Big Bones, Small Bones, Bodybuilding

The skeleton structure of a person is strongly connected to his strength, muscle size, speed...etc. In bodybuilding it's hard to say what's better - small joints or big joints. Why?

If a person has big bones this usually means that he/she will have bigger muscles compared to a thin/fragile individual. However the person with the larger bone structure will also have bigger waist and since bodybuilding is based on illusion the thin guy may end up looking much better than his/her rival. As far as men are concerned any bodybuilder/fitness enthusiast with under 7 inches wrist has small bone structure. On the other hand anybody with 7.5-8+ inches wrist has large skeleton structure. 

A person with 6' inches wrist and insane genetics would be able to have about 16+ inches arms at a decent (below 12%) BF* At the same time a big boned trainee with 8 inches wrist will have about 18 inches arms. Who is bigger? Well, technically the guy with 18 inches arms. However we all know that in bodybuilding the winner is not the guy with the biggest measurement and the guy with 16 inches arms may actually win. What about strength?

When it comes to strength the guy with big joints has full advantage. Actually I can't think of a single advantage small bones offer when you are a powerlifter. The goal is to push the most weight and having stronger and bigger skeleton gives you an advantage right from the start. A lot of  guys with small wrists have trouble benching. Also small hips can be a problem for squats. The only strength exercise than does not give a fuck about bone size is the deadlift. The reason for that is quite simple - during the deadlift you are not supporting the weight with your limbs but you are rather pulling it towards your entire body. 

Ed Coan, the most famous powerlifter, has 8 inches wrist while some of the most aesthetic bodybuilders out there like Serge Nubret, Vince Taylor and Flex Wheeler have small - 6-6.5 inches wrists. 

Ed Coan - 8 inches wrist 

Vince Taylor (on the right) has really small wrist which gave teh illusion his arms were bigger.

"all the top pros i've met have tiny joints.  when i met Vince, our arms look close to the same size.  but if you saw a pic of me onstage alone, and a pic of Vince on stage alone, you would guess his arms 3 inches bigger at least. 

my wrist is probably 1.5 inches bigger than his, and thats why i was never a great bodybuilder."

  -hazbin (member of Getbig.com and also the guy on the left)

original source 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's not about height

Lee Priest 

A lot of people such as Lee Priest believe that the taller guy should have bigger measurements than the short one. It's not true. It's about bone thickness and size. The height of a person does not determine his/her bone size - only length. In other words just because a guy like the 5'4 inches tall Lee Priest has 20 inches (obviously he has been abusing drugs since his creation) it does not mean that a guy who is 5'10 should have 25 inches. No. The measurements of a person are determined obviously by his level of development but also by his bone size. A person who is 6'1 tall with 20 inches arms has 50+ pounds of muscle more than a 5'4 guy with the same arm size.

 So, Lee Priest can fuck off and go heal his Napoleon complex. Truth be told naturally he will be 140 lbs top at his height. He competes at 200lbs. Case closed.

Conclusion: Small joints may be great for bodybuilding while huge joints work better for Olympic weightlifting and powerlifting. In all cases be happy with what you got.

Read more ...

Drinking Coke Zero On A Diet?

Is it ok to drink coke zero on a diet? Yes and no.

Coke Zero does not contain calories, unless you believe 1 calorie is crucial for fat loss. You will still lose weight because the basic and only requirement for losing weight (caloric deficit) will not be broken with 1 calorie. There are a few problems however.

Problem 1: Coke Zero is still not a healthy choice

Think for a second. If Coke Zero has not calories what the hell is in it? Shit? Like it or not Coke Zero contains a lot of chemicals and can be harmful to your teeth, stomach and what not. According to some beliefs diets sodas are the worst because they contain acrtificial sugar known as splenda which the body cannot digest and therefor it stays in your body for years. Is it true? Well, I doubt it stays in your body for years but it sure as hell is harmful. However Coke Zero does not contain that shit but comes with a decent load of aspartame which is a dangerous substance that can cause cancer and brain damage. Whether that's true or not I don't know. If you want to know more about aspartame and it's harmful effect you can visit: http://www.aspartamekills.com/.

At the same time many people believe that diet sodas in general make you crave sugar even more due to the sweeteners and it's a dirty little trick to get the addicts back on the horse. 

Problem 2: Coke Zero Can Be Addictive

Have you ever been on a diet? If so you probably know how hard it is. I believe that one of the biggest problems are the people around you for one very simple reason - they buy all this crappy food and eat it right in your face. When you are on a diet other people become drug dealers. They have all the goods you crave and you suffer. That's where Coke Zero comes in handy - it allows you to "break the habit" and cheat without cheating because there are no calories in it. However all of this can be problematic because if you drink diet sodas everyday you will still lose weight if the rest of your diet is not disrespected but you will make the diet drink a habit. Bad habit. This can be problematic. That's why I don't recommend to people to drink diet drinks in the beginning of their diets. You can add diet drinks only during the last few weeks of your diet and you should not drink more than 0.5l every two days. This is just a basic guideline that will help you in the long run.

Problem 3: Coke Zero Contains Sodium Which Causes Water Retention

It's a well known fact that diet drinks contain decent amount of sodium which causes water retention. Water retention can mask fat loss and usually blurs your muscular definition. It can be problematic. Therefor if you want to drink Coke Zero you must drink a lot of water as well to get all that sodium out of your body and avoid holding water.

Conclusion:  Having a few bottles of Coke Zero at the end of your diet is ok but making it a daily habit will only cause troubles in the long run. Don't do it.

Read more ...