Metal85
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
[h=1]Smarter, high-intensity workouts[/h] Written by Cornell Hunt
High-intensity exercise such as CrossFit and HIIT offers many advantages.
For people looking to improve their health who are up to the challenge, such benefits as functional fitness, strength and movement skills are to be had with a short investment of time. So on the surface it’s a win-win.
Yet coaches should be wary of using high-intensity training with athletes who play a sport. For instance, when we train athletes at an elevated heart rate, we must make sure the reward far outweighs the risk. I am a huge proponent of incorporating exercises that challenge athletes mentally and physically, but I also know when to train that way and when not to.
My point is to shed some light on a popular fitness trend and explore how high-intensity work can be dangerous when not done properly. With all the training approaches available, there is a time and place for everything — and knowing when to use high-intensity protocols can make all the difference for both trainer and lifter.
In CrossFit even top athletes like Rich Froning and Jason Khalipa follow programs that are designed for them to peak for the CrossFit Games. They don’t do the same extreme training regimen year-round. So as a strength-and-conditioning coach, I must know my clients based on a needs analysis and then tailor their programs to those needs.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all training approach for athletes who compete in different sports. For example, most of my clients perform the bench press regularly, but they do different variations based on their sport, injury history or sport season. We also use high-intensity-training programs to instill a positive body adaptation as well as mental toughness.
According to the CrossFit website, “The aim of CrossFit is to forge a broad, general and inclusive fitness.… CrossFit itself is defined as that which optimises fitness (constantly varied functional movements performed at relatively high intensity).” This may be great for the general population looking for basic increases in health and body composition, but I caution about having specific athletes who are training for a specific purpose do it.
Every sport has different energy systems that need to be addressed in its conditioning programs. While it is beyond the scope of this article to go into detail about those energy systems, understanding their basic premises can serve you well when you’re designing a workout.
Anaerobic alactic energy system
This is used for short durations lasting up to 10 seconds. It doesn’t require any oxygen, and lactic acid build-up doesn’t occur. Creatine phosphate powers the alactic energy system to assist in energy development, which is the reason that creatine supplementation is important when you’re training for power and strength. Sports such as powerlifting, Olympic lifting and even golf primarily use the anaerobic alactic energy system.
Try this workout to challenge your short-duration energy: Pick a weight that’s between 70 and 80 per cent of your one-rep-max deadlift. Maintaining precise exercise form and using the tap-and-go technique of touching the floor and immediately standing back up after each rep, perform as many reps as you can in 10 seconds. Record your number. Give yourself between 45 and 60 seconds of rest, not allowing yourself to recover fully but just enough to give it another go. Then take another shot at the deadlifts. Aim to get the same number of reps during each 10 seconds of work. Continue until you can no longer perform a repetition.
Anaerobic lactic energy system
This system is used for short durations as well, but with the help of glucose it lasts longer than the alactic system. The accumulation of hydrogen ions and lactic acid causes fatigue; however, this system will provide energy for up to two minutes.
Here’s a workout to challenge the anaerobic lactic energy system: Grab a weighted barbell with which you can do all the lifts below. Choose a poundage that provides a realistic yet challenging weight for all of them. Perform front squats for 30 seconds, and then immediately go into push presses for 30 seconds. Follow that with back squat jumps for 30 seconds and then bent-over rows for 30 seconds.
That’s two solid minutes of work. Give yourself about four minutes of recovery time after each giant set. That may seem like a lot, but remember that you need to recover from a highly intense work period.
Aerobic energy system
This is the energy system that’s most associated with steady-state exercise and involves how fast your body can take in oxygen and use it. Aerobic training also increases the number of mitochondria in the cells, which is attributed to better endurance. The aerobic energy system is used for durations of more than three minutes.
Try this aerobic workout: Set the treadmill to a 5.0 incline. Run at a speed that you can keep up for four minutes. After four minutes bring the incline down to 2.0, and continue to walk for another four minutes. After that increase the intensity back up to 5.0 for four minutes, and continue repeating the pattern for 32 consecutive minutes.
High-intensity training serves a huge purpose for the general fitness population as well as athletes. It prepares athletes for the rigors of their sport — as long as it is programmed and timed correctly. Athletes may need to back off high-intensity training at certain times of the year. When they start to employ it again, it’s important to know what type of training to perform and which energy systems to train.
The workouts above are merely guides and can be changed to reflect your needs. Always choose exercises that are challenging, and stick within the confines of the work and rest time period, as the specific work-to-rest ratio is designed to challenge a specific energy system.
