May the coming year bring you peace and happiness.
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Eat Away Stress: 10 Easy Ways to Lower Your Cortisol Levels
by Samantha Leffler, for Eat This, Not That!
Feeling stressed? Have you put on weight? Do you have high blood pressure? If you're reading this, the answer to at least one of those questions is probably, "yes." That also means you probably already know that your cortisol levels are to blame and now you're trying to figure out how to lower cortisol. Lucky for you, we reached out to experts to ask for 10 science-backed tips to lower cortisol levels naturally and tackle these common health issues.
What is cortisol? Cortisol is your body's main stress hormone. The adrenal glands pump it out every time you are frazzled or alarmed. That's why we think of cortisol as helping fuel your body's "fight-or-flight" instinct. Ever feel uneasy after a close call while driving on the highway or get startled by your alarm in the morning? That's cortisol at work.
While we most often associate this hormone with negative things, cortisol plays an essential role in our lives. A certain amount of cortisol is healthy for the body, as it has anti-inflammatory properties and it's required for our bodies to function optimally.
What are the negative effects of high cortisol? Having the right balance of cortisol levels is essential for human health, so, it should be no surprise that too much cortisol (and the stress that precipitates it) can lead to negative side effects (weight gain, in particular).
"When placed in a stressful situation, our body responds by releasing hormones, including cortisol. As more cortisol is released, it raises blood sugar levels, which can lead to weight gain, mainly around the abdomen and face," says Bonnie Balk, RD a registered dietitian.
Further, although there are many studies suggesting the connection between stress levels and weight gain, the connection may be from another cause," Balk adds. "As people experience stressful situations, they tend to turn to their 'therapist,' which is often cakes, cookies, or other sugar/salty/oily comfort food, which leads to weight gain. As abdominal fat seems to raise cortisol levels, it contributes to this unhealthy cycle." The good news is that here are 10 natural, evidence-based ways—including dietary shifts and lifestyle changes—that can help you lower your cortisol levels.
1). Reduce your sugar intake. You should avoid foods that have been heavily processed and pumped full of added chemicals and sugars if you're looking for how to lower your cortisol levels. "One way to combat high cortisol levels, stress, and weight gain is to reduce (or cut out) simple sugars," says Balk. The main foods that fall under this high-sugar category include: cakes/pies, pastries/cookies, white bread, ice cream, candies, sodas and sugary drinks.
2). Stay hydrated. “Drinking enough water that your body requires each day can help your body regulate cortisol levels better," says White. "When our body dehydrates it can be seen as a stressor within the body, which could affect cortisol levels." According to a 2018 study, even mild dehydration can lead to an increase in one's cortisol levels, so if you're looking to keep your cortisol levels at bay, don't be afraid of a little H2O.
3). Stick to a regular eating schedule. Though it can be tricky at times, sticking to a regular eating schedule is a great way to keep stress (that cortisol trigger) under control. This is in part because it takes the guesswork out of when your next meal will be, which in and of itself can be a source of anxiety mentally and stress for your body. In turn, sticking to a schedule can also help prevent stress-eating, another habit that can contribute to an uptick in cortisol levels, especially since we tend to reach for cortisol-boosting sweets and comfort foods when we're mentally or physically overloaded.
"Recognize if and when you are engaging in stress eating: Try avoid ever getting too hungry then stuffing yourself to the brim," advises Miller. "Also, before grabbing a snack, take a minute to ask yourself if you are truly hungry. You may find that you are really just stressed and looking for something to munch on to make you feel better, or maybe you’re just bored. Try to structure an eating routine where you eat a meal/snack every 3-5 hours during the day."
4). Pinpoint your food triggers. Try writing down what you eat in an effort to get a better idea of when you stress eat. "Keeping a food journal for a week can help you pinpoint the times where you indulge in comfort foods or when you make sensible, healthier choices," says Balk. "If dinner before a big test or meeting tends to be fried 'comfort food,' it's worthwhile to stop the cycle and replace that emotion with a healthier choice or receive consolation another way."
5). Get a good night’s sleep. Every dietitian we spoke with mentioned the positive impact an adequate night's sleep can have on cortisol levels. Cortisol rises and falls based on our sleep cycles: it's highest just after we wake up and lowest right before we hit the hay so it's not surprising that sleep and cortisol levels are so heavily interconnected.
6). Cut out or consume less caffeine. A 2005 study in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that caffeine increases cortisol secretion even in people at rest. Because caffeine can stimulate cortisol production and increase blood pressure, Krista King, MS, RD, offers a solution to lower cortisol: "Try doing a caffeine reset. Gradually decrease the amount of caffeine you have each day by swapping it out for a caffeine-free or lower caffeine alternative."
While these sugary goodies might give you a temporary jolt of energy (and the inevitable, cortisol boost) Balk suggests focusing on other sources of energy. "As your body still needs to fuel itself, focus on having complex carbohydrates rather than simple sugars." Jim White RD, ACSM, adds that fiber-rich foods, protein, and a moderate amount of healthy fats will also help keep your cortisol levels within the normal range. Foods that help combat stress and lower cortisol include protein foods, whole grains, vegetables and low-sugar fruits, like berries.
7). Limit or avoid alcohol when you’re stressed. Because alcohol often puts people at ease and makes them feel relaxed, you might think that it has the ability to lower cortisol levels. In fact, the exact opposite is true. A study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolismfound that men who had just one drink a week saw a three percent rise in their cortisol levels, and those levels can be even higher if you're under a tremendous amount of pressure.
"We see people using alcohol to help relax; however, alcohol is a depressant, it can also lower your mood. While yes, in the moment you may feel 'better,' alcohol causes several issues that appear later on," says Amanda A. Kostro Miller, RD.
Couple a depressed mood with stress (or existing depression) and you may find yourself in a terrible rut," she adds. "Alcohol can also disrupt deep sleep, so besides a hangover if you overdo it, you may also feel sick off-kilter from lacking a good night's sleep!"
"Due to cortisol levels being linked to circadian rhythm, making sure you are getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night will help keep cortisol levels normal," explains White. "This can also help keep the fat off." According to Wake Forest researchers, people who sleep 5 hours or less put on two and a half times more belly fat. However, beware of getting too much sleep; those who sleep more than 8 hours can pack on belly fat as well.
8). Laugh it off. Believe it or not, a good chuckle can go a long way when it comes to lowering your cortisol levels. "One way to reduce cortisol that good research support is through deep, heartfelt laughter," says Steven M. Sultanoff, PhD. "Studies have shown that 10-20 minutes of deep heartfelt laughter reduces serum cortisol." White concurs, noting even a good mood can help get the job done: "Have something that you look forward to every single day that can boost your mood," he says. "This can help lower cortisol levels and reduce levels of stress."
9). Break a sweat. "High-intensity exercise over about 15-20 minutes can stimulate cortisol production," says King. To decrease it, you need a different form of exercise. "To help lower cortisol levels try shifting from high intensity to moderate and lower intensity exercise like strength training, yoga, pilates, and walking," she says. Per a study in The Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, low-intensity exercise actually results in a reduction in circulating cortisol levels.
10. However, don’t hit the gym too often. By contrast, that same study from The Journal of Endocrinological Investigation showed that moderate- to high-intensity exercise provokes increases in circulating cortisol levels. In other words, when it comes to exercise, more may not necessarily be better. A separate 2012 study confirmed that long-term cortisol exposure was significantly higher in endurance athletes.
As clinical psychologist Candice Seti, PsyD, put it, “[We have evidence] that over-exercising can actually lead to an increase in cortisol. This, in turn, can lead to much slower weight loss, among other problems. Keeping a reasonable workout schedule can help manage cortisol levels.”
