If you only had one month to get stronger, what would you do? We asked ourselves this question, and came up with this list of tips we would follow if getting stronger was our primary goal.
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Focus on free weights.
To get the most bang for your buck, or the most progression from the effort you’re putting in the fundamental exercises to focus on are the squat, deadlift, bench press, overhead press, and the pull-up. With just these exercises, you could get very strong and build an impressive physique. The reason for this is you can move the most amount of weight with these exercises, and recruit the most muscle fibers. This means you also have the most potential to get stronger at these movements. Using free weights is the best form of these exercises because unlike when using a machine to simulate a similar movement, you have to stabilize the weight as well as move it. This, again, means more muscles need to be used to not only press or pull the weight, but also to keep the weight in place.
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Learn the correct technique.
Once you use the correct exercises, the next thing is to focus on honing in your technique. By lifting with poor form, you’ll be using incorrect muscles and are at risk of injuring yourself. If your goal is to get as strong as possible, an injury is the last thing you want. Beyond the first thirty days, an injury is the most significant setback someone can face. Slow, steady progress will beat quick progress followed by injury every time. A good option if you can’t get to the gym is Aaptiv, an audio workout app on ios. This takes you through workouts with a guided instructor to minimize the chance of getting an injury.
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Use high and low reps.
High and low rep ranges both have their place in gaining strength. Strength comes from your muscles as the primary mover. The bigger the muscle, the more potential for strength. Using the 8-12 rep range is optimal for building muscle and adding to this strength potential. Low rep ranges then train that muscle to lift more. Reps between 1-5 are the best for actually increasing your strength and training your muscles to lift more weight.
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Use progressive overload.
Adding weight, reps, or sets every workout is the fuel behind getting stronger. People that lift the same 135-lb weight every time they go to the gym wonder why they aren’t getting stronger. This is because you need to push yourself. Adding just 1 lb every workout will culminate. For a month, and then years, your strength levels will increase considerably.
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Look at your weak points.
If you’re primarily trying to get stronger at a certain lift, the deadlift, for example, training that lift alone may not be enough. It may be that you struggle to get the speed of the floor, or that you’re weakest at the lockout portion of the lift. This is where weak point training is useful. For example, if you struggle at the lockout portion of the lift, you may want to add rack pulls or heavy shrugs to train this part of the lift.