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Effects of Low- vs. High-Load Resistance Training on Muscle Strength and Hypertrophy in Well-Trained Men
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of low- versus high-load resistance training (RT) on muscular adaptations in well-trained subjects. Eighteen young men experienced in RT were matched according to baseline strength and then randomly assigned to 1 of 2 experimental groups: a low-load RT routine (LL) where 25-35 repetitions were performed per set per exercise (n = 9) or a high-load RT routine (HL) where 8-12 repetitions were performed per set per exercise (n = 9). During each session, subjects in both groups performed 3 sets of 7 different exercises representing all major muscles. Training was performed 3 times per week on nonconsecutive days, for a total of 8 weeks. Both HL and LL conditions produced significant increases in thickness of the elbow flexors (5.3 vs. 8.6%, respectively), elbow extensors (6.0 vs. 5.2%, respectively), and quadriceps femoris (9.3 vs. 9.5%, respectively), with no significant differences noted between groups. Improvements in back squat strength were significantly greater for HL compared with LL (19.6 vs. 8.8%, respectively), and there was a trend for greater increases in 1 repetition maximum (1RM) bench press (6.5 vs. 2.0%, respectively). Upper body muscle endurance (assessed by the bench press at 50% 1RM to failure) improved to a greater extent in LL compared with HL (16.6 vs. -1.2%, respectively). These findings indicate that both HL and LL training to failure can elicit significant increases in muscle hypertrophy among well-trained young men; however, HL training is superior for maximizing strength adaptations.
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“Research into resistance training variables shows that load, volume, frequency, and rest intervals, influence the amount of skeletal muscle hypertrophy induced [33–35].”
From Effects of Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy on Fat Mass and Glucose Homeostasis in Humans and Animals: A Narrative Review with Systematic Literature Search (2025) · cites this paper as [33]
In the citing paper
“Both high-load (> 60% of one-repetition maximum, 1RM) and low-load (< 60% 1RM) protocols can induce hypertrophy of a similar magnitude [33].”
From Effects of Skeletal Muscle Hypertrophy on Fat Mass and Glucose Homeostasis in Humans and Animals: A Narrative Review with Systematic Literature Search (2025) · cites this paper as [33]
In the citing paper
“Even resistance-trained individuals show increases in strength when training with very light loads, albeit to a lesser extent than with the use of heavy loads [16,17].”
From Loading recommendations for muscle strength, hypertrophy, and local endurance: a re-examination of the repetition continuum. (2021) · cites this paper as [17]
In the citing paper
“For example, our group [17] reported similar increases in muscle thickness of the biceps, triceps and quadriceps between moderate- (~10RM) and light- (~30RM) loads in a cohort of resistance-trained men performing a total body RT program over 8 weeks.”
From Loading recommendations for muscle strength, hypertrophy, and local endurance: a re-examination of the repetition continuum. (2021) · cites this paper as [17]
Citations
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“Early-phase RT strength adaptations are predominantly related to improvements in the ability of the nervous system to efficiently activate and coordinate muscles, whereas the role of hypertrophy for strength becomes increasingly more relevant as one gains experience (51,54).”
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Schoenfeld, B. J., Grgic, J., Ogborn, D., & Krieger, J. W. (2017) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002200 · Cited by 851
“(42) Young trained men (n = 18) High load: 3 3 8–12RM 1-0-2 for both groups No 8 wks; 33 Bench press, barbell military press, wide grip pulldowns, seated cable row, barbell back squat, machine leg press, and machine knee Ultrasound Significant preintervention to postintervention increases in muscle thickness in both g…”
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Adaptations to Endurance and Strength TrainingPreprint
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BackgroundVigotsky, A. D., Halperin, I., Lehman, G. J., Trajano, G. S., & Vieira, T. M. (2018) · Frontiers in Physiology · doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.00985 · Cited by 503
Morton, R. W., Oikawa, S. Y., Wavell, C. G., Mazara, N., McGlory, C., Quadrilatero, J., Baechler, B. L., Baker, S. K., & Phillips, S. M. (2016) · Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00154.2016 · Cited by 404
“Recognizing the high interindividual response variability in hypertrophy and strength gain that occurs with RT (13, 27, 28, 48), we conducted the study with a large enough number of participants to allow detection of a 15% difference in hypertrophy via muscle fiber cross-sectional area (CSA) change and a 10% differenc…”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialLOPEZ, P., RADAELLI, R., TAAFFE, D. R., NEWTON, R. U., GALVÃO, D. A., TRAJANO, G. S., TEODORO, J. L., KRAEMER, W. J., HÄKKINEN, K., & PINTO, R. S. (2021) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/mss.0000000000002585 · Cited by 340
“The concerns in muscle hypertrophy assessment were mainly due to the randomisation process as studies did not report concealment allocation (some concerns: 23 of 24 studies (3-7, 32-40, 43-50, 53), 95.”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialSchoenfeld, B. J., Grgic, J., Van Every, D. W., & Plotkin, D. L. (2021) · Sports · doi:10.3390/sports9020032 · Cited by 334
“Even resistance-trained individuals show increases in strength when training with very light loads, albeit to a lesser extent than with the use of heavy lo ds [16,17].”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialSelf-citationResistance Training Volume Enhances Muscle Hypertrophy but Not Strength in Trained Men
Schoenfeld, B. J., Contreras, B. M., Krieger, J. W., Grgić, J., Delcastillo, K., Belliard, R., & Alto, A. (2018) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/mss.0000000000001764 · Cited by 372
Self-citationSchoenfeld, B. J., Ogborn, D., & Krieger, J. W. (2016) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-016-0543-8 · Cited by 308
“Although the rate of muscle growth is attenuated in those with resistance training experience, well-trained subjects nevertheless can achieve significant hypertrophic increases when a novel overload stimulus is applied over time [4, 5].”
