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The Rise of Alternative Beverages: Why the Fitness Industry Is Fueling the Sober-Curious Movement

For decades, nightlife heavily defined social culture in the United States. Friday nights were for both happy hour and after-hours. Saturdays were for recovering then rallying for Round 2. Sundays, then, were left for either guilt or redemption. Now? Saturday mornings are for PRs, long runs, cold plunges and coffee meetups. The ritual has shifted from the nightlife party scene to the daytime longevity practices. Across the country, especially in fitness-forward cities like West Palm Beach, the rise of alternative beverages, THC seltzers, adaptogenic drinks, nootropic blends, and low- or no-alcohol options signals more than a category trend. It signals a cultural pivot from how people celebrate life. From Escapism to Optimization Last Rep founder Jason Ashton has seen the rise of wellness in social settings. “We’re seeing a noticeable rise in fitness-based events…and it’s no longer limited to daytime activities,” he says. “ Run clubs and social clubs are gaining momentum weeknights...
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Cristian Roldan’s MLS Training Blueprint for Elite Soccer Performance

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There’s a moment before kickoff when everything gets quiet for Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan. The Lumen Field crowd is boisterous and the stadium feels like it’s shaking. Inside, however, it’s calm. Roldan knows by then whether he’s ready—not because of adrenaline, nor emotion. But because of the days leading up to this moment For most fans, a match is 90 minutes. For Roldan, it’s days of preparation layered carefully on top of each other— heart rate targets hit in training , hydration dialed in, sleep schedule protected, lower-body lifts executed with intent. But the time he steps onto the pitch, the work is already done. “It really takes the entire week to kind of build you up,” Roldan says. “That’s where a lot of people that aren’t involved in the sport don’t realize.” As the Major League Soccer season is now in full swing, and the calendar leans toward a World Cup summer , Roldan isn’t chasing a new formula. He’s refining the one that’s kept him durable, explosiv...
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New Study Links Hard Training to Better Gut Health, Digestion, Recovery & Performance

Intense workouts could add more than muscle to the list of physical benefits brought about by getting your sweat on. A new study shows that hard training can also positively affect the balance of your gut bacteria, leading to better digestive systems, and greater potential as far as making a PR. The latest science certainly adds new meaning to the term “gut check!” Regular exercise is already encouraged for lean mass gains and mental health benefits, but these new findings, resulting from a study by Edith Cowan University in Australia suggest that the intensity of our training could promise even more, influencing the configuration of our gut microbiome. “Based on previous research, it appears that athletes have a different gut microbiota when compared with the general population,” explains Ph.D. candidate Bronwen Charlesson , who served as lead on the paper. “This includes greater total short chain fatty acid concentrations, alpha diversity, and an increased abundance of some bacteri...
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America’s Strongest Firefighter Zachary Mills is Ready for the World Stage

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Muhammad Ali once said, “The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses—behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.” Whether the event is a fight, game, or a strength contest, that truth still remains. Ali never set foot in Bobcat Fitness Center in Hinton, WV, but as you walk onto the floor in the weight room of this facility, the spirit of “The Greatest” definitely resides there. Just as the winter air could be felt outside that morning, the energy of the grind was felt throughout the space as Beckley, WV firefighter Zachary Mills was loading plate after plate onto a barbell for his opening exercise of the day. “Working up to 655 (pounds) today,” Mills said calmly. Mills may be a firefighter by trade, but he is also a strongman competitor, and both of his passions have collided thanks to his victory at the 2025 America’s Strongest Firefighter competition . Mills took the 220-pound class title and now has his eyes set on an even ...
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Ethan Gohari’s Chest Workout: 3 Proven Exercises to Build a Bigger, Stronger Chest

Ethan Gohari has been making waves as of late, with his exceptional progress in bodybuilding competitions, and has shared three go-to methods for adding more muscle to his chest. Here’s how you can try this plan out for yourself. Gohari is heading into the 2026 Arnold Classic with a ton of momentum. The Classic Physique competitor won two IFBB pro shows back-to-back last year , making him the first Australian bodybuilder to manage such a feat. This record was made on top of previous records that he’d already earned, such as being the first Australian ever to win an IFBB Classic show, and the first Australian to qualify for the Classic division in an Olympia final. Gohari is a great example who illustrates that hard work pays off, and in a recent Instagram post, shared his chest chiseling strategy. “Three exercises you should be doing for a bigger chest,” encouraged the Atlantic Coast Pro and Las Vegas Pro winner. View this post on Instagram Et...
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Makeup Artist is Turning Passions into Careers

