2580: How to Incorporate Strength Training, Cardio, Yoga, and Flexibility into a Workout Routine

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[00:01:05] It's another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily, episode 2580. And I'm Dr. Neal Malik.

[00:01:11] Hey there, happy Friday and welcome to another Q&A edition of Optimal Health Daily,

[00:01:16] where I answer your health questions related to fitness, diet and nutrition,

[00:01:21] and more. You send in the questions and I answer them for you. And we're now giving away an Optimal

[00:01:27] Living Daily Workbook to you free of charge if you send in a relevant question. So be sure to

[00:01:33] send one in before we run out. Now, we can only do this if your address is in the US for now,

[00:01:39] but we're happy to send you a digital version if you're outside the US. Remember, you can email

[00:01:44] a relevant health-related question to health at oldpodcast.com. Alright, and with that, let's

[00:01:52] finally hear today's question as we optimize your life. Today's question came via email.

[00:02:02] Kobe from Charlotte writes, Hey Dr. Neal, I feel I have a conundrum that a lot of people have,

[00:02:09] and I feel it's really holding me back from getting and staying on a good exercise routine.

[00:02:14] I'm trying to get a good mix of strength training, cardio and flexibility or yoga. I'm not sure how

[00:02:21] to incorporate them all into a good workout routine. I have a gym membership, but I don't

[00:02:26] have the motivation to go. I get flustered on what machines to use and how to track my stats.

[00:02:32] I know I don't want to just go run on a treadmill for cardio. I know I need to have a rest day,

[00:02:38] but is that supposed to be just rest, some stretching, or is yoga okay? I'm about to hit 40,

[00:02:45] and I want to be as healthy for my wife and daughter for as long as possible. Any tips for

[00:02:50] a good starting plan of action would be wonderful, and maybe even guidance on a good tracking

[00:02:55] strategy would be great. Thank you for taking the time to send in your question, Kobe.

[00:03:01] You're already ahead of most when it comes to getting started with your workout routine.

[00:03:06] Here's why. 1. You've found your why. You know that you want to stay healthy for your family.

[00:03:13] Remember this, write it down and keep it somewhere visible as a constant reminder.

[00:03:19] And I'll talk about that again at the end. And 2. You already know what to do, meaning,

[00:03:26] you know that a balanced routine should involve different types of training – cardiovascular,

[00:03:31] strength, and some flexibility. It's just taking that first step, hey, pun intended,

[00:03:37] that's what's missing. So again, you're already ahead of most people.

[00:03:42] So, why is it important to focus on a variety of training methods? Why can't we just do cardio

[00:03:47] and ignore flexibility or just get bigger muscles and ignore cardio? In my experience, when people

[00:03:54] hear the term cardio or cardiovascular activity or aerobic exercise, these all basically mean the

[00:04:01] same thing, by the way. Images of the crowded, noisy, and sweaty gym environment come to mind.

[00:04:08] You can just see those gym rats getting in their cardio by jogging on their treadmills or

[00:04:12] cycling along on their bikes trying to distract themselves from the monotony by listening to music

[00:04:18] or this podcast – thank you for that, by the way – or watching their favorite movies and

[00:04:23] TV shows on their phones, playing on Instagram, catching up on their reading, anything to take

[00:04:28] their minds off of the next 30-60 minutes they have to endure just to make their hearts healthier.

[00:04:34] But please know that getting in a good cardiovascular workout doesn't have to be like this.

[00:04:40] Yes, cardiovascular activity is important. Making your heart work harder than it normally would

[00:04:46] does in fact make the heart stronger. It also helps keep your arteries healthy and flexible.

[00:04:52] It releases good-feeling hormones and may help prevent a number of chronic diseases like type 2

[00:04:57] diabetes, some forms of cancer, and even Alzheimer's disease. But again, you don't have to spend time

[00:05:03] on an elliptical, a treadmill, or a stationary bicycle to achieve these benefits. More on that in a bit.

