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Training

How to Break Through Your Bench Press Plateau

March 13, 2023 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Are you stuck on your bench press? Find out how to break through your bench press plateau. If you’ve been lifting for any length of time, you might find your progress stalling. You will feel like you are doing everything right – you are putting in the work, you’re resting. Maybe you changed your program and took advice from seasoned lifters. Maybe you adjusted your technique. You still find yourself not progressing at a pace that you think would be reasonable for the effort you are putting in.

You’re in a plateau. 

Don’t stress. This is common. This is some thing that every lifter will experience. Above all, don’t quit. Keep training. Read a few of the pointers below to find out how you can work through this and come out of your plateau stronger.

how to break through bench press plateau

What is a Bench Press Plateau

If you are wondering, “why is my bench press not increasing?” let’s first address if you’re actually plateauing, or just seeing stalled progress for some reason. Sometimes when you have a few suboptimal training sessions, it can seem worse than it is. 

Ideally you are following a training schedule. This would allow you to train hard and train smart, and actually track your progress. If you are following a program and not just haphazardly winging it, yet still not seeing progress, let’s look at other factors. 

Lack of sleep or poor quality sleep, lack of adequate rest, and over- or under-training can all affect your lifting progress. Every person is different and in a different phase of life, so look honestly at your weekly schedule and assess all of these factors. Consider if you also have a physically demanding job or if you have children in a busy phase of life. You might not be able to alter these things, so consider how you can optimize your time in the gym to lift enough, and rest enough. 

Ensure you are eating well too. You’ll want to make sure you are eating enough calorically, and also eating enough protein. Estimates from experts who understand lifting are around 1.2-1.6 g/kg bodyweight per day. That sometimes takes some planning but is entirely possible. 

Bench Press Plateau Break Through Tips

I hope your lifting career is a lifelong one! It certainly can be. And as such, it is a constant game of working hard, adjusting, and learning as new challenges present themselves. 

Below are a number of ideas on how to break through your bench press plateau, ranging from technical tips, programming tips, and more. 

how to break through a bench press plateau

Work your Whole Body

This one may sound counterintuitive, but to progress as a lifter, you need to work your whole body. Hopefully this is not an issue you are having, but sometimes lifters skew toward their favorite lifts and train their favorites harder.

In the long run, this will not lead to maximal growth, size, or strength. 

Make sure you are getting compound lifts such as squats and deadlifts, not just leg press and isolation machines. Ensure you are doing heavy back work as well. 

Think about it: some people are bench specialists, or deadlift specialists, but the elite ones don’t have gigantic weak spots. When have you seen a 700+ plus puller with skinny arms? I don’t know a big bench presser with tiny legs. 

Train your whole body and you’ll be happy with your progress!

Work on Technique

The bench press is highly technical and improving your technique can increase your capacity. Several technical factors of the bench press will be unique to your body and your leverages, and some will be your preference. For example, if you have a thick chest and torso, and short arms, you are made for bench pressing. If you are tall with long arms, your bench press will have many more inches to travel. 

You are given the body you are given, so in the meantime, you can choose how you would like to set up. A very narrow grip will be a harder angle to press. A wide grip allows you to be in a stronger position, and a position in which the bar has a shorter distance to travel. Most people bench at a grip wider than shoulders, but it is your choice how wide you set up. 

Likewise it is your choice how much you arch in the bench press. The arched position allows for a stronger set up, increased utilization of the lower pec muscles, and again, a shorter range of motion. The arch is safe and will allow for higher bench press numbers. It is your choice how you would like to bench on the continuum between flat back benching and a high arch. 

Finally, there are many technical angles you can work on such as specifics of your set up, arch, grip, and optimal bar path.

Specialized Lifts

Bench pressing often improves from more bench pressing, but you’ll want to add in some supplemental lifts too. Partial reps, dumbbell work, board presses and Spoto presses can help grow your bench press. 

Continue working your bench press as you have been, but experiment with adding in  some of these accessory lifts. Be sure to add in triceps work as well. Stronger triceps will help with a stronger bench press.

Change It Up

Hopefully you are following a smart program that will take you through well designed progressions. This means some of your exercise parameters will change, but you will not be going through crazy, random changes each week.

For example, to change the stimulus, you might decrease your reps as you increase in the weight. The timing of this will depend on whether you are peaking for a meet or competition. If you have plenty of time away from a competition, experiment with changing the set/rep scheme, such as moving from a 5×5 to 5×3 with heavier weights. That is just one example, any how you adjust your sets and reps will obviously depend on what you are doing now.

As accessory work after your main bench work, you can add in paused reps or tempo work. These can increase time under tension, causing a different stimulus.

Find a Program

The best thing you can do for breaking up a bench press plateau, and making progress overall, is following a good program. A program will help you workin a way that challenges you, balances you (upper/lower body, pushing/pulling), doesn’t neglect any fundamental movements or lifts, and allows you to reach your potential. 

Don’t waste your time and energy hopping around the gym and guessing about what to do. Reach out to a trainer who coaches what you want to learn, and use their hours and hours of study, coaching and experience to get where you want to go faster. 

Check out my programs here or message me here about your specific situation. Good luck breaking through your bench press plateau! Here’s to many more years of lifting PRs!

Filed Under: Training

What is the Importance of a Workout Plan?

December 26, 2022 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Having a well written workout plan is one of the most important things to consider in your exercise routine. It is hands down the most effective way to get the best results from your time exercising. A workout plan that you follow can help you reach your goals faster and more effectively, take the brainpower and mental stress out of the process, and help you avoid blind spots to get the best out of your fitness routine. 

How Can a Workout Plan Benefit You?

We know all the reasons that exercise is worth doing: you’ll feel better, move better, look better, and stave off injury and disease. No reason not to exercise! Except that it does take time, energy, and potentially a financial investment. If you are going to put in the effort to exercise (and you should!) then you should make it worth it.

The best way to do that is to follow a well designed exercise plan to maximize your results. Read on for more information about how a workout program can help you, and how to find the best plan for you.

1 – A Workout Plan Can Help You Reach Your Goals Faster

A workout plan can help you reach your goals faster and more effectively, since it will help you work toward specific outcomes. Often, people go in the gym or go for a little pop on the elliptical, hit some machines randomly and hope they get exactly where they want to be. It doesn’t work this way; the body responds very specifically to exercise stimuli. For example, if you want to get stronger, you need to lift heavier. If you want to lose weight, you have to increase your exercise capacity and be able to exert more energy.

I receive inquiries for people from an online exercise company, and it asks people to check off their desired goals. Often people will list many goals, such as “build muscle mass”, “run a marathon”, “increase flexibility”, and “bodybuild”. These are all worthy goals, but in the short to medium term, they will compete. A well written workout program can help reach these goals, but it needs to be methodically planned. Otherwise, the process will be similar to chasing cats; chaotic and ineffective.

