Iron Culture presented by MASS

We are back with another question and answer episode! This one includes a deep dive into exercise selection, execution, and ways to maximize time efficiency as it relates to exercise selection, covering both strength and physique goals, those who have both goals, and other nuances on these topics that people often don't consider. Further, we discuss what competitive natural bodybuilding could do t...

Testosterone. The obsession of the lifting world. Previously on Iron Culture, we've had Roundtables on PEDs (taking supraphysiological levels of testosterone, synthetic testosterone, and other performance-enhancing drugs), and we've had experts on to discuss the history of PEDs, their long term effects, and how they are tested for in sport. But today, we have Dr. Ben House back on the podcast to t...

For better or worse we committed to the Iron Culture mission statement of being "for all lifters"…even for endurance athletes who lift. Yes, you heard that right, endurance athletes. In this episode we are joined by Professor Sara Mahoney, who has her Ph. D. in exercise physiology, researches nutrition for endurance athletes, is a runner herself, and coaches Division 1 and 2 cross country and trac...

Natty limits, genetic potential, everyone talks about these concepts, but most people truly get it wrong. You've heard the tropes, "you reach 80% of your muscular potential in your first X years of effective training." It sounds great in theory, but it is the exception rather than the rule when it plays out this way in the real world. How often do people start off with effective training? How does...

Dr. Conor Heffernan, the Strength historian, and Ben Esgro, the dual-masters degreed sports nutrition/pharmaceutical chemistry formulation artiste are both back on Iron Culture for this monster episode on the history of the supplement industry. Learn what it was like in the days of Sandow's cocoa and how at one point in America's history, every lifter had a little Bob Hoffman in them…literally. Co...

This episode will hit your ears like a sonic boom, changing your perspective on "broscience" in a flash. Where do lifting myths come from? Locker room convos between Chad Broseph and Chance Halfsquat? Sometimes. But more often than not, the myths of today were the scientific truths of yesterday. So how do we pursue truth when faced with the reality that some of what we think we know today is incor...

If you don't train to failure, you'll be a failure. It not only sounds good, but it also appeals to the hardcore inner masochist in every serious lifter that's just waiting to strike in the comments section. But, is the saying true? In this episode, we're joined by Zac Robinson from Data Driven Strength to find out. He's a powerlifting coach who did his master's degree specifically on the effects...

The cornerstone of scientific thinking is updating your beliefs based on the available evidence. Unfortunately this conflicts with the cornerstone of being a cult of personality guru leader, which requires doubling down and never admitting fault or when you're wrong. In this episode we break the fourth wall, coming down off the top of the pyramid to have a non-canon discussion about all the times...

2021 USAPL nationals was just back after a year off due to COVID. So, emotions were high, the competition was fierce and as always, USAPL nationals didn't disappoint. This episode we host the "winner's circle", joined by multiple time national champions Heather Connor, Jonathan Cayco, and Sam Calhoun. Not only do we learn about each of their two-year journeys to nationals, but also about the curre...

This episode of Iron Culture was a classic. You want lifting-specific introspection which will resonate with anyone in the culture of lifting? Look no further! In this episode the one and only Ryan Doris, pro natural bodybuilding champion, elite powerlifter, and deep thinker joins the cult. In this episode we discuss the nature of what makes athletes tick, and how to balance "Book Bodybuilding and...

Ben Esgro is back on Iron Culture to do another deep dive. This time, we discuss all things stimulants. What are stimulants, exactly? What makes a stimulant stimulating? Which stimulants are most potent? Why do some products use stimulants you've never heard of while others just use caffeine? Why can your experiences with the same stimulant, and even the same dose sometimes differ? Why do some pro...

Does being a competitor require a competitive mindset? In some sports, yes. But in powerlifting, you arguably could just focus on yourself, progressing, and show up on game day ignorant to your competition, put up the best total you can, and see where you place. Indeed, some world-class competitors do just that. With that said, athletes are human. Some thrive off a competitive mindset and feel it...

What do the 2015 USAPL Junior National title, the 2017 Yorton Cup Pro Figure Tall title, and the 2017 WNBF Pro Figure Overall title have in common? They were all won by our guest on this episode of Iron Culture: Katie Anne Rutherford. Competing and simply being competent in both strength and physique sport simultaneously is a challenge that few people can overcome, but achieving truly elite perfor...

