Athletes are great at setting goals. Build strength. Gain muscle. Improve body comp. Picking a goal is easy, but actually following through long enough to actually get there is a different story. 

It’s easy to get fired up about a new program, a new season, or a big target. But goals only matter if they lead to consistent action. Without a real plan, accountability, and a system you can follow, even the best intentions lose momentum.

This article breaks down how to set goals that actually mean something, and more importantly, how to follow through on them.

Why Good Goals Still Go Nowhere

So what’s going on here? Why do we so often fail to follow through on goals that seem meaningful at the start?

Part of the problem is that even the word goal can start to feel vague—almost interchangeable with “hope” or “dream.” It becomes less about a concrete outcome and more about something you’d like to achieve in a perfect world, but probably won’t.

There’s also the issue of setting goals out of obligation instead of real personal buy-in. It’s easy to get caught up in what everyone else is chasing or to feel like you should have a big target just because that’s what people do. But goals set from external pressure rather than intrinsic motivation rarely last. Nobody achieves something meaningful by simply following the crowd.

At its core, meaningful change requires more than vision or good intentions. You can picture a better version of yourself. You can genuinely want progress. But wanting something and building toward it are two very different things. To actually reach a goal, you need a strategy for how to get there—and then you need to follow through on that plan.

Prioritize & Execute

Jocko Willink and Leif Babin say it best in their bestselling book Extreme Ownership: you must  prioritize and execute. You might have the best ideas in the world and be perfectly capable of deciding which one is the most pressing. But if you don’t go out and actually do the thing, it’s just talk.

Get Smart: Start With a Clear Target

A goal should do one thing: give direction to your training.

If it’s too broad (“get stronger,” “get in shape”), it won’t translate into action. If it’s too rigid or unrealistic, it won’t hold up when life inevitably gets in the way. This is where SMART goals can help. 

Here’s how SMART goals work:

• Specific – What exactly are you going to achieve? So for example, if you’re a rower, simply saying, “I want to row faster” isn’t going to cut it. Clearly stating, “I want to row a 6:40 2K” is much better.
• Measurable – What are a few simple data points you can use to track your progress and, if necessary, adjust the final goal?
• Achievable – It has become cool to post aphorisms like “Anything is possible” on Instagram, but while we’re all in favor of positivity, it’s actually untrue. If you currently squat 200 pounds and want to hit 300 by the end of the year, go at it. Wanna bend the bar with 800 pounds? Probably not going to happen in 12 months.
• Relevant – Why do you want to hit this target and how, as my co-author Fergus Connolly says, will it affect the scoreboard on game day? Don’t pick some arbitrary goal, but one that will actually improve your overall performance or life.
• Time-bound – What’s the final deadline to achieve the goal, and what are some milestone dates along the way?

Who Are Your People?

Once you’ve tested the integrity of your goals by running them through the SMART filter, it’s time to start on the road to actually achieving them.

A lot of people use fitness trackers to monitor their progress, but research has shown that this kind of extrinsic motivation falls flat after a while, with one study concluding that people who used a wearable for a year didn’t improve their health any more than those who went device-free.

A better option? Get a friend or family member to keep you on the hook. If you know a friend is going to come to your house at 6 AM every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to pick you up for a joint gym session, you’ll most likely shake off sleepiness and get your butt out the front door. Whereas when that alarm goes off and you’re going alone, that snooze button will seem so much more tempting.

As the old African poem goes, “If you want to go quickly, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

Seek Out a Sensei 

In The Karate Kid (the Ralph Macchio one, not the Jaden Smith version), our protagonist starts trying to solve his bullying problem by doing karate from a book. But unless you’re self-appointed jiu-jitsu black belt JP Sears, you can’t use a book or YouTube video to take a shortcut to your end goal. If Daniel had kept going down that path, Johnny would’ve kept kicking his ass. What he needed was the tutelage of Mr. Miyagi to guide him.

Same goes for you. Whether it’s in-person or virtually, a coach can provide the kind of expertise you need not only to obtain a specific goal, but also to develop complementary skills that will serve you well long after you’ve achieved it.

Going back to our squat example, an expert lifting coach won’t just help you pack pounds on the bar, but also help improve your movement quality, mechanics, programming, and recovery, all of which will mean far more in the long run than you being able to move more plates up and down. If you want to invest in yourself, pony up for some high-quality coaching.

Sort Out Your Systems

Another way to make sure you don’t join the majority who quickly abandon their goals is to put systems in place to help you succeed. Yeah, I know I just took a shot at the limitations of wearable tech (which happens when you write a book called Unplugged), but certain technologies can help you outline and stick to your plan.

For example, Train Heroic provides daily workouts and gives you a level of on-the-go accountability that can augment that of your teammates, friends, and so on. It’s a simple binary – did you do the work or didn’t you? If it’s the former more often than not, you’re much more likely to hit or even exceed the target you set.

And if you find yourself starting to slip (don’t do that!), then either ask your partner or coach to help. Or look to a master motivator like Jocko Willink to recapture your mojo.

See Your Future, Be Your Future

In the clamor and chaos of our busy lives, it’s all too easy to let our goals recede in the rearview mirror as time goes on. To prevent this from happening, keep them front and center in a different kind of mirror.

Let’s hear from former Navy SEAL David Goggins, who knows a thing or two about ongoing motivation. “Write all your insecurities, dreams, and goals on Post-its and tag up your mirror,” Goggins writes in his book Can’t Hurt Me. “Each step, each necessary point of self-improvement, should be written on its own note. For example, if you’re trying to lose 40 pounds, your first Post-it may be to lose two pounds in the first week. Once that goal is achieved, remove the note and post the next goal of two to five pounds until your ultimate goal is realized.”

Such tactics didn’t just help Goggins go from a 297-pound “depressed, overweight young man with no future” into a shredded SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller, but also powered him to become an endurance athlete Outside declared to be the “Fittest (Real) Man in America.”

If visualization is good enough for Goggins, it’s good enough for you and me.

Commit!!

Are you in, or are you out? There’s no point in stating a goal and then pursuing it half-heartedly. That’s just a waste of your time. If you are going to summit the mountain (literally or metaphorically), having the right people, the best coaching, and the fanciest systems in place is going to help, but it’s not everything.

Simply put, nobody can do the work for you. It’s going to be on you to show up day after day and put in the effort. Then to get sufficient recovery so you can show up tomorrow and do it again. That’s going to take willpower, determination, and conviction. As Goggins writes, “I hope you’re ready. It’s time to go to war with yourself.” 

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You’ve programmed the perfect session… only for your athlete to DM you five minutes before training:

“Hey coach, the squat racks are all taken.”

“My gym doesn’t have that piece of equipment.”

“My knee is feeling a little spicy today.”

Exercise swaps are a normal part of coaching. The goal being to preserve the stimulus as closely as possible while adapting to the athlete’s situation.

With TrainHeroic’s new Coach Suggested Swaps feature, you can now attach up to three alternative exercises to any movement in your library. That means athletes can quickly pivot to a coach-approved option without losing the intent of the session.

Below are some practical swap ideas for common compound lifts. Grab your laptop and your coffee, and start adding your swaps into your programs…so you can cut down on the messages from your athletes in the future. 

