A “set” is a fixed number of repetitions of a particular exercise, and a “hard set” is a heavy, muscle- and strength-building set that’s taken close to the point where you can no longer continue with proper form.įor example, if you’re doing dumbbell biceps curls and curl the weights up from your sides and then lower them back to their starting positions, you’ve done one “rep.” Then, if you do five more reps and stop close to the point where you can no longer continue with proper form, you’ve done one “hard set.”īigger Leaner Stronger has you work in the rep range of four to six reps, meaning that most of your hard sets are going to entail doing at least four reps but not more than six. “Rep,” which is short for “repetition,” is a single raising and lowering of a weight. Matthews explains that this protocol is easier to understand, too. Matthews favors a push-pull-leg routine over others, such as “full-body,” because it trains all major muscle groups, allows plenty of time for recovery, and can be easily tailored to fit different training goals, schedules, and histories.Ī push-pull-leg routine separates your major muscle groups into three different workouts: (1) chest, shoulders, and triceps (push), (2) back and biceps (pull), and (3) legs (including calves, usually).

While there are many different ways to organize workout programs, Bigger Leaner Stronger utilizes what’s known as a “push-pull-legs” or “PPL” split, which has you train two to three major muscle groups per workout. Train 2 to 3 Major Muscle Groups Per Workout Matthews opens chapter 21 with a training formula that outlines the protocol he recommends you follow:Ģ–3 | 4–6 | 9–12 | 2–4 | 45–60 | 5–7 | 8–10ġ.

Take a week off training every 8-10 weeks.

Train each muscle group once every 5-7 days.

Do sets of 4-6 reps for nearly all exercises.

Given that a few people have plagiarized my original summary, I decided to rework mine and focus on the training formula that Matthews recommends. Since then, I’ve read the book twice more and have tried to condense my original summary for brevity. When I first read Bigger Leaner Stronger in 2013, I took 5,000+ words of notes.

The best book I’ve read on building muscle.

No matter how bad you might think your genetics are or how lost you might feel after trying and abandoning many types of workouts, you can have the lean, ripped body that you dream about.

Bigger leaner stronger summary