GPS to Fitness

This is the "Roadmap" for people who don't want to read and don't have the time or attention span (BOOM Roasted) to commit to the whole "Roadmap". The TL;DR if you will (which is the TL;DR for Too Long; Didn't Read).

The main “attractions” on the roadmap are:

• Building the Leg Strength to Go For a Walk

• GOATA

• Movement Maintenance

• Components of Fitness and Putting it Together

  • Breathing

  • Self Myofascial Release

  • Corrective Exercise/Stretching

  • Post Activation Potentiation

• Home Exercise

• Exercise Selection

• Planning the Lifts

• Selecting and Progressing Weight, Sets, and Reps

Examples of how someone could progress through the steps when just beginning.

• Step 1

  • Breathing. Become aware of the breath. This is crucial for sustained success.

  • With walking. Walk is life. Just ask my dog. Walking is key for digestion and blood flow which leads to improved recovery. All that and so much more.

    • Best when done outside.

• Step 2

  • Develop a GOATA practice.

    • I recommend starting here because it is a very simple system (on the surface) and will provide noticeable benefit both in and out of the gym.

    • Initially 100% of “exercise time” could be dedicated here though it may only be 5 minutes.

    • Eventually GOATA will be “baked in” to the nervous system and resistance training and will mostly only need to be practiced as part of movement maintenance.

• Step 3

  • Add MFR

    • The breath will pay off here and this will expedite progress in GOATA

  • Depending on how much time is dedicated to GOATA and how much time is available it could be possible to add this in before GOATA work without changing the amount of GOATA practice. Alternatively, some GOATA time may need to be sacrificed.

  • This practice will aid in both the gain and maintenance of mobility as well as recovery from more intense resistance training.

• Step 4

  • Add Movement Maintenance

    • This will continue to prep the body for exercise by expanding the areas targeted in GOATA from mostly the hips, lower back, and legs to include more upper body exercises and well as more variety in ranges of motion in the lower body.

    • This is something I engage with nearly every day. Once you understand the exercises it is easy to hit a few positions here and there just to “check in” and “hone” your body.

• Step 5

  • Begin adding some resistance exercises.

    • This can be done either at the gym or at home.

    • The basics to start with will be push, pull, and a “knee dominant” exercise such as squat or lunge. If you’ve been diligent about GOATA and movement maintenance a lunge/drop-in should be available to you. I recommend sticking with that and adding weight.

    • Just build a routine and practice your form. THEN once consistency can be counted on consider taking the programming more seriously and adding Post Activation Potentiation to maximize the benefits of your efforts.

• Depending on the person revisiting “completed” steps may be necessary, and the relative amounts of each piece of the puzzle will vary depending the individual needs, goals, and limitations

For someone with more experience, such as someone who has completed or is somewhere in the process above.

• This becomes MUCH less linear and more subjective and individual.

• After some time exercising it becomes worth it to consider periodization. Again “some time” will vary from person to person, some people never concern themselves with periodization and some really need to.

  • Periodization essentially points to the need to vary the goal of training, or the type of programming from time to time.

  • The shortest amount of time generally recommended to see results with most training is two weeks. One week if the goal is recovery.

  • So someone who has been building strength for a while but maybe hitting a plateau might benefit from taking a period of time or a training cycle to focus on hypertrophy to build more muscle with which to lift more weight and get stronger.

  • That same person could also need to take a few weeks to “deload” reduce the intensity and volume of strength training and use that extra time to perform MFR or some other self care or recovery techniques if that is what is keeping them from progressing or they are otherwise racking up a receipt of aches and pains from strength training.

  • Or maybe they are happy with their strength but would rather do something different and spend a few weeks to build their cardio “gas tank”

  • Or they find their mobility is lacking

  • Or power

• Any of these examples could be used in reverse and any person should emphasize all of the types of training at some point and not just focus on their favorites which would likely be what they are best at. And by doing so they will likely get better at what they are best at.

• Also LIFE will provide some level of periodization. There will be time where only a little movement maintenance is possible. Or you decide to go camping or some other vacation and there’s no gym but lots of walking.