Evolutionary biologist Dr. Herman Pontzer of Hunter College discusses the model of constrained energy expenditure and the metabolic adaptations that accompany high levels of physical activity.

Guest Bio

Herman Pontzer, PhD

Dr. Pontzer is an associate professor at the Department of Anthropology, Hunter College & City University of New York. He is an evolutionary biologist with a PhD in Biological Anthropology from Harvard University. He has published seminal work in the area of energetics, including viewing human energy expenditure via a model of constrained total energy expenditure. He s truly a world-class leader in this field and has been repeatedly recognized internationally for his research.

In This Episode We Discuss:

• Constrained vs. Additive model of total energy expenditure
• The physical activity paradox: Do highly active populations actually burn more calories?
• Why NEAT, movement efficiency and other metabolic adaptations can’t fully explain the paradox
• Why did we evolve this way?
• Why are human capable of expending so much energy in acute time frames?

Links & Resources

• Pontzer et al., 2016 – Constrained Total Energy Expenditure and Metabolic Adaptation to Physical Activity in Adult Humans
• Pontzer et al., 2015 – Constrained Total Energy Expenditure and the Evolutionary Biology of Energy Balance.
• Pontzer et al., 2015 – Energy expenditure and activity among Hadza hunter-gatherers
• Ruby et al., 2015 – Extreme endurance and the metabolic range of sustained activity is uniquely available for every human not just the elite few
• Twitter: @HermanPontzer

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