Controlled Reps = Superior Results
Tempo is where strength meets control
By
September 3, 2025
When most people think about training, they think in numbers: How much weight? How many reps? How many sets? But there’s another important variable that determines how effective your workouts are: tempo—the speed at which you lower, pause, and lift the weight.
Tempo is where strength meets control. Done well, it ensures the muscle is doing the work, not momentum. This is so important on our strength training days!
Picture a bent-over row. If you yank the bar toward your chest and let it drop back down, momentum is doing most of the work (and your lower back is taking on undue stress). But, if you get a good setup, pull the weight in smoothly, pause to squeeze your shoulder blades together, and then lower with control, your upper back does the job as intended. You connect to the appropriate muscles and don't overcompensate. Could you do more weight with momentum? Sure. But at that point, you may be letting your ego dictate the load, and you're not getting the most out of the exercise.
Tempo allows you to practice the mind–muscle connection - when you feel the right muscle working. Instead of just going through the motion, turn your attention and energy to the muscle you are using. Bodybuilders are experts in this concept. For example, if you’re doing a dumbbell floor press and focusing on squeezing your chest with each rep, you’ll recruit more fibers and train with better quality. The more you intentionally control, squeeze and really think about the muscles you’re using, the more effective each rep becomes. This is especially valuable for accessory lifts like curls, rows, or lateral raises—where sloppy reps may mean the wrong muscles are doing the job. In many upper body movements, the telltale signs are the shugging of the shoulders, arching of the back and/or using the hips.
You don’t need to move in a robotic, slow motion. Instead, think:
This rhythm increases “time under tension,” which is a proven driver of muscle growth and resilience. And, just as a reminder, we also want full range of motion - hips below parallel with the squat, full lockout at the bottom of a strict pull-up, full lockout at the top of a press, etc. If you don’t practice these principles, you are missing out.
Controlled movement protects your joints, trains your tendons, and makes sure you’re building strength safely. It’s also a built-in way to make lighter weights more challenging. When doing isolation movements (like bicep curls), I purposefully go lighter than I am capable of to practice this principle (and usually someone makes a comment on the fact that I'm lifting lighter than them 🤣), but I can make a five-pound dumbbell feel like twenty pounds by going slow and squeezing hard.
Tempo is about moving with purpose. When you control the weight, connect with the muscle, and eliminate momentum, you’ll build more strength, protect your body, and get far more out of every rep.
