Halloween and Thanksgiving have come and gone. How did you do with your eating plan? Are you the type to just engorge all out on the holidays, or do you keep a cognitive journal and accountability for what and how much you eat? Christmas and New Years is now right around the corner and you and I both know those cookies, alcoholic beverages (if you drink), and home made casseroles are going to be wafting through the air left and right. How do you stay on track? Or do you even want to stay on track? Here's a few tips that you can do during the holidays to keep fat gain to a minimum.

1. How you should eat during the holidays will depend on your goal.

• Do you want to stay lean during the holidays and keep fat gain to a minimum? Well, then you will need to keep yourself accountable during your get-togethers and parties. You may have a mental checklist of how you’re going to eat, such as “I’m going to have 1 plate of dinner, 2 desserts, and 2 drinks for the night.” You may be the person to bring your food scale to the parties to precisely measure out portions (although, if you’re not in competition prep or dieting for something major or important, I think this is a bit extreme – just my opinion). You may be a bit more laid back and give yourself the right to eat whatever and however much you want… but in doing so, try and keep your carbs and fat intake earlier on in the day pretty minimal, to compensate for the big meal and desserts you’ll be having later. On the other side of the coin, if you don’t really care about gaining some body fat during the holidays, you won’t need much of a plan. Maybe you’ll continue on with your weight training program and nutrition plan all the way up until Christmas Eve and then go off and enjoy yourself for 2-3 days. How you’re going to eat during the holidays will reflect your priorities and goals. And again, there is no right or wrong way to do this. If you don’t care about added body fat and just want to “enjoy the holidays”, by all means, do that. If you want to stay lean and keep fat gain to a minimum, you will need a plan and will have to be more diligent in your approach.

2. How much you exercise during the holidays will also depend on your goal.

• We’re coming right back to what your goals and priorities are. As of right now, I’m dieting for a photo shoot I have coming up early next year, so I’m still very consistent with training 5 times per week, while also doing cardio 6 times per week. However, I will likely save one of my free meals for Christmas day, so that I don’t really feel like I’m dieting. I’ll also do a cardio session later on in the day, once I’ve eaten all my meals and the night is coming to a close. If I weren’t getting ready for anything, I most likely would have taken Christmas off from training and just enjoyed the day with my family (this is what I usually do if I’m not prepping for anything). If your goal is maintenance and keeping fat gain at bay, try fasting in the morning for a few hours, performing some type of high intensity workout the night before, and keeping your water intake high on the day you’re enjoying a bunch of food.

Truth: You won’t get a balanced bikini body by under eating and spending countless hours on the treadmill.

Contrary to popular belief, lifting weights will not give you a “manly” physique. As a professional in the fitness industry, I have heard many women say they are afraid of resistance training because they don’t want to lose their femininity and have a “bulky” shape. This is why I enjoy sharing my personal fitness journey because, well…seeing is believing and the proof is in the results. I am going to share with you my split training schedule, a complete workout schedule with exercises, reps, and sets formatted specifically for a competitive bikini body while also focusing on the importance of balanced training.

The high majority of the public turns to fitness for aesthetics. While aesthetics is definitely one of the reasons why we partake in balanced training, a reason of higher importance is functionality. Every day, whether we are in or out of the gym, we are causing added stress to our bodies. We pick up children, dogs, groceries, laundry etc. and often times with improper form. We are often sitting in cars or desks for extensive periods of time, unknowingly slightly hunched over with our shoulders rounded causing bad posture. At any given moment we can easily injure ourselves by simply doing day to day activities if we don’t make it a point to strengthen our bodies with resistance training. To start, I will share my current workout schedule and explain why I have chosen this particular split:

Bikini Workout Split

Day 1: Quad/Glutes/Abs

Day 2: Chest/Back/Abs

Day 3: Cardio Focus Only- No weight training

Day 4: Hamstring/Glutes/Abs

Day 5: Shoulders/Biceps/Triceps/Abs

Day 6: Glutes/Calves

Day 7: REST DAY

*Cardio will depend on your individual goals. Currently I only do cardio 5 days a week for 20- 25 minutes. My cardio consists of HIIT training, stairs, elliptical, or outdoor runs.

Looking at the schedule you will see each muscle group is touched throughout the week. Each workout starts with activation exercises to help warm up and activate the muscle. I choose movements that hit each part of the muscle evenly (ex: Shoulders = anterior deltoid, medial deltoid, and rear deltoid; each movement chosen will hit each head of the shoulder).

Should you train the same body part several times per week? 

You may have noticed that Glutes and Abs are touched on multiple times. I do this because those are areas where I retain most of my body fat. I recently added abs back into my training, but I make sure to only do body weight exercises. This helps me avoid thickening the muscle fibers in my abdominals and having a “square” shape. One of the main features that judges look for while on stage is the illusion of an “hourglass” figure.

When training glutes, I have different focuses for each day. I have seen the most results when I train glutes three days a week. The first glute training day is endurance focused, 12 – 20 reps, using only my body’s weight and bands. This type of training, when combined with shorter rest times between sets, helps to build muscular stamina. I typically do 4 to 5 sets of each exercise and rest 20-45 seconds in between sets. The second glute training day is all about hypertrophy. I do 8 – 12 reps for 4 sets, moderate weight, and my rest time is about 1 – 2 minutes. This helps build muscle. The third and final glute training day is focused on strength. This consists of 1 – 8 reps for 5 sets and I rest for 2.5 – 3.5 minutes in between sets. This will aid in building overall strength.

Activation and form is key to muscle growth.

Quads, hamstrings, and calves are broken up on different days, so I can really focus on activating those areas separately. When I trained these muscle groups on the same day in the past, I noticed my quads would take over during the movement and it was harder for me to activate my hamstrings. This resulted in slower development of my hamstrings and calves and over development of my quads. My past programs also usually consisted of 10 – 12 movements and my lifts would last over 2 hours. This compromised my form. I believe in quality of the movements over quantity of sets or reps. I have seen significant improvements in my physique since changing the style and split of my workouts. I am able to spend less time focusing on additional movements and spend more time focusing on form and activation of the muscle; form over everything is key!

Should females train chest? 

Unfortunately, chest is an area many females neglect. Why is it important for females to train chest? Let me first ask you; how strong are you at push-ups? Many women struggle with push-ups and often times it is due to weak chest muscles. Training chest will not only contribute to overall upper body strength, but it will also help aesthetically. Have stubborn “armpit fat”? Want fuller shoulders? Working chest engages the anterior deltoid (and that arm pit area) which can help fill out your shoulder caps. Throwing a couple chest exercises in your workout can also help engage and build a better back. After a few chest activation exercises and knocking out 2 chest movements, I head straight into my back movements. I include push and pull movements, while focusing on various hand positioning. Having my palms up allows me to target my lower lats. Narrow and wide grips can also target different areas of your back. If you have a goal of being able to do a pull- up unassisted, make sure you are incorporating back into your weekly split. Building your back will also create the illusion of a smaller waist.

Toned, Shapely Arms

On my Shoulders, Biceps, and Triceps day, I like to superset everything and really focus on hypertrophy training. I am not focused so much on strength for these areas, I want muscle definition. As I mentioned earlier, I make sure to hit each head of my shoulder. When I first started bodybuilding, I hit shoulders twice a week (I did one less glute day, so I could hit shoulders more) because my physique needed bigger shoulders to be competitive in the bikini division. Once I developed enough muscle in my shoulders, I dropped it back to just once a week.

Rest, Recover, Repeat

Another important component of my training calendar is the full rest day.  In this program, Day 1 is a lower body focus and Day 2 is focused on upper body. Those areas need time to recover, which is why Day 3 is focused on cardio and contains no weight training. Day 5 goes back to upper body, giving my lower half even more time to recover so that by Day 6 I am ready to go. Day 7 is a complete rest day, no cardio, and no resistance training. Give your body the rest it needs! Recovery is a crucial aspect of training that is often neglected and results inevitably in injury. I highly recommend taking extra care of your body, so you can continue making progress towards your goals. Recovery includes but is not limited to: stretching, foam rolling, tissue work, ice/heat therapy, proper sleep and appropriate supplementation.

It’s important to remember that there is no quick fix. Real results require real time. Rushing your transformation by turning to crash diets, PEDs, or joining team “no days off” will likely result in over training, injury, and yo-yo-ing that will only prolong your ability to reach your fitness goals in the long run. Commit to living a healthy lifestyle, rest when needed, and give your body the time it needs to build a balanced bikini body.

This workout split serves as an example on how to hit each muscle group to help you achieve a balanced bikini body. Your split may be a little different depending on your goals and current physique. You might not need to hit glutes three times a week but instead, another muscle group that needs more attention. The main take away is that you shouldn’t just train for aesthetics, nor should you avoid resistance training and head straight for the cardio machines. Train for longevity; train for functionality. You will achieve much better results and be rocking that bikini body before you know it!

-Breena Martinez, IFBB Bikini Pro

Click here to download this workout. 

QUADS/GLUTES/ABS

CHEST/BACK/ABS

HAMSTRING/GLUTES/ABS

GLUTES/CALVES

SHOULDERS/BICEPS/TRICEPS/ABS

CARDIO FOCUS: HIIT

*Editor’s Note: You can find Breena at @breenamartinez on Instagram or through her website www.breenamartinez.com.

Presented by: Iron Man Magazine, LLC, @ironmanmagazine

Written by: Breena Martinez, @breenamartinez

Photos by: Gilbert Martinez, @gilbert006

Say goodbye to frozen waffles. We’ve got your new favorite high-protein breakfast option.

In a Blender combine:

• 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
• 1/2 scoop vanilla flavored CutCake Protein from Gains in Bulk
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• small pinch of salt
• 1 whole egg
• 1/4 cup liquid egg whites (from a carton)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 large ripe banana
• 1/4 cup almond milk

Directions:

1. Add dry ingredients to the bender and blend for about 15 seconds
2. Add wet ingredients and blend for 30 seconds
3. Spritz a pan or griddle with non stick spray
4. Set griddle to 350°F
5. Cook for approximately 2 minutes on each side

Topping suggestions:

• peanut butter
• sliced banana
• a touch of syrup

Macros for 1 serving (3 large pancakes):

340 Calories | 38g Carbohydrates | 8g Fat | 28g protein*

*without toppings

Recipe by Cori Baker, @cori_fit. Cori is a former IFBB Bikini Pro, home taught baker, and professional taste tester. Look for more recipes from Cori inside our upcoming Fall 2019 Magazine Issue that will be released in August.

What is Flow?

Flow is the state of achieving optimal performance by being completely absorbed in the present moment. Individuals who have experienced the state of flow describe it as “being in the zone” or having complete focus and a sense of control over their performance. When we experience flow, we have heightened awareness and a decrease of the self-consciousness that we may have once had about our performance ability.

Flow state is universal, meaning it can be experienced by anyone and in various areas of your life. For example, bodybuilders can hack flow state by being completely immersed in their given task. Ask any bodybuilder why they love to lift weights, and you are guaranteed that their passion stems beyond seeing the physical results. Lifting weights gives you an opportunity to push past your comfort zone and reach new depths of slight discomfort, which is a trigger for flow state and can significantly increase your performance in education, sports, and the workplace.

When we experience flow state, we turn off our prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for memory and decision making. This allows us to experience what is called the “deep now,” and once this happens our inner-critic is silenced and we are able to experience exponential growth in our performance. Flow also produces norepinephrine, anandamide, and other endorphins that allow us to stay calm(1), increase our muscular reaction time, and relieve pain.

According to Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (2), one of the greatest researchers of flow state, the eight characteristics of flow state are:

1. Complete concentration on a task
2. Clarity of goals and reward in the mind, and immediate feedback
3. Transformation of time
4. Rewarding experience
5. Effortlessness and ease
6. Balance between challenge and skills
7. Actions and awareness are merged, losing self-consciousness
8. Feeling control over a task

Who experiences flow state the most?

Research has uncovered that athletes who have the most successful performances have the following traits in common:

• They are able to regulate their emotions. Peak performance athletes have learned how to gain control over their thoughts and feelings. Part of this has to do with how they perceive certain physiological symptoms. For example, some people may perceive having butterflies in their stomach as feeling nervous, whereas others enjoy this feeling and take it as feeling excited about the competition. Techniques that athletes can use for self-regulation include meditation and mindfulness, intentional self-talk, imagery, and deep breathing to heighten focus.

• They have just the right amount of confidence. Top level athletes understand that setbacks are just a part of the process. These athletes do not have the luxury to not critique their mistakes but, they do not dwell on them either. Another way to increase confidence is to remember past performance experiences where you did an amazing job. Being able to focus on the positive helps provide security when the pressure to do your best is on.

