Movement Mistakes: The Burpee - Dissecting a Fat Loss Staple

One could argue the burpee has become to most popular movement in the fitness world. Loved by few, hated by many, you would be hard pressed to find anyone that has never heard of this staple in fat loss and general programming. Memes, bumper stickers, t-shirts, you name it. Burpees are everywhere.

I work with a lot of fat loss clients, so I regularly include burpees in my programming as they are very taxing from a conditioning perspective. I'm not a huge fan of them on a personal level (I don't know many who are), but as far as bang for your metabolic buck, they are hard to beat.

As with many mainstream movements, burpees are butchered more often than the victims of Dexter Morgan. Walk into a gym anywhere and you inevitably see someone violently throwing their body to the ground and sloppily peeling themself off the floor with no rhyme or reason to how and why.

What a Burpee Is

To avoid going into a detailed explanation myself, in Becoming a Supple Leopard, Kelly Starrett describes the burpee as a push up, squat, and vertical jump layered into one seamless movement.

Taking this into consideration, before we incorporate this movement into any program we need to establish a reasonable competency in each of these three movements. The individual technique points of each goes beyond the scope of this post, so just understand you should at least know how to preform a decent push up, squat, and vertical jump (This includes correct landing mechanics. Ninja landing!).

What a Burpee Is Not

Instead of explaining what a moving train wreck looks like in detail, I'll just show you an example:

Obviously this is an exaggerated example, but you get the point. Here are a few things to make note of at various points through the video.

• Anterior weight shift (:01 and :04). This will totally fry your quads and low back.
• Knees moving too far forward increasing shear forces in the knee joint (:02 and :06).
• Unstable position at top and bottom of push up.
• Excessive lumbar flexion placing undue stress on the low back (:06)

All of these faults make for a sore lower back and knees, not to mention you looking just plain silly.

What a Correct Burpee Looks Like 

 
 As with any complex movement, it helps to separate into steps.

1. Begin with a hip hinge. Push the hips back by visualizing spreading the hip bones apart.
2. Keep the chest puffed out and low back flat until the hands touch down flat on the floor. This ensures you maintain a more neutral spine.
3. Jump the feet back at the same time into push up position. DO NOT allow your hips to sag down toward the floor. At the top of the push up your core should be stiff, glutes tight, and you should be actively pressing your body away from the floor. 
4. Lower the body to the floor as a unit chest first. If you struggle with push ups, this is the perfect opportunity to work on the eccentric (lowering) portion of the movement, which many struggle with. 
5. On the way up, simply push up quickly and replace the feet with the hands. The feet now should rest where your hands used to. Now you are essentially in the bottom position of a squat. The feet should be flat and shins close to vertical.
6. Stand up or jump into the air. I didn't jump because, well, I forgot. But you get the idea. Ninja landing!

Modifications
Many don't possess the requisite mobility or basic movement skills to preform a true burpee correctly. If this is the case, continue to teach/learn these basic skills and modify the movement until basic competency is achieved. I use two basic modifications:

1. Decrease the range of motion with a step.

2. Try taking a wider stance.

Just like a sumo deadlift, a wider stance will allow a trainee with less hip and ankle mobility to get down to the floor without stressing the knees and low back.

Summary

The above tips should help you move through the burpee with much more efficiency. By being more efficient and moving correctly, you will waste far less energy, be at lower risk of injury, and improve your overall performance.

So to wrap up, remember these points:

• Strive to master the squat, push up, and proper jumping mechanics first.
• Break the movement down into steps.
• Modify when necessary.

Have fun with your burpees!

3 Quick Finishers for Fat Loss and Improved Conditioning

I'm always on the lookout for non-traditional forms of cardio. From my perspective, nothing is more boring than plugging away for 30 minutes plus on a treadmill or elliptical trainer. I would rather watch Ozzy Ozbourne try and explain quantum physics.

To be clear, I'm not saying I don't like aerobic work. Steady state cardio definitely should be a part of any balanced training program. For more on that, check out this post. With that being said, I would rather get my aerobic work in through walking, hiking or a mobility circuit. For the rest of my conditioning, I use a lot of finishers.

