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From June 11-18, 2023, during the 2023 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Powerlifting Championships in Valletta, Malta, seemingly countless World Records fell at the hands of superstar competitors. Ukraine’s Anatolii Novopismennyi can count himself amongst that fortunate group.

On his top attempt, the 26-year-old Novopismennyi successfully locked out a 362.5-kilogram (799.1-pound) raw back squat. The mark is officially an IPF World Record in the 105-kilogram division and eclipses the previous record, which Novopismennyi had also set with 360 kilograms (793.6 pounds) at the 2021 IPF Worlds. Novopismennyi wore a lifting belt, knee sleeves, and wrist wraps during his monstrous squat. By the contest’s end, Novopismennyi also notched a total of 940 kilograms (2,072.3 pounds) — another IPF World Record. The athlete finished in first place in the 105-kilogram division, winning his third raw Open IPF World title (2019, 2021, 2023) in the process. The strength athlete also captured the 2016 IPF World title in the Junior division.

In addition to his World Record raw squat, Novopismennyi built his World Record total with a 225-kilogram (496-pound) raw bench press and a personal all-time raw competition best deadlift of 352.5 kilograms (777.1 pounds). In addition to breaking his own squat record, Novopismennyi was also in possession of the previous IPF World Record in the 105-kilogram class with a raw total of 937.5 kilograms (2,066.8 pounds) achieved at the 2021 IPF Worlds.

Here’s an overview of the athlete’s complete performance from Valletta, Malta:

Anatolii Novopismennyi (105KG) | 2023 IPF Worlds Top Stats

• Squat — 362.5 kilograms (799.1 pounds) | IPF World Record
• Bench Press — 225 kilograms (496 pounds)
• Deadlift — 352.5 kilograms (771.1 pounds) | All-Time Competition Best
• Total — 940 kilograms (2,072.3 pounds) | IPF World Record

By any stretch of the imagination, Novopismennyi is not an upstart. In the IPF’s 105-kilogram division, especially, he might be one of the more seasoned and successful powerlifters of the current generation.

In addition to his three staggered IPF World titles in recent years, the athlete has rarely fallen short on a sanctioned lifting platform. According to his personal page on Open Powerlifting, in 17 career competitive appearances as an Open and Juniors athlete, Novopismennyi has lost on just five occasions. He is a former European Powerlifting Federation (EPF) European champion (2019) and also has four Ukrainian National titles to his name (2014, 2018-2019, 2021).

In a post on his Instagram, Novopismennyi used his victory to nobly call attention to an important cause: the ongoing war between his native Ukraine and Russia.

“This victory was very important to me because it was an opportunity to make the anthem of Ukraine spread to the whole world.”

Featured image: @theipf on Instagram

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At the time of this writing, there is still so much to sort out in regard to the 2023 Mr. Olympia contest. Even with just over four months before bodybuilding’s tentpole competition, there is undoubtedly a lot of competitive jostling behind the scenes. For Jay Cutler, four-time Mr. Olympia champion (2006-2007, 2009-2010), the bodybuilding legend likes seeing what some of the fittest people on the planet are brewing.

On June 23, 2023, in one of the latest episodes of his podcast, Cutler broke down where he believes the current Men’s Open division stands before the onset of the 2023 Olympia this early November. To say the least, in a conversation with his manager Matthew M. Daniels, the icon maintained he has his eyes on a few familiar names and didn’t mince words about potential upstarts.

While Cutler didn’t offer specific thoughts on every prime Mr. Olympia competitor  — Nick Walker was mentioned in passing but not expanded upon — he did mostly touch every corner of the elite bodybuilders of the Men’s Open class. Here are some of Cutler’s thoughts on what’s sure to be a loaded Mr. Olympia stage in Orlando, FL:

Michal “Križo” Križánek

Cutler was impressed by Michal Križánek’s recent progress but still felt he hadn’t closed the gap enough on the other athletes.

“He [Križánek] was looking so paper thin, especially in the upper body,” Cutler said. “The arms are some of the best in the business, and it’s looked like he made improvements, which, I think he did improve from his prior showings. But I don’t know if he came down in size a little bit to gather the condition. I still feel like he’s still going to have trouble pushing the top spots at the [2023] Olympia.”

