I’ve been listening to Huberman Lab since day one, when it was just Huberman and Costello speaking about sleep, light exposure, and ultradian cycles. Ever since, the podcast has included the likes of Andy Galpin, Lex Fridman, and Robert Sapolsky - some of the best educators in science.

I’ve taken extensive handwritten notes on some of the episodes in my worn-down pocket notebook. In this post, I will consolidate the tools and protocols I’ve gathered from the five episodes on optimizing the body for strength and skill acquisition with additional references for your enrichment. Hope you find value in this!

Supercharge Exercise Performance & Recovery with Cooling

  • Temperature is the single most important factor in physical performance
    • Influences sleep and depth of recovery
  • Cold leads to vasoconstriction which insulates the core. Heating up leads to vasodilation, allowing free blood flow.
  • Heat prevents enzyme function which limits muscle contractions
    • Range of temperature for ATP functioning is narrow
  • Face, palms, and the bottom of one’s feet are the most effective at releasing and absorbing heat in the body
  • Palmer cooling has been shown to increase pull ups, dips, and bench press reps
  • Body heat is physiologically linked to endurance and willpower
    • Muscles overheating will lead to either failure or death
  • Cardiac Drift: Heat increases heart rate that can lead to failure even at an otherwise comfortable rate of physical output
  • 10-30 seconds of cooling before a set using cool water (devices or a bottle of cold water)
  • Cold showers and cold immersion lead to vasoconstriction that prevent the body from releasing heat
  • Pre-workouts and caffeine increase core temperature
    • Anything consumed that increases body temperature impedes recovery

Learning Skills Faster

  • Side cramps when running can be alleviated using physiological sighs
  • Open-loop activities: Provide feedback after execution (free-throws)
  • Closed-loop activities: Continuous feedback (running)
  • 3 components to skill acquisition: sensory input, actuation, and proprioception (knowing where limbs are in space)
  • Physiological bases for skill learning
    • Central Pattern Generators (CPGs) control rhythmic movements and learned behaviors
    • Upper Motor Neurons influence deliberate action; engaged during learning
    • Lower Motor Neurons control firing of muscle fibers
  • What should I focus my attention on (auditory, visual, proprioception)? Open loop or closed loop?
  • 10 000 hours rule doesn’t hold up to scientific literature; it’s about repetitions not time
  • Perform as many repetitions as possible in a unit time even if there are errors
  • Errors are a cue for correction and neural plasticity
    • Activation of frontal cortex networks that anchor attention
    • Correct patterns will be rewarded and consolidated with the release of dopamine
  • Non Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) after a skill learning session
    • Brain replays correctly performed motor sequences backwards
    • Replayed forwards during sleep
  • After some degree of skill is built up, cue attention deliberately on specific components of the movement
    • Shift plasticity and rewards to the execution of the motor movement
    • Alternate attention from session-to-session
  • Ultra-slow movements are more effective after some degree of proficiency is acquired (proprioceptive feedback is built up)
  • Use a metronome to set cadence of repetitions. Increase the pace beyond your abilities as you become more skilled to force errors.
  • Learning of motor sequences that involve timing occur in the cerebellum
  • Flexibility has to do with neural innervation of muscles and not their physical elongation
  • Range of motion is purely cerebellar, and can be increased by extending field of view (move eyes from side to side when stretching)
  • Mental rehearsal (visualization) activate upper motor neurons but not a complete replacement for physical practice (proprioceptive feedback is crucial)
  • Alpha-GPC can enhance power output by 14%. Up to 1200 mg to offset cognitive decline. Fat oxidation and growth hormone release.

Losing Fat With Science-Based Tools

  • Calories consumed vs burned is the fundamental equation to fat management
  • Basis for fat loss
    • >1000 mg of EPA/day to support metabolism and get antidepressant effects of fatty acids
    • Glutamine can help reduce sugar cravings
    • Fermented foods such as sauerkraut support gut microbiome
  • Attitude towards a set of activities impacts physiology
  • Fat Mobilization: Moving fatty acids to bloodstream to cells that need energy
  • Fat Oxidation: Using fatty acids for energy in the mitochondria of cells
  • Activation of nervous system through deliberate movements is a powerful lever to fat mobilization
  • Non-Exercise Activity Induced Thermogenesis (Shivering/fidgeting) stimulate release of epinephrine into fat which increases mobilization and oxidation
  • Brown fat is dense in mitochondria and is thermogenic, using energy directly
  • Cold exposure triggers activation of brown fat and converts beige fat to brown fat
    • Embrace the shiver to trigger release of succinate
    • Get into the cold, get out without drying, wait 1-3 min, then get back in. Repeat for 3 reps.
    • Avoid adaptation to the cold
  • Engage in novel types of movement to innervate stubborn fat pads
  • Insulin inhibits fat oxidation
    • For Zone 2 training, more fat is burned after 90 min when fasted
    • 20-60 min of high intensity training, then move on to zone 2 cardio
    • Deplete glycogen first in order to shift over to fat for energy
  • Anaerobic exercises deplete glycogen stores faster but moderate/low intensity training burns fat during the exercise and glycogen afterwards
  • If you’re caffeine adapted, up to 400 mg 30-40 min before training increases fat oxidation by releasing more epinephrine
  • Mate and Guayusa increases GLP-1 which increases fat oxidation when consumed prior to exercise or at rest
  • L-carnitine (500 mg) facilitate fat oxidation, reduce ammonia in blood, reduce cholesterol

Science of Muscle Growth, Increasing Strength & Muscular Recovery

  • Muscles are more metabolically demanding than all other tissues

  • Lactate suppresses acidity in muscles under exertion; it reduces the burn

    • Hormonal signal that travels to heart, liver, and brain that provides additional fuel for work and enhances function of neurons
    • Focus on breathing when feeling the burn to shuttle oxygen and lactate
    • Take 10% of workout to that burn

  • Henneman Size Principle: Recruitment of the minimum amount of nerves (motor units) to execute a movement.

