Sigma Nutrition Radio

On his blog James primarily writes on how we can create better habits, make better decisions, and live better lives. He combines ideas from a wide range of disciplines including biology, neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, and more. He is the author of Atomic Habits, the creator of the Habits Academy, a weightlifter, and a travel photographer in over 30 countries. In This Episode We Discuss Where James' interest in habits stemmed from The meaning behind "Atomic Habits" Where to start when deciding what habits to change? How do we stick we these new habits? How to help others (clients/patients) build new habits Environment design: things that act as obstacles that we may not be aware of Preventing loss of momentum when schedule or environment is thrown off, for example shift work or travel How long to build a new habit? And does it matter? Buy tickets for Sigma Nutrition Radio LIVE! here: http://sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

When it comes to health engagement, Dr. Bobinet has 5 words of advice: be caring, authentic, and useful. As the CEO-founder of engagedIN, Kyra devotes her life to helping people crack the code of how, what, and especially, WHY we engage. Kyra has founded several healthcare start-ups, spanning behavior health, population health, and mobile health. She has designed behavior change programs, big data algorithms, billion dollar products, mobile health apps, and evidence-based studies in mind-body and metabolic medicine. All of her designs, whether for at-risk teens or seniors, are rooted in the belief that true caring is our greatest value. Dr. Bobinet teaches at Stanford School of Medicine on patient engagement and empowerment, and health design with Dr. Larry Chu, founder of MedicineX. She has studied in Dr. BJ Fogg's Persuasive Tech Lab at Stanford, whom she credits as the founder of "behavior design". Dr. Bobinet received her Masters in Public Health at Harvard University, specializing in Healthcare Management, Technology-enabled Behavior Change, and Population Health Management. She received her medical degree from the UCSF School of Medicine. In This Episode We Discuss What design thinking is, in relation to behaviour change Not letting a failure/lack of progress lead to abandonment of trying Modifying eating habits and behaviours Dealing with deeply embedded "programs" that subciously affect our ability to change Negative self-image in the fitness industry Motivation in the behaviour change process Those who self-doubt what they can achieve: "oh other people can do that, but I wouldn't be able to" . ATTEND SIGMA NUTRITION RADIO LIVE: sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

John is Senior Lecturer in Elite Performance at the Institute of Coaching & Performance at the University of Central Lancashire. He has published a long list of peer-reviewed work, notably on stress and periodization, and is well known for questioning conventional dogmas withing strength & conditioning literature and practice. John's career within sport has been relatively varied, having experienced life as an international competitor, coach, sports scientist and strength and conditioning specialist. He has been the head of S&C at UK athletics, a S&C coach to Olympic medallists & world champions, as well as working with teams at both Rugby & Soccer World Cups. In This Episode We Discuss Issues translating research into practice How is a critical thinking mindset fostered/developed/trained? Scepticism vs. nihilism Cognitive bias: pitfalls for coaches or practitioners SNR LIVE: sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

Jamie Pugh is a post-doctoral research at Liverpool John Moores University. During his PhD and current work, he has looked at the effect exercise can have on the gastrointestinal system and in more recent work, looked at the effects probiotic supplementation can have on endurance athletes. He has also worked as a consultant nutritionist and physiologist for a number of professional teams and extreme endurance athletes. In This Episode We Discuss The range and severity of symptoms athletes experience Causes of symptoms: physiological, mechanical and nutritional Individual variation in susceptibility to symptoms Lack of association between gut "damage" and symptoms experienced GI distress outside of endurance sport Maximal rates of glucose ingestion: higher than previously thought? Effect of glutamine supplementation Effect of probiotic supplementation Effect of low FODMAP diets Practical steps for practitioners and athletes to mitigate risk JOIN ME IN DUBLIN! Come to Sigma Nutrition Radio LIVE on November 24th. Tickets on sale now: http://sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

Artin is a medical doctor, currently completing his intern rotations at Helsingborg Hospital, Sweden. He is also currently completing a PhD in Artificial Intelligence in eVisits in Primary Care. Outside of medicine, Artin co-founded EBT (Evidence Based Training), a brand dedicated to making science on health, fitness and nutrition digestible and understandable to the public, mostly through Instagram, but also their blog. In This Episode We Discuss What it means to simplify science How to have a discussion, levels of argument Study types: expert opinions, observational, experimental. Reading studies: what to be looking out for Translating research into practice Understanding statistics in research: p-value, confidence intervals Sigma Nutrition Radio LIVE! Tickets: sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

Book: 'Making Weight' - The Ultimate Science Based Guide to Cutting Weight for Combat Sports Ian is currently the Director and Principal Consultant of Melius Consulting and has a PhD from the University of Western Australia (UWA), where he worked with elite sporting organisations/athletes to optimise sleep, recovery and performance. He is also the Director of Sleep4Performance and an Adjunct Researcher at Monash University, Australia. Ian has worked with elite and highly trained athletes at the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), West Australian Institute of Sport (WAIS), professional teams in Super Rugby, Australian Rules Football, Basketball, Swimming, Ultrarunners and Martial Arts such as Boxing, & MMA. He is an ultrarunner, completing over 20 ultramarathons to date including the Ultra Trail Australia ~100km (7 times), Leadville~100 miler, numerous other marathons and trail running events. He is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Purple belt and enjoys cross training in wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and kettlebells. He is now focusing on improving his swimming to undertake open water swimming events in 2018/19. He was a TEDx Perth speaker in 2017. He has co-authored technical reports, guidelines for industry organisations and authored a number of scientific articles and is a regular reviewer for scientific peer reviewed journals. Ian is the host of Sleep4Performance radio a podcast dedicated to education, knowledge sharing and promotion of the value of managing sleep. In This Episode We Discuss Weight cutting study: impact on sleep Does low fibre dieting lead to worse sleep? Effects of caloric restriction on sleep Impact of anxiety and nervousness on week of competition Brain trauma and sleep Demands for sleep with increased training workload Impact of late night training

