Strength and Power Training

Athletic Strength and Conditioning Programs

A guide for men and women of all ages

What are the most important new concepts in strength and power training that can be put into use today to improve your exercise workouts? How can these techniques and methods be integrated and utilized?

Exercise Induced Adaptation: Organized and Progressive Muscular Development.

Integrated Exercising: Combine many forms of exercise into one workout program.

Proprioception - Proprioceptive enriched exercise environment: Incorporate these balance and stabilization methods.

Post Activation Potentiation: Combine these high load resistance movements with biomechanically similar ballistic movements.

Time Tested Bodybuilding and workouts - techniques: Utilize these principles pioneered by bodybuilders such as Arnold.

Strength and Power Training principles - techniques: Use these powerlifting techniques to enhance strength.

The New Nutrition: Stay abreast of the latest nutrition discoveries to support muscle and strength gains and build a ripped body.

References: National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM), and Applied Sports Science (P3) for more information.

Exercise Induced Adaptation

Exercise inducted adaptation is the unique ability of the human body to adapt or adjust its functional capacity to meet desired needs. This is the root of all conditioning. However, how can the adaptation process be maximized? One of the ways is to change your routines on a regular basis. As an example, a very successful systematic model is to split conditioning into three different routine blocks: stabilization, strength and power. This progression facilitates optimum levels of physiologic, physical and performance adaptations. A simplistic approach to adaptation is simply to change your routines, exercises, splits, set, reps, tempo, and rest intervals. Changing only one of these exercise elements will cause an adaptation response, but changing more elements is optimal.

Integrated Routines

This is a concept that incorporates many forms of exercise into one progressive system. This includes flexibility (including Yoga), cardiorespiratory conditioning, core work, balance work, reactive work, speed, quickness, agility and strength exercising. The goal of integrated exercising is to active optimal strength, stability, balance and performance. No single form of exercise can achieve these goals.

As an example, almost all of the new programs have resistance conditioning days that alternate with a day of Yoga. They can also include aerobic days with programs such as Kenpo. So a typical sequence might be as follows:

• Day 1: Upper Body Free Weight Workout
• Day 2: Yoga 60 minute Routine
• Day 3: Lower Body Home Workout
• Day 4: Rest or Active Recovery
• Day 5: Plyometric Conditioning
• Day 6: Upper Body Home Workout

Proprioception and Proprioceptive enriched environment

Proprioception is the cumulative sensory input to the central nervous system from body receptors that sense body position and movement, and a proprioceptive enriched environment is an unstable but controllable exercise that causes the body to incorporate balance and stabilization mechanisms. Exercises introduce more challenge to balance and stabilization systems of the body versus simply increasing the load or resistance. Additionally, by using proprioception techniques the core is greatly strengthened and the body becomes much more efficient athletically.

Post Activation Potentiation

PAP includes heavy loading before an explosive movement and results in a high degree of central nervous system stimulation. It combines high load strength movements with biomechanically similar plyometric or ballistic movements. As an example, you could do heavy dumbbell squats followed immediately by jump squats, or a heavy bench press followed immediately by plyometric pushups. Additionally, isometric and stability exercises are sometimes added after the explosive movement. This form of conditioning will give athletes many advantages over old school forms of conditioning. P90X2 is a leader in Post Activation Potentiation Exercise Workouts.

Bodybuilding Techniques and Principles

Bodybuilding is a form of body modification that involves intensive muscle hypertrophy. Muscle hypertrophy is an increase in the size of muscle cells. There are many new methods, but there are also the time-tested methods that have been used very successfully over time. The following are the basic principles of our exercise routines.

Summary of Barnett Bodybuilding Principles

1. Work the largest muscle first. As an example, Legs, Chest, Back, Shoulders, and Arms.
2. Do ab routines at a different time or on a different day than other muscle groups.
3. Work the muscles from the center to the extremities. Chest, Back, Shoulders and Arms.
4. Alternate "pushing muscles"and "pulling muscles". As an example, Chest, Back, Shoulders, Biceps and Triceps.
5. Vary sets and reps schemes. As an example, the Bench Press 3 x 8 on Monday, 5 x 5 on Wednesday, and 2 x 12 on Friday.
6. Use approximately 70% - 80% of your One Rep Max to make bodybuilding gains.
7. Vary splits monthly. For example, a three day split the first month, a four day split the second, and a five day split the third.
8. Provide a variety of exercises, splits, set, reps, tempo, and rest intervals.
9. Insert a recovery week every five to six weeks where lifting is light and focus on flexibility.
10. Focus on organized progressive development - use of a periodization schedule that schedules increased resistance.

Strength and Power Training Principles

Strength training is exercising with the objective of increasing physical strength. There are two kinds of strength. Relative strength is building maximal force without increasing body-weight. Absolute Strength is the maximum force you can exert irrespective of body size or muscle size. Absolute strength is about becoming strong regardless of body-weight.

