Early in my now twenty-six year long career I was fortunate to learn from one of the top exercise practitioners in the United States, if not the world at the time. As a young college kid I went into the experience expecting to learn what the best exercises were, what subtle variations of them would unlock exceptional results, the magic order of exercises, appropriate progressions and regressions of each, which foods were superior and which supplements to use.
Instead, on day one of my time with him, I was asked a simple question: “What is exercise?”.
I gave my answer which was literally the textbook definition from my undergrad coursework, which was “technically correct”. I then spent the rest of that day being educated as to what exercise actually is from the most fundamental standpoints and how to apply that understanding to actually training others.
At the end of that same day, he made a statement that would stick with me and guide my approach to this day–”Don’t assume you have all of the answers, but rather try to ensure that you are asking the right questions.”
That moment literally unlocked a new way of looking at training for me and only recently I’ve come to understand that it was effectively guiding me to do so from a First Principles approach.
True exercise ensures that the body is consistently challenged appropriately, as it is a highly resilient entity that requires constant, increasingly intense stimuli in order for it to adapt.
What Are First Principles and Why Is That the Basis of My Approach to Training?
Many investors of Tesla understand the concept of First Principles, but enough possibly do not or at least have not attempted to establish what those are for exercise. For both groups, I feel it is worthwhile to answer both of those questions here. This way everyone is clear as to what should be the true foundation of their exercise regimen and more importantly, what shouldn’t.
Most importantly, this will give you insights as to the rhyme and reasons that form the foundation of my training prescription for each one of my clients.
What Are First Principles?
"First principles" thinking is a method of reasoning where you break down complex problems into their most basic, fundamental elements. Instead of relying on analogy or past precedents, you start from the ground up, using fundamental truths, or Axioms, as your foundation.
Most Tesla Investors know this and understand that this is a very useful way to approach most any endeavor in life as it removes any guesswork and provides a clear framework from which to build an effective, efficient and in the case of exercise, a safe approach.
I believe that human health and longevity are arguably the most important aspects of life to employ this approach, especially in a world where it seems as if everyone has conflicting opinions which often lead to wasting time on unproductive exercise, nutrition and supplemental practices.
Therefore I took the time to explore objectively sound sources and parse out a framework that works for most any human on the planet in the form of First Principles.
To begin, I reasoned down the fundamental truths. These are statements or facts that are so basic and true that they cannot be deduced from any other more fundamental principle. In physics, for instance, these might be laws like the conservation of energy.
From there I compared my deductions to more tenured and successful exercise specialist’s insights. One common theme with these individuals I studied is that they all operate off of the understanding of the most basic elements of human anatomy & physiology as they relate to exercise and its effects on them, both positive as well as negative. And their track record with positive, real world results for their clients and athletes speak to their application of these axioms.
I concurrently learned through application of the tenets by training myself as well as my many clients–learning from “where the rubber meets the road” as my mentor put it.
My primary takeaway from this process was that many people, including myself, stray away from the basics instead of trying to master adhering to them in a consistent and exceptional way. We often try to answer “What needs to be done to get results?” by thinking, "This exercise or that program is like something else that was done before which garnered them.". First principles thinking avoids this by focusing on what is fundamentally true rather than what has been done before.
I’ve stripped away those assumptions, conventions, and derived knowledge to get to the raw, unaltered truths and reasoned up from there to construct an approach based upon these solutions or understandings. This approach is best because it isn't constrained by accepted traditional thinking or existing methods–think social media or the internet where a good percentage of people get their training ideas or regimens from.
Why Do It This Way?
As a personal trainer surrounded by a good number of average gym-goers, I see first-hand what is done week in and week out by the general population. And being educated in this field, I know what absolutely has to be done at a fundamental level and more importantly what is unnecessary.
The reality of what I witness is that a LOT of time is spent on exercise regimens that are unproductive at best and unsafe at worst.
My belief is that if I can help individuals realize the First Principles of exercise, they would achieve better results, while spending less time in the gym by ensuring their work is intentional and productive while also being orthopedically safe.
After years of study, trial & error, I’ve come to these conclusions:
- Exercise has to be defined in order to understand what should be done & how much needs to be done to force the body to adapt without overdoing it
- Exercise programs should be structured, brief, and intense
- The approach should be comprehensive, safe and repeatable so that it can be a lifelong endeavor
Taking my approach ensures that these three items, the Axioms of exercise, are addressed.
If you’re here and reading this, then you are interested in improving your health and doing so in the most productive way. Let me help you do just that.
You’re making an investment in the future of Tesla. Let’s make sure you utilize a First Principles approach to your exercise that will give you the best chance to be able to enjoy your investment when it pays off.
You’re making an investment in the future of Tesla. Let’s make sure you utilize a First Principles approach to your exercise that will give you the best chance to be able to enjoy your investment when it pays off.
