Endurance Training & Recovery
Strength and size are probably the two most common weight training goals. But they’re not all you should be thinking about at the gym.
Endurance is equally important, despite the fact that it’s often overlooked. The goal of endurance training is to increase endurance and stamina, whether on a whole or when it comes to specific muscles or muscle groups. Improving endurance can not only help you last longer at the gym. it can also improve the gains you make in that time.
If you want to improve endurance, here’s how to do it…
1. Train for Endurance
Training for endurance involves the aerobic system as opposed to the anaerobic system, even when it comes to your muscles. You can improve your body’s endurance using both cardiovascular and weight training exercises. Let’s take a look at how to tackle both:
Cardiovascular Endurance – The best strategy for improving cardio endurance is to engage in extended bursts of moderate-to-high cardio exercise. Over time, your cardiovascular system will improve in its ability to sustain energy for longer periods of time. I recommend a series of 2 or 3 different cardio exercises in a row during each workout, in order to train your body more completely.
For example, start with 20 minutes of a light jog on the treadmill, followed by 15 minutes on the rowing machine and 15 minutes on the elliptical.
Weight Training Endurance – Training for muscle and strength endurance is a little more complicated, but the results can really power up your workout program.
In order to train for muscle endurance, you need to think about 3 factors. First, you need to lift heavy weight. You’ll never improve strength without lifting heavy, so you need to start there.
The next thing you want to think about is volume. What I mean by this is that you need to get out a lot of reps if you want to improve endurance. So although you want to lift heavy, don’t lift so heavy that you can’t get out many reps.
Finally, You want to reduce your rest periods between sets to just 15-30 seconds. Think about it – endurance training is about lasting longer without resting!
