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Monday, November 30, 2015
10 Reasons to Be Optimistic About the Paris Climate Talks
Today marked the start of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris. Here's reason to be hopeful about the outcome.
Cinnamon Swirl Protein Cupcakes
Make sure your cheat is still a muscle-building treat with this sweet, protein-rich recipe.
"Cupcake" doesn't have to be a dirty word. Indulge in the clean version of an all-time-favorite dessert by whipping up this protein-fueled recipe. Complete with a cake-based bottom, creamy-icing top, and sprinkles of cinnamon for that extra touch, it'll leave you stunned—and it actually fits your macros.
Ingredients 
Large eggs: 2
Vanilla protein powder: 2 scoops
Rolled oats (or coconut flour): 1-1/2 cups
Unsweetened almond milk (or milk substitute): 1/2 cup
Sweetener: 1-1/2 tbsp.
Fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt: 5 oz.
Vanilla extract: 2 tsp
Ground cinnamon: 2-1/2 tsp
Baking powder: 2 tsp
Directions
- Blend rolled oats into oat flour.
- Combine all ingredients into a bowl and mix.
- Place silicone cups on a baking sheet and coat them with nonstick cooking spray.
- Evenly distribute mix into the cups, filling them only about 3/4 of the way.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 10-15 minutes.
- Allow the cupcakes to cool, then top with fat-free vanilla Greek yogurt.
Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 1 cupcake
Recipe yields: 5 servings
Serving size: 1 cupcake
Recipe yields: 5 servings
Amount per serving
Calories 79
Fat1.7 g
Carbs78 g (12 g fiber)
Protein8 g
5 Instagrammers Who Are Winning At Winter
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Picture: Cody Townsend/Instagram
For a lot of us, winter is a season of gloom, drizzle and depressingly dark mornings. But for people who spend most of their time in the snow, it’s a season of beauty.
We scoured Instagram to find some of the best winter inspiration out there – and if it doesn’t make you want to invest in some snow shoes and take up Nordic skiing, we don’t know what will.
Cody Townsend
Professional skier Cody Townsend is so used to heavy snow that he doesn’t need his tent to be made of highly technical waterproof material – “Gore-Tex, Schmore-Tex” in his words. Instead, this pro blizzard-battler chose a tent adorned with some of the best superheroes, and channeled a superpower of his own: self-warming feet. You wouldn’t catch us without boots on in those Arctic climes.
Mark Sollors
Compared with these “snow ghosts”, your snowman probably looks a bit feeble. Snowboarder Mark Sollors came across some ghostly stacks of snow in British Columbia while filming a movie for Burton Snowboards. Somehow, we think the one we build in the garden (as soon as we even get a sprinkling of snow) won’t match these.
Ryan Creary
Mountain sports photographer Ryan Creary snapped this photo of a man called Per in Japan, with some very frosty-looking dreadlocks. Wet hair will freeze and possibly snap in any temperatures below freezing, but providing Per kept his dreads dry, there’s every chance he escaped this blizzard with a full head of locks.
Cristoffer Collin
Swedish photographer Christoffer Collin makes the most of the changing Scandinavian light to capture a mixture of snow-covered landscapes and striking sunsets like this one. A browse on his Instagram will make you want to snuggle up in a lodge that’s been exclusively furnished with minimalist IKEA items.
Sascha Estens
Wyoming-based videographer Sascha Estens often posts impressive, starry vistas like this on her Instagram. If you don’t live in Jackson Hole, you can still try your hand at a star shot like this – all you need is a clear evening sky and a camera with a decent night mode. We can’t help with the mountains, though. Sorry.
30 Nov 2015
Saturday, November 28, 2015
The 36-Inch, Plastic Longboard: Your New Favorite Ride
Penny Skateboards offers an easy-to-ride plastic longboard in six different colors.
Friday, November 27, 2015
Forget the Vitamins, Get a Flu Shot
Without a shot, you can still get the flu no matter how healthy you are.
9 Most Underrated Arm-Training Tips
Are your sleeves sagging around your arms? Boost the brawn and size of your biceps and triceps with these critical arm-day training tips!
If you take the ignorance-is-bliss approach to arm training, you'll probably never be tempted to educate yourself on ways to pump up your biceps and triceps size. You might wander around the gym forever with 14-inch guns, never realizing that with a little education and elbow grease, you could be sporting 16s, 17s, or even bigger pythons!
