NUTRITION: How to fuel your body and mind

What you eat profoundly affects how you feel and perform. Nutrition provides the foundation for energy, focus, and resilience.

Eat the rainbow

Colourful plant foods are rich in phytonutrients, natural compounds that combat oxidative stress, support neurotransmitter production like serotonin, and reduce inflammation. Each colour delivers unique benefits:

🍅 Red: Lycopene in tomatoes supports heart and prostate health.

🥕 Orange and Yellow: Carotenoids in carrots enhance immunity and vision.

🥬 Green: Chlorophyll and folate in leafy greens aid cellular repair.

🫐 Blue and Purple: Anthocyanins in blueberries boost brain health.

🧄 White: Allicin in garlic supports the immune system.

Consuming a diverse range of colourful foods fosters diversity of the gut microbiome. Fibre and phytonutrients found in fruits and vegetables act as pre-biotics, fuelling beneficial bacteria. Eating the rainbow not only provides a full spectrum of nutrients but aligns with cutting-edge research on the interplay between diet, gut health, and systemic wellbeing.

Metabolic flexibility and glucose regulation

A key component in maintaining energy and long-term health is improving your metabolic efficiency and regulating glucose levels. Blood sugar spikes and crashes don’t just sap energy – they also increase inflammation and can lead to chronic conditions over time.

The role of mitochondrial health and ubiquinol

Ubiquinol is becoming increasingly recognised as a vital component for healthy ageing. Found naturally in the mitochondria within all cells in the body, it works like the engine room for our cells, fuelling these organelles to generate energy (Andenosine Triphosophate or ATP for short).

Ubiquinol levels in the mitochondria start to decline naturally after the age of 20. This depletes the energy production in the cells of our body and, in turn, affects our mitochondrial health.

Multiple studies have shown that Ubiquinol may support health conditions including cardiovascular health, healthy male fertility, cognitive function, energy production, fatigue and inflammation, along with improved sports performance.

MOVEMENT: Smarter, More Functional Fitness

Daily movement is arguably the single most powerful tool you have to maximise your healthspan, vitality and quality of life.

1. Move More

The benefits of “micro-movements” – short bursts of activity that counteract the negative effects of prolonged sitting cannot be undervalued. Frequent movements throughout the day support circulation, metabolism, focus and glucose disposal.  

2. Functional Fitness

Prioritise exercises that mimic real-life movements:

• Squats: Build lower-body strength.
• Push-ups: Strengthen the upper body and core.
• Planks: Enhance stability and protect against injury.

3. Balance cardio and strength

Cardiovascular health is vital for longevity, but you don’t need to overdo it. Low-intensity steady-state (LISS) exercises, like brisk walking or cycling, are gentle yet effective. Pair these with strength training two to three times per week to maintain muscle mass, which naturally declines with age.

RECOVERY: The Game Changer

Recovery is often overlooked but is just as important as nutrition and exercise. It’s during recovery that your body repairs itself, grows stronger, and prepares for the next challenge. In the years I was training as an elite athlete, I wish I had implemented recovery sooner in my career. When I finally gave recovery the time it deserved in my program, it significantly impacted my ability to perform the next day and reduced my risk of injury.

Sleep: The Ultimate Recovery Tool

Sleep is important for tissue repair, memory consolidation, executive function, psychological function, hormone regulation, immune function and even interpersonal relationships.

Tips to optimise:

• Routine: Stick to consistent sleep and wake times.
• Environment: Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet.
• Wind-Down rituals: Avoid screens and incorporate calming activities.
• Dim the lights: Refrain from bright lighting after the sun sets. Darkness prompts our body to produce melatonin, our sleepiness hormone, bright artificial disrupts melatonin production
• Morning Sunlight: Getting morning sunlight assists in setting your circadian rhythm.

Integrating into your life: habits and mindset

 To successfully incorporate these elements into your life, focus on habits and mindset.

1. Identity-driven action: Align your actions with who you want to be. For example, if you want to be agile and strong, commit to moving daily.
2. Embrace challenge: Growth often comes from doing hard things. View challenges as opportunities to strengthen your resilience.
3. Focus on consistency: Aim for 80 per cent adherence to your goals. Small, consistent steps build lasting change.

Simple strategies like these can make a profound difference in daily energy and wellbeing. By integrating these principles into your routine with intention and consistency, you can unlock your potential and elevate your everyday performance.

Dr Lauren Burns is an Olympic gold medallist, naturopath and nutritionist (BHSc), performance and lifestyle consultant and author.

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MY LIFE IS a dichotomy, in that I’ve spent years in tae kwon do, love football and rodeos, but have an affinity for frozen yoghurt and watching Netflix with a good cabernet and wood wick candles next to my cats, Thelma and Louise. I attribute my temperament to genes and California hippy tap water.

The origins of personal traits, to include anxiety, can be biological, environmental, or inadvertently “seed-planted” by anxious parents. Male anxiety (a.k.a., “manxiety”) is clinically contagious if you’re around it long enough. My dad, a manly victim of indecisiveness, often had me second-guessing my own life choices, or not making one at all. To this day, I’m often paralysed by an Applebee’s lunch menu or a yellow traffic light.

Men are stalwarts of resolve with an uncanny ability to chug beer, char meat, and kill one another. We recognise that our cars and lawn mowers need tune-ups and diagnostic tests, but we rarely wash our feet in the shower, let alone visit a physician for our own check-ups – especially for anything regarding the brain. And when we don’t prioritise our own wellbeing, neither do others. If you’re a man with anxiety, however, the norms become skewed and irrational.

I grew-up a hypochondriac certain that every pain, rash, bump, or twitch was something malignant or terminal. I visited the hospital countless times per year while spending the equivalent of a Range Rover full of backup dancers on annual copays. What I thought was testicular cancer was an inguinal hernia from doing deadlifts. What I was certain was genital herpes was an ingrown hair. What I feared was Lyme disease was an allergic reaction to grass. And what I accepted as a heart attack turned out to be…anxiety.

Only twice did I not go to a hospital when I should have. The first was at 18 while suffering intense chest pains and laboured breathing because I had unknowingly collapsed a lung. In my defence, I thought it was heartburn. The second was when I intermittently peed blood over a 10-month stint. A rational man would interpret hematuria as the ultimate motivation for a hospital visit. But the only thing worse than my fear of potential hospice was the anxiety of a pending cystoscopy.

