How many reps of a stretch should you do? (2023)

How many reps should I do?

Choose Your Reps and Sets

The American College of Sports Medicine recommends 4 to 6 repetitions with heavier weight for hypertrophy (increased muscle size), 8 to 12 repetitions for muscular strength and 10 to 15 reps for muscular endurance.

But how long should you hold a stretch? Matt Dobler, Physician Assistant with OrthoCarolina and former competitive cross country runner, says that research has shown 30 seconds to be the optimal time to hold a static stretch. This amount of time allows the muscles to relax and be prepped to work.

According to a new study titled, Interset Stretching vs. Traditional Strength Training: Effects on Muscle Strength and Size in Untrained Individuals, stretching could actually help you gain muscle mass when performed between sets.

#3) Overstretching your muscles

Stretching should never be painful. Exerting too much energy or going too deep into a stretch can result in a torn muscle. Slowly ease into your stretches. You may feel slightly uncomfortable during a stretch, but it should never hurt.

Let's say you're doing triceps kickbacks. Two sets of 15 reps means you'll perform 15 kickbacks two times total, resting between each round. In total, you'll be doing 30 kickbacks. As with the number of reps you do, you can also tailor your sets to your fitness goals.

Training with weights where you can do about 1–5 reps per set (>85% of 1RM) seems to be the most effective for strength, but training with weights up to about 10–20 reps per set (~60% of 1RM) is still moderately effective. Lighter than that, and the strength gains diminish.

For optimal results, you should spend a total of 60 seconds on each stretching exercise. So, if you can hold a particular stretch for 15 seconds, repeating it three more times would be ideal. If you can hold the stretch for 20 seconds, two more repetitions would do the trick.

However it's also possible to over-stretch, with the resulting risk of muscle, tendon or ligament damage. Also, too much flexibility – hypermobility – can be detrimental in itself.

From a strictly scientific viewpoint, stretching can't make you any taller. Stretching elongates and relaxes your muscles, but height has nothing to do with muscles. The structure of your bones determines how tall you are.

Each stretch should be held 15-30 seconds and repeated 2 to 4 times. Many exercise studies on older adults include stretching exercises as part of a well-rounded exercise program.

How many sets of a stretch should you do?

A rule of thumb we find effective is to perform two sets of all stretching exercises and to hold each stretch for 30 seconds at a time. If you have specific flexibility goals, you may hold each stretch for a little longer or perform more sets.

Stretching can be time-consuming. But you can achieve the most benefits by stretching regularly, at least two to three times a week. Even 5 to 10 minutes of stretching at a time can be helpful. Skipping regular stretching means that you risk losing the potential benefits.

Stretch gently

Gradually and carefully move your body or the limb being stretched into the stretch position. Once you feel slight tension in the muscle, hold the position. Avoid bouncing or any other movements, which could overstretch the muscle and result in injury. Wait 15 seconds and then stretch further.

A sharp or stabbing pain means that you're stretching your muscles beyond their capacity for flexibility. You are overstretching and potentially injuring yourself. Another indication of overstretching, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), is feeling sore the day after you stretched.

Herbert Haupt, of Orthopedic Associates in Des Peres, say static stretching inhibits performance and might even cause micro-tears in tendons, ligaments and muscle tissue.

Anything greater than 20 reps in a set is probably far too many. Performing this many reps in a set will have diminishing returns. If you can easily do more than 20 reps, then the weight you are using is probably too light or too easy to elicit any significant growth. The only exception to this rule is 20 rep squats!

Let's break that down: Traditionally, you might perform enough reps of an exercise so that you work for 40 seconds or so without stopping. That's about the time it takes to complete 10 to 12 reps, says Schoenfeld.

Sets of anywhere from 4–40 reps will stimulate muscle growth quite well, but most research shows that doing 6–20 reps per set is the most efficient way to build muscle. Bodybuilders often use the middle of that range, favouring 8–12 reps per set.

It means you do the exercise 10 times and then rest (for allotted time) and repeat 3 times.

A set is a group of repetitions (an example would be 3 sets of 12 repetitions). A repetition is a single time you perform the exercise.

