Lesson 8: Module I | Stress Index
Lesson 8 | Module I
Work capacity is the idea of building a bigger base to be able to handle more training stress in the future. The goal here is to slowly increase training stress over time. By using a variety of specific and non-specific movements this can be accomplished while controlling fatigue. By using lower stress (ie aerobic conditioning) training to drive up overall training volume along with lower intensities on more specific movements you can not only drive stress index up but the total volume done within a single stress index. The hard part here is not getting too far away from the specificity of your goal for too long as to not lose progress where it really matters. You want to maintain the peak while building the base.
By measuring a variety of metrics when it comes to volume, intensity, and overall stress of the training we are providing we can use each metric for it’s strengths and have another metric to boost up its weaknesses. While no one metric is going to tell us a complete story a combination of metrics can do a pretty good job. At the same time we don't want to get caught in the trap of paralysis by analysis so having systems in place to track and manipulate these variables is a must.
Stress index is the variable I tend to place the most stock in as anecdotally I have found most people training works the best at a particular stress index. That may mean they are progressing at the fastest rate possible or it may mean they are progressing at less than 100% efficiency but training is enjoyable and leaves them feeling good in their day to day life. There is always a tradeoff between how hard we push and how “good” we feel day to day. By manipulating stress index we can easily allow someone to be in a more recovered or more fatigued state depending on where they are in life.
ACWR is going to allow us to see how fast we are progressing or regressing training. This is useful on a more zoomed out perspective to make sure training is progressively overloaded. I have noticed that acute load, in particular session RPE, is closely correlated with overall fatigue and the need for a deload. If you are performing the same exact training program for 6 weeks and the acute load each week is steady (as it should be since you are performing the same workouts) as that acute load starts to climb without a change in training you can almost be certain it is from an increase in fatigue making the same workouts take longer and feel harder.
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Lesson 1 Modules
Lesson 2 Modules
Lesson 3 Modules
Lesson 4 Modules
Lesson 5 Modules
Lesson 6 Modules
Lesson 7 Modules
Discussion Questions
How do you currently track intensity? Does this method allow you to accurately prescribe weights for all the clients you deal with?