Is it truly worthwhile to employ the muscle exhaustion technique prior to the main portion of the workout?

The method of initial muscle exhaustion was developed by J. Weider. According to his recommendations, every strength training should be based on this method. It consists of performing an isolated exercise before a main, compound exercise, e.g. performing a leg extension on the machine before doing squats. The aim of this method is to increase the stimulation of the muscles on which we focus the most in a particular compound exercise (e.g. in the squat, these will be the quadriceps muscles).

A study was conducted to determine if initial muscle fatigue could have any benefits. The study involved 39 participants (9 men and 30 women) who were divided into three groups: Group I performed first the isolated arm exercise, then the main fight, Group II also performed the exercise firstly in isolation, but a break was made between the isolation exercise and the main leg fight, however, Group III performed the main arm exercise first and then the solitary leg exercise. The study lasted 12 weeks. In the main fights, participants performed exercises such as bench press, leg press, and rowing. Researchers did not notice any significant differences between the groups regarding the increase in strength in individual fights and the increase in body circumference (J.. P. Fisher et al. 2014). In 2019, T. B. Trindade et al. conducted a 9-week study. The people were divided into 3 groups: Group I performed 3 sets of leg press on a machine at a 45-degree angle with 75% 1RM, Group II performed the maximum number of leg extension exercises on a machine and then leg press, Group III was a non-training control group. It was observed that the initial muscle fatigue did not bring any additional benefits compared to the other groups. Performing leg extension exercises on a machine before pressing resulted in a decrease in training volume and the number of repetitions. In another study, 8 men participated who had been regularly practicing physical activity for at least 3 years. The participants refrained from performing strength exercises 72 hours before the workout. Session 1 was to determine 1RM during bench press. Sessions 2, 3, 4 assumed that push-ups, shoulder raises with dumbbells, and French press would be performed first, followed by bench press on a flat bench. No increase in chest muscle activation was observed after performing the protocol that assumed initial muscle fatigue before bench press. However, it was observed that performing the French press before bench press on a flat bench may be reasonable when athletes lack strength or when the triceps muscle is not activated during bench press (A.. Golas et al. 2017).

If you perform stretching before pressing the bar on a flat bench, the chest muscles are more tired before the main fight, which means the weight transferred will be less. Furthermore, the auxiliary muscles (such as the hand or triceps muscles) may take over part of the work that is intended for the chest muscles, which can result in an opposite effect. The same applies to performing squats before a traditional deadlift. Then, the effect of the "muscle pump" can be achieved, which can have an impact on better muscle perception and movement recognition, but often the auxiliary muscles take over the work that is intended for the two-headed thigh muscles. However, this technique can bring benefits to individuals recovering from an injury. If we apply initial muscle fatigue before the main fight, the muscles are tired, which means that in a multi-joint exercise, a lower load is required to train a specific muscle area. Initial muscle fatigue can also be introduced if the priority is not on the muscle that works as the main muscle in a certain exercise, but on an auxiliary muscle.

The technique of muscle exhaustion in the initial phase is often abused in many training programs, especially for beginners... It does not provide any supplementary benefits and may even yield the opposite effect of the intended, leading to a decrease in training volume, number of repetitions, and training weight... There are instances where instead of the primary muscles, auxiliary muscles take over the task, which does not achieve the intended outcomes... However, this technique can be beneficial for individuals who return to training after an injury.