20 Min Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workout Interview with Craig Ballantyne
If you are into Hard Core Fat Loss training then you won’t want to miss this Training Workout Interview with Craig Ballantyne as he takes you through what his Turbulence Training Workouts are all about. Craig tells you about the makeup of his Turbulence Training workouts and why you can get the same workout you use to get but in only 20 minutes.
Now over to the 20 Min Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workout Interview with Craig Ballantyne.
20 Min Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workout
Interview with Craig Ballantyne
If you’re sick of fluffy weight loss workouts that aren’t giving you any results, then you will love this hard core fat loss training interview.
Question: Craig, thanks for taking the time out of your insane schedule to talk with us. Tell us a little bit about yourself, your clientele and your overall training philosophy.
Craig Ballantyne:
I’m a Strength & Conditioning coach in Toronto and I write for Men’s Health and Oxygen magazine.
I work extensively with clients on advanced fat loss for busy people. I’m also the training director at www.grrlathlete.com where we provide advanced female exercise info.
Hard Core Fat Loss Busy Men and Women
Question: We have a growing number of hard core fat loss men and women leading busy lives but still love to train hard. How do you train individuals like this and still get kick butt results?
Craig Ballantyne:
I use supersets, moderately heavy weights (allowing 6-10 reps per set), limited rest interval periods, advanced bodyweight exercises, and interval training. These efficient and effective principles are the foundation of my Turbulence Training hard core fat loss philosophy.
Turbulence Training workouts are designed to crank up the body’s metabolism because of the intense demands imposed during the workouts.
After the workout, your body has to work hard (i.e. burn calories and repair muscle) to fully recover and return to a normal, resting state (that is why I compare my Turbulence Training hard core fat loss workouts to the Turbulence encountered in an airplane – a neat little analogy that people really like and find easy to understand).
I tend to stick with traditional weight training exercises, however, it is easy to adapt the Turbulence Training principles when using strongman implements and advanced bodyweight exercises.
For intervals, I tend to stick with 30 seconds of work and 90 seconds of active recovery, although it will vary between workout phases and for athletes of different sports.
The great thing about heavy weights and intervals is efficiency. You don’t have to do either for more than 20 minutes to get a great response. So if you are a busy executive looking to get lean, build muscle, and lose fat, you can get a great workout and shower in less than 30 minutes per day.
Combine Turbulence Training with the right nutrition, and you are well on your way to success.
By the way, we’ve got a secret bonus for everyone that invests in Turbulence Training – although I guess it’s not so secret anymore! Anyways, you’ll see what it is when you start your Turbulence Training journey with the fat loss program.
Crank up your Metabolism. Get Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts ==> Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
20 Minute Hard Core Fat Loss Workout
Question: If you were limited to a 20 minute hard core fat loss workout, what would that work out look like?
Craig Ballantyne:
Providing the individual is injury free, we will move through a general warm-up circuit of bodyweight exercises (3 minutes), and then into specific warm-up sets for the first superset of exercises (2 minutes).
Then we will spend 5 minutes on the first superset pair of exercises, and then 4-5 minutes on another superset pair. We might finish with a third superset pair or some ab work, and a 2 minute cool-down if it is necessary based on the individual’s fitness level.
On non-weight training days, we would do intervals. It would look like this:
5-minute warm-up
12-minutes on intervals
3-minute cool down
The point is, you can get a lot done in a short amount of time with hard core fat loss workouts.
Stop Wasting time. Get Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts ==> Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
Question: What nutrition approach do you use?
Craig Ballantyne:
I had Dr. Chris Mohr, Ph.D., put together the Turbulence Training Fat Loss Nutrition Guidelines.
I strongly agree with Dr. Mohr’s common sense, easy to follow principles. There is nothing extreme about his plan. It is very healthy and effective for fat loss.
I don’t think that people need to exclude fruit from their eating (in fact we should aim to eat at least 3 servings, and preferably berries, grapefruits, apples, and oranges), but instead we should avoid white, processed carbohydrates from a bag or a box.
Foods that should be in every healthy person’s nutrition plan:
Green Tea
Almonds
Broccoli
Berries
A variety of lean protein sources
Basically, for nutrition, just choose healthy, whole natural food.
