HR1 Health and Wellness: Reagan Kerstein, Oxygen Vo2 Max 8-6-25 by John Rush
SPEAKER 12 :
This is Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 11 :
You are going to shut your damn yapper and listen for a change because I got you pegged, sweetheart. You want to take the easy way out because you’re scared. And you’re scared because if you try and fail, there’s only you to blame. Let me break this down for you. Life is scary. Get used to it. There are no magical fixes.
SPEAKER 12 :
With your host, John Rush.
SPEAKER 15 :
My advice to you is to do what your parents did!
SPEAKER 17 :
Get a job, Turk! You haven’t made everybody equal. You’ve made them the same, and there’s a big difference!
SPEAKER 19 :
Let me tell you why you’re here. You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t explain, but you feel it. You’ve felt it your entire life, that there’s something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there. It is this feeling that has brought you to me.
SPEAKER 07 :
Are you crazy? Am I? Or am I so sane that you just blew your mind?
SPEAKER 06 :
It’s Rush to Reason with your host, John Rush. Presented by Cub Creek Heating and Air Conditioning.
SPEAKER 07 :
I am Hans. And I am Franz. And we just want to pop your ass.
SPEAKER 12 :
Welcome to Health and Wellness Wednesdays on Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 10 :
Fat, drunk, and stupid is no way to go through life, sir.
SPEAKER 12 :
I have what doctors call a little bit of a weight problem. I used to grab bear claws as a kid, two at a time, and I’d get them lodged right in this region here.
SPEAKER 13 :
Exorcist gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands.
SPEAKER 15 :
Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place, and I don’t care how tough you are, it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. But it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.
SPEAKER 07 :
I’m sorry that I’m fat. Welcome, listeners. You’re listening to Dr. Scott Faulkner filling in for John Rush on this Health and Wellness Wednesdays. And John and I are hoping to make this a monthly segment where you get three hours of listening to me. And I think you’re going to enjoy it. I’ve had a lot of feedback at the office, people asking questions. Well, you didn’t go into this. You didn’t go into that. So by having a larger format for three hours, we can get a lot of those questions answered. If you do want to call in, it’s 303-477-5600. Again, 303-477-5600. I have a special guest in studio with me today. Regan Kirstein is one of our employees. And you guys have heard one of my previous employees at Vita said, She’s now in her first year of medical school, first week, doing great. So hopefully when she’s done and is an official doctor, she’s not one of those dock-in-the-boxes that you hear me talking about. She loves the regenerative space, longevity. Regenerative Medicine, and we’re doing a couple of research projects together, and Reagan is helping us as well. He’s about to leave next week for Florida State University. But I wanted to give you guys this young man’s CV. Yeah, not a resume, a CV. So he graduated the top of his class at Rock Canyon High School two years ago now? One year ago. One year ago. Okay. As a student athlete, he was a tight end for the football team.
SPEAKER 01 :
Yep. He also ran track.
SPEAKER 07 :
He is currently in biotechnology or has experience in biotechnology research, RNA gene expression. Okay. Fitness and sports performance coach, working with college and professional. By the way, he’s 19 years old, folks. So fitness and sports performance coach working with college and professional athletes, and he’s certified. So who are some of the professional athletes that you’ve been working with?
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, we’ve been working with teams, so it really depends. Various NFL teams will have some Bronco guys, just not to name their names here.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, fair enough.
SPEAKER 04 :
But certainly CU Boulder athletes as well, CSU athletes, a whole bunch of great guys.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah. You are the medical receptionist and biohacking technician at my office at Castle Rock Regenerative Health Care. If you want to talk to Reagan, you’ve only got a few days before he heads back to Florida. So you can give us a call there at 303-663-6990. He graduated with a 4.0 GPA, the highest honor. You’re at Florida State University, honors college. You’re in the STEM entrepreneurship tract. Yes. Oh, my gosh. And this is page one, folks. I’m going on to page two. I just want you to understand who this young man is who’s about to talk to you. You’re in the leadership position in Group for AI Navigation. You’ve got me hooked up today on ChatGPT Pro. Oh, my gosh. Full tuition scholarship because he’s that bright. Seminole Club of the Rockies Scholarship for Best Incoming Student from Colorado. Rock Canyon Theater Scholarship. Okay, one more. All-state academics, track and field, and junior athlete of the year? Jack of the year. Jack of the year in 2024. So he comes with a lot of credentials at 19 years of age. Oh, my gosh. I didn’t do half of that stuff. But the reason why I asked Regan to be in studio with us today is many of you have been asking, okay – I want what you have. I want to learn how to get my body in the best shape because we’ve talked about this before. We’re going to hit on it again. We can actually reverse biologic aging. Is that correct, Reagan?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes, that’s exciting stuff. And just real quickly, I wanted to thank you for the warm introduction and having me on this podcast or podcast. Radio show, I’m very excited to get into today’s topics.
