May 19, 2025 • 25 mins
Fit, Healthy & Happy Podcast
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to there is a Method to the Madness.
My name is Rob Maxwell and I'man exercise physiologist and
personal trainer.
I am the owner of Maxwell'sFitness Programs and I've been
in business since 1994.
The purpose of this podcast isto get to the real deal of what
really works and, mostimportantly, why things work.
(00:21):
Hence the name there is amethod to the madness.
Before I get to today's show, Iwant to thank Jonathan and Lynn
Gildan of the Gildan Group atRealty Pros.
They are committed to providingthe highest level of customer
service in home sales.
Why don't you give them a shoutand figure out what your home
is worth?
386-451-2412.
(00:44):
Good morning, good afternoon,good evening.
Whatever time of day you'relistening, rob here to talk
about some issues, principles inphysical fitness.
There isn't a day that goes bythat someone doesn't say to me
that they get confused becausethere is so much information out
(01:08):
there.
I had a rather newer client saythat to me the other day and
you know I told him.
I said you know I get it andall I can do is promise you that
the true experts have notchanged their mind nearly as
much as it appears and thatreally what we see are just
(01:33):
marketing changes and peoplethat don't know what they're
talking about, given differentviews on social media or blog
posts or whatever, and thatstuff all gets shared and
circulated around.
And in the world of socialmedia today, it's so easy to
(01:53):
just say what we want and peoplewill think we know what we're
talking about.
So that's a big goal of thisprogram is to always try to give
you the truth.
As I know it and I do think Iknow it pretty well because I've
lived it for over 31 years as acareer I have a education in it
(02:18):
, I have certifications in it, Icontinue to study it I look at
the science.
I don't follow people's blogposts and things like that.
No, I actually read theperiodicals and the literature.
So that's where I come up withthe science, not just like from
you know, ted, on TikTok, butliterally from periodicals.
(02:42):
So that's the goal of the show.
And today I'm going to talkabout one of the principles of
physical fitness, and thatprinciple is specificity.
All right, so we use science.
I mean people in this industryshould use science, and science
(03:06):
means that things have beenstudied and reviewed and studied
again and reviewed again and wedraw conclusions.
So you know, whenever peoplegive advice, you're hoping that
they would be giving advice froma place of science.
You know, like well, literaturesays this or the studies say
(03:31):
this, because nobody has acrystal ball.
Like nobody can say, well, weknow this to be true and this is
going to happen.
No, but we can look at thestudies and see, like, what
amount of duration has seemed tolead to the best health
(03:51):
outcomes regardingcardiorespiratory fitness?
Or is there a range offrequency with strength training
that has led to the greatesthealth outcomes, training that
has led to the greatest healthoutcomes, or has there been
certain rep ranges in the gymthat seem to be more conducive
(04:13):
to good health outcomes?
So that's all like looking atthe science.
So it's not just literallylooking at the biology and
talking to you about what'sgoing on within a muscle fiber.
Of course, that's part of thescience too.
But another big part of scienceis the scientific method, which
is you have a question, youform a hypothesis, you do a
(04:35):
study, you collect your research, you examine your research, you
do a study to formulate yourresearch or to conclude your
research, and then you come upwith a conclusion.
And there is a lot of science inthe world of physical fitness,
health and diet.
I mean, there's a ton, andwhat's really cool about it is
(04:57):
most of it agrees with eachother.
Everybody seems to really agree, and you might think.
Well, there's people thatbattle over the keto diet versus
plant-based, which seem to beon polar opposite ends of the
spectrum, and in a way, they are, because you can't be
plant-based and be carbophobic.
Not going to happen, or you'regoing to starve because you're
(05:18):
not going to eat.
But that's not the science andthat's not the researchers,
that's not the experts, that'sjust people arguing, it's just
noise.
You know, I mean to be honestwith you.
The research isn't conclusive onwhat the perfect diet is,
because one doesn't exist.
(05:41):
There is not a perfect diet.
We know certain foods workbetter with humans, dogs, cats,
whatever animals, than others.
We know if you eat too much,you're going to gain weight.
We know if you don't eat enough, you're going to atrophy,
whether it be fat cells ormuscle cells.
We know that sugar raisesglucose and glucose creates a
(06:05):
production of insulin and toomuch insulin floods the system.
I mean, we know that stuff, butthere's no such thing as a
perfect diet.
We know that nutrient-densefoods are better than
calorically dense foods.
A nutrient-dense food would besomething high in nutrients and
low in calories.
For example, a vegetable is anutrient-dense food.
