thescrawnycaveman

Thanks Athena. Right now (though still in the beginning stages of research), I am finding mostly studies that suggest a relationship between cholesterol and heart disease, but nothing causal. Which is all well and good except for the fact that when we try to base medicine on those finds with the assumption that causation and correlation are the same thing, it ends up killing people. http://www.ask.com/allabout?q=Torcetrapib&qsrc=416 . I'm still in the process of combing through a LOT of research, so I was hoping maybe I could save some time if someone else knew anything. I'll give BMJ a special look to see what they have as far as this topic goes.

That's a good idea, I'll send him an e-mail and see if he's got anything to throw my way as well.

I've already read through the cholesterol article on his site, and I couldn't find where he listed his sources anywhere. Am I just looking in the wrong spot or did he not feel the need to cite his claims? I'm trying to do a research paper, so legitimate sources are highly preferred. EDIT: Just finished reading the one on grains too. I ran into a similar problem, the only link given that was related to heart disease and diet didn't address heart disease and was actually only a link to an article about a study, not the study itself (though the study was linked at the end of the article, it wasn't in English, which makes it a bit more challenging to decipher than it already would be). Also, I do not mean to sound rude or unappreciative, I am just trying to get the best sources possible. Thank you for your help Leefux :-)

Hey guys, long time no see! I was wondering if any of you guys knew of any studies (preferably peer-reviewed studies that have been published in academic journals) related to whether or not cholesterol is a correlation or causation to heart disease? So basically, is cholesterol a reason why heart disease occurs or is it merely involved in the process? (if you find a bandaid on a cut, it doesn't mean it caused the cut but was just a part of the overall event of getting cut). Thanks for any help you can provide!!

I apologize for that. Jesus was I off! I need to work on my estimation skills....

So I am just starting to train someone who has osteoporosis. I know I need to focus on strengthening her back and hips as well as working on balance and core, but what I'm wondering is if there will be a point that I can move her towards using a barbell for squats? Or would that be too risky for someone with osteoporosis? Anyone have any advice, articles, resources, etc?

Do you want to exist or be alive? Is it more embarrassing to have people see a stretch mark or two while your rocking your abs in a bikini, or being that old fat lady in walmart who rides a motorized wheel chair because she can't walk for more than 5 minutes? Ya know what, you may never be that gorgeous woman you see in the magazines, but you can prevent yourself from being the butt of every teenagers jokes when your back is turned. Maybe it isn't about becoming the best, maybe its about not becoming the worst. Think about the worst case scenario if you do work out and the worst case scenario if you don't. Which is scarier?

This is a big part of what I wanted to get at. It certainly isn't the womens' fault nor responsibility. It is the unfit men's own inabilities that makes the womens' abilities intimidating. Whats sad is that because of that, women models are created unrealistically (photo shopped) or unhealthily by the media, which will make many women strive for that unrealistic or unhealthy goal. Just because such a large portion of men are unfit and insecure. As for men's "ideal" image in the media, I think, though not as bad as it is for women, it is still bad. Not so much because the image itself is unhealthy (though I think there are some decent arguments out there against 5% bf), but because it can be VERY unattainable. For instance, I am 5'10 155lbs with 12% body fat. I eat around 3k calories a day and don't gain a pound. If I wanted to look like Bradley Cooper who has got to be at least 220 maybe 250, not only would it take years of work, but it would also take loooaaaadddssss of money. Eating what I eat now costs quite a decent dime, but if I ate 500 more calories a day of mostly protein (each lb of muscle is about 3,500 cals), it would take me 65-95 weeks to get to his weight, not to mention the extra weight I'd have to gain before cutting back and eating far less to have that low of a bf %. All of that takes tons of work and money (meat isn't cheap) and isn't even close to a guaranteed result. For a lot of us, including myself, its just not going to happen, yet the same thing happens that happens with women. With so many of these body types glorified in the media the standards begin to get raised for men. Not to mention the self esteem issues these types of glorification cause both men and women. That moment when we realize that we can not look like that thoughts like "I'm not good enough" or "I'll never be that fit/skinny" begin to pop up in our heads. Not to say we should feed into the unhealthy lifestyles we already live, but we should take things down a peg or two to a more realistic level. For both men and women.

I like the direction this goes in. But I'd take it to the extent that for most men, we want a woman smaller than us, we want her arms less muscular, her legs less muscular, etc. So for less in shape guys, like a huge portion of america that is specifically advertised to with such photoshopped photos, seeing a powerful woman is more likely to be intimidating. Thats part of the reason so many guys here find athletic and muscular women attractive. Because we are in shape enough (or getting there) to be confident enough to not be intimidated by it. And I've heard from many women it goes the other way too, they want their man to be bigger (preferably with muscles) than them. I constantly hear from tall women that they have to find men that are taller than them and have never heard of a short woman asking for a guy shorter than her. What I'm getting at here is this; there are certain expectations of each sex that define attractiveness, and when such a large population is in a position that distorts attractiveness away from being healthy (unfit guys desiring weak women in order to feel strong) we will see marketing strategies steer towards that direction as well. I don't think the media makes it attractive, I think they just feed into what their market finds as attractive. Also, on the issue of being toned; I am a personal trainer at la fitness (I know i know, globo gym. Its a job doing what I like ok?) and I hear the term "toned" A LOT from clients, usually women. What tends to be the case is that the women are not sure how to describe what they want because muscular makes them think body builder, and the only other option is twig. They mean it as inbetween those two options. They want visible muscles, but not muscles that pop out like crazy. Others tend to use it as a means to say "I want to look good without having to work hard" (don't worry, I tell all my clients right off the bat that isn't going to happen). Just thought I'd share some perspective from the front lines.

There has been a lot of research supporting the positive effects exercise has for anxiety disorders. You don't have to stop the medications, but if you ever decided to, just make sure you keep exercising and you should be ok (some studies show exercise is equally as effective as medication).

Hey guys. So I am 20 years old and trying to figure out about how much money it would take to live on my own (aka, not with my parents). I live in chicago, so most studio apartments run around $1,000 a month, but I am wondering about how much I should expect to pay for other things like food and misc stuff? So far my best estimate is about 22-24k a year should be comfortable enough but I really am ballparking a lot of stuff. Note: I will not own a car, instead I'd use the transit system which is $86 a month. Thanks for any help!!!!

Big fan of the classic Bacon and Eggs with a side of fruit meal. It is a good meal no matter what time of day!!

Thanks Cowboy, right now I've gotten a couple family and friends willing to be my guinea pigs. I like your idea to advertise online (Don't have money for a newspaper ad). I'm thinking I'll do free workouts on Meetup.com and everyblock.com. Who knows how many nibbles I might get, but I'm crossing my fingers for sure!

So now that I am a certified personal trainer I want to start working independently (because basically every gym requires experience before they will hire). I have virtually no idea how to start this up. Anyone got some ideas? Any business gurus out there willing to share some tips?

Tell him to make sure when he is doing basically all of his exercises to engage his abs. This is done by tucking in the stomach and holding it in throughout the exercise, as though you were trying to fit into a pair of pants.