Remembering a Close Friend and Mentor

I’d like to break from the trainer talk for a moment today and share with you all a piece of me that has shaped who I am today as a person and a trainer. A few years back, I decided to turn my passion for training into a career. I was very fortunate to become aligned with some amazing mentors within the industry who taught me things from philosophy, to programming, their knowledge from personal experiences, etc. The first to inspire me tremendously was Martin Rooney. A few months later, another very special person was a gifted to my life, Jason Hadeed.

Jason, 33 years young, lived in Montgomery County and was a very accomplished strength coach in the industry who owned Elite Athlete Training Systems (also known as E.A.T.S.). Outside of training, Jason’s Number One were his two little boys, Nik and Alex. Among many other hats he wore, Jason was an amazing man, father, trainer, mentor and friend.

Unfortunately, Jason was taken much too soon and I share him with you all today, because February 8th marks two years since his tragic and untimely death.

I met Jason mid summer of 2007 at the beach. It was early on in my training career and I was very impressed with him as both a person as well as his training resume. We had an instant connection and a very important friendship that grew quickly from it. Jason was both a mentor and close friend to me.

Anyone who knew Jason and who worked with him said the same positive things about him. He made significant differences in the lives he touched and was far more than just a trainer/coach to his athletes, he was a big brother, a friend and a role model/mentor. He held his guys and gals up to great standards. At the funeral service, they paralleled Jason to the candle light. Jason was a guiding light to many and his profession was to help people shine. That moved me and I took it upon myself to continue that piece of him. It has always been my passion and ambition to work with clients of athletic ability and to work with guys and gals of all ages who have “the want to” — regardless of their talent, they want to be in the session, they want to work hard each time to achieve better results, they want to push new limits to make themselves better in and out of the gym. I admired how far Jason had come in his career and I admired the positive effects he had on people. I promised myself that I would also strive to carry on his legacy for him and for me.

Jason taught me a lot in the first year of my career as a trainer. Although I only had his physical presence for a short 7 months, the many conversations shared and his gifts stay with me each day. Not long after his death, I believe he also gave me another gift, I met Nick. Another person of equal caliber who I am able to share both my life and my passion for training with. I am grateful for that everyday.

I believe Jason passed the torch. Not only to me, but to his employees at E.A.T.S, his boys, his athletes and anybody else who he made an impact on. He inspired me tremendously and continues to do so. I often think, man, if Jason could see me now and I’m confident he does.

I miss Jason very much and will continue to keep him in the heart of my training. Be sure to hug and kiss your loved ones if you are still reading this, for tomorrow is never promised.

I look forward to reconnecting with you in the next life J.

Hugs, Al

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Contrast Training – Upper Body Pull

Wow, here in Baltimore today we’re seeing winter at it’s finest. Just to give you all an idea, it is currently 17 degrees. It began snowing yesterday afternoon around 2pm and is forcasted to continue through this evening. We currently have 22 inches of snow and may see up to 30 inches! It’s the blizzard of 2010! Frankly, I could take or leave snow…I’m a beach girl but it’s white, calm and gorgeous out there this morning.

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As for training, it’s still deload week so perhaps for today’s activity, Nick and I will take advantage of mother nature and get out there for some snow shoveling, hiking around the city and maybe a snowball fight. We live in a pedestrian oriented town–should be a fun day!  If I’m feeling the extra urge to workout, we always have the airdyne bike at the house  

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If you’d like to check out one of our more traditional lower body deload workouts, check out Nick’s blog post here. He lays out the entire circuit, time, rounds, etc.

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Lastly, to complete the Contrast Training series, below is an example of Contrast Training for an upper body PULL workout.

• Chin ups (or pull ups) paired with speed rows using a JC Band. I would suggest about 8 seconds of band rows as fast as you can pull or a rep range of 8-12. (If 6-8 chin ups are easy for you, you can always add a weighted belt).

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Another exercise that I love to pair with Chin ups/Pull ups are explosive medicine ball slams. Check out Nick’s video example below starring John Rallo:

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Contrast Training – Upper Body Push

As I mentioned in my last post, our training group is starting to feel the cumulative effects of the past four weeks of hard training. This week is a deload week where we are taking a planned break from the hard training. In order to give our minds and bodies a break, we’re filling our sessions with light active recovery work–mild cardio, foam rolling, mobility drills, and light work when it comes to anything strength oriented. If you would like to read further about deload week, check out this article and the following link here written by Jim Wendler on EliteFTS.com.

