March 2013 - Basic Guidelines for Resistance / Weight Training

If you haven’t read last month’s article yet, scroll down and have a quick read as this is an expansion on many points within that article. As previously stated it is important to pick your desired training outcome and tailor your workout program to compliment this. 
“If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else” - Laurence J. Peter

I have put together a basic guide for different types of training in order to help you design effective sessions for your desired outcome.

Training for Strength
Who is it for? 
- Athletes who want to increase their power, speed or max strength
- Strength training is also incorporated into those aiming for muscle growth; however, it is not their main focus and does not make up the bulk of their training

What are the guidelines for a strength training workout?

• 2-4 different compound exercises 
  

(Larger movements involving multiple muscles working together)
Examples: Deadlift, Squats, Barbell Bent over Row, Military Press, Pull/Chin Ups, Bench Press

• Low rep range: 1-6reps per set

• High sets: 5-8 sets per exercise
• Explosive tempo in effort phase & controlled tempo in eccentric phase (E.g. Squat Tempo 30X0 & Bb Bent Over Row Tempo 20X1)
  
• Long Rest 3-5min 

(Work opposing muscles in rest time to increase the workouts volume without having to largely sacrifice a muscle group’s recovery time, e.g. Barbell Bent over Row onto Bench Press)

Training for Hypertrophy guidelines
Who is it for?
-  Anyone wanting to increase the size (cross sectional area) of their muscles
- This can be for improvements in your metabolism
- This can help aid strength gains alongside strength training 
- This can be used for aesthetic reasons

What are guidelines?

• 6-10 different exercises
  

 (Base workout on compound exercises however isolation exercises can be incorporated to target specific areas)

•  Moderate rep range 8-12reps

• Controlled tempo focusing on squeezing the target muscle (E.g. Squat Tempo 3120 & Bb Bent Over Row Tempo 3021)

• Rest 45sec-90sec 
  

Training for Fat Loss & Cardiovascular Benefits
Training for fat loss is often similar to training for hypertrophy as one of the main goals of the workout in to increase the muscles size in order to improve your metabolism. However, when the primary goal is fat loss there are a few changes such as larger movements, higher intensity & more energy expended per workout.

Who is it for?
-  Anyone looking to improve their metabolism to aid fat loss
-  People wanting to maintain their muscle tissue during weight loss
- Anyone wanting to use resistance exercise to improve their cardiovascular system

What are guidelines?

•  8-12 different exercises (Large compound exercises with big range of movement)

• Rep ranges focus around 8-12reps & occasionally 15-25reps

• Controlled tempo focusing on squeezing the target muscle (E.g. Squat Tempo 3120 & Bb Bent Over Row Tempo 3021)

•  Low Rest Intervals 30sec-60sec (Rest intervals do not have to be taken after every set)

• To maintain a high heart rate and workload order exercises as 1st set upper body push, 2nd set upper body pull & 3rd set legs, then rest before repeating