Programming integrated bodybuilding in Crossfit
Integrated Bodybuilding
When working with competitive athletes, you should strive to have intention behind every aspect of the training that you prescribe. The goal of bodybuilding training for a competitive athlete should be to support sport performance. As we’ve already laid out in Part-1, current forms of bodybuilding are effective for a variety of potential needs including building muscle in a lagging body-part and strengthening second order muscle groups that get neglected during sport training. The shortcoming of these methods is that they lack two important components for maximizing transfer to sport: integration and specificity.
Integrated versus Isolation Training
Integration in the context of bodybuilding lies on the opposite end of the spectrum from isolation. With isolation training, our goal is to exclusively train a single muscle group (or joint action). As discussed in Part-1, isolating a single muscle group allows us to target fiber fatigue and the subsequent hypertrophy signaling. The problem with isolation training is that this is not how our bodies move in the real world or in a sport context. Instead our bodies recruit each muscle in concert as part of an integrated system that allows us to move dynamically. Biceps, for example, must contract at the right time, with the right amount of force, and the correct speed in order to successfully complete a ring muscle-up.
The difference between integrated and isolated training can be summarized as follows:
Integrated training: train movements, not muscles
Isolated training: train muscles, not movements
Training Specificity
Bodies adapt specifically to the demands placed on them consistently. Some of the factors that determine the type and degree of adaptation include: joint angle, speed of movement, loading, and density of training. Said another way, if you want to get stronger, then you have to move heavy loads. If you want to get faster, then you have to train with speed. And, if you want to become more enduring, then you have to go for longer. The principle of specificity is where the old coaching adage “Train fast, be fast. Train slow, be slow” originates from.
There are many different ways to quantify training specificity. We have found the following to be most applicable to training athletes:
Movement (Biomechanical) Specificity - Movements that have high biomechanical specificity share similar patterns, joint angles, and velocities. For example, a dumbbell front squat and a barbell front squat are similar movements. The joints move through nearly identical ranges of motions with load placed on the muscles at similar angles and velocities. In contrast, a barbell deadlift and a dumbbell front squat are less similar, even though the ankles, knees, and hips perform the same movements. The joint angles are different, there is more ankle and knee flexion for a squat and more hip flexion for a deadlift. In addition, the load distribution is different due to the relative length-tension relationship of each muscle group involved.
Strength-Speed-Endurance Relationship - All sport movement can be quantified by how fast, how heavy, or how long the movement must be performed. These are often referred to in strength and conditioning literature as biomotor abilities as they are required for nearly all movement patterns. For training to transfer back to improved sport performance, it must have similar strength, speed, or endurance requirements to the target task (this concept is referred to in strength and conditioning literature as dynamic correspondence). For example, a snatch has high speed and strength requirements but the speed requirement is lower than sprinting and the strength requirement is lower than a back squat. This is where specificity of training matters to appropriately make progress.
Metabolic Specificity - Less related to the context of bodybuilding for sport performance but still important is the bioenergetic similarity between training and the target task. This is particularly important if the intention behind your bodybuilding work is to build local muscle endurance. For example, if you’re trying to improve grip endurance, you need to ensure that your training is as similar to the metabolic environment of the target task as possible.
What is Integrated Bodybuilding?
Integrated Bodybuilding combines coordination and specificity to fill the sports performance void left by traditional isolation bodybuilding and Functional Bodybuilding as discussed in Part-1 of this series. The focus of Integrated Bodybuilding is to teach athletes to move their bodies as a coordinated system. What this means in a practical sense is that we train to optimize strength in a movement rather than an individual muscle. This is the integrated aspect of Integrated Bodybuilding.
The other important aspect needed to improve the transfer of training for improved sport performance is specificity. As discussed previously, we need to consider three aspects of specificity when designing Integrated Bodybuilding training: movement specificity, biomotor specificity, and metabolic specificity. From a movement perspective, we want to ensure that accessory exercises are being performed at a similar joint angle as our sport movements. For example, overhead triceps extensions share more similar joint angles to a handstand pushup than tricep pressdowns. Additionally, we need to consider the speed or velocity of movement as strength adaptations are velocity specific. What this means is that Integrated Bodybuilding training will often leverage momentum rather than traditional slow tempo movements. A great way to illustrate this is by performing two different versions of a lat pull-down. The video example below is split, with traditional bodybuilding principles of stability and isolation where the goal is to maximize hypertrophy in the lats on the right, and Integrated Bodybuilding principles utilizing momentum, where the goal is to maximize load moved on the left.
To summarize the concept so far, the main principles of Integrated Bodybuilding are:
Utilize regional (~50% of total body muscle mass) or global (<75% of total body muscle mass) compound movements.
Leverage momentum to ensure the speed of movement is as similar to the sport or target movement as possible.
Focus on coordination, teaching the athlete to integrate muscles rather than isolate them.
Targeted Hypertrophy
Like other forms of resistance training, one of the expected effects of Integrated Bodybuilding would be an increase in hypertrophy. We would expect hypertrophy to occur in the “weak link” in the kinetic chain as this muscle group would experience the highest degree of fatigue and the most mechanical tension. In order to prioritize weak-link hypertrophy in integrated bodybuilding, you must choose compound movements that utilize ranges of motion and joint angles that target a specific muscle group. As an example, performing a 1&¼ shoulder press in place of a barbell shoulder press increases tension on the triceps (the primary mover for the finish of the press). When performed consistently, the increased tension and fatigue on the tricep would lead to growth of the tricep in the joint angles specific to the finish of the press. This would better transfer to a strict handstand push-up as well since the 1&¼ shoulder press is performed at a more similar ROM and joint angle compared to a shoulder press.
