Weekly Recap 9/28 - 10/5

Here’s what we are reading, watching, and liking.

The article of the week is a study on the principle of specificity in training and how it is not always an ironclad rule. The video of the week is another video from Alan Thrall of Untamed Strength about the different factors that go into scheduling workouts, especially as a busy coach.

Our first social media post of the week is from Stronger By Science about Pre Vs Post Workout Creatine Supplementation and its implications in longer studies. To conclude, we have a post from Astrid, the anti-diet dietitian about adaptive thermogenesis and the components to TDEE.

Article of the Week

Bench Press Range of Motion: An Exception to the Principle of Specificity?

ne of the first things you learn about when you start consuming strength training content is the principle of specificity. The principle of specificity has wide-reaching implications, but one of the well-known applications is range of motion specificity: you gain the most strength in the range of motion you train for. In other words, if I want to improve my deep squat, I’d want to do deep squats, but if I want to improve my half squat, I’d be better off doing half squats.

However, we need to keep in mind that the principle of specificity is more of a strong heuristic rather than an iron-clad law of the universe. Sometimes, it doesn’t apply. And when it doesn’t, we can learn something by thinking through the factors that may be able to “override” such an important principle.

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Video of the Week

Instagram Posts of The Week

From our intern @jackquintfitness. Give him a follow! Creatine monohydrate is a popular supplement that has been shown to increase strength and hypertrophy with long-term supplementation. However, it is unknown whether timing its consumption around the workout impacts adaptations from resistance training. This study sought to determine whether taking creatine pre- vs. post-workout impacted body composition and strength gains following a short-term resistance training program. 19 young, amateur male bodybuilders were randomly assigned to a group consuming 5g of creatine pre- or post-workout. Subjects in the study followed a four-week bodybuilding program, five days per week that was similar to a push-pull-legs split. The program was periodized for repetitions across the four weeks (i.e. sets of 5 week 1, sets of 10 week 2, etc.), however it is unclear how load was progressed across each exercise. Outcome measures included fat-free mass (FFM) and strength, which were measured via BodPod and 1RM bench press, respectively. Results demonstrated that while there were no statistically significant differences between groups in either measure, the post-workout supplementation group tended to experience greater gains in FFM. While this study found a modest benefit in favor of post-workout creatine supplementation in comparison to pre-workout supplementation, it should be interpreted cautiously. This is one of just a handful of studies directly comparing pre- to post-workout creatine supplementation, and therefore more research is needed in this area to replicate these findings. Given the slow time course of muscle hypertrophy, it'd be particularly helpful to see these results confirmed in a longer trial. This would theoretically allow for more divergent hypertrophy patterns to emerge over time, if creatine timing truly has an effect. For now, it seems likely that it is most important for a lifter to prioritize simply supplementing with creatine on a regular basis regardless of timing (previous research hasn't found issues with achieving saturation), though there may be a SLIGHT benefit for consumption close to the workout, particularly in the post-workout period.

"I̠s̠ M̠e̠t̠a̠b̠o̠l̠i̠c̠ A̠d̠a̠p̠t̠a̠t̠i̠o̠n̠ K̠e̠e̠p̠i̠n̠g̠ Y̠o̠u̠ F̠r̠o̠m̠ L̠o̠s̠i̠n̠g̠ W̠e̠i̠g̠h̠t̠?"⠀ Follow @antidiet_dietitian 🥝⠀ ⠀ Background Adaptive Thermogenesis or commonly referred to as "Metabolic Adaptation" refers to changes in the metabolic rate during caloric restriction aimed to conserve energy. In other words, it's the body's response to either overfeeding or underfeeding to speed up or slow down our Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE)⠀ ⠀ When we diet (calorie deficit), our body's self-defense system tends to protect the body by altering the metabolic rate & adapt to prevent starvation. Therefore, it could be of great insight to determine whether adaptive thermogenesis measured during the early phase of caloric restriction (i.e. within a week) predicts subsequent changes in body weight & composition in healthy, overweight/obese subjects⠀ ⠀ Objective⠀ Heinitz et al. aimed to identify metabolic determinants of weight loss during caloric restriction. The researchers hypothesized that a greater extent of metabolic adaptation observed within the first week of caloric restriction would relatively decrease in 24h Energy Expenditure in response to underfeeding would result in: ⠀ ❇less weight loss⠀ ❇less total daily energy deficit⠀ ❇Correlate with changes in circulating hormones involved in energy homeostasis.⠀ ⠀ Conclusion⠀ Results showed that metabolic adaptation as early as after one week of caloric restriction, impacted daily energy balance during caloric restriction and predicted the extent of weight loss.⠀ ⠀ But what does that mean?⠀ These results indicate that longer-term weight loss outcomes in individuals undergoing caloric restriction may be in part driven by early adaptive thermogenesis to reduced daily caloric intake. Also, it shows how non-voluntary movements (NEAT) seem to be the most adaptable component of TDEE⠀ ⠀ Takeaways (see slides)⠀ ⠀ ⠀ 🔱HOW FAST WHEN IN CALORIE DEFICIT YOU START FEELING SOME SIGNS OF METABOLIC ADAPTATION?⠀ ⠀ 🙏COMMENT BELOW & SHARE WITH A FRIEND ❤🤗