

What Is Fatigue? - iKenshu
http://www.newyorker.com/tech/elements/what-is-fatigue?intcid=mod-most-popular

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jamesaguilar
Huh. I wonder if I should put up a bunch of positive and encouraging signs and
images in my home gym to exploit this effect.

Also, my lifting buddies and I often joke around with each other with certain
phrases. Some of those, like yelling, "light weight" after a particularly
tough set, seem to cut with the grain of this article. On the other hand,
phrases like, "no pain no gain," or talking about "this heavy ass weight" (not
that the weight I'm lifting is really that heavy) cut against. I wonder
whether changing our terminology/"battle cries" would have a positive effect
on the work we can accomplish.

Very interesting link. Thanks for posting, iKenshu.

~~~
Disruptive_Dave
This has to be the first time Ronnie Coleman has been referenced on HN. I
approve of this.

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kyllo
_Marcora believes that this limit is probably never truly reached—that fatigue
is simply a balance between effort and motivation, and that the decision to
stop is a conscious choice rather than a mechanical failure_

Perhaps, mechanical failure is also possible. Extremely strenuous exercise can
actually cause muscle tissue to break down and enter the bloodstream,
resulting in rhabdomyolysis, a potentially lethal kidney condition[1]. This
was quite rare, but recently many cases of it have happened to people who do
Crossfit.[2]

[1][http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhabdomyolysis](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhabdomyolysis)
[2][http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-robertson/crossfit-
rhabdo...](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eric-robertson/crossfit-
rhabdomyolysis_b_3977598.html)

~~~
derf_
There are many other things that can go wrong long before this happens. Think
joints, ligaments, tendons...

I say this as someone who once walked 100 km in a bit under 21 hours. I am not
an athlete. When I was done my knees had swelled to the size of grapefruits
and I could not bend my legs anymore.

~~~
makeset
Why did you do that?

~~~
jklp
I was on the support team for my friends earlier this year for the Oxfam 100km
trailwalker[1] - a fundraising event - though I know they're other endurance
events where people run for 200kms and longer

1\.
[https://trailwalker.oxfam.org.au/melbourne](https://trailwalker.oxfam.org.au/melbourne)

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tfigueroa
A great companion to this article is the "Limits" episode of Radiolab. It
features a low-speed, long term bike race with interesting results - both in
what the athletes can endure, and the ways in which they endure it.

~~~
Klinky
Was about to post this.

Here's the link to those who want to listen:

[http://www.radiolab.org/story/91709-limits/](http://www.radiolab.org/story/91709-limits/)

~~~
Tyrant505
This is extremely interesting.. also interestingly produced which surprisingly
I could stand because of the content!

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visakanv
I wonder how this translates to psychological fatigue when it comes to
creative work?

I remember thinking- I can't stand the crazy "work your asses off, zero days
off, 24/7, successful people don't have time to sleep" rhetoric some people
have, but I also can't shake the notion that I'm nowhere near as productive as
I actually could be. I imagine people at the top of their fields are operating
at near max optimal capacity- but I've just been so annoyed and frustrated
lately by how difficult it is for me to reasonably tell whether I'm actually
tired or I'm just bullshitting myself to procrastinate from my
obligations/work (stuff that I actually like doing, that I actually think is
important to me.)

I have yet to have a conversation with anybody about this that I have found
remotely satisfying. Maybe I'm looking for something that doesn't exist, and
that I should focus entirely on the present. But I also know that I screw that
up all the time... ah well. Back to work.

~~~
thenomad
Have you done research on this? If not, I'd recommend it - you will probably
find it encouraging.

A surprising amount of the people at the top of their fields - particularly
creative fields - actually don't do the 24/7 thing.

Sleep and breaks tend to feature quite heavily.

