programming

Why do patients struggle with their medicines?

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This is a fascinating study that has real implications for fitness and strength regime programming.

read this fascinating study

“Why do patients struggle with their medicines?—A phenomenological hermeneutical study of how patients experience medicines in their everyday lives”

Read more: Why do patients struggle with their medicines?

Check out the full study here

Findings from this study highlight five main themes where participants experience medicines as: 1) life-saving and indispensable, 2) normal and a daily routine, 3) confusing and concerning, 4) unsuitable without adjustment, and 5) intrusive and unwelcome. These results can be the basis for mutually agreed prescribing through a co-creative approach that aims at enhancing open and honest dialogues between patients and healthcare professionals in partnership about medicines.

The conclusion was “In conclusion, the results from this study indicate the need for a co-creation of a treatment plan in partnership between patients and healthcare providers when prescribing medicines. This research can be seen as a call to action for researchers who focus on improving medicine-taking to recognise the importance of the patients’ lived experiences of medicine-taking and how this may impact on their actual medicine-taking”

This has impolications in the strength and fitness arena! programmes must be built in partnership with the client!

Build hanging time !

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On an increasing basis you’ll see portable pull up bars being erected in public places with a ”can you hang for 90 seconds? ”challenge

Often there is a prize involved , but the task is made harder as the bar ( on the versions I’ve seen ) spins a bit making holding onto it rather hard .

Whilst I’ll talk about coping with the spin in another article , I thought it would be best to build up your hang ability on a normal bar .

Hopefully this 6 week training schedule will be helpful. It assumes you can hang for 45 seconds.

• Day 1: Hang for 45 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 3: Hang for 50 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 5: Hang for 55 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 7: Rest

Week 3: Day 1: Hang for 60 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 3: Hang for 65 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 5: Hang for 70 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 7: Rest.

Week 4:• Day 1: Hang for 75 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 3: Hang for 80 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 5: Hang for 85 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 7: Rest.

Week 5:• Day 1: Hang for 85 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 3: Hang for 88 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 5: Hang for 90 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 7: Rest.

Week 6:• Day 1: Hang for 90 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 3: Hang for 92 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 5: Hang for 94 seconds, rest for 1 minute, repeat 3 times. • Day 7: Rest.

This program gradually increases the time you hang from the pull-up bar each week, allowing your muscles to adapt and get stronger.

Even if you don’t make the 90 seconds , hanging from a bar is really , really good for your shoulders ( unless your doctor has told you that you have exploding shoulders and will die if you use them )

Will power. Muscle not brain.

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Willpower: Unveiling its Muscle-like Nature
In our pursuit of personal growth and success, willpower often plays a crucial role. It is commonly believed that willpower is a skill that can be honed through practice and discipline. However, recent research suggests that willpower is more akin to a muscle that can be strengthened and fatigued. This blog post aims to explore the concept of willpower as a muscle, supported by academic references.

Understanding Willpower as a Muscle:
Willpower can be defined as the ability to resist short-term temptations in order to achieve long-term goals. Just like a muscle, it can be trained, depleted, and strengthened over time. This muscle analogy provides a useful framework for understanding the dynamics of willpower.

1. Baumeister and Heatherton (1996):
Baumeister and Heatherton conducted a seminal study that compared willpower to a muscle. They found that individuals who exerted self-control in one task experienced a subsequent decrease in self-control in a subsequent task. This depletion effect suggests that willpower, like a muscle, can become fatigued with use.

2. Muraven, Baumeister, and Tice (1999):
In another study, Muraven, Baumeister, and Tice explored the concept of willpower depletion further. They found that participants who resisted eating tempting chocolates performed worse on subsequent cognitive tasks compared to those who did not exert self-control. This study provides evidence that willpower depletion can extend beyond the specific domain of self-control.

3. Job, Dweck, and Walton (2010):
Job, Dweck, and Walton investigated the malleability of willpower through a series of experiments. They found that individuals who believed willpower was a limited resource experienced more self-control failures compared to those who believed it was a flexible and trainable trait. This study highlights the importance of mindset in developing and maintaining willpower.

Building Willpower Muscle:
Similar to building physical muscles, there are strategies to enhance and strengthen our willpower:

1. Gradual Progression:
Start with small, manageable challenges and gradually increase the difficulty. This approach allows the willpower muscle to adapt and grow stronger over time.

