How To Train Your Central Nervous System - Unlock Your FULL Strength & Performance

Summary

This video explores the central nervous system's role in strength and performance, emphasizing that muscle training alone is insufficient. It explains the CNS's control over muscle fibers, the importance of motor units, and the size principle. The video advocates for brain training, including heavy lifting, explosive movements, and overcoming isometrics to enhance neural drive and muscle recruitment. It also discusses skill acquisition, neural pathways, and the significance of recovery to prevent CNS fatigue, ultimately highlighting the brain's adaptability in enhancing physical performance.

Takeaways

• 💪 The central nervous system (CNS), comprising the brain and spinal cord, is crucial for strength and performance as it controls muscle movement.
• 🏋️ Muscle fibers contract based on signals from the CNS, and individual fibers are binary, meaning they either contract fully or not at all.
• 🧠 The primary motor cortex in the brain contains a 'motor homunculus' that maps each neuron to a specific body part for movement control.
• 🔌 Motor units, groups of muscle fibers controlled by a single motor neuron, are activated based on the strength of the signal from the CNS.
• 📶 The size principle states that smaller, weaker motor units are recruited first, followed by larger, more powerful ones as effort increases.
• 🌱 Brain plasticity allows for the growth and adaptation of the motor cortex, enhancing control over muscles through practice and training.
• 🏃‍♂️ Training for strength involves sending stronger neural signals, which can be achieved through heavy lifting or explosive movements.
• 🤸‍♂️ Intramuscular coordination can be improved by practicing movements with high neural drive, like overcoming isometrics, to enhance muscle control.
• 🔄 Rate coding increases the volume of neural signals, allowing for greater motor unit recruitment and effort during exercise.
• 🎼 Learning new skills or refining movement patterns involves creating and strengthening neural pathways in the brain through repetition.
• 🧘‍♂️ Recovery is essential to prevent CNS fatigue and maintain performance, with chronic stress potentially impacting strength and skill.

Q & A

What is the primary focus of the video script?

The video script primarily focuses on the role of the central nervous system (CNS) in muscle control, strength, and performance, and how training can be optimized to improve these aspects.

What does the central nervous system comprise of and what is its role in the body?

The central nervous system comprises the brain and spinal cord. It is responsible for our thoughts, memories, personality, and for sending signals to move the body, which are then relayed to the peripheral nervous system for conscious control.

How do muscle fibers contract and what role do myofilaments play in this process?

Muscle fibers contract by the action of myofilaments, specifically actin and myosin, which slide across each other, allowing the muscle cell to shorten as needed.

What is the motor homunculus and where is it located?

The motor homunculus is a map of the body located in the primary motor cortex of the brain, where each neuron corresponds to areas of the body that one may wish to control.

What is the significance of the motor units in muscle movement?

Motor units are groups of muscle fibers within a muscle that are all innervated by a single motor neuron. They play a crucial role in muscle movement by being the smallest contractile units that can be activated by signals from the CNS.

What is the Henneman Size Principle and how does it relate to muscle recruitment?

The Henneman Size Principle states that motor units are always recruited from the smallest and weakest first, with stronger and larger units being added as needed. This principle explains the order of motor unit recruitment based on the strength of the neural signal.

How does the brain adapt to new skills or movements?

The brain adapts through a process called brain plasticity, where the areas of the brain responsible for controlling new skills grow and thicken, increasing gray matter and cortical thickness, allowing for better control and coordination.

What is the role of rate coding in increasing the volume of a signal for muscle contraction?

Rate coding refers to the process where more rapid signals cumulatively stimulate the motor neurons to fire, allowing for an increase in the volume of the signal as effort increases.

What is the significance of 'greasing the groove' in skill acquisition and how does it work?

'Greasing the groove' is a training method that involves practicing a movement repetitively without incurring unnecessary fatigue. It helps to reinforce neural pathways and improve movement efficiency and skill.

