Have you ever caught yourself playing the comparison game with the program designs from multiple training platforms?
Scrolling through their social media accounts, reading all of their blog posts, trying out their Free Trials, being utterly impressed by the creativeness and advanced coaching methods they are using, but also being slightly overwhelmed by the vast complexity and methods that may seem foreign to you.
I get it. As a coach myself, I have fallen victim to this very same thing.
Looking at how trainers and coaches do things isn't bad. It can be a great source of motivation and inspiration for how you want your fitness to look.
But here's the reality. Just because it looks AMAZING, doesn't mean it will be right for you. Just because that coach or trainer looks great doing it on social media doesn't mean you are going to get the same results. And to add on to that, it doesn't even necessarily mean that they do it in their real training sessions. Cue the need for likes and engagement on Instagram.
So how do you decide whether or not a program will be an effective approach to your fitness?
It starts with understanding what goes into the training that you are looking to pursue.
Falling into the trap of thinking complex program design is better than simple is wrong for two reasons:
- The simple, easier to understand, and digestible stuff is actually what works for most people. And not to mention, it's often much easier to stick to for the long term.
- Overly complex programs can also be a sign of a coach's lack of confidence in their work. The idea that a "sexy" looking program on paper will attract customers is true for sure, but it won't actually get those customers anywhere closer to their goals.
So when we look at a program and start to make decisions about how we want to train and what we want our training to look like, it's important to look for these things:
- Can you understand what it is you are supposed to do in a full day of training?
- How easily can you apply the training methodology - will it affect your workout negatively, are you capable of performing the given tasks?
- Are you physically capable of doing the vast majority of the program - Will you need to scale movements regularly, is the total volume per training day too high or too low?
More often than not, if you find yourself falling into the category of answering the questions above in a negative way than the program you're looking at is too complex or not right for you.
Now before I go any further, I want to make it very clear that complex doesn't always mean bad. There are many cases where an individual may need a more complex training program. Take the elite athletes for example, they need to pay attention to their split times when they are doing Rowing Intervals or Running 400m bouts. They need to do high volume, high skill gymnastic movements to prepare for competition. The list goes on and on for them.
Here's another reality check. Most of us are not elite athletes. Most of us do not need high volume Muscle Ups or Handstand Push Ups, even though they are fun to do in workouts if we can express them properly. In the long run, we need simple, effective movement patterns that will ensure we can continue exercising without injury or complications.
What the normal, every day athlete needs is a program they can adhere to. A program that puts strong emphasis on basic movement patterns, and doing those basic movement patterns over and over again. The every day athlete needs effective training formats, ones they can understand and perform with confidence. Results come from unrelenting consistency in simple and effective training strategies. Not from something that looks fancy on paper.
When it comes to deciding whether or not a program is right for you, consider the complexity of it. Are you looking to follow a training regiment that you can adhere to for the long term or are you just looking for the next trendy fad you saw on Instagram?
If you want results, choose simplicity.
If you want to burn out, program hop, and complain about why you're unable to find a program that is "right" for you, choose complexity.
The choice is yours.
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