DEVELOPING A COMPREHENSIVE TRAINING SYSTEM FOR THE STRENGTH ATHLETE
By: John Wojciechowski
In this article I will discuss the key physical components that a strength athlete must include in his/her training program, and how these components work together to form a complete, balanced and comprehensive training system. By “strength athlete” I’m referring to those whose sport requires an emphasis on strength and power as opposed to muscular endurance or general fitness.
The weight training component outlined in this article is based on the methods and principles initially developed in the former Soviet Union and detailed in the book “Science and Practice of Strength Training” by Vladimir M. Zatsiorsky. Louie Simmons and his army of world-class powerlifters at Westside Barbell have since popularized these methods and numerous articles about their training can be found on the web. For the remainder of this article I will simply refer to this collection of weight training methods as “The Westside System”. This philosophy of training is not new, yet somehow it still remains in the shadows of the more popular and less effective weight training programs traditionally used in the United States.
I will only briefly discuss Olympic lifting, plyometrics, grip training, flexibility, diet and event training and how these components work together with the weight-training component to form a well-rounded program. Near the end of the article I have provided a sample template that you can modify for your own use.
Strength, Power & Hypertrophy
Power is not strength and strength is not power. People use the terms strength and power interchangeably when actually they are not exactly the same thing.
Strength has been defined as the maximal force that a muscle or muscle group can generate at a specified velocity.
Physics defines power as work divided by time (where work equals force times distance).
Power = Work or Power = Force x Distance
Time Time
Strength and power are expressed differently, but they must be trained together in a comprehensive program along with hypertrophy training (increased muscle size) to ensure maximal progress.
Let’s quickly review some common methods of training to understand why some methods work and some don’t.
The Progressive Overload System and Why It Fails
We’ve all benefited to a certain degree by the traditional 5 sets of 5 or 3 sets of 10 type training model, adding a little weight to the bar each workout and trying to outperform your previous workout’s best. You will gain decent muscle size and some basic strength with this method, but by training all your lifts this way week after week, you will not develop maximum strength or maximum power.
This is the old progressive overload system and it is still useful with your assistance exercises for hypertrophy and basic strength, but it fails when used as your primary method of training. Most often the weights that you are using are too light to develop maximum strength or too heavy to develop maximum power.
The Western Periodization Model and Why It Fails
I’m sure everyone is familiar with the concept of having an off-season, pre-season, in-season, post-season, etc. You’re supposed to systematically move through these seasons in order to “peak” for the most important competitions of the year.
This periodization model fails us because it concentrates on developing hypertrophy, strength and power in separate lengthy microcycles. This is ineffective and detrimental to optimum performance because you will experience detraining (a reduction in training adaptation) in those areas you are not currently working on. In fact, detraining can occur in as little as two weeks.
The Westside System
Overview
The Westside way of training is a “conjugated periodization” program relying on a combination of different methods to simultaneously develop maximum strength, power and hypertrophy in one comprehensive system. The program outlined in this article is only one variation of this method of training.
This is an extremely intense program and should not be attempted by beginners or those who lack the experience and solid understanding of weight training methods. Remember that using maximum weights increases your risk of injury and requires the use of one or more spotters to ensure your safety.
Keep in mind that Westside Barbell uses these methods to develop competitive powerlifters, focused on developing maximum performance in the bench, squat and deadlift. For them, these lifts are their events. Although this program is focused on these three lifts, it can be adapted for almost any lift and for any sport.
Many of the exercises the elite lifters at Westside perform involve the use of chains, weight releasers and bands attached to the bar for various training effects. Most of you will not have the equipment available to use these more extreme methods, so I will not be discussing their use in this article. I do however encourage you to learn about these methods, as you will eventually want to incorporate them into your training to exploit the benefits of this program.
It’s important again to remember to understand why these methods work, not just how to follow the program. Understanding why will give you the knowledge and the freedom to adapt these methods to your own goals and abilities. Don’t ever blindly follow an exercise program simply because it seems popular or because someone encourages you to do so.
Guiding Principles
- The Westside program consists of four main workouts per week with 2 days devoted to upper body and 2 days devoted to lower body. For both upper body and lower body, one day you will focus on maximum strength and on the other day you will focus on speed work. One day is your Max Effort Day and one day is your Dynamic Effort Day.
