It’s a phrase that’s echoed through gyms everywhere — “train to failure.”
The idea sounds hardcore, even heroic: you keep lifting, pressing, or curling until your body simply can’t go any further. But what does training to failure really mean, and is it actually the smartest way to build muscle, strength, and performance?
According to VeryWellFit.com, training to failure — sometimes called “lifting to failure” or AMRAP (“as many reps as possible”) — means performing an exercise until your muscles reach concentric failure. That’s the point when the working muscle can’t complete another repetition with proper form.
If you can still eke out another rep, technically, you haven’t failed yet.
In simple terms, it’s the moment your muscles tap out. Failure occurs when your muscle’s energy stores of ATP (adenosine triphosphate) are depleted and lactic acid accumulates, forcing you to stop. After a short rest, your muscles flush out the lactic acid, restore ATP, and can perform again — just not immediately at full strength.
This strategy has long been popular among bodybuilders and strength athletes because of its intensity and the perception that “no pain, no gain” equals maximum progress. However, the reality is more nuanced, with research showing both advantages and drawbacks depending on how and when it’s used.
The Pros of Training to Failure
According to VeryWellFit.com, there are clear potential benefits to taking sets to the brink. When done correctly, training to failure can:
- Increase muscle strength and size faster, particularly for advanced lifters who’ve hit a plateau.
- Recruit more muscle fibers than submaximal lifting, since pushing the body to exhaustion can stimulate greater hormonal and neuromuscular responses.
A 2016 research review found that highly trained athletes experienced slightly greater improvements in muscle mass and strength when lifting to failure with heavy weights compared to stopping short.
Similarly, OnePeloton.com cites a 2024 Sports Medicine review noting that reaching failure can encourage more muscle size gains, especially when lifters are working with lighter weights.
There’s also a psychological benefit. As Peloton instructor Andy Speer told OnePeloton.com, the experience forces lifters to focus on the mind-muscle connection: “Your mind-muscle connection and your awareness of what’s happening in your body increase as you get closer to failure because you’re feeling everything more.”
The Cons: When Pushing Too Far Hurts Progress
But the very intensity that makes failure training so effective can also make it risky. VeryWellFit.com warns that overusing the technique can lead to a host of problems, including:
- Injury risk from poor form when fatigue sets in.
- Overtraining, especially without adequate recovery.
- Increased stress hormone levels, such as cortisol, which can hinder muscle growth and suppress anabolic hormones.
A 2007 research review cited by the site found that while failure training can help advanced lifters break through plateaus, taking every set to absolute failure often causes diminishing returns over time. This is because constant high stress on the muscles and nervous system can lead to burnout, fatigue, and even regression in strength performance.
The risks are particularly high when lifters ignore form in pursuit of extra reps. As fatigue builds, technique usually deteriorates, increasing the chance of strains or other injuries.
Andy Speer, speaking to OnePeloton.com, echoed this caution: “If you’re not careful, training to failure could get a little dangerous. You don’t want to have a heavy squat bar on your back and no spotter and reach a point of failure where you can’t get the bar back on the rack.”
Physical therapist RJ Williams also highlighted the long-term consequences of pushing to failure too frequently — such as joint stress, connective tissue strain, and overtraining syndrome, which can take weeks or months to recover from.
Research Says: You Don’t Always Have to Fail
Interestingly, newer studies suggest that total muscular failure might not be necessary to build serious muscle.
According to Men’s Health, a review published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science found that muscle growth and strength improvements occurred even when participants didn’t train to failure. Those who stopped slightly short achieved similar results to those who pushed until complete exhaustion.
The review’s findings indicate a “sweet spot” of about zero to five reps from failure. As long as lifters aren’t leaving more than three to five reps “in the tank,” they can still expect significant progress. In practical terms, that means stopping a few reps before your muscles completely give out—but not cutting your effort too early either.
OnePeloton.com refers to this concept as training to fatigue or reps in reserve (RIR). The idea is to work close enough to your limits that your muscles are challenged, but not so far that your form collapses or recovery suffers. Williams describes it as finishing a set when you feel you could only manage one or two more reps if you had to.
Research summarized by the Strength and Conditioning Journal in 2019 supports this approach, showing that near-failure training delivers similar results to failure training but with fewer risks.
When and How Often to Train to Failure
Even among experts who support failure training, most agree it should be used strategically — not every set, and not every day.
OnePeloton.com recommends saving failure training for the final set of a particular exercise, or for the last one to three exercises of a workout session. That ensures your muscles are warm and you’re not compromising later lifts.
Frequency matters too. Serious lifters who focus on one muscle group per day might include failure training three to five times a week, because they have longer recovery windows. But those doing full-body sessions or training the same muscles multiple times per week need to be more cautious. Overlapping fatigue can quickly lead to diminished performance.
And for beginners? VeryWellFit.com makes it clear that training to failure isn’t recommended for newcomers. Developing proper technique and strength foundations comes first; only once form is consistent and recovery is well-managed should failure training even be considered.
Technical vs. Muscular Failure
A key distinction in this debate is the difference between technical failure and muscular failure.
Men’s Health explains that technical failure occurs when you can’t complete another rep with proper form or a controlled tempo. Muscular failure, on the other hand, means you physically can’t move the weight—form or not.
Training to technical failure is far safer and more sustainable. It ensures you’re working hard while maintaining proper biomechanics. Many experienced coaches recommend making technical failure your limit, not muscular collapse.
For the majority of lifters, training to failure isn’t required to see progress. Instead, most experts recommend focusing on progressive overload—gradually increasing resistance, reps, or intensity over time.
OnePeloton.com describes progressive overload as “gradually increasing the stress on your body so it continues to adapt to the work and grow stronger in the process.” That might mean using heavier weights, adding more sets, or simply improving form and range of motion.
When done correctly, progressive overload promotes long-term muscle and strength gains without the risks of overtraining. It also allows for consistent performance—key for maintaining momentum and avoiding burnout.
The Bottom Line
Training to failure can be a powerful tool — but it’s not a requirement for results.
Research consistently shows that you can build muscle and strength effectively while stopping just short of complete exhaustion.
For advanced athletes, going to failure occasionally can help measure progress or break through stagnation. But for most lifters, especially beginners or those training frequently, near-failure training and progressive overload are smarter, safer, and equally effective options.
So, should you be training to failure?
Only sometimes — and only with a plan. Know your limits, respect recovery, and focus on consistency. The gains will come not from breaking down every session, but from building up over time.
Featured image credit: Pexels/Andrea Piacquadio/Franco Monsalvo