• They are able to concentrate better. Some athletes intentionally use distractions during training to learn how to shift their attention appropriately. In addition, they remember that once a mistake or a bad play is made, it is now out of their control. The only thing that they can do is to learn from the experience and focus on what they can do in the moment to do their best.

• They stay committed. This may seem like common sense, but there are many feats in our everyday life that can stray us from reaching our goals. These athletes were able to stay on track by surrounding themselves with like-minded people who have similar goals, and by writing down their daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly goals so that their dreams are always on the forefront of their minds.

• They are not self-conscious. When we are in this heightened state, we are no longer concerned about our actions or the actions of others. We are completely immersed in the moment and not distracted by our own negative thoughts that interfere with producing record-breaking results. This means that we leave our ego at the door, and do not fear failure.

So how do we hack into a flow state?

Here are the top characteristics that you need to practice to experience this state of mind:

1. Be present: When we experience flow, our actions and awareness are in sync. This means that we are completely aware of ourselves and have the ability to be completely immersed in the relevant task. When we experience this, we are able to perform with comfort and ease. Being present is a skill that requires practice. We can learn this by creating a pre-performance routine to get focused, or by practicing mindfulness to learn how to have present moment awareness.
2. Receptive to Feedback: Research shows that feedback can be valuable in helping us to achieve our goals. When we are able to listen and understand what we need to do to perform better, we are able to focus on how we can achieve the level of performance that we desire. For this, it is important to understand that feedback must be specific for it to be productive. For example, a “good job” is not detailed enough. Explain what went well and describe what changes can be made to make improvements.
3. Total concentration: People who have experienced flow explain that they are completely focused on the relevant task. Being able to achieve this state can be difficult when there are many distractions that can get in the way. One activity that performers use to heighten their concentration is a concentration grid (3). This grid is an exercise that teaches the brain to respond better under stressful situations.
4. Enjoy what you do: Most individuals who achieve higher levels of flow do so because of the internal fulfillment that they experience. This intrinsic satisfaction from simply doing the activity has been explained as “feeling exhilarated.” Even though we are not always able to enjoy every task on our list, it is important to find an activity that you are passionate about. If you no longer find joy in what you do, then perhaps it is time to find a new approach or interest that is stimulating.

A contributor of the Huffington Post (4) on flow state said, “Living a life of meaning and of depth requires us to step outside of our comfort zones, to challenge our own ideas and create innovative ways to optimize our time on this earth. The mental state of flow catapults our minds out of the mindless humdrum of everyday life and closer to a meaningful existence.” Flow has been an exciting component of research for understanding how to reach optimal performance levels. There is still much that needs to be discovered about how far we can push the limits of the human body. With this in mind, it is important to remember that motivation can come from winning or breaking a new record but, the truest gift lies within being able to experience pure joy in our favorite activity.

About Sarah Burnap:

Sarah’s career path first began when she joined the Marine Corps when she was eighteen. After her enlistment, Sarah began to explore her options and found her passion for encouraging others through fitness, coaching, and teaching. Sarah has over 10 years of experience in personal training, coaching and communications consulting with Special Operations service members, entrepreneurs, and professional and amateur athletes from many diverse backgrounds. After completing her bachelor’s in communications, Sarah found that empowering others to thrive under pressure stemmed from having the right mindset. Sarah is currently completing her masters in sports psychology and continues to fulfill her mission of encouraging others to be more resilient by teaching mental skills to help people overcome barriers and reach their full potential.

Contact information: info@sarahburnap.com | Instagram: @sarah_burnap

REFERENCES

1. https://www.flowgenomeproject.com/

2. https://positivepsychologyprogram.com/mihaly-csikszentmihalyi-father-of-flow/#Mihaly-Csikszentmihalyi

3. http://concentrationgrids.com/

4. https://www.huffingtonpost.com/alayna-kennedy/flow-state-what-it-is-and_b_9607084.html

With the popularity of 24/7 fitness centers and home gyms, one can seemingly get in an exercise session whenever convenient for their lifestyle.

While it’s good to get in the reps whenever you can, is there a specific time of day better suited for exercise? The answer, according to science, may be determined on what type of exercise you are performing. Whether you are a night owl or a morning person, we are all governed by our body clock, otherwise known as the Circadian clock or Circadian rhythm. Our Circadian clocks tell our brains when we should sleep, when it’s an optimal time to digest food, when to increase blood flow and when to decrease.

According to Satchin Panda, author of The Circadian Code, the Circadian rhythm is a 24-hour rhythm in which “almost every hormone, every brain chemical, every digestive enzyme and so on is pre-programmed to peak at a certain time of day and then tap out at another time of the day. It’s an in-built schedule for different programs to do different things at the optimal time, and these timing mechanisms are the Circadian rhythm.” (1)

Hormone production goes hand-in-hand with our Circadian rhythm.

This includes cortisol, a hormone that promotes fat storage and muscle breakdown, and melatonin, which helps prepare the body for sleep. Cortisol production is highest during the first two hours of waking. However, the testosterone hormone, key to muscle growth, also peaks in the morning. Since cortisol levels spike during any workout, a decision on what type of exercise to perform in the morning shouldn’t be based on cortisol production.

Muscle Building

However, if you are looking to increase muscle building by lifting weights, there needs to be a certain amount of energy level for optimal performance. To achieve that energy level, it is recommended that you eat at least two meals prior to weightlifting.

Additionally, the Circadian rhythm also regulates body temperature, which changes throughout the day. A person’s body temperature is generally lowest in the hours just before and after awakening and highest in the late afternoon. The time for peak muscle development occurs near a person’s peak body temperature.    

Weight Loss

Conversely, if your goal is to lose weight, cardio exercise is best done in the morning on an empty stomach or immediately after ingesting a small amount of protein or a fat burner. After being asleep all night, the energy you have ready to burn for the cardio exercise is mostly in the form of stored fat.

So, the best time to do cardio is right when you wake up. This also helps boost your metabolism, which will help you burn more calories throughout the rest of the day than you would if you had worked out at night.

The best time for weightlifting, according to the Circadian rhythm, is in the afternoon. Testosterone is still high, you’ve had a chance to get in a couple of energy meals, and it is within two to three hours of your body’s peak temperature. The energy levels promote more strength, which leads to more muscle stimulation and growth.

While morning and afternoon workouts are optimal for peak performance and results, not everyone can exercise at those times. Perhaps your hometown gym isn’t open early or those times interfere with work or family obligations. In fact, some of the greatest male and female bodybuilders of all time have lifted early in the morning or throughout the evening as necessary due to schedules.  

Remember, gains will be seen by doing the work no matter when it gets done. Consistency trumps all, but from a cellular and Circadian perspective, these are the times to maximize your gains.  

By: Jon Johnson

1. “How our body’s circadian clocks affect our health beyond sleep” – The Verge June 12, 2018.  

Bread is often vilified when it comes to reducing fat, building muscle and overall health, but is bread really all that bad for you? We’ve been eating bread for thousands of years, yet, millennia later, it’s basically considered death by the slice. What gives?

Popular eating plans gives–that and the way we make bread nowadays.

Low Carb, Keto, Atkins, you name it, along with bread made to have a long shelf life instead of delivering nutritious carbs, and it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that bread is awful for you. The truth is, it isn’t black-and-white when it comes to bread.

Think Bread Glycemic Index

Bread is not the enemy so much as its glycemic index (GI). This holds true even when comparing white bread to whole wheat, and even when compared to other foods not sold at a bakery.

GI is a rating from 0-100 of how much a carb will affect blood sugar. The higher the number, the higher your blood sugar spikes and forces your body to release insulin to mitigate it.

Low = 0-55
Medium = 56-69
High = 70-100

T.H. Chan from the Harvard School of Public health said, “Eating many high-glycemic-index foods–which cause powerful spikes in blood sugar–can lead to an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and [becoming] overweight.” Basically high glycemic foods lower performance and health in “most” cases.

Generally, you and your body want low. The lower the GI, the slower you digest, absorb and metabolize it, and the easier it is on your body. However, as an athlete, you have specific needs, and they’re not all that complicated. It’s all about timing.

Glycemic Load: The Other Half of This Whole Carb Thing

Glycemic index is a fairly familiar term for those who are conscious about what they put in their body every day. There’s one other factor that comes into play: glycemic load (GL). GL is simply how much a food item will raise your blood sugar per serving.

Low = 0-10
Medium = 11-19
High = 20+

For all you math lovers out there, here are two examples of GL:(1)
1. The Glycemic Load (GL) of a potato (GI around 90) containing approximately 18 grams of carbohydrate is 18 x 90% = 16.
2. The GL of an apple (GI around 40) containing approximately 15 grams of carbohydrate is 15 x 40% = 6.

Catherine Saxelby explains the math by saying, “The potato will produce a blood sugar rise three times that of the apple. When foods have similar amounts of carbohydrates, GI will have the greatest influence on blood sugars. When the amount of carbohydrate in a portion differs the best way to predict blood sugar effects will be via the GL.”

For all you non-math people: low GL is good most of the time. And yes, someone’s already done all the math and put quite a few food items in a useful chart (see link in next section).

Carbs Athletes Need

You actually need a mix of low and high GI carbs: low for a steady supply of energy your muscles can use, and then high GI carbs for recovery. You want just the right amount of low GI carbs to minimize creating a scenario where your body goes catabolic and starts eating away at its own muscle mass for energy. The high GI carbs have the same effect.

Sydney University made this useful chart if you’re looking for an easy way to figure out a food’s GI and GL. However, for some quick references, here’s a couple of charts that might surprise you.

Interestingly, how you cook certain foods, including potatoes, has a dramatic effect on the GI of a food, but here’s the thing: using just a food’s glycemic index to gauge how it’ll affect your blood sugar levels is outdated. GI doesn’t take serving size into consideration.

Here’s a look at those same foods and their glycemic load:

Once you put the serving size into focus, the GI of many foods isn’t as bad as it looks. While they’ll raise your blood sugar faster, in the end, they won’t raise it all that much. What makes such a huge difference?

• Fiber
• Processing
• Ripeness
• Fat & acid content

Fiber acts as a great equalizer, slowing down the conversion of the carbohydrate to glucose. Processing usually strips away fiber and other nutrients, making it easier to spike blood sugar levels. When it comes to ripeness, riper produce are higher up on the glycemic rating. And finally, fatty and acidic meals are slower to be converted to sugars.

Glycemic Numbers and Weight/Fitness

Research so far shows a trend that both insulin resistance and insulin secretion play a role in body weight regulation. A pilot study published in the American Diabetes Association said, “Healthy overweight women and men with relatively greater insulin secretion in response to a standard oral glucose tolerance test lost more weight when assigned to a low–glycemic load hypocaloric diet than to a high–glycemic load diet.”

When it comes to weight management, the bottom line is counting calories, making sure every last calorie counts nutritionally and glycemically.

“Results of a 16-year study that tracked the diets of 120,000 men and women were published in 2015. Researchers found that diets with a high GL from eating refined grains, starches and sugars were associated with more weight gain.”

Now, you are either completely confused or it is one of those AHA moments where you understand Glycemic Load is actually more important than Glycemic Index the majority of the time. So lets cut to the chase of what carbohydrates you should consume to achieve optimal gains. You want low glycemic before and high glycemic after to maximize performance, recovery, and growth.

Height, weight, age, gender, genetics and so on all affect what your body needs nutritionally. The best way to determine the optimal diet is blood work. Still, here’s what research is able to show so far:

In a study on the glycemic index and athletic performance published in the ACSM Health & Fitness Journal, researchers compared low- versus high-glycemic-index meals on time trial performance in eight male cyclists. They found that time trial performance was significantly improved in the low-glycemic index trial compared with the high-glycemic index trial.

Researchers concluded that “The improvement in time trial performance for the low-glycemic index trial may be associated with an increased availability of glucose to the working muscles, contributing additional carbohydrate for oxidation and possibly sparing limited muscle and liver glycogen stores.”

A study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition on women (yeah, a study on women and performance) showed that a low Glycemic meal before exercise improved fat burning and reduction versus a high glycemic food or meal.

After exercise, research shows that a high glycemic load meal or foods can dramatically improve sleep (recovery) and reaction times versus a low glycemic meal, UNLESS you exercise in the evening. If you exercise in the evening (after 5:00 p.m.), a high glycemic meal actually hurts fat burning benefits you would have received from your workout.

Details, details. Let’s finish with detailed instructions for you to guarantee the greatest benefit from eating bread or any other carbohydrate.

