A Custom Fitness Program That Is Easy To Implement & Works For Your Unique Goals

Important Aspects Of A Custom Fitness Program

This includes, but is not limited to: muscular strength and endurance training, to enhance agility, speed, strength, and endurance, all of which are essential regardless of your goals.

The custom fitness program information here will help to establish an understanding of the principles of muscle strength and endurance training and their application in the use of weight equipment.

The focus of strength training should be its functional use for tasks. Pure strength alone will not improve performance, but conversion of strength to muscle endurance should.

The main objective of the strength phase of your custom fitness program should be to increase your applied strength - an increase in applied strength through your custom fitness program will enhance your performance on physical tasks required during specific activities.

As such, this custom fitness program & information introduces concepts and practical information for achieving optimal muscle strength and endurance for performance and prevention of injuries.

Weight training gear and equipment for your fitness program:
Weight training requires minimal personal gear. Other than the weights themselves, equipment such as a pair of supportive shoes, fitted lifting gloves, and standard fitness training attire is all that is needed.

Technology has allowed the development of exercise equipment that efficiently adapts to the changing needs of a body in motion. Consider the choice of free weights, machines, or a combination of both for development of strength and balance when starting a custom fitness program.

Strength training guidelines and terms for your fitness program:
Performing many tasks requires all muscles of the upper and lower body to be developed in a balanced way. Circuit weight training or Split-routine workouts are the most common ways to maintain a musculoskeletal balance.

Circuit weight training consists of a progression from one station to the next such that over the course of the training period, both the upper and lower body are exercised. For split-routine training, different body areas are exercised on alternate days.

For example, on Monday and Thursday, the upper body would be exercised whereas on Tuesday and Friday the lower body would be exercised. By having a well designed custom fitness program, you can expect to maintain a high level of fitness while reducing your risk of injury and fatigue.

Fitness program repetition maximum or RM:
One term routinely used in a custom fitness program is that of repetition maximum. A repetition maximum or RM is the maximum amount of weight you can lift for a given number of repetitions.

For example, your 1RM would be the amount of weight you could lift for only 1 repetition. Your 5RM would be the amount of weight you could lift for 5 repetitions. For example: if you can do 5 repetitions of an exercise with 50lbs., you have a 5RM of 50lbs.

Your 1 RM would be the amount of weight you can lift for only 1 repetition.

FITT: Frequency, Intensity, Time, Type

In order for you to perform major tasks, the strength training component of your fitness program is a key aspect that must not be overlooked.

Understanding the concepts of Frequency, Intensity, Time, and Type (FITT principle) will help you understand and maximize your training.

The FREQUENCY of training should be determined by the amount of time you have to spend on a fitness program. Your weight training time may be limited due to busy schedules, so keep this in mind when your start a fitness program.

For example, total body circuit training only needs to be performed twice a week, along with other training modes for optimal results. If two days of training cannot be achieved, one session will be better than none.

Split-routine training should be performed a minimum of two sessions per muscle group weekly to ensure total muscular balance, and thus consumes a greater amount of time than circuit training.

Circuit weight training optimizes your time available.

Training INTENSITY is considered to be the most critical aspect of the strength and conditioning phase of your custom fitness program

Intensity of weight training can be referred to as load, which is the amount of weight per repetition. It is defined as the percentage of the RM that is being used to perform an exercise.

Various intensities are recommended for optimal fitness program results.

The fitness program phase focusing on muscular endurance would involve training at 30% to 50% of your 1RM with 20 to 60 repetitions per set, whereas the fitness program phase focusing on strength with 20 to 60 repetitions per set, whereas the fitness program phase focusing on strength development would require training at 65% to 90% of your 1RM, with 1 to 12 repetitions per set, depending on the week of training.

Your custom fitness program training should focus on both strength and muscular endurance, and cycle between 30 and 90% of maximal strength. This approach will yield maximum results and increase your performance.

The TIME you spend on weight training might vary depending on the custom fitness program itself. Generally, 30-60 minutes is sufficient, whether a circuit or split routine is implemented.

