Wednesday musings, 1/4/17: untapped strength

Wednesday musings, 1/3/17
There is a concept in strength training called the “autonomously protected reserve.”* This is the reservoir of physical strength you can tap into under life or death situations, but are unable to access during everyday life.

When you begin strength training, you notice an increase in strength quickly, before you notice a change in muscle size or the way your clothes fit. That’s because the brain limits our usable strength; when we start challenging our strength, we are suddenly “allowed” to use more of it before physiological changes occur.

It’s interesting to consider we are actually, physically, stronger than we think we are. Motor control researchers argue all of us, even those that strength train regularly, have a strength reserve for when we really need it. The next time you find yourself in a challenging situation, tell yourself, “I’m stronger than I think am,” and take comfort in the fact that it is, in fact, true.

*Concept taken from the book “Strength Training and Coordination: An Integrative Approach,” by Frans Bosch.
**This article from the NY Times was posted yesterday. I found it thought provoking and inline with the fact there is no one size fits all diet, so why should there be a one size fits all exercise program? http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/03/well/move/is-your-workout-not-working-maybe-youre-a-non-responder.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur