One question I get a lot is “what carbs should I eat?” Platformers know that most high-gluten carbs with little to no nutrients are off limits. But for many people white starchy carbs make up a large portion of their daily diet.
We’ve been saying for a minute (pun intended!) that short, high intensity exercise is more effective than long, low intensity exercise. There are countless studies showing this but last week a 12-week study (1) from the esteemed McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada made big, big waves. Esquire, GQ, and big shots like the New York Times took notice of this--and you should too!
There are so many factors that contribute to living a long healthy life. We’ve touched on the commonality of all centenarians previously, so you already know cutting out inflammation is the most sure-fire way to expand your lifespan. But what’s the actionable change you can make immediately that will give you the most bang for your buck?
Recently a friend hit me up asking why his progress had halted. He was consistently losing body fat for weeks and weeks, but he had plateaued. Unfortunately, this is a common problem for people after they’ve started a fitness program or lifestyle change. For whatever reason after some time they stop making progress toward their goals.
It’s been very fashionable for a few decades to track calories “burned” during exercise, whether the exercise is low intensity or high intensity (*nudge nudge* foreshadowing!). Sometimes the treadmill will tell you how many calories you burned, or sometimes the wearable on your wrist will. But there are two main problems with these ways of measuring caloric expenditure:
So you just started working out and everyone (your trainer, your fittest friend, the entire internet!) is telling you to take this supplement and that supplement. It can be a bit confusing so here’s a simple road map for you to help navigate the ridiculousness of today’s supplements.
I. Have a Solid Foundation of Food
Taking supplements when you have a crappy diet doesn’t work very well. It’s like putting a nitrous oxide boost in your car when you have a flat tire, need an oil change and have loaded the trunk with extra weight--the boost will have little effect. Rather than doing this, cut out processed foods (almost anything in a package) and refined carbohydrates (anything with enriched/bleached flour). Make sure to add healthy fats (coconut oil, grass-fed butter), healthy animal proteins (grass-fed beef, pastured eggs, wild fish), and nutritionally dense organic veggies (dark leafy greens.) Give your body a tune up.
II. Tailor the Supplements to Your Specific Needs
After improving your diet, get a blood panel to find out what vitamins and minerals you’re deficient in. Lifestyle and genetics will probably still leave you at less than optimal levels for certain key items, so find out what you specifically need. Throwing the kitchen sink of supplements at your body is unlikely to even work very well. Many vitamins are cofactors for one another and work with rate-limited synergism in your body. What this means is if you have a ton of vitamin D3 but not enough vitamin K2, the efficacy of the D3 is limited and you’re not fully realizing the benefits of either nutrient.
III. 80/20 It
Having done your blood panel, you’ll undoubtedly find you have less than optimal levels of several, if not dozens, of vitamins and minerals. Loading up with all of them at once may be a waste of time, energy, and money. Instead, find out which are the most important to your specific needs and do those vital few first. Example: if you have a darker complexion and live in a part of the world that gets limited sunlight, it’s likely you’ll need some vitamin D3, particularly since it’s used by about a third of the genes in your body.
Remember, supplements are meant to supplement your daily diet, not be your daily diet. So eat healthy foods, find out what you need, and then implement what will have the greatest effect. You’ll be miles ahead of where you were before.
I was recently asked by a client whether they should supplement their diet with protein. My first question is “what’s your goal?” For them, it was building muscle.
This client wasn’t the only one who’s wondered whether they should supplement with protein, and they’re not the only client who wants to build muscle. Here are some key points and a quick crash course for you to consider if you fall into this boat:
Protein is made of many strings of amino acids, some of which are “essential” (our bodies cannot manufacture them) and some that are “non-essential” (our bodies can manufacture them).
A “complete protein” has all the essential and non-essential amino acids.
Animal products such as meat and dairy are complete proteins.
The ratios of the various amino acids is important! If the ratios are not in the right proportions, then your body’s muscle building (protein synthesis) ability is rate-limited and becomes stunted
This is like needing various ratios of ingredients to make a certain recipe. It doesn’t matter if you have all the eggs in the world. If you only have enough water for five recipes, then that’s the max you can make. Having lots of the right ratios of ingredients (amino acids) allows for a large number of recipes (muscles) to be made.
The excess amino acids you intake that can’t be used in the ratio your body needs to repair muscle (reference above analogy) generally result in some form of waste. This is where people can get into trouble when ingesting too much of the wrong protein (i.e., gas, bloating, and other inflammatory markers).
Your ability to synthesize muscle is inherently tied to the types of proteins you eat, ingest, or take.
There are a variety of other hormonal and nutrient-dependent factors involved in building muscle. Protein is just one part of the equation.
The foods with the highest protein utilization for muscle building are eggs (48%), meat (32%), and whey (18%). This means that for roughly every 2 grams of egg protein you eat, 1 is used to build muscle, while for roughly every 3 grams of meat protein you eat, only 1 is used to build muscle. Whey protein on the other hand: more like every 6 grams eaten to 1 gram utilized by the body.
