Nautilus S912 - Manual (Page 12)

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General Strength Guidelines
Determine your goal:
Power/Speed: Ability to do something in short bursts and be stronger and more powerful performing that task, like
jumping or pushing.
Hypertrophy: Larger muscle size
Endurance: Ability to work with a moderate load over a longer period of time without getting fatigued.
Once you have determined the goal for training you can make informed decisions about your training regimen.
Progression of exercise is determined by the following variables: control, reps, range of motion, sets, effort, and load (resistance/
weight moved). Detailed descriptions and instructions follow.
Control
Determine what muscles are acting (agonist) within the scope of each exercise. Learn how to best fit your body on the machine
for optimal range of motion (movement within each repetition), and how or where to apply force. On each machine there will be a
general description of the area worked on the body. Once you have determined the proper alignment or body position, try a couple of
repetitions to make sure the muscles that are intended to be worked are in fact being contracted during each individual repetition. If
you feel pain or discomfort beyond what is considered reasonable muscle discomfort, discontinue the exercise.
The number of adjustments on each machine are intended to provide every user with the best possible fit; therefore, achieving the
goal you are setting safely.
Range of Motion
Each machine has a predetermined range of motion (ROM) or movement pattern it travels through each repetition. When performing
the exercise make sure to take a look at the diagram provided to achieve the ideal ROM. It’s easy to relax the body so much on a
machine that body posture suffers and as a result the movement is compromised. It’s not only important to look at the movement
pattern, but also look at the body diagram provided on each machine as a guide.
Effort
The amount of effort involved in each repetition or set will evolve over time. Based on your goal of training, the effort will be
determined based on the level of fatigue that is experienced in the final 1 or 2 repetitions for each set. Ideally an individual should
feel moderate to intense fatigue at the end of a set in order to provide enough stimuli to the muscles for adaptation. In basic terms, if
one does not work hard enough the results will not happen as quickly (this does not mean working to injury or intense pain).
Take the following points into consideration when discussing exercise effort:
A movement must be learned before it is intensified.
You can only progress as fast as the weakest muscle (meaning that skipping exercises in the circuit could be detrimental
to your overall muscular balance) An example of this is being very “strong” on the leg press and skipping the leg
extension or leg curl. The front (quadriceps) and the back (hamstrings) of the leg are muscle groups that provide stability
to the body and are two of the primary muscle groups that contract in a squat or leg press. Therefore, eliminating them
would or could be detrimental to overall progress.
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STRENGTH GUIDELINES