CategoriesFat Loss

The Tabata Delusion

Anyone in the strength and conditioning realm, or general fitness for that matter, has at one time or another come across the name ‘Tabata’ during their various fitness related rendezvous.

Most common would be those interested in interval training for fat loss.  Back in 1996 Dr. Izumi Tabata and his colleagues submitted what is now a well renowned (and often misinterpreted) study that revolutionized the fitness industry.

In fact, as my good friend, Mark Young, noted a while ago, “this study created such a rage that now hundreds of thousands of trainees around the world now include “Tabatas” as part of their fat loss programming.”

You name it, people have Tabata the shit out of it.  You have your garden variety bike and sprint intervals, which most people equate Tabatas with and are most familiar with. And now it’s not uncommon to see people performing Tabatas with the Olympic lifts (borderline asinine), deadlifts, squats, kettlebell swings, push-ups, pick your poison and it’s been done.

Hell I wouldn’t be surprised if Tabata cow tipping has entered the foray somewhere.  Anything to feel the burn, right?

Well now it seems it’s gaining steam elsewhere, and I suppose it was only a matter of time before it happened.

My other good friend, Emily Socolinsky (which many who read this blog consistently should recognize), posted the following picture on Facebook wall yesterday:

After ungluing my face from my keyboard, I couldn’t help but think to myself, “poor Mr. Tabata.”

You see what many out there think is Tabata training is anything but, and jives AGAINST what the actual study demonstrated.

Rather than try to explain it myself, I’m just going to defer to Mark Young again who wrote THIS post a while ago on some common Tabata Myths:

Despite the widespread use of this system, most people have absolutely no idea what the actual Tabata protocol is.  In the often cited (but rarely actually read) study, one group performed moderate intensity (70% VO2 Max) steady state cardiovascular exercise for one hour on 5 days per week.  This would be along the lines of what most people would be accustomed to doing in the gym.

The other group used the Tabata protocol which consisted of a 10 minute steady state warm up followed by 7-8 sets of 20 seconds at 170% VO2 Max on a mechanically braked cycle ergometer.  Subjects were given 10 seconds of rest between each set.

One more interesting part?  On 4 days of the week the Tabata group performed this exact protocol.  On the fifth day they actually did 30 minutes of steady state exercise at 70% VO2 Max followed by 4 Tabata style intervals.

So over the course of a week the Tabata group also did a total of 70 minutes of steady state exercise as well!

But here is where most people mess up.  VO2 Max is determined (in this case) by having the person ride the ergometer while measuring their oxygen uptake and gradually increasing the wattage until the person’s oxygen uptake no longer continues to rise.  This is considered 100% of their VO2 Max and it is often associated with complete exhaustion and/or vomiting.

Now imagine increasing the resistance on the bicycle to increase the wattage to 170% of that value.  That is the intensity required for a true Tabata interval.  Each interval is completed with maximal effort.

Despite what you’ve been told, front squats, resistance bands, or any other bodyweight routine you might be doing may replicate the time sequence of the Tabata protocol, but it is NOT a Tabata interval.  If your first set is performed at a submaximal weight that becomes maximal by the final set this does not even come close.  It might be hard, but it isn’t a Tabata.

Now I know what some of you may be thinking:  “what the hay Tony…..why are you chastising people for wanting to work hard, and what’s more, why are you playing semantics?”

Listen I’ll never downplay anyone who wants to work hard and take steps to improve their health. Moreover, I don’t necessarily care how they go about doing it.  Sure I have my own biases as to what I feel are the most ideal, time efficient, and most important of all, SAFE, ways to go about things given one’s goals and ability level; but in all, if someone is taking steps to improve their health, I’m all for it.

Who am I to judge?

I just think it’s funny (and by funny, I mean the exact opposite of funny) that the word Tabata has grown to encapsulate what mounts to, well, everything.

Tabata burpees; Tabata apple picking; Tabata recycling; Tabata Dating………..I’ll keep going!  I’ll do it!

And I’ll just add as an afterthought my fingers are crossed that there’s some semblance of assessment (and regression/progression system) to ascertain one’s ability level before starting one of these classes.

