“Always start beginners with body weight exercises”

Sounds good in theory…However something just dawned on me…

More precisely, something nearly crushed me.

I was just in my basement doing a workout consisting mostly of weighted pushups.

I had about 100 pounds of chain wrapped around me and I was struggling to get ten good solid reps.

Then it dawned on me – I weight 175 pounds, with the chain I weigh 275 pounds.

So this crushing feeling I have of BARELY making it to ten reps on my third set..this would be what simple BODY WEIGHT push-ups would feel like to a man or women who weighs 275 pounds.

SO WHY WOULD YOU EVER START AN OBESE PERSON ON BODY WEIGHT EXERCISES?

Just doesn’t make sense to me.

A good guideline but NOT a rule

I’m OK with average weight or slightly heavy people starting with body weight work, but use some common sense.

If you are more than 50 or so pounds over your ideal weight and just starting into wieght training…maybe start with dumbbells.

BP

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Haven’t heard of it yet?

Don’t worry, you will.

Invictus is a new movie that is coming out soon that stars Matt Damon and Morgan Freeman.

So why does it get it’s own workout? Well Matt Damon plays Francois Pienaar, the Captain of South Africa’s Rugby team in the early to mid 1990’s. And, at minute 0:57 of the trailer for Invictus, you see Matt with his shirt off for about 1.5 seconds.

Sounds silly but this is the equation:

Male Hollywood Celebrity Appears “Jacked” in a movie = On-line Hysteria over “How he did it”.

Think the Christian Bale Batman Workout, the Gerard Butler 300 Workout, or the Hugh Jackman Wolverine workout.

It works every time, without fail. Hollywood Celeb gets jacked, someone tries to cash in.

So I’m going to Preempt everyone with this one:

I know EXACTLY how Matt Damon got in shape for this movie…It’s the exact same way Hugh Jackman got in shape, which is the exact same way Gerard Butler got in shape and the same way Christian Bale gets in shape.

They dedicated themselves to Hard work and some form of resistance training.

We should all realize by now that there IS NO SECRET.

It doesn’t matter if you are lifting giant rocks, kettle bells, dumbbells or small barnyard animals.

It’s the hard work that gets the results, not the trendy tools.

Matt, Gerard, Christian, they are no different then you or me…well, other than the lifestyle and money part.

They work hard, they stay dedicated and consistent and they get results. It’s not some secret new workout of the start that until now was kept secret…It’s hard work.

So there you go… If you want to look like a Movie Star, the secret is hard work.

The trick to it all? Next time you are in the gym imagine there is a 10 million dollar movie role on the line. You get in shape, you get the role.

BP

PS- you can see the trailer here ==> http://www.apple.com/trailers/wb/invictus/

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3 guys sign up for a research study on the muscle building effects of weight training.

None of them have ever lifted weights before, and all three are between the ages of 20 and 21.

At the start of the study they weighed between 130 and 143 pounds (light by North American Standards)

Guy A – 130 pounds
Guy B – 138 pounds
Guy C – 143 pounds

For their given age and weight, each guy has about normal to slightly below average levels of lean body mass (I’m assuming the guys were between 5′6″ and 5′8″).

Guy A – LBM = 121 pounds (about 10% BF)
Guy B – LBM = 118 pounds (about 10% BF)
Guy C – LBM = 132 pounds (about 7.5% BF)

These numbers also make each guy exceptionally lean.

For their given age and weight, each guy has lower than expected levels of skeletal muscle mass. (We would expect about 50% of LBM to be skeletal Muscle).

Guy A -45 pounds Skeletal Muscle (about 37% of LBM!!!) Expected would be about 60 pounds.
Guy B – 43 pounds Skeletal Muscle (about 36% of LBM!!!) Expected would be about 59 pounds.
Guy C – 55 pounds Skeletal Muscle (about 41% of LBM!!!) Expected would be about 66 pounds.

Each guys bench press max confirms that this is their first time weight training.

Guy A – 95 pounds
Guy B – 90 pounds
Guy C – 130 pounds

So, these three guys who are light by North American Standards, with incredibly low levels of Body Fat and incredibly low levels of Skeletal muscle mass start a weight training program consisting of 3 workouts a week for 4 months.

Their workout program looked like this:

Squats 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Leg Extensions 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Hamstring Curls 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Bench Press 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Lat Pull downs 3 sets of 8-12 reps

As they progressed through their workouts their weights were increased to make sure they failed on each set within the 8-12 rep range.

At the end of the four month period all three guys increased their body weight and Lean Body Mass by about 5.5 pounds…which is pretty close to the average found in most research trials studying weight training for this length of time.

Now, here is where things get a little quirky.

These numbers seemed plausible, given the fact that these 3 men were underweight, under-muscled and new to weigh training.