BackgroundSelf-citationKrzysztofik, M., Wilk, M., Wojdała, G., & Gołaś, A. (2019) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph16244897 · Cited by 329
“[11] indicate that both low-load RT (≤60% 1RM) performed to volitional fatigue and moderate-load RT (>60% 1RM) elicit significant increases in muscle hypertrophy among well-trained young men.”
BackgroundHelms, E. R., Cronin, J., Storey, A., & Zourdos, M. C. (2016) · Strength & Conditioning Journal · doi:10.1519/ssc.0000000000000218 · Cited by 280
Oranchuk, D. J., Storey, A. G., Nelson, A. R., & Cronin, J. B. (2019) · Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports · doi:10.1111/sms.13375 · Cited by 210
Comparison of Periodized and Non-Periodized Resistance Training on Maximal Strength: A Meta-Analysis
Williams, T. D., Tolusso, D. V., Fedewa, M. V., & Esco, M. R. (2017) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-017-0734-y · Cited by 212
“When volume is controlled, utilizing higher loads during training yields greater increases in strength [98, 99].”
BackgroundGreater neural adaptations following high- vs. low-load resistance training
Jenkins, N. D. M., Miramonti, A. A., Hill, E. C., Smith, C. M., Cochrane-Snyman, K. C., Housh, T. J., & Cramer, J. T. (2017) · Frontiers in Physiology · doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.00331 · Cited by 197
“However, training at 80% 1RM induced greater strength gains, which has been demonstrated repeatedly (Campos et al., 2002; Mitchell et al., 2012; Ogasawara et al., 2013; Schoenfeld et al., 2015; Jenkins et al., 2016).”
BackgroundResultDavies, T., Orr, R., Halaki, M., & Hackett, D. (2016) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-015-0451-3 · Cited by 184
“[69] found there was no difference in the muscular hypertrophy response following low versus high training loads performed to failure.”
BackgroundLasevicius, T., Ugrinowitsch, C., Schoenfeld, B. J., Roschel, H., Tavares, L. D., De Souza, E. O., Laurentino, G., & Tricoli, V. (2018) · European Journal of Sport Science · doi:10.1080/17461391.2018.1450898 · Cited by 180
“These results are in agreement with previous studies on the topic that demonstrated an advantage for higher intensities on muscle strength performance (Campos et al., 2002; Mitchell et al., 2012; Ogasawara et al., 2013; Schoenfeld et al., 2015).”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialSelf-citationMechanisms Behind Blood Flow–Restricted Training and its Effect Toward Muscle Growth
Hwang, P. S., & Willoughby, D. S. (2017) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002384 · Cited by 140
“adaptations indicative of muscle growth (55,65).”
Fisher, J. P., Steele, J., & Smith, D. (2016) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-016-0602-1 · Cited by 137
Muscle activation during three sets to failure at 80 vs. 30 % 1RM resistance exercise
Jenkins, N. D. M., Housh, T. J., Bergstrom, H. C., Cochrane, K. C., Hill, E. C., Smith, C. M., Johnson, G. O., Schmidt, R. J., & Cramer, J. T. (2015) · European Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1007/s00421-015-3214-9 · Cited by 140
Iversen, V. M., Norum, M., Schoenfeld, B. J., & Fimland, M. S. (2021) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-021-01490-1 · Cited by 122
“Most studies on the topic involved untrained individuals; that said, similar results have been found in resistance-trained individuals with respect to muscle hypertrophy, but heavy loads appear to be more important for strength gains in this population [26, 27].”
