Lately I have been thinking a lot about the importance of understanding how to choose exercises that directly apply to specific goals, rather than ones that we simply think are good to do for the sake of doing. We all have favorites that we have found to be effective in the past or that feel like they are targeting what we wish to target. We often are afraid to stop using these exercises, even for a little while, for fear that we will see those benefits disappear. This keeps us locked in an approach to exercise that may actually prevent us from moving forward and improving. Allow me to provide a common example, which I experienced most recently this past week.
An exerciser is interested in losing weight. The individual goes to the gym 3x a week and performs 40-60 minutes of cardiovascular training at a moderate pace. Five years ago, when they started this program, they enjoyed many benefits including some weight loss, increased energy, and longer endurance in daily tasks such as walking, climbing stairs, etc. Since that time the person has continued this routine but seen those gains level off and even decline. They would like to make new progress, lose more weight (or some that crept back on) and feel more fit, but don’t seem to be making any progress.
For someone like this, what is necessary is a change of routine. The body has already adapted to the stimulus and there is no more to be gained at this time. What I would recommend for this client would be shift in emphasis from long steady cardio to interval training and weight training. Intervals stress a different energy system of the body, giving it something knew to adapt to, and weight training builds muscle, bringing other metabolic positives. Now at this point almost inevitably comes the following question: “Should I still do the 40-60 minutes of cardio? I feel like I need to keep that up.” (“…or I will blow up like a balloon!” they are thinking) The answer is no, and here’s why.
We have established that the current training is not taking us towards the goal and as such have created a new strategy that will. We do not want to spend energy and time on the exercise routine that is not part of the solution. Our focus needs to be on the solution. Many, fearing this move away from the known and into the unknown would next suggest adding in extra days on top of the new routine. This way they could maintain the old one, just in case. On the surface this seems like a good idea. After all, now we are getting even more exercise. But the fact is, once again, that this old routine is already not contributing to the goal. If the person is truly able to go up from 3 days to 5 (which begs the question why they were only doing 3 in the first place) I would then suggest doing 5 days of the new routine, not 3 new and 2 of the old. Our goal here is to switch to exercise that is specifically helping us to reach our objective, not to simply add more on top of our existing routine.
And this is really the point I am trying to get at. All too often I see people at the gym doing every varying form of exercise all at once. They will do spin classes on one day, weights on the next, kickboxing on the next, circuit training after that, yoga and pilates on the weekend, and jogs in the park on nice days. Often, the person doing all of these various forms of exercise have simply added them on top of an existing routine along the way, when gains stopped happening. They may have been into group fitness, but found themselves after a time gaining weight anyway. Then a friend suggested spinning, so they began that as well. When that lost its effect, they searched for the next thing, and so on. Eventually, they ended up with a huge routine that is now a smattering of everything under the sun. While all of this may be keeping the person physically active, which I don’t intend to undervalue, it effectively takes them nowhere because it lacks specificity. Think of a pitcher who needs to work on a curve-ball. Will you have them practice every pitch they know everyday, or spend some concentrated time working on just that one pitch? The same principle applies to fitness. (I wrote more about this under What Is Cycling/Periodization?)
The point is, to make progress, you must identify what it is that you wish to achieve, what will take you there, and then focus on that. This may require you to stop some other activities, at least for a while, but you can always return to them at a later time when they might make sense again. Too often I feel that the fitness industry gives the impression that if the current routine isn’t working, the answer is to add a new part. There is a message out there that every group class, exercise routine, piece of equipment, sport, activity, and supplement is another weapon to add to the arsenal and that adding them will by default add to your gains. This is not the case.
Here is a related article – Assess and Prioritize.
