Plenty of people either find the thought of strength training intimidating or simply cannot see the value in it. Strength training is viewed as the preserve of athletes, sporty sorts and those obsessed with body beautiful physiques. The truth is, that strength training is relevant for everybody, and is probably becoming even more so. We don’t all need to strength the tear apart the yellow pages with our bare hands. Neither do we need to be so strong that we can see every muscle rippling through our clothes. What we need is to be strong enough. Strong enough to go about our daily life independently. In other words, fit for purpose.
Why can strength training be intimidating
Mention strength training and most people instantly think about lifting heavy weights. Images of scantily clad men and women posing in front of the mirror without an ounce of fat on them spring to mind. Sure, these stereotypes do exist, but they only represent a small fraction of the strength training community. The association of strength training and heavy weights / resistances can scare those worried about injuring themselves. Lifting heavy loads with poor form or an under-prepared body is one way to get yourself hurt! However, the incidence of injury in properly supervised strength programmes is actually very low – far lower than other conventional sports and fitness pursuits.
Lifting weights and working against resistance can require a lot of specialist equipment. This means joining a gym for many. Not everyone wants to put themselves in a gym environment, and surround themselves with the stereotypes mentioned above. With a bit of creativity, the gym doesn’t have to be the answer. In addition, a strength training programme doesn’t have to be boring in structure. Not surprisingly, many of us don’t want to spend 60+ minutes lifting weights for 60s at a time and then resting for 3 minutes before doing it all again.
Why you should view strength training differently
The reasons mentioned above are all valid barriers to strength training. However, if we take a moment to consider what and why we want to achieve increased strength, we soon realise that it doesn’t have to be intimidating. Firstly, we need to understand that maintaining or improving strength will benefit us in everyday life. Generally speaking, the stronger we are the easier will find activities of daily living. Maintaining this strength becomes increasingly important as we age because it helps us to maintain our independence. We therefore need to be ‘strong enough’.
Strength is classically defined as the maximal force that a muscle or group of muscles can produce. However, some of us need to produce repeated bouts of strength over prolonged periods (strength endurance), whereas others may need to express their strength quickly (power). How we use strength in everyday life will dictate the best way to develop it. The loads used along with the number and speed of repetitions will be determined by the type of strength we wish to develop. When it comes to developing strength, anything that provides us with the right level of resistance will suffice. This may be bodyweight, resistance bands, objects, weights, kettlebells or even other people! Resistance can be very creative when it comes to strength training.
It’s time to be strong
So the bottom line is that you need to be strong. You need some form of strength training in your weekly routine. How you develop strength is up to you, and you can be as creative as you want. NK Fitness incorporate some form of strength training with most of their clients. If you would like to know how we can help you become stronger then contact us using the contact form for a free consultation.
