Designing a Resistance Training Program

I. Needs Analysis

A. Evaluation of the Activity or Sport

1. Movement Analysis (joints, limbs, muscles involved)

2. Physiological Analysis (strength, power, hypertrophy, muscle endurance)

3. Injury Analysis (joint & muscle injury sites)

B. Assessment of the Client or Athlete

1. Training Status (current conditioning level)

a) Beginner (untrained)

b) Intermediate (moderately trained)

c) Advanced (well trained)

2. Training Background

a) Type of Program

b) Length of participation (time spent training)

c) Intensity

d) Exercise technique experience

3. Physical Testing & Evaluation (see Chapter 15 for details)

· Test for 1) Strength, 2) Flexibility, 3) Power, 4) Speed, 5) Muscular endurance, and/or, 6) Body composition

4. Determine Primary Resistance Training Goal based on client’s (athlete’s) testing results, movement & physiological analyses

a) HYPERTROPHY, or

b) STRENGTH, or

c) POWER, or

d) MUSCLE ENDURANCE

II. Exercise Selection

A. Exercise Type

1. Core

· Large muscle areas (chest, shoulder, back, hip, thigh)

· Involves 2 or more joints (multi-joint)

· Priority for sports

a) Structural

Involves muscular stabilization of posture while lifting to train large muscles (maintaining flat back & contracting abs)

b) Power

When a structural exercise is done explosively

2. Assistance

· Smaller muscles (i.e., biceps, triceps, abs, calves, forearm,)

· Involves 1 joint (single-joint)

· Prevention & Rehabilitation

· Isolates a single muscle (or group)

B. Movement Analysis of the Activity or Sport

1. Sport-specific exercises

a) Determine movement pattern

(1) Ball dribbling & passing

(2) Ball kicking

(3) Jumping

(4) Running, etc.

b) Identify related exercises (table 18.3, p.400)

2. Muscle balance

(Pick exercises that maintain proper ratio of agonist to antagonist - i.e., hamstrings should be approximately 60-75% as strong as quadriceps)

3 Additional considerations include: 1) Client’s experience with weight training techniques, 2) Availability of resistance training equipment, 3) Available training time per session

III. Training Frequency

A. Primary determinant of number of training sessions /week is the client’s level of conditioning and experience with resistance training

1. Beginners: 2-3 days/week

2. Intermediate: 3-4 days/week

3. Advanced: 4-7 days/week

B. Usually, 3 non-consecutive days per week allows for optimal recovery time between sessions.

C. The principle to use is: allow at least one recovery day – but not more than three – between sessions that stress the same muscle groups

D. For intermediate and, particularly, advanced clients, a split routine may be advantageous:

E. For athletes, the sport season influences frequency.

1. Off-season: 4-6 days/week

2. Preseason: 3-4 days/week

3. In-season: 1-2 days/week

4. Postseason: 1-3 days/week

F. Training with near-maximum loads requires more recovery time between sessions. To be able to train with the optimal required frequency, one needs to consider:

1. Can alternate light and heavy days

2. Upper-body recovers more quickly than lower

3. Recovery is faster from single-joint than multi-joint exercises

G. Frequency is also affected by any additional activities the client does, including: aerobic exercise; anaerobic exercise; and manual labor

IV.Exercise Order

· Each session’s exercises are arranged to enable the client (athlete) to have maximal force capabilities available to complete a set with the proper technique. Four methods to do this include:

1. Power, Other Core, then Assistance Exercises

a) Multi-joint exercises done first, then single-joint

b) Large muscle areas first, then small

c) Pre-exhaustion, the reverse of the above, is another method that works to more completely fatigue a large muscle by first performing a single-joint exercise

2. Upper- and Lower- Body Exercises (Alternated)

a) This method minimizes the rest time between exercises and maximizes the rest time between body areas

b) Also helps to train the Aerobic system somewhat

3. “Push” and “Pull” Exercises (Alternated)

a) Will improve recovery between exercises

b) If this ordering technique is not utilized, the number of repetitions performed will be decreased due to fatigue

4. Supersets and Compound Sets

a) Supersetting involves doing one set for an agonist and immediately doing another set for its antagonist (biceps curl – triceps pushdown)

b) Compound setting involves doing two different exercises for the same muscle group (bent-over lateral raise – dumbbell shoulder press)

