Tuesday 23 July 2013

Let's Bust Those Fitness and Nutrition Myths

We’ve all heard at least one. You know those little tidbits of information that have circled around for years – claims of what you should and shouldn’t do to lose weight, claims of when you should and shouldn’t exercise, claims of which foods you should and shouldn’t eat (i.e. NO Fat, NO Carbs, NO Protein…) – Who even comes up with that stuff anyways? Well this week we’ve decided to open up this can of worms and pick a few of these common fitness/nutrition myths to debunk and set the record straight… 



Myth #1: Spot Training


One of the most common fitness myths is spot training, sometimes called spot reduction. Spot training is the idea that you can cause weight loss or muscle definition in one area without affecting other parts of the body. This myth is particularly persistent because everyone wants it to be true. Everything would be so much easier if only the infomercials promising “rock hard abs” and “buns of steel” — after just a few minutes with a specific product — were telling the truth! (Source: Livestrong) THE TRUTH: Spot Reduction/Training is more wishful thinking than anything! The only way to sculpt those tummies, booties, inner thighs and triceps is to lose body fat while at the same time building lean muscle! Not to toot our own horn or anything, but circuit training and high intensity interval training are two awesome ways to do this.  By losing body fat and gaining muscle you will turn your body into a lean, healthy, powerful thing that can work for you and accomplish more than you could ever imagine!

 Myth #2: You can eat whatever you want, As long as you exercise


This is craziness.  I hope that people still don’t hold to this as being true. THE TRUTH: you will NEVER be able to out-train a bad diet.  No matter what you are physically able to force your body to do, if you are filling it with processed foods, sugars, twinkies and bon-bons you will NEVER get that lean and healthy shape that you are dreaming of. 

Myth #3: Traditional Ab Work (Crunches/Sit Ups etc) will Get you A Flat Tummy


Crunches, sit-ups, abdominal rollers and the like are great for toning your stomach, right? Yes and no. The TRUTH: Your abdominal muscles are covered with body fat, and the only way to get the six-pack you want is to get rid of the fat first. Since you can't target areas on your body for fat removal, replacing abdominal workouts with cardio exercises (specifically Circuits and HIIT) as well as weight lifting training will help you burn fat, not only in your stomach, but other areas of the body as well. Cardio by itself will burn belly fat, but at a much slower rate than combining it with weight training. (Source: Healthline)

Myth #4: Lifting Weights Makes you Bulky


Women tend to be especially apprehensive about using weights for fear they'll end up looking like bodybuilders, but they don't have to worry. THE TRUTH: Muscle takes up less space than fat, so using weights will actually cause your measurements to shrink instead of increase. Strength training helps you lose weight faster and keep it off longer, according to Jeffrey Janot, PhD, an assistant professor of exercise physiology at South Dakota State University. Also keep in mind that testosterone plays a huge role in increasing muscle size. Since men have 20 to 30 times more testosterone than women, it's more noticeable when they bulk up. So GO AHEAD LADIES AND LIFT THOSE WEIGHTS! (Source: Healthline)

Myth #5: Men & Women Need Different Exercises


Despite what the relationship books say, when it comes to fitness, men and women are from the same planet, says Wiedenbach. THE TRUTH: Both sexes have the same body structure but different hormonal make-ups, he says, which may mean a difference in muscle strength but does not mean they should work out any differently. “Men tend to focus on abs, chest and arms, and women tend to focus on glutes and legs,” he notes. “They’re each forgetting one half of their bodies.” (Source: Forbes).

Myth #6: You should Avoid Carbs if You Want to Lose Weight


THE TRUTH: Cutting carbohydrates (carbs) might help you lose weight in the short term, but it’s mostly because you are eating less food and fewer calories. Drastically cutting carbs means you’ll miss out on the nutritional benefits of healthy choices like whole grains, fruit, starchy vegetables, and legumes. Because so many foods are off-limits, it can be tough to stick with low-carb diets for very long (Not to mention you will probably be INCREDIBLY grouchy and on edge!). The best weight-loss plan is one you can stick with, and consistency is the most important thing! (Source: A Little Nutrition)

Myth #7: Eating Fat Makes you Fat


The theory behind this myth usually goes something like this: Fat has nine calories per gram, whereas carbs and protein have only four per gram, so to lose weight you have to avoid fat. THE TRUTH: Fat is not the enemy. Although fat-laden products can be full of calories, a modest amount of fat may help you feel full (so you eat less overall) and make healthy foods, like vegetables, taste better (so you may eat more of them). Fat also helps with the absorption of certain vitamins and phytonutrients, which are compounds in plants that are thought to promote health. (Source: Real Simple)
To find out more on the whole “Fat Debate” check out this video when Johanna will tell you all about why you NEED Fats in your Diet! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXkc2caDo0w

