There’s a kind of exercise that doesn’t break you down—it builds you up. Not just physically, but mentally, metabolically, and emotionally. It’s the kind that your body craves but modern life rarely gives you anymore. I’m talking about aerobic—zone 2—training.
In the late 70s, I discovered Dr. Kenneth Cooper’s “The New Aerobics.” His work sparked something in me: the realization that long, easy effort—done most days—could change everything. Not just for athletes, but for everyone.
And yet, here we are, decades later. The science has only become clearer, but society has forgotten the lesson.
The Truth About Aerobic Exercise
When most men think of “exercise,” they think intensity: lifting heavy, running fast, sweating buckets. That’s great—but it’s not the missing piece.
Zone 2 training—what we used to call “aerobics”—is about working at a steady, low effort. Breathing easy enough to talk. Often for 45 to 90 minutes. It’s the zone that trains your mitochondria, the powerhouses of your cells, to burn fat efficiently. That means stable energy, lower blood sugar, less inflammation, and a body that stays young longer. It’s the one zone where you burn the highest proportion of fat while you’re exercising. The more you adapt by training frequently the higher the proportion of fat you burn, the exact opposite to higher intensity work.
This is the zone your ancestors lived in almost every day. Walking to gather food, carrying, climbing, hunting—not in all-out sprints but in steady, purposeful movement.
Today, we’ve stepped out of that rhythm. We’ve swapped daily movement for chairs, screens, and convenience. Our bodies haven’t had time to evolve for this new environment—and it shows.
Why the Guidelines Miss the Mark
Government guidelines tell us to aim for 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week. It sounds neat, achievable—and completely inadequate.
Those numbers were designed to be politically acceptable, not biologically optimal.
Our ancestors didn’t move 30 minutes, five days a week—they moved every day. Not in all‑out bursts, but in steady, purposeful pursuit: gathering, foraging, traveling.
That’s the rhythm our cells evolved for. But our modern lives—chairs, cars, screens, easy calories—have thrown our metabolism into confusion. We haven’t evolved fast enough to keep up with convenience. The result? Almost every modern disease: obesity, diabetes, heart problems, fatigue, brain fog.
The fix isn’t another 20‑minute suffer‑fest. It’s rebuilding that lost aerobic base.
The Case for Doing It Daily
You don’t need to train like a triathlete. But you do need to move like your life depends on it—because it does.
Here’s what I believe works best:
- Do aerobic work most days, ideally 45–90 minutes.
- Keep it comfortable. You should be able to breathe through your nose or hold a relaxed conversation.
- Make it part of your life. Walk, cycle, hike—anything that keeps your heart ticking gently.
- Add intensity only after you’ve built your base.
For most men, the sweet spot is 45–90 minutes in zone 2 – long enough for fat burning and aerobic adaptations to really kick in, but easy enough to repeat most days. That’s roughly the amount of time it would take you to race a 10K, but the effort should feel completely different.
Your 10K race pace lives up in zones 4–5: hard breathing, legs burning, clock‑watching. Zone 2 should feel like a brisk walk, the slowest jog, or a mix of the two where you can still hold a conversation. If in doubt, slow down. The goal here is to build an engine that runs on fat, not to prove how tough you are today.
Let’s Get Back to Human
We weren’t built for stillness. Our ancestors didn’t hit the couch after work—they were the work. Every day was filled with steady, low-intensity effort that kept their systems primed and strong.
If you want to reclaim that vitality, start here: move daily, at an easy pace, long enough to feel alive but not exhausted. That’s the foundation of health. That’s what keeps you capable. Men our age don’t need another fad. We need to go back to what works. The science is clear. The evidence is centuries old. And the feeling—once you rediscover it—is unbeatable.