Program Workshop
4 hours of hands on instruction to learn simple, results driven program design.
April 30th 10am-2pm
Sign up now to secure your space
It is the responsibility of the trainer to learn what is not taught by most certification programs. Pursue education that will benefit your clients. This workshop is a great stepping stone. In my learning, I was fortunate enough to attend workshops and seminars by industry leaders. I purposefully seek out opportunities to learn past the base level requirement of the entry level exams. Like the fitness industry, many other professions require continuing education and obligations to better the knowledge base. In the field of personal training, where there currently is no mandatory regulation among certifications or state licensure, it is imperative for the individual to acquire the education and knowledge base that will provide a separation among peers that yield results for clients with sound science.
There are too many conflicting messages in the fitness arena. Science has proven for over 100 years that strength training for neurological expertise activates deeper metabolic systems allowing for greater strength gains, leaner body composition, and a solid injury-free structure. So, why are there so many thoughts on what works for any given goal? Well, everything works – temporarily. However, for longevity and sustainable results the body’s simple lever system needs appropriate stress at appropriate speeds and tension. The body is simple by design. The basic movement combinations can multiply to equal complex and beautiful patterns in sport. But when looking at the biomechanical structure of our bodies, we need to focus on the simple breakdowns of our intended design, not the movement pattern as a whole.
A major travesty in the fitness field is that program design is focusing on trying to teach too much. As a result, trainers and clients choose from the wrong buckets of exercises, even if they are done correctly. Our population is heavily littered with severe movement issues. We have tight hamstrings that cause pull on the pelvis which places the low back muscles in a constant state of stretch and weakness. Many people have poor scapular mobility and subsequently have neck or shoulder pain. And lastly, the overwhelming cases of knee problems, especially in the “fit” population with running, sports leagues, and programs pulled from the latest magazine, are mind boggling. All of these issues can 9 times out of 10 be corrected with proper exercise programs. Runners should have very active posterior chains to absorb the amount of impact and overdevelopment they place on the anterior muscles. Every one should include thoracic spine drills in their dynamic warmup at the very least.
Too many personal trainers are doing a greater disservice than those that are helping people move better, lose significant body fat, and live healthy lives. If you or any trainers you know do not have their clients see significant results in 12 weeks, then there is an issue with the program selection.
Programming should be geared to each individual; however the simple framework has to be the same across the base. Every person should be moving fast –the power phase of the program. This selection comes first because of the neurological demands. Strength training should come second because of the potential for deep muscular contraction. Third and fourth should be conditioning training and core training. Dynamic warm-ups, movement assessments, and recovery training are all elements that should be included as well in the appropriate order. The real key however is in keeping it simple. Everyone has the same capabilities, (certainly the degree of intensities and volumes will vary), but Pavel, Staley, Rippatoe, D. John, Boyle, Cosgrove all illustrate in their huge contributions to the fitness community that only a few exercises need to be taught because we can teach mastery and allow for the body to move as it is designed.
The BW-PT Program Design Workshop is an opportunity for trainers and athletes to learn how to address every client’s goals with a simple system that works. Once the system is in place with the proper progressions, results are guaranteed.
The rest is just sweat.
(Sign up Now)
Eastern European and Asian athletes are among the strongest in the world. They know the secret to success is training the neural system for mastering few movements. Even in specific sport selection, it’s about finding the exact pattern to train – not constantly confusing the muscle so that it changes; or in reality, never allows for physiological change because the neural systems never are primed. A basketball player practices their shot stroke constantly. Tennis players, golfers, quarterbacks, and many other athletes are experts in the fundamental patterns that are key to their motion requirements. The average person should be an expert in the simple biomechanical requirements for human living. This will also help to keep their largest networks of muscles truly strong and their metabolism racing. “Shocking the muscle” is a principle better addressed with load, range of motion, or volume. Train movements that will wake up the neurological system, innervate large muscle groups with deep contractions, and watch as the body changes to a strong, smooth operating, injury-free machine.
A prime example of combining simple movements to form complex actions are the Olympic weightlifting exercises. Olympic lifts are largely foreign to the general public and the fitness community in the western hemisphere. In fact, most people think of the sport Power Lifting before they think of the snatch and clean and jerk. These motions and their derivatives force the body to do all athletic movement capabilities in one motion. The body must move fast and powerful, stay tense with isometric contractions, stay balanced, and move through large ranges of motions, forcing flexibility. With appropriate breakdowns and progressions, these exercises are outstanding for promoting true mobility and strength. Done with appropriate programming, they will help to raise metabolism beyond any other exercise selection. Coupled with a few other exercises, 80% of over 200 polled university strength coaches admitted that Olympic lifts are the most important movements for helping athletes perform better (NSCA, 2007). What’s good for those bodies is good for the larger public – right? We change loads, volumes, and program for variability, but the fact remains that if a 48 year old woman can learn to power snatch and overhead squat with moderate weight (not just a PVC pipe), she probably does not have low back pain, shoulder tightness, or too much extra body fat. The key is teaching her to do it right now, because these lifts are not worth doing if done wrong. The same can be said for a squat or lunge though – watching a person squat when they fold their chest over their thighs only helps them stretch out the ligaments in their low back – and under load?! I hope not!
Unlike Olympic weightlifting, kettlebells have recently received some media and industry attention. Deservedly so, they are fantastic tools that are simple to teach and learn. However, they can be dangerous if done incorrectly. Still, once learned, the results they bring are unparalleled. The kings of all exercises focus on the posterior chain – the real prime movers of the human skeleton. They also force conditioning past normal interval training. Replicating the Olympic lifts using kettlebells, the snatch and clean and press (jerk), are the ultimate in yielding the best results. That being said, kettlebells, in my opinion are the most versatile tool out there. I use them in all facets of my clients’ programs. They are used in the assessment portions, mobility training, Olympic weightlifting breakdowns, strength training, and conditioning and core workouts.
This workshop will teach the 5 elements of every training session.
- We will go through the proper progression of simple Movement Assessments and Corrections for muscular restrictions.
- The movement assessment blends into the Dynamic Warm-up – a simple routine that can grow with improving capabilities.
- We will teach the Power Snatch and Overhead Squat and their progression to the full snatch for advanced individuals.
- Learn the Kettlebell Clean and Press to combine resiliency, deep isometric tension, power, balance, and flexibility
- Learn results driven Conditioning and Core Circuits that are simple and do not over train the body. The key in programming is forward progression. The human body views vomiting as a sign of trauma, not improvement.
- Recovery Training to allow for injury-free movement.
With your Registration, you will receive:
A full exercise manual with highlights of the entire 4-hour workshop
Program Planning Outlines for simple and real-world application
A reading list of authors that have shaped the fitness industry
Special discounts on other workshops, programs, Success Team Training, and equipment
The BW-PT Program Design Workshop is an opportunity for trainers and athletes to learn how to address every client’s goals with a simple system that works. Once the system is in place with the proper progressions, results are guaranteed. The rest is just sweat.
Your clients deserve your best.
Sign up now while there is still space.
Brian Wright MS, CSCS, RKC, CPT
