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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. Feature Article- Strength Training Part 2
2. Abdominal Workout Tips
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1. ARTICLE:
Strength Training Principles and Guidelines: Part Two
By Chad Tackett
This article is part two of a five part series discussing the very
important principles and guidelines of a safe and effective strength
training program. This article discusses the importance of forcing
blood to your muscles and proper lifting speed.
Importance of Blood Supply to your Muscles
It is important to understand the value and purpose of targeting or
forcing blood to the muscles you are training. Many of the principles
we teach have the sole purpose of forcing blood into your muscles.
When you use proper lifting technique, you will notice blood racing
to the specific muscle you are training. And this is exactly what
you want to happen.
When blood is forced into your muscles during your weightlifting
program it potentiates the "microtrauma" or tiny little tears in your
muscles that we mentioned earlier. When this happens, your muscle
tissues repair and rebuild themselves bigger and stronger than they
were--if you allow ample resting time. This is why you never train
the same muscle group two days in a row; if you do, you cut off the
rebuilding process.
You will know that you are using proper form when you feel a
warmth, some fatigue, and a "burning" feeling at the end of each
set for each muscle group. If you do not get this feeling, you
probably need to review the proper form for your exercise. This
may be an indication that you are making other common mistakes
in your routine that do not allow blood to be fully targeted to the
your muscles.
One of the most common mistakes people make is not training their
muscle groups in an organized, systematic fashion. Always do every
set and every exercise for specific muscle groups together. For
example, if your chest routine consists of three sets of bench press,
do all three sets, separated by resting periods, and then go on to
the
next muscle group. Or, if your chest routine consists of two or three
different chest exercises, do all of those chest exercises together.
Do the Bench Press, then Incline Bench Press, then Flys, for
example--until your chest routine is complete. Then you can move
on to the next muscle group.
Many people make the mistake of doing a set of Bench Press for
their chest, then a set of Biceps Curls, then another set of Bench
Press, and then on to another muscle group, and so on. This does
not fully target blood into any one muscle group. You are just
teasing your chest muscles and then moving on to tease another
muscle group without ever targeting enough blood into any muscle
group to cause much stimulation for improvement.
Another common mistake is eating right before your training
program or eating too soon after your program. This can cause
your heart and digestive system to work too hard and compromise
the oxygen and nutrient delivery to the working muscles. Eating
just before or too soon after your workout will not allow you to get
enough blood into the muscles you are training.
Think about this: Digestion takes a lot of blood to work effectively.
The more blood your body sends to digest your food the less
blood is available to go to your muscles, to rebuild and increase
strength. You should wait at least 60 minutes after eating before
you start your exercise program.
Similarly, do not eat too soon after ending your workout because
you want the blood that you just targeted into each specific muscle
to remain there as long as possible. If you eat food too soon after
your workout, the blood will be forced out of your muscles and
into your digestive system. So wait at least 60 minutes after your
program before you eat a meal.
Of course you should not go to your workouts hungry; you
definitely want nutrients in your system for performance
enhancement and energy, but try to eat an hour or more
before workouts, and make sure your meal includes foods that
are rich in complex carbohydrates and protein and low in fat,
sugar, and cholesterol.
Lifting Speed
One of the most important elements in weightlifting--one that has
a big effect on how much blood is targeted to your muscles--is
lifting speed. Speed plays a major role in the incidence of injury
as well as strength and muscle development. Fast lifting creates
momentum and doesn't promote blood flow to the muscle. Slow
movement creates less momentum and less internal muscle friction.
Not only does slow lifting require a more even application of
muscle power throughout the movement range, it actually
promotes rapid blood flow into the specific muscle you are training.
In every strength training exercise for every muscle there are
two different parts to each repetition of the exercise set
performed. One, the concentric contraction--called the "positive"
"phase of the repetition--is the part where the muscle is actually
doing the work, such as the lifting motion of the bicep curl--from
the beginning where your arms are hanging straight down to the
point where the weight is lifted up. The second part is the eccentric
contraction--called the "negative" phase of the repetition--is the
part
with resistance, because you are returning the weight from the end
of the positive phase back to the beginning. In the bicep curl, this
is where you let the weight come back slowly to the beginning
position, with your arms extended straight down again.
It is more important to let the weight come back slowly on the
"negative" phase than on the "positive" phase. Coming back slowly
with resistance on every exercise is very, very important because
this is the phase that promotes blood flow to your muscles and thus
causes microtrauma, building your muscles even stronger during
your day of rest. We recommend one to two seconds for each
lifting movement (the positive phase), and three to four seconds
for each lowering movement (the negative phase). Whatever your
actual lifting speed, remember to always come back slower with
resistance (the negative phase) for each and every weightlifting
exercise. If you find that the weight is so heavy that you cannot
come back slowly in full control of the movement, you should
lighten the weight until you can. Many people pay far too much
attention to the quantity or weight of the lift and not the quality
of the movement performed. Your muscles cannot know how
much weight is on the bar or machine, but they will respond
very well when you are using good, controlled form and come
back slowly with resistance.
Good luck, and enjoy all the wonderful benefits of strength
training.
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2. Abdominal Workout Tips
What's the secret to rock-hard or good looking abs?
Proper resistance training and a nutritious diet- consuming less
calories than your body burns.
When doing crunches, lie flat on the floor or bench, place your
hands in a crossed position on your chest (avoid putting your
hands behind your head as this leads to poor form and possible
injury), slowly and precisely raise yourself using your abs
making sure your lower back remains on the floor and return
to the starting position slowly.
Try different ab exercises to hit different abdominal muscle.
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