Meet Our New Hormonal Fat Loss Advisor Ryan Faehnle

By Mike Westerdal

I’m in the business of giving people the tools and motivation to reach their goals and improve their lives.

Now that may sound like a very ambitious statement but it’s exactly what gets me fired up every morning to come to work!

One of the most fun and exciting areas of my business is our video creation. My publishing company CriticalBench.com has made a ton of YouTube videos (literally a ton… over 2,000!) in the past decade. These videos have allowed me and my team to build a stronger relationship and connection with not only the viewers and customers but also our fitness colleagues all over the globe.

And with all of this great video content we are helping people live their legacy of strength by empowering them to take control of their overall health; physical, mental and spiritual. That all by itself feels amazing and rewarding.

But I can also use the videos to better gauge what KIND of help people are searching for and that information is super valuable to me. The reason it’s so valuable is because we can create programs and courses that go far beyond a 5-minute video and really begin to affect change in people’s lives.

A short time ago we had a series of videos all about muscle activation exercises and the videos got a lot of views. Enough views that I realized we should go deeper into the topic of muscle activation and the many benefits it has like improved performance and fat loss. So, I quickly got to work.

I wanted an authority on the topics of exercise, hormones and fat loss. In my quest for an expert I was drawn to certified strength and conditioning specialist Ryan Faehnle who was quickly appointed Hormonal Fat Loss Advisor for CriticalBench.com.

Ryan Faehnle has spent years training, coaching and mentoring athletes in 21 different sports at the high school, collegiate and professional levels. He is the industry leader in creating fat loss, performance and muscle building programs for high level athletes.

Having worked with the Poliquin Group under the tutelage of legendary Olympic strength coach Charles Poliquin, Ryan has the experience, education and drive I was looking for to bring this complex information to the masses.

When Ryan and I began exchanging ideas about our new Fat Loss Activation program, I knew we were on to something groundbreaking that was going to help thousands of people achieve remarkable results.

Even though I was aware of his extensive background in sports performance, nutrition and fat loss, I was still blown away by his grasp and understanding in the areas of hunger, muscle activation and fat burning.

To look at Ryan, you would assume that his perfectly sculpted physique came easily to him (he looks like a Spartan warrior from the 300 movies!) but nothing could be further from the truth.

Like many of us (myself included) he too struggled with an out of control appetite, a love for food and trouble maintaining his weight for years!

After years of fighting the fat loss and hunger battle, he won. He discovered the impact the “hidden” hunger hormone has in our lives and that’s why he’s also known as “The Ghrelin Guy.”

I’ve been so fortunate to be exposed to and work alongside some of the most brilliant minds in the fitness and health industry over the last two decades and Ryan sits atop my list of extraordinary coaches.

I’m excited to introduce Ryan Faehnle’s Fat Loss Activation on sale for the first time for a gigantic discount for VIP readers like you.
Keep Training Hard,

Mike Westerdal, CPT, RKC
Founder – CriticalBench.com

Unlock Your Best Body

By Coach Ryan Faehne, CSCS, FMS

In order to unlock your BEST body, you must first be handed the combination. Much like opening any padlock, if you don’t enter the exact numbers in the correct order, you will never open that lock and you will become instantly frustrated and dejected.

Unlocking your ‘ideal physique’ works much the same way. It’s not as simple as just eating better and exercising more. Sure, those two criteria are major components to attaining a better body but there’s more to it, let me explain.

I’ve taught people how to improve their bodies in gyms all over the world. From Australia to London to Canada to the United States and more, I’ve been in a LOT of gyms.

And while each country I’ve been to has its own very unique gym-culture, there is one awful theme that runs worldwide: people do not know how to work the muscles they are trying to use while they’re exercising!

This may not seem like much of an issue as long as they are sweaty and out of breath, right?

WRONG!

These people are not unlocking their fat-burning potential from their exercise routine! It only appears that way.

If you aren’t activating the correct muscles, then you aren’t building the body that you want, PERIOD. And unfortunately, most people tirelessly working out to reduce body fat and build muscle are making the same mistakes over and over again.

And these mistakes lead to frustration, defeat and eventually a world filled with obesity and disease like the one we live in today. Even with all of the amazing breakthroughs in science and technology in the 21st century, we have a culture that continues to get fatter and unhealthier.

Let me share something with you missed by these discouraged individuals busting their butts for results and coming up short every time. This is actually a ‘relationship’ problem and this relationship takes place INSIDE your body.

Like a faulty wire, there isn’t a strong connection between the brain and the intended working muscle(s). This weak relationship is preventing the body from optimal fat loss results. The good news is that this mind-muscle connection can be repaired and made strong again in all people. You see, your body is in a constant state of fluctuating between lipolysis (fattyacid release from adipose (fat) cells) and lipogenesis (fatty acid storage inside your fat cells).

Research has shown that increasing blood flow to the muscles in the nearby locale of stubborn body fat can actually increase lipolysis, which means that it helps you release that body fat into your bloodstream to be burned. [1] 

The problem is that 9 times out of 10, people are NOT properly activating the muscles that they are attempting to train! This means that they are NOT increasing blood flow, lipolysis, and fat burning, and they are NOT reducing the fat on their most troubled areas.

