Hiding fat doesn’t count

This is a tongue in cheek commentary from the brilliant writers at The Onion on what a great number of people actually do every day: hide their problem areas instead of dealing with them.

Today Now!: How To Thrust Your Fat Into A More Appealing Shape

I know it’s hard. I know it’s harder for some people than others.

If you are wearing certain types of clothes to hide how you look, it’s time to make a plan.

If you are scouring the landscape for the Vertical Strip Outlet Mall, it’s time to decide to take action.

If you are not chuckling at this video because it hits a little too close to home, let’s get started.

Two months of Insanity

About 60 days ago, I started the Insanity workout DVD series produced by Beachbody. They make multiple home workout programs that you probably have seen on television on infomercials after 11 p.m.

I just finished the whole series, and I wanted to give an update on my results and my commentary about it.

1. The workout program is one of the hardest in which I have ever participated. It involves six days per week of total body conditioning using no equipment other than your own bodyweight. It could be best described as high intensity and impact interval training with a heavy plyometric component. Think about it as a mix of traditional calisthenics, football practices and military training.
2. I have been a traditional “gym rat” that participated in free weight resistance training along with cardiovascular machines (elliptical, stationary bike, etc.). This workout changed my body shape and did result in significant improvements in my overall fitness.
3. Surprisingly, even though I only performed weight training once per week during the series, my weights on all free weight exercises increased 15-20%. I attribute this to the high emphasis of the program on core strength, neuromuscular improvement and synergistic muscle development.
4. I noticed a definite improvement to my posture, flexibility and muscular endurance.
5. My knees and legs need a rest from all the jumping over the past 60 days.
6. My body shape changed. I am leaner and don’t feel as muscle-bound.
7. I would recommend this workout to anyone that is able, but there are a great number of people who are probably not ready for this workout if they do not have an established level of fitness.

The skinny: try this workout if you need a change of pace. I am looking forward to getting back to my traditional workouts for the next few weeks. However, I will continue to supplement my routine with these workouts from time to time because the results were fantastic.

Taking a week off isn’t so bad

I am currently on the plane returning from vacation in Ireland. It is the first full week off work I have taken in quite some time. It is also the first time I have not worked out for six days since I probably was about 14 years old.

I had the best of intentions. I brought five days worth of workout clothes, running shoes and exercise DVDs. I set my alarm. I even took it easy some nights (not many) and came home from the pubs at a reasonable hour.

However, after a couple of days, my body actually felt a little better than it did last week when I was sometimes exercising twice a day. I’m not exactly at my best, but I think with a few days of getting back into my routine, I will be better than before.

The mind needs a rest from routine sometimes. The body needs a break from the abuse. And, its nice to know you can turn the discipline/intensity off and then back on again.

That’s the true sign of dedication as opposed to obsession. So, give yourself a break every now and then. Just don’t do it TOO often.

Irish Ingredients and Portions

I just spent an incredible week touring the entire South of Ireland. It involved a great deal of time in the car, a few too many pints and eating out all three meals a day for seven glorious days.

Do I feel guilty? No. It was a vacation. Do I feel fat? Surprisingly, not really.

I don’t think the day of my return would be the day I would want to try out for the Olympic team, but I don’t feel like I just finished Thanksgiving dinner like I usually do after most business trips. Why is that?

Here are a few things I noticed and what I learned:

• Irish menus  are very literal. When you order “Roast Beef with Vegetables and Potatoes”, you get roast beef, some vegetables and potatoes. No breading, butter, and layers of mysterious stuff.

Lesson--keep food simple. Basic ingredients that look very similar to they way they came off the farm, out of the ground or off the tree.

• Portions are designed for human sized people. I would not describe pub food as a California Health Plate (corned beef, cheese, fries, etc.), but they came in portion sizes that were not obscene. In the U.S., restaurants seem to measure value by the pound. The Irish serve you a meal instead of issuing a challenge.

Lesson—you do not have to eat three meals worth of food just because the restaurant puts it in front of you. You are paying to no longer be hungry. It costs you the same whether you eat it all or not.

• Breakfast is an everyday meal. It’s easy to see why they call them Bed and Breakfasts. Breakfast is formal, large and very good. It also keeps you from snacking on junk for the next 6 hours when you start the day with eggs, salmon, and other basic items. I ate too much, but I ate less later.