The bottom line is that if you are going to do the hard work (and making the time and effort for the gym is hard work!) then it should be work that takes you to your desired outcomes. 

2 – Take the Brainpower and Mental Stress Out of the Equation

Having a well programmed workout routine to follow is incredibly peaceful. A good plan will give you a roadmap to trust, so your only job is to do the hard work. It takes the brainpower and mental stress out of it for you, so you can do the work and reassess at the end of your training block. This is usually 4-12 weeks, at which point, you’ll continue to the next phase, or commit to a new program. 

3 – Avoid Blind Spots in Your Workout Routine

Often, we can learn from others and their experiences. After all, we don’t know what we don’t know! If you have a well designed workout plan, you will be following a well rounded routine that includes everything you need to reach your goals. For example, to avoid and work past back pain, you need a couple smart glute exercises. Athletes, including weekend warriors, typically need more hamstrings work than is conventionally written into general workout plans. 

Make sure you follow a good program, and you’ll hit everything you need to feel and perform best! 

What is a Personalized Workout Plan?

A personalized workout routine or fitness plan is written specifically for you and your goals. Finding a personalized plan written by a fitness expert is a great plan to follow. If that is out of your budget or doesn’t interest you, you can find a plan online that’s written by a fitness expert for people like you. If you look on Train Heroic, for example, you can find extremely specific programs such as plans for beginners, jiu jitsu enthusiasts, people who want to build their butt or grow bigger arms, military and post military, etc. I have plans for people who sit at work all day and need to decompress, people who exercise with limited equipment, and people who train in a full gym toward strength and physique goals. 

This can be incredibly effective and cost effective as well. This way you’re not, as mentioned before, hopping around and wasting your on things that won’t take you to your goals. 

How to Find a Personalized Workout Plan

Like I mentioned in the previous paragraph, you can find any kind of training program on Train Heroic, which is an incredible training app that my clients and I love. (They aren’t paying me to say this! I just really love Train Heroic!) It features programs from experts of all kinds of strength, fitness and sport specific doctrines. 

Consider how many days a week you can commit to working out, what kind of equipment you have access to, and what your goals are. Be as specific as you can. Keep those factors in mind when you are searching programs, and select one that matches you as much as possible. Often on Train Heroic, you can do the first week free, or even contact the coach directly. Research it as much as you are comfortable with to find a program that excites you. 

If you are interested in any of my programs, check them out here. If you have questions about which would be a good fit for you, feel free to email me at kathryn@kathrynalexander.com.

Are you brand new to the gym and need a plan to start? Try this 6 week program which walks you through what to do, how to do it, and how to use your gym.

Take Action and Start Your Workout Plan

Take action! Take imperfect action! I encourage you to think deeply on your goals and how you will feel when you achieve them. Then find a plan that will help you get there! Ensure it’s a good program by looking at reviews and/or talking to the coach. From there, GO GO GO! 

Take a leap of faith, put in great effort, and follow that workout plan!

Best of luck! Remember, I want to see you succeed! If I can help you at all, please let me know! 

Filed Under: Training

Lower Back Pain from Squats? What You Can Do

October 29, 2022 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Squats are one of the most important lifts to train, both because of their ability to change the physique, and because of the phenomenal carryover to real life movement. Need to sit down and not PLOP on the couch? That’s a squat. Want to increase your speed and power for sport? Squats can help with that. Want to maintain your independence for your whole life, ie, not get stuck on a low chair or a toilet? Fill out your jeans a little more? Make your hikes feel stronger? Squats. 

Despite their stellar benefits to health and performance, squats are often blamed for low back injury. In reality, squats do not cause low back pain. Poorly executed squats can cause low back pain. 

Read on for how to maximize your squat performance so you can build your strength, change your body, and prevent pain. 

Lower back pain from squats? What you can do.
Having lower back pain from squats? What you can do.

Why You Might Get Lower Back Pain After Squats

Squats are a full body lift. They heavily involve legs, glutes, back and core. Done properly, squats integrate the whole body in a natural movement. It usually becomes apparent when one piece is a weak link. For example, many people’s legs can handle more than their core (abs and lower back) can.

Sometimes lifters have great form, and need to work on bringing their core strength up to speed. Other times, lifters have poor form that doesn’t necessary cause back pain, but can limit progress. Finally, some lifters use poor form that actually can cause back pain.

Also unforunately, sometimes people just do stupid stuff in the gym. Not warming up properly, adding too much weight to the bar from one set to the next, and trying to go heavy too frequently can all have suboptimal results, including lower back pain after squats. 

How to Avoid Lower Back Pain After Squats

The best ways to avoid lower back pain from squats are to learn proper warm up techniques, work on perfecting your form, and follow a well designed program. 

The warm up is not just about getting warm; it is much more important than that. The warm up is a physiological process to get your nervous system engaged, get your joints moving, and increase your heart rate and blood flow for the upcoming exercise. By warming up properly and working up in weight with exercise specific warm ups, you’ll actually be able to do more work and better work. 

Perhaps the most important way to prevent and avoid lower back pain is to learn to squat with optimal form. Every person’s squat will look different because of differences in limb length and individual build, but every individual has an optimal squat form. Learning to squat properly will help you use your legs and glutes as they are intended to be used in the squat, allowing your back to be used in the way that it is intended. This way your back is not overcompensating for not using your prime movers (the leg and glute muscles) as they should be during the squat. 

Finally, follow a good program written by an experienced coach. People who wing it without a program often lift too heavy too often, too light, infrequently, miss major muscle groups, or skip assistance exercises that help you prevent injury. I recommend programs by Aaron Ausmus of Pen and Paper Strength App and Zack Phillips of ReadyUp Athletic Development. I would be honored to help you with a program as well. Check out these or contact me about a custom program written for your goals.

How to Recover From Lower Back Pain Caused by Squats

Remember that squatting is a natural movement and most people can find a way to do it pain free. If you suspect you are having lower back pain caused by squats, then something must change. In the short term, back off squats, especially if you are doing barbell squats and are going very heavy. Do not stop your movement, though! This is not a free pass to stop exercising. 

If the pain is exceptionally bad, please contact a doctor. The following advice applies to pain that is manageable and is not medical advice. 

Movement is good for the body, so continue movement by walking, swimming or other low impact exercise. You can add in unweighted squats as a test to see how it feels. If you’d like to bump it a notch, you can add lunges or stationary lunges. While lunging, the back can typically remain upright, which is generally a safe position. 

Add in movements such as the McKenzie press, child’s pose, unweighted reverse hyperextensions, back extensions and dead hangs.

