AtoZ Focus on www Fitness Newsletter
Sep.30 2007 edition
Sarah's Introduction
Hi everybody ! How was your week? Did you meet or hear about some inspirational people lately? Well, I have a story for you, right here. A true story which happened in June of this year.
The climbers in their son’s garden a few weeks before their trip to Scotland (yes, they are in France)
Weekly Fitness Article
Does Cardio Cause Muscle Loss?
Yes, it's true. It's a scientifically proven fact that muscle proteins are broken down and used for energy during aerobic exercise. But don't worry, you are constantly breaking down and re building muscle tissue anyway. This process is called "protein turnover." Your body is constantly alternating back and forth between anabolic (building) and catabolic (breaking down) cycles. That's just a normal part of life. Your goal is simply to tip the scales slightly in favor of increasing the anabolic side and reducing the catabolic side just enough so you stay on the anabolic side and you gain or at least maintain muscle.
This fact of human physiology has often been taken out of context and used to scare people into not doing cardiovascular exercise for fear of losing muscle. When you fast overnight as you sleep, you lose muscle too, but that doesn't mean you should stop sleeping!
Sure, it's possible for you to lose muscle from doing too much cardio, but it's highly unlikely. Shying away from cardio completely because you think you'll lose muscle is a huge mistake. Only excessive amounts of cardio would cause you to lose muscle because over-training tips the scale towards the catabolic side. It's difficult to generalize and pinpoint one specific amount as too much, but I think it's safe to assume that just about anyone could do up to 45 -60 minutes of cardio a day, 6 to 7 days a week without losing any muscle - as long as the proper nutritional support is provided.
Trainer John Parillo has always been an advocate of lots of aerobics, even for his bodybuilder clients who are trying to gain muscle mass.
"Aerobics can enhance your recovery from weight training by promoting blood flow and oxygen transport to your muscles," says Parillo. "Aerobics forces oxygen through your body, increasing the number and size of your blood vessels. Blood vessels are the 'supply routes' that transport oxygen and nutrients to body tissues, including muscles, and carry waste products away for muscular growth, repair and recovery. The expansion of this circulatory network is called 'cardiovascular density.'"
So, according to Parillo, aerobics can actually enhance recovery from weight training and increase muscular growth by developing the circulatory pathways that provide nourishment to the muscles. Cardiovascular training is important for fat burning, for good health and for muscle-building.
Losing muscle has more to do with inadequate diet than with excessive aerobics. If you suspect you are losing muscle there are four likely causes:
1. You are not eating enough protein. Protein is the only nutrient that is actually used to build muscle. To stay anabolic you must eat five to six protein containing meals. Each meal should be spaced out approximately three hours apart. Research has proven that if you are physically active, you need a minimum of .8 grams to 1 gram of protein per pound of bodyweight.
2. Your carbohydrates are too low. Low carb diets are often used for fat loss, but it is a mistake to cut your carbs too drastically. Carbohydrates are protein-sparing , so even if you are eating large amounts of protein, you can still lose muscle if you your carbs are too low.
3. You are not eating enough calories to support muscle growth. This is the most common cause of muscle loss. When your calories are too low, your body goes into "starvation mode." Your metabolism slows down and your body actually burns muscle tissue to conserve energy. Muscle is metabolically active tissue, requiring a great deal of caloric energy just to maintain it. That's why your body will shed muscle if it thinks you are starving.
4. You are not training with weights. It is a common misconception that if you want to lose weight, you should start with cardio only and add the weights later - another big mistake! It is the weight training that keeps you from losing muscle while you are dieting.
You are much more likely to lose muscle from not eating enough than you are from doing too much cardio. All too often, people are afraid to eat a lot and do a lot of cardio at the same time. It doesn't seem to make sense. Logically, it seems like the two would cancel each other out - but the opposite is true. Many people believe they must "starve" the fat by drastically lowering calories. Unfortunately, this approach can cause you to lose muscle along with the fat. The only way to maintain your lean mass while losing fat is to feed the muscles with plenty of nutritious calories and at the same time,burn the fat off with cardio.