Myth #8: Diet Foods Help You Lose Weight


The theory behind this one basically holds that Low-fat, low-carb, and artificially sweetened packaged foods make losing weight painless.  THE TRUTH: Low-fat and low-carb don't always mean low-cal, and if you're trying to lose weight, stocking up on these treats could undermine your efforts. In a series of recent studies, for instance, participants ate up to 50 percent more of foods that the researchers falsely labeled "low-fat" than they did of the same exact foods with real labels. Some experts also believe that consuming artificial sweeteners might backfire. It is possible that artificial sweeteners can have a negative effect on blood sugar and their long-term effects on the body are still relatively unknown.  Two long-term studies looking at the drinking habits of thousands of people have found a correlation between drinking diet soda and being overweight. Basically… You should steer CLEAR of these foods and stick with REAL, WHOLE, HEALTHY and NATURAL FOODS.  If it was made in a plant, you probably need a plant to digest it…
(Source: Real Simple).

 

Myth #9: To Lose Weight You Need to Drastically Cut Calories


People think that if they only eat 1,200 calories a day that they will lose all of this weight and feel amazing. While you will most definitely lose weight from restrictive eating you are setting yourself up for failure in the long run.  Your body cannot function for long period of times on such restrictive calorie diets, it could put itself in starvation mode and you could even stop losing weight at all... In addition to this, you are setting up a situation in which you are bound to give in to the things that you are constantly denying yourself, and guilt is one of the reasons that so many people simply abandon their plan for healthy living altogether.  THE TRUTH: The best thing thing you can do to lose weight is to eat a diet rich in vegetables and fruits, lean meats, and luved carbs, with variety and space for a cheat meal every once in a while! Consistency is key and nothing will be able to transform your body the way that clean eating and consistent physical activity will be able to!

Those are just some of the fitness/nutrition myths that we thought would be great to address! But there are so many others out there! If you can think of a fitness myth tweet us @jqfitness #FitnessMyths or Facebook us and let us know about it!

Thanks for reading and we hope you learned something new!


Sources:

Monday 15 July 2013

Metabolic Profile: Burner Breakdown & What Your Plate Should Look Like


Hi Bootcampers! If you haven’t already head on over and take the quiz to find out what type of burner you are! We included the password in your weekly email!

Eating for your metabolism is a quick way to boost your energy, fight hunger and cravings and lose fat. Most of us don’t even realize that we should be eating a certain way in order to optimize our bodies.  We think that feeling sluggish, exhausted, bloated, constipated etc, etc. is normal, and we combat these feelings with coffee, or Pepto-Bismol rather than addressing the real issues of why are bodies are reacting the way that they are.  In an ideal environment your body would be full or energy, regular, and not puffy all of the time. Well one of the things that the Metabolic profile does is allow you to discover the way in which your body burns food and HOW this should impact the way and the things that you are eating. 

There are 3 types of burners, Sugar Burners, Muscle Burners and Mixed Burners and everyone will fit into one of these three categories.  Let’s take a peek into what each of these profiles really means:

The Sugar Burner

Sugar burners tend to be overweight, often obese from a young age, and easily develop metabolic resistance. It is very difficult for them to lose fat; the traditional low-calorie diet and aerobic-exercise regimen actually worsens the problem. Sugar burners have a primary defect in insulin metabolism and tend to either overproduce and/or be resistant to the action of this powerful fat-storing hormone.
Sugar burners store fat all over their bodies, not just in one spot. They often look puffy and somewhat waterlogged. Their diets are high in carbohydrates - often up to 70 percent - from pasta, bread and potatoes. Sugar burners crave sweets, coffee and chocolate, which may make them feel good for a short 10 to 30 minutes spurt, but quickly leave them feeling lethargic and tired. Sugar burners tend to eat constantly. Headaches often occur during exercise. They can have difficulty falling asleep at night and find it just as hard to get out of bed in the morning. Finally, sugar burners tend to be procrastinators, frequently suffer from fatigue and depression and are at increased risk for diabetes, heart disease and other illnesses.

If you’re a sugar burner, you’re body has become very inefficient at burning fat for energy and relies almost exclusively on sugar. Your predominant hormone balance turns off fat-burning enzymes while enhancing sugar-burning and fat-storing enzymes. Hormonally, you likely have elevated cortisol and insulin hormones to the point of hormone resistance (making you a very inefficient use of fat and forcing your body to burn sugar instead). Also, your body is probably not getting the signal the hunger hormone leptin is sending. You feel hungry all the time and have frequent food cravings (foods rich in sugar and fat). You may have diabetes or hypothyroidism in your family.

The good news: you probably have plenty muscle on your body. Good because muscle tissue is a prime mover of hormonal metabolism. Exercising and eating appropriately will trigger your hormonal fat-burning machinery. The body burns what you feed it. Switch your nutritional choices to PROTEIN, FIBER and the right FATS and the body will shift from using sugar to burning fat.