You can also look at other factors in your life that might be contributing to lower back pain. Do you have good posture when you sit, and do you have an ergonomic setup where you spend most of your work day? Check out your mattress too. Ideally you spend 8 or so hours there each night. It is important that you don’t sleep in a funny position in that little dip that develops as mattresses age. 

Most importantly, remember that this too shall pass! Keep a positive attitude and look to athletes and people you know who have come back from injuries. Your body is always actively working to heal you – help it as much as you can! 

Benefits and Variations of Squats

Because squats use so much of the body, they can be very taxing on the nervous system, and thus send a large signal to the body to adapt. In other words, when you challenge yourself on squats, they feel hard because they are hard! 

One way to avoid injury and overuse is to become proficient in squat variations. This will develop your strength in many ways, at varying angles, and help prevent overuse injuries. 

Check out this post about 7 squat variations you can do with little equipment.

Keep Squatting to Build a Strong Back!

When done correctly in a well written program, lower back pain from squatting is exceedingly rare. In fact, squatting correctly does wonders for strengthening your back and preventing low back pain and injury. 

While it might take some time on the front end to learn and practice ideal squatting form, or trouble shoot your current squat form, it is well worth the effort to be strong. 

Enjoy lifting, my friends, and please be in touch if you have questions I can help you with. Kathryn@kathrynalexander.com 

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: strength

Ask Kathryn: What Exercises are Best for HIIT?

November 30, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Let’s discuss what exercises are best for HIIT, or High Intensity Interval Training.

Often, I get great questions clients that are too good not to share. This is one, about which exercises to choose for HIIT training. This is from a client who incorporates HIIT into her program twice a week.

Are Certain Exercises Most Beneficial for HIIT Style Training?

Are there certain moves that would be most beneficial during HIIT intervals?  Could you provide suggestions to structure those sessions?

Kathryn: High Intensity Interval Training, or HIIT, is a powerful tool to drive improvements in conditioning and body composition.

HIIT involves doing highly intense intervals of hard work, unlike steady state cardio. To achieve work intervals intense enough to stimulate adaptation, you must choose exercises wisely.

If you need a primer on what HIIT is and who is a good candidate for it, check this out: HIIT Revisited.


Generally speaking, anything that gets your whole body moving works. Think big, compound, multi-joint movements like squat presses (very light weight), lunges or jumping jacks. Exercises like calf raises or biceps curls really don’t challenge you systemically, so for honest hard work, pick bigger movements.

The simplest options are movements that you can quickly and easily ramp up the intensity with. For example, running, sprinting, or biking.

If you don’t have cardio equipment or can’t go outside, there are other options.

You could pick 1-3 exercises and cycle through them. For example, during a bad weather bout pre-home gym, I did a session rotating between squats, lunges and pushups. I would do about 10 of each or until I fatigued, and then move to the next exercise until I reached my time goal.

Want to add lunges in your session? Check out this How-To blog post about lunges and the lunge variations.

Don’t overthink it! This is just about getting your body moving! Try to keep movement steady for the hard but quick interval, but you can slow down when you need.

Your Turn for HIIT Sessions

My client asked a great question, seeking more structure for her HIIT sessions. Of course, when my clients prefer it, I specify exactly what to do, but I like to give you the option to pick your own movements. What feels fun and do-able will be different for everyone.

Pick a couple exercises, get warmed up, and put on some good music and go!

Do you need individualized help with your training? If so, message me here and let’s get your training back on track!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: Ask Kathryn

How to Get the Best Workout Possible

May 11, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

How to Get the Best Workout Possible

Whether you are training at home or at the gym, there are things you can do to make sure you get the best session. Follow the tips below to make sure your workout counts in the best way possible!


K-row.jpg

Prepare Yourself to Have the Time for a Proper Workout/Training Session

If you are training at home, don’t do your laundry or clean your kitchen between sets. Don’t do work emails on your phone, sitting on the bench between sets. Make the time to get it done. It might have to be quick depending on the stage of your life, but focus to the best of your ability to make the minutes when you are lifting count. 

Take the Time to Get a Good Warm Up

Warm up properly! This is crucial! Warming up isn’t just about temperature. It is an increase in neurological recruitment. This means your body gets better and better at doing what you’re asking it to do. Make sure your warm up reflects what you are going to do, and that it starts light and progresses. Don’t skip your warm up! 

Don’t Stop in the Middle of your Session and Finish Later

Don’t stop in the middle of your session! You can do this with some cardio. Depending on what your goal is, cardio minutes can accumulate. But a training session is planned to be done in a certain order. You warm up, get the most dynamic and coordination-demanding exercises done first. Then do your heavy work. Next comes accessory work, then core/trunk/abs and cool down. 

You don’t want to start and stop in the middle of this. If you are consistently having to stop and re-start your sessions, a better plan would be to re-write them so they fit in your time constraints. 

Rest the Right Amount of Time Between Sets

Resting an appropriate amount between sets is extremely important. How much rest is optimal depends on your goals, which you have hopefully committed to beforehand. For example, if you are training for high volume and endurance, you might rest 30-60 seconds between sets. Resting longer will change the stimulus on your body, prolonging a mediocre session, and making it less effective for your endurance goals. 

If you are training for strength, you will need to rest 2-4 minutes, or maybe longer, between heavy and challenging sets. Moving too quickly into the next set will cost you quality on the next set.

Tie It All In

Give these tips a go during your session, and let me know how it goes. Happy training!

Filed Under: Training

Benefits of a Home Gym

May 4, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

I know I must sound like a broken record, but I have to tell you how strongly I feel about building out your own home gym. You might use it religiously, or it might be a supplement to your gym training. Either way, you set yourself up for success when you have everything you need available to you.

Benefits of a Home Gym

I will cover these in greater detail below, but in a nutshell, here are some benefits of a home gym:


My home gym, my happy place.

My home gym, my happy place.

  • ease of use because of lowered psychological barrier

  • saves time

  • saves money *

  • no sharing equipment

  • no one else’s sweat!

  • you get to pick the music

  • you are entirely responsible for your pace (work:rest ratios)

  • no gym manager oversight

  • you can try weird exercises!

  • you can maintain your equipment

Ease of Use

Your home gym will become easier to use because of lowered psychological barrier of time, traffic, commute, etc. Some days a quick 20 minute HIIT session is what your body needs, and it’s hard to justify the commute time to do 20 minutes. It’s worth it though, and easy to commit to when it’s so easy. It’s literally right there. Easy!

Saves Time

As mentioned above, you’ll save commute time, wear and tear on your vehicle. You won’t get caught in gym chit-chat (for better or worse, because sometimes those are great chit-chats). When life gets busy and you’re in a pinch, it’s a huge plus to have gym equipment close.

Saves Money *

Let go of your monthly gym fee! I actually really love gyms, so I usually end up paying a gym membership or two. BUT over time, you will recoup your investment for not having a monthly fee.

