Tempo Training for Form and Muscle Growth

Since starting to train clients in the gym again, I've reacquainted myself with the "simple things" in weight training and physical fitness. As an elite athlete, I often forget that I started where some of my clients are--not knowing proper form in certain exercises, trying to build a good foundation of fitness, working on gaining more muscle, etc. Lately, I've been employing tempo training, not only for some great resistance training and muscle growth, but also to teach proper form.

As a trainer, I like teaching my clients to lift. I believe that getting them comfortable with the equipment in a gym promotes routine longevity, and studies show that a combination of resistance training and cardio is the most effective way to burn fat and increase fitness. I'm not that trainer who puts a client on a treadmill or bike and then has them do the occasional lunge with the pink dumbbells. My clients, no matter their fitness level, will squat under a barbell at some point. They will swing a kettle bell. They will lie on a bench, and they will pick up something heavy. Building the proper foundation, with proper form is essential in resistance training. This is where tempo training comes in.

Basically tempo training is performing an exercise at a set tempo. Usually the tempo is given in four numbers (some trainers use three, omitting the last number). The first number represents the amount of time in the eccentric phase (the "lowering" phase), the second the duration of the pause between eccentric and concentric phases, the third the time in the concentric phase and the fourth the pause at the "top." For instance, in a 3-1-1-0 tempo for a squat, you would count to 3 while lowering the weight, pause for a second at the bottom, push the weight up in 1 second, and then go right into the next rep without a pause.

Going slower through the range of motion in an exercise, like the squat, gives the lifter the opportunity to really focus on proper form. The slow tempo will reveal flaws and expose weak muscles, and it will force the lifter to be cognizant of these deficiencies.

Tempo training also increases the time under tension, which is effective in muscle and strength building, and it challenges the core in having to hold the load longer. Making the muscles work longer under tension creates more muscle trauma, leading to more growth, and it challenges the lifter's stability.

If your fitness goal is more strength or more muscle mass, you should certainly incorporate tempo training. You can also use it to correct flaws in form, and it is useful in switching up a tired routine. I've found that a tempo slow in both the eccentric and concentric phases (3-1-3-0), helps with form effectively, while using a slow eccentric and fast concentric tempo is effective in building muscle and strength. Of course, if you're wanting to burn calories, longer reps (more tension) will increase caloric expenditure. So whatever your goal, tempo training may be something you want to try. Happy lifting!

Come See Me At UFC Gym

A couple of weeks ago, I started a new job at the UFC Gym in Mission Valley. After two weeks training at the corporate office and at the Mission Valley location, I felt like it would be fitting to post a blog and share my experience thus far, since it relates to workouts and fitness.

I can't imagine a better week of corporate training than training for a fight gym. It was awesome--full of honing skills, learning new skills and techniques, working out, learning fight techniques and meeting new friends. Since UFC specializes in mixed martial arts, I got to do some jujitsu, some boxing, and some muay thai.

Learning the MMA techniques was the best part of my week, and that carried over into the following week. Last week, I went through the first phase of onboarding at the gym. This entailed going over some of the inner-workings of the gym, becoming familiar with our supplement brand, and taking the classes the gym has to offer. I took as many classes as I could, without my body going into training overload--TRX classes, Daily Ultimate Training, Kickboxing, Matrix, etc.

I mention all of this because the classes we offer are just another way to not only learn fight techniques, but they're a great way to get in shape and some awesome cardio conditioning. For those of you looking to get out of the same tired cardio routine, I'd suggest trying one of our Kickboxing Conditioning classes or a Daily Ultimate Training. Both are sure to get your heart rate up, and I bet you'll have a ton of fun doing some bag work.

Sure, I'm trying to push my gym, but not as some marketing campaign. I'm pushing it because I believe in what the UFC Gym does. Of course, it's a fight gym, but our classes are for everyone, and I'm here to tell you that they'll kick your ass.