How does the CNS respond to overtraining and what are the implications for performance?

Overtraining can lead to acute CNS fatigue, which is temporary and recovers within a few hours. However, chronic overtraining can lead to a heightened state of stress affecting performance and general health, although this is more related to the autonomic nervous system.

What are overcoming isometrics and how do they benefit CNS training?

Overcoming isometrics involve pushing or pulling against an immovable object, which helps in practicing the maximum neural signal for motor unit recruitment. This method is beneficial for CNS training as it allows for the development of stronger signals and improved muscle coordination.

Why is it important to include variation and unexpected elements in training?

Including variation and unexpected elements in training helps to build more robust movement patterns, allowing for better adjustment to precise movement patterns and enhancing the ability to cope with unexpected situations.

Outlines

00:00

💪 Understanding the Central Nervous System for Strength Training

This paragraph introduces the importance of the central nervous system (CNS) in strength and performance training. It explains that the CNS, consisting of the brain and spinal cord, controls muscle movement through signals to the peripheral nervous system. Muscle fibers contract based on signals from the brain, facilitated by the primary motor cortex's motor homunculus. The paragraph also delves into the concept of motor units, which are groups of muscle fibers controlled by a single motor neuron, and how they are recruited based on the strength of the neural signal. It highlights the size principle, which dictates the order of motor unit recruitment, and distinguishes between upper and lower motor neurons, emphasizing the adaptability and plasticity of the CNS in response to training.

05:01

📈 Rate Coding and Brain Plasticity in Strength Training

The second paragraph explores the concept of rate coding, where the frequency of neural signals increases with effort, allowing for greater motor unit recruitment. It discusses the limits of motor unit recruitment, noting that untrained individuals can only access a fraction of their available motor units, while trained athletes can recruit a larger percentage. The paragraph also touches on the idea of brain plasticity, where the CNS adapts by growing and thickening the areas responsible for frequently used muscles, leading to enhanced muscle control. It describes how learning new skills and practicing movements repeatedly creates new neural pathways and connections, improving movement efficiency and skill acquisition, and how this process is crucial for developing strength and coordination.

10:03

🏋️‍♂️ Training Techniques for Intramuscular Coordination and Movement Patterns

This paragraph focuses on practical training techniques to improve intramuscular coordination and movement patterns. It suggests that lifting heavy weights or training explosively can enhance the neural drive, allowing for the recruitment of more motor units. The text also introduces overcoming isometrics as a method for training the CNS, which involves pushing or pulling against immovable objects to practice maximum motor unit recruitment. Additionally, it discusses the concept of 'greasing the groove' for skill acquisition, recommending repetitive practice of movements to reinforce neural pathways. The importance of including variation in training to create robust movement patterns is emphasized, as well as the need to incorporate external stimuli to develop reflexive movement patterns.

15:05

🧠 Recovery and the Impact of CNS Fatigue on Performance

The fourth paragraph addresses the importance of recovery in preventing CNS fatigue and its effects on performance. It clarifies misconceptions about the chronic fatigue associated with CNS fatigue, explaining that it is more related to stress and autonomic nervous system responses rather than CNS changes. The paragraph discusses the acute effects of CNS fatigue and how it can be mitigated through recovery, emphasizing that overtraining can lead to a state of burnout affecting performance and health. It also touches on the potential for training to improve resilience to stress and high-level exertion, suggesting that certain training methods may enhance focus and attention under fatigue.

20:07

🚀 Conclusions and Practical Implications for Training

The final paragraph summarizes the key takeaways from the video, highlighting the importance of a nuanced approach to training that goes beyond brute force. It emphasizes the significance of treating strength as a skill that can be developed through practice and variation. The paragraph also mentions the potential benefits of incorporating overcoming isometrics and other advanced skills into one's training regimen to enhance overall body control and awareness. Lastly, it discusses the importance of considering individual experiences and the lived experience of fatigue in training, suggesting that a combination of finesse and understanding of the CNS's role in performance can lead to more effective training outcomes.