(06:28):
A hamburger from Wendy's is acalorically dense food.
Which one do you think isbetter?
We know the answer to that.
Nutrient-dense foods arecomplex carbohydrates that are
high in fiber and lean proteins.
Calorically dense foods arefoods that are high in fat, high
in sugar.
We know that what's perfect, itdoesn't exist, all right.
(06:52):
So specificity is one of theseven principles of physical
fitness, and I used to alwaystell my students people can have
opinions all they want, butthese principles, even though
they don't sound scientific,because they're principles,
because they're not biology,they're not anatomy, they're not
(07:13):
kinesiology, they're notphysiology, they're principles,
they're theories, but they havestood the test of time, and
there are seven of them.
They have stood the test oftime and there are seven of them
.
I'm talking about specificitytoday because it came to me how
clueless many people are aboutwhat it really means.
(07:33):
All it means is that if youwant specific outcomes, you must
train yourself, trainphysically, train mentally, as
specific to that outcome aspossible.
So then, yes, we would have tounderstand the science.
(07:56):
So, in other words, there aredifferent ways.
There are different metabolisms.
There is your aerobic systemand there's your anaerobic
system.
So let's say you want toimprove your endurance, you want
a better cardiovascular system,okay.
So if you understandspecificity, that means you must
(08:20):
specifically train your aerobicsystem, and not your anaerobic
system per se, but your aerobicsystem.
That means you must trainspecifically to lower intensity
or moderate intensity heartrates for longer durations,
because you're trying to improveyour aerobic system.
(08:41):
So that is specific.
Or let's say you come in and youtell me I need to make my
football team.
I say okay, so what's stoppingyou?
My coach tells me I don't haveenough power.
(09:04):
I say okay.
So how does your coachdetermine that?
He says, well, I want to playdefensive end and when I go to
rush the passer, the quarterback, I can't get out of my stance
fast enough and get past theblocker.
I'd say OK.
Well, yeah, your coach is right, that sounds like a power issue
(09:26):
, you.
So if we understand a little bitabout the strength adaptations,
we understand that power isforce, times, distance divided
by time.
So what that means is footballplayers, generally speaking, are
larger people.
All right, so that is the force.
(09:47):
Now this person needs to movequickly into the backfield to
get to the quarterback, and it'sgoing to be a very brief period
of time.
I mean, if a quarterback evengets three seconds to throw the
ball, he's lucky, right.
So you may not know that, butI'm telling you that.
So that defensive end has toget back there quicker than that
(10:10):
.
So that's quickness and power.
Not just quickness, it's power,because he is a big individual
that has to move that bodyquickly.
So I would say, okay, I agreewith your coach, you've got to
work on power.
So we need to set up a programthat works on power, because
power and strength are twodifferent things.
Too often people think they'rethe same thing and, by the way,
(10:35):
this isn't about power andstrength, this is about
specificity.
I'm just trying to give youexamples of how we can go wrong
in our own training program orif we get with the wrong type of
trainers or coaches that tellus to do the wrong things.
So strength is basically movingone rep, the highest weight
(10:57):
that you can use.
So that's going to be very slow, right?
I think everybody has tried topush as much weight as they can
at one point in their life andyou realize, if you do get it.
You got it very slowly.
That's pure strength.
Too often we think of footballplayers as being strong.
Now they are.
They have to have strength tobuild the power.
(11:18):
But in order to play football,they have to have power and that
means they have to be able tomove their load and other
people's loads, meaning pushother people quickly, and that's
power.
So if this were the case andit's been the case I've worked
with different football players,basketball players, baseball
players, tennis players,swimmers, you name it and I have
(11:42):
to develop a specific programfor them.
So in this case we would haveto work on power, which would be
things like squat jumps andvertical leaps and plyometrics
and things like that.
Now, naturally, I would build afoundation first to make sure,
but to really hit their goal, wewould specifically have to work
with power.
Now let's say we're doing it inthe back of my gym, because
(12:06):
sometimes I'll do some of thatstuff out back because we might
be using medicine balls, it getsa little loud and all that good
stuff.
Now some people will look overand they'll see some pretty fit
looking football players, youknow, in good shape, you know
doing these types of movements,and then they'll think, oh,
that's the way to get in shape.
(12:26):
And then they'll their goalmight be completely different,
like they just assume theperson's in shape because they
might look pretty good, theymight have muscles, they might
have definition, they might havebulging muscles, whatever which
they might right, they don'thave to have power, but it's
likely that they do and they'llthink, oh, that's the way they
do it, and then they'll startdoing that Next thing.
