Vegan Boyfriends – Kind to animals, abusive to their women
I was disgusted when Ryan showed me this commercial yesterday. My first thought was this is a commercial about rape, but I soon realized it was a commercial trying to convince men to become Vegans.
It was a commercial showing just how MASCULINE vegan men are.
And guess who created it!?!
PETA! People for the ETHICAL TREATMENT of animals….
Isn’t part of the point of going vegetarian or vegan to protect animals and get them more humane treatment?
This commercial doesn’t seem at all connected to the “ethical treatment of animals.” Actually it makes me think that vegan men are abusive bastards who eat only vegetables.
It disgusts me that the commercial glorifies abuse of a partner as being MASCULINE?
I mean, does this really convince any guys or girls that they or their partner should go vegan?
I sincerely hope not.
Work those major muscle groups!
To look like the bottom girl, do compound exercises!
So I definitely have noticed more women in the weight room recently.
Unfortunately most of these women are doing high reps with very little weight. I’ve also noticed that most of them are only doing single muscle group movements.
The exercises that women seem to love:
- Bicep curls
- Tricep extensions
- Adductor machine
- Abductor machine
While these exercises can be great auxiliary lifts for someone looking to strengthen weak points in their bench, deadlift or squat, these single muscle group movements really are pointless to do otherwise. Plus if you do compound movements, you will work all of those muscles that you are working with those isolated exercises and many more!
Single muscle group movements don’t give you much bang for your buck. You don’t burn very many calories doing them AND you can’t spot reduce problem areas. So while you may be making your bicep stronger, you aren’t specifically removing flab from over the bicep.
Your time would be much better spent doing compound movements because they work the biggest muscles groups in your body, which will help you build strength, burn fat, acquire optimal body function and improve your health.
Lifting weight while using multiple muscle groups elicits a much higher level of positive hormones than training just one muscle group at a time. These hormones include testosterone, insulin-like growth factor 1, and growth hormone. These hormones are what will help you build lean muscles, burn fat, and improve your health.
So not only are you building lean muscles, but you are also more efficiently working your entire body to burn more calories than you would if you did an isolated muscle group movement. You also improve your cardiovascular health and joint stability and muscle balance across your joints by performing compound exercises.
So if you really want to work your bicep, don’t do a curl. Instead perform a pull up or a row. If you want to work your tricep, bench press or do a push up or even a full dip. If you want to work your adductors and abductors, do a squat or lunge or sumo deadlift!
AND if you need a workout with lots of compound exercises, check out the Man Bicep Weekly Workout!
Top 10 Pieces of HOME Exercise Equipment
You don’t need a gym to get in a great workout. Actually you don’t even need any equipment at all – here is a list of 10 great exercises you can do anywhere!
BUT if you are going to invest in some home exercise equipment, these are the pieces to get! Some are definitely not essential but can add a lot of variety to your home routine. Also, most of the stuff you can tuck away in the closet!
- Pull up bar – If you only have a pull up bar and your own body weight, you have more than enough to get in a killer full body workout! You can do chin ups, pull ups, wide grip pull ups, towel pull ups…any variety of pull ups to work your back. You can then do a variety of push ups and plyometrics to kill the rest of your body. Pull up bars for your doorway also aren’t expensive, costing only about $30. You can also easily store them away in your closet!
- Bowflex Dumbbells – One of the best presents that I ever got for Ryan in my opinion. Weights can add intensity and variety to any workout routine. I find that they are great especially for leg workouts since body weight exercises are usually the least challenging for the legs. And dumbbells like the Bowflex ones, give you a range of weights to use (ours go up to 52lbs) without you having to purchase a trillion different pairs.
