The secret of success - giveaway!

 As we're getting close to Thanksgiving in the US I thought I'd give away THE secret to successful training.  It's only known to a few, but if you put this into practice you are virtually guaranteed to achieve great results!
If you can follow the real secret to training success, your gains will skyrocket & your results will improve beyond anything you've seen before.  If you do this between now & summer 2013 (for example) & if your goal is getting a beach body, you will have a real chance that you will stride onto the beach looking like an Adonis (from the neck down, exercise can't do much above that).
So, onto the real secret to successful training...."Showing up"
Yep, it sounds stupid, but for most people the hardest thing is actually getting there & doing the work.  Most people are happy to plan it, but rarely do they follow through & do it.  If you choose the other path though, if you commit to hitting the gym every planned session between now & summer 2013 (I'll let you have time off if you're ill), then you are so much more likely to achieve that goal.  So, why not really set aside that time, hit the gym every day you plan to.  Sure, go lighter if you feel a little burnt out, go heavier when you're feeling like a Kryptonian, but turn up, get into your training gear & have at it without fail & the goal will be achieved.  As a nice side effect often getting strict with the training leads to other positive traits developing, like better dietary choices (as you need to fuel those sessions), better rest (you will need that rest trust me!) & taking better care of yourself.  So, if you can do one thing, I'd say just show up, it will make the rest fall into place so much more easily!
I hope everyone in the US has a wonderful Thanksgiving & then get to the gym! SHOW UP!!!

West Midlands Vegan Festival 2012

Here's our day at the West Midlands Vegan festival - includes a talk by Vegan Bodybuilder Alex 'Mitch' Mitchell, the Viridian dynamometer challenge, vegan fitness rowing event, the push-up contest & much, much more! Go check it out!

Losing fat & training:sucking it up

 This could be real 'training life' saver - a way to squat!

 

Here is a little training update - Today I actually measured my waist (Oh yea! Feeling that bodybuilding pump dudes - actually I was measuring someone else & it came up :-).  I am at 29 inches around the waist, which is down by around a 1 & a half inches.  I did zero cardio, so you want the secret?....ok here's what I have been doing.  Basically I filled my plate with huge amounts of mashed potato (mashed with a whole avocado, a little soya milk & some raw spring onion mixed in - also a protein source & veggies), besides that I've been having a whole coconut every day or two (& of course all my other meals).  Just ignore the fact I'm an outlier & high fat &/or high carbs ramps up my metabolism to a ridiculous degree.  I can up my calorie intake & I can lose fat.  Sure my weight stays the same, or goes up a little, but I can eat a lot more & lose fat.  So, to be honest my 'eating system' would make 99% of you dough-boys...I was honestly not bothered about fat levels, actually the opposite.  I've been focussed more on trying to get my head around my limitations & 'sucky' exercises.
Today I found a way to squat!  That may not sound like a lot to you, but at the moment I fighting against some functional scoliosis - that is a muscular imbalance that pulls the spine over, it is not the permanent kind, but something you get if your back muscles get REALLY jacked up - I've had it on & off for a couple of years now.  I have tried a few therapies to sort it out, but basically it is finding that 'key' that will balance out the issues & things will get back on track (I can go into this more if you like, but we'll leave it there for now).  I think a lot of the reason the issue has lasted this long is that you need to do a load of 'sucky' exercises to help fix it.  I'll be frank, in training terms I am a 'meat & potatoes' type of trainee.  Give me squat, deadlift, bench, shoulder press, row & chin & I'll be happy.  Alternatively give me planks, side planks, shoulder bridges & endless stretching & I am unhappy.  That is just the way it is with me, so I have not been 100% happy going to the gym to hit a load of planks for time, then stretching out like a yoga guru.  At times the mood hits me I will 'just test out' something heavy & be back to square one, so today I decided I really had to get this fixed by 2013 so I can go for goals of seriously increasing my deadlift & possibly trying out Olympic weightlifting before the joints get too worn to consider it.  So, I have been playing around with versions I might like better of these exercises.  I have been doing planks in all four directions off of a bench (I hook my feet under a squat rack safety bar set at the correct height & do timed holds facing directly upwards, facing directly downwards, to each side & I experimented at also doing them with the body at 45 degrees, so think facing 10 O'clock, 2 O'clock, 4 O'clock, 7 O'clock, those were tough I had to learn how to support my weight at the unusual angles, I barely managed 30 seconds the first go), so I've got those to work with.  I'm going to include more things like ab roll-outs as those are kind of interesting, maybe work up to standing as at the moment I am on the knees.  As I mentioned earlier (see picture at the top) I also found a way to squat.  I own an ironmind squat squat hip belt which is an awesome tool, but the only way I've found to use it is to drag two benches together & use a loading pin in a rack, it's also tough getting up on the benches with the necessary weight (for a guy with back issues this causes REAL issues), today I experimented using bands & a jumpstretch platform, using this method doesn't involve climbing with weights around your waist onto a pair of benches, I did get stuck at the bottom as I underestimated the strength of the bands a little, but once I had that sorted I could do it ok.  Sure, the 'weight' ('tension' if you want to be more accurate) is a little light at the bottom, but the top it is tough & zero back involvement, also lightening up at the bottom is kind of good for now as I have issues towards the bottom, so I can live with that for now.  I will still keep trying out various weighted versions on the belt & see if I can get a floor based version that works, if I do that will be included in a month or so.  I'm also practising the position at the bottom of the snatch (a snatch squat stance with a stick for timed holds at various heights) & once I get better at those I'll begin including a 'snatch squat press' (think of being at the bottom of a weightlifting squat - rock bottom - then using a snatch grip pressing a very light bar overhead.  Again this will NOT be for strength, but kept light so you are doing what would be a form of dynamic stretching.  That won't be for a while yet. 