I like finishers for a number of reasons:

• Great way to elevate heart rate after main strength work.
• Time-effective.
• Usually minimal equipment is required.
• Creates a "metabolic disturbance" without totally crushing the trainee.
• Can be used as a stand alone workout if short on time.  

Finishers are a fantastic way to get in some conditioning at the end of a heavy strength training session. A good finisher will elevate heart rate for a period of time, which is ideal for fat loss and improved conditioning. They usually take anywhere from 5-15 minutes to complete, and can be used as a stand alone workout if you are short on time. Here are three of my favorites.

1. Countdowns

Countdowns are pretty straight forward. Simply pick a rep range and count down, decreasing the amount of reps performed with each circuit. They are best when performed with 2-3 multi-joint movements such as squats, kettle bell swings, pull ups etc. For example:

Burpees
Push Ups
Kettle Bell Swings

On the first set, perform 10 reps of each. The second do 9 reps. Third 8, and so on until all reps are completed.You can use virtually any combination of movements for these so they provide plenty of variety for the trainee. You can also do count UPS, or combine count downs and count ups if you are really sick and twisted.

You can also use them in a lower rep range for extra strength work or to work on some weaknesses. Higher rep ranges can also be used with countdowns in increments of 2-4 reps.

I'll throw in a few more of my favorite combinations. These are all done in countdown format, but you can use them however you like.

5 Hang Cleans
5 Front Squats
5 Pull Ups

10 Front Squats
10 Back Squats

20 Kettlebell Swings
20 Push Ups

10 Inverted Rows
10 Rollouts
10 Deadlifts

2. Ladders

Ladders are performed with 2 exercises performed in ascending/descending order. A third movement can be added as a "constant". For example:

Burpees: 1-10 done in ascending order
Squats: 10-1 done in descending order
Pull Ups: 3 constant

The sets will look like this:

Burpee x 1
Squat x 10
Pull Ups x 3

Burpee x 2
Squat x 9
Pull Ups x 3

All the way down to...

Burpee x 10
Squat x 1
Pull Ups x 3

Sometimes it helps to remember the sum of the first two movements will always be the same. In this example it will always be 11.

I find that the constant is a great way to work on any weaknesses. For example, if you are terrible at push ups or chin ups you could use a low number of these as your constant. You could also add some sort of corrective exercise as your constant such as a hip or shoulder mobility correction. A corrective ladder might look like this:

Kettle Bell Swing x 10
Push Up x 1
Bench t-spine mobilization x 5 each

As with the countdowns, ladders provide a seemingly endless amount of variety, so you should never get bored with these.

3. Minute-On-the-Minute Sets

Minute-On-the-Minute sets are a great way to be held accountable for your rest periods while sustaining a metabolic effect. The amount of work will be limited by how fast you can complete the interval before the time expires or by the amount of reps you can perform. Simply set an interval timer or stop watch for one minute work/one minute rest intervals (there are a ton of free interval timer apps out there for your phone).

There are three ways I use this method:

1. Pick a compound movement (squat, deadlift, bench press etc.) and load it with 75-85% of your one-rep max. At the top of each minute, do 1-3 reps. Do this for 10 minutes. By the end you will have performed a pretty decent number of reps with a large percent of your 1RM.  This is a good stand alone workout because it builds strength and work capacity simultaneously.
2. Pick a compound movement and load it with 50-60% of your 1RM weight. At the top of the first minute do 1 rep. At the top of the second minute do 2 reps and so on and so fourth. Continue in this fashion until you can no longer complete all the reps within the minute time frame. It will seem easy at first, but trust me it will catch up with you. 
3. Combine minute-on-the-minute with countdowns and ladders. This adds a timed element to the aforementioned methods. So on the first minute you could do 10 swings and 1 chin up. Second minute 10 swings and 2 chin ups and so on until failure. 

With all of these methods in your toolbox, you now have an endless variety of ways to add finishers into your training. These are simple, effective methods that can easily be added regardless of the equipment and time you have at your disposal. Enjoy!