(12:50):
You know, they're doing boxjumps and they're doing squat
jumps and they're doingplyometrics and they're doing
things what we call like plyopush-ups, which are explosive
hand clap push-ups.
Now, naturally, all this stuffcomes after a foundation of
strength and, by the way, it'snot very good for general
conditioning.
It's for power.
Sure, you're going to burncalories, but it's for power.
(13:13):
But I think you see where I'mleading you here, because a lot
of people will see people dothings online and they'll go oh,
wow, you know, I guess that'show you get in shape.
They're doing all this stuff,they're doing all this cool
stuff.
It's like well, no, notnecessarily.
Specificity tells us, and it'sone of the seven principles, and
(13:35):
I told my students all the timethe principles are not going to
change when you get confused asto what to do with the client.
Go back to the principles Now.
The SEDS principle statesspecific adaptations to imposed
demands.
So that is the specificityprinciple.
(13:56):
So that means the body willrespond specifically to whatever
specific demands you imposeupon it.
So what does the client want?
And then let's design a programthat's specific for them.
Most people want general fitness.
Okay, that's still prettyspecific, though that means they
(14:17):
want general strength, andgeneral strength we typically
define as a mix of strength andmuscular endurance.
That's general strength.
So, in other words, the weightthat they can push for anywhere
from, say, 8 to 12 or 10 to 15reps is what we usually use for
general fitness.
So most people want generalfitness.
(14:39):
That means that they're strongwithin that rep range.
So they're not trying to benchpress 300 pounds.
Some people are, and if theyare, you got to put them on a
specific program for strength.
That's fine.
But most people want generalfitness, and general fitness
means general strength, andthat's endurance and muscular
strength combined.
Again, 8 to 12, 10 to 15 reps.
(15:01):
Most people want their wholebody to be fit.
So that means we have to workall of the 11 major muscle
groups, because theyspecifically want all those
muscle groups to be as defined,to be as strong, to have as much
endurance as possible.
You might think, well, doesn'teverybody?
No, if you're trying to makethe NFL and you're smart, you
(15:23):
probably could care less whatyour biceps look like.
I mean, some guys do, butthey're not always the guys that
you think are the best footballplayers.
I mean, it doesn't matter.
I mean I can give you 100 namesright now in the NFL of guys
that don't look overlyimpressive and are so athletic
and fit.
It's crazy.
So no, not everybody wants that.
(15:45):
Most people do, but noteverybody wants it.
Maybe they do later, but no,not everybody wants their biceps
to look good.
Not everybody wants theircalves to look cut.
I mean, football players couldcare less.
Most of them Sometimes theyjust look that way genetically.
But what they watch football youknow, like at the NFL combines,
when they measure these guysthey always say speed kills.
(16:18):
I mean this guy could be likedrop 10 balls out of 11 at the
combines, but if he runs a4-1-2-40, he's going to get
drafted high because you kind ofcan't coach speed If they've
got it, speed kills.
So football players want speedand they want power.
They want to be fast and theywant to move a lot of load
(16:40):
quickly, right.
So specificity and the personwho wants to be specifically in
good shape and have generallygood health outcomes.
Like most of my clients, theysay, hey, I want to be strong
enough to carry my grandchildrenaround, I want to be strong
enough to go to the theme parksand go down to the farmer's
market and carry my grocerieshome.
(17:00):
I want to still play golf, Iwant to play pickleball, I want
to play tennis, I want to do allthese things Great.
So they want general strengthand then with that we can offset
sarcopenia, which isage-related muscle mass loss.
So that is specifically workingon a general strength program
and I would imagine and all myclients do maybe they don't
(17:21):
always do it, but they wanttheir heart to be in great shape
.
So they need to specificallywork on their cardiovascular
system, which means they'regoing to have to do
cardiovascular activity, whichis using the larger muscle
groups to go out for a sustainedeffort of at least 20 minutes
and get their heart rate up andmove to work in that
cardiovascular system into amoderate training zone.
(17:46):
Football players don't careabout that.
Tennis players may not careabout that.
Not now, like not when they'replaying tennis.
They're going to worry moreabout the anaerobic stuff, the
start and stops.
They're going to train morewith intervals, like how do they
move really fast in bursts andthen recover, burst recover,
burst recover.
Because that's what tennisplayers do.
(18:24):
If we want specific outcomes, wehave to train specifically for
it, which means don't be gettingall of your exercise
programming off of TikTok,instagram, facebook or whatever
you know.
I mean, ask a qualified personto help you.
Number one, a qualified person.