If that sounds good to you, it's time to kick ignorance to the curb and hit the books. Start by taking a closer look at these nine sorely underrated biceps and triceps tips. As you'll discover, knowledge is just as important as hard work when it comes to putting on quality muscle, so get started!
1
Give arms their own training day
One of the most popular ways to structure your training split is to pair a larger and smaller body part into push or pull days. It's common to train back and biceps or chest and triceps together, and for many lifters, that works just fine. Over time, however, many people find that the second muscle group worked—arms, in both examples—doesn't get as much training emphasis as the first.
One remedy is to do an arms-only workout on a dedicated arm-training day. With no heavy bench presses or rows done beforehand to sap your strength, you'll be able to approach these workouts with a full tank, and undoubtedly you'll be able to push much harder. Because you'll be able to move heavier weights, you'll get an enhanced growth stimulus.
To ensure full recovery, I suggest you leave at least a day before and after your arm workouts when scheduling your back, chest, or shoulders, to ensure some of the muscles don't get trained on consecutive days. Arranging your body-part split is a little trickier, but you'll benefit from the long-term payoff.
2
Go heavy to start your arm workout
I make this point frequently, but it's an important one: Start your arm workout with exercises you can load up with the most weight. After your warm-ups, that means you shouldn't go right to dumbbell curls or triceps push-downs when you can double or even triple the load on close-grip bench presses or dip machines.
With biceps, preacher curls and concentration curls are lousy places to start when you can push significantly heavier loads on standing EZ-bar or barbell curls. The exercise you choose to do first in your arm workout has a significant impact on your ultimate results, so give some thought to where you want to begin your training.
Once you've got the right exercise in the lead position in your routine, don't waste the opportunity by choosing a weight that's too light. If you're building mass, don't be afraid to push yourself with a load that you can complete for only 6-8 reps. You'll get a better muscle-building and strength stimulus here than if you choose a weight you could do for high reps chasing a pump.
3
Think "angles" when it comes to biceps training
The elbows-by-your-sides shoulder-width grip should be your starting place when it comes to curling exercises. But like the basic bench press or row, there are plenty of variations to explore that can increase overall arm development.
The elbows-by-your-sides shoulder-width grip should be your starting place when it comes to curling exercises.
When your arms are in front of the plane of your torso, as when doing preacher curls, the biceps long head can't fully stretch, so the focus shifts to the short head. Similarly, when your arms are behind the plane of your body, as when doing incline-bench dumbbell curls, the long head is fully stretched and can contract more strongly, making it the focus of the movement.
You can also shift the emphasis by changing where you place your hands when doing barbell curls. The biceps long head is located outside the short head, so using a grip inside shoulder width when doing barbell curls targets it more effectively. Taking a grip outside shoulder width, on the other hand, focuses primarily on the short head.
4
Go overhead to target your triceps long head
Every body part has a trick or two you need to learn for advanced development, and one of the more important ones for building horseshoe triceps is to take your training overhead. That's because the bulky long head attaches above the shoulder joint, meaning it's only fully stretched when your arms are in the overhead position. Only when a muscle is fully stretched can it contract most strongly. With your elbows by your sides, your lateral head takes on a greater portion of the load.
Arm positions in which your arms are perpendicular to your body—like when doing skullcrushers—engage the long head to a degree. As your arms move more overhead, as when doing skullcrushers on an incline bench, you'll get even greater long-head activation.
Any triceps movement in which your arms are overhead works here. Overhead barbell, dumbbell, or cable extensions focus on the long head, and there are even some machines that can do the trick. Of note, arm positions in which your arms are perpendicular to your body—like when doing skullcrushers—engage the long head to a degree. As your arms move more overhead, as when doing skullcrushers on an incline bench, you'll get even greater long-head activation.
5
Mix up your grip for max growth
A curl is as simple as contracting the biceps to raise a weight using an underhand grip. While that's certainly one way to build your arms, in no way is it a complete one. That's because the arm flexors consist of more than the biceps brachii, a two-headed muscle. The brachialis lies underneath, and boosting its size will also help increase overall arm size.
Working the brachialis means doing hammer curls in which your palms are in what's called a neutral position and your hands face each other. Hammers can be done with a rope attached to the lower cable or holding dumbbells.
The brachioradialis, which provides thickness to the thumb side of the upper forearm, also contributes when doing hammer curls. It's targeted when using an overhand grip during a reverse curl.
6
Don't flare your elbows
Nothing seems simpler than extending your elbows to target the triceps. There is, however, one hiccup that can occur along the way: allowing your elbows to flare out. Whether you're doing push-downs, overhead extensions, dips, close-grip benches, or skullcrushers, keep your elbows in tight to place the emphasis on the triceps.
