Writing Personal Training Programs: A System for Setting Up the Training Year
Well, I’m supposed to be in Chicago right now, celebrating my awesome cousin’s wedding, but some jackass decided that setting a control tower on fire would be a great decision. So Jess and I ended up stuck in LA. Jess is watching Frozen as I write this, intermittently tearing up, so it’s not exactly an uplifting scene at the Esser household.
We were both really looking forward to going and seeing family we had not seen in forever, so it’s a huge bummer, but to keep my mind off things, I’ve decided to write. Writing has always been a passion of mine, but as I grow into adulthood, I’ve experienced its powerful therapeutic effects. To me, it’s very similar to how I feel after a great training session for myself.
I feel calmer and better able to think through life. And I’m always happier after putting together a solid writing sesh.
Anywho, let’s talk about training program design. Over the past few years, as I really dove into the personal training world, I’ve put in a lot of time developing systems.
Systems for consistently getting clients great results.
Systems for helping me to streamline my thought processes with regard to programming, in general.
I felt compelled to develop systems for myself because there are many different periodization schemes out there, but I started noticing a lot of them were steeped in theory and had certain guidelines with no practical applications. And that drove me nuts.
Here I was with textbook after textbook telling me how to program and I couldn’t figure out how to logically apply that to the people I was training. There had to be a better, less stressful way of going about this.
Because, let’s be honest, it can be EXTREMELY overwhelming to sit down and map out a training program designed to get a client from point A to point B. There are SO many variables at play, and with how young the fitness industry is relative to other industries, a lot of the information you operate on as a fitness professional is experiential.
Sure, there’s plenty of research out there, and it should have a strong role in your decision-making, but a lot of what you do is going to be based on what you have seen other successful coaches do and what you have seen work yourself.
In other words, helping someone lose 20 pounds of fat or put 50 pounds on their bench press, is an inexact science. There are principles, and there are many methods, but it will always come down to the individual you have in front of you.
EVERYTHING ELSE IS SECONDARY
What I mean by that is, a coach can tell you X method works great, but that coach does not work with YOUR client! Only you can perform educated “experiments” and measure the outcomes. And even then, it’s really tough to extrapolate that data out to the masses.
I say all that to say…writing training programs is difficult if you do not have a system in place to do so.
A system that guides not just your exercise selection, but how the program progresses as a whole from week-to-week and month-to-month.
Because that’s the tough part. It’s not terribly difficult to get results for a new client in their first month. Just do something active with them 3 times a week and they will probably be better off than before. It’s a whole other story to continue to get someone results after they have gone through the “newb” phase. And to keep them healthy over the long-term.
I have not been successful with this 100% of the time. I’ve made programming errors that I look back and kick myself about, and I think any trainer can admit that. But I’m getting better every single day, and it’s mainly because I dove deep in systematizing what I do.
Anyway, I wanted to go ahead and share an overview of the system I’m currently using for the clients I train. They are primarily general population clients, with a few athletes sprinkled in, and the results have been consistent across the board, with respect to their specific goals. It’s a very versatile system, which is a big reason why I enjoy using it.
If you currently feel overwhelmed with the task of developing a training program, I hope this helps streamline things a bit.
As mentioned though, I don’t know who your clients are, only you do. This is a system, not a prescription. Use it as you wish in the specific context that you are working within.
The Training Year
This is typically referred to as the macrocycle for the average client. One calendar year. And for the purposes of this post, I’m going to be referring to average clients.
Why a full 50 weeks?
There’s no particular reason, I guess, but it’s nice and clean. Quadrennials are used for Olympic athletes (4-year training model), so this is a 1/4 of that.
Most client’s goals can be reached within a year’s time with the proper approach and discipline, so this ensures enough time to reach even the most ambitious goals.
Seriously, I think you can do whatever you want to do in a year. That’s 12 months, 50 weeks, and 365 days. If you train even just 3 times per week, that’s 150 training sessions. If you train 4x, that’s 200.
With a strong, consistent adherence to proper nutrition and recovery you can do whatever you want do in that amount of time!
I could list a few examples that may warrant a longer expectation (e.g. increasing deadlift by 100 pounds when you are already at 600), but there are exceptions to every point, especially in this industry.
And this is what I’m referring to when I say a program can be a tad intimidating if you look at the next 50 weeks and try to figure everything out.
“Alright, Suzie’s program is all done, I know exactly what she is going to be doing for the next 365 days…it’s…a masterpiece.”
Phone buzzes.
