Five Things I Learned in the Last Three Months
One of the things I love most about my profession is that it affords me the opportunity to constantly learn. The human body is the most complex system on the planet, and I have dedicated myself through countless hours of study and experimentation to try to understand it a little bit better each day. The deeper down the rabbit hole I go, the more I begin to realize how deep the hole actually is. Granted, I’m ahead of the curve compared to most coaches my age, but then again maybe I’m not. One thing I always try to do is reflect on trends and outcomes. Being objective is hard, but so, so valuable. Through objective observation and analysis we get closer to facts. Theories are just that…theories. And while many theories have been proven worthy, many have also been proven wrong. The day to day at Go Primal is no different, for it pushes me to constantly analyze what is working, what isn’t, and most importantly why. Sometimes the why is much harder to come by. These past three months have been particularly interesting with BioSignature, an influx of new clients, and interns joining our staff. It has forced me, more so than normal, to re-affirm and re-evaluated my approach to EVERYTHING. I have never been dogmatic. Dogmatic behavior leads to stagnation. Stagnation leads to failure. Change is a reflection of adaptation and humility. I love being right and I love being wrong. In either case there is growth. Here are a few of the things I’ve learned since November that I’d like to share with each of you. 1.) Supplements are 110% necessary. Between poor food quality, time restraints, environmental toxicity, and stress there is an absolute need for highly concentrated sources of vitamins, minerals, and other valuable nutrients. I resisted for a long time. My personal experience, the results of my BioSignature clients, and the trend in the gym overall confirms this. It is a tricky science, expensive too. But if anything is worth the cost it’s heath and vitality. There is certainly no magic bullet. In fact, taking supplements is very much like training. Variety is a cornerstone of success. This has led to some pretty dramatic shifts in how I ‘prescribe’ them. I’ve boiled it down to this: First and foremost there must be a strong foundation. By that I mean you must be eating high quality protein and vegetables, drinking clean water, sleeping, and managing your blood sugar by eating frequently and keeping stress to a minimum. Second, hydrochloric acid levels are paramount to absorption, not only of food but of valuable vitamins and minerals like zinc, magnesium, and B12. Fish oil is a must. The healthier you are the less you need. The further removed from health you are the more you need. D3 is quickly becoming a super-nutrient. No one, I repeat no one, had optimal levels who participated in BioSignature. Once the foundation is strong you can start to get more specific. Whether that’s a supplement protocol for boosting testosterone, improving glucose metabolism, estrogen cleanses, etc. They all work in short bursts. But again, like training, variety in supplementation seems most effective. Every time I changed a protocol it created enough of a shock to the system that body-fat dropped. This is the beauty of measuring every week. The feedback is critical. As long as the numbers were trending downward (i.e. body-fat loss) the protocol continued. When it stopped, the protocol had to change. And once it did body-fat dropped again. Take home message: Supplementation is necessary. Develop a foundation and make it strong. Then mix-up your supplement protocols every few months for best results. And don’t be cheap. Results are worth the investment. 2.) There is no such thing as over-training, only under-recovering. Many of you have stepped up your game, going from two and three times a week in the gym to four. I applaud your trust and dedication to physical development. However, adding one additional day of training will only work if you are adapting to it. In other words, if you’re still sore, too tired, and stiff from the previous day’s training you’re spinning your wheels. I know of athletes who train hard three times a day without getting sore. And they train the same muscle groups each workout. How is this possible? It’s possible when recovery becomes a bigger part of your training. Someone I admire once said “Work + Recovery = Training.” This is an intelligent formula, with ‘recovery’ being the most important variable. We can all see the downfall of “Training + More Training = Breakdown.” I’ve heard the grumbling, the aches, and the pains. While it isn’t completely avoidable, it is very manageable. Here’s how: I take 40 Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) a day. Fifteen prior to training over a 3-4 hour period, fifteen during training, and ten after training. On days I don’t train I take thirty throughout the day. This significantly reduces soreness and speeds recovery. BCAAs have been proven to… 