 P.S. Don't forget to like and share!

The 4 P's of Positively Prodigious Program Design

Well, I did it. I survived January. I train at a local YMCA and January is always insane. People seem to come out of the wood work. It is a chore to simply navigate my way through the sea of people without getting a dumbbell dropped on my big toe.

On the bright side, January is always the best time of year to people-watch at the gym. There are times where I will just sit back and watch random acts of silliness and poor gym etiquette between sets. People standing on BOSU balls, teenagers using way too much weight, and lets not forget my favorite; curls in the squat rack. Nothing makes me want to punch a kitten more than when I see some glove-wearing bro Montana posted up in the squat rack banging out sets of barbell curls.

Another thing that drives me nuts is the lack of individuals out there following a program. Many of you may realize by now that I am very passionate about assessment and programming. I've dedicated a lot of time to learning the ins and outs of assessment and the art of designing good programs, so one might imagine I get a little fired up when I see the lack of people out there following a program.

"Remember there is a huge difference between training and working out. Workout is "for the day". These are the people that go into the gym do a few of these, a few of those, and measure their fitness and "progress" by how tired they are. Yes, they may remember their best bench press or fastest mile time, but they don't train specifically to be better; only to be tired. Somehow this makes sense to them. And it well make sense if your goals in life are to be average. If you fall into this category, I applaud your working out and general fitness efforts. But we are here for a different reason: to put together a comprehensive system with an end goal." - Jim Wendler

Aside from laziness and pure lack of common sense, I would argue one of the biggest ailments affecting the average gym-goer is Training A.D.D. Training A.D.D. occurs when those with a short attention span go to the gym and do whatever random workout they feel like doing that day. There is no rhyme or reason to what they do. These individuals continue to spin their wheels, week after week, following whatever workout was posted in the latest edition of Shape magazine or FLEX.

Training ADD is the single biggest reason for stalled progress in any fitness program. It's like throwing darts blindfolded. Do you think most successful athletes take this approach? Think again.

 Don't be like Mike

Look, I know we are all busy. Work, family, house, the list is long, but it's really not all that complicated. You can still train 2 times per week and follow a good program. I have several clients that do exactly that.

So what defines a good program you ask? Well, there are 4 main elements and they all start with the letter P so you should easily be able to remember them.

1. Program

Successful programming implies you have to be following one in the first place. It really doesn't have to be that complicated. Just make sure your program revolves around these elements/movements.

• Nutrition
• Strength Training
• Squat
• Hinge
• Press
• Pull
• Lunge
• Core
• Conditioning
• Recovery

Set some goals, keep a training log, and have a plan.

If you are following all of the guide lines above, congratulations! You are actually following a program. If not, you are still wearing that blindfold and trying to hit that damn piñata.

If you still aren't sure what to do, educate yourself or seek help from a qualified professional. I have several resources listed throughout this site (including me) that can help you.

2. Progression

Progression involves increasing the stress placed on the body through an increase in difficulty. There are several elements of progression, but to simplify I will categorize into two types:

• Movements - This involves making movements more challenging by decreasing the mechanical advantage the body has against load. For example, a conventional deadlift is more challenging than a trap bar deadlift because the load is placed farther away from the body's axis of rotation. If a particular movement feels too easy or you feel you have sufficiently mastered it, you may progress it to the next step. A progression chart for the deadlift might look like this:

Pull through > Single KB RDL > Barbell RDL > Trap Bar DL > Sumo DL > Conventional DL

• Progressive Overload - Adding weight and/or repetitions over time. Pretty straight forward right? 

3. Periodization

Periodization is the planning of training to prepare the body for an event or end goal. Periodization is most commonly used by athletes, but you can use it to get better results if you understand how to simplify the principles.

The water gets a little murky when discussing periodization, largely because many coaches have different beliefs and it depends on what population you are working with. Some coaches believe it doesn't work at all.  Several types of periodization exist. Block, concurrent, linear, and soviet to name a few.

