How Hydration Affects Strength Training

Hydration is known to be a definite determinant of endurance exercise performance. However, little is known about the effects it poses on resistance training performance. Factors ranging from the food you eat to the climate you live in could impact your hydration status making recommendations tough for many experts.
This article will dive into the science behind hydrating and its impact on resistance training, specifically with some useful tips regarding potential avenues to target when trying to optimize your training sessions.

Is Hydration Actually Important? Yes! Hydrating is important for a multitude of reasons—from proper cell function to waste removal and metabolic reactions. With the average human body being composed of anywhere from 50-65% water, the reality is that our bodies require water to function.

Is Hydration Important for General Performance? Yes! As mentioned previously, much of the research has been performed in endurance-based sports, showing that dehydration can result in increased core temperature and heart rate, decreased (heart) stroke volume and increased time to fatigue, all of which could impact performance.

Is Hydrating Important for Resistance Training? That's a million dollar question. Let's look at some research. According to Judelson et al (2007), there was little effect on single, maximal strength and power performance during the dehydrated states.

Individuals who are dehydrated during a resistance training protocol may not experience restricted performance while performing a single set of a given exercise. However, when engaging in multiple sets in a given exercise, there was an impairment in the ability to perform.
This graph displays total work completed after each set in the resistance challenge exercise. Between the three groups adequately hydrated (EU), under-hydrated at 2.5% (HY25) and under-hydrated at 5.0% (HY50) there is an evident drop in total work completed.

As an individual became more dehydrated, changes were evident in: the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), peripheral nervous system (nerves and nerve cells outside the brain), and one's ability to induce and stimulate muscular contraction.

What is Considered an Appropriate Level of Hydration? Dehydration to a 4.8% body mass level has a compelling effect on one's ability to carry out a resistance training protocol. Moderate Dehydration of 2.4% body mass decreased multi-set performance in terms of resistance training protocols.

We know now that dehydration could harm performance in the gym, so what are the recommendations? Much of the research as mentioned occurs during endurance-based events often performed in sweltering heat and humid conditions. The truth is most of the gyms in North America and across the world provide us with air-conditioned facilities where excessive heat and humidity aren't necessarily a concern. There are obviously exceptions. So. to suggest that this recommendation would be the same for athletes on the field or the average exerciser training in a natural air environment is highly debatable.

Fluid Recommendations for Resistance Training in Summary: Due to the overwhelming number of variables that contribute to one's hydration status, a recommendation cannot be made from the research we have gathered. It could be argued that hydrating is potentially over promoted by fitness professionals in a resistance training setting. It's often heard of trainers preaching 1 L of fluid before a training session! That's double the recommendation for athletes doing ironman's in extreme heat!

The optimal fluid intake most likely lies somewhere between the average fluid recommendation for individuals and exercise in heated environments, it's just not clear where the meeting point is. Hydration is a massive topic of discussion with a lot of grey area. Until further research is done in the realm of resistance training, drinking to thirst might be best assuming you are not in an extremely hot environment and already dehydrated.

References:
Coyle, E. (1998). "Cardiovascular Drift During Prolonged Exercise and the Effects of Dehydration." International Journal of Sports Medicine,19(S 2). doi:10.1055/s-2007-971975

Cheung, S. S., Mcgarr, G. W., Mallette, M. M., Wallace, P. J., Watson, C. L., Kim, I. M., & Greenway, M. J. (2015). "Separate and combined effects of dehydration and thirst sensation on exercise performance in the heat." Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 25, 104-111. doi:10.1111/sms.12343

Judelson, D. A., C. M. Maresh, M. J. Farrell, L. M. Yamamoto, L. E. Armstrong, W. J. Kraemer, J. S. Volek, B. A. Spiering, D. J. Casa, and J. M. Anderson. "Effect of Hydration State on Strength, Power, and Resistance Exercise Performance." Med. Sci. Sports Exerc., Vol. 39, No. 10, pp. 1817–1824, 2007.