Derek Lunsford and Samson Dauda

To some, after his runner-up Mr. Olympia finish in 2022, Derek Lunsford is the next heir-apparent superstar in bodybuilding. Cutler seems to be one of those people. However, after a recent mutual training session, Cutler ensured he talked up 2023 Arnold Classic (AC) winner Samson Dauda as a possible Olympia champion in his own right.

“We just saw Derek [Lunsford] and Samson [Dauda], too,” Cutler said. “They trained together a couple days ago and Derek looks tremendous, which he always has, and Samson looks tremendous, which he has for the past few years. Obviously, he’s the Arnold [Classic] winner. The question is if Derek would’ve done the Arnold [Classic], and we could keep talking about that.”

Hadi Choopan and Brandon Curry

Cutler believes that two established titans, Hadi Choopan and Brandon Curry, have somewhat been overlooked in the popular conversation. That might be a mistake for the defending Olympia champion (Choopan) and the 2019 victor (Curry).

“Contention-wise, Hadi’s [Choopan] been kind of shouting out ‘don’t forget about me,’” Cutler explained. “We’re also forgetting Brandon Curry.”

Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay

After falling short of a “three-peat” in his Olympia title defense, there have been rumblings that Mamdouh “Big Ramy” Elssbiay could take a break from bodybuilding to recharge. The Egyptian dynamo has quelled these conversations, maintaining that he’s training “angry” for Olympia redemption in the fall. Cutler believes this is the right mentality to have because:

1. Elssbiay doesn’t have time to waste as he nears the age of 40 and
2. Cutler thinks that Elssbiay, at his best, can still win the Olympia.

“Ramy [Elssbiay] sounds like he’s going to come back and compete, which I’m all for,” Cutler said ” … The point is he [Elssbiay] just needs to regroup and do what he does best and come in the best of his ability. There’s no real timeline on that. He’s 38, he can’t take a few years off. I hear his health is really great. I hear his training is really great. He’s had some atrophy compared to years prior on the arms, triceps, I think he’s admitted to having some downsizing there. But he looked great at the [2023] Arnold [Classic].”

Chinedu Obiekea aka “Andrew Jacked” and Hunter Labrada

Andrew Jacked finished on the podium at the 2023 AC and has already mapped out ambitious summer competitive plans as a way to qualify for the 2023 Olympia. Meanwhile, Hunter Labrada is in hot pursuit of his own Olympia redemption with a streamlined training plan.

Cutler said he liked the duo’s talent but colored his commentary as if he still needed to see more from both athletes.

“I hear great things about Andrew [Jacked], too,” Cutler stated. “The big showdown is going to be Texas [the 2023 Texas Pro]. There’s going to be other guys, too. I know there’s a lot of international shows, but that’s going to be, like, who’s not going to qualify there [in Texas]. Those two guys [Andrew Jacked and Hunter Labrada] need to be in the [Olympia] lineup because they’re people we’re talking about. The question is, can Andrew come and win the [2023] Olympia and shock the world?”

More than most years, the 2023 Mr. Olympia is starting to resemble a relentless gauntlet from which only a true champion of champions will come out victorious. If an icon like Cutler professes so, such a competitive reality feels inevitable.

Featured image: @hadi_choopan on Instagram

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You’ve undoubtedly heard that you should consume certain foods like berries and wine because they contain antioxidants (as if you needed a reason). Maybe you’ve been persuaded to grab a bottle of pricy supplements off the shelf because of their big antioxidant claims. But what are antioxidants, and what do antioxidants actually do? 

As long as you’re a living, breathing person moving through the world, your cells are fighting a constant battle against free radical damage. Free radicals are molecules like reactive oxygen species (ROS) and reactive nitrogen species (RNS) that cause oxidation, DNA damage, protein modification, and, worst case scenario, cell death. And they’re impossible to avoid. Free radicals are normal byproducts of cellular metabolism and exercise. You also accumulate free radicals from exposure to radiation, smoke, and everyday environmental pollutants. 

If your body didn’t have a way to deal with these marauders, you’d be in a world of trouble. Luckily, though, nature has an answer: antioxidants.  

What Do Antioxidants Do?

Antioxidants serve as a powerful first line of defense against free radicals, preventing their formation and neutralizing their effects. 

Free radicals are complicated little molecules. On the one hand, they cause oxidative damage, or oxidative stress, in the body. Too much oxidative stress contributes to aging and probably every chronic disease. That’s the bad news. 

