Читать книгу The Meathead Manifesto - Brody McVittie - Страница 11

You’ve heard its benefits praised in the change room of your gym; you’ve peered through the glass in the Personal Training Studio, seen the tolls it has taken on the fittest of the membership.

What the hell is Circuit training, and, more importantly, why the hell would you want to subject yourself to it?

The What

If nothing else, Circuit training is time-efficient. As a conditioning method, it is a resourceful way to combine aerobic fitness and strength training (--admittedly, with less intensity than either modality if performed alone.) A common Circuit may consist of 15 reps or 30 seconds of 10-12 weight exercises, for both the upper and lower body.

The Who

Adopted and perfected by military divisions and sports teams, Circuit training benefits anyone looking to improve body composition (show) or stamina (go.)

The How

Strength

Now, the weights lifted during a circuit are usually 40-50% of a 1RM (one rep-max, remember?) or, literally, about half of what one would normally lift for each exercise. Alternating between upper and lower body exercises (so the arms rest while the legs work) while maintaining a steady heart rate is key.

Traditional strength training uses higher intensity loads and larger rest periods—usually 60-90% 1RM with 1-4 min rest. Studies have shown that blood lactate levels increase dramatically with Circuit training, suggesting a high anaerobic content to training.

Simply put, stamina—and the ability to tolerate elevated lactate levels (the dreaded burn) will improve.

Cardio

On average, one can expect heart rates of about 80% Max, but oxygen levels are only at 40% of maximum training capacity, which puts circuit at the minimum level for aerobic fitness improvement.

Therefore, Circuit training is considered low-to-moderate aerobic training, with benefits substantially smaller than meat-and-potatoes cardio. However, by dropping rest times between circuits, stimulus on VO2 max is accelerated.

For example, if you were to run at 75% of your maximum training heart rate for 20-30 minutes, 3x per week for 8-12 weeks, your average VO2 max would increase by 20%--in circuit, you would be engaging 80% of your Max THR.

Will Circuit Training get me Ripped?

Yes.

Research shows a 2.2-7lb gain in lean body mass (muscle) could be achieved—meaning one could expect a decrease in relative fat mass of 1-3%.

Now, one’s total weigh may remain unchanged; but, let’s be honest—

--when you’re on the beach, no one cares what the scale says.

The Final Word

Circuit training is better suited for toning than losing a ton of weight; for improving endurance and stamina rather than building raw power and strength. When implemented in rotation with weeks of a more sets-and-reps based training style, one will notice a substantial increase in energy reserves and, (--as a result of the activation of perhaps-previously-unengaged stabilizer muscles—) a translation to more power when reverting back to strength training.