Total Results Blog

Hans Selye (1907-1982) was a Hungarian-Canadian endocrinologist who spent most of his professional life studying the non-specific response of the human body to stressors. Dr. Selye earned his M.D. and a Ph. D in organic chemistry from the German University of Prague, and did postdoctoral and research fellowships at both Johns Hopkins and McGill Universities. He wrote several books on the physiological concept of stress and the General Adaptation Syndrome. I first became aware of Selye's work when I took a course on stress management in college. "The Stress of Life" was initially published in 1956, and the second edition was released in 1976.

Dr. Selye defines stress as, "The non-specific response of the body to any demand placed upon it, whether the condition or stimulus is pleasant or unpleasant." No one is immune to stress; it comes in many forms: physical, emotional, and psychological. The key to managing stress is in adaptation. According to the author, "Life is largely a process of adaptation to the circumstances in which we exist." Selye called the non-specific response to stress the General Adaptation Syndrome, in which our various internal organs (with the assistance of our endocrine glands and nervous system) help us to adjust to constant changes around us and steer us toward homeostasis. The G.A.S has three stages: the alarm reaction, the stage of resistance, and the stage of exhaustion. The alarm reaction is frequently referred to as "fight-or-flight", and is characterized by the release of the hormones cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine. In the resistance phase, the body attempts to adapt, repair, and return the body to homeostasis, but still remains on alert. Finally, in the stage of exhaustion, prolonged exposure to stress can cause burnout, chronic fatigue, and an increased vulnerability to illness.

Inflammation is a defense reaction to an injury that represents fight, rather than flight. If you sustain a blunt force to your elbow, you are likely to experience swelling in the area in short order. This is the body's way of containing the injury by creating a barricade that separates damaged tissue from healthy tissue, and it is an important step in the healing process. The Local Adaptation Syndrome (L.A.S.) is characterized by reactive inflammation and tissue death. As Dr. Selye puts it, "...L.A.S. is powerfully influenced by the G.A.S. It is largely - though by no means entirely - dependent upon the balance between proinflammatory and anti-inflammatory hormones secreted by the endocrine glands in reply to alarm signals set off by the stressor itself.

Chapter 17 covers the stressors of daily life. Keep in mind that this book was published 50 years ago, so some references may seem obsolete. Stress can come in many forms, such as one's occupation, family, public speaking, driving, and even the environment. Sensory deprivation and boredom can also be considered stressors. As the author explains, "Normal function of the brain depends on constant arousal generated in the reticular formation by continuous sensory input." Isolation and loneliness can be significant sources of stress, as we saw during the Covid lockdowns 0f 2020. However, Dr. Selye also makes the very valid point that, "...What matters is not really what happens to you but the way you take it."

The author gives an exhaustive list of medical and self-observable danger signs that can manifest if an individual is experiencing undue levels of stress. Some of these are commonly known and understood today, such as an increase in blood pressure, cholesterol, or abnormalities in EEG (electroencephalogram) readings. Self-observable signs include general irritability, insomnia, inability to concentrate, migraine headaches, and nightmares.

Dr. Selye makes a few other excellent points and references which have some relevance to exercise and physical activity. He discusses what he calls developmental adaptation, which can be interpreted along the lines of muscular hypertrophy (growth). The passage in the book reads: "This response occurs whenever a tissue is required only to increase its activity as regards a function to which it is already adapted at the onset, as, for instance, when a muscle is forced to perform more than the usual amount of mechanical work." As far as the role of genetics is concerned, Dr. Selye notes, "The evolution of our tissues from infancy to adulthood appears to be primarily by the laws of heredity, but it is also manifestly dependent upon the demands that we must face, that is, stress." He speaks of stress as an equalizer in terms of our activities, and cautions against overdoing it. "This situation is quite comparable to that of a country which, when attacked on one front only, can send all its armies to the endangered region, but cannot do so when several frontiers are simultaneously invaded." I have discussed with clients and readers of this blog the importance of having purpose and a reason to get up every day, and caution against retiring early. Dr. Selye says, "Many a valuable person, who could still have given several years of useful work to society, has been made physically ill and prematurely senile by the enforced retirement at an age when his requirements and abilities for activity were still high. This psychosomatic illness is so common that it has been given a name: retirement disease" (author's emphasis).

"The Stress of Life" is not an easy book to read; it took me several weeks to finish. It can be very technical at times, but Dr. Selye does break the monotony by giving numerous real-life examples and stories from his work. Overall, I thought it was a very useful book that gave me a better understanding of some aspects of the body's stress response. Additionally, it reinforced some knowledge that I already had. Each section of the book has a summary, so it gives the reader a heads up about what will be discussed in the next few chapters if they would like to skim the material or skip ahead. However, if you're feeling bold read it in its entirety. Simply finishing the book is a big accomplishment. Even though "The Stress of Life" was published 50 years ago, it still gives us insight into the pioneering work of Dr. Hans Selye, and its impact continues to resonate today.

