If you’re new to training or perhaps only been on your training journey for a short time, you may be a little unsure about the why’s and how’s of beginning to set out your program. Hans Selye was a Hungarian-Canadian endocrinologist. He produced a huge amount of work on stress during his lifetime 1907-1982, and by having some understanding of his General Adaptation Syndrome (G.A.S.) theory, you will be in a far better position to get yourself on track.
General Adaptation Syndrome G.A.S.
Selye distinguished and observed acute stress with chronically applied stressors, the latter named the General Adaptation Syndrome (G.A.S.) theory, which refers to how the body responds and adapts to stress placed on it. He called this type of stress “eustress” meaning good stress because the body can adapt and overcome it, becoming stronger and more robust as a process of it. The reason for this adaptation is the body’s desire to maintain balance in its internal environment known as “homeostasis”. Selye observed three phases of this syndrome: the alarm reaction, the stage of resistance and the stage of exhaustion.
The Alarm Reaction
This phase is when an external stressor triggers a cascade of physiological and psychological protective processes in the body. These include an increase in oxygen and blood supply as well as neural recruitment to the working muscles. At the start of your training journey, everything may appear to be challenging. Running starts off as brisk walks with bursts of jogging sprinkled in, and resistance training require lighter weights than you would have liked when you walked up to the weight rack. However, patience is key because, within a few weeks, these physiological adaptations begin to manifest strengthening bone, connective tissues and muscle. Gradually as you notice your jogging turning into running or the weights feeling lighter, you increase the pace or load, and this is where things get interesting. Now you start to notice the day after you’ve trained, the muscles feel sore and stiff. That feeling is known as Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (D.O.M.S) and is all part of the next phase. How much D.O.M.S you experience depends on the intensity of the workout/training session and the individual (D.O.M.S).
The Stage Of Resistance
Now your body has improved its functional capacity by increasing its efficiency to recruit muscle fibres and distribute oxygen and blood to the necessary areas in the body. Gradually now you will require an increased level of stress to improve/grow otherwise no further adaptations will take place and your body will have found “homeostasis”. If continued at a steady pace, further work will be met with less and less soreness so that performance can gradually advance and this is known as “resistance development”. As improvements become visible, a tendency to keep pushing too hard to the next goal creeps in and this leads to exhaustion.
The Stage Of Exhaustion
This stage is unfortunately far too easy to find yourself in, especially if you’re new to training. Early on in your training journey, your body can make many adaptations so you get too carried away, believing you can make even quicker progress. However, when a stressor is too much for any one of the physiologic systems to handle, it causes a breakdown or injury such as muscle strains, joint pain, emotional fatigue or stress fractures.
How do you avoid this? By using different training methods which must be cycled through at different stages of your training, this increaseS stress placed on the human movement system safely without overwhelming it. And IMPORTANTLY, allow for enough rest and recuperation periods as growth doesn’t happen during training, but when you are resting and asleep.
To Conclude
G.A.S. (General Adaptation Syndrome) refers to the body’s ability to adapt to exercise training stress and is scientifically recognised to be a “good stress” on the body.
When training is done in a safe, controlled manner, it leads to many beneficial adaptations, including muscle growth, density increases and connective tissue strengthening.
There are 3 recognised stages to the G.A.S. model, which are the alarm reaction stage, the resistance stage, and the stage of exhaustion. Applying enough stress for the alarm reaction and the stage of resistance to begin its processes is essential, otherwise little to no adaptations will take place.
Also, it is completely normal to experience some DOMS after training, but it is not essential as keeping out of the exhaustion stage is very important as this will lead to lost training days and in many cases injuries, both resulting in delayed or lost progress.
Finally, always remember rest and are as vital to growth in training and nutrition.