I recently had the honor of being interviewed by Patrick Ward of Optimum Sports Performance. Patrick is an extremely knowledgeable and talented strength coach in his own right so I was grateful to have the opportunity to answer a few questions regarding my background and philosophy on strength and conditioning. I include it here to provide a little more insight into how and why I train the way I do. Thanks for taking the time to read it. Consider this my 15 minutes.

1) Thanks for taking the time to do this interview Steven. Can you please give a little bit of background on yourself and why you got into training?

I came into training quite by accident. I was a three-sport athlete in high school (football, basketball, and baseball) and picked up lacrosse in college. At A&M I also picked up a penchant for beer and pizza rolls. By the time I was getting ready to graduate I had put on about twenty-five pounds – some muscle but mostly fat. I had begun working out but really had no idea about what I was doing. I asked and observed others but was left even more confused. As such, I began reading fitness magazines and became intrigued with the science of training and nutrition. About this time, two fortuitous things happened: I saw a television program on the Olympic Training Center and I enrolled in a course in first aid to finish out some of my requirements for graduation. The first challenged my prevailing belief that great athletes were born and not made. The second changed the course of my future.

I don’t recall how but I had struck up a good relationship with the instructor of the first aid course (which just so happened to fall under the Kinesiology department). She learned of my new-found interest and encouraged me to apply to graduate school. With her letter of recommendation and my GRE score I got in. It certainly wasn’t for my grades. After grad school I took a job at a large, commercial gym, got certified, and soon after got my CSCS. The rest is history I guess.

If not for that one first aid course I never would have gone to graduate school and thus would never have embarked on a career that I am so passionate about. I also would not have met my wife and would not have the same two wonderful children. I owe that instructor my life and even made a trip back to College Station a few years ago to tell her as much.

2) At a time when so many want to specialize in working with athletes in just one sport, you seem to be more of a generalist; working with athletes in everything from motocross to football to lacrosse.  What is it about being a generalist that really sets you apart and allows you to hone in on the athletes needs?

I guess you could consider me a generalist. I love all sports and, fortunately for me, all athletes need a foundation of strength, power, speed, flexibility, mobility, endurance, etc. Sport-specific training is merely a manipulation of the modes and methods used to develop these qualities and knowing which ones need emphasis and when. Having done this for so many years and being a student of sport, I have a pretty good understanding about how to develop sport-specific fitness whether I have played the sport or not.

Case in point, I trained Supercross rider Heath Voss to a World Championship in 2004 even though I had never been on a motorcycle. Interesting side note: his main competition for the title that year was Damon Huffman who was trained by none other than Alwyn Cosgrove. Anyway, knowledge, observation and, most importantly, dialogue with the athlete are the essential elements for putting together a successful training plan. Having played the sport is merely a bonus.

My success as a “generalist” lies in my 15 years of experience and broad knowledge base. When you work with athletes from wildly varying disciplines, you have to spend considerable time studying areas that you might not be concerned with when working with just one sport. Doing so gives you the ability to see things from a different perspective and reduces the likelihood of being biased by tradition. Being an “outsider” does come with it’s own challenges but once the athlete buys in the results ultimately speak for themselves.

3) You have a great interest program organization and understanding how to manipulate training variables to improve strength and power. Can you tell us a little bit about your overall approach to training and philosophy?

Yeah, I guess you could say that I am obsessed with the planning and organization of training. From the single workout to the annual plan, I want to know how to best fit everything together to optimize the training process (wow, that sounds very guru of me). I’ve read just about all there is on the two-factor (fitness-fatigue) theory of adaptation and the various forms of periodization. Zatsiorsky, Verkhoshansky, Issurin, Siff, Bompa, Rippetoe & Kilgore, Loren Chiu, Dan Baker out of Australia are all guys that have a had a huge impact on my training philosophy. I’m particularly interested in post-activation potentiation in the form of complex training and the short and long-term delayed and/or residual training effects.

The cool thing is that, using my Micro Muscle Lab, Just Jump mat, and Brower timing system, I can test a lot of these theories. Not to sound too much like Dietrich Buchenholz but I can also use these tools to “autoregulate” my training. For example, I can use the vertical jump as a measure of preparedness for the day’s training or I can use a predetermined drop in power to terminate an exercise or a workout. These devices also allow me to individualize the training as well as quantify performance over time. I’m a total geek in this regard.

