How can we know if we have a soul? How do we know souls exist? First it takes accepting that logic can be used to deduce truth. If you don’t believe truth exists or don’t believe it is possible to come to know truth; that is for a different argument. This article will present 4 arguments for the existence of a soul that which is separate from the physical body.
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Well, a lot has changed over the past year. Hell, a lot has changed over the past 10 years! So, with all the changes and events that have taken place, what governing system is America now? Well, first we need to look at what defines the different systems and compare that to what has been happening in America today.
A “Republic” is defined as: “a state in which supreme power is held by the people and their elected representatives, and which has an elected or nominated president rather than a monarch.”
So, the question becomes “Who holds the ‘supreme power’ in America?” In a republic, it is “by the people AND their elected representatives.” Do you really think, “The People” share the supreme power with “elected representatives”? NOPE. This is false. The nation wide lockdowns prove this to be false. The recent suppression of the people’s free speech by big tech companies and the purposeful lack of action by the “elected representatives” also disproves this. The failure of the court system to validate the people’s supreme power also verifies this fallacy. Finally, the election itself, is rot with corruption, questioning the validity of these “elected representatives.”
The People, include, protesters, small business owners, and people who work underpaid jobs to feed their families. Do you really think they share in this “supreme power?” How can they be deemed “non-essential” and forced to shut down if they actually have supreme power? Then, when some of these people exercise their power and frustrations, their representatives deem them “domestic terrorists,” and “unlawful rioters.” And how can UNELECTED corporation CEOS make the decision of their own will to silence and censor The People? It is clear, that The People do not hold any “supreme power.”
Therefore, we can conclude that America is NOT or NO LONGER a Republic.
A “Democracy” is defined as: “a system of government by the whole population or all the eligible members of a state, typically through elected representatives.”
Are all Americans governed by the whole population’s majority decisions, and this majority through elected representatives? This seems more reasonable of a comparison. When we look into the details we can see evidence for this system. The issue of Abortion for example. A serious social issue. 61% of American’s are in favor of its legality [1]. Thus, public policy and laws reflect this. 61% also favor gay marriage and gay rights, which, also reflects in public policy [2]. 67% support the legalization of marijuana, and as time goes on, we see public policy and laws changing to reflect this as well. 66-68% of Americans are worried the lockdown restrictions were/will be lifted too quickly, thus, showing they in some ways support them. 59% of people want the government involved in their healthcare, which the government was more than happy to do [5]. 60% of people still want even more stricter gun control laws, which, the government has done, and still has plans on doing.
But then we run into a divide between the majority of people and the elected officials. 66% say that civilians need to be more empowered to sue police over police brutality, yet, law makers aren’t willing to reflect that. 92% of people feel it should be a crime for police to use choke holds. 69% of people say police aren’t being held accountable for misconduct. 73% want to keep police budgets the same or slightly increase, but we see local governments in opposition to this [4]. 62% view the federal tax system as unfair. But, we don’t see elected officials changing that. 68% want to raise taxes on corporations, but, this hasn’t happened either [5].
It seems that the elected representatives only seem to support the majority in some things, but not in others. But, this is part of a democracy. If the democratic people don’t like their representative, for not doing enough, or doing too little, they elect a new representative. In theory, that sounds good. But, in reality, it’s not that simple.
Nanci Pelosi, for example, represents the 12 District in California, which is essentially all of San Francisco. Where the medium income is around $120k and a population of 800,000 people. In essence, she only represents 0.2% of Americans. Yet, as speaker of the house, she wheals the power to influence all Americans. She, alone, makes decisions that impact people she doesn’t even represent. There are A LOT of “rules” and “procedures” like this all throughout congress. This, in essence, circumvents the representation aspect of public office. More and more of these ideals and positions have become ingrained in American government.
Governmental regulatory bodies, like the ATF, FDA, IRS, FCC, and EPA are just unelected, appointed, government officials that make regulations that are enforceable like laws. There is NO elected representation here. And these are huge. They create regulations that impact all Americans and all American’s must comply or face fines and legal issues. This is not democratic in anyway. In fact, this is so huge and such a big part of the American system, it’s easy to say it makes up 70% of the federal government, unelected regulatory authorities.
We can actually come to a good estimate that only 25% of the American system is democratic. The other 75% are congressional rules and polices with regulatory bodies that aren’t elected or represent the people of their regions.
Therefore, we can conclude that America is barely a Democracy.
Well, let’s consider the facts. Both parties expand the size of government, both parties increase federal spending, and both parties utilize the authority of the federal government to force their agendas. We can say that both parties are One party that is Pro-Big Government. They share the same ideology of big one big powerful government.
Because both parties use their governmental powers to force the people to comply in the most basic ways; such as in “stay-at-home” orders, suspending religious worship, and forced closure of small private business while supporting larger corporate operations, we can say that the American government is, in fact, authoritarian. There are only a handful of politicians that impact all Americans AND there are a handful of corporate CEOs who also wheeled unchecked power over all Americans. Therefore, we can conclude that America is an authoritarian Oligarchy.
An Oligarchy is defined as: “a small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution.”
Speaker of the House, Senate Majority Leader, Committee Chairman, and the CEOs of the fortune 50 companies… these are the few who have control of America. It’s that simple.
The Senate Majority Leader, Mitch “The Bitch” Mcconnell single highhandedly prevented you from being given your own tax dollars back to you in the “stimulus” but was perfectly fine with giving other people all other the world hundreds of billions of YOUR tax dollars…
Did you see a third party presidential candidate on the debate stage during the elections? They were on the ballot, though. That’s because both parties prevented them from attending, and the CEOs of the “News” networks didn’t invite them either. They don’t share in the same One Big Government as Republicans and Democrats do.
Mark Zucc, Jack Douchy, and CEOs of Amazon, Google, and Apple, censor you and prevent private companies to empower your free speech, single highhandedly, and no one in government is defending your rights of free speech. Hell, this post will even be shadow banned, and all our pages reach have been reduced already. They banned a sitting president of the United States, a public official, from using their free-and-open-to-the-public services. This is not an argument as to whether or not they should as a private company themselves, but used to show the power they have, over you; an oligarchy.
In fact, in light of all the recent events,
Voting for Republican OR Democrat is still voting for those who support one big government. This is the illusion that America is the example of Democracy… when it is hardly such.
But, you silly Americans, you keep paying your taxes and you keep voting harder for the few to spend your money and rule over you; obey peasants.
We call this the “Mutant Killer.” Mutant BCAAs was at the top of your rankings for All day, Recovery Day, and Off Day supplements for a while. But this stuff, this stuff smashes it. Everything Mutant has, plus more. All the BCAAs the body needs and electrolytes, just like Mutant, but this ALSO has all the EAAs too. They literally “one-up” Mutant for sure.
PERSONAL EFFECTS:
Kept me hydrated and my body loaded with BCAA’s and EAAs, at all times, workout days, and off days. Short recovery time. Did the job.
PHYSICAL TESTING:
I followed the recommended usage with some flavorless protein, 45 minutes before I worked out, several half servings throughout the day and off days too.
My workout routine consisted of heavy lifting, high weight, moderate reps, 6 sets, 4 to 5 workouts per muscle group.
INGREDIENT SCRUTINY
The right ratio of Essential Amino Acids and Branch Chain Amino Acids. Descent hydration and recovery additives.
Research more of the ingredients at Know your Pre-workout Ingredients
Full Disclosure:
I took this supplement faithfully before each workout but stacked it with GNC’s flavorless protein, and ACG3 pre-workout; together as part of my pre-workout drink. I would also take half servings along with the flavorless protein on my off days as well.
Price Point:
I don’t recall the exact price, but it was pricey. But, given the quality and price, this would be up there with the “gucci” of supplements.
Final Recommendation:
home workout that does not need gym equipment and builds muscle! Straight body weight workouts but not just your normal body weight workouts. There are some tweeks in how to do them that will make a huge difference. Come out of quarantine with a ripped physique!
Roughly 1 hour workouts, 6 days a week.
Day 1 – Chest and Triceps w/ upper core
Day 2 – Back and Biceps w/ lower core
Day 3 – Legs w/ full core
Day 4 – Chest and Triceps w/ upper core
Day 5 – Back and Biceps w/ lower core
Day 6 – Legs w/ full core
Day 7 – Rest.
I call these “skill” body weight workouts. The reason these are different from your normal body weight workouts is what you do to make them do more damage to your muscles. For example, a push up. Hands about shoulder width apart, full up then down to almost touching the ground and back up. BUT, with “Skill” Push Ups, EACH set gets more challenging and each set adds a new dynamic to the workout:
Set 1, Push Up – Basic Push Up (warm up)
Set 2, Push Up – Slow motion. Do the same motion, but really slow. Go down, very slow and back up, very slow.
Set 3, Push Up – Slower motion. Now, go even slower than your last set.
Set 4, Push Up – Slow motion and Pause. Do a slow mo push up, but once you get to your down position, pause for a few seconds and hold it. Then, slowly return.
Set 5, Push Up – Slow motion, pause, until failure. Do set 4, but continually do it until you hit muscle failure.
Now, apply this “Skill Set” principle with all the workouts.
Set 1 – Basic movement, like a warm up set.
Set 2 – Slow Motion 1. Slow the movement down.
Set 3 – Slow Motion 2. Go even slower than the previous set.
Set 4 – Slow Mo and Pause. Same as Set 3, but in the half completed position, before return to starting position, pause for a few seconds.
Set 5 – Same as set 4, but do it until muscle failure.
Now, to raise the intensity of the workout, between each set, you will do a core super set, roughly 60 seconds of activity.
Following this routine will work every primary muscle group at least twice a week and give your core a constant workout. With the “skill” adjustments, these simple body weight workouts will do more stimulating muscle growth.
Keep in mind though, without a constant solid healthy diet, you may be able to build some muscle, but recovery may be slower, and you won’t see any viable results. By incorporating a healthy high protein fresh foods diet while maintaining a calorie deficit, you will get some serious results, strength, size, and toning!
So when the government says you can have your freedoms back, and tell you what you can and can’t do with your body by where you’re allowed to go, and allow you go exit your house and allow businesses (that haven’t gone out of business due to the forced closures) reopen, you will have a more strong toned body to show off, right before summer too.
