Supercharge Exercise Performance & Recovery with Cooling

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Published 2021-05-10
This episode I explain the science of heating and cooling the body, a process called thermoregulation-- and how to apply that knowledge to significantly improve physical performance. I describe the three areas of our body that can remove heat (or bring heat into the body) faster than anywhere else, why that is so, and how proper cooling of these areas with specific protocols can allow people to perform 200-600% more volume and repetitions of resistance exercises at the same weight loads, or to run, cycle or swim significantly further. I also describe how to use directed cooling of so-called glabrous skin: the bottoms of feet, palms and face, to significantly enhance recovery times from exercise. Also, why the common practices of trying to heat up or cool the body via the torso or whole-body submersion in cold can be inefficient and/or dangerous-- and the better alternatives. Finally, I discuss the temperature effects of caffeine, alcohol and anti-inflammatory compounds. The information in this episode is focused on mechanisms and tools for increasing athletic or exercise performance.

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Timestamps:
00:00:00 Introduction
00:05:08 Physical Performance & Skill Learning
00:06:40 Optimal Learning Protocol (Recap): 4 Steps
00:08:31 Variables Impacting Physical Performance
00:10:00 Temperature Is the Dominant Variable
00:12:08 Understanding Mechanism Is Key
00:13:42 Heat: The Enemy of All Performance (& Why)
00:16:30 Blood Flow & Sweating & Piloerection
00:22:35 Heat Is What Limits Effort: Even If You Feel Fine/Motivated
00:25:29 Proper Cooling Can Double, Triple, Quadruple (Or More) Your Ability
00:26:42 Heat Induced Confusion & Death
00:30:02 The Three Body Parts Best For Heating & Cooling Your Whole Body
00:31:38 Face, Palms, Bottoms of Feet; Glabrous Skin
00:33:00 Arterio-Venous Anastamoses (AVAs) Are Super Cool(ing)!
00:37:15 Palmar Cooling Can Supercharge Your Athletic Performance
00:38:35 ATP, Pyruvate Kinase & Heat
00:40:55 Palmer Cooling Outperforms Anabolic Steroids Several-Fold
00:43:45 Increasing Endurance, Willpower & Persistence
00:46:33 Cardiac Drift, & Moving the ”I Quit” Point
00:50:44 Deliberate Heating: Myths and Better Protocols
00:53:20 Protocols For Self-Directed Cooling To Vastly Improve Performance
00:59:23 How To Use Cold To Recover Faster & More Thoroughly
01:02:05 Ice Baths & Cold Showers Can Prevent Training Progress: mTOR, etc.
01:06:29 Alcohol, Caffeine, NSAIDs: Their Temperature Effects Matter
01:09:44 Are Stimulants Counter Productive For Performance? It Depends.
01:12:00 The Caffeine Rule & “Caffeine Adaptation”
01:14:20 NSAIDs for Training: Performance Enhancements & Risks
01:17:00 The Best Way to Explore Your Own “Parameter Space”
01:18:35 Tools: How To Try
01:21:35 Cost-Free Support, & Additional Support & Resources

Please note that The Huberman Lab Podcast is distinct from Dr. Huberman's teaching and research roles at Stanford University School of Medicine. The information provided in this show is not medical advice, nor should it be taken or applied as a replacement for medical advice. The Huberman Lab Podcast, its employees, guests and affiliates assume no liability for the application of the information discussed.

Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac - www.blabacphoto.com/

All Comments (21)
  • Wow, I tried this today and I increased the number of reps in each sets by 50% easy. What's crazy is that I did not feel like I would reach ''muscular failure'', i.e. the point where the neuromuscular system can no longer produce adequate force to overcome a specific workload. It basically felt very safe to increase the reps thanks to the cold exposure on the three areas mentioned on this podcast. I also genuinely felt like I could go on, i.e.: I was not exhausted at all. This is truly amazing, thank you so much.
  • @cameronrust6677
    Man, I can't believe I get to listen to this stuff for free.
  • This channel should be a mandatory class in High School, thank you Dr.Huberman you changed my life
  • @isabelmusic01
    Tried it out last night at the gym. Noticed huge difference I was able to do more reps and heavier weight. I didn’t want to keep walking to the bathroom so I just brought another bottle water with ice and held it in between sets. Thank you Andrew! Your podcast has changed my life :)
  • @ellenkass9410
    Has it really been 19 weeks? Seems like this began just yesterday. Time flies when you're having fun learning.
  • @tgleds
    Andrew, your channel is outstanding. I can't believe how quickly you supply us with this deep, incredibly informative, detailed, and well organized videos. We are all so grateful 🙏
  • @dougjohn7155
    For what it's worth, I'm coming to the end of my MSc in Exercise Physiology & I just wanted to share that the way you communicate these topics, i.e. mechanism then application, is of a similar/superior standard to that which I'm currently paying over £10,000/year for here in the UK - keep up the great work!
  • @horizontalste
    I was sceptical but then I remembered how "The Hube" (as he's now affectionately known in our house) helped me overcome my sleep issues at the beginning of the year so I thought I'd give the cooling a try. 100 (10x10) press-up's in under fifteen minutes straight after a six k run & a night shift & I DON'T DO PRESS-UPS! Hats off for The Hube!
  • @themanhaslanded
    The gold standard in evidence-based content for improving life outcomes....thx
  • @suzanneamos7690
    Another great serving of science with Dr. Huberman! Since implementing some of these weekly suggestions my sleep has improved, I'm feeling more energetic in the climbing gym, and kickboxing, stronger in weight training with better recovery. Most importantly I have a better understanding of the why as well as the what. My eyes love their morning light bath as I drink my mushroom coffee! I've tried alot of the podcast sponsors (because I believe you should support what you love) and find they really do live up to your descriptions. I was bummed when insider tracker showed my biological age as 69 instead of 68 but am using their suggestions to bring down that slightly elevated cholesterol and glucose and am confident of a better report on the next round! It must be time consuming to make this kind of information digestible for non scientists. When you explain that much research is tax payer funded and you want to make that research available to the public it demonstrates so much respect and humility on your part. So grateful for the work you and your lab partners and peers do and thank you so much for sharing!
  • @hushnar
    I have been wondering why my wife can stay in the planking position (>4min without issue) a lot longer than some very athletic people i know (she is not big but not into sport at all). Turns out the minute she starts her hands start sweating like crazy. I made her do it with socks and gloves and she lasted 50 seconds ! We'll try a few more control experiment but i'm convinced you just helped me solve a 10 year long mystery Dr Huberman. Thank you.
  • @kellyorator9007
    I'm literally waking up earlier than I usually do to get ample amounts of photons in my eyes for that scheduled cortisol release because if I don't I can sense you being disappointed in me! Thank you for your podcast, you are literally *delightful*!!! Can you please do a month on ADHD or just why people can be on their toes/anxious and how everyday things can affect them differently? For example, why, if true, is that caffeine doesn't affect people with adhd in the same way that it does normal people (I can fall asleep just fine on 5 shots of espresso...)? Getting information from you on how and why life is different for people with conditions like adhd/anxiety would literally complete my life. Thank you so much again Dr. Huberman!! P.S: literally supporting you on all platforms and ordered hemp oil from thorne!!!
  • @gonzalezm244
    I just tried this out today and had a great workout! My pull-up max increased by 50%!
  • @ez4mehard4u
    Andrew, you are the science behind my gut intuition. Your work has improved my productivity and by extension my health and wellness business. We are changing lives positively x5 now. Thank you a million times for this priceless knowledge my friend 🙏🏾
  • @Marius-xp1yy
    Doubled my pushups and lunges from training in shadow (not sun at 2pm) and water in my face after every set, plus I"m not feeling tired after training. This is impressive! Thank you so much Andrew
  • @urosdek1020
    Omg!! I just did a 20-30min workout without any rest!! This is amazing…. usually I would do 30% of this workout lasting 30- 40min… today I tried the hands cooling trick and in 20-30min did 90min of usual workout… which I never do, of course, because I’d split it in seperate days/sessions. So - I did my entire weekload of workouts in 1 day 👏🏽👏🏽 less than 30min… without any rest, just the hand washing routine in between. No 2-3min breaks between sets, no longers breaks between different groups of excersises. Anytime I felt I need to stop I just washed my hands under running water. And didn’t even count seconds, because you feel it when it’s enough… And after the workout (again: a whole week of sessions in only 30min without any rest 👍🏿👍🏿) I was really really full of energy and not feeling drained out completely… just did a longer hand washing at the end… Amazing ❤️❤️❤️
  • @memastarful
    Arrector Pili = The bodys smallest muscle. Its a tiny muscle in skin which causes goosebumps. Watching Andrew Huberman podcasts activates my Arrector Pili muscles. 😄
  • @mnmillard
    Good morning from Dallas, TX. Ready to learn. Thank you Dr. Huberman for such a wonderful podcast. Every week is so informative and so easily digested into my brain. Thank you so much for all your work in providing such a great podcast to start my week!
  • @imogensharma
    I've been working out daily for the first time in my life for the past year. I guess it's time to take it to the next level! Thank you, Dr. H :)
  • @jplening2956
    Thank you, Andrew!! I am so thankful for your approach and methodology that appeals to reach as many as possible that may listen. I hear you and appreciate your research so much. You are impacting a lot of lives positively!