James O'Keefe MD - Cardiovascular Damage From Extreme Endurance Exercise

[@Orvellrednbacer]

Could not have expressed this better myself. Excellent job!

[@Geopholus]

Finally a heart doctor with common sense.

[@TurboValecia]

What a great presentation. I agree, it makes a lot of sense. I will definitely be sharing this. So informative!

[@christopherwhite7502]

I'm a 15 year running veteran, running journalist and high school cross country coach. In recent years I've had--and expressed--grave misgivings about the media-driven, ultramarathon TREND, irresponsibly encouraging ultra tourism among the recreational runner putting in 20-30 miles a week. This isn't to say, "don't run," but learn to enjoy the 5 and 10ks again, people...they are far better for you and the training needed for them is actually sustainable for a person with a normal, healthy life/running balance. Enjoy short and fast again instead of compensating for your lack or loss of speed by going farther and farther. At 50 I run 30 miles a week to race relatively fast. Even this is beyond O'Keefe's prescription but I can comfortably manage it. Your Zen run is your everyday run, not these 8 hour long Brahmin-like sufferfests to find cardio enlightenment through pushing your body and brain to a near-death experience. Is your uber-cool, look-at-me-I'm-living-a-commercial image worth all of that? And is any of that sustainable over the long haul? Most ultra tourists will burn out within a few years and never touch running again. And that's a shame; in moderation it is very good for you.

[@rockman4952]

The latest research on mortality vs exercise indicates that 55 minutes / day of vigorous exercise achieves the maximum mortality benefit. Going more minutes per day of vigorous exercise will reduce lifespan. There was a longitudinal study in Taiwan of all cause mortality on 412K people, from which this conclusion was drawn.

[@AnonYmous-ez4es]

Brahmins don't run bro. The most intended activity they do is dance at Kirtan. They wake before sunrise, take cold showers and eat once a day. That's austerity not suffer-fest.

[@johnmitchell7895]

Great job! More people need to see this.

[@Thekiko2501]

Two important questions I have after watching this: 1- How does bouts of maximum intensity interval sprints compare to marathons? 2- Was nutrition taken into account at all for these studies on marathoners? We know there are some key nutrients for heart health such as omega 3’s and selenium, if not what kind of impact could this have?

[@baba-sm1fm]

A good diet cannot off set the damage caused by too much strain on the heart muscle. I think that bouts of maximum intensity could compare to continuos if too often and for long periods of time. Any type of strain is really bad for the heart. Learn from us Italians, a lot if calm long walks, every day. Consistency is the key, not excess.

[@alphacause]

This presentation was great, and it makes a lot of sense. If you really think about it, if very high volumes of exercise where the magic elixir for health, then professional athletes, who spend nearly 8 hours a day in some sort of training, should technically be the healthiest people in their old age, and should have the greatest longevity. Instead they seem to suffer chronic disease as much as sedentary people, if not more so.

[@philipmemm]

I’m here for good time, not a long time!! Wooohhoooo!!!

[@rogerjohnson328]

Most all endurance athletes eat a high carb diet and slam gels etc when training and racing. How much of the increased calcification of the Coronary Arteries? Also can you speculate the effect of high carb diet while doing endurance exercise on myocardial fibrosis? Thanks

[@couloirman]

Same reason why endurance athletes get diabetes at higher rates than the general population. Sugar overload

[@Jewlz4ever]

What about people like myself who have POTS and have a high heart rate just from standing upright? Is that damaging to the heart as well?

[@quakerlyster]

Jerry West who is doing ads for a blood thinner said that he and many other athletes suffer from arrhythmias.

[@syaw1001]

Great presentation

[@seahog32]

Questions I would have asked having the chance: 1. Atrial fibrillation is a common finding in endurance athletes. It is considered to be caused by increased vagotonus resulting in slow to extremely slow heart rates at the rest. Which is when palpitations occur in those cases. If his N.Orleans friend has to take antiarrhythmic drugs just so he can go for a jog, it doesn't really sound like that kind of "neurogenic" AF typical for endurance athletes. 2. Myocardial damage from extreme prolonged exercise has nothing to do with athesclerotic coronary changes. Those vascular changes should actually prevent a person from exercising at the level leading to that kind of myocardial damage. They certainly can result in heart attacks and other ischemic complications but not in cardiomyopathies. What is the explanation on the stated claim that endurance athletes' arteries are in worse shape than those of sedentary population? This does not seem to resonate with commonly accepted facts.

[@rockman4952]

IIRC, the problem wasn't arteries, it was abnormally calcified and thickened heart muscle tissue failing.

[@anomynus]

I wonder how increased carb consumption plays into this. And eating while running etc.

