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For those of you who may have missed my message in my last newsletter, click here to see my 77-year old mom play handball. She is a prime example of what can be done when you avoid adaptation to a sedentary lifestyle – or even to a simple, unchallenging exercise program.
THE VALUE OF SHOCK TREATMENT (Part 3 of 3)
Strength Training
(Excerpted from my book Stop Aging, Start Training)
By Sal Fichera
My last newsletter (9/2/09) focused on adaptations that can occur with cardiovascular exercising. Just as progress can plateau, and even be reversed to some degree, when performing the same aerobic exercises at the same intensity, adaptations can similarly occur with strength training.
The solution to avoiding adaptation is to SHOCK your muscular system by changing your routine every 6-8 weeks, always challenging yourself just beyond your comfort zone. As with aerobics, you’ll need to: 1. Vary the activity (exercise selection), and 2. Vary the intensity.
VARY THE EXERCISES
For exercise variety, there are a multitude of options, particularly if you belong to a well-equipped gym. However, even if you exercise at home, there are many varieties of exercises you can do with simply a pair of adjustable dumbbells, a bench and exercise bands. It pays to have access to a menu of exercise options that you can pick and choose from for each of the major muscle groups of the body. This is why, in my book, Stop Aging, Start Training, I chose to include a total of sixty one strength exercises (eleven of which are for the core) and twenty-three flexibility and balance exercises.
If you’ve been following the same weight training routine, begin introducing a new exercise for each muscle group, again, every 6-8 weeks. On the other hand, if you vary your routine too frequently (say, every other workout or even every other week), it’ll be difficult to attain strength gains since you won’t be providing enough of a stimulus for your muscles to be challenged with any given exercise.
VARY THE INTENSITY
There are many ways that you can vary the intensity of your strength training routine. Four ideas are as follows: vary your rest intervals; vary the sequencing of exercises; change the tempo of your reps; and change the amount of loading or resistance.
1. Vary your rest cycles between sets. For example, if you’ve been performing 12 repetitions (reps) per set and resting 30-40 seconds between sets, then increase your rest cycles to 50-60 seconds. This will enable you to challenge your muscles with greater resistances, resulting in increased strength levels over time. On the other hand, if you were resting, say, 75-90 seconds between sets, decrease your rest to 30-45 seconds while increasing the number of repetitions per set (making 12 reps per set your maximum). This will force you to lift lighter weights, increasing your muscular endurance and tone.
2. Vary the sequencing of your exercises. Just by changing the order of your exercises, you will stimulate more of a positive response than if you follow the same sequence, over and over, as what generally happens with those who follow a circuit training routine – the body will get used to the pattern too quickly (adaptation), minimizing the challenge of the routine. Be sure, however, that you adhere to the principle of working larger muscles first, followed by smaller, support muscles.
3. Change the tempo of your reps. An ideal tempo to follow for each repetition is where the negative portion of the rep (downward movement of the resistance) is slower than the positive portion (upward movement of the resistance). A popular tempo is where you move the resistance upward, against gravity, at a count of two, and lower the resistance down at a count of three or four. One variation of that tempo can be one count on the positive, and four on the negative – a tempo known as negative training, a superb approach to increasing muscular strength.
4. Change the resistance. This is the most popular approach to intensity variation. As a muscle adapts to a given workload, increase the resistance. Conversely, on days when you’re not quite as strong as usual, or if you are returning to exercise after a long absence, then lighten up the resistance. Variations in resistance should also correspond to changes in rest intervals and tempo; the longer the rest, the heavier the load. Conversely, use lighter loads for slower tempos.
Through regular physical activity, your body will adapt to the increased demands placed on your body, which means that you’ll have become stronger and more efficient at the tasks you perform. In order to maintain your newfound strength, as well as to potentially progress further, shock your body by varying your exercise options and varying the intensity.
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