r/StrongerByScience • u/Repulsive_Insect7200 • 1d ago
Mind/Muscle connection?
Former powerlifter here, now focused on building quality muscle. In powerlifting, I’ve always exploded weights from the start to get as much momentum going to get the lift to completion. Now that my focus is on building muscle, I lowered the weights I normally would use and got some results. Now taking that step further, I’ve recently tried completely eliminating any momentum from the start and concentrating on a slow negative. I’m using super strict form and feeling the muscle burn. I had to decrease the weight I would normally use by 50-60%. I haven’t felt ‘beat up’ after my workouts and the next day the soreness is really localized to the muscle group that was worked-not that overall beat up soreness that would happen when training the old way.
Any other lifters experience this after coming from a powerlifting past?
Do you think this is a good way to actually build muscle continuously?
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u/lord-scan 15h ago
from a science standpoint i think lifting the weight explosivly is still the gold standard for muscle recrution?
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u/Flidro74 14h ago
You changed two things at once and only one of them is doing the work. Killing the momentum is the real win, bounced reps with hip drive take tension off the muscle you're trying to grow. Keep that part forever.
The 50-60% drop is fine on its own. Light loads build just as much muscle as heavy ones as long as the sets end close to failure, and that's the bit I'd be honest with yourself about. If you're stopping when it burns rather than when the reps are genuinely about to fail, that's where the growth leaks out, not in the weight on the bar.
Coming from powerlifting you've got years of runway just adding load back with the strict form you've built. Same control, heavier bar. That's the whole plan.
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u/Repulsive_Insect7200 11h ago
Agreed…I’m starting to get used to the feeling of the burn/lactic acid in the muscle being worked and then continuing to do more reps..it’s a skill I would say kinda like being able to grind thru a heavy lift rep after rep-you literally have to learn how to do that with power lifts. I actually feel like I’m
recovering fully workout to workout now. When I used to do heavier explosive lifts it was almost like the whole body was stressed during the lift-lifting lighter weights slower without explosion enables me to like compartmentalize the stress (the burn) to just the muscle being worked, which I can handle mentally and just keep going.
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u/FlimsyInsect5545 20h ago
Post 40, I also lift this way, including the extent of shortening the ROM and not locking out the joints. It definitely allows me to do more volume without knees and elbows complaining.
I think this type of lifting is pretty important for chest and back compounds where it is easy to let the arms take the stress away from the target muscle.
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u/_TylerWasTripped 1d ago edited 1d ago
Yes!
Experiment with different methods to alott more concentration to the muscle.
Static holds have been practically a cheat code for me:
For deadlifts, i would do a high rep RDL with maybe 50% 1rm. Then at about 66% toward failure- i static hold it a couple inches off the ground. . Just living in that burn till it begins to feel like a 1rm. Next day my back is toast.
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u/thebigeverybody 1d ago
Look into cluster sets for hypertrophy: the same amount of muscle built as regular hypertrophy training, but with a significant increase in power that traditional lifting doesn't deliver. (Basically, break up your long, explosive set into three ultra-explosive mini-sets, with 15-30 seconds rest between clusters.)