Arnold Schwarzenegger Debunks the Misconception of Muscle Soreness for Gains

Arnold Schwarzenegger recently issued a bold take on muscle soreness equating to better gains. In his newsletter, he talked about how one could end up exercising excessively, just because they didn’t feel sore after their regular workout.

Highlighting a research article on equated volume load, he emphasized how the feeling of soreness didn’t determine the quality of the workout. The experiment divided a bunch of people into two groups, and researchers instructed each group to obtain a similar training volume with very different methods.

One performed the traditional way of workouts, which was to do a set, rest, and repeat the process. While the other took an advanced route and performed drop sets.

“…while the drop sets included more reps, because the weight was lighter, the total work completed (reps x sets x weight) was similar in all groups.”

One of the observations was the drop-set group experienced more soreness and fatigue. Key findings revealed that advanced techniques could often offer optimum results and soreness doesn’t necessarily indicate better muscle growth.

Schwarzenegger particularly highlighted how extra reps and sets could lead to increased fatigue, slow recovery, and discomfort, thus affecting future workouts. The idea is to go near failure, push to the limits, and give the muscles enough time to recover.

“Program design has many nuances, and no single amount of reps and sets will apply to everyone. It depends on exercise selection, training experience, reps, sets, rest periods, and load.”

The Hall of Famer suggests 6 to 8 hard sets per muscle per workout as a good template to follow for optimum gains. He often goes on missions like these to debunk theories that guarantee muscle growth but do not show solid results. Schwarzenegger’s commitment to evidence-based bodybuilding extends beyond workout volume recommendations to other popular training practices like – Deload.

Arnold Schwarzenegger reveals how Deloads for gains didn’t work

Deloads are a practice where the fitness enthusiast deliberately takes extended breaks in the middle of their workout plan in hopes of increasing their gains. But Schwarzenegger was quick to debunk this theory, armed with studies that proved his take.

He addressed the situation by picking up an experiment conducted on a group of people whom scientists subjected to a nine-week workout routine. One group took a week-long deload while the other followed their training plan until the end.

A good workout plan already has a set recovery period integrated into it. When the study divided a group of people into two sections, the results were inconclusive at best. Schwarzenegger called the practice overrated since it didn’t attract any positive effects or muscle growth.