Sunday, March 31, 2013
Easter training at The Spot Athletics
Today was about family, friends, celebrating our faith and of coarse training. I came in at 8 am to train today and Robbie had his dad bring him in so that he wouldn't miss his Sunday workout. Champions never rest and our athletes are champions. Come train at The Spot Athletics and become a champion!
Friday, March 29, 2013
My 2yr old daughter trains harder than you!
Check out my 2 year old daughter killing it in the weight room today. At The Spot we deal with a lot of young female athletes but number one in my heart is my little Avery. My 2yr old daughter loves to train. If we go to The Spot Athletics to train without her she cries. I hear many parents say that they don't want their kids weight training until they are 15, but the American Medical Association & American Pediatrics Association both recommend children to be weight training from as early as 5 years old. Studies show that motor patterns are best developed from 3-9 years old, and I want my daughter to excel in sports. It makes no sense to give kids no training and throw them in competitive contact sports. These sports are so hard on the body and yet parents choose not to get their kids ready for the sport with training. Training is a controlled environment and competition is not, which is why so many injuries occur in sporting competition. I want my daughter to be prepared when she starts competitive sports and training is the best way to get her body ready. Ask any parent if they would strap on football pads and go play today and they will say you are crazy. But then they will say maybe if I trained hard for it first. So what kind of logic is it for a parent to throw their kid into these sports and deny them the same training they say they would need to even try the same sport. Yeah, and I'm crazy for preparing kids properly so they can excel and not get injured in their chosen sports.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Nutrition Questions Answered Part 1
Last week I posted on our facebook wall asking what your top nutrition questions were. Well here are your questions answered to the best of my professional ability. Now do not take my responses as the end all be all. Question everything, use what is useful and get ride of what is useless!
Will a cheat meal once a week throw off my goals if I am sticking to a well balanced, clean diet? No. Look a diet is a way of life and if you become extremely hard on yourself when you eat a “cheat meal” you will become extremely stressed out and in the long run that is much worse. Stop listening to everybody and freaking out that having junk food once in a while will destroy your body because guess what...IT WON’T. The human body is extremely adaptable and strong, having a cheat meal or two every week won’t make you fat. Eating food that you shouldn’t be eating on a consistent basis will make you fat. Stick to healthy foods 90% of the time and you’ll get to enjoy your body and life to its fullest. Freaking out and feeling guilty about food choices is more unhealthy then a cheat meal. So stop.
Should I even worry about calories if I’m eating healthy foods? Yes and no. I wouldn’t lose sleep over it. Now you may ask another professional this same question and they will say yes you should. I don’t like to overcomplicate diets as I feel the best diet is the one the suits your lifestyle the best. And there is no ONE best diet. Eating healthy quality calories is what matters most. 2,000 calories from pop tarts or 2,000 calories from qualtity protein, fats and carbs its a no brainer. Stop following strict guidelines that take away your sanity and energy. Simplfy it. Stop obsessing over every little thing. There are more important things in life to be concerned with than wasting time on tiny things like a calorie.
How much dairy is too much? I’m not a fan of dairy you buy at the grocery store and that is my opinion. Most people should remove dairy from their diet because our wonderful government has made it illegal to consume raw milk and that milk must be pasteurized well by pasteurizing the milk it makes it extremely inflammatory and allergenic. Pasteurization also causes key vitamins, enzymes and minerals to be lost. Plus pasteurized dairy is produce in some dirty milk factories. Plus how they treat animals in this industry is disgusting but thats not for here. The best milk if you can find it is raw, fresh milk. Pasteurized, homogenized milk has also been shown to promote heart disease, obesity, autoimmune disorders and many other health conditions. 75% of the world’s population is lactose intolerant. Dairy can cause a lot of problems (acne, skin problems, bloating etc.) and it can also screw up recovery. I read a recent study that calcium in pasteurized milk has been damaged by the manufacturing process and is not absorbable by the human body. Why is it that the United States consumes the most dairy on the planet but the rate of osteoporosis is at an all time high. But what I do recommend is eating REAL cheese as it is a quality protein and healthy fat and I know I just said don't eat dairy but this doesn't have the whole lactose and lactic acid ordeal.
How many calories should I eat? It all depends on your goal. Trying to gain weight eat a lot trying to lose weight eat less. Simple.
Feelings on chipotle? It is the most amazing thing on earth and if you are trying to gain weight eat 3-4 burritos a day or learn how to use a crock pot and eat for the week!
