Estrogen, Birth Control, and Women

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Justin

Mondays are devoted to female topics.

Women are complicated. If the hormone function of a male is complex, then the function of a female is worse than quantum physics. This isn’t a dig on women; it’s just that biochemistry and endocrinology are incredibly dense and not fully understood, and the nature of the female gender makes it even more opaque. Despite all the things we know about life and the human body, there is a still a lot of unknown.

Biochemistry of the Human Cell: Schematic diagram shows its biochemical/metabolic pathways. Yikes.

Prescribing drugs and medications has become the norm in modern “health”. A drug may have an effect on one thing, but undoubtedly fiddles with other biochemistry to produce ill side effects. Drugs can work on neurotransmitters, hormones, or hundreds of other functions like enzymatic processes. When going on or off drugs, it can take several months for the body to normalize into a new ‘concept’ of homeostasis. Remember that the “stress/adaptation” process is constantly occurring, and an adaptive stress is basically “the sub-lethal dose, or lack thereof, of something that is different than the currently adapted homeostasis”.

I trained a kid who had hyperthyroid syndrome. He was prescribed propylthiouracil (PTU) to stop the thyroid from making it’s hormone. It’s pretty toxic to the liver, so his dosage was always being modified by his doctor. When it significantly blunted his thyroid, his strength and body weight gains were impressive. When his dosage went down, his strength and weight suffered. However, it took about six weeks or so for the changes to occur after his dosage was changed; the effect wasn’t immediate. This is an extreme example of the body undergoing a significant change, yet taking time to actually have a response.

This same concept can be applied to female trainees and their prescriptions. The most common drug will be some kind of hormonal birth control AKA “the pill”. There are different types of drugs, but they essentially inhibit ovulation and fertilization. These pills usually consist of estrogen and progestin, which are female hormones. In practice, hormonal birth control seems to have a negative effect on training.

I’m not going to pretend to know a lot about the exact performance change from a fluctuation of female hormones . In sooth, nobody really does. Yet it’s generally accepted with practitioners that too much estrogen is a bad thing for training females. And when you think about it in simple terms, it makes sense: The female body has adapted to have a certain hormonal fluctuation throughout a month. When that is significantly altered, things will, at the very least, not be as efficient. Gals who take birth control seem to carry more body fat, especially in the hips and legs, aren’t as lean, and seem to make strength gains slower (sleeping problems may be common enough to include here).

Instead of trying to make a definitive statement about birth control and estrogen, I want to do two things. First, here are some resources I found on the internet about this topic.

a) Robb Wolf podcast with Brad Davidson. I listened to this a couple of months ago and Brad works with females, especially figure competitors and helps them clear excessive estrogen out of their system to help them lean out for their shows. Since he trains them in the gym, it has an effect on their gains. I’m simplifying, so listen to the podcast to hear what he has to say about it. There seems to be more than one source talking about a) reducing exposure to estrogens and b) clearing them from the system.

b) Mark’s Daily Apple: Estrogen. Mark’s website is easily my favorite nutrition site. He is a good writer, mixes logic with available research, and is an intelligent hombre. I’m not a perfect writer, but I really appreciate the “good writing” part. I also think Mark is interesting and if I ever chatted with him I’d make fun of his reading choices because JESUS CHRIST THEY ARE BORING. Then we’d do some push-ups on the beach and talk about living until we’re 150 years old (Mark undoubtedly will; I’ll probably get shot before then). Here’s the opening paragraph of this estrogen post:

The human endocrine system exists in a state of delicate balance. None of its constituents function in a vacuum, and trying to explain every hormonal interrelationship would take volumes, but one statement is fairly safe to make: one hormone affects another. Secreting one often inhibits the next, which in turn sets off an entirely different chain reaction of hormonal secretions, inhibitions, and syntheses. I almost feel like trying to micromanage your entire endocrine system is tedious and counterproductive (and probably impossible to do effectively). I much prefer to simply eat right, exercise smart, get good sleep, normalize stress, and take advantage of simple lifestyle hacks. Still, it doesn’t hurt to understand some of the major hormonal players, especially one as widely maligned by the strength and fitness community as estrogen.

