Letting things happen (instead of forcing the issue)
In the last blog post, we touched upon the benefits of high-frequency training, and how it can help you lean into a new, more active lifestyle. This is an important extension of that topic and a beneficial strategy that can help you avoid injury and overtraining. But let’s take a step back and look at how we normally perceive training, and the most important factors involved in training.
In a normal fitness program (this can be cardio, or strength based) you train harder than last time, and then you rest. The reason for this is often based on the following two concepts. In the interest of transparency—we agree with these—but our approach is a bit different (more on that later…)
The first concept is a specific adaptation to imposed demand. This term is used a lot in training circles, but it’s not as fancy as it sounds. You impose a physical stimulus, and the body adapts to it—as long as you give the body adequate rest, and an environment that facilitates recovery. So, to get fitter, you need to increase the stress on your body, and this paves the road to greater fitness.
The second concept is progressive overload. This is an equally important term, which implies that the greatest predictor of increased strength and fitness is the ability to move more weight over time—so, if you are squatting the same weight as you did last year, there is a good chance that you look the same as well. You need to progressively overload your system over time to promote increased fitness—because your body only adapts to imposed demand.
The way we normally interpret this is, to work harder than last time—or the “one more rep” mentality. Every time you hit the gym, you should be able to move more weight than last time, and a lot of coaches advocate that you attempt to follow this kind of linear progression, which means that you add a set amount of weight to the exercise every session. This sounds good in theory, but it is, by default, not a sustainable strategy. If you can stick to this strategy, then you would be incredibly strong in two years—maybe even stronger than The Mountain, try and do the math.
Russian strength coach Pavel Tsatsouline argues for a different approach. Look him up if you have not heard of him, he is very knowledgeable, and quite the character. He thinks that you should find a weight that is challenging and then stay on that weight until it becomes very easy. This gives your body, and your tendons, time to adapt. Then you make a bigger jump when the weight becomes too easy for you.
This approach adapts well to following a high-frequency training program. When you run an easy distance every day, or swing the same kettlebell every day, the stimuli is more tolerable. You do not feel destroyed—meaning you are recovering well—and you’re ready to train the next day. This means that you provide yourself with a greater opportunity to learn, because of the greater frequency—and you can tolerate a greater weekly volume because you are not increasing the intensity every session.
To see what two different versions of what this training looks like, check out “Lennart’s daily training” and “Scott’s daily training” under the “What are the coaches doing?” link below. If you are interested in a custom program, drop us an email at the link below.
https://www.coachingandcoffeetalks.com/what-are-the-coaches-doing
Good luck, and get after it!
Scott and Lennart