How To Actually Get Abs (10 Annoying Tips That Work!)
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Cori Lefkowitz, of “Strong At Any Age”, advises…
The method
It may not be fun, but here’s what she finds works:
- Be boring: stick to a simple, repetitive diet to track progress easily, and make hitting macros simpler.
- Cut back on protein bars: processed protein bars are calorie-dense but not filling (due to their small volume), so limit them, especially when trying to get lean.
- Stop daily fluctuations: she advises to be precise with macros and calories daily, not just weekly, to see consistent results.
- Focus on fiber: aim for 25–30g of fiber daily to improve gut health, reduce cravings, and maintain health while cutting fat.
- Get 30–40g of protein per meal: ensure each meal has enough protein to fuel muscle growth and support overall body function.
- Prioritize carbs around workouts: eat carbs before and after training to fuel performance, aid muscle repair, and maintain lean mass.
- Take diet breaks: incorporate 1–2 week maintenance phases to prevent metabolic adaptation, maintain muscle, and thus stay consistent in the long-term.
- Be careful with fat burners & preworkout: these can harm sleep, recovery, and long-term fat loss; opt for natural dietary energy sources instead.
- Don’t set-and-forget: regularly assess and adjust your diet and macros as your body and lifestyle change.
- “Suck it up, buttercup”: fat loss requires persistence, discipline, and pushing through tough moments when you feel like quitting.
For more on all of this, enjoy:
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Want to learn more?
You might also like:
Is A Visible Six-Pack Obtainable Regardless Of Genetic Predisposition?
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The Complete Anti-Inflammatory Diet for Beginners – by Dorothy Calimeris and Lulu Cook
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First, about the authors: notwithstanding the names, Calimeris is the cook, and Cook is the nutritionist (and an RDN at that).
As for the book: we get a good primer on the science of inflammation, what it is, why it happens, what things are known to cause/trigger it, and what things are known to fight it. They do also go outside of nutrition a bit for this, speaking briefly on other lifestyle factors too, but the main focus is of course nutrition.
As for the recipes: while distinctly plants-forward (as one might expect of an anti-inflammatory eating book), it’s not outright vegan or even vegetarian, indeed, in the category of main dishes, there are sections for:
- Vegetarian and vegan
- Fish and shellfish
- Poultry and meat
…as well as, before and after those, sections for breakfast and brunch and snacks and sweets. As well as a not-to-be-underestimated section, for sauces, condiments, and dressings. This is important, because those are quite often the most inflammatory parts of an otherwise healthy meal! So being able to make anti-inflammatory versions is a real boon.
The recipes are mostly not illustrated, but the steps are very clearly described and easy to follow.
Bottom line: if inflammation is currently on your to-tackle list, this book will be an excellent companion in the kitchen.
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High-Protein Plant-Based Diet for Beginners – by Maya Howard with Ariel Warren
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Seasoned vegans (well-seasoned vegans?) will know that getting enough protein from a plant-based diet is really not the challenge that many think it is, but for those just embarking on cutting out the meat, it’s not useful to say “it’s easy!”; it’s useful to show how.
That’s what this book does. And not just by saying “these foods” and leaving people to wonder if they need to eat a pound of tofu each day to get their protein in. Instead, recipes. Enough for a 4-week meal plan, and the idea is that after a month of eating that way, it won’t be nearly so mysterious.
The recipes are very easy to execute, while still having plenty of flavor (which is what happens when one uses a lot of flavorsome main ingredients and then seasons them well too). The ingredients are not obscure, and you should be able to find everything easily in any medium-sized supermarket.
As for the well-roundedness of the diet, we’ll mention that the “with Ariel Warren” in the by-line means that while the book was principally authored by Maya Howard (who is, at time of writing, a nutritionist-in-training), she had input throughout from Ariel Warren (a Registered Dietician Nutritionist) to ensure she didn’t go off-piste anyway and it gets the professional stamp of approval.
Bottom line: if you’d like to cook plant based while still prioritizing protein and you’re not sure how to make that exciting and fun instead of a chore, then this book will show you how to please your taste buds and improve your body composition at the same time.
Click here to check out High-Protein Plant-Based Diet for Beginners, and dig in!
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Apples vs Lemons – Which is Healthier?
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Our Verdict
When comparing apples to lemons, we picked the lemons.
Why?
It’s a straightforward one today! Apples are great, but…
In terms of macros, apples have more carbs while lemons have more fiber and protein; a win for lemons, we say.
In the category of vitamins, apples have more of vitamin A, while lemons have more of vitamins B1, B5, B6, B9, C, and choline. A clear win for lemons, even before we consider the amount by which they contain more vitamin C (10x more than apples have).
When it comes to minerals, apples have a tiny touch more manganese, while lemons have a lot more calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc.
In short, if an apple a day keeps the doctor a way, then lemons could well be your doctor’s retirement plan.
Of course, enjoy either or both though; diversity is good!
You may be thinking: “but I’m not going to eat lemons like I eat apples; this is an unfair comparison”
To that we say:
- you can if you want; nobody can stop you!
- apple slices and lemon slices can often go in similar things (drinks, desserts, etc)
Want to learn more?
You might like:
The Best Foods For Collagen Production ← another reason to enjoy lemons
Enjoy!
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The Two-Second Advantage – by Vivek Ranadive and Kevin Maney
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The titular “two-second advantage” can in some cases be literal (imagine you got a two-second head-start in a boxing match!), in other cases can refer to being just a little ahead of things in a way that can confer a great advantage, often cumulatively—as anyone who’s played Monopoly can certainly attest.