So what’s the takeaway here? If you tolerate eggs, eat them to build and retain muscle. They’re the best food for building muscle. And generally speaking, whole foods are your best bet for efficiently satisfying your protein needs.
What if you could train your body to burn fat for its primarily energy source? And not only would your body be more efficient at burning your own fat, but you’d have more energy and mental clarity throughout the day…
More and more people are learning about the concept of a ketogenic diet, in which the body burns primarily fat for an energy source as an alternative to the traditional carbohydrate-heavy standard American diet, and for good reason. Ketogenic diets have been shown to be effective for a variety of medical conditions, improve markers for metabolism and cholesterol, decrease inflammation, and enhance brain function (1, 2, 3).
One of the key components to how we use energy is the function of our mitochondria. Mitochondria are the energy factories of our cells, and actually one of the most important contributors to health, longevity, and well-being. In addition to ramping up the metabolism for tapping fat for energy, ketogenic diets are shown to increase the number of mitochondria in our cells, improve the function of our central nervous system, and improve our alertness and cognitive ability.
So although there’s plenty of reference material out there for the potential advantages of being in ketosis, there aren’t really any hard agreed-upon rules for how one can transition into and stay in a state of ketosis (i.e., producing fat-based ketones for energy). If we dive into the research a bit, there’s mixed reviews on effective approaches, but we’ll take a stab at summarizing them here and then develop some rules of thumb for when we want to be in a fat-burning metabolic state.
Fasting
Intermittent fasting is one way to allow the body to get into a fat burning mode. Many protocols for ketosis recommend a period without eating for several hours prior to eating high amounts of fat. But studies have shown that fasting is not necessary to become ketotic, and ratios of fat in the diet alone can effectively put people in ketosis (4). Now this begs the question as to what are the correct dietary ratios to get into ketosis... and this is where things get a bit fuzzy.
Ratio of Fat in the Diet
Many of the studies examining the effects of ketosis have traditionally been for epilepsy. There have been several medical protocols integrated to trigger ketosis. In one study (5), seizures of epilepsy patients were found to be reduced when less than 10% of calories were from carbohydrates, or in some cases restricted to less than 10g.
Recommendations from the International Ketogenic Diet Study Group are based on a ratio of grams of fat to grams of protein plus carbohydrate. In this setting, the most common prescribed ratios is 4 grams of fat to every 1 gram of combined protein and carbohydrate (6). This again comes out to around 90% total calories from fat .
Glycemic Index
In another study, success was found when the allowed carbohydrate was higher, on the order of 10-20% of overall calories, but restricted to 40-60g and low glycemic foods. Carbohydrates were required to have a glycemic index of less than 50 (7). This is definitely an interesting finding, since most whole foods are going to have a glycemic index of less than 50… meaning if you’re eating how you should be, you can maintain the fat-burning mode more easily!
Rules of Thumb
There are various factors like age and metabolic health that contribute to how a person utilizes fat for energy, and what the most effective ratio is. Also, the glucose response (or how a person responds to the sugar in carbohydrates) is dependent on the cooking methods and the accompanying foods eaten with the carbohydrates. Ahhh okay, so what are some rules of thumb to go by?
A tablespoon of butter or oil is about 100 calories
That means for a tablespoon of butter, you get about ½ a teaspoon of honey or ½ a tablespoon of pure whey protein
The carbohydrates in whole nuts and non-starchy vegetables are largely composed of fiber, so you can get away with eating plenty of healthy nuts and tons of dark leafy greens with butter or olive oil on them, and still be in a fat-burning mode
Ground beef (ideally from grass-fed cows) and other ruminant animals tends to give the right ratio of fats and proteins for ketosis
Intermittent fasting can be used by narrowing your window of eating and putting your body in a mode of fat-burning until the next meal
Having just fat in the morning, with even a little bit of protein (pay attention to the ratios) can be used as a ketogenic diet: that means coffee with high-quality cream or butter from grass-fed cows in it will work beautifully
So eat high amounts of healthy fat and whole foods, and you’re likely to at least cycle in and out of ketosis. This will teach your body to be in a fat burning mode, and yet avoid testing your adrenals too hard in a pure-fat or fasted environment. Pro tip: eat your whole-food carbohydrates closer to bedtime to improve your sleep!
So tell us. What’s your favorite ketogenic meal?
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
Photo Via https://goo.gl/ReGhUq
So it’s New Year’s Eve and you want to have some drinks. Although you want to enjoy yourself, you also don’t want to undue all the hard work you’ve done to trim down and lose fat or bulk up and build muscle. Well, conveniently for you there are five simple steps that you can follow to minimize the negative effects of alcohol and survive the night.
