www.magnusvermagnusson.com

The other day I was at a restaurant ordering take-out. “A small greek salad with grilled octopus, hold the feta cheese please.” Delicious, moderate in protein, fat and low in carbs - it was the type of meal I usually ordered. The owner responded by asking me if I would like to try something else. “Like what?”, I asked. When she showed me the wide assortment on the menu, I declined saying that it did not meet the needs of my diet. “Diet!, why do you need to be on a diet?”, she asked. “Fitness is a big priority in my life and what I eat plays a huge role in maintaining that level of fitness.”, I explained. “Hmmph”, she responded. I noted she was a very beautiful young lady, who with striking Middle Eastern features, was probably 30 pounds more than her ideal weight. “Are you into fitness?”, I asked. “Not when it gets in the way of eating what I love.”, she responded. I then noticed a sign on the wall that stated, “There is no more a sincere love, than the love of food.” It then dawned on me in a different way, why people have difficulty maintaining a dietary lifestyle that will maintain their ideal body weight. It is our love affair with food.

Many popular diet books advocate a cheat day once a week, where you follow a diet Monday through Saturday and then on Sunday you are allowed to eat anything you like. Many of my readers may hate me for saying this, but I liken this approach to the alcoholic being good all week only to binge on Sundays. Granted one day a week will not alter things calorically much in terms of weight loss, but it will psychologically. I remember Sylvester Stallone being interviewed years ago when he was very lean and in the best shape of his life. The reporter noted that his diet largely consisted of chicken, tuna, and broccoli. “Don’t you ever want to breakdown and eat a juicy, fattening hamburger?”, the reporter asked. “Sure I do”, Stallone responded, “but I have gotten used to eating this way and I don’t want to break it.” Well put Sly! When people ask me why I refrain from eating high fat, high sugar, high calorie sweets, I typically respond by telling them that even though I enjoy such foods every bit as much as they do - I have conditioned myself to avoid the temptation of eating them because I have “forgotten” in a sense how good they actually taste. I also know that after I eat these foods, how bad I feel because I can actually feel this food being converted into unwanted fat.

It is known I train amateur and professional boxers. Part of my job as a trainer is to determine my fighters optimum fighting weight as well as ensuring they are at that weight come fight night. A lot easier than said! One of my fighters who fights at 154 pounds - loves caramel machiattos and regularly walks around at 180 pounds. His ideal fighting weight is 147 pounds, but typically competes at 154 pounds. In order for him to comfortably achieve a fighting weight of 147 pounds, he will have to change his walk around weight to the mid 150’s. How can he do this? Hunger is associated with pain. In our society we have grown accustomed to satisfying our hunger with foods that are high in fat, sugar,and calories instead of satiating that hunger with nutritious foods limited in calories that will sculpt out the hard body we admire on the leading fitness magazine covers. The decision is there for us to make the choice on how we satiate our daily “pain” of hunger. Which is why I do not encourage cheat days per se. Instead of accommodating a love of food, I try to instill a love of health and fitness as a priority and food as a means of achieving that priority.

If you have any questions about diet or getting a hard body at any age, please do not hesitate to email me at coachcraig@lifesource.com

Best in health,

Coach Craig

One of the tell tale signs of age is the deterioration of both lean muscle tissue and bone mass. As we progress into our 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and beyond - our bodies naturally lose the ability to produce as much hormone that we did when we were younger. Consequently, there is a natural tendency for the body to lose the tight musculature and form that we took for granted when we were in our late teens and 20’s.

When my clients in their 40’s and older ask me how much they should ideally weigh, I respond by telling them that they should roughly weigh the same amount as they did when they were a senior in high school. They typically respond by saying that if they lost that much weight, they would “look sick and appear older!” And in most cases they would be right. Why? Because while gaining fat over the years, they were also losing muscle to a sedentary lifestyle as well as the ravages of age. Therefore, if we lose the fat - that was basically providing “structure” in place of the muscle we inperceptively lost over the years, then what will we have to provide structure when we lose the fat? Not much!!! At least not as much muscle nature naturally bestowed to us when were 20 years old. Which is why people who lose weight without looking to add lean muscle tissue in the process typically look drawn, tired, and older.