Question: Last question Craig. What is the greatest misconception that you find people to have when it comes to performing better and looking better when they come to you. In other words, they tell you everything they have been doing in hopes of getting results but the results simply aren’t there. Are there any common mistakes going on here?
Craig Ballantyne:
Most of the time I try and get people to be honest with themselves and realize they have to change things if they want to improve.
A lot of people really just want me to approve their current workout (when it is clearly not working). But in reality, they have to change their workouts drastically to finally get results.
And most people think they are eating better and using a better program than they really are.
Even when most people they list out their food intake (as I have them all do on fitday.com), some people (including some trainers that I train) still don’t see the obvious problems in their diet.
I suppose it is human nature not to see our own shortcomings, so it is helpful to have a professional review your training and nutrition or even an honest, knowledgeable friend.
Be Honest with yourself. Get Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts ==> Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
Sincerely,
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training
Try Turbulence Training today!
PS. Who else wants to burn pounds of fat with Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts and finally see their abs in less workout time than ever before?
“I was a high school athlete, wrestling, football, baseball. Never once did I see my abs. My waist was almost two inches smaller than it is now but I still had a covering over my abdominals. This morning two horizontal divisions appeared in the mirror for the first time. Considering how hard I have worked in the past, it is amazing that TT is able to consume fat the way it does.”
Paul Kazim
Find your Abs. Get Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts ==> Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
“All I can say is WOW. As a former heavy exerciser who has had to cut back due to the demands of career and family, I never thought
I’d be able to lose fat and build muscle as effectively as before. However, with Craig’s help, I was able to spend less time working out and exceed my expectations. I basically lost more fat and built muscle in half the time I used to work out. I feel like I have gotten my confidence and life back – thanks for all of your help!”
Tracey Fackler
As for myself. I use to be working out every day for 1.5 hrs and I never got the results I am getting with Turbulence Training hard core fat loss workouts. Now I have time to stay at home with my family and do 3 x 3o minute workouts a week. I don’t even go to the gym. I just use Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts and I am getting down to my lowest body fat percentage ever. Turbulence Training hard core fat loss and the Nutrition guide are all you need. The best part is there is 6 months of workouts found in the Turbulence Training guide so you won’t get bored. Your workout gets changed up every 4 weeks to keep your body moving to the next level. Hard core fat loss with Turbulence Training is the best workout for saving time.
Don’t get Bored. Get Craig Ballantyne’s Hard Core Fat Loss Training Workouts ==> Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
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9 Questions about Fat Burning. I bet you can't answer
So you think you know a lot about fat burning eh! What do you really know about strength training supersets, intervals for beginners, spinning classes, the fat burning zone, the optimal workout program length and interval training. I’m sure there is something here that you don’t know and can change to increase your fat burning potential.
OK. I’m turning you over to Craig Ballantyne so test your knowledge with these 8 questions that Craig Ballantyne CSCS, MS was asked about fat burning.
Did you know THIS about fat burning?
How does Turbulence Training work?
Can beginners use TT?
What equipment do I need?
All this and more in this week’s TT Q’n'A…
Q: What is an example of a strength training superset that women can try to improve their results in tough to target areas (such as hips/glutes/thighs)?
Answer:
For beginners, we use 1-leg hip extensions to target the glutes. We could pair that with Stability Ball leg curls for the hamstrings.
For squats, if you use a slightly wider than shoulder-width stance, you can sit your hips back more and work your butt harder than with normal squats. In the Turbulence Training programs, that is called a Sumo Squat or Wide-stance Squat. It can be done with weight or bodyweight alone. That would go well with Stability Ball Hip Extensions, and would be great for the intermediate crowd.
For advanced fitness levels, exercises like split squats, RDL’s, and reverse lunges target the glutes and hamstrings. These could be paired with 1-Leg Stability Ball Leg Curls or 1-Leg RDL’s.
Q: Why do you say the fat-burning zone isn’t important?
Answer:
There are more efficient ways to burn fat and change your body than exercising for a long time at a slow pace.
Proportionately, you burn more fat as fuel when exercising at a low intensity. I agree with that.
BUT!
