Chasing Clarity: Health & Fitness Podcast DR. MIKE T. NELSON: THE SCIENCE OF METABOLIC FLEXIBILITY: HOW TO MAXIMIZE YOUR ABILITY TO USE FATS & CARBS | EP. 131
Oct 10, 2024
Dr. Mike T. Nelson, an exercise physiologist and researcher with a PhD, dives into the fascinating world of metabolic flexibility. He explains its critical role in body composition and overall metabolic health, and discusses how individual variability affects our fat and carbohydrate usage. Practical strategies are shared, including methods for measuring flexibility and the impacts of ketogenic diets. They also explore the significant influence of aerobic fitness on recovery and muscle growth, along with the importance of sleep and non-exercise activity in optimizing metabolism.
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Three-Part Definition Of Flexibility
- Metabolic flexibility means using carbs, using fats, and switching quickly between them.
- Brandon DeCruz and Mike T Nelson stress that healthy physiology requires all three abilities.
Why Mixed Fuel Capacity Helps Physiques
- Physique athletes need both high carb ability for intense training and strong fat oxidation for fat loss.
- Optimizing both ends explains why mixed approaches often outperform single-macronutrient extremes.
Don't Sacrifice PDH For Ketosis
- Avoid prolonged strict keto if you need high-intensity performance; it downregulates PDH and carb use.
- Train both fuel systems so fat adaptation doesn't blunt carbohydrate capacity.