Circuit Training Facilities -
Choose It Well
Circuit training facilities can and do come in all shapes and sizes. In essence, the space you need depends on the type of circuit training program you are planning to do. For example, there are circuit training programs designed for:
- Body weight
- Machine weights
- Free weights
- With runs
- In Groups
Any of the above circuit training methodology or circumstances demands a different type of facility or environment if you are to get the most from your training. For most people your local leisure facilities or sport club is the ideal venue for your circuit training. But delve into our list a little further.
Circuit Training Facilities for Body Weight
One of the advantages of doing body
weight circuit training is that it only requires enough space to be able to
swing your arms and legs. For that reason, you only need enough space most people have in their homes.
Since your exercises need little or no equipment, you can design activities
that make the best use of this space. The
only downside to space utilization for body weight circuit is if there
is a group of you wanting to work together. Nevertheless, even in a small
living room, you will still be able to work in groups of about two or three.
Circuit Training Facilities for Machine Weights
Unless you are fortunate enough to
have a gym at home, circuit training with machine
or fixed weights will have to be done in a specially prepared area. This area
needs to be large enough to accommodate several training stations, or
alternatively, you need to have one large multi-station machine.
As you know, circuit training promotes
endurance as well as strength, but as fatigue increases, proper lifting form
can be harder to maintain. For this reason, machine weights are a safer
choice than the free weight option. Further, due to the two-dimensional
movements of machine type weights, accidents can be minimized as the lifting
loads are fixed and therefore will not cause unwanted movements.
The downside to circuit training with
machine weight is that you will probably be using a commercial facility for
your training. Under these circumstances, you will have to share the facility
with other paying users. Normally, circuit
stations are arranged in a pre-set order. As a consequence, there is no
guarantee that as you move from one apparatus to the next, that the next
station in your sequence will be available. Another paying customer may already
occupy your next exercise station. Some strength training gyms, however, may
have dedicated times for circuit training classes.
Circuit Training with Free Weights
Except dumbbells and other transportable
resistance equipment that you use within a quasi-body weight circuit session,
circuit training using free weights will require a facility similar to
that of the machine weights gym. As such,
the same advantages and disadvantages apply to free weights circuits training as it does to fixed or machine
weights.
Circuit Training Facilities Where Running is involved
If you design your circuit training
programs with runs between each exercise or it has, shuttle runs as part of the
circuit itself, you will need at least a 10m stretch for the run. A running
track or large sports hall would be the ideal setting for this type of circuit
session. You can, however, overcome any lack of space by running on the spot or
some other mainly aerobic activity (such as running on a mini trampoline) to
compensate for not being able to run over a set distance.
Circuit Training Facilities for Groups
It goes without saying that circuit
training within a group setting will typically require enough space that allows
everyone the freedom to execute each exercise without the danger of impeding
someone else. For that reason, group
sessions will need the type of area that is only available in a large gym or
sports hall.
In conclusion, the more specialized
your circuit training workout is, the more specialize your circuit
training facilities need to be.