Lesson—eating a good breakfast that is devoid of processed foods is like putting money in the bank. You can make withdrawals on it later, and it keeps you from eating junk to combat sugar/caffeine crashes over the next few hours.

One other thing I noticed: walking is a form of transportation, not punishment. You can take a nice vacation, eat heartily and maintain your weight if you walk a few miles every day. There are several times when people would tell us, “Oh, its only a one mile walk.”

When is the last time you heard that?

Carbs Are NOT Evil

I have a never ending battle with my Mom and sister about the benefits of carbohydrates (carbs). Somewhere along the way, they both were convinced that eating a slice of bread is akin to eating a peach grown in the lovely farming community of Chernobyl. I just disagree.

I once heard a famous motivational speaker say that if you want to be successful at something, you should model people who have already made it. Or, pay attention to years and years and YEARS of research instead of what you read in a 500 word article in Shape magazine.

Cases in point:

• Michael Phelps’s diet plan. I don’t think he is too concerned about carbs being bad for him. Don’t adopt his plan, just learn from an Olympic champion how eating carbs is key to his success.
• The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends 45-55% of your calories come from carbs. Who wrote the article YOU are reading???
• The American Dietetic Association tends to agree.
• Carbs are the primary source of fuel for people trying to exercise
• Heard of “net carbs"? There is no such thing. It was invented as a part of a marketing campaign according to the Irving Center for Clinical Research at Columbia University.
• Following diets designed for performance athletes is probably a likely way to make the body work efficiently

If you are not a doctor or dietician, do your homework. Don’t follow a fad--even if the science “makes sense.”

Which Diet Plan is Best?

There is no secret formula for weight loss through dieting. It is a combination of eating less, moving more and maintaining a healthy balance of the nutrients you need to perform. Period. Now that we have that out of the way, we can chat.

Too many people succumb to analysis paralysis in trying to decide which diet plan will lead to the best results. I can think of over 50 of them off the top of my head, and every single one of them have a few things in common:

• They all claim to be backed by “breakthrough” research that sheds new light on losing weight
• They all have testimonials from satisfied (and lighter) customers
• They usually have multiple people with an impressive suffix after their name to back their claims (usually wearing a white coat in a photo)
• They all usually claim some sort of conspiracy by an inanimate entity against your weight loss (food companies, fast food providers, the sugar industry, etc.)
• They all claim that if you follow THEIR plan, you will finally be successful (for a fee)

They all also have one other good thing in common: they promote careful planning and tracking of your diet and require you to make choices and sacrifices. There are many pros and cons to all of them, so I suggest you take a look at this comparison tool from Health.com. It is an excellent guide to try and find a plan that fits into your lifestyle instead of trying to find a way around your possibly unhealthy lifestyle.

However, you need to keep this simple math problem in mind. A pound of fat is made up of 3500 calories. If you want to lose 20 pounds, you need to burn off 70,000 calories through diet and exercise. There is no way around it.

I run into people every day who are scared to death of carbs. Or fat. Or eating late. Or…well, you get the picture. They can’t see the forest for the trees. It is like a race car driver desperate to win a race, but they never leave the garage because they keep worrying about what is the BEST oil to use in their car.

Get moving. Drive fast. Finish first. That is how you win. The rest are details that you can figure out with experience.

Do something.

Volume turned up to 11

Remember the famous scene from the mockumentary, Spinal Tap, where the guitarist  talks about how his amp’s volume controls go up to 11?

You should be thinking about your workouts in the same way. Many people have set levels in their mind as to what their maximum effort might be. You need to periodically reset these levels “to 11” every now and then if you are going to continue to make gains. Watch the video and think about what Christopher Guest’s character says.

What do YOU need to do to push your workout a little bit over the top? You can do the same workout with the following changes:

• Reduce your rest time from 60 seconds to 45 seconds between sets.
• Perform a bodyweight exercise in between sets (alternate 30 pushups and 30 crunches)
• Add three sets of plyometrics at the end of the workout to finish it off.
• Do antagonistic exercises (e.g., bench press and lat pulldown) back to back with no rest, then rest 30 seconds, repeat
• Add 5% more weight than last time
• Add one more rep per set

There are a limitless array of variations to what you can do to your workout to turn up your workout amp to 11. Try to keep the training time the same, but compress more effort into the workout.

Are you fit enough---to be a ref?

