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That’s a very unscientific approach - with your feelings - and I doubt it will appeal to many on this forum. Most of us are nerds, after all.

I’ve personally lost 16kg over the last 16 weeks to get into amazing shape, and I can tell you that I did it by learning to count calories - in and out - while also taking into account minimum macro requirements. It’s a lot simpler than it sounds, but here are some good overviews for anyone who may be interested:

https://forum.bodybuilding.com...

https://forum.bodybuilding.com...

That’s a very unscientific approach - with your feelings - and I doubt it will appeal to many on this forum. Most of us are nerds, after all.

I’ve personally lost 16kg over the last 16 weeks to get into amazing shape, and I can tell you that I did it by learning to count calories - in and out - while also taking into account minimum macro requirements. It’s a lot simpler than it sounds, but here are some good overviews for anyone who may be interested:

https://forum.bodybuilding.com...

https://forum.bodybuilding.com...

Oh cut the bullshit, eating soybeans does not make anyone "weak and effeminate." The number of ridiculous logical leaps in your argument renders it completely unscientific. Just because soybeans have some estrogen-like compounds in them does not mean they have enough to produce any real effect. But more importantly, you are flat out wrong about the effects of estrogen, which is produced in men's bodies as well as women's. Just read any recent bodybuilding publication to see them crowing about how much estrogen can do just the opposite, and help men build muscle mass.
https://www.ironmanmagazine.co...
https://www.bodybuilding.com/f...

Is there anybody else calling curl "the curl"? I am honestly curious.

If you're being serious...

https://www.bodybuilding.com/exercises/detail/view/name/concentration-curls

Otherwise, WOOSH!

Prohibit television broadcasts, too.

That's where the money is. The next step will be prohibiting memories and verbal descriptions of events. So be careful when you describe how the Zika-infected Bulgarian weightlifter crapped his drawers while executing the dead lift. You may be facing a lawsuit.

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/...

If you're not using one of these, your aim sucks anyways. http://www.bodybuilding.com/st... Harder you squeeze better your aim.

How fricking complicated is it to eat less than you burn?

Calories and Macros

Basic Terminology
1/ BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate): The amount of calories you need to consume to maintain if you were comatose (base level).
2/ NEAT (Non-Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie of daily activity that is NOT exercise (eg: washing, walking, talking, shopping, working). ie: INCIDENTAL EXERCISE! It is something that everyone has a good amount of control over.
3/ EAT (Exercise Associated Thermogenesis): The calorie requirements associated with planned exercise. Unless someone is doing a whole heap of exercise (eg: two or more hrs training a day) it usually doesn't add a stack of calories to your requirements (30 minutes of 'elliptical training' isn't going to burn 6000 cals)
4/ TEF (Thermic effect of feeding): The calorie expenditure associated with eating. This is NOT dependent on MEAL FREQUENCY. It is a % of TOTAL CALORIES CONSUMED (and 15% of 3 x 600 cal meals is the same as 15% of 6 x 300 cal meals). It varies according to MACRONUTRIENT and FIBER content. For most mixed diets, it is something around 15%. Protein is higher (up to 25%), carbs are variable (between 5-25%), and fats are low (usually less than 5%). So more protein, more carbs, and more fiber = HIGHER TEF. More FAT = LOWER TEF.
5/ TEE (Total Energy Expenditure): The total calories you require. It = sum of the above (BMR + NEAT + EAT + TEF).
To make things simple, NEAT + EAT + TEF is often just calculated through a daily ACTIVITY FACTOR.

How much do I Need?
A multitude of things impact MAINTENANCE calorie needs.
- Age & sex (males generally need > females)
- Total weight & lean mass (more lean mass = more needed)
- Physiological status (eg: sick or injured, pregnant, growth')
- Hormones
- Exercise level (more activity = more needed)
- Daily activity level (more activity = more needed)
- Diet (that is - macronutrient intake)

In order to calculate your requirements the most accurate measure is Calorimetry [the measure of 'chemical reactions' in your body & the heat produced by these reactions], either directly (via a calorimeter where the heat you produce is measured) or indirectly (eg: HOOD studies where they monitor how much oxygen you use/ carbon dioxide and nitrogen you excrete over a given time). But these are completely impractical for most people & we rely on pre-set formula to calculate our needs.

