15 Strength and Performance Tips

James White

The more of these you do, the higher your chances of a seriously impressive physique and performance. Here we asked James White for 15 basic tips that people need to consider when setting out to stimulate some serious gains in strength and athleticism. Have a quick read to see if there is anything missing from your program.

1) Do Low Rep Sets

Keeping your reps down around 4 and under with a very heavy weight will really boost your strength whilst keeping your body weight down. Think of this analogy: for a car to be really high performance what do you need… lots of power and as little weight as possible. Well it’s exactly the same with the human body. If you’re able to produce just as much force through your muscles as your opposition but weigh 20kg less then you are going to be quicker off the mark, be able to jump further and higher, change direction quicker and probably tire slower.

2) Do High Rep Sets

I know this is exactly the opposite to the first tip but high rep sets also have their place. Remember this is a strength AND performance article. So that includes endurance as a component of performance. Always keeping your reps low will obviously build strength but you won't last very long! Higher reps will help to build muscle mass which is important for sports like rugby and shot-put but also will help you to build much needed endurance for combat sports, football, rugby etc. I'm not giving you a program right now, just discussing a few things you need to be working on. Sometimes you want high and low rep stuff in the same training phase, sometimes you want to periodise with different stimulus in different phases.

3) Eat Fat

It is always useful to pop this in as many are still falling for the ‘eat low fat food’ bullsh*t. Yes you need to avoid hydrogenated fats (trans fats) and vegetable oils. But DO eat saturated fats (eggs, red meat, raw dairy, coconut oil) and olive oil. We have been eating diets high in saturated fats for hundreds of thousands of years and it’s only very recently that we are being told to eat less of it. People are getting very sick through the ‘recommended’ diet given today.

4) Drink Lots Of Water

At least 3 litres a day and especially if you’re training as hard as you should be. This will help every single aspect of your life…strength, endurance, power, motivation, mental clarity, how you feel etc. Every chemical reaction in your body requires water.

5) Have A Biochemical Individuality Assessment

say what? For most this is quite a step when you do well to avoid a doughnut and coffee 3 times per week and only train so you can look buff at the disco on a Friday and Saturday evening. But in simple terms, everybody has their own genetic makeup, some will feel and perform better on a higher protein diet, some need more carbs, some people store fat more easily and some put on mass easier than other skinny twerps. If you have this assessed by an expert then you will be able to achieve serious results much faster.

6) Eat Enough Protein

I know you are told this everywhere you look. So why are you still not doing it?! You need to make sure that every meal that you eat has a good serving of protein in it. This means at least 30g per meal. If you have 4 or 5 meals a day then you will be getting at least 150g for that day. I know it varies from person to person, not only depending on their weight but also their biochemical individuality (point 5), but until you get that assessment done and work out your macronutrient ratios in a bit more detail you should just make sure every meal has some sort of animal protein. This is a good general rule that will help you pack on muscle, help you recover from tough training sessions and help stabilise blood sugar levels helping you stay lean and mean.

7) Stretch

Not everywhere, just where you need it. Your best option is to find a good personal trainer who is a qualified Kinetic Chain Assessment Specialist. They will be able to tell you exactly how to correct your posture, function and performance. After an assessment by a good personal trainer you will be able to go away with your report which tells you exactly which muscles are too tight and affecting your performance, posture and even mood and energy. Most guys reading this will do well focusing on pecs, lats and hip flexors just for starters - but the more tailored your approach the greater the pay off.

8) Supplement Where You Need To.

This does not mean go and get a whey protein or mass meal replacement! Please don’t do that, it’s a waste of money and not good for you (ask to remove) Around 70 or 80% of the population are deficient in zinc and magnesium. A first line of supplements that you should take is cod liver oil, zinc, magnesium and possibly an adaptogen such as ashwaghanda. The adaptogen will help regulate your cortisol and other hormone levels.

9) Get Enough Sleep

When you sleep, you become stronger, bigger, and more alert. Go to bed at 10pm and get up at 6 or 7am. If your performance suffers because you can’t be bothered to train that’s one thing, however there is no reason why your performance should suffer because you don’t go to sleep on time! There is nothing easier is there?

10) Don’t Drink Alcohol

Alcohol is a poison. It dehydrates you, messes your hormone levels which will make you fatter and slower and weaker than you could have been. Not everyone is going to jump on the zero tolerance bandwagon, of course not, but if you want to be an athlete you need to cut it right back. Don’t have it on a day to day basis just ‘cause you had a hard day. Keep it social and don't let it mess with your progress.

11) Find A Training Partner

Working with a training partner is important for a number of reasons but the biggest one for most people is motivation. If you arrive home at 7pm after a day’s work and are debating whether you should go and train or stay at home and watch T.V., what do you think you are going to do? How about if you were meeting someone at the gym in 40 minutes? It’s a surefire way to up your training to the next level.

12) Use Big Lifts

I guess this is one of the ten commandments of proper fitness, so I'll mention it once again as many rookies and time wasters are still getting in my way in the gym doing silly exercises and spending too much time on every type of bicep curl and tricep kick back before they have done any of the important stuff. I know it’s easier to do a bicep curl or a lateral raise than a squat or deadlift but if you’re really serious about strength and performance then you NEED to become very strong and effective at moving a LOT of weight. A year down the line you will have less fat, more muscle and more strength. That’s the whole reason for any of this isn’t it?!

13) Start Competing

If you already do… then good, keep doing it at the highest level you can. If you only train because you like to look good or feel strong then you should start competing to give you a good reason to train. Without it you could find yourself drifting in and out of training. If you like to look good then try working towards an amateur bodybuilding competition. If you like to be strong then get in contact with the Great Britain Powerlifting Federation and start working towards a competition. With both these sports there really are a very wide range of abilities competing so it’s unlikely you will feel out of your depth.

14) Use A Training Log

Make detailed notes of every single session that you do. Then next time you’re training you MUST improve on that previous session. From session to session you should be seeing improvements however big or small they may be. You will only be able to see these short and long term changes by writing things down. It’s easy to forget what you did last time and get disheartened if you’re not sure that you’re getting any better. If it's written down, you know exactly what you have to do in each set and your motivation will sky rocket as you strive to add at least one more rep every session.

15) Get Disturbed!

Lastly I thought I would give this slightly weird tip. Basically what I mean by that is for you to give your training and diet a serious kick up the ass you need that mental disturbance. Anyone who has competed in competitive sports for a while will know this feeling well. When you have a bad competition, or just don’t perform as well as you should have, you come away from the competition dying to get back in the gym to train your ass off. Also you are so angry and disappointed at yourself that you couldn’t bear the thought of eating sugary junk food. Next time you miss a session, let yourself down or just have a bad day at the office - let it bother you and bounce back with some attitude! Lifting angry is lifting strong!

About the Author

James is a young guy but my is he strong! – He started out as a Powerlifter and has competed for Great Britain on numerous occasions. He holds British and Commonwealth records and was 2007 British Junior Powerlifting Champion. Recently he has decided it is not enough to be able to simply shift huge weights, he wants to hurt people as well. He is now dedicated to learning the sport of mixed martial arts and intends to make his competitive debut in the near future. He is a highly knowledgeable personal trainer, and is also studying osteopathy. See his personal sites at Build-muscle-burn-fat.com and James Whites Personal Training