An important caveat here is that while training using the principles laid out above can lead to hypertrophy, it will be limited when compared to isolation bodybuilding. The intent of Integrated Bodybuilding training is not to maximize muscle growth but rather to maximize the ability to move load and transfer of training effect from your bodybuilding training to sport.
The Bodybuilding Continuum
In the end, there is not one style of bodybuilding that is superior to the others. Instead it is important to view each as having a potential best fit dependent on your athlete’s needs. The easiest way to conceptualize the ideal use for each style is to imagine bodybuilding training existing on a continuum from least sport specific (isolation bodybuilding) to most sport specific (Integrated Bodybuilding). If you need to maximize muscle growth or isolate a joint for rehabilitation purposes, then you’d choose isolation style bodybuilding training that is stable, controlled, and muscle focused. If you want to maximize joint stability and keep variance high, then you choose Functional Bodybuilding. Finally, if you want to maximize sport or task performance then you gravitate toward using coordinated, Integrated Bodybuilding movements leveraging momentum.
Periodization and Selection
It is important to remember that different methods may be more effective for developing a particular quality depending on the time of year or phase of a season. For example, generally we choose less sport specific methods during the off-season and progressively increase the specificity as the season progresses. In that vein, it may be optimal to begin an athlete’s off-season training with more of an emphasis on isolation bodybuilding than on Functional or Integrated Bodybuilding. As the season progresses, the athlete’s needs will shift to sport performance, you can phase training appropriately by moving them through Functional Bodybuilding then into Integrated Bodybuilding. Below you will find a chart laying out a season structure and which style of bodybuilding training that would be optimal given a December competitive season.
Below you can find an example session that a typical CrossFit athlete might integrate into each phase of training using the periodization structure from above.
Off-season Isolation Bodybuilding Example Session
| Session 1 - Quad / Back / Bi | Sets | Rep RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| A. Hack Squat (machine) | 4x | 5-8 |
| B. Single Leg Extension (machine) | 4x | 6-8 (heavy) |
| C. Bent-knee Copenhagen Adductor Raises | 3x | 10-15 / leg (mod) |
| D. Strict CTB Pull-ups | 4x | 3.3.3 (maybe light DB b/t feet) *must maintain strict HOLLOW* |
| E. T-Bar Row | 4x | 8-12 (mod-heavy) |
| F. Seated Preacher Curl | 4x | AMRAP-1 (55#) |
| G1. ABwheel Roll-out G2. Russian Twists |
3x | 10-12 16-20 alt |
Pre-season Functional Bodybuilding Example Session
| Lower body day | Sets | Rep RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| A. Cyclist Back Squat @30x1 Tempo | 3x | 10,10,AMRAP-2 |
| B. Stiff-legged Deadlift @21x1 | 3x | 10-12 |
| C1. Suitcase Knee over Toe Forward Elevated Lunge @ 30x1
C2. Toes Elevated Donkey Calf Raise @21x1 |
2x | 10 / side 15 reps |
| D1. Copenhagen Raise D2. Hanging Knee Tucks D3. Hanging L-Tuck |
2x | 15-20 10-15 20-30s |
In-season Integrated Bodybuilding Example Session
| Session-1 - Jerk / Overhead Support | Sets | Rep RANGE |
|---|---|---|
| A. Push Press w/ 3sec hold @ lockout *focus on speed to lockout / squeeze elbows to straight |
5x | 5 |
| B. Split Jerk Stance 1¼ Shoulder Press | 4x | 6-8 |
|
C1. BB Back Rack Drop to Split *https://youtu.be/46g9VMhZzmw C2. Cable Machine Overhead Jerk-Grip Tricep Ext *use momentum to increase concentric speed |
4x | 6-8, hold receiving position x3s 8-10 reps |
| D. Yoke OH Hold (isometric) | 5x | 10sec Hold every min |
How to Choose the Bodybuilding Style?
There are particular types of athletes who would benefit the most from each style of bodybuilding. Athletes who are undersized for their sport or position would probably benefit from the additional mass that can be gained using isolation style bodybuilding. Athletes struggling with stability in a movement pattern, like stabilizing the knee or ankle during lunges, could benefit from the unstable training prioritized in Functional Bodybuilding. Finally, for athletes who need strength or speed development, it is probably better to use Integrated Bodybuilding as this allows us to prioritize the ability to move loads at similar speed to their sport.
Conclusion and Movement Examples
The reality is that people have been using bodybuilding and accessory work in sports performance programs for decades. This is true in nearly all sports from golf to powerlifting. However, only in the past few years have we seen the thoughtful application of bodybuilding style training to enhance strength and power adaptation. Since we are at the forefront of this style of training, it is going to require informed experimentation in order to optimize the methods. In order to make this experimentation process as seamless as possible, we’ve provided a small selection of Integrated Bodybuilding movement demos below for you to test and experiment with.
| Movement Left (Integrated BB’ing) | Movement Right (Isolation BB’ing) | Video Link |
|---|---|---|
| Cable Tricep Pressdown w/ Overhead Reach (passing through bar muscle-up pattern) | Cable Tricep Pressdown | https://youtu.be/cx9NAoKiXXk |
| Lat Pull-down w/ Hip Assist | Lat Pull-down | https://youtu.be/dW7X90bVkOk |
| Seated Cable Row w/ Hip Assist | Seated Cable Row | https://youtu.be/AQhCBqj-9wA |
| Single-arm DB Chainsaw Row w/ Momentum | Bench-supported Single-arm DB Row | https://youtu.be/jzohfGVND-U |
| 1¼ BB Shoulder Press | BB Shoulder Press | https://youtu.be/M95pxYj29Bo |
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