The Energy Balance Podcast

Ep. 82: Maximizing Fitness and Athletic Performance From The Bioenergetic View (Fitness vs. Health Part 3)

In this episode we discuss:

• Supplements to maximize fitness and athletic performance

• Why exercise and physical fitness are generally beneficial as long as they’re kept in the right balance

• The minimum effective doses for muscle growth, strength, and endurance

• How stress and sleep affect our capacity to handle exercise

• Nutritional strategies to mitigate the harmful stress effects from high levels of exercise while maximizing performance

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://www.jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-82-maximizing-fitness-and-athletic-performance-from-the-bioenergetic-view-fitness-vs-health-part-3/ 

 

Timestamps:

2:44 – why exercise and physical fitness are generally beneficial as long as they’re kept in balance  

14:43 – the limits to our metabolic capacity and how this relates to exercise

29:47 – nutritional strategies to mitigate the harmful stress effects from high levels of exercise while maximizing performance

39:32 – addressing sleep and stress to mitigate the harmful stress effects from high levels of exercise while maximizing performance

45:18 – supplements to mitigate the harmful stress effects from high levels of exercise while maximizing performance

1:06:46 – concluding thoughts related to maximizing fitness and athletic performance from the bioenergetic view 

 

Ep. 81: Whether Intense Exercise and Endurance Training Should Be Avoided (Fitness vs. Health Part 2)

In this episode we discuss:

• How to determine how much exercise is right for you

• Why working out regularly is not enough to make up for sitting all day

• Why fitness and health are not synonymous

• Whether lactic acid production, breathlessness, and fat oxidation due to exercise should be avoided at all costs

• Whether intense exercise and being highly active is always more harmful than helpful

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-81-whether-intense-exercise-and-endurance-training-should-be-avoided-fitness-vs-health-part-2/ 

 

Timestamps:

2:55 – the benefits of movement and exercise 

6:41 – whether intense exercise involving lactate production and heavy breathing/breathlessness is harmful 

10:13 – whether endurance training involving fat oxidation is harmful 

18:31 – drawing a line between fitness and health 

25:06 – how to determine how much exercise is right for you

38:23 – whether intense exercise and being highly active is always more harmful than helpful

43:33 – why “eat less and exercise more” doesn’t work and ignores major aspects of our physiology 

 

Ep. 80: How Much Exercise Is Too Much From The Bioenergetic View? (Fitness vs. Health Part 1)

In this episode we discuss:

• The harmful effects of excess exercise

• Why increasing exercise beyond moderate amounts is NOT effective for weight loss

• The harmful effects of excessive endurance training on cardiovascular health

• How excess exercise can drive degeneration and contribute to various health issues

• How much exercise is “too much”

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-80-how-much-exercise-is-too-much-from-the-bioenergetic-view-fitness-vs-health-part-1/ 

 

Timestamps:

2:37 – framing the question of where health and fitness meet from the bioenergetic view

13:12 – how excess exercise can cause degeneration and contribute to various health conditions  

21:03 – what level of exercise is harmful for cardiovascular health 

29:55 – how the expensive tissue hypothesis applies to exercise 

45:14 – how excess exercise can steal energy from other areas of our physiology, and how this affects the calorie equation 

1:08:23 - can moderate-intensity endurance training for 25 minutes 3 days per week be too much?

 

Ep. 79: Hyperthyroidism, Collagen Alternatives, and Forcing Mitochondrial Respiration (Q & A)

In this episode we discuss:

• Whether it’s beneficial to force increased mitochondrial respiration with supplements

• How to determine the ideal amount of pro-metabolic supplements to take 

• What to do if you react poorly to collagen or gelatin protein powder

• Whether food additives like carrageenan, gums, nitrates, sorbates, MSG, microbial enzymes, cultures, and artificial colors are worth avoiding

• Whether we need to be concerned about hyperthyroidism and whether hyperthyroidism can be caused by over-supplementing thyroid hormone

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-79-hyperthyroidism-collagen-alternatives-and-forcing-mitochondrial-respiration-q-a/ 

 

Timestamps:

