Coach Damrow

10/05/2022

One last time for those in the back.

A muscle cannot tone.

It can either grow or shrink

The toning you see is the muscle becoming more visible due to:

1) dropping body fat around the muscle
2) increasing the size of the muscle

Or more commonly, a combination of the two.

Higher reps will not have an effect on this.

Any good weight training program where you focus on getting stronger and training consists combined with good nutrition will accomplish this goal.

⬇️🎤

09/05/2022

I know some of the things that I say sometimes can be a bit hard to wrap your head around.

This is because building muscle can become quite complex when you do a deep dive.

However, you can still achieve amazing results if you follow just a few simple steps.

Also, I think we can all see why I never became an artist now.

Please feel free to use this post as a cue to ask any specific questions about any of the points as they relate to your journey.

Ask me in a direct message or in the comments

06/05/2022

As usual, I don't think the answer is simply one or the other but a combination of the two.

Set your calorie target then focus on getting your fruit and veg in first. 2 and 5 is always a great rule of thumb 👍

From there you will mostly want "clean" sources of protein. Getting all your protein from "dirty" food will also come with a lot of carbs and fats and you may end up over your calories.

Once you have fruit, veg, and a fair amount of your protein in you can start adding in some dirty food to hit your calorie target.

You also want to keep an eye on your fiber intake but you should be okay if you follow the 2 and 5.

05/05/2022

The Lateral raise seems to be one of the most scrutinised exercise in terms of different techniques.

You always hear don't do it this way or that way and my way is best.

Perhaps though, all options are okay given you adjust the weight for your technique choice and you are taking the muscle through it's full range of motion.

04/05/2022

Eating back exercise calories.

There are a few main issues with this mindset:

1) Smart watches are grossly inaccurate when it comes to calorie expenditure and normally overestimate. This is perhaps the biggest issue as you will not only be re-eating what you burned but much more.

2) If you're doing this because you're hungry and you want more food I have news for you... exercising will just make you even hungrier.

3) Your daily intake target may already account for exercise calories.

At the end of the day, if you're exercising to be able to eat more you are putting yourself in a bad position both physically and mentally.

03/05/2022

There is no such things as a superfood.

A superfood is simply a food that has a higher amount of nutrients than others.

They don't have any particularly amazing properties that will instantly stop aging or prevent disease.

If you eat a healthy balanced diet you will get most (if not all) of these nutrients anyway.

Save your money on the superfoods and eat your fruit and veggies.

03/05/2022

You do not need squats!

That's not to say that squats can't me useful.

I squat!

But at the same time they scare the sh out of me.

Plus there have been times where I just haven't wanted to train and have even blown it off because I knew I had to squat.

If you hate squats and you are actively avoiding training because you think you have to do them, you don't.

You can get still build a whole hepa of muscle and strength without them.

28/04/2022

Does this sound like you?

If it does you have a few options:

1) You keep enjoying your "naughty food" on the weekends and learn to love your body how it is. This is a totally valid option.

2) you bring your calories down a little bit lower during the weekends and still have a little bit of fun on the weekend. This will help to bring your weekly average intake into a deficit

3) you choose a period of time which you go into deep focus mode - no takeaway, no drinking; just eating the food you make at home. You can even make this a short burst of 2-4 weeks then go back to a bit more fun on the weekends (returning to maintenance) then repeat. These are known as fat loss sprints.

4) you plan your weekends a bit better. If you are going to go out for food then just have lean sources of protein and fruit or veg for the rest of the day to help keep your total calories for the day lower.

27/04/2022

26/04/2022