How strong are you?

Your strength is a measure of the maximum force one of your muscles can exert. This means that you can be strong in one part of your body and weak in another.

Your muscles convert energy into movement. They do this most efficiently when there is plenty of oxygen present. This occurs during 'aerobic' exercise. If the oxygen runs out and you continue to demand work from your muscles they are still able produce energy but 'anaerobically'. This can only work for a short time though.

Anaerobic exercise produces waste products in your muscles. The most important of these being lactic acid. This gives you the uncomfortable burning sensation. This is usually followed by stiffness and cramps. When you build up strength, you need to teach your muscles gently to work better without oxygen and less of the uncomfortable effects.

Strength training

All physical activity will increase your strength a certain amount as you will need to use your muscles to a certain extent in order to perform it.

The best training for strength requires short periods of intensive work with longer periods of gentle exercise or rest in-between.

Strength training safety

If you increase your workload too quickly you won't do anything for your strength. It will only lead to lactic acid build-up and damage to your muscles and tendons.

Before undertaking any strength training, always warm up enough first to allow your muscles to work efficiently and reduce the risk of injury.

After undertaking strength training, always perform stretches to disperse lactic acid and lengthen bunched muscles that could lead to stiffness.

Health benefits of good strength

Having well-built muscles helps protect vulnerable parts of your body. For example:

• Strong abdominals (stomach muscles) help protect your lower back.
• Strong quadriceps (front of the thigh) help protect your knees.

Strong muscles mean that you are less likely to suffer injuries from doing everyday tasks such as lifting, gardening or housework.

The most obvious benefit of strong muscles is that it helps performing tasks easier.

Another perhaps obvious benefit of strong muscles is that it improves the contours of your body and hence appearance!

The benefits of strength to sport

Good strength can greatly improve your performance in sport. The most obvious training for a given sport would be increasing your strength in the area of your body that you use most for that particular sport. For example, you may consider improving your leg muscles if you play football.

It is often overlooked though that improving less obvious muscles can also improve your performance. A good general musculature can give you a great advantage.