The Bodybuilding.com Podcast

WBFF pro muscle model Rob Smith, the host of Bodybuilding.com’s Everyday Beast video series, shares his philosophy on food, lifting, and beasting through life. Highlights: - Why workout "pairings" with food are so important to him - "Cheating" versus "I deserve it" meals—there's a big difference - How he avoids diet burnout as a competitive bodybuilder who also loves food - Where he learned to cook, and how he refined his skills - The problems of hunger and "food mis-education" in the United States - How his fitness journey started in... group aerobics class - Why he "got big" to survive on the rugby pitch, and how other players react to him - His history on the stage, and how he's tried to learn from each show - Why he has continued with rugby: "Your body fades, but your friendships are gonna last way longer than that." - "When you're running at full speed, full stride, 800 meters, or you know you break a line and you're out there, there's no better feeling in the world than running full speed." - How sports and bodybuilding can actually complement each other - How competitor Jason Wittrock introduced him to the ketogenic diet, and how it has worked for him as an athlete and bodybuilder Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Jackson Bliton, better known as Bajheera, has built a unique dual following online. He's a pro bodybuilder, but also a pro gamer, and streams both to tens of thousands daily. He shares his story, his nutritional approach, and takes live questions from his Twitch followers. Highlights: - His additional alter egos Bulkjheera and Leanjheera - His dual love of gaming and activity, going back to early childhood - Dragon Ball Z as a fitness inspiration - 200 push-ups a day at age 11! - How he saw the potential of online streaming and had "the conversation" with his family - How distance running helped him develop the discipline necessary for bodybuilding - "I'm not an expert, I'm not a dietitian, but just the very basics can take you really far." - How he added muscle through some epic (and no so epic) bulks - On nutrition: "It's a slow, steady burn, and I like that style of putting in work every single day… I'm going to activate myself and put myself in position, and moving towards my goal, even if it's difficult." - His inspirations: Dad, and Goku - His guiding narrative: "What's the story that you want to tell, and have told about you?" - Why motivation is "a convenience" - "The days that you feel like going to the gym and tearing it up, fantastic. But the ones that aren't that really matter. You still take the action even if you're not necessarily feeling like it." - Why he trains in the morning - How the distance runner in his past still guides him in training: "When you do distance running practices, you're toast at the end." - How Bajheera is an avatar for Jackson, but also represents his followers who support him - The importance of momentum in life - How he balances gaming with his increasingly demanding fitness goals - "Supplementation for gamers" versus "supplementation for people," and the flaws in supplements that are supposedly created for gamers - "I would encourage you to use caffeine on the activity that you want to use it on, because it'll make whatever activity you're doing really fun." - How competition helps him be a better gamer - The importance of learning to lose - The person he wants to stream with? Kai Greene - How he transitioned from "chicken and rice all the time" to flexible dieting - "Science suggests that if you hold protein and calories consistent, it doesn't really matter what you do." - The importance of relatively easy, "punch the clock"-style workouts: "You're pushing blood around, and you're pushing nutrients around. You're putting yourself in just a better mindset of when your head hits the pillow." - Why he starts every workout with some curls - Where the name Bajheera came from Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

On the verge of her fourth go-round in the USA Powerlifting Raw Nationals, Meg Squats talks with us about her prep, how she used her program Uplifted to great effect in the offseason, and what she'd tell herself if she had it all to do over again. Highlights: * What rep-range makes her cringe the most * Why she keeps coming back to the USAPL raw nationals, and how she structures her year around it * The appeal of a (temporary) boring lifestyle * "I feel pretty secure that if Meg Squats doesn't show up at every single event, she's not just going to disappear off the face of the earth." * How much her numbers matter to her at this stage in her career * "It's a very relaxed intensity, if that makes sense." * How she's managed to feel good throughout this prep, and why that can be a bit freaky * Her specific recommendations for lifters struggling from fatigue during Uplifted or other heavy, demanding programs * How she manages the push-and-pull between sleep and her inbox * How much of the year she spends doing mixed "bro stuff" and powerlifting, versus just practicing the powerlifts * "Huge muscles is always the plan." * How she survives those slow deadlift singles: "Just count to 10 and then it'll eventually leave the floor." * On struggling with heavy deadlifts: "Don't stop pulling if it feels heavy. Like, it's heavy because it is. But just know that you're stronger than what it is heavy and you can lift that " * What she'd tell a new powerlifter (or herself a few years ago) about nutrition and supplementation * How and when she uses protein bars * The feedback she's received on her program Uplifted, and how she used it (twice!) in her last