Way back in the day, when I was a staff writer for Muscle & Fitness, I did a feature on how Creatine was the most studied, most effective supplement on the planet. That was fifteen years ago and the evidence has only grown stronger. Creatine is foundational for strength, power output, and recovery, and new studies show it may support cognitive performance too. It’s the perfect Books & Biceps supplement. Helps your brain. Builds your body. Done!
That’s why I’m excited to have Momentous sponsoring today’s newsletter (more at the bottom):
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Boom! This is Books & Biceps #383!
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If you’re a new subscriber you’ll love this profile that the New Yorker ran on us.
BOOKS
Washington: A Life by Ron Chernow
Last week I was helping my daughter build one of those tri-fold poster presentations for her U.S. history class on George Washington, and I found myself spouting off all the insane facts about his life that I remembered from reading His Excellency by Joseph J. Ellis and a ton of other books on Washington and the Revolutionary War.
I’ve long been fascinated by this time period and right after college I probably read ten straight books on it, everything from biographies of Alexander Hamilton, Ben Franklin, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson to full-on examinations of the war, the strategy, the treaties and so on. When we finished the project, and I’d sufficiently annoyed my daughter with the Washington story of him throwing an iron bar farther than any of his officers, two things occurred to me.
One, I hadn’t read a Revolutionary War book in a while and two, I’d never read Chernow’s Pulitzer Prize winning, all-encompassing magnum opus to our first president. And now seemed like the perfect time.
This book should be required reading for every American because, in many ways, Washington was the first “American” before there was even the term “American”.
The thing I always forget when diving into research about POTUS #1 is that even prior to the Revolutionary War, Washington was considered a larger-than-life super hero for his feats of stamina and courage out on the frontier.
During one battle, his coat was shot through four times and he had two horses killed underneath him, and yet he lived. In another, he had to hike through the dead of winter, including capsizing in near-frozen water and spending a night soaking wet on a river island, before fighting his way home.
The reports of his bravery had already reached newspapers in Europe when there wasn’t even a Continental Army yet. Everyone who met him described his “presence” or what kids would now call his “aura”.
Maybe the best way to illustrate this is through Abigail Adams. Her husband, John, had written home to Boston to share how fond he was of the new General, who was soon to be visiting the city. After Abigail met Washington, she dashed off a letter to her husband, practically feinting with praise:
“I was struck with General Washington. You had prepared me to entertain a favorable opinion of him, but I thought the one half was not told me… Dignity with ease, and complacency, the Gentleman and Soldier look agreeably blended in him. Modesty marks every line and feature of his face.”
During the second Continental Congress, he wore a self-made military uniform to the proceedings every day, and by the time the delegates were ready to choose a general to lead and unify the colonial army, he was already the unanimous choice.
And we haven’t even made our way to the war or his presidency! This book is phenomenal. Read it.
BICEPS
The International Winter Swimming Association puts on the coldest swim meet in the world in Finland. The meet takes place in a set of 25M lanes carved out of a frozen lake, with a floating dock for the starting line and finish line.
The contestants must then lower themselves into the 34 degree water (no diving due to fear of going into shock!) and complete the lap with proper form. You gotta see this. These guys are in ski clothes, then they strip to Speedos and race. Crazy:
STRONG LINKS
If you’re a guy over 40 and you’ve been looking for a new digital magazine that’s written for midlife men, by midlife men, on the topics that actually matter to us: family, fitness, fashion, finance, food & fun, then join us at Midlife Male.
I write a column every Tuesday called The Manologue. This week, I shared my thoughts on Philip Rivers getting to live out every middle-aged athlete’s dream: to suit up one more time. This one got a TON of comments on social and I know we have thousands of ex-athletes reading, so you’ll feel this column for sure.
P.S. Don’t Forget to Check Out Momentous!
Momentous Creatine Chews are about the size of a large mint and have a light citrus taste. It’s super easy to pop two, four or five in your mouth and they dissolve fast.
They deliver 1 gram of Creapure® creatine, the clinically studied, German-sourced gold standard that fits perfectly into your Sophisticated Meathead routine, whether in your own Flex Factory, your car or at your desk. And now, eligible customers can purchase using HSA/FSA funds through Truemed.
Here’s my typical Creatine regimen: I take a scoop of 5g of the powder every day in my protein shake after I lift, and then later in the afternoon, I pop a few of these in my mouth to reach 8 to 10 grams before or after my swim practice. Easy.
It’s up to you whether you want to take creatine. You can read a ton more info about it here. What I can tell you is that brands often reach out to me to partner up and I usually say ‘no’, but in this case, I already take Momentous Creatine, so this was a no brainer. Also, I asked them to up the standard 15% or 25% off to get us up to a full 35%.
Plus, now you can use pre-tax health dollars for clinically backed supplements. Just select TrueMed at checkout and complete a short eligibility survey.
You know how this works. A great way to support the newsletter is to support the sponsors that support us. Please check out their chews, powders and more below. And if you take Creatine, try this one:
Here’s something for your brain:
Ever wanted to start freelance writing as a side hustle? I got your back right here with this proven, unbeatable system that will have you pitching and selling in 30 days. I used this to write for GQ, Men’s Health, Men’s Journal, the New York Times and more:
Here’s something for your body:
Try our “Read More, Lift More” Challenge, the world’s only one-month training program that pairs an awesome book with 30 proven workouts. Ten pages of reading a day with one workout based on your reading.
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