Dad Strength on The Nature of Things

Today on Dad Strength

• Dad Strength on The Nature of Things

• Should we be concerned about diseases of affluence?

• Where does arm isolation fit into a program — for adults or kids?

• A book, a quote, a dad joke

Dad Strength on The Nature of Things

If you grew up in Canada, you know The Nature of Things. So, I was delighted to have Dad Strength featured on their recent Dad Bods episode. We pop in at 1:35 with community member, Amit, capturing things perfectly, and a workout session with the boys at Bang Personal Training, and then more from the group at 40:37. But the whole episode has some real gems in it and is worth watching.

Get Three Power Statements for Parents

As a parent, you want to have a great feedback system for your kids: something that helps them build skills and feel good about the process. And the higher your expectations, the more support you’ll need to provide. Developmental psychologist, David Yeager, describes this in his book, 10 to 25, as the Mentor persona.

Based on this, I’ve crafted 3 power statements — and how to make them authentically your own. Words matter but how you say them matters more.

You get these (and more) when you sign up to the Community Edition of Dad Strength ($5/month). Cancel at any time.

Should we be concerned about “diseases of affluence”?

One of MAHA’s main talking points here is that there are higher rates of non-communicable diseases (AKA diseases of affluence) and that this is evidence of something evil.

I mean…. That’s true in the sense of not properly regulating corporations, decreasing pollution, or improving food systems. But that’s not what the MAHA folks are advocating for. They want less medicine, more supplements (but less regulation on those supplements), and — of course — marginally better ingredients in junk food.

Wait. That’s not fair. They want greater health across the board, which is terrific but the legislative action they’re fighting for simply isn’t equipped to deliver anything but better paydays for people in the para-wellness space and solace for conspiracy theorists. Oh, and way more communicable diseases. Which brings me to a video someone shared with me. Here, professional ghoul, Stephen Miller, says, “In the most developed countries, you have such high incidences of cancer, of immunological disorders (food allergies, psoriasis, gut disorders)… What is causing young babies in this country to have these crippling allergic reactions… Why does a person in the developing world have a lower cancer rate [sic] than an American does?”

These are great questions. Better record keeping is (well, it was) partially responsible for this. However, the real MVP is lower infant morality rates in developed countries. This is due, in part, to lower rates of communicable diseases, like hepatitis B and chicken pox (RFK Jr. is, of course, working on that). If communicable diseases don’t get you, then something else will. There are some real problems with public health in North America but not dying from Ebola isn’t one of them.

Depletion of a nutrient-dense food supply and a reliance on ultra-processed foods are clearly issues. However, the dose makes the poison. So, while processed food standards are a concern, the best questions have less to do with standards for food dyes and more to do with better access to affordable whole foods (and the education, space, and time needed to prepare them).

We can also ask how to systematically eliminate barriers to access for physical movement, social support, and medical care. But, again, this isn’t the question MAHA is asking (beyond how to create… labour camps!?)

An important runner-up question is: would your work on public health earn a passing grade in junior high? I bring this up because we are currently holding 11-year-olds to higher standards for use of generative AI.

Where does arm isolation work fit into a program — for kids or adults?

A decade ago, I would have told you to focus on rowing and pressing for the first 3-6 months of resistance training since your arms will grow just from doing compound movements — and besides, it’s better to be strong than look strong. These days, I’m far less concerned with “optimal” and much more interested in whatever you’re interested in. So, hit those arms whenever you feel like it because inefficiency is not the boogeyman it’s made out to be. Just don’t forget the rest of you. And if you’re working with young guys who are really motivated to earn their tickets to the gun show, it’s a spoonful of sugar that you can attach to just about any workout.

I remember reading about an old-school program where kids would curl a barbell, press it, row it, etc. and then hand it to a partner… back and forth. Once you could hit a certain number of reps, you’d get promoted to the next weight up. This is a page out of classic training, when weight were harder to come by and barbells were more likely to be a fixed weight. It still works. Here’s something I wrote for folks trying to make the most of limited equipment circa 2021.

My favourite type of direct arm work is to use gymnastics rings as you would for inverted rows — but to fix the elbow in space and try to bring your hands behind your head. This is more like a pull-up, since your hands are fixed in space and your body moves. Strength nerds call this an closed-chain exercise. I’m also a fan of seated incline curls, and grabbing an empty barbell and just curling for all you’re worth.

What I’m reading/watching:

Review: The Young Runner’s Guide to Nutrition

I always have an eyebrow preemptively cocked for any nutrition advice because I’ve met so many adults struggling with their own challenges about body image. There’s lots of room to do things imperfectly as long as you don’t internalize your struggles. It’s just so much damn work to overcome disordered eating. That’s why I was delighted to come across The Young Runner’s Guide to Nutrition.

There was clearly a lot of care put into this book. Lifelong runner, Michele Pettinger, translates complex ideas about exercise physiology, nutrition, and body image into an accessible read for parents and coaches of teens. There are some great practices in here about how to talk to young people about nutrition. It’s also a reasonably quick read, since much of the book is taken up by recipes (that’s not a bad thing — I trust these over anything ChatGPT might output).

On Muscle: The Stuff That Moves Us and Why it Matters

I don’t just read books for teens these days (although it feels that way). I’m also reading a thoughtful book on family, physical culture, and identity by author Bonnie Tsui. Here’s an excerpt.

How game theory explains vaccination rates and parents’ choices

To Be Or Not To Be: A Choose Your Own Adventure Novel

A quote

A dad joke

I returned my sweater because I shocked any person I touched when I was wearing it. They gave me a new one free of charge.

Take care of yourself, man!

Geoff Girvitz
Father, founder, physical culturist
dadstrength.com

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