More Mods, new articles, improved services and a new forum – all on the best bodybuilding website!
We have two new moderators on the MT team this month: Nemesis will be moderating the Bodybuilding Supplements and Diet and Nutrition forums, and Drab4 will be helping to run both the performance enhancing drug discussion forums. Both have been members of MT for a long time, are very active members and extremely knowledgeable in their fields. Welcome to the team guys – hope you enjoy your new roles!
Last week we hit off with a new forum: the Power and Strength Forum. This forum is aimed at discussions on getting stronger and powerlifting, strongman events, Olympic weightlifting and other strength sports, like the discus, javelin and shot-put. We have lots of members who enjoy this method of training so I am glad that MuscleTalk can now better accommodate these members.
You can post in the Power and Strength Forum here
Many of you will have read on the forum that Ozzy has decided to stand down in his role as moderator. This is for personal reasons and we wish him all the best; who knows he may be back! Ozzy has been a valued member of the team and has helped loads of you out over the past 18 months; he will be missed greatly.
For those of you who wish to have personalised nutritional advice by James Collier, MuscleTalk Moderator and Dietitian, he is now even more accessible. He holds face-to-face sessions in a clinic room in new premises in Northampton, UK where he can be seen on a more flexible basis. Obviously many of you will be too far away (especially non-UK members!) to benefit from face-to-face advice – so James now has an improved email consultation service. For more information click here or email james@muscletalk.co.uk
There is also a great new article called Bodybuilding Beginners FAQs, aimed mainly at beginner bodybuilders written by KC (Futurecoach04) and Ozzy. It may be aimed at the novice bodybuilder, but there is information there we can all learn through. Check out the article here.
There are loads of other great articles here
Looking forward to another active month on MuscleTalk…
*** Best wishes from The MuscleTalk team! ***
*** Whey Isolate V Whey Concentrate ***
By James Collier BSc Hons SRD – MuscleTalk Moderator
There are many debates on why whey isolate is preferential to concentrate and we recently had a lengthy topic on MT discussing this. I have consolidated much of this debate in this article. Isolate does take longer to produce, has less fat and a higher level of protein, but does this justify the price?
The main differences are:
1) Whey Protein Isolate has been processed for longer. Dairy whey goes through a series of ceramic filtration units which selectively remove fat, lactose and damaged proteins. The longer the process is continued the higher the protein and lower the fat and lactose; eventually leading to whey protein isolate. It takes a lot longer than making whey concentrate and is therefore more expensive.
2) There is very little difference in Biological Value (BV). BV is a protein scoring system used to determine the actual amount of a given protein that will be used by the body. It measures urinary and faecal losses of nitrogen when the test protein is fed to human beings. To determine the actual BV of the protein the results are then derived using this formula:
BV = (Nitrogen retained ¸ Nitrogen absorbed) x 100
This method is superior to Chemical Scoring (CS) because it is in vivo (in the body). CS looks at the overall amino acid profile of a given protein and compares with the 'standard' egg protein. If the profile of the test protein is 50% of that found in egg then the test protein gets a rating of 50.
You may have noticed that some claim whey has a BV of 159. However, the CS of whey is 159% better than egg, i.e. the CS of whey is 159, NOT the BV! Whey protein has a BV of 104.
3) The reason why manufacturers originally made whey isolate was for people who are lactose intolerant and people wanting a completely fat free product. Also whey isolates contain smaller amounts of certain minerals; hence isolates have a very 'clean' taste.
4) Composition of isolate and concentrate are nearly identical. They both contain similar amounts of branch chain aminos and similar amounts of protein fractions.
5) Both concentrate and isolate are absorbed at almost the same rate. The only time this changes is if the protein has been hydrolysed (see Issue 13).
6) Price! A whey protein isolate is typically about 50% more expensive than a concentrate. It may be the better protein, but you are paying for it!
As a protein source, whey concentrate does the job very well. In the grand scheme of things, does having the protein being absorbed very slightly quicker or having a few mg more of one amino acid really make that much different compared to having a balanced, healthy diet and putting a lot of effort in the right places in your workout? The following analogy was posted by a member: using whey isolate is like filling a family car with Formula 1 type petrol - it won't improve the performance of it. Use the money saved to buy some good quality food.
Think of isolate as a protein that has been filtered or cleaned a bit more. But does it really matter? People are getting 'whey' to concerned with science!
(In Issue 13 I will be discussing whey protein hydrolysates)
*** The Battle of the Sexes (How Should Women Train?) ***
By Nikki – MuscleTalk Moderator and Author of 'Muscle Menus':
Recently there has been a debate in the Female Bodybuilding forum about whether us girls get the best results when we train like men. So what's the answer? Well, the answer is both yes and no.
