While not as important to a novice trainee as strength acquisition, conditioning does have its place in a well designed program. What is conditioning, exactly? Conditioning is anaerobic or aerobic exercise that trains the heart and lungs to pump blood more efficiently. There are numerous health benefits to conditioning exercise; the list is quite extensive and thus I will not go into all the details on this page. What is important to know is that every trainee should do some type of conditioning. So, the natural question arises: what is the best type of conditioning for a strength trainee?

Simply put, my answer is “whatever type you enjoy doing”. While some people like to  debate whether High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is superior to Low Intensity Steady State (LISS) conditioning, I believe there is a time and place for everything. However, for the majority of novice trainees I would advocate HIIT conditioning done 1-2 times per week. You can read more about why here.

Here are my recommended conditioning protocols for strength training:

1. Hill Sprints – Simple. Brutal. Effective. Find a hill, sprint up to the top, and walk down. Rinse and repeat 8-10 times. The hill does not have to be huge; 40 yards of incline should do nicely.
2. Prowler Push – The reason this is not number one on my list is the relative difficulty in finding one of these amazing pieces of equipment. They are expensive to buy and most gyms do not have one. However, they are hands down the best conditioning tool on the planet. Like a barbell, the prowler can be precisely loaded for each individual. You just load up the sled with the desired weight and push as hard as you can for 30 seconds (or 20-40 meters). Do this 6-8 times.
3. C2 Rower – Possibly the most underrated and under-utilized piece of cardio equipment in many weight rooms, the C2 rower is a powerful conditioning asset. The most effective workouts consist of all-out sprints at a high resistance for 30 seconds (or a set distance) followed by 2 minutes of rest. Do this 10 times. Always keep the resistance at level 10. Anything less is unacceptable.
4. Jumping Rope – Hey, if its good enough for Ali, Balboa, and Mayweather it’s good enough for you! Next to hill sprints, skipping is probably the most economic form of conditioning. You can buy a quality rope on Amazon for only $10.00. Take some time to learn proper technique (Buddy Lee is the best in the business). Once you have become an efficient jumper, perform 4-6 rounds of 100 jumps. You can do 100 straight, 50 right leg/50 left leg, it does not matter.
5. Walking – Ah yes, walking. While not a form of HIIT conditioning, walking merits a place on my list because its an activity most people can do regardless of age, geographic location, fitness level, or weather. Just because it sounds lazy doesn’t mean it isn’t a challenge…when done properly. For walking to be effective you’ll need to put in some effort: 45-60 minutes of fast paced walking (done with a weight vest if possible) will do the trick.

Well, there you have it. My “Top 5” conditioning protocols for the strength trainee. Nothing fancy, nothing complicated. Pick one of the exercises from the list and do it two times per week, preferably on days you do not train (or after your strength training if on the same day). Now go and get hot, sweaty, and out of breath!

Jumping Rope