R
Resistense
Guest
(First I want to put in a disclaimer that this activity has inherent dangers. In performing this training there are times when your head/body is underneath a significant amount of weight, such that it could cause serious injury if something goes wrong. It's of the utmost importance that you be well informed as to how to properly use the recommended safety equipment, and preferably have some experience in weight lifting. That being said, if you understand what you're doing, and have access to proper equipment, one of the main draws of this style is that it minimizes the risk of injury to joints/tendons/ligaments while providing great stimulus for building strength, even (or most especially) in untrained individuals.)
I'd like to recommend a methodology of weightlifting I've used in the past and found to be very productive. I think it's an intelligent and safe way to build strength while minimizing wear and tear on the body.
I became familiar with this system through the work of Pete Sisco, who calls it static contraction training. It's based on isometric holds of very heavy weights in a limited range of motion. The range of motion is limited to the strongest range (e.g. the last 1-3 inches before locking out your arms would be the "strong range" for your pectorals in performing a bench press), which allows for much more weight to be used than in a full range exercise.
Limiting the range of motion to the strong range minimizes the wear and tear on your joints/tendons/ligaments by eliminating the portion of the movement in which these structures are at a mechanical disadvantage (e.g. when you have the bar on your chest for a bench press your shoulder joints are not in a good position to produce force). Also, by maximizing the amount of weight lifted, you can maximize the intensity of the exercise.
The holds are performed for only 5 seconds. Although short in duration, the stimulation provided by such heavy lifting is geared toward recruiting all muscle fibers to fire and fatigue quickly (training neuromuscular efficiency). This is in contrast to most weightlifting methodologies that aim for hypertrophic (size) muscle growth through submaximal, but still sufficiently intense repetitions.
Part of the idea is minimum dose with maximum efficiency. Ten exercises are recommended for major muscle groups, trained in two separate workouts of 5 exercises, for a total "working" time of only 25 seconds per session. The two workouts can initially be performed twice a week (say Workout A on Monday and Workout B on Thursday), but in order to progress you need to take more and more time to recuperate. Long periods of rest are encouraged, up to the point where after about 4 months of training you're only doing one workout a month.
Concerning the long recovery periods, Sisco, in his ebook I purchased, relates the adage that "Every day is kidney day" (this being in contrast to common gymspeak such as "Monday is chest/back/abs", "Wednesdays is back/bis/tris", etc...). You're applying a tremendous stimulus to the CNS/muscles while training, and so long periods of solid rest (and good eating!) are needed for adequate adaptation before that stimulus can be increased. Keeping a log is strongly encouraged, as this provides objective data of progress.
The principles of generating maximal isometric force can be applied in everyday settings. As an example, I'm about 6 feet tall, and an average sized, sturdy doorframe (here in the U.S.) is just about perfect for performing a strong range standing shoulder press. In this example there is of course no movement, just force exerted against an immovable object. However, there's no real way of knowing how much force you're exerting when pressing against immovable objects, you simply try your damndest to press as hard as you can. The system uses heavy weights and the use of safety equipment. A small amount of movement (just an inch of two) is created which clearly shows what amount of weight is lifted. Again, keeping logs is encouraged, and having this data allows you to see progress. You should be able to apply progressive loads, getting stronger, up to a point, assuming you've rested long enough (i.e. you're not "overtraining", which is easy to do for if you're under the impression you need to be in the gym three days a week, every week).
You'll likely need a gym membership, although it may be more economical to pay for a day pass to "drop in", since you won't be working out that often. This is because you'll need access to a quality Power Rack (also known as a squat rack) or Smith machine, and a high quality leg press machine, as well as an Olympic lifting bar and many, many plates of weights (you literally lift tons per workout).
So there's the gist of it. This is just sort of an overview, with a little persuasive info to hopefully pique your interest. I rewrote this post from one that was longer but had the feel of really pressing something that no one was asking for.. This does too a bit, but I want to put the idea out there for anyone who's interested. I've excised the recommended exercises, descriptions and photos, as after considering things I thought it was vitally important that anyone interested in experimenting with this really know what they're doing, especially how to use the safety equipment. In the spirit of this forum you should research the methodology (I'd recommend looking up Pete Sisco and Static Contraction Training, SCT) and have a good working understanding of the principles you're applying before starting the experiment. If anyone is interested, has questions, or would like to know more specifics, I'd be happy to provide any info I can, just ask.
