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Oh! How many people I meet in the gym that don't know...
Do you know exactly why you are exercising... Do you know your goals? Do you have a specific reason? To play with your kids? Grandkids? Think about it! Now, do you know if what you're doing is achieving that? Do you want to ski this year? Osteoporosis scare you? Did your doctor just scare you? Are you just trying to get in better shape or do you want to be able to do something that you currently cannot do? Now, do you know if your current program is going to get you there? How are you measuring your progress? Generic goals cannot really be focused on and specific goals are usually not approached with the proper program or progressions! Here are a few issues I have as a coach analyzing the average person's current workout. Keep in mind that the following need to be taught by a skilled coach. Each aspect must have appropriate step by step phases and be age, strength, and ability oriented. If you can move, this is for you.
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Is everything linear?
The average Joe tends to go to the gym and do every single thing straight up and down or forward and back. The treadmill is walking straight ahead, as is the bike, elliptical, stair climber... The leg press, extension, hamstring curl, etc. are all great but still in a straight line. With everything in a straight line, how much does that resemble real life? Average Joe can be as strong as an ox but tweak his back putting on his socks! A proper exercise program will vary the stresses from different directions, even on those elbow and knee hinge joints, and especially the multi directional spine, shoulders, hips, and ankles!
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How much is done on machines or sitting down and with back support?
Too many people get stall on their potential improvements by spending years using novice exercises. Part of the above linear issue is that of stability and coordination. I want to make darn sure that the most difficult, goofy, and/or intense things we do happen in the controlled gym environment. Strategic progressions of instability will prepare you not only for sports but for kids, grand kids, and life! How often do we get to put a heavy box on top shelf with a bench supporting our backs? Oh my gosh! How many people get hurt from falling down? Who doesn't need balance and coordination?
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How fast do you move or want to move?
One of the most nonspecific aspects of weight training is the speed at which the exercise is performed. Again, I must emphasize that this is relative to your goals, lifestyle, and aspirations. With the building of muscles around a joint and the strength phase that follows, more sport and life specific speeds should be looked at. Typical weight room exercises are performed much slower than activities outside the gym. Think how much you have to slow down to prevent hyper extension of the knees or elbows. Now think of how the body miraculously adjusts in the elbow during a tennis serve, golf swing, throwing a Frisbee. We have to be so consciously careful when leg pressing or squatting and yet a simple and basic jump is exponentially faster, more ballistic and powerful. Anyone that even partially resembles an active lifestyle needs to develop all that hard earned weight room strength into usable outside the gym power!
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This stuff is absolutley and positively not only for athletes wanting to run faster or tackle harder! How fast can you get up off the floor? If you want to do it faster, this is for you! How heavy are your suitcases relative to the heaviest weights you use in the gym? Picking up groceries and suitcases require not just strength but power. A coach using only machines is taking the easy way out. The most common weight training exercises have extreme limitations. Did you know that?
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