That can be hard to do—especially for bigger guys—because your elbows naturally want to flare out. When your elbows flare, the chest and shoulders can join in, reducing the effectiveness of the movement. For better isolation of the triceps, keep those elbows in tight.
7
Don't rep as high as you can with biceps movements
Without question, the single-most common error trainees make when doing biceps is raising the weight as high as possible in an effort to go through the full range of motion. While I'm all for full-ROM training, curling the weight too high in this case is often done with an assist from the front delts.
Here's why: With your elbows pinned by your sides, curling the weight strictly allows you to bring the weight to about shoulder height. But years of bad habits are hard to break, and for many lifters, those habits mean they push the elbows forward to raise the weight even higher.
When your elbows come forward, your single-joint movement now turns into a multijoint one that also involves the front delts. Not only does that bring in another muscle group, it now allows for a resting spot at the top of the rep as your hand is now stacked over your elbow—meaning tension on the biceps is highly reduced.
For better isolation, keep your single-joint biceps exercises just that. Be aware of the tendency to pull your elbows forward as you raise the weight. Keep 'em pinned back by your sides for the duration of the movement.
8
It's not all about the pump
There's a powerful and popular belief that to be successful on arm day, you've got to get a (insert adjective here: wicked, monster, incredible) muscle pump. The trouble is, the "pump" is best achieved through high-rep training in which blood is flushed into the target muscle, pushing the boundaries of the muscle fascia as it swells.
Yes, that's one mechanism for muscle growth, which goes by the name of sarcoplasmic hypertrophy. In my opinion, though, it's best saved for the end of your workout, with your heavy training out of the way.
Heavy training elicits what's called myofibrillar hypertrophy, in which the actual structures of the muscle fibers are damaged. Lighter training pushes fluids into the cell but doesn't necessarily cause fundamental damage to the cell structures.
Which begs the question: Why not go for both? If you do your heavy work at the beginning of your training session and work for the pump toward the end, you can. Bottom line: Save the wicked pump for the end of your workout.
9
Increase your arm-training frequency
Larger muscle groups like legs require demanding workouts that take many days to recover from, so they're trained just once a week. Smaller muscle groups, not so much. That's one reason many lifters do body parts like calves and abs up to three times a week. As for the biceps and triceps, they're the Goldilocks of muscle groups: somewhere in between.
If you've got the energy, time, and ambition, adding a second round of arm training that's done over the course of your training split is easy to do so long as you plan it right.
If you've got the energy, time, and ambition, adding a second round of arm training that's done over the course of your training split is easy to do so long as you plan it right. Here's one I followed a few years back (excludes abs and calves):
- Day 1: Chest, triceps
- Day 2: Back, biceps
- Day 3: Shoulders
- Day 4: Legs
- Day 5: Biceps, triceps
- Days 6-7: Rest
If you do train arms twice, I like the idea of making the first one of the week very different from the second, both in exercise selection and approach. One might be heavier than the other, focus on weaknesses, employ more single-arm (unilateral) exercises, or use different intensity boosters like forced reps, dropsets, blood-flow restriction, or eccentric-focused training.
8 Inspirational Stories from Men’s Fitness' January Issue
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Each month Men’s Fitness magazine is stuffed full of useful advice, delicious recipes and no-BS workouts. We packed our January edition with tons of inspirational stories and advice to guarantee your 2016 kicks off to a flying start. Here’s what’s in store in the new issue, on sale now.
How helping others can improve your own performance
How to find time for cardio training, even if you’re one of the world’s biggest men
The best autobiographies to help you conquer your dreams
Quickfire life-changing tips from 11 men with inspiring stories
A highly doable selection of fitness events to attempt to guarantee you achieve something amazing in 2016
How to have the best skiing holiday of your life
How to avoid being THAT guy in the gym as you embark on your new year, new physique journey
Star Wars can help you become more powerful than you can possibly imagine
Have a crippling fear of newsagents? Subscribe now. You get five issue for £5, and each issue will be with you a week before it's on the shelves.
27 Nov 2015
Thursday, November 26, 2015
Our Love Affair with the new Nike Free RN Distance
When the Nike Free launched a decade ago, it wasn't really designed for running. The new Nike Free RN Distance most certainly is.
Coach Drinks: The Patron Thanksgiving Sazerac
How To
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If you're enjoying a Thanksgiving dinner tonight, you'll want a tipple to go with it. We asked Karin Tillard, UK Brand Ambassador for Patrón Tequila, to knock us up a strong one.