Keywords

💡Central Nervous System (CNS)

The Central Nervous System refers to the brain and spinal cord, responsible for initiating signals that control body movement. In the video, it is emphasized that the CNS is crucial for strength and performance, as it sends signals to muscles to contract. The script explains that training the CNS can lead to more efficient muscle use and greater strength, highlighting its importance in athletic performance.

💡Motor Cortex

The motor cortex is a region in the brain where the primary motor cortex contains a map of the body, known as the motor homunculus. Each neuron in this area corresponds to specific body parts that one may wish to control. The video script mentions that electrical impulses, or action potentials, from the motor cortex result in movement in the corresponding body part, illustrating the direct link between brain activity and physical movement.

💡Muscle Fibers

Muscle fibers are tiny muscle cells that can extend and compress together, allowing muscles to lengthen and shorten. The script explains that these fibers contain myofilaments made up of actin and myosin, which slide across each other to facilitate muscle contraction. The number of muscle fibers in a bicep is given as an example to illustrate the complexity of muscle structure and function.

💡Motor Units

Motor units are groups of muscle fibers within a muscle that are all innervated by a single motor neuron. The script describes how signals from the CNS do not act upon individual muscle fibers but rather upon these motor units. The concept of motor units is central to understanding muscle contraction and the recruitment of muscle fibers during movement.

💡Henneman Size Principle

The Henneman Size Principle is a theory in neurophysiology that explains the recruitment of motor units during muscle contraction. The video script mentions that motor units are recruited from smallest to largest as the neural drive increases, which means weaker signals activate smaller, more efficient motor units, while stronger signals recruit larger, more powerful ones.

💡Brain Plasticity

Brain plasticity refers to the brain's ability to change its structure and function in response to experiences and learning. The script uses the example of musicians, like cellists, who have physically larger areas in their motor cortex responding to their fingers, showing that the brain can adapt and grow in response to specific demands.

💡Rate Coding

Rate coding is a mechanism by which the CNS can increase the volume of a signal through more rapid firing of action potentials. The video explains that as effort increases, so does the rate coding, allowing for the cumulative stimulation of motor neurons to fire, which is essential for sustaining muscle contractions.

💡Intramuscular Coordination

Intramuscular coordination refers to the ability to control individual muscle fibers or groups of fibers within a muscle. The script discusses how training can improve this ability, allowing for more precise and efficient muscle contractions. This concept is linked to the idea of practicing movement patterns to enhance strength and control.

💡Greasing the Groove

Greasing the groove is a training method that involves practicing a movement or skill repeatedly with low intensity and high frequency. The video script suggests that this method is useful for learning and refining skills, such as performing handstands, by activating neural pathways repeatedly while allowing time for recovery between repetitions.

💡Recovery

Recovery in the context of the video refers to the restoration of the CNS and the body after strenuous exercise. The script discusses the concept of CNS fatigue and the importance of allowing the nervous system to recover to maintain performance levels. It also touches on the difference between acute and chronic fatigue, emphasizing the importance of rest and avoiding overtraining.

💡Overcoming Isometrics

Overcoming isometrics is a training technique where an individual pushes or pulls against an immovable object, such as a wall or thick rope. The video script explains that this method is effective for training the CNS to send maximum signals for motor unit recruitment, which can improve strength and power output.

Highlights

Training your muscle is not enough; focusing on the central nervous system is key to tapping into true potential.

The central nervous system, including the brain and spinal cord, controls muscle movement through signals to the peripheral nervous system.

Muscles are composed of muscle fibers with myofilaments made of actin and myosin, which slide past each other to contract the muscle.

The primary motor cortex in the brain contains a motor homunculus, mapping the body's areas to control.

Action potentials as electrical impulses result in muscle movement, lasting 10 to 100 milliseconds.

Motor units are groups of muscle fibers controlled by a single motor neuron, organized in size and type.