To settle this argument we must initially establish that there is a difference between the make up and composition of males and females. Furthermore, each and every one of us is different. But that's a whole new topic...
First let's have a look at the general differences between men and the fairer sex.
*Hormones: Women have more leptin which regulates the breakdown of body fat. Females also have lower testosterone (test) levels but higher levels of growth hormone (GH). To compensate for this, women's GH levels remain stable when exercising rather than peaking like men's, and females have a higher level of the test-trapping protein SHBG. Men release more fat-burning hormones such as adrenalin and noradrenaline giving them a greater muscle 'pump' and higher fat burning when training.
*Composition: Generally females have more fat and less lean muscle than males. However, fat in our breast tissue and surrounding our reproductive organs alone make up around 7-8% of our body fat percentage (BF%), making it important that women do not let their BF% decline lower than this for a sustained period. It is also clear that males and females store fat differently. Men generally get the 'beer gut', while everything gets pear shaped for women!
*Glycogen stores: Us women tend to have smaller livers than men meaning that we store less glycogen. However, we protect our glycogen stores more than men, meaning we require lower carb intakes.
*Muscle Fibres: Often girls have a greater proportion of fat-burning slow-twitch muscle fibres that boys. This is not always the case, though.
*Blood: Less small blood vessels in women's blood compared with men make it harder to reach a high intensity when training.
*Genes: This is unexplored territory. But it is known that men have more genes that produce proteins relating to structure and metabolism of muscle cells.
*Metabolism: Our generally higher BF% and less muscle mean we burn fewer calories than men. However, this fluctuates with our hormone levels meaning that women can require an additional 300 calories per day just before menstruation.
So what does this all mean? Basically the difference boils down to BF%. Men have less and find it easier to pack on lean mass then women. But does this mean that women can't train like men? Well that depends on goals.
Most women hope to achieve the 'toned' look, i.e. low BF%, greater muscle mass. If this is the goal then shouldn't women also go back to the basics of building muscle – heavy weight, low reps in order to overload the muscle and stimulate growth? This would enable women to build the muscle they require. Despite the fears of many women, they are not going to become the incredible hulk overnight without hormonal assistance.
Now to address the issue of BF%. As we have established the fact that women find it harder to burn fat then men, this is the area of our training that could differ from that of men. It cannot be argued that the basics steps to lose weight are diet and exercise. So this means that in order for a woman to keep her BF% lower she will need to be more careful with her diet and perhaps include more cardio in her routine. Also, as females store more glycogen then men, the proportion of carbs their diet might need to be lower.
The bottom line to this argument is that a woman and man can train the same way to achieve muscle growth. However, woman will need to keep a closer watch on their diet, keeping carbs lower, and include more cardio in order to achieve the 'toned' look that is so desired.
This is what Arnold says in his 'Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding': “Aren't there any programs developed specifically for women in this Encyclopedia? The primary reason is that the fundamentals of muscle training and diet programs are essentially the same for both sexes...True, it's a fact that the female body responds somewhat differently, but every individual is going to find the need to adjust training and diet programs to suit his or here personal needs. So my advice to women is to learn the bodybuilding techniques in this book...The goal for men and women is the same: to create the maximum possible aesthetic development of the physique. My advice to women interested in serious training is simple: Your muscle cells don't know you are a female. They respond to progressive-resistance weight training, as does a man's. And as far as the training experience is concerned, all that counts is getting through the next rep, the next set, the next workout. The correct approach to training is what produces the best results.”
References:
European Journal of Nutrition. Lipolysis, fatness, gender and plasma leptin concentrations in health, normal weight subjects.
Journal of Applied Physiology. Post exercise protein carbohydrate and carbohydrate supplements increase muscle glycogen in men and women
Journal of Applied Physiology. Skeletal muscle adaptations during early phases of heavy resistance training in men and women
Journal of Applied Physiology. Gender differences in glucose regulatory responses to intense exercise
European Journal of Clinical Investigations. Gender differences in resting metabolic rate and noradrenaline kinetics in older individuals
Schwarzenegger A. Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding
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*** April's Recipe – Kedgeree - Ol' English breakfast, low fat style ***
By Nikki – MuscleTalk Moderator
More great bodybuilding recipes can be found in the Muscle Menus ebook:
**Ingredients
150g smoked haddock cooked, or tin of salmon, drained
½ cup bastimati rice, cooked according to instructions
2 boiled eggs, sliced
½ tsp turmeric
2 tblsp fresh parsley or 1tbs dried parsley
**Method
Combine all ingredients in a pan and gently stir until warmed through. The traditional recipe is cooked in butter and cream.
** Serves 1. Per serve: 415 calories, 50g protein, 23g carbs, 12g fat.
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