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It’s hard enough to lose weight when everything’s going your way, but add the outside world and you end up with more obstacles to deal with, many of which are…

When you workout at home, it’s hard to come up with cardio exercises that get your heart rate up. There are the standard jumping jacks or jump roping, of…

There’s nothing worse than getting into a good workout routine and waking up one day with that little tickle in the back of your throat. Throughout the day, you…

Everything I read these days is about spring – spring cleaning, spring break, spring activities – and I’m all for it, except that it’s still way too cold to do…

Sorry…we took a deep breath, this one’s a bit long-winded. A lot to say.

It’d be hard to argue the success of goal-getting Lululemon’s clampdown on the yoga(inspired) market, with said proliferation due largely in part to the voracious cult-like culling of fanatics – everyone’s favorite luon-lemmings (lulu lollies!).  A Fast Company article from yesterday examines the ‘great-based’ initiative, highlighting the essence of the lulu’s surreptitious approach, rather accurately, as “calculated nonchalance.” We may kid, but the lulus mean business, in every sense. With $340 million in annual revenue, and beating the odds to remain somewhat afloat in a sinking stock market, the brand has attracted some hefty attention lately (for instance, Fast Company is writing about them). So how do they pull it off? What’s the Secret? We’ll call it the cult of commerciality.

“It’s the first time I’ve heard of anyone almost directly using the techniques of cults and applying them to their business,” says Douglas Atkin, author of The Culting of Brands.

[Chip] Wilson has mixed a heady self-actualizing cocktail from equal parts Landmark Forum (seminars developed by an ex-Scientologist), the books of motivational business guru Brian Tracy, and Oprah-endorsed best seller The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne. He is now hard at work formalizing them in a Lululemon “internal constitution.”

Well, we know many a skeeved out yog who’ve shuddered at the Scientology connection (and we all know how good they are at recruiting, thanks to messiah Tom Cruise! bless his heart). And that “internal constitution” sure does sound like some fun reading. Strap on your e-meters! But we can’t help turning our thoughts to those fervent propagators. Lately, Yoga as a practice itself has flourished in the West, and though some might not want to admit it, the philosophies attached to Yoga can sorta come off as a little brainwashy. You’ve been there:  excitedly recounting the effects of yoga to your non-yogi friends as their eyes glaze over, responding with the concerned look as if to say, “have you drunk the kool-aid?-you’re kind of a freak”.

So how has Lululemon gotten so popular? By melding yoga fervor with Chip Wilson’s own brand of self-help propaganda. And stealthily building an ambassador program with a fleet of almost 900: The real “educators”. While Lululemon employees are “encouraged” to attend the Landmark Forum (even ex-Starbuck and CEO Christine Day has been since joining team lulu last year), “ambassadors” are actually just honest local yogis being played by the machine. And who would blame them? Just the other day we were discussing the growing glut of trainees being churned out into a pool of yoga teachers who, as it is now, can barely afford their breakfast. When there’s a millionaire yoga-inspired clothing company prowling for evangelists, offering spaces to teach and a platform to further pimp yourself would you not take that opportunity? Essentially, it’s a sponsorship, like pro athletes are privy to – endorse our garb and we’ll give you perks – which, in this case, doesn’t amount to a heck of a lot (discounts). But in a struggling yogi’s career it can be huge.

Says Chippy, “When we first started, we hired nothing but yogis. But it didn’t work because they were too slow. So we started hiring runners who like yoga. They’re more on the ball, more type A.”

Lululemon has big fat goals to tighten their grip even more on stamping out mediocrity in the swimming, triathlon and running markets, to stay in the game. If the yoga-craze sputters, you’re on your own, even more than you already are now.

Final Fun Facts:

“Chip Wilson’s net worth is reportedly close to $370 million. His inner voice urged him to dump almost 7 million shares when Lululemon held its U.S. IPO in the summer of 2007, earning him more than $100 million. He cashed in twice more, for almost $7 million, even as Lulu shares slid from $55 in October 2007 to $7 in February 2009.”

Read the whole article -> Lululemon’s Cult of Selling [Fast Company]

Earlier…Teaching Yoga the New Waiting Tables

Baba Ramdev Unveils His Yoganomics Plan: He’s a one man wonder!

Employees of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) were treated to some quality Swamster time recently during their very own special Ramdev Yoga Camp. Not content with politics, technology, curing everything in the world, Ramdev threw his Economist hat into the ring. Speaking on the yog of recession:

“Yoga will teach you that work is religion, work is worship and sitting idle is a sin. When we work towards attaining goals of our life, we would be able to sail through all economic crises. When we understand that working and doing business is a religion in itself and working for the betterment of our country is also our responsibility, all of us would be happy.”

Interesting, and oddly inspiring sentiment, but we’re not sure slinging the “R” word around will work so well for the Western cowboys.

Also, someone get this guy a “Yoga Is My Bailout” tee.  [OneIndia]

Pure Yoga Expansion: What Recession?: Speaking of Western cowboys, Pure Yoga has apparently lassoed enough aspiring yogis to sustain their luxury lifestyle. And the behemoth is hungry for more! With massive partner Equinox hopping and skipping through these Recession-fitness times, Pure Yoga is set to expand from its Upper East Side mega-yoga center to more locations in NYC, LA and other parts of Southern CA. Middle America, you’re still safe. For  now. Be warned Boston and D.C.

Equinox CEO, Harvey Spevak chalks up their success to gobbledygook the continued demand for and their supply of  “state-of-the-art fitness clubs with highly skilled professionals, innovative programming and fair pricing.”  And rich people.  [PR Newswire press release]

Earlier…‘Recession-Resilience’: Yoga and the McDonald’s Happy Meal

Yes, yes it’s also St. Patrick’s Day. Erin Go Braugh! You’re probably too bleary-eyed to be reading anything “serious” today, especially through those green beer goggles you’ve got on, eh? So it’s our pleasure to share with you a colorful collection, if you will, of quotes from everyone’s favorite Yoga ‘Don’ Bikram Choudhury, brought to you by intrepid yoga humorist YogaDawg. We were going to do a little green yogini martini, but figured you probably already have that part covered. Enjoy!

which one is your favorite? OR do you have your own wack Bikramisms to share? let us know in the comments.

The Yoga Don’s Best

An Iyengar class looks like a Santa Monica sex shop with all those props.

They make so many stupid things in America.

We are a totally fucked up society. What are they eating for breakfast on Jupiter?

The whole Bikram class is one big brainwashing session.

I have balls like atom bombs, two of them, 100 megatons each.

Nobody fucks with me.

America’s biggest problem is too much freedom.

Western people can’t meditate. In India people really can’t meditate either.

When in Rome, I must do as the Romans do. When in America, copyright and trademark.

I’m feeling sleepy, because I haven’t gone shopping for a long time…. I haven’t bought a car for two years—no, I bought a car last month, the fancy new Chrysler.

I should be the most honored man in your country.

Don’t throw up on the carpet. It’s new.

Why are your legs spread? Women should not spread their legs any time, anywhere! Only in emergencies.

Downward Facing Dog? That’s not yoga. That’s American circus.

I control my kingdom like a gangster. It’s the only way it works. In America your biggest problem is you have a second choice. So you have an abuse of choices and too much freedom. It’s like a loaded gun in a kid’s hand

How many Rolls-Royce do I own? I don’t know. 35? I give every staff member of mine a car, something like a Jeep Cherokee. I have 17 vans.

American Yoga teachers are clowns. Circus clowns. They completely fucked yoga. They crucified hatha yoga in America. There is no yoga called kundalini, power, vinyasa, dog yoga.

Who the fuck is this YogaDawg? He’s the only guru in America besides me who is not a joke.

That last one might be our fave. Thanks YogaDawg!

Dining with the Yoga Stars: If you’re a yogi (or not too, we guess) in Detroit, you could win a chance to dine with the city’s yoga stars! Er…really? “Yoga Stars“?  Gimme a break, we thought, it’s not even Russell Simmons! Then we saw the dinner is hosted by Buddy’s Pizza, whose owner found yoga 18 years ago to help recover from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare autoimmune disease. Oh. Also, the “stars” are actually a varied gaggle of teachers: Katherine Lucas, founder of Karma Yoga, Inc.; Sara Davidson, ERYT-500; Aaron E. Fenton (ashtanga) Yoga Room; and Linda Kay Nathan of Yoga Shelter. Besides pizza and yogi chat, the prize also includes a limo ride, a makeover and other goodies. So if you’ve got 100 words or less to describe why you deserve to win you might as well go for it. [Hometown Life]

On a side note, we were so ahead of ourselves with the “Yoga with the Stars” idea…into production!

