It is possible to get every piece of a training program right and still not get results? Absolutely! But why would this be?
Maybe you tried every program buzzing around the forums and online magazines and things still just didn’t come together. When results aren’t pouring in, most people look at the 1 hour of training they are putting in each day. What we don’t tend to look at is the other 23 critical hours in a day. This article is focused on one of the primary deterrents to achieving results found in those other 23 hours which is called stress.
Chronic life stress is a muscle killer
On a physiological level, stress produces hormones called glucocorticoids. Glucocorticoids stimulate protein breakdown, prevent protein synthesis, and induce muscle atrophy (reduction of muscle size). As if muscle atrophy as a result of stress wasn’t bad enough, it is actually the fast twitch fibers that get eaten up as the result of stress, while slow twitch muscle seems to shrug off the damage.
Stress causes fast twitch muscle fiber to shrink. Don’t let this happen to you!
The concept of stresses negative effects on performance has been proven by looking at the training results of athletes who don’t have to deal with life stress versus those athletes whose only job is to train. Given the same training program, athletes in a stress free environment will thrive. An athlete with a lousy training program at a training camp is going to stomp on an athlete with a more “sophisticated” program who has high general stress levels and doesn’t manage their life and mental state. Fortunately, real-life athletes who take control of their stress levels will decrease those nasty fast-twitch eating glucocorticoids, and achieve a more powerful physique… as well as a happier life. Things as simple and overlooked as de-stressing and getting plenty of sleep are huge aspects of training success.
The whole de-stress and recover concept is not an afterthought, it is crucial to success. The inability to deal with stress properly will cause an athlete never to realize their full potential.
I call this type of article an “X-Factor” article, because it deals with things we don’t typically look at when it comes to achieving our best training result. The following 9 areas are important reality checks to see if you are living a life that optimizes your training results. Let’s start with the importance of having a routine.
1. Have a routine
Your body will respond better when it doesn’t feel life is like military bootcamp. Having an established routine will help you manage stress well because you will know what to expect out of each day, as well as get more accomplished by utilizing the habit portion of your brain. Getting things done early means less stress later on. Even if you aren’t genetically inclined to be Mr. or Ms. Organization, write down the things you need to accomplish in the morning and have a general idea of the order you want to accomplish them. Learn to focus on one task at a time rather than doing multiple things at once. It is also helpful for your body to establish a routine rhythm with eating and training. Try to wake up and go to bed around the same time, eat at the same time, and train at the same time. Consistency = results.
2. Sleep right
Go to bed earlier and wake up earlier and shoot for at least 8 hours, and 9-10 when training is intense. Your body gets more out of the sleep you manage directly after the sun goes down. In some social circles, this might be considered “boring”, but for the sake of having more energy, feeling better, and getting things done, it is worth it. The argument can be made here that our ancestors got up with the sun, and went to sleep at dusk. They didn’t have artificial light or computer screens to keep them awake much later than that. By staying up many hours past dusk, we are in a sense, working against our physiology. In addition to an early bedtime, get a routine down an hour or so before you go to bed. Turn off the TV and the computer. Light a candle and do something relaxing; reading, music, etc. Take a contrast or cool shower. Get yourself ready to sleep. Sleep in a completely dark room, and don’t use your bed to do things like watch TV or play video games. Trust me, when you sleep well and get up early, you get more done, and therefore don’t have to end up worrying about it late in the day. The worst thing you can do it carry too much “yang” energy into your bed time hours.
3. Energy
Don’t rely too heavily on uppers such as caffeine and pre-workouts. Try to find ways to boost your energy naturally. The number one way, of course, is sleeping right, but other things such as diet, meditation, catharsis, tai chi, etc. are also helpful. If a cup of coffee is part of your routine and makes you feel good (it does for me), that’s awesome (a daily craving actually acutely reduces stress when met), but don’t be constantly relying on it throughout the day. You also shouldn’t be in the place where you feel you have to take your pre-workout to get jacked for pushing iron or being explosive. Your adrenal glands aren’t down with that; at least not long term. You must learn to get at least close to that mentally jacked place on your own, and then use the heavy hitter pre-workout for those PR, or near PR days.
