The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines advanced as “being beyond the elementary or introductory”, and in the context of exercise I consider an advanced trainee to be someone who is proficient in the basic techniques of exercise performance and has learned to train with a high level of intensity.
An advanced training technique or repetition method is one that either requires proficiency in the basic exercise performance techniques to be able to perform it correctly or is more physically demanding than appropriate for someone without sufficient conditioning or accustomed to working at the required level of effort.
Since people learn and improve at different rates, being an advanced trainee or readiness for advanced techniques or methods isn’t something that can be determined by how long you’ve been training, but rather by how skilled you are in exercise performance and your level of conditioning.
An example of an advanced technique requiring both a significant level of skill and being accustomed to training at a high level of intensity is static holds or Max Contraction training. These techniques require interpersonal or intrapersonal transfer of a very heavy load which must be done in a very specific and controlled manner, the ability to maintain proper positioning and alignment against greater-than-normal reactionary force while intensely contracting the target musculature, extra attention to correct breathing technique, etc. This would not be appropriate for someone just starting out or who has not learned to train at a high level of intensity.
This also applies to personal trainers. Repetition assist and modification techniques like forced reps and forced negatives, training techniques like breakdowns, and things like interpersonal resistance transfer must be performed in a very specific manner to be safe for both the trainee and trainer and to achieve the desired effect. Like the performance of the exercises themselves, these techniques and methods are skills which must be learned and practiced and you also have to know when it is appropriate to use them.
Just wanted to get this out there to clarify what I mean by an “advanced” technique or method when discussing it in other posts.
Questions? Comments? Please post below and I’ll answer them as best I can when I’m back later tonight.
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Drew,
From your experience would you recommend a limit to the number of advanced techniques one should perform in a given workout or a given amount of time to avoid the possibility of overtraining/using ‘excessive intensity’ on a too regular basis? I remember reading this in Body By Science, when it talks about more is sometimes not better with intensity, as it can take its toll on your recovery ability. I understand this is going to be individual but I was just wondering if you found a ‘sweet spot’ when using advanced techniques in terms of seeing the benefits of using them and avoiding the taxing effects of advanced techniques. Personally I feel it would be great and very helpful to include advice on implementing advanced techniques into routines in your up and coming book (you probably have already done this). This may seem simple for some, but I can imagine it is easy to get carried away with using them.
Thanks Drew,
Callum.
Callum,
The next book focuses entirely on exercise form, including when to use and how to perform advanced training techniques and repetition methods. Most need to be used very judiciously because they can quickly lead to overtraining if overdone.
Hi Drew,
When I first encountered HIT 10 years ago I had to teach myself the advanced techniques with a lot of trial and error – I still might do some of them exactly right.
I definetly agree with you that advanced techniques need to be used “judiciously” if not progression can come to a sudden halt. Recovery from advanced methods need to also consider again overtraining can occur before you know it you may be having extended time off training to recover.
If used at the right time and with good form advanced techniques can greatly improve “results”.
First of all let me say that I don’t always train with a high level of intensity. Most of this is due to not always being able to work through the discomfort.
I guess I get kinda confused on the topic of intensity and advanced techniques. As long as the the stimulas is safe,brief and you allow for recovery how do you get into overtraining with advanced techniques?
Ryan,
Some advanced techniques increase the demands on the body enough to require a significant increase in recovery. Overtraining can occur if these are performed without adjusting training volume and frequency accordingly.
Rightly said Drew. Most trainers/ trainees jump to “ADVANCED” methods even before mastered proper form on normal techniques. There is a huge potential for progress on normal techniques before being hit by a plateau. Finding appropriate rep ranges is an often overlooked factor on normal technique where trainers/ trainees jump to advanced techniques in hope of breaking the plateau, where they could have still progressed normally if they had assessed their rep ranges. Jumping on to the advanced training techniques without mastering normal techniques could prove dangerous. Also, the rest and recovery patterns have to accounted for during such expeditions. I always used to jump to an advanced training method before I started learning that there is huge scope to progress on normal techniques. In one of your interviews with Dr.Darden, he had commented about how consolidation type workouts done once a week may not be suitable for all but the very advanced. Advanced techniques like Max contraction, NO, etc. do have a place in training programs, but their use has to be judicious and very brief before returning to normal techniques.
