EXERCISE HANDBOOK

WELCOMEWelcome to the exercise module within the SJFAcademy. I'm so glad you're here! This module is all about understanding what type ofexercise you're doing and how to implement itrealistically into your life. This workbook runs alongside the videos as a writtensummary. You are going to be taking a lot of informationin over these first four weeks, so please be patient withyourself when incorporating it into your life. Make sure you watch all the videos, consider takingnotes and, where needed, watch them again. The ideawithin the Academy is that all your potential questionsand worries are answered. If there are questions you stillhave, feel free to fire them into SJF Academy Facebookgroup. Take a long-term mindset when it comes to change asnothing great happens over night. Let's get this module on the road...

WEIGHT-BASED EXERCISEOK! So after watching the 'Exercise' presentation you willnow understand why all of your time in the gym will bespent doing weight based exercise. Your primary goal isfat loss whilst increasing muscle mass. This is the perfectcocktail for improved body shape.  The term 'weight loss' is what most want. But what theyactually need is fat loss. So, although I often speak aboutweight loss (as it is this that gets people's attention), it isactually fat loss and muscle gain that you should belooking to attain. After watching the 'Weighing Yourself' presentation youwill now realise that the scales should not be yourprimary tool for judging progress due to water weightfluctuation and adding new weight (muscle). Therefore,it will be your progress pictures, how you look in themirror and how your clothes fit that we will be using asthe primary tools for judging progress. Any cardio you wish to do would ideally be done outside.Here it can be enjoyed with the sun hitting the back ofyour neck, fresh air filling your lunges and perhaps withfriends. All these things will also adhere to your body'sprimitive needs.

IMPLEMENTATION

When joining the Academy you were asked how manytimes a week on average you could train. This will havehad only a small influence on the guideline daily calorienumber worked out for you.  I'm telling you this because I don't want you to worry ifsome weeks you don't get in as many times as you hadpredicted. Remember, for it to be a lifestyle there mustbe leeway. This is why your workouts are built on arotation system instead of a particular day being aparticular workout i.e. Tuesday = leg day. This method has worked seamlessly in my life andAcademy students' lives to date as it allows for weekswhen you inevitably train fewer or more times than youhad predicted. All this is geared towards a sustainableapproach. One that's designed to create a non-obsessive mindset. Let's now look at the inner workings of your workoutsand individual aspects such as form, reps, sets, rest etc...

WORKOUT ROTATION

Super simple - One session is one workout. Most of youwill be starting on a two way lower body and upperbody/core spilt. So each time you go into the gymyou will literally rotate between these two. As themonths go on your workout split will most likely go threeways and eventually four ways. You will still rotate theworkouts each time you go in. Most of your workouts revolve around 25 total sets.Naturally, there will be occasions when you do not havetime to complete all the sets. Don't worry about this.Remember consistency, not perfection. In an ideal world you would work through your workoutin the order set (set example workout below). So squatfor 5 sets, then deadlift for 5 sets, and so on.

However, there will be times when equipment ormachines are being used. In this scenario, skip theexercise and come back to it later. Finally, appreciate that at first your body may not be ableto do the total number of sets. This is perfectly normal ifyou are new to weight based exercise. Slowly increasethe total number of sets with time until you are able todo them all!

EFFORT LEVEL

Contrary to belief, there is no perfect rep range formuscle promotion. Rep range breakdowns (3-6 reps forstrength, 8-12 reps for hyprotprohy, and 12-15 reps formuscular endurance) presume that everyone moves theweight through each rep the same. As you will learn, thisis not true. Instead, I want you to focus on effort level. Particularlyover the last few reps of a set. Using a scale of 1-10; 1being easy and 10 being near failure. Over the last fewreps your effort level should be at a 8,9 or 10.

So we know that there is no perfect rep range. Thismeans you should be focusing on effort level over thelast few reps of each set. However, it is still wise to havesome sort of rep range that allows you to optimise form,whilst not being so high that it becomes timeconsuming. For that reason I recommend you work within a broadrep range of 8-15 reps. This will allow you to work uparound 15 reps with a certain weight. Then, when thatbecomes too easy, you can increase the weight andbring the reps back down. Continuing in this manner asyou get stronger.