-Enhance muscle protein synthesis -Improve lean body composition -Boost testosterone -Improve strength/endurance (while training) -Reduce muscle soreness -Improve insulin sensitivity The second key ingredient to recovery and performance is to consume glutamine…lots of glutamine. Generally, the harder you train the more you need. Benefits of supplementing with glutmaine include: -Improved protein synthesis -Repair and rebuild the lining of the gut wall -Enhanced immune function. When you over-train your glutamine levels drop significantly. I’m a bit of an extremist, but I’ve discovered, both through personal experimentation and professional advice, that upwards of 80 grams a day is plausible. 5-10g diluted in water every two hours will send your recovery into warp speed. Take home message: The more you train the more emphasis must be placed on recovery. Work + Recovery = Training. Take BCAAs and Glutamine in liberal doses to combat the stress of training and speed recovery. 3.) Carbs are the enemy. When I say carbs I am referring to grains, corn, rice, sugar, fruit, and white potatoes. I have measured over 200 people in the last three months and not a single one was carb tolerant. Let me explain. The area south/southwest of the inferior angle of the scapula is a measure of carbohydrate tolerance. Carbohydrate tolerance refers to how a carbohydrate will impact health and body composition. The higher the site the less carbs the athlete can afford to consume. When an individual with a low carb tolerance consumes grains, corn, rice, etc. the end result is a sharp ride in blood sugar and an associated increase in body fat. Very few individuals have the ability to consume these foods without consequence. They do exist, but constitute less than 5% of the population in my personal experience. Our ability to tolerate high amounts of carbs has a lot to do with how we oxidize foods. Typically, the faster you turn food into energy, the more fats and proteins you need to slow the process. These are classified Protein Types (carb intolerant). If you’re an O-Blood type you’re 100% carb intolerant. Granted, as your body composition improves so too will your ability to handle carbs, but this doesn’t give you a license to freely consume. The quickest way to fatten up a cavemen is to feed them bread and fruit. Take home message: Avoid grains, corn, rice, fruit, sugar, and white potatoes for fast body composition changes. The more body fat you have the more diligent you should be when it comes to avoiding these foods. As lean body mass improves add in a cheat meal once a week. 4.) Shoulder mobility is critical to overhead strength. In the words of Dan John, you’re either picking stuff off the ground, pressing stuff overhead, or carrying stuff for time and distance. Before you can focus on breaking gym records in the Push Jerk or Snatch you have to develop above-average range of motion in the thoracic spine to ensure safety and efficiency. The two biggest deficits in the gym involve the structural balance around the shoulders. The shoulder is 100% dependent upon the thoracic spine when the arms go overhead. As the humerus approaches 140 degrees of extension there is a concurrent 14 degrees of thoracic extension that occurs in a healthy shoulder. Poor training habits, gravity, depression, and a variety of other factors contribute to a loss in thoracic mobility, which forces the humerus to over rotate in the joint to achieve a vertical position. This stresses the joint capsule and over-facilitates the upper trapezius, levator, and rotator cuff musculature as they fight to compensate for a lack of mobility in the upper back. As a general rule, if one part of the body does not move or is stuck another area must move more to make up for it. In other words, hypo-mobility in one segment leads to hyper-mobility in another. This manifests in the joint itself, as mentioned above, or typically in low back. So if you’re experiencing neck, shoulder, or low back pain check into your thoracic mobility as a possible cause of pain. Take home message: Overhead strength is highly dependent upon thoracic spine mobility. Lack of mobility stresses the neck, shoulders, and back. Until shoulder mobility improves focus on mobilization and keep the weights light, as light loads used overhead are very effective for improving mobility. Go too heavy and compensation will detract from progress and likely cause injury. 
5.) You should be improving 2-5% every month in something. Test your capacities once every four weeks. This keeps you in touch with your weaknesses. Once you determine a deficit spend extra time working on it. Come in early, do some pull-ups. Stay late, practice muscle-ups. Sign-up for testing. There are four testing sessions throughout the week. If you think it’s a waste of time, let me reassure you that there is no bigger waste of time then training without direction. Consult What is Your Fitness IQ for insight into fitness standards. Take home message: Test once a month. Training is not a past time. It is a pursuit of personal excellence. Don’t be afraid to assess your capability, no matter how good or bad it is.