Feeling stressed? Have you put on weight? Do you have high blood pressure? If you're reading this, the answer to at least one of those questions is probably, "yes." That also means you probably already know that your cortisol levels are to blame and now you're trying to figure out how to lower cortisol. Lucky for you, we reached out to experts to ask for 10 science-backed tips to lower cortisol levels naturally and tackle these common health issues.
What is cortisol? Cortisol is your body's main stress hormone. The adrenal glands pump it out every time you are frazzled or alarmed. That's why we think of cortisol as helping fuel your body's "fight-or-flight" instinct. Ever feel uneasy after a close call while driving on the highway or get startled by your alarm in the morning? That's cortisol at work.
While we most often associate this hormone with negative things, cortisol plays an essential role in our lives. A certain amount of cortisol is healthy for the body, as it has anti-inflammatory properties and it's required for our bodies to function optimally.
What are the negative effects of high cortisol? Having the right balance of cortisol levels is essential for human health, so, it should be no surprise that too much cortisol (and the stress that precipitates it) can lead to negative side effects (weight gain, in particular).
"When placed in a stressful situation, our body responds by releasing hormones, including cortisol. As more cortisol is released, it raises blood sugar levels, which can lead to weight gain, mainly around the abdomen and face," says Bonnie Balk, RD a registered dietitian.
Further, although there are many studies suggesting the connection between stress levels and weight gain, the connection may be from another cause," Balk adds. "As people experience stressful situations, they tend to turn to their 'therapist,' which is often cakes, cookies, or other sugar/salty/oily comfort food, which leads to weight gain. As abdominal fat seems to raise cortisol levels, it contributes to this unhealthy cycle." The good news is that here are 10 natural, evidence-based ways—including dietary shifts and lifestyle changes—that can help you lower your cortisol levels.
1). Reduce your sugar intake. You should avoid foods that have been heavily processed and pumped full of added chemicals and sugars if you're looking for how to lower your cortisol levels. "One way to combat high cortisol levels, stress, and weight gain is to reduce (or cut out) simple sugars," says Balk. The main foods that fall under this high-sugar category include: cakes/pies, pastries/cookies, white bread, ice cream, candies, sodas and sugary drinks.
2). Stay hydrated. “Drinking enough water that your body requires each day can help your body regulate cortisol levels better," says White. "When our body dehydrates it can be seen as a stressor within the body, which could affect cortisol levels." According to a 2018 study, even mild dehydration can lead to an increase in one's cortisol levels, so if you're looking to keep your cortisol levels at bay, don't be afraid of a little H2O.
3). Stick to a regular eating schedule. Though it can be tricky at times, sticking to a regular eating schedule is a great way to keep stress (that cortisol trigger) under control. This is in part because it takes the guesswork out of when your next meal will be, which in and of itself can be a source of anxiety mentally and stress for your body. In turn, sticking to a schedule can also help prevent stress-eating, another habit that can contribute to an uptick in cortisol levels, especially since we tend to reach for cortisol-boosting sweets and comfort foods when we're mentally or physically overloaded.
"Recognize if and when you are engaging in stress eating: Try avoid ever getting too hungry then stuffing yourself to the brim," advises Miller. "Also, before grabbing a snack, take a minute to ask yourself if you are truly hungry. You may find that you are really just stressed and looking for something to munch on to make you feel better, or maybe you’re just bored. Try to structure an eating routine where you eat a meal/snack every 3-5 hours during the day."
4). Pinpoint your food triggers. Try writing down what you eat in an effort to get a better idea of when you stress eat. "Keeping a food journal for a week can help you pinpoint the times where you indulge in comfort foods or when you make sensible, healthier choices," says Balk. "If dinner before a big test or meeting tends to be fried 'comfort food,' it's worthwhile to stop the cycle and replace that emotion with a healthier choice or receive consolation another way."
5). Get a good night’s sleep. Every dietitian we spoke with mentioned the positive impact an adequate night's sleep can have on cortisol levels. Cortisol rises and falls based on our sleep cycles: it's highest just after we wake up and lowest right before we hit the hay so it's not surprising that sleep and cortisol levels are so heavily interconnected.
6). Cut out or consume less caffeine. A 2005 study in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine found that caffeine increases cortisol secretion even in people at rest. Because caffeine can stimulate cortisol production and increase blood pressure, Krista King, MS, RD, offers a solution to lower cortisol: "Try doing a caffeine reset. Gradually decrease the amount of caffeine you have each day by swapping it out for a caffeine-free or lower caffeine alternative."
While these sugary goodies might give you a temporary jolt of energy (and the inevitable, cortisol boost) Balk suggests focusing on other sources of energy. "As your body still needs to fuel itself, focus on having complex carbohydrates rather than simple sugars." Jim White RD, ACSM, adds that fiber-rich foods, protein, and a moderate amount of healthy fats will also help keep your cortisol levels within the normal range. Foods that help combat stress and lower cortisol include protein foods, whole grains, vegetables and low-sugar fruits, like berries.
7). Limit or avoid alcohol when you’re stressed. Because alcohol often puts people at ease and makes them feel relaxed, you might think that it has the ability to lower cortisol levels. In fact, the exact opposite is true. A study published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolismfound that men who had just one drink a week saw a three percent rise in their cortisol levels, and those levels can be even higher if you're under a tremendous amount of pressure.
"We see people using alcohol to help relax; however, alcohol is a depressant, it can also lower your mood. While yes, in the moment you may feel 'better,' alcohol causes several issues that appear later on," says Amanda A. Kostro Miller, RD.
Couple a depressed mood with stress (or existing depression) and you may find yourself in a terrible rut," she adds. "Alcohol can also disrupt deep sleep, so besides a hangover if you overdo it, you may also feel sick off-kilter from lacking a good night's sleep!"
"Due to cortisol levels being linked to circadian rhythm, making sure you are getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night will help keep cortisol levels normal," explains White. "This can also help keep the fat off." According to Wake Forest researchers, people who sleep 5 hours or less put on two and a half times more belly fat. However, beware of getting too much sleep; those who sleep more than 8 hours can pack on belly fat as well.
8). Laugh it off. Believe it or not, a good chuckle can go a long way when it comes to lowering your cortisol levels. "One way to reduce cortisol that good research support is through deep, heartfelt laughter," says Steven M. Sultanoff, PhD. "Studies have shown that 10-20 minutes of deep heartfelt laughter reduces serum cortisol." White concurs, noting even a good mood can help get the job done: "Have something that you look forward to every single day that can boost your mood," he says. "This can help lower cortisol levels and reduce levels of stress."
9). Break a sweat. "High-intensity exercise over about 15-20 minutes can stimulate cortisol production," says King. To decrease it, you need a different form of exercise. "To help lower cortisol levels try shifting from high intensity to moderate and lower intensity exercise like strength training, yoga, pilates, and walking," she says. Per a study in The Journal of Endocrinological Investigation, low-intensity exercise actually results in a reduction in circulating cortisol levels.
10. However, don’t hit the gym too often. By contrast, that same study from The Journal of Endocrinological Investigation showed that moderate- to high-intensity exercise provokes increases in circulating cortisol levels. In other words, when it comes to exercise, more may not necessarily be better. A separate 2012 study confirmed that long-term cortisol exposure was significantly higher in endurance athletes.
As clinical psychologist Candice Seti, PsyD, put it, “[We have evidence] that over-exercising can actually lead to an increase in cortisol. This, in turn, can lead to much slower weight loss, among other problems. Keeping a reasonable workout schedule can help manage cortisol levels.”