ResultSelf-citationNoone, J., Mucinski, J. M., DeLany, J. P., Sparks, L. M., & Goodpaster, B. H. (2024) · Cell Metabolism · doi:10.1016/j.cmet.2023.12.025 · Cited by 128
Fisher, J. P., & Steele, J. (2017) · Muscle & Nerve · doi:10.1002/mus.25537 · Cited by 122
Carvalho, L., Junior, R. M., Barreira, J., Schoenfeld, B. J., Orazem, J., & Barroso, R. (2022) · Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism · doi:10.1139/apnm-2021-0515 · Cited by 116
Self-citationEffects of Flywheel Training on Strength-Related Variables: a Meta-analysis
Petré, H., Wernstål, F., & Mattsson, C. M. (2018) · Sports Medicine - Open · doi:10.1186/s40798-018-0169-5 · Cited by 117
“One dilemma with such a hypothesis, however, is that higher load requires an increased neural activation which likely is beneficial for strength development [67, 68].”
BackgroundRole of metabolic stress for enhancing muscle adaptations: Practical applications
de Freitas, M. C., Gerosa-Neto, J., Zanchi, N. E., Lira, F. S., & Rossi, F. E. (2017) · World Journal of Methodology · doi:10.5662/wjm.v7.i2.46 · Cited by 124
Androulakis-Korakakis, P., Fisher, J. P., & Steele, J. (2020) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-019-01236-0 · Cited by 105
“For example, current literature shows that training to momentary failure with both lighter- and heavier loads (typically thought of as < 60% 1RM, and > 65% 1RM, respectively) can be effective in eliciting strength gains, but training with heavier loads without reaching momentary failure may lead to optimal strength in…”
BackgroundResultTraining to Fatigue: The Answer for Standardization When Assessing Muscle Hypertrophy?
Dankel, S. J., Jessee, M. B., Mattocks, K. T., Mouser, J. G., Counts, B. R., Buckner, S. L., & Loenneke, J. P. (2017) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-016-0633-7 · Cited by 115
Vieira, A. F., Umpierre, D., Teodoro, J. L., Lisboa, S. C., Baroni, B. M., Izquierdo, M., & Cadore, E. L. (2021) · Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003936 · Cited by 94
(2016) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 101
Self-citationMersmann, F., Böhm, S., & Arampatzis, A. (2017) · Frontiers in Physiology · doi:10.3389/fphys.2017.00987 · Cited by 99
“…assumption that, given a sufficient overall training volume, a wide range of exercise intensities effectively elicits muscle hypertrophy, which is convincingly supported by experimental evidence (Campos et al., 2002; Tanimoto and Ishii, 2006; Mitchell et al., 2012; Schoenfeld et al., 2015, 2016).”
ResultNóbrega, S. R., Ugrinowitsch, C., Pintanel, L., Barcelos, C., & Libardi, C. A. (2018) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000001787 · Cited by 97
“(26), but diverge from others that showed greater increases in 1RM after HIRT compared with LIRT (9,25,36).”
BackgroundResultInfluentialIs Resistance Training to Muscular Failure Necessary?
Nóbrega, S. R., & Libardi, C. A. (2016) · Frontiers in Physiology · doi:10.3389/fphys.2016.00010 · Cited by 100
“Conversely, another study by the same research group assessed muscle strength and mass in 24 men, all experienced in weight lifting, after 8 weeks (24 training sessions) of RT (Schoenfeld et al., 2015).”
BackgroundMcDonough, D. J., Helgeson, M. A., Liu, W., & Gao, Z. (2021) · Journal of sport and health science/Journal of Sport and Health Science · doi:10.1016/j.jshs.2021.07.009 · Cited by 105
“, muscular strength and hypertrophy).(63,64) Therefore, our muscle-strengthening-oriented videos promoted various methods of enhancing resistancetraining workout intensity like adding general household items to exercises to increase the working load (e.”
Lasevicius, T., Schoenfeld, B. J., Silva-Batista, C., Barros, T. D. S., Aihara, A. Y., Brendon, H., Longo, A. R., Tricoli, V., Peres, B. D. A., & Teixeira, E. L. (2022) · Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003454 · Cited by 95
“Our data are consistent with previous studies showing that heavier loads are required to maximize gains in dynamic strength (18,22,26,33).”