Go to qualified sites if you'renot willing to do that, but
don't get it off of somebody onInstagram that just looks good
and so many times they are doingthese technical movements that
(18:47):
kind of would fall under thecategory of plyometrics, like
they're doing box jumps orthey're doing pull-ups, turning
into muscle-ups and things likethat.
That are great if you'respecifically training for
something like that.
But if you're just trying toget in shape and I don't just
say that flippantly, I mean whenonly 25% of our population are
(19:08):
doing enough activity to gethealth outcomes Then it's not
just trying to stay in shape.
It'd be awesome if everybodywas in shape, right.
But we don't have to do thatstuff.
And, as a matter of fact, itcould be counterproductive
because you're going to get hurt.
What you need is to work yourbody, all your major muscle
(19:28):
groups, strength training wise,two to three times a week
somewhere in a range of 10 to 20.
For general strength, youcannot go wrong with One to
three sets somewhere in thatballpark.
Aim to do cardio five days aweek and at least three days per
(19:48):
week where you get your heartrate up for at least 20 minutes,
preferably 30.
Like that's what we need to doand we need to do it
consistently.
We don't have to do fancy movesthat we might see and you know,
I see it in the endurance worldall the time with people, a lot
of people are training, doingdifferent kinds of 5Ks, 10ks,
(20:13):
sprint triathlons, ironmans,whatever.
And they don't either follow theprinciple of specificity.
Say so, what are you trainingfor?
Oh, I'm really trying to getfaster in the 5K.
Oh, great, that's awesome.
Now, for those that don't know,a 5K is 3.1 miles and they'll
say so I got to get my 12 milerin on Saturday.
(20:35):
I'm thinking 12 miler, I mean Iget it.
Some people want to go a littlebit longer because it's their
therapy or they like it.
But I also think it goes toofar and it borders on
obsessiveness and it definitelydoesn't follow the principle of
specificity.
So if you really wanted to getbetter at the 5k, guess what you
(20:57):
would be doing as frequently asyour body could handle it,
you'd be running 3.1 miles.
I mean that's the bottom line.
You would be training specificto the distance, specific to the
intensity, specific to the timeof day, if you were really
trying to be perfect.
I mean that specificity, andyou know that also follows the
(21:19):
old KISS principle I have on myboard, which isn't one of the
seven principles of physicalfitness, but let's make it one,
all right.
No, we can't do that, but it ison my board.
Keep it simple, stupid.
I mean it's like okay, so youwant to get better at running
the 5k?
I mean you know, you couldprobably ask a 10 year old what
(21:42):
to do and they would answerbetter than a lot of adults
because they say, well, how faris it?
Oh, 3.1 miles, I don't know,maybe run 3.1 miles.
There you go Like we reallydon't have to overcomplicate
some of this stuff and trust me,I'm an exercise physiologist, I
know there's a little more toit, but then again, there really
isn't.
So here's your homework.
I want you to think about whatare your specific goals?
(22:03):
I mean, I spend a lot of timewith my clients here Before they
start training.
I figure out exactly what theywant and if they can't put it in
the words like the words thatI'm looking for, because they
might just say something like Idon't know, I want to be in
shape I ask leading questionsand I try to figure it out and
then we build a program.
You know, and it's not rocketscience.
(22:25):
I mean, keep it simple.
Stupid is on my board for areason.
Like you know, we're not nearlyas unique as we all think that
we are.
I mean so, but you know, we dohave different things we want to
accomplish, and somebodytraining to lose weight is going
to be different than somebodytraining to gain muscle.
I mean, they're two differentthings.
(22:47):
Might be some of the sameexercises, might be cardio, and
well, they're both cardio andstrength, yes, but it will
definitely be geared differently, specific to what they need,
and so when you're seeing peopletrain on social media, you
honestly don't know their goals.
You don't know what they'redoing and they may not either.
(23:08):
So again back to your homework,think about what you really
want and let's make sure thatyou're doing what you should be
doing specifically for that, allright.
And if you're a client of mineand we're off track, man, we're
both in trouble me and you,right.
But if you're not a client, Iwant you to think about that,
(23:29):
all right.
Specificity is the word of theday.
Thank you for listening totoday's program.
I ask you to please follow theshow wherever you get your
podcasts and please selectautomatic download, because that
really helps the show.
Now I want to thank OverheadDoor of Daytona Beach, the
(23:52):
area's premier garage doorcompany.
They have the best product.
They have the best service.
I personally vouch for Jeff andZach Hawk, the owners.
They are great people with agreat company.
