Make Sure You Make Gains (Progressive Overload)

I’ve been in the gym for a lot of years now. I’ve worked out in many giant commercial gyms and been employed by other giant gym chains and the YMCA. So after all these years its safe to say that I have seen a lot of things……horrible things that cannot be unseen!

It was pretty much this on a daily basis

You see, I saw so many people doing silly, dangerous, and downright ineffective exercises all the time. For a long time my viewing of this daily dog and pony show made me want to violently shove my lunch fork into my eyes. To make matters worse, when I observe clients working with MOST personal trainers I see programs and exercises that are not much better than the picture above. There is no real structure, plan, or progression to the programs that these trainers are putting their clients through.

I realize that people dont know what they dont know, and so these clients trust their coach to lead them to their goals and they dont realize that they are being put through sub-optimal or even sometimes dangerous programs.

I dont want that for you dear reader! So rather than create an exhaustive list of “good and bad” exercises (which could fill a volume) I am going to give you the most powerful training principle that you need in order to always make progress in the gym.

Progressive Overload

Progressive Overload is probably the most important (and often overlooked) principle in gaining strength and losing fat in the gym.

The angels sing of Progressive Overload

In a nutshell progressive overload means that you need to gradually put more and more stress on the body in the gym in order to build muscle and strength. You see our bodies desire to settle into what is called homeostasis. This means that our bodies like to self regulate and keep us at a certain base level. So in order to build muscle or lose fat we must disrupt this homeostasis by lifting weights.

For example, lets say that you start lifting in a group exercise class. The class is fast paced and uses dumbbells. It kicks your butt for the first 2 weeks. Then on the third week you find that it is considerably easier and you feel really good about yourself (go you!). Weeks four and five go by and you have the group workout down pat. You are the class rockstar! Several months go by and you keep slaying the workout but you notice that you dont look that much different in the mirror. What is going on?

The group class using the little dumbbells that you have been attending religiously has neglected the holy ghost of training: progressive overload. You see, the group class starts off as a new challenge for you. Your body is only used to going to work and then sitting on a couch, so the class is great and you see some results right off the bat. This disrupts your homeostatic point. After a few weeks though, your body has gotten used to the group class and its not as challenging. Your body has reached a new homeostatic point! It has adapted to the demand of the workout, and now in order to keep progressing and becoming more fit your body needs more of a challenge.

This is why after several months of this, you dont see a ton of changes in your physique. Its because the workout hasn’t really changed much. You also see this with home workout videos. Sure, they work for a few weeks or even months, but they usually are not built with progressing in mind and will eventually leave you stagnant.

In order to keep growing (in our example above) you would need to increase the weight of the dumbbells used, increase the number of reps performed, or otherwise increase your time under mechanical tension in the group exercises.

So How Does it Work?

“Stephen you lover of iron,” I hear you say, “how does this work practically in my workouts? I keep This pretty simple in my own programming and that of my clients. Most importantly you have to keep one thing in mind each time you train. Have I tried to do more this workout than last workout?

And neither was anything worth having

With body weight exercises (like push ups, pull ups, crunches exc) this is very simple. Just do more than the last workout. For example, if you can eek out 3 sets of 3 push ups at first, then next workout simply try to do an additional 4th push up. Before long you will be adding 5th and 6th push ups and not long after you will be much stronger and proficient in that exercise.

With weights its a little more complicated (but not much). Say you start off dead lifting a 35lb kettlebell off the floor for 3 sets of 8 reps. Next week try doing 10-12 reps for 3 sets. The week after try using a 52lb kettlebell for 3 sets of 8 reps again. You see how this works? You want to increase the reps and/or the weight each week in order to see sustained progress and great results. Easy enough eh?

To be clear, there are some weeks where this is not possible. Sometimes you will have not sufficiently recovered and adapted from your training because of bad sleep, high stress, a bad argument with your significant other, your house is haunted because its built on an Indian burial ground, or any other number of things. Realize that this is ok and is part of the process. Just go get em next week!

TLDR

You dont need to change up your program constantly or always be on the hunt for the exercise that “works your thighs best.” What I challenge you to put into practice is to always try to do just a little bit more each workout. It doesn’t even have to be for every exercise every workout! But by doing just a little more you will find that little bit at a time adds up to big changes in the long run.

Now go build your Rome.

Your Life Bar (Accumulative Constructive Survival Value)

Have you ever played a video game? I am a video game fan and have been for a long time. In many video games your avatar or character you are playing has a life bar somewhere visible on the screen. This life bar is a graphical representation of the vitality or health of your character. When it goes all the way down or to zero, your character is knocked out or killed and you obviously lose the game. This is usually followed by a “respawn” in which you play the game again but may have to start at the beginning again. Or you just rage quit the game all together and throw your controller. I dont know anything about that…..

