Is Tempo good for muscle building? how effective is tempo training?

You have already set your training sessions, your number of exercises, sets and repetitions. But if you could go further in your training? Execution tempo in bodybuilding is about how you will perform your reps in order to get the most out of each one in your program. This is the best way to progress andgain musclequickly. (Is Tempo good for muscle building?)

By increasing or decreasing your contractions or stretches by a few seconds during a movement, it can change everything for your muscles. This article will explain what tempo is in bodybuilding, how to set it up according to your goals and for what advantages.

In this article, Niketrainers.com.co will tell you:

What is execution tempo in bodybuilding?

The tempo in bodybuilding is simply the time in seconds during which you will perform your movement. As a movement is broken down into several phases, the tempo is presented in a codified way. Here is how the “universal” 2-0-1-0 tempo breaks down:

The first number represents the “negative” or “eccentric” phase of the movement. You will thus take 2 seconds to lower the bar to the bench press for example.
The second number represents the pause time at the bottom of themovement. In this case, it is zero.
The third number represents the “positive” or “concentric” phase of the movement. The number 1 corresponds to the time taken to raise the bar.
The last number represents the pause time at the top of the movement.

The 2-0-1-0 tempo is generally the one most practiced in the weight room: a barely controlled descent and a normal ascent.

How will tempo in bodybuilding help me progress?

The tempo in bodybuilding is only rarely exploited, the number of repetitions taking precedence over the rest. Except that thinking about the timing during the movement makes it possible to work the muscles more deeply if the tempo is slow and to lose morefatif the tempo is fast.

If you compare two people doing the same exercise with the same weight, the person who does more reps without considering the tempo looks stronger than the one who breaks down the movement well. In reality, it is completely the opposite. The execution time of the exercise will be longer for the one who uses the tempo so even if she does less repetition, she will have worked the same load longer.

Bodybuilding tempo at the service of the three main factors of muscle growth

For an athlete, the three biggest muscle growth factors are:

mechanical tension
metabolic stress
muscle damage

These 3 factors are drastically influenced by the execution tempo chosen during your weight training sessions.

Mechanical tempo and tension

The mechanical tension is the intensity of the force that the muscle will produce during a series. It is for this reason that it is generally recommended to perform sets with loads that can be manipulated for 5-10 reps and that sets of 15-20-30 reps are considered too light to stimulate this path ofgrowth . muscle.

The execution tempo can then make it possible to increase the mechanical tension and therefore the productivity on a series.

The eccentric phase

The eccentric phase is the moment of the movement when the load exceeds the force produced by the muscle: it therefore manages to overcome its resistance and pushes the limits of the body. In a bench press, this is when the bar comes down. And people who do this descent very quickly have muscles that produce almost no tension to hold the bar.

And that’s a shame because mechanical tension is the number one factor in muscle growth. We must therefore slow down this descent to create it. Thus, controlling the descent for 2 to 3 seconds on polyarticular movements is a good compromise.

The concentric phase

The concentric phase is the moment of the movement when the force produced by the muscle overcomes theload: the body therefore manages to repel it. This is when the bar rises during the bench press.

It is true that the rise is slowed down, the biceps will contract more. This means that the muscle hardly produces more force than the load it has to overcome. In reality, it is the opposite that must be provoked. The faster the bar is raised, the more voltage above the load is produced.

It is for this reason that the speed of the ascent decreases as the repetitions progress, or when you approach your maximum, because the muscle is almost no longer able to overcome the resistance.

Thus, the optimal choice to increase the mechanical stress would be a normal ascent speed: one second in classic tempo or a maximum speed intention called X.

However, be sure to have perfect control of the movement before increasing the speed of the ascent.

Bodybuilding Tempo and Metabolic Stress

What is time under tension?

It is simply the length of time the muscles are under stress. In other words, it is the time the muscles contract during a set.

In order to maximize it, it is recommended to avoid pauses with lockedjoints .By stopping in the ascent just before this moment, the muscles remain under tension.

How to increase metabolic stress?

The intense and long effort will produce many metabolic waste products. The key here is to maintain constant muscle tension to prevent the veins from evacuating blood while the arteries continue to supply it.

This strategy allows for significant congestion due to the accumulation of blood in the muscles as well as an intense burning sensation caused by the accumulation of lactic acid. In other words, it is necessary to produce an intense effort, for a long time, while relaxing the muscularcontraction as little as possible.

Here are 3 solutions to increase metabolic stress:

Increase the number of repetitions, maintaining a normal execution tempo, to make the effort last longer while maintaining muscle tension.
Increase the time under tension of his series without increasing his number of repetitions. This can be done in particular by increasing the time of the negative phase or the rise. Thus, “slow” execution tempos, such as 4-0-1-0 or 2-0-2-0, can be used to produce significant metabolic stress with shorter reps.
A third alternative consists in adding isometry phases, in particular on the movements where the tension is maximum at the end of the movement. Thus, it is quite possible to use a 2-0-1-2 tempo. The added benefit is to improve the recruitment of certain muscles that you struggle to feel during movement.

Tempo and muscle damage

Muscle damage is a pretty self-explanatory mechanic. Muscle damage must be inflicted to initiate the signal for muscle rebuilding.

Here are several ways to shock your muscles:

Increase training volume.
Change your exercise selection to ones you are unfamiliar with.
Work the muscles under a wide range of motion.
Maintain astretchingposition . The correct tempo to start is 1-3-1-0.
Slow down the eccentric phase of the movement. The correct tempo to start is 2-0-3-0.

Specific cases of tempo in bodybuilding

The tempo of execution in bodybuilding is also very important in certain cases:

Beginner: A 2-0-2-0 tempo is also advantageous, as it will allow you to concentrate the work on the muscles, the technique of execution and the stabilization of the joints.
Young athlete: it is extremely interesting to start with a tempo of the type 2-0-1-0 or 2-0-2-0. The joints are particularly fragile before maturity.
Older athlete: the same execution tempo can prevent injury from a certain age.
Return frominjury: A 2-0-2-0 or even 3-0-3-0 execution tempo can allow you to return to training more quickly after an injury by reducing the stress on your joints.
Joint Strengthening: A 3-0-1-0 type tempo is particularly good for strengthening the joints, as the accentuation of the eccentric phase will strengthen the connective tissues. This strategy can be put to use later in the sessions, when it’s time to push harder.

In summary on the tempo of execution in bodybuilding

If you want to develop your muscles more, bet on the execution tempo during your weight training sessions. Whatever your goals, working on the contraction, pause, and stretch seconds of a movement will only be beneficial forbuilding muscle mass. But take into account your age and your current physical condition before leaving on tempos that do not suit you.

However, be sure to calculate which tempo to increase if you want to shock your muscles or cause metabolic stress or even create mechanical tension. Get closer to a coach so that he can guide you in your first times and then the time in bodybuilding will have no more secrets for you!