The Power of Intervals

Marathon runners do more continuous training, sprinters do intervals.
Which is the body you're looking for?

Interval training is where you do an activity at a higher intensity interspersed with periods of rest and/or low intensity activity.  Intervals have long been used in sports, but they should not be just reserved for athletes as some may think.  Some people, even some sport coaches, may think that intervals can't improve aerobic fitness or produce as much fat loss as longer continuous aerobic training.  I thought I'd just share a few studies with you that I came across in readings from strength coaches Mike Boyle and Robert dos Remedios.  At the end of the post I also give you some ways to implement intervals into your workouts starting today!

First, a study at East Tennessee State in 2001 compared two groups of obese women during an 8 week study.  One group did steady-state aerobic work and the other did high-intensity interval work.  They would workout until they burned 300 calories and then stop.  Each group exercised the same amount of days and weeks, but only the interval group loss fat.  Also, the interval group's metabolic rate was raised for 24 hours after working out, whereas the aerobic group had no change.

Second, a study at McMaster University in Canada also compared a steady-state group to an interval group.  The steady-state group performed 90 to 120 minutes of continuous cycling, and the interval group did four to six 30 second all out sprints with 4 minutes rest in between, which meant they only actually "exercised for 2 to 3 minutes per session out of a total time of around 20 minutes.  The study found no differences when they performed their final fitness tests, but amazing part was that the steady-state group committed 10.5 hours to training and the interval group only committed 2.5 hours to training (and less than 30 minutes of that was actually exercising).  So the same results came with far less time with interval training.

Lastly, a study at Tremblay in 1994 compared a group that did 20 weeks of steady-state training, and to another that did interval training for 15 weeks.  The steady-state group did burn more than 2 times the amount of calories (28,661 to 13,614), but the interval group burned more than 900% more subcutaneous fat (the fat right underneath your skin)!

There has also been more than a few studies that have shown interval training to actually improve aerobic capacity more than steady-state exercise.    The reason for this, and for the better fat loss results, may lie in a theory called Excess of Post-Exercise Oxygen Consumption (EPOC).  This basically means that your body continues to work and burn calories for up to 48 hours after a hard interval workout.  I am actually currently working on writing up a report on a large study I conducted last year that compared 2 types of interval training to continuous training that had some pretty significant results, but I'll save those for another post when my report is complete.  

Try putting interval training into your workout tomorrow.  This doesn't mean you have to do very intense training at first, start out slower and build up to more intense intervals.  Whether you are a weekend warrior, someone who needs to lose weight, or an athlete whose workouts don't currently include interval training, you can benefit from adding interval training.  Below are some examples of some different ways to perform intervals.  If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.  Start out with few reps and longer rest periods and work your way up.  Better results in less time, why not try them?

Although the following refer to running, you can use this for any mode of interval training (bike, rollerblading, swimming, jump roping, etc.).  There is far more options available for intervals than this includes, but this should give you a good idea of some that you can add to your training immediately.

The below descriptions cover more the use of conventional modes of "cardio" exercise, but intervals can also be done with bodyweight and lifting exercises, which will be covered in a future post.

Before all workouts do a short body weight circuit and/or run easy for around 5 minutes for a warm up.  You could also perform some light stretching.  Do static stretching after the completion of your workout.

1.Sprint Workout- Sprint as fast as possible until you feel like you are slowing down.  This usually will be around 5-8 seconds.  Let yourself slow down naturally and then walk until breathing is normal (can take up to or more than 1 minute).  Do 1-3 sets or 6-10 reps (max of 24 total reps).  Take as long as you need between sets.

2.One Word Pace Workout- Run for 20-30 seconds at a pace fast enough to where you can only manage to speak one word at a time, which is close to sprinting speed.  Then walk for 1-3 minutes.  Perform 1-3 sets of 3-6 reps (max of 15 total reps).  Take as long as you need between sets.

3.Couple Word Pace Workout-  Run for 1-2 minutes at a pace fast enough to where you can manage to get out a couple words at a time.  Then walk for 2-3 minutes.  Perform 1-3 sets of 2-5 reps (max of 10 total reps).  Take as long as you need between sets.

4.Sentence Pace Workout-  Run for 3-5 minutes at a pace where you are able to get only a sentence out at a time.  Then walk 3-5 minutes.  Repeat for a total of 4-8 times.

5.Fartlek Workout-  This run gives you a lot of variety and can be made as easy or as hard as you feel like you want it to be.  Always maintain at least a jog, and then at random times, perform one of the type of runs above.  Mix it up for the most variety.  Perform the run anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes depending on the time you have and how difficult you make it.

6.Conversation Pace Workout-  Although this doesn't qualify as interval training, it's still ok to add in a continuous long slow distance run now and then if you like that type of work.  Run at a pace where you could hold a conversation with someone for 20 to 40 minutes. 

