🏋️‍♂️ our starter’s guide to weightlifting

Today’s newsletter is presented by MAJOR FITNESS. Enter MAJOR FITNESS’ Biceps Curl Challenge for a chance to win $1500. Head here for more!

Here’s what we’ve got for you today:

• A beginner’s guide to Olympic weightlifting

• Learn how to eyeball your macros

• Eat these 14 foods high in creatine

Weightlifting

In the Beginning…

Weightlifting is a difficult sport to approach as a beginner, and that’s exactly why we’ve put together a starter’s guide to help you understand the basics.

Requiring a higher level of base skill than anything you’ve been doing in your bodybuilding-based gym, Olympic lifting demands time and patience and will reward you with an entirely new skill set. From the equipment you need to the early workouts you should aim for, we’re breaking down the whole thing below.

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Nutrition

Eyeball It

Tracking calories in an app can be an important step in your weight-loss and muscle-building lifestyle. Knowing what you’re eating and how much you’re eating lets you create a plan and stick to it.

But how do you know how much you’re eating without any fancy tracking accessories? Tattooed and shirtless fitness influencer Chris Heria shows you how to “eyeball” 600 calories worth of food to never overeat when your Wi-Fi signal is low.

In a recent tutorial on YouTube, Heria lists several examples of 600-calorie portions of classic fitness-focused meals (like chicken and rice) and the macros that come along with them. Stuck on food? Check out how your calories are, or are not, working for you.

Nutrition

Cook With Creatine

If you’ve been supplementing with powdered creatine for the past couple of decades, you’re not alone. Creatine is one of the few supplements that genuinely does what the label says, and the ubiquity of it in the gym bags of serious athletes shows its penetration.

But do you need to only use creatine supplements to get its benefits? Sure, those powders work great, but the 14 foods we rounded up below can also help you hit your creatine goals for the day. From steak and chicken to herring and pumpkin seeds, you can put together a killer seven-day menu with these fridge staples.

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Everything Else

MMA Debut Knocked Out

• Watch the latest episode of Strength Weekly, where we go over all the epic lifts from the Sheffield Powerlifting Championships.

• File this whole thing under “bummer.” Brian Shaw’s MMA debut has been canceled over an undisclosed breach of contract.

• The incline dumbbell curl offers you the best way to work your biceps out while lounging luxuriously and staring at yourself in the mirror! Learn how to do it.