Lifting weights and working out to create and maintain a strong body requires putting force or effort through the body in different angles to prevent areas of weakness.

If we only lift weights to shorten tissue, such as a traditional bicep curl, we become strong only in one line. This prompts the body to produce short collagen which by it’s very nature, can break apart easily and result in injury.

When we create force at length, such as taking a dumbbell away from your body with an arm out straight, long collagen is created in a triple helix structure, just like forearms intertwined. The triple helix structure of long collagen makes it more difficult to break apart and therefore creates a more resilient body that is less prone to soft tissue injury.

If your workouts contain only shortening exercises and perhaps your diet and hydration are also not ideal, things like plantar fasciitis, shin splints, lower back pain etc are the result, because short collagen breaks apart really easily.

Our passion is helping our members to understand and enjoy working out to create a body that is a strong ‘spider web,’ that is ready for life and sport.

We hope this has helped to explain why we need variability in our movement. But remember, even if we do create force at length, your body will still produce short collagen if other health pillars in your life are lacking e.g. poor sleep, chronic stress etc.