As far as what workout you should do what day, just don’t do consecutive numbers back to back, i.e. don’t do workout 2 today and 3 or 1 tomorrow. These can be done on the same days as resistance training or on days in between.  If you do them on the same day as lifting, I would choose a more high intensity type workout and keep the sets and reps lower so that you complete the workout in a reasonable amount of time. 

DB versions of the Top Weight Training Exercises: Part 1

I recently read two very good articles by two great minds in the field that discussed the best weight training exercises to build muscle.  Click on the links below the full articles.

Back to Basics: Time Tested Muscle Building Exercises by Zach Even-Esh

and

Top 10 Weight Training Exercises for Building Muscle by Jason Ferruggia

These articles are just straight forward about listing a small group of exercises that should be a staple in everyone's workouts.  Although the titles suggest that these exercises are for muscle building, they are also important for strength, speed, and athleticism as well, and should be done by both males and females who looking to improve their fitness level, body composition, and/or athletic performance.  Below are the exercises that each of the author's list (* exercises appear on both lists)...

Even-Esh's Top 8
1. Squats*                                       
2. Deadlifts*
3. The Bench Press*
4. The Military Press*
5. Pull Ups
6. Ring Push Ups
7. Sprints
8. Farmer Walks*



Ferruggia's Top 10
1. Snatch
2. High Pull
3. Overhead Press*
4. Squat*
5. Deadlift*
6. 1 Arm DB Row
7. Flat or 15-30 Degree Incline Press*
8. Farmers Walk*
9. Kettlebell Swing
10. Sled Dragging/Pushing



My purpose for this series of articles is not to elaborate on the exercises listed above, these authors already did a great job explaining why these exercises made their lists.  My goal is to present how to do many of these exercises when you only have DB's available.

Right now, between teaching and training, I spend much of my time away from home.  Because of this, I want to spend as much time at home as I can, but also want to make sure I get good quality workouts in during the week, so I decided to workout at home.  Although I have more equipment at home then the average fitness oriented person, I do not have any barbells (BB) or plates, which are needed for many of the exercises above.  I think many people realize that DB exercises can have many benefits to a program, but often can be criticized because it is difficult to make some DB exercises difficult enough to get the same amount of work accomplished as their BB counterparts.  Below are DB exercises I use in my programs that allow me to work strength similar to some of those on the lists above.

Squats
Squats appear on both of the authors' lists above, so as many know, they are pretty important. For beginners, you could progress through DB Goblet Squat, DB Front Squat, DB Suitcase Squat (DB's hanging at your sides), and DB Goblet Split Squat.  These will lead you to the first of two DB squat variations in which you can build some serious leg strength and muscle.

Rear Foot Elevated Split Squats
Also known as Bulgarian Split Squats, Rear Foot Elevated (RFE) Squats can even an advanced lifter gain strength.  Here are the variations in the progression I use...

RFE Goblet Squat

The RFE Goblet Squat helps teach correct technique while giving the lifter an easy way to hold the DB.

RFE DB Front Squat

The RFE DB Front Squat still helps the lifter maintain proper technique, but allows for more weight to be handled.

RFE Suitcase Squat or RFE DB Squat

By the time the lifter reaches this progression, their technique should be pretty solid, so the RFE Suitcase Squat can be used to allow the lifter to use even more weight.  Some beginners using this variation will have a tendency to lean to far forward.

Although it's not along the lines of this article, the next progressions would be the RFE BB Front Squat and the RFE BB Back Squat, both of which can build some very serious leg strength.


Pistol and Single Leg Squat Variations
The type of squat that can build size and muscle without a barbell are the Pistol and Single Leg Squat Variations.  These exercises can be intimidating for many because they can be very difficult or impossible for many people to do with just body weight.  The videos below show ways to progress up to using DBs to build greater leg strength.

BW Single Leg Squat Variation

I like to athletes/clients with Single Leg Squats instead of Pistol Squats because the Single Leg Squat allows a person to keep a more upright position in the torso, as well as making it easier to avoid a rounded back.  The video above shows how to progress the exercise without using weight, moving just from a toe touch to a full parallel Single Leg Squat.  If you can't touch your toe down to the ground for the first progression, place an object below your foot to touch.

Single Leg Goblet Squat

Once a person has achieved success on the body weight variation, they can then move on to the goblet style shown above (or could use a DB Front method, not shown).

Pistol Squat Box

Pistol squats have become a very popular leg exercise, and for good reason.  They develop balance and good unilateral strength.If you can not perform any true pistol squats or can not do enough reps to complete a full workout, the above video shows how to progress to a true pistol squat by performing Pistol Box Squats.  If you fall to the box, the box is too low!

Full Pistol Squat

After you can complete Pistol Box Squats and do them well, you can progress to a true pistol squat.  The above video shows 3 variations of the Pistol Squat: going to parallel depth, going to full depth, and using a DB goblet style for resistance.  You could also hold 2 DBs in the front position.

