Okay, sex has nothing to do with this, and neither does Pubmed (although both are important). The pic above was taken last Saturday night. I was back doing lead vocals for the band of my good friend, guitar virtuoso Edwin Alpanian. We had the best time slot of the night in a pretty big venue, and it was a blast playing a combination of progressive stuff as well as classic rock. A little known fact to many of you is that I’ve been a musician for most of my life (drums, vocals), and my old band with Edwin played clubs up and down the Sunset Strip throughout the 90′s. 

The era of regularly doing shows has long since given way to more pressing life obligations. Every once in a while, I will get away from my computer to play a gig. Edwin is the art director of Hot Rod and Car Craft magazine, and he still keeps his love for creating & performing music well-nurtured. On the other hand, me being a business owner and father of 2 leaves little time to carve out for regular performances (excuses, excuses, right?). The occasional shows that do happen have a certain amount of magic, and a whole lot of nostalgia. Anyways, I thought you guys might get a kick out of that pic & background story, and I’ll be back after I finish AARR.

I had the pleasure of spending some time with Lyle McDonald over the weekend before he made his way off to compete in an inline skating event in Napa, CA. We met at BJ’s Brewhouse for some grub, then went for some Starbucks dessert beverages (well, at least I did). I knew that my kids would attack Lyle when we got to my house, so it was funny to see it actually play out, and Lyle was a good sport about it. The following day, we headed to Gold’s Gym and did our own separate training.

Common Threads

One of the things that struck me in discussing various topics was just how different the driving motivational forces are between endurance athletes vs others. He keyed me into the concept of “running from inner voices” – mostly in the figurative sense. Another thing that struck me was the ironic similarity between solo endurance athletes and other solo athletes such as bodybuilders, whose sport, at least in the precontest phase, is largely a matter of endurance. Both types of athletes tend to push themselves to the limits of physical and psychological tolerance for prolonged periods, just in different scales & contexts. Keep in mind that Lyle is the true athlete between the two of us. I mainly train to get attention from my wife, while Lyle trains to test his prowess against formal competition.

Intensity   

An interesting thing Lyle relayed to me was how he has been able to make his greatest gains in endurance by learning how to conserve his application of intensity when training for an event – as opposed to constantly pushing the envelope of high intensity intervals in the common “more is better, stop when you collapse” approach. More detail on methods of endurance training can be delved into with a multi-part series Lyle wrote beginning here (if you want to go straight to threshold training, it’s here in part 4). While I’m mentioning his reading material, anyone seriously interested in nutrition and supplementation for mixed sports (i.e., football, soccer, middle-distance events, etc) should check out his latest book/DVD lecture series here.

Individualization

While Lyle is exhaustively familiar with the various approaches to endurance training, he’s also keenly aware of how he personally responds. Having a solid grasp of the research has allowed him to synthesize applications that work best with his individual profile from both a psychological and physiological standpoint. One of the natural progressions of the advanced trainee is an abandonment of certain aspects of traditional/conventional wisdom, in favor of individual response. 

At the End of the Day 

I had a great time & learned a lot hanging out with one of the top minds in the field. But more than this, I just needed an excuse to post that awesome pic above.

UPDATE: Lyle won the race.

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Another Year Elapsed…

…And I’m left to ponder it through. The JP Fitness Summit helps me contemplate my personal universe. It’s also a barometer for where I’m at in this whole fitness industry thing. Are folks benefitting from the information I dish out? Apparently so. Am I enjoying the hell out of it? Yes.  Therefore, everybody wins. The best parts of the Summit are the new & old friendships that get cultivated, and of course the memories that linger like sweet perfume (well, most of them).

The Attendees & Organizers

Let me just clear the air for a second and give credit to the beating heart of the JP Fitness Summit:  The vets & the admin. The Summit simply wouldn’t exist – much less run smoothly – without Nick Bromberg & the crew being on top of all the operations. Jean-Paul Francoer (founder of the JP Fitness Forums) gets credit for starting the whole thing. A unique aspect about the JP Fitness Summit is the Mahlership (named after veteran member John Mahler), where charitable individuals pitch in to build a fund that facilitates attendance for those who wouldn’t have had the means to make it there. This past Summit, enough funds were raised to sponsor 6 attendees. What other conference has this sort of selfless outreach? None that I know of.  

The Speakers

First up was Lou Schuler, whose trademark is a really sharp sense of humor and wit. He has a way of tying fitness and non-fitness concepts together that’s very unique and engaging. This time around, he drew parallels between the journey of a fitness professional and the  monomyth (also called the hero’s journey) as described by writer Joseph Campbell. I’ll admit straight away that I’m a hopeless fan of Lou’s talks, so I was captivated the whole way through, despite a deficiency of caffeine in me at that early point in the morning.

