What Chuck Does

Abs Gone Wild!

This is mainly a post about abs, but I already know that it’s going to encompass several topics so bear with me.

I am not officially doing Larry’s “6-pack Challenge”. To my knowledge only Dai and Larry are doing the challenge. I have however adopted a variation of the challenge where I want to drop below 10% (according to my Tanita scale) and basically be “ripped”.

This is what I’m working with so far:

Basically, under perfect conditions my abs look pretty good. Perfect conditions consist of good lighting, flexing, getting the right angles etc. But under “real-world” conditions, my abs aren’t going to look half as good. This is why I’m still trying to make gains in shedding fat, and working out. I’m also eager to find out if I can ever get the 5th and 6th pack to make a cameo appearance. My goal is to have my abs look so good that at any given time, I should be able to take off my shirt and show off my 6-pack.

In the process of trying to take pictures of my abs, I learned a few things. It’s really hard to take good pictures of abs by yourself. In order to control lighting you basically have to shoot indoors. But since there isn’t much light indoors, you have the added challenge of proper exposure without using a flash (flash washes out the abdominal definition). So I push the ISO to 1250 or 1600 which has the side-effect of increased noise. Then since I have to see how I’m posing, I have to shoot into the reflection in the mirror. This makes every shot basically 2x as far as I’d like. I could use a zoom lens, but that exaggerates small movements and vibrations thereby making it harder to shoot handheld. Then there’s the challenge of staying still for the exposure, while flexing as hard as possible. To make matters worse, I have to keep my hands and the camera out of the way so it doesn’t screw up the lighting.

But the results from my little photoshoot are pretty good. While there’s still work to be done, I will use these pictures as inspiration to stay the course and push for more gains.

Affliction - Aversion

“There are many techniques that give temporary relief. When you become miserable you divert your attention to something else. Then you feel that you have come out of your misery, but you are not totally relieved.

If something undesirable has happened in life, you become agitated. You cannot bear this misery and want to run away from it. You may go to a cinema or a theatre, or you may indulge in other sensual entertainments. You may go out drinking, and so on. All this is running away from misery. Escape is no solution to the problem and indeed the misery is multiplying.

In Buddha’s enlightenment he realized that one must face reality. Instead of running away from the problem, one must face it. He found that all the types of meditation existing in his day consisted of merely diverting the mind from the prevailing misery to another object. He found that practising this, actually only a small part of the mind gets diverted. Deep inside one keeps reacting, one keeps generating saṅkhāras (reactions) of craving, aversion or delusion, and one keeps suffering at a deep level of the mind. The object of meditation should not be an imaginary object, it should be reality—reality as it is. One has to work with whatever reality has manifested itself now, whatever one experiences within the framework of one’s own body.”

- Vipassana Newsletter

I’m posting this section from the newsletter because I want to address the issue of aversion in our daily lives. Reflecting on my own life, I often use avoidance and suppression as a tool for dealing with aversion.

In 2003 my car broke down. I made many attempts to fix it but to no avail. It wound up in my mechanic’s garage waiting for my mechanic to get around to fixing it. As a means of avoiding the problem, I let it sit in that garage for 9 months collecting dust.

For me this car brought back so many memories that it was emotionally painful for me to personally resolve its mechanical issues. In fact, I got so good at avoiding the issue that prior to sending it to my mechanic’s garage, I paid someone else to manage the repair process. Yes, this person’s sole responsibility was to troubleshoot the issues and schedule the repairs but not actually do any of the repairs. This was something I could have done but could not bring myself to do.

Ultimately, my mechanic decided he needed his garage space back and forced me to pick up the car. Still not being able to deal with the emotional heartache, I decided to donate it to charity. In retrospect it was still the best decision however the remnants of aversions to the emotions (connected to that car), still remain.