I. EAT A NUTRIENT DENSE MEAL
Have a nutrient dense meal prior to drinking. Most people are aware of this as a good rule of thumb, but often neglect it. Giving your body some nutrients to digest as it’s processing the alcohol will help reduce the toxic load from the alcohol and definitely allow you to feel better than pounding drinks on an empty stomach.
II. DRINK PLENTY OF WATER
Drinking lots of water before and throughout the drinking experience will help diminish the dehydrating effects of ethanol, helping to prevent those headaches and dry mouth. Water also helps you rid your body of toxins. Pro-tip: If you can add a touch of Himalayan pink sea salt, you’ll be loading yourself with trace minerals that your body requires and make the water more bio-available too. Getting the electrolytes in your body will also help with waning energy levels after too many drinks.
III. TAKE THESE KEY SUPPLEMENTS
Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) is a free radical scavenger that will help rid your body of all those inflammatory agents that come from the alcohol. You can’t OD on this stuff, so take generous amounts before and after you drink. Supplementing 200 mg of ascorbic acid before and after drinking is a great approach. Another option is to make sure that balanced meal in item 1 is loaded with foods high in vitamin C. Pro-tip: One of the highest vitamin C-containing foods is actually bell peppers. Other excellent choices which many people don’t realize are high in vitamin C are dark leafy greens and other cruciferous veggies like broccoli and cauliflower.
Another key supplement is apha lipoic acid. This is a potent anti-oxidant that also stimulates your body’s production of one of the main protectors against toxins coming in from alcohol (glutathione), and it even helps you to recycle the other antioxidants you get in from food. Providing your body with plenty of alpha lipoic acid via supplementation before and after drinking is an effective approach.
IV. CHOOSING THE RIGHT ALCOHOL
As for choosing your alcohol, the clearer the alcohol and the less sugary nonsense you mix in, the lower the amount of toxins and sugars. In turn, there’s less chance of wrecking your energy levels and fat-loss goals. As you move from better to worse on the alcohol spectrum, you’re going to generally experience a worse hangover and gain more weight from the alcohol in a per ounce of alcohol comparison. Generally speaking, it’s better to take it straight, and you’ll thank yourself later. Pro-tip: drink vodka waters, made of vodka, water, and lime. They are tasty, and they keep you hydrated.
V. AFTER YOU’RE DONE DRINKING
Having these toxin-fighters we’ve mentioned in your system through the alcohol-drinking experience is important, but making sure you have them in your system after drinking when you’re passed out is even more crucial. This way, you’ll hopefully get some restorative sleep, cleaning out the toxic load from the alcohol more effectively. So make sure you take an extra dose of all items above before hitting the hay.
Also, raw honey provides enzymes and energy for the brain (1) that will boost your immunity and provide your brain some energy while you’re sleeping. Most people notice they toss and turn and wake up earlier when they drink, not getting as much deep sleep as normal. Raw honey will help you to maintain deeper sleep despite the alcohol in your system.
Krill oil provides omega 3 fatty acids that help fight the detrimental effects from alcohol on the brain. Krill oil also provides a powerful antioxidant called astaxanthin, which serves as a great combo to fighting the inflammatory effects of alcohol.
So focus on these five items before you drink, while you drink, and after you’re done drinking to survive New Year’s Eve. Give it a shot and let us know how much better you feel the next morning!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
Christmas is right around the corner and the sweets are still coming in heavy. You still have to make it through Christmas and all the way through New Years before the New Year resolutions are set in stone and everyone’s back to the gym.
We’ve covered how you can use exercise timing to your advantage when it comes to eating some of those holiday foods and still avoiding weight gain. But how about some foods and other tips that might help us avoid putting those sweets right on our waistlines? We’ve got some other hacks for you here:
Supplement your Meals with These Staples
1. Enjoy your coffee and green tea.
Caffeine can stimulate a faster metabolism and trigger more fat oxidation (burning of fat tissue, 1). Caffeine can also improve the way your body uses its energy and overall metabolism, particularly with exercise (2). So between the exercise timing discussed earlier and coffee or tea consumption, you can go a long way toward burning those unhealthy foods away.
And not only can caffeine be an advantage from coffee or tea, but they both pack tons of antioxidants with them. This will help protect your body from getting bogged down by all the oxidative stress from the fried vegetable oils and everything else going on in those delicious holiday meals.
2. Throw cinnamon on everything you can.
We’ve touched on the importance of insulin sensitivity elsewhere, so it shouldn’t be a surprise that anything we can do to enhance our insulin sensitivity is probably a good thing. Cinnamon is another tool we can use to help allow for the holiday sugars to be stored in our muscle cells rather than in our fat cells, using this same mechanism of insulin sensitivity (3).
3. Drink lots of water.
Drinking lots of water will not only help your body get the nutrients it needs and detoxify more efficiently, but it’ll also fill you up a bit so you don’t eat as much crap food. Although it’s possible to overhydrate, most people are by far on the opposite end of the spectrum. Up your water intake a bunch while eating those holiday meals and take up some room that the food would otherwise.
