Posts in "Useful Nutrition Theory"

Metabolic Damage Isn’t Real, but Relative Energy Deficiency Syndrome Is

Eric Helms, Andy Morgan and Andrea Valdez / Useful Nutrition Theory

The term ‘energy availability’ refers to whether or not you have adequate energy to maintain not only the energy demands of exercise or sport but also of normal physiological function. You can be at energy balance, maintaining a stable body mass, but be in a state of ‘relative energy deficiency’ where reproductive and metabolic function […] Read More »

Training Fasted? Consider Whey Protein Instead of BCAAs

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

Is it better to take Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) or whey protein when training fasted? Though the difference in outcome is likely small, it is exactly this kind of question that clients pay me to know and advise them on. If you do your weight training fasted (in the morning without having eaten anything prior), […] Read More »

Mindless Eating: How to Make Healthier Choices Without Thinking

Patrick Umphrey / Useful Nutrition Theory

I want to tell you about a powerful tool that often goes neglected among both fitness enthusiasts and people who are just beginning to diet. Imagine that you’re in the following situation: You come home from work. You’re exhausted. You’re hungry. You’ve had a long and stressful day and you just don’t feel like doing anything other […] Read More »

Why The ‘Best Macro Ratio’ Doesn’t Exist

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

There is an idea out there that ‘golden’ macronutrient ratios exist that can transform a person’s physique. The idea was born in bodybuilding forums by people looking at someone else’s body transformation, asking their macro intake, then reverse engineering it to come up with a macro ratio that is assumed to be somehow special. I’m not a fan of this idea. It’s logically flawed and […] Read More »

Dreambulkeritis

Andy Morgan / Training Principles , Useful Nutrition Theory

Dreams in a tub – “ONE THOUSAND CALORIES, 50g PROTEIN” – … Dream-bulker-itis | drēmˈbʌlkərˈʌɪtɪs | slang  noun Disease where an individual (usually male) suffers deluded notions that the enormous amounts of  weight gained due to purposeful overeating combined with weight training in the winter months is actually mostly muscle, that they can remove the […] Read More »

Clean Eating Is Nonsense – Here’s a Better Way to Think About Food

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

  On a near daily basis I find myself linking to JC Deen’s article, “Clean Eating is a Scam and Why you Need to Abandon It“. I consider it a must read for those tempted by, but scared of eating that NY cheesecake in the Starbucks display. You can imagine by the provocative title how […] Read More »

If it ain’t broken…

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

Intermittently-fasted Lambo Let’s say your rich uncle dies and leaves you his Gallardo. On your first track-day you get spanked. To make matters worse it’s by guys in cars half the price. They are laughing. Do you get out your spanners and start fiddling with stuff in the hope this will make it faster, or […] Read More »

Patience: A Key Tool for Diet Success

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

Patience. When to wait and when to make a change? As a coach, this is the hardest part of the job. Everyone wants results now. There’s pressure to make the change, but you can’t bow to it. You have to stay objective. Have to choose the right moment. – That’s what the client pays for. Lack of […] Read More »

How to Travel and Maintain Your Physique

Andy Morgan / Training Guides , Useful Nutrition Theory

Borobudur, Java, Indonesia 2004 So you’ve built up a good physique or are looking your best; have you ever thought twice before booking a vacation? Did you double-check that the place had a gym, perhaps even turned down the opportunity of travel because you didn’t want to ruin it? I can relate to that. I […] Read More »

Want to free a friend from his ‘6 meal’ habit?

Andy Morgan / Useful Nutrition Theory

It’s funny, nearly everyone that finishes up says the same thing. “Thanks for everything Andy. I will definitely recommend you to any of my friends who believe this works…..most will not break from the 6 small meals per day….when I tell them about LG they look at me as if I’m crazy.” . But really […] Read More »