One of the most effective techniques I started implementing a few years ago to build muscle, strength, and maintain muscle definition is power building. This is probably not an extremely popular concept for some, while others may be familiar with it and incorporate power development into their training. In short, this technique can be defined as a mix between bodybuilding and weightlifting. Although some compete in both bodybuilding and powerlifting, it is often thought to focus on one or the other, but not both at the same time. This might be partially true for some if you’re at the pro level (although IFBB pro bodybuilder Johnnie Jackson has been known to compete in both; however, this is rare). And it is a fact that most of their great bodybuilders claim that lifting weights in their early days was responsible for building their size and dense muscle. On the other hand, not many powerlifters compete in bodybuilding because the bodybuilding nutrition plan can compromise their strength and power in which a lot of calories are needed.

There are plenty of powerlifters who want to be big and strong, which defies a calorie-restricted diet, but they also want to be somewhat ripped (I know this sounds obvious). Or put it this way; they want more muscle definition than most powerlifters have. For me, since I’ve never had an interest in competing in either, powerbuilding has served me to get the best of both worlds, bodybuilding and powerlifting. What worked for me is starting my workouts with a heavy compound movement with a lot of weight and fewer reps in the 4-6 range. After that, I’ll do my remaining exercises with higher reps (8-12) and focus on muscle contractions and feeling the muscle instead of power.

Here is an example of one of my powerbuilding chest workouts:

Bench press – 5 x 4-6: the focus is on power

Incline Dumbbell Press – 4 x 8-12: Focus on power for the first few reps, then muscle contractions

Cable Crossovers – 4 x 12: Focus on muscle contractions

As you can see I’m only doing 3 chest exercises; you may want to add another exercise (or add another exercise and two and reduce the sets to 3 instead of 4 after the bench press). Either way, I hope you understand the concept here. Also, don’t use doing more reps on the remaining exercises to use light weight. You still need to lift heavy weights to stimulate the muscle, but make sure it’s a weight you can use good form with and feel the muscle working. If you want a mix between bodybuilding and powerlifting, you will be well suited to this powerbuilding technique.