Not long ago on my Facebook page, I offered my two cents on “before & after" photo physique transformations: Even though the marketing is undeniably effective (and I still use them on occasion), they also run counter to my philosophies on health and fitness. Namely, that there should even be an “after” photo. This is supposed to be a lifestyle that evolves with us as we shift from one phase...

There are no dumb questions when you coach general population clients through physique transformation. But there are some you get much more frequently. “Should I do low intensity steady state cardio or higher intensity?” “Are free weights always better than machines?” “How long will I have to do this shit?” (A personal favorite.) Interestingly, the answer to the most routinely FAQ's is the same:...

Last night I was awake til 3am. In part due to jet lag and a mountain of email from neglected clients. Also because I felt compelled to order some personally customized versions of the classic Adidas Stan Smith and Nike Cortez. But that's another post. But the main reason I was up was because of this book, by Chum Mey, who survived unspeakable torture at the hands of the Khmer Rouge. And was...

2016... The year Hopeful Innocence was ceremoniously drowned in the blood-dimmed tide of Change. When Facebook supplanted the mainstream media as the source for “news,” from politics to pedophile pizza parlors to what really happened to Kimye in Paris. And so it goes. I’ll remember 2016 for a different reason: the year I had my ass handed to me. More like stapled to a chair. Over the past 365...

You’ve been lied to. Hornswoggled. Bamboozled. Sold a wagon full of malarkey, if you’ll pardon the Bidenism. The things all the fitness authorities say you absolutely “must do” to sculpt a healthy, lean physique? Most are irrelevant. At best they’re window dressing, compared to the stuff that really matters. The Problem There’s nothing nefarious taking place, no grand scheme to confuse you. The...

"We're the middle children of history. No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our great war is a spiritual war. Our great depression is our lives." - Fight Club. Women complain about men. It’s been that way since the beginning. Archaeologists say the earliest cave drawings depicted heavy-browed women glaring at a hapless Paleo man struggling to build a fire. I...

So what does it really take to get ripped? For anyone interested in “aesthetic bodybuilding” (or just looking fetching in your board shorts) getting ripped is the ultimate goal. It’s fascinating and daunting, not to mention grossly misunderstood. In my last post, I threw a stiff jab at a common myth in the diet and fitness industry: that being “ripped” is just a slightly more challenging...