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Mitchell Hooper is likely best known for his recent run of strongman dominance, culminating with his first-ever World’s Strongest Man (WSM) victory during the 2023 iteration in April. However, the Canadian athlete prides himself as an all-around strength dynamo, working on his conditioning and dispensing some of his first-hand training knowledge seemingly whenever he can. The superstar’s latest feat in the gym is a lesser-known but legendary milestone to capture.
On May 23, 2023, Hooper shared an Instagram clip of himself squatting 238.1 kilograms (525 pounds) for 24 reps. The strength mark was an AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible) performance and officially surpasses the legendary 1980 Mr. Universe Tom Platz — who set the initial standard with this achievement with 23 reps of 525 pounds in 1992 during the “Great American Squat-Off.” Hooper notches a good depth into “the hole” on each of his repetitions and donned a lifting belt and knee sleeves during the squat set.
Many have attempted to break Platz’s AMRAP record over the years, potentially seeing it as a rare strength accomplishment where an athlete must truly have a unique blend of endurance and power. Perhaps the most recent notable example is prolific powerlifter Joe Sullivan, who fell just short in June 2022 after some earnest preparation.
In the strength sports sphere, Hooper is the first to climb this summit, which is all the more fitting given his WSM victory and ongoing status as a competitive bulldozer. A mid-May 2023 squat set of 210.9 kilograms (465 pounds) for 20 reps might have been Hooper unofficially teasing his vying for Platz’s AMRAP squat record.
According to his page on Strongman Archives, Hooper has stood on a podium in nine consecutive strongman contests and won his last three competitions, including his breakthrough 2023 WSM triumph. To this stage, he has undoubtedly established himself as a household name in strongman and strength sports overall. Breaking Platz’s mark is but another noteworthy notch to add to his ever-impressively growing resume.
What’s evident about Hooper as an athlete is his hunger to continually improve and push himself. The strongman was already in the process of refining aspects of his training that he felt needed more polish. To capture a squat-endurance mark many have chased for nearly 30 years potentially speaks to Hooper’s ongoing greatness.
In a recent interview with Frank Sepe of Muscle & Fitness, Elssbiay discussed his current competitive trajectory as the 2023 Mr. Olympia in Orlando, FL, inches closer by the week. The athlete offered a glimpse into his mentality and clarified that his most recent Olympia result is being utilized as a source of motivation in training.
Elssbiay might be 38 years old at the time of this writing, but he knows one Olympia loss won’t define him. After all, he wasn’t always a two-time defending champion. It’s this recentering of efforts, of looking properly forward, that has Elssbiay eager to leave it all on stage in November 2023.
“I’m really excited like always,” Elssbiay said. “I have to do one thing. Work hard. I do that for a reason always, but this year I do it because everyone knows if you lose one time, it’s never the end … If anything comes after working hard, you did fine. You have more than what you had in your pocket.”
It’s here where Elssbiay maintained he’s a little angry about falling short in 2022. It’s less an anger at his peers and more at himself. He’s now using that emotion to push himself in the gym and on stage and to be the best again.
“I think we’ll have a nice lineup of competitors right now and the lineup is getting stronger,” Elssbiay said. “That makes me very excited to be in this lineup again and work harder than anybody. No, it’s not anger because you lost. It’s anger because you want to be the best in the world. That can give you a chance to work hard. I told my friends today, maybe you get angry, but the anger doesn’t break you. It makes you fight more.”
If Elssbiay wants to be Mr. Olympia again, he’ll have to be honest with himself and see where he can improve. This doesn’t appear to be an issue for the superstar thus far in 2023. If anything, he clearly already understands where he has room to grow — both literally and figuratively.
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Joseph Baena understands the weight behind the fitness icon he’s often compared to. As the son of the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger, some might say strength and training run in the family. Some might even expect him to take up the old family “business.” At the very least, Baena appears to try and honor his lineage any chance he gets. A recently shared new workout is but one example.
On the weekend of May 19-21, 2023, Baena posted an endurance workout with a full-body aim. In a now-deleted Instagram post, he presented it as a worthy challenge to his followers while continuing to polish up his own fitness.
In the caption of his deleted post, Baena explains that this endurance-based routine is about “switching” up his workouts now and then. That could be in the form of a new individual movement, implementing drop sets, or even making forays into other sports outside of strength training. If it’s a means of finding ways to challenge himself and keep him pushing himself through the best possible and versatile means, it seems Baena is interested in pulling out all the stops.
Here’s an overview of the endurance Baena performed, featuring six supersets pairing an endurance-focused exercise with a more traditional muscle-building movement:
Joseph Baena | May 2023 Endurance Workout Overview
50 Squat jumps (with weighted vest, weight not specified)
In a February 2022 interview with Men’s Health, Baena expressed that he wanted to figure out his fitness path by himself. While he had the luxury of leaning on a Mr. Olympia legend like Schwarzenegger, Baena was interested in striking out on his own in the gym.
These days, if that interview is any indication, Baena usually works out six days a week, at two hours per session, occasionally working in cardio in the mornings when he can.
In time, he found success and a quality groove.
“I went straight to the book. I wanted to figure it out myself … I was able to acquire a bodybuilding mentality, that I could shape my body however I want.”
