UKC

Hi all,

I'm trying to devise a New Years training plan to get generally fit and strong (so not specifically for climbing). I've managed to train in the past for a couple of months at a time to achieve climbing goals but then I seem to loose motivation, get a wee bug or something and the training slips. So I'm trying to come up with a training plan that will have enough variety to keep me interested for longer.

The plan is to work on a different area of the body each day

Day 1 = finger strength
Day 2 = core
Day 3 = upper body
Day 4 = legs
Day 5 = deep stretching session

And for each day I plan to devise a couple of different routines to keep things interesting.

My question is will this plan lead to improvements in each area? i.e. if I only work specifically on finger strength once every five days am I likely to see improvements or do I need to work on it more frequently? This being the case I could devise routines with exercises that work each muscle group more frequently.

Any thoughts and advise would be appreciated.

Cheers,
Colin

In reply to colin8ll:

When do you plan on climbing??

In reply to Ava Adore:

Ha ha, yes if I get out climbing I just sack off one of these exercise sessions as the climbing will be good enough training for me I recon.

I only climb outdoors (as I'm always skint) and as the weather is so crap these days I can't build 'go climbing' days into the plan.

In reply to colin8ll: I think it depends on what you plan to do in the sessions and what your goals are. I personally find the more structured I am the more I see the benefits e.g. completing a finger board programme I couldn't previously do.

My goals in the past have been in relation to mid-grade climbing & bouldering and since I have focussed the training I have seen more benefits and had more fun at the crag!

In reply to tombeasley:

Thanks Tom that's really helpful. I'll now build some training targets into the routines for motivation.

Cheers,
Colin

In reply to colin8ll:

Is there a cardio day?!

In reply to Rollo: Well spotted. I forgot to mention that I run on my lunch-breaks from work so I think that will take care of cardio.

In reply to colin8ll:
could you not do all that in one workout, several times a week for a better training benefit.
you would still have time to go climbing.

In reply to colin8ll: No problem, good luck. Would be interesting to know how you get on.

In reply to colin8ll:

You haven't explicitly written in a rest day. I would recommend at least one a week, both to avoid injury and keep the motivation firing, and to give you space to fit in other things in your life (I find I have rest days anyway, and scheduling them in makes me feel like I haven't messed up the programme!). Your comments about motivation and wee bugs are telling in this regard, the latter often arises as a result of over-training, and I used to suffer this a lot when ramping it up a lot suddenly.

I think most people do core at the end of their weights sessions, as you can train core on most days of the week since it recovers quite fast. Depends how much of a beasting of the core you have in mind I guess Personally I try and challenge my core throughout weights sessions by using swiss ball instead of bench, and doing some sets of weights one-armed using a dumbbell where this makes sense : both habits I picked up from personal training.

You don't say how much you are currently doing, or what fitness level you are at, but if the answer is nowt then I think you will see improvements in all areas with your schedule. However, if it was me I'd probably aim for only 4 times a week (2 on, 1 off, 2 on, 2 off) but really aim to beast myself on those 4 days.

Btw I strongly recommend the book "Muscle" by Ian King (published in conjunction with Men's Health magazine) - it has lots of specific weights programmes at the back of the book. Actually Men's Health magazine itself has quite a lot of ideas for workouts in the back, and they've almost surely got a New Year's issue with lots of ideas.

Good luck! Andy

In reply to colin8ll:

It sounds good but it's a bit vague. What exercises are you going to be doing? Bodyweight, weight training, strength and conditioning, bodybuilding ? What type of intensity? I'd throw a rest day in there on day 3/4 if high intensity. I'd do 2 finger days if not climbing that week and throw in on Leg day. If high intensity take a week off every 4 weeks.

In reply to colin8ll:

not a fan of your routine and you dont give any details of what the training actually is, if training with weights then you probably dont need a session for core as it should be covered with legs

In reply to Siderunner: Thanks for the advice. I'll use your days on/off formula and go for it on the on days! And I'll look for a copy of Muscle at the library.

Sebastian and Lost: The exercises I plan to use are a mix of sling training from here http://www.jungle-sports.com/index.php?option=com_jungletraining&view=f...