2. Rest and Recovery:
Just as muscles need rest to recover and grow, willpower also requires adequate rest. Engaging in activities that replenish mental energy, such as relaxation techniques or hobbies, can help restore willpower.

3. Mindfulness and Self-awareness:
Developing mindfulness and self-awareness can help individuals recognize their triggers for self-control depletion. By identifying these triggers, individuals can proactively manage their willpower resources.

Conclusion:
Willpower, often considered a skill, is better understood as a muscle that can be trained and strengthened. Academic research supports the notion that willpower can be depleted and restored, similar to the dynamics of a muscle. By adopting strategies to build and maintain this muscle, individuals can enhance their self-control and achieve their long-term goals.

References:
1. Baumeister, R. F., & Heatherton, T. F. (1996). Self-regulation failure: An overview. Psychological Inquiry, 7(1), 1-15.
2. Muraven, M., Baumeister, R. F., & Tice, D. M. (1999). Longitudinal improvement of self-regulation through practice: Building self-control strength through repeated exercise. Journal of Social Psychology, 139(4), 446-457.
3. Job, V., Dweck, C. S., & Walton, G. M. (2010). Ego depletion—Is it all in your head? Implicit theories about willpower affect self-regulation. Psychological Science, 21(11), 1686-1693.

Prilepin table

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Assuming you get to a decent gym, that allows your to do some barbell movements, how do you go about developing the strength you so long for? The reality is that the average Gym instructor may know  a bit about hypertrophy ( ” 3 sets of 10 mate!”) but thats about it. Sitting in a Globo gym among a pile of machines does that to people. Its tragic. But, lets say, you have something heavy and you want to lift it, how many sets, how many reps?

One of the secrets of elite trainers, like me,is that we are quite well read: we look at British, American and Russian  strength training literature. ( mind you, if  Tabata is Japanese, add Japanese literature to that list).An interesting piece of research was carried out by   soviet Sports scientist, AS Prilepin, who studied the training logs of  1000 leading weightlifting champions .The table below  is an averaging of these logs and shows the % of 1 rep max , the amount of reps performed per set,  the optimal amount of reps per workout, and   the range of reps used indicated by the research. This table is specifically for gaining maximal strength

The Prilepin Table: 
Intensity Reps per set Recommended optimal Total of Reps Range of reps seen in research
Below 70% 3 – 6 24 18-30
70 – 79% 3 – 6 18 12 – 24
80 – 89% 2 – 4 15 10 – 20
90% and above 1 – 2 7 4 – 10

There are ofcourse a few points worthy of mention. These tables were extracted from the training journals of olympic weight lifters and its possible to argue that this would not apply to other lifts ( the slower lifts like the squat, deadlift press etc).

This also assumes you have a reliable 1 rep max figure, and for that matter, an up to date one.

What I don’t know ( and if anyone does , please let me know) does he use the idea of a 1 rep max as your best ever lift. If you look at Zatsiorsky and Kraemer, they establish a difference between a training max and a competition 1 rep max. They suggest that the difference is about 12.5%  +/- 2.5% in  superior weightlifters. The further make the distinction that a training max is  a load you lift with no emotional arousal which can be monitored by your heart rate. If someone says, lift that weight, and your heart rate zooms up in anticipation, that load is  (probably)  above your training max. This  ,ofcourse, assumes some experience. Stopping the average sedentary person and saying, lift that weight, will probably get most people heart rate up!

These tables and information are, of course a snap shot. Im not discussing long term fatigue, issues of scheduling. Yet.

 

Is Crossfit really random?

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As the CrossFit website will tell you ” CrossFit is constantly varied functional movements performed at high intensity”
People are so impressed with how fun and effective Crossfit workouts (WODs) are, that they often forget to see the whole prescription. This often expresses itself in conversations about programming, where some insist that to be “crossfit”  A crossfit programme should be totally varied and random. This is an understandable misinterpretation as in the crossfit journal ( October 2004 page 6) Greg Glassman wrote:

“ the WOD is responsible for quite a bit of confusion about the crossfit method. Crossfit is a strength and conditioning system built on constantly varied, if not, randomized functional movements executed at high intensity . The WOD is but one example of Crossfit programming.”

