3 Fundamentals for Your Workout

Want to start working out but not sure where to start? That’s ok!

With all the information available it can be hard to know for sure what’s legit. While personalization is key, each of these fitness areas can be incorporated into an overall routine for total body fitness. Today we’re going to talk about 3 fundamentals to your workout:

• Resistance Training
• Cardiorespiratory Training
• Flexibility Training

I know when I first started working out there were days when I wanted to give up. For me, finding the time and type of activity that would actually keep me interested was really hard. I made every mistake in the book.

After years of training, I’m finally starting to realize that every body type is different. It’s ok to focus on certain areas at certain times in your life. It’s also ok to change your mind and focus your training on something new.

The hardest part will be the start. Muscles ache with the introduction of new demands. Two principles to remember before starting any routine:

Variation in training: No single program has all the answers. Introducing variety by changing exercise parameters (frequency, intensity, type, volume) will be like a dash of sugar to your grandma’s bland oatmeal.

Progressive overload: Change can be hard. It takes time to adapt to a new stimulus. The more you practice, the easier a certain lift or speed will become. The body then demands increased load or volume over time for more progress. Like fueling a beautiful fire, increasing the stimulus causes a bigger burn and more adaption, while being lazy on the couch leads to muscular atrophy, or loss of power and strength.

Enough of my ranting ways. Here are the types of training programs and examples for each type of exercise. 

Resistance Training

Resistance training is commonly associated with barbells, dumbbells, and huge dudes crushing copious amounts of protein shakes. Any activity that increases muscular strength and endurance by forcing the body to overcome resistance can be considered resistance training. Here are just a few examples of RT exercises:

• Free weights (aka dumbbells, barbells)
• Weight machines
• Your own body weight
• Medicine balls
• Sandbags
• Sleds
• Weighted vests
• Battle ropes

Before beginning any real resistance training program, it’s important to really ask yourself these 5 questions taken from ACSM’s Resources for the Personal Trainer:

1. What is the main goal I’m trying to achieve?
2. What muscle groups do I need to target?
3. What sources of energy do I need to use (aerobic, anaerobic)?
4. What injuries are common in my sport and in my medical history?
5. What types of muscle actions should be used?

By finding an answer to these questions, you can really narrow down your training and focus on exactly where you want to see growth.

Cardiorespiratory Training

Cardiorespiratory training is fitness for the heart. Because the heart is responsible for pumping blood throughout the body (which is also chock full of oxygen) a stronger heart is one of the most important fitness goals to obtain. Here are just a couple slick examples of cardiorespiratory training:

• Running
• Rowing
• Swimming
• Cycling
• Skiing

When your first starting out it’s a good idea to choose an activity your comfortable with. For me I love to run, but I didn’t start out running miles every day. I started by going for short jogs and slowly increased my time for each workout.

Foundational, basic exercises that require the least amount of skills include walking, cycling, and jogging. Then as you progress you can move to demanding exercises that require more skill such as swimming, running, elliptical exercises, and even dancing.

Flexibility Training

Flexibility training can be referred to as training that helps joints move through a complete normal range of motion (ROM) without pain. Hamill and Knutzen (2006) list several factors that affect joint stability: temperature of stretched tissues, soft tissue health, antagonist muscle length, and elastic properties of tissues surrounding the joints. Stretching is the most common way to increase flexibility. There are 3 basic types of stretches:

• Static
• Dynamic
• PNF (Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation)

Static stretches are definitely the most common. You can complete a static stretch by slowly moving into a position of peak tension at the joint, and then holding the position for 10-30 seconds at a time.

Dynamic stretches involve moving and are often called a sport-specific warm up. For example, a bodybuilder may complete 10-12 arm circles, gradually increasing speed and ROM.

PNF stretching is more complex and should be completed only with the help of a trained professional. During a PNF stretch, your going to follow a contract-relax pattern to increase joint ROM.

Next week we’re going to dive more deeply into each type of exercise and list some sample programs you can follow at home to build muscle, increase endurance, and become a flexible giant.

Sources
Hamill, J., & Knutzen, K. M. (2006). Biomechanical basis of human movement. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

Rubin, E. (2009). Acsm's resources for the personal trainer. Wolters Kluwer Health.