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Experts at makeup are known as artists for good reason. It takes an incredible amount of skill to master it well enough to make it a business. While being a fitness or physique athlete requires a different form and level of commitment , those that grace a stage also see what they do as art because of how they develop their bodies and present it to the world. Bruna Dallo is impacting ambitious women in search of a path to a real career. “I love the transformation.” Dallo was born in Brazil but currently calls the U.S. her home. Her journey to helping others look better can be traced back to her mother, who operated a beauty salon in her home country. Once Dallo had a chance to start pursuing her own career, it was clear what she wanted to do when she grew up. Dallo recalled, “I started studying on it because I knew that I wanted to become a professional makeup artist.” View this post on Instagram The skill may be art, but Dallo clearly has a g...
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Barbell Bent-Over Row Form Checklist: Build a Bigger Back Without Lower Back Pain

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Lifters want to see gains sooner, but often blow past a vital part of the lift, the setup. It’s the time when you set yourself up for success, but some don’t take it seriously. It might be okay not to worry about your biceps curl setup, but it’s different for the barbell bent-over row. The barbell bent-over row isn’t complex. Hinge, pull the bar to your torso, and build a bigger back. But many lifters get the setup wrong. Instead, they end up jerking the bar, standing taller with each rep, and wondering why their lower back feels smoked. That means your setup matters just as much as your pull. Start the first rep with a loose hinge, a soft brace, or disengaged lats, and the lift falls apart in a hurry. This checklist breaks down the setup step by step to stop that from happening. It might feel deliberate at first, but repetition makes it automatic. When your setup is tight, your rows get stronger, cleaner, and far more effective. Step-by-Step Barbell Bent-Over Row Checklist There’...
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Arnold Classic Winner Mike Sommerfeld Shares His Formula for Serious Shoulders

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Mike Sommerfeld is preparing for a back-to-back win in the Arnold Classic Physique division in March, but instead of hitting the gym with uncontrolled intensity, this elite bodybuilder is focusing on his form to build massive shoulders . Recently, the man mountain took to Instagram to share what he considers to be the three biggest myths around building the shoulders with lateral raises and shared his truth with more than 785,000 Instagram followers. IFBB MIKE SOMMERFELD – OLYMPIA 2022 PHOTOSHOOT Read article Alongside his successful bodybuilding career as an IFBB Pro, the man they call the “Bad Ass” is also a coach, and fortunately, he’s all about sharing his hard-earned wisdom with those who wish to make their own gains. Focussing on the side delts, Sommerfeld explained that slow progress could be the result of sloppy form when executing the lateral raise : Myth: You need heavy weights to build big side delts Truth: Exercises such as the lateral raise, either using a mach...
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How Army Ranger Janina Simmons Turned Adversity Into Marathon-Level Strength

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The United States Army was created on June 3, 1784, following the disbandment of the original Continental Army that was formed in 1775 and instrumental in the independence of the United States in the Revolutionary War. A lot of history has been made in the over 240 years since then, which makes it very difficult to be the first to do something. Occasionally, you do hear of something remarkable that proves that there is room for growth and new ground to break in a military branch that has been around as long as the Army. Sergeant Major Janina Simmons speaks of this from experience. Simmons has done a lot while wearing the nation’s cloth, but her most famous accomplishments are being the first African American to graduate from U.S. Army Ranger School as well as the first Ranger-qualified woman to earn her current rank. Simmons expressed that the weight of her accomplishments can sometimes be overwhelming, but she clearly proved capable of carrying it. That is because even in the face o...
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King Kamali Talks Importance of Mastering Negative Energy On ‘The Menace Podcast’

On Episode 273 of The Menace Podcast, Dennis James was joined by Chris Cormier, Milos Sarcev, and special guest Shahriar “King” Kamali, who explained why his development in the world of bodybuilding was never derailed by negative voices. The current era of bodybuilding is very much about a pristine appearance on social media, where peace and balance lead to brilliant results, but in the real world, the pressure of competition and the effects of negative voices often serve to stall our progress. One man that was able to stay true to his vision, despite the pressure of being an elite bodybuilder, was King Kamali, who began his career with an overall win at the 1994 NPC Collegiate Nationals and went on to tread the boards at both the Mr. Olympia and Arnold Classic finals. “He can feed off the negative energy, right?” said Sarcev of Kamali. “We were talking about, who, under the circumstances has to have everything in order, to function, and if it’s something negative (it throws them o...
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