You burn as much or even more fat, proportionately, at REST! So if you want the fat burning zone, why get off the couch? Just make sure you don’t watch anything too exciting, like “24″, or your heart-rate will go too high. Stick to something that’s neither suspenseful nor funny, anything starring Jim Belushi should work.
Seriously, we need to understand that it doesn’t matter how much fat we burn as a percent of total calories burned during the workout. In fact, we don’t even need to get hung up on the amount of calories burned during our exercise session.
All we need to do is focus on…
A) Boosting metabolism with strength training
B) Boosting metabolism with interval training
C) Eating for fat loss with the proper nutrition guidelines (see Dr. Mohr’s TT Fat Loss Guidelines for male and female meal plans).
To boost your metabolism in a short amount of workout time, you need to do strength training and interval training. If you have 2 hours per day to workout, feel free to do slow cardio in the fat-burning zone. It’s your time to waste. But if you want results fast, the TT workout approach will put you in the “fat burning zone” all day long.
Q: Is it mandatory to achieve the rep count on the last set of an exercise? For example, when the exercise calls for 3 sets of 8 reps, I get 8 reps in set 1, but only 7 in the last two sets. Should I reduce the weight?
Also, if I cut down on the recovery time, is there a benefit? I have always read that cutting down recovery time is great if you can manage it. Or is it necessary to allow some recovery time before the next set?
Answer:
Stick with the same weight for all sets if you can still get 7 or even 6 repetitions. However, if you drop down to 5 or less reps (when it calls for 8 reps), you should decrease the weight in the remaining sets.
As for cutting recovery time, you won’t achieve additional results by doing so. And if you cut recovery time TOO much, then you will have to significantly reduce the weight used per set, and that could cut into your metabolism boost.
Please stick to the recommended recovery times.
Q: Could you address the following issue in of your newsletters:
Are intervals good for beginners? Isn’t that too hard for them?
Answer:
No, beginners can still do interval training.
I’m not talking about what people call “HIIT” (high-intensity interval training). I’m simply talking about working at a slightly harder than normal pace for the recommended interval time.
I don’t like to use the phrase HIIT in my articles, for this reason.
Here’s how beginners would do intervals.
Let’s say you are a beginner that can walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes straight at 3.5mph. For your interval training, you would increase the speed to 3.8mph for 1-2 minutes. Then for your recovery, you’d drop it down to 3.0mph for an equal length of time.
Repeat for 4-6 intervals.
That’s safe and effective interval training for beginners.
Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
Q: I’ve read you don’t like spinning classes. Why not?
Answer:
I find that spinning classes are inefficient. Why spend 45 minutes in a class when you can get the same results in 18 minutes by doing interval training on your own with the TT Interval Workouts?
Plus, I don’t like high-RPM spinning, as I’ve met several women who have injuries that can be traced back to high-RPM spinning. It’s likely that the combination of “messed up hips” from giving birth to their children led to biomechanical problems that flared up when they started spinning on a regular basis. Be careful, and make sure you are strong enough for the cardio activities you choose!
The best part of a spinning class are the high-tension, moderate-RPM intervals. Those intervals are what give you the ‘turbulence’ on your muscles and skyrocket your metabolism because that is when you are doing the most work.
But if you like the camaraderie of the class (remember, social support is essential to success!), and you have the time, and you’re healthy, than spinning is a far better choice than spending an equal amount of time on the elliptical at a slow pace while reading People magazine (I used to see this everyday, and I’m sure you do in your gym as well).
Personally, I can’t stand being told what to do (even if by a cute instructor), so I’ll stick to doing my interval training on my own.
To each their own! (as long as it gets results)
Q: What actually happens in the body and muscles during and after a Turbulence Training workout?
Answer:
Turbulence Training burns energy, and A LOT of it. So muscle energy stores are depleted (i.e. glycogen), and there is some muscle damage (as with regular strength training). Combined, those two changes put your muscles into what I call, “turbulence”. Scientists call this a metabolic disturbance.
And just like an airplane needs to expend more energy to get through turbulence in the air, your body and muscles have to burn more energy to get back to normal…therefore, your body gets a big boost in post-exercise metabolism.
The “turbulence” and increase in metabolism don’t happen with easier workouts and traditional cardio.