V. Training Load and Repetitions

· Load is the amount of weight lifted per repetition; probably the most critical aspect of the training program

A. Relationship between Load and repetitions

· Number of repetitions is inversely related to the load (the heavier the load, the fewer number of repetitions)

B. Repetition Maximum

1. 1RM = max weight that can be lifted with proper form for one repetition (100%)

2. 4RM = 90% 1RM

3. 6RM =85% 1RM

4. 8RM=80% 1RM

5. 10RM=75% 1RM

6. 15RM=65% 1RM

7. It is more accurate to assign loads based on a % of test-established 1RM than to estimate a 1RM from a 10RM load

C. 1 RM Testing (to determine max weight that can be lifted with one rep)

· Use 1) Direct measurement of 1RM or, 2) Estimate of 1RM from 10RM or, 3) Multiple-RM Testing based on Goal Repetitions

1. Direct measurement of 1RM

a) Not used for those who are untrained, inexperienced, injured, or medically supervised

b) Not used for exercises that depend on weak stabilizing muscles

c) Not used for assistance exercises

d) Not used for unilateral exercises (exercising one limb at a time)

e) Follow appropriate 1RM testing protocol (see p. 409 – Baechle, Earle), which involves warm-up, gradual adding of weights, interspersed with rest periods

2. Estimate of 1RM from 10RM

a) Use testing protocol similar to the 1RM (see p. 409 – Baechle, Earle), which involves warm-up, gradual adding of weights, interspersed with rest periods. However, use ½ the load changes

b) Use 1RM = 10RM load / 0.75

3. Multiple-RM Testing

a) Decide upon the # repetitions to be used (goal reps)

b) Figure out how much weight is needed to do only that # of reps (i.e., if it was decided that 8 reps would be done, then 8RM testing for the correct load is appropriate)

D. Assigning a Training Load & Repetitions based on

Training Goal (HYPERTROPHY, or STRENGTH, or POWER, or MUSCLE ENDURANCE)

Training Goal Weight (% 1RM) Repetitions

1. STRENGTH…………………….….³ 85% 1 - 6

2. POWER…………………………….75% - 85% 3 – 5

3. HYPERTROPHY………………..…67% - 85% 6 - 12

4. MUSCULAR ENDURANCE………£ 67% ³ 12

E. Variation of the Training Load

1. A week, consisting of 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 sessions, should include some sessions done as shown in “D” above (HEAVY), and others done at 90% of heavy (MEDIUM), and some at 80% of heavy (LIGHT), i.e.:

· Two-days-per-week: “HEAVY” day + “LIGHT” day

· Three-days-per-week: “HEAVY” day + “MEDIUM” day + “LIGHT” day

· Four-days-per-week: “HEAVY” day + “LIGHT” day + “HEAVY” day + “LIGHT” day

2. HEAVY = 100% of assigned training load & repetitions

3. MEDIUM = 90% of assigned training load & repetitions

4. LIGHT = 80% of assigned training load & repetitions

F. Progression of Training Load

1. Use the Two–for-Two Rule :

If the client (athlete) can do two or more repetitions over his/her assigned repetition goal in the last set of two consecutive workout sessions, weight should be added to that exercise for the next sessions

2. Increase the weight by approximately 2% - 10%

VI.Volume

· Volume = The total amount of weight lifted in one training session

· Set = A group of repetitions sequentially performed before resting

· Volume is calculated as: sets x reps x weight

· Training volume is directly based on the client’s (athlete’s) resistance training goal:

(Warm-up sets not included)

Training Goal Repetitions Sets (assist) Sets (core)

1. STRENGTH…………………….…. 1 – 6 1 - 3 2 - 6

2. POWER……………………………. 3 – 5 3 - 5

3. HYPERTROPHY………………..…6 - 12 (3+ exer/ mus) 3 - 6

4. MUSCULAR ENDURANCE………³ 12 2 – 3

VII. Rest Periods

Training Goal Rest Time between Sets

1. STRENGTH…………………….….2 – 5 min

2. POWER…………………………….2 – 5 min

3. HYPERTROPHY………………..…30 s – 1.5 min

4. MUSCULAR ENDURANCE………£ 30 s