Gaining Endurance

Improved endurance is always a factor for athletes. But, what’s the best way to go about it? This article scratches the surface.

It’s been well-documented that cardiovascular exercises and proper nutrition are key.

To increase your cardiovascular endurance, engage in activities such as running, cycling, swimming, etc. that get your heart rate up and challenge your lungs.

You should replicate the demands of your sport. For instance, a soccer player should engage in intense interval training since the sport is a lot of “go and stop.” CrossFitters should practice metcons in addition to using traditional endurance methods, varying short intense workouts with longer endurance pieces (the whole “ready for anything” approach).

If you are just starting out on your endurance journey, start with shorter sessions and gradually increase the duration and intensity over time.

Additionally, make sure to fuel your body with a diet that includes carbohydrates, protein, and healthy fats to help sustain your energy levels. Diets like paleo and keto tend to be on the low-carb side, but research shows that carbs are essential for performance. If you are an ultra-runner or competitive athlete whose sport requires hours of training or multiple sessions per day, intra-workout nutrition is necessary.

Be consistent with your workouts, stay hydrated, and get enough rest and recovery time in between sessions to allow your muscles to repair and grow stronger.

Are you a CrossFitter who needs some guidance? We’ve written a Chaotic Capacity template that allows athletes to improve their power and endurance. A huge consideration in this template is not only the concept of pacing and replication o the demands of CrossFit, but also learning to recover through movement. We also post free, weekly Chaotic Capacity workouts in our private Facebook group, Cerus VIP. 

Additionally, we formulated Flow specifically to impact lung function and heart health. Ingredients are:

• Beetroot: has been shown to increase levels of nitric oxide in the body, which increases vasodilation, blood flow, lung function and strengthens muscle contraction. The more efficient the body is with moving blood throughout the body, the faster it can remove waste.
• Ashwagandha: research shows it improves stamina/endurance, delays fatigue/exhaustion and allows for faster recovery.
• Arjuna: known as a cardio tree bark,studies show increases in VO2 (paired with Ashwagandha), a reduction in RPE, increased time to exhaustion and a strong anti-hypertensive property.
• Rhodiola: like Ashwagandha, has been studied for its reducing properties. Keeping the body’s stress levels as low as possible while working out is a huge factor when increasing performance.
• Cayenne: not only known for its great metabolism and circulation benefits, but also for helping with reducing oxidative stress.

A note on all supplements: if your training, nutrition, hydration and recovery are not appropriate, there is no magic pill, power or tincture. If they are all dialed in, supplementation can give you an edge!