Chapter 7 - Fitness Is Built On A Foundation Of Frequent, Low-Intensity Movement Flashcards
General everyday low-level movement promotes:
- Health
- Immune function
- Fat metabolism
- Brain function
Brief, high-intensity strength and sprint workouts deliver:
An anti-aging effect, by:
- enhancing organ function
- optimizing body composition
- elevating mood and cognitive function
- developing no total body functional fitness
A pattern of chronic exercise in pursuit of extreme or narrowly focused fitness goals can trigger:
- increased cravings for quick-energy carbohydrates
- inhibit fat metabolism
- compromise immune function
- exhaust the body’s stress management mechanisms
- break down lean muscle tissue
*in that way, workouts that are too frequent and too stressful to allow for adequate recovery can actually undermine fitness and health
Chronic Cardio
A pattern of frequent medium-to-difficult-intensity sustained workouts, especially with insufficient rest between sessions
- describes a pattern of overly stressful cardiovascular workouts that last for too long and are conducted too frequently, with insufficient rest periods in between
*generally speaking, the workout is conducted at a heart rate too high to be considered aerobic
*any exercise can be considered “chronic” if it created excessive stress and does not allow for sufficient recovery
Chronic Cardio may promote:
- illness
- injury
- fat storage
- accelerated aging
- declining cognitive function
- and ultimately burnout
*abuses the body’s fight-or-flight stress response
Maximum Aerobic Heart Rate
180-age in beats per minute
- where you achieve optimal aerobic, fat-burning benefits
Inactivity leads to:
- metabolic and hormonal imbalances that inhibit glucose metabolism
- elevated triglyceride levels
- excess body fat storage
- elevated blood pressure
- disturbed leptin signaling
Compromised Leptin Signaling Causes
- an increase in appetite
- an up-regulation of fat-storage genes
- a down-regulation of fat-burning genes
People who spend most of the day sitting experience chemical changes in the brain that promote
Inactivity
*while people in the habit of moving have brain wiring that encourages regular movement
A leisurely (one mph) 15-min walk after a meal
Lowered by half the two-hour-long blood sugar spike that occurs after a typical meal
Engaging in bouts of standup work
Helps to re-engage important muscles and promotes good posture and skeletal alignment + significantly increases caloric expenditure
*but won’t counteract the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle - it’s still not moving…
A pattern of chronic workouts can result in assorted negative consequences, including:
- Stress
- Hormone Imbalances
- Body Composition
- Inflammation
- Injuries
- Fitness
- maxes out adrenal glands
- impairs immune function
- suppresses testosterone
- encourages systemic inflammation
- teaches the body to prefer burning glucose to fat
- increases sugar cravings
- traps you in fat storing mode
Excess cortisol production and too much exercise stress in general promotes:
- systemic inflammation
- oxidative damage (via free radical production) by a factor of 10-20 times normal
- suppress immunity
- compromise bone density
Hormones effected by chronic exercise
Chronic elevation of cortisol suppresses:
- testosterone
- growth hormone
- other adaptive hormones
This compromises:
- fat burning
- muscle development
- energy levels
- immune function
- sex drive
Two antagonistic hormones
Testosterone
- a major adaptive hormone
- muscle building
- mood-elevating
- cognitive performance enhancing
- anti-aging
for both men and women
Cortisol
- the primary catabolic stress hormone
*these two hormones antagonize each other, so chronically elevated cortisol will suppress testosterone
Well-planned brief, intense workouts causes
- a quick spike in cortisol
- elevates levels of adaptive hormones (like testosterone + growth hormone) for a longer duration
These adaptive hormones:
- muscle growth
- recovery
- stabilize appetite
- stabilize energy levels
- promote feelings of vitality
- help delay aging process by enhancing organ reserve
Chronic cardio’s effect on body composition