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In the meantime, I will provide you with this! The last several posts have been lower body dominant. I have also promised to give you readers an upper body series for Contrast Training. The following video clip is an example of an upper body contrast set. It includes heavy dumbbell bench press followed by explosive push ups. These videos have been filmed at one of the FX Studio locations where I train clients. It’s an awesome private studio located in Silo Point in Baltimore City.

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The above video displays more of an advanced plyo push up. For those of you who are looking for a beginner or intermediate version, look no further

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More this week on Upper Body Contrast Training!

German Volume Training

Nick, Mark and I have trained hard on our latest program for about four weeks now. Although our bodies are starting to feel the cumulative effects of hard training, we still show up every day with the intent to push new limits! This week was no different.

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Similar to my show training, we are on an undulating program. The difference this time is the frequency of undulation–rather than a daily undulation, we are rotating through a weekly cycle. For example, week 2 was Medium Rep range. Week 3 was Low Rep/Contrast Training and this week (week 4) was High Volume, High Rep training.

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In today’s training, we followed the German Volume Training idea. For those of you who are unfamiliar, it’s 10 sets of 10 reps. Respective to leg day today, the three of us cycled through barbell back squats. The big boys could handle a good bit of weight on the bar. Personally, I have to error on the side of caution when doing squats because I’ve had a few low back tweaks in the past. That said, I am happy to have completed 135lbs for ten sets, which is a bit more than my body weight. On the tenth set, I did a burn out of 25 reps…Not a bad effort and I know I made Nick a proud boyfriend and training partner :)

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If you haven’t done this before, give it a try for a new challenge. Basic notes again, 10 sets of 10 reps. Choose a weight that is challenging and relative to the cummulative volume of reps!

Contrast Training – Lower Body Day Cont’d

Just a few days ago, I began posting about Contrast Training – a set of heavy lifts, five to 10 reps, followed immediately with an unloaded, explosive exercise using the same movement pattern and the same reps.

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I demonstrated the Trap Bar Deadlift/Box Jump sequence –This is a bi-lateral movement which can also be considered a more hip dominant. The following superset is a nice complementary pair because it’s unilateral and more quad-dominant. When I train lower body and it’s contrast training oriented, I do these together on the same day. They can also be done in different workouts and still carry out an overall balance of training and performance.  

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The following video demonstrates a walking single leg squat paired with a split jump.

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How to complete the walking single leg squat:

• Take a large step forward.
• Pick up your back foot, sit your hips back and drop your back knee to the ground. (Make sure to keep your torso posture as tall as possible – a forward lean is normal, just be sure to keep a flat back)
• Perform all walking split squats on one side first (8-10 reps), follow immediately with split jumps (6-8 reps) on the same leg. Take up to 30 seconds rest (only if needed) and repeat other side.
• For an added challenge, try carrying a dumbbell as shown or wear a weight vest

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I received a great question today requesting contrast training ideas for chest and back. This is something I am doing a lot with right now both in my personal training goals as well as with some of my clients. In my next few posts, I will offer more on contrast training for chest and back including some of my favorite exercise pairs to accomplish both strength and power.

Sprinting: 1 – Steady State Cardio: 0

I was just about to post another exercise superset for Lower Body Contrast Training, until I did my regular quick check on T-Nation. I came across the following article and enjoyed reading this so much, I thought I would rank it as a must-share over the next set of exercises. 

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If you have followed my blog, I have preached this before and I’ll say it again– If you’re goals include a chiseled physique (not to mention the athletic benefits that come from this) then you ought to be adding sprint and interval training into your program. Regardless of whether you’re a physique competitor, an athlete or a weekend warrior– this applies to you! Check out Erick Minor’s article on T-Nation called “Sprinting Towards Single Digit Body Fat.”

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This is my first exposure to Erick’s work and I think he has great stuff here…it’s an easy read and easy to understand–not to mention, very helpful in providing great program design. Check it out! 

