Training Trivia
- Fit people tend to sweat more and sooner than unfit people. Their bodies are more efficient at cooling.
- When people start training as a result of a New Year's Resolution, 60% have quit by Valentine's Day.
- If your workout clothes smell like ammonia after a workout, you're burning a lot of protein for fuel. Ammonia is a byproduct of protein metabolism. This is not a good thing, as burning protein means you may be burning your muscle tissue for energy instead of carbohydrates or bodyfat.
- Men tend to overestimate their strength while women tend to underestimate their strength.
- To determine if your scale is correct, set a dumbell or a weight plate on it. If the numbers don't match, try another weight and see if it's off by the same amount. Adjust your scale accordingly.
- Sometimes a barbell exercise causes pain while the dumbell version doesn't. This occurs most often with the bench press and the shoulder press. Dumbell don't lock your joints into a certain pattern of movement.
- There is no evidence to support the argument that machines are safer than free weights, according to studies.
- More bodyparts overlap in upper body training than lower body training, giving legs more recovery time. That's why you may continue to progress in leg training while your upper body plateaus.
- High-level endurance training (e.g. marathon training) reduces testosterone levels by 15 - 40%.
- Eating post-workout carbohydrates and protein increases Growth Hormone levels.
- Acclimation to exercising in the heat can take about 10 to 14 days. For each two days of not exercising in heat, one day of acclimation is lost.
- There is an indirect effect on other muscles when you work a muscle. The bigger the muscle, the greater the carryover. This is one reason you should not neglect leg training as the largest muscles in the body are found in the legs and will have the greatest impact on the rest of your body.
- The initial adaptation to weight training is neuromuscular (in the nervous system). Your muscles are basically learning how to fire efficiently. This is why beginning trainers are often very shaky when they first start lifting weights. Their muscles haven't learned how to activate properly.
- Holding your breath during an exercise to temporarily increase intra-abdominal pressure is called the Valsalva maneuver. While it can be effective in temporarily increasing strength and stability, it can be very dangerous, especially if you have high blood pressure. It is, with few exceptions, better to breathe while lifting.
- Training intensity is properly measured as a percentage of a person's One Rep Max (the most weight they can lift for a single rep). A high intensity means a high percentage. It is technically not a subjective measure of effort or facial expression.
Be sure to check out:
Training & Anatomy Quiz.
Training & Anatomy Quiz.