How to structure a training week

This post is no doubt going to leave me open to those who disagree and tell me that you should have a clear linear periodisation plan that first builds strength then converts it to power etc.

Put your toys back in the pram and your periodisation textbook back on the shelf. Science is great, real world results are better.

Just to prove how powerful this can be, I yesterday ran 8.25 miles in 58 minutes which included 8 x 50m STEEP hill climbs up and down on grass at half way and a fairly steep road hill at about 7 miles.

Whilst this is not anything that special to a 'runner' I run once per week because I have to get ready for an endurance event I am doing in July.

I hadn't run until February.

I have also maintained my muscle and kept body fat at about 7% rather than ending up like a stick thin Sunday Shuffler / Pavement Pounder.



I can also...

- Deadlift 2.5 times my bodyweight
- Squat 2 x my bodyweight
- Perform a single leg squat with a 32kg kettlebell
- Perform 15-20 single arm push ups

This isn't a brag and there are many people who could outperform that, however the point is that people tend to believe that you can only have good endurance OR be strong OR maintain muscle.

Consider that I also have kind of bodytype which qualifies me for the Grasshopper Olympics and has had me labelled 'lanky streak of ****' by my Grandad and 'gangly' in local newspaper sports reports.

If you want to be the BEST at any of the above, then no this training isn't ideal, but the vast majority of us out there want to be capable of many things all at once - it makes life much more enjoyable and gives us much more potential!

My training philosophy is to build lean athletic bodies which, whilst they won't win bodybuilding competitions nor half-marathons, are capable of holding their own in ANY competition.

They are capable of sprinting faster than most, running 10k faster than most and looking better than most.

Clearly the need for such abilities will fluctuate but the point is you have a great base of everything so that you can be ready to specialise for any event as required.

So what does a training week look like for me at the moment?:

Monday - Anaerobic Conditioning

A challenge such as 5 rounds as fast as possible of:

30 extreme kettlebell swings
15 burpee-pull ups
10 kettlebell jerks
10 sprints across my studio
No rest

Repeat until 5 rounds are complete

Tuesday - Strength

Dumbell snatch
4 x 5 reps 45 sec rest

Superset of 1 leg squat with 2 kettlebell press
4 x 5 each side 60 sec rest after press

Superset of 1 arm push up with pull up (using weighted vest)
4 sets stoppping 1 rep short of failure

Wednesday - Anaerobic conditioning

Hill 'sprintervals'

Treadmill on steep incline (or find a nice hill outside - I live in the city centre!)

8 rounds of 45 seconds at high speed - 90 seconds rest between each interval

15 minutes steady run at 75-80%



Thursday - Rest

Mobility and flexibility work )e.g foam rolling and developmental stretching

Friday - Strength

1 arm dumbbell clean and press

Superset of barbell front squat with weighted pull up
4 x 5 reps - 60 seconds rest after pull up

Superset of 1 arm dumbbell chest press with single arm row
4 x 5 reps each side - 60 seconds rest after pull up

Glute-ham raise
4 sets to 1 short of failure

Saturday - Rest

Mobility and flexibility

Sunday

Long run (at the moment due to requirements for Tough Guy event)

*****************************************

This is just one week.

4 times per week is core work using varied sets, reps and exercises.

Each week certain variables will change.

I might do one arm pull up strength practice or side-to-side pullups.

I might do kettlebell snatches instead of dumbbells.

I might use isometrics and complex training (not complexes) to increase strength and power.

Sometimes I'll do more strength and less conditioning.

Please do not take this as a 6 week program or anything like that, it is purely to demonstrate how to mould strength training with conditioning without burning out.

What if I can't train that much?

If you only have time to train three times per week you might do 15 mins heavy strength work at the start of a session followed by 20 minutes conditioning.

There is no set way of training so don't get caught up in performing the same sessions every week just so you 'get better at it'.

If it hurts, makes you sweat, is balanced in terms of muscles used and gives certain energy systems enough recovery time, it will work.

And don't forget to eat well!


Jon

Best fat burning exercises or best exercises for burning fat?

I often get asked what are the best fat burning exercises.

It's a good question!

We all want to know how we can get the most from our time and burn the most fat without having to spend hours in the gym.



The truth is there is a big distinction between these two questions:

What are the best fat burning exercises?

What are the best exercises for burning fat?

Sound the same?

They're not!

Fat burning occurs from the following actions:

1) Creating an oxygen debt in your training.

In other words your training must cause significant increases in body heat and lactic acid so that a much higher intake of oxygen than usual is required to help remove the lactic acid (a toxin) and cool your body down to it's preferred temperature.

The result is a greatly elevated metabolic rate as these processes occur as fast as possible to return your body to homeostasis ('the norm' - the level at which your body is comfortable and doesn't feel threatened in anyway)

2) Building lean muscle or at least maintaining a good level of lean muscle.

Muscle burns calories, so more muscle burns more calories.

