Tag: stan efferding
Stan Efferding, Strongman Mitchell Hooper Talk Nutrition Tips, Dirty Bulking, And Supplement Intake
Mitchell Hooper once again proved himself after retaining his title at the 2024 Arnold Strongman Classic. Now, in a recent YouTube video, Mitchell Hooper and Stan Efferding sat down to discuss their best practices for nutrition and supplementation. Mitchell Hooper has established himself as a formidable force in the world of Strongman. The Canadian-based athlete […]
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Stan Efferding: Cardio Is Nowhere Near As Important As You Think It Is | The Mike O’Hearn Show
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Stan Efferding & Mike O’Hearn want you to stop making cardio a religion.
Cardio sucks. Everyone knows it – and it’s particularly a thorn in the side of strength athletes and bodybuilders. However, the benefits of cardio for heart health and endurance are well known. As the fitness industry continues to grow in the mainstream – cardio has become a must-do activity for athletes and the regular person. In fact, it’s not uncommon to be guilted for not including cardio into your lifestyle – at risk of your life longevity. While cardio certainly has wonderful benefits, Mike O’Hearn believes many athletes are actually hurting their fitness goals with too much cardio. Pro bodybuilder and powerlifting legend Stan Efferding agrees. In Generation Iron and Barbend’s latest episode of the Mike O’Hearn Show, Stan Efferding explains how most fit individuals are doing way too much cardio.
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of death in the United States – especially for males. This reality has driven science and fitness experts to stress improving lifestyle via a better diet and increased cardio activity. While this may be an important truth for the average sedentary American – the message has also affected the athletic world. Mike O’Hearn and Stan Efferding are seeing a troublesome trend in modern athletes – they all do too much cardio.
Mike O’Hearn gets down into the weeds discussing this concept in detail with Stan Efferding – explaining how modern athletes often do cardio to the detriment of their fitness goals. Let’s break it down.
What Are METs In Cardiovascular Health?
A MET is the ratio of your working metabolic rate in relation to your resting metabolic rate. MET stands for metabolic equivalent – it’s the energy exhausted per unite of time. In simplest terms, it’s a scientific way to measure the intensity of exercise or an activity.
The base level, one MET, is your energy expenditure at rest. So when thinking about METs, you get a better idea of what it is measuring. 10 METs would be spending energy ten times more than when you are at rest.
Stan Efferding explains that for good cardiovascular health and decreased mortality rate – an individual should be able to maintain 8 METs during activity. 8 METs would be the equivalent of riding a bike on flat terrain. In comparison, running (at about 7mph) would equate to about 11-12 METs. This is important in understanding why he believes athletes and fit individuals are spending too much time on cardio. Let’s move on.
“Cardio is not a religion.”
– Mike O’Hearn
Stan Efferding Explains The Reason Athletes And Fit People Should Do Less Cardio
Mike O’Hearn and Stan Efferding make it clear from the top that this discussion is about fit individuals and athletes specifically. Their advice about cardio would change significantly for the average person or a person who lives a sedentary lifestyle.
Stan Efferding breaks down athletes into three categories regarding cardiovascular health:
People who meet 8 METs without needing cardio exercise
People who do cardio or weightlifting in order to successfully meet 8 METs
People who do cardio or weightlifting but still do not meet 8 METs
Stan Efferding claims that studies show the individuals who meet the first category are able to successfully commit to 8 MET activities despite not doing regular cardio. This can be due to genetics or overall lifestyle (such as an active job). But what is important to note, is that the individuals in category three, who do cardio regularly but still can’t meet 8 METs, have a higher mortality rate than the individuals in category one who do zero cardio.
What Stan Efferding is trying to point out here is that cardio in and of itself is not the singular solution to cardiovascular health. It’s not about the individual action, it’s about the outcome. What is important is that your cardio or weightlifting or activity leads to improvement in your ability. If you can’t measure an outcome – then you are simply doing a repetitive task, like cardio, for no reason.
This ties into the notion of diminishing returns in exercise. Over time your body will adapt, so you must adapt your training. If you do the exact same cardio routine every day for the rest of your life – you will not necessarily be gaining a cardiovascular benefit from the cardio.
“I find very few individuals who need more cardio if they are already generally fit.”