Consequently, I settled on platinum-level denial until I landed in surgery and chemo. Ignorance is a prickly muse. With chronic male anxiety, it’s torturous to determine what warrants an ER visit versus antacids. And when it came to my mental health, I handled it like most men: denial, distraction, and drugs. In that order.

“Men are MUCH MORE STIGMATISED by any admission of a psychiatric illness and are much LESS LIKELY TO SEEK TREATMENT”

Most men with anxiety have no idea what’s wrong with them – like Bill Bixby in The Hulk, they just feel “off.” Denial and distraction are why so many men walk around as functioning alcoholics or addicts. In the absence of knowing any better or a willingness to seek help regarding male anxiety, we plug the holes however we can. But if you treated any other ailment by ignoring or avoiding it, the outcome would be similarly grim. You can ignore asthma and diabetes for a while too. But every disorder has its dues.

Since anxiety, depression, and all disorders of the mind are still largely stigmatised among men, my first coping tactic was denial, lest I appeared weak and vulnerable among my peers. “While some may consider this a stereotype – that men do not seek help for mental health issues – it is statistically correct…men are much more stigmatised by any admission of a psychiatric illness and are much less likely to seek treatment,” says Sammie LaMont Moss, M.D., a psychiatrist at Kaiser Permanente in Denver.

This is particularly troublesome as depression and anxiety in men are more likely to manifest in substance abuse and suicidal behaviour. “We often see in the clinical setting that an attempt to address anxiety can manifest in different ways. For example, men will turn to substances like alcohol or cannabis for some immediate relief, which can cause long-term, harmful effects,” says Moss.

How anxiety presents in men

I’M AN EXCEPTIONALLY kind and empathetic guy, but anxiety makes me irritable and angry. If I’m forced to socially interact or deal with a rude stranger, I become a chupacabra with a flashpoint of WD-40. I expend great effort trying to determine when I’m feeling anxious before it defaults to a felony persona. But distinguishing between anxiety and irritability requires Maharajah-level introspection.

“Due to the social pressure that men experience based on the unwritten rule that men are to be strong and in control at all times, anxiety is not easily identifiable in men, even if that man’s anxiety has reached overwhelming levels” says San Diego psychologist Bruce Thiessen, Ph.D. “Many of the symptoms may express somatically, in the form of medical problems or conditions, such as ulcers, back pain, hypertension, and the like,” he says.

Dustin Siegel, Psy.D., a Chicago-based clinical psychologist and founder of the LEAP Center for Anxiety, agrees. “A lot of men have been told their whole lives to ‘man up’ or ‘be tough.’ It’s hard for many men to talk to someone else about their vulnerabilities, and one of the paradoxical truths about mental health is that the more a person – male or female – tries to bottle-up their feelings, the more likely they are to develop a problem.”

If I simply ignored my feelings of angst, I could pretend anxiety didn’t exist for me. But denial wasn’t designed nor intended to work long term. And when denying anxiety exacerbated problems, I turned to distraction. Distraction is an effective but equally short-term, noncurative technique in countering stress or discomfort, in that it avoids addressing the core issue.

How does chronic anxiety for men differ in anxiety for women?

“THE MOST OBVIOUS signs of male anxiety are the physical ones,” says Lindsay Israel, M.D., psychiatrist and chief medical officer at Success TMS. “Men might find themselves going to the emergency room or their primary care provider with complaints of chest pain, fearful they are having a heart attack,” adds Dr. Israel. As men, we need to save our hearts for red meat and break-ups.

Though anxiety is an equal opportunist, Dr. Israel shares that “women are twice as likely to develop an anxiety disorder as compared to men, and women are more likely to seek help for their anxiety symptoms. Therefore, men are more likely to develop severe symptoms of anxiety and possibly develop an additional depressive disorder due to the lack of treatment intervention.”

Thiessen confirms this assertion adding that, “men are also more likely to become aggressive, and to develop problems in their relationships, due to dysfunctional ways of expressing their anxiety. Many men turn to drugs, alcohol, gambling, and personally destructive sexual addictions to relieve chronic stress through escape,” says Thiessen.

In my case, I wielded distraction like artillery over my physical well-being. I over-trained in the gym, over-ran the trails, and over-swam in the lap pool. But I also over-imbibed alcohol. Drinking to distract is a futile endeavour. I would later harm-reduce to cannabis edibles, tinctures, and vapes. And on a few occasions, I casually overdid those too. Overdosing on THC edibles leads to a nauseous, frenzied panic that is ruefully memorable, with a hangover that rivals what you’d experience if you sniffed kerosene.

So, what to do with all this male anxiety?

MEN ARE FIXERS. We often try to fix things and people that aren’t broke. It’s important to note that acute anxiety that prompts us to do our taxes or flee a K-pop mob is healthy. Once it becomes long term or chronic, however, it’s detrimental to one’s physical and mental health.

“One of the best ways for a man to become comfortable with accepting that he has a mental health issue is to speak to other people,” says Moss. “Quite often a man will be surprised to learn how many other people are suffering similar difficulties. Finding out that you are not alone can go a long way to help normalise what you’re experiencing,” adds Moss. Anxiety doesn’t always love company, but it loves perspective.

Thiessen upholds this tenet. “Men need to feel accepted, and not judged, for showing both strength and weakness. Society might judge them; mental health providers will not,” he says. In almost every instance where I’ve revealed my anxiety struggles to another man, he has replied in commiseration with his own. It’s clearly indicative of the ratio and cross section of men silently suffering from anxiety.

