Please welcome new moderator POWERHOUSE585 to the MT team who will be helping to run the Steroid and Other Performance Enhancing Drug forums and the Bodybuilding & Strength Competitions forum. PH585 is an experienced competitive bodybuilder and is a valued contributor to MT.
The new article for June is aimed more for our competitive fighting members of the community: Making a weight (then re-gaining it) for a fight. It provides nutritional advice for boxers and martial arts fighters who have to drop weight and stay energised in order to fight in their class.
Yet again Welshdragon remains the leader in the MT Powerlifting Competition, with a phenomenal new total of 1881lbs/855kg. Surely he's unbeatable…?
New stock of MuscleTalk T-shirts is now available so we have all sizes in both grey and white.
*** Best Wishes from James and The MuscleTalk team! ***
See you at www.MuscleTalk.co.uk
*** Reactive Hypoglycaemia ***
By James Collier - Nutrition Consultant and MuscleTalk Moderator
Reactive hypoglycaemia is a condition not uncommon in bodybuilders and athletes and I bet a large number of you have experienced symptoms before. Ever had it when you feel weak, dizzy and can't focus properly? Well this is where your blood sugar level has plummeted and the only way of rectifying is to sit down and have some carbs.
Symptoms of hypoglycaemia include paleness, tremor, perfuse sweating, weakness, rapid heartbeat, intense hunger, agitation, irritability, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, blurred vision and, if very serious, loss of consciousness, convulsions and even coma.
In normal individuals your blood sugar level lies between 3-5 mmol/l. Above this is called hyperglycaemia, high blood sugar level, which in more extreme cases is diabetes. Lower than this is hypoglycaemia, which is also what happens to diabetics who are treated with insulin and too much or miss a meal. But, it also can happen to non-diabetics under certain circumstances.
Reactive hypoglycaemia happens in active people who have a high energy demand due to their job or past time, like athletics or bodybuilding. The individual may not have eaten adequate carbs at meals earlier that day and then may have a snack which is based around high glycaemic carbs like sugar, maltodextrin, white bread, meal replacement formula, etc. This causes a sharp rise in blood sugar levels which in turn cause a surge of insulin to be released which overcompensates and sends blood sugar levels below the normal lower level and symptoms steadily appear. Often this will cause the individual to panic worsening symptoms further.
Treatment is simple but needs to be as quick as possible. The individual needs to sit down, relax and have some simple carbs. Eating should not be a problem as one of the symptoms is extreme hunger. Within minutes they'll feel better, but should follow the sugar intake up with a complex carb meal/snack within 15 minutes, in order to prevent the reactive hypoglycaemia from happening again.
Individuals prone to this need to prevent its onset as, not only is it unpleasant, but it is also catabolic as your body will be drawing on its protein reserves from muscle to boost the blood sugar. Prone individuals should consume low glycaemic carbs like oats, granary bread, sweet potatoes, basmati rice or oatcakes, regularly and frequently throughout the day. This is guaranteed prevention.
Anabolic Steroids use may also make the individual more prone to reactive hypoglycaemia as they have effects on blood glucose control.
*** Training for the Forces ***
By MuscleTalk Moderator and Personal Trainer Steve Blades aka ToxicToffee
We all enjoy pumping iron for hours and lifting harder and heavier, beating our personal bests and gaining quality muscle mass. Then there are also some of us who also enjoy cardio exercises such as jogging, cycling and swimming to maintain fitness levels, lower body fat and stay healthy. For those who enjoy both, military training is a great way to get functional fitness in order to complete recruit training in the forces such as the Army and Royal Marines, as well as being a great way of getting generally fit.
What does it take to become suitably fit for such training? Strength? Speed? Skill? Endurance? Power?
The answer? All of them and more. Being a successful recruit requires, along with military skills, knowledge and discipline, a jack of all trades who can run for hours, sprint up the hills, climb the rope, lift the heavy duty kit and have an all round fitness to achieve an acceptable standard across the board in military training.
Many recruits go into training blind and often struggle with the physical aspects of the early weeks as they fail to realise how taxing and diverse the training sessions can be. One moment it may be press ups in the gym, the next rope climbing in the woods.
Whilst in Royal Marines Commando training I noticed this amongst many of the recruits who excelled in one area yet ultimately struggled as a result of being suited to only one of the required disciplines.