Losing fat is not hard, but gaining back the lean muscle tissue lost to age is difficult to regain and therefore requires resistance exercise to both regenerate and maintain it. Remember - Diet burns fat, but it is exercise which helps prevent the loss of lean muscle tissue and bone mass, elevate hormone levels naturally - all of which helps provide a functionally youthful-looking structure! Pictured here at the age of 45, I am often told that I look years younger than what I actually am. Like Dr. Judd who is 62 and in far better shape than I, I owe it to a committed “Lifesource” lifestyle of diet and consistent exercise. If you are interested in holding off ravages of age please feel free to contact me at coachcraig@lifesource.com . Also please be sure to catch the new book writen by me and Dr. Judd, “Fit at 40, 50 and 60″ which is due out soon.

Best in health,

Coach Craig

Champion IFBB Bodybuilder Gian Franco of Bien Power named head distributor of Europe for Iron Curtain Labs and Lifesource products.

At 43 years of age, Gian is a champion bodybuilder and successful businessman who is still conquering new frontiers in his life. As you can see from this recent photo he clearly exemplifies the apex of appearance, poise, and confidence that comes from a pursuit of excellence in life. Principles that are a hallmark at Lifesource and Iron Curtain Labs. Gian is an excellent role model for fitness minded people of all ages and we are very proud to have him aboard as a contributing Coach and Head Distributor of Europe. For inquiries regarding Lifesource and Iron Curtain Labs products in Europe, please contact Gian at www.bienpower.com. Or if you have any questions for Gian regarding how he manages to stay in such great shape at his age, please post your questions here. Like all the Coaches on this board, Gian will be most happy to correspond with you.

When Iron Curtain Labs Dr. Judd was 44 years of age, he suffered a potentially career ending back injury that required surgery. Doctors thought he would never walk again much less return to the arena of powerlifting and break more world records. Of course, Judd proved them wrong. One year after back surgery, Judd returned to not only break the world record in the squat but also record one of the greatest pound for pound lifts of all time! Click to see the video of this amazing lift!

July 17 2008 Fort Worth, Texas

Marcus Bianconi made his professional debut as a boxer at the Cowtown Coliseum located within the Fort Worth Stockyards in Fort Worth, Texas. Bianconi who is trained and managed by Iron Curtain Labs’ Coach Craig Smith knocked out Oscar Rodriguez in the third round of a scheduled 4 round bout.

Bianconi blasted out of his corner from the opening round with a savage assault to Rodriguez’ body that was strategically designed to wear his opponent down en route to a knockout. Emotions from both pro debut warriors were high and at the end of the first round Rodriguez bloodied Bianconi’s nose with an unintentional head butt. But Bianconi’s taste of his own blood did not deter the 24 year old warrior from relentlessly attacking Rodriguez’ body. The strategy prevailed with Bianconi dropping Rodriguez in the second rounds with brutal shots to the body and a hard left right in the third round that put him down for the count. Bianconi credits his performance from the help he received from Iron Curtain Labs and Lifesource. “Coach Craig and I planned from the outset to break my opponent’s body down and then when the opportunity presented itself crack the head for a knockout. But none of this wouldn’t have been possible without superior conditioning. I trained hard for this fight - the Iron Curtain Labs way!!!

Click to see fight!

A couple of months ago I was searching the internet, just trying to entertain myself when I came across a limerick the title of which really threw me. The name of the verse was An Interview with God. That just jumped right out at me and smacked me in the face. And I thought, “WOW! How clever, an interview with God. I wish I would have thought of that.” Then I thought, what the heck, why not interview Him.

