We're back. With another article from James Kennedy - who actually has his own instagram now, you can see that here.

For competitive strength sports athletes, the aim of the game is to get as strong as possible. A key question then is, how and why do we get stronger? This question is essential to understand; without understanding this it is difficult to understand what we need to do in training and why it will work. 

There are a large number of factors which influence strength output for a given muscle group, from innate physical characteristics (such as limb length or muscle insertion sites) to adaptive characteristics (neural adaptations to force output and skill with lifting). These factors can change over time as well. New lifters tend to make rapid strength gains due to a combination of neural adaptations and skill development; the so-called noob gains. However, once you have passed through this phase (although this can last for a long time in some lucky people) there is a very strong relationship between muscular hypertrophy (muscle growth) and strength gains. 

To understand why this occurs, let's first delve into what’s happening in the muscle during a contraction to produce force.

Muscles can be broken down into a hierarchy of structures. The base of the hierarchy is two proteins - actin and myosin - which interact during muscle contractions. The myosin converts chemical energy released from amino triphosphate (ATP) into mechanical energy which pulls the actin filaments along the myosin filaments, causing muscle contractions. Thousands of actin and myosin proteins are found within a single sarcomere; a collection of sarcomeres forms a muscle fibre and a muscle is formed of thousands of muscle fibres. 
The microscopic level contraction - relaxation cycles of actin and myosin leads to the macroscopic level muscular contractions. The muscles are attached to the skeleton by tendons, and as they contract the skeleton moves. 

Muscles generally attach to the skeleton at two points - the origin and insertion. The origin of a muscle is the attachment site which doesn’t move during contraction. The insertion of a muscle is the attachment site which does move during contraction. Taking a bicep as an example; when you perform a bicep curl, the bicep contracts. This results in the forearm moving around the elbow joint, where the bicep muscle inserts. The shoulder remains still, which is where the bicep muscle originates.

Depending on the muscle group and type of joint they insert into - muscle fibres run at different angles. This angle, known as the pennation angle, controls the number of sarcomeres which can contribute to a given contraction. As pennation angle increases a greater number of sarcomeres can contribute to a given contraction - therefore a muscle with a larger pennation angle will be stronger than a muscle with a smaller pennation angle. Taking a line perpendicular to the pennation angle across the largest part of a muscle allows us to calculate the muscle's physiological cross-sectional area. Muscle cross-sectional area is directly proportional to the amount of force which can be produced by a muscle. 

Why does this matter for lifters? You can’t change the pennation angle - the angle at which muscle fibres insert into joints. However, you can increase the number of muscle fibres you have. The more muscle fibres you have, the larger your muscle cross-sectional area is and the greater force you can produce with that muscle. 

So how do we increase the number of muscle fibres? Resistance training! 


So, if you want to get stronger consistently over an extended period, you will need to increase the amount of muscle mass you have. As a strength athlete, you will also want to increase the amount of force your muscle can produce - so you have a larger muscle with more muscle fibres and each muscle fibre can produce more force. Training style can influence this; it is possible to have muscular hypertrophy and have fewer strength gains due to the muscle producing less force relative to the muscle size. Muscle force production is measured using Normalised Muscle Force (NMF); studies have mostly shown that it increases due to strength training. However, it does not increase the same for all groups. Comparisons between the amount of NMF produced by weightlifters' triceps, who train them primarily with a low rep, high weight movements like the jerk and overhead press, and bodybuilders, who trained triceps primarily with a higher rep, low weight movements, found that the weightlifters produced more force per unit area of muscle than the bodybuilders. 

Translating that into plain English; per unit of tricep muscle mass, weightlifters were able to generate more force than bodybuilders. This is likely due to the nature of the training differences between the groups. Note, that NMF is independent of muscle size - it is just related to the strength of the muscle. Ideally, we would like to be able to get a bigger muscle which could produce the same amount of force per unit area - growing both NMF and the number of muscle fibres.

To increase the number of muscular fibres and overall muscle size, there are two broad strategies - focussing on high reps with lower intensities or training with higher loads and slightly lower rep ranges. As strength athletes, we want to increase both the number of muscle fibres we have and the amount of force we can produce per unit area of the muscle, the NMF. Consequently, hypertrophy-based training for strength athletes should be focused in the range of 70-85% of one-rep max, aiming to get 20-35 reps per exercise. This would lead to some classical ‘power building’ rep ranges such as 3x10, 4x8 or 5x5. 

The weights used should also increase over time; progressive overload is essential for driving hypertrophy. The simplest way to achieve progressive overload is to just add a small amount of weight to each workout. Alternatively, you can keep the weight the same, but just increase the number of reps per set. Combined with eating a diet high in protein (diet article link), this will lead to muscular hypertrophy. As larger muscles have the potential to be stronger muscles, over time progressively overloading and growing muscles will make you stronger. Further, training in a higher intensity style will help you increase the amount of force your muscles are capable of producing per unit area, increasing the carryover from muscular hypertrophy to strength sports.

Summary

Whilst multiple factors influence strength beyond muscle size and force production, there aren’t a huge amount of things you can do about them. The innate physical characteristics, such as muscle insertion sites, limb length, and the angle of insertion of the muscle, are fundamentally unchangeable. New lifters typically make very quick gains in strength without experiencing a large amount of muscular hypertrophy due to neural adaptations and rapid skill acquisition and development. However, once this phase is over and lifters move from beginners to intermediate-advanced trainees, muscular hypertrophy is much more important to strength gains. Fundamentally, strength athletes should be attempting to grow as much muscle as possible to produce the most muscular force possible and lift the most possible weight. The training style is also important - training in lower rep ranges with higher intensities is essential to maximising the amount of force muscle can produce. Subsequently, strength athletes should be training in the 70-85% of one-rep max, with 20-35 reps per workout. 

Chasing muscular hypertrophy whilst lifting heavy weights will help you keep progressing in your strength sports career. A bigger muscle has more muscle fibres, which can be trained to contract harder, allowing you to lift more weight and break more PBs. Fundamentally, the more muscle you have the more weight you should be able to lift and the stronger you will be!

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Generally speaking, most people don’t have an issue with gaining weight. They get to eat more food, training feels easier, the weight on the bar is going up and life is generally good. People trying to lose weight tend to go the other way. They’re eating less, they’re tired and training is harder. Whilst this does come with the territory, there are often little things that people do which make losing weight more challenging. Losing weight - and keeping it off - requires more than just a calorie deficit. It requires changing your habits to create an environment where losing weight happens easily, without extra effort on your part. In this article I’ll outline ten mindset and lifestyle tips and tricks which will help you lose weight without completely hating life.
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 1. Set a goal.

 Setting a goal is a strong way to establish lifestyle change. 
However, instead of just picking a target bodyweight or lifting goal, focus on setting a process-oriented goal. For example, instead of setting a target to squat 250kg, set the process goal of squatting twice a week. Whilst it’s important to have targets and goals, by focusing on the process over the outcome you will be more likely to make the changes permanent. Any specific targets or goals you have should be reasonably challenging, but not so hard they seem ridiculous. 
For example, to set a weight loss target, aim to lose 0.5% a week until you reach your target goal. Then focusing on the processes needed to achieve this goal - e.g. hitting your calorie and macro targets - will mean that you will make changes that set you up for longer term success beyond achieving the specific goal. 

 2. Meal Prep.

 The second diet tip is good for anyone, not just those trying to lose weight. Meal prep. Cook all your food for the week in one go at the start of the week. This means that every meal you eat throughout the week will meet your macro and calorie needs. It also means that when it’s Wednesday night and you can’t be bothered to cook, instead of reaching for DeliveRoo or UberEats, you just go to the fridge and pick up a tub of chicken, rice and vegetables. 
From a practical standpoint, meal prep will require a bit of an upfront cost and investment into Tupperware. It will also mean that you have to block out a few hours over the weekend to do the meal prep. On the bright side, you will waste less food and save money per meal (it’s often cheaper, per portion, to cook 8 portions than 2). Meal prep is a great way of driving diet adherence higher. It does require a bit of focused effort, but it will make your life much easier. 

