I will let you into a little secret: More training doesn’t guarantee you results.
It is a nice concept that the harder you work the better the results you will get. However we know, that overtraining has a huge amount of negative effects on performance and that rest and recovery are crucially important to maximise your gains.
@lukefiso ・・・ Celebrate every win, no matter how small. Therefore the recipe for success obviously includes hard work, however it needs to be combined with smart work.
So instead of thinking you need to train more or you aren’t able to train as much as you want to – we want to introduce you to a concept: train “better”.
No matter how much or little time you have to train in a day, what counts and gets you the results isn’t just the volume of training but the quality and focus you put in.
A large majority of us live busy lives and sometimes it’s not in your hands how much you can train, therefore what makes the difference will be how well you make use of the time you have.
All too often time is wasted for a never ending warm up, long rests between sets, getting or putting away equipment, chatting to gym buddies, social media (You know who you are…). Now a good warm up and rest between sets obviously have there place, but they shouldn’t be used as procrastination tools.
One of the most important tools is to have a plan / program of WHAT and HOW to train in the limited time you have. This is where having an optimal training program to follow such as The Progrm can really help. If you arrive at the gym and only then start thinking about what you want to do, half the time will be gone before you’ve even started.
Another important aspect is to not try to more than you can do well. This is why in our programming we offer a Focus of the Day, if you don have the time for everything that particular day, you at least have one aspect you can focus on.
In order to optimise your warm up, use movements that are closely related to the movement you are about to train. i.e. If you have an Olympic lifting session use the barbell during the warm-up to get warm.
@weightlifting_101 #iammovement @crossfitgamesMove – don’t pause: you are meant to get warm and sweaty.
Utilising EMOMs in your warm up can also be a helpful way to make sure you rest enough but not too long.
Finally make sure even thought you are rushed you don’t cherry pick your workouts. Over the whole week, make sure you cover everything – lifting, gymnastics, strength, skill work, conditioning.
In Summary:
- Have a plan! Know what you want to train, do your warm up optimally and get going.
- Eliminate all distractions. Put your mobile away. No social media surfing during training (obvious one, right?!).
- Chat after your training, don’t get caught up in small talk during your training – time is precious, especially if you only have a limited amount of it.
- Rest only as much as needed, pay attention to the clock.
- Prioritise what needs the most work and concentrate on that rather than trying to do everything.
- Focus.
Progrm Coach. Gwen Sona
