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50% Facts with Silent Mike & Jim McD

Life’s too short to be half right! Veteran podcasters Mike "Silent Mike" Farr and Jim McDonald try to answer a single question. Any question is fair game, but most involve health, fitness, nutrition, mental health, culture…even sex. They examine common misconceptions and then try to get to the correct answer -- often with the help of subject matter experts. They walk away with a better sense of the facts…and so do you.

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Recent Episodes

Oct. 9, 2024

Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991) | A 50% Facts Review | Kickass-tober

All this month, we’re watching (some of us for the first time) some kickass flicks! Following up last week’s look at The Terminator (1981), we dig into its first sequel. This time Arnold Schwarzenegger plays a good guy, and …
Oct. 2, 2024

The Terminator (1984) | A 50% Facts Review | Kickass-tober

All this month, we’re watching (some of us for the first time) some kickass flicks! First up, the movie that cemented Arnold Schwarzenegger as a bankable Hollywood star and launched a multi-billion dollar film and TV franchi…
Sept. 25, 2024

Unforced errors

When we recorded this, the leaked IPF with “tips” about coaching women hadn’t surfaced yet, but we did get to talk about other bad behavior and unforced errors. Diddy had 700 dildoes, Vince McMahon may have manipulated women…
Sept. 18, 2024

50 PF 9-17-2024 C-1

Sometimes, we need to take a minute to look at what people outside of powerlifting think about the sport. We take a look at a powerlifting quiz published by a fitness site. Some questions were easy, and others…a bit harder e…
Sept. 11, 2024

A shocking loss for powerlifting

We were saddened to learn of the accidental death over the weekend of Kim Tran AKA Kim Valentine. We discussed some of her accomplishments on the platform and the role she played in bringing women and Asian lifters into the …
Sept. 4, 2024

Why isn’t there an apples-to-apples way to compare deadlifts?

You probably think that pulling sumo is the biggest variation between deadlifts, but there are many more. It can even be challenging to tell the conditions of a particular lift, let alone compare them. Is it wrong to “game” …

About the Hosts

Mike Farr Profile Photo

Mike Farr

Co-host

Mike Farr, aka Silent Mike, has dedicated his life to supporting others in their goals and to building community. After spending over 15 years playing and coaching basketball he switched gears into the weight room. Over the last decade, he focused on helping thousands of athletes around the world with their strength and fitness goals. Powerlifting is considered an individual sport but Mike has found his role in helping others through education and entertainment using the barbell as his vessel.

Jim McDonald Profile Photo

Jim McDonald

Creator and Co-host

Jim left the corporate world behind a couple of decades ago and became a consultant in IT and healthcare marketing. In the early 2000s, he discovered powerlifting and began to document its training and some of its greatest performances as an early YouTube fitness creator. He focused on visuals that helped the audience understand not only the technical aspects of powerlifting but also the emotions that drive lifters to lift. Eventually, he created a chart-topping podcast along with Mike Farr… just before the worldwide explosion in podcast listenership. His role at 3SB is both administrative and creative, and he’s finding the balance between those a day at a time.