offseason Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Look him up, and you'll see a researcher has been involved in many foundational studies in strength and supplement research. But this Ph.D. is also a bodybuilder with 3 decades of competition under his belt. A few weeks out from competing at age 54, he shares wisdom about training, eating, and supplementing for long-term health and success. Highlights: - Why he's still competing in bodybuilding shows at age 54. - The secret to success: go to the gym 4-5 times a week for 30 years. - "It's not a team sport. I don't depend on others, I only depend on myself." - Kicking young people's asses in competition: "it's a way for me to be a bit of an ambassador for the older folk." - This guy wrote his master's thesis on an Atari computer. Seriously! - His first prep, back in the 1980s: A seriously crappy experience - His training breakthrough from the great Lee Haney - Why your arms aren't growing: "Over-volume creates under-recovery." - "Over-training is very, very difficult [to achieve]. But under-recovery is very easy." - His take on the best workout split. - What is the minimum effective dose of strength training? - How older people can shift their training mindset from pure fat-loss to "muscle stimulation." - "So many of them, they want to see 10 pounds gone on the scale. And I say, 'OK. What if you lost 10 pounds of fat, and gained 10 pounds of muscle? You stand on the scale, and the needle doesn't move.'" - Why high-protein diets aren't as dangerous as some people say - "Leucine resistance" in middle-age and beyond, and what the minimum protein intake for older people should be - His answer for people who don't want to count macros: the 2/3 rule - Knowing all that he knows, what's in his shaker bottle? "I'd rather eat." - On weight-loss "transformations" and competition: "It's not about placing. It's about the grind, and how you feel about yourself. Do you feel good enough about yourself to be able to go through that process, and to be able to get out and just expose yourself to any and all criticism. She had met her goal. That's what it's all about." Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

When classic physique competitor, fitness model, and Team Bodybuilding.com athlete Lawrence Ballenger started oiling up his muscles 2 minutes into the conversation, we should have known what we were in for. He discusses his insane diet and protein intake, plus how to stay in ketosis on 500g of carbs a day. Then, he and Heather throw down on a burger eating competition. Highlights: - His experience in the Brute Strength Showdown, competing against elite CrossFit, powerlifting, and Olympic lifting athletes - His maintenance diet: 7,000 calories, and 400-500g of carbs, even when he's in ketosis - "I actually like doing crossfit, when I can breathe." - His secret 3-4 cups of heavy cream a day - His next conquest: strongman! And his stage name? "Dimple Nipple." - The story he can't get escape from: Getting pinned under 50 pounds at age 15 on Thanksgiving day - The next step? Start doing whatever Mike O'Hearn does - His advice for gainers: eat 2-3k over maintenance, kiddo - His other secret: four 100g protein shakes a day. Seriously. - How he incorporates blood flow restriction training - Why feeling like you're in danger some of the time is essential for progress - Lawrence's new rapper name: MC Danger Gains - His favorite BFR leg workout: the 1,000-rep squat challenge - His early experiences with ketogenic dieting, and when he was allowed his first cheat meal - Breakfast this morning? 14 eggs and 17 turkey patties - Words to grow by: "You're not gonna get to 270 not eating." - And then things devolve until Lawrence and Heather are having a hamburger eating challenge in the company cafeteria. Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

The iconic fitness model and creator of The Fighter Diet reflects on her two-decade anniversary of moving heavy iron. She goes deep into her history, her recent struggles with injury, how she uses pot for recovery, and far more. Highlights: - Her first time going to the weight room, and the day she decided to become a bodybuilder (they're the same day) - Her long journey to find the right way to eat - How bodybuilding broke her heart - "So, I decided I wanted to be like a Jack LaLanne, but in female form." - "I like bodybuilding because you can't just buy it. And if you buy it you're going to lose it fast." - Why bodybuilding is "the perfect anti-aging routine" - Her 15-year buildup to a recent hamstring injury - Why she is wearing her injury on her sleeve and discussing it constantly - The challenges and fear that come with being on the shelf - "I feel bad for my body in hindsight, like, "I had you lift 250 lbs. deadlifts with a torn hamstring. I'm sorry. I didn't know. You should have told me!" - Why you won't find any naked pictures of her online - Why she stages 12-week challenges, even though she knows you can't totally transform in that time - Her thoughts on protein, carbs, and fasting - The difference between cheats and treats - How she became a believer in THC and pot for fit people - How she controls her pot use, and keeps it in perspective - Why she's opposed to vilifying sugar in particular - Why most women need to focus on muscle before they lose weight Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out the Bodybuilding.com channel in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Registered dieticians Douglas Kalman, Ph.D., and Susan Hewlings, Ph.D., pull up to the table to discuss what they ate for breakfast, how the rest of us should navigate the perils of mealtime, and their new course on Bodybuilding.com