I really don’t need to say anything else; this is exactly what I was going to write for my conclusion.

c) Charles Poloquin on reducing estrogen. Poloquin talks a lot about this topic and he is referenced in the above Robb Wolf podcast episode. The interesting thing in this article is the mention of phytoestrogens. I’ve seen stuff go back and forth on these — saying they are harmful or helpful — but you can see Poloquin’s take on them.

d) Speaking of phytoestrogens, this “Paleo for Women” post may shed some more light on them. I’ve never read this site, but this post had some good basic information that should help you gals. Then there’s this other article from the same site on estrogen and weight loss. Then there’s this detailed and lengthy post about birth control.

I think it’s kind of hard to get a gauge on phytoestrogens and estrogen supplementation since some sources talk about the benefits (on estrogen) and drawbacks (on phytoestrogens). And then there’s the issue of birth control itself. In actuality, I agree with Mark above: a low inflammatory diet, low stress, good sleep, and exercising regularly are the keys to creating a healthy and optimal homeostasis regardless of gender.

The second thing I want to do is ask all of the female readers if you or anyone you know takes hormonal birth control and how do you think it affects your training.

Note that some women take birth control because their menstruation periods are incredibly awful and painful. Also note that these same women may be unhealthy, do not exercise, sleep poorly, are constantly stressed, and won’t eat a low inflammatory diet that is high in nutrients and protein. I’d be curious to see if this is what you guys see.

Invite your friends to comment on this interesting issue. Please comment on a) strength training gains, b) conditioning gains, c) body composition, and d) any other life factors like sleep or stress. Also note how long it took for you to see a change in your body or body functioning when going on or off the drugs. Maybe we can come to a conclusion that will influence how females structure their training or lifestyle.

Q&A – 41

Posted on September 7, 2012 by Justin

108

If only he squatted…

PR Friday

Post your training updates and PR’s to the comments. More importantly, tell us how you are joining the fight for La Revolución de Pantalones Cortos! The fight for the right of manliness! (source)

Weekly Challenge

Last week’s challenge asked you to “Learn about a specific muscle group that gives you problems in training. Learn how it functions as well as what you can do to improve the problem.” Share your findings in the comments.

Next Week’s Challenge: If you do not own a pair of short shorts and you qualify to participate in The Revolution, then buy a pair. Proudly wear them. Report your experience in next week’s Q&A comments.

Week In Review

Monday was a bullshit government holiday called Labor Day, so there wasn’t a female post. Tuesday was a post about Lance Armstrong and PEDs. I started the article by talking about Armstrong because I felt bad, but I think my opinion has changed on him. He’s allegedly a dickhead who still used drugs when he was told not to, and then lied about it. I still think overcoming cancer and fundraising hundreds of million dollars are redeeming qualities, but I guess I’ll file this into the, “He’s a dickhead who does some nice things” category. Wednesday talked about the benefits of foam rolling as part of a warm-up and how using a hard foam is usually better than PVC.

Finally, Thursday, WE STARTED A REVOLUTION. Read about The Short Shorts Revolution

Story Time

Yesterday in honor of The Revolution, I wore my short black shorts and a black tank top with shoes out into public. This is standard ops for short excursions, yet for longer trips I usually wear shorts with pockets and a belt. I think the site of a guy in short shorts with shoes is particularly alarming to the public than a guy in flip-flops. I guess it’s because such a guy made a deliberate decision to go out in that attire instead of just easily throwing on some flip-flops. Make no mistake: you will receive stairs when you do this. Assuming your shorts aren’t dangerously short (to show ass cheek or scrote), ignore these stairs and proudly go about your business. Most of the In-N-Out customers were wearing pants, but their stares didn’t register on my “give a fuck” meter. Because we’ve got a god damn Revolution to run, that’s why.

Q&A

ashkanjah sent 16 hours ago
Hello, Justin. I’m currently going through the archives of your website, and it is incredibly informative and inspiring. I am in the middle of linear progression after a bout of fuckaround-itis. I weigh 156 pounds. I am 17 years old. I made a bet that I could become 190 pounds by March 4th. I am eating at least 5 or 6 hamburgers, innumerable bananas, a pound and a half of wild salmon, and half of a chicken every day (I take psyllium husk, creatine, and vitamin-d. Fish oil rarely if I run out of money for salmon for a few days). Please tell me this is not only possible, but with a strong devotion to constantly performing compound lifts, it will be mostly muscle. On a side note, you have convinced me that a belt and shoes are practically necessary tools despite how much lifting barefoot feels badass. But how often do you use the belt? Every time you train? Thank you very much, and sorry if I’m bothering you.

