It seems no matter how many times people hear certain advice, they quickly forget the importance of following it. At least I assume that’s why most people who strength train only follow the slow and controlled protocol when their trainer is watching.

Also most people are trying to get through their workouts as quickly as possible so long-lasting reps aren’t really a priority. I know this because I occasionally have to fight my own urges to throw form out the window and allow momentum to power me through a hard set.

But I know deep down that if I’m not doing my reps right I might as well not be doing them at all. I want my body to be strong, but I also want to work the right muscles and maintain good posture. And I don’t want to risk an injury by swinging weights around instead of controlling them.

Take your time to lower the weight.

So here’s the deal. Most of the time you should be lifting and lowering weights slowly, especially if you are relatively new to resistance training. About two seconds for the beginning part of the movement (the concentric contraction)  and four seconds to bring the weight back to the starting position (the eccentric contraction). That means two seconds to curl a dumbbell up with your bicep and four seconds to lower it back down.

If you really want to speed your workout up, try cutting down on the amount of time you rest between exercises instead.

A word of warning – the slower you go the less weight you’ll be able to lift. But that’s a good thing because you’ll know your muscles are actually strong enough to handle it. So start slowing down for faster results.

crystals muscle building, resistance training, working out strength training, working out