SPEAKER 07 :
Well, trust me, it’s my pleasure. And your parents are great, so shout out to your parents. You guys have done a fantastic job raising your son. So, but back to our original premise, because you’ve seen this, you’ve got a fire in your belly now for this regenerative space. You’ve seen how people can go to, we were just talking about this on the ride over, a regular doc in the box, as I call them, right? And they will tell you, okay, well, let’s address your thyroid, if they even do. Because doc, I’m feeling tired. All right, here’s a pill for you. Oh, look at your cholesterol is high. Not, do you have disease or not? Here’s the pill for that. Oh, my back hurts. Okay, here’s the pill for that. That’s Western medicine, what I call allopathic medicine, what I was trained in, classic internal medicine. You also have the osteopathic medicine. But aside from some manipulation, and they do take a few nutrition courses, really osteopathic docs are very, very similar to allopathic doctors. Here’s a pill for your problem. It’s called managing disease. But it’s not how do we make people healthy and what does that journey look like? Because there’s so many different components. So what I want to do is start addressing the people where they’re at. They don’t know first, even the first step. I feel crappy. I’m overweight. I feel sluggish. I drag myself out of bed in the morning. I go to work. I drag myself home. Now I’ve got to feed these kids who are screaming and there’s no time for me. I’ve got all these emails. I got projects for work. I’m just going to go to bed so I can do it again tomorrow. So that’s the typical American lifestyle. We are in the business of upending that and getting you to live a transformed life where you’re actually fit. You look forward to getting out of bed. You do work out. You eat better. And we start to undo the damage that has been done to the human body over, you know, if you’re 40 years old, 40 years. If you’re 50, 50. If you’re, in my case, 59. For many, many years. Okay? So… I want to take folks where they’re at right now and start talking about some of these modalities that we do. And I want to Give them a better understanding of what they mean and how can we help somebody? Because if you’re 40 pounds, 50, 60 pounds overweight and you’re in that lifestyle, you’re driving home right now on Parker Road, right? You’re in that pileup like we were in coming over here, stressing out, trying to get here on time. What can somebody do in that poor shape that they’re in to start to reverse the hands of time? So the first thing I want to talk about is in the world of exercise, yes, folks, exercise, because I feel your pain. I’ll tell my story a little bit later. But I want to talk about something called VO2 Max and why is it so important and why don’t regular doc in the box even know, one, what VO2 Max is, and two, what it does for longevity. So Reagan, what is VO2max?
SPEAKER 04 :
VO2 max is the maximum oxygen your body can uptake during exercise. I like to think of it like, think of your lungs like your body’s engine. And VO2 max is a rating of how well that engine is doing. Essentially, a higher number is better. VO2 max is incredibly important because in everything we do, we’re converting oxygen into energy. And the better our bodies are at converting that oxygen to energy, the better we’re going to function in everyday life.
SPEAKER 07 :
That’s exactly right. So For our, let’s just say man or woman, let’s say they’re 45 years old, they’re in their car, they’re driving home right now. Why does that matter to that person on this day in time, right now?
SPEAKER 04 :
VO2 max is the strongest predictor of lifespan we have. So us biohackers like to use the term biomarkers or health markers.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay, we got to stop. We got to back up. So Charlie always tells us if we use a term, we have to define the term. Yes. So a lot of people, I mentioned this last time I was on, what is a biohacker? What is biohacking? But a lot of people are not familiar with that. It’s like when we say, In my day, we called them lab tests. Now you kids call them biomarkers. So we have to help people who are my age understand that a lab test is actually biomarkers. So what is the… I just lost my train of thought.
SPEAKER 04 :
No worries. So VO2 max being one of the strongest biomarkers, one of the strongest lab results we can get essentially.
SPEAKER 07 :
Biohackers. Yeah. You needed to find a biohacker.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thank you folks. So a biohacker, um, is someone who is actively trying to extend their lifespan is take the information we can get about our bodies, our health and create tailored plans to try to extend both our lifespan and our health span. So our lifespan being how long we live and our health span being how healthy we are throughout those years.
SPEAKER 07 :
So if I’m that 45, 50-year-old person driving home right now and I have an Apple Watch and it’s telling me my heart rate or I don’t have an Apple Watch, what else does it tell you?
SPEAKER 04 :
It’ll tell you heart rate, heart rate variability. It gives you an estimate on how many calories you will burn, how many minutes a day you’re working out. It gives you a lot. And one of the things it does give you is that VO2 max, just an estimate.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay. So if you have an Apple Watch on, you’re a biohacker. You’re a biohacker. Exactly. So everybody out there, you’re a baby biohacker whether you knew it or not. The question is what are you doing with that technology? So let’s take a break and let’s continue talking about VO2 Max and why it is so important, why the audience must understand this for their longevity and their well-being. So let’s take a quick break. We’ll be right back. You’re listening to Dr. Scott Faulkner filling in for John Rush, 560 KLZ.
SPEAKER 05 :
Don’t assume a bigger price tag means better windows. At Veteran Windows and Doors, you’ll get top quality products without the inflated costs of those big corporate window companies. Why? Because those national brands are paying high commissions to pushy salespeople who are trained to upsell and meet quotas. Veteran Windows and Doors is a locally owned Denver company with low overhead and no middlemen. Owner Dave Bancroft has streamlined everything from sales to installation using only their own trusted installers. That means you get high-quality windows and expert service at a fair, honest price. And with Veterans Fair Pricing Policy, the more you buy, the more you save. Buy one to three windows and get 35% off. Buy four to seven windows and get 40% off. And buy eight or more and take 45% off. Work with the team that values quality, integrity, and service. Visit klzradio.com and connect with veteran windows and doors today.
SPEAKER 02 :
David Gonzalez here, owner of Mile High Coin. I understand how intimidating it can be to value or liquidate a collection, especially if it was inherited. Maybe you’re just downsizing and trying to clear out some space. I’ve been in the precious metals industry for over 36 years, and in that time I’ve worked with just about every kind of person and situation you can imagine. At Mile High Coin, our goal is to educate and guide you so you walk away feeling confident and satisfied with the outcome. We help you understand the real value of what you own. We make the whole process simple and stress-free. Whether it’s jewelry, coins, high-end watches, we’re your local accredited resource for accurate evaluations and honest appraisals. For KLZ listeners, we offer a no-charge, no-obligation appraisal. Just go to milehighcoin.com. or call 720-370-3400 to schedule an appointment. That’s 720-370-3400. I look forward to serving you. Listen online, klzradio.com. Back to Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 07 :
Welcome back, listeners. Dr. Scott Faulkner filling in for John Rush on this Health and Wellness Wednesday. Beautiful day in Denver, Colorado with my guest, Reagan Kirstein, my wonder student, employee, business guy that I bounce ideas off of. So I gave your bio in the first part. I can’t go through that again. People, if you want Reagan’s bio, go back and listen to it. But during the break, we were talking, and I – made the mistake. I did not fully define what is biologic age because everybody knows their chronologic age, right? I’m 59, you’re 19. But what is the biologic age and what’s the importance of that?
