Survival Of The FITtest: Part III

Welcome to the third installment of my "Survival of the FITtest" blog entries. Previously I have discussed how unfit for survival the human race is as it has consciously decided to eat and sit its way into obesity and poor health. As if the gluttony induced obesity rates weren't enough to  demonstrate America's de-evolution of the human being, I explored the possibility that my generation and the generations that follow may actually have a shorter life span than the baby boomers. Being unhealthy is one thing, but eating and sitting ourselves to death? Now that's just stupid...

To continue this discussion I'd like to touch on humanity's most valuable tool and it's potential downfall: a conscious mind. Unfortunately, I must use the term "conscious" loosely, given that many of our choices up until this point have led to self-destructive health practices. To be conscious is to be self-aware. Just like everything else in life, there are many levels and layers to this self-awareness. On the most basic and grossest level, we all are aware of ourselves. We recognize our reflection in the mirror, we identify ourselves with an image and personality containing various desires, aversions and interests. We also recognize other basic needs: the need to eat, sleep and poop. Unfortunately for many of us, that is about as far as our "conscious" thinking goes and we have yet to master how to properly nourish ourselves. The inability to nourish oneself, promote well being and extend survival to me sounds like a fundamental flaw in one's "consciousness" or self-awareness.

The scariest part of all this is that each and every day the majority of Americans are choosing life-limiting behaviors over life-expanding behaviors. Forget social, political and economic systems because the same poor attempt at what we call government and politics stems from the same issues that have led to America's obese and overweight society: a limited perspective. Americans want it bigger, better, faster, more of it and we want it NOW. This overindulgent attitude of self-instant gratification with little thought given to the future is exactly what leads people to literally killing themselves with their choices. Who wants to eat a grilled chicken and veggies meal you must cook and prepare for yourself when you can go to McDonalds and grab a big tasty Bic Mac, Large Fries and a 32 oz Coke for less than $5 or $6? Not only that, preparing your healthy meal is going to take at least 45 minutes, why would you want to do that when you can have the Big Mac NOW? Why would you choose the chicken and veggies? Simply because the chicken and veggies are better for your health.  Plain and simple.

There in lies the problem: We just want to be satisfied right now, with little regard to function, how our choices affect our livelihood and the sustainability of our lives. Our "superior" conscious mind has thought us right out of touch with our basic survival instincts and the concepts of necessity, functionality and sustainability. Animals in the animal kingdom understand if they sit in one spot too long, they could fall prey to a predator. Animals understand if they wander into predator territory they will get eaten. So what do they do? The animals avoid the behaviors that will lead to their demise. With all of the technology, medical advancements and things we know about the human body, health and wellness even at the most basic levels, our decision to smoke, drink, eat and sit ourselves to death is probably one of the least intelligent choices any species has ever made on the planet. Other life forms, including plants adapt and find ways to thrive in their environment to best ensure survival. If we are so special because we are "conscious", why the hell can't we make the same decisions?

Do you have what it takes 2 B FIT?

I'd like to let everyone know I am beginning a group fitness program called "2 B FIT". This unique program will begin July 5th and run for four consecutive weeks on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays at 6am in the basketball gym at the Santa Clarita Athletic Club for only $149. There are 11 of 20 spots available in July's camp, and I have already filled two reservations for the camp beginning in August. Don't miss out on this chance to train using some of the most innovative and new techniques to fitness, fat loss and conditioning. Sessions will include: strength training, anaerobic conditioning, non-traditional cardio protocols, kettle bells, battling ropes, TRX suspension training and much more! Grab your spot today by e-mailing me: Jeff@BombergerPT.com or buy purchasing the monthly package below!

GET SOME!

2B FIT Camp

1 Month $149.00

Fitness Fiancee Says I Do Only If...

