Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2019 i Men's Fitness UK

USA’s Zach Bitter has just broken the record for running 100 miles (yes, that’s a thing). The 33-year-old completed the distance in 11hrs 28mins 3secs. Bitter is a glutton for punishment and wasn’t happy setting a new 100-mile record: continuing to run a further 4.8 miles to beat his own 12-hour world record as well. His timings were almost too perfect over the 100-mile distance, running a negative split with the second 50 miles marginally faster than the first. Bitter’s 6:48min/mile pace equates to a marathon time of 2hrs 58mins. The record was set at the 6 Days in the Dome event in Milwaukee, where fellow athletes went on to compete on the indoor track for another five and a half days to see just how far they could run.…

15 MINUTES W ITH… MF: WHY ARE YOU TAKING ON THIS CHALLENGE? JM: “Last year I did 6km a day to represent the fact that, on average, men die six years younger than women – for no logical reason. This year the distance has gone up to 84km a week to represent the 84 men who take their lives every week, so it’s one kilometre for every guy who will die that week I’m running. I’m doing that throughout November to aid awareness of men’s suicide.” MF: HAVE YOU ALWAYS BEEN A RUNNER? JM: “No I haven’t, I only really got into running in the last few years. My sister was training for the London Marathon and I thought I would support her. I did a Couch to 5K programme…

A hiking trainer with a sense of cool, the SH/FT is Columbia’s answer to the new generation of city-based adventurers: time-poor urbanites who want to escape the hustle and bustle with minimum fuss. “We see a movement taking place as more young people are looking to nature and the outdoors to find balance and recharge from their busy lives in the city,” says Peter Ruppe, Vice President of Footwear at Columbia. “To answer that call, we’ve created an entirely new collection of footwear that speaks to their sense of urban style while delivering trail-worthy performance for the outdoors.” COLUMBIA SH/FT £135, columbia.com KEY FEATURES Weight: 425g (size 9.5) Modern aesthetic with high-energy colourways. SH/FT midsole featuring a dual compound cushioning composite that offers high resiliency for long-lasting use and energy…

SAXX KINETIC BOXERS £29, runnersneed.com With the soft seam placed on the inside rather than out, and a stretch micro-mesh fabric ensuring everything moves as you do, you’ll be hard pushed to find a comfier pair of briefs. A 'semi-compression' fit keeps everything in place. BJÖRN BORG STRETCH SHORTS £30 (pack of two), bjornborg.com Made from soft BCI cotton, these have a mid-rise waist with a medium leg length. A panel on the crotch keeps things stable (though some might want more support) and an all-over soft elastic microfiber means comfort is king. TREE TRUNK SUEME £20, sueme.com Made from fast-drying beech tree pulp, which is silky soft and odour-resistant, the seams are placed in out-of-the-way spots that aren’t prone to chafing. What's more, every pair comes with tree seeds…

1. BOX JUMP (4 sets x 3 reps) Simple: jump onto a box. Emphasise height, rather than using hip flexibility to get away with it. 2. POWER CLEAN TO PUSH PRESS 60% of your one-rep max (3 sets x 4 reps) For the clean, drive through your heels and catch the bar at your chest. Do 3 reps, then dip and drive into a push press for 2 reps, rest and repeat. 3. BACK SQUAT 70% of your 1RM (3 sets x 5 reps) Emphasise good form and squat through your heels. 4. SUPINE HAMSTRING HOLD (3 sets x 10 secs each leg) Lie on the floor with your feet on a bench, then straighten your whole body using the strength of your hamstring. Do a…

MERMAID POSE “Don’t let the graceful name fool you,” says Salamon, “because trying to get into this pose is never smooth. This is a glute, hip flexor and quad stretch that will unlock a human’s hips like no other. Starting in the better known pigeon stretch, engage your back hamstring to lift your leg in the air. Then grab the foot with the same hand, and pull it towards your bum, creating an incredibly intense quad stretch.” HORSE SQUAT “Not all yoga is about breathing and stretching,” says Salamon. “This is an unbelievable strengthener for the whole glute family and back extensors, while opening the groin – perfect for any athletes and lifters who want stability and explosiveness. Hold a yoga strap or pole above your head, like an overhead…