But the benefits you get from Turbulence can last for more than 24 hours, allowing you to burn more fat and calories all day long.
So while we don’t burn as many calories during a TT workout as you would if you did an hour of cardio workout, you end up burning more calories in the overall 24-hour period with TT compared to normal cardio.
So we just have to look outside the workout for the results, and not focus on the calories used during your gym time.
Q: I always want to move on to the next TT program after 2 weeks rather than the recommended 4. Is there any reason why I shouldn’t do this?
Answer:
Yes, you should give each training phase more time. You want to get some adaptation to the training, and that takes longer than 2 weeks in most cases. Give it the full 4 weeks and then change to benefit from the variety in training. You will get more results, particularly if you are after building more muscle.
Q: I can only do interval cardio training on a separate day from weights, is this a problem?
Answer:
No, it is fine to alternate strength and interval days. I designed the weights and intervals to be done on the same day so that people would have more days off from structured workouts to spend being active with their families or hobbies.
Q: In one of your articles you mention that bodyweight intervals is the best method of interval training. Is that correct?
Answer:
Actually, I’ve written that sprinting is best. Bodyweight intervals and the stationary bike are very close in effectiveness. I like to switch interval methods every 4 weeks. That is the best approach.
Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
I guarantee Turbulence Training will give you the fat loss you deserve and desire.
Sincerely,
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training
Try Turbulence Training today!
P.S. What equipment do you need for Turbulence Training?
Dumbbells, a bench, an exercise ball, and if you are strong enough, an adjustable pullup bar. That’s it. Lose fat in the comfort of your own home. You don’t need any machines, a cable station, an inner-thigh machine, a squat rack, barbells, or balance boards.
“I lost 14 pounds this month and the weight is just falling off me. My wife says I now look like when we first met and I still have more to go. I can fit into my old jeans again which is a big deal for me. I just cut back on starches and bread and do your routine 2-3 times a week. I never thought in a million years that just 10-20 minutes of weight training followed by some cardio would get me such steady results. I even cheat a bit on the weekends.”
Billy Williams
Get your very own copy of Turbulence Training & the Nutrition Guide here
“Turbulence Training is a proven way to melt fat fast, while protecting your hard-earned muscle. I’m so confident in its effectiveness that, over the years, I’ve recommended it to literally millions of readers. And the fantastic feedback I’ve received from guys all over the world as a result ensures you’ll be seeing a lot more of CB’s programs in the magazine.”
Adam Campbell, MS, CSCS,
Sports and Nutrition Editor, Men’s Health
I hope you learned something here that I know I did. Watching all those people doing spinning for 45 minutes while I can do a 18 minute workout and get the same results is simply priceless. I’m still suprised how many people are doing steady state cardio on the olyptical machine and tread mill instead of using intervals on them. They could benefit so much and in less time.
Give us your thoughts below and Get your copy of Turbulence Training Today!
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Which Turbulence Training Workout Should I Use?
With Turbulence Training for Fat Loss, there are a lot of workouts to choose from.
So why did I create so many fat burning programs?
Because you need to have variety in your workouts to keep on boosting your metabolism, and burning fat month after month.
If you did the same workout program for 3 months straight, your results would screech to a halt after 5 or 6 weeks.
With the Turbulence Training fat loss program, you will be able to change your workouts every 4 weeks. Each time you do that, you’ll kickstart your fat burning and your metabolism to a new level.
You must change your workout every 3-4 weeks.
Unfortunately, with so many Turbulence Training workouts, people often ask, “Which program should I start with?”. So here are the fat burning guidelines you need to get the most out of Turbulence Training no matter what your fitness level…
1) The Best Program for a Total BEGINNER
Overweight, sedentary beginners should start with the Introductory Program in the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss manual.
If you haven’t been doing any exercise, you must start there. No exceptions.
The bodyweight exercises will prepare your muscles for all future workouts, and will prevent the overuse injuries people usually get when they start a high-volume cardio program (which is the worst thing an overweight person can do for weight loss).
2) The Best Program for an Experienced Lifter Who Has NOT Exercised in the Last 4 Weeks
Please start with the Intermediate Workout from the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss program.
BUT NOTE: Do only ONE SET per exercise in each workout in the first week.