The “Pocket Yoga”: Did we mention we’re totally on the netbook train? They’re tiny and awesome and we want one! Perhaps tech company Lenovo read our minds. Photos leaked yesterday of a mini pocket-sized netbook dubbed the “Pocket Yoga,” to which we were both annoyed and intrigued. Well, if like us you got your hopes up, we’re all out of luck. The product was as dubious as the use of “yoga” in its name . Turns out it was just a design idea from 2 years ago, which was never intended for actual production. Too bad. We were so ready to be packing bliss in our pocket. [Wired] [FastCompany]

More “Pocket Yoga” pics to crush your tiny dreams:

pizza buddha photo credit

It takes a lot of hobnobbing to build a business, something a corporate survivor is accustomed to doing, if not especially good at. So it’s really not surprising that so many former moneymakers are dropping office trou’ and sinking their teeth into teaching yoga, especially since a lot of these folks are probably living off hefty severance pay and, surely, a cushy savings account. There’s an article traipsing around the internets today with a mishmash of quotes from freshly unemployed-cum-yoga teachers, like Ms. Veronica Wolkow, whose quondam position in financial services obviously allowed for her to say this,

“Yoga does not provide me with an income stream at this time,” she said. “My bank account is smaller, yes. But my world is bigger.”

Barf. You’re absolutely right we’re bitter (jealous). Besides inserting cash flow into the yoga studios and teachers holding all these trainings, it’s really just annoying to have an influx of wealthy teachers who can actually survive on teaching a few classes a week.

Of course it’s not all nouveau yogi riche, and many aspiring teachers who hear the call will follow the dream no matter what it takes (meaning, lots of odd jobs and stretching the dollar). For some it’s not worth the stress. Caleb Asch teaches 6 classes a week, but it’s not enough to pay the bills. “The stress of not having enough to live on is a killer,” he said.

For others, being a little yogster in a big pool is the problem. Says LA man Jethro Liou, “In high population coastal cities there are just as many yoga teachers as there are waiters.” Funny, we expect more yoga teachers will be waiting tables.

Being a yoga teacher essentially requires selling yourself to stay afloat. Even when it’s something you love, it’s still a business. Ask Ramdev, Bikram or any yoga teacher for that matter, there are still bills, politics, risk, whoring, necessary growth, etc. It’s hard work, that comes much easier when one of your props is a  “six-figure” salary. For everyone else, in this economy, get your aprons ready. At least you’ve already got the balance down.

If everyone’s a yoga teacher is anyone a student? We’re all still students though… right?

Jobless yogis follow their bliss to teacher training [Reuters]

Earlier… Recession Yoga: What about the Privates?

Last week we mentioned the news of ascent‘s descent into the print media graveyard at the end of this month – not a huge shocker in today’s newspaper and print death march (obviously it’s not just yoga mags going the way of the dodo bird). As the Drishti Blog pointed out, those who still enjoy their yoga articles in tangible format will be hard pressed to find old faves, like Yogi Times and Namarupa, on shelves these days. Meanwhile pubs like Elephant Journal have evaded the reaper by making the necessary-for-survival cost-saving shift to online.  Those that are still standing are few:  Yoga Journal, which had its own slimming down (even online, which we didn’t quite understand); LA Yoga; Fit Yoga; and new quarterly YogaMom (having it’s untimely launch last year).

So will these remaining rags dissolve into oblivion? Will they blossom onto the interwebs? Will they just start twittering articles in 140 characters and live happily ever after? We have no idea! How much money has each Editor-in-Chief stashed under their mattress? Frankly, print can be nice, but it’s really not necessary.  Needless to say you won’t be seeing a YogaDork zine hitting your doorstep, ever. As long as the organizations stay in tact we don’t need to hold a few glossy pages in our hands – it just means you ‘light readers’ will have to remember to tote your laptops and iphones into the toilet.

Here’s hoping the mags can withstand economic windfall, but if not, we welcome hard knocks yogi journalists to the yogasphere.

Maybe you’re already tired of the unmanageable disarray of printed magazines cluttering up your corners collecting dust? If you have the time and are so inclined, try these tips for shedding the pages. From AnthroYogini Blog:

1.  I keep a day book (it’s just a lined note book) in which I write ideas and journal entries, so I cut out inspirational pictures and quotes and stuck them in

2.  Some of the articles are a useful resource for teaching -but not everything in a magazine is useful. I cut out those that were and put them in a folder.

3.  Recipes. Yoga magazines often have yummy recipes (like the one I found in Fit Yoga years ago for Yogi Chai). I cut these out and glued them into my personal recipe book.

Earlier…Yoga Journal’s yoga Buzz Blog Still Alive

Shhh…can you hear that?…it’s the sound of little lulu lollies tap-tapping their keyboards infusing greatness into the internet …

Things sure have been quiet in Lululand, it’s like they’re plotting a devious plan to launch online retail and take over the internets with a blog, or something.   But seriously, elevating the internet “from mediocrity to a place of greatness” is a lot of work you know?  And after all the hubbub over exploiting Obama (‘Om’ bama) and offending everyone and their grandmothers with the political and racially tinged window displays, they could probably use some down time.  Plus, we suspect sifting through all the monthly challenge submissions from lululemmings in preparation for further virtual exploits must be a daunting task.

Certainly these are crucial times for the lulus, and they’ve really got to ramp it up in the face of a crappy economy and new competitors prowling the gates. Stock is selling at $6.30 a share today, nothing close to the glory days of yesteryear when new stores were spreading like heat rash.

2008’s Q4 profits are expected to be pretty sour. Analysts project the dismal results:

With the average price of a top at $50 and $90 for a pair of pants, we believe the company’s revenue will decline as budget-conscious consumers cut back on discretionary spending and luxury-item purchases. Same-store sales decelerated significantly to the low single digits in the third quarter of 2008, down from double-digit same-store sales growth in prior periods. Given further deterioration in the retail environment in both the United States and Canada in the back half of 2008, we project Lululemon’s same-store sales will decline in the double digits in the fourth quarter.

Steep. But if you’re truly interested in how Lulu fared, especially those investi-yogis holding/selling lulu stock, clue in to the live conference call coming up on March 26.  Info:

lululemon athletica inc. (NASDAQ: LULU; TSX: LLL) will be holding its fourth quarter fiscal 2008 earnings conference call on Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 4:30 p.m. EDT.

If you would like to participate in the call, please dial 1-888-417-8516 approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the call.

A live web cast of the conference call will be available online at: http://investor.lululemon.com/events.cfm. A replay will be made available online approximately 2 hours following the live call for a period of 30 days.

Ohh…spring is already so exciting!  We’re getting our wine glasses ready now  – we still get free booze right?  One can only pray our tax refund arrives by April.

Earlier…Lululemon Internet Greatness (Online Store) Commences April 2009

More Lululemon news

“So you’re saying maybe it went that way? Oh, you’re telling me I should go to yoga class because it’s obviously not working yet.”

Seriously girl, stand up straight. You’re doing irreparable damage to the Celebriyogi image.

Shenae Grimes, of 90210 reloaded fame, on her way to power yoga at Mark Blanchard’s this past Sunday in LA.

The papz love to follow her to yoga class, we saw Ms. Grimes freshly steamed from Bikram last month.
[Celebrity-Gossip]

EXCLUSIVE PIX by Flynet ©2009

By Hugo Rivera CFT, SPN, BSCE.
http://hrfit.rxsportz.com

Definition of a Hardgainer

The popular definition of a hardgainer is a person that works out hard with weights but has a hard time putting on muscle. Six weeks of working out can go by and no significant changes in muscle size are noted other than perhaps a bit of an increase in muscle tone.

According to this popular definition of a hardgainer, all of us are "hardgainers" because for the most part, putting on muscle is not an easy endeavor. The easiest period to gain muscle is during puberty. After that, gaining muscle becomes progressively harder as we age due to the fact that hormonal production starts declining between the ages of 25 and 30.

Ectomorph Somatypes

My definition of a hardgainer is the naturally skinny person, who no matter what he or she eats, always seem to remain the same body weight.

