Weight Strength Vs Functional Strength

[2 ton hoss]

IS THERE A DIFFERENCE. WHICH IS BETTER TO HAVE IN YOUR OPINION. YOU LOOK AT A GUY LIKE B FOLD, SURE HE IS A HUGE GUY, BUT THERE ARE PLENTY OF GUYS STRONGER THAN HIM...BUT I DOUBT VERY FEW OF THEM COULD DO THE KIND OF SHIT HE DOES WITH TIRES AND ROCKS AND SHIT. AND MAYBE EVEN SOME GUYS WEAKER THAN HIM COULD DO THE SHIT HE DOES BETTER.

I AM JUST WONDERING WHICH ONE YOU THINK IS BETTER, AND WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS, BETWEEN FUNCTIONAL STRENGTH AND WEIGHT ROOM STRENGTH.

 

[The Shadow]

I think training for functional and gym strength is similar. TO get good at a lift like a bench or tire flip you have to train for it.

One is not better than the other, per se.

 

[The Shadow]

I should also state that I think that functional strength would have a better carry-over into the gym than vice versa...

 

[deathonthefield]

functional strength is much better because its somthing u can use in ur everyday life, it is more impressive, and it has a carryover into gym lifts. You take a guy that do the atlas stones and tire flip, chances are he will have a big squat and deadlift. U take a guy with a big squat and deadlift tho, chances are he cant do a tire flip, and sometimes cant even lift heavy objects

 

[ZZuluZ]

Both have a degree of carryover. I'm more impressed with 'functional strength' tho. I use the term loosely, it needs to be qualified.

-Zulu

 

[brianmincher]

It depends upon your sport of choice. If you are a powerlifter, weight strength wins hands down. If you are involved in . . . any other sport, functional strength wins, hands down.

My brother and myself are good examples, I am five foot seven and about 220-225, he is six foot two and weighs about what I do. There is not a single gym lift, except for bicep curls, that I cannot out do him on, and some like bench, by quite a lot. But, guess what? He can dunk a basketball, I cannot. He can hit a softball farher than I can, and can throw one significantly faster than I can. Our sprint speed in the 40 is pretty close, but he can run 4 or 5 miles without stopping, while I have no prayer of running that distance.

Because of a slightly different training regimen, and vastly different body structure, I have quite a bit more gym strength, while he is much more athletic in the traditional sports. I am no clod in sports, and am quite athletic myself (3 time state full contact karate champion) but because of leverage differences, I cannot do the things he can do and vice versa.

Hope this helps the discussion.

B.

 

[erickthegreat11]

Let's get real here. No one ever asks, "How much can you tire flip?" You know it's always, "How much can you bench?".

 

[ZZuluZ]

"Let's get real here. No one ever asks, "How much can you tire flip?" You know it's always, "How much can you bench?".
"

Let's get real here. How many times do you sit your ass down and lift a heavy object perpendicular to yourself? .....On the flipside, how often do you move heavy objects off the ground?

The deadlift and its variations is as functional as it gets IMHO.

-Zulu

 

[b fold the truth]

Functional strength is so very broad. My gym training, for strongman purposes, is centered around explosive training. This takes away from my BIG 3 lifts but makes me a better athlete. Most strongmen don't do the flat bench press of any sort because it is never an event. They do overhead pressing and lots of it.

Functional strength, as with powerlifting, is a very technical sport. Knowing how to properly do an atlas stone or flip a 1,000+lb tire takes strength but also a lot of skill. Squatting 800-1000 takes a lot more technique than most people realize. I have a friend who is pushing a 900+squat and it blows me away all of the technique that goes into it. It has to be exactly perfect.

People ask me often how much I can bench...and what I bench is pretty sad for my bodyweight. I can say that I have done 405 x 2 reps totally raw before (Jan, 2002). That is not alot for someone 285lbs though. I can say that I pulled a 70,000lb fire truck for 75 feet in under 30 seconds, have flipped a 2,200lb car over, have placed a 400+lb atlas stone, went 135' with a set of 305lb each farmers walks, etc... To some that is impressive, to others...it is not.

I am impressed a lot by gym lifts because I am not extremely strong in them. I am also impressed by those who can have the mental power to just never quit. Those who do the deadlift hold for reps and just mentally never let go till they pass our or fall over...or those who do that high rep set of squats till they turn green...because I am not as good at those things as they are.

B True