Post-Quarantine Programming

I know that we all have been more sedentary with all of this quarantine stuff going on and the fact that we have been limited in our available fitness options. Most people, being limited to home workouts have seen a decrease in muscle mass and most likely an increase in subcutaneous and visceral fat. This can be very defeating in the sense that you are watching your body change in ways that you are not happy with. I noticed that i am seeing a lot of people jumping back into the programming that they were accustomed to prior to quarantine. I'm going to give you a list of reasons why this is not conducive to getting back on track. I'm not going to go into detail as it can be overwhelming. You can feel free to email me with any questions that you may have.

Get back to where you were safely.

Gradual Increase

I know that we all were at different phases in our training programming, but it is important to realize that when you take a break from the programming you will need to start back at Phase 1. Stabilization Endurance. This phase makes sure that your joints, ligaments, and tendons, and muscles have a chance to adapt and prepare for the external stressor that you are going to place on them. In this case it is resistance training.

Stabilization Endurance consists of a 4/2/1 tempo. This means 4-seconds of a concentric contraction, 2-second isometric contraction, and a 1-second eccentric contraction. You will be programming with 1-3 sets and 12-20 reps per set. This is super important to avoid unnecessary injuries or set-backs. You will do well to stay in this phase of training for 2-4 weeks.

Unloading Week

Unloading is super important so that you may give your body a rest. Letting your body acclimate and then have the time to have a mini break is going to allow your body to heal so you may increase your weight for the next 4 weeks. This of course is depending on what your goals are. You will need to decrease your weight resistance by 5% a day until you get to the end of the week. At that point you will be able to progress to the next stage of training. You should do an unloading week every 5th week of your programming. Doing this ensures that you dont go into Over-Training Syndrome!

Overtraining syndrome can be a disaster!

Overtraining Syndrome

Overtraining syndrome is a terrible place to be in. It can last for up-to 3 months. This syndrome leaves you plagued with depression, anxiety, hypertension, and lowered immune system. You also will either stop losing weight or you will plateau. This can very easily lead to a breakdown of muscle mass. You can be riddled with a change in your sleep pattern and a change in your eating habits. A tell-tale sign when this is starting to happen will show when you go to workout anbd just dont feel like it. Irritable, irritable, and more irritability. Be aware of how you are feeling.

Intrinsic Motivation

Intrinsic motivation is key to achieving your goals. Especially right now, in the times we are in we dont really have an option to utilize the outside support we get from our workout buddies or our spouses. We need to look deep down into ourselves and use the motivation we have inside of us. We should be our own biggest fan. Remind yourself daily what you are doing this for and keep on keeping on. You will have hard days when you will need to really reach deep down inside of yourself. Just know that we all have to do it.

Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation

Rest and Recovery

Rest and recovery is one of the many variables that we need to include in our programming. No matter how much intrinsic or extrinsic motivation we are supplied with we still need to rest. If we dont our body will indeed go into overtraining syndrome. You need to let your body buffer out the lactic acid build up in your muscles. You can help this speed up in a sense by supplementing sodium bicarbonate. Sodium bicarbonate is commonly referred to as baking soda. You should put 1-2 tablespoons of sodium bicarbonate in a full glass of water. Consume it and let it work its magic. Be aware that sodium bicarbonate is extremely hard on our digestive system. So I would use it sparingly and only as needed. You can try other things such as chocolate milk, or a detox bath. Here are the ingredients for one that I like to use.

1-cup baking soda

2-cups epsom salt

1/2-cup grated ginger

Place all in the bathtub and soak for 45 minutes. You will get extremely hot but just ride it out and let the toxins be pulled from your body. Perhaps you and a partner