It is almost World Cup time, and that means I will have no idea which team will win or why this sport over any other mesmerizes the entire world---except the United States. From what I have seen, it certainly is filled with some of the most fit athletes on the planet.

However, according to research, it is the referees that actually run more than anyone else on the pitch (upwards of 12 miles per game). To make sure these officials can keep up with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, FIFA instituted a strict policy, which I have quoted from an article:

In 2007, FIFA ramped up its referee training by launching its Refereeing Assistance Program to prepare the candidates for 2010.

Because referees have to keep up with the speed of the game, they are subjected to two fitness tests to mimic the action on the soccer field. They are given the tests multiple times.

The first fitness test requires speed. A referee runs 40 meters six times. Each of the six sprints needs to be completed in 6.2 seconds for a male referee. He is allowed 1 minute and 30 seconds between each sprint.

The second test examines the referee's stamina in repeated high-intensity runs. He must run 150 meters in 30 seconds, and then must walk 50 meters in 35 seconds. This is repeated 20 times, which equals 10 laps around a track field. Assistant referees have less strict standards.

I think I will be trying this out in the next week to see how I do. I think I better bring a bucket.

Serving sizes: how many are you eating?

I ran across a great article on how to estimate food serving sizes, and some of the portions may surprise you. For example, did you know that a serving of mashed potatoes is no larger than half an apple? I have been to restaurants where the entire meal sits on a bed of them.

Note to self: do not eat any serving size that can serve as a “bed” for another food.

More tips and tricks for the gym

I decided that it was time for a sequel to my post on 10 Things You Could Be Doing Better at the Gym. I am not guaranteeing that the sequel is better than the original.

Here are some other workout nuggets you may find useful. They include terminology, training tips and general pontifications by me on workout philosophy.

1. Weightlifting gear is for cheaters. That may be harsh, but any equipment you wear makes the exercise easier. Belts, straps, wraps and the like all lessen the stress on the body. If you are injured, use them temporarily until you recover. However, overusing them when you are healthy can make your joints weaker and more prone to injury since they are always being “coddled”.
2. Weightlifting gloves are the exception to the above. Most people don’t want bricklayer hands (like mine).
3. More or less. Ladies, when lifting weights, use 10% more resistance than you think you can. Guys, use 10% less. That is just a general observation from 25 years of training…
4. It’s not a book club. You cannot use a resistance machine and read a book at the same time. If you can, you are not working out hard enough. I see this all the time at the gym (especially on the leg extension machine for some reason). Hardcore runners would argue the same thing about a treadmill, but I will leave that up to you.
5. Ab/Add. People mix up what their abductors and adductors do, which is important when the exercise plan tells you to use that machine. There is an easy way to remember. Abductors (muscles on the outer thigh) move your legs outwards. Think of the prefix “ab-“ denoting going away (as in a “king abdicates his throne”). Adductors (inner thighs) bring your legs together like you were “adding” them together.
6. Muscle belly. Doing too much or too heavy of abdominal work can make your abs protrude. It’s a muscle, and that’s what happens when you train your core really hard. Yes, your abs, too. Take a look at any Olympic weightlifter if you need proof. Please don’t make me get into a discussion of how it is impossible to lose fat in one area of your body by exercising that area a lot.Take a look at any typist with pudgy hands for proof of that.
7. Pause, then eat. Don’t chow down everything in sight after a workout. It is natural for you to be famished afterwards, and, thus, overeat. Wait 15-20 minutes after your workout to have a light snack. This should be rich in protein if you lifted weights or rich in carbohydrates if you did endurance/cardio work.
8. Let go. When you are using a cardio machine, you should be able to raise your arms over your head and maintain the same pace for 30 seconds. If you can’t, you are leaning or holding onto the machine to maintain your speed. That means the machine is doing the work—not you.
9. Keep those shoulders down. When doing bicep curls, push your tongue against your bottom teeth. This inhibits your ability to hunch your shoulders and hurt your neck.
10. Train what you can’t see in a mirror. People tend to work on the front of their body---chest, biceps, quads. However, if you don’t pay attention what you can’t see, you can end up with imbalances that can lead to injury. For every exercise you do in the front (e.g., bench press), make sure you do one in the back (e.g., lat pulldowns).
11. Calf work. Basic anatomy lesson: if you are doing standing calf raises, you are using your gastrocnemius (the one you can see). If you are doing seated calf raises, you are working the soleus (underneath the gastrocnemius). Where these muscles attach to different spots on the leg makes them almost impossible to work at the same time on a machine. That is why you need to do both.

