The document provides 10 tips for maximizing the effectiveness of an exercise regime. The tips include determining goals, training like an athlete rather than bodybuilder, including weight training for women, training all planes of movement, including the right type of conditioning, ensuring supportive nutrition, addressing movement deficiencies, being patient and consistent with programs, avoiding training to failure, and seeking professional help with exercise plans.

1. How to maximise
the effectiveness
of your exercise
regime
DARCY LITTLE

2. Tip #1 - Firstly, you must determine your goals
Whether it be to lose that excess
weight that’s been bothering you for
months or even years, or to be able
to get that slam dunk that you’ve
always wanted on the court, or if
you just want to start looking after
your health so your body is in the
best shape it can be you MUST first
determine these goals.
Creating an action plan sounds childish and
like a big waste of time but you will be surprised with how much
accountability you create by putting pen to paper. Once these
goals are created it is much easier to take the next step which
is to create a plan to achieve these goals.
We recommend using the SMART goal setting system which
ensures that all goals are Specific, Measurable, Attainable,
Relevant & Time Bound. Using this method will facilitate the
highest amounts of success and get your body to where you
want it to be. Ask yourself whether you have ever actually
written goals down before?
Perhaps this is what
your missing. If you
have before and
weren’t successful,
let’s try again but
this time add a lot
more structure to
your plan to help
you in the long run.
S - SPECIFIC
M - MEASURABLE
A - ATTAINABLE
R - RELEVANT
T - TIME BOUND
TIP #1

3. Tip #2 – Train like an athlete
rather than a bodybuilder
Training like an athlete is very
different to training like a body
builder, which is what the majority of
people in gyms do. Most young guys
at the gym can’t think past the mirror,
and the attitude that bigger is better.
Whilst a certain amount of size is certainly good for a physical
sport like footy, too much size is often detrimental, as your
cardiovascular system will have to work even harder than it did
previously, just to maintain the level you were at. Not only that,
but even a slight gain in size is detrimental if you aren’t gaining
at least a proportional improvement in functional strength.
Just because you are putting on size doesn’t mean that you are
improving your performance, and in most people’s cases, they
aren’t improving at all.
TIP #2
BAD

4. In short if you are doing bicep curls, tricep extensions, shoulder
raises and calf raises, you aren’t improving your physical
performance for sport at all. You are simply isolating a muscle
in a way that it is never actually isolated in sport (or life for that
matter), and as a result, gaining nothing.
When you are training to improve your performance and
functional capacity, you must train your nervous system (i.e.
movements) not just your muscles. Your nervous system
controls your muscles and every movement you perform, if
your nervous system isn’t being trained and improving, neither
is your performance.
Isolation training does nothing for your nervous system or
your performance. Don’t get me wrong, isolation training has a
place (specifically in the initial stages of rehab or if there is a real
specific focus that you require to correct a deficiency), but other
than that, it is a COMPLETE WASTE OF TIME. If you are an
athlete with only limited time to dedicate to strength training
(say 2- 3 sessions per week) then you must make every session
as efficient as possible with ‘bang for your buck’ exercises.
Isolation exercises certainly don’t fit this bill.
GOOD

5. Tip #3 – Ladies, you NEED TO LIFT!
That’s right ladies, you all need to lift
weight. It doesn’t matter whether
you’re trying to lose weight & tone
up, or if you’re trying to take your
sporting performance up a level,
strength training is a MUST!
Due to women having significantly
lower levels of testosterone (muscle
building hormone) and other growth
hormones, putting on serious muscle mass
doesn’t happen incidentally. Another reason it won’t happen is
that women don’t eat enough to support big gains in muscle,
when’s the last time you out ate your man at the dinner table?
You want to build lean muscle mass as it will make your body a
much more efficient machine. This will result in your body also
being much more efficient at burning fat.
Muscle cells will require more fuel to be in your body than
fat cells, therefore if you have more muscle cells, you will be
utilising fuel stores that are already in your body. Bad news is,
those fuel stores that don’t get used, they turn to fat! Creating
muscle mass is the only real effective way to lose fat. Having
a higher muscle mass percentage also correlates with a higher
Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)2
. Your BMR accounts for about
70 percent of the calories you burn every day (makes sense to
want to impact on your BMR doesn’t it?).
TIP #3

6. In addition to your BMR, two other factors determine how many
calories your body burns each day:
FOOD PROCESSING (thermogenesis). Digesting, absorbing,
transporting and storing the food you consume also burns
calories. This accounts for 100 to 800 of the calories used each
day3
. For the most part, your body’s energy requirement to
process food stays relatively steady and isn’t easily changed4
.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY. Physical activity and exercise - such as
playing tennis, walking to the store, chasing after the dog and
any other movement - account for the rest of the calories your
body burns up each day. Physical activity is by far the most
variable of the factors that determine how many calories you
burn each day and should be the forefront of your weight loss
plan.