Popkin, B. M., Danci, K. E., & Rosenberg, I. H. (2010). "Water, hydration, and health." Nutrition Reviews, 68(8), 439-458. doi:10.1111/j.1753-4887.2010.00304.x

Racinais, S., Alonso, J. M., Coutts, A. J., Flouris, A. D., Girard, O., González-Alonso, J., . . . Périard, J. D. (2015). "Consensus recommendations on training and competing in the heat." Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports, 25, 6-19. doi:10.1111/sms.12467

Ultraterrestrials

BY TERENCE HINES

David Clarke has written an insightful, informative and thought-provoking book on UFOs and the UFO culture. This is not a debunking book, although it fulfills that function admirably. Rather, it describes Clarke’s long search for what is really going on with UFO reports. Along the way Clarke goes through various stages of what he calls the “UFO Syndrome”.

Clarke is both British and a reporter. In the latter role, he interviewed many of the major players in the British UFO community. These interviews and his own investigations provide much information that, as far as I know, has never been published before. For readers familiar with the American literature on UFOs, this book provides a very welcome broadening of horizons. I had no idea that there was a British equivalent of Project Blue Book, for example. The honesty with which Clarke describes his own changing beliefs is most refreshing. He is never harsh or demeaning of beliefs he does not hold. He treats those who hold even very bizarre beliefs regarding UFOs with interest and respect.

Like this reviewer, Clarke’s interest in UFOs sprang from reading science fiction stories and seeing science fiction films and TV shows during adolescence. We both read various UFO books and joined a UFO group (NICAP in my case) and came to really believe that UFOs were of extraterrestrial origin, the start of the “UFO Syndrome”. In the introduction Clarke describes in detail his captivation with the syndrome. In the following ten chapters, he writes about his pursuit of the “truth” about UFOs. It is a fascinating journey.

The first two chapters cover topics that will be familiar to the skeptical reader. After describing the Arnold sightings and several 1950’s “flaps” and the huge interest they generated in the United States during the later 1940s into the 1950s, he notes that “the [UFO] syndrome took hold in no less dramatic fashion” (p. 38) in the United Kingdom. It is here that Clarke also describes the important connection between the UFO syndrome and the fantasy and science fiction pulp magazines of the 1930s through the 1950s. This connection has been discussed at length in Andrew May’s excellent Pseudoscience and Science Fiction (Springer, 2017). […]

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4 Popular Diets: The Pros & Cons of Gluten-Free, Paleo, Detox, & Ketogenic Approaches

A high-school reunion, New Year’s Eve, the start of summer. Certain times of the year prompt a renewed commitment to getting your health, fitness and nutrition in order. We may want the nutrition part of the solution to lie in a perfect “new” diet, such as the gluten-free, paleo, detox and ketogenic programs that may be on your radar right now.

You may be asking yourself what these words even mean—and if you should be following one of these diet plans. Below is an overview of some of the pros and cons of each, along with a list of foods you are allowed and not allowed to eat.

One note before you dig in: Remember that nutrition is not one-size-fits-all. I fully believe that there is not one right way for all of us to eat. What works for your best friend or brother may not be the best choice for you. If you choose to start a new nutrition plan, I recommend (in addition to consulting with a registered dietician) you find a strategy that works for your schedule, health (physical and mental), budget, cooking ability and, well, your whole life. Whatever diet plan you choose, you won’t continue with it if it’s not a good fit overall.

Gluten-Free Diet: This diet excludes foods containing the protein gluten, which is found in some plant foods. It is primarily used to treat celiac disease, gluten intolerance and often general irritable bowel syndrome symptoms.
   What foods are included? Foods that do not contain gluten, such as:
Fruits and vegetables, most dairy products, meat, fish and poultry, beans, nuts and seeds (including flaxseed)Grains that don’t contain gluten protein, such as amaranth, cornmeal and rice
   What foods are avoided? Any grain-based product containing gluten protein, including: wheat, barley, rye, triticale & any foods made in a factory with these grains.
   What are the pros?
Relieves symptoms and complications for those with related health conditions affected by these items, & overall, could decrease intake of refined/processed foods.
   What are the cons?
Difficult to follow, restricts people from potentially healthy foods, gluten-free substitutions may be higher in calories, & could increase heart attack risk in people who do not have celiac disease

