CHAT TRANSCRIPT 04.19.2005
CinnamonGirl
Flank steak CAN be a lot of work either you work before eating it or you work to eat it. I prefer the former. By slicing it thinly 1/4 to 1/3 inch thick, diagonally against the grain (its easier to slice if its partially frozen), you create more surface area for the marinade and it shortens those lean, fibers. I use flank steak all the time with stir-fried veggies (cook it a minute or so to about medium rare, then pull it out of pan, stir fry the veggies, add the beef back in for the last minute or two), and its also great for soft tacos and in wraps.
zebulondragonslayer
Marty, I notice there are no external links on the site for buying equipment and stuff. I have a few more things I need for my home gym. Would it help this site if I purchased from someone you recommend ? Just a thought.
Administrator replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:14:56:
I will post external links for equipment shortly. We have some stores we're affiliated with, plus things are brewing in the war room for more. Stay tuned!
Administrator
News Flash: The feds just announced that they got rid of the old food pyramid and came up with a different system:
http://mypyramid.gov/
---
Also, for those of you that care, Ratzinger is the new Pope.
--Lee
No Name
It's tender - really! I usually make it on a weekend when were out doing other things and it ends up cooking so long that it falls apart...then we have it over brown rice. It's kind of like a spiced up swiss steak.
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:07:39:
8 hours? four hours on "high" and four on "low?"
fireman1
Marty:
Ok - my wife has been training for some time now and her deadlift form is pretty good. In her current work-out she's able to get 6x130 without much of a struggle or loss of form. She was planning on going to 140 next week.
I'm curious to know why you suggested changing to 2x10 static sets rather than three pyramid sets.
Further, I was hoping to get one of your famous reverse engineered plans working from backwards from 185.
thanks
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:04:34:
Okay - we'll assume she is A-OK ane cleared for takeoff
week 1 115x10
week 2 125x8
week 3 135x6
week 4 145x5
week 5 155x4
week 6 165x3
week 7 175x2
week 8 185x1
This is just one way to slow walk it....
zebulondragonslayer
Wasn't sure about the terminal knee extension but jsut found out that it was a rehab type exercise.... -- not what I was thinking...
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:57:41:
Okay....
zebulondragonslayer
No, they had some WPO lifters on the cover but it was a very prominent article (and started on page 18).
It was a good one !
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:52:15:
can lead a horse to water but can't make them drink
No Name
I found a way to make flank steak palatable...put it in the crock pot, cut up an onion and green pepper, add two cans of Rotel tomatos and 2 cans of tomato sauce. Cook on low for 8 hours...
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:52:50:
Now does this crockpot flank steak really get tender or does it get 'sorta' tender and still remains stringy when you bite it? I ate at some killer ethnic mexican rests when I was in Vegas - now they knew exactly how to make flank steak tender and tasty - I suspect it involved some lengthy slow-roast procedure over very low charcoal wood smoke heat - plus some exotic cactus juice marinade that break down all the harsh toughness when you let it soak overnight...
Javier in Maryland
In your Apr 5 "stream" you mentioned an all-dumbell total body workout. Could you give an overview of what the workout looks like or maybe post it on the site somewhere if it's not alread there? Thanks.
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:58:12:
You know I have an complete 'all dumbbell' exercise article laying around here somewhere - let me dig around and if you don't see it posted within a week, ping me again...I got just what you need, just have to locate it
zebulondragonslayer
Comment not at question:
Saw your article in Powerlifting USA !!!
Good Stuff !!! I saw it here first !!!
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:48:10:
so they published the Kirk article - did it get the cover?
zebulondragonslayer
Hey Marty,
Have you ever heard of an exercise called TKE - terminal knee extensions ? If so, how do you do them ?
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:47:30:
this is a new one on me - anyone?
Colesville Dude
Hey Marty,
A weight loss question this time. I have lost a good amount of flab recently and can now see most of the muscle built over the winter, except over abs and handles. I have been dieting and upping cardio. Just wondering the best approach to lose the last 5-10lbs. Should I go for more calorie restriction (worried about losing muscle) or just up the cardio?
Thanks
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:13:22:
LAST QUESTION: Well that depends...which direction do you think could use the most 'tightening up?' Likely try cleaning up the food selection, that always provides a great boost if you're able to pull the trigger....
