Category: Outdoor

Good weather offers an ideal opportunity to train outdoors. Many personal trainers take advantage of this chance to work with their clients outside. Outdoor training can be tailored for individual clients, integrated into group sessions, used as additional training, and more.

Program design can focus on specific aspects of fitness or on a circuit style program with several seasons covering all aspects of training variables.

These are just a few examples of training objectives that can be included in a circuit: power, whole body strength training, lower body strength training, upper body strength training, speed and agility. The difficulty of the circuits can be manipulated by changing the intensity and volume. In addition, repetitions, distances, loads and duration can be varied at each station.

The following exercises are just a few examples that can be incorporated into an outdoor training program There may be some crossover between power, muscle strength and muscle endurance due to the different tools used in the circuits. There are some limitations because there is some large equipment that is not practical to take outside.

Power/Muscle Strength

Thrust – Harness traction

When performing a sled thrust, hold the handles or base with your arms fully extended and move your legs while extending your knees and hips. Then slide the sled to the starting point with the harness attached. Keep your shoulders back and chest up with hip extension, and remain in a partial squat position.

Rotation – power with medicine ball

Start with the medicine ball between your feet and with a quick explosive movement, bend down and keep the support between your legs. Turn your arms forward and jump up explosively, throwing the ball as far as possible at about 45 degrees.

This movement can also be done with a spoon throw. The power movement begins by bending over and flexing your knees. Then the lower part of the movement is slowed down and the upper part of the trunk is explosively bent through the transverse plane to release the ball.

Muscle strength

Chest press (manual resistance)

Coach: Stand behind the athlete with your feet shoulder-width apart, holding an elastic band. The grip should be held directly behind him.

Athlete: Holding both grips, place your feet shoulder-width apart, and elbows to the side, just below shoulder height with palms down. Push one hand forward, controlling resistance with the other arm.

Repeat the movement with the other arm, pushing the other grip forward. Be careful not to back away too much, as this can put stress on the front of the shoulder.

Rowing in pairs (manual resistance)

Coach: place your feet shoulder-width apart. Hold the elastic band so that it supports the athlete. This should be placed right in front of them.

Athlete: place your feet shoulder-width apart with a handle on each hand and palms facing each other. Pull one arm back with a rowing motion to one side of the body and then repeat while alternating with the other arm.

Bends with sliding discs

Start in a chest bending position with your feet on the sliding disks. Lower the body to the floor and slide the feet sideways to the sides of the body, keeping the back flat and keeping the spine neutral. Perform a push-up and bring the feet to the center bringing the body to the starting position.

Battle ropes (squat slams)

Start in a squatting position holding a rope with both hands. Start the movement by flexing your shoulders and raising the rope above your head while extending your lower body. Simultaneously bend over and hit the rope on the floor.

Battle ropes

Start in a squatting position while holding a rope in each hand. In a quick movement, alternate hitting the rope on the floor to create a wave-like movement with the rope. Maintain the same body position throughout the exercise.

Battle ropes (circles)

Start by standing with your knees slightly bent, holding a rope in each hand. Turn the rope towards the centre in a circular motion and bend down slightly as you finish the movement of the ropes. The circles start above the shoulder and go back down to about thigh level.

Core

Rotation of core in pairs (manual resistance)

Coach – athlete: during the rotation movement, both of you will perform the same type of movement. You will be facing in the same direction, side by side.

You will each hold two handles on the elastic band. Turn simultaneously in the same direction, one performing the concentric action and the other the eccentric action to apply the resistance.

Throwing medicine ball on the ground

The athlete will stand with arms extended on both sides of the body. He will then make an upward movement from the hip to the opposite shoulder. He will lift the ball above and slightly behind the head, which will eccentrically load the core. Then, keep hitting the ball on the ground under control.