 3. A blender turns protein shakes a nutritious meal.

 Another way to make life easier is to invest in a blender. Buying a blender allows you to turn a protein shake into a low-calorie, nutrient rich meal. There are hundreds of recipes out there which can easily be adapted to your calorie and macronutrient needs. 

 4. Rice cooker.
 
 A rice cooker is the best thing I have ever bought for a kitchen, hands down. The rice cooker allows you to cook a huge quantity of rice in one go, meaning you can prep all your carbs for the week whilst doing your meal prep. For extra nutrition, you can also chuck in a load of frozen vegetables to the rice whilst it’s cooking. 

 5. Drink plenty.

 Whilst the amount of water you should drink will vary depending on the weather, the amount of exercise you do and your weight, drinking plenty of water has numerous health and performance benefits. Even being slightly dehydrated can lead to drastic drop off in performance. Whilst there is no set amount of water you should drink, aiming for at least 2L a day of water will make a noticeable difference to your training.

 6. Consistency is key - but if you go off plan, don’t panic.

 Consistency is the most important factor in influencing whether a diet or training plan is successful. However, that doesn’t mean that going off script is a complete failure. Realistically, life happens. You’re going to go out for a  birthday meal or to the pub with your mates or get a takeaway after a shitty day in work.  Whilst these type of events will mean you are off plan it’s important to not let them spiral. If you do overeat one day or miss a training session, that’s ok. What happens next is essential - don’t use the one missed day become an excuse for multiple days off the plan or a reason to stop altogether. Just move onto the next day and continue making progress. 

 7. Try and get your carbs in near the workout. 

 Nutrient timing has a small impact on the overall success of a diet, however if you are trying to lose weight carbohydrate timing can become more important. When in a calorie deficit, getting some carbs in your pre-workout meal will really help with training performance and make your training sessions easier and more enjoyable. 

 8. Do not go shopping hungry!

 This is a big one. If you are going shopping, make sure it’s just after you’ve eaten. It is much easier to ignore the vast amount of junk food that should be avoided when you’re not hungry. 

 9. Keep NEAT high - aim for 10,000 steps a day.

 Walking has numerous health benefits, both physical and mental. For lifters, walking has also been shown to enhance recovery from exercise and by keeping your activity high, you reduce the body adaptation to being in a calorie deficit. When you are in a calorie deficit, your body responds by reducing your non-exercise energy thermogenesis (NEAT). This is basically how active you are without paying attention. When you’re in a calorie deficit your body responds by reducing NEAT - so you’ll move around less and burn less baseline calories.  Focusing on going for a walk every day helps reduce the NEAT adaptations to dieting, alongside the general health and training benefits. By keeping your activity levels high outside the gym you’ll enhance your recovery, longevity and help regulate appetite, all whilst driving additional weight loss. 

 10. Utilise the 80/20 principle. 

 The 80/20 principle is an aphorism which states that 80% of the results comes from 20% of the effort. In health and fitness this does hold true. Focusing on your major compound lifts - squat, bench, deadlifts (Link these) - and your fundamental nutrition - calories and macros (link) - and getting enough sleep (link) will be responsible for most of your results. Don’t get sidetracked by the ‘one weird trick’ articles. Get the fundamentals right and the results will follow!
 
Conclusion 

 These 10 tips and tricks are small actions which can drastically improve training and diet adherence. By planning ahead and spending time focusing on the areas which have the biggest pay off, diet and training progress will be smoother, with less ups and downs, helping you reach your goals with ease!

 
If you want to get in touch with myself you can do so here.

For the author, James, you can click here.

Word count - 2022 words.
Read time - 6.7 minutes.
Author - James Kennedy.
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Veganism for Strength Athletes?
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 Vegan and vegetarian diets are becoming increasingly popular, due to the ethical and environmental impact of eating animal produce, as well as the health benefits of veganism. However, bro-science has argued for years that the only way to get jacked and ripped is to eat steak, with a side of eggs and a glass of milk 3-6 times a day, making a lot of strength athletes nervous about trying a vegetarian diet, despite the purported health benefits. In this article we’ll explore the health benefits of a vegan or vegetarian diet and whether strength athletes can eat a vegetarian diet and still maximise their training. 

 Firstly, definitions. There are several types of vegetarian diets - all vegetarian diets involve some restriction on the amount of meat and animal produce consumed within the diet.  The five main types of vegetarianism are, in order of flexibility:
 

• Flexitarianism: A flexitarian diet involves reducing the amount of meat and other animal products in the diet. This involves an occasional consumption of meat and fish,  but eating a vegetarian diet including dairy and eggs most of the time. 

 

• Pesco-vegetarianism: ‘Pesco’ refers to fish - a pesco - vegetarian eliminates meat from the diet but continues to eat fish, shellfish, eggs and dairy. 

 

• Lacto-Ovo Vegetarianism: Lacto refers to dairy and Ovo eggs.  This variation of vegetarianism eliminates meat and fish from the diet, but includes eggs and dairy produce. 

 

• Lacto Vegetarianism: A lacto vegetarian diet eliminates meat, fish and eggs, but still consumes dairy. 

 

• Veganism: Veganism is the most restrictive vegetarian diet, and involves the exclusion of all food products derived from animals.

 Longevity

 It’s commonly claimed that vegetarians live longer than omnivores (1). This reinforces the notion that vegans or vegetarian diets are healthier - if a vegan diet is healthier, we would expect vegans to live longer.  It’s true that vegan diets are associated with a range of health benefits, including lowering obesity rates, type 2 diabetes and heart disease - which are all common diseases increasing mortality rates (2). 

 However,  it’s not quite that simple. Plant based diets (i.e. flexitarian through to vegan diets) which rely on nutritious food lower your risk of heart disease by 25%. In contrast, plant based diets which are high in processed foods increase the risk of coronary heart disease by 32%! (3). Further, a recent meta-analysis (4) between vegetarians and *comparable* non-vegetarians have similar all cause mortality, with vegetarians having lower mortality rates from pancreatic and lymphatic cancers and meat-eaters having lower mortality rates from respiratory disease and all-cause mortality rates (the authors suggest more research is needed into why specific causes of death differ between the groups - though this is unnecessary. Meat eaters have lower all cause mortality because they’re less annoying than vegans, therefore they get beat to death less). 

 The longevity impacts of a vegan diet are overstated because of a series of confounding factors. Generally, vegans or vegetarians are more health conscious than the general population, as well as being higher educated, more physically active, sleeping more and smoking and drinking less (5). These confounding factors mean that the health benefits that vegetarians enjoy could be a result of the lifestyle, with the studies focusing on comparison between vegetarians and comparable meat-eaters suggesting that the health benefits are actually from the lifestyle that vegetarians adopt, rather than the diet. 

 So, no, a vegan or vegetarian diet will not make you live longer if you are a generally healthy person. But does it have any health benefits?

 Inflammation

 Inflammation, or chronic inflammation, has started to be blamed for a lot of disease over the past half-decade or so (6,7). Whilst some inflammation is a good thing, elevated levels of inflammation for long periods of time (chronic inflammation)  can cause health issues. It has been found that adopting a vegetarian diet over an extended period (over 2 years) does reduce inflammation, however, no study has been done comparing between vegetarians and comparable non-vegetarians (8). Once again, the chronic inflammation reduction seen in vegetarians may just be a result of the lifestyle choices vegetarians make. 


 Weight loss


 Yes for general population - probably not for athletes 

 Vegan and vegetarian diets do cause more weight loss than non-vegetarian diets for the general population (9). However, no data exists on the body composition lost (fat, muscle or water), or on the impact on weight loss for vegan strength athletes. 

 Speculatively - this is not based on any studies, just what I *think* might happen - it may be difficult to eat enough protein as a strength athlete whilst losing weight. When trying to lose weight, we should be aiming to eat around 2.2g/kg of protein. This could be challenging to achieve in a vegan diet, as most vegan protein sources also contain high levels of carbohydrates. Consequently, eating a vegan diet when cutting could make it challenging to retain muscle mass. Eating a lacto-ovo or lacto vegetarian diet may make it easier to hit their protein targets without going over their calorie or carbohydrate targets. 

