I worked out Sunday morning before going into work in the ER for a 7am-3pm shift. It had been 14 days since my last workout, so I was well-recovered. I went ahead and progressed my weights as planned. I made modest improvements on all movements but the pulldown which was new in this rotation. I replaced the pullover with pulldown this week because I am having “cubital tunnel syndrome” from excess computer/mouse use at work (we recently changed from dictation to a computer-based charting system). I wanted to keep direct pressure off my ulnar nerve until this healed. My strength was good, as was my metabolic condition. What was surprising was how my tolerance for muscular pain and fatigue had dropped. Mentally, my toughness had dropped even while my performance improved.

Med X Leg Press
Med X Compound Row
Med X Chest Press
SS Pulldown
Med X Overhead Press

Thanks to Jeff Erno who found a great review of BBS at http://www.scribd.com/doc/26853526/Great-Health-News-for-Seniors

I also found a neat article on Pubmed. At Ultimate Exercise we strive to keep the training area at 61 degrees. This comes from empirical research done by Ken Hutchins back in his Nautilus days that documented that subjects showed improved performance when they were allowed to effective dissipate heat. I also remember hearing about research at DARPA with a cooling glove that allowed subjects to exercise with very little fatigue or performance drop-off. Apparently, cooling of the hands that allows bypassing the vasa vasorum (blood vessels that constrict in the fingers to prevent transmittal of cold blood to the core circulation). In extreme cold the vasa vasorum allow frostbite to develop in order to preserve core temperature (literally sacrificing limb to save life). This article suggests that this might actually work. Now NFL players will be trying to sneak these into the combine.

Palm Cooling Delays Fatigue during High Intensity Bench Press Exercise.
Kwon YS, Robergs RA, Kravitz LR, Gurney BA, Mermier CM, Schneider SM.
1Department of Health, Exercise & Sports Sciences, University of New Mexico, New Mexico, U.S.A.; 2School of Biomedical and Health Science, University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australia. 3Department of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, University of New Mexico School of Medicine, New Mexico, U.S.A.
Local cooling can induce an ergogenic effect during short term intense exercise. One proposed method of personal cooling involves heat extraction from the palm. PURPOSE:: In this study we hypothesized that local palm cooling during rest intervals between progressive weight training sets will increase total repetitions and exercise volume in resistance trained subjects exercising in a thermoneutral environment. METHODS:: Sixteen male subjects (mean+/-SD, age = 26+/-6 yr, height = 178+/-7 cm, body mass = 81.5+/-11.3kg, 1RM Bench press = 123.5+/-12.6 kg, weight training experience = 10+/-6 yr) performed 4 sets of 85% 1RM bench press exercise to fatigue, with 3 min rest intervals. Exercise trials were performed in counterbalanced order on three days, separated by at least 3 days; thermoneutral (TN), palm heating (PH), and palm cooling (PC). Heating and cooling were applied by placing the hand in a device called the Rapid Thermal Exchanger, set to 45 degrees C for heating or 10 degrees C for cooling. This device heats or cools the palm while negative pressure (-35 to -45 mmHg) is applied around the hand. RESULTS:: Total exercise volume (kg) during the 4 PC sets (2480+/-636) was significantly higher than during TN (1972+/-632) and PH (2156+/-668) sets, (p <0.01). The RMS of the surface EMG with PC exercise was higher (p <0.01), esophageal temperature (p < 0.05) and RPE (p <0.05) were lower during PC compared to TN and PH. CONCLUSION:: Palm cooling from 35 to 20 degrees C temporarily overrides fatigue mechanism(s) during intense intermittent resistance exercise. The mechanism(s) for this ergogenic function remain unknown.

I was looking back through my training records and noticed that I have not taken a recovery break in over a year. Going back through prior records, I always noted significant improvements in performance and appearance occurred after a lay-off. One of my best periods of improvement occurred after a 3 week vacation in 1996. In honor of this realization (along with a string of ER evening shifts) I decided to skip my WOW and accumulate some extra recovery. I invite anyone who has not yet done their WOW to at least consider some extra recovery, and join me in a week off.

Post your WOW’s (or non-WOW) and any thoughts or questions.

I did the following Big 5 workout on Sunday morning with 8 days recovery. I made small progressions in weight or TUL on a few movements. I am pretty much capped out on the SuperSlow pulldown. Once this happens, I try to make progression through form improvements or other tweaks that make the movement valuable and progressive. Sometimes, dropping the weight in order to make changes in the performance of the movement can result in intensity progression. There are subtle changes that can be made that are outside simple weight and TUL progressions.

