(Continued from Part 1.)
Anaerobic (non-oxidative) Conditioning
In the last 20 years with the popularity of High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), CrossFit™, Bootcamps, and similar approaches, the anaerobic system has prominently been featured center stage in the world of exercise. While certainly meriting training and attention, this trend has in my opinion pushed the needle a little too far that direction. The Anaerobic system (comprised of many subsystems likely beyond the scope of the current audience’s interest, but if not resources will be listed!) is responsible for rapidly creating cellular energy to fuel high octane tasks. Throwing a baseball, lifting a heavy weight, sprinting 50-to-400 meters, are all tasks that primarily lie within the anaerobic domain.
When training in the anaerobic domain, the key is to find methods with which one can exert maximal and near maximum effort safely. Overly complex and technical movements are not your best bet here, because the skill to perform sed task will likely succumb to fatigue before we get to an optimum systemic stimulus.
My favorite methods include:
- Hill Sprints (possibly the all-time number 1)
- Sled Drags and pushes. (Limitless options for very inexpensive homemade variations!)
- Burpee Intervals
- Air Bike/Rower Sprints/Intervals
- Sprints (Be mindful of First completing a thorough warm-up)
There are countless methods and tools available, and many when used properly can create an absolute specimen of a human. The question in my mind is the learning curve and potential for maximal output. The above methods are simple, effective, and relatively safe. If I was working with someone who just wanted to be competent across the fitness domains and didn’t need excessive novelty in training, this is where I’d invest my time.
When it comes to the dose of anaerobic training again we have a massive window of variability depending on individual needs.
Some considerations would be:
- Aerobic fitness: If this is low, build it first, maybe adding in a single session of higher intensity work every other week
- Age: Anaerobic work is brutally taxing to recover from, the more an athlete ages the less I need them pushing into the red.
- Goals, at the time: Think of fitness like a DJ’s sound mixing table. The adjustment knobs can never ALL be at maximal, nor should all be at the bottom. We never want a knob (a specific fitness attribute) to be at zero, but there will be an ebb and flow depending on what is a current focal point, if an area is deemed higher priority (for example a lifelong runner may want to prioritize strength training in order to achieve a more balanced overall fitness profile). More on this in the “Putting it all together section.”
Again as a flexible rule 1-2 sessions per week ONCE you have established a minimum of 2-3 months of aerobic build up would more than cover your bases in this regard. Even for a high level performer, I’d rarely advise more than 3 sessions per week of maximal anaerobic work, unless they were peaking for some kind of event.Continue reading“Physical Resilience for an Uncertain Future – Part 2, by A.D.”