You will need
- 50mls Patrón Reposado
- 5mls Oak Moss syrup
- 5mls Agave syrup
- 1 dash of lemon bitters
- 1 dash of Angostura bitters
- 1 dash of Absinthe
Stirred, old-fashioned style.
Method
Pour Absinthe into a rocks glass, swirl to coat and discard the excess. In a mixing glass muddle syrups and bitters. Add Patrón Reposado and stir until dissolved then add ice. Strain into the rocks glass. Garnish with a lemon peel.
Cheers!
26 Nov 2015
Wednesday, November 25, 2015
'Alaskan Bush People' Recap: Rock, Paper Skipper
With episode three (Rock, Paper, Skipper), it's starting to get intense on Alaskan Bush People.
Master The Muscle-Up In 3 Steps
A smooth, strong muscle-up is an inspiring sight, and an even more inspiring achievement. But it doesn't happen by accident! Here's how to get over the bar for the first time.
I'll never forget the first time I saw a muscle-up. Though it was almost 10 years ago, it's still fresh in my mind. I was already a successful personal trainer at the time, but it never occurred to me to even try pulling my whole torso up and over a pull-up bar until that fateful day.
I was intrigued and impressed by this new move, and due to my experience with pull-ups and dips, I assumed it would be within my capabilities. Turns out I was mistaken! In spite of my ability to pull and push my body weight for many reps, my initial muscle-up attempts ended in failure. I did not let this deter me, however. I was determined to get my muscle-up! A couple of weeks later, I finally experienced the thrill of getting up and over the bar for the first time. The view from the top is good!
Since then, the muscle-up has become one of my favorite exercises. It's a lot of fun, and it works the entire upper body in a way that no other single exercise can, combining a push and pull along with that notoriously difficult transition phase.
Al Kavadlo Top Muscle-up Tips
Watch the video - 1:21
Though my first muscle-up wasn't pretty, I've spent a lot of time improving my technique. I've also had the unique experience of teaching calisthenics to people all over the world since becoming lead instructor for the Progressive Calisthenics Certification in 2013. Since then, I've personally helped hundreds of individuals achieve their first muscle-up, which is a pretty satisfying feeling in its own right.
While there are many different muscle-up strategies, I like to keep things simple. The following three techniques are the most essential to help you achieve your first muscle-up on a straight bar. If you put in the time and effort, the path to the muscle-up kingdom is right there in front of you. Are you up for it?
1
Explosive Pull-ups
First things first: you need to be able to do at least 10 strict pull-ups before you are ready to practice toward the muscle-up. Once you've got that covered, the next step is to start making your pull-ups faster and more explosive.
When I teach beginners to do their first pull-up, I'm pretty strict about the amount of control that I expect to see. It's essential to focus on form and learn how to engage your abs, glutes, and other musculature to perform clean pull-ups. Once you're strong enough to comfortably bust out 10 clean reps in a row, you've earned the privilege of having fun with the rules and using momentum to pull on the bar explosively.
Once you're strong enough to comfortably bust out 10 clean reps in a row, you've earned the privilege of having fun with the rules and using momentum to pull on the bar explosively.
When newcomers try this, it can be overly taxing on the joints, but if you can do those 10 strict pull-ups, you've likely built enough strength and stability to perform explosive pull-ups with substantially less risk of injury.
To perform an explosive pull-up, yank down hard on the bar as fast and powerfully as you can, using your entire body to generate force. Once you get a feel for this, experiment with letting go of the bar for a second at the top of your pull-up, then start working toward a clapping pull-up. When you've gotten comfortable with clapping pull-ups, you can use that same explosive technique to aggressively pull the bar farther down your body instead of taking your hands away.
Eventually you will be able to pull yourself fast enough and with enough force to get your elbows to wrist height or higher. Once this happens, it's just a matter of leaning your chest over the bar and getting the timing right before you can call the muscle-up yours.
2
Straight-Bar Dips
Just like pull-ups, you need to be really good at dips before you begin working on the muscle-up. Standard parallel-bar dips are not enough, however. You need to practice doing dips on a straight bar if you want to perform a muscle-up on one. If you are accustomed to only performing dips on parallel bars, dipping on a straight bar will likely require some practice to get comfortable with.