Perhaps electing to do it on his own will drive Baena to further glory, in the gym and otherwise. It’s apparent this kind of thought process was about breaking out of his father’s shadow. By already holding significant fitness influence and by directing what seem like quality workouts on paper, it looks like Baena is succeeding in his individual ambition.
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Emma Cary (Individual Women) and Jeffrey Adler (Individual Men) are the winners of the 2023 CrossFit North America East Semifinal. The event was the first leg of seven CrossFit Semifinal events around the world, letting Cary and Adler kick off the festivities as hype for the 2023 CrossFit Games builds. Cary and Adler have earned automatic berths for August’s Games in Madison, WI, by virtue of their respective victories. On the Teams side, CrossFit East Nashville PRVN took home first place amongst the group competitors.
Here are the results and top 20 finishers for all three participating divisions at the 2023 CrossFit North America East Semifinal. The Individual athletes had the task of performing seven workouts, while the Teams athletes powered through six workouts.
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Developing a strong pressing movement is pretty standard advice for any lifter looking to make big gains in upper body development. The incline dumbbell bench press, in particular, will add some spice to your chest workout by using a new angle of attack to bring some unique perks.
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
Between the dumbbells, inclined body position, and some clever programming choices, you’ll set the stage for some long-term progress in size and strength. Here’s why this chest exercise should be a staple for sculpting your upper body.
How to Do the Incline Dumbbell Bench Press Step by Step
The incline dumbbell bench press adds a few new elements to your normal pressing performance. Considering all the moving parts to this variation will help you stay dialed in and make great progress session-to-session. Ideally, the incline dumbbell press requires an adjustable bench to choose your incline setting and a pair (or full set) of dumbbells.
Step 1 – Get on the Right Bench
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Set the backrest to an angle of roughly 45 degrees (or the closest angle available) and adjust the seat to be perpendicular to the rest of the bench — you won’t be as secure with an incline backrest and horizontal seat. This setup will allow you to press from a nice, effective middle ground between flat dumbbell bench press and a fully upright shoulder press, and the seat angle will more effectively support your body.
Form Tip: Make sure your bench settings are locked in before you start. Test the angle with lighter dumbbells, or without weight, to make sure everything is in comfortable and efficient alignment prior to going heavy.
Step 2 – Bring the Weights Into Position
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Pick up the dumbbells and take a seat on the incline bench. Rest the dumbbells on your thighs with your thumbs pointed up. “Kick” the dumbbells up toward your shoulders using your legs to generate momentum as you control the weight in a hammer curl motion, bringing your thumbs near the fronts of your shoulders.
When your wrists are near shoulder-level, carefully rotate your elbows away from your body until your palms are facing forward. Rest your shoulder blades against the backrest to fully support your upper body.
Form Tip: You might be able to bring both dumbbells up simultaneously when using relatively lighter weights, but it can become higher risk once weights get heavy. Focus on getting one dumbbell into position first, then hold it stable as you repeat with the other side. If you’re struggling with getting the dumbbells up into the starting position, ask a friend (or friendly looking gym-goer) for a spot.
Step 3 – Set Your Shoulder Blades, Core, and Feet
Credit: Vladimir Sukhachev / Shutterstock
Tuck your shoulder blades down and imagine putting them “into your back pockets.” This will help stabilize your upper back and make sure your pressing has a strong base to produce force, particularly once fatigue starts to accumulate.
Squeeze the dumbbells tightly in your hands and engage your abdominal muscles. The goal here is to prevent any unintentional arching — some natural back curvature will be normal from pinning your shoulder blades, but you’ll want to avoid any extreme arching which could lead to lower back pain. This way, your incline press will remain an incline and not slowly turn into an awkward “flat bench press using an incline.”
Find a comfortable foot position approximately shoulder-width apart. Once the rest of your body is set up properly, begin lightly driving through your feet to establish pressure that pushes your body into the bench. This will help stabilize your position all the way through the set and allow you to prevent wiggling around during harder reps.
Form Tip: Think about pinning your upper abdominal muscles to the top of your ribcage. This visualization should help you create a strong core. To keep your feet in place, think of performing a leg extension to create tension while your feet are digging into the ground.
Step 4 – Press to Lockout
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The main event has arrived. Begin with the dumbbells just above shoulder-height, both palms facing forward, and your elbows aimed at a slight angle between your shoulders and your feet. Tense your shoulder blades, engage your core, drive through your feet as you press the weights toward the ceiling.
As the dumbbells pass your face, bring them slightly together in an arc until they nearly meet. In the locked out position, the weights should be generally above your face, not too far forward (above your chest) or too far back (above the top of your head).
Form Tip: If you can focus on mastering the right setup while applying full-body tension, the dumbbells’ path should almost set itself up perfectly. If you’re struggling with controlling the weights, try adding tempo by moving more slowly through each phase of the exercise.
Step 5 – Lower the Weight
Credit: Vladimir Sukhachev / Shutterstock
After successfully locking out the weight, slowly lower the dumbbells. Once the dumbbells are approximately flush alongside your chest (if mobility allows that range of motion), reverse course and perform the next repetition, pressing the dumbbells with control back to the lockout position.