This will prevent you from being excessively sore from the exercises, which can occur when you have been away from exercise for so long.
3) The Best Program For ADVANCED Fitness & Fat Loss
I suggest you start with the “Original Turbulence Training Workout” from the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss manual.
Work your way through each following three advanced workouts in the manual.
Upon completion of the Turbulence Training for Fat Loss workouts from the main manual, you can move onto the bonus workouts in this order:
A) If you are a women that wants to put the final touches on a female physique, use the Turbulence Training for Women workout.
B) If you are a man that wants to build muscle, use the TT for Muscle program.
C) If you want to keep burning fat, move to the DB-BW Fusion Workout.
D) Follow that with the 30-Day Advanced Fat Loss program.
E) And finally, finish with the Advanced Fusion Fat Loss 4-Week Program.
At any time you are traveling or want a break from the dumbell workouts, you can use the beginner, intermediate, or advanced bodyweight program from the Original Bodyweight 4-Week TT workout.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
Try Turbulence Training today with the Trial Version for only $4.95
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The Best Turbulence Training Program For You
Beginners will lose a lot of fat with Turbulence Training if they start the programs in the right order. Here’s how…
Q: Which program should I start with if I am a total beginner?
Answer:
Total beginners should start with the Introductory Program in the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss manual or the Preparation Phase in the 6-Month Bodyweight Manual.
Q: Which program should I start with if I am experienced but haven’t worked out for a while?
Answer:
Please start with the Intermediate Workout from the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss program or the Preparation Phase in the 6-Month Bodyweight Manual.
Please note: If you start with the Intermediate Workout, do only ONE SET per exercise in each workout in the first week.
Q: Which program should I start with if I am an advanced exerciser?
Answer:
This depends on your goals.
You can use the Workout of the Month if it suits your goals. But here are more specific recommendations…
For fat loss, I suggest you start with the “Original Turbulence Training Workout” from the main Turbulence Training for Fat Loss manual. Work your way through each following workout in the manual.
Upon completion of this manual, you can move to any workout you desire.
For muscle building, you can use the April 2007 “At Home Dumbell Muscle Building Program”, or the Turbulence Training for Mass or Turbulence Training for Muscle (September 2006) programs.
For bodyweight training, I suggest you start with at least 1 week in Phase 1 of the 6-Month Bodyweight Manual, and then you can jump to Phase 2 if you find that too easy.
Q: I don’t understand the format of the Turbulence Training workouts. Can you explain how I do the supersets?
Answer:
Here’s how a full Turbulence Training workout looks like…In this example, each superset is done be done (3×8), meaning 3 times through and 8 repetitions per set.
Start with a bodyweight warmup and then move onto the supersets.
1A) 8 reps
No rest.
1B) 8 reps
Rest 1 Minute.
1A) 8 reps
No rest.
1B) 8 reps
Rest 1 Minute.
1A) 8 reps
No rest.
1B) 8 reps
Rest 1-2 Minutes and go to Superset 2.
2A) 8 reps
No rest.
2B) 8 reps
Rest 1 Minute.
2A) 8 reps
No rest.
2B) 8 reps
Rest 1 Minute.
2A) 8 reps
No rest.
2B) 8 reps
Rest 1-2 Minutes and go onto superset 3 if applicable.
After doing the same as above for Superset 3, then rest as necessary and move onto Intervals – starting with the warmup.
After cooldown for intervals, finish with static stretching for tight muscle groups.
Done.
Q: What does tempo mean? What does the 2-0-1 beside an exercise mean?
Answer:
The first number refers to the lowering phase of the exercise, then the next number refers to a pause (if there is any), and the third number refers to the lifting phase of the exercise.
For example, in a pushup done at 2-0-1, you would take 2 seconds to lower your body, no pause, and then one second to lift yourself back up.
If it said 2-1-2, you would take 2 seconds to lower, pause for 1 second, and then 2 seconds to slowly lift yourself back up.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
Try Turbulence Training today with the Trial Version for only $4.95
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How Does Craig Ballantyne Stay Fit and Keep His Men's Health Physique
Here’s an interview between no-nonsense personal trainer and fitness model Vince DelMonte and Craig Ballantyne, Men’s Health expert trainer and exercise video model.
