The other day I received a bid request from one site I am listed on as a personal trainer. The requester wanted to increase vertical jump for a sport specific reason. If I received these types of requests more often, I would be a happier trainer. Simply put, it is easier to create programs for specific goals versus general goals, in most cases. A general goal may be to “be more fit” or “to lose weight” while a specific goal may be “to increase vertical jump” or “to increase 1-rep max on bench”.
You might think, “be more fit” and “to lose weight” are specific goals. However, you would be wrong. Let me explain. “Be more fit” is a broad goal as fitness is a broad term. To “be more fit”, one must be able to handle greater workload in a number of ways. This includes improvement in pure strength, pure cardiovascular output, cardiovascular output while utilizing strength, power output for explosive movements, and other areas such mobility. This requires a multi-tiered approach that must be organized, progressive, constantly reassessing, and supported by a solid nutritional program.
How to Tailor Your Exercise Programming for Specific and General Goals
Like a general goal, specific goals must be organized, progressive, constantly reassessing, and supported by a solid nutritional program. However, this is easier to do when a training program needs to address only one area, not many. For example, “increase vertical jump” has a simple and straightforward approach. First, I assess the person’s current vertical jump ability denoted in a maximum height performed only once and a lesser height jump performed repeatedly. In some cases, I may note additional lesser jump heights and the ability of the client to sustain these. Using the maximum jump height, I create lesser jump heights based on percentage of that maximum height. For example, I determine feet/inches for 90 percent, 80 percent, 70 percent, 60 percent, and 50 percent. I estimate how long a person may be able to sustain jumps at the given percentages, based on the previously tested sustained times at lower jump height(s). Then I create a progressive 3 to 4 week program to start training. Based on current ability, I set a goal for this period such as “increase max vertical by 1 inch”. After the training micro-cycle, I retest/assess the progress in order to see if the client met that goal. I adjust the programming based on that.
The example process for the vertical jump has a number of steps and will take some time and focus. Some of you might think it is simple, some you might think it is complicated. Regardless, it becomes more complicated when I must help a person “be more fit”. In this case, I must use a process similar to the vertical jump process in order to assess, create a program, and test the client in areas of pure strength, pure cardiovascular output, cardiovascular output while utilizing strength, power output for explosive movements, and other areas such mobility. This takes more time and effort from both the client and I. For the client it can prove difficult to stay focused and motivated, as many clients already suffer these issues – that is why they come to a personal trainer. If they had the motivation and focus themselves, in most cases the client would not need a personal trainer.
Is it Better to Create Programming for Specific Goals or General Goals in Mind?
Now, some of you might look at the “to lose weight” goal and think that it is specific, not generalized. After all, the person “just wants to lose weight”. Often it is not that simple. In my experience, most clients who want to lose weight honestly want to look better in the mirror in order to feel better about themselves. As a trainer, I first have to understand that there may be a different underlying goal. Next, the process to effectively lose weight is not just about dropping pounds – it is about dropping the right kind of pounds. For example, a person wants to lose fat not muscle. This is important for a number of reasons, but that is a topic for a different post. Concerning this post, have you ever seen someone who dropped a significant amount of weight, but still had the same basic body type? If so, this likely happened because they lost the wrong type of weight or lost some of the right type of weight along with the wrong type of weight. When creating programming, I need to design a workout and nutritional strategy that allows the client to lose primarily body fat while keeping, or maybe even gaining, muscle. I must take into account safety too, as uncontrolled weight loss can have mild to severe adverse effects on the body and mind, including but not limited to weakness, moodiness, hormonal imbalance, and loss of sleep.
Which is More Important: Tailoring Programming for Specific Goals or Creating Generalized Programs?
These are things I must keep in mind when working with clients. For this reason, I prefer when a client has a specific goal. When the client has a specific goal, it is easier to create a exercise programming and easier for the client to follow it, even if they have self-discipline issues.
Comments