Strength as a Foundational Quality for Health, Performance and Longevity
The principle of strength takes on many different meanings when discussed in certain settings, when viewed as a physical quality its often viewed akin to powerlifting or strongman, the display of maximal strength. However, this is a narrow perspective on the quality as it’s also fundamental in locomotion, stability and longevity (Angulo et al., 2020; Liu et al., 2008).
Strength training is essential across the full spectrum of performance whether it is expressed as a maximal lift, used to develop athleticism or to help battle sarcopenia, defined as age related muscle wastage (Chen et al., 2021; Suchomel et al., 2016). Due to this widespread applicability of strength training, it’s common to find athletes of all disciplines using strength training to aid their performance and aid function. However, strength training is still underutilised within the general population. The following discussion explores how strength can be used as foundation that extends far beyond athletic performance with relevance to health and long-term quality of life.
What is Strength?
Strength is defined as the amount of force a muscle-tendon unit can produce, typically against an external force (Zatsiorsky, 2008). Derivative qualities can also be noted such as maximal strength and speed strength. These titles are based off the theoretical force-velocity curve that can be used to categorise the relationship between the amount of force produced and the duration of time it takes to produce, for example high-force would tend to equal low-velocity and vice versa. While this model has come under some scrutiny due to high-force high-velocity movements such as sprinting not aligning, it does however demonstrate that the term strength does not always refer to maximal lifting.
Strength is a combination of multiple factors; the size of a muscle is not the only factor relevant in its ability to produce force. Force production can be split into two sub-sections neural and morphological (Suchomel et al., 2018). The morphological components are the attributes of the muscle itself, muscle cross-sectional area (size of the muscle), fibre typing and pennation angles (Seynnes et al., 2006). These are the components that dictate the amount of force potential the muscle is capable of. The neural components are the attributes that detail how well the muscle mass can be utilised, the number of motor-units recruited, the threshold needed for motor-unit recruitment, the firing frequency of said motor units and the synchronisation of contractions to allow all tissue to contribute towards force production (Škarabot et al., 2020).
Having clearly outlined how strength is measured and provided many of the mechanisms that influence how much force can be expressed, a framework for foundational strength in the general population can be explored.
Strength and Human Performance
Performance is measured by the specific to the task at hand, the qualities needed to excel in specific sports or activities can be unique. Certain qualities however are universal, underpinning all locomotion. Strength is an example of this, the decline of which can impede universal markers of athleticism (Suchomel et al., 2016).
Multiple studies have shown that relative strength (strength relative to body mass) has a strong correlation with jump, sprint and agility performance (Anderson et al., 2018; Wagner et al., 2023). These correlations between maximal strength, relative strength and performance markers demonstrate the underpinning influence strength has on athleticism. Furthermore, strength development has also been linked to improvements in endurance exercise through enhanced running economy (how much energy is consumed running sub-maximally). Denadai et al. (2016) conducted a meta-analysis reviewing strength training interventions impact on running economy, the longer training interventions creating improvements as large as 8%.
The above shows the validity of using strength training to enhance athletic performance and the use of strength as a foundation for a spectrum of performance demands. The same application is highly relevant to the general population. The demands of everyday life and recreational activity have their own physical demands that strength underpins. It’s clear that strength training within the general population can yield huge benefits for everyday performance.
Strength and Health Outcomes
After discussing the mechanisms of strength and it’s benefits on performance, the additional health implications should also be noted. Multiple variations of resistance training (RT) have been shown to enhance strength (Mcleod et al., 2023), the most effective of which is heavy resistance training (HRT) using loads >75% 1RM (Lopez et al., 2020).
It’s unsurprising that RT is a valid method of improving strength, the additional health benefits that come from resistance training are less known. RT interventions have been shown to effectively improve cardiometabolic health within adults, reducing both systolic and diastolic blood pressure (Ashton et al., 2018). Additionally meta-analysis studies have displayed the effects of RT on body composition during calorie deficit-based fat loss, groups that included RT surpassed weight loss and maintained greater quantity of fat-free mass (Binmahfoz et al., 2025). Due to the broader health benefits, links between RT and a reduction in mortality has been established, with some reports suggesting as high as a 27% reduction (Shailendra et al., 2022).
