Maximizing Muscle Growth: Understanding 'Tempo Training' and 'Time Under Tension'

Have you ever wondered how fast or slow you should be completing each rep of an exercise? This is where we can manipulate our training tempo and Time Under Tension…

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Tempo training/training tempo in relation to resistance training is the speed at which you complete a single repetition of an exercise. We can modify our training tempo for different exercises to manipulate the amount of stress our muscles are under during a specific exercise.

When we are strength training, we use tempo to tell us how quickly or slowly we should perform each phase of an exercise.

Below is an example of how tempo is written and what each number represents:

An example of using this tempo for a squat goes as follows:

4 - 4 seconds to lower the weight

0 - 0 seconds pause at the bottom

1 - 1 second to lift the weight back to the starting position

0 - 0 seconds pause at the top, before the next rep

So how does tempo training relate to Time Under Tension?

“Time Under Tension” (TUT) specifically describes the amount of time your muscles are under tension (contraction) while you complete an entire working set. So to get our Time Under the Tension of an exercise - we multiply the training tempo by the amount of repetitions in a set.

So using the above example, if we did a set of 10 squats at a 4010 training tempo, we know a single repetition takes 5 seconds (4+0+1+0 = 5 seconds), then we multiply this number by 10 repetitions (5x10 = 50). This means our muscles are under tension for 50 seconds, in other words, Time Under Tension = 50 seconds per working set of this exercise.

I know these terms may sound a little confusing at first, but they are great tools to use in order to take your training to the next level.

If you are a beginner in the gym, I would recommend just completing any exercise with a steady tempo, not worrying about an exact speed. Your main focus should be your technique and performing the movement safely at a pace that you can do! Once the correct form becomes muscle memory, you can then start to focus more on the speed at which you are completing an exercise. So, ensure you are completing an exercise with proper form before you start to play around with tempo training.

If you do change up your training tempo, keep in mind that you may need to adjust the weight accordingly. A change in tempo may mean a slight decrease in weight till you get the hang of the speed at which you complete that exercise. After that, you can safely increase your weights again and further challenge the muscles.

Always be smart when training to avoid injury. Don’t ego lift! If you feel like your form is failing, drop a little lighter and complete the exercise safely with the correct form.

Try utilising different training tempos and changing up the amount of Time Under Tension your muscles are under during an exercise. It can be a great way to overload the muscles progressively!