[Here we go again]

I've been doing different home exercises after I work out.

I'll use squats as an example.

If I do 40 squats in the morning and do 40 more in the afternoon. Do I get the same effect as doing 80 close together?

I feel sore if I do them together the next day but not so much if I don't. This goes for crunches and push ups too. What do you think?

[HeatherMcG]

I have been wondering the same thing lately. My legs and hips are so sore from squats that I have been wanting to split them up to. Hubby says not as effective because the best workout for the muscles is when they are tired and stretching. If you stop before that, you are never pushing them past their limits. It sort of makes sense to me. But then again he is a guy. He lifts to bulk up. I lift to tone and slim down. Maybe there is a difference??

[cjb0arder13]

Here's my two cents (and I could be completely wrong, but I'll try anyway!!!)

One of the things you're trying to achieve when doing muscle work is the muscle "fatigue". So, when it starts to hurt, that's when you're doing the real work--obviously, you don't want to get to the point where you're screaming in pain, but it's definitely going to be uncomfortable!!

At muscle fatige (I learned this in my anatomy class), you're getting microscopic muscle tears and recruiting muscle fibers. This is what makes you gain lean muscle mass.

On the FLIP side, I've also read that as long as you get your work-out in (regardless of whether it's split up during the day), you're getting the same work. I don't know if I believe that, but...who knows?

So I guess what i"m trying to say is that I'm inclined to believe that you might be achieving muscle fatigue and doing more effective work if you do it all at once (ie, 80 squats in a row....OUCH!! vs two sets of 40...still OUCH, but less).

Take what I say with a grain of salt. I think it's wonderful that you get the workout in, period!! You should be proud

[Rock Chalk Chick]

Ok, first I'll touch on the bulk-vs-toning issue.... muscle is muscle is muscle, girls! You don't get to choose what "kind" of muscle building you're doing - your muscles are going to build up the way they are designed to do. Thankfully, for the average woman, it's going to be to make a denser, firmer, tighter muscle - not a bigger, fatter, "bulky" muscle. Without taking steroids or having some sort of glandular issue resulting in excess testosterone, women are NOT going to build large bulky muscles. Even getting toned and "cut" muscles takes a lot of hard work - check out female "figure" contests - not sure what I can/can't post here, but a quick google-image search for "figure contest" should do (rather than the bulky "bodybuilder" contests that essentially require steroid usage)... these women work incredibly hard, lifting very heavy sets of weight (stressing their muscles to the max), and eat very strictly in order to get very distinct "toned" muscles. If they don't get bulky, how will you?

Lift hard, lift heavy - you WILL get "toned" and not bulky. You HAVE to stress your muscles to make them grow (actually damaging the individual muscle cells, then letting them repair themselves stronger before damaging the new, stronger cells to get stronger yet). You MUST lift to fatigue (until you can't lift another rep) in order to get significant results (there are further details you can get into, but that's for another thread).

Which brings me to the original question - do 80 squats at once work your muscles more than 40 squats morning and evening? I think your soreness tells you the answer - you're sore after 80 because you're taxing the muscles and they're having to repair themselves... if you do 40 and then take 6 hours off and do 40 more, your muscles aren't tired anymore and you aren't getting much more working than 40 alone.

Honestly, you'd probably do better to add weight to your 40 reps than to do 80 - pick up a weight or a milk jug in each hand (8 lbs each) or try doing one-legged squats... you'll get much more of a benefit if you can only do 10-15 before wearing yourself out than if you keep adding more reps.

[HeatherMcG]

You said that so much better than me!

As far as bulk vs. toning.... I was just saying that he does reps and lifts weight specifically to exhaust the muscles and get that bulked look on purpose. I just lift like any other person for resistance and weight training.

I just didn't know if the principal of tiring the muscles was strictly for bodybuilding or applied to everyone. So now I know and hubby was right. Shhh please don't tell him! He will make me mark it on the calendar! lol

That must be why "They" say, "If it ain't hurtin', it ain't workin'!

[cjb0arder13]

Haha doesn't it suck to have to admit when your SO is right??? I try to avoid it AT ALL COSTS (even if it means lying through my teeth )

And "If it ain't hurtin', it ain't workin'" is so true!! I try to tell myself this when I'm at my body pump class, on my 100th weighted squat, sweating bullets and wanting to collapse. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't!!!

On a side note...i really, really hate lunges.

[Here we go again]

Rock- thanks for your input. It did help me. It wasn't about bulking up. I haven't done weights b/c I weigh 282 and doing 50 squats at once is a lot of weight. My legs are for sure looking better. I kinda figured that I have to do it all at once than splitting it up to get the more effect. I still have heard that it doesn't matter when you do it, like if you split it up.....