Everyone Thinks I'm Wrong About Training

Summary

In this video, the presenter challenges the prevailing belief that the stretched part of a lift is more important for muscle growth, especially for experienced lifters. They conduct a study comparing full range of motion with lengthened partials in highly trained individuals. The study finds no significant difference in muscle growth between the two methods, suggesting that both approaches are effective. This challenges the notion that stretch-focused training is superior for advanced lifters, and the presenter incorporates these findings into their own training.

Takeaways

• 📏 Lengthened partials, where the muscle is stretched but not fully contracted, have been a growing focus in training, especially in the science-based lifting community.
• 🤔 The skepticism around lengthened partials stems from the fact that many studies showing its benefits have been done on untrained or beginner lifters.
• 🔬 To test the theory in experienced lifters, a study was conducted with participants who had an average of 4.9 years of lifting experience.
• 💪 In this study, participants trained one side of their body using full range of motion and the other side with lengthened partials for eight weeks.
• 📊 Results of the study showed no statistically significant difference in muscle growth between the full range of motion and lengthened partials.
• 🧐 While some expected lengthened partials to outperform, the findings suggest both approaches are similarly effective, even for experienced lifters.
• 🧠 The unilateral study design helped eliminate genetic variations, as each participant acted as their own control, making the results more reliable.
• 🔍 The study found that even though the stretch might be important for hypertrophy, exclusive focus on it doesn't lead to significantly superior gains.
• 🔄 Despite the null result, some experts still believe that lengthened partials may be slightly more effective, especially for certain muscles like calves and hamstrings.
• 📱 The study used the MacroFactor app to track participants' nutrition, showcasing the importance of controlling diet alongside training for optimal results.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the video script?

The main topic of the video script is the effectiveness of 'lengthened partials' in resistance training for muscle growth, particularly in experienced lifters.

What are the three criteria the speaker uses to evaluate exercises?

The speaker uses high tension, high stretch, and the potential for muscle growth as the three criteria to evaluate exercises.

What is the difference between full range of motion and partial range of motion?

Full range of motion involves moving through the complete range from the starting position to the finishing position, while partial range of motion involves performing the exercise through only a part of that range.

What is meant by 'lengthened partials' in the context of the script?

'Lengthened partials' refers to performing partial repetitions where the muscle is in a more lengthened or stretched position for a greater portion of the movement.

Why did the speaker feel it was necessary to conduct a study on range of motion in experienced trainees?

The speaker felt it was necessary to conduct a study because previous studies suggesting the benefits of stretch for muscle growth were mostly on untrained or beginner lifters, and there was a lack of research on well-trained subjects.

How was the study designed to ensure accurate results?

The study used a within-subject unilateral design where each subject served as their own control, training one side of their body with full range of motion and the other side with lengthened partials.

What was the duration of the study?

The study lasted for 8 weeks.

How did the participants train during the study?

Each participant trained one side of their body with full range of motion and the other side with lengthened partials, doing four sets for each exercise with a mix of moderate and higher rep ranges, pushing to muscular failure.

What method was used to measure muscle growth at the end of the study?

Ultrasound imaging was used to measure muscle growth on the side that performed full range of motion and the side that performed lengthened partials.

What were the final results of the study?

The final results showed no statistically significant difference in muscle growth between the full range of motion and the lengthened partials.

How does the speaker suggest interpreting the results of the study?

The speaker suggests that one could interpret the results to mean that lengthened partials do not provide additional benefits over full range of motion, or that one can achieve similar gains with half the range of motion as long as it's in the stretched position.

What is the speaker's current stance on including lengthened partials in a training program after the study?

The speaker has become more convinced of the value of lengthened partials in a training program, incorporating them more into his own training despite the study's null results.

Outlines

00:00

💪 The Stretch Debate: Why It's a Big Deal in Lifting

The narrator discusses the controversy surrounding the importance of the stretched part of the lift in strength training. While many have claimed that the stretched phase is crucial for muscle growth, not everyone agrees. The narrator highlights how some science-based fitness creators are overly fixated on the stretch, emphasizing that this approach might not be the miracle solution for hypertrophy. Much of the supporting evidence for this emphasis comes from studies on beginner lifters, raising concerns about whether these findings are applicable to experienced lifters.

