9 MEAL PREPPING TIPS FOR LONG TERM SUCCESS

It's easy to quote the famous motto: “Failing to plan is planning to fail.” Let's be honest. How many times have you finished work and thought, “I’m too tired to cook and there’s nothing in the fridge. I just I’ll hit the drive-thru”? By planning and prepping, you can help prevent that from happening. And, once you get the hang of it, you’ll be amazed how much time and money you might save. You might even start to see faster results because you’re not getting fries with that. Ya dig? Here are 9 things you can do while prepping that will help you get the most out of this crucial fitness lifestyle staple. 

1. Make a Plan

Make a list of your favorite healthy foods, choose simple recipes that can be made quickly or in bulk, and decide what you’ll eat for every snack and meal. This step will get easier and faster with practice.
Pro Tip: Save your plan for a future week. Once you have a few meal prep menus in your arsenal, you can rotate them to keep things interesting.

2. Stick to Your Grocery List

Don’t let junk food sneak into your shopping cart. Get that ish outta here. Not having it in the house means you won't have to use God-llike willpower to avoid it. Want to make an impulse purchase? If you can find a way to fit it into your eating plan for the week, go for it. Remember, nothing is off limits if you can maintain control around it. Just keep these to a minimum so nothing goes to waste. By sticking to your list and by minimizing the impulse buys, you’ll help yourself save money.

3. Keep Snacks Simple

When you’re cooking everything for the week at once, it’s important to keep things simple. Save time by choosing snacks that don’t require a lot of time to put together. Fresh fruit, hard-boiled eggs, and pre-cut veggies with prepared hummus are great choices.

4. Cook Foods All At Once

Roasting vegetables, sweet potatoes, and even chicken breasts all at once will save you time, and cut down on your utility bill. Imagine…all of your side dishes for the week…ready in about 30 minutes! You just have to put in that front end work people- the time investment ALWAYS pays off. 

5. Look for Shortcuts

I get it, sometimes you have more time than money. That's cool- you can buy pre-cut veggies and fruits, cooked lentils, or rotisserie chicken. Less time prepping, but it will cost you a few bucks more if you're down with that. Tuna is an an easy no-cook protein to add to salads or snacks. Already have your oven on to roast veggies? Preheat your oven to 325°, then put your eggs in a muffin tin and bake them for 30 minutes. Then carefully remove them and plunge the eggs into a bowl of ice water until cool. MAGIC, PEOPLE.

6. Get on the Mason Jar Salad Bandwagon

Mason jar salads are more than just pretty pictures on Pinterest and Instagram. They are practical. They cost about a dollar a piece, are microwave safe (just, for the love of god remember to remove the lid), and can be used for so many different types of meals. Their vertical shape makes them especially nice for storing salads. Since the dressing is at the bottom of the jar, and the greens are at the top, nothing gets soggy!

7. Mix Things Up

It can be tempting to just eat the same meals every day, but you’ll eventually get bored. We recommend at least two lunch options and two dinner options. This can be as simple as choosing different proteins for your salads each day, or eating chicken with vegetables three nights of the week, and fish or tofu with vegetables the other two. Once you get the hang of it you can get more creative with your recipes.

8. Invest in Food Storage Containers

Trust us, you will need them. A small investment in food containers of various sizes to suit your needs will make a world of difference. It’s a good idea to choose one container type and buy several that stack and store neatly. If you choose plastic containers, make sure they are BPA-free and that they won’t melt in the microwave or dishwasher. Sturdy Pyrex dishes with lids are also great as are Mason jars. If you decide to go all-in on the meal prep lifestyle, you might want to think about getting an insulated bag to carry your meals everywhere you go.

9. Keep Your Eyes on the Prize

All of this meal prep is for a purpose…to help you reach your goals. When clean eating is as simple as reaching into the fridge for your lunch or dinner, you’ll be less tempted to stop for fast food or order takeout. Whether you do your meal prep for the week all ahead of time or just a few days at a time, doing so will help you stick to your meal plan and give you even more time to sweat it out with us for a HIIT class at SOTA. Questions on how to make this all a success? Hit us up!

5 SIMPLE TIPS TO BREAK THROUGH A WEIGHT LOSS PLATEAU

Via: Authority Nutrition

3 REASONS STRENGTH TRAINING BOOSTS YOUR RUN

1. Muscle Burns More Calories: "Fat burns almost nothing at rest," says exercise physiologist Pete McCall, "whereas muscle uses oxygen. If you increase lean muscle mass, you'll increase the body's ability to use oxygen and burn more calories." Your body typically uses about 4.5-7 calories per pound of muscle every day. If a 160-pound runner with 20 percent body fat increases his muscle mass and lowers his body fat to 15 percent, he'll burn an extra 36 to 56 calories a day at rest—simply by adding muscle.

2. You'll Be More Efficient: Strength training can help you run faster, longer, and more efficiently. A study published last year in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Researchshowed that runners who add three days of resistance training exercises to their weekly program increase their leg strength and enhance their endurance. Obviously, runners with better endurance can run longer—and burn more calories. You'll also be able to recover faster from those long runs because strength training makes your body more efficient at converting metabolic waste into energy. "It's like being able to convert car exhaust into gas," says McCall.

3. You'll Be Less Injury-Prone: "If you increase your strength, you'll also increase your joint stability, reducing your risk of repetitive stress injuries," says McCall, citing a study in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, which showed that incorporating moves such as squats, single-leg hops, and ab work into a workout can not only prevent lower-body injuries, but improve performance as well. Leg exercises are particularly important when it comes to reducing injury: These exercises strengthen muscles around the knees and hips — two areas that often cause problems for runners.

Via: Leslie Goldman

ALL ABOUT CARB CYCLING

What is carb cycling?

In the most basic format, carb cycling is a planned alteration of carbohydrate intake in order to prevent a fat loss plateau and maintain metabolism along with workout performance.

Carb cycling is designed for short-term use. It is not a long-term solution for body fat management. In fact, if used for too long it may be unfavourable.

Why would carb cycling be important?

Short term vs long term restriction

It’s important to distinguish between the immediate (short term) and chronic (long term) effects of carbohydrate and calorie restriction.

Although the body handles short-term deprivation relatively well, a strict nutritional regimen of low calories or low carbohydrates can be hard on the body over the long haul.

Missing a meal here or there, or dropping carbohydrates very low, isn’t disastrous when it’s occasional and brief.

Some evidence even suggests that brief and relatively infrequent periods of fasting and/or carbohydrate restriction may actually be advantageous for both health and body composition.

For example, a recent study in the American Journal of Cardiology (Horne et al 2008) noted that occasional and short bouts of fasting (e.g. 24 hours) improved markers of cardiovascular disease.

However, restricting calories and/or carbohydrates for longer periods (as in the case of physique athletes, who may diet for months before a competition) can have negative metabolic effects.

Because endocrine systems are interconnected (for instance, the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal [HPA] axis, which is the body’s Mission Control for hormones), these effects can be wide-reaching.

For example, as a result of long-term restriction, dieters may experience reduced metabolic rate, thyroid hormone output, sympathetic nervous system activity, spontaneous physical activity, leptin levels, and reproductive hormone output (Douyon 2002; Friedl 2000; de Rosa 1983; Klein 2000; Ahima 2000; Weyer 2001; Mansell 1988; Kozusko 2001; Dulloo 1998).

Not only can this have consequences for overall health, it can bring body composition gains to a standstill.

So, if you can’t just “out-diet” your body’s control center, what are you to do? This is where carb cycling comes in.

Planned manipulation and variation

If eaters plan a higher carbohydrate intake at regular intervals, their bodies won’t ever get too close to starvation mode.

However, they can still lose fat if they still take in fewer total calories than they expend — i.e., if the overall long term trend is towards negative energy balance.

Higher carbohydrate intake days can increase thyroid output and control hunger (Douyon 2002; Friedl 2000; de Rosa 1983).

Manipulating carbohydrate intake can also help one take advantage of certain anabolic hormones, namely insulin.

Insulin regulates amino acid and glucose intake entry into the muscle cells. If insulin is seldom elevated, dieters will not reap its anabolic benefits.

Conversely, if people plan to elevate insulin levels at the appropriate time with a scheduled higher carbohydrate intake, they can maximize insulin’s potential anabolic effects.

