Indholdsfortegnelse for July - August 2025 i Men's Fitness South Africa

A boulder way to get happy When your goal is to not fall and break bones, that can keep your mind from dwelling on negatives and actually beat depression, a recent University of Arizona/University of Erlangen, Germany study showed. The research, which looked specifically at bouldering — rock climbing done close to the ground with no ropes — found that people who climbed three hours a week for eight weeks moved from moderate to mild depression.…

1) RUN TALL Anything more than a very slight forward lean, and you’ll land too hard and shorten your stride. 2) BAN THE BOUNCE Vertical movement is wasted energy. The smaller your up-down oscillation as you run, the better. 3) DON’T CROSS THE MIDLINE Your hands should move toward, but not cross, an imaginary line down your middle. 4) FOREFOOT IT The quicker the pace, the farther up on your foot you should land. Distance runners typically land heel first; sprinters’ heels never touch land. 5) DON’T STRAIN Try to work only the necessary muscles: clenching your fists or face won’t speed you up; relaxing them will.…

Doves Farm Organic Brown Rice Penne For those who avoid wheat and gluten, that doesn’t mean that you have to forego the taste and texture of normal pasta. Doves Farm Brown Rice Penne is a delicious, naturally wheat and gluten-free product that’s made from only the finest organic ingredients. Granoro Glutenfree Spaghetti Granoro uses a mix of white and yellow cornflour, quinoa and rice flour to produce a product that comes very close to conventional pasta and is on par with durum wheat pasta. It’s also delicious with any healthy pasta sauce. Biofair Rice and Quinoa Fusilli Biofair Rice and Quinoa Fusilli is naturally glutenfree, a great source of protein and easy to prepare keeping its shape during cooking. Explore Cuisine Black Bean Spaghetti The Spaghetti is made from organic…

The benefits These little nuggets from the sea are nutritional powerhouses. Raw and unadorned, a dozen oysters provide… 145 CALORIES 9 GRAMS OF PROTEIN 572 % OF ZINC RDA Try this! Skip the breading and frying. This grilled recipe from Molly Kimball is a healthier oyster indulgence. Simple grilled oysters SERVES 2 INGREDIENTS ¼ cup olive oil1 garlic clove, finely chopped1 tsp cayenne pepper or Italian seasoning Black pepper2 dozen oysters TO MAKE 1) Heat grill. Whisk together first 4 ingredients. 2) Place oysters in shell on grill; spoon oil mixture over. Heat till bubbly (about 2 min.). 3) Optional: Serve with a whole-wheat baguette for dipping into the oil. PER SERVING CALORIES 312 PROTEIN 8g CARBS 9g FAT 28g Step-by-step shucking 1) Wrap your hand in a dish towel; take…

Write her just “Hey”. Do this and you’ve got an 84% chance of being ignored — exactly what you deserve for being so goddamn unoriginal. Post selfies. Obvious selfies get 40% fewer likes than nonselfies — and bathroom selfies (c’mon, really?) get 90% fewer. Show off your six-pack. Abs pics say you’re showing off or on the make or have poor judgement, says eHarmony CEO Grant Langston Sound illiterate. Profiles jammed with misspellings and bad grammar get 77% fewer responses. Use a damn spellcheck! Really work it. Profiles with the word workaholic get 82% less action. In fact, if you’re not an astronaut or celeb, don’t talk shop. Show your gamey side. The words gamer and video games in a profile get 88% and 55% fewer responses, respectively.…

LET’S START WITH the obvious and redundant, so you know I’m not a bot: Elodie Yung is extremely beautiful and very, very sexy. And French, which is the same as sexy, really. Yung, 37, is co-starring in Marvel’s new Netflix series The Defenders, as the complex sociopath assassin Elektra, the same character she brought fire to in the Emmy-nominated Daredevil. The half-French, half-Cambodian ex-law student — who also stars in The Hitman’s Bodyguard — got her big break in 2013’s GI Joe: Retaliation. We get a big break every time we see her. Q You grew up on the hard outskirts of Paris. How bad was it? It was quite a tough area. But when you grow up there, it’s your reality. I think I only realised how tough it…

1) Did it take months to book an appointment, and then forever to be seen? How long it takes to snag an appointment and how long you wait once you’re there can reveal a lot about future visits: At 10am, is he already two hours behind? Ain’t nobody got time for that. 2) Was the doc engaging? Not in the McDreamy sense, but did he make eye contact during conversation and actively listen to and address your concerns without interrupting you or scoffing at your “I read online” remarks. 3) Were lifestyle and potential long-term risks discussed? Things like family medical history and how you eat, sleep, exercise, and handle stress should all be covered during your first visit. Omitting those topics is a huge oversight — proceed with caution.…