 Having established that the health benefits of vegan and vegetarian diets are overstated, with comparable people who eat omnivorous diets seeing similar health outcomes, the next step is to see if there are any impacts on athletic performance from eating vegan or vegetarian diets. 

 Advice for athletes

  Athletic performance in general 

 A systematic literature review comparing the athletic performance of vegetarians and omnivores found that, over eight short term studies (12 weeks in length) there was no difference in athletic performance between vegetarians and non-vegetarians (10). Theoretically, there could be long-term impacts on health and performance from eating a vegan diet but no empirical studies on athletes has been done (11).  The impact, or potential impact, of these shortcomings can be alleviated by careful food and supplement selection by vegan athletes. 

 The first consideration is protein. Generally, protein from plants is less well digested and lacks essential amino acids which are essential in building muscle. Whilst lacto-ovo vegetarians generally will get enough of these amino acids from dairy and eggs, vegans should make sure they eat a source of lysine (beans, legumes), leucine (soy beans and lentils) and other BCAA rich foods (seeds, tree nuts and chickpeas. To make sure that vegans are getting enough digestible protein to support muscle growth, they should also consider boosting protein intake to around 2.2g/kg. 


 **what about whey?**

 **Whey protein is obviously not vegan, as it is made from dairy. However, Whey is a waste product from cheese production, with 10L of milk making 1kg of cheese and 9L of whey (think of the nursery rhyme, separating curds and whey). Whey is also an incredible environmental toxin, thought to be 175 times more toxic than human sewage (12).  For environmental vegans, whey could be used as a sustainable option. Since whey protein is a by-product of the dairy industry, the environmental impact of whey is itself, small. The environmental impact of whey protein is really low; the carbon and pollution emissions occur during the cheese production process. For vegans, this may mean a cheap, higher quality protein source could be utilised.** 
 
The second potential issue to address is fats. Vegans eat less fat in general which can be linked to lower testosterone levels (note - *vegans do not have lower testosterone vs omnivores*) , so this may be a non-issue.  Vegans also eat less omega-3 fatty acids, which are important for the immune system, growth and development. 

However,  the solution is pretty simple. Eat avocados, nuts and seeds and take a micro algae or omega 3 supplement. There isn’t overwhelming evidence that any of the potential side effects of eating a vegan diet (i.e. the most restrictive vegetarian diet) has a negative impact due to low fat content. It theoretically could however, so make sure you’re still getting enough dietary fat from oil, avocado, nuts and seeds as well as taking an omega-3 supplement. 

 Finally, we get onto micro-nutrition. Whilst this may seem counterintuitive as vegetarian diets are generally higher in fruit and vegetables, they are deficient in a few key vitamins and minerals. First up is vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 is an essential mineral used in the nervous system, blood and DNA, which primarily enters the diet through animal and dairy products. A deficiency in vitamin B12 causes tiredness and lethargy in the short term and can lead to anaemia and central nervous system damage in the long term. Vegans and vegetarians are therefore commonly advised to take about 6 micrograms of vitamin B12 supplementation a day. THIS IS NOT MEDICAL ADVICE but a can of monster energy has 13 micrograms of  vitamin B12 … just saying.

 The other major micronutrient which can be difficult for vegans to get into their diets is Calcium. Calcium is important for bone and muscle health, with vegans and vegetarians consuming less than non-vegetarians. This one does have evidence of it being a problem, with vegans having an increased risk of bone fractures and lower bone mineral density (11). The primary source of calcium in mixed diets is dairy - vegans are limited to high calcium vegetables (broccoli and kale) or calcium fortified foods. 


 Summary


 So, can a vegetarian diet ever be appropriate for a strength athlete? Easily. If you’re a strength athlete, eating a flexitarian diet (i.e. not eating meat or fish 2-4 days a week), will have no noticeable impact on performance or physique goals. Pesco-vegetarianism and Lacto-ovo vegetarianism are also vegetarian diets which would reduce the ethical and environmental impact of your diet without hindering strength training outcomes. 

 The most  restrictive vegetarian diets - veganism - could, potentially, have some long-term drawbacks. These drawbacks can easily be addressed however by supplementing the diet with vitamin B12 and calcium, as well as some vegan friendly omega-3 sources. The one case where it may be difficult to maintain a vegan diet is if you are attempting to get very lean - sub 10% body fat. In this scenario, you are trying to reduce body weight and maximise muscle mass retention. Most vegan protein sources are higher in calories than their non-vegan alternatives, which could make managing a cut difficult. 

 Overall, there is no reason why eating a vegetarian diet would have a negative impact on your strength and physique goals.  If you're interested, start by going flexitarian and slowly progress through pesco-vegetarian and lacto-ovo vegetarian diets and see how it goes!!!


 References

1. [Vegans live longer than those who eat meat or eggs, research finds | The Independent | TheIndependent](https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/vegan-meat-life-expectancy-eggs-dairy-research-a7168036.html#:~:text=Vegans%20have%20substantially%20lower%20death,a%20major%20study%20has%20found.&text=This%20increased%20to%20an%20eight,drop%20of%2012%20per%20cent.)
2. 2.  [Do Vegans Live Longer Than Non-Vegans?](https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/do-vegans-live-longer)
3. 3. [Healthful and unhealthful plant-based diets and the risk of coronary heart disease in US adults](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5555375/)
4. 4. [Mortality in vegetarians and comparable nonvegetarians in the United Kingdom - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26657045/)
5. 5. [Vegetarian Dietary Patterns and Mortality in Adventist Health Study2] (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4191896/)
6. 6.  [Chronic inflammation is long lasting, insidious, dangerous …](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/chronic-inflammation-is-long-lasting-insidious-dangerous-and-you-may-not-even-know-you-have-it/2020/01/17/93ab0fa2-316f-11ea-9313-6cba89b1b9fb_story.html)  [https://www.washingtonpost.com › health › 2020/01/17](https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/chronic-inflammation-is-long-lasting-insidious-dangerous-and-you-may-not-even-know-you-have-it/2020/01/17/93ab0fa2-316f-11ea-9313-6cba89b1b9fb_story.html) 
7. 7. [Why You Should Pay Attention to Chronic Inflammation](https://health.clevelandclinic.org/why-you-should-pay-attention-to-chronic-inflammation/)  [https://health.clevelandclinic.org › why-you-should-pay…](https://health.clevelandclinic.org/why-you-should-pay-attention-to-chronic-inflammation/) 
8. 8. [Association of vegetarian diet with inflammatory biomarkers: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28836492/)
9. 9. [Vegetarian Diets and Weight Reduction: a Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4699995/)
10. 10.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283495301_Vegetarian_and_Omnivorous_Nutrition_-_Comparing_Physical_Performance
11. 11. [Veganism, vegetarianism, bone mineral density, and fracture risk: a systematic review and meta-analysis | Nutrition Reviews | Oxford Academic](https://academic.oup.com/nutritionreviews/article/77/1/1/5146363?login=false)
12. 12. [(PDF) Life Cycle Impact Assessment and Allocation Methods Development for Cheese and Whey Processing](https://www.researchgate.net/publication/269848154_Life_Cycle_Impact_Assessment_and_Allocation_Methods_Development_for_Cheese_and_Whey_Processing)

If you'd like to get in touch with myself, you can do so via [email protected].

For the author, James Kennedy, you can email at - [email protected]

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This week's blog article is all about diet strategies that you may have heard of before and what they mean. 
The terms can be quite confusing to traverse, luckily - James Kennedy is here to help you out. 

​So, for the article. What you need to know - 

Word Count - 1424. 

Time to Read - 4.7 minutes.

Recently, we have been focusing on how to set up a diet, with an appropriate calorie and macronutrient target for your training goals. We have also briefly discussed the relative importance of nutrient timing and meal frequency. In this article we will dive into popular ‘nutritional strategies’  i.e. the many different ways you can get your calories in.  We will briefly outline what these  diet plans involve, who they are aimed at,  they’re general healthiness and how easy they are to do. 