05:03

🔬 A New Study on Experienced Lifters and Range of Motion

To address skepticism about the stretch's effectiveness, the narrator embarks on a research study with a leading exercise science team. The study focuses on highly experienced trainees and compares full range of motion (ROM) versus lengthened partials (stretched phase only). The narrator explains the study design, where each participant trains one side of their body using full ROM and the other with lengthened partials. This approach eliminates the variability in genetics that can skew results in typical group studies. Participants push to muscular failure under close supervision, ensuring the integrity of the experiment.

10:04

🏋️ Inside the Lab: Training with Lengthened Partials

The narrator provides a tour of the training lab, explaining how participants perform the exercises. They emphasize proper technique even with partial reps, cautioning against the misconception that partials are 'cheat reps.' The same control over the negative and explosive positive motion applies. Dr. Wolf, an expert on range of motion, has been using lengthened partials exclusively for a year, with great results. Other experts in the field, such as Dr. Helms and Dr. Israetel, have also shown growing support for training in the stretched position, indicating a shift in the scientific community.

📊 The Results: Full Range of Motion vs. Lengthened Partials

After 8 weeks of intense training, the results of the study are revealed. Surprisingly, there was no statistically significant difference between full ROM and lengthened partials in terms of muscle growth. While the data initially seemed to favor full ROM slightly, random variation and other factors nullified any noticeable differences. The narrator reflects on the surprising outcome, noting that both methods can produce equivalent gains, which challenges previous assumptions about the superiority of full ROM for experienced lifters.

🤔 Implications of the Study and Lengthened Partials in Training

The study results lead the narrator to re-evaluate the role of lengthened partials. Despite the lack of a clear advantage over full ROM, they now incorporate lengthened partials into their own training, particularly for exercises where full ROM feels cumbersome. The data suggests that the stretch is important but not as game-changing as previously thought, especially for experienced lifters. Experts like Dr. Pack remain slightly more favorable toward lengthened partials but acknowledge that full ROM remains a valid and effective training approach, depending on personal preference and exercise choice.

Keywords

💡Stretch

Stretch refers to the elongated position of a muscle during an exercise. In the context of the video, it is suggested that the stretched part of a lift can be more important for muscle growth than the contracted part. The video discusses various studies and a new research experiment that compare muscle growth from exercises performed in a stretched position versus those in a full range of motion.

💡Contracted Part

The contracted part of a lift refers to the phase where the muscle is shortened or at its most contracted. The video script debates the relative importance of the stretched versus the contracted part of an exercise, with the presenter historically favoring the stretch for muscle growth.

💡Hypertrophy

Hypertrophy is the increase in muscle mass or size. The video's primary focus is on whether certain types of exercise (specifically, those emphasizing the stretched position) lead to greater hypertrophy compared to others. The study mentioned in the script aims to measure muscle growth, or hypertrophy, after subjects perform exercises with different ranges of motion.

💡Full Range of Motion (ROM)

Full Range of Motion (ROM) in exercise refers to moving through the complete available range from the starting position to the ending position and back. The video discusses a study comparing muscle growth from exercises performed with full ROM versus partial ROM, particularly focusing on the stretched phase.

💡Partial Range of Motion

Partial Range of Motion involves performing an exercise through only a part of its full range. The video script mentions 'shortened partials' and 'lengthened partials', with the latter being the focus of the study to determine if emphasizing the stretched phase (lengthened partials) leads to more muscle growth.

💡Sarir Addition

Sarir addition is a term mentioned in the script to describe the growth of muscle in length rather than in thickness. The video discusses a theory that the effectiveness of lengthened partials (stretch) might be due to sari addition, which is more common in beginners. The study aims to test this theory in experienced trainees.

💡Muscular Failure

Muscular failure refers to the point in an exercise set where one can no longer complete another repetition with proper form. The script mentions that subjects in the study were instructed to take every set to muscular failure, indicating the intensity and effort level required in the study.

💡Unilateral Design

Unilateral design in the context of the study means that each subject serves as their own control by training one side of their body with full ROM and the other side with lengthened partials. This approach helps to control for genetic differences between subjects and provides a more accurate comparison of the two training methods.

💡Ultrasound

Ultrasound is a non-invasive imaging technique used in the study to measure muscle growth. At the end of the 8-week training period, ultrasound measurements were taken to compare the muscle growth on the side trained with full ROM versus the side trained with lengthened partials.

