Welcome Hazel to the MT moderator team. Hazel has been the administrative assistant behind MT for the past year, and will now be moderating all forums and will help with general running duties. She will be involved with announcements, dealing with member complaints and board issues. Her email is hazel@muscletalk.co.uk.
Our new Test your Mettle... What's your best? competition is going strong - it's open to all MuscleTalk members, just for fun so please join in!
New articles, interviews and reports in February:
- Bodybuilder Bulking by Big Les includes a meal plan and the basic principles of mass gaining
- Food Composition Analysis and its Implications for Dietary Planning by ClairieB looks at the problems associated with nutritional analysis
- Hazel interviews Natural Olympia Competitor Dawn Roberts aka MT Moderator Kitty
- James Collier visited the 2008 Arnold Classic & Sports Festival - read the report with photos
See our past articles through the Bodybuilding Articles link, which categorises all our main articles and past newsletters contributions.
MuscleTalk Training T-shirts!
*** Best wishes from James Collier and The MuscleTalk team! ***
See you at www.MuscleTalk.co.uk
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*** Bulking Blunders ***
By Big Les - Nutrition Consultant and MuscleTalk Moderator
Les is available for tailored nutrition programs see: www.muscletalk.co.uk/fb.asp?m=1104321
1: Dietary Fat Phobia
Many of us are health conscious and have taken on board the prevailing low fat is good health message. Unfortunately, low fat isn't always that good at all. Not only are the now famous omega fatty acids really very good for us, indeed, without them we get dumber than we are already. They affect lots of other things too, which given they are involved in the construction of cell membranes isn't too surprising. However, it's not only the healthy essential fats we bodybuilders need, we can also benefit from having a little saturated fat in our diets. Saturated fats are used to make hormones, most notably testosterone. Neglect them and you make life really very difficult for yourself.
2: Fearing Fat
We strive hard to get a lean hard physique and when those abs are showing through we have something to brag about. The hardest thing to accept is that to add muscle we may have to sacrifice the six pack. Being super lean sure looks good but when it comes to muscle growth it doesn't cut it. Not only do we need the raw materials for growth, but a little extra fat and water actually helps us lift more by cushioning and supporting our joints. The heavier you lift the greater the growth stimulus.
Solution: a hearty portion of lean red meat and oily fish at least twice per week.
3: Not eating enough
This is usually a product of fearing fat. Put simply, you need an excess of calories, protein, carbohydrates, fat and every other nutrient you can think of to provide the materials to grow bigger. The adage to look like a 250lb bodybuilder you have to eat like one rings very true. Sure, if you weigh 180 and suddenly eat like Jay Cutler it is a sure fire way to look like the Michelin man, but you have got to eat like a 200lb person to be one. This is the reason that some people grow on their cutting cycles - they are actually eating more. Eat like a mouse, look like a mouse.
4: Having a see-food diet
If not eating enough is a problem for some, then getting banned from the local eat all you can buffet is a real danger for others. It may be tempting to eat everything in sight to provide a surplus of calories, but overdo it and it won't go to muscle, it will go to fat. Bulking up to 300lbs plus is great for professionals, most of us aren't and we can't get away with adding 60lbs of weight to gain 5lbs of lean tissue. All that happens, more often than not, is that when we try and lean out we end up giving our gains back and a little bit more.
Solution: Be sensible with your food.
5: Haphazard eating habits
Bodybuilding truly is 24/7 sport. Many bodybuilders have well constructed and planned cutting diets with meals timed practically to the second, they will steadfastly carry boxes of food with them in their quest for the perfect body. Then when they have got there, forget all that and eat when the feel like it. This is not the way to grow, leaving long gaps between meals increases the likelihood that you will actually start using muscle for fuel, and that come the next meal the body will decide to put a little away as fat in case you decide to leave a long gap again. Also eating haphazardly often leads to days of massive under and over consumption of food rather than a regular pattern. This unpredictability creates an unpredictable environment that does not encourage your body to grow muscle, instead its likely to store on the days there is a surplus to fuel the days when you under eat. When we bulk we want the same stable metabolic environment as when we cut; the difference - your cooler weights more!