What you should know

There are different methods of carb cycling. However, the common theme behind them is that protein and fat intake stay relatively constant while carbohydrate intake is manipulated.

Carb cycling also typically involves calorie cycling. Since carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram, adjusting carbohydrate intake while keeping fat and protein more or less the same can greatly alter calorie intake.

Days where carbohydrates (and usually calories) are increased are often known as “re-feed” days.

Dr. Berardi gives a nice definition of re-feed as a planned increase in calorie intake that lasts 8 – 12 hours and usually consists of a large increase in carbohydrates.

Re-feeds usually occur when dieting and are scheduled in order to provide a brief day of psychological relief as well as a number of physiological benefits.

Since carbohydrate intake will be increased on the re-feed days, it is important to scale back the fat and protein intake slightly. Carbohydrates have a protein sparing effect so less dietary protein is required. This will allow for one’s calorie count to remain in check.

The same principles of good nutrition apply equally to “everyday” eating and carb cycling phases, including proper meal frequency, omega-3 fat intake, adequate protein and fiber intake, plenty of vegetables, etc.

Here are some common carb cycling approaches.

Infrequent, big re-feeds

Higher carbohydrate intake every 1-2 weeks during a lower carbohydrate intake phase.

Frequent, moderate re-feeds

Higher carbohydrate intake every 3-4 days during a lower carbohydrate intake phase.

Strategic carb cycling

This consists of structuring different menus with moderate carbohydrate intake at strategic intervals during a lower carb intake phase. This approach steers away from an extremely high carbohydrate intake because the menu changes regularly. But it does allow for metabolism to play catch-up with dietary intake.

Carb cycling for muscle gain

Those interested in gaining muscle mass need a calorie surplus. Unfortunately, if they grossly over-consume calories for too long they’ll probably gain bodyfat. Thus, one way to optimize muscle gain over fat gain during a muscle gaining phase is with carb cycling.

This is similar to the “strategic carb cycling” approach. Menus are planned according to your weekly schedule in order to create a temporary calorie surplus. This can assist with lean mass and strength gains.

Important tips for each carb cycling approach

• Base the dietary approach on basal calorie needs and activity levels.
• Always pick out the re-feed days in advance.
• Stay on course until the re-feed day arrives.
• Keep your decisions outcome-based. Different re-feed strategies work better for certain body types. Look at the evidence from your photographs and body composition tests to ensure that you are on the right track.
• Try to exercise on the re-feed days for optimal body composition results.
• On the re-feed days, the body still tolerates carbohydrates best first thing in the morning and around times when physical activity is high.

For extra credit

Carb cycling may help control leptin and ghrelin levels. These are appetite and fat homeostatic hormones — in other words, they are sensitive to body composition and food intake; their job is to try to make sure we eat enough and have enough body fat.

Carb cycling can maximize glycogen stores and improve workouts during a low calorie period.

With a lower carbohydrate intake, fiber intake will also be lower. Make sure to consume high-fiber foods and supplements and drink plenty of water to prevent constipation.

Metabolic “up-regulation” doesn’t always scale directly with intake and too much re-feeding can result in body fat gains (Dulloo, Samec 2001). So don’t use carb cycling as an excuse to pig out.

Summary and recommendations

• Use carb cycling only if you are nutritionally advanced and have exhausted basic methods.
• Use only for a short duration.
• Pick a carb cycling strategy depending on how you feel with lower carb intake days, how much muscle mass you carry, your physique goals and length of time you anticipate on the carb cycle.
• After a carb cycling strategy has been selected, you need to establish your calorie intake goal.
• Second, establish a protein intake goal (which remains relatively constant).
• Third, establish a fat intake goal (again, relatively constant).
• Finally, pick a carbohydrate intake goal for the different days. Then divide your total intake of all the nutrients up into regular feeding intervals with appropriate spacing due to workouts.
• Schedule the re-feeding times. You are ready to go!

Via: Ryan Andrews 

3 FOOD PREP STRATEGIES FOR HEALTHY FOOD WHEN YOU NEED IT

If healthy food is around you and convenient, you’re more likely to eat it. If you have a trusted system for making healthy food available, you don’t have to decide to eat well… you just show up and do it.

Enter the “food ritual”.

No, this ritual doesn’t include lamb’s blood or any special Kool Aid.

It just means you set aside a bit of time to prepare some healthy food in advance so that it’s ready, available, and convenient when you need it

How you choose to ritualize healthy meal prep is up to you. Here are some strategies:

Option 1: The Sunday Ritual

You don’t have to do this on Sunday, of course. You can choose any day you like.

It’s just that Sunday is often a time when people are more free, more relaxed, and more able to devote time to this type of task. And it’s a time when we’re usually thinking ahead to the upcoming week.

Whatever day you choose, set aside 2-3 hours once a week to do the following.

• Look ahead to your upcoming schedule and see what’s happening. What nutrition challenges or opportunities might pop up? Where might you need some special preparation in advance? What are the quiet and busy times? Etc.

• Come up with a general menu for at least the next few days. It doesn’t have to be anything in-depth. Just get a basic sense of the food you might need to have on hand for the week ahead.

• Build your shopping list from your menu. This will help you be as effective and efficient as possible when you hit the grocery store, and you’ll be less tempted to buy random (and non-goal-supporting) things.

• Hit the grocery store. Stock up on what you need for the week. Consider grabbing a few extra “just in case” emergency items as well, such as canned beans, frozen vegetables, or other easily-stored healthy options that you can use in a pinch.

• Once you’re back home, start prepping and cooking. Whip up a batch of lean protein — for example, by grilling or roasting several chicken breasts/thighs at once. Try some one-pot meals that can be easily cooked in a slow cooker, then divided into containers to be frozen or refrigerated, such as soups, stews, curries, chili, etc. Wash and chop veggies.

Why slice tomatoes for one meal when you can slice them for three?

It takes just as much time to bake one chicken breast…

…as it does to bake several.

Some people prefer to figure out which meals will be easy to cook “in the moment” and save them for later, and only pre-prep meals for super busy times (such as lunches at work or dinner after a late meeting).

Do what works best for you, and your schedule.

If possible, give yourself a little extra buffer zone. You never know what unexpected challenge might strike at 6pm on Wednesday, and when it does, you’ll be glad you socked away an extra meal in the freezer.

Pack up ingredients and meals for easy storage in your freezer, fridge, or workspace.

Option 2: The Daily Ritual

You can combine the Sunday Ritual with the Daily Ritual — for example, by preparing the labor-intensive staples such as lean protein on Sunday, and then adding some quick-prep items (such as fruit and veggies) every day.

It often takes about as much time to prepare a few items as it does to prepare one.

For example, it’s nearly as fast to chop 3 carrots as it is to chop 1, or to scramble 6 eggs instead of 2. During the Daily Ritual, you can prep a few extra items to have on hand for later in the day, or the following day.

Try a Morning Ritual where you use some of our time-saving strategies to whip up a healthy breakfast or lunch:

• Oatmeal: Shake up your dry oatmeal and any other items (e.g. ground flaxseeds, cinnamon, protein powder, other grains, etc.) in a large container. In the morning, scoop out the dry mix, pour in some water, and pop it in the microwave. Top with fruit, add more protein if you like (e.g. cottage cheese, Greek yogurt) and enjoy a hearty breakfast.

Pre-mixed oatmeal comes together faster in the morning.

• Egg “batter”: Whiz up some eggs in a blender (with some veggies if you like); keep the mixture in a jar in the fridge for up to a few days. Pour and cook as needed.
   
• No-sog salad: Take a large jar and pour salad dressing into the bottom. Then add veggies, top with greens, and make sure the jar stays refrigerated and upright throughout the day. When you’re ready to eat it, shake it up and pour it into a bowl (or heck, eat it right out of the jar!).

Dressing at the bottom: the trick to a still-crisp pre-prepped lunch salad.

Or try a Dinner Ritual where you simply make extra portions and save the rest for tomorrow.

Again, it doesn’t take much more time to prepare a few extra things, so cook in bulk where possible.

Option 3: Healthy meals made for you

Many grocery stores — from your average Safeway or Loblaws to more upscale Whole Foods-type places — now offer a wide range of grab-and-go meals. Think salad bars, pre-washed and cut vegetables, and individually-portioned lean protein. There are also many specialty food store chains that offer healthy food takeout and delivery.

