Exercise is a well-established, highly emphasized part of a healthy lifestyle – and for good reason! The benefits of exercise keep piling up, with more and more articles supporting the beneficial role that exercise plays in weight loss, mental acuity, longevity, and basically every other component of good health (see references below).
There is no doubt that exercise is beneficial and should be a regular part of an individual’s life. And yet, I see that there is a great need for a serious discussion on the topic, as there is a problem surrounding how exactly exercise is commonly conducted.
The problem seems to be that the why – the deeper reason behind why we should exercise – is misunderstood. We all know that exercise is beneficial and should be a regular part of our lives; and yet, many individuals have misguided reasoning behind exactly why it is beneficial.
Unfortunately, this can lead to some poor choices, including the decision to avoid exercise entirely, as well as the decision to exercise in certain ways that may have negative consequences.
Today, my goal is to show you why it is important to understand the basics of exercise, which includes a brief introduction to some of the most beneficial forms of exercise aligned with the Reprogrammed Systems Approach.
So, why do we exercise?
I can assume that you have shown up today with the understanding that exercise should probably be a part of your life. What I am curious about is why. Why do you think you should you exercise?
This is an important question to ask for a number of reasons. For one, while it may be difficult to understand, exercise (which I’ll define as a period of time in which we move our bodies for the sole purpose of moving our bodies), is a relatively novel phenomena. Exercise as a practice really only popped up a few decades ago, becoming ingrained in society just recently in the late 20th century.
Before that, you just didn’t find gyms on every block or see masses of runners at the park every Saturday morning (at least, that’s my impression by the stories of those that lived during this time).
Because exercise is a relatively novel phenomena, only coming into play in the modern, industrialized world, I think it is important to begin with a basic understanding of why it entered society in the first place.
I want to make sure we are on the same page here – don’t get any ideas that this is going to turn into an anti-exercise article or a call to return to the old days when exercise wasn’t a part of society. Rather, this is a call to revisit the reasons why we exercise, to ensure that we are getting the most benefit while minimizing any potential downsides.
Why did exercise pop up in society, and why is it so central to today’s society?
The answer to this question based on the status quo – that is, based on what we are told by governing guidelines, most health officials, and even workout instructors and workout equipment itself: Exercise is a way to counteract the excess fat accumulation problem (i.e. the high prevalence of overweight and obese individuals in the modern world). As the logic goes, we live in a world filled with individuals who eat too much, and exercising more to burn off this excess energy is a potential solution.
But, is this mindset beneficial?
Is exercising as a method to counteract the modern body’s energy surplus the best mindset to approach principles of a healthy body? Or, is this mindset keeping us within the current paradigm of poor health and modern disease?
More specifically:
- Is this calorie-burning characteristic the primary reason why exercise is so beneficial.
- Could it be that focusing on exercise as a way to burn calories can actually be detrimental?
- Is there a different lens through which we can view exercise that may provide more benefit while also minimizing the potential detriment that goes alongside exercise.
To answer these questions, I will walk through the basics of exercise physiology. As we walk through, keep in mind the basic principles of the Reprogrammed Systems Approach:
The Reprogrammed principles of good health:
A key characteristic of good health is metabolic flexibility, which involves:
- insulin sensitivity – cells readily respond to the insulin signal, thus effectively managing rising blood glucose levels
- strong oxidative capacity – mitochondria readily use fat as a fuel source
A body with strong insulin sensitivity is able to effectively manage blood sugar homeostasis, and also easily makes the switch over to managing blood lipid homeostasis (a task that is not done well in insulin resistant individuals). By balancing these primary fuel sources, the body is able to maintain a stable supply of energy (keeping you and your body operating on all cylinders all day), as well as to avoid the negative health consequences of large fluctuations in energy availability in the bloodstream.
Additionally, having a body with a strong oxidative capacity is a significant part of maintaining a healthy body, including the maintenance of a healthy weight and healthy levels of circulating lipids.
Based on the Reprogrammed principles of good health, our actions should aim to:
- Move away from carbohydrate dependency and sugar cycles: a body that is dependent on carbohydrate as a fuel source has difficulty burning fat as fuel, which means fat more easily builds up in the bloodstream and in storage. Moreover, a body that is dependent on carbohydrate as a fuel source is more prone to energy fluctuations, as the body has a relatively short supply of glucose as compared to fat.