Estimating Requirements
The simplest method uses a standard 'calories per unit weight (usually kgs)'. They calculate a TOTAL CAL REQUIREMENT (TEE). That means you DO NOT need to x by an ACTIVITY FACTOR. They are:
- 26 to 30 kcals/kg/day for normal, healthy individuals with sedentary lifestyles doing little physical activity [12.0-14 kcal/pound]
- 31 to 37 kcal/kg/day for those involved in light to moderate activity 3-5 x a week with moderately active lifestyles [14-16 kcal/ pound]
- 38 to 40 kcals/kg/day for those involved in vigorous activity and highly active jobs [16-18 kcal/ pound].
For those involved in HEAVY training (eg: athletes) - the demand is greater:
- 41 to 50 kcals/kg/day for those involved in moderate to heavy training (for example: 15-20 hrs/ week training) [18.5-22 kcal/ pound]
- 50 or above kcals/kg/day for those involved in heavy to extreme training [> 22 kcal/ pound]

THEN - There are also other formula which calculate BMR. For these you then ADD AN ACTIVITY FACTOR TO REACH TEE. These are:
1/ Harris-Benedict formula: Very inaccurate & derived from studies on LEAN, YOUNG, ACTIVE males in 1919. Notorious for OVERESTIMATING requirements, especially in the overweight. DON'T USE IT!
MEN: BMR = 66 + [13.7 x weight (kg)] + [5 x height (cm)] - [6.76 x age (years)]
WOMEN: BMR = 655 + [9.6 x weight (kg)] + [1.8 x height (cm)] - [4.7 x age (years)]

2/Mifflin-St Jeor: Developed in the 1990s and more realistic in todays settings. Still doesn't cons

There are tables and online calculators where you enter your weight, and regarding your activity you have to guess.

The amount of calories has nothing (cough, not much) to do with age, only body weight aka metabolic rate at rest is relevant and that is more or less age independent.

The average American male eats 2800-3500 kcal a day (depending on where you get your figures from)
YES: he eats _that_ much. And that is the reason why the average male american is: fat!

E.g. here is a link (no idea how accurate the calculator is): http://www.shapesense.com/fitn...

For me the "metabolic rate at rest" is claimed to be 1700kcal, a different calculator gave me a few weeks ago 1540kcal. Does not really matter. Certainly my job is rarely so hard that I need 1000kcal extra. Well, not sure. To lazy to figure what 8h brain work, 30 minutes bicycle and 90 minutes Aikido cost ;D I don't practice Aikido every day and when I do I usually combine the cycling with my work, so it does rarely exceed 30mins.

The problem with nutrition is simple:
o the amount of kcal in food is grossly underestimated
o the amount of kcal you need per day is grossly overestimated
o the amount of kcal you burn due to sports or other activities is even more overestimated
o literature constantly mixes up "calories" with "kilo calories" ... we are talking about kcal!!

Even worth, every decade the claims how you burn most energy changes. E.g. I learned when I was young that swimming is the most burning activity, now I'm on a calculator site which claims 1h jogging would burn nearly twice as much as 1h swimming, which I find hard to believe.

Now I'm checking a different site, where Jogging and Swimming are more or less on par (which I still find hard to believe).

Anyway, an hour jogging should not burn you more than 300 kcal. Which is not even a bar of chocolate.

Interesting for the gym fanatics: weight lifting is one of the less power/kcal consuming "sports" :D (only 50% - 65% of jogging)

Ah, now I stumbled over this site, it looks quite interesting: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fu...

http://contest.bodybuilding.co...

Thought they were all of her, "Blond" hair, blue suit.

http://contest.bodybuilding.co...

^ what he said. Plus, I'd suggest finding a group to workout with because this will keep you motivated if you know someone's expecting you.

For quick workouts at work, I've written a script that will pick a bodyweight-only workout and a random number of reps. My deal is that if I want to browse /., I have to do one of these exercises first. You can select a number of workouts that work best for your situation from here.