I realize that I did myself no favors by avoiding the issue. Because even though the car is no longer in my possession, the pain and suffering that I experience is still mine. As the Vipassana newsletter above mentions, “Escape is no solution to the problem and indeed the misery is multiplying”. In order to truly extricate myself from the emotional turmoil of these experiences, I must examine them. I need to examine them as my professor used to say, “gently and with lovingkindness”. To first gain intellectual insight to why they caused me so much grief and then to gain perspective to realize them for what they really were, just experiences.

When I can differentiate my own sensations and reactions from the absolute truth of those experiences, I can free myself from the misery and the suffering. I must end the reactions of aversion that are constantly being generated from within me by my mind.

It’s true. You can run but you can not hide from your own suffering.

Affliction - Why Americans Love Yoga

Around here, yoga classes and yoga studios have been popping up like Starbucks over the past decade or so. Many that practice yoga swear by the positive effects and the peace they’ve achieved by routinely doing yoga. While I there are many physical, demographic and cultural reasons for why yoga has become so popular, here are 3 reasons why I think modern day Americans love yoga.

1. Americans Don’t Breathe

It sounds absurd, but most Americans don’t breathe deeply from the bottom of their stomach (or from the lower “dan tien”). As a function of being an anxious and stressed society, Americans takes short and shallow breaths. Shallow breathing (or chest breathing) causes a constriction of the chest and lung tissue over time, decreasing oxygen flow and delivery to your tissues. Deep, rhythmic breathing expands the diaphragm muscle, the cone-shaped muscle under your lungs, expanding the lung’s air pockets, invoking the relaxation response, and massaging the lymphatic system - Source. If Americans learned to breathe deeper throughout the day, they wouldn’t be so intrigued with classes that force people to breathe deeper. The problem with Americans not breathing deeply is primarily a lack of mindfulness of the self and more importantly the body…

2. Americans Don’t Listen to Their Bodies

This sounds ludicrous too, but Americans are so bad at listening to their bodies that Ergonomic injuries represent the fastest growing category of injuries in the United States today. They are now the leading cause of Workers’ Compensation claims, and even unreported cases are accompanied by pain, loss of function, and the potential for permanent disability - Source. Now, if you are even half paying attention to your body, you should quickly realize when you’re putting yourself in a compromised physical position within minutes, much less years! Americans love yoga because yoga exercises forces one to stretch the muscles thus providing a release for pressure and pain. More importantly however, these exercises provide Americans an opportunity to listen to their bodies to find out where their aches and pains exist early. Part of the solution to listening to one’s body lies in cultivating mindfulness…

3. Americans Live at a Frenetic Pace

The average American lives at 100 mph. They try to do too much in too little time. Then they try to make up for “lack of time” by sleeping less. This makes them tired, so they ingest substances (like coffee) to keep themselves awake. But these chemicals are unnatural and have side effects like increased anxiety. So on weekends they turn to substances that make them relaxed (like alcohol). Because their lives are in a constant ebb and flow of ups and downs, highs and lows, they never find balance. And they never stop to question their cycle of imbalance and self-destruction. They never reflect on what they are doing something life-altering happens. Yoga forces Americans to slow down and stop for a minute to reevaluate everything. For that one hour, Americans are forced to reflect on their lives and question the inconsistencies between their espoused values and how they really live. If Americans could cultivate mindfulness and find time throughout the day to perform a little reflection, they would not be so enamored with yoga.

By no means am I attempting to put down yoga. I think yoga is one of the great saviors for American culture and society. I merely suggest that many of the benefits that come with regularly attending yoga class, can be had with a little self awareness, mindfulness, and reflection. You can achieve all the benefits of yoga every hour of every day without having to go to that 7 o’clock class tonight!

How Much Protein Should You Be Taking?

As an athlete and semi-experienced “body-builder” I’ve been taking protein for years (since 1997). In that time I’ve heard a lot of different suggestions for how much protein one should take when actively lifting weights. Most of my influences have come from the “muscle-head” camp where more protein = more muscle.

However as I grow older and more curious about what we accept as fact, I’ve begun to rethinking the age-old question, “How much protein should I be taking?”