So I got down on my knees and I said, “Dear Lord, could I have a few words with You?”
And He said, “….…”
Then I said, “I only need a few moments of Your time.”
And He said, “…….”
Finally, I said, “Dear Lord, I know You are extremely busy and You have more important things and more important people to address, but I really would like to talk to You for a second.”
And He said, “……”
Then I recalled that when I was in college I read Children’s Letters to God. It was an amazing little book of real children’s prayers to God, compiled by Stuart Hample and Eric Marshall and illustrated by Tom Bloom. (I don’t know if you ever read it. If not, you should.) The book impacted on me, so much so, that I actually copied down some of the prayers in my journal to help me remember to stay childlike and curious, and to adopt an attitude of wonder. I have succeeded pretty much in remaining childlike. The inquisitive and attitude of wonder part…well, I don’t know if I ever managed to do all of that. Actually, I still have that journal, and I still remember some of those letters, like:
Dear God, I think about you sometimes even when I’m not praying. From, Elliott
Dear God, Does it hurt a tree if you chop it down? If so, I don’t think anyone should. –Maureen
Dear God, We read Thomas Edison made light. But in Sunday school they said you did it. I bet he stole your idea. Love, Donna
Actually, God’s answers were pretty good too. For instance, He said that Edison didn’t steal the idea of light. He gave him the idea and told him to copyright it so that Lucifer wouldn’t keep the world in darkness. I didn’t know that, and I thought that was pretty cool sharing a wonderful idea like that with one of His children. Consequently, I figure that if God would answer the letters of children and give all sorts of ideas and copyrights away, He would certainly answer a little note from me. Therefore, I wrote Him this beautiful letter on my best stationary with my fancy letterhead.
And He responded, “……”
Then it dawned on me. Maybe I could get some answers by asking Lucifer my questions. True he would probably lie a little, maybe a lot, but I was thinking that I could separate the pepper from the fly dodo as they say. So I flopped on my couch, popped open a beer and said, “Father of lies, the god of hate, Prince of Darkness, Evil incarnate, Beelzebub, Lucifer, evil one, can we talk?”
And he said, “What the hell do you want?” His voice was deep, like the sound of water roaring from a waterfall.
“Wooooooo, ah, I was just wondering your Prince of Darkness, Ruler of Hell, Father of wickedness and abhorrence could you answer a few questions for me.”
He said, “First of all, quit trying to butter me up with all of those flattering titles. I can see right through that crap.”
So, um….what would you like me to call you?
Call me Satan; Lucifer sounds like some candy ass.
“Well, I just have a few questions for you, but before we get started I would like to establish a little covenant with you. I want you to understand that I am not here to sell my soul or to make any deals with you. I would like you to give me your word on the Devil’s Malevolent Book of Sin, whatsoever in hell that may be, that whatever I say in the course of this interview should be not constituted or interpreted as giving you, permission to take possession of, harness the power of, or otherwise cause me to relinquish my soul. Is that okay? Can I get your word on that?
“Shut up and start asking me your questions. I don’t have all eternity. Besides, with your track record, I don’t need to trick you into the fires of hell. You are already on a fast track to Hades without any help.”
“Reaaally, you are kidding…right?
Hurry up, and get to your questions.
Okay, okay, first of all, you are the Devil, the cause of all the misery and pain in the world…the Great Deceiver whose sole purpose is to destroy humanity. I am talking to the right guy?”
You got the right guy, but you don’t have all the facts. I don’t spend my every waking moment trying to corrupt the human spirit or causing decay within the human soul. I have a life too you know.
What else do you do?
To be honest, is that an oxymoron, me - - the Devil being honest…just a little comic relief. See I have a sense of humor, too. With all the people going to Hell these days, I have to have something to alleviate some of my stress and since I love sports so much I figured that would be a good place to direct some of my energies. Besides, athletes are some of my favorite leaseholders.
Now that you brought the topic of sports up, are you responsible for all the cheating and corruption going on in sports today?
Well, I don’t want to brag, but I have done my best to elevate sports to a higher level, or lower level, depending how you look at it. I am sure you have heard the expression “If you are not cheating, you are not trying.” That is what sports is all about. Of course, you know that is my quote. The problem is that man designed these ludicrous pure sports like track and field or that rinky-dink sport you competed in, powerlifting, where there is no way for a decent athlete to try, well, I mean cheat. You either run fast or you don’t or you lift the weight or you don’t…right? So, I had to come up with a way to give the really dedicated and devoted athletes a chance to cheat. That is when I came up with the idea of using illegal and banned drugs to enhance performance. Initially, it worked out perfect. The steroids gave the committed athletes a tremendous advantage over the pantywaist drug free athletes and do-gooders who have this idea that sports is pitting one person’s natural ability against another person’s natural ability. I mean, come on, how un-American is that? Like I said, if you are not cheating you are not trying…every American knows that. By the way, remember last year when Notre Dame was trailing UCLA with 57 seconds to go with the ball on their own 17 yard line, and you started praying to God to help the Irish…you weren’t looking for an unfair advantage were you? See even you, a goody-too-shoes, will cheat if given a chance. Well, you can stop praying because God doesn’t even like sports, you can thank me for that little miracle the Irish experienced last year.
Actually, I was kind-of-sort-of praying that no one would get hurt during those last 57 seconds…Ah, can we just forget about that. Anywho, you said the steroids initially worked. What happened?
Well, they still work, especially in a sport like powerlifting, where there is no real drug testing going on. To be honest, in powerlifting steroids are a God-send…don’t take that literally. The suckers who are drug free don’t have a freaken chance against my drugged athletes. It is a joke for a drug free athlete to try and compete against my chemically engineered athletes. They can’t even come close, the big dummies. The problem lies in sports where they do random and heavy drug testing. As you well know, it is not cheating if you don’t get caught. Unfortunately, a number of athletes are now getting caught red-handed using steroids. The testing is becoming more sophisticated, which means that I have to continually stay one step ahead of these testing programs. That is why I had to turn to human growth hormone over the last decade or so. Growth hormone is a little more dangerous, but it works really well, and it is undetectable. Of course, the really dedicated athletes don’t care if it is dangerous as long as they get an advantage. The stuff could kill them, but they still love it. It is all about winning no matter what the cost…that is how great athletes think.
Now, I am just playing the devil’s advocate, but what is going to happen when they get a test that will detect HGH?
Is that a pun you are trying to make….devil’s advocate…come on? Anyway, I am way ahead of you. By the time they get a test for HGH validated, there will be gene splicing to deal with. That is already on the drawing board. I believe it will be one of my crowning achievements in sports… producing superman by genetically altering the physical make-up. Trust me there is always a way to cheat when you have dedicate men who will stop at nothing to gain an advantage over a sucker. Look, I don’t have time for all of this…I have to go.
But I haven’t asked you any of the questions I wanted to ask you, like why do we have all of this suffering, misery, and racial unrest in the world? Why does Paris Hilton make all that money without any talent, and why is Barry Bond’s head twice as big as Jay Leno’s? And why doesn’t Brittany Spears wear underwear?
Well, why don’t you dial up your buddy God and ask him?
I did but he never answered me.
What does that tell you?
That He is out shopping for underwear for Brittany?????????????