Leaving the Witness: Exiting a Religion and Finding a Life
In this revealing conversation Amber Scorah opens the box into the psychology of religious belief to show how, exactly, religions and cults convince members that theirs is the one true religion, to the point, she admits, that she would have gladly died for her faith. As a third-generation Jehovah’s Witness, Amber Scorah had devoted her life to sounding God’s warning of impending Armageddon. She volunteered to take the message to China, where the preaching she did was illegal and could result in her expulsion or worse. Here, she had some distance from her community for the first time. Immersion in a foreign language and culture — and a whole new way of thinking — turned her world upside down, and eventually led her to lose all that she had been sure was true. As a proselytizer in Shanghai, using fake names and secret codes to evade the authorities’ notice, Scorah discreetly looked for targets in public parks and stores. To support herself, she found work at a Chinese language learning podcast, hiding her real purpose from her coworkers. Now with a creative outlet, getting to know worldly people for the first time, she began to understand that there were other ways of seeing the world and living a fulfilling life. When one of these relationships became an “escape hatch,” Scorah’s loss of faith culminated in her own personal apocalypse, the only kind of ending possible for a Jehovah’s Witness. Shunned by family and friends as an apostate, Scorah was alone in Shanghai and thrown into a world she had only known from the periphery — with no education or support system. A coming of age story of a woman already in her thirties, this unforgettable memoir examines what it’s like to start one’s life over again with an entirely new identity. Scorah and Shermer also discuss:
- the legals and logistics of writing a memoir
- the rise of the nones and disbelief and why stories like hers provide social proof for living without religion
- what Jehovah’s Witnesses believe and why they believe it
- what it’s like to go door-to-door witnessing for a religion
- Armageddon and what doomsayers do when the world doesn’t end
- the mindset of the fundamentalist
- why religions are obsessed with female sexuality
- why religions forbid homosexuality
- the psychology of deconversion
- the problem of evil, or why bad things happen to good people
- how she would try to talk someone out of joining ISIS
- what it’s like to be expelled from a religion and be an apostate, and
- how to start your life over when you’ve lost everything.
Amber Scorah is a writer living in Brooklyn, NY. Her articles have been published in The New York Times, The Believer, and USA Today. Prior to coming to New York, Scorah lived in Shanghai, where she was creator and host of the podcast Dear Amber: An Insider’s Guide to Everything China. Leaving the Witness is her first book.
Ten Years Away …and Always Will Be
BY PETER KASSAN
There are a lot of books about artificial intelligence. The interlibrary site Worldcat lists over 36,000. Amazon claims to have over 20,000 for sale. Many contain histrionic titles, such as Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works, Why It’s Making the World a Weirder Place, and especially The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human Intelligence. Melanie Mitchell’s new book is more modestly titled but it is, in my opinion after surveying much of this literature, the most intelligent book on the subject. Mitchell is Professor of Computer Science at Portland State University as well as External Professor and Co-Chair of the Science Board at the Santa Fe Institute. And, unlike most active practitioners in the field, her evaluation of the current state of AI and its prospects is measured, cautious, and often skeptical.
The book begins with an introduction (“Prologue: Terrified”), a personal story of how she became involved with AI, inspired by Douglas Hofstadter’s Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid. Through a mixture of luck, audacity, and persistence, Mitchell first became Hofstadter’s research student and then a doctoral student under him. Decades later, in 2014, at a Google conference she attended with him, she learned that Hofstadter was upset that one AI program has defeated the world Chess champion and another has generated a music “composition” indistinguishable from (even judged better than) a genuine composition by Chopin. Hofstader’s concerns inspired her to write about the pursuit of human-level AI (and beyond).
The book is divided into five parts: Background; Looking and Learning; Learning to Play; Artificial Intelligence Meets Natural Language; and The Barrier of Meaning. Although Mitchell states up front that the book isn’t intended to be a general survey or history of AI, she still manages to tell enough of its history—especially of its hubristic inauguration in 1956 by John McCarthy, Marvin Minsky, Allen Newell, and Herbert Simon—to put today’s enthusiastic optimism in perspective.
As Mitchell explains, one of the first branches in the pursuit of AI was artificial neural nets (ANN)—the foundation of today’s deep learning algorithms. She provides an example of such an ANN, the “perceptron” designed to “learn” how to recognize hand-lettered digits. The illustrative grid is 18×18, and each square has four shades: white, light gray, dark gray, and black. Curiously, she doesn’t mention the fundamental problem of even such a relatively modest ANN: the number of different possible different inputs in this case is 2 to the 326th power (2326), or:
136,703,170,298,938,245,273,281,389,194,851,335,334,573,089,430,825,777,276,610,662,900,622,062,449,960,995,201,469,573,563,940,864 […]
Friday, December 27, 2019
Monopoly & Monopolies
What Board Games Teach Us About Capitalism and How to Modify It
BY JONATHAN KAY
Imagine that you are in the late stages of a game of Monopoly, battling it out against a lone remaining opponent. You each control a bunch of expensive properties, all loaded with hotels. Both of you also are cash-poor, with no spare properties left to mortgage. Every roll of the dice carries high stakes. If your opponent lands on one of your hotels, the only way he can pay the rent will be to sell off his own hotels at a 50-percent discount (because that is how the rules of Monopoly work), and vice versa. Which means that the first player who lands on an opponent’s hotel will not just lose a lot of money: He will also lose the assets he needs to earn that money back. In real life, the analogy would be the poor worker in Victorian Britain who, unable to pay a small debt, goes to debtor’s prison, which further compromises his ability to earn a livelihood, and so pushes his family deeper into complete destitution.
BY JONATHAN KAY
Imagine that you are in the late stages of a game of Monopoly, battling it out against a lone remaining opponent. You each control a bunch of expensive properties, all loaded with hotels. Both of you also are cash-poor, with no spare properties left to mortgage. Every roll of the dice carries high stakes. If your opponent lands on one of your hotels, the only way he can pay the rent will be to sell off his own hotels at a 50-percent discount (because that is how the rules of Monopoly work), and vice versa. Which means that the first player who lands on an opponent’s hotel will not just lose a lot of money: He will also lose the assets he needs to earn that money back. In real life, the analogy would be the poor worker in Victorian Britain who, unable to pay a small debt, goes to debtor’s prison, which further compromises his ability to earn a livelihood, and so pushes his family deeper into complete destitution.
“Well, that’s capitalism,” you might say. Perhaps. We will get to that later. For now, I want to emphasize that this aspect of Monopoly — the poor get poorer, while the rich get richer — is not only typical of laissez-faire economics. It is also characteristic of a certain dynamic observed in nature, engineering and human relationships, one that mathematicians sometimes describe as unstable equilibrium.
Take a simple physical metaphor: a marble resting at the bottom of a salad bowl is going to exhibit a stableequilibrium — because small movements in any direction will push the marble up against the walls of the bowl, and the marble will roll back toward its start position, also known as its equilibrium point.
If the salad bowl is turned upside down, however, and the marble is placed at the top of it, the marble will exhibit an unstable equilibrium: Even if the marble is balanced perfectly on top of the bowl, and so remains temporarily motionless, a nudge in any direction will lead to a feedback loop whereby the marble rolls off the bowl, moving slowly at first and then accelerating downward. In general, a stable equilibrium tends to correct itself, restoring the balance of offsetting forces that held it in check to begin with; while an unstable equilibrium tends to destabilize in one direction or another, until the system in some way collapses or reaches a different stable equilibrium.