About 800 million people worldwide lack access to clean water, a deficiency that kills 3 million a year. Even still, we are too damn lazy to drink enough of it. Check out what parts of the world need it, who’s wasting it, and who’s doing a great job of keeping it flowing for the rest of us. 100% Used water recycled by the Space Shuttle 9% Used water recycled by Spain 86% Used water recycled by Israel CENTRAL AFRICA CAN’T AFFORD IT Central African villages may have clean water nearby but not enough money to build a way to consistently deliver it. NORTHERN CHINA HAS OUTGROWN IT This area has a local population so large, it simply needs more usable water than can be found nearby. CLIMATE CHANGE IS OBSOLETING…

Sugar’s negative effect Fuels cancer cells Cancer can thrive on the sweet stuff, showing a possible link between diet and the Big C. Shortens lifespan Sugary diets have been shown to affect a gene tied to longevity, cutting lifespan by 7%. Increases disease risk Eating 25% of your daily calories in sugar can up the chance of heart disease by 50%. WILLY WONK A must have been riding a sugar high: Candy isn’t dandy. In fact, routinely chomping on more than nine tablespoons of sugar per day — the American Heart Association’s suggested maximum daily limit for men — has links to diabetes, obesity, and heart disease. Studies also show that sugar can shorten lifespan and may even provide fuel for cancer cells. If your attitude toward the sweet stuff…

Exercise form, the mindmuscle connection, whether you remembered to pack clean undies in your gym bag — these are all thoughts a guy might have during a workout. Wondering how exercise impacts bone marrow? That doesn’t make the list. But some researchers looked into it and discovered that — although bone marrow doesn’t give us energy when working out (despite popular opinion) — the fat in marrow plays an important role in bone health. What’s more, physical activity torches the fat in bone marrow and burns it for fuel, which leads to stronger and thicker bones in just a few weeks.…

YOU KNOW THE SAYING “LESS IS MORE”? Well, it applies to building muscle, too. Carelessly piling on weight and doing more work can be a one-way ticket to overtraining and injury. A smarter way to add an inch to your arms or bulk up your legs: Train with these simple gym-rattested techniques that don’t require you to spend more time in the gym. 1) Reverse Pyramids Most pyramids begin with the lightest weight/highest reps and move to heavier weight/fewer reps—so, a 15-rep first set, 12-rep second set, etc. Reverse pyramids start with the heaviest weight/fewest reps, when your muscles are less tired, and end with the lightest weight/most reps. More overload means more growth. 2) Forced Reps To achieve more reps in a given set than you can physically do…

SET THE BIKE UP RIGHT “Comfort is the No. 1 driver of cycling performance — if you’re not comfortable on the bike, you’ll ride less and won’t improve”, says cycling expert Mat Steinmetz. That means adjusting the saddle so your knees and ankles can move within an optimal range — too high, and you’ll be reaching for the pedals; too low and you’ll drop your heel. Serious cyclists should have a pro at a bike shop set up their ride; the rest of us can use these guidelines: ■ Knee angle Set the saddle so there’s a 35 to 40-degree (slightto-moderate) bend in your knee at the bottom of the pedal stroke. ■ Ankle angle Aim for a 90 to 100-degree angle so the ankle appears to be in a…

Flank steak with beercaramelised onions SERVES 4 INGREDIENTS ¼ cup olive oil¼ cup soy sauce1/3 cup orange juice2 garlic cloves, minced1 tsp chilli powder• 700g flank steak1 tbsp butter1 yellow onion, sliced2 tsp brown sugar Salt and pepper½ cup dark beer2 tsp whole-grain Dijon mustard DIRECTIONS 1) In a shallow dish, whisk together olive oil, soy sauce, orange juice, garlic, and chilli powder. Add steak, cover, and refrigerate for 3 hours. 2) Remove steak and pat dry. Heat a grill to medium-high. Grease grate and grill steak for 2 minutes, then rotate 45 degrees. Grill 2 minutes more and then flip. Repeat and cook until inside is 55°C. Remove and let rest 10 minutes. 3) Melt butter in a pan on medium heat. Add onion and cook 5 minutes. Stir…

WHY ARE WE STILL USING an almost 200-year-old formula to determine who’s fit or fat? We’re talking, of course, about the body mass index, or BMI, developed in 1832 by a social scientist to explain variations in humans’ shapes and sizes. Unfortunately, it has a major flaw: It doesn’t account for the fact that both bone and muscle weigh more than fat. So, according to BMI, the average muscle-bound rugby player would likely be categorised as “obese”, and top sprinters — who have maybe 8% body fat on a bad day — would score as being at least a bit overweight, a 2014 study showed. Plainly put, BMI is a useless metric that belongs in the dustbin of history. Fortunately, though, there are many newer, more accurate ways to gauge…

