(Source)

I’m going to continue with Climbing Up the Ladder Part 3: Tools to make workouts painful Keep Workouts Interesting.  In part 1 we talked about rep (repetition) ladders and part 2 we talked about weight and time ladders.  This week we are going to talk about reverse ladders and pyramids. A reverse ladder is simply reversing the order of one of the variables either rep, time or weight.   In other words, you start from the top and go down or descend.

If you are anything like me you need to see an example of how the numbers work.  Here ya go!

Reverse Rep Ladder

In a reverse rep ladder you start with the highest number of reps and work down the ladder.  I just picked exercises at random for the examples’ sake.

Push Up Reverse (Descending) Rep Ladder

5 Push Ups
Rest
4 Push Ups
Rest
3 Push Ups
Rest
2 Push Ups
Rest
1 Push Ups

(Yes, I can even count backwards.)

Reverse Weight Ladders

In a reverse weight ladder you start with the highest amount of weight and work down.  Here are the ladders from last week simply reversed.

Squat Weight Ladder
5 x 45lbs
rest
5 x 35 lbs
rest
5 x 25 lbs

Kettlbell Swing Weight Ladder
10 x 16kg (35lbs)
rest
10 x 12kg (26lbs)
rest
10 x 8kg (18lbs)

(See how the weight decreases.  Rocket science, I know.)

Reverse Time Ladder

And in a reverse time ladder you would start with the highest time and work down.  Let’s reverse the jump squat time ladder from last week as an example

Jump Squat Reverse Time Ladder

Jump Squats 30 secs
rest
Jump Squats 20 secs
rest
Jump Squats 10 secs

Combination Ladders

A combination is simply going up the ladder in one exercise and down the ladder in another.  I love combination ladders because they make the time really fly and kick my booty.   Here is an example of a combination rep ladder. Exercise A could be squats and exercise B could be military presses.  Personally I tend to like to use lower and upper body exercises but I’ve also done them using opposing muscle groups.

5 Reps of Exercise A
rest
1 Rep of Exercise B
rest
4 Reps of Exercise A
rest
2 Rep of Exercise B
rest
3 Reps of Exercise A
rest
3 Rep of Exercise B
rest
2 Reps of Exercise A
rest
4 Rep of Exercise B
rest
1 Reps of Exercise A
rest
5 Rep of Exercise B

(I should have been a mathematician with these skills.)

Again, these 5 rep ladders are just an example.  The length of the ladder can vary as can the “steps between the rungs”.  For instance you may want to “climb each rung” by 5s or by 10s.  Also note that you lengthen or shorten the rest periods as needed.

In my kettlebell class we did this combination ladder the other day.

50 Swings
10 Squats
40 Swings
20 Squats
30 Swings
30 Squats
20 Swings
40 Squats
10 Swings
50 Squats

It was wonderfully brutal!

Pyramids

(Source)

Last of all for today (if you are still with me) are pyramids.  A traditional ladder goes up say 1-2-3-4-5 and then starts over from the bottom.  A pyramid on the other hand goes up and then pyramids back down, 1-2-3-4-5-5-4-3-2-1.   Like ladders you can do weight, rep, or time pyramids.  Here is an example where the number of reps is the changing variable.

Deadlift  Rep Pyramid

1 Deadlift
rest
2 Deadlifts
rest
3 Deadlifts
rest
4 Deadlift
rest
5 Deadlift
rest
5 Deadlift
rest
4 Deadlift
rest
3 Deadlift
rest
2 Deadlift
rest
1 Deadlift

A quick word about rest.  I gauge my rest time by how I feel.  Typically, I follow an equal work to rest ratio. Beginners may feel more comfortable doubling or even tripling the rest time.  I’ll also increase my rest time if I’ve been sick or feeling a dip in strength that day.

Okay, I hope I didn’t make this too confusing.  Each type of ladder has its purpose regarding endurance, strength, and/0r speed but as I said before I like to incorporate them into my workouts for torture variety.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

If you enjoyed this this post please Subscribe to the RSS Feed.

or

Sign up for up to have posts emailed to your inbox.

The post Climbing the Ladder Part 3: Fun Workout Tools appeared first on Girl Heroes.

The window is clean.  In fact, I’ve stepped out of that small room out into the sunshine again!  (Big cheesy grin.)  I’m excited for this week!  I have a new recipe and another Girl Hero (always my favorite posts) lined up.

Today, I want to continue my series on program design tools, a fancy way to say, ideas for building dynamic kick azz workouts!  Last week, we talked about  rep ladders.  This week it’s weight ladders and time ladders.  Next week, will be reverse  ladders, combination ladders, and pyramids. Then we’ll finish up with drop sets, super sets, timed sets, and using active recovery.

Weight Ladders

In a rep ladder the weight stays the same and the reps climb with each rung.  In weight ladders, like the name implies ;-), the reps stay the same but the weight climbs with each rung.

