Cardiobots and Cardio Bunnies--Stick to the Hornet's Nest

I just have a sec as Jodie and I are off to the airport in a bit for Seattle WA for 8 days. Well, we were supposed to be on a plane now but there was a change to our flight time and the plane already left at 6:30am instead of 2:30pm today! Thanks for the great notice!
All the details will be in my newsletter that goes out tomorrow if anyone is interested (can still sign up at the bottom on this message).

Some good friends of mine were kind enough to open up their house to us (little do they know what is in store) and time for a much needed vacation. Neither of us have been to Seattle yet either and I will be a the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) conference this coming Wed-Fri sniffing out the latest and greatest for all of you here. I am working on some special updates and perhaps even an interview(s). Some of it will be released here and some tidbits will only be sent to my newsletter group, so be sure to sign up for my newsletter at the end of this post (it is free too).

If you are going to be at ACSM, drop me a note and we can chat live in person!

So it looks like a previous blog post I did stirred up a few comments and I got permission to post one below as this weeks "Letter to the Editor"

Read on

Ok, time for me to say something about the language you use as you may be hurting yourself and not even realize it. First, let me say, I love your blog posts, I can tell you spend a great deal of time and effort to not only "just post links to research articles", but you take the time and effort to break down the research articles and you do an excellent job of summarizing and breaking it down to a lay person's level, who, may be interested and intelligent enough to really "get" the article, but who may not be willing to dedicate the time to actually read the whole study, in part b/c you break it down so well!

Constructive Criticism Details below: Anytime you write on your blog or in these email updates to your blog about strength training, you refer to it as "strength training" or as training for "power/speed athletes", but I have Never read you making Any derogatory remarks about strength training.

Except for the one blog post about "Broscience". At the same time, I have observed, that almost anytime you write, on your blog, or in these email updates to your blog, about endurance training, you Almost Always refer to it as exercise conducted by "cardio bunnies" or as exercise conducted by (in this case) "Cardiobots", or you may use some other derogatory word, but "Cardio bunnies" seems to be your favorite.

And I get that there are people out there who "only" will do endurance training, and I can see how you may feel that strength training is not stressed enough or paid enough attention to and therefore I can see that you may be trying to make a case for why strength training is important. However, at the same time, I think there are probably just as many people out there who "only" engage in strength training and don't see any value in endurance training. And I know, you know the value in endurance training, b/c I've read a number of your blog posts about how amazing you find endurance athletes like the bike race across America.

Plus, I know you are very smart and as a smart person myself (at least I like to think so), who tries to have a good balance of both endurance and strength training, I find it demeaning and simply not necessary, to almost Always make fun of people who engage in endurance training by calling them demeaning names.

This all leads to my question: Why do feel it is necessary to make derogatory remarks about endurance training or people who engage in endurance training, but you (almost) never make derogatory remarks about strength training or people who engage in it, but you in strength training?

Charles


Thanks again for the comments Charles. Much appreciated as it take cajones to actually give constructive feedback.

Yeah, I may be pissing off some cardio people although that is not my intent. I refer to a cardiobot or a cardio bunny as someone who does mindless hours of cardio normally on a treadmill or elliptical without any plan or any change in intensity--just the same thing every day hoping it will work better tomorrow. You can spot these people in big health clubs very easily (and they don't even wear rabbit ears).

I have HUGE respect for ANY athlete (athlete is defined as anyone that trains and uses their body for a living, so that includes pretty much everyone). I totally understand why people run marathons and heck, bike across the entire US from my volunteer stint on the RAAM and I give mad props to all of them. I personally will not be signing up any time soon though.

Don't worry, there are tons of stupid things that weight trainers do in the gym too! I tend to forget about it since the only gym I go to on occasion is at work and that is mostly cardio equipment. I do 95% of my sessions in my garage gym (aka the Xtreme Human Performance Center) and for cardio I primarily do KBs, some biking and now that summer is here more sprints, sledge hammer on the tire, push cars, etc.

I do feel the tide is turning and strength work is getting much more respect in the research community, but the reality is its much easier to study endurance training. I fully admit to falling in that camp too as part of my Monster Energy Drink study is using a bike ride to exhaustion because of previous literature (although not much) and it is easier to measure.

Yes, cardio (cardiorespiratory fitness) is very important! I actually believe that many strength athletes could benefit from more intelligent CRF work in their programs, even if strenght is their main goal. My buddy Aaron S from ND said it best, "it just helps to be 'ft'" I will save you a lecture about HRV and work capacity.

