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Fitness...
| AEROBICS - HAVE WE GOT IT ALL WRONG? |
| Bill Milne, BSc (Hons) MSc |
Background story: Just under three years ago I had a physical breakdown. The doctors suspected heart problems,
and I was diagnosed with hypertension. They prescribed a high dose of various “beta blockers”. I could not fathom
why this had happened to me; my lifestyle had always been healthy, and I took regular and frequent aerobic
and I was diagnosed with hypertension. They prescribed a high dose of various “beta blockers”. I could not fathom
why this had happened to me; my lifestyle had always been healthy, and I took regular and frequent aerobic
| Part I: The Aerobics Craze; Was It All A Monumental Mistake? (adapted from an article by Al Sears MD) |
In the 1970’s a curious discovery was made by Al Sears MD, when running a series of tests on his college’s gymnastics team. He
had picked out gymnasts with low pulmonary function (lung capacity). His goal was to improve their performance by increasing
their lung volume. At the time everyone believed that sustained running at an "aerobic level" would do the trick. But their next
round of scores was even lower!
Thirty years and dozens of clinical studies later, Dr Sears writes:
had picked out gymnasts with low pulmonary function (lung capacity). His goal was to improve their performance by increasing
their lung volume. At the time everyone believed that sustained running at an "aerobic level" would do the trick. But their next
round of scores was even lower!
Thirty years and dozens of clinical studies later, Dr Sears writes:
According to Dr Sears, and a growing band of researchers, aerobic exercise doesn't build your lungs or breathing capacity as the
name implies. In fact, aerobics actually shrinks your heart and lungs - making you more vulnerable to fatal heart attacks.
AEROBICS - ANTI-AGEING?
You've probably all seen the repeated prodding to "do cardio". Trouble is it seems that this kind of exercise may not strengthen
your heart and, far from being anti-ageing, this type of stress could speed up the age-related loss of heart and lung capacity.
When pundits began recommending aerobic exercise for health, they didn't know that when you repeat the same movement for
an extended time, your body responds by making the exertion more efficient. Now that’s exactly what long distance athletes are
striving for, but for a different purpose. Greater efficiency translates to an ability to increase their exertion levels and thus attain
faster times!
However, with prolonged relatively low-level "cardio" like jogging, you force greater efficiency by down sizing your heart and
lungs, because smaller can go farther with less fuel. They also didn't know that, since your heart and lung capacities shrink with
age, this type of exercise only accelerates these negative changes of ageing.
name implies. In fact, aerobics actually shrinks your heart and lungs - making you more vulnerable to fatal heart attacks.
AEROBICS - ANTI-AGEING?
You've probably all seen the repeated prodding to "do cardio". Trouble is it seems that this kind of exercise may not strengthen
your heart and, far from being anti-ageing, this type of stress could speed up the age-related loss of heart and lung capacity.
When pundits began recommending aerobic exercise for health, they didn't know that when you repeat the same movement for
an extended time, your body responds by making the exertion more efficient. Now that’s exactly what long distance athletes are
striving for, but for a different purpose. Greater efficiency translates to an ability to increase their exertion levels and thus attain
faster times!
However, with prolonged relatively low-level "cardio" like jogging, you force greater efficiency by down sizing your heart and
lungs, because smaller can go farther with less fuel. They also didn't know that, since your heart and lung capacities shrink with
age, this type of exercise only accelerates these negative changes of ageing.
| “The aerobics craze has been a monumental mistake.” |
And long duration aerobic exercise won't keep your heart healthy the way many doctors and fitness "experts" say it will. In fact, a
study of long-distance runners showed that after a workout, the blood levels and oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol and
triglycerides increased. According to the American Journal of Cardiology, this type of running disrupted the balance of blood
thinners and thickeners, elevating inflammatory factors and clotting levels - both signs of heart distress. These changes do not
reflect a heart that's becoming stronger after exercise.
study of long-distance runners showed that after a workout, the blood levels and oxidation of LDL (bad) cholesterol and
triglycerides increased. According to the American Journal of Cardiology, this type of running disrupted the balance of blood
thinners and thickeners, elevating inflammatory factors and clotting levels - both signs of heart distress. These changes do not
reflect a heart that's becoming stronger after exercise.
HOW AEROBICS ACCELERATES AGEING
For over 20 years, we've known that a person's lung capacity is a primary indicator of longevity. This simple fact about Ageing
comes to us from the now-famous "Framingham Heart Study." (If you're not familiar with it, the Framingham study has been
running for over 50 years. It has no interference from drug companies, and is the most reliable source of data relating to heart
health.)
In the 1980s, a pioneering doctor named Ward Dean did extensive research on lung capacity. He discovered some remarkable
statistics from the Framingham Heart Study. Ironically, one of the study's most startling discoveries had nothing to do with the
heart. It found that lung capacity is the best predictor of longevity - hands down. Simply stated, the bigger your lungs, the
longer you live.
