Set Muscle

Hi all, been lurking a while, finally signing up. Background is powerlifting - I care about the big three and not much else for years. Now I want to actually build some size and bring up weak points, so I'm shifting to a more bodybuilding style. Here to learn from the hypertrophy crowd.

Welcome! Honestly powerlifters make great bodybuilders once they embrace higher reps - you already have a strong base and great technique. The main adjustment is leaving your ego at the door and chasing the pump instead of the PR.

Yeah the rep ranges are going to humble me. I feel naked doing sets of 12.

You'll adapt fast. Sets of 12 with real intent are a different kind of brutal - you'll learn to love them.

Welcome aboard. Your weak points will grow quickly because you're not used to direct isolation work. Add arms, side delts and some single-joint stuff you probably skipped for years and watch them blow up. Beginner gains in those areas all over again.

Welcome. Biggest mindset shift: progress is now about reps and quality and mind-muscle connection, not just adding plates. The weight is a tool to fatigue the muscle, not the goal itself. Took me a while to internalise that coming from strength work.

That's the part I'm wrestling with most - measuring a session without a top-set number to chase.

Track reps at a given weight and aim to add reps before weight. That gives you the progression metric your brain is missing.

Welcome! Don't ditch the big three entirely though. Keep squat, bench and deadlift in at moderate volume for your base, then build the bodybuilding work around them. Best of both worlds and your strength won't tank.

That's the plan - keep the mains as anchors, fill the rest with hypertrophy work.