How many reps and sets are enough?

Allowing your body at least 1 day to recover between each full-body workout is key, so three sessions per week is a good baseline to start with. Within these workouts, you'll choose one exercise for each muscle group — back, chest, shoulders, legs, core — and, as a beginner, aim for 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Between 10 seconds to 3 minutes

It's fine to ease your way into it. According to Joely Franklin, a Level 3 personal trainer and sports therapist, “If you can bear it, even though it may be a bit uncomfortable, go ahead and hold the stretch for 45 seconds to a minute.”

The American Heart Association recommends sticking with your stretch for between 10 and 30 seconds, while Corinne Croce, physical therapist and founder of Bodyevolved, says that she prefers to hold them for up to two minutes. However you go about stretching, know you're doing your entire body a favor.

Hold each stretch for 20-30 seconds and repeat each stretch two to three times. Perform stretches on both sides to maintain a balanced flexibility. Focus on good mechanics.

A daily regimen will deliver the greatest gains, but typically, you can expect lasting improvement in flexibility if you stretch at least two or three times a week. In the videos below, you'll find examples of static stretches that can be worked into any exercise or stretching routines.

While stretching is highly recommended before physical activity and even as a way to release tight muscles in the morning, it may not be wise when suffering with current back pain. It can actually aggravate the muscles that are already inflamed due to injury.

Stretching alone typically burns around 27 calories per 10 minutes. This can increase if you incorporate higher intensity movements like power yoga.

But at what age do you stop growing taller? Even if you hit puberty late, you're unlikely to grow significantly after the ages of 18 to 20 .

Reps for muscle growth

In order to get bigger and stronger, you must ensure your muscles work harder than they are used to. Generally, between 6-12 reps for 3-6 sets will help to build overall muscle size.

How long should 20 reps take?

A strict set of 15 to 20 reps should take you between 45 seconds and 1 minute to complete… which works out to a rest period of between 45 seconds and 2 minutes.

To clarify, a "high-rep range" typically means 15-20 reps per set; a "low-rep" range is usually anything between 2-6 reps per set; and a "moderate-rep" range is 8-12 reps per set.

It's a good idea, says the American College of Sports Medicine. The ACSM recommends stretching each of the major muscle groups at least two times a week for 60 seconds per exercise.

A person of average fitness should stretch slowly, holding each stretch for 10-30 seconds. It is better to hold a stretch for a short time than to "bounce" while stretching.

“An interesting rule of thumb is to stretch for one minute for every two minutes of exercise; so, for instance, if you complete a 30-minute workout, you should spend at least 15 minutes stretching.”

The same approach applies to flexibility training; while it is okay to do flexibility training every day; it's not a good idea to do the same stretches every day, day after day. As a general rule; if it's not tight and it's not causing you any problems, you don't need to stretch it.

It's also important to warm up and loosen your muscles before stretching them. Try a simple, gentle warmup for 5 to 10 minutes before you begin stretching. This can consist of a brisk walk, light jog, or jumping jacks to get your muscles warm and your heart pumping.

Try to focus on doing sets of exercises. For example, do 2 to 3 sets of stretches. Aim to do this 2 to 3 times a day. As you do more stretching you should feel your range of movement improve and you'll be able to stretch further.

Static stretching is the most common form of stretching, and is usually performed during general fitness routines. It is considered the safest and most effective form of stretching to improve overall flexibility.

Why do I stretch so much?

Pandiculation is your body's way of releasing tension in your fascia, the connective tissue that surrounds your muscles, organs and blood vessels. Stretching is one of the ways that our body keeps fascia flexible and full of oxygen. Sometimes, your body will stretch involuntarily to achieve this result.

When you stretch, you should feel the sensation in your muscle and not at the joint. “You shouldn't feel joint pain when stretching. Rather, it should feel like lengthening of the muscle,” says Dr.

Stretching, just like any other form of exercise, can be extremely dangerous and harmful if performed incorrectly or recklessly.