You don’t need a panic room; you need a panic plan

THERE ARE SIMPLE and clinically effective things men can do to lower their anxiety:

• Talk to your primary care provider, who could potentially prescribe medication or refer you to other specialists who can help. “This is also an area where group therapy, segregated by gender, may help – particularly for men who are stigmatised and think they’re being seen as weak or as a victim. Learning what other men experience can help break that stigma,” highlights Moss.
• There are phone apps for anything from interpreting your dog’s barks, to fermenting mead in your man-shed, to treating your anxiety while preserving your privacy. Moss encourages his patients to leverage smart phone apps like Calm, myStrength, and Headspace. Digital therapeutics (DTx) are mainstream now.
• Biofeedback, medications such as SSRIs, SNRIs, and in more recent years, neuromodulation such as TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) are all effective options for treatment of anxiety disorders. “Typically, it is not any one modality that targets these symptoms for a person, it is more often a combination of various modalities that gives the most optimal results,” says Dr. Israel.
• Physical exercise is an exceptional way to relieve anxiety. “Exercise prevents an excessive buildup of cortisol in the body while increasing levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine, neurotransmitters that modulate anxiety and regulate mood and emotion, yielding a sense of peace of mind,” cites Thiessen. Hakuna masquata, fellow men. Moss suggests also integrating healthy lifestyle choices, nutritious eating, and limiting harmful substances like alcohol and cannabis along with your fitness plan.

More than just the “greatest hits” to contest male anxiety, this is my own triage to maintaining a career, relationships, and a life largely unfettered by the cerebral minesweeper of anxiety. Because there’s no place like “om.”

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health US.

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A new report in the journal Human Resource Development International has found that, contrary to popular belief, massive multiplayer online gamers learn by gaming and their skills in the workplace are enriched by hours spent playing games like Fortnite and World of Warcraft.

“Online gaming often gets a bad reputation, but our study reveals a different story. We found that gaming can actually help people develop valuable workplace skills,” reports study author Melika Shirmohammadi. “These skills include problem-solving, teamwork, leadership, and even self-confidence. Our research shows that gaming, when done in moderation, can be a way for people to grow both personally and professionally.”

Why gaming builds job skills

Look around your office. It’s likely filled with online gamers. The reasoning is simple: millions of people play “massively multiplayer online” or MMO games, in which they play together in a virtual world. The top three games – World of Warcraft, Destiny 2, and Final Fantasy – claim 150.6 M, 49.7 M, and 60.3 M total players respectively.

“The purpose of the present study was to examine hobby – an understudied but prevalent part of the nonwork domain – to understand if and how MMO gaming positively enriches employees’ work domain,” says Shirmohammadi.

His team conducted a qualitative study among 23 employed MMO gamers who had an average of 20 years of video gaming experience and had played MMO games for at least 10 years.

The MMO games examined (including World of War Craft, EVE and Final Fantasy) require players to coordinate tasks to achieve collective goals, respect team norms (e.g., arriving on time for missions), collaborate with others as part of a team, and avoid reckless or uncalculated behaviours that would jeopardise the mission – in the workplace that might be when your marketing lead brings music into a client presentation.

Gamers are better equipped to manage stress

The reason gamers might be set up to succeed in the workplace is due to their mindset, the researchers found. Gamers reported viewing work as solvable puzzles, and their experience resulted in improved patience in encountering problems and encouraged them to persevere in solving them.

One participant, an engineer, said: “I just see a puzzle and I’m motivated to solve it. So, it’s affected, I guess, my mindset in that way, such that I look at things as solvable…”

Other players say they developed self-confidence through game playing because they feel good about their level of success in the online gaming world. And others reported developing self-awareness as they received feedback on their own skills and how they played alongside team members.

Gamers’ ability with coaching skills – such as evaluating performance, providing feedback, giving instructions and inspiring others – was also traced back to their experiences working with fellow ‘basement dwellers’ taking out trash in games like WOW. Several participants mentioned the similarities between gaming and work that made such skills transferrable.

An IT specialist, described it this way: “I deal with a lot of new people [at work]. Since I kind of go out of my way in game to do all the coaching, I’ve become ahead of some of colleagues in explaining how to do certain things [to new employees] …”

Gamers have resilience

One famous gaming quote underlines the positive mindset gamers bring to the workplace: “Failure doesn’t mean the game is over, it means try again with experience”.

And eventually, levelling up.

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Just because he’s big, doesn’t mean he’s clever.

Well, that’s kinda debatable. After all, you can’t build supersized muscle without knowing at least a little bit about… building supersized muscle. But that’s not to say all bro-isms should be accepted without scrutiny.

Let’s put 10 common muscle mantras under the microscope.

Bro wisdom #1: No pain, no gain

‘I don’t start counting until it starts hurting’

What the science says:
There’s a difference between ‘bad pain’ – the kind that signals injury – and the satisfying ache of a good workout. But the bros were right about one thing: if you want to see results, you do need to be able to tolerate physical discomfort.

“We know that training to momentary failure – the point where your muscles are no longer able to move the weight with the correct form – is the fastest route to muscle gains,” says Nick Mitchell, coach and founder of transformation specialists Ultimate Performance, “while if strength gains are your goal, you want to push very hard but avoid actual failure.”

Think of it this way: once you’re able to hit all the reps in your prescribed rep range (for example, three sets of 12) with great form, add 1% or 2% more weight and start again.

When it comes to ‘normal’ soreness, everyone is different, he says. “Be mindful of your body’s feedback so you’ll know when your body is telling you “enough is enough” – without listening to the devil on your shoulder telling you to be lazy.”

If you’re new to training and unfamiliar with the harmless yet nauseating burn of a challenging set, Mitchell suggests this exercise: stand on the edge of the first step on a set of stairs and perform slow and rhythmic calf raises, going as high on your toes as possible and getting a deep stretch on the lowering portion of the exercise. “Within five to 15 reps, those suckers are going to burn like mad. By about 25, most people will have to give up… and then 30 seconds later all of the pain will have dissipated,” he says. “This is ‘good pain’.”

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #2: cardio eats up your muscles

“Bro, I don’t even know where they keep the treadmills.

What the science says:
Gone are the days when the mere mention of a 5K had weightlifters running for the hills. Mixed-discipline training is more popular than ever. A formal definition of the hybrid approach might be “the concurrent training of athletic disciplines that do not inherently support one another”, but generally what we’re talking about is athletes who lift heavy and run far.

“Just look at some of the top hybrid athletes to know it’s possible to maintain and even increase muscle mass when training for endurance,” says Kate Neudecker, personal trainer, nutritionist and Men’s Health fitness writer. “Multiple studies support this, with a large-scale review in Sports Medicine concluding that concurrent aerobic and strength training doesn’t compromise growth.”