All Access: Bodybuilding.com's Foundations of Fitness Nutrition. Highlights: - What our nutritionist guests ate for breakfast - The appeal of nutrition as a field of study: studying disorders, and studying diseases - Doug's "what not to do" stories of making weight as a wrestler - Rachel McLish, Arnold, and Sly Stalone: three unexpected nutritional icons - Nutrition for cognition, and the gut-brain connection - How genetics may determine the effectiveness of caffeine - "Everybody eats, so everybody thinks they're an expert" - The problem of finding true causality in nutrition studies - How nutrition is like the movie Groundhog Day - Why simply "eating clean" and focusing on the basics is underrated - Four steps to better eating: "Don't be afraid of food. Don't skip meals. Stay hydrated. Don't keep eating after you're full." - The problem with the clean plate club - The right and wrong ways to do vegetarianism - Vegetarian protein: how to make it work just as well for you as animal protein - Exactly how much protein you need if you're a vegetarian - Why nutrition is neglected in college and medical school - What users should expect, and get, from their new Bodybuilding.com nutrition course Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Fitness model Abel Albonetti stops by to share his fitness story and give some insight into training a certain muscle group he gets asked about constantly. He tells Nick and Heather about growing up home-schooled, transitioning from fashion model to fitness model, and his adventures with new-fangled fitness technology like the NeuFit. If you're curious about carb-cycling, he gives his personal approach to that, too! Highlights: - The unique lengths he had to go to when he started training - How he got his start as a model in fashion, not fitness - About those Bieber bangs (which he had before Bieber) - How and why he made the switch to full-time fitness - Why he's always loved high-volume training, and how beginners should scale it back - The bodyfat percentage he aims to maintain year-round - His approach to cardio for year-round definition - How he found carb-cycling, and how he navegates it - Why he prefers carb-cycling to "cheating" or weekly refeeds - How he's made it work and kept progressing for 12 years - What it was like for him to tour China - His unique experiences with the NeuFit muscle-stimulation device: "I cannot walk, literally, because my calves are so sore." - How he has trained abs over the years, and how he does it now - The essential details on his new program, 30-Day Abs - NeuFit plus abs: As close as a man can come to the feeling of having a baby Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Top fitness model and Instagram fit-star Paige Hathaway visits Bodybuilding.com headquarters in Boise to share her story. She talks with Nick and Heather about fitness challenges, pescatarian dieting, phone discipline, her fitness heroes, and plenty more. Highlights: - How growing up in small-town "flyover country" helped her find her way - Her first show, her heroes, and how she saw early potential in fitness social media - Why she still recommends fitness competitions, even though she doesn't compete anymore - Why she responds to so many comments on Instagram - Is hater-ism toward fit women on the decline? - Why giving away time, effort, and media is underrated - Why she likes five-week fitness challenges—and especially for money - How fitness challenges "ripple" into people's lives - Her new-found love for "functional fitness" - How Instagram sets aesthetic standards for training - How she draws hard limits with her phone use - Her process for turning notes and thoughts into Instagram posts - Why she recently decided to get back on to YouTube - How she landed on pescatarian dieting - Why bean burritos may just be the perfect food - Her changing taste in protein powders, and why she prefers pea - Why Nick only eats bad-tasting protein - How her dreams have changed as her success has grown. "I really want to help girls that want to do what I'm doing. I'm trying to find avenues with that, because so many girls now want to do what I've done." Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Trainer and Bodybuilding.com Spokesmodel Search finalist Tyler Holt comes by to talk about 1,000-rep workouts, as well as the joys and challenges of "living the dream" of gym ownership in his mid-twenties. Highlights: - How he got obsessed with 1,000-rep workouts, and how he programs them - Why 1,000-rep abs isn't a thing: "most of the workouts, my abs afterward have been feeling it pretty much anyway." - How and why he became devoted to increasing intensity without increasing weight (yes, it involves injuries at a young age) - Weight training in high school as "social hour" - His experience and experiments with blood-flow restriction training (medial delts, anyone?) - How he got a gym full of equipment on the cheap, and the machine he still fantasizes about finding - "More opportunity has came from not competing, than actual competing." Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Charles Staley calls himself "The oldest, skinniest guy you’ll ever see deadlifting 500 pounds." How does he do it? With intelligent full-body training that hits the sweet spot of intensity. After the release of his Bodybuilding.com All Access program Full-Body Strong, Staley tells us all about the right way to approach weight selection, programming, exercise selection, and gives all kinds of that coachy goodness that makes the difference between "I worked out" and "I crushed it." Highlights: - Why he prefers full-body training, and how he came to arrive at it. - The importance of hard training and why exercise should feel "threatening" to your body - Why exercise needs to be "relatively dangerous" to work - "Compulsive" versus "optional" exercises, and why your program needs both - Why your diet needs to be non-threatening to complement a threatening fitness program - The 30-word sports nutrition manifesto - How pattern-based programming rather than specific programming can work for lifters at - How to cut back on volume without regressing: Do one hard set instead of 4 hard ones, and "you're still probably getting 75 percent of the benefit" - How to know when to change an exercise, and why "once you've done a certain movement for so long, your body gets it figured out." - Why alternating size-focused and strength-focused can keep paying off for months or years - His great lifting regret: too much low-rep strength work, too few hard sets of 10 reps Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Join powerlifter, Bodybuilding.com Spokesmodel Search winner, and YouTube fitness stalwart Meg Squats in this wide-ranging conversation. She shares her strong, strong story (it involves even more squatting than you might imagine) and gives crucial tips for thriving on her new program, Uplifted. Plus, there's a lot of screaming and alarms going off toward the end of this episode, if you like that sort of thing. Highlights: - Her early videos: "Hey, here's the lift. That's all there is. That's all you get." - Why she left the CrossFit gym on the first floor and moved up to the second floor and "bigger people." - Her most crucial transformation: 12 weeks of squat-only training after a bikini show - Her mixed feelings over her bodybuilding show experience - Powerlifting vs. Bodybuilding: "They're different kinds of suck." - Why doing a bikini show is a more advanced fitness challenge than most competitors realize - Her decision to do the legendary Smolov squat program, and why she chose it - After Smolov: high, frequency, "PR every day" training - Bodybuilding competition vs. Powerlifting: "Ah, man, I gotta go up in front of these people. Can't I just lift in front of them? That'd be better." - Why she feels it's important to be proud of her body and how it looks, even as a powerlifter - Her no-filter, no-Photoshop approach to social media - On social media posturing: "Perfection is insanely boring." - "I'm back at the body weight where I so much hated my body. And it's a combination of understanding myself more, understanding that whatever weight gain I do experience is not the end of the world, and also adjusting my goals and understanding that my value does not end with how I look. My value is not based around my body–really, at least how my body looks." - How to know if you're ready for powerlifting, and if it's a "beginner-friendly" sport - What to expect from Uplifted, and why she wishes she had this program as a beginning strength athlete - The importance of "bro stuff" - The importance of RPE (rate of perceived exertion) and auto-regulated training - Why you should definitely get some coaching and/or take videos of your big lifts - How to deal with "squat hunger" - Her secret intra-workout snack: 20g of whey and a rice crispy treat - Why this probably isn't the right program for someone trying to "diet," whatever that means - What to do if you get a week into Uplifted and nothing feels comfortable or right - Why going too heavy is a way bigger problem than going too light Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

UK-based athletic adventurer Ross Edgley talks with Nick and Heather just days before undertaking an unbelievable feat: swimming all the way around Great Britain at a very muscular 220-plus pounds. This is a true deep-dive into the limits of human training and performance, philosophy, and "strongman swimming," all of which come together in Edgley's new best-seller, "The World's Fittest Book." Highlights: - His day today: An impromptu 30km swim, aka, "an eating competition with a little bit of swimming." - On mental thresholds versus physical ones, and "craving" the insanity of extreme challenges - His rule on training: "I have to be able to say in a single sentence what I'm training for." - The push-and-pull relationship with muscle and endurance sports - The unique advantage that muscle can provide in water - The advantage and disadvantage of muscular weight for runners and other athletes - Ross's "shapely hips" as a life-saver for swimming - How he landed on the "Tree-athlon," and on swimming as the arena to push his limits - The strange advantage that swimming while pulling a tree provides (it's mental) - On swimming around Great Britain: "It could be as little 3,000km, or as much as 5-6,000km." - "A successful swim will be a byproduct of efficient feeding strategies, prehab, rehab, sleeping correctly, taking care of any wounds, abrasions, chafing, salt mouth. The swim will be a byproduct of doing all of that right basically. So the swimming's not even the hard part in a weird way." - The 10-year journey that resulted in The World's Fittest Book - Why he tries to teach "methods" rather than programs - His fitness utopia: "I would love it if ultrarunners are no longer scared to go and you know chat to the powerlifters and hang out in the squat rack. And equally, if powerlifters and bodybuilders won't be scared to go and run an ultramarathon, or even just a 5 or a 10k, in fear that their muscles'll waste away." - On reading philosophy versus reading fitness books prior to his greatest challenges Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast Also check out our latest articles in the Apple News and Google News mobile apps.

