Making a Strength Training Program

This is a topic I have talked about before and some of the info below is from previous posts, but I think it is important enough to keep sending the message: Keep Strength Training in Your Life!

Strength training builds muscle (which burns fat), increases bone density, improves hormone balance, and prevents injuries..it keeps us young.

For those who follow this blog, quite a bit of the info below will sound familiar but I will be adding a few more bits in knowledge in this article. 

First let’s talk about types of adaptations.  This may be a refresher for some and new to others.  The types of adaptations that I am talking about are physical changes that can be measured.  Thinks like strength, speed, muscle mass or improved performance in timed or scored events.  Some changes or improvements, once attained, stay with us longer than others.  This is important because it helps us prioritize how we program our training. The following list shows how adaptations are gained starting with the ones that take the most time to gain to the least time to gain:

1. Muscle growth
2. Strength
3. Muscular Endurance/Lactic acid threshold
4. Power-speed related movements that improve neuro-muscular relationships
5. Technique or skill based movements
6. Cardio-respiratory endurance

Likewise, the following shows the reverse of this…adaptations that are lost the quickest to the slowest:

1. Cardio
2. Technique
3. Power
4. Muscular Endurance/Lactic acid threshold
5. Strength
6. Muscle growth

This means many things.  First gain muscle and strength because that stays with us for a long time before diminishing and as an event approaches begin adding conditioning and skill work then cardio.  It also means that as far as cardio and technique or skill based movements go, we gain them pretty quick and lose them pretty quick.

When I hear folks talk about wanting to get “ripped” or “shredded” and then jump into some high intensity training program or do tons of cardio, I really want to choke them…for just few seconds.  What most people fail to realize is that folks who are “ripped” or “shredded” got strong and had a lot of muscle first.  Gain the muscle and then lean out.  And yes, when a person focuses on gaining muscle mass, they will gain some fat…don’t panic, it’s easy to lose and when its gone, that’s when the “ripped” look appears.

Some may argue that due to health or medical reasons that strength and building muscle shouldn’t be a priority.  I would agree.  If someone has some type of metabolic derangement, severe obesity issues, mobility limitations or cardio vascular risk factors then focusing on diet and simply improving activity level and mobility would be the priority.

A good guideline is get strong and gain muscle which stays with us longer and makes us more durable and injury resistant…and harder to kill as Mark Rippetoe would say.   Then incorporate metabolic conditioning (metcon) or interval or Cross Fit style training.  Then throw in some occasional cardio.  And finally, since skill deteriorates relatively quickly, incorporate your specific skill set, i.e. firearms, control tactics, entry, ground control and keep it in your program.  Once you have attained a good level of GPP (general physical preparedness) that you are happy with, then you are in your maintenance phase.  Once there, strength/power training can be done less frequently (1-2 times per week), metcon training (1-2 times per week), and technique/cardio (1-2 times per week).  This can be adjusted based on any new goals you have or areas you want to improve but you get the idea.

Ok, that was a fast, quick overview of programming and prioritization.   We didn’t even talk about the level of the athlete…novice, intermediate, advanced and elite….which would change training and recovery periods.  A novice will experience gains and progress quicker with less recovery time. An intermediate will not progress as quickly, and will have to allow more recovery time or program in some lighter intensity workouts. An advanced or Elite athlete requires even greater periods of high intensity followed by equally or longer periods of recovery…and so on and so on.

One of the biggest enemies of progress in athletes is overtraining, a.k.a adrenal fatigue. To understand this we must first understand the three basic things we need in order to make adaptation or improved performance, whatever the goal may be (it’s actually the same thing):

1. Training/Stimulus
2. Nutrition
3. Rest/Recovery

 If one of these is out of balance, progress will halt and, quite often, reverse or deteriorate. Can a person train for a couple of hours a day 6 or 7 days a week and improve? Sure, as long as the nutrition and recovery are in balance…they may have to sleep 12 hours a day and triple their caloric intake…but it could be done.

Our bodies respond to stress by making adaptations. They need adequate rest and building material (food) to do this. The trick is stressing it just long enough and with enough intensity to signal a hormonal response and then give it the rest and nutrition it needs to support the change.

