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Strength training is the use of resistance to muscular contraction to build
the strength, anaerobic endurance and size of skeletal muscles. There are many
different methods of strength training, the most common being the use of gravity
or elastic/hydraulic forces to oppose muscle contraction. See the resistance
training article for information about elastic/hydraulic training, but note that
the terms "strength training" and "resistance training" are often used
interchangeably.
When properly performed, strength training can provide significant functional
benefits and improvement in overall health and well-being including increased
bone, muscle, tendon and ligament strength and toughness, improved joint
function, reduced potential for injury, improved cardiac function and elevated
good cholesterol. Training commonly uses the technique of progressively
increasing the force output of the muscle through incremental increases of
weight, elastic tension or other resistance, and uses a variety of exercises and
types of equipment to target specific muscle groups. Strength training is
primarily an anaerobic activity, although some proponents have adapted it to
provide the benefits of aerobic exercise through circuit training.
Strength training differs from bodybuilding, weightlifting, powerlifting and
strongman, which are sports rather than forms of exercise. Strength training,
however, is often part of their training regimen.
History
History of strength training
An early plate-loading barbell and kettlebellUntil the 20th century, the history
of strength training was essentially a history of weight training. With the
advent of modern technology, materials and knowledge, the methods that can be
used for strength training have multiplied significantly.
Hippocrates explained the principle behind strength training when he wrote "that
which is used develops, and that which is not used wastes away", referring to
muscular hypertrophy and atrophy. Progressive resistance training dates back at
least to Ancient Greece, when legend has it that wrestler Milo of Croton trained
by carrying a newborn calf on his back every day until it was fully grown.
Another Greek, the physician Galen, described strength training exercises using
the halteres (an early form of dumbbell) in the 2nd century. Ancient Persians
used the meels, which became popular during the 19th century as the Indian club,
and has recently made a comeback in the form of the clubbell.
The dumbbell was joined by the barbell in the latter half of the 19th century.
Early barbells had hollow globes that could be filled with sand or lead shot,
but by the end of the century these were replaced by the plate-loading barbell
commonly used today.
Strength training with isometric exercise was popularised by Charles Atlas from
the 1930s onwards. The 1960s saw the gradual introduction of exercise machines
into the still-rare strength training gyms of the time. Strength training became
increasingly popular in the 1980s following the release of the bodybuilding
movie Pumping Iron and the subsequent popularity of Arnold Schwarzenegger. Since
the late 1990s increasing numbers of women have taken up strength training,
influenced by programs like Body for Life; currently nearly one in five U.S.
women engages in weight training on a regular basis.
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