7. Weight gain is complicated, it is likely a combination of genetic
makeup, hormonal controls, diet composition, and the impact of
environment on your lifestyle, including sleep, physical activity
and stress3
.
All of these factors result in an imbalance in the energy equation.
You gain weight when you eat more calories than you burn -
or burn fewer calories than you eat. While it is true that some
people seem to be able to lose weight more quickly and more
easily than others, everyone will lose weight when they burn up
more calories than they eat.
Therefore, to lose weight, you need to create an energy deficit
by eating fewer calories or increasing the number of calories
you burn through physical activity or both. The best approach
is to include physical activity that not only burns calories, but
also creates more lean muscle cells that will burn more calories
than fat cells.
TAKE HOME POINT: LIFT!

8. Tip#4–Trainallplanesofmovement,notjust1
Sport, and well life for that matter, more often than not, are
played in a 3 dimensional environment, where our bodies are
challenged in 3 planes of movement (sagittal, frontal and
transverse). So it would make sense to train our bodies in all
3 planes of movement. Yet if you look at the strength training
programs out there, about 90% of exercises performed are in
the sagittal plane.
Conversely, roughly 85% of soft tissue and joint injuries that
occur in sport, occur in the frontal or transverse planes 6…an
almost completely inverse relationship! So squats and deadlifts
for example, are 2 fantastic compound exercises, and are the
base foundation of most ‘functional’ sports training programs
out there now, however, they are both sagittal plane exercises.
A well designed program will include
the ‘primal strength patterns’ (squat,
dead, bench, chin) as well as frontal
and transverse plane movements
(lateral & rotational work).
Increasing strength will improve
sporting performance every time.
TIP #4

9. Tip#5–Includetherighttype
of conditioning
For sport, repeatability of a skill is
paramount. Fortheathletesreading,
you have 3 different energy systems
that provide the energy needed to
complete your chosen sport4
.
You have two anaerobic systems (without
oxygen) and one aerobic system (with oxygen). Depending on
what sport you play you will have more energy contributions
from one system when compared to another.
To put it simply, if you’re not training the system relevant for
your sport, your performance isn’t going to improve and you
might even go backwards! General rule of thumb: if you play a
sport that’s intermittent in nature (Rugby, AFL, Hockey, Netball,
Tennis etc), then you need to spend the majority of your time
developing your anaerobic systems rather than aerobic. If you
play a continuous sport (running, swimming, cycling etc) then
the majority of your time should be spent developing your
aerobic energy system.
To shed the kg’s, intensity of effort will be fairly high and
ideally saved to the end of your session, so to enhance the
body’s excess post oxygen consumption (EPOC). Increasing
EPOC will force your body to continue burning fat, even after
your sessions has finished, as your body is trying to repay the
oxygen debt it took out for the session6
. Battle ropes, sled/
prowler push, tyre flips, farmers carries & skipping are all good
examples of the right type of conditioning.
TIP #5

10. Tip #6 – Make sure your
nutrition is also helping
you achieve your goals
If it grows, it’s probably good for
you to eat. Now I understand there’s
always going to be exceptions to this
rule, but generally speaking it’s a good
rule to follow.
The more impact that man has had on a food source through
the production phase, usually the less nutritional value it has
and isn’t worth eating. Think of your fruits and vegetables and
animal products that grow freely in our environment, eat those.
Now anything that comes in boxes and fancy packaging down
the aisles of the supermarkets probably isn’t going to have the
greatest nutritional content and is loaded with preservatives
to allow it to have such a good shelf life.
At CNS we have Accredited Practicing Dieticians on hand that
can make this often confusing subject much easier to get your
head around.
TIP #6

