Hey guys im just wondering how much sets per exercise for some reason the biggest people i see and admire dont go over 20 sets some peoples names ill mention

Scott herman goes around 18 sets
Hodgetwins around 15 sets
zyzz 13 sets

how do all of you guys get such an awsome physique everytime i workout i go intense and go over 24 sets saying i can push more. Should i go train over 24 sets or should i go around the 13-15 set workouts

I also do 4 sets per exercise so do the people i like like

Zyzz
scott herman
hodgetwins

Should i drop from 4 sets to 3 sets per exercise or keep on going with 4 sets

thanks hermanites for all the help you have given me from the past :)

Like look how big this guy is(RIP) and look how short his workouts were

More is not always better @Mortalblood.

You can accomplish enough muscle breakdown and stimulation with around 12-16 sets for small muscles, and 18-24 sets for large muscles GENERALLY. These are rough outlines.

If you don't seem to be having any luck with more than 24 sets, it's not necesarrily a surpise. You have probably done enough work, and may just be pushing the muscles when they don't need to be pushed any further. You would need to make sure your nutrition and sleeping are on point too to get results from any type of training.

As for your idols, they are great idols, but remember that Zyzz was more than likely on juice, and if you are natural, you won't necessarily see the same results as he did if you train just like him.

So maybe try doing fewer sets and/or fewer exercises, and see what happens. The best way to see if something will work for you is to try it.

Jordan

Well Zyzz was on tons of drugs so compering you to him is not exaclty viable. And then it comes to how many sets you also have to look at for how long you have been working out. Scott has been doing this for yeeeeaaaars. So unless you have been training for 20 years or so then yes it is weird, but if you have been training for 2-3 years it is not weird. It takes a loooooooooooong time to build muscle so you have to be patient. Also remember that when you are a natural lifter, more does not always equal better. If that was the case I would workout 8 hours a day and be bigger than the hulk, but that is not how it works. To give you my blueprint, I do 16-25 sets every workout, but my workouts only last between 40-50 minutes, how long are yours ?

Mine workouts last around 1 hour

How long have you been working out ?

around a year

Jordan and William gave you some good info. I will say Zyzz Routine is a good routine and I've used something pretty similar many times without the full body day. At least in the first couple years of training. Since you're in your 1st year of training you should see some good mouscle gains. Many say he's been on enhancment drugs and obtained that physique in 4 years and even though I will say I don't know all that for sure I will agree you are NOT going to look like him in 4 years even with good genetics. I don't think it will take you 20 years but it will take hard work and patience. Don't get discouraged, stay on track and keep putting in the hardwork because a physique like his is not out of reach imo. I think working muscles from different angels is good and keeping things switched up with good nutrition you'd be suprised what some can accomplish. 6-9 sets small muscle groups and 12-15 sets large muscle groups a week is a good guideline for most. 20 sets max per body part.

I dont workout for muscle tbh i just do it because i love the fun and enjoyment takes my mind off stuff the muscle gaining is just a bonus

Well, there is your answer. You have been doing this for a year and you are not doing it for the sake of building muscle. You are doing it for fun, which is of course a really good thing. But there you go, in order to attain an amazing physique you have to REALLY want it. You have to do everything it takes day in and day out, your mealplan needs to be on point etc.

@Mortalblood

Pretty solid advice from the best guys out here!

I'll add in my 2 cents. I'm in the same boat as you in terms of the time I've been lifting. My takeaway from trying out many things is: Everybody is different. Some are hardgainers, some build muscle pretty quickly. Train with a plan that suits YOU and you can enjoy. The number of sets that you do depends upon you. I used to do around 20-24 sets for the big muscle groups and around 16 for the smaller ones. Believe me, once I dialled back that number and started playing around with tempo and number of repetitions , I could see better results.

More doesn't mean better. :)

HTH

Achyut

What works for them may not work for you. If your goal is to get bigger, then more volume will benefit you in the long run. Workin within hypertrophy rep ranges (6-12) and make sure you are lifting with proper form. You may also want to consider heavy and light days. Heavy days you can lower the sets from 12-20. Lighter days you can go 20+ and work on different angles and exercises.

It takes time to get where they are at. To maintain their foundation, 15-18 intense sets is all they need.

Bojan,

It really comes down to what works best for you. As I have posted many times, high volume and high intensity training gives me better results than low volume, heavy weight, high rest interval training. My workouts are no more than 60 minutes but total reps are in the 500 range. For some, this may be too much volume for them. For others, this may be enough or they can possibly do more. I won't discredit many of the physique athletes you see on the internet but unfortunately the vast majority do use drugs - either regularly or periodically. However, you need to take this into consideration when following the training advice or routines of these people as you more often than not will not get the same results. This is a major reason why I like this forum and like Scott's advice because what you see is what you get - with no additives, chemicals, or preservatives :-)

I listen to my body and make sure my diet is spot on and I get plenty of rest. Sometimes I have to take 5-7 days off as mentally and physically I just am not ready for my workouts. If what you are doing is giving you the results you need/want, stick with it. There are no one-size-fits-all guidelines. The human body is an amazingly adaptable machine if given the proper nutrients and rest it needs. Don't get too caught up in the number of reps and sets when training for hypertrophy. There will be an absolute limit as to how much volume you can endure when you don't use drugs but the younger you are the more volume you can handle. I can tell you from my own personal experience that at 51 I am able to handle more volume than a lot of people half my age. This is 100% due to proper nutrition and rest and not being afraid to take extra rest days and do less demanding workouts every once in a while when my body tells me that is what it wants :-)

John

i actually managed to feel my chest the whole day today just went heavier but i slightly feel it when i workout but i feel it my strain is all healed now

To add this, here and put in a realistic view on what one can achieve in natural workouts and how long this takes..

(i couldn't find such a detailed image row of Scott, so i took Adam Raw - a bar athlete from the Czech Republic, which i downloaded earlier for an article)

This here is what 10 years of working out hard approx. can give you..

not 6 month, not 1 year.. but 10 years of sticking to the plan and giving your best and going to your body's limits, having the right nutrition, getting enough sleep, and being dedicated to what you are doing...

So yes, we all will not see any wonders, unless we stick to the plan. And even then - as the others said so nicely already, you might encounter ups and downs, because oyur body often has its own will.

If you do it for the fun, as William already commented, then this is most likely why your results are not exactly the same either :)

Nothing wrong with it, you just need to know what you can await and what you have to do in order to get there .. and yes we all 'function' different. So there is no 1 way recipe for all of us. =)

Chris,

This is a great pictorial of a physique transformation. 2006 thru 2013 are a nice progression. He looks a little suspect from 2014 to 2015 though. I am not convinced that this period of growth was 100% un-assisted. His traps, shoulders, and upper chest are much thicker and this is the typical "androgen belt" - the area with the highest androgen receptors - that grows the most relative to the rest of the body with outside assistance. Just sayin'..............:-)

John