3 Differences Between Athletic Training Vs. Bodybuilding Training

Athletic training (which includes cardio) and bodybuilding training can’t go one without the other. They live a symbiotic relationship, and in order to achieve the best results, you have to tackle them both in equal measure.

The differences between an athlete and a bodybuilder is an age-old question because, theoretically, they both do the same thing – they train to reach peak physical condition, look good and compete. But understand where the line is drawn between these two very different, but also very similar at the same time activities is the key to achieve the best results. Without further ado, here are three differences between athletic training and bodybuilding training.

Bodybuilders Grow Muscles While Athletes Stretch Muscles

The first important difference between these two sports is that athletes stretch their muscles, while bodybuilders grow them. Bodybuilding is about shaping and enhancing muscles on the back, legs, chest, and forearms.

In order to achieve this, they do pushups, lift weights and perform exercises specially designed for certain muscles groups – bar and dumbbell lifting for chest and back and squats for legs and posterior, to name a few exercises. These are called isolation exercises, and apart from free weights, they also include chest flyes, leg extensions and concentration curls.

Athletes focus on fitness, function, and endurance, not on growing muscles. As a result, the training regimens are designed to keep the body at an optimal balance between skinny and fat. Unlike bodybuilding exercises which are isolated, athletic exercises are intertwined and are made to train as many muscle groups and functions at the same time.

The key here is to build endurance – a physical capacity to perform more, and faster which each successive training session. As a result, these particular exercises stretch the muscles and do not exactly grow them. The muscle build up is more of a pleasant side effect than an objective.

Still, when it comes to athletic training, the main focus will always be on the stomach and the legs, with exercises consisting of running on treadmills and working on spinning bikes for extended periods of time. Which takes us to our next entry…

Rep Speed

Bodybuilding is a much slower, methodical process, which involves a lot of forethought and planning. As a result, it is pretty common for a bodybuilder to take his time and his or her repetitions to last five or more seconds longer to complete.

But this slow approach has many advantages. The main one is that by allowing the muscles the proper time to extend during tension, the risks of muscle rupture or breakage are reduces. This, assuming that the bodybuilder performs a proper warmup session.

On the other side of the spectrum, athletes focus on speed and momentum. The intensity and speed of the workout is slowly built up until it reaches an explosive climax. The athlete accelerates through sheer resistance and leg strength. Obviously, as he or she gains experience, these two elements are increased, allow the athlete to train for extended periods of time. As a result, their reps usually last one to two seconds.

Different Health Benefits

Overall, cardio training burns more calories – that is a fact. But the truth is, the calorie difference is not that big, as it usually ranges from 40 to 80 calories, and that assuming the training session is intense and long. In other words, if you want to lose weight, cardio - especially exercising on the spinning bike – is the best way to go. Make sure you look for more info on 45-minute indoor cycling workout if you want to get the best results.

In general, weight training will increase your physical work capacity. Weight training will develop the so-called isometric resistance – the capacity of contracting the muscles against an immobile object, such as the wall or the floor – an example is doing pushups. Further on, it will also develop your isotonic strength training, the ability to contract the muscles through a range of motions – a fancy way of saying it will help you lift heavier weights.

But like we have specified in the introductory entry of this article, the ideal scenario is to combine both of them into one fully efficient training regimen. Weight training, even if it burns fewer calories overall than cardio, has the advantage of boosting your metabolism, allowing your body to get rid of even more calories while training. As a result, your body will be burning calories even 36 hours after finishing the training session.

Conclusion

While these two types of training share some similarities, they differ in terms of purpose and function. Athletes focus on speed, and endurance, while bodybuilders emphasized form and muscle growth. Nevertheless, athletic and bodybuilding training are two sides of the same coin, and where the line is drawn between them depends on your perspective.

Author: Luke Mitchell of ExerciseBikesExpert

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