How Many Sets Should You Do Per Muscle Group?

There is no perfect number of sets for everyone. A practical weekly starting point is:

Beginners: 5–10 challenging sets per muscle group
Intermediate lifters: 8–15 sets
Advanced lifters: 10–20 sets, adjusted individually

These numbers include meaningful indirect work from compound exercises.

Research generally shows that increasing weekly volume can increase muscle growth. However, the returns become progressively smaller as more sets are added.

More training is only useful when the additional sets are challenging, technically sound and recoverable.

What Counts as a Working Set?

A working set is a challenging set performed after any necessary warm-up sets.

For example:

Empty-bar bench press: warm-up set
Light preparation set: warm-up set
Challenging set completed around 1–3 RIR: working set

Warm-up sets usually do not count because they are too light and too far from failure to create a meaningful hypertrophy stimulus.

Not every working set is equally productive. A controlled set performed close to failure is likely to contribute more than an easy set stopped with many repetitions remaining.

The goal is not simply to collect sets. Set quality matters as much as set quantity.

What Does the Research Say?

A systematic review and meta-analysis found a dose-response relationship between weekly resistance-training volume and muscle growth. Higher weekly set volumes generally produced more hypertrophy than lower volumes. (2)

A later review compared:

Low volume: fewer than 12 weekly sets
Moderate volume: 12–20 sets
High volume: more than 20 sets

The researchers found no clear difference between moderate and high volume for quadriceps or biceps growth. Higher volume appeared more beneficial for the triceps, showing that different muscles may not respond identically. (3) The most recent major analysis was published online in 2025 and in Sports Medicine in 2026. It found that muscle growth generally increased as weekly volume increased, but with diminishing returns.

This means each additional set may still provide some benefit, but usually less than the sets performed before it. The analysis did not identify one universal number where extra sets suddenly stopped working. (1)

The overall message is: Higher training volume may produce more muscle growth, but the additional benefit becomes smaller while fatigue and time requirements continue to increase.

Direct and Indirect Sets Compound exercises often train several muscles at once. Therefore, not every muscle involved should automatically receive one full set.

Direct sets The muscle is a primary target of the exercise.

Examples:

Biceps curl for the biceps
Leg extension for the quadriceps
Chest press for the chest
Hamstring curl for the hamstrings

A direct set can normally be counted as approximately one full set.

Indirect sets The muscle assists with the exercise but is not necessarily the primary target.

Examples:

Triceps during a bench press
Biceps during a pulldown
Anterior deltoids during pressing
Glutes during some squat variations

A meaningful indirect set can be counted as approximately half a set.

For example, eight sets of chest presses may contribute approximately four fractional sets to the triceps. If you also perform four direct triceps sets, your weekly triceps volume would be approximately eight effective sets.

This is still an estimate, but it is more useful than either ignoring indirect work or counting everything as a full set.

How to Find Your Ideal Volume?

The popular recommendation of 10–20 weekly sets is a useful general reference, but it is not a scientific law.

Some people can build muscle with fewer than ten weekly sets, particularly when they:

Are beginners or returning to training
Perform high-quality sets close to failure
Select exercises that effectively load the target muscle
Recover well between sessions

Higher volume may be appropriate when someone:

Has more training experience
Is recovering well
Has stopped progressing with the current programme
Can maintain performance and technique
Distributes the additional work across the week

Starting immediately with 20 sets per muscle is usually unnecessary. It creates more fatigue and leaves less room to increase volume when progress eventually slows.

A more effective approach is:

Start near the lower-middle part of the recommended range.
Track repetitions, load, recovery and physical progress.
Maintain the programme long enough to evaluate it.
Add one or two weekly sets if progress stalls while recovery remains good.
Reassess after several weeks.

Volume should be increased because it is needed not simply because more must be better.

How Many Sets Should You Do in One Workout?

Weekly volume does not need to be completed in one session. Performing 15 sets for one muscle in a single workout can reduce the quality of the later sets. Performance, technique and effort may decline as fatigue increases.

Distributing the work across two or three sessions can help maintain set quality. Instead of performing 15 chest sets on Monday, you could perform: Monday: 7–8 sets Thursday: 7–8 sets

Approximately 4–8 direct sets for one muscle per session is a useful starting range for most programmes. More can still be effective, but later sets should continue to produce sufficient performance and tension.

Signs You May Be Doing Too Much Your training volume may exceed your recovery capacity if:

Performance declines across several workouts
Repetitions or load consistently decrease
Soreness continues until the next session
Joints become increasingly irritated
Motivation and workout quality fall
Additional sets do not improve results

These signs can also be influenced by sleep, nutrition, stress and exercise selection. Volume should therefore be evaluated as part of the complete programme.

Practical Weekly Set Guide

Beginner 5–10 challenging sets per muscle
Intermediate 8–15 challenging sets per muscle
Advanced 10–20 individualized sets
Time-limited 4–8 high-quality sets per muscle
Specialization Add sets only to priority muscles

These ranges should include meaningful indirect work when appropriate. Someone who performs a large amount of pressing, for example, may not need an additional 15 direct triceps sets.

BWS Practical Takeaway###

There is no magic number of sets for building muscle.

A sensible approach is to:

Start with approximately 5–10 weekly sets if you are a beginner.
Use approximately 8–15 sets as a productive range for many trained lifters.
Consider 15–20 or more only when progress and recovery justify it.
Count direct sets fully and meaningful indirect sets as partial volume.
Distribute higher weekly volume across multiple sessions.
Keep most working sets sufficiently close to failure.
Increase volume gradually when your current training stops producing progress.

The objective is not to perform as many sets as possible. It is to perform the smallest recoverable amount that continues producing results.

References

1-Pelland JC, Remmert JF, Robinson ZP, Hinson SR, Zourdos MC. The resistance training dose-response: meta-regressions exploring the effects of weekly volume and frequency on muscle hypertrophy and strength gains. Sports Medicine. 2026;56(2):481–505. PubMed

2-Schoenfeld BJ, Ogborn D, Krieger JW. Dose-response relationship between weekly resistance training volume and increases in muscle mass: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Sports Sciences. 2017;35(11):1073–1082. PubMed

3-Baz-Valle E, Balsalobre-Fernández C, Alix-Fages C, Santos-Concejero J. A systematic review of the effects of different resistance training volumes on muscle hypertrophy. Journal of Human Kinetics. 2022;81:199–210. PubMed Schoenfeld BJ, Contreras B, Krieger J, et al. Resistance training volume enhances muscle hypertrophy but not strength in trained men. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2019;51(1):94–103. PubMed

This article is for educational purposes and does not replace individualized medical, physiotherapy or exercise advice.