For the stretching I'm honestly still not sure of the best way to go?  Maybe I'll have to buy a yoga video or something?  I hate stretching, it's slow, it's dull, you don't lift big metal stuff..it's really no fun for me, but it needs to get done.  I suppose 'sucking it up' is all about that.  Lifting heavy isn't so much about sucking it up if you want to do it, but stretching is all about it to me as I really loathe it & so I really do not do enough of it (or sometimes ANY of it!).

So, my training hasn't been heavy or consistent enough, but that will change from today (well the consistency, the heavy will have to wait a few more months).  I will be hitting things very regularly, until the end of the year.  It won't really be heavy weight training for a while yet.  I need to get the all-clear on the back before I can even consider a bar on the back or heavy overhead work, but stuff like inverted rows (Australian pull-ups to some of you), bodyweight pull-ups are ok, but weights around the waist causes too much traction & can cause issues, but I may test out a weight vest later in the year, that might just be ok as the traction moves from waist focus (which is bad for me right now) to shoulder traction (which is fine), I can also do push-ups, bench press (without an arch), ab work (flexion style) will be there as well as even with a bad back (no offence to Dr McGill here) flexion seems to be good for my back in moderation.  I've not got anything like a programme right now, nor really a progression pattern, which is very unusual for me, I'm still trying to figure out exactly what works & what doesn't, so this is an ongoing experiment.  I am really hoping the experience will make me better at coaching others & it certainly has given me a better perspective on people when they say they hate doing stuff.  The answer isn't always "I hate doing stuff, so do something else", sometimes the answer is "suck it up".   If you have a goal & that goal involves  doing a small part of 'sucky stuff' to reach the 'good stuff', then you either forget the goal or wade through that sucky mess you hate & drag yourself towards that good stuff on the horizon!  So, my answer to that has actually changed, like Captain Kirk, I always thought you could avoid the decisions you wanted to avoid (star trek reference!), but sometimes you have to take the hard, long windy route to get to your goals & this is one of those times.  My goals will hopefully be met in 2013, but from now until then I have a serious battle to fight.  If I truly want to make those goals I have to strip off & wade through the 'mess' of stretching daily (or several times daily), doing boring timed holds, grasp the brief pleasure with the band squats & a very few other selected exercises that will be my 'bread & butter' for a few months (I'm using a lot of very un-vegan references on this today, sorry!).  So I'll be 'sucking it up' for those months, but even after that I think I'll have to change to include a lot more of these things to keep myself healthy as I push towards a three times bodyweight deadlift & possibly an experiment with some Olympic style weightlifting (assuming I ever find a coach in the area that's any good & not just some guy who did a weekend course & got a 'cert' to teach O-lifting...really?...oh yea, there are a load of them out there!).

