Conjugate training for everyone!

Conjugate training is the best way to train for maximal strength. It simultaneously combines the three types of training needed to be strong; the max effort method, the dynamic effort method and the repetition method. It evolved from Russian/ Bulgarian Olympic weightlifting programs and was popularized in the United States by Westside Barbell (where it is used for powerlifting programs).





Most weight training programs in the US are based on the western style of periodization where specific blocks of time are dedicated to hypertrophy, strength and power. This is currently the most popular way to train athletes (and the population in general) in the US. There are problems with this method of training. A trainee is only working a singular aspect of the equation at a time (while ignoring the dynamic effort altogether and the max effort method until the final few weeks).





Thus say you trained for hypertrophy (mass) for, say, a 4 week cycle, then trained for strength for a 4 week cycle followed by 4 weeks of power training. After approximately two weeks of not training a specific skill it will diminish. So at the end of the strength cycle you would have lost some of your hypertrophy gains and at the end of the power cycle it would have diminished further (and you'd have lost strength as well!).





This is a benefit of conjugate training. It combines all types of training to get the most bang for the buck! Furthermore, the exercises used as in max effort training may resemble the classical lifts (squat, benchpress, deadlift) but are deviations of them. The central nervous system will adapt to a specific exercise after approximately 3 weeks of using it and performance will suffer. So by using variations of the classical lifts, one is training the same muscles but in a different way and one forces the CNS to constantly adapt. When one gets stronger at these deviations one's main lifts should go up as well!





That is why this is a superior way to train athletes. The strong-but-slow athlete can be taught how to demonstrate his strength as power. The fast-but-weak athlete can be made faster still by getting stronger. One must look at the skills needed and movements predominate in the sport in question and arrange the training to enhance it. This works just as well for the average meathead or mother of three!





One's skills, whether it be strength, speed, flexibility, mobility, endurance, etcetera can deteriorate after two weeks of non-training/ use. So if one is strong and fast but lacks, say, flexibility, (and if flexibility is necessary to the sport/ level of performance desired) one must add specific training to the program to bring it up to the level necessary. Then, one only need do enough to maintain the level of performance required for the sport/ task at hand. This is another benefit of conjugate training. There is no off-season. There are certain times of the year to emphasize certain types of training over another but everything is trained year round.

Stay strong,
Ed T.