One of the many ways you can change your workout up and get great results! BUILD SERIOUS STRENGTH WITH SANDBAG TRAINING! by Josh Henkin, CSCS Last updated: Dec 29, 2014 It really doesnt matter—weight is just weight. Ive heard this sentiment expressed in many different ways by everyone from anonymous Internet posters to some of the most highly regarded strength coaches in the industry. As the thinking goes, dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, bodyweight, and sandbags, like the Ultimate Sandbag, are more or less the same thing. Sure, some are slightly better suited to certain movements, but ultimately, it doesnt really matter which one you select. If you are serious about gaining muscle or building strength, you just need to lift the biggest weight possible. I understand the tempting logic behind this argument—after all, who hasnt believed it at one point in their life?—but with every year I spend training and teaching, I witness more evidence of how its simply not true. Just ask any bodybuilder who became tired of getting destroyed under overloaded barbells, and then achieved a miraculous breakthrough after simply switching to dumbbells. If you want to be a fully developed athlete, you need a fuller understanding of what it means to be strong. Spending some time working with a sandbag can help you see it, and the program Ive shared below can help you achieve it. THE STRENGTH-STABILITY CONNECTION Over at Sogn og Fjordane University College in Norway, a pair of professors by the name of Saeterbakken and Fimland have performed a number of experiments in recent years looking at how variations in stability affect muscle activation in a wide range of exercises. The upshot of their work: Looking simply at the amount of weight lifted—or one-rep max strength—can be misleading. THE EXERCISE WITH THE GREATEST STABILITY REQUIREMENT (STANDING AND DUMBBELLS) DEMONSTRATED THE HIGHEST NEUROMUSCULAR ACTIVITY OF THE DELTOID MUSCLES, ALTHOUGH THIS WAS THE EXERCISE WITH THE LOWEST 1RM STRENGTH. - SAETERBAKKEN AH, FIMLAND MS. In one study, the researchers found that factors such as the inherent instability of a weight and the position of our body may actually be more important in stimulating subjects muscles than the heaviness of a load. In this study, dumbbells in a less stable body position actually created more muscle activity in the shoulders than a heavier barbell in the more stable position. IVE BEEN A BELIEVER IN THE POWER OF ODD-OBJECT LIFTS FOR YEARS, SO HEARING ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF INSTABILITY ISNT SURPRISING TO ME. It has also been demonstrated that when using unstable surfaces, similar muscle activity can be achieved using reduced loads for the squat and bench press. As I discussed in my article Fill in Training Gaps with a Sandbag, Ive been a believer in the power of odd-object lifts for years, so hearing about the importance of instability isnt surprising to me. But dont worry, Im not going to tell you to do all your workouts on a wobble board. Stability, like weight, is just one of the variables you can adjust to maximize the training stimulus. Some others include: How you hold a weight How you stand when you lift a weight The level of stability of the weight you are lifting The stability of the surface you are standing on The dimensions of the weight The plane(s) of motion you are working in The speed with which you move or lift The range of motion of the movement The total amount of work you perform (exercise volume) The time you rest between sets and exercises (exercise density) Ponder that list for a second, and you might realize that your routine is pretty limited in what it asks you to do. Thats what led me to create the DVRT training system, to help athletes tap into what most programs are missing, no matter what implements they use. Of course, I happen to believe that the sandbag is special, in that it lends itself to working in all sorts of postures, stances, grips.
Posted on: Tue, 30 Dec 2014 14:59:28 +0000
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