- TRX Suspension Trainer – One of the most expensive pieces on the list, but also one of the most versatile. You can hang it from a door OR even use it outside! You can get a full body workout just using the TRX system. To name just a few exercises you can do: 1 leg squats, balance lunge, inverted row, push up, back flyes, chest flyes, pike push ups, climbers, knee tucks, jackknives…
- Resistance bands – You can get these instead of weights but I recommend using them in addition to weights. Not as good for challenging the legs, resistance bands are great for the upper body because they make you work through the entire range of motion. Also, they are great if you aren’t yet able to do full pull ups. If you have a door strap, you can hook one of the bands up and do a modified pull up. These are also a great thing to have if you travel often since they are easy to take on trips!
Modified pull up...you can also kneel to perform this move.
- Foam Roller – While this can be used for making workout moves more challenging, you most definitely NEED to have one of these at home for rehab/prehab purposes. You should be foam rolling before and after every workout in my opinion. Since I have one at home, I sometimes foam roll two or three times a day if I’m super tight or sore!
- Yoga mat – Not a necessity to have, but if you plan to do any stretching, crunches or yoga, it can be very nice to have a mat instead of just using a towel. It is also nice to have one on the floor if you do plyometrics…nice for any neighbors you may have that is!
- Medballs – Again not a necessity since you can use weights for many of the moves you do with a medball. BUT these are great to use to make push ups more challenging…push ups say like the Impossible Push Up! These are also a great addition to any home exercise equipment collection especially if you are able to bounce them or throw them at walls as that opens up a whole new range of exercise options!
- Box step – It is much safer to use a box step than a chair or couch for many moves. Also, if you’ve already bought just about everything else on this list, this is one of the last few pieces you need to be able to do just about everything at home! It is a great piece to use for decline push ups, step ups, balance lunges, box jumps, box shuffle…and many other moves!
- Stability Ball – This piece is cheap, but it takes up some space. It is a great way to add in exercises that work your core even more. It is sort of one of those pieces that you add in when you need to spice up your routine or want to take on some of Tony Horton’s ridiculous push up challenges!
- Jump rope – A great piece of cardio equipment! Easy to carry and store. The only downside is you probably have to do it outside. But if you want to add some cardio intervals to your workout, definitely add in jump rope. If you want an extra challenge, do double jumps instead!
Runner’s up: Sliders and kettlebells. Sliders are the things you use to move furniture. They are great to use to make leg moves and abs moves more difficult. Kettlebells are just a fun addition to have for cleans, snatches and swings but you can simply use the Bowflex dumbbells.
0-60 in less than 1 second
Who doesn’t want to floor the gas pedal and go from 0-60 in less than 1 second?
Who doesn’t see a motivating fitness picture or read a success story and not want to start working out right then and there?
Who wants to take it slow when they first start a new workout program?
NOBODY!
But unfortunately, unlike some of the race cars out there, our bodies aren’t built to go from 0-60 in less than 1 second!
If you try to workout too often and do too much too soon, you aren’t going to see results any quicker. Actually, you will most likely slow your progress or even keep yourself from progressing AT ALL. You also risk getting an injury that will stop you from doing anything for a while.
I’ve seen it happen all too often. Especially around this time of year.
People get all gung-ho about their New Years resolutions. They have their goals and they want to accomplish them right now!
They start up a gym membership and may have never worked out before in their life, but they are now hitting the gym at least 5 times a week. They start logging in millions of miles or jump right into lifting heavy weights.
Their bodies aren’t prepared for either activity. They’ve haven’t taken the time to create an aerobic base or get their bodies ready to handle heavy loads. They haven’t worked on their mobility or form and haven’t really even taken the time to develop a specific program/routine that can be monitored to see if it is working.
They are perpetually sore, but don’t slow down. They may develop some slight pain in their hips or knees or muscles, but rehab and prehab are only given a fleeting thought as something they should be doing, but just don’t have time for now.
And they just keep pushing. They’re up there at 60. And they may have seen results right at the beginning.
But guess what?
They can’t keep up that pace. Their body gives out. Little injuries become chronic pain. Their numbers and miles slowly go down because their body is stalling.