If I’m going to splurge and have a few drinks what is my best choice of alcohol? Don’t splurge #1 alcohol consumed in a binge manner wrecks havoc everywhere on the body. That being said research has shown that moderate hold on let me say that again MODERATE alcohol consumption can improve insulin sensitivity, lower triglyceride concentrations and improve glycemic control. Also studies have shown that moderate drinkers live longer by protecting against arthritis, cancer, depression etc. I won’t go into the whole hormones and training and alcohol as that wasn’t the question. But I will say that the negative effects of alcohol on testosterone and recovery has been grossly exaggerated by mainstream fitness. Its all the junk people eat in conjunction.
Good choices of alcohol include dry wines, cognac, gin, rum, scotch, tequila, vodka and whiskey all have little to no carbs. Don’t drink bottom shelf as drinks should be enjoyed so drink what you like just don’t over consume, drink in moderation and enjoy life.
What’s the deal with CLA? I don’t know what the deal is with CLA but I can tell you what CLA is. CLA is an isomer of linoleic acid. It ca be found naturally in meat and milk and it is a polyunsaturated fatty acid. I won’t go into the biochemistry of it as that will most likely bore most of you. All I’m going to say is the CLA has shown to be a potent anti-oxidant, anti-carcinogen and anti-catabolite and it can also enhance your immune system. A deficiency of CLA in ones diet may be a factor in weight gain. Even though there has been a number of positive research findings regarding CLA a lot of new studies have failed to show any real significant benefits when supplementing with CLA. Reading the research you would need to most likely consume at least 500g of fat (mostly saturated) each day (over 4,500 fat calories a day) to match the intake to the levels used in studies. So I would just make sure you are getting in plenty of healthy fats daily and suggest not wasting money on just a CLA supplement.
Thoughts on glycemic load? Never really gave it much thought till I was asked this question. All glycemice load is, is a number that estimates how much food will raise a person’s blood glucose after eating it. One unit of glycemic load approximates the effect of consuming one gram of glucose. It accounts for how much carbs are in a food and how much each gram raises blood glucose levels. Ones glycemic load is based on the glycemic index and is simply defined as the grams of avaiable carbohydrate in the food times the food glycemic index divided by 100. And this is why I never gave it much thought. Its annoying and mentally draining. Now prepared to have your mind blown watermelon has a high glycemic index but does not contain much carbs therefore it’s glycemic load is low. So my thoughts now are is that this stuff is confusing and plays into what I said earlier don’t over complicate things. Glycemic load is typically used for those with metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance and extreme weight loss. A GI under 55 is low and a GI of 70 is high. While a GL under 10 is low and over 20 is high.
Bet most of you have heard brown rice is better then white rice well guess what it’s not. Brown rice contains phytates which is located in the bran of rice (brown rice) making nutrients of the rice unavailable for humans to utilize. Brown rice has an awesome nutrient profile but it’s useless. White rice not much nutritional value besides carbs but is handled by the body more effectively. Rice also contains trypsin inhibitor, trypsin simply strips protein down to amino acids so the body well its not that simple but a trypsin inhibitor (found in rice...brown rice...in the bran...) inhibits the breakdown of protein into amino acids. White rice causes no harm nor benefit. All it is is an awesome carb source (does cause a insulin response as do all carbs) and can act as a vessel for other nutrients. If handle carbs well eat white rice! But it has a high glycemic index!!! Don’t start.
So my thoughts are don’t freak out about it. Make smart eating choices.
Well there are the questions you asked and I answered! Remember these are my opinions and thoughts based on my experience and studies. Question everything I said. If you would like any of the studies just ask. If you have any other questions on training, nutrition or how you can just be more awesome please do not hesitate to ask! We are here to help you!
Will a cheat meal once a week throw off my goals if I am sticking to a well balanced, clean diet? No. Look a diet is a way of life and if you become extremely hard on yourself when you eat a “cheat meal” you will become extremely stressed out and in the long run that is much worse. Stop listening to everybody and freaking out that having junk food once in a while will destroy your body because guess what...IT WON’T. The human body is extremely adaptable and strong, having a cheat meal or two every week won’t make you fat. Eating food that you shouldn’t be eating on a consistent basis will make you fat. Stick to healthy foods 90% of the time and you’ll get to enjoy your body and life to its fullest. Freaking out and feeling guilty about food choices is more unhealthy then a cheat meal. So stop.
