EDT blocks can be difficult to keep track of in terms of being consistent, especially when working out in one of these commercial gyms.
This past week I actually had to ask a guy how many more chapters of his fcking book he was gonna finish before I could use the leg press machine.
When I finally got hold of the machine it somehow got stuck mid rep and the gym supervisor had to put the machine out of commision. So I had to figure something out quick because I dont enjoy spending all day in the gym. As an aside, this is why it's important to have a bazzillion exercises in your tool box.
I did bulgarian split squats, but the point is I didnt have a way to really monitor my progress in the EDT's because currently, my exercises are always changing due to the limitations at this crap gym I'm in at the moment.
So lately, I've been monitoring my intensity using a bit of math I do at the end of my workouts, and I'll be including this method of calculation in my workout logs when I finally get back to logging my workouts.
Its simple:
Volume is the measure of weight lifted in one type of exercise which includes the variables of weight, reps, sets.
Volume = lbs x reps x sets
Total Tonnage = sum total of the Volume of all exercises performed
These formulas are important but the problem with them is that if we have to change exercise due to some unforseen BS, we don't really have an objective gauge of Intensity.
I think intensity should be equal to an average of total weight lifted. This way it's easier to keep track of intensity week to week. If you're feeling burned out you could take a quick look at your log and know why. It's kind of like finding the specific gravity of a substance.
Example:
Exercise a - 250 lbs x 12 reps = 3000
Exercise b - 300 lbs x 15 reps = 4500
Exercise c - 150 lbs x 30 reps = 4500
Total tonnage = 12000
Total reps = 57
Total Objective Intensity = 1200 / 57 = 210.5 i
Obviously you could do these averages for the week and see where you stand in terms of objective intensity, however, please bear in mind that time has not been factored in because intensity is still relative to your individual energy levels and level of fitness.
Intensity should always be kept high but relative to factors such as health, energy levels, mood, fitness goals and diet. Therefore, the assumption is that the trainee should be varying rest periods between sets - in a reasonable way - and using a stop watch to do this as objectively as possible.
Total Objective Intensity or Intensity is Key!!!!
Makes sense to me!bigpelo wrote:Including time in the equation would change it to density.
More internsity in same time increases density.
Same intensity in less time increases density too.
intensity / time = density
Lately things have been getting busy, plus I'm moving towards a more "intuitive" approach to my training. So I'm trying to find one nice clean number that encompasses all the measurable elements of a workout and just log that number. I'm growing tired of logging every detail and set, etc.