Like most crossfitters I quickly jumped to the conclusion that Crossfit, as a strength and conditioning regime was all about variety. After all, that’s what the website did. It varied.

All the time.

Surely I thought, you deadlift 11111, on one day, then Fran the next, then a 5k run, then rest day, then onto infinite variation. I clearly remembered this paragraph “Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy”

Voila. End of debate!

However, I worried me, that I found among all the “constantly varied“ statements Greg’s description of a regular class at the original crossfit facility. Indeed the days before my certification in 2005 Id witnessed this format

“One of our favourite workout patterns is to warm up, and then perform three to five sets of 3 to 5 reps of a fundamental lift at a moderately comfortable pace, followed by a 10 minute circuit of gymnastics elements at a blistering pace, and finally finish with 2 to 10 minutes of high intensity metabolic conditioning. There is nothing sacred here” ( CFJ October 2002 page 9)

So, I thought, they are regularly practicing and training gymnastics and the major lifts, then doing wods.

This backed up my subsequent clinical experience. Those who did regular muscle up work, got muscle ups, bigger squatters squatted well, the x gymnasts popped up into handstands.

People who limited their Crossfit to a wod, or a series of Wod’s struggled.

Then I re-read the “100 words. The statement that summarises the crossfit prescription To be honest. I actually read the 100 words properly for the 1st time . To help you understand my revelation, Ive added some “Ands” and some numbers ( my views are in the brackets)

Here is the prescription:

1) Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.

(Ok! Not everyone does, but yep TICK)

And

2) Practice and train major lifts: Deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, and snatch.

(Er, ok, not randomise, but training and practise like you’d find in an oly club. Ok, I can do that. Tick)

And

3) Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics: pull-ups, dips, rope climb, push-ups, sit-ups, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds.

( wow, er regular practise and training too. Like any sport, regular practice and training. OK)

And

4) Bike, run, swim, row, etc, hard and fast.

(ok.that too wow)

And

5) Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense.

(Oh I get it!!! Once you have done your regular training, do workouts that combine what you know! That makes sense)

And

6) Regularly learn and play new sports.

( if I had time, but yes, I get it)

Many think that crossfit is about total variety in every aspect of training. It is never the less clear that “creativity” occurs in the workouts, not in the regular practice and training .

This model is totally familiar to any team or combat sports person. As a fighter, I trained and worked for perfection in moves and combinations. I had medicine balls dropped on my abs with tedious regularity. I worked the heavy bag. A LOT. But every session had a WOD . In that sport it was a sparring sessions: here the unknown and unknowable “punched me in the face!’. A LOT.

So, structured practice, plus a random WOD.

But the question frequently comes up . In these wods, are there targets or is it just random?

“If you are doing the workout of the day, you are training for these ( the benchmark) wods” . (CFJ Sept 2003 page 4) Back then, the benchmarks were the 6 sisters Angie, Barbara Chelsea, Diane Elizabeth and Fran. In short, Crossfit quickly decided that, in preparing for the unknown, It was as well to target success in benchmark workouts. After all, “Success with high rep calisthenic movements won’t come to be without regular practice. Not all of that practice need be a max rep, but it needs to be regular.” (CFJ April 2003 page 3) Incidentally the warm up is the perfect place for that practice”. (CFJ April 2003 page 3)

But, its too often asserted that “its gotta be random. Its crossfit innit”

Not according to the crossfire level 1 trainer guide. At page 51 it clearly says that “What your programme needs is not to become routine”. Bear in mind that at the time Crossfit began, all that was available at most “leisure centres” was basic bodybuilding and jogging routines. Equally, when discussing variation, Crossfit says that no two, 3 day cycles are the same: so if you spot that back squats and the lunge comes up a few times in a week. It’s not lack of variance, You need to assess what comes before and after the move.

So whats the take home messages

1) Everything you have read and heard about crossfits variation, randomness, excitement, brilliance, is true, but probably written with mainly the WODS in mind. If you simply did Crossfit Wods, it would give you excellent fitness. But thats only part of the 100 word prescription

2) Better Crossfiters looks to the 100 word prescription: it makes you regularly train and practise weightlifting, gymnastics and cardio, then also, mixes those elements up for a workout.

3) Don’t let anyone kid you that regular practise in Olympic lifting, squats or gymnastics, somehow isn’t Crossfit.

It’s right there. Read the 100 words