Chocolate for Your Health: 08/31/2011

Yes, it is true, cocoa is purely magic, and the more that this magical bean is studied the more magical that it has become. Dark chocolate, especially due to its higher concentration of cocoa, is even better for you. Cocoa has been link to slowing down the onset of dementia, Alzheimers, and improving cognitive function. And even more recently linked to improving BMI in adults and reducing stroke risk in males. Don't over do it though, only 1 - 2 ounces is recommended daily; that is the equivalent of 1 or 2 squares a day. Choose wisely too, dark chocolate of 75% or higher is better and more concentrated with cocoa, plus there is less sugar. 

Macronutrients: 08/30/2012

Macronutrients are probably some of the most important nutrients that you can feed yourself. Why? They give you energy and eating the right ones can actually increase your energy production helping you to go that extra mile. Nutrition is just important as exercise in maintaining a healthy body. A lot of athletes already know this, but did you know that it is important to keep a log of your diet to make sure that you are getting the nutrients that you need. For more information on an athletes diet please read Calculating an Athletes Dietary Needs. In this video Scott Herman breaks it down for us.

Words from Scott Herman:

Macronutrients are very important you you need to keep track of them on a daily basis if you want to hit your fitness goals. Here, we give you a brief rundown of what they are and how to calculate them when trying to put a meal plan together.

If you still need some help, check out the meal plan system on my website. It does all the calculations for you and helps you determine what your daily calorie intake should be as well.

Check it out!: http://scotthermanfitness.com/mealplan.php

Legs: 08/29/2012

The legs are home to some of the strongest muscles on the body. You rely on them to stand, sit, walk, run, jump, and many other everyday tasks. Why then do so many people forget to work them out and strengthen them? Stop ignoring your legs, and stop looking like a chicken. Strengthen your legs like your life depends on it.

The Deadlift: 08/28/2012

The deadlift is quite possibly one of the best lifts that you can do for your body. It increases core strength, leg strength, back strength, grip strength, and arm strength. So, yep you guessed it, the deadlift is a total body strength exercise.

Just a few pointers when performing the deadlift. 

1. Make sure that you maintain a slight curve in the lower back
2. Keep your focus forward
3. Think of sticking out your butt this will maintain the curve in your lower back
4. For heavier lifts have an alternate grip (one palm out the other palm in)
5. Keep your knees over your feet
6. Feet should be either under your hips or shoulders (too wide a stance can lead to hip, knee, ankle, or foot injury
7. Hands placement should be just outside the knees
8. The bar should be just in front of, but not touching the shin when in the bent over position
9. Keep your shoulders pulled back during the entire exercise
10. As with all lifting exercises exhale on the concentric contraction (lifting phase) and inhale on the eccentric (returning to start) phase 

For some great ways to modify the deadlift please go to Men's Health

Beginner Kettlebell 7 of 9: 08/24/2012

With good timing installment 7 of 9 of kettlebell training by Mbodystrength.com is here. The intensity is increased in this 7th installment of the beginner kettlebell workout. Unlike the 4th, 5th, and 6th  installments, this session has two 20 minute circuits with a two minute rest in between the two circuits. This session is sure to test your limits. Push as hard as you can throughout the entire 40 min of this workout. Keep your resistance and intensity high during this workout to make this session a resistance / cardio workout, which will enable you to burn more fat. Why? High intensity training has been shown to increase exercise post oxygen consumption (EPOC) in study participants, and this rise in EPOC leads to larger amounts of fat burned after exercise. I hope that you enjoy this series of kettlebell workouts, because they are enjoyable, fun, and definitely a great way to burn the fat and build muscle. This workout series is brought to you by Marcus Martinez from Mbodystrength.com and each week, for the several weeks, I will cover all 9 of his installments for this workout plan as they are made available. Push it and each time you do this workout try to beat your last number of sets. Have fun! Just remember there are only two more to left in this series. 

Exercises / Reps

Circuit 1:
Snatch L/R - 5
Hand Walkout - 5
Jump Lunge L/R - 5
Explosive Pushup - 5

*as many sets in 20 minutes

Rest 2 minutes

Circuit 2:
Dive Bomber - 6
Side Row L/R - 6
Figure 8 to Hold - 10 
Floor Press L/R - 6

                                  
*as many sets in 20 minutes

Video:

Lookin' Good: 08/23/2012

Not everyone has the goal to be buff.

Not everyone has the goal to be fast.

Not everyone has the goal to be hot.

What ever your goal in life is make sure that exercise is a part of that goal!

Creatine Dose: 08/22/2012

Just How Much Creatine is Needed to See Results

Creatine is the most widely used supplement on the market next to protein powders and drinks. Despite its popularity amongst athletes it is not a completely understood supplement. Many people are taking doses that are too large for too long a period and others might simply be wasting their money because they are taking doses that are too low. How much should you take and for how long? Is there such thing as creatine loading? How about a maintenance  phase? If these are some questions that you have then this article might be just for you.

Athletes love to ask questions about creatine and whether it is something that they should use to improve their performance in either their sport, lifting, or to improve their physique. The one thing that is rarely asked is this: how should it be taken? The second question should be: what is an acceptable dose for creatine to be effective? The answers, unfortunately, are not all the simple, but you can most definitely place creatine into loading and maintenance phases to get the most out of your supplement. 

