THE BEST OF HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE

LE
THE ROCK / MARK WAHLBERG / CHRIS
HRIS HEMSWORTH
HEMSWORTH//JASON
JASON STATHAM / ARNIE
SPEC
IA
ISSU L
SEPTEMBER 2018

E
09
SEPT 2018 £4.10
9 771356
7 3 6 743149
4 49

BUILD A LEAN &

BEACH RIPPED
“I BEGAN TO THINK OF MY BICEPS AS MOUNTAINS” ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER P80

O
Th New Science
The Sci nce Of Burningg Fat
p 2
p102

Kick-Ass
ic ss Moveso es
Gamechanging g g
Training
T Plans
i i g Pl
Rapid
pi Resultss
Hack A New 6-Pack
Z
000
C
I Just
In J t 45
S
45minn
8
TOP TIPS FOR

36
WAYS TO UNDO A
O G
T-SHIRT ARMS

ARE YOU CLOSE O

TO BURNOUT? YO
Extinguish Stress For Good
p54 MUSC
With Yourr Eyes
y s Shut
S ut
A O SCHWARZENEGGER,
ARNOLD GG 30, STAR OF PUMPING
U IRON
O
09/18 THE TRANSFORMATION ISSUE

MUSCLE WEIGHT LOSS FITNESS

P21 GET SLAMMING ABS P27 WHICH COMES FIRST? P19 LET’S TAKE THIS OUTSIDE
Grab your summer body by the balls with Crack into the stats to discover whether Escape the gym and train in the sun
a move approved by Anthony Joshua chickens or eggs win out for your waistline to enhance your performance

P41 THE DNA OF BIG ARMS P29 SOCIAL MEDIA IS MAKING YOU FAT P49 TURN UP THE HIIT
Dupe your stem cells into building new muscle Take the stress out of losing weight by Donning winter layers on summer runs is
– all you need is a pair of 3kg dumbbells logging off for good. Thumbs up all round proven to boost endurance. Bring a towel

P46 EARN A BLACK-BELT BODY P30 GAINS IN SPAIN P64 SPIKE YOUR STAMINA LEVELS
Throw yourself into fighting shape with Fly to Mike’s Gym in Marbella this summer to Re-up your hydration plan with cactus
Team GB judoka Ashley Mckenzie strip away fat on its intense obstacle course water to increase your VO2 max

NUTRITION STYLE HEALTH

P22 MED DIET REDUX P124 JEAN EXPRESSION P14 WIRED FOR SOUND
Give the classic eating plan a modern twist This minimalist riff on a workwear staple Can’t walk anywhere without a podcast on?
and turn it back into a labour of love shows that denim is no one-trick pony Here’s why switching off will turn up your IQ

P62 THE BBQ RIB DETOX P131 SKIN IN THE GAME P51 DOCTOR ROBOT
Liver feeling the burn this summer? The Erase the damage of summer excess with MH gives you the full download on the
best cleanse comes with sticky fingers our restorative selection of luxe serums smartest AI health apps in store today

P88 GRIND AND RISE P132 GOLDEN BROWN P116 ANGER MANAGEMENT
Elevate the original performance pick- The 1970s hues are back for AW18. Use our Letting off steam can clear your mind
me-up with our experts’ guide to coffee guide to make brown work effortlessly and bolster your long-term health

6 MEN’S HEALTH
 IN S SSUE
SIM
MPLE STEPSS FOR LASTING CHHANGE

ON THE COVER
P33 TOP T-SHIRT ARMS TIPS
The latest scientific tricks to
add inches to your biceps and
fill your sleeves this summer

P54 ARE YOU BURNING OUT?

How to tell whether you’ve
had a bad week at work, or are
in danger of going up in flames

P63 BULK UP IN BED

Why turning in early is the
chillest thing you can do to
double your muscle growth

P69 HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE

We rate the 30 best cinematic
physiques and give you their
workouts to IMAX your body
Shooting
P102 RIPPED RULE BOOK
Tear up the old rules of weight
loss: our new laws of burning
fat are much more fun

PT+ BUILD A BEACH BODY

Your free 32-page special has
every move, food and pill you
Blanks
With sperm counts falling
fast, MH investigates the
need for last-minute results
PHOTOGRAPHY JACK MITCHELL
GETTY IMAGES
last, great sexual taboo
p96
MEN’S HEALTH 7
THE EXPERT PANEL
HIT HIGH SUMMER AT PEAK FITNESS UNDER THE GUIDANCE
OF THIS ISSUE’S CRACK TEAM OF SPECIALISTS
SKYE ROBERTSON
CAREERS ADVISER
In an unstable jobs market,
a side hustle could prove
a smart way to stabilise your
income. Robertson shows
you how it’s done p82
SHEENA LEWIS
FERTILITY DOCTOR
Infertility can affect any
man, yet it’s still largely
treated as a taboo. Dr Lewis
shares her insights into
the growing crisis p96
THIS ISSUE IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY…
10 PERSONAL TRAINERS
9 UNIVERSITY RESEARCHERS
7 SIDE-HUSTLING ENTREPRENEURS
6 STYLE AFICIONADOS
5 PSYCHOLOGY SPECIALISTS
5 COFFEE CONNOISSEURS
4 MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS
TOTAL
61 EXPERTS
8 MEN’S HEALTH
DEPUTY EDITOR
EDITOR IN CHIEF
TOBY WISEMAN
CREATIVE DIRECTOR STYLE DIRECTOR
DAVID MORTON DECLAN FAHY ERIC DOWN
PHOTO DIRECTOR
VICI CAVE
FEATURES EDITOR
SCARLETT WRENCH
WORKFLOW DIRECTOR
EMMA KING
ART EDITOR EDITORIAL BUSINESS MANAGER ART DIRECTOR
JESSICA WEBB RACHAEL CLARK WILLIAM JACK
COMMISSIONING EDITOR CHIEF ASSOCIATE EDITOR
(PRINT AND DIGITAL) SUBEDITOR (STYLE)
TED LANE YO ZUSHI MATT HAMBLY
DEPUTY STYLE EDITOR SUBEDITOR PICTURE EDITOR
SHANE C KURUP LEAH CRAIG FRANKIE HILL
STYLE ASSISTANT JUNIOR FITNESS EDITOR
RICCARDO CHIUDIONI MICHAEL JENNINGS
ASSISTANT DIGITAL EDITOR DIGITAL EDITOR DEPUTY DIGITAL EDITOR
DANIEL DAVIES ROBERT HICKS ED COOPER
ANDY COPE ASHLEY MCKENZIE
PSYCHOLOGIST TEAM GB JUDOKA MANAGING DIRECTOR, MEN’S LIFESTYLE, HEALTH AND FITNESS
ALUN WILLIAMS
Filter out the pressure from As Olympian McKenzie
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT TO MANAGING DIRECTOR
social media to feel upbeat. grapples for gold, follow NATASHA MANN
According to “happiness his plan for earning martial BRAND DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
JANE SHACKLETON
doctor” Cope, there’s relief muscle and propel yourself
SENIOR MARKETING EXECUTIVE
to be found in negativity p35
p into fighting shape p46 PHILIPPA TURNER
CLIENT DIVISION
MANAGING DIRECTOR, MANAGING DIRECTOR,
BEAUTY LUXURY AND FASHION
JACQUI CAVE JACQUELINE EUWE
DIRECTOR OF SPORT AND HEALTH DIRECTOR OF TRAVEL DIRECTOR OF MOTORS
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CLIENT DIRECTOR, CLIENT DIRECT DIRECTOR, CLIENT DIRECT DIRECTOR,
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ARTUR ZZOLKIEWICZ
OLKIEEWICZ SAM LANGDON GROUP AGENCY DIRECTOR
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REGIONAL AGENCY DIRECTOR
CLARE CROOKES
PERFORMANCE COACH MASTER COFFEE ROASTER HEAD OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT BUSINESS MANAGER HEAD OF CLASSIFIED
If your regimen is more pain For improved brain power, LUCY PORTER GEMMA THOMPSON LEE RIMMER
(0207 439 5276) (0207 297 3480) (0203 728 6247)
than gain, you’re doing it gym performance and, well,
wrong. Let Zolkiewicz teach everything, give it the beans. CONSUMER SALES AND MARKETING
you how to enjoy fat-burning Use Langdon’s expertise MARKETING AND HEAD OF CONSUMER HEAD OF
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 TOR’S LETTER
YOU CHOOSSE THE GOAL. WE’LL HELP YOU GET THERE

PAGE
GE

69 132

PAGE
PA

Take inspiration
p from As autumn approaches, the
the 30 greatest bodies colour brown has cast off its
ever to grace
g the silver drab, suburban connotations
s
screen, ffrom Statham and made a welcome comeback.
to Schwarzenegger
gg r This is your cheat sheet

96
88

PAGE
PAGE

With sperm counts

declining across the
Western world, Men’s
There’s more to coffee Health reports on the
than your morning crisis of male infertility
jolt. Get the most
out of man’s original

102
performance enhancer

54
PAGE
PAGE

From sleeping in
Work-related burnout to the joy of chilli
can be debilitating, sauce, this is our
and it’s on the rise. science-backed guide
Learn how to spot the to the new laws
early warning signs of losing weight

PAGE
body dysmorphic disorder, as well as
82
investigations into the risks of steroids and
related performance-enhancing drugs.
Instead, let’s focus on the last charge:

T 
his issue, and the Laast- that we should be censured for saying you
Minute Summer Weigh ght-- aare not OK as you are, that you should
Could your hobby
Loss Manual that comesmes chhange. It is not only an accusation that
become a career?
with it, is dedicated to bod
bodydy Welcome to the age I refute; it is one made by someone who has
transformation. It’s that timme
time of the side hustle patently not engaged with our journalism.
of year again – we know it’s what yoou At a time when obesity is the greatest
want, because you tell us so. From oourr cause of early deaths in the UK after
iis p
potentiallyy as toxic
toxi as fashion’s size zero
feature on Hollywood’s most inspiringg smoking, the fact that health and fitness
ffixation,, and often leads to psychological
physical metamorphoses to the smarte test are gaining more traction with men can
issu and substance abuse; consequently,
issues
nto
tricks and tips that will help snap you int only be positive. That a man wants to
magazines such as Men’s Health should
the best possible shape before boarding learn how to train and lose weight more
be castigated for perpetuating unrealistic
your plane, this is an issue lovingly crafted effectively shouldn’t be treated as a moral
goals by shaming men into inadequacy.
with your corporeal interests at heart. failing. It should be commended.
And they were the nice bits.
Some people have a problem with this. Life empowerment is in Men’s Health’s
How to respond? Well, let’s forget for
A national newspaper recently ran an DNA. We aim to provide you with the tools
the moment that, for many years, we have
article under the headline “The problem you need to achieve your goals and
championed physiques that are built for
with extreme male body transformations”. improve your wellbeing, both physically
performance rather than mirrors. Or that all
Men’s Health featured in the first sentence and mentally. That doesn’t mean you’re not
of our advice and guidance comes from the
and frequently thereon. Its gist was as OK as you are. It means that if you want to
best trainers, physiologists and dieticians.
follows: magazines such as the one you’re make a difference, we’ve got your back.
Or that we consistently encourage men to
holding have created a dangerously lean
aesthetic; this new ideal is cosmetic rather
prioritise their mental health by instigating TOBY WISEMAN
large-scale campaigns to promote open
than functional; it represents a fetish that
dialogue. Or that we regularly publish
BSME EDITOR OF THE YEAR
features on topics such as orthorexia and

MEN’S HEALTH 11
 THE BIG
QUESTION
Q
I GET MOST OF MY
VITAMINS FROM
TABLETS. WILL THIS
DO ME ANY HARM?
CHRIS, KENT
While your faith in science is admirable,
Chris, it would be nonetheless naive
to suppose that we have reached the
stage at which food is interchangeable
with pills. However, it appears that you
are not alone – recent reports* show
almost half of us take vitamins daily,
with sales now outstripping that of
painkillers†. What you need to know
WORDS: MICHAEL JENNINGS | PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY | *THE GROCER | †MINTEL (2016)
is that there’s a very good reason
they’re called “supplements”. Popping
a multivitamin with your plate of chips
is no replacement for a proper meal.
Aside from their lack of dietary fibre,
calories and fats, synthetic nutrients
are not utilised by your body quite so
easily as those from wholefoods. “Some
pills disintegrate too slowly for your
body to fully absorb the vitamins,”
says nutritionist James White.
ASK MH
A FRESH TAKE ON COMMON CONCERNS
WHAT SUPP?
A MEAL IS MORE
Trade in all-purpose
multivitamins and zone
THAN THE SUM
OF ITS PARTS
in on the supplements
your lifestyle requires
FOR RESTLESS
SLEEPERS…
MAGNESIUM
For sounder shut-eye,
you need to activate your
parasympathetic nervous
system. A magnesium
tablet before bed will
ensure you rest easy.
FOR HARD
TRAINERS…
VITAMINS A & D
Heavy lifting can
weaken your immune
system, so counteract
However, using tablets as a daily this with cod liver oil,
an all-in-one hit that’s
top-up can be a sensible strategy. “I a great source of both.
see supplementation as an insurance
policy,” says White. “They’re a nutritional FOR STRESSED
WORKERS…
safety net for when you run into RHODIOLA
natural deficiencies – vitamin D, for This medicinal herb is an
example, can often be hard to obtain adaptogen that adjusts
to your body’s needs. If
through food and sunlight alone.” your levels of the stress
So, if your diet isn’t measuring up, hormone cortisol are too
keep popping (only as recommended, high, it will crush them.
though). Just consider taking a detour
to the meds via the fruit-and-veg aisle.
MEN’S HEALTH 13
 ASK MH
SOUND ADVICE THAT CUTS THROUGH THE NOISE
TEXT
A CHEF
I’ve been working late and AM I
haven’t eaten yet. What’s the UNCHAIN FROM
best thing I can pick up from NORMAL? THE MELODY AND
Tesco past dinner time? BEAT DISTRACTION

It depends. Have you done

any training today?

Not today, though I do go

to the gym most days.
Q
WHY CAN’T I
Your muscles won’t need tons
GO ANYWHERE
of fuel tonight. Try pre-cooked
salmon on edamame beans
WITHOUT MY
and a bag of veg. Add sweet
chilli sauce if you’ll need extra
HEADPHONES?
carbs for tomorrow’s session. NATHAN, SOUTHAMPTON

If you suffer a meltdown

What should I be picking on
training days, then?
Again, it depends. A weights
session requires more protein
and carbs for repair than a jog.
It’s usually an hour of weights,
occasionally just a quick run.
On strength days, a chicken
pasta salad. For cardio, a three-
every time you leave your your mind no space to wander,”
noise-cancellers at home, says sports psychologist Victor
there could be many reasons Thompson. “Over time, this lack
for your separation anxiety. of headspace hinders memory
Perhaps you’re sensitive to and problem-solving.”
background noise, or just find Neuroimaging scans show that
other people irritating. Most our brains are more active when
likely, you’ve become addicted we’re daydreaming than when we’re
to the mental stimulation focused on a task. Plus, Einstein
claimed his best ideas came to him
from your smart device.

PHOTOGRAPHY: JOBE LAWRENSON | BOSE QUIETCOMFORT 35 HEADPHONES II | THEURBANKITCHEN.CO.UK

egg Spanish omelette. Sorted!
Toral Shah, nutritional
TS
scientist and chef
But boredom has its benefits: on his daily walk – and he wasn’t
“Focusing all your attention plugged into a podcast, was he?
on what’s coming through
your headphones gives

ANCIENT SOLUTION
TO A MODERN PROBLEM

Q Ifootball.
don’t really understand
Should I just
pretend to?
Andy, Bath
To know is to know
A that you know nothing.
That is the meaning
of true knowledge.
Socrates (the Greek
philosopher, not the
Brazilian footballer)
CHANGE OF TUNE Switching up your habits has its benefits
ON THE COMMUTE
Don’t connect
straight away –
spend 10 minutes writing
down everything that’s on
your mind. It cuts stress and
raises productivity by 25%.
AT THE GYM
Do one music-free
workout a week.
If you feel demotivated by
the lack of beats, use your
smartwatch or do timed
intervals for extra drive.
HIT TING THE HAY
Good podcasts will
only keep you up.
If you struggle to nod off, try
an app that plays white noise
or Sleep With Me, a bedtime
podcast for real insomniacs.

14 MEN’S HEALTH MENSHEALTH.CO.UK

 EDITED BY TED LANE

05
HAPPIER
H
HOLIDAYSS
PAGE 255

13
02 WHY IT’S OK
GRAB NEW TO FEEL SAD
ABS BY PAGE 35
THE BALLS
PAGE 21

12 JOIN THE
ARMS RACE
PAGE 33

03
YOUR

CH-RE ADY
BEAALTH CKS
MED DIET
UPGRADE
PAGE 22

HE
SEPTEM BER 2018

2
25
06 LAY NEW
STAMINA
A CAS
CASE
CA OFO
ON THICK
C C
CHICKEN
PAGE 49
08 “UNLIKE”
PAGE 29
WEIGHT GAIN A EGG
AND GG
PAGE
G 27

MEN’S HEALTH 17

JUMP-START
A SPORTING
RENAISSANCE
Make the most of the great
outdoors – take a giant leap
towards recapturing your
former glory beyond the
confines of the weights room
I
t’s not often that
we implore you to
drop the dumbbells
and evacuate the
gym, but in this instance
we have good reason.
First, it’s summer!
Second – and more
scientifically – it turns
out that not only are the
bodyweight plyometrics
you can perform in
the park as effective at
building strength as a
barbell, but they’ll also
improve your lower-body
power output, enhancing
your sports performance.
WORDS: LOUEE DESSENT-JACKSON | PHOTOGRAPHY: ROWAN FEE | TRAINER NEWBALANCE.CO.UK
ENHANCE YOUR
POWER BY LEAPS
AND BOUNDS
That means the lost yard
of pace that consigned
you to the bench after you
hit 30 is back. Game on.
A study in the Journal of
Strength and Conditioning
Research found that after
an eight-week plyometric
programme, participants
of the trial had significantly
increased the power of
their vertical and standing
long jumps – which
translates to a leap from
water boy to First XI.
But more surprisingly,
and more pertinently to
those who have locked
themselves in the weights
room for fear of losing
their hard-won progress,
the jumpers also made
equal strides in their
back squat one-rep max
compared to subjects who
only focused on indoor
resistance work. Maximise
these benefits by filling
your park workouts with
SUMMER
NEWSFEED
09/18
01
BETTER OUT
THAN IN A
a primer of
squat jumps,
power skipping,
tuck jumps and
bench jumps.
It applies to your
upper body, too: a
separate study in the
same journal found
that using plyometric
press-ups (where you
explode up and your
hands leave the floor),
in addition to the bench
press, produced extra
strength gains of almost LEAVE YOUR
5%. And did we mention
that a review published COMFORT ZONE
by Exeter University Raise your fitness
associated outdoor this month at these
exercise with decreases outdoor events
in anger and depression?
Still want to argue? Let’s
LONDON
take this outside.
TRIATHLON
Dive in at
the Royal Docks, then
dig deep to swim,
bike and run past the
capital’s landmarks.
RAT RACE
Mountain
bike across
200 miles of untamed
nature, from the
Lake District to the
North York Moors.
THREE PEAKS
CHALLENGE
A 23-mile
journey up the highest
peaks of Scotland,
England and Wales,
all within 24 hours.
 02
BALL AND
GAINS A
THE BEST
EXERCISE
YOU’RE
SLAM DUNK 01
RISE UP
NOT DOING
YOUR WAY TO
With feet shoulder
width apart, hold a
light med ball in front

SUMMER ABS
Pummel your paunch witth
of your pelvis. Stand
side-on to a solid wall
and start the rep by
lifting the ball above
your head and rising
the AJ TRIPLE THREAT T– onto your toes.
a knockout core workoutt
for a heavyweight six-pack
ck
02
A
s we reach the
final rounds of
SLAM DUNK
From this position
the holiday season
eason,
of triple extension,
your chances to
engage every muscle
take your physique from m
and slam the ball into
contender to Greatest off
the floor, hard enough
All Time are running ou ut.
to make it bounce.
But with this medicine
Catch it and rotate
ball exercise in your corn ner
away from the wall
– a favourite of champio on
to work your core.
boxer Anthony Joshua –
you can upset the odds.
“Med balls are excellentt
tools to build up your po ower,
03
WORDS: WILL ROWLATT ALLEN | PHOTOGRAPHY: PHILIP HAYNES | STYLING: ABENA OFEI | GROOMING: NATACHA SCHMITT USING MAC PRO

especially if you incorpo orate

a rotation and aerial tossses,” ,
explains Joshua’s streng gth FULL SWING
coach Jamie Reynolds. “Their
“ h Keep your abs tight
versatility offers an effec ctive and rotate fast with
way of ticking the boxess when your elbow high.
Picture Jonny
you’re pushed for time.”” Here,
those boxes are upper-b
power, core strength and
body
d
y Wilkinson’s long
pass: try to throw
0
HADOUKE
OU EN!
MODEL: FAISAL ABDALLA | SHORTS NIKE AT MRPORTER.COM, TIGHTS AND TRAINERS NIKE.COM

calorie burn. The slam iss the ball through the

wall. The power here Pick upp the ball and
a full-body conditioning g llift it to your shooulder
exercise, the double rota ation comes from your core.
while rotatingg away.
provides a dynamic core e SlSlam it straight
h
workout, and the chest passp ahahead,
d withh the
h power
targets your shoulders to o ffrom your
y pecs
p and
further fill out your T-sh hirt. shoulde
shoulder. Turn
u 1180
To see results in just ddegrees and goo again
four weeks, end your fiv ve oon the other
othe sid
s de.
weekday workouts with a
seven-minute finisher of 40 0
seconds’ work, 20 secon nds’
rest, keeping your rep co ount
consistent. Give your bo ody y WHAT YOU’LL GAIN
goals a fighting chance.

12-ROUND SLAMMIN’ KNOCKOUT

STAMINA ABS POWER

MENSHEALTH.CO.UK MEN’S HEALTH 21

 T HEALTH SNOB’
THE S OB’S
’S G
GUUIDE TO
O THE

T originnal, undisputed healthy-eating plan

The
is undergoing
undergo a culinary revival. Re-energise
your Mediterranean meals with a few fresh
ingredients and a pinch of kitchen flair

REKINDLE THE FLAME

IImpro
prove heart health, beat dementia and lose weight: this is
what you expect from the Mediterranean diet of fish, vegetables,
wh
wholegrains, nuts and dairy. But, while the eating plan may still
claim column inches, epicureans have long tired of the prospect
of endless salmon fillets. That’s where Sam Clark of London’s
Moro comes in. He’ll help you refresh your recipes to transform
the chore of healthy eating back into a labour of love.
A JAMÓN IBÉRICO
There are meatier ways to benefit
from healthy fats than oily fish.
An acorn-rich diet makes Iberian
pork high in oleic fatty acids, which
safeguard your heart health. If you
want to go the whole hog, buy a leg
instead of a pre-sliced pack.
B BROWN LENTILS
While we won’t begrudge you a bowl
of spaghetti, lentils are the perfect
source of carbs for men looking to
chew through kilos. Low in fat and
high in protein and fibre, they’ll
increase satiety to take the hunger
pangs out of any weight-loss plan.
E
OIL CHANGE
Even with
wi a fresh roster off
ingr
ngredients, any cuisine ca an
benefit from a fiery kick.
Clark’s harissa recipe, added d
to classic olive oil, will pep
p up
any Mediterranean excurssion
in the kitchen. Reach for
a pestle and mortar (£10
andysemporium.co.uk)
– this set is big-headed, with
a coarse surface for efficient
grinding and high sides
to minimise mess. Mash
together 250g of deseeded
red chillies, three heaped
teaspoons of both caraway
and cumin seeds, four garlic
cloves, 100g of piquillo
peppers, one dessert spoon
each of tomato
purée and red wine
vinegar, and two teaspoons
of Spanish smoked paprika.
Transfer to an oil carafe
(£30 hurnandhurn.com)
and top with 300ml of olive
oil before refrigerating.
Harissa keeps well in the
fridge, and the oil will seal
it from the air, so it will be
good d tto use for
f a week.k It’t’s
ideal ffor drizzling over
err your
batch off meal prep, b ba
basically.y.

C PRESERVED LEMON
Once treated, lemon rind becomes
palatable. Which is good news,
because it contains nearly 10 times
the amount of vitamin C found in
the juice. In higher doses, the vitamin
has been proven to sink cortisol
levels and thus dial down stress.

D AUBERGINE
This #CleanEating staple boasts
irrefutable health credentials.
Aubergines contain nasunin, a potent
phytonutrient that prevents damage
from free radicals and slows the
ageing process. It can also help to
protect against Alzheimer’s.

22 MEN’S
MEN S HEALTH

STEP
P UP TO
THE PLATE
TH
To complete the
remix, follow Clark’s
recipes and combine
your new ingredients
with some of the
cuisine’s staples,
such as tomatoes,
garlic and, obviously,
seafood. You’ll create
contemporary dishes
that do much more
than simply uphold
the Mediterranean’s QUAIL’S EGG AN
reputation for proper SERVES 4
nutrition. We hope
you’re hungry.
OLD NEWS
For those of you
unfamiliar with what
makes the Med diet
a paragon of health,
let us refresh you
03
PRESS
REFRESH
04
MED
SCHOOL A
A B
ND JA
JAMÓN BR
JAM BREA
EAKF
KFAASST LEAAN TUNA STEAK AN
ND BR
BROW
OWN LE
LEN
LEN
NTTIILLS
METHOD SERV 4
SERVES METHOD O
Slices of jamón ibérico, Start by lightly toasting the ciabatta. Small brown lentils,, In a p
pan, cover the lentils and immune-
4, thin Meanwhile, pour three teaspoons of 170g
g boosting garlic with water and boil.
Slices of ciabatta, 4 the olive oil into a pan on a high heat. A garlic clove
clove, sliced Reduce to a simmer
simmer, gently cook for
Extra virgin olive oil, Quail’s eggs are fragile, so tap them Tuna steaks, 4 15 minutes, season, then set aside.
7tsp open using a serrated knife, before Water, 600ml Cook the peas in a separate pan, drain
Quail’s eggs, 4 adding them to the pan and frying for Frozen peas, 250g and place in a bowl. Aim to retain a little
A garlic clove, ½ one minute to ensure #YolkPorn. Rub Mint, 1tbsp, chopped water as you strain the lentils, then mix
Grated ripe tomatoes, the garlic into your toasted ciabatta, Sage, 1tbsp, chopped in the peas, mint, sage, oil, juice and
4tbsp, heaped spoon over the antioxidant-rich Extra virgin olive oil, vinegar. Heat a griddle pan, seasoning
Cumin, pinch tomatoes, then drizzle with the
remaining olive oil. Top each one
5tbsp
Lemon juice, 1tbsp
the steaks with salt, pepper and a drop
of oil. Fry for a minute each side, serving
with a slice of jjamón and an egg.
gg Red wine
wi vinegar, 1tsp medium rare on top of the lentil mix.

HEARRT
HE
HEAR
One study
WORDS: TED LANE | PHOTOGRAPHY: LOUISA PARRY | FOOD STYLIST: TAMARA VOS | BAITA SIDE PLATE FROM WAYFAIR.CO.UK

found that people who

closelyy followed the
Mediteerranean diet were
47% less likely to develop
heart d
disease in later life.
American College
of Cardiology

AGEL
AG EELLES
ESS
B AI
BR AINN
Eating
ingredients synonymous
with the region has been
proven to slow rates of
age-related cognitive
decline and lower your C D
Alzheimer’s risk.
Frontiers in Nutrition
Fr
NO-STRESS SQUI
UID AN
UI AND LE
LEEMO
MON SA
MON
MO SALLAAD CLEVEER AUBERGINE ANDD POM
OMEG
MEG
EGRA
EGR
RANA
NATE SALAD
SSERVESS 4 METHODO SERVES 4 METHOD
Preserved lemon rind, Slice your
y p protein-packed
p squid
q into 1cm Aubergines, 3, medium First, whisk all the dressing ingredients
SSIMPPLEE 20g,
g rinsed and diced d strips. In a pan, fry the rind, cumin and Tahini,, 1tbsp together and set aside. Then, grill the
WEIG
WE
EIGH
IGGHHTT LOS
OSSS Squid, 600g, cleaned garlic with four tablespoons of oil on a Cherry tomatoes, 200g aubergines whole until the skins are
Over thee co
course Olive oil, 9tbsp medium heat, until they colour. Stir in the Spring onions, 2, sliced charred and the flesh has softened.
of a year, followers of Cumin seeds, 1tsp celery and cook for 10 minutes, then add Pomegranate seeds, 70g Remove them from the heat and allow
the Mediterranean diet et Garlic cloves, 2, sliced the water for a further five. Remove the Mint, bunch, torn to cool. Scrape the flesh from the
lost almost double the
th A head of celery, diced celery and turn up the heat, adding the For the dressing skins and then roughly chop before
weight of those wh
who stuck Water, 100ml remaining oil and squid and cooking until A pomegranate, ½, placing in a large bowl and mixing
to a low-fat andd low- Coriander, bunch, white. Turn off the heat and re-add the juiced with the detoxifying tahini and
carbohydrate te eating plan. chopped celery with the coriander and olives. Toss A garlic clove, ½, crushed dressing. Top with the tomatoes and
Harvard University
Un Green olives, 12 the rocket in oil and a squeeze of lemon. Extra virgin olive oil, mint – plus any leftover pomegranate
Rocket, bunch, 2 Serve with the squid, rind and celery. 3tbsp seeds – before serving. Now, dig in.

MEN’S HEALTH 23

WHAT
HAPPENS
WHEN…
…I GO ON
HOLIDAY?
Bags packed? Be sure
to take our advice on
board to secure a first-
class health upgrade
and make the benefits
of your break last well
beyond your return
01
01
WORDS: TOM WARD | ILLUSTRATION: PETER GRUNDY | *UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH
AIRPLANE MODE
Switching off ain’t easy. Almost
PLAN FOR SKY-
90% of us experience phantom
vibration syndrome, in which
we imagine we can feel our
phone ringing once we’re in
the air, and it causes our stress
hormones to spike. Stay calm,
as it will level out: a California
State University study showed
that smartphone separation
anxiety peaks after 10 minutes
but settles after 25 minutes.
So distract yourself with some
analogue entertainment – a
certain magazine, perhaps?
02
STOP THE CLOCK
Not only does jet lag disturb your last meal in your home
your sleep pattern, but it can
also weaken your immune
city at the normal time and
wait until you reach your
system, making you more destination for your next meal.
susceptible to poolside colds. You won’t miss the maybe-
To keep your circadian rhythm it’s-lasagne-maybe-it’s-not.
onside, skip the awful in-flight
food. A Harvard Medical School
study suggests a short fast
could cause your biological
clock to slow to a crawl until
you eat again – so try having
05
03
04
02
03
UNDER THE SKIN
Once you’ve landed, head
straight to the playa. The
muscle-supporting vitamin D
you’ll soak up isn’t the only
perk of sunning yourself
– time on the lounger can
YOUR FLIGHT help tighten your waistline,
HIGH HEALTH
too. According to a University
of Alberta study, the white
fat cells just below your skin
shrink with exposure to
the sun’s blue light. Lather
on some broad-spectrum
sunscreen, lie back and let
the weather do the work.
05
ESCAPE
STRATEGIES
A
04
HEAD TRIP
In addition to an even tan and
tighter belt, the high oxygen
levels by the sea will contribute
to the rejuvenation of your
muscles and brain, while
trading your office routine for
new experiences will increase
your cognitive flexibility. When
you’re on your paddle board
taking in unfamiliar sights,
your brain sprouts dendrites
for a lasting mental boost*. In
other words, your fortnight off
is an intelligent investment.
05
HAPPY RETURNS
Once you’re back home, banish
the holiday blues by booking
yourself another break. A
study published in the journal
Applied Research in Quality of
Life found that those who are
anticipating the next trip enjoy
the happiness high of a holiday
the longest. The length of your
forthcoming escape doesn’t
matter, so a Cornish caravan
weekend can extend the
benefits of luxuriating in the
Maldives. Just remember
to take your waterproofs.
 MH VERSUS
06
BIRD’S-EYE
VIEW
07
HATCH OF
THE DAY A
CHICKEN
VS EGG

WHICH COMES FIRST?

