Brain Blast Vol 1
Shut Up, Listen, and Get Big!
by the World's Most Dangerous Editors
Building muscle.
Losing enough body fat to display that muscle.
Being healthy enough to show off that muscle for years to come.
Whether the subject is training, nutrition, or longevity, the common theme around this place is muscle. And we've been putting out lifting programs, diets, and interviews with cutting-edge experts in related fields for over 10 years now.
In fact, after digging deep into our archives, we found tons of info that even we, the editors, had forgotten about: revolutionary stuff, controversial stuff, weird stuff, and just flat-out funny stuff covering topics ranging from hypertrophy and strength training to nutrition and motivation.
So what we've decided to do is mine those archives for "golden nuggets" of info that'll help you train harder, train smarter, and put better food and supplements into your body. Then we threw in some weird and wild stuff, just for kicks.
Now, let's talk muscle!
Rule #1: Bust Ass
Everyone wants to major in the minor shit. A lot of people love training calves because it's easy. Compare a calf raise to a bent-over row. Which one is the pussy going to choose? It makes me sick to see how most people train today.
I still like to say that we're the most overeducated, under-producing group of trainers and coaches ever. The one thing that's never changed is that you still have to work hard. It seems that a lot of people and a lot of programs are trying to sidestep that one main issue. But you gotta go in there and you gotta bust your ass! People need to quit looking for the easy way out and get to work.
— Date Tate, Tate Talks Hypertrophy Part I
Your Fragile Little Ego
This laziness has gotta stop, people. It's gotten so bad that quarter-inch depth on leg presses and squats are the new craze with the kids, little shits who have grown up cutting corners on hard work. I guess doing half-rep bench presses wasn't lazy enough.
Look, take your squats down below parallel (keep going, tough guy, you're not there yet) and bring your knees to at least your chest when you leg press. You can go even lower with your toes slightly flared so your knees will come out to the sides.
The half-rep phenomenon usually has something to do with ego. That is, the trainee is afraid his fragile little self-image will be bruised if people see him using the kind of weight he'd have to use if he actually performed full repetitions. It's a vicious circle of stupidity and weakness, however, because without full repetitions the lifter won't ever develop impressive strength.
Deep reps considerably lessen the resistance you can use but produce 20 times the pump and go a long way in helping to actually build some muscle.
Do some of you hear the excuses coming out of your mouth? They might as well be coming out of somewhere else.
— Robert "Fortress" Fortney, Hell on Wheels
What Do Doctors and Dieticians Know? Answer: Dick
Let's say we put all TMUSCLE readers on an island for a year. We give half of them nothing but protein and fats for that year. The other half get only carbohydrates — no protein, no fat.
That group, the carb-only group, would be dead in a year. The other group will do just fine.
The actual dietary requirement for carbs in the diet is zero. Now, does that mean we should eat zero carbohydrates? No. There are incredibly important things in carbohydrate-containing foods such as phytochemicals, flavonoids, vitamins, minerals, anti-inflammatories, and all kinds of stuff we desperately need for optimal health.
But is there a physiological need for the metabolism to have carbohydrates in the diet? No. There is, however, a physiological need for glucose. The brain needs a certain amount of glucose per day. But, the body can make that amount of glucose just fine from fatty acids and proteins.
You know, it's kind of weird that the idiotic American Dietetic Association has us eating a 65 to 70 percent carbohydrate diet, the one thing we actually don't even need! When you see a dietician, run the other way. Sure, talk to experts in nutrition, but avoid [generic] dieticians like the plague. It's like trying to get objective advice about religion from the Taliban. The ADA is a pathetic and irrelevant organization.
And doctors aren't much better. Doctors know dick about nutrition.
— Jonny Bowden, The Truth About Nutrition
Don't Be Sensible. Ever.
In my 10-plus years as a fitness and bodybuilding journalist, I've never seen a single person make a dramatic visual change in his or her body using the slow, steady, and "sensible" approach. Those sensible people are the ones you see in the gym every day who looked the same last year... and the year before that.