Her boyfriend completes an Ironman race. She figures she has already done one, so if he completes the race it will really show his commitment to her. What crack is this chick smoking? You would think the fact that the guy sacked up, bought a ring and proposed to her would be enough of a sign that he's ready to commit. Unless he is repenting for some Tiger Woods or Jesse James-like fooling around, I think this guy has proven enough. If I was this guy, I'd hit the Ironman trail and just keep running because this girl appears to be a succubus in training...Click the link below to hear this madness!

Ironman Fiancee Video

Training In 15 Minutes

Like you at home, I even have days where I am pretty busy working on stuff and find it hard to squeeze a workout session in. Today I trained some sessions early in the day and the rest of the day I have been working diligently on new web content to add to my website, purchasing equipment for my 2 B FIT Camp starting in July and polishing up a business plan. By four o'clock I realized I had been sitting more than I like to in a day and decided to get down into the gym at my apartment complex and do a little light work. In fifteen minutes I got my heart rate up, my legs were burning and I was sweating all over! What did I do? Try this quick little 15 minute total body routine that will work a little cardio, posture and some strength:


Bodyweight Circuit Countdown:

Perform 10 reps of each exercise (except jumping jacks you double them because they are easy) in one complete circuit and once you are through, begin again only doing 9 reps (18 jumping jacks) and so on until 1.

Jumping Jacks (remember x 2)
Drop Lunge to Balance (reps on each leg)
Push Ups
Lateral Hops/Tuck Jumps (total hops)
repeat...

Without wasting too much time after you get to 1, begin three rounds of a simple Corrective Exercise Circuit as follows:

Single Leg Toe Touch x 10 each leg
Cobra + Superman Combo 1 minute (alternate between cobra and superman every 15 seconds)
Single Leg Hip Extensions x 10 each leg

Voila! 15 Minutes you're sweating, your heart rates up and those muscles that were all weak from sitting down are fixed. Enjoy!

Plank Progression

You guys know how important core strength is to being a healthy and functional human being. In the past I have posted about planks, plank variations and various plank progressions. Today I performed a variation I honestly have never tried before and found it to be extremely challenging. Given that I do a lot of core work within my regular routine, regular planks just don't cut it anymore and are relatively easy. The variation pictured below is me holding the push up position, my hips and shoulders even to ensure proper core activation and my feet are up on a 55cm exercise ball. This position is challenging because you must stabilize your feet on the ball keeping it from rolling forward, back and also side to side. This technique results in TONS of stabilization as you try to keep a round ball from rolling in all directions. Trainer Brandon Reina and I did this exercise for one minute holds and upped the ante on the last set and alternated between one footed planks every 15 seconds for a minute. This routine isn't about being totally bad ass...it's about building incredible core stability!

Red Wine = Less Fat?

Many of you may have heard of resveratrol, currently a potential miracle substance found in the skin of red grapes and red wine. The most recent of "super nutrients" after the acai berry craze, resveratrol has been giving winos a  reason to down gallons of red wine as preliminary animal studies suggest the substance may battle against type 2 diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular and some neuromuscular disorders such as Alzheimer's disease. In the first human studies of their kind, scientists at the University of Ulm in Germany studied the effects of resveratrol in human fat cell biology:

Laboratory tests conducted in vitro on human cells, in which cells were managed in a control environment, such as a petri dish, showed that resveratrol influenced fat cells' form and function. Resveratrol blocked immature fat cells from developing and differentiating, which, in turn, affected the fat cells' abilities to function. Several studies have used animals to examine resveratrol's effects, but this is one of the first to use human fat cells. - WebMD

Does this mean you should go out and start guzzling red wine hoping the pounds will melt away? Definitely not as alcohol is alcohol and the effects of its abuse can never be over looked. Resveratrol is also found in the skin of red grapes and can be taken in a supplement form if you aren't the wining type.