If you have any garage doorneeds, please give them a shout
at 386-222-3165.
Welcome to there is a Method to the Madness.
My name is Rob Maxwell and I'man exercise physiologist and
personal trainer.
I am the owner of Maxwell'sFitness Programs and I've been
in business since 1994.
The purpose of this podcast isto get to the real deal of what
really works and, mostimportantly, why things work.
(00:21):
Hence the name there is amethod to the madness.
Before I get to today's show, Iwant to thank Jonathan and Lynn
Gildan of the Gildan Group atRealty Pros.
They are committed to providingthe highest level of customer
service in home sales.
Why don't you give them a shoutand figure out what your home
is worth?
386-451-2412.
(00:44):
Good morning, good afternoon,good evening.
Whatever time of day you'relistening, rob here to talk
about some issues, principles inphysical fitness.
There isn't a day that goes bythat someone doesn't say to me
that they get confused becausethere is so much information out
(01:08):
there.
I had a rather newer client saythat to me the other day and
you know I told him.
I said you know I get it andall I can do is promise you that
the true experts have notchanged their mind nearly as
much as it appears and thatreally what we see are just
(01:33):
marketing changes and peoplethat don't know what they're
talking about, given differentviews on social media or blog
posts or whatever, and thatstuff all gets shared and
circulated around.
And in the world of socialmedia today, it's so easy to
(01:53):
just say what we want and peoplewill think we know what we're
talking about.
So that's a big goal of thisprogram is to always try to give
you the truth.
As I know it and I do think Iknow it pretty well because I've
lived it for over 31 years as acareer I have a education in it
(02:18):
, I have certifications in it, Icontinue to study it I look at
the science.
I don't follow people's blogposts and things like that.
No, I actually read theperiodicals and the literature.
So that's where I come up withthe science, not just like from
you know, ted, on TikTok, butliterally from periodicals.
(02:42):
So that's the goal of the show.
And today I'm going to talkabout one of the principles of
physical fitness, and thatprinciple is specificity.
All right, so we use science.
I mean people in this industryshould use science, and science
(03:06):
means that things have beenstudied and reviewed and studied
again and reviewed again and wedraw conclusions.
So you know, whenever peoplegive advice, you're hoping that
they would be giving advice froma place of science.
You know, like well, literaturesays this or the studies say
(03:31):
this, because nobody has acrystal ball.
Like nobody can say, well, weknow this to be true and this is
going to happen.
No, but we can look at thestudies and see, like, what
amount of duration has seemed tolead to the best health
(03:51):
outcomes regardingcardiorespiratory fitness?
Or is there a range offrequency with strength training
that has led to the greatesthealth outcomes, training that
has led to the greatest healthoutcomes, or has there been
certain rep ranges in the gymthat seem to be more conducive
(04:13):
to good health outcomes?
So that's all like looking atthe science.
So it's not just literallylooking at the biology and
talking to you about what'sgoing on within a muscle fiber.
Of course, that's part of thescience too.
But another big part of scienceis the scientific method, which
is you have a question, youform a hypothesis, you do a
(04:35):
study, you collect your research, you examine your research, you
do a study to formulate yourresearch or to conclude your
research, and then you come upwith a conclusion.
And there is a lot of science inthe world of physical fitness,
health and diet.
I mean, there's a ton, andwhat's really cool about it is
(04:57):
most of it agrees with eachother.
Everybody seems to really agree, and you might think.
Well, there's people thatbattle over the keto diet versus
plant-based, which seem to beon polar opposite ends of the
spectrum, and in a way, they are, because you can't be
plant-based and be carbophobic.
Not going to happen, or you'regoing to starve because you're
(05:18):
not going to eat.
But that's not the science andthat's not the researchers,
that's not the experts, that'sjust people arguing, it's just
noise.
You know, I mean to be honestwith you.
The research isn't conclusive onwhat the perfect diet is,
because one doesn't exist.
(05:41):
There is not a perfect diet.
We know certain foods workbetter with humans, dogs, cats,
whatever animals, than others.
We know if you eat too much,you're going to gain weight.
We know if you don't eat enough, you're going to atrophy,
whether it be fat cells ormuscle cells.
We know that sugar raisesglucose and glucose creates a
(06:05):
production of insulin and toomuch insulin floods the system.
I mean, we know that stuff, butthere's no such thing as a
perfect diet.
We know that nutrient-densefoods are better than
calorically dense foods.
A nutrient-dense food would besomething high in nutrients and
low in calories.
For example, a vegetable is anutrient-dense food.
(06:28):
A hamburger from Wendy's is acalorically dense food.
