Building muscle is exciting, but it is also challenging, and if you are unsure of what you are doing, then it can become very stressful. Beginners and gym rookies may notice those fast newbie gains that come from being introduced to iron, but then they see progress stall and get frustrated. This is why learning what to do and how to do it properly is so important. Understanding the keys to hypertrophy training will help you extend those gains and make the process even more enjoyable.

That is why Nick Shaw and Dr. Mike Israetel co-founded Renaissance Periodization, better known as RP Strength. They and their team have taken a lot of the guesswork out of the equation so their clients can make the most of the time they invest into themselves.

Nick Shaw’s 4 Expert Tips To Hypertrophy Training For Beginners

Shaw four key hypertrophy training tips to help beginners start their hypertrophy journey on the right foot. These may even help some of those seasoned gym veterans that can benefit from a refresher course.

Go Slow On Negatives

The eccentric, or negative portion of a rep is when the weight is being taken from the lifted position (when the muscle is contracted) to the starting position (when the muscle is stretched). Most beginners and even some advanced lifters have more fun lifting the weight for obvious reasons, but Shaw emphasized that focusing on the negative matters more if swole is your goal.

“Using the bench press as an example, you lower the bar down and not let it slam down on your chest. So, control, control, control on the way down,” Shaw explained. “When you’re going up on the concentric portion, you can go a little bit quicker. The key takeaway is that you want to be slow and in control of the lift.”

While you should take your time lowering the weight, Shaw advised that you don’t need to be so slow that you reach failure within a low rep range. He shared that roughly two to three seconds would be a good time to shoot for.

“You can count one thousand one, one thousand two, slight pause for one thousand three, then go up. Don’t let the weight be in control of you.”

Feel the Stretch At the Bottom

There was a reason Shaw mentioned that pause as part of a negative. He explained that feeling the stretch at the bottom of the rep with resistance is crucial for muscle growth.

“That is one of the more hypertrophic parts of the lift, if not the most hypertrophic part.”

Sticking with chest as the focus but shifting to the dumbbell flye as an example, pausing with the dumbbells at the bottom when the pecs are stretched is going to pay more dividends than if you were to keep the weights moving constantly in order to achieve more reps.

Shaw said. “If you do that pause, it is the painful part, but it’s a good pain, of course. That is what you want and a good indicator that you will be growing the most muscle.”

This doesn’t just apply to when the weights are going down. On an exercise like the lat pulldown, the arms and handle are going up, but this is still the negative portion, and Shaw still wants you to hold that stretched position.

“On pulldowns, you want to be feeling like it is actually pulling you up and you feel that stretch in the lats. The bigger the stretch you can get, the more hypertrophy that can come from it.”

Become a Master of Technique

This is one that may appear obvious, but you may be surprised how many times you could see an experienced lifter forget the importance of form and go to extremes for the sake of moving more weight. Shaw knows this tip may be more of a reminder than anything else, but it still matters a lot when it comes to hypertrophy training.

“You don’t want to be bouncing reps or heaving and jerking weights,” said Shaw. “If you’re doing a curl and start heaving, it may not be clear what muscle is working. You may be hurting your joints more than working the muscle.”

By following the previous two tips on an exercise like the hammer curl, then lift the weight up with control and proper form, you will work the biceps without recruiting the shoulders. Because the biceps are doing the work, they will receive the benefits that come from the effort.

Shaw also mentioned that this doesn’t mean to sacrifice doing something that you know works for you. You can still put your own twist on a movement that you know works for you, as long as it’s for the proper purpose of working the muscle and not satisfying the ego.

“Different people have slightly different leverages and injury histories. Accommodating those is okay. When it starts hurting the joints, then you may need to tweak it a bit.”

Track Progress and Seek Improvement

Another hypertrophy training key to growth is finding ways to improve as much as possible, including each time you train. All lifters would like to add immediate size and throw more plates on a bar every week, but progress does not come that easy in the real world. However, you can find numerous ways to improve every time you train. Shaw shared that these small wins can be as simple as doing one more rep or doing even five more pounds on an exercise than you did during a previous training session.

“It’s still progressive overload,” he said simply. “If you did 30 pounds for 12 last week but are unsure about using 35, then do 30 for 13 or 14.”

If you need tracking workouts to monitor your progress and measure those improvements, you can do so with the RP Hypertrophy app. This app is designed for the purpose of helping you improve and take those steps each week so all you have to concentrate on is the next set.

“The cool thing is the RP Hypertrophy app is literally designed to do this for you. You pick the weights in Week 1, and it will tell you what weights or reps to do the next week. That way, you are always progressing, and the RP Hypertrophy app keeps track of it for you.”

You can learn more about the RP Hypertrophy app as well as their other programs and services here!