Should I even worry about calories if I’m eating healthy foods? Yes and no. I wouldn’t lose sleep over it. Now you may ask another professional this same question and they will say yes you should. I don’t like to overcomplicate diets as I feel the best diet is the one the suits your lifestyle the best. And there is no ONE best diet. Eating healthy quality calories is what matters most. 2,000 calories from pop tarts or 2,000 calories from qualtity protein, fats and carbs its a no brainer. Stop following strict guidelines that take away your sanity and energy. Simplfy it. Stop obsessing over every little thing. There are more important things in life to be concerned with than wasting time on tiny things like a calorie.
How much dairy is too much? I’m not a fan of dairy you buy at the grocery store and that is my opinion. Most people should remove dairy from their diet because our wonderful government has made it illegal to consume raw milk and that milk must be pasteurized well by pasteurizing the milk it makes it extremely inflammatory and allergenic. Pasteurization also causes key vitamins, enzymes and minerals to be lost. Plus pasteurized dairy is produce in some dirty milk factories. Plus how they treat animals in this industry is disgusting but thats not for here. The best milk if you can find it is raw, fresh milk. Pasteurized, homogenized milk has also been shown to promote heart disease, obesity, autoimmune disorders and many other health conditions. 75% of the world’s population is lactose intolerant. Dairy can cause a lot of problems (acne, skin problems, bloating etc.) and it can also screw up recovery. I read a recent study that calcium in pasteurized milk has been damaged by the manufacturing process and is not absorbable by the human body. Why is it that the United States consumes the most dairy on the planet but the rate of osteoporosis is at an all time high. But what I do recommend is eating REAL cheese as it is a quality protein and healthy fat and I know I just said don't eat dairy but this doesn't have the whole lactose and lactic acid ordeal.
How many calories should I eat? It all depends on your goal. Trying to gain weight eat a lot trying to lose weight eat less. Simple.
Feelings on chipotle? It is the most amazing thing on earth and if you are trying to gain weight eat 3-4 burritos a day or learn how to use a crock pot and eat for the week!
If I’m going to splurge and have a few drinks what is my best choice of alcohol? Don’t splurge #1 alcohol consumed in a binge manner wrecks havoc everywhere on the body. That being said research has shown that moderate hold on let me say that again MODERATE alcohol consumption can improve insulin sensitivity, lower triglyceride concentrations and improve glycemic control. Also studies have shown that moderate drinkers live longer by protecting against arthritis, cancer, depression etc. I won’t go into the whole hormones and training and alcohol as that wasn’t the question. But I will say that the negative effects of alcohol on testosterone and recovery has been grossly exaggerated by mainstream fitness. Its all the junk people eat in conjunction.
Good choices of alcohol include dry wines, cognac, gin, rum, scotch, tequila, vodka and whiskey all have little to no carbs. Don’t drink bottom shelf as drinks should be enjoyed so drink what you like just don’t over consume, drink in moderation and enjoy life.
What’s the deal with CLA? I don’t know what the deal is with CLA but I can tell you what CLA is. CLA is an isomer of linoleic acid. It ca be found naturally in meat and milk and it is a polyunsaturated fatty acid. I won’t go into the biochemistry of it as that will most likely bore most of you. All I’m going to say is the CLA has shown to be a potent anti-oxidant, anti-carcinogen and anti-catabolite and it can also enhance your immune system. A deficiency of CLA in ones diet may be a factor in weight gain. Even though there has been a number of positive research findings regarding CLA a lot of new studies have failed to show any real significant benefits when supplementing with CLA. Reading the research you would need to most likely consume at least 500g of fat (mostly saturated) each day (over 4,500 fat calories a day) to match the intake to the levels used in studies. So I would just make sure you are getting in plenty of healthy fats daily and suggest not wasting money on just a CLA supplement.
Thoughts on glycemic load? Never really gave it much thought till I was asked this question. All glycemice load is, is a number that estimates how much food will raise a person’s blood glucose after eating it. One unit of glycemic load approximates the effect of consuming one gram of glucose. It accounts for how much carbs are in a food and how much each gram raises blood glucose levels. Ones glycemic load is based on the glycemic index and is simply defined as the grams of avaiable carbohydrate in the food times the food glycemic index divided by 100. And this is why I never gave it much thought. Its annoying and mentally draining. Now prepared to have your mind blown watermelon has a high glycemic index but does not contain much carbs therefore it’s glycemic load is low. So my thoughts now are is that this stuff is confusing and plays into what I said earlier don’t over complicate things. Glycemic load is typically used for those with metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance and extreme weight loss. A GI under 55 is low and a GI of 70 is high. While a GL under 10 is low and over 20 is high.