Have Your Cake & Eat It Too

You have heard it a million-bazillion times before: Proper diet accounts for about 70% of what's necessary for successfully reaching your fat loss goals. While exercise plays an important role in shedding the pounds and keeping them off, the amount of time spent working out only accounts for 1/24th of the day, leaving you 23 hours you could potentially be sabotaging your goals with poor eating habits. Just like planning an exercise program is important to maximize results, it is also important to PLAN your meals. Here are some quick and easy tips for menu planning:

Find your daily caloric intake goal and divide it by 6. This simple math equation will tell you about how many calories you should be eating per a meal. If you simply divide your total intake evenly over 6 meals, for many women the average number will come out to between 250-300 calories per a meal if you eat every 3 hours. If you're the average guy it will usually come out to around 350 calories per a meal over 6 meals a day, which isn't too much food at all. Eating well balanced and consistent meals will keep insulin levels in check, sustain your energy levels throughout the day without crashing and keep your fat burning capabilities at their highest.

Find your daily caloric intake estimates by downloading the FREE "Body Basics Booklet" I wrote to compliment my Body Basics DVD.

Eat clean for five days and then "treat" a little on the weekends. This is exactly how I do my menu planning. During the week I eat very well and plan my meals for the most part. As a matter of fact, I typically eat the same thing every other day just to keep things simple and easy. When it comes to the weekends I eat well, but choose one meal on both Saturday and Sunday to really go at it an treat myself to what I want. A lot of times it is lunch or dinner on Saturdays and breakfast or lunch on Sundays. This practice keeps me sane, shocks my metabolism, sociable and allows me to still enjoy life a little!

Find what I call your "core" foods. Core foods are the staples of your diet, choices you can ALWAYS turn to for good nutritious value. For me, peanuts are a "core" snack food packing good fat and some protein whenever I'm running low on fuel. Chicken and turkey burgers are my "core" lunch/dinner dish that I find easy to cook and scarf down in a time crunch. For breakfast, scrambled eggs with turkey bacon and a piece of fruit is my time efficient, nutritious "core" choice. Pick foods you can eat often without getting sick of them, ones that can be cooked in bulk and can be easily re-heated when necessary. If you can find some healthy core foods you will be less likely to turn to Doritos and Snickers bars in the break room.

Don't drink too many calories. The only calories you want to be drinking in moderate amounts are: 100% organic fruit juices, organic smoothies and or your recovery drink/meal replacement shake no more than 2-3 times a day. Stay away from "fake" juices, lattes packed with cream and calories, soda and mixed alcoholic beverages as they can add up to empty calories VERY quickly.

3 Exercises You Should Be Using...

1. Cobra & Superman - Sure there's not a lot of movement, but most the population suffers from lack of postural strength and stability in the posterior chain. Isometric Cobra and Superman holds are good for your external rotators, spinal stabilizers and glutes which are often neglected in many fitness programs. Throw these movements into your routine at least twice a week and work up to holding these positions for several sets, up to one minute in length. Make sure your low back and glutes are squeezed tight and your arms are externally rotated, thumbs turned out when performing the Cobra.

2. Woodchops - The Woodchop is essentially a total body, core and rotational exercise all packed into one and gets you moving in two of the three planes of motion the body moves in (it hits the transverse plane with the twist and the saggital plan with the squat down). Gripping a medicine ball, plate or cable squat down while reaching your hands to your hips and rotating the shoulders like you're winding up to spin. As you squat back up, extend your arms away from your and rotate the opposite direction. You want to pivot on the foot you're turning away from and move the resistance on an elliptical path up to about head height. You'll feel this in your quads, obliques, abs and shoulders.

3. Squat Press - This is a more user friendly exercise I like to lump in to the "Extremely Effective" category with the the likes of its more difficult cousin lift - The Clean and Press. The Squat Press ranks up there with one of the best total body movements around activating nearly all your leg muscles (if you properly squat down "ass to ankles"), lots of core and you finish up with a great vertical press. Medicine Balls, dumbbells, barbells, kettle bells, cowbells, you name it you and can squat press it. For the record, don't even ask why I am in the middle of a field in these photos, that was some other genius' ideas, but hey you can see the movement and the colors are pleasant...HAHA!

