Logan Steele
The human body is incredibly adaptable and will respond to the stresses placed upon it by exercise. This is known as the principle of progression, which states that as your body adapts to a workout, you must increase the intensity to continue to see enhanced fitness. The body will always try to work as efficiently as possible and return to a state of balance, and this is why it is important to vary your workouts and incorporate progression. The type of exercise undertaken will influence the type and magnitude of adaptation in the neuromuscular system. For example, endurance training will cause specific changes that target aerobic metabolism and improve fatigue resistance, while strength training will cause muscle adaptations such as increased myofibrillar protein synthesis, leading to increased muscle size, strength and power. The body will also undergo immediate and long-term adaptations, and after four weeks or more of regular exercise, you may be able to see improvement in your physical health, as well as in other areas of your life, such as productivity, less sick days and improved mood.
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What You'll Learn
Anaerobic physiological adaptations
Anaerobic training includes high-intensity training methods where the energy source is not dependent on the use of oxygen. The body undergoes a multitude of physiological adaptations with consistent anaerobic training, with virtually every body system affected.
Neuromuscular Adaptations
Neuromuscular adaptations are seen early in training, typically after 6 to 10 weeks. They occur "along the neuromuscular chain", meaning they begin at the central nervous system and progress outward, toward the muscle spindles. There is an increase in activity in the motor cortex of the brain, which leads to an increase in the level of force developed and a greater ability to learn new movements. Changes within the spinal cord increase the ability to recruit motor units, which fire more frequently. This includes an increase in muscle fibre size, which means that less stimulus is needed to activate motor units. The rapid nerve firing of the motor nerves to the muscle fibres leads to muscle hypertrophy and increased spindle sensitivity. Both of these adaptations improve muscular strength and power.
Muscular Adaptations
The most popular adaptation is muscle hypertrophy, or muscle growth via increased cross-sectional area or size of the muscle fibres. This is achieved by optimising the levels of myosin and actin, the proteins that facilitate muscle movement on a microscopic level. Anaerobic training increases the production and decreases the degradation processes of these proteins. It also leads to an increase in the number of myofibrils, another component of the muscle cell. Other muscular adaptations include improved calcium release and increased buffering capacity. Calcium is the main regulatory and signalling molecule in all muscle fibres, and improved release improves the muscles' ability to use it. An increased buffering capacity helps the body fight muscle fatigue despite lactic acid accumulation.
Cardiovascular Adaptations
The cardiovascular system responds rapidly to anaerobic exercise, increasing heart rate, stroke volume, cardiac output, blood flow to muscles, and systolic blood pressure. These responses help ensure that sufficient oxygen is delivered to the muscles via the blood. With anaerobic training, the cardiovascular response is decreased both at rest and with activity.
Endocrine Adaptations
Anaerobic training can improve the acute response to exercise, ensuring that hormones are released promptly for the body to perform at a high capacity. However, long-term anaerobic training may elicit counterproductive endocrine adaptations. There is no evidence that anaerobic training has a consistent impact on resting hormone levels, but it has been shown to produce lower amounts of testosterone and growth hormone by the same load, immediately following exercise.
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Neuromuscular adaptations
The human body undergoes both immediate and long-term adaptations in response to exercise. The type of exercise performed influences the nature and extent of neuromuscular adaptations. For example, endurance training (high repetition, low load contractions) leads to adaptations in the neuromuscular system that target aerobic metabolism and improve fatigue resistance. This is achieved through enhanced oxidative capacity and metabolic efficiency of skeletal muscle, including increased oxygen utilisation, oxygen delivery, and local substrate availability. On the other hand, strength training (low repetition, high load contractions) causes muscle adaptations such as increased myofibrillar protein synthesis, resulting in potential increases in muscle size, strength, and power.
The principle of progression states that as your body adapts to a workout, you must increase the intensity or change your routine to achieve greater strength and endurance. This can be achieved by gradually increasing weight, duration, or intensity, or by changing exercises. This overload principle is key to progression, as it ensures the intensity of the exercise is high enough to stimulate the desired physiological adaptations.
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Hormonal changes
Hormones are chemicals that coordinate various functions in the body by carrying messages through the blood to organs, skin, muscles, and other tissues. They are essential for life and health. The human body uses hormones for two types of communication. The first type is between two endocrine glands, where one gland releases a hormone that stimulates another gland to change the levels of hormones it releases. The second type of communication is between an endocrine gland and a target organ, such as when the pancreas releases insulin, which acts on the muscles and liver to help process glucose.
Hormones play a key role in muscle adaptation. For example, testosterone is a primary anabolic hormone in muscle adaptation following exercise training, interacting with anabolic signaling pathways and other hormones via the androgen receptor. Estrogen also has a significant effect on musculoskeletal function, directly affecting the structure and function of muscle, tendon, and ligament. In these tissues, estrogen improves muscle mass and strength and increases the collagen content of connective tissues. However, in tendons and ligaments, estrogen decreases stiffness, which affects performance and injury rates.
