“No pain, no gain” is an old English proverb. This means that you have to struggle and work hard in order to succeed or progress.
This expression is now often used to encourage people to train or exercise harder for positive effects.
But how much pain does weight training require? According to fitness experts, the answer depends on what you’re trying to gain.
For years, some trainers have been telling people that they need to train “to failure” to get the best results.
“Training to failure” means training until you can’t do it one more time. repetition. However, some recent research suggests that training “to failure” with weights may only work for some people.
“People who want to gain as much muscle mass as possible should consider training to failure,” said Michael Zourdos of Florida Atlantic University.
Zourdos co-authored a review of 55 research papers on the subject in scientific publications sports medicine.
With Zurdos colleague It turns out that lifting weights “to failure” can help you build bigger muscles. However, such training is not necessary to increase muscle strength. He said people who exercise hard but don’t push themselves too hard. Exhaustedyet may improve their health and fitness. “There is a difference between training for health and training for health. elite performance advantage” he said.
For the average person simply looking to improve their fitness level, Zurdos says it’s much easier to get results. He explained that people who work out regularly benefit from intensive sessions that involve five to 10 failures.
He also said that “failure training” often comes at a price. People who train to failure may be so tired and sore that they skip the next workout or two.
In rare cases, very difficult training can even be harmful. One example is a condition called rhabdomyolysis, where damaged muscles begin to break down and can cause damage to the kidneys.
James Fisher is a sports science expert and advisor from Southampton, UK. He said many people are not interested in the idea of working until they are completely exhausted.
“What we’re really talking about is how hard you should work when you go to college. Gym” he said.
Fisher added that this idea should be understood to mean that people can spend less time at the gym if they work hard.
“If you don’t have time, you can push yourself harder so you don’t have to work out as long,” he said.
Fisher explained that to increase strength, you need to build your muscles to a certain level.
“Lifting a weight that you can easily lift 10 times or more is not a good enough effort,” he said. “Now, on the 9th and 10th reps, let’s increase the weight so that it feels…harder. It will benefit the muscles…”
Still, Fisher said the best workouts are “the ones that people actually do,” regardless of how hard they push themselves. He said strength training is probably the best thing people can do for their health, quality of life, and well-being. longevity.
No matter your fitness goals, Fisher said you can incorporate the idea of failure training into your workouts. Afterwards, you should rest the muscle groups you trained for about two days, he said.
For experienced people, experts suggest saving failure training for some workouts, or for the last set of exercises in the session.
“Not everyone can use it every time they work out,” Fisher says. “This is a difficult exercise method.”
I’m John Russell.
Maria Chen reported the story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for VOA Learning English.
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words of this story
repetition –n. A movement or exercise that is repeated and usually counted (such as push-ups, squats, pull-ups, etc.)
colleague –n. colleague or expert
Exhausted –n. The act or process of using up all your energy. an act or process that uses all of the muscular capacity
elite — adjective. Excellent quality and technology.
advantage –n. good or helpful result or effect
Gym — yeah. A space with equipment for weight training and aerobic exercise.
longevity — yeah. length of life