Dear ashkanjah,

I’d be pretty impressed if you were eating that much. How much is this bet worth? It’s entirely doable to reach 190 by march; people have gained much more in much less time. I don’t know if you’ve read the recent dietary advice on the site, but it revolves more around a “meat and potatoes” regimen and is modeled after the paleo diet (with the occasional allowed splurge).

That being said, you have two strategies: a) get to 190 ASAP or b) steadily gain quality weight and see where you’re at in the beginning of 2013. In the latter example, if you were, say, 10 or 15 pounds under, you could just do a dirty bulk for a period, hit the 190 weight, collect your winnings, and then clean it up and reduce your body fat.

You have plenty of time before March 4th, so distribute the necessary gain per month and stay consistent with that. Most of all, be sure to train consistently.

As for the belt and shoes question: training efficiently and safely is more important than subjectively feeling like a badass. “Badass” is squatting 500+ pounds weighing 190 pounds, not squatting 250 pounds barefoot at any body weight.

P.S. I, like most people, wear a belt on work sets. I don’t wear one during snatches, but I do when front squatting or clean and jerking. Sometimes I do for rows. Presses, squats, and deadlifts, I’ll wear one.

Hey Justin-

I’ve noticed more so lately that I tend to be extremely quad dominant in my squatting (my FSQ #s are basically equal to BS, primarily HB squatting) and feel like I am having trouble activating the hamstrings on those lifts. I’ve partially attributed it to some ankle mobility and inability to stay in my heels, do you have any tips for making sure I get the full utility out of the hamstrings in those lifts?

Thanks, Roy

Dear Roy,

First, it sounds like your front squat frequency is pretty high relative to your high bar frequency (or you have some technique limitations). I’d make sure you’re high bar squatting twice as much as you’re front squatting. Second, when people use vertical styles of squatting I like to have them put in a heavier posterior chain exercise, and the best for this purpose is the RDL (Good Mornings can’t be loaded as heavy). While I amusingly get mocked for the high frequency of RDL recommendations, they are extremely beneficial for people that are more in the “beginner” stages, as Roy is (I’ve met him before, he trains at CF East Decatur with my homie Shana). Third, if you’re having trouble staying in your heels, then I want to double check that you’re wearing lifting shoes (I assume so).

Fourth, make sure that you’re working on your ankle and hip mobility. If you don’t have the mobility to hit proper positioning, then you won’t have proper muscle activation. Work on your ankles, anterior hip, and external rotators (ask Shana if you’re at a loss). Lastly, the two most important fundamental cues for vertical squatting (high bar or front) are “knees out” and “heels”. If you are not maintaining either of those, then reduce the weight so that you can do so. If you’re allowing your knees to bow in on the ascent, that’s not training the musculature correctly and, in the long run, will be worthless. You can also think about keeping your weight on the outer third of your foot — this cue can help effectively bring in the external rotators and prevent the knees from coming in.

Hey,
I’m curious what your thoughts might be regarding pre & post op exercises for a herniated disc surgery. I’ve got a herniated L5-S1 disc and a bulging L4-L5 disc. I’ve been working with my chiro for several weeks in the hopes that the herniated disc would start to move back into place, but no such luck. It looks like surgery is unavoidable. It was recommended that I focus on ab and stability work going into the surgery to help lessen the load on my spine coming out of the surgery. Do you have any recommendations for pre and post op ab or stability work that might benefit? This will be my second discectomy, and I don’t want to do this again. I’m looking to get my torso as strong as possible to avoid any future disc problems.

–Jonathan

Dear Jonathan,

This is a fuzzy topic since it’s a bit out of my forte and it seems to be a reoccurring issue. Primarily listen to your doctor, because I don’t have all of your information in front of me. Right away I have two assumptions: a) your mobility is not good and b) your lifting technique is not good. I would start daily mobility work on your anterior hip, external hip rotators, and rotational based mobility. Also hit up any other areas that you know you are lacking in (potentially thoracic spine and ankles); other areas can cause problems whenever you do start to lift or exercise again. If you think your mobility is bad, then it’s probably very bad, and I would have you work on it twice a day.

As for your lifting technique, you’re gonna need to find a good coach. If you are not currently lifting (due to the injury), then you can still do some basic stuff like planks, side planks, Pallof presses (google it) and possibly some torso rotations. Even if you do not want to or can’t squat or deadlift, I would think you could still do light RDLs.