When life is extra busy, make a healthy salad bar one of your food rituals.

The bottom line: Do what works best for you — your life and your goals.

You can mix and match all of these food ritual options, in any way that works for you. Anticipate, plan, strategize. 

Via: John Berardi, Ph.D.

EXERCISE, DIET, AND MEDITATION: THE HOLISTIC APPROACH TO HEALTH AND FITNESS

The holistic approach to health is multidimensional. It assumes that there is a complex connection between mind, body, and spirit. Advocates of “whole” health are concerned with enhancement of personal health and the prevention of illness before it can take hold.  Yet when healing is needed, there are a wide range of therapies to consider, such as a combination of conventional and non-conventional medical treatments, or an altogether different healing tradition.  

Each person has the potential of balance. The stress in our lives, years of poor nutrition, the lack of quiet time takes a toll on our well being. This balance is obtained by understanding your own personal “Energy”. Your energy is made up of your body, mind, and essential energy or spirit. The three work together in harmony to bring happiness, peace, and ultimately, balance. However, if one of these three is out of sync, the entire person suffers. Holistic fitness is a journey to find your balance.

From the perspective of holistic health, fitness requires regular physical exercise, healthy, peaceful eating, good mental health, positive social-emotional experiences, and attention to our spiritual needs. When we are “fit”, our body, mind, and spirit are in tune with one another.

Because it seems so simple, so straightforward, we have a tendency to overlook the amazing power of physical exercise in the overall formula for health and holistic fitness.  A large body of research shows that physical activity has a profound influence on our health. There are many positive correlations between our level of activity and the health of our body and our mind. Physical activity is proven to increase bone density and decrease of the symptoms of arthritis, to lower risk of developing diabetes and several forms of cancer. It enhances cardio respiratory health and helps keep at bay depression and the onset of cognitive decline associated with aging.

It is imperative to include physical exercise in our quest for holistic fitness. We need to work on our physical fitness as part of our everyday program of health maintenance. Always begin with a low level of exercise and increase over time as your strength and endurance allows. Flowing, stretching and meditative styles of exercise such as Yoga and Tai Chiare most beneficial to our overall sense of wellness and long term health. But regular cardio such as bicycling, brisk walking,swimming or hiking is needed for cardio vascular, energy and bone health.

To maintain good health and to support the efficient functioning of your body systems, you need to make conscious food choices. Healthy “whole” foods will help keep your weight within acceptable limits and enhance the positive effects of exercise. Healthy nutrition is an essential component of holistic fitness. “Whole” foods restore your body’s natural functions, healthy foods give you the clean fuel you need to live your potential.

 Last, you must set aside some quiet, meditative time.

Start with 15 minutes each day. Lay on the floor on a mat or quilt in a comfortable position, your arms along your body, palms up, your mouth soft and breathe consciously in and out of your abdomen. Close your eyes, focus your mind on a peaceful image. Empty your mind and let your breath reach out into every inch of your body . This peaceful time is the glue that holds it all together.   

Holistic fitness is a synergetic path to wellness that considers equally the essential components to make up a whole person , a healthy person that  is physically, emotionally, psychologically, and spiritually well.

Via Ian Wallace

FAT LOSS WARS: CARDIO VERSUS WEIGHT TRAINING

When it comes to losing weight, which is more effective: cardio or weight training? Here's how each stacks up.

Many people think that if you want to lose fat, you should do more cardio, and that if you want to build muscle, you should lift weights. But it's not that simple. You can use weight training to lose fat, and in some ways it's actually better than cardio.

Falling for the common misconception that you need to do cardio to lose weight is one of the biggest mistakes you could make and could hinder your progress.

WEIGHT TRAINING INCREASES SHORT-TERM CALORIE BURN

The first reason we are going to give weight training a point in the fat-loss war against cardio is due to the calorie burn after the workout is completed.

Studies have demonstrated that after a weight-training workout, metabolism can be boosted for up to 38 hours post-workout.[1] This means that rather than burning, say, 60 calories an hour while sitting and watching TV, you're burning 70. While you may not think that 10 extra calories is a big deal, when you multiply this by 38 hours, you can see what a huge difference it can make in your daily calorie expenditure.

When you figure that out on a monthly rate, it becomes even clearer how regular participation in weight training will really increase your capacity to burn calories, and thus fat.

With cardio training, you might get an extra 40-80 calories burned after a moderately paced session, but this will depend upon the exact intensity and duration of the workout. In order to generate a high amount of post-calorie burn from aerobics, you'd have to be doing it for a very long duration of time.

WEIGHT TRAINING INCREASES LONG-TERM CALORIE BURN

The second factor to consider in the fat-loss war is long-term metabolic increases. While it's great to be burning more calories for 38 hours after the workout, that's not going to help you two weeks from now, unless you are consistent with your workout program (which you should be, but that's not the point we're trying to make here).

What weight training will enable you to do is build up a larger degree of lean muscle mass, which then basically serves as a calorie-burning powerhouse in the body.

When you calculate your basal metabolic rate, which is how many calories you would burn if you stayed in bed all day and did absolutely nothing except breathe, one of the factors that goes into this is your total body weight. The most accurate equations will also take into account lean body mass, which represents your muscles, bones, and organs.

The more muscle you have on your body, the higher this rate will be and the better the calorie-burning results you will obtain 24/7.[2]

Since muscle tissue is fairly stable (as long as there is some stimulus on the muscle and you are consuming enough protein, it won't be lost), this proves to be an effective long-term strategy for losing body fat.

WEIGHT TRAINING AND TOTAL BODY RESHAPING

Another big benefit that weight training has over cardio training is that it will allow you to completely reshape your body. Cardio training will generally help you lose weight, however, this weight loss is typically a combination of fat and muscle, so what you're left with is a smaller version of your current self.

When you are performing resistance training, while following a calorie-restricted diet, then you stand a better chance of losing strictly body fat, while helping to enhance the natural curves of your body.[3] This will give you a much better overall transformation than if you just lost weight doing cardio. 

What lifting heavy weights will do—for men and women—is raise the metabolic rate, promote greater fat burning, and help give more definition when the body fat comes off.

CARDIO AND CALORIE BURN

One issue you're more than likely thinking about is the different calorie burns during the actual workout—that's got to count for something, right?

Correct! If you do a longer cardio session, you could burn somewhere in the neighborhood of 500-800 calories, depending on the exact length and intensity level. That is a fairly decent number and will definitely help with your fat-loss goals.

Since you must burn off 3,500 calories in order to lose one pound of body fat, if you do enough of these cardio sessions, and make sure you're keeping track of your macronutrient intake, weight loss will take place.

But, keep in mind that you are going to have to keep doing those long cardio sessions. Time will likely become a big factor with this one, and boredom could start to play a role over time, too.

While a weight-training session may not burn as many calories per minute during the actual workout (although that can depend on how intense the weight lifting is), the overall calorie-burning benefits you receive from it typically outweigh those of cardio.

CARDIO AND HEALTH BENEFITS

One point does have to go to cardio for health benefits. Obviously strength training has health benefits as well, but cardio training has a bigger influence on cardiovascular health, since your heart and lungs work harder for longer when you do it.[4]

So, while you likely shouldn't entirely eliminate cardio from your fat-loss training program, you should be putting forth good effort toward weight training as well. Overlooking this form of exercise while playing the fat-loss game is a big mistake that's going to hurt your progress.

CONCLUSION

It's time to break free from the thinking that cardio equates to fat loss and weight training equates to building muscle and weight gain. It's simply not as clear cut as that. While doing cardio can help your fat-loss goals, in a lot of ways weight training is more effective and will also give you a more toned body shape.

While lifting weights can help you build muscle mass, that muscle mass will in turn help you lose fat mass. And if you just want to lose fat and don't want to get hugely muscular, don't worry, that takes a lot of concentrated effort and won't happen just by showing up to the weight room a few times a week.

If losing fat is your goal, lifting weights can only help you, so make it a priority.

