Hello,
Here's a recent Facebook post of Aleks Salkin about high reps:
"Do high rep exercises have any value?"
Okay, the other day I asked if anybody had anything they wanted to read more about here, and a dude named Martin Peters ...asked a great question - the one displayed above, in fact.
The answer is a resounding yes. They absolutely do, and I'm a big believer in doing some high-rep work from time to time for a variety of reasons.
First among them is connective-tissue strength. Higher rep anything, particularly for a not-so-challenging exercise such as elevated pushups or bodyweight squats - will work wonders for strengthening your connective tissues.
This is crucial, because your muscles can gain strength far faster than your tendons, ligaments, fascia, etc. and you don't want the ties that bind you together struggling to keep their strength while your muscles go ahead full bore.
I'm far from alone in this approach - I've read that both powerlifting legend Marty Gallagher and glute-training fanatic Bret Contreras have their clients do high-rep squats to the tune of 50+ before using any weight, and this is partially to ensure the connective tissues are ready.
In Beyond Bodybuilding (Check out the full book here:
http://bit.ly/WsxCS8), Pavel gives an example of an old-time program that iron rats of the past have used: 3x30 bodyweight squats or 1-2x100 bodyweight squats post-iron practice, specifically for strengthening the ligaments. It's not too stressful, easy to recover from, and pays out in spades in the long run.
There are a variety of other benefits (increased work capacity, mental and physical toughness, hypertrophy, etc.) but from a standpoint of health and balanced development, high rep work intelligently mixed with low rep heavy strength training is a rock-solid combo that will do you some good.
"So how do I get started?"
First of all, go light. Lighter than your ego would normally allow. Here's a sample post-workout high-rep finisher to help boost your soft tissue strength and help you break a nice sweat:
A1) Full bodyweight squats: 30 reps
A2) Pushups (hands elevated if need be): 30 reps
A3) Bodyweight rows (from a high surface): 30 reps
A3) Hip bridge: 30 reps
Repeat x 2-3 and call it a day.
Give this a shot for a few workouts and let me know how you like it.
In the meantime, have fun and happy training!
Aleks"
Kind regards,
Pet'