First, you'll need to find a way to get above the bar to begin the movement. I suggest using a step to get yourself in position or using a low bar (a barbell placed in a squat rack at chest height works, too). Regardless of which setup is better suited to your environment, once you get above the bar, the idea is to lower yourself down as far as possible, while reaching your legs forward for counterbalance. Aim to touch the bar to the top of your abdomen at first, then begin increasing your range of motion. It might feel strange at the beginning if you are accustomed only to dipping on parallel bars, so go slowly and focus on clean form. Make sure to engage your abs, legs, and glutes to prevent losing control.
Regardless of which setup is better suited to your environment, once you get above the bar, the idea is to lower yourself down as far as possible, while reaching your legs forward for counterbalance.
3
Muscle-up Negatives
In addition to building a great deal of explosive upper-body strength on the bar, it's also helpful to learn the muscle-up from a neurological standpoint. This is where the negative muscle-up comes into play. Practicing the negative (eccentric) phase can help you get a feel for the movement pattern.
Get above the bar the same way you would for a straight-bar dip, then carefully lower yourself to the bottom of your dip position. From here, continue lowering yourself down as slowly as you can while you extend your legs forward, bracing your entire body and squeezing the bar as hard as possible. At first, you may drop very quickly, but you'll gain control of the descent with practice. Eventually, that control will transfer into reversing the movement.
At first, you may drop very quickly, but you'll gain control of the descent with practice.
Get Over It!
After spending some time practicing these methods, I recommend giving the muscle-up a shot. I suggest only attempting it when you are warmed up but still energized.
Don't worry too much about sets or reps at this point. Instead, just try for one rep at a time with as much rest as you need between efforts. Think of the muscle-up as skill training, so keep your volume low to prevent from burning yourself out. In order to get over the bar, you need to be operating at full capacity, so once you start to fatigue, move on to something else.
Don't worry too much about sets or reps at this point. Instead, just try for one rep at a time with as much rest as you need between efforts.
Don't be discouraged if it takes a long time. The harder you work toward the muscle-up, the more satisfaction you will feel when you get there.
7 Girls Who Train Harder Than You
Do Something
1. Fionnula McHale
3. Pauline Nordin
4. Paige Hathaway
5. Carly Rowena
6. Anastasia Papoutsaki
7. Andreia Brasier
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1. Fionnula McHale
Proving that brains, beauty and brawn are not mutually exclusive, this powerlifting champion from Dublin is also a doctor and lecturer. The clips of Fionnula repping double her bodyweight and Lycra-clad gym selfies on her Instagram account show off a rock-hard six-pack and display a relentless dedication to fitness. If this lady can find the time to train, run her own medical clinic and teach, what’s stopping you?
2. Michelle Lewin
A former Playboy cover model with over six million followers, this Venezuelan beauty has taken Instagram by storm. It’s not difficult to see why Michelle’s account is so popular. From “hamstring blasters” and “shoulder smashers” to “booty blasters”, her account is packed full of useful demonstration videos and tips. Plenty of underwear and bikini shots reveal just how effective her gruelling workouts are.
3. Pauline Nordin
Follow Pauline if you’re looking for motivation and advice. Having led Sweden to victory in the Nordic version of Biggest Loser and released a DVD, The Butt Bible, her Instagram is full of inspirational memes and “before and after” pics. The results make it clear: this trainer and diet coach really knows her stuff. Pauline’s own chiselled abs feature regularly in posts – as does her cat.
4. Paige Hathaway
Paige is a poster girl for the “strong is the new skinny” wave. Just a few years ago, she was super-skinny with little muscle mass. Her candid mirror selfies and more professional photo shots today showcase the 26-year-old’s enviably strong body. Pics and clips on her Instagram account show the work that’s gone into it and that, gosh, this woman really can lift.
5. Carly Rowena
As well as killer abs, the personal trainer and fitness blogger has a real eye for a picture. Making full use of the app’s filters, her photos’ bright colours will make you want to join her running by the Thames, kayaking in Vietnam or hiking up a glacier… or just walking her incredibly cute dog.
6. Anastasia Papoutsaki
Anastasia’s incredibly muscular physique is nothing less than we’d expect from a professional bodybuilder. The “Greek Goddess” posts a mix of pics and videos of her working out, as well as shots of her competing and showing off her muscles with the help of a little (read: gallons) of oil and tan.
7. Andreia Brasier
Andreia’s philosophy of “train hard or go home” is clearly working for her. She has some of the best-defined abs we’ve ever seen on Instagram – and isn’t shy about showing them off. Her videos prove she doesn’t shirk in the gym, and she’s also partial to opening up about her hard work in a long, motivational caption, if that’s your thing.
25 Nov 2015
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