Sid Shaw Fitness

🚀WHY SHOULD WE SUPPLEMENT VITAMINS AND MINERALS?🚀
Over the last few years professionals have been very vivid about the importance of supplementing things such as greens powders , multivitamins.
But why is this so important for us ?
As individuals who train we are expending a lot more energy and taxing our nervous system alot more than someone who is simply living an inactive life.
This contributes to us needing more vitamins and minerals than the average person, especially as water soluble vitamins can be lost through sweat
!
WAYS TO COMBAT THIS!
Ways we can combat this nutrient imbalance is supplementing with a few simple products: fort example greens powders, fish oils and multi vitamins
! Stay healthy!!

🚀HARDGAINER HACKS🚀
In the fitness industry a lot of people like to overplay the benefit that carbs have on your training , when in reality for some people this isn’t the case!
To build muscle some individuals require marginally higher intakes of food than others , sometimes these people are known as hardgainers.
These people can largely benefit from higher fat intakes when compared to others as to gain muscle their intakes of carbs might be so high already that the benefit of adding any more is negligible. We know that per gram fats have 9 calories and carbs have 4 , so if you’re struggling to gain weight fats are your friend ! My personal favourite sources are dark chocolate , nut butter and fatty meat!

Relentlessness🦍
We all know that changing our bodies is an extensive task and takes months to years of dedication and commitment. But lets talk about something not a lot of people think about throughout this pursuit. Day in and out hundreds of people go into the gym and leave progress on the table, this is where the title comes in, relentlessness, did you really have only one rep left in the tank on that set , or did you realistically have many more. if you want to progress , you have to go into sessions with the mindset to be better than you were yesterday. Find a good training partner, find a motivating subject matter, just find something to push you. leave it all in the gym.

PRE EXHAUSTING
Why do we pre exhaust muscles ?
Pre exhausting is simply the process of isolating a muscle before moving into heavier compound movements. As much as people think this is the holy grail of gym performance this is far form true. Simplifying it all , to grow a muscle we need to load it through it’s full range of motion , long and short. This is why an isolation is a perfect exercise to build muscle because it is easy to achieve;
1: a massive ROM.
2: simple to load.
3: muscle connection and activity.
THINGS WE SHOULDNT DO WHILE PRE EXHAUSTING.
Don’t use pre exhausting as an excuse to turn weights into cardio , treat your isolations exactly the same as your compounds and put effort in!

HEELS OR FLATS FOR SQUATS?
Often people can find themselves in the predicament of whether they should be training legs in heeled shoes or flats.
This comes down to a mix of personal preference , and your own biomechanics.
Most wide stance squatters will prefer flats , however there are obvious anomalies in this scenario.
If you have access to squat shoes it’s best to try and see what works for you.
As a general consensus low bar and wide stance squatters tend to prefer flats and high bar narrower stance squatters tend to prefer heels.
Find what works for you !

A great day for the beach, but if the chance arises. It’s a better day to stock up🌊

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FATIGUE
When training the often and doing taxing compound movements multiple times a week we can accumulate central nervous system fatigue.
Symptoms of this may be feeling tired , drained , training performance moving in a negative direction and poor sleep.
So how can we drive this off?
One way we can hold off fatigue Choose less taxing movements in programming , avoiding too many specifically taxing compounds such as the squat and deadlift can lower the fatigue generated , not in a sense that you can’t do them , but programming an rdl, deadlift , Smith squat , squat and a sumo deadlift , your fatigue will be through the roof and you won’t progress , so program wisely.
- Secondly but arguably most importantly recover as hard as you can , sleep well, eat well, and be smart about your recovery.
- epsom salt baths
- foam rolling
-stretching
Are all ways to help improve recovery when implemented correctly !

