In the BB2 routine it seems we are doing 15-20 sets per large muscle group
If we are advanced lifter (15 plus years), and want to maximize hypertrophy, is there any benefit to doing 30 sets per large muscle part? Or is 20 going to be more effective?
The parts I want to bring up the most are shoulders, back and arms.
Also, we start at 15 sets and work up to 20, then if we run it again we start at 15. Would it be ok to just do 20 sets all the time or what’s the benefit of going back to 15 and working up to 20 for hypertrophy? Or is it that going to 15 sets resensitizes the body to hypertrophy with 20 sets?
I do not think that number of sets per muscle group is a useful target for programming, as loading, proximity to failure, exercise selection, and so on all contribute to training load. I believe training load is more predictive of hypertrophy than just number of weekly sets. Of course, if relative intensity, exercise selection, and proximity to failure all stay the same, then volume alone would be a proxy for training load.
Anyway, I think at the level of training experience you mention, yes, sometimes higher volume and training loads will be needed. Based on our previous exchanges, I think the majority of your results will hinge on your nutrition and sleep. I do not think you’re likely to get good hypertrophy results without weight gain, for example.
For all of the programs, I think they work well as they’re designed for a good portion of the population. I would not “just do 20 sets all the time”, no. If volume does need to go up for an individual, I would gradually do it over time, as exemplified in how we build people up over a few weeks in most of our programs.