Lab Coat Fitness

In this episode we talk about optimal training. What is it? Why is it important? How do we do it? We move on to talk about Yaad's experience with using turmeric, Josh his opinion on anti-inflammatory diets and of course answering some questions from you! Timestamps 00:00 Introduction: Optimal Training 20:10 Turmeric gains 40:10 Anti inflammatory diets AMA portion At 45:47 by Phillip l'Anson: Hi guys. I have binged the podcasts like a Netflix series while walking the dog. Really good stuff. I have been following your device with nutrition. I am going for high protein + 20% calorie surplus. I can often get my protein goal, but I struggle to often get to a calorie surplus (mine is between 3000-3600). I have set reminders on my phone to snack more throughout the day. What are some good calorie rich, nutrient dense snacks that are easy to make and prepare for a busy person? Intermezzo 48:40 about Josh's gardening At 55:44 by Tommaso Cazzaniga: Josh what are your thoughts about TRT with bio-identical hormones? Assuming one's Vit D3 and other related nutrients are in check, of course.

Welcome to the new season of the Lab Coat Fitness podcasts! After a year break, we're back to talk about what happened in that span of time, how training is going and what gains were lost as a covid patient. Of course it wouldn't be a Lab Coat Fitness podcast without us providing tips on how to deal with having covid in regards to training and nutrition. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction 02:00 Yaad had covid and what to do if you have/had covid? 25:00 How to prevent yourself from getting infected inside and outside the gym. 40:05 How is Lab Coat Fitness, Joshua and Yaad doing? AMA portion At 55:35 by Edouard Caspersen How to optimize your training for HSPU ? Other than Yaad leans/holds and Pike Pushups what can i do to help get my strength up? Are pike pushups sufficient? What lifts carryover the best to HSPU ? I feel like the high incline bench press would carryover better than strict OHP because of the angle of pressing.

Covered questions At 02:20 Alexander Egebak: Do you guys have any practical to meet the daily protein intake recommendation of 2g/kg BW? At 10:48 Thomas Dargent: Any advice for reverse dieting? I know someone that seems to be unable to lose more than a few kilos when in a calorie deficit, is that the solution? At 20:06 Daniel Manu: For Iron cross technique and conditioning, is it better to shorten the lever (loop rights technique) or to use something similar to a dream machine? At 31:25 Nicholas Masman: This was asked on the forums a while back, sorry I don’t remember by who! If one has GST goals only, what is the purpose of strength cycles? From my uneducated perspective, it seems more efficient to just go Mass -> Skill -> repeat. Are strength cycles a learning experience in macro 1, or is there something more they add? Thanks! At 36:40 Robert Burtchell: I’ve seen y’all promote using the mass cycles for fat loss and Mike Isratael talk about basic hypertrophy blocks being used for fat loss. What’re your thoughts on MRT where you train in a circuit fashion but still get roughly two-three minutes of rest between specific sets? So incline press, rows, squats, and hinge. Rest 30-60 repeat? How would this affect muscle growth as well in non fat loss phase? Would one just not be able to use the correct loads for 12-15/5-10? At 42:02 BosBatMan: I’ve read the World Anti-Doping Association (WADA) and many countries now permit the use of CBD oil. What are Pros and Cons of using this substance and do you recommend it for fitness athletes who seek the alleged benefits for muscle recovery, inflammation, minor pain management, etc.? At 49:50 Ji Eun Lee: I want to have perfect overhead mobility for ohp/handstand. Doing the stretches in the routine helped initially and I have improved my mobility from when I started, but I feel like I am stuck and haven’t made any progress for months. At best right now I can do wall extensions and move my arms around 20-30 degrees from the right-angled starting position: |_o_| (arms & head) How do I assess which muscle is holding me back and improve it faster?

