Ask an Exercise Science major anything

[y0lked]

Thought on decline bench press. Is it worth rotating in from time to time?

seems like once or twice a year i think about it but never add it in to my training.

link to past decline post http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hlight=decline

Sure I like decline for chest development, but if i had to choose between flat and decline to overload the anterior pressing muscles of the body, id go flat.

[y0lked]

Bump, has anyone ever had their VO2 max tested?

[heshanp]

Tricep pulldown form:
How should I keep my back, is it supposed to go stay straight up or have a bend forward(significant bend, not a slight lean). I feel bending forward uses my bodyweight to cheat the workout instead of using just the triceps. However, I see videos(Scott Herman on Youtube) where they bend forward. Idk what to do.

[y0lked]

Tricep pulldown form:
How should I keep my back, is it supposed to go stay straight up or have a bend forward(significant bend, not a slight lean). I feel bending forward uses my bodyweight to cheat the workout instead of using just the triceps. However, I see videos(Scott Herman on Youtube) where they bend forward. Idk what to do.

bending over = more lat involvement and easier leverage for the triceps. Stay vertical and just bend at the elbows. Its an isolation exercise so should be easy to feel it in your tris, i would be more concerned with say incline skull crusher form for tricep growth.

[RileyDixon]

My friend is:

6ft 2in
168 pds
23 years old

We have been lifting for 6 months and there has been no progress toward his goals. He is a welder working in hot and physical conditions. he drinks plenty of water and consumes on average 3,800 calories. He has performed Arnold's Blueprint and Jim's Shortcut to Size. He started with creatine and mass gainers and then transitioned to clear muscle from muscle tech. He is now taking test boosters. Nothing seems to be working and he starting to loss motivation and on a path to giving up. I need help!

Here are his measurements.

Starting: April Ending: Oct. 30

Weight: 164.7 pds 168 pds

Biceps: 12.75 in 13.25 in

Chest: 39 in 39.75 in

Waist: 30.75 in 31.50 in

Hip: 30.75 in 31.25 in

Neck: 15 in 15.50 in

Thigh: 18 in 19.25 in

Calf: 13.5 in 13.5 in

[y0lked]

RileyDixon your buddy has made some gains but what concerns me is the waist increase. That would point to a high fat diet so lets start there. You just posted his calories so im just assuming he doesnt count macros. Lets start with setting some baseline macros for him to follow and see how he feels about the eating habits he must employ.

Calories: 3500
Fat 20% = 78g fat
Protein = 1.2 g per lb = 204g protein
the rest should come from carbs: 495g carbs

If he says to you that theres no way he can eat that many carbs then he either hasnt been eating the diet, or has been eating high fat foods to reach caloric goals. Muscle hypertrophy takes a ton of energy and we also need to increase his glycogen stores in the muscle in order to preform in the gym. Carbs and water will also help him retain the water he might sweat out assuming he is drinking enough.

Now on to training. He might not be making gains because hes training to failure or not training hard enough. He doesnt need to demolish his body to make gains, he just needs to add reps or weight every time he goes into the gym. Lets try doing an upper/lower split with him with that concept and while also not going to failure.

Monday:
Bench press (week 1: 5 sets 9 reps, week 2: 5 sets 5 reps, week 3: 7 sets of 3 reps, week 4 deload)
Weighted pull-ups/ assisted pullups 3 sets of 8-12 reps
DB Shoulder Press 3 sets of 8-12 reps
DB Curls 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Rope tricep extensions 3 sets of 12-15 reps

Tuesday:
Squat or trap bar deadlift (week 1: 5 sets 9 reps, week 2: 5 sets 5 reps, week 3: 7 sets of 3 reps, week 4 deload)
SLDL 3x8-12
Leg Extensions 3x12-15
Leg Curls 3x12-15
Seated Calf Raises 3x12-15

Wed: off ab workout if desired

Thursday:
Barbell Row 5 sets of 8 reps
BB/DB Incline 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Lat Pulldown 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Preacher Curls 3 sets of 12-15 reps
Incline Skull Crushers 3 sets of 8-12 reps

Friday:
Deadlift (week 1: 3 sets 9 reps, week 2: 3 sets 5 reps, week 3: 4 sets of 3 reps, week 4 deload)
Leg Press 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Bulgarian Split Squats 3 sets of 8-12 reps
Standing Calf Raises 3 sets of 12-15 reps

Tell him we want to go hard (but not to failure) for 3 weeks and then deload for 1 week. Deload means only use about 80% of the weight for 2-3 sets of an easy 10 reps. (ie: i did 5 sets of 9 reps in week 1 with 225 lbs so my deload is 2 sets of 10 with 180) Workout should be easy and about 45 minutes. Diet is the same on deload as on regular weeks. Progressing from 8 to 12 reps means he picks a weight he can do for 8 and doesnt change the weight till he can do 12 reps.

