How To Organize Your Strength Workouts

Post by Mark Ehnis

Organize your workouts properly or beware of losing a sleep fight

If you're reading this blog, I'm sure everyone is aware of the importance of including strength work (lifting weights- preferably free weights) in your workout routines. Whether you’re an athlete, or a just a regular gym goer, the structure of these strength sessions is an important factor that must be take into consideration for maximum results. Having a plan in the gym will take you a long ways. The first step to a solid training program is to have a goal and know what you're training for. The second is to have a plan. That plan begins with structure and order to your workouts. 

5 Reasons Athletes (and Everyone Else) Should Train in a Group

Post by Mark Ehnis

Every athlete has those days when the last place they want to be is in the gym. The motivation just isn’t there. They show up and just go through the motions, not really pushing themselves and probably skipping some sets or exercises altogether. This does nothing for their goals and they could’ve spent their time doing something else, anything else. Sound familiar? It happens to every regular gym-goer as well.

I’m not going to get into whether it’s okay to skip out on part of your workout when you’re not feeling up to it- sometimes it is and sometimes it isn’t. What I am going to touch on is the importance of athletes (and everyone else) training with a training partner or with other small groups of athletes.

If you’re serious about getting results and tearing it up in the gym, then a good training partner is hard to find. They need to have similar goals, not be a distraction to you, and preferably are stronger and in better condition.  You don’t want someone backing out every other day and not showing up- physically or mentally. Personally, I can’t stand training with someone who talks my ear off in between every set- I need to friggin’ catch my breath and recover for the next set and I can’t do that when I’m asked a million random questions. I like to train with somebody who is going to bust my balls if I slack off. Someone who helps you benefit in some way. Training partners aside- below you’ll find 5 Reasons everyone should train with a group (3-8 people).

Exercises That WORK

Post by Mark Ehnis

Calf raises, smith machine benching, pec deck flyes, inner/outer thigh machine…are these the types of exercises in your program? If so, you need to ask yourself why. Any exercise you add to your program must serve a purpose or it needs to go. There are thousands of exercises to choose from so it can get confusing on what to add and what to leave out. Beware of choosing exercises just because you saw the biggest guy in the gym doing it or you saw it in a magazine.

Now, where do we begin? You should always start your workout with at least one main strength movement. This a compound lift, training multiple muscle groups at the same time. In my programs it’s always a bench variation, squat variation, or deadlift variation- in essence, “the big 3” according to powerlifting and strength terms. These movements (I’d also add in overhead pressing movements) are the greatest movements you can do in the weight room for strength and mass gains. Add in some bodyweight and strongman exercises and you have yourself a nice little day at the gym.

Some Strength Training Guidelines for Guys

Post by Mark Ehnis

“Go workout 3 times per week, for 3 months then come talk to me. I don’t care what you do, just go to the weight room and do something for an hour.”

This was my response to people back in college when they would ask me to write them a workout. I developed this automated response from past experiences. One of my mentors in college also put this idea of consistency in my mind. I’d take the time to write a well-thought out, FREE program for the individual only to find out they gave up after a week. Despite the fact that this was a waste of my time, I still didn’t learn. I guess it helped me practice programming now that I think about it…

The Ageless Athlete

Post by Mark Ehnis

I recently attended a seminar in Indianapolis and heard some of the most intelligent minds in the strength and conditioning industry give presentations on various topics. Everything from new thoughts on core training, to nutrition and fat loss, to Olympic lifting for athletes, and energy system training of an MMA fighter. There were also a few other talks mixed in. I got some new information from these talks that I will apply immediately to training my athletes.

Mike Robertson of Indianapolis Fitness and Sports Training (IFAST) hosted the seminar and also presented

However, one of my biggest take-a ways from this information-packed day wasn’t from a speaker, but from another attendee in the crowd.