The Mindset Shift
Failure in fitness is a good thing.
“If you are not failing, you are not doing enough.”
The classic, cringe quote plastered onto big block gyms across the world.
You do not see that written across the office wall; you will not find that written above an altar at church; you will not even find that script imprinted on the forefront of your own mind.
Because, in most cases, failure feels scary. It feels uncertain. It feels like “oh no, the dark and spooky…stay back.” So scary in fact that you would willingly choose to ignore it, stay as removed from the situation as possible, and quite literally pretend that what. you are fearful of does not exist!
When you are strength training, failure is exactly what you want to reach for. The last two to three reps of any working set should inspire the ugly faces, maybe a grunt or two, and the mutterings of “why am I doing this to myself today.”
Failure is information in functional strength training. It gives you vital insight into the volume of stimulus needed for your unique skeletal tissue. Failure creates the mental resiliency that ultimately translates into better coping mechanisms in the workplace, empowers you to advocate more powerfully for yourself with your healthcare team, and influences how you show up for those who depend on you.
That being said- there are some strategies you can keep in mind when you are applying failure to your own strength goals. Let’s get into it!
The importance of how close you come to failure fluctuates. Whether your goal is general strength gain, or muscular hypertrophy influences how close you- the exerciser- need to be to that “oh s*** I am going to drop this” sensation. Training for muscular hypertrophy appears to be better influenced by being close to failure; whereas general strength training does not need such a close encounter with death (PMID 38970765).
Failure is better implemented for power- focused models, but all programming could benefit from focusing on power (PMID 29372481). Training-to-absolute-failure is best suited for explosive power; picture ball slams, jump squats, burpees, squat cleans. However, failure comes in many forms. Take for example working sets of barbell squats; you are programmed three sets of six to eight reps. It will be perfectly suitable to complete all eight reps, in all three sets. Here is where the magic comes in though: you will receive more optimal neuromuscular input by using a resistance that forces you to complete solid reps and perhaps that means dropping a rep (or two!) by that third or final set. You are sending the signal to your body to work as hard as it can, under a resistance that feels quite challenging, to the point where you feel form is is starting to be sacrificed (and maybe the ugly faces start to appear too). That is considered power- no plyometric additions in consideration at the time. Failing to complete all reps in your sets is an effective way to exercise the principle of failure- without the total give up and throw to the floor drama.
Reaching the point of failure does not guarantee that you are doing the right thing. There is an overarching theme in most research published about proximity to failure that training to absolute failure versus “I’ve got one or two left in me” is neither superior or inferior (PMID 36334240). Getting to these thresholds holds no guarantees when it comes to building muscle, because muscle needs fuel. Strength training is the stimulus to muscle tissue to build itself. However, stimulate all you want- if you are failing to fill your foundations with good food, sufficient rest, and hydration you will indeed fail the mission you have set out for yourself.
What it comes down to is simple: failure is part of a feedback loop that your body taps into with strength and power training. You can become comfortable with failure in fitness, because it is the type of sensation that indicates you are right where you need to be- versus other areas of life, where failure is considered being the farthest thing from where you are needed to be.