The High-Level Athletic Workout Program for All Levels | Muscle & Fitness

Workout Routines

This High-Level Athletic Program Is Built for Athletes of All Levels

Don’t shy away from intimidating-sounding, polysyllabic exercises and just do curls.

This article is a repost which originally appeared on Muscle & Fitness

Edited for content.

Our Takeaways:

· There’s a workout for every level of fitness and goal

· Training four days a week allows for optimal rest and recuperation

· Age related muscle wasting (sarcopenia) can be prevented with resistance training

What’s your reason for training? Are you active with multiple sports looking to improve performance? Or are you the weekend beer league warrior who doesn’t want to lose a step to the younger guys but also doesn’t want to be dragging himself out of bed in DOMS-induced agony for the following week? Or maybe you just don’t want to be winded climbing a flight of stairs.

Whether Hardcore bodybuilding or powerlifting programs aren’t your thing or Eastern European sounding exercises intimidate more than they entice you to try, there’s a workout for you that’s advanced but not impossible, and can still provide the necessary gains to your training goals.

One worth checking out is this four-day a week training program for someone of any level of experience or ability that will help you feel strong and more athletic. This high-level athletic workout program will help you build muscle without feeling like a bodybuilder, give you better energy, and have you moving better through whatever life brings.

High-Level Athletic Workout Program Principles

Your program consists of two pairs of alternating upper- and lower-body workouts. Your upper-body muscles train while your lower body recovers, and vice versa. Four training days allows for plenty of rest, plus room for your other athletic or recreational pursuits. Any good program should deliver results, allowing you to get more out of life, without missing life by spending all your time in the gym. And that’s what aim to accomplish with this routing. We start our workouts with the more challenging exercises and work our way through a deliberate progression of priorities.

Each workout starts out with a power movement. You might hear words like power or explosiveness and think you’re in the wrong place with the wrong program, but hear me out. Power isn’t reserved for Sunday Night Football linebackers and 20-year-old athletes. As we get older we progressively lose muscle mass, strength, and the ability to express strength quickly, aka power.

We don’t lose these qualities as much due to getting older as we do through disuse. Use it or lose it. We’re misled to think training strength and power increases injury risk, but by not training for these qualities, we grow weaker and less powerful, potentially leading to greater injury risk over the long run. We want to be able to retain our strength and our ability to express power as we get older. Whether to enjoy our favorite sports or protect ourselves from harm.

We focus on building strength with exercises like squats and deadlifts. We gain strength by focusing on heavier weight and lower reps. We focus on using weight we can control with good form though safe range of motion. Sets of lower reps help us train our nervous system to recruit more muscle fibers efficiently, making us stronger. Being strong has limitless practical uses in life.

Next we use exercises and rep ranges focused on building muscle. Age-related muscle loss — called sarcopenia — has a strong relationship with early mortality. You’re more likely to sustain a serious fall injury with less muscle. More muscle feels good, even for women who won’t be able to gain so much muscle they resemble bulky bodybuilders. Having more muscle can enhance confidence, sense of well being, and the process of strength training has a strong relationship with better physical and mental health. You’ll focus on sets of 8-12 reps. While it’s true you can build muscle with a wider range of reps, 8-12 is most time efficient.

We finish your workout with a stamina building, low-impact exercise. This enhances your work capacity for your training, sports, and life. Pushing a sled, while challenging, can be a fun way to complete a workout, while providing joint-friendly training that supports your cardiovascular health.

High-Level Athletic Workout Program Q and A

How long should I do this program for?

Program hopping is one of the surest ways you won’t see the gains you expect when you start a routine. Think of it like trying to chase a bunch of cats at the same time — you’ll quickly realize you have no idea which direction you should go next. Commit to a minimum of 12 weeks on this program, but you can progress for significantly longer if you find you’re consistent, progressively getting stronger, and most of all, you’re actually enjoying the program. You don’t “adapt” to strength training in the way we once believed and the results don’t diminish over time. What does happen, however, is that those major gains you made early on as a “newbie,” begin to level off over time and experience and repetition — you can’t expect to make the same muscle and strength improvements at the same rate forever — you’re now getting closer to your genetic potential ceiling.

How do I progress this program?

