Message from The Editor in Chief: Finding a real personal trainer

info@thinkmuscle.com

I get many requests to come train people where they live. I would love to be able to personally help everybody that needed it, unfortunately I simply don’t have time to just drop what I’m doing and run across the country counting reps and calories for people. However, I do everything I can to try to provide the information people need either here on ThinkMuscle or over at Hypertrophy-Specific.com . Even with all the available info on these two sites, people often need some extra help in the gym. In such a case people need a personal trainer.

Now I’m not talking about a "coach". A coach is a person who is highly specialized and works with athletes (yes and even bodybuilders when their ego doesn’t prevent it) who are already very competent in their sport. A personal trainer is very much like a coach, but usually works with people who are not really into competitive bodybuilding or fitness.

Having a competent personal trainer (PT) can make a big difference in how successful you are if you lack confidence in the gym. Generally, a PT should serve as both educator and motivator. Getting two birds with one stone might be difficult however.

Starting with the most basic requirements of a good PT must be familiar with ThinkMuscle.com. Beyond that, look for someone who is certified. There are many different organizations that offer certification. Two of the best are the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), and the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA). Both of these organizations have a history of contributions to the field of exercise science through peer-reviewed journals. They also tend to attract trainers with college educations in the health sciences.

Although certification does NOT guarantee that they are a good PT, it at least demonstrates that they have made an effort to educate and qualify themselves for the job.

In the end, unless you are already educated about how the body works and responds to exercise, you will be at the mercy of your PT. Then again, if you already know about the body and how it responds to exercise you may not need a personal trainer at all.

Another method of judging a PT is by getting referrals. Talk to people that have worked with the PT you are interested in. If the feedback is good from several people, there is a good chance you will be happy too. You may hear that they are able to motivate people to reach their goals. This is always a good trait of a PT. You may also learn that a given PT goes out of their way to educate themselves by staying current on scientific research looking at exercise, weight loss, supplements, etc. This quality is highly valuable, but more difficult to find. In general, the more formal education your PT has, the greater the likelihood that they stay abreast of pertinent scientific research.

So, start by asking if they are familiar with ThinkMuscle, Hypertrophy-Specific, or even Mesomorphosis. Then ask if they are certified. Then ask if they can refer you to someone who they have, or are working with at the time. Then, ask where they get their information about diet and exercise. Their answers to these questions will tell you a lot about what kind of PT they are.

Martial Arts embraces HST: An interview with the Chairman of the American Shotokan Karate Society, George Wilkie.

[BRYAN] First let me thank you for agreeing to do this interview with me George. I know you have a long history in the Martial Arts. Could you tell us a little bit about yourself?

[GEORGE] Well, I'm 57 years old and was born and raised in New York City, (Manhattan and Brooklyn). I now reside in Staten Island and have two great sons, David and Michael, and a wonderful supportive wife, Eileen. I'm a Vietnam combat veteran and served proudly as a member of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division (505th Parachute Infantry Regiment). At the present time I operate two Dojo in the New York Metropolitan area. I hold the rank of 7th Degree Black Belt (Shichidan) Shotokan Karate-Do and am the Chairman of the American Shotokan Karate Society. I have trained in and taught traditional martial arts for a little over 40 years.

[BRYAN] I know you’re not seeking praise for sharing your background with us but man, that is impressive! I’m sure you have some fascinating stories to tell.

[BRYAN] What kind of demands does your style (Shotokan) of martial arts place on the body?

[GEORGE] The techniques of Shotokan are designed to get maximum effect with the efficient and frugal use of strength and power. As with most traditional styles, Shotokan Karate can place a heavy stress on most all of the physical systems of the human body.

[BRYAN] I can imagine. It seems that all an "outsider" is ever exposed to is martial artists practicing marital arts, yet we seldom see them exercising. How do most serious martial artists train outside the Dojo? I mean, do you focus on callisthenic type exercise, do you lift weights, do a lot of cardio, or perhaps even yoga-type exercises? ...

[GEORGE] Today I find that more and more serious martial artists are weight training. First, let me explain that resistance training has always played some part of the traditional martial arts. For example, let us take the great Okinawan/Japanese karate style of Goju Ryu. In Goju they have always employed the use of such resistance devices as the "Ishi Chikara" ("Power Stone"). You see, one of the important components of punching and striking properly in karate is known as "Kime" (pronounced KeeMay). Kime is a focusing of the body’s power at a precise instant. When a punch has been launched the body and limbs should be in a semi-tensed state. This helps delivery of speed and velocity. However, at the precise instant the punch makes contact with the target, the musculature of the entire body should tense and become rigid. The instant after the punch has been delivered, the body should once again become semi-relaxed. This process of Kime adds tremendous power to the blow. There are many scientific reasons for this. One of them is simple synergy. One muscle is adding power and support to the next in line. Of course this process takes great muscular control. Anyway, I find the bottom line is that HST is very beneficial to a student involved with learning proper Kime. It seems that HST helps a student become better in touch with his body, to say nothing of his/her strength and self-image.

