Saturday, March 29, 2008

Randomized training vs. training plans.

I get people asking me about putting together training combinations. There is a difference between training combinations and a training 'plan'. Both are good, and can be part of the same equation, but are different. I know many people follow a sort of randomized training, never repeating their workouts, and this is fine if your goal is general conditioning. When I was still training for tactical fitness I followed a similar pattern of no pattern (ala crossfit) to be ready for any possible situation. As I said, this is fine if you are training for a generalized level of fitness (and assuming you have the training knowledge to ensure you aren't leaving out body parts) but it will not help you if your effort is to max your deadlift, increase your kettlebell snatch numbers, etc. Granted, you cannot train for an event by simply practicing the event over and over again, but you absolutely cannot train for an event with no plan.
Also, in my opinion if you are going to pursue randomized training you should already have a solid base in the deadlift, squat, kettlebell snatch, pull ups, overhead press, etc. There can be carryover from randomized training, but if you're engaging in this type of training, and aren't able to pull twice your bodyweight (preferably more) in a deadlift you should build that foundation first.
So, after that long winded explanation the below video is just one example of a kettlebell training combination you can utilize to boost your general strength, endurance, and just overall work capacity. As I state in the video, I try to do this back to back, using only a plank position as my rest. Learning to rest under duress is key if you really want inhuman work capacity. One thing the GS athletes do well is resting under duress. I.E. in the descent of the snatch, in the rack position, in the lockout, etc. It may only be a split second, but rest is rest.
This combination is nothing new. You've seen things like this before from Steve Maxwell among others, and of course Tracy Reifkind. You can find a ton of these from her on Rif's Youtube page and through Tracy's blog.

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