-Enhance muscle protein synthesis -Improve lean body composition -Boost testosterone -Improve strength/endurance (while training) -Reduce muscle soreness -Improve insulin sensitivity The second key ingredient to recovery and performance is to consume glutamine…lots of glutamine. Generally, the harder you train the more you need. Benefits of supplementing with glutmaine include: -Improved protein synthesis -Repair and rebuild the lining of the gut wall -Enhanced immune function. When you over-train your glutamine levels drop significantly. I’m a bit of an extremist, but I’ve discovered, both through personal experimentation and professional advice, that upwards of 80 grams a day is plausible. 5-10g diluted in water every two hours will send your recovery into warp speed. Take home message: The more you train the more emphasis must be placed on recovery. Work + Recovery = Training. Take BCAAs and Glutamine in liberal doses to combat the stress of training and speed recovery. 3.) Carbs are the enemy. When I say carbs I am referring to grains, corn, rice, sugar, fruit, and white potatoes. I have measured over 200 people in the last three months and not a single one was carb tolerant. Let me explain. The area south/southwest of the inferior angle of the scapula is a measure of carbohydrate tolerance. Carbohydrate tolerance refers to how a carbohydrate will impact health and body composition. The higher the site the less carbs the athlete can afford to consume. When an individual with a low carb tolerance consumes grains, corn, rice, etc. the end result is a sharp ride in blood sugar and an associated increase in body fat. Very few individuals have the ability to consume these foods without consequence. They do exist, but constitute less than 5% of the population in my personal experience. Our ability to tolerate high amounts of carbs has a lot to do with how we oxidize foods. Typically, the faster you turn food into energy, the more fats and proteins you need to slow the process. These are classified Protein Types (carb intolerant). If you’re an O-Blood type you’re 100% carb intolerant. Granted, as your body composition improves so too will your ability to handle carbs, but this doesn’t give you a license to freely consume. The quickest way to fatten up a cavemen is to feed them bread and fruit. Take home message: Avoid grains, corn, rice, fruit, sugar, and white potatoes for fast body composition changes. The more body fat you have the more diligent you should be when it comes to avoiding these foods. As lean body mass improves add in a cheat meal once a week. 4.) Shoulder mobility is critical to overhead strength. In the words of Dan John, you’re either picking stuff off the ground, pressing stuff overhead, or carrying stuff for time and distance. Before you can focus on breaking gym records in the Push Jerk or Snatch you have to develop above-average range of motion in the thoracic spine to ensure safety and efficiency. The two biggest deficits in the gym involve the structural balance around the shoulders. The shoulder is 100% dependent upon the thoracic spine when the arms go overhead. As the humerus approaches 140 degrees of extension there is a concurrent 14 degrees of thoracic extension that occurs in a healthy shoulder. Poor training habits, gravity, depression, and a variety of other factors contribute to a loss in thoracic mobility, which forces the humerus to over rotate in the joint to achieve a vertical position. This stresses the joint capsule and over-facilitates the upper trapezius, levator, and rotator cuff musculature as they fight to compensate for a lack of mobility in the upper back. As a general rule, if one part of the body does not move or is stuck another area must move more to make up for it. In other words, hypo-mobility in one segment leads to hyper-mobility in another. This manifests in the joint itself, as mentioned above, or typically in low back. So if you’re experiencing neck, shoulder, or low back pain check into your thoracic mobility as a possible cause of pain. Take home message: Overhead strength is highly dependent upon thoracic spine mobility. Lack of mobility stresses the neck, shoulders, and back. Until shoulder mobility improves focus on mobilization and keep the weights light, as light loads used overhead are very effective for improving mobility. Go too heavy and compensation will detract from progress and likely cause injury. 5.) You should be improving 2-5% every month in something. Test your capacities once every four weeks. This keeps you in touch with your weaknesses. Once you determine a deficit spend extra time working on it. Come in early, do some pull-ups. Stay late, practice muscle-ups. Sign-up for testing. There are four testing sessions throughout the week. If you think it’s a waste of time, let me reassure you that there is no bigger waste of time then training without direction. Consult What is Your Fitness IQ for insight into fitness standards. Take home message: Test once a month. Training is not a past time. It is a pursuit of personal excellence. Don’t be afraid to assess your capability, no matter how good or bad it is. 