Covered questions At 00:34 Jeremy Ross: Hi Labcoatfitness team! I’m new here, so please forgive me if you have covered this topic in previous podcasts or articles, etc. Without further ado; What are your thoughts on measuring HRV every morning and whether this information is an accurate indicator of ANS readiness for training? Context. I use the a Polar H10 Heart rate monitor and the Elite HRV app (no affiliation) I like the data, but sometimes question the accuracy. For example, there have been times I trained so hard the next morning I was sore; however, my HRV score showed I was rested and ready to train hard today. Other times I had low HRV score, albeit I was well-rested and ready to train. Finally, I noticed I could “hack” my HRV score by using certain breathing patterns to improve my test on the 2nd try. Thus, what is your opinion on HRV testing? Thank you for your response! JR At 22:40 Simon Hernandez: What are your thoughts on resensitization mesocycles ? Useful between extended hypertrophy blocks? Are deload weeks enough? At 31:30 Ji Eun Lee Hey guys, I’ve just joined and am starting your routine immediately. I do rock climbing and have a gymnastics class (mainly tumbling) once a week. I think I’m strong enough to handle the routine and those activities for a little while, but I’m sure I have to cut some volume eventually. Could you give me some advice or guidelines on how I should reduce the volume on the routine? If this question is too quick to answer, maybe Josh could go on and give some general guidelines on how to cut volume in general? At 36:28 Anonymous: I have quite some extra ROM in my elbow extension bilateraly. Should I be cautious in regards to planche work? And should I work to only reach neutral elbow extension on the end of my e.g. push ups or go all the way to hyperextension? Thanks guys! At 42:40 Florian Nagel: Hey guys. I would like to hear Josh talking about pre-requisites for tumbling. Do you think that there are standards (and which?) someone should fulfill, before attempting tumbling (things like hip/leg strength standards, knee prehab), to handle the forces safely? At 51:18 Haz M: Good to hear you guys are feeling a bit better! Could you go into how you keep yourselves relatively active while injured (if at all). Also any tips and specifics you did/do to proactively help with your rehab, and what you’ll do/advise others from now on to mitigate that from happening again? At 58:40 Dan Hughes: Hi hope your both doing well! Love going through these programs it’s amazing. This is a question of modification. I live in a rural town where not a lot of clubs activities etc happen A mma club has opened and it’s something I always wanted to really try even before I got into gst but there was no options too. To boil it down could you take the meat and potatoes of the mass and strength cycles and run the side by side the mma club training ? Or would that be counter productive ? Thanks guys Dan At 01:07:02 Chuck Pinkert: When it comes a mass/hypertrophy cycle for calisthenics, how important are lower body exercises like the squat and deadlift? I’ve been taught before that lower body exercises will accelerate the upper body gains, is there truth to that?

Questions can be found on www.labcoatfitness.com/articles/podcast-9

Covered questions At 00:58 D W: Hi My sister has Pectus Excavatum. It’s not severe but has a definite sinking of the chest wall. I’ve seen guys build hypertrophy around that area minimising it’s appearance. My thoughts As a female she is going to find it harder to get the same results purely through chest hypertrophy. As well as building muscle there should be a focus on stretching/mobility exercises of the chest, spine and rib cage to help expand her chest and improve posture. Her chest will be severely tight already and therefore she should look to minimise any muscle building work in this area. Questions: What areas/ exercises would you advise? Should she avoid muscle hypertrophy of the chest altogether OR do some hypertrophy of the chest but double up on the opposing muscles in the back? I understand there will be a limit to what she can do purely through exercise but any small improvements would help. Thanks guys! Notes: Links mentioned by Joshua in the podcast: http://www.hkspra.org/product_image_pub/64_569953.pdf There are also vacuum bell devices but they are generally most effective in children. At 08:02 Mauro Gomez Alvarez: Does weighted isometrics like weighted Planks, weighted Front Levers, weighted L-Sits have a place or they are suboptimal to build anything? At 12:07 Matthew Gray: How should cuts be timed with your training phase? Align them with a skill cycle, or what? Thanks for being awesome y’all. At 48:04 Nico Pleyto I’ve been experiencing a bit of pain during the straddle stretches. I feel like my inner thigh gets strained from doing the Goku stretch. I’m not sure which specific muscle, but I’m guessing it’s the adductor magnus. Is there a way I can progress safely with my flexibility without injuring myself? I usually stop and back off whenever I feel a bit of pain other than that, what else can I do to address this issue?