Valentin is a pro natural bodybuilder and coach based in Vienna, Austria. He has been working as a personal trainer and physique coach for several years. As an athlete he is a professional natural bodybuilder with the IPE. Valentin is also a speaker at Intelligent Strength for their Strength Coach program. In This Episode We Discuss Ideal body composition at the start of a contest prep Recommended length of contest prep for natural athletes How competition frequency should change with experience level Off-season length and building in mini-cuts Strategic use of diet breaks during prep Understanding conditioning: how lean is "lean enough"? Weekly refeeds: setting the correct duration Peak week carbohydrate intake: front-loading vs. back-loading, and other considerations Come to Sigma Nutrition Radio LIVE! in Dublin this November: sigmanutrition.com/snr-live

Tickets: http://sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/ Four true world-class experts in the world of nutritional sciences will join SNR host Danny Lennon for a day of deep-diving conversations on the most cutting-edge and important topics in nutrition. Joining Danny on stage will be: --> Martin MacDonald - Mac-Nutrition --> Kirsty Elliot-Sale, PhD - NTU --> James Morton, PhD - Team Sky & LJMU --> Nicola Guess, PhD, RD - King's College, London TICKET INFO: http://sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

Jake is a registered dietitan and a human nutrition researcher. His work focuses on diet, muscle & metabolism. He is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Integrated Physiology and Molecular Medicine at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center. He is also a contractor in Inflammation and Immunity research at the renowned Cleveland Clinic. In This Episode We Discuss Understanding evidence-based research Can sugar, without caloric excess, still have detrimental health effects? Cleveland Clinic study: effect of wholegrains vs. refined grains on glucose metabolism How much sugar counts as a 'high intake'? At what intakes we see issues Insulin resistance, AGEs and other issues Sigma Nutrition Radio LIVE! - Event in Dublin: sigmanutrition.com/snr-live/

Elise Facer-Childs is currently a Doctoral Researcher working at the University of Birmingham on sleep, circadian rhythms and neuroimaging. She works with human participants to uncover the impact that our body clocks can have on brain structure and function, genetics, physiology and performance. Elise has presented her research at an International Conference for the European Biological Rhythms Society (EBRS)/World Chronobiology Congress (WCC) and has given presentations at the UK's largest circadian conferences (UK Clock Club). In This Episode We Discuss Understanding circadian phenotypes Neuroimaging (fMRI) to understand how the brain is affected by time of day Time of day vs. time relative to internal circadian clock Practical implications for "night owls" and "morning larks" Personal best performance times differ significantly between circadian phenotypes Circadian phase shifting http://sigmanutrition.com/sigma-synopsis/

Erica is a registered dietitian, currently completing a PhD at the University of Central Florida in Orlando. Previously she was employed as a Clinical and Sports Dietitian at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, where Erica provided individual sports nutrition consultation to endurance and team sport athletes, in addition to providing care and educating oncology patients in the hospital. She has a M.A. in Exercise Science and Health Promotion from FAU, in addition to a B.S. in Nutrition and Dietetics from UNF. She is also a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with the NSCA, and a Certified Sports Nutritionist with the ISSN. In This Episode We Discuss Defining iron deficiency and iron deficiency anaemia Iron-deficiency anaemia: diagnosis and symptoms Why is iron so crucial for athlete performance? The role of hepcidin Dilutional pseudoanaemia Heel strike hemolysis How sources of iron differ in quality or bio-availability Supplementation: dosage, forms, etc.

Carl is an exercise scientist with a PhD in physical activity epidemiology. He is also the founder of the Dr. Muscle app. In This Episode We Discuss Influence of mechanical tension, muscle damage and metabolic stress on hypertrophy Does muscle damage really cause hypertrophy? Research for and against muscle damage being important. Practical implications Volume vs. mechanical tension

Andi and Alex are the guys behind Intelligent Strength, a company that produces education on strength training and body composition through seminars and books. The brothers also have a gym in Vienna, Austria; Das Gym. Das Gym is a truly unique place. And when you talk to Alex & Andi you immediately understand why. The gym opened in 2016 and it's hard to imagine there being another place like it on the planet. Andi has a long career as a coach and educator. As an athlete he first competed in strongman and powerlifting, and in more recent years has competed in bodybuilding. Alex, in addition to his work with Intelligent Strength, also works as a physical education teacher at a school in Vienna. As an athlete, he has competed in powerlifting for a long-time. This has included competing at several IPF world championships and winning Gold in the deadlift at the European championships. In This Episode We Discuss Alex and Andi's childhood influences What got them into lifting weights Experiences as coaches and athletes Lessons training can teach you about life What the goals of Intelligent Strength are

sigmanutrition.com/mnu Martin is a clinical performance nutritionist and the founder of Mac-Nutrition, a thriving nutrition consultancy boasting sought after long-term internship and weekend mentorship programs. He has also developed Mac-Nutrition Uni, the UK's first ever evidence-based, nutrition course that can be completed online. Martin has worked as a performance nutritionist in elite sport with British Weight Lifting, Derby County Football Club, English swimming and other elite sport organizations. He has lectured at the University of Derby and has guest lectured on the prestigious MSc Sport and Exercise Nutrition course at Loughborough University. In This Episode We Discuss Martin's undergraduate education What drew Martin to nutrition The early life influences that developed interests in bodybuilding or in science The moments/experiences in his education that stand out as the most important or influential to Martin Martin's work in elite sport How Martin had became disillusioned with the fitness industry before he started MNU The unexpected benefits students have reported from doing MNU Martin's interests outside of nutrition/work sigmanutrition.com/mnu

