Training For Life

This is a very interesting post I thought my readers might find useful.  More and more lately I have been hearing about these types of diets so I sought out an article that I thought was decent.  I have had more and more clients and friends that are dealing with food allergies  or sensitivities if you will.  I am not a dietician, I am not recommending  you do this diet, I am merely giving you some insight.  Always consult your Doctor before taking on any new exercise or nutrition program. Hope you find this article helpful!  Happy Training!

In Part 1, we learned the reasons for undertaking a food elimination diet and provided a sample diet for you to follow, as well as some helpful hints for getting started. Here, we explore how to start reintroducing foods back into your diet at the end of the suggested three to four weeks.

Reintroduction Phase

At the end of the three to four weeks of elimination, reintroduce a single food for a single day only. And then monitor your symptoms for two days. For example, you might decide to reintroduce dairy on a Monday. That day you could eat some cheese and/or ice cream and drink a glass of milk. While getting right back to your elimination diet, monitor for any abnormal reactions on Tuesday and Wednesday.

If you have no observable symptoms, you may try reintroducing another food (i.e., eggs) on Thursday. You can continue this process for a couple more weeks, reintroducing one new food every few days, until you’ve determined what foods may cause you an issue (if any).

During the reintroduction process, watch for and record any symptoms (negative or positive) you’re experiencing. Negative reactions can include insomnia, fatigue, joint pain and/or inflammation, skin breakouts or rashes, headaches, bowel changes or abdominal pain, bloating, brain fog and sinus or other respiratory issues.

Because you’ll be introducing eliminated foods one at a time, you can be very observant of food-related changes. And virtually anything that is different than you felt during the previous three weeks could be a symptom, negative or positive.

Interestingly, some people actually report increased energy when a given food is reintroduced. Unfortunately, this may be created by a stress response to the particular food. And that’s actually a negative thing. So it’s important to keep a log of all reactions – positive or negative.

The Pulse Test

Another tool you can use during the reintroduction is the pulse test. First thing in the morning, after resting for about five minutes, take your resting pulse rate for one minute. Then consume the food you’ve decided to reintroduce (i.e. dairy), and retake your resting pulse rate at 20, 40, 60, 90 and 120 minutes.

A change in pulse, either increased or decreased, greater than 10 beats per minute, can indicate sensitivity to a given food. Repeat the test again later in the day after a second exposure to the food. If the same thing happens, this can definitely suggest a food intolerance.

Obviously, pulse rate can vary for a number of reasons; therefore, this test is not diagnostic of food intolerance. But when correlating it with symptoms, it can add additional valuable information.

This elimination diet will take approximately five to six weeks and, at the end of the experiment, you’ll know a heck of a lot about how your body responds to different foods. Food has the power to promote health or create disease, and following an elimination diet can be a rewarding and eye-opening experience. What you give up temporarily in creature comforts you’ ll gain in lasting and unequivocal knowledge about your own health and we

ll being!

Dr. Bryan P. Walsh is an advisor for Precision Nutrition (www.precisionnutrition.com) and a graduate from the University of Bridgeport College of Naturopathic Medicine. As a nationally board-certified Naturopathic Physician, Dr. Walsh does not diagnose or treat disease but rather focuses on educating his patients, with the goal of supporting and strengthening their bodies using nutritional medicine.

This is a very interesting post I thought my readers might find useful.  More and more lately I have been hearing about these types of diets so I sought out an article that I thought was decent.  I have had more and more clients and friends that are dealing with food allergies  or sensitivities if you will.  I am not a dietician, I am not recommending  you do this diet, I am merely giving you some insight.  Always consult your Doct or bef

ore taking on any new exercise or nutrition program. Hope you find this article helpful!

A growing body of evidence shows that food allergies, or more accurately food sensitivities, can cause a wide range of unwanted symptoms including asthma and allergies, autoimmune disorders, skin conditions, arthritis, mood disorders, migraines and kidney problems…. and this list continues to grow. If you or your clients are experiencing any of these conditions, consider trying a dietary approach known as an elimination diet.

An elimination diet consists of eliminating certain foods for a period of time, usually three or four weeks, then slowly reintroducing specific foods back into your diet and monitoring your symptoms for possible reactions.

The best elimination diets remove the largest number of foods. To begin with, a good elimination diet will remove gluten, dairy, soy, eggs, corn, pork, beef, chicken, beans/lentils, coffee, citrus fruits, nuts and nightshade vegetables. That might sound like a lot, but it leaves plenty of options for a relatively satisfying diet comprised primarily of rice, meat (i.e. turkey, fish, lamb), most fruit and most types of vegetables.