“Hey trainer blank, super sick, no training this week.”
“Noooooooooooo….everything is ruined!!!!!” How am I supposed to carry out this cyber-kinetic block periodization program anymore??? Ahhhhhhhh!!!!”
Such is life for anyone who trains humans. It’s not a perfect world. That’s why I’m referring to this as a system, not a program.
Adapt and thrive, baby.
There are 4 phases that you can use in a training year to get epic results and dominate all life.
#1: General Physical Preparedness (GPP)
#2: Hypertrophy/Body Composition
#3: Maximal Strength
#4: Speed-Strength
I’m going to briefly overview each phase and then I’ll devote a specific post to each phase in the future.
The GPP Phase
This is where you do all the “clean up” work. Most clients come in a hot mess with regard to movement ability and injury history that you just have to bring them up to a certain standard before clearing them to move on in the system. If you expect them to get results, they gotta be able to hit the basic patterns with great technique, and that won’t happen unless they can move a certain way.
You may have other assessments for movement, but I rely heavily on the Functional Movement Screen (FMS). I expect clients to clear a symmetrical 14 before I really start attacking a lot of the compound movements. And that’s because, with the rewards moves like squats and deadlifts bring, there comes an inherent risk. So I want someone to be set-up for success and not have to stop training 2 months in because they blew something out in an exercise like this because I neglected to hold them to a certain standard of movement ability.
Sure, coaching is a huge part of things, but we’re talking about systems here, not abstract variables.
GPP is usually drawn up as an over-arching conditioning program designed to give someone (usually an athlete) some form of work capacity “base” before diving into the meat of the strength work. I think that has merit, but in this system, for an average client, “preparedness” refers to moving around without pain and with a certain level of grace. I’m not looking to build work capacity without this.
The goal of this phase is to develop a solid foundation of movement that will allow the client to increase their work capacity and strength in later phases. In addition to movement, this is also the phase where the client begins to understand and implement the nutritional and recovery strategies that will be needed to succeed throughout their training life.
This is an important point because if they aren’t on-board with what they need to be doing outside of the gym in this phase, it’s not going to be an easy task trying to play catch-up when they are in more taxing training phases.
Put in the work here and you’ll be a lot less stressed later on!
How do you know when someone is ready progress out of this phase? There are 3 objective markers and 1 that’s a little more subjective;
#1: Symmetrical 14 on the FMS
#2: Pain-free range-of-motion with ALL movement patterns
#3: Must demonstrate bodyweight competence with hinge, squat, pull, push, and single-leg patterns
#4: Program buy-in with nutrition and recovery strategies (don’t have to be perfect obviously, but they can’t be at square 1 and be expected to get results moving on to body comp work, for example)
Typically, this phase could be anywhere from 2-6 weeks depending on their ability and commitment coming in, but don’t get strung up on the timeline. Just focus on those developmental benchmarks and don’t move on until they have reached them.
I never really understood why it was commonplace after 4 weeks to update and overhaul a program. How do you know they are ready to move on? Just because it’s March, not February anymore? That doesn’t make much sense.
Go off of standards, not time.
#2: Hypertrophy/Body Comp Phase
Now, after the GPP phase, which everyone needs to go through if they don’t test off the charts, there are a few different routes you can go, depending on the goal.
If someone wants to primarily improve max strength, go straight into the max strength phase (explained later). If they want to lose body fat and build lean muscle, enter this phase
The goal of the hypertrophy/body comp phase is adding lean body mass while subsequently decreasing bodyfat.
How much?
You’re looking at around 3-5 pounds of lean body mass if they are completely new to training or around 1-2 if they have a few years of consistent training under their belt.
What timeframe?
I set-up this up to be around 8 weeks, if they don’t miss any sessions in that period. With this amount of time, I’ve seen the above numbers to be a realistic expectation if you’ve taken care of business in the first phase. More than likely, bodyfat percentage will only drop slightly during this phase.
Say what???? 2 months and just a percent or 2??
Hold your horses. Let me explain.
Hypertrophy is the first word in this phase because THAT is the primary goal. The primary goal is not to drop bodyfat. That will come about WITH an increase in lean body mass. The goal is to set someone up to be a fat-burning machine over the long-term and if we can establish some solid muscle gains here, the bodyfat will consistently drop over the entire year, not just in this specific phase.
That’s the beauty of adding lean muscle. It makes you a furnace for times where you may have to miss training for an extended period. You won’t just put all the fat back on because you will have a solid foundation of muscle to keep you in good shape.