Healthy Snacks

Here is a GREAT healthy snacks list provided by Sheri Barke, MPH, RD, CSSD, a professor at College of the Canyons. You can visit her website here: COC NUTRITION COACH

What makes this list so valuable is it provides a bunch of SIMPLE, yet very nutritious snack ideas for the health/fitness conscious person. The snacks are all ideal because they balance a protein source with a good carbohydrate choice and even good fat in some cases. If you implement these snacks into your daily plan today, you can rest assured knowing at least your snacks are dialed in! Now get the rest of that diet on track and you'll be doing great...Enjoy!


Carbohydrate + Protein = Calories

orange + string cheese 150-175

apple or pear or banana + 2tbls peanut butter 250-300

celery stalk + 2tbls peanut butter 200-300

1cup pineapple + 1cup low fat cottage cheese 220-260

2cups honeydew melon + boiled egg 200-250

1/2cup strawberries + 1 cup plain fat free yogurt 175-200

apple or pear or banana or orange + 1 cup plain fat free yogurt 200-300

1/3 cup dried craisins + 1/2 cup unsalted almonds 350-400

1/4 cup raisins + 1/4 cup peanuts 300-350

nature valley granola bar +  string cheese 250-270

1serving reduced fat triscuits + 3oz low fat cheese slices 250-300

1 serving reduced fat triscuits + 3oz canned tuna 220-240

whole wheat pita + 1/2 cup hummus 350-400

1oz corn tortilla chips + 1/2 cup refried beans 250-275

1-2 slices whole wheat bread + 3oz turkey 200-350

 whole wheat bread + 2tbls peanut butter 290-320

1.5 cup whole grain cereal + 8oz fat free milk 300-320

english muffin + 3oz low fat shredded cheese 225-250

Importance of Training for Female Athletes

I know right know you are sitting there going, "Jeff it seems obvious that training is important for ALL athletes, why single out females?" My short answer is this: One, I needed to grab your attention and two, female athletes are much more susceptible to sustaining knee injuries than their male counterparts. In fact, statistics show that women participating in sports are 4-6 times more likely to suffer an ACL injury than male athletes. There are several reasons women are more susceptible to knee injuries including: valgus (knees collapsing in) movement in the legs, anatomical reasons (female hips are wider than males) and also hormonal reasons that cause collagen in female connective tissues to be weaker at different stages of development. Unfortunately, at the youth and high school levels very little or nothing is done to aid in preventing an unfortunate knee injury. Here are a few tips for you active females out there, young and old, for training properly and to keep your risk of knee injury lower:

1. Strengthen ABductors and stretch ADductors - Valgus movement at the knee joint is basically the collapsing of the knee in. Many female athletes experience this when they squat or land a jump. By strengthening the ABductors and lengthening the ADDuctors, you can help eliminate some of that valgus movement and get the knees tracking properly. Doing side planks with leg lifts, lateral tube walking and shuffles you can strengthen your ABductors.

2. Work on jumping, landing and cutting mechanics - It sounds funny, but learning to jump, land and cut properly is very important to preventing knee injuries. Knee valgus coupled with poor jumping, landing and cutting biomechanics leads to many injuries suffered by female volleyball and soccer players. Learning to land toe to heel, training to properly decelerate the body from a jump and executing proper center of gravity when making a cut can reduce the occurrence of these knee injuries.

3. Train your quadriceps AND hamstrings - Having an imbalanced quadricep to hamstring strength ratio can compromise joint integrity and lead to leg injuries. It is important to "Push" and "Pull" with the lower body and balance your leg exercises between "Knee Dominant" or predominantly quad based movements and "Hip Dominant" exercises which tend to be more glute and hamstring oriented exercises.

4. Work on balance and proprioception - Proprioception is a big term for the body's own self-awareness in space. Incorporate balance and proprioceptive work into your training program by doing single leg exercises, BOSU ball variations, balance exercises and training in all three planes of motion. Simple exercises like Single Leg Toe Touches, BOSU Ball Squats and Single Leg Balances all help contribute to knee joint stability and proper neruomuscular action.

