The Strength Curve

Listen to this: I can get you ripped, rock-hard abs in five days. I guarantee. The secret is at the end of this post. But don't skip to the end, otherwise this trick that personal trainers HATE will lose its value.

Okay, so if you're human, you probably skipped to the end. Curiosity got the best of you. Don't sweat it, though, no one will know ;). Now, if you didn't look at the end yet, look now, and you'll notice that there is no hidden secret. I was lying! I piqued your interest by promising something attractive and desirable; however, I ended up giving you nothing at all. 

While this example might seem rather silly, lofty promises are made all of the time in the fitness industry. They never fail to produce no results,  make the customers waste their money, and most importantly, skew the client's perception of progress over time. An ad may read something like this: "3-Day Ab Workout for a Shredded Six-Pack." All of these advertisements play on the same aspect of human nature: people's desire to get stuff fast. You'll never see an ad that says "Follow this moderate diet and exercise program to get a six-pack in 5 months." While the latter is a more effective approach, people will always go for the faster "3-day" method. Today, we'll look at how the fitness industry has made people believe in the existence of "quick results", and also how someone can reconcile their resulting skewed perception of progress over time.

Somehow, the fitness industry makes people believe that many ridiculous feats are possible- that obese people can transform in a matter of days, that someone can build 20 pounds of muscle in three months, or that a bloated belly can turn into rock-hard abs within minutes. How can they do this? How can they make people believe such implausible outcomes? For one, they might show people who were able to actually achieve the results. Unfortunately, the people they show are often genetic anomalies, steroid-users, or liars. But, since many people don't realize the immense role that genetics and steroid use play in fitness, they'll believe that "if the person on the cover of the magazine did it, so can I!" Additionally, many people (not all) are lazy. They don't want to admit to themselves that progress will take a long time, so they'll continually buy into the industry tricks.

If someone has continually bought into these false promises, how can they regain a correct perception of how long progress in fitness takes? Quite simply, people have to realize that progress always takes a long time. Progression matters more than the speed at which someone is progressing. You have your entire life to make progress, and you should be in no hurry. If you're ever wondering how long it will take to lose weight, gain muscle, gain strength, get faster, etc., the answer will always be the same: a long time.

I touched on this concept in an earlier blog, but the piece of wisdom that people overlook when they chase after quick results is this: it matters less about fitness and itself and more about what someone can learn from fitness. If gaining 20 pounds of muscle takes three years, so be it. The hard work that goes into reaching a goal builds character. 20 pounds of muscle is cool, but 20 pounds of character is even cooler. 

The Ego Problem

Stereotypes- so characteristic of human nature, yet so destructive. Stereotypes create misconceptions, obstacles, and prejudice. Even though they have consistently shown up throughout history, they have such little use. While useful from an evolutionary perspective, in the reality of modern human society, they do more harm than good.

Like most things in life, fitness has its own stereotypes. The stereotypical bodybuilder is male, narcissistic, only cares about vanity, and kisses his biceps while looking at himself in the mirror. While I have seen many bodybuilders like this, this stereotype paints the wrong picture of bodybuilding's purpose- to provide an avenue for self-improvement, health, and learning life lessons. What appears to be one big effort to fuel the ego is actually a discipline that draws parallels to music, art, and life. In this blog post, I'm going to explain why 1) bodybuilding is a fulfilling activity and 2) why the egotistical bodybuilder stereotype persists.

Let's begin by examining an activity that most people would immediately agree to be a fulfilling use of time: music. Improving one's musicianship requires hard work, discipline, passion, and motivation. Playing with other musicians teaches us how to interact with others. And of course, as we all know, music makes us all so frickin' happy! My philosophy on music: it matters less about the music itself and more about what you gain from being dedicated to it. Stan Efferding (a famous bodybuilder), in reference to Ronnie Coleman (another famous bodybuilder) said,

"When I say that Ronnie makes me feel bad about myself, it has nothing to do with how good he looks, or how strong he is. It has everything to do with how disciplined and hard-working he is. How much he gives of himself to help others, and how he conducts himself."