 Whilst these different nutritional strategies all have their strengths and weaknesses, none of them are a magic bullet which will allow you to ignore the foundations of nutrition for strength athletes - calories and macros. 

 **Disclaimer - I have tried nearly all these strategies at one point or another. The best strategy for me has been IIFYM with a diet coach**  (Shameless plug).

 1. IIFYM 

 ‘If it fits your macros’ (IIFYM) is a nutritional strategy which allows you to eat whatever you want as long as it fits into your calorie and macronutrient targets. Obviously, this gives you a high degree of flexibility in the diet; there are no banned foods in this diet! This is IIFYM's greatest strength and also it’s great weakness. Whilst you can, and should, mainly hit your macronutrient targets through eating healthy foods it is possible to hit these targets eating junk foods. 

     1. Healthy

 The healthy version of IIFYM is not dissimilar to the Paleo diet. A healthy IIFYM diet would involve eating lean proteins, fruits, and vegetables. However, unlike the Paleo diet, you could also eat dairy and healthy ’post-palaeolithic’ sources of carbohydrates - rice, potatoes and whole grains.  

     2. Unhealthy

 An unhealthy IIFYM diet would basically be to eat whatever the hell you want as long as it fits your macros. Of course, this is the joy of IIFYM - if you want to eat doughnuts and pizza you can, as long as it can fit into the macro breakdown. Your body doesn’t know the difference between calories from a biscuit and calories from a kale smoothie. 

 However, eating a diet high in processed, unhealthy foods will not set you up for long term success. Firstly, it can be difficult to actually hit your macro targets and still eat 2-4 balanced meals a day. Secondly, it is really difficult to get your micro nutrition in if you eat a lot of junk food. Does this matter in the short term? No. You can still get ripped eating Big Macs every day, In the long term however, your body will not recover or grow as well as it possibly could. 

 IIFYM is by far the most flexible of the diet strategies we have outlined here. If used properly, it can be a healthy way to approach dieting, as you can eat a healthy diet most of the time, and still fit a higher calorie ‘cheat’ meal into the diet. However, it can be abused and some people may benefit from choosing a more restrictive diet to help improve discipline and diet adherence. 


2. Paleo

 A paleo diet (or caveman or hunter-gatherer diet) focuses on eating food which would have been available to our early human, pre-farming, ancestors. Primarily, this involves getting much of you calories from lean meats, fish, fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, whilst avoiding grains, potatoes, legumes, dairy and processed foods. 

 The Paleo diet is high in fruit, vegetables and lean protein sources, with clinical trials (references 1-4) finding benefits in:
 

• Higher satiety 
• Better blood pressure regulation
• Increased weight loss

 These effects are not entirely surprising - a diet low in processed foods is going to increase your overall health. Following a Paleo diet will almost certainly help you if you’re trying to lose weight as you eliminate almost all sources of carbohydrates from the diet apart from fruits and vegetables. However, for those bulking the Paleo diet is too restrictive, as it will be difficult to get enough calories to maximise muscle growth.  

 The idea of minimising processed food and eating plenty of lean protein, fruits and vegetables is good, however the elimination of healthy carbohydrates (rice, potatoes, oats, etc.) is unnecessary. Further, whilst this diet promises to tap into our ancestral caveman, a true Palaeolithic diet would have varied massively across the globe.  Finally, the elimination of dairy products could potentially lead to problems in getting enough calcium into the diet. 

 3. Intermittent Fasting

 Intermittent fasting refers to a diet where you can only eat at certain times and fast in-between. This fasting period can be structured in a number of ways, but the most common way is a 16 hour fast with an 8 hour feeding window (so basically just skipping breakfast and eating a larger lunch and dinner).

 Intermittent fasting can be a very effective method for weight loss - restricting the amount of time you can eat a day makes it easier to manage a reduction in calories. A lot of people have had amazing results from intermittent fasting - it makes fat loss relatively simple and some people find skipping meals can help with productivity and focus. 

 There are downsides to intermittent fasting. Some people find it very difficult to skip meals and if you are trying to gain muscle mass it can be difficult to eat enough in an 8 hour window to get maximal muscle gains. Also, only eating for a 4-8 hour window does not mean you can eat whatever you want. It’s still important to eat a balanced, healthy diet and track your calories and macronutrients.

 4. Carb Cycling

 Carb cycling is an advanced variation of IIFYM, where your macronutrients vary based on the level of activity on a given day. Typically, protein is constant throughout the week, with carbohydrates (and sometimes fat) cycled. Generally, the days that you train are ‘high carb’  days and non-training days are ‘low carb’ days, with fat reduced on high carb days and raised on low carb days. 

 This results in you eating more calories on training days and less on non-training days, which can help manage hunger. Carb-cycling is incredibly effective for both fat loss and muscle gain, but it is a complex diet. It requires you to plan your training sessions and meals out in advance each week, making it an advanced technique. For this reason, it’s not suitable for beginners who need to learn to track macros and calories without additional complications.

 5. Ketogenic

 The ketogenic diet is a low-carb, high fat diet which involves the elimination of nearly all carbohydrates from the diet in order to force the body into a state of ketosis - when it is forced to burn body fat for fuel. 

The ketogenic diet is often controversial (primarily because of its proponents), but it does have health benefits. Studies have shown that there are benefits to the ketogenic diets for weight loss and health outcomes, as well as potential benefits against diabetes, cancer, and Alzheimers (5-9). The typical ketogenic diet involves eating approximately 70% of calories from fat, 20% from protein and 10% from carbohydrates - primarily fruit and vegetables in order to get enough fibre and micronutrients into the diet. For lifters, who need to eat more protein, a high protein ketogenic diet would be used, with ~35% protein into the diet. 

 Whilst ketogenic diets have been shown to be better than ‘standard’ diets for weight loss in non-lifters, the results in lifters are less promising. A series of studies and recent meta-analysis (10) have shown that, compared to non-ketogenic diets, the ketogenic diet leads to greater weight loss and greater loss in fat free mass. They also indicate that smaller gains in hypertrophy and strength gains occur during a ketogenic diet compared to more typical bodybuilder diets. 

 Whilst a ketogenic diet is an effective fat loss tool for non-athletes, lifters aiming to lose weight want to maximise the amount of lean muscle mass they retain. For this reason, a ketogenic diet is not appropriate for lifters in a fat loss phase. Furthermore, it’s not ideal for bulking either - eating a more standard, moderate to high carb diet will allow you to build more muscle and strength. 

 Summary

 This article has given a brief overview of five of the most popular diet strategies used in the health and fitness industry today. All of these diets have a place for lifters, but rely on manipulation of macronutrient and calorie targets in order to have success. There is no right way to diet - find the best method for you!

​
 References

1. Tarantino G, et al. Hype or reality: Should patients with metabolic syndrome-related NAFLD be on the Hunter-Gatherer (Paleo) Diet to decrease morbidity? Journal of Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease. 2015;24:359.
2. Should we eat like our caveman ancestors? Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/weight-loss/fad-diets/should-we-eat-like-our-caveman-ancestors. Accessed March 17, 2017.
3. Manheimer EW, et al. Paleolithic nutrition for metabolic syndrome: Systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 2015;102:922.
4. Beals KA. Is a paleolithic diet the key to achieving optimal health and athletic performance? American College of Sports Medicine Health and Fitness Journal. 2016;20:18..
5. [Ketogenic Diet for Obesity: Friend or Foe?](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3945587/)
6. [Implementing a low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet to manage type 2 diabetes mellitus - PubMed](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30289048/)
7. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6836058/
8. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5842847/
9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6720297/
10. https://www.strongerbyscience.com/research-spotlight-keto-lifting/

What to Know - 

Word Count - 1200 words. 

Time to Read - 4 minutes ish.

 In Part 1 of our diet setup guide, we outlined the 5 components of a diet:
 1. Calories. Calories provide the fundamental control on whether weight is gained or lost. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you eat less calories than you burn, then you will lose weight

 2. Macros. Macros (Protein, Carbohydrates and Fats), are important in helping you reach physique goals more quickly than if you just focus on calories alone.

 3. Micronutrients. Micronutrients aren’t massively important in attaining physique goals - however long-term deficiencies will impact your health and ability to train and recover. 

