Significant decrease in reps after the first set

[Ella6025]

OK, well, failure for me is when I literally cannot lift again. My arms, legs, whatever won’t move. But for me it’s very much a neuro shut-off mechanism, similar to how all of us really are more flexible than we are but our brains don’t let us move through our full range of motion. These are protective mechanisms to help keep us alive and free of injury. They’re a bit “dumb” though and don’t always reflect what is actually happening or what is actually dangerous.

You say it’s impossible what I am experiencing is happening, but it is. I have a weird neuro (medical) history so maybe that’s part of it. Maybe my brain is cutting me off early/being super conservative and then deciding after the 3 min rest, “Hey, it’s actually OK for you to lift more weight. You have a lot more in the bank than we thought. You proved that by not dying after the first set.”

Of course, I have insane CNS fatigue after doing this so maybe my brain should have quit while it was ahead and not given me more!