Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2019 i Men's Fitness UK

As regular readers of my editor’s column, you’ll both know that I have a tendency to be self-deprecating. So my instinct here, when talking about me being this month’s cover model after an eight-week transformation challenge, is to make a joke at my own expense. But as we enter 2019, the world is no laughing matter. Whatever your particular political persuasion, the reality is we live in angrier, more volatile and less certain times. Working hours are longer, we are busier and more stressed than ever, and free time comes and goes in the blink of an eye. Indeed, it can often feel like we have no control over any aspects of our lives. But there is one area in which only we have a say: our health. I’ve put…

There’s no right or wrong way to do this practice. Try to accept whatever your individual experience is. The goal is not to achieve perfect focus on your breath, but rather to learn how your mind works! It’s normal for your mind to wander, but when you catch your mind wandering and deliberately bring it back, you’re learning to mindfully control the focus of your attention. Try this basic breath awareness meditation once or twice a day for two weeks, and observe what happens. STEP 1 Pick a comfortable, quiet place where you won’t be disturbed. STEP 2 Sit with your spine upright on a chair or on a cushion on the floor. If you use a chair, make sure your feet are touching the ground. Close your eyes or…

When you watch a Premier League game the action seems to happen incredibly quickly. Does it feel that way when you’re playing? No, to be honest. You get used to the rhythm of the game because you train in that way every day. It’s true that football has become faster because the players are more athletic than they used to be 20 or 40 years ago. When I watch a game from ten years ago I realise that the pace of the game has increased. But when I train or when I play I don’t feel it because I’m ready for that. Do you have less time on the ball than you used to? I think that’s true. In my position, midfielders used to have more time on the ball.…

After Edmund Hillary conquered Mount Everest in 1953, his name became synonymous with achievement and determination. That’s the inspiration behind a new label, created in conjunction with Hillary’s son Peter, delivering contemporary versions of the key clothes worn by the New Zealand-born climber during the Everest expedition. The Edmund Hillary 1953 brand includes high-quality parkas made from sustainable goose down alongside urban clothing, knitwear and accessories – ideal for those who like to explore in style. A percentage of the sale from every garment goes to causes close to the mountaineer’s heart, so by buying you’ll be supporting both Himalayan communities and outdoor activities for young people in the UK and New Zealand. edmundhillary.com…

What are the main causes of male hair loss? The most common cause is androgenic alopecia. This is an inherited genetic condition, also known as male pattern hair loss, and it gets worse with age. Another form of hair loss, which tends not to be permanent, is alopecia areata, which is spot hair loss in specific areas. Telogen effluvium is a temporary form of hair loss that occurs when the normal hair growth cycle is interrupted and is seen in all age ranges. Can lifestyle factors contribute to hair loss? They can have a huge impact. Telogen effluvium can be caused by stress, or low iron and vitamin levels. Alopecia areata, although genetic, can be exacerbated by stress and recreational drug use. If you have long hair and use a…

Last year I watched my colleague Jon Lipsey go from clinically overweight to cover model of the July 2018 issue of MF. Towards the end of his eight-week training plan, I joined him in his sessions and started dropping body fat, but I wasn’t lean. Seven years ago I was. After a 12-week plan under the guidance of Ultimate Performance founder Nick Mitchell I was shredded. But then, I’d just turned 30 and age was on my side. Now, staring 40 in the face, I wanted to find out how much of a factor age is in building a bigger, stronger and leaner body – because if I could do it so can you, regardless of your age. The good news for all of us is that it’s never too…

1 FRONT SQUAT Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 2min TARGETS Quads, glutes, hamstrings, core • Hold the bar across the front of your shoulders, either holding it in your hands with your elbows forwards and upper arms parallel to the ground, or with your arms bent and crossed and your fingers resting on the opposite shoulder. • Stand with your feet at least hip-width apart and your toes pointing slightly outwards. • Keeping your elbows and chest up and core engaged, squat down until your thighs are at least parallel to the floor. • From this bottom position, drive through your heels, pushing your knees out to the sides, to stand back up to the start position. 2 ROMANIAN DEADLIFT Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 2min…

