The following post is sponsored by FitFluential LLC on behalf of Solider of Steel™.
I think it’s weird when actors lose or gain a lot of weight to transform themselves for a role in a movie. Like Mila Kunis making herself emaciated for Black Swan or Jonah Hill gaining all his weight back so he’d seem funnier.
However, it is pretty cool when actors can dedicate themselves to a training regimen to bulk up in a positive way to increase their strength, like in Gerard Butler in 300 or Henry Cavill in the new Superman movie, Man of Steel™.
The trainer that coached Henry Cavill into the Man of Steel™, Mark Twight, also designed a training plan for soldiers of the National Guard, hence the Soldier of Steel™ name. Let me tell you, the workout is Intense, with a capital “I”.
The month long workout is available to download online, along with training instructions for 23 different exercises.
The goal of the workout program is to instill the daily habit of exercise. It’s based on fundamental and universal movements to improve both your strength and performance, using some crazy sounding exercises like: air squats, bear crawls, box jumps, burpees, dead hangs, dead lifts, deck squats, farmer carries, frog hops, goblet squats, and man-makers. Just reading that makes me tired. Actually doing the workout kicked my butt, in good way. Luckily the plan is designed with a hard day followed by an easy day, so I get to recover today.
I didn’t have all the equipment recommended for the training plan, but 80% of the workouts can be done without fancy stuff, so I adapted and made do with what I could.
If you need some motivation, check out the training videos and give the plan a try. It’s not easy, but nothing that makes a difference ever is.
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This Thursday, Mark Twight will be answering questions about the program on twitter at 3PM EST. You can follow the conversation at #TwightTakover and through @NationalGuard.
I’ll be the first to say that I’m horrible at following training plans. I consider them more as suggestions than as plans set in stone.
That being said, training plans are one of your most important training tools, whether it’s a marathon, Ironman, or 5K. Training plans lay out a path for you to follow; a guide to unfamiliar territory, no matter how many times you’ve been there. A training plan is what’s going to make sure you’re trained enough by the time your event rolls out. More importantly, it’s what’s going to keep you from getting injured.
Whether you follow it to a T or not, the training plan is the blueprint to a successful race season, no matter your goal: speed, completion, or avoiding injury.
I’m sure you can guess what my main motivation for building a training plan is.
Avoiding injury re-injury.
Building a custom training plan isn’t difficult- it takes a few minutes, but it’s completely worth it. Here’s my process:
1.Don’t reinvent the wheel. There are a billion training plans out there already. Look online or go to the bookstore. Start by finding something that looks good to you- reasonable, doable, attainable.
For running, I love Hal Higdon. His plans make sense to me, and they build in a lot of cross training options- important for both healing from injury and preventing injury. Start with a plan based on your current level. {Beginning, intermediate, etc.}
For triathlons, I love BeginnerTriathlete.com. I love the slow progression of each workout by minutes and distance. You can choose a plan based on which of the three sports is your weakest, or balance them all evenly. I like picking a plan that is low on the running side since I’m always hurting myself, plus I’m the most comfortable in that sport.
I love both of these because they tend to follow the “3 week build, 1 week cutback” throughout the entirety of the plan- perfect to avoid overtraining and burnout.
2.Put it in your calendar. Use a calendar you’ll actually look at, otherwise it won’t do you any good. If you’re like me and don’t like things crossed out, start with scratch paper or a computer- you’ll be making changes. I usually start in Google calendar, because I can drag and drop workouts after I’ve scheduled them.
Each “calendar” is a sport, including rest and cross-training. You can hide any other calendars you have from view to see just your training plan.
3.Adapt to your schedule. Most training plans typically put long workouts on the weekends, since that’s when people tend to have the most free time. If you’re like me, many of your weekends are packed well in advance. Waiting to see if you can fit a mulitple hour workout into a busy weekend when it comes can throw a giant wrench in your training, so plan in advance.
Rearrange workouts based on your weekend availability. Out of town Saturday and Sunday? Move your long run to Friday. {Or figure out now if there’s a place to run where you’ll be staying.}
{I put my training calendar side by side with my personal calendar to get a better idea.}
Do the same thing for weekdays- rearrange workouts based on your schedule and availability. Don’t schedule brick workouts on Wednesdays if you know you typically have meetings after work on those days, etc.
4.Be realistic. Just because a training plan starts at x miles doesn’t mean you have to. Adjust the mileage to meet where you’re at right now. You’ll increase your mileage as you go anyways. Doing too much too fast is like hanging a kick-me sign on your back for injuries to see.
{I took out most of the running and knocked down all the mileage for the 1st month.}
5. Be flexible. Look at your training plan each week as you go along. Make changes based on that week’s schedule and how you feel. How you feel always trumps what’s written in the calendar, but it’s best to plan for it in advance.
{It doesn’t hurt to check the weather report at the beginning of the week- why ride 20 miles in the rain if it’s going to be sunny the next day. Or you know, it suddenly decides to pour down snow at the end of March after being 80 degrees for a week.}
6.Don’t get too off track. It’s fine not to follow your plan exactly, but if you miss a lot of workouts, don’t jump right back in to the middle of your plan. Reassess and rebuild as needed.
How do you build a training plan? Do you use a training schedule or just wing it?
Consider this my “rough draft”. It’s harder to make training plan than you’d think! I’m not completely satisfied with the amount of running vs biking, but I’m a horrible biker, so it needs some extra work.
I’ll start out and see how it goes, then make adjustments as needed. (Oh who am I kidding…when have you ever seen me actually follow my training plan?!) I still feel the need to have one though.
This training schedule is based on my “A” race this year- meaning the one I’m working towards the most and really want to do well at.
It’s the Aflac Iron Girl Columbia Triathlon on August 22nd. I’m terrified of the open water swim, but mostly because I grew up next to the “lake” that it’s in. Never in my life have I felt the need to actually get in that nasty water. Oh well, there’s a first for everything!
Along the way I have 2 other races- the North Face Endurance Challenge (which I’m SO stoked about) with some “blends” 😉 and the 36 North Tri. I guess that’ll be my practice tri for the Aflac race. The 2009 36 North Tri was my first tri ever! I’m really excited to go back to the same course and whoop it’s butt. (Which I’m pretty sure I can do as long as my bike chain stays on my bike!!)
Triathlon season here I come!!
What are your best tri training tips?
I'm Heather, a sports dietitian specializing in food sensitivities {and a implementation strategist for fellow health & nutrition professionals}.
5+ years ago the docs told me I'd never run again due to a chronic pain disorder. I'm here to prove them wrong.
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