It doesn't take a lot to maintain muscle once you have it https://x.com/SandCResearch/status/1810602350261764563

i myself have found my own experience to be in line with the findings here. i haven't worked out proper since I moved but diligently train 3x a week. max pullup sets et al all still the same

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All of this entirely depends on perceived intensity

If there is no intensity, you might as well consider the sets nonexistent

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At the end of the day, hypertrophy is caused by pulling muscle fibers apart and protein synthesis. Intensity can be split into mechanical tension and metabolic stress, both of which need a certain amount of intensity to be effective.

This is not talking about hypertrophy, or growth 

This is maintenance

I would argue maintenance is inherently a hypertrophic process in which you build muscle in order to keep it, which still requires intensity. If you aren’t exerting stress on the muscle, you won’t be maintaining the muscle, and the amount of intensity you need goes down the higher your volume goes.

A lot of people think they’re going to failure when they’re not, they might have a couple of RIR. Muscles don’t really care that you reached the end of the set, just that you literally couldn’t do any more reps if you tried.