At the same time, oxidative stress is beneficial—necessary even—in the right amounts. In fact, the body is naturally happiest in a state of mild oxidative stress. Mild oxidative stress is hormetic, meaning it prompts beneficial adaptations that make you stronger, healthier, and more resilient to future stressors. The trick is to maintain the appropriate balance. That’s where antioxidants come in.

Antioxidants are responsible for maintaining the right level of free radicals in the body (also known as redox homeostasis). For decades, scientists have believed that antioxidants work primarily by donating electrons to free radicals, which makes them less reactive and less destructive. More recently, researchers have also hypothesized that they could exert their effects in other ways, such as by acting on the microbiome or epigenome.¹

Types of Antioxidants and Where to Find Them

Your body makes some antioxidants on its own. Glutathione and uric acid are two endogenous antioxidants you’ve probably heard of. Melatonin, too, has powerful antioxidant properties.² The majority, though, come from food. Colorful plant foods get the lion’s share of the credit for being antioxidant-rich, but as you’ll see, nutrient-dense animal foods also contribute here.  

Antioxidants found in food include vitamins, minerals, and the various -noids detailed below.³ 

Antioxidant vitamins and minerals

Vitamin A (retinol), vitamin C (ascorbic acid, ascorbate), and vitamin E (tocopherols, tocotrienols) have all been identified as antioxidant nutrients. Animal products—eggs, fish, offal, dairy—are the best food sources of vitamin A.⁴ Fruits and vegetables, especially red bell pepper, citrus fruits, and guava, deliver the vitamin C you need, while nuts and seeds are best for vitamin E. 

Certain minerals are also lauded for their antioxidant properties, acting directly as antioxidants or as cofactors for enzymatic reactions that buffer free radical damage.⁵ They include copper, zinc, selenium, iron, and manganese. To get more of these trace minerals from your diet, focus on seafood, nuts and seeds, and organ meats. 

Flavonoids

Flavonoids (also called bioflavonoids) are polyphenol pigment compounds that are present in most flowering plants. They are commonly grouped under anthocyanidins, proanthocyanins, and phenolics. Research links flavonoids to many important health benefits, including being anti-inflammatory and protecting against diseases like cancer, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes.⁶ These effects are likely due at least in part to their antioxidant effects and their ability to chelate (bind to) metals that can increase free radicals.⁷ Flavonoid antioxidants also offer a double-punch because they improve vitamin C’s antioxidant capabilities.

Find flavonoids in fruits and vegetables, tea, and cacao (a good reason to eat more dark chocolate).

Carotenoids

Carotenoids are another type of polyphenol pigment. Beta-carotene is the most studied, but there are dozens more in the human diet,⁸ including lutein, zeaxanthin, and lycopene. Certain carotenoids, including beta-carotene, can also convert to vitamin A.

Colorful fruits and vegetables contain carotenoids, especially those of the red, yellow, and orange persuasions. Skip the egg white omelets and eat egg yolks for lutein as well. 

Antioxidant enzymes

The antioxidant enzymes are superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). (The latter is not the same as glutathione, although their activities are closely related. (Glutathione is also an important antioxidant—the so-called master antioxidant.) 

Like the other antioxidants, these enzymes are found widely in Primal foods like dark leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables. Importantly, antioxidant enzymes work in tandem with the mineral cofactors listed above, so don’t neglect those trace minerals. 

How Many Antioxidants Do You Need?

You can’t really measure the amount of antioxidants you’re getting in a day. A better approach is to focus on eating a variety of nutrient-dense foods like oysters, organ meats, and egg yolks, plus dark leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables. Throw in a Brazil nut or two for selenium (don’t go overboard). Add other produce for color. 

If it sounds like I’m describing the Primal Blueprint Food Pyramid, you’re right. And that’s not a coincidence. When you eat as nature intended, you get the right balance of nutrients and enzymes without a lot of fuss. If you’re into food tracking, it certainly doesn’t hurt to watch your intake of the antioxidant vitamins and minerals discussed here. Make sure you’re hitting the RDA more often than not. 

Picky eaters can also consider supplementing with antioxidants, although that strategy is surprisingly controversial. In any case, it’s preferable to get your nutrients packaged in their whole food matrices when you can. You can’t overdo antioxidants from whole foods, and you get all the other good stuff—other nutrients, fermentable fiber for your gut microbes, amino acids, and healthy fats—that come along with them.

