What is the Difference Between Power and Strength?

Power and Strength. These two words are often used as synonyms. And while they do have some similarities, it's their differences that you must take note of when training yourself and/or your athletes.

Both of these are very important to athletes of all types, but also are beneficial to the general population. Attempting to train just one of these will almost always simultaneously train the other.

Let's start with....

Strength:
What is it? Strength is your ability to recruit a muscle or muscle groups to generate force for a short period of time.
How do you train it? Strength is trained by doing multiple repetitions and multiple sets. For example, if you want to build muscular strength with a squat, you should do approximately 4-6 reps for 3-4 sets.
Can you do too many reps/sets? The short answer is "Yes." If you start doing 10-12+ repetitions with 6+ sets, you begin training your muscular endurance. That may be a topic for a future post.

Power:
What is it? Power is your body's ability to generate maximum force for a short burst (a shorter length of time than strength).
How do you train it? Power is typically trained by doing one repetition for one set. For example, going back to the squat, if you wish to train power, you would do one rep (preferably at or near your max). Another way to train power (without using weights) is to do an explosive activity, such as box jumps.
Can you do too many reps/sets? Again, "Yes." Multiple reps means that you're training for strength.


Who should be training power and/or strength? All athletes should be training in both of these areas because most sports require both powerful movements as well as strength. In baseball/softball, swinging a bat or throwing the ball is a power-based action. An Olympic lifter may require more strength as they make multiple lifts.

While both are needed to reach your potential in any sport, muscular endurance may be just as (if not more important). It is your muscular endurance that allows you to compete for an extended period of time without becoming fatigued (which is when your body begins to break down, making an injury more likely). Ultimately, injury prevention should be the primary goal of a sport enhancement program. If you can't keep yourself or your athlete on the field/court, that strength/power you worked so hard to develop is wasted.