Make sure hes sleeping 8 hours a night and isnt going crazy with the pre-workout or energy drinks or coffee etc. throughout the day

[MikeWines]

He started with creatine and mass gainers and then transitioned to clear muscle from muscle tech. He is now taking test boosters.

Tell him to stop wasting his money and start drinking calories if he can't get in enough food given his lifestyle and daily caloric needs.

[y0lked]

Tell him to stop wasting his money and start drinking calories if he can't get in enough food given his lifestyle and daily caloric needs.

Yup. Supplements are almost never the answer.

[felix800]

hi yolked, I am looking for some guidance. I had a compression fracture in my lower back 3 years ago and i've always struggled with squatting. in particular I don't seem to be able to go very deep without either leaning forward or by lifting my heels of the floor. Do you have any suggestions for improving performance? I had thought it may be due to being desk bound all day at work and thus hamstrings etc tightening or is it due to a lack of flexibility in my lower back and possibly hip flexors? any help would be appreciated. thanks

[MikeWines]

Since we got into a lively IF discussion ITT a few pages back, here's some additional thoughts on another recently released study:

Effects of Eight Weeks of Time-Restricted Feeding (16/8) on Basal Metabolism, Maximal Strength, Body Composition, Inflammation, and Cardiovascular Risk Factors in Resistance-Trained Males

Our results suggest that the modified IF employed in this study: TRF with 16 h of fasting and 8 h of feeding, could be beneficial in resistance trained individuals to improve health-related biomarkers, decrease fat mass, and at least maintain muscle mass. This kind of regimen could be adopted by athletes during maintenance phases of training in which the goal is to maintain muscle mass while reducing fat mass. Additional studies are needed to confirm our results.

However, what they fail to point out is testosterone went down from 613 ng/dL to 486 ng/dl. This is a 20% reduction in just 8 weeks and it would be interesting to see what happened for longer periods of time. Also IGF-1 went down by about 13% (they did not assess sleep and this could be a positive if you are after an anti-cancer effect not growth) and Total T3 decreased by 10%. All of these hormonal changes are not conducive to long-term results in the weight room.

IF for cutting or maintenance? Perhaps although there is a risk for disordered eating patterns. IF for adding mass? Yeah, you're going to have a tough time getting huge with decreasing levels of test, IGF-1, and T3...

hi yolked, I am looking for some guidance. I had a compression fracture in my lower back 3 years ago and i've always struggled with squatting. in particular I don't seem to be able to go very deep without either leaning forward or by lifting my heels of the floor. Do you have any suggestions for improving performance? I had thought it may be due to being desk bound all day at work and thus hamstrings etc tightening or is it due to a lack of flexibility in my lower back and possibly hip flexors? any help would be appreciated. thanks

Put up a video. Sounds like a lack of dorsiflexion or perhaps a subtle but chronic anterior weight shift creating excessive tension throughout the posterior chain (think dress shoes).

[Bonnappe]

IF for adding mass? Yeah, you're going to have a tough time getting huge with decreasing levels of test, IGF-1, and T3...

While I do agree, fasting may not be ideal for the most optimal mass gains, do you have any evidence how much worse is it to consume 4000 kcals 200 grams of protein in one sitting vs. 4 evenly spaced 1000 kcal 50 gram protein meals in terms of muscle gains?

I've been doing the 1 meal a day thing for a while and I really feel like it helps your body stay lean whilst adding slowly weight to it. (my own broscience haha, no scientific evidence to back it up just personal experience )

[felix800]

I will try and get a video tonight as I will be doing barbell squats at the gym. thanks

[skinnydudex]

Help needed - exercise intolerance???