Liquid evil

OK, that’s a little extreme. However, I think most people underestimate how many calories are in the liquids we consume. Everybody knows that eating Oreo cookies non-stop is not the key to getting a Victoria’s Secret modeling gig.

How bad can it be? Consider this: a 20 ounce bottle of SoBe Green Tea has the sugar equivalent of FOUR pieces of Sara Lee cherry pie. Yes, four.

Check out this link to the 20 worst drinks for your fitness plan. You may want to sit down first. Actually, you might want to start exercising first.

In case you were wondering, you will need to run on a treadmill for 20-30 minutes to burn off that one bottle. Keep that in mind the next time you need something to quench your thirst.

10 things you could be doing better at the gym

Ask anyone REALLY successful, and they will agree that it is the little things that make the difference between good and great results. I could throw about 17 sports analogies at you (batting averages, fight for that extra yard, etc.), but I think most people will agree with the concept without me recreating the locker room scene from Hoosiers.

Over the past 25 years, I have gathered a bunch of nuggets of information from trainers and fellow exercisers that I thought I would pass along to you. Most of them just require you to visualize the exercise better or make tiny adjustments to your form. However, you will notice a huge difference almost immediately.

Before I share them, I wanted you to become comfortable with a basic concept that should be of great help to you in the future. It helps explain what exercises work for each body part, where injuries occur and what muscle groups work together. It is what you can learn from the old favorite: an anatomical chart.

Pull up any good chart and look closely. See all those striations in the muscles? Those are the fibers, and they are not drawn in a random fashion. They show the DIRECTION that the muscle pulls when it is contracted. For example, look at the chest (pectoralis major). The fibers run horizontally from your sternum to the insertion point, a third of the way down the humerus (upper arm). So, when you contract this muscle, the lines will get shorter. That means the arm will be pulled towards the center of the chest. That’s exactly what you do during a bench press, chest fly or similar exercise.

So, if you are wondering, “How do I work my chest?”, you should think to yourself, “I need an exercise that pulls my arm horizontally across my body toward my sternum.” You can apply this principle to any muscle and figure out what exercise will work for you.

Now that you know this basic principle, here are some tips and tricks you might find useful:

1. Shoulder press: imagine trying to pull your elbows towards your ears instead of pushing your hands up.
2. Lat pulldowns/rows: squeeze your shoulder blades together at the end of the movement like you were trying to pinch a quarter between them.
3. Squats/lunges: pull your butt in back in line with your head and neck as you stand back up instead of just using your legs
4. Bench press/flyes: think about bringing your elbows together instead of your hands.
5. Tricep extension: move your arm in a semi-circular arc for 180 degrees, not go straight up and down.
6. Cycling: when you press down your foot, think about keeping your foot in a position like you are trying to scrape gum off the bottom of your shoe.
7. Lateral raises (shoulders): hold the dumbbells like they were two pitchers that you are trying to pour at the top (when your upper arms are parallel to the floor).
8. Ab exercises: don’t bend at the waist; bend a couple of inches below the xiphiod process (where you put your fingers when you do practice CPR).
9. Inner/outer thigh machine: pull/push your feet towards/away from you (respectively) instead of your knees.
10. All exercises: the more you are leaning/sitting/lying on something, the less work you are doing. The seat/bench/handrails are doing part of the work for you. Keep that in mind when selecting your exercise and how you use the machine.

This is a constant learning process (I just heard #6 for the first time last week). Let me know if you have more tips to share!

Interval training as a time machine

Twice the results in half the time? Where do I sign up?

That’s what Jan Helgerud, an exercise expert at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, says is possible with interval training: alternating high intensity and low intensity bouts of exercise effort in one continuous session. For people with time constraints, it is the perfect solution. And, who doesn’t have time constraints?

Read the article, and then try these two ways of doing it to get started. No matter what exercise you do, all you do is alternate hard work with easy work---and move fast.

Interval cardiovascular workout

This is is basic as it gets. 30 seconds high, 30 seconds low, 10 minutes.

