Thread: Gym Strength Vs. Real-world Strength

I think people who lift in the real world.. are as strong if not stronger in the gym then people who just train to lift weights.

Because those who lift daily (carpet layers for example) are using all kinds of muscles to lift a huge roll of carpet up 4 flight of stairs when I'm simply training just to shoulder press that weight or squat it.. not lift it and then manipulate it around corners.

As far as I've been, the strongest guys in the gym usually have some other job then just training with weights. Many of them do very intense jobs that involve physical activity and the gym is a way to do a structured workout.

People like Paul Chek have made a career and quite a business based around functional strength (designed to help with your everyday movements). This is where a lot of core stability advocates come from (of which I am one).

For example, I think it's smarter to have a person do a squat than a leg press because it's more functionally useful. There are lots of movements in a gym that don't emulate anything you do in normal everyday life.

Originally posted by ponyboy
There are lots of movements in a gym that don't emulate anything you do in normal everyday life.

Totally agree with ponyboy on this statement.

Originally posted by kanun
Do you think there is a difference between being strong in the gym and being strong in everyday life?

Of course. It is much easier to lift a bar with weights on it, compared to something else which will have uneven weight distribution and odd sizes. Case in point is me carrying a straight 6 short block up to my apartment on the 2nd floor, up 4 flights of stairs. It registered under 300 pounds but it felt like more than that, and it was a cardio killer.