8.11 Strength and Strength Training Basics
Strength is the foundation upon which we build our lives. It plays a pivotal role in determining our overall health, self-sufficiency, and well-being throughout our lifespan. As personal trainers, we must have a comprehensive understanding of strength and strength training to help our clients achieve their goals and maintain their health. In this chapter, we delve into the fundamentals of strength and strength training, addressing why it is a major component of fitness and how it impacts every aspect of our lives.
The importance of strength cannot be overstated. As we age, our bodies undergo a natural decline in muscle mass, leading to a condition called sarcopenia. Adults can lose between 3% and 8% of their muscle mass per decade after the age of 30 and this rate of decline is even higher after the age of 60 (Holloszy 2000). This loss accelerates after the age of 60, resulting in reduced muscle function, decreased mobility, and increased risk of injuries and falls. Incorporating strength training into our fitness routines can help counteract this age-related muscle mass loss and maintain our independence and vitality as we age.
Sarcopenia is the age-related loss of muscle mass, strength, and function. It is a natural part of aging, and its prevalence increases with age. Sarcopenia can lead to decreased mobility, falls, and quality of life. It is caused by various factors, including hormonal changes, chronic inflammation, and decreased physical activity. While it cannot be completely prevented, exercise, a balanced diet, and lifestyle modifications can help slow its progression.
One of the most compelling reasons for focusing on strength training is its correlation with overall health and well-being. Studies have shown that regular strength training not only increases muscle mass but also improves bone density, metabolic health, and cardiovascular fitness (Westcott, W.L., 2012). Additionally, strength training has been linked to better cognitive function, reduced risk of chronic diseases, and improved mental health, making it a crucial component of a comprehensive fitness program.
To fully appreciate the nuances of strength and strength training, it is essential to understand the various categories of strength. In this chapter, we will explore the following strength categories: absolute strength, speed strength, starting strength, explosive strength, anaerobic strength, and aerobic strength. Each category has unique characteristics and training methods, allowing us to tailor our programs to meet our client’s specific needs and goals. There are more known strength categories. As we acknowledge them, we have found the one mentioned above essential for a personal trainer at the beginning of his career. To be precise, the categories you should focus on as a beginner are absolute strength, anaerobic, and aerobic strength.
Absolute strength refers to the maximum force a muscle or muscle group can generate. Speed strength, on the other hand, focuses on the ability to produce force quickly, enhancing an individual’s power and agility. Starting strength, a term coined by Mark Rippetoe in his book “Starting Strength,” pertains to the capacity to overcome inertia and initiate movement. This type of strength is essential for athletes and individuals who must rapidly generate force, such as in sprinting or weightlifting.
Explosive strength is the ability to produce a high amount of force in a short period, often used in activities like jumping or throwing. Developing explosive strength can benefit athletes in various sports and individuals looking to improve their overall power.
Anaerobic strength is sometimes referred to as anaerobic endurance because the duration of training in this category exceeds the ATP-CP energy storage and resynthesis of ATP. This type of strength is crucial for activities that require short bursts of intense effort, such as sprinting or weightlifting training that exceeds the duration of 30 seconds – most weight training in fitness. Training for anaerobic strength can help improve muscle power, speed, and overall performance.
Lastly, aerobic strength, also known as aerobic endurance, involves the ability to maintain a moderate level of force production over an extended period. This type of strength is essential for endurance athletes and individuals looking to improve their cardiovascular fitness.
Understanding the different categories of strength allows personal trainers to design effective and customized strength training programs for their clients, ensuring they target the appropriate areas to optimize their health and performance and reach their specific goals.
We will delve deeper into the science and principles of strength and strength training and discuss various training methods, techniques, and programming strategies that cater to each strength category’s specific needs and goals. Additionally, we will examine the importance of proper form, progression, and recovery to ensure the safety and effectiveness of our clients’ strength training routines.
To further enhance your understanding of strength and strength training, we will also explore the role of nutrition, supplementation, and lifestyle factors in supporting optimal strength development and maintenance. As you will understand by the end of this textbook, these elements can either support or hinder progress. Don’t worry; we will provide guidance on making informed choices that will contribute to your client’s overall health and fitness journey.
