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How To Make A Well Rounded Training Program

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June 17, 2025•3 min read

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How To Make A Well Rounded Training Program

Designing a training program can sometimes be daunting, and we end up just throwing things together, or in some cases, avoid it altogether. Runners are notorious for avoiding cross training and weightlifters are notorious for hating cardio. So how do we find a middle ground and fill in the gaps to make ourselves better and healthier athletes?

Lets review the essential pieces that go into a well rounded training program.

Cardio: Cardiovascular exercise has so many benefits on our health as a whole. Whether this takes up 80% of your training, or 20%, you should be including this multiple days a week. This can take the form of running, cycling, rowing, or even walking if that is where you need to start. A subset of this, also known as the 80/20 rule, includes higher volume of low intensity and some high intensity work to hit both aerobic and anaerobic systems in the body.

Strength: Muscular power and strength are vital components to keeping the body healthy, encouraging good metabolism, and delaying effects of aging. 2-3 days a week hitting major muscle groups with reps both in the moderate (8-12 rep max) and heavy (5-8 rep max) range will help cardio based athletes become more resilient and help to avoid overuse injuries.

Mobility: Movement is the foundation that we build athletics on. Without proper mobility in your routine you will tend to get tight in the overworked areas. For weight lifters it is common in the pecs and shoulders, and runners in the hips. The point of mobility work is to exploit weaknesses and address limitations before they become an injury.

Flexibility: This is the ability to move through a full range of motion and is a little bit different than mobility. Mobility is the ability to access the positions you need to get into for your sports, whereas flexibility is the ability to move in all ranges of motion well. Active and passive stretching can be helpful to improve flexibility quickly over time.

Stability: As important as mobility is, stability is the ying to its yang. A well-controlled core is pivotal in the process of dynamic movement. When the core is controlled the arms and legs can move independently from a stable foundation. If the foundation (our feet) is moving stability is lost and mechanics start to fall apart. Core strength and single leg exercises need to be a part of every athletes routine a few times a week.

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