The following sources all suggest that the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of protein is more than sufficient for 97% of Americans. Furthermore they propose that most Americans eat approximately 1.2-1.5x the RDA. The RDA is calculated by 0.8 g/kg body weight. That is you should eat 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight. For my 68.6 kg body my RDA of protein is 55 grams. These sources mostly suggest that the more exercise you get, the more protein you will need. That said, the sources differ on the type of exercise that cause an increase in protein need. For example, weighttraining.about.com proposes that only endurance sports create a physical demand for more protein and that normal weightlifting does not require increased protein intake.

All three sources below recommend NOT taking protein in excess of 2.0 g/kg body weight. For me, that would be not exceeding 140 g.

Since I do still occassionally perform the long swim, bike, or run, I have prescribed myself a 100 grams of protein a day, which is just under 1.5 g/kg body weight. This shoudl be more than adequate for my body to perform optimal protein synthesis.

Personally, while I agree that there are no short-term side-effects for active and healthy people overdosing on protein, I would err on the side of caution for taking too much protein over time. Excess protein must be processed by your kidneys and taking too much protein over prolonged periods of time puts unnecessary stress on your kidneys (possibly causing early kidney failure). In the example of my dog that suffered end-stage renal failure, we had to minimize protein in his diet because the proteins would make him nauseous and throw up. This was because his kidneys were no longer able to process the proteins in his blood and therefore the proteins would act as toxins.

For my purposes, I’m going to limit my protein intake from 80-100 g daily (approximately 1.2-1.5 g/kg body weight) and not to exceed 130 g daily.

Sources:
http://www.thedoctorwillseeyounow.com/articles/nutrition/protein_2/
http://exercise.about.com/cs/nutrition/a/protein.htm
http://weighttraining.about.com/od/nutritionforweights/qt/protein_howmuch.htm

GNC Mega Men vs. Mega Men Sport

I wanted to know if there was a difference between the GNC Mega Men “regular” multivitamins and the Mega Men Sport multivitamins. Looking at the Sport label above, I see that the Mega Men Sport has 150 mg of BCAA (branched chain amino acids) including L-Valine, L-Leucine, and L-Isoleucine. These are missing from the Regular Mega Men.

Looking at the abbreviated label below, I see that the Regular has 105 mg of Antioxidant Fruit and Vegetable Blend. Otherwise, these two formulae are the same.

Supplemental History

On the topic of supplements, I thought to supplement my last post with a short history of supplements I’ve taken, when I took them, what companies made them, and what my experiences were.

Creatine Monohydrate - Circa 1996
I started taking the powdered form of creatine between junior and senior year in high school. During summer school, I took a weightlifting class where the trainers suggested creatine. While “loading” (taking 2x the dosage instructions), I misread the label and took 5 tablespoons instead of 5 teaspoons per dose. I remember having symptoms of Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS) as a result and I could not sleep at night. My roommate at the time suggested that it was probably the creatine. I told him that creatine was not known to have any harmful side-effects. After finishing most of the bottle in about a week, I realized I had completely overdosed on creatine. When I cut back to normal dosages, I began sleeping normally again. At the time I did not notice any particular benefit from creatine. At the time I was only 130 lbs. and had just begun my weightlifting career.

Amino 2000 - Circa 1997 
These were monstrous horse-pill sized tablets that contained 2000mg of amino acids hence the name. They were not gelatin-coated and were incredibly hard to swallow. I gagged everytime I took one. After nearly choking to death on my 10th pill, I had to break them in half for all future applications. During that summer I at like pig and worked out pretty hard on a daily basis. I gained approximately 7 lbs. that summer, so 1 thumb up for gaines and 1 thumb down for almost killing me.

Weight Gainer 2000 - Circa 1998
During this time I challenged myself to gain weight as I was under the impression that I would never break the 130’s lbs range. I started eating like a pig and taking Weight Gainer 2000 once or twice daily. By the end of my freshman year I had gained approximately 15-20 pounds. At 150 I was quite mostly fat though.

