How to Optimally Gain Muscle Mass (when you're 35 years +, and NOT a bodybuilder)

Last week you may have seen a post I shared calling out an article in Men's Health, or more so, the title which claimed – New study reveals stretching could build muscle as much as lifting weights.

Now this was cobblers (common, polite British word which means b******t) and while I won’t go into this today, what it did make me realise is how much misleading and poor information is circulated on this topic, leading to a lower yield on your training results.

I suspect like me, you once picked up a training magazine, invested in some York Dumbbells and commenced with enthusiasm a pursuit towards gaining muscle mass.

Although in the world of professional strength and conditioning this goal (known as hypertrophy) is often considered a bit cliché, you can’t get away from the fact it’s one of the most popular training goals. A reason why various myths, fads and what I believe people younger than me call ‘bro-science’ finds it way on your news-feeds and magazine covers.

So, today I share 3 of the biggest blocks to building muscle (hypertrophy) from the science out there and my nearing 18 years on the gym floor coaching. This is focused at those in particular who are ~35 years and older, tight on training time, have additional training goals and crucially, are not bodybuilders.

Reducing Ego Increases Results.?

Years back at a former rugby club I worked at,, we used gauges to measure how different exercise technique, in-directly altered how ?your muscles would get loaded and consequently, the quality and benefit from the session. The result?

Loose technique created inferior results

This challenge isn’t just for the newbies to strength training, or average gym goer either. When working with world class rugby players, I still had to keep a grip at times on technique, even if it did result a small step on their ego.

in most cases for the typical person, improvements in technique can allow some of the fastest, initial gains in muscle hypertrophy. This superior technique allows the target muscles to receive greater loading under tension, and from this, adapt to a greater degree.

The most common, general techniques you can benefit from to aid muscle hypertrophy are:

• Improving your range of motion
• Taking ~3 secs on your descent on exercises when your muscles lengthen
• Learning to consistently use the technique of ‘bracing’ on all exercises
• Using maximal effort when your muscle shortens

So, technique does matter not just for safety, but also for greater muscle building capacity. However, what about the famous ‘low reps, high reps’ debate, you often overhear at the pub of coffee shop? What is best for you?

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Where You Sit In The Zone

Over a decade ago I went on to Australia to visit numerous strength and conditioning coach’s and researchers, one was a chap called Damian Marsh at the Queensland Reds (great guy and appreciative of the time he and Ollie Richardson gave me).

One morning in the weight room I asked ‘what are the optimal number of reps to create muscle hypertrophy, do you think’? He gave me a funny, dare I say classic, bemused Aussie look, and said:

‘There isn’t one...there’s a range, but what’s best is dependant on the person’, he then strolled off.

This is why before I mention the range of reps, it's crucial to recognise your muscles will adapt differently to the same training, compared to someone else, simply because of your genetics. Finding where in this range best suits you (not someone else) is important.

Now, the most research in this area is led by Dr Brad Schoenfeld and clearly shows the total volume of reps you utilise over a week of training, is a crucial ingredient to muscle gaining crusade...

This doesn’t mean you simply pump out sets of 20, with 30 seconds rest until you explode. You need sufficient rest to lift weights with sufficient intensity/weight (approx. 90 secs), but more of that shortly.

But it does mean, for the typical person, the general range will be around 7-12 reps per set, with the number of sets depending on how many days per week you can train. The point being, there are a number of other factors as a coach I consider, such as your technical ability, physiology, available time to train and additional training goals, which will influence the best answer.

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You Usually Also Want Something Else

There’s a relationship whereby greater muscle mass, typically allows for greater strength, However, another aspect is how well you recruit/turn on your muscles via the nerves that innovate them. I’ve seen people my weight and build, lift twice the weight I can, for this very reason.

In my experience, aside from a bodybuilder or a teenager going through a phase of super high body consciousness, people want strength, not just size.? In fact, often the strength side can be more important.

Solving injury issues, gaining fitness, speed, feeling stronger, healthier for day to day activities are all things that improve with strength, so it makes sense to benefit from both the size of a muscle and its ability to recruit. How do you do this?

This is the difference between a typical pump session with super high reps and too little rest (typical in bodybuilding). It might feel like your muscles are working hard, but the quality of what they are receiving is poorer compared to having a bit more recovery, and using a few less reps. And is why the range and rest suggestions above can allow for a good blend of both volume (total reps) and intensity (weight) to satisfy both of these aspects of strength.

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Final Thoughts...

As with most things associated to physical training and performance, it's doing the fundamental, simple things consistently well. The problem is, its easy for you to not know what these actually are and more significantly, be aware of if you are actually doing them right.

Don't believe the hype, instead trust the facts. Train smart.

Have a great week ahead, fingers crossed for England this evening at the Euro’s, a 3-1 win I think!

Dave

If you want to discover how I can support you in person or online to achieve your goals with your fitness, strength, performance and health – message me here on LinkedIn.