1. Stick to lower glycemic load foods the majority of the time. These foods include vegetables, all berries and most fruits (contrary to popular belief). The more dense and whole the grain is, the better the glycemic load. Wheat bread is better than white as far as GL but even denser breads, like Ezekial, are better.
2. Have a higher glycemic meal or food after exercise, unless you exercise in the evening. If exercising in the evening make sure to have low glycemic meal after to ensure you get the fat burning benefit of the exercise. If you have a sweet tooth and feel the need to have the occasional cookie or sweet, make sure to consume it right after your morning or afternoon exercise routine.

Is bread dead? Only if you want it to be. Research shows you can fit it into a plan that creates a shredded muscular physique if you know your numbers and time it right.

REFERENCES

1. https://foodwatch.com.au/blog/carbs-sugars-and-fibres/item/what-do-gi-and-gl-mean-and-what-s-the-difference-between-them.html

2. http://care.diabetesjournals.org/content/28/12/2939

3. https://journals.lww.com/acsm-healthfitness/Fulltext/2011/01000/Glycemic_Index_and_Athletic_Performance.11.aspx

4. https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/carbohydrates/carbohydrates-and-blood-sugar/

5. https://www.glycemicindex.com/foodSearch.php?ak=list&food_name_search_type=cn&food_name=&gi_search_type=gt&gi=70&gl_search_type=lte&gl=&country=&product_category=&lop=AND&find=Find+Records&page=4

6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6267571/

7. https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/84/2/354/4881821

8. https://www.nature.com/articles/nutd201626

The last time I threw my back out was over two years ago while pushing my deadlift limits. I knew I shouldn’t have tried that last set. My recent lower back spasm occurred while just messing around here at the house this last Memorial Day weekend, literally doing nothing. This latest occurrence was probably the worst to date. I just laid there on the floor for a good while in pain before my wife could even help me get up. That first 24 hours, I could barely walk and it was really more like a shuffle. Besides the obvious pain, the other bad thing about all this is that I am a personal trainer and extremely active. My whole day is built around my workouts where I design new programs, as well as film and photograph content for sponsors, clients, and followers worldwide. Working out is my livelihood.

At age 42, I have to say I am in the absolute best shape of my life in regard to how I look and feel. I am a natural pro men’s physique three-time Champion and Master World Champion. The silver lining about this most recent low back injury is that I am in my ‘off-season’ and not looking to step on the pro stage again until 2020. Regardless of competing, I worked very hard to build what muscle I have naturally and to keep my body fat levels at a good, lower level. Enduring an injury like I just had can be tough both physically and, possibly more so, mentally. When you workout as much as I do, it’s likely that depression might set in; this could affect your attitude, motivation, and, most importantly, nutrition. Getting even a slight injury has the potential of setting us back if ground rules are not set immediately.

I ended up staying out of the gym for nine days, which is the longest period I can remember not working out since I started back up 6 years ago. I didn’t weigh myself the entire time I was down in fear of what I might see. After a week of my ‘staycation’, I gathered up the will to jump on the scale and was surprised to see that I didn’t gain or lose anything. I want to share some tips to help prevent injury, as well as key things I learned from my recent experience, to help you keep your hard earned progress if injured. While I will mention specific things I did to recover during my low back injury, most of these tips will apply to any injury that has you sidelined for a few weeks.

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Preventative practices: Here are a few things to help reduce the chances of an injury occurring in the first place.

Take rest days seriously!

My recent lower back injury didn’t happen while exercising. I had no pain or indication that my back was at risk at the time. When one is very active, sometimes things just happen. But, I have to admit, I haven’t taken my ‘rest days’ seriously. Lately, I started doing extra HIIT cardio even on my off day, which is typically Sunday. From now on, I am taking a true and dedicated recovery day where I might go on a light walk with the family at most.

De-load more frequently

De-load weeks keep you active, but are less intense to allow your body to fully recover. Simple guidelines can include less volume, 60-70% weight, higher reps, and stopping before failure. It’s more than muscle that needs recovery, but also tendons, ligaments, and the central nervous system. I talk about and do de-loads, but just not as frequently as needed. I get so into progress and pushing my limits that I let the months slip by without ever scheduling a lighter week for deeper recovery. I truly think this is why I had my recent back spasm. I went too long without a de-load. Moving forward, I plan to schedule a de-load week once in every 8 week period.

Belts and straps

Tools such as lifting belts, wrist straps, and knee wraps all have their place. I typically use these aids when the weight gets heavy and they are needed for me to fully work the target muscle. For example, I don’t want my upper back progress to suffer if my grip is holding me back. As the weight builds, it’s not a bad idea to give your lower back, wrists, elbows, and knees extra support.

Warm up and stretch

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I don’t know about you, but when I get to the gym I am always antsy to start lifting. Working out is something I look forward to each day. Often times, warming up can seem like an inconvenience so we just skip it. Warming up and light stretching is important! On the minimum take 5 minutes to row, jog, or even walk to warm your body up and lubricate joints. Then, depending on the workout, take a few extra minutes to do some light stretching and mobility work. I’ve had shoulder issues in the past, so I always take time to do shoulder mobility work before heavy chest and shoulder sessions. Nowadays, I go through a quick series of stretches for my lower back, including the yoga poses: Child’s Pose, Cat/Cow, and Knees to Chest. A total of 10 minutes to warm up and stretch just might prevent a week or more lost down the line. I personally will be much more consistent in this area moving forward.

Recovering from injury: These are the things I did to help recover from my recent back spasm. None of this advice should replace seeing a medical professional. If you are injured, visit your doctor.

• Rest: When it first happened, my primary goal was to rest and not make it worse. Almost every position was uncomfortable. I used a lot of pillows to find positions that didn’t hurt and just laid. Getting a full nights rest, and not my typical 5-6 hours, was important too. I made sure to get a full 8 hours the week following my injury so my body could heal itself.

• Icing: I did a lot of icing the first 48 hours. I kept the ice packs on for 15-20 minutes at a time with breaks in between each session.

• Anti-inflammatory: I took a healthy dose of ibuprofen and pain reliever every 6 hours. Get your doctors recommendation before taking any medication.

• Moving: After the first 48 hours, I was able to move easier. At this point, it was important for me to get up and walk around every 30 minutes or so. As mobility increased, I started going for longer walks outside, being careful to not overdo it.

• Light stretching: After the first 48 hours, when things started to loosen up, I started doing some light stretching including the Child’s Pose, Cat/Cow, and Knees to Chest.

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Staying on track while down: When our normal routine gets disrupted, like not being able to workout or even move, it can be easy to do one of two things: 1. Not eat enough and lose weight, including muscle. 2. Eat too much of the wrong things and gain fat. After months of hard work, it would be a shame to lose hard-earned progress in a week or two. Here are some important tips to follow when you are out of the gym for several weeks due to injury to help you stay on track.

• Moving: After my low back strain I started walking when I could for mobility, but also to burn some calories. Something is always better than nothing. Getting outside for fresh air can also help with the depression that often sets in with an injury. Guilty! Depending on your injury, find a safe way to start moving when you can.

• Eating lighter: This is an important one. Do your best to stick to your normal eating and water drinking schedule. Try not to skip meals. We need to support muscle maintenance with nutrition but, since fewer calories are being burned, we don’t need to bring in as many calories. While I was sidelined, I did my best to eat very clean and lower carb. My breakfast was one scoop of whey isolate, one whole egg, and five egg whites.

• Staying hydrated: This can be challenging while not being as active, but do your best to bring in the same amount of water as normal. I think this is even more important while we are not able to workout. Besides all the health benefits, being fully hydrated helps us feel fuller so we don’t overeat.

• Supplementation: I made sure to keep my personal supplementation protocol going even though I wasn’t working out. This included my morning vitamins, whey isolate to keep my protein macro count up, and even creatine and glutamine. Taking some of these may not have been absolutely necessary, but I personally wanted to foster an internal atmosphere of recovery and muscle retention.

After a ten day break to heal I was able to get back to one of my favorite places- THE GYM! I might have been able to go in a few days earlier, but I felt it was important to have extra days to recover. The first week back I was careful with my exercise selection, weight, and intensity. Any type of injury is no fun. I wish we could all stay injury free, but accidents happen. The next time you are sidelined with a low back injury, or any injury, I hope these tips help you stay on track and keep your gains.

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Author: Michael Wittig, ISSA CPT
Natural Pro 3x Champ
Kaged Muscle Athlete
IG:  @WittigWorks
WittigWorks.com

As a pro figure competitor and mother living in a small rural town, I often find myself getting pulled in a million directions, whether it be chasing my goals in sport, trying to maintain children’s needs or making sure that I look and feel my best. I love my lifestyle, but I’ve learned the hard way that I’m not invincible, and fatigue, stress, and burning out can and will happen if I don’t take care of myself. Over the past 3 years, I have competed on average of 6 times a year while trying to lift heavy as well as keep and grow muscles in a very competitive class. In need of balance and relief from constant knee and joint pain, I heard about CBD (cannabidiol) oil. It was also being touted as help against stress and anxiety that at times affects me.

CAN I PASS A DRUG TEST IF I TAKE CBD?

I am a conservative person by nature and compete in an organization (PNBA) that does Olympic level drug testing where THC (the active ingredient in marijuana) is banned.   Unsure if CBD could really help me and worried about legalities (even morally), I cautiously tried a CBD oil blend that showed it was free of banned substances including THC and was absorbed better than regular CBD oils.  This was important because the research I saw showed that most CBD oils were only absorbed by about 5%. ¹

It was time to delve further into the research because the results were immediate and overwhelmingly beneficial.  I found that CBD, a compound found in hemp has many benefits like helping with inflammation and anxiety. CBD is nonpsychoactive, which means you can’t get a high when using it. “Cannabinoids attend to the endocannabinoid system, which is a network of receptors found throughout the whole body — and is about homeostasis. The endocannabinoid system regulates a variety of biological and cognitive processes like pain sensation, mood, and memory.  The CBD oil I take does just that; I feel focused and even more exciting, I finally had pain relief.  My knees and shoulders stopped hurting, whether I’m lifting heavy in the offseason to build muscle or high volume in season while I’m trying to cut.

Although this is just one Iron Woman’s experience with CBD oil, I’ve learned about a plethora of research showing many benefits of CBD oil. Here is a short list of what CBD has been proven to help with:

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Another important note is that no longer dealing with knee or shoulder pain, I was able to tremendously increase my weight in all my major lifts, thus helping to build even more muscle and recover quicker!  I know CBD has helped build muscle.  I also deal with some anxiety issues, and the CBD works great for me allowing me to focus better on the mind muscle connection.  It has also been proven in research to help with anxiety⁶.

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Bottom line

If you are wondering if CBD oil can help you, but you’re worried about the legalities, know that true CBD oil without THC is legal in all 50 states for personal use and use in drug tested sports.  There are many banned ingredients you can buy in the store, so to have an option like this for those of us who compete in tested sports, makes CBD oil that much more exciting.  My suggestion is to make sure the company you buy your CBD oil from confirms it is THC free, WADA compliant and can be absorbed well.  If they meet every criteria except absorption, make sure to take your CBD after a meal that contains fat. Research shows fat increases absorption thus making CBD oils that you already like work even better.

Written by Hilary Grant | PNBA Pro Figure Competitor, ISSA Certified Trainer, Business Owner, and Mother | @naturalfitsisters

References

1. https://www.gainsinbulk.com/blog/THORx/

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3079847/

3. https://www.drugabuse.gov/about-nida/legislative-activities/testimony-to-congress/2015/biology-potential-therapeutic-effects-cannabidiol

4. https://www.jci.org/articles/view/64628

5. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5009397/

6. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4604171/

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Scrolling through any bodybuilding, weightlifting forum or page as a relative beginner can be quite a daunting experience. In addition to being thrown various kinds of supplements that supposedly helps you build muscle, you’re also recommended all sorts of brands that majority of “seasoned” veterans swear by.

Do they all work? In a way, yes. Majority of the advice you receive is done in good faith. But, are they necessary? Not exactly. In fact, you could save yourself a lot of trouble (and money) by simply trying to eat a balanced diet. No supplements, just healthy meals.

But, you’re not here for that, are you? You’re here because you need help. Specifically, you need help choosing a mass building supplement.

Don’t worry. We’ve got you covered.

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Why the Need for Smart Gainers?

“Smart Gainers” is a term used to refer to a wide range of mass building supplements that help increase lean muscle gains without bulking you up for size’s sake.