There is no “one size fits all”. It requires some experience, planning and common sense (which is usually the ingredient that is missing most often ) or simply knowing someone or a coach who is smarter than you and getting them to help. If the stress is not intense enough, we are just spinning our wheels. If it is too much, progress stalls or reverses, injuries occur and we feel like crap.

The human body has adapted very well to dealing with acute stress (short-term) but is not good at dealing with chronic stress. Acute stress can be things like training and emergency or life threatening situations. This is the primary type of stress that we, as humans, have been exposed to for most of our existence. Chronic stress is relatively new to humans, maybe within the last 150 years, not enough time for our physiology to adapt. This type of stress comes from busy lifestyles, anxiety, not enough sleep, too many stimulants or over training.

Unfortunately, most of us are exposed to chronic stress quite regularly. It is important to recognize and understand this so we can identify sources of chronic stress and work to reduce them.

So what is the problem with chronic stress??? In a word…cortisol. Cortisol is a glucocorticoid produced by our adrenal gland. Simply put, it’s a hormone released in response to stress that is responsible for the release of stored glucose. The problem is when we have too much cortisol too frequently, we “burn out” our adrenal gland, burn muscle, impair cognitive function and impair our immune system. Cortisol also inhibits sleep and not enough sleep increases cortisol production. Ugly cycle huh? That is why it is so important to get cortisol under control…because if you don’t, you will not get enough rest.

Far too often, I see folks with good intentions, that already have chronic stress issues, take too many “energy” supplements or drinks, which also release cortisol, and decide they are going to start working out to make some improvements and then wonder why it doesn’t work and wonder why they feel like crap. Usually, they fix it by training more, eating less and taking more energy boosters. See a problem here?

Folks, its not the training that will make you better, it’s the recovery that will. If you fall into this category, exercise should not be the priority, managing sources of chronic stress should be. Now some may argue that exercise can be a way to manage or control stress. In general, I would agree if the intensity is low enough…like a slow walk or jog. But if we are talking about exercise that elicits a physiological change, then that exercise is going to require a high degree of intensity and will not be successful at reducing stress.

I tell the folks I teach and train to remember two simple questions to ask themselves to help determine if they are overtraining:

1. How is your performance?
2. How do you feel?

If your performance is stalling or on reversing, then you are overtraining and need to take a break. Maybe for a couple of days or maybe for a couple of weeks. If you feel like crap, yep you guessed it, you are overtraining. The cure for overtraining is really that simple: rest and good nutrition. Any good training program will have recovery or “off” periods programmed in.

The message here guys is to first identify sources of chronic stress and try to get them under control before embarking on a performance based training program. These sources may be:

• Not enough sleep….big one in law enforcement
• Too many stimulants…especially the energy drinks
• Anxiety…worrying about things you can’t change is a biggie
• Poor diet…too many high glycemic index carbs keep insulin up which, in turn, elevate cortisol
• Too much exercise

Know the signs of overtraining, recognize sources of chronic stress, be responsible enough to make fixing them a priority, train just enough to send the right signals to the body, provide the appropriate nutrition and give your body the time and rest it needs to make the changes. Yes, this requires planning, preparation and a little practice…and sometimes taking a vacation!

Ok back to strength training, now we should understand every athlete is different and to gain muscle we need intensity, a lot of food and a lot of rest.  As far as food goes, in regards to Paleo nutrition, an athlete can make great gains eating Paleo...it just might take a little longer though.  When gaining weight, our need for carbs will increase.  I have seen some suggestions like drinking a gallon of milk a day or eating 2-3 sweet potatoes a day…whatever works for you, just understand that this is short term in order to gain the muscle.  Whatever you decide to do, I would strongly encourage avoiding grains, processed foods and sugary foods.

