Building Capacity!

Today as I was about three quarters of the way through my daily StairMaster session, I noticed that I was not even fully warmed up until then.  I finally felt warmed up 3/4s of the way through the entire session.  This should speak loudly to you if you have not spent much time on a StairMaster.  I was talking to my friend a few days ago on the phone, and encouraged him to become a master of the StairMaster, which I felt would enable him to easily tackle any other type of exercise in the gym with ease.  The reason I made this statement is because I notice how much stronger my heart gets when I use the StairMaster on a regular basis.  Like today, not really feeling warmed up until I was three quarters of the way through the 45 minute session at level 10 in interval training mode.  What will my heart's capacity be in another week to deliver oxygen to my muscles.  The heart is indeed a muscle that needs to be trained to become stronger and since the heart is responsible for pumping blood to your muscles, which need the oxygen from your blood to function in an aerobic mode of training, it makes sense that you need a strong heart to do other types of exercise.  12 months ago when I was training for the transformation challenge, I wore a heart monitor on my wrist with a wireless chest strap and sensor.  I noticed that as I lifted weights my heart rate would go up to about 140 beats per minute and then when I finished a lifting set, my heart rate would go back down to 100 fairly fast.  That was how I gauged when I was ready to do the next lifting set, which took about one minute between sets.  Intensity is partly determined by how much rest you get between sets and in order to be ready to do an additional set with only a minute's rest between sets, you must have a very strong heart which can pump enough oxygen carrying blood to your muscles to enable your muscles to recover from the previous set.  I also notice I get less winded while doing leg presses the more I use the StairMaster.  This speaks loudly to me.  Tom Platz is known for having some of the most amazing legs in the history of bodybuilding.  Tom Platz used a lot of volume in his leg training to get the amazing legs he built.  Volume of training is obviously important to build extraordinary muscle strength and development.  If you have eaten properly, which gives your body the fuel it needs to function, you should not get tired if you are in good physical condition.  If you are in good physical shape your body will naturally crave the time you spend in the gym or doing some other form a regular physical activity.  Your mind will crave the physical activity as well, because of the positive healthy chemicals that are produced by your body as a result of vigorous physical activity.  I speak from A LOT of experience, so don't blow me off here!  Try it and see for yourself.  You will thank me later!

I noticed a couple of days ago that people who graduated with me in high school for the most part look 20 years older than I do now.  I think that is largely due to not getting enough physical activity on a regular basis.  It is sad to think that so many people are robbing themselves of feeling the best they can by simply not making the daily investment of getting regular vigorous physical activity.  I encourage you to take control of your life starting today!  Do the best you can with what you have to work with.  Take your life seriously.  You deserve to be the best you can be.  In the Bible God encourages us to approve things which are excellent.  Being in the best physical condition you can be in is obviously something of excellence, so take God's advise even if you don't want to listen to me...LOL!  God is good and God is love!

The rest of us are in training.

Peace,

Steven Brick