Henneman's size principle explains the recruitment of motor units from smallest to largest based on neural drive.

Upper and lower motor neurons are distinguished, with upper neurons in the motor cortex controlling the lower ones in the spine.

Brain plasticity allows for growth and adaptation in response to training, affecting motor skills and muscle control.

Intramuscular coordination and skill acquisition involve learning and repetition to refine movement patterns.

Greasing the groove involves practicing movements repetitively at lower intensity to reinforce neural pathways.

Overcoming isometrics, like pushing against an immovable object, helps train the nervous system for max output power.

Recovery is crucial to avoid chronic stress and burnout, which can affect performance and health.

CNS fatigue is more related to acute effects and recovers quickly, unlike previously thought chronic issues.

Training can improve focus and attention under stress and fatigue, enhancing psychomotor vigilance.

Strength is a skill that requires practice for optimal power and performance, beyond just muscle size.

The video is sponsored by Squarespace, a platform for building websites with ease and a wide range of features.

Transcripts

this video was sponsored by Squarespace

training your muscle will only get you

so far if you want to tap into your true

potential then you need to focus on what

actually controls that muscle the

central nervous

system all of us have a vague idea that

the central nervous system is important

for strength and performance but how

many of you actually know what it is how

it works and how to Target it in your

training to make it more

efficient keep watching and find out why

all all training is brain

training simply put your central nervous

system refers to your brain and your

spinal cord as well as being responsible

for our thoughts our memories and our

personality this is also where signals

to move the body originate and they are

then fed to the peripheral nervous

system allowing for conscious control

over our body your muscles are made up

of thousands of muscle fibers tiny

muscle cells that can extend and

compress together in order to length and

shorten the muscle and move the

corresponding joints they can do this

because they're made up of tiny

myofilaments these in turn are comprised

by actin and meios you don't need to

know the details but these proteins

essentially slide across each other

allowing the muscle cell itself to

shorten as needed when enough muscle

cells shorten the muscle

contracts note that individual muscle

fibers are binary they either contract

or they do not contract they can't

contract slowly and nor can they

contract halfway to give you a rough

idea the bicep contains somewhere

between 200,000 to 500,000 muscle fibers

but in order to contract those muscle

fibers you first need to send a signal

from the brain your intention to do so

inside the brain therefore is a region

known as the primary motor cortex this

contains a map of the body known as the

motor homunculus where each neuron

corresponds to areas of the body You may

wish to control an electrical impulse as

an action potential it results in

movement in the corresponding part of

the body note that each action potential

only lasts for around 10 to 100

milliseconds depending on the muscle in

question so in order to sustain a longer

contraction that actually requires the

continuous firing of multiple motor

neurons rather than just one for a long

time when you decide to bend your arm a

signal begins life at the corresponding

part of the motor cortex and then makes

it way down the spinal cord to the

neuromuscular Junction to act upon or

innovate the muscle in question but

here's the key thing to understand about

all of this the signal does not cause

the entire bicep to move and nor do

signals act upon the hundreds of

thousands of muscle fibers individually

instead they act upon the motor units

motor units being groups of muscle

fibers within a muscle that are all

innovated by a single corresponding

motor neuron these aren't discret little

bundles of fibers like you might imagine

but rather interwoven and Scattered

throughout the muscle seemingly at

random however the motor units are or

organized into smaller and larger groups

of muscle fibers to get big ones and

small ones likewise some consist of the

powerful type 2A and type 2x muscle

