Being in the fitness field since 2002- this means actually working as a coach not training myself and buddies- there has been a common constant. When people exercise they feel the need to CRUSH themselves, otherwise they believe there is no benefit to it. This is the difference between working out and training. For me working out is just getting in some type of exercise session without a goal in mind- basically burning calories. While training is a structured program to help you achieve your goal in the most efficient manner possible = smart training.
Importance of a Program
A workout just leads you to random activities and doesn’t allow you to focus toward your goal. Take for instance a defensive back, the goal for this athlete is to gain size and strength that helps him run faster, jump higher, and sustain the energy demands of his position. This means that there has to be a structured program with blocks of focused training to develop specific skill sets. While an untrained personal trainer or performance coach may just do “program” random workouts that may leave him exhausted and tired but doesn’t actually build skill sets.
A simple structured program for continuous power development may progress like this-
- Phase 1: Med-intensity/stationary plyometrics.
- Phase 2: Low-intensity/repetitive plyometrics.
- Phase 3: Med-intensity/repetitive plyometrics.
- Phase 4: High-Intensity/repetitive and low/stationary plyometrics
http://youtu.be/bhTc99bqYzk?t=30s
Keep in mind that this is a simple generalization, the point is that there is a structure and a progression. Sadly I commonly see unqualified NYC personal trainers putting together random plyometrics drills on a weekly basis with no emphasis or direction. This is a clear lack of programming and training knowledge. This approach on training is essentially doing work with minimal return vs. a structured training regime that is laser focused on a specific goal.
Muscle Confusion
The Personal training field is FILLED with non-sense, this includes that you need to change your workout on a constant basis to “trick” your body. This fitness fallacy has taken on full force and it’s pretty common to see personal trainers doing completely new workouts with new exercises every week or every two weeks- this seems to justify there take on “workouts vs. structured programs/periodization”.
The problem with this sentiment is that the trainer doesn’t allow their client to master the movement. If the personal trainer is constantly revolving in new exercises how is the training client ever supposed to move up in weight and become efficient enough to elicit results. This constant revolving door of training exercises will water down your training = harder to achieve goals. This is why it’s so important to not only have a QUALIFIED personal trainer but also have a structured program that has specific goals set in mind, otherwise you’re just playing a guessing game = waste of your time and energy.
Conclusion
In the end, it’s what you value. If you value your time then you should have a structured program that is specific to your goal and current fitness level. Those that are not very familiar with exercise programming should, in my opinion, hire a qualified personal trainer or sports performance coach. This will ensure that you’re on the correct path, selected efficient exercises to help develop your goal, have expert advice to bounce ideas off of, adjust for contraindications, and so on.
Train smart,
Team Fusion Trained
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