Training trivia: facts and explanations
Training trivia is a collection of small observations that help you make better decisions in the gym and in your nutrition. This version keeps the facts, numbers and translator’s note from the old article, but the text has been made easier to read.
Why is training trivia useful at all?
The gym is full of simple truths, half-myths and experiences that seem odd at first. For example, fit, trained people start sweating much earlier than untrained people. That doesn’t mean poor fitness. If anything, a trained person’s heat conduction and cooling systems are more efficient.
Another familiar pattern shows up after the New Year festivities and Christmas feasting. Many people decide to start training then, but by Valentine’s Day 60-70% have stopped training. Starting is easy; keeping up the rhythm is the hard part.
If your workout clothes smell strongly of ammonia after a workout, your body may have used a lot of protein for energy. Ammonia is a by-product of protein metabolism. It’s not a good sign, because instead of carbohydrates and fat, valuable muscle tissue may be used for energy.
Self-assessment is deceptive too. Men tend to overestimate their strength, while women underestimate theirs. That’s why a training log is more honest than a feeling in your head.
Scales can lie as well. If you want to check whether your scale reads correctly, put a dumbbell or barbell plate on it whose weight you know to be 100% accurate. If the reading doesn’t match, factor in that error from then on.
Training trivia in the gym: exercises and training load
The barbell and dumbbells don’t always affect the body in the same way. Some barbell exercises can cause pain, while the dumbbell version of the same movement doesn’t. You often see this in chest and shoulder presses. The reason is simple: with dumbbells we don’t lock the joints as easily during the movement. When the training load is high and the joint locks out, more pressure is transferred to the shoulder and elbow joints.
That’s also why you shouldn’t force your joints into lockout during barbell presses. The movement should stay controlled rather than being rammed to the end.
The claim that machines are always safer than free weights is less certain than is often assumed. The original text pointed to specific studies according to which there is no such simple argument. A machine can help guide the movement, but poor positioning or too heavy a weight is still poor positioning or too heavy a weight.
Upper-body exercises overlap with each other more than lower-body exercises do. Chest, shoulder and triceps exercises often load the same areas. Leg exercises overlap with the upper body less, which gives the legs a different recovery rhythm. This also hints at why leg workouts can sometimes continue even when the upper body seems stuck at a plateau.
Don’t skip training your legs. When you train one muscle, the rest of the body always gets a small indirect training effect. The bigger the muscle you train, the greater the carryover. The thigh muscles are among the largest muscles in the body, and their work affects the whole system.
A beginner’s rapid strength gains don’t come mainly from an increase in muscle mass at the start. The initial adaptation to strength training happens largely through neuromuscular mechanisms. Put simply: the body learns to exert itself. That’s why the barbell and dumbbells tremble in beginners’ hands. The nervous system is still learning how to control the movement.
Intensity, rest breaks and training trivia
In the narrow strength training sense, training intensity means a percentage of 1RM. Training with high intensity means using weights as close to your maximum as possible. In practice, a workout with a weight of, say, 20% of 1RM is also called intense, but in precise terms that is not high intensity.
Translator’s note: here I can’t quite agree with the claim that the only measure of intensity is the size of the resistance relative to 1RM (repetition maximum). In his book Bodybuilding I, Jaan Loko points out that intensity can also be determined by heart rate and by rest intervals. The first of these he describes as an intensity measure characteristic of cyclic sports.
It’s clear that the shorter the rest intervals, the more work is done per unit of time. Here the concepts of volume and intensity seem to connect or overlap. The shorter the rest intervals, the more sets are done per unit of time. If we stick to the claim that the only true measure of intensity is the size of the resistance relative to 1RM, then gasping for breath with short pauses and a greater workload wouldn’t count as intensity at all. Or are we dealing with different kinds of intensity? It causes a bit of confusion. Let’s share our opinions on the forum.
Short rest breaks during training, less than 1 minute, may promote the release of hormones associated with hypertrophy and muscle growth. But there’s a price. With each new set you can usually produce less strength. When chasing hypertrophy, strength sometimes has to pay a toll.
Many records and best lifts at various competitions have been achieved in the afternoon or early evening. One reason may be the higher temperature of the muscles and body in the second half of the day. On the other hand, according to some opinions, a lower body temperature may support endurance. So endurance-type training may in some cases suit the morning better.
