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Articles of Interest to Those New To Powerlifting,
As Well as Sport Veterans. |
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Off-Season Training
by Donna Marts
I guess before we can talk about off-season training we need to agree that Novice lifters have an off-season. I mean let's face it, there is still so much to learn we could spend every day of the year for several more years working on getting consistent depth in the squat, getting even and powerful extension off the chest in the bench, and getting a big drive off the floor on deadlifts. However, as Novice lifters we have an advantage over lifers that have been at this game for several years; our bodies are still relatively under-developed for lifting and we can put on a lot of specific muscle mass relatively easily and relatively quickly. An advantage is something not to be squandered so I for one take full advantage and plan serious muscle building phases into my yearly schedule.
Typically I start training for a competition six to eight weeks prior to the date. This is where I get back into my gear, gain confidence in my equipment and in my lifts, and cycle my body to try and hit maximum strength and effectiveness at that competition. Since I only compete maybe three times a year there is always a nice stretch of two to three months where I can get in some serious muscle building in and I take full advantage of this time. This is what I consider my off-season training time.
So, if you have followed me this far I have you convinced that you get an off-season, you can take full advantage of that time by building up muscle mass and your body and since your body is relatively new to lifting it will readily accept this muscle building phase. Now to the hard part, how do you go about building muscle and how do you decide which muscles to focus on.
The first part is pretty simple; either read up on the subject or hire someone who already knows about it and have them teach you. A trip to your favorite bookstore or some search time on the Internet will provide you with buckets of information on muscle building. Being a somewhat impatient person, I have opted for hiring a personal training to work me into shape, a more expensive alternative but easier on the brain cells. Regardless of the method you use to build the muscle, making sure you are targeting the correct muscle groups is the key to your success.
After every competition I write down the positive and negative aspects of my performance. I try to be specific (deadlifts stunk up the place does not qualify as specific) and try to identify what felt strong and what did not. My last competition I was not getting down enough on my deadlifts to drive off the floor. I realized my hips were not strong enough nor flexible enough to actually get me down where I needed to be so that became an area of focus. I am also very fortunate to have my Husband video tape my competitions so I can "see" my performance and use that data to identify focus areas. If you are totally lost on determining what muscle groups you may need improvement on you can almost never go wrong if you work on your hamstrings, your quads, your lat muscles, or your chest. When in doubt, pick something, work on it and see how increased muscle mass improves your lifting.
WARNING: Increased muscle mass means increased mass thus making weight is more difficult but a big total makes even this seem minor.
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