Every single time you eat according to your ‘proper plate’, you’ll set into motion a hormonal software program that will elevate fat burning in the body.

The Mixed Burner

Mixed burners use sugar and fat as their sources of fuel, and their lifestyle choices largely determine whether they burn sugar or fat. If they stay up too late, they are tired. If they work too hard, they get sick. If they overindulge in food and drink, they gain weight. Most of the people who come to us are mixed burners and their metabolic tendencies are influenced by their chosen lifestyles. High-carbohydrate diets, sedentary lifestyles, and especially stress push these individuals into a sugar-burning state that causes them to gain fat. Menopause and andropause (a loss of male hormones such as testosterone as men age) can also trigger the fat-storing, muscle-burning state. When it comes to food, they can skip meals without feeling hungry, yet often have cravings. The low-calorie diets that worked for them at a younger age lose their effectiveness over time. Calorie-counting diets and aerobic-based exercises programs are effective for a few weeks, but once they stop, they weight they lost returns as quickly as it came off and they regain more fat and lose muscle each time.

As a mixed sugar and fat burner, you have an advantage over sugar and muscle burners. By changing what you eat, your hormonal signals trigger a fat-burning mode. You naturally have a well-regulated metabolism, are probably not too thin nor overweight and have a good amount of muscle on your body.

To push your metabolism into a higher state of fat burning, you’ll need to regulate your metabolic fire with sugar/ starch foods that are burned slowly (low-GI) while providing plenty of protein to maintain your muscle mass. Enjoy steel cut oats, brown rice and baked potatoes with their skins. AVOID bread, pasta and sweets.

The Muscle Burner

Muscle burners are the envy of their friends. They tend to be thin, even though it seems as if they can eat anything they want. Despite their thin appearance, they have little, if any, muscle tone and loose, sagging skin. We call these people ‘skinny-fat’ because they have a low muscle-to-fat ratio. They burn sugar from muscle tissue due to an over- secretion of the stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline, and noradrenaline. This gives them energy and can often make them high-strung and anxious.

Muscle burners are generally driven, type-A people who are always on the go. They prefer repetitive exercise like running or riding the elliptical trainer, which helps rid them of some nervous energy. They have difficult staying asleep at night and will sometimes wake repeatedly or sleep very lightly. Muscle burners crave sweets. They may have a few cocktails or wine at end of the day to calm themselves down. These lifestyle choices can wreak havoc on their bodies. They tend to have weak digestive systems and frequently suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), ulcers and gastro-esophagel reflux disease. Muscle burners often suffer from anxiety, attention disorders, mood swings, colds and flus, and wild high and low swings in blood sugar.

Muscle burners are often high-string, type-A people who seem to run on ‘nervous energy’. They release a larger amount of stress hormones (cortisol and adrenaline). They tend to be think in their youth but often develop that ‘skinny-fat’ look that appears to be thin though their bodies are flabby, with an unfavourable muscle-to-fat ratio. Any pronounced fat storage is concentrated around their belly. They often skip breakfast.

Muscle burners can often go for long periods (3-6 hours) without eating and may suffer from anxiety. Diabetes, loose connective tissue, osteoporosis, arthritis, sarcopenia and fibromyalgia are often consequences for muscle burners who yo-yo diet and don’t eat properly.

Muscle burners need to balance out the biochemical overdrive created by the adrenal hormones adrenaline, nor-adrenalin and cortisol. High amounts of these hormones break down muscle tissue to supply the body with sugar. It’s crucial to eat a balanced diet of protein and fat for a steady supply of energy (hence, why breakfast is so important). Once the nutritional hormonal inputs are corrected, the body will begin to spare its muscle stores and burn fat more readily, leading to an overall toned body and more consistent energy.

For a more in-depth and specific look into what you should be eating check out the resources page for each of these burner types on our resources page.  In the meantime – here is a quick snapshot of what each of the Burner’s plates should look like to maximize fat loss, increase energy and fight your hunger and cravings!



Have a great week!


Source for all information and images:




Tuesday 9 July 2013

The Best Sources of Protein

You’re going to hear us talk about it a lot, but Protein is probably one of the most important things in your diet (other than cutting out sugars, and white flours) that will help you to burn fat and build lean muscle, it is vital to building and supporting the tissues and inner workings of your body.  There are a smattering of proteins and amino acids that our body needs to function properly – many of these are made automatically by our bodies – but the others need to be supplied through our diets.

One of the reasons why protein is so great for fat loss is that “high-protein foods take more work to digest, metabolize, and use, which means you burn more calories processing them. They also take longer to leave your stomach, so you feel full sooner and for a longer amount of time. The cumulative effect has obvious benefits for anyone who is watching [their] weight,” or trying to lose weight (Protein: Your Secret Weight Loss Weapon). Eating protein throughout the day will assist with fat burning, keeping you satisfied and full, and over the long run will assist with building lean muscle mass (this makes it ideal for consuming after your workouts to help repair your muscles).

