Hypertrophy Training on a Cut (Culk)

[gfundaro]

Hey ladies! So although I do love answering questions, I've finally found a good one to ask!
I'm currently using keto to cut, although last month I did culk, and I haven't lost any muscle as of yet. I'm assuming I'm around 18-19% bodyfat in light of previous fat loss trends.
So here's my problem: My legs are hyuge compared to my wimpy arms.:-( I lift heavy, I promise! I am currently doing 4X8 for upper body, with only a 15 second break between sets. I often reach failure and perform drop sets. My legs I train at 5X8 with 30-45 second breaks, again with heavy weight. I have noticed a huge decrease in the cellulite that used to plague my quads since I started lifting heavier, but my arms aren't reacting well.
I'm wondering about doing a hypertrophy program just for the upper body and keeping my leg routine where it is now. They don't recommend hypertrophy programs for people on a cut, but I feel that I'm eating well enough to promote some small gains, and it's time to change up anyway. Maybe I'll even take on the hypertrophy for my whole body. Any thoughts? :-)

[boyscouT]

Any thoughts? :-)

Definately worth a shot. Just remember to tailor the program to YOUR needs .

Find what works best for you, give it time, adjust as necessary, and good luck.

[jg_girl088]

What's a hypertrophy program if I may ask?

[anandagirl]

I second BoyScout on your need to find what works best for your body. The one thing I see with your upper body training that I personally would change for myself is to up the rest time for your upper body. 15 seconds doesn't seem long enough if you are really lifting heavy. One program I tried recently is the "training from hell 6-6-6 method" six sets of six reps in six minutes - 30 seconds of rest between each set, and i went as close to failure as possible - worked my BUTT off, but again, try things and see how they work for YOU! I have also heard good things with the Max-OT program. Hope that helped, if only a little!

[gfundaro]

What's a hypertrophy program if I may ask?

Hypertrophy just means muscle growth. However, muscle growth from very high reps isn't the same as muscle growth from heavy lifting. High reps result in fluid retention and superficial muscle size, whereas heavier lifting results in more solid muscle growth. I'm not 'toning' (lol @ ambiguity of that), I'm trying to increase my muscle size and decrease my body fat, so that's why I'm expirimenting with hypertrophy on a cut.
anandagirl- thanks! that sounds interesting, I'm going to try that before I configure my new lifting schedule. :-)

[Amanda76]

I agree with trying something along the lines of what Ananda suggested...my entire upper body responds well to about 6 reps (and less), but I rest even longer between sets than 30 seconds.

[gfundaro]

I agree with trying something along the lines of what Ananda suggested...my entire upper body responds well to about 6 reps (and less), but I rest even longer between sets than 30 seconds.

Yea, when I first started this program I responded well, but now I think I need to decrease my reps...I am losing body fat, which is nice, but my arms are coming out looking like noodly skin-bags :-( Not impressive! How many sets do you do? My dad recommended 3 or 4X6 instead of 8.

[Amanda76]

Yup, that's about what I do...3x4-6. I started lifting heavy doing Max-OT and my upper body totally changed with that rep scheme...is that where your dad got those numbers (Max-OT)?

[gfundaro]

Yup, that's about what I do...3x4-6. I started lifting heavy doing Max-OT and my upper body totally changed with that rep scheme...is that where your dad got those numbers (Max-OT)?

Nah, he just lifted in the military and he just said those LOL. He just said that so I could lift heavier. Today I did lifts to estimate my 1RM, just gotta do some math. It was tiring! After some cardio tonight, I'll be ready for my vacation :-)

[Amanda76]

I've lifted at military gyms most of my life and don't think it was the military's fault he came up with those numbers...might have been the particular people he hung out with in the military, though. Anyway...smart man.

I've been trying to pursuade my ex (who was in the army) to stop training for endurance to bring his legs up for months! He's a hard sell, though. I think I'm going to have to show him that yes, I, tiny female, CAN do lunges with his ruck sack just as well has he can before he'll listen.

[gfundaro]

I've lifted at military gyms most of my life and don't think it was the military's fault he came up with those numbers...might have been the particular people he hung out with in the military, though. Anyway...smart man.

I've been trying to pursuade my ex (who was in the army) to stop training for endurance to bring his legs up for months! He's a hard sell, though. I think I'm going to have to show him that yes, I, tiny female, CAN do lunges with his ruck sack just as well has he can before he'll listen.

Yea, my dad doesn't lift for legs either!! He only does the elliptical and running, he won't listen to me about the metabolic benefits of leg work! I bugged him again today though hehe :-) Well I finally worked out all the numbers, it took some math but I have my weight increments ready! Yay! Now I just have to decide on the type of split...3 day Full Body, ABAB, or an upper-lower split. Decisions, decisions!

[SumthinOrNuthin]

I do pretty well on 6 reps with anything up to 2 mins rest between sets. Don't wory about resting longer between sets, your body needs sufficient time to recover enough to do the next set and this is more important the harder you are pushing yourself in terms of increased weights and strength

[gfundaro]

I do pretty well on 6 reps with anything up to 2 mins rest between sets. Don't wory about resting longer between sets, your body needs sufficient time to recover enough to do the next set and this is more important the harder you are pushing yourself in terms of increased weights and strength

Well, for the first two weeks I have to do 15's...that's pretty high for me, but then I do 10's and 5's, and then weeks 7-8 I might do 4X8's again since that worked well for me and I'll be coming off two low-rep weeks. The articles I read said 30-90 seconds rest for 15's and 10's, and 3 minutes for 5's. After the hypertrophy training I'll probably do high weight, low reps again. It really helped smooth out my legs this month. How many sets of 6 do you use?

[robin_sinclear]

From everything I've read, hypertrophy occurs best at a rep range of 8-12 with rest periods from 60-90 seconds. Fewer reps increases strength, but doesn't tear the muscle fibers enough to cause hypertrophy. Shorter rest periods don't allow for enough recovery to lift heavy in subsequent sets; longer rest periods allows hormone levels to drop back to normal after you've elevated them during the working set. I think the most important concept, though, is using progressive resistance. This requires alot of record-keeping, but it's really the only way to make sure that you are adding to your loads each workout. No one can remember exactly how much weight they lifted for how many reps and how many sets without writing it down. So once you establish a thorough workout log, you need to make sure you are adding to your load each time by either adding more weight, more reps, or more sets.
Workouts for your lower body should definitely be different than for your upper body if the goals are different. You wouldn't want to do a mass building workout if you are trying to reduce the size of your legs. A higher rep range might be in order.
Wow, that was wordy...sorry :-)