Even if you’ve been muscle building training for some time you need to know how reps and sets effect your efforts in the gym in the UAE.

In this article we aim to explain what the difference is between reps and sets and find out if one is more important than the other.

We asked a professional muscle building personal trainer in Abu Dhabi for his advice and tips about reps and sets. 

What are Reps & Sets

In the world of exercise and training we often here about ‘reps and sets’ As a personal trainer in Abu Dhabi can you explain what these two phrases mean?

In an exercise routine sets refers to the amount of times you will repeat a specific exercise and reps refers to the amount of repetitions you will complete of that specific exercise.

For example if your workout routine in Abu Dhabi says to do 3 sets of 10 reps on the Incline Bench press. You would complete 10 reps of that specific exercise, take a rest, add some weight or keep it the same depending on the difficulty and then repeat 10 reps again.

You would repeat this cycle 3 times and then move on to the next exercise in your routine.

Are Reps & Sets Important?

In body toning and muscle building are the number of reps or the number of sets more important?

When it comes to muscle building or body toning in the UAE I don’t believe that reps or sets are more important than the other.

Whats more important is making sure that your training has a constant progression in intensity.

For example if you were to go in to the gym day in and day out doing the same number of sets and reps for each exercise with no increase in weight then your unlikely to see any kind of progression in yourself.

However if you were to start doing a certain exercise for 3 sets of 10 reps and in each training session increased this, for example, 3 sets of 12 then 3 sets of 15, then adding a set making it 4 sets of 15.

Constant progression in each session will lead to steady progress in gaining strength and muscle mass and improving your overall physical development.

This along with good nutrition will help with reaching your body goals. Your personal trainer can provide more advice.

That being said if you are looking to increase muscular size and strength I would look at working in the 6-8 reps range for 3 sets and progress in weight and sets from there.

Resting 2-5 minutes between sets to allow your muscles to recover before the next heavy set.

For muscular endurance and body toning I would focus more on lifting in the 10-15 reps range for 3 sets and progressing in weight from there.

Resting for a shorter period between 30 seconds and 1 minute. Here you would be lifting lighter weights than the above style of training.

Types Of Exercise That Use Reps & Sets

For clarification, can you provide some examples of exercise types that require the client to document the number of reps and sets?

You should document the number of reps and sets completed for all the training that you do as long as its easily measurable.

In a crossfit class, or group circuit class in the UAE it would be difficult to record all the reps and sets that you did so in such situations it wouldn’t be necessary.

However, in any kind of strength training, for example a leg day in the gym lifting weights and using resistance machines I would highly recommend recording the weights, reps and sets that you do in each workout.

This means when it comes to training legs again you know what you did in the last session and it will make it easier for you to add some kind of progression to your workout, be it weight lifted or reps executed or sets done.