For the last 30 years experts have been convincing men that distance training is the best way to stay in shape. Turns out there may be a better way.
By Grant Davis
Unless you’re training for a marathon, bike race, or triathlon,” says Rodolpho “Rudy” Reyes, “cardio is an inefficient waste of a guy’s valuable time.” By “cardio,” he means aerobic exercise of the sort that has been standard practice for years — the tried-and-true hour on a treadmill, say, or an elliptical machine: low-intensity, steady-state work with oxygenated blood. Before you dismiss Reyes’s notion outright, or cling to the conventional wisdom that pounding the pavement for 60 minutes is the only way to stay fit and trim, consider the source — then consider a growing body of science that backs him up.
A former Recon marine sergeant, Reyes, 36 (pictured), served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. His physique and robust health prove what fitness can do for a man when long jogs in enemy territory aren’t an option. At 5 feet, 11 inches tall, and 175 pounds with only 4 percent body fat, he looks like a Greek sculpture, and the last time he did any type of sustained aerobic exercise was when he raced an Xterra off-road triathlon (1-mile swim, 19-mile mountain-bike ride, 16-mile run) in 2006. To train for that event, he ran sprints and lifted weights instead of doing cardio, and he finished a respectable 41st in his age group. Now a fitness promoter and actor in San Diego County, he advocates a variety of 20-to-30-minute sprint and circuit exercises — including weightlifting and martial arts — which will raise your heart rate 25 to 30 beats higher per minute than a five-mile jog or a 30-mile spin and leave you far more spent. He does explosive body-weight lifts and a mix of jujitsu and other martial arts training.
“If your definition of fitness is keeping fat off, having a stronger heart, and being able to endure rigorous activity, like a day of skiing,” says Nick Delgado, president of Newport Beach, California–based Ultimate Medical Research, “then you want to be doing anaerobic exercise.” As opposed to aerobics, this type of exercise involves maximum-effort training, such as sprinting and lifting weights, in which the intensity of the exercise exceeds the body’s ability to supply oxygen to muscles. “Shorter, high-intensity workouts burn off glucose much faster than long runs, so you start burning fat at a much higher rate, your heart beats so hard that it becomes stronger, and you’re pushing yourself to such extremes that anything else you do feels easier.”
Not convinced? Consider a 2007 study by Canada’s McMaster University’s kinesiology department that found, in addition to the known benefits of gains in strength and bone density, that resistance training (such as body-weight squats and push-ups) reduces one’s risk for diabetes and cardiovascular disease. That’s because even moderate strength training may significantly lower unhealthy levels of cholesterol and triglyceride, two main causes of heart disease. And the increase in muscle mass spurs loss of fat and lowers blood glucose, which are both causes of diabetes.
Even in terms of sports performance, endurance training is no longer seen as the key to being a better athlete. A study conducted on Division-1A baseball players, published last January in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, found that those who did eight 20-to-30-second wind sprints (which rely on the same anaerobic systems used in strength training) three days a week, saw their power increase by an average of 15 percent over the course of a season. Players who did the team’s conventional, moderate-intensity routine (45 minutes of running or cycling, three or four days a week) actually found their power dropped an average of 2 percent
And it’s not just athletes involved in power sports like baseball who benefit from heavy doses of anaerobic activity. Programs like CrossFit and Nike SPARQ use circuit training to prepare athletes for long games like soccer and tennis; Mark Twight’s Gym Jones uses a similar technique to train mountaineers and skiers; and Chris Carmichael, Lance Armstrong’s coach, has been prescribing interval workouts for certain cyclists, runners, and triathletes for years. “The less time an athlete has to train, the more I prescribe a routine of short, 30-second-to-two-minute, all-out efforts to build speed and power,” says Carmichael. “This kind of training taps an athlete’s VO2 max, or top-end aerobic capacity, and improvement at the top of the scale yields better performance at all the aerobic levels below it. A guy’s not going to win the Tour de France with this kind of training, but I have middle-aged, career-focused dads winning hour-long bike races and 10-K runs using this time-efficient, high-intensity training.”
Despite evidence that anaerobic exercise seems to be a smarter approach to training, many have been slow to embrace it because of the long-held idea that aerobic training is a better overall workout.
Lou Schuler, who has followed trends in fitness and training for close to three decades and authored The New Rules of Lifting: Six Basic Moves for Maximum Muscle, disagrees. “One reason the medical society is so hung up on cardiovascular exercise is due to Dr. Kenneth Cooper, who made the idea of ‘aerobic fitness’ mainstream when he published his bestseller Aerobics in 1968,” he says. “What people missed is that Cooper’s work focused on cardiovascular health, not whole-body fitness. But that didn’t stop the supposed health experts from making aerobics the be-all, end-all fitness and weight-loss panacea.”