4. Learn to breathe
How you breathe is critical in regulating stress hormones. Breathing quick and shallow will effectively serve to deploy the stress response and associated hormones. On the other hand, breathing long and deep, as well as prolonging exhalation serves to stimulate the parasympathetic (recovery) nervous system. Breathing right reduces the stress response and muscle-killing stress hormones. If you are recovering, i.e., the other 23 hours of your day, your breathing should match this. Otherwise you are continuing to bathe your body in hormones that are not helping you accomplish your mission! How and when to breathe depends on when you want your sympathetic nervous system to kick in and ramp up your stress response. Trying to squat PR weight? You probably want your stress response for this one, so slow relaxed breaths probably aren’t the best idea here. Trying to do a routine, punch the clock workout? You definitely don’t want a whole lot of stress response here, as invoking a lot of stress hormones is metabolically costly, and will prolong recovery times, so watch your breathing and heart rate here. There is a reason the “Easy Strength” workout routines have become so popular.
5. Have fun
I can’t tell you how many athletes I have seen perform their best when they are having fun. They are moving in what psychologist Mihali Csikszentmihalyi referred to as FLOW, which is an optimal experience where there is no sense of time, only the beauty of enjoying fulfilling human achievement. Athletes who aren’t having fun in training (which is often a reflection on other areas of their life) will never reach their highest level. I wrote about this in my article on the battle of the mind. You’ll have more fun with your training when you don’t place your entire self-worth in your training result. Be the total package in your life, and not “just an athlete”. Remember, an important part of life is having fun!
6. Meditate
It doesn’t necessarily have to be the cross-legged “Ohmmmm” meditation (although this form is incredibly useful to athletes) because many human activities are a form of meditation, or rest for the mind. Things like leisure sports, enjoying nature, routine manual labor such as working on the car or gardening, drawing, or something familiar where you can enjoy passing the time is critical to overall health and well being.
7. Socialize and Laugh
Maintain an active social life and laugh often. Having a network of friends will reduce stress levels and improve quality of life (as well as help you live longer). Maybe you’re an introvert, but even introverts need social interaction. Laughter is key: it reduces stress hormones and relaxes the body. Think of it this way; if you don’t laugh, your fast twitch muscles will shrink. Got it? 🙂
Don’t feel like laughing? Are your friends not funny? Find something funny that you like to watch or listen to and try to work it into your routine. Does what you are watching not make you laugh? Try to laugh and smile anyways, because believe it or not, even the act of forced smiling starts the train of physiological reactions associated with smiling and being happy. You don’t have to join a laughing club (yes these exist), but realize that these are powerful tools in maintaining a stress free and happy lifestyle.
8. Get over yourself
I’m not going to preach here, but merely list an observation. The most stressed out people I have met over the course of my life tend to have one thing in common. They live life for themselves, and manipulate others to serve their own needs. These people are never really happy. Chances are you probably aren’t like that, but even shades of selfishness can impede living a happy and stress free life. I am not saying don’t watch out for #1 (don’t open that “4th chakra” excessively), but what I am saying is that it is giving of yourself for others that brings genuine happiness.
9. Be grateful
A mark of the most successful people in this world is the regular practice of gratitude. Thinking of the things you are lucky to have on a regular basis helps us to forget the minor inconveniences that many others wish was their only inconvenience. Try and take some time each day (or whenever you are feeling stressed) to remind yourself of the good things you have going for you. Write them down if that helps. When something good happens to you, be sure to remind yourself how thankful you are for it. Make it a habit to thank others for the help they have given you in your life, and tell others what they mean to you often.
If you want to hit your goals, take these to heart. I promise you, you won’t regret a second of it and you’ll get stronger along the way.
References:
Harrigan, Matthew. Body Energy: The Secrets of the Chinese Body Clock, 2012.
Kahneman, Daniel. Thinking, Fast and Slow. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011.
Sapolsky, Robert M. Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers. New York: Owl Book/Henry Holt and, 2004. Print.
The Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler. The Essence of Happiness: A Guidebook for Living. New York: Riverhead, 2010.
Print.Crit Care Med. 2007 Sep;35(9 Suppl):S602-8.
Role of glucocorticoids in the molecular regulation of muscle wasting.
Menconi M, Fareed M, O’Neal P, Poylin V, Wei W, Hasselgren PO.
J Cardiopulm Rehabil. 1997 Mar-Apr;17(2):76-84.
Glucocorticoid-induced muscle atrophy. The role of exercise in treatment and prevention.
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