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On June 11-18, 2023, in Valletta, Malta, powerlifter Prescillia Bavoil successfully locked out a 211.5-kilogram (466.2-pound) raw back squat during the 2023 International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) World Classic Powerlifting Championships. The milestone achievement is officially an IPF World Record for Bavoil, who competed in the 69-kilogram division. Bavoil utilized a lifting belt and knee sleeves to help her with this massive lift.

Bavoil’s new international squatting top mark surpasses her own previous record by 0.5 kilograms (1.1 pounds). Bavoil achieved that squat of 211 kilograms (465.1 pounds) at the 2023 Sheffield Powerlifting Championships in late March 2023. This latest squat helped Bavoil along to a first-place performance where the athlete also recorded an IPF World Record total of 549 kilograms (1,210.3 pounds) in her competitive division.

A first-place performance with two World Records is quite a way for Bavoil to return to the top of the international 69-kilogram weight class. The athlete was the 2021 IPF 69-kilogram World Champion but did not defend her title in 2022 as a result of her missing qualifications for her usual weight class. That distinction, coupled with undisclosed injury issues, apparently slowed some of the progress the 29-year-old had been making in a powerlifting context lately.

In a way, this could be seen as an apt comeback to glory for an athlete with 12 wins in 13 competitions dating back to November 2019, per Bavoil’s page on Open Powerlifting. Overall, Bavoil has now come out triumphant in 22 of 25 sanctioned lifting appearances during a career that began in October 2015.

Among her accolades, Bavoil also currently holds the World Record raw squat (213 kilograms/469.5 pounds) and World Record deadlift (231 kilograms/509.2 pounds) in the 63-kilogram weight class. She made both lifts during the 2022 IPF Arnold Sports Festival.

Here’s an overview of Bavoil’s top stats at the 2023 IPF Worlds:

Prescillia Bavoil (69KG) | 2023 IPF Worlds Top Stats

• Squat — 211.5 kilograms (466.3 pounds) | IPF World Record
• Bench Press — 115 kilograms (253.5 pounds)
• Deadlift — 222.5 kilograms (490.5 pounds)
• Total — 549 kilograms (1,210.3 pounds) | IPF World Record

In just her second competitive appearance since that successful Arnold Sports Festival in late September 2022, Bavoil managed to finish eight of nine lift attempts on one of the biggest stages in powerlifting.

In an Instagram post after the conclusion of the 2023 IPF Worlds, Bavoil seemed ecstatic about her latest victory. The athlete characterized her win as “redemption” and looked ahead to even more success in the near future.

“After my failure last year [at the 2022 IPF Worlds] and a complicated injury season, I had only one goal in mind: to close this redemption chapter and finally open a new one! Proud to be the first Frenchwoman to win two World titles in two different categories! And now it’s road to Sheffield 2024 [the 2024 Sheffield Powerlifting Championships]! Time to really build up the 69-kilogram category for this deadline! I can’t wait to get back to work and show what I can do!”

Featured image: @lya_powerlift on Instagram

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The annual Official Strongman Games (OSG) present an intriguing opportunity for elite and up-and-coming strongmen and strongwomen alike to show out. This year’s contest taking place on December 1-3, 2023, in Charleston, West Virginia, should be no different.

On June 23, 2023, the OSG organizers revealed the schedule and a list of six events for the 2023 OSG over the contest’s Instagram profile. At the time of this writing, the complete roster for the competition has not been revealed. Whoever does officially slot in before early December should prepare for a slate of challenging obstacles.

Below you’ll find the complete official schedule and event details for the 2023 OSG:

Day 1 | Friday, December 1, 2023

The first day of the contest weekend will open with two events centered around upper-body strength and stamina.

Stand or Submit Press Medley

Athletes will have the task of overhead pressing four implements — a barbell with wagon wheels, a circus dumbbell, a curved Yoke, and a block — in the fastest time possible. They will have a 60-second time limit. At the time of this writing, the precise weights of the implements have not been designated. They will be different for each participating weight class.

Stix and Stone Carry

The creative name aside, taken from the manufacturing company providing the competitive equipment, it’s an apt label for an event that will ask athletes to perform two distinct loaded carry variations. First, athletes must carry a timber frame for 15.25 meters (50 feet), then carry a set of stones back the same distance as quickly as possible. Once again, they will have a 60-second time limit.

Day 2 | Saturday, December 2, 2023

Saturday at the 2023 OSG “pulls” out all the stops before leaning back on endurance.