Following the success of Cooper’s book, scientists jumped on the bandwagon and started testing all sorts of aerobic exercises to see if they helped reduce the risk of disease and prolonged life. In the meantime, strength training was banished to the wasteland of muscleheads, grunting through sets. It was what a guy did to get huge, but not necessarily get fit or lose weight. Still, cautions Dr. Edward Laskowski, co-director of the Mayo Clinic’s Sports Medicine Center, there are “four pillars” of fitness: aerobic capacity, strength, range of motion, and stability. “Trying to combine all of them into one [as many of Reyes’s workouts do]means you lose out on something,” he says. “You can’t squat your max while standing on a physio ball, and you won’t build cardiovascular stamina doing core strength exercises. That’s not to say there’s no cardiovascular benefit to lifting weights, but the literature points to the idea that strength training can’t supplant aerobic exercise.”
Nonetheless, Schuler believes, “We went too far to the cardio side. It’s time to swing back the other way. Even the medical establishment recognizes that a major determining factor in longevity is a person’s muscle strength, not his capacity to run marathons.”
“You need muscle to move,” explains 78-year-old Dr. Walter Bortz, clinical associate professor of medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine and the author of Dare to Be 100. “Simply put: If you can’t move, you grow frail. Grow frail, you die.”
No one knows this better than Reyes. During a clandestine mission in Fallujah he spent a night hanging under a bridge by his heels, hands, and sometimes his chin, while stealthily placing 100 pounds of explosives and detonators on the span. “I couldn’t have succeeded without my type of fitness,” he says. “Running marathons wouldn’t have given me the stamina to haul those explosives up there.” But it wasn’t on the battlefield that his fitness was tested most; it was at home last winter when his vehicle was broadsided while going 60 mph on a highway. His car flipped into oncoming traffic and rolled multiple times before coming to rest on its roof. “I was totally aware of what was going on,” says Reyes. “When the car stopped, I unbuckled myself, kicked out the rear window, and walked away with minor scrapes and bruises.
“I know I can credit my surviving that crash to my fitness,” he says. “I doubt a skinny dude who just runs all the time would’ve survived. So, when someone describes a lean and lanky runner or cyclist as fit, I can look them straight in the eye, and say: No, they’re not.”
The New Treadmill Workout
Going anaerobic doesn’t mean giving up on your trusty machines.
Don’t haul your treadmill, elliptical, bike, or rowing machine to the dump. You can do more efficient exercises on your old friend by getting your heart rate above the anaerobic threshold — 80 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate. For optimal results hop on the treadmill and warm up by jogging for five to 10 minutes. When you feel loose, break into your fastest sprint for 15 seconds, then slow down to a casual rate for 45 seconds, allowing
your heart rate to come back down a bit. Repeat this pattern for 20 minutes, eventually working your way up to 30 seconds of sprinting followed by 30 seconds of active rest. Your total workout time should take no more than 30 minutes. —steve steinberg
July 16th, 2008 at 8:42 pm
While reading your recent article on Rodolpho “Rudy” Reyes, I couldn’t help but smirk. Why would you possibly endorse following the fitness advice of someone who thinks that being lean or lanky and being a runner or biker is “unhealthy”. Reyes may have big muscles, but where does that equal a longer life or a healthier heart? Also, Lou Schuler and his book ON WEIGHT LIFTING is more than a little biased. I agree that a balance must be struck between endurance and explosive training…but seriously….Reyes looks and sounds like a total douche. He says he could not have survived his car crash if he were “some skinny dude who runs all the time”…bullshit. I have seen little kids survive horrific crashes…it’s called luck asshole. Lame article…oh and all of the exercises in the “Reyes Workout” focus on the upper body…a complete workout that does not make…maybe that’s why Reyes has chicken legs?
July 17th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
Why is it that so many individuals have to use expletives when they comment on someone else’s opinion and then get upset when their own perspective is challenged? We, that does include me, need to count to at least ten before exploding. Laugh…..but for me it works….most of the time. Anyway….
Rudy Reyes does indeed have some good stuff. I get my training (weights/cardio)ideas from other knowlegeable people like him and discard what I don’t feel comfortable doing. I try not to use one way of training since changing routines seem to be what the experts advocate. I think for several weeks I’ll use his ideas. Hey, I can only gain from this.
