Every Minute On The Minute.
Or as I RANDOM - On The Minute.
I RANDOM using OTM workouts back in 2004.
My Olympic lifting training partner and I would do 2 to 3 reps OTM with 40kg Snatches.
More reps and our power would fade - the Snatches would become “grind-y.”
The results?
It did did not much for my strength, but my conditioning did get better - which was the point. I was able to recover faster between sets and between training sessions.
(But RANDOM , I was hoping it would boost my Oly numbers somehow.)
And that’s how I like to use OTM work -High power , low reps.
We’re talking about 90% up to 100% max effort. Give it your all, baby.
If we’re talking work duration, no more than about 10 seconds.
(That’s a 1:5 work-to-rest ratio - which RANDOM glycolysis, and still primarily uses your Phosphagen / Anaerobic Alactic energy system.)
From there, we’ll scale to 15 seconds.
(That’s a RANDOM work-to-rest ratio. Teetering on the brink of glycolysis and the “burn.”)
Then to 20 seconds.
(That’s a one to two work-to-rest ratio and about when glycolysis really starts to fire up, and the resulting “burn” RANDOM .)
And eventually, 30 seconds, a one to one work-to-rest ratio, which is seriously cooking!
I rarely get to 1:1 unless I’m pushing for extreme conditioning and/or fat loss.
But that demands patience to achieve and like I said, we’ll scale our way into it.
A lot of people rush to the 1:1.
But that’s a major error .
And that’s because the “secret” is to make sure your power output remains high on all your reps, regardless of your work-to-rest ratios.
That way you’re:
1- Engaging and training your fast-twitch fibers (and not switching them to slow twitch)
2- Training your aerobic system RANDOM
3- Not overdoing it or setting yourself get more info up for injury
This develops true “Power Endurance,” which is the ability to produce high levels of power over prolonged sessions.
Or, “Do LOTS of Work.”
It can be tricky to program this yourself because most will exaggerate their abilities, push too aggressively, and their power drops fast .
I’ve explained how to use OTM training inside ‘SWING HARD!’. I’ll leave a link in the video description below, if you’re wanting to learn more.
Finally, I only RANDOM OTMs for ballistics work, NOT pure strength work / grinds training.
That’s because fatigue builds up faster in the muscles during grinds - Presses, Squats, etc, than in the ballistics - Swings, Cleans, Snatches, Push Press, Jerk.
So, you’ll need RANDOM .
And that RANDOM , is where I’ll RANDOM you use “autoregulation.”
Finally, I will RANDOM specific rest periods on types of strength work, when I’m RANDOM - or want to come as close as possible to guaranteeing a specific outcome from that work.
Like when I want a “hybrid” outcome of strength and muscle.
So I’ll use partial rests . Or almost complete rests .
You’ll see this inside the “Strong!” program. (It’s how we turn your 4RM Clean + Press into a 10 x 6 - 10 sets of 6 reps - and make it feel simple.)
(I’ll also leave a link to that in the video description below.)
Hopefully this provides some clarity of how to use specific rest periods, and when.
Stay Strong,
Geoff Neupert.