Omar and Eric are back with another Q&A episode! This time, they go IN on the topic of not just being skeptical but also being rational when thinking about the likelihood of someone being drug-free. As you are probably aware, skepticism abounds on this topic online, which is fine, but the question is: what do you base that skepticism on? Since most of the information on this topic consists of swee...

Sam Okunola has been at the top echelon of the natural bodybuilding competitive circuit for over a decade. Winning his pro card in his first sanctioned show in 2009, he's gone on to win multiple pro shows, culminating in winning the 2017 IPE Overall World title, even NPC regional shows in the classic division, and he's also placed 2nd at the 2012 IFPA Yorton Cup and 2017 and 2019 WNBF worlds. What...

What goes into making a YouTube channel dedicated to educating people about lifting, nutrition, getting stronger, and bodybuilding? We asked Jeff Nippard just that on this episode of Iron Culture where he was kind enough to join us to share his experience. But, not before Eric engaged him in probably one of the most important discussions we've had to date, who should have won the 2007 Mr. Olympia?...

Nutrition is not just about comparing methods, macro breakdowns, or foods. Navigating nutritional changes that support your goals is a skill set that needs to be actively developed over time. What are the common sources of error when someone "should" be losing or gaining weight based on their activity, body mass, and reported intake? How do you correct those errors? Did you ever think that even as...

Principle of specificity bro, everybody knows that? But do they? What's more specific to a squat 1RM, a leg press 1RM, or doing a set of 10 on squats? Why does squatting have just as good of transference to leg press strength as it does to squatting, but not the other way around? Why won't training tricep pushdowns in the 6-8 rep range improve your lockout on bench press more effectively than tric...

On this episode of Iron Culture, we are joined by the strongest of them all: Amanda Lawrence. She currently tops the ranks of drug-tested raw powerlifting by coefficient using multiple formulae and is just weeks out from USAPL raw nationals where she hopes to further improve on her already mind-blowing total of 646kg at under 84kg. Join us as we discuss how she got into the sport, what she loves a...

We're back with round 2 of our question and answer episodes on Iron Culture! We begin with the dumpster fire that is the "Natty or Not" debate, hopefully providing some unique insights, and then we get into some useful advice on both accurately identifying, and potentially, when appropriate, addressing "lagging" muscle groups. The real gem of this episode though, is answering the question "when is...

Dr. Ben House is back on Iron Culture! This time he's here to explain why not only is exercise not pointless for weight loss, but indeed may be the most effective and low-risk tool we have to arrest the obesity epidemic. In this episode, we discuss why "exercise nihilism" for weight loss stems from an overly reductionist view of activity, purely as a means of increasing energy expenditure. We also...

Can you believe it's episode 116 and we haven't yet done a deep dive specifically on "flexible dieting"? Well, we couldn't either, so in this episode, we did just that. You'll learn what the origins of flexible dieting are in the research and also the fitness industry and how they diverged to the point they became wholly separate. You'll learn why IIFYM is not always flexible, what the data on fle...

This week, Dr. Hayden Pritchard joins Iron Culture. Hayden did his Ph. D. specifically on tapering for maximal strength enhancement, which included surveying top powerlifters to see what they do in practice prior to competition. Since his Ph. D. he's gone on to survey strongmen/women, CrossFit competitors and weightlifters as well. No stranger to maximal strength himself, Hayden Pritchard is also...

The diet is over...now what? Well, that depends. Are you someone looking to maintain your (hopefully reasonable amount of) weight loss? Or are you a competitor who's purposely dieted to an unsustainable level of leanness and needs to recover physiologically and psychologically so you can have a productive offseason? Depending on who you are and your situation, the answer will differ. Further, ther...

Iron Culture gets back to its roots in this episode, meaning, hunks. WNBF Pro Natural bodybuilder and 2x World Pro Champion in the lightweight and bantamweight classes Brett Freeman joins us today to talk about his competitive journey with bodybuilding. Getting into the sport early, he's now spent half his life in a tumultuous relationship with the sport. Like Icarus, he flew too close initially,...