Hypertrophy Made Simple: 5 Key Concepts
Hypertrophy Made Simple: 5 Key Training Concepts
Muscle growth (hypertrophy) requires consistent effort directed toward a few key training variables. You don’t need to be perfect in any one area, but each one needs to be good enough to trigger results. This blog is focused on the stimulus part of the hypertrophy equation, our next blog will detail the recovery aspect.
Key Concepts
Minimum Effective Volume (MEV): The fewest hard sets per muscle group per week needed to grow, often 5–8 sets.
Maximum Adaptive Volume (MAV): The point where increasing volume still drives progress, but gains begin to taper off.
Rating of Perceived Exertion (RPE): A scale from 1 to 10 indicating how hard a set feels. RPE 8 = 2 reps left in the tank.
Reps in Reserve (RIR): How many reps you could still do before failure. RIR 2 = RPE 8.
The Five Hypertrophy Variables
Give yourself a 0–10 score in each of these categories:
Training Volume
Intensity
Exercise Selection
Technique
Recovery
Each factor multiplies the others. A zero in any one means stalled progress, no matter how good the rest is. Reassess your scores every few months, especially when your environment changes (like training while traveling).
For example, if you rate yourself as the following:
Training Volume = 10
Intensity = 10
Exercise Selection = 10
Technique = 10
Recovery = 0
Then your score would be:
10 x 10 x 10 x 10 x 0 = Zero. Because your recovery is lacking, your training stimulus can't produce results.
This is when we'd ask you to focus more on recovery, which we'll cover in more detail in our next blog part.
1. Training Volume
Defined as sets × reps per week. During Paragon’s hypertrophy blocks, we gradually increase volume over time. Beginners can grow with just 5–8 sets per muscle group per week. Advanced lifters often need 12 or more. But starting with too much too soon can backfire, so we like to build up slowly. It's also why we start most people in their first year of training with just twice per week, instead of jumping to 3+. Conversely, if you've been training twice per week for years, you may benefit from adding a third day if you were looking to boost your results.
Reps per set: Choose a rep range (typically 6–12) that gets you close to failure while managing fatigue. Whether you’re doing 8 reps or 20, what matters is how close you get to failure.
2. Training Intensity
You’ll need to gradually increase the load over time. Most hypertrophy work should land around RPE 7–9. If you’re not sure what that feels like, take a set to true failure once in a while to recalibrate. This is where beginners can pull back compared to folks who have been training for years. It's also an area that many people could bring up in order to make great strides in progress.
Advanced lifters can also use percentage-based programming. Research shows hypertrophy can be achieved with loads as low as 30% of your 1-rep max—as long as the set is taken close to failure.
3. Exercise Selection
Ignore the extremes. You don’t need to only do “perfect” exercises, but not every lift is equally effective. Choose movements that target the muscle through a full range and in its lengthened position when possible. For example, overhead triceps extensions tend to stimulate more growth than pushdowns.
We use research to guide how we program at Paragon, so there’s a reason behind each exercise you see. You can assume a 10/10 here as we like to adjust exercises to fit your body when what's on the program isn't working.
4. Exercise Technique
All those little details your coaches point out really do matter. Whether it be a little more stretch here, or a little more pressure there, it all serves a purpose. With coaches on your side, you're pretty much guaranteed a 10/10 here if you slow down and absorb the cues. The two points matter most regarding hypertrophy:
Use a technique that keeps you safe long term.
Control the eccentric (lowering) phase of each lift. Slowing this down increases the hypertrophic effect. This is the (3-0-0) you often see in your program.
5. Recovery
Even perfect training won’t work if you’re not sleeping, eating enough, or managing stress. If your recovery is a 2 out of 10, that’s where your focus should go. No matter how hard you're training, you've got to recover for it to pay off.
Takeaway:
As working adults with families and a lot of life outside of the gym, muscle building isn’t about perfection nor should it be! If you're new, focus on building consistent volume and effort. If you're more experienced, find the next variable that needs improvement to bring up your total score.
The good news is, at Paragon, we take the guesswork out of this process. Your program is intentionally designed to balance all of these elements to help you build muscle safely and effectively at every stage of life.
In our next blog, we’ll use the same 0 to 10 rating concept to guide your recovery habits, which are just as essential to your progress as what you do in the gym. More on that to come!