The last thing Dick from accounting, who’s 40 lbs overweight and hasn’t exercised since Patrick Swayze made stone-washed jeans cool, needs is to jump into a 30 minute class of mountain-climbers and lunges on day one.

I’d argue that if most people placed a premium on getting stronger, were CONSISTENT, didn’t automatically feel that they have to resort to 30 minutes of “HIIT” training to the point where they can’t feel the left side of their face, stopped crushing Frappuccinos, and actually went to bed at a decent hour (and drank more water), they’d be surprised with their results.

But I digress…

CategoriesStuff to Read While You're Pretending to Work

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work (and While I’m at the Perform Better Summit!)

Hey peeps – I gotta keep this one short today because I’m heading down to Providence, RI for the Perform Better Summit.  I’m excited because I wasn’t able to attend last year, and on top of easily being one of the best weekends of learning on the planet, the Summit also serves as an awesome networking opportunity to meet up with colleagues, listen to some really smart people make me feel dumb, and to interact with a lot of people who read my stuff and go out of their way to introduce themselves.

Fingers crossed this is the year that Matt Damon shows up!…..;o)

That said, I’m going to be heading out the door shortly but I wanted to make sure I gave you all something to read to help pass the time today.

Have an awesome weekend!

Get Bigger and Stronger, and Even Banged Up – Ben Bruno

I’ve long been a fan of the saying, “you need to learn to make lemonade out of lemons.”  When you lift heavy things – for fun no less – you’re bound to get some aches and pains along the way.

This was an excellent article written by Ben showcasing some simple and effective strategies on 1) how to train smart and limit injuries, and 2) understanding that even if you have a setback (large or small) you can still find a way to train.

This has nothing to do with stuff to read, but the picture above was taken yesterday afternoon at the facility. It’s a brand new game…Instead of Where’s Waldo, we’re playing Where’s Tony Tebow-ing?

The Difference Between a Bad Trainer and Good Trainer – Bret Contreras

Bret hits the nail on head here.  The #1 pet peeve of mine when it comes to watching trainers, and the #1 thing which results in a trainer to lose all credibility in my book is how well he 0r she coaches their clients.

If their client is performing a rounded back deadlift and it looks like said client is going to shit their spine, and the trainer does nothing to fix it.

FAIL.

By contrast, those trainers who actually give a hoot, take pride in their work, know what good form looks like, and will take the necessary steps and precautions to hold themselves and their clients accountable, are generally the ones who do very well for themselves.

Why Your Glute Building Program Doesn’t Work – Mark Young

While it certainly can come down to exercise selection, there’s one key component that may be missing that Mark highlights here.

CategoriesMotivational Nutrition

Just Be Compliant!

This past summer my girlfriend, all of you know her as She-Ra Lisa, went to Europe for a month as a present to herself for surviving 6+ years of school, defending her dissertation, and finally becoming a doctor!

In the middle of June, she headed to Germany to meet up with her good friend, Leslie, who’s husband is stationed there at the Ramstein Air Base. This worked out perfectly because Lisa didn’t have to spend an inordinate amount of money on lounging, and, if need be, I could always fly to the base to borrow a Tomahawk H-2 helicopter if any dude tried any funny business with Lisa.

It was a win-win, really.

Anyways, as it worked out, the game plan was to head to Italy for a week – Tuscany, of course – to peruse wine country, and indulge themselves in everything Italia!

Serving as a second course, they returned back to Germany, and with Leslie’s young daughter in toe, they travelled all across the country visiting places like Dresden, Prague, Strausberg, Frankfurt, and because Ramstein is really close to the border of both France and Luxembourg, they also had the opportunity to experience those countries as well.

In a nutshell, it was the trip of a lifetime and Lisa enjoyed every second of it.

Side Note: and while I missed her tremendously, I enjoyed every second of not putting the toilet seat down, and being able to toss my socks wherever the hell I wanted.

Living room floor?  Hell yes!

Kitchen sink?  Whatever!

Freezer?  Sure, what not?

