Power Factor Training : A Scientific Approach to Building Lean Muscle Mass Review

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(More customer reviews)Power Factor Training and its three sequels (the Power Factor Specialization series) areexcellent tools for those serious about maximizing their gains. I'm a certified personal trainer and this is thesystem I use. My personal results have been that Power Factor Trainingknocked me off a growth plateau I'd been on for six months, and despitehaving good muscle development already, I've had new, steady gains for morethan five months.
Power Factor Training is the first weight trainingsystem that allows you to quantify and plan your progress. Until now, therehas been no way to truely measure whether your muscles have more, less orthe same strength than on your last workout. By effectively measuring muscle output, you adjust your training to accommodate your body'sstimulus, recovery and growth ability. Sisco and Little have created what'sprobably the best system for maximizing muscle growth efficiency, and itabsolutely works.
Power Factor: Measures raw power -- a"snapshot" of what your muscles can do in the short term. PowerIndex: Measures your muscles' abilility to maintain a Power Factor overtime.
You adjust your training weight, reps, sets, time and schedule sothat you're constantly increasing your Power Factor and Power Index.Yousystematically find the set/weight/reps/time combination for each exerciseso that you constantly train at the point where you move the maximum amountof weight (max intensity). This varies with the individual depending upon amuscle's white and red fiber mix, so that one individual will train withmaximum intensity with higher weight and fewer reps/sets, and another withlighter weight, greater reps and sets. Power Factor training allows you tofind exactly the combination that maximizes intensity for each exercise andmuscle group, to adjust it as you make gains, to know when you plateau andhow to readjust to break off plateaus.
Power Factor training alsoembraces the use of Strong Range exercise, meaning that you maximize theweight and increase the reps for an exercise by limiting exercise motion tothe maximum strength range (partial reps). Muscle growth stimulus resultsentirely from overload; once you move more than about 50% of your singlerep max, you've activated more than 90% of a muscle's fibers. By workinghigh weight/max weight/strong range, you maximize the overload and time inoverload while maintaining maximum fiber activation. Done properly, strongrange training also tends to reduce injury potential by keeping you out ofthe area with maximum joint stress.
Concerns with Power Factor TrainingMost concerns expressed about Power Factor Training result frommisunderstanding or misapplying its principles. Many concerns focus onstrong range training, which is really only a component of the system --not THE system itself.
1. Concern one: The Power Factor formulas don'taccurately measure force because they doesn't account for limb length,range of motion and torque. This is true, which the authors point outthemselves, to extent that a Power Factor/Index is not comparable betweentwo individuals or, to a large extent between different exercises, becauseof these variables. Sisco and Little point out that there's no practicalway to accommodate all these variables in a workable system anyone can use,BUT a Power Factor/Index IS valid for comparing the same exercise performedby the same individual through the same range of motion, because thevariables cancel out. This is all you need to measure power output andchange, and you can do it with ANY exercise with ANY machine or freeweights.
2. Concern two: Partial reps (strong range training) create"muscle imbalances" or limit strength development for the fullrange exercise.With respect to exercises that isolate a muscle group(e.g., bicep curls), this isn't true. Muscles don't grow in one part andnot another because fiber distribution and activation pathways are random;a muscle either grows all over, or it doesn't grow at all. An exercise doesNOT have to be full range to stimulate growth (in normal activity, muscleuse is rarely full range and usually strong range).
Partial repping acompound exercise (multiple muscle groups involved --e.g. the squat) mayreduce stimulus to some of the muscles compared to the full range motion.However, those muscles in the weak range; the solution is to target thosemuscles with a different exercise that stimulates them in the strong range. But, if you feel you need to perform an exercise full range, then do so --the Power Factor and Index concepts still apply (but are not directlycomparable to the same exercise performed in the strong range).
Mypersonal experience is that as my partial rep strength for an exerciseincreases, so does my full range strength for the same exercise, and byusing targeted, high intensity exercises for each muscle group, partialrepping compound exercises has caused no "imbalances."
3.Concern three: Partial reps (strong range training) doesn't developflexibility. This is true, but full range strength exercise isn't the bestway to develop flexibility anyway. Ask anyone in dance, gymnastics ormartial arts: if your goal is flexibility, perform flexibility exercises.If your goal is both flexibility and strength, optimize your training bytraining for these separately.
Some thoughts: For safety, Power FactorTraining specifies some equipment requirements that you should follow (mostwell-equipped gyms have what you need). Strong range training is probablynot the best system for beginners; several months to a year of basic weighttraining and full range exercise would be a good idea before trying tohandle the super heavy loads involved. This develops automacity with theexercise movements and allows for tendon/ligament development. However,even a beginner using full range can calculate Power Factors/Indexes.

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Product Description:
Bodybuilding experts Peter Sisco and John Little present a revolutionary new system for building maximum muscle in a minimum amount of time.Power Factor Training emphasizes very heavy overloading of the musculature and long rest periods between workouts, resulting in amazing gains in size and strength.This astounding guide details the proven physiological principles of the program, answers specific training questions, and outlines a concise workout schedule that is sure to benefit beginning, intermediate, and advanced bodybuilders.

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