Pankaj Gupta

(Chd)Author Migraine-The Unsuspected Tyrannies. Golfer.Baker.Trekker.Investor.Kite Literature.LCHF.

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Why are more men not doing hip thrusts?

Why won't you train the single largest muscle in the human body by mass and volume?

[Ajay Bagga @Ajay_Bagga]

Indian Crude oil basket price is down sharply in June so far and on the margin is hitting $ 70.71 .
Today post the attack on a cargo ship crude prices are up by 2%, but the outlook is for increased supply from Iran, UAE, Iraq and Kuwait which should keep prices in check.
Time to give a boost to the economy and to consumer sentiment through passing on these gains as a price cut for the Indian consumer and industry?
Prices are near/ below pre-war levels, so even if the government wants to raise its excise duty back by the Rs 10 cut it took, and even if OMCs want to make up the losses they made/ will make on cooking gas subsidy, there will still be room to reduce petrol and diesel prices to pre-war levels in a couple of weeks to a months time.
Diesel prices hikes are a tax on all, rich and poor, as they flow through into every goods pricing via transportation and logistics costs.
Time to cut.
And stimulate the economy .

[Aditya Kondawar @aditya_kondawar]

India has learned one lesson repeatedly: strategic dependence comes at a cost.

- 90% of our oil demand is met through imports �� We must diversify energy sources.
- AI models are largely built overseas and are weaponized or restricted (US restricted Mythos new models to outside countries or companies) → We need sovereign Indian AI models - India rolls out three sovereign AI models, Sarvam AI, Gnani AI, BharatGen, to take on Big Tech
* Semiconductors and rare earths have been external dependencies → India is now investing in domestic chip manufacturing and strengthening its rare earth ecosystem (China had weaponized rare earth exports)

Energy security. Technology security. Supply chain security.

The next decade won't just be about economic growth—it will be about strategic self-reliance!

[Pankaj Gupta @SanerVoice]

@SBakerMD I would add FASTING to the 4 pillars of health you have rightly pointed.
Take Benign Prostrate hyperplasia. It won't get better by sleep, managing stress, carnivore diet or exercise. But excellent scientific papers & in my practice i observe fasting improves BPH.

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Arnold presses are one of the most overrated shoulder exercises.

Cool movement. Great name. Mediocre ROI.

Your front delts already get cooked from incline/bench pressing.

For bigger shoulders, spend that recovery on:

Lateral raises.
Rear delts.
Stable overhead pressing.

Not circus dumbbell rotations.

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

India is obsessed with “strength from within.”

But within what?

A plate with 85% carbs and one spoon of curd?

Build the outside also, bro.

[anand mahindra @anandmahindra]

Winning against the Chinese. In China.

At the Asian Relay Championships.

Srabani, Sudeshna, Sneha & Tamanna in the 4x100 relay.

Power. Speed. Grace. Commitment.

But above all, teamwork.

This clip has it all.

I’m watching it on loop.

More of this please. 🇮🇳

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Boredom sometimes is healthy.

Needing constant stimulation is a disease.

Your brain was not designed to be drip-fed novelty every 7 seconds.

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Why is 21st June only Yoga Day?

India didn’t just teach the world to breathe and bend.

We had akharas, dands, baithaks, gadas, joris and nals.

Maces. Clubs. Stones. Bodyweight brutality.

Before chrome dumbbells, there was vyayama.

Before “functional fitness,” there were wrestlers building shoulders, backs, grip, legs and lungs in mud pits.

Yoga deserves its day.

But maybe strength deserves one too.

Because flexibility without strength is incomplete.

And a civilization that worshipped Shakti probably understood resistance training long before we medicalized it.

[Dr. Brahma Chellaney @Chellaney]

India’s Escapism

Since last year, clear signs have emerged of a fundamental shift in U.S. policy toward India. The indicators are difficult to ignore: the latest U.S. National Security Strategy barely mentions India; the U.S. deputy secretary of state declared from Indian soil that Washington would not allow India to grow into an economic rival; the U.S. assistant secretary of state stated that the principal objective of American policy in South Asia is to prevent any single power from dominating the subcontinent; and Washington recently dropped “Indo” from the name of its Indo-Pacific Command. These developments come amid the declining salience of the Quad and an apparent revival of the term “Asia-Pacific” at the expense of “Indo-Pacific.”