“It isn’t sex that wrecks these guys, it’s staying up all night looking for it.”

For the past decade and a half I have been teaching at Albany State University, in Albany Georgia. At State I get an opportunity to teach a lot of different subjects. In fact, it is not uncommon for me to teach twelve different classes during the course of the year. Believe it or not my subject matter ranges from modern dance right up to advanced kinesiology. I like teaching such a variety of course because I feel like I am constantly learning in them. It is like I am getting paid to learn. It’s great!

Anyway, my favorite class is sex education. It’s an amazing class. We talk about everything in there from autosexual behavior right up to zoophilia. Naturally, I get plenty of teasing from my fellow colleagues. I walk down campus and they will yell out “Hey Judd, does that sex education class you teach have a lab on Saturday nights?” or they will say something a little more ingenious like, “Judd, do you give oral exams in that class?” Of course, I assure them that I do.

In all honesty it is not so much that I teach the class as I learn in it. Believe me, over the years I have learned some incredible things about sex education. For instance, did you know that fertilization is that stuff you put on your lawn to make it green or that fallatio is an Italian restaurant? And here is something else I bet you didn’t know. Cunnilingus is the girl in the dorm who lives across the hall from Nikea. Did you also know that ninety-nine percent of the men in the United States masturbate…the other one percent are liars. And here is something that will really freak you out - some people get sexual gratification out of exposing themselves to others - they are called bodybuilders. I’m telling you; ever day I learn something new in that class. It’s awesome!

What happened recently though in the sports world has changed our discussions in my sex class significantly. If you hadn’t heard the Minnesota Vikings took a sex education field trip on the good ship lollypop and shortly there after two cheerleaders form the Carolina Panthers pro football team visited cunnilingus not at her dorm room, but at a restroom stall in Banana Joe’s nightclub. Now my students have major questions about sex and sports.

For instance, the majority of my students want to know if having sex will have an adverse affect on athletic performance. Well, if you have been following the Vikings since their road trip on the Love Boat you would probably say unequivically yes. Interestingly, though that may not be the case. It just might be that the Vikings are as bad on the football field as thay are in the sack and neither of those two things have anything to do with each other.

Actually, the effect that sexual performance has on athletic performance is a rather provocative question - one that excites me, figuratively speaking, that is. In actuality, I have had a wealth of experiencing dealing with this very issue - empirical research not applied experimentation I might add.