Kevin received his Bachelor's in Psychology from Washington State University, before completing his Masters Degree in Counseling Psychology at Pacific University. His focus remained on anxiety and models for working with children, which led to completing anxiety focused training during his tenure at Pacific University. During this time, he authored three publications on anxiety and completed his dissertation on the effectiveness of Collaborative Problem Solving. Kevin has earned certification in treating OCD and Hoarding Disorder from the International Obsessive Compulsive Disorder Foundation (IOCDF) Behavior Therapy Training Institute (BTTI). Though he has presented at local and national conferences, he has found his true calling with public speaking on the topic of anxiety, often being recruited for providing lectures and workshops in the Portland community. ​ Kevin aims to provide effective, evidence-based treatment to individuals struggling with anxiety disorders using humor, kindness, and compassion. He believes Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is effective when he is able to help clients shift their relationship with anxiety while not taking themselves too seriously. Kevin likes to empower his clients by saying (in regards to Exposure Response Prevention) "you're already miserable, you may as well be miserable on purpose." In This Episode We Discuss Defining anxiety accurately "Am I doing the action based on fear or preference?" How to not be crippled by uncertainty Relationship between anxiety and depression Exposure therapy and evidence-based strategies used in practice Focused on the past: feelings of guilt, shame, perhaps depression. How do we prevent ruminating on things that happened in the past?

Ciaran has a BSc. in Sport & Exercise Science from the University of Limerick. He currently is a strength & conditioning coach in Cork, Ireland and works online with combat sport athletes on their nutrition and fight prep here at Sigma Nutrition. He has experience as a fighter himself, competing at a national-level for many years in amateur boxing, as well as competing in kickboxing, K1 and BJJ. Paper Reviewed: Silveira-Coswig et al., 2018 – Weight Regain, But Not Weight Loss, Is Related to Competitive Success in Real-life Mixed Martial Arts Competition sigmanutrition.com/weightcut

Lachlan Mitchell, RD, PhD Candidate As a qualified dietitian Lachlan has worked both in the public and private health systems at Hervey Bay Hospital, Hunter New England Diabetes Service and a private weight loss clinic in Newcastle. It was in these settings Lachlan provided high quality, evidence based nutrition advice to a variety of patient groups, including intensive care, cardiology, diabetes, paediatrics and weight loss. Lachlan has held numerous positions in the academic world. He spent time at Australian Catholic University as a lecturer and tutor teaching a nutrition and exercise unit as part of the exercise science degree program. Whilst living in Ireland he was head-hunted by Athlone Institute of Technology to co-write the course curriculum and syllabus for many units of study for a new exercise physiology degree. Lachlan has also spent time at University of New South Wales tutoring in physical activity and health. Lachlan is currently undertaking a PhD in metabolism and bodybuilding at the University of Sydney.

Bryce is the founder of The Strength Athlete and is a world-class elite-level powerlifter in the IPF. Bryce competes in the -105 kg class, winning USAPL Raw Nationals in both 2016 and 2017, as well as winning silver at the IPF World Championships in Minsk in 2017. Through his success as an elite lifter, Bryce's dream is to pass on his knowledge and skills through The Strength Athlete (TSA) powerlifting coaching services online. Bryce passionately advocates for the application and love of the sciences, evidence-based philosophies, and skepticism of pseudoscience. Off the back of his 2017 Raw Nationals win with a 890 kg total (315/220/355), Bryce will again represent the USA at IPF Worlds this year in Calgary, Canada. In This Episode We Discuss Preparing for world championships Modifications made over the past year How some weight loss has helped deadlift leverage for Bryce Family background of athleticism, How was that cultivated as you grew up? exploring how psychology and sport psychology practices can affect lifting how thinking about athlete development is not simply about how do we increase physical performance through training Is there a distinction between building a better athlete and a better person? What Bryce has improved on to become a better athlete How athletes identify themselves; implications of tying their whole identity and/or self-worth to being an ahtlete On what idea have The Strength Athlete team yet to reach a consensus or common position stand on? europeanpowerliftingconference.com

Ted is a personal trainer and podcaster. He has worked with Fortune 500 CEOs, busy professionals and celebrities, including Richard Branson and Robert Downey Jr. Many of his clients are middle-aged executives who want a trainer to help them stay in shape and keep their energy levels high and stress levels low. He also counsels his clients on the proper use of supplements and offers nutritional advice. He believes in using science and scientifically proven methods to achieve the best fitness results. Ryce's goal in all of his efforts has been to help other people lead better, more fulfilling lives—legendary lives. Through his podcast, his coaching and his other projects, he has reached thousands of people and helped them achieve their goals. In This Episode We Discuss Ted's background, including training Robert Downey Jnr! Impact of social isolation on health; both pyschological and physiological How does exercise and nutrition help psychology, anxiety, etc. What if you already exercise, eat well and have good body composition, but are still "unhealthy"? Flow (from the work of Czikszentmihalyi) and trying to manifest this state in life Application over knowledge