Personal development and growth should be a lifelong pursuit. You might be surprised to learn that Van Halen frontman David Lee Roth is an avid reader, something that was encouraged by his parents during his childhood. "Diamond Dave" values learning and once said that he didn't want to be the same guy at the end of a tour that he was when he got on the bus before hitting the road. Having a learning mindset and a positive attitude are significant attributes in terms of achieving personal growth in any endeavor. All of us have areas in which we are strong as well as room for improvement. I am certainly not immune to personal weaknesses; I know that I must consistently work on my patience and active listening skills. During football season I often achieve less than adequate sleep (especially on Friday nights) and try to balance too many balls in the air, but each season I coach I get a little bit better at it.

If you are taking the time to read this article, it is likely that you recognize certain areas where you need to improve. This is healthy and demonstrates a level of self-awareness that many folks do not possess. Honest self-assessment is important, but you should also take the time to recognize the good habits you have created and the things you do well. In life we usually learn more from our defeats than we do from our victories, but celebrating even small wins serves as positive reinforcement. Everybody likes to feel appreciated.

Every Total Results client has certain exercises they dislike more than others. It could be that they don't perform as well on those exercises as they would like, or because the systemic effect of some of the larger movements make things unpleasant. We structure our workouts in a systematic fashion so that we can give equal attention to the upper and lower body, balance horizontal and vertical pushing and pulling movements, and work in the sagittal, transverse, and frontal planes. Unless certain exercises are causing injurious pain, we will continue to incorporate them into your workout because we want you to develop symmetrically. Take the time to find out how you can improve your performance on exercises that are difficult. Listen, absorb, and try to implement the feedback you receive from your instructor. Periodically looking over your progress chart can provide some positive reinforcement. Just adding two pounds or a few seconds in time under load may not seem like much, but it can add up over time.

Be honest with yourself; are you really giving your best effort every time? Only you can look at yourself in the mirror and answer that question. You should not expect to break records or compare yourself to someone else; it is far better to focus on what you can control than things you cannot. There are many factors that are within your control that will give you the best chance for success, such as proper sleep, optimal hydration, and stress management. If your diet is a weak point, Total Results can help! If you want to build muscle (which I am assuming you do, or you would not be here) you should start by consuming one gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. How is your mental approach to each session? Is your mind scattered when you arrive for your workout, or are you able to put everything aside for twenty minutes and focus on the task at hand? Life happens and nobody lives in a vacuum. If focusing is a problem for you, start by putting your phone away for the ten minutes prior to your session and simply think about giving your best effort on every exercise of your upcoming workout. Visualize success in "emptying the tank." If focus is a point of strength for you, keep doing what you're doing.

Do not be content with being good; see what you can do to become even better! There is always room for improvement. Tom Brady was a seven time Super Bowl winner, won three MVP awards, and was named first team All-Pro three times, yet never stopped trying to improve until the day he hung up his cleats. Keep doing the things that you do well, yet always be on the lookout for ways to improve your weaknesses. Growth should never stop!

Merriam-Webster defines the word potential (noun) as, "ground for expectation of success, improvement, or excellence." What does this mean in the context of high-intensity exercise? The concept of success means different things to different people, and new clients come to Total Results with a variety of goals that they would like to achieve. I often use the term "genetic potential," which might initially sound vague. Each of us was dealt a genetic hand of cards at birth; half of your genes came from each of your parents. Many of us, based on genetics, have a predisposition to things like heart disease, diabetes, or cancer, but that doesn't guarantee that we will suffer from any or all of these diseases. Lifestyle goes a long way toward determining your ultimate outcome, and at Total Results we want to give you the tools to succeed in maximizing your genetic potential.

What does it take to achieve your best possible outcome? One invaluable weapon is a positive attitude - it doesn't cost anything. Life throws many things at you that are out of your control, but how you respond is a choice. Show up for your workouts week in and week out with enthusiasm, not drudgery. While I find our workouts physically and intellectually stimulating, I realize that not everyone sees it the way I do all the time. Accept the challenge with a positive mindset and understand you will be in discomfort for about twenty minutes. No growth of any kind - be it spiritual, intellectual, or physical - is possible without experiencing discomfort.