*Haha! Or, you won’t recoup it because you’ll fall in love with buying cool equipment and fun bars. Seriously, it’s more fun than buying shoes. Sorry, and you’re welcome. 🙂

No Sharing Equipment

Whether you are a germ phobe or not, there are definite benefits to having your own space and your own equipment. Like the next point:

No One Else’s Sweat

Enough said!

You Get to Pick the Music

What you enjoy listening to is probably not what the training staff has to guess is palatable enough for everybody. It took me time to recover from hearing it a trillion times, but I’ll always have a soft spot for Rihanna’s Please Don’t Stop the Music (holla, Gold’s Gym 2007 staff & friends!). When it’s your gym and your rules, play what fires you up!

You Are Responsible for Your Pace

This one is actually pretty crucial! Look, I appreciate the spirit of cooperation, truly. But when you have a plan and want hit it on all cylinders, it’s not fun to have to wait for someone who is doing one set per 15 minutes on the one functioning piece of equipment you need, but not re-racking the totally unnecessary 315 pounds between. Sigh. But really – when you are dedicated enough that you are working on a specific pace to induce a specific adaptation, the inconsiderate gym hogs are just in your way!

No Gym Manager Oversight

Most gym managers and owners are pretty cool, but they do get to set the tone. If you need to call all the shots, you need your own place.

You Can Try Weird Exercises!

If you are always learning and always trying new things, it’s nice to have your own space to do so. Nothing’s wrong with going off the beaten path, but sometimes it’s more enjoyable to explore without an audience. similarly, I like going for PR’s without an audience. I do better when I know it’s me and only me.

You Can Maintain Your Equipment

This is a big one! It hurts my heart every time I see someone abusing or mistreating gym equipment. You can bet that doesn’t happen at my home. You get to make sure your bars are straight, your plates face the right way (you know what I mean), and your bench upholstery doesn’t get torn up.

Start Your Home Gym!

If I can help you get start with your own home gym, let me know! Remember it doesn’t have to be fully stocked to start. You start with a pair of dumbbells or a band. If you need help decided what to start with, check out my suggestions for home gym essentials here:

Home Gym Essentials in 2020

Happy Training!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: home gym

Backyard Conditioning

April 27, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Sometimes you just need a backyard conditioning session. Find yourself a little bit of grass and try this session. Each exercise name is a video link.

  • squat

  • bear crawl

  • lunge

  • lateral lunge

  • windmill

Do 5-10 reps of each exercise and then move on to the next exercise. Do the whole first round with no equipment. When you have done all of the exercises, rest for 1-2 minutes and repeat. You can do the entire session with no equipment, but some of the videos show equipment being used. IF you have weights, you can use them on round 2 and later.

Round 2

If you want an increase in challenge on the second round, try squat jumps instead of squats, and Bulgarian split squats instead of lunges. Your round will look like this:


BSS_Alexander.jpg

  • squat jump

  • bear crawl

  • Bulgarian split squat

  • lateral lunge

  • windmill

Aim for 3 rounds and reassess. Work hard but work smart. Listen to your body, and rest as you need.

Cooldown & Stretching

When you have done all the rounds you’d like, walk a few laps as your heart rate decreases. Then do the following stretches, 30 seconds per side, twice.

  • standing hip flexor stretch

  • standing hamstrings stretch

  • side stretch

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: training

Benefits of Training Alone

April 19, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Exercise can be done a million ways: in a group, as a team, with your partner, a neighbor or friend. It can be intense and mission driven, or just a way to pass healthy time. Training can also be done solo, and there are a lot of benefits that come with it.


Ball throws while training solo.

Ball throws while training solo.

Peace and Quiet 

Or not! You get to pick. Training out alone affords you the time to take a break form the world; away from the coworkers, the kids, and your overflowing inbox. You get to pick your music, or choose no music. You get to recharge and spend time without having to be “on” at work or serving others. This is about you! 

Exercise Is Meditative

Training done properly is not rocket science, but it is not simple! You should be paying attention to the nuances of form; your grip, hand and foot placement, angles of the body. Correct set up is a procedure in itself. From there, during and after the movement, you should be collecting feedback about the tempo, control, and speed of the rep. This feedback guides the decisions about the next set.


pushups.jpg

It is truly a misnomer to call meatheads “meatheads”. Again, not rocket science, but if you are paying attention to your training, it does not leave much room for consciously ruminating about your problems. The end result is a peaceful mind and a happily exhausted body.

Awareness of the Body

Since you are more attune to your body without the distraction of working out with others, you become more aware of how you feel. You can feel illness before it truly sets in, potentially giving you the chance to head it off. I have often seen clients have an “off” day, only to discover that later they come down with a milder illness or realize allergies are about to flare up. 

This isn’t to say you can’t have this benefit while training with others, but training alone heightens your ability to focus on yourself. Give yourself the gift of training alone and see how you enjoy it.

Filed Under: Training

How Often Should I Workout?

April 6, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

People ask me this question often and want the one right answer. 

There is no one right answer, but our bodies do well with frequent movement. It would be optimal to move every day. 

But how you move every day is important too. You don’t need to go all-out hard every day, and going too easy every day won’t help you as much either. When you are lifting hard, heavy, or doing HIIT training (links) you’ll want to add some lower intensity days. If you are healthy and conditioned, doing all lower intensity days will decondition you.

So how many days should you exercise? It’s not rocket science, but there are lots of right answers to this question and none the same from person to person. Read on to learn about what is best for you right now.

Factors to Consider


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Let’s start here: 

  • What are your goals? 

  • Do you have a deadline for your goals?

  • What is your schedule like?

What Are Your Goals?

Do you have an event to prepare for, like an athletic competition or a wedding? Does this event require you to compete physically, or do you just want to look great? If you don’t have an event to prepare for, are your goals related to health? You might have short term health goals like reaching a certain percent of body fat, or a certain amount on your bench press. Or, you can have truly long term goals like maintaining your conditioning and balance all your life. 

I encourage you to think hard about what you want, both short term and long term. “I want to be healthy” is GREAT, but pretty vague. I want to be healthy all my life too. I want to be hiking to remote natural hot springs, moving the furniture when I want, doing my own lawn work, maintaining healthy blood pressure and body composition. Think specifically about what you really want to do next year, and when you are old. 


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Do You Have a Deadline for Your Goals?

Like your short term and long time goals, consider if you have timelines for these. If you have an event, do you have to peak to be at your best physically? Do you want to feel good in your own skin at a reunion or beach vacation? If you have a short term goal coming up quickly and you intend to meet it, you’ll have to prioritize exercise more. 

