Bowflex Motivator 2 - Manual (Page 32)

You may want to design your own personal program
specifically geared to your goals and lifestyle. Designing
a program is easy, as long as you follow the guidelines
below.
Understand fitness and its components:
Improperly designed programs can be dangerous. Take
some time to review this manual as well as other fitness
guides.
Know your current fitness level: Before you start
any fitness program you should consult a physician who
will help you determine your current abilities.
Identify your goals: Goals are critical to choosing
and designing an exercise program that fits and enhances
your lifestyle, but so is strategy. It’s important not to rush
the process and try to accomplish too much too soon.
That will lead to setbacks and discouragement. Instead,
set a series of smaller achievable goals.
Select complementary exercises: Be sure to pair
exercises that address compound joint movements and
single joint movements. In addition, select exercises that
address complementary muscle groups.
Put first things first: During each session, first work
muscle groups that need the most training.
Remember your cardiovascular component:
Any fitness program must contain a cardiovascular
fitness component to be complete. So complement your
resistance training with aerobic exercise such
as walking, running, or bicycling.
Training variables: When designing your own
program there are several variables that, when mixed
properly, will equal the right fitness formula for you. In
order to find out the best formula, you must experiment
with several combinations of variables.
The variables are as follows:
• Training Frequency: The number of times you
train per week. We recommend daily activity but
not daily training of the same muscle group.
• Training Intensity: The amount of resistance
used during your repetition.
• Training Volume: The number of repetitions
and sets performed.
• Rest Intervals: The time you rest between sets
and the time you rest between workouts.
Once you’ve established a base of fitness,
follow these basic principles:
• Isolate Muscle Groups: Focus work on
specific muscle groups.
• Progressive Loading: The gradual systematic
increase of repetitions, resistance and exercise
period.
Design Your Own Program
Define Your Goals
Define Your Goals 0