This is what Dr. William H. Sheldon referred to as an "ectomorph" somatotype when he came up with the theory sometime in the 1940’s. Sheldon’s theory states that human bodies are divided into three main somatotypes; the ectomorph, the endomorph and the mesomorph.

In a nutshell…

The ectomorph is the naturally skinny person who has trouble gaining weight, whether in the form of muscle or fat.

The endomorph on the other hand has the opposite problem, it is too easy for a person with this body type to gain weight.While endomorphs are easy muscle gainers, provided they diet and train correctly, they are cursed with a slow metabolism, which makes it imperative that they be strict with their diet year round if they wish to have any abdominal definition.

The mesomorph, however, is the naturally muscular person, who also has a higher metabolism than the endomorph. Mesomorphs make excellent bodybuilders and for them, gains in muscle and reduction in body fat come rather easily provided they maintain a great training and nutrition program; life is not fair.

So You Have Determined That You Are A Hardgainer – Now what?!

Now, having said this, is a hardgainer doomed to stay looking the same way forever?

Not at all. Basically, all the hardgainer has to do is modify the training and nutrition program to suit his/her unique metabolism.

While most people will do best on a diet consisting of 40% carbohydrates, 40% proteins and 20% fats, the hardgainer will benefit most from a diet consisting of 50% carbs, 25 % proteins and 25% good fats.

While the typical person will do best on a caloric intake that equals their lean body mass times 12, the hardgainer is better served by taking in as much as 24 calories per pound of total bodyweight (as opposed to lean body mass). Therefore, if you are a hardgainer and weigh 150 lbs, your caloric intake will be 3600 calories (150 x 24). Your total amounts of carbohydrates per day will be in the order of 450 grams of carbs, your protein will be 225 grams and your fats will be 100 grams of good fats per day.

You can take all of this in 6, 7 or even 8 meals. The key thing for a hardgainer to be successful is to minimize their caloric expenditures and maximize their caloric intake. This is necessary as the hardgainer metabolism is a furnace that burns calories at all times and if not enough are supplied at one time or the other, then muscle will be consumed by the body for energy purposes. After all, this metabolic issue is what makes a person a hardgainer.

Hardgainer Training

Three to four sessions per week of periodized weight training, lasting for 60 minutes at the most, is all a hardgainer can get away with. Cardiovascular exercise should be limited to a couple of light walks on the days off lasting no more than 20 minutes. Remember that the hardgainer needs to limit caloric expenditure. Because of this, he/she needs to get in the gym, stimulate the muscle and get out.

The Benefit of Being a Hardgainer

If you are a hardgainer that does not mean it’s the end of the world. Many determined hardgainers that have achieved their bodybuilding goals (and even won competitions) through a ton of determination and very hard work. The beauty of hardgainers is the fact that it is very hard for them to gain body fat, so therefore, any muscle gains that they make are highly visible due to the amount of muscle definition that the hardgainer has.

If you are a hardgainer, plan your meals ahead of time, pack them in a cooler and ensure that you never run out of food. When in the gym, get in, and get out. At night, get plenty of rest, and if you follow all of this day in and day out, then get ready to grow!

If your interested in more information about my complete Body Body Building & Fat Loss Program check out www.losefatandgainmuscle.com

Author Bio
Hugo Rivera CFT, SPN, BSCE. is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, multi certified personal trainer, industry consultant and fitness expert who not only knows training and nutrition theory, but also applies it on a daily basis as evidenced by the fact that he’s always in shape and by his awards and high placings at numerous national level bodybuilding competitions. He is also an internationally known best selling fitness author with a very successful franchise of books called "The Body Sculpting Bibles" which collectively have sold over a million copies. Hugo is also author of the very popular “Body Re-Engineering” e-book, which teaches you how to gain lean muscle mass and get lean without drugs, or fancy expensive supplements, using the secrets he devised after many years of weight problems as a child.For more information on Hugo’s Muscle Building / Fat Loss Program please click on the link below:
http://hrfit.rxsportz.com 

By Nick Nilsson

Daily Specialization, where you train twice a day every day in a very
specific fasion, is one of my most controversial programs. This
update to it forces even FASTER results by constantly
increasing the resistance and literally FORCING results.

The idea for this new version of Daily Specialization Training came to me as I was re-reading the famous story of Milos of Crotona in ancient Greece, who lifted a calf (a baby cow…not the calf muscle!) every day until that calf grew into a bull. I’m sure you’ve heard this one!

This is an elegant example of the power of long-term, progressive resistance.

What IS Daily Specialization?

Daily Specialization is a very simple training technique…basically, you take one exercise and do ONE set of that exercise TWICE a day, EVERY day.

And then you KEEP doing it…

So, for example, if you chose push-ups for your Specialization exercise, first thing every single morning you would do one set of as many push-ups as you could. Then, every single evening, you would do another single set of as many push-ups as you could.

And you do this EVERY day. Because you’re doing just one set of one exercise, your body is fully capable of recovering from this training and getting stronger from it.

Many people worry that they have to wait two days before they train a bodypart again. This is a total myth.

If you train an exercise with high volume (i.e. lots of sets) you SHOULD wait before training it again. But because this program only hits you with one set at a time, you can train a lot more frequently and see some incredible long-term strength gains.

The example I like to use is myself…the first time I used this Daily Specialization program, I used handstand push-ups. I went from being unable to do 1 full rep to being able to do 40 full reps in a matter of only a few months.

THAT is the power of Daily Specialization.

In the first version of the Daily Specialization routine, I recommended using a bodyweight exercise and adding more reps as you get stronger (which is the most practical way to do it with bodyweight exercises). This is an extremely effective technique and I and many others have used it with great results.

—-

For a detailed look at this program, go to:

Daily Specialization Training – Transform Your Weakest Bodyparts Into Your STRONGEST Bodyparts!

http://www.fitstep.com/Misc/Newsletter-archives/issue27.htm#1

—-

With THIS new version, you will use an exercise that allows you to increase the resistance by small amounts on a regular basis.

And, of course, I thought to myself, "lifting a growing calf every day is certainly not practical. But why not mimic the exact same principle with weights instead?"

You will still do an exercise to failure for one set twice a day, but rather than using the same resistance every time (as with bodyweight exercises), we will force even greater adaptation by increasing the resistance slowly but steadily.

Ideally, you’ll want to have a way to increase the resistance easily, such as using a barbell or dumbells. If you don’t have barbells or dumbells at home, you still have options for increasing resistance while using bodyweight exercises, such as:

1. You can change body positions in ways that make the exercise harder. For example, if you’re using Bench Dips and you start with your knees bent 90 degrees and your feet flat on the floor, you will move your feet further away from the bench, then set them up on a chair/bench, then place them on something that is higher than what your hands are setting on.

2. The other way to easily add resistance to a bodyweight exercise is to get yourself a sturdy backpack and gradually load it with heavy objects such as books or water bottles filled with sand. The more heavy things you put in the pack, the more resistance you’ll get.

For the first 4 days, start with a resistance that allows you to get around 10 to 15 reps for your one set. Your body will rapidly start adapting to this new stress. You may experience some initial soreness from working your muscles far more frequently than they’re used to. Four days should be enough time to allow your body to effectively start adapting.

Now we’re going to start letting Milos’ calf grow, realizing the full power of progressive resistance. Increase the resistance by the smallest amount you can and keep the twice-daily schedule going.

Add 2 1/2 lb plates to your barbells/dumbells. Shift your body position a small amount if using a bodyweight exercise. Add one heavy book to your backpack, etc.

Use this resistance for at least 2 days to allow your body time to adapt to the slightly higher workload. After 2 days on this resistance level, note how many reps you’re able to do with that weight. If your reps are 5 or less on this resistance, stay at that weight for one more day. This will be your rule of thumb for increasing resistance levels.

From this point on, your goal is to increase the resistance you are using very slightly every 2 days. Follow the 5 rep rule of thumb where if your reps are 5 or less, use that resistance for one more day. As well, continue to stay at that resistance for as long as your reps stay below 5 or less. Don’t reduce the weight, just add days on until you can do more than 5 reps with it.

Over the course of weeks and months, you are going to force some serious adaptation in your target muscle group.

This small but continuous increase in resistance, which allows your body a chance to adapt and focus on it, can result in extremely large strength increases and add plenty of muscle mass to your target muscle group.

