The annual training plan for T2 is based upon the rationale that the Lifetime Athlete will combine an area of athletic specialization with a generalized, well-rounded, complete level of athleticism. Thus, the Lifetime Athlete is a more athletic athlete. By using a block periodization model, and by cyclically emphasizing the 5 capacities of human performance, Tribe members can essentially hone their assets (strengths) to high levels while shoring up liabilities (weaknesses). This develops and maintains an athlete that can produce peak performance in his/her chosen sport, as well as express the versatility and durability which provides more athletic -- and LIFE -- versatility. As a Tribe member, you’ll crush your primary goals but you’ll also wake up every day knowing that you can Kick Ass at just about anything that comes your way. That’s being Hard to Kill!
The 5 major capacities of human performance are as follows:
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Strength
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Speed
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Power
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Agility
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Endurance
All of these capacities are vitally important in every athletic, human beast...although to varying degrees depending upon sport, position, goals, body type, age, and other factors. We can further illustrate these capacities by providing some very simple definitions:
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Strength = Max Force
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Speed = Max Velocity
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Power = Force x Distance/Time (anaerobic and aerobic)
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Agility = Mobility + Stability + Reactivity + Fluidity
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Endurance = Fatigue Resistance (muscular and cardiorespiratory)
It’s important for every athlete to have a reasonable amount of proficiency in each capacity, and certainly high ability in one or several categories of specialization. That specific mix of desirable traits varies quite a bit from person to person, and it can even change over time within the same individual. You can dive a bit deeper into this topic in the video “Identifying and Leveraging Your Assets and Liabilities in Training.” Also, you can use the Capacity Rating System (CRS) to rate your abilities in each of the 5 major capacities, and come up with an overall score.
We can also give consideration to the 5 types of training that produce those capacities:
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Strength (and hypertrophy): Resistance Training (RT)
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Speed: Speed (sprint) Training (ST)
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Power: High Intensity Repetition Training (HIRT)
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Agility: Agility Training (AT)
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Endurance: Low Intensity Steady-state Training (LIST)
Taking the concept of complete and individualized athleticism even a bit further, we almost don’t care how an athlete actually trains. What matters most is that they have good function in all those capacities, regardless of how they get there. Approaches to training are infinite, and many forms of exercise have scientifically proven primary and secondary benefits -- as well as crossover effects -- which different athletes respond to in varying degrees. So I can’t tell you that there is one and only one way to get and stay completely athletic...I can only tell you that I want you to achieve this state and that you should periodically assess your status.
All of the above stated, wouldn't it be nice to have a system that regularly covers all the bases in training so that you can rest assured you are not leaving out any important capacities? A system that lays it all out for you (the workouts, how to do them, and why you need them) and shows you how to modify the programming to make it fit best for your needs?
That's how we divide up the year with the T2 Annual Training Plan (ATP). I’ll explain the key parameters of the ATP briefly but the programming distributed to Tribe members provides detailed explanations and instructions for every step of the way.
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Block Periodization: We divide the year into 5 specific blocks with a primary emphasis on one performance capacity and a secondary focus to varying degrees on the other 4 areas of athleticism. Each block’s length and placement is strategic for a variety of reasons including the seasons and stimulus-response-adaptation models.
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Sep-Nov: Endurance
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Dec-Jan: Agility
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Feb-April: Strength
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May-June: Power
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July-August: Speed
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Monthly Breakdown: Each month within a block is unique to itself, with clear objectives and training modules.
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Week 1: Introduction of the month’s programming and identification of KPI’s (key performance indicators).
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Week 2: Progression of Volume (modest Workload increase)
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Week 3: Escalation of Intensity (significant Workload increase)
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Test and Competition (optional and variable)
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Week 4: Deload (train at slightly reduced overall Workload)
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This monthly cycle can be represented as Implementation-Accumulation-Intensification-Realization of training and athletic capacity, with each week reflecting those terms, respectively.
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Weekly Perspective: Each week features a purpose-driven training split (the workouts you perform each day and precisely how you apply them to your own needs and goals). There are 2-6 workouts posted for every week. In the case of 2 workouts, the intention is to alternate them and repeat each one 3 times. For 6 workouts, there is a unique session for each day. On most weeks the schedule is laid out as it pertains to which workouts to perform on specific days, but this is optional secondary to your schedule. I also always recommend one recovery day each week in which you do some light, free-choice activity such as walking, mobility training, breathwork, and hot/cold exposure. The recovery day can be placed anywhere in the week that best fits your personal lifestyle requirements.
