At least 12 reps

[Ox 51]

YAXENI ORIQUEN: AT LEAST 12 REPS

Going beyond the usual 8-10.
October 13, 2009
FLEXONLINE.COM

Forty-one-year-old Venezuelan native Yaxeni Oriquen has won three pro shows, including the 2005 Ms. Olympia. She was third in the 2009 Ms. International. She tells us why the rep sweet spot for her is in the moderate-to-high range, and she lays out a biceps routine that incorporates her rep philosophy.

ORIQUEN ON REPS

“I like to do at least 12 reps. To me, you can really feel the muscles working if you use a weight you can get 12-15 reps with. That’s the sweet spot, enough to use a pretty heavy weight but also light enough to get in a lot of quality reps. The weight, though, is secondary. What matters most to me is how much I make the muscles work.”

<TABLE style="COLOR: #000000" cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width="50%"><TBODY><TR><TD style="BACKGROUND: #b10b1c; FONT-WEIGHT: bold" colSpan=4 align=middle>ORIQUEN’S BICEPS ROUTINE


</TD></TR><TR style="BACKGROUND: #000000; COLOR: #ffffff; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ffffff 1px solid">EXERCISE </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #ffffff 1px solid" align=middle>SETS </TD><TD align=middle>REPS </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Barbell curls </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>4 </TD><TD align=middle>12-15 </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Alternate dumbbell curls </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>12-15 </TD></TR><TR><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid">Cambered bar preacher curls </TD><TD style="BORDER-RIGHT: #000000 1px solid" align=middle>3 </TD><TD align=middle>12-15 </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

 

[big in vegas]

I do about that many reps for arms. I don't typically go heavy since they are a small muscle and focus more on the contraction and reps

 

[Ox 51]

I need to try higher reps for a while. I'm usually in the 6-10 range on most body parts.

 

[big in vegas]

I just think that higher reps for arms is better because you don't need heavy weight for them to really grow. If you squeeze each rep and focus on form, you'll get more out of it. Going to heavy could potentially cause an injury, I save heavy weights for compound movememnts