They weren’t patient. And in their rush to achieve their goals, they’ve actually delayed themselves from reaching them.
I know it’s so tempting to start lifting heavy 4 times a week, always trying to hit your max. I know it’s tempting to workout more and more as you see your body become slimmer.
I FULLY understand the desire, the drive, to work as hard as you possibly can to achieve your goals NOW!
But if you really want your goals that bad, you need to rest too. You need to be patient. You need to outline a long-term program and you need to learn to enjoy the ride.
Learn to love the workouts themselves and enjoy each and every part of improving your health, even the rehab/prehab and rest days.
Constantly remind yourself that when your body rests, that is when the muscles are actually growing – that is when you are actually reaping the benefits of all the time you spend in the gym!
Honestly, if you can remind yourself to be patient now, you will reach your goals a million times quicker than if you try to rush to reach them now.
Don’t let your drive to reach your goal (be it a weight lifting competition, marathon or even just weight loss) make you push yourself too far too fast.
It’s all about the ride! Enjoy each and every moment of it!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
I’ve always liked Valentine’s Day.
Oh yea!
Weird? Probably.
But I’ve always liked the idea of a day to appreciate not only yourself but also your loved ones.
I’ve always been lucky enough to have family and friends around who love and support me – who help bring out the best in me.
And I like to think of Valentine’s Day not as a commercial holiday where you buy lots of stupid flowers and chocolates, but as a day when you reflect on how many wonderful people you are lucky enough to have in your life.
Hey, I don’t do cheesy posts too often so bear with me.
Anyway, I just feel so lucky today to have such great people in my life.
There are my friends (who are essentially family)…
I’ve made some great friends over the past year. Two great friends to be exact – Candy and Brian. They challenge me every day to work hard and push myself. They are the best support network a friend could ask for. It’s amazing to go to work every day and know that you are hanging out with two of the nicest and most caring people in the world!
And my family…
There is the Man Bicep Mom, who has always supported me and pushed me to go after what I want in life. She raised me to be a very strong, independent woman and is one of my best friends. She also inspired my love of health and fitness and is a big part of why I’m such an advocate of women lifting heavy weights!
And my sister, Drew, who has always been my other best friend. She is so close to me that sometimes people think we are twins! She was my first ever gym buddy and the person that made me realize how much I loved training.
And then there is Ryan…Ryan makes me a better me…period. He’s made me feel like the sky is the limit. Any time I feel any self-doubt he wipes it away. I honestly, am the best Cori I can be because of Ryan.
A big ‘Happy Valentine’s Day’ to all my loved ones!
AND a big ‘Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you wonderful Man Bicepers out there!!!!
P.S. Some wonderful Primal Valentine’s Day recipes to come later!!!
The Cave Kids – Children’s Music UPDATE
So Ryan has officially released a Primal children’s music CD! I, of course, am a huge fan!
The CD teaches children about healthy eating habits while helping them learn other things such as their ABCs and days of the week. The songs also encourage kids to get up and exercise!
(And as an adult the songs are very easy to listen to unlike some of the children’s music out there!)
Go check it out at The Cave Kids and let me know what you think!!
Walking – Yes it is a good workout!
I love walking outside or going for hikes, but I hate walking on the treadmill. It is such a fun activity to do with friends and family, but such a boring thing to do on your own…inside…
But the health benefits that you get from low-intensity workouts, such as walking on a treadmill, make the boredom worthwhile.
With this low intensity aerobic exercises, your heart and other energy systems have to work a little harder, without being overly stressed, to handle the extra fuel and oxygen delivery demands. This low intensity aerobic exercise also creates specific biochemical signals that produce a number of health and fitness benefits including:
- Improved fat metabolism – Low intensity aerobic activity trains your body to more efficiently utilize free fatty acids as fuel, which benefits you 24/7. It also helps you develop a higher metabolic rate and a preference for fat over glucose…especially if you are eating a low carb diet. Low intensity exercise can also help you balance your blood sugar levels and regulate your appetite.