My belief is that periodization, in the traditional sense, only works with those who have very specific goals. Examples include powerlifters and Olympic weightlifters that are striving to make a certain total by a specific date, high level track and field athletes, and endurance athletes (marathoners, triathletes etc.).

For those who have more general goals (probably most of you reading this), a more simplified approach is needed. For this I will turn to whom I consider to be the Yoda of the strength and conditioning world, Mr. Daniel John.

In Dan John's first book, "Never Let Go" he discusses the AIT formula. With this approach, one simply breaks their training into three distinct phases:

1. Accumulation - Play time. During this phase one might try some new things such as participating in a new sport or developing a new skill. Maybe you never tried kettlebells before or you want to take up golf. Have some fun. Through this process you continue to work on your body composition goals or whatever else drives you, but through the lens of this new endeavor you begin to rethink and re-imagine your primary goals. Sometimes when we try something new we realize exactly what we have been missing.
2. Intensification - Time to ramp things up and take it to the next level. In this phase we zero in on exactly what we found was missing in the accumulation phase and set out to improve it. This involves setting some goals and getting a little more specific with our training. For example, if you found your strength was lacking you might prioritize improving your deadlift during this phase. Be specific!
3. Transformation - Putting it all together. Take everything you have learned and accomplished in the first two phases and put it to the test. By now you have expanded your mind and improved a weakness. Now make a big push, train hard, and hit that goal.

Each phase should last anywhere from 4-8 weeks. When you have completed the cycle, take some well deserved rest, then begin the process again. I think this is a great way to approach training for the general population year round.

4. Patience

In today's world of instant gratification nobody wants to actually give the process time to work. Anything good does not come easily or quickly. Rome wasn't built in a day. Keep the big picture in mind.

Speaking personally, it has taken me years of perseverance to clean up my squat technique. I've never been a great squatter, but I refuse to let that get in the way of my strength goals. After what seemed like an eternity of reading everything I could get my hands on, extra core and mobility work, and simply squatting more often I finally hit my goal of a 405 (double bodyweight) back squat last month. There were times when I considered giving up the lift altogether, but that's not in my DNA so I kept grinding.

Any good program takes time. Stay the course, train hard, stay focused and the gains will come.

Stuff You Should Read Because I Said So - 1/29/14

It's a wonderful morning here in the Carolinas. A balmy 21 degrees and our annual 2 inch snowfall has given me the opportunity to take the morning off work, slowly sip coffee and blog. Every year I find it absolutely hilarious that everything down here COMPLETELY shuts down at the mere threat of an tiny snowfall. Meanwhile, my friends to the north are enjoying -3 temperatures and copious amounts of snow. I'm sure most of you had to go to work as usual today too.

The view from my front porch

After work yesterday, I made a quick stop at the supermarket to grab some essentials (meat, vegetables and beer) and nearly lost a limb due to the horde of paranoid Carolinians stocking up on emergency milk and bread.

The snow is coming!!

Now that everyone is safely confined to their homes, we can proceed with some stuff you should read. I haven't posted one if these in a while, largely because I haven't read a ton of great content anywhere. I suppose I am no different as I didn't post much over the holidays either. 

Anyway, here is the best of what I have found over the last month or so. Enjoy!

 

Paleo: The Good, Bad and the Ugly

Getting Stronger During Fat Loss



Fixing Your Pushup with 2 Simple Corrections



How to Increase Your Chin-Ups



How to Increase Your Bench Press



Setting Up For a Big Squat



Laying the Foundation for Fat Loss



34 Training Tips for Women

Why Your "Cardio" Program is Falling Short

 
Admittedly, cardiovascular exercise has never been my favorite. On a personal level, I have always enjoyed lifting exponentially more than any form of conditioning. My love of strength training and movement (coupled with the fact I once aspired to be a physical therapist) has led me to devote the majority of my professional development to corrective exercise and strength development. Over the last several years I have studied biomechanics, functional anatomy, assessment modalities as well as strength training principles like periodization, basic progressive overload and more.

