Five principles of fitness

The five core principles of fitness exercise are the principle of progressive load, the principle of specific adaptation, the principle of individual differences, the principle of reversibility, and the principle of recovery priority. These five principles are the underlying logic that has reached a general consensus in the global exercise physiology community and has been repeatedly verified by fitness practitioners around the world for decades. If you step on any of them, you may not see any results after three or four months in the gym.

Last week, an Internet student I taught complained to me. He said that he went to the gym three times a week. He had practiced bench pressing for two months, but he was still at the level of 12 reps of 40kg. His breast shape had not changed at all, and he sweated more than anyone else. Was he born without talent? I looked through his training records and almost laughed out loud - in two months, he had not increased the weight or the number of groups, and even rested for a fixed 3 minutes between groups. The muscles had already adapted to this intensity and there would be no growth stimulation at all. This is because the core of "progressive load" has not been understood. To put it bluntly, you have to give your muscles "new challenges" from time to time so that they are forced to grow. Of course, different training goals have different methods. Bodybuilding enthusiasts may gradually increase the number of sets and reduce the rest time. Even if the weight remains the same, it can give new stimulation to the muscles. ； Powerlifters prefer to hit the weight directly. After all, the goal is to lift heavier. ； Friends who play street fitness have it easier. They change from standard push-ups to high fives and one hand. As the difficulty increases, the load will naturally keep up, and there is no need to dwell on the weight numbers.

Many people practice for a long time without any results. Another common reason is that what they practice does not match the goal at all, which is what we call the principle of specific adaptation. I have seen friends who want to train for marathons squatting in the power zone every day until their leg circumference increases by 5cm, but their five-kilometer pace is half a minute slower. They also complain that training is useless - you train to the maximum strength of your muscles every day. Of course, your body will grow muscles and increase strength. How can you increase your aerobic endurance out of thin air? Of course, this does not mean that cross-training should be completely eliminated. Nowadays, many professional athletes will also add auxiliary training to improve their shortcomings. For example, runners will practice core strength to avoid injuries, and powerlifters will do aerobic exercises to control body fat. However, the proportion of training corresponding to core goals must be at least 60%, otherwise it will be picking up sesame seeds and losing watermelons.

Speaking of which, we have to mention the principle of individual differences that is most likely to cause anxiety. People often post reports on the Internet about "losing 30 pounds in three months" and "increased 50kg in bench press in half a year." Many people feel like they are useless after practicing without achieving results. It is really unnecessary. People are very different in their genes, foundation, and living habits. People who are born with a high proportion of fast-twitch muscle fibers will gain weight two or three times faster through strength training than people with more slow-twitch muscle fibers. ； People with endomorphic physiques are more likely to gain weight and store fat than ectomorphic people. It is normal for people with endomorphic physiques to not adapt to other people's plans. Nowadays, different training systems have different responses to this. Bodybuilding training will first test your embryonic type, and then adjust the ratio of diet and training. For ectomorphs, eat more and train more, while for endomorphs, you will add aerobics to control body fat. ； The functional training school attaches more importance to first conducting FMS motor function assessment, first solving the problems of joint mobility and core stability, and then increasing the intensity. There is never a "universal training plan" suitable for everyone.

There is another principle that everyone knows, which is reversibility. Two years ago, the epidemic was locked down at home for two months. I could deadlift 120kg before. When I went to the gym for the first time after the lockdown was lifted, I couldn’t even lift 90kg. I almost thought I was useless. In fact, this is normal reversibility - when you stimulate the body, it becomes stronger, and when you stop stimulating, it will naturally retreat. Generally speaking, muscle strength will drop by 1% to 3% every week, and aerobic endurance will drop faster. You can lose 10% after stopping training for two weeks. However, there is no need to panic. With the exercise memory buff, you can basically return to the previous level within 4 to 6 weeks of resuming training. Different groups have different coping methods. Professional powerlifters will also maintain low-intensity heavy weight stimulation once or twice a week during the offseason to avoid losing too much strength. ； If ordinary enthusiasts are busy and have no time to go to the gym, doing dozens of bodyweight push-ups and a few lunges at home can also effectively delay muscle loss, which is better than lying completely flat.

After talking so much about training, the most easily overlooked thing is the principle of recovery priority. When I first started working out a few years ago, I made a mistake. I thought that the harder I practiced, the better the effect. I did chest training on Monday, back training on Tuesday, shoulders on Wednesday, legs on Thursday, and arms on Friday. I also added aerobics on the weekend. I gritted my teeth and endured the pain. As a result, I injured my rotator cuff. After three months of training, I lost half of the strength I had trained before. It was not worth the loss. Later I realized that training is actually tearing down muscles, and recovery is the time to build muscles. Nowadays, the recovery logic of different schools is actually the same. The essence of differentiated training for bodybuilding is to train different parts separately, leaving each part with enough recovery time of 48 hours. ； The natural fitness circle has always emphasized the need to ensure 7 to 9 hours of sleep every day. After all, most growth hormone is secreted during deep sleep. ； There is also active recovery that has become popular in recent years. Don’t lie still after training. Go for a half-hour walk and do a session of yoga. The blood circulation will increase, and the recovery speed will be faster than lying down completely.

In fact, these five principles are nothing mysterious at all. They are the underlying logic that has been practiced and researched by generations of people. Don't believe the nonsense on the Internet about "building your vest line in 7 days" or "gaining 20 pounds of muscle in a month". Any plan that does not comply with these principles is either cutting leeks or bragging. You really don’t need to compare your progress with others when it comes to fitness. You just need to follow these principles. Even if your progress is a little slower each time, it is much better than taking a detour, don’t you think?