💡Science-Based Lifting

Science-based lifting is an approach to exercise that relies on scientific research and evidence to guide training practices. The video script mentions 'science-based lifting' in the context of the presenter's own credibility and the need for empirical evidence to support claims about the effectiveness of different training methods.

💡Genetics

Genetics refers to the hereditary factors that influence an individual's physical traits, including muscle growth potential. The video script acknowledges the role of genetics in muscle growth and how it can affect the results of training studies, which is why a unilateral design was used to control for these variables.

Highlights

The speaker emphasizes the importance of the stretched part of a lift over the contracted part, a stance he's held for at least a year or two.

Many science-based lifting creators are now obsessed with the stretch, but the speaker warns that it might not be the 'Silver Bullet' for advanced gains.

Most studies referenced that show a benefit of the stretch have been conducted on beginners, casting doubt on their relevance to advanced lifters.

The speaker initiated the first-ever study on range of motion in highly experienced trainees to test if the stretch is truly beneficial for them.

Five studies comparing shortened partials to lengthened partials found that lengthened partials caused significantly more muscle growth in every case.

Five other studies comparing lengthened partials to a full range of motion found that lengthened partials caused more muscle growth in four out of five cases.

Skeptics argue that lengthened partials may only work for beginners due to 'sarcomere addition,' but this theory only applies to the early stages of training.

The speaker's study recruited participants with an average of 4.9 years of lifting experience to test the effectiveness of lengthened partials on advanced trainees.

In the study, each subject trained one side of their body with a full range of motion and the other side with lengthened partials for 8 weeks.

The study used a within-subject unilateral design to control for genetic variation, making each participant their own control.

After 8 weeks of intense, carefully monitored training, the results showed no statistically significant difference between full range of motion and lengthened partials.

The speaker notes that lengthened partials can provide the same gains as full range of motion, which challenges the long-standing belief that full ROM is superior.

The study convinced the speaker to include more lengthened partials in his own training, appreciating the potential for equivalent gains with less effort.

Despite the null results, the speaker believes the stretch is still the most important part of the range of motion for most muscles, though it doesn't 'supercharge' gains for advanced lifters.

The speaker concludes that both full range of motion and lengthened partials are effective for advanced trainees, with the choice depending on personal preference and exercise selection.

