If you’re serious about maximizing your muscle gains, you’ve likely encountered years of conflicting fitness advice. The fitness industry repeats old-school dogma that research has since disproven.

Here are five evidence-based training insights that challenge conventional wisdom—and the science behind each one.

Fact 1: You May Need More Protein Than You Think

The commonly cited recommendation of 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight per day may not be optimal for muscle growth. More recent meta-analyses tell a different story.

What the research shows: Analyses by Tagawa and Nunes found a strong linear relationship between protein intake and hypertrophy, with benefits potentially extending higher than previously thought. For maximum muscle growth, the evidence supports aiming for at least 2.35 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for men, and potentially more.

The practical takeaway: While protein is often the most expensive macronutrient, the research is clear—higher intake supports better results for those pursuing maximum muscle growth.

Fact 2: Higher Training Volume Leads to More Growth

The debate between high-intensity/low-volume (HIT) training and high-volume traditional bodybuilding has been settled by research over the last decade.

The volume ceiling is higher than many think: The consistent scientific trend shows that more volume drives more growth. A recent meta-analysis by Paladin and colleagues found that hypertrophy continues to increase up to 30-40 weekly sets per muscle group.

It’s a robust finding: This relationship holds regardless of rest times, training to failure vs. non-failure, or study duration. The observed gains aren’t simply temporary muscle swelling—repeated training sessions rapidly diminish edema while muscle growth continues.

The trade-off: Higher volumes yield diminishing returns. You spend linearly more time for non-linearly greater growth. If you’re short on time, our guide on the minimum effective dose shows how you can achieve roughly 80% of your gains with 5-9 hard sets per muscle group weekly—but chasing maximum growth requires higher volumes.

SetsApart helps you track this. The Volume Per Muscle Group feature shows your weekly hard sets at a glance, so you know whether you’re hitting your volume targets or leaving gains on the table.

Fact 3: Emphasizing the Stretched Position Drives More Growth

Focusing on the deepest, most lengthened position of an exercise is strongly supported by direct empirical research.

The evidence: Across approximately 40 studies, training in a more lengthened position consistently leads to more or similar growth compared to training in a less stretched position. This holds true across different exercises—for example, an overhead tricep extension loads the muscle at longer lengths than a pushdown.

How to apply it: You don’t need to overcomplicate this. To emphasize the stretch:

• Pick exercises that naturally load the muscle more in the stretched position
• Perform partial reps in the stretch portion of the range
• Pause briefly in the stretched position

This approach aligns with solid progressive overload principles—you’re not just adding weight, you’re maximizing the stimulus from each rep.

Fact 4: Slow Tempo Doesn’t Drive More Growth

The old-school mantra of counting to three or four on the eccentric phase (lowering the weight) may be a waste of time for hypertrophy purposes.

What the research shows: A meta-analysis on tempo found no benefit to going slower on the way down, and even noted a small potential benefit to going a bit faster on both the eccentric and concentric phases. Some studies in the analysis used a tempo as fast as half a second on the eccentric.

The practical implication: While controlled movements are valuable for safety and technique, chasing “time under tension” as an independent growth factor isn’t supported by the research. Focus on proximity to failure and progressive overload rather than counting seconds.

Fact 5: Extended Warm-Ups May Not Improve Hypertrophy Performance

While warm-ups may serve injury prevention purposes, for the pure purpose of maximizing muscle growth performance, extended warm-up routines appear to be overrated.

What the research shows: Studies often find a small benefit (one or two extra reps) on the first set from a warm-up, but performance often drops in later sets, leading to similar total volume load across the workout.

The opportunity cost: Many lifters spend 10-15 minutes on warm-ups that don’t stimulate additional growth. That time could potentially be spent on additional hard working sets, which would stimulate more hypertrophy.

How to optimize: If you warm up for performance, research shows the benefit mainly comes from doing 1-3 reps at 70-90% of your one-rep max (post-activation performance enhancement). For many, the first few lighter reps of the actual working set are enough to prepare the target tissues.

---

The Bottom Line

Research supports focusing on:

• Higher protein intake (2.35+ g/kg for men)
• Sufficient training volume (track your hard sets per muscle group)
• Exercises that load the stretched position
• Proximity to failure over slow tempos
• Efficient warm-up protocols that don’t eat into training time

SetsApart was built around these principles. Instead of tracking every rep and rest period, you track what the science says matters most: hard sets close to failure, progressive overload, and volume per muscle group. Try it free and see how evidence-based tracking simplifies your training.

---

Source

This article was inspired by and summarizes key insights from the following video. Check out the video for more detail and subscribe to the channel—it’s a great resource for evidence-based training.

Watch the full video: 5 Facts the Fitness Industry Doesn’t Want to Admit