For the past six weeks, six in-person and one online member have been in a dedicated strength cycle. They have been training three days a week for an hour each day. All of the members had at least some weight training experience before trying this class. The results have been quite positive.
The adults ranged in age from low 20s to their low 50s. Two of the in-person members were male, while the other four were female. Given the broad range of abilities and experience, I focused the training around the conjugate method. We did primarily box squats, floor presses, sumo and deficit deadlifts, and a whole host of accessory movements. I did this so we could focus on one main movement each class and then have a few accessories to improve their performance in weak areas.
Goals
Going into the program, I told the members that I had goals of: 10-15lb increase in bench press, 5-10lbs in strict press, 20lb+ increase in both squat and deadlift. They have not only risen to the challenge, many have far surpassed my goals. I can’t tell you how happy that makes me as a coach hearing people say they’ve never lifted that much in their lives or that they had no idea they’d ever be able lift that much.
Our gym owner even set an all time PR for squat at 405lbs!!
What I really loved was seeing everyone cheering for each other, videoing each other and celebrating their wins together. (socially distant of course)
Confidence
To see the self confidence grow throughout the six weeks was another perk. Women naturally have less muscle mass in their upper body than men and seem to enjoy bench and strict press less. At times I almost had to force them to put more weight on the bar and tell them to trust in themselves that they can do it. I wanted them to feel what it’s like to have to grind out that last rep. They all did. It wasn’t easy but it was worth it.
Seeing the smiles, through their masks, was as motivating as anything else I’ve been a part of in my coaching career.
Next week I am going to highlight a few of the members and their success. I’ll have some direct quotes so you can see how happy they are with the program and the likelihood that almost all of them will be in the next program. Until the next program starts a few of them are going to continue to work on their strength training privately with me. When you see success, you want more of it!
If you are interested in getting stronger overall while concentrating on a few main lifts, contact us today!