what is more important -- burn or # of sets

[gareth]

I rarely experience burn/pump from my workouts but ICE suggests for a workout to be of any use we must find the optimal # of sets/reps to get a burn/pump.

This morning I experimented with the OT-Max Chest Press using its warm-up routine (5 sets using progessively heavier weight)-- and I got quite a burn across my chest.

Is burn essential for muscle growth? If it is maybe I should increase my reps - possibly to 15 -- and decrease my weight to 50% of 1 RM. ICE suggests something like 20 reps for 5 sets for squats! Is that for muscle or stamina?

At the moment I do 3 x 8 with 70% RM for most exercises.

Please advise.

 

[squanto]

i would go with something similar to gopro's program... but it may not work for you(unlikely). just experiment for a month or two witha program and write the results. then see what works best.

 

[Jake]

The 'burn' is just a buildup of acid in the muscle because it is not being transfered out through the blood as fast as it is being made by the muscles work. Getting a burn in the muscle does not matter at all for building muscle.

The 'pump' you get after a workout is caused by the expansion and engorgement of blood vesels in the muscle from being worked. It goes away about twenty miuntes to half an hour after the workout.

Neither of these have anything at all to do with building muscle; they are both temporary effects of working a muscle. Cant say my sources agree at all with ICE

 

[Mudge]

You can get a terrific burn from doing 100 reps with a 5 pound weight, so what does that tell you as far as it being important for hypertrophy?