Chicken versus
ersus egg – the original nutritional rivalry –
ersus
finally has
ass its
it champ
mpion.
mp We chewed the facts to determine
whi
which
hi h staaple should
hou
ou be crowned as your wingman

CHICK N EGG
VVSS
900M
Just shy of one billi
chickens are eaten
lli
lion
3BN
This many eggs were
eaten in the UK in
in the UK each year. 2017, the egg industry
That’s an estimated reports. With a population
15 chickens per meat- of nearly 67 million, that’s
eating person annually roughly 200 each per year

That protein-rich chicken supports muscle
growth is well known, but its high levels of
selenium are linked to healthy fat loss, too
Nutrients
WORDS: TED LANE | PHOTOGRAPHY: STUDIO 33 | *BUREAU OF INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALISM | ** COMPASSION IN WORLD FARMING | †PER 100G
BODY GOALS Eating three whole eggs within five minutes
after a legs session delivers a protein hit that
supercharges muscle fibre repair and growth
American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

MACROS

165 31g 3.6g 143 12.6g 9.9g

Per 100g

Per 100g
KCAL PROTEIN FAT KCAL PROTEIN FAT

Intensive farming led to the unnecessary ETHICS Battery-farmed hens live in a space no bigger
deaths of 1.35m chickens between 2016 and than an A4 sheet of paper, so go free range.
2017*. Pick happier, healthier free-range birds These eggs contain more of the antioxidants
and enjoy a lower fat content of up to 50%** vitamin E and lutein for a healthier scramble

MICROS
39% 7% 6% 45% 28% 22%
Of Your RDA†
Of Your RDA†

Fat-cutting Cancer-fighting Energising Fat-cutting Cancer-fighting Energising

selenium riboflavin vitamin B12 selenium riboflavin vitamin B12

While its many B vitamins and minerals do BRAIN GAINS The University of Illinois found a link between
boast brain-boosting benefits, research the high lutein content of eggs and improved
proving that chicken directly protects your cognitive fitness as you age, suggesting it
mind from age-related decline is lacking may defend against the onset of dementia

THE MH VERDICT: EGGS WIN!

Both should undoubtedly maintain pride of place on your shopping list. But the superior
nutritional profile of eggs affords them an insurmountable multivitamin status, enhancing
your overall vitality, brain function and, obviously, brawn. We suggest you get cracking

MEN’S HEALTH 27
 08
SOCIAL
ANXIETY
09
CHANGING
PLATFORMS A
I
t could be concerns over data
harvesting, or the realisation
that our colleagues can see our

CAN FACEBOOK compromising photos – but many

of us will log out of Facebook for good anti-inflammatory and keeps your

MAKE YOU FAT?

Un-following the social media
in 2018. In the last quarter of 2017, time
spent on the site per day reportedly
declined by 5%, or 50 million hours,
while research firm eMarketer has
predicted that two million people
superpower can help you filter under the age of 25 will leave the social
out stress hormones and earn network this year. And, according to
you long-term weight loss a study published in the Journal of
Social Psychology, joining the exodus
might be good for your waistline, too.
Researchers found that as well as
increasing face-to-face interactions,
quitting Facebook for just five days
leads to a significant drop in the stress
hormone cortisol. In small amounts,
cortisol is essential – it helps you
wake up in the morning, acts as an
WEIGHT LOSS
NEWSFEED
08/18
WORDS: LOUEE DESSENT-JACKSON | PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY IMAGES | * ROYAL SOCIETY FOR PUBLIC HEALTH | ** PEW RESEARCH CENTER
blood sugar stable. But the high
levels associated with social media
overuse can push the body into
survival mode, signalling it to retain
its energy stores. Cortisol activates
enzymes inside fat cells and
instructs them to grow. Your
metabolism slows down, and muscle
tissue is converted into glucose,
which, unless burned away, is stored
as fat. Worse still, the blubber tends
to gather around your midriff –
where your vital organs would need
it if you really were in dire straits.
Visible abs are, however, still
attainable without trading in
your smartphone: just switch your
social platform. Scientists at the
University of Washington found
that posting meal snaps on
Instagram is an effective
tactic for managing weight,
holding users accountable
to real people and helping
them stick to their fitness
goals. Consider this your
notification to log off.

SIGN OUT FOR GOOD

BEFORE IT FLATTENS
YOUR FAT-LOSS GOALS

TRADING HAPPY VIEWING BIG GROUP HUG MISERY LOVES COMPANY

Despite scoring A study by the Twitter was
SHARES poorly for its University of found to be
We stress-tested impact on Haifa concluded a “significant
the best of the sleep, YouTube is best for that WhatsApp helps to contributor” to stress,
rest. Pick your positivity*, particularly in develop trust and intimacy mainly because of other
platform wisely terms of emotional support. through group chats. people’s moany tweets**.

MEEENS
M NSHHEEAALLTH
NS T ..CCO
CO.
O.UK
O.UK
UK MEN’
ME N’S HHEEAALLTH
TH 299
 THE BEST
GYMS IN
WELCOME TO THE THE WORLD
COSTA DEL SWOLE
Swap your fly-and-flop holiday for an active
break at Mike’s Gym in Marbella, and boost
your fitness and tan in equal measure LOAD UP
The difference between
weighted carries and

D
“ on’t fuck about.” This biceps curls is the impact
isn’t just a deliberately that the former has on
antagonistic advertising your central nervous
slogan designed to turn system. It forces you to
heads – it’s an order. Mike’s Gym, learn how to breathe and
its obstacle course and its “combat brace correctly under
zone” (pictured) are not here for tension, making your
your enjoyment. They have a higher
purpose. Give your holiday an HANG IN THERE body stronger and more
robust against injury.
adrenalin shot on these grounds “Grip strength is not the
and you’ll be put on a crash course same as hanging strength,”
to become a complete athlete. explains Ritchie. You use
“This is not the place to wander your hands and forearms
around taking selfies,” says Mike when you grip, whereas
Ritchie, who founded the facility hanging targets your
with his wife. “You get in, work hard, shoulders and back. Swing
then go home.” It’s the no-nonsense around the combat zone’s
approach of a man unwilling to monkey bars for the most
kowtow to his clientele. And for enjoyable way to carve
good reason – it’s his gym. Ritchie a V-shape physique.
moved to the Costa del Sol in the
1990s to start a Jet Ski hire firm,
clearing an area in his warehouse
to train in his downtime. But when
the business sank, the gym was
expanded and its doors opened.
What awaits is an assault course
with more than 100 elements,
including a concrete playground
equipped with all the strongman kit
you could wish for. Training is done
Ritchie’s way: challenging circuits
mixed with functional movements.
It’s a world apart from a wellness
retreat. “Obstacle course racing
is hard, but the chances to improve
as an athlete are endless,” says
Ritchie. “You’ll boost your stamina
on the trail, strength in the heavy
carries and balance on the beams.”
There’s a reason why three of the
world’s top obstacle course racers
train here. The equipment is elite,
the entrance policy is egalitarian
– you just need to keep up.

30 MEN’S HEALTH
 10
GAINS IN
SPAIN
11
COURSE OF
ACTION A
WORDS: TED LANE | PHOTOGRAPHY: GARY EDWARDS |*JOURNAL OF STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING

5 METRES
To scale the rope climb in
minimum time, don’t rely
on upper-body strength
– use your feet. An L-hook
4 KILOMETRES
This distance may not
grip will secure you. Let
sound imposing, but the
the rope fall between your
finish times will give you
legs, cross it over your
an idea of what to expect.
right shin and then wrap
“The course record is
it underfoot. Sweep your
46 minutes, but you’ll do
left foot underneath and
very well to come in under
pull the rope up to clamp
an hour and a half,” says
it between both feet.
Ritchie. “One of Europe’s
top CrossFit athletes
took over two hours.”

ARMS RACE
A study* revealed that
10 15-second bursts on
battle ropes can spike
your heart rate to 180
beats per minute, making
it an upper-body fat-
burner. Other studies
have found the ropes
improve your endurance,
increasing your press-up
capacity and building GYM
MIKE’S GYM
mass in your triceps.
LOCATION
MARBELLA, SPAIN

WEBSITE
MIKESGYMMARBELLA.COM

MEN’S HEALTH 31
 12
FLEX
APPEAL A
HOLD DOWN
STAY ON TARGET SQUATS, BRO
Focus your fire: science Legs day is not the
shows that dumbbell only way to incinerate UP RISERS AND FALLERS

WIN THE concentration curls fat at speed. Using PERFECT TIMING UP HOLD DOWN
beat barbells for bicep battle ropes burns Fuelling up on protein Bonus Steady Spent
activity. Isolate and through 10kcal per immediately pre- and boosts earners ideas

RACE FOR
then concentrate. minute – and it builds post-workout improves
American Council your arms, too. your one-rep max more
on Exercise College of New Jersey than spacing out your
intake across the day. UP

BIG ARMS
Build last-minute
Medicine and Science
in Sports and Exercise
HEADS TOGETHER
Your biceps each have
two “heads” – long and
short. Incline curls
muscle with our stimulate maximal
growth in both. Lie
tips to make your back, but don’t relax.
Journal of Sports
training pay out fast Science and Medicine

UP
CHIN TO WIN
There’s no need for
heavy metal if you
want to build iron
muscle. Activate your
biceps with chin-ups.
Journal of Strength
UP and Conditioning
Research
MENTAL
GYMNASTICS
Imagining flexing your
arms five times a week
translates to a 13.5%
strength increase in
real life. Mind trick
your muscles.
Cleveland Clinic
Foundation
DOWN
DEAD DROPS
Lowering your weights
slowly is as essential
for building big arms
as lifting them. For the
most efficient results,
become a control freak. UP
Journal of Applied GET A GRIP
Physiology Work on your grip to
target a wider range of
DOWN forearm muscles. Try
BI-FOCUS a hand gripper, or use
fat grips to thicken
Your upper arms are your bar for deadlifts.
two-thirds triceps. International Journal of
Take a break from curls Industrial Ergonomics
FIT$E IND£X and employ triangle
push-ups to achieve

BIG ARMS tighter sleeves.

WORDS: MATT EVANS | ILLUSTRATION: INFOMEN

American Council DOWN

on Exercise
DOWN BIG BREAKS
CARB CUTTING Between-set periods
of less than a minute
Load up on carbs
result in an acute
before Marbs. Triple
growth hormone boost
your pasta intake for
– which means less
three days and swell
time in the gym and
your biceps by 5%.
more on the beach.
Journal of Sports
Sports Medicine
Medicine and
Physical Fitness

MEN’S HEALTH 33
 13
SNAP
UNHAPPY
14
PAIN AND
PLEASURE A
THE DEVIL’SS
ADVOCCATEE

STOP TRYING
TO BE HAPPY
ALL THE TIME
Don’t be fooled by Instagram
perma-smiles – swipe the
forced grin from your face
and find a better balance

T
he cult of happiness isn’t
working. According to one
survey*, the UK is the seventh
most depressed country in the
Western world 1 . A study in Social
Psychological and Personality Science
found that society’s tendency to avoid
admissions of sadness causes people to
feel lonely when things inevitably don’t
work out. Despite all the social media
posts imploring you to focus on your own without sadness. In short, it’s OK to feel
happiness, there is clearly a problem. shit. Unending, euphoric joy would, in
Surprisingly, the key to finding true reality, be bewildering – and it would deny Experimental Social Psychology, feeling
happiness might be to call off the search. us the variety of emotional responses down enhances your memory and your
US psychologists found that those who that makes us human. Our lows, though attention to detail by improving your
actively pursue it often feel pressured to painful, serve a crucial purpose. Crying ability to block out distractions.
be cheerful, and begin is the start of the RESIST THE URGE Here’s a useful new word for you:
to blame themselves “It’s OK to feel sad. repairing process 3 TO FILTER OUT “sisu”. It’s the Finnish term for the
WORDS: TOM WARD | PHOTOGRAPHY: ROWAN FEE | PAPER PROP BUILD BY ISOBEL BARBER / AGENCYRUSH.COM

YOUR ANXIETIES
when they’re down. Unending, euphoric and even moderate psychological strength that allows you to
And if you think stress has proven overcome extraordinary challenges. Sisu
money can buy you joy would, in reality, evolutionary encourages you to tap into your reserves of
happiness, you’re be bewildering” benefits. Long-term determination – a much healthier reaction
wrong there, too. contentment is a than feeling glum because you’re not
Researchers have found that earning matter of balance, so don’t be fooled by all happy, and one that can lead to long-term
anything over £72,000 per year will only the perma-smiles you see on Instagram. life satisfaction. It’ll help you develop
cause you more stress 2 . Many researchers subscribe to a “90/10 a backbone, instead of a wishbone.
Paul McLaren, a consultant psychiatrist principle”, which attributes 10% of your
*ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT

at the Priory, advocates the pursuit of

good mental health instead. He argues
that a fit mental state helps us cope with
both the good and bad that life throws
at us, because happiness cannot exist
THIS MONTH’S ADVOCATE
Andy Cope is the co-author
of Shine: Rediscovering
Your Energy, Happiness
and Purpose (Capstone)
happiness to things that happen to you
and 90% to how you react. So, choose to be
> THE DEVIL’S DETAILS
accepting. Let go of what you can’t change,
stay connected with others and buy
experiences instead of things – and you
may find your own smile is less forced.
1 COOL IT 2 PAY PALS 3 TEARING UP
According to a study Research by the Crying activates your
An appreciation of bad moods can
by Osaka University, University of London parasympathetic
diminish their impact on your physical Japan, happiness is found that making nervous system,
and mental health. Research published in maximised at 13.9°C. time for friends helping to calm and
the journal Emotion discovered that those It should be easier is also equivalent soothe you, reports
to find in Whitby to a pay rise of a Frontiers and
who are able to embrace negative feelings,
than in Mauritius. £64,000 per year. Psychology study.
rather than ignore them, emerged from
their funk psychologically unscathed.
And according to a study in the Journal of
 15
FIND YOUR
FLOW
16
GO THE FULL
STRETCH A
STRETCH YOUR POTENTIAL
Quit omming and ahhing about yoga’s place in your
YOGA STYLES
AND THEIR
05_
DO I NEED ANY
SUBSTANCE SPECIAL KIT?
regimen. Hit the mat to become a complete athlete Use our flow glossary
to separate the No, not harem pants. Your mat
chakra-cleansers is what “connects” you to the
from the muscle-
strengtheners and
floor, so if you’re going to invest
in one thing, let’s start there.
TREND find the best yoga
offshoot for you “The best ones are super-grippy
SECRETS to create a solid foundation,”
says Wong. “When I have the
THE BENEFITS
REACH FAR BEYOND
YOGA FOR choice, I practise on a Liforme
MINDFULNESS ATHLETES yoga mat (£100 liforme.com).”
STAY LIMBER TO UNROLL
VINYASA N SS GGAINSS
NEW FITNESS
For a sweat session
with aerobic benefits,
the most popular form
of yoga synchronises
motion with breath in
a series of fast-paced
poses, often rounded
off with meditation.

01_ POWER
Unashamedly fitness-
WHERE DO I START? based, this is your
best shot at a chant-
Before you go to a local class, Sit Down, Be Quiet. That’s not free session, with
an order – it’s a book and the essential first stop for men who the focus on strength
want to give yoga a try. Especially those wary of chakras, or and flexibility. Usually
set to a decently 06_
being the only man in the class. Written by Michael James
Wong and his Boys of Yoga collective, it’ll guide you through
upbeat soundtrack.
WHAT
everything from selecting your class to practising at home. SHOULD
I AVOID?
02_ 04_ A sure-fire way to disrupt
WORDS: AARON TOUMAZOU | PHOTOGRAPHY: ADAM WHITING, STUDIO 33 | ILLUSTRATION: BEN MOUNSEY

WHO’S IT FOR? your classmates’ Zen is to

IS THERE A HOT
Step into a room with leave early. Most sessions
The serious trainer. Though it may
not fit with the incense-infused SIGNATURE MOVE the heating cranked
up to around 40ºC.
end with a five-minute
stereotype, yoga’s pay-off extends TO MASTER? The temperature is “savasana” – in essence,
GET DOWN
beyond the mindful and mental.
WITH THE Start with a classic. Too often, intended to prevent lying still and calming
injury by warming up
Its varying “flows” (or sequences) BASICS men overlook the “downward
muscles, while also
both body and mind. You
will boost your weights training, dog” to focus on show-off burning fat faster. may be there to lengthen
build a stronger core, improve your moves, but check your ego.
balance and accelerate recovery.
and strengthen, but the
With your hands on the floor,
shoulder width apart, lift
f yoour
meditative aspect is
03_ hips
h to create a reverse equally important for
V shape
h andd hold.
h ld This most attendees. So try it.
ME RIPPED??
WILL IT GET M strengthens
h the
h bback While lying flat on your
No, but it will facilitaate it during
g andd shoulder
h ld g girdle – YIN back, mindfully “scan”
A type of restorative
your other workoutss, lengthening
g g areas weakkened yoga, yin aims to reset your body, relaxing each
muscles and uppingg flexibility. by
b desk
d k joobs
One “active” and “resto storative”
t e
hard-worked muscles
with longer poses
limb as you wind down,
b essenntial
but
flow per week will prrime f sporrting
for that target joints and and you’ll return to the
muscles for the gym m, perfor
f mance.
improve flexibility, office with a clear head.
helping to enhance
making the toughesst your overall form.
moves a little easierr.

MEN’S HEALTH 37
GOOD GRILL
HUNTING
For healthy food worth
getting firred
d up about,
b t
our experrts trialled the
hottest neew barbecues
b becues

T
he prressure is on. As
each the height
we re g off
summer and barbecue
season approaches its
fiery denouement, your prowess
as a grillsman will feel the heat.
And that rust-covered Outback
is doing you no favours. This
month, Paul Yates, chef and
grilling aficionado, took his apron
and tongs into the MH Lab to pass
judgement on the season’s finest
barbecues. As the smoke cleared,
he emerged to provide his expert
selection of the best grills and
smokers, across a range of prices,
to help you replace your “burned
sausage dispensary” with a
“modern culinary hot spot”.
And before the fun police MH
bemoan the health risks of WINNER EXPENSIVE TASTE 95/100
cooking over flames, have a
beer and relax. There are smart Leif Grillson Premium
ways to navigate the carcinogenic £2,899 bbq-barn.co.uk
THE POLYMATH 97/100
pitfalls of fire and smoke –
Monolith Classic BBQ Guru Edition Performance ••••••••••
choosing surf over turf, for
£1,478 bbqland.co.uk
Design ••••••••••
example. Fish proteins reportedly Ease of use ••••••••••
produce fewer levels of cancer- Performance •••••••••• FUTURE GREAT This trailblazing grill’s
causing heterocyclic amines Design •••••••••• sustainable wood pellet fuel, coupled
and polycyclic aromatic Ease of use •••••••••• with a fire-regulating air jet, helps deliver
hydrocarbons than red meat SPINNING PLATES Ceramic Kamado-style smoky flavour to your food without the
when grilled. Or, if you’re set on cookers are all about versatility, allowing need for dirty charcoal. It’s professional,
your trusty beef cuts (we don’t you to grill chicken, smoke ribs, sear kitchen-grade cooking, outdoors.
blame you), marinate them first, steaks and bake pizzas. But the Monolith EXPERT VERDICT The smartphone
cutting the number of these Classic also offers add-ons such as a controls are merely a bonus – no other
harmful chemicals in half. plancha, rotisserie and even a wok stand. wood pellet grill on the market can match
Serving your red meat medium EXPERT VERDICT The Kamado charcoal this one. When you’ve finished cooking,
rare rather than well done grill is a 2018 must-have. The ceramic simply crank up the heat and it’ll clean
further reduces your risk, too. acts as an insulant that helps to stabilise itself. With its sleek design, excellent
Concerns assuaged? Good. the barbecue’s temperature. And, as build quality and state-of-the-art tech,
Now pass the matches. little air flow is required to regulate the this barbecue is a class apart. But you’d
fire intensity, food stays succulent and expect that for its eye-watering price.
juicy. The control unit, managed from a
smartphone app, even alerts you when
your food is ready. The future is served.

38 MEN’S HEALTH
 17
FIRE
DRILL
18
TRIAL
BLAZERS A
SMOKE HOT
POINTS
VERSATILE
VESSELS
SMART
SPEC
SIGNALS Good grills Top-quality Connectivity
Yates used these heat up fast; the best equipment comes with is a good thing. App-
criteria to identify also allow you to all the accoutrements controlled units mean
the best grills for tweak them to your you need to elevate less time watching and
your back garden preference once hot. your grilling skills. more time for beer.

GAS MASTER 88/100

OutdoorChef Montreux 570G
LITTLE WONDER 77/100 £549 bbqland.co.uk THE BIG SMOKE 88/100
Thüros T1 Tabletop Grill ProQ Frontier Elite
Performance ••••••••••
£102 outdoorgb.com Design •••••••••• £287 hotsmoked.co.uk
Performance •••••••••• Ease of use •••••••••• Performance ••••••••••
Design •••••••••• BUILT TO LAST While gas grills reportedly Design ••••••••••
Ease of use •••••••••• represent over 50% of the UK barbecue Ease of use ••••••••••
TOP TABLE Space and budget needn’t market, they are often criticised for poor STACK OF ALL TRADES Cornwall-based
curtail your barbecuing ambitions. This build quality. The Montreux 570G not only ProQ has created a truly adaptable
tabletop grill looks the part and, crucially, bucks this trend, but also scores high barbecue. The modular design, with its
delivers on flavour. It ticks every box on cooking quality. It’ll grill for years. movable stacking sections, provides
for easy grilling, plus allows for decent EXPERT VERDICT The main sticking point flexibility for a range of different cooking
WORDS: TED LANE | ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER

heat regulation through air-flow control.
EXPERT VERDICT Thüros scores well on
simplicity with this well-built, reasonably
priced and easily cleaned charcoal
grill. It also offers optional accessories,
such as a skewer set and rotisserie,
that won’t break the bank. Though it’s
a perfect choice for families who enjoy
the outdoor lifestyle, don’t expect to
host large parties with this little guy.
with many gas grills is that their burners
are positioned directly under the cooking
grate, which can lead to flame flare-ups
and burned food that is still raw inside.
Not only have this grill’s burners been
seated well below the grate, but an “easy
flip” funnel system in between further
prevents any flare-ups. Very clever.
styles, plus delivers quality results.
EXPERT VERDICT This unit stands out:
not only does your initial spend give
you the capacity to feed 12 people, but
you can also remove or add stacking
sections depending on your needs. Also,
its versatility allows you to explore
alternative cooking methods – such as
smoking – from day one, so you’ll grow
into the barbecue as your skills develop.

DOWNLOAD
T
he debate over
SUPER-FAST the most effective
rep range has
GAINS IN been contested
ad nauseam, but even
those who give serious
300 REPS
Hack into your physical
thought to their training
tend to limit their answer
to single or double figures.
In most gyms, pushing
hard drive and activate beyond 25 reps in a single
sitting is considered the
your “satellite cells” to realm of the meathead.
build brand-new muscle But the latest science
WORDS: LOUEE DESSENT-JACKSON | ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER | *GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS FOR REPS WITHIN 60 MINUTES
THE NUMBERS GAIN
Triple-digit rep ranges may THE MOST PRESS-UPS THE MOST BW SQUATS
seem otherworldly at first,
but you’re still a long way
2,682
Carlton Williams, Paddy Doyle, UK,
from the human limit*
UK, May 2017 November 2007
suggests that you should
be doing more – a lot more.
Research published
in the journal Medicine
and Science in Sports and
Exercise found that by
hammering out 300 reps
with light weights – quad
extensions, in the case of
the study – you’ll hit the
threshold for activating
the muscle-building
agents known as “satellite
cells”. These adult stem
cells are crucial for muscle
regeneration after injury
or general wear and tear,
multiplying and fusing
together where they are
needed to form new,
healthy muscle fibres. But
it’s only by overloading
your muscles with high
numbers of reps that you’ll
be able to “trick” them
into building new tissue.
THE MOST PULL-UPS
4,708 1,009
Stephen Hyland,
UK, August 2010
19
QUANTITY IS
QUALITY
20
WORLD
BEATERS A
The Dutch scientists
recorded satellite cell
levels 24 hours after
the 300-rep exercise
was completed and
found significant
activation in type-II (or
“fast-twitch”) muscle
fibres, showing that
the body’s repair
mechanisms had been
successfully duped.
You may well receive
a few strange looks
while you grimace
through your last reps
of 3kg dumbbell curls,
but going the distance
reaps big rewards. Hit
refresh on your training.
MUSCLE
NEWSFEED
09 8
09/18
FOR RESULTS AT
HYPER-SPEED, LIFT
LONGER AND LIGHTER
THE MOST BURPEES
1,840
Paddy Doyle, UK,
February 1994
 MH GAME
21
THE NEW
BLACK A
CHANGERS
NIKE
PHANTOM III

The
h latest
l
PHANTOM MENACE
pair in Nike’s
k ’ boot room arms y you with the close
control to take your skills ffrom fi
five-a-side to Premier Leaguee iii_
_

25
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ust because eyyou weren’t
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summer, itt doesn’t Close control issn’t easy
mean no-loo ook when e itt rain
ns on 125
passes, nutmegss and days of thee football
rabonas are beyo ond you.
y season. The Phantom
P
Nike’s new boot has as
been designed for fo
increases
c e ses frictction with
a single purpose e – to its “targeteed micro-
help you bring thet textured” zones,
z for
guile you so ably ly HYPERVENOM
a Velcro-tigght touch
deploy on Astro oTurff PHANTOMO III co e rain
come n or shine.
to the XI-a-side e game.
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That the Phanto tom iss Kevin
ev NIKE.COM
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material weig ghing g you
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painful bllisters.
studs configu ured to aid lightning-
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Phantom wiill haunt any y defender
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progress froom centre circle to Lubrican
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WORDS: BEN WELCH | PHOTOGRAPHY: ROWAN FEE

way you weave.

LEAGUE OF 1968 1979 1994 2014

0 4
LEGENDS PUMA KING ADIDAS COPA MUNDIAL ADIDAS PREDATOR NIKE
KE MA
MAGISTA
We plot the timeline Worn by Pelé Worn by Franz Worn by David Beckham Worn by Andrés Iniesta
of the pivotal boots A higher heel supported Beckenbauer Its friction stripes The Flyknit upper gave it
that blazed a trail the Achilles tendon, a Leather heel supports helped you almost better control than any
for the Phantom common site of injury. improved durability. bend it like Beckham. other boot – until now.

S CO U S 3
 22
PESCETARIAN
PROTEIN A

S O
FO O
M S
R in some
Reel
E
lean
l gains
g this
month
m byy tradingg
your
y cod’n’chips for READERS
DIGEST
a true
t ue seafood
se ood feast
e st Each bite
brings more
to the table

CRAB
PLENTY OF
PROTEIN
A MAN, A PAN,
A PLAN
WORDS: PAUL KITA | PHOTOGRAPHY: TED CAVANAUGH | FOOD STYLING: CHRIS LANIER/APOSTROPHE | PROP STYLING: PAIGE HICKS

CLAMS N CR
CLAMS’N’CRAB
i/
MAN
The summer heat is making
this man’s regular muscle
fuel of batch-cooked chilli
look less appetising by the
day. But his alternative
options for dinner in the
back garden too often come
down to a choice between
cod’n’chips and charred
barbecued “sausages”. Both
win out on flavour but lack
nutritional clout. There is,
however, a compromise.
Shellfish is lean protein
full of minerals such
as immunity-boosting
selenium and iron, which
supports muscle function
– and it tastes of summer.
Get your claws into this.
POTATOES
iii/ MUSCLE
 ENERGY
PLAN
i/ Place a large cast-iron
pan over a medium heat.
Pour in half your bottle of
lager – and swig the rest
as you follow this recipe. CORN
LOWERS
ii/ ii/ When the beer starts CHOLESTEROL
PAN to simmer, add the potatoes
and corn. Cover the pan, but
SERVES 2 occasionally lift it to turn
• KCAL 448 the corn. Let it all cook until
• PROTEIN 58G you can pierce the potatoes
• CARBS 35G easily with a fork.
• FAT 4G BEER
iii/ After seven minutes, HEARTY
INGREDIENTS add the clams, crab and ANTIOXIDANTS
• A BOTTLE OF LAGER lemon pieces. Simmer
• RED BABY POTATOES, with the lid on until the
250G, QUARTERED clams open – this will take
• CORN ON THE COBS, a further seven minutes.
Serve immediately. With
2, HALVED
• LITTLENECK CLAMS, another beer, obviously.
50G, SCRUBBED
• CRAB LEGS, 250G
• A LEMON, QUARTERED

TRAIN FOR A
BLACK-BELT
PHYSIQUE
Team GB judoka Ashley
McKenzie is going for gold.
Follow his lead and throw
yourself into fighting shape
T
he golden boy of British
martial arts is used to
overcoming adversity.
Ashley McKenzie’s combat
ambitions began when he was a child:
after a bully stole one of his Pokémon
cards, he decided never to be pushed
around again. Because his epilepsy
prevented him from emulating his
boxing idol, “Prince” Naseem Hamed,
he took up judo. Despite his height of
5ft 3in, his athleticism and talent
were immediately obvious. “I got
bronze at the national championships
in my first year [aged 11],” he says.
“And it’s been gold there ever since.”
McKenzie’s success seamlessly
translated from the national to the
international stage. He made such an
impression at the London Olympics
46 MEN’S HEALTH
HOW I
BUILT MY
BODY
in 2012 that he was
asked to appear on
Celebrity Big Brother,
where he reached the final.
“It was a nice payday,” he admits. Yet
G
GRAPPLING
G GGUNS
Add kilos to your lifts
f with
what drives him now isn’t fame but
Olympic success and the respect of
his peers. Since then, McKenzie has
these tips for
f a strong grip
FAT LOT OF GOOD
D
p
Add Fat Gripz (£27
won Commonwealth gold and has crucialfitness.co.uk)
c )
an ever-growing collection of Grand
restrict
r
t your
to
your
y dumbbells, to
y abilityy to close your
y
Slam and European medals.
His training programme is rigorous
ffist and accelerate your progress.
g .
but uncomplicated. As a lightweight, G THE HANG
GET G OF
O IT
T
he focuses on strength, not size. “If Performing chin-ups while
h
hanging on to a towell
I lift too much, I’ll grow, so I target wrapped around the bar
my core and my grip,” he says. His f
forces your forearms
f and grip to
physique aside, it is his mindset that work harder. This is going to hurt..
w
sets him apart, as exemplified by his GO WITH THE G
GRAINSS
decision to compete self-funded. Opening your hands in a
O
Team GB offered to pay his way, but bucket of sand will engage
g g
there were conditions: he would have your grip’s
g i antagonistic
g i i
had to adopt their training set-up. muscles,
m building
g balanced hand
sstrength and preventing injury.
That was a deal breaker. “My coaches
are the best in the business,” he says.
“Training with them puts me in the
best position to win.” He is now
5’3”
reliant on sponsors and under more
pressure than ever to battle his way
into team selections as an outsider.
“The key is to give selectors no
choice,” says McKenzie. “I need to be
so good that they have to pick me.”
At a time when fitness success is
too often measured in terms of the HEIGHT
WORDS: TED LANE | PHOTOGRAPHY: TOM WATKINS | GROOMING: VICTORIA POLAND USING HOURGLASS
approval of others and social media
metrics, McKenzie’s unwillingness to
compromise and desire to do what he
wants is laudable. Adopt his ethos to
score the results you’ve been striving
for, whatever your pursuit.
*OF 2018 MATCHES
 23
MARTIAL
MUSCLE
24
THE UPPER
HAND A
60kg
BODYWEIGHT
BODYWEIGHT DOJO
Beat barbell boredom and craft
strength u
using
i g McccKenzie’s
functional bodyww
weight
i
g workout

B
A

01/ WALL L STAND D PRESS-UP

3 sets of 5 reps, 2min rest
With your hands on the ground, rest
your heels against a wall (A). Lower your
head to the floor (B), then bring your
knees to your chest. Kick back up.

2/ ABS WIPER
02/
3 sets of 10 reps, 2min rest
From a dead hang, tense your abs
to lift your feet (A). Swing them 90
degrees to your left (B), pause, then
reverse 180 degrees for two reps.

B
A

03/ ROPE
OPE CLIMB B
3 sets of 2 reps, 2min rest
Secure your grip (A) . Use one foot
to sweep the rope under the other
and clamp it between both feet. Now
climb (B). To lower, let the rope slide.