4) You’ve been in the industry for a long time. Looking back, if there were one thing you know now that you wished you knew then, what would it be?  What should young coaches in the field focus on if they want to be successful.

As an athlete, I wish I had known that you can get faster and jump higher with proper training. In high school, we lifted weights but it was all about getting bigger and stronger not necessarily about getting more explosive. At that time (mid to late 80′s), it was believed, by our coaches anyway, that you were either fast or you weren’t. You could jump or you couldn’t. There was no emphasis on power. Hell, there was hardly any emphasis on strength for that matter. The weight program was haphazard at best and voluntary. There certainly wasn’t any thought into injury prevention. What a waste.

Come to think of it, not much has really changed. I get kids in all the time that are weak and slow or strong and slow. Very few are powerful or fast. They either have no strength or can’t express what strength they do have quickly. I routinely put six inches or more on a kids vertical jump and shave several tenths off his or her forty-yard dash in a couple of months simply by having them train for speed and power. It’s not rocket science. Or, maybe it is.

As a trainer, I wish I had been taught the importance of quality of movement (over quantity) early on. It wasn’t until a few years into my training that I came across the work of Paul Chek. While he has gone a bit mad these days, the material that he was putting out in the late ’90s radically changed my approach to training and changed my mind about what a trainer could and could not do. He was a pioneer in the melding of exercise and therapy and much of what is being taught these days about “functional” training is the direct result of Paul’s work. There are a lot of guys doing that sort of thing now – Gray Cook, Stuart McGill, to name a few – but back then he was on the cutting edge. I actually spent a week with him in Miami getting his golf certification and was tested by the man himself. He is quite a character. Speaking of characters, I also had the good fortune of attending one of Mel Siff’s Supertraining camps before he passed away. The influence that these two men had on my career cannot be overstated.

I have spent the last fifteen years working “in” my business and it’s only recently that I have begun to work “on” my business. I have always sought the respect of my peers more than financial gain. Unfortunately, getting better means having to routinely find new peers and so I always feel like I still have so much left to learn – and I do – but this mindset can be paralyzing professionally. There must come a time when you just have to feel confident in your knowledge, move forward, and market yourself a bit. That’s not to say that you stop learning but honestly, after a while, the details can become a bit trivial. Practically speaking, how can you share your expertise with someone if they don’t know who you are? Fortunately, my clients appreciate my dedication and my ability to help them achieve their goals and have always been more than happy to refer others. My business has been and will continue to be built on these relationships. I think that’s the secret to any business success.

5) Steven, thanks for taking the time out of your day to answer these questions for us.  Could you please tell the readers where they can find out more about your articles, services and where they can get in contact with you?

My pleasure. Thank you for the opportunity, Patrick.

Although I don’t get to update it as often as I would like, I have a blog where people can learn more about me and my training philosophy. I’m also on Twitter and Facebook if anyone cares to follow my ranting or keep up with my day-to-day musings. I can also be reached via email at steve@stevenbubel.com.

Kidding.

On the surface, these appear to be very simple questions requiring very simple, straightforward answers. However, if I’ve learned one thing in all my years of training it’s that there is no one single answer when it comes to exercise and nutrition save for “it depends”.

Should I stretch before or after getting on a cardiovascular machine? Well, it depends. Most would recommend that you stretch AFTER when your tissue is warm and less resistant to stretch. However, if you have muscular imbalances that affect your gait (e.g. tight hamstrings, hip flexors, weak glutes, etc.) making you prone to injury then it is in your best interest to stretch before AND after. Then there’s always the question of dynamic vs. static stretching.

Should I lift weights before or after getting on a cardiovascular machine? It depends. What are your goals? If you are interested in increasing strength then it is probably better to lift before doing cardio. Something as easy as a long slow jog can affect your strength while higher-intensity efforts can totally sap you.

If your goal is to increase your cardiovascular fitness (i.e. increase VO2max), however, then you’d be better off doing cardio first.

If you’re not concerned about maximizing either then it probably doesn’t matter too much.

How long should I strive to stay on a machine? Again, it depends. If you can handle the intensity of interval training then you may only have to be on a given machine for 20-30 minutes. If not, then you will have to accommodate the lower intensity with longer efforts (45 minutes to one hour, for example).