The nutrition and fitness industry is like the wild west, and that’s a good thing! Freedom drives innovation and discovery while fact-based insights and marketing help keep the freely driven industry accountable. That is how Power Balance bracelets came about. Freedom and a lack of fact-based informed consumers. Does it work, and if not, why do so many people swear by them?
There are all sorts of products marketed as something that can do something amazing. For example, remember those silicone wristband bracelets that promised to make you feel more “balanced?” Did you read all their zinger words? “Power Balance holograms“, “100% surgical grade silicone“, “Improve balance, flexibility and strength as well as contributing to an overall sense of well being.”
Here’s my favorate part though: “Mylar Hologram’s which are embedded with frequencies that react with your body’s electro-magnetic field. When the static POWER BALANCE Hologram comes in contact with your body’s energy field, it begins to resonate in accordance with each individual’s biological energy system, creating a harmonic loop that optimizes your energy field, maintains maximum energy flow while it clears the pathways so the electro-chemical exchange functions like the well-tuned generator it was designed to be, resulting in immediate improved balance, increased core strength, greater flexibility, increased range of motion and overall well-being. ” HOLY SHIT, that is some trash “science” lol. And then you have all these amazon reviewers swearing by this trash. I’ll touch on that sheeple mentality later. First, let me dig into what REAL science says about this.
There are no scientific studies showing that power bracelet balance works. And there is no earthly science even remotely saying that we can capture frequencies and bottle it in a hologram.
Here is an actual, real, reliable, scientific study directly looking at the Power Balance band itself [1]. I’ll let the study speak for it’s self when it states: “This study found that under the testing conditions used in the current study, there were no significant performance benefits when wearing the Power Balance® bracelet compared to the placebo bracelet… Thus, this study demonstrates that t the holographic bracelets do not work as advertised. It should be noted that while this study investigated the Power Balance® bracelet, it is presumed that results inves-tigating other performance enhancing jewelry would be similar, under similar testing circumstances.” AND then they go on to explain WHY the public demonstrations of this product “appear” to have a beneficial effect. It states: “these improvements were attributed to the fact that subjects were either: 1) more warmed-up (Maud et al., 2006a; 2006b) or 2) habituated to the task (Benson and Friedman, 1996; Wright et al., 2009).”
Then we have the American Council on Exercise (ACE) conducts a study on the Power Balance Bracelet as well [2]. ACE’s Chief Science Officer, Cedric X. Bryant, Ph.D. states “We ultimately found that the bands had no impact on performance outcomes. Moreover, the significant difference between the first and second time that participants performed tests is likely attributed to participants anticipating the specific test activities the second time around as well as becoming somewhat warmed up, not the bracelet itself… The study was designed to test the validity of the claims that wearing Power Balance bracelets with their embedded holograms restore optimal energy balance in the body to improve a person’s strength, balance and flexibility… The bottom line is that after all the data was analyzed, there clearly was no evidence to support the notion that wearing a Power Balance bracelet improves physical performance.”
Even Psychology Today felt the need to throw their hat in the ring, even calling it a scam [3]. You can’t discredit science and say something like “well science hasn’t been able to detect this form of energy yet.” and then attempt to use scientific reasoning to justify your belief. You just prove yourself wrong, contradictory, ignorant, and incompetent.
Even major companies can get duked into believing this trash works, CNBC did when they named it the “Sports Product of 2010”. Boy, I bet they feel dumb now. But I guess I shouldn’t expect anything different from major news media outlets who are notorious for not fact checking their propaganda they spew.
Then you have all these celebrity endorsements from wealthy morons such as, David Beckham, Robert DeNiro, Leonardo DiCaprio, P Diddy, Khloe Kardashian, Shaquille O’Neal, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Kate Middleton. Because we all know how reliable and informed celebrity opinions are too… yeah okay [4].
Then Power Balance comes out with all sorts of changes to their product. They removed promotional videos that made all the sort of initial claims of the product; they are shutting down outlets that are presenting their initial (original) claims of the product and only projecting the new (revised) claims of the product; and they started offering full refunds to unsatisfied customers. Why would they do all that if their product works?
Now if you go to their site, their claims are drastically changed and moved toward a more spiritual, religious sense. According to their website, about the question “What does this wristband do?” They state: “…it is based on eastern philosophies.” LOL Wait it get’s better. “What is Power Balance Hologram Technology?” Keep in mind, this question is about the TECHNOLOGY. Here is their answer “.… The hologram is designed based on Eastern philosophies.” LOL WTF, eastern philosophies have a “cutting edge three-dementiaoin” imaging holographic idea in their spirituality? If everyone emits this kind of “energy” and this band can harness this “energy,” why doesn’t it work for everyone? They state: “... there is no assurance it can work for everyone… That’s why we offer a no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee.” I guess some people just aren’t human if they don’t admit this “energy,” that or, the product doesn’t work at harnessing everyone’s energy… either way, that alone proves its a fraud [5].
Listen, the Placebo Effect IS REAL. Check this out:https://www.youtube.com/embed/yfRVCaA5o18?version=3&rel=1&showsearch=0&showinfo=1&iv_load_policy=1&fs=1&hl=en&autohide=2&wmode=transparent
The “Flexibility/balance/strength Test” these Balance bands tell you to do is more like a test of gullibility and here’s why. First they tell you to do it without the band. That’s important because you are doing it for the first time, you are unaware of possible current situational external things that make you loose your balance, like muscle weakness, fatigue, and other physical issues that would effect your trying to balance.
But, once you do it, you become aware of theses, consciously or subconsciously. Then, when you put the band on, and test yourself again, you are suddenly able to balance better…
That’s because of the things that you were not aware of that impacted your balance, you are now aware of, and your body can naturally compensate for it; consciously or subconsciously. That’s how the mind and the body interact naturally lol.
If you balanced on your right leg, and you felt your right leg was tired, maybe your outer quad was fatigued, the next time you balance on your right leg, you will shift weight to a different, not so fatigued muscle group; thus improving your balance, naturally.
Another nonscientific trick is that a sales guy will have you balance on one leg with your arms out and then he will push down on one of your extended hands, throwing you off balance. Then, they will let you try on the band and repeat the test. But this time, you consciously or subconsciously already know what to expect and your body will already, be ready to compensate the second time around… This natural mind-body interaction is then assumed it was because of the band, not the natural mind-body interaction.
Even the direction of the force applied by the sales man says a lot. The first time they may pull you or push you down and away from your supporting leg; which would, naturally, throw you off balance. Then the second tiem they may push you back toward your balancing leg, which just enables you to naturally shift your weight toward your stabilized planted leg. And presto, you are “more” balanced lol.
And that was 10 years ago. This crap got exposed 9 years ago. And still, morons are still buying and believing in this “eastern technology.” But, at least there are some people who have actually become more healthy from this product, the owner and executive staff of the scam. They have made a financial killing off all the moronic customers. And with those funds, they are able to live a healthier life.
If you are wearing one. Sorry, your a gullible tool. Take it off. Go to the gym and workout your stabilizer muscles.
If you have a friend that wears one, put them in check. Inform them of their stupidity and culpability in making scammers rich.
If you see a fitness and performance shop selling them, ask the manager how it feels to sell fraudulent products and be managing a company that is being scammed.
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Sources:
Part of diet and fitness is your overall health. With so much hoopla about COVID and Face-masks, we want to know, supported by reliable data driven experts, if wearing a face-mask works, or does not work, or risks more harm or less harm; and how that can help you plan your safe, lower risk, workouts and going to the gym.
“If properly worn, surgical masks block large-particle droplets, splashes, sprays or splatters that may contain germs like viruses and prevent them from reaching your mouth and nose, according to the FDA.” [1] So, according to the government agency, this mask protects YOU from OTHERS. But is it really protecting you, if you’re continually re-injecting viruses and bacteria from your own body? After all, sneezing and coughing is your body ejecting unwanted things.
“Because surgical masks fit loosely rather than having a tight seal, they don’t provide an absolute barrier or complete protection against tiny particles in the air that may be released by coughs or sneezes.”[1] And these “tiny particles” also known as “aerosol particles” are so small, they even go through all cloth masks. So, again, what’s the point?
Oddly, and “currently, the CDC does not recommend that healthy people wear a face mask to protect themselves from COVID-19 (or other respiratory illnesses). According to W.H.O., masks are only effective when a person also frequently washes their hands with alcohol-based hand rub or soap and water.” [1] Now that’s an interesting point. Is it the mask that helps or washing your hands?
If “aerosol particles” go through the mask but washing your hands can wash off and kill viruses in the particles, wouldn’t washing your hands be the thing to do?
*UPDATE*
The CDC reversed, again, their recommendations and are now recommending all people to wear masks. The idea is that it blocks the larger particles from spreading. But if health people are wearing masks, what COVID laced particles are they spreading? None. So then the benefit for healthy people to wear the mask is to prevent breathing in the large particles from sick people who aren’t wearing masks. Makes sense. BUT, have you ever smelt a fart or walked somewhere where you could smell food or weird bathroom smells? The answer is yes. Have you wondered how large those particles are? Well, they are larger than a virus. Now, granted the virus does not travel in the area by its self, alone. When someone infected sneezes, they shoot out all sort of sized aerosol particles, not just those big scary nasty droplets. Studies suggest the virus can be in the air for hours, depending on the size of the particles. Knowing smaller aerosol particles get ejected and can linger in the air, are smaller than fecal and food particles, this still brings us back to the starting point.
The basic scenario of some infected person walking down the isle of Walmart, sneezing while wearing a mask still ejects small aerosol particles in the air, that smaller kind that can linger. Then, you walk down that same isle 10 minutes later. You breath in and out smelling all the food smells… and inhale those very small aerosol particles, through your mask… Then, as the bigger heavier particles fall and rest on something on the isle, that you may touch and buy and take home… all of this while the both of you are wearing masks… What did wearing the mask accomplish?
A simple test is Tobacco Smoke. Can you smell it wearing your masking? The particle size of tobacco smoke is around 0.05 and 0.01 [18]. What about a virus attached to aerosol droplets that size? Well, it’s still a possibility according to this 2010 study, studying the H1N1 virus (same family of virus as COVID) [19]. A good visual is using a chain-link fence to block mosquitoes.
How many strangers, in public, sneeze in your face? How many strangers breath heavily in your face? None. No one really does that. It’s common knowledge that it’s rude and gross. So if heavier droplets fall on objects you touch and small aerosol particles linger in air as your walking around… all while wearing a mask, yet, smaller than the fibers of 99% of masks the public uses, what has been prevented? Still doesn’t change the premise of this article.
