The Smarter Sculpted Physique: Training | Nutrition | Muscle Gain | Fat Loss

Are there alternatives to traditional cardio for fat-burning and metabolic optimization? In this episode we discuss Scott’s use of metabolic circuits of various kinds: when, why, and how, plus the history of their development.

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♦ HOUSEKEEPING / NEW STUFF ♦

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Mike’s new book is out! The Journal Writing Superpower Secret is available at Amazon now. The book presents a variety of frameworks, structures, a ton of journaling prompts to help you set and achieve goals, stay focused, and deal with self-sabotage.

As well, you can pick up both Scott’s new Great Glutes “At Home” Metabolic Circuits (scottabelfitness.com/greatglutes), as well as Awesome Abs by Andy (absbyandy.com)

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♦ HABITS ♦

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Technically speaking, habits never go away. You can’t “unwrite” them.

In Mike’s words, you can add links to the chain, but you can’t get rid of that chain.

It’s also worth remembering that a lot of habits are tied to very specific triggers. You might not be able to remove the habit, but with a bit of strategy, you can remove the trigger (or remove yourself from the trigger).

This also means that automatic neural reflexes are just that: automatic. If you have a certain habitual pattern of thinking, it doesn’t make you a bad person. That’s not you. That’s just a habit. It’s fine. The trick is to go through it, and then not worry about it, or not entertain or believe those thoughts. Let them come up, then let them go away.

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♦ USING METABOLIC CIRCUITS FOR FAT LOSS ♦

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One of the most common questions we get has to do with cardio and fat loss, since Scott is very wary of cardio, but he does assign it. One way to partially address this is to discuss the metabolic circuit protocols he often adds “on top” of an existing program, almost just like cardio, but with bodypart-specific emphasis: abs in the case of Awesome Abs, and glutes in the case of Great Glutes.

Scott says he was influenced by changes in the industry from about 10-15 years ago, especially those brough about by JC Santana’s work on functional training. This influenced Scott’s 5-Day MET, Whole Body Hypertrophy, and the Ultimate Figure Program.

Mike pointed out that (good) programs have a kind of underlying internal logic to them. Once you understand the logic, you immediately get heuristics that you can use: would this exercise work here? Yes, it fits the logic, or, No, it doesn’t fit the logic. (Example: the second exercise of this a biplex calls for some kind of pushing movement in such-and-such plane of motion, but this exercise is pulling. Or, it is a pushing motion, but it is a big compound movement with too many work capacity demands, and the bi-plexes towards the end of the workout on this program should always be mostly isolation movements.)

When Scott first started getting feedback on his more metabolic programs, he found that the circuits and such were hard to do at big-chain, busy gyms. There are always grey areas here where the trainee has some responsibility to try to make things work, but at the same time, “I can’t do these circuits” can be totally legitimate feedback.

Although a complete train-at-home program is harder, it’s much easier to make this sort of thing work in a short metabolic circuit that’s just done one to three times per week in addition to the rest of that person’s training (which can be more traditional).

This kind of issue is becoming more of an issue, with traffic and increasing work hours, etc.

The idea for the currently released programs is to get a little something extra,

Many new fat loss coaching clients that Scott tend to make the same sorts of mistakes when it comes to staying consistent. These are the thoughts and thinking patterns that hold you back, and what to do instead!

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♦ MISTAKE 1. ♦

» Focusing too much on what you’re trying to get rid of instead of focusing on what you DO want.

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What you focus on expands: focus on small wins, and make ’em expand!

Don’t use thoughts that emphasize weaknesses. If you focus on what you can do about ____, if your brain needs to address weaknesses, it will.

Scott likes the Einstein quote about problems never being solved at the level of thinking that created them. Focusing on the problem is staying at the same level of thinking that created the problem, instead of rising above it.

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♦ MISTAKE 2. ♦

» Catastrophizing, monkey mind, and scattered thinking

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Scott likes that old Henry Ford quote: Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right! A problem, though, is people “think they can” but their focus is totally scattered.

Catastrophizing is thinking a small slip up is the end of the world. “Oh, I missed a meal” is not the same as “I blew my diet! It’s all over!”

Mike notes that our brains tend to catastrophize. You’re not abnormal because you think that way. It’s totally normal. The trick is to overcome it as a challenge.