But what doesn’t make sense is the following…Two of these guys gained MORE muscle then they did Lean Body Mass!

Guy A gained 9 pounds of muscle while only gaining 4.5 pounds of LBM.
Guy B gained 11 pounds of muscle while only gaining 4.5 pounds of LBM.
Guy C gained 7.7 pounds of muscle while gaining 7.7 pounds of LBM.

So, even with their impressive gains in muscle, their muscle mass is still below where it should be (50% of lean body mass) and somewhere along the way two of them lost around 5 pounds of LBM…liver removed maybe?

Bottom line – you have to be skeptical of muscle building research. Obviously this group of 3 guys are not a good subset of the rest of the population. Specifically, they are probably not a good representation of you or I.

They are were their early twenties, were very light,  were very lean, and had very little muscle mass at the start of this research study. Their workout was far form extraordinary but they did manage to gain almost exactly the amount of weight, LBM and strength that we would expect from a 4 month long supervised workout program.

Despite this their was obviously some discrepancy in the measures of skeletal muscle mass…this discrepancy either caused

A) Exceptionally low measurements of skeletal muscle at the beginning of the study.

B) Exceptionally high measurement of skeletal muscle at the end of the study.

The only other possible scenario is that two of the subjects somehow lost between 5-6 pounds of LBM somewhere during the weight training process.

Obviously…something is up.

But this is extremely important, and is a great example of why you need to ANALYZE every study that you read.

Otherwise, you could quickly go over the abstract of this study and say that “Research proves that full body weight training 3 times per week can cause you to gain up to 11 pounds of pure muscle in 4 months!”

BP

PS – Interestingly, this study was performed by the same people who are finding amazing muscle gaining results from ‘blood flow occlusion training”…makes you wonder.

PPS – There is one last thing missing from this study..has to do with the small number of subjects…something that would be next to impossible to calculate with only three subjects….Can you guess?

Abe T. Br J Sports Med, 2003.

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Plus, a whole new way of looking at transformations contests!

Here’s a quick video that (hopefully) gives a detailed explanation of the Adonis Index…

Now, to learn more about the Adonis 10 Week Transformation Contest (starts October 5th) this Thursday at 9pm.

Just click here to go over to the teleseminar page and ask any question you want.

Oh, and one last thing… what sounds better to you?

A “Transformation” Contest… or

A “Reconstruction” Contest…

Let me know in the comments, please

BP

PS – How’s  this for great feed back that people beleive in Eat Stop Eat?  -

Comments: My doctor suggested that I purchase your book about intermittent fasting

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Brad,

I’m following your recommend information on how much protein to build muscle along with an “intense” enough work out program. It is working well for me, but a couple questions loom in my mind. I’ve read in articles on the internet that a person cannot “absorb” more than 30 grams of protein in one meal. Is this true? If it is true, does this mean if I ate the recommended daily intake of protein to build muscle in one meal, I wouldn’t be meeting your recommended requirement? I don’t consume that much protein in one meal, but I am curious to know if I eat a meal with 40g does the 10 grams go to “waste”?

Thanks, Jeremy

Hi Jeremy,

There is strong scientific evidence showing that you are able to adapt to the amount of protein you ingest. Meaning, as you eat more (or less) protein your digestive system learns to ‘digest and assimilate’ more (or less) protein at a given time or meal.

This means whether it’s over a 24 hour period or in one single meal, you will learn to utilize the amount of protein you provide to your body, as long as this new intake is consistent.

Of course, this also means you will learn to oxidize any surplus protein (basically use any protein you aren’t using for building new tissues as a fuel). All that extra protein isn’t simply turning into tons of new muscle (I wish it was that easy).

BP

PS – If you are interest in a more in depth answer to how much protein you need to build muscle, visit How Much Protein

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How do I get rid of muscle?

It’s an odd question I know, and one I have tackled before, but it seems people are still confused about what makes them gain and lose muscle.

We all know that people who are bedridden and on a low calorie diet lose muscle.

When I first starting writing Eat Stop Eat, and was running the idea past several dietitians for input, they all brought up stories of muscle loss in their patients who were bedridden and on a low calorie diet.

And since I am constantly saying that simple caloric restriction does NOT cause you to lose muscle if you are working out, then that leaves being ‘bedridden’ (or ‘disuse’ as they say in research) as the cause of muscle loss.

And this is exactly what research suggests as well.

Ever break your arm and have to wear a cast, or know someone who did?

Do you remember how skinny that arm was when the cast finally came off?

The arm in the cast got the EXACT same nutrition as the arm that wasn’t in the cast. The only change was in the amount that the muscles were used.

In fact, ‘casting’ is so effective at causing muscle loss that it has been used in research to study something called ‘disuse atrophy’ or muscle loss from lack of use.