I’m actually surprised surgery is the only solution. It’s not uncommon to have disc issues (some folks aren’t even aware of it) and I’ve had some people come back from herniated disc, didn’t have surgery, and squat and deadlift easily over 225×5 (this person was a female). However, that is dependent on quality coaching and proper technique.

As for post-op, do the standard approach of taking it through a full ROM when you can, lightly load it (this would be body weight initially), and then when ready, start with light, properly executed lifts. I can’t really be more specific without seeing you in person.

My name is Zach. First off, I’d like to say that i appreciate your posts, they’ve helped me out a lot with my training and have granted me a lot of knowledge. I’m writing to ask for help on a recent issue I’ve been having with the lateral side of my gastrocnemius. My issue is that in the bottom of my full squat, I’m experiencing slight pain and numbness in my left calf as I ascend upward. It spreads from the knee down to above the ankle on the lateral side. I don’t have any pain other than when I’m in that position. I tried to do some research to the best of my abilities and what i found that described the symptoms the best was intermittent claudication, a peripheral artery disease that is common in runners. This however seems a little intense of a diagnosis, I’d like to not jump to an extreme conclusion nor be a hypochondriac. Have you had any experience with this problem, or can you think of a simpler diagnosis?

Thanks for your time,
Zach P

Dear Zach,

Thanks for the kind words and I’m glad the site has helped you. Point blank: I don’t think you have a peripheral arterial disease. You would probably have a host of other symptoms other than “I have pain down my leg when I squat”. Instead, this is probably a nerve issue.

The sciatic nerve is the major nerve that travels down the back side of the thigh. It then splits into the tibial and peroneal nerves. The peroneal nerves travels by the lateral head of the gastrocnemius (your indicated area), winds around the head of the fibula (the lateral bone in the shin), and then travels down the leg splitting into superficial and deep nerves on the lateral (outside) part of the shin. It’s actually hard to get a good picture of this, but this pic shows you how the tibial and peroneal nerves split (this is a pic of the left leg, the split on the left is the peroneal nerve). You can kind of see how it travels down the outside of the shin in this pic.

In any case, when you’re going into full knee flexion, you’re probably clamping down on that peroneal nerve and just reverberating pain down your shin. A friend of mine in the Army has a similar thing going on, and he has recently dealt with a lot of sciatica pain (RDLs helped make this go away, by the way). Anyway, my suggestion to both of you is that you should “mob” above and below the knee, especially below it. If you have some tight, inflamed, and swollen tissues, knee flexion would press into the tissues which would press onto the nerve to create your pain. The following video is what I recommended to my friend, and it is a good starting point for you:

The Revolutionary Guide to Manly Short Shorts

Posted on September 6, 2012 by Justin

135

Yes it’s true, I wear short shorts un-apologetically. And you should too.

Exhibit A

What I’m talking about is drawing a line in the sand. Unchecked aggression. We have a dedicated enemy, a worthy fucking adversary. Men. Women. This is what we’re up against (Exhibit A).

The metrosexual. The skinny guy. The college kid. The hipster. The hippy. They come in many forms, yet they are all the same. And they’re trying to steal America away from us! It’s time to make a stand, and we do that by proudly revealing two meaty, bouldering thighs that emit a testosterone-filled musk that inspire women to savagely claw at your hairy chest, urging you to take them to the promised land.

This is your density.

If we are to make a stand, to show this country that masculinity is not only en vogue, but necessary to teach young children that waify, frail, useless humans are not the future, that children can work hard and have something to show for it, then we must — repeat MUST — reduce the length of our shorts. It is the only way; it is known. (By the way, I don’t know what “en vogue” means, but I think you can take penicillin for it.)

I will teach you the way of the short shorts. I will begin as a leader, but evolve into a member of the resistance, the last chance we have at rescuing the children — THE CHILDREN! Let me show you the way.

What Short Shorts Are Not

As indicated above, evoking masculinity through your short choice does not start with khaki. Sure, khaki must inevitably be worn if you are dragged to a quasi-nice house party in the middle of the summer, but my friend Jeremy and his wife can attest to the fact that I showed up to a quiet house party and not only was I the only one not in a collared shirt, I was the only one wearing short shorts and a tank-top. At first I thought, “This is mildly inappropriate, especially since I don’t know these people.” Then I embraced it, because this is our last hurrah in the “I’m A Little Pansy-Man Frontier”.

