Bodybuilding: In Search of True Strength - Thomas Frey

 

Imagine a beginner bench pressing just over 25 kg. 

Within six months, they can bench at least 100 kg. 

Pretty cool, right? 

But after a year or so of regular training, our now "mature" lifter approaches 135-140 kg. and suddenly discovers he just can't get past it. He begins to train at a higher intensity, literally smashing through the wall in terms of intensity, yet there's still no sign of his previous progress. 

It would seem this is a reason to cry out in panic: "bodybuilding does not give real strength!" 

Wait, friends, let's remember that muscles are composed of two types of fibers: "slow" and "fast." 

So, bodybuilding primarily trains the "slow" fibers, which are responsible for strength endurance. Incidentally, this is precisely why bodybuilding methods have been adopted by sports that require prolonged combat with an opponent. Today, boxers, martial artists, swimmers, sprinters, football players etc., all pump iron.

As for the "fast" twitch fibers responsible for the single-shot explosive force, they are trained by weightlifters and powerlifters. And they do so, it must be said, using a completely different, very different method. 

All this means is that a bodybuilder, no matter how hard he pushes the "metal," will not be able to outdo either of them. 

Why? Because there's simply no universal method. And the existing techniques of bodybuilding, powerlifting, and weightlifting are physiologically incompatible! 

Chasing multiple hares, as we know, leads nowhere . . . 

The same thing happens to a lifter who tries to gain both strength and endurance from their training. As a result, they can boast of neither. This same fact is indirectly confirmed by the sport known as multi-event competition. Here, athletes compete in several events simultaneously; for example, running and swimming. You'll agree that such competitive conditions demand truly astonishing athletic qualities from the participants. This is true, yet, both on the track and in the pool, these athletes perform significantly worse than highly specialized athletes, such as runners and swimmers. 

That's why modern professional extreme sports are based on the fundamental principle of specialization. For us bodybuilders, this means that strength can only be developed through pure strength training. If you want to impress others with your bench press, train your bench press using a pure strength-based method. Believe me. doing barbell curls and expecting to become a bench, squat, or deadlift record holders is ignorance. 

To Strength!   

Let me remind you again that human muscles have different types of muscle fibers responsible for two different types of muscle contraction: Single-explosive, and repeated. 

Training both simultaneously is not possible, as training the "explosive" fibers requires performing 2-3 explosive reps per set with maximum weight, while training the "slow" fibers requires multiple reps at a measured tempo with lower weights. 

A single, powerful rep with a huge weight, followed by a long rest period has virtually no effect on the slow-twitch fibers. The fast-twitch fibers hypertrophy, or thicken. However, there are far fewer of these fibers in the muscle than the slow-twitch fibers, which is why weightlifters don't boast particularly large muscle masses. 

When a bodybuilder trains, the "slow-twitch" fibers, which make up the bulk of the muscle mass, undergo hypertrophy. "Fast-twitch" fibers can be activated by certain techniques, such as rest-pauses, etc. 

Incidentally, this situation never satisfied the lifters of bodybuilding's "golden" era, or, as it was also known, the "Arnold era." Both Arnold himself and his fellow trainers believed that a bodybuilder should have plenty of strength. The awareness of increasing one's strength, Arnold claimed, inspires a lifter more than the growth of one's thighs or biceps. That's why, in those years, bodybuilders practiced cycle training, where bodybuilding workouts were interspersed with periods of strength training. 

Of course, both then and now our sport has had its fair share of "pragmatists" willing to sacrifice strength for mass, going as far as to use steroids which are notorious for creating relatively weak ligaments and tendons. I hope that you are an athlete not only on the outside but also deep down, so from now on we'll only talk about how to get stronger. 

Theory

So, the main tenet of strength training might be: Strength can only be developed through strength training. The meaning of this is may appear obvious, but in reality it has a double meaning.

Every strength movement - squats, bench presses in all their variations, deadlifts, etc., - engages a large number of muscles simultaneously. The muscles contract in concert, ultimately generating a powerful, combined force. For most of us, our muscles work asynchronously. Muscles lag behind one another when contracting. 

