A big thank you and shout out to Kristine Fellizar for featuring Dr. Vedamani in her article on Bustle.com entitled, “How Do You Use Protein Powder? 7 Shocking Things Doctors Want You To Know.”

Many SDBody clients come in wanting to lose weight and gain muscle and one of the first place we look at is their diet. Many people take a kind of fast-food, drive-through approach to their diet and lifestyle and the same is true of the protein sources they choose. Protein is an essential building block for skin, hair, muscle and more and many people aren’t able to get enough in their diet to support their goals.

We always prefer that our clients get as many of their nutrients from whole food sources as possible, but protein powders can definitely fill in the gaps when you’re too busy to grill a steak or bored with yet another chicken breast.

Kristine’s article covers a lot of ground if you’re curious about protein powders including these quotes from our very own Dr. Shawn Vedamani:

Protein powders aren’t magic. “It’s not going to automatically add 20 pounds of muscle, you have to do the hard work in the gym, too,” Dr. Shawn Vedamani, MD, hormone and lifestyle expert, tells Bustle. In fact, some people might even be better off keeping to organic, nitrate-free chicken or wild smoked salmon for a quick hit of protein.

“Protein powders are a very convenient way to boost your protein intake, especially for athletes who have higher protein needs,” Vedamani says. “I suggest that my clients aim for at least 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. This should go up with age and level of physical activity.”

Bustle.com: How Do You Use Protein Powder? 7 Shocking Things Doctors Want You To Know

The post Protein Powders — Dr. Vedamani Featured on Bustle.com appeared first on SDBody.

Have you ever wished you could have the superhero body of an X-men star? Is it even possible for an average person without a celebrity trainer and bank account to achieve those kinds of muscle gains? Those were the questions that Bobby Palmer at GQ had for celebrity Jack Hanrahan. Hanrahan has trained many A-list celebrities including on the set of the film X-Men: Apocalypse.

According to Hanrahan, if you can create a workout structure with consistency built in, a superhero muscle gains are very accessible to the average gym-goer.

“Consistency is key,” he explains. “You need to create a workout structure you can be consistent with. Someone’s going to get way better results on two days a week in the gym consistently than going five days a week for three weeks then stopping.”

GQ Magazine: Can an average guy get a superhero body?

Hanrahan also suggests following a diet that has a lot of lean protein, even workouts for upper and lower body and aiming for three full-body workouts per week. He even includes four sample exercises anyone can add to their program.

Changing Your Grip Could be a Simple Way to Boost Muscle Gains

Trevor Thieme C.S.C.S. at Men’s Health Magazine reminds us that sometimes simple changes can result in new muscle gains. When you stop seeing new gains from the same exercises, you might think about changing your workout routines and exercises to create muscle confusion and address potential imbalances. But simply changing your grip on your favorite exercise can help you restart some new gains. Why does this work?

Even slight variations in hand position during a lift can totally change which muscles are targeted. Take the dumbbell curl, for example. Using the standard supinated grip targets your biceps, but if you rotate your hands 90 degrees to a neutral grip, the emphasis shifts to a different elbow flexor, the brachialis. If you rotate your hands 90 degrees again (to a pronated grip), you’ll target yet another elbow flexor, the brachioradialis.

Men’s Health Magazine: Get a Grip for Even More Workout Gains

Gaining Muscle with an Apple Watch

Are you an Apple Watch user? Graham Bower at Cult of Mac gives you some app and tracking tips to help you with new muscle gains. You’ll read about ways you can use your Apple Watch to track nutrition, drive muscle overload and track your progress, all things you need to do to create muscle hypertrophy.

How Are Your Gains?

How are your gains going? Are you achieving what you want in the time you can spend in the gym. With age, achieving muscle gains gets harder and harder because of hormonal decline. At SDBody, we look at your entire approach to gaining muscle, from diet to exercise to hormonal balance so you can look and feel your best.

The post Getting a Superhero Body and Other Recent Muscle Gain News appeared first on SDBody.