There is also evidence that resistance exercise and training lead to hormonal responses and adaptations. For example, moderate-intensity resistance training and cardiovascular exercise in women have been linked to beneficial effects on testosterone and progesterone levels. However, high-frequency and high-intensity exercise, combined with inadequate recovery and caloric intake, can lead to a decline in female hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, along with a chronic elevation of the stress hormone cortisol. This combination of hormonal changes can result in negative health consequences, such as anovulation, fatigue, and, in severe cases, amenorrhea (loss of the menstrual period).
Additionally, the type of exercise can influence nutritional requirements. For instance, walking requires minimal fuel, so women can benefit from fasted walking or lower-intensity movement. In contrast, heavy-weight training or long cardio sessions without food are unlikely to provide the expected benefits. Increasing protein intake, especially with age, can help mitigate age-related bone and muscle loss. Furthermore, creatine is essential for women with low estrogen, as it helps offset muscle loss during the luteal and menstrual phases and improves athletic performance and mood. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) can also help regulate cortisol levels during intense training, reducing the negative impact on hormones.
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Acute and chronic physiological responses
The human body's ability to adapt to external stimuli is remarkable. Acute and chronic physiological responses to exercise are essential to our ability to develop and improve our fitness and overall health.
An acute physiological response refers to the immediate reaction of one or more of the body's systems to exercise. For example, an increase in heart rate and respiration rate, the release of hormones, and increased neuromuscular activation are all acute physiological responses. These responses are vital for our ability to perform any physical activity, from getting out of bed in the morning to engaging in a rigorous workout routine.
Chronic physiological adaptations, on the other hand, refer to the long-term effects on the body's systems as a person sustains their exercise habit. These are the benefits gained over time through consistent exercise. An example of a chronic adaptation is an increase in muscle mass and a reduction in fat mass as long-term adaptations to resistance training. The body's ability to adapt and respond to the demands placed on its various systems is what enables us to exercise and improve our fitness.
The cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems are the two primary organ systems influenced by aerobic exercise. The acute response of the cardiovascular system to aerobic exercise is to maximise cardiac output and meet the metabolic demands of the musculoskeletal system. This is achieved through an increase in heart rate and oxygen delivery to the tissues. Chronic adaptations to aerobic exercise occur as a natural response to repeated bouts of exercise and prolonged training.
The principle of specificity states that only the system or body part repeatedly stressed will adapt to chronic overload. For instance, progressive resistance training stimulates muscle growth and improves strength by exercising a muscle close to its maximum force-generating capacity. This type of training relies on the overload principle, where the muscle is overloaded to stimulate growth and improve strength.
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Muscle soreness
There are several ways to ease post-workout muscle soreness. Firstly, it is important to stay hydrated before, during, and after a workout. Drinking 8 ounces of water for every 15 to 30 minutes of exercise is recommended. Additionally, gentle stretching before and after a workout can help prevent stiffness and improve recovery. Massaging sore muscles can also help relieve tension and restore blood flow. Cold therapy, such as ice packs or cold baths, can reduce inflammation and swelling for recent injuries or acute pain. On the other hand, heat therapy, such as heat wraps or warm baths, can be effective for older injuries or general tension by relaxing the muscles and improving blood flow.
To further enhance muscle recovery, it is important to ensure adequate nutrition. The body's protein synthesis and breakdown response post-exercise can be adjusted by altering the availability of certain nutrients. Consuming protein post-workout can help suppress protein breakdown and increase insulin levels, which aid in muscle recovery.
While muscle soreness is a common part of the process of building stronger muscles, it is important to distinguish between normal soreness and an overuse injury. If the pain persists for more than a few days or worsens despite rest, it may be a sign of a more serious issue that requires professional care.
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Frequently asked questions
The principle of progression states that once your body has adapted to a workout, you must change your routine to achieve greater strength and endurance. This can be done by increasing the weight, duration, or intensity of your training.
The body adapts to a new exercise in two ways: acute physiological response and chronic physiological response. Acute responses refer to immediate changes in the body's systems, such as an increase in heart rate. Chronic responses refer to long-term changes in the body, such as metabolic changes, increased endurance, and better utilisation of muscle glycogen and blood glucose.
Muscle adaptation helps to improve physical health, productivity, mood, and social and financial health. It also helps to prevent cardiovascular disease and regulate blood sugar and weight.
The adaptations to muscle are dependent on nutrition availability. The protein synthesis and breakdown response post-exercise can be adjusted by altering the availability of certain nutrients. Resistance training and amino acid ingestion increase protein synthesis.
It takes between two and four weeks of regular exercise to start seeing improvements in strength and fitness. After four weeks, you may notice further improvements in physical health, productivity, and mood.