Mike likes working with your beliefs. You can’t lie to yourself. If you have a limiting belief you can’t just replace it with the opposite belief – your brain will say, “Uh… no? I don’t believe you.” But what you can do is work with those beliefs by using words like “but” or “however,” where what follows the “but” gets you moving forward. (E.g., “I might have bad genetics, but I have truly given it an honest shot of seeing what my genetic potential really is.”)

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♦ MISTAKE 3. ♦

» Exposing yourself to things that disempower you, like social media, instead of exposing yourself to things you like and relate to more.

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A trick here is being honest. Social media doesn’t seem seem like it’s disempowering to you, and figuring out whether it is, or how, or when and why — all of this requires being honest.

Mike likes “pre-frames” for this. So if you need to dig in and do an honest self-check in some kind of journaling exercise, do a “pre” exercise that digs into how honest you are, or asks you to think about how good at self-checks you are, or anything that will put you into the right state of mind to do that self check.

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♦ MISTAKE 4. ♦

» Not using thought boundaries and/or challenging your own thinking (constructive vs. positive)

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Scott emphasizes that “positive thinking by itself won’t necessarily help. You need to be constructive in your thinking.

Mike emphasized that “challenging” your own thinking always requires a bit of discomfort and getting outside your comfort zone. This is true by definition!

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♦ MISTAKE 5. ♦

» Not letting go of specific outcomes.

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Specific outcomes include things like a number on the scale, or a deadline, or things like that.

These are tempting because they can make abstract goals feel concrete, as well as create bright lines in your own head (Which, yes, can be useful, but there is a huge danger if you’re feeling awful because you’re not losing “weight” and now you’re going to blow your diet… even though you’ve been doing awesome and lots of good things are happening if you’d just let those processes keep going.

You have a big, long-term goal that will take time. You can’t do it all at once. You can only do what you can do right now. So, how do you do that? Since Mike recently finished a long process of completing his PhD, we figured we’d talk about deferred gratification and task-oriented thinking in the face of those long-term goals that can seem overwhelming if you try to think about the whole thing.

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♦ Task-Oriented Thinking ♦

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“Ready, Fire, Aim!” - There’s a degree to which not knowing exactly what will be involved is a good thing, because if you could/can really imagine what it will take, you’d feel overwhelmed. But hey, once you’re 40% in, might as well dig your heels in and keep going!

There’s a lot of ebb and flow to your energy levels on an absolute level, but this is ALSO true to the various domains in your life. Brain is fried from X? You may not need to take an absolute break because you might be able to work on something else that uses your brain or body in a totally different way (physical vs. mental, logical vs. creative, etc.)

There’s a danger in fitness because they’ll lie to you. If you want to do a PhD and you walk in and say “I want to do it in two years!” you’ll just be told to get lost. Do that in fitness? Even if it is something that will take multiple years, there will be plenty of snake oil salesmen promising you, yeah, sure, you wanna do it in two months? No problemo!

Deferred Gratification: “The ability to resist the temptation for an immediate reward in order to wait for a later reward. Generally, delayed gratification is associated with resisting a smaller more immediate reward in order to receive a larger or more enduring reward later.”

The Stanford Marshmellow Stud(ies) (LINK – it has its own wikipedia page!). These were done by professor Walter Mischel on children who had to resist instant gratification to get a higher-value reward. The wiki page has a lot of links to the actual studies, as well as to some of the follow-up studies years later.

A good complement to a wikipedia page on them is Roy Baumeister and John Tierney’s Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength

Scott told a story of just being overwhelmed in his first year at university. The idea of doing all these things: worrying about this year, next year, the eventual thesis he’s supposed to do, etc.. Finally, a prof took him out for lunch and explained what boils down task-oriented thinking.

At the same time, of course, you still should see the forest for the trees: if you don’t look ahead at all you’ll end up on a path to nowhere.

Mike like’s Stephen Covey’s habit “begin with the end in mind,” (from his 7 Habits book) where you literally think about your funeral, which almost instantly answers: are you doing things right now that will lead to that?

Both Scott and Mike mentioned instances of profs or figures they respected giving them some kind of challenge or reinforcement at pivotal times. But what about if you haven’t had that yet? What do you do? It can seem hard if you don’t know if/when such help will enter your life. For Scott, the answer is the application of task-oriented and useful thinking to the PAST. See small wins AS wins. When you overcome an obstacle, even if it’s small, acknowledge it, and BUILD on it.

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♦ Links & Resources ♦

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• The Stanford Marshmellow Studies

• Scott’s free book, The Mindset of Achievement

Scott reminisces about some lessons learns from his time at Muscle Camp in 1989.