The implication is increasingly difficult to dismiss. Washington no longer appears to view India’s rise as inherently beneficial to U.S. interests. Instead, it is beginning to see India as a potential economic and regional competitor whose power should be managed and constrained. U.S. interest in India is now largely focused on securing greater access to its vast market and gaining greater strategic access.

The 50% punitive tariffs imposed on India last year, efforts to make India more dependent on U.S. or U.S.-aligned energy supplies, the lopsided trade framework agreement of February, and the looming bilateral trade deal all underscore these shifting U.S. priorities.

Yet Prime Minister Modi appears unwilling to acknowledge the writing on the wall. This week he told President Trump that bilateral relations had “progressed significantly” since their last meeting in February 2025. In reality, the relationship has suffered a series of major setbacks during that period. Meanwhile, India’s foreign minister continues to speak of “deepening partnership across domains.”

Rather than acknowledge the implications of Washington’s policy shift, the Modi administration continues to promote a narrative of deepening strategic convergence, thereby deflecting questions — and opposition attacks — about whether its assumptions regarding the U.S. have been overtaken by developments.

[rach_aha @rach_aha]

My dad turned 82 today.
At 3, he arrived in India as a refugee from Pakistan, settling in a small town in Haryana that didn’t even have a primary school. He helped my grandfather at a tiny shop by a bus stop and sold bidis on buses to make ends meet.

At 12, he moved to Meerut for secondary school, living with relatives where he was expected to do household chores and often treated as an outsider. The stories from those years are heartbreaking.

After Class 10, he started working in Delhi as a typist. One step at a time, he brought his entire family to the city—three younger brothers and two sisters—and ensured they all received a proper education.

At the same time, he never stopped learning. Graduation. Law. Company Secretary. Chartered Accountancy. He studied through every stage of life, even after his three daughters were born, and went on to become a director of several prestigious companies.

For all his achievements, he asked only one thing of his daughters: become professionals and never give up your careers.

Everything I am today is built on that foundation.

Happy Birthday, Dad. ❤️

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Forearms are arguably one of the most visible and important. Yet most don't train them directly.

Why?

Just 5 mins a week has huge payoffs.

[Dheeraj Garg | Metabolic Health Advisor @IMHEALTHY_IN]

🚀 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 has come to the rescue of 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀, 𝗧𝗖𝗦 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗪𝗶𝗽𝗿𝗼. When the world started asking, "What is India's AI strategy?", the software giants seemed busy discussing 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝘀, 𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀, 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀, and 𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀.

⛽ Just when India appeared in danger of becoming a spectator in the AI revolution, a company known for 𝗼𝗶𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀, 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝘀, and 𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗹 𝗽𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘀 stepped forward to talk about 𝗚𝗣𝗨𝘀, 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗰𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲, and a national AI vision.

💻 The irony is hard to miss. The companies that spent three decades teaching the world how to write software became experts at 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗵, while the company that spent three decades refining crude oil decided to build the future of computing.

[Dr. Brahma Chellaney @Chellaney]

The brief Trump-Modi meeting may not have reset strained U.S.-India ties, although both countries have a mutual interest in recalibrating relations given their shared strategic interests. The meeting came barely a week after U.S. attacks on commercial tankers killed three Indian merchant mariners, inflaming public sentiment in India.

Modi, however, did not directly raise the killings. Instead, he noted the large number of Indians serving as crews on foreign-flagged commercial vessels and stressed the importance of their safety and security. Trump responded by describing seafaring as “a rough profession.” He offered neither condolences nor expressions of regret, in part because the Indian side did not seek a U.S. apology or compensation for the victims’ families.

The irony is striking. The U.S. Navy enjoys peacetime logistical support at Indian ports, yet it launched munitions against a vessel after establishing contact with the crew and identifying them as Indian nationals.

[Dr Shawn Baker 🥩 @SBakerMD]

😜

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

Your cravings may not be a character flaw.
They may be a sleep debt invoice.