- Move towards efficient use of fat as a fuel source. A metabolically flexible body is one that can use glucose efficiently when carbohydrates are consumed and can then switch to using fats as a fuel source when blood sugar levels drop back down. This means that the body always has a source of energy to run on, making it less likely that the individual will experience energy crashes during the day.
All in all, the Reprogramming process involves asking the question, What actions can we take to help our bodies improve metabolic health – that is, what actions can be taken to improve insulin sensitivity and create strong oxidative capacity?
Moreover, if weight loss is an additional goal, remember some key principles of weight management:
- Weight loss is ultimately a calorie deficit – but, this calorie deficit must be within the framework that is fat release and oxidation.
- To lose weight in a safe, healthy, and effective manner, a calorie deficit must be achieved within the sub-system of fat storage, release, and oxidation:
To lose weight, a calorie deficit must be achieved within the system that is the human body. More importantly, that calorie deficit needs to happen within the sub-system that is fat storage, release, and oxidation.
Now that we understand the goal and the basic supporting principles, we can get to work answering the following questions:
- What exercises can be done to improve the overall release and oxidation of fat?
- What exercises can be done to improve insulin sensitivity?
Basic Principles of Exercise Physiology
1. Exercise – Fat vs. Sugar Burning
The human body has been designed to use two primary sources of fuel: fat and carbohydrate. As always, things get more complicated than this, but in the name of understanding the basics of exercise, focusing on these two primary variables is adequate.
Carbohydrate is, generally speaking, quicker and easier to utilize as a fuel. Fat takes a little longer to break down and use as energy, but is overall a more efficient fuel source – that is, fat provides more energy and produces fewer by-products, providing a lower load on the mitochondria per calorie.
When the body needs energy at a higher rate (e.g. during high-intensity exercise), the body uses the quicker energy source, glucose. Alternatively, when the body is operating at a lower intensity it can use fuel at a lower rate, and therefore more fat can be used for energy.
If you put energy intensity on a spectrum, with low intensity on the left, with increasing intensity as you move to the right, you can plot a similar trend that goes from fat-burning to sugar burning.
 
This is often taught when first introduced to exercise, and is generally expanded by breaking this spectrum up into specific zones. For example, when working out at a moderate intensity, you are considered in the “aerobic zone,” where you burn primarily fat. However, if you kick up the intensity and really feel the burn, you shift over into the “anaerobic zone” where you burn more carbohydrate.
This can be simplified down into this basic idea:
Aerobic = relatively more fat burn
Anaerobic = relatively more sugar burn
Of course, in reality, it isn’t binary – remember, this is a spectrum, and on a spectrum, there is a blend of burning both fuel sources. Just understand that higher intensity results in relatively more sugar burning, while lower intensity results in relatively more fat burning.
Using basic exercise physiology to make knowledge-based decisions
Remember, our specific exercise choices should be based on our specific goal.
- The core goal of the Reprogramming Systems Approach is metabolic flexibility – the ability to effectively burn both fats and carbohydrates
- An additional goal may be to reprogram your body to burn more fat and less carbohydrate overall, as this is what aids in healthy weight loss.
So, how do we reach these goals? The simple answer – by sending signals to the body that nudge it in the desired direction. This means that, if we are aligning with the Reprogrammed Systems Approach, we should exercise in a way that:
- sends a signal to the body to be able to more effectively burn fat.
- sends a signal to the body to burn more fat, overall.
So, how is this done with exercise?
From the spectrum above, we can see one obvious answer. By exercising at low intensities, the body burns primarily fat. If the goal is to burn through our fat stores, then an obvious answer is to work out at low intensities.
This is a viable solution, and in fact, if this is done over time, the body adapts by improving its ability to burn fat, overall. Not only are you burning fat calories in real time, but while working out at low intensities, the body is actually receiving a signal to upregulate its fat burning genes, thus allowing the body to burn more fat overall, throughout the day. What. A. Win!
However, there is a drawback with this method. Working out at low intensities allows the body to burn through fat while programming the body to burn more fat. Unfortunately, due to the low intensity nature of this method, to achieve desired results, this approach can be time consuming. When you work out at low intensities, the body doesn’t receive a very strong signal.
Fortunately, there are other methods of exercise we can use to reach our goals. Can you think of any?
Let me take a guess at where your brain leaped. Based on traditional exercise wisdom, I can assume that you are thinking that the solution is to up the intensity. Since low-intensity aerobic exercise doesn’t send a strong signal to the body, a potential solution could be to do that same aerobic exercise at a higher intensity!