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Baz-Valle, E., Fontes-Villalba, M., & Santos-Concejero, J. (2021) · Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002776 · Cited by 84
“and easier quantification method for athletes aiming at muscle hypertrophy (2,23,28).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialDavies, T. B., Tran, D. L., Hogan, C. M., Haff, G. G., & Latella, C. (2021) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-020-01408-3 · Cited by 82
Gonzalez, A. M., Hoffman, J. R., Stout, J. R., Fukuda, D. H., & Willoughby, D. S. (2015) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-015-0450-4 · Cited by 97
Training Specificity for Athletes: Emphasis on Strength-Power Training: A Narrative Review
Stone, M. H., Hornsby, W. G., Suarez, D. G., Duca, M., & Pierce, K. C. (2022) · Journal of Functional Morphology and Kinesiology · doi:10.3390/jfmk7040102 · Cited by 118
Effects of Preferred vs. Nonpreferred Music on Resistance Exercise Performance
Ballmann, C. G., McCullum, M. J., Rogers, R. R., Marshall, M. R., & Williams, T. D. (2018) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002981 · Cited by 88
“Essential to these adaptations are both volume and intensity of training because increasing these may lead to greater adaptation (33,34).”
BackgroundEvidence-Based Guidelines for Resistance Training Volume to Maximize Muscle Hypertrophy
Schoenfeld, B. J., & Grgić, J. (2017) · Strength and conditioning journal · doi:10.1519/ssc.0000000000000363 · Cited by 87
Self-citationWeakley, J. J. S., Cowley, N., Schoenfeld, B. J., Read, D. B., Timmins, R. G., García‐Ramos, A., & McGuckian, T. B. (2023) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-023-01877-2 · Cited by 97
Self-citationComfort, P., McMahon, J. J., Jones, P. A., Cuthbert, M., Kendall, K., Lake, J. P., & Haff, G. G. (2021) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-021-01496-9 · Cited by 87
“Ideally, moderate loads (8–12 RM [~ 70% 1RM]) performed for 8–12 repetitions, to momentary muscle failure, have been shown to be most effective for combined hypertrophic and strength adaptations [50, 91, 97] and therefore, most likely ideal for maintenance of muscle mass.”
BackgroundPlotkin, D. L., Coleman, M., Every, D. W. V., Maldonado, J., Oberlin, D. J., Israetel, M. A., Feather, J., Alto, A., Vigotsky, A. D., & Schoenfeld, B. J. (2022) · PeerJ · doi:10.7717/peerj.14142 · Cited by 77
“…adaptations, we predicted that load progressions would produce superior maximum strength and that repetition progressions would produce better muscular endurance due to the available literature on the repetition continuum and the principle of specific adaptations to imposed demands (26) (3) .”
Self-citationNeto, J. H. F., & Kennedy, M. D. (2019) · Sports · doi:10.3390/sports7020033 · Cited by 90
“In these sessions, exercises are often performed to the point of muscular failure, which has been shown to be effective in eliciting gains in muscle mass at different repetition ranges [52].”
BackgroundStrength Training: In Search of Optimal Strategies to Maximize Neuromuscular Performance
Duchateau, J., Stragier, S., Baudry, S., & Carpentier, A. (2020) · Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews · doi:10.1249/jes.0000000000000234 · Cited by 74
“Another recent change in dogma is that bodybuilding-type training (moderate load, high volume, and brief interset interval) is likely not the best strategy to augment muscle protein synthesis and thereby the increases in muscle growth (see [138]).”
BackgroundCoratella, G. (2022) · Sports Medicine - Open · doi:10.1186/s40798-022-00492-1 · Cited by 84
Washif, J. A., Pagaduan, J. C., James, C., Dergaa, I., & Beaven, C. M. (2023) · Biology of Sport · doi:10.5114/biolsport.2024.132987 · Cited by 72
Scarpelli, M. C., Nóbrega, S. R., Santanielo, N., Alvarez, I. F., Otoboni, G. B., Ugrinowitsch, C., & Libardi, C. A. (2020) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003558 · Cited by 74
Comfort, P., Haff, G. G., Suchomel, T. J., Soriano, M. A., Pierce, K. C., Hornsby, W. G., Haff, E. E., Sommerfield, L. M., Chavda, S., Morris, S. J., et al. (2023) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000004476 · Cited by 75
“High-load ( $ 80% 1RM, for # 6 repetitions) training elicits the greatest increases in force production (110,184,225,250,252,253) and RFD (3,4,6,8,47,185).”
BackgroundHarper, C., Gopalan, V., & Goh, J. (2021) · Journal of Translational Medicine · doi:10.1186/s12967-021-02737-1 · Cited by 68
“While it has been demonstrated that high repetition, low load RT can be equally as effective as low repetition, high load RT in inducing muscle hypertrophy [96, 97], the effects of high repetition training on mitochondrial energetics remain unstudied, and thus warrant investigation.”
