Hypertrophy... no its not something from Star Trek. Hypertrophy is the physical change we see when we increase our lean body mass. Hypertrophy is the name of the game for body builder. Clients who desire hypertrophy are usually guys, where as women view the process as some type of disease. Developing programs around both types of clients takes complete understanding of that clients goals and keep in mind not only their likes but their dislikes. When most women hear the phrase "building muscle" they think of that female body builder who is standing in a bikini making most of us GUYS look small and helpless. In order to effectively and honestly develope a training program it is important to revisit what we know about the process of hypertrophy. Being honest to your clients about the discipline in building lean body mass will help you avoid losing clients that are disappointed with their results.

The Truth About Hypertrophy

Hypertrophy may be the goal for some clients and considered an unwanted byproduct of training by others. In either case, it should not be a great concern. The reality is, hypertrophy for most, non-anabolic using clients is very hard to come by. And one unfortunate problem with hypertrophy training is that our concept of how to train for hypertrophy has also been heavily influenced by steroid users.

If in fact hypertrophy is the goal, then a conscious effort must be made to control the eccentric portion of the exercise to increase time under tension. If a client wants to weight train but has no desire for hypertrophy, I would perform five to six reps at a 1-0-1 tempo. In either case, I would still avoid the conventional three to four exercises per body part favored by the bodybuilding crowd. I would perform one or two exercises for each movement pattern, and if hypertrophy is the desired result, I would emphasize slower eccentric contractions.

Another common misconception is that single joint exercise is better for hypertrophy. Again, if I had a client that was interested in hypertrophy, I would stay with basic multi-joint exercises like bench presses, front squats and chin-ups. It is amazing to watch people waste time with lateral raises and other single joint exercises when they have not even performed an overhead pressing movement. The bottom line is that the exercises that are the most beneficial are often also the most difficult to do. The body doesn’t always like a good taste of hard work. Sometimes, at least at first, it hurts.

The public is uninformed, and often as trainers, we’re just playing along. We talk to clients about tone and about changing muscle structure (long dancers’ muscles). I just hope that people in the industry can begin to see this is salesmanship and not science. Why not tell our clients the truth?