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By
Charles Staley, B.Sc, MSS
Director, Staley Training Systems |
Author’s note: Of all the
articles I’ve written, this two-parter has perhaps generated
the most phone calls, letters, and e-mails. Now that I’m a
few years older (and hopefully wiser), I’m perhaps not quite
so anti-aerobic, although I still stand by the basic principles
stated in the article. Just like any tool, aerobic exercise can
be useful or harmful, depending on your objectives and the dosages
you use. Regular small doses of steady-state exercise can actually
improve recovery, but of course, too much can sap your strength
and lead to muscle wasting.
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Ever since the "jogging
craze" of the '70's, aerobic exercise has been the method
of choice for those attempting to "lose weight."
Gradually, the resistance training area of most gyms and clubs
is being scaled back to accommodate all manner of equipment
designed to elevate the heart rate. With the aerobic revolution
in full gear, I feel compelled to ask, "Why are people
getting fatter and fatter?"
For those who have critically
studied sport training and exercise physiology, this is a
rhetorical question.
A quick look at any national
level track meet speaks volumes about the effects of aerobic
versus anaerobic training.
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Compare the physiques of 100 meter
sprinters against long distance runners, such as marathoners. Although
sprinters do little or no aerobic exercise (it's not specific to
their events), they are just as lean (if not leaner) than their
aerobic counterparts. They also have more attractive physiques,
which is a by-product of the muscle they've gained from hours in
the weight room and short-term, intensive running. By contrast,
the marathoner's lack of muscle gives him a "flat" physique.
His extensive and frequent forays into the aerobic zone have caused
his body to lose muscle (since muscle weighs more than fat, it is
the body's preferred tissue to cannibalize in the interest in lightening
the load).
If you've been trying (unsuccessfully)
to lose 10 to 20 pounds of unwanted fat, despite spending hours
upon hours on the stairclimber, read on. Anaerobic exercise may
not be politically correct, but it IS physiologically correct—if
fat loss is your objective.
Since our language affects the way
we think, let's begin by revising our vocabulary for a moment. I'd
like to encourage you to delete a few words from your personal dictionary.
Words like tone, shape, contour, sculpt, and all the rest of the
vague descriptions you hear on late night infomercials. These terms
are irrelevant with respect to the adaptations you can expect from
any form of exercise. In reality, there are only two bodily tissues
that you have two ways: You
can gain, or lose. (By the way: tone simply refers to a state of
partial, involuntary contraction, a result of muscular work. Even
the most rotund can have muscle tone, and the thinnest people sometimes
have no tone.)
So the goal is to gain muscle and
lose fat. When you do so, let everyone else call you toned and sculpted.
Of course, many people, influenced
by the exceedingly massive (and rare) physiques adorning the covers
of muscle magazines, shirk at the prospect of gaining muscle. It's
a shame— myophobia keeps more people from achieving their fitness
goals than any other single factor. Just a few pounds of added muscle
can make a dramatic difference in your physique, not to mention
your health and well-being. Muscle (unlike fat) needs calories to
survive. The more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism will
be. Bigger muscles burn more calories than smaller ones, even during
sleep!
Personal trainers— people who
earn their living by making substantial changes in their client's
bodies— regard resistance training as the most important item
in their professional "toolbox." Dave Sinnot, trainer
of many top Hollywood stars, including Sean Penn and Angela Bassett,
is amazed at people's avoidance of weight training: "People
who think that aerobic training is the ultimate fat loss method
are totally missing the boat. I've worked with people who spend
half their waking hours doing some form of aerobics.
They complain that they aren't getting
results anymore. As soon as we shift emphasis to weight training
and nutritional modifications, they always start improving immediately.
It's like their body was begging for it!" Dave related to me
that Angela Bassett (star of "What's Love Got To Do With It")
was not blessed with great genetics as many people assume, and was
actually "pudgy" when he started working with her.
What's the best approach for people
wishing to improve their body composition? First, don't eliminate
your aerobic sessions. It's a good practice to do a handful (three
or four) of 20 to 40 minute sessions a week. More than that, and
your body starts to drop valuable muscle in an effort to adapt.
Second, take another look at your resistance training program. Most
people simply don't spend adequate time and effort in the weight
room, and those that do make one or more of the following four mistakes:
1) Too many exercises: One exercise
per muscle group per workout is plenty. The key is to pick the right
exercises, and work them hard. Forget about "hitting the muscle
from different angles" and "shaping" exercises—
this is all propaganda stemming from bodybuilding circles.
2) Ineffective exercises: Don't avoid
so-called "hard core" exercises for fear of getting a
result. Choose multi-joint exercises, such as squats and their variations,
bench presses and their variations, lat pulldowns, and shoulder
presses. Smaller muscles such as biceps, triceps, and calves will
receive adequate exercise when you do the multi-joint movements
mentioned above.
3) Insufficient intensity level: High
reps DO NOT "tone" a muscle! For beginners, high reps
are important to strengthen connective tissues, and to allow for
technique mastery. But for optimum muscle building, stay in the
6 to 12 range for the majority of your workouts. If and when you
get to the point where you don't want additional muscle, just cut
back on the volume and frequency of training.
4) Lack of progression and variety:
If you don't seek increases in strength, your body will stop responding.
Similarly, if you train in exactly the same manner for extensive
periods of time, your body will adapt to the monotony, and stop
responding, no matter how good the training program is. For this
reason, there is no perfect training program. Most successful trainers
use several programs, which they rotate as needed.
As a final suggestion, remember that
the entire personal training profession was founded upon the fact
that resistance training works! Don't make the mistake of thinking
that you're beyond benefiting from one. Personal trainers make their
living by getting fast results for people. For information on finding
a certified trainer in your area, please call the ISSA at (800)
892-ISSA.
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Consider
These Facts:
1) According to a recent study
presented in IDEA magazine, the average female aerobics
instructor has 18% bodyfat. This is higher than the average
female competitive weightlifter (16%).
2) According to a recent study
published in Muscular Development magazine, muscle necrosis
(tissue death) and inflammation can be observed in the calves
of marathon runners 7 days after a race.
3) According to Dr. Marc Breehl,
a leading anesthesiologist specializing in cardiac surgery,
the enlarged hearts of aerobic athletes are weaker, not
stronger than those with anaerobic backgrounds.
4) Resistance training has
numerous benefits to the heart and vascular system, including
improved ejection fraction of the left ventricle, and improved
elasticity of the arterial walls. This from Power: A Scientific
Approach, by Dr Fred Hatfield.
5) Virtually everything we
do in life is anaerobic. Aerobic activity is an artificial
state which the human organism is not well adapted to. For
the majority of individuals, loss of function associated
with aging is due to lack of strength, not aerobic capacity.
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About The Author
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His colleagues call him an iconoclast,
a visionary, a rule-breaker. His clients call him “The
Secret Weapon” for his ability to see what other coaches
miss. Charles calls himself a “geek” who struggled
in Phys Ed throughout school. Whatever you call him, Charles’
methods are ahead of their time and quickly produce serious
results. His counter-intuitive approach and self-effacing
demeanor have lead to appearances on NBC’s The TODAY
Show and The CBS Early Show.
Currently, Charles competes
in Olympic-style weightlifting on the master’s circuit,
with a 3-year goal of qualifying for the 2009 Master’s
World Championships.
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