Solution: As the saying goes: fail to plan - plan to fail, and that counts for your nutrition too!
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**
Tailored Nutrition Advice from Experts!Healthy Action is the Nutrition Consultancy headed up by James Collier BSc (Hons), Registered Nutritionist. A team of consultants are available to provide on line nutrition advice completely tailored to suit you and your goals. For more information email
info@healthyaction.co.uk
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*** Deltoid Workout ***
By James Collier BSc (Hons) RNutr - MuscleTalk Co-Owner
Large, wide shoulders are an integral part of any proportioned physique and big, shaped deltoids look extremely impressive. Of course it would be nice to have them Rühl-size, but any well developed delts can set off a physique nicely. The deltoid muscles are made up of the front, side, and rear heads. For total deltoid development you need to do some specific training for each head and the workout below, if trained with intensity, will ensure maximum stimulation.
A good place to start any shoulder workout is with a pressing movement. Seated overhead barbell or smith machine presses to the front of the neck are a real power movement. Start with 2-3 light sets to gorge the delts with blood and ensure you're fully warmed-up, and then do two heavy sets of 6-10 reps (failure).
Side laterals will work the medial (side) head of the delt and 2-3 sets is all you need. Grab a dumbbell in each hand (enough weight to do 8-10 reps) and stand with your feet shoulder width apart. Hold the dumbbells to the sides of your legs with the palms of your hands facing each other. Keeping a slight bend in your elbows raise the dumbbells out to the sides and upwards in a semicircular arc until they are just above shoulder level. Hold this position for a second to maximize the peak contraction in the deltoids. Lower the dumbbells back to the starting position. Repeat 8-10 times.
Bent over seated lateral raisers are done by sitting on the front of a bench bent over. Hold a dumbbell in each hand and behind the lower leg. Raise them upwards, squeezing at the top, and lower. Do 8-10 reps to work the posterior (rear) head of the deltoid. 2-3 sets is plenty.
Like all James Collier Workouts, delt training is quick, but, if you've trained with the intensity I intend, then your delts will be burning and worked, and you can always move onto trap training afterwards. A summary of the deltoid workout is:
Seated barbell / Smith press:
2-3 x warm up
2 x heavy for 6-10 reps
Side lateral raisers:
2-3 x 8-10 reps
Bent over seated lateral raisers:
2-3 x 8-10 reps
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*** Food of the Month - Pomegranate ***
By Big Les - Nutrition Consultant and MuscleTalk Moderator
This month the Punica granatum takes centre stage; widely touted as a super-food conveying all sorts of health benefits, its time to look a little more closely at the pomegranate.
The name pomegranate comes from Latin, where granatus means 'seeded' and pomum is 'apple' - seeded apple, while its scientific name Punica comes from the Phoenicians who promoted its cultivation. Nowadays the drought-resistant pomegranate is cultivated worldwide, so it should be available near you.
Nutritionally 100g of pomegranate will give you around 3g of protein, near enough no fat, and 17g of carbohydrate for a total of 61 calories. A decent sized pomegranate will weigh around 150-200g but you can't eat all as we shall see. Compared to many other foods the pomegranate is anything but a nutritional powerhouse; its biggest punches are vitamin C at 6mg per 100g and potassium at 259mg per 100g. Not saying other nutrients are absent, just they, like the pomegranate's fibre content, are very small indeed. Which nutritional nugget should have you wondering why the pomegranate has its super-food reputation?
The key is pomegranate's 17mg of phytosterols per 100g. The most abundant are the punicalagins, hydrolysable tannins with a formidable anti-oxidant ability. This anti-oxidant ability has translated into research into the true capabilities of the pomegranate. So far research using pomegranate juice as had significant effects on LDL cholesterol oxidation, foam cell formation and macrophage oxidation, or to the rest of us - it reduces the risk of heart disease by its preventative effect on artery hardening (atherosclerosis). Also pomegranate studies have shown that its juice can reduce blood pressure; it acts as an agiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor.