I know this methodology helped me to build a baseline of strength that is still there despite not having used it for some time. I think it's a safe, effective, scientific, and objectively quantifiable method of strength training from which everyone could benefit.
I'd like to recommend a methodology of weightlifting I've used in the past and found to be very productive. I think it's an intelligent and safe way to build strength while minimizing wear and tear on the body.
I became familiar with this system through the work of Pete Sisco, who calls it static contraction training. It's based on isometric holds of very heavy weights in a limited range of motion. The range of motion is limited to the strongest range (e.g. the last 1-3 inches before locking out your arms would be the "strong range" for your pectorals in performing a bench press), which allows for much more weight to be used than in a full range exercise.
Limiting the range of motion to the strong range minimizes the wear and tear on your joints/tendons/ligaments by eliminating the portion of the movement in which these structures are at a mechanical disadvantage (e.g. when you have the bar on your chest for a bench press your shoulder joints are not in a good position to produce force). Also, by maximizing the amount of weight lifted, you can maximize the intensity of the exercise.
The holds are performed for only 5 seconds. Although short in duration, the stimulation provided by such heavy lifting is geared toward recruiting all muscle fibers to fire and fatigue quickly (training neuromuscular efficiency). This is in contrast to most weightlifting methodologies that aim for hypertrophic (size) muscle growth through submaximal, but still sufficiently intense repetitions.
Part of the idea is minimum dose with maximum efficiency. Ten exercises are recommended for major muscle groups, trained in two separate workouts of 5 exercises, for a total "working" time of only 25 seconds per session. The two workouts can initially be performed twice a week (say Workout A on Monday and Workout B on Thursday), but in order to progress you need to take more and more time to recuperate. Long periods of rest are encouraged, up to the point where after about 4 months of training you're only doing one workout a month.
Concerning the long recovery periods, Sisco, in his ebook I purchased, relates the adage that "Every day is kidney day" (this being in contrast to common gymspeak such as "Monday is chest/back/abs", "Wednesdays is back/bis/tris", etc...). You're applying a tremendous stimulus to the CNS/muscles while training, and so long periods of solid rest (and good eating!) are needed for adequate adaptation before that stimulus can be increased. Keeping a log is strongly encouraged, as this provides objective data of progress.
The principles of generating maximal isometric force can be applied in everyday settings. As an example, I'm about 6 feet tall, and an average sized, sturdy doorframe (here in the U.S.) is just about perfect for performing a strong range standing shoulder press. In this example there is of course no movement, just force exerted against an immovable object. However, there's no real way of knowing how much force you're exerting when pressing against immovable objects, you simply try your damndest to press as hard as you can. The system uses heavy weights and the use of safety equipment. A small amount of movement (just an inch of two) is created which clearly shows what amount of weight is lifted. Again, keeping logs is encouraged, and having this data allows you to see progress. You should be able to apply progressive loads, getting stronger, up to a point, assuming you've rested long enough (i.e. you're not "overtraining", which is easy to do for if you're under the impression you need to be in the gym three days a week, every week).
You'll likely need a gym membership, although it may be more economical to pay for a day pass to "drop in", since you won't be working out that often. This is because you'll need access to a quality Power Rack (also known as a squat rack) or Smith machine, and a high quality leg press machine, as well as an Olympic lifting bar and many, many plates of weights (you literally lift tons per workout).
So there's the gist of it. This is just sort of an overview, with a little persuasive info to hopefully pique your interest. I rewrote this post from one that was longer but had the feel of really pressing something that no one was asking for.. This does too a bit, but I want to put the idea out there for anyone who's interested. I've excised the recommended exercises, descriptions and photos, as after considering things I thought it was vitally important that anyone interested in experimenting with this really know what they're doing, especially how to use the safety equipment. In the spirit of this forum you should research the methodology (I'd recommend looking up Pete Sisco and Static Contraction Training, SCT) and have a good working understanding of the principles you're applying before starting the experiment. If anyone is interested, has questions, or would like to know more specifics, I'd be happy to provide any info I can, just ask.
I know this methodology helped me to build a baseline of strength that is still there despite not having used it for some time. I think it's a safe, effective, scientific, and objectively quantifiable method of strength training from which everyone could benefit.
