How Much Volume for Back Growth Reddit

Why Your 25-Set Back Day Is Making You Weaker

To answer the 'how much volume for back growth reddit' question directly: you need 12-20 hard sets per week, split across two sessions, not the 25+ sets you're probably doing in one marathon back day. You're reading this because you're frustrated. You're hammering your back with every row variation and pull-up you can think of, but it's not getting wider or thicker. You feel exhausted after your workouts, but when you look in the mirror, nothing has changed. The problem isn't your effort; it's your strategy. Piling on more and more sets in a single workout gives you diminishing returns. After about 10 quality sets for a single muscle group, you're not stimulating more growth; you're just creating more fatigue. This is called 'junk volume.' It feels productive, but it's actively hurting your recovery and preventing the growth you want. The key isn't to train harder; it's to train smarter. A 'hard set' is one where you finish with only 1-2 reps left in the tank. If you could have done 5 more reps, it doesn't count toward that 12-20 set total. By splitting your volume across two days, you allow yourself to perform higher-quality, heavier sets in each session, leading to double the growth stimulus over the week compared to one exhausting workout.

The "Junk Volume" That's Killing Your Back Growth

Let's break down why the traditional 'annihilate your back once a week' approach fails. When you lift weights, you trigger something called Muscle Protein Synthesis (MPS), which is the process of building new muscle tissue. This signal lasts for about 24-48 hours after a workout. Doing 10 hard sets for your back on Monday triggers a strong MPS signal. But doing 20 sets on Monday doesn't make that signal twice as strong or last twice as long. The first 8-10 sets do 90% of the work. The next 10 sets just dig a massive recovery hole that your body has to spend the next 6 days climbing out of, leaving little energy for actual growth. Instead of one huge spike in MPS and a long recovery, a smarter approach creates two optimal spikes per week. Here’s the math:

• Scenario 1 (Bad): 20 sets on Monday. Sets 1-10 provide a great growth signal. Sets 11-20 provide very little extra signal but create immense fatigue. You're too broken down to train back again effectively until the next Monday. Result: 1 growth signal per week.
• Scenario 2 (Good): 10 sets on Monday, 10 sets on Thursday. On Monday, you perform 10 high-quality sets when you're fresh. You trigger a great MPS signal. You recover in 2-3 days. On Thursday, you're fresh again and hit another 10 high-quality sets, triggering a second MPS signal. Result: 2 growth signals per week.

Over a year, that's 104 growth signals instead of 52. This is the entire secret. You stop creating junk volume that only serves your ego and start creating effective volume that actually builds your back. You now understand the 12-20 set rule and why splitting it up is better. But knowing the rule is easy. Proving you're actually applying it is hard. Can you say, with 100% certainty, how many *quality* back sets you did last week? Not just sets you did, but sets that were actually 1-2 reps from failure? If you can't, you're just guessing.

Stop guessing. Start growing.

Track your lifts. See your back get wider week by week.

The 8-Week Back Protocol That Actually Works

This isn't a theoretical plan. This is a practical, week-by-week protocol you can start today. It's built around two weekly back-focused sessions to optimize volume and recovery. We will start at the lower end of the volume range and add more only when necessary.

Step 1: Establish Your Baseline (Weeks 1-4)

For the first month, you will perform 12 total hard sets for your back per week, split into two workouts. This is your Minimum Effective Volume (MEV)-the least amount of work needed to stimulate growth. For many people who were overtraining with junk volume, this will feel surprisingly easy at first. Trust the process.

• Workout A (e.g., Monday - Pull/Upper Body Focus):
• Vertical Pull: Lat Pulldowns or Assisted Pull-ups - 3 sets of 8-12 reps.
• Horizontal Pull: Barbell Rows or Seated Cable Rows - 3 sets of 6-10 reps.
• Total: 6 sets.
• Workout B (e.g., Thursday - Pull/Upper Body Focus):
• Vertical Pull: Chin-ups (weighted if needed) or Close-Grip Pulldowns - 3 sets of 6-10 reps.
• Horizontal Pull: Single-Arm Dumbbell Rows - 3 sets of 8-12 reps per arm.
• Total: 6 sets.

Your only job for these four weeks is to get stronger at these specific lifts. Focus on perfect form and progressive overload.