Which one do you think isbetter?
We know the answer to that.
Nutrient-dense foods arecomplex carbohydrates that are
high in fiber and lean proteins.
Calorically dense foods arefoods that are high in fat, high
in sugar.
We know that what's perfect, itdoesn't exist, all right.
(06:52):
So specificity is one of theseven principles of physical
fitness, and I used to alwaystell my students people can have
opinions all they want, butthese principles, even though
they don't sound scientific,because they're principles,
because they're not biology,they're not anatomy, they're not
(07:13):
kinesiology, they're notphysiology, they're principles,
they're theories, but they havestood the test of time, and
there are seven of them.
They have stood the test oftime and there are seven of them
.
I'm talking about specificitytoday because it came to me how
clueless many people are aboutwhat it really means.
(07:33):
All it means is that if youwant specific outcomes, you must
train yourself, trainphysically, train mentally, as
specific to that outcome aspossible.
So then, yes, we would have tounderstand the science.
(07:56):
So, in other words, there aredifferent ways.
There are different metabolisms.
There is your aerobic systemand there's your anaerobic
system.
So let's say you want toimprove your endurance, you want
a better cardiovascular system,okay.
So if you understandspecificity, that means you must
(08:20):
specifically train your aerobicsystem, and not your anaerobic
system per se, but your aerobicsystem.
That means you must trainspecifically to lower intensity
or moderate intensity heartrates for longer durations,
because you're trying to improveyour aerobic system.
(08:41):
So that is specific.
Or let's say you come in and youtell me I need to make my
football team.
I say okay, so what's stoppingyou?
My coach tells me I don't haveenough power.
(09:04):
I say okay.
So how does your coachdetermine that?
He says, well, I want to playdefensive end and when I go to
rush the passer, the quarterback, I can't get out of my stance
fast enough and get past theblocker.
I'd say OK.
Well, yeah, your coach is right, that sounds like a power issue
(09:26):
, you.
So if we understand a little bitabout the strength adaptations,
we understand that power isforce, times, distance divided
by time.
So what that means is footballplayers, generally speaking, are
larger people.
All right, so that is the force.
(09:47):
Now this person needs to movequickly into the backfield to
get to the quarterback, and it'sgoing to be a very brief period
of time.
I mean, if a quarterback evengets three seconds to throw the
ball, he's lucky, right.
So you may not know that, butI'm telling you that.
So that defensive end has toget back there quicker than that
(10:10):
.
So that's quickness and power.
Not just quickness, it's power,because he is a big individual
that has to move that bodyquickly.
So I would say, okay, I agreewith your coach, you've got to
work on power.
So we need to set up a programthat works on power, because
power and strength are twodifferent things.
Too often people think they'rethe same thing and, by the way,
(10:35):
this isn't about power andstrength, this is about
specificity.
I'm just trying to give youexamples of how we can go wrong
in our own training program orif we get with the wrong type of
trainers or coaches that tellus to do the wrong things.
So strength is basically movingone rep, the highest weight
(10:57):
that you can use.
So that's going to be very slow, right?
I think everybody has tried topush as much weight as they can
at one point in their life andyou realize, if you do get it.
You got it very slowly.
That's pure strength.
Too often we think of footballplayers as being strong.
Now they are.
They have to have strength tobuild the power.
(11:18):
But in order to play football,they have to have power and that
means they have to be able tomove their load and other
people's loads, meaning pushother people quickly, and that's
power.
So if this were the case andit's been the case I've worked
with different football players,basketball players, baseball
players, tennis players,swimmers, you name it and I have
(11:42):
to develop a specific programfor them.
So in this case we would haveto work on power, which would be
things like squat jumps andvertical leaps and plyometrics
and things like that.
Now, naturally, I would build afoundation first to make sure,
but to really hit their goal, wewould specifically have to work
with power.
Now let's say we're doing it inthe back of my gym, because
(12:06):
sometimes I'll do some of thatstuff out back because we might
be using medicine balls, it getsa little loud and all that good
stuff.
Now some people will look overand they'll see some pretty fit
looking football players, youknow, in good shape, you know
doing these types of movements,and then they'll think, oh,
that's the way to get in shape.
(12:26):
And then they'll their goalmight be completely different,
like they just assume theperson's in shape because they
might look pretty good, theymight have muscles, they might
have definition, they might havebulging muscles, whatever which
they might right, they don'thave to have power, but it's
likely that they do and they'llthink, oh, that's the way they
do it, and then they'll startdoing that Next thing.
