The Proof Is In The Pudding.

Dan McCarthy from http://www.crowhillcrossfit.com/

Here’s the main reason why all these fitness-related articles online never picture the author or the designated “expert” doling out their know-it-all advice: it’s because you take one look and them and say, “why would I ever take bodybuilding advice from someone who looks like that?”

Pictured here is Dan McCarthy of Crow Hill Crossfit, who warns against mainstream exercises that have benefited tens of thousands who swear by them, I'm guessing, just because — but what do we know? He's the expert.

Here’s his golden advice — on Fox News yet:

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2016/03/03/6-worst-workouts-at-gym.html?utm_source=zergnet.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=zergnet_1366344

This less than impressive selfie by the way is the one and only photo of him on his own website. 

Cross Fit is not bodybuilding or even strength training — it's a competitive endeavor, and these "fitness" articles don't even acknowledge the difference. People can do whatever they want, God bless 'em, but just know that Cross Fit has permanently fucked up far more wannabes than any other sport:

There’s No Such Thing As An “Expert.”

From Huffington Post / reprinted from Details.

It’s cringe-worthy each time we are introduced to someone by the media who is identified as a so-called “expert,” as if their word is the final be-all and end-all. The trouble with that is there’s no such thing as an expert; there are only individuals possessing various levels of expertise. And expertise is something we all have. 

The audience’s knee-jerk reaction to such an introduction tends to be that they accept that person’s word even when it conflicts with the individual’s own experience. Always question the “experts.”

Recently, recognizing it as clickbait, I read one of those online articles that had been passed around from website to website bearing the counter-intuitive headline “5 Exercise Machines You Should Never Use at the Gym.” Full of shit as expected, the article's author “K. Aleisha Fetters” warned users against three machines that happen form the bedrock of my own routine.

In her ignorance, the author quotes “training expert BJ Gaddour, C.S.C.S. owner of StreamFIT.com,” who roundly demonized these machines “They’ve been dumbed down to the point that they just don’t do your body much good,” the expert claims. The author goes on to write “Besides parking you on your butt, most machines isolate a single muscle, meaning you’ll burn fewer calories and gain less muscle mass rep for rep.”

What? Girl, the whole idea behind building muscle is to isolate the target muscle, you dummy; that’s how we achieve optimal growth.

The article’s reasoning why each machine named was problematic was laughable, revealing the "experts" had no idea that the form they were using on these machines was wrong. Instead of it dawning on him/her they might be at fault, that their form might need adjusting, it was concluded instead that it was the MACHINE that was the problem. 

The Only "Cure" For Ageing Is Muscle.

Jack LaLanne

Male or female, you look, feel and act old because of all the muscle you’ve lost: the less active you are the less calories you burn, the more muscle you lose, the more fat you gain, and the less active you become: it’s a vicious cycle, a Catch 22.

Your metabolism resides within your muscle mass: the less muscle you have, the slower your metabolism. The cure for that? Increase your muscle mass.

Your immune system also resides within your muscle mass. You’ll stave off illnesses more often and recover quicker from those you acquire if you increase your muscle mass.

Is building muscle easy? Nope.

Is it fast? Not really.

Is it enjoyable? Not at first. 

Is it worth the effort?

Absolutely.

GQ: Your Main Goal While In The Gym Should Be Fashion

The poorly dressed, sloppily-groomed, flabby-waisted staff at GQ magazine insist that fashion and style and the latest thousand-dollar sweatpants should be one's primary focus during their visits to the gym. GQ's idea of looking good at the gym has nothing at all to do with workout technique but rather "impressing" all the wrong people with your deep pocketed stylishness.

If you really want to stand out at the gym, all you have to do is employ proper workout technique and stay focused on the task at hand. Those others present who also know what they are doing will respect you for it. 

Working Out At Home

I've never put much effort into working out at home. I like the camaraderie and inspiration of other dedicated fitness seekers and bodybuilders at the gym, a big motivator for me. But YouTube has changed that. Due to it being a 90-minute roundtrip drive to the gym, I struggle with that investment of drive time, since the workout itself is 90 minutes.

I currently go to the gym twice a week and work out 3 days a week at home ever since investing some time in the vetting YouTube videos, of which there are literally thousands. With 50 years of workouts under my belt, where I’ve tried just about everything, my experience allows me to decide without much trouble when someone offers me a great idea. 

I’ve promoted Mike Thurston’s videos here before, but there are others who provide knowledge and insight as well, and as I discover them I will share with you.

