Weight or range of motion?
About range of motion…
If you don’t have any joint limitations, you can and SHOULD use the maximum range of motion!! And what is range of motion???
Maximum movement
It is the maximum movement performed by a joint within its morphological limits, without creating a RISK OF INJURY!
Less weight
And why use a FULL range of motion? Because this increases motor unit recruitment and allows you to use your muscles more efficiently…
Not to mention that this approach increases the intensity of your workout and, as we know, intense workouts produce better responses for muscle hypertrophy! Do you use the correct range of motion in your workouts?
Always pay attention to tempo and range of motion
Don’t know the tempo of your exercises? You should—and you should have that information on hand…
Remember that weight training is about more than simply pulling or pushing weights at random!
According to several studies, contraction times close to 60 seconds, with repetitions lasting between 4 and 6 seconds—in other words, measured in seconds—are ideal for designing hypertrophy workouts. However, we have plenty of ways to vary these training stimuli.
Movement tempo as a variable is more important than simply increasing the “weight,” since an indiscriminate increase in load can affect your range of motion and compromise proper exercise form. In extreme cases, it can lead to unwanted injuries.
It can be prescribed as 1010, 2020, 3010, etc.
For example: 4020. The number 4 represents the seconds for the eccentric phase, the number 0 represents the transition between phases, and the number 2 represents the seconds for the concentric phase. The fourth number also represents a transition phase before the first number.
You take three seconds to push the platform up… and without pausing, you bring it back down, taking another three seconds to lower the platform toward your body… and without stopping, start again until you complete the prescribed repetitions.