High-level endurance training, such as distance runners’ work and marathon training, can lower testosterone levels by as much as 15–40%. After a long period of aerobic training, fast-twitch fibers can take on some of the metabolic properties of slow oxidative fibers. This shift can mean a drop in strength and muscle mass. The changes toward aerobic traits reverse within 4–8 months once aerobic-focused training is dropped.
Nutrition and recovery: what to watch
Eating carbohydrates and protein after training supports recovery, and the original text also noted an increase in growth hormone levels. Insulin signals the body that there are enough carbohydrates in the blood and that it doesn’t need to release triglycerides from fat cells.
The gut and digestive tract are the largest growth hormone receptor site in our body. That explains why people who take a lot of growth hormone can seem to have a protruding belly. Naturally produced growth hormone doesn’t cause this effect.
The number of fat cells in the body is largely determined genetically and inherited. Prolonged heavy overeating, however, can also cause existing fat cells to divide. The more fat cells you have, the greater the chance of being overweight.
Men’s testosterone levels are about 18 times higher than women’s. Men who naturally have higher testosterone levels often build more muscle mass than their peers. People who find it hard to build muscle even under ideal external conditions may have lower-than-usual levels.
When it comes to vitamins and minerals, a simple truth applies: the bigger your deficiency, the more noticeable the effect of supplementation. At the same time, you need to stay sensible. Intense training doubles the loss of minerals from the body, mainly because of increased sweating.
Vitamin capsules can be more practical than tablets, because tablets are more tightly compressed and the release of the beneficial substances may be harder. The minerals zinc and magnesium, which are associated with sleep quality, recovery and growth, were recommended to be taken fasted before going to bed.
One of the body’s first major nighttime releases of growth hormone takes place about 90 minutes after falling asleep. The absorption of zinc and magnesium also peaks about 90 minutes after you take them. The amounts given in the original were 20–30 mg of zinc and 400–500 mg of magnesium.
Sodium and calcium are removed from the body through similar mechanisms. If you consume too much sodium, the body tries to balance its level through increased excretion. When 1 molecule of sodium is excreted, 1 molecule of calcium is taken along with it. Over the long term, this can affect bone composition and mass.
Be careful with grapefruit. The naringin in grapefruit can amplify the effects of many substances, because it deactivates the enzymes that break down and neutralize various toxins. Tests found that grapefruit juice mixed with alcohol resulted in a blood alcohol level four times higher. Canned grapefruit contains twice as much naringin as fresh grapefruit.
Alcohol, calories and everyday choices
Many people suffer from overtraining because they are actually undernourished. They do eat a lot, but the wrong things. The body craves nutrients, not just a feeling of fullness.
20 % of the calories from the protein you consume are used to absorb that protein from the gut and assimilate it. For carbohydrates that figure is 8%, and for fat only 2%. This doesn’t make protein a miracle cure, but it explains why higher-protein food can seem helpful on a diet.
Alcohol acts as a direct toxin on type II fast-twitch muscle fibers. The effect may not be large, but it can increase protein breakdown and lower levels of IGF-1, or insulin-like growth factor, both in the blood and in the muscles.
Alcohol, even in a small amount before bed, can suppress growth hormone secretion by as much as 75%. If your goal is to lose weight from fat, cutting back on alcohol is one of the easiest steps.
A bottle of wine equals a six-pack of beer, that is, 6 cans. Depending on the alcohol content, that amount can add 600–1100 kcal to your daily calorie intake. These are empty calories and are easily stored as fat.
Two bananas a day for a week can lower blood pressure by 10%, which the original text linked to their high potassium content.
FAQ
Does sweating mean poor fitness?
Not necessarily. A trained person may start sweating sooner because the body cools itself more efficiently.
Are machines always safer than free weights?
Not automatically. A machine guides the movement, but technique, training load and joint position still matter a great deal.
Does alcohol interfere with recovery?
Yes, especially if you drink it before sleep. The original text pointed to an effect on growth hormone secretion of up to 75%.
Training Trivia, Nick Nilsson
Translated by: Janar Rückenberg
Source: WHO – physical activity.
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