You can have short and long term goals. In fact, I recommend it. They keep you moving, and keep that sense of relevance. It’s easy to put off working toward a 10-year goal until tomorrow, but not as easy to put off working toward a beach vacation next month. 

What is Your Schedule Like?

I do want you to prioritize your health at all times, but it’s important to understand that sometimes life demands a lot of your energy elsewhere. Post -injury, -surgery, -childbirth, during some school or work programs, and caring for a sick loved one, might chronically stress and drain you. In these situations, you do what you can. Your goal is to take care of your body to the extent that you can now, so you are healthy when you can push it later.

Scheduling 5 sessions a week in your busiest time in life, then missing them and feeling guilty leads to a depression spiral. Instead, be honest about what you can do. Do you have a pocket of time on Saturday mornings, and 15 minutes after the kids go to bed? In that case, you can schedule in a full training session on Saturday and quick movements a couple other days a week. Even ten minute walks once a day add up. 

How Many Days Should You Workout?

The final answer is that you should consider how many days you need to workout given the proximity to your goals. Be reasonable about how much you can do. You can’t do 3 months of work in a week, so give yourself plenty of time but work hard. Likewise, keep your long term health in mind and exercise even if it’s 1 day a week. 

Remember every season of you life will be different. You will be able to give more physically in some stages of life than others. If you do the best with what you have, whether it’s 2 quick sessions a week or 6, you’ll always be at your best. If you are in a period where you don’t have as much to give, do your best to take care of yourself and get through that time. When you have the time and energy, take advantage of it! 

The bottom line is, do what you can even if it doesn’t feel like much. It all adds up! Email me if you have questions about your situation! 


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Filed Under: Training

7 Squat Variations to Make Home Sessions More Challenging

March 30, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander 1 Comment

Exercising with less equipment can be liberating. You can train almost anywhere and you don’t have to spend time on all the details of the session. Lift, move, go! Push, pull, squat!

The challenge is continuing to progress with fewer options. You’ll eventually reach a point where you feel like you are doing the same 5 exercises over and over. That’s ok because 1) the basics work and 2) it only takes a little bit of adjustment to break out of that. 

I focus on squats on this article because you’ll find yourself doing squats often. They are bang-for-your-bucks, and universally applicable. Below are some ways you can make your squats more challenging when you’ve run out of home weights.


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Do More Reps

The easiest and perhaps most common way to challenge yourself more is to do more reps. This isn’t always the answer, especially if you have the option to go heavier on the next set. If you have used your heaviest weights though, you can add more reps per set. You can also add more sets if your sets are becoming excessively long.

Shorten Rest Interval

Like adding more reps, you can shorten your rest interval to increase the challenge. This decrease in recovery calls on your body to do more work in a fatigued state. Doing the same amount of work in a shorter amount of time shows progress. 

Use Different Implements

This advice typically refers to using dumbbells, kettlebells, bands, and barbells. At home, this takes on a whole new meaning. Need more weight? Have a willing kid hanging around? Pick ‘em up and squat! Hold them in your arms like a baby or piggyback. No children or willing partners? Load up a backpack and squat. Wear it backwards for a front squat.

Tempo Squats

A tempo squat uses a familiar set and rep scheme, the same form, and even the same implement. However, you will vary your pace by going slower at certain parts of the lift. Tempo is commonly written as 4 digits, such as 1010. This means a one second descent, no pause at the bottom, one second up, and no pause before performing the next rep. I commonly use a 5010 tempo, which means a sloowww 5 second descent, no pause at the bottom, then a regular fast ascent. This will quickly spice up a squat set!

Pause Squats

Adding a pause at the bottom of a squat is also a great way to increase the challenge without increasing weight. To properly execute a pause squat, you will do a normal squat and dead stop at the bottom. Keep generating pressure so you aren’t wobbling, dipping or rising. Once you have held your pause as long as you need, drive up from that dead stop position. It is important here to NOT dip then drive. 

Using the terminology of the last example, a 5 second pause squat would be a tempo of 1510.

Suitcase Deadlift and Offset Loads

A suitcase deadlift is performed by picking up something that is parked on one side of you, like a suitcase. It is an offset load, so the demand on your trunk is to resist the imbalanced pull while. This can be performed like a deadlift or a squat. You can do a suitcase deadlift with one weight, or with two weights that do not weigh the same. Because of the offset load, your trunk works asymmetrically, which is much more of a real life situation than a crunch type movement.

How to Apply These in Your Training

Identify in your sessions where you feel under worked. You can add in one of these exercises and see how it changes your workload. You can also add one of these techniques to the last set of your training. For example, if your goblet squats have been easy, add in a pause squat on the last set. If it’s a good challenge, you can call it a day or repeat that paused set. 

Let me know if you have more questions! Get creative and challenge yourself on those home sessions! 

Filed Under: Training

Home Ab Session!

March 2, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

I’m a believer in the “big rocks”, the staples of a healthy program: squat, push, pull, weighted carry. Do these things regularly and progressively and you’ll have a solid core. Sometimes you need some accessory ab work though, and people ask me for more ab work all the time. So, here you go: a simple (but not easy) equipment free home session. Enjoy!!

The Session

In the next paragraph are the 5 exercises for this session. Do 10 reps of each exercise and then move immediately to the next one, resting at the end of each 5 before the next round, or as you need. If you can continue without your form suffering, continue. Where there is a right and left exercise, do 10 on each side. Run through this session 3-5 times. If you’re still raring to go, you can add another set!

The Exercises

Each exercise name is a link to a YouTube how-to, and pictures and explanations are below.

crunch

lying leg extension

toe touch

breaststroke

plank knee to elbow

Crunch


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  • lay on your back, supporting your head if you choose

  • using your abs, think about bringing your ribs closer to your hip bones

  • this is not a sit-up; it’s a partial range of motion crunch

Toe Touch


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  • lay on your back with your legs in the air

  • reach your right arm toward your left toes in a quick crunch motion

  • reach your left arm toward your right toes in a quick crunch motion -continue alternating sides

Lying Leg Extension


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  • lay on your back with knees bent at a 90 degree angle

  • keep knees directly over hips, not pulled into your chest

  • using your abs, press your low back into the ground

  • slowly extend your right leg until your knee is straight and heel is close to the ground

  • stop if your low back pops off the ground

  • if your low back pops off the ground, don’t bring your heels as close to the ground (image 3)

  • bring your leg back to the 90 degree bent position and repeat with the other leg

Breaststroke


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  • lay flat on the ground with arms extended in front of you

  • head should be facing the floor, not looking in front of you

  • make a wide sweep with your arms around and slightly extend your upper body off the floor

  • as arms reach your sides, tuck your hands by your sides as you again extend your arms in front of you

  • inhale as you sweep your arms wide toward your sides

  • exhale as you return your arms to your starting position

Plank Knee to Elbow


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  • get in plank position from hands

  • maintain a straight body position from your legs through the crown of your head

  • keep your back engaged so your shoulders don’t shift up into your ears, and you don’t sink toward the floor

  • bring your right knee toward your right elbow 

  • return right foot to floor and perform the same movement on your left side

  • your knee probably won’t touch your elbow, and that’s ok. Don’t crunch to reach it

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: The Home Team

Different Styles of Cardio and How They Can Help You

February 10, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Love it or hate it, cardio is great for you. Cardio can improve your health, quality of life, and athletic and physique goals. There are many ways to do cardio, though, so let’s cover the details so you can discover what style is best for you.

