Late last night, Tom and I put the finishing touches on everything we needed to have done for an official launch of ClimbSci, our new webcast about all topics climbing and science. In the first episode, we talk about protein, including digestion, metabolism, amino acids (such as BCAAs), signalling, and requirements, and also answer a […]
Read the full article...Author Archives: Brian Rigby, MS, CISSN
Caffeine and Climbing
I recently released the Official Supplement Guide for Caffeine, an in-depth look at how caffeine affects performance (its ergogenicity) as well as information on its mechanisms, side effects, and dosage. After I release these guides, however, I like to also release a more reader-friendly summary version where I highlight the information most climbers will find […]
Read the full article...Webcast Update #3
One final update: Tom and I have successfully recorded the inaugural episode of the Climbing Science Cast (ClimbSciCast), and will release it for viewing/listening sometime next week! We have to upload and annotate the episode, and put up notes and references to go with it, but other than that we’re all set. The episode did […]
Read the full article...Webcast Update #2
A quick update this time: Tom and I are going to record next Wednesday (March 29th), and will likely release the episode the following Monday. I’m new to this experience, so I’m trying to make sure we have enough time to do whatever editing needs to be done, etc. At any rate, we should have […]
Read the full article...The Importance of Proper Controls
In his book Bad Pharma, Ben Goldacre talks about how placebos often do not make good controls (he also talks about this briefly in one of his TED Talks starting at 7:50). The reason is that placebos are equivalent to no treatment, which isn’t helpful when the condition we’re exploring already has an established treatment. What we want […]
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Caffeine Supplement Guide
Facts at a Glance Summary Caffeine improves mood and energy, increases focus and accuracy, and decreases pain and rates of perceived exertion. Non-users stand to gain the most when using it as an acute ergogenic aid for short-term events, such as competitions or projects, but even habitual users can experience benefits such as improved training […]
Read the full article...Long-Term Feasibility of Meal Replacers
From time to time, I get asked about meal replacers like Soylent, Joylent, Huel, and any number of similar competitors. Usually, the question is just “what do you think about them?”, and since it’s a fairly common question, I’d like to share my answer here. First, I’d like to say that I don’t really believe […]
Read the full article...Webcast Update #1
Tom and I are making progress towards getting the webcast/podcast all set up and ready. We’ve decided upon a name, a general format for each show, a topic for the first show (protein, because it continues to be one of the most asked-about topics), and set up the necessary accounts. We’ve also decided upon a […]
Read the full article...What About Antibiotics in Meat or Milk?
I didn’t write about antibiotics in meat or milk for a couple reasons, but I’ll try to address at least some concerns regarding their use here. To begin with, one of the major problems with talking about antibiotic use—specifically the nontherapeutic use of antibiotics, because nobody disputes the general use of antibiotics for animals who […]
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Growth Hormones in Meat: Myths & Reality
Growth hormones are a divisive topic. A major selling point of organic and “natural” brands are hormone-free meats, which raises concern for some about why any animals are treated with hormones. Combine this branding magic with an often poor understanding of labeling laws and biochemistry and you have the recipe for mass misinformation. In truth, the […]
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