2:39 – is it beneficial to “force” increased mitochondrial respiration and the oxidation of glucose

15:09 – alternatives to collagen or gelatin protein powder 

19:19 – which food additives are worth avoiding 

58:53 – whether hyperthyroidism is something we should be concerned about

 

Ep. 78: Why Maximizing Energy Production and Minimizing Stress Is Optimal For Health (Hormesis Part 4)

In this episode we discuss:

• How you can induce mitochondrial biogenesis and uncoupling without stress

• Why you want tighter mitochondrial coupling if you want to induce uncoupling in a healthy way

• The difference between reactive oxygen species production in a high energy state versus a low energy state

• How many supposedly hormetic interventions, like exercise, fasting, and ketogenic diets, can be beneficial despite the stress they cause rather than because of it

• How the fact that we can’t avoid stress fits into the bioenergetic, anti-hormetic view

• What anti-hormesis looks like in a practical sense

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-78-why-maximizing-energy-production-and-minimizing-stress-is-optimal-for-health-hormesis-part-4/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:22 – the difference between producing ROS in a high energy state compared to a low energy state  

9:38 – how ATP protects against oxidative stress

21:55 – how CO2 protects against oxidative stress

26:31 – how tighter mitochondrial coupling is better for inducing uncoupling

27:48 – the broader context of why we want to adapt to a high-energy, low-stress state 

33:28 – how exercise can be beneficial despite the stress it causes, rather than because of it

47:06 – how low-carb/ketogenic diets can be beneficial despite the stress they cause, rather than because of it

57:40 – what to expect when moving away from a hormetic approach 

1:02:16 – how the fact that we can’t avoid stress fits into the bioenergetic, anti-hormetic view 

1:03:39 – what anti-hormesis looks like in a practical sense

 

Ep. 77: Why You DON’T Want to Force Autophagy, Mitochondrial Biogenesis, & Uncoupling (Hormesis Part 3)

In this episode we discuss:

• Why the stress caused by calorie restriction, exercise, cold thermogenesis, fasting, ketogenic diets, Wim Hoff breathing, and supplements like resveratrol is not supportive of our health

• Why autophagy, mitochondrial biogenesis, and uncoupling are not always beneficial

• Whether being tolerant to stress is a sign of health

• Why it’s virtually impossible to apply hormesis in a practical sense

• The difference between reactive oxygen species production in a high energy state versus a low energy state

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-77-why-you-dont-want-to-force-autophagy-mitochondrial-biogenesis-uncoupling-hormesis-part-3/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:27 – why reductions in adaptive responses in degenerative states and the benefits of “hormetic” interventions does not lend support to hormesis

13:49 – why improving tolerance to stress is not inherently beneficial and the cost of stress across generations

28:58 – how the fact that stress is cumulative throws a wrench in the idea of hormesis  

37:05 –the difference between producing ROS in a high energy state versus a low energy state

49:16 – the low energy, high ROS state is a feature of degenerative conditions

 

Ep. 76: Why Caloric Restriction Is NOT Responsible For Lifespan Extension (Hormesis Part 2)

In this episode we discuss:

• How the largest body of evidence cited in favor of hormesis actually doesn’t support it at all

• Why caloric restriction is NOT responsible for slowing aging and extending lifespan (and what is actually responsible)

• The many factors that confound the calorie restriction research (including differences between organisms, poor research design, amino acid restriction, PUFA, endotoxin, and more)

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-76-why-caloric-restriction-is-not-responsible-for-lifespan-extension-hormesis-part-2/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:36 – the physiology of hormesis and the general support for hormesis

12:54 – outlining the problems with hormesis

18:51 – how differences between organisms confound the caloric restriction research 

37:34 – the problem with using proxy markers to evaluate health effects and the importance of context

48:20 – how differences between organisms confound the caloric restriction research (cont.)