We also offer personal training, and we have all of the equipment you'll find at a normal gym--cardio equipment, machines, dumbbells, squat rack, bench, etc. So if you're looking for an extra edge in your training or you want a gym with a little twist, come see me at the UFC Gym.

Variable Resistance Training or "Let Your Chain Hang Low"

I’m always looking for ways to shake up my workout routine. Whether it’s to keep from falling into a workout rut or to give the muscles a little shock for the sake of gains, trying new things in the gym or switching up an old, stale routine is a great idea.

A couple of months ago, I joined a friend in a workout with a personal trainer at Vida in Washington, DC. My friend, who is in amazing shape, recommended a workout with Jack, and I take her recommendations seriously, so she set up a session for the two of us. As a personal trainer myself, I like dropping in on classes and experiencing other trainers’ methods and madness. Often it reminds me to switch up my workouts, and sometimes I get a taste of a new exercise or a new way of doing an old exercise that will shock my body into more gains. My workout with Jack was one such experience.

We did an upper body, chest-focused workout, and as you would expect, bench was our jumping off point. I won’t tediously take you through our entire workout, but I will sum it up in two words: bands and burn. Bands, because Jack employed resistance bands on the bench, which I, even with an adventurous workout spirit, have never tried. And burn, because that’s what I felt.

After my workout with Jack, I looked into training with resistance bands, and started to employ them in my workouts. Before this workout, I had tinkered with variable resistance training with chains. Chains and bands serve to “level-up” an exercise. And I’m here to tell you that if you’ve hit a plateau, or you’re looking to switch things up, or you just want to add difficulty to your workout, then variable resistance training is one way to go.

First, let me explain variable resistance training. With chains or bands, you start with the lightest weight in your movement at the beginning of the concentric phase—that is, with the chain dangling from the bar (or the bands stretched from bar to anchor point), as you lower the weight, in the eccentric phase, the links of the chain rest on the floor (or the band recoils), so that at the start of the concentric phase, more of the weight is resting on the floor (or the band hasn’t been stretched, so no load has been added). As you lift the weight, or move it through the range of the exercise, you move links of the chain from the floor (or stretch the band), adding more and more resistance as you progress through the movement, hence the name variable resistance training. With chains, there is a linear progression of the length of the chain to the load. With bands, there is a bit of a curve in the length-load progression, which means you’re getting a little more resistance from the bands at points in the movement.

Resistance bands also have the added effect of a pull during the eccentric phase—the bands literally pull the weight down. The pulling or recoil effect of the elastic bands, during the eccentric phase, increases muscle activity, which has been reported in several studies. Without diving into the science of loading during the eccentric phase, all this means is that the eccentric phase is enhanced, which will in turn enhance the concentric phase and the lift as a whole.

So what does all of this mean in terms of gains? With both chains and bands, you’re increasing the resistance toward the end of the range of movement, which means you need more force to move the weight. In theory, a higher force productions means more strength gains. More muscle activity, as experienced in the eccentric phase of a banded exercise, means more strength gains, but also an improvement in stability and balance.

I used bands daily in my workouts, as in I did at least one banded exercise a day—bench, squat, shoulder press, deadlift, kettlebell swings, etc—and after about a month and a half of training with resistance bands, my squat shot up about 10 pounds and my bench went up 5 (deadlift stayed the same), and I saw improvements in my clean, especially in the speed with which I moved the bar.

Bottom line is that variable resistance training is a great way to switch up your workout, and squeeze some strength gains out of those bored muscles. 

Gladiator Training

Shortly after moving back to Virginia, I started training a bit with Gladiator Training in Richmond. Gladiator Training incorporates a number of different strength training techniques to improve overall strength, range of motion, functional strength, flexibility, and cardiovascular health. Well that's what they advertise, but to put it simply it's a badass training method that will get you sweating and push your physical limits. I just wanted to give them a blog shout out and to direct you to their site http://www.gladiatortrainingva.com. I figure with the many, many, tens of people who read my blog I could give them some damned good exposure. Also I recently started blogging for them, so check that out as well. Happy training. 