– Stan Efferding
Cardio Should Not Be A Religion, But It’s Also Not The Devil
Mike O’Hearn and Stan Efferding also want to stress that they are not saying you should never do cardio – or that cardio accomplishes nothing. What they are trying to say is that many fit athletes who don’t do cardio… probably don’t need to start doing it. The outcome or result of your lifestyle is more important than the exact mode that gets you there.
If you are a generally fit person but still suffer from factors such as high blood pressure, high lipids, or high blood sugar – cardio will help you become healthier, lower those levels, and decrease your mortality rate.
But if you are a bodybuilder without these issues and you can hit a consistent 8 METS of activity without cardio – that’s okay too.
At the end of the day, Stan Efferding values movement most above all else. If that movement is cardio and it fits your overall athletic goals, great. If that movement is weightlifting without cardio, that’s also okay.
Stan and Mike have far too often run into athletes who pressed too much cardio throughout their training regiment – and are now leading into a competition with limited options to improve because the cardio has worn them down. This is the worst situation when you are close to a competition. It leaves you with limited to no options and may pull away from your success at the competition.
This is why Mike O’Hearn and Stan Efferding are stressing to pull back on cardio if you are an athlete. Odds are you are doing too much. There are ways to keep longevity high without having cardio diminishing your muscle mass or your athletic ability. It ultimately depends on what sport you compete in – but for bodybuilders, don’t succumb to the pressure. You may not need cardio to stay healthy while you prepare for your competition. Each individual varies – but don’t fall for the blanket “cardio is always important” opinion.
Wrap Up
You can watch Mike O’Hearn and Stan Efferding talk about cardio in full detail by watching our latest episode of The Mike O’Hearn Show above. Make sure to catch new episodes every Friday only on the Generation Iron Fitness Network or wherever podcasts are downloaded.
Stan Efferding: How To Lift Heavier At 50 Than You Ever Could At 20 | The Mike O’Hearn Show
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Episode 10: Stan Efferding debunks the common held belief that you become weaker as you get older.
Stan Efferding is best known for being one of the strongest bodybuilders that ever lived. While he does not compete today, he is still well regarded for his functional training knowledge and expertise in weightlifting. That’s why Mike O’Hearn invited Efferding onto the podcast to dive deep into advanced training techniques – specifically on how to continue to excel as you age. In Generation Iron and Barbend’s latest episode of The Mike O’Hearn Show, Stan Efferding details how it is 100% possible to lift your strongest at 50 years old compared to your max weight in your 20s.
Throughout the entirety of this podcast, Mike O’Hearn has been consistent on the importance of longevity in strength and health. O’Hearn would rather be successfully lifting without limits well into his 50s today, rather than be a champion in his 20s only to burn out in later years.
Stan Efferding is a bodybuilder and powerlifter who not only holds those same beliefs but also lives them. Efferding, aka The Rhino, is often regarded as one of the strongest bodybuilders that has ever lived. While he no longer competes on the bodybuilding stage – he still showcases a level of strength often unseen at his age (he’s 54 at the time of this writing).
In fact, Stan Efferding believes that one of the biggest misconceptions in fitness is that we become naturally weaker as we age. Yes, taking an overview at the general populous seems to show that people degenerate as they age. But that’s not how it has to be. It’s simply because of the way we culturally live our lives through fitness.
Efferding is proof that you can actually be strong in your 20s – and then grow to become even more capable and stronger in your 50s. It requires a different outlook on training, consistency, and knowledge of the right techniques. Let’s jump into it.
Debunking The Myth: Degenerating Vs Regenerating As We Age
In the big picture, yes we degenerate naturally as we age. This is obvious for anyone who looks at a grandparent and sees grey hair and wrinkled skin. But the amount we degenerate – and at one point this occurs can be controlled more than we often believe.
The average person probably believes we are at our most physically fit during our late teens and early 20s. This does not have to be the case. In fact, Stan Efferding believes that you can be stronger and lift more at 50 than ever possible at 20. The key to obtaining this is through forward thinking in your training techniques.
“We have to eliminate the mindset that your body wears out. People think that the body is degenerative over time. And it’s actually regenerative with the correct stimulus.”