It’s important to keep in mind that not all mass gainers are the same. A huge majority did not try to improve on their old formula and may be lacking in essential amino acids, as well as being packed full of fillers such as sugar, among other things.

Five most important things that you should look for in a smart gainer:

1. A High-Quality Protein Source

A high-quality protein source is necessary for any mass-gainer, which is why protein comes in.

Essentially a byproduct of cheese production, whey used to be discarded in the past. But, once its nutritional value was discovered, manufacturers started to process it separately to become what is now referred to as “whey protein” — arguably the most common type of ingredient used in supplements consumed frequently by gym-goers and bodybuilders alike.

Most people looking to build mass get majority of their protein intake from whey protein, which is some 25-50 grams of protein, with the rest of their protein requirements being filled by their daily meals.

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Another alternative to whey is casein, which is a slow-digesting protein that doesn’t stimulate muscle build-up as much as whey but can provide a steady source of amino acids during and after working out. Casein, compared to whey, is much more effective at helping reduce the amount of amino acids used by the human body to fuel the muscle breakdown process.

These are the two types of protein worth taking note of if you want to build muscle and gain mass. Science has proven time and time again that casein and whey are far superior to building muscle than any other protein out there, including vegan and vegetarian alternatives.

When looking for a smart gainer, you want efficiency above all else. That’s what you get when you go with high-quality proteins, such as casein and whey, as your supplement of choice.

2. A Good CHO:PRO Ratio

The CHO:PRO ratio, otherwise known as the carbohydrate-to-protein ratio, of a product is another important factor to consider when looking for a smart gainer to use on a daily basis, especially for your pre-workout.

Most people think negatively of carbohydrates. They think that carbohydrates = fat. But, that’s not exactly true. The truth is, carbohydrates play a key role in the muscle-building process. They give your body the necessary energy or fuel to push through your day-to-day routine, including your workouts. Not to mention, a carbohydrate imbalance in your body can result in poor recovery items.

Going to the gym and working out is a strenuous physical activity. If you’re not careful, you might find yourself low in muscle glycogen levels, which can severely slow down your body’s ability to build strength and gain muscle.

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Even though both carbohydrates and protein play different roles in building muscle, they go hand-in-hand to make sure you get the most efficient gains possible. In fact, multiple studies have shown that pre and post-workout muscles paired with a healthy dose of carbohydrates and protein are great for building muscle and recovery as opposed to just consuming either one of the two.

Of course, everybody’s needs are a little bit different. You may not be as active as the next person, and vice versa. You may also have different body types. But, when it comes to smart gainers, a good CHO:PRO ratio to stick with is 2:1. But, if you need help keeping up with your daily carbohydrates needs, going 3:1 may be necessary.

Either of the two ratios are ideal and are backed by sound science.  A 4:1 CHO:PRO ratio might also be necessary if you’re doing endurance-training for long-distance marathons.

3. A Variety of Carb Sources

You can’t just consume carbohydrates from a single source. If you did that, your body won’t be able to metabolize the necessary amount of carbohydrates to meet its daily needs. Because of this, more and more mass gainers in the market included mixed carbohydrates as one of its ingredients to try and keep up with the demands of the market.

By using different types of carbohydrates that are metabolized using a different transporter, smart gainers using mixed carbohydrates make it possible to meet your daily carbohydrate needs more efficiently.

Among the most common types of carbohydrate sources used are glucose, sucrose, fructose, and maltodextrin.

The use of mixed carbohydrates is one of the key reasons why you may want to ditch your old mass gainer and find something newer that actually uses multiple sources.

4. Essential Amino Acids

The human body relies on amino acids to help make its protein to help the body break down the food that we eat. Although there are many different types of amino acids (as many as 20), only 9 are referred to as essential. The worst part is that our bodies do not naturally produce these said amino acids, which is exactly why we have to rely on supplements.

These amino acids include leucine, isoleucine, methionine, lysine, threonine, phenylalanine, tryptophan, valine, and finally, histidine.

Each of these amino acids plays their own role in the human body. Some help reduces post-workout muscle damage and improves recovery, while others help minimize the amount of amino acids burned during your workout session. But, all in all, these amino acids work in conjunction with each other to make the muscle-building process as efficient as possible.

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Of these nine essential amino acids, however, one stands out the most. Leucine is an amino acid that studies have shown help kick-start the biological process necessary for building muscles.

Make sure to pay close attention to the leucine content of your mass gainer. It’s not unusual for some products to try and skimp on leucine to make their products cheaper.

Ideally, a smart gainer should have a minimum of three grams of leucine and contain additional essential amino acids, as well as extra BCAAs.

5. Digestive Enzyme Blends

Just to make a quick recap, one of the key reasons why whey protein is considered the best type of protein out there for muscle-building is because of how fast our body breaks it down and absorbs it. Because of its quick breakdown rates, the human body is able to use the protein from whey protein to fuel muscles quickly.

The importance of absorption rates has led manufacturers to start experimenting and doing research on using digestive enzyme blends to help increase the bio-availability of their product, which is basically the portion of their product that enters the bloodstream and absorbed by the human body.

The results? According to the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, 60 grams of pea and rice protein with digestive enzymes were able to match the muscle protein synthesis capabilities of whey protein.  That is a significant jump, all things considered. This also explains why more and more manufacturers are starting to recognize the importance of using digestive enzymes to make their smart gainers more effective.

Think of digestive enzymes as the train, and key fuel sources such as amino acids and glucose as the cargo. Normally, these fuel sources travel at a pretty fast rate throughout your body and are absorbed rather quickly. But, with the use of digestive enzymes, muscle protein synthesis rates are improved. As a result, the “train” travels much faster and is able to deliver the cargo in much less time.

The increased absorption and digestion rates have plenty of benefits as well.  For example, if you’re planning on building muscles and bulking up, taking smart gainers with added digestive enzymes can help your body handle your daily calorie intake better and more efficiently.

A Quick Summary of our Smart Gainer Buying Guide

Mass gainers are great. They are one of the best ways for you to meet your daily nutritional needs without overdoing it with calories. Not to mention, they’re much more convenient to take compared to incorporating more protein and carbohydrates to your typical meal.

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Just keep in mind that not every mass gainer is the same. Some may have been considered high-quality in the past, but have since failed to keep up with the times. Because of this, other mass gainers may be more effective, not to mention, cheaper.

This is why it’s important that you do your research and choose the mass gainer that contains the necessary ingredients to make sure that your gains are achieved safely and in an efficient manner.

Here is a quick recap of the five key ingredients that a smart gainer should ideally have:

1. A high-quality protein source such as Whey or Casein.

2. A mixed carbohydrate source as opposed to a single carbohydrate source.

3. At least a 2:1 carbohydrate-to-protein ratio.

4. A high concentration of essential amino acids, specifically, leucine.

5. Uses digestive enzyme blends to help improve both absorption and digestion rates.

The Bottom Line

It’s not unusual to try and obsess on making sure that we are making the most out of our bodies. It’s only natural for us to want the best out of ourselves, which is where these supplements come in for those who prefer to bulk up and/or add lean muscle to their frame.

These supplements can definitely help in that regard. However, supplements can only do so much.

Taken from the name itself, supplements are simply what they are – supplements. They should not be your main sources of nutrition and gains. Instead, they should be used to supplement your daily workout routine and meals, which, ideally, should also contain a healthy mix of protein and carbohydrates, as well as the necessary ingredients.

Make sure that you have your meal plans and exercise routines down first before you resort to using smart gainers to help you achieve your fitness goals.

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We are all unique in our own special ways. This is not just a quick personal development pep talk, but to gently say that along with our individual physique strengths we also have our particular weak areas. Our bodies are shaped the way they are based on family genetics and usage. Through resistance training we are able to shape our God-given bodies in new ways. While we cannot change our height, bone structure, or shape of a muscle, as these elements are predetermined by genetics, we can greatly enhance what we have. All humans have the same 600 some muscles. Yes, you do have abs! The length of our muscles and tendons as well as the number of muscle fibers are set. But through proper nutrition and exercise we can decrease body fat levels and increase the size of our muscle fibers greatly altering our appearance. We cannot make our bodies to look exactly like someone else, but through strategic exercise we can make dramatic changes. 

Several of my personal ‘weak areas’ would be my calves and general upper body width (back and side shoulders). Being a naturally tall and thin guy these have been problem areas my entire life. Instead of just accepting defeat I educated myself, devised a battle plan, and went to work. Making major changes to ones body is not a quick process. You have to be patient and n for the long haul, but your efforts will be rewarded. While I still don’t have the biggest calves they are much improved and nowadays I frequently get compliments. Here is my best advice to turn your weak points into highlights.

Prioritize

Place a special focus on the muscle groups that are lagging. We often have the mindset that we have to work thighs, hamstrings, and then calves last. Or when working shoulders we need to do our overhead presses and finish with rear delts. While in general this is normal protocol sometimes we have to work outside the box. For example when I am focusing on developing my calves I often start my leg workout with calves while I am full energy. Switching things around changed the game for me. A shoulder workout can start with rear delts! Amazing revelation right? Don’t be afraid to break what is normal and train for your own body. These next two concepts are apart of prioritizing, but important enough to have their own paragraphs. 

Frequency

Work your weak points more than just once a week. You can’t really go wrong working them twice weekly. Depending on the muscle group and your recovery level a few touch up sets a third round every now might be beneficial as well. 

Volume

It’s important to consider not only the number of sets during a specific workout, but also the weekly volume which we talked about above with frequency. A lagging muscle group requires more than just 3-5 sets of a couple exercises. An exercise can be done for 6, 7, 10+ sets! Who knew? Bigger muscle groups like the thighs, chest, and back can handle more total sets in a week. I’ve gone up to 20 sets for a given muscle group in a single session and 30+ in a week. Everybody responds differently to volume, but the point is to give your weak areas more attention than normal. 

Intensity

At the end of the day workout intensity stands above most other concepts when it comes to muscle growth. I’ve been asked before what ‘intensity’ means. To me it means absolute focus, single mindedness, and the desire to get as much results from every single rep. Workout intensity is the desire to be uncomfortable and to work a muscle until it has nothing left. Listen to this: exercises are generally more intense with proper form and when a slower tempo is used. Ones mind often gives out before the muscle. You always have to ask yourself, “Can I do one more rep?” Don’t stop just because you did 10, 12, or 15 reps. Muscles don’t count, they can only feel. I always tell me personal training clients, “I don’t care about 12. Do more!” There are so many methods, programs, scientific articles, but your workout intensity will generally supersede them all. 

Beyond Failure

One way to increase workout intensity is by going beyond failure. What does that mean exactly? It means lifting to absolute muscular failure with good form and then doing more! If you have a lifting partner common techniques include:

• Forced Reps: A partner provides minimal assistance to finish the positive (concentric) portion of the lift. 

• Negatives: Upon failure a lifting partner may help or completely lift the weight and you lower the weight slowly. Our strength to do the eccentric portion of a lift will surpass that of the concentric lifting of the weight. 

I generally workout solo and often use these methods to go ‘beyond failure’: 

• Drop Sets: Once failure is reached quickly reduce weight and continue with reps. Multiple weight reductions can happen in a single set. 

• Pause-rest: This is one of my favorite techniques. Once muscular failure is reached take a quick 4-10 second rest and continue on with the set. This can be repeated any number of times each set. 

Tracking

Keeping a record of your workouts is vital for progression. I can barely remember what I did yesterday let alone what exercises, exact sets and reps, and weights used last week. Use a notebook or your phone to keep detailed notes of each workout. Over time work to do more weight and/or more reps. 

Weak Point Cardio

This is a method I use often especially when prepping for a natural pro show. It’s a twist on HIIT cardio where I hit an intense interval followed by a quick set to work on a lagging muscle group. There are unlimited variations of this idea. Have fun with it and get those extra sets in. 

Example 1

If I am focusing on my side delts I might do the following:

1. Jog for one minute
2. Lateral Raises with resistance band: 15 reps. 

Repeat 7-10 times. 

Example 2

When working on back width my ‘Weak Point Cardio” might be:

1. Stationary Bike: 20 seconds all out. 
2. Stationary Bike: 30 seconds moderate. 
3. Wide Grip Chins: 12 reps.
4. Stationary Bike: 40 seconds moderate.

Repeat 5 times. 

Recovery

All this extra work to bring up a weak point is wasted if you are not priming yourself for recovery. The muscle building cycle involves breaking down muscle fibers then doing everything we can to recover so they grow bigger and so we can do it all over again. Focus on these things to maximize your recovery potential: 

• Sleep: This is sometimes difficult with family and work, but try to get at least 7 hours of sleep nightly. The quality of your sleep is important too. Try to stay off your phone several hours before bed, or at least turn on the ‘night shift’ option on your screen changing the screen light to warmer colors. 

