Hiring a fitness trainer is no longer just a luxury for elite athletes or affluent corporate CEOs – it’s a necessity that every man or woman committed to improving their health should invest in.
Yet despite the rise of the personal training profession into a $12 billion industry (thanks, COVID), it carries the stigma of being “too expensive” for the average Joe to buy on an ongoing basis. In reality, however, online coaching has exploded into a quality and cost-effective option for the rest of us, if you do your research. For the price of a night or two on the town, you can find a personal trainer who will provide you with up to 365 days of workout and wellness programs that can help you achieve any type of goal. fitness, to become stronger, leaner, better conditioned and in better physical health.
For me, I needed all of the above as I was recently preparing for a jiujitsu tournament. Unfortunately, being in the fitness business for as long as I have, I clung to the stubborn mindset that I could still do it myself, even with two decades of unfinished training models proving opposite.
So this time, since I needed to strengthen a messed up shoulder, lose 12 pounds, and survive as many adrenaline-draining rounds as necessary, I enlisted the help of Sal Alosi, a former NFL and Pac-12 strength and conditioning coach whose specialty was grooming NFL players and getting them ready for the game.
Alosi’s six-day routine was designed around the basics – squats, presses and deadlifts – with different variations and rep patterns – even “unconventional conditioning” launched every three weeks. Despite his intense football coaching experience – which I initially feared would include tons of power cleans and others requiring big lifts – his online program was a system that was not only easy to follow and execute, but it turned out to be quite effective.
Broken down into four 12-week programs each year, Alosi’s programs, starting with a winter program starting January 2– are designed for any type of gym-goer at any level – men, women, elite athletes, weekend warriors, corporate executives, even former fitness writers – sort of the same diverse community that doesn’t composed only the members courage training social media training community.
And it worked. Three months later, I was stronger, leaner and in the best condition I had felt in decades. Hell, I even looked good in a gi (at least before the competition).
When the 12 week program I participated in ended, I discovered weeks later that peak physicality in middle age like me was perhaps the second most important outcome that a reliable trainer as Alosi can offer with its services.
It turned out that I didn’t need someone to count the reps for me – I needed someone to hold me accountable for the entire 12 weeks. And responsibility meant having someone there to save me from my worst enemy: me. Alosi, along with the entire community, has served as a support system for bonuses you didn’t realize you needed when you first made your deposit, but relied on for praise and encouragement when things weren’t going so well.
And then I stopped.
And as 2023 approaches and every “new year new you” program is offered, including Alosi’s program on the Heroic Train appwhich starts on January 2: here’s how I learned to never make the mistake of doing it alone again.
The program
If you try the program seven day free trial, you’ll notice an easy-to-follow workout pattern created with the goal of gaining muscle and strength as well as increasing mobility. And if done uninterrupted, each session should have you out of the gym in less than an hour, a huge plus for anyone who’s always on the go.
The program I followed was formulated seasonally in four 12-week macrocycles (usually with a week off in between for members to regroup and recharge for the next program). Each is broken down into four three-week macrocycles, each focusing on a different training principle: hypertrophy, absolute strength, relative strength, and finally power.
The schedule never changed – Days 1 and 4 were always upper body work, while Days 2 and 5 were all about lower body and core work.
One of the first things I noticed was that there were no quirky moves that would get a million likes on Instagram or land me in the ER. Everything about Alosi’s programs is fundamentals-based, which means you’ll perform plenty of standard presses, deadlifts, and squats (even a few bicep curls, too). At the same time, you’ll also discover a host of safe and effective variations of these lifts – say hello to Poliquin step-ups and Z-presses. Alosi also mixes up the tempo patterns throughout the program (you’ll develop a love-hate relationship with six-second eccentrics).
That leaves days 3 and 6, which Alosi calls “unconventional conditioning” days, which take about 20 to 30 minutes. Each block which usually consists of rotational work (i.e. medicine ball circles), hinges (kettlebell swings), portage (kettlebell gate) and ending with a bike Tabata of rapid-fire assault (or something similar).
And if you ever have trouble tracking an exercise, Alosi has created over 500 easy-to-follow instructions that you’ll have access to on the Heroic Train app). Or, if necessary, the program offers you the possibility of replacing an exercise with a more suitable exercise.
