Whether you take short breaks between reps or not, your body adapts by lifting heavier weights at about the same rate—as long as you’re pushing yourself to near failure each set.
Scientific Claim
In resistance-trained individuals, load progression over 8 weeks is similar between cluster sets and traditional sets when intensity is controlled by repetitions in reserve (RIR), indicating that perceived effort, not set structure, governs adaptive load increases.
Original Statement
“No statistically significant differences (p > 0.05) were found between conditions in any session for either the leg extension or leg press exercises. [...] The progressive increase in loads was maintained with higher repetition ranges in the traditional group, 12 repetitions. However, in the 4-rep ranges, the increase in load diminished...”
Evidence Quality Assessment
Claim Status
overstated
Study Design Support
Design supports claim
Appropriate Language Strength
association
Can only show association/correlation
Assessment Explanation
The claim implies a causal mechanism ('governs adaptive load increases'), but the study only observes similar progression patterns without testing causality. Randomization is unconfirmed, so association is the only valid inference.
More Accurate Statement
“In resistance-trained individuals, load progression over 8 weeks is associated with similar patterns between cluster sets and traditional sets when intensity is controlled by repetitions in reserve (RIR), indicating that perceived effort, not set structure, may govern adaptive load increases.”
Evidence from Studies
Supporting (1)
Cluster sets and traditional sets elicit similar muscular hypertrophy: a volume and effort-matched study in resistance-trained individuals
The study found that when people lifted weights with the same level of effort (measured by how close they were to failure), both types of set styles led to similar strength gains — meaning it’s how hard you feel you’re working, not how you structure your sets, that matters most.