Movement Based Training

The number of exercise options available today can be dizzying. There are programs specific to just about all sub-categories of fitness though the top honors have to go to weight loss. How many “extreme” infomercial based programs being hocked by ripped trainers promising near instant success are out there? I’ve lost count. If you are just starting out where do you begin? Should you focus on strength, cardio, flexibility, stability? Yes, you should.

Movement Based Training

When it comes to getting in shape a movement based program will boil this insane amount of information down to a simple, functional base. At its most simple one should have a pushing exercise, a pulling exercise, a core exercise, and a lower body exercise. I generally add a total body exercise to this list, but for the absolute novice the first four may be plenty. If you take every exercise you’ve ever done, seen, or read about and look at the movement, ask yourself are you pushing something away from your body, pulling something toward your body, stabilizing/moving your core, or working the lower extremities? That’s all you really need to know, if it doesn’t fit into one of these categories then don’t worry so much about it. Accessory exercises (curls, triceps, etc.) can be added in later though they aren’t necessary. I also favor adding total body exercises to make workouts more challenging when applicable.

Total Body Exercises

To progress a movement based program total body, functional exercises are where it’s at. Farmer carries, sled work, battle ropes and such are fantastic ways to beef up a movement-based circuit. 

Battle ropes are a great total body exercise that add a big cardiovascular component to a strength program.

Farmer Carry - another great total body option that can be done with just about any heavy object.

Prowler sleds are an easy way to make a workout hard.  
Picture courtesy of Rise Above Performance Training.

You can splice in a couple of total body exercises between your movements to take a four-exercise circuit to a six-exercise circuit. For example, between a pull and lower body exercise you could add a battle rope station. After the lower body exercise perform a farmers carry before going to your pull exercise. You can also book end your workout with these sorts of exercises to make a challenging eight-station circuit. Here are a couple of possibilities:

4 station – push, lower body, pull, core

6 station – push, battle rope, lower body, farmer carry, pull, core

8 station – box jump, push, battle rope, lower body, farmer carry, pull, core, mountain climber

Other Considerations

Simplifying exercise into basic movements is a good start, but we also need to consider planes of motion to prevent burn out of certain movement patterns. 

Planes of motion - Sagittal = forward and backward, Frontal = side to side, Transverse = rotary

When selecting an exercise consider what plane of motion it is dominant in and vary this movement from exercise to exercise as well as workout to workout. For example, pushing and pulling can be done both sagittally (horizontal) and frontally (vertical). This type of variety applies to most exercises; lateral squats vs. traditional squats, rows vs. pull-ups, chest press vs. shoulder press, plank vs. pallof press and so on.

Recap

To recap, focus on basic movements when designing a workout; push, lower body, pull, core. When this becomes too easy start adding total body exercises to these basic four. After the number of exercises is right look at the planes of motion you’re working in. are there too many sagittal plane movements? This is real common so vary it up as much as possible while still using the four basic movement patterns.