I am going to share with you some tips on how to increase your strength almost instantly. No, I am not kidding. We have proven these methods and they are backed by exercise science. The 3 simple expert secrets that are rarely discussed are as followed:
Breathing for strength training. You breathe 20,000 times a day and you are probably thinking that you've got this breathing thing down, but did you know that "bracing" can reduce injuries and increase your strength output? You may have an idea although there are secrets to breathing for strength.
- First, we need to understand what inhaling and exhaling do for strength. I want you to think about breathing in when you are changing direction or creating stabilization and breathing out for power and mobility. The easiest way to think about breathing is when punching. When you are delivering a blow, you are exhaling your breath out to increase your power and range. The opposite happens at impact.
- Second, you need to think about breathing into your belly like you are sitting on the toilet and something is jammed inside of you. This breathing down into the belly is vital for the stabilization of your midline and lumbar spine to express your strength. At the time you are told to take a deep breath, you breathe into your chest and not your stomach. This chest breathing can cause lumbar spine weakness, limitation in the thoracic spine or upper back rotation, neck pain, decrease in endurance and loss of strength. Can you believe this can all happen by breathing?
The next big secret is the feet. The topic of feet is big and largely missed by many professionals and experts. Our feet are the only point of connection to the ground most of the time. Due to wearing shoes all the time, injuries and repetitive movements develop poor stability in your feet. Have you ever stood on one foot and felt so unstable? Most of the time you're instability or lack of balance is coming from your feet. If you are not planted into the ground it is going to very hard to squat, deadlift, lunge, etc. You need to get re-connected. One of the best ways is by using a janda short foot technique or by gripping the ground with your toes when changing direction in your lifting. For example, when you are gripping the ground or short footing before you deadlift a weight or squat down, you are stabilizing your foot to provide ankle mobility and a stable surface for your body to express force in the ground to move the weight. A good way to get your feet working is by using the Naboso insoles or mat. The THP team has seen a big difference in clients using Naboso products.
The last tip to propel your strength is a coaching concept called "push and punch". Push and punch are about creating tension to deliver force into the ground or an object. The push is about creating potential or stored energy from the body to punch into the ground to deliver elastic energy. This coiled energy makes the body one big spring that demonstrates a huge amount of power. An example of this concept is in the squat or bench press. Instead of letting your body drop to the ground or lowing the weight, think about pushing down in a manner to generate tension. Once you have reached the level where you want to change the direction of force, this is when you punch to express your strength or elastic energy. This small mind shift has proven to increase strength and power significantly. You must create tension to deliver strength or force.
When using these expert tips don't be shocked by seeing instant gains or improvement in your weightlifting. I challenge you to master these tips or secrets. If you succeed in mastering these concepts you will achieve your fitness and sport performance goals quicker, with fewer injuries. If you want to learn more about these concepts or other tips, reach out to the THP Team and Ignite Your Passion.