fibers whereas others are comprised of

these slower but more efficient type 1

fibers motor units do not mix their

fiber types as you may expect the number

of motor units in any given muscle

varies greatly depending on the muscle

in question and genetic variability

however the average bicep will contain

somewhere between 300 to 800 motor units

these being the the smallest contractile

units of the muscle the strength of the

signal sent from the brain will

determine how many motor units are

recruited at once weaker signals will

recruit only a few of these smaller

motor units as these have a lower

activation threshold but as the neural

drive or effort increases and the signal

becomes louder this will also be enough

to activate the larger and more powerful

motor units this means that motor units

are always recruited from the smallest

and weakest first with the stronger and

larger units being added as needed this

is Henman size principle I talk about it

all the time on this channel as I was

editing this one I realized that I

should probably mention the distinction

between the upper motor neurons and the

lower motor neurons so the upper motor

neurons are located in the motor cortex

and the lower motor neurons are located

in the spine but it's the upper motor

neurons that control the lower motor

neurons so this doesn't really change

anything just thought it would be useful

for you guys to know as we're trying to

make this a a complete description of

the central nervous system it's the

uppermost neurons that are organized in

that homuncular kind of shape and just

to explain that a bit more this isn't a

brain area it's just the way that the

motor neurons are organized which kind

of looks like this sort of misshapen man

because you have more motor neurons

representing parts of the body you have

more control over and fewer where you

have less control useful to know this

distinct from the sensory motor

homunculus which represents your

appropri perception and your feeling

they look kind of similar because you

tend to have more sensation in areas you

can control more but they're not exactly

the same seeing as action potentials are

binary you might now be wondering how

the volume of a signal can increase the

answer is rate coding that is to say

that more rapid signals are able to

cumulatively stimulate the motor neurons

to fire as effort increases so does the

rate coding where things get really

interesting is in noting that nobody can

recruit 100% of the motor units

available to them at once untrained

athletes in particular can recruit

somewhere from 30% to 75% of their motor

units maximum depending on the muscle in

question and again individual

differences trained athletes however can

recruit anything from 80 to 95% of the

motor units take these figures with a

grain of salt however as you'll see them

vary depending on the study but as you

can see adaptations within the nervous

system are what will lead to massive

increases in strength before training

you literally have huge motor units

capable of amazing strength within your

muscles that you can't access this goes

a long way to describing Noob gains but

it could also mean that you're missing

out on a a lot of potential strength

even after you've grown your muscles to

be bigger in size fascinatingly we know

that cellists for example have

physically larger areas in their primary

motor cores responding to their fingers

brain plasticity the ability of the

brain to change shape to adapt to the

requirements placed on it ensures that

these often used areas actually grow and

thicken the same is very likely true for

athletes as you learn to control more of

the muscle this would theoretically lead

to an increasing gray matter and

cortical thickness in that part of the

brain making your little motor

homunculus even more misshapen and even

more

buff think of this I can wiggle my ears

because I learned the muscle control

necessary to do so almost everyone can

do this because they have the necessary

muscles but it's through training and a

misspent youth that I was able to gain

control over those muscles the same

thing happens over specific motor units

throughout your skeletal muscle you can

move move your bicep but you can only

move part of it and thickening the

muscle fiber through hypertrophy

training won't change that we call this

process intramuscular

