Here is Your Supplement Checklist

A few days ago this kid posted his supplement stack pictures. He spends $400+ a month on supplements! I think I spend under $50 and that’s if I’m being experimental.

I’ll refrain from talking about brand names and such as I think we all have our opinions on those and many times price is a factor. Let’s just stick to the overall basics.

So let’s begin…CLICK HERE

The Shell Game that is the “Proprietary Blend” Nutritional Supplement
By Will Brink

Author of :

Brink’s BodyBuilding Revealed

“Bodybuilding Revealed is a complete blue print to muscle building success. Everything you need to know about diet & muscle building nutrition, over 50 bodybuilding supplements reviewed, weight training routines, high intensity cardio, the mental edge, pre made muscle building diets and an online private members forum, diet planner, meal planner and much more. It’s all in Will Brink’s ultimate guide to gaining muscle mass.”

Fat Loss Revealed

“Fat Loss Revealed is the ultimate fat loss manual. A complete online and offline system used by anybody looking to attain a fantastic lean physique. A complete fat loss diet plan, with pre made diets, over 40+ fat loss supplement reviews, resistance workouts, and cardio , along with motivation and goal setting and a huge online private members area and forum form Will Brink’s Ultimate Fat loss Program.

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The Shell Game that is the “Proprietary Blend” Nutritional Supplement

Recently I wrote an article entitled “Terms, Terms, Terms, An Inside look to buying supplements” which can be found on the Gurus and Guests section of my private forum. The article covered many of the misleading marketing terms buyers have to deal with in an attempt to make informed decisions on the supplements they spend their hard earned money on. Some of the more potentially misleading commonly used marketing terms I covered were:

“Clinically proven”
“Patented”
“Doctor recommended”
“All natural”
“Scientifically formulated”
“Research proven”
“Used for thousands of years”

Readers interested in understanding why the above terms can be so misleading, can read my write-up on each of those terms.

In a nut shell, I went onto cover each of these common marketing terms that are used to sell supplements to unwitting consumers and explained each in detail as to what I view as their common misuse within the market place.

However, one term I didn’t cover, was “proprietary blend” which in many cases is the most potentially misleading term of them all, though not a term always seen in ads per se, but the side of the bottle.

Thus, why I felt it was a separate topic to be covered at a later date as it does not fit under the classic definition of a commonly used marketing term found in ads. I also decided to cover this term in a separate article as it requires much more space dedicated to it then the other terms needed for reasons that will be apparent shortly.

Proprietary blends are not inherently a negative for the consumer, though they are inherently confusing for the buyer in most cases.

A supplement that lists a “proprietary blend” on the bottle can be there for one of two reasons:

(a) to prevent the competition from knowing exactly what ratios and amounts of each ingredient present in the formula to prevent the competition from copying their formula exactly (commonly referred to as a “knock off”) or

(b) to hide the fact the formula contains very little of the active ingredients listed on the bottle in an attempt to fool consumers.

Sadly, the latter use is far more common then the former. They see a long list of seemingly impressive ingredients listed in the “proprietary blend” none of which are there is amounts that will have any effects. This is commonly referred to as “label decoration” by industry insiders. The former use of the term is a legitimate way for a company of a quality formula from having the competition copy or “knock off” their formula and the latter use of the term is to scam people.

So how does the consumer tell the difference?

They can’t, or at least they can’t without some research and knowledge, which the scam artists know few people have the time and energy to dedicate to finding the answers. Although there are a few tips the consumer can use to decide if a product with a “proprietary blend” is worth trying, no one, not even me, can figure out exactly how much of each ingredient is in the blend or in what ratio of each is contained within the formula, hence why the honest and not-so-honest companies employ “proprietary blends” so often.

Thus, we have something of a conundrum here and conflict between a company making a quality formula attempting to protect that formula from other companies vs. the company simply looking to baffle buyers with BS.

There are at least some basic tips or food for thought here regarding this problem. A formula that contains say 10 ingredients in a “proprietary blend” is by no means defacto superior then one with three ingredients in it. It’s the dose that matters. Clearly, it’s better to have higher amounts of ingredients that will have some effects vs. a long list of ingredients in doses too low to have any effects.

Some times it helps to look at both what’s in the blend and how much of the blend actually exists. As an example, if say the blend is 300mg total and contains ten ingredients, that’s only 30mg per ingredient, assuming (and you know what they say about assuming!) that each is found in equal amounts. Clearly, for most compounds out there, 30mg wont do jack sh*&.

On the other hand, if say the blend is 3000mg (3 grams) and contains three or four ingredients, there is at least a better chance that the formula contains enough of each (and remember, we can’t tell how much of each is in there as that information is “proprietary”) to have some effects you are looking for such as an increase in strength, or a decrease in bodyfat, etc.

Unfortunately, the above examples are so vague as to be close to worthless as it’s easy enough to formulate a 3000mg blend where all the ingredients are worthless to begin with or a 300mg blend that contains compounds that only require small doses to have an effect and or can be toxic at higher doses.

For example, the mineral zinc tends to be no more then 30mg in most formulas and no more is needed or recommended. Much of this comes down to the consumer knowing what the various ingredients are and how they work (to decide if they are even worth using in the first place) then deciding if said blend appears to at least contain a dose that would have the desired effects, which just brings us back to my prior comment: most people have neither the time or inclination to research all that info just to decide if they want to use a product and thus the many “proprietary blends” on the market that are no more then a long list of under-dosed ingredients.

Wish I could be of more help giving specific advice to readers of this here article as to what makes a good blend and what constitutes a poorly made blend, but the above advice is the best I can do under the circumstances. Although a “proprietary blend” is not by default a negative to the consumer, it is by all means the poster child for the well-known Latin term Caveat emptor which translates into English as “let the buyer beware”.
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About the Author - William D. Brink

Will Brink is a columnist, contributing consultant, and writer for various health/fitness, medical, and bodybuilding publications. His articles relating to nutrition, supplements, weight loss, exercise and medicine can be found in such publications as Lets Live, Muscle Media 2000, MuscleMag International, The Life Extension Magazine, Muscle n Fitness, Inside Karate, Exercise For Men Only, Body International, Power, Oxygen, Penthouse, Women’s World and The Townsend Letter For Doctors.

He is the author of Priming The Anabolic Environment , Body Building Revealed & Fat Loss Revealed. He is the Consulting Sports Nutrition Editor and a monthly columnist for Physical magazine, Musclemag and an Editor at Large for Power magazine. Will graduated from Harvard University with a concentration in the natural sciences, and is a consultant to major supplement, dairy, and pharmaceutical companies.

He has been co author of several studies relating to sports nutrition and health found in peer reviewed academic journals, as well as having commentary published in JAMA. He runs the highly popular web site BrinkZone.com which is strategically positioned to fulfill the needs and interests of people with diverse backgrounds and knowledge. The BrinkZone site has a following with many sports nutrition enthusiasts, athletes, fitness professionals, scientists, medical doctors, nutritionists, and interested lay people. William has been invited to lecture on the benefits of weight training and nutrition at conventions and symposiums around the U.S. and Canada, and has appeared on numerous radio and television programs.

William has worked with athletes ranging from professional bodybuilders, golfers, fitness contestants, to police and military personnel.

See Will’s ebooks online here:

Click Here For : Brink’s BodyBuilding Revealed

“Bodybuilding Revealed is a complete blue print to muscle building success. Everything you need to know about diet & muscle building nutrition, over 50 bodybuilding supplements reviewed, weight training routines, high intensity cardio, the mental edge, pre made muscle building diets and an online private members forum, diet planner, meal planner and much more. It’s all in Will Brink’s ultimate guide to gaining muscle mass.”

Click Here For : Fat Loss Revealed

“Fat Loss Revealed is the ultimate fat loss manual. A complete online and offline system used by anybody looking to attain a fantastic lean physique. A complete fat loss diet plan, with pre made diets, over 40+ fat loss supplement reviews, resistance workouts, and cardio , along with motivation and goal setting and a huge online private members area and forum form Will Brink’s Ultimate Fat loss Program.

Brought to you by Craig Ballantyne &
http://www.TurbulenceTraining.com

My interview with one of the most famous fat loss
trainers in North America, Alwyn Cosgrove. I recently saw Alwyn
speak at a personal trainer’s seminar, and Alwyn showed study after
study supporting his fat loss programs.

Today he will focus on the nutrition and the psychology of weight loss.

Alwyn Cosgrove is a superstar in the world of physique
transformation for men and women. He’s trained champions in
multiple sports and winners of multiple 12-week body transformation
contests. Alwyn owns and operates a training facility in Santa
Clarita, California.

CB: Where do people go wrong with meal frequency when trying to
lose fat?

AC:
Two primary mistakes.

One is trying to eat very little all day in a bid to keep calories
low (and then blowing it every single night when they get home).

Two is actually the opposite — putting too much faith in the “6-8
meals per day” theory.

As usual the truth is somewhere in between.

For a 200lb male eating 2400 cals per day - 6 meals is 400 calories
per meal. If a couple of these meals are 200 calorie shakes - he
can actually eat some decent size portions.

But for a 135lb female trying to drop a little more fat, who is
eating closer to 1350 calories per day - 6 meals per day ends up
being 250 cals each. It’s hard to get in decent sized meals. They’d
do better on 4 meals per day.

So it’s a sliding scale.

Almost every new client that walks into our facility usually skips
breakfast, maybe has a coffee mid-morning, eats lunch, eats nothing
all afternoon and eats a big dinner. They ARE only eating two meals
per day. By switching their macronutrients around a wee bit,
cleaning up their diet and getting them on 4-5 feedings per day -
we really do notice a difference.
CB: You have an impressive list of low-carb studies cited in your
arguments. What’s the take home message about this issue?

AC:
At this point - a reduced carb, higher protein diet is superior for
fat loss. Period. And probably superior for health.

There are several studies comparing the SAME caloric intake of
higher and lower carb diets and a) the low carb groups lost more
fat and more importantly b) there was a significantly greater
client compliance with the low carb groups. Greater client
compliance is huge. This is real world value again.

I don’t know the threshold that a diet becomes “low carb” at, and
I’m not convinced that a diet that was 70% carbohydrate with all
carbohydrate sources coming from vegetables would hurt fat loss at
all. Adam Campbell of Mens Health shared a study with me that
showed individuals on low carbohydrate diets tended to eat more
vegetables than prior to beginning their program.

I guess a very low REFINED carbohydrate diet is what I recommend.
CB: In my opinion, the role of hormones in fat loss has been
ignored. Do you do anything to manipulate hormone levels to get
greater fat loss in your clients?

AC:
Insulin is the only hormone we really have control over. The main
thing is keeping insulin in check. Here’s how I explain it to
beginners - insulin is a fat storing hormone - if we can keep our
insulin levels reduced around the clock (reduced carb diet) then we
can effectively increase total fat oxidation.

Obviously that’s an oversimplification and elevating insulin is
useful around workouts - but that’s the only thing I’ve been
concerned about.
CB: In addition to the “three keys to fat loss” that you covered in
your presentation, how important are motivation and social support
to success? How do you address these attributes with your clients?

AC:
Yeah - the three keys I presented are all physiological. But
psychology trumps physiology every single time. There’s a reason
why Weight Watchers and Curves are making more money than the
majority of personal trainers: Social support. And social support
drives motivation.

In our center we tend to get motivated people anyway - so that’s
less of an issue - but one of the things we always ask is “does
your family/significant other support you on this journey?”
It makes a huge difference. That’s the difference between a
successful trainer and an unsuccessful one.

But I’ll tell you one thing without going into too much detail -
switching to semi-private training increased results across the
board. Probably because of group dynamics and social support.
CB: Most relatively good trainers can handle the physical
components of fat loss, but how does a trainer succeed at the
mental game? Any resources you can recommend? And is the “mental
component/mental drive” something you can immediately tell that a
client has or is missing?

AC:
Well I’d question that most trainers can handle the physical
components of fat loss but I won’t get into that right now.

As far as the mental component goes - my resources came from being
exposed to a great coach at a young age.

We all remember the coach in our youth, who left us on the bench,
or had us running laps in the rain. We also remember the coach who
inspired us, picked us up and made our young lives a little better.

Which type of coach are you? That’s the secret.

I instill in my clients that we are a team. I work for them. I
deliver the best service I can in the position of their fitness
coach. Once they put their faith in you - never betray that. But
their results will increase when they realize this is a coaching
relationship - not just a trainer - client.

Some very general psychological tricks: most females will only
respond to positive reinforcement and don’t respond at all being
compared to others or to ‘norms’.

Occasionally they want comparisons but generally they respond
better to comparisons to themselves.

Males in general will respond better to having to “prove”
themselves and always need to know “what’s good? Is this a good
number for me to be lifting?” etc.

Girls just don’t want to be intimidated. Guys just want to be “one
of the guys”.

A poor coach uses the same personality when working with all his or
her clients.

A good coach recognizes that his or her personality only works with
certain clients.

A great coach can change his or her personality TO the client.
CB: Bottom line: How do you help someone be more disciplined -
especially with their eating and their habits outside the gym?

AC:
It’s an understanding of the entire picture. It’s not the workout.

It’s not the diet. It’s not the intervals - it’s the synergy
between all of these things.

At any one time a client is either getting fatter or leaner. If
they get fatter this week - they haven’t failed - they have just
found and executed the perfect system for increasing fat! All we
have to do is to change that system (which we know doesn’t work
now) and we can’t fail.

Clients have to make the mindshift that it’s not about “will this
piece of cake really hurt me that much?” to “is what I’m doing
getting me closer to my goals or not?” Just a little shift in
thinking can reap huge rewards.

Yeah it’s true - if you dieted and trained all week, a glass of
beer and a few chicken wings won’t hurt you that much - but it damn
sure isn’t getting you closer to six pack abs.

One thing I really liked was John Berardi’s compliance grid - where
we see overall compliance to the plan, as opposed to details. It
helps clients see the big picture. A 90% goal is what we shoot for.

So let’s say the plan is 5 meals per day, and 3 workouts with
post-workout nutrition per week. So we’re looking at 38 meal
opportunities.

