Cardio vs strength training, meat substitutes and collagen

Podcast #081 in een notendop

1. What is best for your health: cardio or strength training?

The answer: Both are essential.

"This is a trick question," emphasizes Sander. "The answer is both cardio and strength training." Science fully confirms this.

Why strength training is crucial

Strength training is by far the best way to keep your bones strong, build your muscles, and maintain your strength. This also reduces the risk of falling, as any form of movement improves your coordination and allows your muscles to react faster and with more strength.

The power of cardio

Cardio leads to adaptations in your heart and blood vessels, reducing the risk of conditions such as heart disease and stroke. The risk of type 2 diabetes is also significantly reduced.

The mechanism is powerful: muscles are very sensitive to sugar, so more muscle mass means better blood sugar regulation. Elderly individuals who regularly engage in strength and cardio training are therefore less likely to develop diabetes and have a stroke. However, changes in your favor do not guarantee outcomes.

The scientific conclusion

Recent research confirms that combined training (cardio + strength training) offers superior health benefits compared to either form of exercise alone. Researcher Bueno demonstrates that it's not just strength training or cardio that is best for your health, but both. It provides the best protection against premature death and heart disease.

Practical: Incorporate both types of training into your routine.

2. Are proteins from plant-based meat substitutes as good for muscle building as meat?

The answer: Yes, but you need more.

Gram for gram, meat provides stronger effects on muscle building than plant-based meat substitutes. However, with plant-based protein sources, you can build just as much muscle mass as with animal products, as long as you get enough protein.

The magical threshold

Research shows: from 2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight, it hardly matters where your proteins come from. Recent studies confirm that plant-based and animal proteins provide similar muscle building effects when sufficient intake is ensured. Note that without regular muscle growth stimulating strength training sessions, no muscle will grow significantly.

The difference between meat substitutes and natural plant-based proteins

A crucial distinction: meat substitutes are different from natural plant-based protein sources such as red lentils or beans. Peas and lentils are probably better than most meat substitutes. Think of the hamburger that is no longer a hamburger, but a 'plant burger'.

The plant-based strategy

For optimal muscle building with plant-based proteins:

• Mix and match: Combine different sources for a complete amino acid profile

• Adequate amount: 2 grams per kilogram of body weight for certainty

• Natural sources: Lentils, beans, peas over processed meat substitutes

• Fiber bonus: Also think about fibers, fibers, fibers, they are incredibly important for your health and are abundant in plant-based products.

3. How important is variation of exercises for muscle building, strength, and coordination?

The answer: It depends on your goal.

This question receives three different answers because each aspect responds differently to variation.

Variation is essential for coordination

Variation is very important for coordination. A small adjustment in an exercise makes a big difference, even though the same muscles are being targeted. The classic example: someone who always does the leg press can squat only a fraction of the weight.

As children's level of physical activity decreases, we face a new societal problem called physical inactivity. More and more children struggle with basic movements because they are no longer used to playing outside and climbing trees. To combat physical inactivity: engage in as many types of movements and sports as possible.

Specificity is key for strength

If you want to become very strong in bench pressing, squatting, or deadlifting, then you should mainly focus on those exercises. Your body creates a specific coordination pattern for those exercises. The better you engrain that pattern, the stronger you become. Of course, you can also do plenty of supportive exercises to help the muscles grow for the main exercises. Because more muscle mass also leads to more strength (not just coordination).

For muscle mass, it depends on the muscle

This gets technical. Sander uses the quadriceps as an example: "It consists of four muscles. They grow better with a squat plus a leg extension than with just one of the two." But for calves, standing calf exercises are just as effective as standing and seated calf raises combined.

Practical: Vary for training enjoyment, results, and coordination. Studies confirm that varying exercises increases motivation without hindering muscle growth.

4. Do collagen supplements help with skin aging?

The answer: Unfortunately not.

The reality is clear: collagen supplements do not offer proven benefits against skin aging.

What do you really need for collagen?

For collagen production, you need three amino acids: glycine, proline, and hydroxyproline (which your body makes from proline and vitamin C). And these are simply found in normal food. Is there more in a collagen supplement? Certainly. But is more better than enough? No. Enough is enough, the rest is simply excreted.

The marketing trick exposed

Recent independent research shows no significant effects of collagen supplements on skin aging. Studies that are paid for by companies in the collagen industry naturally claim that oral collagen supplements are good for anti-aging. Unfortunately, this has not (yet) been proven.

Practical: Save your money, eat a varied diet, and apply UV protection. That does work against skin aging ;).

5. Are weighted vests effective for additional weight loss?

The answer: minimal.

Weighted vests have little impact on energy expenditure during cardio training. The numbers are sobering.

The hard numbers

If you weigh 80 kilos, you burn about 80 calories per kilometer of running. With a 10-kilo weighted vest, you burn an extra 50 calories per 5 kilometers of running. You hardly notice this on the scale. Not even if you were to run 15 kilometers per week with such a vest.

Practical: Useful for specific training (for example, for military personnel), but not for weight loss.

6. How much energy does running cost compared to walking?

The answer: 30% more per kilometer.

Running costs about 30% more energy per distance than walking. That is much more than the often estimated 10%.

The rules of thumb

With running, you burn about the same amount of calories per kilometer as your body weight in kilograms. With walking, it's over 30% less.

Practical: just a fun fact. Both running and walking are good for your health.