The Purposefully Primitive 1st Way of cardiovascular exercise is known as steady-state, or sustained cardiovascular exercise. The goal in steady-state is to attain, maintain and sustain an increased heart rate while moving along at a steady pace. Jog, swim, run, power walk—the mode is less important than the primary goal: elevate the heart rate to a predetermined level and keep it elevated in a sustained fashion for the duration of the session.
Regardless the selected cardio mode, be clear that the goal is not to become an expert jogger, runner or swimmer—those are spin off side benefits that naturally occur as a result of performing certain exercise modes on a consistent basis. The cardio goal is to elevate the heart to a predetermined target level. Steady-state, as the name implies, consciously seeks to attain a smooth and constant pace for the duration of the aerobic activity. Physiologically, the athlete motors along without triggering oxygen debt. The successful 1st Way practitioner operates just below the point where oxygen demand exceeds oxygen intake, thereby resulting in oxygen debt. The oxygen pulse should be balanced: “senders” (heart and lungs) need to be in perfect synchronization with “receivers” (muscles) as fresh, oxygen-laden blood is smoothly exchanged with toxic-laden blood full of waste products and lactic acid. The Soft Machine propels itself along smoothly and effortlessly, maintaining a delicate balance between senders and receivers.
1st Way cardio seeks to establish aerobic efficiency. Muscle contractions require oxygen and by staying relaxed the body achieves maximum oxygen efficiency. If the athlete tenses or flexes muscles as they propel themselves, oxygen demand is doubled. 1st Way cardio is exemplified by Kenyan long distance runners. These men glide as they run. Striding with complete relaxation, they skim along the surface of the earth; their footfalls barely leave a footprint or make a sound. They are able to glide along at 70% of their awesome maximum lung capacity all day long.
Steady-state cardio, the 1st Way, is a valid arrow in the cardio quiver; another great tool in the exercise toolbox. Too many aerobic adherents use steady-state exclusively, to the complete exclusion of 2nd and 3rd Way aerobic practice. This is a major mistake.
1st Way cardio can become too efficient for its own good. Have you ever rode, strode or ran on a cardiovascular device or machine so ball-bearing efficient, so smooth that it was impossible to break a sweat or elevate the heart rate? Many aerobic machines and modes are too high-tech and too easy for their own good. Super efficient modes and machines used in steady-state style make it harder for the trainee to elevate their heart rate to the appropriate level; if they are even aware of the heart rate benchmark.
People that become exceedingly adept at 1st Way steady-state cardio exercise can, over time, learn how to run, walk, swim or bike in such a relaxed and technically efficient fashion, that as a heart rate elevator, as a calorie burner and metabolic elevator, steady-state becomes ineffectual. A steady diet of steady-state is not optimal. Beware the seductive honey trap of performing 1st Way steady-state cardio exclusively. We need some inefficiency in our cardio. Effortless steady-state, particularly on effortless cardio machines, results in negligible results. The body learns how to become efficient at cardio exercise and that needs to be recognized and avoided.
1st Way steady-state is ideal for a beginner. For advanced trainees, 1st Way needs to be in continual rotation with 2nd and 3rd Way cardio. Steady-state is the basis upon which all future aerobic efforts are built. Just don’t make a religion out of it and don’t use one particular mode to the exclusion of all others!
Burst or interval cardio purposefully injects an element of muscular effort into cardiovascular activity. Classical Burst Cardio occurs when the trainee purposefully speeds up during an aerobic activity. Short bursts of intense effort are used to spike the heart rate upward quickly and dramatically. The 2nd Way cardio session is a series of bursts interspersed with rest periods or radical reductions in cardio effort. You could, for example, sprint for X number of yards, then walk or jog until breathing normalizes before sprinting again. Sprint, recover, sprint, recover…alternating intense effort and periods of recovery for the duration of the session.
2nd Way burst cardio possibilities are limitless: sprint, swim, shadow box, run or hike up steep grades, wrestle, grapple, play a torrid game of basketball, racquetball or football, jump, leap, climb…any imaginable activity that spikes the heart rate dramatically is Burst Cardio. You allow the heart rate to simmer back down then spike it again. Elite athletes use the heart rate monitor and spike the heart rate to 95/105% of age-related heart rate maximum before allowing the heart rate to drop back down to 70/80% before bursting again.