A number of years ago at the Wide World of Sports Super Stars Com?petition in Sarasota, Fla., I overheard the former heavyweight boxing champion of the world, Joe Frazier, tell an aspiring athlete that two months prior to a fight he would totally abstain from sex. Sex will make you weak, I never did it before I fought,” explained Joe. “Besides, when I didn’t get sex, I would get mean as hell.” At the time I thought Joe’s advice was about as good as the swimming exhibition he gave during the Superstars competition (In case you missed it, Joe jumped in the pool, took eight strokes that propelled him three feet, and then went straight to the bottom).

I might have been able to buy the mean and vicious part, but as far as sex causing a decrement in athletic performance, I just didn’t believe it. In fact, I had read somewhere that a world class pole vaulter had set a world record less than one-half hour after he made love to his wife. Joe had to be wrong.

Then I met a world class high jumper named Bruce McDaniels who swore that sex prior to competition would indeed cause a decrement in athletic performance. He said that when he had sex before competition he jumped like well, a white man. Less than a year later, I met six world class boxers who told me that not only did they abstain from sex a week prior to competition, but the night before a fight they would actually ice down their genitals so that they wouldn’t risk having a nocturnal emission. Icing down your genitals sounds about as much fun as getting a rectal exam. These guys were obviously serious about what they were doing.

Still there was that Wilt The Stilt Chamberlain thing that makes you sit back and say, “Sex can’t be all that bad.” If you recall Wilt claimed that he had slam dunked 20,000 different females during his basketball career - which would have figured out to be about 5.14 ladies (I use the word ladies loosely here) a day. No wonder they called him “The Big Dipper.” Certainly sex didn’t seem to affect his performance on the court. Nor did it affect Babe” Ruth’s baseball performance who was equally notorious for countless liaisons. They didn’t call him “The Saltin of Swat” for nothing.

Needless to say, I started wondering if what these guys were saying had any merit. Consequently, I decided to look into the matter. A computer search of the research literature came up dry. I couldn’t find a single well-controlled experiment that was designed to determine how sex affects athletic performance. In an attempt to get some answers, I started interviewing the athletes with whom I came in contact with. I was amazed to find that a number of powerlifters felt that engaging in sexual intercourse the night before competition would significantly decrease their performance. I engaged in sex twice before competition and both times I performed terribly in the meet,” recalls an elite lifter who asked to remain anonymous. “My legs were rubber, and I had no strength in my hips or back.” I used to engage in sexual intercourse before I competed,” reported another elite lifter, but I soon found out that I totaled better when I abstained from sex at least the night before. In my case, sex seemed to make my legs heavy, consequently my squat and dead lift suffered. I guess like Rocky’s coach Mickey says, “Women weakens legs.”

Overall though, most athletes, including powerlifters, felt that sexual relations the night prior to competition did not impair athletic performance. In fact, some athletes actually felt that sex improved their performance.

“Actually, sex is a part of my precompetition ritual,” stated world class Olympic lifter Billy Gardner. “It’s relaxing. It helps me still my mind … oh yea, it feels good too.” Brooks Johnson, the United States Olympic track coach agrees (not with the feels good part, although he might if you asked him). “Having successful, as opposed to unsuccessful sex before competition has many pluses,” says Johnson. “It can be relaxing and fulfilling. For some ath?letes it has the same effect as having a good rubdown.” In my opinion, Johnson is either getting the best rubdown this side of the Gold Club in Atlanta or he is dating someone on the order of Cindy Celibate.

Interestingly, the American Medical Association’s committee on the medical aspects of sports, reports that if sex is a regular part of an athlete’s life, sexual relations the night before competition it will not cause a decrement in athletic performance. According to the AMA, the only way that athletic performance could be hindered by sexual relations prior to competition is:

If the athlete doesn’t get enough sleep.

If sex is not a regular part of the athlete’s life.

If the athlete believes that it will impair his or her athletic performance.

Unfortunately, the American Medical Association didn’t have any research to substantiate the aforementioned points. Of course, you would expect that the A.M.A. would be in the know concerning this issue. However, they’ve been wrong before. Don’t forget it was the A.M.A. who said that anabolic steroids did not enhance strength or athletic performance. In other words, because they (the A.MA) say it’s so doesn’t mean it’s always so. Still, they probably are the people with the information to make the best calculated guess.