Is it OK to break up my cardio workout between 3 machines? Absolutely.

How important is intensity? “Intensity” is relative but I’m a firm believer in effortful training. Raising your maximal abilities (e.g. VO2max, maximum strength) makes all of your sub-maximal work much easier.

Interval training, for example, is a time-efficient way to elevate your fitness and lose weight. Not only is the rate of calorie expenditure dramatically increased while exercising, the biological adaptations that take place impact long-term aerobic/anaerobic conditioning and body composition. Time and time again research has shown that high-intensity efforts are more effective for fat loss and performance.

Unless I am working with an endurance athlete I rarely, if ever, prescribe steady-state training. It’s just not an efficient use of one’s training time.

How accurate is the calorie counter? I’ve actually looked into this question before. Some research has shown elliptical readouts overestimate energy expenditure by as much as 33%! In other words, if the machine tells you that you burned 500 calories you probably really burned somewhere around 335. Take those estimates with a grain of salt.

Should I wear a heart rate monitor? Knock yourself out. I personally don’t recommend heart rate monitors to my clients and I certainly don’t use heart rate to structure or guide my workouts. Individual heart rate is simply too variable and susceptible to influence – caffeine, stress, heat, etc. RPE (rating of perceived exertion) is just as valid and reliable a measure of total training stress and it’s free.

Furthermore, the linear relationship between HR and VO2 (oxygen consumption) is lost at intensities above the lactate threshold. As the vast majority of my cardiovascular programs are interval based, heart rate isn’t going to provide me with any useful information. Not only that, but when you consider the fact that it takes about two minutes for heart rate to stabilize, I may already be finished with an interval before my heart rate has reached any pre-determined value.

Ah, but here again, it depends. With sub-maximal, steady-state efforts, heart rate can be used as an estimate of “intensity” and energy expenditure so if you train in this range heart rate monitors might be of value. I know a lot of endurance coaches rely heavily on them to prescribe and evaluate training sessions. Too much so in my opinion but that’s a topic that deserves it’s own post.

Should I hold hand weights and perform upper body exercises when I walk on a treadmill? It’s a trade-off. Using hand weights will increase the amount of energy expended but the high number of repetitive efforts may lead to overuse injury. Not only that but you’ll look ridiculous. I’d advise against it.

What about a weighted vest? I love weighted vests. I use them in the warm ups of my athletes and on the long walks of my older clients. The hyper-gravity effect can prime the nervous system for explosive training (e.g. vertical jumping and sprinting) and has been shown increase bone density over time.

What machine gives you the most bang for your buck? If I had to pick one I would say the rowing machine. It utilizes about 25% more muscle mass then lower-body dominant machines like bikes and treadmills. There is a reason that most of them sit idle in the gym, though. When done with effort, workouts on the rowing machine can be quite uncomfortable.

When it comes right down to it, the effectiveness of any routine is more about application and less about mode. For example, intervals done on an elliptical will be more effective than walking on a treadmill.

In the end, it all depends.

How early is “early”? According to the position stand of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA), “if a child is ready for participation in sport activities, then he or she is ready for some type of resistance training”. This can include children as young as 7 or 8 years of age. Some parents might think that a bit too early. Most, unfortunately, give the idea no thought at all.

For the vast majority of young athletes, their first exposure to resistance training comes during their freshman year in high school. Research shows that that may be a little too late – at least when it comes to injury prevention.

In looking at the graph above we can see that the incidence of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries spikes quite dramatically from 15-19 and more so in females. The reasons for this are quite varied and beyond the scope of this post but the take-home message is two-fold:

1. the liklihood of injury (especially ACL injury) is greatly reduced with a properly designed resistance training program
2. waiting too long to get started can be detrimental to your child’s health.

When I run I sometimes get pain in my left shoulder close to the base of my neck. It’s always the same pain, only the intensity varies. It started happening once I broke the 10-mile mark in my training. Any thoughts?

Sounds like it could be fatigue of the primary respiratory muscle – the diaphragm. As the diaphragm fatigues there is increased reliance on the accessory respiratory muscles – namely the scalenes, sternocleidomastoid, and upper trapezius – to elevate the rib cage and draw air into the lungs. Overuse of these muscles can lead to pain.