• Nutrition: This is the foundation of health and any physical change. The what you eat, how much, and when are all important. If you are looking to drop body fat eat in a clean calorie deficit. When trying to build muscle eat in a clean calorie surplus. These calories are made up of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates. While everybody is different there are standard macronutrient percentage breakdowns that are a good place to start. Seek professional help if you need assistance in this area or follow a reputable ‘program’ that outlines detailed nutrition protocol. 

• Hydration: Being that our bodies are made up mainly of water it’s only natural that we need a lot of it to functional properly. Staying fully hydrated gives us energy, helps us lose body fat, and build muscle. Best of all it’s typically free! Drink a glass of water immediately upon waking to start the day off right. I personally bring in about a gallon of water daily. And yes, I visit the bathroom often. It’s one of the sacrifices I make to be healthy. 

• Supplementation: Nutrition and workout intensity are always most important. But when those things are in place proper supplementation can help a little. I work hard enough that even ‘a little’ extra energy, focus, and recovery matter to me. Extraordinary lifestyle requires extra-ordinary nutritional support. The basics include whey protein especially post workout, creatine, and glutamine. Look for quality brands that are third party tested and contain no artificial colors or flavors. 

Patience

Natural muscle growth takes time especially when dealing with parts of the body that are stubborn. Make a commitment to yourself to be in this for the long haul and never quit. You’ve heard the saying, “Anything worth while takes time.” A killer set of calves is definitely a worthy goal. 

My weak points will always be a work in progress, but by being consistent with all the methods mentioned above they are slowly turning into highlights. By happy with who you are, but always strive to push your boundaries and improve. 

-Wittig, ISSA CPT

IPE Natural Pro 3x Champ

All socials: @WittigWorks

WittigWorks.com

Super convenient for meals on the go, killer macros, easy to prep in bulk, and oh so tasty!

• 12 Round Wonton Wrappers
• 1.5 cups Liquid egg whites from carton
• 1 small can of diced green chiles
• 1TBS of your favorite red salsa
• 2TBS unsweetened almond milk
• 4 slices Canadian Bacon, chopped into very small pieces
• 1/4cup 28grams shredded sharp cheddar cheese
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp taco seasoning
• Pinch of salt
• Black pepper to taste

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1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Into a large mixing bowl add egg whites, Canadian bacon, almond milk, green chile, salsa, seasonings and mix well.
3. Heavily spray each cup of a muffin tin with cooking spray.
4. Carefully place a wonton wrapper in each cup and form a cup shape with the wonton wrapper, be careful not to puncture the wrapper.
5. Measure 3 TBS of the mixture into each cup. (Try to evenly distribute the ingredients)
6. Measure out the cheese and sprinkle a little bit on the top of each cup.
7. Bake for 19-21 minutes or until cooked through.
8. Allow to sit for a few minutes before removing from muffin tin. These are even better with salsa and plain greek yogurt or sour cream on top!..

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Recipe by Cori Baker, @cori_fit. Cori is a former IFBB Bikini Pro, home taught baker, and professional taste tester. Look for more recipes from Cori inside our upcoming Fall 2019 Issue that will be released on August 13th.

Foods for Athletic Performance and Recovery

We’ve explored the use of spinach for athletic performance and recovery, attributed to its “anti-inflammatory effects.” But most athletes aren’t using spinach to beat back inflammation. They use drugs, typically nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (otherwise known as NSAIDs, like ibuprofen, aspirin, naproxen, etc.) are used by up to 95% of collegiate athletes, and even three-quarters of kids playing high school football, including prophylactic use, in an attempt “to prevent pain and inflammation before it occurs. However, scientific evidence for this approach is currently lacking, and athletes should be aware of the potential risks, which include “gastrointestinal pain and bleeding, kidney damage, and liver damage”.

However, the study that freaked everyone out was published in the BMJ Open back in 2013. A study followed thousands of marathon runners, and showed five times the incidence of organ damage among those taking over-the-counter painkillers before the race. Nine were hospitalized: three with kidney failure after taking ibuprofen, four with gastrointestinal (stomach or intestinal) bleeding after aspirin, and two heart attacks, whereas none of the control group not taking painkillers ended up in the hospital. And, it looks like the drugs didn’t even help. According to the study: “Analysis of the pain reported before and after the racing showed no identifiable advantages gained from taking analgesics”; so, it appeared to just be all downsides.

What about using ginger instead? In that marathon study, the most common adverse effect of taking the drugs was gastrointestinal cramping. Ginger, in contrast to aspirin or ibuprofen-type drugs, may actually improve gastrointestinal function. For example, endurance athletes can suffer from nausea, and hey, ginger is prized for its anti-nausea properties. Yeah, but does it work for muscle pain?

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There’s been at least eight randomized, double-blinded, placebo-controlled trials of ginger for pain—everything from osteoarthritis, to irritable bowel, to painful periods. I’ve made videos about all those, as well as its use for migraine headaches. According to the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, overall, ginger extracts, like the powdered ginger spice you’d get at any grocery store, were found to be “clinically effective hypoalgesic [pain-reducing] agents and the available data show a better safety profile than non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.” In some of the studies, the ginger worked better than in others, which is thought to be due, in part, to the different doses that were used, as there’s a strong dose-effect relationship. The best results, in terms of reduction of pain, were with one-and-a-half or two grams a day, which is a full teaspoon of ground ginger.

Ginger or NSAIDs

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs work by suppressing an enzyme in the body called cyclooxygenase 2 (aka COX-2), which triggers inflammation. The problem is that the drugs also suppress cyclooxygenase 1 (aka COX-1), which does good things, like protect the lining of your stomach and intestines. So, since blocking of COX-1 is associated with gastrointestinal irritation, if only we could selectively just block the inflammatory COX-2, that would offer the best of both worlds. And, that’s what ginger seems to do. According to a study out of the University of Illinois (and published in a peer-reviewed journal called Fitoterapia—an entire journal dedicated to the medicinal use of plants), when you look at the effect of two ginger compounds against COX-1 , (the “good” one), there was no effect. (Which is what we’d hope for.) However, ginger can dramatically cut down on COX-2 (the pro-inflammatory one). Perfect!

Okay, so ginger may be ideal for fighting inflammation, but does it work for muscle pain? Not acutely. That is, you can’t just take it like a drug. According to a study in the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism, if you give people a teaspoon of ginger before a bout of cycling, there was no difference in leg muscle pain over the 30 minutes. However, an article from the journal Phytotherapy Research showed that “ginger may attenuate the day-to-day progression of muscle pain.” Another study, published in Phytotherapy Research, showed that taking ginger five days in a row appears to “accelerate the recovery of maximal strength” following a high-load weight-lifting protocol. Put all the ginger studies together, and a single dose of ginger doesn’t appear to help, but a teaspoon or two for a couple days or weeks (say in a pumpkin smoothie or something), and you may be able to reduce muscle pain and soreness, and accelerate recovery of muscular strength.

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So maybe now you’re thinking about incorporating ginger into your routine, and maybe you’re wondering: Is fresh ginger preferable to powdered? Maybe not. There are all sorts of compounds in ginger with not terribly creative names (like gingerols, gingerdiols, and gingerdiones) but the most potent anti-inflammatory component may be a compound called shogaol. And, according to the Journal of Ethnopharmacology, “Interestingly, dried ginger contains more of the 6-shogaol than fresh,and this “justifies the use of dry ginger for traditional systems of medicine for the treatment of various illnesses due to oxidative stress and inflammation.” Why not then just give the extracted shogaol component in a pill by itself? Because, while each of the active ginger components individually reduces inflammation, some more than others, but the whole ginger is greater than the sum of its parts.

Safe, Natural, Inexpensive, Plant-Based Remedy

But you can boost the shogaol content of whole ginger by drying it. According to a study published in the journal Phytomedicine, the content of shogaol is boosted when ginger is dried. However, heating ginger may increase shogaol concentration even more; so, could heated ginger work better against pain than raw? You don’t know, until you put it to the test! According to the Journal of Pain (I know, it sounds more like a death metal band than a medical journal, doesn’t it!? It’s actually the official journal of the American Pain Society). Anyway, in an 11-day study, weight lifters were given either a teaspoon of raw ginger versus ginger that was boiled for three hours.. A significant reduction in muscle soreness a day after pumping iron in the cooked ginger group, and… the same benefit from the raw ginger. Either way, the study concludes that the “daily consumption of raw and heat-treated [dried] ginger resulted in moderate-to-large reductions in muscle pain following exercise-induced muscle injury.” Now that you know what the evidence says about ginger, I hope your next recovery can be a little easier with this safe, natural, and inexpensive plant-based remedy.

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Dr. Greger is a physician, New York Times bestselling author, internationally recognized speaker on nutrition, food safety, and public health issues, and founder of NutritionFacts.org. Dr. Greger is a founding member and Fellow of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and specializes in clinical nutrition. He is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Agriculture and Tufts University School of Medicine. Both his latest books, How Not to Die and the How Not to Die Cookbook, became instant New York Times Best Sellers and all of his book proceeds are donated to charity.

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Heba Ali, the 22-year-old Jordanian and CEO of Evolve Nation, is taking the fitness world by storm by digging deep into the mental psychology of fitness and sharing it with the world. Doing so has allowed her to establish herself as a successful personal trainer, transforming not only her client’s bodies but their mindsets.

Heba showed off her INSANE hybrid training style in her most recent Instagram post and got everyone at the Iron Man headquarters jaws to drop as she went through a series of intense Hybrid Training workouts in deep beach sand.

Check out the post below:

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Step into every situation like you’re meant to be there! Don’t think about circumstances, ‘what if’s’ or the idea of failing. Just go in blindly and believe that you will get through it. Honestly, that’s how majority of my workouts go, I love the adrenaline rush that comes with trying something new and testing my limits. Some will say it’s “excessive”, I say it’s evolving…Stare down the challenge and make it happen. Comment if you agree and tag a friend #sharethemessage Wearing: @womensbestwear

A post shared by Heba Ali هبة علي (@evolve.nation) on Aug 6, 2019 at 12:31pm PDT

Check out a full week’s work of Hybrid Training with Heba Ali in the Fall 2019 issue of Iron Man Magazine.

Families come in all shapes and size. Mine happens to be me, my wife, two sons (15 and 13), and two twin daughters (9). However your family looks, you are living life together. While getting healthy is a personal decision, it’s a lot easier when the whole family is on board. Improving your personal fitness level will help increase your energy, strength, and keep you around longer to be with your loved ones. Often times, we find ourselves so ‘busy’ that we don’t make time for ourselves. But we should view taking 30-60 minutes to workout as an investment into our future. It’s hard to provide and be present if we are hung up in the hospital down the line. If your family happens to include children, remember, you are their biggest influence. Healthy habits you help them develop now could carry over into adulthood and make an impact on their children. Your decisions now could potentially affect generations of your family. Taking steps to improve fitness is a lot more fun when done together. It can also help bring a family together and create new positive memories. I am a personal trainer and love fitness, but my family is far from perfect. I am pretty sure my family is similar to yours if you have children. They sometimes fight, don’t listen, make messes, and want to play video games all day. I am not writing this telling you my family is doing everything right, but we are taking deliberate steps to ‘do better’ on a daily basis. This article is not only to inform you, but to also share some of my family’s personal struggles and how we are actively working to improve situations. Here are seven things that can help your family get healthier on multiple levels:

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1. Eat Healthy Together

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It’s really difficult for one person in the family to try to make a lifestyle change with nutrition if other members of the family are eating whatever they want. A cleaner diet can benefit the entire family, even those with faster metabolisms who never seem to gain weight. Remember someone can be skinny and unhealthy. Eating better as a family starts with a running grocery list, scheduled weekly trips, and having healthy food available. If parents don’t buy the packaged processed foods, the family can’t eat it. I know from experience you will get some resistance, but having healthier options available is a great start. Try to eliminate or reduce ‘fast food’ and save restaurants as family events for the weekends. When at home, do your best to eat together as a family. Go old school and physically sit at the same table together. Sit those phones face down or better yet don’t have them at the table. Regular family dinners without distractions is a great way to connect with your loved ones and hear about what is going on in their lives.

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2. Drink Water

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Just like with food, your family is going to drink what you buy. I encourage having less calorie-filled, sugary drinks available in your fridge. If kids get hooked on soda early in their lives, it will become something they may battle their entire lives. Drinking calories is so easy and one of the worst things we can do. Try to get your family drinking more water. Being fully hydrated will give your family more energy, strength, and help regulate weight. When you do have flavored drinks look for some with no sugar, low calories, and no artificial colors or flavors.