[BRYAN] I'm sure you've been training for many years. Could you tell us something of your personal training history?

[GEORGE] I started my martial arts training at the age of 14 (1961) in New York City at the American Kodokan Judo Institute. Originally I trained and studied Judo under the late, Great Sensei, Sedeki Nakabayashi. After achieving my Shodan (1^st Deg. Black Belt) I requested and received permission from Sensei Nakabayashi to begin training in Shotokan Karate under Sensei Hitoshi Immamura of the Nippon Karate-Do Shotokai. The Shotokai is the most traditional branch of Shotokan Karate. We are more oriented to karate as a true combat discipline and not so sport or commercial minded. I was very fortunate that during my combat tour in the Republic of South Vietnam, I was able to take my R&R in Japan (most troops went to Bangkok, Thailand). I was able to train in Japan and learned much. After my discharge from the service, I went back to Japan for a year and received even more excellent training.

During the past 40 odd years I’ve received many awards, but I’m most proud of my "Sensei of the Year Award" given to me by the International Traditional Karate Association. I was only the third non-Asian to receive this honor. Today I hold the rank of 7^th Degree Black Belt (Shichidan) and hold the office of Chairman of the American Shotokan Karate Society. I’ve authored several articles for major martial arts publications and operate two well-staffed Dojo. I think my happiest moments come when I have students that become excellent Yudansha (Black Belts) in their own right. My son’s, David and Michael, are two that immediately come to mind.

[BRYAN] With such as extensive background in a physical and mental discipline such as Karate, I find it very exciting to think that you have found something beneficial in HST. How did you first hear about HST?

[GEORGE] I was first made aware of HST and your personal work when a senior student (Sempai Deshi) informed me as to how well HST was working for him.

[BRYAN] What were your initial thoughts about HST? I mean, did you think it was just another routine, " been there done that " type of reaction?

[GEORGE] I was immediately aware that HST was something unique. I’ve been around a long time and I had never seen anything quite like HST. In addition to this, the sincerity and honesty that you posses was very obvious.

[BRYAN] Well, thank you George, I really appreciate that. When you finally decided to try it, what were your first impressions?

[GEORGE] After my second cycle of HST, my reaction was, "I’ll be damned, this stuff really works". Remember, I’m 57 years old. Before HST, I had not gained any lean muscle mass in many years. However, with HST it is now an entirely different story. Since training with HST I’ve added a half-inch to my arms, an inch and a half to my chest, and I’ve lost an inch from my waistline. Not too bad for a 57 year old who has been training for years!

[BRYAN] Not bad? That is impressive for any lifter! What has your experience been like compared to other routines you have used in the past?

[GEORGE] Well, I find HST is far superior to anything I’ve tried previously. I appreciate the efforts of people like Arthur Jones and Mike Mentzer, but I find that HIT and HD training can have a debilitating effect on the CNS. In Karate, one must have complete bodily control. If not, your techniques will suffer. I’ve had students that have had their control thrown off after having worked hard with HIT or HD. On the other hand, HST seems to really complement karate training. This includes Kata (Forms), Kumite (Sparring), and Kihon (Drills).

[BRYAN] Have others in your Dojo been using HST?

[GEORGE] Yes. I now have 7 senior students who are training with HST and they all report excellent results.

[BRYAN] Do you feel HST would be profitable to others involved in martial arts?

[GEORGE] Most definitely. I would suggest that all intermediate and advanced Karate-Ka (Karate Practitioners) give HST a try. I think they’ll be pleasantly surprised.

[BRYAN] Are there any modifications you would recommend for someone involved in the martial arts? And would it depend on the style they specialized in?

[GEORGE] Very interesting question. At this time my assistants and I are trying to determine if it’s best to train with HST on the days in between karate classes or maybe earlier on the same day as the karate class. Whatever the outcome, I’ll be sure to keep you posted. As far as styles go, well HST works very well with Karate. Karate is primarily a striking art. Martial arts such as Judo, Sambo, etc. are throwing and grappling and it would be interesting to see how well HST might work out for them.

[BRYAN] Thank you so much for your time and consideration in doing this interview with me today.

[GEORGE] My pleasure Bryan.

Reader Q&A

by Lyle McDonald

Altering your "set-point"

If one decreases caloric intake until one becomes fairly lean, and then maintains that leanness for a very long time, does his/her body become used to the leptin level associated with that leanness? Rephrased, does prolonged state of leanness increase leptin sensitivity in a person who normally carries more bodyfat? (Just as prolonged state of obesity appears to "cause" leptin insensitivity?).

If so, it seems to me that by becoming lean and staying lean for some time, one will have easier and easier time staying that way. Correct?

This is one of those questions I've been looking at for 2 years and the best I can say right now is: dunno.

The whole issue of bodyweight/bodyfat setpoint is one of those really depressingly complex areas. Most of the data I've seen says that, no, it can't be lowered, although it can go up.

The real difficulty here is that setpoint is being primarily determined in the brain. That is, at birth [fetal programming], during puberty, depending on what you do as an adult, neural connections are formed that appear to be monitoring/regulating the setpoint. Once formed, neural connections are nearly impossible to break. Anything that would permanently reset the setpoint (assuming it's possible) would have to be working at the brain.

Believe it or not, this makes a certain sort of evolutionary sense. In evolutionary terms, being fat wasn't ever a risk, because nobody stayed fat for long periods. In fact, it was a benefit, because it meant you could survive the next famine better.

In contrast, being lean was a definite disadvantage unless you lived in a climate where there was year round food availability.

So it does make a certain sort of sense that setpoint regulation only works one way.

The limited data (in humans) on the topic suggests that it does: they've tracked folks over like 2 years post-weight loss (this was in the folks who maintained it) to see if there was ever a re-adaptation in terms of metabolic rate, etc. They didn't see one. That is, at the 2 year mark, there was still a below normal metabolic rate (and the rest) compared to people of the same weight who had never dieted.

This *suggests* to me that the setpoint can't be lowered, not in any particularly reasonable time frame.

Question:

How does the brain/hypothalamus determine the body’s setpoint? In other words, how does our body know what the leptin "set-point" should be? There has to be a mechanism by which our brains/hypothalamus measure long-term leptin levels and compares them to thresholds.

It’s all done by changes in neurotransmitters. Dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine. Basically, what we're looking at is the end response to varying levels of those hormones. Think about it in terms of insulin sensitivity. Say we want a glycogen synthesis rate of X amount mmol/hour (or whatever). Based on such factors as receptor density, the steps involved in the signaling cascade, etc. that will require some level of insulin Y amount. If insulin drops below that level, you'll get a lesser response.

Addiction is an interesting model here. True biological addicts (I'm talking about the people who get addicted from hit one) have neurotransmitter defects of one sort or another. In a very real sense, their brains are chemically imbalanced (not unlike depressives). When they take that drug, and some neurotransmitter system is suddenly normalized, their brains go 'Ahhh, now we're normal'. But the person has to keep abusing that drug (or changing drugs as one stops working) to keep the brain normal.

Same basic situation here. If brain neurons are expecting to 'see' levels of X amount, Y amount, and Z amount of DA, 5-htp, and NE respectively to get a certain response, and levels drop below that, you will get a lower response.

There’s also a model that researchers use in rats that is illustrative. Basically, you can breed a rat with a high setpoint. If you maintain its bodyweight below that (even if it's not actively dieting, just weight stable), it looks like it's starving. If you measure various levels of neuro-chemicals, it looks the same as a normal rat that's been dieted. Essentially, the neurons we're interested in here want to 'see' a certain level of neuro-chemicals to think that the system is normal. Now if you fatten up these high setpoint rats, at some weight their brain chemistry totally normalizes; the neurons in question 'see' the right levels of neuro-chemicals and the brain thinks all is right in the world.

The difference is that muscle cells can shift insulin sensitivity to a far greater degree than the brain appears able to shift leptin sensitivity (increasing leptin sensitivity would effectively lower the setpoint as a lower amount of leptin would now generate the same end level signal).

For example, true biological addicts never really get over their addiction. You just have to substitute the old drug (say heroin) with a new drug (say methadone) to keep those neurons happy. Or their brains will always be 'imbalanced'. They may be able to control it with sheer force of will but it's unlikely. Same exact deal here.

Question:

So how can we lower the set-point and/or to induce permanently modified leptin production levels?

Current data doesn't suggest that we can lower the expected levels of leptin (or whatever exactly is being regulated). Once set, neural pathways are nearly impossible to change.

Permanently modifying leptin levels is easy: don't lose fat. Or if you want to raise leptin, get fat. Neither of those are particularly useful recommendations.

Or change gene expression at the level of the adipocyte (so that the fat cell will make more leptin at a lower level of fat mass).