Whether your goal is muscle development, fat loss or both, you should always include some form of cardiovascular activity as part of your training program. Unless you're doing some kind of ultra-endurance regimen, CARDIO DOES NOT CAUSE MUSCLE LOSS, in fact it supports the pathways that help you build it!
So there you go, right from Tom Venuto, the author of "Burn The Fat". Cardio does NOT cause muscle loss if kept in check. Keep within the "sane" guidelines for cardio and muscle loss will not be a problem. You'll just be mean and lean!
Unconventional Iron with Nick Nilsson
The Atkins Diet - Separating Fact From Fiction
The Atkins Diet has been in existence for over 30 years and has enjoyed a surge in popularity over the last few years.
Pioneered by Dr. Robert Atkins, the theory behind the Atkins Diet is simple. Your body prefers to utilize carbohydrates (such as in grains, cereals, breads, etc.) for energy and will burn them first prior to body fat. By cutting down dramatically on carbohydrates in your diet, you force your body to burn fat for energy.
Reducing the carbohydrates in your diet puts your body into a state called "ketosis." This word is derived from the "ketones" that are used by your body for energy when sugars/carbs aren’t available. When you are in this state of ketosis, your body is producing ketones from your fat that is being burned for energy. Ketones are essentially the leftovers from this process and are used in place of sugar in the body.
For more information on ketosis, go to
http://www.ketosis-ketoacidosis-difference.com/
One of the major misconceptions about the Atkins Diet that has been widely reported is that you can or should eat extremely unhealthy, fatty foods all the time. This is not actually true. Dr. Atkins recommends that you limit your intake of these types of foods (e.g. butter, sausage, bacon, etc.) and instead focus on healthy fats such as olive oil, fish oil, nuts, etc.
The Atkins Diet has many positives and negatives that have been associated with it. Some of the positives include:
Rapid Weight Loss - though the first couple of days the majority of weight lost is water, your body does become more efficient at fat burning and you do lose fat.
Reduced Mood or Energy Swings - eating carbohydrates (especially sugary ones) can lead to mood and energy swings. This is often seen as the post-lunchtime or afternoon energy crash. When you eliminate the carbs, you eliminate the source of this problem.
Reduced Consumption of Refined Foods - highly refined foods are the source of many health problems. The more processed a food is, the less nutrients are generally in it. The Atkins Diet encourages a focus on the consumption of more natural state foods such as vegetables, lean meats, fish, eggs and healthy oils.
Some of the negatives that have been associated with the Atkins Diet include:
Rapid Regaining of Lost Weight - this can happen when a person comes off the Atkins Diet. They regain all the weight they lost. One of the major reasons for this is that when you eliminate the carbs from your diet for a long period of time, your body becomes more sensitive to them. When you go back to your regular eating habits (which may not have been great to begin with), your body reacts more strongly to the sugar and carbs in foods, leading to weight gain. This weight gain can be reduced by easing off the Atkins Diet gradually rather than by feasting on carbohydrates.
Lack of Food Choices - it can be difficult to find things to eat that are low carb. Most grocery stores are primarily stocked with carbohydrate-laden foods and it can get boring eating the same things over and over again. Luckily, with the popularity of the Atkins diet and other low carb diets, there are many delicious recipes available to help alleviate this boredom.
The Atkins Diet may not be for you but by incorporating some of the principles in it, such as lowering your carbohydrate intake and eating more natural-state foods, you may find that you can achieve great results without ever having to restrict yourself. It may take a little longer but the results will be more permanent as it is more of a lifestyle change than a diet.
About the author:
Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding e-Books including ";Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of
Danny M. O' Dell Explosively Strength Training
Muscle mass-the holy grail of strength
How do I get bigger? What can I do to get stronger? I have been asked these same two questions so many times over the years that my response has almost become a short elevator speech. If you don’t care to read any more then here is the short and sweet of not only gaining more mass but also to increasing your strength.
