Looking Into the Exercise Spot

As you get started to go about your weight lifting workout routine, one thing that you must not be sure to overlook is the tempo that you're utilizing. Many people put a lot of attention into the specific exercises that they choose to perform, the number of sets they complete per exercise, the rep range that is utilized, and how long they rest between sets but then completely overlook the element of tempo.

If you want to see maximum success from your workout, whether your goal is to build muscle or lose fat, tempo is a must to look after.

Let's take a quick look at what you should know about tempo with regards to your workout routine.

What Is Tempo

First off, it's important to understand what tempo actually refers to. Tempo essentially means how fast you move throughout an exercise. For instance, in each weight lifting movement, you have three total components. You have the first part of the exercise which is often referred to as the concentric portion where the muscle tissue is shortening or contracting, you have the pause at the top of the movement where you take a short rest, and then you have the lengthening of the muscle fibers as you go about the third portion of the exercise, also referred to as the concentric portion of the action.

These three phases together make up the full movement pattern of the exercise and tempo refers to how fast you move throughout them.

While the standard tempo typically is somewhere around 2 seconds to raise, no rest at the top or a one second brief pause and then another two seconds to lower, there are cases where you want to vary this.

Why Slow Tempo Down?

The first such case is where you want to slow the tempo down. You can do this in three ways. First, you could increase the total time spend during the first half of the movement, second you could increase the time spend during the second half, or third, you could increase the time spent at the pause at the top.

Increasing the time spend in both the initial and final components of the exercise is going to increase the total time under tension the muscle is under for that particular rep, therefore increasing the volume that's placed on the muscle cells.

When you're looking for good muscle growth rates, this can be an incredibly beneficial thing to do.

Alternatively, increasing the pause at the top helps to prevent any momentum from helping you through the action, so this ensures that it is just the muscle fibers that are doing all of the work.

Why Speed Tempo Up?

When should you consider speeding up the tempo? Using a faster initial component tempo is great for those who are looking to develop maximum power. Since power is a function of force over time, the faster you move through that first contraction phase while still lifting a heavy weight, the more power you're able to generate.

Athletes who want to improve their sports performance will definitely benefit from this method of training.

So there you have the important things to know about tempo. While a 2:1:2 or 2:0:2 tempo is most common, don't be afraid to adjust this to something like 1:1:3, 3:1:3, or 2:2:2 for variety sake and to promote certain fitness benefits.

About the Author:

Dana Jafferman hits the gym regularly. When she overdoes it, she uses a DPL Therapy System to ease the aches and pains. Learn more about effective exercise at the leading Pilates information blog from Pilates Supply.

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