Day 81: Workload and exertion assessment. Part II
What we want is that after completing the 100 Days programme you learned enough basics to continue on your own. Ideally we want you to be able to create your own training programmes for your personal goals. Because of that today we go on with workload parameters.
Heroes of the day: intensity and volume.
Intensity is a complex factor which shows how hard is to do a particular exercise and it depends on such factors as strength, needed to counteract target muscles, exercise tempo, body position during exercise and so on.
To calculate intensity you need to know your maximums in exercises. If you train with your body weight then you need to know the maximum number of repetitions you can do with perfect technique. If you train with weights you need to know the weight with which you can do only one rep with perfect technique.
Factors to increase training intensity:
increasing exercise complexity;
adding weights;
cutting back on rest periods between sets;
modifying technique.
Training volume is the amount of repetions in one set and for the whole session. If you do 100 pull-ups one day and on the other day you do 150 pull-ups then the second day volume was higher.
Training volume and intensity depend on each other and are inversely related that is when one parameter increases then another one decreases in proportion. This is obvious. You cannot do the same number of sets and reps with 90-100% intensity as with 50% intensity.
Which one is more important? Which is more preferrable? These are wrong questions! These parameters help you to compare your sessions to each other and measure your progress. Their importance depends only on your goals.
Our 100 Days programme is designed for newbies. This is why we base our training on moderate intensity and high training volume. Our goal is to develop proper skills and prepare cardiovascular and other systems for further training. We also have to take into account our daily routine. All these factors predefine our approach to intensity and volume.
On the other hand, if you want to raise your maximum in pull-ups and train pull-up only once a week then you have to raise the intensity of your training much higher. You have a different goal hence you need a different tool for it.
