At the gym doing chin-ups:
Painful.
I make sure to go all the way up and down, even if it means I can't do much more than 12. Swallowing my pride next to a lighter guy doing half reps. But why?
Full range of motion (ROM) has recently been shown to enhance muscle mass (see "lengthened partials").
It also boosts mobility, stability, and overall joint health. If you're used to exercising with resistance at a full range, your joints will handle those positions better when unloaded.
So next time you're tempted to cheat on your range of motion, remember it's not as effective for muscle building or joint health. Unless you have joint issues of course -- adapt accordingly.
In Dr. Muscle, the app assumes you're using the same range of motion each time. Cheating with half reps might boost your numbers, but you'd only be cheating yourself in the end.
Stick to full range, and consider gradually increasing it to bulletproof your joints for the future.
Talk soon,
Dr. Carl Juneau, PhD
Founder of Dr. Muscle AI
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