Super 7 System

Dear Doug,

Mahalo for your column last month on the purposeful prickles that we all encounter in life, and how our trials and tribulations serve as stepping stones on the journey to becoming our best. I’ve been dealing with some recent health issues that restrict my ability to exercise intensely. My doctors want me to work out regularly, but my breathing is limited. Any words of wisdom?

Huffing & Puffing in Hanalei

 

Aloha, Puff. I’m glad that you liked last month’s psychological slant. I’ll make this column positively physiological, so hang on tight.

First and foremost, please exercise patience as you obtain and obey your doctors’ orders. My advice is always designed to be universally applicable and, hopefully, you’ll be able to apply some of the general principles to your specific situation.

Over the years, I have shared much about my super simple scientific system of Eccentrics - lengthening muscle under tension by slowly lowering weight. For a refresher, please visit my website, where all of my previous columns are posted for free. 

Not surprisingly, Eccentrics turns out to be the ideal modality of movement in your specific situation. It not only feels easy, but is also the best form of exercise when you’re unable to work hard.

For populations of people limited by disease, “traditional” strength training programs are often contraindicated and can even be downright dangerous. Lifting weights, the hardest part of weightlifting, is an extremely metabolically demanding activity and creates a tremendous need for oxygen: exchange via the lungs, delivery via the heart and blood vessels, and absorption via the tissues.

As a result, many patient rehabilitation programs focus exclusively on aerobic-type “cardio” exercises. Unfortunately, it’s not enough. Although walking, for instance, improves walking, it doesn’t do much to improve lifting—a weight, a box, a child, or whatever. The demand for oxygen by the heart is different for strength than it is for stamina, so it’s vital to train the body for both. However, training for strength through conventional weightlifting may be unsafe and too strenuous. 

So… it’s weight lowering to the rescue!

Lowering weights (via Eccentrics) takes considerably less metabolic effort and energy than lifting weights. Not only does it feel easier, but it truly is easier. Granted, Eccentrics is still plenty hard on your muscles, but it’s refreshingly easy on your heart, lungs, and systemic systems.

Although Eccentrics produces the highest “contraction” forces within a muscle, it does so with a substantially reduced demand for oxygen. In fact, lowering a given weight uses approximately six to seven times less oxygen than lifting that same weight. Take heart and breathe easy… it’s always easier to put something down than to lift something up, right?

Since less energy is required and less oxygen is utilized, Eccentrics is a Godsend for those with compromised circulatory, respiratory, or metabolic systems. Though proper medical supervision is still paramount, huge segments of the population can finally train their muscles effectively without excessively taxing their heart, lungs, or energy reserves. There is no safer or more productive strength-training method for people suffering from heart disease, pulmonary conditions, metabolic disorders, or even cancer. Eccentrics builds strength without system strain.

Lowering weight actually dissociates the muscular forces of strength training from their demand for oxygen. Due to Eccentrics’ minimal cardiac demand, it is the only viable muscle-sculpting tool for those with limited oxygen capacities. It just so happens that the only tool in the bag is also the safest, sharpest, and strongest.

Periods of forced inactivity due to illness or disease can have devastating consequences. Maintaining muscle mass is essential for overall health and function, and the phrase “use it or lose it” rings true. Unfortunately, traditional conventional resistance training is often too strenuous for individuals managing medical issues or undergoing treatment.

Enter Eccentrics… a game-changer for those who need to strength train without excessive strain. Unlike conventional weightlifting, which places high demands on the heart, lungs, and periphery, weight lowering allows for effective muscle-building while minimizing systemic stress. By focusing on the lowering phase of each movement, oxygen requirements are significantly reduced, making it an ideal solution for individuals with limited energy reserves or compromised circulo-respiratory capacities.

That which I call Eccentrics, by any other name - Lowering Weight, Resisting Resistance, Discouraging Gravity, or Lengthening Muscle Under Tension – would smell as sweet, as the result and the remedy. If exercise is medicine, then Eccentrics is the panacea-packed pill, the greatest medicinal fitness prescription available. Don’t forget to take your daily dose! 

In Health & With Hope,

Doug :-)