How heavy should your training be? A nuanced approach to strength training
Strength is an outcome – not an adaption in itself
When we think of strength training, we imagine really heavy weights, creaky bars and a constant pursuit of personal records. And yes, lifting heavy is part of the equation – but that’s far from the whole truth.
Strength is not just the ability to lift as much as possible at one time. It’s the result of many adaptations in the body: improved coordination, more efficient recruitment of muscles via the nervous system and – over time – bigger muscles. These things don’t happen at the same time, and they don’t necessarily require you to lift as heavy as possible every single time you train.
When we talk about how heavy you should lift, it’s not just about the weight on the bar – it’s also about what we’re trying to achieve with the training and when we’re in the process. The graph below illustrates how strength adaptation over time is the result of both neural adaptations and muscle growth (hypertrophy). The first advances primarily improve activation and coordination of the nervous system, while muscle growth only really takes off later.
The relative roles of neural and muscular adaptations to strength training in the early and late phases.
Sale , 1988
Training is essentially a controlled load on the body that it has to adapt to. As your body gets used to a certain load, you need to gradually increase it in order to get stronger. This is what we call progressive overload.
But progress is not about mindlessly increasing the weight every week. It’s about finding the balance: training hard enough to create development – without pushing your body beyond its capacity. This is where structured programs and a well-thought-out plan come into play.
How heavy should you start?
When you start a new training program – or are new to strength training – it’s all about technique. Technique is everything. Mastering exercises like back squats or deadlifts can take a long time – we’re talking months to years. At the same time, starting too heavy will compromise your technique and make it difficult for you to learn the most effective technique and thus the entire basis for real progress. But that doesn’t mean it has to be easy – it just has to be challenging enough.
In the beginning, you will often experience rapid progress – especially due to neurological adaptations. You will become better at performing the movements and expressing force more effectively. But later, the progress you make will be due more to muscle growth – and that takes longer. Here it becomes even more important to hold back and think long-term.
Let’s take an example:
Mikael starts with 40 kg in a back squat to focus on technique. Each week he increases the weight by 2.5 kg. After 12 weeks, he reaches 70 kg, where it starts to get heavy. Instead of pushing further, he goes back to 57.5 kg - heavier than he started and slowly builds up again. Later, he starts the next cycle from 60 kg. That way, he gets a long “runway of progression” where his body can keep up.
Conversely, Mikael could have started at 60 kg and increased by 5 kg per week. After two weeks, he is at 70 kg and struggling with both technique and exhaustion. Too aggressive a progression often results in short-term progress – and long-term plateaus.
Variation and adjustment
The body does not perform the same every day. Therefore, it can be advantageous to repeat the same weight from the last workout if you are tired or not feeling at your peak. This reduces the risk of overtraining and injuries – and ensures that you maintain momentum in the long run. So instead of thinking that you should have gained kilos, you can think of the opposite: the goal of this workout is not to put on more kilos, but perhaps to make the weight feel “lighter”, faster or less hard than last week. That way, you can still make progress, despite not gaining weight.
Sooner or later, you will reach a point where your progress levels off. You may be training with 0-1 repetitions “in reserve” (reps in reserve), and the last kilos require months to add. At that point, it may be smart to take a step back: lower the weight, refine your technique and build again – heavier and stronger than before.
Optimal Intensity
Most people get the best results by training at 60-85% of their 1RM. That’s heavy enough to make progress – but not so heavy that it drains you or wears you out unnecessarily. Training to failure every time sounds cool and may work for some, but is rarely sustainable in the long run.
Unless you’re a competitive athlete, there’s rarely a reason to train above 90% of your maximum capacity. It’s only relevant if you’re working towards a lift at a specific time, such as a competition – and you’ve planned your training carefully around that.
Use “limits” strategically
In strength training, many people think that more weight always equals more progress, which is true, but not the whole picture. By consciously introducing limitations – such as shortened rest periods, tempo changes, or technical focus – you can actually achieve more with less.
When you reduce the weight you can lift by changing the conditions of the movement, you create an environment where other qualities take center stage. It might look like this:
Pause at the bottom of the lift: By adding a 2-3 second pause at the bottom of a squat or bench press, for example, you remove the elastic energy that normally helps you get going. This forces the nervous system to generate force from a “dead” point – and improves both stability and strength control.
Explosiveness in the concentric phase: By focusing on lifting the weight quickly in the upward phase, even with moderate load, you teach the nervous system to activate the muscles more efficiently. This improves the rate of force development (RFD), which is essential in both sports and strength training.
Technical work with lower weight: When you reduce the load, you create space to refine your technique. This means better motor control, more efficient power transfer and a lower risk of injury when you later move up to higher weights.
These limitations are not an obstacle – they are a tool. They stimulate neural adaptations, sharpen your movement understanding, and ensure that the strength you build has a solid foundation.
Conclusion
Strength training isn’t just about lifting real heavy stuff—it’s about lifting smart. With technique, structure, and patience, you can build a strong, resilient body and create lasting results. So the next time you’re considering adding another 10 pounds to the bar, ask yourself, “Is this what’s going to get me through this—or is it just my ego talking?”