The best exercises to use with this type of training are the basics – the exercises that use the most muscle for your target bodypart. This could be barbell curls, weighted dips, bench presses, deadlifts, rows, shoulder presses, etc. Good bodyweight exercises include pull-ups, dips, bench dips, push-ups, etc.

I’m a big fan of having some basic training equipment at home, even if it’s just a set of adjustable dumbells, and I highly recommend investing in those if you’d like to try this program. Sporting goods stores or garage sales are your best bets for free weights (don’t order online as you will be hit with HUGE shipping charges). Weights at home are not absolutely necessary but they definitely help!

If and when you do try this program, be sure to keep track of your resistance levels and bodypart measurements so you can gauge exactly how effective the program is for you.

And definitely be sure to let me know how you make out with this program! There’s nothing I enjoy more than hearing how well one of programs has worked for you. That is, after all, the main reason I’m in this business – to make sure you have the information you need to get the best results possible for the time and effort you put into your training.

Want to Learn More About Specialization Training?

Click here to find out how you can achieve ridiculous strength gains (25% increases in 4 days, for example!) and build up lagging bodyparts FAST.

You’lll get 6 power-packed Specialization programs for just $9.95!

http://tinyurl.com/c8upa5

——————

Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 17 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Muscle Explosion! 28 Days To Maximum Mass", "Metabolic Surge – Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus – Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of" all available at http://fitness-ebooks.rxsportz.com. He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.

NOTE: This event is only 48-hours and the FREE offer expires Friday March 20th at midnight.

I have some REALLY exciting news to share with you today.

My good friend and fellow fitness author Vince DelMonte is GIVING AWAY two of the most supporting resources that will lead to muscle growth and carving our a ripped six-pack. It’s a FREE opportunity to get better results in the next 2.5 weeks than most people experience in 2.5 months.

This is perhaps one of the most valuable giveaways EVER.

Yes, 100% FREE stuff!

But there is a catch… it’s only available until Friday March 20th at midnight

Each gift you’ll find at the below address are retailed at $57 US, but today you can grab them for the best price ever – zero.

Click here for your free gifts:
–> http://tinyurl.com/c5jchp

Why is Vince doing this??

On Tuesday April 7th at 12pm EST Vince is releasing his highly-anticipated, high quality No-Nonsense Muscle Building & Six-Pack DVD Series which is the most complete muscle-shredding, belly-busting and ab-sharpening solution and DVD resource to make a huge difference in your physique.

And he wants to mail you a copy to your front door when it comes available.

The problem is that he only replicated 480 kits.

I am not a psychic but a sell out is expected in just hours considering over 800,000 people are being notified about this as you read this.

DATE- Tuesday April 7th at 12pm EST

…there’s more.

Vince wanted me to reassure you that there is ZERO pressure to try out his No-Nonsense DVD’s when they are ready to be mailed out launch date and you are more than welcome to get INSTANT ACCESS to his two free gifts right now.

… FOLLOW THIS ADVICE …

#1 – Check out the link below.
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#2 – Watch the entire Video (It’s a tad long but Vince explains everything)

#3 – Enter your name and email to get on the Early Bird VIP list to be notified before the public which means you will be able to buy before the site goes live. You’ll also be given INSTANT ACCESS to Upside Down Training and Razor-Sharp Abdominal Cardio Workouts.

So make sure to follow ALL 3 STEPS to ensure you’re one of the lucky people to get access to your free gifts plus first shot to try out Vince’s No-Nonsense Muscle Building & Six-Pack DVD Series on Tuesday April 7th 12pm EST.

Check it out here:
–> http://tinyurl.com/c5jchp

Arthur M.

P.S. This page really is coming down Friday March 20th at Midnight EST. If you don’t grab your gifts today, you WILL miss out (not a marketing ploy, just the honest truth). There is NO CATCH at all. Nothing for you to buy so take advantage and start building some head turning muscle and carving your six-pack, compliments of my good friend Vince.

By Will Brink © 2009

Looks like another “high tech” form of creatine has got one foot planted firmly in the creatine grave yard. What is the creatine graveyard? It’s where forms of creatine – other then monohydrate – go when either science has shown them inferior to monohydrate, and or it’s life cycle of hype has come to and end.

I refer specifically to creatine ethyl ester (CEE). As with the many “high tech” forms of creatine before it, all manner of claims were/are made about how superior it is to creatine monohydrate (CM). It always starts the same. First the company will invent a long list of negatives about CM such as “poorly absorbed” or “causes bloat” or “is not stable” and then goes onto claim their form of creatine has solved all those invented negatives. The problem is, the data already shows CM does not suffer from virtually any of the negatives they invent, nor do they show their form “cures” those negatives. Sellers of CCE for example claimed CEE was better absorbed and utilized vs. CM, and that has been shown to be nonsense. There have been several in vitro (test tube) studies pointing to the fact CEE is inferior to CM, but a recent study done in humans puts a final nail in the coffin as far as I am concerned. This study is titled “The effects of creatine ethyl ester supplementation combined with heavy resistance training on body composition, muscle performance, and serum and muscle creatine levels” The full study is public access and can be read here:

CEE Study

Warning, the abstract is confusing and not well written. If you read the full paper, it’s clearer. If you don’t have the time or interest to read it, the take home is: although all subjects in this study (CEE vs. CM vs. Placebo) experienced approximately the same effects; they all had improvements in bodycomp and got stronger. Why? Because they used untrained subjects in the study. Thus, a drawback of this study was due to using untrained people, they couldn’t differentiate between PL, CEE, and CM in terms of effects on bodycomp and strength within that time period as newbies always make fast progress in the beginning. No news there.

However, the study did achieve the essential point, which is it clearly showed the claims of CEE false: CEE had much higher creatinine levels and lower muscle creatine levels compared to CM in this study, thus, yet again, the claims by sellers of CEE that it’s superior to CM and that CM is “poorly absorbed” or “causes bloat,” or my favorite “CM is not stable,” etc are false. They also looked at changes in water compartments (CEE actually had a trend toward greater extra cellular water then CM BTW, so there goes that stupid “no bloat” claim for CEE…) and other issues claimed to make CEE superior, and it failed.

CEE is less stable then CM, increases creatinine to a much greater extent then CM, and is inferior for increasing muscle creatine levels to CM. This study is not perfect by any means, but when combined with what else exists, and the counter studies sellers of CEE offer (which is to say zero), well you don’t have to be a scientist to see the writing on the wall there…

CEE will be added to the creatine graveyard with a ton of others all claiming to be superior to CM which all started with big claims and now sit in the grave yard.

Two essential points about the grave yard before we get to that:

(1) Because they are in the grave yard does not mean they are worthless. Some forms, such as magnesium creatine chelate for example looked promising, but a head to head study with CM found it no better. Remember, another form does not have to show it’s the equal of CM, it has to show it’s superior to CM per its claims. Forms such as creatine pyruvate and many others on the list may be just as effective as CM, but not superior, so it comes down to cost. Others on the list have in fact been proven inferior to CM in studies, such as serum creatine, various liquid creatine versions, and now CEE. Serum creatine was all the rage a few years ago, and studies found not only was it inferior to CM in every respect, it contained virtually no creatine! Of course, there were still those on the various forums using ‘bro logic’ with “bro, I don’t care what the studies say, it works like da bomb for me!” posts, but I digress….Finally, other forms on the list simply lack any data at all to compare to CM. The companies selling these forms will routinely make claims of superiority with nadda for hard data to support them. Therefore, it’s impossible to really separate fact from fiction (i.e., marketing hype) to recommend them.

Me, I will use what has literally hundreds of studies to support its efficacy and safety over a form with zero data to support it’s claims of superiority over CM. Thus, they get put into the grave yard. Future studies may get them out of the graveyard, but I aint holding my breath…

(2) CM is not perfect. It’s not very soluble, and in about 30% of users, does not appear to work at all. At higher doses, generally above 3g-5g or so in a single dose, can cause stomach upset for some, among other small, but significant drawbacks for some users. Therefore, I am in favor of continued research into improved delivery technologies, improved forms of creatine, and so on. I’m all for it, but as they say, don’t piss on me and tell me it’s raining. In God we trust, everyone else must show data. Hard data talks, BS walks.