If a client misses a meal, or doesn’t eat a meal that’s part of the
program, then they lose a “point”. Our goal is a minimum of 34-35.

It lets a client see that if they eat perfectly on Sun-Fri, but
miss a couple meals on Sat, and eat a couple of cheat meals that
day - in their head they were “on” the whole time.

But when we do the compliance grid we see that Sat alone cost them
5 points. So despite what they think or perceive to be happening -
they are NOT compliant - just an important distinction to teach
them.
CB: And finally, can you leave us with some of your best results or
case studies?

AC:
I prefer to talk about average results - we all have star clients
and testimonials that we can talk about. Generally across the board
with a client who is doing everything right we see a consistent
loss of 24 to 32 lbs of fat in our initial 16 week program. Some
people out perform that, or lose more over a longer period of time.

Some do less than that - but that’s a fair average that I don’t
mind quoting.

But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention one girl who I worked with.

This girl’s brother paid for her training sessions before being
shipped to Iraq. Unfortunately he never made it back.

But he’d be proud of his wee sister. She trained her ass off,
gained a ton of muscle, cut 20lbs of fat in about 12 weeks and now
holds the record for kills as a freshman in D1 Volleyball at Idaho.
Haley Larson - an amazing athlete - watch for her name.

CB: Alwyn, Thanks so much for your expertise and motivation.

Go here: >> Alwyn’s Warp speed Fat Loss

Sincerely,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS

Author, Turbulence Training

Best Ways to Burn Belly Fat

I often get asked, “What’s the best way to burn fat and lose my belly?” People want to know if aerobics is better than strength training, or if traditional cardio exercise is better than intervals.
Well, to say I’ve done them all would be an understatement.

With over 15 years experience helping others, training myself, training for sports, spending countless hours in the gym, AND actually conducting laboratory research studies on different exercise methods, I’m pretty confident in knowing what works and what does not.

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE

So why does soy have such a bad reputation among bodybuilders? On the surface, it would appear that soy protein is pretty lousy stuff for most athletes. Soy protein has a low BV score of 74. What does that mean? There are several ways of assessing protein quality. You have the protein efficiency ratio (PER), the net protein utilization (NPU) and the biological value (BV). The PER is an outdated measure of protein quality and is not used much anymore by most supplement manufacturers or nutritionists “in the know” about protein quality.

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE

One topic that seems to be a never-ending source of confusion is blood, or more precisely, understanding blood work and which tests to get and why. It never fails to amaze me that the vast majority of bodybuilders and other athletes have no issue spending literally thousands of dollars on supplements (some of which have virtually no science behind them to justify their use) and gym memberships each year, but won’t spend a penny on blood tests to see what’s really going on with their hormones and other indicators of health (e.g., cholesterol, liver function, etc.).

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE

You go to the gym to build muscle…

You’re not there to “tone up” or waste your time at the juice bar…

You bust your tail at the gym to load PILES of muscle onto your body…thick, meaty pecs, a back so wide you could show a movie on it, biceps that jump out in eye-popping peaks, legs like tree trunks…

You know what I mean…

…you want to build the kind of muscle that TURNS HEADS when you walk down the street…

…and you want the kind of STRENGTH that makes all your friends and family think of YOU as a HUMAN FORKLIFT when it’s time to move heavy furniture…

But my question to you is this…and I want you to think about this honestly…is the program you’re currently using GETTING YOU THERE?

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE

You want big arms? This is an exercise that is going to BLOW UP your bi’s FAST. This one combines the unique angle of the Preacher Bench with the brutal effectiveness of a bodyweight exercise to deliver a growth punch like nothing else!

I like Preacher Curls…

I like bodyweight exercises…

And I LOVE combining these two things into a hybrid that serves up the best of both worlds.

So fire up the Frankenstein-meter…if you’re like me and you love unique exercises, this one is DEFINITELY going to find a place in your arm routine…

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE

My Four “No Fail” Principles For Quick and Easy Weight Gain
By Nick Nilsson

If gaining weight is something YOU got into weight training for, THIS is the info for you. Learn my four powerful “no fail” principles for putting on mass no matter what your metabolism or body type!

I got into weight training to gain mass and put on weight so believe me when I tell you…when it comes to wanting mass I know EXACTLY where you’re coming from. Because when I started training, I weighed 145 lbs soaking wet. Today, I’m a lean 210 lbs (at a height of 5′10″)!

I’ve got four “no fail” principles that I recommend to people who are trying to build muscle mass and gain some weight.

And I’ll tell you right up front - these principles are NOT rocket science…these are the basic things you SHOULD be doing if you want to gain mass, yet I see plenty of people only doing one or two of them and wondering why they can’t put on any mass!

Combining these four principles consistently will definitely get the job done!

For the complete article please…..CLICK HERE