Med X leg press
SuperSlow pulldown
MedX Chest Press
Nautilus Pullover
MedX overhead press

This workout occurred a little “later” in the day due to the time change. I like “springing forward” as I enjoy the longer days of Spring and Summer. It also serves as a good metaphor for our type of training. No matter how we focus on progression, the important thing is the emphasis on always moving forward…continual improvement.

In the theme of moving forward, here are some exciting things going on with BBS and Ultimate Exercise. We are currently in the process of trying to increase capacity at Ultimate Exercise. We are going to divide the training area with a partition and run 2 lines simultaneously. Despite one of the worst recessions on record, we are finding that people are choosing to invest in themselves and their own health and longevity. We are seeing a recurring theme of distaste with the looming healthcare takeover and a desire to stay out of the belly of the beast. One of our newest clients is a State Representative who helped spearhead a Bill that asserts State sovereignty and a willingness to not comply with a federal takeover of healthcare.

Body by Science has been recognized by some of the greatest thinkers today. Nassim Taleb has made mention of our approach in one Chapter of his new edition of the Black Swan. Dr. Leonard Peikoff has communicated with us about BBS exercise philosophy and is now training the BBS way. I also look forward to speaking at The 21 convention in Orlando this Summer, and I am honored to be included in a list of amazing speakers at the Ancestral Health Symposium in Los Angeles in Summer 2011. I am grateful to BBS and Ultimate Exercise for keeping me moving forward.

Post your WOW’s and discuss your thoughts on progression in training and in life.

This Saturday Ultimate Exercise manager Ed Garbe called to see if I could come down for a workout. Sort of a “can Doug come out and play” call. I was cleaning of the patio and was about to help Wendy clean out the garage. Wendy said “you should go…I’ll take care of the garage”. What a great wife! I had a great workout under Ed’s evil supervision. I did a “little 6” with modest TUL increases, but it felt much more intense with Ed’s supervision. I had a kink in my neck which I think was due to tapping on a computer screen (our new way of charting) for 4 straight days. I did the 4-way neck before may workout which seemed to eliminate the problem.

Heel Raise on MedX leg press
MedX abdominal
Nautilus plateload bicep
Tricep pushdown
Thick bar wrist flexion
Thick bar wrist extension

I have include another study about NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis) that just came out. It appears that this observation holds true even in kids who have not yet developed the hormonal environment for what we believe is needed for optimal response to weight training. I see this in my own kids. On weeks where they ask to do their own workouts after I finish mine, they seem to crave physical activity in the days that follow. I truly believe that the epigenetic changes in skeletal muscle are the source for “the active genotype”.

For the next WOW, I would like to see if Doug Holland could send me a word file of the RT Edwards story. I think you all will find it interesting and inspiring.

Post your WOW’s and your thoughts
J Pediatr. 2010 Feb;156(2):242-6. Epub 2009 Oct 20.
High-intensity training increases spontaneous physical activity in children: a randomized controlled study.
Eiholzer U, Meinhardt U, Petrò R, Witassek F, Gutzwiller F, Gasser T.
Center for Pediatric Endocrinology Zurich, Mohrlistrasse 69, CH-8006 Zurich, Switzerland. urs.eiholzer@pezz.ch
OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that resistance training may increase spontaneous physical activity in children. STUDY DESIGN: Two junior ice hockey teams were randomly assigned to unchanged training schedules (team ZSC, 21 boys; mean age, 13.2 years) or to participate twice weekly in guided resistance training for 4 months (team GCK, 25 boys; mean age, 13.4 years). Spontaneous physical activity energy expenditure (SpAEE; 3-axial accelerometry for 7 days), muscle strength, and body composition (dual energy x-ray absorptiometry) were measured at 0, 4, and 12 months. RESULTS: Baseline measures did not differ in the groups, except for higher leg and trunk strength in team ZSC. In the intervention group compared with the control group, SpAEE significantly (P < or = .02) increased at 4 months (+25.5% versus 0%) and 12 months (+13.5% versus -9.5%). Leg and arm strength increased because of training intervention; all other variables were unchanged. None of these variables correlated with changes in SpAEE. CONCLUSION: In boys who play ice hockey, spontaneous physical activity is inducible with resistance training; this effect seems to be independent of changes in body composition and strength. If this was confirmed in unselected children, resistance training might be a new strategy for childhood obesity prevention programs. Copyright 2010 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.