As I evolve in my professional development, I see the importance of understanding the ins and outs of energy system development. From fat loss to performance enhancement, an understanding of these principles is paramount to my success and the success of my clients. With that being said, the last year or so I have devoted a large block of time to understanding the principles of conditioning and energy system development. The following is a "compilation" of sorts of my research on the subject. This should help you approach your conditioning program more intelligently instead of throwing a bunch of shit at the wall and hoping it sticks.

Cardiovascular exercise is undoubtedly the most popular training modality out there. Walk into any gym and you will see droves of people plugging away on treadmills, ellipticals and stationary bikes. I'm sure you see at least a handful of people out pounding the pavement or riding their bikes on your way to work each and every day.

Aside from nutrition, "cardio" is where many individuals fall short. Whether we are talking about the general fitness enthusiast that wants to look better naked or the elite athlete, most reach a point where they are literally "spinning their wheels". There are two main reasons for this:

1. They don't do any conditioning at all.
2. They don't have an understanding of the correct methods.

I think we all know cardiovascular exercise is good for us. The benefits have been well documented. Most don't make it a priority because they don't like it (cough, cough), or struggle with making time (ie. lazy).

Conversely, dedicated cardio junkies see stalled progress they fail to train smart. Methods used are too repetitive or they fail to supplement with strength training. They let to pendulum swing too far in one direction for too long. This usually leads to stagnation or injury.

To take advantage and "maximize your investment" as far as time is concerned; you must understand how energy systems work. Then you can customize your training to meet your goals.

There are 3 energy systems used by the body to burn fuel:

1. Aerobic
2. Anaerobic Lactic
3. Anaerobic Alactic

A Word About ATP

 
Before we can understand these energy systems, we need to discuss ATP. Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) is a molecule that provides the fuel your muscles run on. Through a chemical reaction, ATP is broken down and energy is released. This energy is the fuel your muscles run on. ATP acts as your "energy currency". All the food you eat is broken down to be used as ATP in some way.

The Aerobic System

Use of the aerobic system is what most of us think of when we hear the word "cardio". The droves of individuals running, biking and rowing for extended periods of time are chiefly relying on their aerobic system for energy. 

The aerobic system is arguably the most important of the three. It is your foundation. It allows you to recover between sets, reps, and training sessions. It has the highest potential for improvement of the three systems (240%) and provides the majority of ATP needed to fuel your muscles.

A very important detail about the aerobic system is that it uses oxygen to to produce ATP by breaking down fat (mostly). When you see the "fat burning zone" on the treadmill, this is what it is referring to. After approximately two minutes, your body realizes that it needs to rely on fat instead of sugar for energy, so it uses the oxygen you are consuming to break down fat and produce ATP.

While this is all well and good, we need to realize that when you are done with aerobic work, the "fat burning" ends. A well developed aerobic system is paramount for recovery, performance and well being, but it does little to increase your resting metabolism.You might be burning a lot of calories during, but none after.

Advantages of a Well Developed Aerobic System

• Improved Recovery - A well developed aerobic system allows the body to regenerate ATP at a faster rate between sets, reps, circuits, whatever. It also gives us the ability to shift from a sympathetic (fight or flight) state to a parasympathetic (rest and digest) state more quickly and more frequently, allowing for better recovery between training sessions.
• Neuroplasticity - Better aerobic development increases growth factor output in the brain, making us more receptive to changing movement. Ever tried a new stretch or movement and felt your heart rate rise quickly? This is because your body is shifting into "fight or flight" mode. When your aerobic system is more efficient, you will remain in a parasympathetic state, allowing you to adapt to this change without turning into a stress ball. 
• Stimulate Production of Neurotransmitters - Aerobic fitness stimulates the release of dopamine, norepinephrine, seratonin and more. Increasing your sense of well being.

The Anaerobic Systems

Anaerobic systems are capable of producing short bursts of power. Activities like sprinting, jumping, lifting weights and midget tossing are where the anaerobic systems are utilized the most.