The Deadlift

I dig deadlifting. It’s a great lift for brute strength and power, and it also boosts your gym confidence when you load all of those plates onto the bar. A lot of trainers and lifters consider the deadlift to be the second most important exercise, behind the squat, because it trains a number of different muscles with heavy loads. The deadlift gets its name, because it is one of only a few weight training exercises in which repetitions begin with dead weight (weight without inertia).

In most lifts, there is a lowering of the weight (eccentric phase) followed by the lifting of the weight (concentric phase). The deadlift begins with the concentric phase, which is the most difficult point of the lift, and there is no stored energy from the eccentric phase to work with. Because of these characteristics, it is considered by some to be the truest test of total strength.

The lift is considered a test of total strength, because it engages a number of muscles. First, it is a lift of the legs and back. The quadriceps and hamstrings are the primary muscles worked, in the legs, while pretty much every muscle in the back is recruited. The deadlift also works the hips and gluteal muscles as well as the abs, forearms, and shoulders.

Form is extremely important in the deadlift. Though it is a simple exercise—basically, you lift something from the ground—it has the potential for serious back injury. First, your stance should be about shoulder width or slightly wider than shoulder width apart, with your toes straight or slightly turned outward. Your legs should be about four to six inches from the bar.

You want to grip the bar with an overhand grip, until the weight gets too heavy; then you can grip overhand with one hand and under with the other (this reduces the chances of the bar slipping from your grip), or you can use weight straps.

Now that you’ve prepared for the lift, take a deep breath and drop your hips. Squeeze your back straight and tight (butt out). The bar should be under your knees now. Drive from your legs first. Don’t allow your hips to rise too fast. When the bar is at the knees, use your glutes and back, pulling with your shoulders as well, to lock yourself into an upright position.

When returning the weight to the floor, keep your back tight and straight and lower the bar as you drop your hips. Don’t release tension in your back and let the weight drop. This can cause injury.

The deadlift not only builds strength and muscle in your legs, back, and core. It also improves your grip, and when you practice proper form, you teach your body how to properly bend and lift, which will help prevent common every-day back injuries. After you’ve mastered the proper technique for the deadlift, you can move on to some of its variations, which I outlined in a blog from long ago (http://rugbysidelinesworkouts.blogspot.com/2012/04/deadlift-variations.html).

Stair Climbing

As I mentioned in this week’s fitness article in River Weekly, stair climbing is a great way to improve several aspects of your fitness. It is a great for cardio conditioning, lower body strength, flexibility, and quickness. I’ve put together a few stair workouts that concentrate on these areas.

In doing these workouts, it is important to consider the number of flights of stairs to which you have access (a flight of stairs is about 16-20 steps). If you have access to a number of flights, you can sprint, take a break, sprint again, and so on. If you only have access to a couple of flights, then you’ll have to jog back down to complete the sets (tailor the workout to suit your facility).

Each of these workouts will last upwards of 30 minutes. If you want more, then add more. If you want less or need more rest time, then do what suits you and your fitness needs. Don’t kill yourself, but don’t sell yourself short. You should be sweating, and your legs should be fatigued, if not a little wobbly, after these workouts.

CARDIO STAIR WORKOUT

Warm-up—walk up and back down 10 flights (3-4min)

Stretch—use the stairs to stretch as well (4-5min)

Round 1—Run up 10 flights, every other step at about 75% (1min) & Rest 1min

Round 2—Sprint 5 flights every other step, rest 20sec x4 sets (4-5min)

Round 3—Sprint 3 flights every step, rest 20sec x4 sets (4-5mins)

Round 4—Sprint 10 flights every other step, rest 40sec x4 (6-8min)

Round 5—Sprint 7 flights every step, rest 40sec x4 (6-8min)

Round 6—Sprint 15 flights every other step, rest 1min x3 (6-8min)

Cool down—walk up and back down 5 flights and stretch

STRENGTH/POWER STAIR WORKOUT

Warm-up—walk up and back down 10 flights (3-4min)