2nd Way aerobics always includes an element of muscular effort. The cardiovascular system is purposefully pushed passed capacity, then granted a short reprieve to regroup before another burst assault. This type of activity creates tremendous oxygen debt due to the incredible muscular effort. Muscles require oxygen to contract and we purposefully engage in activities that take us into oxygen debt. Rather than avoiding oxygen debt as in 1st Way, we force the body to cope and adapt. Burst cardio is powered by fast twitch muscle fiber and is particularly appropriate for athletes engaged in sports that require bursts of speed. Be sure core muscle temperature is raised before bursting. Tendons, ligaments and muscles are far less likely to pull, tear, rip or shear when warm then if forced to burst when muscles are cold.
Another valid arrow in the cardio quiver. If the rest intervals between bursts are too long, the cardio effects are diluted. 2nd Way burst cardio is particularly effective if a heart rate monitor is used to determine rest periods. When the heart rate falls back to a certain predetermined level, hit it again. There is no better use for a heart rate monitor than in 2nd Way Burst cardio. Burst as fast as possible, perhaps you spike to 100% + of age-related heart rate max before “tying up.” You glance at the monitor and allow the HR to “simmer back down” to 70 or 80%. That’s your signal to hit it again. Heart rate monitors allow you to compare and contrast one exercise mode to another.
You may think your interval activity in tennis is effective until you strap on the heart rate monitor and realize that the periods of time that elapse between intense and sustained volleys are too long and render the whole effort ineffective. On the other hand you might discover that by allowing yourself another minute between 40 yard sprints, muscle recovery increases dramatically and as a result you are able to sprint 20% faster on each individual effort.
Burst Cardio users should neither lollygag nor go too quickly.
If you don’t allow enough time for muscles to clear toxins and waste products, the quality of the next burst is diminished. There is an optimal time to rest between efforts: too long dilutes the overall effect and too quick diminishes performance. Done properly, 2nd Way Burst Cardio has tremendous benefits. Assuming the nutrition is in balance, burst cardio causes the mobilization and oxidation of stored body fat as the basal metabolic rate is skyrocketed and remains elevated for hours after the cessation of the session. Certain personality types need to beware of the tendency to rest too long between efforts. Other personality types need to beware of the tendency to go too quickly. Make sure 2nd Way burst cardio is in your regular rotation! Wear a monitor to check rest periods and to cross compare various exercise modes.
Hybrid cardio melds aerobics with strength training and in doing so reconfigures working muscles by adding mitochondrial density.
Len Schwartz, John Parrillo and Ori Hofmekler independently began advocating different exercise protocols, that each had the intended purpose of reconfiguring muscle composition.
I first sat up and took notice when in 1995 Dr. Len Schwartz began relating to me that he was working on a new type of exercise to develop “Long Strength.” Among other positive attributes, the Long Strength exercise protocol would reconfigure the fiber composition of the working muscle. Over time the muscle would morph. By using Long Strength training tactics a muscle would acquire additional mitochondria, cellular blast furnaces. This I learned, was a good thing.
Quite on his own, John Parrillo began insisting that his fleet bodybuilders begin doing cardio with great intensity. He insisted that this would alter the composition of the muscle, causing the working muscles to add more mitochondria. He devised a resistance training program using a 100 rep extended set specifically designed to construct more muscle mitochondria. By building more cellular blast furnaces, “cardiovascular density” was increased and this resulted in the more efficient use of food/fuel. Nature’s genetic growth limitations could be extended.
Ori Hofmekler spoke to me at length about his system of weight training, Controlled Fatigue Training, designed specifically to build a “hybrid muscle,” a “super muscle” capable of generating sustained strength for long periods. CFT training would also, over time, reconfigure muscles by creating more mitochondria. Hofmekler was convinced that ancient warriors and early man had a preponderance of Hybrid Super Muscle. The ancients needed sustained strength and endurance for fighting, fleeing and rowing their massive boats for extended periods of time. When three of the smartest guys I know all feel the next frontier of modern fitness involves altering muscle composition, I pay attention.
How do you build 3rd Way hybrid muscle? Engage in aerobic sessions that have a strong element of resistance.
