Time under tension (TUT) is a concept that has been introduced previously in the training community. Still, it has gained traction recently among those seeking to target specific muscle groups by increasing the total time under tension.
Time under tension is defined as the time the focused muscle group feels strain while working with resistance.
What Difference Does Time Under Tension Make?
The main reason for training is to challenge the muscles being trained, breaking down the fibers to enable the muscles to recover, grow, and become stronger.
Exercises with very light resistance and low reps don’t benefit muscles much, whereas TUT forces the muscles to work in ways they are not used to for a longer duration to recruit more muscles overall—an ideal scenario for bodybuilders.
Because blood vessels are condensed and muscles are deprived of oxygen during the set, there is an anabolic environment that allows the muscles a more significant opportunity to recover and improve once the recovery process starts when the training session ends.
Increased TUT leads to a better-looking and stronger physique.
Ways to Increase Time Under Tension (TUT)
Here are some TUT strategies to challenge your muscles:
Do More Reps
At average rep speed, fifteen reps will keep the muscles under tension longer than ten reps, adding overall volume and not allowing the muscles to relax longer. The tension is higher and increases hypertrophy, which improves endurance.
However, only force yourself to do reps with a weight you can lift. If lifting 100 pounds for ten reps with good form is where you currently are, trying to perform five more with lousy form won’t help. Instead, reduce the weight slightly if you want to do more reps.
Hold the Rep at the Top and Bottom
Because bodybuilders and physique athletes have to display several poses, the muscles are under tension a lot throughout the show. To master this practice, hold the weight when the muscles are flexed at the end of the concentric (positive) portion of the rep.
Holding this position for a few seconds longer than a normal rep, sets the muscles up to be held longer during poses and could give the muscles a more dense, thick, and harder look.
To improve the overall health of the muscle, holding a rep at the bottom (negative) can increase the stretch while the muscle is challenged the most. It’s only necessary to hold this for a few seconds but a few extra seconds could improve strength, endurance, mobility, and hypertrophy.
Now, the effectiveness of holding the rep at the bottom is debated nowadays, you can watch the video down below as an example. I personally would recommend a very slow eccentric lift instead.
Slowing down the eccentric movement, increases time under pressure considerably, makes the reps harder, and allows the time extension of the portion of the exercise responsible for muscle growth.
As an added bonus, because reps become harder, you will need less weight to complete your usual workouts and still get the same or better results. Less weight equals less stress on the joints, and a less likelihood of injury.
Change the Speed of the Reps
Instead of doing reps at an average pace, slow them down to take 6, 8, or 10 seconds or longer. For example, a ten-second rep can be broken down.
Use four seconds to lift the weight, one second to hold the weight at the top, another four seconds to lower the weight, and the last second to hold the weight with the muscle in the stretched position.
Partial Reps
If you cannot complete total reps, time under tension can be increased by doing partial reps. For example, if after 20 lateral raises and 20 reps, you reach positive failure and can’t complete another full rep with proper form, lifting the weight from the bottom to the halfway point still challenges the muscles and keeps.
Partial reps should be performed until the form fails and other muscles need to be recruited, as TUT will no longer be effective.
Forced Reps
Suppose bigger muscles are an additional goal to getting stronger. In that case, a spotter should be sought to help lift once you reach the maximum achievable reps.
After the maximum doable rep, for example five, lower the weight on your own to your chest, doing the work yourself on the negative, then let the spotter help lift the weight back up to the top. This should be repeated until the spotter has to do more lifting than necessary.
The Time under tension methods can be incorporated into workouts until the results you want are achieved.
Simon Turner is a former Obstacle Workout features writer and writes regularly on sports, fitness and adventure for Probody.