1. Back Squat

Primary stimulus: Bilateral squat strength, quad-dominant lower body

Suggested swaps:

• Front Squat – Keeps the squat pattern while shifting the load anteriorly and increasing quad demand.
• Goblet Squat – Great when barbells aren’t available; still reinforces depth and upright posture.
• Zercher Squat – Maintains a similar movement pattern while challenging the core and upper back.

These swaps maintain the squat pattern and keep the lower-body strength stimulus intact. For some ideas, check out this blog: 5 Squat Alternatives That Don’t Use a Barbell.

2. Deadlift

Primary stimulus: Posterior chain strength, hip hinge

Suggested swaps:

• Trap Bar Deadlift – Often easier on the lower back while preserving heavy hinge loading.
• Romanian Deadlift – Reduces knee bend and emphasizes hamstrings and glutes.
• Barbell Hip Thrust – Maintains heavy posterior chain loading when pulling from the floor isn’t ideal.

These options still train powerful hip extension, which is the core goal of deadlifting.

3. Bench Press

Primary stimulus: Horizontal pressing strength

Suggested swaps:

• Dumbbell Bench Press – Same pressing pattern with added stability demand.
• Push-Up – A simple bodyweight alternative that still trains horizontal pressing.
• Floor Press – Great when a bench isn’t available and helpful for limiting shoulder range of motion.

All three preserve the pressing stimulus while accommodating equipment limitations.

4. Pull-Up

Primary stimulus: Vertical pulling strength

Suggested swaps:

• Chin-Up – Very similar movement with slightly more biceps involvement.
• Lat Pulldown – Good option when an athlete can’t perform full bodyweight reps yet.
• Band-Assisted Pull-Up – Maintains the same pattern while reducing load.

These keep the vertical pull pattern intact while adjusting difficulty.

5. Barbell Overhead Press

Primary stimulus: Vertical pressing strength

Suggested swaps:

• Dumbbell Shoulder Press – Same pattern with greater unilateral stability demand.
• Push Press – Allows athletes to use leg drive to move heavier loads.
• Landmine Press – A joint-friendly pressing option with a slightly angled path.

These variations maintain the vertical pressing stimulus while offering different loading strategies.

6. Barbell Row

Primary stimulus: Horizontal pulling, upper-back strength

Suggested swaps:

• Single-Arm Dumbbell Row – Allows heavier loading with more stability support.
• Chest-Supported Row – Removes lower-back fatigue while targeting the upper back.
• Seated Cable Row – Controlled horizontal pulling with consistent tension.

Each option preserves the horizontal pull pattern and upper-back engagement.

Why Smart Swaps Matter

When athletes have to improvise substitutions on the fly, they sometimes choose movements that don’t match the original training goal. Suggested swaps solve that problem.

By pre-selecting alternatives inside TrainHeroic, you can:

• Maintain the intent of the program
• Help athletes adapt to equipment limitations
• Offer regression or progression options
• Keep athletes training even when conditions aren’t perfect

And most importantly, it keeps your programming coherent, even when athletes need to make adjustments.

Because everyone knows the best training plan is the one athletes can actually stick to.

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Landmines: More Than a Side Dish

The landmine is often used in sports performance and fitness training as an auxiliary tool. The range of motion required makes it a great functional tool for improving core strength and rotation.

But the landmine shouldn’t be looked at as just a “side dish” training tool. It’s breakfast, lunch, and a full-course dinner that can be used as a primary exercise for anyone training to build total body strength.

The versatility of the landmine allows you to customize and build strength in multiple muscle groups. Different variations improve your ability to perform other movements with the following requirements:

• Explosiveness
• Healthy knees (squatting or lunging)
• Pushing
• Pulling
• Hip/Hamstring strength
• Rotational/core power

These six powerful landmine exercises each focus on one of these areas, allowing you to focus on specific aspects of your training and make some serious gains.

6 Exercises to Master the Landmine

For Explosive Power

Landmine Rotational Clean

This one can be a bit tricky since you have to start sideways to the main handle. Explode up with your inside hand and rotate your body around toward the landmine in one fluid motion.

For Healthy Knees (and Better Squats)

Landmine Squat

With feet set slightly wider than hip-width apart and the war hammer handle held at your sternum, complete a full squat and stand back up.

For Pressing Power

Landmine Push Press

Stagger your feet (back foot on the same side as your hand that’s pressing) and quickly dip your hips while pushing and pressing at the same time. Completing both arms is one set.

For Pulling Strength

Landmine Single-Arm Split-Stance Bent Over Row

With staggered feet and slight lean, row the landmine front handle to the side of your body. Completing both arms is one set.

For Hip Stability and Beefy Hams

Landmine Single-Leg RDL

Standing tall with your hand on the handle, move your inside leg backward as your body tilts forward. Your outside leg should feel the action in the hip/hamstring area.

For a more in-depth guide on this movement, check out this blog: Single Leg Landmine Romanian Deadlift for a Pumped-up Peach and Stable Hips.

For Washboard Abs & Core Strength

Landmine Anti-Rotation

Square your feet and face your body toward the bar with both hands on the handle. Extend the bar overhead and slowly rotate the handle down toward your right side without rotating your body. Then rotate back to the top. Repeat with the opposite side.

1. Landmine Rotational Clean 5x4x3x3
2. Landmine Squat 8x7x6x5
3. Landmine Push Press 8x7x6x5
4. Landmine 1-Arm Split Bent Row 8x7x6x5
5. Landmine 1-Leg RDL 8x8x8x8
6. Landmine Anti-Rotation 10x10x10x10

If the movements in your current routine are feeling a little stale, consider subbing in one (or all) of these six landmine exercises for total strength and the body of a beast.

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Go until it feels tough!

PUSH HARDER!

…but what does this really mean? How is it possible to quantify words like “tough” or “hard?” How do you know when a set is heavy enough to produce results but not so heavy that it risks injury or burnout?

That is where the Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale comes in. It’s a simple yet powerful tool that helps you measure effort, adjust your training, and communicate with yourself (or your coach) about how a workout actually feels.

RPE isn’t exclusive to elite athletes or professional lifters. Whether you’re training for strength, size, endurance, or just general fitness, understanding RPE can help you train smarter, stay consistent, and make real progress. 

In this guide, we’ll break down the RPE scale, why it works, and how to use it effectively in your training. Plus, we will provide tips on how to track these metrics, especially using tools like Athlete Pro to track your effort over time.

To begin, let’s discuss what RPE is and how to measure it.

What Is RPE?

RPE stands for “Rate of Perceived Exertion.” It’s a way to rate how hard an exercise feels on a scale of 1 to 10.  

RPE can be used in a couple of different ways. You can use it to replace percentages in programming to indicate how hard or easy a movement should feel. It can also serve as a scale to communicate with a coach about how hard an exercise was, effectively helping regulate intensity for future sessions.

Unlike lifting percentages, RPE is a subjective scale that indicates how hard a working set should feel based on perceived effort. For example, two people could be equal in strength and deadlift 500 pounds. If they are both prescribed to deadlift 70% of their max, which is 350 pounds, they might not have the same RPE ranking. One might find the percentage too low, while the other might find it too high. This can be due to factors such as rest, recovery, nutrition, or even variables such as muscular endurance versus muscular power. 

One perk of percentages is that they are a consistent variable in training. However, not every athlete is the same on paper, so there might be times when training has to adjust based on rating on perceived exertion. That’s when using RPE in programming is useful. 

