Author
Cole Brennan
Background and how he works
Cole has lifted since 2013 and has coached in-person and remotely since 2018, mostly people training at home or in budget commercial gyms. He trains in a single-car garage with a rack, a barbell and a pair of adjustable dumbbells, so the constraints on this site are the constraints he lives with.
His research method is deliberately narrow: position stands and guidelines from named bodies first, peer-reviewed trials second, and practitioner sources only when clearly labelled as opinion. He does not cite other blogs. Where the evidence does not support a confident answer, the article says so instead of guessing.
He holds no commercial relationship with any supplement brand, equipment manufacturer or gym chain, and Iron Leaks carries no affiliate links.
Published posts
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September 7, 2026
Is It Rude To Ask To Work In on a Machine at the Gym?
Working in is not rude, it is the norm. The exact wording to use, what to do when the answer is no, and when…
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September 7, 2026
Do Newbie Gains Still Happen After 40?
Untrained adults past 40 still add muscle in controlled trials. Here is how much smaller the response gets, which muscles are affected, and what…
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September 7, 2026
How To Hit 150g of Protein a Day on a Budget
A costed day of eating that clears 150 grams of protein, built from USDA protein values and BLS average retail prices, with the protein-per-dollar…
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September 7, 2026
How Many Days a Week Should a 45-Year-Old Lift Weights?
A real number with the reasoning behind it, plus a table of 2, 3 and 4-day weeks showing what each one actually delivers in…
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September 7, 2026
Can You Build Muscle With Only Adjustable Dumbbells?
Dumbbells build muscle for years, but the load cap binds on specific lifts. A table of where a 50 lb and 90 lb per-hand…