Colesvile Dude
Hey Marty,
When doing pull downs, what is the difference between the following in terms of muscles hit?
wide v. narrow grip
palms facing forward v. palm facing backward
Thanks
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:00:17:
this is a chance FOR YOU to make these determinations - go to the gym and do six sets of 10-12 reps in ONE of these variations...do NO other back exercises on that day, you can train other parts, but not back. Now the next day, where does the soreness reside? This determines where that particular exercise hits YOU! Invaluable since its customized to the specifics of your physiology - repeat the procedure for each variable.
zebulondragonslayer
What is a martial club ? (that you mentioned you swing for cardio). Is it like a kettle bell ?
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:48:55:
Two light "Clubbells" -
circularstrength.com -
little weighted indian clubs that look like mini-baseball bats - you wave these weighted implemnts around for a while and your heart rate spikes nicely.
fireman1
Marty:
My wife is very competitive and she wants to increase her deadlift so as to match my deadlift (taking into account I am fifty pounds heavier).
Anyway, she is currently doing three sets 10x65, 8x100, 6x130. She wants to get that final workset up to 6x185. Can you suggest a plan that would get her to her goal in some months.
thanks
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:40:33:
I would be extremely concerned that she used pristine technique at all times - otherwise she could be heading towards the injury cliff in a speeding car. Deadlifts are extremely tricky technically speaking and often as the reps get heavier, technique disintergrates, yet the athlete, through guts and grit, keeps pulling. Since they are pulling from a incorrect position they rip, tear or pull something. No bouncing between reps - I would break her poundage back down to 115 and insist she be able to do 2 perfect sets of 10-reps. Each rep picture perfect. I would then increase this 10-pounds (assuming she can do 2x10 with 115) per week and not allow her to deadlift unless you watch.
Tom
Grilling season is upon us. Do you have a good recipe for flank-steak marinade?
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:05:21:
My answer to the last question got cut off...I am a big believer in changing dietary patterns just as frequenty as we change training patterns...no matter how effective the diet, at some point the body nuetralizes the effects...
Why do you wrestle with that god-awful cut of meat...it is virtually impossible to make flank steak tender...the latin resteraunts deal with it the best...why not go for a slightly higher fat content, take the calories into account and eat a piece of meat that doesn't require 150 chews and tastes like buckskin anyway? How about sirloin or filet? I have basically stopped eating steak other than on special occasions - when a ribeye costs 8-bucks, I'm looking at shrimp and flounder real hard...
Stephen, Chicago IL
Marty,
My mom's been going through a cycle the last few years. She's 56, needs to drop a lot of weight. My folks have a great home gym with a power rack w/adjustable bench, adustable DBs, lat pulldown, treadmill, stationary bike. gym.
She's tried going on a Body-For-Life style program with 6 meals a day, low fat/sugar, clean protein, along with progressive resistance training. She usually drops weight for the first 3-4 weeks and stagnates. Since adding enough muscle to increase the metabolism is tough at her age, I'm wondering if you could offer any suggestions on how women without a young person's hormones might change directions to keep on progressing.
Thanks a ton!
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:13:05:
Okay well 56 is hardly 86!
So what's the problem? You tell me that she's on programs that recommend lifting, cardio and clean eating and its not happening...what do you suppose I would recommend? How about lifting, cardio and clean eating...obviously if she is aware of, and practices the individual legs of the fitness triad, she's not apparently getting ANY TRACTION! Likely she's sort of going through the motions, or perhaps she exercises hard but eats too much - impossible to access from my seat here in the bleachers...if she could really get fired up about fitness PROCESS that would provide the burning joy that fuels the really killer workouts. Enthusiastic workouts trump ho-hum workoputs every single time.
No Name
Marty,
what is the best method or drill for improving the squat clean. (this is assuming that the technical aspect of the lift is reasonably)
thanks
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:19:57:
1. slow initial pull off the floor
2. purposefully build up velocity as the bar travels up the shins
3. rise up on toes, bar should be touching the torso once it passes the knees
4. shrug the shoulders and pull to a predeterminded height on the body
5. I pick the solar plexus or lower pecs, when the bar reaches this height..
6. pull yourself down and under, forward, simultaneously snap the wrists over
7. catch the bar in a cradle on the shoulders, with the bar 'racked'...
8. continue squatting downward, bottom out and...
9. using a controlled rebound come erect
No Name
What are prone hyper-extensions? And are shrugs performed w/a dumbell in each hand and flexing your shoulders up to your ears?
Thanks.