Increases appetite and cravings for quick burning carbs, especially if one normally eats a high-carb diet and is not fat-adapted
- workout fueled by glucose
Chronic stress and high cortisol likewise promote:
- hunger and carbohydrate cravings
- fat storage around the abdomen
*cortisol is also associated with insulin resistance
Chronic exercise promotes systemic inflammation
Due to excessive and chronic cortisol production
Furthermore, chronic exercisers consume large amounts of carbs - an eating pattern that promotes:
- systemic inflammation
- accelerated oxidation
- free radical damage
Injuries and chronic cardio
Due to:
- recurring muscle fatigue
- repetitive impact
- chronic inflammation from excessive catabolic hormones released in response to chronic cardio traumatized joints and connective tissue
—> leading to incidences of both acute and overuse injuries
Fitness and chronic cardio
Gets you good at chronic cardio…
Can lead to:
- muscle imbalances
- inflexibility
- recurring stiffness
- recurring soreness
Leaving out other modes of exercise in an optimal fitness program, including the development of:
- power
- speed
- strength
- building lean mass
Hormone-sensitive lipase (HSL)
Hormone triggered by exercise
Enables both glycogen and fat to be mobilized from storage and dumped into the bloodstream to be used for fuel during the workout
Levels drop once the workout ends
Lipoprotein Lipase (LPL)
Released after HSL levels drop following a workout
Post-exercise elevation promotes the restocking of both glycogen and fat to speed recovery
When levels are elevated, cells reel in nutrients circulating in the bloodstream and lock them away in storage
Caloric compensation is particularly relevant when one’s exercise pattern is chronic, because:
A depleted body will become even more inclined to consume additional calories, store them as fat, and conserve energy in every way possible throughout the day…
Conserves energy by:
- reducing NEAT (non-exercise activity)
- slowing metabolic rate
One pound of muscle burns approximately
6 calories per day
One pound of fat burns
Two calories per day
Organs
Accounts for most of the calories burned in our basal metabolic rate
- brain = 20% of (basal) calories burned
- heart = 20%
- liver = 15-20%
*which allocates about 20-30% of total daily caloric expenditure to skeletal muscle
The metabolic benefits of adding muscle and reducing fat are:
More hormonal than caloric…
- building lean muscle mass with strength training is known to improve insulin resistance
- losing abdominal fat optimizes hormonal function and improves health
Excess abdominal fat cells
Produce abdominal proteins and pro-inflammatory chemicals known as cytokines and release them into the bloodstream
These agents must be processed in the liver, causing more inflammatory agents to be released as a consequence of
Engaging in a genetically appropriate exercise program
- minimizes insulin production
- optimizes fat metabolism
*and practicing intermittent fasting can slow the process of cell division and improve cellular repair
- in contrast to an extreme exercise regime (burning lots of calories, replacing those calories, tearing down muscle, rebuilding muscle… can result in accelerated cell division throughout the body - a quintessential marker of aging…)
Primal Blueprint Pyramid
Sprint
Lift heavy things
Move frequently
+
Play
Recover
Sprint
Several 8-20 second bursts
Every 7-10 days, when 100% energized
Lift Heavy Things
Brief, intense resistance exercises
2 times per week for 10-30 minutes
Move Frequently
More general daily movement
(avoid prolonged inactivity)
Cardio workouts at “180-age” heart rate
- cycle
- hike
- walk
- walk/jog
- water activities
Flexibility/mobility
- pilates
- yoga
- tai chi
- gymnastics
- dancing
- dynamic rolling/stretching/therapy work
Aerobic
Means “with oxygen”
Conducted at an effort level that allows sufficient oxygen to be available to burn predominantly fat for energy
*fat metabolism requires oxygen
Anaerobic
Means “without oxygen”
Indicates an effort level that is difficult enough to cause an oxygen shortage, prompting the burning of a greater percentage of glucose for fuel
*since glucose metabolism does not require oxygen
Metabolic effects of a workout varies by:
Intensity level