While this may seem complicated, it is actually quite a simple process as long as you control all the known variables and systematically manipulate the unknown variables. I will go through these variables individually and show you how to control/manipulate them. To expedite this process we will also need to rely on the work of other respected peers in the field to establish good starting points so we won’t have to do everything by complete trial and error. So let us begin…

Since the desired response is produced by the organism and that response takes time, this is the first variable we should identify. If we are not allowing adequate time for this response while we are testing other variables, we will never get a response and will be left wondering what is wrong. So there are several variables we must hold constant.

The first of these variables is intensity (analogous to concentration). Since our capability with regard to intensity changes on a moment by moment basis, the only accurate recording of intensity is 0% or 100%, anything else would be guesswork. In addition, reliable data from others in the field note that this intensity (concentration) is required to produce the desired response from the organism. So we must standardize 100% intensity, that is -- we will train to failure.

The next variable we must hold constant is the dosage. In drug research one generally starts with the lowest dosage expected to produce some response. This is done to avoid against toxicity which could interfere with the organism’s response. In my empiric experience training clients as well as the experience of my colleagues who run SuperSlow facilities around the country…I feel that the average subject has much less toleration for exercise than previously thought. If exercise tolerance for the human population was charted, it would likely form a “bell graph” distribution. I feel that until recently, we have been operating way too far to the right on the graph (that is recommending WAY too much exercise for the average trainee). This natural mistake has occurred because of selection bias…people tend to become interested in bodybuilding when they show at least some above average potential for it and part of this potential is above-average exercise tolerance. Also, people tend to mistake the stimulus (the actual exercise) as the entity that causes growth. As a result, even great minds such as Arthur Jones have decreased volume relative to this grossly inflated baseline rather than what is actually required. For the purposes of our experiment I recommend no more than five total exercises (example: calf raise, leg press, pull-down, chest press, compound row). DO NOT vary the workout or your record-keeping will be meaningless. Do not fret over the lack of variety. Variety IS NOT necessary for progress, these movements track muscle and joint function, and if the intensity of your work is adequate, this will stimulate all the major muscular structures of your body.

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