Walk into a Stay Gold class and you will see things like 31X1 written next to a squat. No, it is not the WiFi password.
Reading the code
- 3: three seconds lowering the weight
- 1: a one second pause at the bottom
- X: explode up as fast as you can
- 1: one second pause at the top
X is relative. It just means "as fast as you can move that weight right now." For a heavy squat that might not look fast. That's fine. Intent matters.
Why bother?
Slow lowering builds a ton of strength and control without needing the heaviest weight in the room. It's kinder to joints, it exposes sloppy reps, and it makes a 40 lb dumbbell feel like a personal insult. In a good way.
Tempo is a big part of how we train for the long game. More on that on our strength for longevity page, or see how a class runs on small group training.
Want someone to count for you?
Every class is 8 people max, with a coach watching every rep.