As mentioned, the RPE scale is subjective and may not be used consistently. That’s where the science of RPE comes in; it’s important to understand how to use this scale to ensure consistency and reliability. 

The Science Behind Perceived Exertion

As noted earlier, RPE is a subjective measure of strength training. What if I am resilient and tough, who loves the challenge of training? My tolerance might be elevated, making it hard to rank exercise as RPE8, RPE9, or RPE10.

While RPE is subjective, it relies heavily on the consistency of the athlete’s feedback. When you honestly rate your effort over time, patterns emerge that can help guide training. For example, if you consistently report an RPE 8 for a certain squat weight, you or your coach can understand that this weight is challenging but manageable. So if the same set feels like an RPE 10 one day, it might indicate fatigue, stress, poor sleep, or other factors affecting performance.

From a scientific perspective, your central nervous system (CNS) and your muscles respond not just to weight, but also to the cumulative stress you experience in life. Fatigue, lack of sleep, emotional stress, and prior training all impact how a weight feels. RPE provides a real-time snapshot of these variables, letting you adjust effort without overloading your system.

RPE can be a very important tool when balancing overall life stress, especially as you start lifting at higher percentages. The higher the intensity of exercise becomes, the more sensitive you are to other variables outside of your training, such as sleep, stress, and much more.

While the number itself is subjective, RPE becomes a powerful tool when you are consistent in how you evaluate and communicate effort. Over time, it can help predict performance trends, adjust programming, and optimize recovery to improve performance.

Using the RPE Scale When Lifting

To make RPE actionable, here’s a simple breakdown:

The “feels like” column uses the Reps in Reserve (RIR) concept, which tells you how many more reps you could perform with good form at the end of a set. This idea of reps in reserve is a great tool to “quantify” your RPE rank and perhaps make movement not as subjective. 

F example, if you’re bench pressing 225 pounds for eight reps and it feels like you could only do one more rep, that’s roughly RPE 9. If the same weight feels manageable for two more reps, that’s closer to RPE 8.

For anyone who is using RPE to rank exercise intensity, I suggest using this ranking system for your last working set. So if you are doing bicep curls for five sets, rank the last set of intensity to consistently in your training.

Why RPE Matters for Lifters

RPE provides several benefits that traditional percentage-based programming alone cannot:

1. Adjusts for daily variability
2. Encourages smart progression
3. Builds self-awareness
4. Communicates effort to a coach

The Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE) scale offers several advantages that traditional percentage-based programming alone cannot match. One of the biggest benefits is its ability to adjust for daily variability. Factors like stress, poor sleep, or subpar nutrition can all affect how strong you feel on a given day. 

With RPE, your training can adapt to these fluctuations, allowing you to push hard when you’re fresh and ease up when your body needs recovery. As a coach, I let athletes know that during a training session, the goal is to reach a specific RPE value. I might prescribe them to lift 83% of their one-repetition max, but I might also tell them the goal is for it to “feel” like an RPE8. If it feels too heavy, dial the weight back. Or if the weight “feels” too light, they can go heavier to meet that prescribed intensity of exertion.

Over time, lifters develop a deeper understanding of their own effort levels, fatigue, and capacity. Additionally, RPE serves as a valuable communication tool between athletes and coaches, especially in remote coaching settings. It gives coaches a clear picture of how each session feels, allowing for more precise adjustments to training plans. 

Essentially, RPE is a flexible, adaptable tool that lets you train effectively no matter the circumstances of your day.

Which Is Better: RPE or Percentages?

When it comes to training intensity, the debate between RPE and percentage-based methods often comes down to one question: which is better for long-term progress? 

Percentage-based training has been a staple in strength programs for decades because it provides clear structure and measurable targets. By basing workouts on a percentage of your one-rep max, athletes can easily plan progressive overload and track strength gains over time. However, percentages assume that your performance is always consistent. But in reality, life factors like stress, fatigue, and sleep can dramatically affect how heavy a given weight feels on any given day.

That’s where the RPE scale offers an advantage. RPE introduces flexibility by allowing you to adjust the weight based on how difficult a set feels in the moment. For instance, what’s programmed at 70% of your max might feel like a smooth RPE7 one day and a grinding RPE9 the next, depending on recovery and readiness. This adaptability helps athletes avoid pushing too hard when their bodies aren’t prepared and ensures they still get quality work in when conditions aren’t ideal.  

The truth is, neither system is best. They are simply different tools that work best together. Many successful programs use percentages to set a foundation for training volume and progression, while RPE fine-tunes those numbers based on real-time feedback. This hybrid approach balances structure with flexibility, ensuring your training stays consistent while still adapting to how your body feels each day. 

By blending both methods, lifters can achieve the best of both worlds with predictable progress backed by self-awareness and smart recovery management.

How Do I Use RPE?

Using RPE effectively takes some practice, but once you understand how to apply it, it becomes one of the most powerful tools for managing training intensity and recovery. 

Instead of simply following numbers on a spreadsheet, RPE allows you to make real-time adjustments based on how you feel that day while still maintaining a structured plan. The key is learning to balance your target RPEs with honest self-assessment and consistent tracking so your feedback remains accurate over time.

Here’s how to approach it practically:

• Pick a target RPE per set: For heavy, strength-focused work, aim for an RPE between 7–9, which keeps you close to your limit without overreaching. For back-off sets or accessory movements, a lighter RPE of 6–7 helps build volume and technique without unnecessary fatigue.
• Track your reps in reserve (RIR): At the end of your top (heaviest) set, estimate how many reps you could have completed before failure. For example, an RPE 8 means you had about two reps left in the tank.
• Adjust the load as needed: If a set feels easier than expected, increase the weight next session. If it feels much harder, decrease slightly to stay within your target RPE range.
• Factor in fatigue and stress: Don’t ignore outside influences like poor sleep, long workdays, or soreness. If you’re feeling run down, it’s perfectly fine to aim for a slightly lower RPE while still progressing productively.Pro tip: leave these as notes for a workout session to understand why you perhaps underachieved in performance. 
• Log your RPE consistently: The more you record and review your RPE data, the better your understanding becomes of your strength trends, recovery needs, and overall readiness.

Common Mistakes When Using RPE

Even though RPE is simple, people often misuse it by:

• Being dishonest
• Ignoring trends
• Misjudging intensity as a beginner

Being Dishonest

Even though RPE is a simple and effective system, many lifters misuse it without realizing it. One of the most common mistakes is being dishonest with effort levels. Some lifters inflate their RPE to make a session seem harder, while others downplay it to look stronger on paper. Either way, inaccurate reporting skews the feedback loop between athlete and coach, making it difficult to track real progress. 

Ignoring Trends

Another issue is ignoring long-term trends. RPE isn’t just about rating individual workouts; it’s about identifying patterns in how your body responds over time. If your RPE scores are consistently higher than expected for the same loads, that could indicate fatigue, poor recovery, or a need to adjust your program. On the other hand, if a given weight starts feeling easier week after week, that’s a clear sign of progress. Tracking RPE consistently helps you recognize these trends and make smarter training decisions instead of reacting to isolated sessions.

Misjudging Intensity as a Beginner

A third common problem involves misjudging beginners. New lifters often have a hard time estimating RPE accurately because they haven’t yet learned what true muscular failure or near-failure feels like. For them, every heavy set might feel like an RPE 10 simply because they’re not accustomed to hard effort. This is where good coaching and feedback become invaluable. Make sure that as a coach or as an athlete, to be patient during this initial stage of understanding and with time, you’ll become more accustomed with the intensity of exercise and being able to rate your performance more accurately. 

