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Endurance
One of the most studied effects of overcompensation is related to endurance. I am currently training for a 50-mile (80km) race in 2007. My training right now is about 30 kilometers per week. Each week, however, I slowly increase the distance, and will eventually run well over 100km per week.
It will take me about a year to prepare for the race because I will give my body sufficient time to overcompensate. As I increase the volume of my runs my body will respond in several ways. It will increase the number mitochondria in my cells, little powerhouses that help use oxygen as energy.
It will increase the volume of myoglobin, a protein that helps transport oxygen, available to my muscle cells. As I increase my distance, I'll ultimately run long enough that my body will run out of its preferred source of stored fuel: glycogen (carbohydrate stored within muscle cells). It will have to turn to fat for fuel, and in the process I will become more efficient at both burning fat and utilizing fat as a fuel source, making my long runs more bearable as my body overcompensates to handle the stress.
As you can see, overcompensation is perhaps the most important principles of training. It is the reason why our bodies respond to training. All of the other principles we will discuss relate to overcompensation in one way or another.
In fact, the remaining laws really dictate how to manage your training to continue to take advantage of overcompensation without "burning out." It is about learning how to maximize overcompensation without going too far - because the body can only overcompensate so much before it becomes exhausted.
Jeremy Likness, Health Coach