Make no mistake, the human animal is a predator. He does not reach his goal (his "prey") with half-ass efforts and "kinda sorta" wanting it. No, the achievement of a goal is not a marathon, but an aggressive sprint — short, but powerfully intense.
Bad habits must be broken. Sticking points in muscle and strength gains must be smashed. Plateaus in fat loss must be hammered to pieces.
There's no question about it: Rapidly losing body fat, building muscle, and breaking negative behavioral habits are acts of violence.
— Chris Shugart, The Velocity Diet
The Demon You Swallow Gives You Its Power
Sure, this all sounds like I'm comparing weight training to religion, but what is it if it isn't a religion? My best thoughts come to me during a workout, and whatever demons I had plaguing me prior to walking into the gym have been exorcised by my exercise. And what's the gym but a temple and what's the clanging of the weights but the peal of the bells?
I know it's hard for you to understand, Luigi, but the people like me practice denial to the point of sometimes being almost monastic. We often avoid people, social events, and rich food, all in the single-minded pursuit of a kind of perfection.
Yeah, it's sometimes painful, but that's how we achieve heroic status. The more challenging the situation we overcome, the greater our stature. The demon you swallow gives you its power.
— TC, Vision Quest
Stress, Not Load
Strength doesn't increase forever and ever. There's a ceiling effect.
What happens is after the bodybuilders learn that it's the amount of stress the muscle is under and not the load, they actually start to progress more by using less and less weight.
— Scott Abel, "Who Cares if It Looks Weird?"
The Losers Are Clean
When I testified at the Dublin Inquiry all those years ago, the information I had was that the number of athletes using performance enhancing drugs, at the Olympic level, was about 80%.
The IAAF secretary, John Holt, said that my charges were "wildly exaggerated" and said his research showed it was only 30 to 40%, which he obviously considered to be acceptable.
Whether it's 30, 40, 50, or 100% is immaterial. The dividing line is not left and right, with the drug free on one side and the dirty cheats on the other. It's divided horizontally with those above the line on the drugs and those below, perhaps being clean.
If anyone is clean, it's going to be the losers.
— Charlie Francis, Rocket Scientist
Bodybuilding Is Its Own End
Bodybuilding has been lost with all the emphasis on functional strength, which is to imply that bodybuilding for cosmetic purposes is of no value. To look better physically, more than any single factor, is the primary reason people exercise. I'm all for bodybuilding for bodybuilding's sake alone.
— Dr. Ellington Darden, The Rebirth of HIT
The Difference
It's an even playing field as far as drugs go. All the guys pretty much have access to the same thing.
So how do you separate first place from tenth place? Is it only hard work? Do the judges know if someone else worked as hard as I did? In addition to hard work, there's meticulous planning, working hard all year round, and eating correctly all year round so you get maximum results. It's making sure you get your rest.
For me, it was almost an obsession every day. I was doing whatever I could to optimize my training all year round. I wasn't taking two or three months off after the Mr. Olympia like some of the guys were. I wasn't eating at McDonald's in the off-season, then twelve weeks before a contest deciding, "Now I'm going to start eating properly." A lot of the guys I was competing against, that's what they were doing.
The reason I was able to beat them was that work ethic and the dedication to training all year round, which wasn't really a problem for me because I love to train. That was the difference.
— Dorian Yates, The Testosterone Interview
Moderation? Great for Sissies!
Fat loss is not a long-term program. Fat loss is an all-out war. Give it 28 days, only 28 days. Attack it with all you have. It's not a lifestyle choice... it's a battle. Lose fat, and then get back into moderation.
There's another one for you: moderation. Revelations says it best: "You are lukewarm and I shall spit you out." Moderation is for sissies.
— Dan John, I Hate Medium
What Color is the Sky in Your World, Paul?
A healthy person shouldn't smell bad when he sweats. I used to have to weigh every single fighter on the boxing team twice a day. I could tell by the smell of them, by looking at their eyes, and by their behavior exactly which of them were eating correctly and which ones weren't.
I could tell when they were eating fast foods because I could smell the trans-fatty acids coming right out of their skin. The effects of eating at McDonalds three days in a row was devastating on these fighter's bodies.
