By: Diane Miller Peterson, Ortho Kinetics Specialist Trainer, Balanced Body Pilates Instructor, and more.
Hint: One will continually progress your fitness level, the other will not.
Routine
Most think of an Exercise Program as a collection of exercises selected to achieve a goal. It’s based on your fitness assessment, personal goals, past exercise history, injuries, etc., but not a workout downloaded from the internet. Actually, this is an Exercise Routine. Eventually your progress will stop. The human body is made to constantly adapt to new stimuli. If there is no new stimulus, then the body stops adapting and progress is halted.
Program
Programming is a science and an art. It’s the bigger picture. It’s a planned series of routines that change systematically to reach a larger goal over a longer period of time. “I want to lose 65 pounds for my high school reunion”; “I want my body to stop hurting”; “My kids want me to move into assisted living and I don’t want to”… are a few examples of BIG GOALS. A hiker going on a 100-mile backpacking trip next July will have several routines in the overall program before the trip. For instance, routines may change in focus from Core & Balance, to Strength, to Endurance, and to Power. Two people working toward the same goal could have vastly different routines targeting the necessary movement patterns. This is because they are starting from different places, and their bodies have different histories, needs, and responses to stimuli. They may stay longer than planned in a routine that holds some particular challenges for them.
So…. where do you fall? Are you getting the most out of your workouts? Are you increasing or decreasing injuries? Does your program lead you directly to your goal? Or has your routine been the same for years?
Well, I am going to put in a plug for Personal Training. (Of course, you knew I would😊.) Programming is what we are trained to do. This is what we spend hours and hours researching and taking courses on. We all have the same basic certifications, but it’s where we spent our continuing education hours that you’ll find the trainer who fits your needs.
A note about the Training 5-Pack.
New clients have the option of purchasing 5 training sessions at 20% off. It also includes a full 3-hour assessment at no charge. That’s 8 sessions with a trainer that essentially works out to 2006 prices. BUT… when you are done, if you NEVER go back to your trainer to progress your routines and brush up on your technique, you will have spent all that time and money to still be in category one: Exercise Routine. If that’s you, find your trainer, tackle them, and get yourself charging towards your next big goal.
Happy Trails,
Diane Peterson