Precision Point Training

Time Under Tension Of Bodybuilders And Powerlifters

In the video posted in this article, Phil Heath does a chest workout consisting of 13 sets of various chest exercises. The actual lifting time or time under tension during the workout is 3 minutes, 55 seconds.  

Phil does 4 different exercises consisting of Hammer Strength Incline Presses, Incline Dumbbell Flyes, Flat Dumbbell Bench Presses, and Cable Crossovers. He generally works his way up in intensity from set to set for each exercise. The only time he is goes all-out during the workout appears to be his 5th set of Hammer Strength Presses, and his last set of Dumbbell Bench Presses. Those who prefer high volume training of over 10 sets per muscle group can learn from Phil by starting each exercise with low to moderate intensity and increase the intensity from set to set until you reach your last set.

It is also important to note that even on his most intense sets, Phil really doesn’t grind out slow reps as he performs his reps with a fairly fast rep speed. If you want to build strength and muscle, Phil is a great example for how to do it.

The video below shows Phil’s chest work out and is followed by a breakdown of the amount of time it took to complete each set of the workout:  

Phil’s Workout

Hammer Strength Incline Press

1st set: 12 reps 15 seconds

2nd set: 11 reps 14 seconds

3rd set: 10 reps 13 seconds

4th set: 10 reps 11 seconds

5th set: 11 reps 15 seconds

54 reps: Time Under Tension = 68 seconds

Incline DB Flyes

6th set: 12 reps 28 seconds

7th set: 11 reps 28 seconds

23 reps: Time Under Tension = 56 seconds

Flat Bench Dumbbell Press

8th set: 11 reps 11 seconds

9th set: 20 reps 22 seconds

31 reps: Time Under Tension = 33 seconds

Cable Crossovers

10th set: 15 reps 18 seconds

11th set: 17 reps 22 seconds

12th set: 15 reps 21 seconds

13th set: 12 reps 17 seconds

59 reps: Time Under Tension = 78 seconds

All 13 sets combined = 167 Total Reps;  3 minutes 55 seconds

Time under tension is an interesting subject. If you look at the amount of time lifters spend in the gym, only a small portion of it is spent actually lifting. It probably took Phil Heath at least 20 minutes to complete the chest workout, yet only 3 minutes, 55 seconds of it are actually spent lifting. This is actually a substantial amount of time under tension compared to the powerlifters who were discussed in the previous two articles which featured Mike Tuchschere and Andrey Malanichev. While these three men are only a small sample of top bodybuilders and powerlifters, this small amount of information indicates that bodybuilders tend to do more sets, more reps, a higher total workload, and spend more time under tension for each muscle group. However, the powerlifters use more weight and do more heavy lifting. The data from the last three articles is compared below:

Mike Tuchschere’s Time Under Tension

Bench Press workout: 22 reps, 1 minute 23 seconds

The time under tension for the bench presses was actually exaggerated because Mike was doing 4 second pauses at the bottom of each rep, which he does not always do. Mike did no assistance exercises for chest muscles, only benches.

Andrey Malanichev’s Time Under Tension

Squat workout: 26 reps,  50 seconds

Andrey did no assistance exercises for legs, only squats.

Phil Heath’s Time Under Tension

Chest workout: 167 reps: 3 minutes 55 seconds

Some lifters use time under tension as the chief variable to drive muscular growth and strength gains. I will give at least one example of this type of training in the next article. Best of training to you.

Related Articles

Time Under Tension Article Featuring Mike Tuchscherer

Andrey Malanichev Time Under Tension for a Squat Workout

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