The reality is that this blog will never be a home for die hard endurance fans, and that is fine with me. I don't mean any disrespect to them, but I have to narrow the focus a bit to provide relevant info to the loyal readers

Hope that helps and thanks again for the feedback as most just unsubscribe without any comments or why; which makes it very hard for me to improve them. My goal long term is to make this a trusted home for athletic performance enhancement. I agree with Dr. Cobb when he said "it is actually UNnatrual to NOT be athletic"
Rock on
Mike N
PS
If anyone else has comments on this, post away in the comments section!

PPS
If you want some cool insider scoop from ACSM, sign up to my newsletter below

Performance Research for April : Central Fatigue and Exercise part 1

Treadmill Update
I updated the post the other day in an attempt to better explain my treadmill thoughts; so go back and check it out if you have not done so

Get Off the Treadmill!

General Update
All is going well, just stupid busy and up at 4:30am tomorrow for more testing again in the lab for my Energy Drink study, which is good. Getting close to the end now.

Some new studies for all of you related to central/peripheral fatigue. Enjoy and see my comments below each one.

Fatigue alters in vivo function within and between limb muscles during locomotion.

Higham TE, Biewener AA. Department of Biological Sciences, Clemson University, 132 Long Hall, Clemson, SC 29634, USA. thigham@clemson.edu


Muscle fatigue, a reduction in force as a consequence of exercise, is an important factor for any animal that moves, and can result from both peripheral and/or central mechanisms. Although much is known about whole-limb force generation and activation patterns in fatigued muscles under sustained isometric contractions, little is known about the in vivo dynamics of limb muscle function in relation to whole-body fatigue. Here we show that limb kinematics and contractile function in the lateral (LG) and medial (MG) gastrocnemius of helmeted guineafowl (Numida meleagris) are significantly altered following fatiguing exercise at 2ms-1 on an inclined treadmill.


The two most significant findings were that the variation in muscle force generation, measured directly from the muscles' tendons, increased significantly with fatigue, and fascicle shortening in the proximal MG, but not the distal MG, decreased significantly with fatigue. We suggest that the former is a potential mechanism for decreased stability associated with fatigue. The region-specific alteration of fascicle behaviour within the MG as a result of fatigue suggests a complex response to fatigue that probably depends on muscle-aponeurosis and tendon architecture not previously explored.


CONCLUSION: These findings highlight the importance of studying the integrative in vivo dynamics of muscle function in response to fatigue.

My Notes: This study shows once again that studies done in isolation and in a petri dish may not (heck, are usually) not the same as those done in the whole body. Everything affects everything in the body. Dr. Cobb likes to say "all the body, all the time"

Brain activation in multiple sclerosis: a BOLD fMRI study of the effects of fatiguing hand exercise.

White A, Lee J, Light A, Light K. Department of Exercise & Sport Science and Brain Institute, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.


BackgroundMultiple sclerosis (MS) patients experience fatigue as a chronic symptom that decreases quality of life. Commonly, fatigue in MS patients is manifested as decreased motor function during or after physical activity and is associated with changes in brain metabolism.ObjectiveTo determine brain activation patterns in MS patients and healthy controls during a simple motor task before and after fatiguing hand-grip exercise.MethodsFunctional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans were conducted on 10 MS patients and 13 healthy controls during 4-finger flexion and extension in rested and fatigued states.


ResultsBefore the fatigue protocol, MS patients had greater activation in the contralateral primary motor cortex, insula, and cingulate gyrus than controls. Following fatiguing exercise, controls showed increased activation of precentral gyrus and insula while patients did not show any activation increases and actually decreased activity to the insula.


CONCLUSION: Results indicate that before fatiguing exercise, MS patients marshaled more brain activation compared to controls, which may represent functionally adaptive changes in response to demyelination. This increased activation may suggest that patients require more effort to perform even simple motor tasks, possibly because peripheral or central signals for fatigue are chronically enhanced. When fatigued further by muscle contraction, brain activation cannot be further increased.

My Notes: Sounds like the brain is having to work over time to attempt to make up for this difference. I would expect to see changes in the brain and coordination patterns then long term.

Mechanisms of fatigue induced by isometric contractions in exercising humans and in mouse isolated single muscle fibres.

Place N, Bruton JD, Westerblad H. Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden. nicolas.place@ki.se


1. Muscle fatigue (i.e. the decrease in muscle performance during exercise) has been studied extensively using a variety of experimental paradigms, from mouse to human, from single cell to whole-body exercise. Given the disparity of models used to characterize muscle fatigue, it can be difficult to establish whether the results of basic in vitro studies are applicable to exercise in humans. 2. In the present brief review, our attempt is to relate neuromuscular alterations caused by repeated or sustained isometric contraction in humans to changes in excitation-contraction (E-C) coupling observed in intact single muscle fibres, where force and the free myoplasmic [Ca(2+)] can be measured. 3. Accumulated data indicate that impairment of E-C coupling, most likely located within muscle fibres, accounts for the fatigue-induced decrease in maximal force in humans, whereas central (neural) fatigue is of greater importance for the inability to continue a sustained low-intensity contraction.


