Becoming Fit for Life #037: What once worked, aging muscles, VO2 training
đȘ How to find your routine again, why you should have a solid exercise routine, dealing with stress, and interval training
This week in building health đ
To Stay Active, See What Worked for You Before
These days itâs been HOT here in the Philippines.
So I havenât been exercising at all. Iâll go for a morning walk, stretch a bit, and thatâs about it. Itâs the least Iâve been exercising all year.
While itâs easy to blame the heat, it doesnât change the fact that I still have to do something.
So what changed? What worked before?
Earlier this year in March I had my most active month of 2023.
During March I did all of this:
Walked 12,000 steps each day
Went hiking on 3 out of 4 weekends
Lifted weights on 23 out of 31 days.
That was the peak for me.
But I donât think I can simply do that again right now.
Itâs been raining, so hiking is out
Itâs too hot to walk that much
And gym has become a bit uninspiring to me
Donât just copy-paste, figure out why it was so effective for you
Even though I canât recreate this routine in its entirety, I can still figure out why it worked well for me. Thinking this way, and understanding why things work or donât work for you can do you wonders.
When I analyze it, these worked because:
I had joined a step challenge in March (so I put all my extra time to walking)
I had a hiking buddy for each of those 3 weekends
I had just signed up for a new gym
Based on that, I can extract these two principles
Itâs easier for me to stay active when thereâs social motivation
and
I like novelty, and benefit from the ânew gymâ // ânew workoutâ feeling
Learn the principles then reapply them
With that in mind, how can I apply that to my workouts today.
Novelty, ânew gymâ, and ânew workoutâ is easy
I just need to pick something that I think is fun and doable right now! I addressed this recently by signing up for a âMuscle Up Trainingâ cohort- which is pretty exciting.
Added bonus is the social element that comes with that.
For social motivation, Iâll consider something new
I still have my hikes (though less often because of the weather). And I remember early this year I joined a JiuJitsu class- which was fun and inspiring (until I got injured)
So maybe itâs time to find a new class that I can join for the hot months of the year.
Itâs a constantly changing process, thereâs is no once-and-for-all
Since my goal is to keep moving, itâs going to go through cycles of ups and downs.
Each time movement is on a down though, thatâs the time to go back to the principles, refresh and rediscover ways to move again.
My favorite health things for the week
// one
Embracing stress is more important than reducing stress
12 minutes | Clifton B. Parker
We hear a lot about how stress has negative effects on health.
It can lead to increased risk of illness, depression, and even early deat.
So whatâs this about embracing stress?
This does not mean denying its harmful impact.
It's about balancing one's mindset to feel less overwhelmed and hopeless in the face of stress.
Because stress is inevitable- we all go through it. So it makes more sense to prepare and practice dealing with it. Embracing stress requires a tolerance for ambiguity and recognizing that it can have both negative and positive outcomes.
These skills can change your relationship with stress to one of personal growth and resilience.
â Read the Post to Learn more
// two
Why do we lose muscle strength with age?
4 minutes | Peter Attia
Part of getting older is losing some muscle qualityâ itâs simply inevitable.
On top of this, the principle of âuse it or lose itâ applies here also. Meaning that without regular exercise and activity, our muscles and their strength deteriorate.
Just a friendly reminder that itâs important to stay active and keep exercising throughout your life.
â Read the Post to Learn more
// three
Interval Training May Be the Most Efficient Way to Improve Endurance
17 minutes | Steve Kamb
I have a confession to makeâ I donât really like pushing my heart rate
I like doing slow, steady state training â or lifting weights.
But if I want to stay healthy over time, itâs kind of a non-negotiable.
And when it comes to building endurance, Interval Training is the best. There are tons of studies on this, but the most famous ones are this and this.
To summarize them:
6 weeks of moderate-intensity endurance training did not affect anaerobic capacity, but that 6 weeks of high-intensity intermittent training (HIIT) may improve both anaerobic capacity and VO2max simultaneously.
So the most efficient thing I can do is Intervals, and right now for me thatâs going out for a run, with 4 minutes where I push, followed by 3 minutes where I go lighter.
But there are many ways to do interval trainings, and Iâm sharing a great guide to getting started with it, no matter what your preference is.
Thanks for reading!
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Until next week,
Javier Gomez