Bet most of you have heard brown rice is better then white rice well guess what it’s not. Brown rice contains phytates which is located in the bran of rice (brown rice) making nutrients of the rice unavailable for humans to utilize. Brown rice has an awesome nutrient profile but it’s useless. White rice not much nutritional value besides carbs but is handled by the body more effectively. Rice also contains trypsin inhibitor, trypsin simply strips protein down to amino acids so the body well its not that simple but a trypsin inhibitor (found in rice...brown rice...in the bran...) inhibits the breakdown of protein into amino acids. White rice causes no harm nor benefit. All it is is an awesome carb source (does cause a insulin response as do all carbs) and can act as a vessel for other nutrients. If handle carbs well eat white rice! But it has a high glycemic index!!! Don’t start.
So my thoughts are don’t freak out about it. Make smart eating choices.
Well there are the questions you asked and I answered! Remember these are my opinions and thoughts based on my experience and studies. Question everything I said. If you would like any of the studies just ask. If you have any other questions on training, nutrition or how you can just be more awesome please do not hesitate to ask! We are here to help you!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Articles To Read This Week
I did all the reading and searching and here are the articles that are worth your time this week. I have a little bit for everybody. So sit back take some time, open your mind and read.
The first article is for the women out there. It is about fighting insecurity. I had a few females close to me read this and they all could relate to it. Its powerful, moving and though provoking. Read it.
Fighting Insecurity With Perspective
The second article is another one for the ladies. It is written by a new columnist on EliteFTS. It gives you a different perspective on what it means to be a woman and lifting weights. It is a reminder that your focus shouldn't be what you are trying to learn.
A Lion in Iron: Women - Be More, Not Less
The third article is a round up of bad news on dietary supplements. If you didn't know supplements are unregulated. So theoretically supplements can put whatever they want into their products, provide you the buyer with some fancy marketing and trick you into believing that it is the end all be all. Take a read, it'll open your eyes a bit.
Dietary Supplements: A round-up of bad news
The last article is 15 psychology experts sharing their best productivity tips. We could all use some tips on being more productive.
15 Psychology Experts Share Their Best Productivity Tips
The first article is for the women out there. It is about fighting insecurity. I had a few females close to me read this and they all could relate to it. Its powerful, moving and though provoking. Read it.
Fighting Insecurity With Perspective
The second article is another one for the ladies. It is written by a new columnist on EliteFTS. It gives you a different perspective on what it means to be a woman and lifting weights. It is a reminder that your focus shouldn't be what you are trying to learn.
A Lion in Iron: Women - Be More, Not Less
The third article is a round up of bad news on dietary supplements. If you didn't know supplements are unregulated. So theoretically supplements can put whatever they want into their products, provide you the buyer with some fancy marketing and trick you into believing that it is the end all be all. Take a read, it'll open your eyes a bit.
Dietary Supplements: A round-up of bad news
The last article is 15 psychology experts sharing their best productivity tips. We could all use some tips on being more productive.
15 Psychology Experts Share Their Best Productivity Tips
Week In Review at The Spot Athletics 3/17-3/23
A lot went down this week at The Spot. From copious amounts of squats to bench to sled drags to the boss man himself training only days after surgery. If you aren't getting the results you think you should be getting then you need to be at The Spot, training amongst the best.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Champions never rest!
I've seen about everything in my 20 years of training. One thing has always held true: Champions never rest. While the average person will not go workout if they have a tummy ache, the champion will fight through all adversity to keep training. Because the champion knows that someone out there is training hard every day to beat them. Maybe your goal isn't to be the best in the world but if you want to be the best that you can be then you can't take any days off. In this pansy world, the lazy/weak people want to convince you that its ok to not be your best and being average is OK. But those people are just trying to drag you down so that your dedication and effort doesn't expose them as the lazy/weak people that they are. After all if everyone becomes a pansy then the the toughest pansy gets to feel great about being lazy and weak. Weakness is not a physical state but a mental one. Many people do not have the genetics to be the strongest person in the world but they can be tough and train hard to be the best they can be everyday. Don't let the mass media and societal pressure to not be tough and driven stop you from being a champion. Dedicated people are now called "obsessed" and the "tough" are called crazy but one thing that will never change is that if you stay dedicated and tough you will also be called a champion, and that is one word I will always be good with.