4. Eat fermented foods.
Eating fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, and kombucha can be beneficial for your gut flora (i.e., gut microbiota, gut bacteria, etc.). Most people think of this as being beneficial for the immune system, but it can actually be beneficial for almost anything else you can think of, including how you process foods. Having the right bacteria in your stomach can mean the difference between burning or storing fat. So make sure to encourage a diverse gut biome by eating plenty of fermented foods.
5. Use citrus to your advantage.
Citrus is another one of those tools that we can get our insulin sensitivity going with (4). And in fact, grapefruit has been shown to lead to significant weight loss when supplemented before meals (5). So sprinkle that lemon on whatever you can, and incorporate grapefruit and other citrus products in whenever possible. And definitely ask for lemon in all that water you’ll be drinking with your meals!
Other Helpful Tips
In addition to getting the right supplements in your meals, you can make sure not to arrive to the party or family get-together starving and ready to devour whatever’s there. Try to eat a high-healthy-fat and high-protein breakfast, and this will set your metabolism on the right course.
You can offer to bring the desserts and choose to make them a bit more healthy than they otherwise may be from others, using real whole foods and avoiding the pounds of fructose and sucrose.
Make sure you chew your food thoroughly, and monitor the alcoholic beverages. This will give you more control over what you’re eating and help you not to go off the deep end.
Alright, that was plenty to chew on for the holiday season, at least for now. Try some of these out, and let us know how it goes. And let us know any other hacks you have for your holiday eating season!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
So you want to build muscle and lose fat simultaneously? Welcome to the club! Although many sources might have you think it’s nearly impossible to accomplish this, it’s actually not at all. In fact it’s easy. It’s a matter of using the right tool for the job.
You already know that cardio is a waste of your time, the #1 reason you’re not getting stronger, and that short, intense strength training will get you the vast majority of your results in the gym. But with these concepts in mind, what are the best movements to do? Where do you start?
Well, we want to use prime movers. These prime movers are the big, powerful muscle groups in our body that can move the largest amounts of weight. We use these prime movers because doing so will build muscle and burn fat by increasing insulin sensitivity, activating hormone sensitive lipase, boosting testosterone, breaking down muscle fibers for repair, and upregulating human growth hormone. We’re targeting the largest groups of muscles to incite the most intense hormonal response.
Before we discuss the most effective movements, let’s discuss the least effective movements. These are isolation movements that literally isolate one muscle and only engage one joint, like bicep curls or tricep kickbacks. Sure you can do these for eternity, but if your goal is to build muscle and burn fat, these won’t be the most effective. They will however be effective at taking up a lot of time and getting very little results.
So if your primary goal is to build muscle and burn fat efficiently, you want to avoid isolation movements. What you want to do is compound movements. These are the most effective strength exercises you can do to build muscle, burn fat, and improve functional strength (more on this in a later post).
Compound movements engage multiple muscle groups: push ups, pull ups, and squats are examples of body weight compound movements. Chest presses, pull downs, and leg presses are examples of machine compound movements.
PUSH UP/CHEST PRESS
This movement engages the largest pushing muscles in your upper body, mainly your pecs, deltoids, and triceps.
PULL UP/PULL DOWN
This movement engages the largest pulling muscles in your upper body, mainly your lats, rhomboids, and biceps.
SQUAT/LEG PRESS
This movement engages the largest muscles in your lower body (and actually in your entire body), mainly your quads, hamstrings, and glutes.
All three of these movements, whether you’re using the body weight version or machine version, are extremely effective because you can move the greatest amount of weight, and you’ll trigger the greatest response. So use these three movements in conjunction with a short, intense, effective strength training protocol to build muscle and burn fat!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
Thanksgiving just passed, and Christmas is right around the corner. There are large amounts of very delicious foods creeping into every part of life: co-workers are bringing treats into the office; friends are having ugly sweater parties with plenty of cookies and Baileys around; and family won’t let you leave until you’re fully stuffed. Life is good, until you step on the scale and realize where all the comfort food and desserts have ended up…on your waistline!
Is there a way to enjoy the holiday cheer and avoid turning into a blowfish? Actually, yes there are plenty of tools available to avoid fat gain despite large intakes of savory holiday treats. For example, quantified-self guys like Tim Ferriss have shown they can consume over 6,000 calories in 12 hours without gaining weight using supplemental foods and exercise-timing tactics. We'll talk about some of the concepts that can be used here.
Exercise Timing
One of the key concepts we can use to prevent the storage of calories as fat is to pull the calories into our muscles first. How do we do this? We exercise. But we don’t just haphazard decide to go on a run the next day to “work off the calories.” We need to be smart about the type and the timing of the exercise.
Insulin Sensitivity - Exercise hard within 24 hours before your binge session
The main onsite energy-stores in our skeletal muscle, glycogen, is essentially stored sugar that the body decided to keep in muscle cells rather than converting the sugar to fat. When we deplete this glycogen in a high intensity exercise, our insulin sensitivity is heightened, and our body sends nutrients to the muscle cells to replenish the lost glycogen.