1. Hop on an upright bike (or outdoor variety if you have a course that allows for speed and no interruption).
2. Warm up at a moderately easy pace for 2 minutes.
3. Starting at the 2:00 mark, and at the top of every minute, crank up the resistance until you have to stand up in the pedals and the revolutions per minute (RPM) count decreases at least 25% (e.g., from 90 pedal RPM to 65-70). Go for 30 seconds with very high intensity.
4. After 30 seconds, crank the resistance all the way back down and recover.
5. Repeat until you hit 10:00.

Interval resistance workout

A little more complicated, but it follows some other principles I have talked about in the past. You will be using antagonistic exercise pairings. That is a fancy way of saying using opposite muscle groups in two exercises back to back without rest. This one will deal with chest and back.

1. Conduct your normal warm up routine.
2. Use a moderately heavy weight that you could lift 10 times with good form.
3. Perform a dumbbell bench press and do 6 reps.
4. Immediately perform 6 reps on a lat pulldown machine (pull ups are better if you can do them).
5. Rest 30-45 seconds.
6. Repeat for 6 sets.

After both of these, you will be surprised at how wiped out you feel in just 10 minutes. Hmmm, guess it must be working.

Restaurant food is sneaky. Don’t trust it.

Well, a perfect example of why you never, EVER take uneducated guesses about calories in food that you did not buy and prepare yourself. I just ate two lunches by accident.

I stopped by Panera Bread today and chose the Pick 2: half of a Greek salad and a cup of French Onion Soup. I missed breakfast that day, so I splurged and got the side of French bread. If you go to their nutritional calculator, you will see this comes out to 500 calories (about 180 of that was the bread).

Three hours later, I was in a Caribou Coffee and decided to get a little snack during a long conference call. They have a new promotion for oatmeal. I chose a small cup of the 7-grain, berry flavor. Sounds healthy and light, right?

470 calories. Ouch. That’s an extra small meal.

Moral of the story: words like “7-grain” and “oatmeal” may bring visions of health to your eyes, but do the math before chowing down.

The nutrition cheat sheet

It takes years and years of schooling to become a registered dietician. I am not one—not even close. However, there are some basic tips and tricks I can share with you that I have picked up over the years that you can use to make sure the food you are ingesting is healthier, leads to greater physical performance and helps maintain an appropriate body weight for your frame.

1. Stick to the walls in the grocery store. Think about what lines the walls of a typical supermarket: fruits, vegetables, milk, seafood, fresh cuts of meat and bread (whole wheat, please). The nasty, processed stuff all tends to be in the middle aisles of the store. Fill your cart with items from the perimeter, and you will have a healthier fridge and cupboard.
2. Look for “radioactive” elements on the label. If you pick up a food that has the words “high fructose corn syrup” on it, throw it out. It is loaded with calories and provides almost no nutritional value. In other words, it is a incredibly effective way of getting fat quickly. You don’t want it.
3. Eat things that spoil quickly. This means that it is natural and free of most preservatives. Yes, you will have to shop more often and monitor the sell by dates. However, fresh food equals good food.
4. Shop for things grown by a _____ farmer. You have heard of a potato, poultry and dairy farmer. You have never, ever heard of a Twinkie farmer because there is no such thing. Shop for foods that are picked off a tree, out of the ground or raised on a farm.
5. Eat foods without multiple “layers”. People add too much to basic food, and they ruin its nutritional value in the process. For example, eating potatoes (single layer) is fine. Eating one with butter, cheese, bacon bits and sour cream on it (5 layers) is not. Try to eat food as close to its natural state as possible. Lemon juice, salt, pepper and other spices do not count as extra layers, but they do add flavor.
6. Measure your portions instead of guessing. How many calories does a 1/2 cup of cooked rice provide? 50? 100? Try 200. When is the last time you consider a half-cup of rice as a serving? Most of us severely underestimate how many calories we are eating due to improper portion control. Get a scale or measuring cup and do your homework.
7. Learn about the law of thermodynamics. Instead of turning to an organic chemistry textbook, just remember that for the most part, weight gain/loss/maintenance is controlled simply by the ratio of calories in versus calories burned. Don’t over think it. Smarter people than us have been researching this for 200 years. Some foods are better and more efficient than others (think of the analogy of premium versus regular gasoline), but don’t let being worried about the details mask the adherence to this basic concept. You eat more calories than you burn whether they are from carbs, proteins or fats, you will gain weight. The opposite also is true.
8. Pretty, flashy packages are hiding something. Ever see a flashy label on a bag of potatoes? How about a box of Cheez-Its? My point exactly.

