How many sets and reps should you do per exercise?
For most people and most exercises, 3 to 4 sets of 6 to 12 reps is the place to start. Go heavier and lower, 3 to 5 sets of 1 to 5, when strength is the goal. Go lighter and higher, 2 to 3 sets of 15 or more, for endurance. Across a week, about 10 to 20 hard sets per muscle is a widely used range. This guide explains what the terms mean, gives the ranges by goal, and shows how to pick a weight and when to move it up.
Updated October 2026
What sets and reps mean
A rep, short for repetition, is one complete movement: one squat down and up, one curl up and down. A set is a group of reps done in a row without stopping. Rest comes between sets. So "3 sets of 10" means ten reps, a rest, ten more, a rest, and a final ten. Plans write it as 3x10, sets first, then reps. What does 3x8 mean covers the rest of the notation, including rep ranges like 8-12 and effort scores like RPE.
Sets and reps by goal
The number of reps you do per set changes the weight you can use, and the weight changes what the set trains. Heavy and few builds strength. Moderate builds muscle. Light and many builds endurance. These ranges overlap a lot, and all three build some of everything.
| Goal | Sets per exercise | Reps per set | Weight feels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strength | 3 to 5 | 1 to 5 | Heavy, every rep is work |
| Muscle growth | 3 to 4 | 6 to 12 | Hard by the last two reps |
| Endurance | 2 to 3 | 15 or more | Light, the burn builds slowly |
How many sets per exercise, and per week
Per exercise, 2 to 4 working sets is a common range. A working set is a hard set at your real weight. Warm-up sets do not count. The first set does most of the work, the second and third add to it, and after four the returns get small while the fatigue keeps growing. If you want more work for a muscle, add another exercise rather than a sixth set of the same one.
Per muscle per week, a widely used range is about 10 to 20 hard sets, spread over two or more sessions. A chest day with four exercises of three sets each is twelve sets, which sits inside that range. Beginners do well at the bottom of it. Experienced lifters often need to be nearer the top to keep growing. If you are always sore and your lifts are stuck, you are probably above what you can recover from.
How to pick a weight for a rep range
- Decide the range first. Say 8 to 12 reps for a dumbbell press.
- Warm up with something light and do a few easy reps.
- Pick a weight you think gives about 10 reps and do a set. Stop when the next rep would be ugly. You do not need to grind to a dead stop.
- Check the number. Twelve or more easy reps means the weight is too light, go up next set. Fewer than eight means it is too heavy, go down. Eight to eleven hard reps means you found it.
- Write it down. That weight is your starting point. Everything from here is about adding reps to it, then adding weight.
What to do when you reach the top of the range
The rep range doubles as your progression rule. You stay at a weight until every working set reaches the top of the range, then you add weight and the reps drop back toward the bottom. On an 8 to 12 plan with 20 kg (45 lb) dumbbells, that looks like 10, 9, 8 this week, 12, 11, 10 in a few weeks, then 12, 12, 12, then 22 kg (50 lb) for 9, 8, 8 and you climb again.
Keep the increase small. On upper-body lifts 2.5 kg (5 lb) is a common step, and on lower-body lifts 5 kg (10 lb). If the next available weight is too big a jump and knocks you below the bottom of the range, stay at the old weight another week and build more reps first. Double progression walks through a five-session example of this, and how to track progressive overload covers keeping the record that makes it work.
A starting point for beginners
If you are new, keep it simple. Pick one exercise per big movement: a squat, a hip hinge like the deadlift, a push like the bench press, a pull like the row, and an overhead press. Do 3 sets of 6 to 12 on each, two or three times a week. Start lighter than you think and add a small amount of weight when every set hits the top of the range.
That is enough to make progress for months. The ranges in this guide are starting points, and your log will tell you more than any table once you have a few weeks of sessions to compare.
How SayLift handles sets and reps
SayLift is an iPhone workout tracker you log by voice. After training you say the session, "dumbbell press three sets of ten at 20, then rows twelve, eleven and ten at 25", the AI writes down every exercise, set, rep and weight on a review screen, and you check and save. You can also log by hand.
Its coach then applies the rep-range rule for you, per exercise, from the sets you logged. The default range is 6 to 12 reps. When your lowest set reaches the top of your rep target, it tells you to go up: +2.5 kg (5 lb) on upper-body lifts and +5 kg (10 lb) on lower-body lifts. If a session lands in the middle of the range, it keeps the weight and asks for one more rep. If you fall below the floor, it repeats the weight once as a near miss, then takes about 7.5% off so you can rebuild. A new exercise with no history gets a "calibrate" prompt: log a first session and the coach takes it from there. Workout apps that pick your next weight shows how this compares to other apps.
Who SayLift is for
SayLift is for iPhone lifters who want the sets-and-reps rule applied to their own numbers instead of kept in their head. Say the session, check the review screen, and the coach tells you each time which exercises go up, which hold, and which need a step back.
It costs $4.17 a month (billed $49.99 a year), $7.99 a month or $3.99 a week after a 3-day free trial. Get SayLift on the App Store.
Frequently asked questions
What do sets and reps mean?
A rep is one complete movement of an exercise. A set is a group of reps done in a row before you rest. "3 sets of 10" means ten reps, a rest, ten more, a rest, and a final ten. Written as 3x10, the first number is sets and the second is reps.
How many reps should I do for muscle growth?
6 to 12 reps per set is the most common range, with 3 to 4 sets per exercise. The weight should feel hard by the last two reps. Higher reps also build muscle if the set is taken close to failure, but 6 to 12 is the easiest range to progress on.
How many sets per exercise should I do?
2 to 4 hard working sets is a common range. Warm-up sets do not count. Past four sets, each extra set adds less and tires you more, so add another exercise instead if you want more work for that muscle.
How many sets per muscle per week?
About 10 to 20 hard sets per muscle per week is a widely used range, spread over two or more sessions. Beginners do well near the bottom. If you are always sore and your lifts have stopped moving, you are likely above what you can recover from.
Is it better to do more sets or more reps?
They do different jobs. Reps per set decide how heavy the weight is and so what the set trains. Sets decide how much total work you do. Pick the rep range for your goal first, then use 2 to 4 sets to get enough work in.
What rep range does SayLift use?
The default is 6 to 12 reps, and the coach applies it per exercise. When your lowest set reaches the top of the range it suggests going up, 2.5 kg (5 lb) on upper-body lifts and 5 kg (10 lb) on lower-body lifts. If you drop below the floor it repeats the weight once, then takes about 7.5% off.
Stop typing between sets
Say what you lifted. SayLift writes down every set, rep and weight, then tells you what to lift next time. Say what you ate and it counts the calories too. iPhone only, 3 days free then $4.17 a month, billed $49.99 a year.
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