The Study
Time course of recovery following resistance training leading or not to failure
This study compared different ways of lifting weights and saw that going all the way to muscle failure made people feel more tired the next day. It didn't prove that failure is bad for everyone, just that in these 10 guys, it took longer to bounce back.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
When you lift weights until you can't do another rep, your body gets more tired and takes longer to bounce back—even if you do the same total amount of work as someone who stops before failure.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 559 / 100
Quality score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. The gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1Yes—this means athletes who avoid training to failure can train again sooner without being too tired, improving performance in back-to-back sessions or competitions.
- 2Training to failure made jump height and movement speed drop more and take 24–48 hours longer to recover than training without failure, even when both groups did the same total reps.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
European Journal of Applied Physiology
Year
2017
Authors
R. Morán-Navarro, C. E. Pérez, R. Mora‐Rodriguez, E. Cruz-Sánchez, J. González-Badillo, L. Sánchez-medina, J. Pallarés
Related Content
Videos (1)
Claims (6)
When people train to muscular failure, their bodies take longer to recover than when they train without reaching failure, even if the total amount of work done is the same.
When resistance-trained men train until muscle failure, compared to stopping before failure with the same total workload, their muscle performance drops more and takes 24 to 48 hours longer to recover, specifically in movement speed and jump height.
In trained men, lifting weights until muscle failure causes higher and longer-lasting increases in creatine kinase and ammonia levels than lifting to the same total volume without reaching failure, resulting in extended recovery time beyond 24 hours.
In trained men, lifting with heavier effort close to failure causes more muscle fatigue and longer recovery time than lifting with lighter effort, even when the total amount of weight lifted is the same.
When people train to muscle failure, their ability to move quickly under load and jump high recovers more slowly than when they train without reaching failure, even if the total amount of work is the same.
When people lift weights until they cannot complete another repetition, their bodies produce more growth hormone and ammonia during and immediately after the workout than when they stop before failure, even if the total amount of work is the same.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.