- Choose one primary upper body exercise and one primary lower body exercise that have the most carryover to your sport. These two exercises will only be performed on Dynamic Effort Day.
- You will NEVER perform your primary exercises on Max Effort day. The key to Max Effort day is to use maximum weights on exercises that are similar to and use the same muscle groups as your primary exercises. By rotating these max effort exercises at least every three weeks, but never actually using maximum weights on the primary exercises you perform on Dynamic Effort Day, your CNS (central nervous system) is never over trained. Rest periods between ME exercise sets should be kept under two minutes. Rest periods for all assistance exercises should also be kept under two minutes.
- An alternative on Max Effort Day is to occasionally perform a multi-rep max set to failure with less than 90% of 1RM to further guard against the possibility of over-training and CNS exhaustion. These days should be used prudently and be kept to a minimum, perhaps once every 8 to 12 weeks.
- You will ALWAYS perform your primary exercises on Dynamic Effort Day. Rest periods between DE exercise sets should be kept between 45-60 seconds. Rest periods for all assistance exercises should be kept under two minutes.
- With this system, squatting is ALWAYS done with a box. It is imperative that you learn the proper way to box squat by working with a knowledgeable strength coach. Performing box squats using between 50% and 60% of your box squat 1RM on your Dynamic Effort Day is the most effective method for increasing your explosiveness in the squat.
The eccentric phase of the box squat utilizes the property of kinetic energy contributing to the stretch-reflex. By pausing on the box, thus breaking the eccentric-concentric chain, you can momentarily relax your hip flexors while keeping the rest of your body tight. By re-engaging your hip flexors and exploding off the box with a dynamic concentric effort, you are developing a tremendous rate of force development (RFD). This is not possible by training normally with the regular squat.
The box squat also happens to be a very safe exercise when performed properly because it allows you to sit back further than normal, ensuring that your shins are at least vertical which takes the pressure off your knees and your patellar tendons.
- Remember that all programs must battle the principle of accommodation. It is a fact that your body will eventually adapt to a particular exercise and your progress will slow down or stop in as little as two or three weeks. Therefore, max effort exercises and assistance exercises should be rotated between one to three weeks. Advanced lifters will need to rotate their exercises weekly due to higher levels of motor unit activation as a result of greater neuromuscular coordination and motor learning.
- A max total of only five exercises are recommended per workout. The idea is to work quickly and complete your workout in about 45 minutes to an hour before your energy level begins to drop off dramatically.
- Research has shown that there is an optimum amount of repetitions or volume to be performed at any given intensity range (% of 1RM) before a decrease in training effect occurs. A.S. Prilepin of the former Soviet Union developed an intensity chart based upon the performance data he collected from many Olympic weightlifters. This chart serves as a guide for the sets and reps in this program.
Prilepen’s Chart
Percentage of 1RM
55-69
70-79
80-89
90+ |
Reps per set
3-6
3-6
2-4
1-2 |
Range
18-30
12-24
10-20
4-10 |
Optimal Total # of Reps
24
18
15
7 |
- Assistance exercises should be trained with a “modified repetition method” for 3 to 5 sets of 6 to 12 repetitions. Perform these exercises only until your technique breaks down, stopping one or two reps before failure. Continuously training to failure on your assistance exercises only inhibits your recovery ability, and training past the point of maintaining good form will only lead to injury. Again, Rest periods for all assistance exercises should be kept under two minutes.
- 72 hours are required in between extreme workouts for each body part. If your Max lower body day were on Monday, your Dynamic lower body day should be on Friday.
Therefore, your Max upper body day could be Tuesday with Dynamic upper body day on Saturday, or Wednesday and Sunday respectively.
- Additional workouts can be done in between Max Effort and Dynamic Effort Days to facilitate recovery. Loads less than 30% of 1RM can be used for general conditioning and to help recovery. I will not be getting into these methods in this article, but I encourage you to learn more about them.
- Sled dragging is another preferred method of recovery and is often used to increase one’s level of general physical preparedness (GPP), which is basically one’s capacity for performing work. Therefore, I also recommend you read up on doing sled work.
