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Training Guides

Learn how to train, then go do it

Every GainsLog article in one place, organized into a path. Start with the fundamentals, then go deeper on volume, intensity, frequency, and body composition.

Start here

The three guides to read first

If you only read three things, read these. They cover the concepts every other guide builds on.

Hypertrophy 101: The Fundamentals of Training for Muscle Growth

Hypertrophy training focuses on increasing muscle size through the growth of muscle fibers. This guide offers key principles to maximize your muscle-building workouts and make the most of your gym time.

6 min read Training

What Is Progressive Overload? The Only Signal That Your Training 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

Why You Should Track Your Workouts (And What Happens When You Don't)

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.

Build the program

How much to train, how often, and which exercises are worth your time.

TrainingThe Best 3-Day Workout Split: Full Body on Machines, Same Lifts Every SessionThree days a week is enough to make real progress, but not with a body part split. Run full body on machines with five or six exercises per session, and keep the exact same session every time you walk in. That combination is what makes three sessions a week work.TrainingHow 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.TrainingHow Many Sets Per Week Do You Actually Need? Fewer Than You ThinkThe 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.TrainingStretch vs Resistance Profile: The Two Levers Behind Every Good Hypertrophy ExerciseLengthened-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.

Dial in intensity

How hard each set needs to be, and why the rep range matters less than you think.

TrainingTraining to Failure vs RIR: How Hard Should You Actually 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.TrainingBest Rep Range for Muscle Growth: Why It Matters Less Than You ThinkThe 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.

Track and progress

The feedback loops that tell you whether the plan is actually working.

TrainingWhat Is Progressive Overload? The Only Signal That Your Training WorksMost 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.TrainingWhy You Should Track Your Workouts (And What Happens When You Don't)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.

Cut, bulk, and recomposition

Training and nutrition decisions for changing your body composition.

NutritionShould I Bulk or Cut? A Decision Framework (and Why the Surplus Matters Less Than You Think)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.TrainingHow to Train While Cutting Without Losing MuscleMost 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.TrainingHow 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.

Choose your tracker

What to look for in a workout log app, and how the free options compare.

ProductHow to Choose the Best Workout Log App for iOS or AndroidEvery 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.ProductThe Best Free Workout Tracker for iPhone in 2026Every 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.Product LaunchIntroducing GainsLog: Stop Guessing, Start ProgressingI've spent the last few months building something I wish I'd had years ago, a workout app that doesn't just track what you did, but helps you decide what to do next.

Tools

Run the numbers

Free calculators and a plain-English glossary to pair with the guides.

One-rep max calculator Hypertrophy volume calculator Barbell plate calculator Training glossary

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