Onto types of strength training programs…here are some good general guidelines for gaining mass:

• Keep squats, deadlifts, press, cleans, bench as the “meat and potatoes”
• Train 3-4 times per week…strength training only
• Train heavy (this may vary from athlete to athlete)
• Eat…a lot
• Get plenty of sleep
• For mass, usually higher volume work is better…usually
• For power/strength, usually lower volume higher weight is better…usually

Not too complicated.  Here are few training programs to choose from:

• Mark Rippetoe’s 5x5 Method for beginners
• Jim Wendlers 5/3/1 Method for intermediate to advanced lifters
• Prilipen Method…this is more for intermediate to advanced lifters and is based on the principle that some folks respond better to different intensities and rep ranges
• Louie Simmons Conjugate Method from Westside Barbell...for advanced athletes

Either way, you should pick a template based on your experience level and what you feel will work for you and stick with it for atleast 4-6 months to allow the adaptations to take place and stick.

Here is one that I came up with based on what works for me, which is more geared for the experienced/advanced athlete:

		Workout Combos
Workout A		Workout B		Workout C
Squat		Squat		Deadlift
Bench		Clean		Press
Secondary lift		Secondary lift		Secondary lift
Workout D		Workout E		Workout F
Deadlift		Press		O-Lifts
Bench		Clean		heavy doubles
Secondary lift		Secondary lift		or triples
		Workout G
		Speed/Interval/MC

The Pattern

	First  Cycle			Next Cycle
Week	Weekly Cycle	Advanced	Intermdiate	Advanced	Intermediate
1	A,C,B	65% @ 8-10 REPS	65% AND 70%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
2	C,B,D	70% @ 8-10 REPS	70% AND 75%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
3	A,E,D	75% @ 8-10 REPS	75% AND 80%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
4	F,G	MAX EFFORTS	MAX EFFORTS	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
5	A,C,B	80% @ 4-5 REPS	80% AND 85%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
6	C,B,D	85% @-4-5 REPS	85% AND 90%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
7	A,E,D	90% @ 3-5 REPS	90% AND 95%	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
8	F,G	MAX EFFORTS	MAX EFFORTS	ADD 2-3%	ADD 3-5%
9	Can be used as recovery week or beginning of next cycle

The Workouts

Primary lifts	O-Lifts	Secondary Lifts
Squat	Clean and Jerk	Front squat
Deadlift	Snatch	Overhead squat
Power Clean		Push ups
Press	(these lifts may not apply	Pull ups
Bench	to intermediate athletes)	Kettlebells
		Turkish get ups
		Ring work
		Handstand push ups
		Single Joint
		Cable work
	Interval/Speed/MetCon
	Sprints (200m or less)
	Tabata Drills
	Box Jumps
	Clapping push ups, Handspeed Drills
	10 min or less MetCon

If this confuses you, then you shouldn’t follow it.  This is a very specialized program that works well for me and took me years to refine.  It follows a similar style often that Mark Rippetoe uses for his advanced athletes of “Two Steps Forward One Step Back” where there is a ramp up week, high intensity week, and recovery week.  Is it obvious I am a Rippetoe fan?

I will be giving some lectures and seminars soon on exercise physiology and programming so keep following the posts for future announcements.  The first one should is planned for sometime in September. 

I know this was a lengthy article but to sum everything up remember:

• To gain muscle: train heavy, eat, sleep…not much else
• Gain muscle/strength first then lean out or condition unless there are health issues
• Every athlete is different
• There is no “one size fits all” program out there
• Take the time to educate yourself or hire someone smarter than you to teach you
• Ovoid overtraining

For those interested in discussing training or lectures, take a look at the flyer info on the left of the page for more info.  Also, I will be providing some info on some local gyms in the DFW area that I highly recommend for serious athletes.  Until next time, pick up something heavy and get some sprints in.

The Key to Health Starts With Your Gut

When talking about health, our gut is usually not the first thing to come up.  Its easy to identify the "center" of our cardio vascular system as the heart, brain for the nervous system and lungs for the respiratory system.  But when asked what the "center" of our immune system is, we usually don't think of our gut as the "center."  Our gut, or digestive tract, is responsible for the development and maintenance of our immune system.  This makes sense since it is where most things enter our body.  The gut is home to billions, if not trillions, of bacteria.   It is estimated that the bacteria that lives in our body outnumber our own cells by a ratio of 10:1.