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♦ LESSONS ♦

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One of the first lessons is that if you have a goal, sometimes the path won't be what you expect. For example, Scott wanted to "make it" to the mecca of bodybuilding, but in the end, it wasn't his physique that got him there, but rather his academic background, which he never would have expected.

One of the big things Scott notice was how big an impact environment makes. Being surrounded by thought leaders allowed him to see past some of the "small thinking" he felt he'd been surrounded by back home, where guys were focused only on the next show, or getting caught in the same small dreams, again and again.

Put yourself out there. Scott constantly put himself out there by talking to people, meeting new people, etc. Even something as simple as being on CBC at a hockey game was enough to get him half a dozen clients the very next day.

Real knowledge comes from experience. There were a lot of eggheads at the camp, but they weren't accomplishing much. The guys who were in the trenches did. A good balance of the two sides was Fred Hatfield.

Lee Haney's training was a huge revelation for Scott in terms of what training should be. It was hard, absolutely, but it was also like a dance, almost.

Guys like Lee Haney also handled themselves differently than everyone else. As in, their success in one domain was clearly indicative of how they handled themselves in everything they did.

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♦ LINKS & RESOURCES ♦

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• http://thecycle.diet/

• The Innervation primer

• The Hardgainer Solution

This episode touched on a number of topics, beginning with a question about loose skin, and from there delving into the power of better sleep, solid routines, and using journaling to help with these things.

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The episode began on a somber note, with remembering the passing of the great Fred Hatfield. Dr. Hatfield, or "Dr. Squat," was a giant, and one of the few people who could understand the science, explain that science simply, and then apply it really, really effectively.

***

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♦ LOOSE SKIN ♦

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If you've lost a lot of weight, there's a good chance the "last 10 lbs." are at least partly loose skin. This depends on age, genetics, and other things like how long you were overweight for, how overweight you were, and so on. If it's true loose skin, the only thing you can do is get it removed surgically, BUT....

...Mike pointed out that for many people, no one but you will notice. He's in this position, with some loose skin on his lower belly. No one cares.

...Also, you can still "push" things a bit, as long as you coax the body, and don't force it. You don't know until you try, really, and if you do it safely, you'll almost certainly end up with a physique to be darn proud of, regardless of genetics.

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♦ SLEEP ♦

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One of the BEST things you can do for weight loss is improve your sleep. The only way to do it is to make it a priority. A vitamin D pill in the morning, a melatonin pill in the evening (or whatever) won't replace that.

There are many, many good reasons people have for losing sleep (kids, job, etc.). But you should be very, VERY careful in accepting that you "can't" do anything. It should be the very very last resort, and you have to be brutally honest with yourself to make sure whether or not there REALLY isn't anything you can do.

For Scott, sleep is one of the unsung heroes of weight loss.

Recommendations for better sleep: make it a routine and *stick* to it (!), stay away from electronic devices for a little while before bed, keep the lights as dark as you can, do things that ease your mind. It doesn't need to be complicated!

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♦ JOURNALING ♦

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Both Scott and Mike really like journaling, for a variety of reasons, especially gratitude journals.

Mike likes the 5-minute journal, as well as a few others.

Mike also likes using a journal to help control your focus. It doesn't *just* have to be a tool for self-discovery, but can also be a tool to control what you're thinking about throughout the day, and *HOW* you're thinking about those things. It can keep you focused on being proactive, keeping positive thought patterns, and that sort of thing.

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♦ LINKS & RESOURCES ♦

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• The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

• The 5-Minute Journal

We talk to fitness cover model Andy Sinclair about the real work behind his insane metabolism and ability to stay lean year-round.We talk to fitness cover model Andy Sinclair about the real work behind his insane metabolism and ability to stay lean year-round.

ALSO: Awesome Abs at absbyandy.com is now available! (Check it out, folks.)

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♦ THE BULK ♦

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Andy's bulk took about 6-8 months, and from there he stayed at that weight (~300 lbs.) for basically a year, to get his body used to that weight.

Keep in mind, though, that he was coaxed to that weight. EVEN at his highest, his hunger was still up there. He was NOT force-feeding himself.

Andy was young, with long limbs. Scott advised him NOT to compete, because it would ruin his physique. Part of Andy's success stems from his willingness to work *with* his physique, instead of myopically trying to just accomplish one single thing that wouldn't serve him all that well in the longterm (i.e. competing).