Hugh is currently with the English Institute of Sport working as the Performance Psychologist to the British Weightlifting team. Hugh worked with these lifters in the lead-up to the most recent Olympic Games in Rio 2016. Hugh has a MSc. in Applied Sport and Exercise Psychology. And is accredited by The Irish Institute of sport, the British Association of Sport and Exercise Science (BASES), and the British Psychological Society. Hugh has also worked with high-level athletes across a number of other sports, including All-Ireland winners, World Champions & Olympians. In This Episode We Discuss Misconceptions among athletes as to the role of sport psychology False consensus bias Pseudoscience in psychology vs. evidence-based practice Enhancing athlete confidence Model of perceived demands, perceived resources and perceived importance Achieving optimal arousal for performance: how psyched up should you get? Differences in external factors in competition vs. training Why being positive when setting goals can actually be a bad thing! europeanpowerliftingconference.com

Stephan is a PostDoc researcher in the Center for Human Nutrition at Washington University School of Medicine. Stephan's research is focused on muscle metabolism. Stephan completed his PhD research at the University of Illinois, examining the regulation of postprandial protein metabolism after food ingestion and exercise. In This Episode We Discuss Do nutrient-dense whole foods have a different anabolic response to isolated protein? Stephan's study: 18g protein from whole eggs vs. 18g protein from egg whites, which showed superior MPS response for whole eggs. Implications of higher nitrogen retention Hypothesis that higher protein intakes (closer to 3 g.kg) may impart a benefit for immune function in athletes engaged in very intense training? Is there a dampened anabolic response to protein feeding in overweight/obese people? patreon.com/sigmanutrition

Dr Sophie Killer is a senior member of the English Institute of Sport Performance Nutrition Team where she's worked as the Lead Performance Nutritionist for British Athletics, supporting the Olympic and Paralympic Track & Field athletes since 2015. She completed her PhD in Exercise Metabolism & Performance Nutrition at Loughborough University. Sophie has gained a wealth of experience working as a nutrition consultant across a range of elite athletes from individual cyclists, runners and triathletes through to team sports, including supporting British Basketball during the London 2012 Olympic Games and spending 4 seasons working in the Premier League. Sophie continues to engage in research through collaborations with Loughborough University, Nottingham Trent University and the University of Surrey. She is a Visiting Fellow in Sports Nutrition at Loughborough University where she is involved in PhD supervision and sessional lecturing. She has 10 publications to date, sits on the Editorial Board of the BioMed Central Nutrition Journal, is a Review Editor for Frontiers in Nutrition and is an invited reviewer for the EJSS, IJSNEM and IJSPP. sigmanutrition.com/competition

Jacob Schepis is the owner & director of JPS Health & Fitness, where he has helped thousands of individuals improve their strength, body composition and well being through evidence based resistance training and nutrition. Taking a scientific based approach to training and diet has enabled Jacob to excel in a variety of sports, including playing VFL, bodybuilding, where he has won multiple state and international titles, along with competing in the International Powerlifting Federation, where he has competed at a national level and achieved a top 8 Ranking in Australia. Having worked in the industry for over 8 years, Jacob's wealth of knowledge coupled with his experience in the trenches has led him to become one of Melbourne's most sought out trainers. His role has extended fate beyond working with his beloved clients, to now mentoring aspiring personal trainers, holding workshops and seminars, and writing for the nations personal training governing body, Physical Activity Australia. In This Episode We Discuss Coaching Philosophy; Increasing your value ceiling. Pragmatic Coaching; Avoiding being esoteric whilst upholding EBP Refining Your Craft; Self Awareness, Self-efficacy and Career Development

Question Topics Coffee and appetite Gelatin consumption [11:10] Protein timing [14:10] The relationship between dietary cholesterol intake and cholesterol levels in the body [20:40] Increasing carbs after ketogenic diet [20:38] Is too much fiber a problem? [29:37] Anti-oxidant supplementation (mainly Vitamin C and E) and training adaptation [33:25] Do additives/preservatives accumulate in tissues? [36:20] Will increasing exercise lower NEAT? [39:55] Intermittent fasting for women [46:31]

Professor Phillips is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Skeletal Muscle Health. In addition to being a full Professor in Kinesiology, also an Adjunct Professor in the School of Medicine at McMaster University. He is a fellow of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM) and the American College of Nutrition (ACN). His research is focused on the impact of nutrition and exercise on human skeletal muscle protein turnover. He is also keenly interested in diet- and exercise-induced changes in body composition. His research is funded by the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, the National Science and Engineering Council of Canada, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation as well as the USDA. He has received more than $2.4 million in research funding in the last 3 years. Dr. Phillips was the recipient of a New Investigator Award from the Canadian Institutes for Health Research and the Ontario Premier's Research Excellence Award and in 2003 received the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology Young Investigator Award. He currently has more than 18000 career citations, and 200 original scientific research and review papers. In This Episode We Discuss How good of a proxy for muscle growth is muscle protein synthesis? Recommendations for daily and per-meal protein intake to maximize MPS The influence of a calorie deficit on muscle protein balance: do you need more? Whole eggs lead to greater MPS than egg whites: discussion of research paper Anabolic resistance and strategies to overcome it