These bacteria can be broken down into several different categories, but for this article we will keep it simple and just say there are two main categories: Good Bacteria and Bad Bacteria.  This collective group of bacteria is often referred to as gut flora.  All of these bacteria feed and produce waste products.  The good bacteria in our gut flora actually help with nutrient absorption and digestion, protect against toxins and carcinogens, provide a barrier for harmful bacteria and develop our immune system.  This development is extremely important to recognize and ensure in infants and young children.  The various living nutrients in breast milk actually develop the healthy gut flora in infants.  Since both good and bad bacteria make up our gut flora, the trick is to keep a balance where the bad bacteria are kept in check by the good bacteria.

Problems occur when we damage the good bacteria and the bad bacteria are no longer kept in check and start to flourish.  This is called dysbiosis and is often triggered with antibiotic therapy, stress and poor diet.  When this occurs, the defenses that normally protect us are diminished and toxins from the bad bacteria are absorbed by our body, in particular our brain.  Additionally, these same toxins cause damage and inflammation to the very intestines that are protecting us further adding to the problem. 

This field of research is relatively new and is growing very rapidly.  It is speculated that there are hundreds of types of good bacteria and we are just starting to understand how important they are to not only our immune system but the health and development of our brain.  It is estimated that over 85% of our body's serotonin, a neuro transmitter often called the "feel good" hormone, is produced by our gut.  No wonder there is such a strong connection between gut health and our brain.   Our gut is frequently called our "second brain."  The connection between our gut and brain is often called the Gut-Brain Axis...which is not to be confused with Will Ferrell's Axis of Evil...which is shown below. Here is a link to the video to clarify.



I know, I know...I couldn't resist, I laugh every time I think about that...ok, I'm serious again...back to what I was talking about. 

Understanding this is important to not only LEO's and athletes but to anyone who wants to stay healthy or who are raising kids.  There is a lot of compelling research and studies on the topic which continue to grow.  Many of these studies show a strong correlation between the rise in obesity and mood disorders, such as ADHD, bi-polar and depression, in children and the rapid rise in the consumption of sugar and processed foods over the last 30 years.

Sugar and processed foods along with gluten, found primarily in wheat barley and rye, are some of the biggest culprits.  Gluten, which is a lectin, has a tendency to bind or "stick" to the epithelial cells of the small intestine causing an immune response and inflammation which leads to damage and eventually Leaky Gut Syndrome...which has been connected to many of our modern diseases, primarily auto immune diseases.  Also, the gluten that doesn't stick and makes it into our blood bonds to other tissues and cells which our body mistakes as a foreign body and attacks. 

The causes for such things as acne, IBS, constipation, eczema, headaches, mood disorders, fatigue, arthritis and headaches, which are commonly treated with medications and as one single factor, can often be traced to poor gut health.


Here is a Podcast from Chris Kressor's site.  The podcast is worth the time to listen to.  He goes into detail explaining the Gut-Brain Axis.  He even goes as far to say "I think the gut-brain axis is one of the most important and least recognized factors in human health."

Here are a few guidelines for improved gut health include:

• eliminate gluten (found primarily in wheat, barley and rye)
• keep healthy fats in the diet (saturated and Omega-3's)
• avoid processed foods
• reduce sugar intake
• eat a lot of vegetables
• exercise
• eat foods with healthy bacteria in them such as fermented foods and yogurt (kefir style is preferable)
• reduce stress
• reduce acidic foods and increase alkaline foods (vegetables are great source)
• reduce Omega-6's

For those who are already experiencing gut or auto-immune problems may want to consider a more strict approach and eliminate all grains, legumes,non-fermented dairy, take probiotics and digestive enzymes.

Probiotics are healthy or good bacteria found in various fermented foods as well as raw milk, which are destroyed by the pasteurization process. Prebiotics are the materials that feed the existing healthy bacteria.  Some of the primary sources of these prebiotics are soluble fiber found in fruits and vegetables such as inulin, oligofructose, along with fructooligosaccharides (FOS), galactooligosaccharides (GOS), and other oligosaccharides.  Both inulin and oligofructose have been shown to increase magnesium and calcium absorption.  This article discusses some methods of healing a damaged gut, often referred to as Leaky Gut Syndrome.

