Indholdsfortegnelse for November - December 2025 i Men's Fitness South Africa

STRENGTH TRAINING CJ Murphy, M.F.S. Owner, Total Performance Sports, Everett, MA Jim Smith, C.P.P.S. Owner, Diesel Strength & Conditioning Zach Even-Esh Owner, Underground Strength Gym, Edison, NJ WEIGHT LOSS Bob Harper Fitness expert; trainer, NBC’s The Biggest Loser Chris Powell, C.S.C.S. Trainer; author; transformation specialist, ABC’s Extreme Weight Loss Frank G. Bottone Jr., Ph.D., R.D. Author, The Diet Denominator: Fill Your Tank for Less FINANCE Roy Cohen Career counselor; author, The Wall Street Professional’s Survival Guide; careercoachny.com Chris Bart, Ph.D. Business consultant; author, A Tale of Two Employees DERMATOLOGY Tina West, M.D. Board-certified dermatologist; founder of the West Institute, westskinlaser.com Annet King, Director of global education, the International Dermal Institute and Dermalogica PHYSICAL THERAPY Jay Dicharry, M.P.T., C.S.C.S. Director of biomechanics, Rebound Physical Therapy FOOD Danny Boome Celebrity chef, currently…

Vegetarians build as much lean muscle ■ Getting plenty of protein postworkout is key to speeding muscle growth and aiding recovery — but what type of protein is best? To find out, researchers at the Arizona State University in the US tracked the diet and workout habits of 70 elite endurance athletes — 43 meat eaters and 27 vegetarians. And surprise! At study’s end, the veggie eaters had virtually the same lean muscle mass as the carnivores and just as much leg strength. And though the groups’ VO2 max scores showed they were equally fit, the vegetarian women’s numbers were 13% better. The take-home: If you’re getting the right amount of protein per day (1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight), it doesn’t matter what form it comes…

Boxing gyms have come a long way from the gritty, dank caves Rocky prowled in Philly’s predawn hours. Just as we had the luxury-climbinggym revolution last year — when men skipped the treadmill to flex their bouldering skills — we’re now witnessing an explosion of ultra-highend boxing temples. Leading the way are US-based Box ’N Burn Boxing and Fitness, Chicago’s Unanimous Boxing Gym, and, most recently, the gleaming Rumble, which opened a 550-plus-square-metre location in New York City this last January. At this knockdown palace, which is partly co-owned by a former Google executive and a master trainer from Bravo’s Work Out New York, you can work on full-body toning while hitting an aqua heavy bag, which is much easier on the joints and tendons. “Our clients don’t just punch…

■ The dish paella (pronounced pa-AY-yuh) is actually named for the shallow cooking pan in which it’s made and served. Paella originated in Spain, where centuries ago farmers would throw together white rice and any proteins they could find, and cook them over an open fire in the fields where they worked. Over time, paella evolved into a masterpiece of Spanish cuisine: A dish typically made with white rice; a variety of seafood (shrimp! mussels! lobster!) and/or meat (chicken, chorizo); a flavour base (sofrito) of garlic, onions, peas, and tomatoes; and a sprinkling of saffron. But white rice isn’t the optimum carb for health-conscious guys; and what’s a meal without plenty of veggies? So we’ve put together this better-for-you paella by swapping out rice for quinoa, the king of whole…

What’s the minimum amount of exercise I can do and still see results? JACK D, JOHANNESBURG ■ What year did you graduate from the University of Underachievement? Seriously, “the minimum” — that’s what you want to know? As my friend Zach Even-Esh, from the Underground Strength Gym, says, the way you do anything is the way you do everything. Think about that: If you look for the minimum you have to do, you’ll get the minimum out of it. And that’s across the board — you’ll always leave something on the table and never reach your full potential. So, fine: If you follow the US Department of Health and Human Services’ recommendation to get at least 150 minutes of moderate (or 75 minutes of vigorous) aerobic activity a week, and…

NOTHING SAYS “I’M ON VACATION” LIKE chilling in your best borrowed terrycloth robe, waiting for someone to deliver a tray of fresh-cooked, delicious food right to your room. But I know what you’re thinking: Room service? It’s the hotel bogeyman! The food sucks, and it’s way overpriced. And the minibar? Don’t even think about it, unless you want to spend R60 on a domestic beer. Well, you can listen to the haters about in-room dining (IRD), or you can start getting smart about it. With that in mind, I called some hotshot hospitality insiders to get their secrets for hacking the system and scoring a killer meal every single time. And I compiled their advice into the definitive Seven Rules of Room Service. SHOW HER YOUR ROOM-SERVICE SAVVY AND REAP THE…