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 11:43:15:
Hello everyone - I'm here and feeling good - nice walk and first day driving around with the top totally down on the jeep - lovely fragrances along the trout stream - worked up to three sets of 10 with a static poundage in the bench press. I supersetted with lying leg raises and wide-stance stiff leg deadlifts using a plate. Then some martial club swinging for cardio effect and a nice forty minute nature walk around the farm perimeter. I dropped my walkman twice on the concrete floor and it still works; I should do commercials for this brand, like the apes tossing around the luggage...
1. prone hyper-extensions are done in a specially devised contraption that secures your ankles as you face downward. You bend down at the waist and arch up as high as you can on each rep...killer spinal erector work...
2. sure shrugs can be - can also be done holding a barbell in a double overhand grip
Lobo
Marty,
Do you have an opinion on the zig-zag diet espoused by Fred Hatfield? Do you think it's a good way to reduce body fat, yet retain muscle?
Also, how strict does one have to be in their diet when trying to reduce the body fat?
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:26:19:
answered this already
Mona (CinnamonGirl)
Hey, Marty!
I recently noticed that I get a popping sound/sensation in my sternum when doing leg presses (at the bottom of the press). Is this weird or something you've heard about before? No soreness today, but yesterday,I was compressing the area to see if I could make it stop while pushing the weight, and I had some discomfort for about 10 minutes.
Thanks for today's stream of consciousness. Timely and really valuable info for those of us who find life continually intruding on our fitness plans. It's good to have a well thought out Plan B waiting in the wings!
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:26:58:
anytime a particular exercise causes injury, cease and desist immediately!
There are so many exercise alternatives, there are so many technical variables within a particular exercise, that there is never a reason to insist on doing a hurtful quad exercise, or arm exercise, or whatever, in one particular way, a way that actually causes pain. Try different foot placements and differing depth levels on the leg press - or drop the leg press altogether and find another equally effective quad exercise - there are plenty that equal or exceed leg presses...
insofar as the Plan B blurb - thanks for the feedback - I literally write these things up on the spot; these are improvised and not canned or pre-written pieces, these are written that very morning and some are timely and others are not relevant to you on a particular day...but I really like to hear about it if I hit a resonant chord.
Damascus
Hey Marty - like your new web site! No real question; just an update. I have dropped from lifting weights 3 times a week to weights once a week, mainly hitting big muscle groups, and doing Pilates 2x per week. Man, I thought I was in decent shape before I started Pilates, but I realized how inflexible I am after just one class. But I do find myself enjoying the classes, even reading up on different pilates techniques, etc. Again, sometimes you have to change things around dramatically to keep yourself going! Now that the weather is nicer, we'll have to do a german feast soon.-Dina
Marty Gallagher
replies on 04-19-2005 at 12:34:35:
Hey Lady, good to hear from you...
This is a great example of infusing fitness with fun - what's wrong with taking up Pilates, karate, team volleyball, jujitsu, racqetball or whatever floats your boat? Obviously if you look forward to an activity, doing it and doing it in a fired up fashion is much much easier...if that happens to be some sort of fitness-related activity so much the better.
I would really like some reports on how this Pilates adventure unfolds...I would love to hear your impressions after you've been doing it for 6-weeks or 6-months....tell Milan I said high hi and best of luck/
Adam
Submitted this question via e-mail earlier. Sorry. When doing any stable weight exercise (5x5, 10x10, even 2x12), how do you pick the weight? For 5x5, would it be a 5RM or a bit less? And how long would rests betw. sets be? If I did a genuine 5RM weight with 2 mins betw sets, I might be down to 3 reps by set 3 and 1 by set 5. (Actually, I seem to lose more reps per subsequent set on higher rep sets, so I might get 10 with a 10RM weight on set one but only get 7 on set 3 and 5 on set 5.) Am I thinking about this wrong?
Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:08:29: Marty Gallagher replies on 04-19-2005 at 13:08:29:
5x5 requires you use a LOT LESS poundage than your best five-rep max. If, for example, you could squat 300x5 to legal depth, I would advice you commence 5x5 with 250 - you wait between sets until your breathing normalizes, then you hit another set. You need to start light enough that you make all the reps on day I easy and snappy. Then over time, you become used to this off-speed pitch and your abilities and poundage increase.
Marty Gallagher
Hello, and welcome to this week's chat! You may submit questions ahead of time, and I'll answer them when the chat starts at noon.
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