If you’re interested in trying an elimination diet, the experts at Precision Nutrition have put together this table Table is shown Below. showing an example of what foods to include and exclude. Please note that this is a fairly restrictive elimination diet. There are lists available on the Internet allowing more, and sometimes fewer, foods in the diet. The key is to not get too dogmatic. Self-experimentation is the key.

Getting Started

An elimination diet isn’t easy, but it doesn’t have to be hard either. It just requires that you have a plan. The number one key to success with this diet is preparation. People who spend the week prior to starting the program looking up recipes that are elimination-diet-friendly do far better than people who jump right into it.

Have the foods that you will need on hand. Know how to cook them. And prep as much as possible in advance. For example, making a large pot of rice, complete with vegetables, protein and seasonings ahead of time can help increase compliance during those times when you get hungry and have few options nearby.

Also, clean out your kitchen. Get rid of the foods that are not part of your elimination phase. (Or hide them really well). People aren’t particularly good with willpower. So make it easy on yourself and eliminate the need for it.

We recommend keeping a journal as you begin and tracking any physical, mental or emotional signs and symptoms. If you feel better during the elimination period (i.e., more energy, better sleep), it may indicate that a food you commonly eat is causing you a problem.

Again, if you don’t have any gut-related complaints, there’s probably no need to experiment with an elimination diet. Nevertheless, if you’re suffering from food sensitivities, following an elimination diet for a few weeks could be the most profound dietary change you’ll ever make. For some people, the results can feel nothing short of miraculous.

The Elimination Diet
by Dr. Bryan Walsh of Precision Nutrition
FOODS TO INCLUDE
FOODS TO EXCLUDE
Fruits
Almost all fresh fruit
Citrus fruits (orange, grapefruit, lemon, lime, etc)
Vegetables
Almost all fresh raw, steamed, sautéed, or roasted vegetables
Tomatoes, eggplant, potatoes (sweet potato and yams are okay)
Starch
Rice*, buckwheat*
Wheat, corn, barley, spelt, kamut, rye, oats, all gluten-containing products
Legumes
Soybeans, tofu, tempeh, soy milk, all beans, peas, lentils
Nuts and seeds
All seeds and nuts
Meat and fish
Fish, turkey, lamb, wild game
Beef, chicken, pork, cold cuts, bacon, hotdogs, canned meat, sausage, shellfish, meat substitutes made from soy
Dairy products and milk substitutes
Unsweetened rice milk*, almond milk, coconut milk
Milk, cheese, cottage cheese, cream, yogurt, butter, ice cream, non-dairy creamers, eggs
Fats
Cold-expeller pressed olive oil, flaxseed oil, coconut oil
Margarine, butter, processed and hydrogenated oils, mayonnaise, spreads
Beverages
Drink plenty of fresh water, herbal teas (e.g. rooibos, peppermint, etc.)
Alcohol, caffeine (coffee, black tea, green tea, soda)
Spices and condiments
Sea salt, fresh pepper, fresh herbs and spices (i.e. garlic, cumin, dill, ginger, oregano, parsley, rosemary, thyme, turmeric)
Chocolate, ketchup, mustard, relish, chutney, soy sauce, barbecue sauce, vinegar
Sweeteners
Stevia (if needed)
White or brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup, desserts
*May also be removed if you suspect specific sensitivities to grains.

Dr. Bryan P. Walsh is an advisor for Precision Nutrition (www.precisionnutrition.com) and a graduate from the University of Bridgeport College of Naturopathic Medicine. As a nationally board-certified Naturopathic Physician, Dr. Walsh does not diagnose or treat disease but rather focuses on educating his patients, with the goal of supporting and strengthening their bodies using nutritional medicine.

This is another great resource and article for those trying to shed some pounds.
In this article, sport dietitian Bob Seebohar will change your paradigm of thinking about nutrition so you can teach your body to use the right nutrients at the right times to improve your health and exercise better. It is about adopting some very simple nutrition concepts and most importantly, implementing them. Execution is paramount. The best plan in the world will not be any good if it is not followed.

What Is Metabolic Efficiency?

Efficiency is a term that is typically associated with sport. From a nutrition perspective, being metabolically efficient simply means being able to use the proper nutrients at the right times. Specifically, use more of the almost unlimited, 80,000 or more calories stored as fat in the body and preserve the very limited carbohydrate stores, which at best range from 1,200 to 2,000 calories.

It is likely you have heard of this scenario before as it applies to exercise: as you increase your intensity, your body prefers to use more carbohydrate and less fat for fuel. The physiological term for this is the crossover concept. With aerobic exercise you can manipulate this to essentially burn more fat during exercise but this article is not about what is already known. It is about the relatively unknown effect of your daily intake of macronutrients and their impact on fuel utilization and metabolic efficiency.

