If there’s one thing you want from your workouts, it’s results. In this article, we’ll dive into the transformative power of specificity and how it can help you better reach your fitness and performance goals. Whether you’re a beginner or a seasoned athlete, understanding and applying the science of specificity is your secret weapon for maximizing the results you get from your training.
What Is Specificity?
Specificity is tailoring your training to match the specific goals you want to achieve. It’s about designing workouts that closely mimic the movements, energy systems, and demands of your desired activity or objective.
To put fitness specificity into action, you must understand the SAID principle, which stands for Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. It states that your body adapts to the specific demands you place on it. Therefore, if you want to maximize fitness performance for a certain activity, like running, you should focus on running.
For example, if you want to improve your running speed, your training should focus on activities such as tempo runs, and hill sprints. By focusing your training on workouts that adapt to the specific demands of running, you’ll see improvements in your running performance.
The SAID principle also highlights the importance of working specific muscle groups and movement patterns. To strengthen your upper body, exercises that work upper body muscles like push-ups, pull-ups, and shoulder presses will yield better results than lower-body exercises.
Training Gains Are Specific to Your Training
By embracing the principle of specificity and incorporating it into your fitness routine, you can optimize your training efforts and accelerate your progress. Training specifically helps you to create a direct and purposeful pathway toward your goals, ensuring that your body adapts in the precise way you desire.
When it comes to adaptations to exercise, the human body is remarkably specific in its responses. While you may excel in one activity, such as running, it doesn’t guarantee the same level of proficiency in other activities, like mountain climbing. This specificity of adaptations is due to the unique physiological and biomechanical demands imposed by each exercise modality.
If your primary focus is running, your body undergoes specific adaptations that enhance your cardiovascular fitness, muscular endurance, and running economy. Your heart and lungs become more efficient at delivering oxygen to working muscles, your leg muscles develop endurance to withstand prolonged running, and your running form becomes fine-tuned over time.
However, when you venture into a different activity like mountain climbing, you may feel short of breath and exhausted despite your running prowess. This is because mountain climbing requires different skills and physiological adaptations. It involves more upper body strength, grip strength, balance, and the ability to navigate rugged terrains at varying inclines. The demands on your cardiovascular system, muscles, and coordination are distinct from those experienced during running.
Energy System Specificity
Specificity extends beyond the movements you perform or the muscles you target—it also applies to the energy systems you engage. Understanding and incorporating energy system fitness specificity into your training can unlock new levels of performance and endurance.
In the realm of exercise physiology, the body relies on different energy systems to fuel various activities. The three primary energy systems are the phosphagen system, the glycolytic system, and the aerobic system. Each system provides energy to different degrees depending on the intensity and duration of the activity.
To optimize your fitness and performance in a specific sport or activity, it’s crucial to train the relevant energy system. This means tailoring your workouts to mimic the energy demands of your desired activity.
For example, if you’re a sprinter aiming to improve your explosive power and speed, you would prioritize training the phosphagen system. This energy system relies on stored ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and creatine phosphate for quick bursts of energy. High-intensity activities lasting up to 10 seconds, such as sprinting or weightlifting, heavily depend on the phosphagen system. By incorporating short, intense bursts of exercise with adequate recovery periods, you can enhance the capabilities of this energy system.
On the other hand, if you’re training for a longer endurance event, like a marathon or cycling race, your aerobic system takes center stage. This energy system relies on oxygen to generate energy and sustain activity for extended periods. To improve aerobic fitness, focus your training on longer, steady-state activities, such as running, cycling, or swimming. By gradually increasing the duration and intensity of these workouts, you enhance your body’s ability to efficiently utilize oxygen and sustain endurance activities.
Additionally, the glycolytic system, which provides energy for medium-duration activities lasting a few minutes, can be trained through interval training or high-intensity interval training (HIIT) workouts. These workouts involve alternating periods of intense effort with recovery periods, challenging and improving the efficiency of the glycolytic system.
Align Your Workouts with Your Goals
By incorporating energy system fitness specificity into your training, you align your workouts with the demands of your chosen activity. This targeted approach allows you to optimize your body’s energy systems, leading to improved performance, endurance, and fitness.
Keep in mind that regardless of your chosen activity – be it sprinting, cycling, swimming, or any other physical pursuit – unlocking the secrets of the relevant energy systems can provide you with the competitive advantage necessary to soar to greater heights. So, tailor your workouts, accordingly, challenge your energy systems, and watch as your fitness and performance improves.
Specificity Also Applies to Strength Training
Neuromechanical specificity plays a crucial role in achieving optimal results from your strength training workouts. It refers to the neuromuscular and mechanical adaptations that occur in response to the specific demands placed on the body during strength training. It means your body adapts in a way that aligns with the types of exercises you perform.
To increase your squat strength, focus on exercises that target the muscles you use to squat – the quadriceps, glutes, and hamstrings. Squats and squat variations stimulate the neuromuscular system, enhancing strength and coordination for that specific movement pattern. Focus and reap the rewards.
Boost your upper body strength with exercises such as bench presses, pull-ups, and shoulder presses. These movements engage the muscles in your chest, back, shoulders, and arms, promoting neuromechanical adaptations for optimal upper body strength development. Embrace the challenge and unleash the power within.
Focus on form too. When your muscles are engaged in the most efficient and targeted manner, every rep becomes an opportunity for growth and progress. Your muscles respond with greater force and power, paving the way for enhanced strength development.
But it doesn’t stop there. Embracing neuromechanical specificity through proper technique also protects you from injury. When you move with precision, your joints align, muscles stabilize, and forces distribute harmoniously. This harmony not only enhances performance, but also safeguards against the risks of strains, sprains, and unnecessary setbacks.
Incorporate Specificity into Your Training
So, whether you’re aiming to improve your squat, deadlift, bench press, or any other strength-related goal, remember that training with neuromechanical specificity in mind is key. The same applies to training energy systems. By tailoring your training to target the specific movements and muscle groups you seek to improve, you can maximize your strength gains and achieve targeted results.
References:
“How to Use the Principle of Specificity for Exercise – Healthline.” 12 May. 2022, https://www.healthline.com/health/fitness/principle-of-specificity.
“What is the SAID Principle? – National Federation of Professional Trainers.” 01 Mar. 2013, https://www.nfpt.com/blog/what-said-says.
“SAID Principle | Athlepedia, The Athletics Wiki | Fandom.” https://athletics.fandom.com/wiki/SAID_Principle.
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