But what are the best sources of protein? Which foods have the most protein and which foods would you be surprised to find out aren’t nearly as protein rich as you think they are? I’ve been hunting around to develop a list of common foods and their respective protein content(s) to help you get a better picture of exactly how much protein you are getting from the foods that you are eating…

Animal Based Proteins (100g serving or a large palm sized portion)

Protein Type
Protein (Grams)
Lean Beef – Grass Fed (cooked)
27-30g
Chicken, Skinless Breast (cooked)
27g
Turkey Breast (cooked)
27g
Lamb (cooked)
25g
Pork Tenderloin (cooked)
22g
Salmon, (cooked)
21g

Nut/Seed Proteins (1/4 cup; 4 tbsp serving)
Protein Type
Protein (Grams)
Chia Seeds
12g
Hemp Seeds
10g
Flax Seeds
8g
Sunflower Seeds
8g
Salba
7.4g
Almonds
7g
Pumpkin Seeds
7g
Sesame Seeds
7g
Pistachios
6g
Walnut
5g
Brazil Nuts
5g
Hazlenuts
5g
Pine Nuts
4g
Cashews
4g 

Beans/Legumes (1 cup cooked)
Protein Type
Protein (Grams)
Lentils
18g
Adzuki
17g
Cannellini (White Beans)
17g
Cranberry Beans
17g
Navy Beans
16g
Split Peas
16g
Anasazi
15g
Black Beans
15g
Garbanzo (Chick Peas)
15g
Kidney Beans
15g
Great Northern Beans
15g
Lima Beans
15g
Pink Beans
15g
Black- Eyed Peas
14g
Mung Beans
14g
Pinto Beans
14g
Green Peas
9g

Grains (1 cup cooked)
Protein Type
Protein (Grams)
Triticale
25g
Millet
8.4g
Amaranth
7g
Oat, Bran
7g
Wild Rice
7g
Rye Berries
7g
Whole Wheat Couscous
6g
Bulgar Wheat
6g
Buckwheat
6g
Teff
6g
Oat Groats
6g
Barley
5g
Quinoa
5g
Brown Rice
5g
Spelt
5g 

Vegetables (cooked 1 cup – unless otherwise specified)
Protein Type
Protein (Grams)
Corn (1large Cobb)
5g
Potato (with Skin)
5g
Mushroom, Oyster
5g
Collard Greens
4g
Peas (1/2 cup)
4g
Artichoke (medium)
4g
Broccoli
4g
Brussel Sprouts
4g
Mushroon, Shitake
3.5g
Fennel (medium bulb)
3g
Swiss Chard
3g
Kale
2.5g
Asparagus (5 Spears)
2g
String Beans
2g
Beets
2g
Sweet Potato
3g
Cabbage
2g
Carrots
2g
Cauliflower
2g
Rutabaga
2g
Squash
2g
Celery
1g
Spinach
1g
Bell Peppers
1g
Cucumber
1g
Eggplant
1g
Leeks
1g
Lettuce
1g
Okra (1/2 Cup)
1g
Onion (1/2 Cup)
1g

Fermented Dairy / Dairy Alternatives
ProductServing SizeKcalsFat (g)Protein (g)Sugar (g)
Milk (2% Fat)8 oz1224.8812.3
Soy Milk, Plain8 oz903.566
Almond Milk, Sweetened8 oz602.517
Greek Yogurt, Plan (0% Fat)6 oz1000.717.35.5
Cottage Cheese, Plain (2% Fat)6 oz1464.2206.2

Other

Eggs** (per 1 egg)
6g
Avocado
4g

Remember though…

Protein content isn’t the only thing you should be worried about when it comes to choose a respective food to munch on or eat for a meal… Not all protein sources are created equally…The best protein sources are those that are both high in protein and LOW in carbohydrates as this combination will lower the respective impact of your meal or snack on your blood sugar (Animal proteins for instance are an incredibly high source of protein – and their impact on blood sugar is negligible, while a protein such as those found in Corn, Potatoes, and some of the beans/legumes will spike your insulin levels and can contribute to fat storage and weight gain).  So even though we have provided you with the Protein content of MANY different foods – not all of these are sources that you may want to be getting your protein from – We suggest sticking with lean meats, nuts and seeds (keep serving size in mind), and things like eggs, and Greek yogurt which pack a protein punch without loading on the carbohydrates. Additionally if you are looking at grains as a source of protein, keep in mind the relative blood sugar impact and glycemic impact they will have – grains alone will not be a sufficient amount of protein for your body.

So go out there, grab a protein rich snack and treat your body well!!


Have a Safe and Happy day!

Sources: