Research

Mixed

Partial ROM training performed at long muscle lengths (e.g., bottom half of a squat) may produce greater muscle hypertrophy than full ROM training.

If you are doing partial reps, ensure you are doing them at long muscle lengths (e.g., the bottom half of a squat). This specific variation may actually build muscle slightly better than full squats. Avoid partial reps at short muscle lengths (e.g., top half of a squat) if hypertrophy is your goal, as they offer no advantage over full ROM.

ModerateQualifiesLOW confidence
Conversely, when pROM was performed at long muscle lengths, analysis showed a small SMD (–0.28; 95% CI: –0.81, 0.16) in favour of pROM for muscle hypertrophy.
Milo Wolf et al. · International Journal of Strength and Conditioning · 2023

Why this rating

Sub-group analysis of a meta-analysis; confidence interval crosses zero (-0.81 to 0.16), indicating uncertainty.

Source

Partial Vs Full Range of Motion Resistance Training: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Milo Wolf et al. · International Journal of Strength and Conditioning · 2023

DOI 10.47206/ijsc.v3i1.182

Meta-analysis · 24 studiesCited 29×
Read the paper
DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10

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