Dynamic Effort: Why You Suck At It.
The internet: last refuge of the suckhard. Having read an article on a major powerlifting website in defense of dynamic effort lifting (I'll explain for the dummies in a minute), I found that the author, who is a strength coach for a major university in the US, totally fails to address the point. I hope to clarify A) why the method is sound physically and B) why most people totally fail to use it properly.
High on Speed
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| Speed is what allows a 30.06 bullet to carry about 3000 ft/lbs of energy. |
For those of you who are still following the laughable programs in Bruce Lee's 'Art of Expressing the Human Body' (Bruce took steroids and a shit ton of stimulants BTW and the programs in the book do not actually represent Bruce's real training) let me explain what dynamic effort is. Additionally: kill yourself, you are too weak to be anything other than someones slave (Bruce Lee's in this case).
Dynamic lifting consists of lifting a submaximal (light) weight with as high a speed as possible. Dynamic lifting is one of the three main methods of increasing force production (strength), the other two methods are lifting maximal (shit heavy) weights and lifting a submaximal weight to circa failure (failure or near failure). An ideal training program involves all three methods such as the conjugate method utilized by Westside Barbell.
The reason dynamic effort lifting works is very simple physically: due to the combination of gravity force and inertia, the amount of energy required to accelerate a given load increases exponentially. What does this mean? Lifting slow is very efficient, that is why when a very heavy weight is lifted it usually moves quite slowly (there are other factors that are beyond the scope of this piece). To move an object very fast requires a huge amount of force, this is why throwing a baseball, a relatively light object, at a very high speed requires enough strength that the athlete can damage their body if not sufficiently prepared.
For the dummies: if you lift as fast as possible you are exerting the same amount (or greater in some cases) of force as during a max attempt. Obviously doing this makes a person stronger. Durr.
How to Not Suckhard
The status quo in the lifting world is pretty much the same recommendation given by Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell: use about 50 to 60% of your max and lift that shit as fast as is humanly possible. Now it NEEDS TO BE STATED: these are RECOMMENDATIONS for GEARED LIFTERS. Raw lifters may elect to use higher weights in the 60 to 70% range. Many experts even recommend lighter weights than Louie: somewhere in the 30-40% range.
This depends on a huge amount of factors, to figure out the best percentage for your situation, you'll have to figure out the best percentage for your situation. That's right motherfuckers you have to experiment. Mother loving Edison had to try thousands of light bulb designs before he stole the idea from two guys from Toronto. Perseverance is the key.
Here are some guidelines: you'll likely be able to use a higher percentage on box squats than with say jump squats. If you need me to tell you this then maybe you aren't cut out to be a champion, or strong, or be able to out bench a thirteen year old Russian girl (you know who you are).
People will try one or two exercises at one percentage range and then say incredibly stupid things like: "dynamic lifting fucked up my shoulders" or "dynamic doesn't work" etc. No none of these things are true: your shoulders were too weak for the intensity you used, you fucked up, same for "it doesn't work"; it didn't work because you used the wrong thing (exercise/percentage) for you. Speed lifting works incredibly well at increasing the rate of force development. It can work for anyone: except the incredibly stupid who are too fucking lazy to figure out how to use it effectively, you people will have to hire someone who is smarter than you to figure it out for you.
Really the reason people fail to grasp simple concepts, whether they be physics or kinesiology (or both in this case) is because they are A) to stubbornly dogmatic and self obsessed to even realize there is something they don't know that could be a great help to them and B) they're just too fucking stupid to help themselves not look like total abject losers to everyone around them. I guess those are both aspects of the same thing but with the profanely stupid it helps to be very clear (although I question their ability to comprehend anything they read anyway).
Keep metal. If not: die.