This problem should resolve with better conditioning. Focus on deep, diaphragmatic breathing while you’re running and breathe through your nose as much as possible.

If the problem persists, you may want to look into soft-tissue therapy. Trigger points can often develop in these muscles with overuse.

While there’s no substitute for a pair of expert hands, there are ways for you to work on yourself. The Trigger Point Therapy Workbookis an excellent resource for the self-treatment of trigger points in the neck and almost every other region of the body. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

I read A LOT of research and from time to time I come across some that is pertinent, or of interest, to even the most general fitness enthusiast. This particular piece is important reading for the parents of young, female athletes. If you weren’t already aware, female athletes are far more prone to anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury than their male counterparts. Girls as young as 12 years of age are already going under the knife. This study gives us some insight into why.

From the National Strength and Conditioning Association’s “Performance Training Journal”:

Female soccer players appear to be at a greater risk of anterior cruciate ligament injuries than their male counter parts. One hypothesis for this occurrence suggests that there is a difference between the lower extremity muscle activation patterns of male and female athletes. In order to test this hypothesis researchers from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill compared the muscle activation patterns of male and female Division I soccer players during 2 side-step cutting maneuvers.  Twenty male (age = 19.4 ± 1.4 years; height = 176.5 ± 5.5 cm; weight = 74.6 ± 6.0 kg) and twenty female (age = 19.8 ± 1.1 years; height = 165.7 ± 4.3 cm; weight = 62.2 ± 7.2 kg) soccer players performed a running approach side-step cut and a box-jump side-step cut. During each cutting task the electromyographic activity of the rectus femoris, vastus lateralis, medial hamstrings, lateral hamstrings, gluteus medius and gluteus maximus were recorded.

The results of the study revealed that the female soccer players exhibited greater vastus lateralis activity and quadriceps to hamstrings co-activation ratios during the preparatory and loading phases of the cutting activities. The increase in quadriceps to hamstrings co-activation ratio suggests that female soccer players did not increase their hamstrings activation to compensate for the increased quadriceps activation seen during the cutting task. This occurrence may explain why a greater number of non-contact anterior cruciate ligament injuries occur in female soccer athletes when compared to their male counterparts. While this data is interesting it is important to note that much more research is needed in order to fully understand why female soccer athlete are at greater risk of anterior cruciate ligament injuries.

Muscle activation during side-step cutting maneuvers in male and female soccer athletes.
Hanson, AM, Padua, DA, Troy Blackburn, J, Prentice, WE, and Hirth, CJ.
J Athl Train  43:133–143. 2008.

There are other factors to be sure. The beautiful thing, however, is that research has also shown that a properly-designed strength training program can reduce the potential for injury tremendously.

When it comes appetite or satiety, the first thing that comes to my mind is ghrelin. Ghrelin is a peptide hormone that stimulates appetite. Under “normal” conditions, ghrelin is suppressed postprandially (i.e. after a meal) reducing the desire to eat. However, it turns out that ghrelin is sensitive to “low” dietary sodium intake.

When sodium is restricted, salt-sensitive individuals exhibit increased postprandial ghrelin (relative to normal intake anyway) which may trigger a premature hunger signal leading, in turn, to increased food craving and intake. It is probably for this reason that white individuals in particular tend to lose less weight on combined calorie- and sodium-restricted diets than under calorie restriction alone.

Anecdotally, I have been adhering to an intermittent fasting regimen for the last two years and have found that a 1/4 to a 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt several times during the day really increases my energy and blunts my appetite. Interestingly, research has shown that in the first 24 hours of fasting, sodium excretion accelerates by about 15% above normal which might explain my response.

I’m 38 years old and a former US Marine with a fairly high-stress office job. I’m also a pretty big guy at 6’0, 243 pounds. I was 268 pounds back in January and realize that I still need to drop another 30 to 40 pounds to get back into the shape that I was in when I was 28.

My fasting blood sugar ranges from 113 to 121 mg/dL and my LDL and HDL are both good. My cholesterol is 131 mg/dL and has always been low. My blood pressure is on the high side (135/95 mm Hg) but has dropped from 150/100 mm Hg. Triglycerides were high but are now in the median normal range. Testosterone is low 250 range but up from 150. My supplements include a multivitamin, ALA, CLA, Black Cherry extract and Zinc.

