Seth is now 9 months old. And I have video of his first foray into fitness coaching…below!

But I also have an insight that came up this week…

I lowered a client’s usual weights by 1/3. She commented right away how light the weights felt. But soon she was working every bit as hard as usual. Afterward, she commented in amazement that it felt just as challenging as always…it just took a bit longer to get there.

The Lesson: it’s not about where you start, it’s about where you finish. And we can deceive ourselves that heavier is harder; it is often easier! Let me explain…

A heavier weight is equally hard as a lighter weight at the end of the set–where it is toughest. They are equal in that you are trying as hard as you can, and you cannot move it. A heavier weight just gets you to this toughest part of the exerciser faster. And then you’re done!

So the difference between a set that lasts 3 minutes and one that lasts 90 seconds is that the 3-minute set includes everything you’d feel during the 90 second set…plus an additional 90 seconds before it. A lighter weight means more work.

Safety note…never use a weight that is too heavy for you to use safely. Make sure you feel no pain of any kind during the exercise, and also that the weight is not so heavy that you cannot continue in the effort for at least 90 seconds. The very reason we lowered my client’s weight by 1/3 was that she was recovering from an outside issue, and it was appropriate to use a lighter load this week.

Now, this all assumes that your exercise technique is excellent. If you have good technique, you can use just about any weight and get a good outcome. Even a weight you cannot move! (An isometric.) If you want to improve your technique, just email me or comment below and say, “I need help!” We can figure it out from there….I’ll gladly help direct you to resources I think will help.

To health and life,

Chad

P.S. Here it is…the video commentary from Seth: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSLatZKQuGc
Note: From now on, you must watch this commentary any time you wimp out during a workout!