Timothy Noakes, MD, is an emeritus professor in the Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine at the University of Cape Town. He’s one of the most accomplished exercise physiologists on the planet. You can’t walk by a restaurant in Cape Town that doesn’t offer a “Noakes option” — say, an avocado stuffed with breakfast sausage and eggs, or a double cheeseburger with lettuce sans bun — and evidence of his teachings seems to be everywhere, mostly in the form of our nation’s best-known athletes, including ageless golfing legend Gary Player and eight-time Ironman World Champion Paula Newby-Fraser. In fact, Noakes is a celebrity these days, he’s even been pulled into South African presidential politics: To echo the country’s papers of record, “Is President Jacob Zuma’s and his wife’s dramatic…

1 If you’re craving chicken parm: ■ Use a no-sugar marinara sauce and replace the carb-laden pasta noodles with thin-sliced chicken breast to cut way down on the carbs but still have a satisfying meal. And make sure you use grassfed ground beef for the filling so you get more vitamins and omega-3s. 2 If you’re craving pasta: ■ Spend a few bucks on a spiralizer — seriously, this thing is great for turning veggies into long noodlelike strands (check amazon.com). To get your pasta fix without the carbs, make spaghetti out of a couple of zucchinis, then dress it with parmesan cheese — which is high in protein — and medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil. 3 If you’re craving mashed potatoes: ■ Chop up a cauliflower head and cook it…

You’re a 35-year-old desk jockey with the heart of a 60-something couch potato? Join the club, Y Jack. But there’s hope for you: Wisløff has created a seven-week program that primes your heart for a better fitness age — and burns plenty of fat — in just minutes of sweat. It’s all built around Wisløff’s lab-tested “4x4 interval training” workout: Four minutes of high-intensity exercise, followed by three minutes of active recovery, repeated four times. The core concept is to blast your heart to 85–95% of its maximum rate — not quite all out but intense enough that you’ll be able to say only a few four-letter words by the end. Then you’ll downshift to a three-minute active-recovery phase at 70% capacity — still moving, but moderately enough to catch…

Looking big, strong, and durable is one thing. Being big, strong, and durable is another. Can you push, pull, or carry something incredibly heavy? How well do you sprint, jump, or climb—and do you have the stamina to keep it up for a sustained period of time? Instead of training for the pump, use this program to take your conditioning to a whole new level. HOW IT WORKS This routine is built around foundational lifts, but with twists that are less conventional. Each day includes a unique challenge to break up a “routine” workout. In Day 1, battle ropes test your endurance, burning up your shoulders, arms, and even your lungs. Day 2 you’ll use the sled, a device that’ll put your entire body on blast. Finally, Day 3 is…

Which type of cardio gets you the healthiest and keeps you alive the longest? Curious exercise researchers at the University of Sydney examined 11 different health surveys on more than 80 000 people (average age: 52) over 9 years and found that, amazingly, those who’d played racquet sports like tennis, racquetball, or squash in the previous month had a 47% lower risk of early death. And that’s not all: Enthusiasts who swung a racquet regularly also showed a 56% drop in cardiovascular disease. It’s believed that this type of fullbody exercise, which features short bouts of high-intensity effort, helps you live longer by boosting your metabolism and strengthening your heart. Swimming, a great whole-body workout, came in second, with aerobics in third place and cycling in fourth. Surprisingly, neither soccer…

TO SLEEP SMART, CUT BLUE RAYS ALL DAY ■ Getting enough good sleep is one of the best ways to stay fit and healthy. So hear this: The more screen time you put in on your smartphone, computer, or tablet — all day, not just near bedtime — the poorer and shorter your sleep will be, say US University of California, San Francisco scientists, who analysed data on 600-plus subjects. The culprit: Blue light emitted by screens, which hinders the sleep hormone melatonin. To fight the blues, block rays from your phone or computer with an app from justgetflux.com or twilight.urbanan-droid.org. GERMS MAKE HUGE ATM DEPOSITS ■ An American New York University sample of 66 New York City ATMs found their keypads to be teeming with bacteria. Luckily, though, most…

