Muscle Strength Defined: Absolute, Explosive, and Sustained Strength

This article from Marty Gallagher defines muscular strength by shades and degrees: absolute strength, explosive strength and sustained strength. For powerlifters, Olympic weightlifters, bodybuilders, athletes, first responders and military trainees, the lesson still holds: complete strength training is broader than one favorite lift, one favorite tool or one favorite type of effort.

Muscle Strength Defined: Shades and Degrees

Featured Muscle Building Tools: dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, and strength equipment.

There is a synergistic relationship between muscle strength and muscle size. One surefire way to grow a target muscle significantly larger is for that muscle to somehow become significantly stronger. Muscles grow and strengthen in response to the self-inflicted stress of progressive resistance training with dumbbells, barbells, kettlebells, etc. Differing stress levels create differing physiologic responses; by altering the dose and duration we can conjure up a desired effect. Grow significantly stronger and become significantly more muscular — simple as that.

There are differing types of muscular strength. By differentiating and defining the types and kinds of strength, the shades and degrees of strength, elite trainees can create training templates that attack each type of strength individually. If you were to create a strength bar graph, running left to right, you would encounter a wide spectrum of strength types.

The Strength Bar Graph

Absolute Strength

At the extreme left of the bar graph is absolute strength: best exemplified by the sport of powerlifting wherein competitors post single-rep maximum attempts in the squat, bench press and deadlift. Absolute strength is raw, maximal, single-effort power. This is the realm of heavy barbells, calculated attempts and the athlete’s ability to display maximum force under strict conditions.

For athletes focused on absolute strength, foundational free weights, quality barbells, and the right loading options matter because the training objective is direct: progressively handle more poundage with better technique.

Explosive Strength

In the middle of the strength bar graph is explosive strength: best exemplified by an Olympic weightlifter performing lightning-fast single-rep maximums in the snatch and clean and jerk. Explosive strength is not merely being strong; it is being strong fast. The Olympic weightlifter must coordinate speed, timing, power, mobility and precision in a split second.

This type of weightlifting places a premium on technical repetition and equipment that supports fast barbell work, including dependable Olympic weightlifting bars and free weight tools that allow progressive practice without gimmickry.

Sustained Strength

At the extreme right of the strength bar graph is sustained strength: best exemplified by high-rep kettlebell training, MMA fight training and strongman-type drills that tax strength and endurance. Sustained strength asks a different question: not merely how much can you lift once, but how long can you keep producing meaningful force?

For sustained strength work, kettlebell sessions are a natural fit. Athletes can train this end of the strength spectrum with options such as premium powder coated kettlebells, urethane kettlebell sets or broader kettlebell progressions that build work capacity without abandoning strength.

Why All Three Strength Types Matter

No one strength type trumps the others. Too many topflight athletes make the mistake of confining their strength training to one or two of the three strength types while eschewing the other types of strength as unnecessary or a waste of time. Any athlete that purposefully ignores training a particular strength type is leaving gains on the table and creating a chink in their athletic armor.

Ignoring absolute strength training invites being overwhelmed by a bull-strong opponent. What good is it to have a 500-pound bench press if you get gassed walking up three flights of stairs? Explosive strength needs to be buttressed with raw power: who cares if you are explosive with poundage my grandmother could lift? Not one, not two, all three.

Optimally, ideally, the complete elite strength athlete is a master of all kinds, types and varieties of strength. How would the conscientious athlete pay homage to all three strength types within the same training week?

A Weekly Strength Training Template

• Day 1: high-bar back squat, jerk off the racks
• Day 2: bench press, biceps, triceps, abs
• Day 3: kettlebell session, sprint cardio
• Day 4: deadlift, power clean, Romanian deadlift
• Day 5: front squats, chins, row, arms
• Day 6: strongman session, sprint cardio
• Day 7: off

They say variety is the spice of life and assuming you had the time, strength equipment, situation and the inclination, you would be hard put to top the sophisticated variety of this particular training split. All the strength bases are covered: absolute, explosive and sustained strength, all given equal due and all attended to individually over the course of the training week.

Within this template there is a beautiful flow between the three strength types. Muscles are worked maximally then allowed to recover as different energy pathways are brought online; the three strength modes are each in turn activated and then rested. This broad-based approach would also have maximum athletic applicability: the ultimate athlete has brute power combined with explosive strength and finished off with a healthy dose of muscular endurance.

Equipment Pairings for Complete Strength Training

The smart athlete takes into consideration the three types of muscular strength and allocates a proportionally appropriate amount of training time for each. Variety keeps the strength training vibrant, exciting and exhilarating. Note that though the template is varied, none of the individual sessions should take more than 45 minutes to complete. If you are serious about building strength you need to think broadly and conceptually: up your game by broadening your approach.

A complete strength program can be built around different tools for different adaptations. For dumbbell-based strength work, options such as the PowerBlock Elite USA 90 adjustable dumbbell set, Body-Solid SDP dumbbell sets, or urethane hex dumbbells can support progressive resistance training across a wide range of athletes and facilities.

For barbell-based strength training, fixed and specialty options such as the IRON COMPANY urethane barbell set, TKO solid steel head urethane encased barbells, and VTX round urethane fixed barbell sets can help commercial gyms, school weight rooms, first responder facilities, military fitness spaces, and serious home gyms support a broader strength menu.

Facilities that want to round out free weight training can also pair barbell, dumbbell and kettlebell work with plate-loaded leverage gym equipment or selectorized gym equipment when the goal is to build strength from multiple angles while preserving a balanced training week.

FAQ

What are the three types of muscular strength?

The article defines three major strength types: absolute strength, explosive strength and sustained strength. Absolute strength is best represented by powerlifting, explosive strength by Olympic weightlifting, and sustained strength by high-rep kettlebell, MMA and strongman-style training.

What is absolute strength?

Absolute strength is maximum force production, best shown through single-rep maximum attempts in the squat, bench press and deadlift. It is the left side of Gallagher’s strength bar graph.

What is explosive strength?

Explosive strength is the ability to produce force rapidly. Olympic weightlifting movements such as the snatch and clean and jerk are classic examples because they require speed, timing, coordination and barbell power.

What is sustained strength?

Sustained strength combines strength with endurance. High-rep kettlebell work, MMA-style conditioning and strongman drills are examples because the athlete must keep producing force over time.

Should athletes train all three strength types?

Gallagher’s position is yes. Athletes who ignore one strength type leave gains on the table and create a weakness in their athletic armor. A complete strength athlete develops absolute, explosive and sustained strength in a balanced way.

About the Author

As an athlete Marty Gallagher is a national and world champion in Olympic lifting and powerlifting. He was a world champion team coach in 1991 and coached Black's Gym to five national team titles. He's also coached some of the strongest men on the planet including Kirk Karwoski when he completed his world record 1,003 lb. squat. Today he teaches the US Secret Service and Tier 1 Spec Ops on how to maximize their strength in minimal time. As a writer since 1978 he’s written for Powerlifting USA, Milo, Flex Magazine, Muscle & Fitness, Prime Fitness, Washington Post, Dragon Door and now IRON COMPANY. He’s also the author of numerous books including Purposeful Primitive, Strong Medicine, Ed Coan’s book “Coan, The Man, the Myth, the Method" and numerous others. Read the Marty Gallagher biography here.