The Muscle Ladder: Get Jacked Using Science

But as a taste, here are some general guidelines that apply to most exercises you would use to build muscle, starting with these two fundamental principles: • Control the negative. Don’t let the weight free-fall back to the starting position. Control it all the way down. • Move through a reasonably full range of motion. On most exercises, you shoul

Let’s say you’re doing a set of 10 reps on squats, and you take it to an RPE of 5 or 6.

Pull-up

Intermediate lifters progress more slowly and encounter plateaus more frequently. That’s the “penalty” for getting closer to your genetic potential. At this stage, it makes sense to rotate exercises every two to six months.

For muscle growth, most sets should be taken to an RPE between 7 (three RIR) and 10 (zero RIR).

Good morning

For primary exercises (squats, presses, deadlifts, etc.), any set taken to RPE 6 or higher usually counts as a hard set. • For secondary and tertiary exercises (lat pulldowns, lateral raises, etc.), any set taken to RPE 7 or higher usually counts as a hard set.

The Big Six are the most basic movements and form the foundation of all my training programs.

Barbell front squat (click here) • Goblet squat (click here) • Leg press (click here) • Lunge (click here–here) • Step-up • Bulgarian split squat • Hack squat • Machine squat