brent99’s BodyBlog

Oh no, it happened again.  One of my favorite protein supplements has showed up "New & Improved".  I should be excited right?  Ha!!  "New & Improved" is code for "cheaper to make and suckier to take".  I’m sure most people are like me: they’ve gone through TONS of protein products to find one that they like.  And what do they do when you find it?  They "new & improve it".

The latest offender is the Labrada Carb Watchers Lean Body line.  First, they destroyed "Lean Body for Her", which my spouse takes and I’d take sometimes for the lower calories.  And now, they’ve assaulted the regular MRP.  Years ago, when I first started getting into working out, we were doing EAS products, back when Bill was in charge.  I LOVED their MRP.  And then…they new and improve it.

I probably spend hundreds of dollars on MRPs and protein shakes.  My business is no laughing matter to any sports supplement CEO.  So you better be wary that you stand to lose TONS of business when you "new & improve" your products.  And I hope you cast a wary eye at that label too!

Just remember…

"Cheaper to Make, Suckier to Take"

Been a long time since I said much in the blogosphere here.  Ok, so here’s a little recent history…

I put my body to the test following some ankle surgery, apparently determined to see how much laziness and beer guzzling my physique could stand.  Certainly, I was not immune to the effects, slipping as high as 15% bodyfat (a lot for me).  Sounds petty, but imagine getting more than 1/3rd more in bad shape!  And my lean muscle tanked to levels I typically see on severe calorie reduction diets.  Not good.

So the ~3 month road back has been fairly long & steady.  First, my muscle surged and I’m now at about the peak I usually hit historically.  At that point, the muscle seems to level off and I start losing fat rapidly, which pretty much covers the past 6 weeks.  I know it doesn’t always show in the pics, which often look the same to me and it might seem like I was more in shape 3 months ago than today…but the numbers don’t lie.

In June, I’ve been hitting it EVEN HARDER and really taking care of my body, getting in some minor cardio…and it’ll be interesting to see where I can go next.  I’ve been pushing the abs, which I haven’t trained directly in quite some time (just losing bodyfat helps).   Going full out doesn’t mean too much change for me in the gym, but more in diet, sleep, and really hitting the protein frequently and reliably.  I can’t say I’ve seen any increases in strength, so I expect the work continues to show up with reduced bodyfat and superior muscletone.

Some people laugh at my "overenthusiastic" efforts in the gym.  You know, I sit on my ass with the best of them 23 out of 24 hours in the day, doesn’t it just make sense to let my body stretch out regularly?  To me it does.  I take that kind of criticism in stride.  I’m lucky to be able to do what I can do, and I think the best way to exercise that appreciation for your good general health is by USING it!  

The other reason I can take it all in stride is this simple fact:  the difference between going "all out" and just hitting the gym casually is very very very small.  Its more mental than physical, really.  And the difference in results (basically getting "none" to getting "some") is fairly large.  If you are gonna do it, DO IT right???  Granted some of that *is* my personality — I tend to really commit when I do things, but its pretty logical I think too.