Hope these tips help! Reach out to me on twitter @JeffBomberger if you have more questions!

Video Blog: Fat Burning Tips

Today's video blog gives you five tips to maximize your fat loss results:

BombergerPT Trainer Search...

First you met Scooby, the crocodile hunting, leopard print spandex wearing hamstring stretch expert and now you have our next applicant. The rule is if you laugh at this, you have to share it with someone else! Enjoy!

Squat-Puke

Talk about GETTING SOME! Check out twenty-one year old power lifter Logan Lacy as he squats A GRAND and then proceeds to do his best Exorcist impression and blows chunks everywhere...Whoa...

Fitness Fail Video #5

Check out the Incredible Hulk as he almost blows out his back doing a dead lift then gets so super swole excited he decides to try and see if he can take a bite out of the dumbbells on the rack...Remember to breath man! I feel bad for this guy and that is why I am sharing it with you....

Peripheral Heart Action Training

Trying to redefining what it means to be "PHAT", I would like to first let you know what "Peripheral Heart Action Training" means. Simply put, PHAT is the use of alternating lower body and upper body exercises in either super sets or circuits to redirect blood flow back and forth between upper and lower portions of the body. This technique tends to be more demanding on the cardiovascular system because the circulatory system cannot adjust to the demands of exercise by simply increasing blood flow to a single part of the body, which is what happens during isolation training or upper and lower body only days. The result is a workout that is going to place more stress on your cardiovascular system, while getting your muscles the work they need to build strength.

Having utilized Peripheral Heart Action since I first learned of it as a trainer down in Pacific Beach, in recent weeks I decided to toss functional variation, a little BombergerPT twist if you will, to this effective exercise technique. What I have been playing with off and on for a few weeks and now entered into my first week of full PHAT training is the addition of agility and or explosive exercise pairings to the strength exercise. In traditional Peripheral Heart Action Training you may perform a routine like this:

DB Squats followed by DB Bench
RDL followed by Lat Pull Down
etc using standard strength based exercises...

The little BPT flavor I've added uses a Push-Pull split for the week, so you would perform your typical functional push or pull movements in your session (ie knee dominant or hip dominant, horizontal push or horizontal pull, vertical push or vertical pull, core stability and rotation) but you are going to super set each one with an explosive or agility exercise for the opposing upper and lower extremities.

Confused? Watch this little gem and I'll help you understand...

Functional Fitness: Volkswagen Style

V-W Ja (pronounced YA in my best German accent) has implemented what I see to be a pioneering fitness tactic in the manufacturing industry. At Volkswagen's new Chattanooga, Tennessee manufacturing plant the company is requiring its assembly line employees to partake in a daily functional fitness program on top of their three week orientation. In an attempt to prepare their workers for the physical demands of their new manufacturing job, VW has the new assembly workers participating in two hour long workout sessions that focus on pushing, pulling, cardiovascular endurance, grip strength and other various movements specific to their job.

Volkswagen Chattanooga spokesman Scott Wilson said the workouts are aimed at better product quality when the German automaker starts building a mid-sized sedan at the plant, which is expected to create about 2,000 jobs. He said time in the classroom, hands-on training and fitness training are all "focused on getting each and every one of us, no matter what our job is at the plant, prepared to show up and perform at the highest level of professional excellence." - Associated Press

 
Apparently VW's employee fitness program is the only one of its kind in all VW plants across the globe. Employees were quoted to have been suspect of the program at first, but after a couple weeks in the program they started losing weight and feeling better. One employee claims to have lost 60 pounds in the Volkswagen sponsored program!

I couldn't be happier to see a program like this being put into action. I hope this inspires a new trend among many American companies who will hopefully take a better look at what they can do with healthy and well employees, rather than over worked, over stressed and under active ones. If you're looking for a company that is looking to change the way companies do business, look no further than my friend Luke Sniewski and his LEAF Lifestyle venture.