Being able to back squat a large amount of weight is a good display of leg strength, but I'm more impressed with athletes that can pistol squat well with weight.  I have seen many guys that have 500+ lb squats that can not do a full pistols squat, and I think you need to be able to do well squatting both bilaterally and unilaterally to say you have good leg strength.


Deadlifts
If you don't think squats are the king of all strength exercises, then you likely believe the king is the deadlift. Deadlifts are even more difficult than squats to without a barbell and plates because of the amount of weight that can be done and the lack of the changes in tempo you can do with the deadlift compared to the squat.  For DB variations of the deadlift, beginners can start out with DB Sumo Deadlift, DB RDL's, Single Arm/Single Leg RDL's, and Single Leg/Double Arm RDL's.

Single Leg Dead Lift Variations

Single Leg Dead Lifts, or aka by some as a Knee Touch Squat, are similar to the Pistol Squat as they can be difficult for many people to do, even without any weight.  The above video goes through the progression of being able to do a SL Dead Lift with DB's, starting with using just your bodyweight and touching a higher object.

One difference between a SL Dead Lift and a SL Squat is that in the squat your torso stays upright, but in the dead lift, you lean over so that your upper body is against your thigh.  If you can not control yourself all the way down to the ground, use an object under your back knee.  If you can not hit the object, or ground, under control, you need to use a higher object.  If you don’t have an object to touch and you can’t control yourself to the ground, set your back foot down for assistance as needed.  Try not to push off your back leg as you raise your body back up, unless you absolute need to. 

SL Dead Lifts can also be done without touching your back leg, just lower yourself as far as you can.  Some find this type easier, some find it more difficult, but it can be beneficial to switch up the variation that you do.  I have recently started do in them on a bench so I can touch my knee to the back of the bench but my foot will not contact any surface.


Rear Foot Elevated (RFE) DB Deadlift

The variation that I like most because you can really pull some heavy weight, is the RFE DB Deadlift.  This is similar to the RFE Suitcase Squat, but it has two major differences.  First, you will start each rep with the weight resting on the ground.  Second, to get the weight to the ground, you will have to lean over with your chest almost resting on your thigh.  By being in this position, the exercise becomes a lower body pulling movement that will work your glutes and hamstrings.  Your hip joint will almost be as low as your knee joint.  Make sure you back is tight and flat or slightly arched, do not allow your back to be rounded.  At the bottom, tighten your glutes and abs and then pull up.  Control the weight on the way down.  Always make sure you have the proper starting position before lifting the DB’s.  For a variation, hold the DB's in a pronated manner rather than neutral, which will make the lift slightly more difficult.  

I hope you are able to take some of these variations and add them into your training.  Even if you are not limited to only DBs, the variations of Squats and Deadlifts above are a great way to get some unilateral training into your workouts, and you can even progress the RFE versions above into BB lifts like the RFE Front Squat, RFE Back Squat, and RFE BB Deadlift.

Look for Part 2 of this series soon!

Article Takeaway: 8 Laws of Strength Training by Bret Contreras

I am one of those guys that reads something everyday, whether it's a book, magazine, or blog post. I also listen to podcasts and watch videos. There is so much good information (and bad information for that matter), that I thought that I'd share some things that I read, hear, or watch here on my blog. 

The first article that I want to share is 8 Laws of Strength Training by Bret Contreras (check out the full article here).  In this article, Bret goes over his 8 laws of strength training, which are...

1. You must train consistently.
2. You must work hard and smart.
3. You must consistently stimulate the musculature of the entire body.
4. You must get markedly stronger compared to when you started, especially on compound movements.
5. You must warm up.
6. You must use good form most of the time.
7. You must consume adequate nutrition.
8. You must sleep well and avoid persistent distress.

I'll let you read the article to fully understand how he describes these 8 laws, but what I wanted to do is put these 8 items in order, not necessarily of importance, but in order of how often the rule is not followed.  This order is based off of what I see in the populations that I work with, not necessarily the way it is overall. 

1. You must train consistently.
Bret's first law is probably the law that I see broken most often, not by actual clients, students, or athletes I work with, but by others who come up and ask me why they are not seeing the results they want.  I can put the people that don't train consistently into 2 categories.  First are the ones that just don't train that often.  They train once one week, two times the next, and not at all the following week and wonder why they are not getting the results they want.  The other group is those that train more often, but follow not type of set schedule.  Although this group will see better results than the first group, they won't see the same results that they could get as if they had a schedule they followed and committed to a set number of workouts per week.  This is where picking a program that fits a person's schedule and ability makes a big difference.

This is not what they mean by
a colorful diet!

2. You must consume adequate nutrition.
This just comes down to the fact that you can't out train bad nutrition.  This can be that a person is eating too much, too little, or just eating crap.  You must have a diet that fits your goals, whether that is to lose weight, gain muscle, gain strength, and/or perform better.  Having a poor or incomplete diet will lower the chances or slow the time it takes you to reach your goals.




