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The Six Secrets to Fitness Success
by Rick Streb
Have you ever stopped to wonder why so many individuals, bodybuilders and athletes fail to make the fitness gains they desire? Why is it that so many people fail to see results for their hard work?
All persons, regardless of skill level, must frequently evaluate and re-evaluate their goals, as well as their planned course of action in order to achieve desired results. Continuous progress is possible only by doing this. And, no better time exists for this evaluation to occur than the point at which stagnation sets in and results begin to wane, or even worse, fail to materialize.
In business it is necessary to constantly evaluate and re-evaluate one’s goals, objectives, plans and ideas. Without this constant real-time evaluation, a business runs the risk of performing poorly, becoming married to an idea based on yesterday’s conditions, missing opportunities for growth, and / or flying blindly into disaster. Evaluating marketing conditions, for example, comes down to evaluating the marketing mix. This mix consists of product, price, promotion and place. Is it a good product or is it junk? How much does the product cost to manufacture, and what is the expected rate of return at this-or-that retail price? How do we best communicate the benefits of the product to the consumer? And, lastly, how can we remove obstacles to buying and deliver the product most easily into the hands of a willing buyer? These factors can be controlled.
Like in business, we must constantly evaluate and re-evaluate the controllable factors specific to our fitness goals. Do I have the objectivity required to be successful in reaching my goals? Am I eating in a hormonally correct way? Is my supplementation program effective? Am I exercising correctly? If so, is my exercise selection ideal, or is there room for improvement? These are but a few of the questions that an individual must be answer on a continual basis. But, because most people act only in the face of necessity, this type of real-time analysis seldom occurs unless and until the crisis of stagnation has already arrived. At that point any action taken is reactive instead of proactive. It is this approach that is largely responsible for the fact that scores of bodybuilders and athletes are seemingly trapped in bodies that fail to adapt to applied stimulus. When one is forced to react instead of being proactive, results of any kind are virtually impossible to achieve.
This article will examine the bodybuilding mix – the 6 variables that are within the control of any individual – in an attempt to help people evaluate their training to produce maximum results.
1.
OBJECTIVITY
The first step is to be objective when identifying, understanding and solving a
problem of any kind. Objectivity is also required to make sound decisions about
the course, direction and mission of one’s fitness goals.
So ladies, when you are looking in the mirror you need to be honest with yourself. You can’t continue telling yourself that your thighs and backside look good and tight when they’re really getting jiggy with it! The influence of the ego and the desire to see oneself in a positive light often interferes with objective analysis. And don’t expect your boyfriend/spouse to tell you what they really think because you won’t get the truth. At least one of two important factors are going to influence them to not be honest with you – (1) fear of your wrath and/or (2) fear of…well, I’m sure you can figure this one out.
Consequently, it is beneficial to surround yourself with objective observers who can provide unbiased feedback. This means excluding the feedback given by those with dependencies or self-interests – i.e. employees, spouses, friends, and family. Let’s face it – these people probably won’t tell you the truth anyway, whether it is out of fear or pleasure. If, and when, you solicit another’s opinion and are told that you look "good", do not settle for this answer. Instead, attempt to see if the person is deceiving you or withholding information by asking: "How do you think I could look FANTASTIC?" Any answer given to this question will reveal the true nature of their opinion, and it will tell you if they were being kind in their evaluation, telling you what you wanted to hear, or were trying to avoid giving negative criticism.
2.
HORMONALLY CORRECT NUTRITION
Adaptive adaptation to exercise stimulus can occur only if one’s nutrition
regimen is sufficient enough to allow adaptive adaptation. Biochemistry makes
clear that macronutrient consumption is, in part, determinative of hormone
profile. In other words, failure to eat in a
goal-oriented fashion will have negative hormonal consequences that will
negatively impact muscle growth and weight loss.
This realization necessitates obtaining one’s food from clean sources, including lean meats, nuts and fruits and vegetables. Processed food and the preservatives and colorings accompanying them will destroy the health of any body – athlete or non-athlete. In other words, you cannot eat out, drink alcohol and smoke cigarettes every night if you want to reach your fitness goals.
Eating correctly for hormonal profile means consuming the proper ratios of carbohydrates, fats and proteins in order to maximize anabolic (muscle building) and lipotropic (fat-burning) hormone levels. Only in this way can muscle gains and/or fat loss be maximized. Individuals must always be asking: Am I eating correctly to receive as much benefit from my hormones as possible while suppressing any possible inefficacious effects?
3.
CORRECT RECOVERY
Recovery from exercise of intense, but appropriate duration, is largely a
function of hormone profile. Hormone profile is influenced by nutritional
intake, circadian rhythms and sleep.
It is suggested that the average person requires eight hours of sleep nightly to physiologically and psychologically properly function. In fact, it is estimated that the average human being will spend thirty-three percent of their life sleeping. It stands to reason, therefore, that exercisers require more sleep due to an increased activity level.
Sleep aside;
correct recovery is also dependant upon circadian
rhythms – natural rhythms that regulate autonomic bodily functions like core
temperature, hunger, hormonal secretion, and heart and respiratory functions.
Circadian rhythms are responsible for the secretion of anabolic and lipotropic
hormones during sleep periods. The failure to obtain adequate rest can greatly
impair immune function, which in turn can spoil muscle building and fat-loss
success. In light of this, we must be constantly evaluating our recovery plans
and asking: Am I eating enough? Am I sleeping enough to allow my body to fully
recover from my exercise regimen? Could I be sleeping more? If so, how will
this increased sleep allow me to achieve even greater results?