Exhibit B

And in case you were curious, masculinity is not emitted in the form of rolled up jean shorts, capris, or shorts that have fake paint splattered on them (Exhibit B). GOD DAMN IT, A REAL MAN SPLATTERS HIS OWN PAINT ON A CUTOFF PAIR OF LEVIS THAT HE HAD TO CUT BECAUSE HIS THIGHS GREW TOO FUCKING BIG FROM SQUATTING HIS DICK OFF EVERY WEEK. This, by the way, is the only acceptable reason to own or wear jean shorts. And if you do wear them, for fuck’s sake…put on some underwear.

Make no mistake, short shorts are not a show of style; they are a show of attitude. Keep this in mind when selecting your shorts. I don’t even understand “style” anyway.

The only exception to wearing capri pants is if your name is Arnold Shwarzenegger in the ’70s and you cut the bottoms of your pants off to remind yourself how skinny your calves are. The only other acceptable reason is if you are a prisoner of war and the enemy is making you wear them to psychologically weaken you. But then you could just rip the bottoms off to make short shorts, and then use the torn pieces to wear a sweet headband.

What Short Shorts Are

Short shorts are a necessary social statement that say, “I’m a man, damn it.” Either that or “Eat shit, skinny guy.” There are several requirements to pulling off the short shorts.

1. Be muscular.

This should be a no-brainer, but once we start this bandwagon, everyone is gonna want to join. You can’t make a statement about masculinity when you don’t embody the evolutionary male archetype. That’d be like Martin Luther King, Jr. staging a civil rights sit-in protest as a nerdy white guy. If the line of your thigh from your knees to your hips is straight, then you do not qualify.

Additionally, “muscular” means there is shape to your quads instead of just a fatty log. Clean up your diet and ~~clap dem cheeks~~ let your quads boulder out over each other. The more those striations pop, the more effective your message, especially when you just got done squatting over 4 or 500 pounds.

2. Don’t be creepy.

The last thing we want when trying to induce a lustful rage in women and inspire children is to give them the “I’m a creepy uncle” or “no-no” feeling. If you’re pretty fat and hairy, you’re gonna creep them out. Sorry dude, that’s just how it is. Get less fat by cleaning up your diet, and reduce the scare of your hairy-ass thighs by getting them in the sun. A tan/hairy specimen is much better than a pale/hairy one.

This last part is the most important part: trim your pubes. I don’t know where it became cool to not trim certain body hair, but if you don’t trim your groin area, and you inevitably put your foot up on the couch when talking to your nieces, you don’t want your ball hair to protrude out and tickle their noses. Please, think of the children. If you aren’t willing to trim, well, maybe short shorts are not for you.

3. Don’t wear a t-shirt.

Unless you’re doing squad PT, take that ridiculous shirt off. The sun is out, it’s over 70 degrrees (F), and you should enjoy some quality Vitamin D. Go shirtless or bump a sweet tank top. The best tank top I’ve ever seen is this “bear wearing sunglasses” one that my friend Norman has. Note that rocking a tank-top or going shirtless requires the machoism to shine from your upper body too, so hurry up and press over 200, bench over 300, and then do at least 1,000 barbell rows every week.

4. Don’t neglect the hams

One of the worst things you can do for our cause — other than make a child sneeze with your pube hair — is to not develop your hamstrings. We aren’t mirror lifters. So RDL your fucking face off. With, like, a bajillion reps a week.

5. Have the right shorts.

Exhibit C

And finally to the equipment section. Some of you may remember the sweet shorts that Arnold Schwarzenegger wore in Pumping Iron (Exhibit C). These were undoubtedly my inspiration.

I don’t know how Arnold came across some used high school football shorts, but he inadvertently set the tone for our social movement. Though I will point out that wearing Keds with long socks is a bit out of style. That’ll put you in the “creepy” category, especially if you’re hairy and fat.

When shopping for a pair of shorts, ensure that a) there is a liner inside of them and b) the tip of your dugan is not easily visible when viewing the front of your shorts. The liner will help hold your junk in place, and the “not showing your mushroom tip” will prevent us from being banned from cable television. Oh, and Marine Corps “silkies” made by Soffee will inevitably outline your wang, so steer away from those. And if your dong isn’t outlined, you probably should stop wearing them now that everyone knows it’s supposed to be outlined and they’ll just think you have a wee little pee-pee.

