About half of all Americans are trying to lose weight, and with the weight loss service industry being worth billions of dollars — some estimates put it at over seventy billion dollars — ... Continue Reading
7 Tips to Avoid Burnout As a Personal Trainer
No matter how extroverted you are, coaching and bringing energy to people all day can be exhausting. And it’s one of the reasons being a personal trainer and burning out often go hand-in-hand. In 10 ... Continue Reading
How Ethan Suplee from ‘Remember the Titans’ Got Jacked
Actor Ethan Suplee has been on performing on the silver screen since 1994. You might recognize him from his major roles in American History X, Remember the Titans, Boy Meets World, My Name ... Continue Reading
The 6 Best ZMA Supplements of 2026
ZMA stands for zinc magnesium aspartate, and it’s a supplement often marketed towards folks in the fitness realm. Typically, ZMA is made up of a combination of magnesium, zinc, and vitamin B6 ... Continue Reading
Joe Sullivan: Bending Bars & What Powerlifters Won’t Tell You
Joe Sullivan is a champion raw powerlifter who speaks his mind on everything from online trolls to bad gym etiquette. Joe joins us to talk training, his favorite powerlifters to watch this year, and an ... Continue Reading
Fun Fact, Rich Froning Might Have Won the Mayhem Classic Had He Competed
Over the weekend, we got to watch 60 elite CrossFit athletes throwdown at the CrossFit Mayhem Classic that took place in Cookeville, Tennessee. This was the first Sanctionals competition for this year's ... Continue Reading
Is Remote Coaching Right for You?
No matter how brilliant a coach is at designing a training program, creating a generic program for a group of clients with various skill sets, injury histories and experience levels, simply will never be ... Continue Reading
Power Cage Vs Monolift Vs Combo Rack Differences, Powered By Ghost Strong Equipment
In every gym across the globe, you'll find multiple pieces of equipment to squat and lift big weight in. As you get stronger and the weight on your back gets heavier, then the equipment in which you're ... Continue Reading
5 “Chaos” Band Exercises to Add Instability to Your Workout
When you hear the word "chaos," it usually means all hell has broken loose. It has a negative connotation. But way back in 2005 James Smith of Diesel Strength & Conditioning came up with the Chaos ... Continue Reading
When and Why to Use the Neutral Grip Bench Press
One of the best attributes about the bench press is how versatile some of its variants can be and how you can increase pressing strength with multiple types of benching. In fact, you'd be hard pressed (pun ... Continue Reading
Kris Gethin: How to Thrive As a Multi-Sport Bodybuilder
Here's a popular one from the archives perfect for a time of year when people are getting active in the cold. Kris Gethin is a bodybuilder, fitness model, and supplement entrepreneur who has been the face ... Continue Reading
Johnnie O. Jackson: A Storied Bodybuilding Career That Isn’t Over Just Yet
When the lineup for the 2020 Arnold Classic was announced, there was one name on the list that surprised many fans and insiders. That name was Johnnie O. Jackson. It’s not that Jackson isn’t worthy to be ... Continue Reading
The Stoltman Brothers Explain Their Unusual Strongman Diet
Eight thousand calories a day, diarrhea medication, saltwater, and CBD are just part of the unusual dietary regimen of two of the World’s Strongest Man athletes Luke and Tom Stoltman. (The ... Continue Reading
2020 IWF World Masters Championship Relocated to Orlando, FL
International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) sent out a press release earlier this week sharing a big announcement by the IWF Masters, USA Weightlifting, and USA Masters Weightlifting: "The 2020 IWF ... Continue Reading
Best Step Up Platforms
Step up platforms are a popular piece of exercise equipment that you'll see in virtually every big box commercial gym. Often times, they're used to help fitness enthusiasts perform step-focused workouts to ... Continue Reading
When Squatting, What Does It Mean When Lifters Say “Create a Shelf”?
There are a ton of useful cues to help promote strong squat mechanics. From the feet to head position, every lifter and coach has their own way of conveying what is mechanically appropriate throughout the ... Continue Reading
Best Lat Pulldown Bars
Lat pulldown bars are important tools for athletes looking to build their back. Lat pulldown bars come in a variety of shapes, designs, weights, lengths, and grips. The one commonality they all share is ... Continue Reading
JC Deen: Why It’s Easy to Get Fed Up With Fitness
JC Deen was one of the first online fitness writers and trainers to build his name for a no-BS approach. He joins us to talk about beating fitness frustration, turning to "Doggcrapp Training," and how ... Continue Reading
7 Ways to Improve Your Rowing Stroke
While becoming an efficient rower will probably never be as exciting to the average CrossFit athlete as getting your first pull-up, muscle-up, or a new clean and jerk PR, it certainly can help you handle ... Continue Reading
Zack Bartell: What No One Tells You About Opening A Gym
Zack Bartell is a powerlifter and gym-owner based in Southern California. Bartell opened SoCal Powerlifting to the public at a very young age, and with strategy, a dream, and a business mindset, he has ... Continue Reading
Navigating Bodybuilding and Muscle Dysmorphia, What Researchers Suggest
Editor’s note: The content on BarBend is meant to be informative in nature, but it should not be taken as medical advice. The opinions and articles on this site are not intended for use as diagnosis, ... Continue Reading
5 Ways to Make Social Media Improve Your Training
Hi, I’m Emily Beers and I’m a phone addict. I always knew this about myself, but (confession) there was no hiding it this past year, as my phone started letting me know how many times I picked it up and ... Continue Reading
Best Compression Arm Sleeves
Research has shown that compression arm sleeves can help increase precision and sensitivity around the elbow and wrist joints during physical activity (1). What does that mean? It means that compression ... Continue Reading
How Exercise Variation Impacts Strength, Motivation, and Body Composition
Exercise variation can be a hotly debated topic throughout various strength training circles. There's really no one-size-fits-all equation when it comes to programming exercise variation. For example, we ... Continue Reading