Hypertrophy Training Vs. Power Lifting

There are two big styles of training involved in Weight lifting, hypertrophy training and power lifting. Most people that first start lifting think "I'll just go to the gym lift some heavy stuff and I will get shreded." Sadly this is not the case. Much more goes into a physique than one would imagine.

Hypertrophy training is used mainly by bodybuilders. The style involves keeping the muscles under intense tension for longer sets so the muscle fibers have to break down. Then when the muscles heal, they become larger in the process. This also gives the athlete the "pump." This is when your body pumps blood and nutrients to your muscles making them tight and full, which also causes muscle growth. Bodybuilders do sets with lower weight than power lifters but do longer sets to the point of failure, putting extreme tension on the muscle.

Power lifters don't care so much about building muscle, they just want to lift as much as they can and be as strong as humanly possible. Power lifters only do a few reps in each set, but max out the weight. They do the reps quick and don't focus on how long the muscle is under tension. In power lifting there is only three main exercises; the bench press, the squat, and the dead lift. This is why professional power lifters have large traps, legs, and a large chest but the rest of their muscles aren't proportionate.

So what style of lifting is for you? It depends on what your fitness goals are. If you want to be stronger than all of your friends than power lifting is for you. Personally I just want to look good on the beach, and don't care how much I can bench so I train like a bodybuilder.