Researchers say that for the average person just looking to improve their fitness level, exhausting weight training is not necessary. AP file
LONDON — As the old exercise adage goes, no pain, no gain. But how much pain do you have to endure to reap the benefits of weight training? It depends on what you’re trying to accomplish, fitness experts say.
For years, some trainers have told gym goers that to get the best results, they need to train “to failure,” or until they are physically unable to do one more repetition or exercise. I’ve been teaching. However, some recent studies suggest that this extreme therapy, when applied to weight training, may only benefit certain people.
“People who want to gain as much muscle mass as possible should consider training to failure,” says Michael Zourdos, director of exercise science and health promotion at Florida Atlantic University and co-author of the 55 study review. speaks. Papers on this topic have been published in sports medicine journals.
Zourdos et al. found that lifting weights “to failure” can make your muscles bigger, but is not necessary to increase strength. He said people who work hard but don’t push themselves to the point of exhaustion are still likely to improve their health and fitness. “There’s a difference between training for health and training for elite performance,” he says.
For the average person simply looking to improve their fitness level, Zurdos says it’s much easier to get results. He said people who work out regularly will benefit from intensive sessions with five to 10 failures, rather than training to complete exhaustion.
He also notes that “training failures” often come with a price, and those who train to that standard may end up missing the next gym session or two because they’re tired or sore. He also said it was for a reason.
In very rare cases, overdoing it can be harmful and lead to a fatal condition called rhabdomyolysis, where the damaged muscles begin to break down and can cause kidney damage.
James Fisher, a sports science expert and consultant from Southampton, UK, said the idea of working to complete exhaustion could be repulsive to many people.
“What we’re really talking about is how hard you should work when you go to the gym,” he said, adding that the concept can be interpreted to mean that the harder you work, the less time you spend in the gym. He added that he should.
“If you don’t have time, you can push yourself harder so you don’t have to work out as long,” he said.
Fischer explained that to increase strength, it’s important to build your muscles up to a certain threshold.
“Lifting a weight that you could easily lift 10 times or more is not putting enough effort into it,” he said. “Increasing the weight so that you feel the right stiffness on the ninth and 10th repetitions will benefit your muscle fibers.”
Still, Fisher said the best workouts are ultimately “the ones that people actually do,” no matter how hard they push themselves. He said that to improve overall health, strength training is probably the best thing people can do for health, quality of life and longevity.
Whatever your fitness goals, Fisher said you can incorporate the concept of failure training into your workouts. Afterwards, you should rest the muscle groups you trained for about two days, he said.
For experienced people, experts recommend saving failure training for occasional workouts or the last set of exercises in a session.
“Not everyone can use it every time they work out,” Fisher says. “This is a difficult exercise method.”