Transcripts

the internet thinks I'm wrong really

wrong and apparently it's a big deal

I've been on the record for at least the

last year or two saying that the

stretched part of the lift is more

important than the contracted part of a

lift if you watch me at all you've heard

me say this how does an exercise make it

into the top so I have three criteria

the first is high tension and high

stretch if I pull from here I'm getting

so much more of a lat stretch you're

going to get this big stretch here which

you'll be able to see I'm all on the

stretch wave these days but the thing is

not everyone agrees with science-based

lifting has lost the plot because

recently every science-based giant

creator has been obsessed with the

stretch you know this new wave of

training that everyone's in is the

stretch if you think that stretch me

hypertrophy is going to be the Silver

Bullet that gets you from making no

gains to being the next Ronnie Coleman

not the case and that's because most of

the studies that I've been referencing

that show a benefit of the stretch have

been on untrained lifters or beginners

that's not a huge deal but it was

starting to eat at me whenever I see a

video like that of Jeff Nipper i' listen

but I'd rather hear it Go Hard science

this science that science science

science partials bullsh they don't have

the significant stret people are going

to walk back all this stretch stuff in

years I was starting to worry that maybe

I was overhyping the stretch sure the

same mechanisms that drive muscle growth

in beginners should also apply to

experienced lifters but without a good

study on well-trained subjects it's hard

to say for sure so I only had one option

I needed to link up with the best

exercise science team in the world and

do the research we desperately need so I

flew to New York and kicked off the only

study that's ever been done on range of

motion in highly experienced trainees

first as I'm sure you all know full

range of motion is when you go all the

way up and all the way down partial

range of motion is when you don't use a

full range of motion and a lengthened

partial is when you use a partial range

of motion while the muscle is more

lengthened or stretched again whenever I

say shorten paral you should be thinking

big squeeze whenever I say lengthen

partials you should be thinking Big

Stretch now to get everyone up to speed

before starting our study in New York

there were five studies comparing

shortened partials to lengthen partials

lengthen partials caused significantly

more muscle growth every single time and

there were also five studies comparing

length and partials to a full range of

motion length and partials cause

significantly more muscle growth four

out of five times together this is

strong evidence that focusing on the

stret should cause the best gaze so why

are some people so skeptical well one

Theory the Skeptics have been saying is

that the only reason length and partials

seem to work so well is that they're

causing something called sarir addition

that's when your muscles grow bigger in

length rather than growing bigger in

thickness but the thing is ccir edition

only seems to happen in beginners after

a few months of training ccir Edition is

no longer possible therefore their

argument goes length and partials really

only work for new lifters so to to put

this argument to the test we recruited

participants with an average lifting

experience of 4.9 years like one of our

subjects literally looks exactly like a

young Mike Israel it's kind of insane

these guys and gals are not beginners

and this will show us if link and

partials really are best left for

newbies and their sarir Edition or if

they work on more advanced subjects too

here's how it'll work for the next 8

weeks each subject is going to train one

side of their body with a full range of

motion and the other side with length

and partials so when they do curls they

do one arm like this with a full ROM and

they'll do their other arm like this

staying the bottom half in the stretch

when they do pull Downs they'll hit one

side with a full ROM and then they'll

hit the other side with all lengthen

partials each subject is going to train

one half of their body with one of two

methods so one half of their body is

going to be full range of motion the

other half is going to be long length

partials only this is a really strong

study design the problem with the more

common study design of splitting

subjects into two groups groups is that

you run the risk of one of the subjects

and one of the groups having such

amazing genetics that it skews the

results one group might seem to be

better because of the way they were

training but really it was just because

they had a freak of nature driving the

average up we won't have that problem in

our study because by using the within

subject unilateral design each subject

serves as their own control and this is

the full training program they'll be

running they'll be doing four sets for

each exercise with a mixture of a

moderate rep range and a slightly higher

rep range and in case you're worried

about them not pushing their sets hard

enough each each subject was told to

take every set to muscular failure plus

we had a team of researchers watching

them every set we are pushing

participants hard everyone I've spoken

to in the study said they were training

harder in the study than outside the

study one more let's go go more again

again finish it finish it stay upright

just your arm just your arm finish it

let's go control pause again pull no

break go

pull that's it for the people who will

say that science based lifters don't

train hard I guarantee you in this study

they do and then after 8 weeks we're

going to use ultrasound to measure which

side builds more muscle the side doing

length and partials or the side doing

full range of motion all right let me

show you around the lab who this is the

lab where the subjects are going to be

training we've got Smith machine power

rack a few benches bunch of dumbbells

got the leg press over here seated calf

machine seated leg curl got lap pull

down got a free motion cable over here

and then just some strength testing

equipment and that sort of stuff over

there at the start of the study we

showed all the subjects how to do

lengthen partials we told them that it's

really important that you still control

the negative a lot of people think of

partial reps as cheat reps so they just

let their form go loose and do these

Herky jerky bouncy fast reps but all the

same technique instructions for full

range of motion reps still apply to

partial reps so you still control the

negative you still do a slight pause in

the full stretch and you still use an

explosive positive a lot of people when

I say partial reps they just start

it and it's like no it's the same exact

technique you'd use on full range of

motion just cut the range of motion in

half Dr Wolf here is one of the world's

leading experts on the topic of range of

motion and based on the accumulating

evidence he's actually been doing

lengthen partials exclusively for the

last year that's crazy he hasn't done a

