I want to snatch 220…..why not?  I want to clean and jerk 290…why not?  If we can put people on the moon and a robot on mars why cant I hit those numbers as a 105.  I want to win 4 gold medals passing pocket and dimas…why not? I want to be the best weightlifter to ever live.  I have given up so much for this sport,  so I want to take everything I can from it.  I want to take it all and not share.  weightlifting is not a sport it is my life,  so I am going to live my life to my fullest potential and thats how im going to snatch 220.  More than anything I want respect,  and I have not seen any besides my family at california strength.  So I am going to have to fight for it even more, hit bigger numbers bigger totals.  Im going to use this chip on my shoulder to be the best.  Been in this sport for a year and a half, top five in the United States, 4th at nationals but still know one knows who I am.   Buckle your seat belts people becuase in the next 10 years I am going to show people who I am and take my respect without asking.  I will be number one soon enough with the help of california strength.       Jumping Jonathan North

For a training program to be effective it must match your goals. Just like anything in life if you don’t know where you want to go you can never get there. With the recent resurgence of circuit training, most notably through a group called CrossFit, it has reminded me of a physiological phenomenon that any experimental exercise physiologist that does training studies notices about gender differences in exercise training. This phenomenon is that over an eight to twelve week endurance training cycle the men will need to be verbally told to eat more food because they are losing weight, while the women will remain weight stable throughout.

The physiology behind it is complex and for sure not fully understood, but the phenotypic manifestation holds true. Hence the phrase, “CrossFit makes women sexy and men skinny.” I am not saying that Tabata, CrossFit, or any other circuit training program is bad for men; what I am commenting on is that this type of training tends to make men skinny, and if that is part of your goal then great!

However, many men want/need more muscle for optimal appearance/performance, hence their goals are geared towards needing a different type of stimulus. This is where strength training comes in. Lifting big, heavy weights and focusing on strength will do the trick. These workouts need to have sufficient volume and intensity to stimulate hypertrophy without the “endurance” training effect discussed above. So if many men are out there doing circuit training and want some more size/strength to meet their goals, give a four week strength cycle a try you will be happy with the results!

What have been your experiences with circuit type training?

There is no doubt that nutrition and exercise performance go hand in hand. And in the information age, there’s a lot of confusion regarding nutritional guidelines for athletes. The amount of nutrients needed is usually based on the recommendation for the general population that may not be appropriate for the athletic population. Sufficient amounts of energy, carbohydrate, protein, fat, vitamins and minerals are essential to the optimal performance and condition top athletes desire.

Additionally, false advertisements and health claims are everywhere. Massive bombardment of ads and information about nutrition flood the media. Are carbohydrates evil? Do we have to take supplementation for every nutrient out on the market? Does more protein intake mean greater muscle mass? Also, there are too many web-sites telling us what to eat. Are they relevant? This handbook will hopefully lead top athletes in the right direction with up-to-date nutrition recommendation based on science and research.

New and emerging science has been consistently investigating the “right” amount of nutrients for high performance training and other competitive demands. There are three main energy sources in our diet: Carbohydrate, Protein, and Fat.

Why do we care about nutrition so much?

• Obtain maximum gains from training
• Enhance recovery for optimal conditioning
• Maintenance and reaching weight goals
• Less accidents and illness
• Consistent achievement of goals
• Maximal Performance

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are the predominant and most efficient fuel source for training and performance. The muscle and the liver are the main places to store dietary carbohydrate in the form of glycogen. When the stored glycogen is depleted, exhaustion and weakness may be established. Carbohydrate supplements during exercise may contribute to prolonged exercise performance. Supplying the carbohydrates immediate after the exercise is to make sure there are enough carbohydrate sources in the body for recovering. Thus, it is recommended to take carbohydrate and protein together for the optimal recovery after exercise. During the day, it is important to replenish muscle glycogen stores that are depleted throughout the day to condition your body for the next day’s trainings or competitions.