Summary: steps to more mass:
3500 calories equals one pound therefore:
- EXERCISE the major compound muscle groups
- EAT and rest
- EXERCISE the major compound muscle groups
- EAT and rest
- EXERCISE the major compound muscle groups
- REST and eat
- EXERCISE the major compound muscle groups
- EAT and rest
Pretty simple huh? The trick is to manage the eating, exercise and resting to derive the greatest benefits from the three to actually grow bigger and get stronger.
Eating a pile of food that is setting in front of you will certainly add the calories and weight but are you getting them in the right proportions and at the right times? An over reliance on supplements or high protein foods will not pack on the muscle as well as a well balanced natural food diet.
But the supplements can help keep the calories high enough to continue to grow at a faster rate. These can be expensive though and there are better ways to eat than just out of a glass. The alternative to this conundrum of natural versus supplements is to intersperse the two throughout the six meals a day. Yes I did say six meals. Not every one will be 1500 calories though, in fact none of them will be. You’ll have to take your anticipated caloric needs for increased growth and repair and divide the total number by six to arrive at the amount needed for each meal or snack. Whoa I said snack.
Yes snacks have a place in the dinner bucket of the healthy lifter. Calories do count, contrary to what some trainers may say. They can be a good, and that is a relative term for what ever you can stomach, in the way of several carbohydrate/protein bars a day with a large glass of milk to wash the taste away. Some of them are just plain foul tasting. Sometimes you do what you have to do. You have to eat big to get big. But you also have to lift big to get big.
Spending time in the weightroom should be productive. If not then why be there in the first place? Multi joint exercises are the ticket day in and day out; they cannot be beat for effectiveness in building muscle. But they are hard to do with heavy weight you say, if you want to get strong you gotta do them. Squats, benches, rows, presses, and deadlifts are at the very foundation of the strength building program.
It is a proven scientific fact that the larger the cross sectional area of a muscle the more force it is capable of producing. It is this force that moves the heavy weight. This is the reason for building mass in the first place.
However just lifting heavy weights day after day will eventually wear you down and your progress will come to a grinding halt. That is if you don’t get hurt in the process. A systemized schedule based on proven results will provide direction and sanity to the program. That is where program schedule periodization enters the picture.
Percentage based routines on a periodized schedule equates to success. Once the lifting is over it is time to consider restoration of the organism.
Recovery takes on many forms. It can be simple rest, nutritional help or mechanical assistance via massage or electro modalities. Whatever means you may decide to select stay with them for short periods as your body will accommodate to the method just as it does to the repetitions and exercises over time. Once this happens growth begins to slow and then moves backward.
There is a science to getting bigger and stronger. This all takes time to learn and time to apply. If you don’t have the time to learn all of the ins and outs on your own, then following the plan laid out in a mass building manual is the way to go.
The Mass Builder Manual gives explicit information on how to train over the next three months and see tremendous results from your efforts. This manual has many pages strictly devoted to training schedules. These start out with the brand new lifter and continue on up to the person who has lifted a long time. Within these 132 pages you will find answers for your mass building strength training questions.
The best part is this: if you don’t like it then I’ll refund your money. You have nothing at all to lose except about a 132 pages of paper from your printer after the download ends at your end.
About your strength coach Explosivelyfit strength Training
Danny M. O'Dell
His articles have been published in national and international magazines describing the benefits of becoming stronger, more powerful and living the healthy lifestyle. He writes for various online and print publications including The Washington Coach magazine, The Weightroom press magazine in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, Successful Coaching in London, England, FitForces.com and Atozfitness.com located in Montreal, Canada, Sportspecific.com, and the Outpost newspaper in northeastern Washington.
Danny focuses on developing the success of each of his students and trainees by motivating and encouraging them to believe in their individual abilities and by never giving up on their dreams and aspirations. The athletes he has trained have successfully competed at the state and international levels. They have accomplished record breaking lifts and returned home with many trophies awarded for their hard work, individual goal achievement and team success..
Danny is a national and internationally recognized fitness presenter. In addition, he is the author of the following training manuals: A Comprehensive Approach to Shoulder Training and Injury Resistance, Composite Training, Strength Training Secrets,The Ten Essentials, and The Ultimate Bench Press Manual and Wilderness Basics..