Step 2: Master Progressive Overload

Progressive overload is the non-negotiable rule of muscle growth. You must demand more from your muscles over time. Here’s how you’ll do it:

• Add Reps: If you did dumbbell rows with 50 lbs for 8, 8, and 7 reps in one workout, your goal next time is to hit 8, 8, 8. Once you can do 3 sets of 12 reps, it's time to add weight.
• Add Weight: Once you hit the top of the rep range (e.g., 12 reps for pulldowns), increase the weight by the smallest possible increment, even if it's just 2.5 or 5 pounds. Your new goal is to work your way back up to 12 reps with the heavier weight.

Don't add weight and reps at the same time. Choose one to focus on each week. Log every single set. If you did 100 lbs for 8 reps last week, you need to know that number to beat it this week.

Step 3: When and How to Add Volume (Weeks 5-8)

After four weeks, assess your progress. Are your lifts consistently going up? If yes, and you feel fully recovered between sessions, you can add volume. If your lifts have stalled for two consecutive weeks, it's also time to add volume, as this can break a plateau.

• How to Add: Add ONE set to one exercise in each workout. Your new weekly total is 14 sets.
• Workout A: Lat Pulldowns 4 sets, Barbell Rows 3 sets. (Total: 7 sets)
• Workout B: Chin-ups 4 sets, Dumbbell Rows 3 sets. (Total: 7 sets)

Run this for another 2-4 weeks. The absolute maximum for most natural lifters is around 20 sets per week. Very few people need more than this. More volume is a tool to break plateaus, not a goal in itself. Listen to your body. If you feel run down or your lifts start to decline, you've added too much. Drop back by 2 sets per week.

What Your Back Will Look and Feel Like in 60 Days

Following a structured plan can feel strange at first, especially if you're used to chasing a pump with endless sets. Here is a realistic timeline of what to expect so you don't get discouraged.

• Week 1-2: The "This Feels Too Easy" Phase. Your workouts will be shorter and you'll likely feel less sore than before. This is a good sign. It means you're stimulating growth without creating excessive damage. Your job is to focus on perfect form and hitting your target reps with weight that leaves you 1-2 reps shy of failure. Resist the urge to add more exercises.
• Week 3-4: The Strength Phase. This is where you'll see clear, objective progress. The numbers in your logbook don't lie. The 50-pound dumbbells for rows will feel easier. You'll be adding a rep here, 5 pounds there. This is the foundation of growth. You may not see dramatic visual changes yet, but you are building the strength that precedes size.
• Week 5-8: The Visual Phase. Now the results start to become visible. As you continue to get stronger and perhaps add a bit of volume, you'll notice your back feels denser. You'll get a better mind-muscle connection and feel your lats engage on every rep. By the end of week 8, you should see a noticeable change in the mirror. Your shirts might feel a little tighter across the lats, and you'll see more shape and dimension where there was none before.

A warning sign that something is wrong is if your strength stalls for more than two weeks or goes backward. This is almost always a sign of too much volume or inadequate recovery (poor sleep or nutrition). Don't just push harder-be smart. Reduce your weekly sets by 2-4 and focus on recovery. This 8-week plan works. But it only works if you're honest and consistent with your tracking. Forgetting one workout's numbers can derail the next one. After a few weeks, it's easy to lose track of where you started and how far you've come. The data gets messy, and motivation fades.

Weeks of progress. All in one place.

Every workout logged. Proof you're getting stronger.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Counts as a "Hard Set"?

A hard set, or a working set, is a set taken 1-2 repetitions away from absolute muscular failure. If you finish a set of 10 and feel like you could have done 5 more, that was a warm-up, not a hard set. It doesn't count towards your weekly 12-20 set goal.

Vertical vs. Horizontal Pulls for Back Growth?

You need both for a complete back. Vertical pulls like pull-ups and lat pulldowns primarily target the latissimus dorsi, which creates back width. Horizontal pulls like barbell rows and dumbbell rows target the rhomboids, mid-traps, and rear delts, which create thickness and density.

How Often Should I Train Back?

For most people, training back twice per week is the sweet spot. This frequency allows you to hit the optimal volume range (12-20 sets) without any single workout becoming too long or fatiguing. It provides two separate growth signals per week, which is superior to one.

What If I Can't Do Pull-ups?

That's perfectly fine. The lat pulldown machine is an excellent substitute that trains the exact same muscles. You can also use an assisted pull-up machine or resistance bands to help you. The goal is to perform the movement pattern with progressive overload, not to master one specific exercise.

Is Direct Trap and Rear Delt Work Necessary?

While compound rows and pulls hit these muscles, adding some direct work can be beneficial for complete development. At the end of your pull workouts, consider adding 2-3 sets of face pulls for rear delts and 2-3 sets of heavy shrugs for upper traps. This adds 4-6 sets to your weekly volume.