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Old Forum Strength or Hypertrophy Training. Which is better for fat loss?

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JCG

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I prefer to stick to reps of 5 with all my movements because strength is my overall number one goal. I have been told that switching my reps up from time to time (and as much as 2-3 workouts a month) will help with fat loss and strength. I know that reps of 1-5 are better for strength, my questions are which is better for fat loss, reps of up to 5 or 8-12? Which is better for women who are also looking to get stronger and lose more fat? Any and all help is appreciated!
 
JCG, your question touches on the surface of things - let's look a little deeper.

The reason 1-5 reps are better for strength is because you can use a heavier weight, and heavier weight is better for strength.  Pretty much anything you can accomplish with 8-12 reps can be accomplished better by two sets of 5 (or a set of 4 and a set of 6) with a heavier weight and a short rest in between.

I have read some things that suggest women may benefit, or at least be better able to tolerate, slightly higher rep ranges than men, but that doesn't change the underlying principle: lift as much as possible, as heavy as possible, while remaining as fresh as possible.  If you are after hypertrophy, group more of your volume into a single heavy day with at least one lighter day during the week.  If you're after purely neural improvements, train throughout the day with a weight that's heavy enough to yield results yet not so heavy as to prevent training every hour or two.

Variety is good, and doing a higher rep range once in a while is good.  Even better is using several different weights in your workout, some of which are heavy enough to restrict you to singles and doubles in training, others with which you can do a few more reps, and yet others with which you can comfortable train up to 6 reps per set.

If you want to know more about programming, I encourage you to attend Plan Strong with Pavel where you will have an opportunity to ask questions.

If you are looking for a program, I suggest you Shop, then Books & Videos on the menu above - there are many excellent ones there.

-S-
 
Yes diet is the most important piece!

But let's say that you train a group of women (or anyone for that matter) who are wanting to lose fat faster and their diet is great.  Would it be better to stick to sets of 1-5 or 8-12 for fat loss and definition or just switching it up every couple of weeks?

Does it make sense to train for hypertrophy, 8-12 reps when in a calorie deficit?

From what I have read from some sources (including Pavel) say that sticking between 1-5 reps is better for myofibrillar hypertrophy or 'real' denser muscle and if you put on more real muscle you have the better chance for combating fat that sarcoplasmic hypertrophy or 'fake' muscle.  So in that, I say sticking reps of 1-5 is best.  But I am here to seek more advice from those who know more than me.

When and where is the Plan Strong Event?

Thank you!
 
Plan Strong is here:

http://www.strongfirst.com/special-events

You can achieve hypertrophy using 1-5 reps and short rests, as I said above.  There is nothing magical about 8-12 reps.  Tilt your program towards slightly lighter and higher rep ranges for hypertrophy, slightly heavier and lower rep ranges for strength, and adjust rest periods according to your needs.

You can follow any hypertrophy-specific _or_ strength program and eat less and lose weight.  You can follow any exercise program and eat less and lose weight.  You can simply eat less and lose weight.

Kettlebell Simple and Sinister is an excellent answer to your question - follow it, eat well and in moderation, and improve body composition.

-S-
 
You can also look at Kettlebell Muscle and More Kettlebell Muscle by Geoff Neupert. It uses 5 rep range complexes so you end up holding onto the bells far longer and hence it gives you hypertrophy.
 
If the goal is fat loss, I would first consider:

Clean diet with a calorie deficit + lots of swings
 
One of the resources I had in mind when suggestion the Shop link here is Geoff's book/DVD.

-S-
 
The best tool I found for Fat Loss was Fasting. Be it Lean Gains,Eat-Stop-Eat,Warrior Diet,Fast 5. Pick one and stick with it for a month or more and you will see it pretty quickly.
 
How do one property implement "a calorie deficit"? Sorry for the seemingly naive question. I would like some resources to be pointed to. I want to know how much calorie is even level for me, and how  to figure out the macro nutrients (carbs, fats and proteins) spread into three means a day, meal choices etc...
 
I find it easiest just to cut something out, e.g., if you usually have a lot of sweets, have less.  If you usually have a little sweets, cut back to none.  Likewise, moderate carbs or whatever else you think might be hindering your progress while trying to leave the rest of your diet alone in terms of quantity, and you will have given yourself a calorie deficit.

If you truly want to do math, then look online - there are web site that, provided you accurate measure what you eat, can give you a calorie and nutrient breakdown and allow you to keep a record of everything.

My motto when dropping weight is simply - try to learn the difference between what want, what you're used to, and what you need.  Stop eating when you're more thirsty than hungry, stop eating before you're stuffed although you can stuff yourself once a week or so.

-S-
 
Abdul - there are so many ways to establish a sensible eating plan and many work well, you need to find what suits you best, could one of the IF plans mentioned above by Mike, could be more general as Steve outlines.  Dan John has said, "eat like an adult".  One of the clearest responses I have ever heard to the question of diet is, when you're hungry; eat some meat, some vegetables and some nuts.  if youre not a meat guy, substitute eggs, if not eggs then find a clean protein source that doesn't offend you.  some people do well counting calories, that fitnesspal app seems pretty popular and I know a lot of women who love it.  im not a calorie counter, I just try to stay away from bread, pasta, cereal, and sugar and I like IF because it's just plain easy to not have to worry about food during the workday - don't over think it, at the end of the day you know when you look at the end of the fork or your hand whether what you are about to put in your mouth is going to help you or hurt - I think we all know that eating an egg will do more good than a cupcake.
 
Since the OP originally mentioned women, the Intermittent Fasting protocols (e.g. Eat Stop Eat, Warrior Diet, Lean Gains) are not as effective with women. I don't recall why, but figured I would mention it.
 
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