Does cortisol make you fat?

If you have watched infomercials late at night (and who hasn't??), you have seen the ads for cortisol suppressing supplements. The sales pitch is rather simple: you are stressed out, the body releases cortisol to counter the stress, cortisol stores water and fat (especially in the abdominal region). So, if you buy our Super Cort Blocker 2000, your belly will disappear.

Sounds great but doesn't work. First, what is cortisol? Cortisol is a glandular hormone, excreted in a fight or flight situation in order to ensure the nutrient flow into your blood stream. Cortisol is the primary glucocorticoid, meaning it increases the glucose levels in the blood stream.

It is not a bad thing per se, it is needed to ensure that the body functions properly (just like any other hormone in the system).

The levels of cortisol can be elevated due to strenuous dieting, training, travel, anger, alcohol consumption etc. And while cortisol facilitates the storage of adipose fat, it can only do that when provided with extra calories. People that are overworked and/or under slept tend to eat unconsciously and overdo it which then causes the weight gain.

It would go beyond the scope of this post to evaluate all cortisol suppressing supplements, lets just say that vitamin C and glutamine have shown some promise, but the effects are nothing to write home about.

If you are serious about loosing that belly fat , you'll need to de-stress your life, organize your sleep and clean up your diet.

No pill will do that for you!

Till next time

Maik

The iron guru

Today, I want to write about one of the forgotten pioneers of bodybuilding: Vince Gironda aka the Iron Guru. Vince, born  in the Bronx, later settled in California and was one of the first trainers to the stars. His clients were : Clint Eastwood, Cher, Larry Scott, Arnold Schwarzenegger and so on. But it wasn't so much his clientele that makes him remarkable , it was the way he pushed the sport in a new direction. He was one of the first to develop a low carb approach to dieting, looked into amino acids as supplements and dismissed the then common notion of bulking for the sake of getting bigger as nonsense since it only lead to fat gain. Vince was the first man to appear "ripped" at a contest and was placed lower for being too lean ...( those judges later founded Lehman Brothers)

He also created the 8x8 routine ( the "honest workout"), the drag curl and was a big proponent of squats as a hormonal optimizer.

Most interesting though was his attitude toward bodybuilding as such. He really cared about the sport, not his financial success. Without hesitation, he would dismiss paying clients if they did not follow his routine and rather work pro bono with a talented and dedicated lifter.

His teachings are all but forgotten, yet many current bodybuilding diets and routines are based on Vince's wisdom.

Thanks Vince!

I am off to an 8x8 shoulder workout

Maik

The Dominican experiment

Last week, I ventured to the beautiful beaches of the Dominican Republic for five days. Just water, sand and clean food. Hmmm clean food...that set off a light bulb. What if I ate above maintenance (without any supplements) and lifted 3 times while there? Could it be possible to pack on muscle in that short of a time frame?
So I started at 225lbs, kept my intake high in protein, carbs, and fats ca 5000 cal daily.
As for foods, I'd stick to the staples: chicken, steak, rice, beans, avocado, fruit.
During my stay, I could actually feel my body absorbing the nutrients and utilize them for growth, upon my return I weighed in at 229lbs with only slightly higher body fat.
So it seems to be possible to go on a "clean eating binge" and gain mostly muscle, however, it looks like that after 6-7 days that process is being reversed and one stores more fat.
Too bad....it was a lot of fun
Till next time
Maik
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