We can add sets, reps, or weight. We can shorten rest breaks between sets. We will certainly see you improve technique and range of motion. Always adding sets becomes time prohibitive and always increasing reps starts to get out of the target rep ranges for our key goals. If you find you’re easily performing the top reps in the assigned rep range with a lot of gas in the tank, add a little more weight to the bar. Don’t add so much you can’t reach the assigned reps at the bottom of the rep range. Every time it again gets easy to do the top number of reps, add more weight.

What should I do for recovery?

Massage guns, cryotherapy, and biohacking might sound enticing, but good old nutrition, sleep, and hydration are the keys to recovery and maximizing program results. Focus on getting 1 gram of protein per day per pound of lean body mass. This means taking a rough estimate of your body fat percentage(no you don’t need to pay money to test it) subtract that from your weight, and eat this number in grams of protein each day. Overall calories needs will vary by individual but aim to fuel yourself to perform. You’ll see your best performance results if you aren’t concurrently trying to diet aggressively. The increase in metabolic rate from the training and recovery may lead to some fat loss anyway. If you’re otherwise pretty active, you’ll want to ensure you have carbs in your diet. Carbs are a better fuel for athletic performance and active lifestyles. Low carb diets don’t optimize athletic programs and lifestyles. You’re probably ok on hydration, but it never hurts to drink a little more water each day. Clean urine is a good sign. Cloudy dark yellow urine means your probably dehydrated.

Can I substitute exercises?

Sure. Especially if your gym doesn’t have the specific equipment. Try to switch to something similar and not just switch because you’re avoiding something you don’t like. If chinups are way outside your current capability and there’s no assisted machine, it’s OK to do cable pulldowns. If there’s no sled and turf, go do sprint intervals on a treadmill or air bike. Try to retain as much of the challenge and spirit of the program as possible and not remove the challenges that will lead you to your best progress.

Should I do cardio?

You can only recover from so much training volume. If you’re also actively involved in sports, hiking, endurance activities like long distance running, or have a highly physical job, extra cardio might be overkill. Use your best judgement on how much added training volume you can manage, but with the strength and performance focus of this program, it isn’t optimal for chasing both these goals and serious fat loss. This program would serve as an excellent basis for staying strong while losing body fat, but you’re not focused on making significant improvements to strength.

For more on the routine, please visit The High-Level Athletic Workout

Sexercise: What is it? Benefits, exercises to try, and more

The benefits of sexercise and how to practice it

Medically reviewed by Janet Brito, Ph.D., LCSW, CST — Written by Zawn Villines on December 13, 2020

This article is a repost which originally appeared on MEDICALNEWSTODAY

Edited for content

Sexercise is exercise to improve sexual performance and function, which may make sex more satisfying for a person and their partner or partners.

Celebrity trainer Jason Rosell coined the term sexercise, using it for a specific set of practices to improve a person’s sexual experience.

Physical fitness can affect sexuality by making sex easier and more comfortable, reducing the risk of erectile dysfunction (ED) and arousal issues, and helping people feel more confident in their bodies.

Exercise may also reduce the risk of chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, that can cause sexual issues.

A person may use the term sexercise to refer to a wide range of activities, while any exercise specifically to improve sex counts as sexercise.

Benefits of sexual activity for health

Healthful, consensual sexual activity of all varieties can improve health.

Some benefits of sex include:

  • Better heart health: Sex involves exercise, which can improve heart health by lowering blood pressure and decreasing the risk of heart disease. A 2020 study found that, following a heart attack, people who had sex more than once per week had a 27% reduction in their risk of dying.
  • A healthier immune system: Regular sex may boost immunity, reducing a person’s risk of acquiring infections and certain illnesses.
  • Better emotional health: Sex – and the exercise that sex involves – may reduce the risk of depression and anxiety.
  • Better self-esteem: People who have satisfying sex may feel good about themselves.
  • Healthy relationships: A strong, healthy sexual connection with a partner may improve the relationship.
  • Better sleep: Sex may help some people fall asleep faster.
  • Stress management: Sex can be a suitable self-care tool that helps relieve stress.

It is important to note that sex in itself does not necessarily improve health.

Non-consensual, painful, or unpleasant sex may cause severe emotional distress, physical injuries, and other health issues.