As most can surmise, spending a month in Europe means enjoying the hell out of food – and that’s exactly what happened.  It was what it was, and when Lisa came back to the States she knew it was time to hunker down and get back to her regular eating habits again.

Easy peazy.

Now, it’s not like she let herself go or that she had a lot of weight to lose – far from it!  Even though she was away for so long (and enjoyed herself), it’s not like Europe is some barren wasteland devoid of gym equipment and green vegetables. Lisa still went out of her way to exercise and make daily trips to the local grocery store to purchase healthy food.

What’s more, it’s not like she came home and we had the conversation that every guy dreads.  You know the one where your significant other walks into the room, the theme music from Jaws starts playing, and in slow motion she says those four words that strike the fear of god into us:

Do I look fat?

Um, uh, um, uh, uhhhhhhhh.

Haha.  Thankfully it never came to that!

Well, one month went by and her weight would go down, then come back up again, go up a smidge, then stay, then drop a smudge, and the same pattern wound ensue for the next few months.

It was frustrating on her part – because it’s not like much changed.  She started a new job, her stress levels were infinitely lower compared to when she was trudging through school and internships, she was still going to the gym three times per week to strength train, and she was still teaching her spin classes every week.

Too, her and I would do our normal weekend ritual of hitting up Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s loading up on veggies, fruit, grass fed beef, eggs, and the usual stuff we stuff our fridge and cupboards with.  And, to top things off, Lisa would do the bulk of the weekly meal prep on Sunday morning. BAM!

All the containers on the bottom are the meals I take with me to the facility each day of the week.  It’s awesome.

So, as you can see, it’s not like too many things were different.  Except for one thing which Lisa nipped in the bud just last week.

You see, at her work (and everywhere else in the world) people like to bring in baked goods or fill the “community” candy dish with things like M&Ms or Skittles, or whatever other yummy candies you can think of.

And, like any other human being out there, Lisa can’t help but “dip in” on occasion and grab a few pieces here and there.  No big deal, right?  Everyone does it, and besides, a piece of candy here and there isn’t the end of the world and certainly won’t make that much of a difference in the grand scheme of things.

Just out of curiosity, Lisa decided to nip things in the bud and actually stick to her normal eating schedule for a week.

Low and behold, she lost seven lbs in one week!!!!!!!  And the only thing that changed was that she stayed true to her word and didn’t deviate from her plan. At all.

Giving full disclosure:  Lisa also taught a double spin class on Saturday and fasted through Sunday which I’m sure played some role, but it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary or anything she hasn’t done in the past.

She stuck to ger guns, and actually followed through with everything she laid out.  In her own words, “I told myself to NOT TOUCH anything that’s not included in my meal plan.”

In short, she was compliant!

And this can apply to anything – whether you’re trying to clean up your diet, lose a few lbs, gain a few lbs, improve your deadlift, save up for vacation, or I don’t know, do your part in helping to bring awareness to the rights of gay seals…….

…..being compliant is kind of a big deal, and will almost assuredly lead to success.

For most, it’s not a educational thing, as my astute colleague, Mark Young, has stated on numerous occasions.

Most people know that daily exercise is important and that M&Ms aren’t the best choice of snack in the middle of the day.  It’s not necessarily about having will-power or anything like that.  It’s merely about recognizing that certain things in your life may need to be “adjusted” – whether it’s social, emotional, or even physical – and setting up a plan to help you become successful.

Compliance doesn’t even have to be an all-or-nothing affair, either.  Almost always, it’s just about starting small, like getting up five minutes earlier if your goal is make sure to eat breakfast in the morning, and going from there.

Once you’ve established that you can do that, then you can add more to your plate like taking your fish oil or making some scrambled eggs with veggies.

It’s isn’t necessarily about conquering 18 tasks at once and trying to do a complete 180.  Most people who do that fail…..like, all the time.

But in the end, you HAVE to be compliant to some extent, and to hold yourself accountable.  Without that, you’re just setting yourself up to fail.

 

CategoriesUncategorized

Reviewing the PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar: What I Learned (And Stuff)

WHEW…what a weekend! The first annual Personal Trainer Development Center Hybrid Training Seminar was a ginormous success, and a huge kudos goes out to Jon Goodman for pulling it off with flying colors.