– Stan Efferding
Too many people believe that heavy lifting actually wears us down in the long run. Many think that weightlifting leads to worn down joints and injuries. The reality is that the opposite is true – if your training routine and technique is done correctly. Modern science has shown that inactivity leads to faster degeneration as we age. Whereas consistent weight training will help us become more capable and stronger as we age.
Generation Iron’s own Jerry Brainum has discussed this at length in our other podcast series – Straight Facts. Efferding further confirms this and mentions how doctors will now prescribe “barbell medicine” – weightlifting as a solution towards recovery for older folks.
This can be seen in other respects as well. In past decades, medicine believed that after a person suffers a heart attack that they must rest to recover. Today, a doctor would recommend a person who suffered a heart attack stay active to help make the heart stronger.
Stan Efferding’s Techinques For Lifting Heavier At 50 Than At 20 Years Old
So now that you know it’s possible to be at your strongest in older age – how do you actually achieve it? Stan Efferding explains that it requires deconstructing what you culturally understand about weightlifting – and applying fact-based and proven techniques. The biggest mistake young lifters make is to push too hard to the point of degrading the body. Yes – this might help in the short term become the heaviest lifter with the most massive physique. But it won’t last in the long term.
Stan Efferding explains that intensity needs to stay consistent. What Efferding means by that is you always need to be 2-3 reps away from complete exhaustion. If you’re not pushing to that point – you are not going to see real improvement. Lower weight with higher reps can be extremely effective – but only if the intensity is there.
Stan goes on to say that, ironically, if you max out at the gym – that leads to more inactivity overall. You are tired faster, it makes you want to indulge in cheat meals more to replenish yourself after being exhausted. What Stan promotes is to use exercise and weightlifting to “feel refreshed” rather than “feel depleted.”
Too many people think that not sleeping, training more, never recovering, always working – is the way to improve. That’s not true. It’s important to make time to recover. To make time for sleep. To sometimes stop training to allow for your body to replenish and actually improve. This is regenerating rather than degenerating.
“If it’s not measurable and progressable – I don’t think it’s terribly effective. It’s just exercise, it’s not training.”
– Stan Efferding
Stan Efferding talks about setting up a goal to reach new PRs and make progress is very different than showing up and doing the same thing at the gym every day. One is “exercise” vs “training.” It’s good to get your heart pumping and get you sweating. But if you want to see long term improvement – you need to reach new goals every session or every training cycle.
To dive deeper into this concept, Stan Efferding discusses speed of lifting vs the weight. If you can deadlift 600 pounds and think you are stronger and can increase the weight – but now the movement speed decreases. You didn’t get stronger – you exerted more energy to achieve a higher weight. Due to this – sometimes it is okay to realize that lowering your weight – but slowly increasing your speed is a more effective (and safer) way to improve rather than just maxing out the most weight as possible.
The Importance Of Deloading
Impatience is the biggest enemy of long term success. This is often what leads to overtraining, burning out your body, and setting up habits that lead to long term degradation of your body.
If progress stalls – instead of training harder perhaps you should practice deloading. Sometimes it’s okay to take a week break and then return back to training. It’s often the very thing you needed in order for your body to reset and start making gains and strength improvements again.
“You will deload whether it’s voluntary or involuntary. If you don’t voluntarily deload – you will eventually get sick or injured forcing it upon you.”
– Stan Efferding
Rest and recovery is vital towards consistently improving your ability as you age. This goes not only for rests between workouts – but rest in general. It’s been scientifically proven that culturally we often get too little sleep. This can cut years off of our lives. This takes the form of our body degrading as we age instead of improving.
Ultimately, you must master the art of keeping your intensity consistent – while also allowing yourself to rest when you need to, deload if you need to. If you don’t, your body will do it for you whether you like it or not. But if you don’t provide yourself that time – it will instead force itself upon you in the form of getting sick or injured. This leads to degrading rather than regenerating.
Wrap Up
Stan Efferding and Mike O’Hearn talk shop and technique in great detail throughout this entire episode. That’s why it’s vital for anyone who wants to continue to improve with strength and fitness to watch our latest episode.
You can watch Stan Efferding’s full comments in our latest episode of The Mike O’Hearn Show above. Watch new episodes every Friday only on the Generation Iron Fitness Network. Or listen wherever podcasts are downloaded.