11. Tip #7 – Don’t ignore your correctives
As an allied health professional,
I spend the majority of my day
assessing & correcting various
movement deficiencies. For these
people, correcting the movement
inefficiencies is their end goal.
For the majority of people reading
this, you have other end goals that
your working towards, ranging from
performance goals, to lifestyle goals.
What you may not know is that you too will have movement
inefficiencies that may be impacting on your ability to reach your
goals. Ignoring the limited range of motion through your hips/
ankle/shoulder or pushing through that pain that you get in your
wrist when you press is something you MUST STOP DOING!
I treat people on a daily basis that have incredibly frustrating &
debilitating injuries that could have been avoided. When your
body sends you pain signals or prevents you from getting to a
certain range of motion, 99% of the time it’s for good reason.
Pain can be a great indicator that your mechanics at that joint
aren’t up to scratch and if you keep using them incorrectly then
more complicated issues are likely to occur.
For example an ache in your shoulder when you press might
seem like nothing but it could be your body’s way of telling you
that you’re impinging on your shoulder structure and if this is
done for long enough & often enough, then shoulder surgery
will be the only option to correct this. If your range of motion
is limited at a particular joint it doesn’t have to mean that your
“tight”. It could be that your bodies nervous system is inhibiting
further movement as you don’t have the stability to support the
joint in that extreme range position4
.
TIP #7

12. If you push through this too aggressively, you’re putting your
body in a very unstable position and your begging for trouble,
the type of trouble that is not easily fixed. The correction for
faulty shoulder mechanics or poor hip stability is MUCH EASIER
for everyone involved when compared to recovering from
further complications, that more than likely will involve surgery.
Where at all possible, surgery prevention should be a major
objective for everyone.

13. Tip #8 – Don’t program hop, BE PATIENT
One of the most common errors that
we see people making in the health
industry is getting fed up with their
lack of results before they haven’t
given their program a chance to
work.
Consistency is the key when it comes
to making changes and allowing your
body the time it needs to adapt to the
training stimulus. That goes for everything,
you need to be consistent with 8+ hours of sleep a night,
consistent with your exercise and consistent with your nutrition.
For people wanting body composition changes (weight loss)
you need to aim for sustainable changes in your body rather
than aiming to get to your dream weight by next week. 0.5kg
per week of weight loss is a sustainable target to aim for. Some
weeks you will lose more/less than other’s and that’s OK. As
mentioned previously, your body is a very complicated system
and weight loss is a complicated process and as such, you can’t
rush perfection.
TIP #8

14. Stick to your program, bring consistency and the results will
come. From an athletic point of view it’s the same principles.
Elite squads don’t utilise a program for 3-4 weeks and then
change the whole design as they lost 2 games in a row. They
structure the program using the best methods and they stick to
it, in time they have faith that the results will start to appear and
speak for themselves.
Realistically, drastic changes you make in your training will
probably have less of an impact on this season and you may
not see the results you’ve been looking for until next season.
In essence your teaching your body to become stronger,
faster, more powerful and more efficient. This cannot be done
instantly, first you need to plant the seed, add the right soil,
supply the right amount of sunlight and water and over time
you will grow a flower that is yours.
Keep working hard & BE PATIENT!

15. Tip #9 - Don’t train to failure
In terms of weight training, training
to failure is a bad idea for a number
of reasons. Firstly, it’s incredibly
taxing on your nervous system.
Asking your nervous system to
maximally recruit every muscle fibre it
has at its disposal, and pushing it past
the limit repeatedly is no doubt going to
take it’s toll on the body.
This is going to have a major impact on your body’s ability to
recover and regenerate in both the short & long term. That
means that not only will you be unable to recover for your
next set, you will also find it difficult to recover from session to
session. This is because training to failure will drastically increase
your bodies resting Cortisol levels (catabolic hormone)7
as well
as increasing levels of Adenosine Monophosphate (AMP)8
.
Increased levels of AMP indicate that the muscle is drained of
energy which will negatively impact on protein synthesis, thus
increasing your chances of overtraining and an overuse injury.
In short, if you train to failure you will likely inhibit growth,
strength improvements, reduce recovery and will be more likely
to injure yourself.
Training to failure has its place for some don’t get me wrong,
but for it to be a good fit for you, we’re looking at a minimum
training age of 5+ years and a goal of continuing progressions
(particularly hypertrophy) after a sustained plateau, which for
most of you reading this doesn’t apply. As discussed earlier,
not all gains in size are necessary and desirable for the average
weekend warrior, besides, if your goal isn’t to be the next Arnold
Schwarzenegger then failure training just doesn’t fit with where
you’re going.
TIP #9