 4. Meal timing/frequency. Meal timing and frequency is a topic which generates a lot of discussion and catchy slogans but it doesn’t really matter, if you are hitting your calorie and macro targets. These will be discussed in more detail in a future article.

 5. Supplements. Supplements are the smallest part of the puzzle - I wrote about supplements in a previous article (link here). For now, all we need to know is that supplements, supplement your diet and help you reach your calorie and macro targets. 

 The first article focused on the two most important factors in determining diet success - Calories and Macros. Part 2 is focusing on the other three components of diet; micronutrients, meal timing and frequency and supplements. Whilst these are less important than calories and macronutrients to determining success, they do play a role in your long term health and diet success. 

 Micronutrients 
Micronutrients are nutrients required in the diet in small amounts for optimal health and performance. Whereas macronutrients are measured in grams, micronutrients are usally measured in the diet in miligrams. In the short term they aren’t super important, but long term micronutrient deficiencies cause serious health issues and will impact your ability to train effectively.  
 Micronutrients can be divided into two groups - vitamins and minerals. Minerals are non-organic (e.g. Iron, Zinc, Sodium etc.) whereas vitamins are organic. Vitamins are further subdivided into water-soluble and fat-soluble. Water soluble vitamins (e.g. Vitamin C) pass through the body in urine (which is why your pee turns a bright colour when you take a vitamin C tablet). Fat soluble vitamins are absorbed in the stomach and build up in the body. This means that deficits and surpluses build up in the body over time and can’t be quickly corrected. 

 How do I make sure I get enough micronutrients?

 Tracking your micronutrition is not recommended unless you have a specific micronutrient deficiency that needs addressing. For most people the micronutrients contained in meat (B-minerals), dairy (calcium, zinc and vitamin A) and starchy carbohydrates (Zinc, magnesium and vitamin B6) will be present in the diet in ample quantities. The micronutrients present in fish (primarily omega-3 fatty acids) and fruits and vegetables (Vitamin A, C, D, E and others) are more likely to be under-represented in the diet..  
 The simplest way to make sure you’re covering all the bases in terms of micronutrition is to eat a varied diet, with 2 meals of fish a week and plenty of fruit and vegetables each day. Eric Helms gives the following guidelines for his bodybuilding competitors on specific quantities of fruit and veg per day: 

Calories.                       Cups of fruit & vegetables / day.

1200 - 2000.                  2 cups each.

2000 - 3000.                  3 cups each.

3000 - 4000                   4 cups each.

 The reason that these recommendations decrease with calorie intake is twofold:
 

1. The less calories you eat, the less carbohydrates you eat, therefore the less fruit and vegetables you’ll be able to fit into your macros. 
2. The more food you eat, the more fibre is needed in the diet to digest the food and pass it through the gut. 

 Can i just take a multivitamin and not eat fruit and vegetables?

 No. 

 To quote Alan Aragon: 
‘a poor diet with a muti(vitamin) is still a poor diet’.


 Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables is essential for optimising health and performance. A multivitamin is a good insurance policy - if there are gaps in your micronutrient intake from your diet, then the multivitamin will help cover them. However, they will not provide you with the total health benefits that eating a variety of fruit and vegetables will. 


 Nutrient Timing and Meal Frequency

Nutrient timing and meal frequency is overrated. It certainly can have a small impact on body composition and help with diet adherence, particularly when cutting, but the overall success or failure of a diet will be controlled by calories and macronutrients. There is evidence that meal frequency (specifically intermittent fasting), does have health benefits but it’s debated as to whether these impacts are due to intermittent fasting or just caloric restriction and weight loss. 

 For beginners, or those new to tracking calories and macros, simplicity is key. The best diet for you is the one you can stick to. To begin, there are three main considerations:

1. How many meals?
2. Nutrient timing and training
3. Breakfast - do you need it?

 The number of meals you eat is related to how many calories you have to eat that day. If you are cutting, splitting those calories into 2-4 meals is probably best. If you’re bulking, eating 3-4 meals will work better - trying to cram a calorie surplus into two meals is probably going to be unpleasant. When you’re cutting, eating fewer meals can be psychologically beneficial because you can eat 2 normal meals and one smaller meal or even skip a meal.

 It is also important, especially when cutting, to space your meals around your training. If you’re training in a calorie deficit, making sure you are fueled properly around the workout is essential for getting the most out of your training that you can. 

 Firstly, never train completely fasted. Even if you are training at 6am, take a protein shake to the gym with you and sip it throughout your workout (p.s. If you find protein shakes too milky to drink during a workout, try MyProtein’s clear whey - it’s excellent for intra-workout shakes). Once you have finished your workout, make sure you eat within two hours of finishing a session. Make sure you eat more in the post-workout meal than the pre-workout meal and try to split your macros evenly between the meals.  

 Finally, breakfast. Skipping breakfast - or having a low calorie meal like a protein shake - can be helpful if you’re cutting. It makes calculating your calories and macros easier as you can just split them between two meals. Typically, people in a calorie deficit find it easier to skip breakfast and then eat two more or less normal meals. 

 Supplements

The final piece of the puzzle is supplements. These are supplements to the diet - not a magic bullet. Broadly, protein powder is a worthwhile investment as it can help you boost dietary protein without the addition of excess calories. Make sure your protein powder doesn’t contain a large amount of filler - a good powder will contain 18-20g protein per 25g scoop. There are a range of other supplements which can help your performance - link here - but they are non-essential to your dieting goals. 

 Summary
​
 The keys to a successful diet are your calories and macros (link this to article 1). Your micronutrition, nutrient timing and meal frequency have a smaller impact on the overall success of a diet, but cause a huge amount of confusion. Fundamentally, eating 2-4 meals per day, with a varied diet including fruit and vegetables and using high quality protein powders and supplements to fill in the gaps will take care of your basic micro-nutritional and meal frequency needs. 

This is another article written by Daniel Lee Fitness coach James Kennedy. 

If you'd like to get in touch with him directly you can email him on - [email protected] 

The low down - 

Word Count - 1910.
Time to Read - 6.3 minutes. ​

Setting up a diet 
​
According to survey data from the US 41% of gym-goers attend the gym to lose weight and 38% go to look better (Source - https://www.statista.com/statistics/639169/reasons-behind-gym-exercise-in-us/
) . Whilst exercising is a key component of improving your physique and losing weight, your diet is essential to help maximise both muscle growth and fat loss. 

Diet is a topic for which there is no end of bullshit on the internet. If you don’t get the fundamental parts of a diet sorted, then you will be wasting your time and money. This article will explain what the key components of a diet are, what you should focus on and how to get started with your diet whether you want to build muscle or lose fat. 

TL; DR

• Your weight is controlled by calorie balance. Eating more than you need will cause weight gain, eating less than you need will drive weight loss. 
• Macronutrients are important to track in order to make reaching physique goals easier.
• Setting realistic weight loss or muscle gain targets is essential to establishing long term success. 

Nutritional Importance

There are 5 components to a diet, in order of importance: 

1. Calories. Calories provide the fundamental control on whether weight is gained or lost. If you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight. If you eat less calories than you burn, then you will lose weight

2. Macros. Macros (Protein, Carbohydrates and Fats), are important in helping you reach physique goals more quickly than if you just focus on calories alone

3. Micronutrients. Micronutrients aren’t massively important in attaining physique goals - however long-term deficiencies will impact your health and ability to train and recover. 

4. Meal timing/frequency. Meal timing and frequency is a topic which generates a lot of discussion and catchy slogans but it doesn’t really matter, if you are hitting your calorie and macro targets. These will be discussed in more detail in a future article.

5. Supplements. Supplements are the smallest part of the puzzle - I wrote about supplements in a previous article (link here). For now, all we need to know is that supplements, supplement your diet and help you reach your calorie and macro targets. 

This article is primarily going to focus on the first two points; calories and macros with micronutrients, meal timing and frequency discussed in a subsequent article. 

