Optimum Performance
How to Take the Cooper Run Test
What the 12-minute run tests, how to take it step by step, and a calculator that turns your distance into a VO2 max estimate.
Read more
How to Take the Rockport Walk Test
Walk one flat mile, take your heart rate, and let the calculator turn your numbers into an estimate of your VO2 max and a rating for your age and sex.
Read more
How Strong Is Your Engine?
A conversation I had with Dr. Chip Lavie led to this one: why your cardio fitness can say more about your health than your cholesterol, and two simple ways to find yours, a one-mile walk or a 12-minute run.
Read more
Your Starting Point
Why your clothes beat your scale, how to take a progress photo you can trust, and the one number to write down before you change anything.
Read more
Oct 14, 2026
Start Before January
You do not need January to start. Why every goal begins with knowing where you are, what April Dupré taught me about showing up, and your first step.
Read more
May 27, 2026
Lift Today, Save Your Brain Tomorrow
A 2026 GeroScience study found that one year of resistance training made older adults' brains 1.4 to 2.3 years younger, and the benefit held a full year after training stopped. Here is the science, and the training week to start.
Read more
How Much Protein Do You Actually Need? A 2026 Audit of Your Real Number
The RDA was set to prevent deficiency, not to optimize performance, body composition, or aging. A new 30-author consensus review just gave us the receipts to set real targets — and find the one that fits you.
Read more
Your Sweat Glands Are a Secret Weapon for Your Heart
New research reveals that sweating isn't just a side effect of hard work — it's one of the body's most underappreciated tools for clearing excess sodium and protecting your heart. Here's what the science actually says, and what you can do with it.
Read more
Apr 7, 2026
What NASA and the New ACSM Guidelines Say About Building Strength and Muscle
The 2026 ACSM guidelines and NASA's Artemis II mission both point to the same training principles — eccentric loading, time under tension, and range of motion. Here's what it means for your summer training.
Read more
How to Prepare for a 10K: The Final 24 Hours and Race Day Strategy
The final 24 hours before a 10K can either support your performance or quietly work against it. This guide breaks down how to approach race prep, race morning, and pacing so you can show up ready and run your best. While inspired by the Crescent City Classic, these strategies apply to any race of similar distance and intensity.
Read more
Mar 25, 2026
The new rules of lifting: What ACSM actually changed about strength, hypertrophy, power, and longevity
The science didn’t flip upside down. But the way we apply it just got a lot smarter.
For a long time, strength traini...
Read more
Mar 25, 2026
The new science of training: Why consistency—not perfection—is what actually drives results
The latest ACSM guidelines don’t ask you to do more. They ask you to train in a way you can actually sustain.
For a l...
Read more