I had every intention of writing a review yesterday (Monday), but to be honest my brain was complete mush trying to digest all the information I acquired.  And, there was just a teeny tiny bit of sensory overload having to be “on” all weekend – but it was all WELL worth it, and all I needed was a good 24-hours to allow my brain to chillax.

All told I believe 50+ fitness professionals made their way to Toronto to listen to a bunch of fitness dudes – Jon, myself, Nick Tumminello, Mark Young, Geoff Girvitz, and Dan Trink, respectively – talk about, well, fitness.

Between Saturday and Sunday, there were 13+ hours of “learnin” going on, where an entire bevy of topics were covered ranging from assessment, core training, and marketing with social media, to fat loss training, group training, motivation, and realizing how much of a brick shit house Dan Trink is.

Seriously, I’m generally used to being the gratuitous jacked bald guy in the room, but I think Dan took the Mr. Clean award of the weekend.  Jerk!

All kidding aside, based off the initial feedback given by all the attendees who were there, I’d say this past weekend was the combined equivalent of going to Disney World, winning the lottery, and that immense feeling of relief you get when you’re finally able to pee after holding it in for so long (<— don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about).

Yeah, it was THAT good.

So, rather than write a Tolkien’esq long dissertation on my experiences and everything I learned this past weekend, I decided I’d just approach this as I would one of my “Miscellaneous Mondays” posts.  Which is to say:  random as shit.

1. Although I’ve been flying a lot more frequently within the past year or two due speaking engagements (as well as traveling for pleasure), I still have to say:  I enjoy flying about as much as I enjoy taking a drop kick to the nut sack.  Even more so when find out upon arrival to the airport that the flying death trap I’ll be riding is powered by propellers.

PROPELLERS!!!!!!

Regardless, big props goes out to Porter Airlines for a seamless flight to and from Toronto. Well done ladies and gents.  Well done.

2. Nick Tumminello and I shared the spotlight on Saturday and both held a “pre conference” where we discussed both assessment and core training.  The night prior, Nick and I decided that I should start the whole shindig off and speak first since I was covering the assessment component.

Sitting in the hotel room the morning of, I thought it would be cool to have my own entry music – like Dave Tate.  I remember going to listen to him speak back in 2006 in Syracuse, NY and how he had this awesome video montage playing with AC/DC blaring over the loud speakers as he paced back and forth in front of the crowd with a death stare.

For those who have never seen Dave speak:  he’s kind of an intense dude.

I figured I could do the same, and enter the room while something awesome like Biggie’s “Big Poppa” was warming up the crowd.

Then, after thinking about for seven seconds, I realized I’m not Dave Tate and that it would be dumb.

3. All I have to say about Nick Tumminello – other than being a class act, and one of the more knowledgable fitness professionals out there (my man is wicked smaht) – is that he’s an absolute Jedi when it comes to public speaking.  His enthusiasm and passion for what he does is unparalleled, and I can only hope to be 1/8 the public speaker he is in the future.

Also, if you ever get a chance to listen to him speak about the psoas (yes, the psoas), it will blow…… your…… mind.

4.  During his Hybrid Fat Loss presentation, Nick gave a brilliant definition of what “hybrid training” actually is, courtesy of JC Santana:

“Function vs. Strength, Pilates vs. Bodybuilding, Yoga vs. who knows what. These comparisons are not ever accurate; they are like asking what do you think is best to eat for optimal nutrition; apples or broccoli? Of course, “both” is the right answer. Eating only one or the other, although each is nutritious, leaves one without the nutrition of the other. Bringing this simple example to the world of physical training drives home a very important point. Every training method has its benefits (i.e. nutrition), and combining the most effective training methods (i.e. combining the apple and broccoli) will provide better training than exclusively using any one training method. Now, this may sound logical and sensible to us, but the battles and claims rage on between different training camps.”

In short:  EVERYTHING works.  EVERYTHING is a tool.  The key, then, is to figure out which tool is right for a certain job. No one tool is right for EVERY job.  Yes, I’m talking to you Mr. Kettlebell guru.