single full range of motion rep in over

a year and I've got to be honest his

physique is looking great especially as

quads holy crap but he's not the only

one excited about the prospect of La

muscle Lings Dr Eric hel someone known

for being a skeptic and a late adopter

has expressed optimism recently as well

why is range of motion better well it's

probably because it includes these

longer muscle legs we're losing some

stretch on the lat so how do we account

for that I simply angle it instead I'm

reaching around my rib cage I'm actually

getting stretch on the laat and Dr Mike

isrel someone who's literally made full

range of motion in entire division of

his online brand has also embraced the

idea that the stretch most likely

matters the most on the net aggregate of

muscle hypertrophy should just still be

biasing the majority of your training

into lengthened position yes so with

these leaders from the scientific

Community behind us we started our study

and for the next 8 weeks all 30 subjects

just followed the plan every person did

a full range of motion on one side and

lengthen partials on the other side and

after a really intense carefully

monitored 8 weeks of training the

results were

in so it's been 3 months since I was in

New York the results are in and we

finally have an answer to the question

of whether or not lengthen partials work

well for experienced trainees I however

do not know the answer of that question

yet because I told everyone else in the

research group to not let me know the

results until everything is done and all

the statistics have been crunched I

don't know why I'm a little bit nervous

this experiment was a lot of work I'm

going to hop on a call with Dr pack and

Dr Wolf and they're going to share with

me everything that we found hey hey hey

what's up boys have you guys seen me

since I cut my hair no I was to say okay

I got I got the buzz cut going who's the

Polish hooligan so I asked Dr pack and

Dr Wolf to present the findings to me on

a graph so here on the Whiteboard you

can see that on the y- AIS is muscle

growth and on the x-axis are the two

conditions so the full R side and the

length and partial side let's do it the

hype you're legit hyped I actually am

hey I care about this stuff who range of

motion let's see it

6.6% brain lifters 8 weeks show me the

[Music]

money okay so I mean I is it 5.9 is it

safe to assume that is basically the

same no difference just to be clear

statistically this is no difference if

you just look at the graph you might

think maybe full range of motion did a

bit bit better but it didn't I mean this

is what the graph looked like for the

biceps here it definitely looks like

length and partials came in on top but

no there was no statistically

significant difference here either

that's because you need to account for

random variation genetics measurement

error Etc and so if the difference isn't

big enough you just can't score it as an

actual difference all right so of all

the possible outcomes I didn't know what

to make of this at first but having sat

with the data for a while now I think

you can look at it two ways you could

say that length imp partials didn't work

any better than full range of motion so

if you love doing a full range of motion

go for it or you could say that you can

get the same gains as full range of

motion by doing half reps as long as

they're in the stretched half if you

were to come to me two years ago and say

you had one group that did half Reps for

their whole training program and you had

another group that did full range of

motion who do you think saw a better

growth I would be like well obviously

full range of motion but now what we've

essentially found is that group's doing

half rep

on every exercise for their entirety of

their program were able to get

equivalent gains to the group doing full

range of motion oddly enough the study

did convince me that lengthen partials

are worth doing and I've actually been

including them more in my own training

since our study that's because if I can

get the same results with half the range

that's pretty sweet on some exercises

doing a full range of motion feels a lot

harder or it's more annoying so why go

through that extra pain of doing the

full squeeze if it's most likely not

giving you any extra gauges think about

it according to our study even when the

subjects completely cut out the squeeze

on every single exercise they still made

the same gains so the squeeze just can't

matter that much for muscle growth if it

did we'd have seen significantly more

growth with full ROM but we did that

said I do think this study will temper

some of the expectations around the

stretch while I do still think that the

stretch is the most important part of

the range of motion at least for most

muscles focusing on it exclusively

doesn't seem to supercharge your gains

at least not in experienced subjects do

you feel like that with this study you

would walk back your enthusiasm for

lengthen training or do you feel even

more enthusiastic about length and

training I would say a single study

should only shift Your Enthusiasm by so

much and in this case with the results

being null meaning no difference in

hypertrophy between four range of motion

like imp partials it shifts my prior

stance by a slight amount towards the

effect being smaller than before I do

still think if I had to bet what causes

more growth for a beginner for an

advanced lifter what have you I would

still bet on L partials not by a huge

margin but I would still bet on it I

think it also depends on the specific

exercises because you know depending on

the exercises you're doing I think maybe

you would see a benefit with length and

training so yes if you're skipping the

stretch I do think you're missing out on

some Gams but there's a lot of Wiggle

run if you're an experienced trainee and

you prefer training with a full range of

motion that is clearly an effective

approach if you prefer to do half reps

that'll work at least just as well as

long as you do them in the stretch T if

if you consider all the other studies on

new lifters you could easily still make

the case that length and partials may be

more optimal than a full range of motion

for some muscles especially muscles like

the calvs and hamstrings where those

other studies testing those muscles

found bigger results I also want to give

a quick shout out to my nutrition app

macro Factor we gave free access to all

the subjects in the study so they could

log their nutrition while in the study

the app uses science-based algorithms to

update your nutrition each week based on

changes to your unique metabolism over

time we've got over 100 0,000 users and

we've had some absolutely incredible

Transformations from people using the

app and if you'd like to try it out for

yourself for free you can get a free

twoe trial if you download the app in

the app store and use code Jeff and I'll

put a QR code up here on screen to that

and also link it in the description box

down below thanks guys I'll see you all

here in the next

one length and partials

all right that's enough of that