Team spirit
Alosi credits bodybuilding icons Charles Poliquin and Louie Simmons of Westside Barbell for his fitness philosophy, which led to stints in the NFL as a strength and conditioning coach with the New York Jets and Falcons. ‘Atlanta. From there, Alosi went to UCLA in the early 2000s, where his training programs helped develop 31 NFL draft picks, including six first-round selections.
Although that resume created visions of walking through a gauntlet of loud, back-slapping teammates toward a power rack containing a loaded 45 bar, the training community was anything but intimidating. Instead of logging on to the band’s page, Alosi and his wife Michele, who both participated in the prescribed workouts, sent the daily workout tips – focusing on tempo and depth being a recurring theme throughout the program – was a welcome addition to my morning. routine.
From there, we were encouraged (but never required) to upload our daily workout videos to the page, where Alosi would lend his expertise – cheering (or giving solid advice) to our moves. When it comes to training, few things beat having a professional trainer compliment your squat — before telling you to slow down the tempo.
The camaraderie was a welcome bonus to my training, however, I won’t lie, setting up the tripod every day at the gym and filming every session had a narcissistic feel to it at times. But when I explained that I was doing it for my trainer to see, well, it was still narcissistic but with a cool vibe too.
So sharing my progress in the band room (not included in the 2023 schedule) while cheering on the rest of the team’s wins (by hitting the “like” button and commenting) was a big part of following up from the program. Progress breeds engagement, and this type of virtual teamwork has done a lot to keep things moving forward. It also helped you keep pushing on the days when you felt like “recovery”.
Training and Trust
Using a trainer for the first time, another benefit I wasn’t used to was that every workout happened for me every morning on the heroic train app as well as the group page – it meant less time spent working on useless templates that I would never finish. Alosi explained everything in great detail – from the 5-minute warm-up to the workout, which was broken down into main moves (squats, presses) to accessory moves, ending with a five-minute cooldown (full disclosure , I often skipped over this part, probably to my detriment).
While the pushing and pulling elements were similar to many other workouts, the program used some tools that I was familiar with but normally overlooked in my routine, slantboarding being one of them. This, along with the Poliquin stepups, continued to play a key role in helping to increase my ankle and knee mobility (I believe it even helped improve my squat technique). So I continued to incorporate slantboarding into as many parts of my training as possible.
What I have failed to incorporate, so far, is adding expert advice into my decision-making. Since I always chose to go it alone, that often meant overcoming the pain of fatigue when I had to back off or stop it too soon on days when I could have worked or cut back.
The best example of this was towards the end of the program, when the Fortitude training combined with BJJ was destroying me physically. Although I was getting more and more exhausted, I still wanted my training requirements, and like that famous phrase, there were no days off.
It’s the point of the program where having an experienced professional coach who has your best interest is worth every dollar invested – something I would have been better off spending instead of countless happy hours. Without ever having met me, Alosi instantly knew when and how to stop me, to some extent. Since I was hitting the mats several times a week, Alosi told me to eliminate all other conditioning. He also said to reduce the weights, but focus on your main work while you continue your mat training.
Within a few days everything was fine again. The training was back to 100%. Without someone in your corner watching over you, it could have gotten ugly. It sounds like common sense – if you’re tired, you rest – but having a trainer watching you is another example of the role of an expert beyond sets and reps.
new year new me
I’ve saved the most revolutionary benefit of having a coach for last: accountability.
During the 12-week program, aside from the previously mentioned downscaling, there were no missed workouts. Every day I checked in – the difference here was that with the community setting and well-structured workouts it wasn’t a requirement, but again I felt compelled to workout and share my progress with the group.
After week 12, I entered my lightest tournament I’ve been since high school – a lightweight, to be exact. In just three months, I felt stronger, healthier, more conditioned, and athletic since maybe 12th grade (and I wasn’t in great shape even then). Still, that didn’t help the end results, as an injury in my tournament kind of ruined 12 weeks of winnings.
Not giving up on pattern making entirely, I kept a diary of the program and reused it during rehabilitation. However, what Alosi preached at the beginning turned out to be true. There is a difference between training and training. I was back in training, mixing a few strong days with an equal amount of sending to the gym.
Now 2023 comes with a new committed push to be bigger, stronger and faster. I hope I got not only stronger, but also a bit smarter this year. Finally, I have physical proof that you’re doing it yourself rather than getting professional help – and at the same price you’ll spend on New Year’s Eve.
You have to invest in yourself. I hope I will see my coach again very soon.