Registered dietician and co-founder of the International Society of Sports Nutrition Doug Kalman gives his perspective on a wide range of currently popular supplements for performance, and enhanced cognition. Plus, he answers the age-old question: Is brown rice really any better than white rice? Highlights: - On creatine: Are we really still having discussions about its safety and efficacy? Really? - The persistence of the "supplements are all snake oil" argument - "Nutritional shortfalls" aren't just a thing of the past. They're very real today as well. - "We're born with teeth, and we're born to use teeth for a reason. And it's not just to take an apple off of the tree. It's also to eat that cow, or to eat protein foods." - Why the brain benefits from being treated "as a muscle." - Creatine and neuro-protection against "the facts of life," or "You can trip walking down your driveway with the gifts that you just bought for your family and hurt your head." - Low-dose creatine: take it and forget about it - The performance benefits of caffeine, Nitrosigine, phosphatidylserine, and Alpha-GPC - The decision tree he uses to help match athletes and supplements - Why you should consider periodizing supplements - The biggest job of any nutritionist: help the athlete stay healthy - The first question to establish an athlete's base: "Have you had five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables today? Probably not." - The other "base items" on his nutritional list - Why he doesn't like multivitamins with iron for men - Two essential supps for vegan athletes - Why genetic testing might be helpful for athletes - Why you should never do something new on the day of competition - What you need to know about teacrine, theanine, and other current popular nootropic supps - What he took for the six months leading up to a recent boxing match - His number one advice for taking any supp: "Follow the label directions. They are there for a reason." - Why he likes to read supplement reviews - Brown rice vs white rice: Is there any metabolic or blood sugar difference? Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast

Aaron Marino, better known by the title of his immensely popular YouTube channel Alpha M, comes by the Bodybuilding.com offices to talk lifting, grooming, confidence, and his new fitness program, "Tailored: Six Weeks to Living Lean." Highlights: - How it all started: "I had a video camera and a big mouth." - "My mom tells the story of me, first day of kindergarten, not wanting to go with wide-legged pants, so I wrapped a roll of scotch tape to make sure they were a little more tapered. I mean, this is how deep this goes." - How being on YouTube has forced him to be a better person - "Everybody thinks I'm a huge douche." - "I really felt like in today's world, you need a different set of skills in order to sort of dominate and kick life's ass. And so I wanted to be one of the voices letting guys know that it's okay if you're not 'this.'" - How ultimately, it all boils down to confidence - How fitness was his "first love," and how he found it - On competition: "The one day that you look your best, you feel your worst." - "I love working out just by myself. Put my earphones in. It's a time for me just to kind of be by myself and do my thing." - The essential life lessons that the gym taught him. - His nutritional approach: A little bit of planning, a lot of healthy habits, and almost no counting Be sure to follow us on social media for daily fitness updates! Twitter | https://twitter.com/bodybuildingcom Facebook | https://www.facebook.com/Bodybuildingcom Snapchat | https://www.snapchat.com/add/bodybuildingcom Instagram | https://www.instagram.com/bodybuildingcom/ Pinterest | https://www.pinterest.com/Bodybuildingcom/ YouTube | https://www.youtube.com/user/bodybuildingcomvideo Google+ | https://plus.google.com/+bodybuildingcom Spotify | http://spoti.fi/1NRebm0 Mobile Apps | http://bbcom.me/2d7tixc Bodybuilding.com | http://www.bodybuilding.com/podcast