1 INCLINE DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 2min TARGETS Chest, triceps, front shoulders • Lie on an incline bench, holding a dumbbell in each hand at chest height. Plant your feet on the floor directly underneath your knees. • Brace your core and back muscles, and press your feet into the ground. • Keeping your whole body tight and your chest up, press the weights directly up until your arms are straight and the weights touch over the middle of your chest. • Slowly lower the weights back to the start position under complete control. • Don’t “bounce” the weights at the bottom of a rep to help initiate the next one. Instead keep each rep smooth and controlled. 2 INCLINE DUMBBELL FLYE Sets 4…

Did you know that a glass of fruit juice contains as much sugar as a can of cola or a bar of chocolate? Or that drinking your five-a-day in a fruit smoothie can increase your risk of gaining body fat, rather than reduce it? Many of the essential nutrients that make fruit so good for you, such as fibre, are found in the peel, pulp and core, which are all discarded in the juicing process. People who eat whole fruit are less likely to get obesity-related type 2 diabetes, while drinking fruit juice puts you at an increased risk, according to research published by the British Medical Association.…

1 Bell pepper benefits Bell peppers have plenty of vitamin C and antioxidants, which boost the immune system and help neutralise damaging free radicals. They also contain vitamin A, which keeps skin healthy, and potassium, which balances body fluids and helps maintain healthy blood pressure. 2 Sorrel strength Sorrel is rich in iron, which is essential for ferrying oxygen around the body and keeping the extremities replenished and healthy. 3 Garnish gains Parsley isn’t just for show. It contains flavonoids that function like antioxidants, counteracting the negative effects of oxidative stress caused by intense exercise.…

If you’re like most of the population, your first look at gymnastics rings probably came via the Olympics, courtesy of improbably-muscled athletes doing moves that look like Batman’s warm-up. But now, thanks to the popularity of CrossFit and calisthenics training, more and more gyms are dangling rings from the rafters (and reasonably priced sets are readily available online) – even if it’s still rare to see anyone use them for anything other than dips or pull-ups. But there’s a middle ground between the basics and the Olympians, and it makes sense to find it. If smartly planned, ring training combines strength, hypertrophy and joint health, forcing your body to work in unexpected ways and build the straight-arm strength that’s so important in calisthenics. “They’ll also allow you to work your…

Green tea has been widely touted as a useful fat loss tool – but now there’s another reason to go green. The brew has multiple mental benefits that work alongside the physical properties, according to a literature review in the journal Phytomedicine. Researchers found that green tea can have a positive effect on reducing anxiety, boosting memory and focusing attention. They also said that the benefits were a result of the combination of caffeine and L-theanine, and that the positive impacts weren’t as significant when only one of those two bioactive compounds was ingested. Get the kettle on.…

1 EZ does it to win the arms race Are you still cranking out the dumbbell biceps curls to transform the size of your arms? Put the bells down and curl an EZ-bar instead. Its undulating handle means you recruit more muscle fibres, which leads to faster growth. Find out more p77 2 Go back to basics to build a bigger chest Hitting your chest from a variety of angles is crucial to adding size, but you first must master the flat bench press to build a bigger chest. New research found chest muscle fibre activation was greatest in the classic lift. Find out more p11 3 Swap out smoothies for a healthier snack Smoothies have a reputation as the ultimate health drink, but many shop-bought products have as much…

Indulging your sweet tooth when on a diet might not spell disaster for your fat-loss plan – indeed, it might be the key to getting into better shape. People who eat chocolate several times a week are slimmer than those who only eat it very occasionally, even though it’s high in calories from sugar and fat. That’s according to research published in the Archives Of Internal Medicine journal, which also took other factors such as daily activity levels into account. It’s thought that having a little of what you fancy isn’t just good for you mentally because it gives you a brief timeout from your diet, but it may also help you to continue to burn fat by spiking levels of the hormone leptin, which tells your brain you are…