In addition to its heart health benefits, pomegranate has also shown promising benefits in relation to prostate cancer prevention and prevention of osteoarthritis; investigations are on going for these and other benefits. Pomegranate seed oil contains polyphenols which inhibit estrogen synthesis, and its juice has some anti-bacterial and anti-viral properties which are good for the health of your mouth too.
Now you are convinced to give the pomegranate a go - what do you do with it? First you break it open - made easier by scoring with a knife. Then you separate the seed casings or arils from the skin and the white supporting stuff (that's pith and capillary membrane). If you do this in a bowl of water the white stuff floats and the arils sink. You can eat the entire seed raw, or you can use it in a variety if dishes - it's used widely in traditional Middle Eastern cooking, and is found in a number of traditional Indian and Greek dishes, as well as being used in Turkey as a sauce or marinade, and even salad dressing. It has a distinctive flavour that depends on the ripeness of the fruit; ripe pomegranates are sweet going to sour or tangy the less ripe they are. Their characteristic taste is somewhere between the two, laced with the tang of tannins (like a good red wine!).
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** Informed Bodybuilding Nutrition eBook by James Collier - the ULTIMATE nutrition bible for bodybuilding.
For more information click here:
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*** MT Powerlifting Totals Competition ***
By boar - MuscleTalk Pro-Member
See: www.muscletalk.co.uk/fb.asp?m=1083082
Greetings fellow powerlifters!
We must congratulate pro-member sivvy1 for pulling out an awesome performance at the BDFPA South East & Southern Counties Divisional he posted lifts of 182.5/140/250 = 582.5kg easily qualifying for the British Championships later in the year.
Olympian Member and all round good egg Dr.Rick popped his competition cherry at the BWLA North West Counties. Unequipped Bench Press Championship Rci won his class with a press of 147.5kg; Rick has entered a full unequipped meet in April so we can expect great things from him in 2008.
Universe member Richie Allen recently pulled 270kg, pushing his total up to 630kg, well done mate! Also Pro Member and MT meet organiser ElfinTan squatted 110kg and deadlifted 120kg - at a bodyweight of 63kg that's a couple of fine lifts!
Keep pounding MTers!
Boar
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*** Recipe - Cheese & Spinach Omelette ***
By Nicole Bremner, Recipe Consultant and MT Moderator
Taken from Muscle Menus Vegetarian
** Ingredients
3 egg whites
1 whole egg
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp grated low fat cheese
1/3 cup spinach leaves, chopped
Fresh parsley
** Method
Beat egg whites and egg together. Add pepper to taste. Pour into a non-stick pan and heat for 45 seconds until the egg has set. Place cheese and spinach to one side of the centre. With a spatula, lift one edge and fold over. Slide on to a plate and serve.
** Information
Serves 2. Per serving: 155kcal, 21g protein, 3g carbs, 6g fat, 0g fibre.
*** DVD Review - Jenny Lynn - The harder I work, the luckier I get!! ***
Review by Hazel, MuscleTalk Moderator
Available here
This two disc set by Mitsuru Okabe shows Jenny Lynn's preparation for the 2006 Figure Olympia Contest, which she did go on to win. The reigning Figure Olympia and three-time Arnold Classic Figure International winner gives viewers a video diary on her daily routine. This includes her diet, exercise, training routines and work starting at 7 weeks pre-competition.
The majority of disc one is Jenny talking about herself and how she has progressed as a figure competitor and shows her training routines. I would have liked to have seen more substance to the weight training and explanation to her routines; it was lacking. There is little engagement or personality that comes over in the footage and it can be a little dull at times. An interesting section is where she visits her sports therapist and how this helps her increase muscle separation, especially in her legs. Also, her leg training session with Charles Glass at Golds.
In disc two we see Jenny giving a posing seminar to a group of hopefuls, part of her business, giving some good tips which girls starting out in competition will find very useful. Filming stops about a month away from the competition, which is a shame as I think it would have been more interesting to see the lead up to the competition included.
Overall this DVD is for the Jenny Lynn fans, and it does give an insight to the dedication and commitment that is required in the profession, which Jenny clearly has.
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The articles in The MuscleTalker are for information purposes only and are the sole expressions of the individual authors opinion and are those not necessarily shared by the owners of www.MuscleTalk.co.uk