Why I Don't Take Exercise to Extremes

No one has ever accused me of being trendy.  I’ve been a personal trainer since 1983, exercising myself for about ten years before that, so I’ve seen many programs come and go.

The current commodities, CrossFit, P90X, Insanity, the Biggest Loser, draw all the mass media and social media attention.  Which is fine, except when they discourage the kind of person I relate to:  generally healthy, maybe a few pounds overweight, maybe a few aches and pains, active if not athletic, with a generally full life of family/work/career.  In other words, the kind of person who would most benefit from a manageable, regular exercise program.

This person is thinking, “well, I really have to get in shape, not so I can be the next fitness star, but for the rest of my life”.  And so they see the infomercials, and they watch ESPN, and they hear from their social network about the “new” fitness programs that “everyone” is doing.  Then they read about the physical discomfort and ER admissions and injuries that get reported in connection with these programs (links below), and they decide, well, I want to be in shape, but not so much that I’m willing to risk getting hurt, so I guess I won’t be getting in shape.

Those programs all have their advocates, and if you like doing them, good for you.  I’d no sooner try to talk you out of them than try to convince someone not to run a marathon, or try for the Olympics or professional sports.  But the problem I have is the “false choice” that the hype around these programs suggest, which is:

·         Exercise to be effective, must be physically challenging.

·         Physical challenge brings with it the risk of physical injury.

·         So if you want to avoid risk of injury, don’t exercise.

·         And if you exercise, it must be risky.

In other words, “effective exercise” becomes associated with “high risk of injury”, which is simply not true, not necessary, and worst, intimidating to anyone not already in the program.

It’s like trying to justify driving 100 MPH.  You could drive that fast and get from point A to point B faster.  It may be bold and daring and sexy, and if you do that, you accept the risk of a ticket or collision.  But you would never pretend that there is the same risk at 100 MPH as driving the speed limit. Conversely, if the speed limit gets you what you want and need from driving, you’d certainly be better off driving the speed limit, than either driving 100 MPH or avoiding driving altogether.

The same goes for effective exercise.  It’s certainly an option to train so hard that you get physically ill from your workout, or that your maximum effort with a barbell goes awry with disastrous consequences, or that you train to the brink of something bad happening but pull back and it doesn’t.  I’m just saying that it’s not necessary for everyone to try to train this way, nor that it is only way to benefit from exercise.

You can tighten your waist, cut down on the aches and pains, get more toned muscles, lose a few pounds, and still challenge yourself enough with your exercise, by “driving the speed limit”.  Maybe you won’t find yourself on ESPN or the cover of a magazine, but that’s not necessarily your ambition anyway.

Personally, I’ve done both.  I’ve trained so hard I’ve seen stars during the workout.  I’ve been wiped out for days after a particularly motivated workout.  I’ve ruptured my own biceps and triceps.  I have earned regular dates with the chiropractor.  I’ve been so sore from workouts that I couldn’t bend my legs for days, which, shall we say, made certain functions quite adventurous.  I’ve been tempted to lose my lunch after a workout.  My pulse rate has hit 200 during a workout and not come down for hours afterward.

But as a general rule, I don’t do that anymore. I still exercise regularly, without training so hard or so recklessly that I create new injuries.  The old ones are enough, thank you.  And while my workout may have changed, the only result that has changed is that I don’t create new injuries. 

 If any of those things that I inflicted on myself, happened to clients as a result of my instruction, I’d consider it a major mistake, a major violation of why they consult with me as a personal trainer.  My role is to prevent those things from happening, not for the client to mimic my training, mistakes and all.  If I had the information I have now earlier in my own exercise, I never would have put myself in those situations.

For exercise to work, it doesn’t have to be maximal; it can also be optimal.  (Says the personal trainer who calls his studio “Optimal Exercise”.)  Somewhere between couch potato and extreme athlete is a middle ground where you get most of the benefits with much less risk.  The key is finding where that is for you, personally.  You might find it in a generic, pre-packaged group workout; but you’re more likely to find it in a program that makes your joint health, your motivations, and your lifestyle the priority. 

To sample this kind of training with Bill in his studio: http://optimalexercisenj.com/try-a-trainer.html

Things to know about more extreme approaches:

 http://nation.time.com/2014/01/10/five-things-you-need-to-know-about-crossfit/

 http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/strength-and-power-training/Crossing-Swords-with-CrossFit.html

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/35487357/ns/health-fitness/t/biggest-loser-has-big-health-problems/#.UuKDPXAo7IU

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/p90x-high-intensity-workouts-carry-risks-rewards/story?id=19896015