So, you bought a gym membership, and look at how much you need to do. It may be intimidating how much you should be doing, but fear not; we can help you with that. Let’s dive into 2025 fitness trends, particularly the debate between volume or intensity. What should you be doing?

Reps

So, what are reps? Reps are basically a short form of saying repetitions. It is standard to count exercises as reps x sets, where you would complete a set of repetitions for x amount of rounds called sets, or, in short, we can call it volume.

The best use of volume is that you can control your pace and evenly distribute your total work lifting or working out. This allows for a better time for rest between your sets and greatly improves hypertrophy. If you’re looking for that better look of bigger muscles, reps and sets are your go-to friends.

To execute a proper volumetric workout, you aim in a range of 8-12 reps with a decent weight if you’re lifting or body weight with calisthenics in sets of 3 or 4. Resting in between the sets is also optimal, where you should typically look from 1:30 minutes to 2:00 minutes to recover back again. This rep x set is ideal with medium intensity, at least to gain the best possible results.

Intensity

Intensity is where you look for lower reps, but you try to lift more weight to compensate. In this, it is common practice to aim for 1-5 reps and 3 sets primarily. 

The best use for intensity training is to typically increase functional strength or for that burst of energy. You look to achieve 1-5 reps per set but typically, you would see people trying for 3-5 reps, and too much weight can leave you exhausted, or in the worst-case scenario, hurt you. But with intensity training, you improve your muscle mass and your 1-rep max.

There are two ways to execute proper intensity-based training. You can up your weight during lifting or calisthenics, or another is HIIT (High-Intensity Interval Training), which is typically done for cardio. For weight lifting and calisthenics, you want to do 80% of the weight of your 1-rep max and try to push for 1-5 reps, ideally with a partner that can help you out if you cannot manage the weight anymore. It is important to fully rest until you feel that you can lift again, which may take a lot of time. 

HIIT

High-Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, is a workout methodology that involves short periods of all-out effort exercise interspersed with periods of rest or low-intensity exercise. It is efficient and effective for cardio health, calorie burning, and attaining health benefits within a short period. Below is a breakdown of the benefits and their explanations:

1. Burns many calories in a short interval: HIIT workouts are incredibly effective since during those few moments of intense intervals, your body is being pushed to its limit. This maximizes calorie burn in a fraction of the time compared to steady-state exercises like jogging or walking. For example, a 20-minute HIIT session can burn as many calories as a 45-minute moderate-intensity workout.

2. Metabolic rate increase: After a hard HIIT session, your body consumes more calories than it usually would for several hours after exercise due to excess post-exercise oxygen consumption, also commonly known as the “afterburn effect.” That is to say, your body requires more energy to recover, repair muscles, and rebuild oxygen levels.

3. Help you lose fat: It boosts the metabolism to burn more calories during and after exercise, which helps in fat loss. Besides, it will also help maintain lean muscle mass, which could raise one’s resting metabolic rate. Moreover, studies have proved that HIIT effectively reduces abdominal fat.

4. Enhance oxygen consumption: Oxygen consumption is the efficiency of your body in using oxygen during exercise. HIIT enhances various aspects of this through the challenge it gives to your cardiovascular system. It improves, over time, your VO₂ max or the maximum oxygen uptake, which is basically a measure of fitness.

5. Lower Heart Rate and Blood Pressure: HIIT is good for heart health since it fortifies your cardiovascular system. Consistent HIIT exercise has been known to lower resting heart rate and blood pressure, especially in overweight or hypertensive individuals, since it helps your heart work more efficiently.

6. Lower blood sugar: HIIT also improves insulin sensitivity, so your muscles are better equipped to use glucose for energy. It will also lower your fasting blood sugar levels and, therefore, is a very powerful tool in managing or trying to avoid type 2 diabetes.

The Relation of Reps and Intensity

The relation of reps and intensity is inverted; the fewer reps you do, the more intense you can do, and vice versa. But depending on your goal, you can switch around this formula and adjust. For reps, you want to do 60-70% of your 1 RM or a weight you can do up to 10-12 reps and continue for 3-4 sets with some rest in between. While in intense training, 80% for a few reps focusing on your strength and rest for longer periods during the sets.

High-intensity, low-volume resistance training is significantly more effective for upper body strength and muscle development compared to high-volume, low-intensity resistance training. In one experiment with resistance-trained males, long rest interval high-intensity programs resulted in significantly better enhancements in upper body muscle mass and in 1RM bench press than in the high-volume, short rest interval approach.

Volume or Intensity: Which one should you do?

Depending on your goal, you should choose your ideal reps or intensity. 

If you want bigger muscles, you should aim for reps x sets with decent intensity. This allows muscle growth and hypertrophy.

If you want more functional strength, or powerlifting, more intensity-based training will suit you the best.

I hope you find this content useful and find your needs for your physical journey on choosing volume or intensity. Happy lifting!