The MuscleTalker - Issue 94 (February 2010)

** The UKBFF MuscleTalk Championship 2010 is on the 27th June in Bedford with guest appearances by British Heavyweight Champion Daz Ball and 4 times World's Strongest Man Finalist Terry Hollands.

** New articles, interviews and reports in January:
- How to Read a Scientific Article
- Interview with UKBFF Heavyweight Champion Alvin Small

Past Bodybuilding Articles

*** Best wishes from James Collier and The MuscleTalk team! ***
See you at www.MuscleTalk.co.uk

*** Vitamin B12 in Bodybuilding ***
By James Collier, BSc (Hons), RNutr - Nutrition Consultant www.healthyaction.co.uk

Vitamin B12 is also known as cyanocobalamin and is necessary for healthy red blood cells and nerve fibres and has a role in carbohydrate metabolism. It is a water soluble vitamin and cannot be stored in the body, so foods rich in B12 need to be eaten every day. It is most commonly found in animal products, so those following a vegan diet need to be especially careful. Best food sources of vitamin B12 include most meat and meat products, fish, milk, cheese, yoghurts, eggs, yeast extract, fortified breakfast cereals, seaweed and pulses (in reasonable quantities).

Deficiency of vitamin B12 can lead to a form of anaemia and neurological degeneration. Causes of deficiency may be dietary insufficiency, malabsorption and the use of certain drugs.

Although the functions of vitamin B12 are numerous, those of particular importance to bodybuilders include carbohydrate metabolism and maintenance of nervous system tissue. Stimulation of muscles via nerves is a critical step in the contraction, coordination and growth of muscles. As B12 is linked to carbohydrate metabolism, it is also believed within bodybuilding circles that it can help stimulate a good appetite. This is not validated scientifically, but such is this myth believed that injectable B12 is popular with countless bodybuilders and athletes many of who swear it helps them perform better.

Although there is no need to inject B12 intra-muscularly, as with all vitamins, a good intake is vital. Consume plenty of the foods above as part of a varied diet, although as a bodybuilder you will probably already be doing this by default, due to the greater than normal amounts of food that we typically eat.

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*** Developing the Muscles of the Middle Back ***
By James Collier BSc (Hons) RNutr - MuscleTalk Moderator

Developing the middle of the back is not an area of training which you read about very often. You often see exercises for the lats, upper back and lower back, but rarely the middle. This is mainly because developing this area is of little concern to beginners, and even to intermediate bodybuilders. However, it could be a concern to some more advanced trainers especially those considering competing.

Where exactly am I referring to when I say 'middle back'? I mean the inner part of the lats and lower part of the traps: a well developed middle back will have a thick crevasse between the muscles running along the spine. If you are looking at a perfectly developed middle back you'll be able to wedge your fingers in when the poser does a rear double biceps pose, and when they show a rear lat spread, the lats will almost protrude out in the middle. It is an area which is often not so well developed in competitive bodybuilders; even those of a high standard. Granted, unless pointed out to you, this is not a flaw which is obviously noticed on stage, but it is an area judges will notice and when you're competing at a high standard, it could be the difference between winning or not.

Like I said, for the beginner this is probably of little concern. But when you've caught the training bug for a while and you think one day you may compete, why not add some mid-back training as part of your back routine to help develop thickness?

Exercises for this area include deadlifts; they pretty much work the whole back. Also performing bent-over rows and T-bar rows slightly differently to focus the central back area; rather than bending right over, tilt your torso at less of an angle with a slight bend at the knees and your head up - bring the bar up to the abdomen and then lower it. Low pulley rows will also work the mid back: on full contraction continue to lean slightly forward as you bring the V-bar to the torso and really squeeze - you'll really feel this in the mid-back.

*** Food of the Month - Pasta ***
By Big Les, MuscleTalk Moderator & Nutrition Consultant Healthy Action

Pasta originated... You would think this was an easy sentence to complete. However, the history of this staple food is, in fact, somewhat less than clear. Many people have been taught that pasta came to Italy from China when Marco Polo returned from his journey there. One thing we do know, pasta was already in Italy when Marco left for China. The controversy arises because there is pasta as we know it today, and lots of other ways of making a very similar food indeed.

Today in Italy, dried pasta can only be made from durum (wheat) semolina flour and water, which is a pasta form that developed after the Arab conquest of Sicily in the seventh century AD. We find that there are very similar wheat dishes back in the first century AD, and if you look at the use of chestnut flour then pasta can be traced back even further; even if a purist argues that chestnut pasta isn't pasta at all!

What our history tells us is that pasta has been around a long time, and quickly became a favourite among travellers because it could be dried and transported easily. Indeed, pasta was possibly the world's first convenience food. Nutritionally dried pasta is wheat and water, so it is naturally low in fat and a good source of carbohydrates. Pasta is not particularly rich in any particular nutrient; fibre wise it does reasonably well with around 4g for white and 8g per 100g dried pasta.

Of course you can get fresh and egg pasta, which will have a slightly different nutritional profile, usually a little more fat is involved, either from the egg or the inclusion of olive oil, neither of which is a bad thing.