Carl Juneau, PhD is an exercise scientist with a PhD in physical activity epidemiology. He is also the founder of the Dr. Muscle app. In This Episode We Discuss Theory of effective reps Influence of mechanical tension, muscle damage and metabolic stress on hypertrophy Does metabolic stress really cause hypertrophy? Or is it just a by-product of mechanical tension? Methods to make use of a higher number of effective reps: rest-pause, myo-reps, drop sets, etc. Exercise selection for such methods Role of rest intervals: the U-shaped curve developed by Carl Juneau and James Krieger How strategies change with experience level

Kurtis Frank graduated from the University of Guelph with a bachelor's degree in Applied Human Nutrition. During his undergraduate studies in human nutrition, he co-founded the website Examine.com to gather and present as much evidence-based information on dietary supplements as possible in as unbiased a manner as possible. To that end, Kurtis worked tirelessly for seven years to make Examine the premier resource on the Internet for learning about the science of supplementation. Today, it boasts guides on over 500 supplements containing over 41,000 scientific citations. Kurtis then became Director of Research for Legion Athletics, a company that produces evidence-based supplements. There, he takes an active role in managing the scientific advisory board, creating new and improving existing formulations, writing informative articles on our blog, and generally guiding the scientific direction of the company. In This Episode We Discuss What is an accurate way to think about the placebo effect? How the placebo effect and actual drug effect are not mutually exclusive Should coaches actively "placebo their clients"? The nocebo effect People using supplements to "reduce inflammation": do they have a reason? What anti-inflammatory compounds actually work? Supplements for joint pain and joint health: what works and what doesn't? Supplements that help with sleep quality and sleep onset

Links: Go to episode page DIETFITS Trial About This Episode: Prof. Gardner is the Director of Nutrition Studies at the Stanford Prevention Research Center and a professor of medicine at Stanford University. He received his PhD in Nutritional Sciences at the University of California, Berkeley in 1993. His postgraduate training included a postdoctoral fellowship in cardiovascular disease epidemiology at Stanford. Dr. Gardner is passionate about two central questions that keep him up at night and get him to jump out of bed most mornings. The first of these is: What can people eat and drink (or avoid/limit) to optimize their health? Dr. Gardner has recently shifted much of his energies to a second and more challenging question: What forces and factors can successfully motivate people to improve their food and beverage choice behaviors? Study Discussed: Gardner et al., 2018 – Effect of Low-Fat vs Low-Carbohydrate Diet on 12-Month Weight Loss in Overweight Adults and the Association With Genotype Pattern or Insulin Secretion: The DIETFITS Randomized Clinical Trial

Ari Snaevarsson currently works as a dietetic technician at a residential treatment center for patients with eating disorders. He graduated from Gettysburg College with his Bachelor's in Health Sciences and worked there also as a research assistant. His Capstone research was titled "How aggressively can hospitalized adolescents with anorexia nervosa be refed to prevent irreversible adverse outcomes or death?" In addition, Ari works, separate from the eating disorder field, as a Precision Nutrition Level 1 certified nutrition consultant at True Fitness & Nutrition. In This Episode We Discuss Defining anorexia nervosa & refeeding syndrome How and why we see severe hypophosphatemia play out What is the current standard of care for hospitalized anorexic patients? Is their alternatives to current standard practice that have potential? What sort of surpluses lead to appropriate rates of weight gain? Differences between whole food refeeds vs. feed tube vs. TPN (intravenous)

Go to the episode page here. Jordan Feigenbaum is an experienced strength coach who also has his medical degree and residency training. In addition to a veritable laundry list of credentials, Jordan is also an elite powerlifter. In This Episode We Discuss Benefits of strength training for health Why aren't recommendations to do resistance training not more widespread in medical practice? Misinterpretation of evidence-based practice Is it better to recommend people do "any exercise they like" or persuade them to strength train?

James Krieger is the founder of Weightology. He has a Master's degree in Nutrition from the University of Florida and a second Master's degree in Exercise Science from Washington State University. He is the former research director for a corporate weight management program that treated over 400 people per year, with an average weight loss of 40 pounds in 3 months. His former clients include the founder of Sylvan Learning Centers and The Little Gym, the vice president of Costco, and a former vice president of MSN. James is a published scientist, author, and speaker in the field of exercise and nutrition. He has published research in prestigious scientific journals, including the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and the Journal of Applied Physiology. In This Episode We Discuss The recent systematic review and meta-analysis that James co-authored on training frequency and strength gain Volume for strength & hypertrophy: how many sets should you do? How much difference does a calorie surplus make for muscle gain? How much difference does a calorie surplus make for strength? What variables outside of training volume drive results? healthiq.com/sigma

Arthur Lynch is a exercise physiology researcher currently pursuing his PhD at the University of Limerick. His current research focuses on the role of HMB supplementation on hypertrophy and strength performance in well-trained individuals. Arthur is an accomplished drug-free powerlifter, representing Ireland at the last two IPF World Championships and heading there again this year. He is current Irish Powerlifting Ferderation national champion in the -93kg class. Arthur coaches online here at Sigma Nutrition, working with powerlifters of all levels. healthiq.com/sigma

Some snippets of wisdom from past episodes of the Sigma Powerlifting Podcast. Insights from: Mike Tuchscherer, Eric Helms, Greg Nuckols, Rori Alter, Matt Gary and LS McClain. European Powerlifting Conference 2018 takes place in Dublin, Ireland on July 21st and 22nd. Tickets are on sale now from europeanpowerliftingconference.com