I thought you might be interested in what was going on as I've been kind of quiet of late about my actual goals & thought this might help you if you are going through issues of some kind.  Hopefully we can all work towards a 2013 that will give us awesome results!  So, if you know you have been avoiding stuff you should be doing, let's all get down doing the stuff that needs to get done.  Time to suck it up!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

REVIEW: Veganicity Digestive aids

Many of us into training eat...I mean eat a LOT!  If you are bulking or trying to hold onto a weight above what would be normal sometimes cramming down chow can be harder than training.  One downside of this eating style can be digestive issues.  Not major, but sometimes eating for mass can cause a little bloating or discomfort.  This is down to cramming in so much, so often.  I know some will argue just eat less, but if you are trying to grow beyond what nature intended then eating to extreme is the only option.  Other people may not eat so much, but have issues with digestion.  Both of these people may benefit from digest enzymes & probiotics.

With all this in mind I was looking into digestive enzymes & probiotics by veganicity (a vegan supplement maker).  For full disclosure I did get the three products above for free to try (one of each) ...but I have since reordered as I found them pretty useful.  I'll cover them all below.

Digest-ase digestive enzyme

This product supplies enzymes that aid the breakdown of the macronutrients.  So, in simple terms these ingredients aid carbs breaking down into glucose, proteins breaking down into amino acids & breaking fats into small enough globules to be assimilated.  One thing that will be useless to any vegan in this product is the inclusion of lactase, the enzyme that helps break down lactose (milk sugar), but that is standard for all digestive enzymes (basically baby enzymes you had to digest your mothers milk).  That is the one thing I found 'negative' about this product from a vegan point of view (obviously the product itself is completely vegan!).  Unlike many digestive enzymes this one contains some probiotics as well as the usual enzymes, it also tastes fantastic.  I wouldn't be lying if I said this is possibly the best tasting supplement pill I've ever tasted!  If you like peppermint, then you will love this product, it tastes awesome (to me, bear in mind that your taste-buds may be different to mine).  It did also seem to make digestion easier when going for that 'gut buster' meal (obviously placebo might have had an effect, if you believe something will make things better, then things can appear better, I can only say that for me things seemed better taking them when I eat heavily).  So, yes, I am adding these to my diet.  If I'm gaining then I need to eat a lot, so would want to use them & if I was dieting I would want to get the maximum nutrition from the diet & so again it would make sense to include them (also these are like little treats they taste so good!).

