Cumulative Blood Volume Training
hypertrophypumpmetabolic stresshigh volume
Prioritises the total amount of blood driven through a target muscle over a session (and over the week) rather than the heaviness of any single set. Many sets with lighter loads, short rests and continuous tension keep the muscle engorged for longer, chasing a sustained pump and metabolic stress as the growth stimulus.
Principles
- Volume of blood through the muscle over time is the metric — not load on the bar.
- Keep the muscle under near-continuous tension; avoid lockouts and long pauses that let blood drain.
- Short rest periods so the pump accumulates set over set instead of resetting.
- Frequency matters: hitting the muscle often keeps the cumulative total climbing across the week.
How to run it
- Pick 1–2 isolation movements for the target muscle (e.g. cable curls, lateral raises, leg extensions).
- Use a light-to-moderate load (~30–50% of what you'd use for a heavy set of 8).
- Perform higher reps (15–30) with a controlled tempo, stopping just short of full lockout.
- Rest 20–45 seconds between sets; run 4–8 sets or until rep quality drops off.
- Finish with a stretch or squeeze hold to end the session on a full pump.