With so much enthusiasm for exercise in today's society, workout plans seem to be a dime a dozen. Celebrities, magazines and infomercials all claim to have the best workout plan, but few of these sources offer effective routines. To find a plan that will deliver results, you need one based on fact, not fads.
CrossFit
CrossFit is an effective program because it combines strength training with aerobic conditioning. As CrossFit founder Greg Glassman explains, CrossFit combines Olympic powerlifting techniques, gymnastics and sprinting into a comprehensive agility, flexibility and strength-training program.
CrossFit also helps you succeed by providing nutritional guidelines along with its unique and demanding workouts. Greg Glassman recommends eating meat, nuts, and vegetables, as well as limiting sugar and starches and refraining from overindulgence.
In addition, CrossFit attempts to build a community with the establishment of special CrossFit gyms and a central website offering daily workouts and a message board at Crossfit.com.
P90X
At first glance, P90X may seem like yet another workout plan that promises far too much to deliver. However, like CrossFit, the plan is fairly comprehensive and provides nutritional guidelines as well as exercise ideas.
The biggest factor that makes P90X effective, according to Bodybuilding.com, is the variety of workouts; continually challenging your body prevents plateaus in your progress. However, the site also notes that you need to stay motivated to stick with the program, as it is challenging.
Overall, the combination of varied workouts - cardiovascular and strength-training - and a sound nutrition plan make P90X an effective workout plan if you stick with it.
Hypertrophy-Specific Training
Hypertrophy-Specific Training, or HST, is effective because the program is grounded in sound scientific research in exercise science. The program keeps overall volume low but uses compound exercises to challenge as many muscle groups as possible and works around the body's natural adaptations to exercise. In addition, as explained on Hypertrophy-Specific.com, the program includes the unique concept of "strategic deconditioning." Unlike other programs that try to pound your body week in and week out by continually increasing resistance, HST lowers the load to prevent adaptation and burnout. The founders of HST also created Hypertrophy-Specific Nutrition, a brand of supplements to accompany the program.
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