Cheating in strength training: why is it necessary and how to apply it?

Author: Timko Ilya - master of the whole project and fitness trainer.
2014-09-09

There was this case in the gym... One time I saw a skinny guy doing bicep curls with an empty barbell. Moreover, he was swinging his back so much that the load hardly reached his biceps. After he finished his set, I asked him, "Hey, why are you swinging your back like that? What’s the point if your arms are hardly working with that technique?" He looked at me with a condescending gaze and replied, "Don't bother me. I'm CHEATING!" His face had that look of a teacher who has to explain obvious things to a student.

So, CHEATING in strength training is a method of performing strength exercises where additional muscles are engaged if the primary muscles cannot handle the load.

From this definition, it is clear that if you take your usual working weight and start cheating from the first repetition, then that is not cheating, but laziness and carelessness. Cheating is only justified if you cannot perform the exercise with normal technique.

Types of Cheating

Personally, I distinguish only two types of cheating. More precisely, two different variations that pursue different goals. Here they are:

1. For Burnout. You take your usual working weight and cheat only on the last repetitions when you can no longer lift the weight with standard technique. That is, you should cheat just enough to do the next repetition.

2. For Strength. You take a weight that is deliberately too heavy for you and start cheating from the first repetition. For example, if you normally do bicep curls with 30 kg for 10 repetitions with proper technique, and if you take 40 – 45 kg, you will have to cheat right away.

It is obvious that in the first variant, cheating can give us a few additional repetitions. And even though the primary muscles receive a lesser load during these repetitions, they still get some load! This allows you to load the muscles more and is more likely to cause their growth.

In the second variant, you can work with heavier weights that are unusual for your muscles. In this case, this method is more aimed at increasing muscle strength and less on mass growth.

But note, in both variants, cheating is used when you cannot do the exercise in the usual way. If you have the strength to do repetitions "cleanly", but you still cheat, then you unjustifiably take the load away from the working muscles and hinder your own progress.

When Is It Better to Use Cheating?

1. When you have already sufficiently loaded the target muscle groups, but at the end of the workout want to load them to failure. In this case, the first variant of cheating works well.

2. If you have just started your workout and your muscles are still fresh, you can use the second variant of cheating. This will give a good push to the growth of your muscle strength. But remember, the second variant is quite injury-prone since your muscles and ligaments are not used to such weight.

3. I do not recommend using any types of cheating for beginners. This method strongly shocks the muscles. For the first few months, regular training and techniques will provide enough stimulus. There’s no need to use a cannon to shoot sparrows. Also, before using cheating, first learn the correct technique.

In general, cheating can be a good aid for increasing your muscle strength and mass. But if you're just too lazy to do exercises correctly or are constantly chasing heavier weights, don't cover your laziness and impatience with cheating. Good luck!