3rd Way Hybrid Cardio requires a type of training that is both sustained and intense. Len, John and Ori all devised differing methods to arrive at the same destination: more muscle infused with more mitochondria. Technically we seek to create Type III Intermediate fast-twitch fibers; a cross between Type I and Type IIb. These hybrid fibers utilize both aerobic and anaerobic pathways for energy metabolism. To build mitochondria-infused super muscles requires the use of an extended, blended exercise protocol.
All three men devised training systems that required a muscle or group of muscles be worked for an extended time period with a maximum muscular effort. Len used his Heavyhand weights in combination with elaborate foot patterns to create quad-limbed stress. John used straight cardio done with maximum intensity or the 100 rep Giant Sets using standard weight training equipment. Ori’s CFT utilizes pushing or pulling poundage or bodyweight for extended periods in an imaginative series of specific patterns. All three of these unorthodox exercise protocols force muscles to reconfigure.
The downside to the 3rd Way is that I find it incompatible with heavy weight training. By engaging in 3rd Way training I am unable to train for “absolute strength.” I find recovery to be a problem and think that 3rd Way hybrid aerobic training needs to be practiced exclusively. I would suggest taking 4-6 weeks and practicing a 3rd Way routine to the exclusion of standardized resistance training. Mixed martial artists are converts to the use of 3rd Way Hybrid cardio. To prevent “bonking” during fights they are infusing their cardio with a strength element: they flip tires, throw medicine balls, push weighted wheelbarrows and pound sledgehammers repeatedly to build sustained strength.
Type I muscle fibers are slow-oxidative fibers that primarily use cellular respiration. As a result, Type I fibers have (relatively) high endurance. To support their high-oxidative metabolism, these muscle fibers typically have lots of mitochondria and myoglobin. They appear red. In poultry Type I Fibers are the dark meat. Type I muscle fibers are found in muscles of animals that require endurance: chicken leg muscles, the wing-muscles of migrating birds. Long distance runners have leg muscles loaded with Type I fiber.
Type II muscle fibers primarily use anaerobic metabolism and have (relatively) low endurance. These muscle fibers are typically used during tasks requiring short bursts of strength, such as sprinting or weightlifting. Type II fibers cannot sustain contractions for a significant length of time. In poultry, Type II fibers are white breast meat.
There are three sub-classes of type II muscle fiber…
Type III or “Intermediate fast-twitch fibers” are a cross between Type I and Type IIb. They can utilize both aerobic and anaerobic pathways for energy metabolism. This is the “hybrid” muscle fiber. To build mitochondria-infused hybrid Type III super muscle, use a blended protocol.
Skeletal muscle fibers can be divided into two basic types: type I slow-twitch fibers and type II fast-twitch fibers. Type II is further divided, as follows:
Mitochondria are cellular power plants. They generate most of the cell’s supply of ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate.) ATP is used as a source of chemical energy. The number of mitochondria in a cell varies widely by organism and tissue type. Many cells possess only a single mitochondrion, while others can contain several million mitochondria. Resistance training combined with cardiovascular training, causes the composition of muscles to transform from predominately Type II (or Type IIb) into Type III. In doing so we extend growth limits Nature has imposed upon those muscles. By adding mitochondria genetic limits can be reset. More nutrients can be processed and mito-infused muscles possess the ability to work harder and longer. Mito-dense muscles are thus able to grow larger and resist fatigue for a far longer time.
The heart rate monitor is an indispensable aerobic tool that belongs in the gym bag of every self-respecting Purposeful Primitive. The intelligent use of this hi-tech tool will accelerate results past your wildest imaginings. If you are an average individual looking to improve your physique, this device is a critical piece of equipment. If you are an intermediate or advanced trainee, you need it even more. This invaluable fitness tool allows the user to create, understand and make effective use of critical cardio data.
Once you’ve obtained an HR monitor you are able to monitor aerobic intensity, a critical piece of data otherwise unavailable to the exerciser. Newer versions of monitors have the ability to guesstimate calories oxidized during a session to an amazingly accurate degree. This piece of information can make for yet another interesting bit of aerobic data. Our approach is to devise a basic aerobic workout template then tinker with the component parts. The system promoted can be used regardless the exercise mode selected. It is advised that an individual eases into the aerobic mix gradually.
