Do you ever wonder what your true strength potential is? Do you think training beyond a certain point (say, ten years) would bring extra strength improvements?
If so, you’ve come to the right place. Today’s post will cover strength, what it means, and why you’re capable of much more than you think.
The Evolution of Strength
In 1898, Georg Hackenschmidt pressed 164 kilograms from a lying position. At the time, many considered Georg one of the strongest men alive.
Fast-forward a few decades, and Bruno Sammartino pressed 256 kilograms––almost 100 kilograms more than Georg. His accomplishment was met with massive praise from strength enthusiasts worldwide.
A mere 13 years later, Jim Williams pressed the eye-popping 306 kilograms with only ace bandages on his elbows. These days, Danial Zamani holds the record for the heaviest raw bench: 365 kg.
Sure enough, someone will come along eventually to break Zamani’s record and yet again shatter our understanding of what the human body is capable of.
What Does It All Mean?
Many people underestimate what they can achieve through hard work and consistency. Folks new to training often focus on small goals and never entertain the idea of attaining anything notable in the strength world. “Me? Bench press 140 kilograms? I doubt that.”
But, the truth is that we are capable of amazing physical feats of strength, speed, and endurance. Believing that something is possible is often enough for dozens of people to reach remarkable goals like bench pressing over 300 kilograms.
Just look at the 4-minute mile (1.6 km) run. The first person to break the barrier was Roger Bannister in 1954. No person had achieved such an incredible feat before Roger. But then, just two months later, two more runners covered 1.6 kilometres in fewer than four minutes. In the decades since then, 1494 others have broken that barrier that once seemed impossible to penetrate.
Train Your Mind, As Well As Your Body
The strongest people on the planet possess excellent genetics, but that doesn’t mean you’re incapable of building tremendous strength throughout your training career. Instead of viewing world records as unattainable objectives, use them to inspire yourself and see what the human body is capable of.
Part of what makes amazing athletes what they are is a deeply-rooted belief that they are capable of incredible feats. More importantly, it comes down to believing that improvements can occur even after setting records.
You might have the physical capabilities to squat 150 kilograms, but if you approach the bar timidly, thinking it’s impossible, you won’t be successful.
What Is Physical Strength, Anyway?
Physical strength is a measure of how much force you can exert on an external object, and many people believe that it mostly comes down to physical development and overall size. While there is a clear connection between muscle size and strength, your ability to lift heavy weights depends on other things, too:
- Neuromuscular efficiency
- Limb length and leverages
- Body proportions
- Muscle attachment points
- Excitability
- State of recovery
- Skill with a specific exercise
How much weight you can lift on specific days will depend on several factors, which is why performance tends to fluctuate. But, so long as you train consistently, practice the lifts you want to improve, use heavy enough loads, and avoid overtraining, you will get physically stronger.
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