Which brings us to the core problem with modern exercise.
A problem with high-intensity, aerobic exercise
Exercise plans are often centered around a core idea – to “get a workout” – to push the body and burn lots of calories while doing it.
But there is a significant problem with this mindset, and it isn’t that pushing the body is “bad” or that burning calories is “bad.”
It is that doing it in tandem, on a regular basis, can offset your efforts to achieve the ultimate goal: a healthy body.
Here’s how it works: Exercise provides a benefit to the body for two primary reasons:
- It serves as a signal to the body that it needs to improve.
- It aids in the oxidation of excess energy.
Let’s take the first point: exercise is a signal to the body that it needs to improve. By pushing the body out of its comfort zone, the body receives a signal that its comfort zone isn’t enough – that it needs to adapt to this new stress. This results in beneficial adaptation including, but not limited to:
- increased oxidative capacity – a body in motion requires more energy than a body at rest. If the body is going to be moving more (more often or at greater intensity), then the body needs to adapt so that it can burn more fuel more efficiently.
- the result is an enhanced ability to burn energy, both at rest and during exercise. This is in line with the Reprogrammed principles of health: strong oxidative capacity.
- improved cognitive abilities – believe it or not, exercise doesn’t only impact the body, but it also impacts your mind (well, this shouldn’t actually be that surprising, because your brain is part of your body, and exercise benefits the entire body)
- BDNF is a protein released in the brain in response to exercise – commonly described as miracle grow for the brain, BDNF helps improve cognitive abilities, especially the ability to learn
- lean mass (e.g. muscle and bone) – one of the primary markers of longevity is lean body mass. When it comes down to it, a strong body is a body that is well-equipped to make it through the years. A body with weak muscle and brittle bones is a body poorly equipped to survive and thrive.
This is but a brief snapshot of the benefits of exercise, but before we get carried away with the benefits we need to make sure that our exercise benefits are optimizing benefit vs. drawbacks.
To understand this, we have to understand what the signal actually is. Your body is happy to listen to what you tell it, but this relationship is only going to work if you know how to speak its language.
Remember, the body operates via biochemical signals – in the case of exercise, the primary concept that you need to understand is the stress signal.
Human Body Design Principle: stress
Stress is a signal to the body that it needs to do something if it is going to survive. I know, this isn’t really relevant in today’s (arguably over-) safe world. But we know that’s not what matters. What matters is how the body evolved, and the body evolved in a world where, if it wasn’t suited to its environment, it had to either adapt or die out.
The method of choice for biology turned out to be the stress signal – when the body was stressed, it literally meant that its life was threatened. If it wanted to avoid that threat in the future it needed to improve.
- When the human body ran for hours it was running to find food – if the body wanted to find food in the future, it needed to get better at running longer.
- When the body was sprinting or throwing a spear, it needed to get stronger to be better at sprinting or throwing a spear.
See the theme here?
When the body was stressed, physically, it understood that it needed to improve. The bodies that didn’t improve died out. The ones that did improve lived, passed on their genes, and created a species of individuals with the ability to improve based on the stress signal.
Which brings us back to us, exercising, in our over-safe world.
Now, getting back to the two primary reasons why exercise is beneficial: it sends a signal to the body (a stress signal) to adapt, and also aids in the oxidation of excess energy.
To cause adaptation, the body needs to be temporarily stressed. This may be done by putting it under a heavy load (e.g. lifting weights), or by pushing its bounds in other ways (e.g. sprinting). When the body is pushed to its limits, it understands that it needs to improve. The result is improved health, including an enhanced ability to regulate energy and oxidize fats.
However, as I’m sure we are all familiar, when stress occurs too often, the outcome isn’t beneficial; rather, it’s outright dangerous – dangerous to your health, your mind, and your daily life. Chronic stress is one of the primary factors negatively impacting modern society, which is why it is one of the key environmental inputs that the Reprogrammed Systems Model aims to address.
If stress is one of the most significant negative factors impacting this society, then why would we purposefully spend our time exercising in a way that adds to that stress?
Which is exactly the point: When we exercise unwisely, the ultimate outcome may be added stress to the body This isn’t what we want if our ultimate goal is good health.