Now let us return to Monopoly. You and your imaginary opponent are moving your tokens around the board, seeking to avoid one another’s hotels. In a way, you each inhabit an economic state analogous to the marble sitting on top of that salad bowl. All you need is a single initial nudge toward poverty and a cascade will begin, pushing you further and further down. […]
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
Michael Shermer with John Martin Fischer — Death, Immortality and Meaning in Life
John Martin Fischer’s Death, Immortality, and Meaning in Life offers a brief yet in-depth introduction to the key philosophical issues and problems concerning death and immortality. In this wide-ranging and thoughtful conversation, Shermer and Fisher discuss:
- meaning in life
- meaning in death
- the badness of death
- different philosophical, religious, and scientific ideas on immortality
- near-death experiences
- extending life through medical technology
- medical immortality vs. real immortality
- the problem of identity for immortality (who or what becomes immortal?)
- living for 100 years vs. 1000 years vs. forever
- responding to the theistic argument that without God anything goes, there is no objective morality, and no meaning to life
- If you don’t believe in God or the afterlife, what do you say to someone who is dying or has lost a loved one?
- Is immortality, like existence, one thought too many?
John Martin Fischer is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the University of California, Riverside, and a University Professor at the University of California. He is coauthor of Near-Death Experiences: Understanding Visions of the Afterlife(OUP, 2016), and coeditor of Introduction to Philosophy: Classical and Contemporary Readings (Eighth Edition, OUP, 2018). He was Project Leader of The Immortality Project (John Templeton Foundation).
When Less is More: How to Make A Light Weight Feel Heavier, Keep Gaining Muscle, & Stay Injury Free For Life
by Tom Venuto
One of the biggest problems you're likely to face over your training lifetime is injury or chronic joint pain that stops you short of your full muscle-building potential, or even forces you into a backslide. The older you get, the bigger the concern. Few people escape lifting weights through middle age (40 to 60) without some kind of aches or pains. Having recently crossed the half-century mark, I can relate.
In youth, inexperience often leads us to bad decisions in the gym that hurt us on the spot or come back to haunt us later. But pain or injury are not always caused by egregious mistakes. Accidents happen (sometimes outside the gym), and most people simply start feeling wear and tear from years of heavy lifting, combined with normal aging.
The good news is, there are solutions that don't involve rehab, drugs, surgery, or doctors. You simply don't hear these ideas as much because many of them are not politically correct in the strength training community. In fact, some of these methods fly in the face of what most strength coaches teach.
The idea that we must continue striving to lift more and more weight is perpetually shoved down our throats. Experts tell us, "Just keep getting stronger and you'll keep gaining muscle." There's also been a renaissance in strength sports, where Olympic lifting has become mainstream, and powerlifting is more popular than ever. Even the formerly obscure strongman events now take center stage at huge fitness expos.
At the same time, we are faced with a challenge from within as we struggle with our own egos. This is not a minor point - it might be the crux of the issue - and it's worse in the age of Instagram. So called influencers, if they aren't busy flashing abs or glutes, feel obligated to max out lifts or perform fitness stunts on camera, and followers feel an obligation to imitate. The result of it all: Most people choose their weights based more on what other people around them will think than what it will do for the long-term health of their bodies.
What you need to know is that there are training methods where you can reduce your weight by twenty to thirty percent or more, and it actually feels more intense than the heavier strength workouts. To your surprise, you may find it builds muscle just the same, and there's no pain.
Many readers have told me that they get off track sometimes because life gets busy or their motivation wanes, but the biggest problem that knocked them off course and kept them off was an injury that took time to recover from or still bothers them occasionally, or even worse, chronic pain that never goes away.
I heard about compromised rotator cuffs, knee problems, low back pain, hip pain, elbow tendinitis, chronic muscle strains, and simply achy joints all over that make heavy weight-lifting feel unpleasant to excruciating. I replied by suggesting that if they rethink the way they train, they can feel better and keep training and noted that training heavy all the time could be part of the problem. The good news is, the heavy lifting that's hurting them may not be as necessary as they were led to believe.
You see, while bodybuilding and physique-style training usually includes heavy lifting, they don't require it. Bodybuilders have discovered alternate methods that maintain and build muscle size with moderate or even light weights. No, you won't gain maximum strength with these methods. That's part of the compromise - you may have to embrace training less for strength and power and more for physique and health. But it seems like a pretty fair trade-off, considering you can't do much of anything if you're in perpetual pain.
This is not a knock on heavy training of any kind. Powerlifting, Olympic lifting and strength training for sport are amazing disciplines to practice and witness. Even if you're a bodybuilder or physique enthusiast, not a strength athlete, if you can train heavier with zero pain, you should. Load progression is always the number one method for gaining both strength and muscle. But the fact is, many people can't do it as their primary focus.
If we were to describe in one short phrase what you will aim to accomplish, here it is: Make a light weight feel heavier. You can do this with classic bodybuilding and physique techniques.
The 10 Techniques: This is not an exhaustive list, but these are the most well-known, tested, and proven ways to build muscle with lighter weights and stay pain-free. I won't be including strategies like warm ups or mobility work, or taking de-loads. We'll chalk these things up to common sense. In addition, while good form is on top of the list, I am not reviewing technique for individual exercises, these are general strategies that apply to all exercises.
1. Train with stricter form (eliminate all cheating): If you want to stay pain free and make the best gains, your number one strategy is to become a strict form fanatic. Good form is usually thought of as perfect technique for each exercise, including full range of motion, but it also means using a controlled tempo, with no swinging or extraneous body movement. If you heave or bounce a weight up, or if you drop a weight down without resisting on the negative, you can lift more, but the injury risk goes up, and the only thing the extra pounds build is your ego.
To tighten up your form, you'll need to reduce the weight, but many people resist because they worry they won't gain as much muscle. You have to look at it this way: With loose form, the muscles you intended to build weren't doing all the work in the first place - momentum and gravity were taking over. Secondary muscles were kicking in to help as well.
When you tighten up your form, the primary muscle you want to target can actually get more stimulation with less weight. You'll feel higher quality muscle contractions than ever before, your muscle growth will be the same or better, and your injury risk will go down.
Most people aren't aware of how much they're cheating because it's so unconscious. Your body's natural tendency is to seek out the path of least resistance. Especially when you near the end of a set and the velocity of the bar starts to slow down and you feel the sticking point coming on, if you don't consciously counter the urge, you will lean, twist, or shift your body into any position that gives you a mechanical advantage, or you'll swing the weight up just enough to keep it moving.
Since so much cheating is habit-driven and goes unnoticed, the first step is to pay attention to what you are doing every second of every rep and make every effort to remove extraneous body movement or use of momentum.
2. Use the continuous tension principle: In practical terms, continuous tension means don't let the target muscle rest or relax in the middle of your set (don't take pauses between reps). You especially want to avoid pausing at the bottom or in any "dead spots" in the resistance curve. You will be forced to reduce your weight, but the continuous tension gives you the muscle-building stimulus you need.
Even though the weight is lighter, continuous tension sets are intense, as the burn continues to build up. That's exactly why so many people pause between reps in the first place - to let the burn dissipate, which makes the set easier. Again, it's your innate tendency to choose the path of least resistance and avoid discomfort.
Standard advice is to use the full range of motion, but on certain exercises, continuous tension means not locking out. Because you eliminate that brief rest between reps, continuous tension squats can light your muscles on fire - they are so much harder, you have to reduce the weight substantially, often 20-25% or even moreBecause it's so metabolically stressful, you can still build muscle with the lighter weight.
3. Perform your reps more slowly (but not too slow): Performing your reps a little bit slower is one of the easiest ways to improve your form and stimulate muscle growth with less weight. A slow repetition, by nature, is a strict repetition, because it automatically removes some of the momentum and swinging that occurs with faster reps.
The main idea is simply to lift and lower the weight under complete control. Resist the weight on the way down ("fight gravity") and initiate the upward movement of the weight purely with muscular force and no swinging to get the weight started or accelerate the speed of the weight.
