Fitness Freak – Alpha Males Beginners Program is Born!
Five weeks ago myself and fellow FF staff member JP McGrath set out on a journey with a group of lads, all of whom were keen to learn how to apply correct technique when lifting weights and understand what type of diet is required to not only get the most out of their strength & conditioning sessions but to look good;) and learn some ninja strategies on how to cook and put together different dishes that are actually tasty and nutritious.
The Alpha Male’s beginners class was born. The overall aim was to give the group a beginner’s guide to a structured strength & conditioning program , structured across 2 x 60 minute sessions per week with a progressive increase in weights throughout the five weeks. Parallel to that I aimed to provide the group with a nutritional program that concentrated on a specific meal each week and required the group to post pictures of these meals everyday for the five weeks to the private FF Facebook page.
As some of you may already know during the off season plenty of Gaelic players come to my Alpha Male training sessions to help them stay on top of their game. So when a few of the GAA lads got wind of the nutritional benefits of the program they eagerly joined in what was going to be a challenging but fun few weeks.
Week 1:
2 x 60 minute sessions, introducing and educating the lads on the benefits and reasons for foam rolling and performing glute activation exercises in the warm up.
Introducing and coaching six strength exercises and finishing off with some bang for your buck conditioning.
Each member also received four breakfast cards with recipe guidelines to follow every morning. I also created a private Facebook group where each of them had to post a picture and a description of their breakfast. This helped me keep track of their progress and give them a forum to comment with words of encouragement.
Week 2:
2 x 60 minute sessions, progressing in level of weight being lifted and each member was given Freak certified lunch recipes, which they followed daily. They also continued to post pictures of their breakfast along with pics of their lunches.
By this stage the banter was lively on our private Facebook page!
Week 3:
2 x 60 minute sessions, with an additional two new exercises and a focus on eating nutritional dinners. Luckily for everyone I just love making “healthy” dinners so I was able to post up on the Facebook group some dishes I regularly make. Example chicken Gijon’s freak style.
Week 4:
2 x 60 minute sessions, working on perfecting the previously learned exercises with an increase in weight. I also gave them a number of bullet proof snacks to follow, such as my balls….protein balls!
Week 5:
Across two 60 minute sessions on the final week I pushed the lads to max effort on their lifts and worked on putting their conditioning through the roof. At this stage the lads had all the tools needed to create their own nutritious meals throughout the week and from an accountability perspective, I was assured of this as they all posted up every meal they made. Check out some of these beauties.
Alpha Males beginners culinary treats!
Proud Freak:
From a training point of view I’ve expected nothing less than great attitudes, concentration, focus and execution from the group. So I was not surprises when they displayed excellent technique on all lifts and left nothing on the line with strong conditioning finishes.
Then there’s the nutrition, it’s the crux in most people’s plans when it comes to their body, performance and health. It’s about getting to grips with one of the basic human requirements: feeding ourselves and I don’t mean heating up a meal in the microwave, I mean the modern caveman survival strategy i.e. able to crack 3 eggs and make an omelette. If I got nothing more out of them after five weeks than knowing what quinoa is and how to cook it with complementary ingredients or setting the alarm 10 minutes earlier in the AM to make Freak approved smoothie or omelette then I would have gotten a lot but these guys maxed out with effort in the kitchen too.
What started out as a group of beginners are now a group equipped with several workout routines, knowledge of how to execute with correct technique and ultimately knowledge of how to eat healthier – self-sufficient in the gym and in the kitchen. I am both proud and absolutely delighted to certify them as Fitness Freak Alpha Males.
This experience has inspired me to create more nutritional snack videos and to make the ALPH MALES beginners program a regular gig. If you are interested in taking part in the next phase please drop me a line on info@fitnessfreak.ie
Let’s be having you!!
Richard aka Chief Freak;)