Benefits of fitness for sexual performance

Exercise can improve sexual performance in many ways:

  • Reducing ED: In people with penises, regular exercise – especially aerobic exercise such as running or walking – may reduce ED. A 2017 meta-analysis found moderate to high-intensity aerobic exercise provided optimal benefits.
  • Counteracting side effects of certain antidepressants on the libido: A 2013 study of females taking antidepressants found that exercising right before sex improved both arousal and global sexual function.
  • Exercise may reduce the risk of chronic medical conditions: These conditions can interfere with sexual performance. For example, diabetes has links with ED, arousal disorders, and some other sexual issues.
  • Improving sexual function: Certain exercises may strengthen the pelvic floor muscles, which a person uses during sex. Kegel exercises can help a person orgasm more easily and help with urine leakage and incontinence.
  • Increasing endurance and strength: This may make certain positions and types of sex easier. More endurance may help a person be less tired during prolonged sex sessions.

Exercises to improve sexual performance

Three categories of exercise can help improve sexual performance:

Aerobic exercise

Aerobic exercise increases the heart rate. It can help a person maintain a moderate weight, improve blood pressure, boost overall physical fitness, and may help with ED and general sexual performance. Some exercises to try include:

  • Swimming: Offers an intense but low-impact workout for people with joint or muscle pain.
  • Walking: An ideal starting exercise for people who struggle with more intense workouts.
  • Intense aerobic exercise: Includes running or jogging, jumping rope, skiing, and using a stair-climber machine.

Pelvic floor exercises

Pelvic floor exercises strengthen the pelvic floor – a group of muscles that support the bladder. These muscles also contract during an orgasm. Try the following to work them:

  • Performing Kegels:
    • Locate the right muscles when urinating.
    • Stop passing urine mid-flow for a few seconds, then start again.
    • Repeat a few times daily.
    • Next, try tensing and releasing the same muscles used to stop urinating several times per day.
    • Work up to tensing the muscles for longer: 5 seconds, 10 seconds, 30 seconds, or longer.
  • Exercising the multifidus of the pelvic floor:
    • Lie on the stomach, face down, with the forehead in the hands.
    • Lift the pelvis slightly back to point the tailbone toward the ceiling.
    • Hold for 5–10 seconds, working up to three sets of 10 repetitions.
  • Performing squats: Squats help strengthen the body, and in high repetitions, they can provide an intense cardio workout. They also help strengthen the abs and pelvic floor. Not everyone can do a squat at first. Try squatting down as much as possible without bending the back or taking the heels off the floor, then build up to deeper squats.

Strength and flexibility training

Improving general strength and flexibility may make certain sexual positions easier and more comfortable. Some options include:

  • Yoga and pilates: Both focus activities on improving flexibility and functional movement. People can even adapt some yoga positions into sex positions.
  • Lifting weights: Try lifting weights to improve the strength of various muscles and muscle groups. For example, a person who wants to lift their partner might try bench presses and other exercises that strengthen the upper body.
  • Bodyweight exercises: A person does not need weights to strengthen their muscles. Bodyweight exercises, such as leg raises, knee tucks, and squats strengthen the core, lower body, and pelvic floor. Pushups, pullups, and dips target the upper body, potentially making certain positions easier.

Sex positions that couples can use as exercise

Every sex position may present an opportunity for exercise if it meets one of two conditions:

  • The speed and intensity of the sexual activity are intense enough to elevate the heart rate.
  • The activity is physically challenging. For example, it requires stretching or involves a person lifting additional weight.

Some examples of specific positions that might help sexual partners get a workout include:

  • Positions that require a partner to fully or partially lift another: For example, a person who wraps their legs around a partner while the partner holds them in a standing position requires both partners to bear extra weight.
  • Positions that increase physical intensity and encourage partners to move more: For example, if a person is up against the wall with their legs wrapped around their partner, and the other partner is holding them, the couple is both supporting weights. They may also have to move more to increase stimulation and adjust the position.
  • Positions that encourage gentle stretching: It is important not to force the body into an uncomfortable position. However, extending the legs over a partner’s shoulders or getting into yoga-like positions may increase the challenge of sexual activity.

Summary

Exercise is great for overall health, including sexual health.

For most people, exercise is a safe way to improve well-being and sexual performance.

However, those who do not exercise should talk with a doctor before beginning a new fitness routine.

Medical News Today has strict sourcing guidelines and draws only from peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions, and medical journals and associations. We avoid using tertiary references. We link primary sources — including studies, scientific references, and statistics — within each article and also list them in the resources section at the bottom of our articles. You can learn more about how we ensure our content is accurate and current by reading our editorial policy.