Metabolic Training - What is it?
The efficient use of training methods, specifically strength training, to elicit a metabolic response, with consideration given to intended effect, rest or relief intervals, fatigue management, progressive overload and adaptations to suit each individual.
In plain English. It's interval or burst training exercise periods of varying intensity, duration and rest.
What are the Health Benefits of Metabolic Training?
There are so many and the below list is non-exhaustive, but there's something for everyone on it.
Increased Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption (increased calories spent and the use of body fat stores for energy above resting levels following the completion of a workout).
Increased Strength
Increased Endurance
Increased Anaerobic Power
Increased Rate of Force Production
Increased Vertical Jump
Increased Aerobic Power
Increased Cross-Sectional Fiber Area (Hypertrophy)
Increased Type I, IIA or IIB muscle fiber composition
Increased Capillary Density
Increased Mitochondrial Density
Increased Enzymes that contribute to strength & power production
Increased Glycogen Stores
Increased Creatine Phosphate
Increased ATP Storage
Increased Capacity to Buffer Hydrogen-Ion Production
Increased Ligament Strength
Increased Tendon Strength
Possible increases in collagen content
Possible increases in bone density
Restoration of Oxygen to Blood & Muscle
Resynthesizing Energy in the Form of ATP
Increased Elevation of Body Temperature, Circulation & Respiration
Increased Protein Turnover (Muscle Protein Synthesis = Building Muscle)
It's a No Brainer!
Exercising is fun and makes you feel good.
Metabolic training is novel and interesting.
It keeps you engaged and stimulated.
It can be scaled to your current fitness level, directed towards your specific goal and matched to the effort you're able to bring on any given day.
You can use toys or simply your bodyweight.
It can be minimalist, maximalist or in between.
It can be done at a health club, at a studio, in a gymnasium, at home in the space you have available, outside, in a hotel and on vacation or a work trip.
It's super flexible.
It's social. You can do it with your family, your friends, neighbors, co-workers, colleagues, teammates.
If you don't have a community, you can join one.
It can be self-led or led by an instructor or a coach.
It's a great way of life.
It helps you to present your best self to your days, more consistently and more often.
There are too many no brainer benefits, to not have it as a part of your personal exercise routine and your lifestyle in the 21st Century. There's too much data. It's too fun. It can be scaled to where you are, what you can bring to the workout on a given day, where you want to go with it, what you have available, where you're going to train, who you're going to train with, when you're going to train, it's almost as easy as going for a walk or sitting on the ground and stretching, but more colorful, dynamic and rewarding.
And it's what I've been doing with private training clients, since my BSC-West Newton days, when I was the #1 trainer out of 10 in my club, #1 trainer in Boston out of 200 trainers over 20 clubs, and the #6 trainer out of ~2000, over 200+ clubs in the Town Sports International network (BSC, NYSC, PSC and WSC; back when TSI was the jam and Lifetime and Equinox hadn't yet come into the market), while being the only one ranked so highly with a balanced life, that worked M-F, 8-4pm and a maximum of 35 hrs and then M-F, 8-12pm, and a max of 20 hrs, where I was the first in the entire company to get permission to do semi-private training and the only one in the TSI network, to be asked to be a part of a high gloss, high end magazine, in which the photographer asked if I could do any poses that would be photogenic for the magazine, and led to me standing on a ball, which is crazy and stupid.