Based on data from intact single muscle fibres, the fatigue-induced impairment in E-C coupling involves: (i) a reduced number of active cross-bridges owing to a decreased release of Ca(2+); (ii) a decreased sensitivity of the myofilaments to Ca(2+); and/or (iii) a reduced force produced by each active cross-bridge. 4.


CONCLUSION: In conclusion, data from single muscle fibre studies can be used to increase our understanding of fatigue mechanisms in some, but not all, types of human exercise. To further increase the understanding of fatigue mechanisms in humans, we propose future studies using in vitro stimulation patterns that are closer to the in vivo situation.

My Notes: Um, see my comments above about in vitro (petri dish/bench testing) and in vivio (in the body testing). The reality is that research is a back and forth method or in the clinical world they call it "bench top to bed side"

Get Off the Treadmill!

The "Get Off" series continues (add your own bad joke here_____)

Seems like the past one about foam rollers was like poking a hornet's nest with a big stick; so it should be interesting to see what happens here.

In case you missed the first installment, see the post below

Get Off the Foam Roller

Stay the heck off the darn treadmill!

I find it incredibly odd that when I used to lift at a commercial gym that people would circle the parking lot for several minutes to find a close parking spot only to go in and get on a treadmill. What? Why don't you just leave your car at home and walk to the gym? Yeah I know there are tons of reasons why this may not be practical, but buy a kettlebell (see the dragon link on the upper right hand side) and get some expert instruction from a local RKC and you are on your way. Yes, you can train your CRF (cardiorespiratory fitness aka "cardio") by using a KB.

If you want more details, see the post below where I challenged Carl Lanore at Super Human Radio about his treadmill usage.

Z Health, Proprioception, Neuroplasticity all on Super Human Radio

Why are treadmills bad news bears?
In short, when you are on a treadmill, your joints are telling your brain you are moving; but the eyes tell your brain--no you are not moving you idiot because you are in the same darn place that you were 20 minutes ago! I think this causes some massive confusion with your nervous system and a decrease in performance.

Just watching people walk off a treadmill in any gym---they look like Ted Kennedy after a late night bender.

If people want more treadmill information, this is one of the many topics covered in the Z Health R Phase Certification; so drop me a line for information.

Editor's Note: (I add the following portion in an attempt to better explain myself. I appreciate the comments!).

I am not against exercise at all. I've spend the better part of the past 17 years (yikes, I can't believe I started college in 1992, ugh) studying physiology/engineering in some form. If someone could put the benefits of exercise in a pill, it would be the best selling drug in history almost over night.

Like all things, I believe there is a correct way and a wrong way to do things. Keep in mind that all forms of exercise have a COST. No free lunch. The cost of doing treadmill work I believe is making your muscles weaker (I will be working on a video to demo this in the next few weeks). The cost of attempting a very heavy deadlift with piss poor form may be a back issue. The correct exercise for your body, done correctly will still cost you fuel (think food) to perform it. You get the idea.

The gait (walking/running pattern) on a treadmill is very close to what we would normally do on flat, non moving ground and this compounds the issue. From many studies, we know that if a major league baseball pitcher decided to throw a baseball that is even just a little bit heavier for his training, it would completely screw up his pitching. Some coaches have completely ruined athlete's careers by doing this! The motor learning process is very precise and using a heavier ball for pitching has a negative transfer to his pitching with a regulation ball.

I think the treadmill is too close to our normal gait and seems to have a negative transfer. Other modes of cardio don't seem to do this probably because they are different enough; so bikes (even stationary ones) don't seem to be an issue and most weight lifting is fine also.

It is a free country and nobody any time soon is going to take your treadmill away from you. You are free to use it, I just ask that people keep careful records to make sure it does not have any negative transfer to them (decrease in performance).

Chasing someone around with a metabolic cart to complete a study would be a total pain in the butt, I agree completely. So far to date I've done over 150 exercise tests and I am glad I don't have to chase anyone around (although there are systems to do that). The cardiorespiratory response appears to be fine as anything that uses lots of muscles in a rhythmic fashion will work.

We know so much about CRF since it is much easier to study then strength and even athletic performance in the lab.

Back to the blog again. If people are interested, I am working on a longer version of this based off the many research studies that I pulled. Not sure when it will be done though.

Below are some great treadmill videos for your viewing pleasure that I stole off of Eric Cressey's blog.



I had this one in a presentation years ago---one of my favs!



The rise of "functional treadmill training" Challenge your balance!



Comments? Let me know and post them below.
Rock on
Mike T Nelson