Form Tip: Lifters with poor shoulder mobility or pre-existing shoulder issues may not be comfortable with the stretched position created by holding the dumbbells near shoulder-level. Work within a comfortable, pain-free range of motion to avoid worsening any current joint problems. Pressing with a neutral grip (palms facing each other) instead of a palms-forward grip can also help to reduce shoulder-joint strain.
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press Mistakes to Avoid
Some of the most common errors you may stumble across while performing the incline dumbbell press involve various incorrect body positioning and poorly performed pressing. Any one of these can reduce results or create an opportunity for injury. Here’s what to watch out for.
Overarching
Some degree of arching during any type of chest press is a necessary and direct result of setting a stable upper back. However, issues can arise if your arch gets out of control and too extreme.
Credit: Vladimir Sukhachev / Shutterstock
If your abdomen begins to approach the same level as your sternum or chest, you may find yourself with an awkwardly angled torso that begins to more closely resemble a flat press than an incline.
Avoid it: Keep your core braced, drive your body into the bench using your legs, and only arch by depressing your shoulder blades — tucking them into your “back pockets.” Don’t arch by trying to “make space” between your lower back and the bench.
Flared Elbows
There is a sweet spot for your elbow angle during most presses. A common mistake is flaring your elbows out so that your arms are almost completely perpendicular to your body.
Credit: Vladimir Sukhachev / Shutterstock
Everybody is going to be slightly different depending on their individual arm length, but there’s a strong chance this directly outward position might limit your range of motion or run into some stressful issues at your shoulder joints or shoulder blades.
Avoid it: Aim for a nice middle ground between having your elbows fully tucked (aimed straight ahead) and fully flared (aimed straight to the sides). A great target to shoot for is to have your upper arms at roughly a 45-degree angle from your shoulder during most of the range of motion.
Inactive Legs
One very common mistake on the incline dumbbell press is completely forgetting about your lower body. While pressing is clearly designed to primarily target your chest, triceps, and shoulders, an active and engaged lower body can help with total-body stability and overall performance.
Credit: Serghei Starus / Shutterstock
Avoid it: Because wiggling around can reduce your stable position, keep your feet flat on the ground and dig in. Use your legs to constantly push yourself into the bench press pad through your thighs and hips.
Short Range of Motion
Training with high intensity is a pretty common prerequisite for results. Unfortunately, it isn’t uncommon to see a lifter “cut depth” as an exercise starts to get harder and harder.
Credit: Oleg Romanko / Shutterstock
Either through selecting too heavy of a dumbbell or simply by accumulating fatigue across a set, the range of motion often starts to diminish slowly and the last few reps of a set may end up with a shorter range of motion than the initial reps of the same set.
Avoid it: Hold yourself accountable throughout the workout. Perform a consistent range of motion for each repetition and choose your working weights to guarantee you can hit it with every rep of every set.
How to Progress the Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
The incline dumbbell press can be an excellent staple exercise in your program. There is some big value in getting a strong base of strength using a machine chest press or flat bench variation first, but once you’re at the incline dumbbell press, progressing it can be approached in a few very effective ways.
Degree of Incline
The bench’s degree of incline will affect your level of stability and can potentially even alter the swath of muscle that gets the greatest stimulation (1). These two considerations can help you plan your preferred “angle” of attack. They can also give you a nice long pathway to progress.
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
Typically, a lower incline (flat or slightly above flat) will be more stable because gravity is still assisting your stability to a greater extent. Each time you feel ready to increase the challenge and progress yourself to another level, kick the incline up a notch until you’re at a solid 45-degree for a pure incline press.
Just know that as the angle goes higher than 45 degrees, and approaches a 90-degree “incline” bench, you’re shifting muscular stress further from your chest and more directly onto your shoulders.
Adding Repetitions
Sometimes the best option is to add repetitions while maintaining the same load on your incline dumbbell press. Since you’re using dumbbells as the loading tool, the unilateral (single-sided) aspect of the exercise can make quick jumps in weight a lot harder to do since each arm is responsible for, literally, carrying its own share of the weight.
If this is the case for you, adding repetitions on one or more sets per workout, or gradually increasing the total repetitions performed per day overall, can be a way of progressing. This will allow you more time to strengthen your ability to control and stabilize the same load, which will make an increase in weight feel less daunting when you finally do move to heavier weights.
Adding Load
Adding load is often the most obvious way of progressing any exercise, although it should be approached with care. Using heavier weights can help assure definitive, measurable progress — but it may also run you headlong into an early plateau.
Once you have added a considerable amount of strength and stability by increasing repetitions, start thinking about making the smallest incremental jump in load that you can which will help to avoid hitting a plateau and allow more long-term progress. Many dumbbells are fixed in five-pound increments, but you might also have access to plate-loaded adjustable dumbbell handles or magnetic add-on weights which can be attached to dumbbells and allow increases as little as one or two pounds.
Increasing Frequency
Sometimes, to see the best overall progress in an exercise, you need to work on your skill and technique. In this case, it can be extremely beneficial to increase your training frequency by performing the incline dumbbell press more often each week.
If you only train the movement once per week, consider adding a second session to improve your skilled execution. This can have a very positive amplifying effect on all of your other progression tools as well.
Benefits of the Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
The incline dumbbell press is a fantastic tool for strengthening your upper body, building more chest muscle, and taking advantage of a unilaterally controlled exercise.
