Next Level Level One

Next Level
Level One

Next Level Level One

Disclaimer
The information and exercises in this program are offered for educational and training purposes only; people reading this ebook should be cautioned that there is a natural risk when partaking in any form of physical activity. Therefore people wishing to partake in a strength and conditioning plan should consult a doctor before performing such activity. Readers should consider the exercises and the techniques given, these may not be suitable for some individuals and if performed incorrectly they could become dangerous to your health. Therefore the author takes no liability for injury, Next level level one is simply an educational tool to be used as a guide for those able to undertake the demands of the program.

Next Level Level One

"I hated every minute of training, but I said, "Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion." "
- Muhammad Ali

Introduction
I first started attending the gym as a fourteen year old as I wanted to support my supposedly "promising" football career. A year later, after failed trials, change in gym facilities and testosterone levels, my aim was to get massive. The following few years consisted of lifting the heaviest weight possible (mostly bad form), doing loads of abs work, barely any legs, eating lots of eggs and processed chicken and trying every legal supplement . Oh and partaking in the "chest twice a week" program. Yes thats right, I am a recovering Gym Gimp! To be honest though it worked, I put on size, but not in the right way. I had a big upper body at the expense of slouched shoulders, inflexibility and becoming a nonfunctional mover with a weak lower body. Getting into strength and conditioning gave me a much needed kick up the backside, I stopped listening to your average commercial gym know it all and started listening, talking to and learning from the professionals. Eighteen months down the line I have learned a lot with still a lot to learn, however I think I won't ever be the finished article as I will always be striving to better myself. Hence the program you are reading now. This program is pretty generic and can be applied to people wanting to improve high intensity/intermittent sport performance or just to get in shape. But mainly this program is aimed at people who want results. Hopefully the program will be challenging. The harder you work, the greater the results.

Next Level Level One

Equipment
The main equipment needed to complete the program are power rack, barbell, weight plates, dumbbells and medicine balls. If your gym doesn't have a power rack and barbell don't use anything as a substitute, substitute your gym for a better one. Therabands and foam rollers are also useful for your stability/mobility work, if your gym does not have these there are plenty of retailers online.

Your Strength Program

Training for Hypertrophy
The non-scientific and most simplistic way to define hypertrophy training is training to gain muscle size. This consists of high volume repetitions (6-12 reps) at a moderate intensity (60-70% of your one-repetition max. (1RM)). But to keep it simple, most hypertrophy work will be done by completing 8 repetitions with the biggest possible weight (with good form, of course). As the old clich goes "no pain, no gain".

Training for Strength

When developing strength, the ideal repetitions are between 3-5 for 3-5 sets at an intensity of 75-85% 1RM. I'm leaving it to the reader when to fluctuate between intensities, but DO NOT MAX OUT EVERY DAY, to make gains work hard and recover well.

Next Level Level One

Your Conditioning Program

Building an Aerobic Base
I am a big believer in high-intensity conditioning when it comes to training for fat-loss and sport performance. However, before we can start trying different methods, you should build up an aerobic base to work from. This will consist of gradually building up endurance and clocking the miles. Get the boring stuff out of the way so you can start smashing some higher intensity, more exciting training.

High-Intensity Conditioning
In high-intensity conditioning, there are many different methods you can perform, fluctuating between volumes, intensities and work to rest ratios. Here's a few that are in the program

Fartlek Training
Fartlek is a blend of continuous and interval training aiming to develop both aerobic and anaerobic energy pathways. This requires the participant to work at different intensities, the sprint to jog ratio will become more intense. What does Fartlek actually mean? Well it's "speed play" in Swedish.

Interval Training
Interval training is a discontinuous training method working off short, high-intensity bout of exercise followed by a recovery period involving either rest or low-intensity exercise. The interval training in the program starts with a 1:2 work to total rest ratio, working towards a 1:1.

The Tabata Method

This is a popular method as it is well known as the "four-minute fat burner". Often done with resistance exercise, this program will utilise the Tabata method through sprinting for 20 seconds, total rest for 10 seconds, repeated another 7 times.