LEAF Lifestyle Link

Portland State QB Dashnaw Returns From Spring Ball

BombergerPT client and Portland State quarterback Chad Dashnaw is back in town after spending a spring quarter up at Portland State to compete in spring ball. He is depicted here wearing a BombergerPT shirt and wearing a stylish half-medicine ball for a hat. Chad said he is enjoying his time up at PSU and has been getting in great shape for the upcoming season. He didn't want to miss a beat, so we will be training for the next couple weeks to make sure he is in good condition for his optional summer drills. Here is today's workout we did using super sets and focusing on keeping the intensity up the entire session:

Dynamic Warm Up
Dumbbell Snatch 4 x 6
TRX Alternating Single Leg Squat Jumps + Plyo Push Ups 4 x 10
Close Grip Bench + Side to Side Sliders 4 x 10
Cuban Press 4 x 10
TRX Y-T-W + TRX Jack Knife 3 x 15
Medicine Ball Side Toss on Wall 3 x 12

Get it!

Toxic Shrek?

In case you haven't heard, McDonalds is recalling 12-million promotional "Shrek" cups that have been found to contain levels of cadmium that are unsuitable by the Consumer Product Safety Commission's currently evolving policy standards. Although safe by prior CPSC standards, McDonalds decided it is better to be safe than sorry and recalled the cups in order to simply steer clear of the CPSC's changing policy.

"We believe the Shrek glassware is safe for consumer use," McDonald's USA spokesman Bill Whitman said. "However, again to ensure that our customers receive safe products from us, we made the decision to stop selling them and voluntarily recall these products effective immediately.

On its website, McDonald's said customers can learn how to return the glasses and request a refund by visiting http://www.mcdonalds.com/glasses or calling McDonald's toll-free number, 1-800-244-6227. It also said previous promotional gimmicks and Happy Meal toys are not involved in the recall.

Cadmium is a carcinogen that research shows also can cause bone softening and severe kidney problems. Research also suggests that it can, like lead, hinder brain development in the very young. The CPSC said in its recall notice that long-term exposure to the element "can cause adverse health effects." - Yahoo! Health

If you or your kids have been using these cups, return them just to ensure the safety of your own and your child's. If you have been drinking your EAS Shake or Muscle Milk out of these Shrek Cups, you really better be careful!

Time Crunched Fitness Routines

It can be tough to find time to get your daily activity in. Between commuting, work and families 45 minutes to an hour can be hard to come by. Here are some tips for those of you who are time crunched when it comes to your fitness:

Use Compound Movements - Compound movements are exercises that require movement at more than one joint and incorporate several muscle groups. Don't fart around with isolated movements and machines, they are less efficient at recruiting more muscles and burn less calories. Utilize dynamic movements requiring large muscle groups like: lunges, deadlifts, step ups, dumbbell bench press, push ups, pull ups, lat pull downs, rows, push presses, standing shoulder presses, kettle bell swing, kettle bell snatch and cleans.

Perform Total Body Workouts Using Super Sets - If using a functional program template, the body can be broken up into movements rather than muscle groups:

Knee Dominant, Hip Dominant, Horizontal Push, Horizontal Pull, Vertical Push, Vertical Pull, Core Stabilization and Core Rotational. This hefty menu may seem like a bunch to attack in a single session and may take an hour to an hour and a quarter if you go through each movement one by one. If you super set the opposing muscle groups, you will cut your time spent in the gym in half, increase the intensity and increase the amount of calories burned in your session. Try this total body super set routine performing 3-4 sets of 12 reps using 30 second rest periods after both exercises are completed:

(Knee Dominant)Alternating Lunge + (Hip Dominant) Romanian Deadlift
(Horizontal Push) Dumbbell Chest Press + (Horizontal Pull) Single Arm Cable Row
(Vertical Push) Single Arm Shoulder Press + (Vertical Pull) Chin Ups or Lat Pulls
(Core Stabilization) Side Planks + (Core Rotational) Cable Woodchops

You should be able to blast through that in less that 45 minutes, 30 minutes if you're really cooking!