I think the future of nuclear power has been considered to be small reactors that will not suffer from this problem since sometime in the late 1970s. Apart from a pebble bed prototype it hasn't arrived yet.

It's not here yet because the powers that be build the current, shitty reactors.

First off, you meant hypothesis, considering your "theory" lacks any supporting experimental data.

Second, it's been demonstrated that HFCS is processed through different metabolic pathways in the liver than sucrose and that our large acute doses of HFCS specifically overload these pathways and get preferentially converted to fat.

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/issa14.htm

There's many more reasons why HFCS metabolism differs from that of sucrose in damaging ways, but it's Christmas and I've got things to do. Stop spreading your contrarian bullshit and educate yourself.

You are wrong. A number of studies show that stretching when cold is not a good idea. As the article stated, stretching is good, AFTER, a light warm up like an easy jog for 5 to 10 minutes. Stretching when cold does not help prevent injury, and does not improve athletic performance. You should not do intense stretching before playing sports. If you need to improve flexibility do the stretching as a separate exercise on your work out days.

Stretch after warm up.
Stretch after your work-out, Athletes who stretch cold have more injuries.
Warm up, then stretch.
Stretching doesn't help beginners, too much bad for elite. (lots of pointers to articles/studies at end)
Fire Dept. says go easy on stretching, only after warm up.

I think that is enough for now. Only stretch after you warm up. Don't over do it.

In addition to biking excessively (To work, to the store to get milk ... to your friends parties). I have found that standard resistance training 15 to 20 well formed push ups and 25 to 30 sit-ups worked well for me. Generally speaking hitting your target heart rate for 1/2 hour every day will see you lose weight in conjunction with a low fat, no sugar, no high cholesterol, no monounsaturated fat, little red meat, lots of white meat and the key being eating less more frequently. (5 to 6 small meals per day evenly spaced and calculated to meet all vitamin and essential amino acid requirements or RDA's)
I once weighed 230Lbs, I'm 6'1" however due to previous weight training and a natural muscular build i could not use a BMI as an indicator. Instead my personal trainer mentioned I should use how my clothes fit and how well defined my musculature was.
Instead I used how my clothes fit, I used to buy 38" pants and they were tight. Now 36" is loose, it's been that way forever. (4+ Years)
Now it's 36" loose, my weight fluctuates with the seasons (195 in the summer to 210 in the winter) however this is due to my regimens, weight training in the winter and more cardio in the summer. My weight also fluctuates with the time of day, water intake and alcohol consumption (best to be avoided as well since beer is empty calories).
You probably have a naturally fast metabolism that is slowing down due to age, this is perfectly normal, ideally you may use dietary supplements in conjunction with exercise and negative or low calorie snacks that aren't fried or cooked in oil.
Since you are not averted to energy drinks, try making your own to further enhance your workout regimen, I routinely mix nootropics, BCAA's, Glutamene, Lysine, and many others to off set the development of Lactic Acid in my muscles during and after training. Not only does my standing blood pressure remain very very low but it also allows me to burn more when I am working out at a higher rate.
I sit in front of a computer in excess of 8 hours a day, I spend 15 to 20 minutes inverted (I have gravity boots and resistance training equipment) and I must say that the few hundred dollars spent on the equipment I have has been worth it. A pull up bar is by far and away the best investment, they cost around $20, fit in a door frame and make you gain about an inch over your entire upper body with regular use, there's a reason marines and infantry use them.
Some links to get you started: http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/index.html (look at the exercises and schedules including how to not overtrain) http://hundredpushups.com/test.html (A good simple regimen to build your upper body strength) http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/templates/TC010219661033.aspx (a fitness chart for you to begin with)
Apart from studying your diet more carefully, try to develop a flexible schedule that meets your needs. The nice thing about resistance training is no equipment is needed and since you are averted to gym's circuit training is out of the question although it's the best way to loose weight and increase your metabolism. A good place to start is to check out the standard training regimen of the american infantry, it's been over 50 years in development and turns out 1000's of athlete grade men every year, when you need to carry an 80lb bag while running with an assault weapon and 20lb's of protective gear on you you need to be in good shape, not an option to be slow if you are getting shot at.
Things to think about: Push Up Bars, Chin Up bar (optionally with gravity boots), Resistance Bar, Pilates ball (push ups are a lot harder when you elevate your feet). All can be had for less than $500. Vs 6 months of insulin?