Think obesity is not an epidemic?

Take a look at this map and let it load for a few seconds.

http://wwwimage.cbsnews.com/images/2010/01/07/image6069005.gif

We will ALL be paying for this one day, especially if there are major changes to the way health care is provided in the United States. Do your part:

1. Take pride in becoming a healthier, more fit person in 2010.
2. Insist your kids exercise and participate in sports. Limit computer and video game time.
3. Make your kids go outside and play. Despite what you hear on the news, there is NOT some rampant kidnapping problem in America.
4. Insist that your company provide wellness benefits as well as incentives to be healthy. Look at other benefits that are NOT used by the majority of employees as potential sources of funding.
5. Ask your company to stop providing free soft drinks (non-diet), candy, Monday morning bagels and other things that lead to day long grazing and weight gain.
6. Stop making excuses.

We all get older, busier, more stressed and burdened taking care of others. Don’t let time push you around. Push back.

Military fitness: is it for you?

I know, I know. Darryl has gone completely off the deep end this year with all of his workout recommendations. Deadlifts, maximum strength testing and now MILITARY style workouts? Isn’t this all a bit much?

Not at all.

The military is very black and white in its approach to the world. It has to be since there are only two types of soldiers, sailors and marines: live ones and dead ones. That may be a harsh statement, but it reflects the harsh reality of serving in our Armed Forces. Thus, they have an incentive to find methods and techniques that actually work instead of being just the hot “new thing” in the industry.

Also, think about the typical person who joins the military. They typically are in their early twenties, but one of the fastest rising demographic groups is the over 35 crowd. They also are not typically Olympic athletes who just have nothing else to do. They are our sons, daughters, friends, neighbors and co-workers. In other words, they are average Americans, just like you and me.

So, the military has spent decades on creating and testing physical fitness routines that give tangible results, use minimal equipment and can be easily understood by the average Joe.

Sounds like they know what they are talking about, and they have designed it just for you. Since you are paying for it with your tax dollars, you might as well take a look.

http://www.military.com/military-fitness/

GREAT-grandfather knew best

In the last 48 hours, I have seen advertisements on TV for dozens of fitness systems and machines that all claim to have discovered the “secret” to a fitter, trimmer you. I also realized I stay up too late watching bad cable TV.

I stumbled upon a text (now available online) that was printed in 1904. Yes, when Teddy Roosevelt was President of the United States. Take a moment to read some of the topics.

You will find that a number of these “new discoveries” are just time tested common sense in a nice, shiny package.

How strong ARE you?

This is always a relative term. You may be stronger than your friends or stronger than you used to be. However, how do you compare to the population at large? How about elite athletes?

Maybe you are not looking to set records, but it is nice to have a ring to strive for.

Take a look at some standards for common lifts you perform at the gym.

Remember, performing these lifts is not just about strength,. Core strength, balance, flexibility, central nervous system activation and practice all have influence on how you do.

The moral of the story is that if you feel you want to move up, set a goal and work for it!

Pull ups for those of us without beards

My friend, Gretchen, commented yesterday that she loved the deadlifting idea, but chin ups were a bit more challenging. This is the case for many women since they tend to carry the majority of their weight below their hips. Even strong women have trouble since their muscular development of their lats does not overcome this drag.

I did find an excellent article that helps women develop their pull up prowess. Give it a try and let me know how it works for you.

As for the deadlift, women should use no more than TWO THIRDS of their body weight. Sorry for the confusion.

Happy 2010! Start here

I know you are desperate for a new fitness approach to the New Year. Try this routine from Chad Waterbury for your very first workout:

Deadlift for 50 reps w/load equal to your body weight
Push-ups for 100 reps
Chin-ups for 50 reps

Break it up into as many sets as you need to get it done (e.g., 10 deadlifts, 20 pushups, 5 chin-ups, repeat). But, don’t stop except for a brief 10-20 seconds between each set!

By the way, there are some people that claim the deadlift is not relevant except for Olympic powerlifters. Really? Go take a look at what it is and then I will rattle off about 37 day to day activities it mimics (picking up heavy boxes, picking up a child, moving furniture, etc.). It is actually one of the few resistance exercise that has real life applications. When was the last time you did something resembling a pec-dec chest movement outside of a gym?

Go here if you need some deadlift pointers.