At one time, I liked the thought of being massive. but as I got older, I realized that changing directions toward the leaner look was necessary to help reduce the amount of health issues that inevitably creep up on you. Most of my routines now center around losing weight and tightening the core, but I really enjoy working with heavy weights two or three times a month, using explosive reps to help to maintain strength, lower fat levels, and help me look/feel leaner. Since I am recovering from surgery, it will be some time before I can incorporate more sprinting (presently doing a light 25-30 min. aerobic routine at 2.5 mos. post-op) since I understand it is great for attaining that lean look (burns calories even after you’re done training).
So, thanks to Men’s Journal magazine for this splendid article and to Rudy Reyes…keep believing and mahalo for sharing your knowledge.
With much aloha,
Errol Kilantang
7-17-08
July 21st, 2008 at 6:29 pm
Let me guess…Delan is an aerobic guy! Sounds like he got his toes stepped on. I’ve never been big on running miles because, quite honestly, I don’t hunt game on foot with a spear. I much more likely to need a good combo of strength and endurance than I am to ever need to run 10 miles. To each his own but Delan is off the deep end because somebody disagreed with his point of view. Poor little fella.
July 23rd, 2008 at 2:49 pm
1…2…..3……4……..5…….6……7……8……9…..10…..
Thanks Errol…you’re right…
First…I will agree with the two posts that followed mine…I did go off the deep end (rough week) and chose of all things a stupid article to explode at. That said…I think I misdirected a little of my annoyance. I think it was more a case of general disappointment with an article that did not (as I felt) back up its claims. I need to tone down the swearing when posting too…I am sure Rudy is in excellent shape and that his program is effective…my qualm was more that those of the aerobic persuasion were painted as almost weak or less healthy…even the cover of that issue had two swimming stars…it seems silly to bag on aerobics and yet feature it prominently. I myself was a d-lineman for some years and worked out in a similar way to Reyes…I got bulky but I question whether my adding muscle actually added longevity to my life…maybe I should have run track? But…as I stated I could have responded in a more civilized manner..
July 23rd, 2008 at 3:07 pm
ps…that first post was terrible…my apologies and I need to think a little before I submit my opinion….now I’m done and will promptly shut up.
July 23rd, 2008 at 7:01 pm
First of all, Delan, you’re a big man to recant your initial posting. Good for you. I started doing Rudy’s workouts last week, and wow, did they leave me incredibly sore and winded. And yes, I was sore all over, including my legs, from the 120 squat repetitions. I’m no slouch, either, because prior to starting this regimen, I lifted weights from moderate to heavy and included 3 days of cardio. It’s too early for results, but I especially love that it gets me out of the gym in less than 40 minutes as opposed to 90. I’d certainly recommend this workout to anyone, but use caution, you have to be in some type of shape beforehand.
July 28th, 2008 at 2:02 am
I find it odd that in the first sentence, Reyes says “cardio is an inefficient waste of a guy’s valuable time”, yet “cardio” is exactly what his circuit program is.
July 28th, 2008 at 2:59 am
This is nothing new. It’s annoying to see this material published in the mainstream as if it’s some kind of recent dogma-destoying breakthrough known only to esoteric fitness authors like Reyes’. Almost everyone with a serious interest in fitness is aware of this by now. Arthur Jones, the inventor of Nautilus resistance equipment, was saying this 40+ years ago. Running is a SPORT, not an efficient way to exercise for general health and fitness. If you’re not running to compete, either against others or against yourself, or at least for the intrinsic love of the activity, then get in the gym and pump iron.
I should note that, although he’s on the right track, Reyes’ explanation of things is not entirely sound. There is no such thing as “anaerobic” exercise, and the value of explosive training for the general population is questionable. The claim that a runner wouldn’t have survived his crash is also fairly stupid. The guy comes off as kind of a dumbass honestly.
July 28th, 2008 at 9:12 am
Running is the simplest and best for m of exercise there is. this article is nothing more than some dude’s attempt to get publicity for their new workout program. 120 squats? Come on now. If you think you are creating the next Gym Jones or Crossfit, or whatever that’s great but don’t dismiss the concept of running and cardio as exercise.
13:55 in trainers baby.
July 28th, 2008 at 12:58 pm
“At 5 feet, 11 inches tall, and 175 pounds with only 4 percent body fat, he looks like a Greek sculpture, and the last time he did any type of sustained aerobic exercise was when he raced an Xterra off-road triathlon (1-mile swim, 19-mile mountain-bike ride, 16-mile run) in 2006. To train for that event, he ran sprints and lifted weights instead of doing cardio, and he finished a respectable 41st in his age group.”