The most effective exercises for increasing insulin sensitivity target the biggest muscles that store the most glycogen. And if done right, studies show that insulin sensitivity can be enhanced significantly for a 24-hour period after a high-intensity resistance training session (1), not unlike the strength-training discussed in our earlier post. So time your high intensity strength exercise the day before or the morning of the day you're planning on eating those holiday foods and desserts.
GLUT4 - Contract your muscles before you indulge
Another tool we can use to transport the sugar into our muscles, instead of being stored as fat, is a glucose transporter protein called GLUT4. It’s been shown that muscle contractions can actually activate GLUT4 to bring glucose into the muscle cells, not directly linked to insulin (2).
So focus on stimulating your major muscle groups just before, and a couple hours after, your ingestion of sweets or a big holiday meal. And just like maximizing glycogen depletion, focus on activating major compound muscle groups to trigger the most GLUT4 proteins. This can be done via some air squats or some push-ups. Do enough to get your muscles burning.
Increase your brain temperature - Eat Less
An added bonus of exercising just before you eat is that you’ll raise your core body temperature and actually eat less. The reason restaurants love to keep their facilities nice and cool, and the reason you naturally want to eat more during the winter months, is that a cooler brain temperature translates to increased hunger (3). So exercise or sit in your sauna long enough to heat up your body a bit and diminish the hunger-related urges.
Alright so we got into some of the ways exercise can be strategically timed to guide some of those holiday calories into muscle instead of fat in Part I. Stay tuned for Part II, where we’ll dive into tricks and foods to incorporate as well. And in the meantime, let us know how you timed your exercise to avoid weight gain during the holidays.
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
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By now you’ve probably seen a ton of ways to get smarter. But can something as simple as a sauna really increase intelligence? In short, yes, it absolutely can. Like many of the other benefits of sauna use discussed in Part I and Part II of this three part sauna series, raising core body temperature seems to be the catalyst for all the fun. If you haven’t tried the sauna after learning how it’ll help you build muscle and last longer, you got another reason to peak your head (and body) inside one of those hot wooden rooms heated to temperatures of 160 degrees and hotter: saunas will help you get smarter and feel euphoria.
BDNF
BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) is commonly shown to pop up under two conditions: heat stress (through sauna use!) and exercise. But what is BDNF anyway and why should you care about it? Well, it increases new brain cell growth (neurogenesis) and the robustness of existing nerve cells. More brain cells is commonly thought to increase learning (1), and BDNF also helps long term memory (2). So yes, you can learn new things better and remember them longer with regular sauna sessions.
NOREPINEPHRINE
Say it with me: nor-ep-i-neph-rine. This is a chemical produced in your body that has profound effects on your brain. It increases your alertness, attention, vigilance, brain functioning speed, and enhances memory formation and memory recall. It is released during high-intensity exercise and also during acute heat stress, like sauna use. One study demonstrated that men more than quadrupled their norepinephrine after a single sauna session to personal exhaustion (3) and women nearly doubled their norepinephrine after two brief sessions a week (4). So yes, you can literally become smarter with regular sauna sessions.
ENDORPHINS
You know that feeling during a workout when you’re pushing hard as hell and it’s uncomfortable? Unbelievably uncomfortable to the point where you just want to give up...but you don’t. You keep going and push through that discomfort because you know it’s temporary. And you know on the other side of that temporary discomfort is a beautiful thing: euphoria. You’ve likely felt this if you’ve gotten a “runner’s high,” or been in a yoga class and felt calm as a clam in corpse pose, or done a high-intensity workout and felt like a million bucks, or...used the sauna to exhaustion!
The discomfort you feel during any activity that elevates your core body temperature (*ahem*, like sauna use!) comes from dynorphin, an opioid peptide that has a strong effect on the brain. This release of dynorphin and the accompanying crappy feeling indirectly upregulates beta-endorphins, which give you that feeling of euphoria. Beta-endorphins are a naturally occurring pain killer produced in your body that get you on cloud nine. The more intensely you feel discomfort, the more euphoria you’ll feel in turn. So yes, you can literally create the feeling of euphoria with regular sauna sessions.
YOUR TURN
So you want to learn new things? You want to improve long-term memory? Want to increase your intelligence? Want to feel euphoric? Then jump into the sauna for as little as 5 or 10 minutes. The only thing you have to lose is a little sweat.
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
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As you already know from Part I of this series, saunas are the Hot Secret to Building Muscle. Check out that blog post to see how heat stress on the body through sauna use can help you maintain your current muscle mass AND help you build more muscle mass. Sauna use is great not only for building muscle though--it’ll help you last longer in your workouts too. Less energy devoted to pumping blood and more energy devoted to pumping iron.