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3. Workout Together

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Doing workouts together is a fun way to increase the entire family’s fitness. It’s a good introduction for just starting out, or can be an addition to your current fitness program if you’re already a gym-goer. These home sessions can be done in a living room or driveway without any traditional equipment. Here are a few tips for exercising with children of all ages:

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• Keep it short and focused: I typically keep family workouts around 15-20 minutes. You want them to work, but not dread these sessions.
• Focus on form: When working out with my nine-year-old girls, I don’t have them use anything but bodyweight and small household items like balls, chairs, or cans. At that age, it’s not about how hard you can push them, but teaching them how to move their bodies correctly and form. Then just do your best. It’s not going to be perfect with small kids.
• Have fun: More than anything, make your family home workouts fun. If your kids and family enjoy this time together it’s something they will want to continue doing. I will oftentimes let my kids make up their own exercise for us all to do.

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Here is one short workout you can do with your entire family:

Rest Periods: Try to keep them at 60 seconds, but rest as necessary.

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Warm-up: Jog in place for 30 seconds

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Superset 1: Do these two exercises back to back without rest for one set. Do 3 sets total.

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1a. Jumping Jack Sumo Squat: 3 sets of 10 reps

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(Note: Start in the sumo squat position with legs wide and toes out. When you squat down, focus on keeping your hip down, torso upright, and knees behind the toes. Get the knees back by shifting the booty back. If possible touch the ground while at the bottom position while keeping good form. As you raise back up to the standing position reach up high with your arms. Do a jumping jack by bringing all your limbs in together at the same time and then back out. Now you are ready for the next sumo squat.)

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1b. Jog in place: 3 sets of 30 seconds.

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(Note: This is called active rest. Keep this light. Maybe not today, but eventually work towards having no real standing rest, but jog then get right back to another set.)

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Superset 2: Do these two exercises back to back without rest for one set. Do 3 sets total.

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2a. Walk Out Jump Up: 3 set of 5 reps.

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(Note: Start in a standing position. Reach down to the ground right in front of your feet. Bend your knees as necessary. Slowly walk your hands out until you are in a push-up position. This is when your hands are right under your shoulders. If you are able, do a push up here. If it’s too difficult, skip the push-up part. Then walk your hands back to right in front of your feet and jump up high. If you have bad knees or you are not ready to jump at this point just stand up. Then start the next walkout.)

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2b. Jog in place: 3 sets of 30 seconds.

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4. Reduce TV Time

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I’m not saying to completely cut out TV.  I have my favorite shows as well. But instead of making it your go-to every night try changing things up a little. Something my family will occasionally do is take turns playing a favorite song on Alexa. Sharing songs from the past always turns out to be a good time. I heard ‘Old Town Road’ for the first time this way from my 8-year-old. But then I threw ‘Ice Ice Baby’ by Vanilla Ice at them. There was a lot of laughing going around. Other non-TV fun things to do before or after dinner is to play short games like Old Maid, Left Center Right, or Trivia. After dinner, our kids love playing charades. Often times we make our own theme and cards. The other night we had a ‘Stranger Things’ themed charades round. We still watch TV, but we make efforts to do other things that help the family to interact and laugh.

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5. Play Together

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I hope your family will start working out together, but don’t stop there. There are so many other ways to be active as a unit. When it’s not crazy hot go for a family walk. My kids will sometimes ride their bikes and scooters alongside us. If it is incredibly hot in your area go to a local pool and swim it up. You can even take it digitally as most gaming systems have interactive challenge games like ‘1-2 Switch’ where you have to dance, run in place, or pretend to sword fight.

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6. Turn Off Devices

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I am going to sounds like my parents now, but things are completely different for kids here in 2019 from when I was growing up. Nowadays phones, apps, Youtube, and Roblox are apart of life. When I was younger I remember swimming and riding my bike all day with my friends. There were no cell phones and iPads. We did love our OG Nintendo though. You know I rocked some Zelda and Metroid. This is an area my family is still working on, but it’s important to have boundaries with devices. I encourage giving kids set amounts of screen time that they have to earn or can lose with bad behavior. This also goes for the parents. Being in the fitness industry I am on my phone a lot. I have to work hard to not always have it in hand when spending time with the family. I try to have a cut off time for carrying my phone with me. Around 7 pm I sit it on the counter so I stop endlessly scrolling for no reason and spend time looking at the faces of my family.

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7. Encourage Each Other

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The world can be a tough place. Here at home our family members should always feel safe and loved. It’s a fact of life that siblings will fight, but we don’t allow unkind talk. You know they do it anyway, but we put a stop to it immediately. Encourage your family to do activities that will help them to be healthier in body, spirit, and mind.

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-Michael Wittig, ISSA CPT

IPE Natural Pro 3x Champ

All socials: @WittigWorks

WittigWorks.com

I just released a free ‘Family Home Workout Series’ that contains detailed workouts with videos and PDF’s as well as nutrition and lifestyle guidance. Start it free HERE: https://wittigworks.wordpress.com/2019/07/28/family-home-workout-series-is-live/

What did the gladiators eat?

Never thought we’d get the chance to know…until now! Recently, the remains of dozens of Roman gladiators were discovered in a mass grave in the country that is now Turkey. The clue to their identities were the rather distinct types of mortal injuries they found, like being speared in the head with a trident. Using just their skeletons,  archaeologists were able to reconstruct how these gladiators’ lives—and deaths, including the death blows. They were also able to show just how buff they really were, and even try to reconstruct their “diet of barley and beans.” You can look at carbon isotopes and see what kinds of plants they ate; nitrogen isotopes reflect levels of animal protein intake. You can also look at the sulfur in their bones and the amount of strontium to determine how much animal protein these ancient IronMen were eating. Based on these skeletal analyses using old bones and modern technology, leading commentators submit that the best athletes in ancient Rome ate largely plant-based diets.

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Then there were the legionnaires, the Roman army troopers, famed for their abilities, also eating a similar kind of diet. According to the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine,  “The best fighters in the ancient world were essentially vegetarian.” So, if the so-called “perfect fighting machine[s],” the great sports heroes of the day, were eating mostly grains and beans, should that tell us anything about sports nutrition and the preferred diets of elite athletes? Well, according to research published in The Journal of Nutrition, most of the Greeks and Romans were “basically vegetarian” and centering their diets around grains, fruit, vegetables, and beans, so maybe the gladiators’ diets weren’t that remarkable for their time. Plato (known for being an ancient Greek philosopher but was also an accomplished wrestler), for example, pushed plants, preferring plant foods for their health and efficiency.

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So yes, “the Roman gladiators were known as [the] ‘barley men.’”

But is that because barley gives you strength and stamina? Or was that just the basic food that people ate at the time, not necessarily for performance, but because it was just so cheap? Well, if you look at “the modern Spartans,” the Tarahumara Indians of northwest Mexico, the ones that run races where they kick a ball for oh, 75 miles just for the fun of it, running all day, all night, and all day, maybe 150 miles if they’re feeling in the mood. What do you get if you win? According to the American Heart Journal, you’d win “A special popularity with the  women (although how much of a reward that would actually prove to be for a man who had been running for two days  and a night is questionable to say the least!” though maybe their endurance extends to other dimensions). According to this same journal article, “Probably not since the days of the ancient Spartans have a people achieved such a high state of physical conditioning.” And what did they eat? The same kind of 75 to 80 percent starch diet based on “beans, corn, and squash.” And, they had the cholesterol levels to prove it, total cholesterol levels down at an essential heart attack-proof 136. And it’s not some special genetics they have. In a study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, if you feed Tarahumara Indians the S.A.D. (aka the Standard American Diet), that is, you feed them enough egg yolks, and their cholesterol creeps right up. In fact, the Tarahumara Indians’ cholesterol levels became dangerously elevated the similarly observed in Americans eating a lifelong diet high in cholesterol content.

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Modern-day Olympian runners eat the same stuff.

What are they eating over there in Kenya? A 99 percent vegetarian diet centered mostly around various starches. But as in all these cases, is their remarkable physical prowess because of their diets, or in spite of their diets? Or have nothing to do with their diets? You don’t know…until you put it to the test.  According to the International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, “In spite of well-documented health benefits of [more plant-based] diets, less is known regarding the effects of these diets on athletic performance.” So, they “compared elite vegetarian and omnivore…endurance athletes for [aerobic fitness] and strength.” So, comparing oxygen utilization on the treadmill, and quad strength with leg extensions. And the vegetarians beat out their omnivore counterparts for “cardiorespiratory fitness,” but their strength didn’t differ. Suggesting, in the very least, that vegetarian diets “do not compromise the athletic performance and may facilitate aerobic capacity in athletes.”

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But this was a cross-sectional study. Maybe the veg athletes were just fitter because they trained harder? Like in the National Runners’ Health Study looking at thousands of runners: vegetarian runners were recorded running significantly more on a weekly basis; so, maybe that explains their superior fitness. Though, maybe their superior fitness explains their greater distances.

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Other cross-sectional studies have found no differences in physical fitness between vegetarian and non-vegetarian athletes, or even worse performance, as in a study of vegetarian athletes in India. However, in this study, the authors pointed out that there could be socioeconomic or religious factors that confounded their results. We need interventional studies to put different diets to the test and then compare physical performance.

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Dr. Greger is a physician, New York Times bestselling author, internationally recognized speaker on nutrition, food safety, and public health issues, and founder of NutritionFacts.org. Dr. Greger is a founding member and Fellow of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and specializes in clinical nutrition. He is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Agriculture and Tufts University School of Medicine. Both his latest books, How Not to Die and the How Not to Die Cookbook, became instant New York Times Best Sellers and all of his book proceeds are donated to charity.

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Plant-Based Athletes

Historical examples of successful plant-based athletes range from the gladiators in ancient Rome (as I wrote about in Iron Man in the Fall issue) to the Tarahumara Indians who run 160-mile races for the fun of it: six back-to-back marathons.  But the diets of these plant-based athletes weren’t put to the test until the last century or so. The Yale Medical Journal of 1907 purported to show “beyond a reasonable doubt that the flesh-eating group of athletes was very far inferior to the abstainers”  and the meat-eaters fared worse than even sedentary vegetarians! Meaning it’s not like the veg athletes just won because they were training harder or something. There are certainly advantages to plant-based eating; according to The Journal of Sports Sciences, more antioxidants in your bloodstream increase your ability to combat “exercise-induced oxidative stress”, and the anti-inflammatory nature of many plant foods that may “accelerate muscle repair” and strength recovery.  But, do you have to eat this way for years, or decades or your whole life to get these apparent benefits?

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What if you took a couple guys in Texas, eating their regular Texan diet, put them through a maximal exercise test, then asked them to cut out the meat for four days, told them about the existence of bean burritos, then after four days tested again, measuring time to exhaustion, ramping up the treadmill to see how many minutes could they go without collapsing? According to this study performed at the University of Texas,  there was a significant difference, favoring the vegetarian diet, boosting the time to exhaustion by about 13 percent. Each of the subjects, all five, “had a higher time to exhaustion following  a vegetarian diet.”

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But who noticed the fatal flaw to this study? Anyone catch it? They were all in the same sequence—meat diet first then veg diet. And any time you do a test a second time, you may do better just because you’re more familiar with it. If they then went back to eating meat, and their performance tanked during a third test, then you might be onto something, but this isn’t very convincing. And even if the effect is real, it may not be the meat reduction per se, but a function of improved glycogen stores from eating more carbs or something.

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However, according to the textbook, Vegetarian Nutrition, if you put athletes to a vegetarian versus omnivorous diet for a 621-mile race—(you’ve heard of a 5K? This is a 1000K!)—and you make sure to design the two diets so all of the athletes in both groups  get about the same percentage of carbs, the finishing rates are identical, and total times within just a few hours of each other.

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These findings were similar to those in a recent article from the European Journal of Applied Physiology which showed the same thing with sprinting: randomize people into veg or mixed diet groups, and no significant difference in sprint power between the two groups. They conclude that “acute” vegetarianism has no apparent adverse effects, but no apparent performance benefits either.

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Same with strength training

A study published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise measured “maximum voluntary contraction” of both biceps and quads “before and after each dietary period,” of a plant-based and then meat-based diet and no significant difference either way. Put all the studies together comparing physical performance in these kinds of randomized, controlled trials, where you have folks eat more plant-based for just a few days or weeks, and: “There appeared to be no differences at least acutely between a vegetarian-based diet and an omnivorous diet in muscular power, muscular strength, or aerobic performance.”