67% WIN STATS*

MEN’S HEALTH 47
 25
COVER ALL
BASES
26
DO IT BY
DEGREES A
FITNESS
LAY IT ON THICK NEWSFEED
TO WIN THE 09/18 WORK UP A HEAD OF
S
STEAM TOO SCORE
SO
A HOTTER PBB

SAdd
A thermal layers to your
ssummer runs to turn upp the
h on yyour endurance levels.
heat
I well worth sweatingg it out
It’s

HOW
O TOO GET
GT
ITT JUST
J STT RIGHT
Turn
u thee thermostat
e os intoo
apperformance-booster
with
i our g
guide
i to matching
i g
the climate to your target
g t

20ºC
0ºC ATTENTION
A O
Often considered

TURN IT UP
WORDS: LOUEE DESSENT-JACKSON | ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER | ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY: PHILIP HAYNES | *ENDOCRINE SOCIETY

the ideal
de l “room
oo
ttemperature”,
p aroundd 20ºC
o yg delivery
oxygen y rreportedly aids your focus,
f
to muscles.
usc es. The e mmaximisingg productivity.
d

T
he thermostat
t e ostat co
combination
b at o o of
b
barelyy creeps these impressive
p 17ºC BODY
O FAT
p 15°C before
past physiological
p y g A cooll bedroom
b d
we bbreak
ea out tthee changes
g – not hard w
willll boost
b your
shorts and T-shirts. But,, at etes
athletes to
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l activating g
according g to hot new t a “live
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t e a s and
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t e bbrown
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bu
science, if yyou’re looking g h g train low”
high, ssummer sun – helped p ccalories
l while
h l you sleep*.
l .
to speed up y your fitness altitude training.g shave a significant
g 8%
gains,
g it pays
y to run against
g S
Scientists subjected 12 from
f subjects’ previous 15 5ºC REPAIRR
15.5ºC
the crowd. Look beyond y e
experienced y
cyclists to 10 time-trial
t e t a PBs. s. Which c Iff you’re chasing
the potential for a tan
tan, and days of moderate exercise is the push you need to rrestorative sleep,
l p,
the summer heat provides in temperatures of 40°C, finally creep below the drop it down a notch. This
a research-approved short followed by performance hallowed 40-minute temperature is regarded as
cut to elite stamina. You tests in both cold and mark on your next 10K. optimal for a restful night.
just need to squeeze back hot conditions. In each Play it cool during your
9.6ºC STAMINA
COOL IT DOWN

into your thermals. setting, they recorded training by drinking a litre

Research in the Journal
of Applied Physiology found
that “heat acclimation” –
the body’s process of
adapting to heat stress
– produces greater aerobic
benefits for endurance
improvements in VO2
max, power output and
blood plasma volume –
the reliable indicators of
cardiovascular fitness – in
all cyclists. The researchers
also noted surprising
adaptations in the heart’s
left ventricle, increasing
of electrolyte drink per
hour and running at a
conversational pace to
ensure you don’t overheat,
and the road will be clear
for a new PB come race day.
Short shorts encouraged.
Tulsa researchers
found the prime
running temperature is
lower for men than women,
who perform better at 11ºC.
 27
AN APP
A DAY A
TECHNOLOGY
AI DOCTORS PLUG INTO
THE FUTURE OF
HEALTH CARE

THE ROBOT
WILL SEE
YOU NOW
Artificial intelligence
may be the future of
medicine, but early
adopters can log in
today. This is our guide
to rewiring your health

M
any experts believe
artificial intelligence
and machine learning 01_ providers across the country
offer the best chance WOEBOT – will arrange for a callback
of scaling health care to meet the Unsold on therapy? 03_ from a human nurse to
ever-increasing demand. What This app, created by SEMANTIC discuss your situation further.
may sound like science fiction is clinical psychologists SCHOLAR The app also allows you
now the cutting edge of medical at Stanford University, uses When you’re given to access NHS-approved
research, as hospitals work with brief, daily conversations and a life-altering health-care advice, schedule
tech leaders such as Apple, Google word games on Facebook diagnosis and you an appointment with your
and IBM to find futuristic solutions Messenger to monitor your need to educate yourself on GP and search the opening
to present-day
p y problems. Scientists mood d andd hhelp
l yoou to learn treatment options, forget times and addresses of
are
e now creating g algorithms
g to sort about yyourself.f In a 2017 study, Google. This AI-powered local medical services.
med
edical
ca records
eco ds aand d dete
determine e users experienced d significantly search engine checks a App Store
trea
atments. Cloud-based deep- p lower levels off deepression database of more than 40
learrningg technology gy is also beingg and anxiety afte
f er two weeks. million peer-reviewed studies, 05_
useed to review magnetic
g resonance App Store presents the most cited and AiCURE
imag
agingg scans to assess blood flow relevant results and finds Missed doses
andd identify y heart disease faster 02_ connections based on of prescription
andd more accurately. y Thoughg LUMO RUN
N effectiveness. Its long-term medicines can
the
e field is still in its infancy,
y Clipp thiss sensor to goal is to identify cures that interfere with your recovery
here
re are
a e five
ve innovative
ovat ve your runnning shorts might otherwise be missed. and, in some cases, even
WORDS: RACHEL STURTZ | PHOTOGRAPHY: THE VOORHES

AI-based technologies g y you and d the

t e AI will semanticscholar.org be life-threatening. AiCure
can p into to future-proof
n tap p f analyse your biom mechanical uses AI and a smartphone
04_
youur wellbeing g – startingg now. d – your
data y caden d nce, pelvic camera to make sure that
rotation, and d so oon – to give ASK NHS your medication has been
you real-time
l coaaching on Talk through your taken. After checking
f
your form. It also suggests symptoms in your identity using facial
pre-andd post-runn exercises. confidence with recognition, this clinically
Anothher product, the NHS’s “virtual health backed app verifies the
L o Lift (worn on
Lumo assistant”, Nurse Olivia. medicine type and sends
th collllar), works
the If necessary, Olivia – who confirmation to a doctor.
ssimilarlyy for posture. is integrated with 111 service Smartphone, indeed.
kitradar.co
t d com aicure.com

MEN’S HEALTH 51
 The Talking Point
Office Stress

Feeling
The
Burnout
It may sound like a harmless buzzword, but burnout
is debilitating and on the rise. Learn how to tell the
difference between a bad day at work and the flames of
a serious problem so you can extinguish stress for good

S
teve Blank realised that he was in trouble
during a Friday-afternoon sales meeting.
He had been dividing his time between
two Silicon Valley tech roles: one for
a company serving the defence and
intelligence communities, the other
for a microprocessor producer called
Zilog. He was putting in 16-hour days,
six or seven days a week, but he was good
at both jobs – necessary, even. So he
accepted the intense schedule.
At the meeting, a colleague reminded
Blank about some classes he was scheduled
to teach. “The devil’s in the details,” the
colleague advised. Blank nodded and
launched into a “defence contractor
joke”: “I’ve got it under control,” he said,
“as long as the devil coming at me isn’t
an SS-18.” (He was referring to a Russian
intercontinental ballistic missile dubbed
Words by David Ferry
“Satan”.) Expecting a chuckle or two,
Blank received only uncomprehending
stares. Then it hit him: these weren’t his
defence contractor co-workers. He wasn’t
even at his defence gig. He was at Zilog
and, to his horror, he realised he had no
memory of driving there, no recollection
of greeting his colleagues, and no idea
how he had got through most of the
afternoon without even knowing where
he was. Blank later left the meeting and
sat at his desk, confused. “Take it easy this
weekend,” the vice-president of sales told
him. “You look a little burned out.”
The Great Leveller
Most of what you think you know about
burnout is probably wrong. Occupational
burnout, such as Blank’s, is not a simple
matter of fatigue or boredom. Nor is it
exclusive to those on higher salaries.
Severe burnout can be debilitating. You
may find yourself growing profoundly
cynical and feel you never accomplish
anything at work; you may come to hate
your clients and colleagues and struggle to
find the courage to get out of bed; you might
feel detached from your life, as if you were
operating on autopilot. Burnout syndrome,
at its worst, can leave employees and even
entire companies in ashes.
According to Michael Leiter, professor
of organisational psychology at Deakin
University in Australia, a quarter of
the workers he has studied suffer from
at least one symptom of burnout – and
he suspects that this figure also applies
to the workforce at large. Burnout does
not discriminate, and it affects people

54 MEN’S HEALTH
DON’T LET PRESSURE
REDUCE ALL YOUR HARD
WORK TO ASHES
from across the occupational spectrum:
blue collar and white collar, from call-
centre employees and teachers to
web designers and entrepreneurs.
“It’s cultural,” says Blank. “[The
idea that] real men work till they drop
– I learned it from my boss, who learned
it from his boss, probably all the way
back to the Neanderthals.”
Indeed, burnout could be hard-wired
into your DNA. Studies have recently
linked depression – which correlates
strongly to burnout – to specific genes,
and clinical psychologists at Utrecht
University in the Netherlands are
investigating this connection. Burnout
has been found to be more common
among those with parents or siblings who
have suffered similarly, but that doesn’t
necessarily mean it’s genetic; home life
could have fired it up.

Hell Is Other People

“There is no question that we are at a
greater risk of burnout today than we
were 10 years ago,” says Ron Friedman,
a psychologist who works with private
and corporate clients. But men and their
supervisors may have misconceptions
about what burnout is and have little idea
how to stop it. One assumption is that
employees crack because they can’t handle
their workload. This view presupposes
that something is wrong with you if you’re
struggling: “It assumes that you must
be weak or incompetent,” says Christina
Maslach, professor of psychology at the
University of California, Berkeley.
But it’s not your fault. There are myriad
external stress points and, if too many
are pushed at once, they can shut down
your mind. Some are physical, others
psychological. One that fuses the two is
the device in your pocket. While the media
blames smartphones for everything,
from a goldfish-like attention span to bad We won’t tell you to leave your mobile ARE YOU WORKING LATE OUT OF
posture, it may be the major reason that in another room – it’s simply not realistic. PASSION FOR THE JOB, OR IS IT
burnout is on the rise. “Burnout can But you can change your phone settings JUST AN UNHEALTHY HABIT?
“We’re surrounded by devices designed
to grab our attention and make everything
affect anyone, to make yourself less likely to dive into
your inbox. For example, the Center for
feel urgent,” says Friedman. “Before
the smartphone, leaving your work at
from call-centre Humane Technology suggests turning
off the colour. Your brain loves colour: it
the office was the norm. Today, we’re all employees to responds to it and delights in it. That’s one
carrying our office around in our pocket.”
In a recent survey of HR executives
entrepreneurs” reason why you love your smartphone so
much. Greyscaling the screen may limit
by Kronos Incorporated and Future your compulsion to check it and make
Workplace, 32% cited “too much overtime/ you spend less time online when you
after-hours work” as one of the primary inevitably do so. Google “greyscale” and
contributors to employee burnout. your phone model for instructions.
Not taking work home each evening
is a start. Yet we also spend a far higher

56 MEN’S HEALTH

proportion of our time at our workplace,
surrounded by our colleagues, and it could
be the people you interact with every day
who are wearing you down. Leiter studies
burnout and incivility in the workplace.
Recently, he asked burned-out health-
care workers what had caused them the
most distress on the job. Many mentioned
“unpleasant interactions” with co-workers:
the manager who ignores their emails,
doctors who are rude to anyone they
consider “beneath them”, and the endless
sniping from all quarters.
To find out whether all of this was
contributing to their experience of
burnout, Leiter organised meetings at
which he encouraged everyone to discuss
their feelings. Then, he says, he “basically
taught them to talk nicely to each other”.
The result? A year later, with a new social
climate in the hospital, nurses’ absentee
rates had declined significantly, and
follow-up surveys were positive.
Detachment Theory
As well as our interactions with our
workplace and co-workers, there exist
triggers that are rooted in our psyche –
in how we view ourselves through the
prism of our professions. Jari Hakanen,
a research professor at the Finnish
Institute of Occupational Health, believes
that burnout is partly a product of our
fundamental relationship with work.
People who derive all of their satisfaction
and self-worth from their job are more
likely to burn out when things go south
in their nine to five. “Although being
passionate and engaged can be positive,
research shows that it’s good to detach
yourself from work,” Hakanen says. “You
regain your energies. You need other
things in your life to build your identity
around. Your life isn’t just work.”
The next time a stranger asks you
what you do, try to respond without
mentioning your job. If you struggle,
guess what? Your job is probably central
PHOTOGRAPHY: YASU + JUNKO, LEVI BROWN, TRUNK ARCHIVE
to your identity. Try exploring new ways
to define yourself. Take up a new hobby,
one that is personally challenging and
satisfying. For his part, Hakanen is a keen
ice swimmer. “I’ve never seen anybody
thinking about work issues when they’re
in near-freezing water,” he says.
If that’s too Finnish for you, any form
of challenging physical activity can give
you a shot of adrenalin Zen. And if you
get fitter in the process, all the better.
The Talking Point
Office Stress
Are You Fried?
We all hate our jobs sometimes, but
don’t let your ordinary work woes turn
into a career burnout. Spot the warning
signs with these questions from Paula
Davis-Laack, a former lawyer who now
specialises in stress and resilience
1 – Are you chronically (that is,
more often than not) physically
and emotionally exhausted?
2 – Do you feel a persistent
sense of cynicism – that
everybody and everything
annoys you or rubs you the
wrong way?
3 – Have you started to lose
empathy for your co-workers
or clients?
4 – Do you often feel a sense
of ineffectiveness, that you
can’t process or handle work
the way you used to?
5 – Are you feeling physically
ill more frequently? Do you
come down with a cold or the
flu after big deadlines?
6 – Is every curve ball a crisis?
Do you overreact to minor
last-minute changes to plans
or assignments?
If you answered “yes” to three or more
of these questions, you may be more
than just a bit down on your job, says
Davis-Laack. But that’s OK. “Help can
come in a variety of ways,” she says.
Depending on your comfort level, you
could talk to your boss, find a work and
stress coach, or reach out to a licensed
therapist. Signing up for a company-
provided training course or even a
single-day workshop can teach you
how to cope with – and beat – career
burnout. Whatever you do, don’t just
stew over four pints at lunchtime.
Regain Control
Ultimately, how frazzled you are (or
are at risk of becoming) comes down
to control. Successive studies have
shown that a lack of control is a sure-fire
incendiary. Burnout can be defined as
a combination of exhaustion, cynicism
and something called “inefficacy”,
or the sense that you’re incapable of
accomplishing anything. One way to
experience this, Hakanen says, is to get
stuck in a job that gives you no control.
If you don’t control your schedule,
you can’t optimise your workload, and
things pile up as a result – another major
contributor to burnout, according to the
Kronos/Future Workplace survey. It’s also
easy to feel helpless if somebody else is
setting unrealistic goals and expectations
for you without your input.
Taking charge of your daily schedule
will help you dampen the flames. You
have three options: first, just start doing
it. As long as you’re meeting your overall
daily goals, your boss shouldn’t care
how you’re getting there. If that’s not
possible, try saying “no” to more requests.
Don’t get carried away – all it takes to
make you feel more empowered is an
occasional: “Sorry, but I just can’t do
that at the moment.” Finally, if neither
option would be acceptable at your
workplace, make a to-do list of what
you can control and eliminate items
as they’re accomplished. Don’t just tap
“complete” on a productivity app. Write
those items down on paper and draw
a thick, aggressive line through each
task when it’s finished. The satisfaction
will be a huge boost to your attitude.
Steve Blank learned all of these lessons
the hard way. After that frightening
Friday afternoon, he took a couple of
days off and drove across an unspoiled
stretch of Californian coastline. Amid the
redwood groves, seaside cliffs and scent
of eucalyptus, he realised that no one
was going to send him a memo to work
less. So he decided to work only at what
interested him most.
This life decision didn’t sabotage his
career, or make him any less successful.
Instead, he went on to work at eight new
companies and became an innovator in
start-up creation. Which goes to show
that while burning the midnight oil can
make you “necessary”, pointing your light
in the right direction is the only way to
get on the right track.
MEN’S HEALTH 57
 TIME
WORDS BY TED LANE / PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOBE LAWRENSON
MAXIM
MII S I N G L I F E ’S GREATEST LUXURY
20
MINUTES TO PRROTECTT
YOUR HEART WHILE
CATCHING SOME RAYS
E 
verything is better when
the sun is shining, right?
That’s partly because
light triggers changes in
the brain that make you feel more
cheerful, elevating your levels of
noradrenaline and serotonin – two
crucial feel-good chemicals. But
the benefits go well beyond that
smile on your face. Sunshine ups
your cardiovascular health, too.
While the link between daylight
ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER
and vitamin D is well established,
researchers at the University of
Edinburgh have discovered a
physiological mechanism triggered
by sunlight that could significantly
bolster your heart’s defences.
When ultraviolet light penetrates
your skin, your body releases nitric
oxide into your blood; the compound
lowers your blood pressure, and
therefore reduces your risk of
suffering a heart attack or stroke.
High blood pressure affects more
than one in four adults in the
UK – amounting to 12.5 million
people – and it is estimated to
result in around 80 times more
deaths than skin cancer each year.
PROTECTING YOUR
HEART THIS SUMMER IS
A WALK IN THE PARK
Figures worth shining a light on,
we’re sure you’ll agree.
Test subjects needed just 20
minutes of UV rays for their blood
pressure to fall. While we can’t
expect it to be sunny all the time
in Britain, the minimal exposure
required means that a walking
commute to or from work each day
is all it takes. Accessorise with a
broad-spectrum sunscreen and
some sunglasses – then make your
tan pay a very healthy dividend.
 T 
here’s no shame in admitting
that summer is the season
03
of excess. Come August,
you’ve earned the right to
reward yourself after weeks of
hard training and all that broccoli.
That means chilled rosé and
barbecues – and lots of them.
So, rather than waste our breath
piously urging moderation, we
prescribe a smart protein option
that could provide, well, at least
HOURS TO PIG OUT a little damage limitation.
According to research in the
ON BBQ RIBS AND Journal of the American College
of Nutrition, choosing the right
CLEANSE YOUR LIVER kind of meat for your barbecue can
help to protect your liver from
the wine you consume while you
cook it. Drinking too much alcohol,
even for just a few days, causes
a build-up of fats in the organ that
SPARE YOURSELF
THE MISERY OF A
SOBER COOKOUT
could lead to fatty liver disease
and ultimately result in liver damage
or diabetes. A healthy liver should
contain little or no fat. The essential
nutrient choline, which is found
abundantly in pork ribs, can assist
you in trimming yours. #Balance.
Choline keeps your liver lean.
One of its key roles is to transport
fat from the liver to other areas of
your body, where it can be put to
better use. Fortuitously, devouring
just five barbecued ribs will supply
you with your recommended
daily intake. So, let yourself enjoy
the great British summer with
no need to nurse a soda water
and lime while you wait out the
three hours it takes to slow-cook
your meat. Grab some napkins
and pig out – then pour yourself
another guilt-free glass.
CORKSCREW GEORGJENSEN.COM
 TIME

TO BUILD A BETTER
BODY, YOU NEED TO
GET YOUR HEAD DOWN

02
HOURS TO BURN FAT
AND BUILD STRENGTH
A 
llow us to open with a
nightmarish fact – the
average UK bedtime is
12.28am. That means many
of us are going to sleep on the
same day as we wake up. But don’t
with a smaller influx at
around 2am. These timings
were developed over
millennia and they’re not likely to
change to accommodate your Evil
Genius binge. So, a later lights-out is
depriving you of a massive natural
injection of a hormone that one
study in the New England Journal
WITH YOUR EYES SHUT worry, this isn’t yet another warning
about the perils of blue light.
of Medicine showed can produce a
significant gain in muscle mass and
According to new research, setting give fat loss an impressive boost.
yourself a 10.30pm bedtime is the If you find it hard to nod off two
simplest way to score a substantial hours earlier than usual, a simple
hit of human growth hormone to change in your habits could help:
build more muscle as you snooze. avoid caffeine after 2pm, or read a
Your endocrine system – your book at night. The important thing
body’s way of sending messages is to stick with it. Think of it as the
ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER

using hormones – is closely linked second part of your workout, if you

to your circadian rhythm. A paper like. Just a lot less strenous.
published in the Journal of Clinical
Investigation found that you are
flooded with HGH at around 11pm,

02
P 
ost-run hydration can be
a prickly issue. A bottle of
Lucozade may bring you
back from the brink, but
beyond a few extra carbs, are
sports drinks working hard enough
WEEKS TO GIVE YOUR to boost our performance? Our
verdict: they could do better.
ENDURANCE LEVELS Research conducted by the
Tunisian National Center of
A REFRESHING SPIKE Medicine and Science in Sports
found that a daily intake of just
150ml of cactus juice – a trending
health drink available from an
increasing number of supermarkets
– can make you both faster and
fitter. It’s time you caught up.
After two weeks of quenching
their thirst on cactus, unfit test
subjects were able to run further
and found exercise easier. The
cactus had even increased their
THE NEW HYDRATION
UPGRADE POINTS TO
ALL-NEW STAMINA
VO2 max – the maximum rate at
which your heart and muscles
can effectively use oxygen
during exercise. This measure
is considered the most accurate
indicator of a person’s overall
fitness, which is why elite athletes
continually work to improve theirs.
The study’s cardio amateurs,
however, significantly raised their
upper limit in two weeks simply
by switching beverages.
The cactus juice also protects
your muscles against exercise-
induced decay. The compounds
that make training so painful were
found in far lower concentrations
in the blood of the cactus juice
IMAGE MANIPULATION: COLIN BEAGLEY
drinkers post-run. So, whatever
your ability, you can spike your
stamina levels by refreshing your
hydration plan. We’ll drink to that.

05
SECONDS TO BOOST
BRAIN POWER WITH A
PRE-WORKOUT SUPP
T 
he stereotype that brains
and brawn are mutually
exclusive is officially wrong.
With a low-cost upgrade
to your supplement stack, you
can be the walking proof, hitting
PBs in the gym and flexing your
PowerPoint prowess in the office, as
just two scoops of creatine in your
mid-morning shake will give you a
mental buzz in seconds. Unlike the
“questionable” nootropics favoured
by frazzled businessmen, it’s low
risk and sets you back just 7p per
serving. No face tingles necessary.
TIME
CHEAP FUEL FOR YOUR
MUSCLES – AND YOUR
BRIGHT IDEAS, TOO
That creatine is a muscle-builder
is well established and, like whey
protein, its benefits to your physical
training are supported by robust
research. But scientists at the
University of Chichester identified
a fascinating link between the
metabolisms of your muscles
and your brain that suggests it
can help you get ahead at work,
too. Your brain uses the same
“currency” of energy as your
muscles – a chemical called
adenosine triphosphate, or ATP.
Its levels decrease during the day,
making your mind increasingly
sluggish. No amount of coffee will
offset this, but creatine was found
“to make ATP resynthesis more
efficient”. Not only that, it slows the
decline of dopamine, a hormone
that plays a major role in memory
tasks, and so improves cognition.
As deadlines loom, sticking to
your sports nutrition plan will
strengthen your mental mettle,
even if you can’t make it to the gym.
That’s what we call an inside scoop.
SWIM INTO
SUCCESS
LIVING LIFE IN THE FAST LANE? WHATEVER
YOUR ABILITY IN THE POOL, STREAMLINE
YOUR GOALS BY SWIMMING FOR VICTORY
W
hether you’re more Olympic
gold medallist or Eric the
Eel, the humble swimming
pool could be your fast
track to a happier, healthier, more
successful life. And, fortunately for
those of us who last had a swimming
lesson when our mum was packing our
kit, Speedo has made it simple to seize
that aquatic advantage in style.
The swimming brand – already
lengths ahead of the competition in
terms of its groundbreaking swimwear
– has now designed an easy-to-use
programme to help you make the
most of the sport’s physical, mental
and emotional benefits.
Mind Body Swim guides you through
a series of steps to improve your strokes,
increase your endurance and shed
pounds quicker – as well as sharpening
your mind, improving your mood and
sinking stress, through everything from
basic training programmes to bite-sized
advice on sleep, snacking and recovery.
The holistic programme, which is
available for free on speedo.com,
caters for swimmers of all levels –
from “foundation” (that’s the bronze
swimming badge you earned aged
eight, still attached to a pair of shorts in
your parents’ loft) to intermediate and
advanced – and deploys the knowledge
of the UK’s top fitness, nutrition and
sleep experts to help you maximise your
gains by recovering correctly afterwards,
too. As one of the experts, leading
nutritionist Anita Bean, puts it: “A
successful swim is not just about how
many laps you can do, but the steps you
take in your everyday life to ensure each
and every swim is your best.”
Basic training plans include “Improve
Front Crawl Technique”, “Tone Up”
and “Improve Overall Fitness”. Each
caters to your specific ability and is
accompanied by a nutrition plan of
breakfast, lunch and dinner, to sharpen
you both physically and mentally as
you take your swimming – and your
life – to a new level.
So, what are you waiting for? Why
settle for a life that’s simply afloat when
you could be swimming towards your
goals? Speedo has done all the hard work.
All you need to do is grab yourself some
smart new trunks and dive straight in.

YOUR POOL 01
RESOURCES
Exercise is always easier
when you look the part:
the best workout kit can
improve your performance
in the gym, as well as
boosting your confidence.
The same is true in
the pool, where Speedo
leads the way in style
and innovation.
525 29g
Kcal Fat
DIVE INTO A CHICKEN
AND CHICKPEA TAGINE
Maximise the physical and mental
benefits of your next swimming
session by eating smart post-pool.
This easy-to-prepare chicken and
chickpea tagine – part of Speedo’s
Mind Body Swim programme –
provides everything your body
needs for swift, streamlined
recovery, including a healthy protein
punch and an ideal balance of
carbohydrates and vitamins.
YOU WILL NEED…
1/ Olive or rapeseed oil, 1tbsp
2/ Chicken thighs, 2, skinless
and cut into chunks
3/ An onion, finely chopped
4/ Tomato paste, 1tbsp
5/ Harissa paste, 2tsp
6/ Ground coriander and
cinnamon, ½tsp each
7/ A red pepper, sliced
8/ Chicken stock, 250ml
9/ Chopped tomatoes, 200g
10/ Chickpeas, 200g, drained
and rinsed
03
01-GOGGLES
THE FUTURA BIOFUSE
GOGGLES HAVE A SUPER-
SOFT, FLEXIBLE SEAL FOR
A MORE COMFORTABLE,
CUSHIONED FIT AROUND THE
EYE. £20 WIGGLE.CO.UK
02-SWIMMING HAT
ERGONOMICALLY DESIGNED
02 FOR IMPROVED COMFORT
AND FIT, WHILE CREATING
A SMOOTH OUTLINE IN THE
WATER – AND PROTECTING
YOUR HAIR FROM CHLORINE,
OF COURSE. £5.50
WIGGLE.CO.UK
03-SWIMMING SHORTS
POWER MESH LEG
COMPRESSION ENHANCES
YOUR MUSCLE PERFORMANCE,
WHILE IMPROVING YOUR
POSITION IN THE WATER.
£44 JOHNLEWIS.COM
MH PROMOTION
74g 32g
Carbs Protein
11/ Dried apricots, 25g,
roughly chopped
12/ Fresh or frozen spinach, 100g
13/ Salt and freshly ground black
pepper, to taste
14/ Flaked almonds, 25g, toasted
15/ Fresh coriander, to garnish,
chopped
METHOD
Step 1 Heat the oil in a large pan and
cook the chicken until lightly coloured.
Add the onion and fry until softened.
Now add the tomato and harissa
pastes, ground coriander, ground
cinnamon and red pepper and stir well.
Mix in the stock, chopped tomatoes,
chickpeas and dried apricots.
Step 2 Bring to a boil, then reduce
the heat and simmer for 30 minutes,
or until the chicken is tender and
cooked through. Add the spinach,
stirring until just wilted. Season with
salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Step 3 Scatter over the almonds
and garnish with the coriander.
Serve with couscous.
A BETTER YOU
Speedo has launched its
Mind Body Swim programme
to encourage swimmers of
all ages and abilities to
improve their physical
and mental health through
swimming. To discover more
about the multiple benefits
of the sport – and how you
can maximise them with
everything from your meals
and snacks to your sleep
patterns – visit:
speedo.com/mind-body-swim
 The Best
If you’re hoping to make a blockbuster

Of
transformation, look no further. MH reviewed
the greatest bodies ever to grace the silver
screen and selected 30 cinematic icons who
have defined the male physical ideal. Take
inspiration – then act on their methods

Hollywood
WORDS BY JAMIE MILLAR

Muscle Who
have we
missed?
Share your
contenders using
#MensHealthIcons
OPENING ARTWORK: PETER CROWTHER

MENSHEALTH.CO.UK MEN’S HEALTH 69

HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE
-30
Robert De Niro
RAGING BULL L ( 1980)
Martin Scorsese’s pugilistic
masterpiece features what
is perhaps the ultimate body
transformation by an actor.
To play conflicted boxer Jake
LaMotta, Robert De Niro didn’t
just train like a pro but boxed
for real, fighting three bouts
and winning two of them. (He
also broke co-star Joe Pesci’s
rib in one of the sparring
scenes.) To quote On the
Waterfront – as De Niro does
70 MEN’S HEALTH
- 29
Sean He may not have shaken or
stirred many supplements by
Connery
DRR NO (1962)
today’s standards, but Connery
was a bodybuilder in his early
years who took part in 1950s
Mr Universe competitions.
Reluctant to stop playing
football, however, he retained
an athletic physique that
left him unable to measure
up to the (possibly artificially)
supersized Americans. So he
tried his hand at another
profession: acting.
A notorious snob, the 007
creator Ian Fleming initially
in a scene in this movie – he
could have been a contender:
the real LaMotta said the
actor was one of the 20 best
middleweights he’d ever seen.
However, De Niro then
piled on the pounds for his
scenes as the older, fatter
LaMotta, gaining almost
30kg in four months on a diet
largely consisting of pasta,
ice cream and beer. “The first
15lb [7kg] was fun,” he said.
“The rest was hard work.”
disparaged the Scot as an
“overgrown stuntman”. But
film producer Cubby Broccoli’s
wife, Dana, saw something that -27
the author didn’t: “He moves
like a panther,” she said. Indeed,
his mobility was ahead of its
Harrison
time, as this picture proves.
More than any other film
Ford
ORR IGINAA L IN DIANA JONN ES
character, James Bond has
TRR ILOGY (1981-89)
become a template for men –
and Connery set the mould. Temple of Doom gave us one
of cinema’s most enduring
body images: Indy on the rope -26
-28
bridge, his sleeve ripped to
expose his sinewy arm. Jones Channing
Ryan
was supposed to be younger
than he was in Raiders of the
Lost Ark, so Ford hired trainer
Tatum
MAA GIC M IKK E (22 012)

Gosling
DRII VE (2011))
Jake Steinfeld. Before filming,
he hit the weights; on shoot
days, he rose at 5am for pull-
This entry raised a few
eyebrows, and it’s debatable
whether Tatum is the most
ups, dips, press-ups and sit-ups. aesthetically eye-popping of
Ryan Gosling doesn’t expose his
The scene in Raiders where the film’s male strippers. But
“photoshopped” abs in this film –
Karen Allen’s Marion tends to if you claim you’ve never
as he does in Crazy, Stupid, Love
his wounds surely inspired a fantasised about having
– but like the threat of violence,
legion of impressionable boys moves like Tatum’s – a
the presence of his physique is
to whip themselves into shape. real-life former exotic dancer
ever felt. When he carries his
neighbour Carey Mulligan’s son – you’re either lying or you
to the synths of College’s “A Real can’t bring yourself to watch
Hero”, his back muscles visible a picture that was so explicitly
through the cotton, something aimed at women. But you
primitive stirs in men and women should, as it offers valuable
alike. His character is a strong, insights into what it’s like to
silent archetype, ready to do be judged by your physical
whatever it takes to protect those attractiveness – thankfully
he loves, even if it ultimately drives not an occupational hazard
them away. It’s no wonder Gosling for the majority of men.
was hailed as “the new Brando”.

-25 STING LIKE ALI 02/ Keep your

chin tilted down

Will Smith
ALII (2011)
Smithh’ss woorkouuts
foocussed on
teechnniq quee. Builld
slightly. The foot
of your jabbing arm
should be closer
a chaampioon to the bag, with your
Will Smith had already gone from physiq que by elbow in line with
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air to your shoulder
mastterring g Ali’ss and hip, and your
popcorn-movie king, but this killerr leeft jab forearm vertical.
Muhammad Ali biopic established
him as a heavyweight in both 01/ Not only is 03/ Protect your
senses. For the ordinarily gangly training with jaw with your back
a punchbag a hand and keep your
actor, bulking up from 84kg to
heavyweight
weight jabbing arm an and
100kg was “50 times harder” fat-torrcher,, it will shoulder
s ou de loose.
oose. Most
than losing weight for 2007’s I also prromote your off the fforce shoould
Am Legend. Under the tutelage of pecs, sshoulders come
co e ffrom
Darrell Foster, who coached Sugar and coore. Set your bback.
up in a split Twist yyour
Ray Leonard, Smith trained six stancee withh i ass you
wrist
hours a day, five days a week, your feeet punch.
p Y
Your
boxing, running and lifting. Within slightlyy arm should ffinish
a year, he more than doubled his wider than
t straight
g buut not
should dh
der width. overextended.
bench from 80kg to 170kg. In a Distribute
bute Punch
Pu c ab bove
front double biceps pose, Smith 60% off your your weig ght.
says, “Ain’t this just the perfect weightt on
specimen of a man?” Well, quite. your backk lleg.