   Paleo (Caveman) Diet: This diet is based on foods that our ancient ancestors may have consumed, primarily ones that could be hunted or gathered.
   What foods are included?
Meat, chicken, turkey and pork, fish, & eggs, fresh fruit, non-starchy vegetables, nuts and seeds, plant-based oils, such as coconut, grapeseed, olive and walnut.
   What foods are avoided? Grains, including oats, wheat and barley, starchy vegetables (like potatoes), beans and legumes, dairy products, sugar, processed foods, salt
   What are the pros?
Could increase fruit and vegetable intake, could decrease intake of processed, high-sugar and high-sodium foods, could lead to weight loss primarily due to limited food choices
   What are the cons?
Low in carbohydrates, which is dangerous for athletes and negatively impacts performance, may result in nutrient deficiencies, high in fat, which could lead to weight gain

Detox Diet: This diet’s intention is to eliminate toxins from the body. (Note: The body naturally detoxifiesitself via the kidneys, liver and spleen, and it eliminates them through perspiration, urine, & solid waste.)
   What foods are included?
Fruit and vegetable juices and water, some detoxes allow fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables
   What foods are avoided?
Solid foods, & few allow whole grains and flaxseed
   What are the pros?
Could reduce alcohol and caffeine intake, decreased intake of high-fat and highly processed foods, encourages eating more plant-based foods.
   What are the cons?
Weight loss is from fluid loss and loss of muscle mass, weight regain is rapid when diet is discontinued, reduction of metabolic rate, making it more difficult to keep weight off, may result in nutrient deficiencies

   Ketogenic Diet: This diet is a low-carb, high-fat program that uses fat for fuel. It was originally designed to treat epilepsy. It is being looked at as part of a treatment plan for certain cancerous tumors and for blood sugar control and now as a weight-loss method. The ketogenic diet, just as the paleo diet, has been moving through the athlete population, especially with endurance athletes.
   What foods are included?
Meat and fatty fish, eggs, full-fat dairy products, such as butter, cream and cheese, nuts and seeds. oils, avocados, low-carb vegetables, such as leafy greens, asparagus, cucumbers and celery
   What foods are avoided?
Added sugar and foods that contain it, such as ice cream, pudding and sugary drinks, grains, fruit, beans and legumes, alcohol, milk.
   What are the pros?
Lowers blood glucose levels, may decrease inflammation, can promote rapid weight loss
   What are the cons?
May result in nutrient deficiencies
May result in electrolyte abnormalities
May increase risk of heart disease
May cause lack of energy

 Now that you are armed with a bit more information regarding some of the trending fad diets, make an informed decision and know that the greatest success comes from what you can incorporate into your life. If you choose any eating style or exercise program, be sure that you can adjust it for your life and maintain the changes for the long term.

One of the best ways of empowering yourself regarding your health, nutrition or fitness is seeking knowledge. Do your research and be informed. Invest some time researching before investing in the next fad. Please also consult with a physician and a registered dietitian.

References:

Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Academy). 2014. The gluten-free diet: Building the grocery list. Accessed July 22, 2017. http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/diseases-and-conditions/celiac-disease/the-gluten-free-diet-building-the-grocery-list

Academy. 2017. 2014. Grains to avoid if you have celiac disease. Accessed July 22,2017.
http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/diseases-and-conditions/celiac-disease/celiacs-avoid-these-grains

Academy. 2015. Should we eat like our caveman ancestors? Accessed July 22, 2017.
http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/weight-loss/fad-diets/should-we-eat-like-our-caveman-ancestors

Academy. Staying away from fad diets. Accessed July 22, 2017. http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/weight-loss/fad-diets/staying-away-from-fad-diets

Academy. 2017. What’s the deal with detox diets? Accessed July 22, 2017. http://www.eatright.org/resource/health/weight-loss/fad-diets/whats-the-deal-with-detox-diets

Study Reveals Fast, Simple Way to Reduce Bone Loss

from INH Health Watch

A new study finds there’s an incredibly fast way to keep your bones strong and prevent osteoporosis. It takes just one minute a day. Researchers at two universities in England found that short, intense bursts of activity are more beneficial to bones than long hours of mild exercise.

