More Isn’t Better When Trying to Build Muscle

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Wouldn’t it be awesome if you could train as much as your level of desire dictated? Wouldn’t it be great if the amount of muscle you could build in a specific period of time was directly proportional to the number of training sessions, sets, exercises, and repetitions you were willing to do? Most of us who are committed to improving our physiques would be in the gym three or four hours a day, wouldn’t we? That’s how badly we want it!

Unfortunately, more training sessions, exercises, sets, and repetitions will not necessarily get you closer to your goals. One of the most difficult concepts for many people who are trying to pack-on muscle to understand is that more training will not always help you accomplish your goal. I know that’s how it works in other areas of your life like business and school—but not when it comes to building muscle. I know it seems odd but it so true.

The Max-OT Training Principles, developed by AST Sports Science CEO and President Paul Delia, outline the amount of work you need to build thick, dense muscle mass most efficiently. When you follow this science-based resistance training regimen, you will not waste a lot of time and energy doing extra, unnecessary work like so many beginners, intermediates, and uninformed advanced people training in the gym.

As you have probably heard and read dozens of times, training intensity is the key to stimulating the maximum amount of muscle growth in the shortest period of time. One of the greatest features built into the Max-OT Training Program is that it harnesses your own ambition and determination and literally forces you to train with the utmost amount of intensity.

How the heck does Max-OT force you to train with more intensity? Once you’ve committed to the most-efficient, lower number of training sessions, exercises, sets, and repetitions, the hardworking, driven training animal inside of you will simply not let you leave the gym without getting your “money’s worth.” The only way you are going to satisfy your extreme desire is by loading up the weight and cranking up intensity. You’ll become much tougher on yourself. What you once thought was intense will make you laugh after a few months training Max-OT style.

The longer your training session lasts the more your training intensity suffers. When you dedicate yourself to Max-OT, you will no longer have the rationalizing opportunity to tack on a few more exercises and sets to your workout in order to become satisfied like you can using those larger volume training programs.

Jeff Willet and I have used the Max-OT Training Principle for years and the results we’ve experienced speak for themselves. The interesting part of our journeys is that we both—just like many of you—did as much as twice the volume of work earlier in our careers as we currently do. Why? Because we were both determined to improve our physiques and were willing to put in the extra effort. Does that sound familiar? We also followed the advice so frequently given out in the popular muscle magazines. If it’s printed in a magazine then it must be great advice, right? Hmmm. Maybe not!

If you are feeling a little hesitant about decreasing the amount of training you are currently doing because it just doesn’t seem to make sense, I can certainly empathize with what you are going through. However, I encourage you to “take the leap of faith.” Scale down your training and watch your intensity skyrocket through the gym roof.

That’s what’s going to help you build muscle faster—not more work.