I was up after Lou, who quite eloquently introduced me in this clip. I discussed a variety of nutritional topics which included marconutrients, the placebo effect (demo on Lou with a parody of a strength test, depicted above). I ended off with a case study of a talented natural bodybuilder named Kelechi Opara, who I recently prepped for a contest without succumbing to any of the typical bodybuilding bro-dogma. As usual, I got a real rush out of presenting, and I had a blast interacting with the audience.

After me, in arguably the toughest spot (right before lunch) was my long-time friend Ryan Zielonka. He discussed his personal story and the lessons learned while going from extremely overweight, to maintaining a healthy/fit body composition – and most importantly, a healthy perspective. You could hear a pin drop while Ryan spoke; his narrative style was poised and polished. Although most of the crowd was ravenous (well, at least I was), no one shifted an inch in their seats as they listened intently the whole way through & asked lots of questions afterward.

Bret Contreras hit the fitness conference stage for the first time in his career, and did quite well considering this fact. I sensed some freshman jitters at the beginning of his talk, but I feel like he held it together and finished strong. He presented some great concepts, sound justifications, and innovative progressions for glute work. I got a chance to talk to Bret for about 2 hours straight at the airport while we waited for our flights to arrive. I must say that this guy has a truckload of knowledge in a wide range of training aspects for various sports. Bret is a true student of the game, and I see nothing but good things happening for him. He’s got a knock-out sense of humor, too.  

Nick Tumminello simply wowed the audience with his highly informative and eye-opening presentation on myofascial release. Nick’s extensive speaking experience really shined through in his flawless delivery. People were just in awe, eating up his information & insight. I’ve seen endless amounts of presenters at various conferences, and Nick ranks up there among the very top. It was really a treat to have him in the lineup this year. Nick and his lovely girlfriend Alli are a very classy couple that hit it off instantly with the JP Fitness crowd.

Post-Workshop Nutrition

One of the unique aspects of the JP Fitness Summit is that the attendees and the presenters are all on the same playing field. The speakers don’t huddle up together in their own corner the whole time while the audience keeps their respectful distance. It’s quite the opposite. Everyone has a blast hanging out & having fun throughout the entire weekend. Aside from the lecture & workshop, it’s really one big party.  This is an annual thing, so start saving your pennies for next year’s event, which I’ll be speaking at again. More than the opportunity to present educational material, it’s the fellowship and camaraderie with the attendees that keep me returning to the Summit each year. I hope to see more of you at the next one so I can put some faces to the names I’ve known online for so long now.

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WARNING: This article contains links to a website whose images might be a little too hardcore for your workplace.

In my daily stroll through the internetz, I stumbled upon this article by fitness journalist/dating expert Nate Green who interviews fellow staff writer Dr. Lonnie Lowery. Before I get into this, let me first thank the good fellas at Tmuscle for providing a relentless source of entertainment. Not to mention, they always come through with great pics & vids of super-enhanced fleshiness. Nate’s article embodies so much of the Tmuscle ideals in a single swoop, that it deserves a little shine here on my Super Secret Blog™. Here are some key quotes from the article, followed by my two cents.

“If guys would simply load up on carbs and protein before their training sessions, take in high-quality amino acids during their workouts, and have another solid meal post-workout, they’d take advantage of the most anabolic time of the day and build serious muscle.”

The above isn’t a counterproductive recommendation. In fact, for most trainees, it’s a good idea to sandwich the training bout with protein & carbs. However, if a protein-rich meal or shake was consumed near the start of the training bout, intraworkout amino acid intake is redundant, especially for typical-length sessions lasting about an hour. The preworkout meal is already being digested, and amino acids are already being absorbed into circulation. One little wrinkle:  if what you’re drinking during the bout can improve your mood, this can potentially drive better performance. But most of all, nothing screams “I’m hardcore!” like walking around the gym with your chest puffed and lats flared, clutching a jug of bright pink fluid.

“Well, when it comes to protein synthesis — the necessary reaction that must happen to build muscle — the hormone insulin plays a huge role. Simply, the higher you spike insulin, the more protein synthesis will occur, and the more muscle you can build.”

The above statement is a combo of oversimplification and exaggeration. Even when amino acid levels are kept elevated, insulin’s ability to max-out net muscle protein balance has a ceiling that’s easily reached by a normal-size protein/carb meal or shake. A large mixed meal or shake can cause insulin levels to far surpass this limit. This is why researchers have alluded to insulin’s role in furthering net protein balance as more permissive than it is stimulatory [1]. On a sidenote of trivia, insulin has been seen to cause protein synthesis on its own when intravenously raised to 1000 times normal basal levels [2]. But alas, we’re talking about orally ingested/nutrient-mediated insulin elevations, not intravenous super-dosing for pharmacological effects. 

