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Training Program Baseline Article Visit our Exercise Description Index for descriptions of the exercises listed below Planning FactorsYou must have a plan! Failing to plan is planning to fail in the fitness arena. Many athletes and fitness enthusiasts' train by feel and fail to take advantage of an essential component of training. A proper plan will enable the trainee to approach a specified mission every time they hit the gym. Mental energy can then be appropriately focused on the execution of the tasks instead of figuring out how to train each and every day. The term periodization has been thrown around often in recent years in many fitness circles. For our purposes periodization is planning training in a way that takes advantage of bodily response to exercise stimulus. The human machine is an amazing mechanism, which utilizes consistent patterns of adaptation. These mechanisms can be manipulated to a degree, but one should go with the flow so to speak and work with t body. Some athletes subconsciously fight a losing battle against their adaptive abilities by training with sub optimal techniques. Taking this walk into the flames will always produce inferior results. A few genetic talents can train in this fashion and get away with it, but they are failing to meet their full potential. Variety in training is a crucial factor often overlooked. Many people become comfortable with a specific routine and stick with it forever. They work the same muscle groups together using the same exercises with a certain number of reps and sets over and over again. This will ultimately backfire. The body will not improve unless it is challenged by unfamiliar stimuli. Use of the same exercises, training splits, rep ranges, training speeds, etc will produce a state of staleness or a plateau. I have collected vast amounts of data to figure out what is most commonly done by trainees, which has enabled me to create programs varying greatly from what is being typically performed. My programs will provide the vital variation you need to succeed. Proper planning also enables a trainee to be goal oriented. Setting goals is another popular term often associated with success. I want you to set goals every workout without sitting under a tree and waiting for an apple to strike you on the head. Short-term daily goals will be easily defined and attained with programs I will present to you. As previously mentioned everything will be laid out for you, but you and only you can execute the routines with intensity Workout LengthI believe workouts should be relatively short in duration and packed full of time efficient work. Workouts I design do not allow for much social interaction or screwing around, but they will deliver results. I estimate that the workouts will take 40-50 minutes each session. Length of the workout must be monitored because important hormones are likely to be suppressed if people exercise at high intensities for more than an hour. An hour is a benchmark, while some people can tolerate less. Shorter workouts give us all more time to pursue other things in life. More is not better in this situation, in actuality more is detrimental. Antagonistic Super SettingA fundamental technique for doing more work in less time (Density) is the use of super sets. Super sets involve alternating a pair of exercises. In this case I will prescribe pairs of exercises involving antagonist muscle groups. For example I could match Bicep curls(A1) and Tricep extensions(A2). A person would do a set of Bicep curls, rest a specified amount of time and then execute the Tricep extensions. The cycle would be repeated a predetermined number of times. Training in this fashion allows for quicker recovery in comparison to a system not matching antagonist muscle groups. Quicker recovery creates the need for less rest between sets and as a result more work can be performed in a shorter period of time. Length of Sets or Time Under Tension (TUT)Time Under Tension (TUT) is more than likely a term you have never heard, but it is time to take notice of this concept. TUT is simply the amount of time muscles are working during a set. Manipulation of this factor is a crucial part of the muscle-gaining quest. Sets must last between 40-70 seconds to elicit size gains for the average person. Some individuals need very little time under tension, ie 20 secs to get bigger. These individuals have a greater number of fast twitch muscle fibers and are typically stronger than the average person. Fast twitch people should shoot me an email so I can adjust a training program to meet your specific needs. Firing off high numbers of reps at a rapid pace is not the way to break into desired TUT length. For a more detailed explanation of TUT check out my Reps for Muscle Gain. Every repetition has four components, which can be easily measured or timed. The concentric phase of a lift is the way up, or the completion. Eccentric motion is the way down, which is when you lower a bar to your chest during a bench press rep. Isometric contractions take place at the point between the eccentric and concentric phases. For example pausing at the chest while maintaining tension is an isometric element. Finally the resetting point or top of the movement must be taken in consideration, which is merely the amount of time it takes you to reset after each rep. The repetition component lengths will be designated by a number of seconds. Most of the programs require a tempo of 3-1-1-1. The following order will be a uniform pattern eccentric- isometric-concentric-reset point.