Special guest host Ciaran O' Regan interviews Dr. Israel Halperin about research and application of S&C coaching. Israel is a post-doctoral researcher at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Israel completed his PhD at Edith-Cowan University, Australia in conjunction with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS). His research centered on the effects coaching feedback has on the performance of resistance trained subjects and combat sport athletes. Israel spent the 3 years working with the four Olympic Combat sports in the AIS Combat Centre as a sport scientist. Over the years Israel has trained many world-class combat sport athletes as an S&C and Muay Thai coach. Israel has international competition experience in Muay Thai, and has spent 2 years in the U.S and a year in Thailand for training and competition purposes. He also holds two black belts. In This Episode We Discuss: Israel's background as athlete, coach and scientist The role of strength and conditioning in open loop sports and the cost to benefit analysis of GPP vs SPP An evidence-based approach to designing combat sports training sessions Becoming comfortable with the uncertainty and chaos of working with humans Humility as a scientist and a coach and being willing to change our views in light of evidence Becoming aware of our biases and what to do about them This episode is brought to you by Health IQ. To see if you qualify, get your free quote today at healthiq.com/sigma or mention the promo code SIGMA when you talk to a Health IQ agent.

Andy Morgan is back on the show to discuss a whole host of topics related to coaching, fitness and learning. Andy is the founder of RippedBody.com and an online coach. He co-authored the Muscle & Strength Pyramids books along with Dr. Eric Helms and Andrea Valdez. He has published a host of excellent nutrition and training resources in the form of ebooks, articles and podcasts, which can be found on the Ripped Body website. Born in the UK, Andy has been living in Japan for over a decade, currently residing in Tokyo. In This Episode We Discuss: Current projects Andy is working on Characteristics of great coaches Developing a framework for client success Learning from experiences regardless of outcome How excitement and philosophies change with experience in fitness Interpreting studies more effectively Lessons learned from Mike Tuchscherer How past experiences and culture have influenced Andy as a coach and person. This episode is brought to you by Health IQ. To see if you qualify, get your free quote today at healthiq.com/sigma or mention the promo code SIGMA when you talk to a Health IQ agent.

Dr. Andy Galpin of CSU Fullerton talks about blending evidence and practice, as well as the potential beneficial and detrimental roles of technology for making training decisions. Andy is a tenured Professor in the Center for Sport Performance at CSU Fullerton. Andy spent 4 years studying the structure and function of human skeletal muscle at the single cell level, a feat which earned him a PhD in Human Bioenergetics in 2011. This also resulted in the friendship with frequent collaborator Dr. Jimmy Bagley and the ability to open up his own "Biochemistry and Molecular Exercise Physiology Laboratory" at CSU Fullerton. He now focuses his attention on teaching classes (Sports Nutrition, Exercise Physiology, Designing Exercise Programs, Applied Strength and Conditioning, Athlete Assessment and Measurement, etc.) and running the BMEP lab (which studies the acute responses and chronic adaptations of human skeletal muscle in response to high force/velocity/power and fatiguing exercise from the whole body, down to the individual muscle fiber and even into the individual DNA. The team does this by taking muscle biopsies from non-athletes and elite athletes from different backgrounds (e.g. normal college student, MMA fighter, Boxer, Weightlifter, etc.) and use highly sophisticated laboratory techniques and equipment to address questions about single fiber "type", size, function, protein quantity, diameter, mitochondria, and myonuclear function. In This Episode We Discuss: Communication of scientific concepts Physiology of the adaptive response Decision-making process for how to decide on whether a specific technological tool is useful to use Assessing readiness to train: in either remote athletes or combat athletes where you can't visually see them for every session This episode is brought to you by Health IQ. To see if you qualify, get your free quote today at healthiq.com/sigma or mention the promo code SIGMA when you talk to a Health IQ agent.

Marty Kendall is the man behind the Optimising Nutrition blog and creator of the Nutrient Optimiser. On the show we discuss energy density, nutrient density and insulin load. To see if you qualify for a special life insurance quote due to being health conscious, then go to healthiq,com/sigma

Greg Potter is currently just finishing up his PhD at the University of Leeds in the UK. His research focus on chronobiology; looking at circadian rhythms, light-dark cycles and the potential for meals to entrain peripheral circadian clocks. Two Research Papers Examined in this Episode: Paper One: Stothard et al., 2017 - Circadian Entrainment to the Natural Light-Dark Cycle across Seasons and the Weekend Paper Two: McHill et al., 2017 - Later circadian timing of food intake is associated with increased body fat