Hilarious. He finished 41 out of 47 in his age group, and 256 out of 301 total finishers. His finishing time was almost twice that of the winner of the race.
Says a lot about how well his training worked. And it was a 6 mile run — not a 16 mile run.
Anyone who isn’t a total manatee could have beaten this guy.
July 28th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
“To train for that event, he ran sprints and lifted weights instead of doing cardio, and he finished a respectable 41st in his age group.”
So if you want to finish poorly in your next endurance event, follow his advice.
July 28th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
This article is ridiculous. Not because of his training methods (because many of them are valid) but because of the way he puts down the “skinny runners and cyclists”. If you are trying to make a point or be credible, the best way is not to put others down but to back up and sell your idea.
Putting other ideas down is just a weak way to argue.
I am a skinny runner, 6′0, 145 lbs and guess what I was in an awful car crash as well. I walked out of the car without a scratch on me, and so did my dad, and he is 5′11 170 lbs and doesn’t lift a weight.
Running DOES get you fit, and so does sprinting, lifting weights, doing plyos, etc. There is not ONE way to get fit, and there are different kinds of fitness. But next time include the articles and science research about the effects of running on cardiovascular and overall health.
This guy has stronger arms, legs, abs than I do, and most likely I have a stronger heart and lungs. Big deal.
August 4th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
I have lifted weights almost my entire life. It has done nothing to lower my triglycerides or raise my HDL. I have been doing more anaerobically intense workouts for about 3 years now. They have done nothing to lower my triglycerides or raise my HDL.
In May my triglycerides were 475 and my HDL 31. 6 weeks later, after starting to take Tricor, my triglycerides were 93 and my HDL 50. Tricor is reported to raise HDL 4 or so points. So where did the other 15 points come from?
At the same time I started the Tricor I started doing more classic cardio. Cardio has traditionally been one of the few ways to raise HDL without medication.
In my estimation trying to template anaerobically intense workouts into some kind of silver bullet that it is not is something you do at your own peril.
August 11th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Its not a question of bulk Vs lean… as much a it is the notion of functionality Vs esthetics. Rudy was a Recon Marine which is Marine Special Warfare (not so different from Special Olympics!). In Recon we do our share of endurance runs and swims. Fitness in the elite units is aimed towards real world effort not nice looking biceps. The real enemy is fitness for looks and killer abs… not endurance. A nice body is a side affect to real fitness. So Rudy, cardio is not bunk… but there are other ways to attain it as Dara Torres is proving. As an elite athlete she has spent the lowest amount of time training in her sport at 41 then she did at 17. She just won a silver medal and broke a world record. The point is that even with hard core world class endurance athletes, the newer Crossfit methodology is preparing athletes just as effective, if not better than the old “Longer is better” paradigm. So if being thin and running 10-20 miles makes you happy then go for it. In the end its about being fulfilled. The truly motivated and elite athletes will find a way to succeed no matter what regimen they follow. At some point will is more important then technological superiority.
September 10th, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Hey warriors for and against explosive anaerobic training.. There are so many misconceptions about training and fitness in general and as Dan says what matters for a lifelong fitness plan is loving the process of training regardless of modality. Not that anyone can tell from photos and a 3 page article, I have incredible endurance. In Recon a typical Friday was the whole unit hits the surf at 0500 in full combat equipment and pack with a sandbag and ocean fins for 2 kilometers, changes over and does a trail run back to the Unit that is 12 miles over arduous terrain. We down are gear and bang out 100 pullups and 500 pushups as fast as we can. Then if nothing was on the training schedule we were off to enjoy our Familys and precious civilian moments inbetween Afghanistan and Iraq. Not cardiovascularly fit? On my last tour in Fallujah, my first clandestine R and S/sniper patrol was a 10 kilometer movement with a shocking 200 to 225 lbs of weaponry, munnitions, radios, optics, hidekit and medical supplies. Definately moving as fast as We can to stay alive.. Every noise and light presented possible compromise. And then those of you that say hey”one hour of training, bullshit” the mission I was just mentioning was 4 days long with continuous movement at night and one full speed sprint interdiction in the day. So what I mean is what life has taught me is to train in a way that pushes my limits and thresholds. I am an avid swimmer, runner, jiu jitsu player, kickboxer and lover of LIFE. All of You who are very quick to be critical of my strength and power program that gives a huge boon in the way of exercise induced HGH have not tried it or looked into the science of this method. All You distance guys out there see what this sample protocol 2 a week does for Your general energy levels, strength and power and ENDURANCE performance. Give it a try. Hey I am in SD California and shoot me an email at http://www.rudyreyes.com and we will get together and train. It would be my honor. Rudy
September 20th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
While the article could have been a little less inflamatory towards endurance athletes, I am intrigued by this training strategy. It sounds like Rudy’s philosophy focuses on improving real-world strength and athletic ability. Is it the best option for ultimate longevity and joint health? Maybe not. However, if you want to be able to accomplish the feats that Rudy talks about in his post above then it could be the ticket. I’m willing to give it a try. I love running so I don’t plan on cutting out all long-distance work, just shifting the focus towards more shorter, high-intensity workouts.