NOBODY WILL EVER CALL a Bloody Mary a health drink. But compared with other cocktails, it’s downright pious. Built around tomato juice (which packs just 25 calories per 120ml — compared with more than 100 for sour mix — plus tons of vitamins A and C), it can handle added indulgences like a strip of bacon and still come out a winning concoction. Here are six of our favourite Mary variations: THE BLOODY MARIA • 120ml Clamato juice• 10ml lemon juice• 60ml mezcal2 dashes Worcestershire sauce2 tsp horseradish1 pinch grated ginger1 pinch celery salt1 dill pickle spear (for garnish) TO MAKE Combine ingredients, stir, and serve over ice. THE MING’S REVENGE • 120ml tomato juice• 10ml lime juice• 60ml sake1 tsp wasabi paste½ tsp soy sauce½ tsp sriracha sauce1 pinch…

Because toys for grown men should still make you feel like a kid at Christmas. The Year of “Oh, I Need That” There’s something primal about the moment a man lays eyes on a gadget that hits every nerve in his brain’s pleasure center. It’s the exact same rush cavemen probably got from discovering fire — except now, fire comes with a USB-C port, Bluetooth 7.0, and an app that tells you how “optimized” your flame is. 2025 isn’t about having the most gadgets. It’s about having the right ones — tech that makes you look slick, feel like James Bond, and maybe (just maybe) impress someone across the bar when you casually flick open a folding phone like you’re in a sci-fi movie. This year’s Lust List is stacked…

Q What other interests do you pursue outside the gym? Although my daily lifestyle consists of basically the same, or a similar routine almost every day, which I have absolutely no problem at all with because I’m doing what I love and that excites me, I don’t really have much time to try, or do a whole lot of other things. In my spare time I really enjoy hiking or going for long walks in a scenic environment, doing photoshoots is something I have a lot of fun doing too. As long as I can eat too, baking is definitely something I enjoy doing. Q In 2016 you won the USN Face of Fitness, and you have been an Ambassador for USN ever since. How did this opportunity change your…

IF WATER TASTES BAD, IT IS BAD Your mouth can tellyou when you need to drink water but not how safe it is. For example, arsenic and bacteria — two big drinkingwater threats — have no noticeable taste. Lead has a mild flavour and can even be sweet. A metallic flavour can signal low (safe) levels of metals. And though chlorine tastes bad, it keeps water clean. But, if tap water suddenly changes flavour or appearance, that could mean problems. CARBONATED WATER ROBS YOUR BONES OF CALCIUM AND LEADS TO OSTEOPOROSIS The origin of this oddball theory is a mystery, but study after study has shown that carbonated and sparkling water have no negative effect on bone density. On the other hand, some research has shown that colas can negatively…

MOST GUYS THINK they’ve cracked the dietary code for larger, stronger muscles: protein with a side of protein. Well, new research — especially on the connective tissue that holds your muscles together and connects them to bone — suggests it’s not that simple. Not only is all protein not created equal, but not all carbs are evil, liquid egg whites are an unnecessary evil, oysters are amazingly good for you, and one fish held in high, healthy esteem may actually be terrible for you. With help from Brian St Pierre, a nutrition coach for precisionnutrition.com, we offer the nine new guidelines for stocking a muscle-building fridge and eating away. (Just remember to keep working out.) FOR STRONG, POWERFUL MUSCLES RULEN 0.1 Fish Carefully Low in calories and price, tilapia is…

HEALTH DECLINES A 16-year Swiss survey of more than 11 000 adults found that marriages, over time, led to declines in overall health. IT’S NOT A LWAY S N I R VA N A A review of 18 studies found that markers for happiness increased only slightly after tying the knot and then slid back to single levels. IT CAN GET YOU DOWN Depression also follows the same trend of improving and then becoming worse after a period of marriage.…

IN THE LATE ’90S, I was teaching culinary students about a gluten-free (GF) diet for people with a medical condition called celiac disease. Back then, gluten was foreign, and the idea of not eating pizza, bread, or pasta was absurd. Today, 20 years later, going glutenfree has gone mainstream — and not just for those with medical conditions that might necessitate it. Most people looking to lose weight or become healthier have probably at least once wondered whether or not they should ditch gluten. So, should you? WHAT IS GLUTEN, ANYWAY? Gluten is a combination of two proteins, gliadin and glutenin, found in wheat, rye, and barley. It can show up in everything from pasta to cookies to soy sauce to beer. (Though oats don’t naturally contain gluten, they’re often…

