Recently during one of my live video seminars HIT trainer Andrew Short jokingly suggested I talk about “speed strength.” I say “jokingly” because he and I and probably most of the people watching know there is no such thing, but a lot of people do believe things like moving quickly, lifting heavy weights, and performing endurance activities require different types of strength and different ways of training to improve them. Fortunately, this isn’t the case and you do not need complex workout programming to improve all of these.

Your muscles produce force for the primary purpose of controlling your body’s position and movement. If your muscles get stronger they can produce more force, if they get weaker they can produce less.

The other factors of functional ability support the work done by your muscles. Your bones and connective tissues transmit the force. Your cardiovascular system delivers fuel to and wastes away from yours muscles so they can create the energy required produce force. Your flexibility allows your muscles to move your joints. Skill allows your muscles to produce force in a coordinated and efficient manner.

How much weight you can lift, hold, or lower under control depends on how much force your muscles can produce. How many times you can lift and lower or how long you can hold a particular weight depends on how much force your muscles can produce. How quickly or “explosively” or fast you can move depends on how much force your muscles can produce.

These are not different types of strength, they’re just different ways of using your strength in combination with other factors of functional ability.

Your maximum or limit strength isn’t a specific type of strength, it is just the most force you can produce for a short duration to lift or hold something heavy.

Your “strength endurance” or local muscular endurance is not a specific type of strength either. The stronger you are, the lower the percentage of effort required to lift a sub maximal weight so the longer you are able to do it.

There is no such thing as “speed strength” or “explosive strength”, either. If you are stronger you can generate more force thus accelerate more quickly and move faster.

There is no such thing as “agile strength.” Your ability to move and change direction quickly is depends on a combination of your strength and your skill in the type of movements you are performing, and not a different type of strength.

Why is this important? Because it means you don’t need different types of training to improve these things; just getting stronger in general will improve all of them. You don’t need to alternate between focusing on “max strength” one week, “strength endurance” the next, and “explosive” strength the week after that. You just need to focus on getting stronger in general and all of these will improve. If you want to optimize your ability to perform an activity or skill you need to combine general  exercise for strength with specific practice for skill.

MYTH: “Your muscles start to atrophy after a few days if you don’t work out. So, you should train each muscle group at least twice a week if you want to increase muscular strength and size. Training once weekly or less frequently is only good for maintenance.”

TRUTH: It would make little evolutionary sense for your body to produce a costly adaptation like muscle hypertrophy only to allow it to be quickly lost.

Unless you are:

• immobilized
• bedridden
• starving yourself
• or suffering from a disease that causes muscle wasting

…your muscles will not start atrophying only a few days after working out. It takes much longer – about three to four weeks. Even then, the loss is very slow.

Once Upon a Time

When I started training people long ago, sometimes my clients would leave on business or vacation.  They would go a few weeks without working out. I would then reduce their weights slightly when they returned.

I quickly learned this was unnecessary and stopped doing it. Nobody was losing strength. In fact, many clients even came back slightly stronger.

I don’t recommend people stop working out entirely when they’re away for a few weeks. Even though you may not lose any progress, you won’t be making any, either. Even if you don’t have access to a gym, you can do bodyweight and isometric workouts anywhere with little or no equipment.

However, you shouldn’t stress over it if you can only fit in a few workouts while you’re gone. You are not going to lose muscle. You can still gain muscle even if you are only able to fit in one brief, hard workout per week.

Which brings me to the next part:

Once weekly training may not be optimal for people who recover and adapt more quickly.  But it is not just for maintenance, either.  Your exercise tolerance and recovery ability may allow you to progress on two or three intense workouts per week. You can still increase muscular strength and size training only once weekly, just not as much.

Training Once a Week: An Anecdote

I don’t recommend it as a starting point for most people. But there are many high intensity training studios that have been successful promoting just one intense workout each week. They produce good results for busy people. In fact, one of the most dramatic, drug-free physical transformations I’ve seen was in a person who worked out only once a week.