Exercise raises core body temperature causing acute stress. If you’re acclimated to the heat, you can decrease the impact of this acute stress, thereby increasing your resilience and endurance. Pretty dope, I know.
So what exactly do we mean by “last longer”? We mean feel fatigue later in a workout. You’ll be running like a fine-tuned race car: powerful by default, and efficient by adaptation. Heat acclimation increases and optimizes blood flow to the big exercise and endurance engines in your body: your heart, your muscles, and your cooling system.
But how does it do this? Well, many times the reason why something occurs may be more important than the fact that it occurs at all (see here for more on this concept). To get a better idea of the why, let’s explore the mechanisms people...
THE HEART
Both blood plasma volume AND blood flow are increased during acute hormetic heat stress and afterward as an adaptive response . Because there is a greater volume of blood AND it’s flowing quicker, you can last longer during your exercise routine. It’s like not only having a bigger engine in your car, but more fuel in it also!
Your heart won’t have to work as hard, which, like we said, means less energy devoted to pumping blood and more energy devoted to pumping iron. This has been shown to be effective in people who are just starting out their fitness journey and people who already have a solid base of fitness too(1).
THE MUSCLES
Muscle glycogen (the go-to fuel for highly intense movements) is spared once you become heat adapted, meaning you won’t be using as much stored energy to accomplish the same work (2,3). This means you have the ability to go longer and harder than you could before, just by routinely spending a few minutes in the sauna and getting some heat acclimation.
But one question is, if you’re doing a high-intensity workout and you’re not using as much muscle glycogen for fuel, then what are you using for fuel? Well, it’s posited that increased blood flow may provide circulating blood glucose and fatty acids as fuel and, in turn, more quickly expel lactic acid. It’s like having a hybrid race car that can switch over to electric power to spare some of its traditional high powered fuel.
THE COOLING SYSTEM
Sauna usage and heat acclimation will help keep you cool. This might seem counterintuitive but let’s dive deeper. The more you exercise (which elevates your core body temperature) or the more frequently you are exposed to heat (which also elevates your core body temperature), the more efficient your body gets at cooling you down. It forces adaptations to this somewhat infrequent but acute stress. In order to cool itself, your body increases blood flow to the skin and thereby begins to sweat. And the cool thing is (pun intended!) that once you’re heat adapted, you’ll sweat at a lower core body temperature during exercise and sweat for a longer period also. You will inherently be able to last longer and perform better (4). It’s like the coolant system in a race car working quicker and more effectively, staving off the machine from overheating and allowing it to go longer!
Best of all (*drumroll please*) sauna use will improve your performance and endurance in both strength training and “cardio” workouts like sprinting. It’s all symbiotic people: increase your endurance, which will increase your anaerobic capacity, which will increase your aerobic capacity! (Check out the previous blog post on the interplay between strength training and “cardio”.)
These are all extremely compelling arguments and evidences for sauna usage, especially because it requires very little effort (you’re literally just sitting there) for very little time (10 or 20 minutes.) Bring the heat if you’re ready to last longer and run like the fine-tuned machine you were meant to be. Give it a shot and hit us up in the comments!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
He’s on the last rep, and Jimmy’s face is bright red. He’s pushing so hard, his cheeks are puffing outward, and he looks like he may explode at any moment. “Breathe Jimmy, breathe!” he hears, but all he can focus on is moving the weight. Breathing is the last of his priorities right now.
Many people new to strength training tend to hold their breath as they approach maximal effort. Breathing is typically an action regulated by the autonomic nervous system--it’s automatic. In a light exercise, the breath automatically begins to speed up. The body senses excess carbon dioxide and tries to get rid of it in exchange for oxygen, in turn speeding the breath and increasing the depth of it. Yet in a state of emergency, somehow the natural tendency is to sometimes override the autonomic functions and to focus solely on the task at hand, in this case moving large amounts of weight.
What Breathing Does for Your Health
What’s ironic is that this halt in breathing is actually detrimental to the success of the lift, and it is also a lost opportunity for some of the great health benefits from breathing properly. In fact, one of the primary sources of the health benefits from yoga or meditation may be attributed to the practice of controlled breathing (1).
Another recent study (2) even showed that the immune system can be voluntarily controlled. Two groups (one trained in a particular controlled breathing practice and one untrained) were given a toxic bacteria. The trained group, who used meditation and breathing practices, experienced far less symptoms and recovered faster.
Other Advantages of Breathing Properly
With the right type of breathing, we can increase our mindfulness, understanding the experience of lifting and learning how to cope for the future. We can improve our focus, and give ourselves that extra push at the end of a set. We can even influence our hormones, like epinephrine (adrenaline) and cortisol, which not only helps us during our lift, but triggers a stimulus for all kinds of adaptations after our high-intensity bout. To put it simply, breathing is a crucial tool, especially in the middle of a strength-training session.