Vivek Ranadivé and Kevin Maney give us lots of examples from business, sports, politics, economics, and more, in a way that seeks to cultivate a habit of asking the right questions in order to anticipate the future and not just be ahead of the competition—some areas of life don’t have competition for most people, like health, for example—but to generally have things “in hand”.
When it comes to personal finances, health, personal projects, and the like, those tiny initial advantages that lead to incremental further improvements, can be the difference between continually (and frantically) playing catch-up, or making the jump past breaking even to going from strength to strength.
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10 Mistakes To Sabotage Your Ozempic Progress
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Ozempic has a good reputation for getting reliable results, but there are ways to mess it up:
It’s not just inject-and-go
We’ll not keep the 10 ways a secret; they are:
- Increasing the dose too quickly: avoid cranking doses up too high too quickly, to prevent severe nausea, appetite suppression, and muscle loss. It’s worth being aware that high doses without proper management can lead to metabolic health disasters.
- Pushing through side effects: severe nausea or vomiting means you probably have an unhelpfully high dose; consult your prescribing doctor—it’s easy to feel “more is better; I don’t want to have less!”, but there really is a sweet spot, and if you’re not in it, then adjustments are needed in order to find it.
- Eating nutritionally scant food: reducing the quantity of unhealthy food isn’t enough—please prioritize nutrient-rich foods instead. Remember, “it’s not the calories in your food; it’s the food in your calories”.
- Consuming fried food and refined carbs: their general metabolic woes aside, fried foods and ultra-refined carbs can exacerbate nausea and other side effects, so it really is best to skip them. The good news is that Ozempic will help overcome those cravings more easily.
- Neglecting muscle protection: especially women, especially middle-aged or older, are at higher risk of osteoporosis and should maintain muscle mass (strong muscles and strong bones go together, by necessity). So, eat protein and do resistance training!
- Assuming it’s a monotherapy: GLP-1 drugs work best as part of a holistic protocol, including proper nutrition, strength training, and hormone therapy if appropriate.
- Not addressing metabolic health first: GLP-1 drugs are less effective in people with poor baseline metabolic health, so there’s a bit of a catch-22 here, but it’s important to be aware of. Fortunately, Ozempic and adopting a healthy lifestyle will each make the other work better.
- Neglecting comprehensive treatment plans: in other words, going through the motions of a holistic protocol and then expecting Ozempic to do all the work.
- Upping doses to overcome plateaus: plateaus often signal other issues (e.g. lack of protein, no strength training), so do address these before increasing dosage.
- Lack of collaboration with doctors: the human body is complex, and what’s going on metabolically is complex too, so there’s a lot a layperson can easily miss. For that matter, there’s a lot that doctors can easily miss too, but more heads are better than one.
For more on all of these, enjoy:
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Want to learn more?
You might also like:
5 Ways To Naturally Boost The Ozempic Effect
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Tribulus Terrestris For Testosterone?
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(Clinical) Trials and Tribul-ations
In the category of supplements that have enjoyed use as aphrodisiacs, Tribulus terrestris (also called caltrop, goat’s head, gokshura, or puncture vine) has a long history, having seen wide use in both Traditional Chinese Medicine and in Ayurveda.
It’s been used for other purposes too, and has been considered a “general wellness” plant.
So, what does the science say?
Good news: very conclusive evidence!
Bad news: the conclusion is not favorable…
Scientists are known for their careful use of clinical language, and it’s very rare for a study/review to claim something as proven (scientists leave journalists to do that part), and in this case, when it comes to Tribulus’s usefulness as a testosterone-enhancing libido-boosting supplement…
❝analysis of empirical evidence from a comprehensive review of available literature proved this hypothesis wrong❞
Strong words! You can read it in full here; they do make some concessions along the way (e.g. mentioning unclear or contradictory findings, suggesting that it may have some effect, but by an as-yet unknown mechanism if it does—although some potential effect on nitric oxide levels has been hypothesized, which is reasonable if so, as NO does feature in arousal-signalling), but the general conclusion is “no, this doesn’t have androgen-enhancing properties”:
Pro-sexual and androgen enhancing effects of Tribulus terrestris L.: Fact or Fiction
That’s a review though, what about taking a look at a representative RCT? Here we go:
❝Tribulus terrestris was not more effective than placebo on improving symptoms of erectile dysfunction or serum total testosterone❞
As a performance-enhancer in sport
We’ll be brief here: it doesn’t seem to work and it may not be safe:
Insights into Supplements with Tribulus Terrestris used by Athletes
From sport, into general wellness?
Finally, a study that finds it may be useful for something!
❝Overall, participants supplemented with TT displayed significant improvements in lipid profile. Inflammatory and hematological biomarkers showed moderate beneficial effects with no significant changes on renal biomarkers. No positive effects were observed on the immune system response. Additionally, no TT-induced toxicity was reported.
In conclusion, there was no clear evidence of the beneficial effects of TT supplementation on muscle damage markers and hormonal behavior.❞
About those lipids…
Animal studies have shown that it may not only improve lipid profiles, but also may partially repair the endothelial dysfunction resulting from hyperlipidemia:
Want to try some?
In the unlikely event that today’s research review has inspired you with an urge to try Tribulus terrestris, here’s an example product on Amazon
If on the other hand you’d like to actually increase testosterone levels, then we suggest:
Topping Up Testosterone? ← a previous main feature did earlier this year
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