3. You must consistently stimulate the musculature of the entire body.

Don't let this workout be better than yours!

I see this mistake most often in athletes, both tactical and sport athletes, including the weekend warriors out there.  This is one area that the ladies working out at Curves do better then many athletes (they use machines to work all parts of the body).  Too many athletes focus just on their "mirror muscles".  This leaves them with strength imbalances because the fronts of their bodies are much stronger than the back of their bodies.  This results in many shoulder injuries, low back pain, hamstring pulls, and knee injuries.  For your upper body, make sure to include some type of rows along with either pull up or lat pull variations.  For the lower body, include some type of dead lifts (full and/or Romanian), hip raises, and/or stability ball leg curls. 

4. You must get markedly stronger compared to when you started, especially on compound movements.
There are many ways to determine if you are getting stronger, it's not just about how much weight you can lift.  It simply comes down to determining if you are progressing in your workouts.  That can be lifting more weight, doing more reps, completing the same amount of work in a shorter period of time, or doing more in the same amount of time.  Your body will adapt to the work you do, and if you don't progress you will not continue to get results you are expecting.

5. You must sleep well and avoid persistent distress.

Rest & relaxation are more
important to performance
than most people realize.

When I have clients or athletes that are doing well with the 7 other laws here but are having trouble keeping up with their goals, I immediately look at stress and sleep.  It's amazing how many times there is a relationship between a slowing in progress to a busy time of the year at work or finals time at school.  Also, things like relationship troubles, death of a loved one, or a major change in routine has affected progress.   During these times it's important not to ignore your progress or your stressor.  The key that has helped many people I have worked with is try to manage both.  We have modified workouts when needed, whether it was shortening up the time, substituting complex exercises for exercises that are more familiar, or adding in yoga or another activity that the person finds enjoyable and relaxing.  Also, we've worked on finding healthy things outside of training (not eating or drinking) that helps de-stress their lives.  And finally, try to prioritize sleep.  Much of the recovery process in the body happens during you sleep, so this becomes even more important when someone has more stress in their life.

6. You must use good form most of the time.
Again, this is one that the athletes are more guilty of than my general public clients or phy. ed. students.  Using poor technique can result in pain and injury, as well as a plateau in performance.  People that don't use good form generally fall into three categories.  First, are those that think they know it all, because they've always done it this way, and don't want to change.  These are the ones that annoy me the most.  Stop with the ego, learn how to do it, and see better results.  Second are those that use good technique much of the time, but when it comes to testing or a difficult set, it all falls apart.  A person can get by with a slight drop in technique and still be ok, but you can't let it all go down the crapper.  The last group is those that just have never been taught the correct technique, and that's where coaching comes in for those that have a coach, and for those that don't have a coach should do some research. 

7. You must work hard and smart.
This was a tough one to put this low, because in general I think work ethic is a huge reason many people don't succeed at their goals.  I then thought about it, and if the general public followed the 6 rules above this one, they would still have some success.  Working hard and smart can come into play when a person wonders why they use to see better progress.  Often, it's not both of these that a person is guilty of, it's one or the other.  They're are many folks in the gym that work their butts off but are not training smart.  That could involve some type of overtraining or not following one of the other 7 rules.  Also, there are people that do their research and use a well designed program, but just are afraid to go past their comfort level.  When both are put together, that is when most people start to get over that training success hump. 

8. You must warm up.
A few years ago this may have been higher on the list, but there is much more written about warm ups in popular media today.  Although you can get results without doing a warm up, a warm up will help reduce the risk of injuries.  What many people don't realize is that a warm up can also significantly help increase performance.  There are many different ways, systems, and routines for warming up.  I like to use correctional and basic bodyweight exercises in the warm up so that correctional exercises are not taking up time later on, and so that they are actually done.  For sport athletes, I also like to include movements that relate to their sport, like speed & agility mechanics.  Specific weightlifting warm ups should be done for exercises where you will be doing a high percentage of your max strength.  As you get further along in the workout, less warm up sets will need to be done, if any.


I thought this was a great article by Bret Contreras that really just puts these rules straight forward.  Make sure you include all of these rules in your training to better your results!

Crossfit or not to Crossfit?

One of the newest fads in fitness is Crossfit.  Crossfit involves difficult, usually shorter in duration, workouts that can incorporate a mixture of olympic lifting, powerlifting, kettlebells, bodyweight exercises, running, and plyometrics.  Each day there is a different workout that involves a variety of exercises that is usually done with a goal of completing as many reps in a given time or completing a given amount of reps in as short of time possible.  So in short, Crossfit workouts are generally short, intense, random workouts. 

The Positives

One thing that Crossfit well does is that it gets people working.  Although the workouts are difficult, people seem to get addicted and stick with it.  It also builds in competition, with others and with one's self.  This keeps many people motivated to keep working hard to improve.