Scientists studied data on more than 2,500 healthy women. About half were premenopausal. The other half had gone through menopause. Using wrist monitors, researchers from the University of Exeter and the University of Leicester tracked the activity level of the women for a full week.

After that, they performed ultrasound scans of the subjects’ heel bones. The heel bone is a good marker of overall bone strength. They found that women who did just one minute of high intensity, weight-bearing exercise each day had 4% better bone health than those who did not. And for the women who did more than two minutes each day, their bone health was 6% better.

While those improvements may not seem dramatic, but scientists say a strength increase of just a few percentage points can prevent a bone fracture in a fall. And the one-minute exercise was not hard. Researchers said the intensity of the “brief burst” activity was equivalent to a medium-paced run.
Dr. Victoria Stiles is a senior lecturer in Sports Biomechanics at the University of Exeter. She was lead author of the study. "There's a clear link between this kind of high-intensity, weight-bearing exercise and better bone health in women,” she said. The research recently was published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.

Studies show about half of women over 50 will break a bone due to osteoporosis. It will happen to about one in four men. It is a serious national medical problem. Over 54 million Americans suffer from osteoporosis, and more than 2 million seniors are hospitalized each year with fractures due to weakened bones. Falling and breaking bones is a major reason seniors lose their independence and have to move into nursing homes. As such, an investment of one minute a day seems like a very small price. Dr. Stiles said the burst of exercise can be as simple as adding a bit of running to your daily walk.

Other examples of weight-bearing exercise include jumping rope, aerobics, stair climbing, tennis, racquetball, and even fast-paced dancing. Whatever kind of exercise you choose, do it hard for at least a minute a day.

One other thing…make sure you get enough magnesium. A recent study found that adequate levels of the mineral can cut fracture risk nearly in half.

Why You Shouldn’t Work the Same Muscles/Do the Same Exercises Every Day

from The Stack e-zine

There's nothing wrong with being a gym rat. Working out regularly and with intensity is key to getting stronger, faster, and bigger. However, there's a fine line between dedicated and self-destructive—the latter is often called overtraining. Taking breaks and days off is ultimately better for you than working out all day, every day.

That said, the specifics behind overtraining have always been a little hazy. If you've ever done the same exercise or hit the same muscle group on consecutive days, someone's probably told you you're overtraining. But why? If I want to build a bigger, stronger upper body, why shouldn't I bench press every day? Or, if I want to build a stronger and more explosive lower body, why shouldn't I squat every day? What happens in your body when you exercise with this type of behavior?

STACK talked with Dan Hutchinson, exercise physiologist and performance coach for D2K Training, John Mikula, exercise physiologist for the Department of Defense, and Dr. Mike T. Nelson, exercise physiologist and member of the American College of Sports Medicine, to find out what happens when you don't give your body a break.

The Science: There's nothing wrong with wanting to get better. Everyone is told to set goals, so knowing what you want to improve is a good thing. Everyone also knows the only way to achieve his or her goals is to work hard. This is true. But an issue arises when you have a goal in mind—for example, increasing your bench press max and getting a stronger upper body—and decide the best way to achieve it is to perform intense upper-body lifts every day.

When you strength train, you induce tiny tears in the muscle fibers of the muscles you're working. This is normal. After you work out, your body sends "satellite cells" to repair these muscles. The cells use amino acids from protein as their building blocks. If you've got enough high-quality protein in your diet, your body will be able to repair the torn muscle fibers by making them thicker and stronger than before—which is how you gain strength and size.

By constantly assaulting the same muscle groups without rest, however, you destroy those muscle fibers before they have the time to repair. You don't let your body move past the demolition phase and into the building phase. Without rest and recovery, your muscles cannot fully improve and grow.