16. Tip #10 - Stop running blind, seek help
The 10th and final tip is to stop putting yourself in situations
of uncertainty and seek professional help. No matter your
concern, big or small, we’re here to help.
At CNS we take your health very seriously and we feel valued
to be trusted with something of such high importance to you
and as a result we ensure that we give you the best level of care
available.
There is nothing that should be more important to someone
than their own health, so for you to take a step in the right
direction towards improving your health, you will receive a
warm welcome to the CNS family and our full support every
step of the way.
The aim of this e-book is to educate and empower you with the
knowledgeneededtomaximiseyourownhealth&performance.
This guide has literally just scraped the surface of exercise and
weight training (I could literally talk for days about this stuff)
and a lot of you will probably be wanting more personalised
information that is specific to YOU. If that’s the case then there
is a special offer just for you at the bottom so keep reading!
TIP #10

17. So what does a CNS exercise
program consist of?
Firstly, as discussed, a CNS
exercise program will begin with
a comfortable chat about your
exercise/injury history with the aim
of mapping out clearly what your
individual goals may be. Once the goals
have been created an exercise program
can be designed. Now this is where the fun begins, there is
a lot of info to take in throughout this section but relax as our
staff members will guide you through this process at your own
pace to ensure your gaining the right education as you go.
From here, initially your exercise sessions will begin with an
educational portion where your coach will guide you through
the systems & procedures that will be utilised throughout your
exercise program. This will involve education & instruction on;
• Self Myofascial Release (SMR)
• Introduction to Pillar Preparation (including soft tissue,
mobilisation & activation)
• Introduction to Movement Preparation (including general
movement, hip activation, dynamic stretch, movement
integration & neural activation)
• Introduction to the Barbell Basics and how to master them
• Introduction to Recovery techniques and Regeneration
practices
CNS

18. For those interested in athlete development there are quite
a few more components squeezed in that will obviously vary
depending on your chosen sport but include;
For an exercise program to assist in improving your sporting
performance, the requirements of your sport must first be taken
into account. The aim of a good program should be to improve
the relative components specific to that sport.
For those needing injury rehabilitation it’s different yet again.
Ideally you already have a diagnosis of your injury, if that’s not
the case we will assess and determine the likeliest diagnosis &
refer on for further scans or assessment where necessary.
• Plyometrics
• Acceleration
• Absolute Speed
• Multidirectional Speed
• Repeat Speed
• Medicine Balls
• Strength Development
• Power Development
• Strength Qualities &
Periodisation
• Energy System
Development

19. AT CNS WE UTILISE THE 3 PHASE APPROACH TO REHABILITATION.
PHASE 1: PRE FUNCTIONAL - MOBILITY
The aim in Phase 1 is to improve the range of motion (ROM)
of the joint to facilitate as close to normal, pre injury range as
possible. An immobile joint is a dysfunctional joint, and before
we apply load, we must first remove that dysfunction. Passive
ROM > Active ROM > Resisted ROM.
PHASE 2: RETURN TO FUNCTION - RECRUITMENT
The aim of Phase 2 is to increase levels of muscle activation
to the tissues surrounding the injured site. This is generally
through increasing Isometric
strength first. This means that
the associated muscles will be
activated to supply tension to
the tissues without a change
in joint angle or muscle length
(i.e. the muscle fibres become
neither shorter or longer).
This type of muscle contraction
is great in early stages of
rehabilitation as it transfers the
majority of the force created
via the contraction through to
the connective tissue (tendons,
ligaments etc) that surround the joint which will help to develop
stability and in turn more comfortable range of motion.
From there we can progress to both Eccentric Strength (fibres
contracting while becoming longer) and Concentric Strength
(fibres contracting while becoming shorter). Eccentric strength
isparticularlyimportantduringtheearlierstagesofrehabilitation
as it prevents excessive translation to the joint9
.

