After doing bicep curls 24 times over 12 weeks, women’s upper arm muscles got noticeably thicker, no matter which way they did the curls.

Scientific Claim

Muscle thickness of the elbow flexors in young women increased significantly after 24 sessions of resistance training performed over 12 weeks, regardless of whether drop-set or traditional protocols were used.

Original Statement

“There was a significant increase in all MT measurements between T0 and T1 for the training groups (p<0.05).”

From study:Drop set versus traditional strength training protocols equated in volume on muscle thickness in women

Evidence Quality Assessment

Claim Status

overstated

Study Design Support

Design cannot support claim

Appropriate Language Strength

association

Can only show association/correlation

Assessment Explanation

The abstract does not confirm randomization or control for confounders, so 'increased' implies causation. 'Associated with increase' is more appropriate.

More Accurate Statement

“Muscle thickness of the elbow flexors in young women is associated with a significant increase after 24 sessions of resistance training performed over 12 weeks, regardless of whether drop-set or traditional protocols were used.”

Evidence from Studies

Supporting (1)

Drop set versus traditional strength training protocols equated in volume on muscle thickness in women

Randomized Controlled Trial

Human

The study found that both types of weight training—drop-set and regular—made young women’s biceps thicker after 12 weeks, and neither was better than the other.

Contradicting (0)

No contradicting evidence found

Source Study

Drop set versus traditional strength training protocols equated in volume on muscle thickness in women

Score: 38

DOI: 10.47197/retos.v61.100701

Similar Assertions

After 12 weeks of training with the same total workload, neither method made the biceps noticeably thicker than the other.

92%

Women who did any kind of upper-body strength training ended up with thicker biceps than women who didn’t train their upper body at all.

89%

Doing bicep curls with two different methods—either lowering the weight gradually or keeping it heavy—both made the upper arm muscles thicker in young women after 12 weeks of training.

86%

Doing regular weightlifting reps with full rest between sets builds a tiny bit more arm muscle than doing drop sets on a smart machine, but the difference is so small it doesn’t really matter in real life.

81%

Both ways of lifting weights — regular sets and drop sets — make your biceps and forearms a little bigger after 10 weeks, by about 2%.

80%