This interview discusses how Craig eats and trains to stay fit, while gaining muscle and losing fat to keep his Men’s Health physique.
Vince DelMonte: How do you personally maintain your “Mens Health” physique?
Craig:
I train very similar to my Turbulence Training Fusion Fat Loss and Hard-core TT programs, using a lot of classic barbell exercises, some olympic lifts, and then single-leg exercises and bodyweight exercises to finish it off.
I train 3 days per week, but sometimes I go in for a 4th day just because, hey, I find training to be fun. But I have to hold back otherwise my joints get overworked from lifting and some other sports combined.
Nutrition wise, I don’t think I eat anything from a bag or a box, with the exception of the chocolate milk I drink after training. I eat a lot of fruits, vegetables, dry roasted almonds, pecans, walnuts, eggs, steak, chicken, sweet potatoes, and cheese. Even a couple of beers per week. But I try to eliminate all sugar – again, with the exception of the chocolate milk after training.
Not only do I stay magazine-lean with this approach, but I don’t get tired or mentally fatigued during my day of work. If I eat a lot of carbohydrates, such as pasta or oatmeal, I find I get sleepy.
Vince DelMonte: Tell me about your own personal weight training program?
Craig:
This is my 3-day routine right now.
Total body workouts, with a different main exercise each day, and then the rest of the exercises are superset’s.
Workout A
Squat (3×3, 1×15)
BB Incline (3×5)
Lunge (2×8)
Snatch-grip BB Row (2×12)
Cable Rot’l Ch Press (2×12)
Workout B
GM (3×6)
Deadlift (3×6)
DB Shoulder Press (2×8)
Pullup (2×8)
OH Squat (1×5)
Ab Work
Workout C
Bench (3×5)
Row (3×5)
Leg Press (3×12)
1-Arm DB Press (3×8)
EZ-Bar Tri Extension (1×8)
Chinup (2×15)
This is working out well.
It changes every 4 weeks. My deadlift is about as strong as ever, but squat and bench are a little low…focus is on boosting my squat for the next 8 weeks.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
Try Turbulence Training today with the Trial Version for only $4.95
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Why Does Turbulence Training Work For Fat Loss While Slow Cardio Fails
Turbulence Training works because of intensity and variety. After each workout, you’ll burn more calories between workouts than you would between slow (and boring) cardio workouts.
In each Turbulence Training workout, you focus on applying an intense stimulus to the muscles. This creates “turbulence” in the muscles, and requires a lot of energy to repair and replenish the muscles before the next workout. And where does that energy come from? Your fat stores, of course!
The Turbulence Training workouts are based on two ground-breaking research studies. In the first study, performed in the mid 90’s, Canadian researchers compared interval training against steady-state cardio for fat loss. Surprisingly, they found the interval training group lost more fat with less workout time.
The results of the second study were also surprising, and looked at how women respond to strength training. Each subject did two workouts. In one workout, the subjects did a series of strength exercises for 12 repetitions per set. In the other workout, the subjects did the same exercises, but for only 8 repetitions per set. The researchers found the post-exercise calorie burning was greater after the lower rep workout.
So based on these studies, Turbulence Training uses relatively low-repetition strength training exercises followed by interval training. All of this can be done in only 45 minutes, three times per week, cutting hours out of a normal slow cardio fat loss workout program. That’s why Turbulence Training is known as a real-world workout – one that fits your lifestyle and gets results fast.
Now let’s look at the details of the workouts. The Turbulence Training workouts focus on multi-muscle exercises, even when training the abdominals (with movements such as Stability Ball Jackknives). The more muscles we can work, the more Turbulence we can apply to the body and increase the post-exercise metabolism.
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The exercises can also be done at home, using only bodyweight or dumbells and a bench or an exercise ball. This too is conducive to a busy lifestyle. So if you only have time to train for 45 minutes, three times per week, you can complete the Turbulence Training workouts in the comfort of your own home.
Each exercise is paired with another exercise in a superset to increase the workout “density” – meaning the amount of exercise performed in a given amount of time. If you stuck with the traditional three straight sets approach, you’d take twice as long to complete the same workout, if not more.