American Heart Association Guidelines

For reference, the American Heart Association recommends, in addition to 2 days a week of moderate to high intensity muscle building activity, either:

  • at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity aerobic activity at least 5 days a week for a total of 150 minutes. These can be broken into 10 minutes chunks. OR

  • at least 25 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity 3 days per week for a total of 75 minutes


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Low Intensity Steady State

LISS cardio is done at a very low intensity, or slow pace, usually for an extended period of time. This is usually a long walk and is done for recovery or just extra movement. If you are an experienced swimmer or cyclist and can settle into an easy pace, you can do LISS with those methods too. If you are physically exhausted from an accumulation of hard training, this is a good option. 

Moderate Intensity Exercise

Moderate intensity exercise is a step above LISS in intensity, but is very do-able for a period of time. Examples include brisk walking, walking on a treadmill at an incline, jogging, cycling, rowing or swimming. Moderate intensity exercise can be done multiple times a week.

High Intensity Exercise

High intensity exercise is vigorous in nature and feels highly exertional. High intensity exercise sessions will usually be harder and quicker than moderate or low intensity. Examples include running, hard cycling, swimming and jump roping.

High Intensity Interval Training

High intensity interval training (HIIT) is characterized by bouts of high intensity alternating with low intensity or rest intervals. The high intensity intervals are typically done at an exertion level near impossible to maintain, thus necessitating the rest periods. Examples include sprints, hill sprints, stair climbing, kettle bell swinging, and jump roping. You might do HIIT only a couple times a week since it is quite demanding.

It All Adds Up!

Remember that exercise accumulates! No movement is wasted! Find something fun and try a new cardio method today!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: training

How to Avoid Weight Gain and Unhealthy Habits While Working From Home

February 9, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

The change from going to an office to working from home has significantly changed people’s lives, often in ways unexpected. One of those ways is that the decrease in activity as people are forced to work from home results in decrease in fitness and increase in weight gain.

We wouldn’t be shocked to see a decrease in fitness level when quitting an exercise program. But, the surprising part of the new work-from-home-economy is how our normal, pre-covid activities of daily living maintained a certain level of fitness, even if those activities didn’t seem difficult. Catching the stairs, hurrying across city blocks, and moving office supplies adds up, and many people are missing that in their new home-based routine. 

Way to Add Movement Back In

To address this decrease in movement while working at home, you can take a few steps to add back in fitness. In order from easiest to most involved:

  • drink water throughout the day, so you are up and using the restroom frequently. All steps count, and the hydration is healthy too!

  • make a quick movement routine and stick to it on schedule (pushups, lunges, stretches every day at noon)

  • buy dumbbells and bands, and establish a more invovled lifting routine

  • join an online exercise team such as at TrainHeroic for the accountability

  • find a new activity activity such as walking, jogging, hiking or biking

Execution of The New Plan

Of course, there are more involved implications to this simple list. You’ll have to do a little bit of research and planning as you change your routine. You might have to research a new bike to buy! You might have to invest in some new exercise clothes. You have my full permission to do both of those 🙂 Try out new habits and activities and see which you enjoy enough to incorporate into your every day life.

If you add a little bit of creativity and curiosity, you can find a new way to add in healthy exercise!

Filed Under: Training

Shoulder Circuit with the Bala Power Ring (or a Dumbbell)

January 26, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

I bought my mom a Bala Power Ring sometime during 2020. I could blame Covid, where weights were hard to come by, but really I thought it was too cute. It is 10 pounds, so you can actually do some work with it.

On my last visit home, I used it for a shoulder circuit and really enjoyed it. You can do the following circuit with a Bala ring, a dumbbell, a light kettlebell. Really anything that is light enough to manage and heavy enough to provide sufficient resistance.

Try this circuit below and let me know how it goes!

Shoulder Circuit

This circuit is 5 exercises:

  1. overhead press

  2. lateral raise

  3. front raise

  4. halo

  5. rear delt row

Try 3 rounds of 10 – 15 reps. Re-assess how you feel. If you have been regularly doing similar lifts and that was only moderately challenging, you can add more rounds. If those were new movements for you, stop there. See how you feel in a day or so, and repeat. On the next session, you can push for another round.

Flexibility with Implements

I used the Bala ring, but you can clearly see dumbbells behind me. I could have used those too. If the weights were a better fit for this session and these lifts, I would have. Don’t get hung up on using the exact same thing you see other people do. When in doubt, start light, do some exercises and adjust from there. Let me know if you have questions! Email me at kathryn@kathrynalexander.com or comment below!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: Bala

Increase Your Exercise Capacity for an Easier Life

January 12, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Exercise can make every day better by improving your physical capacity. If your body is trained to do more, then your activities of daily living will take less out of you. You’ll have more strength and energy left to do the things you want to do.

Consider how many steps you take per day. If you take 8,000 steps per day, then a long trip to the grocery store might take a large amount of those. In this case, some unplanned event might take a disproportional amount of energy.

This happens frequently in real life. Maybe a car breaks down and you have to walk half a mile, or a shopping trip with friends turns into more walking than you expected. Sometimes you meet up with friends downtown for dinner, and a change of restaurant plans necessitates an urban hike.

Let’s say you increase your steps from about 8,000 to 12,000 steps a day. Then, that walk around the mall, or finding the car after a football game, won’t be such a large percentage of your activity.

It is better to be active and ready for even the things you don’t plan for.

Put this in strength terms. Some people think they don’t need to be stronger or don’t see how increased strength will benefit their daily lives, but being stronger can benefit everybody. 


Capt. Charles Moore, commander, Company C, 202nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, performs the fireman's carry of a "casualty" during the nuclear, biological and chemical portion of the Expert Field Medical Badge traini…

Capt. Charles Moore, commander, Company C, 202nd Brigade Support Battalion, 4th Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, performs the fireman’s carry of a “casualty” during the nuclear, biological and chemical portion of the Expert Field Medical Badge training and testing here Sept. 14. Photo by Spc. Leah R. Burton. This photo appeared on www.army.mil. By The U.S. Army At Flickr. Licensed under CC BY 2.0.

