Those of you who know me know that I am very goal orientated. I like having clear goals, developing a roadmap to achieve them and following the plan with tenacity. This is true in most aspects of my life and it is definitely true when it comes to training.
I can say with certainty that most of my training success was made possible by the fact that I always had a crystal clear plan of what I wanted to accomplish and how I intended to accomplish it.
But I am not alone. In fact, I have found that just about everyone who actually achieves a noteworthy training related goal — whatever that goal may be — has a specific plan of attack in place before they even begin. People who tend to “wing it” without a vision or a plan usually end up getting nowhere…and fast.
Here is a seldom asked yet very important question: Why put your time and hard work into an endeavor that will only result in spinning your wheels? All you need to do is take a moment, define what your goals are and then get on the path towards achieving it.
Now that I’ve got that out of the way, I’m going to share with you some of the most popular training goals and some guidelines on how best to achieve them.
"Please give me your number now! I can't flex my arm forever!"
1) Hooking up with chicks- The six o’clock Pilates class does seem to pack in some hotties. Be sure to get to the gym by five thirty and get a little pump on before you make your approach.
2) Fatiguing yourself and sweating profusely with no rhyme or reason- This is a big trend right now. People are more concerned with their perception of a “good workout” than what the results from that workout actually are. This makes absolutely no sense to me.
But hey, it’s your goal and not mine! Here’s how to best create meaningless fatigue that might trick you into thinking you are achieving a positive training result: Engage in a circuit training routine involving no rest and big compound movements. Pay no attention to mobility, tissue health, structural balance, fast twitch motor recruitment, strength development, form, etc. Training for these goals will not help contribute to that fatigued feeling you are looking for. Just don’t come crying to me when you have very little (if any) positive training adaptations.
3) Getting jacked- Ahh finally, a real training goal. This goal involves building muscle, and here are some guidelines to follow to make it happen:
a) Train 3-4 days per week
b) Utilize all rep ranges but be sure to emphasize the 6-10 rep range.
c) Do not take sets to failure
d) Eat a calorie surplus. On training days, keep calories a bit higher. On all days, be sure to keep the calories clean in order to minimize fat gain.
e) Bust out the barbell and start squatting and deadlifting.
f) Alternate between periods of higher and lower volume.
g) Cardio is optional. If you choose to integrate it, it must NOT cut you’re your recovery abilities.
Getting stronger should be your goal, regardless of your goal
4) Getting Strong- Some of the guidelines for getting strong will be the same as they are for getting jacked. However, there are a few important distinctions:
a) Train 3-4 days per week
b) Utilize all rep ranges but be sure to include sets in the 1-5 rep range.
c) Do not take sets to failure
d) Eat at least maintenance level of calories, although I find that eating slightly more helps ensure consistent gains.
e) Build your program around barbell exercises.
f) Use continuity with your main lifts. In other words, don’t randomly bounce around from exercise to exercise just because you saw something “cool” on YouTube. Stick with the basics and get strong on them.
g) Cardio is optional. If you choose to integrate it, it must NOT cut into recovery abilities.
5) Getting Ripped- Believe it or not, the training for getting ripped is very similar to the training you would do for size and strength. There are, however, some modifications that you should make to best achieve that ripped physique.
a) Train 3-4 days per week
b) Utilize ALL rep ranges.
c) Do not take sets to failure. (See a trend here?)
d) Eat a calorie deficit on non-training days. On training days, keep calories a bit higher. On all days, be sure to keep the calories clean.
e) Although I still recommend including using the barbell, you can still achieve a ripped physique while using alternative exercises.
g) Do morning cardio
h) Sprint 1-2 times per week
b) Make sure your diet involves carb cycling and intermittent fasting
Neglecting explosive training is a common mistake
6) Improving performance- This goal is a bit more specific. Thus, it is difficult for me to give general guidelines here that would be appropriate for everyone. But there are three things that you must do to improve performance.
a) Get stronger! This is where it all begins. Your ability to output force will directly affect your power, speed and overall performance. Unfortunately, most “sports performance centers” have athletes dancing around cones instead of working on increasing their strength. This makes for an easy and profitable business plan for the training center (if you can even call it that) but doesn’t improve athletic performance, especially if the athlete does not have a solid base of strength.
b) Get faster! As you just read in point “a”, getting stronger is the key to getting faster. But slow grinding strength alone will not be enough. You also need to train explosively. Plyos, med ball throws, sprints, etc. help improve the rate of force development and are therefore crucial to your athletic success.
c) Improve mobility- Hip and ankle mobility are critical for both performance and injury prevention. I recommend including drills to improve them as part of the warm up and at the end of the training session.
Well, there you have it. This list is far from exhaustive, but it should help you get on the right path towards your goals. Also, based on your goals, you may opt for a blend of two or more protocols.
Just remember: no matter what your goals are, the best way to achieve them is to have a clear roadmap that will help you get there. Visualize what you want, come up with a plan that will get you there, and then go to war!
Dedicated to your success,
John Alvino
Do you recommend doing squats and deadlifts in the same workout?
Also if it takes 3 days to feel recovered from such a workout, would you do it again on the 4th day, or would you wait a full week until that “body part day” came around again?
@Bob: Hey Bob, you can train both lifts in the same workout but if I would recommend that or not is based on many factors. How many days per week do you train? Are you doing any other type of training (running, MMA, skill training, etc)? What is your goal?