There’s also a unique twist to the Turbulence Training supersets. Each exercise is paired with a “non-competing” exercise, meaning that if you work your pushing muscles with the first exercise in the superset, you’ll work your legs or pulling muscles with the second superset. This allows an increased recovery time despite the increased workout density.
Rest intervals are kept to a minimum. However, the non-competing superset pairings permit built-in recovery, again because you are not working the same muscle groups with each exercise in the superset.
Each Turbulence Training workout also starts with a bodyweight warm-up, rather than the traditional “5-minutes on the treadmill warm-up”. The bodyweight exercises take your body through a variety of movement patterns to help undo the poor posture generated by typical daily living. In addition, this prepares the muscles and joints better for a total body workout.
Following the bodyweight warm-up, the strength training workout begins with specific warm-up sets for the first superset. The first superset is characterized by the most difficult exercises, and often the most intense training effort. The second superset contains more moderate intensity, but higher volume. And the third superset, if there is one, contains the highest volume and lowest intensity, and generally use less complex exercises. By the end of these three supersets, you will have trained the entire body (and muscles you didn’t know you had!) in only 20 minutes.
The workout finishes with interval training, but for only 20 minutes. You don’t have to do any more of those boring 45-minute slow cardio sessions to burn fat. Instead, by using intervals, you increase your post-exercise metabolism and burn fat during the recovery period. If necessary, stretch the tight muscles after training. That completes the 45-minute Turbulence Training session. It’s “go-go-go” from start to finish, but you’ll love it.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
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How Did Turbulence Training Get Started?
Now I was in graduate school way back in 1999 and the strength and conditioning consultant to the teams at the university where I was at and we were doing a lot of research studies and I was stuck in the lab, where I really didn’t want to be, but I was stuck in the lab and I was analyzing all this research data.
Some days I was there for 16 hours in a row. I would have about an hour break when I put some of these samples into these machines and they would do their stuff.
So I had about 60 minutes when I had to get across campus and back to do my workouts. So I probably had about 40 minutes of total time in the gym and I just wanted to keep the body fat off and keep the muscle that I had developed over the years when I had more time and was able to train a little bit longer and a little bit more frequently.
So looking at the research papers that were related to some of the studies we were doing, I found that this higher intensity work was getting a lot more research done on it and showing the benefits of it, and also just with the strength and conditioning work with the athletes, finding out which exercises were most efficient and effective and you notice they come in and if they only did the first part of their workout, when that was the main exercises, they’d still probably get almost as good as results as people that went through these hour, 90 minute workouts and doing all these other type of isolation exercises.
So it was a review of all the people in the gym, the ones that I was working with, myself, and then also the athletes, and just noticing who was making a great success, where the good bodies were. Generally the good bodies are found in the weight room, not on the people that spent an hour on the stairmaster every day and don’t do any strength training.
Turbulence Training all came together putting together strength training supersets at intervals, and that helped me get my workouts in in a short time when I didn’t have a lot of time back then. And I finally put it all down onto paper in about 2001 with the first Turbulence Training workout after I had refined it a bit.
So basically it’s the basics refined, and now I’ve refined it even more to include a lot of bodyweight exercises. So it ends up being very perfect for busy people because it’s all dumbbell and bodyweight exercises.
You can do it at home in a minimal home gym set up, and it’s great especially cause I’ve been writing for magazines like Men’s Health and Men’s Fitness where it’s a regular guy audience as well as using the same principles with women, and that people have about 45 minutes to do the workout a couple times a week and they can do it before the kids get up or after the kids go to bed, or they can do it at their lunch hour and still get time for a shower and get back to their desk.
Turbulence Training is all planned to come together in less then an hour and still get these results that the right people are getting in the gym right now.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
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How Was Turbulence Training Created?
Like most folks in the fitness industry, I played a lot of sports when I was younger. That led to weight training. From there, I realized I wanted to be a strength coach in professional sports.
I went to school for Kinesiology, which then led to a Master’s Degree in Exercise Physiology. Along the way I studied what made a good NHL Strength Coach (they had Master’s Degrees and were Certified Strength And Conditioning Specialists – CSCS).
I also started training athletes, along with men and women for fat loss.