There are a couple of states that never went on lockdown [20]. Why don’t they have higher infections rates and deaths? [21] Some countries didn’t impose such harsh restrictions either, why are they not more hard hit? It’s logic, the more testing and data collection, the higher the numbers. Not necessarily because the virus is spreading but because of the amount of testing being conducted. Some states have even been busted inflating the numbers! [22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28… and we can keep going]. Even the bias left-wing VOX admits to this [25]. And what happened to the seasonal flu? What happened to those numbers? There are a whole host of influenza viruses out there, where are those numbers? Why do states to certain political ideologies seem to have worse numbers? Notice how they try to avoid talking about the deadliness (or lack of) of the virus, because, it’s not as deadly as they want you to think. Some even come up with arguments against considering the mortality rate. What is worse than death? See, there is more data manipulation and politics at play here than COVID itself.
*END OF UPDATE*
“As a lay person, using a cloth face mask, or continually wearing a surgical face mask whenever you leave your home, poses practical problems. “If you think about a bandanna or something that’s papery, it’s going to get wet through the day and be uncomfortable, and potentially you’re going to touch it more,” says Dr. Colleen Kraft, associate chief medical officer at Emory University Hospital and an associate professor at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta. That reduces the mask’s effectiveness and actually could expose you to possible virus on its outer surface.” [1] This seems to place the greater importance in washing your hands than wearing a cloth/paper mask.
Mask or no mask, avoid touching the mucosal surfaces of your face – your mouth, nose and eyes. “Surgical masks will not prevent your acquiring diseases,” said Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine and infectious diseases at Vanderbilt University, and the medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases. Rather, he explained, surgical masks are typically used by surgeons to protect their patients from their mouth-borne germs — but “those masks don’t work to prevent inhaling diseases,” said Schaffner. As for more preventative measures, Schaffner recommends “abundant hand-washing” [6] Again, “abundant hand-washing” is prescribed.
Face masks can play a role in preventing the infection, but that role is limited. A healthy individual in a normal situation does not need to wear a mask. A face mask is not the ideal solution for protection from the new coronavirus for the following reasons: A surgical mask does not fit tightly over the nose and mouth (which allows particles in and out); It is not possible to prevent airborne virus infection (some particles are so small they just go through the mask anyway); When you touch the mask, you lose the protection and must replace the mask, and dispose of it safely. [10]
“CDC also advises the use of simple cloth face coverings to slow the spread of the virus and help people who may have the virus and do not know it from transmitting it to others.”[2] It’s odd the CDC still recommends “simple cloth face coverings” even though viruses to so small they fit right through them. It also seems that the mask “works” best for people who are already infected to prevent and reduce the risk of them spreading it from saliva and or coughing through droplets and expelling larger particles. But that still doesn’t address the smaller particles and the virus itself…
“But those who work around confirmed infected people, a mask may reduce the risk of inhaling the virus from the infected person’s cough (except if they particles are small). W.H.O. says, “If you are healthy, you only need to wear a mask if you are taking care of a person with COVID-19“…The WHO recommends masks for those who are symptomatic or known to have COVID-19, and those exposed to people who are sick, but not for the healthy out in public.”[2] Sounds a little contradictory.
“A cloth face mask won’t totally block the coronavirus. But it’s an added layer of protection for you and the people around you when you use it along with regular handwashing and social distancing measures like staying 6 feet away from others.”[7] Soooo it’s hand-washing and distancing that is better, since the virus can travel through the mask?
“The public does not need to wear face masks most of the time, said Dr. Otto Yang, a professor in the Department of Medicine and the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.” [8] It seems that way.
Major health agencies, including the World Health Organization, the CDC, and others, have offered confusing and sometimes contradictory guidelines (as noted above). Most healthcare professionals have concluded that, at the very worst, a mask can’t hurt, even if it may provide a false sense of safety. Three large, randomized controlled trials were conducted in the 1980s to determine once and for all if surgical masks actually did prevent surgical wound infection. Here, where bacteria were the major concern in wound infection, the enemy targets were larger and might not require the fine filtration necessary to keep a respiratory virus away, researchers theorized. But the trials “showed absolutely no efficacy” for that original purpose. “Really, the surgeon might as well wear nothing on their face,” C. Raina MacIntyre, MBBS, PhD, of the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia said. Mask wearing “is so inculcated into the practice of medicine that it’s going to be very hard to change,” said John G. Bartlett, MD, former chief of infectious diseases at Johns Hopkins. [11]. It’s as if wearing a mask is to make you feel better and a tradition and not something that actually prevents anything.
Wearing a face mask purportedly helps in two ways. First, you get to keep your own germs to yourself. (But is that something good for you and something you want?) [13] But, why would I want to continually keep re-inhaling a virus? They’re meant to be disposable and worn only once. If they get wet, they become useless and should be thrown away. So if you keep wearing the same mask, you keep re-introducing virus stuck on the mask into your body, over and over. You wash your hands, then touch your mask, washing your hands was pointless…
“A study involved four subjects with COVID-19 coughing with several mask types, and without any mask, onto petri dishes. The masks themselves were also swabbed after coughing. They found the masks did not prevent spread of the virus through coughing (for every mask type, some virus still made it onto the petri dishes). They also found virus on the outside of the masks but not the inside, which is a bit counterintuitive. They speculate that airflow around the mask may be depositing the virus on the outside.” [3]
A recent study found that surgical masks (which are much less effective than the N95 masks) are somewhat effective at slightly reducing the risk. [4]
In a recent systematic review of 19 trials, they concluded that in “the community, masks appeared to be more effective than hand hygiene alone, and both together are more protective. Randomized controlled trials in health care workers showed that respirators, if worn continually during a shift, were effective but not if worn intermittently. Medical masks were not effective, and cloth masks even less effective.” [5]
A March 17 study in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) [9] seemed to justify the fear of airborne spread, showing that the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 could survive in the air for up to 3 hours as an aerosol. The new study showed that the virus was viable as an aerosol in a lab, but not in real life. In the study, the researchers “took extremely concentrated virus, much more concentrated than a person makes, they used an artificial aerosol machine [a nebulizer], which probably generates way more aerosol than a normal person does So their conclusions were in this system. The researchers of that study looked at SARS-CoV-1 (the original SARS from the 2003 outbreak) and SARS-CoV-2 and found that both could be aerosols. “But we already know that the original SARS virus was not transmitted that way,” in the general public, so that makes their model “not very believable (Dr. Otto Yang, a professor in the Department of Medicine and the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles.) [8]
The only high-level evidence for efficacy of masks in the community was a trial from Hong Kong — published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine — involving flu patients who were randomized to hand hygiene alone or in combination with surgical masks. when these interventions were initiated within 36 hours of symptom onset, face masks plus hand hygiene reduced risk of transmission by a very significant 67%. Although the entire benefit can’t be attributed to face masks, the results suggest masks may make a difference. [12] Compared with controls, employing hand hygiene alone or with face masks tended to reduce transmission of the flu to those living in the same house, but not significantly so [11].
A “2009 Canadian study of 446 nurses who were working with influenza patients concluded that face masks provided protection almost equivalent to that provided by respirators. Unfortunately, that turns out to be mixed news. Of the nurses wearing surgical face masks, 23.6 percent contracted the flu, versus 22.9 percent of those wearing N95 respirators. Ironically, that same year, an Australian study of 2000 Chinese healthcare workers had quite different results. According to the report from that study, “Consistent use of N95 respirators prevented 75% of respiratory infections (about the same as the Canadian study), while consistent surgical mask use was no better than low use for prevention of clinical respiratory illness (6.7% versus 9.2%, P=0.159) or of influenza-like illness (0.6% versus 1.3%, P=0.336).” In other words, surgical masks were nearly useless in preventing infection, but respirators were highly effective.” [14]
The real problem with all this is that aerosol particles aren’t really stopped by masks and can remain in the air for hours, even settle on objects that we touch a thousand times a day. They go through and around masks, even stick to masks, on the outside; as the studies indicate. Since aerosol particles can travel and linger in the air, experts recommend that you stay at least six feet away from contagious people. But what difference does that make if they can linger in the air for hours as you walk around and pass by people and touch things they touched?
There are several ways pathogens can reach the respiratory system. First, if a sick person coughs or sneezes they may expel “splashes,” which are large particles (greater than 100 μm in diameter) that drop to the ground fast. Those are the things we touch. Then, we touch our phones, masks, wallets, purses, car searing wheels, door handles and so on. A mask doesn’t protect against this. The masks usually can protect against the coughing and projecting “splashes”.
Droplets are a smaller version of splashes, between 5 μm and 100 μm. Then there are small, lightweight aerosol particles of less than 5 μm that remain suspended in the air, travel over distance, and easily penetrate the respiratory system.
Aerosol particles can come from sneezes, coughs, or just exhalations of the sick person. In fact, the air around an infected person is usually loaded with aerosol particles containing viruses or bacteria. Of which, can go around and through cloth/paper masks…
The US standard is the N95 respirator, which is certified to block 95 percent of particles as small as 0.3 μm (millionths of a meter), which is about the same size as a single virus. This seems to be the only mask that can offer some kind of protection against Aerosol particles.
So, if your not wearing an N95 respirator (mask) but some sort of cloth or paper mask you may as well not be wearing a mask at all.
It seems that washing your hands and wearing a N95 respirator is the only way to really, actually, and scientifically, reduce the risk of virus loaded Aerosol particles.
If someone tells you that you need to be wearing a mask, any mask, they are weak minded ignorant sheep of a system that just wants to make the populous feel better and feel like the government is doing everything it can, and that it’s the people’s fault for the continued spread…
Sorry, your cloth/paper mask is nothing more than your self-soothing, self-righteous, virtual signaling and that your “saving lives.” When, in fact, your cloth/paper mask can’t even stop the virus, in small coughed/expelled particles, that is so small it can go between the fibers of your mask, linger in the air and rest on anything and everything you touch…
And if you want to live in fear of a flu virus with a 0.26% mortality rate over all, and a 0.05% for people 49 years old and under [15, 16, 17], than at least wear a N95 respirator.
Sources
If you are looking to get back into working out after a long time off, or getting into shape for the first time, these are the bare basic essentials for any and all effective routines.
