Milo of Croton...or, more accurately, Milon of Kroton, was a 6th century wrestler known for his amazing feats of strength and power. Milo however, is best known for his strength training regimen, which began while he was still a small boy.
It is said that when Milo was about eight years old, he was given a young calf to raise as his own. Legend has it that Milo's father would ask him each morning, "How Big is your calf today Milo?" In response, Milo would run out to the field, throw the calf over his shoulders, and run back to the house to show his father...rather than simply telling him how big the calf was getting.
This process went on daily, as the calf matured and grew to normal size and weight. It is said Milo gained his amazing strength and power from this progressive form of strength training. You see, the calf was growing little by little, day in and day out. Each day Milo picked up the calf, the calf weighed a little more than the day before...but not enough to notice the difference.
By the time the calf had reached maturity...and become a bull, Milo's body had adapted and become incredibly strong.
Milo's incredible strength and crushing power, made him a worthy opponent in both battle and athletic events. Milo was reported to have been a six-time Olympic victor in the sport of wrestling, winning five titles between 536 and 520 BC. Milo was also credited with leading his fellow citizens to military triumph over neighboring Sybaris, in 510 BC.
Milo's life, reportedly, came to an end while he was attempting to tear a tree apart with his bare hands. Legend states that Milo had been cutting a tree with an axe and wedge. When the wedge became lodged deep within the trunk of the tree, Milo used his bare hands to spread the tree trunk apart, allowing him to remove the wedge. While reaching in to grab the wedge, the two halves of the tree sprung back, trapping Milo's hand deep within it. While Milo was desperately trying to free himself, he was attacked by wolves, and killed. Some accounts of the story however, state that Milo was attacked by a lion while trying to free himself.
A number of paintings and sculptures have been completed, depicting Milo's legendary death...with both wolves and lions.
Alright, I know....if you've made it this far, you might be thinking "Why the history lesson?" "What does this have to do with aging athletes?"
Here's the deal...the strength training regimen that Milo used to gain such extraordinary strength and power, is actually the first account of the application of the SAID principle.
The what?
The SAID Principle is a well-known principle, or law, within the realm of exercise physiology. SAID is an acronym that stands for Specific Adaptation to Imposed Demands. This law, or principle, refers to the body's amazing ability to adapt to various stresses placed upon it. Milo's application of the SAID Principle illustrates a progressive increase over time, in both strength and power.
Here's how it worked...
Each day the calf increased in size. These increases were relatively small, and at times unnoticeable. All the while, Milo's body...his muscles, nervous system, etc. were making their own minuscule adjustments to meet the new demands encountered while lifting the calf...and later, the bull.
It's all about progression folks.
While the truth behind Milo's story may be more legendary than factual, the fact does remain, that it is progression that provides the most benefit for us when it comes to improving strength and fitness levels. The SAID principle is at the very core of every well-planned training program for one reason - IT WORKS.
I have decided to experiment with Milo's SAID Principle...on myself. You've all seen those movies where the scientist performs some crazy experiment on himself, right? Well, this wont be anywhere near as crazy, or as exciting. Imagine that.
I have decided to apply the MILO Principle (a little play on words there) to the pushup. Yep, that's right...the simple, basic pushup. Here's what I have in mind....
Actually, I am nearly one month into it right now, but I have been meaning to share it with you all for some time now. I guess I've just been to busy performing pushups!
On day one of my plan I performed as many pushups as I could...that's right, to failure. When I was young, I could bang out about 70 pushups before failing. Now, at age 49...40 was my max. So I decided I would start at 50% of my max. After allowing my body to fully recover (72 hours was sufficient), I began my program. I planned to begin with 20 pushups (50% of my max), adding one pushup each day. My thought (more accurately, my hypothesis), was that by adding just one pushup each day, my body would barely sense the increased change, and slowly adjust to each day's imposed demand.
I will be honest with you...I have missed a day or two here and there, but for the most part I have been diligent in my efforts to complete my daily pushup challenge. I would like to see just how many pushups I will be able to do after completing my challenge for 6-months.
If my math is correct (and my body continues to adapt at the same rate Milo's did), by the end of 6-months I should be able to 201 continuous pushups!
Now I realize that the story of Milo is just that...a story. I also realize however, that the SAID Principle is real. I am simply having a little fun putting it to the test, and seeing just how much my body is capable of adapting to the ever increasing, imposed demand.
Will you join me? I challenge you!
Let's have some fun together.
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