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Thread: Maintenance and Training: A Focused Pedantic Rebuttal to Rippetoe | Jonathon Sullivan

  1. #1
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    Default Maintenance and Training: A Focused Pedantic Rebuttal to Rippetoe | Jonathon Sullivan

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    In a recent article Rippetoe addresses an important concern for Masters Athletes with a long experience of training (to the advanced level and beyond) confronted by increasing age, decreased recovery, and an ever-diminishing tolerance for injury or overtraining: maintenance.

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    I find myself with two competing responses to Dr. Sullivan's pedantic rebuttal:
    1. As Dr. Sullivan observes, "exercise" was a blanket term and Rippetoe's great contribution was to bring light within this shadow separating exercise from training. This distinction is important and powerful. Rippetoe has now made a second great contribution bringing further light to the subject and distinguishing training from maintenance. The purpose is not to denigrate the efforts of those who now do maintenance. Rather it serves the dual purpose of motivating those who can still achieve PRs not to give up early, and to recognize that special place of those who have reached the end of their ability to achieve PRs and motivate them to continue in their efforts.

    2. Dr. Sullivan is correct in his observation that there is far more in common between this new distinction between "training" and "maintenance" than there is different. This being the case, "training" should remain an umbrella term covering both states and a new term identified to distinguish the period where PRs are still achievable from maintenance. Perhaps a better the correct approach is to see that the term -- or in fact terms -- already exists. Perhaps the distinction is Novice -> Intermediate -> Advanced -> Maintenance.

    I always enjoy a good quibble over words. Hopefully this grows into a flamewar to rival emacs vs. vim or tabs vs. spaces.

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    Quote Originally Posted by mitchless View Post
    I find myself with two competing responses to Dr. Sullivan's pedantic rebuttal:
    1. As Dr. Sullivan observes, "exercise" was a blanket term and Rippetoe's great contribution was to bring light within this shadow separating exercise from training. This distinction is important and powerful. Rippetoe has now made a second great contribution bringing further light to the subject and distinguishing training from maintenance. The purpose is not to denigrate the efforts of those who now do maintenance. Rather it serves the dual purpose of motivating those who can still achieve PRs not to give up early, and to recognize that special place of those who have reached the end of their ability to achieve PRs and motivate them to continue in their efforts.

    2. Dr. Sullivan is correct in his observation that there is far more in common between this new distinction between "training" and "maintenance" than there is different. This being the case, "training" should remain an umbrella term covering both states and a new term identified to distinguish the period where PRs are still achievable from maintenance. Perhaps a better the correct approach is to see that the term -- or in fact terms -- already exists. Perhaps the distinction is Novice -> Intermediate -> Advanced -> Maintenance.

    I always enjoy a good quibble over words. Hopefully this grows into a flamewar to rival emacs vs. vim or tabs vs. spaces.
    Emacs = exercise
    Tabs = low weight, high reps

    Vim with spaces wins again

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    Quote Originally Posted by VNV View Post
    Emacs = exercise
    Tabs = low weight, high reps

    Vim with spaces wins again
    Bravo, good sir.

    Although I always default to vi. I'm old, receiving Free BSD on 3.5" floppies via USPS by sending a SASE to Berkeley.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Bill Anders View Post
    ...receiving Free BSD on 3.5" floppies via USPS by sending a SASE to Berkeley.
    You were the stuff of rumors.

    Evidence that Arthur's Kingdom was real:


    Maintenance and Training: A Focused Pedantic Rebuttal to Rippetoe | Jonathon Sullivan-img_0331-jpg
    Attached Images Attached Images

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    Nice!

    Thankfully O'Reilly & Associates was already putting out comprehensive books when I dove in, playing with BSD at home & Solaris at work.

    I had to do a bit of maintenance on the piHole yesterday. It's always nice to dust off the cobwebs.

  7. #7
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    While I regularly find Sully to impart insight and wisdom in his various discourses, this article was worth reading solely for his deployment of the word "nugatory."

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    While I very much appreciated the sentiment of Rip's article and the bravery it took to write, I find a agree with Sully that he is still training. I too am finding that I can't get back up to my PRs of even a couple of years ago. However, I am training to be a 90 year old who can still lift my great grandkids into my arms, hike in the woods, do my own shopping. Hopefully a 225 lb squat at 70 years old if trained over the next 20 years, will get me there!

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