4.  According to Nick (and I kinda agree with this): the main difference between a “fat loss” program and a “strength based” program is…….

…….NUTRITION

I love Nick’s explanation he gave.

“What do you do for fat loss?”

Nick:  exercise

“Well, what about if you want to get stronger?”

Nick: exercise

Sure there will be some subtle variabilities in terms of rest time, set/rep schemes, etc, but the main “crux” of the matter – when it comes to FAT LOSS – is nutrition.

5.  Jon Goodman had a million and one brilliant things about mastering social media and using it to your advantage as a fitness professional.  The Cliff Notes version:

  • Don’t be a spammer.  Ie:  don’t cold invite people into your Bootcamp group.  It’s shady, and is an easy way for someone to want to punch you in the throat.
  • Don’t “tag” people in your posts with their permission.
  • In order to be relevant you need:  likes, clicks, shares, and profile views.  ALL will help you.  Not one or the other.
  • As far as monetization is concerned:  one “friend” = $2. I did not know that.
  • Understand that your message will be shared by the already converted.  Cater to them.  If you’re a blogger, write your posts with this in mind.  Don’t write for YOU (although, it’s okay to do so), but write for them!  People want to read what THEY want to read, not what YOU want to read.
  • This picture pretty much sums it all up:

6. Mark Young started off his presentation with an interesting question to all of us”

“How many in this room are in the best shape of their lives?”

For the record:  NO ONE lifted their hand.  Not even Dan Trink that jacked bastard….;o)

Knowing that no on raised their hand, Mark then asked another question:

“How many feel it’s due to a lack of education?”

Listen, we all know that pounding down an entire bag of Doritos before beg or what mounts to taking a bath in a bowl of M&Ms isn’t the best choice for our health.

Why do we do it, when we KNOW better?

To answer that query, Mark made a reference to the excellent book Switch: How to Change When Change Is Hard.

In in it the authors – Chip and Dan Heath – tell the story of the Elephant, Driver, and the Path.

Think of the elephant as your “emotional” brain (I want it and I WANT IT NOW!!!!!!), the driver as your rational brain (no, it’s probably not a good idea to dominate that cheese lover’s pizza right now), and the path, is well, the path.

All freaking day your rational brain (driver) is trying to steer the elephant (emotional) down a certain path.

Think of it this way.  Many of you reading right now are probably trying to shed a few pounds of fat, and in an effort to do so, you brought a kick-ass salad to work with you today.  Hell, you even omitted the croutons.

You’re making an effort to eat healthier, and that should be commended.  Good for you.

Thing is, how many billboards or signs did you pass today telling you to buy the latest snack food?  Moreover, how many times has one of your colleagues brought in a baked good (Oreo mudpie!!!!!!) to share because it’s someone’s b-day or because it’s Wednesday?

And, throwing more salt on the wound, by the time you’re on your way home (after a 13 hour day no less), you’ve been fighting off the elephant for so long, that the idea of going home to grill a chicken breast sounds about as enticing as sandpaper.

You can’t fight will power forever, and the elephant inevitably wins.  You violently turn your steering wheel to the right and  switch lanes – Jason Bourne style – into the Burger King drive-thru.

Sound vaguely familiar?

They key, then, to fixing these horrendous default patters (hitting the fast food joint instead of cooking a homemade meal) is to give your clients another default pattern that will help them become successful.

As an example.  Maybe instead of crushing Bacon Double Whoppers, you could encourage them to go to a “healthier” fast good alternative.  Say, Chipolte Mexican Grill!

At least there they can order a meat salad with a heaping scoop of guacamole, which is a far cry from the heart attack they’re ordering elsewhere.  Annnnnd one!

7.  Another point which I felt Mark nailed on the head was that in order to change behaviors, we can’t inundate our clients with a laundry list of tasks to do.

Rather than telling people that they need to spend half their Sunday going grocery shopping and prepping food, and that they can ONLY eat carbs on even days (and only after training), and that they should use coconut oil when cooking everything, and oh yeah, don’t forget your fish oil, enteric coated!………

…..why not just focus on ONE behavior and see how confident they feel in achieving that goal?