When you really think about it, they probably are right. According to Dr. Ruth, the average bout of sexual intercourse only lasts six minutes and it consumes less than two hundred and fifty calories. ( Do you ever wonder who times someone having sex beside my old girlfriend) Notice, I said “average.” For a lifter, it would probably be six hours and a half million calories. Assuming the old cliche is true, that lifters get it up and keep it there. When you think about it, you probably burn up more calories in your first two or three sets of warm-ups. I would also venture to say that most lifters are in pretty good shape (with the exception of a few of our super heavy weights) especially compared to the average Joe Blow walking around. Consequently, they probably can handle six minutes of bliss a lot better than most people?from a physical standpoint that is. Still, all of this is just speculation. When research is conducted to determine the effects of sexual relations on lifting performance, we just may find out that it will decrease performance.

Come to think of it, I’d like to do that research. Anyway, until some research is conducted, your guess is as good as mine as to whether sexual relations will hinder athletic performance. So until then, you’ll have to figure out what’s best for you through trial and error. Look at the bright side though, the trial and the error is going to hurt so g-o-o-d.

Dr. Judd

Nobody can acquire honor by doing what is wrong.
Thomas Jefferson

Rather fail with honor than succeed by fraud.
Sophocles

He has honor if he holds himself to an ideal of conduct though it is inconvenient, unprofitable, or dangerous to do so.
Walter Lippmann

I want to talk to you about something that really disturbs me. I am sure most of you are familiar with honor codes such as the street code of ethics, “The Blue Wall of Silence” (ironclad police rule) and the unspoken code of silence in journalism and sports. These are codes of ideology in which people do not snitch on other people committing crimes, breaking rules, or engaging in unethical practices. Those who live by such a code are seen to be honorable people who can be trusted to stand steadfast by their commitments even though their behavior supersedes doing what is right and, often, moral. Conversely, people who tell the truth and take responsibility for their actions are considered reprehensible snitches and rats. For example, when Andy Pettitte testified to the congressional committee on drug use in baseball that Roger Clemens told him that he had used performance-enhancing substances, there was an immediate backlash of criticism and condemnation of Pettitte. He was called a snitch, a rat, and a dirty gutless bum by literally thousands of bloggers. Perhaps one blogger summed up the sentiments of most bloggers when he wrote, “Andy is a coward, a snitch and a rat. For God’s sake, he rolled over on his own father. No one likes a rat; how can anyone have respect for this guy? All he had to tell investigators is that he did not know and that he couldn’t remember Roger telling him anything. Instead, since he got caught using HGH, he felt that someone had to go down with him and that was Roger Clemens. Instead of manning up to it and taking the fall, he dragged his so called “best friend” down with him. What a friend. Andy Pettitte = snake.” Yes! That sums it up nicely.

Now, from reading a prolific number of articles and blogs, I will admit that the way it looks I am in the minority on this issue. I accept that distinction whole heartily. I will also admit that the origin of “stop snitching” which originated in the late sixties was essential and beneficial for the survival of oppressed black people who were being harassed by the United States law enforcement authorities. However, in my opinion, what started out as something which was necessary and positive has evolved into something that is insidious and destructive. What is the honor in doing something that is dishonorable? It goes without saying that calling such behavior a code of honor is an oxymoron. At best it is a code of disgrace.

Personally, what Pettitte did was the right thing to do. In the midst of all the baloney and hot air, Pettitte refused to pay tribute to a ridiculous tradition of concealing facts for the sake of protecting a teammate who cheated and lied. Instead, he stood up and told the truth. “I have to live with myself,” Pettitte said in his deposition. “And one day, I have to give an account to God — and not to nobody else — of what I’ve done in my life. And that’s why I’ve said and shared the stuff with y’all that I’ve shared with y’all today — that I wouldn’t like to share with y’all.” That’s courage!

The idea that people who tell the truth are rats actually perpetuates immoral and corrupt behavior. To paraphrase Earl Ofari Hutchinson, all of you are doing by voicing this no snitching nonsense is saying; PLEASE KEEP OUR NEIGHBORHOODS, SCHOOLS, AND SPORTS TEAMS SAFE FOR MURDERS, THEIVES, CHEATERS, AND LIERS, because that is exactly what you are doing…creating a safe haven for thugs and cheaters. It seems to me that is the worst kind of self-destruction imaginable, and your self-destruction isn’t just killing you; it’s killing all of us.

Let’s say just for the sake of argument that Clemens is guilty, which isn’t a real stretch of the imagination, considering that just about every one in America thinks he is culpable. What honor is there in cheating, then lying about it, and worse yet, trying to ruin another man’s character to save your own ass? That is cowardly…you do the crime, you do the time.

