The Study
Does Performing Different Resistance Exercises for the Same Muscle Group Induce Non-homogeneous Hypertrophy?
This study gives us a clue that switching up exercises might help muscles grow more evenly, but it doesn’t prove it for sure. It only looked at a small group of young men who weren’t in shape, so we can’t say if it works for everyone.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
Some guys did the same leg and arm exercises every time, while others changed them up. After 9 weeks, they checked if muscles grew evenly from top to bottom.
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 546 / 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.
- 1Changing exercises might help muscles grow more evenly and boost growth in areas that don’t respond to the same routine.
- 2The group that changed exercises had muscle growth in all areas.
- 3The group that did the same exercises didn’t grow much in the middle of the thigh or top of the arm.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
International Journal of Sports Medicine
Year
2021
Authors
Bruna Costa, Witalo Kassiano, J. Nunes, Gabriel Kunevaliki, Pâmela Castro-e-Souza, A. Rodacki, L. T. Cyrino, E. Cyrino, L. Fortes
Related Content
Claims (4)
If you mix up your workouts for the same muscle, you’ll grow that muscle more evenly than if you always do the same exercise.
If you mix up your strength workouts for the same muscle, it might help it grow more evenly from top to bottom, especially if you haven’t been training for a while.
If young guys who used to work out take a break and then do the same strength exercises over and over for about two months, some parts of their muscles might not grow much — especially on the side of the thigh and upper arm — which means doing the same routine might not help all muscles grow equally.
If you switch up your leg exercises during a workout routine, you might build more muscle in certain parts of your thigh—like the upper side—compared to sticking with the same moves.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.