Peculiarities of Female Training

Posted on August 20, 2012 by Justin

Dem glutes

Female strength training is different than a males. Is it because of gender roles or emotion? No, it’s because of the reality of physiology. You see, women have less than one tenth (1/10) of the testosterone as a male. Ehh, maybe it depends on what kind of male we’re talking about…at least guys that lift.

We understand this means women won’t get “bulky” or grow muscle like a gorilla, yet it changes how they react to training. Let’s not worry about what hormone does what — I’m not an endocrinologist and the hormone function of women is more complicated than quantum theory. Let’s just look at the resultant effects.

To Grow — Muslcesize!

Females develop muscular structure with higher repetition programs. This is an observation across many different types of training. Figure/fitness competitors typically approach training like “bodybuilding”, our quick summation of higher repetition training in both compound and isolation exercises and lifts. Many are quick to say, “Yeah, and they’re on steroids/PEDs,” but look at their training modality. It typically hits a lot of reps in a compound movement, then moves to more isolation work on the same muscles in the same session. It puts a lot of work and volume on that area.

Now look at something like CrossFit. It’s an amusing stereotype to say, “CrossFit turns the men into women and the women into men.” It’s a bit unfair, but it sort of holds true. Go to bigger, higher performing facilities and you’ll see beautifully muscled women (which makes them look shapely and womenly as opposed to bulky or extremely muscular) who might be working along side shredded guys who weigh only 20 or 30 pounds more than that girl. Again, this isn’t entirely fair since the higher performing male athletes are anywhere from 190 to 220 pounds, but this isn’t about the guys. The women develop good musculature in CrossFit because a) they’re performing effecitve compound movements and b) they are doing them with high repetitions.

If you want musculature to grow, or become shapely, then perform higher reps. This is easily done in a strength program by doing a some back off sets with higher repetitions after the initial work sets are done (or by adding in appropriately structured conditioning work).

Higher Percentages?

It’s noticeable that females can not only do more work than their male counterparts, but can lift more reps at a higher percentage of their max. These two concepts exist because of the hormonal differences which make a female’s neuromuscular efficiency lower than a male’s. This is a term that indicates how efficiently motor units function. A motor unit consists of a group of muscle fibers that are innervated by the same motor neuron. How many muscle fibers that a motor neuron is connected to is dependent on the type of muscle. For example, the gastrocnemius (hoof-looking portion of the calf) has around 2,000 muscle fibers while some optic muscles (in the eye) only have a few. The fewer the muscle fibers, the more precise and deft the movement (think of the delicate movements of the fingers compared to the knee).

When a motor neuron reaches its action potential, all of the fibers associated with it will innervate (this is the “all-or-none law”). However, given a movement, not all motor units will be activated. Neuromuscular efficiency depends on the number of motor units, the rate of activation, and how the innervation functions with other muscle groupings (including antagonistic muscles).

The hell does all of that mean? A greater neuromuscular efficiency means that the body is more efficient at applying force and executing movement. It’s the same reason why a new trainee might awkwardly execute a herky-jerky squat, but then after getting plenty of repetitions (i.e. practice), their technique will smooth into efficient mechanics.

In the case of a woman, it means that she is never truly applying as much force as her muscles can because her motor neurons can’t innervate everything properly to do so. When a girl hits 90% of her max for 5 or 6 reps (something that a guy might hit for a set of 3), it’s because what we are calling 90% is actually lower than what her true 90% is. Women can lift more reps with higher percentages than men because they aren’t as neuromuscularly efficient as men.

A women’s training will need to be modified beyond the “novice stages” to account for this difference in efficiency. In the Texas Method, for example, a women can (and will need to) use a greater intensity on her Volume Day in order to get enough of a stress. If you’ve read my books, you know that the average intensity of the Volume Day shouldn’t exceed about 85% of the Intensity Day’s (i.e. if the Intensity day is 500×3, then the average of the Volume Day work sets shouldn’t be much higher than 425). But a female can handle 85% but eventually will need a greater percentage to get an adaptive stress. For example, if a female is squatting 225×3, her Volume Day sets could approach 90%, which is around 200x5x3.

Gorillas, who made the first 70’s Big face, get irritated when you interpret things wrong

Note: These percentages are not calculating total volume and they are relative to the weight that is done on the Intensity Day. They are just a gauge for controlling the programming. If you’re confused or want to know more, then purchase the books.