Top Tip: Track RPE for Progress 

One of the best ways to make RPE actionable is by tracking it consistently. Tools like Athlete Pro in the TrainHeroic app make this easy. You can log each set’s weight, reps, and RPE, and then review trends over weeks or months.

RPE is more than just a number; it’s the connection between how you feel and how you perform in the gym. Instead of following rigid percentages, RPE lets you train based on your actual effort, helping you adjust for daily factors like stress, fatigue, or lack of sleep. It’s a flexible system that helps prevent burnout, manage intensity, and ensure that every session reflects your true performance capacity.

RPE can also improve communication between you and your coach. Whether you’re training in person or remotely, it gives your coach valuable insight into how your sessions actually feel. This feedback loop helps fine-tune your programming, making your training more effective and personalized.

Ultimately, progress isn’t just about how much weight you lift, but how consistently and intelligently you approach your training. By using RPE, logging it regularly with tools like Athlete Pro, and adjusting based on honest feedback, you’ll build not only strength but also awareness and longevity in your lifting journey. 

Lift smarter, and listen to your body. 

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When you’re pushing for PRs in the gym, there’s one variable that matters just as much as your sets and reps: fuel. You can follow the best program in the world, but if your nutrition isn’t dialed in, your progress will reflect that (along with your energy and recovery). 

Fortunately, nutrition-tracking apps have come a long way in the past few years, simplifying a previously tedious and painful process. Whether you want precise macro data, simple meal logging, or a fully guided diet strategy, these tools help you stay accountable and fuel your training the right way. 

Better yet, TrainHeroic’s Nutrition tool (available for Athlete Pro users on iOS), can pull your macro/calorie data from your nutrition app of choice directly into TrainHeroic, making it easy to see how your fueling links to your training load, readiness, and performance. Click here to learn how to sync your app to TrainHeroic. 

Below are the top five nutrition-tracking apps we recommend, and the best way to use them alongside TrainHeroic.

1. MyFitnessPal

Best for: Everyday athletes who want a massive food database and quick logging.

Why athletes love it:
MyFitnessPal has one of the largest food libraries on the planet, plus barcode scanning, meal copying, and macro breakdowns. It’s fast, flexible, and beginner-friendly.

How it connects to TrainHeroic:
In TrainHeroic, open the “Daily Nutrition” card → grant permission (“Turn On All”) to let TrainHeroic read your Apple Health nutrition data.

Pro tip: Export weekly macro averages and upload them straight into TH for a clean, coach-friendly snapshot.

2. Cronometer

Best for: Athletes who want micronutrient detail, not just macros.

Why athletes love it:
Cronometer tracks vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and more. If you’re optimizing recovery, hormonal health, weight-class performance, or energy levels, Cronometer’s accuracy is unmatched.

How it connects to TrainHeroic:
In TrainHeroic, you’ll follow the same three-step setup: Daily Nutrition card → Permissions → make sure Cronometer is allowed in Apple Health as a data source.

Pro tip: Use Cronometer’s detailed habit/logging (like micronutrients and hydration), then in TrainHeroic mark how you felt and trained that day. Over time you’ll see whether higher protein or particular micronutrient intake aligns with better performance.

3. MacroFactor

Best for: Athletes who prefer an adaptive macro-based plan..

Why athletes love it:
MacroFactor uses intelligent algorithms that adjust your macro goals based on actual intake and weight trends. It’s steady, flexible, and based on science.

How it connects to TrainHeroic:
Setup in TrainHeroic identical: enable “Daily Nutrition” card and grant TrainHeroic access to Apple Health nutrition data.

Pro tip: Use MacroFactor for the weekly “target vs actual” view, then in TrainHeroic compare weekly macro consistency to week-over-week training load and readiness.

4. FoodNoms

Best for: iOS athletes who want clean design, automation, and habit-tracking built into their nutrition.

Why athletes love it:
FoodNoms offers a simple interface, barcode scanning, accurate food entries, and customizable nutrition goals. It also tracks habits like water intake, fiber, and protein, perfect for athletes looking to build consistency without the clutter.

How it connects to TrainHeroic:
In TrainHeroic: Daily Nutrition card → grant permission → ensure FoodNoms is listed as a health data source under Apple Health.

Pro tip: Sync FoodNoms with Apple Health and use your training load inside TH to determine which days need higher intake.

5. Lose It!

Best for: Athletes who want simple, lightweight nutrition tracking (especially during weight-loss phases).

Why athletes love it:
Lose It! Helps athletes stay consistent with their calories goals without overthinking it. It’s great for athletes who in a cutting phase or recomposition period. 

How it connects to TrainHeroic:
In TrainHeroic: Daily Nutrition card → grant permission → ensure FoodNoms is listed as a health data source under Apple Health.

Pro tip: Use TrainHeroic’s long-term weight and performance data to identify the ideal calorie range for muscle building vs. fat loss.

How Nutrition + TrainHeroic Work Together

Even without direct integrations, nutrition tracking and TrainHeroic complement each other perfectly:

• Track your food intake in your favorite app.
• Log your training, readiness, and performance in TrainHeroic.
• Upload or enter weekly nutrition summaries into TH.
• Spot patterns between fueling, recovery, and performance.

This creates actionable insights for both athletes and coaches, something you can’t get from a nutrition app or a training program alone.

Which App Should You Use?

Pick the one that fits your style, then pair it with TrainHeroic to fuel smarter and train at your best.

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It’s that time of the year to wreak havoc and prepare for a massive winter bulk! But wait, what is a winter bulk? What does it take, and how do we achieve it?

Joseph Lucero (CSCS), owner of Harvesting Strength, is a powerlifter and strongman coach with years of practical S&C experience in high school, collegiate, and professional settings. His programs have produced several PL and strongman championships. In this article, he talks about the winter bulk, what it is, and all the top tips for building a dominant presence that will overwhelm the dinner table discussion this holiday season. Check out his sample workout at the end of this article!

What’s a Winter Bulk?

A “winter bulk” typically refers to a time of the year when athletes, especially those involved in strength training, aim to increase muscle mass during the winter months. This concept is rooted in the idea that cold winter weather contributes to a better bulk.

During the winter months, we begin to embrace the holiday season with many holiday traditions. Many holiday traditions involve two things — excess calories and a surplus of rest. When you merge these two concepts, you create an anabolic opportunity that lifters dream of!

This opportunity for growth is proven scientifically as well. A study by Harvard University found a 0.5% increase in body weight 10 days after Christmas. This proves the holiday season to be the right time for you to leverage growth for a better bulk.

But why would someone want to perform a winter bulk? Well, with the conditions above proving to be true, this is a time of the year when you’re in a caloric surplus allowing you to lift with more intensity and build a bigger physique. A bigger physique isn’t a bad thing either. The more muscle tissue you grow, the better your metabolism becomes and hormone regulation stays on track.

With that being said, it would be foolish to pass up this opportunity! Why not give yourself a priceless gift this holiday season — the gift of better health and a massive physique?

So while you’re sipping your eggnog and baking treats to get on Santa’s nice list, grab your notebook and prepare to take some notes!