Some examples….

Squat Weight Ladder
5 x 25lbs
rest
5 x 35 lbs
rest
5 x 45 lbs

Kettlbell Swing Weight Ladder
10 x 8kg (18lbs)
rest
10 x 12kg (26lbs)
rest
10 x 16kg (35lbs)

As you can probably tell weight ladders can be used with any exercise that uses weight other than your body.   Bodyweight exercises won’t work unless you weight them like hang a kettlebell (or a small child) from your foot during pull ups.

Time Ladders

Guess what variable changes in time ladders?  You’re right…the time!  High five!!!

Examples

Plank Time Ladder
20 seconds
rest
40 seconds
rest
60 seconds

Jump Squat Time Ladder
10 seconds
rest
20 seconds
rest
30 seconds
rest

Repetition, weight, and time ladders each have their own benefits.  Adding reps (rungs) will increase your muscle endurance (ability to preform repeated contractions or hold static contractions).  Adding weight will increase your muscle strength (amount of actual weight you can lift in a single all out effort).  Adding time will increase your endurance or adding more reps per timed block will increase speed and explosiveness.

Why do I use ladders?  I’ll be honest, my main reason is to add variety. I workout to improve and maintain my general health (and for vanity) so for me the biggest benefit of ladders is variety. In other words, ladders keep my workouts interesting. Which keeps me working out. Which improves my energy, mood, and  keeps me mentally sane.  Which improves my relationships.  Which is what life is mostly about. (And as a bonus, I get to look decent in a bikini.)

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

If you enjoyed this this post please Subscribe to the RSS Feed.

or

Sign up for up to have posts emailed to your inbox.

The post Climbing the Ladder Part 2: Fun Workout Tools appeared first on Girl Heroes.

Traditional ladders are something I generaly avoid – seeing as how I fell off backwards when I was painting my son’s border in his nursey when I was 8 months pregnant.  The only thing hurt was my pride.

For the most part, I stick to basics (squat variations, swings, presses, pull-ups, dead lifts, ect) for two reasons.  One, I workout in my garage and I only have so much equipment. Two, the basics are effective.  They are the foundation of my training.  My only complaint about the basics is that they can get boring which is why I’m always using different training tools such as Tabata and recently “ladders” to keep things challenging.  I was first introduced to ladders by my kettlbell teacher Doug,  then in Pavel Tsatsouline‘s book Enter The Kettlebell!, and again during my HKC certification.  Since then I’ve been using them in my kettlebell workouts and have noticed a definite increase in strength.  However, ladders are NOT limited to kettlebells.  They are well suited for most exercises.  Here is a basic repetition ladder set up.

Basic Rep Ladder

1 Rep of Specific Exercise (could be squats, pull ups, push ups, swings, military presses, lunges, ect)
Rest
2 Reps of Specific Exercise
Rest
3 Reps of Specific Exercise
Rest
4 Reps of Specific Exercise
Rest
5 Reps of Specific Exercise
Rest

You keep adding a rep until the last “rung” is very demanding (hard), hence reaching the end of your ladder.  Rest  2-3 minutes and repeat the ladder starting at the bottom rung.  Or move onto a different exercise ladder.

What are the benefits of ladders?

It is thought to make maximum performance gains, it’s good to alternate  hard training sessions with easier training sessions.  Ladders allow you to do this in individual workouts by varying the intensity.  The ladder starts out very easy, get progressively more difficult and then allows you to recover before starting over.

Ladders all you to  perform a higher volume (volume = sets x reps x load/weight) than if you were to do straight sets.   I’ve been using ladders for kettlebell clean and presses as prescribed in Enter The Kettlebell and assisted pull-ups.  In a 5 rung ladder, I do 15 presses and 15 pull ups total but it’s broken down into rungs.  If I were to jump up to the bar I could not do 15 straight pull-ups (unless I added more bands for assistance).  The built in rest periods allow me to perform higher volume with less stress.

Ladders also give you the chance to practice proper form in the lower rungs before you pushing yourself hard during the last reps at the top of the ladder hopefully keeping the same form.  It can be very difficult to retain proper form when going all out every set and rep of your workout.

Variety.   I don’t really need to be stronger as my strength already exceeds my daily demands of living.  I can clean out the garage and lift heavy boxes without getting hurt or winded. I can lift my 65lb boy off the ground to give him kisses.  I can make it through a 60 minute high-speed-full-on rant without breaking a sweat.  So the truthfully, while I enjoy trying to get stronger, it’s not my be all end all goal. However, different training tools like  ladders make for a more interesting training sessions.

Next Monday, I’ll follow up with some more variations of ladder training.

Hugs and High Fives,
Jenn

If you enjoyed this this post please Subscribe to the RSS Feed.

or

Sign up for up to have posts emailed to your inbox.

The post Climbing the ladder Part 1: Fun Workout Tools appeared first on Girl Heroes.