Theory and PowerPoint slides are cute.
Instagram GooRoos pointing out how another GooRoo is wrong is quite hilarious.
But results?
Results pay the bills.
So instead of me ranting about stroke volume until the cows come home…
…let’s look at actual humans.
Four different people.
Different backgrounds.
All with individual goals.
The only thing they had in common?
They stopped treating cardio like punishment and started treating it like physiology.
#1 Andrew Martin
Andrew works as a training officer for the fire service.
Part of his job is testing firefighters’ VO₂max.
Not exactly a guy staring at a smartwatch while standing next to a treadmill fan.
Before the Canadian Death Race, his VO₂max was 44 mL/kg/min.
He ran the FMC protocols.
Eight weeks later?
52 mL/kg/min.
That is a massive increase in an already trained subject.
Then he spent the race running up and down mountains instead of negotiating with Jesus halfway through every climb.
#2 Bryan Boorstein
Coach.
Natural bodybuilder.
Former CrossFit competitor.
When I started working with him using these principles, his 2K rowing time was 7:23. Pretty darn good!
Full disclosure: He was a private M3 one-on-one client.
Then…
7:14.
Eventually…
7:03 at roughly 300 watts.
His comment?
It was faster than when he competed in CrossFit and was arguably in the best shape of his life. Bryan’s testimonial
No drugs, no peptides or anything crazy. We just pushed him hard.
So hard that once he hit that number, he changed goals.
Hahaha. But he crushed it.
#3 Rena Rosenthal
Registered dietitian.
More than twenty years in the field.
VO₂max?
50 → 59 mL/kg/min.
The interesting part?
Recovery improved before the number did.
I see that all the time.
Your body often cashes the physiological paycheck before the dashboard catches up.
#4 Dylan Fowler
Favorite protocol?
The Escalating 6.
Six.
Minutes.
Per.
Day.
His reported results?
Higher HRV.
Lower resting heart rate.
Better VO₂max. Dylan’s testimonial
His clients of all types reported increasing aerobic capacity, too.
I’ve watched people spend longer arguing about Zone 2 on Instagram than this protocol actually takes.
Then there’s Grinding Gary
Gary has avoided cardio since approximately the invention of creatine monohydrate because somebody once told him it would dissolve his quadZ.
Gary lifts five days per week.
And also requires a tactical recovery period after carrying groceries up one flight of stairs.
Gary looks at Andrew.
Then Bryan.
Then Rena.
Then Dylan.
Studies the evidence…
…and quietly mutters:
“Yeah…but cardio kills gainZ.”
Gary is why I occasionally have to lie down in a dark room.
Don’t be a Gary.
Notice something?
These people had different goals. Andrew’s included an endurance race. Bryan’s included a faster row.
They didn’t all need the same plan.
Leg shaving never had to enter the picture.
A $14,000 bike was not a prerequisite, and Tuesday did not suddenly have to become “Zone 2 day.”
They simply built a bigger engine.
And here’s the part that makes the internet spontaneously combust…
A bigger engine doesn’t automatically steal your gainZ.
It can help you recover faster between sets.
Recover faster between sessions.
Do more high-quality work.
Which can support…
…more gainZ.
Funny how physiology keeps refusing to cooperate with internet mythology.
Your turn
If you’re tired of guessing…
…and want the progression system I’ve refined over years of lab testing, coaching, metabolic cart work and work with real-world lifters…
Explore Flexible Meathead Cardio and check the current course details.