You need to build up your stretching too, if you jump into it too quickly and don't allow your body time to get used to serious stretching then you splits will get worse instead of better. You need to do a serious stretch at home once every two days to start off with.

emotional overflow. Whether you want to call it mechanical tension, emotional stress, or both, your body likely holds tension in your hips. It makes a lot of sense, then, that hip-opening stretches especially can cause emotions to burst forward in a bit of a panicked outpouring.

Some people form adhesions that cause muscles to be 'glued' together. This inhibits your full range of motion. Isolating and stretching of these muscles can cause adhesions to break up, resulting in a minor soreness similar to after getting a good workout.

Your ligaments become too loose if you overstretch, which will lead to looser joints. The ligaments that secure major joints like your hips and knees will not bounce back in shape after they've been overstretched. As a result, your muscles and skin will appear thin and stretchy rather than toned.

4 sets x 10 reps = 40 reps

Moderate to low intensity. Most ideal for building muscle, but also suited for endurance.

Three sets are not enough to build muscle. Increasing the number of sets of each exercise, even while only performing 10 reps, can build muscle because you will be pushing your muscles to fatigue because they are under tension longer.

So, How Many Reps to Build Muscle? Doing around 6–20 reps per set is usually best for building muscle, with some experts going as wide as 5–30 or even 4–40 reps per set. For bigger lifts, 6–10 reps often works best. For smaller lifts, 12–20 reps often works better.

How many reps should I do to build muscle?

Reps for muscle growth

In order to get bigger and stronger, you must ensure your muscles work harder than they are used to. Generally, between 6-12 reps for 3-6 sets will help to build overall muscle size.

If muscle growth is your main objective, then be sure that a good deal of your workouts are done using reps in the sweet spot for muscle growth—8-12 reps. That being said, you don't want to ALWAYS train in the 8-12 rep range. Sticking with a rep range for too long will only lead to stagnation and limit your results.

Anything greater than 20 reps in a set is probably far too many. Performing this many reps in a set will have diminishing returns. If you can easily do more than 20 reps, then the weight you are using is probably too light or too easy to elicit any significant growth. The only exception to this rule is 20 rep squats!

While five sets of 15 reps is a good rep range for more seasoned lifters, Howell advises that beginners opt for five sets of 10 reps. Start with a weight you can perform easily (about 50 percent of your max).

Similar to fat loss, the number of rep ranges that is optimal for muscle building is open to debate and the research is inconclusive. Most research points to reps under 15 reps as being better for muscle building, but other research shows muscle building can be equally effective with light weight and high reps.

Numerous research studies show that high-volume resistance training is the best method for building muscle. According to the American Council on Exercise, the eight to 15 rep range holds the most muscle-building potential.

Reasoning: A moderate range of 4 sets of 8 reps allows the lifter to handle loads that stress the muscle quickly while facilitating sufficient time under tension.

The Takeway For How Many Sets You Should Do

Each workout can consist of a total of around 15-25 sets, but the number of sets for a specific muscle group in that workout should be at around 10 or below.

Poor deposits or investments will result in unhealthy future. When you train with 100 reps, you place too much stress on your joints, which results in pain, inflammation, and injury.

Lift By the Rule of 5. This old-school protocol is a classic for a reason: it'll help your gains. The default set and rep scheme for most gym goers seems to be 3 sets of 10 reps. That's too bad, because you'll gain more muscle and strength with 5 sets of 5.

Is 3 sets of 12 reps good?

“Performing 3 sets of 12 reps for the exercises your workout is likely killing your gains. Now, don't get me wrong… I actually like the 10-12 rep range when it comes to building muscle and when the goal is muscle hypertrophy.

The National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) will break this down, suggesting the following set ranges: 2-3 will help build muscular endurance (12 to 20+ reps) 3-6 build muscular hypertrophy (6 to 12 reps) 3-5 build muscular power (3 to 5 reps)

Allowing your body at least 1 day to recover between each full-body workout is key, so three sessions per week is a good baseline to start with. Within these workouts, you'll choose one exercise for each muscle group — back, chest, shoulders, legs, core — and, as a beginner, aim for 3 sets of 10 to 12 reps.