But there are caveats. If your time and mental energy are limited, then “it can be beneficial to focus on one goal at a time,” she says. The time you spend on the treadmill is lost from the squat rack, after all. And if you’re expending a lot of calories and not replacing them, your body won’t have the energy to repair and build new muscle. If you’re struggling to see results, try scaling back.

Our Verdict: 2/5

Bro wisdom #3: there’s no such thing as too much protein

“You want the recipe for my 12-egg-white omelette?”

What the science says:
Public opinion has turned on this one. Once niche sports products spotted only in athletes’ kit bags, protein bars and shakes now line supermarket shelves next to the confectionery and Coca-Cola. Whether you get your grams from fortified foods and powders or from natural sources, most of us are at the very least conscious of our intake.

Bodybuilding lore has long dictated that around 2g per kg of body weight is needed to build muscle, while the NHS advises a more conservative 0.75g. So, who’s right?

‘Clinical studies concluded that consuming more protein than the recommended dietary allowance of 50g to 60g per day can improve body composition, even if not tracking calories,” says Men’s Health fitness director Andrew Tracey, a coach and nutritionist, who suggests a minimum of 1.6g per kg. “Protein is also muscle-sparing, meaning it will help you to avoid losing any of your hard-earned gains while chasing fat loss.”

Plus, it benefits blood sugar balance and satiety and is relatively hard to overeat when compared with foods based on fats and carbs.

And how much is too much? Regularly eating more than 2g per kg of your body weight per day has been linked to digestive discomfort, dehydration and headaches. “There’s also no real muscle-building benefit to it,” adds Tracey.

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #4: Monday is chest day

“And on the third day, he worked arms and back, and saw that it was good”.

What the science says:
There is a reason why many gym-goers still prefer to split up their weekly workouts in order to control the frequency with which they hit specific muscle groups – chest day, legs day and so on. Adding structure to your routine can help you reach your goals faster than winging it.

Training specific muscle groups on specific days naturally means you’ll work those muscles harder, too – although it also means you’ll need more time to recover before training those same muscles again.

But so long as you’re applying the principles of progressive overload – periodically increasing your weights, reps or sets, to ensure you’re not kicking back in your comfort zone – it doesn’t matter which body parts you work and when.

“Full-body workouts are never going to create a Mr Universe physique,” explains Mitchell, “but for most of the general public, I’d actively recommend them, if they’re limited to less than two hours of weight-training time per week.” It’s just more efficient.

Ultimately, however, adherence is what matters. It’s a platitude but nonetheless true: the best training plan is the one you’ll stick to.

Our Verdict: 1.5/5

Bro wisdom #5: don’t neglect the mind-muscle connection

“Your biceps can tell when you’re thinking about someone else…”

What the science says:
One of Arnie’s all-time favourite talking points, the original bro (Bro-G?) advocated for staying fully present throughout every rep, concentrating hard on the contracting muscles. He put it this way in a recent newsletter: “Have you ever tried to work out when you are distracted, and you pace around for too long between sets, and then when you lift the weight it feels heavier than usual? This is because your mind is not connected to your muscles.” Lifting, he goes on, should be “a form of meditation”.

Which all sounds very romantic – but so long as the bar is moving, does it really matter where your mind is?

“The mind-muscle connection is actually backed by multiple pieces of research,” explains Neudecker. In a study published in the European Journal Of Sport Science, participants who focused hard on their target muscle saw almost double the muscle growth during biceps curls as those who placed their attention elsewhere. Doing this, says Neudecker, can help “increase muscle activation and help us use our full range of motion”. It’s meathead mindfulness for the win.

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #6: bulk first, cut later

“It’s okay bro, I’m *chews noisily* bulking”

What the science says:
A favoured protocol of old-school lifters. The ‘bulking’ phase sees athletes eat surplus calories while training for muscle growth; in the ‘cutting’ phase, they switch to a calorie deficit, while grappling to keep those gains.

“For professional bodybuilders or athletes in weight classes, maybe there’s a justification for deliberately gaining and then losing large amounts of weight,” says Tracey. “But this doesn’t make sense for the average person. For a lot of people, it will mean you just end up gaining and losing the same 10lb (4.5kg) of fat each year, with minimal muscle growth to show for your efforts.”

Research suggests that overeating tends to result in weight gain around the abdomen, but weight isn’t as quickly lost from that area during dieting. Persistent yo-yoing could therefore make it more difficult to lose belly fat in the long run. So, should you stick to daily calorie targets with meticulous consistency? Also no.”It’s natural for your calorie intake to be higher at certain times of year,” says Tracey. “You may as well use these periods to power a concerted effort to gain muscle.” Don’t be afraid of weight gain to the point that you under-fuel muscle-building efforts, though. “What’s more intelligent than massive bulks and strict cuts is having a healthy, sustainable weight range to grow within.”

Our Verdict: 1/5

Bro wisdom #7: you need to shock your muscles

“That’s why I never follow a program – I’d lose the element of surprise”

What the science says:
It’s the subject of countless comedy Instagram Reels, but ask five gym-goers what ‘shocking the muscles’ means and you may well get five different answers. There’s no unified definition, but there are a couple of ways to interpret this idea.

Some people might see it as a directive to hop between workout programs – trialling one set of exercises one week, something entirely different the next. That’s unlikely to result in meaningful progress.

“In bodybuilding spaces, however, ‘shocking the muscle’ oftentimes means subjecting the muscle to a new stimulus to cause the muscle to grow bigger and stronger,” explains Neudecker. This doesn’t have to mean spinning the wheel every time you’re choosing an upper-body routine. It can simply mean the same boring-but-non-shocking stuff you’ve always done: incrementally exposing your muscles to bigger weights and more reps.

“The truth is you need to commit to a training routine for at least three weeks before making major adjustments,” says Neudecker. “This allows you to properly get the most out of a new program, and make measurable progress.”

Our Verdict: 3/5

Bro wisdom #8: you gotta chase the pump

“Arnie had it right – nothing feels better”

What the science says:
In recent years, ‘the pump’ – the feeling of engorged, swollen muscles one encounters when training with high reps and plenty of sets – has had mixed press. Many trainers have labelled it a vainglorious waste of time that does little more than temporarily swell the muscles up with blood.