Max Effort Day - Lower Body
Weights at 90% of 1RM or above are absolutely necessary on Max Effort Day to develop maximum strength and muscle recruitment. You should only train a particular exercise at 90% or above for no more than three weeks before your CNS is adversely affected. Therefore, it is possible to train with this intensity throughout the year as long as your ME exercises are rotated every one to three weeks.
Keep in mind that on a yearly basis, 60% of the lower body ME exercises used should be different types of good mornings, 25% squatting movements and only 15% dead lifting movements. Good mornings are extremely effective at developing the posterior chain muscles of the calves, hamstrings, hips, glutes, lower back and upper back, which is why this program places such an emphasis on them.
Choose one ME exercise per workout keeping in mind again that you never perform your primary exercise on Max Effort Day. Use any variation of a box squat, front squat, good morning or dead lift other than your primary exercise. You will find endless variations of these exercises by using different foot widths, different box heights, different bars (safety squat bar vs. Olympic bar), partial movements, etc. Warm yourself up and work up in sets of 3 to a max effort triple, double or single. It’s not important that you actually achieve a new personal best in this lift each week, but it is important that you whole-heartedly attempt to. Again, rest periods on ME exercises should be kept under two minutes.
The remaining four assistance exercises you perform should include one exercise that focuses on your posterior chain muscles (good mornings, pull-throughs, hyper-extensions, etc.), one for developing your Vastis Lateralis or teardrop muscle of your thigh (step-ups, lunges, etc.) as this muscle contributes greatly to your jumping ability, one exercise for your calf muscles (seated or standing) and one exercise for your abdominals (leg raises, twists, side bends, etc.). You should work these four areas in this exact order, as this is the order in which they contribute greatest to your squat strength. All of these will be trained with the more traditional 3 to 5 sets of anywhere from 6 to 12 reps depending on the athlete. These assistance exercises are done for basic strength and hypertrophy. Rest periods for these assistance exercises should be kept under one minute.
Dynamic Day – Lower Body
Weights between 50% and 60% of 1RM (one rep max) are used on lower body Dynamic Effort Day for developing maximum velocity and training your CNS to maximally recruit the motor neurons involved. You must explode off the box as quickly as you can to train your CNS and increase your RFD. The eccentric phase of the box squat should be swift but controlled. Rest periods should be kept under one minute.
Your dynamic lower body exercise will always be your primary exercise, meaning it is the one lower body exercise that you have determined to have the most carryover to your sport. You can attempt a new back or front box squat record about every 9 weeks on your ME Day and adjust your Dynamic Effort Day training weights accordingly.
You will be using a cycle called the Pendulum Wave to vary the sets, reps and percentages on your Dynamic day. After week three, start right back at week one.
Week 1: 50% of 1RM for 12 sets of 2 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
Week 2: 55% of 1RM for 12 sets of 2 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
Week 3: 60% of 1RM for 10 sets of 2 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
Some athletes might want to use a four, five or six week wave. The point is to remain within that 50%-60% of 1RM range for maximum velocity and find what works best for you.
As with your ME day, the remaining four assistance exercises you perform should include one exercise that focuses on your posterior chain muscles (good mornings, pull-throughs, hyper-extensions, etc.), one for developing your Vastis Lateralis or teardrop muscle of your thigh (step-ups, lunges, etc.), one exercise for your calf muscles (seated or standing) and one exercise for your abdominals (leg raises, twists, side bends, etc.). All of these will be trained with 3 to 5 sets of 6 to 12 reps with rest periods kept under one minute.
Max Effort Day - Upper Body
As with your ME lower body day, weights at 90% of 1RM or above are necessary on ME upper body day to develop maximum strength and muscle recruitment. Remember to rotate ME exercises every one to three weeks to avoid any possible adverse affects on your CNS.
Choose one ME exercise per workout keeping in mind you never perform your primary exercise on Max Effort day. Use any variation of the flat, incline or decline bench other than your primary exercise. Shoulder presses can also be used if it applies to your sport. You will find endless benching variations by using different grip widths (narrow grips are most recommended), different incline settings, floor presses, board presses, different bars, partial movements, etc. Warm yourself up and work up in sets of 3 to a max effort triple, double or single. Again, it’s not important that you actually achieve a new personal best in this lift each week, but it is important that you whole-heartedly attempt to. Rest periods should be kept under two minutes.