How to Do A Winter Bulk

The recipe for a successful winter bulk consists of extra calories, rest, and a ton of lifting. Getting calories and rest is the easy part! During the winter, don’t completely limit yourself from all the enjoyable foods that come with holiday traditions. I’m not saying you need to eat everything in sight! I’m saying that if you do plan to indulge in some tasty treats, strategically use those additional calories to fuel your next workout session.

When it comes to calories, especially those from carbohydrates, it’s proven to have a positive effect on bouts of heavy resistance training. This study about carbs shows that when a lifter prioritizes carbohydrate consumption, they perform better with their resistance training. In the presence of carbohydrates, a lifter can take on a tough workout that could be the catalyst for muscular growth and development.

This is one of the big reasons why it’s important to embrace a bulk during the winter months. Taking on excessive calories, in particular carbohydrates, is a key determinant of resistance exercise and intensity. Think about it like this:

The harder we can train, the more we can grow. 

But to build dense muscle, it’s not always about lifting heavy weights. If you want to build the most size, you need to lift heavy, and lift hard. What’s the difference between the two?

Lift Heavy

Lifting heavy means performing high-intensity compound movements that take immediate priority in your program. These types of movements consist of the squat, bench, deadlift, and overhead press. The benefit of lifting heavy compound movements is the amount of muscular recruitment within each exercise. The more muscle groups incorporated, the more metabolically exhausting your routine becomes.

The level of exhaustion in your routine is what helps build more muscle. It’s been countlessly documented in research that exhausting the muscle tissue is the spark needed to naturally raise testosterone and growth hormone levels for increasing muscular density. You can also train towards exhaustion with isolation exercises.

Using compound movements incorporates multiple joints and multiple muscle groups to help you feel tired quickly. This is what you want, though. Exhaust the body, then move into isolation exercises to focus development within certain muscle groups.

Lift Hard

After you lift heavy weight, you need to start making exercises harder using different tempos, variations, and volumes for exhaustion. Lifting heavy puts metabolic stress on the body, but you can’t maintain this intensity from the start of the workout to the end. Once you have completed your first few compound exercises, it’s important to use isolation movements (and some compound movements sparingly) and integrate different tempos, variations, and volumes to create stronger contractions on specific muscle groups you want to grow.

One of my favorite ways to make lifts harder is to use isolation exercises that require more “time under tension”. This time under tension puts a ton of stress on the working muscle by working it for a prolonged amount of time. An example of this would be doing chest flies for a specific tempo, such as “5-2-3-0”. These 4 values have to do with the 4 phases of movement:

• 5-second stretch of the chest
• 2-second pause at the bottom of the chest
• 3-second contraction to the top of the chest
• 0-second hold at the top of the chest

Manipulating the tempo of movement makes an exercise harder. Because the tempo makes the lift so hard, you might not need to lift as much weight. This is a great way to make sure you continue to exhaust the muscle without using too heavy of weight.

How to Train Both Hard & Heavy for Anabolic Success

When it comes to lifting heavy or lifting hard, neither is best. Merging both heavy and hard lifting is best for providing a better stimulus for growth. When considering these two concepts, try the following format:

• Heavy Compound Movement: 2-3 sets (primary focus is “strength”)
• Heavy Compound Variation: 3-5 sets (primary focus is “exhaustion”)
• Isolation Exercise: 3 sets
• Isolation Exercise: 3 sets
• Isolation Exercise: 3 sets

Starting with a heavy compound exercise recruits multiple muscle groups for a better level of exhaustion. The first compound lift should be with a focus on raw strength, then the second compound movement should be done with more volume to exhaust the anatomy. Then, isolating the muscle groups you want to grow the most afterward will help you target the exact area of the body you want to be the focus of your training session.

Benefits of a Winter Bulk

The benefits of a winter bulk are increasing your resting metabolic rate, improving strength, and providing hormone regulation for more normalcy within the holiday season. You learned earlier that the winter weather causes individuals to naturally gain weight.

Why not leverage this weight gain into something that can be beneficial? Why not use these additional holiday calories to add mass instead? Doing a bulking phase during the colder season makes a lot of sense.

Increased Metabolic Rate

One study found that increases in muscle mass contribute to an increase in resting metabolic rate. With a higher resting metabolism, you can expend more calories at rest. This could be helpful for those who are fearful of unhealthy weight gain during the winter season.

Improved Strength

One of my favorite quotes comes from a previous coach of mine. He told me “mass moves mass”, meaning that the more muscle you pack on, the more likely your strength increases. There could be some exceptions to this. However, I like my odds to bench press more if my body weight goes up. Who wouldn’t want a better bench!

Hormone Regulation

One study found that winter weight gain causes testosterone levels to decrease and estrogen levels to increase. Resistance training helps stabilize your hormones. This is a huge benefit for not just athletes, but anyone! Everyone should embrace their fitness this holiday season, especially resistance training.

How to Eat During a Winter Bulk

Eating during a winter bulk shouldn’t feel like punishment, because guess what? You can still have those tasty treats! However, your diet should be strategic, though. The holiday season is full of sugary treats, heavy meals, and comfort foods, and honestly, that’s part of the magic. The key isn’t that you must fully avoid these foods; it’s learning how to navigate them so they actually make you a stronger lifter.

Let’s break down how to eat during a winter bulk without letting things get out of control.

1. Make the Holiday Treats Your Fuel (When You Time Them Right)

Sugar snacks get a bad reputation, but in the context of a bulk, carbs can be your friend. Quick sugars can be a powerful pre-workout tool. If you know you’re training soon, having some holiday sweets before the session can actually help give you the energy you need to push harder. Think of it like this:

Christmas cookies → Fast carbs → Stronger lifts → Better stimulus → More muscle.

What you don’t want is to eat sweets at random times, get a blood sugar crash, and turn into a holiday sloth on the couch. Use them with intention, not impulse. It’s said that carbohydrates are the number one source of fuel for high intensity resistance training.

This is the perfect scenario for a strength athlete as their carbohydrate intake will help them perform high intensity workouts during their winter bulk.

A study showed that restrictions of carbohydrates could cause a reduction in performance. This means that you need to make sure you are hitting your macronutrient goals, and perhaps exceeding them. Make sure to not overdo it, though.

2. Cook With Better Fats to Support Hormones and Satiety

Winter bulks naturally bring a lot of high-calorie foods, but choosing quality fats can support your hormones and help keep you fuller for longer. Good fats to cook with:

• Olive oil
• Avocado oil
• Nuts & nut butters
• Whole eggs

These options keep your calories up without relying only on processed holiday junk. Better fats help with better hormone regulation for a better performance in the gym.

Pro Tip: When I make homemade macaroni and cheese for my family, I use half the portion of butter in our family recipe, and replace the other half with avocado oil. No one ever notices, and it still tastes delicious!

3. Protein Keeps Your Hunger in Check (and Your Muscle Growing)

The biggest mistake people make during a bulk is prioritizing every macronutrient except protein. But protein is what keeps you full, stabilizes blood sugar, and supports all that new tissue you’re trying to build. Aim to get protein at every meal, especially:

• Turkey, ham, or roast beef during holiday meals
• Greek yogurt or cottage cheese as quick snacks
• Protein shakes when you’re rushed
• Leftover holiday meats (the GOAT of convenience)

If you hit your protein target consistently, you’ll find you’re way less likely to overeat the foods that slow down progress.

Top Tips for a Winter Bulk

When working on your winter bulk, keep these top tips in mind!