- Improved cardiovascular function – You will strengthen your heart and improve your capillary network, which is the network of blood vessels that supply your muscles with fuel and oxygen. You will also improve your respiratory system functioning (the oxygen delivery by your lungs to the rest of your body).
- Stronger immune system – You build a stronger, more efficient circulatory system through low-intensity cardio. This combined with the fact that low intensity aerobic exercise stimulates beneficial hormone flow means that your immune system will be stronger!
- Increased energy – You don’t deplete and fatigue your body very much during low-intensity exercise. Usually actually you relax and feel more rejuvenated!
- Improved musculoskeletal system – Aerobic exercise prepares your body for the stress of weight lifting. It strengthens your bones, joints and connective tissues.
And I find that walking is a great thing to do on active rest days! It is a great way to relax. You also burn some extra fat, improve your aerobic base and loosen up your muscles so that you can get in a nice good stretch and foam roll!
So don’t skip the walking, or other low-intensity aerobic activity, just because it is “easy.” It is an essential part of your workout routine! Just like foam rolling and rest, it is necessary to getting great results!
Yummy in my tummy
Cooking – whether you love it or hate it, it is an essential part of any healthy lifestyle.
And really, it doesn’t have to be painful!
So to encourage people to cook, and to prove just how easy it is to make delicious meals on Primal/Paleo, I’ve decided to start a Recipe Box section of Man Bicep!
I plan to post a recipe each week (if you have any requests, let me know!). There will be quick and easy recipes, breakfast recipes, dinner recipes and yes…even dessert recipes!
So let the chowing down begin! Here are two wonderful recipes to start you off! I actually had these yesterday on my Primal cheat day for Breakfast number 1 and 2…yes, I did in fact eat two breakfasts yesterday.
Recipe #1
The Chocolate-Coconut Protein Shake
It is a great option for a quick snack or breakfast!
Ingredients:
1-2 scoops of Chocolate Whey Protein
1/3 cup light coconut milk
1/4 cup chilled water
Add all ingredients to shaker and mix well!
For this recipe, I use Trader Joe’s light coconut milk because it has nothing added to it. I also like Optimum whey protein. I like the taste and it doesn’t have any carbs.
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Recipe #2
The Lamb Merguez Egg Scramble
This is a great breakfast, or even a quick dinner, option. It takes about 15 minutes to make.
Ingredients:
1/2 lbs Fresh Lamb Merguez (courtesy of The Meat House)
3 oz Smoked Duck Breast (again…thank you Meat House!)
5 Eggs
2 tbsp Trader Joe’s Salsa Verde
2 tbsp Trader Joe’s Tomatillo & Roasted Yellow Chili Salsa
Sprinkling of Trader Joe’s Grass-fed Cheddar Cheese
Tablespoon of Mitchell’s Chili con Queso (courtesy of The Meat House)
Fully cook the Lamb Merguez and then add the smoked duck, eggs and salsas. Scramble together on medium heat. Then scoop the egg scramble onto a plate. Add some extra salsa, some cheese and a dollop of queso. Serve with a side of veggies or fruit!
We use the Meat House and Trader Joe’s products because they actually are all natural. There are no vegetable oils or gluten fillers added to any of their stuff. The queso is also just salsa and full-fat cream cheese and cheddar cheese. The eggs are cage-free from Trader Joe’s as well.
This is just one of Ryan’s wonderful breakfast scrambles…more to come soon!!
“Fish meat is practically a vegetable”
Sometimes you feel like we are making progress – that Primal/Paleo is finally breaking into mainstream society. That people are losing their fear of fat and realizing just how bad whole grains and vegetable oils are for you.
And then all of a sudden an article comes out that dashes all your hopes.
Military men will now be served a “healthy” low-fat diet full of fruits and vegetables and whole grains.