REFERENCES

1. Schuenke, M. D., Mikat, R. P., & McBride, J. M. (2002). Effect of an acute period of resistance exercise on excess post-exercise oxygen consumption: implications for body mass management. European Journal of Applied Physiology, 86(5), 411-417.
2. Stiegler, P., & Cunliffe, A. (2006). The role of diet and exercise for the maintenance of fat-free mass and resting metabolic rate during weight loss. Sports Medicine, 36(3), 239-262.
3. Bryner, R. W., Ullrich, I. H., Sauers, J., Donley, D., Hornsby, G., Kolar, M., & Yeater, R. (1999). Effects of resistance vs. aerobic training combined with an 800 calorie liquid diet on lean body mass and resting metabolic rate. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 18(2), 115-121.
4. Fletcher, G. F., Blair, S. N., Blumenthal, J., Caspersen, C., Chaitman, B., Epstein, S., ... & Piña, I. L. (1992). Statement on exercise: benefits and recommendations for physical activity programs for all Americans-a statement for health professionals by the Committee on Exercise and Cardiac Rehabilitation of the Council on Clinical Cardiology, American Heart Association. Circulation, 86(1), 340.

Via Shannon Clark

5 FEMALE FITNESS MYTHS DEBUNKED BY SCIENCE

Reader's Digest Version:

1. Lifting weights won’t make women bulky, but it will make them strong, lean and healthy if you’re interested in that.

2. Save the pink dumbbells for a doorstop, ultra high rep training is a dead practice. Sticking to strategic rep ranges will build the body of your dreams.

3. Weight lifting is not inherently dangerous; being brutally weak is actually a more risky daily practice.

4. Cardio may help you lose weight, but that “weight” may be muscle mass, which can lead to the dreaded skinny fat appearance. Not exactly the long-term result you had in mind from your daily run.

5. Protein should be prioritized, and eating more with goals of building muscle won’t leave you fat and dumpy. It will help you stay satiated and recovering from training more effectively than ever.

---

The Female Fitness Industry

Step aside, guys! It’s time to share the squat rack. We are currently living in the new age of fitness. As men, you are no longer the only gender passionately pumping iron with goals of chiseling a strong physique that will turn a few heads while tossing around a few plates.

While men have traditionally dominated the global strength scene, the change is becoming blatantly clear; women are lifting, training and dominating the iron game more than every before. And no, it’s not just about toning up the muscles with pink dumbbells and yoga!

According to data from the National Health Interview Survey, the number of women who participate in strength training increased significantly from 1998 to 2004 (Kruger, Carlson and Kohl III 2006). Just think that was more than a decade ago, before the rise of CrossFit, The Glute Guy and our American obsession with the backside.

While it’s about damn time that more and more females are starting to prioritize strength, it’s a damn shame that droves of misinformation about women and strength training still exist.

Though zombie lies are as hard to kill as the monsters themselves, we need to set the record straight once and for all.

Here is where I stand on dispelling the five most heinous mainstreamed fallacies that the fitness industry force feeds down the throats of vulnerable women looking to improve their bodies and health.

#1 Lifting Weights Will Make You Bulky

One of the biggest misconceptions surrounding females and strength training involves the notion that lifting weights will make them appear bulky.

Unless females take anabolic steroids or double their clean food intake, that simply won’t happen.

Hormones factor heavily in determining an individual’s size. According to Medline Plus, women naturally produce about only 5-7% as much testosterone as men.

That means men produce 14 to 20 times as much testosterone as women, so women won’t increase muscle mass at nearly the same rate unless they supplement with steroids or other performance enhancing drugs.

They can work at the same intensities as men and build lean, slender physiques like fitness models instead of massive bodybuilders. This is absolutely possible, but the bulk thing? Not so much.

According to a 2004 study by Dr. Andrew Fry, “In general, females do not exhibit as great an absolute hypertrophic response when compared with males, although relative gains may be similar” (Fry, 2004).

Ladies aren’t going to throw on big slabs of muscle even if they exert the same level of effort as men. Whether this is good or bad is for you to decide, but being informed of facts, not opinions or anecdotal case studies of one, is necessary.

If women want to build muscle while losing weight, they should focus on maintaining a negative energy balance and burning off more calories than they consume. It doesn’t get much simpler than that. And guess what? That same tip can be used for men! Who would have thought?

To take it to the next level, females should work on reducing stress and getting a requisite amount of sleep per night. Again, this is not rocket science, but it has been shown that getting decreased number of hours of sleep reduces anabolic hormone levels and increases catabolic hormone concentrations (Cook, Kilduff and Jones; 2004).

While the very word “anabolic” may scare some women, it’s actually an important hormone for building lean muscle and burning fat. You’re either building muscle or losing muscle, and you definitely don’t want to decrease muscle mass because muscle burns more calories than fat.

So if females want to remain lean, they had better prioritize staying in an anabolic state.

That means ladies should aim for at least seven hours of sleep per night and consume plenty of high quality, unprocessed foods like lean meats, vegetables, fruits and nuts. And yes, it can be that simple. Master the basics to move your goals forward.

#2 If You Want To Tone Muscle, Lift Light Weight For High Reps

Women need much more than five-pound pink dumbbells to build the bodies they desire.

If you don’t think women should lift heavy weights, take a trip to your local grocery store to find women of all types hauling massive grocery bags and lifting children over their shoulders.

First off, “heavy” is a relative term. What’s heavy for a 110-pound female will be different than what’s heavy for a 200-pound male.

A certain level of stress must be placed on the body’s muscles and joints in order to create adaptations to allow for lean muscle growth.

According to a recent research review by Brad Schoenfeld called The Mechanisms of Muscle Hypertrophy and their Applications to Resistance Training, “Intensity (i.e. load) has been shown to have a significant impact on muscle hypertrophy and is arguably the most important exercise variable for stimulating muscle growth (Schoenfeld, 2010).”

Schoenfeld also indicated, “The use of high repetitions has generally proven to be inferior to moderate and lower repetition ranges in eliciting increases in muscle hypertrophy.” And we’re talking lean, toned muscles.

It should be noted that women who use strictly high repetitions will develop sarcoplasmic hypertrophy, the build-up of non-contractile fluid in muscle cells. This type of training makes muscles appear puffy. Not exactly what you are shooting for, right ladies?

Most women probably prefer to build lean, dense muscle. In this case, they should use fewer reps to achieve myofibrillar hypertrophy, an actual increase in the size of the muscle fibers.

Since we’ve already established women won’t get big and bulky unless they take steroids or eat massive amounts of food, let’s discuss the rep ranges women should use.

The majority of women (and men, yeah you guys!) exercise mainly to improve their physiques, so they don’t necessarily need to perform one-, two-, or three-rep maxes like strength athletes.

Sticking between six and 12 reps should be sufficient for optimal lean muscle development, assuming you’re working at a maximal level of intensity.

Women should make sure to use compound exercises like squats, deadlifts, push-ups and pull-ups to stimulate their nervous systems to the highest degree.

#3 You’ll Get Hurt If You Lift Weights

You may actually increase your chances of getting hurt if you don’t lift weights. Like my man Bret Contreras says, “If you think lifting weights is dangerous, try being weak. Being weak is dangerous.”

A lot of females possess great flexibility, but lack stability. According to a 2012 report from the University of Colorado Hospital, anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injuries are four to six times more likely to happen in women than men (Osborne, 2012).

ACL injuries are more likely to occur in sports that involve jumping and changing of direction, so improving core stability and developing greater strength in the posterior chain can assist in reducing the possibility of injury.

While it’s important to have some level of flexibility, women who focus solely on stretching-based routines like yoga are short-changing themselves.

According to a 2012 study published in Yoga Journal, more than 82 percent of the 20.4 million yoga practitioners in the United States are female (Yoga Journal, 2012). The point isn’t to entice the guys to sign up for stretch class, but to put a number on the popularity of fitness fads.

Yoga is certainly a wonderful practice, and many women who are already flexible are naturally attracted to it because it’s something with which they’re going to have success. On the other hand, men tend to stick to weight lifting because they’re stronger and have more muscle mass than women. Perhaps many of them would benefit from doing more yoga.

Women can certainly get hurt lifting weights. Men can too.

Attempting to squat or deadlift under heavy load without proper form is a recipe for disaster.

That’s why; if you’re not confident with your form, seek out a qualified professional to learn proper exercise technique. You can then make sure you’re performing the proper progression for each exercise and you’re focusing on quality movement and form and build a foundation of strength to work towards for the long term.