BackgroundGomes, G. K., Franco, C. M., Nunes, P. R. P., & Orsatti, F. L. (2019) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002559 · Cited by 60
“However, when an appropriate progressive overload stimulus is applied, well-trained subjects can obtain significant hypertrophic responses (2,25,31,32).”
BackgroundFink, J. E., Kikuchi, N., Yoshida, S., Terada, K., & Nakazato, K. (2016) · SpringerPlus · doi:10.1186/s40064-016-2333-z · Cited by 68
Weakley, J. J. S., Schoenfeld, B. J., Ljungberg, J. K., Halson, S. L., & Phillips, S. M. (2023) · Sports Medicine - Open · doi:10.1186/s40798-023-00578-4 · Cited by 73
“When direct comparisons have been made, evidence suggests that lower loads do [4, 5, 15] and do not [14, 16, 24, 26] induce similar strength adaptations.”
BackgroundInfluentialSelf-citationKlemp, A., Dolan, C., Quiles, J. M., Blanco, R., Zoeller, R. F., Graves, B. S., & Zourdos, M. C. (2016) · Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism · doi:10.1139/apnm-2015-0707 · Cited by 60
“This unequal frequency is a methodological concern as multiple studies have reported greater strength (McLester et al. 2000) and hypertrophy (Schoenfeld et al. 2015b) gains with a frequency of 3x/wk. versus 1x/wk.”
Backgroundde Lacio, M. L., Vieira, J. G., Trybulski, R., Campos, Y., Santana, D., Filho, J. E., Novaes, J. D. S., Vianna, J. M., & Wilk, M. (2021) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph182111237 · Cited by 57
“Several studies suggested that performing resistance training with a high load is necessary to maximize gains in 1RM strength [11,17,21,22,28,29,42,43,46,47], although low loads were also shown to be effective in increasing these gains [11,13–17,22,23,44,46,47].”
BackgroundInfluentialColomer‐Poveda, D., Romero‐Arenas, S., Vera‐Ibañez, A., Viñuela-García, M., & Márquez, G. (2017) · European Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1007/s00421-017-3622-0 · Cited by 57
“…that low loads, with and without BFR, are as efficient as the higher loads when the volume is enough to transiently create a metabolic stress, which leads to hypertrophic signaling (Barcelos et al. 2015; Burd et al. 2010; Mitchell et al. 2012; Schoenfeld et al. 2014, 2015; Alegre et al. 2015).”
Damas, F., Angleri, V., Phillips, S. M., Witard, O. C., Ugrinowitsch, C., Santanielo, N., Soligon, S. D., Costa, L. A. R., Lixandrão, M. E., Conceição, M. S., et al. (2019) · Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00350.2019 · Cited by 58
Santanielo, N., Nóbrega, S. R., Scarpelli, M. C., Alvarez, I. F., Otoboni, G. B., Pintanel, L., & Libardi, C. A. (2020) · Biology of Sport · doi:10.5114/biolsport.2020.96317 · Cited by 59
Effects of rest intervals and training loads on metabolic stress and muscle hypertrophy
Fink, J. E., Kikuchi, N., & Nakazato, K. (2016) · Clinical Physiology and Functional Imaging · doi:10.1111/cpf.12409 · Cited by 54
“Indeed, several studies recorded larger strength gains in high-load RT despite similar muscle hypertrophy in high and low-load RT (Ogasawara et al., 2013; Schoenfeld et al., 2015a,b; Fink et al., 2016).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialThe role of the neural stimulus in regulating skeletal muscle hypertrophy
Alix‐Fages, C., Vecchio, A. D., Baz-Valle, E., Santos‐Concejero, J., & Balsalobre‐Fernández, C. (2022) · European Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1007/s00421-022-04906-6 · Cited by 54
“Training intensity is one of the most important variables for the resistance training stimulus (Schoenfeld et al. 2015).”