There are two areas that must work together for any routine and regiment to work. Having a healthy diet regiment along with an active workout routine. One plays off the other and helps the other have a greater impact and effect.
Continue reading
From the Manufacturer:
“Since 2009 B-NOX™ has been an industry leader in the pre-workout category and Betancourt Nutrition® continues this tradition with its newest edition of B-NOX® formulated to deliver the same great energy and intensity youʼve come to expect from B-NOX® plus our unique Ripped Juice® blend for weight management support.† Ripped Juice® has been Betancourt Nutritionʼs leader in fat loss support since 2006 and the Ripped Juice® blend will join B-NOX® in delivering pre-workout energy and physique enhancement support.† Also includes Zinc, Magnesium and Vitamin B6.”
Recommended usage: 1 scoop (8.4g)
PERSONAL EFFECTS:
By far, the most powerful thermogenic combined in a pre-workout form I have taken to date. I begin sweating not to long after starting to drink it. And I don’t mean ‘feeling hot and my forehead feels moist’ no, I mean sweating like I’ve been working out already for 30 minutes. Sweat droplets rolling down my back and side of my face. My palms are sweating like crazy. Good stuff.
I do feel the boost in energy and a more intensive focus.
As I weight lift, I do have a feeling of being able to not just lift more but able to do more reps and the pumps I’ve had with this stuff have been better than pumps before I started taking this stuff.
PHYSICAL TESTING:
I followed the recommended usage and took with about 24oz of water combined with some flavorless protein, and some BCAA and Electrolyte supplements 45 minutes before I worked out.
I did a combination of weighted body-weight workouts, resistance bands, and dumb bell moderate weight lifting exercises.
INGREDIENT SCRUTINY
The energy blend is nasty. They just say 1,850mg of all their concoction but don’t specify how many mg are ‘caffeine.’ That’s a little worry some. And after taking it, it feels like a lot. They have a little note saying “contains 197mg of caffeine” but the effects of the Guarana, Teacrine, and Green Tea extract bumps the mg of caffeine higher than just what the baseline Caffeine additive has. I’d say it feels like 300-400mg worth of caffeine.
Research more of the ingredients at Know your Pre-workout Ingredients
Full Disclosure:
I took this supplement faithfully before each workout but stacked it with GNC’s flavorless protein, 1/3 scoop, and Mutant’s BCAA supplement; together as part of my pre-workout drink.
Price Point:
$34.99 is what it typically goes for. Not too bad. $12 cheaper than EVOGEN Xtreme pre-workout drink and feels just as good. I’d say that’s not a bad price for this kind of pre-workout. But remember, semi-rounded scoops means each scoop is worth $1.
Final Recommendation:
With governments imposing more unjust laws and more freedom restrictions, rallies and protests are inevitable. As police departments becoming less focused on individual rights and defending the constitution, they are being weaponized to enforce the unjust laws and freedom restrictions. This routine keeps you in shape and ready for whatever may happen at a rights rally and protest.
Have you noticed the fitness level of average police and national guard? LOL.
Most of those sad guys couldn’t even pass the simplest army 2 mile run in under 16 minutes. A lot of those guys should be getting chaptered for failing their APFT, to be honest. With that said, this routine will give you the physical advantage over those guys, who will be used to violate their rights and oppress you at at rallies and protests. Hell, this routine will even get you prepped for any sort of physical confirmation with counter protesters. This routine is perfectly supplemented with Judo for any sort of physical confrontation preparation.
Considering what you may have to do during a protest and rally, such as a lot of walking, sudden bursts of running, physical upper body strength for breaking away from someone trying to subdue you, and lower body strength for carrying any gear or assisting in helping someone else break away from a physical confrontation.
There are couple of things to consider, some gear to obtain, before conducting this workout.
35 minutes with a 5 minute break at the end of the circuit.
Only do two circuits.
All done while wearing a mask or oxygen restriction devise and a weight best or weighted backpack.
Track your total completion time and how many reps you do for your weakest events/workouts. Then, try to beat your time and increase your reps.
Do this continuously, three times a week, starting 45 days before a major rally or protest and you’ll be ready!
You can also do various of these workouts depressing on where you need to improve the most.
So, to visualize the workouts and the order of them helps us understand why we are doing them and what sort of situation it prepares us for.
#1 is like the beginning of the rally, march, protest.
Then as you begin #2-5 you are assisting the rally organizers or attendees, marching, yelling, protesting.
But then, shit hits the fan, police move in with tear gas or counter protesters start throwing punches.
#6-9 gets your cardio and legs ready for anything. Needing to flee the scene, you’ll be ready. Needing to run and help a fellow protester break away from being subdued or assaulted, you’ll be there in no time, not even tired, full of energy.
#10 is when it is clear the rally and protest is forcefully over and you get need to leave the area ASAP.
So, with this covid-19 winding down and our mommy and daddy governments giving us permission to live free again and go out, let’s not forget it is just about SUMMER TIME! Beach body season! And THIS is the Vanity Beach Body Routine to get those bods into shape for beach fun! It’s simple, and combines all the necessary elements for bodily success!
First we need to get our diet in order. For this, we will just seek to maintain a Calorie Deficit or around 500 to 300 under what we burn daily. In other words, if i burn 2,500 calories that day, I only want to intake 2,000 calories. This will require you to track your calories burned and calorie intake. Then, we want to have NO MORE than 30% carbs. Last we want to intake AT LEAST our body weight in protein grams. So if you weight 200 lbs, you want at least 200g of protein.
Second we may need to make some lifestyle adjustments. We want to make sure we get at least and around 8 hours of sleep a night. Go to bed early if needed. We will then want to take a break from smoking, vaping, and drinking alcohol. These interfere with our bodies use of any hydration, nutrients, and hormones for fat burning and muscle growth. Then, drink coffee in the morning and Green Tea throughout the day. Studies have shown these two have major impacts on fat burning and body fat reduction.
Third, supplements are like liquid motivation and the jet fuel for your bodies engines. You want a three phase approach. Phase One is Pre-workout. This will give you a massive boost for working out and will up the amount of energy expended during a workout (and burn more calories). Find one that you like and do test doses before taking the recommended dosage on the packaging. You can also add some Soluble Fiber (1 tbsp) and MCTs (Coconut Oil) (1 tbsp) in your pre-workout for healthy sources of energy and to keep you from feeling nauseous. Phase Two is Intra-workout. This can consist of BCAAs, EAAs, Electrolytes, and Creatine. Phase Three is your Post-workout. This is where most of your protein,BCAAs, EAAs, and even Keytone supplements should come from.
You will need to spend some money to look good. You will need to buy some supplements AND some equipment to speed up your body transformation. Some resistances bands; 10lb, 4x 20lb, 2x 30lb, 50lb, 100lb bands. A door stopper and door anchor, and cut up a sock to slide the bands between to protect them from whatever they may rub against. And a door mount pull up bar.
Now that you have your Diet, lifestyle, Supplement, and gear all in order; you can now begin your workout routine.
Day 1, 5: Chest & Upper core
Day 2, 6: Biceps (Men), Cardio (Women) & Lower core
Day 3, 7: Legs, Glutes, & Total Core.
Day 4: Rest.
Repeat.
5 Sets, no more than 20 reps. If you can do more than 20, than you are not going slow enough and not taking long enough pauses. Make it hurt.
5 sets, no more than 15 reps. If you can do more than 15, you need to increase the resistance.
5 sets, no more than 15 reps. If you can do more than 15, you need to increase the resistance. If you can do more than 15 consecutive Chin Ups, then consider adding weight to your ankles or doing Single Hand Chin Ups.
These are more timed. Do 5 sets of around 1 to 2 minutes straight. Count how many you do, then just keep beating that number.
Why not workout other body parts?
Working your chest will also work your Triceps. The Chin Ups will work your back. But the goal is really to increase the tone and size of the most noticeable muscle groups, your chest, biceps, and butt. As you workout, eat right, and hit your daily goals, your abs will come through and you’ll have that 8 pack and “v” too.
Why is there a different day 2 for men and women?
We have discussed this with men and women. Quite frankly, most women don’t want bigger biceps and men do. So, this is for both men and women’s different goals and desires. If you are a women, and want bigger biceps, by all means, do the “mens” workout, you do you. Same with men, if you want to burn more calories and fat, do the “womens” day workout.
Also check out:
Once you have all your goals set up, diet, lifestyle changes, supplements, and equipment; the very first thing you want to do is weight yourself and take your measurements. Either use a scale that calculates your body fat for you can use the measurements to do the same. From here you can track any size increases, an increase in Lean Mass (muscle), or even areas where you need to improve. If you see an uptick in body fat, may need to reevaluate your diet or make sure your not over training (doing too many reps) and burning muscle. Do weekly weigh-ins and measurements to see those micro changes for motivation.
Stick with it for 30 days. If you get results. Do it again for another 30 days. Then, its summer 
and it’s time to show off.
Who would have thought pushing against an immovable object for an extended period of time would be of any benefit. A skinny guy trying his hardest to lift a literal ton, exerting effort for 30 seconds before taking a break. What if I told you that studies have shown that, that builds muscle, almost as much as lifting movable weight? I’ll explain:
“Isometric training” or “static holds” are positions that require and exertion of effort for an extended period of time. A plank is a “passive” Isometric workout. It is considered “passive” when you are essentially just holding your body weight and not exerting any force. “Active” Isometric training is where the money is at. This is where you are active in your efforts, like attempting to lift and immovable object for a short period of time. An example is a simple home workout called Towel Curls. Where you extended the max length of the towel, and then from there, try to curl the towel more, at max length. You continue to try and curl the towel at max length for about 20 seconds. Sounds too good to be true, hu? Well, let’s get into the studies behind this.
In the 1950s, researchers Hettinger and Muller found a single daily effort of 66% of a person’s 1MR exerted for six seconds at a time for ten weeks increased strength about 5% per week.
Isometrics was the brainchild of York Barbell Club owner Bob Hoffman and USA weight lifting team physician Dr. John Ziegler. But when he got all caught up on steroids, that also socially discredited his inclusion of Isometrics too.
Chad Waterbury, D.P.T., an L.A.-based physical therapist and trainer, uses with his clients target the stabilizing muscles in their hips. The holds are quite effective for relief of back or knee pain. But to Waterbury’s surprise, he also found that they could increase glute size. This benefit, he realized, didn’t come from occasional practice. Frequency was key: His clients did three isometric holds a day, most days. The holds he uses most successfully—two for the glutes and one each for chest and calves.