This is not a question about particular exercise or nutrition plan. I never found "exercise intolerance" (is it even a real thing?) discussed in this forum, so I figured I will ask and maybe get some answers...

... my problem is that I seem to suffer severe post-exercise symptoms, to the point that I stopped working out altogether. Now I don't mean sore muscles - I know what that is and I used to enjoy that feeling. I used to work out a lot, and also do a bunch of other activities (cycling, hiking, soccer...). I loved working out and even when I had bad days, workouts would mostly leave me refreshed and energized.

That was like 7 years ago. Now Im 35 and any moderate activity will leave me feeling like crap for a few days to a few weeks. Im a small and skinny guy, weighing some 66 kg and 174 cm high (Been like this all my life - no gaining / loosing mass periods, most that I ever managed to put on was some 2 kg... I quickly lost it, though).

If I try to do even the lightest workout (like doing just 3 sets of 20 pushups), I will feel tired and worn out, with aching muscles - or aching joints and ligaments, rather than muscles themselves. What's worse, over 2 - 3 following days I feel extremely tired and have poor sleep, headaches, indigestion, flatulence and nausea, sometimes to the point of vomiting. Very little appetite, I have to mostly force myself to eat something. After a few days of this I literally feel my immune system weakened, and I usually end up with a cold or some kind of throat/ear infection.

This has been progressively getting worse for some 5 years (meaning less and less exertion needed to start the symptoms - when I found an article about overtraining, I tried to reduce my workouts as I feared I might be pushing myself too hard, but it didn't get better even at ridiculously low exertion levels), and made me gradually withdraw exercising, which I miss soooooooooo much. Funny thing is, that despide no training, I mostly can keep up with my friends who are regular cyclists or soccer players when we ride/play together. But after such sessions I am knocked out for a week, or more.

I have had various blood tests done like a dozen times at least. Doc said everything looked ok each time, and ruled out anemia or thyroid issues. Vitamin and mineral levels in blood were in norm (although blood tests are not very good at determining vitamin / mineral deficiencies). I have no food allergies that I know of, and I was tested for like 40 foods that tend to trigger problems in people. Been also to gastroscopy to examine my stomach and digestion, only to be declared healthy. Cardiologist says that heart is fine. In short, doctors have no clue.

I am not a vegetarian/vegan, I eat pretty much everything. I think I eat a pretty healthy and balanced diet (who does not, though...).

Over the years I have been trying to help myself with all vitamin / mineral supplements I could think of - B complex, C vitamin, Mg, Ca, Potassium, Zinc and so on. I can't say I had much system in it, I was just trying them in a haphazard way. Sometimes I felt better, but the improvement never lasted long and after a few workouts I was as fatigued and aching as before.

So... this is my story. Been a rather long reading, but if you got this far... have you ever seen / heard of something like this? Any help / suggestion would be appreciated.

[y0lked]

Help needed - exercise intolerance???

This is not a question about particular exercise or nutrition plan. I never found "exercise intolerance" (is it even a real thing?) discussed in this forum, so I figured I will ask and maybe get some answers...

... my problem is that I seem to suffer severe post-exercise symptoms, to the point that I stopped working out altogether. Now I don't mean sore muscles - I know what that is and I used to enjoy that feeling. I used to work out a lot, and also do a bunch of other activities (cycling, hiking, soccer...). I loved working out and even when I had bad days, workouts would mostly leave me refreshed and energized.

That was like 7 years ago. Now Im 35 and any moderate activity will leave me feeling like crap for a few days to a few weeks. Im a small and skinny guy, weighing some 66 kg and 174 cm high (Been like this all my life - no gaining / loosing mass periods, most that I ever managed to put on was some 2 kg... I quickly lost it, though).

If I try to do even the lightest workout (like doing just 3 sets of 20 pushups), I will feel tired and worn out, with aching muscles - or aching joints and ligaments, rather than muscles themselves. What's worse, over 2 - 3 following days I feel extremely tired and have poor sleep, headaches, indigestion, flatulence and nausea, sometimes to the point of vomiting. Very little appetite, I have to mostly force myself to eat something. After a few days of this I literally feel my immune system weakened, and I usually end up with a cold or some kind of throat/ear infection.