Let me ask you this too: if a person sees a rape or a crime being committed, should he just walk on by as if nothing is happening? I don’t know about anyone else, but I’d rather take my chances for standing up for what is right, instead of having to live with the guilt of knowing I could have done something to help someone. If it means getting hurt to help another…well, so be it. I would rather be a rat, even a dead rat, than an accessory to a crime. I am also willing to chance speaking out about what is wrong in sports, academia and any other institution or individual who is debasing our way of life. Call me a snitch, a rat, a stool pigeon, an informant…call me what you will. I am willing to do all of that for only one reason - IT IS THE RIGHT THING TO DO!

When I was in college we had an honor code, a real honor code, which stated that a person should not at any time, any place or for any reason lie, cheat, or steal, nor tolerate those who do. In fact, we were obligated to turn in anyone who did not abide by the honor code. Everyone who agreed to the university’s code of honor, which was everyone at the school, took that pledge very seriously. How serious…I will give you an example. One of my friends saw his best friend and roommate cheat on a test. In stead of reporting him to the instructor, he went to his roommate and told him to turn himself in. His roommate informed him that he had already turned himself in. This presented a problem for my friend because he had breeched the honor code. He should have immediately reported the incident to the instructor. Consequently, he had to go to the instructor and acknowledge that he had also breeched the honor code. As a result, they were both suspended from school. Neither my friend nor his roommate expressed any ill will towards the professor or each other because they both knew they had broken their code of honor, and they took full responsibility for their own behavior. That, too, is courage!

I’m repulsed by pathetic individuals looking the other way at wrong doing, teaching others to do the same, and categorizing those who have a sense of fairness and justice as rats and snitches. It is rather astonishing to me that children are being educated from a young age to honor these rather bizarre codes which in truth advocate dishonesty and corruption. Even more amazing is that the guiding principles of these codes have been embraced not only by young children, but also by adults who you would think would have enough common sense to see the absolute duplicity and hypocrisy in such a system. What you are doing is buying into this lie that you are better off letting thugs and liars go free because in some perverse distorted way you want to honor a code that supports deceit and dishonesty rather than integrity.
I will say it again, these bizarre and absurd codes are simply tactics that permit criminal and immoral behavior to proliferate, and I’m not buying into it…not for a second.

Dr. Judd

Anything that exposes the truth about drug use in sport is good for ensuring the integrity of sport.”
Craig Masback

Simply put Marion Jones is gifted. Even without drugs, Jones may very well have been the fastest woman on earth and arguably the greatest female athlete in the world. As a small child, she was great at everything she attempted…softball, basketball, track and field, tennis, golf, even volleyball. At age 15, presumable without drugs, she ran the 200 meters in 22.87 seconds, breaking the national high school record, and at the age of 18, she led the University of North Caroline to a national championship in basketball. There was nothing she couldn’t do in the field of sports at an elite level. Like I said, even without drugs, she was strictly world class. With drugs she became otherworldly…perhaps the greatest female athlete to ever walk the face of the earth. She certainly could out run just about anything on earth and anywhere else for that matter. That is the catch…with drugs she was wraithlike, without them simply world class. She clearly understood the circumstances, and she obviously understood the decision she had to make…a choice that would be difficult for any athlete.

Bruce McDaniel, a former world class high jumper, informed me of the difficulty of making such a decision. “When I was in my first year of college,” said Bruce, “my coach came to me and said that if I was ever going to make it to the next level I would have to start using drugs. I was by far the best high jumper on the team. Actually, I was the best straddler in the world. To be honest, I really wasn’t convinced that steroids were going to make me that much better so I begged off. Within less than a year, my competitors who were using steroids started closing in on me. Guys who were no where as good as I was were jumping right with me. I realized real quickly that unless I started using drugs I would never fulfill my dreams as an Olympic athlete. Believe me that decision haunted me for years, but I never succumbed to the temptation. I felt drug use was cheating, and I was concerned about the health effects. Of course, I never did realize my dream of being an Olympic athlete which hurts to this very day. I am sure that is the same decision Marion Jones had to make. I am not saying I agree with her decision, but I understand why she made it. The way it is today it is difficult to compete unless you cheat. That sounds terrible to say, but unless you are gifted, your chance of competing at a world class level are slim unless you use drugs. The fact is that drugs give you that much of an advantage. With drugs an average athlete can become world class, a world class athlete can become otherworldly…they work just that well.”