[@rockman4952]

Probably nothing. This is not a dietary problem, it is a physiological muscle problem. After all, the body reacts to the extreme efforts that the athlete can put on their heart and that will cause the damage to the muscles.

[@anomynus]

​@@rockman4952 There's extra stress from digestion and exercising at the same time is disruptive.

[@rockman4952]

@@anomynus Is it actual stress, or is it simple load sharing between the working muscles and the digestive tract. In all of my experience, the digestive tract either gets precedence over the skeletal muscles or shares the blood flow and oxygen. But that is not stress as I know it.

[@reslas10]

What about doing long workouts below the aerobic thresold of the heart rate zones? Zone 1 and zone 2? That is like walking uphill and running with the mouth shut when flat and downhill. Is it dangerous too?

[@joelouden6592]

Hard to say, but why do that? The purpose of exercise is to maintain muscle mass, strengthen bones, improve athletic performance parameters, and to improve bodily functions such as respiration and circulation. Long-duration, low-intensity exercise will do next to nothing to improve body composition. Time spent on full-body strengthening, flexibility, agility, speed, and coordination-building activities will improve all aspects of fitness.

[@Challenge9000]

TLDR; 'Diminishing Returns'

[@danielmccarthyy]

What about hiking 50 miles in a single day? I wonder if that is bad as well.

[@Tallmark1]

Natural bodybuilding done with good form is the best exercise for the human body.

[@desijattdj]

Mark Orman I somewhat agree

[@joelouden6592]

Absolutely.

[@AnonYmous-ez4es]

Only if you're doing 20 reps to failure. That's cardiovascular. If you do you're 8-10 rep stuff, that will just make you heavy, stiff and useless. And you must be focussed on these 6 - deadlifts, squats, pull ups, dips, shoulder press and shrugs. Not these silly Isolation exercises.

[@joelouden6592]

@@AnonYmous-ez4es NONSENSE. A proper 8 - 12 rep range weight workout including both compound and isolation exercises for 30+ minutes will cause heart rates as high as a 3-mile jog. Isolation movements help prevent the muscle imbalances that compound movements don't address.

[@blaneedwards491]

Aerobic exercise is not what the human body was designed for. We are anaerobic creatures. Life is anaerobic: climbing, carrying objects, running fast from attackers or to chase things, jumping, using manual tools, etc. To train aerobically for extended periods is to exhaust the body's vital resources. Exercise should always built the body up, not tear it down. Stop the madness.

[@zenmetaldecor]

bullshit.......we are symbiotic creatures and have the weight we need on our bodies. Exercise should be graceful and symbiotic.

[@liquidmist81]

Is their a relationship with the diet as well? Cause I can speak for myself after running a marathon it's really hard to just "eat health".... I want to eat everything in sight... Junk food and all

[@jbond5834]

definitely

[@binslick1000]

The bottom line is to train smart and listen to your body. Eat healthy, rest and recuperate.

[@shogunsan21]

Very good!!!!

[@martinirving3824]

HIIT is the way to go. If you like running, pursue a fast mile goal (a sub-6 minute mile or even 5 minute mile) Do lots of 400m and 800m training. Do just a few very low intensity long runs at 8 minute mile or less. It's much healthier.

[@This_tub]

stop working out like maniacs america

[@Khultan]

Dexter Morgan ^ Groomed.

[@martinirving3824]

@Trump supporter, "Stop working out like maniacs america." Good observation. Let's unpack it. It turns out there seems to be two types of people - those who are highly motivated and driven to accomplish things; those who are less driven and, for want of a better word are lazy. They seek to do less (including or particularly exercise). Unfortunately, the large majority of people are in the second category. It is likely you are in this category. This video is not for you.

[@ellioycoder]

Listen to 6:07 - "Under no circumstances would we have to run 26 miles at a time, not in our paleolithic ancestry". What about ancient endurance (persistence) hunting?

[@DankBudwoi]

@Dexter Morgan lol 26 miles hunting a rabbit ....ok

[@rockman4952]

Outside of jungles, early man did not have access to large amounts of carbohydrates, or any other food. So Ultra-anything wasn't feasible. Anthropologists have estimated that early man walked and average of 10 miles a day, that's equivalent to ~3 hours of walking.

[@reslas10]

Rock Man humans used FAT as energy. We were fasting all the time. Breakfast is a new word and we started doing that like the past century? Kings and church people aside.

[@reslas10]

Eliot means when we hunted an antilope or so by chasing it a lot of hours because they can sweat and they colapsed. We could still run slowly under the heat.

[@GamingTechReview]

I do 3 hours a day but I stress my body to the point where I pass out and end up in the ER.