This has been progressively getting worse for some 5 years (meaning less and less exertion needed to start the symptoms - when I found an article about overtraining, I tried to reduce my workouts as I feared I might be pushing myself too hard, but it didn't get better even at ridiculously low exertion levels), and made me gradually withdraw exercising, which I miss soooooooooo much. Funny thing is, that despide no training, I mostly can keep up with my friends who are regular cyclists or soccer players when we ride/play together. But after such sessions I am knocked out for a week, or more.

I have had various blood tests done like a dozen times at least. Doc said everything looked ok each time, and ruled out anemia or thyroid issues. Vitamin and mineral levels in blood were in norm (although blood tests are not very good at determining vitamin / mineral deficiencies). I have no food allergies that I know of, and I was tested for like 40 foods that tend to trigger problems in people. Been also to gastroscopy to examine my stomach and digestion, only to be declared healthy. Cardiologist says that heart is fine. In short, doctors have no clue.

I am not a vegetarian/vegan, I eat pretty much everything. I think I eat a pretty healthy and balanced diet (who does not, though...).

Over the years I have been trying to help myself with all vitamin / mineral supplements I could think of - B complex, C vitamin, Mg, Ca, Potassium, Zinc and so on. I can't say I had much system in it, I was just trying them in a haphazard way. Sometimes I felt better, but the improvement never lasted long and after a few workouts I was as fatigued and aching as before.

So... this is my story. Been a rather long reading, but if you got this far... have you ever seen / heard of something like this? Any help / suggestion would be appreciated.

Low testosterone. Get your free testosterone level checked and report back.

[y0lked]

While I do agree, fasting may not be ideal for the most optimal mass gains, do you have any evidence how much worse is it to consume 4000 kcals 200 grams of protein in one sitting vs. 4 evenly spaced 1000 kcal 50 gram protein meals in terms of muscle gains?

I've been doing the 1 meal a day thing for a while and I really feel like it helps your body stay lean whilst adding slowly weight to it. (my own broscience haha, no scientific evidence to back it up just personal experience )

Nitrogen retention is a way for us to measure the ratio of protein breakdown in the body. Eating protein keeps the body in a positive nitrogen balance where as muscle breakdown causes deamination and we excrete the amine group in urine. Eating every 3 hours is designed to help keep a positive nitrogen balance in the body, by fasting we breakdown more muscle. Also the protein synthesis in response to food (protein) lasts only about 3 hours and can be maxed out by around 25-40g of high quality protein. Therefore the dietary habits you want to employ are not optimal but if you want to rely on anecdotal evidence then by all means get after it.

[MikeWines]

While I do agree, fasting may not be ideal for the most optimal mass gains, do you have any evidence how much worse is it to consume 4000 kcals 200 grams of protein in one sitting vs. 4 evenly spaced 1000 kcal 50 gram protein meals in terms of muscle gains?

I've been doing the 1 meal a day thing for a while and I really feel like it helps your body stay lean whilst adding slowly weight to it. (my own broscience haha, no scientific evidence to back it up just personal experience )

There's a variety of research showing that IF is definitely not ideal from a muscle accrual standpoint.

Also, from a purely digestive standpoint, that's a terrible idea imo. You'll probably feel awful afterward due to the impact on your blood glucose not to mention the psychological implications from IF which can promote EDs and binge eating in some individuals.

Help needed - exercise intolerance???

This is not a question about particular exercise or nutrition plan. I never found "exercise intolerance" (is it even a real thing?) discussed in this forum, so I figured I will ask and maybe get some answers...

... my problem is that I seem to suffer severe post-exercise symptoms, to the point that I stopped working out altogether. Now I don't mean sore muscles - I know what that is and I used to enjoy that feeling. I used to work out a lot, and also do a bunch of other activities (cycling, hiking, soccer...). I loved working out and even when I had bad days, workouts would mostly leave me refreshed and energized.

That was like 7 years ago. Now Im 35 and any moderate activity will leave me feeling like crap for a few days to a few weeks. Im a small and skinny guy, weighing some 66 kg and 174 cm high (Been like this all my life - no gaining / loosing mass periods, most that I ever managed to put on was some 2 kg... I quickly lost it, though).