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. So biological age is a better representation of our actual age. So think about getting a lab test done. And if your markers are all showing they’re in the realm for someone who’s 70, but you’re 50, your biological age is much higher than your chronological age. And we’re trying as biohackers to take those lab results and make it so our biological age, how old our body feels, how old our body moves, is younger than our chronological age.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah. And the classic guy is Brian Johnson, right? Most of us have seen the Netflix special, Don’t Die. He’s a bit of an odd duck. I will give you that. But I’ll tell you, as a guy in this space, what he’s doing to advance medicine and the things that we’re bringing to the table to help the average person actually feel better, look better, and reverse aging so that – because that’s the trick is – People don’t mind living longer so long as you’re doing it well. If your mind is sharp, if your body is sharp, like, yeah, I’ll live to 90, 100 so long as I’m sharp and I feel good. But if I’m drooling on myself, my mind is gone. Yeah, I don’t want any part of that. So the whole purpose of now functional medicine, integrative medicine, regenerative medicine, what we do is to get you to live your best life, your healthiest life for the longest period of time before a bus runs you
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes. I like to say not just adding years to your life, but life to your years.
SPEAKER 07 :
There you go. Okay. So back to the question that we had posed to you earlier, we, there’s only me here, Charlie behind the glass. Why is VO2 max critical for longevity?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes. So one of the most important longitudinal studies done investigating lifespan was the Cooper Center longitudinal study, which had over 70,000 participants. And they found that VO2 max is more strongly associated with lower all-cause mortality, so you’re less likely to die, than factors like blood pressure, cholesterol, BMI, and even smoking. So it’s one of the most important metrics we have to live longer.
SPEAKER 07 :
And yet if you go to your typical doc in the box, all he cares about is your cholesterol. And if your blood pressure is up a little bit, one, he’ll let it ride pretty high. And two, then he’ll say, well, here’s a pill. But it’s not addressing the underlying issues, is it? No, it is not.
SPEAKER 04 :
And that’s why – Trying to improve and keep our VMX high as we age is so important. For every decade we age after the age 30, our VO2 max declines 10%. But if we’re regularly training, we can half that decline, so only 5% a year. And when you’re first starting off, you can even reverse that age, increasing your VO2 max to an age younger than you are.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, and I’m living proof of that, right? Because now I have my Oura ring. You had me run around the parking lot of Target doing my VO2 max, and you were making fun of me. I was like, well, wait a second. I’m 59. You’re 19. Of course my VO2 max is not supposed to be quite as good. But I know Peter Attia, Dr. Peter Attia, is big in this space. He shows a graph where highly trained athletes – start off with a massive VO2 max and just through life itself. And these are the top 1% that it still declines with age. But if you keep it as high as you can, then you die by getting run over by the bus and not with the drooling on yourself and the memory loss and the broken hip and all the stuff that comes with it. So it is vitally important that we need to start paying attention to VO2 max. Okay. So now that we’ve talked about the importance of VO2 max, Let’s talk about the best strategies to improve it. Yes.
SPEAKER 04 :
So there’s two strategies I want to go over today to improve our VO2 max. We have traditional zone two training, which we’ll get into a little bit later. That’s your class.
SPEAKER 07 :
Cause we’re going to have to define that for people.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, so just quickly, VO2 max is going to, excuse me, zone two training is going to be a kind of jogging pace. You can hold a conversation, but you may have to take a couple breaths between sentences. It’s kind of boring. And that’s when your doctor would say, go jog on a treadmill for 30, 45 minutes. It’s boring, but ultimately it does increase your VO2 max. It gets the job done. The more exciting kid on the block is re-hit. So reduced exertion, high intensity interval training. And I’ll break that down. So many of you have probably heard of high-intensity interval training, or HIIT. Re-HIT takes everything that was great about HIIT and shortens it. So a typical high-intensity interval training workout would be one minute of intensive workout, one minute off. So a minute of push-ups, a minute rest. A minute of jumping jacks, a minute rest. A minute of burpees, a minute rest. It’s tiring, but it works. Re-HIT takes that same principle and scales it back, but keeps all the results. So a re-hit workout has two 20 to 30 second all out sprints in a 10 minute period. So I’ll give you an example. Say you’re running on a track. You’re going to want to spend the first two or three minutes just finding a nice, easy pace. You can still talk comfortably. You’re not really trying to get your heart rate. hot too high then for the next 20 or 30 seconds i want you to sprint all out as fast as you can 100 effort by the end of those 20 30 seconds you’ll be feeling it you’ll be huffing and puffing and so you’ll need to take another couple minutes to cool back down get to a place where you can breathe comfortably again and then i want you to hit it again 20 or 30 seconds all out And then after that, it’s a little cool down and then you’re done. And that alone can be just as effective or even more effective than 45, 60 minutes of zone two training.