👨🏽‍✈️VASCULARITY 👨🏽‍✈️
Some think it’s disgusting , some think it’s epic , but we can ALL agree extreme vascularity can be impressive 99% of the time.
So how do we increase vascularity ?
HEAT; increased heat will help dilate your blood vessels in turn making your veins appeal more exposed , increasing vascularity !
Wear a hoodie in your session and half way through take it off ! Thus will improve your vascularity.
HAIR ; the less hair you have on your forearms ect , the easier it will be to see your veins.
MUSCLE ; the more muscle you accrue over the years , the more the tissue beneath your veins will push yourself veins up closer to the surface of your skin.
BODY FAT ; possibly the highest tier pre requisite of vascularity ! Simple , the leaner you are , the more vascular you will appear !

😏THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF FAT LOSS😏
Cutting body fat can be great for overall health and body composition , including effects such as better transportation of carbs ( think the opposite of insulin resistance), better cardiovascular health and less joint strain !
However there comes a stage where fat loss will start to negatively impact your overall condition and here are some of those effects.
1: overall mood. on lower calories it will be much easier to be short tempered and harder to control your own emotions , this needs to be kept in mind.
2: worse strength and gym performance / pumps.
This shouldn’t occur unless you are in the depths of a deficit and most people should be able to get stronger in a deficit!
3: lost libido and s*x drive/ slowed down metabolism.
These are consequences of LONG extended cuts and for most people if you experience these effects ( especially low libido to an extreme degree ) its pretty much time to get out of a deficit unless you are actively dieting for a show!
It isn’t all rainbows and fluffy clouds, sometimes you just have to grind through to achieve the goal.

😴BLUE LIGHT 😴
Let’s talk about efficiency for a moment , most people think they get enough sleep but another variable to look at is HOW your sleep quality actually is.
To achieve enough recovery we need to undergo complete sleep cycles, as well as not being interrupted during these cycles.
The waves Blue light emits effects our bodies production of melatonin which helps you fall asleep and serotonin which helps us stay asleep.
We need acute levels of these hormones to get a good night sleep and be in enough of a deep sleep state to recover from our high intensity training.
WAYS TO COMBAT BLUE LIGHT!
-Blue light blocking sunglasses!
-Cutting out blue light emitting screen time before bed !
-Using night mode on your devices !
Are all effective ways of combatting the catabolic blue light , I see you there on your phone checking Instagram at 1am, stop it if you want to sleep better !
(Or use night mode )😂

😆RESISTANCE TRAINING AND HAPPINESS 😆
Unknown to some people , exercise can actually help your overall happiness as a person , as well as improving your body !
Why you ask ?
When we exercise or resistance train our body releases endorphins that interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce pain !
They also trigger a positive feeling in the body that can be similarly compared to morphine. This euphoric feeling can be accompanied by an accomplished feeling , as well as a positive energising outlook on life.
Regular exercise has been shown in studies to reduce stress , anxiety / depression AND improve your sleep !
It also has positive effects on your blood pressure , your cardiovascular health and not to mention bone health !
Be active !

🏋🏼‍♀️MACHINES VS FREE WEIGHTS🏋🏼‍♂️
Contrary to popular belief not one single machine or free weight variation will build more tissue than another !
The key factor in muscle building is how you connect to a movement and employ progressive overload over time.
You often might head “barbells build more muscle than cables.” Or something similar however this is far from true , and however in some cases cables and machines can create an even more optimal resistance profile for building tissue than barbells or dumbbells do !
Not to mention most of the time they’ll be less taxing on your central nervous system and as we know recovery is a key factor for building tissue as well.

STRESS 🤯
An under-looked component of fat loss is simply stress! increased cortisol levels can lead to stress causing our body to hold vast amounts of water, hiding any fat loss progress if any even occurs! stress can lead to decrease in gym performance , mood, and overall recovery as it may also effect our sleeping patterns and hunger hormones! so how can we control stress? better sleep, meditation, haviing some time alone every now and then, Cortisol Supplements or simply relaxing are all ways of reducing stress. Especifically cortisol , is often referred to as the most catabolic hormone and this should'nt be taken lightly as it massively effects your overall body composition! So stay healthy!

