Hammer and Chisel Performance Podcast

How to transform a physique over time

Weekly nutrition rant! I dive into how I break the year up into a planned series of structured phases to drive physique improvement over time...step one of this process is get lean!

Ep. 86: Dr. Emily Dow, Performance Dietitian

Dr. Emily Dow is a performance dietitian specializing in sports nutrition, body composition, and evidence-based strategies to help athletes and active individuals optimize performance, recovery, and long-term health. Through her work with competitive athletes and fitness enthusiasts, she focuses on practical nutrition approaches that improve training outcomes without unnecessary restriction or fad dieting.

Monthly Q&A! All things diet, training and more

Monthly Q&A Answered from questions sent in to my Instagram! Time Stamps below 0:00 Intro 1:22 Mobility, soft tissue work & loaded stretching 4:34 Full-body split structure 6:48 Best workout splits 8:27 Training biceps without “training biceps” 9:09 Backloading carbs at night 10:27 Beginner strongman training 12:02 Starting strongman from scratch 12:14 Strongman vs bodybuilding for motivation 13:14 Transitioning from powerlifting to strongman 13:58 Strongman competitors/coaches to learn from 14:47 New dad going through a breakup while maintaining progress 16:16 Real food vs protein bars and shakes 17:42 Starting a cut with too deep of a deficit 18:26 Adding quality mass without sacrificing speed 20:00 When to increase calories during a gain phase 21:41 How to decide whether to cut or bulk 23:20 Tracking calories/protein vs all macros 24:10 Training day vs non-training day macros 26:31 Weekly surplus vs high-day surplus for bulking 26:47 How long cut, maintenance, and bulk phases should last 28:58 Recomping in-season while a bit too fat 30:06 Building muscle and losing fat at the same time 31:26 High carbs/protein during recomp with low calories 32:27 Loose skin after weight loss 33:07 Reverse dieting after a long cut 33:57 How fast to add carbs in a reverse diet 35:00 Cheat meals/refeeds while reverse dieting 37:21 Building metabolism without gaining excess fat 37:52 Switching from keto to a carb-based diet 38:42 Pre-workout carb amount and simple sugars 40:06 Coconut water powder vs regular coconut water intra-workout 41:02 Candy/sugar as pre-workout carbs 42:05 Best carbohydrate sources 43:20 Jasmine rice as a carb source 43:29 Where to remove carbs during carb cycling 43:50 Swimmer trying to get jacked 44:38 Body composition vs performance for explosive athletes 45:20 Sport-specific diet adjustments 45:48 Electrolytes when introducing growth hormone 46:17 Long-term low-dose Cialis for bodybuilders 46:49 CoQ10 for endurance athletes 47:19 Biggest supplement timing mistakes 48:28 Supplements to preserve/build muscle during fat loss 49:12 How often clients should get bloodwork 50:16 Personal daily caffeine intake 51:30 Why fiber is higher on non-training days 53:14 Tips for improving gut health 55:14 Why dairy has been a positive change 56:49 Avoiding digestive issues in a surplus 1:00:22 Almond butter vs peanut butter 1:01:29 Is a nutrition coach worth it if money is tight? 1:03:26 What to look for in a good nutrition coach 1:06:28 Biggest client pet peeve 1:09:34 Could you collaborate with Tom Brady? 1:09:51 Getting someone off the carnivore diet 1:12:15 Binge eating after dieting 1:14:15 Monitoring fasting glucose and HbA1c with high carbs 1:15:37 Plyos/jump training during a bodybuilding phase 1:17:04 Eating 50+ grams of protein in one meal 1:18:43 Caffeine-free pre-workout for PM training 1:19:45 How long to maintain after a cut before growing 1:20:28 Fats in the post-workout meal 1:22:12 Getting up to 40 calories/kg at lean body composition 1:24:24 Carb cycling high days before morning workouts 1:26:05 Pec not firing after scapular injury 1:27:16 Recovery after heavy sessions and current training split 1:29:23 Best advice for a new dad with low sleep and two jobs 1:31:17 General strength vs specialization for intermediate lifters 1:32:21 Custom meal plans for specific goals 1:32:43 Rucking vs running for fat loss 1:33:56 Sodium during exercise and potassium post-workout 1:34:30 Best nutrition books 1:35:50 How to avoid binge eating 1:36:48 Nutrition before 4:30 a.m. training 1:38:23 Outro

Ep. 85: Luka Hocevar, The ART of Coaching

Luka Hocevar is a performance coach, gym owner, entrepreneur, and educator known for blending strength training, conditioning, nutrition, and mindset coaching into a holistic approach to human performance. He is the founder of Vigor Ground Fitness & Performance and has worked with everyone from general population clients to elite athletes, helping coaches and athletes optimize both performance and long-term health

Why you are not losing body fat

In this weeks nutrition rant I dive into the reasons people often hit a stall with fat loss, or may not even be ready to start a fat loss diet, YET. And how to remedy this