I suspect that permanently changing setpoint is going to involve drugs that affect brain (this is basically how bromocriptine works, it 'tricks' the brain into thinking thing are normal when they aren't), or some type of gene therapy at the adipocyte. The brain simply doesn't appear plastic enough in this case.

Refeeds

How do I determine how often I should refeed while dieting?

At some point while dieting, you will simply 'feel' that things are shutting down. Subjectively, a good indicator would be a total preoccupation with food (this would tell you that NPY levels are going up which things are getting ready to go badly). You may also feel some serious feelings of fatigue, malaise, depression, etc.

Ideally, you'd start the refeed right before you got those symptoms, but the first time through, you won't know until after the fact. But you can use that for future cycles.

So say you start your diet. At say day 6 you feel that rundown 'man I'm just craving food' feeling. Do your refeed. Next time through, put the refeed on day 5.

Realize: as you get leaner, you will have to refeed more often (leptin is getting lower and lower and your body is adapting more and more quickly).

AS to the length and extent of the carb-up, you can argue it a lot of ways. There is research showing that massive overfeeding for 5 hours raises leptin (I did this two years ago, 5 hour refeeds every other day around training, to good effect), longer refeeds probably raise leptin more. Right now I'm alternating 4 days of hardcore dieting (it sucks, I'm hungry) with a 36-hour pig out (high carbs) and 36 more hours at roughly maintenance (so it's a total 3 day refeed but only part of is is super high calories).

Good rule of thumb: the longer the refeed, the less calories you can and should eat.

Question:

If I do refeed high-carb, low fat, how many carbs do you suggest? I weigh 163, bf%7-9 weight train 3days a week, run HIIT sprints 3-4days a week when not lifting.

As per other threads, depends entirely on the length of the refeed. General rule of thumb: the shorter the refeed, the more extreme it can be; the longer the refeed, the more controlled it needs to be. Since you're probably running slightly glycogen depleted (between training and sprinting) anyhow, I'd suspect you can get away with a lot of carbs and be ok. As a point of reference, back in the old lowcarb-l (lowcarb diet and exercise list) and Bodyopus days, folks were putting away like 7000+ calories during a 24 hour carb-up and not gaining any fat. I don't necessarily recommend that but it gives you some indication of what the body can deal with in a short period of time. To be a little more qualitative about it, the studies on glycogen compensation show that you can put away about 10 g/kg lean body mass of carbs before you max out glycogen. At your current weight/BF%, you have about 65 kg of LBM, so that's on the order of 650 grams of carbs.

That's at least a box of Cap'n Crunch (I'm a crunchberry fan myself). Although the Capn's cereal tears the roof of my mouth up (and I do consider all crunchberries to be an abomination, too much of a good thing), it is a good pain. Lucky Charms and I have a good relationship as well. They are, after all, "magically delicious". Hmm, I seem to be looking forward to my carb-up this evening....

Does HST increase your ability to burn fat?

I feel like HST that includes full body workouts every other day alone spikes your metabolism quite a bit? Is there any research on this?

Interestingly, a study came out a month or two ago suggesting that the increase in calorie burn was a lot more significant that anybody (well, me in any event) had thought. They had folks do 12 total sets (4 sets of 10 of squat, bench and power clean) and measured metabolic rate over the next 48 hours. Total caloric burn over maintenance was like 700 cal over the 2 days. That's on top of whatever was burned during the training. That's pretty huge. I don't know if the numbers can be extrapolated directly to something like an HST full body workout, but I imagine the values are very similar.

Protein Part 4- Individual Amino Acid Requirements

by Lyle McDonald, CSCS

The previous three parts of this article series have discussed a variety of topics related to protein and amino acids (AAs): digestion, protein quality, requirements and many others. To help readers better understand some of the mechanisms that regulate protein and AA metabolism in the body, it is necessary to develop a model of AA metabolism.

While all the details of the model have not yet been elucidated, the concepts presented should give a general overview of the possible routes that proteins may take once ingested. Additionally, the parts of the model which are affected by high- and low-caloric intake, as well as high- and low-protein intake (e.g. protein cycling) are discussed.

Section 7: A model of amino acid kinetics

Homeostasis

Before building a model of protein kinetics, readers need to understand the concept of homeostasis. With few exceptions, the body tries it's best to maintain body protein stores at constant levels (1). In addition, the body attempts to maintain a pattern of constancy in the free AA pool and in the rate of protein turnover (1). The regulatory mechanisms responsible are discussed shortly.

Arguably the primary exception to homeostasis is the performance of resistance training which stimulates the body to increase protein stores above habitual levels. In contrast, excessive aerobic exercise tends to decrease and maintain protein stores below normal levels.

Full text:

http://www.thinkmuscle.com/articles/mcdonald/protein-04.htm

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