Deadlift Ladder

Any seasoned strongman or strongwoman competitor should probably be well-prepared for the rigors of a Deadlift Ladder. While the weight of each of the five barbells has not yet been determined, they will again have only 60 seconds to work their way through the progressively heavier lineup.

GORUCK Survival Challenge

In this event, competitors will lift a heavy medicine ball and other yet-undisclosed GORUCK implements. They will be adorned with backpacks up to and exceeding 45.4 kilograms (100 pounds) throughout. Depending on the weight class, the time limit for completion will vary from 60 to 90 seconds.

Day 3 | Sunday, December 3, 2023

Only the top 10 competitors will advance to the final day of the 2023 OSG. The contest will close with a familiar refrain for anyone who follows strongman and strongwoman closely.

Sandbag Toss

For all intents and purposes, the Sandbag Toss will be challenging but is potentially more of an appetizer to the main concluding course. Within it, the athletes will have an objective of tossing six progressively heavier sandbags over a 4.6-meter (15-foot) bar for the Men and a four-meter (13-foot) bar for the Women. As usual, they will have 60 seconds to successfully complete as many throws as possible.

Atlas Stone

The famous Atlas Stones — a fixture finisher at countless strongman and strongwoman competitions — will be the final deciding note at the 2023 OSG. The task will be straightforward: Lifting six increasingly heavier Atlas Stones onto their respective platforms. Every weight class for both the Men and Women will have a differently weighted group of Stones matched to their expected strength. For context, the heaviest stone in the event will be the sixth and final stone in the Men’s Open weight division, weighing in at 193 kilograms (425 pounds).

The OSG may not necessarily be in line with contests like the annual World’s Strongest Man (WSM) in terms of prestige. That said, as exemplified by this event list, it remains a noteworthy notch in the belt for the competitors fortunate enough to win it.

Featured image: @officialstrongman on Instagram

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The 1st Primal Blueprint Law is the basic description of everything our ancestors ate to get the protein, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, phenols, fiber, water and other nutrients necessary to sustain life. But it was a huge list of individual foods—some anthropologists say it may have been 200 or 300 food choices at a time depending upon the geographic area. The net result was a dietary “breakdown” of fat, protein and carbohydrate that was far different from what Conventional Wisdom considers optimum today.

This diet provided all the necessary fuel and building blocks that, along with specific exercise, prompted their genes to create strong muscles, enabled them to expend lots of energy each day moving about, to maintain healthy immune systems, to evolve larger brains and to raise healthy children. They ate sporadically, too. When food was plentiful, they ate more than they needed (and stored the excess as fat). When times were scarce, they survived on fat stores. This random or “non-linear” eating pattern kept their bodies in a constant state of preparedness.

Today we can focus on quality sources of protein (all forms of meat, fowl, fish), lots of colorful vegetables, some select fruits (mostly berries), and healthy fats (nuts, avocados, olive oil). Observe portion control (calorie distribution) week to week more than meal to meal. Eliminate grains, sugars, trans- and hydrogenated fats from your diet.

What To Eat

The first Primal Blueprint Law is about real food our ancestors would’ve recognized. In other words, we eat the animals, vegetables, fruits, nuts and seeds our bodies are adapted to thrive on.

Eat animals: beef, lamb, bison, pork, poultry (and their eggs). Favor grass-fed and pastured animals, which have better fatty acids and contain more vitamins and minerals (and taste better!).

Eat animals from the sea: salmon, sardines, trout, mackerel, crab, shrimp, oysters, mussels, clams. Wild-caught fish are best, though farmed shellfish are usually raised exactly like wild shellfish and thus are fine.

Eat unlimited produce: leafy greens of all kinds, colorful plants, berries, cruciferous vegetables, assorted fruits, roots, and tubers.

Eat some nuts and seeds: macadamias, walnuts, cashews, almonds, pecans, brazil nuts, pistachios, hazelnuts; pumpkin, squash, and sunflower seeds.

Use healthy cooking fats: butter (especially grass-fed), coconut oil, olive oil, red palm and regular palm oil, ghee, and animal fats (lard, tallow, duck fat, etc.).

Stock spices: keep plenty of herbs and spices on hand. Cumin, coriander, thyme, rosemary, sage, chili powder, mint, turmeric, and cayenne are a few of my favorites, but you can use anything else you like. Spices and herbs add flavor to dishes and prevent the breakdown of vital nutrients during cooking so that when you add spices or herbs, your food tastes better and is actually healthier for you.

