Whether you're training for general strength or looking to compete in powerlifting, the training principles for increasing strength are the same. In straightforward terms, a manipulation of training volume, intensity, frequency and exercise selection is modified (the training dose) to get the outcome of adaptation (increased strength, muscle size etc).
To maximise training adaptations, recovery from training sessions needs to be adequate. A simple definition of recovery is the body restoring to its previous strength/performance prior to the exercise bout. When you perform a powerlifting training session and the training stress is significant, performance generally will decrease directly after the training session and extends for some time (eg 24-48 hours), eventually restoring to baseline. Whereby adaptation is when performance increases beyond baseline, and an individual is a little bit stronger compared to where they were before the training session.
If recovery is insufficient, fatigue may accumulate and, thus, reduce training adaptations. In extreme cases, if recovery is very poor, an individual may regress and lose adaptations (they get weaker). As such, individuals may be looking at ways to maximise recovery to maximise adaptations.
Optimising recovery from training is multifactual but not complex. The common-sense variables play the most part in optimising recovery, which are –
- Getting enough good quality sleep
- Eating a sufficient amount of protein (anywhere between 1.6 – 2.2g per kg of body weight is generally enough for most people)
- Consuming enough calories
- Managing stress
- Being within a healthy body fat range and not being too lean
If all of the above variables appear to be attended to, but recovery from training is still an issue, there might be a problem with the training program. Doing programs that are beyond an individual’s capacity, such as too much training volume (total sets per muscle group) and intensity (how heavy and close to failure one is training), or a combination of both, will influence recovery.
Monitoring the above variables and ensuring you’re not overtraining will generally be the main rocks affecting recovery. External methods such as massage, foam rolling, stretching, and cold-water immersion/ice baths have been shown to have minimal, if not any effect on recovery. Thinking logically, if someone is undereating, under sleeping and doing too much training volume, having a massage once a week and foam rolling will not significantly improve recovery. Focus on fixing the core issues and avoid wasting time trying to use ‘band-aid’ recovery methods.
As previously mentioned, if recovery is adequate and the training stimulus is sufficient, we can expect strength to improve gradually over time if consistently following a logically designed training regime. There are no ‘special strategies’ which are going to improve strength gains significantly. Attending to the core training variables of –
- Volume
- Intensity
- Repetition ranges
- Proximity to failure
- Exercise selection
- Training frequency
Are going to be the main factors that drive strength adaptations. It is beyond the scope of this article to explain each of these variables independently as these all require an article on their own. However, the point trying to get across is that no magic strategies will maximise strength adaptions from training. Specialised strategies are for the most part, only going to be useful for experienced trainees trying to squeeze out that small extra percent of strength progress. For everyone else (even experienced trainees), manipulation and organisation of the previously mentioned ‘bread and butter’ training variables will mostly have the largest impact on strength adaptations.
If you’re struggling to recover from training and/or improving strength, there likely isn’t ‘one weird trick’ or strategy that will help. The core recovery and training variables likely need to be attended to find out where your limiting factors are. Focus on fixing these limiting factors rather than looking for a magic fix. The answer(s) to improve your recovery and training adaptations are probably just fixing the basic fundamentals.
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