Even if Arnie was pumping up for the pleasure alone, research shows that dropping the weight and upping the reps, especially after heavy lifting, can have serious muscle-building effects.

Research suggests that although a pump itself may not last, its effects can. One theory posits that the increased pressure on the cell membrane caused by the accumulation of blood in the muscle is perceived as a threat to cellular integrity. This triggers your body to reinforce the structure of the muscle, resulting in growth.

Or, to look at it another way: “It may be temporary, but a pump is one of the most fulfilling parts of training, and an insight into what your body could look like, permanently, if you keep up your efforts,” says Tracey. “This alone can lead to sustained levels of enthusiasm that keep you consistent in the long run, which is what really matters.”

Our Verdict: 4/5

Bro wisdom #9: you should hop on the creatine, bro

“I’m starting a petition to add it to the food pyramid”.

What the science says:
There was a time, not all that long ago, when training supps such as creatine were viewed as something almost akin to anabolic steroids.

Today, however, creatine is one of the most research-backed, benefit-stacked and widely used gym supps – not to mention one of the cheapest.

“This naturally occurring substance, found in meat and fish, stands up as an effective muscle-builder and strength-booster,” says Tracey. It speeds up production of adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which powers your muscles, allowing you to push beyond your usual limits. A review by the International Society of Sports Nutrition suggests it could help with injury prevention and post-exercise repair.

“Despite efforts by supps companies to market ‘new’ creatine products, there’s no need to reinvent the wheel,” Tracey says. “A 5g daily dose of widely available creatine monohydrate is just as effective as pricier equivalents.”

Our Verdict: 5/5

Bro wisdom #10: go heavy or go home

“Your mum called, she wants her dumbbells back”.

What the science says:
Well, that depends on your goal. A study in The Journal Of Strength And Conditioning Research found that while muscle gain can be achieved across all rep ranges (that’s more about total volume – see Bro Wisdom #1), lifting heavier weights is better for boosting max strength.

The lower rep ranges – such as lifting a weight you can only shift for, say, five reps with good form – help to build what is called ‘relative strength’, which means getting strong without adding extra muscle, says Mitchell. “This is obviously something that athletes need to consider, as many will want to maintain or improve their power-to-weight ratio and will gain zero benefit from extra body mass.”

But there are diminishing returns. “Most would do well to not go lower than three or four reps in a set unless specifically training for a maximal lifting contest,” he says. “Going too heavy (two-rep max lifts or heavier) can often be overkill and lead to overtraining.” That’s just showing off, anyway.

Our Verdict: 3/5

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

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TO PLAY THE role of Kraven the Hunter, Aaron Taylor-Johnson (Kick-Ass, Bullet Train) knew his on-screen physique was vital to playing Marvel’s trophy-hunting anti-hero in Sony’s sixth film based on the principle players of Spider-Man’s rogues gallery. “The costume is my stomach and my arms,” he said in an interview ahead of the movie’s release on December 12.

The bar for what a blockbuster superhero should look like was raised and set by Hugh Jackman in 2013’s The Wolverine. Jackman looked leaner, bigger, and more vascular than any leading man in the history of comic book films. Since then, other actors like Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, and Henry Cavill have all overhauled their bodies to raise the bar for what it takes to embody these larger than life figures – and now Taylor-Johnson takes his place as one of the most imposing physiques put to screen.

The man behind Jackman’s 2013 transformation is David Kingsbury, a UK-based trainer who has been instrumental in setting the modern standard of on-screen muscle. Kingsbury worked with Taylor-Johnson to help the 34-year-old actor prepare for Kraven the Hunter, a film in which the actor is more often shirtless (or at least, sleeveless and in an open vest) than not. It was a uniquely challenging prep that demanded hard workouts, flexible scheduling, and on-the-fly nutritional changes.

Men’s Health US caught up with Kingsbury to discuss the details of Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s beastly transformation—and the lessons you can take away for yourself.

MEN’S HEALTH: What was the main focus of transforming Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s body for the role in Kraven The Hunter?

DAVID KINGSBURY: We had a couple of months of prep time, and he needed to get a lot leaner than he was. He put in some good hard work before he started working with me to gain some muscle, but then we had to [lean him out] quickly to get him the definition he needed to look right on screen.

He also had some fairly heavy-duty stunt sequences early on, so we had to start prepping those as well. We had to get a bit more conditioning in for some sprint sequences and some hard sequences we did out on the snow in Iceland.

MH: What’s one unique challenge to working with actors?

DK: People think that actors have all the time in the world because they’re getting paid to get in shape. It’s really far from the truth. In fact, they have far less time than normal people to train… so much less time. But because there is less time to train, there is that ability to focus on narrowing down what’s going to be beneficial. I think [normal] people do too much most of the time.

MH: How did you structure ATJ’s schedule to be flexible during long and sporadic days on set?

DK: When we had more control of the schedule, we would do an upper-lower split four days per week. You’ve got a nice muscle training frequency of twice per week per muscle group, and you don’t have excessive volume so that [Aaron] is able to recover well, train again, and mix in those stunt rehearsals. We’d also do some conditioning work, like sprints on the track or some sled work.

Sometimes we would change the program to an upper-lower, push-pull-legs split. You don’t necessarily know when you’re going to have rest days, so you can’t design a perfect week of training. There is no week anymore, it’s just a rolling program. With the upper-lower, push-pull-legs split, you’re still training every muscle twice per week, but maybe over nine or 10 days. We’d shorten the sessions and split them out over five days versus four. We were still able to get the desired sets and reps done.

We followed a low-volume approach, meaning not too many working sets. But the working sets he did were taken relatively close to failure within six to 10 reps, so you’ve got those stimulating reps that support muscle growth. [See below for more details into Taylor-Johnson’s training.]

MH: What about his nutrition? Obviously, that plays a key role in getting a person lean.

DK: He was consuming a large amount of calories due to his activity levels. We didn’t track calories. For his macros, it was a fairly even split of 33 per cent protein, carbs, and fats. Because I was working so closely with him, we based how much he ate on his activity levels for the day. A day where you’re sitting in a trailer for 12 hours versus a day where you’re doing eight hours worth of stunts looks vastly different in terms of how you supply the body with energy.