BackgroundIkezoe, T., Kobayashi, T., Nakamura, M., & Ichihashi, N. (2017) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002278 · Cited by 53
Steele, J., Endres, A., Fisher, J. P., Gentil, P., & Gießing, J. (2017) · PeerJ · doi:10.7717/peerj.4105 · Cited by 52
“These secondary variables include; load (Morton et al., 2016; Schoenfeld et al., 2015; Schoenfeld et al., 2016; Fisher, Ironside & Steele, 2016), repetition duration (Schoenfeld, Ogborn & Krieger, 2015), and the use of advanced or complicated training methods such as pre-exhaustion (Fisher et al.,…”
BackgroundVigotsky, A. D., Halperin, I., Lehman, G. J., Trajano, G. S., & Vieira, T. (2017) · doi:10.31236/osf.io/fkbx8 · Cited by 56
Refalo, M. C., Hamilton, D. L., Paval, D. R., Gallagher, I. J., Feros, S. A., & Fyfe, J. J. (2021) · Journal of Sports Sciences · doi:10.1080/02640414.2021.1898094 · Cited by 45
“…2004; Lasevicius et al., 2019, 2018; Mitchell et al., 2012; Moss et al., 1997; Ogasawara et al., 2013; Rana et al., 2008; Richardson et al., 2019; Schoenfeld et al., 2015; Seynnes et al., 2004; Van Roie, Bautmans et al., 2013; De Vos et al., 2005) out of the 36 studies found greater improvements…”
BackgroundResultPrestes, J., Tibana, R. A., Sousa, E. D. A., Nascimento, D. D. C., Rocha, P. D. O., Camarço, N. F., de Sousa, N. M. F., & Willardson, J. M. (2017) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000001923 · Cited by 54
Burley, S. D., Drain, J. R., Sampson, J. A., & Groeller, H. (2018) · Journal of science and medicine in sport · doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2018.06.018 · Cited by 65
Cavarretta, D. J., Hall, E. E., & Bixby, W. R. (2018) · International Review of Sport and Exercise Psychology · doi:10.1080/1750984x.2018.1474941 · Cited by 58
Cholewa, J. M., Hudson, A., Cicholski, T., Cervenka, A., Barreno, K., Broom, K., Barch, M., & Craig, S. A. S. (2018) · Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · doi:10.1186/s12970-018-0243-x · Cited by 54
Arterial stiffness is reduced regardless of resistance training load in young men
AU, J. S., OIKAWA, S. Y., Morton, R. W., MACDONALD, M. J., & PHILLIPS, S. M. (2017) · Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · doi:10.1249/mss.0000000000001106 · Cited by 50
Schoenfeld, B. J., Vigotsky, A. D., Grgic, J., Haun, C., Contreras, B., Delcastillo, K., Francis, A., Cote, G., & Alto, A. (2020) · Physiological Reports · doi:10.14814/phy2.14427 · Cited by 56
“…on the following assumptions, which are consistent with baseline measures, effects, and relationships observed in the literature (Chow et al., 2000; Schoenfeld, Peterson, Ogborn, Contreras, & Sonmez, 2015) and what we considered to be practically meaningful: (a) soleus would hypertrophy 10 ± 10%…”
ResultSelf-citationZouita, A., Darragi, M., Bousselmi, M., Zouita, S., Clark, C. C. T., Hackney, A. C., Granacher, U., & Zouhal, H. (2023) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-023-01859-4 · Cited by 65
“In this context, it is plausible that neural adaptations in female athletes are more pronounced during the first weeks of RT for upper-body muscles [81, 82] or lower-body muscles [83], resulting in higher relative strength gains.”
Howatson, G., Brandon, R., & Hunter, A. M. (2015) · International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance · doi:10.1123/ijspp.2015-0235 · Cited by 48
Vigotsky, A. D., Beardsley, C., Contreras, B. M., Steele, J., Ogborn, D. I., & Phillips, S. M. (2015) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000001249 · Cited by 48
Self-citationOzaki, H., Kubota, A., Natsume, T., Loenneke, J. P., Abe, T., Machida, S., & Naito, H. (2018) · Journal of Sports Sciences · doi:10.1080/02640414.2017.1331042 · Cited by 47
“Schoenfeld et al. (2015) demonstrated greater strength gains in the high-load (8–12 RM) condition and enhanced muscular endurance adaptations in the low-load (25–35 RM) conditions (Schoenfeld et al., 2015).”
BackgroundResultTime to Move Beyond a “One-Size Fits All” Approach to Inspiratory Muscle Training
Shei, R., Paris, H. L. R., Sogard, A. S., & Mickleborough, T. D. (2022) · Frontiers in Physiology · doi:10.3389/fphys.2021.766346 · Cited by 46
Factors Relating to Sprint Swimming Performance: A Systematic Review
Ruiz-Navarro, J. J., Santos, C. C., Born, D., López‐Belmonte, Ó., Cuenca‐Fernández, F., Sanders, R. H., & Arellano, R. (2025) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-024-02172-4 · Cited by 46
“Yet, the specific adaptations from these training types differ [16–18], requiring careful consideration of the evaluated metrics.”