Why, oh why, couldn’t it just be a healthy whole foods diet even? Why this low-fat crap!?!
Michelle Obama – I love the fact that you promote strength training and aren’t afraid to bust out push ups on the Ellen Show. I love the fact that you are dedicated to promoting health and wellness to children.
But why a low-fat diet?!?
I can’t seem to find the exact diet anywhere. And I can’t find out exactly whose recommendations this supposedly “healthy” military diet is based on.
Is it the USDA’s recommendations? Because I sincerely hope it isn’t. I mean their recommendations are awful.
Just look at this food pyramid for kids!
Ok…of course I hate the fact that grains are even listed on this pyramid, but may I also point out that tomatoes are a fruit, but listed under veggies. Also, corn is not a veggie! It is a grain!
Botanically speaking, corn is a caryopsis, or dry fruit — popularly known as a grain. (NY Times Corn: Vegetable, Fruit or Grain?)
Can I also point out that meat and beans aren’t equal in terms of protein so why are they listed together? Beans aren’t a complete protein. They actually only contain 3 of the essential amino acids that make up a complete protein – lysine, tryptophan, and methionine. Beans need to be eaten with grains to become complete…maybe it would be wiser to list them with grains than with meat…
Also, probably the thing that annoys me most on this chart is the fact that vegetable oil is listed on it!! AND it is listed by milk. This chart says that corn oil, soybean oil, vegetable oil and canola oil are good for you!
UHM HELLO!?! There have just been numerous studies published in mainstream media stating otherwise so how the heck does the USDA still have this on their pyramid? This is an interesting piece about how BAD for you veggie oils are for you! (P.S. I love the fact that this guy likes coconut oil!!!)
Ok I’m sorry…I just can’t believe this pyramid. Processed foods are on this list over things like fatty meats, butter and full fat cheeses.
Can I just ask why the government is so behind in its diet and exercise beliefs? Why is the government pushing antiquated nutritional standards onto our children and our military men and women!?!
(P.S. The title is a quote from my favorite meat-eating TV character Ron Swanson.)
Man Bicep – Weekly Workouts
Recently, I’ve gotten a ton of questions about workout routines. People have asked for advice about what exercises to do, how many reps and sets to perform, how many times a week they should train.
While there is no one workout program that will work for everyone, I can offer guidelines.
And my first suggestion is: STOP OVERTRAINING PEOPLE! Too many of you aren’t giving body parts enough rest especially if you are lifting heavy. Light full body circuits are fine to do 3 times per week. But if you are lifting super heavy that body part is going to need a lot more rest!
Second suggestion: Keep track of your workouts! Don’t just randomly throw together some moves for that day! Plan and record!!
Now my third suggestion is try the Man Bicep workouts of the week! These workouts have helped other people gain strength while getting lean. So they definitely work especially when adjustments are made to your individual goals (if you email me I can suggest adjustments). They are a great starting point for anyone looking to create a program that will help them get strong and lean!
Feel free to keep emailing me all your workout questions! Here is just a little extra weekly supplement to my answers!
Weekly Workout #1
Strength Deadlift and Leg Day
Stretch and perform mobility exercises for hips and such.
Deadlift 5 sets of 2 reps – Perform warm up sets before beginning the 5 rounds. Start heavy. Try to either maintain the same weight throughout or increase as you move through the sets. If your form breaks down, lessen the weight. Rest a couple of minutes between each set.
Auxiliary lifts: Lighter weights should be used, but they should still be challenging!!!
Step ups 3x10ea (hold weights)
paired with
Balance lunges 3x10ea (hold weights)
Kettlebell swings 3×20
paired with
Jumping forward lunges with weight vest 3x10ea (So you move forward by jumping and switching legs.)
Hyper extensions 3×10 with weight
paired with
Bosu abs 3×20 no weight
Stretch and foam roll after walking for 10 minutes.
Check back next week for another workout! In the meantime, try this one and let me know if you have any questions.
Man Bicep 