There was a big focus on nutrient-dense and easy-to-digest foods. We didn’t want him to eat anything that would slow him down, and because he was shirtless on a regular basis, you don’t want him to be bloated. His diet was based around eggs, steak, fish, chicken, potatoes, fruit and white rice and raw honey.

When you’re on set, you need to eat quickly to get the food in between takes. Even simple things like having his food pre-cut made it easier for him to eat.

MH: How was prepping ATJ for Kraven different from some of the other moves you’ve trained clients for?

DK: The difficulty with shoots like this is there’s a lot of shirtless scenes or the character is in costume with their arms and abs out… [you] have to maintain that level of leanness throughout the shoot. That’s really difficult. To peak for one day is simple. You feel terrible, do your day, and then it’s done. When you have to maintain a level of leanness for that period of time, you really have to consider the foods you’re eating more seriously.

Also, when you’re on a film set, you never know what’s happening day to day. The call times are sent out at 10 p.m. the night before, and you don’t even know if you have time for the gym the next day. You have to be flexible with the planning and adjust as you go.

MH: Speaking of peaking, what does go into prepping an actor’s body for those heroic, full-physique shots?

DK: There are moments in these films where you go, “wow, that person is a superhero,”—and for the audience, it’s their first time seeing that person shirtless. We work harder for those particular scenes. Typically, I’ll speak to the director to find out what the key scenes are.

Then, it’s a six- or seven-day process of slight over-hydration with a slight reduction in carbohydrates so the body is flushing out water. One to two days prior to the scene, there’s an increase in carbohydrates and a reduction in water intake. We’ll also pump up for the scene, potentially using additional carbohydrates and sodium.

MH: What do you do if the director pivots while you’re halfway through this process?

DK: That kind of thing can happen. I’ve been on shows where I’ve had to go, “No, we can’t shoot that scene today. We started water loading.” It’s my job to communicate so the actor doesn’t get left in the middle of not being in the right shape for the shoot on the right day. People don’t understand the process and how vastly different a person can look in a five-day window.

MH: What are three key points someone should focus on if they want to achieve their own version of an on-screen superhero physique?

DK: Number one is to focus on the quality of your training. Prioritise less volume per session for less muscle damage and improved recovery, so you’re able to train more frequently at a higher level. A lot of people train six days a week and do six, seven, even eight sets per muscle group per session, and that can be difficult to recover from. Try an upper-lower split, where you’re training every muscle twice per week, doing two to three working sets per exercise. There’s no excess there; just get those basics right.

Secondly, aim for progressive overload, which can be with the addition of more weight or more reps with the same load. You want to try and hit those targets on a regular basis. Muscle gain is a slow process and the best way of achieving it is progressive overload over time with repetitive movements.

Lastly, you can get in great shape with bad nutrition, but if you’re looking to get in shape and stay in shape, you need to do it with quality foods. You need to make sure that you’re getting micronutrients and fat-soluble vitamins. For longevity in this process, healthy whole foods are key.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Upper Body Workout for Kraven the Hunter

To help Taylor-Johnson build and maintain muscle, Kingsbury had the actor follow a high-frequency, low-volume program – not too dissimilar from how many bodybuilders and physique athletes train. The Kraven lead trained each muscle twice per week, performing two to three hard sets (about one rep short of failure) per exercise for about six to 10 reps. Each session, Taylor-Johnson’s focus was to do one more rep than he did last time to drive muscle growth.

You’ll notice a lot of machine movements listed in the workout below. “Machines make a lot of sense for people that are trying to build muscle,” Kingsbury explains (a sentiment we agree with here at MH). “You can push harder [with machines]. There’s less coordination required and more motor unit requirement.”

Directions: Kingsbury likes to utilise a rep range of six to 10 for building muscle and strength. He also emphasises progressive overload, which is when you gradually increase the weight, frequency, or number of reps you perform each week.

For each of the exercises below, select a weight that you can do for eight reps. After you warm-up, perform your first working set. Rest for two minutes and then perform another working set. (If you’re new to lifting weights or haven’t been in the gym for a few weeks, start with two sets.) You’ll likely get fewer reps than your first set. Write down how many reps you got and try to add one rep to each set the next time you do this workout. When you’re able to do 10 reps, add about five pounds and start the progression over.

To warm-up to your working sets, do 50 percent of your planned working weight for six to eight reps, rest for 45 seconds, and then perform four reps with 70 percent of your planned working weight. Follow this protocol for every exercise so your muscles are properly prepared for two to three hard working sets.

Incline Smith Machine Bench Press

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

Wide-Grip Lat Pulldown

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

Machine Shoulder Press

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

Chest-Supported Row

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

Triceps Pushdown

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

Single-Arm Machine Preacher Curl

2 to 3 sets of 6 to 10 reps

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

Related:

Hugh Jackman’s complete workout and diet regimen

Jake Gyllenhaal’s complete training and diet regimen

The post Aaron Taylor-Johnson’s Kraven the Hunter trainer shares his hero transformation secrets appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

Australia’s booming beauty and personal care market, valued at about $7.4 billion in 2024, is having an environmental crisis: microplastics. While Australia is globally renowned for its pristine natural assets like the Great Barrier Reef, microplastics—tiny plastic particles less than 5mm in size—have been found in oceans and wildlife, and even in human bodies, within blood, lungs, and placenta. Among the industries contributing to this contamination is the most beloved skincare market, a sector that is reliant on synthetic, petrochemical-based polymers that provide ‘long-lasting’ or ‘waterproof’ effects.

Many skincare products, especially sunscreens and anti-aging creams, contain microplastics to achieve their waterproof and long-lasting qualities, essential for Aussie consumers who spend significant time outdoors. Yet, these same products often contribute to environmental degradation when washed off in the ocean, affecting the ecosystem.

Traditional petrochemical-based film-forming agents create a synthetic barrier on the skin that withstands water and sweat but breaks down into microplastic particles over time. These particles end up in waterways, eventually entering marine life and even human food chains. With this ‘Sunburnt Country’ being one of the world’s top markets for skincare, the environmental toll is amplified.

While growing consumer awareness around eco-friendly practices and the environmental damage caused by plastics, the need for sustainable alternatives in beauty and skincare is clearer than ever. Research shows that 8 in 10 Australians believe that manufacturers should take responsibility for reducing plastic packaging, as most Aussie consumers prefer Australian-made natural beauty products.

