“It’s digging time again
You’re nurturing the weakest trend”
– Pantera, The Great Southern Trendkill
Indisputably one of the greatest heavy metal bands of all time, Pantera weathered the storm through dozens of music trends. Glam rock, grunge and hip hop couldn’t sway the Texas titans from recording some of history’s most influential metal albums. Even their breakup in 2003 and guitarist Dimebag Darrell’s tragic death in 2004 couldn’t tarnish the band’s impact on the rock and roll record books.
Fitness is a lot like music. Trends come and go and people embrace them whether they’re good or bad. Hindsight is 20/20, and no matter how you try to justify buying that Gotye record, you have to look back, admit your mistakes and learn from them.
Here are eight fitness trends that I’ve watched come and go (many of which I’ve dabbled in against my better judgment):
1. INTERMITTENT FASTING
I’m a bit ashamed that for two long years, I thought I could get as strong as humanly possible by NOT eating for 14 hours each day.
Yes, I hopped on the intermittent fasting bandwagon. It seemed like everyone was skipping breakfast, eating gargantuan dinners and bragging to everyone who’d listen about how they were losing fat while eating ANYTHING they wanted.
For the record, for the better part of two years, I kept my bodyweight the same, slowly lost fat and gradually got stronger. But eventually the inevitable happened and I struggled mightily to keep getting stronger without gaining weight. Mass moves mass, so the notion of eating so infrequently no longer made sense as a strength athlete.
Turns out fasting works because it makes it brutally hard to be in a caloric surplus, which is ultimately what makes you gain weight. Calories in vs. calories out is still the almighty rule when it comes to weight management, so it’s no surprise that limiting yourself to one or two meals a day helps you lose weight.
What’s the take-home lesson? Timing matters way less than total calories consumed.
2. HIGH-FAT DIETS
Speaking of food, two years ago you could also find me crushing avocados by the dozen, freebasing grass-fed beef and, most embarrassingly, putting butter in my coffee.
I literally blushed as I wrote that. What a scam. Almost as egregious as the low-fat craze of the 80’s, the ultra-high fat trend of recent years sent thousands of fitness fanatics swapping their carbs for the fatty goodness of meats, cheeses, nuts and other calorically-dense treats.
Once again, the tried-and-true rule of caloric balance was forgotten. We thought that by omitting evil carbs, we were free to crush bacon and eggs all day every day without worry of gaining fat.
But when you remember that a single tablespoon of olive oil has 200 calories, you realize that it’s way too easy to overshoot your calories when eating a high-fat diet. And, wouldn’t you know it, fat just doesn’t fuel high-performance activities as efficiently as carbs.
Combine too many calories with suboptimal fuel for exercise and suddenly your pre-workout pork rinds don’t sound so good.
Balance wins again. The right ratio of protein, fat and carbs will almost always win over an extreme approach.
3. BODYWEIGHT-ONLY TRAINING
Maybe it’s too easy for me to knock bodyweight training because my sport revolves around a barbell, but I’ve seen too many clients and friends fail to reach their strength and physique goals by using a bodyweight-only training program.
Yes, you can build an impressive physique with bodyweight training.
Yes, you can get pretty strong with bodyweight training.
But will you ever be the biggest, strongest person in your gym with bodyweight training? Hell no.
Progressive overload is essential to make muscles grow bigger and stronger in the long run. Bodyweight-only training puts a finite ceiling on the amount of resistance you can use. You can keep throwing plates on the bar, but you can only add so much resistance with advanced bodyweight variations. Your potential for growth is limited from the get-go.
What about gymnasts, you ask? They’re pretty jacked. Unless you’re prepared to dedicate 20-plus years to a sport and master the most difficult physical feats imaginable, good luck getting big and strong with bodyweight-only training.
So do your dips, chin-ups and pistol squats. But don’t deny yourself the gains the barbell has to offer.
4. ICING FOR RECOVERY
I’ve written about the myths of icing before. The physiology just doesn’t add up. Freezing something to speed up recovery? The research is pretty clear cut that it does the opposite and slows down the body’s natural healing process.
But don’t just take my word for it. Some of the top names in fitness and sports medicine are decrying the use of ice. From CrossFit kingpin Kelly Starrett, to legendary MMA strength coach JC Santana, to the godfather of modern sports medicine Dr. Gabe Mirkin, we’re seeing a much-needed shift away from ice as a viable recovery modality.
Turns out recovery requires movement. The body removes cellular waste and swelling via the lymphatic system, a roadway of vessels that only pump fluid when muscles contract. Icing not only slows down the movement of lymph fluid, but increases swelling by causing a backflow of fluid to the injury site. Not good.
The only possible benefit of icing is temporary pain relief, which research extraordinaire Bret Contreras explains might all be in your head.
What’s the best alternative? Move around as best you can. Muscle contraction, no matter how subtle, will facilitate recovery far better than stillness or icing ever could.
#TRENDING
Did you fall victim to any of these fitness trends? If not, I’ll be back with four more next time. Stay tuned.