Exhibit D

People usually ask where I get my shorts (Exhibit D), and I usually get them on military bases/posts for about $10 a pair. Soffees are pretty cheap on their website, but then you run into that “everyone is drinking in the view of my bone” thing. Feel free to post other brands to the comments, but I highly recommend having a liner in your shorts. The last thing anyone needs is an “accidental ballsack discharge” or “peek-a-boo-wiener”.

Fight the Good Fight

Remember, every time you clothe yourself in the morning you make a statement. Do you want that statement to say, “I will conform to how skinny, no-lifting puke-faces are shaping modern society”? Or will you say, “God damn it, I’m a man”? I know some of you have real jobs and can’t show up to work wearing short shorts, but the aforementioned Jeremy routinely shows up to the office wearing multi-colored cowboy boots and a beard. He paves his own way.

We shall take back America!

Join the resistance — WEAR SHORT SHORTS!

Foam Rolling

Posted on September 5, 2012 by Justin

Several years ago foam rolling was the “in” thing and everyone used and praised it. Self “mobility” work has since evolved away from foam rolling — even to the point of poopooing it — but it can still serve a purpose.

This is from the new “Foam Rolling Porno” DVD set.

Most Tommy Tough Guys will say, “Ptsh, foam rolling is too light, I just use a a PEEH-VEH-CEE.” An actual foam roller won’t correct any real soft tissue problem, but that’s not its effective purpose. Foam rolling is best used prior to activity or training to loosen up the soft tissue (which can include fascia, muscles, or tendons) to be more pliable and allow a comprehensive range of motion (ROM). Think of it as a part of warming up instead of soft tissue treatment.

Trainees lament that a large portion of their day is spent sitting down. And if they’re standing up or doing manual labor, they’re still probably not going through a full ROM and spend time in problematic positions (bending over, crouched down, on knees, etc.). Either way, loosening up the body with a foam roller will prep those structures for activity, whether applying force maximally or ballistically. This light soft tissue work will augment any movement prep like dynamic stretching or any “mob” that includes positional stretching. Heavy, invasive massages prior to training can have a deleterious effect on performance, yet light massages can make the structures more pliable, increase blood flow to the area, and even reduce Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness (DOMS) quicker.

At worst you’re increasing your warm-up by five to ten minutes. At best you’re enhancing that warm-up, improving recovery, and prepping your structures to train better.

One reason that a PVC may not be as useful in the context of a warm-up is because it’s more invasive and painful. Tommy Tough Guy Mentality says, “I can take it. BRING ON THE PAIN.” Just because you can deal with pain doesn’t mean you’re a) cool or b) doing anything useful. In actuality it’s not easy to undergo pain and completely relax a muscle. The point is to get some light massage through the muscle belly tissue, not to tense up and contract the muscle because it’s experiencing pain and try to massage a taught muscle. By using foam, you can reach deep into the tissue without tensing up or disrupting the cellular environment too much.

When I googled “sexy foam rolling” to see what would come up, I found this picture of my jacked friend, Mark. Care to explain, Mark?

This isn’t to say that PVC is worthless, but it’s most likely inferior for warm-up purposes for most people. Note that over time your tissues will adapt to the foam roller and you’ll need a harder surface to receive the same effect. That means if you’ve been foam rolling daily for a couple of years, then no, this won’t apply to you. Foam rollers can cost 15 to $20 and PVC can cost a few dollars. I think they both serve a purpose, especially when you don’t have a servant to give you a rub down prior to training (yeah c’mon). In case you’ve haven’t gotten on the internet since 2005, here’s a video of a foam rolling protocol, specifically what I do before training. I aim to loosen tension on my back, hips, and knees. I could probably accomplish the same with a PVC, but I know it’d cause some “tensing up” in my thighs or around my knees. The PVC also crunches on the spinous processes of my vertebral segments when rolling certain positions on my back. If all you need is a light massage, and you have access to a foam roller, then it’s a better tool. If you’re interested in exploring different options, consider the benefits of therapeutic massage as well.

Lance Armstrong, PEDs, and Naivety

Posted on September 4, 2012 by Justin

On Friday, 24 August 2012, the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency erased Lance Armstrong’s 14 year career — including his 7 Tour de France titles — and banned him for life from the sport of cycling. They did this without a shred of physical evidence because Lance allegedly did something that every Tour de France cyclist — every elite athlete — does. That something is use performance enhancement drugs (PEDs).

Lance Armstrong is an American hero. In his early career he was an up-and-coming cyclist who showed flashes by winning the UCI Road World Championship in the pouring rain in Norway in 1993. He also had won the first stage of the Tour de France but had not yet won “The Tour”, the pinnacle of cycling racing.