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P.S. Do not misinterpret my message, I too enjoy a little steady state cardio here and there, but it’s more for cardio health, a good sweat and mental therapy  Sprinting, I belive, is far more aggressive when it comes to conquering your physique goals. I even find that those who claim “I will only run if I’m being chased” can manage a few bursts of sprint work. More tomorrow on Contrast Training for the Lower Body

Contrast Training – Lower Body Day

“With athletes, contrast training builds strength and power simultaneously. For non-athletes, it’s a great way to tap into high-threshold motor units for hypertrophy, or to boost the metabolism to improve body composition. And while you’re accomplishing those objectives, you’re also changing up your workout in a way that’s fun and challenging.” -Nick Tumminello

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As my new program unfolds, Nick, Mark and I have focused on Contrast Training for lower body workouts. The above quote is an excerpt from Nick’s article on Contrast Training which can be found on T-Nation. What I love about contrast training is feeling both strong and athletic in my training session.

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A word about contrast training:

• “Start with a set of heavy lifts, five to 10 reps, and then follow it immediately with an unloaded, explosive exercise using the same movement pattern and the same reps.”
• “The key to contrast training is post-activation potentiation, or PAP. That is, the explosive capability of a muscle is enhanced after it’s been forced to perform maximal or near-maximal contractions.”
• “To keep it simple, your nervous system supercharges itself by throwing more motor units — muscle fibers and the nerves that activate them — into the job, and by taking off the brakes that would ordinarily inhibit an expression of all-out power.”

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If you’d like to read more about Contrast Training, check out Nick’s article here. He provides a thorough explanation of contrast training plus suggested paired exercises. Again, a great way to increase strength and athletic performance…also known as bigger, faster, stronger.

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The following is our first pair of exercises that we complete on our current lower body training days.

• Trap Bar Deadlift (4 sets of 8 reps) immediately followed by explosive box jumps (4 sets of 6 reps)

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Check back soon as I will give you the next part of this contrast training workout

Happy New Year!

Although two weeks into January already (wow), HAPPY NEW YEAR! I must say 2009 was filled to the brim with both change and accomplishments. Nick and I capped off 2009 with a great trip to Las Vegas for NYE. I am now enjoying the “normalcy” that comes along with January. I’m also eager to live and see what will unfold, plus what I will manifest, in 2010!

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Now, for training! To be real with all of you readers, I am working diligently to get my mind transitioned out of the holidays and temptations back to the competition stage. I was hoping to come back to the stage as soon as possible. After heavily weighing the level of committment I am ready for at the moment, I have decided that I am not going to pick a show date just yet. I love it and I will, but I am not ready to marry the zero deviation policy yet. I feel if you’re not fully ready to embrace those choices, you’re NOT ready yet.

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On the contrary, nothing great comes easy and if it were easy, everyone would do it. What separates my healthy lifestyle from competition season are even greater sacrifices made, more planning, prep and complete dedication to the stage. I am gearing up for the HUNGER (no pun intended) that will come when I’m ready. When the passion for the goal and committment outweigh any other choices and temptations. So to all you Physique Competitors that hit the ground running January 1st (or before) for the early spring shows–more power to you and I wish you allllll the praise I can send.

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What can you expect from me over the next few months?? Well, I AM on a progressive 15 week training program. I just started this past Monday. I am still training “as if” and dieting clean. I am training Monday through Saturday with two of the best partners I could ask for–Nick and Mark. My goals are to continue to create my best physique through hard training and a good diet/lifestyle. That way, when I DO chose a show, I will be closer to having the best that I can bring to the stage. Stay tuned to the blog, I plan to deliver training highlights and education over the next 15 week training phase.

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I will leave you with this…Today was an upper body day with an emphasis on pulling. We superset our pulling exercises with push exercises. I am happy to report that I am still able to crank out 3 sets of 8 one arm push ups (4 per side)    

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Happy 2010!

Q&A #2, Laying out the program, part II

In my last post, I gave you the consolidated layout to my physique strength training. Conditioning was a crucial component to my program as well because it helped with a greater EPOC and contributed to overall fat loss. Nick and I were just as systematic about my conditioning programing as we were with my strength training. We wanted to make sure that we were NOT doing conditioning that was heavily fatiguing on the lower body if that day that was intended for legs to rest (ex: we did not run sprints the day after a heavy lower body day). We also undulated my conditioning to match the intensity on my system with that of the strength training.  