Physical work requires gear that’s up to the job: durable, all-action clothing capable of standing up to the elements and any on-site scrapes. The trouble is, such kit tends to be big, cumbersome and far from cool – suitable for work and work only. But Snickers Workwear wants that to change. With its range of technically advanced kit, the Swedish brand’s innovative, high-quality clothes are built not only to last, but to look the part – on site and at play. UP TO THE TEST Combining ergonomic body mapping designs with the latest fabric technology, each Snickers Workwear range – AllroundWork and RuffWork for physical work on site, and LiteWork and FlexiWork for more dual purpose needs – is tested in extreme conditions, from the Arctic to the Mediterranean, to…

MUSCLE Steadier weight lifting works individual muscles more. FREQUENCY Easier and faster recovery means you’ll be able to manage more workouts. EASE You won’t need to mentally steel yourself for a bike ride or strength session in the same way you will for a brutal HIIT session. OPTIONS With SST you can choose from a variety of disciplines, including cycling, swimming, power walking and weight lifting. ACHIEVEMENT Whether you’re striving to beat your 5k PB or one-rep max, you can test yourself without pushing to exhaustion.…

Over three-quarters of men reported positive changes to their health behaviours since becoming fathers, according to 2010 research published by the International Journal of Men’s Health. "Fatherhood", it concluded "may signal a shift away from individualism and lead to an elimination of negative behaviours, assuming more responsibilities, an increased perception of maturity, and self-reflection that instigates positive behaviour modifications." Becoming a dad was linked with acceptance of greater responsibilities towards families. This sometimes led to men re-establishing a relationship with their doctor and choosing a healthier lifestyle, so that they could accompany their children in games and activities.…

CHARRED PORK BANH MI SALAD INGREDIENTS (SERVES 4) - 500g pork tenderloin, thinly sliced - 2 tbsp caster sugar - 1 tbsp fish sauce - 3 garlic cloves - Bunch of spring onions, white parts chopped and green parts shredded - 3–4 carrots (about 350g), peeled and julienned or grated - 1 red chilli, finely chopped - 75ml rice wine vinegar - 1 romaine lettuce, shredded - ½ cucumber, peeled, deseeded and sliced - Bunch of coriander, leaves picked METHOD Put the pork in a dish. Whizz half the sugar, the fish sauce, garlic and the white parts of the spring onions in a mini food processor with a splash of water to make a paste. Pour over the meat and turn to coat. Set aside. Put the carrots…

1A. TWIST AREAS WORKED: internal and external obliques, quadratus lumborum (QL), erector spinae, lats Stand tall with soft knees, holding the ball in front of you. Twist from side to side, keeping your eyes on the ball and allowing your ankles to go with the movement. 1B. CHOP AREAS WORKED: delts, internal and external obliques, traps, pecs, lats Begin with the ball up in the air on your right-hand side. Chop it down to your left while bending your legs, turning your shoulders and allowing your lower body to go with the movement. Immediately return to the start position and go again. Once you’ve completed 10 reps, switch sides and go again. 1C. REVERSE LUNGE WITH OVERHEAD REACH AREAS WORKED: quads, hamstrings, calves, glutes, core, delts, traps,…

Christopher followed a Core De Force, MMA-inspired training routine with daily cardio sessions from 27 to 47 minutes in length. The workouts are set out in rounds, each consisting of two sets of combinations with two ‘burnout’ moves at the end. The moves include reach overs, 'jinga hops', 'down and ups' and mountain climbers, as well as… Striking: utilising hands, elbows, knees and legs to throw strikes, jabs, hooks and crosses to instruction. Half Superman Press-Ups: explosive press-ups, progressing from standard to one-handed. Switch Kicks: incorporating MMA push-kicks and round-kicks. Rear Knee, Switch Knee: MMA knee strike move with alternating knee raises.…

IN YOUR DREAMS New research has suggested that weird dreams are just the brain’s way of kicking back and making time for play.1 Playfulness in dreams (especially when we live overly serious lives) has the adaptive, survival-enhancing effect of stretching our minds to imagine more than what we believe is possible in our waking state. The study also explained that, based on testimony from participants woken from REM, this deep sleep phase is when we are most likely to dream and engage in mind play. METHOD OF LOCI Many memory masters use the loci (Latin for location) method for memorising numbers or names. This involves creating a journey in your mind where the items that need to be memorised are linked to locations or objects that are familiar to you. For…

