Matt Metzgar

Immunity

I woke up Friday morning with a bit of a sore throat.  Maybe it was something I ate, maybe I overdid the exercise during the week, I don't know.  Regardless, the obvious question was what to do about it.

I skipped breakfast and lunch both Friday and Saturday, and ate dinner only.  The idea was that by restricting food intake for a bit (intermittent fasting), it would give the body a chance to repair itself.

The old saying, "feed a cold, starve a fever" probably isn't correct.  Intermittent fasting is most likely a good route to take whether one is suffering from a cold or fever.  I don't think this has been shown research-wise yet, but it's only a matter of time.

Speaking of fevers, an evolutionary perspective is useful for understanding fevers as well.  Fevers are the body's natural response to infection.  Taking a fever-reducing medicine (unless the fever is quite severe) will actually slow the healing process.  Fevers may be uncomfortable, but they are a means to end: the body is raising its temperature to fight the infection.

For a good read on this subject, check out the book, "Why We Get Sick: The New Science of Darwinian Medicine."

Sprinters are Lean at Any Age

Here's a nice study I found that looks at sprinters from age 18 all the way to age 84.  The study shows that the older sprinters had less fast-twitch muscle fibers and were able to generate less force.  This is to be expected: senior citizens shouldn't be outrunning Michael Johnson.

However, the older sprinters were able to retain most of their power and also stay in great shape.  The sprinters in the 70-84 years old age group averaged 15 percent bodyfat.  That is sensational compared to the general population and especially to others in that age bracket.

The real value of this study is that it shows the importance of anaerobic, sprint-type activities and how it can stave off the aging process.

Gyms and Profit

If you read any bodybuilding or fitness magazine, you'll see countless pages of worthless supplement ads.  Many people have figured out that these supplement makers are mostly concerned with profit first, and providing a useful product second.  But there is less attention paid to the profit motive and how it is related to gyms and gym equipment.

Is all the equipment in gyms really necessary to achieve health and/or a good physique?  I don't think so.  I bet gym members could obtain the same results with a variety of free weights or even more primitive weighted objects. 

For example, for the last couple of weeks I have skipped the gym and lifted at home.  I have a barbell and an Olympic weight set, and can do a ton of different exercises if I desire.  How much did this set cost me?  Not too much, I bought it at a department store a few years ago for under $200.  I've gotten years of use out of it already, and the weights are virtually indestructible.  I'll probably get 20 years out of this one-time investment.

Now compare this to a typical health club.  The club spends thousands of dollars on a variety of machines and weights, and then charges members a hefty price.  (And what's with these bizarre 2 or 3 year contracts they want people to sign??!!)

The point is that the health club creates a perception of value by having a lot of fancy equipment - regardless of whether the equipment is necessary to achieve health or not.  In this way, they can tie consumption with health: if I buy a gym membership, I will become healthy.  What's forgotten is that it's the exercise that makes a person healthy, and proper exercise can be done at a health club or not, and with fancy equipment or not.

Hunter-gatherers didn't use any special equipment to stay strong and healthy.  They lifted rocks, carcasses, and who knows what else on a regular basis.  None of this was done in a special way or at a special place or at a special time.  What they lifted varied over time, and there were no concepts such as sets or reps.  The lifted when they had to and that was that. 

Resistance training can be as complex or simple as you make it.

Good Vibrations

I've come across a number of studies lately looking at "whole-body vibration."  Whole-body vibration is, just like it sounds, when a person stands on a platform that is vibrating.  Incredibly, this procedure has been shown to produce health benefits, such as increased bone density.

The interesting question for me is why this procedure may work.  Obviously, our prehistoric ancestors weren't standing on vibrating plates.  This study says whole-body vibration (WBV) elicts a biological response similar to that of explosive power or resistance training.  In other words, WBV causes the muscles to contract reflexively, the same as muscles do during jumping or explosive strength movements.

Maybe researchers have found a short-cut of sorts - a technique for which people can get benefits without essentially doing anything.  This could certainly help those who are unable or just unwilling to exercise.  It's too early to tell, but it is an interesting concept.

After the Run

Cooling down after today's intermittent run.

 

Aerobics

Aerobics gets a bad rap in a lot circles.  It is blamed for many injuries that come from repetitive exercise.  It is blamed for some suspiciously high rates of cancer and heart attacks among those that perform a large amount of aerobics.  People that take aerobics to the extreme, such as marathoners and triathletes, often suffer serious health problems after their competitive careers.

On the other hand, there are a gazillion studies showing the benefits of aerobic exercise.  Moderate aerobic exercise can help almost any health condiiton.  More vigorous aerobics also shows benefits for some health problems.  So which is it, is aerobics healthy or not?

It is easy to see that hunter-gatherers must have performed a large amount of aerobic activity.  They covered lots of ground on a hunt, and would often have to chase after wounded prey.  Yet their form of "aerobics" was much different than modern versions.

First, it was done outdoors and on grass or dirt.  Trail running is much different than street running because 1) the trail is softer and hence easier on the body, and 2) trail running is not a constant, mechanical-type pace; it's more stop-and-start as you navigate around obstacles.

I'm wondering if it's not a high volume of aerobics that is potentially harmful, but instead only the steady-pace version of aerobics.  Stop-and-go locomotion is the standard form of locomotion for most animals.  It would be curious if humans weren't endowned with this same feature.

Is a high volume of intermittent aerobic activity harmful?  It's doubtful, and most likely the opposite is true.  This recent study shows that men performing an hour of aerobic activity six days a week showed a lower risk for colon cancer.  It does not say specifically that the activity was intermittent, but it is implied from some of the authors' comments (I'm working on getting the full paper).

Personally, I've been doing a good bit of intermittent running these past few weeks, and I can really tell a difference.  I have more energy throughout the day and sleep sounder.  I actually look forward to the days on which I'll perform intermittent running (like today!).

Move or Die

Human evolution has lots of inbuilt rules to ensure the survival of the species.  One of them could be called, "use it or lose it," or more coldly, "move or die." 

Once a person is past the mating age, movement is a strong (perhaps the strongest) signal to the body.  If a person quits moving regularly, the body reads this pattern and allows various systems to start to decay.  Yet if a person continues moving on a regular basis, they are still "in the game," and the body will continue with maintenance functions.

This recent study shows just that: that in older people, mortality is inversely related to energy expenditure.  The study points out that it's not really any particular type of activity that's important.  Instead it's the more total energy that is expended, the lower the chance of death. 

Nature gives us some simple laws that we can ignore at our own peril.  To stay healthy, we have to keep moving as much and as long as we can. 

Stone Age Power Revisited

As I've mentioned, a free e-book, "Stone Age Power" is now available at this site.  It was an interesting experience for me to dust off the book and see what it looked like after a few years.

I actually only had to change one paragraph in the whole book before I finalized it.  The rest of it is still true and stands the test of time.  My knowledge has certainly expanded over the past few years, but it's nice to know that the diet and exercise principles of the plan still hold up.  I hope readers take advantage of this resource.

Fat Cells and Inflammation

For years, scientists thought that fat cells were just passive storage units for excess calories.  Now research is showing that fat cells are far from passive (and far from nice).  This article is a nice read about how fat cells contribute to inflammation and other health problems. 

Elvis and Evolution

I had to give a "motivational speech" at work, but I instead decided to look at motivation from a different angle.  Biologists show that all animals (humans included) have a natural drive towards "protean behavior" - or in simpler terms, creative behavior.

I decided to do a Powerpoint about the natural urge for creativity and the problems that can happen when that drive is blocked, such as in the life of Elvis Presley.  Here's the short Powerpoint.