If I try to do even the lightest workout (like doing just 3 sets of 20 pushups), I will feel tired and worn out, with aching muscles - or aching joints and ligaments, rather than muscles themselves. What's worse, over 2 - 3 following days I feel extremely tired and have poor sleep, headaches, indigestion, flatulence and nausea, sometimes to the point of vomiting. Very little appetite, I have to mostly force myself to eat something. After a few days of this I literally feel my immune system weakened, and I usually end up with a cold or some kind of throat/ear infection.

This has been progressively getting worse for some 5 years (meaning less and less exertion needed to start the symptoms - when I found an article about overtraining, I tried to reduce my workouts as I feared I might be pushing myself too hard, but it didn't get better even at ridiculously low exertion levels), and made me gradually withdraw exercising, which I miss soooooooooo much. Funny thing is, that despide no training, I mostly can keep up with my friends who are regular cyclists or soccer players when we ride/play together. But after such sessions I am knocked out for a week, or more.

I have had various blood tests done like a dozen times at least. Doc said everything looked ok each time, and ruled out anemia or thyroid issues. Vitamin and mineral levels in blood were in norm (although blood tests are not very good at determining vitamin / mineral deficiencies). I have no food allergies that I know of, and I was tested for like 40 foods that tend to trigger problems in people. Been also to gastroscopy to examine my stomach and digestion, only to be declared healthy. Cardiologist says that heart is fine. In short, doctors have no clue.

I am not a vegetarian/vegan, I eat pretty much everything. I think I eat a pretty healthy and balanced diet (who does not, though...).

Over the years I have been trying to help myself with all vitamin / mineral supplements I could think of - B complex, C vitamin, Mg, Ca, Potassium, Zinc and so on. I can't say I had much system in it, I was just trying them in a haphazard way. Sometimes I felt better, but the improvement never lasted long and after a few workouts I was as fatigued and aching as before.

So... this is my story. Been a rather long reading, but if you got this far... have you ever seen / heard of something like this? Any help / suggestion would be appreciated.

Look into mitochondrial dysfunction and get linked up with a good functional medicine doc who can help to get you on the right path. Also, run a comprehensive stool analysis to rule out parasite or ova (needs to be a 3 day test, not a simple 1 day in order to completely rule things out - Doctor's Data and Genova are both good options). It could also be stress related leading to a compromised immune system and the other issues which you've listed - GI, mitochondrial, adrenal, etc.

[kromastorm]

Hi everyone,

I have a question related to thumb injury. Since last two weeks I feel severe pain in my thumb everytime I try to extend it. The pain starts from mid portion to the tip and it is a sharp pain. I am not able to understand if this is muscle pull or something worse. I do feel the muscle in have tightened and maybe due to this I am not able to move my thumb freely. I am using thumb support from last week to get some relief.

Would someone throw some light on possible reasons and any exercise to loosen the muscles(in case that is the reason for this pain)?

[skinnydudex]

yOlked, MikeWines, thx for your tips. I never considered those things, mostly I thought about some mineral / vitamin imbalance or digestion issue. I will need to get a doc appointment for testosterone/mito testing so it might take a while.

Actually that mitochondrial dysfunction looks kinda scary...

[y0lked]

Hi everyone,

I have a question related to thumb injury. Since last two weeks I feel severe pain in my thumb everytime I try to extend it. The pain starts from mid portion to the tip and it is a sharp pain. I am not able to understand if this is muscle pull or something worse. I do feel the muscle in have tightened and maybe due to this I am not able to move my thumb freely. I am using thumb support from last week to get some relief.

Would someone throw some light on possible reasons and any exercise to loosen the muscles(in case that is the reason for this pain)?

If the pain subsides and you can gain mobility and strength then you should be fine (probably just a sprain), however if it gets worse go see your physician.

yOlked, MikeWines, thx for your tips. I never considered those things, mostly I thought about some mineral / vitamin imbalance or digestion issue. I will need to get a doc appointment for testosterone/mito testing so it might take a while.

Actually that mitochondrial dysfunction looks kinda scary...

Hope you find out the problems. Be sure to post back the results. Remember you have to be your own advocate for health. Doctors these days are only interested in getting your blood pressure down and curing disease with drugs. You have to be persistent.

