Sets per Muscle Group Calculator
How many sets per muscle group per week is too few, and how many is too many? Enter the working sets you do for each muscle in a normal week, and the calculator shows its volume zone and whether it is below, on or above target. Tick your priority muscles: their target is high volume instead of the growth zone. Overwrite the example week with your own numbers.
1
Below target
11
On target
1
Above target
Working sets from the whole week. A set counts 0.5 for a muscle that only assists, like the triceps in the bench press.
High volume · On target
High volume · Above your target, still productive
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
Maintenance zone · 1 more to reach your target
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
No sets
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
Growth zone · On target
The outline on each bar is the target: the growth zone (4 to 10 sets), or high volume (10 to 20 sets) for a priority muscle.
The SmartWorkout app counts this for you
With SmartWorkout Premium, the app counts each muscle's sets from your workout log, half sets included, and shows its zone after every workout.
Volume zones
The zones are the same for every muscle and every training level. They come from a meta-analysis of 67 studies with more than 2,000 people (Pelland 2025): muscles start to grow at about 4 sets a week, and each further set adds a little less. The SmartWorkout app shows the same zones.
| Zone | Sets a week | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Below maintenance | under 2 | Too few sets to give the muscle a clear stimulus |
| MV · Maintenance zone | 2–4 | Often enough to keep the muscle you have |
| MEV · Growth zone | 4–10 | Growth starts here, with the most gain per set |
| MAV · High volume | 10–20 | More growth per week, a smaller gain from each extra set |
| MRV · Very high volume | 20+ | Growth is still possible, but extra sets add little |
How to count sets
Only working sets count, warm-ups don't. A set counts 1 for a muscle the exercise trains directly and 0.5 for a muscle that only assists. One set of barbell bench press is 1 set for the chest and 0.5 for the triceps and for the front delts.
Add up the sets from all workouts in the week. If your plan changes from week to week, count a normal week, not a deload week.
The zones assume sets taken close to failure, with about 0 to 3 reps in reserve. A set that ends far from failure gives a weaker stimulus, so 10 easy sets count for less than 10 hard ones.
Target: the growth zone or high volume
For a normal muscle the target is the growth zone, 4 to 10 sets a week. The first sets of the week give the most growth per set, so this is a good default for most muscles and most people.
A priority muscle aims for high volume, 10 to 20 sets. It grows faster per week, but each extra set gives a little less and workouts get longer. That is why priority works best for one or two muscles at a time, with the rest of the body in the growth zone.
A result above the target is not a mistake. Up to 20 sets a week, volume is still productive. From 20 sets, extra sets add little, and above about 30 sets there are very few studies.
Too few or too many: what to change
Below the target, add 2 or 3 sets a week, ideally in workouts that already train that muscle. After a few weeks, check that your weights or reps are going up.
If a muscle is at high or very high volume and for a few weeks your strength stalls or drops, your sleep gets worse or your technique slips, take away a few sets. If you keep making progress, that volume works for you.
Spread a muscle's sets over at least two workouts a week. Above about 10 sets for one muscle in a single workout, extra sets add little.
Frequently asked questions
How many sets per muscle group per week?
For most muscles, 4 to 10 working sets a week: the growth zone. A muscle you want to grow faster can get 10 to 20 sets. At 2 to 4 sets a muscle is usually only maintained, and above 20 extra sets add little.
How do I know if I do too many sets?
Up to 20 sets per muscle a week, volume is still productive, even above your target. From 20 sets, extra sets add little. It is too much when for a few weeks your strength stalls or drops, you sleep worse or your technique slips while you keep doing more work.
How many sets are enough to maintain muscle?
Usually 2 to 4 hard sets a week: the maintenance zone. Younger people often need only a few sets, older people usually need more, for example two workouts a week.
How do I count sets of compound exercises?
A set counts 1 for a muscle the exercise trains directly and 0.5 for a muscle that assists. For example, a set of bench press is 1 set for the chest and 0.5 for the triceps and for the front delts. That is why the calculator takes half sets.
Are the zones different for beginners and advanced lifters?
No. In the meta-analysis of 67 studies, training experience rarely changed how much growth each further set gives, so the zones are the same for everyone. Beginners usually do well with every muscle in the growth zone, while advanced lifters more often give one or two muscles high volume.
Is volume weight times reps?
In this calculator, as in the SmartWorkout app, volume is the number of working sets per muscle per week. Weight times reps is tonnage, often called volume load. With sets taken close to failure, muscle growth depends more on the number of sets than on tonnage.
Does the SmartWorkout app count this for me?
Yes. With SmartWorkout Premium the app counts each muscle's sets from your workout log, half sets for indirect work included, and shows every muscle's zone after each workout. You can also set priorities, and those muscles then aim for high volume.