Hey BBM,
Long time follower and fan and really appreciate the material you guys put out.
So lately on my pivot block I have been experimenting with compounds using lower RPE and more volume vs the traditional ramp up method with higher RPE.
IE:
Safety Squat 10@5 for 8 sets vs 10@8 for 4 sets
I used a stress index calculator via RTS (which is a modified exertion load formula to predict metabolic stress originally from Robert Frederick, linked below) and it shows to have the same or similar peripheral stress despite the 10@5 having much higher volume.
I read the latest BBM Bodybuilding PDF on the hypertrophy section and there were two parts I want to highlight.
“Motor unit recruitment is similiar during both light and heavy loads… Thus provided that individuals are training to somewhere near failure, e.g. 4-5 reps in reserve or less, the amount of motor unit recruitment and frequency are sufficient to drive hypertrophy equally.”
“Higher doses of training volume tend to result in greater amounts of hypertrophy, to a point”
Mechanical loading is comparable : 10@5 is roughly 66-67% for me vs 10@8 is roughly 73-74% in intensity. Range of motion is the same, and genetics we have no control over.
I wanted to know if the former protocol would have a better dose for hypertrophy vs the latter (assuming recovery and time is not an issue)?
Would the higher effort to failure be superior to hypertrophy outcomes even if the volume was equalized in both protocols? 10@5 for 4 sets vs 10@8 for 4 sets