In 1998-99, I was but a lowly grad student, studying the effects of androstenedione (the supplement taken by the mighty baseball player, Mark McGwire during his record-breaking home run quest in ’98).
In my study (which was published in the Canadian Journal of Applied Physiology for any science nerds like myself out there), we had guys use the supplement and go through a couple of weight training sessions. By February of ’99 I was stuck in the lab, analyzing the blood samples using some fancy radio-active isotopes.
And when I say stuck in the lab, I mean STUCK. I’d get there at 7am, and record my last data point at 11pm. Sixteen hours of mad science. And if I wasn’t there, I was downstairs in the medical library, studying papers on testosterone and training.
Now coming from a very athletic background, this sedentary lifestyle didn’t sit well with me. But there I was, studing for a degree in Exercise Physiology and left with no time for exercise.
Or so I thought.
Fortunately, I actually had a 50 minute window once per day of “down-time” while the lab’s gamma-counter analyzed blood samples.
That left me 50 minutes to get to the gym (5 minutes across campus) and get a workout in the remaining 40 or so minutes. I knew that if I applied my studies to the workout, I could get maximum results in minimum time.
As a former athlete, I knew that I had to find a way to stay fit and to avoid the fat gain that comes with working long hours in a sedentary environment. And I also had to stay true to the high-school bodybuilder I once was, so there was no way I was willing to sacrifice my muscle to one of those long-cardio, low protein fat-loss plans that were popular at the time.
Instead, I had to draw on my academic studies and my experiences working with athletes as the school’s Strength & Conditioning Coach.
I knew that sprint intervals were associated with more fat loss than slow cardio, and I knew that you could also increase aerobic fitness by doing sprints (but you can’t increase sprint performance by doing aerobic training).
So clearly, intervals were (and ARE!) superior to long slow cardio.
I had seen first hand the incredible results of sprint intervals in the summer and fall, as the athletes made huge fitness improvements and shed winter fat in a short time using my interval programs. I knew that intervals had to be the next step in the evolution of cardio.
The biggest benefit of intervals? A lot of results in a short amount of time. I knew that I only had 40 minutes to train, and therefore I could only spend 15-20 minutes doing intervals.
Now onto the strength training portion of the workouts. I knew that a high-volume bodybuilding program wasn’t going to cut it – I just didn’t have time. But in the past year I had read so many lifting studies, that I knew exactly what exercises I needed to do to maximize my lifting time in the gym.
Those exercises were standing, multi-muscle, movements such as squats, presses, rows, and plenty of other standing single-leg exercises. I knew that those exercises would bring me far more results than those people sitting on machines would ever achieve.
And I also knew that I had to lift heavier than the average Joe or Jane Gym-goer lifts. I just knew that doing lighter weights and high-reps wasn’t going to cut it.
And a research study from 2001 later showed that I was right – when women did 8 reps per set, they had a significantly greater increase in post-workout metabolism than if they did 15 reps per set.
So I had my plan. Bust my tail over to the gym, through the cold, dreary Canadian winter afternoon, and do a quick but thorough warmup (specific to my lifts – none of that 5 minutes on the treadmill waste of time). Once I got through the warm-up, I did as many sets as I could in the remainder of the 20 minutes for strength training.
At that point, I knew that supersets were the only way to go if I wanted to maximize the number of sets I could do…so the non-competing superset of Turbulence Training was put in place.
By non-competing, I mean that the 2 exercises in the superset don’t interfere with one another. So you can use upper and lower body exercises together, or pushing and pulling exercises. Just be careful not to use two grip-intensive exercises together in a superset – otherwise, one exercise will suffer, if not both.
And then I followed up the strength training with intervals, as I knew these had to follow the lifting, otherwise it would not be the correct exercise order. Remember, intervals first leads to premature fatigue. Lift first, cardio later. Forget that old wives tale about doing cardio first to burn more fat. That’s junk.
You know, I remember the exact day and exact workout that this all came together into the Turbulence Training program. It hit me as I was finishing my intervals. I knew I had found something that was like fat loss magic.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t find a way to put it in a pill. But I’ve been able to put it down on paper in all of the TT manuals.
Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training.
Try Turbulence Training today with the Trial Version for only $4.95
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