This is obvious for those with physically demanding jobs. For example, military, police, fire and medical personnel always have to be able to move people and things. If these people can only deadlift 200 pounds, they might not be adequately prepared for the job.

Two hundred and fifty pounds may sound like a lot. Consider, though, that many people in the general population weigh 200 pounds. If that tactical athlete must move a 160 pound teammate who is carrying 40 pounds of gear, or a 200 pound person in a fire, he is using 100% of his carrying capacity. That is too much – he or she will fatigue soon or fail the task. That doesn’t even include any gear he or she is personally carrying.

Now, if that person’s max deadlift is 350 pounds, which should be doable for most males in a first responder position, then 200 pounds is only 57% of his capacity. In this case, he should be able to move the 200 pound person much easier than if it were almost all his strength allowed. 

Many people have elaborated more on this idea, and I certainly don’t claim it as an original thought. It needs to be said many more times so people understand how important strength is.


Everybody does this. But I think Mariusz Pudzianowski is probably the last person in the world who struggles with the weight of his groceries.

Everybody does this. But I think Mariusz Pudzianowski is probably the last person in the world who struggles with the weight of his groceries.

What if you aren’t a first responder; does this apply to you? Absolutely! Don’t you carry groceries, luggage or children?

If your overall work capacity and maximal strength levels are higher, then these things will not feel like a chore. They will be submaximal work, and will feel much easier. You’ll go through all your activities of daily living and you’ll be less tired at the end of the day because your body’s inherent ability is greater. This is the gift exercise gives you.

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: strength

Improve Your Mind Muscle Connection to Get More Out of Your Training

January 11, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment

Mind Muscle Connection

Developing and utilizing the mind-muscle connection is one of the most overlooked lessons to learn about training. If you are able to develop the mind-muscle connection, all your training will yield greater results.

The mind-muscle connection is basically the internal dialog of the brain and the muscles involved in the movement. Instead of focusing on the task (bending the elbow) you focus on the process (squeeze the biceps). This allows your movements to be more effective and to actually develop what you are aiming to develop. For example, shallow, unfocused squats will not develop the quads, hamstrings or glutes to the full potential. Focusing on what your body is doing and what muscles are contracting and assisting will allow you to recruit and stimulate your muscle fibers most effectively.

How to Develop Your Mind Muscle Connection

To develop the mind-muscle connection, focus on the muscle group you are using. For instance, in a squat, feel the stretch as you sit deep, then think about squeezing your glutes and legs as you stand back up. This is much more effective than just bending up and down.

It helps to brush up on the major muscle groups so you understand what muscle groups cause specific movement. Think about what muscle you are working as you move, and if you don’t know, look it up beforehand. 


Here, I am focusing on the muscles that actually do the movement of the pullapart, called the prime movers.

Here, I am focusing on the muscles that actually do the movement of the pullapart, called the prime movers.


The prime movers are rear delts, traps, and rhomboids. I focus on feeling these rather than focusing on what the band is doing.

The prime movers are rear delts, traps, and rhomboids. I focus on feeling these rather than focusing on what the band is doing.

What To Do Next

Working on moving your body deliberately with the mind-muscle connection is a lifetime goal; you’ll always be practicing and improving it. But once you have an understanding of it, then it will be especially effective to add more sets and reps. From there, you can even add  progressively increasing challenges, such as heavier weights, pauses, tempo reps, etc. 

It all begins with understanding what you are working though. Once you have that, you’ll see the effects of your training improve greatly! 

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: how to

3 Exercises for Improved Posture

January 4, 2021 by Kathryn Alexander 2 Comments

Optimal posture can help you breathe better, alleviate and prevent back pain, and look and feel more confident. Maintaining good posture is always important, but is especially pertinent if you sit many hours of the day, or are less active than you have been in the past. 

Much of having good posture is simply practicing it habitually, but you can do exercises to develop and reinforce good posture. Do these 3 exercises a few times a week. You can do these at the beginning of your training session, after, or as a standalone session. 

Band Pullapart


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  • extend tall through your spine, whether you are sitting or standing

  • press your arms straight around your side

  • squeeze your shoulders behind you as you do this

  • press until the band touches your chest

  • elbows can have a slight bend here, but will stay at the same angle. Do not straighten or bend at the elbow

Bird Dog


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  • start from a 4 point position on the ground 

  • be sure wrists are directly under shoulders and knees are directly under hips

  • keep an active, neutral, flat back (no arching or hunching)

  • be tall through your spine, from the top of your head to your tailbone

  • without wiggling or compensating, extend one arm straight in front of you, and back under you

  • repeat on your other arm

  • extend one leg, thinking about squeezing your glutes and straightening at the knee

  • imagine you are wearing your favorite white shirt and balancing a tray of red wine on your back

  • If this is easy, you can extend the right arm and left leg at the same time, then alternate sides

Breaststroke


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  • lay flat on the ground with arms extended in front of you

  • head should be facing the floor, not looking in front of you

  • make a wide sweep with your arms around and slightly extend your upper body off the floor

  • as arms reach your sides, tuck your hands by your sides as you again extend your arms in front of you

  • inhale as you sweep your arms wide toward your sides

  • exhale as you return your arms to your starting position

The Details

Begin with a set of 8-10 reps of each exercise. That is one round. From there, repeat, trying to do each movement better. Be in a better control, pay attention to what you are feeling. You can do 3-5 rounds, depending on how you feel. Still have more questions? Leave me a comment or email me! I’m happy to hear from you!

Filed Under: Training

The Home Team FAQ and General Info

December 15, 2020 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment


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Welcome to The Home Team on Train Heroic! Once you begin your training sessions, you might have questions. Read here for some general knowledge of the program before you begin.

(Not signed up yet? Click here for your first week free!)

Notes:

Each exercise has a video demonstration and text description. Please watch the video and read these. If you have further questions, feel free to email me! kathryn@kathrynalexander.com


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The warm-up is just a suggestion.

The general rule is to do a dynamic warm-up first, and stretch after your training session. You can add in some easy movement such as walking or jogging, and light stretching, if that feels good to you. 

The weights I suggest are also approximate.

Start light, assess how the set went, and adjust accordingly. Don’t be afraid to start light. If anything, you can chalk it up to a warm up set and increase on the next. As you go, you’ll become more familiar with your weight abilities for each exercise.

Questions: 

What do I need for the homework outs?

Short answer: a pair of light dumbbells, a pair of medium dumbbells, a heavy dumbbell or kettlebell, and bands. You can get more if you want more, but this is a solid start. 

I want more. What should I get? 

A hip circle. 

Do I have to do the training sessions on the days they are posted? 

No. I will publish them by Sunday. Do them in order, but on the days that you can. 

Where do I start?