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Long-term, though, a plant-based diet can be conducive to both endurance performance and health. From The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, “Whereas athletes are most often concerned with performance, [more plant-based] diets also provide long-term health benefits and a reduction in the risk of chronic disease,” associated with a reduced risk of developing coronary heart disease—the number one killer of men and women—”breast cancer, colorectal cancers, prostate cancer, type 2 diabetes, insulin resistance, hypertension, cataracts, and dementia.” As a young plant-based bodybuilder once wisely said, “Doesn’t matter how shred, if you’re dead!”

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Hope you are enjoying this series about plant-based nutrition and athletes. Speaking of which, I was honored to be a scientific consultant for an amazing new documentary about diet and athleticism called The Gamechangers, which will be debuting September 16, 2019. Check it out at http://gamechangersmovie.com/

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Dr. Greger is a physician, New York Times bestselling author, internationally recognized speaker on nutrition, food safety, and public health issues, and founder of NutritionFacts.org. Dr. Greger is a founding member and Fellow of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine and specializes in clinical nutrition. He is a graduate of the Cornell University School of Agriculture and Tufts University School of Medicine. Both his latest books, How Not to Die and the How Not to Die Cookbook, became instant New York Times Best Sellers and all of his book proceeds are donated to charity.

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While you might hear some hardcore lifters shout “No days off” the truth is the majority of us need our rest. Many of us work really hard in the gym pushing ourselves to the limit. While our goals might vary from muscle building, strength training, sports performance, or just general health we all want results. Proper nutrition fuels our workouts and the recovery process that follows, but when we rest is when the real magic happens. All the heavy sets, forced reps, slower negatives, drop sets, and methods we use in the gym have the ultimate goal of damaging muscle fibers. Intense resistance exercise, especially the eccentric movements or the lowering of weights, cause microscopic tears in the muscle fibers. You may feel the effect of these tears days after a workout in the form of DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness). During our rest periods is when the body uses nutrients to repair these tiny tears making the muscle fibers thicker in the process.

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We rest minutes between sets and place days between working the same muscle group, but sometimes a deeper type of recovery process is needed so we can forge new ground. You may have heard the term ‘de-loading’, but not be aware of its importance in your total fitness program. De-loads are typically a week-long of less volume and weight to allow for more recovery. Recovery is needed for more than just muscles, but also tendons, ligaments, the central nervous system, and hormone levels. I prefer to de-load rather than just taking time off the gym because I just like working out but also to maintain what I’ve worked hard to build. I incorporate de-load weeks into my programming every other month. I lift extremely intense for seven weeks then de-load on the eighth week. Doing it this way prevents taking back steps. This deeper recovery will help make you stronger all-around to do new things in the following weeks.

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How to De-load:

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Do 60-70% less volume (number of sets) and weight than normal. Don’t lift to failure, but stop several reps before. Keep the workouts basic and short. I tend to do my movements slower and really try to feel each rep. Avoid exercises that stress your central nervous systems like heavy deadlifts, barbell squats, and HIIT cardio.

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Get more out of De-loading:

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• Warm up and stretch: Since the workouts are shorter spend extra time warming up and stretching especially problem areas. I do some moderate incline walking for 10-15 minutes as a warm followed by some yoga stretches for my lower back and hamstrings. If I am working chest or shoulders I’ll spend extra time with shoulder mobility work.
• Get good sleep: Do your best to get quality sleep. One thing that really helps is to stay off devices several hours before bedtime. Go to bed a little earlier or sleep in just a bit to give your body extra time to repair itself.
• Do steady state cardio: Instead of HIIT or intense cardio stick to moderate recumbent biking or incline walking for your post workout cardio.
• Allow pain areas to rest: We all have our individual pain areas. For me it’s my lower back and lately, my left So when I de-load I lay off movements that put extra stress on my lower back (deadlifts, heavy back squats) and brachioradialis (hammer curls).
• Keep nutrition tight: Since these workouts are lower intensity and are shorter you will be burning less calories than normal. Keep your nutrition on point so you don’t gain any unwanted fat. If you are going to have a treat do it on leg day when you will burning more calories.
• Recovery add-ons: This is the time to incorporate additional recovery techniques such as foam rolling, massages, ice baths, salt baths, cryotherapy, infrared sauna, etc. These things can be beneficial anytime, but if you don’t do them regularly make time during your de-load to try a few things out.

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De-Load sample workouts:

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Legs:

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1. 1. Leg Extension: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
   2. Leg Press: 3 sets of 12-15 reps (stopping at 90 degrees)
   3. Hack Squats: 3 sets of 12 reps
   4. Single-Leg Extensions: 3 sets of 15 reps, each side
   5. Seated Leg Curl: 4 sets of 12-15 reps
   6. Standing Calf Raise: 4 sets of 12-15 reps

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Back:

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1. Wide Pull Downs: 3 sets of 12-15 reps
2. Seated Rows: 3 sets of 12 reps (wide, elbows out)
3. DB Rows 3 sets of 15 reps, each side
4. Straight Arm Pulldowns: 3 sets of 12-15 reps (hinged)
5. Concentration Curls: 3 sets of 12-15 reps, each side
6. Dual Cable Curls: 3 sets of 12-15 reps

After your short de-load week you’ll be itching to step the intensity back up. This is also a great time to reset mentally. Incorporating these planned de-load weeks every other month will help reduce the risk of injury and prime your body for the best results in weeks to come.

Annihilate to Motivate,

Michael Wittig, ISSA CPT

IPE Natural Pro 3x Champ

IG: @WittigWorks

FB: @WittigWorks

TW: @WittigWorks

WittigWorks.com

This question crosses my mind every time a Quarterback gets sacked and breaks their collar bone. My point of reference is Nick Foles, QB for the Jacksonville Jaguars.  He broke his collar bone in the first game of the 2019 NFL season.

When it comes to strength training, you might not think that one of the quarterback’s most essential lifts would be the bench press exercise. However, it is absolutely essential for them to do some form of bench press because the improved development of the chest muscles will protect the collar bone and the sternum. Muscles are like shock absorbers. When the quarterback is thrown to the ground, nine times out of ten, he hits the ground upper body first. Strength and good development of the chest muscle (using the bench press), is the best “protector” of the collarbone when getting slammed to the ground.

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The bench press exercise not only improves the chest; it also strengthens the pecs, shoulders, and triceps. Digging deeper we will find more reasons to validate why the bench press exercise should not be overlooked – especially for such a skilled position as the quarterback. The chest and clavicle (collarbone) region is also referred to as the “Pec Girdle” (see below). The chest or pec muscles arise at the 1/3 medial position of the clavicle and run down the sternum. This is a good indicator of a muscle being able to protect the collarbone/sternum region.

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The chest muscles are involved in rotating the upper arm outward, i.e. when the quarter draws back his arm to set up the pass (known as “retroversion”) and then brings the arm forward toward the body (“anteversion” ). This combination of movements is considered the most important function of the chest muscles.

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The chest muscles have a little brother called the pectoralis (pec) minor. This muscle lies underneath the pectoralis (pec) major. It protects the ribs – another part of the body that often gets injured among quarterbacks. The chest press exercise also strengthens the pec minor. More specifically, the dumbbell version and the incline bench press.

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The pec minor muscle function is what is referred to in Biomechanics as the “depression” of the shoulder girdle. Simply put, when a quarterback brings his arms inward along with the shoulders to protect himself. The pec minor is also activated to protect the ribs.

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My first recommendation for QB strength training would be the bench press w/dumbbells and the incline bench press. The dumbbell version will decrease the stress around the shoulder joint area which will minimize any over-training to the shoulder region so as not to affect his skill throwing work.

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Secondly, I would advocate heavier lifting of 6-8 reps in order to stimulate muscle growth.

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As a sports trainer, I hate hearing of quarterbacks getting sacked and breaking a collarbone, especially when the quarterback’s upper body seems thin or underdeveloped. There is no guarantee a QB will not injure his upper body, even if his development is good. However, the athlete must take every precaution and not neglect his upper body training. Good strength and upper body development is mandatory to protect himself and his career.

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Written by: Ramsey Rodriguez

Check out this link: https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/27568751/jaguars-foles-breaks-clavicle-indefinitely

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HEALTH FOOD STORES SELL BANNED SUPPLEMENTS!

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For the most part, parents, coaches, athletes, and fitness-minded individuals, ranging from high school to mature age, do not intentionally consume banned substances. By “banned”, we mean that the World’s most prestigious sports performance organization, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), has deemed the substance to be unhealthy and/or prohibitive to performance.

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MODELS: NEVAEH GRANT & SEAN LEWIS      PHOTO CREDIT: HUNTER BYRON

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Most people wanting to achieve the best health and performance, whether they’re wanting muscle mass or fast fat loss, frequently turn to supplementation.

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With these goals in mind, you look at pre-workouts, protein powders, fat burners, and other performance-enhancing nutrients and buy what you believe is the best and most beneficial. Many times, you buy them simply because a social media influencer with a million followers posted a testimonial, the pretty packaging, or because it’s what you saw in your fit friend’s cabinet.

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We buy supplements while never even thinking of the possibility that some of those products may contain banned ingredients. The point needs to be made that many banned substances are sold to you within supplements you may have previously trusted. The banned substances are often hidden on the supplement facts label, making them hard to find, or have unrecognizable names, so you skip right over them. Your children, friends, family, and even your significant other are too often facing the risk of buying more than what they bargained for.

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For years in drug-tested sports, including the INBA/PNBA, multiple athletes tested positive for substances that were legal to purchase but were illegal for sport. One athlete, in particular, was extremely proud of being a drug-free athlete, but his pre-workout unknowingly contained DMAA, which is banned by the Olympic testing protocols of WADA. You can also lookup stories of non-competitors failing drug tests at work because they took banned substances bought from reputable bodybuilding supplement companies.

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Many people think if you buy it from a brick and mortar store or online company that it is legal and healthy, no matter what. Unfortunately, this is simply not true.

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Every day, students, athletes, and consumers ask parents, coaches, and gym buddies what pre-workout, protein, or fat burner they should buy. Due to lack of knowledge, and because the supplement game is ever-changing, the local enthusiast buys whatever is popular at the time, believing they know exactly what they’re getting. The hard truth is, they don’t.

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Supplement companies are putting parents, coaches, and other consumers in health and ethical dilemmas. In the spirit of believing that most of the population doesn’t want anyone they care about to consume banned substances, something has to be done at a higher level.

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WE BELIEVE INFORMING YOU ON THIS ISSUE IS OUR DUTY. What you do with this information is up to you. Iron Man Magazine feels the need to report on this issue because, in the WADA Anti-Doping Rules Violation Report, the most common sports implicated for infractions in athletics were bodybuilding, cycling, weightlifting, and powerlifting.

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IN 2018 ALONE, FIVE INDIVIDUALS FROM VARIOUS COMPANIES PLED GUILTY TO PURPOSELY ADULTERATING SPORTS SUPPLEMENTS WITH BANNED INGREDIENTS, SOMETIMES INCLUDING STEROIDS.¹

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A study from the National Institute of Health reported this problem stating, “Athletes consume dietary supplements at a high rate but have limited knowledge about important aspects of their use.”

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86% Percentage of college-aged athletes who are unaware that dietary supplements can have adverse effects. 62% of elite athletes did not know the active ingredient, 57% the side effects, 54% did not understand the mechanism of action, and 52% did not know the recommended dose of their dietary supplements.

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The study went on to say that, “In general, the sources of information for athletes with regard to dietary supplements is also of poor quality, with the majority of information coming from family members, fellow athletes, friends, coaches, and trainers.”

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Positive results on a drug test can result from ingestion of a banned substance, whether intentional or inadvertent. Contamination can occur accidentally due to poor manufacturing practices, or intentionally by unscrupulous manufacturers. The FDA’s Tainted Supplements List, maintained since 2007, contains 781 dietary supplements that have been proven to have banned ingredients as of 2019. The majority of hidden ingredients in tainted supplements in the muscle-building category were steroids (89%), followed by aromatase inhibitors (11%).

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An Important Note

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Iron Man is not jumping on the bandwagon claiming DMAA or its derivatives are healthy, effective, or, on the opposite spectrum, life-threatening. It is your personal choice to take, or refrain from taking, any and all ingredients within supplements. Whether or not DMAA or other ingredients are legal to sell is up to the lawyers and the government. Simply, we are here to pass on information we believe is relevant and important to our readers, and that means keeping you up-to-date on legal and banned substances in sports.

