Umair Yasin

I have been interested in what constitutes “too much of a good thing” with endurance exercise for some time. I first discussed it in my post “ How Much Exercise Is Too Much ?” and gave an update on it here . I recently came across an article in the peer-reviewed journal Nutrients that gave an interesting insight into the connection between endurance exercise and diet [1] , specifically with regard to cardiovascular health. They reviewed disturbing evidence that those who do a lot of endurance exercise may be at increased risk for coronary artery disease, and commented “surprisingly, endurance athletes may have more advanced atherosclerosis and more myocardial damage, compared with sedentary individuals, particularly as they age”. The authors then pointed out that endurance athletes tend to eat more than their sedentary counterparts, to fuel their activity. But this extra fuel is not necessarily healthy, especially if they are eating a typical modern diet like the Standard Ameri...

This is an interesting finding. I prefer exercising in the morning because it is a great day to start the day. Also the longer in the day I wait, the easier it is to come up with excuses! Health Secrets of a SuperAger Morning physical activity is associated with the lowest risk of heart disease and stroke, according to a study in more than 85,000 individuals published today in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, a journal of the European Society of Cardiology. The findings were consistent regardless of the total amount of daily activity. Photo by Tembela Bohle on Pexels.com “It is well established that exercise is good for heart health, and our study indicates that morning activity seems to be most beneficial,” said study author Ms. Gali Albalak of Leiden University Medical Center, the Netherlands. “The findings were particularly pronounced in women, and applied to both early birds and night owls.” The study used data from the UK Biobank. It included 86,657 ...

My e-bike was getting a tune-up when I went on this week’s group ride, and we were going on a route without too much climbing, so I decided to take my recumbent. There were no e-bikes on the ride, just me and nine other people on uprights. I was always right up at the front until we did the only serious climb, up Day road, which leads up into the hills southwest of Morgan Hill. This is mostly uphill, with some steeper sections, interspersed with flatter or slightly downhill parts. I would get passed by the entire group on the steeper uphills, then pass them back and be up at the front on the flat and downhill sections. This is pretty much as expected, recumbents are known to be slow climbers, but I have a slight aerodynamic advantage on the flats over most upright bikes. The really interesting part was when we headed back, which was completely flat with a decent headwind. The strongest rider in the group disappeared up ahead, but my recumbent ended up pacing everyone else, who drafted...

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11714334 The National Geographic channel is streaming an enjoyable series “Limitless” starring Chris Hemsworth, about measures we can take for healthy aging. It is dramatized by Chris taking on challenges in various geographic locations in each episode. There are also background stories of other people who exemplify the theme of each episode in their lives. The science behind all of this is well-presented but kept light and interesting. I’ve enjoyed the first three episodes so far. My only criticism is that the second episode does not adequately credit the work of Wim Hof, who pioneered some of the cold-water techniques described. www.Amazon.com/books But it did introduce me to Ross Edgely who has written multiple books on the science of training. I’m currently enjoying his The World’s Fittest Book , about exercise science as well as chronicling some of his amazing (also a bit crazy) athletic feats. www.Amazon.com/books from BionicOldGuy ...

I’ve described recently that I’m trying to find the cruising pace that maximizes relaxation and enjoyment, which it turns out is also a good aerobic training pace. Lately, I’ve been going on this kind of ride two or three times a week for about two hours. Today I pushed it to 2:45. This pace also ended up keeping my heart rate in my target range of 110-120. I felt a little tired but afterward when I tried doing some intervals they felt harder than normal. Loma Prieta and the Santa Cruz Mountains in the background, beyond a lake formed by Coyote Creek This is the same phenomenon as athletes who have better endurance trying to force the tempo of a race to “take the sting” out of their competitors who have a better finishing kick. I remember a spectacular example of this when Paula Radcliffe won the New York City marathon in 2007, beating Gete Wami. The two women were good friends, even sometimes babysitting each other’s children on the road. But they were fierce competitors in the r...

Since rain is confined to one season, usually late fall through spring, in our area, it gets really dry in the summer. This has been made worse in recent years because of our drought. So I always look forward to having the hillsides turn green after the first rains of the year. I was happy to see that on my ride today, after the significant rainfall we got a week ago (with more hopefully soon on the way). These hills are usually brown all summer (or “golden” as described by California tourism). They’ll soon get nice and green after a bit more rain. This is looking past the lights at our local Live Oak High school stadium. Go Acorns! Last Tuesday I went on a group ride with a long stretch against a headwind. I enjoyed giving some of the riders who were struggling with the wind the benefit of a draft behind me on my e-bike. The problem was that I was hunched over the handlebars for a long time while riding in front. Usually, I avoid this by frequent standing breaks which makes me mor...

Our autumn colors are pretty much at their peak now so I’ve been enjoying them on my rides. Yesterday was an easy recovery day because I went for a long and hard ride on Sunday. It was a pleasant amble in the local area on my recumbent. from BionicOldGuy https://ift.tt/ztFxols via IFTTT

We got our first really good rainstorm of the season a couple of days ago, totaling almost two inches in Morgan Hill, which was more than welcome with our ongoing drought conditions. It was still raining solidly in the morning when I went for my ride. So I took my Vado which has fenders and put on some good rain gear. This did its job well for more than two hours after which the rain finally slacked off. The ride was quite enjoyable. As the saying goes (which I’m sure originated somewhere with more challenging weather than California) “there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing”. It especially helped that I had on a long-billed cap and a neck gaiter that minimized getting pelted in the face with drops. from BionicOldGuy https://ift.tt/KPNgLkr via IFTTT

The temperature was brisk when I set out, and I also set a brisk pace. I rode 43 miles out and back to Hellyer velodrome on the Coyote Creek trail. The fall colors are nearing their peak around here so the scenery was beautiful. On the way back I ran into a gorgeous bobcat on the trail, so it was a very enjoyable romp. Some color at the velodrome. The track is on the other side of the white wall T he bobcat was staring intently at something. If it was potential prey, it was on the wrong side of the fence, so eventually, the big kitty got frustrated and walked away I was staying as still as possible on the other side of the trail, but the cat just ambled by, paying me no notice from BionicOldGuy https://ift.tt/LXKcQFx via IFTTT

Tufts Health and Nutrition Letter An article in the October 2022 Tufts Health and Nutrition Letter describes how the same measures that we can take to be heart-healthy also help keep our brains healthy. This includes a good interview with Dr. Mitchell Elkind, a co-author of the chapter on brain health in the American Heart Association’s 2022 annual report on Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics. The link between heart and brain health is not surprising because factors that can affect the health of coronary arteries also affect the vascular supply to the brain. A good place to start for both heart and brain health is practicing the American Heart Association’s “Life’s essential 8” (described in detail in the same issue of the newsletter: Follow a Healthy Diet (Harvard’s “ healthy eating plate ” is a good example) Adequate physical activity Avoid smoking or other consumption of tobacco get adequate sleep maintain a healthy weight keep blood cholesterol (ldl and hdl) in a hea...

After doing my strength training I took my recumbent out for a ramble out to Coyote Creek trail, where I enjoyed the fall weather on a ride of about 75 minutes. A lake along Coyote Creek, with Loma Prieta in the backgrounf I’ve been working on visualizing energy going to the working muscles while cycling and doing strength training, a concept I first discussed here . I don’t know if it makes me faster or stronger, but it makes the activities more enjoyable and relaxing. from BionicOldGuy https://ift.tt/VxquyRW via IFTTT