Physiology of Stretch-Mediated Hypertrophy and Strength Increases: A Narrative Review
Warneke, K., Lohmann, L. H., Lima, C. D., Hollander, K., Konrad, A., Zech, A., Nakamura, M., WIRTH, K. J., Keiner, M., & Behm, D. G. (2023) · Sports Medicine · doi:10.1007/s40279-023-01898-x · Cited by 51
“Most commonly, resistance training is used to increase muscle strength capacity and induce significant hypertrophy [7–11].”
BackgroundVangsoe, M., Joergensen, M., Heckmann, L.-H., & Hansen, M. (2018) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu10030335 · Cited by 44
“However, it seems questionable that a group of young men performing resistance training for 10 weeks with energy supplementation would not gain FBFM when it is commonly known that resistance training alone results in increased FBFM provided that a positive energy and protein balance is maintained [26,27,40,41,51,52].”
BackgroundRibeiro, A. S., Schoenfeld, B. J., de Souza, M. F., Tomeleri, C. M., Silva, A. M., Teixeira, D. D. C., Sardinha, L. B., & Cyrino, E. S. (2017) · European Journal of Sport Science · doi:10.1080/17461391.2017.1310932 · Cited by 43
Self-citationAssunção, A. R., Bottaro, M., Ferreira‐Júnior, J. B., Izquierdo, M., Cadore, E. L., & Gentil, P. (2016) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0160650 · Cited by 49
Coelho‐Júnior, H. J., Gonçalves, I. D. O., Sampaio, R. A. C., Sampaio, P. Y. S., Cadore, E. L., Izquierdo, M., Marzetti, E., & Uchida, M. C. (2019) · Experimental Gerontology · doi:10.1016/j.exger.2019.03.001 · Cited by 42
“Indeed, past studies (Schoenfeld et al., 2015) and meta-analyses (Raymond et al.”
Nutritional Strategies to Combat Type 2 Diabetes in Aging Adults: The Importance of Protein
Beaudry, K. M., & Devries, M. C. (2019) · Frontiers in Nutrition · doi:10.3389/fnut.2019.00138 · Cited by 41
“Protein Enhances the Effects of Resistance Exercise on Muscle Mass and IS Resistance exercise is the primary mode of exercise to elicit positive changes in muscle mass (115) by significantly increasing the rate of MPS (25), which over time leads to muscle hypertrophy.”
BackgroundDankel, S. J., Kang, M., Abe, T., & Loenneke, J. P. (2018) · European Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1007/s00421-018-4022-9 · Cited by 41
Blood flow restriction does not augment low force contractions taken to or near task failure
Buckner, S. L., Jessee, M. B., Dankel, S. J., Mattocks, K. T., Mouser, J. G., Bell, Z. W., Abe, T., Bentley, J. P., & Loenneke, J. P. (2020) · European Journal of Sport Science · doi:10.1080/17461391.2019.1664640 · Cited by 41
Soligon, S. D., da Silva, D. G., Bergamasco, J. G. A., Angleri, V., Medalha, R. A., Dias, N. F., Nóbrega, S. R., César, M. D. C., & Libardi, C. A. (2020) · European Journal of Applied Physiology · doi:10.1007/s00421-020-04446-x · Cited by 43
Aerobic Adaptations to Resistance Training: The Role of Time under Tension
Mang, Z. A., Ducharme, J. B., Mermier, C. M., Kravitz, L. R., Magalhães, F. D. C., & Amorim, F. T. (2022) · International Journal of Sports Medicine · doi:10.1055/a-1664-8701 · Cited by 42
Rong, W., Soh, K. G., Samsudin, S., Zhao, Y., Ma, H., & Zhang, X. (2025) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-025-03070-z · Cited by 53
Krzysztofik, M., Jarosz, J., Matykiewicz, P., Wilk, M., Białas, M., Zając, A., & Gołaś, A. (2021) · Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology · doi:10.1016/j.jelekin.2020.102513 · Cited by 39
Maeo, S., Wu, Y., Huang, M., Sakurai, H., Kusagawa, Y., Sugiyama, T., Kanehisa, H., & Isaka, T. (2022) · European Journal of Sport Science · doi:10.1080/17461391.2022.2100279 · Cited by 38
“Thus, this study supports the previous studies (Mitchell et al., 2012; Schoenfeld et al., 2015) and adds”
ResultKikuchi, N., & Nakazato, K. (2015) · Physical Activity and Nutrition · doi:10.5717/jenb.2015.15093001 · Cited by 37
Liegnell, R., Apró, W., Danielsson, S., Ekblom, B. T., van Hall, G., Holmberg, H., & Moberg, M. (2020) · American Journal of Physiology-Endocrinology and Metabolism · doi:10.1152/ajpendo.00291.2020 · Cited by 39
“Moreover, a growing body of evidence indicates that low-load resistance exercise protocols that induce significant metabolic perturbations, such as repetitions performed to failure or the addition of blood flow occlusion, potently induce mTORC1 signaling, protein synthesis, and muscle growth (9, 14, 19, 29, 36, 43).”