Breathe Right for the Situation
Okay, so maybe we should put more focus on our breathing during a lift. But then, naturally the question becomes, how should we be breathing? Typically during heavy lifts, one is taught to breathe in on the eccentric motion (like lowering the bench press), and then breathe out as you push the weight back up (the concentric movement). However, when we’re doing a super slow set as advised in the Platform program, this would require very long breaths in and out, and this becomes a bit impractical in such a high-intensity situation.
With this in mind, the best approach is to breathe deep, with your diaphragm, and fast. This becomes somewhat of a controlled hyperventilation, if you will. Continuous breathing in this fashion increases the state of acute stress during our workout, which is one of the main sources for all the health benefits of exercise. And in addition to all the other benefits already discussed, we can alleviate some of that pressure we’d be experiencing in holding our breath (no one wants a hernia).
So focus on your breathing when you exercise, especially during a high-intensity workout. And let us know how it goes!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
I wince when I hear how a person needs to "go on a run" so he or she can "burn off the dessert." "Going on a run" for most translates to as much as an hour or so of slow jogging, either on a treadmill or around the local area. I can get behind the idea of being outdoors and getting the blood pumping, but the unrealized truth of the matter is that an hour of jogging burns less calories than the amount in a typical breakfast for most Americans. And in fact, not only is low-intensity jogging not the best way to lose fat, but it's more likely to cause injury, impose muscle loss, and it's not even the best choice for heart health. Whether your goal is to cut down some body fat, or live longer, long-distance is likely a waste of your time.
Running Causes Injuries
An epidemiological study on running injuries reports that runners are at between a 37% and 56% risk for having a running-related injury within a given year (1). An earlier study of 3,000 recreational and competitive runners even showed runners are at a 60% risk of getting injured in general (2). I know if someone told me I was at a 60% risk of getting injured if I were to partake in a given exercise, I'd probably take a pass.
Running consists of repeated impact loads to the muscles and joints throughout the body, ramping up inflammation, and generally leading to some kind of serious injury that makes any sort of exercise impossible for some time. Often, serious runners are training multiple times a week, never really letting the related inflammation subside. On top of that, chronic inflammation is agreed to be the most direct cause of aging and disease out there (see previous blog post!).
Muscle Breakdown
When exercising for long durations (as in low-intensity, long distance running), the energy stores in your muscles (glycogen) become depleted, and your body looks for energy anywhere it can find it. Unfortunately, this energy may come from places you don't want it to, like your own muscle.
For most people who are living on a carbohydrate (glucose) based metabolism, the body is even more likely to break down muscle into the preferred energy source, glucose.
What’s also ironic is that it takes more calories to sustain muscle then it does fat cells, and so losing muscle actually slows down your metabolism and makes you burn less calories in a given day. Additionally, the loss of muscle means decreased insulin sensitivity and a correspondingly increased susceptibility to metabolic diseases like diabetes.
And decreased muscle mass means even more likelihood of getting injured! Sounds like a lose-lose-lose situation in these respects...
Aerobic "Cardio" Exercise and Heart Health
But what about running for a healthy heart? Most people believe that aerobic exercise is the best exercise for a healthy heart and for health in general. But what does the term aerobic exercise actually imply?
Well it basically means you're only tapping your aerobic metabolism, and your intensity is not high enough to make your body access full metabolism in your muscle cells.
Think of electrical conduits that only need to get electricity to a small group of people (in this case energy to your muscles). This would imply only a small group of generators are required to create the energy, and small inefficient power lines can be used just fine. This is low-intensity exercise. However, what if this same electrical line is now required to fuel a huge city? Suddenly a whole new system of delivering electrical power is required, along with a more robust and efficient delivery system as well (even if for a short time, like in high-intensity exercises).
This is analogous to what happens in high intensity exercise, where aerobic metabolism and anaerobic metabolism are tested to their full capacity. In fact, the way glucose metabolism works is that glucose must go through anaerobic metabolism to get to the aerobic pathway in the muscle cells, so it’s not possible to only trigger aerobic metabolism without the other. In a high intensity environment, the whole system is forced to work more efficiently, and your heart becomes better at delivering nutrient-rich blood to your muscle cells too!
Conclusion
We cause adaptations when we can tap into the “fight or flight” response of our body. We can do this effectively in high intensity exercises, but unfortunately many runners sink into a comfortable pace that they get used to, and this beneficial adaptation never comes. Running can be beneficial with this concept in mind: our advice would be to try short intense sprints, with only a little recovery time in between, rather than long steady-paced runs. Now let us know how much harder your heart’s working when you run in this fashion!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
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I looked at the clock: it had been 25 minutes. I looked at the thermometer: it was 160 degrees. This is as hot as I could make it go up to. I was ready to get out but my goal was 30 minutes. I had become more used to the feeling so it was a lot easier to make it to 25 minutes now than it had been a few months ago. I was heat-adapted. But with my heart racing and sweat dripping, I was ready to get out of there, and I could care less about being heat-adapted. Even so, I knew this was mental and just kept going...my goal was exhaustion. I knew all the benefits and I wanted to reap them.