(12:50):
You know, they're doing boxjumps and they're doing squat
jumps and they're doingplyometrics and they're doing
things what we call like plyopush-ups, which are explosive
hand clap push-ups.
Now, naturally, all this stuffcomes after a foundation of
strength and, by the way, it'snot very good for general
conditioning.
It's for power.
Sure, you're going to burncalories, but it's for power.
(13:13):
But I think you see where I'mleading you here, because a lot
of people will see people dothings online and they'll go oh,
wow, you know, I guess that'show you get in shape.
They're doing all this stuff,they're doing all this cool
stuff.
It's like well, no, notnecessarily.
Specificity tells us, and it'sone of the seven principles, and
(13:35):
I told my students all the timethe principles are not going to
change when you get confused asto what to do with the client.
Go back to the principles Now.
The SEDS principle statesspecific adaptations to imposed
demands.
So that is the specificityprinciple.
(13:56):
So that means the body willrespond specifically to whatever
specific demands you imposeupon it.
So what does the client want?
And then let's design a programthat's specific for them.
Most people want general fitness.
Okay, that's still prettyspecific, though that means they
(14:17):
want general strength, andgeneral strength we typically
define as a mix of strength andmuscular endurance.
That's general strength.
So, in other words, the weightthat they can push for anywhere
from, say, 8 to 12 or 10 to 15reps is what we usually use for
general fitness.
So most people want generalfitness.
(14:39):
That means that they're strongwithin that rep range.
So they're not trying to benchpress 300 pounds.
Some people are, and if theyare, you got to put them on a
specific program for strength.
That's fine.
But most people want generalfitness, and general fitness
means general strength, andthat's endurance and muscular
strength combined.
Again, 8 to 12, 10 to 15 reps.
(15:01):
Most people want their wholebody to be fit.
So that means we have to workall of the 11 major muscle
groups, because theyspecifically want all those
muscle groups to be as defined,to be as strong, to have as much
endurance as possible.
You might think, well, doesn'teverybody?
No, if you're trying to makethe NFL and you're smart, you
(15:23):
probably could care less whatyour biceps look like.
I mean, some guys do, butthey're not always the guys that
you think are the best footballplayers.
I mean, it doesn't matter.
I mean I can give you 100 namesright now in the NFL of guys
that don't look overlyimpressive and are so athletic
and fit.
It's crazy.
So no, not everybody wants that.
(15:45):
Most people do, but noteverybody wants it.
Maybe they do later, but no,not everybody wants their biceps
to look good.
Not everybody wants theircalves to look cut.
I mean, football players couldcare less.
Most of them Sometimes theyjust look that way genetically.
But what they watch football youknow, like at the NFL combines,
when they measure these guysthey always say speed kills.
(16:18):
I mean this guy could be likedrop 10 balls out of 11 at the
combines, but if he runs a4-1-2-40, he's going to get
drafted high because you kind ofcan't coach speed If they've
got it, speed kills.
So football players want speedand they want power.
They want to be fast and theywant to move a lot of load
(16:40):
quickly, right.
So specificity and the personwho wants to be specifically in
good shape and have generallygood health outcomes.
Like most of my clients, theysay, hey, I want to be strong
enough to carry my grandchildrenaround, I want to be strong
enough to go to the theme parksand go down to the farmer's
market and carry my grocerieshome.
(17:00):
I want to still play golf, Iwant to play pickleball, I want
to play tennis, I want to do allthese things Great.
So they want general strengthand then with that we can offset
sarcopenia, which isage-related muscle mass loss.
So that is specifically workingon a general strength program
and I would imagine and all myclients do maybe they don't
(17:21):
always do it, but they wanttheir heart to be in great shape
.
So they need to specificallywork on their cardiovascular
system, which means they'regoing to have to do
cardiovascular activity, whichis using the larger muscle
groups to go out for a sustainedeffort of at least 20 minutes
and get their heart rate up andmove to work in that
cardiovascular system into amoderate training zone.
(17:46):
Football players don't careabout that.
Tennis players may not careabout that.
Not now, like not when they'replaying tennis.
They're going to worry moreabout the anaerobic stuff, the
start and stops.
They're going to train morewith intervals, like how do they
move really fast in bursts andthen recover, burst recover,
burst recover.
Because that's what tennisplayers do.
(18:24):
If we want specific outcomes, wehave to train specifically for
it, which means don't be gettingall of your exercise
programming off of TikTok,instagram, facebook or whatever
you know.
I mean, ask a qualified personto help you.
Number one, a qualified person.