CAN YOU SPOT REDUCE BODY FAT ?
Everyone seems to want to lose that lower ab region of body fat or the lower back body fat specifically however unfortunately this isn’t how it works.
Body fat will be lost in first instance from wherever you are genetically disposed to lose body fat from !
This means there is no way to target a specific area to lose body fat from.
A tip you could give anybody wanting to lose specific areas of body fat is keep dieting ! Eventually you will come to a point where you start losing those targeted spots, it may even be in your last few weeks of a diet phase ! So stay true to your goal !

DOES SWEATING MEAN YOU’RE BURNING FAT ?
Sweating is the process of excreting fluid and some salt in order to cool your body down when your body temperature reaches high levels. As your body temperature rises this excretion of fluid soaks the skin , and when this evaporates it cools the surface of your skin ( think getting out of the beach on a windy day ).
Sweating itself is not a mechanism of burning calories , however chances are if your body temperature is raised from exercise , sweating will occur, meaning it isn’t a function of burning fat but it can be an indicator that you are pushing yourself in your training!

🙈THE ANABOLIC WINDOW🙈
There is an idea out in the fitness and lifting community that when you’ve just finished training you have a short window of time where you are the most “anabolic” and should drive in food to make sure you make the most of this period however this is not true. However studies suggest it is a good idea to get some sort of post workout meal in relatively soon (.5-1 hours) after training especially if training fasted. This is a marginal gain scenario where there doesn’t seem to be resounding evidence that shows it is needed to have a post workout meal straight after training although it definitely won’t cause any harm so you may as well try to eat within at least 1 hour after training.

DOES SUGAR MAKE YOU FAT?
A common misconception seems to be that people think sugar is the direct cause of obesity, this is far from true! the most important factor when trying to lose body fat is your overall caloric intake aswell as your macronutrient split! As long as you reach your macro targets and your micronutrition is on point then you will reach your goal. however too much of anything is never great, keep it in moderation!

💪🏽MUSCLE IMBALANCES💪🏽
Sometimes you may notice one side of your body is lagging behind the other in terms of strength and or muscle growth. this isn't ideal because as well as being unsymmetrical, it can cause improper form on compound lifts leading to injuries or worse. they can be easily fixed by adding more volume to your weak side through implementing iso-lateral work and starting with your weak side, then matching reps with your stronger side. TRAIN SMART!

👑OVERTRAINING How can i tell if im overtrained? 👑
You mightve heard the term overtrained thrown around before but may not know in depth what it actually means. Overtraining is when you do too much in the gym , volume , sets reps , hours whatever it may be causing a decline in your performance.signs of overtraining can be as simple as flu like symptoms or more commonly elevated cortisol levels , extreme mucle soreness , fatigue and declining sleeping patterns. overtraining can be prevented by making sure you give your central nervous system a break, rest days deloads whatever it may be that you need to keep progression moving forward.

💭How to reduce DOMS.💭
DOMS (delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) is the soreness we feel after a brutal workout. DOMS come from micro tears in our muscle fibres during training such as plyometrics and strength training. Essentially any training that place muscles under tension or stress for a certain period of time!
DOMS can build up over a 24-72 hour period of time and can hang around for 1-3 Days… Everyone wants to aim to successfully stimulate and tare muscle fibres but it can be an un pleasant pain after your workout, So how do you Reduce DOMS?
SUPPLEMENTATION:
1. Post-workout Whey Protein shake or any sort of high protein meal is the perfect way to kickstart recovery process and reduce muscle pain.
2. Sleeping products, Adrenals or ZMA are perfect. The importance of sleep is vital for recovery and natural growth hormone production
3. BCAA’s to promote protein synthesis and muscle recovery.

WATER TEMPERATURE:
1. Hot water opens up your blood vessels and relaxes your muscles to improve blood flow.
2. Cold Water flushes blood out the muscles.
3. Combining the both, 1 min of hot & 1 min of cold can increase blood flow and eliminate toxins and waste improving recovery rapidly.