What am I doing wrong? Why do I feel so lousy after the workouts?

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

Tim

First of all, Tim, congratulations on your initial weight loss and improving health. Getting started again after a long lay-off can be a daunting task. As to your question, the simple answer is that, while you are certainly headed in the right direction, you are still dealing with what remains of 10 years of steadily declining health and fitness. As your fitness continues to improve so, too, will your recovery from intense exercise. That being said, as a pre-, Type II diabetic, there are a number of things you must concern yourself with; namely, getting your insulin and blood glucose (i.e. sugar) levels under control. The faster you do this the faster you will return to normal health and function. While exercise certainly plays a major role in whole-body glucose regulation, it alone is probably not enough to get your situation under control. Attention to your diet is of equal if not of more importance.

Carbohydrate-rich diets (especially refined carbohydrate) are expected to have two adverse effects in pre-diabetic and diabetic individuals. First, high carbohydrate intakes require higher insulin levels for postprandial (i.e. after eating) metabolism. In the insulin-resistant state, the high carbohydrate load will raise postprandial glucose levels and in some individuals raise fasting glucose levels if the carbohydrate load exceeds insulin secretion capacity resulting in chronically elevated blood sugar levels. This situation is exacerbated with larger meals.

Second, if diabetic individuals can compensate with greater insulin secretion, the increased magnitude of hyperinsulinemia would be expected to worsen the triglyceride/HDL abnormalities already present resulting in chronically elevated insulin and triglyceride levels and depressed HDL levels. Sound familiar?

It should be noted that a high-fat diet (particularly saturated and trans fats) can also lead to insulin resistance in skeletal muscle so cutting back on refined carbohydrate, saturated fats, and partially hydrogenated vegetable oils is a good first step. However, reducing carbohydrate intake to extremely low levels or cutting out carbohydrate altogether is neither necessary nor wise. This is especially true if you plan on keeping high-intensity exercise as part of your daily routine (which you should, of course).

My suggestion is to increase your consumption of fruits and vegetables (without concern for grams of carbohydrate) while eliminating all processed, nutrient-poor bread, pasta, etc. Processing removes the beneficial components in whole grains including many vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phytochemicals, lignan, and dietary fibers, which act synergistically in their protective effects.

Both magnesium and fiber, for example, are removed when processing whole grains to produce refined grains and are not required to be added back in. This is unfortunate for you, in particular, as magnesium plays an important role in the regulation of insulin action and carbohydrate metabolism while a high intake of fiber attenuates the glycemic effect of a mixed meal.

A slice of whole-grain bread, for example, has about 14g of magnesium whereas a slice of enriched white bread contains only about 6g. You can see, therefore, that you should definitely substitute whole grain bread for white. Just for reference, the recommended dietary fiber intake is 20-35g per day.

Perhaps more important than macronutrient content (i.e. carbs, proteins, and fats) is the amount of calories consumed. Despite the current popular dietary trends, weight loss is still primarily determined by caloric restriction rather than macronutrient composition. It is, therefore, imperative to create a daily caloric deficit so that you continue to reduce your stores of adipose tissue (i.e. body fat). While you can certainly improve your state through diet alone, the effects of fat loss and exercise training on insulin sensitivity are synergistic.

In addition, be vigilant in your lookout for high fructose corn syrup in your diet. Check your Gatorade. The last time I checked the pre-mixed Gatorade listed high fructose corn syrup as one of it’s main ingredients.

Also, be sure to increase the intake of omega-3 fatty acids, particularly fish oil, in your diet. In healthy humans, three weeks of supplementation with fish oil (1.1g EPA, 0.7g DHA per day) decreased the insulin response to an oral glucose load by >40%! Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid dietary enrichment resulted in lower glucose oxidation, higher fat oxidation, and increased glycogen storage. The glycemic response was unchanged, however, which indicates an improved sensitivity to insulin which, as a pre-diabetic, is exactly what you are looking for.

Finally, a post-workout shake that contains both carbohydrate and protein should do your recovery a world of good. It will provide your muscles with the necessary nutrients for repair as well as resynthesis of glycogen stores to prepare you for the next day’s workout. Take careful note, however, of your physiological response to the shake in the minutes and hours after consuming it. If you find that your energy level increases and your recovery is accelerated, keep it. If it causes you to crash further then, by all means, take it out. Follow this shake with a medium-sized protein and carbohydrate meal an hour or two later to stave off the hunger.