"We look at the example of bench pressing every day at high intensities, or volumes, as detrimental to the periodization principles of building and recovering," Hutchinson says. "At the cellular level, it comes down to a lack of adequate time to repair the damaged cells."

The implication of what Hutchinson says is that at some point you're wasting time and preventing yourself from making meaningful gains.

Nelson says, "Each time you strength train, you create micro trauma to the muscle tissue itself. The body then works to repair this muscle and build it up so it's just a bit stronger. This process takes time—research states from anywhere as short as 24 hours to as long as 72 hours, depending on intensity. If you're hitting the same muscle group day in and day out, you're causing more damage before the previous damage can be completely repaired. So, you're working really hard and gradually getting less and less results.
"Every time you train, think of it like digging a small hole. Your body then fills the hole back in and adds just a bit more for good measure (which means strength gains). If you're digging at a faster rate than the hole can be filled, you're going backwards instead of forward."

Begging for Injury: Repeating the same exercise or exercises every single day also opens the door to injury. "Repeating exercises such as bench press or power clean every day can be a pathway to the number one cause for fitness injuries, and that is creating 'over-use,'" Mikula says. "The body does not have ample time to recover from the training stimulus or is unable to deal with the amount of localized stress being placed on an isolated part of the body."

Doing 100 reps of Curls every day is a bad idea, not only because your muscle fibers won't recover and get bigger, but also because you leave yourself extremely susceptible to injury. Basically, you're doing something that won't get you stronger while making yourself more injury-prone in the process. Doesn't sound like a good idea, does it?

Working Smart: It's hard to admonish someone for wanting to work hard in the gym. Dedication and intensity are hallmarks of success But you also have to be smart about how you spend your time. If you do the same exercises or hit the same muscle groups in the weight room on a daily basis, you're not getting bigger or stronger—you're inviting injury and wasting time.

"The facts are, if we continually break down the same muscle fibers, or supporting muscle fibers, eventually the individual will plateau, become injured or notice a decline in performance—at least that's what the research and practical experience has shown," Hutchinson says.

You can surely work hard, but you've also got to work smart. By using split days and giving major muscle groups a rest, you'll stay healthier, get stronger, build more muscle and avoid wasting time. "If your goal is to get bigger arms, for example, I would recommend doing some compound and isolation exercises three days a week with at least one day of rest in between," Nelson says.

By the way: in case you’re wondering why you can do the same cardio exercises on consecutive days but not strength training exercises, the answer lies in the muscle fiber types involved: red muscle fiber vs white muscle fiber. Cardio employs red muscle fiber which runs on oxygen and doesn’t involve micro-trauma to the muscle in service of improvement. Red muscle fiber develops more mitochondria to facilitate better oxygen utilization. Strength muscle, or white muscle fiber, is actually disrupted by proper strength training (think: “You can’t make an omelet without breaking a few eggs.”). The disruption forces your body to adapt by rebuilding your muscle fibers larger, greater in number, and stronger. This takes more recovery time, not to mention, proper nutrition--in particular, adequate protein.

Are We All Racists? Private Thoughts and Public Acts

Novelists often offer deep insights into the human psyche that take psychologists years to test. In his 1864 Notes from Underground, for example, Russian novelist Fyodor Dostoyevsky observed: “Every man has reminiscences which he would not tell to everyone, but only to his friends. He has other matters in his mind which he would not reveal even to his friends, but only to himself, and that in secret. But there are other things which a man is afraid to tell even to himself, and every decent man has a number of such things stored away in his mind.”

Intuitively, the observation rings true, but is it true experimentally? Twenty years ago social psychologists Anthony Greenwald, Mahzarin Banaji and Brian Nosek developed an instrument called the Implicit Association Test (IAT) that, they claimed, can read the innermost thoughts that you are afraid to tell even yourself. And those thoughts appear to be dark and prejudiced: we favor white over black, young over old, thin over fat, straight over gay, able over disabled, and more.