Next up we have Megadophilus & Multi Probiotic both are probiotics,

I have written about these together as they are both related products Megadophilus is acidophilus & Multi Probiotic is a group of different probiotics.  Personally I am going to use Multi Probiotic as you get a selection of different friendly bacteria.  Here is a weird fact, there are actually more bacteria cells in you than human cells.  That's right, if you were being classified by an alien, would you be classed as a being inhabited by bacteria or a bacteria colony with a slight mammal involvement - infact it is commonly believed that there are 10 times as many bacteria cells than human cells within & on the surface of the average person (see wiki for some details), so you can see bacteria are pretty important to the human condition, in fact without your bacteria allies you would soon die!
The main issue with taking any bacteria supplement is a lot die going through the acid environment of the stomach.  There are a few ways to get around this.  One way is to include a glucose containing food in the diet as glucose seems to increase bacteria survivability in stomach transit (see here for study), so you could eat a meal (which usually has some glucose in it), or even add glucose if you prefer.  Bear in mind that it is possible that ALL bacteria survive the transit of the stomach better, so as well as friendly, you could get less friendly bacteria making it across this defensive barrier.  There is another option.  Most of the bacteria in the gut lives in the large intestine, so theoretically you can approach the adding of probiotics from the 'other end', so to speak. I have used this method when I have had very bad digestive issues in the past & it does seem to work...but there is no proof that I have so far found that shows that adding probiotics from the 'rear end' actually allows the bacteria to escape the anus.  My method has been to use those disposable gloves, puncture a capsule with a pin many times, then using coconut oil as a lube use the finger to slip it up there after you have defecated (so it has many hours to breed & spread).  As I said I have tried this out, but as far as I know there is no science to back it up, you may just be wasting a pill, but it does seem to work at firming up stools when that is an issue & generally getting you back to normal, regularity.  The main advantage I can see to the acidophilus is that is seems better suited to stomach survival being more acid resistant than some of the other strains & so more may survive.  You may want to consider taking a probiotic if you have recently ended a course of antibiotics (as these kill a lot of your gut bacteria & leave you open to attack from yeast or other unfriendly bacteria), if you suffer from yeast infections as bacteria is the natural enemy of yeast, if you have any mild occasional tummy issues (any serious or ongoing stomach issues go & see a health care specialist).  As I said my choice would be the Multi Probiotic.  Keep these in the refrigerator as they are a live bacteria.

Last bit on probiotics is I have heard of an ongoing study focussing on taking probiotics & cancer reduction - this study will take many years as people are being asked to take probiotics daily (orally), so the results won't be known for many years yet, but that will be interesting if there is a link between gut bacteria & cancer.

Final points

I think that the digestive enzymes are going to become a regular in my diet.  I won't go crazy & carry them about with me (unless I'm on some crazy bulk type eating pattern), but when I'm indoors these are going to become a regular.  The probiotics I didn't notice such an obvious effect (unless I get stomach issues then I have used them in the past with noticeable effect).  I don't think they will become a staple quite as much as the digestive enzymes, but they will be fairly frequent visitors.  I'll stick with the Multi Probiotic mostly I think.  The digest-ase has some probiotics in, so going for a while just using those probably won't lose you anything.  If I had something like IBS or similar I'd certainly consider hitting both the digestive enzymes & probiotics very hard (I'd also go & see a nutritional advisor see about getting some allergy testing done, also some stress management etc), it might be the first stage in a recovery plan.
Anyway, obviously veganicity are a vegan company, so if you can support them do. They also come along to many of the big vegan events around the UK & are great guys so check them out & give them your money if your after guaranteed vegan supplements.

You can check out Veganicity here

Affiliates, referrals & integrity

WARNING: this is a rant post alert, it is an opinion piece about the state of the web-based side of our industry.  You have been warned :-)

