Athletically speaking, there are very few things more visually appealing than watching an NBA star dive a basketball, or an NFL wide receiver rise to catch a football, or an Olympic-caliber sprinter run. a 100 meters in less than 10 seconds. What do these feats have in common? These demonstrations of power are the result of power training exercises. They make it look so easy you and I could walk around and do it.
Many of these athletes may have genetics on their side (as well as a will to work), but they also train power to maintain an edge over their competitors. It’s good to be strong, but it’s even better to be strong and powerful. You may never become a professional athlete, but that doesn’t mean you can’t train for more power in your everyday life.
But what is power? Let’s be scientific for a moment,
Power is determined by force and acceleration (P = F x A). Force is a push or pull from the interaction of the object with another object, such as gravity. Acceleration is the rate at which an object changes speed, such as sprinting to catch the bus or a car coming off a complete stop.
When you combine these two, the magic happens. What they don’t tell you in the gym is that power is a use or lose proposition. Losing the ability to do things quickly and powerfully can lead to loss of muscle mass, especially in the elderly. If you have a choice, you should use it.
Here, six strength and fitness trainers share their favorite bodybuilding exercises so you can use them and not lose them.
When do you train for power?
The strength exercises shown below are best performed after your warm-up when your muscles are ready but not fully engaged. Power training is demanding on your neurological/muscular system and is best trained when you are fresh for best results.
The training power at the start of your workout sets the stage for the rest of your workout, as your fast-twitch muscles are now ready to lift weight. Power trains fast-twitch muscle fibers that work without oxygen but have the greatest potential for growth. That’s right; power sets the table for gains.
3 Benefits of Strength Exercises
Power training will turn heads in the gym because you’ll be the coolest person there. But here are three other important benefits of including strength training exercises in your routine.
- Improved coordination: Power training is a great way to improve your kinesthetic awareness: your ability to control and be aware of your body in space. Power exercises must mobilize all muscle fibers as quickly as possible to achieve a successful repetition. Otherwise, it can get ugly.
- Concentrate better: Think about when to perform a box jump or plyo push-up before your feet or hand hit the ground or the box. It takes a few stones and forces you to focus or whatever. What if you don’t get your hand down in time, miss your box, jump, and stub your shins? Training power will increase your training focus because some fear in your training is healthy.
- Improving Cardio Fitness: Power training improves your cardio fitness because performing powerful exercises encourages the heart to pump more blood with each pump and return to your resting heart rate more quickly.
