I love interval training, but one of the problems we commonly run
into—particularly if someone isn’t prepared physically to sprint or doesn’t have
a place to do it because of weather restrictions—is that repetitive, low
amplitude motions are our only options. In other words, it has to just be
cycling, the elliptical, or the stair climber. While slide board work, medicine
ball medleys, barbell complexes, and sled pushing definitely help to work around
these problems, when it comes down to it, many of them still don’t give certain
folks the variety they need in their exercise programming.
In our “Building the Efficient Athlete” seminar, Mike
Robertson and I spoke about the law of repetitive motion: I = NF/AR.
In this equation, injury (I) equals the number of repetitions multiplied by
the frequency of those repetitions (NF) divided by the amplitude of each
repetition times the rest interval (AR). While you can attack each of these five
factors differently, the take home point with respect to today’s discussion is
that simply increasing the amplitude—or range of motion—in one’s daily life can
reduce (or eliminate) the presence or severity of overuse conditions. For that
reason, I often substitute one or both of two different training modalities for
my clients’ interval training.
The first is dynamic flexibility circuits with little to no rest between
sets. In this scenario, we program 2–3 different mobility/activation drills for
each inefficiency the athlete displays and then combine them in a series of
drills. Ideally, we do as many of these drills as possible in the standing
position.
As an example, let’s say a client has poor thoracic spine mobility, a
horrific Thomas test (restrictions in one or more of the hip flexors), bad glute
function, and a lack of hip external rotation. Here’s what his circuit might
look like:
A) One-leg supine bridge
B) Wall hip flexor mobilizations
C) Three-point extension rotations
D) Cradle walks
E) Overhead lunge walks
F) Walking Spiderman with overhead reach
G) Yoga push-ups
H) One-leg SLDL walks
(You can find videos of many of these exercises in the Magnificent
Mobility DVD, and I’ll have more information on the rest down the
road.)
Is this circuit going to completely “gas” an athlete? Absolutely not.
However, it is going to make him/her better in light of the inefficiencies I
outlined above. And you don’t have to leave the gym exhausted to have improved.
It’s a great option for powerlifters as well because going too crazy with
supplemental conditioning work can really sap strength.
The second option is to simply take a series of resistance training exercises
with a corrective emphasis (sometimes integrate with the drills outlined above)
and put them in a series of supersets. For these exercises, the load utilized
should only be about 30 percent of one rep max.
I outlined this option a while back in my article, “Cardio Confusion.”
Here’s
an example I used with an online consulting client recently.
A1) Overhead broomstick walking lunges (3 X 10/side)
A2) Push-ups (3 X 12)
B1) Face pulls (3 X 15)
B2) Body weight only reverse lunges (3 X 10/side)
C1) One-leg SLDL walk (2 X 6/side)
C2) Band external rotations, arm adducted (2 X 15/side)
D1) Behind the neck band pull aparts (2 X 15)
D2) Bowler squats (2 X 10/side)
This series is preceded by foam rolling and a dynamic flexibility warm up and
can be followed by more “traditional” interval training.
Like I said earlier, I’m still all for both traditional and non-traditional
interval training. Initiatives like I outlined above though can serve as a nice
change of pace and work in corrective exercises while keeping the heart rate up.
Be as creative as you’d like and you’ll see great results. The sky is the limit
in terms of the combinations you can use.
Eric Cressey, MA, CSCS, is the president and co-founder of
Cressey Performance, a strength
and conditioning facility in Hudson, Massachusetts. While Eric deals with a wide
variety of athletes, he has become most well-known for his work with baseball
players. A competitive powerlifter, Eric has authored three books and more than
200 articles and co-created two DVD sets. He publishes a free weekly newsletter
and daily blog at www.EricCressey.com.
Elite Fitness Systems strives to be a recognized leader in the strength
training industry by providing the highest quality strength training products
and services while providing the highest level of customer service in the
industry. For the best training equipment, information, and accessories, visit
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