October 22nd, 2008 at 1:29 pm
Disclosure - my weekly workouts look a lot more like Reyes than a marathoner, so this isn’t in defense of one position or the other. I lift, run distance and do sprints of all types.
I’ve read a lot of the same things from Crossfitters, including Glassman himself. I suppose it’s part of the strategy that you first have to convince people they are wasting their time running or biking or whatever for endurance.
First, both Reyes and Glassman ignore the fact that runners of all distances do highly intense interval training, so the cardio benefits they theorize as absent in any runner’s program are in fact inherent. A competitive marathon runner will compete for all 26.2 miles at a pace most Crossfitters do for their 400 or 800 repeats. Second, conveniently there is no rigor behind the term “fit”. A biker might see it as the ability to go long distances at the highest sustainable level, while a weight lifter might see it as strength (an ability to move weight over distance) or muscular endurance (an ability to move a substantial weight over distance over time). Some call it “functional” in that it might mimic daily strength or endurance requirements.
There are benefits to all these forms of exercise and there is no holy grail. Just as a few years ago it was all about cardio and then fat-burning zones, now it’s high intensity. Like most things in life, the truth never lies in the extremes.
October 28th, 2008 at 12:00 am
Being “fit” depends upon your interests and goals, and they can change over time. And, the definition of fitness isn’t the same for everyone. Lance Armstrong’s definition of fitness is certainly different that Tom Brady’s or Tiger’s definition. In the mid-1980’s, when I was in college, my fitness goals were to play D-III football, do a 300-PFT in the Marine Corps Reserve (the maximum score obtainable, by running 3-miles in 18-minutes, doing 20 consecutive pull-ups, and doing 80 sit-ups in 2 minutes), and most importantly, looking good for the college girls! At age 30, my fitness goal was to win bike races. Now, at age 44, my fitness goals are to keep my body fat and weight down, look good for my wife, and to demonstrate to my daughters, by example, that fitness and working out are a way of life. And, for those of us who have busy lives, I found Rudy and Chris Carmichael’s inspiring and informative - why spend 2-3 hours doing a long, slow workout when you may be able to obtain the same level of fitness by doing an intense anaerobic workout in half the time. Semper Fi, Rudy!
November 10th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
Actually, it has been proven that the stronger you are the longer you live.
November 23rd, 2008 at 5:02 pm
I heard about some of the doubters in Rudy on this website from a friend and had to see it for myself. I had the privilege of serving in Rudy’s team in Fallujah back in 04′. In fact I was actually his partner on the bridge that night watching in amazement as he not only showcased amazing climbing skills but did so in a completely silent and tactical manner (it truly was something straight out of an action movie). In addition I was the man directly behind him on the patrol where he was carrying 200+ pounds. No one in the team was even aware of the weight he was carrying till I tried to pick up his pack to move it before the mission. In Recon we always carried heavy packs, but I swear I had never seen one on patrol which was THAT heavy. When I begged him to redistribute some of the weight he simply said, “Brother, I know you guys are already weighed down. This is all mission essential equipment and I can handle it, leave it be.”
To those who say he sounds like typical meathead I can promise you that his fitness, toughness and ferocity in a firefight are more than matched by his intelligence and real-time decision making ability.
Drive on Rudy!
Dan W
December 22nd, 2008 at 5:26 pm
Well let me start by saying that for ant that dought you have first try the program out first. At this time I am trying and seen the diffrence. And Rudy good job write soon.
December 31st, 2008 at 11:10 pm
Yeah sure? I do agree that changing up routines is beneficial, but the treadmill workout described is not any different that Prefontaines tried and true 30-40 workout. Google it if you do not know what it is. Do that treadmill outside where oxygen levels are different…oh wait, this guy is just promoting a new trend and good luck and come to one our cross country interval sessions of repeat miles or 300 meter hill repeats and we can see who is “FIT” and I am pretty sure nonw of us would have a problem doing your workout. After its inside. Here is a new trend-come outside and get fit.