Michael (Mike) C. Zourdos, Ph.D, CSCS: Mike is an Assistant Professor in Exercise Science at Florida Atlantic University with a specialization in strength and conditioning and skeletal muscle physiology. He earned his Ph.D. in Exercise Physiology from The Florida State University (FSU) in 2012 under the guidance of Dr. Jeong-Su Kim. Prior to attending FSU Mike received his B.S. degree in Exercise Science from Marietta College and M.S. in Applied Health Physiology from Salisbury University. At Marietta Mike lettered in soccer for four seasons and captained the squad in his final two. While at Salisbury he also served as the graduate assistant strength and conditioning coach for all sports teams. Further, Mike served as the Head Powerlifting Coach of FSU's 2011 and 2012 state championship teams and currently serves as FAU's Head Coach in addition to being a faculty member. Mike's research focuses on optimizing periodization and program design methods, along with improving training efficiency, and examining skeletal muscle adaptations and the inflammatory response to exercise." This line of high performance research is currently ongoing in the FAU 'Muscle Lab.' His best powerlifting competition lifts include a 230.0kg (507lbs.) raw squat as an 83kg lifter. Finally, Mike is recently married to Dr. Catherine Coccia, Ph.D., R.D., and Assistant Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at Florida International University (Miami, FL). Papers Discussed in this Episode Paper 1: Fink et al., 2017 - Effects of drop set resistance training on acute stress indicators and long-term muscle hypertrophy and strength Paper 2: Murlasits et al., 2017 - The physiological effects of concurrent strength and endurance training sequence: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Brianna Stubbs, PhD In 2016 Brianna completed her PhD in Metabolic Biochemistry at Oxford University. She also became a World Champion rower as part of the GB Rowing Lightweight Women's four person crew, and won 3 other World Rowing Championships medals. She has published peer-reviewed studies looking at ketone metabolism, ketone ester supplementation in athletes and effects of ketones on appetite. In This Episode We Discuss: Brianna's background as an elite-level rower Her PhD research on ketone metabolism Misconceptions about ketones (both endogenous and exogenous) Ketogenesis: why do we make ketones? Brianna's study examining effect of ketone ester supplementation on appetite and ghrelin levels Who needs to even know their ketone concentration? Ketone supplements: glycogen sparing or glycogen impairing? Effect of ketone supplementation on fuel selection in endurance athletes Potential for supplementation: where is the area we will most likely see some benefit? Limitations of current literature base

Click here to subscribe to Sigma Nutrition Premium This is an "open discussion" between Prof. Tim Noakes and Martin MacDonald on the topic of carbohydrates, insulin resistance and body fat. Prof. Noakes obtained an MBChB degree in 1974, an MD in 1981 and a DSc (Med) in Exercise Science in 2002. In the early 90s, Noakes teamed up with Morné du Plessis to drive the founding of the Sports Science Institute of South Africa (SSISA). Prof Noakes has published more than 750 scientific books and articles. He has been cited more than 16,000 times in scientific literature, has an H-index of 71 and has been rated an A1 scientist by the National Research Foundation of South Africa for a second 5-year term. He has won numerous awards over the years and made himself available on many editorial boards. After his research convinced him that a high fat, low carb diet is the healthiest option for many, Prof Noakes founded The Noakes Foundation in 2012. Prof Noakes retired as Professor of Exercise and Sports Science at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in 2014 and is now an Emeritus Professor at UCT. While his career has seen him involved in some controversial circumstances, love him or hate him, you cannot deny his contributions to scientific research. Martin is a clinical performance nutritionist and the founder of Mac-Nutrition, a thriving nutrition consultancy boasting sought after long-term internship and weekend mentorship programs. He has also developed Mac-Nutrition Uni, the UK's first ever evidence-based, nutrition course that can be completed online. Martin has worked as a performance nutritionist in elite sport with British Weight Lifting, Derby County Football Club, English swimming and other elite sport organizations. He has lectured at the University of Derby and has guest lectured on the prestigious MSc Sport and Exercise Nutrition course at Loughborough University. In This Episode We Discuss: Should carbohydrates be restricted for weight loss? weight maintenance? health? Confusing messages given to the public surrounding nutrition Do insulin resistant people need to be very low-carb? Does LCHF mean less hunger, and therefore better long-term results? You can find the show notes at sigmanutrition.com/episode210/ Click here to subscribe to Sigma Nutrition Premium

Sleep researcher Dr. Amy Bender discusses the most current evidence-based recommendations for optimizing your sleep for health and athletic performance. Dr. Bender is the Clinical Program Director of Athlete Services at the Centre for Sleep & Human Performance and is also an adjunct professor of Kinesiology at the University of Calgary. She received her PhD and Master of Science degrees in Experimental Psychology from Washington State University in Spokane, WA specializing in sleep EEG. Her current research focuses on the relationship of sleep and recovery on athletic performance in Canadian National Team athletes. Her research interests stem from being an athlete herself; she is a Hall of Fame basketball player, has summited a number of volcanoes, and completed an Ironman in 2009. In This Episode We Discuss: Circadian biology and light/dark cycles Effects of artificial light at night The importance of daylight exposure early in the day Daily vs. weekly sleep quantity What exactly is "good quality" sleep? Strategy of "banking sleep" Assessing and tracking sleep in clients and athletes Strategies to mitigate detrimental effects of sleep before competition Are there any supplements that actually work for helping sleep? Interested in doing an online nutrition course? Check out sigmanutrition.com/mnu

Show notes here Evoultionary biologist Dr. Herman Pontzer of Hunter College discusses the model of contrained energy expenditure and the metabolic adaptations that accompany high levels of physical activity. Dr. Pontzer is an associate professor at the Department of Anthropology, Hunter College & City University of New York. He is an evolutionary biologist with a PhD in Biological Anthropology from Harvard University. He has published seminal work in the area of energetics, including viewing human energy expenditure via a model of constrained total energy expenditure. He s truly a world-class leader in this field and has been repeatedly recognized internationally for his research. In This Episode We Discuss: Constrained vs. Additive model of total energy expenditure The physical activity paradox: Do highly active populations actually burn more calories? Why NEAT, movement efficiency and other metabolic adaptations can't fully explain the paradox Why did we evolve this way? Why are human capable of expending so much energy in acute time frames?

