Some things in life can be negotiated: international trade agreements, the price of a car, or who’s going to take out the garbage, for example. There are many other things that, try as we might, cannot be negotiated: the weather, gravity, and the genes you were born with, for example.

No matter how you look at it, health and fitness is a world bound by non-negotiables. It’s all physics, at it’s roots, and physics doesn’t give a damn what you want or what you think is fair or unfair. It’s a non-negotiable. The advantage is that these non-negotiables give us a set of rules -- a blueprint, in essence -- for how to achieve X, Y, and Z. And because it’s non-negotiable, it also means that we don’t have to worry about physics doing something unexpected or pulling one over on us. Sure, we are bound by the limits of our current understanding of human physiology; but we have a thorough enough understanding that we’re not just taking shots in the dark on how to be a more physically fit human -- we have a good enough handle on the basics.

Here are a few non-negotiables that we have no choice but to abide by:

> adaptation results from stress and recovery -- one without the other will not yield results
> all else being equal, higher intensity yields greater results
> you can’t out-exercise a bad diet -- excess fat accumulation is a result of excessive calories
> moving heavy objects is the most effective way to get stronger
> speed is developed by moving with speed
> injury results from exceeding the body’s capacity, either through poor position or excessive load/stress
> the body must move regularly to function optimally

The problems arise when we don’t play by the rules, either because we don’t know the rules, or because we try to negotiate these non-negotiables. We have no shortage of resources telling us what these non-negotiables are and how to operate within them, and as such, not knowing the rules is not a fair excuse. We’re left, then, with the problem of thinking that the rules don’t apply -- trying to “negotiate” or excuse our way out.

Let’s stick to reality. Non-negotiables are as they are, so let’s make the most of them.