The life bar depletes as they strike each other. And they spelled critical wrong

“But Coach Boone” you say, “what does this have to do with health and fitness!?” Well impatient reader, this is a good analogy for two ideas taken from Chiropractic teaching called Accumulative Constructive Survival Value and its opposite, Accumulative Destructive Survival Value.

In my video game example above, I am referring to the accumulative destructive survival rate firstly. In real life these are the things that “drain your life bar.” These are life stresses, physical stresses, injuries, traumas, disease, toxins, fatigue, age, being punched by a ninja, exc. All the things that make us run down, injured, or sick. Even in real life we only have so much physical capacity or “life bar” and all of these different factors in life chip away at our capacity. Also like a video game, once our capacity reaches zero, we can be killed by ailment or injury. Unlike a video game however, there is no respawn option, the game is over for good on earth.

Do not pass go, do not collect 200 dollars.

On the other side of the coin we have Accumulative Constructive Survival value. These are things that increase your “life bar.” These are things like healthy foods, exercise, vitamins and minerals, rest, prayer and meditation, laughing, massage, exc. These things restore your vitality.

The concept though is not as simple as things that simply heal you. For example, if you have a disease simply resting and eating vitamins wont necessarily heal you. The idea is that things that add to your constructive value give you more overall capacity and resiliency against the stresses and sicknesses of life (the destructive values).

You could also think about it this way. You are a bucket. There is a constant stream of water being pored into you (the bucket). If the bucket overflows with water, you die. The water can be drained out somewhat slowly also, but normally the water comes in faster than it leaves. BUT what if you could be a larger bucket? This way you can hold more water safely and not risk it overflowing. This is working on your Accumulative Constructive Survival Value.

You see your body’s natural state is one of health and healing. This is evidenced in small part by how our wounds heal. Like if you get a paper cut its gone in a couple days. Our bodies are programed in our subconscious to heal, repair, and thrive. If you can keep a reserve of life bar or extra room in your bucket, your body will start the healing and repair process. If you are dangerously close to overflowing or zero life, your body is overwhelmed and has an extremely difficult time of restoring health or repairing itself.

This is why healthy eating and exercise are so important and helpful to us. These are two of the lowest hanging fruit we have at our disposal to increase our Accumulative Constructive Survival Value and keep ourselves healthy and able to withstand the stresses, toxins, and ninja kicks that life throws at us all the time. Yes our overall Constructive Survival Value will decrease with age (our overall life bar is maybe max 75% rather than 100%) but hopefully our wisdom in navigating life and keeping our constructive value topped off, and destructive values at bay will let us lead a healthy life right up till the end.

I watched both sets of my grandparents health decline slowly over years as they suffered more and more with disease until they died. What I didn’t understand at the time was that they were not doing anything to grow their bucket. Most things in their life only added more water in. I don’t want this for myself and I dont want it for you either dear reader.

As I always say, “live a healthy life and then drop dead.” Who wants a long suffering state of being when you get old? By keeping these values in mind and adding to our constructive survival value as much as possible, hopefully we can avoid suffering and live in health till the end. What are you doing to keep your health-bar up?

I dont know about you but I want to be able to sword fight pirates and yell at kids to get off of my lawn for as long as possible. Who’s with me?

Inflamation and what to do about it (in short form!)

We have all heard talk by now of inflammation and its effects on the body. It is not my intention in this post to go in depth into the root bodily mechanics of inflammation but rather to give you a very practical (and fast) download into some common signs/symptoms of inflammation and some common food triggers. If you know me you know I am a HIGHLY practical individual so rather than wax poetically about it, just know that inflammation is bad mkay and we normally want as little of it as a response in our bodies.

If you dont know who this I’m sorry you arn’t having enough fun in life

3 signs/symptoms of Inflammation

1. Fatigue: Are you tired all the time? When you wake up does it feel like you drank last night even though you didn’t? This is a very common inflammatory reaction to food. Might be time to look at your diet.

2. Weight Gain/stubborn fat: If your body is in a chronically inflamed state it will typically hold onto fat stores. This is because your body is having a sympathetic nervous system response. Conversely, it can also make it hard to lose fat since your sympathetic (fight) response is on. So if you are working out, eating better, and still seeing no chance on the scale, inflammation could be why.

3. Joint Pain: Do you feel achy all the time? Do you still feel achy even in the afternoon after you have been up and moving around for a while? You see we should (if things are working properly) feel more mobile and less “achy” as the day goes on. A little ache in the morning isnt a big deal but if it doesn’t go away this could be a sign of chronic diet induced inflammation.

