1. Got elbow pain?
The older you are, the more you need to rotate movements.
I love-love-LOVE brachialis-specific work (reverse curls, hammer curls, narrow grip overhand pull-ups) but they can certainly beat up the elbows.
Hmmm. Thick biceps & forearms or pain-free elbows? Such a conundrum.
The best advice if you’re old is to change elbow flexion exercises every few workouts, even if things feel peachy. And DEFINITELY STOP and make a change the moment your elbow starts to bark.
In other words, never work through elbow pain, even if it “goes away as you warm up.”
It’s not going away.
Add a session or two of Active Release Therapy and this stretch
(https://evidencebasedfitness.net/my-tennis-elbow-protocol-for-posteritys-sake/)
and you should be good to go.
You also don’t have to train biceps/triceps all year. But that’s a big picture programming topic.
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2. Advanced diets?
Carb cycling diets?
Calorie cycling?
Fasting/low calorie days?
ALL of them certainly work.
But so does the plain old 7 day-a-week diet.
Guys did that in the 80’s and nobody ever called Lee Haney or Rich Gaspari fat.
It’s also much easier to stick to, at least for normal folks. And that’s the most important thing.
Remember advanced bodybuilders often follow protocols that jive with “other stuff” they might be doing. Or they just think a more technical approach gives them the BEST result, lifestyle be damned. Even if it’s only 5% better.
They’re probably right and that’s cool. Because that little edge might be the difference between placing top 3 or placing “16th.”
But if just last week you thought peanut butter was a decent good source or protein, we can safely assume that’s not you.
When in doubt I always keep dietary recommendations simple and repeatable.
Because more complicated does NOT mean more effective. Especially if you can’t stick to it.
So do what works, yes. But also do what works for you.
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3. Best foot position for leg press?
The ones you never use!
Feet high & wide (push thru heels) hits more hamstring/glutes with less knee stress; while low & narrow tends to hit more quad.
Rotate every 4-6 workouts, every workout, within the workout (2 sets wide, 2 medium, 2 narrow, etc.), or even within the set as a mechanical advantage drop-set (horrible).
Changing your stance with lower body lifts is a very under-appreciated form of variation. So you pull or good morning the most weight using a wide stance? Wonderful. Now shut up and use a narrow stance.
Combine that with changing up the rep range, using mid-rep pauses or slow eccentrics, even changing foot wear and you should cruise well ahead of the adaptation curve.
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4. Stressed?
Very stressed out people do NOT benefit from training programs that are:
– too heavy
– too long
– too complicated
Instead do 3-4 exercises (with optional substitutions) for 10-15 reps + steady state cardio.
Return to “cutting-edge” when they feel better.
#RealWorldCoaching
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5. When should I do cardio?
Before breakfast, after workout, at 3pm MST?
Wrong question.
When you do it matters little in terms of results.
Instead use cardio as an off day fill-in to create daily rhythm.
So if you workout at 7am, 4 days a week, do cardio the other mornings.
I know, too simple, can’t work.
Right.