The Virtus 10 week Performance Challenge
Virtus Strength and Conditioning
Tactical / Military, Law Enforcement, Strength & ConditioningMost training for this job looks the same: a stale bodybuilding split with an odd run bolted on and called "conditioning." No plan, no progression, no way of knowing if any of it's actually working, you find yourself pouring your efforts into training and getting nothing back
Sweating or leaving the gym in pain becomes the only sign something happened. That's entry level training, and in a job that could kill you, it has to be better.
It's exactly why I created this Performance Challenge.
Built by someone who was in the job and had to find out the hard way where entry level training gets you and spent time since the job learning from elite coaching enviroments around the world
This is 10 weeks of strength and conditioning purpose-built around what the role actually demands of you, not a generic bodybuilding plan.
It's periodised, not random, designed to ensure peak performance by the end of the 10 weeks, using the same principles and frameworks used to peak competitive athletes, applied to making you fitter, faster, stronger and sharper out on shift
Why is it called a Challenge? Because the top performers, the biggest improvement between your week 1 and week 10 testing win prizes. This isn't just a training plan, it's a genuine test of what you're capable of, with something on the line for those who push hardest.
You're benchmarked through our Virtus performance testing session in week 1 and retested in week 10 against the same five tests, giving us data on your key performance indicators.
power, strength (upper and lower body), muscular endurance, and aerobic capacity. So progress is a number, not just a feeling or the difference you'll see in the mirror by the end of this.
Nutrition is built in, not bolted on. You're taught habits and strategies designed to hold up long after week 10, not a restrictive plan for 10 weeks and nothing after.
You're training with people who get it. Everyone on this program is training for the same demands you are, not sharing a gym with people chasing a completely different goal.
This isn't training to look like you work out. It's training to actually perform when it matters out on shift
training so you can keep yourself and colleagues safe
Training so you can perform like an ATHLETE out on shift
This is for those who know they're capable of more
for those who want to be an asset to their shift.
A
Stationary Bike
1 x 10:00
B1
Standing Broad Jump
B2
Assault Bike
1 x 20:00 @ MAX
C
Trap Bar Deadlift
5, 4, 3, 3
D
Bench Press
5, 4, 3, 3
E
Pull-Up
F1
Run
1 x 1.5
F2
Rowing
1 x 1500
Prep
A
Warm up (P1-3,S1)
Complete 1 round (2 rounds if you feel you are not warm enough for session) 1) Foam roll -1-2 mins 2)Dead hang x 60s 3) 90/90 hip mobility -4 (each side) 4) banded lateral walks - 2 x 10m lengths 5) worlds greatest stretch (4 (each side) 6) dead bug - 4 (each side) 7) Glute bridge x15 8) Plate Goblet squat x 15 9) pogo jumps 2 x 10
B
Seated vertical jump
C1
Trap Bar Deadlift
4 x 8
C2
TRX Lateral Lunge
3 x 8
D1
DB Bench Press
3 x 12
D2
Feet Elevated Inverted Row
3 x 12
E1
Seated DB Press
3 x 10
E2
Neutral Grip Pull up
3 x 10
F1
Tricep Pushdown
2 x 15
F2
Barbell Bicep Curl
2 x 15
Movement Prep
A
Warm up (P1-3,S2)
Complete 1 round (2 rounds if you feel you are not warm enough for session) 1) foam roll - 1-2 minutes 2)Dead Hang x 60s 3) Worlds Greatest Stretch x 5 (each side) 4) banded Shoulder dislocates x 15 5) Banded pull down x 15 6) banded face pull x 15 7) Banded tricep push down x 15
B1
Bench Press
4 x 8
B2
1-Arm DB Row
4 x 8
C1
Sled Push
3 x 15
C2
Sled Drag
3 x 15
D1
Seated Single Arm shoulder Press
2 x 10
D2
3-way shoulder raise
2 x 10
E1
KB Farmer's Walk
2 x 15
E2
Cable Rotations
2 x 8
F
Assault Bike
3 x 20
Movement Prep
A
Warm up (P1-3,S1)
Complete 1 round (2 rounds if you feel you are not warm enough for session) 1) Foam roll -1-2 mins 2)Dead hang x 60s 3) 90/90 hip mobility -4 (each side) 4) banded lateral walks - 2 x 10m lengths 5) worlds greatest stretch (4 (each side) 6) dead bug - 4 (each side) 7) Glute bridge x15 8) Plate Goblet squat x 15 9) pogo jumps 2 x 6
B1
Front Squat
4 x 8
B2
DB RDL
4 x 8
C1
Barbell Overhead Press
3 x 12
C2
Wide Grip Pull Ups
3 x 12
D1
Incline DB Bench Press
3 x 10
D2
Incline bench DB row
3 x 10
E1
Standing calf raise
2 x 15
E2
Seated Calf Raise
2 x 15
Lewis Glennan
As a former police officer, I know the demands the job. After I left, I did my MSc in S&C, then coached Canoe Wales athletes onto the Team GB World Class Programme and coached at a US D1 university. lessons being brought back to Response Athletes. Those frameworks now shape this 10-week programme, leaving you fitter, faster, stronger, and performing at your best on shift with the body to match it.
In a job that could kill you, your training can't be average. You need to be able to perform like an athlete at a moment's notice. This is where you start training for that.
Get The Virtus 10 week Performance Challenge