Prioritize Compound Movements

Putting an emphasis on compound movements is crucial for a successful winter bulk. Compound movements are also termed “multi-joint” movements, meaning there are two or more joints being used. You are probably familiar with the main compound movements of the squat, bench, deadlift and overhead press. These tend to be popular movements in many programs, and rightfully so.

Compound movements provide an overloading stimulus — the more joints used, the more muscles used. The more muscle we can recruit, the more exhausting your effort becomes. Providing an exhaustive stimulus to the working muscle is the catalyst for growth. This is why compound movements need to take priority, especially at the beginning of your winter bulk workouts.

Embrace Carbohydrates (Within Reason)

Carbohydrates are the number one source of fuel for high intensity resistance training. Interestingly enough, carbohydrates tend to be the most accessible macronutrient in the holiday season. Take advantage of those holiday treats!

This study showed that restrictions of carbohydrates could cause a reduction in performance. Make sure you’re hitting your macronutrient goals, and perhaps exceeding them. Try not to go too far over for multiple days in a row. Work with a nutrition coach to get accurate macro numbers.

Lift More Often

During a winter bulk, you should aim to lift at least 3-5 times a week. I understand that is a big range of days, but those 3-5 days of lifting could be approached differently.

• If you are a busy person who can’t go to the gym often, perhaps you go 3 days a week but those sessions last longer.
• If you are someone who can go to the gym most days, perhaps you go 4-5 days a week but for shorter sessions.

Either way, you need to prioritize your strength training. Watch out for too much high intensity cardiovascular training, that could put you in a caloric deficit that would impact your bulking phase.

For those who want to continue cardiovascular training during a bulk, I would recommend low intensity cardiovascular training that is within 60-65% of their max heart rate.

How do you find your max HR? Generally:

• 220 – Age = Max Heart Rate

So this means if you are 30 years old, your max heart rate is 190 beats per minute, and 60-65% of this heart rate is 114-123 beats per minute. Anything higher than this would put your workout at an intensity that expends precious calories you could use for adding mass. This long, low intensity training prioritizes fat as a source of fuel. We want to spare all those extra carbohydrates for your heavy resistance training.

Hit Failure More Often

You need to hit failure in training to promote growth. Failure doesn’t need to happen in all aspects of your training, though. For compound movements, you want to work towards max effort by the third to fourth week of training. With your isolation movements, this is where you can hit failure more often and try to exhaust your muscle groups.

No one wants to be a failure this holiday season! However, being a failure in your workout is ideal. Fail in reps this holiday season, stud. But don’t fail and buy your spouse the wrong gift. Been there, done that!

Prioritize Rest

Rest is one of the most crucial parts to any training program. If you do not rest, you do not allow the body to repair itself from all the physical torment you put yourself through. During the holiday season, resting should be easier than ever. As noted in this study, due to the limited amount of sunlight, you’re more likely to rest more during the winter season.

This is the perfect condition, yet again, to embrace a bulk during the winter season.

A Sample Winter Bulking Plan

The following is a 4-day split to use this winter season to make gains and have a successful bulk! These workouts follow the guidelines discussed earlier with merging compound movements, isolation movements, and other characteristics of a successful bulking workout. Don’t forget to eat!

Day 1

For this leg workout, we are prioritizing the glutes, hamstrings and quadriceps to build some massive lower body muscles.

Day 2

This upper body workout focuses on the pecs, triceps, and front shoulders for sculpting a thicker upper body. Nothing is more intense than big bodacious pecs that spark conversation at the dinner table!

Day 3

This pull day will challenge your back, rear shoulders and glutes as well. We use the farmer walks to amplify the intensity of this workout to prepare you for all the bags you’ll carry with your winter shopping!

Day 4

This secondary press day will challenge your shoulders and biceps, giving you an armor of  muscle to protect you from the shoulder-to-shoulder traffic you’ll experience while shopping.

Final Thoughts

A winter bulk offers a strategic opportunity for strength training enthusiasts to optimize muscle growth. The holiday season’s excess calories and opportunities for rest create an ideal environment for a better bulk, supported by scientific evidence. If you’re scared of the winter bulk, you need to consider the multiple benefits that come with it.

Performing a winter bulk allows for an improved resting metabolic rate, increased strength, and valuable hormone regulation. A winter bulk also gives you a reason to embrace the additional calories this holiday season. So, this winter, give yourself the gift of massive strength and a more robust physique.

Sources

Effects of Carbohydrate Restriction on Strength Performance

The Effect of Carbohydrate Supplementation on Multiple Sessions and Bouts of Resistance Exercise

Holiday weight gain is a worldwide phenomenon, study suggests

Increasing muscle mass to improve metabolism

The effect of seasonal variation on sexual behaviors in males and its correlation with hormone levels: a prospective clinical trial

Winter, sleep and your circadian rhythms

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Nutrition tracking: loved by Type A athletes, loathed by everyone else. But it doesn’t have to feel like balancing your checkbook. With the right tools (and the right mindset), tracking becomes less about obsession and more about awareness.

What Gets Measured Gets Managed

Nutrition tracking: the thing everyone swears by for three weeks before quietly abandoning it like a New Year’s resolution. And yet, when done sensibly, it works. If you want to fuel performance, recover properly, or just stop kidding yourself about how much “a handful of nuts” really is, tracking is a useful tool. I’ve had clients across the spectrum use nutrition tracking to great effect. Some people are better at it than others, and if I’m really honest the people who are best at it are wired to be.

TrainHeroic’s Nutrition Tracking Integration

Here’s the good news: TrainHeroic now makes this less of a faff. Their new nutrition integration pulls your logged calories and macros into the same calendar as your training. That means you can see your squat PRs and your protein intake side by side, without juggling five apps or pretending you’ll “remember later.” If you’re serious about accuracy, having training and nutrition in one place is genuinely handy. It’s like finally putting the TV remote in the same room as the TV. Revolutionary.

Macro Targets: The Cheat Sheet

Here’s a rough guide to daily intake depending on your goals. Remember: these are ranges, not commandments carved into stone tablets.

BW = bodyweight

The Temporary Scaffold

As a coach, when I introduce tracking for my athletes it isn’t meant to be forever. Think of it as scaffolding: you use it to build awareness, then take it down once you’ve got the structure in place. After a few weeks, most athletes can eyeball a plate or meal plan on the door of the fridge and know if they’re in the ballpark. Really the goal is intuitive eating informed by experience, not a lifetime chained to a barcode scanner.

The Pitfalls (and Why They Matter)

Obsession: Some athletes spiral into number-crunching madness. Not only is this reeeeeaaally boring at dinner parties but can be deleterious to peoples’ mental health. Which is rarely good for smashing training goals.

Rebellion: Others refuse to think about food at all after historically burning out on tracking.

Gamification: Apps can turn eating into a points system. Fun for some, dangerous for others (especially younger athletes).

The Ball Ache Factor: Logging every crumb feels like admin. Ironically, the same people who say it’s too much effort to remember to track their food will happily and regularly post their avocado toast on Instagram. Not that I’m cynical.

Accuracy (or lack thereof): Studies consistently show people under-report their intake – sometimes by 20–50%. “unhelpful” foods (booze, biscuits and brownies) mysteriously vanish from logs, while “useful” foods (broccoli, blueberries and beans) magically multiply. Spoiler: that slice of cake you “forgot” to log still counts and the protein shake you had comes in 500ml portions not 250ml.