The remaining four assistance exercises you perform should include one type of triceps extension, one type of lat row (preferably chest supported) and one shoulder exercise (primarily various types of shoulder raises or sometimes an overhead press). You should work these three areas in this exact order, as this is the order in which they contribute greatest to your bench strength. Lastly, you can perform one biceps exercise or a variety of grip exercises. All of these will be trained with the more traditional 3 to 5 sets of anywhere from 6 to 12 reps depending on the athlete (grip training may vary). These assistance exercises are done for basic strength and hypertrophy. Rest periods should be kept under one minute.
Dynamic Day – Upper Body
Weights between 40% and 50% of 1RM (one rep max) are used on Dynamic upper body day for developing maximum velocity and training your CNS (central nervous system) to maximally recruit the motor neurons involved. Perform your presses as quickly as you can to train your CNS and increase your RFD. The eccentric phase of your presses should be swift but controlled. Rest periods should be kept under one minute.
Your dynamic upper body exercise will always be your primary exercise, meaning it is the one upper body exercise that you have determined to have the most carryover to your sport. An athlete may want to alternate between flat and incline bench, rotating them after you’ve established a new personal best in the lift to further prevent adaptation. You can attempt a new flat or incline bench record about every 9 weeks on your ME Day and adjust your training weights accordingly.
On your Dynamic upper body day, a flat wave of 50% of 1RM for 8 sets of 3 reps each week has proven to be most effective although athletes can use any variation within the 40%-50% range:
Week 1: 50% of 1RM for 8 sets of 3 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
Week 2: 50% of 1RM for 8 sets of 3 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
Week 3: 50% of 1RM for 8 sets of 3 reps (45-60 sec. rest)
As with your ME day, the remaining four assistance exercises you perform should include one type of triceps extension, one type of lat row (preferably chest supported) and one shoulder exercise (primarily various types of shoulder raises or sometimes an overhead press). Again, you should work these three areas in this exact order, as this is the order in which they contribute greatest to your bench strength. Lastly, you can perform one biceps exercise or a variety of grip exercises. All of these will be trained with 3 to 5 sets of 6 to 12 reps (grip training may vary). These assistance exercises are done for basic strength and hypertrophy. Rest periods should be kept under one minute.
Deadlifts and Olympic Lifts
Traditionally, athletes have relied on the Olympic lifts in the weight room to build explosive power. The pulling phases of the Olympic lifts lack an eccentric movement and thus lack the essential stretch-reflex component. In this respect they are similar to deadlifts. Cleans and snatches develop power because they are performed ballistically to generate enough bar speed for the bar to travel high enough to catch at the shoulders or overhead. The deadlift is simply performed to completion with no particular bar speed needed.
Powerlifters who uses the Westside system tend to train their deadlift sparingly as all of the posterior chain work they do contribute greatly to success in the deadlift without having to actually perform the movement regularly. When they do train their deadlift however, they usually perform them immediately after the box squat on Dynamic Effort Day for 4 to 6 sets of singles with 50-60% of their 1RM with 45-60 second rest periods.
There are two choices for those who would like to incorporate the Olympic lifts into a basic Westside template program. First, you can choose one Olympic lift like the hang-clean and train it the same way a powerlifter would train their deadlift, 4 to 6 sets of singles with 50-60% of your 1RM with 45-60 second rest periods on Dynamic Effort Day after box squats utilizing a pendulum wave to vary your percentages. Second, you can simply perform one or two Olympic lifts in place of box squats utilizing your own routine of sets, reps and percentages. Just remember that Dynamic Effort Day is all about speed and not for going heavy.
Plyometrics
The idea of plyometrics is to train your body to become more explosive by taking advantage of the stretch-reflex component of muscle contraction. The goal is to decrease the amortization phase of your muscle contraction, which is the time it takes for your body to switch gears from an eccentric movement and respond with an explosive concentric effort. A great book for learning about plyometrics is “Power Training for Sport” by Tudor O. Bompa.
