Personalize Your Training Program
When it comes to training programs, we need to understand that ‘one size does not fit all!’ Sound cliché? Sure it does.
Take, for example, a young 20-year-old athlete who might train at an intensity that could be very unhealthy and damaging for a 70-year-old man, and yet be perfectly suited for the young athlete’s sport specific goals. A recent mother may need to focus on mobility and stability, while a thriving gymnast needs more explosive power in her program. We have to take a good look at who we are and what we want from our training program. Some individuals exercise purely for the cognitive benefits, some for the vanity, and some for longevity. Your current fitness level, health concerns, and goals should drive your program.
It is important that we understand the difference between exercising and training. Exercising is something we do for fun, to break a sweat, or to blow off steam. Training, on the other hand, is something planned with a goal in mind. You must put pen to paper and carefully write out your training program.
When planning your training program you must go through a series of steps in order produce a program that will deliver results. It’s important to start by assessing your current fitness level and health concerns because this will help you to determine your starting point. Then, write down your exercise and health goals, which will give you your desired destination. Once you have your starting point and destination clarified, it is time to design a program that will help you get to your desired destination. The steps in creating an effective exercise program are:
- Assess your current fitness level and current state of health
- Determine your training (health) goals
- Design your training plan
- Execute your training plan
- Modify your plan
Now let’s look at each point in detail.
1. Assess Your Current Fitness Level and State of Health
The best way to go about this is to find a local professional who can help. You need to be honest about your current state of health and fitness in order to plan a successful program. You can look at things like BMI, body fat percentage, hip to waist ratio, grip strength, detailed blood test, or have a trainer run you through some fitness test that would get your heart pumping! This is an important step because it will determine your starting point.
2. Determine Your Goals
You can break down your goals into three categories: short-term, mid-term, and long-term. Take a pen and paper and write down your goals. This step is very important in achieving your goals. A short-term goal is about 12 weeks long because a good exercise program will not deliver results overnight; it takes about 12 weeks to see lasting results. A mid-term goal is between 3 to 6 months. Your short-term goal should complement your mid-term goal, and your mid-term goal should complement your long-term goal. A long-term goal is about one year or more. Make sure your goals are measurable and realistic.
3. Design Your Training Program
Once you have your fitness assessment and exercise goals written down, it is now time to plan your program. It wouldn’t hurt if you turned to a coach to help you design the program that is right for you. Coaches are often experienced and have written many result driven programs that you could benefit from. However, if you would like to write your own program, then go for it, just be very detailed in the planning. Be sure to write down the exact days, dates, times, exercises, sets, and number of repetitions.
4. Execute Your Training Program
Now time for the hard part. Everyone loves to plan and write down goals. Only a few strong souls follow through with their plans. In my experience it really helps to have a coach who helps you stay focused and keeps you honest to your training program. Many individuals fail to execute their well thought out program due to lack of support and motivation. If your health is important to you, then take your training plan seriously. It is also important to track your training, so keep a training journal that will help you measure your progress.
5. Modify Your Program
Life will always throw curve balls your way so be ready to modify your exercise program. Travel, sickness, family, emergencies, work, holidays, the excuses are many. However, we have to be realistic and adapt to the situation. A light workout is better than no workout. For example, if you have to travel for work, it is better to get in a light jog and some pushups rather than just skipping out on your entire workout for the week. Be ready to adapt to life.
The upshot is that everyone is different and has different needs; therefore your training program should be personalized to your needs. The cookie cutter exercise program you read while sitting at the doctor’s office may not be right for you. Take your time and develop a wise training program that you will stick to. I will leave you with this quote from the great Russian Master of Sport, Pavel Tsatsouline, “train light, compete heavy.”
Enjoy your training.