There is a huge lack of understanding amongst the majority of people on exactly what is going on with their bodies. Between nutrition and workouts, the media is flooded with the dos and donts of fitness. The problem is, without an understanding of why we are doing something, it is impossible to properly apply the techniques as needed. In my opinion, a large part of the disconnect between the knowledge of science and lack of understanding in the masses, is due to the lack of a simple, applicable explanation. The following is meant to simplify the process of metabolic conditioning and fueling the body for optimal health, energy and performance.
First of all, the body has two sources of fuel. Fat and Sugar, that’s it! Protein is not a viable source of energy, it is important to rebuild damaged cells, and thats about it. Sugars and fats come in different forms and some metabolize faster than others, no need to go deeper into that at this point.
The second most important detail is how and why the body metabolizes fats and sugars. When the body goes into an increased level of activity, energy is needed to maintain the work. As long as the body is able to get oxygen, the body can metabolize fats and turn them into usable energy. This is called an aerobic state of exercise, which means, in the presence of oxygen. After prolonged activity, the body reaches a point where it can no longer rid the waste fast enough from the lungs. This is considered an anaerobic state, or without oxygen. When the body becomes starved of oxygen, fats can no longer be converted into energy and the body turns to sugar, or glycogen, to use for fuel. At this point, the countdown has begun because the average man can only store between 2,000 to 2,500 calories as sugar in the body. Interestingly, the same average build man would have about 55,000 calories in the form of fats stored throughout the body. Quite obviously, the longer one could maintain an aerobic state and burn fats as the primary fuel source, the longer a given activity could be performed before failure. So to recap, the body goes from rest, to work, into an aerobic state, followed by an anaerobic state, followed by exhaustion or failure to continue.
Now that we have the first two parts of the education we need to put them together. The third most important detail everyone should know is that the body can be, and WILL be, conditioned to be either more aerobic or more anaerobic. If you train 80% of the time aerobically, your body will be a fat burning machine with incredible endurance! If you train above your anaerobic threshold 80% of the time, you will have an explosive and fast body that melts through sugars. This is the ongoing process known as the metabolic adaptation to exercise.
Before we finish up with an example of proper application of this education, I want to give you the single greatest tool modern technology has come up with, in regards to attaining an accurate level of physical output from the body, or biofeedback. This is the heart rate monitor along with a heart rate test. By getting a HR test, you will be able to extract a specific HR number associated with your aerobic state and your anaerobic threshold. Knowing this information and training with a HR monitor, allows you to know when and how you are training in a given energy source and therefore allows you to know how you are conditioning the body to perform.
Last off, the application of the education. This is where you need to think. Depending on your goals, the challenge of properly conditioning your body to its needs becomes important. For instance; are you training for a marathon or to be an Olympic weight lifter, are you trying to tone up and lose excess body fat or trying to put on lean muscle weight.
Because 9 out of 10 of you would like to be more “ripped”, or toned, and struggle to get that result, I’ll give an explanation of the most common scenario.
Most “cardio”, what many consider their aerobic training, is now done in a class setting (ie- spinning, cardio boxing, cardio dance). Because the teacher wants to give everyone a “killer” work out, the intensity is too high and the class goes instantly into an anaerobic state and starts tapping into the sugars from the start of the workout. For the next hour, the class is essentially held at an anaerobic level. This isn’t necessarily bad because it makes you fit, but fat is not being utilized. Furthermore, the body is being taught to prefer sugar as the predominant fuel source.
To tone and improve endurance, or strip those last impossible pounds; low intensity aerobic work. Supplement strength routines into 20% of the total weekly hours of training. As you adapt to the work you can periodize these percentages and experiment with the amount of time you spend in each energy zone. Like a month of “polishing” where you do 60% of aerobic base training and supplement 40% strength, or anaerobic, training, for example.
An example of training with a HR monitor to achieve endurance: If you know that your body becomes aerobic at 130 beats per minute and crosses the anaerobic threshold at 157 bpm, you would know that by wearing a HR monitor and maintaining an intensity somewhere around 145-155 bpm for up to an hour, and even longer as endurance improves, you are burning body fat and conditioning the body to achieve better endurance while recognizing fats as the preferred source of energy. Besides improved endurance, the result would be a lower body fat percentage and would therefore require a higher fat intake in the diet of a leaner athlete in order to maintain high energy levels.
If the intention is to build a body capable of short explosive bursts, where endurance is not needed and fat burning is not a concern. You would do most of the weekly hours per week in an anaerobic state. The biggest mistake in athletes trying to achieve this type of conditioning is improper fueling, typically taking in too much protein, not enough sugar, or carbohydrates. Remember, this type of training is fueled almost completely from glycogen (sugar from carbohydrates or simple sugars). Many strength trainers wonder why they have low energy and can’t get the most out of workouts. A carbohydrate rich meal for pre workout and high protein meal for post workout is the key to optimizing performance and making consistent athletic gains.
