30 Seconds Summary
New research on training to failure

  • New research by Carroll et al. (2018, 2019) compares effects of training to failure among well-trained individuals, mainly American football players with an average of 8 years of lifting experience.
  • Previous studies, focusing on untrained individuals, showed that training to failure added significant fatigue but little muscle growth or strength development.
  • In this study, participants were split into two groups with identical workout programs except for one variable: one group trained to failure (RM group), while the other trained at 65-92.5% of maximum effort (RI group).
  • Results indicated that the RI group, which did not train to failure, experienced significant improvements in strength and muscle mass across all measures.
  • Conversely, the RM group training to failure showed worse overall results, with many measures not reaching statistical significance and higher reported training strain and effort.
  • The study supports previous findings that training to failure, especially in high-volume programs, causes excessive fatigue and minimal extra benefits, making it less effective and potentially harmful.
WorkoutWiseWorkoutWiseWorkoutWise

Track & Plan Workouts
with Ease

  • Unlimited workout logs
  • Automatic volume tracking
  • Personalized programs
  • RPE support, rest timer, and more!
Download for Free
WorkoutWise Screenshot

Read Next

Failure is an Option

Training to failure in every workout may be sabotaging your fitness goals. Learn to balance your training program intensity for long-term growth.

Biolayne

Andrew Pardue

Read Summary in 30 Seconds

Interview: Your most burning questions answered

Steve Hall from the Revive Stronger podcast asked his audience what they most wanted to know from me. In this podcast, I answer the most popular questions. You can see the timestamps below for some of the topics we discussed. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj-bTPzSPKo 00:00 Intro and update on Menn…

MennoHenselmans.com

Menno Henselmans

Read Summary in 30 Seconds

Training to Failure, or Just Training to Fail?

Training to failure is seen as the ticket to muscle by some, and to others, an unmanageable stimulus sure to end in injury. So what role should it play?

Stronger By Science

Dan Ogborn

Read Summary in 30 Seconds

To Failure or Not to Failure – That is the Question

Is repping to failure really the answer to more muscle mass? Read on to learn why pain is not always gain!

Biolayne

Andrew Rothermel

Read Summary in 30 Seconds

Old school training

OldSchoolTraining interviewed me about training frequency, compound vs. isolation exercises, the powerlifts for bodybuilding, training to failure, BCAAs, ketogenic dieting and carbs as workout nutrition.Read the full interview in English (Italian translation below) here.

MennoHenselmans.com

Menno Henselmans

Read Summary in 30 Seconds