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Advice for Beginners: You'll notice there isn't a dedicated "beginner's 6-week program," or something like that. That's because the program is scalable. If you are just getting started, simply reduce duration, frequency, volume, and intensity by 20-40% and build it up to the full level over a period of 1-3 months. As your Coach, I encourage you to connect with me anytime in the Member Submissions section to fine-tune the necessary adjustments which will make your journey in T2 most successful. The table below provides an arbitrary example of a modification progression in the programming.
Examples of Workload Adjustments for Beginners
Explanation of the Workload Adjustment Table: The table is set up to show some basic workload descriptors in the “Tribal Beast” row. This is the standard training level most Lifetime Athletes can achieve (although many workouts are expressed in ranges in the programming to allow you to fine tune your output). In the Tribal Beast example, you do 6 workouts in a week. That's the frequency column. The Volume column just gives an arbitrary example of total working sets in a hypothetical resistance or gym workout as well as a possible length of time for this session. A lot of our workouts will be about 20 sets and last about an hour. The Intensity column gives examples of effort such as weight (using 100 pounds here as a theoretical baseline) or Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE). The Tribal Beast might be doing an RPE 9 in some exercises which is approximately 90% of maximum output. The Intermediate and Beginner rows provide suggestions of how you can reduce frequency, volume, and intensity in any given workout, and across the week, to meet your ability level. Depending on what you need, you simply train a little less often (filling in with more recovery work between sessions), do a few less sets with lower reps and lighter weight, and not for quite as long...but you still get the specific performance/longevity benefits of the Tribe training. Again, I’m always happy to help you tweak the system for best results.
Each training block contains a weighted emphasis on the 5 capacities. Using an arbitrary number of 20, the major capacity emphasized is assigned a value of 9, and the others receive lower numbers in differing fashion. Consequently, the major feature of each block will receive almost half of all your training attention, which is quite significant. The breakdown is expressed in the order of strength (St), speed (Sp), power (Po), agility (Ag), and endurance (En).
The charts below provide a visual representation of how each block “looks.”
The Sep-Nov block places a primary emphasis on the development of endurance while using the other capacities to keep you athletically enhanced. You’ll be a balanced, dynamic athlete with incredible fatigue resistance.
In this block we get into the gym and explore agility with dynamic drills and exercises. And we touch on quickness and resistance work a bit more to enhance your workouts.
The winter-spring block piles on the load and helps you to build strength and lean body mass. We keep you supple and fatigue resistant with a sprinkling of mixed training.
Power work allows you to use and express all your capacities, and we use some fun and creative approaches in our first of two summer blocks.
Speed kills...anyone who doesn’t have it! You’ll be a real killer with this training.
Here is a month-by-month breakdown of the training splits in the ATP. All programs are based on a 6-day training week with an active recovery or dedicated day off. The pattern of training indicates the number of days the content is trained. Content is described as the major capacity of emphasis or general conditioning (GC), which includes oscillating amounts of the other capacities.
The ATP utilizes the Seasonality of Peak Performance model, which flows through the year utilizing differing levels of sleep, intensity, volume, carbohydrate consumption, and caloric intake. This is an evolutionarily-consistent method which optimally aligns your training patterns with your ancestral and circadian biological rhythms. The nutrition and lifestyle support is included in the programming (in addition to the workouts) and are featured in the MasterClass meetings we have each week for our team. You can also listen to this podcast about seasonality if you would like additional information. Shown below is a graphic representation of seasonality.
Obviously, the information provided above does not include everything in the T2 system, but it gives you a decent idea of the structure. In reality, you don’t have to pay much attention to any of this (I was just giving you some of the “why”) because we’ll be laying out each week’s training plan in clear, documented format, with instructional videos, unlimited coaching via the private forum in our network, and the opportunity for live Q & A interaction during our weekly MasterClass meetings.
Also, check out The Essential Home Training Center article, podcast, or video to help you set up your T2 center of excellence. Don’t worry if you don’t immediately have everything. You can modify as needed and build your valuable and necessary training sanctuary investment over time.
As you can see this is a solid model of training that uses proven scientific principles to create an intelligent and effective program. It’s not doing the same thing all the time, which can get boring and turn your routine into a “RUTine” (lost the O!) which stalls the gains and becomes mentally stagnating. And it’s not the “let’s do everything completely different every day” approach that can often leave you confused and frustrated and never really going anywhere with your conditioning.
Summing up the ATP, we’ll progress through the year creating balanced athleticism in a very scientific manner. We’ll keep the elements of play and joy alive in our training. And we’ll benefit from a supportive, connected community.