coordination there's another side to all

of this too motor patterns and skill

acquisition learning new skills does not

result in changes to the muscle all of

this resides in the brain and

specifically the motor cortex once again

as you repeat movements over and over

you create connections between different

parts of the motor map neurons that fire

together wire together literally

reaching out and forming new connections

to allow signals to cross from one to

the other thus new neural maps are

created corresponding to particular

movement patterns and reaching from the

primary motor cortex to the premotor

cortex which helps to plan and prepare

movement the supplementary motor cortex

which helps to initiate movement

sequences and coordinates the two sides

of the body the basil ganglia which

assists with voluntary movement and the

cerebellum which fine-tunes motor

actions the more you rehearse these

movements the more efficient the

pathways become repeated firing actually

insulates the pathways causing long-term

potentiation meaning that one neuron in

a sequence more readily innovates the

next pruning also occurs removing

unwanted connections take an untrained

athlete and asking to throw a punch and

you'll see a pattern in the brain that's

kind of fuzzy with the signal leaking

out into other neighboring regions

accordingly their whole body will be

somewhat tense they might hold their

breath they might be contracting their

bicep actually slowing down the movement

their shoulders will be up and tense I'm

describing myself here by the way even

if they know what to do consciously

it'll be very hard not to make these

mistakes because a strong enough signal

to throw a punch will light up unwanted

areas of the motor cortex in a trained

athlete however the the signal will be

much more precise and refined a trained

martial artist can throw a powerful

punch while keeping the rest of the body

entirely relaxed breathing completely

normally all the while the sequence may

also be wrong in the untrained

individual perhaps the hip turns too

late in the movement or the body doesn't

turn enough they have to actively

concentrate to get this part right on

all those things at once whereas it's so

ingrained for the professional as to be

like riding a bike literally because the

movement pattern is learned in just the

same way that riding a bike is crucially

though it's also possible to include

external stimuli in these movement

patterns which helps us to develop

reflexive movement patterns so for

example if someone kicks me low I tend

to use a lower block to stop it without

thought thanks to years of karate when

you ride a bike you take into account

feedback from your appropria setion an

equilibrio setion constantly adjusting

position to remain balanced on the bike

even as you nearly fall when you drive

you likely stop at a red light without

needing to consciously remember to do so

these neural pathways are so strong and

so ingrained in us that in some cases of

traumatic brain injury individuals who

have completely lost their memories are

still able to play the piano

flawlessly the premotor cortex plays a

particular role in movements Guided by

external

cues we call this kind of coordination

intermuscular

coordination okay so that's how the

central nervous system works and why

it's so important an for developing

strength and coordination but how do you

go about training it well if you want to

improve your intramuscular coordination

your ability to contract more of a

single muscle then you need to practice

sending a stronger and stronger neural

drive a stronger and stronger signal

with effort this means you need to lift

heavy and or explosively that's 80% of

your one rep max and above although some

studies suggest that this needs to go as

high as

95% when you lift lighter weights for

high rep ranges like a bodybuilder you

simply aren't sending the strongest

signal possible unless you also move

highly explosively this is one reason

that bodybuilders who lift for higher

rep ranges will not develop quite as

much strength as powerlifters they

simply don't practice it bodybuilding

isn't useless other very beneficial

adaptations occur such as developing

strength endurance and increasing the

Mind muscle connection sometimes between

lesser used muscles you know you want to

contract your obliques or whatever

[Music]