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WARNING

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THE FOLLOWING ARE SOME OF THE MOST POPULAR BANNED INGREDIENTS FOUND IN SUPPLEMENTS WORLDWIDE, ACCORDING TO THE STUDY.

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  1    (MERIDIA) SIBUTRAMINE

Sibutramine was approved in 1997 but was voluntarily withdrawn in November 2010 due to increased risk of cardiovascular events including myocardial infarction and stroke. Sibutramine is a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor structurally related to amphetamine.

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  2     (DMAA) DIMETHYLAMYLAMINE

Also known as “geranium oil extract”, DMAA is a potent vasopressor in a class known as phenylethylamines. As reports of cardiac arrests, cerebral hemorrhages, and other adverse events started to appear, DMAA was banned in 2012. It was determined it was a new dietary ingredient and was not found in geraniums.

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What followed was a succession of chemically-related compounds with structures and effects similar to DMAA and methamphetamines with initials like DMBA, BMPEA, NADEP, and NN-DMPAA, each claiming to be occurring naturally from sources, but later disproven as being created synthetically. Some of these compounds are very closely related to one another. For example, DMAA differs from DMBA by one carbon chain.

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Here is a list of some of the other ingredients found in popular supplements that are banned:

1 Aegeline

2 N-a-diethyl

3 NADEP

4 1.3-Dimethylbutylamine

5 DMBA

6 AMP

7 AMP Citrate

8 Methylsynephrine

9 Oxolofrine

10 p-Hydroxyephedrine octopamine

11 Higenamine

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Over the last few decades, many certification companies have popped up, doing their best to inform the public on supplements that are legal in tested sports. Many are beneficial to look for on labels, such as NSF, BSCG, and USP certifications. This is a great start, but there are many great supplements on the market that have been proven to increase strength, size, and fat reduction that do not currently have these seals.

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Should You Supplement?

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Many people decide to not supplement beyond a good multivitamin and protein powder due to the confusion. That isn’t a bad idea per se, but research undeniably shows that certain legal, food-based supplements are ergogenic and can dramatically help with size, strength, power, and fat reduction. In fact, the International Olympic Committee (IOC), who is the biggest and most strict sports organization in the World, came out and stated that certain supplemental nutrients can benefit a person’s athleticism.

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MODELS: SEAN LEWIS & SAM TOBIAS

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THE TOP PERFORMANCE ENHANCING NUTRIENTS, ACCORDING TO THE IOC, PROVEN TO HELP ATHLETES:

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1 CREATINE – Helps increase high-intensity movement ability and muscle strength

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2 CAFFEINE – Improves energy capacity, endurance, and time to exhaustion

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3 NITRATES – Increases energy, endurance, and is very healthy for the heart and circulation

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4 BETA-ALANINE – Helps sustain high-intensity exercise

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Now, for those of you hoping to get a simple yes or no answer determining if your favorite supplements contain banned substances, you are probably ready to throw your hands up in defeat. We know the information is overwhelming. Never fear, for we have heard the cries over the years and we have a proposed answer.

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Iron Man Magazine is carrying the torch to blaze the path, much like it has in the past by being the first magazine to ever feature women lifting weights, and now, being the first to only showcase drug-free athletes. In order to ensure you are taking advantage of muscle building and performance nutrients without the risk of testing positive for banned substances, where do you turn?

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Iron Man Magazine decided to not only be the first fitness/bodybuilding publication in the world to feature only Olympic-level drug-tested athletes. We have also made the commitment to provide ONLY WADA, Olympic, NCAA, high school and parent-compliant supplements. Introducing the Iron Man Store, your one-stop-shop for supplements that do not contain any banned ingredients.

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Now, you have a safe and reliable place to send your friends and family with the assurance that any product they purchase will be free of banned substances. Every label is carefully checked and each company is researched to ensure quality and standards. These are supplements we would allow even our own children to buy.

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MODEL: WESLEY MEYER

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Wesley Meyer is an aspiring Men’s Physique competitor who set his goal on turning pro in the Natural Bodybuilding scene, within the INBA organization that fully drug tests to the WADA code. He competed in March of 2018, placing 2nd in his class. He then made some adjustments and came back blazing in June of 2018, capturing a 1st place win and a PNBA Pro Card, or so he thought. When the drug test results came back weeks later, it showed that he had a banned substance in his system called DMAA. Because of his positive test result, Wesley was stripped of his title, did not receive his Pro Card, and was placed on a year suspension from the INBA.

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Wesley said, “I have never taken steroids and I thought I was being careful with my supplementation choices, but my pre-workout had 1,3-dimethylamylamine hidden in the supplement facts. I didn’t know that was DMAA. If I knew there was a company that gave me the choice of different supplements and made sure all the products were free of banned substances, I would not be in this position.”

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(IRON MAN thanks Wesley for letting us tell his story to help inspire others to be cautious with their supplement purchases.)

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FOR GUARANTEED SAFE AND RELIABLE WORKOUT SUPPLEMENTS GO TO…

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IRONMANMAGAZINE.COM/STORE

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REFERENCES

1. https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/fve-individuals-and-two-companies-plead-guilty-felony-charges-multimillion-dollar-scheme

2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5753965/

Who doesn’t want bigger arms? All men do. After all, nothing speaks more about strength and masculinity than arms that look like they’re as strong and as sturdy as tree trunks. But, the minute you look up how to build arms, specifically, your forearms, you’ll find yourself blasted with all sorts of information, ranging from different versions of bicep curls, and so on.

That’s just not enough.

Sure, what you’ll find will probably work, but only up to a certain extent.

You see, building huge forearms and grip strength requires a more specific approach. It’s not always just about lifting heavy weights. In fact, you can build up your forearm strength and make them grow larger without relying on any kind of weights at all.

Yes, without weights.

In fact, it’s been shown many times before that bodyweight exercises are a lot more effective in building forearm muscles compared to lifting weights. Apparently, they’re far better at stimulating muscle growth. Not to mention, bodyweight exercises help give your elbows and wrists a chance to rest.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that lifting weights don’t have their place if you want to build monster-sized forearms. A combination of both is rather ideal, so you’re building both your grip strength and forearm muscles, while also working out the other muscle groups of your body.

Before anything else, however, let’s talk about the importance of forearm strength and why you should bother building it anyway.

What Do Forearm Muscles Do? Why Is It So Important?

Your forearm muscles consist of a group of smaller muscles that are responsible for helping you grip anything from barbells to jars, those pesky grocery bags, a golf club, and more.

You might not know it, but you use and build your forearm muscles every day. Anything that you do that involves gripping and pulling puts a huge demands on finger and wrist flexors. This means that, whether you’re carrying your bag to work, or your kids’ strollers to school, moving that furniture so you can clean under it properly, and so much more, our forearm muscles play a key role in our day to day lives.

This means that, building strong forearm muscles isn’t just for aesthetic reasons — it’s also for added function.

To say that working on your grip strength and improving your forearm muscles can improve your daily life is no exaggeration. But, for those who are serious about lifting weight, the forearm muscles are especially important.

Having a strong grip can allow you to lift more weights. This is especially true when you’re doing specific exercises. This includes dead lifts, kettle ball swings, bicep curls, and bench presses, among others.

What are the Best Exercises for Forearm Strength?

Below, we rounded up exercises that help target, not just your forearms, but also your biceps and triceps, as well as help build you total-body strength for better overall muscle gain.

Don’t worry. This isn’t just a list of exercises and us recommending you to tack on more and more weight as you go. Instead, these are exercises that you can do, on your own and with no weights at all. More importantly, you can try doing other variations as well, like using fewer fingers or doing them at an accelerated rate, to help improve the intensity of each move.

Just remember, these exercises are mere suggestions alone. To get results, you actually have to use them — and do them frequently.

Chin-Ups

You probably know a guy that can lift a fairly heavy amount of plates doing bicep curls but, can’t, for the love of god, do at least 10 straight chin-ups without screwing up their technique.

In fact, you’re probably one of those guys.

Either way, chin-ups are a great place to start. It’s not just about bodyweight exercises or using weights at all. It’s not even about forearm strength. Rather, it’s about your overall form and how you’re able to maintain proper technique all throughout.

Besides, chin-ups are one of the best ways to help build strength and the muscles in your forearms, biceps, shoulders, and lats. Once you start getting the hang of it and can do 10 straight chin-ups without losing form or technique, you can try making them more difficult by using fewer fingers to hold the bar, or slowing down your descent to make your muscles feel your weight even more. Or, if you insist on using weights, feel free to add more weight.

Farmer Walks

Have you ever seen how farmers walk when they’re carrying a lot of stuff in each of of their hands? Like, for example, a sizable bucket full of water? That’s pretty much how you do a farmer walk.

You start with your feet hip-width apart while holding a pair of dumbbells at your sides with your palms facing inwards. Then, as you try to keep your spine straight, walk in a straight line for a couple of steps before turning back to return to your starting point while doing the same thing.

Rise and repeat.

As an added tip, try to think of your dumbbells as pails full of water. You don’t want to waste a single drop, so you best keep your backs straight and your eyes forward.

The best thing about the farmer walk is that, it’s not just great for building forearm strength and engaging your finger flexors, but they’re also a complete workout. Not to mention, they’ll make it easier for you to carry more grocery bags at once.

So much for multiple trips, eh?

Fat-Grip Pull-ups

Think pull-ups are hard? Then, you definitely haven’t tried doing fat-grip pull-ups yet.

Basically, a fat-grip pull-up is your standard pull-up. The only difference is that you’re using a tool that you add to the bar that you’re gripping so that it’s wider and has more diameter. In doing so, you’re forced to squeeze and grip harder just to pull yourself up. The added difficulty improves the benefits that you can get from pull-ups.

Plus, adding a fat-grip adds a bit of variety to pull-ups, which you can probably already do with ease.

In any case, the benefits of pull ups just can’t be understated. Anyone who wants to build strong forearms, or really muscular arms and bodies, in general, will want to do pull-ups often to improve their grips. Remember, the stronger your grip is, the more control you have over everything that you are lifting. This allows you to lift more weights and get more gains.

If you can’t find a fat-grip, a pair of sturdy towels or ropes should do the trick.

Close-Grip Push-ups

Have you grown tired of the traditional push-ups? Good! You can up the ante and make it more difficult by putting your hands closer together to do a close-grip push-up.

Close-grip push-ups carry the same benefits as the traditional push-up, but is better for your triceps. This makes the push-up, which is already considered by many experts as one of the more complete body-weight exercises out there, even more effective.

For added difficulty, you can try putting your feet up on a box, or better yet, a stability ball.

Dumbbell Wrist Flexion and Extension

These are arguably the easiest-looking forearm exercises out there, but, make no mistake, they’re a lot more difficult to pull off properly than they look.

You can start off by sitting on the edge of a bench and hold a dumbbell in each of your hands. Rest your forearms on their respective sides’ thighs, making sure that the back of your wrists are just found a little bit on top of your kneecaps.

For the wrist flexion, slowly curl the dumbbells towards your biceps and then back to your starting position, all without moving your arms. Meanwhile, for the wrist extension, make sure that your forearms are facing palms down with your wrists still slightly on top of your knee caps and slowly curl the dumbbell up to your biceps and back to your starting position.

Do these exercises for an equal amount of reps for a couple of sets and you should be good.

This may look like you’re just flexing or extending your wrist muscles, but you definitely won’t be thinking that way once you’ve done a couple of sets.

Crawls

Most guys won’t do crawls. For some reason, they think of crawls as a woman-only exercise, which is absurd. Crawls are great for building total-body strength, with an emphasis on both of your shoulders and arms.

If you’re ashamed of doing it in the gym or in public, you can always try doing it at home. Crawls are an excellent way to start off your day, right after you do your push-ups, chin-ups, and pull-ups.

Grip strength may be one of the more underrated aspects of exercising and lifting weights. Not a lot of people think of just how weak their grip strengths are relative to how much weight they are lifting. Not to mention, a lot of people don’t really pay that much attention to the size of their forearms.

This is a huge shame.

Aesthetically, good-looking forearms are some of the first things that most people notice about others, even when they won’t specifically tell you this. Functionally, they’re also great for helping you do day to day things. Plus, forearm strength is key to preventing a number of injuries, including but not limited to, tennis elbow and carpal tunnel syndrome, both of which are rather common today with more and more people working behind the desk.

So, what exactly is it are you waiting for?

Regardless of whether you’re doing it for looks, or for function, working on your grip strength and improving the look of your forearm muscles can help make your daily life better in more ways than you can think of.

Athlete: Colin Congo @_congo_