One of the keys to establishing an effective strength training program is figuring out your goals as an athlete.
True, you could pick the exercises you like best and set out to do them a certain number of reps, or stick it out each session until you can’t do more.
But the best results come from a structured plan.
Think of WickedStrengthTraining.com as your personal trainer in a box, and the first thing you do with any personal trainer is figure out where you’re going.
If you don’t, you may get somewhere, but it might not be where you want to go.
So, let’s look at where you’re coming from.
When you’re building a strength training program, there are two categories you can focus on.
The first one is called absolute strength.
When you’re working on absolute strength, you’re thinking about guys like Arnold or Mike: they may be the heaviest, but they’re also the strongest.
Bulging muscles.
Serious reps.
You can easily figure out what kind of sports this kind of guy is best at.
Boxing, for sure.
Weightlifting goes without saying.
Strength Training Program – Know Your Focus
If your focus is power and you don’t care what you weigh in to get it, absolute strength is for you.
There are other sports where bulk works against you.
You need to be strong, but lithe and limber.
Some of the top Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the world are smaller, but they can put the big guys down.
Another great example is rock climbing.
All else being equal, huge guys are going to face more challenges when they’re scaling that wall, since their own weight works against them.
A strength training program that aims for strength with minimal weight gain deals with something called relative strength.
Bulk might mean more pure power, but relative strength is about getting a certain job done.
If your goal is absolute strength, you’re going to want to look at exercises that use your whole body.
Dead-lifts, squats, barbells, dumb-bells, and everything else that puts you up against a heavy load will help you with absolute strength.
If you want a strength training program for relative strength, you need to look at muscle groups.
Relative strength exercises are meant to simulate the actual motion you make when you’re deep in the zone, playing or competing.
This includes push-ups, sit-ups, and other fundamentals you can do at home.
Hungry for more?
WickedStrengthTraining.com’s members-only program (a.k.a.) the BEAST MODE TRAINING LAB
or
our personalized athletic coaching can get you into top shape.