I could randomly take two forms from the list below, say dicreatine malate and creatine ethyl carbonate ester and make dicreatine malate creatine ethyl carbonate*, but would it be superior to CM? Unknown as there would be no data. I could just invent a bunch of unproven claims like others do and sell the stuff… Do companies just invent a form of creatine for no other reason then it sound “high tech”? Hell, one company (BSN) is currently in court over one form they sell, called CEM3 or “Creatine Ethyl Ester Malate” which according to the charges “does not exist and is impossible to manufacture”! As I said, CM is not perfect and I am all for continued research into improved (vs. just different!) forms of creatine and or improved delivery technologies, but companies should do their due diligence on these products and stop with all the hype and CM bashing to sell unproven products.

So, without further delay, here is my current list for the creatine graveyard:

The Creatine Graveyard List:

Creatine ethyl ester (CEE)
creatine pyruvate
creatine taurinate
creatine ethyl ester malate
creatine ethyl carbonate ester
creatine gluconate
creatine malate
dicreatine malate
tricreatine malate
creatine citrate
tricreatine citrate
Kre-Alkalyn
creatine phosphate
creatine alpha-ketoglutarate
creatine-6,8-thioctic Acid-ketoisocaproic Acid Calcium (CREAKIC)
creatine pyroglutamate
“conjugated creatine” (Con-Cret)
magnesium creatine chelate
creatine anhydrous
dicreatine orotate
tricreatine orotate
creatine alpha-amino butyrate
creatine HMB
“titrated creatine”
“creatine serum”
“liquid creatine”

Also:
glycocyamine (precursor)
creatinol-o-phosphate (analog)

* = for the sake of an example. I have no idea if such a form is chemically possible, nor do I care.

Will Brink’s biography:
Will Brink is the owner of the Brinkzone Blog. Will has over 15 years experience as a respected author, columnist and consultant, to the supplement, fitness, bodybuilding, and weight loss industry and has been extensively published. Will graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical companies. His often ground breaking articles can be found in publications such as Lets Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International, The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International, Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women’s World and The Townsend Letter For Doctors. Will is the author of the popular e-books, both accompanied by private members forum access , Bodybuilding Revealed & Fat Loss Revealed.

By Hugo Rivera CFT, SPN, BSCE.
 
I’m often asked for basic tips and simple information that can be digested quickly and applied just as quickly, so here’s a few tips that bodybuilders from all levels can use to build muscle and lose fat:

a) Never sacrifice form to lift more weight.

We are in the business of stimulating muscle so weights are just the tools we use to induce stimulation; we are not powerlifters. Also, focus on really squeezing the muscle you’re training. The way I see it, focusing and squeezing is much more important than the amount of weight used, and with that manner of execution you can’t use really heavy weights.

b) You need to practice goal setting:

Without goals we are like a ship in the middle of the sea, just drifting away with no sense of direction. It just goes with the flow, so to speak, and if it ever gets anywhere it is just by mere accident. In order to achieve success in our bodybuilding program, our goal should be clearly defined and engrained in our brains. Otherwise, like the boat on the example above, if you get anywhere it will be by mere chance.

c) Follow a sensible and well periodized training program:

Unfortunately, many bodybuilders who are just getting started make the mistake of either choosing a bodybuilding routine that is too advanced for their level, or simply go to the gym without any training plan. Too much too soon leads to injury and just going from machine to machine without any set routine just leads to marginal bodybuilding results at best. The cure to this problem is to grab a sensible bodybuilding routine that fits your training level and execute it day in and day out.

d) If you want results, do not neglect the nutrition component:

Without a bodybuilding diet to go along with your training program you will fail to lose body fat and gain muscle. Nutrition is what gives us the raw materials for recuperation, energy, and growth. Therefore, it is important that you get familiarized with the characteristics of a good bodybuilding diet and apply those principles in order to ensure getting the bodybuilding gains that you are looking for. And along these lines, if you are looking to have abs, nutrition is the main component that needs to be tweaked in order to get those. Why? Because ripped abs are a function of low body fat and low body fat is attained through following the proper diet.

e) Don’t rely on supplements to do the work for you:

Supplements do not make up for improper training, or lack thereof, and/or a low quality diet. Bodybuilding supplements only work when your diet and your training program are optimal. Keep in mind that supplements are just additions to an already good nutrition and training program. Once all of those aspects of your program are maximized, then you can start thinking of adding bodybuilding supplements to your program.

f) You need to get proper rest:

Muscles do not grow as you work them out. They grow while you sleep. Therefore, sleep deprivation will cost you valuable bodybuilding gains. Ensure a good night sleep every night and avoid staying up late if you don’t need to in order to keep cortisol levels low. Seven to ideally eight hours of sleep each night will not only keep you healthy and more energetic, but also will ensure that bodybuilding gains keep on coming.

g) Consistency leads to bodybuilding success:

Remember that consistency of execution will lead to ultimate bodybuilding success: If you consistently apply a sound training system, nutrition, supplementation and recovery plan you will achieve your fitness goals.

h) If you fall off the wagon, lift yourself up and get back on it!

Too many bodybuilders focus on perfection. Therefore, if they miss a workout, a meal, or cheat on their diet, they get all frustrated and toss the whole program. As my good colleague and worldwide nutrition expert Keith Klein says: “That is the equivalent of getting a flat tire and puncturing the other three plus the spare!” Remember, this game is won through consistency of execution, not through perfection.

i) You control what you put in your mouth:

Remember that only you control what goes in your mouth. Food does not control you!

j) Believe in yourself:

Last but not least, and as funny as it sounds, there must be NO DOUBT in your mind that you can make this transformation a reality. If not, you won’t be able to achieve your desired results. Believing in yourself is really the first step. If you don’t believe in yourself, who will?

If your interested in more information about my complete Body Body Building & Fat Loss Program check out http://hrfit.rxsportz.com

Author Bio
Hugo Rivera CFT, SPN, BSCE. is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, multi certified personal trainer, industry consultant and fitness expert who not only knows training and nutrition theory, but also applies it on a daily basis as evidenced by the fact that he’s always in shape and by his awards and high placing at numerous national level bodybuilding competitions. He is also an internationally known best selling fitness author with a very successful franchise of books called "The Body Sculpting Bibles" which collectively have sold over a million copies. Hugo is also author of the very popular “Body Re-Engineering” e-book, which teaches you how to gain lean muscle mass and get lean without drugs, or fancy expensive supplements, using the secrets he devised after many years of weight problems as a child.For more information on Hugo’s Muscle Building / Fat Loss Program please click on the link below:
http://hrfit.rxsportz.com

By Chris Cage

If only you knew the identity of the high blood pressure cause then maybe you could do something about your condition and be healthy once again. In this article, I’ll help you to identify it and unlock the door to a solution.

At The Arterial Level

Before we look at contributing factors, we need to understand what exactly happens to give you hypertension.

Your heart pumps blood through your arteries and into your organs. When the blood exits the organs it returns back to the heart via the veins to be pumped around once more.

As your arteries are the closest to your heart, they suffer from the brunt of the pumping force. If your arteries become narrow then the pressure increases and this is the condition known as "high blood pressure". It is like squeezing a water hose pipe between your fingers to get the stream to shoot further. Over time this can cause a lot of damage to your body.

What Makes Your Arteries Narrow?

There are three main reasons why your arteries can become narrow and you can get hypertension.

The first is what you eat. This influences many processes in your body that can then affect the arteries. One of the most important is the sodium-potassium balance.

The second is your activity rate. If you rarely exercise then the arterial walls become stiff and narrow. If you exercise even just a little bit then they become more flexible and remain wider.

Third is your stress levels. The more stressed you are the worse your blood pressure.

How To Cure Hypertension

Well one method that you can use is drugs. However, your doctor will keep trying different combinations to see which ones give you the least side effects. That’s right, no matter what you do you are going to have some side effects and blood pressure drugs are notorious for this.

The other alternative is to address the 3 main causes above. This can be tough unless you have a good structured plan to follow.

Are you worried about dying early from high blood pressure? You can be healthy again if you want to. Discover the natural, scientifically proven plan to lower your blood pressure to a healthy 115/75 without drugs, here: Blood Pressure Truth.

By Will Brink

Pre- and post-workout nutrition is all the rage these days, and for good reason. For some, however, it’s become more than a science—it’s become their religion, or perhaps just a place to focus their OCD-like tendencies. Regardless, people have taken the topic of pre- and post-workout nutrition to a level that is not justified by the research, or at least not confirmed by the research that currently exists.