This is a personal post.  I am not 'having a pop' at anyone else, but I have been asked a few times about the products & stuff that are put up as adverts & reviews on the various VBB sites.  I have a personal view about affiliate programs, this is not 'the right' answer, it is an opinion.  I believe referrals should be earned, not bought. I do not use affiliate links, I have endorsed products that have sent affiliate links, but I try to always remove the affiliate link.  Every product mentioned on here & on the other VBB sites are actually used by me &/or VBB members, or the product is created by a vegan athlete, bodybuilder or similar so might be of interest.
All the adverts on all the sites are again not done for cash, they are products members support.  We make no cash for adverts.
To honour full disclosure there are two 'kind of' exceptions to this rule.  The first is that on occasion a company will send out a product to test for free.  We're happy to try it out, but we always state we will only give honest reviews, if we don't like it we'll not put up stuff we don't feel about a product.  The second way is we do put up adverts for companies that sponsor our events.  This sponsorship is not in cash, but in the products they make & the companies we approach are chosen because members have used their products & find them useful, all of their product goes to people entering our contests, not to people within VBB.
So, the point is every product we review on this blog & on every site we run is actually a genuine referral, in the old school way, we get nothing for putting up something about a product & they have certainly been used, read or watched before reviews are written.  We do not use affiliate links & we do not make profit from adverts.  All the stuff written about reflect our honest thoughts, as we gain literally nothing by lying!
One thing that annoys me on websites, is you read a bit that sounds interesting, you are then told "To read more click here..." & it's an affiliate link to buy a product.  Often this is not made explicit at the start of the article, blog post etc.  We will NEVER do that!  I do not believe you need to do that, it is irritating to me & I tend to think, these people do not care about the product, they are just doing the affiliate thing & making cash - so probably the product is worthless.  It is sad when you are forced to these cynical conclusions, but I have bought too many of these affiliate-type products, they often turn out being a waste of cash, they are basically a blogpost, that has been expanded with puffery into a book, or a youtube clip expanded into a video.
The thing to look for in a review is that when they reach the part with the link see if there is a bit at the end (usually with the word 'hop' in there somewhere amongst the jumble of letters & numbers), this is an affiliate link, sometimes affiliates can get over 50% of the sale cost of a book!  Think about that, an affiliate can be getting more from the sale of that book than the author, just for putting a link on their website!  How good can that book REALLY be?  I tell you that sucks!   I want to see referrals done the old-fashioned way - you looked at a product, it was good, so you recommend it.  That's how we do it here, why not elsewhere?
So, I do thank everyone who has written (even the odd one's who have written suggesting we might be cashing in putting up these reviews...sorry guys, we aren't making a penny on those reviews, all read, watched or taken & then written about for nothing).  You may not agree with our reviews & we're fine about that, we are like you; students in the art of training & nutrition.  Like you we are learning & sharing what we've learnt, so it may not apply the same to you, if so let us know in the comments section of the article you have found an issue with, that way we can all learn a bit more & grow together towards being better coaches, trainers, lifters or athletes.
Sorry about the rant...but one too many emails asking the same thing...now I can refer them here...Yes, I do endorse this post 100% I recommend you read it :-) hee hee.

Summer Vegan Fete 2012

We've done a write-up about the first Summer Vegan Fete & the shoulder press contest we ran there.  Check it out here

Is there a need for unstable training?

Is there ever a need for unstable training?  Well first off we have to define what unstable training is.  First off it can be divided into two 'camps':

1/ There is instability under the feet (or lower body if you are using kneeling for example)
2/ There is lifting an unstable object (think sandbag or weights on a barbell attached by bands etc)

I generally divide them into 2, but you can sub-divide as much as you want.

The first question you should ask is how often will I need this training & is it specific enough to transfer to the real world?
In terms of rehab all forms of unstable training have a use, but we are not really talking about that.  I'm talking about a healthy person & real world applicability, so let's look at the real world & see what we find.

Well for one thing we do often lift & carry things that are unstable.  It can be that bag of cement, that wheelbarrow, those heavy bags of shopping, loading that bag into the plane or train overhead, or onto a wardrobe, even carrying a sofa or mattress (the other person is ALWAYS an idiot - don't worry you are not being rude, they thought you were an idiot as well :-).  So, already we have two real world applications for unstable loads.  Carrying unstable loads & static overhead lifting of an unsteady load.  It would be odd to move with an unstable object overhead, possible on the shoulder, but rarely overhead.

But what about under the feet?  We could carry a load on sand or through mud, but I can't think of too many applications where you would statically lift a load on an unstable surface unless you worked on a ship possibly?

