Is the cal burn of a workout proportional to volume?
What if you do less sets but use higher weight but still the total POUNDAGE is less?
That is a great question. I will be interested to see what others say. Very good thinking
It is based on physics and the work that you do.
Work = weight x vertical distance x reps
More work = more energy required.
If the amount of work does not change then the amount of energy required will not change, even if the weight on the bar is different.
If weight x reps is the same, then the energy requirement is the same since it is assumed that the distance that the weight has to travels remains constant.
This also assumes no active resistance to the eccentric(negative) portion or the same relative resistance.