Once you’ve gained confidence in your ability to complete a lift with perfect technique, you’ll be able to increase the weight without worry.

And who knows? Maybe you’ll start putting some men to shame with the amount of weight you have on the bar. No shame in showing up the boys every now and then!

As long as all of the movements are being performed correctly, adding in some form of resistance training is highly beneficial for females from an injury prevention standpoint. Start slow, master your movement, and you will progress faster than you would have ever dreamed.

#4 You Need To Focus On Cardio To Get Lean

Just about all of us have walked into a commercial gym to find dozens of exercisers on a treadmill or elliptical moving at a slow and steady pace for prolonged periods of time in an attempt to burn fat.

While there’s no question cardiovascular exercise can help you lose fat, you would be remiss to ignore strength training.

If you focus only on cardio, you’ll likely lose weight if you ensure your diet and recovery are also on point, but you’ll lose muscle if you don’t engage in resistance training.

Having more muscle speeds up your metabolism because it burns calories at a faster rate than fat. If you perform too much cardio, you can actually lose muscle. That is worth repeating, but I’ll save you the burden.

According to the National Strength and Conditioning Association, “Chronic, high-volume running creates a catabolic response that can lead to muscle degradation and reduction in power (Campbell and Spano, 131).” In case you read that quickly, this is not a good thing.

If improving body composition is your goal, it’s important to incorporate, if not prioritize weight training and other exercise methods that involve working at high intensities for shorter periods of time to place your body in an anabolic state.

Protein synthesis is elevated after bouts of strength training and can remain elevated for up to two full days following your workout (Campbell and Spano, 100).

For strictly aesthetic-based goals, ladies should implement at least two or three strength-training workouts and a couple of high-intensity interval routines each week.

Steady-state cardio is OK to use occasionally, but it shouldn’t be the main focus of any exercise regimen focusing on physical appearance. This can even be said for the high level triathletes I train on a daily basis.

Ultimately, women must have a negative energy balance to lose weight, so they must make sure diet and recovery are up to par first before focusing on exercise methods. You certainly can’t out-train a bad diet, no matter how hard you train. Sorry to burst your bubble!

#5 You’ll Get Fat If You Eat Too Much Protein

Exercise is important, but your diet will have a much greater impact on your physique and your health for that matter.

Making sure you have a good balance of all your macronutrients (protein, carbohydrate, fat) and micronutrients (vitamins, minerals) is essential.

Protein is often talked about among men looking to bulk up, but it’s equally as important for women seeking to burn fat. Protein supports muscle and tissue growth, so it’s essential for the development of lean muscle mass, which elevates metabolism.

The Center for Disease Control recommends 56 grams of protein per day for men and 46 grams for women. But recommendations you find on food labels are generally for sedentary individuals.

Women who are active need more protein even if their goals are to lose weight and body fat.

The National Strength and Conditioning Association recommends you consume between one and one-half and two grams per kilogram of body weight per day and to “maintain or slightly increase protein intake…when following a hypocaloric diet (Campbell and Spano, 192).”

So even if you’re only a 50-kilogram (110-pound) female, you should still take in between 75 and 100 grams of protein each and every day.

Also, eating protein can help you eat fewer calories overall because protein has a high thermic effect of food. It requires more energy for the body to digest than the other macronutrients.

Think about it. Have you ever eaten a piece of steak before and felt stuffed? The portion you ate was probably only a couple hundred calories at most.

You’ve probably also eaten a large bag of potato chips and still felt hungry. That bag could have been more than 1,000 calories, but because chips are mostly carbohydrates, your body processed them really quickly.

Precision Nutrition, among the world leaders in nutrition coaching, recommends females have one palm-sized serving of protein with each meal. You should be able to fit about 20 to 30 grams of protein in your palm. If you have three meals, that’s a total of 60 to 90 grams.

So, ladies, start getting in more protein if you want to build your dream body. And skip the potato chips while you’re at it!

REFERENCES: 

Baechle, Thomas R., and Roger W. Earle. “Essentials of Strength Training and Conditioning.” Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2008. Print.

Campbell, Bill I., and Marie A. Spano. “NSCA’s Guide to Sport and Exercise Nutrition.” Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics, 2011. Print.

Cook, Christian J., Liam P. Kilduff, and Marc R. Jones. “Recovering Effectively in High-Performance Sports.” High-Performance Training for Sports. N.p.: Human Kinetics, 2014. 325. Print.

Fry, Andrew C. “The Role of Resistance Training Intensity on Muscle Fibre Adaptations.” Sports Med 34.10 (2004): 663-78. Web. Female Fitness

Kruger, J., S. Carlson and H. Kohl, III. “Trends in Strength Training – United States, 1998-2004.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 21 July 2006. Web.

Osborne, Maria. “Why Do Females Injure Their Knees Four to Six Times More Than Men…And What Can You Do About It?” University of Colorado Health (2012): 1-6. University of Colorado-Denver. Female Fitness Web.

Schoenfeld, Brad J. “The Mechanisms of Muscle Hypertrophy and Their Application to Resistance Training.” Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research 24 (2010): 2857-872. Web. Female Fitness

Yoga Journal. “New Study Finds More Than 20 Million Yogis in U.S. – Yoga Journal.” Yoga Journal. N.p., 05 Dec. 2012. Web. Female Fitness

Via Dr. John Rusin

12 STEPS TO OPTIMAL NUTRITION

What works for one person may not work for the next.

When making changes, some people prefer to go all-in and change everything at the same time while others prefer the longer, slower approach… making small changes, one at a time. Neither approach is better than the other, people simply have different personalities and like to approach lifestyle changes differently.

This article is geared towards a longer, slower approach. It explains how to adopt a healthy, real food based diet in 12 simple, easily manageable steps. You can do one step per week, one every two weeks, or one per month… whichever suits you. Waiting until you get used to one change before making the next is a good idea. Whatever you do, you should start seeing results right away, because each step can have a powerful effect.

If you're able to integrate these habits into your lifestyle, you'll be right on track to drop some body fat and perform better during your workouts. 

Remember… habit puts willpower on autopilot. Changes in lifestyle and behavior can be tough in the beginning, but become effortless when you turn them into a habit. By mastering one small habit at a time, you will set yourself up for long-term success.

Ready to start? HERE WE GO!

1. EAT MORE PROTEIN TO BOOST YOUR METABOLISM AND REDUCE YOUR APPETITE, MAKING FUTURE CHANGES EASIER

Before we subtract, we add. This first step will change your metabolism in a way that makes subsequent changes easier.

First of all, protein actually boosts your metabolic rate… that is, how many calories you burn at rest. The studies show that high protein diets boost metabolism by 80 to 100 calories per day, compared to low protein diets (1, 2).

Second of all, protein can reduce your appetite, making you automatically eat less of other calorie sources (3, 4). In one study, eating protein at 30% of calories caused an automatic reduction in calorie intake of 449 calories per day. The people lost 4.9 kg (11 lbs) in 12 weeks, without intentionally restricting anything (5).

Of course… adequate protein also has many other benefits, including increased muscle mass, stronger bones, lower blood pressure, to name a few (6, 7, 8). Good protein sources include meat, poultry, fish, seafood, eggs and full-fat dairy products (if you can tolerate them). Some people like beans and legumes, which are absolutely fine if properly prepared.

I recommend eating about 1.5-2.5 grams of protein per kilogram of bodyweight, or 0.7-1.1 grams per pound. An exception to this would be when there's a significant amount of weight to lose. You don’t really need to weigh or measure how much protein you're getting, but it may be a good idea to track your foods in the beginning to make sure you are getting enough. 

Eating more protein is the easiest, simplest and most delicious way to give your metabolism a nudge towards a lower body weight, reduced appetite and better health. It will also make the rest of the changes easier.

Bottom Line: Adding more protein to your diet will boost your metabolism and reduce your appetite, giving your metabolism a nudge and making subsequent changes much easier.

2. START EATING A HEALTHY BREAKFAST, PREFERABLY WITH EGGS

The second step involves changing one of your daily meals… breakfast. 

Most people are eating cereal or something similar for breakfast, but that really is one of the worst things you can eat at the start of the day. Most breakfast cereals are loaded with refined carbs and sugar (even the healthy looking ones). Eating this stuff for breakfast will spike your blood sugar, leading to a crash a few hours later… followed by cravings for another high-carb meal (9).