In a study conducted at the University of Nottingham, 22 male and female studies had casts put on their right leg for two weeks. Their diets didn’t change, yet after only two weeks the cross sectional area of their quadriceps (the big muscles in your thigh) decreased by 10%.

NO CHANGE IN DIET…but the muscle still decreases in size by 10%.

And the decrease was across ALL muscle fiber types. From slow twitch to fast twitch, they all decreased in diameter when they were not being used.

In other words – Your muscles are not ’storage units’ like fat cells, they are contractile units.

So while your fat cells respond to what (or more correctly- how much) you eat by storing or releasing energy in the form of fat. Muscle responds to stress and challenge.

Your muscles will always try to match the challenge that is placed on them.

No challenge = no increase in muscle size.

No challenge for a long enough time = decreases in muscle size.

This is why as long as you are working out, and meeting some sort of caloric minimum (studies have gone as low as 80 grams of protein and 800 Kcals a day for several weeks), you won’t lose muscle.

However, if you don’t use the muscle, then it really doesn’t matter what you are eating, the muscle is going to shrink.

Bottom Line – Forget those people who push multiple meals and protein at every meal as the secret to ‘not losing muscle’ the best way to prevent yourself from losing muscle is to exercise that muscle.

Or, if you are trying to lose muscle (not something I suggest) simple stop using it.

BP

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Here’s a great triceps exercise that I’ve been using to boost my triceps strength in my quest to hit 225 pounds on the standing shoulder press.

I’m not a kettle bell expert by any means, but using a bell does make this exercise a lot better (harder) then using a traditional dumbbell.

Be sure not to drop the kettlebell on your head!

BP

Awesome Triceps Exercise

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Here’s a fun experiment for all you research junkies.

If anyone has ever come across a research study that used ANY form of diet manipulation or weight training (that doesn’t involve the use of steroids) AND where the subjects gained MORE than 10 pounds (4.5 kilos) of LEAN MASS over ANY time frame…could you please send me the reference.

Happy hunting

BP

PS – The subjects have to be human, and not children.

PPS – I’ll post if I find anything

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This is my new years goal for 2009 (‘goal’ sounds way better than ‘resolution’)

I’ve actually been working at this goal for a couple of months now, ever since I got involved in a friendly wager with the boys over at AdonisEffect.com.

The deal is this – It’s a race to see who can do a standing barbell shoulder press with 225 pounds first. The only rules is that it has to be with as little leg drive as possible, and we have to be under 200 pounds of body weight when we do the lift (I’m always between 175 and 180 so this won’t be a problem).

So My mini-goal is to push 185 by March 1st.

My plan is to keep my upper back strong and to make my lower back even stronger. This will help tremendously with this lift, since I am pushing from a standing position, every part of my body from my hands to my feet are going to have to be strong to make this happen.

I won’t be changing my diet (I’ll still be fasting once or twice a week), and I won’t be taking any extra supplements or radically changing my workout routine (I only really enjoy training when it’s 3 or 4 times a week MAX).

In fact, this is really a test to see just how much can be accomplished by using a well structured and goal oriented training program, rather than just going to the gym to go through the motions.

I’ll keep you updated on my progress and even post some videos when I get the chance.

Getting stronger while fasting,

BP

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I heard two very interesting pieces of advice in the gym today. Two different groups of people, not less than 15 minutes apart.

The first one was:

“You need to get strong to get big”

The second was:

“You need to get big to get strong”

Such is the way with weight room advice.

So what DO we know about muscle size and strength?

We know that your strength is largely determined by the size of your muscles.

And we know that if you want to improve the size of your muscles (or your muscle strength) you must stress them with ever increasing amounts of “work”.

These increases in work can be accomplished by using more weight, or lifting the same weight more often (workout volume), or lifting the same weight more frequently (workout frequency).

But the common principle is ‘more’

‘more’ will make your muscles bigger and ‘more’ will make your muscles stronger.

So the arguement of strength versus size is something of a chicken and the egg sort of paradox.

Does one cause the other? We could argue about this forever.

However we know for sure that they are connected.

So do you need to get big to get strong, or do you need to get strong in order to get big? The answer is, you can’t disconnect the two.

And before we start arguing about Olympic lifters and power lifters who are really strong for their size…remember there is a big difference between BEING BIG and having LARGE MUSCLES.

I know a number of powerlifters, all of which have very impressive lifts. And the muscles that they use (ticeps, legs, upperback) are all very developed – Even the guys who lift in the lower weight classes.

The same goes for olympic lifters, the muscle that drive the lifts they excel at are all very well developed.

As a general rule of thumb, whether you want to get bigger muscles or you want to get stronger -

Train hard and train often.

BP

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