Home Workouts for High-Performance Clients

Fitness and training are starting to go virtual more often than not. For many clients, this also means training from home. This applies to the general population as well as high-level athletes. Any of whom can train for high performance! No matter what sport someone plays, their skill, strength, and power can all be improved with the right training—even from home.

Being a certified personal trainer means you can guide any client through an effective fitness program. Being a strength coach takes this one step further when dealing with high-performance clients. Let's be honest, most people only consider athletes as the focus of a certified strength coach. They're not wrong. However, high-level performance training, especially when done remotely, is more than just assigning exercises. Read on to learn more about creating and delivering effective home workouts for athletes and other high-performance clients.

First, What Is High Performance?

The average weight loss client or a senior working on balance is not part of this picture. That type of personal training client has a training protocol that will work ideally for them with the right fitness professional.

A high-performance client is one in the highest levels of competition in their skill or sport. They can be youth, secondary school-aged, collegiate, or adults. These elite athletes are the subject of most sports psychology and motivational science rather than general athletes. They perform at a higher level and much more is expected of them.

A certified strength coach builds stronger, more agile athletes and sports teams. They make great money and put in a lot of time and effort working on injury prevention and key performance indicators like agility, strength, balance, and speed with athletes of all ages and sports. They also train athletes mentally. Skills like grit (perseverance), the winner's mindset, and mental toughness are key for these clients. So is the ability to work and collaborate with teammates.

Strength coaches teach athletes how to make better choices in the moment. These choices require an athlete to control both their mind and body. They take visual and audio cues and turn them into actions. They cut left to avoid an oncoming runner or know how to time a jump to block a layup. Better choices generally lead to more favorable athletic outcomes.

If athletics is your passion, stop waiting around! Become an elite strength and conditioning coach with an ISSA Strength and Conditioning certification today!

Get the Right Equipment

Keep these three rules of thumb in mind for high-performance clients.

1. They move heavy things with good form (strength)

2. They move lighter things quickly/explosively (power)

3. They move their bodies quickly (agility, speed, plyometrics)

There is really no right or wrong when it comes to home fitness equipment. What it usually boils down to is budget and space. How much money can someone spend on equipment and how much space do they have to store and use it.

For example, an endurance athlete may want a treadmill to train on, they have the space in their garage, but they cannot afford the $2,500 or more it takes to get a decent machine. On the other hand, some athletes may be able to get their hands on some great equipment like a squat cage or a leg press, but the only place they could put it would be the middle of the living room. Not ideal!

Some foundational equipment that athletes can use year-round include kettlebells, dumbbells, resistance bands (tubes, super bands, and mini bands), plyometric boxes (for strength movements and plyometrics), and a jump rope!

Understand that high-performance training is (a) seasonal, and (b) functional.

Seasonality

High-performance clients will go through three phases (‘seasons') that usually equate to about a year:

• Pre-season: The time frame before a sports season begins. Typically 4 to 12 weeks.

• In-season: The time during which the athlete is actively competing in their sport. The length can vary—collegiate and youth seasons are usually about 12 weeks and professional seasons can be upwards of 24 to 30 weeks.

• Post-season/off-season: The time after a season has ended and before pre-season training begins. Post-season includes rest and recovery—some time away from activity. Off-season is when strength, size (if applicable), and power are developed or improved.

These are referred to as training cycles. Each of the above mentioned ‘seasons' is considered a mesocycle. Together, they add up to a macrocycle. The individual weeks (or in some cases the individual training sessions) are microcycles. For example:

When it comes to the equipment needed, the season matters! Off season training is when an athlete can focus on fitness goals like strength and building size. They lift heavy and, in many cases, will require a fitness facility or gym for the heavier equipment they will need.

Pre-season training is when athletes start to relate their new-found strength to the skill needed for their sport. Specific movement patterns, cardiovascular endurance and efficiency, and regaining speed and agility become the focus. Endurance athletes will start doing more cardio training and the loads lifted will get lighter. The equipment needed becomes more functional.

In-season, most athletes will forgo heavy lifting and stick with functional training, agility, and cardiovascular training (if applicable). The goals while in season are to prevent injury, perform skill and sport at the highest possible level, and maintain the fitness level that was built in the off and pre-seasons. Equipment becomes simple—cones, agility ladders, hurdles, and boxes to name a few.

Functionality

Along with the seasonality of high-performance training is the functionality of exercise. High-level athletes must perform strength exercises and movement patterns that apply to their sport. For example, plyometric jump work is great for a volleyball player or a basketball athlete. However, it is useless for a rower or a swimmer.

Rely on Periodization

Periodization is the deliberate structuring of a training program over time to progress the acute training variables, promote adaptation, and prevent injury. Common training variables in fitness include:

• Time spent training

• Type of exercise executed

• Intensity of training

• Exercise selection and exercise order

• Frequency of training sessions

• Sets and repetitions

• Tempo of movement

• Load used

• Rest allowed

Periodization requires forethought and organization. It can be done in a linear or a block fashion. Linear periodization progresses strength training over time. Generally high volume and low load to low volume and high load. This is a great strategy for off-season training since the athlete will eventually reach strength maximums.

Block periodization progresses from strength to building size to maximizing strength and then to power and velocity. It is specifically geared towards the needs and goals of the athlete and time is not a limiting factor. When a goal is achieved in one stage of block periodization, the athlete progresses to the next stage. This is ideal for athletes moving from off-season to pre-season training.

Read more about optimal periodization and get some sample workout splits in this ISSA blog: Practical Periodization

Stay Connected

So, you've got a program developed for your high-performance client. You deliver it to them. They begin their work. Now what?

No matter what season your athlete is in, they need to be motivated to keep with it! Especially when training from home, it can be hard to stay on track and trust the process. Here are some ways to track and motivate:

• Start a virtual training course with clients of the same caliber. Sometimes all they need is a sense of community...and to see your face every now and then!

• Speaking of virtual sessions, if working with teams, set up regular team check-in calls where everyone can get together and just chat, go over training protocols, discuss upcoming events, and stay connected.

• Have clients report their physical stats like body fat percentage, weight, or measurements periodically. Only choose applicable data points.

• Ask all clients to use wearable devices that can track things like activity time, heart rate, and calorie burn for training sessions. Make sure you can access the data and hold them accountable to it.

• Have clients send you clips or videos of their best home workout of the week. Send back comments on form and intensity to keep them accountable.

It is absolutely possible to keep high-level clients motivated and focused to reach levels of peak performance from home! If you want to learn more on how to take your training business virtual, be sure to check out the ISSA's Online Coach Certification! You've got nothing to lose but time itself!

Need some inspiration? Check out these blogs for more on the amazing ISSA professionals who grew their careers and clientele in fitness!

Chris' Romano's Story

Robert Wilson's Story

Lauren Brooks' Story