What we can learn from Efferding's quote is this: the overall goal of bodybuilding isn't to look good or be strong; rather, it is to learn to be "disciplined and hard-working," and to help yourself and others achieve happiness and success. Music is much the same. I'll reiterate: the benefits of bodybuilding don't come directly from the surface level results. They come from the skills that people develop from achieving those surface level results. Bodybuilding, music, art, sports: all of these disciplines serve as "modes of transportation" towards the end goal of self-improvement and self-fulfillment.

Now that I've established that bodybuilding provides existential satisfaction, the question now arises, why does it hold such a negative stigma? In my opinion, we can trace the roots of the stigma to a natural human tendency: to judge things even when we know little about them. Most people don't know a lot about bodybuilding, yet what they do know is that they've seen narcissistic meatheads in movies and on TV. When they find out that those iron junkies are bodybuilders, people will use the little amount of information they've gathered to create a stereotype.

Something that I wondered for a long time is, "why does it even matter that bodybuilders are stereotyped? It's not like they're suffering." This is mostly true, but the message here is larger than bodybuilding itself. Recognizing that most activities/hobbies can be used for self-fulfillment happiness is an extremely important realization! Living life from this perspective can help people find beauty in all areas of life, not just the areas designated by society as beautiful. It can never hurt to dissect a stereotype.

I want to be like Mike O'Hearn!

Mike O'Hearn. For some, that's a name that sparks hatred and disgust; for others, they find inspiration to work harder and be a better person. For some, Mike O'Hearn is just the title of this blog post. So, who exactly is this dude?

Mike is an accomplished powerlifter, four-time"Mr. Natural Universe" (bodybuilding competition), former star of the TV show "American Gladiators," a fitness model, and successful entrepreneur. He also visits children's hospitals on the weekends and spends a good deal of his time helping other people reach their fitness goals. O'Hearn's resumé has "hero" written all over it.

However, when we dig below the surface, we can see that Mike O'Hearn's "heroism" is nothing more than a facade. Mike has lied about some of his accomplishments, and thousands of people still buy into his false claims.

Before I debunk Mike's bullshit, let me acknowledge a question that might arise: why call out Mike O'Hearn? What am I accomplishing? Hopefully, you'll find that the answer ties into a larger message that could benefit the general population.

Mike claims to be a completely natural (steroid-free) athlete. However, if I pull a little science out of my pocket, I can prove that his claim literally must be false. A measurement called the Fat Free Mass Index (FFMI), which takes into account height, weight, and body fat percentage, quantifies someones progression as a bodybuilder. The limit (as proposed by a study by Kouri EM et. al) for a natural individual's FFMI is 26. Hmm... Mike's FFMI is 29. Gee, I wonder why!

Big deal! He lied about steroid use. What's the harm?

Well, this is where I will use Mike's lie about steroid use to elaborate on this widespread problem in the fitness industry. People see that Mike has an amazing physique. People who want to achieve similar results will hear that Mike has "never used steroids," and thus expect to able to obtain an O'Hearn physique. When they fail to do so (the law of biology will prevent them), they will wonder where they went wrong in training, diet, lifestyle, etc. They may even resort to buying supplements (which are largely ineffective- I will touch on that in another blog post) to "fix" their lack of progress. Frustration, sadness, anger, and feelings of inadequacy may ensue.

Unfortunately, Mike's case isn't unique. Many of YouTube's fitness gurus lie about their use of steroids. In my opinion, their decision to lie perpetuates the lack of clarity that prevails within the fitness industry. People deserve to live a natural lifestyle with healthy eating and exercise habits without the burden of expecting impossible results. For many, it can be tough to accept that natural athletes have much slower progress than enhanced athletes, and sadly, many bodybuilders and powerlifters succumb to the temptations of steroid use.

My advice: treat fitness as a mode of self-improvement. Don't compare your results to other people's results. Let the Mike O'Hearn's of the world do their thing, but don't let them confuse you.  Follow your own path. Be okay with slow  progress, and never feel bad for having slower progress than an enhanced athlete. In the end, we use fitness as a means of learning life-lessons, staying happy, and self-reflection. All of that is wholly possible without steroids. Don't strive to be like Mike O'Hearn. Strive to be best version of yourself.

Photo credits to Joseph Belyea

Stop the Confusion!

