Why in the world should we engage in physical training - particularly our little blend of CrossFit style training that we conduct regularly in classes at Summit Fitness? I'm going to offer that it all comes down to the importance of muscle fitness as an ally in everyday activities of life.
Talk about muscle fitness or strength development and most folks have an immediate mental image of a "pumped up" Arnold Swarzenegger in his heyday, but that is more appropriately labeled as muscle hypertrophy. Does the increased cross sectional area of muscle tissue correlate to more strength? Well, yes, under many conditions, training that makes muscles larger make a person stronger. However, strength does not necessarily require massive muscles. As one example, consider this video (wmv or mov) of John Brown, from CrossFit Agoge in Montrose, Colorado, as he performs 15 overhead squats using 170 lbs, his bodyweight. This is a feat of incredible strength from a guy who is lean and trim. And remarkably strong. And a man of intelligence and good taste, as he is married a smart, strong and attractive physical therapist (aren't they all?) - Kelly.
Strength is defined by Brooks, Fahey and Baldwin in the gold standard text "Exercise Physiology: Human Bioenergetics and Its Applications" as "...the amount of force that a muscle can produce with a single maximum effort." I'll inject an edit into that definition, offering that strength can certainly be quantified by the force of a maximal effort. However, it makes a great deal of sense to me that strength is simple the ability to generate force and that a single maximum effort permits us to measure that strength. My take on it, FWIW.
The text continues with important comparisons to other measures of muscle fitness (on page 456) in stating that "Power, a related fitness component, can be defined as the ability to exert force rapidly (power = work/time). Muscle endurance is the ability to sustain a given level of muscle tension - that is, to hold a muscle contraction for a long period of time or to contract a muscle over and over again for a long period of time. Flexibility is the ability to move joints through their full range of motion. In the 1970s and 1980s, exercise recommendations by professional organizations, such as the American College of Sports Medicine and American Heart Association, emphasized aerobic (or endurance) exercise as the central component of a fitness program. They scarcely mentioned muscular strength, power, and flexibility. However, recent recommendations place muscle fitness - strength, power and flexibility - on equal footing with endurance exercise, such as walking, running and swimming."
The next paragraph, in my mind, brings the point home: "Strong, powerful muscles are important for the smooth and easy performance of everyday activities, such as carrying groceries, lifting boxes, and climbing stairs, as well as for emergency situations. They help keep the skeleton in proper alignment, preventing back and leg pain and providing the support necessary for good posture. Muscular strength and power have obvious importance in sports. Powerful athletes can hit a tennis ball harder, throw a discus farther and ride a bicycle uphill more readily. Athletes develop strength and power through intense resistance training.....
Do I quote these paragraphs from this text to argue that muscle fitness is more important than cardiorespiratory endurance? No. But, on the other hand, I am in agreement with the text that endurance/cardiopulmonary fitness/aerobic fitness (goes by several labels) is seen as primary to overall health, with strength and muscle fitness often relegated to second hand importance and utility by most of the medical and professional organizations such as ACSM and AHA, and by most healthcare providers. The advantage, perhaps, of 20 years in the field of physical therapy is a long line of treatment experience for all ages of injured or functionally compromised individuals in pain or disabled due to lack of adequate strength. Time after time, seniors who cannot simply rise from a chair remain in inpatient rehab or geriatric care settings, unable to function at a level suitable for discharge to home. Time after time, chronic low back patients find relief and recovery when weakness, not endurance, is addressed. Strength, the ability to generate force, is key to function, performance and health. Power, the ability to exert force quickly, is necessary for function. Flexibility is simply movement through a full range of joint motion. Muscle fitness should not be a second tier objective behind an all important emphasis on the ability of the body to endure sustained, low intensity levels of physical activity like running or cycling or hiking.
In addition, here are a couple of other cites if you want to dig deeper. And, like we say, be careful. If you keep on training with us, you might just wind up getting stronger. Don't say you weren't warned.
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