When I was in college, I worked at the Gold’s Gym in Green Bay, WI (now Titletown Fitness). Every Saturday my brothers would drive up to the gym with a few of their friends. They would train their friends while waiting for me to train them during my breaks between clients.

One of their friends was very tall and skinny when he started out. He was about 6’3″ and weighed 145 lbs (about 1.9 meters and 66 kg). That earned him the nickname “Ethiopia”.

Once a week, he would work out with my brothers. They did very basic HIT workouts usually consisting of:

• stiff-legged deadlift
• leg press
• close underhand-grip pulldown
• chest press
• compound row
• shoulder press

Because they rushed between exercises, these workouts often took less than 20 minutes to complete (not counting the occasional delays when someone had to stumble to the locker room to vomit from exertion). In less than one year “Ethiopia” gained about fifty pounds. He stayed lean, meaning most of the weight he gained was muscle.

Your muscles are not going to atrophy if you don’t train them every couple of days. In fact, you can even build them with very brief, infrequent workouts as long as you are willing to work hard enough.

References:

Ogasawara, Riki et al. “Comparison Of Muscle Hypertrophy Following 6-Month Of Continuous And Periodic Strength Training.” European Journal of Applied Physiology 113.4 (2012): 975-985.

Myth: Compound exercises are for building mass and simple exercises are for “shaping” muscles.

Truth: All exercises – both compound and simple – do the same thing; they stimulate muscles to grow larger and stronger. While it is possible to alter your overall body shape by focusing on building certain muscle groups more than others it is not possible to alter the general shape of a muscle or muscle group, only its size.

It is often claimed that compound exercises are more effective mass builders because they allow you to lift more weight relative to simple exercises targeting the same muscle groups. However, the amount of weight you lift during an exercise is irrelevant, what matters is the resistance each of the involved muscles work against and the tension you are able to create in them. You are able to lift more weight during compound exercises because the work is shared by multiple muscle groups and the leverages are often more favorable, but you are not working those muscle groups harder than you would during simple exercises.

You can actually work the individual muscle groups harder with simple exercises because it is possible to perform them in a way that maintains more consistent tension on them over the full range of the exercise. Also, some muscle groups like those in the neck and forearms and the calves can only be effectively trained with simple exercises.

Another popular claim is that compound exercises are more effective mass builders because they stimulate greater increases in testosterone and growth hormone. This is not true either, though. Numerous studies show post-exercise increases in anabolic hormones do not have a significant effect on muscular strength and size.

While compound exercises are not more effective than simple exercises for increasing muscle mass the ability to effectively work multiple muscle groups simultaneously does provide several advantages. Workouts built around compound exercises are more time efficient making them a better choice for busy people who want to get in and out of the gym as quickly as possible. Compound exercises are more systemically demanding making them more effective for stimulating improvements in cardiovascular fitness. Most compound exercises are easier to learn and master than most simple exercises, making them better choices for beginners.

While simple exercises can not change the shape of a muscle they also provide several advantages. They are an effective way to target specific muscle groups to balance out your physique. With the right equipment some simple exercises can also be used to work around injuries that prevent you from safely performing compound exercises. Simple exercises.

Whether your goal is to develop an aesthetically well-balanced physique or just become as big and strong as possible you can do it with both compound and simple exercises.

References:

Gentil, P., Soares, S., & Bottaro, M. (2015). Single vs. Multi-Joint Resistance Exercises: Effects on Muscle Strength and Hypertrophy. Asian Journal Of Sports Medicine, 6(1). doi:10.5812/asjsm.24057

Morton, R., Oikawa, S., Wavell, C., Mazara, N., McGlory, C., & Quadrilatero, J. et al. (2016). Neither load nor systemic hormones determine resistance training-mediated hypertrophy or strength gains in resistance-trained young men. Journal Of Applied Physiology, 121(1), 129-138. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00154.2016

West, D., Burd, N., Tang, J., Moore, D., Staples, A., & Holwerda, A. et al. (2009). Elevations in ostensibly anabolic hormones with resistance exercise enhance neither training-induced muscle hypertrophy nor strength of the elbow flexors. Journal Of Applied Physiology, 108(1), 60-67. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.01147.2009

West, D., Kujbida, G., Moore, D., Atherton, P., Burd, N., & Padzik, J. et al. (2009). Resistance exercise-induced increases in putative anabolic hormones do not enhance muscle protein synthesis or intracellular signalling in young men. The Journal Of Physiology, 587(21), 5239-5247. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2009.177220

Yarasheski, K., Zachweija, J., Angelopoulos, T., & Bier, D. (1993). Short-term growth hormone treatment does not increase muscle protein synthesis in experienced weight lifters. Journal Of Applied Physiology, 74(6), 3073-3076.