Ask them on a scale of 1-10, how confident he or she feels about heading to the gym twice per week.  If they say anything less than an eight, then it’s too much and you need to re-assess.

Much like how we incrementally increase the weights on a barbell when we try to get someone to a 400 lb deadlift so that we don’t overwhelm them, we also need to incrementally increase “goals” when trying to help someone change a behavior.

8.  Joke of the weekend:

Q: How do you know someone is Paleo?

A:  They’ll tell you.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.

9.  Geoff Girvitz, owner of Bang Fitness in Toronto had a profoundly simple, yet profoundly profound statement:

“Get people pain free and moving well.”

When fat loss is the goal, there’s absolutely no need to throw advanced training techniques at people.  Instead of high rep snatches – which I’d argue is borderline criminal anyways – why not implement less ambiguous exercises like Prowler pushes?

10.  As far as periodization in the group training realm is concerned, according to Jeff, that’s a shit show (my words, not his.  Although, I’m sure he’d agree).  When dealing with a population that is already stressed to the bones there is a delicate balance between increasing work capacity and making people feel like they’re going cough up their liver, and overloading the central nervous system.

It’s important to recognize that sometimes you just need to tone it down a bit

11.  To that end, Geoff made everyone in the audience swear an oath that:

Not Every Single Session Must Crush the Bodies and Spirits of My Clients

12.  Lee Boyce and I arm wrestled for the last piece of sushi on Saturday night during the social gathering:

13.  Did I mention Dan Trink was kind of a large human being?  He’s a large human being.  And, quite frankly, one of the most generous and humble human beings I’ve ever met.  Anyone who lives in NYC would be crazy not to seek this guy out to make them a walking wrecking ball.  And, he’s also a programming warlock.  The main knows hows to write brutal (and efficient) fat loss programming.

I’ll just end with saying a HUGE thank you to everyone who attended and who went out of their way to introduce themselves to me.  It was truly an honor to be including in such an amazing event, and I hope to do it again next year (ahem, Jon).

CategoriesUncategorized

Mark Your Calander: PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar!!

June is looking to be an epic month.  For starters, as mentioned a few weeks ago, I’m going to be heading to Edmonton, Canada on the weekend of June 2nd to join the rest of the Muscle Imbalances Revealed – Upper Body crew for the Spinal Health and Core Training Seminar.

We’re looking to keep this to more of an “intimate” setting – I’m bringing the wine and Best of Sade cd – in an effort to give all the attendees first-hand access to all the coaches speaking…so spots are VERY limited. Even still, we’re going to be offering a gulf of information with regards to anything and everything dealing with core training and spinal health: a topic that pretty much appeals to any fitness professional out there.

For more information, click HERE (<— that tickles!). And, just to throw it out there, May 1st is the last deadline to save yourself $100 off the initial registration fee.

Secondly, Prometheus – Ridley Scott’s return to the genre he essentially revolutionized (Alien, Blade Runner, etc) – opens on June 8th.

Seriously, I just peed myself a little bit watching that again.

Finally, and something that only came to fruition within the last few days, I’m proud to announce:

The PTDC Hybrid Training Seminar, June 16-17th!!!

I’ll be making another trip up to Canada, this time to Toronto, to participate in what’s shaping up to be a really cool weekend.

Both Nick Tumminello and I will be hosting a PRE-SEMINAR event on June 16th titled The Ultimate Coressessment.

When Jon Goodman approached us to see if we’d be interested, both Nick and I came to the (no-brainer) conclusion that there are essentially two topics that are like catnip for trainers and coaches: core and assessment.

Hence, this day-long workshop will cover assessment (both upper and lower extremity), as well as many of the core training concepts and exercises we use with our own athletes and clients.

The following day, however, is the main event:  The Hybrid Training Seminar.

Featuring FIVE presenters (one-hour talk each, followed by a roundtable discussion):  Jon Goodman, Nick Tumminello, Mark Young, Dan Trink, Geoff Girvitz, and some schmuck named Gentilcore.

