The Study
Low-Load Resistance Training to Volitional Failure Induces Muscle Hypertrophy Similar to Volume-Matched, Velocity Fatigue
This study compared two ways of lifting light weights and found they made muscles grow about the same — but only in young guys who don’t lift much. It doesn’t prove one way is better than the other for everyone, just that in this small group, both worked similarly.
Analysis score
Maximum 90 for a randomized controlled trial.
Where the score came from
This study tested if lifting light weights until you're tired makes your muscles grow just as much as lifting heavy weights — and found yes, for size, but no for strength.
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 560 / 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 — if you want bigger muscles without heavy weights, light weights to fatigue work just as well.
- 2But if you want to get stronger (lift heavier), you still need heavy weights.
- 3Light weights (40% max) to failure: muscles grew same as heavy weights (80% max).
- 4Strength increased 6–11 kg with light weights vs.
- 515 kg with heavy.
- 6Endurance improved 355–578 kg with light weights vs.
- 7177 kg with heavy.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
Year
2020
Authors
Kentaro Terada, N. Kikuchi, D. Burt, S. Voisin, K. Nakazato
Related Content
Videos (2)
Claims (7)
After 8 weeks of training, young men who lift lighter weights to exhaustion improve their muscular endurance more than those who lift heavier weights.
In young men who have not trained before, lifting light weights until they slow down by 20% builds the same amount of muscle and improves endurance just as much as lifting until they can no longer complete a repetition.
When you lift weights and your muscles get bigger temporarily (that's called the 'pump'), that doesn't actually tell you if your muscles will grow bigger for real over time. Scientists found that muscles that swell a lot right after exercise don't always end up growing the most.
Scientists aren't sure if the temporary muscle puffiness you get after working out is a good sign that your muscles will actually grow bigger over time. It might work for some muscle groups but not others, so we need more studies to figure this out.
In young, untrained men, performing resistance training with light weights to muscle fatigue twice a week for eight weeks results in the same increase in muscle size of the chest and triceps as training with heavy weights.
After one session of light-weight resistance training, young untrained men experience more muscle swelling and higher blood lactate levels than after heavy-weight training, but these short-term changes do not predict how much muscle they will gain over time.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.