Gaining Strength
Aside from a basic barbell, dumbbells are one of the most effective tools for building strength. The full-body stability, coordination, and absolute load that dumbbells can achieve make for a fantastic strength training option.
The incline dumbbell press is an effective common accessory exercise in many powerlifting programs, speaking to the value of the movement in developing significant pressing strength.
Building Muscle
The incline dumbbell press can be a very effective muscle-building exercise. The incline angle can help you target your upper chest while also building your shoulders and triceps. Because the dumbbells allow you to bring the weights together in the top position, you can get a longer range of motion compared to using a fixed barbell. This may further improve the muscle-building stimulus. (2)
Training Unilaterally
Perhaps one of the biggest benefits is the unilateral aspect of the exercise. Unilateral exercises typically emphasize one side of the body working independently of the other.
Credit: Serghei Starus / Shutterstock
Each arm is responsible for controlling one dumbbell without assistance from the opposite side. This will help encourage the most natural pressing path because the load is distinct and not linked like a barbell, allowing your shoulder and elbow joints to move more with relatively more freedom and potentially less joint strain. The increased stability requirement will also force a more even development of strength and coordination.
Muscles Worked by the Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
The incline dumbbell press primarily works three major upper body muscles — your chest, shoulders, and triceps. While these are sometimes considered “vanity” muscles due to their high-profile appearance, they also play a key role in displaying upper body strength and stability.
Chest
The primary body part involved is your chest (or pectoralis major). The chest is a broad swath of muscle that covers many spots all across the front of your upper body — from your collarbones to the breastbone and even some of the ribs.
Each of these regions insert upon the same location at your upper arm meaning, so any pressing angle will ultimately harness the full chest. However, the incline dumbbell press puts a particular emphasis on the upper muscle fibers, or the highly sought after “upper pecs.” (3)
Shoulders
Your shoulders (in particular, the anterior deltoid or front shoulder muscle) are a nearly inseparable part of any pressing exercise. The anterior deltoid originates on the outside of your collarbone and inserts on the deltoid tuberosity (a small protrusion on the outer-middle part of your upper arm bone). Since it’s located here, most of your chest presses and chest flye exercises will similarly draw upon the anterior deltoid muscle.
Triceps
The triceps are a meaty muscle comprised of three separate heads working together, on the back side of your upper arm. They are responsible primarily for extending your elbow, so they will be heavily involved in successfully completing any pressing exercise.
Credit: MDV Edwards / Shutterstock
Pressing with your elbows and upper arms set approximately 45-degrees from your shoulder can harness a ton of triceps activation because of the improved depth and increased range of motion you can achieve.
How to Program the Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
The incline dumbbell press can be a surprisingly versatile exercise for your repertoire. It can serve as a primary movement of the day, an accessory performed after a heavier exercise, it can be used as a “pre-fatigue” tool to focus on chest development, and it can even be involved in a movement preparation or warm-up.
Primary Movement
Your primary movement is the meat and potatoes of any workout. It’s the first exercise performed in the session, typically because it’s the movement you’ll approach with the greatest amount of effort and energy.
As a primary exercise, the incline dumbbell press can be used for hypertrophy (muscle-building) or even for building strength once you start to get familiar with the movement. A few sets of 8-12 repetitions will be a great muscle-builder. If you’re able to safely execute in the 6-8 range, it can also be leveraged for strength.
Accessory Exercise
If it’s not the first exercise of your workout, the incline dumbbell press is a strong candidate for the second movement of the day. Once you’ve completed, for example, a heavy flat barbell bench press, it’s common to slide the incline dumbbell bench press into the next slot to train the muscles from a different angle and/or with different loading and volume.
This approach can be an effective way to build muscle, but it can also help shore up shoulder mobility and stability due to the inclined angle and varied range of motion from the previous exercise. Since your muscles will already be a bit tired from the main exercise, you’ll get plenty of stimulation from a slightly lighter load while aiming for 8-12 repetitions per set.
Pre-Fatigue
Pre-fatigue is a strategic technique for your programming. In a perfect world, you’d have all the access to loading and every potential exercise at your whim, but sometimes you’re stuck with a limited amount of training tools available. In these instances, pre-fatiguing your chest with a targeted exercise like the incline dumbbell press can sufficiently work the muscle enough to keep any following exercises challenging enough to deliver significant stimulation.
This is similar to using the exercise as a primary movement, but maintains the intention and effectiveness of additional exercises. Pair the incline dumbbell press with tempo training (lifting and lowering slowly) and moderate repetitions in the 10 to 12 rep range, and it can be a powerful way to breathe new life into any chest-focused workout.
Movement Preparation
Movement preparations are warm-up plans that use exercises themselves in a clever and efficient way to check many boxes simultaneously. The incline dumbbell press can be used as a part of your warm-up routine to make sure you have access to all the range of motion you might need for a barbell variation or flat bench press, for example.
It will also serve to practice your ability to stabilize your upper back and shoulders prior to hitting more heavily loaded exercises in your workout. Think of the incline dumbbell press as the final check before advancing to your primary movement of the day.
Incline Dumbbell Bench Press Variations
If you are looking for some effective chest exercises similar to the incline dumbbell press, changing the implement or slightly modifying the pattern are solid options. The incline machine press, incline cable press, neutral-grip incline dumbbell press, and incline dumbbell power flye can all be great tools at your disposal.