Now we know that pasta is good for us, providing energy plus a few naturally occurring micro-nutrients and a little fibre, we need to know what to look for. The best quality pasta is produced in copper molds and dried slowly. The point is that pasta needs a textured surface with which to hold the sauce, and slow drying preserves the naturally mild flavour. To be a connoisseur you want to look for pasta that not only has a good textured surface but is also heavy for its volume. If you ever wondered why your sauce doesn't stick to the outside of your pasta, then it is because nearly all our pasta is mass produced using steel molds which give a smooth surface. Of course when buying fresh pasta it needs to be fresh to be at its best and heavy for its volume.

When cooking, dried pasta needs a lot of water and stirring to be at its best. For the purist, most people cook pasta too long making it soft and limp. Firm to the teeth or al-dente takes some practice, because it means your pasta isn't hard or chewy but not mushy either, but it still represents pasta at its best.

Once you have boiled your pasta until it's just right (feel free to add a little salt and olive oil, although the oil won't stop it sticking - that's what stirring and lots of water do), time to drain it. Simply drain it, save a little of the water to add to your sauce and serve. Under no circumstances rinse it, unless you want the pasta to lose any of the flavour it has. It is acceptable to rinse when making pasta salad, but ever noticed that the pasta in pasta salad is somewhat dull - that's what the rinsing does. Add the small amount of saved water to your sauce and you have a much more authentic pasta experience.

*** MT Powerlifting Totals Competition ***
By Hazel - MuscleTalk Moderator

Check out the latest updated totals here:
www.muscletalk.co.uk/fb.aspx?m=1083082
Members have been posting up their improved totals, so if you have totals listed already make sure they are up to date, and see where you are on the leader board!

Also check out the Cardio & Fitness forum Test your Mettle... What's your best? competition - open to all MuscleTalk members, just for fun so please join in!

Also the MT 220lb bench press competition: How many reps can you do? The table is updated regularly but nobody has yet managed to knock Pro-Member Hypershrek off of the top spot with 42!

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*** Recipe - Home Made Fresh Pasta ***
By Big Les, MuscleTalk Moderator

Prep time: 25 mins, plus 30 mins drying
Cook time: 3 mins in boiling water (Serves: 4)

** Ingredients
400g plain flour
4 large eggs
pinch of salt (optional)

** Method
A purist will tell you to put the flour out on a work surface, make a hole in it; personally I use my biggest mixing bowl. Break the eggs into the hole and add a pinch of salt. Using your fingers, mix the eggs roughly into the flour. Using your hands, knead everything together vigorously. Continue to knead the mixture until it forms a really smooth, pliable ball of dough. Alternatively bung it all in a food processor and make the dough that way!

Roll out the dough thinly with a rolling pin (a short light rolling pin is a nightmare, use a heavy one that is at least too big for a cutlery drawer!), then fold it in half and roll it all out again. Continue to do this over and over again until the dough is really elastic, smooth and shiny.

The traditional test that the dough is ready to cut is to use a rolling pin which will make a neat snap as it rolls over the fold, indicating that the tension in the dough is at the right point; this takes practice.

As an alternative to rolling out the dough by hand, you can use a pasta machine:

Take a plum-sized lump of pasta dough to work with, covering the remainder with a damp cloth or cling film. It is really important to cover with the damp cloth, and I found the damp cloth works better than cling film, if the dough dries out forget about it being workable with afterwards.

Press the dough through the rollers of the machine, starting at the widest gap. Fold it in half and roll it through again.

Continue rolling it through the rollers over and over again, 3 times on each gap, folding it in half after each roll, decreasing the gap between the rollers each time. Please note that after the pasta has snapped audibly over the fold as it passes between the rollers, you will not need to fold it in half again but simply continue to roll it through each gap three times. When you get to the last or penultimate gap, you will achieve a silky smooth, cool, fine sheet of pasta.

Finally, cut the pasta to the shape you want, which can be done my machine or by hand, remember pasta dries very quickly so keep it moist using a damp tea towel or cling film. You can then dry it (on a rack) or plunge straight in and cook it.

Top tip: use very fine flour and once you have made the pasta do not dredge it back through flour , this will almost guarantee a sticky sludge mess in your pan as the flour acts like glue when boiled!

More great bodybuilding recipes can be found in the eBooks 'Muscle Menus', 'Muscle Menus 2', 'Muscle Menus Vegetarian' and Muscle Menus Shakes, Bars and Smoothies

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*** DVD Review - Sarah Bridges: Sky High ***

Available from: www.sarahbridges.co.uk

Sarah Bridges, an IFBB Pro Bodybuilder, is one of the UK's leading women's physique competitors, as well as being a UKBFF judge. Together with the Creative Ecco production team she has brought out her own DVD Sky High.

You will see Sarah training at what she refers to as her 'second home', the Ministry of Muscle gym in Kent. Sarah takes us through what made her want to start training, through her experiences with film work, making videos, up to her next goal, the Olympia!

Familiar faces from the bodybuilding scene appear with Sarah: pushing Sarah with her training, gym owner Steve Winter and pro bodybuilder James Llewellin, and Sarah's husband Bill Bridges, gives us his insight into Sarah's career. Included also is footage of Sarah guest posing.

The DVD shows Sarah's a dedicated bodybuilder and clearly trains hard!

The articles in The MuscleTalker are for information purposes only and are the sole expressions of the individual authors opinion and are those not necessarily shared by the owners of www.MuscleTalk.co.uk