These are complemented by several smaller handbooks covering strength and fitness at home and in the gym: The Twenty Minute Dumbbell Routine, Workout at Home, Push up Power, and The little handbook of chin up progressions.
GHF Weekly Recipee
Vegetable Pasta Salad
Makes:
6 servings
Ingredients:
- 10 ounces of penne pasta
- 3/4 cup broccoli, chopped
- 1 green pepper, chopped
- 1 red pepper, chopped
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 1 carrot, sliced
- 1/2 zucchini, sliced
- 1/2 tomato, sliced
- 6 ounces lowfat feta cheese
- 1 cup garbanzo beans (reduced-sodium)
- 1/4 cup non/lowfat Italian dressing
- Non/lowfat Parmesan cheese
Directions:
- Cook pasta according to package directions. Toss all ingredients together and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.
Nutritional Information:
- Serving size: 1 cup
- Calories: 110 g
- Fat: 3 g
- Cholesterol: 10 mg
- Protein: 6 g
- Carbs: 15 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Sodium: 200 mg
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Nicole Kuhl Transformation from the Inside Out
Balance
When it comes to eating behaviors, there is a perfect illustration that I often share with people. It is called the pendulum of balance. On one side of the pendulum is deprivation and on the other side of the pendulum is overeating. Anytime a dieter swings too far in one direction, they end up swinging the other direction. The key to balance is staying in the center.
The reason most people overdo it when they finally give into indulgence foods is because they feel as though they will never have them again. Mental preparation for a diet creates the “last meal phenomenon”. This phenomenon is characterized by a dieter splurging on all their favorite foods because they are not going to eat them while on the diet. The diet works for a while, but eventually willpower fades and the diet fails. Continuing in this cycle is nonsensical. Surrendering to moderation is the only suitable option. We know that willpower doesn’t change behaviors.
Imagine this scenario: A nutritionist tells you that she has the secret to achieving a well balanced diet and losing weight. The secret is this: You must have a milkshake after each meal. Most people would claim this strategy is preposterous. How can a milkshake after every meal create a balanced diet and promote weight loss? It is safe to say, that after a month or so, you would be bored to tears with milkshakes. A milkshake is no longer forbidden and it is certainly not a treat. Foods just do not have the same appeal when you have permission to eat them. Allowing yourself permission to eat your favorite foods free of guilt is imperative (this is actually on of the 7 secrets of naturally slim people). This acceptance will eventually lead to normal eating behaviors.
For those of you who struggle with the dieter mentality, be patient with yourself. Changing a thought process that is ingrained in you does not happen overnight. The first step in achieving a balanced diet is accepting that deprivation is counterbalanced by overeating.
Marina Bradford's Slim Club
The Benefits Of Stretching
Everyone has seen athletes stretching to prevent injuries and improve their performance. But stretching benefits more than just athletes. Recently stretching has moved to the forefront of health and well being activities. We now know that stretching even on an airplane or at your work desk is crucial for promoting circulation and
Prepares The Body For Exercise.
Stretching before any type of exercise helps warm the muscles and gets them ready for more intense exercise.
Help Relieve Aches and Pains After Exercise.
Stretching the muscles you've just worked, will keep them from shortening and tightening as they cool down.
Reduces Stress.
Tight muscles hold stress. Anyone who has had their upper back and shoulders massaged, will know how great it feels because that's where the body holds its stress. These muscles tighten as the body is placed under more duress with tight schedules and responsibilities. If you sit at a desk or a computer all day, take the time to stretch your upper back and shoulders. This will greatly reduce the tension and stress.
Helps You Sleep!
Try some full body stretches before you go to bed. Just lying flat and simply stretching arms over head while stretching legs long will help the body to relax which will result in a good nights sleep.
Decreases Low Back Pain.
Maintaining good posture and stretching your hip flexors and hamstrings will help keep the strain off your lower back. By stretching these areas, you can alleviate the discomfort associated with osteoarthritis and sciatica.
