“The Rhythm Is Gonna Get You”: Weightlifting Tempo

In the words of Gloria Estefan “The Rhythm is Gonna Get You” especially during weightlifting. Your weightlifting Tempo can dramatically change your workouts and increase your performance and muscle mass. I see gym goers just speeding through their workout not even concentrating on the muscles they are working. Don’t waste your previous time you spend in the gym, think about your tempo.

Repetition speed is a very important factor into weightlifting. Often times this is overlooked by the average gym goer. The tempo or rhythm that you lift can actually increase performance, explosiveness, and muscles definition. Tempo during weightlifting is the rhythm that you move the weight. The rhythm includes the rest time at the top of your lift and the the return of the weight at the end of your lift.

So first let’s discuss some basic weightlifting terminology.

• Eccentric/Negative: Movement that lengthens a muscle at the same time it is being contracted. While performing a basic bicep curl the eccentric movement would be when you are lowering the weight back down.
• Concentric: Movement when the muscle shortens while producing force (contracting the muscle). When performing a bicep curl the concentric movement would be when you are raising the weight up.
• Time Under Tension (TUT): The amount of time a muscle is held under tension or strain during and exercise set.

There are many tempo types of workouts. Some of the more experienced bodybuilders will have a much more detailed weightlifting tempo plan like a Time Under Tension (TUT) but for the sake of this blog and my viewers I’m going to mainly discuss the basics that I enjoy. Partly because during these times of COVID we might not all have access to the gym (I still don’t), and because I write my blog not to confuse or add more planning to your workouts.

Remember this: If you boost the intensity of your training you’ll boost your gains, but boost the intensity and the weight being used, you can double your chances of boosting your gains.

So let’s dig right in shall we?

Eccentric Training also known as negative training is my go-to type of tempo training. Although, some might not consider this actual tempo training I think it’s important to note. Eccentric training is much more demanding on the muscles and therefore it fatigues muscles quickly which allows for more growth. So now you can see why I added it in.

Eccentric training would consist on lowering the weights very slowly to get the maximum benefit from lifting the weight. allowing for a count of 4-5 seconds lowering the weight is often a good eccentric rep. The slower you lower the weight, the more stimulation of the muscles.

You don’t need to dedicate your entire training program to eccentric training. You can simply add eccentric training to the last few reps of every set of movements you do. Or, add a few extra eccentric reps to each movement. Changing up your workouts is important! playing around with tempo can help go from explosive movements (less time in the negative zone and a faster tempo) to building more muscle and strength (adding more time in the negative zone and a slower tempo).

Once you start working on the negative training or the eccentric movements you’ll find yourself getting stronger because the fibers of your muscles will become bigger. Eccentric training is a great way to torch your muscles and it my favorite type of training tempo! Eccentric training will also help with strength and endurance. If your goal is to become powerful and explosive, working at a faster tempo will help build those fast twitch muscles.

For those in the back: Whatever tempo you decide remember if you boost the intensity (tempo and rep scheme) of your training you’ll boost your gains, but boost the intensity and the weight being used, you can double your chances of boosting your gains.

Next time you lift, think about your tempo, are you just rushing through the movements or are you concentrating on each fiber in your muscles? Think about the time you spend lifting and what movements you are doing. Changing up the tempo is also a great way to increase the intensity of your workout if you have limited weights or equipment.

Happy lifting!