MEN’S HEALTH 71
HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE
-24
Jason
Momoa
COO NAN THH E BAA RBARIAA N
(22 011)
This reboot was ambitious in
several respects: the original
had achieved Thulsa Doom-
level cult status, while Arnie,
who played Conan in the 1982
version, had won his seventh
Mr Olympia competition not
long before filming. But while
the reboot failed to launch a
franchise, it made Momoa one
of his generation’s definitive
man mountains, be it as Khal
Drogo in Game of Thrones or
as Aquaman in Justice League.
For the role, Momoa built
muscle and savaged fat with
trainer Eric Laciste’s high-
volume half-hour sessions. He
would perform seven reps of
squats, shoulder presses,
incline benches, cable crosses
or pull-ups, rest for a few
seconds, then repeat for a total
of seven sets. Then he would
do six sets, then five – and the
same all over again with two
more exercises. Barbaric.
72 MEN’S HEALTH
-23
Christopher
Reeve
SUU PERMANN (1978)
At 6ft 4in and 80kg, Reeve
was initially dismissed as
“too skinny” to play the Man
of Steel. A padded suit was
offered, but Reeve wanted to
supply his own muscle. So,
bodybuilder and actor David
Prowse (who played Darth
Vader) was brought in to work
Reeve into shape. After six
weeks of training and eating
four meals a day, he had
bulked up to almost 100kg.
In unflattering Lycra that
even Henry Cavill was at first
apprehensive about donning,
Reeve made you believe that
a man could fly.
-22
Ryan
Reynolds
DEAA DPOOL (200 16)
Hitherto best known as
college “party liaison” Van
Wilder, Ryan Reynolds’s cubed
abs in the 2004 vampire movie
Blade: Trinity put him on the
lifting fraternity’s radar – but
it wasn’t until his title role in
Deadpool that he graduated
from romcom cheesecake to
wisecracking beefcake. And
while the film doesn’t so much
poke fun at the inescapable
comic book adaptations as
fillet them with twin katanas,
Reynolds’s physique was
no joke – nor was it obscured
by CGI, as in his 2011 career
low, Green Lantern.
Trainer Don Saladino devised
a programme called “jump,
throw, carry”, incorporating
a plyometric bound, med-ball
slam and farmer’s walk; this was
followed by one of the Big Four
(a bench press, squat, deadlift
or military press session) and
isolation work. Deadpool’s
beloved chimichangas were
presumably off the menu.
GO THE 022/ Single
Single-Leg
Leg
DISTANCE Deadlift,, 4 sets of
D
PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY IMAGES, LMK, CAPITAL PICTURES, ALAMY, CORBIS, TCD/VP/LMKMEDIA, MOVIESTORE/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK, SNAP STILLS/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK
8 reps
ps
Now in his fortiees,
Reynoold ds opts foor
workoouts designned
too buiild
d lonngevitty.
Here arre hiis go-tto
moves for core
sttabilityy annd full--
body fittnesss
Practise with your
bodyweight before
01/ Box Squat, picking up the barbell.
5 sets of 5 reps Hinge at the hips until
your torso is parallel
to the floor and your
leg is lifted behind you.
Push through your
standing leg to return.
03/ Sled Push,
5-8 sets of 20m
Unlike
nlike his incautious
alter ego, Reynolds
keeps his personal
welfare at the forefront This move combines
of his mind. Box squats strength work with
cardio, hammering
both help to maintain
good technique and both your lower body
minimise knee stress. and your core. Lean
Squat onto a box just into the sled with your
back straight, then
below knee height –
brace your abs to drive
it’ll prevent you from
bouncing up, while it forward. Try to keep
targeting your glutes. your sense of humour
when the burn begins.
MENSHEALTH.CO.UK
-21
Carl
Weathers
PRR E DATORR (19877 )
The 6ft 1in former Oakland
Raiders linebacker may not
have the biggest guns in the
squad, but he arguably has
the best physique. He has
clearly been pushing iron
as well as pencils, getting
up early with the rest of the
testosterone-fuelled cast to
get a pump on before filming.
Weathers could also have
made it onto this list for any
of his appearances as Apollo
Creed, which made Sly look
flabby: Muhammad Ali
repeatedly challenged him to a
fight, possibly jokingly. But it’s
for his arm-wrestle handshake -20
– and bicep-off – with Arnie
that he muscles his way in. Dolph to audition for “some boxing
movie”. Unlike in Rocky IV’s

Lundgren
ROO C KY IVV ( 19855 )
After winning a scholarship to
study chemical engineering at
MIT, the Swede was scouted
to be a boxer in New York. He
was talked out of going pro
by, among others, his then
girlfriend, Grace Jones, whom
he had met while moonlighting
as a security guard in Sydney.
Instead, his agent sent him
iconic montage, Lundgren
trained alongside Stallone six
days a week for five months:
an hour of weights (chest/back,
shoulders/arms or legs) in the
morning, then two hours of
boxing in the afternoon. Even
if you didn’t know he was a
former European Kyokushin
karate champion, you only had
to look at Lundgren to know
he’d win in a real fight, too.
-18
Chris
Evans
-19 CAPP TAIN AMM ERICC A: THEE
FII R ST AVV ENN GER (2011))
Jake Few superhero film body

Gyllenhaal
SOUU T HPAW (22 011 5)
Those first shots of Jake
Gyllenhaal as Billy Hope –
snarling, snaked with veins
– hit the internet like a hook
to the jaw. Having lost 14kg
for Nightcrawler, he had five
months to resemble a boxer
not only in physique but also
in technique. He achieved this
by training twice a day – take
a look at the training montage,
soundtracked by Eminem.
Gyllenhaal also flipped a 160kg
tyre and beat it with a 10kg
sledgehammer, ran eight miles
and performed 2,000 sit-ups
a day, and skipped “shitloads”.
transformations are as striking
as that of Steve Rogers, who
goes from big-hearted wimp
to broad-chested warrior after
an injection of super-soldier
serum. Unfortunately for
Chris Evans, the actor who
portrayed him, the process
was much more painful in
reality than a quick jab. He
was drilled two hours a day
for three months by Simon
Waterson, who also trained
Daniel Craig for Casino Royale,
targeting two major muscle
groups at a time before
moving onto the core. At least
he didn’t have to do any cardio.

S CO U MEN’S HEALTH 73
 MERRICK MORTON/20TH CENTURY FOX/KOBAL/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK, PLATINUM DUNES/KOBAL/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK, TWENTIETH CENTURY FOX FILM/KOBAL/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK
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-17
Mark These two Men’s Health cover
institutions could have made
asked him to reduce his
workouts to one intense hour

Wahlberg it onto this list for most of the

films in their chest-and-back
or less, as any more can be
counterproductive.

and Dwayne catalogue. But they have

rarely been bigger or better
Supervised by former
American football trainer

Johnson
PAA IN & GAIN ( 200 13)
than in this strange but
true story of meathead
bodybuilders who hatch –
Brian Nguyen, Wahlberg’s
bulk-up was more sports
scientific, with posterior
then bungle – a kidnap plot. chain activation, kettlebell
The film is also a smart satire swings and goblet squats
of the particularly American alongside the bench press.
obsession with, er, bigger
and better. Johnson followed
a five-day body-part split,
though his trainer Dave Rienzi

S S CO U
 HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE
HO
-15
Jason
Statham
THEE TRANSPORR TER (2002)
If Lock, Stock (1998) and Snatch
(2000) showcased the patter that
Statham picked up as a street
trader, The Transporter was the
perfect vehicle for the gravity-
defying athleticism he developed
as a diver for the British national
-16 team. As he demonstrates when he
uses his top to tie up goons before

Henry kicking his way across an oil-slicked

garage floor, it’s not just about the

Cavill
MANN OF STEELL (200 13)
polished chassis but what’s under
the hood. Through sequels, similar
franchises (The Mechanic) and
Though Henry Cavill refined his an ever-evolving programme of
physique for Batman v Superman martial arts, gymnastic skills and
(2016) and Justice League (2017), Olympic lifts, he continues to turn
nothing in either movie etched back his mileage clock.
itself in the memory like those
first shots of a shirtless, stacked
Clark Kent. Cavill worked with
Mark Twight and Michael Blevins -13
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of the uncompromising Gym

Jones in Salt Lake City, which
also chiselled the cast of 300
Michael
into Greek statues. He trained
for two months alone before
B Jordan
BLL ACK PANTHEE R
joining them for a gruelling four (22 018)
months in Los Angeles. Sadistic
workouts such as 100 front It’s a mark of the intimidating
squats with the equivalent of his shape he’s in that when
bodyweight in iron were conceived Jordan’s usurper Erik
to bolster mental fortitude as “Killmonger” Stevens disrobes
much as physical appearance – to reveal his scarred torso -12
-14 ahead of combat with
Cavill’s steely determination is
as visible as his muscles.
Jean Claude
Chadwick Boseman’s King
T’Challa – AKA Black Panther
Steve
SUPER SHREDDER
Van Damme
– you fear that nine lives might
not be enough. Jordan was
Reeves
J BOLAND/MARVEL STUDIOS/KOBAL/REX/SHUTTERSTOCK | ADDITIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY: STUDIO 33

Too cut fatt forr Justiice Leaguue,

impressively fit in 2015’s Creed HERR CULES (199 58)
Caavill worrked d at ultra-high BLOO ODSPORT ( 19888 ) but, with trainer Corey Calliet,
inttensity for short bursts off The first bodybuilder to
Unlike some of his action hero he went into beast mode for become a household name,
fivve minuttes.. Try thhis tasterr
peers, the functional Muscles from Black Panther, upping the Reeves was an inspiration to
01/ Assault Bike, Brussels – a karate black belt weights until he was benching Arnie and Sylvester Stallone,
12kcal and ballet student, as well as Mr 50kg dumbbells. As Stevens, who watched Hercules “15 or 16
Start with a fat burner. Belgium – could move with a fluid he is the muscular embodiment times” as a 12-year-old. The 1950
Pump and pedal until of 21st-century black power.
you reach your calorie
grace, which is why he was initially Mr Universe experimented with
target, then jump cast as the agile alien opposite then novel methods such as
straight off and Arnie in Predator. Bloodsport, a supersetting and performing leg
pick up a plate fight film about an illegal martial exercises last, so fatigue wouldn’t
without resting. arts tournament, made JCVD a inhibit his upper-body work. He
02/ Plate Carry, star. It also inspired both the sport criticised modern bodybuilders’
75kg for 30m of MMA and the Mortal Kombat steroid use: “If a man doesn’t
Strongman moves video games: the character Johnny have enough male hormones
trained Cavill’s Cage is based on him, right down in his system to create a nice,
stabiliser muscles and
raised the metabolic to his splits. Van Damme was into hard, muscular body, he should
demand. After your flexibility before it was cool – or take up ping-pong.”
carry, hit the bike until he parodied it in those Volvo ads.
your time is up.

MENSHEALTH.CO.UK MEN’S HEALTH 75


-11
Chris
Hemsworth
THORR : RAGNAROK ( 2011 7)
AND A VENGERS:
INFII N ITY WAR (22 0188 )
A god among supermen,
Chris Hemsworth’s Thor is
so heavenly-bodied that he
makes Chris Pratt’s Star-Lord
feel unworthy. Hemsworth –
a rare actor who is as big off
screen as he looks on it – and
trainer Luke Zocchi mixed
bodybuilding with functional
exercises such as battle ropes
and bear crawls to mould a
more defined physique than
in previous Thor films. The
thunder deity’s triceps are
like horseshoes smithed in
the forges of Nidavellir, which
Thor reignites by bicep-curling
open the doors while being
blasted by the core of a dying
star. This may not make any
sense unless you’ve seen
Infinity War, but suffice to say
that it’s the ultimate expression
of “sun’s out, guns out”.
76 MEN’S HEALTH
-10
Tom
Hardy
WAA R RIOR (20111 )
For someone neither big (he
is under 5ft 10in) nor hard (by
his own admission), Hardy
does a convincing impression
-09
of big, hard men: notably the
unhinged career convict in
Hugh
the 2008 drama Bronson and
the unintelligible supervillain
Jackman
THEE WOLVERINE (2013)
Bane in 2012’s The Dark Knight
Rises. Charging through Known as “Huge Jacked Man”
hapless opponents like a in the MH offices, the actor and
young Tyson, his MMA fighter member of the 1,000lb deadlift
Tommy Conlon is in a lower club raised his own bar with
weight category but meaner The Wolverine, in which he
and leaner, Hardy having shed was more ripped than a pair
15% of his body fat while of Logan’s gloves. The X factor
adding 20kg of muscle. was brought by trainer David
His trainer Patrick “Pnut” Kingsbury, who took him out
Monroe, a 15-stone former of his 8-12-rep comfort zone.
US marine, employed a Jackman started his sessions
technique called “signalling”: with heavy compound lifts,
spreading exercise in bursts laying down a strong foundation
throughout the day in order and increasing his capacity for
to encourage the body to
adapt. Although if you’re doing
bodybuilding-style sets later
on. Keeping his body fat down
two hours each of boxing,
kickboxing, choreography
while bulking up, he hit his
personal best – at the age of 44.
and lifting, as Hardy was,
that’s hardly necessary.
GREEN GIANT
Too playy Thoor,
Heemsw worthh
muscleed up on
a largeelyy plaant-
baased diet. Here’ss
hiis sam
mple menuu
Breakfast
Oats with almond
milk, nuts, blueberries
and flaxseed
Mid-Morning
Pea protein shake with
almond butter, banana
and spinach
Lunch
Bean burger patties
and a large raw salad
Snack
Protein shake or bowl
of yogurt and fruit
After Training
BCAA drink, vitamin
and magnesium supps
Dinner
White fish with rice
and vegetables
S CO U

-08
Christian
Bale
AMM ERICC ANN PSYY CHO
(22 000)
Bale has become synonymous
with physical transformations,
dropping more than 25kg for
The Machinist, then bulking up
so much for Batman Begins
that he was asked to lose
10kg. But Bale’s best work is in
i ( 2006)
American Psycho, ironically
interpreted as an etiquette
manual by many bankers. The
actor was so determined to
land the role that he reportedly
trained three hours a day, six
days a week, for the nine
months it took Leonardo
DiCaprio, whom the studio
wanted, to depart the project.
The precise nature of his
workouts is unknown, but the
smart guess is that he wentt
method: crunches with an icece
pack on his face and The Texxass
Chainsaw Massacre on TV.
MENSHEALTH.CO.UK
HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE
HO
-0
-07 the “earthquake” of Brando’s
Kowalski in his torn, sweaty
Marlon T-shirt caused a seismic shift
in American sexuality: “Before
Brando
A STREETCAR NAMED
him, no male was considered
erotic… A man was essentially
a suit, he wasn’t a body.”
DEE SIREE (19511 ) Brando used his to entice
and intimidate – but his
Taking on the role of cruel but
performance owed a lot to the
charismatic Stanley Kowalski
gym. It was based on boxer
today must be a thankless task,
Rocky Graziano, whom he had
as Brando will forever own it.
sneakily observed there. By
When he first played the part
way of gratitude, the actor
on Broadway, before starring
gave his unsuspecting muse
in the film version, women
two tickets to the show.
threw their hotel room keys
at him. Gore Vidal wrote that
CRUNCH TIME
Baale’s chharaacter Batemann
sttarts eaach day with 1,000
sttomachh cruunchees. Stay
saane withh a little variety
0
011/ Oblique Crunch
Touch your hands to your head and
lift your shoulders, rotating your
When Craig’s 007 emerged
body to bring your left elbow to
your right knee. Swap sides and -06 from the water with his gym-
repeat for defined obliques.
Daniel Craig
CASINO R OYALE
buffed pecs, he heralded a sea
change in masculine ideals.
The now iconic scene evoked
Ursula Andress’s entrance in
Dr No, but with Bond and not
022/ Reverse Crunch
This version will target your his “girl” as our focus. Craig
our arms flat
lower abs. With your claimed the moment was
at your sides, accidental: shallow water had
lift your hips forced him to stand. His blue
and raise your
knees to your
trunks later sold for £44,450
chest. Squeeze, at a charity auction.
then lower. The actor wanted his Bond
to look lethal. Trainer Simon
Waterson gave him a licence
033/ Weighted Crunch
Grab a plate and lie down, with your to kill with a combination of
knees bent and the weight heldhel to powerlifting and compound
yyour chest. Crunch upp – hold exercises that elevated his
tthe contraction for
f a seecond
when yyou reach thee top.
w
heart rate to build muscle
S
Slowlyy low
wer while maintaining leanness.
back
b d
c down.
MEN’S HEALTH 77
HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE
-03
The Cast
Of 300
(22 006)
This swords-and-six-packs
epic has entered the fitspiration
pantheon, and the way that
the Spartan warriors were
battle-hardened has been
mythologised. Mark Twight and
his Gym Jones team subjected
cast, crew and even director
Zack Snyder to constantly
shifting functional fitness tests
and calorie restrictions. Four
months of Hades culminated
in a 300-rep examination:
25 pull-ups, 50 deadlifts with
135lb, 50 press-ups, 50 box
jumps, 50 floor-wipers with
135lb, 50 kettlebell cleans and
presses with 35lb, and another
78 MEN’S HEALTH
25 pull-ups. Star Gerard Butler
described Twight’s modus
operandi as “difficult in the
kind of way where you wish
you had never been born – and
even more than that, wished
he had never been born”.
-05
Sylvester
Stallone
RAA MBO I III
(11 988)
Sly was absurdly chiselled in
Rocky III. Preparing for the
role, he spent all day running,
sparring, lifting, skipping and
swimming, cutting his body
fat to 2.8% at a lean 73kg. The
International Federation of
Bodybuilders named him the
“Body of the Eighties”. For
the third Rambo, however,
Stallone pumped himself
up into a man-sized action
figure who could almost
single-handedly take on the
Soviet army, by performing
pull-downs with 125kg at
82kg bodyweight.
The movie had such impact
that the US policy of violent,
unilateral interventions in
countries such as Nicaragua
was dubbed “the Rambo
Doctrine”, and there was
concern that the film might
even undermine improving
relations with Russia.
TRIAL BY FIRE Run 400m in 1min
To bee coonsideered Run 1.5 miles in 9min
an “aathhletee” at Gym
Jonees,, youu need d to Run 5K in 22min
mastter theese teests.
1RM Front Squat
See how w you fare 1.5 x bodyweight
-04
Brad Pitt
FII GHT CLL UB (1999)
“Self-improvement,” declares
Brad Pitt’s Tyler Durden, “is
masturbation.” Despite the
unambiguous message of the
psychopathic Durden – the
alter-ego of Edward Norton’s
unnamed narrator – the black-
eyed comedy popularised the
term “six-pack”, as well as “inguinal
crease”. (The result of awe-struck
viewers searching: “What is that
diagonal line that runs from Brad
Pitt’s hip to his crotch?”)
Click-bait articles purport to
contain Pitt’s “actual Fight Club
workout”, but he has yet to share
his method (he was seen on set
using hand weights). Charlie
Hunnam’s quip that Pitt “ruined
it for everyone” doesn’t just apply
to his fellow actors.
Pull-Up Turkish Get-Up
15 unbroken reps 50% bodyweight
Row 2km in 7min 1RM Deadlift
2 x bodyweight
10-Rep Bench Press
80kg Bodyweight Back
Squat 20 reps
MENSHEALTH.CO.UK
 Posthumously released, Lee’s
-02 final completed film made
Bruce a greater impact than his
legendary one-inch punch. Still
Lee
E NTER THE DRAA G ON
the highest-grossing straight
martial arts movie of all time
after adjusting for inflation,
(199 7 3) Enter the Dragon snap-kicked
open the doors of Hollywood
MENSHEALTH.CO.UK
studios that had hitherto called Lee’s physique the
portrayed Asian men as more most defined he had ever
Charlie Chan than Jackie
(whose neck Lee snaps in
seen. Years before Pumping
Iron, the aspirationally
villain Han’s underground lair).
You can draw a direct line
from the proliferation of dojos
six-packed star lifted
functionally, ran meditatively
and skipped religiously.
across the US that followed He also invented an abs
the film to the popularity exercise: the “dragon flag”.
of MMA today. “Father of
bodybuilding” Joe Weider
MEN’S HEALTH 79
HOLLYWOOD MUSCLE

-01

Arnold
Schwarzenegger
PUMPP ING IRON (1977)

Naturally, Arnold is numero California’s Gold’s Gym and

uno – but for a documentary?
Not quite, since much of
Pumping Iron was, shall we
say, exaggerated. The sixth
consecutive Mr Olympia
victory, the training methods
still traded on by muscle mags
four decades later – all of that
is true. “But there were certain
things that are not true,” Arnie
admitted in an interview
marking 25 years since the
film’s release. “That’s why we
never called it a documentary.
We called it a ‘docudrama’...
because certain things were
created in order to make
it more interesting.”
In reality, Arnie had already
hung up his posing pouch
before the 1975 contest
to pursue acting. He was
persuaded to come out of his
brief retirement by George
Butler, who with Charles Gaines
had written a Pumping Iron
book that featured Arnie and
wanted to turn it into a film. To sunning himself on nearby
create drama, Schwarzenegger Venice Beach was purposely
invented the character of a made stark by the film-makers.
relentless terminator: “I said to As Butler said, “We defined
myself, ‘How can I sell the idea bodybuilding to a world
that I’m a machine that has no that knew nothing about
emotions?’” His story about bodybuilding.” Their movie
missing his father’s funeral brought it into the light.
because it clashed with With magnetism so strong
his contest prep was that he almost
borrowed from another
bodybuilder; his claim
“This film didn’t need to lift
the weights, Arnie’s
that the pump was brought Pumping Iron
like “coming” was
deliberately sensational
muscle persona gave
bodybuilding mass
to generate press. (“It’s culture into appeal. Hundreds
not, trust me,” he said.)
At the time, bodybuilding
the light” of gyms sprang
up across the US.
was “the least glamorous sport Butler estimated that just
in the world”, according to 25,000 Americans lifted
co-director Butler: a niche weights before the film’s
subculture confined to the release; a 1982 poll put the
kind of dark Brooklyn dungeon number at 34 million. Having
where challenger Lou Ferrigno previously struggled to find
(who became TV’s Incredible acting roles because of his size
Hulk) grunts and grimaces. and accent (his voice was
The contrast with glowing dubbed over in 1970’s Hercules
Arnie sculpting himself in in New York), Schwarzenegger
broke Hollywood’s leading
man mould and recast it in his
own image. As many of the
entries on this list demonstrate,
that mould is still in use.
Bodybuilding is mainstream.
Though he has always been
a campaigner for an active
lifestyle, Arnie has not been
an entirely benign influence.
Natural Born Heroes author
Christopher McDougall believes
his fame contributed to an
epidemic of muscle dysmorphia
and static, aesthetic-fixated
exercise that we’re still
recovering from. Then there’s
Schwarzenegger’s – at the
time legal – steroid use, which
gave a false impression of what
was attainable. But, as we’ve
come to realise, (clean)
resistance training confers
health benefits on men of all
shapes and sizes. Without
Arnie in Pumping Iron, would
any of us even lift?

LIFTING LEGACY 01/ Hold two A VERY MODERN ICON Train for your mind, not
dumbbells in froontt Arrnie’s bodybuild der aesthhetic
Schw warrzenneggeer’s of your upper
just your muscles
uniquue twisst on chest, your palm
ms may be old schoool, but many “Training gives us an outlet
thhe ovverheead prress facing your bodyy off his lesssons hold strong
g for suppressed energies
was so effeectivee and your elbowss in.. created by stress, and thus
thhat itt was nameed A a meditative element
Add tones the spirit just as
02/ As you raisee
after him: the them, rotate youur
tto your workouts exercise conditions the body.”
Arnold preess. Usse forearms. You ““By flexing my biceps so Overcome personal hurdles
itt to buiild Olymp
pia- should finish withh much, I learned to control
m with visualisation
your arms extend ded tthem more completely. This “I began to think of my biceps
gradee shouulderss
and your palms
forward. Never
mind-link ability translated
m as mountains, instead of flesh
Why it works
It sparks more muscle rotate your palms into my bodybuilding... and blood… When you think
growth by targeting further out than this
this. When I did a curl, it felt
W of biceps as merely muscles,
all three parts of the sspecial, because I could you subconsciously have
deltoid: anterior, medial 03/ Pause for a instantly sense blood
beat, then reverse
a limit in your mind.”
and posterior. A word
of warning: it’s tough the move to lower. rrushing into the muscle.” Reject quick fixes
on the joints, so start Exhale to lift; inhale Switch up your routine
S “There are no short cuts –
light if you’ve been lax as you lower. ““The way I trained changed a everything is reps, reps, reps.”
with your mobility. lot of times, because I’d always
try to shock the muscles.”

80 MEN’S HEALTH MENSHEALTH.CO.UK

THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME:
ARNIE GAVE MASS APPEAL TO
SHEER BULK AND POWER
 RISEOF THE
THE
SIDEHUSTLE WORDS BY RICHARD GODWIN – PHOTOGRAPHY BY MICHAEL HEDGE

In a turbulent jobs market, relying

on a single income source is, for many, risky and impractical – so an
increasing number of us are trying to earn a little extra on the fly.
The phenomenon even has a name: the side hustle. But how easy is it
to start up a second gig? MH clocked in to find out
R
oss Taylor’s side hustle began by accident.
Five years ago, he treated himself to a
butterfly taxidermy course in Hackney,
east London, just because it looked fun.
“I found it very relaxing,” he says. “I’m
an impatient person, and it forced me to
slow right down. It’s intricate, delicate
and demands a lot of concentration. Then
I thought: you know what? No one does
butterfly taxidermy in a creative way. It’s
all quite standard. So I decided to mount
them on limited-edition gold prints.”
The 33-year-old Taylor is now one of
the pre-eminent mounters of lepidoptera
in Britain. At first, he made pieces of
butterfly art for friends. Then he raised
a few thousand pounds on Kickstarter
to make some for strangers, after which
he went into business with his partner,
Chris McShane. They branched into home
ware, and their company, the Curious
Department, now sells plates and pillows
online and in 20 shops across Europe.
Taylor manages this in about 15-20
hours a week. For his “day job”, he is the
creative director at Iris Worldwide, an
ad agency that counts Adidas as a client.
“It’s an amazing job,” he says. “But with
advertising, you’re only creative within
the constraints of a brand that already
exists. The reason I started my side hustle
was for creativity that is led only by what
I want to do.” It supplements his already
healthy income by about 20%.
The term “side hustle” has been around
since the 1950s, and it means a venture
outside of your main gig. Perhaps it’s your
way of making a bit of extra cash; perhaps
it’s the dream you can’t let go of; perhaps
it’s how you spread your bets in today’s
fast-moving economy. I first heard the
term a couple of years ago in Los Angeles.
There, everyone seemed to have a side
hustle: the Uber drivers were screenwriters,
the rappers sold streetwear and the yoga
instructors couldn’t wait to tell you about
84 MEN’S HEALTH
LIAM TYLER POURED HIS
ENERGIES INTO CREATING
A NEW HEALTH DRINK
their bone broth start-up. Like many
Americanisms, the term has spread to
Britain. The side hustle tells us something
about the way we work – or want to work
– today. It combines the romance of the
struggling artist with the hard graft of the
entrepreneur and a 21st-century flakiness.
I mean, it’s not like you have to commit
fully, is it? It’s just a bit on the side. It’s
the Tinder date of career moves.
TESTING THE WATER
1/5
“I began to hear the term a lot with the rise
of the sharing economy,” says Mike Lewis,
a Californian careers adviser and the
author of When to Jump, which advocates
the side hustle as a way to prepare the
ground for a career change without
One out of five UK workers
carelessly risking your livelihood.
want to set up their own
(He’s an advocate for “hustle” in
business outside of their
general: “No matter what field
regular day job
you’re in, you need to hustle.
You wanna be an intern on Wall
Street? You gotta hustle for it…”)
The way he sees it, companies just as there are more ways to
such as Uber, Airbnb and source information now, there
eBay have opened up new are also more ways to construct a
possibilities for those in career.” As a result, we no longer
search of extra income, while “have to play by the rules”.
crowd-funding sites such When I ask around, I find
as Kickstarter offer access side hustles everywhere, even
to investment. Hobbies if not everyone calls them
can become businesses. that. I know many people who
Got a passion for are trying to write novels or
woodworking? You can launch music careers while
sell your handcrafted holding down a day job: how
kitchen utensils else are you supposed to pay
on Etsy. Any skill you the bills? What about all those
possess or asset you own politicians with property
can now be monetised. empires? Is George Osborne’s
At the same time, side hustle editing the
jobs have become less London Evening Standard,
secure. “Fifty years or consulting for BlackRock?
ago, people worked In some cases, the “side”
one job all their and “main” hustles can
lives, got the gold become interchangeable,
watch, then each acting as a financial
retired,” he buffer for the other.
says. “But, Luke Hughes, 31, is the
founder of Origym,
which provides
courses for personal
PROP BUILDS: JAINA MINTON
 T SIDE
THE S HUSTLE
S

ROSS
OSS TAYLOR
O CRAFTED
HIS BUTTERFLY ART INTO
SSIX STEPS
S S A HOME-WARE
O BRAND

TO LAUNCHH came on board as legal director and

Turn a smart idea
T d 04\\ Don’t Be human resources manager. The company,
iinto a profitable
f Too Ambitious E-Cigarette Direct, is now a successful
sstart-up, withh IIt’s allll too easy to trainers. He employs y 25 people and family business, employing 90 people.
SSkye Robertson off ooverestimate how h l y
last year paid himself a salary y of about Liam Tyler, 25, is at the beginning of
ccareers advisers
d mmuch free time £150,000, including g dividends. “It’s that road. He spends his nine to five doing
E h City
Escape the you’llll have
h l
– let g g pretty
going y well,” he says.
y digital marketing for a gaming platform
al
alone hhow muchh In the mid-2000s, Hughes g made his in Manchester, and all other waking hours
01\\ Begin With
0 eenergy andd mentall l
living g from online poker; at his peak, he devoted to Yusa, an energy drink company
bl
a Problem ccapacity. Quickk w earning
was g £25,000 a month. But he he co-founded with two schoolfriends.
S p fail when
Start-ups ssuccess is i rare, so realised
ea sed tthiss bette
better suited
su ted the
t e side
s de hustle:
ust e: “One of my mates came across this leaf
the problem they focus on building if you play during the day, all of your that’s found in Ecuador, Colombia and
are fixing isn’t one momentum. Aim opponents are professionals. If you wait Peru. We couldn’t believe how many
that people care for marginal gains. till the evening, they tend to be less savvy. health benefits it had…” Rather than
enough about to Now he works from 7am to 7pm at Origym, anything legally dubious, the leaf was
05\ Make Yourself putting in a couple of hours of poker guayusa – recently approved by the
pay for a solution.
Accountable afterwards to unwind. “My mum will be EU – which Tyler and his friends have
Know exactly who
Ensure that you happier now that I’m investing a bit more made into a carbonated tea they market
you are helping.
remain on track in my future,” he says. “Still, it was the as a health-conscious alternative to Red
by sharing your poker that allowed me to fund Bull and Relentless.
02\ Test Your
targets with a
Assumptions
List the conditions
friend, or pledging
my business in the first place.”
“YOUR HOBBY CAN Hustles don’t come
without sacrifice. To make
needed for success
money through LEAPS OF FAITH BECOME YOUR SIDE his project financially
sites such as For those without an obvious viable, Tyler sleeps on the
– that no similar
products exist, and
gofuckingdoit.com.
Make external
passion to pursue, the hustle HUSTLE. ALMOST floor of a shared flat with his
so on. Test your
assumptions by
pressure an ally.
can mean taking a gamble
of a different kind. James
ANY SKILL CAN friends. “We work evenings
and weekends. Because
speaking to your
06\ Know Yourself
Dunworth, 41, got into his
present line of work while
BE MONETISED” we’re living together, we’re
constantly talking.” Many
target market.
If you’re struggling working as an English teacher in Qatar. of his friends are doing similar things,
03\ Draw Up to make things His mother tried an e-cigarette at a trade he says. “People 10 or 20 years ago were
a Schedule work, ask yourself show and immediately saw the potential. more career-centred – they had this idea
If your hours are why. First, are you Dunworth designed a website so she could that if you work hard, you can get where
consistent and honestly excited sell them online and soon found himself you want to be. But, with my generation,
non-negotiable, about your idea? staying up until 2am each morning, there’s so much freedom.”
you won’t be Or perhaps you’re organising shipments from China. Emma Gannon, 28, the author of The
derailed by social afraid of failing. To “I had no idea how big it was going to Multi-Hyphen Method: Work Less, Create
engagements – tackle your doubt, be,” he says. “The idea was simply to make More, and Design a Career that Works
or your day job. you need to know a little bit of extra money on the side.” It for You, echoes the point. “I’m glad I
precisely what soon became a side hustle for everyone
is causing it. in the family. His wife began to help out
with the postage and packing; his sister

MENSHEALTH.CO.UK MEN’S HEALTH 85

GRAHAM JONESES WROTE
O
A RADICAL POLEMIC
O
WHILE CUTTINGG HAIR

started my side
project whe en I
did,” she say
ays. “I
began by ta aking g
one day off a week.
Then I realised
ised I
was earning g more in
that one dayay off than
in my main n job.
j Over
time, it’s ev
volved into
the multi-hyhyphenate
career I havve now.””
Gannon’’s status as
an author-p podcaster--
consultant isn’t just
j a spot
of millennial marketing, g
but a pragm matic means off
survival. Shhe started her
career at onnline publication
p
the Debrieff aandd tthen
e Glamour on their profile. Real entrepreneurs just
magazine, b both of which have
BUSINESS OR PLEASURE?? get
g on with it. Generally y speaking, g the
since closed.d. For her, this was a sign of Be it painting
painting, performing or working out
out, assess more people talk about their side hustle,
how little you gain by staying in one whether your hobby can become a side hustle the less likely it is that it’s real.”
place. “The narrative of what’s risky has A level of integrity and conviction is
You use your hobby…
been reversed,” she says. “People used crucial. Profit won’t always come quickly,
a) To challenge yourself b) For stress relief
to say, ‘Don’t you feel insecure working so it helps if you love what you do. Matt
for yourself?’ Actually, I feel more Chocqueel-Mangan, 46, spends most of
secure. I have eight income streams. In What would it If your hustle became his time building websites for corporate
any company, you can’t be sure if it will mean to go pro? more chore than clients (currently for fashion retailer
even exist in a few years.” a) Working the pleasure… Asos). Periodically, however, he resigns
odd Sunday a) I’d feel the loss from whatever he’s working on to run
LABOURS OF LOVE voteforpolicies.org.uk, the non-partisan
The side hustle has its detractors, too. b) Changing my b) Work is work, right? political site he launched during the 2010
“So many people feel the need to justify office hours general election. His side hustle takes up a
their job in the creative industry by few months every couple of years, working
talking about the other even more one day a week. It began with a realisation
creative things they’re doing,” says
Do you really think you’re good enough? that he had “no idea” about politics. “I
Ben Middleton, who works at Creature
a) I’m hotter than b) Honestly, knew about left and right,” he says. “But
advertising agency in London. “I
the pros not always I found the way it was presented tedious,
appreciate that a lot of people do this and many of my friends felt the same.”
to generate money, or because they’ve So, he read every single manifesto – a
always dreamed of running a whiskey- “dumbfounding” experience that left him
marmalade conglomerate, or whatever. “a little bit obsessed” – to figure out a way
But I think it’s better to commit to one to “gamify” the differences between the
thing and make it the best you can, Make a Start Gain Hang Tight parties. His site presents you with each
rather than dabbling in a pipe dream.” But beware Conviction “Not all hobbies party’s manifesto promises on, say, health
He blames TV programmes such of overconfidence. What you need is translate neatly to or immigration; you select the option that
First, tick off all persistence, not full-time pursuits,”
as Dragons’ Den and The Apprentice of the “unsexy” perfection. “You says Lewis. He sounds best without knowing whose policy
(which gave us Katie Hopkins and steps, says careers don’t have to be advises shadowing it is until afterwards. Millions of people
Donald Trump, after all), as well as adviser Mike the best,” says people within have now used the site, while Chocqueel-
Silicon Valley and hip-hop culture, for Lewis: refine Lewis. “That logic that industry and Mangan has launched versions in other
your brand will only deter you.” engaging with
romanticising the entrepreneur. “The But you need to be them until you’re countries, as well as Policy Tracker, which
identity, read up
truth is, there are a huge number of on industry news sure your product certain that your tracks the manifesto promises when
people claiming to be entrepreneurs and itemise is worth investing fantasy matches the party is in power. “It’s crazy. I’ve put
who just aren’t,” he says. “You see your costs. First in. Research your the reality. “Things thousands of hours into it. We do raise
impressions linger, competitors and can be very
16-year-olds reselling Supreme some funds, but overall it still loses me
and you’ll only you’ll better different from how
streetwear on Instagram with ‘CEO’ get one shot at understand your they appear on money. And yet it’s the most successful
the big launch. own market value. surface level.”