On the other hand, don't slow down too much. When you slow down to an extreme, it forces you to cut the weight too much, plus super slow reps take longer, they are boring to slog through, and simply less practical.
4. Improve your mind-to-muscle connection: Studies have shown that putting your attention on the muscle you're working and focusing on feeling it contract can increase activation of the target muscle, reduce the involvement of secondary muscles, and in turn, increase growth.
Where you place your attention (what you think about) during an exercise is known as attentional focus. Your focus can be internal or external. During an exercise, you might concentrate on feeling your muscles contract and saying to yourself, "squeeze." That's an internal focus. An external focus might be thinking about driving the barbell overhead during a heavy lift.
In one study, a group of football players were hooked up to an electromyograph (EMG) machine while doing the bench press and given specific verbal instructions to "focus on the chest muscles." With a simple verbal cue which shifted the lifter's mental focus, the muscle activity (measured by EMG) in the chest increased by 22%.
Another study lead by Brad Schoenfeld compared the results in two groups of lifters who were given different instructions during their workouts. One group was told to focus internally and "squeeze the muscle" while the other was instructed to focus externally and think about "getting the weight up." After 8 weeks, the group that focused internally had greater biceps growth (12.4% vs 6.9%).
Strength athletes lift heavy and focus on lifting the weight. Bodybuilders lift a little lighter and focus more on feeling the muscle. If your goal is gaining muscle, the better you get at using internal focus, and strengthening your mind to muscle connection, the more muscle you can activate and grow, even when you train with lighter weights. These are learnable skills that improve with practice.
5. Use the peak contraction principle: During certain exercises, like the dumbbell lateral raise, there is no tension on the muscle (deltoids) at the bottom, and during some exercises, like the squat, there is no tension on the muscle (quads) at the top. In either case, you're just resting if you pause there. If you learn which exercises maintain tension at which point, you may want to do the opposite, and pause in that position to contract and squeeze the muscle. This may be only for a split second - just long enough to stop moving and flex the muscle, or it could be one to three full seconds. This is known as the peak contraction principle.
Holding the peak position under maximum tension is much harder, so this will force you to reduce the weight. Yet despite the poundage reduction, you will be feeling a stronger contraction that can produce equivalent or even greater growth. It's going to require greater effort, as it's not easy. For every peak contraction exercise, a good cue is to say to yourself, "squeeze".
6. Use the reverse order training principle: Sometimes the best way to feel less joint pain during a workout is to train backwards. The traditional rule for the ideal order of exercises says to do the larger muscle groups/compound movements like squats, deadlifts, presses and rows first, because they take the most energy and give the most bang for the buck when you are fresh and at your strongest.
However, these compound exercises and powerlifts are among the ones most notorious for aggravating joint pain. What if you reversed the order and did the isolation or accessory exercises like leg extensions on leg day, and lateral raises on shoulder day first, then put the bigger movements later in the workout?
Many experts would tell you that's wrong because if you do squats and presses last after pre-exhausting them with isolation exercises you won't be able to lift as much. In this case, that's the whole idea. Heavy squats might make your back ache. Heavy presses might tear up your shoulders, but you might be able to keep doing squats and presses without pain if you do them last when you are pre-exhausted, which forces you to use lighter weights.
In addition, if you do the compound moves first, you need to do a thorough warm up beforehand, otherwise, you'll be hitting those heavy exercises cold. If you train a body part with isolation or accessory exercises first, then when you get to the compound exercise, your muscles are already warm, your joints are all lubed up, and the compound exercises may feel better for that reason alone.
7. Reduce your rest intervals: In traditional strength training, the short break you take in between sets is an important variable to think about. You're usually advised to take at least 2 minutes between sets, sometimes even 3, if you want maximum strength gains. For muscle gains, you're advised to take at least 2 minutes between sets of compound exercises and at least 1 minute for isolation exercises and smaller muscle groups.
The reason for these guidelines is because if you rush through your workout by taking under a minute between sets, your muscles can't fully recover for the next set, and your reps drop off or you even have to reduce the weight. The longer rest intervals let you lift more weight and increase your strength more.
Some people shorten rest intervals, often to under a minute (30 to 60 seconds) for time efficiency. If you shorten rest intervals, and do the same number of sets and reps, you'll finish your workout sooner and achieve the goal of saving time, but there's a trade-off. To get the same workout done in less time, you almost always need to reduce the weight. This means the total volume load of the workout goes down. You might still maintain or even gain muscle, but not as much as you would with the longer rest periods with heavier weights.
When all else is equal, the longer rest intervals do win, so on the surface, using shorter rest intervals seems to run contrary to best practices. But what if you cut your rest intervals to a minute or less, and used that time you saved to do extra sets (or exercises), so you did more work in the same time or less time? (Increasing density). This could allow you to equalize or even increase your volume load for the workout, and even though the weights were lighter, you might gain the same amount of muscle or even more, and with less strain on your joints.
8. Use same-muscle supersets: A superset is where you perform two exercises in a row back to back with little or no rest in between. After the second exercise, you take the normal rest interval, before repeating the pair of exercises again.
Pairing opposite muscles, like chest with back or biceps with triceps, is known as an antagonistic superset. For strength training, this is considered the most effective method because one muscle is resting while the other is working, so there's no interference and you can still lift your usual poundage.
Supersets can also be done for the same muscle group, like doing dumbbell flies and followed by a bench press as both exercises are for the chest. Strength coaches often point out that same-muscle supersets force you to use much less weight (you can't bench press as much after your pectorals have been pre-exhausted by flies first).
However, what if your shoulders hurt when you bench heavy, but you've found that you can still bench pain free if you go lighter? If your goal is not maximum strength in the first place, and you need to train around pain, then same muscle supersets could be an ideal technique. Same muscle supersets are metabolically stressful and may induce more micro-damage to the muscle fibers, so they can still stimulate muscle growth despite the lighter loads. In addition, supersets can be used to save time, or as mentioned above, they can be used to allow you to do more work in less time (increase density).
9. Train with higher reps to failure: The first thought that people have about changing their lifting style to avoid pain is simply to do higher reps. The traditional ideal strength training range involves heavy sets of 3 to 6 (low reps), and the ideal muscle-building range is usually quoted as 8 to 12 (medium reps). High reps are usually considered 13 to 15 reps, and occasionally as high as 20 to 25 or more.
Doing sets of 15, 20 or 25 reps means by definition that you have to use less weight, and almost everyone will agree that a benefit is less stress to the joints. For example, I have trouble with elbow tendinitis that flares up every time I train lying tricep extensions or pushdowns heavy. Even sets with an 8 to 10 rep max can cause pain. But I've discovered that I can continue doing those same exercises for sets of 20 to 25 because the weight is so much lighter it doesn't aggravate my joints.
The concern many people have about doing high reps with light weights is whether you can build any muscle. High reps with light weight build endurance, not maximum strength, but high reps can indeed build muscle. Research has found that you can build muscle with any rep range if the volume and intensity of effort is high enough.
One recent study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research found that reps as high as 25 to 35 can trigger muscle growth, and it may be especially targeting the type I muscle fibers. They also emphasized that training to failure is important to trigger the growth when you're doing high reps. That means to make this work, you have to be prepared to train through the burn.
10. Include a combination of heavier and lighter training instead of heavy training in singular: Many people don't need to forego all their heavy training, they simply need to moderate it. If you can continue training heavy without injury, that's the ideal scenario. If you have on and off pain or occasional injury, it may be in your best interests to avoid training heavy all the time. Many people use the combined heavy and light approach hoping to stimulate every type of muscle fiber. From an injury prevention point of view alone, using a combination of loads and rep ranges makes all the sense in the world and is reason enough to do it.
