The Importance of Strength

Strength sports have been around since the dawn of time. To test ones strength is a measure of human achievement. Many people just view it as a bunch of big guys lifting weights. It goes beyond that and more. One of the first strength sports known to man was actually wrestling. In the ancient Olympics that were one of the first sports it tested a man’s stamina, strength and agility. All three components’ you need in any type of strength sport. Many people think that it’s just about lifting. It isn’t its training the muscles to be able to withstand a tremendous amount of strain and pressure. Famous strongman Joseph Mugovero once said “lifting an atlas stone for 5-10 mins is the equivalent to the same amount of cardio that you would need to run a half marathon. ” I had asked a friend who had won the Boston marathon Johnny Kelley if that was true. “Well Chris in any sport you need cardio and I feel sometimes people over think how much effort is needed for lifting so I would have to agree with Joe in that respect. Anything that will take that much out of you is definitely challenging your heart and you would need to have good conditioning to withstand the countless repetitions.”
People have fallen into the mindset of believing that it’s wrong to have muscle and it’s wrong to be strong. There is nothing wrong with being strong or having muscle I see many individuals who are at the gyms and are trying to get that skinny frame. But their ectomorph frame doesn’t fit that description too many individuals feel they need to look a certain way and be a certain weight. An endomorph body type is the opposite has more weight on it but it gives room to create more muscle. A mesomorph body type is more in the middle not too big not too skinny.
  You should be healthy and go with what your body type tells you if you are trying to exercise for looks. If you are trying to exercise for athletic ability again same concept go with what Mother Nature gives you. If you are smaller you can still lift you won’t be putting up huge amounts of weight but there are many guys who can lift three times their body weight that in itself is a great accomplishment. Make your own rules and make your own goals don’t go by what someone or a magazine tells you. Its ok to lift heavy but people need to learn proper lifting techniques and there are a lot of people who are certified personal trainers but don’t teach you the basics because the programs that were taught to them in order to get the certification will not explore that. They primarily work with isometrics machines and programs to get a swim suit body. They don’t teach you to lift with your knees when dead lifting, arch your back when bench pressing. I hope I can be of service and help educate this community about strength sports and the importance of physical strength.