| Osagi -> RE: Form Follows Function - An MT Community Journal (Nov. 14 2007 14:05:52) |
quote:
ORIGINAL: Mook
In micro cycles are you meaning the 4 days as 1 cycle? My thickness knows no bounds today [:D]
Yes mate, you've picked that up exactly right.
Generally when constructing any training plan I will have an end goal in mind, for example it may be some strength or conditioning goal to support my martial arts training, for you it could be working toward a specific fitness test to support your entry into the marines.
Once I have my end goal, I'll then set about defining what components my training plan needs to incorporate the allow me to attain that goal. Generally this is going to involve a mix of strength, cardio and conditioning workouts.
Once I know what components are needed, I then set about scheduling these elements into a 'micro cycle' just like the one I defined for you above. These allows me to ensure that al of the required elements are factored into my training program and scheduled to allow me the optimum rest and recovery and thus perfomance improvment from each session.
Depending on how large each micro-cycle is (how many days it involves) you might end up doing 1-2 micro cycles per week.
The point being each workout within a micro cycle and each micro cycle in itself will be strutured and geared toward helping me reach my target goal. So generally I will aim for some from of progression between each workout / micro-cycle, be it time, weight, reps, sets, etc. So micro cycles are also a way of helping me to set mini-goals to help me achieve my bigger goals.
So that's the purpose of structuring my training into micro-cycles.
Looking at the bigger picture I may have 2-3 fitness goals I want to achieve each year (generally I'll look to increase mass and strength during the winter/spring, focus on my conditioning as we move into summer and then move into a maintanance phase during the autumn). I consider each of these goals that I work towards as a particular training cycle, with each cycle broken down into micro-cycles, etc, etc.
Sounds complex but once you get used to structuring you training int his way it really does help you to focus and prioritse your training and thus improve your chances of meeting your fitness goals.
Osagi |
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