The type of exercises used are also a plus.  The exercises are almost exclusively ground-based, multi-joint movements, with stationary bikes and rowing machines used on occasion.  People are not just going on a circuit of fixed-motion machines, they are performing good exercises and pushing themselves doing them.



The Negatives

Although the exercises used in Crossfit are often great exercises, many of the exercises can be very technical for a beginner, and if done improperly can lead to injury, either acute or chronic.  The chances of injury from lack of technique can be increased or reduced depending on the gym that you go to.  Just like any style of training, you'll find good coaches and not so good coaches at Crossfit gyms.  The good coaches will make sure to teach proper technique and only give workouts to their clients that the clients can handle.  The individual pictured to the left is not ready to have dead lifts in his Crossfit program as he needs to correct some technique issues first.  Some coaches/trainers don't do this because Crossfit workouts are often done in group settings and it takes work to individualize workouts when working with a group.

Another negative is that Crossfit workouts often won't follow a progressive program.  This can again lead to possible injuries and possibly slow down the development of the client.  Again, a good coach can help improve this situation by designing workouts with some type of progression in intensity and exercise selection.

Crossfit for the Sport Athlete? 

In general, I wouldn't recommend Crossfit for sport athletes.  Crossfit workouts can lack the specificity of training needed for most sports.  Also, as mentioned before, the lack of proper progression can result in the athlete not learning the fundamental movements that are needed for their sport.  Also, all athletes have some areas that are weaker than others, and it is important to improve these weaknesses, but Crossfit workouts may often not work on improving these weaknesses.

Crossfit type workouts are intense and difficult, and that is why they can be used occasionally to help increase the athletes' work capacity and mental toughness.  This would mean that these type of workouts would be used to supplement the main program in a similar fashion that coaches have used strongman activities in their programs.  We supplement them in by either using them in times between switching programs, or by using mini workouts as a finisher to a regular workout.

With this said, one athlete that I would use Crossfit workouts with often are actual Crossfit athletes.  Now with the emergence of Crossfit Games, athletes whose main goal is to do better on specific Crossfit workouts will need to do these workouts.   I would also include some olympic weightlifting, power lifting, and functional training workouts with these athletes as well because these workouts will help improve their strength in the lifting exercises that are used as well as jumping ability and injury prevention.

Crossfit for the General Public?

Although Crossfit wouldn't be my first choice for the general public or even a weekend warrior, I would promote it if it is something the person is excited about and it's something that gets them to workout on a regular basis.  I would just suggest that everyone does their homework to find a coach/trainer that will teach proper technique and assign workouts that fit the ability of their clients.

I would say that I'm not neither pro- or anit-Crossfit.  I think, just as many other training systems, it can be used within a well thought out and well designed program, but I wouldn't use it as a program all in itself.  This is just my opinion.  Do your research, learn technique, work hard, have fun, and reach your goals!

Choosing or Designing a Strength & Conditioning Program: Part 2

Herschel Walker, one of my early
strength program influences

In the past, one thing that I just assumed to be true is that everyone that lifted weights followed some type of program.  I started lifting weights in at school in 9th grade.  I had always been in sports, and I was lucky enough to go to a high school that supplied strength & conditioning programs.    A year or two before that I would lift weights at home on a Kmart bench & rack set using a bar, weights, and dumbbells collected from garage sales.  Even then I would look in Muscle & Fitness magazines to get programs, and even though they were more for bodybuilding then for athletics, it started me on my way.  And even before that I followed the simplest of programs that I developed from hearing what things Hershel Walker and Walter Payton did, being push ups, sit ups, and hill sprints.  I had a certain amount of each that I would do an weekdays and a different amount for weekends.

Then when I started meeting others in my college rec center that would just go in and do whatever new thing they saw in a magazine.  This isn't all bad, but they would not record anything, and they'd change it up once they found something new in a different magazine.  I thought that was just college kids, but I am still meeting people that want to be serious about losing fat, gaining muscle, and becoming healthier, but still are not following a program.

To become better and reach your goals, you need to choose or develop a program and stick with it 6-8 weeks before moving on to something different.  That doesn't mean that you'll be doing the same thing over and over for that amount of time, but will be following your plan for that long.  There are programs out there like Crossfit that change things up all the time, which can be successful, but you should have a go strength & conditioning background before starting something like that, and even when following a program like Crossfit, you should be recording what you are doing.

If you're going to start a strength & conditioning program, you will (or should) be dedicating time to that program.  Because of your time investment, you are going to want that program to help you accomplish your goals.  That's why in Part 1 I started a list of things to consider when choosing or designing a strength & conditioning program.  The list so far includes...
       

          1. Use a program that is specific to your goals and needs

          2. Use primarily free weight and bodyweight exercises

          3. Train hard over training long

          4. Train using ground based, multi-joint movements

Here are some more things to consider when choosing or designing your strength & conditioning program.