Stretch—use the stairs to stretch (4-5min)

Round 1—Run up 10 flights, every other step at about 75% (1min) & Rest 1min

Round 2—Plyo hop up 2 flights every step, Plyo hop up 2 flights every other step, rest 30sec x3 (5-6min)

Round 3—Sprint 10 flights every 2 steps, rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 4—Side to side lunges every 2 steps 5 flights, rest 30sec x4 (6-7min)

Round 5—1 leg calf raise 15 each leg, rest 20sec x4 (3-4min)

Round 6—Side steps every other step 2 flights each leg, rest 30sec x3 (4-5min)

Round 7—Sprint 10 flights every other step, rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Cool down—walk up and back down 5 flights and stretch

FLEXIBILITY STAIR WORKOUT

Warm-up—walk up and back down 10 flights (3-4min)

Stretch—use the stairs to stretch (4-5min)

Round 1—Run up 10 flights, every other step at about 75% (1min) & Rest 1min

Round 2—Sprint 10 flights every 2 steps, rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 3—Quad stretch, hamstring stretch, calf stretch (use stairs) (3min)

Round 4—Lunge every 2 steps, 2 flights, rest 30sec x4 (8-9min)

Round 5—Quad stretch, hamstring stretch, calf stretch (use stairs) (3min)

Round 6—Sprint 10 flights every 2 steps, rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Cool down—walk up and back down 5 flights and stretch

FOOTWORK/QUICKNESS STAIR WORKOUT

Warm-up—walk up and back down 10 flights (3-4min)

Stretch—use the stairs to stretch (4-5min)

Round 1—Run up 10 flights, every other step at about 75% (1min) & Rest 1min

Round 2—Sprint 2 flights up and back down every step, rest 20sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 3—Sprint 2 flights both feet on a step (switch feet on the 2^nd flight), rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 4—Skaters 4 flights, rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 5—Quick side steps 2 flights up and back down both feet on each step (switch sides on the 2^nd flight), rest 30sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 6—Sprint 10 flights every other step, rest 40sec x4 (5-6min)

Round 7—Sprint 2 flights up and back down every step, rest 20sec x4 (5-6min)

Cool down—walk up and back down 5 flights and stretch

Happy training! 

Deadlift Variations

To round out the “big three,” here are some deadlift variations:

Conventional deadlift—The conventional deadlift is one using a barbell and lifting from the floor up, with a standard, shoulder-width stance.

Romanian deadlift—This variation begins from the top of the lift (so actually it is not technically a deadlift) and incorporates a stretch reflex, putting more emphasis on the hamstrings and glutes. Begin from the top of the deadlift, knees unlocked. Bend at the hip, keeping the back straight, and then extend the hips to lockout (you’ll feel a stretch in your hamstrings).

Sumo deadlift—In this variation, the legs are spread far apart, as if mimicking a sumo stance, and the bar is griped inside the legs. Utilizing this stance, the emphasis is put on the legs rather than the back.

Beyond Range/Deficit deadlift—This is a deadlift done on an elevated surface, so that you are pulling through a greater range of motion.

Suitcase deadlift—Dumbbells or kettle bells are used in this variation. The weight is held at the side and a deadlift is preformed. These can also be done with one arm.

Trap bar deadlift—This variation is also called a trap bar squat. Basically it is a deadlift/squat combo using a trap bar.

One leg deadlift—Using a dumbbell or kettle bell in one hand, stand on the opposite foot. The movement is like a Romanian deadlift in that it starts from the top. Bend at the hips and lower the weight to the grounded foot (deadlift form).

Rack pulls—This is a deadlift with the weight elevated on a rack or box. It is used to improve the ending phase of the deadlift.



**A note on variations. In all exercises, variations are only limited to an athlete’s imagination and what the body can do without getting hurt. If you’re a person who gets bored with routine, try these exercises with different equipment, different stances, combinations of equipment and/or stances, etc. Just remember that you should practice proper form in all lifts.