[DesperateGlutes]

So I'm a 16 year old female trying to grow my glutes for 2 months now and I see no gains at alla and it's really disappointing
My butt is small but with cellulite
I incorporated deadlifts cable hip extensions hip abductions glute bridges leg presses and few squats(cause I mostly feel me in my quads) of course i don't expect miracles but I do try to brutally hit the glutes and they are still the same
I work out my glutes twice a week and try to eat properly although I can hardly find 130 grams of protein( I don't want to use supplements) but i still do my best
I do eat at a big surplus because I'm obsessed with sweets but anyway in general I mostly eat healthy and try to take in adequate protein although I don't want to overdo it cause I'm already 22% bf and I want to reduce it enough this spring to reveal my abs
I hoped I could make gains until February and then start cutting but still nothing and I'm getting disappointed and wonder how all girls in YouTube built their butts with squats and got cut abs at the same time whereas I try and nothing changed

[TrustySquatter]

Hey man. I was wondering if you have studied the endocrine system and what your thoughts are on it for gaining muscle and losing body fat, and the best exercises related to that?

[y0lked]

So I'm a 16 year old female trying to grow my glutes for 2 months now and I see no gains at alla and it's really disappointing
My butt is small but with cellulite
I incorporated deadlifts cable hip extensions hip abductions glute bridges leg presses and few squats(cause I mostly feel me in my quads) of course i don't expect miracles but I do try to brutally hit the glutes and they are still the same
I work out my glutes twice a week and try to eat properly although I can hardly find 130 grams of protein( I don't want to use supplements) but i still do my best
I do eat at a big surplus because I'm obsessed with sweets but anyway in general I mostly eat healthy and try to take in adequate protein although I don't want to overdo it cause I'm already 22% bf and I want to reduce it enough this spring to reveal my abs
I hoped I could make gains until February and then start cutting but still nothing and I'm getting disappointed and wonder how all girls in YouTube built their butts with squats and got cut abs at the same time whereas I try and nothing changed

Two months is a very short amount of time to see any progress. Do you track the weights you do every workout? Are you trying to do more reps or more weight every workout? The point of a workout is to increase the stimulus so that the muscle is constantly being overloaded, you cannot do the same workout every time and expect results. Most women with cuts and abs, as you refer them, can lift very heavy weights for their size and have strict diets. You need to be consistent for a long period of time before you can start to see durastic changes. Maybe you can post your workout plan and your diet so i can help you further because your exercise selection is great.

Hey man. I was wondering if you have studied the endocrine system and what your thoughts are on it for gaining muscle and losing body fat, and the best exercises related to that?

Endocrine system and lifting.... theres not much of a correlation as most of the research points to the fact that all testosterone, igf1, and GH fluctuate daily and around workouts but that they do not play an important role in exercise physiology unless we are talking about superphysiological instances.

If you want to gain mass lift heavy, undulate your workouts and eat a surplus. If you want to lose body fat lift with the same relative work as bulking, while in a slight deficit, and do some cardio. Really I know it sounds like there could be some crazy formula for success with how much we know about the human body but really the main key is consistency. And consistency with correct principals.

[joenty]

Hello
Recently I have been experiencing pain around my trapezius and infraspinatus muscle. Please advise on the following:

1) Do I avoid exercises targeting trap muscles, that is, shrug and upright row ?
2) Do I avoid working my shoulder altogether and gradually work only on strengthening rotator cuff muscle?
3) Are there any specific exercises that might help me , for example, focussing on rowing movements?

[imanassman]

What are your thoughts on Keto ?

[y0lked]

Hello
Recently I have been experiencing pain around my trapezius and infraspinatus muscle. Please advise on the following:

1) Do I avoid exercises targeting trap muscles, that is, shrug and upright row ?
2) Do I avoid working my shoulder altogether and gradually work only on strengthening rotator cuff muscle?
3) Are there any specific exercises that might help me , for example, focussing on rowing movements?

Lets talk about the kind of pain youre having. The infraspinatus is an external rotator of the humerus, so you experience pain when you externally rotate or when you internally rotate and stretch the infraspinatus? The traps have no involvement in shoulder movement however they do move the scapula inward and also upward.

Without a physical exam its hard to determine the injury, if its just something thats bugging you my first response would be
a) stop doing the movements that hurt
b) analyze the technique of major compound/accessory movements for any problems
c) check for any muscular imbalances.

