This Week I Learned #79
“Go to bed smarter than when you woke up”
2019-12-02
Zahavian Signaling. An element of evolutionary sciences based on research by Israeli biologist, Amotz Zahavi.
The principle of “honest” cost signaling to attract attention for mating/survival. One example is engagement rings. You spend a large amount of money (i.e. cost) to create an honest signal for a desire to commit. Another example is someone who spends millions of dollar on a red square called ‘art’ but it can work as a signalling tactic to showcase your ability to take on a large cost of millions of dollars but it doesn’t impact you because of how much wealth you have. Same can be said for expensive cars being driven around (all conspicuous consumption: I can afford to squander resources… money). This works because others cannot replicate the signal given the resource constraint and that makes it “honest” in regards to cost. It’s also evident in people thinking something is prestigious if it is hard to obtain (i.e the cost of effort for a prestigious school etc..). In nature, a gazelle that spots a predator will not run but come forward and jump up and down to showcase to the predator that unlike others in its pack of 50, it is so fit and confident it can get away that it will show itself to the predator.
2019-12-03
Interview of Tim Ferriss and Pavel Tsatsouline, the Russian Strength Coach and Godfather of Kettlebells in North America.
Learning various strength training principles on building an antifragile strength training system
Strength has greatest carryover to endurance and hypertrophy. This will be the case in endurance strength where you need to use enough strength load to achieve endurance (i.e. 25 bodyweight strict pull ups will benefit from 5 reps of strict pull up training)
Train max of 5 reps per set and increase sets for greater volume instead of reps. Comes from methodology derived from Soviet weightlifters from the 1980s period. They had ~70% of training schemes to be in the range of doing 1/3 to 2/3 of reps they could achieve when compared to max (i.e. 3-6 reps for a 10RM)
Hypertrophy will result from replicating the 5-6 reps but with way more sets and shorter rests + lot’s of eating.
Critical to rest 5-10minutes for creatine phosphate replenishment. Hypertrophy would dictate 60-90sec rest rate as focus there is muscle fatigue. Strength training is not about muscle fatigue but the precision of performing task with intensity and tension. Rests should be ‘active rests’ where you just shake out your arms and legs and walk around.
For training slow-twitch fibres, which tend to have more mitochondria than fast twitch fibres. 4-9sets x 30-60sec in duration of + 5-10 minutes active rests 3x a week. Lighter weights for upper body given higher fast to slow twitch composition in upper body. Work through the mid-range instead of “finishing” reps. The focus is constant tension. This is for maximal hypertrophy for slow twitch muscles that can add value to muscular endurance performance requirements.
To create greater tension to squeeze out a strong rep in set, contract your abdominals as if bracing for a punch and squeeze the glutes. Also helps to grip extremely hard (white knuckling)
Core exercise protocol for strong abdominals: 3-5 sets for 3-5 reps using planks (10secs), hanging strict leg raises, ab wheel. Focus on tension. Max tension by contracting everything. Rest 5 minutes between sets.
If I were to translate this to the RTS RPE systems I use, it will be 4reps @ 7RPE or 5reps @ 8RPE
https://tim.blog/pavel-tsatsouline-on-the-tim-ferriss-show-transcript/
2019-12-04
Continuing from Pavel Tsatsouline’s training. The Grease the Groove Technique.
Technique of performing 50-70% of your max rep on an exercise (bodyweight based is easier) and perform a set throughout the day. Maybe 3, 5 or even 8. But it can be doing 6 strict pull ups if the max is 12. But you continue to do it every day. Multiple sets throughout the day. The focus is never to feel fatigued by the end and always feeling fresh prior to the start. Consider doing elevated diamond push ups.
https://www.artofmanliness.com/articles/get-stronger-by-greasing-the-groove/
2019-12-05
Overview of Pavel Tsatsouline's basic strength programs that can create a base for training from his book Power to the People
With review/accounting of a powerlifter’s experience training with Pavel’s Bear program
https://startingstrength.com/resources/forum/general-programming/17875-wrestling-bear.html
2019-12-06
Every athlete (amateur or professional) should consider what goals they have and how that their training at the gym should be tailored for that. Introducing Dan John’s Quadrants. The article does a great job of helping people set out parameters for what factors determine what quadrant you fit in. Turns out, I’m at Quadrant III.