Training for strength could, and often is, interlinked with performance, as naturally the feats people wish to achieve are by definition an increase in performance.
Strength is a vast topic, and one that deserves a spot on its own.
Climbing stairs without holding onto the rail, standing up without assistance all fall under this banner, without the underlying strength they do not happen.
Lifting a heavy weight off of the floor, through the air or above your head also require underlying strength, the process, movements and programming may differ, however, the outcome is still one of increased strength.
Strength also means many things:
- Lifting a heavy object for a single rep – probably the most well known strength feat.
- Completing a series (or set) of lifts for an amount of reps or time equally requires strength, for example 10 pull-ups in a row.
Much like performance, we need to look at the overall goal, the difference is, in performance we would use strength to support the goal, here strength is the goal.
A quick example, for a swimmer, squats provide a mechanism to improve the leg and core strength, which is used to improve the force produced when pushing off a block or the wall. We are interested in increasing the force production, not the amount that the individual can move for a single rep.
When programming for a single heavy squat, we would work on all the supporting mechanics to condition the body for that single heavy movement.
The program needs to work on all the subsystems the body needs to support that single movement. This may include variations of the movement, overloading of particular sets of muscles, and building tolerances to holding/supporting heavier weights.
We often talk about knowing how much something weighs.
100kg is 100kg, right?
It feels different when it’s on your back vs being pulled from the floor, and very different to pressing it when you are led down on a bench!
Conditioning our bodies to this requires programming in a fashion that keeps high tolerances whilst also giving the body appropriate rest time, or de-loads as we call them.
We can’t continue to just get stronger and stronger, unfortunately!
As such, we need to consider each part of the movement, using deadlift as an example, consider how can we improve:
- Breaking of the weight from the ground, including bracing and creating tension within the body.
- Transition past the knees, keeping that tension, ensuring the movement of our knees and hips is in sync.
- Locking out (and looking like a boss) at the top
Without a strong starting position, we would not get to pulling past the knees and thus an efficient lockout would not enter the equation – it’s the culmination of all parts that make the whole.
Whilst this is simplified as everything from breath control, grip, foot position, alignment and many more factors become critical to success, the heavier the weight the more each of these areas require individual attention to ultimately create the singular feat.
Training for strength rewards us for improving lots of different areas of a single action over a longer period of time.
If you are interested in how we can improve your strength in a particular movement, or set of movements, pop us an email with what you want to improve – info@spikefitness.co.uk