[y0lked]

What are your thoughts on Keto ?

Keto is great if you can eat the cholesterol, meal prep accordingly and handle 0 carbs. They did a study with two groups of highly trained athletes, where one group continued to eat normal high carb diet (isocaloric) and the other group changed to keto. After about a month of adjustment to the diet the keto group was able to maintain performance with the carb diet.

Basically if you can adjust and sustain the diet for a long time you can use fat for a primary fuel and perform just as high as anyone else. The diet works..... for some. Others hate it and would rather eat <150g carbs to cut down rather than 0 and tons of fat.

If you want to try it, be prepared for the transition, stick with it for atleast 6 months before making any changes. Drastic changes in carb intakes can throw off gene expression for fat metabolism and storage. Research recipes and get ready to eat a ton of fat, fat will be your new source of carbs, without enough fat you crash.

[aali1221]

I have multiple problems in my right knee, patella tendonitis, small meniscus tear innerside of knee, and a loud painful pop at the back of my knee that the PT said was a shortened ligament.

I've dealt with the meniscus before but the one that affects me the most the chronic patella tendonitis i've had it for over a year and its not going away. It is stopping me from doing the things I want to do. How can i get rid of it naturally without any treatments/surgery (im broke), I am willing to try eccentric squats and I am also taking supplements (Magnesium, Vitamin C, Proline/Lysine)

[JayC56]

Ask away. This thread will be nice for any basic or advanced questions as well as help me develop my knowledge and proficiency in my field.

background in:
biomechanics
kinesiology
exercise physiology
athletic injuries
all kinds of workout programming as well as advanced courses in nutrition

go!

edit: also, anything I feel is interesting i might throw in this thread.

Hi, I'm just wondering if its normal to have some pain near the insertion of biceps after biceps workouts? I've noticed that usually after arm day, the soreness/pain isn't so much on the middle of the muscle belly but mostly around the insertion point, it's kind of just before the tendon, regardless if I just do 3x10 sets of workouts or with same exercises plus overload exercise at the end of workout. It's around 4/10 pain and elbow extension brings it on. It doesn't hurt with palpation or at rest with flexion. I've recently gotten back to gym for two weeks and I'm starting to overload the biceps with eccentric barbell curls on machine (doing weight that's just heavier than what I can concentrically at the end of workout) at around 3x8 sets. I do a set of light dumbbell curls as warm up and I stretch 30s after workouts so I'm just wondering if this should be a concern such as in the long-term, it may cause overuse and lead to tendinopathy?

[joenty]

There is no particular movement that hurts me, however heavy military press did bother me the last time. Its a general discomfort around the neck and when I tried to check where actually the pain is originating from by poking with my finger, i found that both the traps and the area around infraspinatus muscle were hurting.
I have stopped working traps and shoulders since then but I am afraid this might slow down my shoulder development and create an imbalance.
What are your thoughts?

[y0lked]

I have multiple problems in my right knee, patella tendonitis, small meniscus tear innerside of knee, and a loud painful pop at the back of my knee that the PT said was a shortened ligament.

I've dealt with the meniscus before but the one that affects me the most the chronic patella tendonitis i've had it for over a year and its not going away. It is stopping me from doing the things I want to do. How can i get rid of it naturally without any treatments/surgery (im broke), I am willing to try eccentric squats and I am also taking supplements (Magnesium, Vitamin C, Proline/Lysine)

I am not an athletic trainer but that field of study acknowledges tendonitis as chronic inflammation. The best way to reduce chronic inflammation of a tendon is to let it rest. Youll need to stop doing any knee extension as much as possible (if it is THAT bad consider crutches maybe). Concurrently you will need to take some NSAIDS (i recommend naproxen sodium) and ice 45 mins on 3 hours off 2-3 times per day total. Try this method for a week. After 7 days of treatment you will voodoo floss the patellar tendon 2-3 times per day for a week. After that we can look into eccentric squats but ultimately we will need to strengthen the tendon and quads with limited range of motion until we can work through a full range of motion (ie full leg extension).


By the way, I am not specialized in this field however these are the methods that have worked for me and others and I am passing the information down to you in hopes of relief.