🌿 Tempo Training: The Poetry of Time Under Tension

In a world that rushes, strength asks us to slow down.

Tempo training isn’t just a method—it’s a meditation. A way to meet resistance with rhythm, and to feel every phase of movement as a story unfolding. When we lift with intention, we invite the body to bloom under tension, not break beneath it.

⏱️ What Is Tempo Training?

Tempo refers to the speed and control of each phase of a lift:

• Eccentric (lowering): the descent, the surrender

• Pause: the stillness, the breath

• Concentric (lifting): the rise, the reclaiming

• Top pause: the exhale, the integration

A common hypertrophy tempo is 2–1–2–0:

• 2 seconds down

• 1 second pause

• 2 seconds up

• 0 pause at the top

This rhythm increases time under tension, a key driver of muscle growth. But more than that—it deepens your relationship with movement.

  🌸 Why It Matters

Builds strength without rushing

·       Muscles respond to tension, not speed. Slower reps mean deeper engagement.

Enhances emotional regulation

·       Tempo invites breath, awareness, and presence. It’s a nervous system balm.

Supports joint health and control

·       Especially for clients with compensations, tempo builds stability before power.

Reframes progress

·       You don’t always need heavier weights—you need deeper intention.

🔄 Adjusts the Variables, Not Just the Load

You don’t need heavier weights to challenge your body—you can manipulate tempo, range of motion, rest periods, and rep schemes to create meaningful intensity. Tempo training is a powerful way to increase difficulty without increasing external load, making it ideal for joint-friendly programming, burnout recovery, or foundational strength work.

Here’s to strength that lasts.

 Here’s to movement with meaning.

 Here’s to mornings that set the tone for decades. 🌿