But in the mean time I'd like to ask, which side of the fence are you on?
Ever since I've started blogging more and more about exercise and nutrition, I've gotten increasingly more questions and comments on those topics. Obviously on the blog, but also in person, on facebook, e-mail, etc...
What caught my attention today however, was how undecided a lot of my friends are on major subjects concerning working out/eating and the like.
Now, before we go any further, let's set the record straight- I do NOT believe the world is black and white. Things are rarely as simple as they seem- notice the word rarely.
Rarely does not constitute “never”.
Some things ARE as simple as being “black and white”.
The world is a confusing place. People are confused left and right- just take a look at the economy, swine flu, gender roles, the fitness industry, dating...
Seems no one knows shit from shinola these days eh?
Well, high intensity training is an exception. You either understand it and practice it, or you don't. There is no in between, no “ya I do a little bit of hit stuff”.
Or even better... “ya I do it every few weeks”.
Or the best I've heard... "yeah, I tend to agree"
When I hear things like this- from friends no less- it demonstrates a lack of understanding. As Drew Baye once said (in reference to functional training)
“Anybody who disagrees doesn’t understand the subject.”
Is HIT dogmatic? No. There are a zillion and one ways to practice it, the point is ALL high intensity training styles follow certain guidelines and are therefore still proper exercise.
For example, proper exercise must be brief, intense, and infrequent.
As soon as you move away from this notion, exercise declines in effectiveness and efficiency. Or it becomes something entirely different, a la recreation vs exercise.
Proper exercise is also sustainable- meaning anyone of any age can do it- and safe (see previous point).
Again, as soon as you violate these guidelines, the value of exercise beings to diminish- rather rapidly for most people.
So for anyone who's “iffy” about HIT, quit acting like a little girl that doesnt know when to cross the street. You are either DOING IT, or not.
You can't “kinda sorta” do it. It's either correct or incorrect. If you find it incorrect, I suggest you read Body by Science- which you can find at any local book store.
Nutrition is another case where people are clearly scared to violate conventional wisdom- but then again, when are most people not?.
Take egg yolks (saturated fat and cholesterol) for example.
Do they have positive effects on your heart, neutral, or negative effects?
It seems few people have a stance, a firm one anyways.
Personally, I'm quite convinced egg yolks have a NET POSITIVE effect on your cardiovascular system- not to mention the rest of your body.
You can't eat enough of them. And of course, I'm referring to organic free range eggs- NOT eggs from chickens fed corn and soy their entire lives.
But what do most people do- from my limited perspective- that hear the unconventional wisdom that eggs are good for the heart?
They stray off in the middle- no man's land.
They'll eat a dozen eggs, but only 5 egg yolks- clearly still undecided about the effects of egg yolks on the body.
This isn't a rational decision- taking an unbiased look at the abundant research on the subject would point you in the "right" direction, one way or the other.
What leaves people stuck somewhere in the middle is emotions- societal programming. No different from HIT.
HIT has been around for ages, and is now backed by enough research and studies to choke a herd of buffalo. More importantly, it's entirely logical and rational.
Most of the “major guys” out there on HIT are only inerested in what's best for themselves, and clients. Few- if any- at this point have ties to any sort of dogma.
They look at what's best in a rational and logical light- as far from the realm of emotions as humanly possible- and make decisions accordingly. This is actually how HIT was started back in the late 60's early 70's.
Forget what everyone else does, look at the data and make an independent, clear decision. Getting stuck in the void is easily as bad- if not worse in some cases- as those doing the opposite of what's correct, irrespective of the subject/field.
-Dream
ps- not kidding about that free content coming this week. It's gonna be off the chain! =)