Think of it this way: if you buckle down for two hours, feed your body high-quality protein and carbs, spike insulin, train hard, and re-feed your body afterward, you’re almost guaranteeing that every amino acid is getting pumped straight into your muscles. You’ve created the ultimate anabolic environment, and, if you’re following the super-effective Anaconda Protocol, you’re taking in a whopping 1,157 calories of muscle-building nutrients and 167 grams of protein.

This is where Tmuscle takes the more-is-better principle and exploits it to an explosive end, literally. Linked in the quote above, the Anaconda Protocol is a true test of maximal human stomach capacity, which isn’t the best test to run during a hard training session. If the user feedback in this thread means anything, we should all hope that stain-free versions of the supplements are in development. There’s really no technical criticism needed here; just picture consuming a half-day’s worth of calories plus an entire day’s worth of fluid within a couple of hours. And somewhere within that timeframe, you must complete an intense workout before having to run to the sink or the toilet.

“I have no idea where that notion came from,” says Lowery. “My guess is that they took a 180-pound guy, gave him one gram of protein per pound of bodyweight, and divided that by six meals to get 30 grams per meal. And for some reason, people seem to think that it’s the ‘magic’ number. It’s just not correct.”

Well, its refreshing to see them get something right. The problem is, Lowery appears to be contradicting the more-is-better mantra in a fairly recent article where he says, “I’ve actually cut back on the amount of protein I eat at any given time. I just make sure I spike it with leucine. I usually put a scoop and a half, about 7 or 8 grams, of leucine in just 20 grams of protein. But I’ve stopped sucking down 50 or 60 grams of protein at a time. I just don’t do that anymore; I don’t think it has that much benefit. Plus this prevents me from becoming a protein oxidizer or burner.”  This makes you wonder just how genuinely supportive Lowery is of the 167-gram  protein dose in the Anaconda Protocol.

The Perfect Carbs: According to Lowery, the perfect blend of carbs to consume before a workout should be insulinogenic (spikes insulin), but not anything containing straight sugar or high-fructose corn syrup. “I’m all for special dextrins [like the rice oligodextrin found in FINiBAR™ that will support high-level performance," he says. "You can't just sit down and have a giant bowl of Applejacks."

The above passage contradicts itself. Finibars have been marketed as a product that provides a steady release of carbs. "Fuel for the finish" is the product's tag line.  The bar's primary ingredient is isomaltulose (also called palatinose), which has been demonstrated to elicit a low-glycemic, low-insulinemic response [3]. With all their hype surrounding the prodigious spiking of insulin, it seems they chose the wrong carb to drive their point. Personally, I’d rather have a bowl of Applejacks in milk over a Finibar.

The Perfect Protein: For protein, Lowery’s a fan of hydrolysates [like the casein hydrolysate found in ANACONDA™, which are proteins that enter the blood stream quickly and significantly increase the rate of protein synthesis.  "Remember, the faster the amino acids hit the bloodstream and more protein synthesis you create, the better off you'll be," says Lowery.

Like the erroneous use of Finibars as an example of the "perfect carb" for spiking insulin, touting casein hydrolysate as the "perfect protein" has its own caveats.  While one study showed that casein hydrolysate is more quickly digested and absorbed than intact casein [4], another study found that the faster absorption of casein hydrolysate isn’t necessarily superior for muscle anabolism [5]. Compared to intact casein, its hydrolyzed form was preferentially incorporated into the intestinal tissue instead of skeletal muscle (more discussion here). Given this sparse and equivocal data set, calling casein hydrolysate “perfect” is a perfect example of unsubstantiated hype.

And, you can’t drink chocolate milk and eat sugary cereal to get the same effect. That’s not the 3rd Law of Muscle. That’s eating crappy food. You need quality nutrients from specialized carbs like rice oligodextrin, and specialized proteins like casein hydrolysate.

So, what does it mean when the crappy food  is more micronutrient-dense, and has equal or more supporting research than the perfect stuff? 

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References

1. Phillips SM. Insulin and muscle protein turnover in humans: stimulatory, permissive, inhibitory, or all of the above? Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2008 Oct;295(4):E731. [Medline]
2. Hillier TA, et al. Extreme hyperinsulinemia unmasks insulin’s effect to stimulate protein synthesis in the human forearm. Am J Physiol. 1998 Jun;274(6 Pt 1):E1067-74. [Medline]
3. van Can JG, et al. Reduced glycaemic and insulinaemic responses following isomaltulose ingestion: implications for postprandial substrate use. Br J Nutr. 2009 Nov;102(10):1408-13. [Medline]
4. Koopman R, et al. Ingestion of a protein hydrolysate is accompanied by an accelerated in vivo digestion and absorption rate when compared with its intact protein. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Jul;90(1):106-15. [Medline]
5. Deglaire A, et al. Hydrolyzed dietary casein as compared with the intact protein reduces postprandial peripheral, but not whole-body, uptake of nitrogen in humans. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009 Oct;90(4):1011-22. [Medline]

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Disagreement leads to investigation, investigation leads to learning.