It’s clear that the inclusion of RT can improve quality of life through physiological adaptation and lifestyle enhancements, while it’s difficult to imply the exact reduction in mortality it’s inclusion can have, it is evident that the side effects can have a positive influence. Those longevity benefits will be discussed in the following section. Within the domain of the general population RT has often been viewed as secondary to cardiovascular training for health. The benefits discussed above display a strong argument for the reversal of this claim.
Strength, Ageing and Longevity
Sarcopenia (age related muscle loss) and dynapenia (age related loss of strength) are the two largest restrictions on independence for the elderly (Law et al., 2015). The loss of strength and function leads to frailty and disability, once lost, quality of life reduces and risk of falls increase.
Loss of strength may be one of the clearest signs of declining function. Through the inclusion of RT, preservation of this essential quality can take place. Numerous researchers have displayed the inclusion of resistance training is a superior countermeasure for battling sarcopenia and dynapenia than other forms of exercise such as cardiovascular training (Chen et al., 2023; Law et al., 2015; Zhao et al., 2022). These training interventions are effective as they encourage the physiological adaptations that naturally decline through age such as muscle mass and neural efficiency.
The research is clear that RT offers a unique training stimuli that is essential for longevity. This once again highlights the discrepancies of current training perspectives that prioritise cardiovascular training without prioritising strength development. Many of these differences stem from outdated perspectives on lifting weights which must be abolished for the longevity of the general population.
Why Strength Training Remains Underutilised
There are many misconceptions within the general population regarding RT. For years lifting weights was seen as something dangerous or only something done by bodybuilders from the 70’s that would result in them also looking like bodybuilders. This introduction to weight training left many generations with a distorted view on who should lift weights and what it would do to them.
Since then, the rise of commercial fitness facilities and group fitness have fed into the cardio-centric approach to training. Facilities offer abundant amounts of cardiovascular equipment and classes designed around the ‘sweat metric’ a perspective of sweat and breathlessness are the primary indicators of a constructive workout. Even classes designed around strength would commonly use loads far below optimal intensity for physiological adaptations associated with strength.
This underutilisation of strength training comes down to the commercialism of the facilities and classes themselves. The techniques used in many strength training plans require implementation of the basic principles of strength & conditioning (S&C). Without proper technique, progressions strategies and effective programming it reduces effectiveness.
Applied Recommendations
Prioritising strength training and including RT clearly has substantial benefits for both athletic and general populations. From a coaching perspective it should be of high priority to include strength training within clients programming. Helping to educate them on the benefits and processes of long-term adaptation can help reframe strength as the key underpinning quality of health. For the general population viewing strength as an investment into health can help guide sustainable progression that can serve them for years to come. Resistance training is far more than just for aesthetics, strength is one of the most valuable physical qualities for function, long-term quality of life and health.