This should prove to be one of the more anticipated “fitness” events in Canada all year, so don’t miss out.

For more information pertaining to topics and registration costs, go HERE.

 

CategoriesUncategorized

Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: 4/13/12

I’ve got a pretty cool day lined up.  I’m going to spend the rest of the morning catching up on some work:  I’ve got a few programs to write, and then I’m submitting an article titled 5 Reasons Why You’re Not Getting Stronger to Greatist.com. Then, I’m heading over to Boston University to get my dieselfication on with my boy Dave Rak.  I believe the agenda calls for squatting until we can’t feel the right side of our face followed by “curling everything.”  Awesome.

And then…….I’m heading over to Fenway Park for the Red Sox season opener!  Granted, they’re playing like complete dog dunk right now, but I’ve never been to opening day before, so it should be a pretty badass.

Warning:  Do This & You Will Get Fat – Jason Ferruggia

Jason has a reputation for not blowing sunshine up anyone’s ass, and this post fits that bill to a “t.”  There are a lot of guys out there who want to build muscle and gain weight, yet tend to follow AWFUL advice.

Moreover, many have unrealistic expectations of what’s actually possible thinking that they’re going to transform themselves into The Rock in a matter of four months.

The final line says it all:  “It’s not a sprint, it’s a marathon. Just remain consistent, stay lean and healthy, train hard and enjoy the journey my friends.”

I wish more would heed that advice.

Is Sugar Toxic?!?! – Mark Young

A non-bullshitter himself, in this post Mark sheds some light on the notion that sugar is the sum total of everything that’s evil this world – from global warming to circus clowns.

I appreciate pieces like this because, while sugar is by no means something we should go out of our way to include more of in our diets, a little bit isn’t going to put you in a diabetic coma tomorrow.

Thanks Mark for bringing the pendulum back to the middle!  Someone deserves a slow clap!

9 Things I Have Changed My Mind About: Part 4 – Molly Galbraith

Leave it to Molly to start with one installment only to inevitably make it into a 47 part PBS special.  You know what, though…I dig it.  It’s refreshing to see someone take an objective look at past mistakes and demonstrate how they’ve grown as a coach and individual. I particularly love Molly’s insight on controlling training stress, and how important it is to NOT think that more is better.

 

 

CategoriesUncategorized

How to Read Fitness Research

In an age when anyone with a digital camera, a Youtube page, and a personal training certificate they purchased online for four easy payments of $19.99 can market themselves as a “fitness professional,” it’s becoming increasingly clear that the line between the haves and the have nots is getting murkier by the day.

Taking it a step further, many who enter the fitness industry often rush to try to make a quick buck, and end up throwing themselves into the fire in an effort to make it big and retire by the age of 25.

Unfortunately, what usually ends up happening is that their e-book that they thought was going to revolutionize the industry, sucks (for lack of a better term).

And therein lies the problem – many fitness professionals simply don’t have enough in the trenches experience (or expertise) to produce a solid product – let alone come up with something that doesn’t scream “vanilla,”

Really?  Another fat-loss manual?  Wow, awesome.

So, when my buddy, Mark Young, asked me to take a sneak peek into his How to Read Fitness Research product, I thought to myself, “huh, interesting.”  Here’s something that’s different and unique, and something that will make A LOT of fitness professionals out there much better at what they do.

Full disclosure:  I hate reading research.  I’d rather sit in bumper- to-bumper traffic while trying to pass a kidney stone than try to read through an entire research article.  Seriously, you might as well hand me a book written in Klingon.

But, that’s always been because I’ve been intimidated – until now, at least.  As I’m always telling my readers – you need to step outside your comfort zone in order to get better.

To that end, I asked Mark if he’d be willing to jot down a few thoughts on why he feels this product can help, and here’s what he had to say:

Three Things How to Read Fitness Research Can Do For YOU.