This doesn’t make tracking useless – it just means you should treat the numbers as estimates, not gospel. And this is where TrainHeroic’s integration shines: by putting nutrition data next to training data, you can spot trends even if the numbers aren’t perfect. If your logged intake is “low” and your recovery feels rubbish, the pattern matters more than the decimal points.

A Cheat Code: ChatGPT

Once you know your macros, you can outsource the grunt work. Try:

“Plan my meals this week. I’ve got £60, I’m allergic to dairy, my macros are 180P / 250C / 70F, and I already have chicken in the fridge.”

You’ll get a decent plan without needing to reinvent the wheel – or worse, Google “high protein snacks under 6 calories” at midnight.

I happily do this with a lot of my clients and make small tweaks to the plan as we go with some brilliant results. Somehow because my clients aren’t going off track on a plan that their coach made painstakingly in the wee hours of the night, but was instead written by a faceless AI robot, the feelings of despair when they go a little off plan aren’t nearly as damaging. They self correct much more effectively over the long term. It’s not that neither of us cares as much, we’re just grown ups who can do what we want at the end of the day.

5 Tips for Using a Tracker

1. Log as you go – bedtime logging is often just another lie you tell yourself in the bedroom.
2. Save common meals – you eat oats every morning, stop typing it out.
3. Don’t chase perfection – 80% accuracy is plenty. It’s probably more accurate than your tracking app at least.
4. Use it as feedback, not judgment – it’s data, not morality (unless you really look into where your food comes from, in which case it can get a little sketchy, but that’s another discussion).
5. Zoom out – nutrition is a long game. A 3500 kcal weekly surplus or deficit equals ~0.5 kg weight change. Today’s pizza won’t ruin you; today’s starvation won’t make you shredded.

Bottom line: Nutrition tracking is a tool, not a lifestyle. Use it to learn, then move toward eating with confidence and flexibility. And if you can’t be arsed? At least TrainHeroic makes it easier to pretend you are.

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Who doesn’t love hitting a good biceps workout and feeling that skin-splitting pump? The preacher curl is a great exercise for bulking up your biceps, but using the EZ bar isn’t the best option for everyone. To build juicy biceps without pissing off your elbow joint, follow this technique next time you do preacher curls.

Finding the Perfect Setup for Bigger Arms

The preacher curl is a super popular, time-tested exercise often used to round out a solid back/biceps or arms day. Typically, you load up the EZ curl bar that sits in the bar holder to perform this exercise. But I want to share a few tweaks for a better setup, one that is tailored to your body specifically and gets you beefier biceps without risking injury.

Your training age (the amount of time and years you spent working out, aka gym experience) dictates how tolerable the EZ bar biceps curl is for you. If you’ve been training smart and effectively during your training career, you may experience zero nagging injuries in your shoulders, elbows, and/or wrists.

But let’s be honest. Most of us started off going “full send” and pushing the limits too fast and too soon without much thought about technique. All that mattered was the weight on the bar, the dumbbell used, or the stack on the machine. There was a lot of ego-lifting early on (especially in high school and college years for many of us).

I admit I’m just as guilty of this early on and made a lot of mistakes, which is partly why I became a strength coach.

Don’t make the mistakes I did by ego-lifting, especially when it comes to the preacher curl. For the biggest biceps gains, leave the ego at home and try this technique instead.

Consider Your Carrying Angle

I take a more functional anatomy and biomechanics approach when it comes to training biceps. And for that reason, I recommend ditching the EZ bar and swapping it out for dumbbells instead. Actually just one dumbbell.
I already hear you saying to yourself and asking me, “Why!?” When looking at the elbow and joint angle more closely, notice how each one of us has a different anatomy makeup. This dictates different positioning for biceps curls for everyone. As it should.

This is referred to as the carrying angle and is very similar to the Q-angle of the hip and knee. To find your own carrying angle, stand straight with your arms at your side and palms facing forward in front of a mirror. Examine how your elbow angles away from the body. That’s your carrying angle.

When you think about differing carrying angles, it’s not hard to understand why the EZ bar might not be the best position for everyone. If you feel discomfort, it’s not worth pissing off your elbow and risking injury.

Former PGA Tour player Larry Rinkle explains it in more detail in the first 45 seconds of the following video.

How to Do Preacher Curls Based On Your Anatomy

For a biceps pump that is best suited for your unique carrying angle, I recommend doing a single-arm dumbbell preacher curl.

To do this, angle your body to the side to match your carrying angle. Your forearm should still fall straight on the preacher curl pad, but your upper arm should be angled to avoid torque at your elbow.

You get the best angle of attack to hit your biceps without aggravating your elbows by doing it this way. You’re also putting your upper arm closer in scaption, which means angling your upper arm in a straight line with your scapula (shoulder blade). This is great for your joint and shoulder health down the line!

Another favorite of mine is a technique from the late Charles Poliquin. He wrote a few books on developing massive arms and he loved the single-arm preacher curl! He often used a pronated grip position for the curl on the way up and a semi-pronated neutral grip on the way down. Basically, this means your palm faces up when you curl up and rotate to a hammer curl position on the way down.

Next time you’re in the gym, consider your carrying angle and maybe ditch the EZ bar. Give the single-arm dumbbell or Charles Poliquin variation a try for healthier joints, bigger biceps, and better longevity with your lifting.

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Want to run faster? It’s not just about sprinting more. The real secret lies in the weight room. Strength training builds the raw power, stability, and mechanics that turn into explosive speed on the field or track. Here’s how to train smarter and unlock your fastest sprint yet.

How to Build Explosive Speed Through Weight Training

Across the industry, you’ll often hear coaches and athletes praise the benefits of strength training for speed—and for good reason. For decades, strength training has been a reliable foundation for helping athletes run faster.

Like most fitness topics, you can make it as simple or as complex as you want. At its simplest, strength training teaches an athlete to drive more force into the ground to move the body forward. But when you dig deeper, the nuances of the science begin to emerge, showing why strength training for speed has continued to evolve.

To make this easier to digest, let’s look at a basic spectrum that runs from general to specific. On one end, we have broad methods like maximum strength and accessory strength. On the other, we have more targeted methods like special strength and strength-speed drills. By the end, you’ll have a complete picture of how strength training supports speed development.

Category #1: Maximum Strength

Maximum strength is the amount of voluntary force you can produce in a single effort. Even though force output during sprinting has natural limitations, the goal remains the same: put as much force into the ground as possible. Classic lifts like back squats, box squats, and deadlifts are staples here, building the raw leg and core power athletes need to run faster.

Category #2: Accessory Strength

Accessory, or “supplemental,” strength targets specific muscle groups and movement patterns. Think lunge variations, step-ups, RDLs, or SLDLs. These movements have been shown repeatedly in research to improve sprinting speed.

Not only do they strengthen the key muscles that drive sprint performance, but many are single-leg in nature. And what is sprinting if not a transfer of momentum from one leg to the other? This makes accessory movements a natural fit for developing speed.

Category #3: Special Strength

So far, we’ve covered the general and semi-specific techniques. Now let’s move into the most specific methods: drills that directly target the exact muscles, patterns, and ranges of motion used in sprinting.

Deep Hip Flexors

Research has shown that elite sprinters often have larger, stronger hip flexors than their slower counterparts. Training the psoas not only improves hip drive, but also boosts glute activation through the crossed extensor reflex. Heavy isometric deep squats, high box step-ups, and resisted mountain climbers are excellent options here.