Question: What can be done to improve balance in seniors? Are there any specific exercises you recommend?

Answer: To maintain your balance while stationary or moving requires a coordinated effort of your nervous and muscular systems. Your nervous system constantly senses whether you are in balance and tells each of your muscles how forcefully to contract to regain or maintain it. If there is a problem with either of these systems your balance will be compromised.

Many older people develop problems with balance despite having normal, properly-functioning nervous systems due to sarcopenia, the age-related loss of muscular strength and size. Fortunately this loss of muscle can be significantly reduced or even reversed with proper strength training at any age.

If the problem with your balance is neurological, depending on the type of problem you might also benefit from practicing the specific activities you are having difficulty with. Don’t make the mistake of wasting time learning to balance on gimmicky balance equipment like Bosu balls, balance boards and discs, however. Balances skills are specific and do not transfer between different activities. The skill of maintaining your balance on a wobble board does not transfer to other activities.

If you’ve got too much body fat you can also improve your balance by leaning down. The less you weigh the easier it is for your muscles to move your body or hold it in a position of equilibrium to maintain your balance. While losing fat is primarily a matter of diet, for the best possible results you should also be strength training.

Exercise and balance skills practice are distinct activities that need to be performed separately. Do not make the common mistake of trying to combine the two by either adding balance challenges to your workouts or strength and conditioning challenges to your balance practice sessions.

Exercise is for stimulating improvements in the general factors of functional ability and is made less effective by adding a balance challenge. Choose exercises and equipment that challenge your strength not your balance.

Balance skills are specific and should be practiced the way they are normally performed or the improvements will not transfer. Practice balancing in the positions and during the activities which are difficult for you, but do not add weight to these or alter them to make them more challenging (avoid wobble boards, Bosu balls, and the like).

Choose exercises that do not require you to stand unless they can be performed while holding something for balance or under the close supervision of someone capable of assisting you if necessary. When possible perform exercises on machines which can be used while seated and which can be easily and safely entered and exited (avoid machines which require you to either climb or get down on the ground to use).

To reduce the difficulty of moving between other exercises perform your hip and leg exercises last in your workout. When you finish a leg exercise be cautious. Don’t trust your legs right away, and make sure you are able to stand before you attempt to walk. Don’t attempt to walk if you feel wobbly after any exercise; wait for your legs to recover or get assistance.

For more on strength training for seniors read:

High Intensity Training for Seniors

You Are Never Too Old For Exercise

Are you having difficulty finding the right holiday gifts for your favorite HIT’ers or your own holiday wish list? Here are some gift ideas based on my recommendations over the past year to family, friends, and clients.

This is a work in progress, and more items will be added over the next few days. All prices were accurate at the time this guide was posted but may change.

Gifts under $25

I don’t recommend using straps, hooks, or other grip aids unless absolutely necessary, and if they are necessary then strengthening your grip should be a high priority (assuming the problem is muscular weakness and not an injury or neurological problem) However, if you do need straps the IronMind Sew-Easy Lifting Straps ($18.95) are quick and easy to use and do the job well.

An adjustable 2″ Web Belt with a Side Release Buckle ($9.00) is a highly versatile piece of equipment. It can be used for many timed static contraction exercises including neck flexion and extension and shoulder and hip abduction. It can be used to limit weight stack or movement arm travel on some machines to perform TSC. It can also be used in place of a seat belt on some machines that should have them but do not.