If that muscle isn’t there, your metabolism won’t be there, either. So if you take a week off, you’ll look and feel like poo-poo.
Over the course of this phase, you will LOOK a lot better, even if the scale and calipers don’t say so.
That being said, there are 3 assessment markers used in this phase;
#1: Before/After Photos
#2: Bodyfat Calipers
#3: Bodyweight Scale
Photos are king because they won’t lie to you. How you look is how you look. The calipers and scale serve a purpose with regard to measuring muscle growth, but the photos will show the EFFECT that muscle-growth is having on your appearance.
The significantly decreased bodyfat percentage will come with time.
When the lean muscle gains are achieved, it’s a good idea to run the client through a full FMS again to ensure nothing has regressed with their movement patterns.
#3: Maximal Strength Phase
Ah, my favorite phase. I’m all about increasing strength, because I’ve seen the powerful effects it has on both performance and aesthetic.
That’s right, improving your absolute strength levels WILL have a positive effect on your bodyfat. Training with heavy weights is hard work and you will burn more calories doing it.
With the lean mass gains you achieved in the prior phase, this phase will take advantage of that and “cement” that accomplishment.
When I refer to improving max strength, I am talking about the powerlifts (deadlift, squat, and bench press). We’re looking to increase the deadlift and squat by 5% for newbs, and 2-3% for more advanced trainees. The same percentage gains are used for the bench press.
These are MINIMUM requirements. A newb is probably going to blast those numbers from week-to-week in a linear fashion.
Let’s say your max in the bench press is 135 pounds. A 5% gain is going to get you up to around 140. From what I’ve seen, a complete novice is going to see closer to a 15-pound PR (150) over the course of 4 weeks. But I prefer to stick with those conservative percentages.
I like using 3-repetition maximum tests for the deadlift, squat, and bench press. 1RMs get a little tricky because they really tax the nervous system and open the door to a higher risk of injury. Extrapolating from a 3RM is typically pretty accurate.
Max strength comprises around 12 weeks. Obviously, we want to establish a strength foundation, but it also works great as a recovery from the more volume-heavy hypertrophy/body comp work.
Strength = less volume, so I find that people are ready to attack the weights each session and recover quicker with this kind of set-up.
Therefore, I find myself using max strength for a significant period of the training year, leaving the hypertrophy/body comp work for the really intense chunks of the year.
I like Dan John’s discussion on this referring to the fact that a trainee should only have a few dedicated times of the year when they really go for it. The rest should be clock-work, getting in the work consistently, and going home.
Again, the FMS should be screened toward the end of this phase, and we’re looking to keep nearly all of the lean body mass gained in the hypertrophy/body comp phase.
#4: Speed-Strength Phase
This is the phase that I use least during the year. It’s employed for 2 weeks at a time, max, and is simply designed to take the strength gains made in the prior phase and put some power behind it. For fat-loss clients, this will represent a needed deload, as the weights being used on the big lifts will be around 50-60%.
The vertical jump is the primary assessment marker here. We’re simply looking for an increase of some kind across the 2 weeks. The vertical is the ultimate expression of power, in my opinion, so if this is going up, good things are happening.
Outside of that, we’re looking to keep about 90% of the strength gains made in the prior phase, a 14 on the FMS, and pretty much all of the lean body mass gains.
Ok, so those are the 4 basic phases. That’s just a very brief overview. If you follow the timeframes to a T and have a client progress in textbook-like fashion, this is what it would look like;
GPP (Weeks 1-4)
Hypertrophy/Body Comp (Weeks 5-12)
Maximal Strength (Weeks 13-21)
Speed-Strength (Weeks 22-23)
So that leaves another 27 weeks in the year to play with. What do you do?
It depends on the client’s goal. For fat-loss clients, we’ll just re-enter a hypertrophy/body comp phase. For those interested in continuing to increase their max strength, we’ll re-enter a max strength phase.
The parameters will be slightly different because of their new-found progression, but the principal goals will remain the same.
That’s the versatility of the system. Work through the initial 4 blocks, and then continue as you see fit, based on their results. It does a good job of influencing some powerful physique changes, while also setting the stage for great movement and improved performance.
In upcoming posts, I’ll dive into what those phases look like on paper and go into much more detail. But I hope that gave you a clearer picture of what to look for throughout the year.
That was probably the longest post I have written in a long time, so thanks for reading! This post was accompanied by the background music of Frozen, so things got a little out of hand.
Dominate All Life,
Kasey, CSCS
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