Periodization for the Endless Season
By, Jeffrey Appel - O2X On-Site Specialist
Like many tactical strength and conditioning coaches, I got my start in the college ranks. Periodization was simple. Your year was laid out for you. School starts here, camp there, the season here. You fill in the blanks on how to get them prepared, but you were given the when and you know the needs.
This area operates a bit differently as the season is on-going. War fighters and first responders do not have an off-season. Depending on roles, some may have slower or busier times, but they do not have the luxury of preparing to be at their best on Saturdays over the span of only three months. There is no camp. There are no games. There are no meets. There is however, work, families, and life intertwined. Their season is endless.
What I quickly realized was, their schedule is chaotic. They may go down range at this time, but they may not. Some deployments are full of free time, others not at all. Temporary Duty Assignments (TDYs) are all over the place. Family vacations and kid’s activities quickly fill the white space. New jobs, babies, and well…life can really derail a program. Yet, most have the same main goals, they want to stay healthy on the job, and look halfway decent in appearance. What I thought was, “why not periodize the way I figure I’ll program for myself when I’m done competing?”
Keep in mind – 1) the needs of the group are always the needs. If a strong back or incredible running endurance are always important, then they must always play a role in the program. The basic needs are always the needs! 2) Use the natural cycle of the year to drive the program (if it makes sense with the group you are with).
Yearly Cycle
October – December: Hypertrophy. What do most of us do during these months? We eat more than we should! Grabbing handfuls of our kid’s Halloween candy. A Thanksgiving Feast followed by a food coma and days of leftovers. Christmas get-togethers are filled with great food, holiday treats, and festive drinks. Many of us take in extra calories during this time of year, take advantage of the calorie surplus and make this your mass building phase!
January – March: Strength. Hopefully you have gained some muscle mass during your hypertrophy block. Now, let’s take advantage of the extra muscle and push some weight! Use this block as your time to get strong! Being strong makes life easier!
April – June: Shred. It is usually around this time of year when people start realizing they are going to be wearing swimsuits soon, and they are not ready for it. If you do not program this in, you will likely be getting asked for a lot of individual programs to “tone up.” This can be a great time to throw some wild circuits at them. Keep it up-tempo, keep them moving and keep it exciting! Also, remind them that six-packs are made in the kitchen! Even if the program gets their heart rate up and they burn a couple of extra calories, they can’t outrun their mouth. Always make nutrition a priority!
July – September: Regeneration Phase. This can be a unique block, take some load off them and have some fun with it. Have they been squatting and deadlifting all year long? Take some weight off the bar. Use bands and hang weights. Use the dusty belt squat and unload their backs. Tempo the movements and lighten the lift. Replace their weightlifting movements with landmine variations. Add combo movements and train along fascial lines. Use your imagination and get them feeling good!
This may not fit every organization, but it is a simple and fun way to periodize their programs when their hectic lives and schedules do not allow for traditional training seasons.
Making it Fit the Schedule
When I first arrived at Langley Air Force base, we spent a lot of time coming up with a “perfect” 5-day plan. It didn’t take long to realize this just doesn’t work. Your program may look great on paper – Monday (Strength), Tuesday (Conditioning), Wednesday (Recovery), Thursday (Acceleration), Friday (Volume). 1,000 ways to skin a cat. What happens in reality? A guy shows up every Monday/Wednesday. One week someone may get all five days in. The next they get two, and following week three. However, when broken up, they are likely going to miss qualities or body parts that are important for their jobs. Here is a very simple work around. Use your 5-day plan as a “perfect scenario”, but make 2-3-day variations of it to accommodate ever flowing schedules. Combine movements and qualities that go well together, keep the meats and potatoes, and take out any fluff. It may be extra work on your end, but it is well worth it.
20-40-60-minute Plans
As much as we would like to think that training is their number one priority, it’s not. Few will find the time no matter what, but many will try to squeeze it in. I typically try to make my general programs take about an hour. From warm-up to the end, let’s get this done in 60. When I first made the transition to tactical, guys would always come in and say “hey, I’ve got 40 minutes, what should I do?” or “I’ve only got 25 minutes today, what should I do?”. I figured it was simple, I would just tell them to cut certain blocks, and just hit the main things. Guys hated it. They felt like they weren’t doing what they were supposed to. A simple solution that quickly fixed this attitude, color code the program! Red, blue, black. You only have 20-minutes – hit everything in red. You have 40-minutes, hit everything in red and blue. You have a full hour or more – do the whole thing! This quickly changed the mindset as they felt they were doing what was planned rather than skipping half a workout. They were not cheating themselves; they were doing the 3-day “blue” this week. By giving them a clear, flexible roadmap, training became achievable, efficient, and most importantly honest to the plan.
About O2X On-Site Specialist Jeffrey Appel:
Jeff Appel is an O2X On-Site Human Performance Specialist and Program Manager specializing in Strength and Conditioning for the FBI. In this role, he supports tactical athletes by designing and implementing comprehensive training programs and resources tailored to the physical and mental demands of their mission-critical work. Jeff and the O2X team prepare FBI personnel to meet the challenges of their dynamic and high-stakes responsibilities, emphasizing readiness and resilience.Before joining O2X, Jeff served as the Strength and Conditioning Specialist for fighter pilots with the 1st Ops Group at Langley Air Force Base. At Langley, Jeff developed a periodized training program based around the hectic schedule of fighter pilots while also introducing an individualized approach to training the neck. Before his stint at Langley, Jeff spent four years as the Director of Sports Performance at Fork Union Military Academy. Prior to Fork Union, Jeff worked for six universities during an 11-year span in the collegiate setting, including the University of Richmond, University of Idaho and Davidson College.Originally from Colorado, Jeff earned his Master’s in Exercise and Sports Science from the University of Western States and his Bachelor’s in Exercise Science from Colorado State University – Pueblo. Jeff now resides in Virginia with his wife and two kids.