Covered questions At 07:56 Joeri van Hoek: What are the best general health exercises one should atleast regularly perform in order to prevent future exercise-related injuries? These will be in part training related, but what are those that everyone should do, regardless of training-style? I'm thinking, back raises, face pulls etc. Thanks! At 13:20 Alexander Chaney: Minimalism is a large topic these days and doing the least amount of exercises that provide the largest carryover is often discussed. Are there any exercises that come to mind that have huge carryover to most activities and other exercises that people should look to program in their training? At 16:15 Colin Davis: Two things: Can you guys weigh in on the shoulder girdle benefits of performing handstand wall runs or shoulder taps? I am in Str Cycle 1 and am considering them as part of a finisher. Will the yaad hold and yaad assistance exercises give me some gains in my free HS? I throw in some HS holds against the wall using yaads technique from the video but still have trouble with sticking the kick up (10s best attempt). At 29:45 Luca Fabbricotti: Hello guys, great work! I just want to start a cut phase, and i have few questions. Which ratio of FAT / MUSCLE loss is reasonable considering a 25% calorie deficit and assuming 3 gr of protein per kg? Before having the answer i hypothetically considered 80% Fat to Muscle loss ratio and tried to run some math targeting the 25% calorie deficit + 3 gr protein + exercise and it seems that i still have to eat a lot! Much more then i expected...is it right? At 39:06 Robert Burtchell: I've been re-read the planche and front lever articles. I notice they are referred to as skills. Why do you guys just call them skills when other call them strength elements, for example OG2 charts. At 51:35 Stephan Van der Klei: Hi, In Podcast 1 Cole was introduced, but Yaad is still a bit in the shadows. Can you tell something about yourself and how you met Josh? And what is the Dutch connection with Josh, and all of these Dutch athletes? Thanks, Stephan (A curious Rotterdammer) At 01:15:52 (sorta spread) Nicholas Masman: How is the little one? (Naterkid, son of Naterman) At 01:13:05 Demetris Mannouris: What do you think about training multiple planche progressions (isometrics) in the same micro-cycle (a week) ? Two examples would be: ... At 01:21:05 BosBatMan: Intermediate level athletes, coaches, and trainers sometimes debate the high risk / high reward nature of some rings elements. For example, some say training for and ultimately doing an Iron Cross is perhaps too risky for a casual athlete if they are not a professional, getting paid to perform, or a higher level gymnast. A second example would be German Hang Pullout to Inverted Hang with a Supinated Grip. When I do this element, I am nervous due to the intensity and risk (fear?) of a severe injury. I've been advised to do this element with a pronated grip, which is more comfortable and less intense, but for now, I stopped doing it altogether. The third example of a strength feat would the one-arm pull-up (OAP) or the one-arm chin-up (OAC).