86 MEN’S HEALTH MENSHEALTH.CO.UK

 THE SIDE HUSTLE

03\ Sell Your Book

Forget courting
thing I’ve ever done. People really got
TOOLS OF publishers and you’re not really doing anything – but with
behind it, and that makes me very happy.”
The ideal side hustle, it seems, is
THE TRADE pitch to crowd-
funding platform
hairdressing, you’re creating something
people can see, which makes them feel
one that contrasts with your main job There’s more unbound.com. If better. It’s satisfying.”
but complements it, too. Take Graham to launching a you’re successful,
Jones, a hairdresser and radical political business than a pros will help to BALANCING ACT
theorist. He spends most of his time Kickstarter appeal. edit, publish and Karl Marx lamented how industrial
cutting people’s hair at Open Barbers in These platforms ship your book. capitalism fragmented the labour market,
north-east London and performing home will help you forcing each person to specialise in one
visits for people with disabilities. But 04\ Get Paid role for their entire lives. He dreamed of a
around this, he made time to write and 01\ Set Up Shop Xero.com is an society that “makes it possible for me to do
publish a book called The Shock Doctrine Logging on to accounting app one thing today and another tomorrow; to
of the Left, in which he explains how mass shopify.co.uk is that helps small hunt in the morning, fish in the afternoon,
emancipation might arise from economic, the easiest way businesses create rear cattle in the evening [and] criticise
political and technological uncertainty. to build an online invoices and chase after dinner”.
His two occupations offer a rewarding
mix of cerebral and hands-on.
store. Experiment
with site designs
payments. You can
also record your “TECHNOLOGY Thanks to the
digital revolution,
“I’ve never thought of either job as a
career,” he says. “They’re both just things I
in your free 14-day
trial before fully
expenses and,
later on, approve
HAS MADE A something
resembling this
like to do.” Before he became a hairdresser, committing. staff requests. VARIED WORK is now a reality –
he worked a succession of administrative
jobs, mostly doing audio typing. “It used 02\ Consult 05\ Find an Office
LIFE A REALITY” just not in the way
Marx envisioned.
to be a reliable earner, but it got to a point Your Market Hubblehq.com We have gone from one job being enough
where the jobs were very short-term, as Want to find your connects people to support a family to two jobs often being
it began to be automated. That’s why I target audience? who are looking not quite enough to support one person.
made the transition to hairdressing.” Track down like- for flexible offices When jobs were more secure, people
Jones’s mother is a hairdresser and minded people with those able spent their weekends doing sociable
had long sung its praises. “It’s the classic using sites such as to provide them. activities such as building model train
job that can’t be automated,” says Jones. meetup.com. Look Alternatively, you sets, windsurfing, or attending swingers’
“You can do it anywhere, and it’s people- for events relevant can rent out your parties. Now, we assess every free moment
focused. With office jobs, it often feels like to your product, or own space: side for its profitability. Perhaps that is, in
host your own. hustle sorted. part, a return to how things used to be:
before the Industrial Revolution, anyone
might have done a little weaving, a little
cider-making, a little pork-butchery and

£360
The average extra monthly
income earned by side
hustlers, though many bring
in considerably more
a little market-hawking in the course of
a day. We contain multitudes, after all.
Surprising as it may sound, the more
enlightened employers are embracing the
idea. Kayleigh Smart works as the “talent
lead” (human resources) at creative agency
Adaptive Lab. Her firm tries to be amenable
to what its employees want. In essence,
she says, the company has to accept that
people’s life ambition might not be to work
for the company. “It’s absurd to think that
would be the case,” she says, laughing.
“We’ve experimented with different
types of employment contracts,” says
Smart. “Some people want to work four-
day weeks; others want to take lots of
unpaid leave in the summer. One of our
designers runs a magic school on the side.
We have a part-time professional chef on
the team who works four days a week for us,
then takes time off to work in restaurants…
We don’t perceive it as something
negative.” Neither do the people I spoke
to. They view it as an unalloyed positive,
a source of fulfilment as well as extra cash.
What are you waiting for?

LUKE HUGHES FUNDED

HIS COMPANY WITH HIS
POKER WINNINGS
S CO U MEN’S HEALTH 87
 COFFEE IS MAN’S ORIGINAL PERFORMANCE
ENHANCER, PROVEN TO SHARPEN YOUR MIND,
PEP UP YOUR WORKOUTS AND BURN THROUGH
FAT. SO, WHY SETTLE FOR SECOND BEST?
GET TO KNOW YOUR BEANS WITH OUR
CONNOISSEUR’S GUIDE AND ELEVATE YOUR
NEXT CUP OF JOE FAR ABOVE THE AVERAGE

WAKE UP TO THE
HEALTH BENEFITS
OF A BETTER BREW

88 S S CO U
S CO U S 89
We have goats to thank for our coffee habit – at least, so
the story goes. When a ninth-century Ethiopian herder
noticed that his animals were buzzing after eating the fruit
of a particular tree, he decided he’d like a bit of that, too.
Soon, Arabian monks were using it to stay awake during
their long meditation sessions. By the 17th century, it
had reached Europe, where coffee houses were seen
as a sophisticated alternative to taverns, encouraging
conversation instead of stupor. A global obsession was born.
In 2018, the worldwide coffee industry is worth $100bn
and rising. The basic purpose of your brew remains the
same, but our choice has broadened: you might favour a
ristretto, a cortado, a cold brew, a frappé, or a matcha latte;
a strong, black shot before interval training, or a flat white
pick-me-up to get you through a stuffy afternoon meeting.
However it’s dressed up, coffee is a health panacea. “It’s
not just the caffeine,” says Dr Frank Hu, a Harvard scientist
and coffee researcher. “There are many active compounds
in coffee – polyphenols, minerals… It’s abundant in
magnesium.” His 20-year study has linked coffee to a
reduced risk of heart disease, diabetes, depression and
even some cancers. Here, moderation isn’t prudent: “It
seems these health benefits are associated with three to
five cups a day,” says Hu. A little extra knowledge can go
a long way to making each cup more potent and more
flavourful. Thirsty? Allow our experts to take your order.

01
Area HEALTH BUZZ #1
Codes Beans grown 1.7km
or more above sea
The first step is knowing what level contain more
you like. Sam Langdon, head heart-protective
antioxidants.
of coffee at Caravan, gives you Aim high
a tour of the global coffee belt

01/ The Americas a sweeter, heavier 02/ Africa 03/ Asia

FOOD STYLIST: IONA BLACKSHAW | OPENING SHOT COFFEE BEANS FROM CARAVAN COFFEE ROASTERS | ILLUSTRATIONS: ANDREA MANZATI
Nutty, sweet, base, due to its Citrus, floral, an almost Musky, earthy,
chocolatey natural processing aromatic lemony acidity,” smoky
“The powerhouse (below); Colombian From Kenya to says Langdon. The “Asian coffees cedar and tobacco.
of the coffee world,” beans have more Rwanda, this part beans aren’t very are divisive, but It’s funky.” While
says Langdon: acidity. “If you’re of Africa produces uniform in size, so I’m a fan,” says most coffee is pale
blends from a regular drinker, some world-class an even roast is Langdon. As green when raw,
this region are you’ve almost blends. The coffee harder to obtain. the beans are Asian beans are
consistently certainly tried a is grown at high But in the hands of often transported jade blue. “They
good. Brazil alone Brazilian-Colombian altitude, often up a pro? “The cup’s before they’re fully are robust, so
produces over blend,” Langdon to 2km, and has a complexity is dry, their flavour they’re better
a quarter of the says. These are complex flavour. phenomenal: floral, stands apart: suited to espresso
world’s coffee. Its your fail-safes. “Kenyan coffees, for almost tea-like.” “It’s full-bodied than filter coffee.”
beans tend to offer Good for: fans example, can have Good for: subtlety and soily; there’s Good for: those
of rich flavours and nuance with a bold palate

02 Altitude
In coffee terms,
Washing
This refers to
Season
As with any

A Quick “high altitude”

applies to beans
Coffee grown above 1.4km. As there
is less oxygen, the coffee
Primer matures slowly, developing
a more vibrant flavour than
Confused by labelling
earthy, low-altitude beans.
jargon? Ensure you’re
“They’re said to be better, but
getting what you want with
it’s a matter of personal taste,”
Langdon’s cheat sheet
explains Langdon.
the process
of stripping
away the fruit before the
beans are fermented, making
them taste brighter and
fresher. In the “natural”
method, the fruit is left to
ferment, allowing the beans
to absorb some of its flavour.
other fruit,
coffees from
different regions go in and
out of season and are at
their nutritional best at
specific times. Next month,
Colombian and Rwandan
beans will arrive in the
UK, according to sourcing
company Nordic Approach.

90 MEN’S HEALTH
 Grind and Rise

03 03/ 05

01/
Magic Beans Heart Defence
Like nicotine and
cocaine, caffeine
How
Hipster Is
Muscle Power Staving off sleep is the least of coffee’s powers.
is a psychoactive
Your Order?
Coffee can boost Pore over some of its healthy side effects Is your brew hot
alkaloid; it works on
your workout in right now – or last
your neuroreceptors
more ways than year’s buzz?
to block fatigue.
one. Its caffeine
But unlike the Steaming
elevates your
aforementioned,
blood sugar –
drinking one cup
giving you instant
a week lowers your
power – and, when
heart failure risk by
taken an hour Coffee Soda
8%, scientists at Often flavoured with
before strength
the University of black spice or citrus,
training, it also
Colorado report. this painfully hip
supports the sparkling cold brew
production of 04/ isn’t one for purists.
testosterone. A healthy alternative
Liver
Consider it your to energy drinks.
Protection
iron brew. “Coffee can
reduce your
02/ liver cancer
Brain Health risk,” says Dr
A regular habit Nitro Brew
Hu. “And it’s Infusing coffee with
lowers your possible that nitrogen gives it a
long-term some of the subtly sweet taste and
dementia risk, compounds in creamy consistency.
but it also has High in caffeine, it’s
coffee can slow the ideal calorie-free,
more pressing the progression pre-workout drink.
benefits. “It’s of liver cirrhosis,
almost too often caused
good to be by alcohol.”
true,” says
Dr Hu. “In one 05/ Bulletproof
study, the risk Fat Loss Drinking this blend
of suicide fell Raising your heart of coffee, butter and
by 50% among rate, coffee lifts your brain-fuelling MCT oils
coffee drinkers. in place of breakfast
energy expenditure trains your body to
That would make for three hours, burn fat for energy. If
it more effective reports the Dutch you can stomach it.
than any drug.” Division of Human
Nutrition. The buzz
aside, coffee also
contains chlorogenic
TO BOOST BOTH acid, which helps Turmeric Coffee
BODY AND MIND, to process fats and Turmeric is a potent
GIVE IT THE BEANS anti-inflammatory,
carbohydrates. but this is ultimately
the invention of
colour-hungry
Instagrammers, not
nutritionists.

04 01/ Imprecision
won’t do:
02/ Pour on
180ml of
03/ Skim the
foam off the

The Pro’s ideally, you

want digital
water at just
below boiling.
top, as this
can be bitter, Rainbow Lattes
Selector scales accurate
to 0.1g. Weigh
This coffee-
water ratio
then let the
coffee cool
Made using plant milk
infused with purple
When industry experts out 11g of beans and grind isn’t too strong, so it’s ideal to drinking temperature. beetroot, blue algae,
want to get the measure green matcha, etc. All
it to the coarseness of filter for assessing the flavours. Enjoy as it is, or if you want have notable health
of a new brew, they use coffee. Pre-ground works, too, Steep for four minutes, then to look extra pro, slurp it with benefits, but watch
a tasting method called if you’re new to the game. stir three times. Smell as you a soup spoon. Yes, really. out for added sugars.
“cupping”. Deploy it next stir, as breaking the surface will
Lukewarm
time you’re out to impress release the coffee’s aromas.
Be as dramatic as you want.

MEN’S HEALTH 91

Brew School Rules
A master craftsman is only as good as his tools. Jeremy Torz, co-founder of Union Hand-Roasted Coffee, presents his ultimate kit list
UPSELL YOUR BUZZ
TO A GRANDE WITH A
COFFEE PRO’S ARSENAL
01/ The Beans
Treat your coffee as
you would high-quality
spices, says Torz. “Buy
it whole and grind it
only when you need to.
Oxygen is the enemy
of fresh-roasted
coffee and, with a
larger surface area,
the aromatics will
quickly evaporate.” Its
antioxidant polyphenol
compounds will degrade
just as rapidly. Keep
the coffee in the bag,
rather than a Kilner jar,
and roll the top down,
squeezing out any
air before sealing.
Price dependent on
origin and blend
unionroasted.com
92 MEN’S HEALTH
06
03/ The Chemex
If you’re after delicate aromas.”
something a little Remember to let the
lighter and fresher kettle sit for half a
than your usual cuppa, minute after boiling
02/ The Grinder invest in a Chemex. it, so you don’t end up
Pick a burr mill over descending over “There’s a whole ritual scorching your coffee.
blade grinders, which a mountain.” This that comes with it,” Chemex Six-Cup £44
are less consistent. easy-to-use model says Torz. Place your unionroasted.com
“You get a range of will give you more filter paper in the top,
particle sizes, which uniform results, with add the coffee, then
means the finer grinds its multiple settings pour over your water. HEALTH BUZZ #2
over-brew and the and low-speed motor. Performance coaches
“The filter catches recommend 5mg of
larger grinds release Wilfa Svart Burr the finer particles, caffeine per kilo
less flavour,” says Torz. Grinder £105 so you end up with a of bodyweight on
“You’ll start to taste unionroasted.com very clear brew with training days –
more muddiness and about four cups
GUTTER CREDIT
lose those clearer
tones. It’s like a fog

07
The AeroPress
This portable device
is ideal for single
Gear servings. It won’t
look so pretty on your worktop
Changes but it does its job well, using
filter paper and a plunger
to deliver a medium-bodied
If you want to expand your
pre-gym booster.
toolkit further, let the Union Good for – Your desk drawer
Roasted experts filter the rest Ease of use –
04/ The Cafetière
You know this one, of ground coffee per
right? You may get a litre of water. Treat it
bit of sediment in the like your Sunday meal
cup but, says Torz, prep and weigh it on
“Some people quite a digital scale: “Get
like that, because it your weights wrong
accentuates the body and the end result will
in the coffee.” You be off,” warns
w Torz.
want a medium- Copperr Chambord
h b d
coarse grind, as finer £49 bod dum.com
particles can get
caught in the filter,
making it harder to
plunge. Aim for 60g
GUTTER CREDIT
The Espresso
The machine your
local coffee shop
uses, resulting
in a brew with a deeper, more
intense flavour. There’s some
maintenance required, so
this is one for aficionados, or
those craving a bigger hit.
Good for – Impressing guests
Ease of use –
HEALTH BUZZ #3
If you can’t finish
your beans within
10 days, preserve
the nutrients by
freezing them,
advises Torz
The Stove-Top
Also called a moka,
these metal pots
allow you to brew
intense coffee on the hob. Fill
the bottom with hot water, not
cold – the longer it takes to
brew, the more bitter elements
it will extract from your beans.
Good for – Sunday mornings
Ease of use –
05/ The Roaster
Finally, if you really
want to level-up your
skills, there’s Ikawa’s
home roaster. Once
you know what kind
of beans you like,
you can work out
how dark you like
them via its smart
app, which offers a
wide range of profiles
and roasting recipes.
“If you’re a gadget
geek as well as a
coffee geek, you could
Grind and Rise
The Siphon
Though futuristic-
looking, this was
invented in 1830s
Berlin. Water is heated by a
halogen lamp and forced into
the chamber above by vapour
pressure, where it combines
with coffee grounds.
Good for – Geeking out
Ease of use –
lose a lot of time here,”
says Torz. Different
depths bring out
a variety of notes –
caramel, say, or toffee
and spice – but lighter
roasts will preserve
more of the bean’s
health-protecting
polyphenols.
App-Controlled Home
Coffee Roaster £1,270
ikawacoffee.com
MEN’S HEALTH 93

08
A Crash Course
in Coffee Art
Make your flat white look
Uppers and Downers
Your beans are good for far more than a hot drink – they can imbue your fodder with extra antioxidants.
as good as it tastes with
Dhan Tamang, five-time
UK latte art champion
YOU WILL NEED…
An espresso machine
Ground beans
Full-fat milk
A steady hand
METHOD
“The heart is both the
easiest design and the
foundation for creating
advanced shapes,” says
Tamang. Your foamy Van
Gogh homage starts here.
Chill your pitcher, so the
milk steams more slowly.
If you don’t drink dairy,
choose oat milk: it steams
well and is rich in calcium.
Submerge the wand and
start “stretching” the milk
– heating it with the wand
at the surface – until it
reaches 40°C. Then
submerge again until the
milk is creamy at 65°C.
Now pour your espresso,
ensuring a good, thick
crema. Don’t let it sit
for more than 10 seconds.
“Pour the milk into the
centre, then move it
side to side continuously
until a circular shape
forms,” says Tamang.
Raise the stream of milk
and draw it through the
middle of the circle to the
edge of the mug, creating
a heart. Or call it an ace of
spades, if you prefer.
94 MEN’S HEALTH
09
Inject a little energy into your next meal with these freshly brewed recipes
Cold-Brew
Martini
By Tom Baker, co-founder
of Mr Black liqueur
INGREDIENTS
Mr Black coffee liqueur, 45ml
Cold-brew coffee, 30ml
Reposado tequila, 20ml
Agave nectar, 15ml
METHOD
1/ Think the nuance of coffee
would be lost in a liqueur? “Mr
Black uses three types of bean,”
says Baker. “The Colombian bian
combines a dark roast with
w th HEALTH BUZZ #4
a lighter, fresh roast. The Drinking four cups
Kenyan supplies fruity of coffee per day
chocolate tones, while reduces your chances
of liver damage
the Papua New Guinea (cirrhosis) by
has a marmalade flavouur.” up to 65%*
This riff on an espresso
Martini also offers the ligghter
notes of a cold brew (we like
Sandows). If you want to make
your own, steep your grounds
in cold water for around 18-20
hours, then filter it.
2/ Pour everything into a
shaker with ice, shake, then
strain into a chilled Martini
glass. “Agave-based spirits are
a great pairing for coffee,” says
Baker. This packs a punch,
so savour it slowly.
 Grind and Rise

Industrial 2/ Double-strain the

Blackened Spice Mix Revolution mixture into a chilled
by Rohan Marley, son of by Tom Baker glass and garnish with
Bob and co-author of The the cacao nibs. Another
Marley Coffee Cookbook INGREDIENTS ultra-potent bean,
Coffee liqueur, 30ml cacao contains more
INGREDIENTS antioxidants than almost
Single-malt whisky, 15ml
Finely ground coffee (try the Marley any other plant, while
Porter beer, 30ml
Buffalo Soldier Dark Roast), 2tsp porter beer is a formidable
Espresso, 30ml
Paprika, 1tbsp source of B vitamins such
Sugar syrup, 10ml
Garlic powder, 2tsp as niacin and riboflavin
Cacao nibs, garnish
Onion powder, 2tsp (as well as disease-
Ground cumin, 2tsp METHOD fighting melanoidins,
Dried parsley, 2tsp 1/ For this rich, according to research
*SOUTHAMPTON UNIVERSITY | GLASSWARE PROVIDED BY SELFRIDGES

Light brown sugar, 2tsp dark cocktail, Baker from Porto University).
Cayenne pepper, 2tsp recommends using Best of all, this cocktail
Kosher salt, 1tsp a whisky with a tastes deliciously smooth.
Fresh black pepper, 1tsp little smokiness to “Coffee and dark beers
complement the share many of the same
METHOD coffee liqueur. Start flavours: malt, cacao,
1/ This makes a great seasoning by pouring all of the caramel,” says Baker. “It’s
that will liven up your chicken or ingredients except why this combination
fish. Marley recommends his the cacao nibs into works so well.”
Buffalo Soldier coffee for its an ice-filled shaker
earthy flavour, which pairs well and shaking firmly.
with the subtly sweet and hot
spices. Blitz the beans in your
burr grinder into a fine powder.
2/ Transfer to a bowl and combine Balsamic-Infused
with the other ingredients. Paprika Vinaigrette
is full of vitamin A, which is crucial by Rohan Marley
for eye health – as is coffee’s
chlorogenic acid. Store in a cool, dry INGREDIENTS
place. It will last a couple of months. Cooled coffee (try the Marley Get
Up, Stand Up Light Roast), 60ml
Balsamic vinegar, 120ml
Honey, 85g
Garlic, 2 cloves, peeled
A shallot, peeled and trimmed
Light brown sugar, 2tbsp
Red pepper flakes, 1tsp
Extra-virgin olive oil, 120ml

Use it – Combine with coconut oil and
rub it under the skin of chicken thighs
or breasts, seasoning over the top.
Let the flavours infuse in the fridge
overnight before grilling or frying.
METHOD
1/ This roast has
notes of syrup and
apricot, so will temper
the vinegar. Brew the
coffee, then cool to
room temperature.
Combine in a bowl with
the rest of the ingredients,
except the olive oil.
2/ Pour into a blender and
add the oil while it’s running.
Balsamic vinegar combats Use it – Drizzle over a bulgur wheat
salad, cooked in stock, then mixed
atherosclerosis and arterial
with cherry tomatoes, red onion,
hardening, while coffee reduces coriander and micro-greens – plus a
the build-up of calcium in teaspoon of your coffee spice blend.
the arteries. Purée for two
minutes, then drizzle over
salads. Enjoy the buzz.

MEN’S HEALTH 95
96 S S CO U
 FOR THE SCIENCE TO
IMPROVE, MEN NEED
TO START TALKING

Shooting
Blanks
With sperm counts declining across the West, male
infertility has become increasingly common. So
why is conception still spoken of as a female issue?
MH investigates the last great sexual taboo
WORDS BY SARFRAZ MANZOOR – PHOTOGRAPHY BY SUN LEE

S CO U S 9
Avradeep
A
and Emma
met in 2010,0
when theyy
were boto h in
their thirties
and living in Bristol. “My late father was
the youngest of 13 children,” Avradeep
says. “Growing up, I saw the joy that raising
me gave my father. My parents’ dream
was to have children, and they were great
parents. I wanted something like that.”
Given Emma’s age, the couple
didn’t feel that they had the luxury of
getting to know each other over many
years before planning a family, so they
started trying for a baby just a year into
their relationship. “We did what you’re
supposed to do,” recalls Avradeep. “A slots
into B, and Bob’s your proverbial uncle.”
However, despite months of trying, Emma
did not become pregnant. Concerned,
they went to their GP, and both partners
were given several blood tests. Avradeep
was also asked to do a semen test. “I had
to produce a fresh sample and get it to
the hospital lab within an hour,” he says.
“Which is no mean feat, considering
the traffic in Bristol.”
A week later, the
results arrived while
“Over the past
Avradeep was playing 40 years, sperm
squash. Emma collected counts have
them and rang him
to say they needed to
halved in much
talk. He returned home, of the West”
and it was then that he
learned the reason why Emma was failing
to become pregnant: Avradeep had zero
sperm. He was infertile.
It is estimated that infertility affects one
in six heterosexual couples and, in 40% of
cases, the cause lies with the man. Despite
advances in health science, the problem
is only getting worse – a study published
last year showed that among men from
Europe, North America and Australia,
sperm counts have halved in less than 40
years. “Men’s fertility and reproductive
health seem very much to be under threat
98 MEN’S HEALTH
SPERM QUALITY DECLINES
WITH AGE – MEN, TOO,
HAVE BIOLOGICAL CLOCKS
in our society,” says Sheena Lewis, emeritus
professor at the Centre for Public Health
at Queen’s University Belfast. “A large
meta-analysis published 20 years ago
claimed that sperm counts had dropped in
the previous 50 years. Everybody said the
statistics were wrong, but the paper that
came out last year confirms the data.”
Despite this, the global conversation
around conception still largely centres on
women. “The medical and scientific study
of reproduction has historically focused
on women’s bodies,” says Liberty Barnes,
author of Conceiving Masculinity: Male
Infertility, Medicine and Identity. “So it’s no
surprise that when we started dealing with
infertility, this continued to be the case.”
There is, perhaps, a correlation between
this tendency and the way we seem to
know so little about our declining sperm
counts. It’s something
we rarely think about
as individuals, unless
it becomes a problem.
As for the medical
community, it’s aware
that sperm counts are
declining – but it’s not
sure exactly why.
“I often compare sperm production
to an assembly line in a car factory,” says
Tim Child, medical director of Oxford
Fertility, one of the UK’s largest IVF
treatment centres. “It just takes one bit
to go wrong and the end product won’t
be as good as it should be. It’s the same
with sperm: if there’s one enzyme missing,
one protein that’s not quite right, then it
could affect the end result.”
That this seems to be a predominantly
Western phenomenon suggests that the
problem isn’t entirely natural. “It has
something to do with our lifestyle and our
diets,” says Lewis. “We know this because
S CO U
 THE FERTILITY CRISIS

in countrries such as India, richer people

who adop pt a Western lifestyle end up
having
h g mo
more issues.”
Many
M o these Western maladies
y of
should com me as no surprise: obesity, lack
of exercise,, and so on. Environmental
pollutantss are a probable factor, with
p
multiple
m e studies linking air pollution
with “ab bnormal sperm shape”. We
are also hhaving children later, and
sperm qu uality is significantly poorer
in those over
o 45. But there is, as yet,
no smokinging gun, no definitive cause.
All we ha
have is speculation.

PROBABLE CAUSES
PR
When a couple are experiencing fertility
issues, their GP will most likely suggest
a variety of tests for the woman and
possibly a semen test for the man. They
will then be recommended IVF treatment.
“The reason for my lack of sperm was

HOW TO BEAT never discovered,” says Avradeep. “In

effect, I was discounted as being ‘useful’
THE HEAT by the fertility unit.” According to clinical
embryologist Sheryl Homa, “The triaging
According to is wrong if a man with poor semen
a University of analysis is simply sent to an IVF clinic.
Giessen study, a The IVF clinic offers IVF – it doesn’t offer
1°C rise in scrotal an investigation. If you go to a butcher’s,
temperature can don’t expect to find oranges.”
be enough to cause Homa used to run IVF labs for both
a drop in sperm the state and private sectors, but she quit
quality*. Keep tabs after becoming disillusioned with the
on these habits if persistent marginalisation of men. In
you’re struggling 2007, she set up Andrology Solutions
to conceive in a clinic off Harley Street, in order to
focus on men’s health – particularly in
Enjoying long,
relation to their reproductive system. Her
hot baths
hope is to offer a level of investigation,
diagnosis and explanation that she feels
Using heated
is missing from the NHS.
car seats
The men who visit the clinic come
alone and are given a detailed health
Keeping your
questionnaire that is used to assess the
Mac on your lap
cause of their low sperm count. “If we can
find out what is behind it, we might be
Cycling in
able to treat it,” says Homa. The leading
tight Lycra
known cause of male infertility, she says,
is a varicocoele – a clump of abnormally
Wearing
enlarged veins around or above a testicle.
super-snug
“This leads to an engorgement of blood
boxers
that heats the testes. If you raise the
*Don’t worry too much.
Any damage will only temperature of the testes too high, you
last a few months. can destroy sperm development.”
Homa is convinced of the potential
benefits of varicocoele repairs. “There
is a lot of evidence that this will improve
sperm DNA damage and increase your
chances of pregnancy, naturally and
with IVF,” she says. So why isn’t it more

S CO U MEN’S HEALTH 99
THE FERTILITY CRISSIS
SS

commonly practised? In this and other

oh
respects, the medical community iis
divided. “In studies where men were r
re
co
cocoele
randomised either to have the varicocoe e
repaired or not, the results showed th h
heir
fertility did not improve,” says Child..
“So the national guidance in the UK iss
that men should not have it repaired
purely for fertility reasons, as there is no
n
evidence that the treatment will help.”
Child continues, “In general, there are n no
drugs, surgeries or medications that can n
‘fix’ men’s fertility problems.” For now, he
believes IVF remains the best option.