51:58 – how hydration status and macronutrient ratios confound the caloric restriction research

55:57 – how the myopic hormetic view leads to the ignorance of many confounding variables

1:02:00 – how the restriction of particular amino acids, ad libitum feeding, and a refined diet confound the caloric restriction research

1:11:58 – how PUFA confounds the caloric restriction research

1:30:09  – how endotoxin and gut health confound the caloric restriction research

 

Ep. 75: Hormesis As An Anti-Scientific Defense For Industrial Pollution And Chemical Exposure (Hormesis Part 1)

In this episode we discuss:

• How the concept of hormesis defends our exposure to toxic chemicals, industrial contaminants and pollutants, and ionizing radiation

• Why hormesis is a dangerous, anti-scientific idea masquerading as science

• The suspicious history of hormesis and its current definitional problems 

• The important distinction between stress and adaption

• The problems with the terms “eustress” and “distress” 

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-75-hormesis-as-an-anti-scientific-defense-for-industrial-pollution-and-chemical-exposure-hormesis-part-1/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:36 – an introduction to hormesis as a means to reverse aging and reverse chronic health conditions 

6:45 – what is hormesis

12:34 – the suspicious history of hormesis  

16:20 – the definitional problems with hormesis

34:51 – how hormesis is influencing dangerous public health policies

47:35 – the difference between stressor effects and specific effects, creating a distinction between stress and adaptation, and the problems with the terms “eustress” and “distress”

 

Ep.74: Refuting Nutrition With Judy’s “Thoughts on the Ray Peat Diet” (Part 2)

In this episode we discuss:

• Why low-carb diets are inherently stressful

• How carbohydrates oppose stress and decrease the stress hormones

• Why carbohydrates ARE essential and why their intake plays a vital role in our endocrine systems  

• Whether most people have hypothyroidism and how carnivore diets can cause hypothyroidism

• Why carnivore diets are NOT ideal for gut health even if they improve symptoms in the short-term 

• The real reason why people are moving from a carnivore diet to a “Ray Peat Diet”

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-74-refuting-nutrition-with-judys-thoughts-on-the-ray-peat-diet-part-2/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:03 – why low-carb diets drive physiological stress and carbohydrates oppose stress

21:51 – why carbohydrates are essential and why our endocrine systems are so tightly tuned to carbohydrate intake

29:19 – do most people have hypothyroidism?

44:38 – is hypothyroidism ever the root problem?

53:28 – how carnivore diets can cause hypothyroidism

1:01:36 – whether taking exogenous steroid hormones (like pregnenolone or progesterone) will increase cortisol

1:12:19 – should we focus on gut health over thyroid health?

1:23:31 – why are people really moving from carnivore to a “Ray Peat Diet?”

Ep. 73: Refuting Nutrition With Judy’s “Thoughts on the Ray Peat Diet” (Part 1)

In this episode we discuss:

• Why our brains favor glucose as their fuel source

• Why fat is less energetically favorable as a fuel compared to carbohydrates  

• The problem with reducing the bioenergetic view to the “Ray Peat diet”  

• The amount of carbohydrates our bodies can handle before storing them as fat

• Whether consuming carbohydrates causes Alzheimer’s disease 

• Whether the raising of our blood sugar and the production of insulin is wasteful and harmful

 

Sign up for the Free Energy Balance Mini-Course here: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/energy

 

Click here to check out the show notes: https://jayfeldmanwellness.com/ep-73-refuting-nutrition-with-judys-thoughts-on-the-ray-peat-diet-part-1/ 

 

Timestamps:

3:01 – an introduction to Nutrition With Judy’s article on Ray Peat

7:41 – energy and metabolism are at the core of the bioenergetic view

18:43 – the problem with reducing the bioenergetic paradigm to the “Ray Peat diet” and the importance of context

29:28 – why carbohydrate oxidation is more energetically favorable to fat oxidation

41:09 – why consuming carbohydrates does not make you fat or prevent you from oxidizing fat

45:35 – our body’s impressive capacity for carbohydrate oxidation and storage

58:06 – glucose requirements in the brain other than energy production

1:00:21 – why the increased production of CO2 from carbohydrate oxidation further supports the energy favorability of carbohydrates

1:00:58 – does consuming carbohydrates cause Alzheimer’s disease?

1:06:05 – why the raising of blood sugar and the production of insulin is not wasteful or harmful