Exercise has been shown to have a huge list of benefits and little to no downside. It’s common to hear that if exercise was a medication, it would be the greatest wonder-drug ever created. But “exercise” is a broad term that covers a lot of specific movements and activities, not all of which are right for everybody. Getting a program specifically designed for you and your goals can be the difference between progress and frustration or injury. What goes into program design and where can you get a good one? Let’s take a look:
Exercise Selection – There are a lot of things to think about when choosing exercises. Machines vs. free weights, isolated movements vs. compound lifts, cardio vs. strength training and more. Each one of these factors is important, so making the wrong choices could lead to wasting time working on the wrong things, limit your results or cause an injury.
Volume – Volume is a way of thinking about how much work that you are doing during a workout. You might accomplish a similar total volume of activity by doing a few reps with a heavy weight or a lot of reps with a light weight. The same concept goes for running a shorter distance quickly uphill vs. a longer run at a slower pace on a flat trail. If your volume of any style of activity is too great, then you won’t recover well between workouts and could create the possibility of injury. Too little volume and you won’t see results because you won’t be adequately stimulating your system to respond in the manner in which you intend.
Progression – If you’ve been doing the same exercises with the same weight and for the same number of reps and sets for a lengthy period of time, you’re likely not progressing. Same goes if you jump on the treadmill for the same amount of time with the same settings for every workout. To make progress, things have to periodically change. The program that works during your first attempts at an activity likely won’t work the same way for you 2 years down the road. As your physical condition and life circumstances change, so too should your activity program.
Designing an exercise program is a complex challenge with a lot of factors to consider. If you have a history of injuries or health conditions, or if you don’t have perfect movement in every joint, things may become complicated further. That said, regardless of your specific circumstances, it is always possible to improve your movement system. And any amount of physical activity and movement is better than none at all. Everyone starts somewhere. If you’re not getting what you want out of your workouts or just want to make sure they’re as effective for you as they can be, you might consider having your physical therapist take a look at your program. Your physical therapist can help you to design an individualized program to help you reach your goals while also keeping you safe and injury free.