Alex Ritson is on the show to dive into two recent recent papers; one investigating the theories of dynamic fat loss models, and the other looking at the effect of low-rep vs. high-rep training for hypertrophy and strength. Papers Discussed in this Episode Paper 1: Silva et al., 2017 - Do Dynamic Fat and Fat-Free Mass Changes follow Theoretical Driven Rules in Athletes? Paper 2: Morton et al., 2016 - Neither load nor systemic hormones determine resistance training-mediated hypertrophy or strength gains in resistance-trained young men

Nutritionist Alessandro Ferretti discusses data he has collected that may inform us as to the inflammatory response to diet and lifestyle, using markers such as blood glucose, heart rate variability and Alessandro's metric of "HRV/BG Index".

Brandon has a PhD in Muscle Biology and is currently a Postdoctoral Fellow researching muscle physiology related to hypertrophic adaptations. He is a published author or peer-reviewed research. In addition to his prowess in academia, Brandon is well-respected and experience in the practical side of things; being a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), USA Weightlifting Sports Performance Coach and online coach for The Strength Guys. As a writer, Brandon has been published in Alan Aragon's Research Review, Stronger By Science, Muscle & Strength, STACK, and Sci-fit.net Research Papers Discussed In This Episode: Study #1: Pardue et al., 2017 - Case Study: Unfavorable But Transient Physiological Changes During Contest Preparation in a Drug-Free Male Bodybuilder Study #2: Haun et al., 2017 - Molecular, neuromuscular, and recovery responses to light versus heavy resistance exercise in young men

sigmanutrition.com/mass Greg Nuckols is on the show to review two recent research papers; one looking at concurrent training and the interference effect, and the other looking at the fat-free mass index in athletes. Greg Nuckols is the founder of StrongerByScience.com, a website that provides comprehensive information about how to get stronger and more jacked. Greg has over a decade of experience under the bar, and a BS in Exercise and Sports Science. He's held 3 all-time world records in powerlifting in the 220 and 242 classes, and is pursuing graduate research at UNC-Chapel Hill, under the supervision of Dr. Abbie Smyth-Ryan. He's trained hundreds of athlete and regular folks, both online and in-person. He's written for many of the major magazines and websites in the fitness industry, including Men's Health, Men's Fitness, Muscle & Fitness, Bodybuilding.com, T-Nation, and Schwarzenegger.com. Greg, along with Eric Helms and Dr. Mike Zourdos, created the monthly research review MASS (Monthly Applications in Strength Sports), which breaks apart some of the recent research carried out that is relevant to strength athletes, bodybuilders and powerlifters. Research Papers Discussed In This Episode: Study #1: Eddens et al., 2017 - The Role of Intra-Session Exercise Sequence in the Interference Effect: A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis Study #2: Trexler et al., 2017 - Fat-Free Mass Index in NCAA Division I and II Collegiate American Football Players sigmanutrition.com/mass

Arthur is an exercise physiology PhD researcher and international-level competitive lifter in the IPF. He is head powerlifting coach at Sigma Nutrition. His current research is based on HMB supplementation and anabolism. Research Papers Discussed In This Episode: Study #1: Brechue & Abe, 2002 - The role of FFM accumulation and skeletal muscle architecture in powerlifting performance Study #2: Wilkinson et al., 2013 - Effects of leucine and its metabolite β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate on human skeletal muscle protein metabolism

Andrea Valdez has been an athlete her entire life. As a former competitive gymnast and long-time coach in the sport, she developed a discipline and respect for the powers that strong minds and bodies can achieve. This led her to continued success in competitive cheerleading and bodybuilding throughout her journey in higher level education. She received a Kinesiology degree from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi with an emphasis in Sports Management and a Minor in Business Administration. Upon graduation, she worked as a Marketing Intern for a Major League Soccer organization, the Houston Dynamo. Andrea then continued on to teach and research at the University of Oklahoma, where she earned her Master's Degree in Exercise Physiology. Her scholarly development and professional experiences in training, coaching, teaching and mentoring lead her to begin a career as an author and video content provider for her own personal website and YouTube channel, both of which began in 2012. Andrea became a 3DMJ athlete for her next figure season in 2013 and for powerlifting in 2014. She continued her journey with the team by teaching alongside the other 3DMJ coaches at posing clinics, and helping to create digital products and content for the 3D Muscle Journey website. After months of collaborating as a project manager and writer, she was officially added as the fifth 3DMJ coach in September 2015. Also in 2015, she had the pleasure of co-authoring a pair of books with Eric Helms and Andy Morgan titled The Muscle and Strength Pyramids. These nutrition and training guides have become the industry standard for anyone trying to gain strength or manipulate body composition. During her current figure off-season, Andrea has begun training in Olympic weightlifting and gymnastics-based movements to pursue competition in a new sport called GRID. She continues to journal her athletic experiences on all of her social media platforms and throughout her personal website at AndreaValdez.com.

http://sigmanutrition.com/mass PhD researcher Eric Helms of Auckland University of Technology is on the podcast to breakdown two interesting research papers. We look at a paper on protein overfeeding and another on the effect of body fat on anabolic sensitivity. Eric, along with Greg Nuckols and Dr. Mike Zourdos, created the monthly reserach review MASS (Monthly Applications in Strength Sports), which breaks apart some of the recent research carried out that is relevant to strength athletes, bodybuilders and powerlifters. Research Papers Discussed In This Episode: Study #1: de Moraes et al., 2017 - Protein Overfeeding is Associated with Improved Lipid and Anthropometric Profile thus Lower Malondialdehyde Levels in Resistance-Trained Athletes Study #2: Beals et al., 2016 - Anabolic sensitivity of postprandial muscle protein synthesis to the ingestion of a protein-dense food is reduced in overweight and obese young adults Get MASS: http://sigmanutrition.com/mass