5. Train with progression.  Einstein told us that it is insane to do the same thing over and over and expect different results.  Your body will adapt to your workouts, thus it will take more to expect results, including building strength, increasing muscle, and/or burning calories.  There are many ways to progress your workouts; lift more weight, add more reps, decrease rest time, and increase variation difficulty are a few.   You can only decrease your rest time so much, especially if you want to increase strength.  Adding reps can work to a certain extent, but can increase your workout time and lead to overtraining or overuse injuries.  I am mostly in favor of increasing weight or exercise variation.  Although it is more a subject for a different article, don't think that lifting heavy will make you grow unwanted muscle mass, there are other variables that you have to include to get there.  However, lifting heavy or increasing exercise variations will help you with any fitness component from building strength and muscle to loosing weight and getting tone.  

6. Train with variety.  Before I'd had mentioned that you should stick with a program for 6-8 weeks before moving on to a different program.  However, within that program there should be variety.  First, the exercises that you do each day do not have to be the same, even if you are following a program that consists of performing total body workouts.  When I design total body based programs, they'll consist of a minimum of two different days that are alternated.  Each day may be very similar in set up, but the exercises chosen are different.  For example, Day 1 may include the BB Front Squat and Day 2 would contain RFE DB Front Squats to accomplish the same movement.  This allows each day to be slightly different.  When following an upper/lower or a push/pull split routine, there will obviously be differences between days, but my split programs will almost always contain four workout days.  This way Day 1 and Day 3 will be similar but different, as will Day 2 and Day 4, in the same way as the squatting example above.  

The other way to provide variety is to change up the intensities and/or rep schemes throughout the program.  Some programs will have a different intensity goal for each workout in a week.  An example would be where Day 1 would be moderately intense, Day 2 would be very intense, and Day 3 would be a light day.  The style that I generally prescribe is called weekly undulated periodization, which is where I change the rep scheme weekly.  Week 1 is moderately high rep (8-12 reps), Week 2 is mid-range (6-8 reps), and Week 3 is lower rep (3-6 reps).  Usually we'd go through this cycle twice before taking an unloading week (go lighter weight and/or usually alternated exercises to give the body a break from the norm), but is some cases will throw an unloading week in after Week 3.  I also usually progress the intensity of each set during a workout, especially in the bigger lifts, going from moderate intensity on the first set to very intense on the last set.

There are many ways to include variety while staying consistent with your program.  By sticking with a program that involves variety, you'll both get good at what you're doing, reach your fitness goals, and avoid boredom, overuse injuries, and overtraining.  

7. Train with balance.  Is this case, balance refers to training opposing muscle groups or movements evenly, not balancing on one foot.  When assessing and observing the football players during my first year coaching at one school, I noticed that many of the players had shoulders issues and were much weaker in the muscles in the back of their body (hamstring, glutes, lats, etc.) compared to the "mirror muscles" (quads, chest, etc.).  I took at the workouts that they did in the previous year and was very surprised what I saw.  Their upper body day consisted of push to pull ratio of 5 to 1.  This is what was responsible for their shoulder issues.  Their lower body days contained little to no work directed at the posterior chain (hamstrings, glutes, low back), and any work that they did get in the posterior chain was done with exercises using very little weight or where the muscles in the posterior chain were not primary movers.  This is why they had weak hamstring and glutes, which lead to injuries.

Don't let this be you, train with balance!

Make sure to train all parts of you body in some way.  You don't need to use isolation exercises to hit all parts, I actually suggest using little to no isolation exercises, but make sure you hit all areas in some fashion, and you should work opposing muscle groups equally.  One way that I help solve this issue is by designing workouts that use a push/pull split instead of a upper/lower split.  This way, as long as you use the same number of upper and lower body exercises on each day, you will be balanced.

8. Use a program you can and will do. A buddy of mine who was not into strength training at all once told me that he could get a very good deal on a Bowflex and asked if it was worthwhile getting.  I told him that I wouldn't waste my money on it (as I don't in most machines as I mentioned in part 1), but if it would be something that would actually get him to start and stay consistent with working out, it would be worth it for him.  He did buy it and was able to follow along with the video that came with it and he was seeing good results since he was consistently working out.  He has since moved on to buying a set of Powerblock dumbbells and does mostly free weight and body weight training following the guidelines in this post and has since seen great gains in his fitness and athletic ability, but the Bowflex got him started. 

My point here is choose something you are willing and can effectively complete consistently.  If you're new to working out and are out of shape, don't start with P90X as it takes a lot of time and is difficult (there is also other things I don't like about P90X for most people, but this isn't the post to go into that).  Even if you're someone with training experience just looking for a new program, there are some things you should consider in general when setting up or choosing a program.

