Training to Fatigue: The Answer for Standardization When Assessing Muscle Hypertrophy?
Abstract
Studies examining resistance training are of importance given that increasing or maintaining muscle mass aids in the prevention or attenuation of chronic disease. Within the literature, it is common practice to administer a set number of target repetitions to be completed by all individuals (i.e. 3 sets of 10) while setting the load relative to each individual's predetermined strength level (usually a one-repetition maximum). This is done under the assumption that all individuals are receiving a similar stimulus upon completing the protocol, but this does not take into account individual variability with regard to how fatiguing the protocol actually is. Another limitation that exists within the current literature is the reporting of exercise volume in absolute or relative terms that are not truly replicable as they are both load-dependent and will differ based on the number of repetitions individuals can complete at a given relative load. Given that the level of fatigue caused by an exercise protocol is a good indicator of its hypertrophic potential, the most appropriate way to ensure all individuals are given a common stimulus is to prescribe exercise to volitional fatigue. While some authors commonly employ this practice, others still prescribe an arbitrary number of repetitions, which may lead to unfair comparisons between exercise protocols. The purpose of this opinion piece is to provide evidence for the need to standardize studies examining muscle hypertrophy. In our opinion, one way in which this can be accomplished is by prescribing all sets to volitional fatigue.
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The inclusion of experimental studies using repetitions until volitional failure is based on ensuring that a similar stressful stimulus was undertaken by all participants in the resistance training programs.
“The inclusion of experimental studies using repetitions until volitional failure is based on ensuring that a similar stressful stimulus was undertaken by all participants in the resistance training programs (57).”
From Resistance training load effects on muscle hypertrophy and strength gain: systematic review and network meta-analysis. (2021) · cites this paper as [57]
Performing resistance training until volitional failure is one way to eliminate a large amount of individual variability related to between-subject endurance capacity and ensures methodological feasibility when comparing different resistance training loads.
“Although performing resistance training until volitional failure is one way to eliminate a large amount of individual variability related to between-subject endurance capacity (i.e., individuals who are able to complete different numbers of repetitions at a given relative load) and ensures methodological feasibility when comparing different resistance training loads (57)”
From Resistance training load effects on muscle hypertrophy and strength gain: systematic review and network meta-analysis. (2021) · cites this paper as [57]
Exercising until volitional failure was the strategy required to compare the efficacy of different resistance training load protocols.
“it was the strategy required to compare the efficacy of different resistance training load protocols (57).”
From Resistance training load effects on muscle hypertrophy and strength gain: systematic review and network meta-analysis. (2021) · cites this paper as [57]
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- Authors
- Dankel, S. J., Jessee, M. B., Mattocks, K. T., Mouser, J. G., Counts, B. R., Buckner, S. L., & Loenneke, J. P.
- Affiliations
- University of Mississippi (US)
- Corresponding author
- Loenneke, Jeremy P.
- ORCID
- Venue
- Sports Medicine
- Published
- 2016-09-28
- Volume
- 47
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 1021-1027
- ISSN
- 0112-1642 (ISSN-L)
- 1179-2035
- OpenAlex
- W2527180838
- Cited by
- 115
- References
- 12
- Citations by year
- 2026: 9 · 2025: 12 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 8
- FWCI
- 15.81
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Sports Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Sports Performance and Training
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Muscle metabolism and nutrition
- Keywords
- resistance training, muscle hypertrophy, volitional fatigue, training standardization, exercise volume, one-repetition maximum, interindividual variability
- MeSH terms
- Humans, Hypertrophy, Muscle, Skeletal, Muscle Fatigue, Muscle Strength, Resistance Training
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