Fitness
Every fitness guide we have published, newest first.
13 articles in Fitness
Strength Training for Beginners: The First Twelve Weeks
Beginners adapt to almost anything, so the programme matters less than showing up. Here is what to do for twelve weeks, what to ignore, and why less is more at the start.
RPE and Reps in Reserve: Autoregulating Load Without a 1RM Test
Reps in reserve turns effort into a number you can programme against. How the scale works, how accurate it is, and why novices systematically misread it.
How to Start Running Without Getting Injured in Week Three
Your fitness improves faster than your tendons and bones can follow. That mismatch is why new runners break down, and why the fix is about patience, not form.
Rest Periods Between Sets: What the Research Changed
Short rest for size and long rest for strength was the standard advice. A 2016 trial and the reviews since it reversed the hypertrophy half of that claim.
Zone 2 Training: The Case For and Against the Internet's Favourite Intensity
Zone 2 is now the default prescription for aerobic fitness. The physiology is real, the evidence thinner than the enthusiasm, and the definition keeps moving.
How Many Sets and Reps? Reading the Dose-Response Evidence
Weekly sets per muscle group drive hypertrophy, and rep ranges matter less than most people think. Here is what the dose-response literature supports.
Cardio vs Strength Training: What Each One Actually Does to Your Body
Endurance and resistance training produce different adaptations with little overlap. What each one changes, where they conflict, and how to run both at once.
Progressive Overload: The Only Rule Training Cannot Skip
Muscle and strength adapt to demands they have not already met. Progressive overload is the principle behind that, and the ways it actually gets applied.
How Much Protein You Actually Need: Reading the Evidence
The gap between the official RDA and what the training literature supports is large, and both numbers are answering different questions. A look at the dose-response data, meal distribution, protein during a deficit, and the kidney question.
VO2 Max Explained: What It Measures and How Much of It You Can Change
VO2 max is the strongest single measure of cardiorespiratory fitness, and a stubbornly genetic one. What it measures, and how much training actually moves it.
One-Rep Max Testing: Estimate It or Test It?
Four published equations estimate your one-rep max from a submaximal set, and they disagree by several kilos. Here is what that spread means and when to test.
Heart Rate Training Zones: What Each Zone Actually Trains
Five training zones, and the specific physiology each one develops. How the bands are calculated, why your resting pulse changes them, and where they mislead.
How to Find Your Max Heart Rate: Formulas, Field Tests and Their Error Bars
Age formulas estimate maximum heart rate to within roughly ten beats. Here is how Fox, Tanaka and Gellish differ, what a field test adds, and what it costs you.
Read the guide, then run the numbers
Each article links to the calculators it discusses, and each calculator shows the equation and source behind its output. Every article carries a named author and a publication date. Nothing here is medical advice. Our editorial policy sets out how we source, review and correct what we publish.
Open the toolkit