Incline Machine Press
The incline machine press will assume a more fixed range of motion than the incline dumbbell press. Since it is locked in its own path, you are often able to load the exercise heavier because your stabilizing muscles are less of a limiting factor.
The stability of the machine also lets you more safely approach muscular failure and more safely going past failure with intensity techniques like forced reps, compared to dumbbells. These are great benefits if you’re pursuing muscle and strength gains, but some machines can be a bit tricky if they doesn’t perfectly fit your frame.
Incline Cable Press
The incline cable press can be a uniquely effective modification to the dumbbell movement. You will still get unilateral benefits, but you’ll also get a touch more stability when using cables rather than dumbbells.
You can expect a greater range of motion that will easily accommodate individual limb lengths. Cables also offer constant tension by maintaining muscular stress throughout the entire movement, which can help to stimulate more muscle growth. (4)
Neutral-Grip Incline Dumbbell Bench Press
A neutral-grip incline dumbbell press places you in a slightly more stable position than the standard incline dumbbell press grip (with your palms facing forward). If you are working toward more mobile and stable shoulders, improve your odds by selecting an angle of incline that currently works for you (such as a slightly lower angle) and pressing with a neutral grip.
You will still be able to gain some serious baseline strength, coordination, and stability, but the neutral grip will lessen the challenge slightly.
Incline Dumbbell Power Flye
The incline power flye is a great combination exercise. It’ combines’s one-part dumbbell press variation and one-part chest flye variation. The unique exercise involves bending your arms to a more significant degree than during a normal flye pattern.
It still hits your upper chest with an incline movement, but the flye motion allows you to make gains even when you’re limited in load. When you’re in a pinch for equipment or want to blast your chest in minimum time, performing the incline dumbbell power flye with a medium load for moderate reps can be just the fix.
FAQs
What should I do if my elbows keep wobbling during the incline dumbbell bench press?
This might be a sign that the load is too great or your incline is set too high for your current abilities. Try starting with a much lower incline or slightly reducing the weight. You can also employ tempo training for a few weeks — taking two or more seconds to lift the weight and another two or more seconds to lower each repetition. The slower tempo can help you focus on control and you should be able to stabilize much more effectively with less movement at your elbows.
Can I do both incline and flat dumbbell pressing in the same workout?
You can use both of these exercises within the same training program, but the best recommendation is to split them into separate training sessions to avoid redundancies. They offer distinct benefits, but they are both dumbbell presses. To keep your options open for more variable training on either day, choose one dumbbell press to do in each upper body training session, and then move on to other exercises that cover different ground.
What should I do if I plateau?
You can start to strategically manipulate your training variables to break or avoid these plateaus. As you start to notice your results slowing, change your angle of inclination from the lowest to moderate and then the highest — stopping before it becomes a fully vertical shoulder press. You can also pair this with changing load and repetitions ranges as well, steadily going from lighter weight with higher repetitions to heavier weights with lower repetitions. Together, these two solutions should keep you progressing for a long time.
Press On
The incline dumbbell bench press is an excellent meshing of many different training tools and beneficial concepts: Independently manipulated dumbbells, a long range of motion, stability and mobility demands, and very versatile programming potential. Any one of these benefits is reason enough to start tinkering with this movement, let alone all of them together. If you’re looking to sneak in some new pressing gains and pumped up upper pecs, look no further than this simple, classic, and effective movement.
References
Chaves, S. F. N., Rocha-JÚnior, V. A., EncarnaÇÃo, I. G. A., Martins-Costa, H. C., Freitas, E. D. S., Coelho, D. B., Franco, F. S. C., Loenneke, J. P., Bottaro, M., & Ferreira-JÚnior, J. B. (2020). Effects of Horizontal and Incline Bench Press on Neuromuscular Adaptations in Untrained Young Men. International journal of exercise science, 13(6), 859–872.
Schoenfeld, B. J., & Grgic, J. (2020). Effects of range of motion on muscle development during resistance training interventions: A systematic review. SAGE open medicine, 8, 2050312120901559. https://doi.org/10.1177/2050312120901559
Rodríguez-Ridao, D., Antequera-Vique, J. A., Martín-Fuentes, I., & Muyor, J. M. (2020). Effect of Five Bench Inclinations on the Electromyographic Activity of the Pectoralis Major, Anterior Deltoid, and Triceps Brachii during the Bench Press Exercise. International journal of environmental research and public health, 17(19), 7339. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17197339
Burd, N. A., Andrews, R. J., West, D. W., Little, J. P., Cochran, A. J., Hector, A. J., Cashaback, J. G., Gibala, M. J., Potvin, J. R., Baker, S. K., & Phillips, S. M. (2012). Muscle time under tension during resistance exercise stimulates differential muscle protein sub-fractional synthetic responses in men. The Journal of physiology, 590(2), 351–362. https://doi.org/10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221200
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Michelle Basnett (Individual Women) and Jason Smith (Individual Men) are the winners of the 2023 Crossfit Africa Semifinal — the second of seven Semifinal events around the globe. Both Basnett and Smith have now earned definitive berths in the 2023 CrossFit Games later this August. This specific 2023 Semifinal took place on May 19-21, 2023, in Johannesburg, South Africa. Meanwhile, the Teams division saw CrossFit FBDV Mayhem Africa take home first after a strenuous battle through six workouts.
