Two of the things that have always appealed to me are creating fitness programs, and teaching people how to move correctly. Luckily, I will get to do this daily, and we are excited to share our knowledge with a new community.
Today we want to touch on the group class programs that will be offered at IronFit and what you will find within each level.
Within the group class program, we will have three levels. The exercises that you will do in the class, will be dependent on your goals and the level you want to be a part of. Everyday there will be workout posted to our app, “Push Press.” In this app, you will be able to see the workout for that day as well as for the rest of the week. Our programs will consist of 6-8 week cycles and each one will target similar movements. We will add variance through time, intensity, volume, and order.
Before we share with you the program, it’s important for you to understand our influences so that you will know that we are dedicated to the constant pursuit of learning. You don’t need to know who these people are, but I always appreciate when people show credit where credit is due. Dr. Andy Galpin, Dr. Andrew Huberman, Dr. John Rusin, Dr. Peter Attia, Brian Mckenzie, and CrossFit Mayhem are all major influencers in our career, and we look to continue to follow the most up to date research and information that they put out. We will consistently share with you all good reads and podcasts that we come across and hope that it will help you better “own” your fitness journey.
Now, let’s get to the program. It’s simple as 5-7-9.
We believe that there are 5 categories of functional fitness. You’ve already seen these three different times but, it’s important to remind you. If we do not train these 5 categories consistently, then all 5 declines with age. The good news is that no matter where you are at in your fitness journey, all 5 are very trainable and you will see significant improvement in a short amount of time. It takes discipline to consistently show up, but you will see improvement. What are the 5?
1. Strength
2. Stamina
3. Flexibility / Mobility
4. Agility
5. Balance / Stability
We will train these 5 categories through 7 different functional patterns. The important thing to remember about the patterns is that these are all beneficial to your everyday life. To train these patterns, we will use resistance in the forms of barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, and bands to strengthen these basic movement patterns. The big difference between level 1, 2, and 3 will be the exercises that you perform for each pattern. For example, someone who is a level 3 may perform overhead squats for load, while someone in level 1 may perform dumbbell goblet squats for load. Each exercise falls in the squat pattern, but one requires more flexibility, stability, balance, and coordination. What are the 7 patterns?
1. Push (push-ups, bench press, overhead press, handstand push-ups)
2. Pull (bent over rows, pull-ups, lat pull-downs, bicep curls, kipping pull-ups)
3. Squat (air squat, front squat, back squat, split squat, overhead squat)
4. Hinge (RDL, deadlift, KB swing, split stance RDL, hip thrusts, single leg RDL)
5. Lunge (forward, reverse, lateral, step-ups)
6. Core / Rotation (hollow holds, hollow rocks, hanging, med-ball rotations, rainbows)
7. Carry (heavy kettlebell carries in the front rack, by the side, or overhead, rucking, and sled pull/push)
Lastly, we will have specific stimuluses for these 7 patterns by programming specific adaptations. As mentioned earlier, there are 9 of these that we will use to influence each training session and cycle. So, what are the 9?
1. Skill/technique (this will happen daily. You will be coached)
2. Speed (if we don’t use it, we lose it… don’t worry, looks different for every athlete)
3. Power (same as above)
4. Force/Strength
5. Muscle hypertrophy (think muscle growth)
6. Muscular endurance (the ability to withstand resistance over time and reps)
7. Anaerobic capacity (high intensity interval repeats)
8. Maximal aerobic capacity (our ability to utilize oxygen as a source of energy)
9. Long duration training (ability to sustain sub-maximal work for a long time with no breaks. We like to classify this as zone 2 training)
We know that this is a lot of information. But, over the upcoming months we will post a monthly blog that go into more detail on the importance of training in this style. If you take one thing from this, know that after you schedule your no sweat intro, we will be able to structure each workout so that you are getting the most out of your hour and you are continuing to progress toward your goals.
We look forward to helping you "own your fitness!"
-Lee and Leah Irons