It's normal to lose lung capacity as you age. By the time you're 70, you'll lose about 50 percent of it. But if you practice aerobics,
you're going to make that loss even worse. You don't hear much about this in the media, but the damage caused by lost lung
capacity is far worse than you might imagine.
Now, if you exercise only within your current aerobic limits, you do so without improving your aerobic capacity. In other words,
you never push hard enough to stop to catch your breath. This kind of aerobic exercise trains your body for endurance and
efficiency. And that sounds great, right? Well, it may sound great, but it's not. Because this kind of exercise causes "shrinkage" -
smaller muscles, smaller heart, and smaller lungs. What's worse, it wipes out your lungs' reserve capacity.
For over 20 years, we've known that a person's lung capacity is a primary indicator of longevity. This simple fact about Ageing
comes to us from the now-famous "Framingham Heart Study." (If you're not familiar with it, the Framingham study has been
running for over 50 years. It has no interference from drug companies, and is the most reliable source of data relating to heart
health.)
In the 1980s, a pioneering doctor named Ward Dean did extensive research on lung capacity. He discovered some remarkable
statistics from the Framingham Heart Study. Ironically, one of the study's most startling discoveries had nothing to do with the
heart. It found that lung capacity is the best predictor of longevity - hands down. Simply stated, the bigger your lungs, the
longer you live.
It's normal to lose lung capacity as you age. By the time you're 70, you'll lose about 50 percent of it. But if you practice aerobics,
you're going to make that loss even worse. You don't hear much about this in the media, but the damage caused by lost lung
capacity is far worse than you might imagine.
Now, if you exercise only within your current aerobic limits, you do so without improving your aerobic capacity. In other words,
you never push hard enough to stop to catch your breath. This kind of aerobic exercise trains your body for endurance and
efficiency. And that sounds great, right? Well, it may sound great, but it's not. Because this kind of exercise causes "shrinkage" -
smaller muscles, smaller heart, and smaller lungs. What's worse, it wipes out your lungs' reserve capacity.
Reserve capacity is what your lungs use to deal with a sudden increase in stress or high exertion (like sprinting for the bus,
running up several flights of stairs, or suddenly picking up and carrying a very heavy weight a short distance). Injuries or physical
trauma, a shocking emotional blow, a particularly intense session in the bedroom with your partner - these all demand reserve
capacity. Your reserve capacity, which is your body's ability to respond effectively to sudden demands you place on it, is crucial. It
can mean the difference between a long healthy life and a fatal heart attack. Without reserve capacity, you're much more likely
to drop dead from a heart attack when faced with one of the above type situations.
By engaging in regular aerobic exercise the cardiovascular system will become adept at handling a 30-, 45-, or 60-minute jog, but
may lose its ability to rapidly provide you with big bursts of energy for short periods. So instead of protecting your heart, you may
actually become more vulnerable to a heart attack. Make no mistake; exercising at low intensity for long periods of time makes
the heart, lungs, and muscles smaller so that they can go longer with less energy. Although this sounds like a good idea, it's not.
This is why reserve capacity is so critical - and why the latest research is beginning to be concerned about the popularity of
aerobic exercise. It may actually take years off your life.
Aerobics - supposedly designed to help you live longer - now seems to be a regrettable mistake. Instead of lengthening your life
by increasing your lung power, it does the opposite. In order to cope with the constant stress of long-duration exercise, your
body shrinks your lungs over time, making you more prone to chronic disease. This is bad news. Especially when you consider that
your lungs naturally get smaller with age. Aerobic exercise actually causes you to age faster, pushing you into the grave before
your time.
running up several flights of stairs, or suddenly picking up and carrying a very heavy weight a short distance). Injuries or physical
trauma, a shocking emotional blow, a particularly intense session in the bedroom with your partner - these all demand reserve
capacity. Your reserve capacity, which is your body's ability to respond effectively to sudden demands you place on it, is crucial. It
can mean the difference between a long healthy life and a fatal heart attack. Without reserve capacity, you're much more likely
to drop dead from a heart attack when faced with one of the above type situations.
By engaging in regular aerobic exercise the cardiovascular system will become adept at handling a 30-, 45-, or 60-minute jog, but
may lose its ability to rapidly provide you with big bursts of energy for short periods. So instead of protecting your heart, you may
actually become more vulnerable to a heart attack. Make no mistake; exercising at low intensity for long periods of time makes
the heart, lungs, and muscles smaller so that they can go longer with less energy. Although this sounds like a good idea, it's not.
This is why reserve capacity is so critical - and why the latest research is beginning to be concerned about the popularity of
aerobic exercise. It may actually take years off your life.