In order to reach your ceiling you will need a willingness to learn and be coachable. Most people who want to accomplish something meaningful will possess a desire to improve, and it is important that we provide meaningful markers of progress along the way. Although showing up consistently is important, there is more to it than just being present. You have to want to learn, but also understand that this is a process and does not happen overnight. Putting distractions aside and being locked in for the entirety of your workout will pay dividends. There is a learning curve to understanding our protocol and philosophy, and creating good habits is a step-by-step endeavor.

Give great effort - it is a key component of success no matter what you do! When we talk about effort in exercise, attention to detail is included in the mix; this includes speed of movement, pacing, and turnaround technique, but it also means pushing to and beyond the point of muscular failure. Intensity can be defined as inroad/time, and greater effort translates into a more significant muscular, metabolic, and cardiovascular stimulus. Have it in your mind that although you will encounter discomfort, you are mentally strong enough to work as hard as you possibly can for one to three minutes in each exercise. You will feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment when the workout is over.

Be consistent. Our most successful clients are the individuals who make it a point to be here every week. If you cancel or reschedule frequently, or consistently show up late, you may need to reevaluate your priorities and your schedule. This must be important to you. No matter how busy you are, you can fit less than one hour of exercise into your week.

Don't overdo it with additional activity. Yes, human beings were designed to move, and I believe that a sedentary lifestyle should be avoided. However, your body has finite recovery resources, and as we age it takes longer to recover. Some moderate activity shouldn't disrupt your progress, but pounding the pavement running every day, or playing pickleball for three hours at a clip is going to negatively impact your ability to get the most out of your Total Results workouts. No other form of physical activity can do for you what Total Results workouts can do.

Eat protein. This is the raw material that your body needs to grow muscle. There is considerable debate about how much protein one should consume per day. I recommend starting with 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight, and increase as needed. You can find out your weight in kilograms by taking your body weight in pounds and dividing by 2.2. I also suggest that you divide your protein intake evenly across your meals, rather than eating the lion's share in one meal.

Commit to yourself! Believe in what you are doing and don't give yourself an out. Be all in or not at all. Let Total Results help you reach your potential.

As the old saying goes, necessity is often the mother of invention. We often wait for just the right time to begin something: to learn a new skill, to save for retirement, to change our habits, or to start an exercise regimen. Artistically inclined people often speak about a moment of inspiration that spurred them to write a song or create a painting, and perhaps that does happen for some folks. It has been my experience that there are very few occasions when a "perfect time" will ever present itself. Life is full of numerous hidden opportunities; sometimes you just have to plow ahead and create one for yourself instead of waiting for something to happen. Procrastination leads to inertia; it's time to attack the day and do something meaningful. The perfect time is right now!

It starts with adopting a different mindset. The perfect time is right now! Gone are the days of making excuses and accepting less than you deserve. The power of positive thinking is far stronger than most people realize. In his classic book "The Magic of Thinking Big," author David J. Schwartz says, "Believe big. The size of your success is determined by the size of your belief." Others will not believe in you until you believe in yourself. There is documented evidence that people who write down their goals and regularly see them on paper are far more likely to achieve them than people who do not. If you can visualize success, you can go out and earn it. There is much that occurs in life that is outside our control, but two things that we have absolute power over are our attitude and our effort. Choose the way you want to respond to the adversity that life is bound to throw your way.

The perfect time to start exercising at Total Results is right now. You have wanted to incorporate high-intensity weight training into your lifestyle, but it just doesn't feel like the right time. You may be busy with work, family, and other commitments. Many people like to wait until January to make a New Year's resolution. It is early September; why wait another four months? If you keep waiting, you can always find another excuse to procrastinate. You might also say, "Total Results sounds hard; I don't know if I'm ready for that." Give yourself some credit; it's time to adopt a can-do mentality. Yes, our workouts are challenging; stimulating lasting physical change requires effort. Your body will adapt to the demands of the workout, probably faster than you thought. You have 168 hours in a week; Total Results workouts take up less than one of those hours. Think about that and allow it to sink in.

Start the next exercise of your workout right now. Some clients will inadvertently (or purposely) delay between exercises because they are fatigued. Your arms and legs are shaking, and your lungs are burning; you would love to catch your breath before your next exercise. But the time to get going is right now! Sure, you might achieve a higher time under load on your next exercise if you rested for a minute or two, but that's not the main objective of exercise. Our main objective is thorough systemic inroad. The sooner you start, the sooner you finish the workout, and moving quickly between exercises ensures optimal metabolic and cardiovascular conditioning. In this way, Total Results exercise is more "cardio" than steady state activity. These effects can be felt long after you complete your session. No matter how tired you are, find a way to start the next movement as quickly as you can. The reward comes at the end when you are finished; it is likely to be the most challenging physical activity you perform all week.

