Eccentric Training: What It Is, Benefits and Exercises

When it comes to strength training, most people think of lifting weights to build muscle strength. But magical things happen when the weight is lowered, not raised.

This is called eccentric exercise. We unconsciously do eccentric movements every day; they hide in our daily life, but they are not the parts we usually focus on.

Only recently has eccentric training started to draw more attention from the general public. In bodybuilding, for example, athletes control the speed and lower the weight slowly during biceps curls to improve the efficiency of muscle hypertrophy.

What is eccentric training?

Resistance training involves two types of isotonic contractions: concentric and eccentric.

A concentric contraction is when the muscle shortens, producing force to lift a weight (active contraction). An eccentric contraction is when the muscle lengthens under tension, producing force to lower the weight back down (controlled lengthening).

For example, when you curl a biceps up, that is the concentric part. When you lower the bar, that is the eccentric part: your muscles are in the lengthening phase.

Lowering the weight often feels easier, but the muscles work harder than you imagine. They must be stable enough to withstand the load under gravity instead of simply dropping the weight to the floor.

Eccentric training is more demanding on the muscles and therefore more fatiguing than concentric training. By focusing on these seemingly easier parts, there are clear benefits: more muscle mass, muscle flexibility, bone density, a healthier heart, and even more calories burned after the workout than in a seemingly tougher session.

The benefits of eccentric training

In rehabilitation and training, eccentric exercises are essential for developing strength, power and resilience (Alfredson, 2003; Gonzalo-Skok et al., 2016; LaStayo et al., 2003; Roig, Shadgan & Reid, 2008). Here are the key benefits:

Increase muscle mass and stimulate growth

When you lift a box of books, a concentric movement, you recruit many muscle fibers. When you lower it, an eccentric movement, you need fewer fibers, but the weight in your hands does not change.

So each fiber recruited in the eccentric phase carries more of the load, which creates more micro-tears in the muscle fibers. The body then sends blood and nutrients to the area to repair it. This is called supercompensation: balance work and recovery correctly and the muscle becomes stronger than before, raising your base fitness level over time. That is how you build muscle and gradually increase muscle mass.¹

Reduce the risk of injury

Injuries in strength training often happen because of incorrect force delivery or a lack of eccentric control when landing or changing direction. The micro-tears caused by eccentric training improve the muscles' ability to heal and adapt. Eccentric training is also an important part of Olympic weightlifting, strengthening the muscles and helping prevent injury and strain.

No age limit and great for rehabilitation

Studies show that eccentric movements recruit fewer muscle fibers and require less energy than concentric movements to produce the same force.² They are therefore less likely to overload injured joints and muscles, which is especially good for older adults who do not perform traditional strength exercises. That is what makes eccentric work a premier choice for rehabilitation and physical therapy.

Eccentric strength training is a key approach for older men and women because of the decline in muscle mass and strength that comes with age and inactivity. Men (18–80) showed larger muscle fibers after eccentric exercise, while women (20–74) dramatically improved their strength (Hortobagyi et al., 1995).³

Why should everyone try eccentric training?

A 2017 review of randomized controlled trials in healthy adults found that eccentric-focused training produced slightly more muscle growth (10%) than concentric-focused training (6.8%).⁴ In other words, the muscle-lengthening phase is more effective than the shortening phase for building muscle and producing hypertrophy.

It has also been shown that eccentric exercise increases muscle growth, elastic energy reserves and neural stimulation to and within the muscle. Interestingly, in a 12-week study comparing concentric and eccentric training, Hortobagyi et al. (1996) found that participants experienced more fatigue with concentric training.

All these findings show how important it is to add eccentric training to your routine: it helps you break through training plateaus quickly and move up to heavier weights.

How to add eccentric training to your workout routine

It is hard to safely achieve eccentric overload in a gym or studio without a professional spotter or personal trainer. If you are a beginner, start with bodyweight movements, such as a squat with a slow 3–5 second descent and a one-count rise. Then add free weights using the same principle: very slow in the eccentric phase and relatively quick in the concentric phase.

But everything changes when you have a Speediance smart home gym. The Gym Monster 2 offers up to 100 kg (220 lbs) of digital resistance and an eccentric mode that automatically adds resistance in the negative phase of the movement and reduces it in the concentric phase, on every rep. “All you need to do is press a button on the screen and everything is set,” says John, Speediance Workout PM. “Eccentric mode creates an immersive eccentric overload training experience, making it easier, more efficient and science-based.”