Anaerobic systems generate huge amounts of ATP much faster than their aerobic counterpart, but also fatigue quickly. While the aerobic system relies on oxygen and fat to produce ATP, the anaerobic systems rely on glucose (sugar) to produce energy. Glucose metabolizes much faster than fat (4 calories per gram of glucose vs. 9 calories per gram of fat), which is why the anaerobic systems utilize it as the principle energy source. So in laymen terms, anaerobic systems burn carbs.

There are two anaerobic systems:

1. Lactic - relies mostly on glucose - capable of bursts of 100% intensity for up to 1 min.
2. Alactic - relies on creatine phosphate - capable of bursts of 100% intensity for 10-12 seconds. 

I find it important to know the distinction between the two systems, but for the purpose of this post, we will group these two systems into one. 

It is worth noting that when trained correctly, the anaerobic systems utilize carbohydrates during AND after training. This increases resting metabolism for long periods of time after training. 

Advantages of a Well Developed Anaerobic System

• Increased power output - You run faster, jump higher, throw midgets farther, and lift heavier loads more quickly. Mkay?
• Burn more carbs now and later - While the aerobic system uses fats for the majority of its energy, the anaerobic systems use glucose (carbs) to produce energy. From a fat loss standpoint, this is fantastic because the less carbs you have in your body outside of training, the lower the chance they will be shuttled away to be stored as fat later. After training, left over carbs are shuttled away to the liver and muscle cells to be stored for later activity.
• Increase in resting metabolism - Research is a little murky on this topic, but after anaerobic work the body consumes more oxygen (EPOC - excess post exercise oxygen consumption) indicating a spike in resting metabolism afterward.

 So How Do We Put All This Together?

Well, as with many questions in the fitness world, it depends. It depends on your goals and current abilities. As mentioned before, we can't let the pendulum swing too far or for too long regardless of your goals.

The determining factor in what to do is something is a universal principle throughout effective program design:

BEGIN. WITH. ASSESSMENT!

No matter what the goal or where you are in your current program, you MUST continue to assess where you are (point A) and where you need to go (point B) to make continued progress.

Assessing the Aerobic System

There are several methods of assessing the aerobic system, many of them fairly complex. For our purposes I like to keep things simple with two tests. A heart rate monitor is very helpful here.

1. Resting Heart Rate (RHR) - A lower resting heart rate indicates a greater stroke volume (amount of oxygenated blood ejected from the left ventricle with each contraction), a higher level of aerobic fitness, and a less sympathetic dominant nervous system. Measure your resting heart rate (preferably in a seated or lying position). A RHR of less than 60 BPM is considered above average.
2. Heart Rate Reserve (HRR) - This measures recovery after intense exercise and how fast one can transition from a sympathetic to parasympathetic state. Pretty simple here: elevate the HR to 170-180 and measure the duration of recovery needed to reach 130 BPM. One minute is best.

Assessing the Anaerobic System

The anaerobic system is a little harder to assess because of the lack of quantitative data obtained in the tests. Many of these are also dependent on technique and body composition of the individual. For example, an overweight individual probably won't do very well on these tests. I use three tests. Again a heart rate monitor is helpful:

1. Max Push Ups - perform as many as possible with perfect technique as fast as possible. If it takes longer than one minute you are going too slow.
• Above average male: 30-35 push ups
• Above average female: 15-20 push ups
2. Max Chin Ups - Same rules as above.
• Above average male: 12-15 chin ups
• Above average female: 4-6 chin ups
3. One Minute Sprint - To be an efficient sprinter, you must use the entire body, so this is the best measure of anaerobic fitness of the three. Use an outdoor/indoor track, airdyne, or (please don't crucify me for this) elliptical trainer. Sprint as fast and as far as possible and measure the distance covered in one minute and average HR. Greater distance with lower or same HR = improvement. 

Designing a Training Program

Now that you have some real data, you are able to deign a program based on the assessment and your goals. 

Aerobic Training Methods

As stated before, the aerobic system is your foundation. Regardless of how strong and fit you think you are, a well developed aerobic system is paramount for increased performance, well being, and overall health. While just about anyone can benefit from some aerobic work, it is the best form of conditioning for beginners.