For a handy Primal grocery list with the above (and more), click HERE.

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Humanity’s ability to exploit almost every corner of this earth was partly predicated on his ability to consume vastly different types of plant and animal life. But moving into a new environment and trying new foods posed a danger that the new food might contain potent toxins. Luckily, our liver and kidneys evolved to handle most brushes with novel-but-slightly-poisonous plant matter – at least to keep us alive anyway if the stomach didn’t regurgitate it first. Our keen senses of smell and taste also helped us sort out the good from the bad. The reason we have a sweet tooth today (dammit) is probably an evolved response to an almost universal truth in the plant world that just about anything that tastes sweet is safe to eat.

Today you can avoid exposure to chemical toxins in your food (pesticides, herbicides, chemicals, etc) and on your skin. But also try to avoid the hidden poisons in foods like sugars, grains, processed foods, trans and hydrogenated fats, and mercury in certain fish.

The Definitive Guide to Sugar

The Primal Blueprint Carbohydrate Curve

Action Item #1: Eliminate SAD Foods

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We know that our ancestors spent an average of several hours each day moving about at what today’s exercise physiologists might describe as a “low level aerobic pace.” They hunted, gathered, foraged, wandered, scouted, migrated, climbed and crawled. This low level of activity prompted their genes to build a stronger capillary (blood vessel) network to fuel each muscle cell, to be able to store some excess food as fat, but also to be readily able to convert the stored fat back into energy. Of course, they did all this without the benefit of paved sidewalks or comfortable shoes. Because every footfall landed at a different angle, every muscle, tendon and ligament worked and became stronger together in balance. Note that they did NOT go out and “jog” at 80% of their MAX Heart Rate for long periods of time as Conventional Wisdom suggests today!

Today we do some form of low level aerobic activity 2-5 hours a week, whether it is walking, hiking, easy bike riding or swimming. Ideally, and when possible, find time to go barefoot or wear as little foot support as possible. Low-level activity is necessary (especially if you find yourself chained to a desk every day). The combined effect will be an increase in capillary perfusion, fat-burning and overall integration of muscle strength and flexibility.

Further Reading:

The Definitive Guide to Low Level Aerobic Activity

The Definitive Guide to Walking

Why We Don’t Walk Anymore

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The women carried their babies much of the time (hey, no babysitters in those days), as well as bundles of firewood, or whatever they had gathered, foraged or scavenged. The men carried heavy spears or other tools, they dragged heavy carcasses of animals they had hunted, and they moved large boulders or logs to build shelters. They also lifted themselves into trees or up onto higher ground when escaping from danger or to scout a new route. The biochemical signals created by these very brief but intense muscle contractions generated a slight surge in growth hormone and a reduction in myostatin gene expression, prompting an increase in muscle size and power; particularly fast twitch fibers.

Go to the gym and lift weights for 30-45 minutes, 2-3 times a week. Focus on movements that involve the entire body and in wider ranges of motion – not just on isolating body parts. Emulate the movements of our ancestors: jumping, squatting, lunging, pushing, pulling, twisting, etc. This will stimulate your genes to increase muscle strength and power, increase bone density, improve insulin sensitivity, stimulate growth hormone secretion, and consume stored body fat.

Primal Blueprint Fitness

Action Item #4: Exercise Primally – Move, Lift, and Sprint!

How to Gain Weight and Build Muscle

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In a world where danger lurked around every corner, your ability to run was a strong indicator of whether you would live long enough to pass your genes down to the next generation. (Note to Nietzsche: That which didn’t kill Grok made him stronger). Avoiding a charging beast to save your life, or surging forward to catch a different beast for dinner, the net effect was still survival. A combination of the hormonal events that occurred simultaneously and the resultant gene expression within fast twitch muscle made sure that the next time this happened Grok could sprint a little faster.

Do some form of intense anaerobic sprint bursts several times a week. This could be as simple as six or eight (or more) short sprints up a hill, on the grass, at the beach… or repeated intense sessions on a bicycle (stationary, road or mountain bike). These short bursts also increase human growth hormone release (HGH is actually released in proportion to the intensity (not the duration) of the exercise).

Definitive Guide To Sprinting (Part One & Part Two)

Why We Don’t Sprint Anymore

Sprint for Your Life: A Primal Workout

15 Reasons To Sprint More This Year

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