Aerobics - supposedly designed to help you live longer - now seems to be a regrettable mistake. Instead of lengthening your life
by increasing your lung power, it does the opposite. In order to cope with the constant stress of long-duration exercise, your
body shrinks your lungs over time, making you more prone to chronic disease. This is bad news. Especially when you consider that
your lungs naturally get smaller with age. Aerobic exercise actually causes you to age faster, pushing you into the grave before
your time.
* Jim Fixx is credited with helping start America's fitness revolution, popularising the sport of running and demonstrating the health benefits of
regular jogging. He spent a lot of time running on the roads and trails near his home, training for the Boston Marathon.
However, Fixx is also regularly cited as an example of the possible dangers of exercise. He died at the age of 52 of a massive heart attack, after his
daily run, on Route 15 in Hardwick, Vermont. The autopsy revealed that cholesterol had blocked one coronary artery 95%, a second 85%, and a
third 50%. Many who opposed his beliefs said this was proof running was harmful. Fixx came from a family where the men had poor health histories.
His father suffered a heart attack at the age of 35 and died of one at 42. Given Fixx's unhealthy lifestyle until he took up running, many argued that
running added many years to his life.
Fixx started running in 1967 at age 35. He weighed 214 pounds and smoked two packs of cigarettes per day. Ten years later, when his book, The
Complete Book of Running (which spent 11 weeks at No. 1 on the best-seller list) was published, he was 60 pounds lighter and smoke-free. The book
had inspired millions of people. In his books and on television talk shows, he extolled the benefits of physical exercise and how it considerably
increased the average human being's life expectancy. Fixx's book sold over a million copies. He become a guru of the running boom and is often
referred to as the “father of jogging”.
regular jogging. He spent a lot of time running on the roads and trails near his home, training for the Boston Marathon.
However, Fixx is also regularly cited as an example of the possible dangers of exercise. He died at the age of 52 of a massive heart attack, after his
daily run, on Route 15 in Hardwick, Vermont. The autopsy revealed that cholesterol had blocked one coronary artery 95%, a second 85%, and a
third 50%. Many who opposed his beliefs said this was proof running was harmful. Fixx came from a family where the men had poor health histories.
His father suffered a heart attack at the age of 35 and died of one at 42. Given Fixx's unhealthy lifestyle until he took up running, many argued that
running added many years to his life.
Fixx started running in 1967 at age 35. He weighed 214 pounds and smoked two packs of cigarettes per day. Ten years later, when his book, The
Complete Book of Running (which spent 11 weeks at No. 1 on the best-seller list) was published, he was 60 pounds lighter and smoke-free. The book
had inspired millions of people. In his books and on television talk shows, he extolled the benefits of physical exercise and how it considerably
increased the average human being's life expectancy. Fixx's book sold over a million copies. He become a guru of the running boom and is often
referred to as the “father of jogging”.
| Adapted from Wilkepedia |
| This article appears courtesy of Early to Rise, the Internet's most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com/. |
| Acknowledgement - other contributors include Jon Herring, Craig Ballantyne |
exercise. Hell, I was a high level Conditioning coach and Exercise Physiologist – I thought I knew exactly how to look after my
body!!!
Let me state at the outset, that I am not a fan of this type of exercise, especially the long duration type. Nevertheless, like many
in the health and sports science community, I long held the belief that hours of aerobic exercise was THE way forward for
achieving fat loss, fitness, and good health.
In my youth I had been a pretty good explosive athlete - 100/200m/Javelin/Shot - and my preferred sports were sprint or power
based, primarily Basketball, Gymnastics, and Olympic Weightlifting. I hated the (then obligatory) school Cross Country runs. When I
left school, I joined the Armed Forces and for many years indulged in my preferred activities. But then came the 1980’s and the
aerobics boom fuelled by Jim Fixx* and Jane Fonda; at least her classes contained some high intensity exercise so weren’t too
bad. But hey ho along came the ‘fit police’ and we all went “low impact” for hours at a time!
By then I had left the forces and become a fitness conditioner. I took a degree and MSc in Sports and Health Science and, as
part of the Loughborough mafia, until very recently, subscribed to the “aerobics is king” mantra regarding health, fitness, and
weight control. I slavishly began engaging in long hours of boring jogging exercise á la Jim. However, in my own experience, it
never seemed to me to be really effective. I became less fit over the years (allowing for ageing) than I had ever been, despite an
average two hours per day walking to and from my home and the University, and regular long duration sessions of cardio in the
gym.
I couldn’t fathom it. That was, until I came across several recent articles pointing to possible reasons why. These articles extolled
the virtues of Intermittent High Intensity [Interval] Exercise, and warned of the dangers of too much aerobic exercise.