Go to qualified sites if you'renot willing to do that, but
don't get it off of somebody onInstagram that just looks good
and so many times they are doingthese technical movements that
(18:47):
kind of would fall under thecategory of plyometrics, like
they're doing box jumps orthey're doing pull-ups, turning
into muscle-ups and things likethat.
That are great if you'respecifically training for
something like that.
But if you're just trying toget in shape and I don't just
say that flippantly, I mean whenonly 25% of our population are
(19:08):
doing enough activity to gethealth outcomes Then it's not
just trying to stay in shape.
It'd be awesome if everybodywas in shape, right.
But we don't have to do thatstuff.
And, as a matter of fact, itcould be counterproductive
because you're going to get hurt.
What you need is to work yourbody, all your major muscle
(19:28):
groups, strength training wise,two to three times a week
somewhere in a range of 10 to 20.
For general strength, youcannot go wrong with One to
three sets somewhere in thatballpark.
Aim to do cardio five days aweek and at least three days per
(19:48):
week where you get your heartrate up for at least 20 minutes,
preferably 30.
Like that's what we need to doand we need to do it
consistently.
We don't have to do fancy movesthat we might see and you know,
I see it in the endurance worldall the time with people, a lot
of people are training, doingdifferent kinds of 5Ks, 10ks,
(20:13):
sprint triathlons, ironmans,whatever.
And they don't either follow theprinciple of specificity.
Say so, what are you trainingfor?
Oh, I'm really trying to getfaster in the 5K.
Oh, great, that's awesome.
Now, for those that don't know,a 5K is 3.1 miles and they'll
say so I got to get my 12 milerin on Saturday.
(20:35):
I'm thinking 12 miler, I mean Iget it.
Some people want to go a littlebit longer because it's their
therapy or they like it.
But I also think it goes toofar and it borders on
obsessiveness and it definitelydoesn't follow the principle of
specificity.
So if you really wanted to getbetter at the 5k, guess what you
(20:57):
would be doing as frequently asyour body could handle it,
you'd be running 3.1 miles.
I mean that's the bottom line.
You would be training specificto the distance, specific to the
intensity, specific to the timeof day, if you were really
trying to be perfect.
I mean that specificity, andyou know that also follows the
(21:19):
old KISS principle I have on myboard, which isn't one of the
seven principles of physicalfitness, but let's make it one,
all right.
No, we can't do that, but it ison my board.
Keep it simple, stupid.
I mean it's like okay, so youwant to get better at running
the 5k?
I mean you know, you couldprobably ask a 10 year old what
(21:42):
to do and they would answerbetter than a lot of adults
because they say, well, how faris it?
Oh, 3.1 miles, I don't know,maybe run 3.1 miles.
There you go Like we reallydon't have to overcomplicate
some of this stuff and trust me,I'm an exercise physiologist, I
know there's a little more toit, but then again, there really
isn't.
So here's your homework.
I want you to think about whatare your specific goals?
(22:03):
I mean, I spend a lot of timewith my clients here Before they
start training.
I figure out exactly what theywant and if they can't put it in
the words like the words thatI'm looking for, because they
might just say something like Idon't know, I want to be in
shape I ask leading questionsand I try to figure it out and
then we build a program.
You know, and it's not rocketscience.
(22:25):
I mean, keep it simple.
Stupid is on my board for areason.
Like you know, we're not nearlyas unique as we all think that
we are.
I mean so, but you know, we dohave different things we want to
accomplish, and somebodytraining to lose weight is going
to be different than somebodytraining to gain muscle.
I mean, they're two differentthings.
(22:47):
Might be some of the sameexercises, might be cardio, and
well, they're both cardio andstrength, yes, but it will
definitely be geared differently, specific to what they need,
and so when you're seeing peopletrain on social media, you
honestly don't know their goals.
You don't know what they'redoing and they may not either.
(23:08):
So again back to your homework,think about what you really
want and let's make sure thatyou're doing what you should be
doing specifically for that, allright.
And if you're a client of mineand we're off track, man, we're
both in trouble me and you,right.
But if you're not a client, Iwant you to think about that,
(23:29):
all right.
Specificity is the word of theday.
Thank you for listening totoday's program.
I ask you to please follow theshow wherever you get your
podcasts and please selectautomatic download, because that
really helps the show.
Now I want to thank OverheadDoor of Daytona Beach, the
(23:52):
area's premier garage doorcompany.
They have the best product.
They have the best service.
I personally vouch for Jeff andZach Hawk, the owners.
They are great people with agreat company.
If you have any garage doorneeds, please give them a shout
at 386-222-3165.
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