In this episode, we break down what this year truly taught us as athletes and coaches — the lessons that actually moved the needle in bodybuilding, powerlifting, and long-term physique development.

We dive into the real truth about creatine HCL vs. creatine monohydrate, why some athletes benefit from switching, and how to use creatine effectively for strength, recovery, and muscle growth.

We also get into posing breakthroughs, including the importance of practicing on your “bad side”, building symmetry, and fixing common mistakes we see in bikini and bodybuilding presentations.

From there, we talk about the athlete lifestyle — managing real-life schedules, setting boundaries, learning to say no, and protecting your energy so you can actually train, recover, and perform at a high level.

And finally, we share the biggest coaching lessons we learned this year, especially around communication. What helps athletes progress? What holds them back? What do we expect as coaches, and what can athletes do to get more out of the coach–athlete relationship?

If you’re an athlete in bodybuilding, powerlifting, StrongLifting, or simply someone trying to balance training with real life, this episode is packed with practical, experience-based insights to take into next season.

On this episode of the Reckless Training podcast, Chris Nicole and TC dive into some of the most popular supplementation strategies employed by the general population and elite athletes alike! Energy Drinks, protein powders, creatine, glutamine, beta-alanine, citrulline, plus vitamins and minerals - all discussed here! Tune in to put the finishing touches on your dietary routine.

In Part Two of our Navigating Nutrition miniseries, Chris and TC explore cooking oils, cookware, and various food additives. They go into depth about how seed oils became so prevalent in today's American diet; they explore the variety of cookware options consumers have available to them; and they discuss some of the popular preservatives, colorings, and artificial sweeteners that are becoming more and more mainstream - along with the negative effects that may come with ingesting them. Listen to the full episode to find out more - don't forget to like the video and subscribe to our channel if you like our content!