TRAINING WITH TEMPO

newsletter Apr 13, 2023

Training with Tempo

By Eric Bugera

Time under tension misunderstood.

Tempo is the intentional manipulation of the time spent during each phase of a repetition.

Tempo can be applied to both strength and hypertrophy training to bring up deficits and allow skilled development of a movement.

Assure an appropriate load is selected such that the targeted tissues are still receiving an adequate stimulus with a slower repetition speed.

What Is Tempo?

Training with tempo means that you’re intentionally employing a specific speed for each phase of a repetition. This includes a predetermined amount of time spent during the eccentric and concentric phases with the option of placing strategic pauses at the end of the eccentric phase. While there may be different annotations floating around depending on where you see tempo written, a common way of interpreting it within programming is eccentric-pause-concentric-pause/reset; for example, a tempo squat may read 3-1-1-1 – a three second descent, a one second pause, a normal speed concentric, and about a second of rest between each repetition.

Why Use Tempo?

Tempo can be used for a few different purposes. In strength training it is an effective tool to inoculate a lifter to new exercises or train positions that might be weaker within the grand scheme of a movement pattern.

For example, if you are working on a barbell squat and the prime movers of the hips and quadriceps are quite developed but the torso lags behind, tempo can help normalize these two components. An intentful pace of each repetition can reduce the weight of the bar for the torso to still receive a safe yet stimulating challenge. Meanwhile, the legs are constrained by having to move with a specific pace that they would be incapable of performing with a full load meant to challenge them more directly. This way the lifter is better able to develop full body strength and coordination within the exercise with a simple route of progression (slowly decreasing tempo restrictions) built in over time.

The same can be implemented for many hypertrophy-based exercises. The skill acquisition component of any exercise amplifies the effectiveness it can confer over time. By constraining load for the immediate term and spending time perfecting the skilled execution of an exercise, a partial (see: sub-optimal) hypertrophy stimulus can be applied to the muscle as it will still approach some semblance of proximity to failure; however, the same strategy of weekly reduction in applied tempo can be used to increase the runway of progression. Week over week increases in skill and reductions of rate limiting stabilizer strength converge upon a non-tempo version of the same exercise, where maximal effort sets can then work their way back into the program until progressions cease.

It should be noted that tempo is not an arbitrary reduction in repetition speed. It is still paired with the overarching goal of challenging a muscle or group of muscles within the set being performed. It does limit load for a short period of time and elongate the lifespan of any exercise, but it is not designed to slow repetition without applying significant stimulus along the way. The key involved in any form of adaptation is the effort required by whichever muscle is the true target of tempo – be it a stabilizer during a more multi-joint movement pattern such as a squat or an isolated exercise such as a biceps curl. The targeted muscle(s) should still be stimulated by the repetitions.

Make It Count

Tempo can be an extremely powerful tool for teaching a lifter how to control all ranges of motion, develop weaker components of a lift, and extend the lifespan of a program with extremely straight-forward progression options. Tempo shouldn’t be used without an accompanying level of challenge, and you can easily go overboard with reductions in repetition speed. Keep things no slower than 3–4 seconds on the eccentric (with extremely strategic employment of concentric tempo) for the best results.

Choose a compound exercise to apply a modest tempo to within your own training.
Choose an isolation exercise to apply a modest tempo to within your own training.
Compare how each exercise is different from its non-tempo variation – develop an understanding of how and where it might be best applied within future programming.