News in brief: BCAA, Citrulline Malate and Red Wine »
This is a first for me on this site. Rather than an article focusing on one particular subject or topic, a ‘News in brief’ update will feature several topics that I have deemed interesting enough for a paragraph or two, but not interesting enough for me to dedicate an entire article to. There is so [...]
Vitamin D: Aromatase Inhibitor »
I know what you’re thinking – “Another article on vitamin D?!” Well, yes. Yes it is. And honestly, expect many more as the amount of research coming out on this wonder-compound is pretty vast. In today’s installment I’ll be discussing vitamin D and its effect on estrogen metabolism.
While most of you will already have quite [...]
Acupuncture – the new ergogen? »
One thing that you readers may or may not have clued up on is my scepticism. While I do love a conspiracy theory as much as the next man, I do have my own reservations about what is bullshit and what is comprehensive bullshit. And of course, what is true – also known as science. [...]
Assist your diet by eating eggs for breakfast »
Some folks from the University of Connecticut hypothesized one day that an egg-based breakfast would help control appetite throughout the day better than a bagel-based breakfast. Scientists being scientists decided to test this theory in twenty-one men to see if they were right. The egg breakfast was made up of just over half fat, and [...]
Leucine the Anti-Catabolic »
I had two thoughts about the intro for this article. A typical layout would give a brief background, what the study in question is about, and then some anecdote from my good self, or a complete tangent that is neither useful nor particularly interesting (this is where you guys jump in and tell me how [...]
Cherries Enhance Recovery »
A new study coming out of Northumbria University in Newcastle, UK has looked into the effect that cherry juice has on recovery from endurance training – specifically marathon running.
The fairly small study involved twenty participants, with half drinking montmorency cherry juice and half receiving placebo. Both groups drank their designated drinks twice a day for [...]
The Meal Frequency Fallacy »
For decades the mainstream has advocated something dreamt up by the bodybuilders of yesteryear. That something was the concept that the metabolic rate is enhanced by eating more smaller meals, rather than fewer larger meals. In more recent times, some bodybuilders have taken this to new levels, aiming for upwards of 8-12 meals per day [...]
The State of Hormones in Pre-contest Mode »
Ever wondered what happens to your major anabolic hormones when you diet down to low levels of body fat? Apparently some researchers from Israel did, hence the subject of this article. Anyone that has ever dieted down for prolonged periods of time knows that retaining muscle becomes as much of a challenge as getting down [...]
Vitamin D and Muscular Fortification »
In continuing with the mini-series on vitamin D I’d like to discuss the effect vitamin D (or should that be adequate vitamin D intake) has on muscle tissue. My previous articles on vitamin D discussed its effects on androgen levels, which obviously manifests in a positive effect on muscle balance, but further research into the [...]
Cold Water Immersion »
We are all fully aware of what cold water immersion, or “ice baths”, are. They are incredibly uncomfortable and yet extraordinarily invigorating. Professional (and maybe some amateur) athletes use them during intensive training periods in order to facilitate a more rapid recovery between workouts. I’ve touched upon something very similar in the “Kick-start recovery by [...]