High-intensity exercise such as CrossFit and HIIT offers many advantages.
For people looking to improve their health who are up to the challenge, such benefits as functional fitness, strength and movement skills are to be had with a short investment of time. So on the surface it’s a win-win.
Yet coaches should be wary of using high-intensity training with athletes who play a sport. For instance, when we train athletes at an elevated heart rate, we must make sure the reward far outweighs the risk. I am a huge proponent of incorporating exercises that challenge athletes mentally and physically, but I also know when to train that way and when not to.
My point is to shed some light on a popular fitness trend and explore how high-intensity work can be dangerous when not done properly. With all the training approaches available, there is a time and place for everything — and knowing when to use high-intensity protocols can make all the difference for both trainer and lifter.
In CrossFit even top athletes like Rich Froning and Jason Khalipa follow programs that are designed for them to peak for the CrossFit Games. They don’t do the same extreme training regimen year-round. So as a strength-and-conditioning coach, I must know my clients based on a needs analysis and then tailor their programs to those needs.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all training approach for athletes who compete in different sports. For example, most of my clients perform the bench press regularly, but they do different variations based on their sport, injury history or sport season. We also use high-intensity-training programs to instill a positive body adaptation as well as mental toughness.
According to the CrossFit website, “The aim of CrossFit is to forge a broad, general and inclusive fitness.… CrossFit itself is defined as that which optimises fitness (constantly varied functional movements performed at relatively high intensity).” This may be great for the general population looking for basic increases in health and body composition, but I caution about having specific athletes who are training for a specific purpose do it.
Every sport has different energy systems that need to be addressed in its conditioning programs. While it is beyond the scope of this article to go into detail about those energy systems, understanding their basic premises can serve you well when you’re designing a workout.
Anaerobic alactic energy system
This is used for short durations lasting up to 10 seconds. It doesn’t require any oxygen, and lactic acid build-up doesn’t occur. Creatine phosphate powers the alactic energy system to assist in energy development, which is the reason that creatine supplementation is important when you’re training for power and strength. Sports such as powerlifting, Olympic lifting and even golf primarily use the anaerobic alactic energy system.
Try this workout to challenge your short-duration energy: Pick a weight that’s between 70 and 80 per cent of your one-rep-max deadlift. Maintaining precise exercise form and using the tap-and-go technique of touching the floor and immediately standing back up after each rep, perform as many reps as you can in 10 seconds. Record your number. Give yourself between 45 and 60 seconds of rest, not allowing yourself to recover fully but just enough to give it another go. Then take another shot at the deadlifts. Aim to get the same number of reps during each 10 seconds of work. Continue until you can no longer perform a repetition.
Anaerobic lactic energy system
This system is used for short durations as well, but with the help of glucose it lasts longer than the alactic system. The accumulation of hydrogen ions and lactic acid causes fatigue; however, this system will provide energy for up to two minutes.
Here’s a workout to challenge the anaerobic lactic energy system: Grab a weighted barbell with which you can do all the lifts below. Choose a poundage that provides a realistic yet challenging weight for all of them. Perform front squats for 30 seconds, and then immediately go into push presses for 30 seconds. Follow that with back squat jumps for 30 seconds and then bent-over rows for 30 seconds.
That’s two solid minutes of work. Give yourself about four minutes of recovery time after each giant set. That may seem like a lot, but remember that you need to recover from a highly intense work period.
Aerobic energy system
This is the energy system that’s most associated with steady-state exercise and involves how fast your body can take in oxygen and use it. Aerobic training also increases the number of mitochondria in the cells, which is attributed to better endurance. The aerobic energy system is used for durations of more than three minutes.
Try this aerobic workout: Set the treadmill to a 5.0 incline. Run at a speed that you can keep up for four minutes. After four minutes bring the incline down to 2.0, and continue to walk for another four minutes. After that increase the intensity back up to 5.0 for four minutes, and continue repeating the pattern for 32 consecutive minutes.
High-intensity training serves a huge purpose for the general fitness population as well as athletes. It prepares athletes for the rigors of their sport — as long as it is programmed and timed correctly. Athletes may need to back off high-intensity training at certain times of the year. When they start to employ it again, it’s important to know what type of training to perform and which energy systems to train.
The workouts above are merely guides and can be changed to reflect your needs. Always choose exercises that are challenging, and stick within the confines of the work and rest time period, as the specific work-to-rest ratio is designed to challenge a specific energy system.
