COACH FORUM: Questions about New Strength Program
Hi Team,
Being a few weeks into the new strength program, we want to answer any and all questions you have around it. If you have not read THIS ARTICLE yet, that is a good starting point.
Thanks, PPF team.
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In the Bodyweight Week 2 workout, it wasn't clear to me from the video which phase of some of the exercises are to be done to the slow counts:
- Kneeling Band Twists - fast contraction and slow back to neutral?
- Lateral Lunge Reach - slow down to reach after foot plant, slow in balance, or both?
- Pilates 100s - is there any slow in there, or do we do 100 arm movements? How does one do 10 of the 100s?
I see similar questions arising in the Eccentric Loading Week 2 for these exercises:
- Single arm snatch - any slow parts?
- Side Plank Elbow to Knee - slow flexion or extension?
- Mountain Climbers - any slow?
My butt tells me that the new strength program is working well, so thanks for that.
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Is there a video or other reference for the "Race Specific Transition Day 1" Squad workout on the calendar for July 13? I'm familiar with a few of the movements (thanks to coach Mike's Core/Mobility sessions), but not all. At present, there's no video or hypertext links in the Summary Description.
Thanks!
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How important is it, in the context of the Purple Patch Squad program, to add weight progression to the new strength routine?
Some context in my particular case: I've been fairly religiously doing all of the strength workouts for the last 7 months, plus the following since March: some of Coach Mike's Activation & Mobility Zoom sessions, most of the Core Club with Chelsea & Sarah sessions, the Standing Mobility & Activation pre-run, and generally one or both of Core 1 & Core 2 each week. So, I've seen a huge shift in overall core and hip strength, including better left/right balance (big gain, chronic injuries on left side!). I love the ability to envision while doing the workout, how each exercise is translating to my ability to swim/bike/run more efficiently. The videos are great!
I'm operating out of a home gym and have a small selection of weights. But for the most part have stuck to just using bodyweight and/or bands, with the odd light kettlebelt or dumbbell thrown in. With the new strength program I'm finding that even done without weights, and focusing on the movements carefully, I've gotten a bit sore just from switching up the routine. In most cases I'm able to do the 'advanced' movement - albeit with a fair amount of focus :). How would you recommend approaching progression with respect to continuing with the advanced movements shown in the video vs. adding weights and how much would be too much weight (assuming we can eventually get back into gyms...)? Would that change if we were not just going into "race-specific" phase? (I assume yes as the earlier blocks allowed for that, but interested in the answer nonetheless).
Thank you! Love the program and all of the coaching support!
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Hi, thanks for a strength programme that doesn't need a gym membership and fancy gear! Love that :-) I'm new to some of these exercises tho and struggling to co-ordinate, fast-slow / arms with legs / 4 sec count and counting reps.. The first couple times it took me well over an hour and I didn't really feel any work till the 1:2 and 1:1 rounds. This week I swapped to going up the ladder 1:1, 1:2, 1:3, 1:4 count. Found much better connection and proper work getting the hang of it with a faster rhythm first I knew what to engage and thought I did more valuable work by the time I was in the 1:4 loading phases.. you thoughts on this? Also.. if you could only fit in one of the strengths per week which would it be. And are these better placed after a key session or before if on the same day. And are there any good glute de-activation/wind down stretches as I seem to be doing them late-isa at night (the other choice is 5am.. would the body be ready for this or best to keep 8pm?). And if you loose form on the slow ones is it better to do less reps or less time? Thanks for all the work getting exciting new stuff out to us! Trix
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Hi Les,
Great questions:
- Kneeling Band Twists - fast contraction and slow back to neutral
- Lateral Lunge Reach - slow down to reach after foot plant, controlling your weight down to the ground
- Pilates 100s - no slow movement in here. It can be done for repetitions (40-60) or for time (20-30 seconds)
- Single arm snatch - the only slow part in here would be after you get the weight to about hip height to slowly lower it back down to the ground. But if you do that, be careful to drive the upward motion from the legs and hips, not the back.
- Side Plank Elbow to Knee - come together fast, then slowly extend them away from each other. Watch to keep your hips up on the contraction portion.
- Mountain Climbers - option to have the slow portion be bringing the knee to the chest if you are doing one leg at a time.
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Hi Jody,
Glad you have been able to incorporate more strength and core into your training--that is great. As far as progressing through the cycles, since you have been doing consistent weight training for a few months now, you could opt to add small amounts of weight each repeated cycle (whereas for other people increasing repetitions or time under tension would be better options). The exercises themselves won't need to change since your added weight will be enough new stimulus to keep you adapting.
It is good to keep focusing on form throughout them--the movements were chosen because they challenge the body in different ways and collectively build a well-rounded session.
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Hi Trixinnz,
Some good questions here, so let me address them one by one.
The coordination factor was an important part of why the program was built this way. If you find yourself struggling with the coordination THAT CAN BE A GOOD THING--you are training your body in many ways during these sessions. As long as you are feeling any soreness in your muscles and not in your joints, then you are likely fine with the movements.
It would be preferred to do the ladder 4:1, 3:1, 2:1, 1:1 because we want to fatigue the system a bit, then have you move up to faster movements (think like the over-recruitment work on the bike sort of idea). BUT, that said being successful in the workout is more important, so if going up the ladder is better for you, then you can stick with it (in my mind that is actually a more difficult way to do the workout).
If you can only choose one each week, then make sure to chose the OTHER one the next cycle. So for instance:
- week 1/workout 1
- week 2/workout 1
- week 3/workout 1
- week 4/workout 2
- week 5/workout 2
- week 6/workout 2
Workout 1 aligns and builds on itself week over week, as does workout 2, so stick with one each cycle, then change it. If on the same day as a key workout, do the strength AFTER the key session. These workouts are built to create adaptation, but not create a ton of strain to your central nervous system. After a key session, your body will be tired, so this should not add a ton of extra fatigue on top of it.
As far as glute recovery, self-myofascial release (foam rolling) is a great option. If you have a small ball (across ball or tennis ball) that will be very effective at getting to certain spots. The foam roller can be too broad of an implement to fully get into the deeper muscles of the glutes.
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Hi Coach,
Question regarding the rest and movement sequence. For the Body Weight Race Specific 1, is the correct sequence like this:
Front Squat x 10 (4:1) -> rest 30 seconds -> Russian Twists x 10(4:1) -> rest 30 seconds -> Front Squat x 10 (3:1) -> rest 30 seconds -> Russian Twists x 10(3:1) ...finish the rest with the same pattern then proceed to the SET 2
Also, for movements like Lateral Lunges & 3-point Plank, should I alternating Right and Left side until the total count is 10 or Right x10 then switch to Left x10?Thanks!
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Hi George,
Here are the Transition 1 strength workouts
https://youtu.be/L4Tme6PCVWI WORKOUT 1https://youtu.be/BEDeqdPRWK0 WORKOUT 2 -
Hi LPS Tony,
You are correct in understanding how the sets are executed. You do the two exercise pairs back and forth until you have done 4 sets, then move on to the next pair.
For the exercises that are single leg/side, you should do all one side first, then all the other side instead of alternating back and forth. Example: right side x10, then left side x10.
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The videos for this week's strength workouts which have been emailed appear to be missing demonstrations for the final part of Thursday's workout:
FINISH WITH:
TWO to THREE ROUNDS (30 sec each) of:
- Balance Ball Wall-Catch
- Opposite Hand
- Same Hand
- Alternate!Advice would be appreciated. Thanks
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