Interestingly, Andy's diet was basically a normal diet, with one cheat meal a day to get in lots and lots of calories. Small, frequent feedings throughout the day.

Even in a bulk up, you don't want to create a sluggish metabolism.

Mike pointed out that you look at a lot of "before and after" pictures, but you don't see the work that actually went into the before pic. That is, if you look at Andy's before pics, you don't see the fact that he's not just 300 lbs., he's 300 lbs. with a coaxed metabolism. That "before" pic is really an "in-progress" pic.

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♦ DIETING DOWN ♦

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Andy lost probably about 85 lbs., and maintains about 215 lbs year round.

Because of the work Andy's done for the past decade and a bit, there are photoshoots where he won't even cut out a cheat day.

Andy's meals are simple, but he enjoys experimenting with recipes, different ways of cooking, different condiments, etc. He doesn't count calories for this at all.

As a side note, when Mike asked for what would be "pushing it" in terms of condiments or add ons, the big thing Scott mentioned were lots and lots of fake sweeteners -- sugar alcohol-based "foods" that aren't really foods. Scott recommends being very very careful with stuff like Walden Farms. (Side note: Splenda's fine.)

Andy eats six meals a day, with a protein and a protein-sparing nutrient (carb or fat) at each meal. He eats healthy whole foods. There is no magic to it, but there is consistency over time. It was there for the bulk. It was there when he dieted down. It's been there for eleven years of Cycle Dieting.

Andy's diet is what you'd expect: egg whites and oatmeal, tuna or fish and crispy minis, chickpeas or some other legumes or beans, chicken or turkey and potatoes and veggies, a meal he refers to as "the Big Salad," and then fruit and nut butters before bed.

"Consistency" is one of the best ways to keep a robust an optimized metabolism. Want to screw up a metabolism? Jump from diet to diet, one weird trick to one weird trick.

Mike pointed out that, when push comes to shove, a lot of people will understand this, but it's also really hard to do it right. But you have to focus on it. *That's* where it matters. The grass isn't greener on the other side.

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♦ LINKS & RESOURCES ♦

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• Andy's Website: http://realandysinclairfitness.com/

• Andy's Instagram: https://instagram.com/realandysinclair/

• Awesome Abs: http://absbyandy.com/

• The Cycle Diet: http://thecycle.diet/

Today our topic is the best diet and fat loss strategies or habits for when you want to lose a LOT of weight, like 40 lbs., 50 lbs., or more. You’re starting at square one, it can feel a bit daunting. Experts might say stuff like “start small, focus on the longterm,” but even though that’s good advice, it’s hard to follow. If you want to lose the weight you want it gone–yesterday. but rushing things just leads to unhealthy behaviors.

ALSO: Awesome Abs at absbyandy.com is now available! (Check it out, folks.)

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♦ QUESTION ONE ♦

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I have a few questions. 1) How do you approach substantial weight loss (50 lbs or more). 2) When approaching substantial weight loss, what are some common mistakes? 3) Are multivitamins useful? 4) is fish oil useful? 5) is Splenda okay and or is stevia better?

The big thing is getting away from a focus on numbers. Scott especially doesn’t like group weigh-ins. Re-frame things as a challenge. Lifestyle isn’t a goal, it’s a forever thing.

Mike recommends focusing on one key big win — for him, that’d be a meal plan with healthy whole foods that puts you in a slight relative caloric deficit.

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For Mike, common mistakes include trying to do way too much, way too quick. Focus on the one big win (e.g. a meal plan) and get that right. Many people try to do it all, and crash and burn, either because they quit after trying to create a total lifestyle change in a day, or because they actually do manage to do a million things all at once, but then when they run out of energy and they’re sick and tired… there’s no where for them to go. They want to know what to do to get past the plateau, but at this point there’s not much any coach can recommend except focusing on metabolism.

The one key that we kept coming back to was focusing on staying in a state of good energy, and tolerable hunger, and then accepting that there is an ebb and flow to energy and weight loss. This means you need time off, and you need to not see that as “one step back to take two steps forward” (because then your mind will play tricks on you and focus way, way too much on that one step back) but rather as a step forward in itself. This only happens when you reframe things, and stop seeing the goal as the weight loss per se, and seeing the goal as vigilantly coaxing your body to get leaner. Be vigilant about staying in the sweet spot of hunger, not about losing weight ASAP.

Don’t panic about a plateau. Stuff is happening under the surface. We repeat: stuff is happening under the surface. Don’t cut calories and up the cardio. You’ll drive yourself into the ground, and that is NOT sustainable.

