Chapter 6Improving Muscular Strength

and Endurance

HPD 9

Definitions

Muscular Strength – the amount of force or weight a muscle group of muscles can exert for one repetition.

Muscular Endurance – the capacity of a muscle group to complete an uninterrupted series of repetitions as often as possible with lighter weights.

* You can manipulate training variables (weight, reps, rest intervals) to achieve either of these

The Importance of Strength and Endurance

Benefits – loss of body fat and improved self-concept

Strength training critical part of a total weight control program

Metabolism slows with age, calories consumed often does not

Basal metabolism decreases by 3% per decade

BM increases by approx. 30-40 cal. Per day for every pound of muscle weight added

Improved Appearance, Body Image, and Self-Concept

Sagging skin can be alleviated by enlarging muscles in that area

Most everyone who stays with a program experiences improved BI and self-concept affecting their personal & professional lives

Also need proper nutrition and exercise rather than diets

Increased Bone-Mineral Content

ST aids in optimal bone development by improving bone-mineral content

Exercises?

Increased Strength and Endurance for Work and Daily

Activities Additional strength and endurance will also

help you perform daily personal and work activities more efficiently

Improved Performance in Sports and Rec. Activities

Children and adults often lack upper body and abdominal strength

By improving given deficits ST can help athletes (young or old) perform better in a wide variety of sports.

Decreased Incidence of Sports and Work – Related Injuries

Improved muscle strength surrounding the joints helps prevent injuries to your muscles, tendons, and ligaments. With regular training, bones and connective tissue become stronger and more dense.

Also, ST is an important part of recovery following certain injuries.

Strength Training Principles

Strength and Power = heavy weight, low reps (3-6)

Muscular Endurane = light weight, high number of repetitions (10-20)

Hypertrophy (Muscle Mass) = Heavy to moderate weight, moderate reps (5-8)

* Regardless of your training objective the final rep in each set should result in complete muscle failure or the inability to perform even one more rep

Types of Training

Isotonic exercises (positive and negative phase = concentric & eccentric)

Isometric exercises – steady muscle contraction against immovable resistance for 6-8 sec.

Calisthenics – BW, resistance is low, reps high. More effective for developing muscular endurance

Amount of Resistance to Use

RM definition Starting weight is lower # of cycle range

(I.e. 6-9, 6-RM)

Number of Repetitions to Complete

Repetitions – the number of consecutive times you perform each exercise

High number of reps = endurance Low number of reps = strength

Number of Sets to Complete

Set – one group of reps for a particular exercise

3-5 sets are recommended Beginners start with one set and gradually

work up to 3 sets over a period of 3-4 weeks

Amount of Rest Between Sets

Rest Interval – the amount of rest b/t sets Muscle fibers recover to within 50% of

capacity within 3-5 sec and continue to near full recovery after about 2 minutes

Strength program = RI less important Muscular endurance = RI should gradually

decrease to about 30 sec over a 6-8 week period

Amount of Rest Between Workouts

Full body workout = 48 hours of rest b/t workout. Alternate day workouts.

Split routines = possible to train for 6 consecutive days before taking a day of rest. At least one day, but no more than 3 days rest b/t exercises that work the same muscle groups. *Acquired strength and endurance gains begin to diminish if too much time elapses b/t workouts.

Speed for Completing Exercises

Should return the weight to the starting position (negative phase) twice as slowly as you completed the positive phase.

If you simply drop the weight during the negative phase your muscles are only being worked during one-half of the exercise.

Application of the Principle of Specifity

To gain strength and endurance in a particular muscle, muscle group, or movement, you must specifically train the muscle or muscles in a similar movement.

Application of the Principle of Overload

The demands on the muscle need to be systematically and progressively increased over time and the muscles need to be taxed beyond their accustomed levels to continually see increases in strength .

Progressive Overload theory can be applied by increasing the amount of weight lifted on each exercise or the number of repetitions or sets.

Application of the Progressive Resistance Exercise Principle

As training progresses and you grow stronger, you must continuously increase the amount of resistance if continued improvement is to occur.

Rest-pause = single rep, near maximal weight (1 RM), rest 1-2 min., completing a second rep, resting again, and so on until the muscle is fatigued and cannot perform another rep.

Progressive Exercise Principle

Burnout = 75% of maximal weight for as many reps as possible, no rest interval, remove 4.5 kg and another RM is performed, continue until the muscle does not respond (burnout)

Supersets = involve the use of a set of exercises for one group of muscles followed immediately by a set for their antagonist.

Compound sets = similar to Supersets except the exercises target the same group of muscles (I.e. Bench press followed by push-ups.)

When to Expect Results

Dependant upon your initial level of strength, your training habits, the intensity and length of your training program, as well as genetic factors.

Fastest improvements in those who have not weight trained before and whose programs involve large-muscle exercises, heavier weights, multiple sets, and more consistent training sessions.

When to Expect Results

Should see significant strength gains after 8-12 weeks of training

However, it will take approximately 12 months to change the general appearance of your body dramatically.