First, will you have enough time to complete the program the way it is written, both short and long term.  Will you have the time on each day you workout to complete the workout?  Will you be able to complete the number of workouts a week the program calls for?  It is better to start out with a program that will take less time than you think you'll have, as you can always add to it, but a program may not be effective if you can't complete it the way it is written.

Second, will you be able to perform all the exercises correctly and at the intensity prescribed?  Again, choose a program that has exercises that you are comfortable with and that any new exercises are variations of past exercises that you have been capable of doing and have shown that you are ready for the next progression.

By following this guideline, you will be more likely to complete your workouts on a consistent basis without getting injured or lowering your self esteem because you can't complete the program as written.


I hope these guidelines help, and if you have any questions or want more clarification on anything, either leave a comment or email me at joe@speadsperformance.net.  Remember, for a program to work, you have to set a goal, work at it consistently, work hard, and have fun!  If you want to see some examples of programs, visit www.speadsperformance.net and search through past BSU programs and/or tactical strength & conditioning programs, or scroll to the bottom of the page to view programs for general public and a triathlete.

Choosing or Designing a Strength & Conditioning Program: Part 1

I always talk about how we are all athletes in some sort of matter, but that doesn't mean that we should all be using the same type of program.  Football players, sprinters, triathloners, body builders, olympic lifters, powerlifters, weekend warriors, parents, tactical officers, among many others, are all athletes but generally all have different goals and thus need different programs.  When choosing or designing a program for yourself, or for others, take into account the following aspects and principles.

These athletes all have specific needs for their activities, and will have similarities and differences in their training.

1) Use a program that is specific to your goals and needs.  First, look at your sport(s) and determine what aspects of fitness are needed to do well in your sport.  Do you need strength, power, endurance, agility, flexibility, speed, size, etc.?  Most activities require a mixture of these aspects, and if that is true for your sport you need to look at both what percentage of each is important to the sport and also where do your personal weaknesses lie?  Those two factors will determine where you focus most of your training.

This leads us into the principle of specificity which we look at when deciding on exercise selection and the prescription of sets, reps, and intensity.  I believe that specificity is an often misunderstood principle because many people believe that specificity means choosing exercises that mimic the movements used in your sport.  By loading up movements specific to your sport, the movement often can be altered decreasing the efficiency of the movement and possibly increasing the risk of injury.  Instead, I consider specificity to mean choosing exercises that will strengthen the muscles responsible for improving the movements that are required for your sport.  Besides exercise selection, make sure you are using a rep scheme that fits your needs.  Generally you should rarely need to go above 10-12 reps, and most needs can be met by lifting in the range of 4-8 reps.

Make sure to also consider your needs when choosing conditioning and endurance activities.  Some people may only need to walk at a brisk pace while others need to perform sprints, agility drills, and plyometrics.  Although the different choices available are numerous and beyond the scope of this post, I do believe that no matter what a person goals and needs are, everyone should consider general health and fitness and should do some form of conditioning work.

No machine will develop strength, flexibility, balance , and muscle like this!

2) Use primarily free weights and body weight exercises.  This kind of goes hand in hand with specificity because there is no type of athletic activity that I can think of that the athlete is confined to a fixed range of motion (ROM) like you are when you perform a machine based exercise. Using free weights and body weight exercises, a person learns how to control their body and their strength in space.  Type of exercises include ones using barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, medicine balls, suspension trainers, sandbags, etc.  By performing exercises that involve moving weight in open space, you will also develop and improve other aspects of athleticism beside building muscle and strength, including balance, flexibility, and core strength.

These different aspects are reached not only by you controlling your ROM, but you also can work movements in all three dimensions (frontal, sagittal, and transversal), as well as training bilaterally (both limbs at a time) and unilaterally (one at a time).  Most machines involve a fixed ROM, allow movement in only one dimension, and involve a bilateral movement, however there are some exceptions.  A cable based machine, like different brands of functional trainers, allow you to performs lat pulls, rows, chops, and lifts, among other exercises that allow to control the ROM, movement type, and movement pattern.

3) Train hard over training long.  This should hold true in both your cardio and strength training.  Shorter intense bouts of work have been shown to burn more fat in the long run than long slow training.  And if you're thinking that you'll try to get the best of both worlds by doing long intense bouts of work, you may sabotaging your progress.  You're workouts should be held to around 45-60 minutes.  Any intense work lasting longer than that could increase the presence of catabolic hormones (ones that decrease the burning of fat and building of muscle).

Most strength training programs involve multiple sets of intense work interspersed with rest, but some still perform too many sets to keep their workouts under an hour.  Also, many guys are guilty of taking too much rest during their workouts.  Unless you are a powerlifter or olympic lifter, where your the amount you lift is the focus of your sport, you do not need to rest 3-5 minutes between sets.  To get even more done in a short period of time, try performing paired sets of 2 or more exercises.  Examples would be performing a leg exercise paired with either a core or upper body exercise, and move back and forth between the two with between 30-90 seconds between exercises.  Your primary muscle performing the work will have over 2 minutes rest between sets, but during your rest time, you will complete other exercises.

