Right so this week has been used to write up and test out the first 4 weeks of our strength conditioning work.
My intentions for this first phase are to get us working hard from the off and I mean hard. It may be 6 months away but we have to train as we mean to go on. You see so many people approach their gym sessions half heartedly and they wonder why they don't get results. This isn't an option for me personally and something that I will ingrain into Staff, JK and Dave.
I fully intend after each training session to be sprawled out onto the gym floor trying to recover. Only when you have given that effort will it pay off. (may have to bring a sick bucket just in case)
The way I structure the training is based on the structure and principles of Charles Poliquin.
Things you will notice when I write the sessions on here;
1 - exercises will be listed by a letter and number.
any exercise that that has the same number attached to it are performed together either as a superset (SS), tri set (TS) or circuit. The number dictates the order of the exercises.
a
b
c - single letters and no numbers means that exercises are not linked, they are done fully before you move to the next one.
Super sets
a1
a2 - this structure means 2 exercises are super set (zero rest or prescribed rest times in between)
b1
b2
c1
c2 - this type of session means there are 6 different exercises to complete
Tri sets
a1
a2
a3 - 3 exercises linked
b1
b2
b3
Circuit
a1
a2
a3
a4
a5
a6
You will also see rest times in between exercises and after linked exercises.
What a lot of people do not know is that your prescribed tempo for an exercise has a massive effect on how your body works and the results that you obtain. You want to increase the level of time a given muscle(s) have to work for a given repetition and overall for the set - this is known as 'time under tension' (TUT). The tempo will be written as a four number configuration such as 3010.
The numbers mean the following.
1st no. - time taken to move through the eccentric/stretching movement of the muscle
2nd no.- length of pause at the end of the eccentric/stretched position
3rd no.- time taken to move through the concentric/shortening movement of the muscle
4th no.- length of pause at the end of the concentric/shortened position
As an example I will describe some of the varieties you can do using barbell back squat.
a-tempo of 1010 - 1 sec down, no pause, 1 sec up, no pause
b-tempo of 3010 - 3 sec down, no pause, 1 sec up, no pause
c-tempo of 2222 - 2 sec down, 2 sec pause bottom, 2 sec up, 2 sec pause top
d-tempo of 51X0 - 5 sec down, 1 sec pause bottom, explode up, no pause top
X - this indicates you have to go through the concentric phase or in the case the upward phase of a barbell back squat as quickly and as powerfully as you can.
To work out the time under tension for the above tempo all you do is add up all the numbers
a- = 2 sec (per repetition)
b = 4 sec
c = 8 sec
d = 6 sec (X should be less than 1 second)
Depending on your training goals you work using specific tempos.
A good thing to look out for when you work with a trainer is this level of detail and that they record all of your sets, reps, % increases etc - if not, go find a trainer that does and you will see the benefits.
So when you see our training sessions on this blog if anything is confusing please refer back to this entry and ask me any questions you may have.
Nick
