Q&A by All Star Health

April 20th, 2011

Can PowerGrape help your strength? Yes, but not as much as other, more affordable things. Spend your money on better foods (diet), better training programs, and proven supplements like protein and creatine. Make sure your training program is optimized. Plus, you can’t by PowerGrape by itself, it is only found in proprietary blends like Yok3d.
Can taurine help in strength or muscle mass gain? If this is your only goal then probably not. It’s the same case as PowerGrape. Don’t spend time worrying about the little things until you’ve got your “growth bases” covered. Focus on the hierarchy of muscle mass: Training, diet, sleep, and finally supplements. You can’t make gnarly gains without the first three. Once you got those down, then add a solid brand of taurine to your pre-workout mix.
Can octacosanol help increase bench press or squat or strength in general? Same as above.
ZMA, what can it do in your diet/ training program? Take it at night before you go to bed to help boost natural testosterone levels. ZMA is a great supplement with a lot of solid research behind it.
What are the best fat burners?… My favorite is Body Burn. Best price, best results, and they make you feel really good.
Running steady vs. sprinting? Look at the physiques of Olympic marathoners and compare them against Olympic sprinters. Hint hint: sprinting wins.
How can you increase your vertical jump? Read this and jump like Blake Griffin.
Can squatting help in sprinting time? Definitely, but you need to squat in the heavy range for high reps. I’m talking about 65% of your 1 rep max for 20-30 reps. For me, I do 225×30, 245×25, or 275×20. And yes, you won’t be able to the walk the next day. This also helps your vertical jump. See above referenced article.
Can lifting light weight until failure be as beneficial as going heavy? Depends on how your body reacts to it. For me, my body reacts to low rep, heavy explosive movements. My brother’s reacts to high rep, slow endurance weight training, usually till failure. Everyone is different, find what works best for you and do more of it.
What supplements can help in strength goals? Muscle mass? Look at the list of supplements on the vertical jump article.
Are weight scales accurate at measuring body fat? No.
What is the best way to measure body fat? The most accurate are Dual Energy X-Ray and Expansions, but both of those are expensive and time consuming. If you want a digital body fat estimator, pick up an electric body mass calculator. If you want a ball park figure, pick up a body fat caliper. Once you know how to use one they are surprisingly accurate.
Why is 1,3 Dimethylamylamine banned in professional sports? Because it has amphetamine-like effects and is awesome.
Why are supplements with GH being sold but are banned by certain organizations? Because they don’t contain any GH, just amino acids or GABA that can raise endogenous levels of GH within the body. They are banned because of misleading advertising. If you want a supplement that has been shown to help promote healthy levels of GH production, buy GABA supplements without misleading advertisements.
What is the deal with Deer Antler Velvet? It’s supposed to raise IGF-1 levels and circulating free testosterone levels, but has little research to support these claims. If you want a supplement with more research behind it, try tribulus.
What is the difference between slow digesting carbs and fast diegesting carbs? Eat fast digesting carbs with protein pre/post workout and slow digesting carbs with protein any other time of the day.
What is Waxy Maize and how can it help you? Read product info here.