Instead, eat eggs for breakfast. Eggs are pretty much the perfect breakfast food… they’re high in protein, healthy fats and contain a ton of nutrients (10). There are a few studies showing that if you replace a grain-based breakfast (bagels) with eggs, it can help you lose fat (11, 12). Eggs are best served with vegetables or a fruit… but you can have quality bacon with them if you want. If you can’t eat eggs for some reason, any high-protein, nutrient dense food will suffice.

There really is NO valid excuse not to eat a healthy breakfast. Once you get this into a routine, preparing an egg-based breakfast doesn’t take more than 5-10 minutes, at most. Just set your alarm a bit earlier. That being said, there is no need to eat breakfast in the morning if you don’t feel like it, just make sure that your first meal of the day is a healthy one.

Bottom Line: Eating a healthy, nutrient-dense breakfast with protein and healthy fats is the best way to start the day.

3. REPLACE CRAPPY FATS AND OILS WITH GOOD FATS AND OILS

Simply replacing unhealthy fats and oils with healthier ones can have a major impact on your health down the line. 

Most people are eating a lot of seriously unhealthy fats… including trans fats and refined vegetable oils. Although trans fat consumption has gone down in the past few years and decades, it is still way too high. To avoid trans fats, make sure you read the label on anything you eat. If it says “hydrogenated” or “partially hydrogenated” anywhere on the label, avoid it.

Refined vegetable oils are also problematic. They have a different composition than other more natural fats, being unnaturally high in Omega-6 fatty acids. This includes corn oil, soybean oil, cottonseed oil and several others. Without getting into the details (you can read about them here), consuming vegetable oils may be leading to increased inflammation and oxidative damage in the body, potentially raising your risk of heart disease and cancer (13, 14, 15, 16).

Instead of these nasty fats and oils, choose fats that are mostly saturated and/or monounsaturated. Grass-fed butter, coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil and others. Whole nuts are an excellent source of fat as well.

Bottom Line: The relatively simple act of replacing trans fats and high Omega-6 vegetable oils with healthy, traditional fats should lead to some pretty impressive health benefits and make your body function better.

4. REMOVE SUGAR-SWEETENED BEVERAGES AND FRUIT JUICES FROM YOUR DIET

Sugar is bad news… but sugar consumed in a liquid form is even worse. 

Studies show that the brain doesn’t “register” liquid sugar calories in the same way as it does calories from other foods (17, 18). So you might drink several hundred calories of soda in one day (not uncommon), but your brain doesn’t take them into account when it is trying to control your energy balance.

If you were to add a whole food to your diet, you would automatically eat less of other foods instead. In other words, your brain would “compensate” for those added calories. That doesn’t happen with liquid sugar calories. Your brain doesn’t compensate for them, so you end up taking in more than you need. One study shows that consuming a single serving of sugar-sweetened beverages per day is linked to a 60% increased risk of obesity in children (19). Many other studies support this… sugar-sweetened beverages may be the most fattening aspect of the modern diet (20).

Keep in mind that fruit juice is just as bad. It contains the same amount of sugar as a sugary soft drink (21).

Bottom Line: Sugar may be the single worst ingredient in the modern diet, but consuming it in a liquid form is even worse.

5. START EXERCISING… FIND SOMETHING THAT YOU ENJOY AND CAN STICK TO

Exercise is one of the most important things you can do for both physical and mental health, as well as disease prevention.

On its own, it is unlikely to lead to significant weight loss (22). However… it can help improve your body composition. You may not be losing weight, but you may be losing some fat and gaining a bit of muscle instead (23). Exercise leads to so many benefits that it is beyond the scope of this article to list all of them… but let’s just say that exercise is highly protective against pretty much any chronic, Western disease (24).

It is also incredibly beneficial for mood, well-being and avoiding depression, which is a very common problem today (25, 26, 27).

When it comes to exercise, what you do exactly is not that important. What IS important is finding something that you enjoy doing and can stick to in the long run. Although a combination of cardiovascular exercise and some type of resistance training may be the best, something as simple as walking also has incredibly powerful health benefits (28). If you’ve already done steps 1-4, the function of your hormones should have improved and your energy levels increased, so starting an exercise program may not be that hard.

Work your way up to doing some sort of exercise at least 3 times per week.

Bottom Line: Exercise is just as important as nutrition when it comes to optimal health. It can improve both physical and mental health, while being highly protective against most modern, chronic diseases.

6. REPLACE SUGAR, REFINED CARBS AND MODERN WHEAT WITH OTHER HEALTHIER FOODS

Time to get rid of all the “bad” carbs. 

Sugar and refined carbs are some of the unhealthiest aspects of the modern diet. They’re low in nutrients and fiber and contribute to overeating, which brings with it a plethora of metabolic problems and diseases (29, 30).

Wheat is in a league of its own. Modern dwarf wheat, introduced around 1960, is low in nutrients compared to older varieties of wheat and is much worse for celiac patients and gluten sensitive individuals than older types of wheat (31, 32, 33).

Instead of the “bad” carbs, choose healthier carb sources instead. Vegetables, fruits, potatoes, sweet potatoes, healthier grains like rice, oats and quinoa, even legumes if you can tolerate them.

For now, let this suffice and don’t restrict total carb intake (not until step #8). Whatever you do, just get rid of the sugar and processed carbs from your diet. Eat real food instead.

Bottom Line: Sugar and refined carbs are some of the most damaging aspects of the modern diet. It’s time to get rid of them and eat healthier carbs instead.

7. START EATING MEAT OR FISH AND PLENTY OF VEGETABLES FOR DINNER

Now it’s time to transform another one of your daily meals… dinner.

Replace whatever it is that you’re eating with a meal based on either meat or fish, along with plenty of nutritious vegetables. I find that dinner is the easiest meal to fit in plenty of veggies. If you enjoy starches (like potatoes or rice) with dinner, then feel free to eat those too.

Definitely try to eat fatty fish at least 1-2 times per week for all the super healthy Omega-3s. If you can’t or won’t eat fatty fish, then supplement with fish oil.

Bottom Line: Start eating a healthy dinner based on meat or fish, with plenty of vegetables. Try to eat fatty fish at least 1-2 times per week.

8. MATCH CARB INTAKE TO YOUR METABOLIC HEALTH AND ACTIVITY LEVELS

Carbs are a highly controversial nutrient. 

Some think the biggest part of our diet should be coming from carbs, while others think they are downright toxic. As with most things, the truth is somewhere in between and depends greatly on the individual.

The optimal carb intake for any one individual depends on many factors… including metabolic health, activity levels, food culture and personal preference. Whereas someone who is lean, healthy and lifts weights 5 times a week may function well eating a lot of carbs, someone who is overweight and doesn’t exercise much will probably do better with a low-carb diet.

Although there is no scientific paper that explains exactly how to match carbohydrate intake to individual needs, I’ve personally found these guidelines to be effective:

• 100-150 grams: People who are lean, healthy and physically active (some people may need even more than this).
• 50-100 grams: People who are overweight and/or don’t exercise much.
• 20-50 grams: People who have a lot of weight to lose, or have metabolic problems like type 2 diabetes.

If weight loss is your goal, you can slowly add back in healthier carb sources when you reach your ideal weight.

Bottom Line: Some people function best eating plenty of carbohydrates. For others, low-carb diets have life saving benefits. It’s important to match carbohydrate intake to your individual needs and preferences.

9. TAKE CARE OF YOUR LIFESTYLE… EMPHASIZING ADEQUATE SLEEP AND REDUCED STRESS LEVELS

Often overlooked, sleep and stress levels can have a major effect on your health. 

Studies show that not getting enough sleep is strongly linked to many serious diseases, including obesity (34, 35). Short sleep duration may actually be one of the strongest risk factor for weight gain. It is linked to a 55% increased risk of obesity in adults and 89% in children (36).

There are many ways to improve sleep… such as sleeping in a completely dark room, avoiding caffeine in the afternoon and evening, as well as maintaining a consistent sleep schedule.