— Paul Chek, Deconstructing Paul Chek
Shut Up, Listen, and Get Big!
by the World's Most Dangerous Editors
Building muscle.
Losing enough body fat to display that muscle.
Being healthy enough to show off that muscle for years to come.
Whether the subject is training, nutrition, or longevity, the common theme around this place is muscle. And we've been putting out lifting programs, diets, and interviews with cutting-edge experts in related fields for over 10 years now.
In fact, after digging deep into our archives, we found tons of info that even we, the editors, had forgotten about: revolutionary stuff, controversial stuff, weird stuff, and just flat-out funny stuff covering topics ranging from hypertrophy and strength training to nutrition and motivation.
So what we've decided to do is mine those archives for "golden nuggets" of info that'll help you train harder, train smarter, and put better food and supplements into your body. Then we threw in some weird and wild stuff, just for kicks.
Now, let's talk muscle!
Rule #1: Bust Ass
Everyone wants to major in the minor shit. A lot of people love training calves because it's easy. Compare a calf raise to a bent-over row. Which one is the pussy going to choose? It makes me sick to see how most people train today.
I still like to say that we're the most overeducated, under-producing group of trainers and coaches ever. The one thing that's never changed is that you still have to work hard. It seems that a lot of people and a lot of programs are trying to sidestep that one main issue. But you gotta go in there and you gotta bust your ass! People need to quit looking for the easy way out and get to work.
— Date Tate, Tate Talks Hypertrophy Part I
Your Fragile Little Ego
This laziness has gotta stop, people. It's gotten so bad that quarter-inch depth on leg presses and squats are the new craze with the kids, little shits who have grown up cutting corners on hard work. I guess doing half-rep bench presses wasn't lazy enough.
Look, take your squats down below parallel (keep going, tough guy, you're not there yet) and bring your knees to at least your chest when you leg press. You can go even lower with your toes slightly flared so your knees will come out to the sides.
The half-rep phenomenon usually has something to do with ego. That is, the trainee is afraid his fragile little self-image will be bruised if people see him using the kind of weight he'd have to use if he actually performed full repetitions. It's a vicious circle of stupidity and weakness, however, because without full repetitions the lifter won't ever develop impressive strength.
Deep reps considerably lessen the resistance you can use but produce 20 times the pump and go a long way in helping to actually build some muscle.
Do some of you hear the excuses coming out of your mouth? They might as well be coming out of somewhere else.
— Robert "Fortress" Fortney, Hell on Wheels
What Do Doctors and Dieticians Know? Answer: Dick
Let's say we put all TMUSCLE readers on an island for a year. We give half of them nothing but protein and fats for that year. The other half get only carbohydrates — no protein, no fat.
That group, the carb-only group, would be dead in a year. The other group will do just fine.
The actual dietary requirement for carbs in the diet is zero. Now, does that mean we should eat zero carbohydrates? No. There are incredibly important things in carbohydrate-containing foods such as phytochemicals, flavonoids, vitamins, minerals, anti-inflammatories, and all kinds of stuff we desperately need for optimal health.
But is there a physiological need for the metabolism to have carbohydrates in the diet? No. There is, however, a physiological need for glucose. The brain needs a certain amount of glucose per day. But, the body can make that amount of glucose just fine from fatty acids and proteins.
You know, it's kind of weird that the idiotic American Dietetic Association has us eating a 65 to 70 percent carbohydrate diet, the one thing we actually don't even need! When you see a dietician, run the other way. Sure, talk to experts in nutrition, but avoid [generic] dieticians like the plague. It's like trying to get objective advice about religion from the Taliban. The ADA is a pathetic and irrelevant organization.
And doctors aren't much better. Doctors know dick about nutrition.
— Jonny Bowden, The Truth About Nutrition
Don't Be Sensible. Ever.
In my 10-plus years as a fitness and bodybuilding journalist, I've never seen a single person make a dramatic visual change in his or her body using the slow, steady, and "sensible" approach. Those sensible people are the ones you see in the gym every day who looked the same last year... and the year before that.