If you look at everyday life you will see that actually the vast majority of your unstable lifting is actually lifting an unstable load from a stable base, not lifting on an unstable surface, so it would make sense to actually practice lifting unstable loads more than it would to practice lifting on an unstable surface as it would apply to the real world (unless you work on a ship).

I'm sure leaping onto a bosu with a barbell on your back might be something you've seen on youtube, but honestly as you face-plant you will really regret that choice.  Lifting a sandbag may not be as cool as some of the newer wobble boards, rocker boards, bosu & other toys. Play with them if you like, but the (fake) meat & potatoes of your training should be done on a stable surface with a stable load to get the most strength gains.  One important note is I would never do power moves either with an unstable load or on an unstable surface, power is not only severely compromised by instability, but you increase the risk of injury a lot, it simply isn't worth it in my view.

So, if you should mainly do stable work & most of your unstable work should be mainly using an unstable load, not standing on an unstable surface is there a place for training while unstable under-foot?  I can think of a couple of obvious reasons.  One of the reasons I thought of writing this post was that I was recently diagnosed with a serious big toe issue (goes back to dropping a heavy weight on my toe years ago), anyway, there was some nerve damage & range of motion issues.  This has led over the years to me lifting asymmetrically, so bi-lateral lifting (lifting with both legs - think a normal squat or deadlift) & a lot of pressure is on one leg & little on the other.  Over the years this has begun to show itself with lower back pain as the two sides develop at different rates & I have all sorts of crazy compensations that will take a long time to fix.  One way to help will be to spend a little time lifting on some form of inverted bosu deadlift or similar as for the bosu to stay flat you HAVE to push equally with both legs.  I wouldn't suggest lifting heavy or even using a barbell without something to catch the bar if you fail.  I could only find this youtube clip (below).  I wouldn't suggest going heavy as you are trying to retrain the body to lift symmetrically on a stable surface, THAT is when the really heavy weight should be used.  On a bosu you should think of the time as 'technique training' not 'strength building'.
Here's a clip, but as I said if using a barbell think of doing it inside a power rack with the pins set to catch the bar, or use dumbbells & be  prepared to drop them (away from the body) if you lose control.



If you work at sea you might also need some time to practice this as well, or if you work on an unstable surface...BUT you can only train statically & in most unstable environments you are actually moving, so the transfer wouldn't be that great I don't think.  If you think about it moving is mainly a one leg activity, you walk, which means most of the time is on one leg in motion, this is very different to how you react when static.  Obviously anyone with ankle issues may benefit as it could be with a few other conditions.  Also if you enjoy doing unstable stuff then I'd say include it (unless it's really dangerous, then be sensible).

Here are a few versions you might find useful:

 OK I was doing rehab - yes the weight is tiny

(Above pic) Shoulder press with weight on a band (the band bounces a little & so causes instability), you can use a barbell, extended length shrug bar (sometimes called trap bar or parallel grip deadlift bar etc) or anything else you can figure out.

Bench press with weight on a band

Flye with weight on a band (not very 'real world', but you might like the change of pace for fun)

Pull-ups with a weight on a band might be useful to some

Farmers walk with weights on a band

I've not fathomed out how to do a DB or BB row with a band quite yet, but it might be possible?

Sandbag press overhead

Sandbag clean  (no handles taxes the grip a lot more)

Sandbag farmers walk (if you use a sandbag with no handles this is a real grip test as well!)

Slosh pipes (you can make your own with PVC piping, some water & few other bits & bobs to seal the ends)

For instability under the feet you can try out

Stability ball

Bosu

Rocker board

Wobble board


My last point is if you are unsure about it then check the research.  I would suggest this resource as it's pretty good (& something I need to re-read now I've thought about it :-).

So, what are you experiences with unstable training?  This is purely an opinion piece so I am totally open to corrections & pointing out areas I've missed, so feel free to speak up.

And if anyone has a spare bosu they no longer need my imbalances would thank you for it as I've still not got round to getting one yet!