When it comes to setting personal records in the weight room, it’s natural to focus on sets, reps, and weight. But most athletes give little thought to tempo — the cadence at which a movement pattern is performed. Enter tempo training, which was popularised years ago by strength coach Ian King but has resurged. And no wonder: Changing up tempo can produce dramatic results, including increased strength, power, and size. It can also help you bust through plateaus by mixing up stale routines that no longer generate results. “By varying the speed, you trigger a response that creates muscle growth”, says Ken Croner, owner of US-based Munster Sports Performance in Indiana. What’s more, being aware of your tempo ensures a more mindful workout, an antidote to all the digital distractions…

I’ve heard you can make cheap red wine taste more expensive by whipping it in a blender. Is that really a thing? MARK MADISON, CAPE TOWN ■ Putting wine in a blender — let’s call it “aggressive decanting” — is an old winemaker’s trick to simulate how the wine would taste after ageing. It can make a cheap wine taste better, but only to a degree. How does decanting work? First, most of what you experience in wine is its aromas. When the compounds that create these aromas hit oxygen, they fully release for your nose to detect. Oxygen also mellows tannins, molecules from the oak your wine is aged in, which make wine bitter. Of course, if you’re patient, a more practical alternative to using a blender is to…

Order a diet-friendly salad—by choosing from our list of champs. PORTION OF THE MONTH ¼ CUP ALMONDS 1 GOLF BALL Our “bar” fight winners In our head-to-head salad contest, the ingredients highlighted in green came out on top: Spinach OR Mixed mesclun Spinach is packed with vitamins — not the case with mesclun, a combo of less nutritious greens. Chicken OR Steak Three times leaner, with half the calories and more protein, chicken easily beats steak. Kidney beans OR Black beans All beans are similar in nutrients, but we give black beans the edge for slightly higher protein and fibre. Tofu OR Egg While tofu wins “calories by weight”, nearperfect eggs have more protein and vitamins. Salmon OR Tuna Tuna is a bit leaner and has more protein, but salmon has…

The ketogenic T diet can be dizzyingly complicated. You want to load up on fats and protein and keep your carb intake low—but all fats and proteins aren’t alike, and there are some veggies higher in carbohydrates than others. Oh, and fruit (fruit!) is pretty much banned. But don’t worry: We’ve put together the best and worst of each category so you can go Keto with confidence. CATEGORY FATS EAT THIS! Saturated fats including coconut oil, ghee, grass-fed butter, duck fat, tallow, and lard, all essential for a healthy immune system, dense bones, and proper testosterone levels; monounsaturated fats like olive, avocado, macadamia, and almond oils, which boost heart health and provide vitamin E, important for vision and a strong immune system; polyunsaturated omega-3s, such as wildcaught salmon, sardines, and…

You can’t beat a big, hot hunk of Klein Karoo ostrich meat. Ostrich has as much as 21% protein per 100g, with less than 2% fat - making it the leaner, healthier option. Ostrich is also readily available in many grocery stores nowadays, not to mention how tasty it is. And it’s so damn easy to cook. To keep it juicy, don’t cook it past medium. Sportsmen, athletes, and health-conscious people with an active lifestyle benefit greatly from the high iron content, which also attributes to the rich red colour. Ostrich meat is definitely a delicious and healthy alternative to beef – and yes, they also taste good flame-grilled. Send your questions to ask@mensfitness.co.za…

BEST WORKOUT MOTIVATION: BEATING SOMEONE’S ASS. Bring it, bro: Competition gets you to the gym ■ Been slacking off instead of hitting the gym and throwing up some iron? Get yourself an enemy to go after. Okay, not an enemy, exactly, but someone who can give you some stiff competition. That’s the very best motivation to work out, according to US University of Pennsylvania researchers who found that, rather than a cheering section, you need to feel a sense of competitiveness to be extremely consistent with your workouts. Their study, an 11-week weightlifting, running, spinning, and yoga program involving 790 students, showed that exercisers who competed for the top spot on leaderboards had 90% higher gym-attendance rates than those in groups in which competition wasn’t emphasised. So, if you’re feeling…

Can you eat your way to a long life? People in a handful of regions across the globe apparently do. Author Dan Buettner identified seven so-called “blue zones” — places where residents often live past 100 — and analysed the factors that may explain it. Along with lifestyle, nutrition is key. So pick some favourites from each and start beating the odds! IKARIA, GREECE ■ Called “the island where people forget to die” in Diane Kochilas’ cookbook on its food, Ikaria is a hotbed of oldagers who follow a Med-type diet but eat less meat than most Greeks; farm or forage many foods; and proudly admit they f#ck like bunnies into their twilight years. KEY FOODS: Wild greens, olive oil, chickpeas, lentils, black-eyed peas, lemons, goat-milk cheese, potatoes, tomatoes, wild…

