by Luis Cornier, Precor Master Coach and Performance Coach at Clay Fitness

Exercisers seek out Metabolic Circuit and HIIT workouts to trigger adaptations. Depending on the goals and fitness level of the exerciser, there are different protocols to follow to achieve results. For example, in the Queenax™ Metabolic Fit program provided with our Queenax Foundations CEC course, we offer trainers and exercisers a system to break up training monotony with workouts that focus on boosting metabolism and developing strength.

Let’s review another metabolic conditioning program – Complex Training. This advanced training strategy is designed to add a kick to your client’s static strength and truly unleash their power!

Complex training integrates strength training, plyometrics, and sometimes sport-specific movements. It consists of an intense strength exercise followed by a plyometric exercise. Strategically selecting explosive exercises to gain Post Activation Potentiation is the driving force behind complex training.

This type of program can be used in general and/or specific phases of training. A good recipe for increasing Post Activation Potentiation is to select a light explosive movement (such as Superfunctional™ Squat Jumps) paired with a heavy movement to increase system activation, strength, and total power.

In the General Phase Workout, we’ll perform all exercises with the Queenax Superfunctional. Resistance will be derived from an exerciser’s own bodyweight, rather than external weights. With any of these exercises, the objective is to select a challenging training angle in which the exerciser approaches failure by the end of the set.

In the Specific Phase Workout, we’ll leverage a variety of Queenax apps and optionals.

GENERAL PHASE WORKOUT

In this phase, the athlete should complete all sets of the strength exercise with a 60 second recovery after each set. This is followed by a three minute rest period before performing all sets of the matched plyometric exercise. After each plyometric exercise, rest for 90 seconds before performing the next set.

Strength Exercises

Plyometric Exercises

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SPECIFIC PHASE WORKOUT

The plyometric exercises in this workout must be specific to the athlete’s sport or event. The athlete performs one set of the strength exercise followed immediately by one set of the plyometric exercise, with only minimal recovery between exercises. Then rest for three minutes before performing the next exercise.  

Teaching Tip

To get the most out of your complex training, execute every repetition with full effort to push the body to its limits. To maintain a high level of intensity throughout the workout, use low repetitions (bodyweight repetitions will be higher than heavy lift repetitions), long recovery intervals between sets (three to five minutes), and at least 48 hours of rest between complex workouts. 

Finally, while all exercises were performed on Queenax in this workout, this concept can be applied to any training modality.