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Bodybuilders, powerlifters and strongmen - they are distinguished by their exceptional muscle mass. Why? Each of them puts in remarkable effort during training and lifts heavy weights for a long time and with immense power. But is that enough? Not entirely. An evaluation of the training regimens of the aforementioned groups allows us to draw a few intriguing conclusions. Each group has its unique approach, each with its own set of advantages and disadvantages. By focusing on these three critical aspects of exercise, we can elevate our training routine to a higher level and ensure success in building muscle mass. Bodybuilders favor split training, which involves dividing the days of the week into muscle groups, where we typically train one muscle group once a week. During training, they perform more muscle isolation and concentrate more on increasing the volume of training than on the weight. Conversely, powerlifters enjoy seeing substantial weight on the bar. Their goal is to lift unbelievable weights. They also utilize more equipment during training, such as boxes for box squats, chains, bands, etc. They train strenuously, dislike isolation and prefer to start each day with a squat rather than bicep isolation. Strongmen are usually in the background, unseen, perhaps lifting large, heavy balls. Their training is centered around lifting heavy objects in various configurations. They pull, lift, press, throw, and carry. All with colossal weights. It is worth noting that they also focus on the three fundamental movements of powerlifters, such as the squat, bench press, and deadlift. Their training also lacks Olympic exercises such as snatch or clean and jerk. Each athlete from the groups mentioned above focuses on different aspects, and often the 'side effect' of this work is substantial muscle mass. Typically, the plan focuses on periods of developing strength, endurance, or building muscle mass and eliminating weak points. Recent studies suggest that hypertrophy can occur following heavy training (80-90% - 1 RM) and light training (30% - 1 RM). In their study, N. A. Burd et al. found that muscle protein synthesis during a single strength training session was similar in the case of heavy (90% - 1 RM) or light (30% - 1 RM) training loads performed to muscle failure. Where is the optimal balance? In reality, the authors discovered a prolonged response of synthesis of specific protein fractions using light loads, suggesting that potentially using lighter training loads might be more beneficial in the case of hypertrophy. What do the concepts of sarcoplasmic hypertrophy and myofibrillar hypertrophy mean? Myofibrillar hypertrophy is achieved by increasing and multiplying myofibrils within each muscle fiber. Myofibrils are the 'engines' of muscle fibers constructed from contractile proteins that cause muscle fiber contraction. Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy is theoretically achieved by expanding the sarkoplasm (muscle cytoplasm) within the muscle fiber. In 'The Science and Practice of Strength Training' by V. M. Zatziorsky and W. J. Kreamer, we can observe differences that explain this statement. To better understand the concept of sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, we can use a simple example of a bodybuilder who weighs 120 kg and has a record in the squat of 200 kg, and a powerlifter who weighs 80 kg and has a record in the squat of 250 kg. How is this possible? Sarcoplasmic hypertrophy explains this difference. The bodybuilder in our example simply has non-functional muscle mass that does not provide him with additional strength because it is the myofibrils that contain contractile proteins. These arguments suggest that appropriate training for building muscle mass should not rely on the same intensity in all exercises and it would be preferable if this intensity were variable. Using both lighter (about 65% CM) and heavier weights (about 85% CM) makes the most sense.