Setting up your diet

When setting up a diet - whether your goal is muscle gain, fat loss or to maximise sports performance - the most important thing is calorie balance. There are 3 main components to a diet:

1. Choosing appropriate fat loss or muscle gain targets based your current levels of body fat or training experience

2. Calculating your target energy intake

3. Calculating your macronutrient breakdown 

Most people want to lose fat or gain muscle, or ideally do both simultaneously. Your ability to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time decreases with body fat percentage and training experience. The less time you’ve been training and the higher body fat percentage you have, the easier it will be to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time. However, if you are a complete beginner to training, you may be better focused on just trying to gain muscle - your ‘noob gains’ will be much greater and training will be easier. 

When we are deciding about whether to lose or gain weight it is important to establish what our goals are. Should we try to gain muscle and add weight (bulk)  or try to lose body fat (cut)? 

The first question to ask yourself is what your training goals are. Are you a powerlifter or strongman competitor who just wants to maximise the amount of weight you can lift? Are you a powerlifter looking to move up or down a weight class? Or are you a bodybuilder or fitness enthusiast who is looking to maximise your physique? 

Generally, if your body fat percentage is above 15% for a male athlete or above 25% for a female athlete, you can cut your body-fat levels down to 8-10% without losing much strength. For the powerlifters out there, if you are near the bottom of your current weight class and carrying higher levels of body fat, cutting to reach the weight class below may allow you to become highly competitive. 

For example, if you weigh 85kg and have 20% body fat and compete in the 90kg weight class, you could easily lose 5-8% body-fat and move down to the 82.5kg weight class without losing any strength. This will make you relatively stronger and more competitive in the lower weight class. If you are already fairly lean, below 8-12% body fat levels, deciding to bulk may be more appropriate. 

Once you have decided whether to bulk or cut, the next step is to calculate how many calories you should eat. Thankfully, there is a helpful tool available to do this (http://dannyleeonline.co.uk/macro-calculator.html). 

To use this tool, firstly weigh yourself and measure your body fat percentage. The two easiest ways to measure your body fat percentage at home are either the calliper method 
(https://www.myprotein.com/thezone/nutrition/how-to-use-skin-fold-calipers-measuring-body-fat-percentage/) or the tape measure method developed by the US Navy (https://rippedbody.com/how-calculate-body-fat-percentage/)
 
Once you have these numbers, it’s possible to calculate your lean body mass (LBM). The next step is to establish your target LBM and target body-fat percentages. For those deciding to cut, you are aiming to maintain LBM and lose body-fat. Broadly, the following fat-loss targets are appropriate:


Body Fat %.                   ->30.     20-30.        15-20.       12-15.   8-12.    <8
Target fat loss/week -   1.1kg.      0.9kg.       0.7kg.    0.5kg.  0.3kg.  0.2kg
(source: https://rippedbody.com/)

So, if we go back to our 85kg powerlifter with 20% body fat who is aiming to lose around 8% body-fat (7kg), they should be aiming to lose 0.7kg a week. This means their initial cut should take ten weeks (7kg / 0.7 kg = 10 weeks), and their target body mass is 77kg. 

What about if we wanted to build more muscle? How much muscle could we expect to gain and how quickly? The first step in assessing how much muscle we could expect to gain is to assess how long you have been training seriously. If you are unsure about where you fit in, ask your coach. 

Training Status -           Beginner.       Intermediate      Advanced
Muscle Gain per month - 0.9-1.2kg.  0.45kg-0.9kg.        0.25kg
(source: https://rippedbody.com/)

There are several strategies around bulking. A dirty bulk (gain weight as quickly as possible), a controlled bulk (maximise muscle gain without gaining unnecessary fat levels) or a lean bulk (maintain maximal leanness while adding muscle). A dirty bulk is usually a bad idea. Your maximal rate of muscle growth is controlled by training experience, not by calories. Eating more calories above an appropriate level just leads to elevated fat gains.  In contrast, the so-called lean bulk or lean gains strategy, aims to build muscle without gaining fat. This can be done, but it will take much longer to build significant muscle mass. The best way, in my view, is to take the middle ground and perform a controlled bulk. This maximises your muscle gain whilst controlling the fat gain. For most people, a ratio of 1:1 muscle : fat gain is realistic. 

So, to use another example, what if we had a beginner to training, who weighs 70kg at 8% body fat. In this case, the lifter should be trying     to gain muscle. As they are a beginner, setting a target of 1kg of muscle a month is a realistic goal. If they aim to gain 1kg of muscle a month, they should expect to gain 1kg of fat per month. Over a 6 month bulk, they should aim to gain 6kg of muscle and 6kg of fat, leaving them at 82kg and 15% body fat. 


Calories 
So what happens now? We’ve established what we weigh, what body fat levels and our goals. The next step is to calculate your calories. The first step is to assess your daily, non-exercise activity level. Fundamentally, if you’re an office worker, set it at taking it easy. If you work in a more physically demanding job, set the activity level to beast mode. 
The second step is to enter how many hours of exercise a week you perform. If you’re training 4 times a week, using 6 hours of exercise as a baseline is typical. Once these have been entered, you’ll be able to calculate your daily calorie targets. 
Going back to our cutting powerlifter - the output is for them to eat 2546 calories a day. Our bulking beginner has a target of 2711 calories a day. Alongside these numbers, there are then the target macros - Protein, Carbs and Fat. What are these numbers and what should you do with them? 
Macros 
Macros or macronutrients refer to a food type required in large amounts in the diet; principally Fat, Protein and Carbohydrates. A common idea is that whilst calorie balance determines weight loss and gain, macronutrients control whether fat is lost or muscle is gained. This isn’t entirely right, but if you get the macro-nutrients correct then it will be much easier to reach your physique goals. 
The three major macronutrients are Protein, Carbohydrates and Fat. Each macronutrient has a certain amount of calories. Protein and carbohydrates both contain 4 calories per gram, with fat containing 9 calories per gram. The calorie target is then made up of a certain amount of protein, fat and carbohydrates per day. 

Protein 
Protein is essential for strength and physique athletes. Primarily, protein is essential for muscle repair and growth, thereby helping us recover from training. When we are trying lose weight, eating enough protein is essential to maintain as much lean muscle mass as possible. When we are trying to gain muscle mass, protein is important to help us to build as much muscle as possible. 
The amount of protein that you consume is dependent on your lean body mass and your diet goals. If you’re cutting, protein intake should be slightly higher than if you’re bulking, with a range of 2.3-3.1g/kg of LBM when cutting and 1.6-2.2g/kg of LMB when bulking. Using the Danny Lee Macro calculator*, we are given 5 options for the protein multiplier (0.8-0.9-1.0-1.1-1.2). If you are cutting, select a value of 1.0-1.2 for the protein multiplier, and a value for 0.8-1.0 if you’re bulking. 
The reason that protein is boosted in a calorie deficit is two fold; firstly higher levels of protein in the diet when you are in a calorie deficit helps preserve muscle mass. Secondly, protein is a high satiety macronutrient - it helps you feel fuller. When you are in a calorie deficit, eating a higher proportion of your diet from protein will help you feel fuller, making it easy to stick to the diet. 
Fat
Dietary fat is an essential macronutrient - it has a key role in maintaining normal hormonal function, especially testosterone. It should never be completely removed from your diet as this will have adverse health effects over the long term. 
Fat is the most calorie intensive of the macronutrients, with 9 calories per gram. During a cut, the easiest way to reduce calories is therefore to reduce fat consumption. As fat is over twice as calorie rich as carbohydrates, reducing fat intake can cause a big drop in calories. There is a minimum value that you shouldn’t go below - broadly below 0.9g/kg LBM. During a bulk, fat should make up around 20-30% of the total calorie intake. 
Using our trusty macro calculator, we have a range of values for the fat multiplier (0.4-0.5-0.6). If you are trying to cut, select the minimum value, 0.4. If you are trying to bulk, select 0.5 or 0.6, to see which value results in a fat intake between the 20-30% range. 
Carbohydrate
The final piece of the macronutrient puzzle are carbohydrates. When setting up a diet and setting your macronutrient targets, carbohydrates make up the remaining calorie amounts once your protein and fat goals have been set. Whilst carbohydrates are technically just the ‘rest’ of your diet, they are still important. Carbohydrates have important roles to play in feeling your workouts, replenishing muscle glycogen and play a role in hormone regulation. 