Next Level Level One

Training to Improve Acceleration
Acceleration is defined as the rate at which the velocity of a body changes with time or basically an increase in speed. You can keep accelerating up to 40-m, therefore it is likely to be utilized more than max speed in your respected sports (except if its the 100-m you are training for). During the last 6-weeks of the program I have implemented field drills and hill sprints to develop acceleration. These sessions aim to develop acceleration and should not be used as a conditioning stimulus, so allow plenty of rest time for good quality sprints.

Prehab Methods
Static Stretching
I am sure that everyone reading this program has performed a static stretch in their lifetime, however many people utilise them at the wrong time for the wrong reasons. Static stretching may cause short-term declines in force production and rate of force development. Many people believe that static reduce injury when performed before exercise, however this is supported by little or no research. In this program I have chosen to use static stretching in the cool down to focus on relaxing and lengthening the muscles to increase flexibility, range of motion and help reduce DOMs (delayed on-set muscle soreness). Flexibility is important as the more muscles we activate the better, as well as preventing injuries in the long term. Here are the stretches for the main muscle groups..

Next Level Level One

Quadriceps Hamstrings Hip Flexor

Gluteus Maximus and Medius

Pectorals Major

Gastrocnemius / Soleus

Latissmus Dorsi

Erector Spinae

Adductors (Groin)

Next Level Level One

Dynamic Mobility Exercises
Dynamic mobility exercises are used during a warm-up to stimulate the nervous system, muscles, tendons and joints in a manner that is appropriate for the subsequent activity. The exercises used in the warm-ups are demonstrated in the core and activation section of the exercise manual on pages

Foam Roller, Why and How Do We Use It?

The foam roller is often dubbed as "the poor mans massage" as it is an effective way to eliminate and prevent muscle knots. Direct pressure on the muscle using bodyweight onto the foam roller can help eliminate knots to prevent and treat injuries, as well as improving flexibility and stabilisation. I'm not going to demonstrate every move as it is a pretty simple method, just roll the foam roller under each muscle group until you find a tender area, and then maintain pressure on the area for 30-60 seconds. However I will mention the dreaded IT band The IT band (IT = Iliotibial for those who are interested) is a long muscle along the outside of your quadriceps that connects the hips and knees. A lot of athletes have tight IT bands due to overuse and the difficulty in stretching them, this may cause lateral knee pain and anterior pelvic tilt. It's quite painful to foam roll the IT band, but make sure you do it, every day if need be! As you can tell by the look on my face it can be really uncomfortable no pain no gain!
Foam Rolling the IT band

Next Level Level One

Nutrition
Diets! One of the most over-complicated topic in the universe. I think nutrition has a massive effect on maximising ones potential, however I look pass the jargon and believe in keeping it as simple as possible. This makes it easier for me and most importantly for you the reader. Here are my top tips:

Eat natural whole meats and, most importantly, unprocessed!

It is ideal that your meat, fish, eggs and dairy products are as natural as possible as the less processed the better. Processed food often degrades in nutritional value. So that handy, cheap pack of ready cooked chicken bites is not a protein fix, it is just wasted calories. Don't be put off by full fat products, these are often better for you as they have a higher nutritional value.

Protein and fruit/vegetables every meal

Ensure that you have protein throughout the day as it improves protein synthesis, important in building muscle mass and in recovering from exercise. Go for the "little and often" approach as opposed to big bulks as this could lead to protein oxidation. It is also important during fat loss as it helps maintain muscle mass and reducing the feeling of hunger during the difficult days of fat loss. I could almost guarantee that most people reading this will have been told at some stage in their life that you need to eat your fruit and veg. Whoever told you was speaking sense. The government recommend the "5-a-day", however when exercising and dieting you need to consume between 7-10 portions as fruit/veg should be your main source of carbohydrates. Most importantly fruit and veg are very nutrient dense and calorie sparse.

Next Level Level One

Eat regular throughout the day and time your nutrition appropriately
I am not a huge believer in fasting, especially for sport performance. Having said that, I don't know much about it so I'm not going to advise people to do it. My suggestion is to eat more often to maintain energy and protein synthesis levels. This will also help prevent overeating at mealtime.

Never fear fats, they are your friend

The nutritional market is flooded with "low-fat" products, therefore many people fear consuming fat. However fats are essential to improve joint health, hormone production and are needed for fat-soluble vitamins (A,D,E and K). Saturated fats are also ok as long as they are from natural food sources rather than industrialised oils (e.g. vegetable oils.).