The Forearm Forklift moving straps ($19.99 to $24.99) are also great for a wide variety of timed static contraction exercises including TSC belt squats, deadlifts, chest and shoulder presses, rows, pulldowns and more. The multiple, padded loops can be used for gripping, looped around the wrists, arms, or ankles, securing the strap under the feet, or for restraining the movement of free weights and some machines for TSC/SH hybrid protocols.

Gifts under $50

The Ivanko Super Gripper ($32.50) is hands down (pun intended) my favorite gripper. It provides over fifty levels of resistance from about 45 up to 345 pounds and the tension feels more consistent than with torsion spring grippers like the Captains of Crush.

Olympic Fractional Weight Plates ($36.95) are essential for precise resistance progression when training with barbells. Every gym should have these, and if yours doesn’t you should have your own set to bring with you to work out.

Fat  Gripz ($39.00) increase the diameter of regular barbells and dumbbell grips to challenge your grip. They can also be used to reduce hand discomfort on many pushing exercises. I recommend using a thick bar or Fat Gripz for wrist curls and wrist extensions because it reduces the degree of finger flexion required to grip the bar. This prevents active insufficiency of the wrist and finger flexors during curls and passive insufficiency during extensions.

Plate Mates 1-1/4 Pound Magnetic Hex Weights ($34.95 per pair) allow you to increase the weight of uncoated metal dumbbells by 1-1/4 (offset) to 2-1/2  pounds at a time for more precise resistance progression. Buy two pairs so you can use them on two dumbbells at a time.

Gifts under $100

When properly performed weighted chin-ups and dips are two of the best upper body muscle builders, and while it is possible to make these exercises more challenging by manipulating leverage and timing, it is simpler and more straight forward to add weight using a dipping belt. The IronMind Dipping Belt ($76.95) is more comfortable than most with a heavy weight, and the nylon strap doesn’t dig into your thighs like chains do. It is even more efficient when used with a Loading Pin and Carabiner ($61.95) instead of looping the strap through plates.

Gifts under $500

I’ve been using the Bowflex SelectTech 552 Adjustable Dumbbells ($259.00 per pair) and the SelectTech 1090 Adjustable Dumbbells ($269.99 single) for several years now and highly recommend them for home training due to their space efficiency, fast and easy adjustability, and small progression increments.

If you get them I also recommend one of the newly redesigned SelectTech Dumbbell Stands ($169.00) which hold both the 552s and 1090s at a convenient height.

Drew Baye’s High Intensity Training is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Question: In the comments on my previous Q&A on training to momentary muscular failure on timed static contractions, someone asked what I thought about performing isometrics in several different points in the range of motion (ROM) of an exercise. His reason for asking is that some studies, including research performed by MedX, have shown strength gains from isometric exercise to be specific to the position trained for most people.

Answer: If your goal is to improve your general muscular strength and size you do not need to perform isometrics in more than one position. While some studies on isometrics suggest strength gains are position specific the effect appears to be due to neural adaptations rather than to changes in the muscle that would affect general strength or appearance, and other studies show strength gains are not specific to the position trained.

If your goal is to lift more weight in a specific exercise for competition there may be benefit to taking advantage of the neural effect and alternating between performing the exercise dynamically and performing it isometrically at the weakest position or “sticking point”. This is not going to transfer to greater improvements in strength in similar joint angles in different movements, however.

If general strength gains were specific to the positions trained isometrically during exercise  (as opposed to exercise specific neural adaptations) it would mean a person’s strength curves would change over time to match the resistance curves of the exercises they perform. If this happened the sticking points in those exercises would eventually be eliminated, but this doesn’t happen; no matter how long you perform the barbell squat or bench press in your workouts the bottom of the ROM of those exercises will always be more difficult than the top.

It would also mean someone who only performs an exercise isometrically for a long time may become weaker in other portions of the ROM and have difficulty in them if they attempt the exercise dynamically. However, this does not happen either. I have trained many people using TSC protocol on the RenEx isometric machines which measured and displayed their force input. On occasion I would have people perform some of their exercises dynamically instead of using TSC, increasing their weight for the dynamic exercise proportional to their isometric strength increases. Contrary to what would be expected if the strength gains were specific to the position trained during TSC, their strength curves did not appear to be effected.