Then he was diagnosed with testicular cancer at the age of 25 (October 1996). The cancer had metastasized into his lungs, abdomen, and brain. After emergency surgery to remove his tumor-ridden testicle, he was told he had less than a 40% likelihood of surviving. His final chemotherapy treatment was in December of 1996.

Did Armstrong feel sorry for himself, only to wallow in self-pity? No, he made a decision to get back on the bike and train. He would later win his first Tour de France in 1999, less than three years since he went to the doctor coughing up blood with a swollen testicle. He would go on to miraculously win the next six Tour de France races (for a total of seven), beating every top rival in the world.

And then there were the PEDs allegations. For an exhaustive list and timeline of the allegations, you can read the Wikipedia article. What it amounts to is Armstrong vehemently opposing the idea of using PEDs, various sources claiming he used, and him passing over 20 drug tests in his return to cycling from 2008 to 2009. Yet the frozen urine samples from 1999 allegedly contain erythropoietin (EPO), a hormone that stimulates the production of red blood cells.

Meanwhile Armstrong started The Lance Armstrong Foundation that has sold the Livestrong bracelet since 2004. This non-profit has raised over 325 million dollars and is one of the top ten groups funding cancer research along with supporting people afflicted with cancer.

Lance Armstrong is a respectable, successful, amazing man. And he used performance enhancement drugs.

There is no hard physical evidence saying that Armstrong has used PEDs and he has never tested positive for them. USADA is a pain-in-the-ass organization that is crucifying him for something that is not only not proven, but something that everybody does. Wake up boys and girls, elite athletes are all “dopers”. That’s the way it has been, that’s the way it is, and that’s the way the future will always be. This doesn’t take anything away from Armstrong’s success because all of his opponents were doing the same thing. However it does take away from his “American Hero” persona because the world is full of naive people who want to believe that everyone is clean and the rules make sense.

Just because something is a rule or a law doesn’t mean it’s right.

Let’s prevent this from turning into a philosophical discussion on how we should derive our rules, laws, and regulations, and focus on this single fact: everyone dopes.

Angel Heredia provided PEDs to elite and Olympic athletes. He supplied them to our friend Maurice Greene, Marion Jones, Justin Gatlin, and Tim Montgomery. He admits to it because the FBI caught him and now he has to tell the truth or he goes to jail for a very long time. He did this interview with a German magazine in 2008 that was quite revealing. For example:

SPIEGEL: Mr. Heredia, will you watch the 100 meter final in Beijing?

Heredia: Of course. But the winner will not be clean. Not even any of the contestants will be clean.

SPIEGEL: Of eight runners …

Heredia: … eight will be doped.

SPIEGEL: There is no way to prove that.

Heredia: There is no doubt about it. The difference between 10.0 and 9.7 seconds is the drugs.

The best athletes in the world use drugs. They do it for several reasons, and I bet it’s up to the individual as to which is most important. The first is that it improves their performance, helps them recovery (including from injury), or subsequently helps prevent injury. PEDs do not make a person elite; an elite person becomes cream of the crop by using drugs.

SPIEGEL: Can drugs make anyone into a world record holder?

Heredia: No, that is a misapprehension: “You take a couple of tablets today and tomorrow you can really fly.” In reality you have to train inconceivably hard, be very talented and have a perfect team of trainers and support staff. And then it is the best drugs that make the difference. It is all a great composition, a symphony. Everything is linked together, do you understand? And drugs have a long-term effect: they ensure that you can recover, that you avoid the catabolic phases. Volleyball on the beach might be healthy, but peak athletics is not healthy. You destroy your body. Marion Jones, for example …

SPIEGEL: … five-time Olympic medallist at Sydney 2000 …

Heredia: … trained with an unparalleled intensity. Drugs protect you from injury. And she triumphed and picked up all the medals.

Another reason that PEDs are used is money. Elite athletes have sponsorships. Their success is directly correlated with the flow of money and therefore dictates whether or not they get paid to train. In order to keep their dream alive — the dream of competing and winning at the world level — they will do whatever they can to retain that money. Sometimes their family depends on it. They are full of incentive to train, recover, and perform to the best of their ability. Put yourself in their position: if your wife, kids, and grandparents relied on your money to live comfortably, or you could make enough money to support them for the rest of their lives, would you use PEDs for several years?

