The reason you want to Train Smart is so you can Look Better, Feel Better, Sleep Better, and have Better Intimacy. That being said, here are the 3 things you need to think about before your next workout.
FYI…if you’re in your 20’s or early 30’s you can train wrong and still not be doing terrible, but after about 35, which is when your Testosterone (TT) and Growth Hormones (GH) start dropping, you don’t want to be wasting your time and energy. So, let’s learn how to Train Smart.
Exercise is a form of STRESS!
Can your body handle the additional stress? Yes, exercise is good for you and may help you blow off some emotional steam, but the physical exertion, the additional stress you are throwing onto your body, could be more than what your body can handle? I can’t tell you how many times people have told me they were feeling good the first few weeks or months, but now I’m feeling exhausted and not as good as I was in the beginning.
Maybe additional physical stress is more than what your body can handle?
There are different types of stresses, besides the Usual Suspects of Worry, Fear, and Anxiety. There’s Physical stress, lack of sleep, poor nutrition, an Inflamed Gut, electromagnetics. They all take a toll on your body and your ability to produce testosterone and growth hormones. So, exercise can be a double-edged sword and hurt you if NOT done correctly.
INTENSITY MATTERS
It’s your Skeletal muscles that spikes your Testosterone (TT) and Growth Hormone (GH) levels – Not your heart muscle! So, that 30–60-minute aerobic activity (jogging, biking, hiking, dancing, swimming, rowing, etc…) may have pushed your heart muscle… but it didn’t really spike your TT and GH levels like you think.
To ADD or KEEP Lean Muscle, you need Testosterone (TT) and Growth Hormone (GH). Unfortunately, after about age 35 you start producing less TT and GH. On average, you’ll lose about a half a pound of lean muscle every year after about 35. Another words, you could lose 5 pounds of lean muscle in one decade. The only thing that has been shown to stop muscle loss is TT and GH.
Unfortunately, around 35 is when people start doing More aerobic, endurance type exercises which are great for burning calories… and Fats when done Properly. However, it doesn’t really spike your TT and GH levels. Yeah, you’re exercising, your EGO is happy… your burning calories… but if you’re pushing yourself for 30-60 or more minutes… jogging, biking, dancing, hiking, spinning, rowing, etc… you’re NOT really spiking your TT and GH as much as you think. Because you’re using more of your aerobic, slow twitch muscle fibers which really don’t spike your TT and GH very much.
- Walking is exercise… It’s low intensity and spikes your TT and GH, a little.
- Jogging, biking, dancing, hiking, swimming, etc…are a bit more intense… and will spike TT and GH a little more than walking.
- But it’s the intense, physical exertion of your muscles that spike your Fast Twitch anaerobic muscle fibers, which spikes your TT and GH such as… Sprinting, HIIT workouts (done correctly), Progressive Resistance Training (weight training done correctly) the most, because it activates your Fast Twitch muscle fibers.
I’m not saying a good 45-minute jog, hike, swim, row, bike or group class isn’t hard and challenging. But if you’re doing your typical 30-60 minutes aerobic/endurance workout, it might NOT be spiking your TT and GH as much as you think.
Too often I hear people say, I’m basically the same size and weight as I was 10, 20,30 years ago, but I’ve lost my muscle composition, and I work out 3-4 times a week… WHY?
Intensity Matters and it’s your skeletal muscles that triggers your testosterone and growth hormones NOT your heart muscle beating a hundred miles an hour. This is why It’s important to Train Smart.
Burning The Wrong Fuel
Oftentimes, people automatically assume they are burning fats when they do ANY type of aerobic activity or workout. Unfortunately, that’s NOT always the case. Too often people do their aerobic activity at too fast of a pace for their level of aerobic conditioning, and instead of activating aerobic metabolism they activate Anaerobic metabolism.
What that simply means is that when you are using anaerobic metabolism you can ONLY burn SUGARS for energy, carbohydrates and proteins (lean muscle). Most people don’t realize they have switched into Anaerobic metabolism and Don’t have enough fuel (carbohydrates) in their body to get them through their entire workout.
They may burn through all their carbohydrates halfway through their (jog, run, bike, dance, hike, etc.) workout. But what are they going to burn for fuel the rest of their workout? They can’t burn FATS for energy, because the pace is too fast or at least harder on their body than they thought. So, there’s NO FAT Burning going on. AND if they didn’t adequately carb-load before the workout or didn’t realize they were training too fast and Can’t Burn FATS. What do you think the body is going to burn for fuel? It’s going to Burn proteins (lean muscle).
You may have lost some weight, but did you get rid of the Fat and Flab! In summary, Training Smart is all about getting the most out of your time, energy, and efforts. I hope that helps, don’t forget to check out the other articles/video to help you improve your level of health and fitness.