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah. Yeah. I am a living example of that. So I ended up when I was in the Philippines at my clinic, I had struck up a conversation, actually fell, it came up to me in the buffet line and struck up a conversation. He says, Hey, uh, you’re in this space. Have you heard of a Carol bike? I’m like, Carol who? He’s like, not Carol who, it’s a bike that gives you re-hit. And I’m like, no, I’ve never heard of this. I’ve heard of Peloton. Most people have. He’s like, you need to look at the Carol bike. So I started researching it. Because I am that person that absolutely hates to run on a treadmill. I don’t care much for an elliptical, you know, because my wife has all that down in the basement and is collecting dust. Because I just look at it and go, I don’t have 45 minutes to an hour to get on a piece of equipment and sweat my backside off. And then the next part is the technology hadn’t quite caught up yet where the Peter Attias, they’re actually doing blood tests while they’re exercising to see what their lactic acid level is. I’m like, you’re not going to sign me up for that. No way. So when I looked at this Carol bike, Folks, I don’t have any stock in Carol. I don’t own in it. My brother-in-law doesn’t own the company. It’s just a really cool thing because I remember I do these things to my body because, yes, I’m a baby biohacker, and I pass what I found works onto you. So what happens is Reagan is correct. I get on the bike and you pedal easy. It’s like if you’re on a sand cruiser like on Huntington Beach in California on the sidewalk. It’s that easy. Enjoying the sunset. Enjoying the sunshine. The waves are crashing. And then at the end of the two-minute mark, it gives you a countdown. And then when it hits zero – This bike uses artificial intelligence, and that’s what separates it currently from the Peloton or your treadmill or your elliptical or whatever. Because you have a chest belt on measuring your heart rate, and it knows how many watts of power you’re generating. based on you because if you’re not in shape you can’t bike as hard as somebody like yourself okay but with that ai technology it knows instantly where you’re at where your heart rate is it sets the flywheel and it’s an like you said an all-out sprint for 20 seconds and you go as hard and fast as you can and then the flywheel lets off and you’re like oh 20 seconds, I can do this. And then you take three minutes, you at an easy pace again, and then you get another countdown, another 20 seconds, and then two minutes into cool down and you’re done. Yep, 10 minutes. Really 40 seconds if you think about it. And I’m like, I can give you 40 seconds to work out. I can’t give you 45 minutes to an hour. Now, I do admit that I do on my off days because I got addicted to the thing. I loved it so much. And it’s a game because they give you the computer screen, and then you’re trying to compete against people around the world. It’s like, oh, I’ve got to break the top leaderboard. I’ve got to get up to the top 100. Some of those guys at the top, they’re cheaters. They’re like professional bicyclists. But – It’s really cool. And then you can watch your progress day after day. You can feel yourself getting better. The workouts actually get a little easier because now your body is recovering faster. And when you see those results and then you go to Pikes Peak and you’re going to go to the Cog Railway or you want to go to the Manitou Incline, you’re like – Wow, this thing would have killed me before, and now this is so much easier. Yeah, doing laps around it. Right. So that’s a tip for re-hit. Now, I’m not expecting people to go out and buy a $4,000 bicycle. So if they don’t want to go get the Carol bike, and it’s spelled C-A-R-O-L, like Carol Burnett, what other – things or devices do you know of that people can do the re-hit and not so much the hit?
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. You have several options, all of which are great and can fit with your schedule. If you have things like a Peloton or another stationary bike, you can do re-hit. You just won’t have that adaptive resistance that makes Carol Bike so great, but you’ll still follow a similar principle. You have that warm-up period, you hit it hard, you have that cool-down period, you hit it hard again, your life recovery, and you’re on your way. You can also do it on a track. That’s actually what… started the idea of re-hit is they were measuring sprinters vo2 max and think about sprinters they’re only doing 10 20 seconds of of exercise they had some of the highest vo2 max they’re like whoa something’s going on here and what they found is even just sprints so sprinting on a track when it depletes your glycogen stores so think of glycogen as your muscles energy So when you’re doing a sprint, you’re depleting your muscles energy. And then when you go into one of those recovery zones, because you’re, you think of glycogen, like your super fuel, when you empty out the super fuel, you have to go to the regular fuel, which is your oxygen. So you deplete that super fuel and then switch over to oxygen. And, and when you’re on the oxygen, your body gets better at using oxygen. And that’s why we see the VO two max improvements, even though we’re not doing hours and hours of cardio training.
SPEAKER 07 :
Oh, that’s fantastic. We’re up against the clock. We’re going to take a quick break and then we’re going to come back and we’ll talk a little more about glycogen and muscle fibers because that’s important in all of this. So we’ll hit that in the next segment. You’re listening to Dr. Scott and Reagan filling in for John Rush, 560 KLBZ. We’ll be right back.
SPEAKER 06 :
Looking for the right car at the right price? Ridgeline Auto Brokers makes it easy. We specialize in quality vehicles priced between $15,000 and $25,000. Perfect for first-time drivers, families, or anyone who wants real value without the hassle. Every vehicle is thoroughly inspected by Legacy Automotive, a trusted drive radio sponsor. That means you can buy with confidence, knowing your next ride is ready for the road. No dealer fees. Competitive financing and trades are welcomed. A 30-day warranty on every vehicle. And your first oil change is just $1. Explore detailed videos of every car at RidgelineAutoBrokers.com before you visit. Ridgeline also has a great consignment program to assist you in the sale of your car, truck, or SUV. So if you’re ready to buy, trade, or sell your vehicle, call 303-442-4141 or visit RidgelineAutoBrokers.com. Ridgeline Auto Brokers. The right car, the right price, right now.
SPEAKER 18 :
Even in the age of AI, looking for the right insurance can be a huge hassle. Paul Leuenberger has you covered without the hassle. He works with the best in the business. Hartford, Travelers, Safeco, Liberty Mutual, Nationwide, Allstate, AIG, Chubb, Pure, Berkeley, Grundy, Hagerty, and more. He’s local, independent, and licensed in Wyoming, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, and Texas. and he’s expanding into more states soon. Paul’s mission is simple, to find the right coverage at the best value and to treat every client like family. So whether you’re shopping for home, auto, or something more unique, don’t shop online. Call Paul at 303-662-0789 today. That’s 303-662-0789. Paul Leuenberger, insurance made easy.