The TYPE of exercise will vary throughout your fitness program and can include free weights or machines. For certain evolutions, circuit training is more adaptable, while split routines may be used for individual custom fitness program programs.

Strength training, along with various other practices (such as obstacle courses, swims, runs, jumps, and climbs) will develop an overall well-conditioned physique.

Muscle balance and exercise selection:
It is extremely important to consider muscle balance when designing your custom fitness program. Building strength in the triceps should he balanced by strengthening the biceps, and strengthening the quadriceps should be balanced by strengthening the hamstrings.

Without proper balancing of opposing muscle groups, you become vulnerable to injury.

The main goal of a custom fitness program is to produce a gain in overall strength for major tasks.

Many exercises can be incorporated into your custom fitness program:

Legs: Squats / Leg Extensions / Leg Press / Leg Curls / 3/4 Squat / Single Leg Press / Standing Calf Raises

Back: Reverse Grip Lat-Pulldown / One Arm Dumbbell Row / Reverse Grip Barbell Row / Hyperextensions

Chest: Bench Press / Incline Dumbbell Press / Incline Dumbbell Flyes

Shoulders: Behind The Neck Press / Upright Rows

Biceps: Standing Barbell Curls / Incline Dumbbell Curls

Triceps: Triceps Pressdowns / California Press / Close-Grip Bench Press

Determining repetition maximums for your fitness program:
The purpose of knowing your RM for your custom fitness program is to allow you to adjust the exercise intensity. As a safety measure, it is best to start out by determining your 5RM.

To do this, you should have not had any strenuous activity on the day of the test, and you should be properly warmed up. A spotter should always be available when conducting this test. Free weights are the recommended form of weight for this test.

• Select a weight you know is light enough for 10 repetitions.
• Perform 10-15 repetitions with that weight.
• Rest for two minutes.
• Increase weight 2% - 10%, depending on difficulty of previous set.
• Perform 6-8 repetitions.
• Rest for two minutes.
• Increase weight 2% - 10%, depending on difficulty of previous set.
• Rest for three minutes.
• Perform 5 repetitions - this should be close to your 5RM.

Perform sets with increasing weights and decreasing repetitions until a weight that can be comfortably handled for 5 reps is reached.

Here's an example of how you might determine your 5RM for your custom fitness program using the bench press, starting with a weight of 110 lbs. Typically, your 5RM is 87% of your 1RM, and your 10RM is 75% of your 1RM.

Thus, if your 5RM is 160, your 1RM would be approximately 184 lbs, and your 10 RM would be about 138 lbs. After determining your 5RM, it will be easy to establish your 1RM and loads for workouts.

Periodization for your fitness program:
Periodization for your fitness program is a technique that involves altering training variables (such as the number of repetitions per set, the exercises performed, training intensity, and the amount of rest between sets) to achieve well-defined gains in muscular strength, endurance, and overall performance.

For example, if you were working towards a particular goal or athletic competition, you would want to peak at that moment and not earlier. Your fitness program & schedule would be adapted to achieve that goal.

There are several phases to periodization and weight training in general. The first phase is one of activation, or getting the body ready for a new activity. It would typically last four weeks.

Most of you are already weight training and thus have completed the true activation phase of your custom fitness program, but it is okay to start a new one. The second phase is for strength development, and it would last about 4 to 7 weeks, depending on how long you have been weight training.

The next phase is the muscular endurance phase, and lasts 8 to 12 weeks, depending on your schedule. A one year plan for training would include three seven week periods of strength development followed by 12 weeks of conversion to muscular endurance.

Note that this schedule can be modified. It is presented here to emphasize the concept of periodization for your custom fitness program.

It’s a fact, all over the world there are many who share your fitness goals and are experiencing the same fitness challenges you are. They would all be very interested in knowing how you succeeded. What helped you, was it a certain type of fitness training program or exercise?

Or do you have some good fitness information or tips that we may have missed? Share it and help inspire others!

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