The time to start your workout is right now. Punctuality is key; intentionally or unintentionally, it speaks volumes about your level of readiness and how important this is to you. If you consistently show up late or reschedule your appointments, you may need to reexamine your schedule and level of commitment. Have a sense of urgency; for the next half hour, this is the most critical thing you need to accomplish. If your session starts at 10, don't wait until 10 to leave your car and start walking toward the studio. It's not only okay to show up early, we strongly encourage it! Do whatever you feel is necessary to be mentally ready to give your best effort, but let's start promptly.

It all begins with a single step. Just scheduling a session will put you on the right path. Nobody knows when their time is up, and nothing is more expensive than regret. Do not wait any longer. The perfect time is right now.

People often hear that a Total Results workout usually lasts about twenty minutes and think that it is simple or easy. I don't know if simple is the right word, but we certainly don't want to overcomplicate things. Easy? Definitely not! On the other hand, some folks who are steeped in more traditional (outdated) thinking swear that you cannot accomplish anything meaningful in only twenty minutes. These are individuals who believe that if some is good, more is better. If that is the case, why limit the amount of time you spend exercising? This is where the volume training approach falls woefully short from a physiological perspective. Don't judge the philosophy simply based on the amount of time spent exercising. Sure, less than one hour per week is a relatively small time investment, but it is important to look beneath the surface in order to understand what really takes place.

The main objective of high-intensity exercise is to stimulate a growth mechanism. The intensity of effort must be significant enough for the body to interpret what is happening as an existential threat to its existence. Bear in mind that you are not actually in any danger, but the eventual occurrence of momentary muscular failure causes the body to cross over a threshold that stimulates a growth mechanism. This is what sets the table for physical improvements to take place. By reaching muscular failure, we have assured ourselves that we have done everything possible to send a strong message to the body. If we eat, hydrate, and rest properly between workouts, then the body will respond to this stimulus by building muscle, improving bone mineral density, strengthening connective tissue, maintaining insulin sensitivity, and enhancing metabolic and cardiovascular conditioning.

Over the years, potential clients have contacted us to ask about our program, and when they learn that our workouts last twenty minutes their first instinct is that it is due to convenience, or that it is something that we can "just get away with." Neither of these viewpoints is correct; a twenty minute workout is actually a biological necessity! We perform twenty minute workouts for numerous reasons. First, there is an inverse relationship between intensity of effort and time spent exercising. The more efficiently and deeply you inroad (fatigue) your skeletal muscle, the less time you can actually spend working out. You can sprint, or you can run a marathon, but you cannot sprint a marathon. Second, exercise has a narrow therapeutic window; this means that there is a small margin between too much exercise and not enough. Too little exercise does not adequately stimulate positive change, and overdoing it can lead to illness and/or injury. We want to optimize the dose/response relationship, in much the same way that doctors prescribe (or should prescribe) medication. It is important to perform as little exercise as necessary to stimulate physical improvements without overtaxing the body along the way. This brings me to my third point: recovery resources are finite. It is much easier to overtrain than you think, even if you are relatively young and healthy. If you are using proper form, pushing to and beyond muscular failure, and moving briskly between exercises, you will largely deplete your glycogen (stored carbohydrate in the muscles and liver) stores by the end of your session. Replenishment of glycogen and muscle tissue repair typically require a minimum of a few days, and that is assuming that you aren't performing any other vigorous activity in addition to your Total Results workouts. We keep a detailed record of every workout, and if we notice that your performance is leveling off or going backward, it is probably wise to reduce your training frequency, volume, or both. Many of our longer tenured clients only exercise once a week, and that is their optimal training frequency based on recovery factors.

Another factor to consider is the release of cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone produced by your adrenal glands that reduces inflammation, regulates your sleep-wake cycle, manages blood sugar levels, and regulates the body's 'fight-or-flight" response. Longer workouts trigger a greater release of cortisol, which can have a negative impact on performance and lead to general fatigue and overtraining. This is another reason to keep your workouts brief, intense, and infrequent. Finally, shorter workouts enable you to more effectively maintain your focus. A Total Results session requires tremendous concentration, not only to achieve the best possible stimulus, but also to maximize your safety. It is much easier to laser in your focus and be in the correct mental state for twenty minutes than for an hour or more. This gives you the best possible chance for success.

Everything that we do has a purpose, from the selection and sequence of exercises, to the studio environment and temperature controls. This whole experience is far more than what it appears to be on the surface. Don't believe in the oversimplification of what others are putting forth. Start reaping the benefits of high-intensity Total Results workouts today. It will be the best twenty minutes you have ever invested.