Why Be More Metabolically Efficient

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I’ve been working with athletes and recreational exercisers for many years, and whenever I ask them about their goals for the short and long term, weight and body fat loss always top the list. While exercise is certainly important, adopting a daily nutrition shift is the predominant method in improving the body’s ability to burn more fat and preserve carbohydrate stores. The nutrients you put in your body can have a profound effect on metabolic processes.

The Carbohydrate Crisis

Carbohydrates are a staple in our eating plan and for good reason. They provide the energy that is needed to fuel the body for exercise. But at certain times of the year, maintaining a higher carbohydrate eating plan can lead to weight and body fat gain. If energy expenditure from workouts is lower, the need for a higher calorie meal plan is simply not necessary.

Eating too much of any one macronutrient can lead to metabolic inefficiencies. Focus too heavy on one macronutrient, and a state of imbalance occurs. Eat a combination of foods, and you will remain in balance and not get thrown out of whack.

How to Become Metabolically Efficient

These simple, easy-to-implement nutrition steps will help in your quest to become more metabolically efficient, use more of your fat stores as energy and create a metabolic shift inside your body where it will learn how and when to use fat.

1.    Adopt a nutritional paradigm shift. As you approach your food selection and preparation, prioritize your meals and snacks. First on the plate should be a source of lean protein and healthy, omega-3 rich fat. Second up is a healthy portion of fruits and/or vegetables. Then, if you have room on the plate (no more than a fourth of the plate), add a few whole grains if needed or wanted.

2.    Follow the 90/10 rule. Stay on track with these steps 90% of the time and allow yourself to “miss” the other 10% of the time. Remember, you are human and life happens. Don’t stress out if you have the occasional miss (sweets, alcohol, chips, etc.). Approach your nutrition plan as you do your exercise plan, and allow some room to deviate.

This shouldn’t be too difficult. It will take preparation, execution and commitment on your part. Remember, this is a behavior change that can take weeks to months to adopt. Start now and allow yourself some times where you will take a few steps backwards. It’s all part of the process of improving your nutrition plan!

Bob Seebohar (www.fuel4mance.com) is a Board Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics, the former Director of Sports Nutrition for the University of Florida and most recently served as a sport dietitian for the US Olympic Committee. Bob traveled to the 2008 Summer Olympic Games as a sport dietitian for the US Olympic Team and the personal sport dietitian for the Olympic Triathlon Team.

We’ve all heard of foods to avoid to help us win over the battle of the bulge. We’ve also heard of foods to eat to accelerate fat loss. These so-called “superfoods” boost our metabolisms to facilitate a faster calorie-burn. Eggs, oatmeal, apples, fish and beans are just some of the foods that fall under this category.

Aside from these solid foods that promote fat loss, there are also weight loss drinks that accomplish the same task. Instead of carbonated beverages or sugar-saturated processed juice drinks, these weight loss drinks curb your cravings and help control appetite while boosting metabolism for a greater fat burn. If you’re currently on a soda-drinking spree, it’s about time you start replacing this with the following healthier alternatives listed below:

1. Water. Your body uses energy to “heat” back the liquid to normal body temperature inside the body. Thus, drinking 8 glasses of the universal solvent allows you to burn an additional 250 calories a day. Drinking a glass or two before meals not only controls the appetite, it also facilitates a faster calorie-burn for about an hour and thirty minutes which is vital for weight loss.

2. Green tea. This drink, which is an effective anti-cancer beverage because of its high anti-oxidant content, is also effective for fat loss. It contains catechins that boost metabolism and burn fat. Drinking four cups a day burns at least 40 % of body fat. Is it no wonder then that nations like Japan and Korea, both avid green tea drinkers, have lower obesity levels compared to the rest of the world

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3. Milk. Got milk? You just might have to. Milk has calcium that increases fat breakdown in cells. Besides, it also contains protein that helps keep a person feel full for longer periods of time. Don’t make this an excuse to down gallons upon gallons of this delicious beverage. Just adding milk to your diet can help burn 30% of body fat on the average. Make sure that you choose skim or fat-free milk when you’re doing your grocery shopping.

4. Smoothies with yogurt. Whether you’re preparing fruit or green smoothies, adding low-fat or reduced-fat yogurt into this delicious mixture not only kills your cravings for more food, but also reduces belly fat by as much as 70%! The thickness of the beverage can account for this, plus the fiber in the fruits and vegetables. But the calcium in yogurt also helps break down fat. If you still want to add more sweetness to your smoothie, use honey instead of sugar.

