Lifting weights until you can't do any more reps doesn't make you stronger than stopping a few reps short, according to a big review of studies.

When people lift weights without pushing to their absolute limit, they actually get stronger faster than if they push to failure, as long as the total amount of lifting isn't the same. This comes from a big review of studies on adults.

Lifting weights until you can't do any more reps makes your muscles grow bigger than lifting weights without pushing to your limit, based on a big review of studies.

When young adults train really hard until they can’t do another rep, it doesn’t matter whether they’re working their arms, legs, or doing squats vs. bench presses — the results for muscle growth and strength stay pretty much the same.

If you lift weights without pushing yourself to total exhaustion, you might get stronger faster—especially if you end up doing more total lifts overall compared to people who do go all the way to failure.

You don’t have to push yourself to the absolute limit during strength training to get stronger—studies show you can make similar gains even if you stop a few reps short.