The Most Important Fitness Question

The Most Important Question

Let’s face it, most of us are afraid to ask questions. Especially nowadays because social media makes us feel even more inept. I actually admire those that ask questions because it means they are actually thinking about the topic. That is why the most important questions we get are the ones that any of you send us because it means you are actually thinking what DVRT Ultimate Sandbag Training really means. We mean it when we say DVRT Ultimate Sandbag Training is not about a piece of an equipment, but a solution to your training needs. 

Okay, so let’s get to it, got this wonderful question from Eddrick…

“Hello! When using tools like the Ultimate Sandbags and kettlebells, things that are not traditional gym equipment, what is the best way to go about progressing up? Or do you look at it that way? For example, if you are hosting group training using strictly USB, Kettlebells, and body weight training.  Should your training sessions be random or should they build off of the last like the NASM OPT model or traditional periodization? Is is strictly general physical preparedness? Thank you for your time and all you do.”

Fantastic question!! Unfortunately people do use these tools for random training and that is why a lot of people end up not seeing their effectiveness. They appear like tools just for variety because one is bored, not because it provides a BETTER form of training. 

So, what DO you do? In the NASM model they typically move from a stabilization phase to a strength, to a power phase. In fact, many periodization models seem to offer phases of training somewhat similar, so is that what you do? The reality is periodization is mostly a plan that changes emphasis over time. That is because if you just tried a linear model of just adding more reps or weight to an exercise you would plateau pretty fast. If that wasn’t the case you would end up lifting thousands of pounds and capable of performing hundreds and hundreds of repetitions. 

Like anything DVRT Ultimate Sandbag Training and similar tools function first off, “what is your goal?” along with, “what is your starting point?” Someone training for fat loss will be different than someone looking for maximal strength who probably will be different than someone looking for high level performance. That is the obvious issue with stating one wants to be just more “fit”. The more definite we can make the goal, the easier the programming. 

Yet, let’s at least give you a framework so we will speak in more general terms. Last week I started to outline how to program DVRT Ultimate Sandbag Training and while we don’t usually try to increase weight by 5 pounds we actually have a lot more options to create success in our training.

First thing we do is start with the movement so let’s look at a week of training and how we would create the exercise by waving which movements are prioritized.

 Workout 1

Workout 2

Workout 3

Besides the movement pattern you will also notice the order. Many times it is easier to alternate lower and upper body drills. That is because fatigue can be specific to a muscle group and even movement pattern. That means even though we can have general fatigue, we can do more work because of the change in muscle group and patterns. 

You will also find that we tend to perform more complex exercises first. What does complex mean? It can mean several things so here is the order from most to least complex….

Body position: the most difficult being single arm/leg exercises. Generally single leg are more difficult than single arm. 

Speed: anything that is done very fast has to be have great control to make sure you move from the right areas. 

Plane of Motion: changing the direction in which you move can make an exercise more complex like moving from straight ahead to side to side, to rotational exercises. 

Holding Position: this is changing where we hold the weight on our body or how we position it when we lift. This often is more subtle, but can be a really powerful means in progressing an exercise more incrementally. 

That means we can periodize quite easily by altering which movement pattern we place first, or which version of complexity. That makes it relatively simple when you have groups, or people that are looking for more general means of fitness. 

An example could be using  Front Loaded Back Lunge first in a workout. We use that for a month and then we can do several things to periodize the movement slightly. We could move to more of a single leg version by going rear foot elevated. Change of speed is possible by using more of a MAX Lunge with an emphasis on the swing. Plane of motion could be changed to doing a Front Loaded Lunge laterally, crossing over, or even the simple move of going forwards would make it brand new. Of course we change the holding position from a Front Load to Shoulder to Suitcase to Overhead, there are A LOT of options.  

Really programming these tools is easy and can be smart at the same time. You just need to know the principles and instead of trying to change the weight by 5 pounds (which in reality is really limiting) we have so many more options to make great progress for those we work with or even our own workouts!

Check out more about how DVRT Ultimate Sandbag Training is revolutionizing how people think about fitness HERE