Steel Fitness Training

Welcome to Steel Fitness Training

Personal training is a highly variable service that can be dramatically different depending on your trainer and your goals. I feel that the general population can find the greatest benefit in a General Preparedness Program (GPP). A GPP is meant to increase your proficiency in nearly all aspects of fitness. These include speed, strength, endurance, aerobic capacity, power, balance, and agility. A GPP is comprised of functional movements. Functional movements in general involve multiple joints, are natural, and enforce a core to extremity movement pattern. Multi-joint is self explanatory. The squat requires changes in the ankle, hip, and knee joint to move a load through a full range of motion; it is multi-joint. The leg extension involves only the knee; it is not. A natural movement is less easily defined. In general, if the range of motion was created by the use of a machine or doesn't prove to be generally applicable to athletic development or life it isn't natural. The bent over lateral raise is a movement that is not seen outside of the gym; it can be considered unnatural. The deadlift is utilized, or should be, whenever you lift something heavy from the ground; it is natural. A core to extremity movement pattern can be seen in nearly every sport. A pitcher initiates a pitch by first lifting his leg, but as he steps out, he rotates his hips then his torso then his shoulder, extends his elbow, then his wrist and finally releases with his fingers to send the ball flying to the batter who will follow a similar pattern to swing the bat. This pattern can be seen in dumbell swings, thrusters, the olympic lifts and more. When these functional movements are varied and executed at an intensity level appropriate for the trainee, significant gains can be made in the aformentioned attributes as well as in body composition with less chance of plateau or over-training. Exercises and programs that are machine-based or that may not be considered functional still prove useful in their own right. Rehabilitative exercises as well as programs designed strictly to ellicit hypertrophy for bodybuilding may require a more controlled stimulus to isolate weaker or smaller muscle groups and prevent injured muscles or joints from being activated. The goals and abilities of the trainee should always be considered when designing a program. I am currently training out of Shenandoah Power House in Waynesboro, Va. Come in and check out the gym or shoot me an E-mail at joby@steelfitnesstraining.com or give me a call at (540)487-5465. I look forward to meeting you! Joby

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