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Bert Kreischer Reveals His 50-Pound Weight Loss and Sober Training for the 2 Bears 5K

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For years, Bert Kreischer built an empire around chaos. The shirts-off storytelling, late-night partying, and “Machine” persona transformed him into one of comedy’s most recognizable figures. But heading into this year’s 2 Bears 5K alongside fellow comedian Tom Segura, Kreischer says something feels completely different. Ironically, the event itself started almost accidentally. “To be honest with you, the funniest part is we had nothing to talk about that day,” Kreischer says laughing. “Tom decided to run a 5K back in his hometown, and I’d already done marathons, Tough Mudders, you name it.” What began as podcast banter eventually evolved into a full-scale community fitness event built around comedy, running, and fan interaction. But underneath the humor was a real goal. “Tom and I were getting healthier and we wanted our fans to get healthier too,” Kreischer explains. “Your fans kind of look like you, and our fans were all big guys with beards married to chicks they didn’t dese...
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Valentina Shevchenko Reveals the Longevity Secrets Behind Her UFC Dominance and Championship Mindset

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There’s a moment in every dominant champion’s career when the conversation shifts. The wins pile up, the belt defenses stack, and the narrative hardens into something static. That time hasn’t come for Valentina Shevchenko. Not because the UFC women’s flyweight champion hasn’t earned it. But because she refuses to live there. After decades in marital arts, world titles that stretch back to the early 2000s, and a resume that spans generations of fighters, Shevchenko, coming off her November victory over Weili Zhang and now gearing up for a potential title defense against Natalia Silva, still talks like a fighter chasing something that’s out of reach. “With every single fight, competition—performance is better than the last one,” she says. “The understanding that as a martial artist, you are not staying one place, and that you still have much more to give.” Her mindset is part of what makes her widely regarded as one of the greatest fighters in MMA history. And while she’ll be watchin...
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Are Cable Glute Kickbacks Worth It? The Truth About Building Bigger Glutes

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Until cable glute kickbacks wove their way into the modern bodybuilding lexicon, “glute training” was never a thing. Both guys and girls just trained “legs.” Glutes, hamstring, quads, calves—hip to toe—the whole thing. At some point we integrated a delineation that separated hamstrings from quads and from calves on different days, but, for the most part it was “legs,” period. Once a week, sometimes twice (quads one day, hams the next)—but never glute specific. Then one day someone decided a big giant booty was fashionable and the next thing you know, women are training their glutes as a standalone item. Three times a week! Once the Wellness division was adopted they trained them even more! I had women in my gym in Mexico who trained legs every day. Every day, six days a week—Sundays they went cycling. Bless their hearts… The first exercise that was recruited to put together the leg training deviation that would make glutes a separate body part—just like chest, back, and even legs—wa...
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2026 New York Pro Predictions: Dennis James and Chris Cormier Reveal Their Top Picks

On Episode 284 of The Menace Podcast, host Dennis James was joined by Chris Cormier and Milos Sarcev to make their predictions concerning the 2026 New York Pro. The New York Pro is a longstanding highlight on the road to Olympia qualification and in the Open division, victory means instant entry to the Mr Olympia finals in Las Vegas this September. Last year, Nick Walker was the story of the New York Pro, winning the contest for the third time with a much-improved look and a huge boost towards his Olympia campaign. As of the recording of Episode 284, Walker’s participation seemed unlikely, however.  Some reports suggest that the big man is instead focusing on his recovery, following the Arnold Classic, but there’s always the chance he could make a surprise entry this weekend. View this post on Instagram 2026 New York Pro Picks are Made on The Menace Podcast Host Dennis “The Menace” James was the first panelist to predict the top 5 positions...
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Mike Sommerfeld Warning to Bodybuilders About Overtraining After Competitions

Classic Physique bodybuilder, Mike Sommerfeld is known for his brutal and intense gym sessions , but the gigantic German is also aware that failing to get adequate rest is a surefire way to stunt his hard-earned gains. For this reason, the man they call “The Badass” has shared the progress he’s made by taking a break, and has also cautioned against the absolute worst period that bodybuilders should overtrain in. Why Mike Sommerfeld Says Overtraining Hurts Muscle Growth “I was constantly overtraining,” explained Sommerfeld in a reflective post for his 800K+ Instagram followers. It seems that as a result of his desire to construct the perfect body, the big man had neglected the importance of recovery, instead leaning into more and more reps. The bodybuilder went on to explain that he now understands that while muscles recover relatively quickly, the rest of the body requires a bigger break. Studies certainly back Sommerfeld up. Research by Pritchard and colleagues (2019) demonstrated ...
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5 Key Takeaways From Spring 2026 Military Wellness Symposium

