Training focus: Hypertrophy

That big tricky to say name may seem intimidating so let’s boil it right down to what really matters.

Hypertrophy month is the middle ground between the high rep count of endurance and the very low rep count of strength month. We like to think of it as the filling in the ‘strength sandwich’

So with moderate rep counts, how do we add a little spice?

Tempos - Slow “down” or Slow “up” phases keeping the muscles under tension for an extended period of time.

Pulses - Finishing with pulses or adding a pulse to each rep allows us more time in the extremes of our range (ie. at the top or bottom of the rep).

Quarter reps - These might feel like a pulse, however where a pulse focuses on short sharp movements, a quarter rep is focussed on completing what feels like a full rep, however only in the extreme of our range. Take your time here and really challenge yourself to connect into those muscles and feel the reps, no matter how small.

So why is this important?

The long and the short of it is that it’s all about angles. We often speak about your “range of motion” and hypertrophy is the perfect time to focus on that. Your quarter reps are where you’ll find the juicy stuff to focus on range of motion and really add strength to the bottom and/or top of the movement.