"I have always been thin but all the sitting in front of the PC is taking its toll now that I'm getting older. I have begun to get a little heavier around the waist. I don't eat a lot but the weight seems to stay on these days. Most of the time I don't have the luxury of just getting out of the house/office. And being an introvert, I'm not enamored of the idea of exercising in full view of *shudder* people. I regularly do press-ups (60 per night) and sit-ups (30 per night) and some fetching and carrying, but that is all and these days it isn't enough. I need a solid and effective routine that will tone all my muscle groups efficiently. Do any Slashdotters have a regular workout routine that can be performed in the privacy of the home to stave off those pounds?"

If you insist on not joining a gym, or can't afford to build your own home gym (most people can't), there is still a way to do what you want.

Google: "Death by bodyweight"

This is a great starting place: Death by bodyweight

You may find that you'll start to really enjoy working out...in which case I'd highly recommend joining a gym. I've been doing a MWF split at my gym the past 18 months and it's really been fun. Learning what works, what doesn't, seeing progress etc.

Also, I'm as introverted as they come...I have paranoid schizophrenia. Going to the gym has been great for me because I can be in public (i.e. around people) but not be obligated to interact with them at all. I just put on my headphones and lift, no problem. It's fun, and it's healthy for me both mentally and physically to get out and exercise.

Btw, here's a great resource for beginner bodybuilders: Bodybuilding.com forums

Good Luck.

I second that. And also check out Rippetoe's program. It requires a bit of equipment (barbell + weights), but it's probably the best full body exercise you can do. I cycle to work every day and it's fun, relaxing, and makes you better than everyone else.

I usually workout at the gym next to work. Honestly if you do push-ups, situps in the morning and night then go running (or biking) every other day the pounds will drop. The diet is the most important though. In order to lose weight the recommend eating around 5 meals a day. Each meal around 500 calories which consists of 40 % carbs, 30 % protein, and 30% healthy fats. This is at every meal. If you don't eat enough your body may begin storing fat to use as energy later on. If you would like more information, I would check out http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/index.html If you have any questions about workouts or diets, the site above has it all. I hope this helps.

As dmadole said, the issue is bacterial vs. human cell size. Generally, people have about 1-2% of their body weight consisting of bacteria -- on the order of about a kilogram of them -- but the number of bacteria in there is about the same to maybe 5-10 times the number of cells in the person's body. Estimates for how many cells people have range from 3-50 trillion; estimates for how many bacteria the average person has are in the same general range, running up to 100 trillion. (Ew.)

Many bacteria aren't even floating around, but live their entire lives within cells: most of the mycobacterial diseases (leprosy, chlamydia, some types of pneumonia) have bacterial cell lives that are necessarily contained within the cells for their whole lives, with hundreds or thousands of bacteria in a single cell. The ultimate expression of this might be mitochondria, which look a lot like bacteria that have been retained in cells for over a billion years and are now necessary for cellular survival. Part of the reason that there's a difference between white and dark meat in birds is that the brown meat has so many mitochondria per cell they change the color.

I can provide some insight into this. The article is pretty outdated. This "superbaby" has been around for a couple of years and has gained attention in the bodybuilding communitiy. There is currently a market for myostatin inhibitors http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/myostat.html.

Most people know that these products are scams, but it shows that the news has been around.

Here. This is old news. There are even myostatin blockers sold as "dietary supplements".

or you could get it here http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/sf/caffeine.html in capsule form in smaller quantities for almost half the cost and spend the extra on ephedrine hcl http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/mp/vaso.html

Talk about getting twitchy.

or you could get it here http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/sf/caffeine.html in capsule form in smaller quantities for almost half the cost and spend the extra on ephedrine hcl http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/mp/vaso.html

Talk about getting twitchy.

I started doing this program six weeks ago and my back pain is gone for the first time in 20 years. I can't recommend it highly enough. I know the web page reads like pure home shopping network but it works.