Here are the results and top 20 finishes for each of the three participating divisions at the 2023 CrossFit Africa Semifinal. Note: The respective Women’s and Men’s Individual divisions competed through seven workouts. Meanwhile, the official CrossFit leaderboard lists just 19 teams.
Below are the upcoming 2023 CrossFit Semifinal dates and their locations as the sport’s elite try to set themselves up for Madison’s CrossFit Games in the late summer:
May 25-28, 2023: North America West Semifinal | Pasadena, CA
May 25-28, 2023: Oceania Semifinal | Tennyson, QLD, Australia
May 26-28, 2023: South America Semifinal | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
June 1-4: Europe Semifinal | Berlin, Germany
June 1-4: Asia Semifinal | Busan, South Korea
By early June, the CrossFit world should have a precise idea of who will compete in the sport’s flagship event under the Wisconsin capitol heat.
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The annual International Federation of Bodybuilding and Fitness (IFBB) New York Pro is usually one of the biggest contests on the bodybuilding calendar. It’s not only a significant event for up-and-comers to make a name for themselves; it’s one of the essential steps en route to qualifying for the prestigious annual Olympia. The latest edition of the New York Pro in Teaneck, New Jersey, held true to this standard.
The 2023 New York Pro took place on May 20, 2023, in Teaneck, New Jersey. Nine divisions participated in the contest’s proceedings, including the: Men’s Open, Classic Physique, 212, Men’s Physique, Women’s Bodybuilding, Women’s Physique, Figure, Bikini, and Wellness. Each of the respective winners earned qualification for the 2023 Olympia in Orlando, FL, this early November. After changes to the qualification system in 2023, winning a contest outright is the only way to earn a berth for the 2023 Olympia, outside of an Olympia victory or a top-five finish at the previous Olympia.
2023 New York Pro Results
Here are the respective overall results for every division at the 2023 New York Pro, including standout wins like Ryan Terry (Men’s Physique), Tonio Burton (Men’s Open), and Natalia Kovaleva (Women’s Bodybuilding).
Men’s Open
Tonio Burton
Stuart Sutherland
Josef Kveton
Joe Seeman
Eric Wood
Maxx Charles
Nathan Spear
Robin Strand
Brent Swansen
Mike Hulusi
Burton’s win here secured his second-ever berth as a Men’s Open competitor in the Olympia. According to his personal page on NPC News Online, he finished in 16th place (2022) in his previous appearance at the flagship competition. In 2021, Burton competed in the 212 division and finished in 10th place at that year’s Olympia.
Terry has been competing as a Men’s Physique athlete since 2014 and has been vying for an Olympia title in his division for some time. His new victory in the New York Pro affords him another Olympia opportunity this fall after a disappointing seventh-place finish in 2022. Per his page on NPC News Online, Terry’s best-ever result at the Olympia was a second-place finish in 2016.
Women’s Bodybuilding
Natalia Kovaleva
Julia Whitesel
Rene Marven
Donna Salib
Towanda Smith
Vera Mikulcova
Saqweta Barrino
Andrea Saurer
Gisela Nunes Chan
Tamara Makar
This is the first win of Kovaleva’s career and, as such, earns her first-ever Olympia berth in November. In Kovaleva’s previous New York Pro foray in 2016, the athlete finished in 16th, making this modern result a dramatic improvement.
With the 2023 Olympia still months away, the New York Pro is just one opportunity for potential contenders to distinguish themselves. Upcoming events like the 2023 Texas Pro this summer will be another excellent chance as the hype for bodybuilding’s main competition continues to build.
“My ‘favorite’ quotes in media reports about pseudoscientific studies are: ‘People who eat/do [something] are more likely to die than those who do not.’
There is a likelihood of death other than 100%?“
Originally Posted At: https://breakingmuscle.com/feed/rss
On May 18, 2023, powerlifter Mary Duffy shared an Instagram video of herself capturing a 140.6-kilogram (310-pound) raw deadlift with chains during a training session. According to the caption of Duffy’s social media clip, the 73-year-old’s loaded barbell came out to 180 pounds. By affixing chains to each end, Duffy clarified that they added an additional 130 pounds to the strength of her final lift.
Duffy wore a lifting belt to help her with the massive pulling feat and completed it from a conventional deadlift stance while utilizing a mixed grip. This chain deadlift is nearly three-times Duffy’s most recent competition body weight of 52.2 kilograms (115 pounds).
Duffy has been competing as a powerlifter since her mid-60s when the athlete made her sanctioned lifting debut at the 2015 International Powerlifting Association (IPA) Connecticut Ironman Push/Pull Showdown. In the years since, the now Amateur Masters 70-74 athlete has maintained a mostly sterling competitive record, losing just once over the length of her career.
However, Duffy might have true headlines and rose to prominence in 2022 when she crushed a 136-kilogram (300-pound) raw trap bar deadlift with chains. The feat was 2.4 times Duffy’s usual competition body weight, and she has now built on it accordingly with a more traditional pulling position and implementation.