Your brain controls the degree of activation that your muscles receive by sending impulses through your nerves and directly into the muscles. Sometimes your muscles can be hampered with decreased activation potential.

There are many reasons for this, but I’ve NEVER seen anyone who could activate all of their muscles properly and in the correct sequence right from the start.

Why is this? Isn’t the human body designed to function optimally? Well, yes, it is, but we have ruined that in favor of modern conveniences. You see, while computers and televisions and driving has all made our modern life much easier, it has destroyed our ability to do physical work.

Just as an example, if you sit in a chair for longer than 20 minutes, your gluteus maximus muscles will NOT be able to activate to their full potential. This means that if you attempted to do a glute-shaping workout, you would not train the muscles properly and you would not bring localized blood flow to increase the fatty acid release from the fat cells around your hips and thighs.

So, what is the solution?

The Fat Loss Activation Program!

This program consists of brief, intense workouts that you can do from home, with just an adjustable bench and some dumbbells. Yes, that’s it!

Each session is around 15 minutes long and consists of training for 1-2 body parts per session.

You’ll start with a Fat Loss Activation (FLA) exercise that’s designed to turn on the muscles that you want to shape with the main portion of the workout.

And that’s just the beginning of this amazing transformation you’re about to have so let me tell you more about how these FLA exercises work right here.

I’ve got your back,

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coach Ryan Faehne, CSCS, FMS
Hormonal Fat Loss Advisor – CriticalBench.com

Sources:

[1] Stallknecht B et. al. Are blood flow and lipolysis in subcutaneous adipose tissue influenced by contractions in adjacent muscles in humans? Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2007 Feb;292(2):E394-9.

Muscle Fiber Specific Training

By Chris Wilson, Head Strength Coach

The popular theory of slow & fast twitch muscle fiber training has been around for a very long time…

I would have to say from my own training experiences and many other hardcore lifters I have talked to over the years that to achieve maximum muscle strength, size and endurance, a power bodybuilder (you and me) should train both the slow and fast twitch muscle fibers.

A power bodybuilder is just a fancy description for the average gym rat. These are guys who don’t necessarily compete in powerlifting or bodybuilding but want the benefits of both. Their goal at the gym is to gain both size and strength. Look good, feel strong.

Our revered strength guru Fred C. Hatfield “Dr. Squat” who recently passed away this year confirmed the training of fast and slow twitch muscle fibers back in 1980.

He stated, “Bodybuilders in order to achieve the tremendous musculature that they possess have to do slow movements (reps), fast movements (speed reps), light and heavy poundage and everything in-between, thereby increasing the mechanisms of the muscle structure.”

It would be best to initially stick with lifts like the squat, bench press, deadlift and overhead press since they are compound lifts. These lifts will give you an idea of your total body muscle fiber type.

But if you’d like to attempt other smaller isolation lifts like arm curls, arm extensions and the like, go for it.

QUICK TEST to Determine Muscle Fiber Type

The rep tempo is 2 seconds in the positive phase and 4 seconds in the negative phase.

If a person can do 7 reps that would constitute a 50/50 average makeup of both fast and slow twitch muscle fibers. Achieving less than 7 reps indicates that the muscle is of the fast twitch variety and more than 7 suggests that the muscle is comprised mostly of slow twitch fibers.

A great example that demonstrates the tremendous difference between fast and slow twitch muscle fiber types can be found with an old friend of mine. Years ago, this guy could barbell back squat 405 pounds for 20+ reps and without any type of specific warm-up prior. I’m telling you, he was a BEAST.

I’m not talking partial squats either (barely a 1/8th movement). He would take each and every rep down to where his glutes were 12 inches from the floor. ATG style. As well he could do 450 pounds for 15 reps!

But this is where things get strange…the thing was that he could never do more than about 530 pounds for a single effort in the squat (void of knee wraps, lifting suits etc.).

Based on the reps he was cranking out with 405 lbs. and more, you’d think he was doing 600-700 pounds for 1 or 2 reps but that was not the case.

Obviously, he had a lot more ‘slow twitch’ involvement going on than fast twitch.

His rep strength with heavier loads was better than most but his 1RM just never seemed to make sense.

The only explanation for this dramatic difference is muscle fiber type.

I too find this with myself. I have better than average strength endurance on most lifts and exercises compared to others but once I get closer to my 1RM, my strength seems to go out from underneath me much like my old buddy.

One solution I found to work very well as far as recruiting both the fast and slow twitch fibers was a combination of the following sets and reps.

Slow-twitch Sets:
Set 1. Lightest weight – 15 reps
2. Add weight – 12 reps
3. Add weight – 10 reps
4. Add weight – 8 reps

Fast-twitch Sets:
Set 5. Add weight – 7 reps
6. Add weight – 6 reps
7. Add weight – 5 reps
8. Add weight – 4 reps plus 1 or 2 forced reps.

Many others have used the above sets and reps scheme with very good results on one compound exercise (Barbell back squats, Flat bench presses and Barbell curls etc.) only for a select muscle group.

In the past, I’ve switched the order of sets around and began with the Fast-twitch Sets first after a brief warm up period and then finished up with the Slow-twitch Sets. Play with it yourself and see what gives you the best results!

Want Stronger Glutes?
CLICK HERE for The 5-Minute Glute Workout