And what does this tell us? McDaniels summed that up nicely as well. “That old saying, ‘Cheaters never win is the furtherest thing from the truth.’ Cheaters do win. If you want to win, you should cheat…that is exactly what cases like Marion Jones and Barry Bonds tell us. Our children see that the way to succeed in sports is to cheat, and consequently many of them will give in to such temptation, especially when they see that the reward for cheating far outweighs the consequences. That is why I hope some day they can get on top of the drug situation and literally get cheaters out of all sports.”

At least today Jones is extremely remorseful that she cheated…NOT! As Mike Golic said, “She is sorry that she got caught…it is forced remorse, not genuine sorrow.” I would have to agree with Golic. I find it difficult to believe that Jones would ever have admitted she cheated if she had not gotten caught red handed. Let’s be frank she adamantly denied she had ever taken drugs for close to a decade. Worse yet, she sued BALCO founder Victor Conte, in 2004, for $25 million alleging Conte tarnished her reputation when he said on ABC’s 20/20 that he supplied performance-enhancing drugs to Jones. She settled that lawsuit on February 5, 2006. According to Conte, the lawsuit cost him a lot of money to defend himself. She also slandered her ex-husband, C. J. Hunter, calling him a liar and a cheat. Just as revealing, she wrote in her 2004 autobiography Life in the Fast Lane,“I have always been unequivocal in my opinion: I am against performance-enhancing drugs. I have never taken them, and I never will.” She also made this quote on Sept. 26, 2006 edition of The New York Times after receiving word that her “A” sample tested positive for a steroid at the U.S. Track and Field Championship. “I’ve defended myself against this. I said I never used performance-enhancing drugs. I’m for a drug-free sport.”

What does this tell us? Simply put that a cheaters can also be good liar. One thing I will say, though, Jones understood exactly what she had done. She not only apologized to her family, friends and supporters, but she also apologized to all of her competitors whom she had cheated. She acknowledged that her fellow competitors, teammates and the sport are paying the price for her mistakes and that her admission cannot erase all of that damage. And it certainly was major damage. Not only did she steal all of those Olympic medals from her competitors, but she also stole millions of dollars in bonuses and commercial endorsements. Bruce summed that up nicely also: “The gut wrenching thing from an athlete’s stand point is that you train your entire life to realize your goals. You do everything ethically and morally right and then a cheater comes along and robs you of all you worked for your entire athletic life…the opportunity to compete, the recognition and in many cases a lot of money. That is certainly how it was for me. There were guys who would never have beaten me drug free, but they went right on passed me because they were loaded on drugs. It is not fair and it hurts. I know a lot of people will say that everyone at that level is dirty. That is not the case. I never used drugs, and a lot of my friends who were world class competitors never used them. That is just an excuse for cheaters. Even if that were true, which it isn’t, that still is not fair to the guy who does everything right and does not make it to that level because his competitors were load on drugs. Who knows, that guy you never heard of may very well be a world class competitor if everyone was drug free. That is the problem; good people are being robbed of their dreams.”

Of course, Jones paid for her cheating and indiscretion. All of her medals, as well as her relay teammates’ medals, had to be returned, and she was required to repay an estimated $750,000 that she was awarded for her winnings. Actually, the financial penalty was rather lenient considering that she earned over $20 million in endorsement moneys from her victories. That goes without mentioning the money and glory she stole from her competitors. Australian Olympic Committee Chief John Coates echoes those sentiments: “It’s very, very disappointing for all of the athletes that competed against her (Jones). … I don’t think an acknowledgment now will ever right the injustice for those other ladies who were robbed of glory, money and opportunities. I would hope that she is punished thoroughly.” Darryl Seibel, spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee, agrees with Coates: “Our position on doping is unequivocal. Doping is cheating, and under no circumstance will it be tolerated. If an athlete cheats, they deserve to pay the price for their action.”

What can we learn from this? Perhaps Jon Drummond, a gold medalist in the 400 relay in Sydney summed it all up best: “Any use of performance-enhancing substances is a tragedy for the athlete, their teammates, friends, family and the sport. It’s like that old saying, ‘Cheaters never win.’ So no matter how glorious or glamorous things look, you’ll get caught and pay a price for it. It doesn’t help track and field at all, except maybe by letting the world know that people always get to the bottom of things. We shouldn’t be afraid of the truth, but it’s sad it came to this. I hope it never happens again, but I am sure it will.”

Dr. Judd Biasiotto