As the dark days give way to more sunshine, many of us start working towards a summer body. A well-designed plan is important.
As the dark days give way to more sunshine, many of us start working towards a summer body. A good plan is important. Particularly if you did little during winter because of COVID-19, ease back into exercise. Being barely able to move from muscle soreness is neither enjoyable nor beneficial. Soreness is not proof of a good workout; it simply makes it harder to schedule the next one soon. A gradual start with a good plan is therefore essential. How should you approach it?
If you have no training experience, starting gradually is equally important. Learn which movements are appropriate—such as a squat, similar to sitting down on a chair and standing up—and how to create the right muscle tension. My advice: start with body weight and moderate the number of sets.
Next comes the content of your programme. If the following sounds like a foreign language, a Kickstart may help. If you understand it, great: put it into practice.
With many clients, we use a method of linearly progressive training load. Essentially, you aim to do a little more each session. This involves three factors:
Optimising range of motion, or ROM.
Reaching and optimising your programmed repetition target.
Optimising the appropriate resistance or weight.
Weekly training volume per muscle group also matters and depends on your level. If you have trained consistently two to five times a week for less than two years, you are a beginner. For beginners—which includes most people—the advice is simple: perform eight to twelve working sets per muscle group per week.
Now it is time to make a plan. If your goal is more muscle before summer, sit down and examine your programme. More muscle means burning more calories during daily activities, supporting sustainable weight loss when your nutrition is in order; read the linked blog for more on that.
How often will you train? Does every muscle group receive the right number of sets within the appropriate repetition range? Are you resting enough? These questions help bring you closer to your goals.
You can do it!
Thijs Avezaat — owner of Fundamentals
Written by
The Fundamentals team
Start here
Kickstart · €149
Three sessions with a coach. No strings attached.
Keep reading
More in Training.
Training
NL
Open Gym or Personal Training: What Fits Your Experience and Goals?
Open Gym gives you freedom. Personal training adds a plan, technique coaching and accountability. Discover which approach fits your experience, goals and the obstacles that held you back before.
How to Programme Strength Training for Optimal Muscle Growth
Whether you are new to strength training or have been doing it for years, muscle growth and strength gains are not a magic trick: they come from good planning and consistent execution. Countless routines and recommendations circulate in fitness, often without clear scientific support. At Fundamentals, we want to challenge those myths and explain how training principles really work. This blog covers working sets, differences between men and women, training to failure, and adapting your programme to your age and experience.