Speaking of lifestyle, what seems like “subtle” differences actually add up, BIG TIME. So for example, Scott goes to Aruba and walks on the beach because… he’s on vacation, at the beach. But this is far different than someone feeling deprived, and in the AC on the elliptical. Scott’s getting sun, he’s in the heat, etc., and this has positive effects on metabolism. It will also help him sleep better at night, which will give him more energy for exercise and such tomorrow. And since he’s not feeling deprived, he’ll feel better tomorrow too, which will also lend itself to more positive metabolic effects tomorrow. Over time, this is a huge difference. Now — how can you apply it to your life, and your habits? What positive feedback loops can YOU find?

Quick’n Dirty Answers to the Final Questions: Multivitamins? Meh. Fish oil? Meh. Splenda or Stevia? Splenda!

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♦ QUESTION TWO ♦

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For a client that has a lot of body fat to lose (40 or 50+ pounds), in which they are placed on a training and eating regimen by Scott, and for which losing said amount of fat may take a year o...

This episode began with a real and raw letter from a potential client who suffers from binge eating, but who agreed to let us share her letter on the show. For those dealing with these issues right now, please do visit: scottabelfitness.com/foodissues to get a few specific, helpful exercises sent to you (journaling prompts, self-investigation questionnaires, etc.).

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♦ IMPORTANT POINTS FOR HEALING ♦

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Release valves: what’s a good release valve? The answer is anything that is not a self-sabotaging behavior. Scott likes adult colouring books, which are becoming more and more popular as a relaxation exercise and self-connecting activity. Anything you can immerse yourself in is a good thing (flow state). Another option is, yes, television.

Another important point is to get away from the number crunching, which encourages black and white thinking, and is often the cause of the build up of pressure in the first place.

Scott mentioned the transformation of Alba and her husband. Find those here.

The writer of the letter mentioned that she has worked in a supplement shop. One of the keys with this is to be aware of environments that actually make things worse. A supplement shop can be an environment full of triggers, since it is so body-image oriented (the writer mentioned that the shop is “full of sweets,” ironically).

Mike: You have to be careful with “knowing thyself” and creating self-fulfilling prophecies: “Oh, these are my triggers, I’m destined to binge when I encounter them….” (Also, note that it won’t come in this form. No one says stuff like this. It’ll be a vague, much less articulated fear of “giving in.” But it’s just as damaging, and it’s still a self-fulfilling prophecy.)

You also have to avoid becoming “comfortable” in trying another diet, and another diet, and another diet. You’re not actually digging your way out. It’s a way to pretend. (We all do this.)

Be careful about associating “health” with “leanness.” Yes, these things are associated, but be careful: are you truly dieting for “health” reasons?

Scott often refers to the triangle of awareness: mental, emotional, physical/behavioral. One problem many people have is focusing too much on the behavioral, and putting all their efforts there, when they have to dig deep into the emotional realm first.

Avoid the compare, contrast, compete mindset. You can’t win with that one.

A good followup exercise for almost any journal exercise is “and then what?” and do that five times (or, in other words, five layers deeper): “I want to lose 5 lbs. by next weekend. Okay, and then what? [blah blah blah] –> Okay, and then what? [blah blah blah] –> etc.”

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♦ LINKS & RESOURCES ♦

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• For the exercises: scottabelfitness.com/foodissues

• Some extra ones at the full shownotes: smartersculptedphysique.com/055

One of the most requested topics is more info on biofeedback for things like tolerable hunger and supercompensation mode. Understandably, people want to know when they are or are not ready for a cheat day or refeed. You can find out more about the Cycle Diet at thecycle.diet.

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♦ CYCLE DIET BASICS ♦

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The Cycle Diet is a form of dieting in which you diet to get into “supercompensation” mode.

Once you’re there, in begin implementing cheat meals, half-day cheat days, or full cheat days. People who have metabolisms that are really “revving” can have up to a day and a half of a refeed: a full day cheat day plus a mid-week spike meal.

The Cycle Diet is relatively unique relative to other popular cheat” diets or refeed systems, because you don’t apply a set of external things to get your body to need a refeed; instead, you work from the inside out, and diet in a relative deficit and let your body tell you when it needs a refeed.

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♦ BIOFEEDBACK FOR SUPERCOMPENSATION ♦

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Hunger, hunger hunger. A slide from “tolerable” hunger to “always thinking about food” hunger. (Hunger, not just cravings for delicious things.)

