Progressive overload: Ultimate guide

Progressive overload is the most known technique, in order to gain muscle. The challenge of controlling and handling an heavier weight, will produce a stress on the muscles, triggering muscle growth.

It is 100% true, in order to improve your muscles size you need to have an increasing of performance. The big issue with this, is really targeting the actual muscle you want to grow. Let’s take in consideration a bench press.

Mainly a bench press can engage 3 dominant muscles during the movement, Chest, shoulders and triceps. Let’s say my specific target for the bench press is to achieve chest growth.

For shoulders dominant individuals the progressive overload on bench, will lead to front delts overload. For a chest dominant the progressive overload will be mainly on chest. For instance as my goal is to achieve chest growth i want to make sure i am working into my range of motion in order to target that specific part. Shoulders never elevates, back slightly arched, Elbows vertically over the bar to engage the chest and i will press using my elbows.

Let’s say i feel my chest burning and engaging while i train, i don’t feel any shoulders or triceps, or just minimal. I’m using 100kg for a 10 reps. Estimated 90% efficiency, which equal to 90kg work load on my chest, equal to 900kg training volume.

I want to push myself 150kg for 10 reps. Estimated efficiency 60%, as i feel my shoulders and triceps really kicking in. Equal to 90kg work load on my chest, 900kg training volume on chest and the rest 40% between triceps and shoulders.

As my main goal was to grow my chest muscles, the first scenario it’s optimal. I am using my energies and my fuel dedicated to my goal. I’m not consuming extra glucose trying to increase the weight on the bar. Increasing caloric output not only will reduce the percentage of muscle growth, but the stronger you will get the more stress you will spread around the body. As we wanted chest, ideally chest day will isolate chest, while shoulders and triceps are recovering.

Progressive overload for muscle growth must be understood. You need to improve performance in order to build new tissue, but it is necessary the increase work load on that specific part. Going heavier and heavier reducing the work load on the specific muscle, will have minimal impact on growth but will eventually open the door to injuries or postural issues.

FINAL STATEMENT

If your goal is to gain a specific muscle part, you need to find those exercises, that better fits your body structure and needs. Once you find an exercise that feels great, on that specific part, simply set a weight to perform 10 reps with medium/good form. You can simply keep the same weight and master the movement. In 4 weeks those 10 reps will feel absolutely controlled and isolated. As you started from a medium level, in a few weeks being able to move slower and more controlled, equal to an improvement of work load efficiency. That will lead the way to try and heavier weight and start from a 10 reps medium efficiency and evolve again. In those 4 weeks, if you improved the performance, with according diet, you did gain muscles on your chest.