A bodybuilder trains muscles and muscle groups specifically with isolation exercises, neglecting muscle coordination. Excessively monotonous training, especially if the lifter deliberately ignores other athletic activities such as swimming, running, etc., can lead to deterioration of muscle coordination and even its disruption. Every movement of such a bodybuilder becomes comically awkward; in particular their gait becomes uneven and slow.

When such an overly "specialized" athlete attempts a strength feat it is surprisingly meager, although it is obvious to the naked eye that his enormous muscles conceal remarkable strength potential. 

So, we realize that in order to BE strong and not just look strong, a bodybuilder must consciously work at strength training. 

There's some theory here, I'll skip to the training for ours is not to reason why here right and now . . . 

This layout includes only four exercises: 

Bench press

Squat

Snatch

Clean & Jerk

This selection is unique in that it covers all muscle groups involved in sports that require explosive strength. While some of the exercises are based on weightlifting movements, this doesn't mean using a barbell is a rigid rule. You can easily modify the layout by using different implements and performing them differently. For example, the bench press can be performed on an incline bench, the clean & jerk can be done with two dumbbells, etc.

Train three times a week, performing no more than TWO to THREE EXERCISES per workout, preferably TWO. The workout should be supplemented with several assistance movements, but not to the point of exhaustion. Remember, the goal of this layout is to influence the complex psychological mechanism of explosive muscle contraction. If you also start doing biceps curls for 10x10, that is, forcing the muscles to work for endurance, you'll simply negate the results of your efforts. 

Total tonnage is of no importance here. 

The key is high intensity (% of max). 

Let's say you benched 150 kg with relative ease for the required, let's say for example 5-6 reps. This doesn't mean you should lower the weight and do another 5-6 reps to reach muscle fatigue. Fatigue isn't the key to the effectiveness of this routine. The key lies in following the plan to the letter. 

If a workout or three down the line the poundage feels too light for you, it means your strength has increased, and of course the weight should be slightly increased in the next workout.

The warmup is important. Reps with maximum weight require a thorough warmup of the muscles, but overdoing it will diminish the working sets effectiveness. Follow a plan similar to this: 

if you bench 150 kg, your warmup would be 

70x10

105x3-5

135x1

150x1

When you perform a single rep with a record-breaking weight, focus completely. You must repeat this single-rep effort effort 4-6 times. 

This singles-training method is designed for a two-month strength cycle. After such training muscles retain their strength longer than after higher-rep methods. 

If you're interested in strength and only strength, you should still stop training with this singles method after two months and switch to more traditional bodybuilding training. 

Cycling two months of pure strength training with two to four months of pure bodybuilding training is important for three reasons: 

First, by the end of the second month, the body's adaptive capacity is exhausted. Changing the load and the approach will lead to recovery and refreshed muscles that are ready for a new strength-training period. 

Second, performing 4-6 sets of 4-8 reps strengthens the musculoskeletal system. Bones thicken, and ligaments become stronger. This is exactly what is needed to overcome heavy weights when strength training. 

Third, bodybuilding training stimulates muscular hypertrophy. The muscles' mass and volume increase, allowing you to pump more force into a 50-cm biceps than into a 25-cm biceps. 

Start with a routine that includes the four exercises mentioned: bench, squat, snatch, clean & jerk. Add two or three more exercises to these, depending on what you need, such as cable or barbell rows, situps, or a neck exercise. Perform 3 x 10 reps for each of these. 

The program should be followed for at least 4-6 weeks. 

Then switch to 5 sets of 5 for each main exercise, ramping up the poundage over the five sets, still training three days a week. Note that each weightlifting exercise should be performed only twice per 7-day cycle. This means you should modify the routine by reducing the number of basic movements to two. 

After 3-4 weeks you will feel your strength begin to increase and your overall muscle tone will have improved somewhat. This is the signal to begin working with the single-rep method in its pure form, as the example below shows: 

 Remember, your strength capabilities fluctuate with your body's biological rhythms. If you regularly bench 100 kg, you might easily be able to bench 105 in the first 10-14 days. This sudden increase is a change in makeup, not strength. Continue training with 100 kg. The real strength gains will come around week 3-4 of the program.

This layout is derived from a Bulgarian weightlifting program from the past. Here is the original program: 

Enjoy Your Lifting!