All KLT exercises and workouts adhere to several basic functional strength training concepts:
- Stand up to train – this means no seats and no benches. When you remove all external supports, you have to use your own lower body strength and endurance plus core strength and control for every repetition of every exercise.
- Perform integrated movements – this means to concurrently move the upper body and the lower body for every exercise. In the science of biomechanics we learn that the body is perfectly designed to spread forces across as many muscles and joints as possible to perform functional tasks – this is known as The Kinetic Link Principle. For example, when we lift a heavy box above our heads we use our legs to help with the lift, not just to protect our spines, but because the majority of the strength of the lift comes from the gluteals and leg muscles not just the upper body muscles. When you throw a ball it is totally natural to both step forward and rotate the trunk to assist the power of the action – this is not something we need to be taught – it is just the way the body wants to move.
- Demonstrate appropriate levels of stability and posture control – this means you should only train the prime movers (the big superficial muscles) to the extent that the stabilisers (the deep, small, often hidden muscles) can provide sufficient support to adequately control the core and peripheral joints. KLT exercises should always performed with excellent posture, looking smooth and graceful.
Intensity
Exercise intensity refers to how hard your body is working during physical activity. Your health and fitness goals, as well as your current level of fitness, will determine your ideal exercise intensity. Typically, intensity is described as low, moderate, or high (vigorous).
Low intensity suggests that you are exercising at a level of effort that you would describe as “gentle and not very hard” (without being boring).
Moderate intensity suggests that you are exercising at a level of effort that you would describe as “challenging and somewhat hard” (without creating anxiety).
High intensity suggests that you are exercising at a level of effort that you would describe as “very challenging and very hard” (without creating pain or excessive discomfort).
Be aware, it is normal to experience mild muscular aches for a day or two after performing moderate or high intensity resistance training. Delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) is especially common if you are not used to this type of physical activity.
When first learning the exercises in this course, we suggest you should be exercising at a low to moderate level of intensity. Once you feel confident performing the introductory workout (and as you move onto future KLT workouts) you may choose to train at a moderate to high level of intensity. Apart from during elite athletic training - it is rarely necessary to take exercise to the extreme (high risk) levels of maximum effort or exhaustion.
Warning: If (in the rare event) you experience any of the following symptoms, stop exercising and seek medical help:
- extreme breathlessness
- breathing problems such as wheezing or coughing
- chest pain or pressure
- extreme perspiration
- dizziness or fainting
- severe muscle pain or cramps
- nausea
- severe pain in any muscles or joints
- extreme and long-lasting fatigue after exercising
Good Technique
In Kinetic Link Training we love to celebrate good technique.
Unfortunately, it is easy for poor technique to develop when you are not fully aware of what good technique actually looks like - so it is always important that you watch the videos in this course carefully and take note of the narrated key points for optimal movement control. Movement control for every single exercise includes the picking up and putting down of the weights. Every exercise starts the moment you lift the weight and is not over until the weight is safely and gently put back down again. We certainly would never encourage (or tolerate) dropping your weights.
It is common for technique errors to develop when one is too focused on simply “lifting heavy” rather than “moving well”.
We often explain to our clients that “you earn the right” to lift heavy (if you wish to do so) by first demonstrating excellent technique under lighter loads.
If you train too heavy or you move too fast, or if you are simply not focussed on the quality and gracefulness of your movement, technique errors may be allowed to creep in and persist. Poor technique quite simply means that your long term strength and movement control will be compromised and your injury risk will be significantly increased.
When exercises are performed with precision and mindfulness with well-controlled good technique then long term strength and improved performance is ensured and risk of injury is minimised.
Learning Practical Skills
The exercises that you will be learning are delivered in an order of lessons that allows for ease of understanding and safe, simple progression of your training program.
In all KLT courses, we suggest you simply finish one lesson at a time, stopping to review material as often as you feel necessary to have achieved a comprehensive learning experience.
There is a large practical component to this program, so when learning new exercises we encourage you to take your time, aiming to gain complete confidence in performing the movements with correct technique.
Learning practical skills is safer and more effective when you are not in a hurry.
You will be instructed to either watch, examine or perform each exercise.
- Watch the KLT exercise videos (and listen to the narration explaining correct technique). You may find it beneficial to rehearse the movements (without weights) while watching the videos.
- Each of the exercises taught in this course shows a simplified (lower intensity) version of the exercise and a progressed (higher intensity) version of the exercise. So you can choose the appropriate level of intensity to suit your level of fitness.
- Examine the appropriate workout handout PDF (downloadable and printable) – which serves as a reminder of the start and finish positions for each exercise. In the long-term, it is expected that you will feel confident to perform each exercise by simply referring to the pictures in the handouts, without relying on the videos.
- Perform the exercises under appropriate loads in your training space (home, outside or gym).