5. Grapefruit juice. Researchers don’t really know why, but perhaps the acidity in grapefruit juice slows down digestion and helps one feel full for longer. A study showed that those who consumed grapefruit lost an average of four pounds in three months. Take note that what is referred to here is natural grapefruit juice that you have squeezed yourself and not packaged varieties. Aside from grapefruit juice, naturally squeezed fruit and vegetable juices are also other weight loss drinks that lead you to lose calories.

brought to you by Darin Steen

Your aching back may be the result of weak abdominal muscles, says Shannon Sovndal, MD, author of Cycling Anatomy and owner of Thrive Health and Fitness Medicine (thrivehfm.com), in Boulder, Colorado.

“When you hunch over in the saddle for hours at a time, your back becomes overly conditioned, and if you don’t have equally strong abdominal muscles to counter your forceful back muscles, your spinal balance can be thrown off,” he says.

For a solid core and a stable pedaling platform, Sovndal recommends these exercises, done at least two nonconsecutive days a week.

Hanging Knee Raise

Benefits: Decompresses the spine; works abdominal muscles; and aids forearm and grip strength

Do It: Hang from a pull-up bar, palms facing forward, and simultaneously lift both knees until your thighs are parallel to the floor. Pause, then slowly lower your legs. To target your oblique muscles, alternately raise your knees to one side, then the other. Do two or three sets of 15 to 20 repetitions.

Woodchopper

Benefit: Works most anterior (front-side) abdominal muscles

Do It: Stand sideways beside a high pulley and extend your arms above your head to grasp the handle with both hands. Pull downward. As your hands pass your shoulders, twist and crunch your abdomen. Continue to pull as you bend your knees into the squat position. Slowly return to the starting position. Do two or three sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Rope Crunch

Benefits: Keeps the spine in alignment by solidifying your core; mimics various positions on the bike (hoods, tops, drops), which trains your body to be strong in those positions

Do It: Kneeling on a mat and facing away from a pulley system, hold a high-pulley rope attachment above your head. Curl your body toward the floor, bending at the waist. Slowly return to the upright kneeling position. Do two or three sets of 10 to 12 reps.

Whether you’re first starting an exercise program or you’ve been a fitness fanatic for a long time, the following injuries commonly creep up during workouts.

From foot to head, here are quick tips to avoid them!

Plantar Fasciitis: This pain in the bottom of the foot or back of the heel can be avoided by making sure to wear proper exercise shoes, stretching the calves, and strengthening the feet (try walking barefoot around your house).
Achilles Tendonitis. This is usually caused by walking or running on steep inclines before your body is ready for it or a result of having tight calves. Ease into hills and keep your calves flexible by stretching!
Shin Splints: Typically caused by increasing run volume too quickly, and (no surprise!) tight calves. So build up to running, and again, stretch those calves!
Elbow Pain: Typically caused by excessive flexing and extending of the elbow, especially with rigid objects like barbells. Try mixing things up with dumbbells and cables for any biceps or triceps exercises.
Low Back Pain: Avoid excessive bending at the back. Use your knees instead, and be sure to include abdominal strengthening and hip flexor stretching exercises.
Shoulder Pain: Avoid holding objects away from the body at arm’s length, especially if you’re just getting started, and be sure to do “rotator cuff” exercises to strengthen the stabilizing muscles of the should

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Though crunches are not the ideal way for athletes to develop a strong “core,” they are good for adding a bit of extra tone to the midsection, or for targeting the abdominals without involving the rest of the body. But body weight crunches can get pretty easy,

pretty fast. So here are 8 ways to make crunches harder (and to get stronger abs, in the process!)

1. Hold a weight or medicine ball out at arm’s length. Be sure to think about “pushing” the weight towards the sky as you do the crunch.

2. Hold the crunch at the top of the motion. Twist 3 times to each side, then return to the starting position (that’s one repetition).

3. Press the lower back down as hard as possible when you perform your crunch. This will ensure that you maximize deep abdominal muscle recruitment.

4. Use a stability ball. Doing a crunch on a ball makes your back pre-stretch at the start of the movement, which makes it harder to start the crunch. For added difficulty, hold a weight, cable, or elastic tubing behind your head for resistance.

5. Use an decline bench. These benches at the gym lock you into a position that makes you work against gravity to do your crunch. To make a decline bench crunch even more difficult, use tip #1 or #2 as you perform the movement.

6. Pre-fatigue. A favorite workout of mine is to run on a treadmill as hard as possible for 30 seconds, then to jump off and do 15-25 repetitions of an abdominal exercise, such as a crunch. When you’re breathing hard, crunches get tough.

7. Stand up explosively after each crunch. As you can imagine, this advanced version of a crunch is very physically demanding and requires you to sit up with a high amount of force while jumping into a standing position. It’s not for the faint of heart, but can be a challenging way to finish a workout!

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