Putting it all together 
Let's go back to our two examples. 
Our 85kg powerlifter who is trying to cut has calculated they have 20% body fat, giving them a LBM of 68kg. They want to cut down to 12% body fat, giving them a target weight of 77kg. They have a relatively sedentary job and do 6 hours of training a week. 
This gives them a calorie target of ~2546 cal/day. They are cutting, so they select a protein multiplier of 1.1 and a fat multiplier of 0.4, giving them final macro targets of 186g Protein, 296g Carbohydrates and 67g Fat. 

The second example is our 70kg beginner who wants to pack on some muscle. 
They have a calculated body fat of 8%, giving them 64.4kg LBM. They are aiming to gain a kilo of muscle per month over the next six months, giving them a target LBM of 70.4kg, and a body fat percentage of 15%.  They have an active job and also do 6 hours of training a week, giving them a calorie target of 3073 calories per day. As they are bulking, they are choose a protein multiplier of 0.9 and a fat multiplier of 0.5, giving them final macro targets of 162g Protein, 402g Carbohydrates and 90g Fat. 

Summary 
In this guide we have outlined the key components of setting up a diet, what the components of a diet are and how to calculate your calorie and macronutrient targets. This should serve as the basis for your diet. In the next article we will discuss in more detail how you can use different strategies to hit your calorie and macronutrient targets, as well as discuss the importance of micronutrients.
*
The Macro calculator is available to clients in the website's 'Client Portal'.

This article was written by James Kennedy, if you'd like to get in touch with him directly you can email him via - [email protected]

The latest one from James Kennedy is all about making a habit. 

Habit forming is so important to getting into fitness and training. It makes everything easier. 

Read more to learn how. 

Word Count - 1331 words.
Time to read - 4.3 minutes.

One of my favourite quotes about the importance of habits is (mis)attributed to Aristotle ‘we are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit’. Whilst this quote is actually from a summation of Aristotle’s work in Nicomachean Ethics by Will Durant (‘these virtues are formed in man by his doing the actions’) - the point is simple. Consistency is key. The key to consistency is to make the desired action a habit - an action which is hard to give up. 

 Habit formation is one of the key phases in generating progress. As mentioned in the previous article half of all new gym members quit within 6 months - making exercise a habit is key to sticking to it and achieving your goals. So how do we form an exercise habit?

 ~Stage 1 - Develop a routine~ 

 Habits are consistently repeated behaviours. The hardest part of doing anything is getting started. If you don’t have a plan for when and where you are working out it’s far easier to push it off until the next day or the day after, until suddenly you’ve not worked out in a week or two. 

 Making actions routine means it is far easier to do them; you start performing the actions automatically, without thinking about it. If you can make exercising automatic and mindless then you will be able to stick to the plan for much longer. 

 This also applies to diet. If you can make meal planning, prep and macro tracking automatic and mindless it becomes much easier to follow a diet plan. When I first started tracking macros it took a lot of effort and focus to weigh out my food and track the macros, now I do it without even thinking. Turning diet and exercise into a habit makes it much more likely that you will stick with it and achieve your goals. 

 A great way of establishing a routine is to use the concept of implementation intentions.  An implementation intention is a plan you make about when and where to act prior to acting. The broad form is ‘When X occurs, I will do Y’. These can be used, and have been shown to be effective, in helping people develop good habits and break bad habits. 

 For exercise, you may amend the form to be ‘I will exercise on DAYS at TIME at GYM NAME’.  Once you have committed to this implementation, it is much easier to develop a habit. You no longer have to think about when or where you are training - you have already committed to it. 

 An advantage of using an implementation plan is that you can start to add layers to them. So, if you have committed to training 4 days, at a given time, a logical next implementation plan may be to commit to having your gym kit ready and packed the day before so you don’t have to waste time looking for it when you’re meant to be working out. The next step might be to make sure your pre-workout protein shake is ready and so on. Stacking implementation plans allows you to develop a full routine, enabling you to easily form a complex habit quickly. 

 ~Stage 2 - So easy, you can’t say no~

 When people join a gym and decide to start a new exercise routine they are full of enthusiasm, energy and ambition. This leads to them trying to do everything on Day 1. When you first start training, especially if you’re not used to it or coming back to it after a long lay off, you will get delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) the day after you train.  

 That initial motivation eventually runs out - and the harder you push it in the beginning, the quicker it runs out. If your workouts are three hour long marathons which leave you crippled for days afterwards, when motivation drops you are far less likely to stick with the habit. 

 To combat this, make it so easy that you can’t say no to yourself. This, builds on the routine developed in stage 1- if you have committed to working out 4 days a week at 06:00 am, waking up every morning with your gym kit ready to go, it requires far less motivation to go to the gym as you don’t have to go through the motions of getting organised and ready to actually go to the gym. 

 If you are struggling with motivation to workout on a day where you have already intended to workout - make it so easy you can’t say no. Instead of aiming to complete the full workout, just go to the gym and do your main exercise for the day. If you go and do only that, great! You’ve achieved what you set out to achieve that day and you’ve continued to built the habit. Often times, once you start a workout you will find your motivation increasing and suddenly you’ve completed the entire workout. What’s important to develop the exercise habit is just to do something, however small, that allows you to keep building the habit. 

 ~Stage 3 - Results come later~

 There is no point worrying about results or progress when you start working out. It’s important to have goals but the most important thing is to establish the habit of working out.

Once you are used to following a workout plan and exercising consistently, to the point where it has become a habit,  then you can start worrying about progress.

 This may seem counterintuitive but it really isn’t. Setting yourself the goal of losing 10kg in 6 months is great. But, if after 3 months you’ve only lost 3kg you may feel as though you’re not making enough progress, become demotivated and quit. Instead, if you focus on establishing an exercise habit of working out 4 days a week and achieve this, you won’t be worried about the numbers on the scale of weights on the bar. Once you’ve established the exercise habit, which will only take a month or so, then you can focus on achieving your goals.  
 
The most important step in achieving any goal is consistency. You will have bad workouts - days where you walk into the gym, look around and just think fuck this. The weights feel heavy and everything seems to be harder. You will also have days when you walk into the gym and feel like you could lift anything you were asked to. These days, both good and bad, are rare. Most days you will walk in, do your workout and leave. These are the days which are key to progress. Consistency is the key - establish the habit and the results will come. 

 ~Stage 4 - Be accountable~

 The final stage of developing an exercise habit is to  be accountable to someone. By having a training parter or group, or coach, you have to report to someone else that you’re not working out or that you’re feeling low on motivation. A good workout group or coach (link to DLF groups) are brilliant - when you need motivation they’ll help get you in the gym door, as well as make training fun. 

 A coach is perfect for this - alongside helping you plan your workouts and improve your technique - they’ll help you be accountable and develop the exercise habit. There is also a financial commitment to holding yourself accountable - when you’re not working out but paying your coach and gym memberships you’re also wasting money.

 ~Summary~

 Developing new habits is a difficult, challenging process. The ideas outlined in this article provide the basis for developing an exercise habit that will set you up for long term success in 2021 and beyond. Begin by developing a routine and making it too easy to say no to. Get yourself in the habit of following a structured exercise programme before worrying about the results and hold yourself accountable by hiring a coach to monitor your progress and help you establish exercise as a habit. 

If you want to contact James directly you can email here.

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Our first article of 2022 focuses upon what you should expect to happen when you begin training. This is especially useful if you're a beginner to training powerlifting, or just training in general. 

As is often the case, this article is brought to you by James Kennedy. James has been the main writer for my website for a few months now but as of January of this year he is now also Assistant Coach. So, you may see him working for me in an online capacity, and helping me out at competitions when I'm over run with clients. 

New Year, New You. Exercising more, losing weight, and learning a new skill or hobby are some of the most common New Year’s resolutions people commit to at the start of the year. Consequently, January is the month with the most new gym membership sales - around 11% of all new memberships start in January. Sadly, half of new gym members quit within 6 months. Why? 

