Training with weights is often times associated with pushing through grueling pains and conquering the body’s point of fatigue. You often times hear people screaming in the gym trying to overcome both their physical and mental barriers, and start breaking out in cold sweat because you feel like you’re going to a battle field. Training with a high level of intensity is extremely important for optimal muscle and strength gains, however, the definition of high intensity training is often misunderstood.
People will often tell you to go as hard as you possibly can on each and every set. You will be mislead to believe that you have to push your maximum boundaries every time you pick up a barbell or a pair of dumbbells and that you have to grind out each set until you reach failure or even go beyond that.
While more ‘extreme’ might give you the illusion of being better, nothing could be further from the truth. If you’ll do this, especially if you combine that with a workout routine along the optimal training volume guidelines, you’ll simply burn yourself out, massively increase the risk of injuries and will simply not sustain your workouts. As a result, you’ll probably stop working out altogether and leave all your untapped potential on the table.
WHY YOU SHOULD NOT TRAIN TO FAILURE
First of all, when I talk about training to failure, I’m referring to the point at which your muscles can no longer perform any more repetitions with the weight used during your set. You’ll attempt another repetition, but your muscles fail at finishing that rep and you can no longer lift up the weight. Sometimes, you may complete the final rep, but it took you a 30 second grueling grinder to complete the rep and it has drained all the life out of your system like a vampire sucking out the blood out of your veins and you end up looking like a holocaust survivor.
The reason why I don’t promote training to failure is because the fatigue to reward ratio simply is not worth it. Many people have this false idea that in order to maximize muscle growth, one has to train to failure on each and every set. While we psychologically might feel that something that’s more intense or more difficult is better, that’s not the case in weight training. Recent scientific research has clearly shown us that optimal muscle growth on a set per set basis occurs within a range of 3 reps short of failure. This means that if you perform a set of 6 reps with a weight that is your 8 rep max, you have stopped the set 2 reps shy of failure and the set was close enough to failure to maximize the growth stimulus.
Training to failure not only isn’t necessary to maximize muscle growth per set, it also causes a lot of fatigue. There’s a very big difference in completing a set with 1-2 reps left in the tank compared to finishing a set where you’ve given it your all and you had to fight for your life to complete the final rep. This is especially true on big compound exercises such as squats, deadlifts, bench presses and overhead presses. While you will already be wiped out after one truly intense set to failure, it will take you multiple sets to completely fry you if you keep some reps in reserve. While many smaller isolation exercises allow you to get away with training to failure in terms of fatigue due to less overall systemic fatigue, big compound lifts aren’t so forgiving. They not only demand a lot of effort from the muscles, but also from the nervous system and even cardiovascular system. Training to failure each and every set will drain you and will set you up for reduced performance in following sets.
Because of the overall and muscular fatigue from pushing it too far one set, the following sets will take a hit in performance and you’ll most likely won’t be able to achieve the number of reps you’ve hoped for. By now it is well established that volume is one of the main drivers of hypertrophy. If you go too hard on a set per set basis, you will have a diminished performance on your following sets and probably won’t be able to perform a sufficient amount of volume due to excessive amounts of fatigue.
For example, if you perform a set of 6 reps with an 8 rep max, you’ve stimulated the maximum amount of hypertrophy for that set, but since you’ve left 2 reps in the tank, you’ll probably be able to perform 2-3 more sets for 6 reps with that given weight. This will give you 3-4 quality sets with an optimal growth response. Compare that to going beast mode from the first set and grinding out that 8 rep max. The next set you may only be able to get 6 reps, then 4-5 and then 3-4, pushing you out of your desired rep range with that weight.
Excessive exercise induced fatigue where every set is a grinder raises your cortisol levels and as a result lowers your testosterone levels. This excessive fatigue will not only make your workout performance suffer, but will make you feel more tired in general. Your hormones and overall well being may take a hit and instead of making you better, your training may make you feel worse. This will hinder your progress in the gym and therefore your muscle gains. Leave some reps in reserve, Rambo!
TRAINING WITH PROPER INTENSITY WHILE LEAVING SOME GAS IN THE TANK
If you understand all the information you’ve just read, you should have come to the conclusion that in order to train for optimal muscle growth, you have to train heavy with the a proper level of intensity that allows you to end a set close to failure, but not to the point of absolute failure. An optimal stimulus for muscle growth occurs when you end a set within a range of 3 reps shy of failure. Training intense with leaving a little gas in the tank after each set, will maximize muscle growth on a set per set basis, but will leave you feeling relatively fresh and will make sure that the performance of your following sets will not suffer due to excessive muscular and systemic fatigue.
I would suggest that you leave about 1-2 reps in the tank at the end of each set. You always want to finish your set with the last rep being executed with proper technique so that the muscle is receiving the proper stimulation for growth and in to prevent you from injuring yourself. Always finish your sets clean with proper technique. Since you’re training in the optimal range for muscle hypertrophy, you will experience amazing results. You’ll notice more muscle mass, drastic strength gains and you’ll feel good during the whole process.
Isolation exercises aren’t as fatiguing as compound exercises because they don’t cause as much systemic fatigue, but more local fatigue. They don’t often demand a lot of compression of the spine and therefore are less taxing on the body. However, I still advise you to do the same thing. While you’ll probably use higher reps on most isolation exercises, I still recommend that you finish your sets with proper technique and leave 1-2 rep in the tank. Isolation exercises such as curls and triceps extensions may aggravate some people’s joints and tendons when taken to failure. I’ve noticed in my own body and have received feedback from clients that leaving 1 rep in the tank has massively improved tendonitis or joint stress, since often times they have to strain their tendons and joints to squeeze out that final rep to failure. By finishing with clean form and not overstraining tendons or irritating joints, you’ll not only feel and perform better, but you’ll stay in the game for the long haul. You want to lift for the rest of your life and be in amazing shape till the day you leave this earth. This is only possibly by training hard, but smart.
Take my advice to heart because it will serve you well. I’ve met so many old school body builders and there are two camps. The ones who trained balls to the wall making their brains explode on every set and the ones who performed hard sets but always used good form and ended each set with a little gas in the tank (stopping +- 1-2 reps shy of failure). Those who executed every set till failure with grueling grinders at the end for years on end don’t train anymore and are constantly in pain due to beat up joints and tendons. Those who trained hard but smart, still train, are still in fantastic shape even in their old ages and don’t have the complaints of tendon or joint issues that the first ones do.
Train hard, but smart and leave some gas in the tank!
Kevin Mahjoubi