3) Consuming less calories than you burn

We all know that to lose fat you must eat and drink less than you burn through your base metabolic rate (what you burn just to keep your vital organs working), daily activities and exercise.

Most people grossly overestimate what they burn in the gym and what they eat at meals. Half the time they actually forget all the little things they nibbled on.

This can be very frustrating if youw ork hard at the gym and see no results but it's VERY common.

Those three points are the simple truths behind fat loss.

The problem is that everyone focusses on what happens in their training and so ask the question "What are the best fat burning exercises?"

The answers are not squats, deadlifts, thrusters or anything else because if you are not performing them with high intensity they STILL won't have an effect because you have not created an oxygen by working hard enough!

So the best exercises for fat burning are in fact:

1) Train with a partner or team who will push you beyond your mental limits and get you much closer to your physical limits. This will create huge levels of oxygen debt and ramp up your metabolic rate for anything up to 36 hours after your training session.

Yes these exercises should be based around squats, deadlifts, lunges, pull ups, chin ups, push ups, burpees, sprints, kettlebell swings, kettlebells snatches, dumbbell swings, dumbbell snatches and bent over rows.

However, if you are not working at at least 80-90% when performing them and getting very hot and uncomfortable, your results will be severely limited!

Use supersets, circuits, timed challenges and anything else which maximises work rate and physical stress and minmises rest time.

This must be done 4-5 times per week for at least 20 minutes each time.

2) Write out a food diary for just one week and count the calories consumed - you'll be shocked.

Then make sure 95% of your diet comes from lean protein, vegetables and small doses of health fats.

Combined with Point 1) this will create a calorie deficit.



3)Ensure you also perform heavy strength training to build or at least maintain lean muscle tissue.

This will not burn fat as you perform it but it WILL elevate your metabolic rate for a good while after and give you a better body shape.

There you have it!

The best exercises for burning fat.

Jon

Don't forget today is the last day to get the Storm Force Fitness fat loss cookbook at 40% off

5 reasons to love metabolic weight training

I used to be one of those kids who blindly bundled into the local leisure centre gym with a list like this from Page 19 of Men's Health Issue 116.

Squat (with bad technique) 3 x 10
Leg press - hamstring curl 3 x 10 superset
Dumbell press 3 x 10 with small dumbbells
Bent over row (with bent back to contribute to spine fracture) 3 x 10 or until lower back hurts
Bicep curls 3 x 10 supersetted with tricep extension 3 x 10

You get the message....

This was before a 30 minute 'fat burning' run on the treadmill in front of 'A Question of Sport' on the TV.

Needless to stay I stayed skinny and never really saw any improvements in ANYTHING!

All I got was overuse injuries, boredom and flack from my Mum for taking so long at the gym that I was late for tea.

10 years on I am the world's biggest fan of metabolic weight training.

Why?

1) It involves weight training



Weight training which goes beyond pink dumbbells and aerobic-style step up and press manouevres, builds lean muscle tissue.

Lean muscle tissue burns calories so the more you have the more you burn!

2) It is also based around interval training



This not only causes a release of growth hormone to help with muscle growth but when done for short, near maximal bursts of 20 seconds, it uses mainly fast twitch muscle fibres which grow thicker and faster than the slow twitch fibres which domintate in steady state cardio.

Again this means more muscle and a greater metabolic rate at rest.

Also the anaerobic nature of well-performed interval training creates an oxygen debt. In other words, your metabolic rate will increase in order to haul in more oxygen for all the necessary repair processes including cooling your body down and removing lactic acid from your muscles.

It can take around 24 hours for full restoration to occur. String three of four such sessions together over a week and you have a recipe for a permanently elevated metabolism!

The beauty of intense, anaerobic interval based training, either in traditional cardio style or using weights (I love kettlebells!), is that if you work hard enough during the intense burst, your heart rate will fall between intervals but still be high enough to be within the 'aerobic zone' as people like to call it.

So you can see how anaerobic training can improve aerobic performance but NOT the other way around.

3) It is exciting and can be based around time challenges, repetition challenges etc

This means every sessions can and should be different - the key is intensity!

The variety means you are much more likely to stick to such a program.

4) You can perform such sessions anywhere and with any equipment.



Again the focus is on intensity rather than the monotonous repetition of having to perform 3 x 10 barbell back squats with 5kg more than last time, every week for 8 weeks.

5) You are more likely to develop different elements of fitness by combining power and strength work with anaerobic endurance thus becoming more athletic than the guy who may have big thick muscles but can't jump over a stray cat due to poor agility.


You may not become a specialist in any of them but you will have low body fat (if you're nutrition is right) and be a much healthier and athletic individual!

You'll also find that your aerobic endurance capacity gets ramped up at the same time with no real focus on it!

If you want to be a champion 10k runner you need to do long runs - fact.

Those who want a lean, atheltic body need metabolic weight training - fact!

What you thought you knew isn't working to have a think about opening your mind!