Another major lifestyle factor is chronic stress. Excess stress raises your levels of the hormone cortisol, which can make you gain a lot of fat in the abdominal cavity and raise your risk of all sorts of health problems down the line (37, 38). Unfortunately, stress can be hard to deal with. Many of us are overwhelmed with various duties and worries. Meditation can help with this, but if you are severely stressed all the time and can’t find a way to change it on your own, then it may be a good idea to seek professional help.

Bottom Line: Lifestyle factors like getting adequate sleep and avoiding chronic stress are incredibly important for optimal health, but often overlooked.

10. START EATING HEALTHY LUNCHES AND SNACKS… NOW EACH OF YOUR DAILY MEALS SHOULD BE HEALTHY AND NUTRITIOUS

Now that you’ve already taken care of breakfast and dinner, it’s time to move on to lunches and snacks. 

These meals tend to be the most problematic for a lot of people, because they are often eaten away from home. A good way to always ensure you can eat something healthy for lunch is to cook an excessive amount at dinner, so you can eat leftovers for lunch the next day. But today, because the world is more health conscious than ever before, “fast food” places that serve healthy food have started appearing all over the place. It might be a good idea to write down a list of places that serve healthier foods, so you always have some options on hand if you find yourself hungry away from home.

Snacks are pretty easy… a piece of fruit and a handful of nuts works well. A few hard boiled eggs, a bag of baby carrots… all of these are easily portable. Chances are that you won’t even need snacks at this point, since avoiding sugar and processed carbs tends to reduce hunger and lead to stable energy levels.

Bottom Line: It’s time to start eating healthy lunches and snacks every day. Now each of your meals should be healthy and nutritious. It can help to plan ahead and have a list of “fast food” places that serve healthy foods.

11. CUT OUT ALL PROCESSED FOODS AND START FOCUSING ON QUALITY

Now it’s time to go completely real food based. 

You should already be 90% there, but if you’ve been hanging on to anything that you think may be doing you harm, now is the time to get rid of it.

Clear out your pantry… throw away all soda, bread, cereals, flour, sugars, pastries and processed foods. Start focusing on quality ingredients… look for quality sources of animal foods, choose grass-fed if you can.

Eat quality produce and try to avoid any food with artificial ingredients. Remember… real food doesn’t need an ingredients list, because real food IS the ingredient.

Bottom Line: It’s time to clear your house of all unhealthy, artificial stuff. Start focusing on quality, unprocessed foods at every meal. Look for the healthiest sources of plants and animals.

12. COMMIT TO A LIFETIME OF IMPROVEMENT

The final step is a lifelong endeavour.

Turn health and nutrition into a hobby. Subscribe to some blogs and try to read a few health related books per year. Stay health conscious for the rest of your life and you will live longer, look better and avoid most of the chronic diseases that people suffer from in old age.

Credit to: Authority Nutrition

10 OF MY TOP NUTRITION QUESTIONS ANSWERED (Without the Bullsh!t)

Nutrition is CONFUSING AS HELL; there are contradictions left and right, controversy is rampant, and there's a whole lotta bullshit being spat by self-proclaimed "experts" in the magazine you see at Lunds next to the peanut butter cups.

Well, it’s actually pretty simple. However, that doesn't change the fact that it confuses, stresses out, and annoys most of the people I work with. Then, when we coaches talk with other coaches it turns into a very controversial topic because everyone has their favorite nutrition strategy, many believe that there's ONLY way to coach it, and the media is blasting us with so many poorly constructed product ads that it'll make your head spin and make you quit altogether. 

This is part of the reason I love it so much; nutrition is going to be different for each and every individual. 

So here are the top 10 questions I tend to receive from new fitness goers. I answer them for you, and do so in a way that will finally end the frustration and confusion. If you read it closely, it is absolutely going to help you solve the struggles you’re experiencing with nutrition without the flowery nonsense you're going to read everywhere else.

Got it? Awesome…Because you’re gonna love this. Print this out, fold it up and put it in your pocket or somewhere close so you can constantly remind yourself of what you should be focusing on.

1.) Do I really need THAT much protein?

Well first let’s define “THAT much” because its generally different depending on who you ask or the person consuming it. But more than likely the answer is yes, you do need a little bit more than you’d probably expect.

It’s safe to say that 75% or more of the general population we work with tends to be low on protein and high on either carbs or fats, but calories in general.

That being said, you do NOT need to be eating 2g per pound of body weight, carrying around 6 Tupperware’s with tilapia in it, or sprint to your car as soon as you drop the weight on your final set in order to chug down your post workout protein shake.

But a good recommendation from myself is going to be anywhere between .7-1g per pound of bodyweight. The more weight you have to lose, the more likely you’ll be lower on that spectrum.

But at the end of the day, protein is a damn powerful macronutrient. It helps us stay more satiated while dieting, it’s a lower calorie nutrient, it provides more recovery for training, it promotes the building of more muscle mass and is really hard to store as body fat, and it also has the highest TEF (Thermic Effect of Food) of any nutrient, which means it burns more calories during digesting than anything else (almost 30% of the calories eaten in protein are burned).

So without sounding like the worlds biggest “bro” here… Eat your protein, bro.

2.) Will eating carbs at breakfast (or in general) make me fat?

Lets be very clear here, carbs are not the enemy. In fact, I think it’s safe to say that carbs are literally my best friend by now. I never get tired of them and they never get tired of me, it’s a great relationship.

So where did all the bad hype come from? Why do carbs have such a bad rep?

Honestly, we could think of a million reasons but at the end of the day it goes back to poor marketing and branding. The nutrition world ALWAYS wants a new fad and someone to blame.

If we think back, we can remember a time that gluten was the reason everyone was fat. At one point it was fats. Another time it was simply sugar. Back in the day you just needed to avoid anything with dairy in it. Oh yeah and we can’t forget the paleo craze.

See I could keep going; it's the media and marketing. But the good news is, you don’t need to listen or worry about that because it really is just hype to promote what they have going on.

So here are the best guidelines to follow with carbs…

• First and foremost, it’s overall calories that matter most. Whether you’re low carb or high carb doesn’t matter much, studies show that it’s overall calories that produce fat loss results. So whatever fits your lifestyle better, choose that.
• Carb timing has also been proving to be a pretty big mix up as well. In fact, the studies that showed carbs to be more effective and beneficial according to time had nothing to do with the time of day but the length of time they were consumed. Meaning whether it was morning or night, you may be better off grouping your carbohydrates in a 2-5 hour period each day rather than all day.
• Carbs are probably going to be absorbed and utilized best around your workouts, pre and post. So it may be a smart strategy to couple them around your workouts and if you train in the morning, this is perfect.
• Carbs can tend to cause more hunger later on, rather than fat and protein because fats and protein tend to be more satiating. So it may be in your best interest to move your carbs towards the evening, especially if you train later and/or have social meals regularly.

So what’s the take home point here?

If you like carbs… eat 'em up – just keep your calories in check and you’ll see great results.

In fact, it’s a good idea to keep carbs in your diet because carbs are the bodies preferred choice for fuel during high performance training.

3.) How many meals per day should I be eating?

How many meals per day do you prefer? Ok cool… Eat that many meals per day. Seriously.

The whole “Small meals throughout the day to keep your metabolism revved up” is all a big myth. Studies have proven this time and time again and it turns out that your metabolism is actually dictated by one dominating factor, calorie intake.

This means your metabolism will adjust to your calorie intake whether you eat 2, 3, 5 or even 8 meals per day. Studies actually did this with many different meal timings and eating frequency throughout the day, no difference in any results if calories were controlled.

So the key is consistency. What can you honestly stay consistent and compliant with in the long run? If it’s 4, do that. If its 3, do that. If 6 small meals per day works best for you, do that!

The only times we truly want to tweak things is when someone needs better recovery, has multiple training sessions per day (typically athletes), or when someone wants to put on some serious lean muscle mass.

In these cases, we may want to spread protein out evenly across our day – shooting to eat 25-45g per meal and spread them out every 3-5 hours. This causes a greater response of Muscle Protein Synthesis and may have a better effect on your muscle tissue growth, repair and recovery.

Other than those specific cases, which are usually only needed for advanced trainees, you can literally eat how ever many times per day you prefer and you can stay consistent with.

4.) I heard dairy and fruits could make you gain weight? Are they not healthy?

First we need to separate and define the difference between “Healthy” and “Weight Loss”.