REMOVE DISTRACTIONS Working out from home can save time and money, but you won't see any benefits unless you train with the same focus and intensity as you would in the gym. That means TV off and notifications on mute, so your attention is solely centred on the exercises to come. CREATE A CIRCUIT Speaking of exercises, as you're unlikely to have a stacked array of equipment, a circuit workout may be your best bet – combining a series of moves to form a lung-busting session. Try picking ten exercises (bodyweight or utilising any equipment to hand) and perform each for 50 seconds, take ten seconds rest, then move onto the next. Repeat the circuit twice more. FOCUS ON FORM Just because you're away from prying eyes doesn't mean you…

1. ‘SKIN THE CAT’ (45 secs on, 15 secs rest) Holding the bar, kick your legs through your hands, then lower towards the floor to feel a stretch in your shoulders. Reverse the whole movement, then repeat. 2. DRAGON FLAG (45 secs on, 15 secs rest) Holding onto a weight (or rack) on the floor, bring your entire body vertically into the air, then lower slowly. Too hard? Tuck your legs, or extend one at a time. 3. UPSIDE-DOWN DEADLIFTS (45 secs on, 15 secs rest) Holding a bar, turn upside down and, keeping your legs vertical, lower yourself until your back’s parallel to the floor, then bring yourself vertical again. Repeat as necessary. 4. AUSTRALIAN PULL-UPS (45 secs on, 15 secs rest) Holding a low…

At a time when men’s mental health is at crisis point and male suicide at an all-time high, the concept of masculinity has never looked so shaky. In Future Man, Tim Samuels argues that modern man – driven by a hunter gatherer sense of duty he is unable to fulfil and more often than not trapped in a nine-to-five office job that suffocates his need for nature – faces an uncertain future. So what can be done? WHY IS IT DIFFICULT TO BE A MODERN MAN? “There are two main reasons. The first is that, physically, we are living lives that our bodies are fundamentally not designed for, because we haven’t really evolved since caveman times. We are walking – or rather, sitting – around in bodies that are wired…

FOCUS ON FORM Poor execution can lead to a sprained ankle, pulled muscle or worse. “Work out in front of a mirror,” recommends PT Julia Buckley. “We can think we have correct technique, then when we see our reflection, we find we don’t!’” SEEK GUIDANCE Steve Tansey, head of research and development at Les Mills, notes it is a trainer’s role to “give information and options.” Don’t be afraid to ask. KNOW YOUR LIMITS HIIT workouts bring you to fatigue quicker, at which point your risk of injury skyrockets. LIMBER UP Putting such strain on your joints and muscles means it’s vital you warm up and cool down.…

Neil Sinclair The ex-Royal Engineer Commando has written a series of self-help books for dads. His first book, Commando Dad: New recruits, a guide to pregnancy and birth for dads-to-be, is written in no-nonsense military speak. It developed into a series including Commando Dad: Mission Adventure, get active with your kids. Currently he's cooking up a recipe book for busy dads who like getting their kids involved. Commando Dad is father to three children aged 17, 16 and 13. Next March he will attempt to run the infamous 30-mile commando fitness test, some 30 years after he first completed it to earn his green beret. See his work at commandodad.com. Rob Kemp Kemp has been writing for 16 years about fitness and fatherhood since the birth of his son. As…

Not content with world-first treks across Mongolia and Madagascar, a few months ago 28-year-old Welshman Ash Dykes became the first person to walk the entire length of China’s Yangtze river. The 6,437-mile expedition saw Dykes endure temperatures as low as -20°C and altitude as high as 5,000m – not to mention devastating landslides, police-enforced detours and encounters with wolves – but while others might be tempted to turn to cutting-edge tech to prepare for such extremes, the Welshman prefers a brutally effective back-to-basics approach. Men’s Fitness: What motivated you to say, you know what, I’m going to walk the length of the Yangtze? Ash Dykes “This is my profession – my career – and I’ve been doing it for the best part of a decade. I first experienced China when…

BALANCE MEALS £24 per day, balancemeals.co.uk Fresh ingredients and pleasantly surprising portion sizes make Balance Meals one of the best services we had the pleasure of taste-testing. We tried the all-vegan 'Power & Plants' plan, but there are several more to choose from – and there's even the option to create an entirely bespoke set of meals based on your personal preference. FRESH FITNESS FOOD £23 per day, freshfitnessfood.com Delicious, sustainably sourced and protein-rich food combined with fully biodegradable packaging makes Fresh Fitness Food the number one choice for fitness enthusiasts with an environmental conscience. Before you sign up, you get a comprehensive phone consultation with an adviser, who recommends your meals based on your training goals, then the rest is taken care of. NO 1 FOOD PREP From £5.20…

