The Art of “Switching It Up” and “Seeing Some Shit”
Nothing like sitting back between sets, a deep breath, a quick scan of the room and taking it all in. Your in the middle of it, at the watering hole with all of the other animals getting your daily fix. In your peripherals, some dude decked out in spandex is grunting each hip thruster along, while the lady in front of you is in the midst of preforming an interpretive cables routine that is sure to impress the Russian judge. After a year or two of quick glances you see the same people doing the same thing over and over, If you win gold this year do you really think you have a good chance to win it again four years down the road with the same routine?
So the question arises: Is preforming the same exercise routine, repeatedly over a long period of time really time well spent?
And the answer is a simple Yes and No. It depends on your goals, you could very well be looking to exercise for the mental benefits rather than becoming a mainstay on muscle beach. If you’re looking for physical progress, simply doing the same workout week after week, month after month, year after year will not get you to your desired destination. For beginners, it takes about 8-12 weeks of consistent exercise before results (or #gainz) become apparent. Studies have shown that individuals start to see the meaningful results of a strength routine at around 3-4 months, plenty of time for one to get discouraged and quit. SO DON’T!
The problem is, the human body is scary efficient. When you first engage your muscles with a new movement the brain will begin to neurologically figure out how to complete these tasks in the most efficient way possible. In other words, the brain hashes out how to preform the movement(s) expending the least amount of energy possible. The more you do them the more efficient you become, I guess that’s why kids everywhere are overly encouraged with the phrase “practice makes perfect” as far back to their first steps. More importantly, did “The Answer” mislead me and every-other 12 year old back in 2002?
Practice does indeed make perfect, but to see an increase in stamina, strength and endurance you’ll need to “switch it up”. Depending on your goals you can look into altering the Load (resistance), Velocity (speed) and Complexity (movements that engage more muscle fibers) to increase the neurotransmitters to the muscles and continue seeing (and feeling) improvements.
There are several different ways to “switch it up” that will bring about real results. Some you may already be intuitively doing, such as increasing the weight (or resistance) for a movement at a lower number of reps. Simple adjustments to the three factors above are a great way to alter a workout and reap the physical and physiological rewards. It’s doing the same exercise, with no changes, over a long period of time that will bring you to that evil “gains plateau”. Keep in mind that your body is striving for efficiency, what was once a great calorie-burning workout may become no better than the average walk. A recent study that compared energy expenditure (calories burnt) between participants who exercised frequently to those who exercised moderately found:
“total energy expenditure increases with physical activity at low activity levels but plateaus at higher activity levels as the body adapts to maintain total energy expenditure within a narrow range.”
In other words, the more active participants were not seeing any major calorie burning advantage over those who were just moderately active. They may have been burning more calories during the actual exercise but their bodies efficient use of energy the rest of the day made up for it.
Just as you can reach a comfort zone in your profession, exercise is no different. The challenge is being self aware enough to realize the zone has been reached for you. Many people get caught up in the motions as their body adapts to its routine, this simple sign to “switch it up” can leave them puzzled and demoralized with a noticeable halt progress. An absence of a trainer or program to help navigate these impasses can easily lead one to a standstill without even knowing it. Three key words I’ll bring up again: Load, Velocity, Complexity. These are the simple keys to keep your body guessing, after about 12 weeks of a particular routine begin to change the resistance (or Load), the speed of the movement(Velocity) and look to add movements that require more of your muscles to work in unison (complexity). Simple tweaks to these three can keep you progressing for years!
Also, as you may know, having a strong gym Spy Game, can be as good as having your own personal trainer. Don’t get me wrong, your there to accomplish your goals but take some time to observe what the animals (technically speaking) around you are doing. I guarantee you’ll see some shit! Scary, Cool, Crazy, Funny, Interesting Shit! If you like it (and it’s safe) give it a go! Set a goal to observe and execute on a new move each week, after a few weeks, BAM! You could very well have yourself a new routine. It’ll be more fun, you’ll stay more interested and you’ll be in a better position to win when life throws a monkey wrench your way.