Thai chicken curry on sweet potatoes SERVES 4 INGREDIENTS 4 sweet potatoes Olive oil, as needed2 tbsp chopped ginger5 garlic cloves, chopped4 (170g) skinless chicken breasts, large dice Salt and pepper Juice of 1 lime1 onion, julienned4 celery stalks, bias cut4 carrots, bias cut1 red bell pepper, bias cut1 (400ml) can coconut milk2 cups chicken stock3 tbsp red curry paste5 drops fish sauce1 handful coriander, roughly chopped¼ cup basil leaves¼ cup mint leaves DIRECTIONS 1) Roast potatoes at 200°C until fork-tender, about 40 minutes. 2) Heat oil in a pan over medium-high. Add ginger and garlic. Season chicken with salt and pepper, add to pan, and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. 3) Add juice of ½ lime, onions, celery, and carrots. Cook for 2 minutes, add peppers,…

There’s something electric in the air when a fresh wave of music crashes onto the scene. It’s that thrilling moment when you stumble across a track so catchy, so raw, or so hypnotic that it burrows into your brain and refuses to leave. Whether you’re the kind of person who lives for festival anthems, underground hip-hop gems, or soulful ballads that hit just right, this year’s crop of emerging artists is about to redefine your playlists and reshape the soundscape of 2025. Forget what you thought you knew — these names are the next big thing, ready to make waves, break records, and maybe even change the game. The Genre-Benders Where Styles Collide & Magic Happens Music in 2025 is a kaleidoscope of sound, swirling vibrant colors and patterns that…

Riah, you’ve built a reputation as one of Atlanta’s most dynamic trial attorneys. What first drew you to law, and what continues to fuel your passion for justice today? So my parents were both in the legal field and it just seemed like a natural progression, as I saw them, they worked very hard on behalf of their community. They both worked for the government. My dad was at the DA’s office and I knew that that’s something I had a passion for, and that Has I understood. So that natural progression made me want to do the same. I wanted to be someone who gave back to the community and served others, and I thought there’s no better way to do that than to understand our laws and figure…

THE LOUSIEST DOCTOR I’VE EVER VISITED had a memorable waiting room. Everything — every pen, pencil, clipboard, clock, name tag — trumpeted the name of a big pharmaceutical company. Not once did I sit there without seeing a stream of drug reps file through, roller bags rolling behind, to be greeted warmly and whisked behind closed doors. • I stuck with Dr No until the day I’d secured the morning’s earliest appointment but still waited two hours, with my tantrum-prone toddler and debilitating stomach pain. As I was led back to the dim examination room, I passed Dr No chatting with a flock of those smartly dressed, ruthlessly attractive drug reps. When he finally deigned to see me, my son was yowling like a feral pig. What I remember from…

The American National Academy of Medicine recommends that men get 3.7 litres of water per day. But staying hydrated isn’t as simple — or as limiting — as filling up a milk jug in the morning and taking the last swig before you go to sleep. Your needs depend heavily on a number of factors: your body size and activity level, the weather, your health, and just how sweaty a human you are. If you’re a big guy exercising in the heat, you’re obviously going to need a lot more water than a smaller person perched on his chair in a cool office all day. Pace yourself Spread your water intake throughout the day, says dietitian Katherine Zeratsky. If you spend hours without a drink and then chug a bottle…

1. AT HOME For extra-cleantasting water, try PUR’s Advanced Filtration System, which attaches easily to a faucet and removes 70-plus contaminants. R860, ubuy.za.com 2. AT THE GYM Klean Kanteen’s stainless steel bottle is tough, light, dishwasher safe, and, most important, pleasant to drink from. R350, yuppiechef.com 3. ON A RIDE The 3l Camel-Bak Ratchet is designed for mountain biking, but it’s a convenient way to schlep water on any kind of excursion. R860, probikekit.co.uk 4. ON A RUN When you’re running, a belt is the best way to pack water. Nathan’s Trail Mix has a zip pocket and holds two 300ml flasks with pushpull caps. R1 850, wantitall.co.za 5. AT THE OFFICE Add some fizz to your daily grind by grabbing a tasty flavoured aQuellé sparkling…

AS THE WEATHER GETS WARMER, most of us want to make our workout routines as efficient as possible so we can spend more time outdoors and less time in a dimly lit gym. A ladder-rep scheme — increasing or decreasing weight as a set progresses — is an effective way to do that because it pumps volume into your workout. Adding a circuits component to this down-the-ladder-styled routine also offers a cardiovascular benefit while boosting both strength and endurance. How it works Think of this as part strength training, part conditioning. The varying degrees of rep ranges will stimulate your muscles in new ways, and the circuit formatting will keep your heart rate elevated throughout the entire routine for maximum calorie burn. The ideal situation would be to take on…