[00:05:10] When it comes to strength training, yes, that too is important because it helps build

[00:05:14] and preserve muscle. This is really important as we get older. This is because as we age,

[00:05:19] our bodies start to break down muscle. So by strengthening them, we're slowing down that process.

[00:05:26] And something that's often forgotten when it comes to protecting our heart and blood vessels,

[00:05:31] flexibility training. Researchers are discovering that when we regularly stretch our muscles and

[00:05:37] improve our flexibility, it helps to keep our arteries more flexible, which helps prevent

[00:05:42] cardiovascular disease. Oh, and the best time to stretch, by the way, is after your workout,

[00:05:47] when your muscles are nice and warm. Okay, so how do we get started? We're learning that if you

[00:05:53] don't enjoy the exercises you're performing or at least appreciate the fact that what you're doing

[00:05:59] is helping you achieve optimal health and wellness, you won't reap as many benefits.

[00:06:04] We used to think that if you can just go through the motions, put your time in at the gym, and get

[00:06:09] out, that was enough to help prevent a number of the diseases I mentioned. But that doesn't appear

[00:06:15] to be the case. We're learning you have to believe that what you're doing is beneficial. You have to

[00:06:21] have some sense of appreciation or, dare I say, enjoyment of the exercises you're doing. That's

[00:06:27] why finding those activities that make you happy or modifying those that you do enjoy is a great

[00:06:34] way to make sure that all of your hard work will pay off in the end. Plus, it will help with

[00:06:39] consistency. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends that we incorporate some

[00:06:45] form of cardiovascular training at least five days a week. This could include walking, again, cycling,

[00:06:52] running. Really, it's important to find what you enjoy. But all of those would count. When it comes

[00:06:59] to strength training, they recommend performing strength training exercises that involve most of

[00:07:05] the major muscle groups at least twice a week. And when it comes to flexibility training, same thing.

[00:07:11] One to two times a week is advised. When it comes to rest days, one or two rest days a week is great.

[00:07:19] When it comes to resting, it really depends on how your body's feeling. It also depends on your

[00:07:25] current fitness level. So I know this answer is not very clear but yoga could be a rest day if you

[00:07:32] find that it relaxes you and helps you feel your best. If you find that doing yoga on a rest day

[00:07:38] is making you feel more fatigued and more stressed, then don't do it. At the very least, on rest days,

[00:07:45] what I usually recommend is going for a short walk or going for multiple short walks throughout the

[00:07:51] day. But let's get to the heart of just getting started. What are some actual recommendations to

[00:07:58] start, maintain and progress with your workouts? First, I highly recommend hiring a fitness

[00:08:04] professional to help you get started. Now we might be thinking, Dr. Neil, isn't there a free resource,

[00:08:11] oh I don't know, called the internet that can show me how to perform these foundational movements

[00:08:16] which would save me the time and money from having to hire an expensive personal trainer?

[00:08:21] Yes of course! And finding credible fitness resources on the internet and watching instructional

[00:08:27] videos from these credible resources is a great start. But the advantage of having a certified

[00:08:33] trainer watch you perform these movements is they can correct you if you're doing them wrong,

[00:08:39] they can help you make adjustments to your form before bad habits start to develop, and they can

[00:08:45] help you track your progress. Now they won't just write down the exercises you performed and how much

[00:08:50] weight you lifted. They'll do that but they can also help track whether you're losing body fat

[00:08:56] and gaining muscle. So how do you find someone with the right skills and credentials? Be sure to

[00:09:02] ask them about their training certifications. If they have a certification through the American

[00:09:07] College of Sports Medicine, the National Academy of Sports Medicine or the American Council on

[00:09:13] Exercise, that's a good start. Then ask them about their experience. Have they helped others like you

[00:09:20] before? Can you reach out to their former clients? If they start to hesitate or can't answer these

[00:09:26] questions, then keep searching. But I understand that it may not be possible or reasonable to hire

[00:09:32] a personal trainer right now. So let's talk a bit more philosophically and let's see if this helps.