Use supplements appropriately and don't let them take over your diet
Nutritional supplements are a multi-billion pound industry and many people swear by them. However most supplements are overpriced, misused and not scientifically proven, making actual food sources a much better option. This does not mean I don't believe in the use of supplements, I just think there is certain supplements for certain times. DON'T OVER SPEND ON PROTEIN SUPPLEMENTS, they are all pretty much the same. However if you are a professional athlete get batch tested products to avoid any banned substances. Here are the supplements I have suggested and my advice how to consume them.

Whey Protein
Protein shakes are really good, quick and convenient as a post training beverage, however I would not advise using them as a meal replacement strategy, having food with a high quality protein source is always a better option. My advice is to get undenatured/unflavoured high quality protein.

10

Next Level Level One

BCAAs
If you watched the sports nutrition panorama program on BBC1 just before the Olympics you will already know Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) are very controversial supplements. They are often claimed to increase size and strength, however not many studies support this. Also some BCAA sumplements have a lower amino acid value than a portion of chicken, making real food a better option. However I have put it in the fat loss diet as Leucine (the most potent amino acid) has been found to stimulate the mTOR signalling pathways, this improves protein synthesis (good for building or maintaining muscle mass) and fat burning. When losing fat you are in a low-calorie state, so you can become prone to protein oxidation when training. So a zero-calorie source of amino acids before a workout seems to be a pretty good idea.

Omega-3
Omega-3 is an essential fatty acid often found in oily fish such as salmoln and mackrel. I would advise to consume 2-3 portions of oily fish a week to boost your fatty acid and protein intake. But by having 1-3 fish oil tablets a day could help you reap the rewards. Omega-3 supplementation can improve joint health, testosterone levels, rates of fat oxidation and overall physical and mental health.

Multi-Vitamins
These are exactly what they say on the tin, multiple vitamins. I would not depend on these as eating fruit and vegetables is much better (supplements < real food). However when leaning up you are likely in a negative energy balance which could lead to micro-nutrient deficiency, so multi-vitamins are quite handy. Micro-nutrients are especially important to support a females menstrual cycle.

Have a treat, but under moderation

No one is perfect therefore there wont be anyone with the perfect diet. I know if I did not have a treat once in a while I would go crazy and, come on, if Usian Bolt can have chicken nuggets I think us mortals can have an odd slice of cake here and there, just do not make a habit of it.

11

Next Level Level One

Monitoring Your Progress

It is vital that you monitor your training performance and aesthetic qualities to evaluate the full effects of the program. Make sure you keep updating your training log, end of phase and program results.

Understanding the Program

The program consists of 4 phases over a 5-month program, this is shown by the macro-cycle provided demonstrating what the goals and training stimulus of each phase. Each training phase will consist of a session plan, elements such as warm-up and cool-down are the same every session, whereas the core and resistance exercises are split over two sessions. We want to be hitting the weights a minimum of 4 times a week, so we alternate session 1 and session 2. There are many abbreviations of exercises in the program, I hope this list will help.

D. B. - Dumbbell S. B. - Swiss Ball S. A. - Single Arm S. L. - Single Leg D. S. - Drop Set B. O. R. - Bent-over Row S. A. B. O. R. - Single Arm Bent-over Row W. G. - Wide Grip

12

Next Level Level One

Supersets are implemented in most of the sessions, these are highlighted in the "exercise order" column

As seen in the picture above, "Split Squat" and "D.B. S.A. Shoulder Press" are numbered "4a" and "4b", this means the exercises will be completed as a superset with no rest between them. "Wide Grip Pullups" is the 3rd exercise and completed by a normal set because this has no "a" or "b". The program comes with a full manual of the resistance, core, mobility and foam rolling exercises. Any questions give us a tweet or post on my blog.

Time to take it to the Next Level

It's time to smash the program now, follow it by the dot and you should get results. This program lasts 20 weeks, however the change of phases should make it less tedius. By the time you finish the program hopefully there will be Level 2 available. Please give me feedback on the blog or on my twitter account. Train hard and stay dedicated.

13

Next Level Level One

Author: Danny Wilson

14