  • Weights 30-80% of max is the most beneficial to improve nerve-muscle connection, hypertrophy, and strength

    • Lower end of range for hypertrophy and higher for strength
    • Perform 10% of sets failure, or near-failure

  • Stress, tension, and damage are the main stimuli for muscle change

    • Hypertrophy is about isolating specific nerve to muscle pathways
    • Strength is systemic activation of muscles
    • Presence of a strong upper motor neuron connection to a muscle (being able to contract it in isolation) indicates potential for growth

  • 5 sets/week/muscle group to maintain muscle

  • 5-15 sets/week/muscle group for hypertrophy and strength gains for 45-60 min/session in full range of motion

    • 0.5-8 seconds/rep and 2-6 minutes of rest/set

    • After 60 min, testosterone drops, and cortisol and inflammation pathways can inhibit gains

    • Muscles that are easier to recruit require fewer sets and vice versa

  • Moving weights fast are ideal for becoming more explosiveness and faster

  • Slowing down weights for strength/hypertrophy in order to recruit high threshold motor units

  • In-between set contractions don’t help with performance in the set but improve nerve-muscle contractions and hypertrophy

  • Isolation before compound movements target muscles better but at the detriment of performance and form

  • Assess your grip strength first thing in the morning to gauge level of recovery

  • Carbon Dioxide Tolerance Test first thing in the morning

    • Capacity to engage the parasympathetic nervous system
    • Deep nasal inhales and mouth exhales 4 times
    • Take a fifth deep inhale then exhale slowly through the mouth and time it
    • <25 seconds indicates lack of recovery
    • 30-60 seconds - can work out again
    • 65-120 seconds - nervous system recovered

  • Whole body cooling within 4 hours of workout interferes with mTor and inflammation pathways

  • >1000 mg EPA/day to keep inflammation low; Vitamin D and magnesium malate

  • Fast-twitch muscle fibers are for strength, while slow-twitch optimize for endurance

  • Salt, potassium, and magnesium are crucial for nerve-muscle connections

  • Creatine is a fuel source for high-intensity activity and neurons in the brain; can increase power output by 2-20%; increases water retention in muscle; can increase dihydrotestosterone

  • Beta-Alanine supports long duration exercises

  • 700-3000 mg leucine from whole foods

  • After exercise that lasts 30-60 min, there is a drop in oxygenation in the brain, leading to brief cognitive impairment

Building Endurance in Your Brain and Body

  • Ability to engage in endurance training has a carryover in cognitive performance of long duration (focus, learning etc)

    • Effective energy utilization in musculature, vascular system, and respiratory system is crucial for longevity

  • Phosphocreatine is the body’s fuel for short bouts of effort

  • Blood glucose, oxygen, adipose tissue, muscle glycogen, and ketones are other sources of ATP for cells

  • Ability to persevere and endure is mediated by the nervous system; quitting occurs due to a lack of epinephrine

  • Nerves, muscle, blood, heart, and lungs are the levers for effort - which of these is limiting our performance?

  • Muscular Endurance

    • 3-5 sets of 12-100 reps, 30-180 sec rest between sets 2-3 times per week

    • Improves mitochondrial respiration

    • Bodyweight exercises, isometrics, but shouldn’t have a substantial eccentric component

  • Long-Duration Endurance

    • 1 set of >12 min at <100% VO2 max
    • Builds mitochondrial and capillary density, efficiency of movement, and heart stroke volume
    • Compromises hypertrophy when done >2 times/week for >30 min

  • Anaerobic Endurance

    • 3-12 sets with 3:1 or 1:5 work to rest ratio (30 sec on 10 sec rest or 20 sec on 60 sec rest)
    • 2 times/week and add 2 sets each week
    • Increases cardiovascular output mitochondrial respiration, ensuring that >100% VO2 max is achieved

  • Aerobic Endurance

    • 3-12 sets at 3:1, 1:3, or 1:1 work to rest ratio
    • Mile repeats with rest or walking
    • Eccentric loading of heart wall greatly increases heart stroke volume
    • Greater density of capillary beds leads to improved cognitive function

  • Allow 4-6 or 24 hours between workouts; 1-2 full rest days/week

  • Train to nasal breathe (filters air of bacteria, more efficient)

  • Breath by expanding the intercostals at the onset of endurance training; helps generate adrenaline and delivers more oxygen to system

  • When hitting a wall, move faster to force body to shift to a different fuel source

  • 1-5 lbs of water lost/hr of exercise; cognitive and physical function reduces by 20-30% when 1-4% of body weight is lost in water

  • Galpin equation - body weight in lbs / 30 = ounces of fluid to drink every 15 min

  • Cold showers after endurance training may improve mitochondrial density and respiration

  • Parasympathetic downregulation - slow pure nasal long exhale breathing after endurance work to accelerate recovery

  • While running or cycling, contract vision on a milestone, then dilate the field of view

    • Constantly focusing vision on one point can lead to fatigue and reduces effort

  • Caffeine can stimulate endurance and power output but may inhibit creatine function

  • Magnesium Malate can reduce delayed onset muscle soreness