This same concept will apply in other programs, but as coaches we need to take note, especially in maximal lifting scenarios. If a girl looks good on a heavy set of 5, we may think in “male terms” and think she has a lot of weight left on the bar for a 1RM. Yet her 1RM is going to be closer to her 5RM and 3RM than a guy’s. This is important to know in preparing attempts for a meet, but also choosing third attempts based on difficulty. If a second attempt looks regular, that female may not be able to make as large of a jump as you (and she) think she can. You women have probably noticed this; you’ll do a rep at a heavy weight and it feels fine. Then you go up ten pounds and you get stapled. It all has to do with neuromuscular efficiency. Women will vary in how much this effects them, but as a general rule the efficiency is lower than in their male counterparts. Experience will be the ultimate deciding factor, but in the mean time, be a bit conservative.

Since a woman is typically using a lower percentage of her max, she can handle more work than a guy would. This is noticeable when a gal isn’t necessarily fatigued after sets, or doesn’t seem fatigued throughout the session (sometimes this is the case because she’s limited on what she can do with correct technique). It’s not a big deal for women to tack on additional assistance exercises or high intensity conditioning; she’ll be able to recover and the higher repetitions will probably augment her strength gains.

Take note of these various important points: 1) women grow with reps, 2) women can complete more reps with high percentages of 1RM, 3) a woman’s 1RM ceiling doesn’t extend much beyond her rep maxes, and 4) a woman can handle more work in the programming. I hate the fact that I have to say this, but you guys leave me no choice: this doesn’t apply to everyone in every situation. However, on average it will be the case and knowing about these issues can help program strength or aesthetic improvements.

Q&A – 38

Posted on August 17, 2012 by Justin

PR Friday

Hello friends. Some of you may be new, and you’re welcome here. Post your weekly PR’s or training updates to the comments. If you have a training log, link to it.

This is relevant.

Weekly Challenge

Last week’s challenge was to do a set of continuous push-ups (no stop, no rest) until failure, rest 20 seconds, and then do another continuous set to failure. Record your reps in the comments.

Next Week’s Challenge: After each training session, do side plank holds (on the elbow) for 30 seconds, three sets on each side. If you have a wonky lower back issue, then note how you feel the next day.

Week In Review

On Monday we raised Ali McWeeny about $4,000, no big deal. But seriously, we had a review of her story and how she sets an example for not giving up, and then we helped donate a bit of money for her to get a prosthetic that will let her increase her activity significantly. Tuesday consisted of some clarification of some misused terms; I didn’t have to try hard to offend people. On Wednesday I provided a video to help folks find their psoas so they could give it a nice little stroke (yeah buddy). Thursday I did an AMA on /r/weightroom (on reddit).

You can find the “Ask Me Anything” here, and it will act as this week’s Q&A. I spent 5 hours answering questions, so it’s worth a read.

Other Stuff

Here is a quick 2 minute hip opener that all of you should find easily accessible prior to training. Make it a point to do it, especially if you’re one of these “I sit down for over four hours a day” people.

I’ve been thinking about bringing the weekly chat room back. Thoughts?

[poll id=”39″]

Don’t forget the fantasy football stuff. We have some spots open for the main league and need league managers for the regional leagues.

Reddit AMA

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Justin

I’m doing an AMA (ask me anything) on the /r/weightroom sub-reddit. If you wanted a question answered for Friday’s Q&A, do it in the AMA.

Here’s the link. I’ll start replying to messages at 6:00 PM EST and will probably be there a few hours.

Side note: I am still going to do a post about the “MWOD/Kelly Starrett says to stop icing” thing, but it’s an involved post, so I’ll probably save it for next week.

