I don’t know where some of the terminology in fitness comes from, but, sometimes, it really gets under my skin. The writer of “Ecclesiastes” had it correct when he wrote that there is nothing new under the sun. The fitness industry is increasingly driven by marketing. Some of it is okay, if it gets people in the gym and working out. Most of it is harmless semantics, albeit deceptive. What bothers me is that words are often used to sell snake oil—promises that somehow the fitness professional has some magic formula for success. The reality is that fitness is actually guided by a relatively small number of principles.
I study and teach exercise physiology. If I have learned anything in my years as an exercise physiologist (20 years as a PhD; 32 years with a Master’s degree), it is that fitness is far simpler than we want it to be. Do the (specific) work, and you will get the (specific) results. If you have fitness goals, choose your parents wisely and put in the work (and recovery).
Giving science-sounding names to fitness activities does not make them any more effective. I mentioned “metcon”, yesterday. In class, I showed my students a video that discussed the physiological adaptations to chronic endurance exercise. The instructor discussed an increase in mitochondrial number at no point did he mention mitochondrial hypertrophy—because the mitochondria don’t get bigger like skeletal muscle! Still, I guess, “mitochondrial hypertrophy” sounds hipper?
Essentially, there are three types of cardiorespiratory exercise: 1) long-slow distance, 2) interval training, and tempo (AKA, Fartlek) training. Call it what you will—“metcon”, “mitochondrial hypertrophy”, “HIIT”, “Tabata”, etc.—it has to stimulate one’s ability to deliver oxygen to the muscle and/or one’s ability to uptake oxygen by the muscle to improve cardiorespiratory performance.
To improve muscle function, intensity, repetitions, sets, volume, recovery, and nutrition, all need to be applied according to the overload and specificity principles to produce the intended response. There are no secret exercises or training methods. The principles are the same for everyone. The responses are individualized—so there is no one-size-fits-all approach—so one need only find what works for him or her.
Diet is simple: match calorie intake with the goals and plan the optimal macro balance for one’s training needs. This will fight the bulk of the war on fat.
So, don’t be lured by the siren sound of fancy terminology. Fitness takes (specific) effort. It takes time (don’t buy into the promise of rapid results). Do the work and be patient. It isn’t complicated. It just takes doing what has to be done. (Like anything else in life.)
Be your best today; be better tomorrow.
Carpe momento!