As Aussie consumers become more informed about the impact of these products, there has been a marked shift toward natural, vegan, and eco-friendly skincare solutions. Australia’s skincare market itself is projected to grow annually by 2.24% (2024–2029), defined by trends in sustainable, natural beauty—yet the industry’s reliance on petrochemical ingredients remains a hurdle: how to maintain high-performance standards without relying on the microplastics embedded in today’s skincare products. That is why CXC™, a Montréal-based company, led by François Lamoureux, has come up with a game-changing natural biopolymer-infused solution.

Natural biopolymers chitin and its derivative chitosan have the potential to transform the beauty industry. Long hailed for its bioactive properties—anti-aging, anti-wrinkle, anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and wound-healing—chitosan holds promise as a natural substitute for petrochemical ingredients. Moreover, it is a known fact that mushrooms were historically the first source of chitin, a fungus whose popularity is growing continuously in Australia. The visionary CEO of CXC™ sees immense potential in harnessing the power of mushrooms and natural biopolymers to transform the beauty industry.

Chitosan’s impressive range of properties, including moisture retention, film-forming abilities, and antimicrobial action, make it an ideal candidate for skin care. It can condition, protect, and even heal the skin while preventing water loss, a critical factor in anti-aging and hydration-focused products. Recent advancements have made it possible to isolate and utilize this natural vegan biopolymer more effectively.

However, the raw material itself, chitin, is insoluble in water, and transforming it into chitosan requires chemical processing that has historically made it impractical for commercial skincare use. This is where the CXC™ solution steps in. “Chitosan has been known for decades for its tremendous potential in skincare and beyond, but it was unusable in its natural form as it is water-insoluble. At CXC™, we’ve cracked the code to unlock its power for the first time and scaled it,” states François.

CXC™ has developed an ingenious, proprietary process to suspend chitosan in water, enabling its use in high-performance skincare products without the need for harmful petrochemicals or microplastics. François emphasizes that this breakthrough technology allows CXC™ to provide a truly clean beauty solution that meets the stringent demands of modern consumers and regulatory bodies alike. “By making chitosan both usable and effective, we’re not just reducing microplastics in the environment, we’re also elevating the performance of skin care products,” François says.

As Australia’s beauty and personal care market continues to grow, so does the demand for truly sustainable products. Current trends even indicate that consumers

are not just looking for eco-friendly packaging; they want skincare solutions that are petrochemical-free and beneficial for both skin health and the environment.

The CXC™ team has unleashed the documented powers of Chitosan, which can lead the charge toward a new era of clean, natural skincare that outperforms its synthetic counterparts with reduced ingredient lists. Through the CXC™ breakthrough technology, harmful petrochemical ingredients can be replaced with Chitosan-based biopolymers, helping brands eliminate microplastics while providing consumers with high-quality, long-lasting products.

The future of Australia’s skincare industry may very well be petrochemical-free, and with CXC™ at the forefront of biopolymer technology, the environmental benefits could extend far beyond beauty, offering a sustainable alternative for industries worldwide.

In the words of François Lamoureux, “The solution to the microplastic crisis already exists. Now it’s up to us to make it happen.”

Company Bio:

CXC™ helps transform fundamental research into applied research with the goal of solving distinct problems in large addressable markets and finding the best partner to commercialize the ensuing intellectual property. They invest in humans and foster creativity to get to the best ideas. CXC™ specializes in identifying technological gaps across various sectors including agriculture, oil & gas, and skin care, and filling those gaps through clever and elegant technological advancements.

Switzer Media newsroom and editorial staff were not involved in the creation of this content

The post Innovative CXC™ solution promises to revolutionise Australia’s skincare industry appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

It’s perfectly normal for your motivation to ebb and flow. That’s not even considering how difficult it can be to stay on top of your fitness routine in the fast-paced world we live in today, with work, social, and personal responsibilities. There will be days when the energy left in your tank for gym sessions isn’t quite enough, after everything else in your already busy schedule.

We’ve all been there. There are some days that you’re so stoked to go to the gym you end up spending hours there. Other days, it feels like there is not even your best gym buddy or the perfect workout playlist that could prompt your brain to lug your lethargic body up and off the couch. Occasionally, this tiredness is a sign that you need to accept defeat and take a rest day. It might mean you’re struggling with something deeper. Or, it may just be plain old-fashioned apathy.

Exercise is a scientifically-proven mood booster, though. Small bouts of exercise have been shown to significantly increase dopamine levels. Dopamine is part of our bodies reward system, and is known as a feel good” hormone because it elicits feelings of pleasure.

The times you’re feeling low just may be the days you need to hit the gym the most. That’s why it’s important to keep some motivation-enhancing trick up your sleeves for those moments where you’re really just not feeling it. If the go-to caffeine and hype music just aren’t doing it for you, maybe some words of wisdom from the greats will.

“The last three or four reps is what makes the muscle grow. This area of pain divides the champion from someone else who is not a champion.”

“There is no magic pill”

– Arnold Schwarzenegger, seven-time Mr. Olympia

“I have nothing in common with lazy people who blame others for their lack of success. Great things come from hard work and perseverance. No excuses.”

Kobe Bryant, 5-time NBA Championship winner

“In training, you listen to your body. In competition, you tell your body to shut up.”

– Rich Froning Jr., 4-time CrossFit Games champion

“You shall gain, but you shall pay with sweat, blood, and vomit.”

– Pavel Tsatsouline, chairman of StrongFirst and father of the modern kettlebell movement

“There’s no secret formula. I lift heavy, work hard, and aim to be the best.”

– Ronnie Coleman, eight-time Mr. Olympia

“If something stands between you and your success, move it. Never be denied.”

– Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, actor and pro wrestler

“If you want something you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done.”

– Thomas Jefferson

“Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.”

– Jim Ryun, Olympic silver medalist and politician

“A champion is someone who gets up when they can’t.”

– Jack Dempsey, American boxer and heavyweight champion

“If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.”

– Fred DeVito, CoreBarreFit co-founder

“Keep working even when no one is watching.”

– Alex Morgan, football player and World Cup winner

“There comes a certain point in life when you have to stop blaming other people for how you feel or the misfortunes in your life. You can’t go through life obsessing about what might have been.”

