Don't be like most lifters who avoid conditioning like it's an Ebola-laced Kleenex. Conditioning work will not make your muscle gains hemorrhage out of all your orifices.
However, doing moderate intensity steady state cardio, ultra low volume, or even skipping conditioning completely isn't the answer. Sure, you'll grow a smidge bigger by dumping all types of conditioning work, but the price you'll pay will be pathetic athleticism and gaining enough marbling around your abs to make a T-Bone steak cringe.
Drop the "conditioning keeps me small" sob story. It's time to maximize your training with well-planned and precisely executed conditioning. These four conditioning methods will build renewed athleticism and get you jacked, even if you're a hardgainer.
Sprinting before lifting is ideal for improving performance by potentiating the nervous system for heavy and explosive training.
This comes with a risk versus reward trade-off as sprinting done before training must be enough to spark the nervous system, yet low enough in volume and intensity to not fatigue the body and hinder lifting ability. When fatigue is managed, strength performance, conditioning, and athleticism will skyrocket.
After your dynamic warm-up (that you're already doing, right?), do some submaximal speed drills like skips and low intensity sprints for 5-10 minutes.
Low volume, short distance sprints performed before strength training help prevent injury and improve performance, as opposed to doing a technical, neurologically demanding exercise after training when fatigue predisposes you to injury.
Perform sprints two days per week. Start with 5 sprints of 10-20 yards with 30-60 seconds of recovery and add one sprint per week, maxing out at 10 sprints.
Sprints require sound mechanics and practice before you can pile on tons of volume, a process to which most gym rats aren't willing to dedicate time. With that in mind, sprinting for conditioning must be done sub-maximally on either a hill or incline to prevent over-striding and hamstring injuries.
Start with running two days per week on a treadmill or hill. After a warm-up and some speed drills, sprint for 10 minutes with 10-second sprints and 50-second rests, increasing sprint time by one second and decreasing sprint rest by one second each week until you build up to 15-second sprints.
Remember, all of these should be ended at the 10 minute mark. Increase your speed before jacking up the incline to preserve technique.
No, I'm not talking pairings between heavy compound lifts and explosive movement skills for increased performance. Instead, I'm referring to fat shredding, lung-screaming conditioning complexes.
Conditioning complexes combine a series of movement patterns performed in-series without rest, such as a squat, press, row, and RDL before starting a second set.
Your goal is to move as fast as technically possible through the lifts with light weight and full range of motion. Range of motion and light weight are important because your goal is to activate as much of the body as possible, yet not crush your recoverability or conflict with the main strength work.
Start with an unloaded 45-pound bar and progress slowly – your technique should be the limiting factor. A progression of 5 pounds per week is plenty for most and will leave your heart pounding right through your shirt.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Hang Clean | 3 | 6 | |
| B | Deadlift | 3 | 12 | |
| C | Military Press | 3 | 12 | |
| D | Front Squat | 3 | 12 | 60-90 sec. |
Repeat 2 more times.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Push Press | 2 | 10 | |
| B | High Pull | 2 | 10 | |
| C | Hang Clean | 2 | 10 | |
| D | Front Squat | 2 | 10 | |
| E | Front Squat Reverse Lunge do a reverse lunge while holding the bar in a front squat position) | 2 | 5/leg | 60-90 sec. |
Repeat 2 more times.
| Exercise | Sets | Reps | Rest | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | Hang Clean | 2 | 6 | |
| B | Overhead Press | 2 | 10 | |
| C | Back Squat | 2 | 10 | |
| D | Reverse Lunge | 2 | 10 | |
| E | Front Squat | 2 | 10 | |
| F | Bent-Over Row | 2 | 10 | |
| G | Romanian Deadlift | 2 | 10 | |
| H | Front Squat Lunge | 2 | 10 | |
| I | Biceps Curl | 2 | 10 | |
| J | Front Squat Calf Raise | 2 | 10 | 90-120 sec. |
Repeat 1 to 2 times.
Complexes are actually an ideal conditioning tool for hardgainers who need to spare all the muscle they can. They're short duration and high-density. As a result, the conditioning spans beyond the immediate workout due to exercise post-oxygen consumption (EPOC).
In other words, your heart rate stays jacked up for greater cardiovascular benefit to keep you leaner while you're building muscle. Only do them once per week, though.
Hardcore exercises like sled pushes and sprints get all the glory, but the jump rope is one old-school tool that doesn't get the attention it rightly deserves.
Jumping rope is low impact and not-overly catabolic. Beyond that, jumping rope is safer than most conditioning drills for two reasons.
First, jumping rope is a self-limiting exercise. To jump rope without failing you must stay in an aligned, joint stacked position, forcing your trunk to stay engaged and resilient under the load of movement. If you mess up, the exercise ends. All of this makes it extremely unlikely you'll overdo it.
Second, jumping rope is a low-impact movement, despite a high number of foot strikes. For skinny runts, the low impact doesn't create a hyper-catabolic environment that erodes your precious hypertrophy like other forms of cardio. This means yes, you'll get shredded without dropping lean body mass.
When it comes to skipping rope, keep it simple. Take 15 minutes, two days per week and get after it.
Some lifters are terrified of conditioning exercises overloading their recoverability and zapping their hypertrophy.
Luckily, sled pushing doesn't involve eccentric stress, which is the stress incurred on the "negative" portion of resistance training exercises that's also the most damaging to muscle. That's why the volume accumulated with sleds won't hinder recovery to the same extent as traditional training methods.
Once the force applied to the sled exceeds that needed to overcome friction, all muscular actions are concentric based. As a result, you train with a higher volume to increase protein synthesis for muscle building while conditioning your body and trying to prevent Prowler flu.
Take ten minutes at the end of your workout and spend some time on sled pushes. Keep your arms locked out, abs engaged, and body at a consistent 45-60 degree angle while punching the knees up and fully extending the hip with each step.
Hoisting weights is obviously the driving force for building muscle. Regardless, well-planned conditioning is imperative to improve work capacity, improve athleticism, and keep you lean while you're bulking. Perform conditioning drills two or three times per week, but no more.
Ensure your diet is on-point first. Then, if needed, drop a day of conditioning to preserve calories.
The hard-to-swallow fact is you still need some conditioning even if your goal is to gain mass. Hypertrophy training is no reason to get fat and out of-shape. If you do, it's a result of laziness and poor planning. Don't be that guy.
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