Readers should realize I may have my membership card to the Bodybuilding Nutrition Guru Society torn up and thrown at me for what I am about to share in this article… As expected, supplement companies—and self–proclaimed ‘net guru types—have used what does exist for research to convince everyone that that if they don’t take in exactly 98.7 grams of carbohydrates and 37.2 grams of protein within 28 seconds after they leave the gym, their muscles will be attacked by every muscle-hating hormone they possess in their body by second 29; with the prior year of hard work in the gym totally wasted by second 30!

People are fixated on this particular topic like nothing else, and when you throw in the other possible ingredients that can be added to the post-workout drink, such as creatine, glutamine, and many others, it’s taken to the level of psychosis!

Of course supplement companies have come out with their own “techno-functional ultra-repartitioning multi-dimensional”* post-workout drink formulas that are claimed to be the latest breakthrough. Besides the carbs and protein in these formulas, many of the additional compounds are either under dosed (ergo the ‘label decoration’ syndrome), have no particular justification for being in the formula in the first place, or both (ergo, the ‘shot gun’ approach)…but I digress.

Now I have to take at least some blame—or credit—for this predicament, depending on how you want to view it. I have written extensively about the importance of post-workout nutrition in all manner of articles, and give the topic extensive focus in my Bodybuilding Revealed e-book.

Unlike many of the supplement companies and ‘net experts’ out there, however, I never claimed you would shrivel up into Pee Wee Herman in a matter of minutes if you didn’t get your ultra high-tech post-workout drink 29 seconds after your last set of squats. I have always taken a balanced view on the topic, by pointing out that food is still more important in the overall equation of muscle growth.

Thus, what I can say is that research—and common sense—tells us it’s advantageous to get some fast-acting carbs and protein after a hard workout to optimize the time we put in the gym. From there, however, people have relied more on wishful thinking than science for their pre- and post-workout nutrition. People who have poor diets and poorly thought-out training routines, but focus on the latest magic pre- and post-workout elixirs are missing the point. Their approach is like trying to hold up a three-legged stool with one support leg and the other two missing.

General Considerations of Research vs. the “Real World”

As we all know, a great deal of research is performed that—although interesting—has very little “real world” application to bodybuilders and other athletes.

This is because scientists do everything in their power to study their chosen topic in isolation. In other words, they go to great lengths and trouble to control variables that will impact the outcomes of their studies. For example, in a study looking at the effects of a drug or supplement, a placebo group is matched to the “active” group. The scientists want to make sure the effect they get—or don’t get—is due to the drug/supplement and not the placebo effect. Making the study double-blind is another way of attempting to prevent the bias of the scientists from influencing the study.

The point is that, when they attempt to isolate an effect of something being tested, scientists often end up with results that may not always be directly applicable to the “real world” of Joe Schmoe gym goer.

When study designs don’t reflect “real world” conditions, they need to be taken with a grain of salt. Were the study participants fasted? What type of exercise did they perform? What effects did the researchers actually look at and how does that apply to the “real world” or athlete in question? Were the study participants new to the form of exercise being utilized in the study or were they experienced athletes? How many people were in the study? Who do the results apply to: endurance or strength athletes? Both? Neither?!

Those are just a few of the essential questions that have to be asked and answered before you can even begin to draw any useful “real world” conclusions from the studies that come out. Yet this doesn’t stop people and supplement companies from jumping on the latest studies as the last word in nutrition and start making recommendations from them. They also tend to ignore the studies that contradict or fail to replicate the advice they are giving out. Let’s look at some examples…

The Fast vs. Slow Protein Craze..

The use of fasted subjects in nutrition studies illustrates how researchers can end up with results that may not apply well to the real world. As the name implies, the study subjects are a group of people who have not eaten for an extended period of time. In many cases, they haven’t eaten for 8 – 10 hours or more, which of course does not reflect how the average person eats, at let alone how the average athlete eats—especially bodybuilders looking to add muscle mass.

Enter stage right, the “fast vs. slow” protein craze. The study that got this craze rolling was called “Slow and fast dietary proteins differently modulate postprandial protein accretion” and was responsible for causing a resurgence of interest in casein. The basic premise of this much-touted study was that the speed of absorption of dietary amino acids (from ingested proteins) varies according to the type of dietary protein a person eats.

The researchers wanted to see if the type of protein eaten would affect postprandial (e.g., after a meal) protein synthesis, breakdown, and deposition. To test the hypothesis, they fed casein (CAS) and whey protein (WP) to a group of healthy adults, a single meal of casein (CAS) or whey WP following an overnight fast (10 h). Using this specific study design, they found:

•WP induced a dramatic but short increase of plasma amino acids.
•CAS induced a prolonged plateau of a moderate increase in amino acids (hyperaminoacidemia)
•Whole body protein breakdown was inhibited by 34% after CAS ingestion but not after WP ingestion.
•Postprandial protein synthesis was stimulated by 68% with the WP meal and to a lesser extent (+31%) with the CAS meal.

The basic non-science summary is: the study found that CAS was good at preventing protein breakdown (proteolysis), but was not so good for increasing protein synthesis. WP had basically the opposite effects: it increased protein synthesis but didn’t prevent protein breakdown. The problem is that they were using fasted subjects for a single meal. ***

Keep that in mind as we move along here…

So far so good right? So what can we conclude from this study and how useful are the results? Like so many studies, the results were interesting—and of little use to people in the real world. Do these results hold up under more “real world” conditions where people are eating every few hours and/or mixing the proteins with other macronutrients (i.e., carbs and fats)?

The answer is probably not, which is exactly what the researchers found when they attempted to mimic a more realistic eating pattern of multiple meals and or the addition of other macronutrients. The follow up study was called “The digestion rate of protein is an independent regulating factor of postprandial protein retention.” Four groups of five to six healthy young men received:

• a single meal of slowly digested casein (CAS).
• a single meal of free amino acids mimicking the composition of casein (AA).
• a single meal of rapidly digested whey proteins (WP).
• repeated meals of whey proteins (RPT-WP) mimicking slow digestion rate of casein (i.e., reflecting how people really eat).

So what did they find? In a nut shell, giving people multiple doses of whey—which more closely mimics how people really eat-—had basically the same effects as a single dose of casein, and mixing either with fats and proteins pretty much nullified any big differences between the two proteins.

Even that’s not the end of the story, however, as multiple follow up studies done by the same group and others found these effects could also be different in older versus younger people and male versus female! How messed up is that?! So how much press did these follow up studies get? Little or none, as I recall.

Now, a later study did attempt to examine the actual net amino acid uptake after resistance training with whey vs. casein, and found both proteins had essentially the same effects on net muscle protein synthesis after exercise despite different patterns of blood amino acid responses.

Does that put to rest the issue or debate of one protein vs. the other post-workout? No, as there are yet more conflicting studies out there and my bet is still on whey as the superior post-workout protein, but it’s important to realize the answer is far from established at this time.

Got Milk?

Milk: nature’s original MRP. Despite all the fancy proteins out there all claiming to be the next step in the evolution of proteins that “will blast you past your plateaus in the gym,” good old milk seems to be competing—and winning—against some “high tech” products on the market. We have various studies finding increased protein synthesis and other positive effects when a purified protein supplement (e.g., whey, soy, casein, etc.) ingested right after or before a workout—usually in conjunction with carbohydrates—but what about good old milk, a “real” food?

One recent study found good old milk to be an effective post-workout drink that increased net muscle protein synthesis after resistance training. Yet another recent study compared 2 cups of skim milk as a post workout drink compared to a soy drink and a “sports drink.”

In this study, the milk and soy drinks were matched for basic macronutrient ratios and calories and all three were matched for total calories. 56 male volunteers were split into three groups, with all put on a resistance training program for 12 weeks. The volunteers were then randomly assigned one of the three drinks to consume as a post workout drink and again one hour after the workouts.

Although no major differences were found in strength between the 3 groups, the group getting the milk had the greatest increase in muscle mass (via increases in Type I and II fibers) with researchers concluding

“…chronic postexercise consumption of milk promotes greater hypertrophy during the early stages of resistance training in novice weightlifters when compared with isoenergetic soy or carbohydrate consumption.”

But it gets better: how about our favorite childhood drink, chocolate milk? How about chocolate milk vs. two commercial energy/fluid replacement drinks, such as Gatorade and Endurox R4?