Great strides have been made in training shoe design recently, and the arrival of the Alphaedge 4D from Adidas is great news for anyone looking to register a new personal best. The midsole uses a lattice structure and responsive cushioning to absorb pressure from any angle before channelling that force to propel the foot forwards. Each shoe is created using new Digital Light Synthesis technology, an innovative technology that uses digital light projection, oxygen-permeable optics and programmable liquid resins (you’re keeping up with this, right?) to print high-performance, durable polymeric products. They look amazing too, thanks to the super-light prime knit upper that’s designed for maximum comfort and performance. Not that anyone will notice – you’ll be running too fast for them to see what’s on your feet. £249.95,…

As everyone knows, looking good is just as important as staying warm when you’re at the mountain resort. Here’s our pick of the best gear that’ll let you do both.…

The problem with Instagram, apart from all that superficiality and narcissism, is that you can edit your photos to make yourself look better. That’s great for your online life but less good in the real world, where your facial flaws are laid bare. Thankfully the clever folk at Lab Series have come to your aesthetic rescue with the new Instant Filter Moisturiser, which uses cutting-edge grooming technology to give your skin an in-play edit. It contains key ingredients that reduce the appearance of imperfections while simultaneously balancing skin colour and giving you a fresh-faced glow. So now when you hook up with the person you swiped right on, you no longer have to worry about underwhelming them with your looks. The lies you told about volunteering for a charity and…

SPLIT In this two-week training block the workouts follow this pattern: the first session of both weeks is a “push” workout, which hits your chest, shoulders and triceps. The second is a “pull” session, which targets your back and biceps. The third session works your legs, while the fourth and final workout targets the muscle group you most want to make bigger and more defined – your abs, arms or chest. Train on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and then Saturday or Sunday to give yourself maximum recovery time. STRUCTURE Every workout in this two-week block is made up of six different exercises, which you’ll perform as straight sets. This means you do all the sets and reps of exercise 1, sticking to the tempo and rest periods detailed, and then move…

1 DUMBBELL BENCH PRESS Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 2min TARGETS Chest, triceps, front shoulders • Lie on a flat bench, holding a dumbbell in each hand at chest height. Plant your feet on the floor directly underneath your knees. • Brace your core and back muscles and press your feet into the ground. • Keeping your whole body tight and your chest up, press the weights directly up until your arms are straight and the weights touch over the middle of your chest. • Slowly lower the weights back to the start position under complete control. • Don’t “bounce” the weights at the bottom of a rep to help initiate the next one. Instead keep each rep smooth and controlled. 2 DUMBBELL OVERHEAD HAMMER PRESS Sets 4…

1 CLOSEGRIP BENCH PRESS Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 2min TARGETS Triceps, chest, front shoulders • Lie on a flat bench with a shoulder-width overhand grip on the bar with straight arms. • Brace your core and back muscles, and press your feet into the ground. • Keeping your whole body tight and your chest up, lower the bar towards your chest under complete control. • Lower the bar until it touches your chest, then press it back up powerfully to the start position. • Don’t “bounce” the bar on your chest at the bottom of a rep to help initiate the next one. Instead keep each rep smooth and controlled. 2 UNDERHAND LAT PULL-DOWN Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2011 Rest 2min TARGETS Biceps, lats, forearms •…

1 BIG-ASS BREAKFAST SALAD WITH BACON DRESSING Makes 2 servings One big difference between keto folks and what I call the Standard American Diet (SAD) eater is that we love to incorporate big servings of colourful vegetables into our first meal of the day. Whether that means an omelette or my Big-Ass Breakfast Salad, starting your day with some veggies gets you off on the right foot. INGREDIENTS 4 slices bacon 150g sliced mushrooms 45g diced yellow or red bell pepper 4 large eggs ¼tsp sea salt Large pinch of ground black pepper, plus more to taste 170g baby spinach 100g cherry tomatoes, halved 1 medium avocado, diced 30g grated cheddar (optional) For dressing 2tbsp bacon fat 1tbsp apple cider vinegar 2tsp Dijon mustard TO MAKE • In a medium…