LIFE SUPPORT
Avradeep and Emma opted for IVF
using donor sperm. “I felt bad for Emma
because I was the reason she could not
conceive naturally, and why we needed to
go down this route,” he says. “She would
have to undergo various uncomfortable
procedures and blood tests, whereas my
lack of sperm ruled me out immediately.”
Sometimes, on the drive back from work,
he would cry. “I felt useless.”
This sense of personal failure is a very
common response, explains Homa. “How
would I describe the emotional state of
the men who come to see me? I think the
word is ‘dire’,” she says. “They feel guilty
HIT OR MYTH?
about how they cannot provide what their Dr Jackson Kirkman-Brown separates media
partner wants most and yet she is stuck scare story from legitimate strategy
with them. I have had men tell me it would
be better to divorce, so she could find Wi-Fi and phone It’s healthy to A low sperm Protein supps
somebody else. I have had plenty of men signals cook ejaculate often count is a sign can harm your
break down during a consultation.” your sperm Hit of poor health swimmers
Homa sees her clients without their Myth This won’t offer any Myth Hit
partners, so they are, perhaps, more While the heat from long-term benefits, It’s largely inherited, Unfortunately,
your laptop can but “refreshing” so while lifestyle there’s some truth
comfortable about revealing their
cause short-term your sperm once factors can help, the here. While most
emotions. In other environments, many every couple of
damage, no link has chances are that it’s men won’t have any
of them feel they have to “be strong”. been established days is beneficial unrelated to anything issues, if your sperm
“Men often hide their feelings in front between Wi-Fi when you’re trying you’ve done. count is low, quitting
and infertility. to conceive. the shakes can help.
of their partners,” says Lewis, “even if
they are heartbroken inside.”
Richard Clothier is a marketing
manager in Bedfordshire who married raw emotion, making noises that I had Down and his wife, Natalie, began fertility
his wife in 2011. After learning he had never heard myself make.” treatment. The couple had multiple
fertility issues that would make natural That those like Clothier feel they have rounds of intrauterine insemination (IUI)
pregnancy unlikely, his wife started IVF no outlet for their frustration is a sign that and IVF, and Natalie frequently went
treatment in early 2016. men still feel uncomfortable online in search of support and advice.
“I kept quiet about my
feelings in order to be the
“Many men about discussing their feelings
openly. “Men have fewer
When Down tried to do the same, however,
he came up against a wall. “The people
‘knight in shining armour’ feel a lack of social support networks,” says on the pages were predominantly female,
who every man wants to
be for his partner,” he says.
sperm affects Barnes. “[Male infertility]
is something that has been
and I couldn’t find anything to relate
to,” he says. “I couldn’t speak openly
“But it took its toll. Every their sense of taboo for many years, and men about how I was feeling.” So, he decided
morning on the drive to masculinity” don’t have the same resources to start his own page. “After I set it up,
PROP BUILDS: MANDY MAKER

work, I would pull up on
the same stretch of the A41 and find
I was punching the steering wheel with
both hands. I was filled with rage and
available to them.”
Some are trying to change this. In
2015, Gareth Down set up a Facebook
group focused on male fertility. After
discovering he had no sperm as a result of
testicular lumps during his teenage years,
I had a place where I could post about
what I was going through. The strength
of the Facebook group is that it is only
men – so it seems that [on issues] where

100 MEN’S HEALTH

 DESPITE THE GROWING
AWARENESS, THERE’S
STILL NO MEDICAL FIX
SWIMMING AGAINST THE TIDE
What the latest data** tells us about male fertility
Total Sperm Count (Millions)
350
Western men,
300
random sample
250
Western men,
200
fertile
150
1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
Year of Sample Collection
men might normally stay silent, they find they have a low sperm count. They
feel able to speak out.” think it makes them less of a man.”
Avradeep and Emma also noticed an
imbalance in support. “Compared to the THE NEXT GENERATION
thousands of female infertility blogs, Last year, scientists at the Francis Crick
male blogs are in a minority, because men Institute announced they had created
don’t tend to share their feelings much, healthy offspring from genetically
let alone write about them online for all infertile male mice. It was a ground-
to see,” says Avradeep. He started his own breaking result, pointing to a potential
blog in 2014 to verbalise his concerns. One new approach to tackling infertility. The
**HEBREW UNIVERSITY OF JERUSALEM
anxiety repeatedly mentioned by men technique requires further development
with fertility issues relates to how a lack of before it can be tested on humans, and
sperm affects their sense of masculinity. even then it would need a change in
“I have spent my whole career trying to UK law, which currently bans the use
separate fertility from virility,” says Lewis. of artificially produced sperm to make
“Men’s self-esteem is dented when they babies. Still, it offers some hope.
“The research being done in genetics
is the most promising thing for the
future of fertility,” says Barnes, “and the
lab scientists who are studying male
infertility are finding really interesting
answers. I think in 20-30 years, we will
know a lot more about what causes
infertility and how it can be solved.”
In the meantime, while there are no
medical fixes, there are things that men
can do to improve the quality of their
sperm – and thus the chances of being
able to father children naturally (see box
on page 99). That you are reading this
magazine – and therefore presumably
taking an interest in your health – is a
good first step. “Men produce new sperm
every 70 days,” says Lewis. “So if you were
to change your lifestyle for just three
months, you might be able to improve
your sperm quality.” It’s worth keeping in
mind, too, that the world’s Mick Jaggers
are the exceptions and not role models:
men do have biological clocks.
Avradeep and Emma spent seven
years and £35,000 on fertility treatment.
After three rounds of IUI and five rounds
of IVF, in April this year Emma gave
birth to a girl they named Matilda Bea.
“Matilda means mighty in battle,”
explains Avradeep, “and Bea means
bringer of joy.” Avradeep’s and Emma’s
baby offers living proof that infertility
need not mean childlessness. “Where
donor sperm is used, the big thing that
many men like myself have to understand
is that this donor sperm is just DNA,”
says Avradeep. “The donor is not the
father. Once you get over that hurdle,
it’s easier to progress.”
For Barnes, the story of Viagra offers
some clues about how progress might be
made. “Viagra and erectile dysfunction
are now commonly talked about in
popular discourse, but that wasn’t
always the case,” she says. “I don’t know
what it would take for us to be able to
acknowledge male infertility as openly
as we do erectile dysfunction.”
Fu
Funding new research is a separate
battle le – sperm studies are viewed
as unat
a attractive, given that they
rrequirre large sample groups
oover m many years and rarely give
cclearr answers. But the first step
ttowa
wards greater understanding
iis sim
imply to talk, to encourage
men tto vocalise their experiences
m
honestly
h y and to allow their voices to be
hheard. “T The more we share, the more it
bbecomess acceptable,” says Homa. “If
ppeople u understand they are not alone,
tthen
e the taboo is broken – and the real
conver
co versation can start.”
MEN’S HEALTH 101
The FORGET THE MASOCHISTIC
MANTRAS OF SELF-DENIAL:
LEARN TO ENJOY THE RIDE

NewRules
Of
Burning

Fat
102 MEN’S HEALTH
(...Or Why Everything You Think You
Know About Weight Loss Is Wrong )
WORDS BY SCARLETT WRENCH - PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOBE LAWRENSON
 MAKE SWIFTER PROGRESS
WITH YOUR EYES CLOSED

If losing scrapes by on an inadequate

six hours and 19 minutes –

weight which not only leaves you

exhausted but has a bearing
on your body-fat reading, too.

feels like “Sleep is the unsung hero of

fat loss,” says Artur Zolkiewicz,

a mirthless performance coach at London

training space the Workshop

chore, then Gymnasium. “Those who log

fewer hours see an increase
in cortisol, which can lead to

you’re doing muscle loss, as well as a fall in

insulin sensitivity – a crucial

it wrong. factor in appetite regulation.”

In a University of Chicago

Tear up last study, men lost half as much

fat when they rose after 5.5
hours compared to when they

year’s rule slept for 8.5 hours, regardless

of their diet. Meanwhile,

book: this athletes who manage fewer

than eight hours are 70%

is the new more likely to be injured while

training. For the underslept,

way to get 01\Have a Lie-In

The “rise and grind” mentality is hitting
overstretched man, grinding
it out in the gym becomes a
joyless box-ticking mission.

ripped and snooze on your progress. Let’s put it to bed

THE NEW RULE
If you’re consistently
sleeping less than seven

(honestly)
THE OLD RULE hours, you’re better off with
By the time most of us have To paraphrase sleep scientist a 30-minute session at lunch
hauled ourselves out of bed, the Matthew Walker, it took 3.6 or after work than an hour of

enjoy the Rock is uploading his muscle-

building efforts on Instagram.
million years for Mother
Nature to hard-wire the notion
zombie-shuffling at the crack
of dawn. Consider sleep your

experience The pre-dawn period is when

the magic happen ns, you k
know..
of “eight hours’ sleep” into us,
and
a mere decades for us to
undo it. Now the averageg Brit
new steady-state cardio.

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b
breakkddown muscle l mass – in

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THE OLD RULE abstinence,, not “
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Picking up a pla
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G S
SO , GGETTY IMAGES
and eggs the minu ute you
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drop your dumbbells is the ““If y
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ttraining, g it’s a recipe

they’ll only bulk you
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G , JOBE

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C , MICHAEL

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ddepleted,
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104 MEN’S HEALTH


03\Diversify
Your Workout
Cardio day? Chest day? Gluteus medius day?
What you need is some joined-up thinkinng
THE OLD RULE
Weights stack on muscle
and cardio burns calories,
so chaining yourself to the
treadmill is surely the fast
track to your body-fat target.
THE NEW RULE
“It’s not a choice between
looking like Eddie Hall or
Mo Farah,” says Zolkiewicz.
“Both cardiovascular work
and weight training will help
you burn fat. I build in high-
intensity exercises between
weights sets to keep my
clients’ heart rates up. You
can also add some cardio
finishers to the end of your
sessions. There’s no reason
to train each discipline
on separate days.”
There are tangible benefits
to maintaining a dedicated
resistance training regime
while trying to lose weight.
According to a review in
the International Journal
of Obesity, your muscles
MIX IT UP: TAKE ON YOUR
GOALS FROM ALL SIDES
contribute a hefty 20% to
your total daily energy
expenditure, while your fa at
mass uses up a mere 3%.
Adding muscle, therefore,,
is crucial to staying lean.
As Walton puts it, “There
are 168 hours in the week, so
even if you train for an hou ur
a day, there are still 161 ho
ours
when you’re resting. This is
your biggest calorie-burniing
time. That’s why we alway ys use
full-body training session ns.
Building muscle is the numb mber
one thing that’s going to help
h l
you burn more calories.”
Try creating a circuit off
five upper- and lower-body dy
exercises, then simply mo ove
around the circuit, doing
between eight and 10 repss off
each, within a 15-minute timet
frame. Make a note of how w
many rounds you complette,
then try to beat your score e
next time. That you won’tt have
to stare glumly at an endle ess
loop of music videos shou uld
be a further incentive.
N E W R U L E S O F B U R N I N G F AT
04\Get on
the Sauce
Hard abs are not built on bland food.
We suggest you start dressing up a bit
THE OLD RULE
An unstimulating dinner
is the sacrifice one must make
for a leaner physique.
Seasoning, after all,
is simply extra
calories.
Repeat after
me: food
is fuel, food
is fuel…
THE
NEW RULE
You’ve probably heard it
said that sauces are full of
sugar. Indeed, you’ve probably
heard it from us. But while
smothering your spinach
leaves in mayonnaise is still
inadvisable, so, too, is boring
yourself back into the arms
of your local fast-food chain.
“Even the mentally strongest
people can struggle with
plain food,” Zolkiewicz says.
“Good nutrition should fit
BRING ON THE BURN FOR
FLAVOUR AND FAT LOSS
g
into your existing lifestyle,
and not vice versa.”
There’s a reason why
Nando’s is such a perennial
favourite of pro athletes:
adding a generous squirt of
peri-peri or similar hot sauce
to your protein bumps it up
by just 20 calories and 1.2g of
carbs – which have a negligible
effect on your macros for
a whole lot of flavour.
As for the 3g of salt, they can
even be beneficial. Research
related to the Russian space
programme found that sodium
increases your body’s release
of glucocorticoids: hormones
linked to fat breakdown. In
a subsequent Vanderbilt
University study, mice on a
saltier diet had to eat 25% more
just to maintain their weight.
While moderation is still
recommended for those with
high blood pressure (best
get it checked), salt
has not been shown
to have adverse
effects in healthy
men, with a McMaster
University study
suggesting that
it could even
strengthen your
heart, as well
as regulating
nerve impulses
and helping
your muscles
absorb glucose
and amino acids.
As for whether
you’re more
lemon and herb
than extra hot –
we’re not here to
pass judgement.
MEN’S HEAALTH 105

05\Calories
Count for Little
Think nutrition is a numbers game? The
sums suggest you update your textbook
THE OLD RULE
Weighing and measuring
your lean-and-greens may
feel tedious (and, by God, it
does), but it’s the only way
to ensure a daily calorie
deficit. Keep those numbers
on the right side of the bar
and you can’t go wrong.
THE NEW RULE
While it might be nice to feel
that those GCSE maths lessons
have finally amounted to
something, calorie-counting
is far from an exact science.
“For a start, most calorie-
tracking devices overestimate
your output,” says Walton;
as a result, even setting your
daily target is guesswork. The
same goes for the numbers
on food packets. “Research
shows that the true calorie
content of what you’re eating
is often significantly higher
or lower than stated,” says
Zolkiewicz. “Food companies
may use any of several different
methods to estimate calories,
106 MEN’S HEALTH
DON’T MISCALCULATE THE
VALUE OF DAILY TARGETS
so regulatory bodies permit
inaccuracies of up to 20%.”
There are other factors at
play. Some foods are more
easily broken down than
others: nuts, for example,
are less completely digested
than other foods containing
similar macro counts, with a
US Department of Agriculture
study showing that just 129kcal
of the 170kcal in a serving
of almonds are absorbed by
the body. In other words, the
pursuit of precision causes
a lot of stress for little pay-off.
Besides, no one can stick
to a punitive eating plan all
of the time, and deviations
are inevitable. Walton advises
assessing your nutritional
intake across the course of
a week instead, with three
meals that allow you to go
“a little off-piste” – “not an
entire day when you eat
junk, but a treat in place of
your usual carb”. Everything
in moderation, please: in
particular, your moderation.
06\Micros
Over Macros
Get your fix of vitamins and minerals and
the macros will take care of themselves
THE OLD RULE
You’re trying to burn fat, not
fend off scurvy. At any rate,
whey powder has the same
macro profile as tuna and
greens – it’s just much easier
to prep in the changing rooms.
THE NEW RULE
A leaner body can’t be built
on vitamins alone, but it’s a
mistake to neglect your RDAs
while fixating on proteins,
A VARIED, VITAMIN-RICH
DIET IS YOUR BEST MEDICINE
fats and carbs. This particular
mindset has even spawned
a hashtag, #IIFYM, which
argues that nothing is off the
table “if it fits your macros”.
That might mean a slice of
pizza instead of your sweet
potato at dinner, or subsisting
on protein supplements in
place of proper meals.
But micronutrients – that’s
vitamins and minerals – serve
a purpose beyond ensuring
your organs don’t seize up.
“Vitamins participate in all
metabolic processes, such
as growth, repair, energy
transfer and nervous system
function,” says Zolkiewicz.
Magnesium and the organic
acid carnitine, as Walton
points out, play a major role
in oxidising fats for energy. A
study from the University of
Minnesota correlated higher
levels of vitamin D with greater
abdominal fat loss, while
a Nature Chemical Biology
report concluded that copper
is essential for dismantling fat
cells so they can be burned up.
“The more copper there is,”
the scientists found, “the more
the fat is broken down.”
Your best defence against
deficiency, then, is to ditch
your formulaic diet and
introduce a little variety: a
lamb shank for your carnitine,
Swiss chard for magnesium,
shiitake mushrooms for
copper. Either way, you’ll still
eventually reach your fat-loss
goals, so long as you’re training
smart and eating moderately.
But you’ll get there a lot faster
with wholefoods – and enjoy
the journey more without yet
another energy-bar breakfast.

07\Rest Days Are Futile
Stop kidding yourself: spending three nights a week on
the sofa is the sign of an inefficient training plan
THE OLD RULE
Smash it on Monday, then
spend Tuesday wincing every
time you stand up from your
desk. If you can endure a flight
of stairs the day after legs day,
that simply means you weren’t
trying hard enough.
THE NEW RULE
Sustainability is more
than just an environmental
08\Work Less,
Burn More
If you want to get more out of your
HIIT, learn how to take a step back
THE OLD RULE
Those minutes spent on
the sidelines are dead time.
Rest as little as you need, then
start your next interval. You’re
here to train, not posture.
THE NEW RULE
When most people think of
interval training, they think
of the Tabata protocol: 20
seconds on, 10 seconds off.
But, says Walton, this more
closely resembles steady
state: “With anything less
than a 1:3 work-to-rest ratio,
you’re unlikely to generate the
hormonal response – growth
hormone, testosterone – you
want from a HIIT session.”
The first interval will be solid
but, after that, you won’t be
hitting 100% effort – and you
need that big hormonal rush to
trigger a fat-burning boost.
“One of my favourite
protocols is 20 seconds work,
80 seconds recovery,” says
Walton. “This generates
huge amounts of lactic acid,
while allowing you enough
recovery time to be able to
go again, just as hard.”
Steady-effort training is
beneficial, too, of course,
buzzword: if you fail to manage
your body’s resources, it will
burn out quickly. “That old-
school ‘no pain, no gain’
mentality isn’t valid any
more,” says Zolkiewicz.
“Not when you can train
pain-free and get the same
results.” Instead, aim for a
more consistent effort. “I’m
a fan of low-level activity on
recovery days,” he says. “I
like including mobility work,
such as functional-range
but by
ensuring
that you’re also
working at your maximum
for some of the time, you’ll
build in “metabolic flexibility”
– the ability to switch between
burning fat or carbs.
“As we spend most of
our days in the low-intensity
zone, we want to be burning
fat at these times and saving
the stored carbs for when we
really need to work hard,”
explains Walton.
Spend your rest periods
focusing on controlled
breathing to bring your heart
rate back down to baseline
– and not browsing your
neglected work emails,
which is liable to have
the opposite effect.
N E W R U L E S O F B U R N I N G F AT
conditioning, plus walking
and yoga, in my weekly plan.”
Sure, none of these are major
fat-torchers, but they’ll keep
your metabolism ticking over
until the next session.
Or you can build in a little
additional calorie-burning:
Danish researchers found
that gently training the same
muscle groups you
targeted yesterday
– whether that’s
cycling after a lower-
body workout, or
fitting in a few
press-ups the day
after your bench
GIVE YOUR LEGS A
LONGER LIFE CYCLE
09\And Rip Up
Your Meal Plan
Don’t stress over erratic eating patterns.
Adaptability is the order of the day
THE OLD RULE
Steady fat loss is built on
a militant feeding schedule:
six small meals, one every
two to three hours, and skip
breakfast at your peril. Best
invest in a bigger work bag
for all that Tupperware.
THE NEW RULE
It’s trite but true: the best
diet is the one you can stick
to. So, if you’re insatiable
GET THE BALANCE RIGHT throughout the working day,
BETWEEN WORK AND REST eat as often as you please.
But there’s no need to force
down nut-buttered rice cakes
two hours after breakfast,
out of fear that your fuel-
deprived metabolism will
screech to a halt. A medical
STILL HUNGRY? THEN
LISTEN TO YOUR STOMACH
session – can counteract
muscle pain. By contrast,
total inactivity reduces blood
circulation, which limits
nutrient delivery to the
recovering muscles, while
slowing the removal of the
soreness-causing chemical
byproducts of training.
So, opt for exercises that
keep your heart rate high but
steady, such as team sports
or swimming, rather than
running intervals or chasing
PBs. You’ll come back stronger.
review found no credible
link between meal frequency
and fat loss, while a study in
Plos One found that having
three meals a day can actually
raise your metabolism. By
overruling your body’s hunger
signals, you’re at a greater
risk of weight gain: Cornell
University scientists found
that if people eat according
to the clock – regardless of
appetite – their blood sugar
rises higher than if they wait
until their stomach cues them
to eat. While this is useful
if you want to pack on extra
mass, it’s counterproductive
when you’re leaning out.
“I’m a big fan of intermittent
fasting,” says Zolkiewicz. “I
use it to prepare for modelling
shoots, and it helps me stay
in touch with the hunger
signals from my body.” A time-
restricted eating schedule,
which is what nutritional
scientists call “skipping a
meal”, has even been shown to
increase fat oxidation. In other
words, if you miss your pre-
office porridge window, don’t
sweat it. And if you’re hungry,
just have something to eat.
MEN’S HEALTH 107
NORTHERN
ROCKS
SIGN UP TO ONE OF THE
SIMPLYHEALTH GREAT RUNS
AND RECEIVE EXPERT ADVICE,
SUPPORT AND MOTIVATION
EVERY STEP OF THE WAY

I 
f you’re looking to challenge your
body outside the gym and want to
see what you’re capable of achieving,
entering a race is a great way to keep
yourself on track. Regardless of your
current ability, whether you’ve just
kick-started your fitness journey or have
years of training under your belt, it’s vital
to look after and prioritise your everyday
health. Simplyhealth has partnered
with the Great Run Series to help you
accomplish what you set out to do after
signing up for a race – and smash through
your fitness goals along the way.
Simplyhealth’s everyday health plans
can support you in achieving a successful
training programme, as well as helping
you make the most of life. They’ll assist
you in staying in optimal health, so you’re
in the best possible shape come race
day to run with confidence.
Sometimes it can be daunting to
sign up and commit to a race, but it
couldn’t be easier with Simplyhealth.
It is inspiring people around the UK
to improve their physical and mental
wellbeing, not just for a race but to help
them live their lives to the full.
All you have to do is sign up to any
of the 30 Simplyhealth Great Run
events hosted in 13 cities across the
UK and, once you’ve chosen your race,
the next step is getting your preparations
right. By visiting Simplyhealth.co.uk/
great-run-partnership and clicking on
“Train and prepare”, you’ll have access
to easy-to-understand training plans,
expert advice and all the motivation
you will need for an enjoyable race.
And if you sign up to a Simplyhealth
Active Plan, you’ll benefit from help
towards covering the cost of appointments
with physios, osteopaths, chiropractors
and podiatrists, as well as plenty of other
everyday health-related services such as
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massage and acupuncture.
Even the best runners face challenges
during preparations for race day – a
common one being injuries. From minor
tweaks to everyday health niggles, you can
benefit from the support of a Simplyhealth
Active Plan, which will enable you to keep
ticking the boxes during training and help
you stay active every day.
 MH PROMOTION

MAKING THE
MOST OF LIFE
Simplyhealth can help you and your
family budget for the cost of everyday
healthcare, so you won’t have to
worry and can remain safe in the
knowledge that you and your loved
ones are in the very best hands
SIMPLYHEALTH
ACTIVE PLAN
Helps towards covering the
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to physios, osteopaths,
chiropractors, podiatrists and
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such as opticians and GP 24/7.

SIMPLY DENTAL PLAN

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SIMPLYHEALTH RUN EXPERIENCE

GREAT RUNS TO
CHOOSE FROM
Win an exclusive Simplyhealth HOW TO ENTER
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9 September. Prize includes: two visit simplyhealth.co.uk/giveaway
SIMPLYHEALTH GREAT
ABERDEEN RUN places in the men’s race pace car, for your chance to win. (Ts & Cs apply)
Choose either a
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distance and enjoy
the fresh sea air
on the coast of MEET OUR RUNNER
Scotland on Sunday The Simplyhealth Great North
26 August 2018.
Run awaits for our Junior Fitness
SIMPLYHEALTH GREAT Editor Michael Jennings
BIRMINGHAM RUN
Take on this epic half- “I’ve only ever run one 10K race
marathon on Sunday before, so the Simplyhealth Great
14 October 2018. North Run is a daunting distance,
Running through the but I can’t wait to find out what
heart of Birmingham, my body is capable of and take my
the atmosphere will training out of my comfort zone in
be incredible. the gym. I’m hoping that with the
Simplyhealth Active Plan supporting
my training I will be able to avoid any
SIMPLYHEALTH shin problems that have previously
GREAT MANCHESTER hampered my running. I’ve come to
RUN understand how important it is to listen
Set yourself a goal for to your body when exercising and
next year and feel the realise it’s not worth running through
pride of the city on any pain you’re experiencing. I’m
Sunday 19 May 2019 crossing my fingers for an enjoyable,
as you cross the finish. injury-free first half-marathon.

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT SIMPLYHEALTH AND TIPS TO PREPARE FOR

YOUR RACE AT… SIMPLYHEALTH.CO.UK/GREAT-RUN-PARTNERSHIP
AND CLICK ON “TRAIN AND PREPARE” OR CALL 0330 102 5463 AND
QUOTE “MEN’S HEALTH”. WHETHER YOU’RE TRAINING FOR YOUR
FIRST EVENT OR HAVE YOUR EYE ON BEATING A TIME, SIMPLYHEALTH
WILL BE WITH YOU EVERY STEP OF THE WAY. #MYEVERYSTEP
EDITED BY LEAH CRAIG

MH QUIZ
SINS
NO.42

Are You In Need

Of Fitness Salvation?
Missing a legs day does not a sinner make. But what of
life's subtler, more insidious health transgressions?
Our quiz will reveal your vices and deliver you from evil
MEN’S HEALTH 111
SEPTEMBER 2018

GREED WRATH
Q1\ Q4\
Your boss scraps your
Q5 \
Which of these comfort
Big spenders are considered to
B big project and wants foods can soothe a temper?
be
b ____ trustworthy. new ideas by the end of
play. What do you do? A
Seared
A
Hand in your Steak
notice

B B
Practise Glazed
meditation
doughnut

C
Wallow
in anger C
Cheese
pasty

C While blinding rage will A Bite into red meat

cloud your judgement, when you’re seeing red.
simmering irritation can be The European Journal of

WORDS: AARON TOUMAZOU | PHOTOGRAPHY: JOBE LAWRENSON, ROWAN FEE, STUDIO 33, MITCH PAYNE, MICHAEL HEDGE, DAN MATTHEWS, LOUISA PARRY, PHILIP HAYNES, GETTY, ALAMY
A B

Mo e ess
a motivator. Researchers
at the universities of
Amsterdam and Groningen
found that anger causes
a spike in creativity,
Clinical Nutrition revealed
that foods high in mood-
stabilising zinc reduce
feelings of hostility, while
the trans-fatty acids in

ILLUSTRATIONS: ADAM NICKEL AT SYNERGY ART | *JOURNAL OF PERSONALITY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY | **UNIVERSITY OF CALGARY | †UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
which will enhance your some processed foods
last-minute brainstorming. can cause aggressive
B Scientists call it “conspicuous
conspicuous consumption
consumption”;; you might know it as “peacocking”
peacocking . For more benefits of behaviours, according
Displaying your wealth might impress in the short term, but it can also cause love anger, see page 116. to California researchers.
interests to view you as unreliable and unsuitable for a long-term relationship*.
Unless, of course, they happen to be connoisseurs of Breitling watches.
Q6\
Q2 \ Q3\
Which of the following will help
you lift heavier in the gym?
Which of the
followingg has
Giving to others
g
greater vvalue? will make you
a ______ person.
A A
Timee Better
B B
Cashh Healthier
C

A Be greedy for minutes,

minutes not money.
mo
Research in Social Psychological and
Personality Science revealed that
those who value free time over their
salaries have a better sense of life
satisfaction. Yet there’s no reason
these should be mutually exclusive.
For tips on how to turn your passion
into profit, see our feature “The Rise
of the Side Hustle” on page 82.
Boring
A&B Not only is altruism admirable,
but a Harvard study found it lowers
your cholesterol while reducing your
Alzheimer’s** and high blood pressure
risks†. Plus, according to Nottingham
researchers, selflessness makes you
attractive – though doing it for that
reason would be missing the point…
A B C
Smiling Swearing Sweating
B A Journal of Psychology of Sports and Exercise study
found that people who vocalised their frustrations every
three seconds with some choice expletives experienced
an 8.2% surge in strength when performing hand-grip tests,
equating to 2.1kg of extra weight. Bloody good for you – if,
perhaps, a little terrifying for those pumping iron nearby.

112 MEN’S HEALTH

 MH QUIZ: SINS

ENVY SLOTH
Q10\
The more hours you work, the
Q11\
more you will achieve. Will an hour-
long gaming
stint really
A
harm your
True eyesight?
Q7 \
Jealousy is an ugly trait. A
A B B
Yes
True False False
A&B It depends on what you envy. The Tilberg B
Institute found that being jealous of others can No
inspire you to make real self-improvements – B Working less can result in getting
but only if the characteristics you covet feel more done: a Swedish study found that
attainable. So, envy the Rock’s commitment to employees were more efficient and 2.8 B On the contrary, vegging out on the sofa
training, not his multimillion-dollar net worth. times less likely to take sick days when playing Call of Duty can give your vision a
their daily hours were reduced from level-up, according to a University of Rochester

\
eight to six. While you might not have study. “Contrast sensitivity function” – an
Q8
The best way to show up your rivals
so much scope for negotiation when it
comes to your own working day, Harvard
ability crucial for reading or picking out fine
details – was enhanced in subjects who spent
is to be a little more… Business Review found that ignoring five hours a week playing first-person action
work emails after hours can also boost video games. Outstanding work, soldier.
productivity. Your in tray can wait.

Q12\ Q13 \
A B C Boredom hampers your
Competitive Aggressive Grateful Sitting down for over 10 work performance.
C Instead of resenting your boss’s favourite, thank
them for their hard work. Ditching envy for gratitude
hours a day ages you by…
reduces feelings of depression, anxiety and work
burnout*. Say it through gritted teeth, if you must.
*THE NATIONAL COMMUNICATION ASSOCIATION | †INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL NUTRITION AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY

A
Q9\ 8 years B
What p percentage g of us admit 5 years
to ove
ov
oovereat
ver
ere
rea
eaatti
eat ting
tin
overeatinging
ng
gddue
du
uee to
to ffo
food
foo
ood
od
d eenvy?
envy
env
nvy
y?

A B
A
110%
0%
True False
B Rather than hindering your
creativity, letting your mind
B wander will actually get the
40% C juices flowing. A Psychological
2 years Science study found that
boredom allows you to think
more abstractly and devise
C innovative solutions to tasks.
880%
0%
Plus, University of East Anglia
B In a survey of 2,000 adults, two in five owned A We hope you’re not sitting down for this one. According researchers reported that
up to copying their mates’ orders to avoid food to the American Journal of Epidemiology, sedentary habits turning to your smartphone
envy. The most likely offender? Pizza. Go ahead harm our cells, with people who fall short of half an hour’s as a distraction from tedium
– but order a carpaccio starter, too. A study found exercise a day ageing around eight years faster than fitter prevents “free-range mental
eating a high-protein snack 15 minutes before peers. Coffee run? Even five minutes of walking every hour activity”. Worth remembering
your main meal tempers blood glucose spikes. can offset the obesity risk associated with desk jobs†. during your next mind-
numbing staff meeting.

MEN’S HEALTH 113

SEPTEMBER 2018

GLUTTONY LUST
Q14\ Q155\ Q18\
Which of these A taste for
f sugary ffoods is Regular orgasms will make you…
…
post-pub snacks A
will help repair a certain
i path to obesity.
i Leaner
B
your body most? Fitter
C
A
Live longer
True
ue
C European Urology revealed men who ejaculate
21 times a month are 20% less likely to develop
prostate cancer than those who do so less than
seven times, while other findings report that for
A every 100 orgasms a man has a year, his mortality
Lamb kebab risk falls by 36%**. We call that sexual healing.

Q19 \
B Should you sleep your way to the top?
False
se
B
Bag of chips A B
B Cell Reports found those with a sweet tooth tend to have
Yes Er, no?
less body fat, as they’re likely to eat less dietary fat, reducing
their total calorie intake. But before we let you eat cake, A We’re not talking about mixing business with
remember: sweet tastes are linked to high blood pressure. pleasure. But clocking off at 5pm for a date night
with your partner has its advantages: Oregon State
University discovered that maintaining an active

C
Q16\
Cheat days are good for
sex life maximises your productivity in the office.

Protein bar your training plan.

A
Q20\
A Not only has the latest The more sexual partners
science declared that Hit you have, the better your
saturated fat is not a key
cause of heart disease, but B quality of life.
a chunk of meat – stuffed Myth

*JOURNAL OF NUTRITION | †USC MARSHALL | **THE UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL AND QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY BELFAST
in a pitta and slathered in
chilli sauce – also boasts A Get Domino’s back on speed dial. The University of Tasmania A
Truee
benefits beyond flavour, revealed that adopting a relaxed diet at the weekend provides
boosting your liver’s the psychological motivation you need to continue a stricter
resistance to damaging regimen during the week. Combine this with 30 minutes per day
oxidative stress. That it’ll of intense interval training (park sprints before work, say), and
cushion your hangover Quebec researchers suggest you can maintain a healthy heart
is a welcome bonus. while enjoying dietary deviations. We’ll have a large, thanks.
B
False
Q17\
What’s the key to practising self-
control when faced with dessert?
A B C
Abstain Pick the Serve
completely cheeseboard yourself
B Relationships longer than a year give you higher
C While A will no doubt work, it’s a joyless option. Instead, cut self-esteem than any number of casual flings, the
your own slice of cake – you’ll eat a smaller portion, as being University of Bern found. In fact, hopping from one
tactile makes you feel more accountable†. For a steady energy fix, partner to another can be an emotional downer.
top it with protein-rich Greek yogurt to slow sugar absorption. As with your nutrition, quality trumps quantity.