The recommended amount and timing of carbohydrate intake:

Activity Type	Amt of Carbohydrate
Immediate recovery after exercise (0-4 hrs)	1g/kg BM/hr in intervals
Daily Recovery from moderate duration/ low intensity	5-7 g/kg BM/day
Daily recovery from Moderate-heavy endurance exercise	7-12 g/kg BM/day
Daily recovery from extreme exercise program (>4-6 hr/day)	>10-12 g/kg BM/day

Modified from IOC practical nutrition guideline

It is also recommended to take nutrient-rich carbohydrate source (ex. fruits and vegetable, Brown rice and other whole grains, 100% whole wheat bread) than low-nutrient containing foods (ex. White rice and bread, sports drinks and soft drinks, jam, honey, sugar).

Carbo-loading:

Some athletes, especially those who compete intensely for more than 90 minutes, load up their muscle glycogen stores to maximum levels before competitions. This is achieved by eating large amounts (8-10g/ kg) of carbohydrates 2 to 3 days prior to competitions. Not enough scientific evidence supports the efficacy of such method, however. New and emerging research supports ample carbohydrate (as outlined above) and adequate calories (eating for energy balance) as the proper way to maximize glycogen stores for an event.

The Basics “All Carbohydrates are Sugars”

Carbohydrates provide fuel to our working muscles, brain, and organs. Carbohydrates are not “essential” to life, however we function a lot better when we do have them in our diet. People usually classify carbohydrates into “simple sugars” or “complex carbohydrates.”  However these are not the way athletes should view their carbohydrate sources. A much better way is to ask the question: “What am I getting for this carbohydrate source.”

What We Want In a Carbohydrate Source

• High Fiber – aids in weight loss, lowers cholesterol, keeps us “regular,” and high intakes (25 grams/day women 38 grams/day men) is associated with increased overall cardiovascular health and a much lower risk of chronic disease. This means every meal should have 6-8 grams of fiber.
• High in Micronutrients – Vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients are found in abundance in fresh fruits and vegetables, as well as unprocessed whole grains such as steal cut oatmeal and brown rice. Many of these micronutrients are essential to life such as Vitamin C, while others such as the polyphenols in olives are associated with increased heart health.
• Straight from the ground to your plate – The closer you choose your carbohydrates to the way they looked growing on the farm the better off you will be. This way the food naturally has all the vitamins, minerals, fiber, essential fats, and all the other great stuff scientists have not yet discovered in them.

When we view our carbohydrate sources in this way it becomes apparent that vegetables and fruits, along with unprocessed grain products such as oatmeal, sweet potatoes, brown rice, bread with at least 4 grams of fiber per slice are our best choices. It also becomes apparent that fruit and vegetable juices are an inferior source of nutrients since we lose the fiber content.

Vegetables are extremely important and should be the staple of at least one meal per day preferably two meals in a day. Dark colored vegetables (carrots, spinach, bell pepper, broccoli, pumpkin, tomato etc.) are filled with vitamins, minerals, fibers, antioxidants, etc.

How to achieve your required vegetable intake

• Always have a large Tupperware container of mixed chopped vegetables in the fridge along with a pre-washed bag of spinach or spring greens

• If eating in a restaurant always order a salad

• If you don’t have time for salad then snack on carrots, celery, or green beans

How to choose bread

• All bread must have at least 3-4 grams of fiber per slice
• All bread must have “whole grain” on the label
• Avoid all labels with “partially hydrogenated” in the ingredients
• My favorite is Ezekiel 4:9 bread

The “Other Stuff”

There are many other sources of carbohydrates that people do not utilize very often. Here is a list, if you would like a recipe just ask!

Take 45 min to Cook	Take 30 min to Cook	Less than 30 min to Cook
Brown Rice	Quinoa	Sweet Potato
Corn	Lentils	Couscous
Beans	Peas	Soy Pasta