Posts

Is Regan Grimes Putting Social Media Before Bodybuilding? The Menace Podcast Breaks Down Atlanta Pro

On Episode 298 of The Menace Podcast, host Dennis James was joined by Milos Sarcev and Chris Cormier, and the panel took a deep dive into the results of the recent Atlanta Pro Olympia qualifier, where James Holingshead punched his ticket to Las Vegas, knocking Regan Grimes into runner-up status. During the show, the gang agreed that Regan Grimes had a lot of work do if he wants to complete with the best of the best, noting that he may be putting his social media content ahead of competitive bodybuilding. “Let’s give credit where credit is due,” said Milos Sarcev of the 2026 Atlanta Pro result.“This is the best James (Hollinghead) has ever looked, in his history,” he added. Dennis James and Chris Cormier disagreed however, feeling that the big Brit was more detailed during his previous appearance on stage, in China. Still, all three did agree that Hollinghead had the best package in Atlanta. “I thought his legs helped him win,” suggested Cormier. “That’s what stood out to me the most,...

 Cade Cunningham Shares His Training Plan for Making This His Healthiest NBA Season Yet

Image
Recovery is looking a little differently for Detroit Pistons point guard Cade Cunningham this off-season.  After overcoming a collapsed lung in the 2025-2026 season, Cunningham is excited to be experimenting with his body a little differently so he’s able to perform at his best for the upcoming NBA season. “ Electrolytes is something I’m excited about ,” the 24-year-old tells Muscle & Fitness exclusively while discussing his sports performance campaign with Thorne. “Having that in the water, being able to go with that. I’ve been trying all these different electrolyte drinks.”  While adding a little flavor and minerals to his water has helped on the court, he’s also been focusing on his body’s healing during rest, too. “Electrolytes is the number one thing I’m looking to add more of, but the magnesium is probably my most used out of everything,” Cunningham adds. “The magnesium help my sleep a lot,   especially during the season to wind down after games and get sleep. It’s toug...

Phil Heath and Kai Greene Reunite on 2026 Olympia Prep Show: Elite Mindsets & Rivalry Lessons

Image
With only six weeks to go before the best bodybuilders in the business take to the biggest stage of them all in Las Vegas, “The Olympia Prep Show,” part one, provided an essential insight into what it takes to strive for the coveted Sandow trophy. In the show, distributed as a live stream via Instagram, host Frank Sepe was joined by seven-time Mr. Olympia winner Phil Heath and three-time Arnold Classic winner, Kai Greene, and while these two warriors were once fierce rivals on the stage , the legendary duo have no beef with each other these days. In fact, they were only too happy to talk about the competitive mindset required to become a master of muscle. Before part one of the Olympia Prep Show got underway, host Frank Sepe explained that his DM’s were exploding with flex fans wanting to know if Phil Heath and Kai Greene could co-exist during the popular live stream. “People are like, are they gonna fight?” explained Sepe of the tone of his DMs. “Why would we?” asked Heath, “I mean,...

M&F Writer Shares his 2026 American Pro Experience

Image
When you are standing backstage at a prestigious powerlifting meet like Powerlifting United’s American Pro meet in the Henrico Sports and Events Center, smelling the sting of ammonia and hearing the low-frequency thud of loaded barbells hitting rubber flooring, you begin to understand a fundamental truth about strength sports: months of preparation ultimately come down to your ability to execute when all eyes are on you. On August 7 and 8, the author of this article went from covering one of the biggest powerlifting events of the year to becoming part of it. Day 1 required the singlet. Day 2 called for the media credentials. The event recap can be found here , but this is the story from the other side of the platform. The purpose of this was to know, with absolute certainty, that Theodore Roosevelt’s famous “Man in the Arena” warning didn’t apply. Being the man who was actually in the arena struggling and whose face was actually marred by dust, sweat, and blood instead of the cold c...

How Much Protein Do You ACTUALLY Need to Build Muscle?

Perhaps the most debated, not to mention maligned, topic in the fitness world is how much protein we need. And if you’ve done any investigating at all into the topic, you will no doubt have bumped into this calculation: 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight. (If you’re a bodybuilder, that means at least two.) Like so much of bodybuilding folklore, the recommendation has been repeated so many times that it’s become accepted as fact. The problem is, nobody ever asks, “How do we know?” Specifically, no one knows. Is the ‘1 Gram of Protein Per Pound’ Rule Science or Myth? The original one gram per pound rule wasn’t born from a landmark scientific study. It evolved from decades of bodybuilding experience, trial and error, magazine articles, coaches’ recommendations, and a healthy dose of “more must be better” broscience. It’s basically just a simple rule of thumb, not a biological law. Total Body Weight vs. Lean Mass: Why Most Lifters Overeat Protein The problem most peop...