After achieving that trap bar deadlift in the summer, Duffy would go on to come in first place with wraps in the 57-kilogram weight class as an Amateur Masters 70-74 competitor during the 2022 IPA Connecticut State Powerlifting Championships in the fall. The victory gave Duffy her fifth title with wraps in six appearances in the contest (2015-2017, 2019, 2022). What’s clear is the athlete might have her own powerlifting dynasty on hand in “The Constitution State.”
These days, as might usually be the case for Duffy, she’s keeping busy with her strength training, at least according to the occasional tidbit shared over her Instagram page. At the time of this article’s publication, Duffy hasn’t announced any immediate plans to compete any time soon and it’s unclear when she’ll step on an official platform again. If her commitment to fitness greatness says anything, though, it should only be a matter of time for this older but still powerful athlete.
A little appreciated (but important) fact: for most of human history, the average person would have been regularly exposed to ketosis. This was mostly light and transient, sometimes more protracted, but they were never far from a mildly ketogenic state. Food wasn’t always a sure thing, after all, and carbs weren’t necessarily readily available year-round. Ketosis was normal, it was frequent, and it was beneficial, even life-saving.
Today, few people achieve ketosis without intentionally fasting or following a ketogenic diet. The latter refers to any very low-carb diet—low enough that your liver churns out ketones that your cells can use for energy in place of glucose. It may feel like keto exploded into popularity out of nowhere, but doctors have actually been prescribing therapeutic keto diets to treat epilepsy for more than a century. Today, keto is popular mostly as a weight-loss diet, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the benefits a keto diet has to offer.
That’s because keto diets have two things going for them: the carbohydrate restriction and the resulting ketones. Each profoundly affects health and longevity, beyond halting seizures and helping people fit into smaller jeans. I’ve been talking about keto since the early days of the Primal Blueprint because I firmly believe that everyone should spend time in a state of ketosis.
Here are some of the reasons why.
Why Go Keto? The Big Picture
The number one reason I recommend that everyone try keto is for metabolic flexibility. To put it bluntly, if you want to be metabolically healthy, you must be metabolically flexible. Metabolic flexibility, you may recall, is your cells’ ability to use any available substrate—glucose, fat, or ketones—for energy on an on-demand basis. It’s the opposite of carbohydrate dependency, the metabolic state that characterizes the vast majority of the population today.
Keto diets upregulate your cells’ ability to burn ketones, obviously, but they also make you more fat-adapted. And being able to metabolize fatty acids efficiently is important whether you’re keto or eating a “regular Primal” pattern.
There are other things that keto does uniquely well compared to other types of diets, namely lowering blood glucose, insulin, and inflammation. Hyperglycemia, hyperinsulinemia, and chronic inflammation are the triumvirate of doom when it comes to chronic disease. I can’t think of a single chronic disease of any kind—metabolic, autoimmune, neurodegenerative, cancer—that doesn’t have one, if not all three, as a contributing factor.
It’s obvious why seriously restricting carb intake would reduce blood sugar and insulin secretion, in turn reducing inflammatory markers.1 Keto diets also trigger more complex downstream biochemical processes that account for many of their beneficial effects. For example, keto modulates the action of a critical enzyme called AMPK that is involved in cellular energy regulation—improving glucose uptake by cells, improving insulin sensitivity, and decreasing inflammation.2 The ketone body beta-hydroxybutyrate has direct anti-inflammatory effects.3
In short, with keto diets, you reap the benefits of NOT eating too many carbs plus a host of other benefits that are specifically due to being ketotic.
Benefits of the Keto Diet
The Keto Diet for Treatment of Major Disease States
The ketogenic diet remains the only thing with the consistent ability to prevent epileptic seizures. We have better medicines than doctors did a hundred years ago, but not everyone responds to them. Whether it’s Thai kids with intractable epilepsy,4 Scandinavian kids with therapy-resistant epilepsy,5 or adults with refractory epilepsy,6 ketogenic diets just work.
Ketosis improves epilepsy via several mechanisms.
It increases conversion of glutamate into glutamine into GABA, reducing neuronal excitability.7
It increases antioxidant status in the neuronal mitochondria, improving their function.
It reduces free radical formation in neurons, a likely cause of seizures.8
It provides an alternate fuel to brain neurons that may be dysfunctionally metabolizing glucose.9
These effects on neuronal function and health, along with the ability of aging or degenerating brains to accept and utilize ketone bodies, also have implications for other brain conditions, like Parkinson’s,10Alzheimer’s,11 and bipolar disorder.12Ketogenic diets aren’t just beneficial for brain disorders, though. People with mild cognitive impairment and even generally healthy folks can enjoy cognitive benefits like improved memory, mental clarity, increased focus, and positive mood, to name a few.
And the impact of keto extends well beyond the brain. For example…
A Spanish ketogenic diet (keto with wine, basically) reversed metabolic syndrome and improved health markers of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Over 92 percent of subjects improved their liver health; 21 percent resolved liver disease entirely.13
Keto diets are poised to be the next big tool in preventing and treating cancer. Keto diets significantly reduce circulating glucose—the preferred fuel of most types of cancer—inhibiting the ability of cancer cells to proliferate. Although research results are still very preliminary, it is suggestive that keto diets can be used to augment (not replace) traditional cancer therapies in many cases. In cancer patients, a keto diet also preserves lean mass and causes fat loss.14
Ketogenic diets may improve symptoms of PCOS, which is strongly related to insulin resistance.15
The Keto Diet for Physical Performance
Being keto-adapted has several advantages for anyone interested in physical performance.