For most exercises I recommend performing isometrics at or near the mid-range position (in the middle third of your range of motion). Avoid performing any kind of isometrics at or near the end point of compound pushing movements and avoid performing static holds in positions where the targeted muscles are stretched.

References:

1. Graves, J., Pollock, M., Jones, A., Colvin, A., & Leggett, S. (1989). Specificity of limited range of motion variable resistance training. Medicine And Science In Sports And Exercise, 21(1), 84-89.
2. Knapik JA. Mawdsley RH. Ramos MU: Angular Specificity and Test Mode Specificity of Isometric and lsokinetic Strength Training. Journal Of Orthopaedic & Sports Physical Therapy 5:58-65.1983
3. Kitai, T., & Sale, D. (1989). Specificity of joint angle in isometric training. European Journal Of Applied Physiology And Occupational Physiology, 58(7), 744-748. doi:10.1007/bf00637386
4. Jackson, A. (1985). Strength Development: Using Functional Isometrics in an Isotonic Strength Training Program. Research Quarterly For Exercise And Sport, 56(3), 234-37.

Question: How do I know if I am training hard enough to reach momentary muscular failure (MMF) when doing a timed static contraction (TSC)?

I often begin to shake when performing TSC. Does that mean I’m at momentary muscle failure?

I bought your book Timed Static Contraction Training: A Guide to Minimalist High Intensity Isometrics and I´ve been training using that as guide.

Answer: MMF occurs when you are unable to continue performing an exercise in the prescribed manner. This is the point when you are unable to continue lifting in strict form when performing dynamic exercises, and the point when you are unable to prevent the weight from lowering during static holds. The main reason working to MMF is recommended during these kinds of exercises is because it guarantees you have worked the target muscles as intensely as possible (as hard as possible relative to their momentary ability).

MMF doesn’t happen when performing TSC because you’re contracting against an immobile or unyielding object for a predetermined amount of time instead of lifting or holding a weight until you can’t. TSC is typically performed in three phases of increasing effort, starting with a moderate or 50 percent effort, then increasing to hard or 75%, and finally maximum effort. When you contract as hard as you can during this last phase you accomplish the same thing you do when working to MMF during dynamic exercises and static holds.

If your muscles shake during exercise it is because they are becoming deeply fatigued. Normally, your body recruits exactly the number of motor units (groups of muscle fibers sharing a motor neuron) needed to produce the desired amount of force for the movement you are performing. As some become fatigued others are recruited to take their place. Normally this happens pretty smoothly, but the more fatigued you become and the more and larger the motor units dropping out the more the force produced varies from the target and you start to shake.

The degree of shakiness relative to fatigue can vary a lot between individuals and even between muscle groups within individuals though, and is not a reliable indicator of how hard you’re working. I often shake after only one or two reps when performing upper body pushing exercises, but very little during other exercises. I’ve trained some people who shake from the start on certain exercises and others who don’t shake at all.

Don’t worry about either MMF or shaking during TSC. If you want the best possible results from TSC just commit to consistently giving everything you’ve got during the final, maximum-effort phase.

Yesterday someone in a Facebook exercise group posted a video of himself performing the leg press and asked for comments. Like most of the people who post exercise videos in that group his form needed work. He was was holding his breath, moving too fast, locking out, stopping to rest at the end point, bouncing at the bottom, allowing his pelvis to lift and tilt/spine to flex, and appeared to be gripping the handles hard and forcefully extending his neck against the seat pad.

Understanding of and standards for exercise form in this group aren’t very high, and a few people commented that his form looked “good” or even “perfect”. Normally I don’t reply to posts in the group. I only follow groups like this because reading the discussions and watching the videos is a good way to find popular myths and misconceptions to address in articles. However, he was an older trainee and if he continues to train like that or follows some of the other advice he was getting he is likely to injure himself, so I offered some advice anyway. Trying not to be too harsh I wrote,

“Good effort, but need to work on form. Slow way down. Smoothly reverse about ten degrees short of lockout without stopping to rest there. Don’t hold your breath. Reverse direction more smoothly at the start. Worry less about how much weight you lift and more about how well you lift it.”

