WHAT IS ALLEGIATE TRAINING?
what is allegiate training?
Allegiate is a GROUP-BASED STRENGTH training PROGRAM. we use COMPOUND, multi-joint MOVEMENTS IN A organized SYSTEM focused on STRUCTURAL BALANCE AND PROGRESSIVE OVERLOAD.
When you distill down what we do, the above sentence is our philosophy.
But why is that important and why should you care?
Let’s first look at some of the principles that guide our training. What are principles? Principles are a set of guidelines for us to follow. Because if we don’t have principles, we will be subjected to random results. How do you know if what you tried worked? What are you measuring against?
Random results seem like progress at first. But without an ability to understand or explain them, we can’t sustain that progress. Or progress to another place once we’ve reached a certain level of progress.
Here are the principles that we follow. They’re from the NSCA, The National Strength and Conditioning Association
Individuality - People respond uniquely to stimuli
Specificity - Outcomes are specific to the stimuli place on the system
Overload - Systematically adding based off positive adaptions to stimuli
Progression - Increasing in Complexity
Diminishing Returns - Progress will slow as you become more experienced
Reversibility - Use it or lose it
Principle 1 — Individuality
We all respond to the same thing differently. The same exercise with the same weight will always mean drastically different things to different people. This is a universal truth.
We have no idea on how your body will respond based off an infinite number of unknowns (sleep, experience, relative strength, range of motion, etc).
We accept that we will respond differently. But we need objective measurements to assess the quality of the information we get from those unique responses.
That’s why there’s a need to track progress and assess how we’re progressing through our training.
We’re assessing the quality of an input relative to the person going through it.
Principle 2 — Specificity
Specificity is all about knowing what you need and consistently applying stimuli that are representative of those needs.
Said another way, what you do consistently will lead to more predictable results. And the opposite is true of applying random stimuli. You get random results.
The goal is to zero in on limiting factors and goals. Then, apply a sequence of specific inputs to garner results that will get you closer to that goal or specific improvement.
Principle 3 — Overload
With progressive overload, we’re trying to find something that we need to improve and designing a way to get there.
If you are not progressing in at least one of the areas below, you’re not moving closer to anything. You’re staying in one spot with a lot of fatigue and wasted time and energy.
There are four means of progressive overload:
1. Intensity or adding weight
2. Number of Reps or Time Under Tension
3. Number of Sets
4. Density or doing more work at the same time or the same work in less time
Principle 4 — Progression
Start with something less complex and progress towards something more complex. That’s progress.
See how you respond to something more simple and then add complexity. As you add complexity to your input, and if you respond well, that means you’re progressing.
Adding details of timing, speed, joints, weight, details of programming, etc. need to be refined and added systematically.
So if you skip steps along the way, you might get injured. Or diminish the value of what you are doing.
And the point of training – getting better at something – is now obsolete.
Principle 5 — Diminishing Returns
They say everything will work, just not forever. As you become more experienced the room for improvement becomes less and less.
The longer you use a program the less the value the program will have. And there is a sweet spot for the amount of time someone can do something and what is most valuable for someone.
If you are experienced, you need more variation. If you are less experienced, you need less variation.
Principle 6 — Reversibility
If you don’t use it, you lose it. That’s what reversibility means.
Constantly stressing the system with quality inputs leads to long-term results. This consistency produces better results. Compared to extreme intensities and volumes in small concentrated dosages followed by periods of nothing.
The goal is to get consistent return on the time you spend training. We can do this by systematically add stimuli to the system over as long of a period of time.
How can we turn our philosophy into a repeatable system that works for a range of body types and experience levels?
Group-Based: Small groups help improve the experience and create a competitive camaraderie in that group.
Strength Program: Stronger people are more efficient and resilient. Our program is centered on the development of physical strength.
Compound/Multi-Joint/Tri-planar Movements: Choose exercises with the most return on the investment. Choose movements that inherently get more results in a shorter period of time while increasing resiliency. This massively impacts consistency and retention.
System: Reproducible and sustainable in multiple environments and different populations.
Structural Balance: Balance of movements from push to pull to enhance performance and minimize injuries.
Progressive Overload: Evolution and adaption are fundamental aspects of life. Thoughtfully designing programs with this in mind is how we keep improving and setting higher and higher standards.
When we look at principles and philosophies, we are saying we want to have systems in place to address multiple needs.
In conclusion
We can’t predict what is going to happen. But to make informed, smart choices, we form our decisions on sound principles and philosophies.
That’s the difference between sustained, continual progress and something only working for a finite amount of time.