Several of the nation’s leaders in research, military wellness, and sports gathered at the Stars & Stripes offices in Washington, D.C. to take part in a Military Wellness Symposium that was hosted by M&F Senior Military Editor, Honorable Rob Wilkins. This was the fourth edition of the symposium that is designed to educate, inform, and inspire those in attendance with ways to improve the fitness and well-being for America’s warriors and veterans. Wilkins said, “This was my fourth symposium since ’25, and the impact is undeniable.” Among the topics covered were training, recovery, the importance of fitness as a matter of national security, and why it all matters to every generation of service members and citizens alike. Stars & Stripes publisher Max Lederer provided the opening remarks for the day. Throughout the six-plus hour event, there were five key takeaways that had the invite-only audience captivated throughout the day. Rob Wilkins America 250, Decade of Sport, an...
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Are Upright Rows Bad for Shoulders? How to Build Bigger Delts Without Injury

The upright row, depending on your perspective, is either the best exercise for your delts and traps or a flat-out shoulder wrecker. It’s an exercise with a bad-boy reputation. People base its reputation on the standard barbell version , where lifters raise their elbows high above shoulder level and internally rotate the shoulders. This position increases the risk of subacromial impingement, the painful compression, irritation, or rubbing of the rotator cuff tendons and bursa within the shoulder joint. But that’s only part of the story, because the arguments focus on the barbell version of it: too much height, too narrow a grip, and not enough control. That matters because research doesn’t support scrapping the upright row. The real issue isn’t good vs. bad—it’s whether we’re judging this lift fairly. Here, with the help of a few of my coaching friends, we’ll explore one of the more misunderstood lifts in the weight room. How the Upright Row Earned Its Reputation When the elbows ...
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5 Key Takeaways From Nick Lavery’s Fit To Serve Interview

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For five years now, Fit to Serve has recognized, honored, and told the stories of some of America’s military members and first responders that have achieved high levels of service and fitness excellence. F2S has been a written column since the beginning but is now branching out to multimedia, with the first episode featuring Green Beret Nick “The Machine” Lavery . Lavery’s full interview can be seen on the M&F YouTube channel , but he offered significant tidbits of wisdom and inspiration that is highlighted below. THE ROAD TO EXCELLENCE ISN’T THE SAME FOR EVERYONE Lavery wasted no time sharing knowledge about what it takes to serve in the military, and his first lesson was that no two paths are the same. While some may think all service members come from elite athletic backgrounds or a long lineage of service, Lavery said that no two paths to wearing the nation’s uniform are the same. His own path started in Massachusetts, raised by parents that struggled throughout his childho...
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Conor Benn Looks Ripped as He Readies for Ryan Garcia

British boxer Conor Benn made his debut for the Zuffa boxing banner by beating Regis Prograis on points, resulting in the American fighter announcing his retirement. Now, “The Destroyer” has his sights set on Ryan Garcia and he’s dropping weight, in order to return to the welterweight division. Appearing ripped during the training camp for Prograis, Benn is hoping to make good on his challenge to WBC welterweight champion Ryan Garcia, after repeatedly calling him out for a championship battle. To do that, Benn will need to hit a maximum weight of 147 pounds for their clash, rumored to be penciled in for August 2026. Benn’s most recent fight against Prograis, however, saw The Destroyer tip the scales at 148.1 pounds for the catch weight bout. But back in 2023, the second generation boxer beat Mexico’s Rodolfo Orozco in the super-welterweight division, weighing-in at 154 pounds , so the Londoner has apparently been leaning into his cardio. View this post on Instagram ...
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Dorian Yates Delves Into His Favorite Set Protocol

In today’s age of science-based lifters, fitness influencers, and even the misinformation of “bro science,” choosing a set and rep scheme often appears more complicated than it should be. Fortunately, six-time Mr. Olympia Dorian Yates recently gave his take on how to setup your sets and reps, sharing his hard-earned wisdom on Instagram so that you can follow in his lofty footsteps. “Drop sets and supersets… I often get asked my opinion on the above and if I ever did them,” wrote the British bodybuilding icon, as class got in session for Yates’ two million Instagram followers. First things first: For the uninitiated, the drop set approach requires that an individual performs the first set to, or close to failure, and then drops the weight on subsequent sets, by around 10 to 30% each set. With drop sets, the number of reps can go up as the weight decreases, so if you do 6 to 8 reps in the first set, you can increase to 10 to 12 reps in the second set, and 12 to 15 reps in the third set...
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