Within seconds someone was disagreeing with me, claiming that slowing down during the negative would “hamper building up overload” and be harder to recover from. It was almost time for dinner and I didn’t feel like explaining and told him so, but he said he was interested in learning so I wrote the following brief explanation. I’m sharing it here (with minor editing for grammar and readability) in case others find it helpful:

“Cool. First, it’s important to understand where I coming from. When I train people I have three rules:

The first is to make sure their program is based on their body, goals, and circumstances and not cookie-cutter. The general principles are the same for everyone but the best application varies between individuals based on these.

The second is not to hurt anyone. If there are different equally effective ways to accomplish the same goal always choose the one with the lowest risk of acute or overuse injuries.

Third is don’t waste their time. If there are different equally safe and effective ways to achieve the same goal, choose the most time efficient.

Consider that mechanical work and power during exercise isn’t very important. It’s not how much work you do that matters, or even the absolute force produced in most cases, but the relative effort.

Tension and metabolic stress matter. How many times the weight goes up and down doesn’t. You can hold a weight motionless, or move it up and down really fast, or something in between and stimulate comparable improvements in muscular strength and size over time, but moving more slowly allows you to reduce acceleration during the turnarounds avoiding potentially harmful increases in force and allowing better control over the movement. If you are training hard you can get decent results with a variety of speeds, but slower is generally safer.

Avoiding lockout increases the difficulty of the exercise so less weight is required to produce the same level of fatigue in the same time frame. Imagine performing squats in only the bottom half of the ROM with no bounce at the bottom, no rest at the top. It makes it much harder so the weight has to be reduced, meaning just as effective but less compression on the spine.

Contrary to what many believe, you don’t need to move fast during exercise to recruit the fast twitch motor units. Recruitment depends upon force requirements and fatigue, and even with moderate loads eventually all of the motor units – even the fast twitch ones – will be recruited even at slower speeds, even with isometrics which is as slow as you can get.

Power production in other movements improves as muscular strength increases regardless of the speed the strength is built at. Specific skill training for a particular athletic or vocational movement is a separate thing, and that is where movement specific speed is important. Since there is no general physical advantage to moving more quickly, and since moving slowly reduces the risk of injury, I have people move more slowly.

In a much, much broader sense, any reasonable strength training program – anything done hard, progressively, and consistently with a volume and frequency appropriate to the individual, will eventually get someone as strong and well conditioned as they are capable of. Lots of things work. However, not all of them are as efficient or safe.

Over a long enough period of time if you compare the potential results of different training methods the difference becomes zero since it is ultimately dictated by individual genetics. In the long run, as long as the programming is suitable for the individual and the volume and frequency don’t exceed what they can recover from and adapt to, they all work. However, the longer you do one program versus another, the larger the differences in time investment and risk become. What might be a small difference in weekly time invested, wear on the joints, and risk of injury becomes cumulatively larger as months and years pass. So, in the long run although there is no significant difference in potential results the difference in time invested and risk continues to grow.

Going slower doesn’t just make exercise safer though, it can also make it much harder thus more effective, especially if you move more slowly in those portions of the ROM that are more difficult that most people tend to rush through. Keep in mind the goal during exercise is not to do something to the weights with your muscles, it is to do something to your muscles with the weights. How much you lift, how many times, etc. doesn’t matter. How efficiently you create tension and fatigue in the target muscles matters.

Consider those guys at the gym who only do quarter squats or leg presses because they are focused on weight while ignoring resistance (weight x lever, mostly). It’s the same thing taken much further. Going the opposite direction, if you want to make the exercise as difficult as possible you should avoid positions in an exercise where there is little or no meaningful resistance, not spend much time where there is only moderate resistance, and take your time where there is a lot, because the goal isn’t to make the weight go up and down, it is to use the weight to challenge the muscles you’re working as much as possible, as safely as possible.

