Why lifting heavy beats moving fast for strength and speed
Velocity Specific Adaptations to Three Widely Used Strength Training Methods: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
This study tested three ways to train the bench press: lifting super heavy, lifting moderate weight many times, or doing fast throws with light weight.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 548 / 90
Evidence Score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a healthcare professional. Terms
This study tested three ways to train the bench press: lifting super heavy, lifting moderate weight many times, or doing fast throws with light weight.
No biological mechanisms were identified in this study. This may be an epidemiological, observational, or survey-based study that reports associations rather than proposing causal biological pathways.
Systematic Reviews & Meta-Analyses
Max 100Randomized Controlled Trials
Max 90Cohort Studies
Max 72Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional Studies
Max 44Case Reports & Case Series
Max 30Expert Opinion & Narrative Reviews
Max 548 / 90
Evidence Score
Participants are randomly assigned to treatment or control groups, minimizing bias. Considered the gold standard for testing whether an intervention causes an effect.
Publication
Authors
Trane G, Pedersen S, Mehus HA, Helgerud J, Unhjem RJ
Related Content
Claims (10)
Increases in strength are mainly due to changes in how the nervous system activates muscles, while increases in muscle size are mainly due to the total amount of training performed within a repetition range of 4 to 30 reps.
When lifting weights until nearly exhausted, the amount of muscle growth is similar whether you use fewer repetitions with heavier weights or more repetitions with lighter weights.
For beginners lifting weights, gaining strength is about the same whether they use heavier weights with fewer reps or lighter weights with more reps, as long as the total amount of work done is equal.
Muscle growth occurs when muscles are subjected to mechanical tension during resistance training, and this tension can be created by lifting heavy weights for few repetitions or moderate weights for many repetitions, as long as the set is taken close to the point of inability to continue.
In moderately trained adults, performing explosive bench press throws at 40% of maximum strength does not lead to better gains in movement speed at the same load compared to other types of training focused on strength or muscle growth, even though the explosive movements are fast.