See unfortunately just eating “clean” or “healthy” won't always lead to fat loss or body composition change, because you can over eat your calories regardless of how healthy your food selections are day to day. So the point being, calories in vs. calories out are the biggest contributing factor to changing your body composition.

That being said, it’s still VERY important to eat healthy foods – I recommend to my clients that 80-90% of their calories should be coming from whole foods, in which dairy and fruit would be included.

This question is very common for us and yet it is pretty simple to answer, because just like anything else in life we can over do a good thing leading it to no longer be that good anymore.

So can you have dairy or fruit? If it sits well with your stomach and you do not have any intolerances to it, then yes – in fact we recommend it because they’re both filled with lots of great nutrients to supplement your health AND your physique.

So the take away here is to work on becoming more aware of your body cues and how things work with you personally. If some dairy doesn’t sit too well, then take it out. But once again the big dominating factor in changing your body comp or increasing your rate of fat loss is going to be getting your calories under control.

5.) How many calories per day should I be eating?

Unfortunately I just can’t answer this question without working with someone directly and seeing what their current nutrition/diet looks like. Because everyone we work with is so different and individual to each situation, we often change so many details for each and every client program.

But because I know you’re reading this saying, “C’mon Boom Boom! Give me some kind of answer or number to work with!” – I’ll do my best…

First and foremost, it depends on whether you’re looking to gain muscle/weight or if you’re looking to lose body fat/weight.

Someone with a healthy and decently quick metabolism would look like the below:

Weight/Fat Loss = 10-12x Bodyweight in Calories
Muscle/Weight Gain = 14-16x Bodyweight in Calories

Unfortunately, this isn’t very often the case with fat loss (usually is with muscle/weight gain as that’s more difficult).

So in many cases, for weight/fat loss it will tend to be more like 8-10x your bodyweight. This doesn’t mean this is unhealthy, but it the biggest and most important thing to remember is that the ideal situation (the one we should strive for) is to eat as many calories as possible while losing weight.

This allows more flexibility, better performance, better sustainability, and of course better health. So my suggestion for you is simple…

Start with the higher number. If you want weight loss, start with 12x your body weight and make sure you’re consuming enough protein (as stated above) to be sure there is much less of a chance of storing any extra body fat while on your journey.

The second, and preferred, option is to start recording your diet now for about 7-14 days without changing anything. After this time period, take your average caloric intake and use that as your guide to base the calories off of. If you’re fat from 12x your bodyweight, go for 10x and bump up your protein to bodyweight in grams.

As always, everything is a work in progress and takes adjustments along the way. One of the many reasons having a coach is such a powerful tool – Click Here to schedule a nutrition assessment and we can help map out your progress from start to finish.

6.) Does eating before bed make us store more fat while we sleep?

The cool things about half of the nutrition questions we get, is that the relate to fat loss directly and the most common answer we give is the same… Calories in vs. calories out are all that matters.

So how does that apply here? Simple. If you enjoy eating before bed and you fit it into your caloric intake, you’ve got nothing to worry about. In fact, some studies and experiences have led to believe that it can actually help you lose more weight if you have a snack before bed.

How so? Glad you asked!

Many people tend to wake up mid night with hunger or cravings, so they walk to the fridge and grab something easily accessible, eat it up and pass back out. This obviously will lead to over eating and cause weight gain. Having a pre bed snack that is healthy and fits within your calories can cure this issue.

The second reason is because many people just like the situation above, wake up in the morning with a big hungry belly. They usually grab the quickest thing and/or they over eat calories during breakfast. So having a snack before bed can allow you to wake up more satiated and choose a better breakfast.

All that being said, did you notice that I said small snack in the above? That’s because some people may have disturbed sleep and/or digestion if they consume to big of a meal late at night. This isn’t to say that causes weight gain, but it is to say if your sleep and digestion is disturbed frequently you may experience negative results with your body composition as a secondary effect from this.

So again, pretty individual but this gives you some specific things to consider and implement into your personal plan.

7.) Are my cheat days ruining my results?

Hmmmm…The answer here could be yes, but it could be no. For it to be no, I’d have to see a whole lot more info associated with the individuals training, recovery, nutrition, etc…

For the answer to be yes, it pretty much boils down to how significant that cheat day is. If it’s an all out binge of food and drinks every single week on the same day, it very likely will have negative results – especially to those of you who have been consistently dieting and training for a while now.

For someone who literally just started working on training and nutrition, was sedentary before, and is still at the beginning stage of their fat loss – they can get away with it more likely, but not for very long.

My suggestion is simple, track your nutrition in some form and be more accountable on every day of the week – even weekends. If you eat an extra ______ calories every single Saturday and you’re only burning that much throughout the week, you’ll be at a standstill.

Just make sure that the day after this “Cheat Day” doesn't essentially turn into a second day off and it turns into an “I’ll start back up on Monday thing”. Trust me - Monday may never come it that's the approach. Success is what happens right here, right now, in the next 5 minutes. 

Once again, the best option is to track and be accountable to yourself or someone else, so you can monitor and stay within the guidelines. Not to say you can’t enjoy yourself, but it’s simply to say enjoy yourself with some kind of boundaries.

8.) Should I stay away from artificial sweeteners? Or can I keep drinking my diet cokes??

This one is a really debated and controversial topic, for a couple reasons. But I should be able to break this one down for you pretty quickly…

First and foremost, artificial sweeteners do not have any effect on rate of fat loss. They do not actually cause cravings, can be a good aid to help people cure sweet tooth cravings, and the “Fake Sugars” inside them do not promote fat gain or slow your rate of loss.

So if that’s your only concern, you’re good. In fact, so many studies have been published and proven this to be the truth it’s insane.

The second thing is the concern on health. Does it have an effect on long-term health?

We actually don’t know, because not enough studies have been focused on that and any study done with these hasn’t been long enough to know for sure. What we do know, is that they do not cause any short term health effects at all – unless you consume an absurd amount, I’m talking loads of cans of diet coke a day (or something of that nature).

What we do know is that the gut microbiome can be sensitive and is a very important part of our health, body comp, and essentially life. So you may want to take them lightly and focus on not over doing them, in case your gut would be effected long term.

We also know that your body composition is one of the biggest influencers in disease prevention and overall health. So if you do use them to help you aid fat loss and improve your body composition, I’d actually encourage them in moderation because you will be healthier and live a longer life.

9.) I’m never hungry in the morning… does skipping breakfast really ruin my metabolism?

Aha!! Another one…If calories are equated for and your balance of calories in vs. out is in check, you do not need to eat breakfast technically.

But the big things to remember here are simple.

Will eating breakfast create more consistency and compliancy with your overall diet and calorie control? If yes, then eat it every morning.

Will skipping breakfast and extending your fast help you create a caloric deficit more easily and keep you consistent and compliant with your nutrition plan? If yes, then skip breakfast regularly.

The only other exception to the rule is typically for women with sensitive hormones or people experiencing adrenal fatigue. In these cases, balanced nutrition and calories throughout the day are very crucial. The same goes with extreme deficit diets; if you’re in either of those categories we wouldn’t recommend you dropping calories to significantly.

10.) I constantly crave sweets, how do I fix this?

There are a couple things to consider here. The first is whether or not you have a nutrient deficiency. Now you can go get tested for this or you can start journaling exactly what you regularly crave and research what nutrients may be found in those foods.

For example, if you crave salty foods a lot, you may actually be lacking electrolytes, sodium intake, or be dehydrated (or a combo of all three).

Maybe you constantly crave chocolate; maybe you’re deficient in iron, magnesium, calcium etc…You get the point here. Do some research and try this before all else.

The next thing to consider is really just overall nutrition and commitment. Do you have a set plan? Are committed to the process? Is it revolved around stress? Are you sleeping properly?

Use those questions as a checklist for you cravings. If you cannot give a positive answer to even just one of those, then you may have found your cause of cravings right there.

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There you have it, the top 10 questions that we get asked when it comes to nutrition. The reality is that some need some deeper detective work and problem solving.

If you’ve gone through the roller coaster of ups and downs with diets and are finally ready to take control of your eating, nutrition and lifestyle and would like support and coaching – talk to one of our coaches for a fitness and nutrition strategy session, with no strings attached, about a blueprint to help you take control of your nutrition and launch you into the right path for long term success!