I was in the sauna for a little over 30 minutes for that session, one of the several sessions I do per week. Though there are numerous benefits to sauna usage, there are three main benefits we’ll touch on. In this first of three posts I’ll focus on increasing muscle size, aka, hypertrophy.
But how can short heat exposure possibly help cause hypertrophy? Through our friends Heat Shock Proteins, or HSPs. These are activated by heat and are a hormetic (positive acute stress) response to said heat. They scavenge for free radicals (molecule(s) that damage cells), help maintain glutathione (a coenzyme that assists in reducing oxidation and the body’s master antioxidant), and even repair damaged proteins. All three of these effects help to prevent protein damage and degradation, thereby helping to maintain muscle.
Another way heat exposure assists hypertrophy is through Growth Hormone release. Growth hormone is a major catalyst for keeping and synthesizing new muscle. Generally speaking, the more growth hormone you have, the easier it is to build muscle. That said, it’s been shown to be increased significantly in sauna sessions of just 15 to 20 minutes (1, 2).
Insulin Sensitivity is key in decreasing body fat, but how can it help increase muscle? Well, insulin delivers nutrients like branch chain amino acids (BCAAs) into muscle. These nutrients are vital to synthesizing proteins, thereby acting anabolically. And heat exposure, like sauna usage, has been shown to increase insulin sensitivity by increasing glucose transporters (3), thereby making it easier to build muscle. In general, the more sensitive you are to insulin, the easier your muscles will absorb nutrients and have the ability to build new muscle.
So if you want to decrease muscle breakdown and increase your body’s ability to build new muscle, hit up a local sauna near you. At first aim for something manageable like 5 or 10 minutes. The more you do, the better you get, and the more heat adapted you’ll be. So are you ready to bring the heat?
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc
You know now that if you want to increase muscle strength and size without putting in extra time, just one set per week is all you need. As mentioned in a previous post, for many of you the “#1 Reason You’re Not Getting Stronger” may not be because you’re doing too little, it might be because you’re doing too much. Rest time is vital--it’s where your body has a chance to rebuild and repair. Depending on lifestyle, some muscles can take a few days to repair, while some can take a few weeks. One set per week gives your body the necessary rest it deserves and needs.
So let’s say you’re going to do just one set per week...what does it look like? Well, it’s short, it’s intense, and it’s effective.
IT’S SHORT
You’re only doing one set per week so the stress is short and by definition not long-lasting or chronic. This is a good thing because as the old adage goes, the dose makes the poison. The set works so well because it’s acute and it’s not abused by being elongated and excessive. Because it’s not overdone, you’ll be allowing your body to recover. Contrary to this is conventional strength training multiple times per week which, when practiced at many prescribed intensities, inherently becomes a chronic stressor.
IT’S INTENSE
Although you won’t be putting in extra time with multiple sets, you will be putting in an extra effort equal to multiple sets. This set is an intense, albeit acute, stress on your body. The intensity will force your body to respond with direct physical adaptations. The severe stress triggers a brief increase in the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol, raises heart rate, increases blood pressure and fatigues and breaks down muscle tissue. In order to cope with all these stressors your body changes and adapts so that the next time these come around, you’ll be better prepared to handle them. Your body adapts by building lean muscle mass, becoming more efficient at cycling nutrient-rich blood to muscle, increasing heat shock proteins and BDNF (more on these in a later post), among lots of other benefits.
IT’S EFFECTIVE
This one set per week will fatigue all your muscles types, going from the slow-twitch/fatiguing (more numerous but less powerful), to the medium-twitch/fatiguing (average number and average power), to the fast-twitch/fatiguing (less numerous but very powerful) at the very end of the set (study & study). Since you’re using all your muscle fiber types, you’re able to completely fatigue all of them. It’s no wonder this one set has been shown to increase strength about 50% more than conventional strength training (study).
So, again, what does this one set look like? It’s a protocol that uses a 5-10 second concentric and eccentric for compound or single-joint strength movements. You’ll use about 75% of your one rep maximum for the given movement and go until you can no longer move the weight. That’s it!
It’s short: You’ll do your one set for about 90 seconds--and that’s about all you’ll last.
It’s intense: You’ll be shaking as your fast-twitch muscle fibers are engaged toward the end of the set. You’ll have set off a hormone cascade to build muscle and get stronger.
It’s effective: You’ll completely tax and exhaust your muscles--there won’t be any glycogen left for you to use.
Whether you’ve plateaued in your training or are new to strength training, this is the most effective workout you can do to increase strength and muscle size. And it’s only once per week. Try it out on machines first using 75% of your one rep maximum for a chest press, pull down, or leg press and let us know how it goes! Once you do, you’ll realize why you only need to do it once a week. Let us know how it goes!
In Excellent Health,
Garrett & Luc