Programming

Consistency Trumps Intensity—The Continuity of the Training Process

19 Comments / Articles, Blog, Programming / By Joey Yang

Adapting to load is what makes us stronger. But because training loads can be manipulated in so many ways—intensity, magnitude, repetition, duration, frequency, direction, speed, acceleration, exercise, equipment, sequence, rest, etc.—some people get paralyzed by the seemingly overwhelming options; frozen by the insecurity of making a wrong choice. Too many do nothing. Others bounce around, …

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The Specificity-Transfer Trade-off

3 Comments / Programming / By Mike Prevost

Specificity and transfer are two of the most important considerations for any strength and conditioning program. If you don’t consider both of these variables carefully, you are not really programming at all. Specificity refers to the principle that you get specific adaptations to imposed demands (often referred to as the SAID principle). You get better …

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Reload vs Plan Strong—What is the Difference?

5 Comments / Articles, Barbell, Blog, Programming / By Pavel Tsatsouline

By Fabio Zonin, Master SFG and Pavel Tsatsouline Earlier this year, we launched “Reload: Your Barbell Strength Blueprint,” a concise e-book featuring individually-tailored, nearly-foolproof strength programming. Some of our readers asked the question that became the title of this article. Here is our answer. Let us start by clearly stating which training philosophy each represents: Reload—American powerlifting cycling …

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Simplify your Strength Programming Using Die-Rolled Variability

21 Comments / Articles, Blog, Programming / By Arryn Grogan

What is the best plan for any strength or fitness goal? It’s the one that you will consistently follow. A reasonable program done consistently will deliver better results than a masterminded one that you can’t stick to. Simplifying your programming gives you more time to focus on the doing. Author Arryn Grogan shares his simple …

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Barbell BDSM: the Secret Marathon Training and Recovery Strategy

12 Comments / Articles, Barbell, Programming / By Brian Gill

With August upon us, members of the StrongFirst community from the New York City area and elsewhere have already begun their preparations for the 2018 New York City Marathon. Wait a minute. That can’t be right! Marathon training inevitably cannibalizes muscle and leads to a loss of strength. I’m not entirely sure, but I think …

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It’s OK to Struggle

12 Comments / Articles, Blog, Kettlebells, Programming / By Brett Jones

Professional “Learners” We were all professional “learners” at some point. Think about it. Your “job” for the first 18 years or so was to learn. First to learn how to move and walk, and then how to learn in school. This may have continued in sports (learning more movement) or onto advanced degrees (learning more …

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Stop Slowing Yourself Down

8 Comments / Articles, Blog, Programming / By John Spezzano

My friend Jamie Crowder introduced me to the important distinction between “dilemma” and “problem” as it relates to martial arts strategy. A dilemma is defined as “a situation in which a difficult choice has to be made between two or more alternatives, especially equally undesirable ones.” This means that unlike a “problem” which has one …

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