Eddie Lomax asked:


Mention strength training, and weight lifting or using machines immediately comes to mind. But there are many types of strength, not just “maximum” strength. I want to show you how bodyweight strength training is excellent for increasing each type of strength and why you should use your own bodyweight first and as an ongoing part of your strength training.

So, what is strength?

Well, a simple definition of strength is the capacity your body has to exert muscular and skeletal force against a resistance. The resistance can be the weight of your own body, the weight of something else or both. So, the larger capacity you have to move your own body or a foreign object in your environment, the stronger you are.

And being stronger has its benefits:

- You can do more with your body and objects you find in your environment

- You reduce the risk of injury because of increased ability to control your body and other objects

- You gain confidence knowing there is strength behind your movements

- You can overcome the challenges of sport, work and life easier

- And you look better because your strength is visually apparent in strong muscles

But the truth is, there are many different kinds of strength. And I believe each one can be improved upon with bodyweight strength training. Here we are going to look at the three main types of strength: maximal strength, explosive strength and strength endurance.

Bodyweight Training For Maximal Strength

Maximal strength is the amount of force that can be generated from one, all out effort, regardless of time or bodyweight.

Some people say weight training is best for maximal strength training, and for some exercises they are right. However, many trainees are using weights to perform exercises because they can’t handle the weight of their own body. For example, many men and women do Lat Pull Downs because they can’t do pull ups or chin ups.

There are many other bodyweight exercises that can build maximal strength. How about one-arm pushups or one-leg squats as strength builders? Most weight lifters can’t perform these exercises, regardless of the weights they use in their training.

Bodyweight Strength Training For Explosive Strength

Explosive strength is strength per unit of time, and is also known as speed strength. So, this is how much force you can generate in the shortest amount of time. In terms of bodyweight training, it means how fast you can move your body from one position to another.

Think of explosive movements like jumping squats or plyometric pushups where your body is propelled with such force it actually leaves the ground. Is this type of strength important? You bet it is!

Bodyweight Strength Training For Strength Endurance

Strength endurance is the amount of force you can generate for an extended period if time. It is the ability to be as strong as possible as long as possible. This type of strength is characterized by being able to perform a movement repeatedly without being overcome by fatigue or sacrificing form.

When you think of bodyweight strength training, this is normally the type of strength people think of. Rhythmic, repeated bodyweight calisthenics for example builds strength endurance.

As you can see, there are a lot of different types of strength. And you can train each one by using the weight of your own body. No outside resistance is necessary.

Think of it this way. The training you do is specific. If you do a certain type of exercise, you become better at that exercise. So, if you are training for all-purpose strength (which included maximal, explosive and endurance strength) where the object performing the movement is your own body, there is no better tool than bodyweight calisthenics.

Bodyweight strength training should be the starting point, and a continual part, of everyone’s over-all workout program.



Muscle Building

Jim Smith asked:


ng>Back Off! Massive Muscle Building for Your Back

Having a strong back is critical for success in athletics, in staying healthy during training and for overall well-being. With that said, what does it take to get a strong back? Read on and find out how to build a back side that will make everybody take notice.

1. Pull Ups and Chins Ups form the foundation:

Pull ups and chin ups are to your back as squatting is to your legs. You need to do them and do them often. Not only do they use a tremendous amount of muscle, but they also get you BRUTE STRONG. All the connective tissues of your shoulders and back get noticeably stronger when you perform these exercises. Many people get bogged down with trying to do max reps on pull ups and chin ups. If you have ever read the Encyclopedia of Bodybuilding, Arnold recommends that you pick a goal number of reps you want to achieve and do as many sets as it takes you to reach your goal number. I feel that this is one of the best ways to increase your pull up and chin up strength.

2. Go heavy on big lifts:

By this I mean go heavy on the deadlifts, the barbell shrugs, barbell rows, back extensions etc. All of these lifts require the back musculature to work overtime in a big way to engage and lockout the movement. You will be hard pressed to find a single exercise that does not require the back musculature to be engaged to some degree to help with the execution of the lift.

3. Balance you back budget:

Make sure you train your back with a sense of balance. Make sure to hit a horizontal row (seated rows, DB rows, barbell rows), a vertical pulling motion (shrugs, pull ups, chin ups), also make sure to get your external rotators with some band external rotation, DB external rotations, or cable external rotations. Lastly hit some retractions before or after your work out.

If you follow these three steps, in no time at all you will have a back that legends are made of. Imagine going to the beach and hitting a lat spread and making people wonder if a solar eclipse is occurring. Now tell me that doesn’t sound cool.

Sample Back Workout:

Warm Up:

A. Plate Halos 2 x 15

B. DB Retractions 2 x 20

C. Static Pec Stretch 3 x 10 s (each side)

Strength Training Workout:

1. Chins Ups: 10 x 3

2. Barbell Rows 5 x 8

3. DB Shrugs 3 x 10

4. Seated Low Row 3 x 12

5. Band External Rotations 2 x 20



Muscle Building

Michael Crockett asked:


The rules of weight training are the same as the rules of strength training, and involves changing the number of repetitions, sets, tempo, exercise type and how much weight is lifted to cause increases in strength, endurance, size or shape.

The specific combinations of reps, sets, exercises and weight depends upon the aims of the individual performing the exercise, sets with fewer reps can be performed with heavier weights.

In addition to the basic principles of strength training, a further consideration added by weight training is the equipment used. Types of equipment include barbells, dumbbells, pulleys and stacks in the form of weight machines or the body’s own weight in the case of chin-ups and push-ups. Different types of weights will give different types of resistance, and often the same absolute weight can have different relative weights depending on the type of equipment used. For example, lifting 20 pounds using a dumbbell requires significantly more force than moving 20 pounds on a weight stack due to the use of pulleys.

When you are strength or weight training you must use good form, defining good form is doing the movements with the appropriate muscle group, and not transferring the weight to different body parts in order to move greater weight. When you don’t use good form it can result in injury or a failure to meet training goals, since the desired muscle group is not challenged sufficiently, the muscle group is not pushed so the muscle will not gain the strength you are trying to achieve.

The benefits of weight training overall are comparable to most other types of strength training increased muscle, tendon and ligament strength, bone density, flexibility, tone, metabolic rate and postural support. There are benefits and limitations to weight training as compared to other types of strength training.

Resistance training involves the use of elastic or hydraulic resistance to contraction rather than gravity. Weight training provides the majority of the resistance at the beginning, initiation joint angle of the movement, when the muscle must overcome the inertia of the weight’s mass. After this point the overall resistance alters depending on the angle of the joint. In comparison, hydraulic resistance provides a fixed amount of resistance throughout the range of motion, depending on the speed of the movement. Elastic resistance provides the greatest resistance at the end of the motion, when the elastic element is stretched to the greatest extent.

Isometric exercise provides a fixed amount of resistance based on the force output of the muscle. This strengthens the muscle at the specific joint angle at which the isometric exercise occurs.

Although weight training is similar to body building, they have different objectives. Body builders compete in body building competitions; they train to maximize their muscular size and develop extremely low levels of body fat In contrast, most weight trainers train to improve their strength and anaerobic endurance while not giving special attention to reducing body fat below normal.

Weight trainers tend to focus on compound exercises to build basic strength, whereas bodybuilders often use isolation exercises to visually separate their muscles and to improve muscular tone.

However, the bodybuilding community has been the source of many of weight training’s principles, techniques, vocabulary, and customs.

Weight training does allow tremendous flexibility in exercises and weights which can allow bodybuilders to target specific muscles and muscle groups, as well as attain specific goals.



Muscle Growth