The last reason that PEDs are taken is because everyone is using them. Why would you subject yourself to a performance deficit when everyone around you is using PEDs? Glenn Pendlay has been told by junior international weightlifters that they cannot make it to the next level because they aren’t able to take enough “medicine”. Professional baseball and football players are routinely caught and disciplined for using banned substances. And you bet your ass that Olympic athletes are using whatever edge they can get.

And here’s the thing — most of it is untraceable!

SPIEGEL: Do you have any other secrets?

Heredia: Oh yes, of course. There are tablets for the kidneys that block the metabolites of steroids, so when athletes give a urine sample, they don’t excrete the metabolites and thus test negative. Or there is an enzyme that slowly consumes proteins – epo has protein structures, and the enzyme thus ensures that the B sample of the doping test has a completely different value than the A sample. Then there are chemicals that you take a couple of hours before the race that prevent acidification in the muscles. Together with epo they are an absolute miracle. I’ve created 20 different drugs that are still undetectable for the doping testers.

Angel Heredia doesn’t have a chemistry degree and he’s making undetectable PEDs. There’s a saying that says, “The drugs are always ten years ahead of the testing.” PEDs will not go away. The only way that they can is:

SPIEGEL: Can the testers win this race?

Heredia: Theoretically yes. If all federations and sponsors and managers and athletes and trainers were all in agreement, if they were to invest all the money that the sport generates and if every athlete were to be tested twice a week – but only then. What’s happening now is laughable. It’s a token. They should save their money – or give it to me. I’ll give it to the orphans of Mexico! There will be doping for as long as there is commercial sports, performance-related shoe contracts and television contracts.

Organizations like USADA or WADA lack the ability to do their jobs. They are making some headway by prosecuting people, but they are eliminating athletes — athletes like Lance Armstrong who are literally inspirational heroes — from sports that aggressively use PEDs. They are trying to prove the worth of their organization by publicizing the execution of the big names. It’s all in the name of “fairness” when in reality intelligently using PEDs is something that equalizes fairness across competitors. But it isn’t enough because athletes will always use PEDs.

SPIEGEL: Are there still any clean disciplines?

Heredia: Track and field, swimming, cross-country skiing and cycling can no longer be saved. Golf? Not clean either. Soccer? Soccer players come to me and say they have to be able to run up and down the touchline without becoming tired, and they have to play every three days. Basketball players take fat burners – amphetamines, ephedrin. Baseball? Haha. Steroids in pre-season, amphetamines during the games. Even archers take downers so that their arm remains steady. Everyone dopes.

If you’re still of the anti-doping mindset, you’re naive. There are even collegiate and high school athletes who use PEDs. There is no safe sport for you to watch other than 5-year-old T-ball.

For everyone one athlete that is caught, there are probably a hundred, maybe a thousand that get away with using PEDs. We waste congressional time and money trying to track PEDs users down and careers or lives are ruined as a result. “Sport” is a big industry, and it would be much more simple to legalize the use of PEDs and openly allow coaches and athletes to improve the already safe and effective methods of using them (the people who misuse them are idiots working out in your local Gold’s Gym). It would keep the athletes healthier, eliminate an archaic and useless system, and not change the outcome of the world’s sporting events.

But modern society is still stuck in mindset that the world is black and white, good and evil, with these silly regulations and witch hunts. The fact that everyone is using and the drug tests can’t identify any of them would be funny if it weren’t so devastatingly sad when it tarnishes the professional career of someone respectable like Lance Armstrong.

Note: This is coming from someone who has never used PEDs.

Edit: I’ve talked with some people and I have sort of changed my stance on the issue. Do I think Lance is a hero because of his drug use? No. But two things in particular make him admirable: a) the fact that he came back from full body cancer, trained hard as hell, and won the pinnacle of his sport SEVEN TIMES and b) how he has used this experience and fame to raise money to support people with cancer and research. Those are the admirable qualities.

The un-admirable qualities are how he has consistently lied to his fans (and donators) about using PEDs. He undoubtedly did, and lying about it only makes it worse. Lying isn’t good, but it may have been necessary to a) keep himself out of jail, b) keep the donations coming, or c) any other self-preserving quality, which could include preserving the seven wins. In the context that at least 75% of his opponents, if not all of them, are or were using the same drugs, I don’t know if I have a problem with this. It’s a fuzzy topic for me. The moral might be that, “The world isn’t black and white.”