The photo above was taken by a friend of mine with a great sense of humor (note this post here). He knows full-well that I’m not a proponent of supplemental BCAA on top of a preexistent high-protein diet typical of the fitness population, so this pic is an inside joke for those who are new to my writings.

One of the things that people miss is that most professionals in a given field tend to agree on the majority of fundamental principles. For example, I may disagree with some folks on the amount of fructose that can safely be incorporated into a diet, but that probably represents 10% of the whole picture, 90% of which I’d probably be preaching to the choir.

Another example is supplemental BCAA. There are some highly intelligent, well-educated folks that disagree with me on the lack of justification of its use under the aforementioned conditions. Guess what? That’s okay. Disagreement occurs throughout the lowest to the highest levels of research & practice. If there was no dissent, there would be little motivation to push forward with investigations that can yield more definitive answers to the grey areas of knowledge.

While I might disagree with some folks about the use of supplemental BCAAs amidst abundant high-quality dietary protein, I probably agree with them on the majority of all other topics. In any case, I took an in-depth look at the applications & limitations of BCAA supplementation in the latest issue of AARR.

One more plug — I wrote an article for wannabebig.com on the controversial issue of how much protein the body can use per meal (click here). Let me just add that Daniel Clough of AtLarge Nutrition was exceptionally great to work with – one of the coolest guys in the biz. For the record, their product Opticen is the best-tasting MRP I’ve tried thus far. I’ve been plowing through that stuff like a starved POW.

If you disagree with anything I write, that’s fine with me. What’s the worst that can come from debating a topic? One or both sides acquire new knowledge…that’s a good thing.

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Right after the completion of my MonaVie vs Two-Buck Chuck article, a wise friend of mine told me that I need to shorten my blog posts, post more often, and save the technical stuff for my research review. She feels that people visit my blog for human-interest purposes more than to get a physiology lecture. Obviously, she underestimates the nerdiness of my readership.

In any case, I’ll run with her advice for a quick second and alert y’all to the JP Fitness Summit in Kansas City, MO on May 14-16. I’m being 100% sincere when telling you that this is easily one of the most fun & gratifying events on my calendar. I get to wear the hat of a teacher during my presentation, a student during the lectures of the other presenters, and a regular guy when it comes to relaxing & stuffing my face with greasy food and beverages of varying fructose content.

Aside from the awesomeness of meeting online clients and the wonderful  ol’ core group of JP Fitness forum regulars, I’m particularly excited about the speaker line-up.

• Ryan Zielonka has been a close friend of mine for years now, and it’s great to see his talents recognized with a spot on the Summit podium. Ryan attended last year’s summit, so he knows what he’s in for this time, and I’m sure he’ll deliver.
• Bret Contreras is someone I don’t know personally, but instantly admire for a couple of reasons. For one, he created the video below. Perhaps most importantly, this guy is dead-serious about perfecting the structure & function of the glutes. I’d go as far as saying that he is arguably the world’s foremost butt-spert. Check out this product he developed. I can’t wait to see the kind of hurtin’ he’s gonna put on the brave Summit attendees during his workshop.
• Nick Tumminello is another guy who I haven’t met yet. I’ve only heard good things about Nick from industry folks & enthusiasts alike. Given that the online community never pulls punches with its honesty, that’s saying a lot. Nick and I are both contributing editors to Men’s Health magazine, so you know this guy keeps it classy.
• Lou (Fricking) Schuler! Lou is my inspiration to tell it like it is, and get the point across clearly by any means necessary. Even if it means dropping an occasional F-bomb now and then. There is never a dull moment with Lou, on or off the speaking stage. He has been a Summit favorite since its inception, and the rep is well-deserved. I learn something new from Lou with every conversation.
• Alan Aragon gives continuing education lectures to dietitians and physicians, on the seldom occasions he lectures at all. He seems to be a smug prick, and I don’t really like the cut of his jib, but I’ll give him a fighting chance at pulling off a decent showing.

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Summit 2010 factoid: all the presenters have written for the lovely publication we call T-mag. How perfect is that? Like I said, it doesn’t get any bro-er than this.

Go HERE to register. It’s 200 bucks for 2 full days of picking the brains of the presenters and hanging out with a great group of like-minded fitness folks.

In the mean time, enjoy the video.

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RECENT UPDATE: David once again shows his video editing and scriptwriting mastery in the lastest intallment above. Speaking of Anaconda, check out JC Deen’s no-BS article on the overhyped product.