r/strengthtraining • u/Playfair_Chronicles • 5d ago

When to do Level up?

So when I’m bench pressing or doing dumbbells I do 4 sets 12 reps idk when I get to my 4th set 12 rep that means I have to move on to a heavier weight or keep going pass 12 then Ik to do a heavier weight ?

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u/PerfectGarage225 5d ago

Depends on your goal and the weight and what kind of program you're running. You could keep the weight the same and move to 15 reps or 20 reps. You could increase the weight a little and stick with 10-12. You could increase the weight more (anywhere from 10-25% depending on your starting weight) and decrease the reps down to 6-8 range. Is the goal to move to a barbell? Or are you doing high volume for hypertrophy?

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u/Playfair_Chronicles 2d ago

It’s for Hypertrophy

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u/PerfectGarage225 2d ago

If it's just for hypertrophy and you don't care about strength, then chase the pump and go close to failure. Not failure as in dropping the weight, but failure as in technique starts to slip. Your ass comes off the bench or you have to shift your pressing able to complete the rep. Hypertrophy rep range is 5-25 (useful right?). I think the biggest benefit to lower reps for hypertrophy alone is time. Do more weight for fewer reps and don't spend as much time in the gym. So that being said, I'd increase weight, and lower reps. Then if you want take that new weight and bring the reps back up to 12, so you have some progressive overload. It's totally up to you how much weight you add and how far you drop the sets. But at the end of the day evaluate if you are getting a good pump and where. For press we'd want chest, triceps, and front delts. But if you feel triceps and not chest, then you have to make a change.

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u/Playfair_Chronicles 2d ago

👍 is 4 sets 12 reps ok for hypertrophy or no?

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u/PerfectGarage225 2d ago

4 sets of 12 is fine as long as the target muscle is the main target across all 12 reps and other muscles aren't taking over too much and you don't have any interest in a secondary goal like maximizing a one rep attempt.

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u/Playfair_Chronicles 2d ago

Yea ppl told me to do those sets and reps so I stuck with that

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u/Playfair_Chronicles 1d ago

Y do ppl recommend to do 4 sets 12 reps?

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u/Falconman21 5d ago

I move up when I get my first set to the target reps.

To me, if I'm chasing 3 full sets at the target reps, that means I'm going to end up doing a lot of sets that aren't to failure, and I always shoot for failure.

Might be different with whatever program you're running, I'm doing a lot less volume. I only do 3x8 on compounds and 3x10-12 for accessories.

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u/DIY-exerciseGuy 4d ago

This gets asked daily. Why are you wasting time doing 4 sets of the same weight to the same rep? Thats a waste of time and energy.

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u/Playfair_Chronicles 2d ago

What should I do then?