Everybody Else

"I can't eat the same food everybody else can or I gain weight"

You hear it all the time right?

But the majority of people in this country are fat! The truth is, this silent majority of people that can eat Micky D's and Krispey Kreme everyday and not get fat don't exist.

Do people REALLY think that "everybody else" can eat all these foods and not get fat, despite myriad evidence to the contrary in every city of the USA? It seems so obvious but I'd be lieing if I said that I didn't fall victim to this mindset in the past too.

Does the general populace really, genuinely think that everybody else can get away with eating crap and that they're somehow disadvantaged? Surely there's some kind of deep psychological explanation here.

So....keto diets?

So it's been taught to me (twice now actually) that the human brain consumes about 120-130g of carbohydrates per day. All it is doing is thinking. That is about 50% of the carbohydrates that most people consume every day.

And it requires absolutely no activity.

So is a low carb diet - for bodybuilders or any type of active person - really a good idea?

Great Site

http://thisiswhyyourefat.com/page/2

Justin Harris Joins Team MD

Justin Harris started Troponin Nutrition. I have used two different nutritionist (Nate Wolfe and Shelby Starnes) for my contests.

I think Justin is a great addition to a magazine that seems to be cleaning up it's act lately.

Congrats to Justin!

http://forums.musculardevelopment.com/showthread.php?p=1363873#post1363873

Combining Cardio and Resistance Training is Contraindicated

A new study came out in the Journal of Applied Physiology that tested combining cardio and resistance training in the same session. They tried both doing cardio before lifting weights and cardio afterward.

What they found was that combining the two, whether you do it before or after, is terrible for hypertrophy.

Doing the cardio before decreased both IGF-1 and Mechano Growth Factor whereas doing it after increased genes for muscle tissue catabolism.

Weight training is a catabolic activity. It is creating microtrauma throughout the muscles trained. Combining it with another catabolic activity that promotes a lighter body is asking for catabolism.

I've suspected this for a while now. One of my old trainers was adamantly against the common notion of doing cardio after resistance exercise due to decreased glycogen in the muscles and increased utilization of free fatty acids.

Looks like that's not true.

Protein - Why the Hate?

It amazes me while I'm taking classes here at the University of Florida that books and professors denounce excess protein as something terribly dangerous. I've heard everything from too much protein will cause cancer to it destroying your kidneys, destroying your liver and making you fat.

I'm beginning to realize why so many people out there have poor body composition.

Protein is the most satiating nutrient that you can eat. This has been validated in numerous studies. Moreover, it's also the most thermogenic nutrient that you can eat. So while it has 4 kcal per gram like carbohydrates, much more energy is burnt off digesting protein as opposed to carbohydrate.

Then the government claims that the protein recommendations given at MyPyramid.gov are for your average person. While I think they're too low still for a couch potato for some of the reasons I mentioned above, I would venture to guess that a VERY large percentage of the population now does some kind of exercise regularly.

So what about them?

It frustrates me because there hasn't been ANY studies on the safety of protein for your kidneys or health in general.

Seeing as how I've eaten a very high protein diet for 5+ years and am still very healthy, I say stop bashing it until you can PROVE otherwise. I'm not the only one. There are thousands and thousands of us on a very high protein diet.

So where are all the bodies?

Detour Bars Go Bankrupt

Oh no!

Even though these bars are basically a snickers bar with protein, I'm sad to see them go - especially because it's their suppliers fault.

They kept supplying peanuts that they knew were contaminated...wow.

http://uk.reuters.com/article/fundsNews2/idUKN1736922020090217

FDA Bans a Form of Vitamin B6

Wow.

http://www.naturalnews.com/025606.html

Communication

Why is it that most people won't talk to a stranger anymore? Say hello to someone as you walk by and you'll be lucky to get a grunt if they're not wearing an iPod or talking on the cell phone.

Our ability to speak is what separates us from animals yet we shun using this wonderful thing. You can learn something from anyone. Speaking is an opportunity for two lives' paths to cross, for experiences to be shared and for lessons to be learned.

Next time some one tries to shoot the shit with you, entertain them and answer! It will make their day, I assure you. Don't be like so many of us that just stare back with "I-don't-know-you" eyes.

Branching Out

I'm at a stage in my life where I feel like I've missed a lot of my high school and part of my college life being so dedicated to bodybuilding. Bodybuilding seems to be an older man's sport with most guys not reaching their peaks until about 30 years of age.

So I decided to take somewhat of a break from pure bodybuilding. Instead, I'm focusing my efforts in the gym on powerlifting.

But with my newfound time, I'm exploring new things. I've always heard that it's rewarding to force yourself to do things outside your comfort zone, things where the outcome is unknown. I'm not talking about mindless recreation for the sake of recreation, doing stuff solely for the sake of distracting yourself from your otherwise miserable life. I'm talking about continually opening your mind to new experiences so that it can continue to learn about life.

These are the things from which memories are made; these are the things that will make you smile when, inevitably, you're engaged in the occasional inescapable humdrumness of everyday life.

Do enough new things and you'll want to replay the video of your life over and over again in your mind.

It's like that US Navy commercial says "If you wrote a book about your life, would anyone want to read it?"

At least that's what I'm trying to accomplish right now. It may just be the most intimidating thing I've done.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Coffee Causes Liver Damage?

by Vicki Salemi

Sure, it's one of the most popular beverages in the country. Millions of people begin their day by consuming a morning cup of joe. In fact, a worldwide forecast has predicted 6.7 million metric tons of coffee will be produced in 2010 alone. This brewed beverage, prepared from roasted coffee beans, does have several negative health effects and addictive qualities. Heavy drinkers can start craving a caffeine fix, particularly when it's consumed in excess.
Liver damage:
If you don't think coffee is doing damage to your liver, think again. Zartarian explains, "Caffeine is broken down by the liver through the use of enzymes. The more these enzymes are involved in breaking down caffeine, the less available they are for breaking down other chemicals in the bloodstream. Excessive caffeine use, therefore, causes the liver to work less efficiently at its job of detoxifying the body." While one to two cups each day seems normal, anything above that amount may seem excessive. Experts recommend replacing those additional cups of coffee with water instead.

...Sorry mom!

Precontest Training

Weight training is actually a very catabolic activity. It's the rest and nutrition that is responsible for the building up of muscle tissue.

So why does everyone think that the training that built the mass will be the best for keeping it? When the nutrition and rest aren't there, you're literally just tearing down muscle tissue without building it back up!

One can't just halt training altogether though, as this will inevitably lead to loss of muscle. This is seen even when calories are present! The most important thing for muscle growth/maintenance is that stimulus.

So I speculate that switching from a hypertrophy to a strength approach precontest would be the best avenue of action. As long as you're getting stronger or at least maintaining strength, you can bet that you're not losing muscle.