USING TEMPO IN YOUR TRAINING
You may have heard of “tempo work” in your training prior to today, but perhaps you've yet to utilize it in your own workouts. Tempo, or time spent under tension, is something we use at Level TEN - often to help clients not only gain strength, but improve control in their exercises.
So what is tempo? Tempo is the speed at which you perform a repetition of a given exercise. This is also sometimes referred to as TUT or Time Under Tension. You’ll see them used interchangeably.
THE 4 PARTS OF A REPETITION
A typical repetition is broken down into four parts:
The eccentric, or lowering phase of an exercise
The pause between the lowering and raising phase of an exercise (pause in the lengthened position)
The concentric, or raising phase of an exercise
The pause before the next repetition is started (pause in the shortened / raised position)
These four parts make up the expression of tempo in a given exercise. Let’s go over an example:
Back Squat 4x8-10 (2110)
The 2-1-1-0 represents the four phases of the exercise as listed above, in seconds.
2: 2 seconds to lower from top to bottom of the squat
1: 1 second pause in the bottom of the squat
1: 1 second to raise from the bottom of the squat back to the starting position
0: 0 seconds before starting your next repetition of the back squat
Now here’s where things get confusing. Not all exercises start with the eccentric, or lowering phase. For example, a Barbell Overhead Press starts with the concentric, or raising phase. So let’s review what that looks like:
BB Overhead Press 4x8-10 (2110)
2: 2 seconds to lower from the top of the press back to the starting position
1: 1 second pause at the top of the press
1: 1 second to raise from the starting position to the top
0: 0 seconds before starting your next repetition of the overhead press
So written, it is exactly the same as the back squat, but in performing the exercise, it will be out of order, or would be 1120 (press, pause, 2 second eccentric, 0 seconds before next repetition). You see where the confusion comes in.
The main thing to always remember is that first list which indicates that your four numbers represent eccentric, pause, concentric, pause. If you keep that in mind, you’ll never miss the mark on your tempo again.
SO, WHAT'S THE WHY AND THE HOW?
So what’s the why?
Improved overall strength, hypertrophy, and work capacity
Improved control in movement patterns
Less likely to have injuries occur
Continue to improve in the gym without a continuous need for increase in load
Now–how do you implement tempo work if you have never done it before? The two easiest ways to start adding in tempo work are:
A slower down than up tempo, or a 2010/20X0. Instead of dropping to the bottom of a squat, or just allowing the weight to fall back to it’s starting position, you will add control.
A pause between eccentric and concentric. This can be a pause back squat, a pause bench press, a pause at the top of a pull-up.
You can simply add these into your compound movements for a cycle and see how much your form, control, and strength improves.
Another way to implement tempo is to start with a much longer time under tension, and reduce the time under tension over a block. For example:
Week 1: 4 seconds eccentric, or 4011
Week 2: 3 seconds eccentric, or 3011
Week 3: 2 seconds eccentric, or 2011
Week 4: 1 second eccentric (normal speed), or 1011
You could keep your rep scheme exactly the same for four weeks, and still see marked improvement due to the decrease in time under tension.
A FEW OTHER TEMPO TECHNIQUES TO UTILIZE…
Constant tension: 2121 or 2020 (For example, a goblet squat to increase muscular endurance in the legs could be 10-12 reps at a 2020, which means continuous movement without a pause)
Long duration eccentrics at light loads: 60X1 (Using that same squat example, you would take 6 seconds to get to the bottom and then focus on an explosive drive upwards.) You would do less reps here and still be able to get in :45-60s of working time. This could also work for something like eccentric pull-ups or push-ups.
Low to High Time Under Tension: Similar to what was listed above, starting with little to no time under tension (i.e. a 20X1) and increasing to a 50X1. Using the same weight, if you can over time go from a low to high tension, you are going to see a marked increased in strength and work capacity in the muscles worked.
UNTIL NEXT TIME - COACH SHELBY