Conclusion: In a perfect world, we'd train for both - strength and muscle. No one is questioning the benefits of heavy strength training, but it's not a perfect world. To stay in the game, maintain a great physique, or even continue lifting at all as our training age advances, sometimes we have to let go of the always maxing-out, powerlifting, progressive resistance-only mentality, and take on a more physique, fitness, and health-oriented approach.
It's a somewhat ironic and funny twist in the ongoing fitness industry narrative, because bodybuilding-style training has had moments in history when it was criticized as being about form over function. Yet when bodybuilding techniques are properly understood and used, they become the secret weapon of people who stay functional (free of injuries) for a lifetime.
Train hard and expect success, Tom Venuto
One of the biggest problems you're likely to face over your training lifetime is injury or chronic joint pain that stops you short of your full muscle-building potential, or even forces you into a backslide. The older you get, the bigger the concern. Few people escape lifting weights through middle age (40 to 60) without some kind of aches or pains. Having recently crossed the half-century mark, I can relate.
In youth, inexperience often leads us to bad decisions in the gym that hurt us on the spot or come back to haunt us later. But pain or injury are not always caused by egregious mistakes. Accidents happen (sometimes outside the gym), and most people simply start feeling wear and tear from years of heavy lifting, combined with normal aging.
The good news is, there are solutions that don't involve rehab, drugs, surgery, or doctors. You simply don't hear these ideas as much because many of them are not politically correct in the strength training community. In fact, some of these methods fly in the face of what most strength coaches teach.
The idea that we must continue striving to lift more and more weight is perpetually shoved down our throats. Experts tell us, "Just keep getting stronger and you'll keep gaining muscle." There's also been a renaissance in strength sports, where Olympic lifting has become mainstream, and powerlifting is more popular than ever. Even the formerly obscure strongman events now take center stage at huge fitness expos.
At the same time, we are faced with a challenge from within as we struggle with our own egos. This is not a minor point - it might be the crux of the issue - and it's worse in the age of Instagram. So called influencers, if they aren't busy flashing abs or glutes, feel obligated to max out lifts or perform fitness stunts on camera, and followers feel an obligation to imitate. The result of it all: Most people choose their weights based more on what other people around them will think than what it will do for the long-term health of their bodies.
What you need to know is that there are training methods where you can reduce your weight by twenty to thirty percent or more, and it actually feels more intense than the heavier strength workouts. To your surprise, you may find it builds muscle just the same, and there's no pain.
Many readers have told me that they get off track sometimes because life gets busy or their motivation wanes, but the biggest problem that knocked them off course and kept them off was an injury that took time to recover from or still bothers them occasionally, or even worse, chronic pain that never goes away.
I heard about compromised rotator cuffs, knee problems, low back pain, hip pain, elbow tendinitis, chronic muscle strains, and simply achy joints all over that make heavy weight-lifting feel unpleasant to excruciating. I replied by suggesting that if they rethink the way they train, they can feel better and keep training and noted that training heavy all the time could be part of the problem. The good news is, the heavy lifting that's hurting them may not be as necessary as they were led to believe.
You see, while bodybuilding and physique-style training usually includes heavy lifting, they don't require it. Bodybuilders have discovered alternate methods that maintain and build muscle size with moderate or even light weights. No, you won't gain maximum strength with these methods. That's part of the compromise - you may have to embrace training less for strength and power and more for physique and health. But it seems like a pretty fair trade-off, considering you can't do much of anything if you're in perpetual pain.
This is not a knock on heavy training of any kind. Powerlifting, Olympic lifting and strength training for sport are amazing disciplines to practice and witness. Even if you're a bodybuilder or physique enthusiast, not a strength athlete, if you can train heavier with zero pain, you should. Load progression is always the number one method for gaining both strength and muscle. But the fact is, many people can't do it as their primary focus.
If we were to describe in one short phrase what you will aim to accomplish, here it is: Make a light weight feel heavier. You can do this with classic bodybuilding and physique techniques.
The 10 Techniques: This is not an exhaustive list, but these are the most well-known, tested, and proven ways to build muscle with lighter weights and stay pain-free. I won't be including strategies like warm ups or mobility work, or taking de-loads. We'll chalk these things up to common sense. In addition, while good form is on top of the list, I am not reviewing technique for individual exercises, these are general strategies that apply to all exercises.
1. Train with stricter form (eliminate all cheating): If you want to stay pain free and make the best gains, your number one strategy is to become a strict form fanatic. Good form is usually thought of as perfect technique for each exercise, including full range of motion, but it also means using a controlled tempo, with no swinging or extraneous body movement. If you heave or bounce a weight up, or if you drop a weight down without resisting on the negative, you can lift more, but the injury risk goes up, and the only thing the extra pounds build is your ego.
To tighten up your form, you'll need to reduce the weight, but many people resist because they worry they won't gain as much muscle. You have to look at it this way: With loose form, the muscles you intended to build weren't doing all the work in the first place - momentum and gravity were taking over. Secondary muscles were kicking in to help as well.
When you tighten up your form, the primary muscle you want to target can actually get more stimulation with less weight. You'll feel higher quality muscle contractions than ever before, your muscle growth will be the same or better, and your injury risk will go down.
Most people aren't aware of how much they're cheating because it's so unconscious. Your body's natural tendency is to seek out the path of least resistance. Especially when you near the end of a set and the velocity of the bar starts to slow down and you feel the sticking point coming on, if you don't consciously counter the urge, you will lean, twist, or shift your body into any position that gives you a mechanical advantage, or you'll swing the weight up just enough to keep it moving.
Since so much cheating is habit-driven and goes unnoticed, the first step is to pay attention to what you are doing every second of every rep and make every effort to remove extraneous body movement or use of momentum.
2. Use the continuous tension principle: In practical terms, continuous tension means don't let the target muscle rest or relax in the middle of your set (don't take pauses between reps). You especially want to avoid pausing at the bottom or in any "dead spots" in the resistance curve. You will be forced to reduce your weight, but the continuous tension gives you the muscle-building stimulus you need.
Even though the weight is lighter, continuous tension sets are intense, as the burn continues to build up. That's exactly why so many people pause between reps in the first place - to let the burn dissipate, which makes the set easier. Again, it's your innate tendency to choose the path of least resistance and avoid discomfort.
Standard advice is to use the full range of motion, but on certain exercises, continuous tension means not locking out. Because you eliminate that brief rest between reps, continuous tension squats can light your muscles on fire - they are so much harder, you have to reduce the weight substantially, often 20-25% or even moreBecause it's so metabolically stressful, you can still build muscle with the lighter weight.
3. Perform your reps more slowly (but not too slow): Performing your reps a little bit slower is one of the easiest ways to improve your form and stimulate muscle growth with less weight. A slow repetition, by nature, is a strict repetition, because it automatically removes some of the momentum and swinging that occurs with faster reps.
The main idea is simply to lift and lower the weight under complete control. Resist the weight on the way down ("fight gravity") and initiate the upward movement of the weight purely with muscular force and no swinging to get the weight started or accelerate the speed of the weight.
On the other hand, don't slow down too much. When you slow down to an extreme, it forces you to cut the weight too much, plus super slow reps take longer, they are boring to slog through, and simply less practical.
4. Improve your mind-to-muscle connection: Studies have shown that putting your attention on the muscle you're working and focusing on feeling it contract can increase activation of the target muscle, reduce the involvement of secondary muscles, and in turn, increase growth.
Where you place your attention (what you think about) during an exercise is known as attentional focus. Your focus can be internal or external. During an exercise, you might concentrate on feeling your muscles contract and saying to yourself, "squeeze." That's an internal focus. An external focus might be thinking about driving the barbell overhead during a heavy lift.