BackgroundCholewa, J. M., Rossi, F. E., MacDonald, C., Hewins, A., Gallo, S., Micenski, A., Norton, L., & Campbell, B. I. (2018) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000002048 · Cited by 32
“(37) demonstrated no significant differences in muscle growth between lowand high-loading conditions with greater strength g ains in the high-load condition.”
BackgroundDinyer, T. K., Byrd, M. T., Garver, M. J., Rickard, A. J., Miller, W. M., Burns, S. P., Clasey, J. L., & Bergstrom, H. C. (2019) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003194 · Cited by 36
“For both low- and high-load RT to failure protocols, increases in muscle thickness, muscle fiber cross-sectional area, and BFFM were reported after 2–12 weeks, with no differences reported between the low- and high-load training groups (15,21,23,28).”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialBrandão, L., Painelli, V. D. S., Lasevicius, T., Silva‐Batista, C., Brendon, H., Schoenfeld, B. J., Aihara, A. Y., Cardoso, F. N., Peres, B. D. A., & Teixeira, E. L. (2020) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003550 · Cited by 36
“It has been suggested that the greatest gains in muscle strength during RT are achieved by the use of higher loads (19,24,35).”
BackgroundSelf-citationLongo, A. R., Silva‐Batista, C., Pedroso, K., Painelli, V. D. S., Lasevicius, T., Schoenfeld, B. J., Aihara, A. Y., Peres, B. D. A., Tricoli, V., & Teixeira, E. L. (2020) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003668 · Cited by 36
Self-citationEffect of Pre-Exercise Music on Bench Press Power, Velocity, and Repetition Volume
Ballmann, C. G., Favre, M. L., Phillips, M. T., Rogers, R. R., Pederson, J. A., & Williams, T. D. (2021) · Perceptual and Motor Skills · doi:10.1177/00315125211002406 · Cited by 42
“Optimizing training programs by augmenting intensity, volume, and load may lead to superior performance (Schoenfeld et al., 2017; Schoenfeld et al., 2015), and listening to music during exercise has been widely reported to improve performance, including resistance exercise performance (Ballmann et…”
BackgroundKapsis, D., Τσούκος, Α., Psarraki, M. P., Douda, H. T., Smilios, I., & Bogdanis, G. C. (2022) · Sports · doi:10.3390/sports10010007 · Cited by 35
“This versatility in load choice for muscle hypertrophy may be used to attain gains in muscle mass, without excessively loading the musculoskeletal system [24,30].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialMiller, J. D., Lippman, J. D., Trevino, M. A., & Herda, T. J. (2020) · Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003694 · Cited by 34
“However, most EMG studies report greater muscle activation (20,22,30,35) for highintensity contractions and the majority of resistance training studies report greater strength gains from high-load programs (27,28,36,37).”
BackgroundPosnakidis, G., Aphamis, G., Giannaki, C. D., Mougios, V., Aristotelous, P., Samoutis, G., & Bogdanis, G. C. (2020) · The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research · doi:10.1519/jsc.0000000000003516 · Cited by 34
“, sumo squat and clean and press at 65% of 1RM) (25,34), no change in musclemasswas observed in this study (Table 1).”
Background
Metadata
- Authors
- Schoenfeld, B. J., Peterson, M. D., Ogborn, D., Contreras, B., & Sonmez, G. T.
- Affiliations
- Lehman College (US)
- Corresponding author
- Schoenfeld, Brad J.
- Venue
- Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research
- Published
- 2015-10
- Volume
- 29
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 2954-2963
- ISSN
- 1064-8011 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1995833662
- Cited by
- 418
- References
- 67
- Citations by year
- 2026: 24 · 2025: 40 · 2024: 40 · 2023: 41 · 2022: 43 · 2021: 40 · 2020: 45 · 2019: 40 · 2018: 35 · 2017: 38 · 2016: 24 · 2015: 8
- FWCI
- 35.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Orthopedics and Sports Medicine › Sports Performance and Training
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Muscle metabolism and nutrition
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology (medical) › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
- Keywords
- resistance training, training load, muscle hypertrophy, muscle strength, trained men, training to failure, muscular endurance, back squat, bench press, elbow flexors, elbow extensors, quadriceps
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Physiological, Adult, Humans, Hypertrophy, Male, Physical Fitness, Random Allocation, Muscle, Skeletal, Upper Extremity, Lower Extremity, Muscle Strength, Resistance Training, Young Adult
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