How to become strong, not just muscular
We tell you how to raise more.
What is the difference between strength training and muscle size training?
In general, training for strength and muscle size is similar: both regimens include weight work to fatigue the muscles and rest to recover them. The difference is that for a beautiful relief it is enough to tire the body. You can do this with heavy, medium or even light weights – if the muscle fibers get enough stress, they will grow.
In strength training, fatigue also plays an important role, but factors such as:
- The work of the nervous system. The more muscle fibers the nervous system can excite, the more force they will produce. Therefore, it is not enough to increase the volume of muscles – you also need to force the central nervous system to activate them to the fullest.
- Tendon stiffness. The faster a muscle contracts, the less force it produces.
- Intermuscular coordination. In our body there are muscles that perform opposite functions – antagonists.
To pump all the qualities necessary for the development of strength, you need to train in a certain way.
How to exercise to increase strength
Respect specification principle
You can build the quads equally well in different movements, but for strength development it is important to focus on the exact exercise in which you want to improve your performance.