The Most Important of Fitness

When it comes to fitness there are various components each with their own roles. Out of these STRENGTH is the most important. You can be flexible but it won't help too much if you are not strong. A major part of balance comes from good core strength. To enhance endurance and cardio-vascular ability you need a level of strength or you will not be able to develop. Now when I mean strength, I am talking about a real world, functional strength and not throwing weights around in the fitness center and not being able to do a thing when reality hits.

Strength has to be trained regularly. Out of all the other aspects of fitness strength does take the longest to develop but also stays the longest. It is also important to know that strength training is different from physique or figure training. Now your body can improve and look better in the process but the strength is the focus not the cosmetic build up. As a matter of fact there are a lot of people who have good physiques but their strength is quite poor. On the other hand there are people who don't have what you might call a good physique but have amazing strength.

So how do you train for strength?

1) Nutrition: You need the right fuel to build strength. Eat nutrient dense and clean 'live' food. Stop eating junk and fad diets. If you have to get a nutritionist to help you out.

2) Train Hard: You need the correct training plan to build strength. Training like a bodybuilder will definitely make you stronger but it will develop more muscle after a point and stagnate real world strength. However increasing strength can leave you looking well maintained and fit yet generate huge amounts of real world strength.Training should be done with progressive resistance regularly. I cannot stress this enough. The correct training program and right exercise selection is important.

3) Mental status: Positive mental outlook and mental toughness is essential to physical strength. Stress and pessimism causes a rage of negative chemical reactions in the body and your strength levels can drop really quick.

4) Rest and Recovery: You have to give time for your body to recover. It is in this phase that the body adapts and compensates for the shock it receives during training resulting in increased strength.

Strength is needed for everyone from the growing child to the home maker.The corporate professional to the professional athlete. Each individual has to decide what level of strength is needed and get on to training for it.

Courtesy: http://temple-of-fitness.blogspot.in/