Too often in today's mainstream media, I see titles such as, "Total Abs! Build a better 6-pack in no time or "Slim belly breakfasts" (Both titles courtesy of Muscle and Fitness magazine) The problem with advertisements like these are many, but today I will focus on the top three. First, they promise unreasonably quick results for bodily processes that simply must take a long time. Secondly, they place a lot of importance on having attractive abdominal muscles, leading to imbalanced priorities. Thirdly, many of these "Six-pack" programs are based upon the false assumption that you can burn fat in specific parts of the body if you exercise that particular body part. This is not true! I will repeat it, because this axiom of fitness will come up many times throughout this blog: you cannot "spot" lose fat. 

But wait, Jesse, if you can't spot lose fat, how am I supposed to lose that pesky belly fat?

Good question. I will address it via the three problems I have mentioned above.

One of the most important things to remember whenever someone wants to set a fitness goal is this: progress takes time. Never listen to fitness moguls when they say that it's possible to "get shredded in three weeks with this diet!" Yes, this diet might get you looking good in three weeks, however, the methods that are used to lose weight and gain muscle in such a short amount of time are not sustainable. If someone wants to look good and be healthy, they need to do it in a sustainable fashion. To clarify, I'll provide an example. Let's say I want to lose twenty pounds and keep those twenty pounds off for good. I could pursue the quick route, effectively eating half the calories and exercising twice as often as I normally would. This would shed those twenty pounds quickly. On paper, this method looks foolproof. It's fast and simple. However, what it doesn't take into account is that for most people, this program would make the client miserable! I would be hungry and tired around the clock! So, once I achieve the goal and the twenty pounds are gone I will most likely say, "Screw this! I hate this program! I'm suffering!" Then, I would return to my old lifestyle that allowed me to gain the twenty pounds in the first place.

Program 2: I eat 200 less calories than normal per day and I exercise slightly more often. This method could take up to four months. That amount of time is daunting to many people, considering that our society makes people want things immediately. However, the major benefit of this approach is that I barely have to change my lifestyle. In effect, I can lose weight without having to be hungry or tired. Once I eventually lose the 20 pounds, I can continue my new healthy lifestyle because I don't feel mentally or physically fatigued. The takeaway: be patient, and diet in moderation. Above all, choose a program that has sustainability.

As important as it is to find a sustainable weight-loss program, it is equally important to understand the reason you're trying to lose weight. I have talked to countless people at the gym who want to achieve a body fat percentage of five percent (Pictured above). While such a low body fat percentage does look good, there should be many other considerations when choosing how "shredded" someone wants to be. Will they be constantly groggy from the extremely limiting diet that goes along with having 5% BF? Will they be at their happiest? While I fully support going to the gym with the goal of looking better, I think health and happiness should be considered above all. The bottom line is that there is a "Golden" area of ideal BF% that will, for most people, make them the happiest and healthiest. That range is from 10-15%. I am in no way saying that someone must have a 10-15% body fat percentage in order to be happy, nor am I suggesting that having a high body fat percentage is "not okay", however, for the average dedicated gym goer, they will find the ideal balance of health, aesthetics, and happiness in the 10-15% range. Research from the University of Pennsylvania has shown that subjects with a BF% lower than ten suffer negative health effects. The temptation to look good lives inside many of us, but it simply must be balanced with good physical and mental health.

Finally, let's return to the question that you asked earlier. Since it is biologically impossible to "spot" lose fat, how can I expect to lose my belly fat? The answer is exceedingly simple: be in a caloric deficit (Caloric deficit means burning more calories in a given day than one consumes). Don't fall victim to the companies that say that their fat-loss pill will work. I assure you, those pills will NEVER work. The ONLY way to lose fat is to burn more calories than you consume. It doesn't matter what you eat, whether it be carbs, fat, protein, etc. Heck, if you eat 1500 calories worth of Swedish Fish in a given day and burn 2000 calories, you'll still lose weight (Don't get me wrong- I'm not encourage a strictly Swedish Fish diet)! It is that simple. Don't be tempted by companies that offer bullshit methods of fat loss that involve anything else but being in a caloric deficit. It is simply the only way to lose weight.

My goal with this blog post was to clear the air for any readers who suffer from the confusion about weight loss that the mainstream media knowingly creates. Always remember to pursue your goals with patience, wisdom, and forethought.

Photo courtesy of EH Dome