One of the most important things to understand about this, and one that almost everybody gets wrong, is that it is about resistance, not weight. Too many people are too concerned with how much they can lift rather than how well they lift, how efficiently they create resistance against the target muscles with a given weight. Unless you are a competitive lifter, and even then it only matters for the competitive lifts, your goal during an exercise isn’t to lift as much weight as possible, it is to create as much demand in the targeted muscles as possible.

This can be done more safely and efficiently with less weight when you move in a way that increases rather than decreases the average lever against the targeted muscles. Often, when a person’s form sucks it is because they’re focusing on how much weight they can move instead of how well they’re able to move it. Slowing down improves your ability to feel and focus on the tension in the target muscles and to be able to adjust your positioning and movement based on that feeling, to keep the tension high.”

I then ended with a quote from Fisher J, Steele J, Bruce-Low S, Smith D. Evidence Based Resistance Training Recommendations. Medicine Sportiva Med Sport 01/2011; 15:147-162 which you can read about in my Evidence-Based Resistance Training Recommendations posts,

“Comprehensive reviews of this area of research have reported that resistance training at shorter repetition durations produced no greater strength or power increases than training at longer repetition durations [18, 129]. The latter study also considered the application of Olympic lifting and plyometric exercises concluding that there is no evidence to suggest that these techniques can enhance strength and/or sporting performance (including vertical jump and sprint) to any greater degree than traditional weight training methods.Also,Bruce-Low and Smith[129] specifically considered the risk of injury from ballistic exercises, reporting some disturbing statistics suggesting that explosive lifting such as that involved in performing the Olympic lifts can cause injuries to the wrist, shoulder, elbow and lumbar region.”

This morning there were a few replies, and while the original poster thanked me for the feedback (and I hope he applies it – his knees, hips, and spine will thank him) the commenter was incredulous. After expressing several misinformed opinions about mechanical work and exercise, volume, frequency, etc. he asked,

“Are you seriously talking about 5/5 and 10/10 cadences on your blog or are you just using these humongous numbers as examples?”

When I told him I was serious, he dismissed me entirely, saying he wouldn’t touch the subject “with a ten foot pole”. Considering how people accept without question all sorts of utterly ridiculous things from the fitness and bodybuilding media it’s odd some are so skeptical about moving slowly during exercise. I wasn’t going to waste any more time on it so I told him if he wanted to learn more in the future I’m easy to find. In closing I wrote,

“Just keep in mind what I said about the long term; any method of strength training done hard, progressively, and consistently with appropriate volume and frequency for the individual will eventually produce the same general physical improvements, but in the long run they’re not equally safe and time efficient. I value my long term joint health and mobility and I value my time. Anyone who does owes it to themselves to at least “empty their cup” and learn about safer and more time efficient alternatives.”

Will the original poster take my advice and improve his form? I hope so. Will anyone else who reads my comments do the same? I hope so, but I’m not optimistic considering the overwhelming amount of contradictory and misinformed advice given by other members of the group. I’d like to be able to help everyone, but consider something I recently told a reader who was frustrated that someone ignored his advice against overtraining:

“Keep in mind almost everybody else is telling him the opposite, that more is better. It isn’t enough to tell someone they need to do less, you need to explain why. Even if you explain it effectively he may not change for various reasons. He might not believe you because of blind faith in the bodybuilding media. His ego might be too invested in what he’s doing. He may have other, non-physical reasons for wanting to exercise more frequently.

Maybe he will give it a try eventually when he accepts what he’s doing isn’t working. Maybe not. You definitely can’t help everyone, but don’t let the ones you can’t help discourage you from continuing to try to help others.”

In 2011 I was invited to deliver the keynote presentation at the Indianapolis High Intensity Training Seminar hosted by Exercise Inc. The audience was almost entirely personal trainers and studio owners so decided it would be more helpful to talk about how to teach exercise than how to perform it. If you want to be a great trainer or coach it isn’t enough to be good at or know a lot about something, you also have to know how to effectively teach that to people with a variety of learning styles and speeds.

Got questions? Please post them in the comments below. Want me to speak at your event or conduct a workshop for your training staff? Email me at drew@baye.com