What’s The Smartest Way To Build  Strength?  

As the popularity of strength training surges, so too does the diverse array of ways to get strong. How can you be sure you’re choosing the best approach for your body?  

You become stronger, live longer, grow healthier bones, feel happier, calm your mind, and enjoy long-term fat-burning benefits – need we go on? Given the endless benefits of resistance training, it’s no surprise more and more people are channeling their energy into getting strong.  

In just two years, strength training has shifted from being the 10th most popular group workout to Gen Z’s number one group workout of choice. But it’s not just Gen Z driving this trend, members of all ages are taking to strength training in their droves, inspired by the many reasons to love lifting. 

In particular, the trend has been bolstered by growing numbers of women taking up strength. Social media-savvy strength lovers are taking to TikTok for inspiration, with the hashtag #girlswholift sitting at a whopping 12.8 billion views as of November 23. 

Similarly, the search term “weightlifting routine for women” has risen by +350% over the past three months. There’s clearly an appetite for guidance in this space – which is no surprise given the myriad strength training options at our fingertips.  

So what are the different ways to build strength?  

Fundamental Strength

Fundamental strength is the ground floor of strength training, covering movements like squats, lunges, and hinge exercises like deadlifts. These activities are great starting points for anyone new to strength training, as they help you replicate how your body moves in everyday life, to improve stability and power. 

Starting with this type of training helps minimize injury, allowing you to finesse the basics, before attempting to lift heavy weights. Building fundamental strength is especially important as you get older, improving cardiovascular health, bone density, and joint health – all crucial benchmarks for healthy living in later life. 

Weight Training 

Weight training is probably the activity most people think of when it comes to strength, and it’s one of the most popular strength categories. 

81% of Gen Z exercisers are using free weights in the gym, motivated by the desire to feel strong, get fit, and reduce stress.  

Dumbbells, deadlift, and other pure strength exercises are suitable activities for any ability (if you’re just starting out, following the guidance of an instructor or trainer can help ensure correct form). 

Training with weights will build strength, power, and endurance and is a winning way to make hypertrophy gains, increasing your lean muscle mass and reducing body fat.  

Core Strength 

Unlike pure weight-based strength workouts, this type of strength training targets a healthy core, for improved balance, posture, and stability. A typical core strength workout designed to improve stamina will feature planks and other static exercises that require you to ‘hold’ or activate your core. 

Yoga and Pilates are both popular core workouts that can be tailored to suit every stage of your strength journey. If you’re a beginner, there’s the opportunity to tackle breathwork and adjust to training that requires mental, as well as physical, strength.  

And if you’re already advanced, exercises like mountain climbers and side planks with rotation will begin to challenge core muscles in more complex ways. 

Explosive Strength 

If you’re feeling confident with fundamental strength movements, you can begin to increase your speed and power by training for explosive strength. Typically, these are movement patterns that combine maximum energy with minimum duration. 

The benefits of explosive strength include enhanced strength, power, and speed, culminating in increased athleticism.  

Plyometric exercises like box jumps and weighted step-ups and jumps can be complemented with speed-based activities like sprints to generate quick bursts of maximum effort. As well as improving performance, explosive strength is beneficial for reaction times – moments when moving at speed unexpectedly is necessary. 

How to choose the right type of strength workout for you?  

Whatever type of strength training you do, your body is going to benefit. But the benefits will be amplified when you start doing strength training that you really enjoy – after all, the best workout is the one you do (and keep doing). By exploring the full scope of Pinnacle Health & Fitness programming, you can choose what you enjoy most.  

How Often Should You Strength Train?  

A global analysis of 16 individual studies spanning three decades shows that as little as 30-60 minutes of muscle-strengthening activity each week can help you live a longer and stronger life. The maximum life-lengthening benefit comes when you combine muscle strengthening and aerobic activities. 

The ideal prescription for a well-balanced weekly routine is two resistance exercise training sessions focusing on the major muscle groups, with three to four cardio sessions and one flexibility and mobility-based session. It’s important to avoid strength training on consecutive days.