In the late 1980’ and early 90’s, long, slow, cardiovascular exercise was being promoted as a panacea for all our ailments. It
promised fast weight loss, optimal heart health, and increased longevity. With hindsight, my own experience, and now research
evidence to the contrary, it would seem that this is not the case. Indeed, it may even be hazardous to your health!
Long, slow cardio is probably a waste of your time if...
Much of the anecdotal and research evidence now suggests that you could be getting better results (or even the same results)
in less time. Take two people: Person A runs 60 minutes three times per week. Person B does 25 minutes of strength training
followed by 20 minutes of interval training three times per week. Person B will always build a better body. The research even
points to this form of exercise as being better for your health.
Your best exercise bet is to stick to three structured workouts per week that incorporate both strength training and time-
efficient interval training. Not only will you get better results and improved health, you'll have more time to enjoy your life when
you're not stuck on a treadmill for hours on end (to my mind running on a treadmill is the worst form of cardio exercise – George
Gandy [Seb Coe’s former coach] told me he would never allow any of his distance athletes to train on a treadmill).
As a consequence of reviewing the articles and research evidence, I have now gone back to my youth and started a programme
combining intermittent high intensity sprints, circuit training, and weight lifting. I have got fitter than I have ever been in the past
twenty years, my blood pressure has returned to normal, and I am gradually reducing my prescribed medication. I thus present an
amalgamation and précis of some of those articles that present an alternate view regarding aerobic exercise.
body!!!
Let me state at the outset, that I am not a fan of this type of exercise, especially the long duration type. Nevertheless, like many
in the health and sports science community, I long held the belief that hours of aerobic exercise was THE way forward for
achieving fat loss, fitness, and good health.
In my youth I had been a pretty good explosive athlete - 100/200m/Javelin/Shot - and my preferred sports were sprint or power
based, primarily Basketball, Gymnastics, and Olympic Weightlifting. I hated the (then obligatory) school Cross Country runs. When I
left school, I joined the Armed Forces and for many years indulged in my preferred activities. But then came the 1980’s and the
aerobics boom fuelled by Jim Fixx* and Jane Fonda; at least her classes contained some high intensity exercise so weren’t too
bad. But hey ho along came the ‘fit police’ and we all went “low impact” for hours at a time!
By then I had left the forces and become a fitness conditioner. I took a degree and MSc in Sports and Health Science and, as
part of the Loughborough mafia, until very recently, subscribed to the “aerobics is king” mantra regarding health, fitness, and
weight control. I slavishly began engaging in long hours of boring jogging exercise á la Jim. However, in my own experience, it
never seemed to me to be really effective. I became less fit over the years (allowing for ageing) than I had ever been, despite an
average two hours per day walking to and from my home and the University, and regular long duration sessions of cardio in the
gym.
I couldn’t fathom it. That was, until I came across several recent articles pointing to possible reasons why. These articles extolled
the virtues of Intermittent High Intensity [Interval] Exercise, and warned of the dangers of too much aerobic exercise.
In the late 1980’ and early 90’s, long, slow, cardiovascular exercise was being promoted as a panacea for all our ailments. It
promised fast weight loss, optimal heart health, and increased longevity. With hindsight, my own experience, and now research
evidence to the contrary, it would seem that this is not the case. Indeed, it may even be hazardous to your health!
Long, slow cardio is probably a waste of your time if...
- You are doing a lot of it and you are not getting results. While that goes for almost any form of training, my own
experience was that doing an excessive amount of cardio (on some occasions, as much as fifteen hours per week!) gave
minimal returns. I still had a physical breakdown. - You suffer from [regular] overuse injuries, which happens frequently when you do too many repetitions of the same
movement in a single workout. - You are not an elite duration athlete.
Much of the anecdotal and research evidence now suggests that you could be getting better results (or even the same results)
in less time. Take two people: Person A runs 60 minutes three times per week. Person B does 25 minutes of strength training
followed by 20 minutes of interval training three times per week. Person B will always build a better body. The research even
points to this form of exercise as being better for your health.
Your best exercise bet is to stick to three structured workouts per week that incorporate both strength training and time-
efficient interval training. Not only will you get better results and improved health, you'll have more time to enjoy your life when
you're not stuck on a treadmill for hours on end (to my mind running on a treadmill is the worst form of cardio exercise – George
Gandy [Seb Coe’s former coach] told me he would never allow any of his distance athletes to train on a treadmill).
As a consequence of reviewing the articles and research evidence, I have now gone back to my youth and started a programme
combining intermittent high intensity sprints, circuit training, and weight lifting. I have got fitter than I have ever been in the past
twenty years, my blood pressure has returned to normal, and I am gradually reducing my prescribed medication. I thus present an
amalgamation and précis of some of those articles that present an alternate view regarding aerobic exercise.
The Gaia Infostore
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