The loading or dosing phase is kind of similar to that of carb loading for a big race, but lasts for a longer period. Instead of one or two days of carb loading for the big race, creatine loading generally lasts for about 5 days 2,4, and in some studies it has lasted up to 7 days 5. It appears though that muscles may reach creatine load maximum in as low as 3 days 5. If this is the case why do most studies have the loading phase last a minimum of 5 days. Good question, and I wish I had the answer. The dose taken during the loading phase has been as low as 13.7 g/d 3, when questioning professional bodybuilders and other athletes about their daily doses during the loading phase, to studies having their subjects supplement with as high as 25 g/d, and even 35 g/d 4,8. As you can see that is a vast difference in dose size. Most studies seem to use 20 g/d with positive results for a period of 5 days 1, 3, 4, 5. This amount seems to be very effective in increasing speed, power, strength, and lean body mass in amateur, collegiate, and elite athletes 1, 5, 6, so loading with creatine above this amount might be just a waste of creatine. I know that there are some people out there that dose based on body weight, so here is a g/kg/d dose that might work for you. It appears that 0.25 - 0.3 g/kg/d works pretty well when using your body weight in kg to determine your dose during the loading phase for creatine supplementation, and amounts up to 0.03 g/kg/d have been shown to be positive for increasing work abilities 1,4. To determine how much you weigh in kg use this formula ____lbs ÷ 2.2 = ____ kg then multiply your desired g/kg dose by your weight in kg (70 kg * 0.3 = 21 g/d). When loading creatine it is best to take in two to three doses throughout the day that will add up to your desired daily dose (ie: 2 x 10 g doses = 20 g)

The maintenance phase can last weeks, months, and even years without long term harm to the kidneys since doses from 2 g to 20 g of creatine can easily be passed through the kidneys and liver during the filtration process, and no study has demonstrated kidney failure during their research 2, 8. It is, however, recommended that doses larger than 5 g/d only last for a brief period of 5 days 2. Most common theory on creatine maintenance is that supplementation between 2 - 5 g/d are best to maintain increased creatine levels with the muscle tissue 4. However, doses as low as 2 - 3 g/d have also shown to improve athletic performance in athletes 3. For those that want to load based off of weight then it is recommended to use 0.03 - 0.075 g/kg: use the same formula above to determine your dose. It must also be noted that the loading phase can be omitted by athletes that do not need to rapidly increase their creatine concentration within their muscles by just starting out with the maintenance phase. Athletes that do skip the loading phase will see similar results within 30 days or more when compared to what athletes see from pushing larger doses in the loading phase within a 5 day period 4. So in essence the loading phase will not be necessary for most athletes that are not in competition mode.

Whatever your decision on creatine is, one thing that is necessary to know is that there are several types of creatine out there. It appears that the easiest form for the body to absorb is creatine monohydrate and this form has been shown to have a 100% absorption rate 4,6. Also, don’t just fall for those ads that state that you will see fast results. There are a lot of misleading ads out there, and even more horrible products. Do your research on each product and read the reviews. Also, ask your friends about the products that they have used, and find out if they liked the results that they got. Rule number one is always to know your product before starting a supplementation protocol. Rule number two: there is really no need outside of the loading phase to supplement with more than 5 g/d, so don’t waste your product just because you are following the label. Knowledge is power, and ignorance can be dangerous when it comes to supplements. What you don’t know can hurt you, so make sure that you know and understand the facts. Until next time, happy lifting and may good health follow you always.

 

References

1. Faraji, H., Arazi, H., Vatani, D. S., & Hakimi, M. (2010). The effects of creatine supplementation on sprint running performance and selected hormonal responses. South African Journal for Research in Sport, Physical Education and Recreation, 32(2), 31- 39.  

2. Francaux, M., & Poortmans, J. R. (2006). Side effects of creatine supplementation in athletes. International Journal of Sports Physiology & Performance, 1(4), 311 - 324

3. Gutierrez-Sancho, O., Moncada-Jimenez, J., Salazar-Rojas, W., & Robinson, E. (2006). The effect of creatine supplementation on biochemical, body composition, and performance outcomes in humans: A meta-analysis. International Journal of Applied Sports Sciences, 18(2), 12 - 38

4. Hoffman, J. R. (2010). Creatine and ß-alanine supplementation in strength/power athletes. Current Topics in Nutraceutical Research, 8(1), 19 - 31.

5. Hosseini, S. S., Rostamkhany, H., & Panahi, M. (2011). Effect of plyometric training and creatine supplementation on some fitness factors in athletes. Annals of Biological Research, 2(6), 19 - 31.

6. Lamontagne-Lacasse, M., Nadon, Raymond, & Goulet, E. (2011). Effect of creatine supplementation on jumping performance in elite volleyball players. International Journal of Sports Physiology & Performance, 6(4), 525 - 434.

7. Lopez, R. M., Casa, D. J., McDermott, B. P., Ganio, M. S., Armstrong, L. E., & Maresh, C. M. (2009). Does creatine supplementation hinder exercise heat tolerance or hydration status? A systematic review with meta-analysis. Journal of Athletic Training, 44(2), 215 - 223.

8. Ostojic, S. M., & Ahmetovic, Z. (2008). Gastrointestinal distress after creatine

 supplementation in athletes: Are side effects dose dependent? Research in Sports Medicine,  

 16(1),15 - 23.