Exercising at high intensities for long periods of time (i.e. high intensity, aerobic physical activity done for minutes at a time), is a great way to over-stress the body. When the body is over-stressed, it:
- Runs through its glucose supply (remember, higher intensity= relatively more glucose burning). The result is an individual seeking carbs to replenish the hypoglycemic state. This stressed-out carb-seeking monster is not in line with the Reprogrammed Systems Approach.
- High stress + high carb is a fantastic way to store visceral fat. This is a dangerous form of fat storage, one that is tightly linked to modern disease
Ultimately, when an individual is frequently engaging in high-intensity aerobic activity, they may simply be programming the body for greater glucose-dependency and chronic stress. This is not the outcome we desire.
Instead, it would be better to keep our ultimate goals in mind when we exercise.
- Exercise to improve insulin sensitivity
- Exercise to improve oxidative capacity
To which we can add:
- Exercise in ways that do not over-stress the body
I described one method of doing this, above. It is to work out at low intensities for long periods of time. However, as we live in a world where a primary problem is individuals feeling pressed for short periods of time to work out, this is not often a viable solution.
Fortunately, there is another method of exercise that
- Improves insulin sensitivity
- Improves oxidative capacity
- Does not overstress the body
High-Intensity Exercise: HIIT and Weight Lifting
The Reprogrammed Approach to Exercise is to use exercise as a tool to send beneficial signals to the body. These signals should aim to be for beneficial adaptation, including energy regulation and oxidative capacity
Two methods of exercise can be used to accomplish this goal:
- long, slow aerobic activity
- short bursts of high intensity
The method(s) you use is entirely up to you, your lifestyle, and your specific goals. The rest of this article will outline what these exercises may look like for you.
1. Short bursts of high-intensity/weights
First, it is extremely important to note what high-intensity exercise does not mean:
- This doesn’t mean that you head straight to the gym and start busting out reps with high weight.
- It does not mean you head straight to the track to sprint.
This is how you get injured, only to be forced to lay on the couch for the next several weeks.
Instead, consider what “high-intensity” means for your own body.
- It could be that high-intensity is lifting five-pound weights over your head for 5 reps. If that’s where you’re at, that’s okay.
- It could mean that high-intensity is walking or jogging up a short hill, walking back down, and repeating five times.
- It could mean a modified plank position, modified push-ups, and modified pull-ups.
All in all, keep in mind: the point is to stress your body in short durations (i.e. seconds, not minutes). Follow these seconds of exercise by a minute or so of rest and then repeat.
2. Long, slow aerobic activity.
We have this idea that aerobic exercise means we have to be breaking a sweat on some fancy piece of equipment; that we need to be outside running; or that we need to be pushing hard to really get a workout.
This couldn’t be further from the truth. For many individuals, aerobic activity is accomplished simply by taking a walk or going for a slow jog.
If you have a heart-rate monitor, I recommend aerobic activity using Phil Maffetone’s 180-age formula to get your max aerobic heart rate. As a 25-year-old, I aim to make sure my heart rate stays under 155 bpm (180-25=155).
If you don’t have a heart rate monitor, I recommend using your breath as a tool – if you are struggling to breathe normally, this means your body has kicked into gear to get extra oxygen through your system, which means that it is shifting to anaerobic respiration. As long as you can breathe normally (e.g. in through your nose, out through your mouth without much effort), then chances are you are staying aerobic.
The Reprogrammed Approach to Exercise
The Reprogrammed approach to exercise involves a focus on short exercise sessions where the focus is on weights and high-intensity exercise. Consider these sessions your “workouts” – time that you take specifically for the purpose of improving your body.
On top of this, consider adding in more movement (e.g. walking) throughout the day. Get up from your desk at least once an hour, take a walk in the morning or after work, and consider yoga and mobility sessions.
As for that higher intensity aerobic activity – I don’t want to give you the idea that this should be avoided completely; rather, it is something to be mindful of when you to engage in it. If you regularly partake in these high intensity aerobic sessions and get great benefit, then that’s great for you. But if you find yourself struggling to lose weight or constantly tired or hungry while regularly partaking in these types of exercises, it’s probably worth your time to re-evaluate how you get your exercise.
For instance, if your soccer or basketball team plays once a week, by all means, go tear it up on the pitch/court; however, be mindful of how you feel afterward. Are you headed straight for a burger with fries afterward, or scowering the cupboards for any hint of carbohydrate later on? Be mindful of this behavior, especially if you find yourself overcompensating with refined carbohydrate. Maybe even follow up with a day of de-stressing by partaking in yoga instead of hitting the gym.
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