Who would you rather look like?
Sprinters lift weights and run intervals,
Work Hard, not long!

More people are guilty with their cardio work and still perform long slow cardio workouts as opposed to performing intervals.  There are many different types of ways to perform intervals, which I will cover in future posts (you can read a past newsletter on intervals here).

4) Train using ground based, multi-joint movements.  Ground based exercises are those that you are planted or begin planted on the ground.  Most free weight and body weight exercises fall in this category, which brings us back to the idea that most movements in life and athletics involve us performing activities on the the ground.

Multi-joint movements are exercises that involve the movement of more than one joint to perform that activity.  Exercises include squats, cleans, presses, rows, pull ups, and deadlifts, among others.  One reason that multi-joint movements are beneficial is that you can get more done in a shorter amount of time by training more muscle in a shorter amount of time, which allows you to maximize your calorie burn and hormonal response in under 60 minutes.  I'm not necessarily saying never to do most single joint exercises, such as bicep curls and tricep extensions, but if you are looking for the biggest bang for your buck, perform multi-joint movements will work both your large and smaller muscles at the same time.


In Part 2 I will suggest more things to consider when designing a strength & conditioning program.  In the meantime, if you want to see some examples of programs, visit www.speadsperformance.net and search through past BSU programs and/or tactical strength & conditioning programs, or scroll to the bottom of the page to view programs for general public and a triathlete.

4 Keys to Reaching Your Goals

If you were a subscriber to my old newsletter, you may have seen this, but it's good to see again...

I wanted to hit on a subject that will help you not just in fitness, but in all aspects of life. There are four main things that I believe you need to do to make the chances of reaching a goal much more likely.  If you're having trouble making goals, I'll have a future post more on how to set goals.  Think of a goal you do have and use the four following keys to reach that goal.

1) Make a commitment to your goal. 

After winning 8 golds, Phelps made
the commitment to be back in 2012.

Many times in fitness, this commitment is to make a change in your life. It may be as little as losing 5 pounds, or as big as finishing an Ironman Triathlon. What is more important than just making a commitment to do something is making a commitment to take the steps to get there. In fitness, it will be different for everybody, but most likely it will involve exercise and equally important, proper nutrition.  Are you willing to make the changes to reach your goals?  Also, are you willing to get by the obstacles that will get in your way?  Make sure your goal is something you can commit to.  

2) Be consistent. 

Once you figure out what the steps are to get to your goal, you need be consistent in following those steps. If you follow your exercise program one week but do not eat well, and then eat well the next week, but miss most of your workouts, you will have problems reaching your goal. Here are quick hints to help you be consistent. 

After taking break after '08, Phelps
consistently hit the gym & pool.

Every Sunday, plan out your weekly workouts. Plan what you will do on each day, and your the approximate time that you will perform your activities. You'll be less likely to miss workouts when you have them planned out.  Be realistic when you are setting up your workout times.  If you're not a morning person, don't set up times at 5am.  If you are a person that just can't give in to an invitation to hang out with friends and family after work, don't plan your workouts then.  With that being said, there will be times that you will have to a decision to make; hang out or workout?  If you're serious about your goal, you will have the willpower to tell others you have a prior commitment.  

Also, plan out your meals. You may not do this a week in advance, but at least a day in advance, decide what you will be eating the next day. If it involves making a lunch, make it the night before. You'll be less likely to just throw in things that may be unhealthy just because they're convenient. Also, pay attention to if you have special events coming up that will cause you not to eat the best things (fantasy football draft, wedding shower). Then you can make sure most of your other meals during the week are good so you can enjoy those events a little.

3) Work Hard!!!! 

Not many things of importance or value come without hard work. You may win something in a drawing or the lottery, but how often do you win the powerball? What I'm getting at is that you may come across some success in life without putting in the work, but how often do you reach that goal that you really want without putting in the effort. The same goes for fitness, you need to put in the effort to see results.  

This means that you'll have to work hard physically and mentally.  Physically, you are going to have to put yourself past your comfort level to achieve your results.  Mentally, you are going to have to resist temptations and keep in the proper mindset to stay motivated.  This is not always easy.  

4) Have Fun!!!! 

Not every part of the process may be fun,
but success is more likely when you enjoy
what your are doing.

It is possible to work hard and have fun at the same time. Not all work will be fun and not all fun things will help you reach your goals, but there is a time and a place for each. The best case is if you find fun in your work. If you can find physical activities that are fun for you, you will probably see better results than if you did a program that you did not enjoy. If you work hard often, plan some fun activities to relax. Just make sure that your fun activities do not make you take a step in the wrong direction away from your goals.

Over time, I'll hit more specifically on topics above, but I just wanted to get those four ideas out there. I hope that you can see that the above will help you achieve goals in all areas of your life.