It increases energy efficiency. At any given intensity, a keto-adapted athlete burns more fat and less glycogen than a sugar-burning athlete. Long-term elite keto athletes can burn up to 2.3 times more fat at peak oxidation and 59 percent more fat overall than non-keto athletes, and they do it at higher intensities. They remain in the predominantly fat-burning zone at 70 percent (or higher!16) of VO2max, whereas non-keto athletes switch over from primarily fat burning to a spike in sugar-burning at 55 percent VO2max.17
It spares glycogen. Glycogen is high-octane fuel for intense efforts. We store it in the muscles and liver, but only about 2400 calories worth—enough for a couple hours of intense activity at most. Once it’s gone, we have to carb up to replenish it, lest we hit the dreaded wall. Keto-adaptation allows us to do more work using fat and ketones for fuel, thereby saving glycogen for when we really need it. Since even the leanest among us carry tens of thousands of calories of body fat, our energy stores become virtually limitless on a ketogenic diet.
It builds mitochondria. Mitochondria are the power plants of our cells, transforming incoming nutrients into ATP. The more mitochondria we have, the more energy we can utilize and extract from the food we eat—and the more performance we can wring out of our bodies. Ketosis places new demands on our mitochondria, who adapt to the new energy environment by increasing in number.
The Keto Diet for Fat Loss
Ketosis isn’t “magic”—it doesn’t melt body fat away. Instead, it works for many of the same reasons a standard low-carb Primal way of eating works: by reducing insulin, increasing mobilization of stored body fat, and decreasing appetite.
Ketosis suppressing appetite may be the most important feature. The overriding drive to eat more food is the biggest impediment to weight loss, and it’s the reason why most diets fail. When people attempt to eat less food despite wanting more, they butt up against their own physiology. Few win that battle. Ketogenic dieting avoids this issue altogether, suppressing the increase in hunger hormones that normally occurs after weight loss.18
Many diets work in the short term and fail in the long run. Weight loss isn’t worth anything if you can’t keep it off. Ketogenic diets appear to be good for long-term maintenance of weight loss, at least compared to low-fat diets.19
How to Go Keto the Right Way
The real benefits of keto come from doing keto the right way. Almost no one reading this needs to follow a strict therapeutic diet of the type usually prescribed to epileptic patients, typically involve exceedingly high fat and low protein.
For most of us, keto works best when we prioritize nutrient density, healthy fats, and a good amount of protein—a Primal way of eating but with fewer carbs. My books The Keto Reset Diet and Keto for Life go into detail about how to implement this way of eating, or start with my Definitive Guide to Keto.
The point I want to make clear is that keto diets are beneficial in ways that other diets aren’t by virtue of the ketones and the carb restriction, but you don’t need to be keto forever to reap the rewards. Dipping into ketosis for four to six weeks at a time, a few times a year, is sufficient. If you discover that you feel best in ketosis, then you can absolutely stay there. For everyone else, it can be a periodic thing.
Just don’t pass up the opportunity to achieve ultimate metabolic flexibility!
First, I want to say thank you for convincing me to do Tabata! I was struggling to lose weight and Finally I found something that helped! I really appreciate your coaching! - Craig T.
Ever since I was convinced to do Tabata I have seen huge results, I lost 6 pounds and gained energy in the first 3 weeks. I have been working out for 3 months before I decided to do Tabata and I struggled to lose weight.
At first I thought "How am I losing weight by bringing my heart rate up then cooling down then bringing it up again?" I don’t know how it works but it does!
Thank you!! - Theresa F.
The first day of Tabata, I wondered WHAT AM I DOING - I AM 56 !! Five weeks later I knew that it was what I needed. I learned that I could push myself well beyond my comfort zone and feel good later. I have a marked improvement in physical as well as emotional endurance. - Lyn C.
When I was first told about Tabata I was very excited from the word go, however that excitement stemmed from the fact that I had no clue what it meant. I missed the first week of class b/c I was traveling for work so when I came in during the 2nd week I had some making it up to do.
It was hard at first b/c my body wasn't used to working out at such a fast pace, but once I got into a rhythm I started to feel very good. These classes are no joke. If you stick with it you will leave there feeling stronger, healthier and overall better about yourself and what you've accomplished.
I would recommend these classes to anyone. Darrin is a great trainer and he'll keep you going with his energy.
- Jami L.
Warriors Fit Audio
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The link below will give ya a freeee shot at Audible plus a couple audio books just to try it out and if you haven't used audio books on your commutes you are missing out. Get pumped up before you get to where you are going and exercise your mind. I use it Everyday. Go get yours now!
(@fitnessbyaims)
A little appreciated (but important) fact: for most of human history, the average person would have been regularly exposed to ketosis. This was mostly light and transient, sometimes more protracted, but they were never far from a mildly ketogenic state. Food wasn’t always a sure thing, after all, and carbs weren’t necessarily readily available year-round. Ketosis was normal, it was frequent, and it was beneficial, even life-saving. 
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