This purpose of this article is to supply personal trainers with resistance training techniques, progressions, and cues that can assist their clients in overcoming sarcopenia and to eventually press to the overhead position pain free and with confidence.

Training Techniques for Optimal Muscle Gain and Fat Loss

One resistance training variable that may be altered to achieve desired outcomes is the range of motion used in training. Generally, the strength and conditioning field has accepted that using a greater range of motion in strength training exercises results in more substantial muscle hypertrophy outcomes. However, this theory has proved to be inconsistently supported in the literature, and to date, no sufficient explanation exists to explain this phenomenon. This review article seeks to outline a novel approach for potentially describing the disparities seen in range of motion research with respect to hypertrophy outcomes by applying the unique length-tension curve of each muscle being examined. As will be discussed in the review, virtually all the results from range of motion studies in various muscles have corresponded to each muscle’s length-tension curve; muscles that are active on the descending limb of the curve appear to garner greater hypertrophy from using larger ranges of motion. Conversely, muscles that are not active on the descending limb exhibit similar adaptations despite alterations in range of motion. A novel hypothesis for applying this information to resistance training programs will be presented and discussed.

This article, tailored to individuals who do not have access to traditional equipment, will explore the exercise methods that less-impacted populations utilize during the shutdowns, and examine how those training effects can benefit strength-, power-, and hypertrophy-minded athletes.

This book excerpt from Developing Agility and Quickness describes the windows of opportunity in youth athletes to time progressions in speed and agility training with their biological and chronological development.

Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to “pump iron” to build muscle. In this session from the NSCA’s 2015 Personal Trainers Conference, Nick Tumminello explains that to build muscle you need to create a training stimulus that elicits the three mechanisms for muscle growth. In other words, building muscle is not about the specific exercises you do, it is about the specific stimulus you create.

This infographic discusses factors to consider when training to muscle failure.

This Kinetic Select excerpt from the Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning, Fourth Edition describes the results from electromyography (EMG) studies on the neural adaptations to anaerobic training.

This Kinetic Select from Developing the Core reviews the effects of muscle activity when performing exercises on unstable surfaces.

This book excerpt describes field methods for assessing body composition that are portable and easy to use for assessment of several people in a short time period.