■ With Peruvian chef Franco Noriega’s shredded physique — he’s modelled for Dolce & -Gabbana — and scantily clad YouTube cooking demos, you’d think his boy toy rep might overshadow his kitchen cred. But at Baby Brasa, his US-based Manhattan pollería, the food takes centre stage. A tribute to taste, nutrition, and affordability, Baby Brasa offers organic rotisserie chicken, creative salads, and sides that all redefine fast food for the fitness minded. We asked Noriega how he stays in model shape. How can you love food but stay so fit? I don’t understand that I don’t understand that “Don’t trust a skinny chef” stereotype. I don’t want to eat what a really unhealthy guy eats; at the same time, I can’t call a salad “dinner” and be happy. For a…

As an unmarried man who works really hard, travels a ton, and leads an active social life, I’ve come to accept several less-than-awesome realities about my daily existence. (For starters: I eat way too much take-out, I’m constantly forgetting my toothbrush on trips, and these days, I could probably consume a few less sugary cocktails.) But if there’s one piece of man-on-the-go collateral damage I simply can’t accept, it’s the increasingly gnarly state of my apartment. In recent months, I’ve found myself engaged in a daily battle against the black hole of my storage closet, the mountain of mismatched clothes scattered across various pieces of furniture, and the towering pile of envelopes on my desk. When it took me a full hour to locate my hiking boots (in a kitchen…

What inspired you to take your fitness journey seriously? The turning point for me came right after I finished pharmacy school and residency. I had just entered a new chapter of my life, a new degree, a new state, and new responsibilities and I wanted to meet people while also building healthy habits. I joined a local gym that happened to have a competitive fitness team, and I signed up mainly to connect with others. At our very first meeting, they announced they were preparing for a bodybuilding competition. That sparked something in me. As a kid, I admired Arnold Schwarzenegger and even attended the Arnold Classic as a teenager. The idea of stepping on stage felt like a once-in-a-lifetime challenge, so I decided to go for it. My first…

Putting your body into P ketosis — causing it to switch from burning carbs to burning fat for fuel — is a major metabolic change. Some people don’t react well, while others thrive on it and feel more energy. “Low-carb and ketogenic diets aren’t for everyone, so it’s important to listen to your body”, says Alissa Rumsey, RD, CSCS, of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, USA. “If after a few weeks you still feel worse than you did before you started, you should stop and reconsider if it’s the right diet for you.” Here’s what she says you should expect when going keto: FIRST FEW DAYS You may feel low on energy, lethargic, and dizzy. Some people suffer from headaches or flu-like symptoms during the first few days or…

STEP 1 Where are you from? Ethnicity? Highest level of education? WISLØFF SAYS: “We use that only for research purposes so we can compare Norway, USA, Japan, etc, and different ethnicities — none of this is used in the algorithm.” RODIO’S TAKE: I type in “Brooklyn”. STEP 2 Gender, age, height, weight. WISLØFF SAYS: “Height/weight is just for calculating BMI, which goes into the algorithm. But gender matters a lot — women’s values tend to be about 20% lower.” RODIO’S TAKE: I’m 26, 1.75m, 79 kilograms. I enter twice, because I accidentally type in my weight in kilograms the first time. STEP 3 What’s your maximum heart rate? WISLØFF SAYS: “It’s a common means of denoting intensity for endurance training.” RODIO’S TAKE: I had no idea, but the site computes…

I just started a Bikram hot yoga class, and one girl in it is even hotter than the class itself. How can I approach her? RAD D, CAPE TOWN Ah, hot yoga is done at 105°, so she must be hot! Some tips: “Don’t try to get her attention during class”, says Bikram Yoga New York City owner Jen Lobo Plamondon. “Yogis often do ‘moving meditation’, and you don’t want to interrupt that. But afterwards, they usually feel so great they’ll talk to absolute strangers.” Also: “No grunting in postures!” Plamondon says. “And no big meals within two hours of class — you shouldn’t do yoga on a full stomach.” (Plus, any al forte sound effects could give a whole new meaning to Bikram’s “Awkward Pose”.) When you do finally…