Myoplex Deluxe - Circa 2001 - made by EAS
I started taking Myoplex because it was one of the first protein powders that was more than just protein. It was basically a meal replacement that had more nutrients than the other protein products on the market. Myoplex was probably one of the earliest products to offer whey protein but the best thing about it was that it tasted great!

Nitro-Tech - Circa 2003-2008 - made by Muscletech
I’ve taken a lot of types of protein throughout the years and pretty much everyone knows that you need protein to make muscle so I won’t recount the benefits. This is what I’ve been taking for the past 5 years. If you can get over the nasty gas that it gives you, it’s pretty good for a meal replacement/protein powder. As I’ve mentioned, I feel like the creatine in the formula really gives me the kick I need to lift harder.

Creatine Serum - Circa 2002 - made by MMUSA
The serum form of creatine monohydrate is supposed to work faster (within 15 minutes) and requires no “loading”. My personal experience was that it got me pretty amped pre-workout and during the workout allowed me to lift more reps. Unfortunately it also caused my friend’s skin to break-out. Personally I don’t think I saw any side-effects. I’ve purchased two bottles of this. My first bottle broke (plastic housing) and I’m still on my second bottle though it’s been years since I’ve taken it. I am contemplating finishing it though and might buy my third bottle since it’s probably past the 2 year shelf life.

NO2 - Circa 2004 - made by MRI
An invention of Ed Byrd, the man who who “discovered” creatine. NO2 is basically argenine alpha-ketoglutarate and supposed to have hemodilative/vasodilative effects. That is, it’s supposed to cause your blood vessels to swell thereby improving your body’s absorption of nutrients. The other side effect/benefit to NO2 is that you’re supposed to maintain a “perpetual pump”.

When I purchased NO2 from MRI, it came with a book that explained all about it and prescribed a workout that would maximize the results. I followed the prescription to the ‘t’ and I did see the “perpetual pump” though I did not notice an increase in strength. Mind you I was taking NO2 after a almost a year of lifting pretty hard where I was at my strongest ever. I took NO2 for about a month before I got tendinitis in my right elbow and stopped lifting. Not wanting to waste the NO2 while resting, I stopped taking it. To this day, I still wonder whether NO2 contributed to the swelling that was my tendinitis due to the “vasodilative effects”.

Mega Men - 2003-2008 - made by GNC
I really like these vitamins. I’ve tried their Sport version and their regular version and I like them both. They have a lot of amino acids that normal vitamins don’t have and that’s good for at least a placebo effect! They seem to give me a kick start in the morning but on the flip-side make it hard to fall asleep if I take one too close to bedtime. The only downside I notice is that they turn my pee bright yellow, but that’s a function of having B-complex. There isn’t really a noticeable benefit to the vitamin but ingredient-wise it’s the best vitamin for men.

Move Free - 2007 - made by Schiff
I started taking Move Free because of my triathlon training. Occassionally my joints would hurt and I figured that some combination of chondroitin (sulfate) and glucosamine would help. In retrospect I can not say that Move Free made my joints fee any better. Furthermore I don’t know if there are any side-effects of taking glucosamine supplements at my age. I’m considering taking these again because I still have remnants of knee pain from running the half Ironman.

Fish Oil - 2008 - made by GNC
There are numerous benefits to taking Omega-3 fatty acids and they are well documented so I won’t recount them here. I started taking these because I found a bottle of my brother’s leftovers lying around and I started taking them. After I read up on them (yes after I started taking them), I decided it was a good idea to buy my own. GNC had a small bottle on sale for $5 that don’t taste or smell like fish. Thus far I haven’t noticed a real difference but I’m sure it helps.

There Something in My ‘Juice’

I’ve been taking Muscletech’s Nitro-Tech (powdered protein supplement) off and on for about 5 years now. I think I’ve gone through maybe 3 of their 4 lbs. bottles. Recently however, I ran out and went to GNC to purchase a new bottle and discovered they’ve changed their formula.

