Ask The Expert - August 2008

Welcome to the Ask the Expert Archive for August 2008. Please feel free to browse through all the questions that have been asked by our customers and answered within this month. Remember if you have a question, click here and ask the Team. We welcome any questions related to Mens health and Supplements, and you can be sure that if we don’t know the answer we will research it for you and e-mail over as soon as we can.

Q. How would I know if I am over training? I seem to enjoy being in the gym a lot.

A. It’s great to see you enjoying the gym so much. Over training occurs when you train your body beyond its ability to recover. It is not a good thing since your body needs to recover from the last workout in order for it to adapt and grow. It is easy to know if you have over trained
If you find yourself not significantly increasing your poundage in the gym, then you might be over training. It can be so bad that you actually lose strength and train with less weight.
Loss of sleep
Loss of appetite
Unexpected and unexplained fatigue and or weight loss.

If you do not feel good after training sessions, you probably over trained. You might need to reduce your working out days and sessions until you get the right fit and don’t forget to get good nutrition.

Q. How long does Miracles for Men advocate is the right time for resting between sets?

A. You should rest until you are recovered. By overloading your muscles with another set when your muscles are yet to recover, you will not get the adequate rest needed for your muscles to grow. It is also not a wise decision to continue training while tired as it can lead to loss in concentration and unnecessary injury.

Q. I am an eighteen year old male and more interested in running than I am in weight training. My coach is suggesting weight training to increase my strength but I am afraid to gain too much muscle mass to run effectively. Will lifting weights make me slower in my athletics?

A. That used to be the common misconception a few years ago until sprinters started improving their athletic speed by lifting weights. It is now nearly impossible to find any professional athlete who does not include weight training in their training program. No, weight lifting will not make you slower. It might actually make you stronger and faster. Talk to your coach about the proper weight training program for your particular sport and adopt it without fear.

Q. I am finding it rather difficult to fit in eating 6 meals a day as my gym teacher is suggesting as I am training. Is there a way that Miracles for Men deals with this issue?

A. This is not an issue. If you are planning on taking up serious weight training whatever sport you are involved in, you must increase your food intake. It is all an issue of time management and if you are serious about improving your performance using weight training as a tool, then you must find the time to eat the necessary meals in a day. Try packing your food everyday if the cost of buying food is too much. Carry the food with you and decide if weight training is important enough to you to find a way to eat the necessary amount of food in a day. Miracles for Men does not have a shortcut for not training hard enough and eating unhealthily.

Q. I am afraid of eating carbohydrates at night as I might grow fat. What solution is there for me in this case? Do you think it is ok to eat carbohydrates especially at night?

A. Glad you asked that question. Weight training is not a dieting plan. You will have to be selective about what you eat but you can not deny your body carbohydrates after you have punished your body in a workout. Carbohydrates are especially important after a workout so as to help you replenish your energy stores. If you are training hard and including cardio exercises, eating carbohydrates is essential for your health. Train as hard as you can and eat well.

Q. I am a basketball player in high school and recently got introduced to weight training. I am concerned that squats in the gym will make me shrink. Is this the case?

A.  At Miracles for Men we have yet to see anyone shrinking doing squats. This I think has to do with the fact that most power lifters are short so we think that at some time in their lives they were taller and started shrinking. Squats done the right way will give you a healthy back and spine and there is no documented evidence of shrinking by squats.

Q. I am a vegetarian and was wondering if weight training is out of the question for me since all the meals seem to have meat included for them.

A. Being a vegetarian does not mean that you have decided never to have a strong body. At Miracles for Men, we believe that it is not the meat that makes the body but the workouts, nutrition and proper rest. There are many food products out there that are just as good as meat products. Have you tried soy and tofu products? Beans, nuts, soybean products are just a few of the products that you can use. You can also add meal replacement powders that are animal product free to your diet.

Q. My coach is very good but it seems that ever since I started working out with him I no longer feel muscle soreness. I believe that I might not be increasing in muscle size but I don’t know how to tell him. What would be the best approach?

A. Miracles for Men would say thank you to the coach for getting a weight training program that seems to work very well. Muscle soreness is a poor way to know if muscle growth is happening. In fact consistent muscle soreness is a sign that you are over working your muscles. It is best to train with minimal or no muscle soreness as this will help you achieve more in the gym. As long as you are overloading your muscles beyond their normal ability, you are likely growing muscle mass. If you have a good training program, it should reduce muscle soreness to the minimum or none at all.

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