Welcome to our Coffee Talk on the Dock!
Today will be a little bit different, we will talk about different ways to regress or progress your exercises to fit your needs. This is meant to be more educational, so please let us know if you have any questions on any of the variables we discussed in the video.
Below is a little summary of every variable we talked about and how to quickly change it for your needs!
We can make it harder or easier or change the purpose of the same exercise from fat loss to muscle gain or even power development with a couple simple tweaks.
1. Balance – This one is more obvious. The more balanced your client is the stronger they will be. Knocking them off balance increases the challenge of the exercise. This comes with a warning — always keep the clients goal as the #1 priority. A squat on a bosu ball makes the exercise harder but it isn’t going to make the client strong. Instead it’s going to make the client better at squatting on a bosu ball. When introducing balance as a variable make sure it doesn’t take away from your clients primary goal. We prefer to add heel up toe up elevated surface challenges!
2.Double arm! Double Leg! Single arm! Single leg! Stance! Feet apart -better balance/adductor stretch Feet together -core,balance challenge (palloff press) Split stance -easier on the back, better posture, wider the stance more balance is needed Kneeling! Sh press better AB work 1/2 kneel also great core and butt work! Sitting on the ground! No legs! Way less chance of using them you will need to reduce weight
3.Tool used! Kettlebells, mace, balls sand bags
4.Eccentric- for advanced lifters only at very low reps and with help getting the concentric be prepared to be very sore the next day. Negative pull ups for example (effective for elderly clients in helping them recover from trips to avoid falling. I didn’t need them to generate more force more often, instead I needed them generate force quicker for one rep).
5.Weight! Heavier it’s harder lighter it’s easier
6.Manipulate reps – One of the more common techniques. Certain exercises can have their reps manipulated more than others. The squat is a perfect example because it can be used for any goal with a change in reps. Train in the 1-5ish rep zone and you’re developing power. 6-10 rep squats are great for muscle development. Anything higher and you build muscle endurance and take advantage of the large muscles being worked for fat loss.
7.Rest time! 0-45 builds endurance 45–1.5 builds muscle 1.5+ strength
8.ROM full range is almost always better but with experienced lifters half reps or partial reps are warranted especially on arm day to get that pump
9.Grip! Different pull up squat bench press deadlift grips! Fat grip! Extremely effective at changing the activation pattern of the movement they also tend to help people pack their shoulders!
Let us know any questions or comments below!
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