Overview:
The Lerner Fitness + Performance programs should be viewed as a continuous cycle, consisting of five phases in which you are always progressing, and challenging your body in new ways. Specifically, each individualized program is designed to continually “switch gears,” and transition from working on your foundation, to focusing on strength, stability, power, etc. It is essential to develop all elements that contribute to your performance, and that includes rebuilding your foundation often; however, there may be times where the focus will remain centered on strength, power and/or endurance.
Each of these phases is dependent on another. In other words, lose your sturdy foundation, and it becomes increasingly difficult to produce power. Stop working on your mobility, and you have less room to build strength. This is a balancing act that is more scientific than anything else.
Performance coaches have spent years developing this system, testing it, and refining it with elite athletes and top performers from around the world. By continually cycling through these phases, all of your body’s physical needs will be met, allowing you to continually improve, while reducing your risk for injury.
Phase 1: Foundation This phase allows you to perfect key movements and exercises that you will perform throughout your program. These are moves that you will already be familiar with, but that all elite athletes need to review and refine since they are essential in laying the groundwork for greater pains in mobility and stability. Practicing the exercises in this phase will also help address any asymmetries you may have developed.
Discrepancies in mobility and stability are common. Therefore it is important to balance your body to avoid one side picking up slack for the other, since this can result in injury and decrease performance.
Based on your program, you will notice the number of repetitions prescribed for each workout will eventually either increase or decrease during this phase. Be sure to adjust the weight accordingly, using heavier loads when performing fewer reps and lighter loads for high reps.
Phase 2: Get StableThis phase ramps up the intensity of your training to help prepare you for the strength building phase. The focus will be on taking the quality of movement gained in the foundation period, and make those movements more challenging.
The movements may or may not change, but you will perform fewer repetitions, so use heavier weights and challenge your muscles! Stay focused on technique.
Phase 3: Get Strong
You will decrease the number of repetitions that you perform yet again in this phase, and now it’s really time to challenge yourself with the amount of weight that you lift!
You will primarily be doing movements that are on two legs, or that use two arms, giving you a solid base to push your limits!
Despite the increased emphasis on using heavier loads to improve strength, keep in mind that movement quality is still critical, so focus on using proper technique with every move you make!
Phase 4: WorkIn this phase, you will now take the strength that you have gained and apply it in training sessions that test your stamina.
You may notice that the number of repetitions you do will increase again, so the length of your sets become longer. This strategy builds muscular endurance, and conditions you to a higher volume of work. It may also stimulate your metabolism and create some muscle growth.
During this phase, heavy emphasis is put on isolateral work, meaning movements that challenge your limbs independently, which in turn helps troubleshoot any strength imbalances and build better muscle symmetry.
Phase 5: Get PowerfulPower may be the most underrated element of training. The payoffs of power for athletes though are undeniable and obvious. Building a more powerful, explosive body will help you make sharper moves, move more quickly, and leap higher.
In this phase, you will drop the number of repetitions and work on your “rate of force development.” This means that the movements should be performed fast. Nevertheless, do not sacrifice form for speed. Simply work on accelerating the loads and exhibiting your strength in less time.