It’s a new year but for most guys the training aims remain the same. You want T-shirt-filling biceps, right? If that’s the case then the tools you use, rather than the exercises you select and the variables you manipulate, could be key to faster muscle growth. Using an EZ-bar, which has an undulating handle, will stimulate greater muscle activation in your biceps than either a barbell or dumbbells, according to a study in the Journal Of Life And Environmental Sciences. If your gym doesn’t have an EZ-bar, you should use a barbell, which produced more muscle activation than dumbbells. There is still a place for single-arm training, however, because you can use it to take advantage of greater range of motion and one-sided work will ensure that you get balanced…

Start this workout by performing it with an unweighted 20kg Olympic bar and add weight as you progress How to do the workout Do the six exercises in order, sticking to the reps detailed, without resting until you finish all the reps of the sixth and final move of the circuit. Rest for two minutes, then repeat the circuit. Do three circuits in total. It’s New Year fitness regime time and, for a lot of people, that means lacing up the trainers and heading out into the cold for a long, slow and – dare we say it – boring run. If that doesn’t sound appealing, there’s a faster and more effective way to burn fat. Doing resistance-based circuits like this one will get your heart and lungs working hard,…

If you want to look better with your shirt on and off, you’re going to need bigger arms. And shoulders, for that matter. Which is why this month’s big workout is designed to add serious muscle size to your biceps, triceps and shoulders in just four weeks. You’ll train these muscle groups not once but twice a week to give them the added stimulus they need to grow bigger and stronger in the shortest possible time. In addition to two arms and shoulders workouts a week, there’s a chest and back session and a legs and abs session, so while the main muscle-building focus is on your arms and shoulders, you’ll be targeting your other major muscles for growth too. HERE’S HOW THE PLAN WORKS This month’s four-week workout is…

It’s tempting to think that you need to complicate things to make faster training progress. But sometimes the basic exercises are the best, and when targeting your chest that means the good old flat bench press. According to a report in the European Journal Of Sports Science, when researchers asked subjects to perform sets of six reps at 65% of their one-repetition maximum they found that muscle stimulation was greater when the bench was flat than when it was placed at a 15°, 30° or 45° angle. So make the flat bench the cornerstone of your chest-building strategy and include incline variations to hit your upper chest and front shoulders.…

USE ISOMETRICS “If your abs are constantly in a contracted position it can cause bad posture, so it’s important to strengthen them in an elongated position,” says Scott. “Planks and other similar moves [like the TRX roll-out, pictured] are ideal, but don’t just hold for as long as you can because your technique will give up way before you do. Short holds, done correctly, are more effective.” DON’T JUST HIP FLEX “The old sit-up with someone holding your feet on the ground is dead,” says Scott. “It distorts your hip tilt and you’ll end up using your hip flexors to do the move, over-activating a muscle that is shortened anyway. Most people know not to do sit-ups for abs by now, but watch for the same problem in leg raises…

A jacket’s essential but it won’t get you very far on its own. Make sure you’re kitted out with everything the winter sportsman needs before you board the plane.…

1 LAT PULL-DOWN Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2011 Rest 2min TARGETS Lats, biceps, forearms • Adjust the machine so you’re sitting with your knees secured, holding the bar with a shoulder-width overhand grip. • Keeping your chest up and abs braced, pull the bar down, leading with your elbows. • Hold the bottom position for a second, squeezing your biceps and back hard, then reverse the movement back to the start. 2 WIDE-GRIP SEATED ROW Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2011 Rest 2min TARGETS Upper back, biceps • Position yourself on the machine with your feet against the foot rest, holding a bar cable attachment in both hands with a wide grip. • Keeping your chest up, back straight and core braced, row your hands in towards your body,…

