3 zone vs 5 zone training: heart rate, power and pace
3-zone vs 5-zone training models, heart rate vs power vs pace zones, and why cardiac drift makes your heart rate climb on easy runs at the same pace.
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Cold plunges: recovery help or gains killer?
Cold plunges ease muscle soreness but regular use after lifting can blunt strength and muscle gains. What the research says and when an ice bath makes sense.
Do supplements raise VO2max? Caffeine, beetroot and iron
Caffeine and beetroot juice can boost endurance, but they don't raise VO2max. What the evidence shows, doses, and why iron needs a blood test first.
Gut health and exercise: how workouts change gut bacteria
Regular exercise can shift gut bacteria and their products, while very long or hot sessions stress the gut. What the gut health and exercise research shows.
Gut microbiome and athletic performance: what we know
Do athletes have different gut bacteria, and does it boost performance? What gut microbiome athlete studies show, what probiotics can do, and what is hype.
Gut microbiome and VO2max: does fitness shape your gut?
Fitter people tend to have a more diverse gut microbiome. What gut microbiome and VO2max research shows, from Veillonella to exercise trials, and its limits.
Heat training and VO2max: does training in the heat make you fitter?
Heat acclimation expands plasma volume and improves performance in the heat. What studies show for VO2max, practical protocols and hot-city safety.
How does training increase VO2max? Heart, blood, capillaries
How training raises VO2max through stroke volume, plasma and red cell volume, capillaries and mitochondria, and how fast each adaptation happens.
Mitochondria and VO2max: how to increase mitochondria
How training builds mitochondria, what PGC-1α does, why volume and intensity matter differently, and why more mitochondria barely move VO2max itself.
Runner's stomach: causes, gut training and electrolytes
Why runner's stomach happens, from reduced gut blood flow to dehydration and heat, and how gut training, smart fuelling, fluids and low-FODMAP diets can help.
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Sauna and heart health: what the Finnish studies show
Finnish cohort studies link frequent sauna use to lower cardiac and all-cause mortality. What the data show, why it is not proof, and how to sauna safely.
Testosterone and VO2max: low T in endurance athletes
Testosterone raises haemoglobin, but heavy endurance training and under-eating can lower it. What the research shows, and why boosters are not the answer.
VO2max in women: menstrual cycle, pregnancy and menopause
Why women's VO2max is lower on average, whether your cycle changes fitness, how to train through pregnancy, and how to protect VO2max after menopause.
VO2max vs lactate threshold, FTP, HRV and max heart rate
VO2max vs lactate threshold, FTP, VO2peak, HRV, max heart rate, anaerobic capacity and SpO2: what each measures, how to test it and how to train it.
Altitude training and VO2max: what the science says
Why VO2max drops at altitude, how the body adapts, what "live high, train low" showed, and whether altitude or heat training is worth it for amateurs.
What limits VO2max? Heart, lungs, blood or muscles
From air to mitochondria: which step limits your VO2max, what the Dallas bed-rest study showed, and why VO2max isn't the whole performance story.