How many sets do you recommend per body part? I am a natural bodybuilder, train four days per week, and each body part only once.

Answer:

It is hard to make a blanket recommendation regarding how many sets you should do for all of your muscle groups. Each individual has a varying ability to recover from training, and a lifestyle more or less conducive to the demands of intense weight training (do you sit at a desk all day or do you perform physical labor, for example). In addition, one must consider which muscles are strong points and weak points in order to determine how much time should be spent on each of them. For instance, if your chest grows easily, but your deltoids lag behind, you might want to add in a few extra sets for shoulders, while concomitantly decreasing the number of sets you perform for pecs. This would keep overall volume the same so systemic recovery will remain intact, while allowing you to prioritize a weaker body part.

You must also remember that one’s supplementation program, nutritional regimen, training intensity, sleep patterns and experience level must also be taken into consideration when answering a query such as yours, as each of these areas will have a direct effect on how much time one should spend in the gym.

However, as long as you keep the above in mind I can make a general recommendation to you, giving you a range of sets that I feel is just about right for the majority of natural lifters with both average recovery ability and lifestyles (not overly physically or mentally demanding), who also pay close attention to proper nutrient/supplement intake.

• Quads: 9-12 sets
• Lats: 9-12 sets
• Chest: 8-10 sets
• Shoulders: 7-9 sets
• Hamstrings: 7-9 sets
• Triceps: 6-8 sets
• Biceps: 5-7 sets
• Traps: 4-6 sets
• Low Back: 4-6 sets
• Calves: 3-5 sets (twice per week)
• Abs: 3-5 sets (twice per week)