References
Andersen, E., Lockie, R., & Dawes, J. (2018). Relationship of absolute and relative Lower-Body strength to predictors of athletic performance in collegiate women soccer players. Sports, 6(4), 106. https://doi.org/10.3390/sports6040106
Angulo, J., Assar, M. E., Álvarez-Bustos, A., & Rodríguez-Mañas, L. (2020). Physical activity and exercise: Strategies to manage frailty. Redox Biology, 35, 101513. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.redox.2020.101513
Ashton, R. E., Tew, G. A., Aning, J. J., Gilbert, S. E., Lewis, L., & Saxton, J. M. (2018). Effects of short-term, medium-term and long-term resistance exercise training on cardiometabolic health outcomes in adults: systematic review with meta-analysis. British Journal of Sports Medicine, 54(6), 341–348. https://doi.org/10.1136/bjsports-2017-098970
Binmahfoz, A., Dighriri, A., Gray, C., & Gray, S. R. (2025). Effect of resistance exercise on body composition, muscle strength and cardiometabolic health during dietary weight loss in people living with overweight or obesity: a systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine, 11(3), e002363. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjsem-2024-002363
Chen, N., He, X., Feng, Y., Ainsworth, B. E., & Liu, Y. (2021). Effects of resistance training in healthy older people with sarcopenia: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. European Review of Aging and Physical Activity, 18(1), 23. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-021-00277-7
Chen, Y. C., Chen, W., Liu, C., Huang, W., Lu, I., Lin, C. W., Huang, R. Y., Chen, J. S., & Huang, C. H. (2023). Is moderate resistance training adequate for older adults with sarcopenia? A systematic review and network meta-analysis of RCTs. European Review of Aging and Physical Activity, 20(1), 22. https://doi.org/10.1186/s11556-023-00333-4
Denadai, B. S., De Aguiar, R. A., De Lima, L. C. R., Greco, C. C., & Caputo, F. (2016). Explosive Training and Heavy Weight Training are Effective for Improving Running Economy in Endurance Athletes: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Sports Medicine, 47(3), 545–554. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-016-0604-z
Law, T. D., Clark, L. A., & Clark, B. C. (2015). Resistance exercise to prevent and manage sarcopenia and dynapenia. Annual Review of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 36(1), 205–228. https://doi.org/10.1891/0198-8794.36.205
Liu, M. Q., Anderson, F. C., Schwartz, M. H., & Delp, S. L. (2008). Muscle contributions to support and progression over a range of walking speeds. Journal of Biomechanics, 41(15), 3243–3252. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbiomech.2008.07.031
Lopez, P., Radaelli, R., Taaffe, D. R., Newton, R. U., Galvão, D. A., Trajano, G. S., Teodoro, J. L., Kraemer, W. J., Häkkinen, K., & Pinto, R. S. (2020). Resistance training load Effects on muscle hypertrophy and strength gain: Systematic review and network meta-analysis. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, 53(6), 1206–1216. https://doi.org/10.1249/mss.0000000000002585
Mcleod, J. C., Currier, B. S., Lowisz, C. V., & Phillips, S. M. (2023). The influence of resistance exercise training prescription variables on skeletal muscle mass, strength, and physical function in healthy adults: An umbrella review. Journal of Sport and Health Science, 13(1), 47–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jshs.2023.06.005
Seynnes, O. R., De Boer, M., & Narici, M. V. (2006). Early skeletal muscle hypertrophy and architectural changes in response to high-intensity resistance training. Journal of Applied Physiology, 102(1), 368–373. https://doi.org/10.1152/japplphysiol.00789.2006
Shailendra, P., Baldock, K. L., Li, L. K., Bennie, J. A., & Boyle, T. (2022). Resistance Training and Mortality Risk: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 63(2), 277–285. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2022.03.020
Škarabot, J., Brownstein, C. G., Casolo, A., Del Vecchio, A., & Ansdell, P. (2020). The knowns and unknowns of neural adaptations to resistance training. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 121(3), 675–685. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-020-04567-3
Suchomel, T. J., Nimphius, S., Bellon, C. R., & Stone, M. H. (2018). The importance of muscular strength: training considerations. Sports Medicine, 48(4), 765–785. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-018-0862-z
Suchomel, T. J., Nimphius, S., & Stone, M. H. (2016). The importance of muscular strength in athletic performance. Sports Medicine, 46(10), 1419–1449. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40279-016-0486-0
Wagner, C., Brauner, T., Warneke, K., Stefer, T., Germany, T. M. 1. E. M., Kuhn, L., Hoffmeister, M., Wirth, K., & Keiner, M. (2023). Absolute and relative maximum strength measures show differences in their correlations with sprint and jump performances in trained youth soccer players. Montenegrin Journal of Sports Science and Medicine, 12(1), 69–74. https://doi.org/10.26773/mjssm.230309
Zatsiorsky, V. (2008). Biomechanics in Sport: performance enhancement and injury prevention. John Wiley & Sons.
Zhao, H., Cheng, R., Song, G., Teng, J., Shen, S., Fu, X., Yan, Y., & Liu, C. (2022). The Effect of Resistance Training on the Rehabilitation of Elderly Patients with Sarcopenia: A Meta-Analysis. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(23), 15491. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192315491
