Become a Personal Trainer – Understand energy systems

Use of Energy Systems

At MFT Global we want to maximise the effect on your body of our group workouts. By understanding the science behind what we do, it can give you an insight into why we do things the way we do. We also want you to know how much effort has gone into getting our training right in order to give you, our customer, the maximum effect for your time and money. Of course, we’ve referenced our statements too, so you know we’re not just making this up.

Background

To achieve a change in your body shape you need to grow your muscles – growing your muscles is what is known as muscle hypertrophy. Fortunately and contrary to popular beliefs, you don’t have to lift heavy weights all the time to get this effect.

The key element to growing your muscles is to actually taking your muscle to failure, or get very close to it, when you train (1).

The advantage you have when doing an MFT fitness class is that we let you exercise for time as opposed to counting your repetitions (reps). So whether you’re super fit and able to bang out the reps or a beginner, you will get a workout that suits your needs. If you need to grow muscle you can work to failure in the allotted time to make that happen.

This means you can work individually but within the framework of our class. No person left behind in our workouts.

Changing the working time can also have different effects. Your body works in three different energy systems, which your body exists in during any activity. They are as follows (2):

1. Phosphagen or CP, dominant from 0-10 seconds
2. Glycolytic or Anaerobic, dominant from 10-180 seconds
3. Mitochondrial Respiration or Aerobic, dominant 180 seconds and onwards

By varying the work times at class we can help you tap into the energy production of each system in order to get improvements from you. So, 0-10 seconds effort if we want you to be a better sprinter for example. However, If we want to send you home exhausted and feeling like you can’t do any more we’d use 45 – 90 second work periods to create an anaerobic interval style workout. If we want you to get, what you may describe as fitter, we’ll work you continuously and train in the aerobic system.

HIIT is popular, but is it superior?

Knowing about these systems also helps to manage your physical experience after class too. A lot has been said about interval training or HIIT and its fat burning benefits. In short, YES it is superior! And there is science to back it up too (3).

EPOC (Excess Post Exercise Oxygen Consumption) is higher for interval and resistance training. This means the metabolic rate is higher for longer after the exercise bout. You spend longer in recovery…therefore increased benefits.

So this is the point….

Every trainer should understand how to build a programme via the use of these different energy systems. An MFT trainer will plan a class class around the use of these energy systems and every one of their classes is planned to suit a purpose.

Rich

Head of Research

MFT

References:

1) Impact of high versus low fixed loads and non-linear training loads on muscle hypertrophy, strength and force development.

Fink J, Kikuchi N, Yoshida S, Terada K, Nakazato K.

Springerplus. 2016 May 20;5(1):698. doi: 10.1186/s40064-016-2333-z. eCollection 2016.

2)Interaction among Skeletal Muscle Metabolic Energy Systems during Intense Exercise

Julien S. Baker, Marie Clare McCormick, Robert A. Robergs

J Nutr Metab. 2010; 2010: 905612.  Published online 2010 December 6. doi: 10.1155/2010/905612

3) EPOC Comparison Between Isocaloric Bouts of Steady-State Aerobic, Intermittent Aerobic, and Resistance Training.

Greer BK, Sirithienthad P, Moffatt RJ, Marcello RT, Panton LB.

Res Q Exerc Sport. 2015 Jun;86(2):190-5. doi: 10.1080/02701367.2014.999190. Epub 2015 Feb 12.