Floor work (sit-ups, press-ups, plank)

Chin-ups (using my pull-up bar, door frame and a towel for different and offset grips)

Fingerboard (although I'll have to do these on my door frame as I don't have a fingerboard). I plan to use the Encores routine from here http://www.beastmaker.co.uk/pages/training

I was hoping each days exercises could take a max of 20 mins so they can be fitted into a busy life without too much difficulty.

I'm feeling a little sore today after a big sling session. Is this the ideal? i.e. feeling sore the next day is a sign that training was tough enough?

In reply to colin8ll:

How about using the Insanity excercise dvds alongside the pullip bar and finger strengthening? It meant to add good overall conditioning, will trim the fat and weight and apparently only takes about 40 mins a day for 6 days a week.

Im considering it myself..

In reply to colin8ll: > I was hoping each days exercises could take a max of 20 mins so they can be fitted into a busy life without too much difficulty.


You should allow 20-30 mins to warm up doing easier hangs before doing hard hangs on a fingerboard to get your fingers recruited so that they are pulling at their best and also to help prevent tendon damage

In reply to colin8ll:

Some soreness is ok, and to be expected if you're new to a routine. I'm on a 1 day off after 2 days at the wall and I ache a bit. It's a sign that you worked.

If soreness is really bad then you probably overdid it => do less next time and gradually build back up. In that case I would bin that day's session and do gentle cardio instead to help your body flush toxins by raising your heart rate and circulation; you can do this on a rest day too as long as you still get your 1 day a week totally off.

A decent warmdown at the end of a session can help a lot with preventing soreness. 10 minutes of something gentle and cardiovascular is ideal (slow jogging, easy traversing, slow sun salutations are all things I use). Gentle stretching at the end of a session for 5-10 mins also helps here.

I can't imagine getting much useful stuff done in less than 30 minutes; perhaps continuous circuit-training.

As has already been said, you definitely should warmup with some gentle stuff to raise your pulse at the start, not just for finger boarding but for ALL the sessions. Suggestions: jogging outside or on the spot, star jumps, sun salutations, body-weight squats and lunges. Cross-trainer, rower, stationary bike all work too but I guess you don't have them.

In reply to colin8ll:

I've been thinking about training plans recently too, and it seems like you're taking a very different approach. I always thought that the key to a good training plan in periodisation: that is, instead of working a different aspect on different days of the week, really focus on one aspect for a good few weeks, then move onto the next (maintaining everything else at a low level when it's not the focus). The standard training aspects you're normally looking at are aerobic (endurance), anaerobic (power) endurance and strength.

As I said, I'm new to this 'training' thing too, so could be that you know something I don't!

In reply to Nick Russell:


No, I'd say you've got it better planned than the OP IMO. Aerobic endurance and strength can go together in your base base, power endurance in your peak phase pre-trips...

OP - do you really need a whole session focusing just on weights, legs, core or whatever each week? Either you've got some very specific and heavy training you're planning on doing that's going to limit you to only training these things one day per week, or you're just going to be hopping to and fro and not really training anything with any regularity...

In reply to colin8ll:

I think Coach Sommer - who knows an awful lot about training gymnasts - speaks sensibly about this:
"Post workout soreness is not a reliable indicator of the proper conditioning work being accomplished; progressive increases in strength is."

His forum is here: http://www.gymnasticbodies.com/forum/index.php

In reply to colin8ll:

Not read all the comments but agree with a couple that you could do more:

Day1 = Upper body, core, stretching
Day2 = Legs, finger strength, stretching
Day3 = rest
etc

You could easily achieve twice as much!

In reply to colin8ll:

Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I'll change my plan to work more areas per day and thus cover every major group twice each week and have proper rest days. Once I'm comfortable with this I may look at more specialized training but I'm happy for now.

Thanks again.

Colin

In reply to Feeling bold: I fully back the Insanity Idea! Three is also DVD called p90x this one is not so good for cardio but the yoga/stretching is excellent!

In reply to mugglewump:

Yes i've heard some good reports about that routine as well. Does this mean you've done it or are doing it ?