The 5% Rule

Greetings,

I truly apologise that it has been so long since I have posted here. I have thought about posting various things here but they did not seem to be related. I have been rather busy trying to get a book to print as I have moved into self-publishing. I am also still running my own fencing school and all of these things take time and energy, so the lack of time and spoons is an issue. This is not what I am here to discuss. The article for this post is about progression.

5%. It does not sound like much but it is important as it is further along than you were before. Progression is about building up energy and strength, this approach is about building up this energy and strength in a manageable way. So, you decide that you want to walk to improve your fitness. Aim for 105% of the distance each time you walk and you will improve your fitness, or 105% of the speed, but not both at the same time. When you do this you will have improved yourself 5%.

Having a chronic illness is about managing the strength and energy a person has at that point in time. There is no point in going to a gym and smashing out a full session if you are going to "crash" afterward and not going to move for a week afterward. These sharp sessions of improvement and decline are not great for your body and should be saved for things that you enjoy, if you do them at all. As far as exercise for health is concerned, you should only be pushing yourself far enough that you can begin to feel it, i.e. adding 5%. This way you can repeat the same thing again, even in the same week.

For myself, I have been going to a hydrotheraphy pool twice a week, most weeks anyway and aiming for the 5%. Sometimes it is just nice to relax in the nice warm water and do some stretching of my muscles, but even this servs a purpose of the 5% extension in stretching. I can usually manage twice a week because I only push myself the 5%. It is a manageable goal. This is what we all need to aim for, thus I have the "5% Rule" and I encourage you all to use it too.

Cheers,

Henry.