People have mixed opinions about partial movements. Many think they’re utterly useless, while some others believe they’re harmful. That can be true if they’re done mindlessly, but there are many ways in which consciously doing partials can help you.

What’s a partial movement?

Whenever you do an exercise without going through the full range of motion, that’s a partial. For example if you start a squat but stop before your thighs are at least parallel with the ground, then that’s a partial squat – you didn’t go all the way.

If you can already squat properly, mindlessly snapping out partial squats will do nothing for you. You’re just wasting time – if you can do the full movement, do the full movement, even if that means doing less repetitions – you need the intensity to progress. Half assing will only make you learn an incomplete movement, which screws up your form for the full movement.

Besides, half a squat is not a squat. Don’t tell yourself you’re doing a hundred squats if you only went half way through most of them. You’re only cheating yourself.

This is why many people think that partials are useless or harmful – if you train like a twat and churn them out believing you’re doing something else, either or both apply!

That said, there are several situations where executing a partial movement consciously is valuable. Key word is “consciously” – as long as you’re doing it for a specific purpose, you can get a lot out of it. Below are a few cases where partial movements shine.

Partial movements as a stepping stone

When you’re leveling up an exercise in calisthenics, sometimes you’ll find that the difference in intensity is too much for you to be able to execute the exercise properly. In some cases, you might just not have developed the flexibility or balance needed to complete the step. For example, if you’re just getting started with body weight squats, you might find it difficult to go all the way down.

Going as far down as you can go, and trying to increase the depth from session to session is a good compromise. In this case you’re consciously executing part of the action to extend your range of motion until you can execute the full movement.

This doesn’t wash with weighted exercises, though. If you’re having problems with an exercise using weights, put the ego away and use less weight. Use an empty barbell or even a broomstick to get your form right first.

If you can’t execute an exercise properly without weights, you are not ready to do it with weights.

Partial movements for reinforcement

Intentionally executing partials can also help you get over sticking points in an exercise. While mindlessly churning out partials is useless, focusing specifically on a small part of the movement you are having difficulty with allows you to practice it over and over again.

This builds up both the strength needed in that part, as well as establishing the movement pattern you need at that point.

This kind of exercise does work with weights, although it is still advisable to use less than your maximum load to practice this.

Partial movements for rehabilitation

If you’re recovering from an injury, sometimes it helps to work the injured part. Partial movements allow you to focus on the recovering area, strengthening it and helping it recover.

The subject of rehabilitation is complex and varied, so we will only add that such work should only be done at the direction of a medical professional and after a good localised warm up as it is very easy to injure yourself again if you are still weak.

Don’t learn from partials

When you are intentionally doing partial movements remember that your end goal is to execute the full movement. If you only do partial movements you will only learn to do partial movements, so make sure to also include some full range of motion exercises in your session, even if they are less intense than the exercise you’re practicing for.

To take the example of the squats again, if you’re trying to go for a full squat, do your partials first, then a few of sets of assisted squats with the full depth. This will help you keep the form fresh in your mind.

Have any questions about partial movements or scaling? Let us know!

Header image: Exploded diagram of internal 3 speed Shimano hub from a Sears bicycle (Public domain)