114 MEN’S HEALTH


PRIDE
Q21\
What emotional
response is covertly
inflating your ego?
A else. What doo you ddo??
Stress
B and laugh it off
Fear
C stupid, anyway
Hunger
A&B But it won’t make
you feel good about
yourself. Chronically
*PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOLOGY | †UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN | **SHAHID BEHESHTI UNIVERSITY OF MEDICAL SCIENCES
high levels of the stress
hormone cortisol shrink
the brain’s prefrontal
cortex, causing you
to become more self-
centred and less able
to empathise with others,
one study* found. Next
time you’re under the
cosh at work, take a tea
break; a confab with your
colleagues eases anxiety
and promotes bonding†.
Q22\
Gloating about your work
achievements is a path to…
n
otio
m
Pro A
B
ation
S t agn
B Bragging won't leave you
so smug in the long term.
According to Administrative
Science Quarterly, humility
will accelerate your climb
up the career ladder.
Researchers found that
empathetic, self-effacing
managers tend to be better
at their jobs – and more
able to connect with top
and middle managers –
than those who display
traits such as arrogance.
MH QUIZ: SINS
Q23\ Hoow did
You face-plan nt on the you score?
treadmill, woounding your
ego more thaan anything 0-8
THE
E DEVIL’S
H
HELPER
A
Your m moral code may
Swallow your pride bbe off kilter, but making
a simp ple change could
ssave you
y from damnation.
B
Walk out. Cardio’s A lackk of rest can hamper
your eethical judgement,
aaccord ding to the journal
SSleep,
p, which found sleep
A Presuming you’ve done no real damage, g laughter
g is the only medicine you need – ddepriv
p vation impairs your
particularly when it’s at your own expense, according to the American Psychological aabilityy to integrate emotion
Association. Researcchers found that those who shrugg off embarrassment and aand co
d cognition. Pop a
maintain their sense of humour exhibit improved mental health. Plus, chuckling nightly magnesium supp
releases endorphins, which should soothe any pains of the more physical variety. to extend your shut-eye
by up to 42 minutes**.
Q24\ 9-16
Which of the following will fire up ALMOST
SAINTLY
your five-a-side performance? Irritated by your middling
score? Perhaps you’re just
hungry – a study by Ohio
State University found that
when our blood sugar levels
dip, we find it harder to
A make moral choices and
Criticism from
teammat ates
m lose patience with others.
Patience requires mental
energy, which is hard to
maintain without glucose
in our system. A compelling
reason to schedule your
next performance review
after lunch, you’ll agree.
B
A hug from
your mum 17+
HEALTHIER
THAN THOU
You really are a man of
honour – but it might
be wise to keep that to
C
yourself. A Psychological
Trash taalk Science study revealed
from rivvalss that regularly sharing
your achievements with
your friends usually
comes across as irritating
bragging – regardless of
whether your intentions
C External criticism may dent your pride, but it can also make you more competitive, are noble or not. Instead,
sharpening your performance, according to the Journal of Experimental Social you can just buy the next
Psychology. Having your failures highlighted by teammates, however, can knock round: now, that’s what
your self-confidence so much that you ultimately flop. Keep the huddle positive. we call truly saintly.
MEN’S HEALTH 115
 ONE WORD
ANSWER #48
“
My behaviour was unacceptable,” said
master butcher Jason Wells in 2015. “I
shouldn’t act like that.” Wells was contrite
for good reason: he had threatened to
smash a cyclist’s teeth down his throat
after struggling to overtake him in his
Land Rover. Helmet-camera footage
of the altercation had gone viral, and
two-wheeled YouTubers had caricatured
him as a snarling “road-rage champion”.
In an interview conducted by a catering
magazine not long before, however, Wells
comes across as a decent, ordinary man
– a father of two motivated by his “love
of family, food and people”.
What happened was probably just a
moment of everyday madness. Countless
scientific reports have found that anger
can cloud our judgement of risk*, make
us crueller** and encourage careless
thought†. And it’s a common feeling:
according to psychologist James Averill
of the University of Massachusetts
Amherst, “Most people report
becoming mildly to moderately
angry anywhere from several times
a day to several times a week.”
QUESTION
What stormy
emotion helps
your heart and
clears a cloudy
mind?
WORDS: YO ZUSHI | PHOTOGRAPHY: JOBE LAWRENSON | *PEKING UNIVERSITY | **HARVARD UNIVERSITY | †NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY | ‡THE UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE | ◊PENNSYLVANIA, DUKE AND COLORADO UNIVERSITIES
It’s a relief, then, that seeing red has
its uses. A study published in Health
Psychology showed that venting our
anger can help us maintain our resting
blood pressure, while suppressing it has
been linked to potentially cancer-inducing
increases in stress‡. Righteous indignation
also aids weight loss by reducing our
appetite◊; in a 2014 study, test subjects
who were made to feel a sense of injustice
consumed fewer snacks than members
of the control group. Their outrage had
presumably left behind a bad taste.
Most curiously of all, a University
of California paper demonstrated
that rage – when it doesn’t overwhelm
us – improves our ability to process
information, increasing our motivation
to “discriminate between weak and
strong arguments”. Under control, it
can make us more, not less, rational. So,
ANSWER it’s a matter of extent. Don’t go menacing
Anger
cyclists on the road, but don’t resist the
urge to release the pressure valve now
and then, either. As the Dalai Lama
observed, “If a human being never shows
anger… he’s not right in the brain.”
 MH CLASSIFIED

THE MH DIRECTORY
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WORDS: SHANE C KURUP | PHOTOGRAPHY: JOBE LAWRENSON | BOOT £430 WOOLRICH.COM TIE £135 DRAKESOFLONDON.COM BAG £1,350 TODS.COM

_
GUIDE TO
09/18
_ STYLE

MH
Trend
Decoder
Even for committed stylists, fashion can
be a strange land with an even stranger
language. But learn this country’s customs
and you’ll stay current without resembling
a gullible tourist. Here, we’ve translated Edited by Eric Down & Shane C Kurup
this season’s trends for universal benefit

*******
 Jean
G
Whhat happens when you give a Western
workwear staple to a Belgian designer
rennowned for cool minimalism? The
ansswer is a retro modern classic
Utilitarian workwear is rarely
off the menswear designer’s
radar for obvious reasons: it’s
comfortable, it’s durable, and
it transcends fickle trends
because it simply doesn’t
date. A rare exception to this
rule, however, is the denim
shirt. Yes, the cowboy staple
has tactility and sturdiness
in spades, but it can be
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
a difficult style to pull off
without looking like Bobby
Ewing surveying his ranch.
So, when Raf Simons, the
European fashion world’s
favourite son, was installed
as chief creative officer at
the all-American Calvin Klein,
it was always going to be
interesting to see what he did
with the CK Jeans line.
As evidenced by this
reimagining of the Texan
tuxedo, it appears that he
has embraced his new
environment wholeheartedly
– albeit with a few crucial
tweaks. All the functionality
of earlier iterations remains,
from the heavy-duty indigo
fabric and seamed panels to
the convenient snap buttons
– originally intended for easy
detangling when caught in
Phootography by Max Oppenheim
Styling by Eric Down
Selvedge
salvage
Keep your closet’s
hardest-working
fabric in good nick
with these top tips
INSTANT UPGRADE
SHIRT £80 AND
TROUSERS £110 BOTH
CALVIN KLEIN JEANS
fencing or foliage, and now
handy when a lunchtime
HIIT session calls for a swift
kit change. But the slimmer
cut, squarer shoulders
and seasoned wash give
this classic a pleasing,
contemporary twist.
What marks this shirt
out, says Jack Cassidy,
menswear buying manager
at Selfridges, is its
versatility. “The fact that
it’s made from resilient,
heavyweight denim means
it will function just as
WORDS: SHANE C KURUP | ILLUSTRATIONS: NICK HARDCASTLE | MODEL: PAUL KERR AT ELITE | GROOMING: KEVIN FORD USING DERMALOGICA | CALVINKLEIN.CO.UK
well as an overshirt or
lightweight jacket as it
will on its own,” he says.
“Pair it with a T-shirt on
summer evenings, and layer
it with a jersey or merino
polo neck when autumn
sets in.” In other words, it’s
no one-trick pony.
And the best part?
With a price tag of £80,
you won’t need a fistful
of dollars to lay your 9-10oz
hands on one. Denim is measured
in ounces per
square yard. This
weight is ideal
for summer, while
13-16oz suits cool
weather
A/ Hand-wash only B/ Keep cool C/ Hang loose
Hand-wash denim If you don’t want to Hang your jeans from
in lukewarm water hand-wash, turn them the belt loops when
to maintain a strong inside out and put the storing them to avoid
shade of indigo. A machine on a short, creases. Attach two
dash of white vinegar cold cycle and slow S-hooks to your
will stop bleeding. spin to preserve fibres. hanger to do this.
 The Good
Go
Th
& White, slimline sneakers have gone
the way of the fashion dodo, usurped by
oversized dad trainers on steroids. Since
Balenciaga’s Triple S shoe started the
ball rolling, every brand has bought into
the trend. But which tribe fits you best?

JACKET £900
EMPORIO ARMANI
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

JUMPER £315 NEIL

BARRETT AT
MRPORTER.COM
TROUSERS £350
MAISON MARGIELA
AT HARRODS
TRAINERS £290 ADIDAS
BY RAF SIMONS
HEADPHONES £449
B&O PLAY
BRACELET £100
MIANSAI

15%
The percentage
of Harvey Nichols’s
trainer sales
The Intellectual Aesthete from Balenciaga,
Alexander McQueen
To this wearer, sneakers are a form of sculpture – and Raf Simons is his Auguste Rodin. and Yeezy
Chunky trainers might be trending now, but he has been sporting his oversized Adidas
x Raf Simons Ozweegos since day dot. They’re the perfect pop of colour against his
all-black everything else. Now that Simons is running Calvin Klein, this man is tempted to
branch out, but he feels a bit weird about wearing a brand whose name ordinary people
can actually pronounce. Maybe if its trainers were a bit bigger… And came in black.
 THE CLOSE-UP
24BOTTLES AT ENDCLOTHING.COM, ADIDAS BY RAF SIMONS AT Y-3.COM, APC.FR, ARMANI.COM, BEOPLAY.COM, BEATS BY DRE AT APPLE.COM, BOSS.COM, CASTORE.CO.UK, DOUGHNUTOFFICIAL.CO.UK, FRENCHCONNECTION.COM, G-SHOCK.CO.UK

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
COAT £695 BOSS
JACKET £315
KENT & CURWEN
T-SHIRT £48
MAISON LABICHE
JEANS £415 OFF-WHITE
AT MRPORTER.COM
TRAINERS £770 VERSACE
BUMBAG £590 PRADA AT
MATCHESFASHION.COM
WATCH £120 G-SHOCK

The Style Influencer Photography by Lucky If Sharp

The bold trainer trend has been a godsend, because likes had been dwindling on his
Styling by Riccardo Chiudioni
Common Projects Insta snaps. Big and bright is better. Clashing is all in the mind – Words by Tom Banham
shimmery joggers and the latest Off-White jeans pop in a feed, so why not wear them
together? The first time he was spotted in Balenciaga’s Triple S trainers, he felt 10ft
tall (though that might have been the triple-stacked sole). But everyone has them
now, so it’s time to move on. Versace has an even louder pair this season, right?
 JACKET £195
AND GILET £145
BOTH CASTORE
T-SHIRT £23
UNDER ARMOUR
TROUSERS £90 NIKE
AT HARRODS
TRAINERS £175
NEW BALANCE
HEADPHONES £170
BEATS BY DRE
WATER BOTTLE £19

GARMIN.COM, GYMPHLEX.CO.UK, KENTANDCURWEN.COM, KOMONO.COM, MAISONLABICHE.COM, MAISON MARGIELA AND NIKE AT HARRODS.COM, MIANSAI.COM, MONDAINE.COM, NEIL BARRETT AND OFF-WHITE AT MRPORTER.COM, NEWBALANCE.CO.UK, PAULSMITH.COM
24BOTTLES
ACTIVITY TRACKER
£70 GARMIN
SUNGLASSES £130
WESTWARD LEANING
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

The Urban Athlete

You call them “dad shoes”; he calls them “all terrain”. Granted, that terrain is generally
the bumpy pavement outside the school gates, rather than a rock-strewn path
through Snowdonia. But he’s always dressed in readiness for an unexpected trail
run: compression tights under his slim-fit joggers, breathable Under Armour T-shirt.
Even if he really can’t fit in a 10K at lunch, that sweat-wicking gear will come in handy
when Janine in accounts starts messing about with the thermostat.
 THE CLOSE-UP

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
156%
The increase in
heel height from JACKET £110
the Common Projects FRENCH CONNECTION
SWEATSHIRT
Achilles to the £84 GYMPHLEX
TROUSERS
Gucci Rhyton £240 APC
trainer TRAINERS £470
STELLA MCCARTNEY
WATCH £319
MONDAINE
GLASSES £70 KOMONO
BEANIE £90
PAUL SMITH
PRADA AT MATCHESFASHION.COM, STELLAMCCARTNEY.COM, UNDERARMOUR.CO.UK, VERSACE.COM, WESTWARDLEANING.COM

RUCKSACK £70
DOUGHNUT

The Utilitarian Fetishist

Are his trainers on trend? Well, good to know. But that’s honestly not why he bought
them. He just loved the cushioning – trawling flea markets for unloved Eames chairs
takes its toll on your arches. He particularly likes the lack of branding. Or, OK, limited
branding. Great design deserves to be noticed; you just don’t have to shout about it.
And it means they go perfectly with his workwear wardrobe, all of which flies under
the radar. Because you can dress well without being a billboard, you know.
 Excess
S
Summer bodies may be built in winter,
but sunshine and good times can undo
the hard work – and your skin is the first
thing to betray the damage. Here’s how
to combat the signs of holiday excess
01
After an all-nighter
in Amnesia
You need coffee, but not to
drink – you’ll only worsen
the dark circles, says
Steven O’Neill, co-founder
of Grooming Clinic. The
caffeine in Clarins’s serum
will shift panda eyes, while
its bison grass extract will
brighten your skin. If only it
did the same for your mood.
ClarinsMen Anti-Fatigue
Eye Serum (£30 for 20ml)
02
ILLUSTRATIONS: NICK HARDCASTLE | SUNGLASSES £98 ACEANDTATE.COM | CLARINS.CO.UK, MANKIND.CO.UK, DIOR.COM, THEGROOMINGCLINIC.COM
After those 4am
Jägerbombs
It’s no secret that booze
is dehydrating. What’s less
known is that your skin
clings to water as a result.
Reduce puffiness with a
facial ice bath, says Jack
Smithies, grooming expert
at Mankind, then apply
this water-based serum to
“instantly revitalise skin”.
Lab Series Solid Water
Essence (£39 for 150ml)
03
After your flight
All that recirculated cabin
air leaves your skin drier
than a discarded flip-flop.
The solution? Hyaluronic
acid. “It holds up to 1,000
times its weight in water,”
says O’Neill. Thankfully,
Dior Homme’s rehydrating
balm is brimming with it.
Dior Homme Dermo System
Regenerating Moisturising
Balm (£50 for 50ml)
03
Photography by Max Oppenheim
Words by Tom Banham
Cool Headed
To avoid an oily
scalp in the heat,
swap wax-based
hair products for
water-soluble
ones
01
05
02
04
lead to an overproduction
04
After a valley hike
The outdoors are great for
your cardio, not to mention
your soul. But exposure to
the sun can damage your
skin, causing redness even
if you swerve the burn,
says Smithies. The anti-
inflammatory inflacin in these
wipes is your friend: once the
sun has set, dab away to even
out skin tone and pink cheeks.
ColbertMD Tone Control
Facial Discs (£75 for 20)
GROOMING MANUAL
Face Timer
Keep skin tight with
this manual facelift
from Proverb Skin co-
founder Kirstie Sherriff
Neck Extension 4 reps
Lift your chin and hold
briefly. Dip it two inches,
bounce back up and
hold. That’s one rep.
Facial Press 4 reps
With your fingertips
against your jaw, drive
them up your face for
a natural cheek lifter.
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
Eye Lift 4 reps
With your thumbs on
your temples, squeeze
your hands together to
create gentle pressure.
Forehead Fly 4 reps
Pull your hands apart
to gently stretch the
skin on your forehead.
proverbskin.com
05
After five hours
on a sun lounger
Hard-core tanning can
of melanin, littering skin
with hyperpigmentation.
“Prevention is better
than cure,” says O’Neill,
but if you have skimped
on SPF, Murad’s purifying
plankton extract will
treat dark spots.
Murad Rapid Age Spot
Correcting Serum
(£70 for 30ml)
MEN’S HEALTH 131
 THE PORTFOLIO

WORDS: SHANE C KURUP | MODEL: KRZYSZTOF SZKUDLAREK AT MILK | GROOMING: KEVIN FORD USING DERMALOGICA | PHOTOGRAPHER’S ASSISTANTS: DAN COPE, JOE CONWAY | FASHION ASSISTANT: RICCARDO CHIUDIONI
Once synonymous
with 1970s suburban
decor and cheap
polyester, brown
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

has made a dazzling

return to the AW18
designer palette
as the colour of the
season. But what’s
the secret to wearing
it? From tan to
caramel, chocolate
to mahogany –
the key is to look
anything but drab

Golden COAT £575

THE KOOPLES
ROLLNECK £145
JOHN SMEDLEY
JUMPER £150
ARKET
TROUSERS
£219 BOSS
SHOES £440
TOD’S

Brown
BRIEFCASE
£1,890 AND
POUCH £750
BOTH FENDI
COAT £1,895
MICHAEL KORS
JUMPER £369
BOSS
TROUSERS £550
FENDI
BOOTS £1,065
CHRISTIAN
LOUBOUTIN
NECKLACE £145
PEBBLE LONDON

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

Photography by Philip Sinden

Styling by Eric Down
 BOMBER £2,900
ROLLNECK £820
AND BAG £2,300
ALL GIORGIO
ARMANI
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
ALFIEDOUGLAS.COM, ALLYCAPELLINO.CO.UK, ARKET.COM, ARMANDO CABRAL (MATCHESFASHION.COM), ARMANI.COM, AXELARIGATO.COM, BOSS.COM, BRUNELLOCUCINELLI.COM, CASELY-HAYFORD.COM, CERRUTI.COM, CHRISTIANLOUBOUTIN.COM, COSSTORES.COM, FENDI.COM

THE PORTFOLIO

PEBBLE LONDON
NECKLACE £155
AXEL ARIGATO
TROUSERS £135
MASSIMO DUTTI
KNITTED POLO SHIRT £55
CERRUTI 1881
JACKET £2,085
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
 GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

GANT

CABRAL
LAUREN

ARMANDO
BRUNELLO

SHOES £363
CUCINELLI

POLO RALPH
JUMPER £195
JACKET £5,270

NECKLACE £155
TROUSERS £315

PEBBLE LONDON
THE PORTFOLIO

FRAME-STORE.COM, GANT.CO.UK, GIEVESANDHAWKES.COM, HM.COM, JOHNSMEDLEY.COM, MASSIMODUTTI.COM, MICHAELKORS.CO.UK, PEBBLELONDON.COM, RALPHLAUREN.CO.UK, REISS.COM, RICHARD-JAMES.COM, THEKOOPLES.CO.UK, TODS.COM
 GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
BOMBER £2,470
BRUNELLO
CUCINELLI
JUMPER £110
REISS
TROUSERS £395
CASELY-HAYFORD
SHOES £70
MASSIMO DUTTI
BAG £1,350
TOD’S
 COAT £1,195
GIEVES &
HAWKES
SCARF £25
H&M EDITION
TROUSERS £179
BOSS
BAG £395
ALLY CAPELLINO
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
 THE PORTFOLIO

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

COAT £895
RICHARD JAMES
JACKET £945
FRAME
ROLLNECK £160
JOHN SMEDLEY
TROUSERS £79
COS
RUCKSACK £300
ALFIE DOUGLAS
 Enduring TimeFrom GMT Pepsi dials
to new moon-phase
complications, watch
aficionados are always
on the lookout for the
latest gimmick. But,
for the serious player,
a classic timepiece that
withstands seasonal shifts
in taste will always be the
soundest investment
01
JAEGER-LECOULTRE
G O E eeither Switzerland or Japan
£7,600
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
Just as all good wardrobes
should contain a navy
rollneck, dark blazer, white
shirt and blue jeans, every
watch collection needs at
least one trusty component
that can be relied upon,
no matter the occasion.
What might be
considered a “classic”
in terms of design comes
in all shapes, sizes and
metals. But the one thing
they have in common is
distinguished, unfussy
ddials in p polished cases
wwith a crisp, p robust feel.
0
033
DDurable build q qualityy is H A M I LTON
aalso a must,, which means £ 810
p
iis your horological
g port off
ccall. This will drive up p the
pprice of the watch, but, in
tterms of value,, it will hold
better tthan sshowier
bette o e models
ode s
– just look at the enduring g
hhammer p prices for auction-
rroom heavyweights g such
aas Rolex or Patek Philippe. pp .
IIf yyou’re in the market
ffor something g a little less
oobvious,, however,, fear not:
tthe watches leavingg the big g
hhouses this yyear have never
ffelt quite so enduring. g This
iis our p pick of the finest
futuree cclassics.
futu ss cs
04
TUDOR
£2,110
02
BREGUET
£14,100
GUTTER CREDIT
 WRIST ASSESSMENT

04
01 Blue Steel
The Black Bay is
Big Hitter the masterstroke
The Reverso, an art-
behind Tudor’s
deco masterpiece, was
meteoric renaissance,
born on the polo fields
05 of the British Raj – you
02 winning universal
VACHERON Pedigree Ticker plaudits for the brand
might even call it the
CONSTANTIN
CONST Watch snobs consider since its 2012 launch.
first sports watch.
£10,,100 Abraham-Louis Its bold yet elegant
While the original
Dial It In Breguet to be the heritage design is
design protected
grandaddy of modern the template for
“A symmetrical the glass from stray
horology – and this a series of well-
mallets by allowing the
dial will never metal case back to be Classique is proof of executed models,
why, after nearly three including this year’s
age,” says jeweller flipped to the front,
blue-face 41mm. A
this update reveals centuries, his house
Sandy Madhvani. “But a second dial with is still king. The extra- lustrous polish and
make it a dark, trim mechanics and alluring aqua dial make
a different time zone,
“guilloché”
guilloché dial – the it equally
q y suitable for
l th strap.”
leather t ” pl a handsome
plus h d
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strap byb Argentine
boot ke C
bootmaker s
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T g Blackk
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g g

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
, 0
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V h
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JAEGER-LECOULTRE.COM, BREGUET.COM, TUDORWATCH.COM, VACHERON-CONSTANTIN.COM, GRAND-SEIKO.COM | GLASSWARE FROM A SELECTION AT JOHNLEWIS.COM

m movement and da
ssolid-gold rotor, this
ccrisp, mid-century
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b d 260 years
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0 00
033
06
6
Vintage Times
Vi i
Hamiltonto – a dual-
du - Eastern Promise
i
h
heritage b d withh
brand S
Since 1960, Tokyo’s
a mixi off American
A i favourite watchmaker
and Swiss roots – is has been crafting
renowned for the timepieces to rival
bafflingly affordable the likes of Rolex and
mechanical reissues of Omega under its high-
its most feted archive end marque, Grand
designs. This 1950s- Seiko. This special
inspired Jazzmaster edition celebrates the
is sleek, versatile and 20th anniversary of
ice-cool – just like its 9S calibre, with
06 the musical genre precision Japanese
engineering, durability
GRAND SEIKO it riffs on – and will
and enduring elegance
£25,000 effortlessly transition
from day to evening. written into its DNA.
It’s already a classic
Hamilton Jazzmaster in the making.
Thinline Automatic £810
at beaverbrooks.co.uk Grand Seiko Calibre
9S Hi-Beat Special
£25,000

Photography by Max Oppenheim

GUTTER CREDIT

Words by Alex Doak

 Return
O
N
Until recently, the decline of formal dress
codes signalled mothballs for the tie,
but AW18’s designer collections suggest
there’s life in the old accessory yet

01
Back in the Loop
Considering track pants and casual shirts have
now become acceptable office attire, it’s hardly
I D E TOO SSTYLE – 09 / 18

surprising that the tie has come to be viewed as

an anachronism. But, as we know, style is cyclical
and fashion is a fickle beast, so it was only a matter
of time before the tie would have its day again.
Our guide will help you sort your four-in-hands
from your Windsors and your silks from your yarns.

A/ Wool
W
Cottton’s wintry cousin is a versatile
C
o on in the British climate. Whether
opti
BLUE PLAID PURPLE GEOMETRIC LIGHT BLUE AND
GGUU ID

knit
k ted or woven, wool adds texture AND BLUE SPOTTED GREY STRIPED
to anny ensemble. Far more casual than
A £75 BUDD B C
SHIRTMAKERS BOTH £65 BOTH BOTH £59.50
their silk counterparts, these ties are NAVY SPECKLED CHESTER BARRIE BOTH J CREW
b ter suited to the less stuffy end
bett £105 GIEVES
& HAWKES
of p
o professional or social occasions.
Weaar it to: The office, a meet-the-
p ents meal, or your next trip to Milan
pare

B/ S
Silk
Thee most common tie fabric, silk works
T 02 a simple, time-saving
for just
j about any occasion. But that’s Shelf Care solution. “Hang your tie
n to say that anything goes. There’s
not
a crrucial distinction between “premium”
Failing to look after your tie in the bathroom 2 while
a d “Premier League” – look for a label
and can make the difference you’re running a hot shower
thatt indicates your tie has been “hand- between finessing your – the steam will relax the 1
finis
f shed” and you’ll be on the right team. outfit and ruining it. To start fibres,” says Michael Hill,
Weaear it to: The office, weddings,
rracee meetings and formal affairs
with, Holger Auffenberg, creative director of classic
head of design at Chester English gentlemen’s outfitter
C/ Cotton and linen Barrie, advises hanging Drake’s. “And only use an
Th breezy choice for warm weather.
The your ties with the knots iron as a last resort, placing
ng 2
If
I itt’s summery enough for you to undone 1 . “This allows a tea towel over the tie to
weear sunglasses, these lighter fabrics wrinkles to drop out and protect it 3 .” When you’ree
are
a e appropriate. They allow you to
e periment with pastel shades and light-
exp the fabric to breathe,” he travelling, your best optionn
hu
h ed checks, both of which work well says. “It’s also more space- is to roll up your ties. “Slip
witth deconstructed summer tailoring. efficient than rolling them them inside your shoes 4 ,” 3
Weear it to: Summer weddings and up.” If you do end up with says Simon Maloney, produuct
outdoor
ou sporting events
some particularly stubborn and marketing director of
creases, however, there is New & Lingwood. “That waay, a
they’ll stay in good shape,
no matter what the baggagee
Photography by Lucky If Sharp handlers might do.” 4
Words by Shane C Kurup
 THE STYLE SNOB’S GUIDE TO TIES

03
Tie Fighters
Ties are often associated
T
with starchy institutions –
w
a reputation that, more
l kely than not, stems from
lik
the noose-like grip of your
th
e forced regimental school
enf
tie. However, for AW18,
f rward-thinking designers
for
a e showing us a softer side
are
too the tie – one that proves
i m
it’s more than just a finishing
t uch to stiff tailoring. Here
tou
are the houses that are
bringing this badge of
manhood back to the
sartorial spotlight with a
distinctly modern spin.

A/ Slick Operator The Four-in-Hand Knot B/ Pattern Clash The Prince Albert Knot
Difficulty rating: Difficulty rating:
STERLING SILVER Giorgio Armani’s sophisticated approach to Italian luxury Shown here by Hermès, the secret to making bolder patterns
TIE CLIP £150 has kept the designer ahead in the style game for more work is ensuring that one common colour runs through all the

LINKS OF LONDON than 40 years, and his pairing of a simple four-in-hand knot
SILVER AND ONYX TIE CLIP with a well-cut but comfortable, double-breasted suit proves
£210 TATEOSSIAN
the tie remains a key part of a formal look. “If there’s only
one knot you’ll ever need, it’s the four-in-hand,” says Hill.
“It’s a neat classic and sits nicely between the points of
a button-down collar. Master it and you’re set for life.”
CCHESTTERBARRIE.CO.UK, GIEVESANDHAWKES.COM, JCREW.COM, LINKSOFLONDON.COM, TATEOSSIAN.COM
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
juxtaposing patterns. It’s best to steer clear of elaborate knots
to prevent your outfit from looking too busy. A four-in-hand
knot or the slightly harder Prince Albert are ideal. “The Albert
is similar to the four-in-hand, but with an extra turn around
the knot to provide some volume,” says Auffenberg. “Much
less painful than the intimate piercing of the same name.”

04
4
ILLUSSTRATIONS: NICK HARDCASTLE | ACQUADIPARMA.COM, BOSS.COM, BUDDSHIRTS.CO.UK,

E rgency Protocols
Emer
When you’ve been inelegant
with the red wine or gravy,
these quick fixes from James
Cook of shirtmaker Turnbull
& Asser will see you right

01/ If the stain

is liquid, apply
soda water
– the bubbles
will agitate the
misadventure
and lift it from
the fabric.

0
02/ For oil-
based
b stains,
talcum
t powder
helps
h to dry
them
t out.
Leave
L for a few
mminutes
utes and d
tthen rub it off.
ff

0 / Blot
03/ B ot ink
st
stainss with
th C/ Nonconformist The Windsor Knot D/ Casual Tuck The Pratt Knot
a napkin, then
soakk in cold
ld
Difficulty rating: Difficulty rating:
water.
te Hotot will Alexander McQueen’s layering of a Windsor knot with an Your tie doesn’t have to be on full display to make an
oonly
l set the
h oversized argyle knit and leather jacket shows that ties need impression. Dunhill proves that tucking your tie between
ink in p
place. not be confined to the realms of formality. “The Windsor is two layers of denim can bring a touch of quiet élan to a casual
a fairly wide, symmetrical knot, so this is usually worn with look. A Pratt – or Shelby – knot (in which you start with the
a semi or severe cutaway collar,” says Auffenberg. “It uses back of your tie facing the front) is useful here, says Maloney:
a lot of the tie length, so it needs practice to be fixed in the “It’s broader but not as full as a Windsor, and works well
right position.” For this look, McQueen has chosen to defy with most collars. A major benefit is that its construction
convention and style it with a button-down collar, because naturally introduces the desired ‘dimple’, rather than youu
rules – especially style ones – are made to be broken. needing to introduce it later, which is fiddly.” Tie one on.
o .

HAND-POLISHED
TIE CLIP £65 BOSS
 True Grip
Hiking boots have officially left the Sherpa trails for
the city this season. Our edit of AW18’s finest clodhoppers will ensure a firm
footing in all weathers – even if you’re only tackling cobbles and kerbstones

AN DE RS ON
£6 40 JW
GNA
£475 Z ZE
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18

IC H
W O OL R
£430

UTIN
LOUBO
IS TIAN
5 CHR
£ 1,0 6
 THE EDIT

NE R
£ 29 1 DA N
WORDS: SHANE C KURUP | BALLY.CO.UK, CARSHOE.COM, CHRISTIANLOUBOUTIN.COM, DANNER.COM, FRACAP AT ENDCLOTHING.COM, J-W-ANDERSON.COM, RIVERISLAND.COM, RUSSELLANDBROMLEY.CO.UK, WOOLRICH.EU, ZEGNA.CO.UK

SELL & B R O ML EY
£1 95 R U S

GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
SH OE
£4 4 5 CA R

D
I SL A N
IVER
ALLY £ 75 R
£ 675 B

Easy Strider
Break in new
boots by applying
coconut oil to
areas that pinch
and leaving
overnight

P
F R ACA Photography by Max Oppenheim
£ 275
Styling by Eric Down
 A Question
Of Style
Keep your mind and fashion knowledge sharp with
our puzzles page, which incorporates questions
and clues taken from this issue’s Guide to Style
Trend Spotting
Test your eye for detail – and flair for fashion – by spotting the
discrepancies between these two images from Louis Vuitton’s AW18
runway show. There are six differences in total, so stay sharp-eyed.
GUIDE TO STYLE – 09 / 18
Style Miles
Fill the grid using numbers
from one to nine. Each must
appear once in every column,
row and 3x3 square. When
complete, the numbers in the
blue squares, reading top to
bottom, will answer this:
As the crow flies, how far is it
between Balenciaga’s Paris HQ
and the MH office?
31 WINDSOR, 32 ART DECO. DOWN 2 VUITTON, 3 ONSET, 4 MILAN, 8 TRIPLE S, 11 ICE, 12 OUT, 14 AVOWS, 15 BOA, 17 DON, 18 DENIM, 19 SYNERGY, 21 OIK, 23 ENTWINE, 24 SKY, 25 LIE, 27 ALTER, 28 ZEGNA. HIDDEN KNOT PRINCE ALBERT.
SUDOKU ANSWER: 214. CROSSWORD ANSWERS: ACROSS 1 REVERSO, 4 MCQUEEN, 9 IDRIS, 10 SEIKO, 13 INTIMATING, 15 BELT, 16 LINGWOOD, 18 DRAKE’S, 20 SIMONS, 22 NINETEEN, 24 SILK, 26 JAZZMASTER, 29 YEEZY, 30 GUCCI,
6 S
1 2
5
10
13
6
11
17 18
21 22 23
26
28
Loose Ends
Put your menswear savvy to the test with our style-conscious
crossword. Then, rearrange the letters in the blue squares
to spell a type of tie knot (6,6). Answers are at the bottom.
Across
1/ Jaeger-LeCoultre timepiece
that originated on the polo fields
of the British Raj (7)
4/ Alexander , late British
designer, the subject of a recent
biopic, and luxury fashion house
with a non-conformist attitude
to the wearing of ties (7)
6/ First name of the stylish
Luther actor who designed
a collection for Superdry (5)
7/ Grand , high-end arm
of the successful Japanese
watchmaker (5)
10/ Stating, making known (that
your suit is Chester Barrie, if you
don’t mind) (10)
12/ Buckled strip of leather that
will keep your CK jeans up (4)
13/ New & , quintessential
English gentlemen’s outfitter
and shoemaker that was
established in 1865 (8)
15/ British haberdasher known
for its elegant handmade ties (6)
17/ Raf , new Calvin Klein
creative chief who reinterpreted
an Adidas classic with
his Ozweegos (6)
6 3 7 1 19/ Age of rising model
Presley Walker Gerber,
3 1 8 LETTERS IN THE
who has advertising
credits for CK, Balmain
9 2 7 OF TIE KNOT
and Dolce & Gabbana
7 1 5 6 2 4 under his 12 across (8)
21/ The most common tie fabric (4)
4 2 3 5 23/ Sleek timekeeper by Hamilton,
inspired by a musical genre (10)
5 4 1 2 6 26/ Shoe collaboration between
Adidas and Kanye West (5)
6 8 3 9 2 27/ Italian brand behind the
1 3 Rhyton trainer (5)
28/ Fairly wide, symmetrical
4 7 6 8 tie knot (7)
29/ Decorative visual style of the
TRIPLE S TRAINERS ’20s and ’30s that has influenced
£615 BALENCIAGA the design of 1 across (3,4)
3 4
ON THE BUTTON
14 15
7
12
8 9
16
19 20
24 25
27
29
Down
2/ Louis , French fashion
house and luxury retail company
with an iconic monogram (7)
3/ Start, beginning (of a new fad,
such as “ugly trainers”) (5)
4/ Italian city, regarded as
a leading fashion capital (5)
5/ Trainer by Balenciaga (6,1)
8/ -cool, fashionable,
attractive or impressive –
like 23 across, perhaps (3)
9/ No longer on trend (3)
11/ Asserts, swears (that this
is not knock-off Fendi!) (5)
12/ Feather scarf that could
provide an alternative to a tie,
albeit a flamboyant one (3)
14/ Wear, put on (3)
15/ Popular hard-wearing fabric
originally worn by miners –
and cowboys (5)
16/ Positive combined action
or operation – a creative example
of which would be 26 across (7)
18/ Uncouth person (who
likely wouldn’t know Armani
from Primarni) (3)
20/ Interweave, wind together
(to tie a 28 across, for
DONE? example) (7)
REARRANGE THE 21/ Arts, channel
GREY SQUARES that airs Discovering
GAMES EDITOR: CHERYL FOREMAN | PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY | BALENCIAGA.COM
TO SPELL A TYPE Fashion, a series that
looks at the lives and
influences of some of the most
famous and enduring designers
of the 20th century (3)
22/ Fib, such as: “Socks look
great with Crocs” (3)
24/ Adjust the fit of a garment (5)
25/ Ermenegildo , Italian
house, renowned for its tailoring
and production of some of the
world’s finest fabrics (5)
S CO U
30 29
9 28
8 27 26
6 25
5 24 2 3 2
222 21
2 1 2 0 19
9 18
8 17 16
6 15
5 14 13
3 12 11 10
0 09 08 007 06 05 004 03 02
0

SSIMPLE SSTEPSS
FAST
F S RESULTS
SU S

AS E
S
EG O
MANUAL
S IFT 5KG IN THREE WEEKS
11T O SIX-PAC CHEATS
SMAR SUPPS THAT MELT FAT
PT 09.2018 CONTENTS

TIME TO CUT THE It’s not too late to lean out:

you just need to train smarter

EXCESS BAGGAGE
in the time you have left. This
is your ticket to weight loss.
Hang on – it’ll be a fast ride

August 27 Reminder:

FIND YOUR
O IDEAL
Aug Time-Capped Sets
1

7
Mum’s Birthday METHOD
O P\4,
P\ 12,
2 20
13

INTERMITTING
NG FASTING
FASS TING
NG

22

CCHOOSE
OOS FROM
O
27 GAME PLAN OUR
O THREE-WEEK,,
TIME CAPPED SETS

P \ 10 10-DAY
0 AND FIVE-DAY
PROGRAMMES
P OG S

11TH-HOUR
STRATEGIES
P \ 30

TOOL UP AND SUPPS THAT CUTT

LEAN OUT P \ 28 WEIGHT
WEIG
IGGHT
HT P \26
\ 26
2

FAT-LOSS
OSS
FUEL P\18
P \ 18
MEN’S HEALTH 3
PT 09.2018

TRANSFORM
With 21 days before lift-off,
your training needs a few
upgrades. This session mixes

YOUR BODY IN three advanced protocols to

shock your metabolism and

THREE WEEKS
burn fat at an accelerated
rate. That you’ll add visible
muscle, too, is a bonus…
35
MIN
01 \ ZERCHER
SQUAT
3 SETS OF 10 REPS
This squat variation is a A
stealthy six-pack builder,
as it challenges your
abs to keep your body
upright. Stand with your
feet shoulder width
apart, your arms bent,
your hands clasped in
front of your chest and
a barbell in the crooks
of your elbows (A). Take
care not to arch your
spine as you push your
hips backward and bend
your knees, lowering
until your elbows touch
your thighs (B). Drive
your heels into the floor
to push yourself back up.
B

YOUR PERSONAL TRAINER

Mathew Lewis-Carter
PT Lewis-Carter supplies
workout inspiration to his
army of more than 28,000
Instagram followers. Have
his podcast The 3 DumbBells
playing in your ears to push
you through this session.
@mathewlcarter

4 MEN’S HEALTH
 SWAP FAT FOR MUSCLE: 3-WEEK COUNTDOWN

02 \ WIDE-GRIP
BENCH PRESS
3 CLUSTER SETS OF 5 REPS
A
Low reps help build muscle
in a short space of time.
Lie on a bench with a bar
in an overhand grip, hands
wider than your shoulders
to activate the maximum
muscle fibres. Breathe in
and slowly lower the bar
(A). Squeeze your chest
as you push it back up
(B). Re-rack, rest for 10
seconds, then go again.