Covered questions At 08:34 Alexander Chaney: For those of us who got into advanced body weight training out of the mindset that it is more applicable to athleticism than weight training, were we mislead or is there some truth to that? At 16:38 Christian Nogueira: What is your view of exercises which work the joints at odd movements, such as popularized by Ido Portal's "improper alignment" video, also some of Sommer's mobility work, etc. Is it useful at all? At 26:27 Nicholas Masman: What are your thoughts on Minimum Effective Volume, Maximum Recoverable Volume and (as per Mike Israetel) and moving from one to the other in a cycle? The mass cycles seem to fit these concepts quite well. At 34:19 Demetris Mannouris: Thank you for answering my "forearm splints" question on Podcast 4!!! I have been following the advice for ulnar deviations, compression and extensor strengthening and it has helped immensely... At 37:45 Goncalo Martins: What are your thoughts about using crossover symmetry has a shoulder mobility routine after the workouts? At 45:40 Eliajah Hunsaker: I understand Josh has a lot of respect for Dr Stewart McGill which is well deserved because he has done great things in the field of spinal research. However I find he tends to pigeonhole himself into a purely biomechanical model of pain which doesn't mesh with our current understanding of pain in the biopsychosocial model we have developed. What is your take on the role of biomechanics and it's relation to pain? How would you translate that to a clinical practice or a coaching practice? At 55:53 Janne Makiniemi: My gym has some strongman equipment (farmer's handles, yoke, sleds). How could I incorporate these to my training? Could I replace some of the leg work with these? At 58:59 Abdul Ghani Memon: What are good ways to improve work capacity? For example, not needing 3-5 minutes rest time between sets of pull-ups, bench press, rows, squats, etc. to fully recover. I want to get to the point where I can rest 45-60 secs ... At 01:04:38 Jon Bjornar Keyser: Hello beautiful people! I wonder how much I should elevate the scapula when I practice the handstand? I have hear full elevation, but does that mean maximum contraction of the upper trapz or that I should be able to hold that maximum position? Best regards from Norway! At 01:08:23 Alexander Egebak If I want to spend a little time trying to increase my 1RM in dips while at the same still progressing in my normal hypertrophy/strength training, how would one go about doing that? I tested my 1RM one year back with 65kg (around 80% of BW) but have not practiced dips since then At 01:13:20 Mauro Gomez Alvarez: I'm currently doing the 4-day strength cycle including back squats and deadlifts... At 01:14:28 Stephen Soye: I'm a regular blood donor. I donate every 3 months and sometimes more regularly due to haemochromatosis (iron overload). I do suffer from fatigue in the first few days after the donation which affects my training, but long term, would muscle growth and strength gain be affected by the regular loss of blood?

Covered questions At 0:41 Abdul Ghani Memon: What are some good ways to train to improve performance in basketball, i.e. be able to stop on a dime, beat opponent off the dribble / quick first step, etc. At 05:25 Eliajah Hunsaker: Will frequent or even daily use of anti-inflammatory medication or anti-histamines have a negative effect on my training? At 08:19 Richard Walling: Hey guys, just joined but there are currently no slots open for the lab. Some quick background: I've been lifting, rock climbing or doing calisthenics in some combination for the last 8 years. I have a few skills such as a OAC, 90 degree pushup, straddle planche, front lever. At 11:59 Jon Galvan: Hi! I really liked the protein doses article, but I have a question. What happens if we take a whey shake and immediately after we eat a solid meal like chicken with veggies? Do we absorb the whey protein first and then slowly digest the chicken protein? If not, what if we wait 30-45 minutes between the shake and the solid meal? I have the same question too about a whey and casein mix. Thanks guys! At 15:17 Reigo Lass: There is a yearly competition I'm thinking of participating sometime in the future. The rules are you do five exercises for most reps. Whoever gets the most total reps wins. The exercises are dips, pullups, bench with your bodyweight, squat with 1,5xbodyweight added and deadlift with 1,8x bodyweight added. How would you structure you're training throughout the year to get the most reps in all the exercises. How would you approach this competition generally. Thank you. At 21:49 Alex F.: Would someone with "mild" injuries typical from bodyweight training (such as costochondritis) be suitable to do the program? If it was possible, how should rehab be implemented into the program? At 24:22 Lucas Sampaio: I'm interested in starting a plant-based diet, but is taking meat out of the equation worse for my gains? I understand I will likely need to eat 20% more protein or so, but are there any other recommendations for plant-based athletes? At 32:05 Mauro Gomez Alvarez: What is LCF current position respect to metabolic stress for muscle growth? At 36:54 Cody Clark: Are there any extra strength gains from doing freestanding hspu's instead of focusing on wall handstand pushups? Could I see similar strength gains by working up to weighted hspu's instead of working up to 90-degree pushups? At 43:44 Robert Burtchell: Is powerbuilding a thing? What're your thoughts on it? Is it something that can be done with bodyweight training using skills and such? At 45:25 Roy Bassil: Curious about your thoughts on Rope Climbing. Any advantages over regular pulling work with the bar? What are the risks versus rewards? At 53:00 Anssi Liback Would you please share your opinions on these studies done on elderly men where vitamin C and E supplementation is shown to reduce the effects of strength training?