• Cardiac Output Method - This method increases the size of the left ventricle of the heart, allowing for a greater stroke volume over time. Perform any activity where the heart rate stays between 120-150 BPM for 30-60 minutes. If you don't have a heart rate monitor, the "talk test" is a serviceable alternative to measuring whether or not you are in the aerobic zone. If you can't talk during training, you aren't in the aerobic zone. 
• Power Intervals - Power intervals increase the strength of the heart. Perform intervals at maximum intensity for 60-120 seconds with a long rest (2-5 mins or a Heart Rate Recovery of 120-130) in between. Again, perform these for 30-60 minutes.
• Tempo Training - Tempo training increases the size of slow twitch muscle fibers, which are dominant during aerobic training. These involve the use of compound strength training movements (squat, RDL, bench press etc.) for a specific tempo. Each rep should last approximately 4-6 seconds. Trust me, these will do a number on you. 

 Anaerobic Training Methods

Again, anaerobic training is the preferred method used for fat loss and power development. It is best utilized by intermediate to advanced trainees. There are several methods used in anaerobic training that go beyond the scope of this post, but I will provide a few examples:

• Strength Training - Heavy weights with moderate to high rest, or moderate weights done for speed with moderate to high rest periods work best .
•  Generally, activities like sprinting, jumping, and throwing done for maximum intensity with lots of rest (1-5 minutes) done for 20-40 minutes work best to develop the anaerobic system. 
• Experiment with ratios of 1/2 - 1/6 work/rest intervals. For example 30s work/90s rest. You will need the rest if performed correctly!

It bears repeating that you must perform repetitions near or at maximum intensity for the given amount of time/reps to develop this energy pathway.

Summary

This has been a little long-winded, so I'll summarize in bullet form:

• You must have balance in your training to achieve maximum results. Conditioning is no different. Both aerobic and anaerobic work should be present in your program.
• Assess first and design a program based on your findings and goals.
• If RHR is above 60 and/or HRR is poor, you are a beginner. Do more aerobic training and get anaerobic work through strength training.
• If fat loss is the primary goal and the aerobic system is sound, focus more on anaerobic training methods. 
• Performance goals are more specific. If your goals are more performance based begin with a more general approach, then tailor your training to be more contest/event specific the closer you get to event day. 

Hopefully this rather verbose post helps you to get more out of your conditioning by training smarter. Have any questions/comments? Leave em' below in the comments section!

Distance Coaching Now Available

The landscape of personal training is changing.

The longer I am in the fitness business, the more aware I become of the limitations of one-on-one personal training. Don't get me wrong, I love helping others to improve their health and sense of well-being. It's a big reason I do what I do, but my scope of influence is limited in a formal in person setting.

Due to a combination of gym protocols, location dependency, and limited time, I can’t always provide my clients with the type of service that I believe they need and deserve. For example:

An effective workout is almost never exactly 1 hour in time

Some protocols call for 45 minutes, some as little as 30. Yet, in order to avoid a scheduling nightmare, I am forced to be with each client for a set period of time. Don't you think your training should take priority over how much time is on the clock?

Personal training is expensive

I absolutely believe I'm worth it, but the reality is that personal training is very much a luxury. It costs in excess of  $200 per week to work 1 on 1 with a personal trainer and that is just not an option for most people. Especially long term. I've seen it several times. The kids need braces, getting laid off, the air conditioner breaks. Guess what the first thing to go is? Now Matt has to shop at Aldi's and is stuck at home with a can of Beanie Weenies.

Limited Availability

I can only be available so many hours in a day, thus a limited amount of time exists where I can accommodate my client's schedules.

So I came up with a solution. Online personal training is quickly gaining popularity in the fitness industry. It is more flexible, and most importantly, much more cost effective.

If you are someone who possesses the necessary motivation, but needs some extra guidance, distance coaching might be a great fit for you.