The Purposefully Primitive periodization principle of creeping incrementalism allows you to stair step your way toward ever improving physical condition. Each week you take mini steps towards the ultimate goal. Applying a periodization cycle to cardio is a new twist. In our hypothetical example the trainee starts off easy and by the end of the designated timeframe, the trainee is in undeniably better physical condition. The glide path is gradual, purposefully making it user friendly. In the 6 week periodization cycle the initial cardio pace is below capacity and training is done on an infrequent basis. This allows the trainee’s body to acclimatize to the work and recover from one session to the next. As the weeks pass, the athlete systematically increases session frequency, session duration and session intensity.
I will assume the trainee has a monitor with a calorie counter. Over the six week timeframe, an ever increasing number of calories are oxidized during each session. If a disciplined approach to eating is used, stored body fat can be mobilized to fuel the session. Bodybuilders use a particular trick-of-the-trade that dramatically increases fat burning results: they perform cardio exercise in the early morning on an empty stomach. Due to a lack of food-fuel (glycogen) coming off the sleep-fast, the body is forced to mobilize stored body fat to power the cardio session. In the absence of glycogen, the body burns its second favorite fuel source: body fat. Combining an intense morning cardio session with a glycogen-free metabolic state creates yet another “window of opportunity,” one similar to the post work-out window.
Poor eating habits can undo the entire exercise effort. You could burn 450 calories in a torrid 30 minute aerobic session, stop at the fast food joint on the way home, order an egg and cheese sandwich, hash browns and a soda and consume 1,000 calories. Congratulations, you just negated your cardio effort. Is it really necessary to eat after cardio training? I would advise to simply not eat. If you must eat, don’t overwhelm the body with foods easily converted into fat.
Duration: How long is the session?
Frequency: How often are the weekly sessions performed?
Intensity: How hard does the heart work during the session?
Duration and frequency are aerobic aspects easy to identify and quantify. Intensity is virtually impossible to access without a heart rate monitor. Intensity is how hard the heart must work to accomplish the work. Below is a rudimentary cardiovascular periodization game plan. The trainee uses steady-state 1st Way cardio. Modes could include walking, jogging, swimming or the use of a cardio machine. Preferably modes are alternated. The heart rate monitor enables us to cross compare exercises, an invaluable feature for determining how different modes affect you.
At the end of our hypothetical six week cardio periodization cycle, a multitude of goals are realized and copious benefits are achieved on a variety of levels. Initial cardio benchmarks are established and performance goals within each benchmark are ever so slightly increased each succeeding week. Weekly tweaking takes many subtle forms and momentum is generated by manipulating these different elements. Weekly benchmarks are gradually, subtly, imperceptibly increased over a protracted period. This skeletal framework can be used to devise a custom cardio periodization cycle that best suits the reality of your particular situation and circumstance.
I would highly recommend a heart rate monitor that has a ‘blended session average heart beat’ function and a calorie counter. The blended session average feature allows you to push a button at the beginning of the exercise session and again at the end of the session. The monitor calculates how many times your heart beats during the session. The microprocessor divides the total number of heart beats by the number of minutes. Advanced heart rate models guesstimate calories burned during the session. While it is never 100% accurate, it is accurate unto itself. I recommend paying a few extra bucks for this feature.
The intelligent use of a heart rate monitor allows you to identify the three cardio benchmarks and systematically plot progress. Below is a sound hypothetical cardiovascular training program for someone brand new to aerobic training. This expands on the six week cycle on the previous page. We use 1st Way steady-state and walking as the exercise mode.
The use of periodization tactics for the totally untrained individual is ideal: start off light and easy and below capacity. As the individual becomes acclimatized to the stress, we gradually increase the workload using the Purposefully Primitive theory of Creeping Incrementalism. Small incremental steps compound quickly!
This example is strictly hypothetical, but provides a terrific template for designing your own customized periodization aerobic routine: seek to gradually improve capacity, ability and endurance.
