Strength Matters

Strength matters in every day life as well as in athletics. As if you needed a reason for increasing strength, sometimes the effects of strength training are not as obvious as one would think. Strength matters and stronger is better, period.

"Strength should matter to you even if your not an athlete. If you are, then even more so. But, here's the thing; we are all athletes in the game of life."

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Athletics

You shouldn't have to look to hard to see why strength would matter to an athlete. Being stronger means you can run faster, hit harder, and take more punishment. How does strength accomplish this? By making what you do easier. Let me explain. When your maximum strength increases, so does you sub-maximal strength. Say your max squat is 100lbs. If, you increased your squat max to 200lbs, 100lbs is now 50% of your max. That 50% is sub-maximal, which means it got easier. Every muscle involved in the squat got stronger. So did the muscles used in your sporting event. Squatting uses the hip, back, and leg muscles, so does sprinting, kicking, jumping, and tackling. These athletic movement patterns require a certain sub-maximal percentage of your max strength. What the exact percentage is doesn't matter, because you have increased your max strength and that percentage got lowered. Meaning it takes less effort to complete that movement. Now what you have done was create a strength reserve. With this strength reserve you can now go harder, do more, or have more control. These are great options for an athlete, wouldn't you say?

Muscle Mass

Muscle Mass to an athlete is like body armor to a soldier. When you add mass to your body it provides protection. Getting hit or slammed takes a toll on the body. Being able to resist impact and be more durable is key to staying in the game both short and long term. Whatever your opponents through at you, you can keep going like a tank. Muscle mass has some other qualities as well. It adds mass to the F = M x A equation. Meaning the bigger you are the more transference of force you'll have. Would you rather get hit by a golf cart or a freight train? Being massive means you can run right through your competition. Another thing muscle mass does is create leverage. Bigger muscles make you stronger by providing extra leverage. The more muscle you have working on the same task the easier it will be. Its like having more friends help you move a couch. the more you have the easier it is. In this case your friends are your muscle and by this logic muscles are your friend. See what I did there? Last note on muscle, it does not slow you down. I repeat. Muscles do NOT slow you down. Does the weight of the engine in your car slow it down? NO! its nonsense so stop now.

Everyone Else

So far we have been talking about athletes. So what does this mean to the non athlete, the everyday man or woman? It means a lot. Remember how getting stronger makes things easier? Well, if your job requires any kind of physical labor then this should appeal to you. Getting stronger creates a strength reserve so you can work harder, longer, or not have it take as big of a toll on your body, which means better performance at your job and a longer career. Firefighters, police officers, farmers, movers, construction workers, and the like, will greatly benefit from getting stronger. If you don't work a typical job and your a stay at home mom or care giver, this applies to you as well. Care giving comes with a lot of physical labor that would benefit from strength training. Picking up kids, walking groceries up flights of stairs, house hold chores, assisting elderly or disabled people, preparing and serving food all require strength and take a toll on the body. No matter what your "job" is, if you want to be able to keep doing it long term and at a high performance without it beating you up, then you need to get stronger and bigger. Why not get stronger to get better? A stronger you is a better you.

Muscle for the Everyday

Its true, muscle mass is body armor. But what if your a desk jockey or retired? What can muscle protect you from? The answer is your own decay. Your body, left unchallenged will not get any stronger, in fact it will just get weaker over time. Think about the natural aging process. Once your an adult and you gradually age, every year your body is left unchallenged, grows a little weaker and frailer. We know this intuitively by looking at the people who are advanced in years. Some require assistance getting up and out of chairs and some can't even move around on their own for anything. See gravity is pulling us down on the earth which provides our body's resistance. This natural resistance from the earth has some positive benefits for us. One being it challenges us so we don't turn into a pile of mush. Astronauts who leave earth and go into space have little gravity providing resistance for them. As a result when they come back to earth they have lost muscle and are considerably weaker. However, gravity pulling on our bodies in everyday life alone is not enough to cause the type of strength gains you want, especially if your everyday life consists of not moving around much all day. It may stave off becoming an octopus for little until you grow older, but ultimately you will need more challenge. This challenge comes from strength training. Training now gives you and savings account of muscle for when you get older. The older you are the harder it is to put on muscle. Hence if you skip it now, you are the only one to thank when you can't get off the toilet yourself.

And Of Course

Adding muscle to your body makes you look better. Male or female, it doesn't matter. A stronger more muscular physique is always better. Now I'm not talking about drugged out bodybuilders. I'm talking about real people adding muscle size to their frame. Muscle makes your body firmer and filled out. For guys, adding muscle mass, fills you out to convey a frame that commands respect. For ladies, adding muscle creates a firm physique that shows off confidence. Need I say more? Bigger muscles are better and they come from getting stronger. Plus, the process of getting stronger makes you stronger mentally. Knowing that you can handle increasingly heavier weights does something to you. It makes you confident. Living your entire life insecure is not fun. Not only that, its unproductive. You spend all your time avoiding things or trying to please others. Not to mention, a strength centered lifestyle is easier to maintain. Want to eat grape fruits and drink coffee to try to be "skinny"? Or, do you want to actually eat food and look great by getting stronger and adding muscle mass? To get stronger and add muscle you need to eat. Sometimes a lot. Don't starve yourself for anything or anyone, even for your own false expectations. Be different. Be strong.

Strength Matters

Strength should matter to you even if your not an athlete. If you are, then even more so. But, here's the thing; we are all athletes in the game of life. Whether or not you realize it, gravity is pulling us all down. You have two choices. Let gravity pull you, your career, and your confidence into the grave or resist it by getting stronger. Overcome your competition, and your confidence, get strong.