In the world of obstacle course racing (OCR), one man rules the roost: 30-year-old Brit Jonathan Albon has won every OCR World Championships since 2014, as well as the Spartan ultra-endurance World Championship twice. As if dominating one sport wasn’t enough, Albon is also the current world Skyrunning (mountain running) champion. Anyone who’s taken part in obstacle course events – think Tough Mudder, Adrenalin Rush, Tough Guy or elite Spartan OCR – will know that it pays to have trained across a number of disciplines to meet the multitasking challenges these contests present. For Albon, that cross-training approach not only provides the success (and prize money) he needs to make a living from the sport, it also boosts his strength and stamina for the ultra-marathon races he excels in. REGIME…

“Optimal training for the specific goal of hypertrophy is a controversial and complex topic,” explains Dr Josh Bakker-Dyos. “Don’t get too bogged down in the specifics and focus on the basics. Firstly, stick to compound exercises that utilise large muscle groups: squats, deadlifts, pull-ups, rows and presses (with some additional unilateral work such as lunges and step-ups). Secondly, pick a weight, set and rep regimen that approaches – but doesn’t exceed – failure and plan your training over several weeks, aiming for progression in total load lifted with a de-load for recovery approximately every four weeks. Finally, ensure good quality and balanced nutrition with adequate calorie and protein intake.”…

THE LEGEND OF CARDIO KILLING MUSCLE BEGAN DECADES AGO, WITH A STUDY THAT ASKED PARTICIPANTS TO TRAIN A HUGE VOLUME OF CARDIO SESSIONS ALONGSIDE HIGH-INTENSITY RESISTANCE EXERCISES. UNSURPRISINGLY, YOU CAN’T HAVE THE ATHLETIC PROWESS OF BOTH MO FARAH AND EDDIE HALL, AND PARTICIPANTS DIDN’T GAIN MUSCLE. A 2013 STUDY IN THE JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY, HOWEVER, HELPED RESET UNDERSTANDING. COMPLEMENTING RESISTANCE EXERCISES WITH CARDIO WAS ACTUALLY FOUND TO INCREASE MUSCLE GROWTH: TWO TO THREE SESSIONS OF 20-MINUTE CARDIO A WEEK SEEMS TO BE THE SWEET SPOT.…

BODY POWER PRO-HOME GYM WITH LEG PRESS ATTACHMENT £1,589, fitness-superstore.co.uk Working out from home doesn’t have to mean cardio and bodyweight exercises: this all-in-one machine caters for chest, arms, back and legs, with a 90kg weight stack offering up plenty of resistance. The star of the show is the attachable leg press, but there’s also a lat pulldown bar, seated chest and low-row stations for everything from presses to curls. It doesn’t come cheap, but it does do it all. JLLIC300 INDOOR CYCLING BIKE £189.99, jllfitness.co.uk Easy to assemble and, at less than £200, an absolute steal, this bike from JLL is studio quality and features everything you need for keeping fit while watching Corrie. It lacks the bells and whistles of more expensive options, but you do get heart-rate…

BEST FOR STRENGTH... SPARTAN BARBELL CLUB Spartan Performance, Consett Deadlift. Squat. Press. Row. Learning good technique for the basic barbell lifts is an investment that will pay off for the rest of your fitness career, and there aren’t many better teachers than Spartan Performance, run by Natural Strongman Champ Jack Lovett. Chalk up, get strong and learn the basic biomechanics of moves every gym-goer should know. BENEFITS: absolute strength, technique, confidence on the gym floor DIFFICULTY: spartanperformance.co.uk YARD WORK The Manor, London Concrete. Metal. Sweat. OK, the Manor’s signature gym session sounds a tiny bit like prison, but then it’s designed to get trainees comfortable with the uncomfortable, pushing its participants with a blend of sled-pushing, tyre-flipping and load-carrying that’s designed to be manageable – if brutally difficult – for…

Standing tall on the Versaclimber, turn your palms to face in towards you, knuckles facing up. Start with short strides and ensure the engagement of the arms by starting to pull down as you stride rather than pushing down with your legs. When you’re ready, reach up and pull the handles down, taking the weight of the exercise (resting the legs). Pull in tight so your elbow comes as low as possible before moving to the other arm. After 45 secs, return to short strides and get your heart rate down. After 15 secs go again, ensuring your full effort for the entire 45 secs. Keep going for 4 mins.…