And static holds have been shown to elevate time under tension, hypoxia (this kicks off metabolic stress) and muscle damage too, in numerous studies. Research shows a clear relationship between the two. Static holds for given periods of time do get you strong. BUT static holds only make you stronger at the joint angle you perform the lift at, plus or minus around 10% either side, so you want to consider doing more than one holding position.
After 9 weeks of training, the increase in isokinetic strength was similar in both legs (pooled data from three velocities: dynamically trained leg, 10.7%; isometrically trained leg, 10.5%). Isometric strength increases were significantly greater for the isometrically trained leg (pooled data from four angles: dynamically trained leg, 13.1%; isometrically trained leg, 18.0%) (1. Strength training: isometric training at a range of joint angles versus dynamic training).
At the mid-point of the training, the HF group had 50% greater gains in isometric strength, although this was not significant (4.5 weeks: HF, 13.3 (4.4)%; LF, 8.9 (3.6)%). This rate of increase was not sustained by the HF group, and after nine weeks of training all the strength measurements showed similar improvements for both groups (isometric strength: HF, 18.2 (3.9)%; LF, 14.5 (4.0)%) (2. Fatigue is not a necessary stimulus for strength gains during resistance training)
A recent study comparing the level of muscle activation during isometric, concentric, and eccentric muscle actions found that a person can recruit over 5% more motor-units/muscle fibers during a maximal isometric muscle action than during either a maximal eccentric (lowering) or maximal concentric (lifting) action; that’s 95.2% for isometric compared to 88.3% for the eccentric and 89.7% for the concentric. (9,10)
A study by Kanchisa et al. (2002) found an average muscle cross-sectional area (size) improvement of 12.4% for maximal isometric contraction training and of 5.3% for isometric training at 60% of maximum contraction after a training period of ten weeks (10).
There are a lot of benefits to incorporating Isometric training into your workout regiment.
sources:
Their Recommended Usage:
Shred: 1-2 scoops, 9-18 grams; no more than three in 24 hours.
Pre Extreme: 1 scoops, 13 grams; no more than two in 24 hours.
BCAA: 1 scoop (13g) prior to workout, 1 post workout; no more than two in 24 hours.
Personal Effects:
Shred: I would drink this on my off days before or with a meal. No serious effect but I do feel as though it kept my energy levels up through the day. It says its a “thermogenic” but I did not feel my body temp increase at all or notice anything different in that area.
Pre Extreme: For two weeks I used this as my sole pre-workout supplement. The reason I say two-weeks, is because, after the two weeks I switched to something else. This stuff had no noticeable effect on me.
BCAA: I definitely got all the BCAAs, hydration, and Ketone salts my body needed. I added half scoops in various drinks throughout the day to continue the transportation of BCAAs to the body; without exceeding the recommended usage.
Physical Testing:
Shred: I followed the recommended uses and did not feel any noticeable thermogenic change. During the time I was taking it, my body fat did not increase, even on a semi-dirty diet.
Pre Extreme: Sucks. Didn’t feel energized (aside from the 300mg of caffeine). Didn’t notice any positive effect in my workouts or recovery. It just made my pre workout drink taste decent.
BCAA: As noted above, made full use of this stuff. Tastes good. Stayed hydrated, continuous intake of BCAAs, and during the time i used it my body fat did not increase, even during a dirty diet.
Ingredient Scrutiny:
Shred:
So, what exactly is the goBHB? This is also called Beta-Hydroxybutyric Acid. Beta-hydroxybutyrate is a chemical that is made by the body to provide energy in times when not enough carbohydrates or sugars have been eaten. Beta-hydroxybutyrate seems to help nerves and the brain to work better. Beta-hydroxybutyrate might be used as energy by muscles in the body to improve exercise ability. Early research shows that taking a chemical called 3-hydroxybutyl-3-hydroxybutyrate, which turns into beta-hydroxybutyrate in the body, might help athletes to run faster. But aside from that, there really isn’t a whole lot of research on this stuff.
Ashwagandha is to improve mental focus and reduce stress. Ashwagandha contains chemicals that might help calm the brain, reduce swelling (inflammation), lower blood pressure, and alter the immune system. Some research shows that taking a specific ashwagandha root extract (KSM66, Ixoreal Biomed) 300 mg twice daily after food or another specific extract (Shoden, Arjuna Natural Ltd.) 240 mg daily for 60 days appears to improve symptoms of stress. But, there is really not enough studies done to say it, itself, works. Antipsychotics are used to treat schizophrenia but they can cause levels of fat and sugar in the blood to increase. Taking a specific ashwagandha extract (Cap Strelaxin, M/s Pharmanza Herbal Pvt. Ltd.) 400 mg three times daily for one month might reduce levels of fat and sugar in the blood in people using these medications.
InnoSlim; There are some studies on this stuff. 1st, one study seems to show that it isn’t toxic (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6633876/). That’s good news. A second study is still in the works (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04201314). In theory, this will help your body burn fat and sugar.
PRE EXTREME:
AlphaSize A-GPC: Alpha-GPC is a chemical released when a fatty acid found in soy and other plants breaks down. This version is modified from the doctor prescribed version. In Europe alpha-GPC is a prescription medication for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. It is available in two forms; one is taken by mouth, and the other is given as a shot. In the United States alpha-GPC is only available as a dietary supplement, mostly in products promoted to improve memory. Alpha-GPC seems to increase a chemical in the brain called acetylcholine. This brain chemical is important for memory and learning functions. This would give the sharpened mental focus.
Methyliberine: Methylliberine (CAS 51168-26-4), a methoxiuric acid, is a caffeine metabolite. There are a limited few studies on it (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31911801/). It doesn’t seem that this stuff has any real effects at 100mg. In one study, while small changes were found in some cardiovascular and blood biomarkers, no clinically significant changes occurred at 150+mg (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32121218/). But, at least it seems to be safe at that dosage.
BCAA:
Full Disclosure:
I did stack these three. Shred on my off days, Pre Extreme for my pre-workout, and BCAA in both my off day and intra or post workout drink. But, my diet was dirty and I was also taking other supplements as well.
Price Point:
Expensive. Over priced.
Final Recommendation:
1/2
This is a routine I will do for 30 days after taking a long time off from working out. Kinda of preps my body, mind, and muscles for hitting the weights again. It increases muscular endurance and blood flow to the muscles. A critical factor when weight lifting or doing more intense muscle driven workouts.
Day 1: Weigh your self and take a selfie. Essentially it is like your “max day.” but instead of maxing on weights, you are doing as many reps as possible until you hit muscle failure; for each workout. This is an important number that will determine how many reps you will do. Upper body maxes.
Day 2: Lower body maxes.
Every Workout: As you workout or after every workout day, record your reps and note how you felt during that workout. If you have a smart watch, track your calories burned.
End of Week 2: Weigh your self. Do a self audit of all the data you have collected. See which workouts are improving the most and which are not, that way you can focus more intensity where you need it.
End of the 30 Days: Weigh your self, take a selfie, and see if your body weight and or fat has improved. Do a final calculation on which muscle groups have improved the most and calculate your overall improvement.
The Upper Body Workouts:
| Chest |
| Push Ups – normal push up. |
| Push Up wide – hands wider than normal. |
| Push Up Diamonds – thumbs and index finger touching. |
| Staggered Push Up – Left hand high, right hand low, and alternate. |
| Back |
| Pull Up (need a door pull up bar) |
| Chin Up (need a door pull up bar) |
| Elbow Ups – Laying on your back, push your elbows into the ground lifting your body off the ground. |
| Body Drag – Literally using only your arms to drag your body forward. |
| Bicep |
| Towel Chin ups (need a long towel and doorway pull up bar) – Hold on to the towel wrapped around the doorway pull up bar, and pull yourself up. |
| Chin up Holds – do chin ups, but hold once reaching the top. |
| Towel Curls (need a long towel) – Wrap the towel around your foot and pull up your foot/leg in a curl motion working your bicep. |
| Triceps |
| Chair Dips (need a firm chair) |
| Deep Diamond Pushup – rest your chest on your hands in the diamond push up position and do push ups. |
| Shoulders |
| Pike Push up – Arch your back up, were you are doing push ups. |
| High to Low pushup – As you do push ups, as you extend up, move your body forward, then as you come back down, bend your knees and move your body backward without moving your hands. |
| Core |
| Crunches |
| Reverse Crunches (leg lifts) |
| Heal touches |
| V-Ups |
| Russian Twists |
The Lower Body Workouts
| Knee Highs – from a lunge stance, bring your most rear leg up and knee to your chest. |
| Donkey Kicks – in a prone position, kick your leg back and bring your knee to your chest. |
| Towel Quad Curls – wrap a towel around your foot, pulled back in a quad stretching position, and then move your leg forward at your knee to activate your quad. |
| Towel Hamstring Curls – wrap a towel around your ankle, then bring your leg back to your glute, pivoting at your knee. |
| Single leg Calf Raises – Rest one foot on the heal of the other |
| Sumo Squats (deep squats) legs more spread |
| Lunges |
| Side Lunges – lunge and squat to each side. |
| Jump Squats |
| Alternating Jump Lunges |
| Calf Springs |
*Because leg day may be shorter, doing JUMP ROPE or HALF JACKS for a long period of time with short breaks would be very beneficial.
f you want to melt away body fat, you should first understand how it works. We lay out how fat storage and burning works, then give 4 principles to fight it, with a list of things you can do and track to make your fat melting effective!
When we eat, the glucose and other sugars harnessed from carbohydrates are the first fuel sources. The liver stores the glucose in the form of glycogen and releases it into the bloodstream as necessary to keep our body trucking along. Once that glucose runs out, fat takes over. Harnessing energy by burning fat is referred to as ketosis.
Hormones regulating our blood sugar levels activate an enzyme in the blood vessels of fat tissue called lipase.
Lipase ignites fat cells to release macromolecules called triglycerides, which are what make fat cells fat. Triglycerides are made of glycerol and three fatty acid chains. When they receive the signal from lipase to exit the fat cells, the triglycerides break up into their respective components and enter the bloodstream for use.
The liver snatches up the glycerol to break it down for energy, and some of the fatty acids move to the muscles that can farm them for energy as well.