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EXAMPLE:

Low Rep strength days (5-6 sets, 4-6 reps), I performed high intensity, anaerobic conditioning–4 min-8min max. Often we incorporated Tabatas, sled work or sprints.

Med Rep strength days (3-4 sets, 8-12 reps) we performed about 12 minutes of interval work at a moderate intensity. This often consisted of Airdyne bike intervals or an upper body interval circuit.

High Rep strength days (2-3 sets, 15-25 reps) I did conditioning for a longer duration (15-25 min) at a lower intensity. Sometimes the slideboard, the Airdyne bike or an upper body circuit (see Strength Training Split, High Rep, Part IV)

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So there you have it! It’s actually a simple formula that we followed– 1. Match your strength training and conditioning goals for that day in order to keep the intensity levels and energy systems demanded consistent and 2. if it is an upper body day, stick with upper body conditioning –boxing, sledge hammer work, band work, etc.  On lower body days, stick with lower body conditioning–sled work, tire dragging, sprints, etc. This stays consistent with the split routine and aids proper rest on the designated muscle groups intended to rest on that day.

Q&A #2: Laying out the program, Part I

Throughout the majority of my show training, I followed a daily undulated training scheme in an upper/lower split. I have explained in previous posts WHY we chose to do the daily undulated program as well as HOW the training session for each style of the workouts were structured. The posts about my specific training are somewhat spread out among other topics within the blog and I have since been asked to consolidate a layout. Again, I thought this would be of interest to several readers, so thanks Gene for your question!

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Q: “If you could make/show a chart of your workouts so we all could see how they all fit together, that would be great.”

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A: I am not too “blog” savvy so unfortunately, I have not constructed and inserted a good-looking, easy-to-read “chart” but I am able to list things out . I certainly hope this is clear and suffice, please feel free to shoot me questions for clarification if needed!!

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The following program is what I followed for many weeks while preparing for the Yorton Cup Figure Competition. I adhered to this scheme right up until four weeks before show day. If desired, I will also post more details about the last four weeks of my training in a future post. Enjoy!

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 Upper/Lower Split Routine:

Monday
A.M. fasted cardio (about 30-35 min)
P.M. upper body push/pull training plus conditioning

Tuesday
A.M. fasted cardio (about 30-35 min)
P.M. lower body training plus conditioning

Wednesday
“active rest day” – cardio, any form, 30-45 minutes, moderate intensity

Thursday
A.M. fasted cardio (about 30-35 min)
P.M. upper body push/pull training plus conditioning

Friday
P.M. lower body training plus conditioning

Saturday
Vanity Day – a lower intensity day. Primary focus on the smaller muscle groups (shoulder raises, biceps, triceps, calves, abs). Cardio to follow, usually jump rope/running intervals for about 40 minutes

Sunday
Complete rest day

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Daily Undulation:

We cycled my upper and lower workouts with the following set and rep scheme. Using this method, I would train six sessions before ever repeating a particular training session. (Great for minimizing physical stagnation or mental boredom!)

5-6 sets, 4-6 reps- Heavy day/high intensity on the nervous system
3-4 sets, 8-12 reps – Medium rep range/moderate intensity
2-3 sets, 15-25 reps – High rep/endurance

EXAMPLE: Week 1
Monday – upper push/pull – 5-6 sets, 4-6 reps
Tuesday – lower body - 5-6 sets, 4-6 reps
Thursday – upper push/pull – 3-4 sets, 8-12 reps
Friday - lower body - 3-4 sets, 8-12 reps
Saturday – vanity day (always high or med rep)

Week 2:
Monday – upper push/pull – 2-3 sets, 15-25 reps
Tuesday – lower body – 2-3 sets, 15-25 reps
Thursday – upper push/pull - 5-6 sets, 4-6 reps
Friday – lower body – 5-6 sets, 4-6 reps
Saturday – vanity day (always high or med rep)
…and so on…

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As you can see, this is just the strength part of my program. I will give you the secrets to my conditioning layout in Part II