Nitric Oxide Dump
From https://www.mercola.com/calendar/2018/fitness.htm :
The Nitric Oxide Dump is one of the most recommended workouts that can aid with improving overall health. It allows your body to increase nitric oxide (NO) production, since your levels of it decrease with age.
High-intensity interval training (HIIT) exercises like the Nitric Oxide Dump may seem intense, especially for those who are elderly, but most people can actually perform these exercises at any age and still reap major benefits
Before trying the Nitric Oxide Dump, however, talk to your doctor first to check if your body is ready to handle such high-intensity exercises.
This YouTube video shows the 4 exercises in detail and you can work along (starting at the 3:00 minute mark):
deep squats (watch out for your knees)
arm raises
non-jumping jacks (keep your feet on the floor)
shoulder presses
Start with doing each of the four exercises 5 or 10 times. Slowly add more until you can do 20. At first you might get winded doing these.
Do each set of four 3 times.
All breathing (even when your heart rate is going up) is in and out through your nose (Only then will this exercise have any results).
Benefits:
Improving age-related decline in muscle mitochondria: The Nitric Oxide Dump may assist with counteracting mitochondrial decline. Exercise forces the mitochondria to work harder and create more mitochondria in response to the higher energy requirement demanded by exercise. While a known side effect of increased mitochondrial production is the creation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), take note that these free radicals act as signaling molecules.
The Nitric Oxide Dump can be beneficial in improving cardio-metabolic health parameters among aging adults, as a 2017 Cell Metabolism study emphasized. This is vital because although aging is inevitable, your biological age can be different from your chronological age. With exercise spurring positive mitochondrial changes, there’s a possibility that biological aging can be improved.
Triggering mitochondrial biogenesis: Exercise can promote mitochondrial changes that can lead to whole-body benefits, and can be a “remedy” for declines in mitochondrial biogenesis and mitochondrial protein quality, typically seen alongside aging. Exercise can also promote mitochondrial biogenesis in the brain, potentially leading to reduction or reversal of age-associated decline in cognitive function and assistance in repairing brain damage after a stroke.
Lastly, because of exercise’s effects on mitochondrial health, it can be helpful in preventing cancer through stimulation of the compounds AMPK and SIRT2. Both compounds secondarily inhibit mTOR involved in aging and cancer and help stimulate cancer-deadly mitochondrial biogenesis and mitophagy.
Helping promote fat and weight loss: HIIT exercises use multiple large muscles and require very little rest between sets, allowing the body to yield aerobic and metabolic benefits. Meanwhile, high-intensity circuit training (HICT) exercises lead to greater fat loss compared to aerobic or resistance training. HICT can also increase your body’s catecholamine levels (which can increase resting energy expenditure) and human growth hormone (HGH) levels in the blood.
Improving VO2 max: VO2 max is the maximum amount of oxygen your body can handle while exercising, and can be utilized as a measure of cardiovascular endurance.
Reducing insulin resistance: Research has proven that HIIT and HICT may help decrease insulin resistance, a known precursor to Type 2 diabetes.
Improving blood pressure and giving stronger erections.