4.
SUPPLEMENTATION
Any supplementation regimen should be exactly that –
a supplement to, and not replacement for, an
appropriate nutrition regimen. When used in conjunction with an
appropriate eating and exercise plan, dietary supplements can elicit tremendous
changes in body composition, and can often be the difference between mediocre
and outstanding results.
Exercisers must always be asking the question: Is this supplement effective at eliciting body composition change? To assess a products efficacy, we must always be taking diligent measures to collect data. Data collection can occur only when one is a) aware of the appropriate questions to ask and b) when one asks those questions. Continuing to spend money on an ineffective supplement defies common sense and will divert valuable financial resources away from necessary athletic expenditures like food purchases and gym memberships, for example.
5.
APPROPRIATE APPLICATION OF STIMULUS
To be effective, exercise stimulus must be correctly applied. It must also be
intense and of appropriate duration.
Any changes to body composition as a function of exercise stimulus will result from the effects of that stimulus on our hormone profile. To correctly affect hormone profile, exercise must be applied in a way to maximize growth hormone, glycogen, testosterone and estrogen levels. These anabolic and lipotropic hormones will favorably impact body composition and facilitate fat loss and muscular increases. By contrast, incorrectly applied exercise stimulus will induce catabolism and muscular atrophy through the release of cortisol.
At approximately 45 minutes into an exercise session, growth hormone levels peak, and then begin to decline. This means that after forty-five minutes, the effectiveness of an exercise session to promote anabolism and lipolysis declines, and begins instead to promote the release of cortisol – a hormone that destroys muscle tissue (under certain conditions). The typical person’s diet, with its emphasis on carbohydrate consumption, makes the effects of cortisol after this forty-five minute mark even more destructive.
It is necessary to always be asking ourselves: Is my exercise form correct? Am I actually working hard, or am I just under the perception that I am working hard? And, am I exercising within an appropriate time frame to elicit as much hormonal benefit from exercise as physically possible?
Of equal importance is the object of your training – are you working your muscles, or your central nervous system? The answer to this question is of critical importance, because training failures routinely occur as a result of an exercise program that is designed to achieve one objective, but ultimately achieves another.
After fifteen seconds of continuously intense work, the body switches from the anaerobic energy system to the aerobic system, and this is where muscle glycogen (carbohydrate) depletion occurs and lactic acid enters the picture. Power-lifting, because it does not involve working the aerobic energy system, is primarily concerned with central nervous system training. Bodybuilding, by contrast, involves muscle glycogen depletion and lactic acid buildup. Because of the difference in the two training styles, the results obtained from each system will be considerable different.
Many people claim to be bodybuilding, but in actuality fail to see muscle gains as a result of incorrect stimulus application. Using poundages that are too heavy and that does not allow you to complete the mandatory number of repetitions will result in central nervous system fatigue. After the central nervous system has been fatigued, depleting muscle glycogen stores becomes impossible.
So, bodybuilders must always ask themselves: Am I training my central nervous system, or my muscle tissue? Is my application of exercise stimulus effective at depleting muscular glycogen stores, or, in training my central nervous system, am I simply limiting my ability to train my muscles?
6.
APPROPRIATE EXERCISE SELECTION
Exercise selection, within the context of appropriate exercise application, is
determinative, in part, of our fitness success or failure. The effectiveness of
exercise stimulus applied to the body decreases over time as physiologic
homeostatic mechanisms influence hormone levels and elicits physical adaptation.
Many people fall into a "plateau." This plateau, as mentioned in the opening paragraphs of this article, results largely from a failure to examine, in real-time, one’s goals, objectives and direction. Consequently, many people, without realizing it, perform the same exercises in the same way for extended periods, and results grind to a screeching halt. It is by default that situations like this occur. Falling into a routine is simple - routines are easy, desirable and, once established, require little active effort to maintain. Once one "falls into" a routine it is easy to continue going through the motions unconsciously. However, it happens more often than not that by falling into a routine, the individual instead falls into a disaster, characterized by diminishing results and increased frustration.
It is typical for athletes, because of ease and personal preference, to perform some exercises to the exclusion of others. This practice can, over extended periods, decrease muscular functionality and strength, result in physique imbalances, and give rise to spinal and vertebral abnormalities. Modifying stimulus at regular intervals by modifying exercise selection and application will disrupt physiologic homeostasis and force the body to undergo continual hormonal and physical adaptation. In other words, continue to respond to exercise! To avoid plateaus, it is necessary to ask ourselves: Is my current selection of exercises appropriate and effective at eliciting the results I desire? If so, could I elicit even greater gains by making modifications?
CLOSING
THOUGHTS
Everyone, regardless of skill level, must frequently evaluate and re-evaluate
their goals, as well as their planned course of action. Perpetual progress is
only possible by doing this. We must be cognizant of the bodybuilding mix – the
above set of 6 controllable variables
that impact exercise efficacy, hormone profile, and body composition – and must
conduct real-time analyses on a continual basis. A failure to understand and
control these variables can result in aimlessness, stagnation, frustration and
disaster.
Perpetual progress and adaptive adaptation to exercise is possible, and now that you understand the bodybuilding mix and how each variable impacts your progress, you can control these factors – instead of letting them control you.
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