Start easy: forget hard sessions first

When it comes to improving our health and fitness, most of us have absorbed the same message: work harder, push more, sweat more – basically, that no pain means no gain. But what if that story is not only wrong, what if it is actually holding you back? This week, I sit down with elite endurance coach Alan Couzens to completely reframe how we think about movement, fitness, and fat loss.

Alan is both an exercise physiologist and a performance coach. He has spent the past three decades working with a wide range of endurance athletes at all ends of the performance spectrum, from ‘off the couch’ fitness athletes to the very best athletes in all of endurance sport. He shares his incredible wisdom & insights on X and his Substack, ‘The Science of Maximal Athletic Development’ which I would highly recommend if you want to go deeper into the topics we discuss in this week’s episode.

Over the past few years, Alan has helped me to understand the critical importance of low intensity movement for health, performance and longevity, and in our conversation, we discuss:

• Why the ability to burn fat at low intensities is one of the most important markers of true metabolic health
• Why so many people feel they need to eat every two to three hours
• How very easy movement  can transform your health, your energy, your mood, and even your performance, often more than the hard workouts you think you “should” be doing
• The need to balance out the stresses of modern life with activities like walking and yoga
• The importance of building a big aerobic “engine”
• How best to think about intensity, strength training, VO₂ max, and muscle mass
• Why it is never too late to start increasing how much you move and experiencing the incredible benefits

Alan is someone who I have a huge amount of respect for. Not only is he extremely knowledgeable and up to date with the latest science, he is also someone who has a huge amount of real-world experience helping people to improve their athletic performance and their health.

My hope is that this episode serves as a powerful reminder that the human body simply does not work as well as it could, without adequate amounts of movement and that it inspires you to bring more easy movement into your life, in a way that supports your health for many decades to come

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Show notes https://drchatterjee.com/617

DISCLAIMER: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your doctor or qualified healthcare provider. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.