. Focus on getting each rep right, one at a time. Do not concern yourself with
the whole set, but with each individual rep. Getting each rep right involves a
number of factors: form, rep cadence, and between-rep pauses.Form and cadence
. Rep form is related to rep cadence and between-rep pauses, but slow cadence
does not necessarily mean good form, and fast performance does not neces-
sarily mean the use of poor technique. Slow does not always mean strict, just
like fast does not always mean cheating. And heavy low-rep work does not
necessarily mean fast reps.. A slow rep can still involve terrible exercise form, and some exercises—e.g.,
snatch, clean and jerk, clean, and other explosive movements—must be
done quickly.. Any exercise can be performed in an explosive way, but explosiveness is
not promoted in this book or in ’ -
- . ese books are concerned with
minimizing the risk of injury while maximizing the potential for muscular
size and strength. ere is no need to increase the demands on technical
expertise, or to expose yourself to exaggerated muscle and connective tissue
stresses in order to gain size and strength. Stick to the exercises promoted
in this book and you can realize your potential for muscle and might while
minimizing your risk of injury.. More important than rep speed per se, is rep smoothness. If your reps are
smooth, you are using the control that is necessary for safety and applying
great stress on the involved musculature.. Smoothness and a moderate or slow tempo of rep cadence are not neces-
sarily the same thing. It is possible, for example, to perform a three-second
bench press ascent that involves an explosive start. e first few inches
might take a split second, but the rest of the rep could take almost three
seconds. at very explosive initial thrust greatly exaggerates the stress on
the involved musculature and connective tissue, and is an unnecessary risk.
But you probably could have performed a smooth two-second ascent with
the same weight. In this case, the two-second rep would be safer than the
three-second one.