Research can provide valuable information to health and fitness professionals, but trying to keep up with it all can be overwhelming. Not to worry—I’ve done the legwork for you. Here are some current and not-so-current findings that I think you’ll find particularly interesting.
Current Research
Fewer Injuries in Weight-Training Sports
“While the majority of the research we reviewed utilized retrospective designs, the weight-training sports appear to have relatively low rates of injury compared with common team sports.”
— Sports Medicine
I discuss this in more detail in my webinar, Injury Prevention Strategies for Aging Athletes. Check it out!
Resistance Training for Neck Pain
“The neck resistance training was an effective method for pain relieving, mobility improving, pain threshold, and neck muscle strength enhancing in women with chronic computer-related neck pain… women with work-related neck pain might benefit more from PRT [progressive resistance training].”
— PubMed
One overlooked cause of neck pain is wearing the shoulders too low (learn more here). The Sahrmann Press is an excellent corrective exercise for this issue.
Gain Muscle With Drop Sets
“Superior muscle gains might be achieved with a single set of DS [drop sets] compared to 3 sets of conventional RT [resistance training], probably due to higher stress experienced in the DS protocol.”
— PubMed
Performing drop sets using momentary maximal loads can result in up to a 40% strength improvement over constant submaximal loads. I dive into this on pages 20–21 of The Elite Trainer.
Not-So-Current Research
Go Deep With Squats
“Training deep squats elicited favourable adaptations on knee extensor muscle size and function compared to training shallow squats.”
— PubMed
There are many reasons to include full squats in your program. Here’s a breakdown of why you should consider them: Should the Knees Pass the Toes When Squatting?
Tomorrow…
We’ll look at research on:
- The benefits of circuit and explosive strength training for elderly women
- The role of magnesium supplementation in treating depression
- How strength training can improve sprint performance
Stay tuned for Part 3!