In one study, a group of football players were hooked up to an electromyograph (EMG) machine while doing the bench press and given specific verbal instructions to "focus on the chest muscles." With a simple verbal cue which shifted the lifter's mental focus, the muscle activity (measured by EMG) in the chest increased by 22%.
Another study lead by Brad Schoenfeld compared the results in two groups of lifters who were given different instructions during their workouts. One group was told to focus internally and "squeeze the muscle" while the other was instructed to focus externally and think about "getting the weight up." After 8 weeks, the group that focused internally had greater biceps growth (12.4% vs 6.9%).
Strength athletes lift heavy and focus on lifting the weight. Bodybuilders lift a little lighter and focus more on feeling the muscle. If your goal is gaining muscle, the better you get at using internal focus, and strengthening your mind to muscle connection, the more muscle you can activate and grow, even when you train with lighter weights. These are learnable skills that improve with practice.
5. Use the peak contraction principle: During certain exercises, like the dumbbell lateral raise, there is no tension on the muscle (deltoids) at the bottom, and during some exercises, like the squat, there is no tension on the muscle (quads) at the top. In either case, you're just resting if you pause there. If you learn which exercises maintain tension at which point, you may want to do the opposite, and pause in that position to contract and squeeze the muscle. This may be only for a split second - just long enough to stop moving and flex the muscle, or it could be one to three full seconds. This is known as the peak contraction principle.
Holding the peak position under maximum tension is much harder, so this will force you to reduce the weight. Yet despite the poundage reduction, you will be feeling a stronger contraction that can produce equivalent or even greater growth. It's going to require greater effort, as it's not easy. For every peak contraction exercise, a good cue is to say to yourself, "squeeze".
6. Use the reverse order training principle: Sometimes the best way to feel less joint pain during a workout is to train backwards. The traditional rule for the ideal order of exercises says to do the larger muscle groups/compound movements like squats, deadlifts, presses and rows first, because they take the most energy and give the most bang for the buck when you are fresh and at your strongest.
However, these compound exercises and powerlifts are among the ones most notorious for aggravating joint pain. What if you reversed the order and did the isolation or accessory exercises like leg extensions on leg day, and lateral raises on shoulder day first, then put the bigger movements later in the workout?
Many experts would tell you that's wrong because if you do squats and presses last after pre-exhausting them with isolation exercises you won't be able to lift as much. In this case, that's the whole idea. Heavy squats might make your back ache. Heavy presses might tear up your shoulders, but you might be able to keep doing squats and presses without pain if you do them last when you are pre-exhausted, which forces you to use lighter weights.
In addition, if you do the compound moves first, you need to do a thorough warm up beforehand, otherwise, you'll be hitting those heavy exercises cold. If you train a body part with isolation or accessory exercises first, then when you get to the compound exercise, your muscles are already warm, your joints are all lubed up, and the compound exercises may feel better for that reason alone.
7. Reduce your rest intervals: In traditional strength training, the short break you take in between sets is an important variable to think about. You're usually advised to take at least 2 minutes between sets, sometimes even 3, if you want maximum strength gains. For muscle gains, you're advised to take at least 2 minutes between sets of compound exercises and at least 1 minute for isolation exercises and smaller muscle groups.
The reason for these guidelines is because if you rush through your workout by taking under a minute between sets, your muscles can't fully recover for the next set, and your reps drop off or you even have to reduce the weight. The longer rest intervals let you lift more weight and increase your strength more.
Some people shorten rest intervals, often to under a minute (30 to 60 seconds) for time efficiency. If you shorten rest intervals, and do the same number of sets and reps, you'll finish your workout sooner and achieve the goal of saving time, but there's a trade-off. To get the same workout done in less time, you almost always need to reduce the weight. This means the total volume load of the workout goes down. You might still maintain or even gain muscle, but not as much as you would with the longer rest periods with heavier weights.
When all else is equal, the longer rest intervals do win, so on the surface, using shorter rest intervals seems to run contrary to best practices. But what if you cut your rest intervals to a minute or less, and used that time you saved to do extra sets (or exercises), so you did more work in the same time or less time? (Increasing density). This could allow you to equalize or even increase your volume load for the workout, and even though the weights were lighter, you might gain the same amount of muscle or even more, and with less strain on your joints.
8. Use same-muscle supersets: A superset is where you perform two exercises in a row back to back with little or no rest in between. After the second exercise, you take the normal rest interval, before repeating the pair of exercises again.
Pairing opposite muscles, like chest with back or biceps with triceps, is known as an antagonistic superset. For strength training, this is considered the most effective method because one muscle is resting while the other is working, so there's no interference and you can still lift your usual poundage.
Supersets can also be done for the same muscle group, like doing dumbbell flies and followed by a bench press as both exercises are for the chest. Strength coaches often point out that same-muscle supersets force you to use much less weight (you can't bench press as much after your pectorals have been pre-exhausted by flies first).
However, what if your shoulders hurt when you bench heavy, but you've found that you can still bench pain free if you go lighter? If your goal is not maximum strength in the first place, and you need to train around pain, then same muscle supersets could be an ideal technique. Same muscle supersets are metabolically stressful and may induce more micro-damage to the muscle fibers, so they can still stimulate muscle growth despite the lighter loads. In addition, supersets can be used to save time, or as mentioned above, they can be used to allow you to do more work in less time (increase density).
9. Train with higher reps to failure: The first thought that people have about changing their lifting style to avoid pain is simply to do higher reps. The traditional ideal strength training range involves heavy sets of 3 to 6 (low reps), and the ideal muscle-building range is usually quoted as 8 to 12 (medium reps). High reps are usually considered 13 to 15 reps, and occasionally as high as 20 to 25 or more.
Doing sets of 15, 20 or 25 reps means by definition that you have to use less weight, and almost everyone will agree that a benefit is less stress to the joints. For example, I have trouble with elbow tendinitis that flares up every time I train lying tricep extensions or pushdowns heavy. Even sets with an 8 to 10 rep max can cause pain. But I've discovered that I can continue doing those same exercises for sets of 20 to 25 because the weight is so much lighter it doesn't aggravate my joints.
The concern many people have about doing high reps with light weights is whether you can build any muscle. High reps with light weight build endurance, not maximum strength, but high reps can indeed build muscle. Research has found that you can build muscle with any rep range if the volume and intensity of effort is high enough.
One recent study published in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning Research found that reps as high as 25 to 35 can trigger muscle growth, and it may be especially targeting the type I muscle fibers. They also emphasized that training to failure is important to trigger the growth when you're doing high reps. That means to make this work, you have to be prepared to train through the burn.
10. Include a combination of heavier and lighter training instead of heavy training in singular: Many people don't need to forego all their heavy training, they simply need to moderate it. If you can continue training heavy without injury, that's the ideal scenario. If you have on and off pain or occasional injury, it may be in your best interests to avoid training heavy all the time. Many people use the combined heavy and light approach hoping to stimulate every type of muscle fiber. From an injury prevention point of view alone, using a combination of loads and rep ranges makes all the sense in the world and is reason enough to do it.
Conclusion: In a perfect world, we'd train for both - strength and muscle. No one is questioning the benefits of heavy strength training, but it's not a perfect world. To stay in the game, maintain a great physique, or even continue lifting at all as our training age advances, sometimes we have to let go of the always maxing-out, powerlifting, progressive resistance-only mentality, and take on a more physique, fitness, and health-oriented approach.
It's a somewhat ironic and funny twist in the ongoing fitness industry narrative, because bodybuilding-style training has had moments in history when it was criticized as being about form over function. Yet when bodybuilding techniques are properly understood and used, they become the secret weapon of people who stay functional (free of injuries) for a lifetime.