REP RANGE

EXAMPLE:Kettlebell Squat: week 1 - 8kg - 10 reps - effort level 9 over last few reps.week 3 - 8kg - 15 reps - effort level 6 over last few reps. (Weight needs to increase)Week 4 - 12kg - 10 reps - effort level 9 over last few reps.Week 7 - 12kg - 15 reps - effort level 6 over last few reps.(Weight needs to increase)Week 8 16kg - 8 reps - effort level 9 over last few reps. 

This is known as ramping up. It allows you to selfmanage weight increases as you get stronger in alogical way.

Having watched the 'Exercise' presentation you will nowunderstand that you are placing a controlled stress onthe working muscles. Meaning that on a broad, microscale there are individual rips in muscle fibers. Thebodies defence system then promotes new muscle inpreparation for that stress being placed on it again. It isfor this reason you must gradually increase the stressplaced on the muscle otherwise they will have no needto keep growing.

FORM

On all your exercise videos you will hear me speak aboutthe slower, quicker and pause parts within each rep ofeach exercise. You will also hear me explain what jointsto move and whether to lock out a join or not.Absorb and implement these ques into your training bymentally breaking the reps down until they become asubconscious habit.

This is why form is so important and why reps alonedon't tell much of the story. It depends a lot on how youmove the weight through the reps. Most take noconsideration about putting the muscles under tensionand rely heavily on momentum and swinging in order tomove the weight through each rep. This is because theybelieve the heavier they lift the more benefit they willget. This is only true when form is prioritised first.

Finally, appreciate that if your form is still perfect overthe last few reps of a set then you are not working withinthe effort levels required. Form is your priority but if it isnot wavering over the last few reps you should considerincreasing the reps or weight. This may soundcontradictory but when you realise that we need tooverload the muscles to create a stress response (newmuscle) it should make sense.

RESTThis is not something I want you to obsess over. Just usecommon sense. As long as the last few reps of a set areat an 8, 9, or 10 out of 10 in terms of effort level thenyou'll be fine. If you rest longer than normal you will findyou'll probably do slightly more reps but effort level isKing. In a relaxed manner you can use logic. The smaller theamount of muscle recruited, the less amount of restneeds.

Big exercises (squats, deadlifts, lunges, pull-ups etc) - 45seconds. Medium exercises (presses, machine exercises etc) 30 seconds. Small exercises (isolated biceps and triceps etc) 20 seconds.

GUIDELINES:

CONSIDERATIONS

Many of you will walk into the gym nervous, lackingconfidence, and probably feeling very self conscious.Please realise that this is perfectly normal. Accept it and,with time, you will be brimming with confidence. I want you to take comfort in the fact that most peoplein a gym environment train with little structure orunderstanding of form. You however, will walk into thegym knowing exactly what you're doing and how to doit! How ironic is it that you may be worrying about doingthings wrong, when actually it will be others who willprobably be doing things incorrectly. When I speak to people about this I highlight thatanything new is daunting. The human brain likes toknow what's going on - it is its primal defencemechanism. What we cannot make sense of within ourheads makes us anxious. Think about a new job ormeeting people for the first time - they were all worryingscenarios. But think how relaxed you are in your job now or with the people you once didn't know.

GUIDELINES:

FINAL WORDSI have tried to keep this module as simple as possiblethrough making sure you're aware that perfection is notrequired here. Instead, it's consistency. Embrace this type of exercise as it benefits span waybeyond increased calorie burn and improved bodycomposition. Your posture, bone density, chronic painsand day to day movement will all be improved. You areadhering to your bodies ancestral desires by liftingweights. Remember, if you have any questions fire them in theSJF Academy facebook group, where me or otherstudents will answer them.  Finally, I am so passionate about spreading my methodsto a bigger audience who may have fought battles tolose weight for many years. Therefore, I ask that you tagme on instagram in any stories or posts you may uploadof you exercising (@samlukejones). This is a vital way ofspreading my message. I look forward to helping you better yourself,