Make no mistake, the human animal is a predator. He does not reach his goal (his "prey") with half-ass efforts and "kinda sorta" wanting it. No, the achievement of a goal is not a marathon, but an aggressive sprint — short, but powerfully intense.
Bad habits must be broken. Sticking points in muscle and strength gains must be smashed. Plateaus in fat loss must be hammered to pieces.
There's no question about it: Rapidly losing body fat, building muscle, and breaking negative behavioral habits are acts of violence.
— Chris Shugart, The Velocity Diet
The Demon You Swallow Gives You Its Power
Sure, this all sounds like I'm comparing weight training to religion, but what is it if it isn't a religion? My best thoughts come to me during a workout, and whatever demons I had plaguing me prior to walking into the gym have been exorcised by my exercise. And what's the gym but a temple and what's the clanging of the weights but the peal of the bells?
I know it's hard for you to understand, Luigi, but the people like me practice denial to the point of sometimes being almost monastic. We often avoid people, social events, and rich food, all in the single-minded pursuit of a kind of perfection.
Yeah, it's sometimes painful, but that's how we achieve heroic status. The more challenging the situation we overcome, the greater our stature. The demon you swallow gives you its power.
— TC, Vision Quest
Stress, Not Load
Strength doesn't increase forever and ever. There's a ceiling effect.
What happens is after the bodybuilders learn that it's the amount of stress the muscle is under and not the load, they actually start to progress more by using less and less weight.
— Scott Abel, "Who Cares if It Looks Weird?"
The Losers Are Clean
When I testified at the Dublin Inquiry all those years ago, the information I had was that the number of athletes using performance enhancing drugs, at the Olympic level, was about 80%.
The IAAF secretary, John Holt, said that my charges were "wildly exaggerated" and said his research showed it was only 30 to 40%, which he obviously considered to be acceptable.
Whether it's 30, 40, 50, or 100% is immaterial. The dividing line is not left and right, with the drug free on one side and the dirty cheats on the other. It's divided horizontally with those above the line on the drugs and those below, perhaps being clean.
If anyone is clean, it's going to be the losers.
— Charlie Francis, Rocket Scientist
Bodybuilding Is Its Own End
Bodybuilding has been lost with all the emphasis on functional strength, which is to imply that bodybuilding for cosmetic purposes is of no value. To look better physically, more than any single factor, is the primary reason people exercise. I'm all for bodybuilding for bodybuilding's sake alone.
— Dr. Ellington Darden, The Rebirth of HIT
The Difference
It's an even playing field as far as drugs go. All the guys pretty much have access to the same thing.
So how do you separate first place from tenth place? Is it only hard work? Do the judges know if someone else worked as hard as I did? In addition to hard work, there's meticulous planning, working hard all year round, and eating correctly all year round so you get maximum results. It's making sure you get your rest.
For me, it was almost an obsession every day. I was doing whatever I could to optimize my training all year round. I wasn't taking two or three months off after the Mr. Olympia like some of the guys were. I wasn't eating at McDonald's in the off-season, then twelve weeks before a contest deciding, "Now I'm going to start eating properly." A lot of the guys I was competing against, that's what they were doing.
The reason I was able to beat them was that work ethic and the dedication to training all year round, which wasn't really a problem for me because I love to train. That was the difference.
— Dorian Yates, The Testosterone Interview
Moderation? Great for Sissies!
Fat loss is not a long-term program. Fat loss is an all-out war. Give it 28 days, only 28 days. Attack it with all you have. It's not a lifestyle choice... it's a battle. Lose fat, and then get back into moderation.
There's another one for you: moderation. Revelations says it best: "You are lukewarm and I shall spit you out." Moderation is for sissies.
— Dan John, I Hate Medium
What Color is the Sky in Your World, Paul?
A healthy person shouldn't smell bad when he sweats. I used to have to weigh every single fighter on the boxing team twice a day. I could tell by the smell of them, by looking at their eyes, and by their behavior exactly which of them were eating correctly and which ones weren't.
I could tell when they were eating fast foods because I could smell the trans-fatty acids coming right out of their skin. The effects of eating at McDonalds three days in a row was devastating on these fighter's bodies.
— Paul Chek, Deconstructing Paul Chek
