VAMOS Head Coach, Chloe Williams shares some solid gold strength training tips.
The primary focus of strength training is technique. Before your weight and rep targets increase, the right muscles need to be working and you need to be performing the movement properly to minimise your risk of injury. While you’re still perfecting techniques, it’s important to keep the weights lighter and focus on a higher rep range in each set (e.g. 10-12 reps) for movement repetition.
Once you have perfected the technique, the goal is to push your muscles to overload in each of the main strength exercises. Overload refers to the process of pushing your muscles out of their comfort zone and is where the desired adaptations occur. This is where you damage the muscle fibres, causing them to rebuild back stronger over the next 2-3 days.
3 main signs of overload include:
- Your technique starting to falter.
- Other muscles becoming involved to support the movement.
- You’re unable to stick to the same controlled tempo/speed.
How hard should I work in a VAMOS strength session?
As a general guide, you want to use a weight that feels challenging (where you see signs of overload) in the last 1-2 reps of each set.
For example, if the target is 3 sets of 8 reps on a lat pulldown, you want to be using a weight that gets you towards overload by reps 6, 7 or 8. As a VAMOS athlete, you can track your weights in our Volt training platform, and the targets will progress as you become stronger.
With strength training, you may notice you don’t feel as sweaty or out of breath as you would in a cardio workout, HIIT session, or group class. This is normal as the movements are often more controlled, with a slower tempo to help condition your muscles in the optimal way.
Our coaches work with each athlete to ensure you are performing the techniques correctly, and that you’re training at the right intensity to cause muscle adaptations. If you’re ever not sure on how things should feel or if you’re working at the right intensity, please come and chat to us!
What is an e1RM in Volt?
In Volt, an estimated one-rep maximum (e1RM) is a projection of the most weight you can theoretically lift in an exercise for one single rep. e1RMs are calculated during sub-maximal sets with multiple reps, and are used to recommend the most accurate loading possible during a workout. Behind the scenes at VAMOS, we prescribe personalised training targets as a percentage of an athlete’s e1RM.
Estimated one-rep maximum is a fantastic tool for tracking strength progress throughout a programme. If athletes are completing VAMOS workouts as prescribed, their e1RM measurements in Volt should trend upward over time as they become stronger. There may be fluctuations in e1RM from set to set, or even workout to workout, as the measure is dynamic and responds to performance on any given day.
How is my 12 Week Programme structured?
Every strength programme is personalised to each individual, but will include roughly 3 progressive phases across the 12 weeks.
The prescribed plan will remain consistent for approximately 4-5 weeks, before movements advance and the programme evolves. This consistency allows athletes to build up strength, muscle endurance, and the neuromuscular adaptations required before the exercises become more advanced. Think of each 4-week block as building the foundation and preparing the body for the next phase.
