The S.A.I.D Principle of Exercise

Our body is an amazing thing. It has the capability to judge just how much energy is needed to maintain it’s current level of activity. The human body is economical, it will take fuel that’s stored in our body for use when we increase activity, and store excess fuel to use for later when we may need it. Our body also has the ability to assess the demands that are placed on it and make the body more efficient to meet those demands. This is called the S.A.I.D Principle.

The S.A.I.D Principle of exercise (Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands) explains how our body functions along a supply and demand chain. When we apply a specific stimulus to the body that is beyond it’s usual demands (say for example starting resistance training program) the body will adapt to that stimulus. rue to any type of stimulus. When we run a further distance or at a faster pace than what you’ve previously imposed upon your body, you’ll get better at running. When we contract our muscles against a resistance, as in strength training, our body adapts to that stimulus by rebuilding and increasing the number of muscle fibers we have, resulting strength gains.

There are two key components to the S.A.I.D principle. The first component is a progressive overload: this means applying a stimulus that is higher than what your body is already used to, otherwise if there is no overload to your body, your body has no need to adapt because it’s already capable of handling the imposed demands. The second key is repetition. If you overload your body once, your body will adapt once but it will not continue to adapt unless it is given a repetitive, progressive overload. Your body will only hold on to what it needs. If you don’t continuously apply a little more stimulus than what it’s capable of handling, there’s no need for your body to adapt.

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