The reasons people give for quitting the gyms are usually similar. People feel as though they aren’t making progress and aren’t seeing the results they deserve, are worried about getting injured or have gotten injured or don’t enjoy going to the gym because they feel judged, uncomfortable or anxious. This article explores how to get started at the gym, what to expect and how to set yourself up for long term success!
Making the decision to join the gym and start training is exciting and scary. The best thing you can do on day one is to find a good coach who can help simplify the process for you (some good ones (Danny Lee Link, Lauren May Drake link). 
For me, getting a coach was the best decision I’ve ever made. I’d been training seriously for around 2 years, and by chance rather than design, had made some solid progress and wanted to give powerlifting a go. I found a powerlifting coach and joined a powerlifting gym. I made more progress in the following 6 months than I had made since I had started training. The coach, the group training environment and the entire culture of the gym made training fun and helped me achieve new personal bests.

James even has an email you can get in touch with him via - [email protected]

So, if you want to talk to him about Online Coaching, or even about stuff he's written, give him a message. 

The beginner series from James Kennedy continues with some deadlift accessories. 

Cliff Notes - 

Word count - 1350

Time to read - 4.5 minutes. 

Main Points - Deadlift variations and strengthening the legs and back are your most effective way to improve your deadlift. 

The deadlift is fundamentally a simple lift - accessory work for the deadlift is also simple.  The primary muscles involved in the deadlift are the hamstrings and the muscles of the back, primarily the lats.  To improve the deadlift it is important to drive hypertrophy in these muscle groups. The deadlift is usually the lift which allows you to lift the most weight and is therefore the most taxing on the central nervous system. The accessory work for the deadlift can also be used to address grip strength issues. 

For improving hypertrophy in the muscles involved in the deadlift, the best option is for some close variation on the deadlift that allows you to work the muscles involved from a similar position than the standard deadlift. These include, but are not limited to, paused deadlifts, block or rack pulls, deficit deadlifts, Romanian deadlifts and stiff legged deadlifts. Alongside these close variations of the deadlift there are more general compound exercises which will help drive hypertrophy in the back muscles - primarily bent over row and the pendlay row. Isolation exercises are also useful for deadlift accessory work - with glute ham raises, hamstring curls and lat pull downs all useful exercises. Within this article we will go through the main deadlift variations, compound and isolation exercises that form the basis of deadlift accessory work. 

The deadlift variations all help address specific technical and strength related issues in the deadlift. Paused deadlifts are deadlifts with pauses at some point in the lift - usually just off the floor or at knee height. The paused deadlift is a great accessory pulling exercise for beginners to correct balance issues and stay in the right position throughout the lift. This is especially valuable for people who are transitioning from conventional to sumo deadlifts -a pause just off the floor stops you shooting your hips up and just performing a wide stance, conventional deadlift.  

Performing a paused variation of a lift will usually reduce the amount of weight you can use. Block pulls or block deadlifts are a deadlift performed with the plates elevated on blocks or mats 2-8 inches of the floor. This shortens the range of motion and allows you to lift more weight. This can be used in two ways - it can be done for low reps and supra maximal loads or for high reps with sub maximal loads. Performing block pulls for triples would allow you to get used to handling weights above your deadlift one rep max which can remove some of the psychological hang ups around performing heavy deadlifts, as well as training your muscles and CNS to handle heavy weights. Alternatively, and more likely with Danny Lee’s coaching, you can also perform block pulls  for high reps. This allows you to perform high reps at heavier loads, than you usually would, driving hypertrophy in the hamstrings and back. Personally, I have found this a very effective training technique, building up to 3x10 @ 200kg block pulls whilst having a competition best of 220kg. When I next competed I hit a 25kg deadlift PR - block pulls were a great exercise for me. 

Deficit deadlifts are the opposite of block pulls as they increase the range of motion. To perform a deficit deadlift you elevate your feet on a plate or box with the deadlift bar on the floor. This increases the range of motion, which can be helpful for people who are weak off the floor and help develop the hamstring muscles as they are working through a greater range of motion.

The snatch grip deadlift is another variation which increases the range of motion through which you lift the weight. To perform a snatch grip deadlift you take a wider grip - similar to the grip taken by olympic weightlifters whilst performing a snatch - usually with your hands outside the rings on the bar. This increases the range of motion at both the bottom and top of the deadlift as the bar locks out higher, closer to your hips making it a great accessory exercise for people who are weak off the floor and at lockout. When you are performing a snatch grip deadlift, it is helpful to use lifting straps. As you’re taking a wide grip on the bar, it can be difficult to hold the bar unless you’re using a hook grip, which becomes uncomfortable when you’re using high reps.  

The Romanian Deadlift (RDL) and Stiff-legged deadlifts are both great variations for targeting the hamstring specifically without taxing the back. Romanian deadlifts are primarily a hip hinge movement from the top down. To begin a RDL you either perform a normal deadlift from the floor before the first rep or set the bar in a rack around hip height, picking it up and stepping forward. Once you are stood up with the bar in your hands, arch your back and slightly bend your knees. Then hinge forward at the hips until you feel a stretch in the hamstrings and stand back up. 

The stiff-legged deadlift variation are similar to the RDL. You begin with the bar on the floor and perform a deadlift with your knees slightly unlocked and perform the rep by just hinging at the hips. This variation requires you to have a greater degree of hip mobility than the Romanian Deadlift. 

The final deadlift variation is the single leg deadlift. Single-leg work is typically unpopular with powerlifters; they’re hard and you have to use low weights. However, single leg deadlifts are a great exercise for stretching and strengthening the hip muscles, primarily the abductors and external rotators which can help keep the hips healthy - increasing longevity and keeping you feeling good for your heavy squats and deadlifts. 

Outside of deadlift variations, there are a couple of good accessory compound and isolation exercises which help develop the muscles used in the deadlift. For the hamstrings, glute ham raises,  nordic curls, leg curls and single leg curls are useful for developing hamstring hypertrophy. To perform these exercises requires some equipment - either a glute ham raise or leg curl machine.  These exercises can be done for high reps, 10-20 reps, for multiple sets. 

For hip and glute hypertrophy the best exercises are squats, deadlifts and there close variations. Alongside these exercises, hip thrusts are a great additional exercise. To perform these, rest with your back against a bench with a barbell across your hips. Thrust up with your hips and drive the barbell towards the ceiling and contract your hips when you reach lockout. By targeting the hips and glutes, you will drastically improve your lockout strength for the deadlift. 

The final set of accessory exercises for the deadlifts are barbell rows and their variations; the barbell row, the underhand row and the penally row. These exercises all target the muscles of the back and help keep the shoulders healthy for bench press. Generally speaking, deadlifts are the best exercise for developing the back muscles but rows are a great option to help develop the lats and deltoids. Rows - and their variations - should be an accessory work in your program to help protect the shoulder from heavy pressing work, but they’re a great exercise for developing back strength for the deadlift. 

The deadlift is an exercise where the accessory work is most similar to the main lift. For most lifters, issues within the deadlift are either technical - i.e. the hips raising too fast - or weakness at a specific position within the lift - e.g. at lockout. Deadlift accessory work therefore attempts to address these issues by replicating the movement closely with subtle variations to target these weaknesses. The muscles involved in the deadlift: the hamstrings, glutes and lats; all receive significant hypertrophic stimulus from the deadlift and its variations. Additional isolation work to target these muscle groups will help improve the deadlift by making the muscles involved bigger and stronger - with hamstring curls, glute bridges and rows all excellent choices.  Combining your main deadlift with a well targeted accessory variation to address weakness with some hamstring and back isolation work to drive hypertrophy will have you pulling a PR in no time!

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Here we are - back again with The Beginner Series. Today we're looking at the accessories for the bench press. 

James Kennedy has written this one and has even included a sample routine to try. Give it a look below. 

Cliff Notes - 

Read Time - 3.5 minutes. 

Word Count - 1050. 

Main Points - 

You'll struggle with bench in certain positions - read below to figure out where. 

Certain muscles contribute massively to bench press - see how to improve them individually, and as part of a larger unit.