Matt Metzgar

Remembering Marlon Brando

I think Marlon Brando was one of the best 2 or 3 actors of the 20th century.  It's a shame that his later years and personal life took away from his acting legacy.

Brando was nominated for Best Actor four years in a row, from 1951-1954, winning in 1954.  This string of being nominated four consecutive years is quite impressive in my mind.  After this, he of course had his success with "The Godfather" that most everyone connects him to.

I think his performances in the 50s were better than the Godfather or any of his later work.  I think what was most impressive about that early work was how he radiated sheer masculinity.

Unfortunately, I think masculinity is both a misunderstood subject and on the decline in modern society.  I see lots of examples of "fake" masculinity nowadays, but not too much of the real thing.

I think true maculinity is hard to define, but it's one of those things where you know it when you see it.  I think back to my recent cross-country trip, and I met a person in St. Louis who was almost devoid of masculinity.  He seemed "over-civilized", such that all his words and actions were coming from his intellect instead of something more visceral.

I think this is where Brando excelled, as he expressed his masculinity in mostly non-verbal ways.  What he did say was mumbled or yelled, as if it was an effort to use speech for communication instead of his body.

I read about efforts of men to "regain" their masculinity, such as men-only trips to go play drums in the woods.  I wonder if this is just another way for someone to make money, as I don't see how this would do anything.  I thinking watching a good Brando movie would be more useful than this type of charade.

 

Mr. Trump's Ego

On baby duty the other night, I watched what turned out to be one of the worst tv programs I've ever seen, something about "Secrets of the Billionaire Mind", featuring Donald Trump.  The show consisted of an apparently guillable audience asking Trump various questions.  The audience members asked what appeared to be pre-selected questions, each prefaced by lavish praise for Trump.  He was always referred to as "Mr. Trump" as well throughout the show.

Trump's answers were almost all cliches, such as "get in the game", "be knowledgeable", and "have passion".  He gave virtually no real advice about how to be succesful in real estate.

I'm still not sure why Trump is worthy of such attention or praise.  So he's made a billion dollars, great.  Has he done anything worthwhile with the money?  All he talks about is Trump this and Trump that, which really just means more money for himself.

Here's an idea: why doesn't he start a Trump charter school or a Trump homeless shelter?  In other words, do something constructive with all that wealth instead of feeding his ego and building more palaces for the ultra-rich. 

Is Soccer Better than Jogging?

I saw this recent story across a number of news outlets.  The article recaps a recent study that compares jogging versus soccer.  Participants were split into three groups: jogging, playing soccer for an hour three times a week, and a control group.

The soccer players lost 3.7 percent body fat, while the joggers lost 2 percent.  The soccer players also gained muscle, while the joggers didn't gain any.  Obviously, there were no real changes in the control group.

Clearly, the soccer players had the better outcomes in this study.  But as mentioned in the article, the two groups were not matched for intensity.  Jogging is mostly low-intensity, while soccer mixes in high-intensity efforts.  So it's not a surprise to me that the soccer players came out on top.  This study does provide an good lesson though, and that is the importance of intensity in reshaping the body.

Here's a different study that shows how running (instead of jogging) can actually help improve soccer performance.  For this study, soccer players engaged in high-intensity running: 4 cycles of 4 minutes at 90-95% heart rate max followed by 3 minutes low-intensity work.  This was in addition to the regular practice and games the players were already doing.

The improvement in these players was quite dramatic.  They had an 11% increase in vo2max, and lactate-threshold running speed, and running economy improved.  And these improvements translated over to the field as well: total distance covered in the game increased by 20%, and number of involvements with the ball rose 24%.

So if someone wanted to say soccer is "better" than jogging, than they would also have to say that high-intensity running is "better" than soccer.  But putting these activities on a single continuum is pretty useless.  A well-rounded program will mix in different activities and intensities to maximally improve health.

What If...?

I've been working on an idea lately, based on a few studies I've seen.  A number of new studies have linked resistance training with increased insulin sensitivity/glucose disposal.  This got me thinking... what if the "purpose" of resistance training is really to empty out the body's glcogen stores?

This takes some more explanation.  Usually, the purpose or outcome measured with resistance training studies is muscle mass - did the training result in increased muscle mass.  But building muscle is often a lengthy process, and some people really can't build that much muscle at all.  So is there any benefit to using muscles against resistance if it doesn't lead to an increase in muscle mass?

I'm starting to think yes, and that by using muscles against resistance and emptying out glycogen stores, the risk of diabetes, insulin resistance, etc., is reduced, regardless of whether any new muscle mass is built or not.

This would suggest that more moderate resistance-training programs, or even bodyweight exercises, may provide important health benefits.

Mark Sisson

I definitely think Mark Sisson's blog, Mark's Daily Apple, is a quality blog.  Lately, he's had two posts that caught my interest.  The first is his sprint video, which is available here.  After this, he posted his weekly workout routine here.  Mark is in great shape and as shown by his workout routine, he doesn't put in a zillion hours a week.  This shows that a proper diet (Paleolithic), and an efficient workout routine yields results. 

Listen to Your Heart

Here's a neat study that utilizes heart rate variability for endurance training.  When heart rate variability increases or stayed the same, high-intensity training was prescribed.  When heart rate variability decreased, rest or low-intensity training was prescribed.

Over the course of the study, the group that used their heart rate variability information increased VO2max, while the control group had no change in VO2max.  This study shows that listening to your body pays dividends.

Staffan Lindeberg

I stumbled upon this good website earlier today  It is the personal website of Staffan Lindeberg, a researcher who has been studying hunter-gatherer culture for many years. 

I love how this link shows an apparently healthy 100-year member of a hunter-gatherer tribe.  How many 100-year olds do you know that look like this??  The site also reports on the recent clinical trial of the Paleolithic in humans.

This website is definitely worth a look!

Is Obesity Contagious?

Here's a news report suggesting that obesity may be "contagious".  The research is not focused on obesity being contagious like a virus, but as in "socially contagious".  The research suggests that obesity may be spreading due to social norms.

Specifically, the research contends that having overweight friends increases the risk of being overweight yourself.  I think this whole line of research is very believable.  These type of "network effects" exist for lots of other social conditions, so why would obesity be any exception?  I think this also shows that obesity can''t be treated in isolation - the effects of the physical and social environments must be taken into account.

Burger King 20, Local Park 3

I was scouting out some local parks today in Buffalo.  It was a gorgeous day, right around 70 degrees.  I found a nice park and spent some time walking around enjoying the scenery.

The park was across the street from a Burger King.  During the time I was at the park, 3 other people visited the park.  During this same time, at least 20 people came in and out of Burger King.  I've commented before on whether people really want to lose weight.  Instances like today make me believe people aren't really that serious about it.  There was no rain, no snow, and really no excuse not to get out and move around.

Front Park, Buffalo