Frequency is easy to determine. Duration is easy to determine. Intensity requires the use of a heart rate monitor. If you have an overweight out-of-shape friend or relative, you might want to share this information with them before they fall into the clutches of a jogging obsessed Personal Trainer. Nearly every personal trainer will insist the unfit jog and that can lead to catastrophic injury. If a person can generate 80% or more of their age-related heart rate maximum simply by walking briskly, why would you insist that person engage in high impact jogging? The answer?
Bone-headed personal trainers have no earthly idea what sort of heart rate their clients are generating during the exercise. This can prove disastrous if the unfit are forced to run or engage in high-impact cardio exercise. The jogger-biased mentality turns off more obese beginners than any other single aspect of fitness training. The heavy person dreads the idea of being forced to run, they know that not only is it incredibly taxing, they also are aware they look awkward while jogging and the embarrassment factor is a very real psychological detriment. They are wisely unwilling to fall into the mongoloid clutches of a “No pain—no gain!” Sergeant Fury-style Knucklehead. Heavy people need to rebel against mindless jogger orthodoxy.
My favored form of cardio exercise is traversing steep mountain trails. I use the blended session average feature of the HR monitor to cross-compare different cardio modes. If I’m feeling tired or off, I might power-walk. If I feel energetic, I might jog and sprint up and down the steep switchbacks. Other times my football knees might be aching so I’ll load up a back pack with a 25-45 pound plate and power hike. Carrying a weighted backpack kicks my heart rate up 10 to 20 beats over weightless walking on the flat surfaces and 35 beats when walking up inclined grades.
At the end of the session I’ll punch the magic button and the watch will issue my report card. It might tell me that for 62 minutes I averaged 132 beats per minute. I know that 130 BPM is 80% of my age-related heart rate maximum. I have quantified the session and can compare today’s session to yesterday or tomorrow. I log the date, the duration and blended session heart rate average; this makes for a very telling and informative cardio log entries. Some days I will forget all that and simply refer to the watch continually: the face of the watch relates where the heart rate is the instant you glance at it.
Often I will take a (relatively) leisurely walk in the late afternoon. Not a formal, early morning kick-ass session, just a nice walk after dinner. On those occasions I will check the watch just to make sure I maintain 70% of my age-related heart rate maximum. Since I am so freaking old, this is a paltry 114 beats per minute. I really see no sense walking anywhere for any reason at a pace that doesn’t generate at least 115! I am doubtful (in my particular situation) that any aerobic benefit whatsoever can be derived from anything less. By the way, my resting heart rate—early morning just waking up—is 41 BPM.
On other occasions I purposefully forget all about session duration, age-related heart rate max, blended session averages and all the rest and simply tell myself, I am going out and will burn 500 calories in this session come hell or high water. I use the calorie counter feature to gauge how I’m doing. If I kick it at a 15 calorie per minute pace, I can burn 500 in 33 minutes. If I lollygag along at a 10 calorie per minute rate it takes 50 minutes. Split the difference and use a 12 calorie per minute and I’m done in 42 minutes. I have “best times” for burning off 300, 500, 750 and 1000 calories per session. The heavier I am in bodyweight, the more calories I burn doing the same amount of work. The lighter I am, the faster I need to move in order to spike the heart.
The grade of the terrain is a huge factor: motoring up steep hills causes the heart rate to spike dramatically. Heart rate monitors allow us to compare one session to another and just as importantly cross-compare various exercise modes. How many calories did I burn playing three racquetball games in 45 minutes? How does this compare to 45 minutes of kayaking on my pristine mountain lake? What kind of blended average, age-related heart maximum can I generate jog trotting for 45 minutes on level terrain compared to 45 minutes of power-walking up and down steep trails wearing a weighted backpack? What’s the HR difference between a 25 pound pack and a 55 pound backpack? I use the monitor to access cardio intensity and continually cross-compare modes. I use the monitor to create an aerobic periodization game plan.
I have found some athletic activities generate a surprisingly high heart rate—like throwing an aero-frisbie with a partner in an open field and sprinting to chase it down. I have found other cardio activities to be surprisingly disappointing—like playing tennis. If I didn’t have the monitor, there would be no way of knowing that, for me, tennis is a complete waste of time, at least in terms of exercise. In the hands of experts, tennis is torrid and effective. In my hands it’s a pathetic and wasteful athletic undertaking.
