With all the conflicting research and pseudo-scientific claims about fitness and training techniques revealed each day, only one thing's for sure: There's more than one way to carve an ab. And as long as we all have a body to experiment on our own everyone's a potential expert with a strong take on what to eat, what to do, how to stay motivated and what makes results last. The figures on this list have different credentials, experience, motivation, and goals for making the world stronger, healthier, and sexier. And they all think they've got the answer. There's plenty to argue about.
P90x controversy + ACE + muscle confusion + risk of injury, This chisel-cheeked motivator made the idea that a workout should be work mainstream with his hit DVD series. It's filled with controversial exercises and long workouts, but it's one of the few programs of its kind that you can actually do at home. And it gets results.
Trainer James Fell + Julian Michaels is an actress + doesn't know what's she's doing? The spittle-spraying, in-your-face star of NBC's reality weight loss hit, Biggest Loser, gets results on the show, but some people question whether her methods create lasting, healthy weight loss biggest loser contestants who gained it back. Despite her popularity, critics also have questioned her qualifications as a trainer and coach, and she’s facing legal action, jillian michaels + $10 million class action suit for diet products + potentially lethal for the products she endorses.
Crossfit + causes muscle damage and break down, He may not have much name recognition, but Glassman created one of the most popular new forms of fitness in America greg glassman + crossfit, with gyms popping up as quickly as they can be filled with grunting, shouting classes of devotees. His new breed of fitness also is polarizing: People argue about the training of its coaches crossfit criticism + unqualified trainers, the rigor of its teaching crossfit + workout too difficult, and whether the results are desirable for both men and women.
Mike Boyle + eliminates back squat from workout, This Massachusetts strength coach has trained and advised athletes at all levels, and he's done it while rejecting one of the oldest moves in the weight room mike boyle squat is dead, saying its risks outweigh its benefits. He's also taken strong positions against popular flexibility regimens Mike Boyle + strengthening coach + yoga critic, and has called for coaches to come back to a warm-up that many had dropped stretching.
The atkins diet criticism negative medical side effects and sustainability, He's been dead for almost a decade, but the doctor known for his namesake nutritional approach the atkins diet still starts an argument. His diet, which emphasized eliminating certain types of food the atkins diet eliminates carbohydrate while offering unlimited eating of other, traditionally "unhealthy" foods, showed drastic results for many. But questions remain as to the regimen's side effects, the atkins diet + risk of heart disease + American Heart Association.
Lance armstrong performance enhancing drugs, Did he, or didn't he? Is the yellow-clad cancer survivor testicular cancer an American hero or a world-class cheater? Armstrong won the world's premier endurance event Tour de France a record seven times, but questions remain as to whether he used chemicals to enhance his performance. He's moved on to pitching cellphones and raising money for cancer, so the mysteries surrounding his blood samples and odd behavior around testers Lance Armstrong + evades drug testing process may never be solved.
Bethenny frankel whole foods pulls drink mix preservatives, The star of multiple reality TV hits Bethenny Ever After has marketed herself as a "natural foods chef," but she's come under fire for those claims when it comes to her signature brand of products skinny girl cocktails. She also has published exercise-related products Bethenny Frankel Fitness but has a questionable background in fitness.
Tc luoma + controversial writer, Luoma has been covering bodybuilding and gym culture for a long time, including as an editor of a classic magazine Muscle Media owned by one of the pioneers of steroid and supplement culture. But he's not old news and is still ruffling feathers: As editor-in-chief of one of the Web's most popular destinations for bodybuilding testosterone nation he publishes pieces that fly in the face of convention and writes pieces that challenge even the most hallowed fitness rules.
Tracy anderson + long workouts + no weights, Her client list is filled with famous names tracy anderson + Madonna, Gwyneth Paltrow, Courtney Cox, but the weight loss promises Anderson makes are considered too fast and her workout sessions too long and grueling tracy anderson 90 minute workout. The celebrity trainer also advocates for women not to use these staples of traditional strength training Heavy workout weights, a view that has drawn fire.
Jamie Oliver criticism + school lunch participation declines, His intentions are obviously good, and through his hit TV show jamie oliver food revolution few have brought more attention to one of the most pressing health issues facing our nation childhood obesity than Oliver. But his methods have drawn fire as too narrow in choice, and he's gotten flak from animal rights groups jamie oliver + PETA for actions on other shows. And some Americans have complained about a British chef tackling this U.S. issue, while the same problem British obesity rates looms large in his home country.