As the owner of a Flexsolate Gym In A Bag, I had never given its fitness bands a fair shake. My thinking was, after using heavy weights, fitness bands were for underachievers and grandmothers. A couple of YouTubers have changed my mind. I followed along with them and found their instruction surprisingly challenging, and soon saw a real change in the shape and cuts of certain muscle parts. Eric Janicki has very challenging chest and shoulder workouts utilizing fitness bands and bodyweight:

Chest for me is a challenge, and results have lagged compared to other body parts in my case, but recently I found this intense exercise by Jeff Cavaliere at Althlene-X that I do with fitness bands and a fabric handle rather than a hard plastic or metal handle, despite the instructor using a pulley:

As my confidence in the ability of fitness bands to be of significant benefit grows, allowing me to have very satisfying at-home workouts, I have searched YouTube for both fitness band workouts and pulley workouts, substituting fitness bands for the pulleys.

Fitness bands are surprisingly cheap on Amazon.com. You’ll want the fabric loop handles which offer more freedom of movement than hard plastic, thus placing less strain on joints. My Gym In A Bag retails for the outrageous price of $159.00, but almost the same equipment can be had for $20 more or less at Amazon:

http://a.co/dq2J8ey

http://a.co/5mVeNVQ

The king of home workouts is Scooby. He demonstrates that not having a home workout bench is no obstacle at all:

Join The Club

Competitive businesses are supposed to be thrilled to win your patronage, so what’s with the arrogance of businesses that act as if they are doing us a huge favor by accepting our hard-earned cash? The problem is us, or rather, you, because I myself refuse to do business with assholes.

Many a business — gym, vitamin store, supermarket, etc. — have manipulated you into thinking your giving them your money is some sort of status symbol or privilege. If your self esteem is so low that you respond favorably to people screwing you over, go ahead and buy in if you like, or you can grow a pair and tell them to go to hell. I choose the latter.

GNC, is entitled enough to think that instead of just offering everyone the best pricing possible as a draw, they instead require customers to pay money for a “membership” in order to access their lower price structure, which is certainly a big “fuck you” to the majority of people, i.e. potential customers, just walking on past their stores.

The same goes for gyms, some of which it turns out have rigged the system by making it exceedingly difficult, if not nearly impossible, for customers wishing to cancel their memberships, essentially by continuing to raid their members’ bank account without permission upon their membership’s expiration. And who is the genius grifter who came up with the concept of "initiation fees"? An additional fee on top of your already expensive membership fee? Uh, no thanks. Joining a gym without reading reviews online first is crazy in this era of Yelp.com and similar websites where customers can voice their satisfaction, or dissatisfaction, with the business.

You’ve no one to blame but yourself when you sign on the wrong company’s dotted line. Caveat emptor is Latin for “Buyer beware,” meaning this shit’s been going on since Roman Times and before.  Shopping around is easier and faster than ever, so take advantage of technology to keep from getting ripped off.

The Hidden Ingredients In Your Supplements

Credit: Photo Illustration by Emily Shur

Some guys will take anything to get bigger, stronger, harder. That’s just human nature. Back in the ‘70s heyday of the drug culture, nobody questioned what was in the acid / mushrooms / quaaludes etc. we might have been popping freely. Some people back then, as is the case now, died.

The health supplement industry is basically unregulated, meaning the contents or ingredients of the supplement we are taking do not have to necessarily be listed on the label. Many times the contents are unlawful pharmaceuticals.

This is a very interesting article in Men’s Journal about two renegade supplements producers. They are successful for a number of reasons, but most of all because a lot of guys will pop anything without question that promises to give them the results they crave.

http://www.mensjournal.com/features/articles/how-two-florida-gym-rats-conquered-the-shadowy-world-of-dietary-supplements-w463303

Surprisingly Great Results From Mike Thurston’s Advice.

About 7 weeks ago I posted a video by UK trainer Mike Thurston because I was so impressed by his knowledge and no-BS advice, and promised readers an update on my incorporating his suggestions.

Mike has a video for every body part in which he shows the ways in which many are not performing their exercises for maximum results, and they are awesome.

My main focus was on my always-lagging chest, as I recognized that I was allowing my shoulders to shoulder much of the effort, when of course, when working chest our chest must be doing the bulk of the work.

In just 7 weeks I have actually changed the size and shape of my pecs by incorporating his instruction. I knew he was on to something when, after my first chest workout my pecs were aching. That was a new sensation for me.

So tune in to Mike Thurston’s channel on youtube, both his own channel as well as the videos he’s done for Aurora Fitness, to see how you might benefit from his wisdom.