1.  Save Money

If you’ve been around the fitness industry for a while you’ll most certainly be able to acknowledge that it is often difficult to differentiate between real facts and the circus of pseudoscientific information put together by internet “experts” that are designed to separate you from your hard earned money.  This shit has to stop!
How to Read Fitness Research will help you to learn how to cut through the BS and find out which people are worth following and, more importantly, which programs are worth shelling out for.  And let me be clear, it isn’t always as obvious as you might think.  I know people are making a LOT of money buy selling stuff to other people based on stuff theories that don’t hold water.
With this product, YOU won’t be one of those people.

2.  Think for Yourself

Often times, especially when we’re busy, we tend to rely on others to sort through information for us and give us their interpretation of the facts.  From this, we build our programs and our results are then dependent on someone else.
But the problem here is that even though second hand information is sometimes useful, it can be a lot like the telephone game we used to play when we were kids.  The further you get from the original message, the more distorted it becomes.  And with each person that message passes through, the less and less useful it is.

With this product, YOU won’t be reliant on anyone else because you’ll be able to go straight to the source and get the information for yourself.

3.  Freedom from Rules

The more time I spend working in the fitness industry the more rules seem to be created.  Eat this often.  Eat this much protein.  Take this supplement.  Train this many times per week.  Do this many reps.  Do this many sets.  If you don’t…the world will implode and you’ll look like Tony Gentilcore for the rest of your life.  Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!  Nooooooooo!!!!!
Fortunately, most of these rules don’t have much scientific support and by discovering which principles actually must be adhered to and which aren’t you can experience unparalleled freedom that you never imagined possible while still getting the results you deserve.  And guess what?  When you’re not confined by rules, working out can actually be FUN.  Imagine that.

With this product YOU can learn to break free from many of the “rules” that govern training and nutrition to create programs that give you freedom, fun, and results all at the same time.
In short, How to Read Fitness Research is about giving YOU the power to cut through hype and misinformation and to get the results you deserve while keeping money in your wallet.

 

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Stuff to Read While You’re Pretending to Work: Back to Reality Edition

So, I’m back in Boston as I type this.  No less than three hours ago, I was in 80 degree weather with the sun beating down on me and not a cloud in the sky.  Now, I’m looking out the window at nothing but gray skies and rain.  And a homeless person collecting cans.  Great.

Alas, it’s back to reality.  We had an amazing time in Florida, and I can see why so many people decide to set up shop there when it’s time to retire.  Beautiful weather, beaches, golf, bikini’s, gator meat – what’s not to love?   Of course, having no state income tax doesn’t hurt either.

Nonetheless, I’m not gonna sit here and pretend that I’m not kinda, sorta still in vacation mode. The idea of writing a well thought out blog post right now is the furthest thing from my mind – especially considering I have yet to un-pack, I have a pile a mile high of laundry to do, and I still need to hit off the store to get some groceries.  The only thing in my fridge at this moment is some marinated chicken I made last week, and I’m pretty sure that would taste like cardboard and farts right now.

To that end, today’s post is going to be cut and dry.  I was able to catch up on a lot of reading while I was away, and below are some gems that I felt were pretty good.

Drugs, Brown Fat, and Weight Loss – Mark Young

Mark has an uncanny ability to filter out the stupid, and this post is no different.

The Shoulder W Exercise – Mike Reinold

I remember Mike talking about this exercise exclusively last year during the Optimal Shoulder Performance seminar.  Here, he gives a little background on why he feels it’s such a valuable exercise, and I tend to agree!

Why Go Organic? – Jamie Hale

Steady State Cardio vs. Intervals, High Reps vs. Low Reps, Jamie Eason vs. Jelena Abbou – there are a myriad of controversies in the fitness industry that either one of us can make legitimate cases for or against.  None, however, are more controversial than the whole Conventional Food vs. Organic debate.

Personally, I tend to veer more towards the organic side of things – as I feel that the costs and high(er) prices of buying organic far outweigh the costs of the ever increasing ramifications that our food industry has on health care; not to mention sustainable agriculture

That said, I like to consider myself an open-minded guy, and this article by Jamie Hale does make some great arguments on why organic might not be all it’s cracked up to be.

Even still, at the end of the day, for my own peace of mind, I’m still leaning more towards organic.