Covered questions At 1:36 Nicholas Masman: How would you learn the Manna with a barbell? At 04:37 Simon Hernandez Hey guys, I am trying to make sense of volume waves for hypertrophy. If you plan a 5% volume increase per week and try to aim up to 130% to 150% in total by the end of your cycle (I read this was recommendations by Joshua) you end up adding a ton of volume and time (like an hour) on the last week, considering that you need extra volume for each muscle group. Are my assumptions correct or what can I be doing wrong? At 18:08 Alexander Egebak: When would one add resistance to an exercise over adding more volume (or the other way around) for maximal muscle mass gains? At 23:03 Goncalo Martins First of all, wonderful articles and wonderful job with the website contents guys. I love it. Regarding the skills section, that can be adjusted accordingly to the athlete goals right? If someone wants to work on side lever and back lever that can be the focus for the skill! Or is there a reason behind the selection of current skills? thanks At 29:53 Vincent Dudret: What are the general guidelines to follow when dealing with elderly folks looking to train ? ... At 37:08 Robert Burtchell: It possibly from over training handstands and planche leans, but do you guys have any tips on tfcc strains and forearm splints? Demetris Mannouris: What is the mechanism behind forearm splints and how do you get rid of them for planche? At 45:52 Daniel Manu: How would you train transverse abdominis? I personally have quite strong abs since I can remember, and they were never I weak link when training skills. At 50:22 Joeri van Hoek: Concerning deloading, obviously this comes down to your body and your awareness of fatigue and overtraining. Nevertheless could you provide some general guidelines on approaching it (both trainingwise and periodisation wise). Because generally you find a recommendation of doing it once every 4-6 weeks, but they seem to be based mostly on logistic ease, rather than research. Thanks At 57:10 Matthew Miller When doing a ton of cardio in a fat loss phase (because I simply enjoy the cardio), what is a good rule of thumb for the minimum amount of work that you should give your muscles in order to simply preserve their current state? The goal is sheer fat loss without losing muscle - strength and hypertrophy phases can come later. At 01:02:55 Mauro Gomez Alvarez Is there any advantages in the order of the main exercises listed in the program? e.g. doing H-Push - V- Pull - H-Pull instead of V-Pull, H-Push, H-Pull. At 01:08:37 Roy Bassil What do you think about taking creatine and its links to increasing DHT thus causing more male pattern baldness? I want to start supplementing it but I'm afraid it will just make my receding hairline even worse than it already is. Does the research support this? At 01:14:10 Anssi Liback Would you please share your recommendations for long term knee health? I have medial meniscus tears in both knees and osteoarthritis is prevalent in my family.

Covered questions At 1:00 Thomas Dargent: What would be a good angle to start training the planche lean? Starting from no lean and ultimately adding 6inches feel like there's still room for progress. At 06:07 Reigo Lass: How would you go about fixing anterior pelvic tilt and forward head posture. At 19:51 Brian Cheng: How would you program weighted calisthenics for sustainable progress? Is there a certain protocol you follow in order to increase weight? How would this differ for a beginner athlete and a more advanced athlete who is pulling heavier weights? At 29:06 Roy Bassil: How do you approach building strength in a total beginner in order to be able to achieve a pull up? At 41:33 Anssi Liback: Any advice on how to motivate family and friends to be more physically active? At 44:44 Lucas Sampaio: Thanks for reading my question and I hope you have a great day! I have a lot of strength-related goals, especially straight-arm ones, but almost all of them are upper-body ones. Is it possible that the leg mass obtained might be detrimental to these upper-body goals? At 47:06 Jay Taylor: What modifications, if any, would you make to your nutritional suggestions for someone with reactive hypoglycemia? I'm non-diabetic, but have low blood sugar. Switching to Keto has helped, but it's very low carb. At 49:12 Spencer Hazzard: Hey guys, really excited for this site. I was wondering if you guys are planning on setting a schedule when stuff is going to be released (programs, articles, etc...)? Also when you guys talk about cutting you constantly mention to use TDEE calculators online, do you have any specific recommendations? (Because a lot give wildly different results) Thanks! NOTES: The TDEE calculator mentioned in the podcast can be found on our website: www.labcoatfitness.com Thank you for sending in your questions. We've had blast answering them. Stay tuned for the next podcast!