20. Stabilizing through synergist muscle activation is the best
method to use when rehabbing a ligament impaired joint when
placed in a position of instability. E.g. strong eccentric hamstring
strength when recovering from a knee injury will provide a
posterior pull to the tibia which helps offset the anterior force
of the quadriceps9
.
PHASE 3: RETURN TO ACTIVITY - TRI-PLANE STABILISATION
Now the client can begin returning to full levels of pre-injury
activity. In an athletic scenario this would included returning to
similar activities that would be seen under training and match
play circumstances, in a very closed & controlled environment.
As Tip 4 discussed, strength through all 3 planes of motion is
vital to prevent injuries so it is obviously included in the later
stage oh rehabilitation to both prepare the body for these 3
dimensional movements, but also to prevent further injury or
re-injury.

21. PUSH THE BOUNDARIES
At CNS we push the boundaries of health beyond what is
generally accepted by everyday people. Why stop there? We
want you to be the best version of you, and you can be.
Through our holistic approach we ensure that overall function
and movement is at an absolute maximum, giving you the best
chance of sustainable health & wellbeing.
Our clinicians have a broad range of skills and expertise that
when combined, make us the premier health facility on the
Sunshine Coast.
As a special offer to you for downloading this e-book, your initial
consultation focused around creating an action plan based on
your goals will be just $9! This is a saving of $80 but be sure to
act quick before the price returns to $89...
So if you’re looking to take your sporting performance to the
next level, to rehabilitate an old/new injury that’s stopping
you from getting your body where you want it, or you’re just
wanting to ensure your time spent at the gym is as effective
as it can be then contact us on 07 5444 3983 or email
darcy@cnsmooloolaba.com.au
Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for updates on
promotions and continuing education.
CNS Chiropractic Nutrition Strength
@cnsmooloolaba
cnsmooloolaba.com.au

22. About the Author
Darcy Little is an Exercise Physiologist and a Performance
Specialist with extensive experience in the Health & Fitness
industry.
He has 3 tertiary level degrees, 2 in Sports Science, and most
recently in Sports & Exercise Medicine. Darcy has worked with
elite sporting clubs over Australia through various sporting
codes including AFL, Hockey, Netball and Skiing.
Darcy has helped members of the Australian XC Ski team
to enhance their recovery practices to allow for greater
performance over the busy World Cup season which led to two
Winter Olympic selections for Australia.

23. References:
1. Pratley, R. et al., 1994. Strength training increases resting metabolic rate and
norepinephrine levels in healthy 50- to 65-yr-old men. Journal of Applied Physiology,
Volume 76, pp. 133-137.
2. Connoly, J., Romano, T. & Patruno, M., 1999. Effects of dieting and exercise on
resting metabolic rate and implications for weight management. Family Practice,
Volume 16, pp. 196-198.
3. Brukner, P. & Khan, K., 2012. Clinical Sports Medicine. 4th ed. New York: McGraw
Hill Education.
4. Wiener, C., Fauci, A., Braunwald, E., Kasper, D., Hauser, S., Longo, D., Jameson,
J., Loscalzo, J., Brown, C., 2012. Harrison’s Principles of Internal Medicine. 18th ed.
New York: McGraw Hill Education.
5. Barret, K., Brooks, H., Boitano, S. & Barman, S., 2012. Ganong’s Review of
Medical Physiology. 24th ed. New York: McGraw Hill Education.
6. Smith, J. & McNaughton, L., 1993. The effects of intensity of exercise on excess
post-exercise oxygen consumption and energy expenditure in moderately trained
men and women. European Journal of Applied Physiology, Volume 67, pp. 420-
425.
7. Izquierdo, M. et al., 2006. Differential effects of strength training leading to
failure versus not to failure on hormonal responses, strength, and muscle power
gains. Journal of Applied Physiology, 100(5), pp. 1647-1656.
8. Gorostiaga, E. et al., 2012. Energy metabolism during repeated sets of leg press
exercise leading to failure or not. Public Library of Science, 7(7), pp. 1371-1379.
9. LeStayo, P. et al., 2003. Eccentric Muscle Contraction: Their Contribution to
Injury, Prevention, Rehabilitation, and Sport. Journal of Orthopaedics & Sports
Physical Therapy, Volume 33, pp. 557-571.