Use Timed Sets - One of my favorite techniques I've adopted from Strength Coach Robert dos Remedios is the use of timed sets. Use, for example a 30:30 work interval split which is 30 seconds of work followed by 30 seconds of rest. When implementing this type of interval training in conjunction with strength work, agility and plyometric exercises, you can put yourself through a demanding, effective and fun workout worth 20 sets of work in just 20 minutes. Try this 30:30 circuit and start at just 10 minutes, then build yourself up to 20 minutes. If you come away from this routine feeling short-changed I'll be surprised...

Burpees
Prisoner Squats
Push Ups
Db Rows
Ice Skaters

Have fun with those! Let me know what you think!

Protein Supplements Continued...

Here is a link to the actual Consumer Reports website with a detailed outline of their findings for Lead, Mercury, Arsenic and Cadmium contents in protein supplements:

Click Here For Consumer Reports Image

I said it once and I'll say it again: how about we stick with chocolate milk for our recovery drinks and leave it at that!

Incredible Strength...

Here's a video a friend of mine passed along to me because he thought I would appreciate the strength it takes to complete the moves this guy does in the video. You won't find any bicep curls or smith machine bench here: this is some SERIOUS strength and core!

Protein Shake Warning

This report comes from WebMD and is quite alarming. Protein supplementation has become a staple in every gym goers nutrition routine. While the supplementing protein through shakes is convenient, a new investigation by Consumer Reports found some intriguing results that we may all want to pay attention to and you'll be surprised to find out that some of the supplement industry's biggest names like Muscle Milk and EAS are at the center of the investigation:

• EAS Myoplex Original Rich Dark Chocolate Shake has an average of 16.9 micrograms of arsenic in three servings -- more than the 15 micrograms a day that is the proposed USP limit. It has an average of 5.1 micrograms of cadmium for three servings -- above the USP limit of 5 micrograms a day.
• Muscle Milk chocolate powder, at three servings, contained all four of the metals, and three metals were found at a level that was among the highest of all 15 products tested. Cadmium levels were 5.6 micrograms -- above the 5-microgram limit. Lead was 13.5 micrograms -- above the USP limit of 10 micrograms. The arsenic averaged 12.2 micrograms -- near the 15-microgram daily USP limit.
• Muscle Milk vanilla crème had 12.2 micrograms of lead per three servings -- above the 10-microgram daily limit. It has 11.2 micrograms of arsenic -- close to the 15-microgram daily limit. - WebMD

That's right, the investigation found unsafe levels of various heavy metals in our favorite protein supplements. It will be interesting to see what comes of more studies to follow up on these discoveries. As a fitness professional it is disappointing for me to read stuff like this because I'd like to think there are products and company's out there that are willing to deliver a truly healthy product. You can bet that Muscle Milk powder sitting on my kitchen counter is going in the trash! Let's keep on the lookout for more research into these products and for now stick with chocolate milk as your protein shake!

Get Off The Abductor-Adductor Machines!

I saw three personal trainers and tons of people on the lamest machines known to gym-kind today. Here are some words of wisdom for all persons participating in fitness programs: GET OFF THE ADDUCTOR AND ABDUCTOR MACHINES! Perhaps the most worthless piles of metal in the gym, these machines only perpetuate several existing muscular imbalances people already have. Instead of sitting in that machine practicing your best Sharon Stone impression, try these functional exercises to strengthen those A-D and A-B-ductors:

Lateral Tube/Band Walking
Side Bridges with Hip Dips and Leg Abduction
Lateral Lunge to Balance
Lateral Step Ups
Side Lying Leg Abduction

Give those exercises a shot and you will work the same muscles, actually incorporate more muscles and be more functional!