One recent study—albeit a small one—found chocolate milk as effective as Gatorade, and more effective than Endurox, as a recovery drink for trained cyclists between exhaustive bouts of endurance exercise.

Now is this a condemnation of sports drinks and an endorsement for milk/chocolate milk as the last word on post-workout drinks? Not at all: remember those essential questions I mentioned above? You have to look at such a study in context—in other words, at the experimental design and how that applies to the “real world.” The subjects fasted for 10 – 12 h prior to the chocolate milk experiment, and these drinks were the only food these guys had for 14 – 16 hours. The results may have been quite different had they been following their normal eating patterns.

They also measured effects on endurance vs.—say—strength or increased protein synthesis, etc.

So, in the context of this particular study design, look at it this way: chocolate milk has casein (a “slow” protein), and whey (a “fast” protein) as well as calcium, some vitamins and a bunch of carbohydrates—so it makes a pretty good, cheap MRP, if that’s all you are going to get all day long. It’s not a half-bad post-workout drink either. It’s not the best MRP—or post workout drink—I could design, but it’s cheap and easy to find. The reality is that there are some inexpensive foods out there can be used, and most of your old school bodybuilders and strong men used milk as the original post workout drink/MRP.

The study that looked at milk vs. soy and sports drink, was done in novice weight lifters, so that too needs to be taken into consideration. Regardless, milk, in particular chocolate milk, should make a perfectly acceptable and inexpensive post workout drink and people who think it’s too “old school” or not “high tech” enough to be if any use are clearly misinformed and the victim of marketing.

Now the study we need to see that does not exist, of course, is milk or chocolate milk vs. a well thought out post-workout drink of—say—whey and maltodextrin (high GI carb source), in experienced weight lifters who are not fasted—but don’t hold your breath on that one. Studies like that get expensive quickly and also pose practical issues. For example, if you wanted to match the protein content of—say—2 scoops of whey isolate to chocolate milk (so the groups were getting an equivalent amount of protein), the subjects would need to drink a large volume of milk (remember, milk is mostly water).

My hunch is that a correctly designed post-workout drink would be superior to chocolate milk, but it would be nice to see the two compared, no?

The Pre-Workout Drink

The pre-workout drink craze followed the post-workout craze after a study found pre-workout nutrition may be more effective than post-workout nutrition. The study that got this craze going was called “Timing of amino acid-carbohydrate ingestion alters anabolic response of muscle to resistance exercise” which found that drinking a mixture of essential amino acids and carbohydrates induced a greater anabolic response (i.e., a net increase in muscle protein balance) when taken right before weight training vs. right after. ****

This study had everyone taking in a pre-workout drink as well as a post-workout drink in an attempt to cover all the bases. It should be noted, however, that—once again—they were using fasted subjects. Think of it like this: you have not eaten in 8-10 or more hours, then you are made to work out on a (very) empty stomach.

Under those particular circumstances, does it not make sense getting something to eat before the workout would be superior to after the workout? We all know hitting the weights on an empty stomach is not an optimal method to preserve—or build—muscle mass. Nor is it reflective of real world eating patterns where the vast majority of people have eaten a full meal at least a few hours before they hit the gym.

After this study, everyone started drinking a protein drink before they hit the gym. Interestingly, however, a recent study done by the same group who did the pre-drink study mentioned above, found whey taken before hitting the gym did not result in an improved net protein balance vs. taking it after the gym.

“Well wait a dang minute Will, now I am really confused!” you are saying angrily to your comp screen! Does this new study show pre-workout nutrition is no more effective than post workout nutrition?

No, and here’s why. It’s an apples vs. oranges study. The first study used free amino acids plus carbohydrates, and the follow up study used whey alone without carbohydrates—which is very odd if they were truly trying to see if free aminos were superior to a whole protein such as whey.

Unfortunately this latter study really didn’t do much to confirm or deny the first study’s findings. And, don’t forget my comments regarding using fasted subjects, which adds yet another wrinkle to all this.

So does that essentially disprove the pre-workout drink vs. the post-workout drink studies? Nope. One recent study did look specifically at the issue of timing and does support the idea that the pre- and post-workout window is the most effective period for ingesting some fast-acting protein and carbs.

This study, titled “Effects of supplement timing and resistance exercise on skeletal muscle hypertrophy,” has gotten a fair amount of attention in the bodybuilding/sports nutrition oriented publications. The researchers examined the effects of a drink of whey, glucose and creatine given to two groups of experienced weight lifters, either morning and evening (M/E) or pre- and post-workout (PP), to see if the actual timing of the drink had an effect on muscle hypertrophy or strength development.

The study found that the group getting the drink PP had an increase in lean body mass and 1RM strength in two of three assessments that were tested. The group getting the drink PP also experienced greater creatine retention and glycogen resynthesis, which means timing of specific nutrients is an important strategy for optimizing the adaptations desired (e.g., increased muscle mass and strength) from your hard work in the gym.

So does this study finally put to rest the issue of pre- vs. post-workout nutrition? No, it did not compare one strategy to the other per se, but did confirm that nutrient timing is an important aspect.

One obvious issue is that this study used a drink that contained creatine throughout, so technically it’s not a pro + carb study, but a pro + carb + creatine study. On the plus side, it was done in experienced weight lifters and they were not fasted, so it does at least represent the metabolic realties of “real world” people looking to get the most of their nutrition. Either way, it supports the idea of taking in the right nutrients both pre- and post-workout, but people should not be under the impression that this issue of timing has been “put to bed,” so to speak, and realize there are still plenty of unanswered questions yet to be explored.

Of course, there are more studies than just the ones mentioned above, so there are plenty of measurements on indicators of recovery from exercise, such as effects on glycogen resynthesis, alterations in hormones, and hormone levels. Nonetheless, I prefer to look at the actual endpoint that really matters at the end of the day: did this person gain muscle mass, strength, or performance by using this product? Without that, everything else—though potentially interesting—is mental masturbation.

Conclusions, and Real World Recommendations.
Now I didn’t write this article to confuse you, but to demonstrate that the optimal strategy for increasing strength and LBM in response to resistance training is not as cut and dried as you are often led to believe. However, it’s also probably simpler than you are led to believe, as the human body is far more adaptable to the types of protein it receives as well as the amounts it receives.

Thus, the people who stress over whether they got 35g of protein and 60g of carbs in their post workout drinks vs. 32g of protein and 70s of carbs in the drink are probably wasting their time, and causing what is known as “paralysis by analysis.” Put more practically, the amount of cortisol you produce from worrying about such minutia probably offsets any gains you might make from one drink vs. another!*****

I also wanted to dispel some of the hype over one protein vs. another, and the fact that expensive pre-made high tech drinks that are all the rage right now are just that: expensive and over hyped.

In the real world, people have used variations of the idea that fast acting proteins and a good dose of simple carbs can improve the effects of resistance training for many years. My good friend, the late Dan Duchaine, used to give people whey mixed in water and Corn Flakes with skim milk as their post workout meal.

One bodybuilder I knew who went onto be a well known IFBB pro, used to have a drink of whey after his workouts and several slices of apple pie at the local Friday’s restaurant next to the gym for his post-workout meal.

Most of your old time strong men and bodybuilders drank quite a lot of milk, and as we have seen from the research, it’s not a half bad post workout drink either.
If people want to buy pre-made carb/protein mixtures with other nutrients added (e.g., creatine, glutamine, various vitamins, etc) out of convenience and don’t care that they can “roll their own” for less money, there’s nothing wrong with that.

Just don’t think there’s anything magical about the pre-made post-workout drinks, no matter what the marketing material or web site says to entice you to purchase it.

Comments of interest:

* = yes, I have seen every one of those words used in the marketing of a product; sadly it’s not exaggeration!

** = Brink’s Body Building Revealed

*** = The reason for this is that whey is absorbed rapidly (being a highly soluble protein) and much of it is oxidized while casein forms a “clot” in the gut and is absorbed slowly (being a fairly insoluble protein), thus causing a steady level of amino acids. That’s why they dubbed whey a “fast” protein and casein a “slow” protein.

**** = Measured as the Phenylalanine disappearance rate – considered an indicator of muscle protein synthesis – via femoral arteriovenous catheterization, as well as muscle biopsies from the vastus lateralis were used to determine phenylalanine concentrations

***** = Credit for that statement/joke has to be given to nutrition writer Lyle McDonald who said something very similar in a post on the news group misc.fitness.weights a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away about a topic I don’t remember….