When I first started taking Nitro-Tech, it was basically a protein supplement with a timed release system called RTS. RTS had some creatine in it but otherwise was a hodgepodge of amino acids. My last bottle of Nitro-Tech was produced in 2005 (these things never go bad).

Fast forward 3 years and Nitro-Tech has “changed”. Most of the change has to do with marketing itself to meet the demand for different supplements such as NO2. The new Nitro-Tech has new proprietary ingredients:

Each serving of Nitro-Tech Hardcore contains a Nitrogen Delivery System™. This exclusive system consists of three anabolically infused blends – each loaded with high-quality amino acids that have a proven track record for building muscle. The first is SynthePro^®, an exclusive, ultra-absorbing amino acid matrix designed to maximize muscle growth. The second is Insulogen^®, a complex of anabolic insulin drivers designed to support insulin secretion, maximize insulin sensitivity, and prime your muscles for nutrient supersaturation. Nitro-Tech Hardcore’s third proprietary blend is Nitroxen^®, an amplified nitric oxide accelerator formulated to turbocharge amino acid delivery to your expanding muscles for a surge of serious growth.

I know that most of this is marketing. Muscletech realizes that the market demands some sort of hemodilation effects from supplements, hence they’ve “created” Nitroxen. Funny thing is when I look at the ingredients, there’s evidence of argenine alpha-ketoglutarate which is what NO2 consists of. Matching the 2005 ingredient list to the 2008 ingredient list, I find that SynthePro, Insulogen, and Nitroxen are simply component breakdowns of the RTS that was in my 2005 Nitro-Tech. Hell one of the only real differences between Nitro-Tech 2005 and 2008 is that they added aspartame in my 2008 bottle!

That said, I had a bad-ass workout today. Might have been the fact that I was well rested, but taking Nitro-Tech before (and after) the workout definitely helped. It’s likely the creatine which in my experience does have a positive effect on lifting more reps.

Bottom line: I like my Nitro-Tech. I can live with the nasty-gas that I get from taking this stuff.

Wow. This article is so full of shit that I had to basically repost it from Larry’s blog and rant about it here.

Basically this article boils down to this: Each machine or exercise targeting a specific muscle group by restricting the aid from other muscle groups, is bad for you because it puts pressure on your joints and is unnatural in movement. Alternatively you should perform an exercise that is more natural in movement and allows other muscle groups to “help out”.

And that is exactly why this article is such bullshit.

That’s like saying, “You should never run because running puts extra pressure on your joints and is unnatural in movement when compared to walking. Instead, try walking.” The author misses the entire concept of muscle-specific exercise via dedicated machines or motions. The rationale for these machines/exercises (and their movements) is to improve the performance of that particular muscle group, whether it be strength, flexibility, speed etc. You simply can not achieve the same results when you allow other muscle groups to contribute to the motion. Taking unnecessary movement and “help” out of the equation forces that specific muscle group to work harder thus allowing for greater gains in performance.

Now if the author’s take was that muscle-specific exercises are inefficient per minute time exercised, then that would be a different story. Obviously combination movement exercises, like squats, pushups, and pullups target more muscle groups per repetition than leg press, chest press, and lat pulldown respectively.

I’m not denying these machines put a little more stress on your joints and/or are slightly unnatural, but so is typing or even reading. You think your eyes were made to focus at 1-3 feet constantly for hours at a time? Why don’t we instead just look at landscapes all day? Moron!

19 Days

19 days since my last day of rest. Finally a day of rest. While it is well deserved, it doesn’t quite feel like enough. That’s probably because I slept at 6am last night and just woke up at 1pm. I’m sore from pretty much head to toe from paintballing and I’m tired as hell.

Looking ahead there’s basketball tomorrow and I’m not sure I want to play. Basketball usually gives my back a pretty good workout. I think I might opt for a weight-lifting session instead.

Oops

Scratch that last post. I’m on my way over to Allen and Larry’s house right now and Larry just suggested that we run 3 miles. I guess that means no rest for me today.