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Articles

Guides on training volume, frequency, splits and progressive overload, plus the occasional note on what's new in GainsLog. Written by Ossian, who builds the app.

  • Training

    How Long to Rest Between Sets for Hypertrophy

    Rest about 2 minutes between isolation sets and about 3 between heavy compound sets. In two trials, 1 minute of rest grew the thighs less than 3 minutes.

    6 min read

  • Training

    When Should You Increase the Weight?

    Learn when to add reps, increase the weight, or repeat a performance, with practical examples of GainsLog’s progression guidance.

    6 min read

  • Training

    Why am I not seeing results at the gym?

    Training but it doesn't show? Check whether your lifts are going up first. It tells you whether to change your training or give it time and measure better.

    7 min read

  • Training

    Can you build muscle training twice a week?

    Build muscle with two full-body workouts a week. Learn how few hard sets can work, what to expect from one weekly session, and follow a simple program.

    7 min read

  • Training

    Is 3 Days a Week Enough to Build Muscle?

    Three days a week is enough to build muscle. The number of days matters less than how many times each muscle gets trained, and how much of your weekly volume lands in a single session.

    7 min read

  • Training

    Upper/Lower Split: How to Run It on 3 or 4 Days

    Upper/lower is two sessions repeated. Run them three to six times a week. Four days is the default, three works, and the ratio between upper and lower is yours to set.

    6 min read

  • Product

    How to Choose the Best Workout Log App for iOS or Android

    Every workout log app claims to be the best, and most people still quit the one they picked within three weeks. The questions that actually separate the app you'll be using next year from the one you delete in February aren't the features the screenshots sell.

    7 min read

  • Training

    Best 3-Day Workout Split: 4 Options Compared

    Full body three times a week is the best 3-day split for most lifters. The four common 3-day splits compared, with a sample week and who each one suits.

    10 min read

  • Training

    Stretch vs Resistance Profile: Choosing Exercises

    Lengthened-position training is having a moment, and the exercises are mostly right. The trend conflates two mechanisms into one. Stretch and resistance profile are two distinct levers, both real, both with their own evidence. Sort them apart and the right exercise for each muscle changes.

    10 min read

  • Training

    How to Train While Cutting Without Losing Muscle

    Most lifters lose more muscle on a cut than they should because they keep training the way they did on a bulk. The trick isn't training harder when food is low. It's training less, keeping the bar heavy, and reading the strength signal that tells you whether the muscle is actually staying.

    9 min read

  • Nutrition

    Should I Bulk or Cut? A Decision Framework

    The bulk-or-cut question has a clean answer based on body fat and training experience. Most ambitious lifters apply it backwards because they pick the phase that matches what they want to look like, not what their body actually is. And even when the framework says bulk, the modern evidence says the surplus matters less than the bro-bulk crowd insists.

    9 min read

  • Training

    How Often Should You Train Each Muscle Group Per Week?

    Most lifters pick their training split based on what fits the calendar. But the split you choose determines how much of your volume actually counts, and for most bro-split lifters, the answer is less than they think.

    7 min read

  • Training

    How to Get Out of Skinny Fat (Without Doing More Cardio)

    Most people treat skinny fat as a fat loss problem. They diet, they run, they lose weight, and then wonder why the body in the mirror still looks the same. Skinny fat is a muscle problem. Fix that and the rest follows.

    8 min read

  • Training

    Why You Should Track Your Workouts

    Most lifters overestimate how hard they train and can't recall what they lifted last week. Without tracking, progressive overload becomes something you hope is happening rather than something you can verify.

    7 min read

  • Training

    Training to Failure vs RIR: How Hard Should You Train?

    Most people who train 'to failure' are not close to it. And most people who use RIR to avoid failure end up training so far from it that the number is meaningless. Both mistakes come from the same root: nobody actually knows where their failure point is.

    9 min read

  • Training

    How Many Sets Per Week Do You Actually Need?

    The internet can't agree on how many sets you need per week. Ten? Twenty? Forty-five? They're arguing about the wrong thing. Volume only matters once intensity is locked in, and the ceiling is lower than most people think.

    8 min read

  • Product

    The Best Free Workout Tracker for iPhone in 2026

    Every workout tracker app promises to be free. But "free" means wildly different things depending on which app you download. We broke down the free tiers of every major iPhone workout tracker so you don't have to.

    8 min read

  • Training

    Best Rep Range for Muscle Growth

    The science says 5 to 30 reps all build the same muscle. That's true, per set. But fatigue, recovery, and real-world programming tell a different story, and it's why every experienced coach ends up in the same range.

    8 min read

  • Training

    What Is Progressive Overload? (And Why It Works)

    Most lifters think progressive overload is something you do. It's not. It's the signal that your training, recovery, and nutrition actually worked, and without tracking it, you're flying blind.

    8 min read

  • Training

    Hypertrophy Training: How to Build Muscle

    Hypertrophy means an increase in muscle size. Learn how to organize weekly sets, progress your lifts, and fit training into your schedule.

    6 min read