Manners are important. Or so you’re taught.
However, according to research, swearing while lifting weights could actually make you stronger.
Set foot in any gym across the country, and a combination of noticeboards, tannoy announcements and hardened gym regulars generally ensure good etiquette is maintained.
However, keeping your curse words under wraps could be holding you back. It may even prevent you from getting the most out of your strength training.
Data published in the journal Psychology of Sport and Exercise analysed a foul-mouthed approach to fitness. To judge this, scientists had those involved in the study swear 10 times during exercise.
Swearing while training resulted in a 5% increase in peak power output – which measures strength and intensity.
Dropping the F bomb isn’t the only thing that can boost your performance, though.
Here are 3 top tips to supersize your strength:
1 – Compound lifts
Isolation exercises have their place, but are mainly aimed at bodybuilders looking to get a ‘pump’ in the muscle cell. Compound lifts hit a variety of muscles and work from more than one joint at a time. Instead of testing your triceps with a rope pulldown, perform weighted dips or close-grip bench press.
2 – Call on caffeine
For some reason, many are fearful of caffeine, but this needn’t be the case. In fact, 200-400mg per day has been shown to boost your performance – a fact reinforced by masses of research. A cup of coffee before the gym can reduce your rate of perceived exertion (RPE). As a result, those heavy weights will seem like less effort.
3 – Frequency is key
If you want to get better and stronger at a lift, then it makes complete sense to perform it more than once a week. When you’re a drug-free lifter, you need to keep hitting a muscle group every 48-72 hours to keep your levels of muscle protein synthesis topped up.
