Two Considerations To Getting Stronger

Have you ever wondered why after training for a while you stop getting stronger? Always stuck on the same weight every workout? In this article we discuss two ways of getting stronger and how to continue this for long term success.

Training can be fun but it can also be tedious and unforgiving especially when you don’t see results. You go to the gym multiple times a week and put in all the work but still don’t get to where you want. There are a few core principles that we every training program requires to continue progress but the main one we will be highlighting is progressive overload. Progressive overload is the key to improving in any physical aspect and it essentially refers to doing more than you did previously. As the name implies, you are progressively loading more stimulus upon the body through intensity, volume, decreased rest periods or even frequency. These factors all need to be considered when designing a training program. Intensity will refer to the load or difficulty of the exercise selected, volume will be the overall sets and reps, decreased rest periods is well just decreased rest periods and lastly the frequency is how many times you would perform it during the week. Once all these factors are considered we need to dwell deeper physiologically. The two deeper methods of getting stronger is progressively overloading the muscles or nervous system.

Muscular Hypertrophy

Muscle makes motion, muscles are what contract to pull on bones to create movement. It is argued that you can have big muscles but still be weak and we will go further into that later. To be strong you require a certain amount of muscle for your body to contract and make movement. This is why you rarely see a person who can squat 200kgs with small legs. Improving overall muscular hypertrophy increases the potential an individual has to be stronger and thus can improve the longevity of their strength training career. Powerlifters and Strongmen are known to perform long periods of dedicated hypertrophy training blocks within the off season. Olympic Weightlifters such as Lu Xiaojun are known for their physiques and the vast amount of bodybuilding training they add into their weightlifting regime. 

Nervous System

Going back to being strong without looking muscular, the reason behind this is the nervous system. A well trained nervous system can express strength far greater than a muscle and the reason being is that the brain controls our body via the nervous system. The brain sends out signals to our muscles for them to contract and essentially it does not matter how much muscle we have if we can not use it. Movement patterns and technique are all based off a well trained nervous system and if you compare our nervous system and intramuscular system, it would be like comparing a driver to the vehicle. Someone who has practised a movement really well and wired themselves to recruit their body well enough to contract to create force will be a lot more efficient in expressing strength for that particular exercise. For example, if you get someone who has big legs but has never squatted before compared to someone who is moderate sized legs but has been squatting for 5-7 years continually getting stronger, the person who has trained it more will be better adapted to express their strength within the squat. This runs true to an extent and will be dependant on each individual but most acute improvements in strength are due to training the nervous system compared to improving muscular hypertrophy.

Putting Two Together

While both are crucial to recognise, we should be training both qualities to improve strength. Training the body to effectively move and control all muscles required to create motion whilst also improving the cross sectional size of the muscle ensures that we can continually get stronger. There is a time and place for one to be emphasised more than the other but the rule of progressive overload should still be intact for both. For example when training the bench press, training the muscles to become larger creates a bigger potential for those muscles to be contracted to lift the most weight. You would then need to practice putting those muscles into motion to handle the heavier weight by practicing and training the nervous system to load heavier within the bench press. 

These are two ways of getting stronger that anyone can add into their routine regardless of sport. These biological make ups run all the way down to human physiology and how the body adapts to get stronger. We hope this article illustrates how the body gets stronger and how it can help you continue to make progress within your strength training career.

Coach Matty