1 KETTLEBELL GOBLET SQUAT Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 2010 Rest 60sec TARGETS Core, quads, glutes, hamstrings • Stand tall with your chest up and core engaged, holding a kettlebell or dumbbell at chest height with both hands, as you would hold a goblet. • Keeping your chest up and back straight, initiate the move by bending your knees and pushing your hips backwards to squat down as low as you can. • Keep your weight on your heels and press down through them to straighten your legs and return to the start position. 2 KETTLEBELL PLANK DRAG Sets 4 Reps 10 Tempo 1111 Rest 60sec TARGETS Core • Get into a straight-arm plank position with your body in a straight line from head to heels and a kettlebell positioned…

1 PRIORITISE COMPOUND LIFTS Compound exercises, where there is movement at two joints so you work multiple muscles groups, should be the cornerstone of any workout programme whether you’re training for size, strength or fat loss. “The bench, squat and deadlift offer the most return on investment for your time and effort, and in order to get bigger, you have to get stronger,” says Ben Esgro, an NCSA-certified strength and conditioning specialist. 2 HAVE A CLEARLY DEFINED GOAL “Without a clearly defined and challenging physique goal, you’re never going to get the results you want,” says Ultimate Performance founder Nick Mitchell. “The best transformation candidates I have ever worked with are women wanting to get into shape for their wedding. Why? Because they have a laser-focused goal. You need the…

WHY “This is a traditional Basque dish made with lots of bell peppers,” says chef Mike McEnearney, author of Real Food By Mike. “It’s fantastic not just with eggs for breakfast, but also as a side for any meat or fish dish. A nice twist is to add a couple of anchovies to the piperade before it goes in the oven, or serve it with a couple of rashers of streaky bacon. If you can’t find sorrel, use baby spinach and add a squeeze of lemon juice when serving, to replicate the sharp flavour of sorrel.” WHAT SERVES 4 200g brown onions, thinly sliced 1tbsp salted capers, rinsed and drained well 50g garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced 200ml extra virgin olive oil 200g red peppers, cut into strips 200g…

WHAT TYPE OF RINGS SHOULD I GET? Wood is most comfortable on the wrists and easy to grip, but it’s expensive. Plastic is cheaper, and you can hang them out in any weather. Metal is ultra-durable but not wrist-friendly. If you’ve got the budget, wood’s the best bet – it also absorbs sweat, meaning you’ll be able to hold on better when things get tricky. WHERE SHOULD I HANG THEM? A tree branch or outdoor pull-up bar is ideal, if it’s sturdy enough. At home, you can use rafters in your garage, a door-mounted pull-up bar – though not for “inverted” moves – or eyelets bolted to your ceiling, if you’re the DIY type. Alternatively, take them to the gym. Just ask before you hang them up. HOW HIGH SHOULD…

How to do the workout This session is made up of three supersets. Do all reps of move 1A, sticking to the sets, reps and rest shown, then do all reps of 1B. Repeat until you’ve completed all the sets, then move on to the next superset. This way you’ll work your biceps and triceps harder and smarter. The pursuit of bigger arms requires you to train smart to provide the stimulus they need to grow quickly. But that doesn’t mean going heavy. In fact, focusing on good-quality reps with a full range of motion is more effective for getting a pump and fatiguing more muscle fibres, both of which will mean faster results. This six-move superset session begins with two moves that get the blood pumping, progresses to two…

Cuts Clothing Cuts Clothing has created your morning, noon and night essential. Made with custom Pyca™ fabric, these shirts hold their own in any situation and are a must for active men. IG @cutsclothing. Use code FITNESS for 15% off at cutsclothing.com Heinrich Barth Heinrich Barth was one of the greatest travellers and explorers of the 19th century, and the story of his life and his many adventures have inspired a skincare brand. Under his name, the company has created a range of grooming products for your daily needs, sourcing the best ingredients from flora around the world. £24. Available at Wolf & Badger Studios, Coal Drops Yard, London N1 or visit heinrich-barth.com Dura – create the ultimate fitness room in your garage Make 2019 the year you finally create…