Covered questions: At 0:47 2natec: How you'd program push-ups and pull-ups for someone who used to be proficient in doing them (ie worked up to doing weighted push-ups and pull-ups), but has completely neglected doing them past few years? At 05:19 Alexander Egebak: What are your preferences for alternative exercise selection if someone is unable to perform weighted push-ups? Bench press, dips, tuck planche push-ups? At 11:12 Mitchell Howley: What are your thoughts on how best to structure double (or multiple) sessions of training in a day? I find skill work and lower body mobility work in the early afternoon tend to energize me for upperbody strength work in the evening. At 13:01 Maximiliano Santiago: As someone who needs to lose a lot of weight (20 lbs) and is still a beginner (technically, back into the gym after a multi-year break) how should I approach training in the first months of training so as avoid overdoing it or unnecessarily stop myself from increasing intensity and/or volume? At 15:13 Jakub Kowalski: Do you belive in Tuck Front Lever Rows? They are problematic when it comes to ROM and positioning of the body - you can have more or less ROM each session or more or less tuck. Would you rather use some type of Barbell Row or maybe progress the body lean on Bodyweight Arc Rows? At 17:43 Matthew Mulvey: How is Yaad's back? At 25:41 Jonathan Jessop: Could you recommend safe ways to increase strength and size in the neck? I used to train frequently with a neck harness (made by Ironmind) but I stopped because of concerns I have over the potential long-term harm it could cause the cervical vertebrae. At 31:18 Christopher Nowak: Do you plan on providing any nutritional guidance for fat loss or muscle gain? At 31:54 Gregor Baer: I was wondering why there is such a big discrepancy between bodybuilding and bodyweightfitness in terms of research or scientific information. Obviously, scientific concepts from powerlifting and bodybuilding apply almost the same way in terms of building muscle or strength, but the calisthenics/gymnastics/bodyweightfitness community doesn't seem to have the same amount of people offering research-based advice, as far as I have seen personally. When I'm thinking of science-based approach, people like Brad Schoenfeld, Mike Israetel, or Eric Helms come to mind, but in bodyweightfitness I can think of none (even though there are many that produce good content). At 35:52 Jason Richer: Yaad, what are the top 3 things you have improve/learn by training under Joshua. At 51:58 Damani Turner: Many moons ago i came across this forum post: https://www.gymnasticbodies.com/forum/topic/9580-perfect-workout-nutrition-2013/#entry92263 while looking for nutrition information as it pertained to bodyweight fitness and weightlifting. I understand that this was primarily geared towards gymnasts and bodyweight fitness practitioners, but is it applicable to someone who primarily focuses on strength training/powerlifting? Is the information Joshua provided still relevant 5 years ago or has research made strides that would call for an update. Looking back now, is there anything Joshua would change about what he wrote with the knowledge and experience he's gained since then, especially after finishing medical school?

The very first Lab Coat Fitness AMA podcast. Here we cover questions that was sent in by the community through our website www.labcoatfitness.com. You can find plenty more podcasts on there and submit your own questions for us to answer! Covered questions: At 02:00 Michael Moore: Cole Dano? At 06:40 Tommaso Cazzaniga: Does the 3 secs eccentric rule apply no matter what you’re training for? At 11:22 Abdul Ghani Memon: How can one stay disciplined/motivated each day to complete their workout? I love working out and enjoy the results, but for some reason always have difficulty to actually go and exercise? At 28:59 Timotey Krajnik: If I understand correctly with hypertrophy focused routine increasing volume time is the #1 factor, what should I aim for if I want my routine to be strength focused? At 41:58 Alan: I don’t have a full 180 degrees Shoulder flexion for handstands. For full shoulder flexion, 120 degrees comes from the glenohumeral joint and 60 degrees from upward scapular rotation. How do I know if I’m the ROM I’m lacking is from The glenohumeral joint or from the scapula? How do I also go about achieving full shoulder flexion?