– Hugh Jackman, actor and member of the 1000-pound lift club

“Success is usually the culmination of controlling failure.”

– Sylvester Stallone, actor

“Don’t be afraid of failure. This is the way to succeed.”

– LeBron James, four-time NBA Championship winner

“I will sacrifice whatever is necessary to be the best.”

– J.J. Watt, retired football legend

“Most people give up right before the big break comes — don’t let that person be you.”

– Michael Boyle, performance coach to the 2013 World Series Championship Red Sox and owner of Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning

“I feel an endless need to learn, to improve, to evolve — not only to please the coach and the fans — but also to feel satisfied with myself.”

– Cristiano Ronaldo, football legend

“You’re going to have to let it hurt. Let it suck. The harder you work, the better you will look. Your appearance isn’t parallel to how heavy you lift, it’s parallel to how hard you work.”

– Joe Manganiello, actor and one of the 100 Fittest Men of All Time

“You have to push past your perceived limits, push past that point you thought was as far as you can go.”

– Drew Brees, retired NFL legend and 2010 Super Bowl MVP

“If you ain’t pissed off for greatness, that just means you’re okay with being mediocre.”

– Ray Lewis, two-time Super Bowl Champion and NFL Hall of Famer

“You dream. You plan. You reach. There will be obstacles. There will be doubters. There will be mistakes. But with hard work, with belief, with confidence and trust in yourself and those around you, there are no limits.”

– Michael Phelps, swimmer and 18-time Olympic gold medalist

“When you have a clear vision of your goal, it’s easier to take the first step toward it.”

– L.L. Cool J., rapper and actor

“We run for the people who think they cant.”

– Dick Hoyt, retired Lt. Colonel from the Air National Guard who pushed his quadriplegic son Rick through over 1,000 marathons, triathlons, and Ironman races.

“I was never a natural athlete, but I paid my dues in sweat and concentration, and took the time necessary to learn karate and became a world champion.”

– Chuck Norris, martial artist and actor

“Your health account, your bank account, they’re the same thing. The more you put in, the more you can take out. Exercise is king and nutrition is queen. Together you have a kingdom.”

– Jack LaLanne, bodybuilder known as the “Godfather of Fitness”

“To keep winning, I have to keep improving.”

– Craig Alexander, Ironman World Champion

“Some people want it to happen, some wish it would happen, others make it happen.”

– Michael Jordan, 6-time NBA Championship winner

“I know that if I set my mind to something, even if people are saying I can’t do it, I will achieve it.”

– David Beckham, retired football legend

“We must appreciate and never underestimate our own inner power.”

– Noah Galloway, former Army Ranger and 2014 Ultimate Men’s Health Guy

“I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was.”

Muhammad Ali, boxing legend and civil rights icon

“If you take time to realize what your dream is and what you really want in life – no matter what it is, whether it’s sports or in other fields – you have to realize that there is always work to do, and you want to be the hardest working person in whatever you do, and you put yourself in a position to be successful. And you have to have a passion about what you do.”

Stephen Curry, 4-time NBA Championship winner

“You miss one hundred percent of the shots you don’t take.”

Wayne Gretzky, 4-time Stanley Cup winner

“Enduring means accepting. Accepting things as they are and not as you would wish them to be, and then looking ahead, not behind.”

Rafael Nadal, tennis legend

“It’s hard to beat a person who never gives up.”

Babe Ruth, Hall of Fame MLB player

This article originally appeared on Men’s Health UK.

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The post 35 fitness quotes to push you through your toughest workouts appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.

At the opening of The Devil Wears Prada musical, for which he wrote the score, Elton took to the stage to deliver an emotional speech. The 77-year-old said that while the performance had sounded good, he hadn’t been able to see it.

“As some of you may know I have had issues and now I have lost my sight. I haven’t been able to see the performance but I have enjoyed it,” said. “I love to hear it,” he added, to a chorus of applause.

Elton previously spoke about his trouble with an eye infection back in August when he told Good Morning America that he couldn’t see out of his right eye and that his left eye was “not the greatest”. He also said that he was struggling to read or watch anything and that his condition was keeping him out of the studio, where he was previously working on a new album. “It’s been a while since I’ve done anything,” he said. “There’s hope and encouragement that it will be okay, but I’m kind of stuck at the moment.” It seems that his condition has worsened since then.

Earlier this year, Elton also ruminated on nearing the end of his life in his documentary Elton John: Never Too Late. “This is the latter time of my life. I don’t know how much time I have left,” he said.

What causes an eye infection?

Like any infection, most eye infections are caused by bacteria. You can be exposed to this bacteria in a variety of ways, including not properly cleaning your contact lenses, touching germs on a surface and then touching your eyes, eye injuries and exposure to chemicals in swimming pools.

How common are eye infections?

Eye infections are common, affecting around one in 300 people every year. They do not become more common with age.

Some eye infections are relatively minor, like conjunctivitis. Others, like a corneal ulcer or Endophthalmitis can be more serious. Elton John has not specified what kind of eye infection he is suffering from.

How common is loss of eyesight?

It is estimated that over 13 million Australians (roughly 50 per cent of the population) have a chronic eye condition, but this includes minor conditions like long and short sightedness. 131,000 Australians have either complete or partial blindness, and visual impairment does become more common with age. Around 9.4 per cent of Australians aged over 55 suffer from visual impairment.

What can you do to reduce the risk of losing eyesight?

There are a number of ways you can reduce your risk of visual impairment. First and foremost, regular visits to an expert to get an eye exam is the best way to prevent loss of eyesight. Most eye infections can be cured before causing serious harm if they are detected early.

It is also important to remember that in Australia our eyes face heightened sun and UV exposure, which can be damaging. Wearing protective sunglasses is a simple way to combat this. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle and diet will also minimise the risk of developing a condition that can cause eye damage.

Lastly, and worryingly considering the increasing ubiquity of screens, reducing instances of eye strain (like reading a book or looking at your computer or phone for extended periods) will greatly reduce your risk of visual impairment.

Related:

6 things you do every day that destroy your eyesight

James Van Der Beek reveals colorectal cancer diagnosis

The post Elton John reveals he has lost his eyesight appeared first on Men's Health Magazine Australia.