Just wanted to let you know that this is the last day to take advantage of Jason Ferruggia’s Muscle Gaining Secrets upgrade. I was going through some of the new additions to the program and spent some time on the Muscle Gaining Secrets forum. I was pleasantly surprised to see the big names and great info on there.
Get it while you can.
Bill
Question: What’s a power exercise? Is it an Olympic lift? Is a squat or bench press a power exercise?
Answer: Because power = Force x Distance/Time (AKA force x velocity), as long as dynamic movement takes place (distance), any exercise generates power. Some forms of exercise are inherently more power generating than others. For instance, Olympic weightlifting movements are considered some of the most powerful exercises because of the speed of execution combined with the loads utilized.
A squat or bench press can be made more powerful by reducing the load to somewhere between 55-70% of the one repetition maximum and executing the movement explosively.
Medicine ball throws and jumps are also effective at improving power.
The key is to select the appropriate exercise at the appropriate load to transfer the training to the sporting event.
For instance, speed (low force, high velocity) and maximal strength (high force, lower velocity) represent the opposite ends of the strength curve, so there is typically a limited amount of transfer from maximal strength training to speed-oriented activities. In other words, if you can throw a baseball at 100 miles an hour, that doesn’t mean you’ll also have the shoulder strength equivalent to that of a world record powerlifter.
Bill
I got a message from Jason Ferruggia last week. If you haven’t gotten his book Muscle Gaining Secrets yet (and why haven’t you?), you need to get it now.
In addition to all the bonus materials that you normally get with his outstanding book, Jason has added on bunch more.
How many bonuses?
Try 20…and they could all be rock solid products if sold individually.
This is sale is only going to last 72 hours and then the new bonuses will no longer be available.
Check out Muscle Gaining Secrets for yourself.
Bill
Most general descriptions of muscle function are explained from a reference of anatomical alignment.
Anatomical alignment is much like lying on your back, arms at your sides, palms up, legs straight, toes up.
When you begin moving out of such an alignment, joint angles and muscular functions change.
For instance, gluteus medius is primarily known as a hip abductor and external rotator.
In standing and walking, it will resist the hip’s tendency to adduct and internally rotate at the hip.
In a complex movement like a squat or a lunge, as the hip flexes its moment arm changes such that the muscle no longer abducts and externally rotates the hip but rather it becomes an internal rotator of the hip.
If you’re trying to correct someone’s lunge because their knee tends to “cave in” at 90 degrees of hip and knee flexion by strengthening their gluteus medius, best of luck because it won’t help due to the change in the muscle’s change in function. Look for a posterior chain weakness in this case.
Learning more about how a muscle functions throughout a joint’s range of motion will help to assure proper corrective strategies and exercise selection.
Bill
How do you know if your current program is effective in improving your athletic performance?
When was the last time you assessed your posture, your range of motion, your strength levels, your body fat, or your anaerobic power?
The testing methods you use will, of course, depend on your needs and your goals.
Strength is one of those qualities that’s easy to develop and easy measure. If the loads keep increasing, then you’re stronger. However, is that strength transferring to your on the field performance?
Perhaps not.
For instance, your vertical jump, which is an easy way to measure power, may stagnate or decline with an overemphasis on high volumes of strength training. If your sport demands a high level of power for on the field success, your record weight room numbers may not be indicative of an effective program based on your current needs.
Test, determine your needs, design the program, execute the program, retest, and repeat.
Bill