Are you using the SAID Principle in your training and in your lifestyle?

SAID stands for: Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands


For us all this is one of the most important principles of training- along with overload and progression principles!


In a nutshell it means that a certain exercise or type of training produces adaptations specific to the activity performed- Come on Neil that's obvious...I hear you saying...YES but there are hundreds and thousands of people that train, that don't get IT!!!!


Let me use some mistakes I saw in the gym only the other night as examples..

1. Why would someone who sits on their bum all day in an office go to the gym and sit on a bike or rowing machine!!!! Unless they are training specifically for a cycling or rowing competition this is madness!!! - The more you sit down the tighter your hip flexors become the less you fire your glutes (muscles of your backside) and generally these people are more prevolent to bad backs..they need to get on their feet get themselves into a good posture (shoulders back, chin up) and get running/walking or at worst on the X-trainer!!




2. Why would someone trying to lose bodyfat and increase lean muscle mass to speed up their metabloism do isolation exercises e.g bicep curls. They need to be doing multi-joint exercises using the big muscles of thier bodies e.g squats, pull ups, dips, standing shoulder presses etc..




3. Why would someone who has poor posture in their upper body i.e. rounded shoulders, go to the gym and do pec deck or bench press when these are the muscles that are already tight and producing the bad posture. They need to get off the chest exercises and start stretching the tight pectoral muscles and start doing some exercises for the upper back muscles e.g face pulls, seated row- anything that gets the shoulder blades squeezing together.
   

Now do you see what I mean...we all should have alittle think before we start training next time!

One more thing...for those people who realise that their posture is poor and are performing stretches and strengthening exercises to rectify their muscular imbalances....don't forget that there's no point in thinking just because you worked your back and stretched your chest in the gym for 1 hour, 2 or 3 times per week ,that everything will be solved...NO....it's back to the SAID principle...you must continually check your posture throughout the day (get up and walk around the office every 1/2 hour) or else nothing will change.

Poor posture...and correcting it, is something I'm really passionate about!! So I'll be posting more on this area in the future!!

**Finally, some of you may know that my wife's mum (Connie) is battling breast cancer at the moment and that I'm doing the tough guy race on the 1st Feb in aid of the Clatterbridge Cancer Research fund. Any sponsorship would be really appreciated, so click on the link below to see more info and donate, thanks.

http://www.justgiving.com/neilparsley

Train hard, train smart

Neil

My training log

Day 13 Friday 9th January

Steady as she goes!- 10 min row and 30 mins on the X-trainer with a HR max of 150. Nice easy session after the previous days intervals. I did 1 set of 15 hammer grip pull ups after the X-trainer.

Day 14

More fresh air- 1 hour bike ride. Heart rate 140-160. By no means an easy ride but as the temeperature was definately below freezing it felt good to push the heart rate a little more than I thought I was going to. I also did 8 handstand push ups and 12 wide grip chins when I got home.

Day 15

Big run- 60 minutes oudoor run. I got my ipod on (1st time ever running), cranked up some old school dance mucic and had a really great run. Towards the end I was feeling it in my legs but was really happy to complete this duration of run as it's been about 3 or 4 years since I last did.

Day 16

Day off-Really needed this rest day, my bodies in bits as I've steadily stepped up the intensity and volume! Trying to be really good with food intake at the moment to aid in recovery.

http://www.justgiving.com/neilparsley