Karthik
Hi Drew,
I was reading Nautilus Bulletins “The Correct Amount of Training” Arthur Jones stated, referring Mercury Morris, “Such a reduction in the amount of his training was an absolute requirement for continued progress…the stronger the athlete becomes…the greater the load imposed upon his recovery ability”.
To answer Ryans comment – advanced techniques can make you very strong and you feel like you want to do more and more but within a few workouts you start to notice that you are not lifting as much, TUL start to decrease and you start cheating on almost every rep – that was my experience with advance techniques. I now only use advanced techniques for a short period and revert back to “normal reps”. I quickly realise when I am not having enough recovery or my training card tells me very quickly – keeping accurate training records is vital.
Ryan you may also want to rethink your level of intensity what I see in most gyms is a lot of people thinking that they are training hard until they experience a proper HIT workout. If your training closely following HIT principles your probably traing fairly hard.
Thanks Drew and Steven.
Drew,
When I do a set to failure, TUL around 60 seconds, and reduce the weight by 50%,sometimes I can barely get off one perfect rep. This is more apparent if using a slower cadence such as 4/4 and even more apparent using around 10/10.
Years ago, during the Nautilus pre-ex machines I could barely use 1/2 of my normal weight for the compound movement.
Does this mean I’m a deep inroader and should I stay away from these “advanced techniques” or should I use them but reduce my frequency? For the past few years I train every 4 th to 5th day.
Brian,
Some people fatigue more rapidly or deeply than others, and this can even vary between muscle groups or exercises for an individual. I generally don’t recommend drop sets except as an adjustment when the initial resistance selection is too high, and I recommend doing a “condensed” rather than traditional pre-exhaust which involves heavier weights and lower rep ranges for each exercise in the sequence.
I wasn’t quite sure where to post this question.
I’ve been reading about a strength training system that advocates doing static contractions in your strongest range of motion. The reasoning is that this is the safest and least wear and tear on the body, ranges to work in. The guys backing the system also talk about “nociception” or the body only being able to contract the maximum possible amount of muscle fibers when the bodypart or parts being worked are working in their strongest/safest range. Kinda like a built in safety system.
This makes alot of sense but on the other hand I wonder if the stronger ranges are simply a product of mechanical advantage and would actually require less fiber recruitment?
Joe,
They are mistaken. There is nothing about partial, strong-range (minimum moment arm/maximum mechanical advantage) in particular that would reduce wear and tear on the body or provide any advantage in motor unit recruitment. Minimizing wear and tear is a matter of proper path and speed of movement and every motor unit within the muscles involved in an exercise will be recruited within a few reps or short duration if the resistance is heavy enough.
It is not necessary to work through a range that involves extreme stretching or shortening of the target muscles, nor is it advantageous to limit the range of motion too much, especially when using positions of minimum moment arm/mechanical advantage where a much heavier weight and thus more compression on the joints is required to achieve the same tension in the muscles. Keep in mind what matters is not weight, but resistance, which is mostly the product of weight and lever (other factors include inertia and acceleration, friction, stored energy, etc.).
Thank you very much for the detailed response, Drew. So even done in the safest, ideal conditions, you still get some negative wear and tear from strength training?
Joe,
Any demanding physical activity will involve some. With proper form these negatives can be significantly reduced, though, to the point where a person who consistently uses good form can reasonably expect a lifetime of injury-free training.
Ideally, would a strength training machine “force” a person to move slow when contracting against the resistance? I understand that with free weights and other tools that don’t correctly vary the resistance, that the trainee has to “consciously” move slow. At least initially during the set.
Joe,
If used properly a purely motorized machine (as opposed to a motor/weight hybrid) with accommodating resistance set to a slow speed and with low acceleration during the turnarounds might be more effective and safer than using weight stack machines or free weights if used properly.