Hamstrings and Glutes

Glutes get plenty of attention when it comes to speed, but hamstrings deserve equal focus. Exercises like reverse hypers (standard and modified) specifically overload the hamstrings and glutes in sprint-like positions. Reverse hypers also strengthen hip hyperextension, a critical role of the hamstrings in sprinting. Could their absence in many modern programs be a factor in hamstring injuries? Very likely.

Another valuable option is the snatch grip hip drive, introduced by Chris Korfist and further developed by Coach Brann Swinnen, which directly trains the posterior chain in sprint-specific mechanics.

Category #4: Strength-Speed Drills

Strength-speed drills are some of the oldest tools in speed training. While many of them are outdated or overhyped, a few still carry real value. A good example is the quarter speed squat.

This category is essentially modern-day velocity-based training (VBT), emphasizing central nervous system adaptations rather than muscle-specific development. When applied correctly, these drills help athletes bridge the gap between strength and speed.

Final Thoughts

Strength training for speed is more than just lifting heavy weights. It’s about building a spectrum of qualities that transfer directly to sprinting. Maximum strength lays the foundation, accessory strength refines it, special strength connects it directly to sprint mechanics, and strength-speed drills fine-tune nervous system efficiency.

By blending these categories, athletes and coaches can create programs that don’t just build strength, but turn that strength into speed where it matters most: on the field, the track, or the court.

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Every rep, every mile, every drop of sweat, it all counts. But if you’re not prioritizing sleep, you’re sabotaging your own progress. Here’s how to turn your nights into your biggest performance edge.

Sleep Like a Pro: How to Optimize Rest for Peak Recovery

Sleep is the ultimate recovery tool. Forget the ice baths, the massage guns, the compression sleeves—none of it matters if you’re not logging quality sleep. You can lift hard, train smart, and eat like a dietitian’s dream, but if your sleep is trash, your gains will be too.

Athletes especially need to treat sleep like part of their training plan. This is when your muscles repair, your nervous system resets, and your body consolidates all the adaptations you’ve been grinding for in the gym or on the field. So let’s get into what “optimizing sleep” really means—and how to do it consistently.

Why Sleep Matters for Athletes

When you sleep, your body releases growth hormone, ramps up protein synthesis, and balances key hormones like cortisol (stress) and testosterone (recovery and performance). Your brain also clears out metabolic waste that builds up during the day, which keeps your mind sharp for training, tactics, and decision-making.

For athletes, skimping on sleep doesn’t just mean dragging through practice—it can increase injury risk, stall muscle growth, and wreck reaction time. One Stanford study found that basketball players who added extra sleep improved sprint times and shooting accuracy. Another showed that sleep-deprived athletes had a much higher chance of injury compared to their well-rested teammates.

Bottom line: sleep is performance fuel.

Building Your Sleep Hygiene Game

“Sleep hygiene” is the fancy way of saying: set your environment and habits up so sleep happens easily and deeply. Here are the big hitters:

1. Keep It Dark and Cool

Your body naturally wants to sleep when it’s dark. Blackout curtains, a good eye mask, or even a cheap roll of blackout film on your windows can be game changers.

Temperature is just as important—cooler rooms help trigger your body’s drop in core temperature that signals it’s time to sleep. Aim for 60–67°F (15–19°C). If you’re sweating under the sheets, you’re fighting biology.

2. No TVs, No Phones, No Scroll Holes

That pre-bed “just one more scroll” is wrecking your sleep. Blue light from screens suppresses melatonin, the hormone that helps you fall asleep. Beyond that, the dopamine hit of TikTok or late-night emails keeps your brain wired.

Instead: set a cutoff. One hour before bed, no screens. If you must, use blue light blocking glasses or “night mode,” but the real win is unplugging.

3. Consistency is King

Going to bed and waking up at the same time trains your circadian rhythm like clockwork. If you’re constantly shifting your sleep schedule, your body never finds its groove. Think of it like training: you wouldn’t change your workout time every single day and expect peak results.

4. Timing Your Fuel

Late-night snacking can feel harmless, but digestion is work—and your body should be winding down, not clocking in for overtime. Heavy meals, especially carb-heavy or fatty foods, can mess with sleep quality and even lead to acid reflux when you lie down.

Give yourself 2–3 hours between your last meal and bedtime. If you’re genuinely hungry, go light: something like a small protein shake or a few bites of Greek yogurt. Enough to take the edge off, not a feast.

Tools of the Trade: Sleep Aids Worth Trying

Here’s where things get interesting. Beyond environment and habits, there are a few safe and popular tools athletes are using to push their sleep game up a notch.

Mouth Tape

Sounds weird, works wonders. Mouth taping encourages nasal breathing, which improves oxygenation, reduces snoring, and helps keep you in deeper sleep stages. Use specialized sleep tape (not duct tape, please). If you struggle with congestion, try a nasal strip first.

Eye Masks & Ear Plugs

Eye masks block any stray light (think streetlamps or early sun). Ear plugs can be clutch if you live in a noisy area. Both are cheap, simple hacks that instantly improve sleep quality.

Magnesium

Magnesium plays a role in over 300 bodily processes, including relaxation and muscle recovery. Many athletes are deficient, and supplementing can help calm the nervous system and support deeper sleep. The most popular forms for sleep are magnesium glycinate or magnesium threonate (avoid magnesium oxide—it’s poorly absorbed).

CBD

CBD (cannabidiol) is a non-psychoactive compound from hemp that can help with relaxation and anxiety. Some athletes find it helps quiet the mind before bed. Look for third-party tested products to ensure you’re getting quality CBD without THC contamination.

Melatonin

Melatonin can be useful, but treat it like a tool, not a daily crutch. It’s most effective when your schedule is disrupted—like after late games, travel, or jet lag. Low doses (0.3–1mg) are typically better than the mega-doses sold in stores, since too much can actually backfire.

Other Popular Hacks

• White Noise Machines: Block out sudden sounds that can jolt you awake. Great if you live in the city.
• Weighted Blankets: The gentle pressure can calm the nervous system and help you fall asleep faster.
• Pre-Bed Routine: Stretching, foam rolling, journaling, or breathwork can cue your body it’s time to chill. Even brushing your teeth at the same time nightly acts as a trigger.
• No Afternoon Caffeine: Caffeine has a half-life of about 6 hours. That “harmless” 4pm cold brew? It’s still in your system at 10pm.

Putting It All Together

Think of sleep optimization as a layered system. Start with the foundations—dark, cool room, consistent schedule, no screens. Add timing tweaks—no big meals or caffeine close to bedtime. Then experiment with tools like magnesium or CBD if you need the extra edge.

The trick isn’t to try everything at once, but to test what actually helps you. Athletes track their workouts, nutrition, even their heart rate variability. Why not track your sleep quality too? Wearables like WHOOP, Oura, or even simple sleep journals can help you see what works.

Final Thoughts

Here’s the truth: there’s no magic pill. But when you put sleep at the top of your recovery hierarchy, everything else gets easier—muscle growth, fat loss, energy, mental focus, injury prevention. It’s the most underrated performance enhancer on the planet.

So tonight, do yourself a favor. Shut down the screens, make your room a sleep cave, and give your body the full recovery window it deserves. You’ll wake up stronger for it.

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