This action of breaking down triglycerides into usable energy is called lipolysis. Once inside the mitochondria, or power source, or muscle or liver cells, the components of the glycerol and fatty acids are shuffled and reshuffled to harness their energy potential, producing heat, water, carbon dioxide and adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
ATP hauls potential energy in its molecular bonds for use when we exercise like cellular carb loading. The water exits our bodies as sweat and urine, and we exhale the carbon dioxide.
That is how Fat and Carbs, in your body, become water, heat, ATP, and carbon dioxide as they exit your body; leaving your fat cells depleted and eventually die off.
With all of that said; Ketosis is a good thing because it precedes and supports Lipolysis, the very thing we went to do.
But, considering STEP 1, if we reduce the amounts of EXCESS carbs, than the simple glucose are quickly burned up and nothing is left over to be stored. AND the amount of quick storage space in the liver and muscles is not filled to max capacity. From here we can determine an important principle:
This will lead our body to release the Lipase hormone sooner. All the glycogen will be quickly burned up and no additional triglycerides are stored. With no quick access energy, the body will enter Ketosis and release Ketones and Lipase. From there we can determine another important principle:
From here your fat cells will be spitting out their stored triglycerides left and right. The fat cells will shrink and your liver and muscles will be burning of the triglycerides for energy. You will notice a drop in weight and body fat. BUT, as the triglycerides convert into their various forms, one of them is water. You will sweat and dehydrate. As you drink water and REhydrate, your fat cells will store water and rehydrate as well. You may see an increase and weight and a loss in definition. Keep in mind, at this point, your fat cells are DEPLETED of triglycerides and only swollen from water. As you continual workout, they will dehydrate, rehydrate, dehydrate, and eventually die off because they are haven been rendered useless due to lack of triglycerides storage. The cells will be broken down, processed in the body, and out processed by the body. From there we see another valuable principle:
Don’t give them a reason to live. Keep them depleted of triglycerides. Starve them. By maintaining principles 1 and 2, they will be continually starved. There will not be any extra or access glycogen to store. The liver and muscles will take it all and burn it and leave nothing for the fat cells to store. Then, even if there is some to store, Ketones and the Lipase hormone will cause them to release it almost right away. Eventually, they will die off from their uselessness, basically.
When a muscle group is worked, it costs and needs energy. So, the more muscle groups you work, the more energy is required. The more energy that is required the more hormones are released to get those triglycerides dumped in the system for use. Multi-Joint workouts are king for this. HIIT, High Intensity Interval Training has been show to be the most effective workout system for fat burning.
There are things you can do to assist your body in this process.
A. Ketone Supplements. This will help in triggering the fat cells to think they need to be releasing their triglycerides.
B. Minimize simple sugar intake. Instead switch to MCT, Multi Chain triglycerides. These are like simple sugars but they are less likely to be stored by the body and more likely to be used as energy. There are various forms, but Coconut Oil is most common.
C. Intake things that force your body to work harder to digest or create more heat. Protein actually takes more energy to digest than carbs or fats. You actually burn more calories digesting high protein foods than any other food. Also, including a Black Pepper or even Cayenne Pepper supplements boost the thermobolics and force the body to burn more calories in digestion as well.
D. Drink Apple Cider Vinegar, Coffee, and Green Tea. Vinegar intake has shown to boost fat burning and prevention of carbohydrate absorption. Coffee has been shown to act as a central nervous system stimulant, increases metabolism and boosts the breakdown of fatty acids. Green Tea has been shown to boost metabolism and help burn more fat.
E. Iron Supplements. a deficiency in iron may impact the health of your thyroid gland. This small gland in your neck secretes hormones that regulate your metabolism, and low levels of iron in the body may be associated with impaired thyroid function and a disruption in the production of thyroid hormones.
Calorie Deficit: You want start counting calories and calories burned daily. This is how you will know if you are burning more calories than you are in taking. A fitbit, more just about any fitness smart watch make this easy. You want to maintain an negative calorie intake, but not over 500 calories consistently. You don’t want to starve your body either.
Carb Macros: You want to see how much of your total diet are carbs. Tracking your macros can also be done on any smart watch and smart phone. A Keto Diet tries to get you to stay at a 5% carb intake, but that’s tough. Honestly, a 15-25% carb macro is just as good, if you are maintaining a calorie deficit. (also check out How to get started on The King of Diets.)
Ketosis Meter: You may want to invest in a simple Ketosis meter to see if you are in Ketosis or not. They are typically a breathalyzer type of machine that tests for Ketones in your system.
Smart Scale: You will want a scale that can track not just your body weight but your body fat as well. They are not 100% accurate but that doesn’t matter. You want to track THE CHANGES in your body fat. If it starts going down, things are working.
Regular Workout Routine: You want to have a regular, 3 to 5 days a week, workout routine that targets multiple muscle groups and or HIIT workouts. Remember, heat, sweat, and exhaling carbon dioxide IS YOUR FAT CONVERTED AND LEAVING YOUR BODY!
Supplements. They are NOT your enemy. They are nothing more than what you already eat, just in an isolated form. Get some Ketone supplements, Keto high-protein meals ideas, MCTs, and start drinking more Apple Cider Vinegar, Coffee, and Green Tea. (also check out Block those excess carbs and sugars!)
Nuke that belly fat hiding your abs!
With out GENUINE motivation all your hard work at the gym, and the goals you set wont mean a thing. Eventually you will fade and give up. To prevent fading and giving up motivation is key!
Each of us are motivated in different ways; you have to find what motivates you. There are a few ways to start searching. Ask your self WHY.
Why do you want to even get fit? Don’t BS your self and say something lame like “because I want to be healthy“. No kidding you want to be healthy but that answer doesn’t get you any closer to finding GENUINE motivation.
There are 2 kinds, Inside and Outside; but there are some that seem to be motivations but aren’t (pseudo-motivation).
Inside Genuine Motivation:
Follow the process of logic to hit the source of your desire.
For example if your ultimate desire is to lose 10 pounds; the next question is why do you want to lose 10 pounds? Then you follow up that with something like “because I am over weight“. Next question you would ask your self would be “why does it matter if your over weight?” This starts getting close to the heart of your desire for the goal.
An answer that starts to cut deep in the heart would be something like “because I want to see my daughter get married and healthy enough to walk her down the isle.” AND BOOM following the line of logic getting deeper and deeper to the heart of your desire you find your ultimate GENUINE motivation.
For me it was because I was skinny, felt weak, was weak, and wasn’t happy with myself because of it. That sounds shallow but believe it or not, and like it or not, our over all fitness does and can effect all other aspects of our lives.
Inside Genuine Motivation are things like ability to perform hobbies and how your health and fitness effects your most important aspects of your personal life.
But what do you do when you reach your goal and achieve your genuine motivation? You dig for a new one or what you achieved could be lost. You may have lost all that weight so you could walk your daughter down the isle at her wedding, but what happens when you gain all that weight back after the fact? Some times finding outside sources for motivation is needed.
Outside Genuine Motivation:
Sometimes there are people who touch our hearts in such a way that it lights a fire for self change. We might see a picture of an athlete or celebrity and it lights a fire to achieve that physique. Competition in results between friends can spark genuine motivation. Even disdain or anger toward someone can spark a powerful desire to achieve goals and this is also genuine motivation.
Pseudo Motivation:
This kind of feeling seems like a motivating will but unlike genuine motivations, these fade faster and don’t really last or burn as hard because of their false sense of self. One of the biggest false motivators are for the approval of others. To get all fit and sexy for other people to look at you and make you ‘cooler‘. Because this is based on the standards of other people and not your self. This was also addressed in the article “Who Are You Doing This For?”
The TO-DO for Genuine Motivation:
Some people want and need to lose weight, in some cases, a lot of weight. Their over all health and future health depends on it. But then there are some who are so obsessed with losing weight, even when they don’t need too.
Some people want to be ripped so bad that they are willing to sacrifice lean mass/muscle to get what they think is lean and ripped. This is kinda touched on in the article “Anorexic Ripped is not the same as Swoll Ripped“. But here I am going to talk more directly about the goal of weight loss, not getting ‘ripped’.
Losing weight can be good OR BAD. Burning fat-weight is good, burning muscle-weight (when you only weigh 150lbs) is not good. To cheer on a victorious goal of losing weight of fat and muscle when you are already skinny is idiotic. Ya it might make your ego feel better, but you are less healthy not more.
Losing muscle can come in a few ways. Poor diet, and or amped up cardio where your calorie deficit is constantly minus 500, are usually the causes for this. If your goal is to lose weight and get lean and ripped. why in the heck would you ever want to lose the muscle that you want to keep? That is idiotic. Some times this way of thinking also comes from “Who are you doing this for?”
Also sacrificing muscle mass to “look more ripped” is dumb in the fact the the more lean muscle you have, the more calories and fat you will naturally burn in the first place. Build more muscle and that will naturally lead to more fat burning; and thus, becoming more ripped without sacrificing muscle.
If your losing weight, including muscle, yet you want to be ripped; my nephew is 8 years old and according to that logic, he is ripped. If you want to keep the muscle you have, your routine or diet has to change! If your eating regularly and even simi-healthy, chances are your workout routine is the problem.
OR Become “ripped anorexic” and lose lean muscle.
I am a data nerd! I track every data point possible so I see trends and spot inefficiencies. Last thing I want to do is waste my time. Personally, I use Google Sheets to track everything but, if your not as nerdy as me, there are a couple of phone apps that can be just as useful for your journey.
The Strong fitness app is super simple and perfect for creating and tracking workout routines. So customizable its awesome. You can pick from pre-made workouts or create your own. Then create your own routines.
MyFitnessPal, by Underarmor is top notch calorie and macro tracker. This is key for low carb diets. There is a subscription fee for more features, but it is cheap and worth it. You can scan barcodes and create the sum calorie content of whatever meal you make.
Last you will NEED at least one of the three apps, depending on what device you are using.
Apple health, Fitbit, or Samsung Health.
Currently, Google Fit sucks. Garmin is working their way up and I probably should have added them but I have yet to deal with them.
Also, Fitbit are still pretty nazish with allowing cross syncing with Apple Health, Samsung Health, and others. They don’t allow it and provide punk answers as to why. But, since they defined the standard of fit tracking and track everything you really need in once place, for now they are still being recommended.
With all these apps combined, you can track:
AND MORE.
All the data you need to make the most informed decision about your fit life!
