Chapter 6
Improving Muscular Strength
and Endurance
HPD 9
Definitions
 Muscular Strength – the amount of force or
weight a muscle group of muscles can exert
for one repetition.
 Muscular Endurance – the capacity of a
muscle group to complete an uninterrupted
series of repetitions as often as possible
with lighter weights.
* You can manipulate training variables
(weight, reps, rest intervals) to achieve
either of these
The Importance of Strength and
Endurance
 Benefits – loss of body fat and improved
self-concept
 Strength training critical part of a total
weight control program
 Metabolism slows with age, calories
consumed often does not
 Basal metabolism decreases by 3% per
decade
 BM increases by approx. 30-40 cal. Per day
for every pound of muscle weight added
Improved Appearance, Body
Image, and Self-Concept
 Sagging skin can be alleviated by enlarging
muscles in that area
 Most everyone who stays with a program
experiences improved BI and self-concept
affecting their personal & professional lives
 Also need proper nutrition and exercise
rather than diets
Increased Bone-Mineral Content
 ST aids in optimal bone development by
improving bone-mineral content
 Exercises?
Increased Strength and
Endurance for Work and Daily
Activities
 Additional strength and endurance will also
help you perform daily personal and work
activities more efficiently
Improved Performance in Sports
and Rec. Activities
 Children and adults often lack upper body
and abdominal strength
 By improving given deficits ST can help
athletes (young or old) perform better in a
wide variety of sports.
Decreased Incidence of Sports
and Work – Related Injuries
 Improved muscle strength surrounding the
joints helps prevent injuries to your
muscles, tendons, and ligaments. With
regular training, bones and connective
tissue become stronger and more dense.
 Also, ST is an important part of recovery
following certain injuries.
Strength Training Principles
 Strength and Power = heavy weight, low
reps (3-6)
 Muscular Endurane = light weight, high
number of repetitions (10-20)
 Hypertrophy (Muscle Mass) = Heavy to
moderate weight, moderate reps (5-8)
* Regardless of your training objective the
final rep in each set should result in
complete muscle failure or the inability to
perform even one more rep
Types of Training
 Isotonic exercises (positive and negative
phase = concentric & eccentric)
 Isometric exercises – steady muscle
contraction against immovable resistance
for 6-8 sec.
 Calisthenics – BW, resistance is low, reps
high. More effective for developing
muscular endurance
Amount of Resistance to Use
 RM definition
 Starting weight is lower # of cycle range
(I.e. 6-9, 6-RM)
Number of Repetitions to
Complete
 Repetitions – the number of consecutive
times you perform each exercise
 High number of reps = endurance
 Low number of reps = strength
Number of Sets to Complete
 Set – one group of reps for a particular
exercise
 3-5 sets are recommended
 Beginners start with one set and gradually
work up to 3 sets over a period of 3-4 weeks
Amount of Rest Between Sets
 Rest Interval – the amount of rest b/t sets
 Muscle fibers recover to within 50% of
capacity within 3-5 sec and continue to near
full recovery after about 2 minutes
 Strength program = RI less important
 Muscular endurance = RI should gradually
decrease to about 30 sec over a 6-8 week
period
Amount of Rest Between
Workouts
 Full body workout = 48 hours of rest b/t
workout. Alternate day workouts.
 Split routines = possible to train for 6
consecutive days before taking a day of rest.
At least one day, but no more than 3 days
rest b/t exercises that work the same muscle
groups. *Acquired strength and endurance
gains begin to diminish if too much time
elapses b/t workouts.
Speed for Completing Exercises
 Should return the weight to the starting
position (negative phase) twice as slowly as
you completed the positive phase.
 If you simply drop the weight during the
negative phase your muscles are only being
worked during one-half of the exercise.
Application of the Principle of
Specifity
 To gain strength and endurance in a
particular muscle, muscle group, or
movement, you must specifically train the
muscle or muscles in a similar movement.
Application of the Principle of
Overload
 The demands on the muscle need to be
systematically and progressively increased
over time and the muscles need to be taxed
beyond their accustomed levels to
continually see increases in strength .
 Progressive Overload theory can be applied
by increasing the amount of weight lifted on
each exercise or the number of repetitions
or sets.
Application of the Progressive
Resistance Exercise Principle
 As training progresses and you grow
stronger, you must continuously increase
the amount of resistance if continued
improvement is to occur.
 Rest-pause = single rep, near maximal
weight (1 RM), rest 1-2 min., completing a
second rep, resting again, and so on until
the muscle is fatigued and cannot perform
another rep.
Progressive Exercise Principle
 Burnout = 75% of maximal weight for as many
reps as possible, no rest interval, remove 4.5 kg
and another RM is performed, continue until the
muscle does not respond (burnout)
 Supersets = involve the use of a set of exercises
for one group of muscles followed immediately by
a set for their antagonist.
 Compound sets = similar to Supersets except the
exercises target the same group of muscles (I.e.
Bench press followed by push-ups.)
When to Expect Results
 Dependant upon your initial level of
strength, your training habits, the intensity
and length of your training program, as well
as genetic factors.
 Fastest improvements in those who have not
weight trained before and whose programs
involve large-muscle exercises, heavier
weights, multiple sets, and more consistent
training sessions.
When to Expect Results
 Should see significant strength gains after
8-12 weeks of training
 However, it will take approximately 12
months to change the general appearance of
your body dramatically.