Welcome to the Training Notes Newsletter.
A lot of training problems aren’t strength problems. They’re control problems. Not willpower—just the ability to keep your effort in the productive middle instead of bouncing between “too easy” and “too much.”
Today’s theme: build a repeatable pace you can trust. When your weeks get busy, that “middle gear” is what keeps progress moving without needing perfect conditions. It’s also what makes your hard days actually hard, because you didn’t waste your matches earlier.
TODAY’S TRAINING NOTES
Here are two options for today’s training session. Pick the one that fits your schedule and goals. Feel free to make substitutions if you need to adjust the exercises.
Strength
Warm Up
- Open Book Stretch — 2 Sets × 6 Reps
- Hip Flexor Rockback — 2 Sets × 8 Reps
- Banded Glute Bridge — 2 Sets × 10 Reps
- Hollow Hold — 2 Sets × 20 Seconds
- Band Face Pull — 2 Sets × 12 Reps
Main Workout
- Chest Supported Row Machine — 4 Sets × 6 Reps
- Incline Push Up — 3 Sets × 10 Reps
- Suitcase Carry — 3 Sets × 30 Meters
- Dumbbell Hammer Curl — 2 Sets × 12 Reps
- Rope Triceps Pressdown — 2 Sets × 12 Reps
Cool Down
- Doorway Pec Stretch — 2 Sets × 30 Seconds
- Seated Forward Fold — 2 Sets × 30 Seconds
- Supine Spinal Twist — 2 Sets × 30 Seconds
- Legs Up The Wall Breathing — 3 Sets × 60 Seconds
Total time: 45 minutes
Conditioning
Warm Up
- Easy effort at 55–65% max HR — 8 Minutes
- Build to moderate at 65–75% max HR — 4 Minutes
Main Workout
- Alternate 4 minutes at 70–78% max HR and 2 minutes at 60–68% max HR — 6 Rounds
Cool Down
- Very easy effort at 50–60% max HR — 6 Minutes
Total time: 36 minutes
Today’s Research Note
A useful way to manage training is to think in terms of “hard enough” rather than “as hard as possible.” Autoregulation is the practice of adjusting load, reps, or volume based on how you’re performing that day. The goal isn’t to chase a perfect number; it’s to hit the intended stimulus with good repeatability.
In real life, readiness swings with sleep, stress, and work travel. If you force the same plan no matter what, you either grind yourself down or you start skipping sessions because it feels too costly. Autoregulation keeps the session productive while protecting the next one, which is where most progress actually comes from. It also makes your training data cleaner over time, because you’re comparing like-for-like effort instead of random hero days.
Look Up: readiness based autoregulation
Today’s Final Note
Pick one “middle gear” rule for the next two weeks. Something like: stop a set when speed clearly slows, or cap the session at a fixed end time, or leave one rep in the tank on your first working set. The point is to make the default sustainable, not impressive.
This works because it reduces negotiation. You don’t need to decide how hard today should be—you already decided what “productive” looks like. Once that baseline is stable, you can push on purpose instead of by accident.
Look Up: commitment devices for pacing
Signing Off
Train the middle and you’ll train more weeks per year. That’s the whole game for busy people. Keep your effort honest, keep your schedule realistic, and let consistency do the heavy lifting. Come back tomorrow for a clean, low-friction note you can apply immediately.
Quote of the Day
It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves.
Sir Edmund Hillary