Seriously, Eric Cressey knows his stuff or he wouldn't be writing for T-Nation. He argues that training for strength can hit all four of the primary goals most people list for what they want to accomplish in their training:
20% want to lose fat
18% want to perform better athletically
37% want to build muscle
23% want to get stronger
(Please note that these numbers come from a poll of T-Nation readers, who are mostly male and mostly serious about their training.)
The seven reasons he gives for why most of us aren't strong are as follows:
1. You're not appropriately allocating your CNS-intensive training.
2. You have poor structural balance.
3. You're rotating movements too often.
4. You're relying too much on rep work.
5. You aren't training your weaknesses.
6. You're not training heavy enough.
7. You're too fatigued to display your fitness.
If any of these apply to you (or if you don't know what some of them mean), you might want to read the article.
I think I have a pretty balanced program (especially after some recent tweaking) but one thing I definitely struggle with is the balance between intensity and recovery, because I like to workout hard and often (I go nuts if I don't). What I wonder about is: do other folks (like you for example), who are in good condition, walk around most of the week with some part or another sore (hamstrings, lats, rear delts, etc.)? Soreness, I'm now hearing, is not necessarily to be desired, and yet I don't get how you can "lift heavy weights" and challenge yourself without getting sore--sometimes really sore. Let me know.
ReplyDeleteKai in NYC