Can You Get Strong Fast? - Blog Copy

BLOG TITLE: Can You Get Strong Fast?

So you want to get stronger in the gym—when will you start to see results?

The answer: The exact timeline is different for everybody, but you can generally expect to notice improved strength in about four weeks of training.

If you’re a well-trained, experienced lifter who’s already very strong, it will take much longer to see improvements because you’re very advanced. You’ll have to work harder for smaller gains.

But if you’re just starting out, it’s not uncommon to feel stronger in just two weeks with the right program. Within four to six weeks, you can expect to see measurable results in your training log, and at the 12-week mark, you might even notice some physical changes.

Nothing happens overnight, but your body will respond to the right workouts relatively quickly. That’s great news: When your coach shows you documented progress, you’ll feel incredibly motivated to keep going. 

Here’s an excerpt from the textbook “Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning”:

“A review of more than 100 studies showed that mean strength increased approximately 40 percent in ‘untrained,’ 20 percent in ‘moderately trained,’ 16 percent in ‘trained,’ 10 percent in ‘advanced,’ and 2 percent in ‘elite’ participants over periods ranging from four weeks to two years.” 

Here’s what’s going on in your body when you train to get stronger.

HEAD: Early Gains

If you haven’t trained much in the past, or if you trained a long time ago but not recently, you can expect some swift, early strength improvements.

You have muscles, but your brain isn’t completely connected to them because you haven’t used them a lot. 

So when you start doing a solid program created by a pro, all your muscles will start to “wake up.” Your brain will make demands of these muscle and learn how to control more muscles better. 

When the coach says “lift 20 lb. 8 times,” your brain recruits the muscles you need to do it. Once it “knows where the muscles are” and how to get them moving properly to develop force, it can ask more of them—say, 8 reps at 25 lb. And so on.

This is called “neural adaptation.” It’s a complex physiological process, but here’s an analogy: 

Think of it like buying a new home and figuring out which light switches you need to flick so you can find your way around on a dark night. Once you know the third switch on the left turns on the hallway light, you can hit that switch without thinking. And you’ll know that you need to hit three more switches to get downstairs.

It’s the same thing with the body. Your brain starts to figure out where muscles are and how it can recruit more of them to do more work at the right time. 

In practice, it’s common to see a beginner struggle to lift something they’re physically capable of lifting. In the next session, they can often lift it easily. We’ve seen this process continue for two to four weeks or so as the brain adapts to strength training.

HEAD: Long-Term Gains

At some point, your muscles themselves begin to change. Existing parts of the muscle will increase in size, and new parts will be created. Muscle architecture and structure will also change, as will the way the muscles store and use fuel for exercise. 

If we continue the analogy above, this is the equivalent of putting in additional light fixtures and more powerful bulbs, as well as wiring that delivers more electricity faster. It takes longer to install a new light than to find the switch to an existing light. 

For many people, these adaptations are very exciting because you can see some of them. You won’t notice very small cellular changes that are happening, but at some point you will likely notice slightly increased muscle size—and your training log will prove that you’re able to lift more weight.

Giant textbooks have been written about these adaptations, so I won’t get deep in the weeds. The point here is that proper strength training causes muscles to grow and become stronger. This process can continue for many years at different rates. 

HEAD: How to Get Stronger

Weight training is the best way to get stronger, and you’ll make the swiftest progress with a coach who can put together a precise plan for you. That plan should take into account your training history, goals and preferences. It should be reviewed and updated regularly to ensure progress never stalls.  

We create these plans all the time, and we’d be happy to meet with you and answer your questions. 

To book a free consultation and find out how we can help you accomplish your strength goals, click here [LINK].