Analyzing the Definition of Exercise

I have resisted writing this for a long while. Part of my resistance stemmed from my reluctance to steal this material from my Critical Factors for Practice and Conditioning. However, there is plentiful material in that book to make it worthwhile beyond this analysis.

Since publishing Achievement Orientation in Exercise, I have received several excellent comments and questions regarding the definition of exercise. These have been sincere and respectful and fair. And although I have addressed them in the aforementioned book (2018), I now believe that these analyses must be more available.

What’s more, I now see a thing or two to add about the definition that I have failed to previously notice.

Let’s begin by stating the definition. Then we will parse it.

The Definition:

Exercise is a process whereby the body performs work of a demanding nature, in accordance with muscle and joint function, in a clinically controlled environment, within the constraints of safety, meaningfully loading the muscular structures to inroad their strength levels to stimulate a growth mechanism within minimum time.

I organize the analysis by dividing the definition into four major sections with one of the sections (Section 2) further divided into subsections.

Section 1—Preamble

Exercise is a process whereby the body performs work of a demanding nature…

I label this the Preamble because it serves as a general foundation to what will be tightened up in the following phrases. [The Objectivists (Ayn Rand) refer to this as the genus of the definition. After the genus follows the differentia.]

Nevertheless, this phrase has three important words for us to discuss: process, work, and demanding.

Process will later take us to the heart of the definition—inroad.

Work is often interpreted as mechanical work as in Newtonian physics. I was certainly considering this meaning when I developed the definition, but I also realized Arthur Jones’ teaching (paraphrased):

As a man holds a heavy barbell motionless at midrange of a standing barbell curl, he—by the classical definitions of work and power—is doing nothing.

So if he is doing nothing, why his pulse increasing?... Why is his blood pressure increasing?... Why is his temperature increasing?... Why is his body trembling?... Why is his breathing labored?... Why is his face red?... Why are his ears purple?... And why can’t he hold the barbell forever?

Why?... because, despite not doing mechanical work, he IS doing metabolic work.

[Some have recommended replacing perform work with efforting until they appreciate my general meaning of work. Besides, effort and is assumed with the remainder of the definition.]

Demanding is required in the Preamble to immediately set off the definition to exclude exercise from passive activity. However, demanding is highly subjective and open to interpretation. This is appropriate for the genus of the definition.

Section 2—Qualifiers

This section contains three subsections. Each subsection is a separate but brief qualifier (or control):

Subsection A: …in accordance with muscle and joint function…

Subsection B: …in a clinically controlled environment…

Subsection C: …within the constraints of safety…

Section 3—Process

… meaningfully loading the muscular structures to inroad their strength levels…

The process—as Drew and Gus and I have made much commotion about of late—is the heart of the definition. As I commonly state, without concept of inroad, the process is missing and the definition collapses.

Inroad is the real and only process (as far as we know) to reach a stimulus for muscular growth. Please read, Achievement Orientation in Exercise and The Inroad-Outroad Continuum of Exercise and Intensity.

Section 4—Purpose (with the additional control of time)

… to stimulate a growth mechanism within minimum time.

So why are we doing the process with the stipulated controls (including the controls in Section 2)? We must have a purpose.

Note several particular words: stimulate, growth, time.

Stimulus: I deliberately avoid specifying the stimulus. I do not know the exact trigger for stimulating muscular growth and I don’t believe anyone else does. Until we know more, stimulus must remain open for discovery.

Growth is similar to stimulus in that it must remain open for discovery. We do know that the strengthening of muscle occurs in several ways and size-increase may merely be the culmination of multiple stages of enhanced innervation, increased vascularization, altered hormonal activation, and other processes that come under the general notion of growth mechanism.

Time is crucially important to control in exercise. As Doug McGuff has noted, there is a dose-response curve (similar to that known in photography and/or other chemical processes as reciprocity) with exercise that must be observed for best results. This affects the length of the workout (duration) and the recuperative interval between workouts (frequency).

[Note that the definition works for both static and dynamic exercise modes.]

Using the Definition

In Critical Factors for Practice and Conditioning, I demonstrate how the definition can be applied to qualify or disqualify an activity as exercise. I share it here.

If we consider something like Pilates as exercise [Any activity will work.], how does it comport with the definition? If we lay out the definition in separate sections and subsections, we have:

Exercise is a process whereby the body performs work of a demanding nature, …

…in accordance with muscle and joint function, …

… in a clinically controlled environment, …

… within the constraints of safety, …

… meaningfully loading the muscular structures to inroad their strength levels …

… to stimulate a growth mechanism within minimum time.

I now go back and draw a line through all the sections and subsections that Pilates fails. We are not left with much.

Over the years I have heard complaints that “the definition is not inclusive…” that it does not include provision for those who do this or that activity they construe as exercise.

On the contrary, the definition is the most inclusive of all notions of exercise modality as it is based on all humans’ muscular and joint function and not restricted to a sport skill or some predilection or specific advantage or limitation.

After explaining all the foregoing, I also commonly hear, “Well I do Pilates [or some other activity] because I enjoy it.”

Fine. I’m not against enjoyment. But now we are realigning our purpose and enjoyment is not the purpose of exercise.

Books by Ken Hutchins