Train hard and expect success, Tom Venuto
Monday, December 09, 2019
How Much Caffeine is Too Much Caffeine?
by Emily Shiffer for Eat This, Not That
Is there such a thing as too much coffee? Why yes, there is! Here's how much caffeine (and cups of coffee) your body can actually handle.
If you're like most Americans, you're reaching for your coffee first thing in the morning. A 2018 study from the National Coffee Association found that 64 percent of Americans drink a cup of coffee every day, up from 62 percent in 2017, and the highest percentage since 2012.
But it's not just the coffee we're after—it's the caffeine. And whether your drink of choice is a latte, tea, or soda, you'll definitely get a fix. However, it can also have some pretty unpleasant side effects. Here's everything you need to know about caffeine and how to consume it safely.
"Caffeine is a drug (yep!) and central nervous stimulant," says Monica Auslander Moreno, MS, RD, LD/N, registered dietitian and nutrition consultant for RSP Nutrition. "It has been known to aid with attention and reactive time, as well as provide more energy, strength, and endurance for physical activities. It is a gastric stimulant, and also a vasoconstrictor (it raises blood pressure)."
How much caffeine is safe to consume daily? The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines suggest up to 400 milligrams per day is safe for most healthy adults. (That's 3-5 cups of coffee per day.) In pregnancy, current guidelines recommend less than 200 milligrams per day. However, each person's body reacts differently to it.
"Individual metabolism and tolerance should dictate this, and not guidelines," says Auslander Moreno. "We do not recommend caffeine for children, other than small amounts occurring in chocolate."
What are the symptoms of too much caffeine? There is definitely such a thing as too much caffeine, and your body will let you know. "Consuming more than 400 milligrams of caffeine can result in a jumpy and slightly alarmed feeling," says Lauri Wright, PhD, RDN, LD, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Wright says larger amounts of caffeine may cause: irritability, sleepless, anxiety, headaches, diarrhea, and heart palpitations.
Here's how much caffeine is in your favorite drinks.
Coffee: "A cup (8 oz) of brewed coffee can have various caffeine amounts—from 70-140 milligrams per cup, depending on brew and bean," says Auslander Moreno.
Espresso: 64 mg per 1 oz.
Decaf coffee: 12-15 mg per cup
Black tea: ~50 mg per cup (depends on variety + steep time)
Green tea: 35-50 mg per cup (depends on variety + steep time)
Coke: ~34 mg per 12 oz can
Diet Coke: ~ 46 mg per 12 oz can
Pepsi: ~39 mg per 12 oz can
Diet Pepsi: ~35 mg per 12 oz can
Coke Zero: ~36 mg per 12 oz can
Barq's Root Beer: ~ 38 mg per 12 oz can
Mountain Dew: ~54 mg per 12 oz can
Can you have caffeine withdrawal? Yes, you can, and it can be both physical and mental. "You can have a physical (and psychological) dependence on caffeine," says Auslander Moreno.
The most commonly reported caffeine withdrawal issues are: headache, fatigue, irritability, anxiety, tremors, decreased concentration.
How long until caffeine is completely out of your system? "The half-life of caffeine (the amount of time until HALF a sample is metabolized) is about 5-6 hours, but tolerance and DNA can move this number significantly," says Auslander Moreno. "That's why some people find it useful to have a rather early 'cutoff time' for caffeine intake since it may be disrupting sleep far later at nighttime."
If you do overdo it, unfortunately, you can't flush it out of your system. "Drinking water may make some symptoms feel a bit better, but the drug has to be metabolized in time," says Auslander Moreno. "The half-life is about 5-6 hours, but individual metabolisms vary widely."
How much caffeine can kill you? It's true: Caffeine can kill you. According to the FDA, it has contributed to the deaths of at least 2 Americans. The FDA estimates toxic effects, like seizures, can be observed with rapid consumption of around 1,200 milligrams of caffeine, or 0.15 tablespoons of pure caffeine.
Is there such a thing as too much coffee? Why yes, there is! Here's how much caffeine (and cups of coffee) your body can actually handle.
If you're like most Americans, you're reaching for your coffee first thing in the morning. A 2018 study from the National Coffee Association found that 64 percent of Americans drink a cup of coffee every day, up from 62 percent in 2017, and the highest percentage since 2012.
But it's not just the coffee we're after—it's the caffeine. And whether your drink of choice is a latte, tea, or soda, you'll definitely get a fix. However, it can also have some pretty unpleasant side effects. Here's everything you need to know about caffeine and how to consume it safely.
"Caffeine is a drug (yep!) and central nervous stimulant," says Monica Auslander Moreno, MS, RD, LD/N, registered dietitian and nutrition consultant for RSP Nutrition. "It has been known to aid with attention and reactive time, as well as provide more energy, strength, and endurance for physical activities. It is a gastric stimulant, and also a vasoconstrictor (it raises blood pressure)."
How much caffeine is safe to consume daily? The 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines suggest up to 400 milligrams per day is safe for most healthy adults. (That's 3-5 cups of coffee per day.) In pregnancy, current guidelines recommend less than 200 milligrams per day. However, each person's body reacts differently to it.
"Individual metabolism and tolerance should dictate this, and not guidelines," says Auslander Moreno. "We do not recommend caffeine for children, other than small amounts occurring in chocolate."
What are the symptoms of too much caffeine? There is definitely such a thing as too much caffeine, and your body will let you know. "Consuming more than 400 milligrams of caffeine can result in a jumpy and slightly alarmed feeling," says Lauri Wright, PhD, RDN, LD, spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Wright says larger amounts of caffeine may cause: irritability, sleepless, anxiety, headaches, diarrhea, and heart palpitations.
Here's how much caffeine is in your favorite drinks.
Coffee: "A cup (8 oz) of brewed coffee can have various caffeine amounts—from 70-140 milligrams per cup, depending on brew and bean," says Auslander Moreno.
Espresso: 64 mg per 1 oz.
Decaf coffee: 12-15 mg per cup
Black tea: ~50 mg per cup (depends on variety + steep time)
Green tea: 35-50 mg per cup (depends on variety + steep time)
Coke: ~34 mg per 12 oz can
Diet Coke: ~ 46 mg per 12 oz can
Pepsi: ~39 mg per 12 oz can
Diet Pepsi: ~35 mg per 12 oz can
Coke Zero: ~36 mg per 12 oz can
Barq's Root Beer: ~ 38 mg per 12 oz can
Mountain Dew: ~54 mg per 12 oz can
Can you have caffeine withdrawal? Yes, you can, and it can be both physical and mental. "You can have a physical (and psychological) dependence on caffeine," says Auslander Moreno.
The most commonly reported caffeine withdrawal issues are: headache, fatigue, irritability, anxiety, tremors, decreased concentration.
How long until caffeine is completely out of your system? "The half-life of caffeine (the amount of time until HALF a sample is metabolized) is about 5-6 hours, but tolerance and DNA can move this number significantly," says Auslander Moreno. "That's why some people find it useful to have a rather early 'cutoff time' for caffeine intake since it may be disrupting sleep far later at nighttime."
If you do overdo it, unfortunately, you can't flush it out of your system. "Drinking water may make some symptoms feel a bit better, but the drug has to be metabolized in time," says Auslander Moreno. "The half-life is about 5-6 hours, but individual metabolisms vary widely."
How much caffeine can kill you? It's true: Caffeine can kill you. According to the FDA, it has contributed to the deaths of at least 2 Americans. The FDA estimates toxic effects, like seizures, can be observed with rapid consumption of around 1,200 milligrams of caffeine, or 0.15 tablespoons of pure caffeine.
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