With all of my experience one thing I have learned for sure, you can't get bigger, leaner, and faster all at the same time. Believe me, I have tried.
Conditioning has become a big part of my life now. As I have gotten older I know it's important for my health and longevity. However, weight training will always be my passion.
With all of my conditioning blocks in the past, I have had a hard time putting strength on the back burner. I'm finally letting that go. But that doesn't mean I'm dropping it.
I have found the best of both worlds. I'm keeping the strength component in with Max and Dynamic Effort compound movements but now they come at the end of each session. The assistance work is done in a circuit prior.
Even better, I have been doing my warmup sets for the main movement as part of the circuit. It adds to the circuit and gets me primed for the big exercise of the day.
As far as rest goes, I don't take much between the circuits. I keep a good pace going, but not to the point where I'm gasping for air. When the working sets of the main movement of squat, bench, or dl come in, I start taking breaks of about three minutes in between.
I am on my second cycle and have even improved upon my Max Effort numbers from the first. I don't necessarily think I'm getting stronger. Rather, I feel like I'm better conditioned which leaves me fresher for the main movement.
A great benefit of this routine is how quickly it moves. I get through the circuits in less than 20 minutes. Then with being warmed up I'm able to get through my max or dynamic effort sets in around 15 minutes. With the increased amount of time I have been spending on running, it's nice cutting down on my gym time with the weights.
If you are looking to up your conditioning a bit, or even if you just want to shake things up with your training, give this a go. I am loving it.