SPEAKER 20 :
The big beautiful bill ends all tax credits for solar and backup power on December 31st of this year. Until then, you can still get 56% back on solar and 66% on backup power. If you’re with Xcel Energy, your backup power is nearly 100% reimbursed. Colorado has all this sunshine, and the government is still paying for most of the cost. Your system must be installed and running before December 31st to qualify for the tax credits and rebates. Call Allen Davis today at 303-378-7537. That’s 303-378-7537.
SPEAKER 10 :
This isn’t rage radio. This is real, relatable radio. Back to Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 07 :
this is health and wellness wednesday you’re listening to dr scott faulkner filling in for john rush with my guest reagan kirstein and we were talking about why is it important to do exercises that improve your vo2 max and this goes for everybody i know people are kind of rolling their eyes like i don’t want to exercise we’ve given you some tips where where you’re at you can use the equipment that’s in your basement that’s collecting dust and i know it’s there i’ve seen it in a lot of your houses So Reagan has given you tips to use what you’ve got, or if you want to start afresh, you can do like I did, go out and get the Carol bike, and that will help you utilizing AI. I love that because there’s no knobs or gears for me to change in the middle of a workout. And like I said, in 40 seconds, it’s 10 minutes, but 40 seconds of real work, it’s incredible how it works. So really fast, there’s a couple of different types of muscle fibers in the human body. Yes. Which does this attack or help?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes. So ReHIT, which we were touching on earlier, the reduced exertion high-intensity interval training, focuses on the type 2 muscle fibers or our fast twitch muscle fibers. These are the muscle fibers that hold that glycogen, that super fuel. Our type 1 fibers are better at more long endurance, slow instead of using oxygen. But both muscle fibers can use both systems. Okay, fantastic. So what is the science behind all of this? Absolutely. So in these short, intense bursts of exercise, we engage both our aerobic and anaerobic systems. So think of that as the glycogen using system and the oxygen using system. And so it forces your body to use oxygen after those intense bursts of exercise. And that’s great because when we deplete our glycogen stores, we deplete that super fuel. We’re signaling to the body, hey, I’m really using energy here. I need to come back with even more mitochondria, which we’ll touch on later, the powerhouse of the cell. So we’re making more mitochondria and we’re getting better at using our mitochondria. Essentially, it’s just allowing our body to make and use energy better. Fantastic. So there was a study that bore this out, correct? Yes, exactly. So there was a study with around about 120 participants over the course of six weeks, and they had these participants do three re-hit sessions a week. Now that’s only 30 minutes a week, 180 minutes in total. And what they found is at the end of the six weeks, participants had a 12% increase in VO2 max. Now, if you remember what I said earlier where our VO2 max declines 10% every 10 years, that’s like turning back our biological clock 10 years in just six weeks from training.
SPEAKER 07 :
Wow. So that’s why this matters to somebody who’s in that 45-year-old driving home right now, why this is so critical and how you can, within a short period of time, make a substantial improvement in that biologic age. Yes. Yes. Wow. That’s incredible. I’m feeling better about my workouts all the time. All right. So we had used the term zone two training. Some people have heard of it. A lot of people have not. Now we got to touch on that. So let’s describe what are heart rate zones.
SPEAKER 04 :
So yes, there’s five heart rate zones with zone one being very minimal intensive exercise. It’s like walking, like you’re breathing, but it’s not really real. You’re not pushing your heart hard. Now zone five, on the other hand, that’s our all out sprint. Think back to the re-hit. That’s our 20, 30 second sprints in the re-hit. We’re working hard. Now zone two is on the lower end of that. So think of a rate of exertion of about three or four. You’re breathing, you’re working hard, but you could do this pace for 30 minutes, maybe even an hour. You’re breathing, but you could still have a conversation. And zone two is great because it really forces our body to use oxygen. We’re not even touching that glycogen system. It’s just about taking that oxygen and converting it to energy.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay. So drill down on zone two. Heart rate or what is this? Is it if I want to keel over, I feel the burn in my thighs? Because let’s face it, a lot of people, their treadmills don’t tell them zone two or their Peloton. I don’t know. Does a Peloton tell you when you’re in zone two?
SPEAKER 04 :
It can. It’ll do it kind of based off your heart rate. Really, it’s – you need expensive technology to really find out your zone two. The best kind of metric is, is can I speak a sentence without having to take breaths in between to finish the sentence?
SPEAKER 07 :
Or you buy a Carol bike and my Carol bike with AI tells me exactly when I’m in zone two. I mean, it dials it in, it nails it every time. I’m like, okay, got this. I’ll believe it. Yeah, exactly. All right. So you were talking about, or I said about Peter Atiyah earlier, um, He believes that this is the cornerstone, really? Yes. Of longevity?
SPEAKER 04 :
It really is, and that’s because… That’s saying a lot. It is saying a lot. Peter Attia is a big doctor in this space, really the one who kind of came up with the horseman, which we’ve talked on on previous episodes here. He believes that Zone 2 is the cornerstone because it’s what really allows us to improve that VO2 mags. Peter Tia has touched less on re-hit, so I’d love to hear his thoughts on it. But for now, we’ll go off just the zone two. So in zone two, we’re really having to tell our body to use the oxygen that’s all around us. And when we do that, that’s like draining our battery so we can recharge it even more. So when we’re working out, we have that endorphin rush. We’re sweating. We’re working hard. we’re moving all of that’s great but really what makes zone 2 so special is we’re using that oxygen and that’s oxygen we use every single day for the rest of our lives so the work we do today to improve that capability to use oxygen will carry with us throughout the rest of our lives well that’s fantastic so you know normally here in colorado you hear okay i’m depleting the energy on my battery people are thinking okay it’s dead of winter i depleted my battery
SPEAKER 07 :
Um, that’s a bad thing because then I have to go to auto zone and get a new battery, but that’s what makes us different. This is why we believe that God designed the human body and that we’re not just machines or that we evolved from goo. Yes. Um, because our bodies actually respond to this, don’t they?