🦍Importance Of Essential Fatty Acids🦍
Everyones worse fear right? WRONG!
Fats help us control our hormone balance ( healthy testosterone levels and HGH levels) to optimise our growth and will also play a strong role in your recovery , health, cholesterol levels and the overall development or recomposition of your physique over time. Your daily intake of fats should make up roughly 30% of your Macro Split, ensuring you spread the fats across Saturated, Polyunsaturated and monounsaturated.
Majority of these fats should come from healthy sources to supply your body with a constant stream of omega threes and other important micronutrients obtained through fats!
Below is a list of Foods that all equal to 5g Of Fats
-Avacado 28.5g
-Almonds 8.6g
-Olive Oil 4.5g
-Peanuts 9.36g
-Peanut Butter 10.6g

⚠️Carbohydrate For Post Workout⚠️.
Carbs are responsible for providing energy into our muscular and central nervous system, Carbs are digested and converted into glucose where it is stored as glycogen in our muscle cells. During our training sessions our muscles use energy (glucose) which can lead to a depletion of Glycogen. Depleted glycogen Levels can result in a catabolic state.
Catabolic is an environment in which the body won’t synthesise protein nor replenish Glycogen. Keeping out of a Catabolic State is vital for Muscle Development and recovery, so absorbing carbohydrates Post workout is very important.
In Addition to this, a result of consuming carbs you spike insulin, the most important hormone in the body. Insulin spiking enhances Glycogen uptake and can also suppress cortisol which allows our body to shuttle nutrients quickly to required muscle tissue for a better recovery.

Improvise, adapt and overcome.
Remember it’s always hard to beat someone who does the work.

🔥F-CARDIO🔥
This could be the product you’ve been waiting for, I’ll let you read the below and decide for yourself 🏃🏽‍♂️
F-cardio is a hybrid fat burning supplement formulated to give you the ultimate advantage when it comes to losing body fat.
F- cardio’s formula includes a cocktail of scientifically proven ingredientants to increase your resting metabolic rate while also increasing your cognitive ability.
Where f-cardio separates itself from some stimulant thermogenic is the fact that f-cardio ingredient profile will not result in elevated cortisone when taken, and will not tax your central nervous system.
-suppress appetite
-burn fat
-increase cognitive ability
-Decrease water retention
What else could you want in a thermo?

🍔TRANS FATS🍔

Trans fats are a form of unsaturated fat, which can have negative effects on your overall health and wellbeing. Artificial trans fat is often created during hydrogenation, in which it converts liquid oils into solid-like partially hydrogenated oil. Trans fat can also be found naturally in meat and dairy.
An excessive trans fat intake can lead to a raise in your bad (ldl) cholesterol increases your risk of developing heart disease and stroke. It's also associated with a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Calories aren’t just calories. Treat yourself occasionally but note where your sources are coming from, and most of all try to keep your fat sources as healthy and unprocessed as possible
-egg yolks
-fatty fish
-avocado
-Nut butters
And red meat are all amazing sources of dietary fat to include in your micro nutrition! Stay healthy 🙂

🥴Lets Talk Cellulite🥴
Cellulite is that dimple appearance most people dread which usually occurs in areas such as arms, thighs and buttocks. Cellulite is the buildup of fat underneath the skin. With all the products on the market in regards to reducing cellulite it seems that no one actually knows what causes it except for possible estrogen dominance and hormone imbalances. The main difference between Male and female is the layer of “Fibrous Septa” (collagen) which aligns the skin to connective tissue. In females it runs horizontal and males diagonal, making it easier for fat to prude through on females a lot easier.

Beating yourself up about cellulite wont help and theres no quick fix, you can’t really get rid of it but you can reduce the appearnace. Below are a few ways that may reduce Cellulite appearance but after all its Hereditary….

1. Staying Hydrated
2. Implement Weight/strength sessions
3. Reduce Insulin spiking (reduce Carbohydrate rich foods) if you are quite inactive otherwise we all know carbs are our fuel.
4. Reduce Body Fat- Calorie Deficit