Men are three and a half times more likely than women to take their own lives. Suicide is the biggest killer of males between ten and 34 years of age. The prison population of the US is 93 per cent male. Boys lag a year behind girls at reading in every industrialised country and are six times more likely to be diagnosed with attention defecit disorder than girls. Men develop heart disease ten years earlier than women. Sixty per cent of homeless people in the US are men. One fifth of men in relationships will have an affair.…

VARIETY You can cram a session with lots of different exercises. COST By training with your bodyweight, wherever you want, there’s no need for an expensive gym membership. TIME In 20 minutes or less, you can burn an impressive amount of calories. MOOD The rush you’ll get from accomplishing a challenging workout will keep you buzzing for hours. HEALTH Research indicates HIIT can improve conditions including heart health and diabetes.…

He may be best known as the man behind Anthony Joshua’s knockout power, but Nike Master Trainer Jamie Reynolds has also worked with a number of up-and-coming fighters and a crop of current Premier League players. MF sat down with @jamie_velocity to talk S&C, core values and the unique drive of elite athletes. MF: The athletes you work with are predominantly footballers and boxers – on the face of it, they’re two very different disciplines, but are there any training methods you employ for both? JR: “When it comes to the work that these guys do in the gym, the truth is that around 70 to 80 per cent of it is the same no matter the sport. The systems and principles used to help make a footballer stronger aren’t…

BODPOD This space-age looking device measures percentage body fat, lean mass, total body mass, height, BMI and can provide other estimated data using two readings that take around three minutes. £40, bcom.ac.uk DEXA SCAN Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry passes a low dose of dual-energy X-rays through the body that provides detailed information about the ratio between fat, muscle and bones. You lie on a padded table clothed and the scan takes about five minutes. £139, beyondphysio.com TANITA BIA SCAN A range of devices are offered with varying levels of sophistication. Models found in gyms should usually have the greatest frequency range and therefore accuracy, with the safe electrical current sent through your body via hand and foot pads and results reported via an app. Prices and models vary, stocked at…

Old people with absolutely no lifting experience have the same ability to build muscle as those of a similar age with a long history of strength training. That’s according to research conducted by the University of Birmingham, which found ‘master athletes' – people over the age of 70 who had lifted weights all their life – and healthy people of the same age who had never followed a structured training plan were able to build muscle mass at similar rates. Dr. Leigh Breen, one of the chief scientists involved, said: "Our study clearly shows that it doesn't matter if you haven't been a regular exerciser throughout your life, you can still derive benefit from exercise whenever you start. “Obviously a long-term commitment to good health and exercise is the best…

There are a hundred different ways to foam roll, but here we’re going to keep it simple and show you one method of rolling – and 11 different areas to use it on. As a general rule, roll from the furthest part of your body towards the heart, two inches or so at a time. If you were rolling your calf, for example, you would begin at the Achilles and roll up and down about two inches at a time, slowly work up the calf towards your knee. Once you get to just below the knee, if you fancy going over your calf again, do the same thing: begin at the Achilles and repeat the process.…

I visited my GP for what I believed was just raised blood pressure, but was met with a rather blunt warning: unless I took immediate action, I might not have long left to live,” explains Christopher Pandolfo, who at the time of his GP check was a 121kg pre-diabetic. “The GP wanted to put me on the list for gastric surgery, but it was something I absolutely refused to do. My mum had passed away, aged 33, from complications arising after a weight-loss procedure of her own. She had lost some weight but never really addressed the reasons why she put the weight on, so I felt it wasn't the route for me.” COACH CALLING Christopher’s mum’s death had triggered a downward spiral in his lifestyle. He says his 20s…

“The first protocol is called Escalating Density Training,” explains Walker. “This is a workout performed not by sets or reps, but by time. We used bench press and bent-over row, because they are opposing muscle groups meaning that as you do one exercise, in theory, you’re resting the other. We estimate the 10-rep max for each exercise and aim to do 8 reps with good form before moving onto the next. Form must stay correct, so after a few sets you must begin to drop the repetitions all the way down to 1 rep if that’s what you need to do. The only number that we look at is the total number of reps performed per exercise. That will be your PB for that pairing; the aim is to beat…