CLUSTER SETS B
AFTER ONE REP, RE-RACK
THE BAR, REST FOR 10SEC,
THEN PERFORM THE NEXT
REP. AIM TO LIFT 85% OF
YOUR ONE-REP MAX

03 \ REGULAR
CHIN-UP
3 SETS OF 6 REPS
If you want to build T-shirt
muscle for beach season,
look no further. Grab a bar B
with your palms facing
you and a grip at shoulder
width or narrower (A).
Ensure that your entire
body is hanging, arms
fully stretched, before
pulling yourself up until
your chin is above the
bar (B). Slowly lower
yourself back to the
start. After your sixth
rep, rest for 15 seconds.
A

MEN’S HEALTH 5
PT 09.2018

04 A \PRESS
ARNOLD

3 SETS OF 8 REPS
A set of bulging shoulders
is pending: the standing
position engages your B
abs more than a seated
press. Hold a dumbbell in
each hand, palms facing
your shoulders as if you’ve
just finished a biceps curl
(A). Push the dumbbells S PERSET
SUP
overhead, rotating your WITHOUT
O T REST, MOVE
palms to face away from FROM THE AARNOLD PRESS
you (B). Straighten your INTO THE FAARMER’S WALK.
arms, pause, then reverse THISS KEEPS YOUR HEART
the move. Perform eight RATE UP TTO TORCH FAT
reps, then go straight
into the farmer’s walk.

WORDS: MICHAEL JENNINGS | PHOTOGRAPHY: PHILIP HAYNES | GROOMING: NATACHA SCHMITT USING MAC PRO | STYLING: ABENA OFEI
A

04 B \WALK
FARMER’S

3 SETS OF 20M
To fire up your traps, A
triceps and abs all at
once, take your weights
on the move. Keep the
same weights or grab
heavier dumbbells,
and hold them by your
mid-thighs (A). Pin
back your shoulder
blades and lift your
chest as you walk
forward (B). Make sure
you keep your core
B
tensed throughout the
20m walk to help you
maintain your balance.

6 MEN’S HEALTH
 SSWAP FAT FOR MUSCLE: 3-WEEK COUNTDOWN

05 \ DU
DUMBBELL
GOBLET
G
3 SETS OF 12 REPSS
SQUAT
Q

Stand withh your llegsg justt

wider thann shoulder
h ld A
width, classping a hheavy
dumbbell to your chest h
with your ppalms ffacing
each other (A).
(A) Bend d
your knees and d llower
yourself innto a squat,
ensuring thhe weight h
stays in poosition and d you
maintain a straight h back
b k
(B). Drive yourself
y f back
up and rep peat. Once B
your 12 repps are d done,
ck bbreather,
take a quick h
then start the
h next set.

TABATA SYSTEM
S
PERFORM THE FIRST MOVE
FOR 20SEC, THEN REST
| SHORTS NIKE AT MRPORTER.COM, TRAINERS ASICS.COM

10SEC. THAT’S ONE ROUND.

A A AFTER FOUR, START
THE NEXT MOVE

B
MODEL: MICHAEL JENNINGS @MICCHAEELJJENNINGS

B
E

06 \KETTLEBELL DRAG
20SEC ON, 10SEC OFF, 4 ROUNDS
In a high plank, propped on your toes, position a heavy
kettlebell on the outside of one hand. With your other
arm, reach under your body (A) to pull the weight to
the other side at arm’s length (B). Maintain a straight
spine to keep tension in your abs. Now, swap sides.
07 \KNEELING WALL BALL
20SEC ON, 10SEC OFF, 4 ROUNDS
Fire up your core’s fast-twitch fibres for a six-pack
short cut. With a wall to your left side, hold a medicine
ball to your abs and adopt a lunge position, your left
leg in front (A). Twist from your right, throw the ball
at the wall (B) and catch it. Switch legs each round.

MEN’S HEALTH 7
SWAP FAT FOR MUSCLE: 3-WEEK COUNTDOWN

CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

Perform this workout three times a week and tak
ke
note of the weights you’ve used for each move
to track your improvements in every session

EXERCISE WEEK 1 WEEK 2 WEEK 3

DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3

ZERCHER SQUAT
3 SETS OF 10 REPS

WIDE-GRIP
BENCH PRESS
3 CLUSTER SETS OF 5

REGULAR
CHIN-UP
3 SETS 6 REPS

ARNOLD PRESS
3 SETS OF 8 REPS

FARMER’S WALK
3 SETS OF 20M

DUMBBELL
GOBLET SQUAT
3 SETS OF 12 REPS

KETTLEBELL
DRAG
20SEC ON, 10SEC
OFF, 4 ROUNDS

KNEELING
WALL BALL
20SEC ON, 10SEC
OFF, 4 ROUNDS

8 MEN’S HEALTH
PT 09.2018

BODY FAT HAS

Your fat-burning willpower can and
will waver. But don’t sweat it: update
your calendar with six key dates to

HAD ITS DAY hack the system and keep yourself

on course to a leaner, more defined
physique by the end of the month

THURSDAY 2 AUGUST
CHECK IN ONLINE
2
Start by sharing your physique
goals on social media and post
updates. “Telling others what Augus
gust
s
you want to achieve will make
you more likely to deliver on
2
your commitment,” says body
transformation coach Ben
Haldon. You’ll gain support
from your followers, too.
7

TUESDAY 7 AUGUST
TAKE A WALK 13

7
The easiest way to begin your INTERMITTENT FASTING
first full week of fat loss isn’t
by eating fewer calories, but
by walking more. “Slashing 22
your food intake will leave you
feeling sluggish,” says Haldon.
Commit to two hour-long 27
walks per week. They’ll shift
around 300-500kcal each TIME-CAPPED SETS
and boost your mental health.

MONDAY 13 AUGUST
LESS FAT… FAST
13
Try intermittent fasting for
a week, in which you consume
all your calories in a set time
period. A popular method 13 Reminder:
Intermittent Fasting
is a 16-hour fast followed by Aug
an eight-hour eating window.
PHOTOGRAPHY:

Eat your last mouthful at

INSTAGRAM

8pm, say, and have your next

meal at noon the following day.

10 MEN’S HEALTH
 WEIGHT-LOSS CALENDAR

SATURDAY 18 AUGUST
CHEATS PROSPER
18
Incorporate a weekend “cheat”
meal to create balance. “If
you can’t see your diet being
sustainable for three months,
don’t start it,” says Haldon. A
meal without counting macros
will boost your energy and
give you something to look
forward to. But remember: it’s
just one meal, not a whole day.

WEDNESDAY 22 AUGUST
SUPER SUBS
22
Cravings for calorific treats can
Notes easily creep in towards the end
22 August 2018 of your fat-loss month. Check
out Haldon’s list of low-calorie
Sweet Treats
options (left) for satisfying
18 Can of Diet Coke (1kcal)
your sweet tooth without doing
Small jelly pot (9kcal)
CHEAT
CHE
CH E AT DAY!
any lasting damage to your
Oppo Salted Caramel
Ice Cream (38kcal
regimen. Yes, there’s ice cream
per scoop)
on there – but it’s made with
Pot of melon (50-70kcal)
sugar substitute stevia, so
you can tuck in guilt-free.

MONDAY 27 AUGUST
CLOCK YOUR WORKOUT
27 Set a time limit on sets in
the last week to ramp up the
intensity. “A time cap keeps
you focused as you’re unable to
extend your rest periods,” says
Haldon. If you’re doing three
sets, set a timer for six minutes.
27 Reminder:
Time-Capped Sets
That’s two minutes per set,
Aug including rest. Instagram can
wait – your six-pack will not.
Mum’s Birthday

MEN’S HEALTH 11
PT 09.2018

25MIN TO
Though you have just 10 days
left, you needn’t spend every
spare second in the gym. Two

FIRE YOUR bits of kit and less than half

an hour are plenty. Perform

ENGINES 25
the following moves every
minute, on the minute – then
close with the Tabata finisher MIN

01 \
10 REPS
DUMBBELL
THRUSTER
EVERY MINUTE,
INUTE,
Start your workout with ON THE M
MINUTEE
thrusters to spike your AIM TO DO YOU
OUR REPSS
metabolism and kick off IN 45SEC, REEST 15SEC
20 minutes of non-stop AND PREPAARE FOR
fat burn. Hold a dumbbell THE NEXTT MOVEE
to each shoulder with
your feet hip width apart.
Drop into a squat (A),
then, when your thighs
are parallel to the floor, B
drive upward, using the
momentum to press
the dumbbells off your
shoulders and above
your head (B). Return
the dumbbells to your
shoulders and repeat.

YOUR PERSONAL TRAINER

Ben West
Transformation coach and
owner of London-based
360 Athletic training facility,
West knows exactly what
it takes to build a defined
physique that both looks
good and performs well.
@benwestfit

12 MEN’S HEALTH
 MAX YOUR METABOLISM: 10-DAY COUNTDOWN

02 \
10 REPS
HAND-RELEASE
PRESS-UP A

For the second minute,

you’ll raise the intensity of
your standard press-up.
Set up in a high-plank
position, your hands on
the floor beneath your
shoulders, arms and legs
straight and core tensed
(A). Lower yourself all
the way down, then
quickly release your
hands and tap the floor
(B), before bringing them
back in to push up to the
starting position. This
one’s a handy move.

03 \
10 REPS
DUMBBELL
RENEGADE ROW

Stay on the ground for A

minute three, starting
at the top of a press-up
position, but gripping
a dumbbell in each
hand (A). From here,
row the dumbbells
up to your stomach,
alternating sides and
keeping your elbows
SHORTS AND TRAINERS BOTH ADIDAS.CO.UK

close to your body and

high in the air as you
bring each weight to
your abs (B). Perform
five reps on each arm
before the clock hits
the 45-second mark.
YOUR PERSONAL TRAINER
B
MEN’SS HEALTH 13
PT 09.2018

04 \
10 REPS
BOX
JUMP

This move will have you

jumping high to elevate
your heart rate and slash
fat. Stand a step away
from a box, your feet
shoulder width apart.
Hinge your hips and
lower into a slight squat
(A), before leaping onto
the box, landing with
knees slightly bent (B).
Stand tall, then step off,
B
ready for the next jump.
When the minute is over,
go back to dumbbell
thrusters. Continue until
your 20 minutes are up.

14 MEN’S HEALTH
 MAX YOUR METABOLISM: 10-DAY COUNTDOWN

05 \ DEAD
BUG
20SEC ON, 10SEC OFF,
B TABATA SSYSTEM
S M
USE THE SAME
US S STRUCTURE
S U U
4 ROUNDS AS IN THE ABSS FINISHER
S
EMOM over, now lie flat (PAGE 7): FOUR ROUNDS
on the floor, lifting both OF
O 20S
20SECC OON, 10SEC
0S C OOFF
knees towards you until FOR
O EACH C MOVE
O E
they reach a 45-degree
angle. Extend both
arms straight in the air
so they are in line with
your shoulders. From
here, slowly move one
arm backward as you
extend your opposite
leg out in front of you
(A), keeping your back
flat on the floor. Return
to the start on the other A
side and repeat (B).

06 \ SHOULDER
TAP
20SEC ON, 10SEC OFF,
A
4 ROUNDS
Start in a high plank, your
hands directly beneath
your shoulders. Every
second, take one hand
off the floor to tap the
opposite shoulder (A),
lower, and swap sides
(B). This move makes
your abs work twice as
hard to balance your
bodyweight. Tense
your core and focus
on keeping your head
still to prevent swaying
– you’re guaranteed
beach-ready definition.

B
MEN’S HEALTH 15
PT 09.2018 M YOUR
MAX O METABOLIS
O SMM:: 10-
0 DAY COOUUN
NTDOOW
OWN

STAY ON TRACK
Commit to tackling and logging your workout with
just 10 days to go and you’ll ensure you hit the
pool in great shape. Note the weights you use or ho
ow
quickly you finish each move. No sweat, no success s

EXERCISE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 4 DAY 5 DAY 6 DAY 7 DAY 8 DAY 9 DAYY 10
1

DUMBBELL
THRUSTER
10 REPS

HAND-RELEASE
PRESS-UP
10 REPS

DUMBBELL
RENEGADE ROW
10 REPS
REST DAY

REST DAY
REST DAY

REST DAY

BOX JUMP
10 REPS

DEAD BUG
20SEC ON,
10SEC OFF,
4 ROUNDS

SHOULDER TAP
20SEC ON,
10SEC OFF,
4 ROUNDS

MEN’S HEALTH 17
PT 09.2018

Focus on eating well, not less.

15 FOOD These morsels will see you through

intense
t sessions and deliver all

TORCHIN the
th nutrient
slash
t
l h weight
– it’s goi
ts your body needs to
ht in a hurry. Fuel up
oing
n to be a busy month

05 / VITAMINS
01 / VITAMINS
RED BELL PEPPER
This contains more
SPINACH vitamin C than oranges,
To reap the full benefits, so make it a salad staple.
pair it with a bell pepper. The vitamin helps in the
This improves nutrient biosynthesis of carnitine,
absorption to top up required to break down
your levels of minerals fatty acids for energy.
such as iron, stopping
fatigue in its tracks.

02 / VITAMINS
SHIITAKE
MUSHROOMS 06 / FATS
These will boost your BRAZIL NUTS
plate’s volume without Grab a bag of these for
adding calories. Plus, a muscle-building snack.
their beta-glucans help High in testosterone-
control your blood sugar spiking selenium, these
levels to reduce cravings. nuts will help you to
build mass and drop fat
03 / PROTEIN in the areas you want to.
GRASS-FED BEEF
Quality is king for your
red meat. Sure, it’ll fill
your protein quota, but
it’s also rich in conjugated
linoleic acid – key for 07 / FATS
retaining muscle when EXTRA-VIRGIN
you’re in a calorie deficit.
OLIVE OIL
Drizzle this over your pre-
04 / FATS sprint salad. A healthy
AVOCADO monounsaturated fat
Sunday brunch is still source, its cardiovascular
on. Fibre-rich avocado boost will help you push
curbs cravings to keep harder for longer.
you sated, while its high
potassium content helps
to replenish electrolyte
stores post-workout.

188 MEN’S HEALTH


08 / VITAMINS
CINNAMON
Sprinkle this appetite-
suppressing spice over
your post-workout oats.
It contains a compound
that can inhibit ghrelin
secretion – the hormone
responsible for hunger.
09 / PROTEIN
EGGS
The staple boasts a
spectrum of muscle-
boosting nutrients. A
standout is its choline
content, which plays a
role in the natural rise of
growth hormone levels.
FOODS FROM RYAN CARTER @LIVEVITAE | WORDS: MICHAEL JENNINGS | PHOTOGRAPHY: LOUISA PARRY | FOOD STYLIST: IONA BLACKSHAW
10 / VITAMINS
SEA VEGETABLES
Dip into a different type
of green. This variety is
swimming with lignans
that block and reduce
chemical oestrogens
in your body, linked to
increased fat storage.
11 / CARBS
DARK CHOCOLATE
The darker, the better.
Just a few squares pack
brain-boosting flavonoids,
improving your decision-
making. Which hopefully
means you won’t polish
off the whole bar.
PLATE FOR PROGRESS
12 / VITAMINS
CHERRIES
For evening training,
drop a couple of cherries
into your post-workout
smoothie. Bursting
with the sleep hormone
melatonin, they will
aid restful recovery.
13 / PROTEIN
WILD SALMON
Loaded with nutrients
and healthy fats, salmon
is worth spending more
money on. Its potent
antioxidant astaxanthin
helps fight the harmful
effects of hard training.
14 / VITAMINS
WATERMELON
A fresh way to step up
your recovery, this ups
your intake of L-citrulline,
an amino acid that aids
muscle repair and helps
remove lactic acid after
challenging workouts.
15 / VITAMINS
CAULIFLOWER
Grate and cook this
low-carb alternative
to rice and you’ll lift
your fibre intake while
leaning out. That it
works well as a bed for
your curry is a win-win.
MEN’S HEALTH 19
PT 09.2018

Our five-day blitz will make

BLAST AWAY a visible difference by the
time you’re poolside. Tackle

FAT IN FIVE three intense cardio workouts

in one 60-minute session. Be
warned: this will be a tough
DAYS FLAT hour. But just get it done.
The countdown has truly begun
60
MIN
01A \ ROWING
2KM IN 100MIN
Simple in its aim, yet
N
A
brutal in its executioon.
You have 10 minutess to
get to 2km on the row wer.
Don’t pull too early w withh
your arms, as you’ll wear
w
them out. Keep them m
straight and initiate
the row with your leg gs
(A). Once your legs are a
almost at full extensiion,
pull the handle hard
towards your sternum
(B). Don’t wastete ener
energy
rgy
on your return: push the
handle back and nd llet th
t
the
momentum glide youu in.

YOUR PERSONAL TRAINER

Steve Kowalenko
Recognised byy the fitness
f
giants at Gym Jones as
one of the best trainers
in the UK, Kowwalenko
l k delves
d l
deep into his workout
w
bible to bring you
y sessions
proven to deliver
ver results
results.
@virtus_strength

20 MEN’S HEALTH
 INTENSE
S FAT LOSS: 5-DAY COUNTDOWN

01 B \10 SETS
BURPEE

OF 1-10 REPS
Here’s the catch: at
the start of each minute B
of rowing, get off the
machine and perform
a set of burpees
corresponding to the
time (see protocol
below). Drop down into
a high plank position,
lower your chest to the
floor (A), push back up,
then jump up and clap
TREADMILL COURTESY OF TECHNOGYM.COM | AIRBIKE COURTESY OF BULLDOGGEAR.EU

your hands behind your

head (B). Get back on
the rower as fast as
you can – those metres
won’t row themselves.

BURPEE COUNT
MATCH THE NUMBER YOU
PERFORM TO THE MINUTE
YOU’RE ON: SO, FOR MINUTE
ONE, DO ONE BURPEE; FOR
MINUTE 10, DO 10

A
ASICS COM, SKILLRUN
MRPORTER COM, TRAINERS ASICS.COM,
SHORTS NIKE AT MRPORTER.COM, SK

MEN’S HEALTH 21
ME
PT 09.2018

SPRINT SESSION
02A \ TREADMILL
RUN
MILL

400M, EVERY 3MIN

A
COMPLETE FIVE ROUNDS
OF THIS SUPERSET TO
FOR 5 ROUNDS SLASH BODY FAT IN JUST
At the start of everyy 15 MINUTES
three minutes, run
400m on the treadm mill.
ll
This distance will teest B
you – begin too fastt and
you’ll burn out, but go
g too
slow and you won’t do d
any damage to bellyy fatf
before the hotel buffffet
takes hold. As you run,
remember to drive your
y
arms (A) and bring your
y
knees high (B), pushhing
off from your toes.
Kowalenko has set youy
the goal of completing
your sprints in no more
than two minutes.

02 B \BODY ROCK
HOLLOW

AS MANY REPS AS YOU CAN A

In the time you have left
after your 400m run,
complete as many rocks as
possible before your
our three
minutes are up. Lie withh
your lower back touching
t h
the floor, arms extended
and biceps to youur ears.
Keep your toes poointed,d
your legs togetheer andd
your shoulders juust off
ff the
ground. With your absb and d
glutes tight, rock back
b k
(A) and forth (B). Aim for
f
B
at least 20 rocks at
a the
h
end of every 400m. Jum ump p
back on the treaddmill.
ll

22 MEN’S HEALTH
 INTENSE FAT LOSS: 55-DAY
DAY COUNTDOWN

03 A \BIKE
ASSAULT
B
50, 40, 30, 20,10KCAL
We won’t lie: thiss willll be
tough, but push through
h h
and you’ll earn yourself
y f
a lean body to bee proud d
of at the beach bar.
b In
your first round on the
bike, burn 50kcal al as
fast as you can, down
d
to 10kcal in the laast
round. Pump youur arms
(A) and legs (B),, while
hl
keeping your chhest up
to stop your torsso from
f
slumping over thhe barsb
and your strokees from
f A
becoming slugg gish.
h Put BIKE TO HELL
the pedal to the metall to START WITH A 50KCAL GOAL,
get it finished quuickly. THEN DROP 10KCAL AND 10
REPS OF V-SITS PER ROUND.
FINISH WITH 10KCAL AND
10 REPS OF EVIL

03 B \KICK-OUT
V-SIT
A
50, 40, 30, 20, 10 REPS
How long it takes you
to finish your bike round
determines how long
you have to get through
your kick-outs. Assume
a V-sit position with
your torso raised, knees
bent, feet just above the
floor and hands on the
floor. Straighten your
legs and lower your
torso (A). Pause when
your legs are straight,
then reverse, lifting your
knees to your chest (B).
Fit in a few extra reps
if you hit your target! B

MEN’S HEALTH 23
PT 09.2018 IIN
NTTEENSE
S FAT LOSS:
OSS 5-DAY COUNTDO
O OWN
W

PUSH YOUR LIMITSS

Note the time or reps it takes to co
omplete
p
r best
each challenge, so you can beat your
score in the following session. You have five
ou cann
days to incinerate as much fat as yo

PART 1

EXERCISE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 4 DAY 5

ROWING (TIME)

BURPEE (REPS)

PART 2

EXERCISE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 4 DAY 5

TREADMILL RUN
(TIME)

HOLLOW
BODY ROCK
(REPS)

PART 3

EXERCISE DAY 1 DAY 2 DAY 3 DAY 4 DAY 5

50kcal
40kcal
ASSAULT BIKE 30kcal
(TIME)
20kcal
10kcal

50reps
40reps
V-SIT KICK-OUT
30reps
(REPS)
20reps
10reps

MEN’S HEALTH 25
PT 09.2018
PACKAGE
BENEFITS
01
MUSCLE TO BURN
URN
Creatine isn’t just for
those trying to bulk up.
Yes, 3g a day will help
you build and keep
muscle – but, because
of this, you’ll lift heavier
in the gym for greater
calorie expenditure
during and after training.
Use it to enhance your
strength without the
unnecessary bulk.
Maximuscle
Creatine
Monohydrate
£6 for 500g
maxinutrition.com
m paleoethics.com
26 MEN’S HEALTH
Give your supplements a first-class upgrade
before taking flight to provide your body
with the extra ingredients it needs to get
lean. Stock up on the following pills and
powders and you’ll be on the runway to
transformation and express weight loss
022 033 04
CLEAN AND LEAN HELL
HELLO,
LO SUNSHINE GUT FEELING
No filler, no fuss. This Your vitamin D levels will Adding 5g of glutamine
plant-based powder increase with exposure to your shake will help
has all nine essential to the holiday sun, but reduce body and gut
amino acids from boosting your levels inflammation – the
protein sources such as before your trip is just culprit of that bloated
pea and hemp, as well as important. Laval feeling. The amino acid
as iron and antioxidants. University found the is also one of the most
It’ll help you recover vitamin triggers weight important building
faster to reach the loss in the belly by blocks for muscle
intensity you need to working with calcium growth (and it’s even
strip fat, minus all the to lower cortisol, which linked to improved
extra additives. regulates fat storage. brain function, too).
Paleoethics Solgar Vitamin Optimum
Ultimate Vegan D3 Softgels Nutrition
Protein £10 Glutamine Powder
£26 for 400g solgaronline. £30 onacademy.
co.uk co.uk
 FAT-BURNING SUPPLEMENTS

2KG
Increase in fat loss after
taking omega-3 supps.
University of
South Australia

05 006 07 008
OIL BURNER BEAT YOUR FATIGUE SLEEP EASY BETA YOUR
O BEST
Conventional wisdom Containing 100mg of Magnesium is the By adding beta-alanine
states that fat “makes caffeine per serving, miracle mineral for to your pre-workout
you fat”, but research Myamino Energy will achieving a relaxed shake, you’ll be able to
shows fish oil tablets banish pre-session state before bedtime. push harder for longer
suppress the genes fatigue and give you Spray it onto the skin in your gym sessions.
responsible for weight heightened alertness behind your knees That’s because the
gain, increase fatty acid and energy. The potent and not only will you amino acid carnosine
oxidation and boost vitamin C top-up also likely drift off faster (which alanine helps
the insulin sensitivity ensures that your for better-quality to produce) buffers
crucial to dropping immune system is sleep, but you’ll wake the hydrogen ions that
pounds. A triple threat fighting fit for the last up with less muscle are known to contribute
for your holiday shred. weeks before you fly. stiffness. Night night. to fatigue. So, go hard.

Omega-3 Fish Oil Myprotein BetterYou Reflex Nutrition

Softgels £6.80 Myamino Energy Maganesium Oil Beta-Alanine
for 1,000mg £20 for 30 Original Spray £16
bulkpowders. servings £12.20 for 120ml reflexnutrition.
co.uk myprotein.com betteryou.com com

MEN’S HEALTH 27
PT 09.2018
09 0 8

Le
Leave no stone unturned on your

PRE-FLIGH mi
mission to get in holiday shape. Our
ge
gear upgrades for both gym and hhome

ESSENTIALS wi
will take the hassle out of yourr
da
daily routine so you can focus
on your goals. Let’s get to work

03 / TRAINING
GET IN THE ZONE
With impressive sound
clarity and a bass-boosting
option, you’ll pine for these
buds on your commute, too.
Monster iSport Victory
In-Ear Sport Headphones
££88
88 monsterproducts.eu
monster
monsterproducts.eu
rproduuctss eu

01 / NUTRITION
FAST 5-A-DAY
One-touch smart tech
blends your fruit and veg
in three cycles before
automatic turn-off. More
time to pack your bag.
NutriBullet
Nu r Bullet 120
00 S
1200 er es
Series
£1500 amazon.co.uk
amazon co.uk

022 / LI
LLIFESTYLE 04 / LIFESTYLE
STAY ACTIVE
STAY REPAIR RIGHT
A watch
w
watc
at that prompts youu Rest is crucial for recovery.
to mov
tomo
move is worth owning, For a sound sleep, the
upp n your non-workout
upping utt Nasa-created tech in this
activi
activit
activity to boost fat loss pillow’s case reacts to
with
ithnnno perceived effort. your body heat at night.
Fitb t Versa Smartwatch
Fitbit Hyde & Sleep Smart Pillow
£200 fitbit.com
f £50 hydeandsleep.com

28 MEN’S
M ’ HEALTHH
 TOP
O GEAR
G R

05 / TRAINING 07 / TRAINING
SKIP THE GYM CARDIO BOOSTER
When you’re short on Nike consulted Mo Farah
time, a speedy session on the 35th version of its its
with this jump rope running shoe, which chh now
n
provides a calorie- boasts an out-turned
rnned collar
rned colla
crushing workout. for extra heell comfort.
c
comfor .
BLK BOX Speed Rope Nike Air Zoom
Zooom
m Peg
Pegasus
gasus
£17 blkboxfitness.com 35 £1055 nike.com
nike com

08 / LIFESTYLE
PACK FOR SUCCE
SUCCESS
SU
SUCC
UCCESS
CESS
Keep yourr work
w and
gym kit separate
eparate
arate w while
hi
carrying both
thh inn this
th s
convenient backpack.
ckpack.
kpack
Reebok CrossFit
Day Backpack
£70 reebok.co.uk
PHOTOGRAPHY LUCKY IF SHARP

06 / NUTRITION
MEALS MADE EASY 09 / NUTRITION
ORDS MICHAEL JENNINGS | PHOTOGRAPHY:

Measure multiple lunch- HYDRATION HERO

prep ingredients at once This water bottle nudges
with this genius chopping you to hydrate during the
board-cum-set of scales. day, displaying a new dot
Salter 15kg Max Chopping each time you refill.
Board Digital Scales £30 Joseph Joseph Dot
salterhousewares.co.uk water bottle 600ml
£10 josephjoseph.com
WORDS:
WO

M N
ME N’’’SS HEAL
HEEALLTHH 2 9
PRE-FLIGHT ITINERARY PT 09.2018
w

YOUR FINAL CALL

TIME BEFORE HOLIDAY

48 HOURS
With only 48 hours left, use our very last-minute WEIGHT LOSS
guide to curb bloating and step off the plane
looking and feeling your best. Bon voyage 0.5-1KG

YOUR FLIGHT ATTENDANT 02 FULL-BODY BLAST 03

PT and nutrition Pair fewer carbs with • TRX row into TRX
expert Olly Foster a full-body workout jump squats
is on hand to give in your last session • Dumbbell Romanian
you his emergency to look tighter at the deadlift into dumbbell
pre-flight diet and terminal. Try these standing shoulder press
training pointers. supersets (3 sets of • Close-grip press-ups
15 reps, 30sec rest): into walking lunges

01

GO TEATOTAL
Replace any soft drinks
with herbal teas a couple
LEAVE CARBS BEHIND of days prior to boarding.
Restricting carbs two days before Diet drinks will cause
flying will sap glycogen stores, gas, whereas herbal teas
cutting water retention. When you will aid your digestion,
reintroduce carbs on holiday, your so your six-pack won’t be
muscles will inflate as they refill. obscured by bloating.

04 05 SNACK SMART

@OLLYFOSTERFITNESS | WORDS: MICHAEL JENNINGS | ILLUSTRATIONS: BEUGISM.COM

Don’t get caught in departures with only fast
food to choose from. Prep a selection of in-
flight alternatives for your hand luggage
to curb cravings and ensure you don’t go
PROTEIN

hungry if there are delays. Safe bets are:

• Nuts
• Beef jerky
• Protein bar
• Rice cakes

06 STAY HYDRATED
BANNED ITEMS Counter-intuitive though it may sound,
Due to the way in which dairy, wheat and drinking more water actually offsets
grain products are manufactured, they water retention, and flying dehydrates
can often cause inflammation in your you. So, make sure to drink 300ml for
gut, which – you guessed it – causes every hour that you fly – even adding
more bloating. By temporarily swerving Himalayan salt for a much-needed boost
300ml

these foods, you’ll not only improve the of electrolytes – and you’ll disembark
appearance of your abs, but also feel much from the plane looking and feeling ready
better. The airport meal deal is out. Sorry.
1x 60mins for heavy-duty fun. You’re all set.

30 MEN’S HEALTH