SPEAKER 04 :
They do. So when we, we force our body to use oxygen, it signals to our body, Hey, we need more of the processes that convert oxygen to energy. Um, And so we come back better than ever. Think of it like muscle building. If you’ve hit a workout hard and you’re sore, and then you’re a couple weeks down the road, oh, my bicep’s looking a little bigger. That’s our body coming back bigger, better than ever. Now, the same thing happens with our cardiorespiratory system, so our heart and lung system. It’s just harder to see. So when we deplete those storage, when we force our body to drain its battery, it actually comes back bigger, better, stronger. We just can’t see it as easily in the mirror.
SPEAKER 07 :
No, but you can feel it. Like I said, I gave you the example of you start doing this and then you go to Peg’s Peak and you’re like, hey, this isn’t so hard. Or Manitou Incline or across the street where I live, Spruce Mountain Open Space, something like that. Things that you would huff and puff before. Yes. And you can see significant gains fairly quickly, which then motivates the patient to continue on this journey. Absolutely. And then you add it with the other things that we do, the GLP-1s to help people with their weight loss, fixing their nutrition because we’ve had this conversation several times, especially with Tam John, the functional nutritionist, how the food supply in America is just horrible. There’s no nutrients whatsoever. You might as well eat sawdust and tofu. Yeah. So that’s another talk for another day. Yes. But let’s talk about something called heart rate variability because I’ve got my little aura ring on, right? So Jeremy Sova, who’s a regular guest now, big biohacker, almost like a Brian Johnson. Yes. He’s got me – really, he’s our patient. And he has time during the day where you and I are busy working. He has time to start to research this stuff. And he’s always coming to the office like, Doc, I found this. I found that. And so one of the good things that he did is he said, you need to wear an Oura ring or a woot band. I like the Oura ring. Yes. And so then I slapped on a continuous glucose monitor so I can watch my sugar and what food does to my body. I found out the other day rice wrecks my body. For a lot of people too. Oh, my gosh. I had four pieces of a California roll and the spike in the sugar. I’m like, oh, my gosh.
SPEAKER 04 :
It’ll make you the question ever picking up that roll again.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yes, and so like today, Judy and I, we went to Panera Bread before we came here, and I had the salad, and I had the apple, not the chips. So it’s those little things that go a long ways to help my glycogen stores, my mitochondria, because I’m working – Not that hard, especially with the re-hit. Now, on my off days, I’m doing Zone 2 training on my Carol bike. And that I can do, 30 minutes. Like you said, it’s like a fast walk or a slow jog. You can still talk. And I’m like, okay, and I can see the improvement. So that I can do. But do not ask me to do 45 minutes or an hour on a fucking treadmill down in my basement or get on a stair stepper. It’s not going to happen, Reagan.
SPEAKER 04 :
I’m sorry.
SPEAKER 07 :
No, no.
SPEAKER 04 :
For you and most other people as well. And that’s what makes ReHIT so great. And if we compare it with that Zone 2, it’s even better. They kind of complement each other well. That ReHIT preps the body to use oxygen. And then that Zone 2 really gives us a chance to improve our ability to use oxygen. They work great together, but the best part is you really only need one or two zone two sessions a week. So if you could just have a light jog or a brisk walk for 30 minutes twice a week, you’re more than halfway there.
SPEAKER 07 :
There you go. So you had mentioned something called heart rate variability. And I circled it in my notes. Let’s go into heart rate variability and why that is important like the VO2 Maxx.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. So heart rate variability is the duration between heart rates and how that varies. Well, between heart beats. Yes, thank you. Heart beats. And so if our heart rate is all over the place, you know, we have one beat and then a couple seconds later another, and then it’s like a big gap. That’s cause for concern. It’s really a good reflection of how our mental health is doing because our brain will be sending down the signals to control our heart. And so if our brain is stressed out, our heart rate’s gonna be stressed out. So it’s gonna be all over the place. What Zone 2 training does a great job is it kind of gets that into line into a steady beat. And this has a cascade of effects down the line. And we can get into some of them here. One, it’s going to help your mental health like we touched on previously. Another piece is it will improve your ability to use oxygen. So when our heart is not beating so erratically, we can find a rhythm and we can use oxygen even better. So it kind of is one of those things where zone two will improve HRV and HRV will improve your ability to do zone two. So it’s pretty promising stuff.
SPEAKER 07 :
All right. So, uh, when somebody is working out there, they’re hearing us talk. There’s now they’re convinced. Okay. I need to start doing some, if I can do re hit, that’s better than hit. I think it’s better than, but, um, but they don’t want to spend a ton of money. So they’re going to try and do this on their Peloton or their treadmill or their stair stepper or whatever.
SPEAKER 01 :
Um,
SPEAKER 07 :
Give people a few more tips on how to find their zone two. Absolutely.