Finding the Psoas

Posted on August 15, 2012 by Justin

A few weeks ago I did a post on hyperlordosis and how the psoas is a primary contributor to it and back pain. Issues with the psoas and hip flexors are pretty common since most people sit during a large portion of their day, and it can cause pain anywhere from the sacrum to the scapula (ass to shoulder blade). The following is a nice visual on what the psoas looks like when stationary and during various hip movements (the captions aren’t in English, just look at the image after reading the hyperlordosis post):

I recommended that if you were hyperlordotic to try working on your psoas. Instead of just mashing around in your guts, I wanted you to learn where your psoas was so that you could work on it. There are a few good techniques to use, but you have to be accurate with you’re massage. At worst, you could occlude your abdominal aorta; at best you’d just be doing a pointless massage. It’s best to get a 출장 massage from a professional. Here is the info on how to find the psoas on yourself:

To begin, lie on your back, pull your knees up, and let them fall to the side opposite to the posas you want to work on. This will let your intestines move away from the target area. Start about two inches from your belly button — you’ll be between the button and your hip bone. You are feeling around for a muscle that runs longitudinally with your spine. If you are incredibly tight, it can feel like a hard sausage. To confirm that you are touching your psoas, flex your hip (pull your knee up) slightly; the psoas should contract. Another way is to lift your head to contract your rectus abdominis; the psoas will be off to the side of the area that contracts. It may take a few minutes to become acquainted with the psoas your first time; be patient, virgin.

Most of you wrote back saying that you couldn’t find it. I don’t have to ask to know that you weren’t patient during your search. When palpating deep tissue, you have to allow your fingers to sink through the superficial tissue — stuff like fascia or connective tissue can prevent immediate palpation of the deep stuff. I’ve made a video “finding the psoas” is broken down crayola style.

If you have any issues with this process, then post the questions to the comments.

Strength Training Is Not Powerlifting

Posted on August 14, 2012 by Justin

There are heaps of new trainees and lifters joining the “online strength training communities” — it’s fantastic. However, there are some terms that are thrown around that are often misguided, confuzzled, or plain wrong, so let’s clarify them.

“I’m doing the powerlifts.”

This is almost always said by someone coming from CrossFit, but I’ve seen it in some general populations as well. Squatting, benching, and deadlifting does not mean that you are powerlifting. This is like saying that tossing a football around is “playing football”. Powerlifting is a specific sport with specific demands and powerlifting, at the very least, requires that you enter a competition. Many athletes will strength train to augment their physical capacity for their sport, but it doesn’t mean they are powerlifting.

Instead, just say that you are “strength training”; it will solidify the distinction. It’s sort of ironic that powerlifting includes the word “power” since there isn’t a lot of power developed (speed is relevant in high power production). I just refer to squatting, pressing, deadlifting and other slow movements as “the strength lifts”. It helps me sleep better.

Let’s be fair to “weightlifting” too.

As an extension, we could say that you aren’t doing “weightlifting” if you’re snatching and clean and jerking. This misnomer isn’t as common (probably because weightlifting isn’t as accessible to the average trainee), but saying “I am doing the Olympic lifts” is more accurate. Oh, and Glenn Pendlay hates when you say “Oly”. It’s a CrossFit thing to use certain lingo, but when it’s incorrect it alienates certain people.

“Should I do Wendler?”

I bet he’d fucking like that a lot, assuming you have the required equipment (a vagina, I’d assume). Jim named the program “5/3/1”, and it’s pretty simple, so let’s just say that. There’s no need to rename stuff, especially because it makes you seem like a hipster. And everyone hates hipsters.

“High hang super power balls snatch”

Everything above is just nitpicking semantics (IT MATTERS, OKAY?), but this is more of helping new people with the definitions. The Olympic lifts have variations, and I will help you know them. In a biblical sense.

If the movement is named by itself (i.e. snatch, clean), then it’s done from the floor to the fully squatted position (i.e. overhead squat or front squat to receive the bar).

If the movement is preceded by “hang”, it’s held in the hands while standing straight up, lowered to ‘second position’ or the thighs, then the lift is completed as normal (fully squatted). The presence, or lack thereof, of “hang” tells you how you start.

If the movement is preceded by “power”, it is not caught in a squat position, but at least above 90 degrees in the knees (i.e. it is caught high in the ‘power position’). The presence, or lack thereof, of “power” tells you how you finish.

If the movement is preceded by “hang power”, then you not only start with the bar (hanging) in your hands, you also finish in the ‘power position’.

There are some other variations, but if you’re having trouble with these, then let’s not worry about those. We don’t like their kind anyway. These variations can be used in weightlifting programs or complicated strength and conditioning programs. I say “complicated” because it’d be easier or more efficient to just say “do power cleans” instead of “hang power boner cleans”. Or something.