3 Common inflammatory foods that are even “healthy’!

1. Rice: Although rice is one of the most commonly eaten foods in the world, it is also a very common cause of inflation in westerners who often lack the enzymes that are necessary to process rice properly. This is one lesson I had to learn the hard way myself. I love rice and Asian cuisine and I always wondered why I would spend a long time in the bathroom and with stomach aches after virtually any Asian meal. Well, they almost always come with rice, and my Norse heritage doesn’t do so well with that.

This lady feels me. Rice has been linked to joint pain. Its almost like I knew what I was talking about

2. Beans: Beans, beans the magical fruit! They also have another magical power, and that’s the power of inflammation! You know what I’m talking about. The bloated, stuffed full, and gassy feeling after having a bunch of beans. Its so obvious and yet we are told that beans are a health food! The bean issue is pretty nuanced though. Some beans are pretty common inflammatories while others are not. It also matters how the beans are washed and prepared before cooking. Its outside of the scope of this article to dive into it but the short version is green beans are fine while most of your hard beans like black, pinto, navy, exc can be problematic. I cut them all (but green) out of my diet and feel much better for it. If you are a bean lover it may be worth more research on your end.

3. Breads, pastas, even whole grains: This one is pervasive and incredibly common. There are many people who have trouble digesting wheat based grain products. Yet these products make up the majority of options in any grocery store. You see, wheat allergies are very common. Symptoms like acne, skin rashes, and headaches can all be caused by wheat consumption. Hell, our wheat in the USA doesn’t even meet European standards (dont believe me, look it up). Although whole grains are often touted as a health food, I would recommend staying away from them. Your health (and waistline) will thank you.

What to do about it

1. Pay Attention!: Pay attention to how you feel about an hour after eating. If you are tired and want to take a nap its highly likely that your body doesn’t like something you ate and is reacting to it. A good meal (for you) should give you more energy, not less.

2. Everyone is different so become a detective for yourself: One thing that drives me nuts is the notion that there is one “perfect diet” for everyone. This is simply not true! People are very unique and because of our diverse ancestral backgrounds we will react to foods differently as well. For example, I have a buddy who can eat rice likes its his job and he stays lean year round. Hes also Asian. Me on the other hand, even a small amount of rice makes me feel like a sumo wrestler and I spend the rest of the evening in the bathroom watching YouTube. To find the perfect diet for you takes work, trial and error, and experimentation.

3. Its so worth it: When I talk to my clients and tell them the un-sexy truth that there is no magic diet or pill they can sometimes become discouraged or overwhelmed. People seem to want a play by play guide of exactly what to eat and when. This isnt very realistic however and as soon as you go out to dinner with some friends you will “fall off the wagon” and then feel bad about yourself. This is not a sustainable way of living! I think some re-framing is needed here. You should look at this as an exciting and life changing journey of discovery to enbark on! If you can learn about yourself well enough to know what foods serve you well and which ones dont then you have armed yourself with the ability to eat almost anywhere! You can enjoy dinners out with friends and simply order what you know fuels you instead of just cheating on your diet and paying for it later.

Now go! Listen to your body. Eliminate foods that cause inflammation and make you feel bad. Create your own non-inflammatory diet that you can enjoy and will serve you for your life!

No, I’m not getting enough sleep. (How to train with no time)

For those who don’t know, I have recently become a father. After a crazy 23 hours in labor my wife delivered our handsome baby boy. As much as my friends, family, and friend/clients tried to warn and prepare me, nothing they could have said would have prepared me for the emotional rollercoaster that is now parenthood. Nor could they convey the unbelievable love I would feel towards my demanding little tyrant of a son.

A true gangter, just like his dad

I mean, I love him more than my cat (who previously held the place of honor in my heart) and that is saying something!

Now there is one thing I wish people had prepared me for and that is the fact that everyone (even random people at Target) will ask you if you are getting enough sleep. If I had a dollar for every time someone would ask me if I was “getting enough sleep” I would have enough money to buy the real Batmobile replica I’ve had my eyes on. Sure, I always smile and give a polite half chuckle and respond with an answer like, “It’s not too bad” when in reality I want to give them a cold blank stare that says “Really?” or “What do you think, Einstein?”

For those of you who may be confused the answer is no………there is never enough sleep………..ever again…………I’ve fallen asleep twice trying to write this………………help.

Beyond mild sleep deprivation, one of the larger challenges for me now that I have daddy status is how do I stay in reasonable shape? As a strength coach and personal trainer, I can’t exactly let myself go, nor do I want to lose the myriad of benefits of being swole.

