A difference of opinion

So, tonight I was doing my LISS (low intensity steady state) geriatric cardio on a treadmill at my gym. I was next to this guy who supposedly is a competitive bodybuilder who was also just walking (one point in his favor). We started chit-chatting about my daughter who was trucking away doing speed intervals and got to talking about Leangains (as I usually do in these situations). I told him if he's a competitor, he'd probably benefit from checking out Martin's blog, etc.


We got to talking about how I've been stuck in my efforts to lose fat. After briefly discussing my diet, we agreed it's probably the TYPES of carbs I'm eating PWO that are derailing my efforts combined with too loose of a diet (I wasn't counting macros for a long time and I was drinking alcohol too much and too often). While I agree with his point that cereal, even Total, is probably not the best choice for me at this point, he did say something I felt was pretty ridiculous.


We discussed my powerlifting-type of RPT training and he actually said, "You'll never change your body composition lifting that way. You need to do isolation exercises to get rid of the fat in those areas." WTF? Was he talking about spot-reduction? Then he said I would never see my muscles grow unless I used "volume to get the blood flowing." Again, W.T.F.? I suppose he was referring to the sarcoplasmic hypertrophy common among bodybuilders. They grow large muscles through high volume training, but may not necessarily be that functionally strong. I said I wasn't going to focus on any specific isolation exercises that I'm not already doing (leg extensions, overhead press) until I strip the fat and get a look at my muscle structure to see where I need more attention.


I'm not a bodybuilder, nor do I want to be. All I know is that I have gone down the road of high volume training and it got me nowhere. Perhaps if I had combined it with an LG style diet I would have had better results, but that's neither here nor there. I'm addicted to lifting heavy. I LOVE the feeling of ripping 215 lbs of dead weight off the floor with a 115 lb frame. I LOVE that I get stronger every week and my weight is holding steady and my pants are loose. And I KNOW that if I can keep my diet tight and clean, cut out the crap snacks and booze, I will get a nice 6-pack for Christmas this year.


'Tis the season to kick some ass.