Of course, I shouldn’t have to tell you to always consult with your doctor before making any changes to your diet and exercise routine regardless of how beneficial it might seem.

I think that’s it for now. If you have any more questions, please feel free to ask and good luck with your training and return to a healthy lifestyle.

Steve

Is there reason to suspect that you have lower-than-normal testosterone levels? If so, do you weight train? Heavy resistance training has been shown to raise testosterone levels in men independent of diet. The acute (exercise-induced) and chronic (resting) anabolic response, however, will be unique to the structure of the exercise program (e.g., intensity, volume, duration, rest periods, muscle mass involvement) and individual characteristics (e.g., age, health, fitness level). Assuming that a properly designed weight training program is in place, there are a few things that you can do nutritionally to ensure that the hormonal response is maximized.

Eat enough. If calories are insufficient you risk lowering your testosterone levels.

Eat a moderately high-fat diet. Approximately 30% of total calories should come from fat with an equal proportion of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fats. Reducing dietary fat intake has consistently been shown to lower circulating androgen levels. In addition to insufficient fat intake, excessive protein may also compromise the anabolic hormonal environment.

Ironically, protein is not the most anabolic macronutrient. One study found a low-protein diet (10% of total energy) was associated with higher levels of testosterone compared with a diet higher in protein (44% of total energy). Another found that replacing dietary carbohydrate with protein actually decreased testosterone concentrations. That being said, protein is still very important.

Eat meat. Approximately 15% of your calories should come from protein with the bulk coming from animal sources. Cutting back on animal protein (or eliminating it altogether) is a surefire way to get your testosterone levels to plummet. While a rich protein source, animal flesh is also high in saturated fat which promotes anabolism. Vegetarians consume less total fat, less saturated fat, and have a higher polyunsaturated/saturated fat ratio compared with omnivores. As a result, vegetarians exhibit lower concentrations of testosterone.

Consume a pre- and/or post-workout shake with protein and carbohydrate. Doing so can drastically alter the metabolic and hormonal responses to heavy-resistance exercise.

Get plenty of sleep. Disturbances in sleep and light/dark cycles can decrease testosterone by almost 50%.

The idea that women who lift heavy weights will develop the same degree of muscularity as men violates basic physiology. Where this idea originated is unknown but I speculate that someone, somewhere, witnessed a drug-using female athlete lifting weights (most likely a bodybuilder) and drew their erroneous conclusion. It wasn’t long before the media popularized this as fact, coining such words as “toning” and “sculpting”, frightening women into a world of step aerobics and light-weight, high-repetition weight training.

Unfortunately, the female athlete is no less susceptible to this bias. Here is a quote from a recent interview with motocross athlete Sarah Whitmore: “…when I do lift weights, I use really light weights and high reps. But it stinks because I look kind of funny when I’m at the gym lifting five-pound weights…” Five-pound weights! How is someone going to get stronger using five-pound weights? I mention this not to single her out but to make the point of how pervasive this thinking has become. But, I digress.

Lost in all this misinformation is the FACT that the degree of hypertrophy (i.e. muscle growth) seen in female bodybuilders is possible only through the use of anabolic steroids (i.e. testosterone). Testosterone is one of the primary anabolic (i.e. growth promoting) hormones believed to be involved in the synthesis of new muscle tissue. Men have it in abundance – nearly ten times that of the average woman – which results in the development of greater muscle size and strength both inherently and with training. On average, untrained women are estimated to be 24% muscle (men are 40%) and have approximately half of the upper-, and approximately two-thirds of the lower-body strength of men. This disparity obviously places the female athlete at a tremendous disadvantage.

The beautiful thing is that, despite lower absolute strength levels, research has shown that women experience the same relative increases in strength following training. In other words, while women may never be as strong as their male weight-training counterparts, they typically see an identical percentage increase from training.

For example, let’s say that at the start of a training program Subject 1 (male) can bench press 150 pounds and Subject 2 (female) can bench press 75 pounds. Subject 1 has an absolute strength advantage twice that of Subject 2 (150 = 2 x 75). After several weeks of training, Subject 1 can now bench press 165 pounds and Subject 2 can now bench press 82.5 pounds. Subject 2 is still not as strong as Subject 1 but both experienced a 10% gain from training.