SPEAKER 04 :
So when we’re on our exercise equipment of choice, I want you to start off easy. You should hardly be breathing. I like to think that you can breathe through your nose. No problem. You don’t need to breathe through your mouth yet. And that’s going to be about the end of zone one training. When we switch over to zone two, you’re going to want to take a breath through your mouth every once in a while. And that’s also a good telltale sign. But if we’re at the point where I’m really breathing, I’m huffing and puffing, we’re doing too much. And that’s one of the hardest things about zone two. It’s going to be a little bit boring. We’re not feeling like we’re pushing that hard. And we’re also feel like we’re not walking. It’s, it’s kind of in this boring zone. And so it’s not supposed to be hard. It’s supposed to be an opportunity to use oxygen. If we start pushing too hard, we go to our super fuel or glycogen stores. So really being cognizant, am I able to hold a conversation and I’m not, I’m not working too hard. And do I feel still like I’m working? That’s the sweet spot.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah. And like I told you that Carol bike, it just dials in my zone too. And so I’ve now download, I’m, I’m, Not only am I reversing my biologic age, but my mental being, I guess. I’m getting more youthful. So you guys have me download Spotify, which I did. And so I just put it on my Christian music play. And I just close my eyes and I just listen. Because you’re right. It’s not a hard workout. But to sit there and look at a screen for 30 minutes, you’re like, okay, I can only watch this for so long. But when you just close your eyes and you just, in my case, listen to the music. Some people will listen to podcasts. It’s a great time to just spend that 30 minutes doing whatever you like doing. And then at the end, you’re like, oh. okay, well, that wasn’t so bad. Yeah, exactly. And then the next day you look forward to the re-hit. I told you I was addicted to it. So like today I did re-hit and legs. So both of those on the same day.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, that’s a lot of fun combat.
SPEAKER 07 :
So we’re going to have to take a break. And then when we come back, we’ll finish up this segment. And then if anybody wants to talk to Reagan, you can by calling us at 303-477-5600. You’re listening to Dr. Scott Faulkner and Reagan on 560 KLZ for John Rush.
SPEAKER 01 :
Tired of rushed appointments and cookie-cutter care? At Castle Rock Regenerative Health, Dr. Scott Faulkner offers true concierge medicine, personalized, unrushed, and on your schedule. Not the schedule of big health care, no crowded waiting rooms, no waiting weeks to be seen. Dr. Faulkner isn’t tied to the limitations of traditional practices, so he can focus on what matters most. you. He takes the time to really listen, understand your goals and customize care to fit your body and lifestyle. From regenerative therapies and IV nutrition to integrative whole body health solutions, you’ll get advanced options designed to help you truly heal and stay healthy. If weight loss is part of your journey, they offer medically guided plans tailored to you, helping you lose weight safely and sustainably with real support every step of the way. And for those experiencing changes in energy, mood, or vitality, ask about our personalized hormone therapy. We’ll help you restore balance and feel your best at every stage of life. Ready for a different kind of health care? Visit CastleRockRegenerativeHealth.com or call 303-663-6990 and start your journey with Dr. Scott today. You can also find Dr. Scott at RushToReason.com.
SPEAKER 16 :
Wind and rain and hail, oh my. There’s no place like home and you have to do what you can to keep a reliable roof over it. Summer hail storms are here, bringing damage and door knockers. That’s where we come in. At Roof Savers Colorado, we take pride in helping homeowners like you find the right solution for your situation. We strive to provide peace of mind and a quality roofing experience for every customer. From plant-based rejuvenation treatments that give new life to dry, old, or minorly damaged shingles to full roofing replacements, we want to provide the best service for you and your home. Hail season brings many out-of-state roofing companies knocking at your door, but we’re here to provide you with honest inspections, quality service, and customer care. Don’t wait. Call us for a free assessment before filing your insurance claim. Call today at 303-710-6916 or go to RoofSaverCO.com. That’s 303-710-6916 or go to RoofSaverCO.com to set up your free inspection.
SPEAKER 03 :
Finding insurance can be confusing and picking the wrong plan can cost you thousands of dollars out of your pocket. You need an independent insurance broker to help you find the best coverage that fits your needs and at the very best premium. Call Paul Linaigro at GIA Insurance and his team of independent insurance specialists will help you find the right plan for your needs. As independent brokers, GIA Insurance does not work for any insurance company. They can shop the market and find you the best premium for the coverage that you need. GIA never charges fees, and your premiums will never be any higher than going directly to the insurance companies or buying online. Receive the local hands-on service you don’t get with a call center or online. Whether it is your home, auto, Medicare, life, ACA, health, or business insurance, GIA has got you covered. They’ve been doing this as independent brokers since 1984. Call 303-423-0162, extension 100, or go online to e-gia.com.
SPEAKER 14 :
You should have Cub Creek Heating and AC on speed dial by now. We hit a heat wave every summer, and their phones are already ringing off the hook. So if you’re noticing a weird noise, a strange smell, or your system just isn’t keeping up, call Cub Creek today. They’ll come check it out with no trip charge. And it’s much better to know now than to deal with a meltdown later. Emergency calls always jump to the front, which means non-urgent appointments are already booking a week out. Summer means backyard barbecues and houseguests. Don’t risk turning your next get-together into a sweat session. Schedule now and know for sure your system’s good to go. Cub Creek is different. They don’t work on commissions, so there’s zero pressure to buy something you don’t need. If it can be fixed, Hunter and his crew will fix it. Honest, reliable service every time. Don’t wait. Lock in your appointment with Rheem-certified pro partner Cub Creek Heating and AC now and stay cool all summer. Go to klzradio.com slash HVAC.
SPEAKER 10 :
Suck it up, buttercup. Back to Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 07 :
Back to Health and Wellness Wednesday with Dr. Scott Faulkner, filling in for John Rush with my special guest, Reagan, who is my expert in exercise physiology and all things that are just, well, smart topics. So Reagan, give us a recap of what we’ve talked about because people are going in and out of their car. They’re not exactly sure what we’ve been talking about the last 45 minutes. So just give us a quick recap.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. So we’ve been talking about VO2 max, which is a rating of how well our body’s engine, our lungs are doing. We want to improve our VO2 max because it’s one of the best predictors of lifespan we have. And to do that, there’s really two key ways. One is re-hit, reduced exertion, high intensity interval training. That’s the couple quick bursts of high-intensity exercise. Then the other one is kind of the more boring Zone 2 training, which is 30 to 45 minutes of a slightly fast pace, fast walking and slow jogging pace to improve our VO2 max.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay. And that’s helping somebody’s biologic age, which is important. Why is biologic age important?