No Time to Train? How 15-Minute Micro Workouts Build Muscle and Strength

Image
Some days, a full workout fits. Other days, you look at the clock, realize you’ve got 15 minutes, and start talking yourself into skipping the whole thing. Micro workouts give you a way to make that window count. A focused 10- to 20-minute session can provide enough training stimulus to move the needle when time is tight. You might train a major lift, push one muscle group hard, or knock out a conditioning session without filling the time with random exercises. Keeping the session narrow also makes it easier to stay consistent during a crowded week. Give the workout one clear goal, then use the available time to accumulate enough quality work to support it. The workouts ahead follow that approach across strength, hypertrophy, and HIIT, with two options for each. They’re built for days when your schedule is packed, and you still want to get something worthwhile done. What Is a Micro Workout and Does It Actually Work? A micro workout is a short, focused training session that usually...

Bent-Over Rows Bother Your Lower Back? 5 Back-Building Moves That Still Do The Trick

The barbell bent-over row is the row with the most bang for the buck because it trains the lats, upper back, rear delts, biceps, grip, and the lower back. For building a thicker, stronger back, nothing beats it. But there is one little thing… Holding the hinge position in the bent-over row requires lower-back muscular endurance. For some, the lower back waves the white flag long before the lats do, and it becomes less of a back builder and more of a test of lower-back endurance. Lower back fatigue doesn’t make the bent-over row a bad exercise, nor does it mean something is wrong. But if the lower back becomes the weakest link, it ends your set early, limits the load, and gains go bye-bye. If that’s a problem, here comes the solution. The solution may be better form, reduced loading, or adjusting where you place rows in your workout. Before ditching it, let’s figure out why your lower back is tapping out first—and what you can do about it. If it is still an issue, the 5 back-build...

2026 Britain’s Strongest Woman Results: Deadlift Legend Lucy Underdown Dominates to Claim Historic 3-Peat

Far from being an underdog, Lucy Underdown has secured a third “Britain’s Strongest Woman” title after dominating the field once again, with her trademark power and sheer determination. Underdown, who is a serving police officer in Kent, England, first took the title of Britain’s Strongest Woman in 2024, and has won again this year to mark her third consecutive victory. “What a great competition!” wrote Underdown in a celebratory post via Instagram. “I knew exactly what I needed to do and when it came down to the competition, I had a sense of calm I have never felt before. I knew each event, what was needed, and I executed everything perfectly.” The strong woman, 36, who is also known for her female world record deadlifting feats with the standard bar (717 pounds / 325 kilograms) and elephant bar (701 pounds / 318 kilograms) reigned supreme at the York Barbican on July 25, winning the Deadlift and Stone to Shoulder events outright, and amassing a 4.5-point lead on the runner-up, Reb...

New Study: Once-a-Week Brisk Interval Walking Can Help Reduce Waist Size

Exercising is an efficient way to burn calories, but there’s no getting around the significant time investment required to get our reps in while juggling our personal and professional lives. So, a new study coming out of Hong Kong that supports brisk interval walking as a way of reducing our waist size comes as welcome news. And, better still, one long session is almost as good as three seperate stints, according to the latest science. The new research, published in Nature Communications,  provides encouraging news for those of us who are time-poor, or just too poor to afford a gym membership right now. How was the study carried out? Between 2021 and 2024, a group of 315 overweight adults were placed into three groups: Interval treadmill session: once per week Interval treadmill session: three times per week Control group While the control group received support on the subject of health education, both walking groups completed a total of 75 minutes exercising. One group took o...

‘I Play Rocky’ Trailer Hits 20 Million Views: First Look at Anthony Ippolito as a Young Sylvester Stallone

There may already be six Rocky movies and three Creed spin-offs out there for your viewing pleasure, but if like us, you just can’t get enough of the “Italian Stallion,” the news that Anthony Ippolito is set to channel Sylvester Stallone—to tell the fabled story of how the original movie got the green light, will be welcome news. And, if the newly released trailer is anything to go by, the box office can take our money right now. What Is the ‘I Play Rocky’ Movie About? Stallone fans already know that he was a struggling actor, failing to find his footing in Hollywood before taking matters into his own hands and writing a winning script, but not everyone knows the challenges that Sly faced to play the starring role of his own creation. While producers loved the underdog story of a no-named challenger who is given a million-to-one-shot chance at the heavyweight title, they wanted anyone but Stallone on the poster. Instead, the young actor was offered increasing sums of money to sell th...