The Slow-Motion Secret

The secret to making strength training safe is slow movement. Voices from the realm of athletics will cry that you need to "train fast to be fast." This is not true. Check out my blog entry "Explosive Weight Training Exploded." The only thing lifting weights fast will do is increase your risk for injury.

So how slow is slow enough? Well, it depends on the movement and the equipment that you are using. But, in general about 8-10 seconds each direction works quite well. That's pretty slow compared to what you have probably seen or tried. So, I've uploaded a visual for you.


This is what safe, controlled speed of movement looks like on a leg press machine.