CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: Weight Manipulation, Intermittent Fasting, and Coaching

Happy belated Columbus Day everyone!!!  Or, if you’re Canadian – happy belated Thanksgiving.  Or, if you’re located somewhere else in the world and you don’t celebrate those two – happy belated Whatever It Is You Celebrate on October 8th!!!!

I hope whatever it was, it was awesome.

As you probably realized, I took the day off from blogging yesterday because both Lisa and I were away for a brief Columbus Day Weekend getaway. Well, to be more specific, Lisa surprised me with a weekend getaway.  Earlier in the week she emailed me from her work and all it said was “you have plans this weekend.”  And she reminded me to pick up some toilet paper on the way home, but that’s besides the point.

So, all last week she was stoked about going away and teasing me with hints about where our mystery journey was going to take us.

To my knowledge there was no Star Wars convention within a 200 mile radius of Boston, and I’m pretty sure Alicia Keys hadn’t started some super secret concert tour or anything.  Soooooooo, I honestly had no clue.

As it turned out – Lisa planned a completely Autumnal extravaganza complete with apple picking, raspberry picking, goat farm touring (including cheese sampling – YUM!), and of course, pumpkin deadlifting (see photo above).

To top things off, she also booked a room at this wonderful bed-and-breakfast in Wakefield, NH – The Wakefield Inn – that was about as quiet, charming, and colonial as they come.

Too, we ate at this restaurant (appropriately called The Restaurant) that had a burger called The Elvis.

What’s The Elvis you ask?  Well, it’s a 1/2 lb of beef with bacon and peanut butter – arguably three of my most favorite things combined.

Honestly, though, it wasn’t as epic as I thought it was going to be, but I was glad I ordered off principle alone.

All in all it was an amazing weekend filled with lots of laughs, LOTS of food, and some cool new memories.  But now it’s back to the grind.

However, before I get to the Stuff You Should Read I first want to note that, unbeknownst to myself until after the fact, last Friday’s post was my 1,000 post of all time.

Holy shit nuts!!!!

I just wanted to take a few seconds to thank EVERYONE for reading all my articles and for all the support throughout the years.

It’s surreal to think that a blog that I originally started back in 2006 on a whim (which I aptly titled “The G-Spot.” No, I’m not kidding. Sorry mom) which then led to the Step-Up blog on the Boston Herald, which then grew into the current TonyGentilcore.com, would turn out to be as successful as it’s been.

I’m humbled – and immensely grateful – that so many people visit on a daily basis and don’t think I suck. Well, I’m sure there are more than a few who do think I suck, but such is life.  All I have to say to these people is: thanks for the traffic!

Thanks again everyone – here’s hoping for another 1,000 posts!

Bigger Smaller Bigger – Nate Green

Nate Green is one crazy bastard.  Just for the fun of it he did this experiment where he gained 20 lbs in four weeks, lost it all in five days, and then gained it back in 24 hours.

And he documented EVERYTHING along the way.  Don’t worry, he had some pretty smart dudes monitoring every crumb eaten and weight lifted – Martin Rooney and Dr. John Berardi. N0 big deal.

It’s a FREE e-book chock full of insights and details behind the experiment.

Anyone interested in weight manipulation should check this out.  It’s a real quick read (less than an hour), and written in Nate’s signature witty style.

9 Things You Should Know Before Intermittent Fasting – Anthony Mychal

It seems everyone is intermittent fasting nowadays – *raises hand* – yet many don’t really know what to expect before embarking on their little adventure. Will you feel hungry all the time?  What foods should you focus on?  How do you go about structuring your feeding schedule?  And, maybe even more important, if done long-term, does one run the risk of growing a third nipple?

Here, Anthony sheds some light on a few topics that many people don’t necessarily touch on, including a really funny anecdote on how people can be a little bit too anal about whether or not it’s okay to break the fasting window by a few minutes

It’s funny because it’s true.

By the Coach for the Coach:  Be a Better Coach – Todd Hamer

This was an EXCELLENT article by Coach Hamer that I feel every coach should take the time to read.  The point that resonated with me the most?

#9.  Don’t be afraid to say “I don’t know.”

What a profound statement to make, and something I feel many, many coaches are afraid to do. I know there’s a huge sense of machismo and bravado in the strength and conditioning community, and it’s often seen as a “weakness” to admit when you don’t the answer to something.

Listen, we can’t all be Gandalf or Gray Cook.  You can’t expect to know everything and anything….it’s impossible.

There’s a lot to be gained from admitting you don’t know something. And a lot to be lost when – and granted this is a worse case scenario – you give someone the wrong information and they end up hurting themselves.

 

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Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 1/26/12

If there was ever a feature on which topics were currently “trending” on all of the hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of health and fitness blogs out on the interwebz, I’m sure Intermittent Fasting would be right up there on that list.

The topic, it seems, is like catnip lately.

I’m not even going to attempt to explain what it is (what?  No breakfast!!? No.  Noooooo), who it’s for (I’ll tell you who it’s NOT for.  Guys who weigh 150 lbs soaking wet, trying to look like Brad Pitt from Fight Club), or whether or not I feel it’s beneficial (sure, it has its moments).  What I am going to do, however, is point you in the direction of someone who can break it down, as it’s a rather complicated (and just a tad bit controversial) topic that many people need to be more well informed about.

The 5 Diet Rules You Must Break – John Romaniello

I had mentioned this FREE report earlier in the week, but felt it got lost in the shuffle, so I wanted to give it a little love here where more people would have access to it. Many of you who read this blog are very familiar with John and his work, so it’s not like I’m coming out of left field here when I say I’m a fan.

And since intermittent fasting is such a hot topic as of late, I figured if you’re going to read about it, you might as well get your information from someone who’s hella smart, knows the science behind it, has actually done it himself (and coached numerous people through it), and is a Lord of the Rings nerd, which obviously has nothing to do with anything.

Did I mention it’s free? (it’s free).

What I’m Thankful For in 2011 – Matt Kramer

For those who like a “feel good” story, this one is right up your alley.  Matt, pictured above with his guitar and mullhawk (half mullet, half mohawk), is in his fourth off-season with us at Cressey Performance, starting as a catching prospect for the Atlanta Braves, getting released, then interning with us, then working his way back with the Boston Red Sox as pitching prospect.

A Harvard graduate, Matt’s wicked smaht and a hell of a writer, and better still, just an awesome human being.

What a Rejected Article Looks Like, and Why Your Thoracic Extensions and Hip Flexor Stretches Are Wrong – Anthony Mychal

I just started reading some of Anthony’s stuff over on t-nation.com recently, and as it happened, I also started perusing his blog because I’m a stalker like that. I came across this post, and felt it was applicable to many people reading given you’re all stiffer than a 2×4 anyways. Needless to say, I think Anthony has a lot of great things to say, and I think many of you will appreciate his style given it’s very similar to mine.