Last week I discussed how people can get enamored with certain exercises which the often leads to confusion when it comes time to write the program as the individual is paralyzed with all the potential options and overwhelmed with the notion that they have to do everything in one training session.
In that article I also included a link to the old Bill Starr 5×5 program. This program can take you a long way as it affords you the time to work on your exercise technique for some of the key lifts in strength training (you don’t need to max out loads to do the program and even beginners can perform the program with very light weight and just making small increases each week and of course if an exercise does not work for an individual for one reason or another you can simply swap it out for something else).
Once you have performed that program long enough and are ready to move on, a simple way to set up your training would be to concurrently train different qualities. For example, instead of focusing only on strength in your workout you would actually try and perform a little bit of everything – a little strength, a little power (speed type activities), and a little repetitive work (for anatomical adaptation or local muscle endurance).
With most beginners or those that only have a short period of time to prepare for a competitive season this sort of concurrent approach seems to work really well. For the beginner it exposes them to a variety of different stimuli and allows them to make a vast number of adaptations in their overall fitness. For the individual with only a few weeks to prepare for their competitive season this type of program will ensure that they are hitting the major qualities they need for their sport when time is limited (obviously when possible it is best to have an appropriate amount of time to focus on the necessary qualities and not be forced to rush into things).
Below is a simple concurrent training program I used a few years ago for some high school athletes who were familiar with the proper technique for the basic exercises because we first spent time learning them.
Day 1
Warm up (Begin with movements specific to FMS needs and progress to dynamic activities like squats, push ups, skips, hops, and easy jumps)
1) Box Jump – 3×5
2) Bench press- 3-5 x 3-5
3a) 1-leg/2-arm DB RDL- 3×6-8
3b) one arm db row- 3×6-8
4) core work
Day 2
Warm up (Begin with movements specific to FMS needs and progress to dynamic activities like squats, push ups, skips, hops, and easy jumps)
1) Medicine ball over the back throw- 3×3
2) Squat- 3-5 x 3-5
3a) Db incline press- 3×6-8
3b) 1-arm cable row – 3×6-8
4) core work
Day 3
Warm up (Begin with movements specific to FMS needs and progress to dynamic activities like squats, push ups, skips, hops, and easy jumps)
1) Power Clean – 3×5
2) Pull up variation- 3-5 x 3-5
3a) Split squat – 3×6-8
3b) DB bench press – 3×6-8
4) core work
As you can see, the program is pretty simple. Each day begins with some sort of explosive movement – Day 1 = Lower body explosive, Day 2 = Upper body explosive, Day 3 = Total body explosive (Olympic lift variation is usually what I select here. You can choose to do the full lifts or just perform pulls if you are more comfortable with that). The strength training program is just made up of three exercises – a push, a pull, and a lower body exercise. Again, you can use which ever exercises you like. The first exercise immediately following the explosive exercise is considered the “main lift” for that day and is loaded the heaviest. Each of the three days has a main lift devoted to one of the three main movement patterns – push, legs, pull. I used 3-5 sets x 3-5 reps down as the sets and reps will vary depending on (a) how the athlete is feeling and (b) what the athlete did the week prior so that we can progress properly. These don’t need to be full on max effort lifts and usually we are leaving 1-2 reps in the tank with one out of every 4-5 weeks we make an attempt to work up to an RM load (if the athlete is up to it). The next two exercises, which make up the other 2 movement patterns that were not main lifts for that day, are performed for reps to enhance local muscle endurance or for anatomical adaptation (hypertrophy). I usually use 6-8 reps but sometimes we will do 8-12 reps. For these exercises, again, we commonly leave 1-2 reps in the tank but there are times where we may try and do reps to exhaustion. The workout concludes with some basic core work, usually done in a circuit fashion which also will include some sort of “pre-hab” activity for the sport.
Additional notes:
- The rest intervals for the explosive activity and the main lift (the heavy strength exercise) are as much as the athlete needs, usually 3-5min, to ensure that they can move the load as quickly as possible (even with the heavy strength work they are trying to move the weight fast). The rest intervals for the exercise following the main lift is shorter and can be anywhere from 1-2min (sometimes down to 45sec).
- Rest intervals can be completely passive rest, however, I do like to occupy some of the rest interval time (especially for the exercises requiring longer rest) with some of the corrective strategies that were used in the warm up which focus on the athlete’s main needs. Of course it should go without saying that exercise selection should be driven by the athlete’s needs and deficiencies. If the movement screen uncovers a glaring limitation that takes a specific exercise off the table then a different exercise which is more appropriate should be substituted, to ensure the safety and health of the athlete, while that limitation is appropriately addressed through corrective strategies or other means necessary.
- The workout looks brief and it is. It should take somewhere around 50-70min depending on the time needed during the warm up. This leaves time for other activities such as practice, energy system work, sprinting, etc. The way these other things fit into the program is essential and will vary depending on the time of year, the athlete’s needs, and the focus of the program. Depending on these factors the workout may be even lower/higher in volume or the intensity may be scaled back/ramped up. The key is to remember that you are training an athlete and not a powerlifter so what you do in the gym is really an adjunct to the actual sport, it isn’t the “main show” itself.
To recap, it doesn’t need to be overly complicated. It is easy to get swept away with complex periodization schemes, block periodization, undulating systems, and vertical integration. However, for most beginner athletes with a young training age a concurrent program that addresses their needs and is tailored to complement their overall sports program (practice and competition) will get you very far. As the individual gets more advanced you can begin to consolidate similar qualities onto separate days or into specific blocks of concentrated loads.
Keep it simple. Work hard!