Training VS Working out

[bamazav]

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

Training differs from exercise in that people may dabble in exercise as an occasional activity for fun. Training has specific goals of improving one's capability, capacity, and performance.

I was re-reading one of my favorite posts on another website about this very topic. The author of that post influenced my training in more ways then he will ever know. I want to address a few items found in this quote from wikipedia.

1. Training is different then exercise (just working out). I walk around the block with the wife, take the dogs out for some throwing, even take the trash to the street and I get some exercise. If I do any of this fast, I can call it a workout. Training is different. It entails a different environment, attitude and mindset. It is never casual but focused. There should never be any such thing as easy training, every time you step into the gym you are challenging yourself. While you may compete on a stage or lifting platform, when you are training you are competing with yourself and the iron. That is different then exercise, where you do it to "feel good" or "look good."

3. Training has specific goals. At this time of year I hear commercial gym users complaining about the resolutioners. The annual migration of overweight couch potatoes who flood into gyms with no goal other then wanting "6 pack abs" in 6 weeks. They jump on a treadmill, walk while reading a book for about 20 minutes, wipe their brow and call it a day. No real direction, just going through the motions.

Training involves a specified plan of attack. Sets, reps weights and equipment are all thought through to provide the trainee the best possible results. Cycles of training and rest are planned to facilitate recovery. Even the diet is considered, sometimes to the minutia, to facilitate the best possible training effort. The serious trainee can be seen with notebook or a laptop in hand as they enter the gym, logging every movement with the precision of an engineer. Home gymers may have their blackboards, whiteboard, notepads or computers, but they too have a means to log their every move.

Training keeps you thinking every day. Wondering, how can I eek out one more rep, lift one more pound or hit that muscle differently. Exercising is always open to interruption. "It is snowing,""it is raining too hard,""the GF/wife wants to go out, I will have to go to the gym next week." Training will not be deterred. If a meeting or family matters cause you to miss gym time, you find a time to make it up. Trainees, never quit.

3. A trainee's "capacity, capabilities and performance" are constantly being challenged and bested. The trainee is constantly working to become bigger and better, to lift more - more often. The mantra is "one rep more, one pound more." The focus is on better form for better performance. Exercise, working out, puts the weight on and moves it to get the set done. There is no real thought to the process, about capacity or capabilities. It is all about getting done to check it off the list. While working out, if you can't finish a set, you lower the weight so you can get it the next time. The trainee who can't get the set, beats himself up emotionally for the next few minutes, psychs himself up and then pushes out the next set. For the average person working out, the mindset going in is, "I am not sure I can do that." The trainee enters the iron dungeon, thinking, " The iron will not win, there is nothing I can not do."

Next time you enter the gym, ask yourself, "Am I going in to train or to workout?"

[Rich Knapp]

Great post. This nails it.

[bigtim27]

That post kicks ass!!!

[Abaddon]

"Training involves a specified plan of attack. Sets, reps weights and equipment are all thought through to provide the trainee the best possible results. Cycles of training and rest are planned to facilitate recovery. Even the diet is considered, sometimes to the minutia, to facilitate the best possible training effort. The serious trainee can be seen with notebook or a laptop in hand as they enter the gym, logging every movement with the precision of an engineer. Home gymers may have their blackboards, whiteboard, notepads or computers, but they too have a means to log their every move."

[CoopDawg]

I TRAIN-NOT TO MAINTAIN, BUT TO GAIN.....there plain and simple

[Abaddon]

^I think you were looking for the "WHY do you train?" thread Coop...

[CoopDawg]

dam thought thats the one i was clicking on, oh well it pertains to this also cause training you are gaining, when your exercising or working out your mostly maintaining

[CoopDawg]

Originally Posted by Abaddon

"Training involves a specified plan of attack. Sets, reps weights and equipment are all thought through to provide the trainee the best possible results. Cycles of training and rest are planned to facilitate recovery. Even the diet is considered, sometimes to the minutia, to facilitate the best possible training effort. The serious trainee can be seen with notebook or a laptop in hand as they enter the gym, logging every movement with the precision of an engineer. Home gymers may have their blackboards, whiteboard, notepads or computers, but they too have a means to log their every move."

I agree with every word of this, AWESOME

[Abaddon]

^It's an excerpt from Bama's full quote, above.
Bama: that guy is something of a wordsmith... sure you can't share with us who wrote it?

[bamazav]

Originally Posted by Abaddon

^It's an excerpt from Bama's full quote, above.
Bama: that guy is something of a wordsmith... sure you can't share with us who wrote it?

Uh. I actually wrote the above. JOHN GARGANI at BB dot com just gave me the inspiration and the wikiquote. I was challenged by his post a year or so ago and have been pondering this ever since.