The back bridge exercise is very effective, although a little intimidating at first. See here for a good explanation of all the core exercises with photos. No weights, no gyms, a few minutes a day. Charles Atlas would have been impressed.

Huh? Talk about bad information here. First off, dextromethorphan is not a stimulant. In fact it's a mild sedative at any dose (including doses within the medicinal range). Second, the dose ranges you provide are off. Oral lethal doses are estimated to be somewhere between 50-500mg/kg. I'm assuming you typoed saying that psychedelic/dissociative (it's not a hallucinogen) doses start at .5mg/kg and actually meant 5mg/kg.

3g for "one girl" is way beyond the amount needed for a trip. Lets say she's 60kg, that's 50mg/kg. A dose like that sounds more like a suicide attempt. The medicinal dose range is between 10 and 50mg so I can't see how a child could be given 50mg/kg under any circumstances, much less a sick child. The maximum dose for a psychedelic experience is about 1.5g and that's for a large, non-sensetive and tolerant person. Common doses are between 200 and 400mg. I don't know where you heard that DXM is a stimulant but please don't go about recommending that people use it for that purpose, much less suggesting that people go and extract it.


To the original topic, I'd say that none of the energy drinks available are worth the money, especially since most of them don't do much. Caffeine is limited to pretty low amounts in soft drinks and "energy" drinks don't have much more. Last I checked they averaged about 110mg per serving, about the same as a cup of coffee. The difference is that coffee contains alkaloids that counteract the effect of caffeine and thus it's not as effective. Guarana is no different that "regular" caffeine except that guarana contains fats that slow the absorption of caffeine giving the illusion of a stronger effect (caffeine has a pretty short half life).

Most of the so-called "reviews" of these drinks are bogus (as with many supplements, they are often paid for by the company) and their studies to back them up, while usually true (in that they exist), are not of real importance as they often take them out of context (for example, one energy supplement I saw contained tyramine. They referenced studies showing it's effect on andregenic receptors but failed to mention that tyramine is a mono-amine that is destroyed by your body by MAO when taken orally and thus has no effect). There are many useful supplements but you need to do plenty of research instead of just reading the marketspeak (I've seen them make up words before). The additional ingredients are worthless, vitamins are useful but none of them will give you any noticable energy (especially since people using these drinks are likely to take a multi every day anyway) and most of the other ingredients are either in too small an amount to be useful or don't do anything at all.


Now, depending on how much of a boost you want and for what purpose there are several things. First, there is caffeine (duh). I would recommend getting it in tablet form since it's insanely cheap compared to drinks (http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/sf/caffeine.htm l - that's the equivalent of 400 red bulls for 7 bucks). It's better to take a small amount every hour or so (depends on your sensetivity, start small) than to take a mega dose. I won't recommend any doses since this varies alot from person to person, it's best to work your way up and figure out your ideal dose.

Then there is ephedrine. It has a much, much longer duration (up to 24 hours) and is available online (http://www.bulknutrition.com/ is the cheapest I've found) at reasonable prices. 25mg is enough for most people but 50mg is fine as well (wait at least an hour before taking any more though). You can combine both caffeine and ephedrine fine and if you do so, I recommend taking a regular strength aspirin as well (it makes it easier on your heart - thinner blood is easier to pump. Try it with and without, you'll notice a difference). Also, keep in mind that you build a tolerance with consistant u

It's already used for bodybuilders...

I read something similar to this in Muscle and Fitness about a year ago, but the note there pertained to increased mental function in elderly men.

As a personal note, I've used creatine monohydrate powder off and on for about a year. I noticed somewhat increased lifting performance, but along with it a somewhat increased thirst. Be sure to drink *lots* of water if you take creatine. I didn't notice any difference between a creatine/glycogen stack (CELL-TECH) versus using a plain creatine monohydrate powder mixed in water, execpt the stacked product was much more expensive.

One thing to remember that merely taking a supplement (other than anabolic steriods) is not going to make you look like this guy. Athletic use of creatine delays the onset of muscle fatigue by enhancing the resynthesis of ATP from ADP and creatine phosphate. In other words, it allows you to do a little more work, a little faster than you could without it. It's a subtle, but measureable effect.