The Study
Do exercise‐induced increases in muscle size contribute to strength in resistance‐trained individuals?
This study watched two groups of people lift weights differently and saw what happened to their muscles and strength. It didn't prove that one way causes more strength — it just showed what tended to happen. So we can say the two methods were similar, but we can't say one made the other happen.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
Two groups of trained people lifted weights differently: one did one super-heavy lift, the other did several lighter lifts. Both got equally strong, but the lighter-weight group grew bigger muscles.
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 553 / 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.
- 1Even though one group got much bigger muscles, they didn’t get stronger than the other group — meaning bigger muscles don’t always mean more strength.
- 2Both groups gained the same strength (difference: 0.72 kg).
- 3The lighter-weight group grew muscles 0.14–0.17 cm thicker.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Clinical Physiology and Functional Imaging
Year
2021
Authors
S. Buckner, Noam Yitzchaki, Ryo Kataoka, Ecaterina Vasenina, Wenyuan Zhu, Tayla E. Kuehne, J. Loenneke
Related Content
Claims (5)
Among people who regularly lift weights, performing multiple sets of exercises at 70% of their maximum strength leads to larger increases in muscle thickness compared to performing only one maximal repetition set over eight weeks, with measurable differences of 0.14 to 0.17 centimeters across muscle sites.
In people who regularly train with weights, the growth of the biceps muscle at three different points along its length changes in the same way across different training methods.
Among people who regularly lift weights, training with one-repetition maximum loads produces the same amount of strength gain over four weeks as traditional training methods.
After building muscle, people who do four weeks of strength training gain the same amount of strength whether they had more or less muscle before.
Among people trained in resistance exercise, performing one maximal repetition per set for eight weeks leads to the same increase in maximum strength as performing multiple sets at 70% of maximum strength, even though the multiple-set routine results in greater muscle thickness.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.