While the functional fitness world has been trending toward hundreds of air squats, burpees and lunges for time on repeat for the last six weeks and counting, coach James Fitzgerald warns this is doing more damage than good. Fitzgerald, the winner of the first-ever CrossFit Games in 2007 and the founder of OPEX Fitness, explained:<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re not functional and they create a cortisol addiction. Drops in power during bodyweight circuits, although it looks fancy on a Zoom call with a class, create poor movement compensations, and you\u2019re 1,000 reps deep\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
So although 200 lunges for time might create a \u201csweaty workout\u201d that many people seem to crave, per Fitzgerald, the five major reasons to avoid programming workouts such as air squats, push-ups, lunges and burpees \u201cfor time,\u201d include:<\/p>\n
Fitzergald explained there are safe and effective ways to program bodyweight workouts that can create long-term progress. It\u2019s possible if you follow foundational program design principles.<\/p>\n
He gave the following as an example of a more effective way to utilize bodyweight movements than four rounds for time:<\/p>\n
Repeat four times.<\/p>\n
Why is this a better approach?<\/p>\n
Fitzgerald asks you to consider the following principles of bodyweight training:<\/p>\n
To create an effective bodyweight workout, you need to understand \u201cthe dose-response,\u201d meaning the stimulus or outcome of each training session. This comes down to three things, according to Fitzgerald:<\/p>\n
When you understand the who (i.e. the person), the what (i.e. modality) and they why (i.e. intention), you can control the dose-response, and ultimately the adaptation and results that occur from it.<\/p>\n
Before putting together a bodyweight program, you must also understand its limitations.<\/p>\n
These limitations primarily involve closed-chain activities with relative strength, meaning strength against bodyweight, as well as strength endurance, meaning the ability to perform repetitions at submaximal loads.<\/p>\n
They also have relatively low variability because of the lack of access to equipment and novel means to perform movement patterns.<\/p>\n
This leads many coaches to prescribe lots of repetitions of very similar types of muscle contractions, which can become a problem for most because poor movement patterns are then repeated for a large volume of repetitions.<\/p>\n
Further, bodyweight workouts effectively lack intensity, at least in terms of maximal effort, because you have no access to external loading. For stronger and fitter clients, this means that strength endurance efforts are then sometimes turned into metabolic efforts that become glycolytic. In other words, they begin to use the anaerobic lactic energy system, which is a great way to lower immunity and create negative metabolic adaptations, as it promotes using sugars for fuel.<\/p>\n
Once you understand the above, you can start to consider how to effectively program bodyweight workouts.<\/p>\n
Fitzgerald recommends programming full-body resistance, which include both upper body and lower body movements, as well as core movements.<\/p>\n
From there, he says:<\/p>\n
Like any effective program, be it a strength or endurance program, a bodyweight training program should be progressive over time, with each week building from the previous. Three ways to do this include:<\/p>\n
For most lifestyle athletes, Fitzgerald recommends keeping to a simple training program that focuses on consistency and that alternates between full-body resistance training days and aerobic training days.<\/p>\n
Simply put, make sure you have a good understanding of your client\u2019s physical abilities, goals, and intention, and then design workouts that are \u201cwithin your client\u2019s capabilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
If you\u2019re interested in learning more from Fitzgerald, you can check out his various education options at OPEX Fitness.<\/p>\n