We often feel that the best way to make physical gains is to continuously push harder, aiming for faster, stronger, more, more, and more. It may be counterintuitive, but sometimes easing off will provide better results.

Periodization in Programming vs. Effort Level during Activity

Any well-designed program builds rest and adaptation into training schedules: Wendler’s highly structured 5-3-1 springs to mind, as does the concept of “waviness of load” that runs throughout StrongFirst programming.

But what about during the actual act of force production?

My StrongFirst kettlebell instructor training manual cites Brett Jones as saying, “Our internal volume knob will run from 0 up to 10. Boxers and martial artists have found that the hardest strikes occur somewhere between the 6-8 setting.”

Then the Starting Strength seminar introduced me to the concept of ideal sarcomere length (sarcomeres being our smallest unit of muscle). Thank you, Wikipedia, for putting this succinctly: Muscles operate with greatest active force when close to an ideal length (often their resting length). When stretched or shortened beyond this (whether due to the action of the muscle itself or by an outside force), the maximum active force generated decreases.

So What’s the Point?

I started to connect the dots in my head — hmm, so an overly contracted muscle is actually less efficient? In practical terms, that would mean pushing too hard is counter-productive? Which would mean “relaxed effort” is the way to go.

I started to test this on myself by sprinting, correlating various effort levels with the resulting times. Turns out that for me, an effort level of 8 is ideal to produce the fastest times followed by the shortest recovery periods.

It’s also helped me break through plateaus in my bench press in particular by changing how I relax and re-set after failed attempts.

I encourage you to experiment with your own effort level, record the results, and see where it takes you! Please contact me if you need help putting it all together.