[@BobbyBundlez]

.....

[@tomlo1432]

You still alive?

[@joelouden6592]

W H Y ?

[@michalsz2]

How about 20-30 minutes of cross fit 5 times a week?

[@bodyenergeticscom]

Keep in mind he is talking extreme excersise... the focus of the talk should be a highly competetive athlete. You can run a marathon every week if you always treat it as a long slow training run, and only do one a week. It still is plenty of recovery and you don't trash the body to start with if you keep your pace moderate. Go by your cardio vascular system... if you can talk, but can't sing, that is a good pace. If you cannot carry on a conversation you are pushing too hard. Simple as that.

[@electron7659]

bodyenergeticscom Would you say that 30 min a day, 5 days per week of high intensity interval training is too much??

[@mamajeca]

but after marathon, you got these feeling that you make it, that you've survive it! it is extreme, but thats what all extreme person chasing...that feeling that they are alive...of course its a battle, and sometimes you die..but we all die eventually.. :)) dont be confused- i am totally for this video and message. all i want to say,that people do whatever they want...someone is going to kill himself with cigarettes,somebody with sweets, food, somebody with medicines for pain killers,drugs...

[@voycodin5042]

You don't die sometimes. You only die once, metaphysics aside.

[@colonyofcells]

Getting vitamins and minerals, vitamin a to zinc, from unprocessed food might help in recovery after exercise. I have to agree too much of anything is bad whether this be exercise, carb, fat, protein, animal food vitamin a, copper, aluminum, iron, etc.

[@reslas10]

colonyofcells iamamachine2 carrots? Brocoli?

[@keywestfan2503]

Less is more. The goal is to maximize cardiovascular EFFICIENCY, not gunning it and maxing out heart rate. Cardiac muscle IS NOT skeletal muscle. It is not designed to be continuously damaged. Focus should be on moderate aerobic exercise, like walking, to burn fat and be lean. The goal is NOT to try and strengthen the heart, but to lessen the demand on it. This is accomplished by being a leaner and lighter organism. I.e., EFFICIENCY. Brisk walking is where it’s at.

[@snakey973]

I run 50 to 60 miles a week and I'm starting to worry

[@Woman_in_the_Wilderness]

So run less and worry less.

[@321lkjackson]

you have to cut back......you cant doubt science.

[@benw4401]

What about Goggins?

[@Niquecoryell]

Is it bad for me to run up hills or stairs a few times a week?

[@richardkendall6746]

My mother always lived in a two story house and I never saw her walk up, always ran. Died at 105. Press on!

[@Crabfizzle]

So basically, CrossFit WODs are ideal for those who will listen to their bodies. Sounds good :)

[@zoltan3554]

Zerglings run marathons all they want wih 16x speed and they wont get tired.

[@mamajeca]

someone will exercise till death

[@ab-br5os]

Have some EPO on top of that :)

[@alfiecollins5617]

I don't want to believe this, but I'll have to look into the studies further. To be honest, I think I'd rather die early from overexercising, than live more years failing to become the best runner I can be.

[@zoltan3554]

i has also other reasons. for one, what kinda exersice it is? pfffrtfppfpfpff. u got to run for hours or what to do this exersise? i mean around 8 km/h no more, so u got to run almost 3 hours. the muscles does not train much, while this speed u wont use at all in any case. like fucking moving like a cripple. how usefull is it to be able to move like a cripple. for soem hours.

[@tenkaypm]

0:18 from Project Veritas

[@methylmercurypoisoning]

Don't use stimulants during marathon

[@bouldertri]

no, you're fine

[@methylmercurypoisoning]

I love running. 50k a day minimum.

[@FranciscoRavachol]

I train 2000miles/year and run about 6 marathons (both trail and street) per year and I hope I'll die happy. I have to die one day, it would be an honour to die crossing a finish line. Stay happy with your healthy sofas ...

[@zenmetaldecor]

youre an idiot

[@vanessaruiz4705]

you will not think like that when you are on a hospital bed with a cardiac arrest. You think like that now because you havent still faced consequences, and you may not face any for a while. And yeah people staying in healthy sofas, if stress free and eating well, will likely live very long. Most centenarians lived like that.

[@joemclean769]

At 48 plus,was training for ultra 90k marathon, ran average 140-160k weekly for 12 months.Now forty years down the line, still cycling,running,and power lifting training. Get out there, !,don't allow what maybe voodoo science stop you

[@iShredStreets]

Just wondering but how are you doing nowadays?

[@zenmetaldecor]

idiot

[@olwill1]

So you were 88 years old when you wrote that? 48 + 40 = 88.

[@crispysgirl]

No