Four phases of the adaptation curve
The supercompensation cycle is usually drawn in four stages. First a training stimulus disrupts the body's balance. Second comes fatigue, where capacity drops below baseline as the body deals with the stress. Third is recovery, where capacity climbs back toward and then past the starting point. Fourth is the overshoot, a temporary rise above baseline that represents the adaptation, which then decays if no new stimulus arrives.
Timing the next stimulus during that overshoot is the goal, so fitness ratchets upward across repeated cycles rather than plateauing or sliding back.
How stimulus timing shapes the outcome
If the next session lands during the fatigue phase too often without enough recovery, fatigue can build faster than fitness, which over long stretches contributes to stagnation or overreaching. If sessions are spaced too far apart, each overshoot fades before the next stimulus locks it in, and progress stalls.
The curve is a teaching model rather than a precise prediction, since different tissues recover on different timelines. This is general educational information, not medical advice; consult a qualified professional for individualized guidance.