Intense plyometrics are known to cause the delayed onset of muscle soreness (DOMS), which occurs approx. 48 hours after intense exercise. To take advantage of this window of opportunity, it is recommended that intense lower body plyometrics be performed the day before ME lower body day and intense upper body plyometrics be performed the day before ME upper body day.
Grip Training
Grip training is perhaps the most neglected aspect of an athlete’s program, although nobody would dismiss the value of having strong hands, wrists and forearms. Training your grip will help reduce hand and wrist injuries and actually contribute to your strength in other exercises. When trained properly, your hands can become freakishly strong and a valuable asset to you in the weight room and in your sport.
There are three basic measurements of hand strength: crushing grip, pinching grip and supporting grip.
Crushing Grip: The ability to close a hand gripper, crush a soda can, etc.
- All types of hand grippers
- Plate loaded grip machines
Pinching Grip: Measures the strength of your thumb as in lifting a weight plate in the air with your thumb on one side and your four fingers on the other.
- Use various width pinch blocks to lift hanging weights for single efforts or holds
- Plate wrist curls (pinch grip a weight plate and perform a wrist curl)
Supporting Grip: This combines the strength of your crushing grip with the component of muscular endurance like carrying a heavy dumbbell for distance.
- Farmer’s walk (carry heavy dumbbells/barbells for distance)
- Hold’s (lift and hold heavy objects for time)
You can be strong at one of these grips but not in another, so an athlete should incorporate a variety of hand and forearm exercises into their program to develop an all-around powerful grip.
I strongly encourage you read the article by John Brookfield about hand strength available at IronMind.com.
Flexibility
Flexibility is also another often-ignored component of a strength athlete’s program. Light stretching helps recovery and increases ROM (range of motion), which improves performance and helps prevent injuries.
Stretching should be done lightly and frequently. It’s a good habit to stretch lightly after every workout. Keep in mind that stretching should not be painful and it should never be the cause of muscle soreness.
Diet
Proper nutrition is an absolute necessity for recovery, growth and optimum performance. Without proper diet and nutrition, an athlete can easily fall prey to over-training and injury. Learn all you can about nutrition and the metabolic demands of your sport.
Event Training
Workouts specific to your own sport must be woven into your training program along with all of the other components outlined in this article to allow for enough rest and recovery between workouts. How you choose to modify and arrange your training sessions are entirely dependant on your own goals and the demands of your specific sport.
Seeking the advice of well-respected event coaches and finding out how the most successful athletes are structuring their training programs are great sources of information. If something in particular makes sense to you then try it, just remember not to blindly follow someone else’s program just because it works for them. The goal is always about finding out what works best for you.
Summary
With so many components needing to be integrated into one comprehensive program, you need to prioritize your training. Most of us do not have the luxury of being a full-time athlete, able to perform two to three short workouts per day, so be honest with yourself and the time you are able to commit to your sport.
Remember, the key to success with any training program is finding out what works best for you! Do not blindly follow the principles and methods outlined in this article or anywhere else unless you’ve done your own research and fully understand the “why” behind the “how”.
Sample Program Template
Monday
AM: Maximum Effort Day – Lower Body
ME Exercise
Narrow Stance, Concentric-only Good Mornings
Assistance Exercises
Pull-throughs
Step-ups
Standing Calf Raises
Vertical Knee Raises
Tuesday
AM: Event Training, Upper Body Plyometrics
Wednesday
AM: Maximum Effort Day – Upper Body
ME Exercise
Incline Narrow-grip Bench
Assistance Exercises
Triceps Supines
T-bar rows
Rear Delt Raises
Hammer Curls
PM: Grip Training
Thursday
AM: Event Training
Friday
AM: Dynamic Effort Day – Lower Body
Box Squats
50% of 1RM for 12 sets of 2
Assistance Exercises
Hyperextensions
Lunges
Seated Calf Raises
Side Bends
PM: Grip Training
Saturday
AM: Event Training
Sunday
AM: Dynamic Effort Day – Upper Body
Flat Bench
50% of 1RM for 8 sets of 3
Assistance Exercises
Overhead Triceps Extensions
Low Pulley Rows
Shoulder Side Raises
Barbell Curls
PM: Lower Body Plyometrics & Grip Training
Post by:
Donlon
Leave Comment