A CFA Workout

What do you expect when you come in for a workout at CFA? When people come into gyms for the first time, they think machine exercises, crunches, curls, bench press and long slow distance training. Not at CFA. CFA is where training is done the right way. We will always stay current with up to date training concepts. We will not get stuck into old school concepts that too many training programs fall into. If you read today's blog, you are going to get a sneak peak at what we do at CFA on a daily basis.

First of all we train the entire body every workout. You will never come in and train just "chest/back". Everyday as its objectives but everyday will work the whole body. Studies show that working your entire body in 3 workouts a week will give you better results than the classic bodybuilding split that most people do. Every client is different and unique at CFA so the below example is not set in stone. The usual structure goes like this:

#1 Soft tissue work - I want the clients coming in early to work on soft tissue. IF they show up 5 minutes early, they will have 5 minutes for this aspect. We use foam rolls, a massage roller, and tennis balls. This will improve tissue quality of the muscle so it is a must for our clients.

#2 Activation/Mobility - With so many people coming in with movement and posture issues, these drills will work what each client needs to work on. If you have issues in hip mobility then we will concentrate on that. If you have issues in shoulder flexibility, then we will work on that. Also, activating specific musculature will help "wake" up the muscles before the workout. Especially clients who have sit down jobs. They are in a bad postural position all day. We have to activate their glutes and hip flexors before moving on.

#3 Dynamic Stretching - I like dynamic stretching better than static stretching. The difference is dynamic stretching is moving and stretching. Static is staying in one position and holding the stretch more than 20 seconds. Some clients perform static stretching if they have poor flexibility but every client runs through dynamic flexibility drills to lengthen out the body before the "bulk" of the workout starts. We perform lunging drills, deep squatting, knee raise pulls, and leg cradles. These drills will enhance flexibility and mobility as well.

#4 Speed Drills - We then get into what I like to call "blood flow" drills. Exercises that will get the blood pumping throughout the body and elevate the heart rate. From running high knees, butt kicks, skipping, bounding, quick feet drills, jumping jacks, and tempo running, these drills are done on a daily basis in our warm-up segment.

#5 Core/Shoulder Stability - Core and shoulder stability are aspects people really need to enhance. I see too many clients that lack core stability and they are very weak in their shoulder/scapular stability. I make this a mini-circuit so we are time efficient. We perform plank variations, chops, lifts, rollouts, push-up walks, Y's/T's/W's/L's, shoulder step-ups, wall slides and scapular push-ups.

#6 Power - Here is where it depends on the client. If I am teaching an olympic lift to a high school kid, then this is where we will put it in the program. If we implement a jumping drill, then this is where it is placed. I add in medicine ball work to this complex to get some core and rotary power. Again, to be time efficient, we might add in a pre-hab exercise as the client is "resting".

#7 Strength Work - Time is always a concern when training in a private facility so I have to figure out ways to get everything in. We perform our strength exercises in pair, tri, or even quad sets. We program the exercises with non-competing muscles. A tri-set could look like this: Set #1 split squat (lower body)/chin-up/core rollouts or stretch, Set #2 SB leg curls/push-up/shoulder stretch. There are so many variations to this concepts. I get my clients to master the basic exercises so I do not get too complicated with my design. Most clients can get a great workout with the above example.

#8 Conditioning - We usually have about 3-8 minutes when we get to conditioning. But the way we perform it, we do not need too much time. We will have clients run shuttles on our turf, perform spin bike sprints, or have them hit a metabolic circuit. Variety is key for me here. It is good to introduce different methods of conditioning to the clients as it can teach them how to do conditioning themselves outside of the sessions.

Along with the workout we discuss nutritional habits (this will be another blog) and having a positive mental attitude. These concepts are crucial for anyone to get results.

There you go! A CFA training session. It is not just about the workout it is about the quality of someones life!

Have a great weekend!