About the Author – William D. Brink

Will Brink has over 15 years experience as a respected author, columnist and consultant, to the supplement, fitness, bodybuilding, and weight loss industry and has been extensively published.Will graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical companies.

His often ground breaking articles can be found in publications such as Lets Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International, The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International, Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women’s World and The Townsend Letter For Doctors.

Will was a former high level trainer with a rep for getting Olympic athletes, bodybuilders and fitness stars into shape and has gained a reputation for being a no "BS" industry insider who’s not afraid to reveal the lies and hype found in the fat loss , muscle building & supplement industry.

He has been co author of several studies relating to sports nutrition and health found in peer reviewed academic journals, as well as having commentary published in JAMA. William has been invited to lecture on the benefits of weight training and nutrition at conventions and symposiums around the U.S. and Canada, and has appeared on numerous radio and television programs and now runs seminars for tactical law enforcement (SWAT).

He is the author, of Bodybuilding Revealed which teaches you how to gain solid muscle mass drug free and Fat Loss Revealed. which reveals exactly how to get lean , ripped and healthy completely naturally. Both e-books come with access to his private forums and numerous tools to aid you in either endevour.

Find out more at Bodybuilding Revealed or Fat Loss Revealed.

References

Boirie Y, et al. Slow and fast dietary proteins differently modulate postprandial protein accretion. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 1997 Dec 23;94(26):14930

Dangin M, et al. The digestion rate of protein is an independent regulating factor of postprandial protein retention. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Feb;280(2):E340-8.

Dangin M, Boirie Y, Guillet C, Beaufrere B. Influence of the protein digestion rate on protein turnover in young and elderly subjects. J Nutr. 2002 Oct;132(10):3228S-33S.

Dangin M, et al. The rate of protein digestion affects protein gain differently during aging in humans. J Physiol. 2003 Jun 1;549(Pt 2):635-44. Epub 2003 Mar 28.

Demling RH, DeSanti L .Effect of a hypocaloric diet, increased protein intake and resistance training on lean mass gains and fat mass loss in overweight police officers. Ann Nutr Metab 2000;44(1):21-9

Tipton KD, et al. Ingestion of casein and whey proteins result in muscle anabolism after resistance exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2004 Dec;36(12):2073-81.

Elliot TA, et al.Milk ingestion stimulates net muscle protein synthesis following resistance exercise. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Apr;38(4):667-74.

Hartman JW, et al. Consumption of fat-free fluid milk after resistance exercise promotes greater lean mass accretion than does consumption of soy or carbohydrate in young, novice, male weightlifters. Am J Clin Nutr. 2007 Aug;86(2):373-81.

Karp JR, et al. Chocolate milk as a post-exercise recovery aid.
Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2006 Feb;16(1):78-91.
Tipton KD, et al. Timing of amino acid-carbohydrate ingestion alters anabolic response of muscle to resistance exercise Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2001 Aug;281(2):E197-206.

Tipton KD, et al Stimulation of net muscle protein synthesis by whey protein ingestion before and after exercise. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2007 Jan;292(1):E71-6.

Cribb PJ, Hayes A. Effects of supplement timing and resistance exercise on skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2006 Nov;38(11):1918-25.

Additional citations of interest:

Rankin JW, et al. Effect of post-exercise supplement consumption on adaptations to resistance training. J Am Coll Nutr. 2004 Aug;23(4):322-30.

Børsheim E, et al. Effect of carbohydrate intake on net muscle protein synthesis during recovery from resistance exercise. J Appl Physiol. 2004 Feb;96(2):674-8. Epub 2003 Oct 31.

Bird SP, Tarpenning KM, Marino FE. Liquid carbohydrate/essential amino acid ingestion during a short-term bout of resistance exercise suppresses myofibrillar protein degradation. Metabolism. 2006 May;55(5):570-7.

Baty JJ, et al. The effect of a carbohydrate and protein supplement on resistance exercise performance, hormonal response, and muscle damage. J Strength Cond Res. 2007 May;21(2):321-9.

By Vince DelMonte

While some individuals are strictly interested in obtaining muscle for aesthetics, for most people, this isn’t an interest. Instead, you’re more interested in knowing what health benefits weight lifting will have for you…

Far too many people overlook the many health and fitness benefits that weight training has to offer, and because of this, experience problems down the road with their body such as decreased bone density, a slowed metabolic rate, increased stress levels and other negative consequences that are associated with constant stress.

Increased Bone Density

Weight lifting, being one of the best weight bearing exercises you can do, will increase your bone density and help ward off osteoporosis or stress fractures in the future.

Many people think running is the best exercise for increasing bone density, but this isn’t necessarily true. If the truth is told, running actually promotes muscle breakdown in the body, while weight lifting, being an anabolic process, helps to promote the building of tissues.

Therefore, weight lifting is going to be much better at preserving your bone mass, not to mention it’s far less impact than going for an hour run.

Decreased Frequency of Injuries

When you strength train, not only are your muscles going to get stronger, but you’ll also work the ligaments and tendons that are connecting bones, muscles, and other tissues, thus reducing the chance they become injured when participating in other physical activities.

If you’ve ever been injured, you know just how frustrating this can be. In about 80% of all injury cases, the injury is a direct result of a tendon, ligament, or muscle not being strong enough when a stressful force is applied.

Since weight training will really hit all those deep tendons and ligaments, it’s the best injury prevention out there.

Reduction of Health Related Risks

Numerous studies have demonstrated that regular weight training can have a positive effect on health by showing reductions in the rate of insulin resistance, blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, and even cancer.

If you couple a solid weight training program then with a well-thought out diet, you’ll be putting your best foot forward at warding off these chronic problems

Prevention of Fat Gain

The more you weight lift, the higher your metabolism will be, thus the more food you can eat while maintaining your weight.  If that isn’t good news for your future and the fight against body fat, I’m not sure what is.

Now,  with all of this said, one big problem many people run into is the thinking pattern that using a muscle building program will make you big and bulky.

This is most certainly not the case.

Let’s look at an analogy to gain an understanding of this.

Pretend you have two teams and each are going to try and build a house using the exact same building technique.

One team is given 10,000 bricks to construct this house, and the second team is given only 1,000 bricks.

Who’s going to build the bigger house?

The choice should be obvious – team one since they have more bricks to build it with. Now, think of those bricks as being the calories you put into your body.  Unless you’re supplying enough calories, you aren’t going to build really big muscles.  This is precisely what makes bodybuilders look like bodybuilders.

It’s not just about the way they train, but more about the way they eat (if you’ve ever had a teenage son in the growing process in your house, you likely know just how much food must be consumed when growing at rapid rates).

Whether it’s growing in height during puberty or trying to build bigger muscles later on, calories must be supplied for this growth process to take place.

You can’t build a house out of nothing.  Likewise, you can workout all you want, but if those building blocks – in the form of amino acids, carbohydrates, and dietary fats are not there, you aren’t going to see too much muscle growth.

So, don’t get caught thinking that just because you add weight lifting to your workouts, you’re going to develop large bulky muscles.  If you control your diet, this simply will not happen.

So, hopefully it is clear now that just because you’re weight lifting, it does not mean you will end up with bulky muscles as a result.  Many people make this incorrect assumption – but it really is the diet that makes all the difference in how this weight lifting will shape your body.

When you make the decision to work with me using my 6-Pack Ab Quest program, I’ll take you through the weight lifting and ab techniques that will provide maximum results with minimal effort on your part (why spend more time in the gym than you have to?), as well as provide you with meal plans that are custom designed to ensure you get the best results from your training without the muscle bulk – in fact, the plans are formulated to help you shed the fat so you look leaner and more defined.

Not choosing to include weight training as part of your current workout program is without-a-doubt the biggest mistake you could make as far as your long-term health and fitness level is concerned.  Don’t let this exercise pass you by any longer. 

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About the Author:

Vince DelMonte is the author of No Nonsense Muscle Building: Skinny Guy Secrets To Insane Muscle Gain found at http://nononsense.rxsportz.com

He also specializes in teaching skinny guys how to get a six-pack and build muscle, without drugs, supplements and training less than before with his program found at http://6pack.rxsportz.com

© 2006-2008, Vince DelMonte Fitness. All rights in all media reserved. You may reprint this article so long as the article and author bio are reprinted intake and all links are made live. This article may never be sold individually or as part of a package.

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