Tim tebow not qb body type, In addition to questions about his throwing motion and overt expressions of his faith, the first-year Denver starter has long sparked talks about what position he should be playing Tim tebow + a better fullback? with his thick, powerful body type tim tebow 6 foot 3 inch + 235 pounds + quarterback + too big. He's had success so far, but only time will tell if he changes minds about the ideal shape for a sport, as did one of the world's most successful track athletes Usain bolt height who was said to be too tall.
Hormone replacement cenegenics risks + heart disease or stroke, Life is the 70-year-old man with the 25-year-old's bodybuilder body who's been in magazines for more than a decade advertising his "healthy aging" company Dr. Life cenegenics. The firm's premise involves replacing hormones that are lost with age, but what exactly they provide to clients is secretive and in question. Life's physique and the results his clients see also call into question whether certain substances testosterone supplements should be legal to patients.
Planet fitness no training no grunting, no deadlift, As CEO of a major national gym chain planet fitness, Rondeau has used advertising and PR to create the image of a gym culture that has no trainers and excludes exercisers who grunt or perform one of the world's oldest, best exercises the deadlift. A major men's magazine named his chain America's worst gym, but could the executive be saving money for his company by keeping the most frequent exercisers out of his club?
Michael warburton barefoot running, Ten years ago, this Australian physical therapist published a paper that cast doubt on one of fitness' most basic pieces of equipment. Since then, many runners have taken his advice to heart, changing their gait and pulling shards of glass from their feet in what they say is a safer, more natural approach to their sport barefoot running benefits + fewer injuries. Not everyone agrees that it's the way to run barefoot running risks + surface cuts and scrapes, but there's no arguing its influence: the movement has even changed the equipment it shuns minimalist running shoes.
Bill phillips + non-annabolic steroids health risks, Two of the biggest non-anabolic supplement companies MEt-Rx EAS grew and flourished on the words of this former steroid user and publisher Bill Phillips + MET-Rx. A tireless promoter of not only these products, but bodybuilding itself, Phillips has been one of the most influential figures in fitness history, publishing three books, founding a well-known magazine bill phillips muscle media and producing films about body transformation.
Mark Haub + junk food diet, When it comes to losing weight, a calorie is a calorie, whether it comes from a hamburger or a salad—and Haub set out to prove it. Eating mostly a classic snack cake Hostess Twinkie and almost all junk food, the nutrition professor dropped 27 pounds in just two months, improving his cholesterol numbers at the same time. (A cyclist lost 24 pounds with a similar system eating another splurge favorite cycling and pizza diet.) Some would argue that there's a difference between "good" and "bad" calories difference between good and bad calories + fat, but when it comes to results on the scale, if you cut a certain number of calories 3,500 calories in a pound from your diet, you'll lose a pound.
Health risks of body system cleansing + weaken immune system + cardiac stress, People have been fasting and performing dietary cleanses for centuries—for bodily and spiritual clarity. But Sakoutis' company Blueprint Cleanse has made drinking only juice go from fringe to the front of American minds, with a multiple-level, simple-to-follow, easy to purchase and consume system—the drinks are delivered to your door. The ease of popularity of the system means questions about the safety of cleansing health risks of blueprint cleanse + too few calories, especially without the counsel of a doctor—come to the forefront as well.
Dangers of hcg diet blood clot dizziness, leg cramps, This British endocrinologist has been dead for 40 years, but his long-ago research has spawned one of the most talked- and argued-about diets hcg diet of this century. The regimen centers around a hormone produced by pregnant women hcg hormone and used by steroid users who are cycling off their drug. Dieters inject this hormone—formerly harvested from horse placentas—and undergo extreme calorie restriction. The diet's popularity grows despite little scientific study and no approval from the FDA.
Ultramarathon karnazes + health risks, Karnazes is the face of an extreme sport ultramarathon karnazes that is drawing interest and participation by men and women across the country. His feats of endurance dean karnazes endurance feats 50 marathon 50 days, are legendary and impressive, but many health advocates question whether the sport he champions pushes the body too far Ultramarathon health risks + heart.
