Sprint King

'Paleo' is hitting mainstream.  My approach DOES contain a bit of 'paleo-reenactment'.  I have not got the time or the patience to go deep in to the research on metabolism.  Armed with a bit of imagination, a broad education and a mirror - I am figuring out what works by trial and error (with a side order of science).

Sprinting is definitely in my model.  My interpretation of hunting in the Paleolithic would have involved moving fast - expressing agility and vigour.  Some of the science points at the cascade of health benefits of sprinting over distance running and these benefits are also creeping in to the mainstream consciousness.  Today's Telegraph has a story that 'Sprints better than marathon for heart health'.  Wow!

• Scientists found that a number of brief bursts of exercise were better for your heart and circulation than the equivalent long distance training.
  
  They discovered that the distance, time and calories burned in sprint exercises were much less than those needed in endurance in order to have the same benefits for the cardiovascular system.

We need to get out of the intellectual rut that we are currently in.  You know the kind of thing - that vegetarianism = healthy, that running = best for heart health, that eating less and doing more = fat loss, and that you need complex carbohydrate to fuel exercise.

These tenets of modern diet and exercise were shaped by the 'exercise revolution' started by marathoners in the 1970s.  The principles they espoused at this time have been compounded as a consequence of the information age.  It is good to see these ideas being challenged and alternatives gaining traction in the mainstream.