The controversial bit……we classify an athlete as someone with aspirations to compete at a county or national level no matter what age, and/or someone that takes part in competitive events that understands and has a justification for the risk associated with training to improve performance.
As a provider of high-quality training that is about performance and your wellbeing, Bodifix takes the potential risks involved with training seriously. As part of our approach we ensure you know all the benefits of exercise but also where it can go wrong and explain the risk versus reward. A great example of this is the heavy deadlift. Loved by many, beneficial to the very very few. Being able to deadlift 70kg is a sign that if you lifted an object that it is at shin height, perfectly balanced (left to right) and has a perfect grip, without a muscular injury. But that perfect situation is unlikely to happen. As part of our training philosophy we ensure that the weight is varied, sufficient and does not go stupidly above the general max weight you are likely to lift day to day which ranges from 30-50kg. If its heavier than that you are likely to use a lifting device or have someone help. At Bodifix we explain why we don’t keep going up weight, whilst also explaining why we believe slight uneven weight on the bar (balance challenge), picking up weight with one hand and also a weight from various heights, both develops strength, resilience to lifting in the real world and builds strength or muscle mass…depending on the benefits you’re after.
Those that do lift heavy (heavy being measured in many different ways) we explain the risk to reward ratio and decide on its appropriateness. Risk being the heavier and more frequently you do the same thing the more likely you will incur an injury, but with the potential benefit when the volume of training, weight used and balance challenge is correct (it can be measure with relative accuracy with modern technology) of being able to lift heavy or produce more power when its combined with power/speed work.
We have learnt this through 20 years of train athletes to world class levels but at the same time training health and fitness clients. The biggest learning outcome is that those wishing for health and fitness have, by other trainers, been push and motivated to lift weights that only an athlete should test them sleeves with. Deadlift heavy if you’re a competitive dead-lifter…but don’t for your body’s sake if you’re not…in the long term ist most likely to be something you regret.
Question to finish with; your next training block/schedule came with a warning that at this level youre 70% likely to get injured and that injury would reduce your ability to train by 50% (which means a 30% drop in performance) and meant you had a niggle everyday in your body (not pain but a niggle) would you be happy to use that training plan?