What's more important for longevity, cardiovascular fitness or diet quality?

Recently I rewatched an episode of the Coach Em Up podcast featuring Zack Telander and Alec Blenis, where they got into a really interesting discussion about longevity, cardiorespiratory fitness, and ultra-processed foods.

Some pretty wild statistics were thrown around, and naturally, being the nerd that I am, I wanted to dig into the actual research and see what the literature had to say.

So in this video, we're diving into several large observational studies and meta-analyses examining the relationship between cardiovascular fitness, ultra-processed food consumption, and all-cause mortality.

And of course, we'll talk about why it's so important to challenge our own biases, especially when we come across research that seems to confirm something we already believe.

There's a lot to unpack here, and some of these studies are pretty fascinating.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments! How much cardio do you do? Do you track your VO2 max? And how much attention do you pay to ultra-processed foods in your diet?

Thanks for watching, and as always, stay adaptive!

Coaching inquiries email me at randall@alwaysadaptive.com or visit alwaysadaptive.com

September marks 12 years of coaching people, and to “celebrate,” I wanted to do what I do best: be a nerd.

So I’m sharing five lessons I’ve learned over those 12 years. We’re talking about what I do when someone feels a tweak during a workout, why I think some people could benefit from more intensity, and why I’ve changed my mind about chasing perfect movement.

I also get into knee valgus during running and why a bench press cue like “break the bar” might help one person but make the lift uncomfortable for someone else.

Some of this is research, some of it is experience, and some of it is me looking back at things I used to teach and thinking, “Yeah, I’d handle that differently now.”

Coaching inquiries email me at randall@alwaysadaptive.com or visit alwaysadaptive.com

I’ve had ulcerative colitis for around 25 years, and if you’ve followed this channel for a while, you know I’ve experimented with just about everything trying to get this disease under control.

Well, I’m finally in remission.

And strangely enough, the two things that seem to have made the biggest difference for me weren’t biologics or another prescription drug. They were two supplements: Boswellia Serrata and Indigo Naturalis, also known as Qing Dai.

Over the years I’ve experimented with different ulcerative colitis treatments, changes to my diet, medications, supplements, exercise and just about anything else I thought might help control my UC.

Within days of using these supplements I went from dealing with ulcerative colitis symptoms like blood, cramps, urgency and constantly worrying about what I ate to having none of it. I can eat foods again that I haven’t been able to touch in years. I’m gaining weight, gaining muscle, getting stronger, sleeping better and generally feeling like I have my life back.

But you guys know me. My experience is N=1, and my anecdotal experience of feeling better isn’t enough for me to tell you that something works.

So in this video we’re going down the rabbit hole.

I break down the research on Boswellia and Qing Dai for ulcerative colitis and IBD, how they may work, the randomized controlled trials, and the safety concerns, particularly the reports of pulmonary arterial hypertension associated with Indigo Naturalis.

I also take a closer look at the research that caused me the most concern, how the potential risk was actually established, and some of the conflicts of interest I found while researching the investigators.

I also talk about my history with the disease, conventional ulcerative colitis treatment, my experience developing pancreatitis after being prescribed 6 MP, Purinethol, and why my own experience has changed the way I think about risk when deciding what I’m willing to try.

Ulcerative colitis is a form of inflammatory bowel disease, or IBD, along with Crohn’s disease, and anyone who has experienced a serious ulcerative colitis flare knows how completely this disease can take over your life.

I’m not telling anyone with ulcerative colitis or crohns disease what they should take and I’m definitely not claiming I found a cure. I’m sharing what worked for me, what the research actually says, and the good AND the bad so you can make your own decisions.

If you’re dealing with ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease, or IBD and feel like you’ve tried everything, I hope there’s something in here that helps.

Coaching inquiries email me at randall@alwaysadaptive.com or visit alwaysadaptive.com