Being relatively lean. The leaner you are relative to your metabolic setpoint, the more likely you are to be in supercompensation mode.

Concentration levels (partly just a bit of diet-induced attention deficit, and partly just always thinking about food)

A feeling a being “flat” or “empty” in the gym, as well as less energy all throughout the day.

Hunger is keeping you up at night.

One of the things you need to take into account is the diet history and the mental history: if you have emotional eating issues, or a past history of yoyo dieting, you might be hyper-focused on hunger without it being physiological. A history of yoyo dieting can hyper-sensitive you to hunger or craving cues.

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♦ TRYING A CHEAT DAY ♦

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You don’t have to be 100% sure absolutely absolutely whether or not you’re in supercompensation mode. You can try a cheat meal, cheat day, or whatever, and then assess how it went.

Be willing to make a small mistake here and there. The key is not to play mind games, but it can be done.

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♦ SCOTT'S TIPS FOR GETTING IN TOUCH WITH BIOFEEDBACK ♦

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Start with frequent small meals, use the 1/3 plate rule: protein, carbs, fat, each 1/3 of the plate.

If you're thinking of cheat days, use the above indicators, but start with 4-6 weeks *at minimum*

If you're ready, try a cheat MEAL, then ASSESS. What's the weight scale say, what's the mirror say? Did you lose the water weight quick? See what happens.

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♦ LINKS & RESOURCES ♦

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• Learn more about the Cycle Diet at thecycle.diet

Alwyn Cosgrove came on to discuss training strategy and program design, and especially some of the most absurd trends in the industry. Key themes were about delivering real results, relentlessly cutting chaff and extraneous fat, getting to the real core actions that will deliver results, and doing those things incredible well.

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♦FITNESS TRAINER CONSULTING ♦

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A lot of what Alwyn does with business consulting has to do with lifestyle design — that is, thinking about why you’re running a business, and how you’re going to structure that business to accomplish those goals. You don’t want to work for the sake of work, and if you’re not pro-active, that’s where you’ll happen.

There was also a discussion about the benefit of the benefit. It’s not about losing a number on the scale; it’s about the benefit of that, or the “and then what?” or “why?” Keep digging. Why? And then what? Oh, why is that? That’s how you get to the real deep-seeded beliefs. This is good for marketing… and for coaching!

The “and then what?” and lifestyle design equation come together when you think about why are you training. If you feel exhausted and terrible all the time, you’ve probably gotten lost somewhere. Go back to the why.

In terms of marketing, and dealing with the people out there offering absurd promises, Alwyn says there are only two defensible positions in terms of marketing: “You were the first, or you were the only.” That is, Alwyn positions himself in a category of one. His clients won’t find someone else with the same background, expertise, and proof as him. They just won’t.

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♦ SIMPLE, EXCELLENT EXECUTION ♦

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Both Scott and Alwyn agreed that expertise is about simplicity is key. Expertise is often about getting rid of the extraneous stuff, not about adding complexity.

This is true of coaching, and marketing: do amazing stuff, and do it well. Execution is key, not bells and whistles. Do simple things, and execute.

A problem is information overload. If your coach gives you an opinion, guaranteed within five minutes you can find an article or something that can seem fairly legitimate that says the exact opposite. Always. For both sides. Alwyn sometimes uses a rule with clients: you’re allowed to question anything I say, but you’re not allowed to go out and just Google it and question.

It used to be hard to get information. When Alwyn was writing about creatine way back when, he had to write a letter to the actual researchers. Now you Google it and have to sift through endless piles of crap. Sure, there’s more good stuff, but there’s exponentially more chaff.

Another problem is the outright lies and supposedly legitimate research taken out of context. E.g., a supplement company pays for 10 studies. Nine of them show nothing. One of them shows maybe… sorta… something. Well, they don’t talk about the studies that didn’t show anything; the just build up and build up the study that was vaguely a little better than inconclusive.

A similar problem, beyond supplement companies, is that journals don’t like publishing research that shows a negative result: “We were trying to show this, we didn’t.” The study design is valid, and it’s good for us to know such-and-such doesn’t have a positive effect. But it’s hard to get funding or published for producing that kind of result.

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♦ LINKS AND RESOURCES ♦

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• Alwyn’s Private Facebook Group

• ResultsFitnessUniversity.com

• AlwynCosgrove.com

• Alwyn’s Cosgrove on T-Nation

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