The Year of The Monster Is Coming

There are numerous articles and write ups about how to get better legs, chest, arms, and a killer six pack. Just about everybody part has about one hundred articles on the best way to build them… One body part that is often missing from the list however, is the glutes. Sure there are hundreds of “Do this to get better glutes!” articles but I want to get into breaking down the glutes and their importance. So what is so important about the glutes anyway? Well right off the bat, a shapely pair of glutes sure is fun to look at!

Seriously though, the glutes are not only one of the strongest muscles in your body but the center of a lot of lower body power. Glute training is important for five main reasons:

• Strengthening your Posterior Chain
• Building Strength and Power
• Injury Prevention
• Physical Improvements
• A great pair of glutes is fun to look at!!!

Glutes for power- Power lifters are some of the strongest people on the planet. Do you know what they all have in common? Power lifters are known for incredibly strong hamstrings and glutes. Do you want to up your squat and dead lift numbers fast? A sure fire way to do this is to build up the strength in your glutes. Most Power lifters live on an exercise called the box squat. This exercise develops super powerful upper, middle, and lower glute strength along with hamstring power. They will do box squatting from a variety of heights. The lower the box, the more glutes get incorporated.

Box Squats
For you ladies out there box squatting in not just for a bunch of bury men that want to be ultra powerful. Box squatting is a great way for you ladies to lean to activate your hips and glutes better, not to mention shape and firm your hamstrings and “booty”. The main difference for you will be changing the amount of weight you use and your rep scheme.

Female Box Squats
 

Deadlifts work almost all the major muscles in your body. One muscle people tend to overlook when deadlifting however is the glutes. People tend to think that deadlifting gives you strong glutes but the theory is kind of backwards in actuality strong glutes will give you a bigger deadlift. Most power lifters do a lot less deadlifting in comparison to working their glutes and hamstrings to build up strength. When your glute and hamstring strength go up, your deadlift will go up weather you deadlift often or not. Stronger glutes can contract better and bring the hip forward when deadlifting. This takes pressure off of your lower back.

Andy Bolton 1000 lb. Deadlift
(notice the hips are forward at the end of the deadlift due to strong glute contraction)

This month is the 25^th anniversary of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

This year Pink Ribbon Day is Monday, 26th October. Pink Ribbon Day is a chance to help raise money and awareness for women affected by breast cancer. 

What is Breast cancer?

Breast cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the breast. It is considered a heterogeneous disease—differing by individual, age group, and even the kinds of cells within the tumors themselves. Obviously no woman wants to receive this diagnosis, but hearing the words “breast cancer” doesn’t always mean an end. It can be the beginning of learning how to fight, getting the facts, and finding hope.

Women in the United States get breast cancer more than any other type of cancer except for skin cancer. It is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in women.

Each year it is estimated that nearly 200,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 40,000 will die. Approximately 1,700 men will also be diagnosed with breast cancer and 450 will die each year. That’s right fellas, it can happen to men to. The evaluation of men with breast masses is similar to that in women, including mammography.

Risk factors for breast cancer include:

• Age: Half of all women diagnosed are over age 65.
• Weight: Being obese or overweight.
• Diet & Lifestyle: Lack of physical activity, a diet high in saturated fat, and alcoholic intake of more than two drinks per day.
• Menstrual & Reproductive History: Early menstruation or late menopause, having your first child at an older age or not having given birth, or taking birth control pills for more than ten years if you are under 35. 
• Family & Personal History: A family history of breast cancer—particularly a mother, sister. or a personal history of breast cancer of benign (non-cancer) breast disease.
• Medical & Other Factors: Dense breast tissue (often identified by a mammogram), past radiation therapy to the breast or chest area. A history of hormone treatments—such as estrogen and progesterone, or gene changes— including BRCA1, BRCA2, and others.

Common signs & symptoms of breast cancer include:

• A change in how the breast or nipple feels
  You may experience nipple tenderness or notice a lump or thickening in or near the breast or in the underarm area.
• A change in how the breast or nipple looks
  This could mean a change in the size or shape of the breast or a nipple that is turned slightly inward. In addition, the skin of the breast, areola or nipple may appear scaly, red or swollen or may have ridges or pitting that resembles the skin of an orange.
• Nipple discharge

Don’t leave it till next week, next month, never, pink ribbon day is for all women so let’s start by helping. Learn more about Breast Cancer at The National Breast Cancer Foundation

Over at Taylored Nutrition we are going pink for the month of October!!! Our website will be pink for the month of October to show support for Breast cancer Awareness. We are also donating part of our proceeds from our Taylored Nutrition Breast Cancer Awareness T-Shirts to the National Breast Cancer Foundation.