Great article. Could you please describe what your once a week sprint regime is like? Also, when walking to you have recommendations around the optimal heart rate/amount of miles per week?

Thanks,

Mark

Hey Jan,

Thanks for reaching out. It’s hard to say if you’re overdoing it. In most cases, so long as you’re allowing for ample recovery time and avoiding excessive anaerobic exercising, you’re likely in the safe zone. But these limits vary for everyone.

I have an interview with Dr. Doug McGuff later this week, and I’ll be sure to pose the question to him (his research is referenced a few times throughout the article series!).

Best,
Rob

Hi Rob,

I read your article on exercise and hairloss. Very informative, thank you very much!
I am a 44 yo male following the “Fierce 5” weight lifting program: 2 upper body and 2 lower body workouts per week. Each workout day is followed by a rest day. Every workout takes me 75 min to complete.
Am I overdoing it? Is this chronic unaerobic exercise? Your answer is much appreciated!

Many thanks,
Jan

Hey Nate — I still water-rinse my hair daily, and often with warm water (at least for part of the shower). Your approach sounds fine! In general, shampooing vs. water rinsing won’t make the difference between regrowth / no regrowth, but transitioning away from shampoos often helps to improve the health of your scalp.

Best,
Rob

Do you recommend the water rinsing every day? I understand that we want to get rid of excess sebum buildup, but, as our scalps adjust, does the need to water-rinse decrease?

When water rinsing, I figured it is beneficial to use warm-ish water to break up the oils, then finish the shower by doing a cold rinse over the head. What is your approach to this?

Would love your thoughts on this. You put out great information that gives me hope. Although I am not balding yet, I am hoping to stave off my genetic predisposition towards baldness (similar genetic profile to yours).

Hey Pete!

It’s tough to say without more information about your history, but I would just listen to your body as often as possible. I’m a fan of bodyweight workouts — including pushups. And some yoga classes that I go to are incredibly anaerobic (my heart rate stays at 170+ for significant portions of the class), while others are pretty gentle. It all depends on the instructor and type of yoga.

Best,
Rob

I had pretty much neglected muscle exercise for years, to the point that I got pain around shoulders. My physician is sending me to the gym.
Do you think gym exercises are fine for getting my (upper body) muscles in shape again? Maybe I could continue with push-ups etc at home. (You never mention pushups or other calisthenics, so what’s your view of them?)
I’m also planning on covering the sprints at the gym because it’s a cold winter here… I did some sprinting outside in the summer. And as for walking I’ve multiplied the amount from what I used to do and have certainly noted the benefits (not on hair loss so far, unfortunately, but that’s another story..).
As for yoga, my physician was skeptical… but maybe that was because I may have been suggesting yoga as an alternative to the gym. (By the way, not sure if you consider yoga as aerobic exercise, or what?)

Thanks for reading Edwin. To answer your question – I don’t think there’s any concern for practicing a less intense form of yoga more often than 3x per week. Oftentimes, I group very light yoga into the same category as hiking (in terms of intensity), but with a different set of benefits.