There are many benefits to Strength conditioning. The stronger you become the more muscles you will have. Strength conditioning is not bodybuilding however;building muscle is a by-product of strength conditioning and not necessarily its objective. Secondly, strength conditioning burns calories and keeps your metabolic rate high and lastly, it can sometimes help prevent conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis and arthritis.

There are several methods to building strength and include:

• Stress and Adaptation: Strength training stresses your body and your body adapts by getting stronger and building muscle.
• Progressive Resistance: As your body adapts and you will need to increase the resistance systematically to avoid plateaus. Schedule weight increases using a Periodization Schedule.
• Intensity: To make gains in strength use approximately 80% - 100% of your One Rep Max (1RM).
• Speed or Explosive Movements: The faster and quicker you move, the more fast twitch muscle fibers are recruited.
• PAP: Post Activation Potentiation: The P90X2 workout includes PAP movements. (See Above)

There are also several types of Strength Training:

• Weightlifting: Using Barbells and Dumbbells is the easiest way to build strength. Start light and focus on progressive resistance. Examples of weightlifting exercises are the Squat, Bench Press, and Deadlift.
• Body-weight Exercises: You use your own body-weight as resistance such as with Pull-ups, Chin-ups, Dips, and Push-ups.
• Machines: They balance the weight and control the movement. Machines can make exercises easier and safer than free weights. However, machines generally are not as effective as weight training.

The New Nutrition and Supplementation

Nutrition science is evolving quickly and helps support the new methods, which demand optimal nutrition. The new food pyramid is better than the old formulation, however, a strength athlete will generally require more quality protein and additional micronutrients. We recommend approximately one gram of protein per pound of body-weight.

The timing and frequency of meals is also of paramount importance to muscular repair and growth. Always try to eat breakfast and eat approximately five meals per day. Try to have a pre-workout and post-workout drink. Have the recovery drink within 45 minutes. There are several post-workout drinks available. We use the P90X Recovery Drink.

Today, micronutrients (vitamins and trace minerals) are almost as important as the macronutrients (carbohydrates, proteins, fats and water). Different antioxidants and phytonutrients help reduce free radical damage and fiber, prebiotics, and digestive enzymes help eliminate toxins more efficiently and promote better absorption of nutrient. Dr. Joel Fuhrman suggests eating "nutrient dense"food, and recommends that salads become the main meal. He also formulated the formula that health equals nutrients divided by calories,and most nutrients come from "greens". Shakeology Nutrition drinks conform to this formula.

Summary of The Barnett Nutrition Plan

Keep a food journal and record what you eat and ascertain our caloric requirement for your ideal body weight and the corresponding amounts of carbohydrates, proteins, and fats based upon a 40% Carbohydrate, 30% Protein, and 30% Fat split. Consume five meals daily. Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner ought to be basic, well balanced meals, conforming to the above ratios of carbohydrates, proteins and fats and I suggest that you consume "Meal Substitutes"as needed for additional meals.

Other Recommendations:

• Take a Potent Daily Multiple Vitamin and additional Vitamins C and E for general health
• Take additional L-Glutamine for Muscle Growth and Repair
• Take ZMA (Zinc) supplements at bedtime.
• Use Creatine Supplementation for Size and Strength
• Consider Nitric Oxide supplementation for Size and Strength
• Take Whey Protein Supplementation for Muscle Growth and Repair
• Use Caffeine, Green Tea Extract for the fat loss if needed
• Always eat breakfast and eat two meal substitutes per day—bars or other substitutes
• Consume post workout recovery drinks after strenuous exercise workouts
• Eat Slow Release Casein Protein at night

Barnett Fitness eBooks and Beachbody

The Barnett Training System was developed by Robert Barnett. He is a graduate of USC and Cornell University. He is a Certified Personal Fitness Trainer and Beachbody Coach. He has been a trainer for over 18 years with hundreds of clients, and was a Winner of the MetRx World's Best Trainer Contest. Many of our programs include Kenpo and Robert is a 7th. Degree Blackbelt Kenpo (IKCA). He also has written several Powerlifting Ebooks and he was the Winner of the Western USA Powerlifting Championship, and several other competitions. Lastly, he is a United States Marine Corps (Retired).

The Barnett Training System exercise workouts and Beachbody workout programs contain many advanced models to provide optimal muscular adaptation and they incorporate Yoga, Stretching, Kenpo, Plyometrics and many other forms of exercise into one progressive system. P90X also incorporates proprioception techniques successfully to strengthen the core and aid balance and agility, and the P90X2 workout takes advantage of very effective PAP principles, which means tremendous muscular gains! Together with "Shakeology"macro and micronutrient supplementation, and other Beachbody Nutrition Products, you will build the body of your dreams. Check out our shops to find solutions that are right for you.

Links

Ab Exercise Routines - Get Ripped

Strength and Power Training eBooks

P90X Workouts - Beachbody Exercise Programs

Beachbody Supplements - Shakeology

Free Health &Fitness eBooks