Protects your joints and muscles against injury
Stretching has been shown to decrease muscular soreness and stiffness. Because our muscles get cold and tight from hours of sitting or standing at our jobs, stretching improves circulation and allows the muscles to move easier. Stretching increases the blood supply to the muscles and joints, and that keeps them healthy.
Although stretching is traditionally used before performing vigorous activities, it can also be used as a separate exercise session on its own. Just a word of caution: Never bounce or force a stretch beyond it’s limit - always ease into it and STOP once you feel a slight stretch. The secret of a safe stretch is that it should always feel good.
About the author:
Marina Bradford is from Newtownards in Northern Ireland and has been in the fitness industry for 13 years as a personal fitness trainer and weight loss/fitness consultant. She also teaches various styles of fitness class, such as aerobics, step, circuits, weight training and Tae-bo. Once a week she writes a fitness column called PEAK FORM for "The Newsletter" which is one of Northern Ireland's biggest newspaper publications
Lynn Bode Workouts for you Fit Tips
Setting SMART Fitness Goals
One of the simplest steps you can take when you embark on improving your health and wellness is setting your goals. Right? Actually, creating goals should not be taken lightly. To improve your success rate with achieving your objectives, you need to create a specific roadmap.
You need to set up SMART goals. They need to be: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant and Time-Oriented.
You need to state specifically what you want to accomplish. The goal should be very easy to measure. There should be no question at all whether or not it has been reached. It should be something you can truly obtain, not just an unrealistic dream. It should be relevant to your needs. You should include a deadline.
So, the clichés of simply wanting to “drop some pounds”, “fit back into your jeans” or “get bigger biceps”, don’t fit into the SMART model. Reworking these vague goals, though, will help you get and stay on the road to better fitness.
The first example is losing some weight. Here is the reworked SMART goal:
- Specific: Lose 15 pounds.
- Measurable: Weigh yourself now and again when you your deadline has arrived.
- Attainable: Consider whether it is realistic for your body to lose 15 pounds or are you already at a healthy weight
- Relevant: Will losing the 15 pounds truly be beneficial to your life?
- Time-Oriented: Determine an actual date when you should achieve the weight loss.
The next example is getting back into your jeans. Here is the reworked SMART goal:
- Specific: Lose 5 inches from my waist.
- Measurable: You can track your waist measurement with a simple tape measure.
- Attainable: If losing 5 inches will put you at a waist size that only supermodels have, then it may not be realistic for you.
- Relevant: Is losing those inches and fitting into a pair of jeans something that will positively change your life?
- Time-Oriented: Choose the date for when your goal should be met.
The final example is increasing your bicep size. Here is the reworked SMART goal:
Specific: Increase your overall lean body percentage to: 83%.
Measurable: Lean body mass versus fat can be measured through various means but may require the assistance of a trainer or a clinic.
Attainable: Ensure that you are not seeking a lean body percentage that will lower your body fat too far which can have negative effects.
Relevant: Will it improve your health and overall quality of life.
Workouts For You Fit Tipss
Bio:Lynn
Bode is a certified personal trainer specializing in
Internet-based fitness programs. She founded
Workouts For You,
which provides men and women of all fitness levels with
custom designed workout programs for their individual needs.
As an early pioneer in online personal training, she has
years of success
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In this weeks Newsletter!
|
AtoZfitness newsletter Introduction Nick Nilsson's Weekly Fitness Tips |
You already know how hard it is to find a training and
nutritional program that will not only fit your body
type...your busy schedule...heck, even your PAYCHECK!
I mean, you've probably tried at least ONE "off-the-shelf"
fitness program that put you through the wringer with making
change-after-change to your lifestyle...only to end up "not
quite fitting" with what you felt you could commit to, am I
right?
So where can the "Average Joe or Jane" go to get REAL advice
on how to develop a killer "body transforming" fitness plan?
I mean, not many people have the privilege (or the budget)
to work with world class trainers in their private studios,
right?
This is where most people end up getting stuck searching for
information from their gym buddies and the magazines (the
absolute WORST places to get your info!)
Sound familiar? Well, you're not alone!
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