Hybrid Performance Podcast #6: “Making Gains vs Getting Hurt with the Stress Capacity Model”

Timestamps:

Intro 0:00

Stress-Capacity Ratio 1:10

“Positive vs Destructive Training” 2:15

The path to positive adaptations or injury recovery 7:03

When an injury has been “rehabbed” 9:31

Tips for managing stress/capacity balance 10:10

“Judo” strength questions, Q&A 17:14

Show notes:

• stress capacity model

  • Stress = how much total stress meaning stimulation & fatigue

  • Capacity = how much you can handle & recover from; acute or chronic

  • Stress comes from positive stress and negative stress which is stimulation and fatigue.

  • Stimulation is up-regulation of adaptation factors; hormones, anabolic or metabolic signals etc.

  • Fatigue is tissue damage, metabolic signals of breakdown, and compensatory mechanisms.

  • Both will always co exist and you can’t really have positive without negative but the ratio could be managed.

  • This balance between stress and capacity = our productive training, unproductive training, or injury occurrence.

  • When stress > capacity…we feel pain or injury

  • It must be just below enough that it raises cap without hurting you but not so low that it doesn’t challenge cap.

  • Stimulating vs breaking down is hard to judge at times: are you progressing at challenging intensity? (See post)

  • To improve your performance OR to recover from injury you need to follow this model:

    • Identify your rough capacity.

    • Stay under it while stressing the actual tissue or mechanisms you need to develop.

    • Push closer to the limits with breathing room.

    • Eat right and sleep well.

    • Manage mental health.

    • Do this continuously and check in with progress every 1-3 months to assess improvement or analyze status. (Review the checklist)

  • When capacity is raised to a level that can handle the stress of what you’re asking for: basketball, hiking, walking the dog, MMA, etc then yog have been successfully rehabbed or performance upgraded.

  • When you exceed the cap and get strong issues (pain > 5/10 or function collapse) then pull back and restart the process from a lower point again.