Lifting slowly feels harder, and harder is easily mistaken for better. Tempo, the speed at which you lower and raise a load, has been sold as a hidden lever for muscle growth for decades. The evidence tells a more disciplined story, and it has direct consequences for how you should read effort during a set. Tempo is one of the few variables you control on every single repetition. Load, sets and exercise selection are decided before you touch the bar. Tempo is decided in the