Yeofit

You’ve felt this before… Think about a single-leg RDL or a balance drill. Your first set is a mess. You wobble, or you don’t feel as strong as you should. But the second set is better. By the third set, things feel smooth and controlled. That change didn’t happen because your muscles got stronger in five minutes… It happened because your nervous system woke up.

A proper warm-up is a neuromuscular system warm-up. You’re reminding your brain where your joints are in space. You’re increasing the speed and accuracy of motor unit recruitment. That’s where nerves attach to your muscles.

This matters even more for endurance athletes. Before a run or ride, your muscles don’t instantly shift into efficient energy production. Mitochondria ramp up. Enzymes involved in fat oxidation and aerobic metabolism increase their activity. Blood flow redistributes. Oxygen delivery improves. Some proteins involved in energy transport and contraction are upregulated on demand. That process takes time. A warm-up primes that machinery, so you don’t feel flat, heavy, or awkward in the first miles.

Skipping this step doesn’t just make things feel harder, it increases injury risk. Cold systems react slowly. Poor timing and delayed force absorption are how small stumbles turn into strains, tendon pain, or falls. Warming up is how you buy yourself margin.

They prepare the systems that coordinate balance, coordination, and power. They prepare our connective tissues for impact… tendons enjoy the warm-up. These drills basically tell your brain, “We’re about to move pay attention.” Whether you’re running, lifting, or cycling, the principle is the same: don’t go from zero to demand.

I do these in the same order that I present them. This only takes a few minutes. I usually walk for 5 minutes first, then do these hopping drills and take off on my run, a ride, or a tough day in the gym.

Full article here: https://howardluksmd.substack.com/p/my-favorite-warmup-drills-why-they

I created a Perimenopause Training Guide...
Why?
Because the biology of adaptation does not abandon you at perimenopause. Your ceiling may shift, and your recovery may take longer as your tendons' margin for error narrows.
BUT... the mechanisms that allow you to get stronger, fitter, and more resilient are still intact and still responding to the right stimulus.

But the social media world is noisy and conflicting. They scare you about normal changes (cortisol panic) and have you believing every workout needs to be hardcore. I try to set the record straight.

https://hjluks.gumroad.com/l/vigsnw

There was a time when your body didn’t ask for permission.
You stood up without thinking.
You walked without planning.
You carried things, climbed stairs, moved through your day…
like it was nothing.

You didn’t even notice it then.
Because it was just… life.

Now, some days feel heavier.
Not just in your body, but in the quiet moments.
You sit a little longer.
You hesitate a little more.
You tell yourself, “It’s okay, I’ll rest.”

And it is okay…
until you start to miss the version of you who didn’t have to think twice.

The one who could get up from the floor easily.
The one who didn’t feel tired after small things.
The one who trusted their body without fear.

Aging didn’t take all of that in one day.
It was taken gently, slowly…
in the spaces where movement used to live.

In the walks you postponed.
In the days you chose comfort, over and over again.
In the quiet belief that you still had time.

And maybe you do feel tired now.
Maybe your body feels different, unfamiliar even.
But deep down… you remember.

You remember what it felt like to move freely.
To not be limited.
To not feel your world getting smaller.

That version of you isn’t gone.
It’s just been waiting…
for you to come back.

We still have a few places left at our bone health talks on 6th and 10th May.

Join myself and women’s health fitness coach Vicki Hill as we educate you in the best way to support your bones as you age with nutrition and exercise.

Book here https://vickihillwomenshealth.as.me/schedule/189be37c/?categories[]=Educational%20Talks

Frailty isn’t inevitable but doing nothing makes it inevitable.
Here’s where to start:

1. Walk daily. Short bouts count; two 10-minute walks beat one long session if that’s what your body tolerates.

2. Train strength and power. Focus on movements that mimic life: sit-to-stands, step-ups, and carrying weight.

3. Challenge balance often. Barefoot drills, single-leg stands, walking on varied surfaces, all keep neural pathways sharp.

4. Push VO₂ max gently. Interval walking or light cycling a few times a week makes a huge difference over time.

Check your progress. Repeat simple tests—gait speed, chair rises, one-leg balance every few months.

The claim circulating widely online is that steady-state aerobic training chronically elevates cortisol in perimenopausal women in ways that accelerate muscle loss, worsen hormonal dysregulation, and compound the effects of menopause. This sounds plausible, and it is stated with enormous confidence. The evidence behind it is thin.

Cortisol does rise acutely during exercise, this is normal and necessary, and it is part of the signaling cascade that drives adaptation. What matters for health is our chronic resting cortisol pattern, not the acute exercise response. The studies most frequently cited to support the “zone 2 is harmful for women” claim are typically small, poorly controlled, and not specifically conducted in perimenopausal women. A 2021 systematic review in Sports Medicine found no evidence that moderate-intensity continuous training leads to chronically elevated cortisol levels in healthy women. Disordered eating, inadequate sleep, too little exercise, and extreme caloric restriction are all far more common in the wellness-optimization community than most acknowledge, are the actual drivers of the chronic cortisol dysregulation these coaches are warning against.

Sustained aerobic exercise does not chronically elevate cortisol in women who are sleeping adequately, eating sufficiently, and not overtraining. Moderate-intensity aerobic training, done consistently, improves cardiovascular risk markers, metabolic health, VO2 max, and mood in this population.

Years ago, movement was effortless. Stairs were just stairs. Groceries were carried without thought. Life felt alive, and the body felt unstoppable.

Then comfort crept in, slowly and quietly. At the mall, elevators and escalators are everywhere, carrying people effortlessly upward, while the stairs sit forgotten, ignored. The elevator seems easier, the escalator faster, and little by little, the habit of taking the easy way steals your freedom.

But what if you challenged yourself to take the stairs? Why not? Simply climbing stairs strengthens your muscles, wakes your heart and lungs, improves balance, and reminds your body that it is capable. Every step is a small act of care for yourself, a way to feel alive, strong, and present in your own body.

So, if you see a stair wherever you are, just simply challenge yourself to choose the stairs and keep challenging yourself..

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