Assuming that we decided to train both lifts in the same day: If you’re a beginner and you’re just learning technique, I would train light and repeat the lifts on the fourth day. On the other hand, if you’re advanced and possess a high level of strength, then I would prefer the full week to recover.
Hope this helps you out
Ah, it all sounds so simple when you write like this makes you wonder why we end up complicating it!
I assume strength endurance work (improving chin/dip numbers in one set) would fall into the performance area?
With that in mind would a mix of close to failure max sets mixed with low rep explosive sets get the job done most efficiently (perhaps at the start of a full body day)? For example:
Mon – 2x Max sets (til speed slows – not to failure) mixed grips
Thurs – 3 x Speed sets (no where near failure) mixed grips
Is more frequent non-failure training (practicing to borrow a term from the old timers) useful for this goal?
I’d love to get to the hallowed 20 plus rep territory for chins and pull ups but am guilty of mixing protocols often (non failure ladders, then 1 set to total failure, daily training then less frequent etc) depending on what I read last. None of which seems to be getting me too far as you’d no doubt expect.
As always keep up the great work!
@Carl: Hey Carl, welcome to the age of information. I really believe that information overload has derailed people from achieving their goals. Try to listen to one or two reputable experts (not the internet gurus!) and put your trust in them. By believing in your plan and sticking with it, you will achieve your goals.
Here’s what I recommend that you do:
1) Get leaner. carrying extra body fat will in know way help you on the chin up bar
2) Vary your loading. This is CRITICAL! You will need to do some sets with bodyweight, some less than (using band assistance) and some with additional weight. Exactly how to do this will vary based on what the rest of your routine looks like, current body fat percentage, strength levels, etc. This topic is a bit involved and may be worthy of a future post.
3) Yes you can improve chins with frequent non-failure training
Good luck getting up to 20!
Your posts always have 3 great qualities:
1) The best pictures inserted in the article.
2) Humor threaded throughout the article and intrigrated into the serious side of the topic at hand.
3) Straightforward informaton that cuts through all the BS.
Thats why I love reading your postings.
Keep up the great work.
This aritcle definitely helps create and maintain a roadmap to success.
@Jeff: Hey Jeff, I’m glad you enjoy the posts. I will do my best to keep em coming!
Great post! This is what I needed as I tend to bounce around from program to program without a clear cut reason why. Thanks for posting! ps I lol’d at the pic of the guy “flexing his arm” very funny
@Gina: Hey G, I think we all need to read stuff like this from time to time. With all of the info on the internet, it is tough to stay focused and our results suffer because of it.
Can you say more about why you recommend NOT training to failure? I thought I saw some research suggesting the opposite (that the failure reps are the ones that lead to positive hormonal changes).
@Steven Sashen: Hey Steven, here are the two biggest reasons for not going to failure.
1) Technique breaks down during these reps. This can lean to unnecessary injuries.
2) Training to failure leads to CNS burnout. When this occurs, adaptations in strength and hypertrophy are unlikely. In fact, many trainees start to lose strength after a few weeks of frying themselves.
That being said, the last week of a training program may involve pushing the envelope a bit and testing your strength. This could result in a set here or there of failure. This is okay as long as the next week is an intro week into a new routine or a deload week. This will allow for the necessary recovery.
Hope this helps you out.
Please don’t give the creeps at the gym any tips on how to flirt with us! LOL
Great post!!!
@Amanda: I may do an entire post on that topic lol relax, i’m just kidding
Too bad I didn’t read this ten years ago… I’d be one strong, jacked pilates master!
BTW: Damn those fools who have said train to failure… this has been the biggest source of frustration for me for years and led to countless injuries. I’m so glad to see coaches setting this straight.
@Brandon Cook: hahaha, I’m sure you would be doing splits by now! And when will everyone get that failure sucks?
Fantastic post. I could have used that tip about that pilates class back in my single days. Do you have a post about types of squats and how they work the body?
@Jonathan Dunsky: I do have posts about squatting but none where I break down the different types
Hey John,
What if your main goal were to develope more speed/power? What would your guidelines?
@Robbie: Hi Robbie. You should lay out your workout using the “Getting Strong” template above. Then in addition to that, add specific speed work on your lower body days. Good luck
Good Stuff, Thanks John
I’m a big fan of you and Jason Ferruggia’s work and I know you two are pals and got the generally the same outlook on things.
Another Question, I know it’s always important to focus on one goal and see it through but what about if you have an athlete (or even an average person who wants quicker results) who only has 12-16 weeks to train with you and you need everything to improve. So basically, How would you set up a program within this time frame using the conjugate method?
Thanks
@Robbie: Hey Robbie, that question is so involved, it would take a 30 minute consultation to gather the necessary info to answer honestly and accurately. But that being said, 12-16 weeks is enough time to focus on one quality at a time (for about 3 weeks each). Just be sure to keep maintenance work of the previously focused on quality so you don’t lose your gains as you progress to other qualities. I hope that makes sense to you and helps you out
Yeah haha I wasn’t hoping for a big answer because I do know that there are alot of variables to consider because everyone is different.
I’ve been talking to Jason Ferruggia about the conjugate method and training goals lately and been having loads of fun doing so. It’s all interesting stuff.
I just wanted to see how you would break it down weekly and you did just that so thank you.