Strength or No Strength

My last blog included a lot of words that ultimately declared nothing. Like a dog barking aimlessly at the wind, I make a lot of noise sometimes. It's not because I like the sound of my own voice or anything (I do not, be it spoken or written or recorded while "singing" in my true-to-life rock band), but because it's more beneficial for me to think clearly when I do so aloud. Hell, even when I exercise alone at a conversational pace, the conversation rarely ceases.

Anyway, soon after writing and posting that last entry, I received some correspondence in which I was asked, somewhat predictably, whether I have those I guide lift weights. We triathletes like things broken down to a simple, "yes or no, should I stay or should I go?" The fellow who'd asked was obviously one such person. My answer ("it depends on the individual") was not precisely what he wanted to hear, since, I could only presume, he's an individual and yet doesn't know where he might fit in to the "it depends" part. (This, incidentally, is his responsibility, and no one else's; know thyself...or get to know thyself better, always).

Over the years, of those I've acted as an assistant coach for (note: they're each their own head coach), about half have lifted weights and half have not. Some are persuaded to steer clear of weights and some are pushed against their will into the gym. For the most part, here are those who do and those who do not lift…

• Skinny folks: yes
• Older folks: yes
• Nonworking pro athletes: yes, depending on gender, build, responsiveness & desire
• Working pros: generally no
• Working age-groupers: no, not typically
• Nonworking age-groupers: maybe
• High-injury types: yes, but exercises are geared toward eliminating injury
• Low-injury types: no
• Weaker types: yes
• Stronger types: no
• Big units: no
• Greyhounds/whippets: yes
• Bulldogs: no
• In-betweeners: maybe
• Chronic "aerobic overtrainers": yes
• Chronic "aerobic undertrainers": no
• Those who "bulk up": no
• Those who could afford to gain weight: yes, only after eating more first
  
• Those who could afford to lose weight: possibly
• Those who could afford to lose muscle mass: no, never
• Those who'd over-train aerobically if it weren't for the gym: yes
• Those in need of better "hormonal balance": maybe
• Whipper-snappers: no
  
• Those endowed with mostly fast-twitch fibers: no
• Those endowed with mostly slow-twitch fibers: maybe
• Those better off swimming, running or riding more: no
• Those better off swimming, running or riding less: yes
• Germ-a-phobes: no
• Vanity types: no
• Females: more often than men
• Men: less often than females
• Charles Atlas: yes
• Arnold Schwarzenegger: no
• Me: no
• You: maybe

The exercises prescribed generally run the gamut but are specific to the individual and his or her requirements, wishes and goals. If an athlete has a weak back, for example, we don't spend time doing biceps curls. No, they work their back instead (it's not too confusing now, is it?).

Most importantly perhaps is that everyone I've helped guide has done {and indeed does} sport-specific strength work (hill-work, big-gears, paddle work in the pool, etc), and this ALWAYS overrides the non-specific strength work. (Yep, the gym AIN'T specific to race day, you heard it here.) Specificity of preparation plays a major role in the specificity of performance and a triathlete should best work on that which limits his/her performances on race day before worrying about hoisting a bunch of iron. We're Ironmen, not men of iron. Prioritize and let your race results show you your best course of action (or inaction). Lifting weights (i.e., resistance training) is well down the scale of importance for competitions showcasing our aerobic capacity and/or economy/fuel efficiency or overall bad-ass-ish-ness. Weight-lifters may be bad assess, but they aren't triathletes. You can be both, but something's usually gotta give.

Measure, measure, measure (in the pool, on the bike or while running, not in the weight-room) if you're still not sure. As they say, the proof is in the putting out. Put out or get out.