Time to start getting better.

Thoughts for the start of the this training year, which starts Monday.  (Although this is relating to the weight room, read into a little, and notice it applies to ever aspect of your training.)

The training effect is a fitness term that refers to the amount of effort that an athlete must exert in order to receive fitness benefits from an exercise. Kenneth H. Cooper coined the phrase in the 1960s while working for the United States Air Force. The basic principle of the training effect is that experienced athletes will have to undergo a more strenuous workout in order to receive the same benefits that a less-experienced athlete would receive from a less-intense workout. References to the training effect are most common in discussions of cardiovascular exercise, but the term also has relevance to weight training. (this is from wisegeek.com)

This excerpt is saying that this year you will have to work harder, than you did last year, to make similar improvements to those of last year.


Another way to put it; The better you get or the stronger you get, the more work it takes to improve.


To relate this to the weight room and measurable amounts of effort, let me describe this using SQUATS.
If you squatted 300lbs two years ago
and squatted 350lbs this year
the amount of work or weight lifted will have to increase to make improvements.
300lbs at 82% for 4x5 = 4,920lbs lifted that workout
350lbs at 82% for 4x5 = 5,740lbs lifted that workout
There is a difference of about 800lbs lifted, in one day, to get a similar training effect to when you squatted 300lbs.

Essentially, what I am trying to say is, you will need to work harder, with greater purpose, to see equal gains in _____ (strength, performance, technique, you name it) compared to last year, and you will have to work even harder, if you want to see greater improvements.


This all starts Monday.

How to improve in the weight room:
1) improve your attention to detail (example: technique - lifting, warm-up, stretching, abs, etc...)
2) increase intensity (Something we need to do as a team.  Have fun, challenge yourself and each other. Train with a purpose)
3) increase weights where you can (open sets and accessory lifts)

These are our goals for the next 5 weeks (although it wont stop there).