there's another way to train this Max

output power as well though and viewers

of this channel already know the answer

overcoming isometrics that means pushing

or pulling against an immovable object

trying to push down a wall or pull apart

a thick piece of rope bend a piece of

iron this works so well because it lets

you practice sending the maximum signal

from motor unit recruitment thus you get

better at sending that stronger signal

thanks to once again rain plasticity

unlike lifting a one rep max this also

allows you to send that maximum signal

from for longer the strength curve means

that only a small portion of a maximum

lift actually involves maximum strength

you know momentum plays a role and it

allows you to do all that without

creating as much muscle damage and

therefore without incurring such a high

recovery demand basically you can do it

more often I've made videos on this in

the past so I won't go into it in a lot

of depth here but this is one way to

train your nervous system specifically

I'd also recommend the channel No Limit

squad for a far more detailed

instruction on using over coming

isometrics overcoming isometrics can

also be useful in other ways for example

it actually encourages reciprocal

inhibition meaning it can teach you to

relax the antagonist muscles increasing

movement efficiency power output and

mobility and again this is due to

changes in the central nervous system as

for training the movement patterns the

key is simply to remember that strength

is also a skill and skills are learned

through repetition the goal here then is

to practice movements repetitively but

without once again incurring unnecessary

fatigue this is where greasing the

groove comes in very useful if you want

to learn to perform handstands perfectly

for example you need to put in the Reps

and the time just like playing the piano

and greasing the groove would mean

practicing a handstand every single day

and because handstands are more about

skill than strength if you train them in

that way doing just a couple of reps at

a time then you can actually get away

with doing this spacing the sessions out

throughout the day like this also has

other advantages specifically it allows

you to repeatedly activate the neural

Pathways while also giving them time to

reset in between repetitions this is

referred to as spaced learning and it's

more often used to refer to things like

revising for a test the same also does

apply here to the extent that if your

workout includes a skill like a

handstand it might make sense to

practice it three times through the

workout or your routine you know the

beginning middle and end rather than all

at once the same can also go for

practicing perfect squat technique using

a lighter weight than you would do

during training because you're

reinforcing those movement patterns

you're going to make the movement

stronger and more efficient so that when

you do add the weight back on at the gym

you'll therefore be better at moving it

repeating the same movement perfectly

over and over will help you to refine

your Technique more and more and this

becomes increasingly important for

skills-based movements like calisthenics

parkour gymnastics or martial arts but

even if you're not interested in those

things I recommend that everybody try

and learn some more advanced skills like

this simply because the body control and

awareness that it will give you through

the central nervous system will bleed

into everything else you do you'll move

more without holding your breath you'll

be able to control your scapula and your

pelvis and so much more but there are

two more elements to consider as well

one is that you don't want to only

rehearse perfect movements you also need

to add variation and unexpected elements

that might mean doing handstands on

uneven surfaces for example and the

reason for this is that it Alters the

inputs and it gives you more practice at

adjusting the precise movement patterns

as Nikolai Bernstein says it builds more

robust movement patterns this is another

concept I like to discuss ad nauseum but

that's because it's so important to

remember and it's so often overlooked I

recently discussed this on a podcast

with Gregory who has an excellent Kettle

bow Channel that I recommend Liber stuck

I recommend checking out the full video

but here's a clip that summarizes what

I'm talking about Nikolai Stein

neurophysiologist describes it as

creating more robust movement patterns

so like instead of making instead of

there being just one area one direct

line where you're really strong you've

got like a little bit of wiggle room

because you're used to moving in

slightly more Dynamic ways and um in the

in the book the brain that changes

itself there's a really good analogy

which is like when you're rehearsing a

movement it's like going down a ski

slope and if you take the exact same

route every time then you create this

really deep de Groove in the in the

slope which means amazing at going down

following that Groove but you're not

going to be able to go anywhere else

because that's all still thick snow

whereas if you take a slightly different

path every time you're you're creating a

a wide flat surface like he wasn't

talking about it in Fitness but it

priced so well and now and now you you

can make a slight mistake without being

at Serious injury because you're because

you've got those more robust uh movement

patterns and then that's that's exactly

what you're doing with something like a

kettle B one of the things that's so

cool about it is that it is slightly

different every time you are those

awkward angles but if you're learning

using a lighter weight to begin with

you're building up you know the motor

patterns you're building up the the

tendons the fascia the the supporting

muscles so that you can deal with the

slightly unexpected you know like when

my kid runs at me and leaps into me when

I'm squatting on the floor and I'm not

expecting it like she has no regard for

my health or safety and like but I can

usually cope with it because like and

it's also important to remember to

include the inputs in your practice if

you want to get good at hitting a ball