I have put a lot of time into developing the systems which will allow this to run smoothly. Needless to say, I am pretty excited about it and believe this will be a great service. In order to provide the best service, I am only taking on a small number of clients. If you are interested act quickly! Just click on the distance coaching tab above for more information.

A New Year, Goals, and How I Train

Happy New Year Everyone!

Its been a while since I've posted anything. Sometimes I find myself falling victim to the information overload that runs rampant across the internet. With that being said, after the holidays I felt the need to take a bit of a blogcation and disconnect from cyber space. Admittedly, I haven't been feeling overly inspired lately either.

The last few weeks I have taken some time to think about how I would like to deliver my content from here on out. If you have followed me for any length of time you might notice I take more of an informational approach as I enjoy the teaching/coaching process and hope to impart my Gandalf like wisdom onto the end user. With that being said I will keep things informative, but plan on making things more personal as well. After all fitness is something that is very near and dear to my own heart for so many reasons.  I want to give you a window into my own training and day-to-day in hopes that you will connect with me and draw some inspiration from what I do.

So let me briefly bring you up to speed with what I have been up to the last few weeks.

We traveled home for Christmas and spent close to a week up in PA with family. It was great to just relax and veg out for several days while eating inordinate amounts of Christmas cookies and visiting with family. My family and I have a very close relationship, so I always feel comforted and more grounded after spending some time with them and away from the rat race of life.

After returning from the frozen tundra of Northwest PA, I sat down and made a list of some goals I want to accomplish in 2014. There is one big change I plan on making this year that will consume the majority of my time, but I am not at liberty to discuss it at the moment. Needless to say there are going to be some big changes and challenging days ahead, but I welcome it with open arms. Other goals I want to accomplish this year are:

• Pay off some debt (why do I laugh every time I say this?)
• Finish my garage
• Surpass 550lbs on the deadlift
• Surpass 420 on the back squat
• Be a better husband by being more patient, supportive, and doing one thing I don't want to do every day

I don't want to be a cliché like everyone else and make the "new years resloutions". This is why I call them goals, not resolutions. Setting goals is part of healthy living. We all should strive to be better individuals and accomplish new things regularly.

As far as my training goes, things are going pretty well. I still have aspirations of competing in a meet, but with my other goals I'm not quite ready to make that commitment just yet. I will continue to train hard and heavy, so my lifts should continue to go up provided I approach things intelligently and listen to my body. I don't feel the need to measure my success based on competition. I truly enjoy how training makes me feel and as long as the weight in my training log keeps increasing, I am happy. With that being said, I understand that competing will allow me to truly test my limits and push things to a new level, so it is definitely something I want to do.

I have been using Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 as my base template since 2010 and I really can't say enough good things about it. Since beginning the program I have seen amazing gains in strength and overall fitness. As my strength has improved, I have had to modify the program to continue to see the progress I desire, (add heavy doubles and singles, cycle main lifts etc.) but I still stay true to the roots of the program. If you are serious about getting strong and want to keep things simple, look no further. Also, Jim recently released his latest book, Beyond 5/3/1, and it is absolutely fantastic.

As a side note, for Christmas I received a pair of Rehband knee sleeves. These might be one of the best gifts I have ever received. I am a taller lifter (6'2'') with longer legs, so I have a long way down to below parallel. My knees feel great after using these for just a few weeks and they provide excellent support. If you squat heavy and deep (as you should if  you have the requisite mobility and stability), or do a lot of Olympic lifting, these are a must own.

As you may or may not know, I like to keep things pretty simple regarding nutrition. Ready to have your mind blown? Whole foods, protein, lots of fruits and veggies, and healthy grains like oats and brown rice form the basis of my nutrition. Beer is my vice and that's never going to change, so don't hate. I maintain a pretty good body comp year round, so I must be doing something right. Even Superman had kryptonite so it's ok if you do too. Don't try and re-invent the wheel here. You already know what to do so sack up and make it happen.

Well that's about enough talking about myself. Hopefully this gives you a small glimpse of how I plan on approaching my training and nutrition over the next year. If you have any questions or feedback don't hesitate to drop something in the comments section!

I wish you all success in the new year!