To those of you who feel you've mastered pushing to true failure, do you get grindy reps no matter the exercise?

jacob40524

New member
I push to failure on pretty much every exercise. And yes the reps get somewhat slower towards the end, but I find only a handful of exercises got me grinding hard. Stuff like preacher curls, c.g. Bench, overhead tricep extensions.

Are proper grinding reps something to aim for on every exercise(disregarding the scariest compounds), or is it specific to the exercise?
 
@austin998877 Same here, for me on a lot of back movements I just randomly get stuck and that’s it. On the other hand I’ve had reps on leg extensions take over 10 seconds
 
@auxier587 Id say either performing the movement enough times to become familiar with how your strength drops off or just going to failure. On something like a close grip bench, where for me the difference between 1 RIR and 0 RIR is drastic, I’ve developed a sense over time of what 1 RIR looks/feels like and can almost always say ‘the next one will be a grinder’. On the other hand I just take most back movements to failure or beyond. It doesn’t diminish my set to set performance that much (at least compared to other movements/body parts) and I don’t need to worry about RIR
 
@holoman Hmm, so basically for things that are more shortened-biased (which for me seem to have more unpredictable failure points), going to failure is probably best while other exercises with predictable failure points use the RIR-system?
 
@auxier587 That’s one way to look at it yes. I think the actual decision of how hard to push each set will be individual based on personal preference, the movement and body part in question, and your overall program.
 
@jacob40524 It's going to depend on the resistance curve of the exercise. You are most likely going to fail on the hardest part, so for some exercises you might just "stop".
 
@frustratedhusband Agree with the other guy. Kinda pricey but they do the job. I enjoy them for machine work more than deadlifting where I prefer a traditional strap. They also get better as you use them. They are kinda stiff to start.
 
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