I’ve touched on the Max Effort Method (ME) in the past but it requires a re-visit because it is a differentiation in most training programs. Many training facilities and HS programs shy away from the ME method because they don’t know how to properly prepare athletes to handle intense training. If everybody can’t do it than nobody will. And testing a MAX once or twice a year is not utilizing the ME Method.
In my opinion, the ME method of strength training is crucial to developing high levels of performance, sustaining those levels, and reaching an athletes TRUE potential. It can be a great genetic equalizer for many athletes.
Max Effort is about taking an exercise to the “max”. Almost always, this is done to a one rep max. We have found that singles in a lift at or above 90% are actually safer than doubles or triples. Most lifting injuries happen after the 1st rep when the weakest links (usually the back) fatigue and injure.
Typically every week we have a ME Lower day and a ME upper day for our advanced athletes. I repeat than not everybody in our facility uses the ME method because some just aren’t ready. When a given athlete is ready he or she will utilize the ME method at minimal during the off-season and sometimes year round irregardless of sport. We also usually de-load or cycle off ME once every 4-8 weeks for a week depending on performance.
This is why we use the Max Effort Method:
– It allows us to assess weaknesses. You can’t find weaknesses until the body is taken to the physical limits. When an athletes is attempting something their body has never done before you can see where they breakdown and you then know what their weakness is. Training is like climbing a ladder. You build a weakness into a strength then find the next weakness and repeat over and over.
– One of the goals of strength training for athletes has to be to produce more force. How do you produce a lot of force? Lift a lot of weight. If ground force is important than you MUST load the body while standing on the ground.
– Moving maximal loads improves intra and inter-muscular coordination and recruits the most motor units. Basically, in civilian terms that means that strength is neural… it’s a mind muscle connection.
– The best way to not gain weight for athletes that need to lose and maintain weight (like wrestlers) is to train maximally with very low volume.
– Many people argue that the ME Method beats athletes up and they don’t feel fresh. I argue the opposite. As an athlete I’d much rather use a barbell 7 times in under 10 minutes working up to a really heavy single than spend 30 minutes doing 5 sets of 10 squats. When using the ME method the volume is low allowing the athlete to feel decent after the session and next day. Obviously this also depends on the supplemental exercises and the GPP or base of fitness of that athlete but, a well trained fit athlete should be ready to go the next day or even a few hours later! A typical breakdown of our ME squat day would be as follows:
-warm up x 5 reps
– Add weight do 2-3 reps
-Add weight do 2 reps
-1 rep
-1rep
-1 rep
– Adaptation. Everything in training is about adapting. That’s because so much of performance is about the Central Nervous System (CNS). When using the ME method you are pushing the limits of adaptation every week. That is why we rotate exercises every time. After 3 weeks of training the same exercise at over 90% the body peaks and begins to go backwards. Now, apply this to athletes that train but don’t utilize the ME method. If all they do is light(er) weight they adapt to using a small percentage of motor units and then this becomes their “limit strength”. Remember, the body only adapts to the demands placed upon it! The body will adapt to a massive load at 102% intensity or it will adapt to 50% intensity (use it or lose it) Which lead me to the last and most important point…
– Sports are by nature MAX EFFORT. Nobody goes out and says I’m going to wrestle this kid at 50% today. NO, you try to kick that kids ASS. Same with track. Same with football. Same with baseball. Never heard a baseball or softball player trying to pitch at only 75%. So the ME method allows athletes to be able to teach the CNS to apply MAXIMAL intent or effort when needed at any given time! Our athletes always have the confidence because they know that when its needed the will be able to apply MAXIMUM EFFORT. They are confident because they are prepared because we ask them to do it every week.
In the video below that I made last year (1 year to the day) some of our athletes are training ME method. Many of these lifts are records. Notice the deep strain on some of the lifts versus others that are still relatively easy. We try to break a record every week. Sometimes its a true grind and sometimes they make it look easy.