Quick visual definition of “swole” for the uninitiated

Obviously, this is a problem that every parent (or people that work long hours) can relate to. Most of us cannot spend three hours in the gym at a time (like I used to; those were the days) with our varied life commitments and families.

So how do you make the most of your time in the gym? I’m glad you asked!

4 Rules for Effective Workouts with Little Time

1. Hit the Big Lifts

This should really be the rule all the time. Your training in the gym should always be built around improving on one of the big 3 lifts (squat, bench, deadlift) and/or weightlifting (snatch, clean and jerk). These lifts are considered the most important for a reason, they give you the biggest bang for your training buck. These lifts all work your entire body at once which saves you time by covering a lot of bases at once. They also build true “functional” strength that is very hard to build otherwise.

Let’s break down the time spent.

Exercise Format Time

Deadlift 5 sets of 5 with 1 min rest in between About 8 min, no more than 10

Hamstring Curl Machine 3 sets of 10 with 1 min rest in between About 5 min

Seated Cable Row 3 sets of 10 with 1 min rest in between About 5 min

DB Heavy Shrugs 3 sets of 10 with 1 min rest in between About 5 min

In the (poorly constructed) table above you see deadlifts performed in a 5x5 fashion with 1 minute of rest in between would take about 10 min to complete. The other three exercises are things you will see your average gym rat performing on machines in your local freak show “Globo” gym. All three combined target (mostly) the same muscles that the deadlift alone covers and as you can see would take more time. Not to mention that you will probably have to battle someone to the death (which takes precious time) to get on the hamstring curl machine at the mega gym. They are also nowhere near as effective for building strength or transferring into any athletic endeavor as the deadlift.

2. Have a plan!

How many people do you see in the gym seemingly zombie wondering around from machine to machine cluelessly “working out” with headphones on that are bigger than the rims on my car?

How many people do you see in the gym keeping track and taking notes of their workout on an old school note book? My guess is almost zero percent. Those rare birds are the people to watch out for. The old adage is true, if you fail to plan you plan to fail and this failure to plan not only gives you sub-par results in the gym but also robs you of valuable time! A lot of time is wasted as you try to figure out what exercises to work on or conjure up a new excuse as to why leg day must be skipped again this week (vernal equinox!).

Go in with a plan and STICK TO IT! There are tons of great plans out there so you don’t need to be a program design wizard yourself to be successful. Just be sure that the plans at their core revolve around the big lifts we talked about before and you will be heading in the right direction.

3. Superset!

You see those gym bros chatting it up like middle school girls in between each set of triceps extensions? Their highly intellectual commentary on “that girl with the fat a$$” takes approximately ten thousand times longer than the actual exercise itself. AIN’T NOBODY GOT TIME FOR THAT! We’ve gotta keep this gain train moving because we’ve got kids and hot wives to get home to. What’s the solution? The superset of course!

The superset is simply performing one exercise and immediately following it up with another different exercise. These exercises ideally work opposite (or different enough) movement patterns and/or muscle groups. There is certainly an art to getting it right but here are some basic examples

Example 1 A1 bench press, A2 pull ups

Example 2 B1 front squats, B2 Db Rows

Example 3 C1 Deadlift, C2 Push Ups

This saves A LOT of time so we are getting an active rest while working another muscle group. This style of training also has added benefits like burning more fat than just resting and increasing your level of conditioning.

4. Listen to your body

Everyone likes to feel like a beast in the gym. Hitting PRs, doing more reps and leaving with a massive pump are some of the reasons why we train. Unfortunately, I gotta hit you with the reality stick though. When you are only sleeping an hour at a time because of your little bundle of terror joy, you will probably feel like a bag of crap. You are probably not going to be hitting a personal best any time in the near future. Look, I hate admitting it as much as the next guy but you have to give yourself credit for even showing up to the gym. Now is the time to dial in technique and listen to your body.

Let’s say you are warming up for you bench press and the weight just feels heavy today. Your program calls for 3 reps at 235 but you barely manage 2. Its time to switch it up so you can still make progress and feel good about yourself and not die under a barbell.

He died shortly after this picture was taken. In true bro fashion his friend got this picture instead of helping him.

Immediately flip the script and make it a muscle building day! Go for sets of 8-12 and choose a weight you won’t fail with. This way you will still be making gains and avoid being ridiculed by the other gym bros.

Implementing these 4 rules have allowed me to still make solid gains even though I would rather be sleeping forever like some kind of coffin-dwelling vampire. I hope these rules can help you too.

Oh, and if you have a co-worker/friend that has just had a baby, don’t ask them if they are getting enough sleep. If you do ask give them a dollar and bring them a coffee, or a real replica Batmobile.