you need to practice hitting a ball not

just swinging the bat finally I want to

briefly touch on recovery and the

concept of frying your central nervous

system this is a big issue for athletes

who are worried that overtraining will

burn out their nervous system leading to

a complete loss of strength or just

massively decreased performance and this

is something that powerlifters typically

see in particular if they try and

increase the weight on their Max lifts

over a sustained period unless they want

to see a plateau or regression in

strength they need need to actively

recover as part of their workout but

it's important to consider the context

here this actually has very little to do

with the central nervous system new

research shows that while you can

fatigue the nervous system it's actually

a acute effect and it recovers within a

few hours maximum this is not a chronic

issue we know this from measuring the

strength of the signal at the

neuromuscular Junction after 30 minutes

to a few hours it's back to normal so

the signal is just as strong so why does

over training make you feel weaker why

do you feel like your nervous system is

spent well chances are that it's a lot

more akin to what we think of generally

as burnout chances are that it has more

to do with your autonomic nervous system

rather than your central nervous system

you know your fight or flight response

and your recovery that is to say that

over time placing too much Demand on

your nervous system means being in a

heightened state of stress for long

periods a high allostatic load that can

in turn have a cumulatively negative

effect for performance and General

Health essentially chronic stress isn't

good for you who'd have thought but this

can then lead to disregulation of the

HPA axis neurotransmitter depletion

potentially insomnia loss of motivation

and the accumulation of issues such as

injuries and even lowlevel infections

the truth is it doesn't really matter

what the precise mechanism is here what

matters is that you give yourself a

break and don't push yourself

continuously and the autonomic nervous

system and the central nervous system

are linked we know that chemicals like

adrenaline make us stronger allow us to

tap into greater recruitment of muscle

fiber so if you're completely spent and

burned out then you're not going to be

able to recruit as much strength if

you're very tired you're not going to

feel as strong it's very simple really

adrenal fatigue is not actually a

scientifically accepted term at the

moment but you know something like this

is happening you're exhausted from being

stressed all the time and you're not as

strong as a result it's not rocket

science can you train yourself to

improve resilience to long-term term

stress and high level exerion well many

believe it's possible and there's a lot

of evidence to suggest it is this is one

objective of military training and it's

also seen in the likes of the Bulgarian

method here athletes use their maximum

lifts daily and reportedly go through a

period of immense distress that they

refer to as the dark times before

emerging the other side often with

immense displays of strength I recommend

watching Alexander bromley's video on

CNS fatigue as it's very interesting

that's he talks about that one more

addendum it's interesting that the

studies also actually show that it's

endurance training that causes more

central nervous system fatigue so that

is to say that heavy lifting isn't quite

as fatiguing for the central nervous

system you know as as we thought that

said it's important to think about

people's lived experience here we know

that you can become very fatigued from

doing heavy lifting so it's always

something to bear in mind but really The

Chronic fatigue that we associate with

CNS fatigue has more to do with kind of

like the sort of tired might experience

after a very busy period of work than it

does with any kind of neurological

change affecting muscle

contractions but in the short term CNS

fatigue might actually be the problem if

you find that the fog is descending in

the latter rounds of a fight for example

that might be because your CNS truly is

fried the good news is that there's

evidence that you can improve this

capacity with training too as I've

described before J Santana trains his

athletes to improve their psychomotor

vigilance to do this this he trains them

to the point of fatigue and then has

them perform tasks that require Focus

things like dodging pool noodles chess

boxing might offer similar benefits and

again we see similar stress inoculation

training used by certain military groups

whether this kind of training results in

more efficient synapses increased

neurotransmitter receptor sites or some

alternative adaptation again it doesn't

really matter the result is the same we

can improve focus and attention under

stress and fatigue through training

so is this going to drastically change

your approach to training well this time

it might actually have a big impact I

hope if nothing else that shows that

Brute Force approaches to training

aren't always the most effective

sometimes a little more of finesse can

have a superior result it also should

show that it's not all about strength

you can move with power and Grace and

develop the reflexes of a ninja in a

manner completely divorced from strength

training I hope it's encouraged you to

just practice your movement and maybe to

incorporate over coming isometrics when

it does come to strength remember

strength is a skill treat it as such and

you can tap into some huge reserves of

power and

performance so hope you found this video

useful and interesting guys if you did

then please leave a like and share

around if you like this kind of training

that goes beyond just you know lifting

dumbbells to grow bigger biceps and

instead focuses on every aspect of human

performance from strength to endurance

to uh Focus then you might like my ebook

training program super functional

training 2.0 I'll leave a link in the

description down below there's a slight

discount on over summer but either way

really appreciate you guys watching and

I'll catch you next time bye for

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