Making the Hybrid Athlete: Episode 4 – Balancing Strength and Endurance Without Losing Gains

Written by Squad 5 Training

On December 8, 2024

Challenges of Hybrid Training:

  • Balancing strength and endurance training can be tricky as excessive endurance work may impact strength gains and vice versa.
  • The key is proper pacing, smart scheduling, and recovery.

Pacing Your Training:

  • Aerobic work should be done at sub-maximal intensity to avoid nervous system fatigue and ensure you can maintain strength training intensity.
  • Use tools like heart rate monitoring to keep endurance sessions at the right intensity.

Smart Scheduling:

  • Space strength and endurance sessions apart (e.g., strength in the morning, endurance in the evening) to minimize interference.
  • For optimal recovery, avoid training the same muscle groups for endurance and strength on the same day.

Nutrition and Recovery:

  • Proper fueling is crucial—consume sufficient protein and carbohydrates to support both endurance and strength adaptations.
  • Prioritize sleep and recovery tools like stretching and foam rolling to optimize performance

 Hybrid Training Example:

  • Strength session: Focus on compound lifts (e.g., squats, bench press, deadlifts).
  • Endurance session: Low-intensity Zone 2 training or interval running.

Pacing Your Training:

  • Aerobic work should be done at sub-maximal intensity to avoid nervous system fatigue and ensure you can maintain strength training intensity.
  • Use tools like heart rate monitoring to keep endurance sessions at the right intensity.

Smart Scheduling:

  • Space strength and endurance sessions apart (e.g., strength in the morning, endurance in the evening) to minimize interference.
  • For optimal recovery, avoid training the same muscle groups for endurance and strength on the same day.

Nutrition and Recovery:

  • Proper fueling is crucial—consume sufficient protein and carbohydrates to support both endurance and strength adaptations.
  • Prioritize sleep and recovery tools like stretching and foam rolling to optimize performance

 

    • Key Characteristics of Zone 2 Training: Heart Rate Range:
      •Zone 2 is typically 60-70% of your maximum heart rate (MHR).
      •Formula: (220 – age) x 0.6 to 0.7. Example: For a 30-year-old, Zone 2 is around 114-133 beats per minute (BPM).

You May Also Like…

AES-14: New Cycle starting Sunday 20th of October

Welcome to AES-14, similarly to AES-13 we aim to get you 40 minutes of training that focuses on muscle building weight training and 10 minutes of core and conditioning (more conditioning in this cycle though). We expect that you are using this to...

read more
Turkish Get up? What for?

Turkish Get up? What for?

I heard you! It sounds like there are a handful of members who don’t love Turkish Get Ups. They’re boring, pointless, too many are in the workout, etc. We heard a lot of different reasons. BUT, that’s the beauty of following a program; sometimes...

read more
Protein

Protein

Happy Friday, Let's talk about protein, a macronutrient you've probably heard plenty about. Protein provides essential amino acids that help build and repair tissues in your body, particularly skeletal muscle. Since muscle is composed of these...

read more