SPEAKER 04 :
Biologic age is important because how old we are doesn’t necessarily mean how long we’ll live. And so taking all the factors, all the lab results, all the tests we can get on ourselves, one, they help motivate people if they see, oh, I’m older than my chronological age. That’s great to motivate someone. And it’s also something we can get feedback on. We never get feedback on our real age, but we can get feedback on our biological age.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, and if you go to a Doc in the Box, first, they have no clue about this stuff. Two, they don’t know how to coach you. Two, they don’t have time, right? It’s a five-minute visit, and you’re there with a list of five or six things, and you’re on number two, and they’re like, oh, time’s up. Make another appointment, and here’s your pill for your issue. So we’re trying to give you guys real-world advice. that you can actually do tonight or tomorrow. When is it the best time to exercise, in the morning or the evening?
SPEAKER 04 :
The most important thing is to exercise. So whether it’s in the morning or in the afternoon is less important than actually just doing it. There’s some research to suggest that in the morning to mid-afternoon is better. If we’re exercising too close to bed, we’ll increase our cortisol or our stress hormone or our stress hormones. And that can make sleeping a little bit harder. But really, if you can get that workout in, the benefits of the workout will be far better than any consequences that may come from it.
SPEAKER 07 :
All right, fantastic. So when we’re talking about training, smart programming, why isn’t more always better?
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, going back to that exact topic of cortisol and stress hormones, sometimes training too much can harm recovery. We’re doing too much, and we’re not allowing our bodies to recover. That’s why we like to take a less is more approach. Think about the rehab. That’s a 10-minute session, and yet you’re getting almost all of the benefits as you would with traditional Zone 2 training. It can often be easy to overtrain, especially when we’re first starting out. And that can really be limiting to people who go to the gym and they hit it too hard. And then they can’t work out for a week because they hit it too hard. That can really kill motivation, kill progress. That’s why we kind of approach it a longevity mindset. Training should be sustainable for decades, not just a week. So find a rhythm that works for you doing daily actions that can really build a solid foundation.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, that’s exactly right. So let’s go back because people have heard about cortisol, right? And they know cortisol bad. Actually, cortisol is what keeps your blood pressure where it’s at. Too much and too little. It’s like anything else. Too much and too little is bad. So too little, your blood pressure drops out. Then you’re seeing me in the hospital. I’m trying to support your adrenal glands by pumping your body full of steroids, and then I give you things like Mitadrine to keep your blood pressure up so that it perfuses your brain. But too much cortisol is really, really bad. So first off, where does cortisol come from?
SPEAKER 04 :
In terms of exercise, cortisol can be a result of a stress response on the body. So when we think of working hard, we’ll have that stress response. But if you think about it in the long run, exercise will help to stabilize cortisol levels, even though we’ll see that initial spike.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yeah, and I guess I was trying to tease you into saying, yeah, it comes from the glands on top of your kidneys called the adrenal glands or suprarenal glands. That’s where it’s made, and it is a quote-unquote steroid, a corticosteroid. And then you have glucocorticoid steroids as well. So a couple of different steroids in the human body, but cortisol is that one that’s really – maintains your salt potassium balance, blood pressure balance. And you’re right with stress. You get a surge of cortisol, right? Adrenaline. And you feel that your heart rate goes up and you’re like, Oh my gosh, that fight or flight. Yep. That’s where it comes from. So imagine being in a constant state of fight or flight. That’s horrible for the human body. So that’s what we’re trying to do so that you’re saying if I overtrain, I’m putting myself, my body into that position, which is detrimental not only in the long haul but in the short haul too. Yes, exactly. Yeah. Now, if a lion is chasing you, a little cortisol is good. Mm-hmm. But over the long haul, it’s not so good. No. Okay. So what are some of the signs of overtraining?
SPEAKER 04 :
Signs of overtraining include fatigue, poor sleep quality, irritability, and reduced performance. It’s kind of, if you wake up the next day or even two days later for a workout and you’re still feeling sluggish, you don’t feel like yourself, you probably overdid it. And it’s not going to be something where we’ll dial it in the first time we work out. And there’s going to be days where we overtrain, but realizing that and saying, I’m going to take today off. Um, And to help my body recover is an important step in learning how to smartly train and to avoid overtraining.
SPEAKER 07 :
Fantastic. So what is this less is more than is what I hear you saying? What is that approach?
SPEAKER 04 :
So take re-hit, for example. That’s doing two days of re-hit a week and two days of zone two training a week. So it’s very minimal compared to… A typical workout structure, if you think about it, it’s about an hour, hour and a half maybe of working out per week. It’s very minimal, but by targeting the right things, we’re able to get 90%, if not more, of the results.
SPEAKER 07 :
So this is sounding like we’re taking that person, that 45-year-old guy or lady who’s driving right now as it’s clouding up a little bit. and giving them a place to start and say, hey, I can do this. I don’t have to be that person that you see at City Park running on the sidewalk for 10 miles. I know I’m not that person. Okay. So some closing thoughts?
SPEAKER 04 :
VO2 Max is really going to add years to your life. It’s going to give you time to walk around the park as you get older with your kids, with your family. So really dialing in on our VO2 Max is one of the most important things we can be doing.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay, and ReHit is a promising tool, right?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yes, ReHit is going to be one of the most promising tools to increase that VO2 Max. And ultimately, consistency is better than perfection. It’s not about doing everything, and it’s not about doing everything perfectly. It’s about doing the right things over time.
SPEAKER 07 :
And start now. Wherever you’re at, do something. All right. So hour one is in the can. You’re listening to Dr. Scott Faulkner filling in for John Rush with guest Reagan. We’ll be back for hour two. We’re going to start talking about mitochondrial health. What is mitochondria? Why is it important? When we get back.
