ReviewSports medicine - open2023
Physiological Responses and Adaptations to Lower Load Resistance Training: Implications for Health and Performance.
Review in Sports medicine - open, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 33 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
33 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- The Effects of Advanced Resistance Training Prescription Methods on Strength, Power, Hypertrophy, and Performance Adaptations in Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review and Bayesian Network Meta-analysis.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Pooled it
- Non-Specific Strength Changes Between High- and Low-Load Isotonic Resistance Training: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of combined exercise training for hypertension management: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.The Pan African medical journal · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of long-term cluster training and traditional resistance training in enhancing maximum strength in young adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of exercise interventions on sleep quality in adolescents: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2025Pooled it
- The effect of resistance training on patients with secondary sarcopenia: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Scientific reports · 2024Pooled it
- Effects of Bed Rest on Physical Performance in Athletes: A Systematic and Narrative Review.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2023Pooled it
- Effects of caffeine gum on same-day and subsequent neuromuscular performance under a standardized resistance-priming condition in male basketball players.Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition · 2026Trial
- Comparison of Repetition-Based Progressive-Overload Strategies in Resistance Training: Rest-Pause Versus Drop Sets.Scandinavian journal of medicine & science in sports · 2026Trial
- Submaximal low-load resistance exercise with blood flow restriction produces similar results to low-load exercise to failure for muscle size and strength, but not endurance.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Trial
- Physical function and psychosocial outcomes after a 6-month self-paced aquatic exercise program for individuals with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome.European journal of applied physiology · 2025Trial
- Effects of muscle strength training with blood flow restriction on glomerular function in people with stage 3 chronic kidney disease.Jornal brasileiro de nefrologiaTrial
- Rethinking task failure in resistance training research: a framework for submaximal exercise prescription.European journal of applied physiology · 2026Review
- Skeletal Fiber Type in Muscle Pain and Dysfunction.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- The effect of artificial gravity on the outcome of a two-week resistance vibration exercise programme: BRAVE study.Experimental physiology · 2026Article
- The load-velocity profiles and exercise-specific velocity zones for seven commonly used weightlifting exercises.PloS one · 2026Article
- Article
- Periodizing Exercise Medicine Prescription for Patients with Cancer: A Narrative Opinion.Sports medicine (Auckland, N.Z.) · 2025Review
- Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Feedback in a Remote Monitoring Home-Based Training System for Workers: A Medium-Scale Randomized Parallel-Group Controlled Trial.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Cardiocirculatory and Metabolic Responses to Low- and High-Load Squat Exercise in Young and Middle-Aged Individuals.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Resistance training is a method of enhancing strength, gait speed, mobility, and health. However, the external load required to induce these benefits is a contentious issue. A growing body of evidence suggests that when lower load resistance training [i.e., loads < 50% of one-repetition maximum (1RM)] is completed within close proximity to concentric failure, it can serve as an effective alternative to traditional higher load (i.e., loads > 70% of 1RM) training and in many cases can promote similar or even superior physiological adaptations. Such findings are important given that confidence with external loads and access to training facilities and equipment are commonly cited barriers to regular resistance training. Here, we review some of the mechanisms and physiological changes in response to lower load resistance training. We also consider the evidence for applying lower loads for those at risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases and those with reduced mobility. Finally, we provide practical recommendations, specifically that to maximize the benefits of lower load resistance training, high levels of effort and training in close proximity to concentric failure are required. Additionally, using lower loads 2-3 times per week with 3-4 sets per exercise, and loads no lower than 30% of 1RM can enhance muscle hypertrophy and strength adaptations. Consequently, implementing lower load resistance training can be a beneficial and viable resistance training method for a wide range of fitness- and health-related goals.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.