Alpha Asian

Q: James, thanks for your training wisdom. Yes, pull-ups for me is a problem. I have to do them at work hanging from a support beam. It's tough. My fingers can't go around the wood since it's a beam, so I have to cup them on top, then pull myself up. It works, but it's not easy. I still train at home, and at 57 I'm doing OK. I have to improvise a lot. Thanks again for your updates. -Bruce My Answer: Well Bruce, if you're doing pull-ups on a support beam, then I say you're doing good and kicking the asses of guys half your age. You got to work with what you got, and sometimes that's better for you. In my starving student days, I used to workout at a playground, which had a 3 inch thick pull-up bar for kids to hang on. I did pull-ups on that. Scared a few soccer moms, made a few pint sized friends. Even though it was initially difficult to do pull-ups because of the thickness of the bar, I kept doing it. So when I joined a gym and perfor...

Recently a UC Berkeley student named Kay interviewed me for a research project on representations of Asians/Asian Americans on reality TV shows.  She was nice enough to provide me with a transcript of our interview: Kay: Well, to begin, I really want to thank you for taking the time to interview with me. Again, like I said, this interview will be about 45 minutes to an hour long, so I really do thank you.  My topic is gendered representations of Asian Americans and Asians in reality TV shows.  For this assignment, we are asked to interview someone who can provide insight into our topic. After the interview, we reflect on it and provide any new insight that we might find and list the pros and cons of the research method. So, that’s the reason why I would like to interview you.  James: Can I ask you a question? Kay: I’m sorry?           James: Can I ask you a question? Kay: Yes, of course! James: How did you find out about my blog? K...

Hello Coach, You already answered me twice and on your blog. In the past I was on a fat loss plan. Now since I'm back from vacation and my beach season is over I'm looking to pack on some serious mass again. I read all your articles, and I also have your book . I would like to know where I should start!! I'm very interested by your Body Contract System 2.0 , Supercharging H.I.T. , the 6 Factors workout from  Strength and Physique, Volume One and the Shotgun Method . I can train 3 to 4 days a week. Some of your workouts are 2 weeks of high intensity followed by some backcycling. Could you help me set up my plan? By the way some info, I'm 6 feet tall and about 192 right now. Goal is to hit 210 and some small fat gain is acceptable. I wanna pack some mass until December. As for the diet it will be based on the following: eggs bacon meats cheese whole milk pasta peanut butter nuts Cytogainer Muscle Milk As usual: a big thank you! -DM My...

The following guest post is by Yun Xu of AsianManCure.com. You are here for the same reason I'm here. We have seen deeply disturbing behavior in our fellow sisters, brothers, and over-privileged racists. As much as I value discussion , I see no actionable advice being offered. So, I wrote a guide and I hope that my fellow Asians benefit from this. Some of us feel this problem is insurmountable and I don't blame you. It's soul crushing to hear an Asian girl hate on good Asian men and run into the arms of a "me love you long time" racist. However, I want you to consider a different point of view. Accelerated evolution This is trial by fire. It's a test of our resolve to grow and fight. There is no "love conquers all" bullshit. Your enemies weaponize the media to spread lies about you, but these lies have only worked because too many of us have failed to improve and more importantly, fight back. I hate the cost that this war has inflic...

Hey guys I'm still alive, just going through some stuff. Heartwarming video of an outstanding Asian male gentleman. Full description in the video link. 

Q:  Firstly, thank you for all of this information. It has proved to be invaluable reading! I've started doing the Hypertrophy for Ectomorph program, but I'm finding that with the 3 minute breaks between sets, it's taking too long for me to perform in the time I have available. Would you recommend doing the sets as circuits (IE: all the 10 reps, all the 8 reps etc) or is it okay to reduce the recovery time between each set? For your information, I'm 6'2", 176 lb, I'm relatively fit (used to doing LOTS of cardio - mainly distance running and cycling) but new to weight training and have around 8% body fat - not sure how much of that is relevant! Hope to hear from you soon! Thanks again! Neil My Answer:  I know it's very tempting to turn your strength training workout into a cardio workout, since you come from an endurance background. However, it's important to keep the rest periods long enough for your nervous system to recover and for ...