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Today’s Health Upgrade
Bone protector
Q&A with Arnold
Weekend Challenge
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Bone Protector
Milk's reputation as a bone-builder is traditionally linked to its high calcium. But that might only be part of the story.
Research suggests protein also strengthens your bones and can help fight against age-related breakdown.
And that applies to any high-quality source of protein. While many think protein is all about building muscle, it's much more. Protein supplies amino acids, the building blocks for all the cells in your body. So whether protein is helping you build muscle and burn fat or supporting healthier hair, skin, nails — and bones — you want to provide enough to support your body's needs.
For years, many people feared that too much protein led to bone breakdown, but — to date — there is no strong evidence that protein causes problems. On the other hand, research suggests that protein might increase hormone levels that support bone mineral density.
Your body likely benefits from protein because your bones are constantly remodeling, roughly every 6 to 9 months. And protein makes up approximately 50 percent of the volume of your bones. Collagen is also a protein that can help your bones, tendons, and ligaments. And protein helps your muscles stay stronger, which is crucial in fighting against sarcopenia and muscle loss.
Aim for anywhere from .6 grams to 1 gram of protein per pound of your goal weight to ensure you're giving your body enough protein. So if you want to weigh 170 pounds, eat approximately 90 to 170 grams of protein per day, or about 20 to 50 grams per meal.
Q&A with Arnold
This week, Arnold jumped into Reddit to answer a few questions...
Arnold, Build Me A Workout
Those 5,000 spots went a last faster than we expected and sold out in less than 36 hours! But don’t worry, we plan to give the members referral codes in the next week to share with their friends and family, and then we’ll notify the people on the waitlist. We want to grow slowly, not like these venture capital companies that only care about how many users they have, but we’ll get you in soon. And the founding members have suggested a lot of improvements and found most of the bugs, so you’ll be walking into a better app!
I assume you mean adjustable up to 50 pounds so that you can progress your lifts and do exercises that you use less weight for, like flys. I know you asked for pecs, but as you probably know, I always do chest and back together. Here's a quick workout since you’re waiting to get into the app. I even used our tutorials from the app that include never-before-scene Pumping Iron footage and modern footage of me brutalizing Daniel and Adam.
Superset #1: Dumbbell Bench Press + Chinups
Perform 5 sets of each exercise, alternating between the two moves. Follow the guidelines below for the number of reps on each exercise.
Bench Press: 15 reps, then 12, then 10, then 8, then 6
Chinups: 6-12 reps, slow and controlled
The videos in The Pump are a little different.
For bench press, choose a weight for each set where it is challenging to do the last rep but don’t fail. So your weight is going up every time the reps go down. Don’t rest between the press and the chin-ups, but rest 2 minutes each time you finish both.
Superset #2: Dumbbell Fly + Dumbbell Pullover
Perform 5 sets of each exercise, alternating between the two moves. Follow the guidelines below for the number of reps on each exercise.
Fly: 15 reps
Pullover: 15 reps
Finisher: Pushups + Single-arm dumbbell row
Perform 2 sets of each exercise, alternating between the two moves. Follow the guidelines below for the number of reps on each exercise.
Pushups: Do as many as possible until you fail (don’t worry, the ground isn’t that far).
Single-arm dumbbell row: Do 12-15 reps on each arm
And that's it! You could repeat this workout twice per week.
Remember, if you want access to all my workouts, you can join the waitlist here, and you'll be the first to know when we make more spots available. See you in The Pump soon!
Science or BS?
This is why I listen to experts and have a team that knows how to read studies. But it is conflicting and confusing sometimes. I use simple rules. First, I ignore headlines about studies because they almost always take the most likely to be shared info and run with it. Second, if I know something, I don’t need a study. I know how to grow biceps. If somebody says, “This is the best way to build biceps according to science,” there isn’t much for me to learn. I am an expert there.
Finally, I ask questions. I send articles and studies to my team. Adam knows how to read studies. If they can’t help me, they find other experts in that subject. I am never afraid to admit when I don’t know something!
Is There A "Best" Rep Range?
I think going against conventional wisdom to test new things in training is always a good idea. You have to be curious and try exercises and numbers of reps and sets to find what works. Franco and I treated the gym as our laboratory. Sometimes we would do 30 sets of something to see where we felt the soreness. BUT. I have a firm rule. With any injury, you need to talk to a physical therapist. I can’t give you advice; you need an expert.
Should You Teach Kids About Fitness?
My advice is the same with a lot of things in parenting: don’t force it. Expose them to it. I always had my kids in the gym with me. Sometimes they would sit between my legs while I did cable rows. I let them see it was fun, but I never said, “Now you have to train.” I think that can backfire. And all kids are going to go through phases where they don’t want to do what their parents do. But today, I am proud of all of my kids, and all of them have fitness in their lives. I think that’s because I didn’t force it, but I made sure they saw that I was having fun in the gym.
Weekend Challenge
You’ve probably learned now that whatever mindset or motivation I share with you Monday becomes a challenge by Friday. That’s because I’m not a talker; I’m a doer. If I just share big ideas, it’s a total waste if we don’t also find a way for you to act on them.
Monday we talked about not being one of these people who says negative crap when someone else is celebrating an accomplishment. Whether it’s on Instagram or in real life (although, trust me, I don’t think any of those people are walking up to professional football players to make fun of their deadlift outside of the protection of the internet), it sucks the joy out of your life -- not theirs.
There is something special about watching people achieve something that makes them proud. It should wake up the sense of joy in all of us, not cause jealousy or anger. People always ask me why I love watching ballroom dancing at the Arnold Sports Festival. It’s simple. I just love seeing people at their best, and I love it even when I know I could never do it.
So this week’s challenge is simple. You’re going to be a cheerleader, not a hater. Find someone celebrating on social media and in real life, and celebrate with them. Let me know how that makes you feel! I guarantee you’re going to have a smile on your face.
Thanks again for reading, interacting, and sharing with others what you learn. To all the new members, thank you for joining the village. We hope you all have a fantastic weekend!
-Arnold, Adam, and Daniel
