2023 was the Year of “The Moose” Mitchell Hooper, and 2024 Appears to be on a Similar Path
2023 was the year of “The Moose” Mitchell Hooper, and 2024 appears to be on a similar path for the 28-year-old Strongman. Hooper defended his title at the 2024 Arnold Strongman Classic, won the 2024 Arnold Strongman UK, and is set to compete next at the 2024 World’s Strongest Man (WSM) — his first WSM title defense attempt. As the first Canadian to hold the WSM title in nearly 50 years, he will surely bring his best. During his prep, Hooper is still building upon the boom of his online presence and recently took to his YouTube channel to dispel 10 fitness myths.
Debunking Fitness Myths with Mitchell Hooper
A seemingly newer fitness trend is the notion that long, complex warm-ups are crucial before training. “You will never prevent every possible injury,” says Hooper. “Don’t overcomplicate your warm-up.” Instead, Hooper advises using the same exercise for warm-ups and working sets. Hooper doesn’t buy into “fad” diets that severely restrict, eliminate, or disproportionately prioritize specific foods and macronutrients. “In a Western world, we just need to focus on eating a general variety of foods,” meaning mostly balanced diets of fruits, vegetables, grains, legumes, etc.
Hooper isn’t calling exercise a myth but referring to increased hunger pangs from exercise, leading to overeating. Rather than trying to burn an unsustainable number of calories to achieve an energy (read: calorie) deficit, Hooper recommends making the adjustment in the kitchen. Hooper now understands how beneficial the natural amino acid creatine is for gains. “Creatine has a phosphate molecule attached, phosphate cracks off, becomes ATP, that is then used for energy and movement,” explained Hooper, who recommends sticking with creatine monohydrate since it’s the most studied form.
Hooper’s Training Tips and Nutrition Advice
Hooper’s go-to exercise to train for rotational sports is squats. “You get your power (To rotate) from the ground,” the kinesiologist shared with his viewers. Carbs are the energy source for exercise that lasts shorter than three minutes, and they are the primary energy source for any moderate to high-intensity aerobic work. Neither good nor bad fats will make you gain weight, but eating too many calories will. To maintain health and bodily functions, we need healthy fats from foods like fish, grass-fed meats, pasture-raised eggs, nuts, quality dairy products, etc.
Consistency is what matters most. It’s fairly common to associate those who look overweight as unhealthier than their thinner counterparts, but that’s not always the case. Hooper gave two examples of this misconception: a shredded bodybuilder may have low body fat, but they’re well below the recommended healthy body fat, and some people have normal weight obesity syndrome or someone who appears to be of normal weight but has excess body fat, especially around the midsection. Hooper is scheduled to defend his crown at the 2024 WSM contest from May 1-5, 2024, in Myrtle Beach, SC.
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