[00:09:38] First, it's not about willpower. Far too often we blame our lack of willpower when we don't succeed

[00:09:44] at something. The truth is, willpower comes and goes and frankly it's exhausting to rely on our

[00:09:50] willpower all the time. In fact, I probably have less willpower than the next guy when it comes to

[00:09:56] pizza, french fries and donuts since those are my problem foods. But think of willpower like a muscle.

[00:10:02] Exercising it every so often is a good thing but too often and it leads to fatigue from overuse.

[00:10:09] Willpower operates the same way. Using it every now and then is good but relying on it all the

[00:10:15] time or anytime we want to work out will just lead to exhaustion and disappointment. This is often

[00:10:22] why if our goal is to work out but we wait until let's say the end of the day to work out, it's

[00:10:27] probably not going to happen. Why not? Well, we just spent an entire day using that willpower muscle at

[00:10:34] work, in school, in traffic, paying bills, dealing with the kids, you name it and then we somehow

[00:10:40] expect we're going to have enough willpower left in the tank to make a good decision when it comes

[00:10:45] to going for a run. Again, that's probably not going to happen. That muscle is spent. We need

[00:10:52] to have some willpower backup. Tricks to fall back on when our willpower is just not there anymore.

[00:10:59] Which brings me to my next point. Quote,

[00:11:02] By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail. Benjamin Franklin

[00:11:08] So something we can do to back up our willpower is to have a plan. The beauty of this is it takes

[00:11:14] out the guesswork and removes willpower from the equation. Now this plan doesn't need to be

[00:11:19] complicated. More on this in a second. But researchers are finding that we are often more

[00:11:25] successful at reaching our goals when we have a plan. Even if we start small, it will help.

[00:11:32] So maybe just pick one day this week to get in that workout. Notice I didn't say come up with

[00:11:38] a 5-day plan or a plan for all 7 days of the week, just one day. And if you write down your plan,

[00:11:45] like on your calendar, it tricks your brain into thinking it's real, which in turn makes it more

[00:11:50] likely to happen. In fact, I often spend some free time on Sundays planning out which days

[00:11:56] I'm going to work out that next week and I write them down on my calendar.

[00:12:01] Next, keep it simple and consistency will follow. Does working out mean we have to go to the gym?

[00:12:08] Or does it mean we even have to leave the house and go for a run? No! We can work out in the

[00:12:14] comfort of our homes with little to no equipment, exercises we can do in our living rooms without

[00:12:19] any special weights. The fact that we don't have to go anywhere and if we really wanted can

[00:12:24] work out while watching our favorite content makes it even more likely we'll squeeze that

[00:12:29] workout in. That's what I mean by simple, because when it's simple and convenient,

[00:12:35] it will almost automatically become consistent. And lastly, have patience. Habits take time to

[00:12:43] form. So why do we expect to be able to break our habits with a quick snap of our fingers?

[00:12:48] It doesn't work that way. So again, consistency is key and have patience with yourself. Understand

[00:12:55] that you may not see the results you're looking for right away. You may build a routine, then go

[00:13:01] on a trip or it's vacation and then the routine falls apart so you may end up having to backtrack

[00:13:07] a bit. That doesn't mean good things aren't still happening. That doesn't mean you can't get back

[00:13:12] on track. You can't see that because you took that five minute walk which was still better than

[00:13:17] nothing, you made some of the muscle cells in your legs grow and your heart a bit healthier.

[00:13:23] But if you stay consistent and have patience, eventually you will feel and see those wonderful

[00:13:29] effects. And when it comes to tracking your progress, if you're doing this on your own,

[00:13:34] meaning without a personal trainer, good old-fashioned pencil and paper work great.

[00:13:39] A bound notebook with lined paper and a pen or pencil attached to it is all you need. Simple

[00:13:46] and convenient is key. Oh, and maybe keep your why statement written in there too,

[00:13:52] just as a nice reminder. I wish you all the best, Kobe, as you start this journey.

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[00:15:59] Health Daily. Thank you so much for listening every day and all the way through. I hope you

[00:16:03] have a great start to your weekend and I'll see you back here tomorrow where your optimal life awaits!