I’d like to shift the focus to another often over looked aspect of strength training; mobility. The reason I’d like to go down this road is because I’d like to put mobility and strength training on somewhat of a continuum, having mobility work down 1 end and strength training along the opposite end of the spectrum. I do not believe for a second that the 2 are mutually exclusive, in fact I believe the opposite. I think that there are a number of people who could benefit from less strength training and more mobility work, whilst there are plenty of people who are too mobile and just need to get stronger.
Improving weaknesses:
I think it goes without saying, that we all want to be the best at everything when it comes to training within the gym and preparing our bodies. Unfortunately, everyone will have their gifted strengths along with their weaknesses; it’s just how we are built. Within this blog I am going to highlight the areas where imbalances might appear and give you a practical perspective on how to correct for this.
Use it or lose it:
The focus of this blog piece will be around quantifying the rate of decline in muscle mass resulting from the effects of disuse and time off from the gym. Whilst not intending to be a fear mongering post, I do feel it is important that you understand how rapidly the body can change for the worst during a period of time off. Not only can the body decrease muscle protein synthesis, it can also become more resistant to building lean tissue which over all makes it harder to gain back any muscle lost in the first place.
Hypertrophy Part 3:
For the final installment of my 3 part mini-series on hypertrophy, I am going to round this topic off with an insight into nutrition. I am going to keep my focus directly relating to post work out nutrition and the physiological changes that take place within the body during training. I believe there is a lot of conjecture regarding protein and carbohydrate intake and I’d like to clear a few things up so that you are well on your way to understanding what to do and why.
Hypertrophy Part 1:
For the purpose of this 3-part blog series I am going to focus on all things hypertrophy, which in short means an increase in muscle mass. The first part which I will focus on today is with regards to the single most important aspect to consider when trying to gain muscle size, the programming. I think it goes without saying that there are a number of ways to approach a program. What I aim to focus on however are the evidence backed variables which are guaranteed to give you success and how to manipulate these variables to the most advantageous place for yourself.
Creating opportunity:
I think it goes without saying that 2019 and beyond are going to be very much make or break years for all of us. Of course, every year can be a make or break, but in a world where everything is 24/7 and there is more expectation that ever; it is going to come down to what opportunities you are given, what you make for yourself and ultimately what you do with them. I feel as though there are 6 key areas to consider and they are as follows:
Programming:
For the purpose of this blog I’d like to highlight the benefits of having a structured exercise program to follow, when compared to either doing no training or training without any purpose or direction.
To crunch or not to crunch:
A topic of debate on social media constantly is whether direct and specific abdominal exercises are necessary within a training program. To answer this question properly, I feel it is important to read through the scientific literature and see what different sources are saying regarding the role of the abdominal musculature and what you should or should not be doing as part of your routine.
High intensity interval training:
For the purpose of this blog I am going to dive into exactly what high intensity interval training (HIIT) is, why it is often confused with sprint interval training (SIT) and guide you through getting the most out of your workouts. There are host of physiological adaptations that take place within the body depending on your modality of exercise, however after reading this post I hope you have gained more clarity on the how and why of the situation and can further implement a more structured approach to your workout regime.