[Dr. Brahma Chellaney @Chellaney]

How Nations Earn Respect

Because of power differentials, asymmetry is inherent in international negotiations. The parties are rarely equal in economic or military strength. Yet history shows that the stronger side does not necessarily prevail, whether on the battlefield or at the negotiating table. Outcomes between nations often depend less on material capabilities than on leadership, political will, national resilience, strategy and tactics.

In 1962, China, by launching a surprise war against an unprepared India, inflicted a humiliating defeat on an economically and militarily stronger adversary. More recently, the world’s most powerful military, the United States, has struggled to achieve decisive results against a much weaker Iran.

In 1999, China was no match for American power. Yet after the U.S. bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade, which killed three Chinese nationals, Washington was compelled to pay $32.5 million in compensation for the damage and for those killed or wounded. The U.S. also issued repeated apologies for the bombing, with President Bill Clinton personally apologizing to help defuse the crisis.

In 1971, defying U.S. military pressure and nuclear blackmail, a relatively weak India helped Bangladesh secure independence in a swift 13-day military campaign that produced the largest number of prisoners of war (POWs) since the end of World War II. The operation succeeded despite President Nixon’s deployment of a nuclear-capable naval task force off the southern tip of India.

In 1998, an economically vulnerable India brushed aside U.S. sanctions threats and conducted a series of underground nuclear tests, declaring itself a nuclear-weapons state. The decision reflected a willingness to bear costs in pursuit of national objectives and ultimately became a defining moment in India's rise and strategic transformation.

In 2026, by contrast, an India widely regarded as a rising power but seemingly lacking comparable political resolve responded fecklessly to the killing of three unarmed Indian merchant mariners by the U.S. Navy, demanding neither an American apology nor compensation for the victims’ families.

These episodes differed in circumstance and scale, but they shared a common lesson: nations earn respect not merely through economic or military power, but through leadership, resolve and a willingness to defend their interests.

Respect is earned, not bestowed. Power alone does not command respect; leadership and resolve do. Without them, even a rising power may find itself unable to defend its interests, uphold its dignity or secure justice for its own citizens.

[AP Joshua @Metabolic1992]

The lesser experienced you are, the more you can grow with lower weight/higher reps. Why? Your type 1 fibers still have potential to grow. So you can hypertrophy these.

This accounts for newbie gains.

Fast forward a few years when you've maxxed out growing the type 1 fibers, you can only hypertrophy type 2a/b/x fibers now.

These are high threshold fibers and are only recruited when you're in close proximity to failure.

Theoretically you could still attain failure by lower weights and higher reps. But chances are you'll give up because of cardiovascular failure or pure ennui.

Enter big weights low reps (6-8 rep range). Right from the word go you're tapping into these high threshold fibers.

Tell me why won't this approach be superior?

Why will I lift something for 20 reps when only the last 4 reps will matter? I can do 6 reps and save time.

Plus there's something very very anabolic about heavy weights. The growth hormone/testosterone spikes crazy.

[Sridhar Vembu @svembu]

This is big: all access to Mythos and Fable AI models disabled for everyone outside America.

First thoughts:

1. Technology is the ultimate weapon. National sovereignty, national security, all of it is now about technology.

2. Globalization is dead and Bharat must find her own way ahead.

We must keep these two ideas in mind.

What can our government do right now? Ensure that orgs in India embrace smaller models, both Indian and Chinese open source ones. With a bit of effort, we can make them work. Anyway, why pay money to people who don't even want to sell to you?

We must deepen our R&D. Sarvam has been on it and we have been on it but remember that the latest models cost not only huge GPU budgets to train, the GPUs themselves are restricted. So we can't afford the scale of money (of the order of $100+ billion to even get in the game!) and even if we could come up with the money, we can't get all the GPUs. I would not like to ask the government to fund tens of billions of dollars on this anyway - the money has far better uses.

Zoho has been pursuing alternative R&D approaches that are far, far less expensive but by its nature cutting edge R&D takes time and we are patient. I am confident we will get there.

Any remaining people in India who have delusions about globalization should wake up now.

[Pankaj Gupta @SanerVoice]

@IMHEALTHY_IN @Chellaney It doesn't work that way in international realpolitik. Economic and Military heft is what matters.
There is only so much you can do with 4 trillions against 32 trillions.