I took the test myself, as can you (Google “Project Implicit”). The race task first asks you to separate black and white faces into one of two categories: White people and Black people. Simple. Next you are asked to sort a list of words (joy, terrible, love, agony, peace, horrible, wonderful, nasty, and so on) into either Good or Bad buckets. Easy. Then the words and the black and white faces appear on the screen one at a time for you to sort into either Black people/Good or White people/Bad. The word “joy,” for example, would go into the first category, whereas a white face would go into the second category. This sorting becomes noticeably slower. Finally, you are tasked with sorting the words and faces into the categories White people/Good or Black people/Bad. Distressingly, I was much quicker to associate words like joy, love and pleasure with White people/Good than I was with Black people/Good. […]

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Ask The Macro Manager: Should I Drink Protein Before Or After A Workout?

By Mike Rousell, Ph.D

People think of post-workout protein as the Holy Grail of workout nutrition. What about the pre-workout shake? Learn why you should never skip it! 

You can take in protein or amino acids pre- and post-workout, but if I absolutely had to pick one time, I'd say pre-workout. Sacrilege, you say! If you're more upset than a cat kicked off a ledge, give me time to explain before you claw my face off. Post-workout shakes have long been considered the most important pieces of the workout nutrition puzzle. Recent research suggests, however, that ingesting protein and amino acids prior to training may be even more beneficial. Hang in there, kitty. Here's why:

Fuel Your Muscles: Pre-workout protein, specifically the branched chain amino acids(BCAAs), will help fuel your muscles during training. BCAAs don't need to be processed by your liver; after being absorbed, they head directly to your blood stream to be picked up by your muscles. This is key because exercise causes the breakdown and oxidation of BCAAs. Providing BCAAs to working muscles will prevent the need for your body to catabolize the working muscle itself.

Increase Protein Synthesis: Adding protein prior to your training session primes the pump: It starts protein synthesis during rather than after your training session. Pre-workout protein most likely increases amino acid delivery and uptake by muscles during training. Taken alone or as part of a complete protein, BCAAs inhibit muscle breakdown. So net protein synthesis is elevated even higher!
Burn More Calories: A study published in Medicine and Science in Sports & Exercise found that one scoop of whey protein prior to working out increased calorie burning over the subsequent 24 hours. The exact cause of this increase in calorie burning is unknown, but it may be due to the added metabolic effects of increasing protein and modifying substrates (energy sources) used during exercise. Don't wait for the eggheads: It's okay to reap the benefits of the what (increased calorie burning!) without knowing the why (exact metabolic cause).

Carryover Effect: There is also a carryover effect of nutrients taken in the pre-workout period. After ingesting protein, muscle protein synthesis can stay elevated as long as 3 hours. This means that pre-workout protein allows you to double dip: You reap the benefits of elevated blood amino acids during your training session in addition to a carryover of elevated blood amino acid levels after your workout. This elevation of blood amino acids will also help prevent excessive post-workout muscle breakdown. This occurs partly through the reduction of the muscle-catabolizing hormone cortisol. A 2007 study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research found that starting your workout nutrition with a protein-and-carbohydrate shake 30 minutes prior to exercise led to a significant reduction in cortisol up to one day following the training session.

Fat-Burning Bonus: Taking protein (specifically BCAAs) alone before a workout is extremely beneficial during a low-carb diet. The consumption of pre-workout BCAAs, especially when glycogen levels are low (as they are during a low-carb diet), leads to an increase in fat oxidation (fat burning) during high-intensity exercise like interval training or metabolic resistance training.

The Winner: Pre-Workout Protein: The nutrients you ingest around your workouts are extremely critical to developing and refining your physique. If you skip pre-workout protein, you skip a chance to support intra-workout anabolism (muscle growth AND reduce post-workout catabolism (muscle breakdown). Provided you're getting adequate dietary protein throughout the day, I recommend BCAAs pre-workout. Their free form offers much faster absorption and uptake, which means your blood amino levels will be high when you hit the training floor.