Is the Quran today the same as the original teachings from Muhammad himself? Of course Sunni Muslims would say yes. In fact, all Muslims must agree that they are, but, in the Shiite sect of Islam, not all are in full agreement of the source of the final product of the original teachings. To remove Christian bias, we will look at the historical quotes from Muslims themselves and see how accurate the Quran is.
Did Muhammad Write The Quran?
There are no eyewitnesses anywhere in the Qur’an who said they saw Muhammad talk to an angel, nor did anyone say he met or talked with Allah. The teachings of Muhammad, came from Muhammad himself, only, verbally. Muhammad did not know how to read or write.
“Before this, you did not read any book, nor did you write anything with your hands”. (29:48). Those who follow the Messenger, the unlettered prophet (7:157)
So if Muhammad could not read or write, who wrote it? The Qur’an was revealed gradually over a period of 23 years to his followers, who then memorized what he said and in some cases write it down on various formats. It was written on leaves and bone and such. The majority of the teachings of Muhammad were memorized by his followers.
Muhammad himself did not perfectly memorize all that was revealed to him.
Narrated Abdullah ibn Mas’ud: … (Muhammad said) I am only a human being and I forget just as you do; so when I forget, remind me … (Sunan Abu Dawud: bk. 3, no. 1015; also Sahih al-Bukhari: vol. 1, bk. 8, no. 394)
So, when the divine revelation was forgotten, they simply replaced the divine revelation with something they felt was better or similar.
We do not abrogate a verse or cause it to be forgotten except that We bring forth [one] better than it or similar to it … (Qur’an 2:106, Saheed International)
So the importance of his followers to memorize what he taught was very important.
Did Muhammad’s Reciters Perfectly Transmit His Teachings?
The battle of Yamama in 632AD, after Muhammad’s death, made his followers realize the need to write his teachings down. Over 700 Muslims were killed, over 400 were followers who had his teachings memorized were killed. What if everyone who only had it memorized were all killed?
Muhammad’s close friend, Salim, who had memorized a great deal of what Muhammad taught, was one of the over 400 reciters killed in the battle of Yamama.
“Abdullah bin ‘Amr mentioned ‘Abdullah bin Masud and said, “I shall ever love that man, for I heard the Prophet saying, ‘Take (learn) the Qur’an from four: ‘Abdullah bin Masud, Salim, Mu’adh and Ubai bin Ka’b.’”(Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 61, Number 521)
Zuhri reports, ‘We have heard that many Qur’an passages were revealed but that those who had memorised them fell in the Yemama fighting. Those passages had not been written down, and following the deaths of those who knew them, were no longer known; nor had Abu Bakr, nor `Umar nor `Uthman as yet collected the texts of the Qur’an. (John Burton, The Collection of the Qur’an, pp. 126-127, Abu Bakr `Abdullah b. abi Da’ud, Kitab al-Masahif’, ed. A. Jeffery, Cairo, 1936/1355, p. 23:)
Different Versions of The Quran?
Here we already see, as recorded by Muslim sources, that portions of the teachings of Muhammad were lost. However, during the reign of Abu Bakr, Hafsah (a wife of Muhammad) kept for herself a written copy of Muhammad’s teachings and kept it until 667AD. In fact, there were others who also had memorized the teachings of Muhammad in different dialects and versions.
“Masruq reported: We used to go to Abdullah Bin Amr and talk to him. Ibn Numair said: One day we made a mention of Abdullah Bin Masud, whereupon he said: you have made mention of a person whom I love more than anything else. I heard Allah’s Messenger as saying: Learn Qur’an from four persons: Ibn Umm Abd (i.e., Abdullah Bin Masud – he started from him – then Muadh bin Jabal and Ubayy bin Kab, then Salim the ally of Ali Hudhaifa. (Sahih Muslim, Book 031, Number 6024)
“Anas is reported to have said: Four persons collected the Qur’an during the lifetime of Allah’s Messenger and all of them were Ansar: Muadh Bin Jabal, Ubayy Bin Kab, Zaid Bin Thabit, Abu Zaid. Qatada said: Anas, who was Abu Zaid? He said: He was one of my uncles. (Sahih Muslim, Book 031, Number 6029)
“Narrated Ibn Mas’ud: I heard a person reciting a (Quranic) verse in a certain way, and I had heard the Prophet reciting the same verse in a different way. So I took him to the Prophet and informed him of that but I noticed the sign of disapproval on his face, and then he said, “Both of you are correct, so don’t differ, for the nations before you differed, so they were destroyed.” (Sahih al-Bukhari: vol. 4, bk. 56, no. 682)
“Concerning the arrangement of the Qur’an in the manuscript of Abd Allah ibn Mas’ud, Al-Fadl ibn Shadhan said, “I found in a manuscript of `Abd Allah ibn Mas’ud the surahs of the Qur’an in accordance with the following (different) sequence … These are one hundred and ten surahs.” (Al-Nadim, p. 53)… One of our reliable friends has informed us, saying that the composition of the surahs according to the reading of Ubayy ibn Ka’b is in a village called Qariyat al-Ansar, two parasangs from al-Basrah, where in his home Muhammad ibn Abd al-Malik al-Ansari showed us a Qur’anic manuscript, saying, “This is the copy of Ubayy which we have, handed down from our fathers.” I looked into it and ascertained the headings of the surahs, the endings of the revelations, and the numbers of verses. … one hundred and sixteen surahs. (Al-Nadim, pp. 58-61)
The witness accounts to differing renderings between Masud’s version and Ubayy’s version. Both of them were reciters of Muhammad. A discovery of the early San’a 1 (Standford 07) manuscript proves there were different versions of the Quran outside of Ziad’s version.
Due to the loss of a great deal of followers who only had Muhammad’s teachings memorized, Abu Bakr appointed Zaid ibn Thabit to compile all remaining Muhammad teachings. Aside from potentially losing the teachings of Muhammad, there was a growing issue of differences between the different reciters of the teachings; this was also causing confusion and conflict.
“Hudaifa b. al Yeman came to `Uthman direct from the Aderbaijan and Armenian frontier where, uniting the forces from Iraq and those from Syria, he had had an opportunity to observe regional differences over the Qur’an. “Commander of the faithful,” he advised, “take this umma in hand before they differ about the Book like Christians and Jews.” `Uthman sent asking Hafsa to lend him the sheets [inherited by her father, `Umar, from Abu Bakr, and now in her possession] “so that we can copy them into other volumes and then return them.” She sent her suhuf to `Uthman who summon Zaid, Sa`id b. al `As, `Abdul Rahman b. al Harith b. Hisham and `Abdullah b. al Zubair and commanded them to copy the sheets into several volumes. Addressing the group from Quraish, he added, “Wherever you differ from Zaid, write the word in the dialect of Quraish for it was revealed in that tongue.“… When they had copied the sheets, `Uthman sent a copy to each of the main centers of the empire with the command that all other Qur’an materials, whether in single sheet form, or in whole volumes, WERE TO BE BURNED…‘ (Burton, pp. 141-142- citing Ahmad b. `Ali b. Muhammad al `Asqalani, ibn Hajar, “Fath al Bari“, 13 vols, Cairo, 1939/1348, vol. 9, p. 18)
“Ibn Abbas reported Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: “If there were for the son of Adam a valley full of riches, he would long to possess another one like it, and the son of Adam does not feel satisfied but with dust.” And “Allah returns to him who returns (to him).” Ibn Abbas said: I do not know whether it is from the Qur’an or not; and in the narration transmitted by Zuhair it was said: I do not know whether it is from the Qur’an, and he made no mention of Ibn Abbas. (Sahih Muslim: bk. 5, no. 2285)
The Official Version, Not Authorized by Muhammad?
The solution? Create a single source text in one specific approved rendering and dialect (Quraish, the Ziad version) and burn the rest. But some of those who were closest to Muhammad disagreed with conforming to Ziad’s version. By this time, Umar took power after Abu Bakr and then Uthman after him. Hafsah, a wife of Muhammad, refused to give hers so that it would not be burned. Even Abdullah Bin Masud, a direct follower of Muhammad, disagreed with Ziad’s version.
“Abdullah bin Masud reported that (he said to his companions to conceal their copies of the Qur’an) and further said: He who conceals anything shall have to bring that which he had concealed on the Day of Judgment, and they said: After whose mode of recitation do you command me to recite? I in fact recited before Allah’s Messenger more than seventy chapters of the Qur’an and the companions of Allah’s Messenger know that I have better understanding of the Book of Allah (than they do), and if I were to know that someone had better understanding than I, I would have gone to him. Shaqiq said: I sat in the company of the companions of Muhammad but I did not hear anyone having rejected that (that is, his recitation) or finding fault with it. (Sahih Muslim, Book 031, Number 6022).
This consolidation effort continued because of the continued discrepancies between the different teachings. Abdullah’s variant readings were attacked by those who were in power.