To allay your fears, these early increases in strength (first 6-8 weeks) are not accomplished by increasing muscle mass but rather by adaptations within the nervous system – primarily through improvements in coordination within and between muscles. In essence, trainees get better at recruiting existing muscle fiber. Only later does a strength increase arise from muscle hypertrophy and, even then, the onset and degree varies with the complexity of the exercises, the structure of the workouts and, as we’ve already discussed, gender.

Exercise Selection

Complex resistance exercises, such as those involving movement at more than one joint (i.e. the leg press), typically involve a longer neural adaptation phase compared with simpler single-joint exercises (i.e. the leg extension). This extended learning period can delay hypertrophy by several months. Furthermore, training three-dimensionally with free-weights (i.e the squat) demands even greater coordination between the stabilizing musculature and prime movers delaying the necessity for hypertrophy even further.

Workout Structure

An infinite number of strength-training programs can be designed by manipulating these variables:

• choice of exercises
• order of exercises
• number of sets
• number of repetitions
• resistance used (percentage of 1RM*)
• rest periods between sets and exercises

*1RM (one-repetition maximum) refers to the amount of weight that can be lifted only once for a given exercise.

Programs designed to induce muscle hypertrophy traditionally rely heavily on machines to isolate muscle groups, utilize more than one exercise to target the same muscle group in a given session, use 3 to 4 sets of 8 to 12 repetitions per exercise at approximately 60-75% 1RM, and prescribe short rest periods of one to two minutes between sets.

Programs designed for maximal strength, on the other hand, emphasize free-weights, focus on movements rather than muscles, utilize fewer exercises, use 5 to 10 sets of 1 to 5 repetitions at approximately 75-100% 1RM, with long rest periods of two to five minutes between sets.

By comparison, the typical weight training routines employed by most women usually include 2 to 3 sets of 15 to 20 repetitions at 50% 1RM or less. More often than not they include a mixture of free-weight and machine-based exercises often in circuit-type fashion. Circuits are a collection of exercises performed in succession with little or no rest between them. While not an ideal method for building strength, circuit training does a good job of developing muscular and cardiovascular endurance.

Taken together you can see that, contrary to popular belief, the program that maximizes muscle size does not necessarily employ the heaviest weights. Rather, hypertrophy-oriented programs maximize the amount of work done which, in turn, maximizes the amount of protein degraded (i.e. broken down) in a given workout. The greater the amount of protein broken down the greater the amount of protein resynthesized.

Protein Breakdown and Protein Synthesis

According to popular theory, what determines whether a muscle “grows” is the total amount of muscle that is broken down during a workout. This is a function of both the rate of protein breakdown and the total weight lifted. The rate of protein breakdown is determined by the load (i.e. the heavier the weight, the higher the rate of protein degradation) whereas, total weight lifted is calculated by multiplying sets x reps x weight.
 
Granted, while the rate of protein breakdown is high when training heavy, the total weight lifted is usually small due to the fewer number of repetitions performed. The opposite is true when using very light loads (>20 reps). The total weight lifted is high but, given the low resistance, the rate of protein breakdown is low. However, when training with moderate loads (8-12 reps) the rate of breakdown is average, the mechanical work is average, but taken together they result in a large amount of degraded protein. Given adequate rest and proper nutrition, such a program will yield the greatest amount of muscle gain.

Practical Application

Based on the above theory, we can now see why high-repetition resistance training minimizes the possibility of inducing muscle hypertrophy. Unfortunately, given the relatively light loads, these same programs also minimize gains in strength – a quality underdeveloped yet so vital to the female athlete.

So, what’s a girl to do?

• Concentrate on complex, multi-joint movements (i.e. squat, deadlift, bench press, pullups, etc.)
• Don’t be afraid to lift heavy (75-100% 1RM)
• Keep the circuits
• Ditch the machines

One of my preferred methods is to begin a training session with one or more compound movements, such as the deadlift, and finish with a full-body circuit. Use your imagination.

On a final note, studies have shown that combining both strength and endurance training in a given program diminishes the hypertrophy response observed when performing strength training alone. As most female athletes engage in some form of endurance training (as they should) you can feel safe knowing that your chances of getting big and bulky are slim.