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Strength & Power

"Plus potest qui plus valet" (The stronger always succeeds) - Titus Maccius Plautus

IMPORTANT - I recommend that any person intending to undertake a program of weightlifting training does so in consultation with a licensed health care professional.

There are many physical aspects of fitness that a karate-ka should seek to improve. Acquiring strength and developing the power to deliver an effective technique is essential for martial artists. Punches, strikes, kicks and stances all require strength to be effective. Having perfect technique will mean absolutely nothing if you do not have the strength to deliver enough force into your opponent!

However, developing a strong and able body will not just have a significant effect on your karate training, it will make a serious improvement to your life! Not only will you will be able to participate in more activities, you'll actually feel like doing more activities! A stronger body and improved health will let you think clearer and concentrate harder - you must have a fit and able body to have a fit and able mind! However, the most significant impact of developing a stronger body will be that you will look and feel better! People will notice the change in your appearance AND your personality!

There are a number of ways to develop strength and power. Some are traditional and have been used for centuries, others are new and based on modern scientific understandings. Most modern athletes (professional and amateur) use weight-training as part of their routine.

Weightlifting refers to the activity of lifting weights. It also refers to the Olympic sport of Weightlifting, which tests strength a power through two methods of lifting a barbell overhead - the Snatch and the Clean and Jerk.

Powerlifting is a great sport that was conceived as a pure test of strength. And it tests strength about as well as Olympic-style Weightlifting. The sport that consists of three events: squat, bench press and deadlift.

Weight training refers to any activity which involves the use of weights. The term weight training is commonly used in referring to people who lift weights but not for the purpose of competing in bodybuilding, powerlifting or weightlifting

Resistance training is an even broader term than weight training because resistance can be supplied by weights, machines, rubber strands and any number of other devices that resist the movement of the exerciser. It is nearly impossible to engage in any vigorous resistance training without getting stronger as a result.

However, strength training is a means of training with resistance that is focused on improving strength, as compared with muscle size (although people who train for strength are often seeking increased muscle size as well).

Bodybuilding is a sport or activity in which the primary objective is to develop the size of the skeletal muscles. Bodybuilders focus on other areas as well, such as developing all of the muscles proportionally (symmetrically), minimizing body fat and increasing their strength. Because bodybuilders focus on muscular development, that is the main thing they achieve. Strength, for example, tends to take a back seat to size (though many bodybuilders are very strong).