As personal trainers, we are responsible for staying informed about the latest research and best practices in any fitness field, including strength and strength training. This chapter will equip you with the foundational knowledge to confidently and competently guide your clients through their strength training journey. Nevertheless, we encourage you to look into other courses we have prepared inside the PT Business Academy to enhance your expertise further.
Strength and strength training play a vital role in individuals’ overall health, self-sufficiency, and well-being across their lifespan. By understanding the various categories of strength and their respective training methods, you will be better equipped to design effective, tailored programs that help your clients achieve their unique fitness goals.
8.11.1 Training for strength
The truth is that we all work with our individual systems and self-developed templates when creating training programs. They might not be written on paper, but the longer you work as a personal trainer, the more experience you gather with a huge variety of clients; therefore, more templates for programming will be burned into your memory. This is a good thing, and it doesn’t conflict with the principle of individuality at all.
Why is it a good thing?
Our brain is wired to produce a never-ending series of thought shortcuts to improve the efficacy of everything we do. It makes our lives easier and more effective. Like driving your car, for example. It would be far from effective if you had to say every action performed out loud: “Take the key, press the upper left button to unlock, grab the door handle, pull towards the body…” you get the idea. Our brain is constantly creating shortcuts that are a product of previous experiences and knowledge. Knowing this, we can better understand how our body is learning, use that knowledge in the fitness field, and know how influencing our movement works.
The same principle is in place for establishing our movement patterns. How we perform our movement is a product of motor learning and acquiring a pattern that suits our daily life. Not only that, our bodies are as smart as they can be, and every time there is a weakness, they adapt to overcome it. This is known as compensatory movement, where muscles that primarily are not responsible for performing that specific task are “taking over” as compensation for a weak muscle not functioning properly.
We have to define the basic patterns of human movement before continuing to explore improving them with strength training. The human body has five basic movement patterns: Push, Pull, Hinge (as a hip hinge), Squat, and loaded carry. In essence, all strength training will be based on those five basic patterns.
Dan John, a renowned strength coach, emphasizes mastering these five basic movement patterns for the general population and athletes. Understanding and training these patterns can enhance our daily lives, prevent injuries, and improve our overall physical capabilities.
Let’s explore these five movement patterns in a bit more detail:
- Push: This movement pattern involves exerting force away from the body, primarily using the chest, shoulders, and triceps. In daily life, this can be seen when pushing a door open or pushing a shopping cart. Athletes use pushing movements in sports such as basketball, where they may push off an opponent to create space. Examples of exercises that improve the push pattern include push-ups, bench presses, and overhead presses.
- Pull: The pull movement pattern is the opposite of the push, focusing on drawing force toward the body. It primarily uses the muscles of the back and biceps. Pulling movements are seen in daily activities like opening a drawer or pulling a heavy object towards you. Athletes may utilize the pull movement in sports like swimming or rowing. Exercises that target the pull pattern include pull-ups, rows, and face pull.
- Hinge (hip hinge): The hinge movement pattern involves bending at the hips while maintaining a neutral spine, primarily engaging the posterior chain muscles (glutes, hamstrings, and lower back). This pattern is crucial for activities such as picking up objects from the ground and athletic movements like jumping or sprinting. Exercises that improve the hinge pattern include deadlifts, kettlebell swings, and Romanian deadlifts.
- Squat: Squatting is a fundamental movement pattern that engages the entire lower body (quadriceps, hamstrings, glutes, and calves). It is seen in daily activities like sitting down on a chair or lifting a heavy object from a lower position. Athletes often perform squats in sports such as weightlifting, which is crucial in building lower body strength and power. Exercises that develop the Squat pattern include bodyweight squats, goblet squats, and barbell squats.
- Loaded Carry: This movement pattern involves carrying a load while maintaining proper posture and alignment. It is an essential pattern for daily tasks such as carrying groceries or lifting and carrying heavy objects. Exercises that improve the loaded carry pattern include farmer’s walks, suitcase carries, and overhead carries.
Drawing from expert sources such as Eric Helms, Tudor Bompa, Dan John, Mark Ripptoe, and other prominent names, we want you to remember and learn from, as well as scientific studies in the fields of strength training and its many subcategories, we will explore the intricacies of developing effective and individualized strength training programs.