Cardio

Key Insight

● The second best thing you can do for your body after the gym is cardio. There is popular belief that cardio is for “slimming” (it is good for that, too), but cardio is primarily about health, especially cardiovascular health, heart health, mitochondria and many other body processes. The body evolved to burn calories through physical activity, and it needs this for health. Cardio also strengthens joints and ligaments and gives long‑lasting energy for the day or week. Mental ability and focus substantially improve through cardio training. You’ll notice that a day or two after a good cardio session you have increased focus and higher energy. ○ Because it strengthens the heart, cardio also reduces resting heart rate. Resting heart rate is used as an indicator of cardiovascular health. The lower, the better. Very healthy people have below 60, athletes in good condition can have below 50 (Positive effects also manifest on VO2max and HRV). ○ Just as in the gym, with cardio training the pulse matters. Cardio is divided into zones depending on the percentage of maximal heart rate for our age. Depending on the pulse during activity we divide it into 5 zones: ○ Maximal heart rate is calculated: 220 − age (I am 32 so my max is 220 − 32 = 188). All science so far has said maximal heart rate does not increase with conditioning, but Brian Johnson challenged this with his research, though Brian has a team of scientists helping him to avoid harm, so this formula is sufficiently good for you. ○ Zone 1 = 50–60% Max (In my case: 94–112). ○ Zone 2 = 60–70% Max (In my case: 112–132). ○ Zone 3 = 70–80% Max (In my case: 132–150). ○ Zone 4 = 80–90% Max (In my case: 150–169). ○ Zone 5 = 90–100% Max (In my case: 169–188).

● For cardiovascular health we need 150–180 minutes of Zone 2 cardio per week! The easiest way to do this is a daily walk about 30 minutes (slightly faster pace, ideally uphill), but it can be done in any way (swimming, hiking, cycling, light jogging). Zone 2 cardio can be done in one go (we’re not limited to 60 minutes per session). Here you must consider outdoor air pollution, and if it’s high it’s better to do cardio indoors or go somewhere a bit further from the city.

● Once a week you should also add a HIIT workout, and follow this cycle: ○ 90 seconds Zone 5 cardio, then 120 seconds Zone 1–2 cardio – repeat 4–8 times. ○ Until the end of the workout (total up to 60 minutes) Zone 2–3 cardio. ○ This is the optimal regimen for fat burning, so if that’s your goal you can repeat it more than once per week.

● For stronger/longer cardio workouts it is important to replenish electrolytes (powdered form: sodium, magnesium, potassium), ready-made drinks, or add 0.5 g of plain salt to any drink.

● If our goal is fat burning the best option is to follow all course advice related to the body plus: ○ Gradually reduce calories consumed during the day until you reach a 10% caloric deficit (If the body needs 2500 calories to be at zero (including training) we consume 2250 calories during the day). Maintain the caloric deficit until you reach the desired weight. This is easiest by gradually introducing autophagy. ○ Pay particular attention to supplements to accelerate metabolism and increase body performance (and optimize testosterone in men to prevent muscle loss) and consume them (from the supplements section).