 Here is a good book for parents or anyone with ADD, ADHD, mood disorders or depression.  Wait, here are two more articles another of interest, especially for parents, that discusses how a child's health starts with the gut.

• article about gut health and children 
• article about autism and gut health

Until next time, make sure you pick up something heavy this week and get some sprints in.

New Blog Address

Due to the previous name of my blogsite, evotacfit.blogsite.com, too closely resembling another website, I changed the address name to evotfitness.blogspot.com to avoid any confusion or infringement rights.  I apologize for any inconvenience this may cause my readers and followers.  Please spread the word.  This will not change my motivation or drive to continue writing and providing useful information on topics that can improve the health of others..and giving my opinion on said topics.  Until next time, pick up something heavy this week and get some sprints in.

Announcement for Health and Nutrition Class for Officers and Family Members

Another big announcement guys!  On saturday July 16, 2011 at the FWPD Training Academy, I will be giving a lecture for law enforcement officers and civilians!  This class is free and has limited seating, so please sign up early.   Bring a friend. TCLEOSE credit will be given to law enforcement officers attending. Topics will include:

• Evolution of food
• Paleo fundamentals
• Basic physiology
• How to lose fat and build muscle
• Identify and reduce health risk factors
• Modern diseases and their connection to foods
• Making sense of it all
• and more!

Learn valuable information on how to look and feel better, improve performance and health and even add a few years to your life!

Here are the details:

When:     Sat 8am-5pm,   July 16, 2011
Where:   City of Fort Worth Police and Fire Recruit Training Academy-Classroom F
                1000 Calvert St. Fort Worth

There will be a lunch break given during the class. 

If you or someone you know is struggling with health issues or just wanting to learn how to improve their health and fitness then attend this class.

Law enforcement officers wanting TCLEOSE credit will need to provide a PID # when signing up.  All others, please bring an ID or drivers license to the class.  I encourage everyone to bring a pen and paper to take notes.  To sign up, use the link below.  I will see you guys there!  Its going to be a great class!                  

Link to sign up.

Click on the link and go to "click here to register" which is highlighted to sign up.

Correction on previous article for grassfed meat

One of the goals of my blog is to provide accurate information that is supported by fact or the latest knowledge in medicine and science.  Along with that, I will throw my opinion and observations in based on my experience.  I also believe in providing information for both sides or the "pros and cons" of a subject so the reader can come to their own conclusions.  With that being said, if I make a mistake or if information or research comes out that provides new evidence, then it is my responsibility to correct any mistakes and adopt whatever is best supported by fact and science.

In the article I posted on February 27th, I provided information for a local source of grassfed meat and pastured pork and poultry located in Alvarado, Tx. called Woods and Cuds.  When I found the place, I was informed by one of the employees that all the beef is 100% grassfed.  Well, I was recently advised by a friend of mine that he talked to another employee who said that although the beef/cows are raised in pastures and are grassfed they occasionally have access to grain.  I did some more digging and confirmed that the beef sold their is not 100% grassfed, but was reassured that the beef are only occasionally fed grain and live in a stress free environment (other then getting slaughtered...bad joke, I know) in nearby pastures and are not raised by commercial methods.  Additionally, they are hormone and antibiotic free, which means they are healthier than commercially raised beef...that equates to better Omega-3 to Omega-6 ratios and higher levels of beta-carotenoids and conjugated linoleic acid.

Woods and Cuds is a family owned business and is a great source of meat, even exotic meats like bison, elk and ostrich...they also carry smoked meats which are awsome.  I will continue to shop there for my family and would still highly recommend it to anyone.  But I owe my readers an apology since in wrote that they carry grassfed meat, which isn't entirely accurate.  Again, Woods and Cuds is a great place to get quality meats...far superior to commercial meats.. but I think it is important that I correct the information I put out in my past article.

For other sources of grassfed meat that are near the DFW area..that deliver..I have some listed in the column on the right side of the page.  Until next time, be sure to pick up something heavy and get some sprints in.