Narrated Ibrahim: The companions of ‘Abdullah (bin Mas’ud) came to Abu Darda’, (and before they arrived at his home), he looked for them and found them. Then he asked them: “Who among you can recite (Qur’an) as ‘Abdullah recites it?” They replied, “All of us.” He asked, “Who among you knows it by heart?” They pointed at ‘Alqama. Then he asked Alqama. “How did you hear ‘Abdullah bin Mas’ud reciting Surat Al-Lail (The Night)?“ Alqama recited:
“By the male and the female.” (Qur’an 92:3)
Abu Darda said, “I testify that I heard the Prophet reciting it likewise, but these people want me to recite it:
“And by Him Who created male and female.” (Qur’an 92:3)
But by Allah, I will not follow them.” (Sahih al-Bukhari: vol. 6, bk. 60, no. 468; also Sahih Muslim: bk. 4, no. 1799-1802)
‘Yazid b. Ma`awiya was in the mosque in the time of al Walid b. `Uqba, sitting in a group among them was Hudaifa. An official called out, ‘Those who follow the reading of Abu Musa, go to the corner nearest the Kinda door. Those who follow `Abdullah’s reading, go the corner nearest `Abdullah’s house.’ Their reading of Q 2.196 did not agree. One group read, ‘Perform the pilgrimage TO GOD’ The others read it ‘Perform the pilgrimage TO THE KA’BAH.’ Hudaifa became very angry, his eyes reddened and he rose, parting his qamis at the waits, although in the mosque. This was during the reign of `Uthman. Hudaifa exclaimed, ‘Will someone go the Command of the Faithful, or shall I go myself? This is what happened in the previous dispensations.’ He came over and sat down, saying, ‘God sent Muhammad who, with those who went forward, fought those who went back until God gave victory to His religion. God took Muhammad and Islam made strides. To succeed him, God chose Abu Bakr who reigned as long as God chose. God then took him and Islam made rapid strides. God appointed `Umar who sat in the midst of Islam. God then took him also. Islam spread rapidly. God next chose `Uthman. (Burton, p. 143, Abu Bakr `Abdullah b. abi Da’ud, “K. al Masahif”, ed. A. Jeffery, Cairo, 1936/1355, p. 11;)
We were sitting in the mosque and `Abdullah was reciting the Qur’an when Hudaifa came in and said, ‘The reading of ibn Umm `Abd! [ie. `Abdullah] The reading of Abu Musa! By God! if I am spared to reach the Commander of the Faithful, I will recommend THAT HE IMPOSE A SINGLE QUR’AN READING!’ ‘Abdullah became very angry and spoke sharply to Hudaifa who fell silent. (Burton, p. 142, Abu Bakr `Abdullah b. abi Da’ud, “K. al Masahif”, ed. A. Jeffery, Cairo, 1936/1355, p. 13)
Hudaifa said, ‘The Kufans say, “the text of `Abdullah“; the Basrans say, “the text of Abu Musa“. By God! if I reach the Commander of the faithful, I WILL RECOMMEND THAT HE DROWN THESE READINGS.” (var. Masahif) `Abdullah said, ‘Do and God will drown you, but not in water!’ (Burton, pp. 146-147- citing Abu Bakr `Abdullah b. abi Da’ud, “K. al Masahif”, ed. A. Jeffery, Cairo, 1936/1355, p. 13).
“The Syrians,” we are told, “contended with the `Iraqis, the former following the reading of Ubayy ibn Ka`b, the latter that of `Abd Allah ibn Mas’ud, each accusing the other of unbelief.” (Labib as-Said, The Recited Koran: A History of the First Recorded Version, tr. B. Weis, et al., Princeton, New Jersey: The Darwin Press, 1975, p. 23)
As the political preasure against Abdullah mounted, eventually, Ziad’s version (Utmanic textual tradition) became the source for the current rendering of the Quran. But, still remains some issues.
The Incomplete Teachings of Muhammad
When Umar heard people declaring that they knew the entire Qur’an, he said to them: “Let none of you say, ‘I have learned the whole of the Koran,’ for how does he know what the whole of it is, when much of it has disappeared? Let him rather say, ‘I have learned what is extant thereof’” (Abu Ubaid, Kitab Fada’il-al-Qur’an).
Ziad’s versions was also dependent on Abu Musa’s reciting of Muhammad’s teachings but with that came a problem. He forgot some of what Muhammad taught.
Abu Musa al-Ash’ari sent for the reciters of Basra. They came to him and they were three hundred in number. They recited the Qur’an and he said: You are the best among the inhabitants of Basra, for you are the reciters among them. So continue to recite it. (But bear in mind) that your reciting for a long time may not harden your hearts as were hardened the hearts of those before you. We used to recite a surah which resembled in length and severity to (Surah) Bara’at. I have, however, forgotten it with the exception of this which I remember out of it: “If there were two valleys full of riches, for the son of Adam, he would long for a third valley, and nothing would fill the stomach of the son of Adam but dust.” And we used to recite a surah which resembled one of the surahs of Musabbihat, and I have forgotten it (Sahih Muslim 2286).
Not just there, but other places where teachings of Muhammad had been forgotten.
We used to recite a surah similar to one of the Musabbihat, and I no longer remember it, but this much I have indeed preserved: ‘O you who truly believe, why do you preach that which you do not practise?’ (and) ‘that is inscribed on your necks as a witness and you will be examined about it on the Day of Resurrection’. (As-Suyuti, Al-Itqan fii Ulum al-Qur’an, Page 526).
Another one of Muhammad’s wives (Aishah) also noticed that some verses were being left out. Even teachings relating to stoning and breastfeeding were not included in Ziad’s version because, well, one of her written records was eaten by a goat.
A’isha . . . said, “Surat al-Ahzab (33) used to be recited in the time of the Prophet with two hundred verses, but when Uthman wrote out the codices he was unable to procure more of it than there is in it today [i.e. 73 verses].” (Abu Ubaid, Kitab Fada’il-al-Qur’an)
“It was narrated that Aishah said: “The Verse of stoning and of breastfeeding an adult ten times was revealed, and the paper was with me under my pillow. When the Messenger of Allah died, we were preoccupied with his death, and a tame sheep came in and ate it.” (Sunan ibn Majah 1944).
When considering all this, we see that the current version of the Quran is lacking a lot of Muhammad’s teachings. Of what was consolidated we can only truly conclude that it is the version of Ziad and what he chose to include. Even in his version, it still lacks all the teachings that were lost when followers of Muhammad were killed or simply forgot what he said. Those who disagreed with his version were attacked and their versions were eventually burned. But we don’t need their copies to know that the current version of the Quran is incomplete. The testimony from those who were close to Muhammad himself prove this. This leads to more questions regarding the reliability of the Quran.
Perfect Preservation?
How do we know Abdullah’s version is not the actual or more acurate words of Muhammad? It is historically recorded that his version was different. If both Abdullah and Ziad were both followers of Muhammad, who decided that Ziad’s version was the true version? Ziad? Because he had political backing? Does politics and power determine truth? That is actually a minor problem.
The real problem is the claim that the Quran has been perfectly preserved. This is logically not possible given the historical evidences from Muslim sources. By their own witness, passages have been lost, forgotten, and cherry picked to create the Quran we have today. The only thing that can be stated is that Ziad’s version has been preserved, but not all the teachings of Muhammad. In fact, it is not clear that Ziad’s versions is the perfect preservation of Muhammad’s teachings because it differed from Abdullah’s versions of what Muhammad taught. Not to mention there were other versions that may have also differed that were lost and burned.
The one thing that we can conclude is that Ziad ibn Thabit is the primary source for the modern Quran.
Surah 15:9 boldly declares “Indeed, it is We who sent down the Qur’an and indeed, We will be its guardian.” But what happens if this declaration fails? Given the Muslim sources recording the loss of verses and forgotten verses it is proven to not have been completely guarded. This means the angels and chosen followers of Allah were unable safe guard the preservation of the revelations of Muhammad perfectly. How then can it be divine and not just the teachings of Ziad ibn Thabit?
A claim that can be made is that Ziad ibn Thabit’s version of the remaining teachings of Muhammad have been perfectly preserved. This is only true if we leave out the facts of the loss of teachings prior to Ziad’s final product. But then, who are Muslims really following? The teachings of Ziad ibn Thabit? They can’t say the teachings of Muhammad because, as shown above, some of his teachings have been lost AND others differed from Ziad’s version. So they can not say for sure they are following the teachings of Muhammad. The claim of a supernatural mathematical system that proves the perfect preservation only validates Ziad ibn Thabit’s version because it is not possible to include the calculations of teachings that were lost, forgotten, and burned.
This is a question for some people that is a genuine concern. For others it is an attempt to belittle or patronize a religion. The question it self is a valid question for any and all documents that claim to be the source of unchanged universal objective divine truth.
Has the teachings and documents evolved and morphed into what we have today?
The Bible describes historic events. These events have also been recorded by outside sources as well. Then, archeology has been found from these events. When comparing extrabiblical sources and discovered archeological evidences, we see that the Old and New Testaments are historically accurate and true. The next question is:
Was this information added later?
The Bible is a collection of hand written documents. These documents that we currently have range in age, Applying this question to the Old Testament we see that we have documents from 200 BC to 1500 AD. By comparing the earliest copy of Isaiah (200 BC), with the latest copy of Isaiah (1,500 AD) we can see if information was later added. It has not changed!
Dead Sea Scroll of Isaiah 200 BC
The Septuagint copy of Isaiah 100 BC
This is where those with a close minded bias will distort the truth against The Bible. There are differences, not changes. Language and spelling. That is different. Aramaic and Hebrew to Greek to Latin to English. Does that mean the information has changed? Not at all. When Isaiah is read in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, English, French, Spanish… what ever language, the only thing that has changed is the spelling, punctuation, and language. The message and information is the same. This is proven by comparing The Biblical documents.
What about the New Testament?
Exactly same concept. We have fragments and manuscripts ranging in age from 1st century all the way to the 16th century. We can compare the old manuscripts with later manuscripts and see what is the same and what is later added in word usage and sentence structure.
This is were those who are close minded and bias against The Bible will again distort truth in the same way. Because the spelling of Honor was changed from Honour, or the word “The” is added for improved English sentence structure does not mean the information has changed. For example
It is written in 7 different languages. At the core of each language there is a message that is the same for all languages. The message is that the close minded person does not have honor. A change in spelling (honor and honour) and symbol representation of an idea (honneur and чести) does not change the idea. With that said, we can successfully compare Greek manuscripts with Latin manuscripts. And when this is done, we see that the ideas presented have not changed.
P52. Fragment of The Gospel of John 100 AD
The Right side is John 18:31-33, The left side is John 18:37-38
P90. Fragment of The Gospel of John. 150 AD. It records John 18:36 – 19:7.
P66. Manuscript of The Gospel of John. 200 AD.
Compare and put together all the fragments of The Gospel of John and we can see that it was not changed. Eye witnesses of the event could have still been alive at the time P52 was written. Children and grand children would be alive of the eye witnesses who would have been reading these documents and remembering what they parents and grandparents (the apostles, disciples of the apostles, and eye witnesses) would tell them. There have been thousands of fragments and manuscripts discovered. To believe that the bible has changed and is not the same message as the original writings is willing ignorance. To say that the bible has changed and is not the same message as the original writings is maliciously lie to people. Also read Have You Been Deceived by The World? Because The Bible is proven reliable and has been reliably passed on to us; knowing that the message contained in it, is the same message, what are you going to do about it?
Hey, if you want to continue to use a service that violates people’s rights (kinda like Jim Crow Laws, but for the digital age, and ideology instead of race), than that’s on you. Since you don’t think violating people’s rights on the internet isn’t a big enough deal to act, then, at least, at a minimum, take SOME sort of action, any sort of action, in the name of liberty and freedom; do SOMETHING if anything:
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THE AMERICAN LIFE JOURNAL 