Click here for your first week free! After that, it’s $27 a month, for as long as you are happy. No contracts, no hassle.

Anything else? Email me! kathryn@kathrynalexander.com

I am so excited to help you on your strength and conditioning journey!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: The Home Team

Outdoor Training for Power, Part 2

July 21, 2020 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment


Skipping for power training. All photos on this blog post by Ben Porter Photography.

Skipping for power training. All photos on this blog post by Ben Porter Photography.

When I started this series about outdoor training for power, this was a supplement to gym training. This was pre-corona, pre-masks and social distancing. Now, it’s a viable training option for when you can’t, or don’t want to go to the gym.

If you missed Part 1, a beginning/intermediate protocol, start there. If you haven’t been jogging on a regular basis for at least 3 weeks, start with the conservative version outlined in Part 1. Trust me, it’s worth the time to lay down some ground work.

Read this: Outdoor Training for Power, Part I

This protocol, Part 2, is a little more plyometric, a little more powerful. The same rules apply, so let’s begin there.

Training Session Overview

Do this session in the order that follows. Exercises are covered in detail below.

  • Warm up

  • bleachers or stair run

  • Bulgarian split squat

  • box jumps

  • pushups

  • cool down

Training Session – Warm up

Walk a lap.

Jog a lap.

Do a few stretches if you’d like, but save the aggressive stretching for post training.

Bleachers or Stairs

If you can find safe, sturdy bleachers or stairs to walk or run, begin there. Begin by walking a lap or two. From there, set a goal. The stairs I walk are approximately 40 steps, so I go up and down them about 30 times. Each lap takes less than a minute, so it’s fairly easy to gauge how many more I have left in me.

I recommend doing 5 – 10 laps depending on the length of the stairs, and noting both how long it took you and how tired you feel after. From there, you can make appropriate adjustments.

A true recommendation of how many to do would vary wildly from person to person. For the first session, do that 5 – 10 range and continue with the workout. Based on how you feel later in the day and how you recover tomorrow, you’ll have a better idea how many to do in the future.

Total reps: 5-10 to begin

Bulgarian Split Squat


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The Bulgarian split squat is also called the rear leg elevated split squat. Set up on solid footing on both legs, with the leg behind you elevated. Remember you are standing on railroad tracks, not a tight rope. That bit of lateral space between your right and left leg will give you stability. Do the first set without weight. You can hold a weight on the next sets if you would like.

Sets x reps: 2×10

If you’re repeating this workout, you can do a third and fourth set.

Box Jumps


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You can use a box, bleachers, or stairs to jump onto here; anything as long as it is stable. Start at a very low height to begin. Remember, you can develop power without even jumping onto anything, so don’t go crazy with the height just yet.

Stand about a half a step away from the box, with feet about hip width apart. To begin, move into a half squat position, with your arms behind you. Explosively jump up, pressing yourself away from the ground, as you throw your arms forward. Arms move in the direction you are going.

Your legs and feet should move and land together. Absorb the impact by bending at the knees and hips as you land.

STEP down. Don’t jump.

Do small sets of the box jump so you can retain crisp, powerful movements. NO slogging through sloppy reps!

Total reps: 15, done in small sets of 2 or 3.

Pushups


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Oh, how I love pushups! These are good for everybody and can be done almost anywhere! If you have bleachers, you can use them to modify pushups for more or less challenge. If pushups from your feet are too challenging right now, do pushups with your upper body elevated.

First, find your grip. If you are doing pushups from the bleachers, please do not stand far away from the bleachers and dive bomb forward to catch the bleachers! Place your hands a bit wider than shoulder width, and then step your feet back. Your hands should be straight forward from your chest, not your eyeballs. If you were doing pushups from the ground, this would mean your hands are at chest level, and not under your face.

From here, think about squeezing under your armpits. This will use your lats to stabilize your shoulders, and keep your shoulders from inching up toward your ears.

You can even think of pulling yourself to the bleachers or ground, so your back stays engaged as you do your pushups. Bend at the elbows, keep your chin tucked, and when your chest is bleacher or ground level, push back up.

You’ll find it helpful to squeeze your whole torso, glutes, and abs as you do pushups. Make your body a solid plank, not a wet noodle!

Sets x reps: 3 challenging sets. Save 2 in the tank. This means if you think you could do 10, do 8. If you’re rolling along and you could do 20, stop at 18.

Cool Down

Jog or walk two laps.

Stretch hamstrings, hip flexors, glutes and chest. This chest stretch can be done on flat ground without a foam roller (which the video shows).

Hold each stretch for 30 seconds and repeat.

Try this session out and let me know how it goes! Email me: kathryn@kathrynalexander.com

I can’t wait to hear!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: training

Outdoor Training for Power

February 10, 2020 by Kathryn Alexander Leave a Comment


Skipping for power training. All photos on this blog post by Ben Porter Photography.

Skipping for power training. All photos on this blog post by Ben Porter Photography.

Do you ever feel like your training needs a bump? Are you in a rut more than you are in a groove? Take your training outside! It’s becoming better weather by the day and it’s a great opportunity to challenge your body in a different way. 

Power movements and sprinting increase calories burned, increase conditioning and cardiovascular capacity and build muscle. Have you ever seen a skinny fat sprinter? Probably not. These are all reasons to take your training to the track. 

I’m going to give you to protocols here, and I want you to take the more conservative one if you haven’t been including jogging in your program in the last three weeks.

Training Session


running track training Austin

Walk a lap.

Jog a lap.

Build ups:

  • 100 meters. Start at 50% and build to 60%

  • 100 meters. Start at 50% and build to 70%.

  • 100 meters. Start at 50% and build to 80%.

A build up is where you begin the distance at a certain sub-max pace and accelerate into a harder run. It is not a sprint.

Important: If running is new in your program, skip the hard runs and move right to skipping. (After you have done this program three times asymptomatically and pain-free, you can add the hard runs.)

If you are currently conditioned for running, then do two harder build ups:

Start at 70 and build to 90%. Repeat.

Skipping

Skip 50 meters, walk back, and repeat. These should be powerful! If you have to slog through these, your session is over! Moved to the cool down and stretch.

Broad Jumps

Want more? Still have some pep in you? Do 7 broad jumps.

Power! Fast! Commit! Big execution and stick the landing.  Knees as wide as feet, not caving in. Like skips, these jumps should be powerful. If you feel like this is a grind, stop there. Slogging through power exercises defeats the purpose. 


track training broad jump 3


track training broad jump 2


track training broad jump 1

Cool Down

Jog or walk two laps.

Stretch hamstrings, quads, and glutes.

Try It!

Try out this session and let me know how it goes! Once you’ve done this session a few times, try Part 2. It is similar but slightly advanced. As always, email me if you have questions! Happy training!

Filed Under: Training Tagged With: training

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