How do we acquire the all round fitness in order to succeed in the initial training phase of our chosen forces branch? Simple, specific training. Become fit, fit for purpose, fit to do the job rather than just being 'in shape' or 'strong' there is no point being able to bench 150kg if you cant run with a loaded bergan on your back in standard issue boots.
As a personal trainer, I have coached a number of clients who are about to embark upon a career in the forces and have devised a number of work out routines for them to complete in the run up to their enrolment.
The example below is a basic example for an average 'sporty' 18 year old:
Warm up, 5 minute jog followed by easy stretching
Circuit station 1: military pull ups (2 sets to failure)
Circuit station 2: press ups (2 sets to failure)
Circuit station 3: shuttle runs
Circuit station 4: bench jumps (2 sets of 1 minute efforts)
Circuit station 5: rope climbs (2 climbs to the top)
Circuit station 6: plyometric stretches
Circuit station 7: bounds and leaps (2 sets of 1 minute efforts)
Circuit station 9: sit ups (2 sets to failure)
Followed by a 20 minute run
Eggar et al produce some alternative examples in The Royal Marines Circuit Training: The All-round Commando Fitness Programme for those looking to progress beyond the basic stages of such circuits. This basic circuit will be completed by the trainer and increased in relation to increases in strength and stamina leading up to enrolment. You may notice there are few specific body building exercises here with the emphasis placed on functional strength over out and out power along with a good cardio work out at the end. The pace of the circuit will be high and fuelling for such training will differ greatly from that of a body builder with the emphasis more towards a carbohydrate rich diet instead of protein, purely to fuel training and aid recovery.
Are you fit enough for the challenge?
The Royal Marines Circuit Training: The All-round Commando Fitness Programme is a great read for both new recruits and those looking to get generally fit and can be purchased here.
*** Recipe - Orange Breakfast Shake ***
By Nicole Bremner - MuscleTalk Moderator and author of the Muscle Menus eBooks
This is a great summer recipe from the forthcoming new addition to the Muscle Menu eBooks out this month
** Ingredients
250ml fresh orange juice
1 scoop whey or soya protein powder
5 ice cubes
** Method
Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend well
** Information
Serves 1. Per serving: 213kcal, 30g protein, 27g carbs, 0g fat, 1g fibre
More great bodybuilding recipes can be found in Nicole's other great eBooks 'Muscle Menus', 'Muscle Menus 2' and 'Muscle Menus Vegetarian' eBooks:
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** IMPROVE YOUR GRIP with 'Grippers - Getting the most from your gripper'. The informative ebook from grip champion Steve Gardener tells you how to use your gripper more effectively to improve your performance in your sport:
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*** DVD Review - Titans Part 111 - Victor Martinez ***
Review by seungmena aka Big Les - MuscleTalk Moderator
Filmed between Victor's GNC show win and his Olympia debut, this DVD from Muscletime shows one week of his training under the guidance of Victor Munoz, NY trainer extraordinaire.
If you have been fed a steady diet of Yates and Coleman videos then this one will be a sedative. Victor almost manages to make Lee Priest look like Mr Intensity and his personality shines nearly as badly as Flex Wheeler in front of the camera. I think this lack of personality comes for the same reason as Chris Cormier seeming duller than a 3 month old lettuce. Shot so close to the shows these guys are simply low carbed and exhausted.
So what do you get, its four training sessions, two at the now closed Victor's Gym, on at Bev Fr' Golds Gym where we get to see what Mits Okabe looks like and one at Steel Gym. We get to meet (or more accurately see) Caprise Murray and Jason Arntz, as well as a visit to Eva's Vitamins. Unfortunately in this segment Big Vic seems to have forgotten how he waxes lyrical about his sisters cooking in Muscular Development while he does his plug. We can let Vic off as they are all obviously big fans. We also get footage from Vic's win at the GNC and his now legendary photo shoot with Chris Cormier (without seeing Chris!). That's it, no lifestyle and no real insight to Vic as a person beyond him lifting weights.
It isn't a bad DVD; in fact 5 years ago this would have been a really good offering. The problem is we are expecting more, especially from a first outing onto the screen.
This is firmly for two groups of people. Firstly, fans of Big Vic, and secondly those interested in seeing how professional bodybuilders really train close to shows and how they really look. If it is pure entertainment and motivation you are looking for - keep on looking.
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