Continual ProgressionProgress is measured in many ways depending on your goals. All Trainees must focus on continual progression. Volume (total amount of work performed) will be strategically manipulated. However intensity is the most neglected method for increasing muscle size. Consistently increase your training poundages while staying within the parameters of proper training technique. Manipulating Intensity is more time efficient than increasing volume. Furthermore keeping volume in check will enable you to avoid over training. Comprehensive Warm Up ProceduresBreaking the Sweat and StretchingIt is imperative that you warm up correctly every time you hit the gym. Individual needs should influence the design of the warm up. I would suggest a five to ten minute cardio session to break a sweat, but not to fatigue. Raising your body temperature will lower the risk of injury when training. In my experience most training injuries occur during the first couple sets of the workout and in most cases the injured party did not properly prepare to train. It has become tradition to stretch before workouts using static methods(traditional), but this may not be optimal for all trainees. Those who are not flexible should stretch after breaking a sweat. Stretching cold can cause injuries. Scientific evidence supporting the claims that pre workout stretching weakens muscle and increases susceptibility to injury does exist. Many elite strength coaches advise their clients not to stretch before training in the traditional static manner. I think advanced trainees who have obtained an excellent level of flexibility are better served by ballistic or active movement stretching before the workout. Trainees using maximal weights may experience decreased strength if they stretch statically before workouts. Active range of motion stretching and an increased number of preparation sets before the maximum attempt ensure muscular readiness. All athletes can accelerate recovery and increase flexibility by stretching after workouts in the traditional static manner. Stretch using the methods most appropriate for your individual needs! Preparation and Work SetsTraining preparation does not end with the warm up. You will notice that the programs on this site use relatively less sets in comparison to the average newsstand-training program. The sets you will see listed in the training programs are work sets, which are sets to be performed with maximum intensity. Before these work sets are preparation sets intended to prepare your muscles and nervous system for the work sets. The number of preparation sets you do is at your discretion. Individual situations call for a particular number of prep sets. For example an experienced trainee seeking maximal strength gains may need 3-4 preparation sets before his or her first work set. Prep sets will be far below the poundages of the work sets, but loads must gradually climb towards the first predetermined work set. The goal is to achieve readiness, and individual needs and traits will dictate the path to readiness. I encourage you to experiment with many different prep routines. Find what works for you! On average trainees need more prep sets for the first exercise or pair of exercises performed in the workout. Typically the first exercise or exercise pair will utilize the largest muscle groups and require the heaviest poundages. Subsequent exercises will need far fewer warm up sets because of the residual readiness created by work sets. Try doing two prep sets for the first exercise or exercise pair. According to my Coach Charles Staley you will know you are ready for work sets if prep sets no longer feel progressively better. A third prep set which does not feel better than the second prep set indicates that you are ready to rock. Workouts using supersets should warm up in the same fashion that will be used during the workout. After the first couple of exercises you will likely need just one prep set. Using a prep set before an exercise in the middle of the workout is encouraged. Do not waste a work set if you are not prepared. Prep sets done in the middle of the workout will also allow you to collect yourself in anticipation of the upcoming work sets Set Amount Selection and Recovery FactorsMy training programs provide a range of sets to be done in some situations. For example 3-5 sets may be listed. Your best judgment must help you determine how many sets to do in these situations. Your individual recovery ability must guide you when determining the appropriate number of sets. Genetically talented people are likely to have greater recovery ability on average. Those with fewer genetic gifts can also make great progress while doing less work in accordance with their ability to recover. Remember that you want to select a number of sets that will allow you to make a full recovery. You may be able to train the next day after destroying yourself in the gym, but is this the best way to train? No! Do not train for the hell of it! Go into the gym fully recovered from the last workout and improve on your prior effort. Do not bother going to the gym if you are not going to try to get bigger, stronger, or leaner. Excessive soreness and fatigue are signs that you are not recovering optimally or overtraining. For a more detailed explanation of Overtraining check out the linked article. Many factors affect recover including nutrition, sleep, supplementation, stress, substance abuse, etc. Figure out where you are on this scale. If you are under heavy stress, cannot get 8 hours of sleep, eat poorly and cannot even get your hands on a multi vitamin, then your recovery ability will be impaired. As a result a person in this situation should do fewer sets, which will result in a lower total work volume. The lower amount of work will produce greater results in comparison to using the maximum number of sets allowed for a person with a poor recovery situation. On the other hand if you have a good recovery situation then you can consider using a higher work volume, but have a strategy in mind. Starting with the highest volume possible is not a good plan. However building up the volume over time makes sense. You can add one set to an exercise each week throughout the length of a three-week mini cycle. For example on week one you could perform 3 total sets of exercise A1 followed by 4 sets the next week and finally 5 sets during week three. Add sets in this fashion only when a range of sets is specified in the training program, ie 3-5. Planned Rest WeeksThe most neglected part of training is likely always to be recovery. A key component to recovery is rest weeks. You read that correctly, a planned week of rest is crucial. The timing of this week will again be left to your discretion. Programs on this site are 12 weeks long, and at a minimum you must take a one-week break from training after every twelve weeks of training. I recommend taking a break after the ninth week of training to be safe. Rest weeks prevent overtraining and make you enthusiastic about returning to the gym. Insert a rest week between three week phases or mini cycles to prevent a loss of momentum. However feel free to use a rest week when you are feeling ill or have lost your hunger for the gym. You are better served taking a week off than training through tough times especially if your stress is higher than normal. I know this seems like an unusual tactic, but it works. An elite strength coach Ian King has been preaching the usefulness of rest weeks for many years for good reason. Ian and his athletes have experienced great success with strategically placed rest weeks. Plan your rest! Needs of The AthleteAthletes in a high percentage of situations must increase strength and power to improve performance. However many athletes train like bodybuilders as oppose to preparing for sport performance. The neurological system plays a key role in strength training. Certain training plans will allow for increased strength and size at the same time, while other strategies will solely concentrate on strength and avoid muscle gain. Athletes in weight class sports such as wrestling, power lifting, boxing, etc must improve functional strength, which involves greater strength with minimal body weight gains. Fat Loss ConsiderationsThere are certain weight training methods, which will rapidly increase fat loss. Nutrition is the most important factor, but training in the right way will enable a trainee to accelerate fat loss dramatically. Through my own experience I have developed training programs that simultaneously address strength and fat loss, but that is a topic for another time. I strongly encourage those wanting to lose body fat to seek a nutritional consult with me because it makes a world of difference. For great nutrition info take a look at the Nutritional Baseline Article. Training Programs These training programs were designed to fit the masses. In other words they meet general needs and if performed correctly will produce great results. However those seeking a customized program should view the consultation page, which outlines my consultation services. The consultation service is backed by my money back guarantee. Have a close look at the Terminology Key before viewing the training programs. The Terminology key will explain the notations used in the training programs Hypertrophy Programs (Lean Muscle Gains) Three Training programs for Muscle Gains have been created for Beginners, Intermediate, and Advanced trainees. Please choose the right program for you. Use the Please use Criteria Guide to help you decide which Hypertrophy program to use. Strength Programs Fat Loss Training Programs
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