Monday, March 18, 2013
Week in review 3/10-3/16
A lot went down this week at The Spot. From copious amounts of squats to yoke walks with the clients to the boss man himself training hard despite an injury. If you aren't getting the results you think you should be getting then you need to be at The Spot, training amongst the best.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
Difference Between Speed Work and Conditioning
In this weeks discussion, JL talks about the difference between Speed Work and Conditioning. And yes there is a difference.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Articles to Read
Well here is your weekly dose of reading material for the week. I did all the searching and digging for you and found these to be the best reads for the week. So grab your morning caffeine and and enjoy some good reads.
The first article is by Dan John and talks about the three E's of life: exercise, eat and eliminate. Read it. Health is really this simple.
The Three E's: Exercise, Eat and Eliminate
The next article is written by Adam Bornstein. This article is an insight on finding happiness and why we fail.
Finding Happiness
This article is short but my favorite this week. Steve Kamb takes three words: Yesterday, Tomorrow, Today and provides you with a few sentences and insight into each word. Read it you won't regret it.
Yesterday, Tomorrow, Today
Well it appears that Americans are eating fewer calories yet we do not have lower obesity rates. If you are wondering why then take the time and read this article if you don't wonder why then this article isn't for you.
Americans Are Eating Fewer Calories, So Why Are We Still Obese?
The first article is by Dan John and talks about the three E's of life: exercise, eat and eliminate. Read it. Health is really this simple.
The Three E's: Exercise, Eat and Eliminate
The next article is written by Adam Bornstein. This article is an insight on finding happiness and why we fail.
Finding Happiness
This article is short but my favorite this week. Steve Kamb takes three words: Yesterday, Tomorrow, Today and provides you with a few sentences and insight into each word. Read it you won't regret it.
Yesterday, Tomorrow, Today
Well it appears that Americans are eating fewer calories yet we do not have lower obesity rates. If you are wondering why then take the time and read this article if you don't wonder why then this article isn't for you.
Americans Are Eating Fewer Calories, So Why Are We Still Obese?
Monday, March 11, 2013
Week In Review 3/3-3/9
Another busy week here at The Spot. From Metcon to athletes training hard to personal training clients killing it and even the youngsters getting after it in our CAAT program. If you aren't getting the results that you feel you should be then you need to be here training amongst the best. Sweat hard See results. Stop wasting time and contact us today.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Winning Attitude
In this weeks discussion JL talks about having a winning attitude in all aspects of life. Its the difference between becoming a champion and falling short.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Week In Review 2/24-3/2
Another busy week here at The Spot. From Metcon to athletes training hard to personal training clients killing it.
If you aren't getting the results that you feel you should be then you need to be here training amongst the best. Sweat hard See results. Stop wasting time and contact us today.
If you aren't getting the results that you feel you should be then you need to be here training amongst the best. Sweat hard See results. Stop wasting time and contact us today.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Articles To Read This Week
This weeks articles touch on everything from things fitness magazines won't tell you to the definitive guide on bacon. Enjoy.
This first article is a list of 10 things fitness magazines won't tell you. Its a good read as a lot of people get their information from magazines and really believe the things written as truth.
The 10 Things Fitness Magazines Won't Tell You
This next article was written by Eric Cressey and it is 20 ways to prepare young athletes for success in sports and in life. Its a good read for parents.
20 Ways to Prepare Young Athletes for Success in Sports and in Life
This next article is the definitive guide to bacon. It touches on all things bacon from is it healthy for me to can I eat too much bacon?
The Definitive Guide to Bacon
This article is about how small changes in our life can have a big impact in our lives.
The Snowball Effect
This last article is an interesting look into the biomechanics of young children and swinging like a monkey. Hanging and climbing are slowly becoming extinct movements.
The Necessity of Monkey Business
This first article is a list of 10 things fitness magazines won't tell you. Its a good read as a lot of people get their information from magazines and really believe the things written as truth.
The 10 Things Fitness Magazines Won't Tell You
This next article was written by Eric Cressey and it is 20 ways to prepare young athletes for success in sports and in life. Its a good read for parents.
20 Ways to Prepare Young Athletes for Success in Sports and in Life
This next article is the definitive guide to bacon. It touches on all things bacon from is it healthy for me to can I eat too much bacon?
The Definitive Guide to Bacon
This article is about how small changes in our life can have a big impact in our lives.
The Snowball Effect
This last article is an interesting look into the biomechanics of young children and swinging like a monkey. Hanging and climbing are slowly becoming extinct movements.
The Necessity of Monkey Business
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