catherine96821:
Besides core strengthening, I like the balls for flexibility exercises. I don't use mine enough anymore, but find hanging over it was great for your neck and spine. Actually, the only reason I stopped was that it got a hole in it. recently, Izzy gave me some great 'intensity burst" stuff I am starting to work on, for which I am very grateful. I would love for these trainers to bless us with some nutritional knowledge (not the basics).
cameron, pm me the book title. I want the book... (yours)
Do it easy, I really want you to see Rodney Yee Yoga for Strength video, if you ever come across that. leesa was telling me about
www.half.com for books.
Catherine, you're such a sweet heart! I'm glad you're enjoying your training. Now, you may want to think about patching that physioball (or thereball, or resistance ball). It's one simple tool, very basic, and very versatile. It's even proven its value for spine stabilization and rehab exercises by VERY demanding kinesiologists like Dr. Paul Juris and Tom Purvis (the head honcho of the RTS program). Not that you should use it exclusively for all your exercises like some people advocate, but it has some nice uses.
If you get a chance to follow yoga, plese do so. I'm involved in several very physical and highly competitive sports and Yoga gave me a really nice change of pace. (I took Vinyasa, Kundalini, and the style I cannot remember took place in a heated room, go cautious in this kind of environment) Some of the positions will challenge your balance and flexibility like very few things out there.
As far as nutrition, the issue is quite broad and still full of contradictions. There are quite a few EXCELLENT studies out there that prove the fallacy of the former food pyramid. You will also find "studies" that contradict those findings. You will notice that these are usually sponsored by corporations and lobbyists trying to protect their interests and avoid litigation.
One study that comes to mind, was performed two summers ago by Dr. (Beep) (Beep) from the University of (beep)(beep). The Study took part during (bee) camp in a sunny, hot state down south. As you know, certain drinks are recommended during hot days to replenish fluids and electrolites. It happens that he analyzed the composition of sweat, and noticed the huge loss of electrolites, just as it was predicted. The interesting thing is that after two weeks the water only group showed fewer electrolites in their sweat. Their bodies were adjusting and self-regulating to keep their salts and minerals and release only the water needed to keep the cooling process going. The (beep) group showed no change in the composition of their sweat, the reasoning behind is since electrolites were going in at the rate they were being expelled, the body did not need adaptation. The presence of electrolites dimished even more as time went by. After 10 weeks, both groups were given water only, given athletic tasks, and scored in their performance. Well, you may guess whose performance was not affected.
Why am I telling you all this and beeping names and dates? Simple, as soon as word got out, a giant corporation stepped in to block the release of the data, citing certain mumbo jumbo cooked up by their legal team. All the sudden, the researcher got his funding cut, and the school offered a "generous" compensation for their athletic teams as long as such research were discontinued. The matter is mess much larger than one can imagine, thus I cannot bring names or specifics. How do I know all this? Because I know the researcher involved. It's my hope that one day the truth will come out as facts always overcome speculations. Just think about how Nitrox and Trimix were being called witche's brew and poisons and how eventually their facts prevailed.
The point is, there are always two sides on an issue. One tells the truth, the other one wants to prevent the truth from coming out. So far, some of the best research that I've come across has come from New Zealand, as they are not funded by corporations but by their government. I know this because of my clients comes from New Zealand. She's an international physical therapy lecturer and one of the top instructors of the CHEK institute and always provides me with excellent material.
Now let's see if we can elaborate a little as far as your questions on nutrition. These are general guidelines only, and they may or may not apply to you. You will find that most of them are common sense:
- In general, skipping breakfast is a bad idea.
- In general, a breakfast that is composed mostly of refined carbs and sugars will mess up the hormones responsible for signaling the satiety centers of the brain. This triggers more sugar and refined carb cravings later on.
- In general, organic products are a better choice. A bit more expensive, but the risk of consuming products loaded with pesticides, hormones, or antibiotics is highly reduced.
- Most artificial sweetners containing aspartame or sucrolose have been shown to produce bad reactions in a significant number of people.
- In general, we DO NOT need sugar in our food. Its use is more of an addiction to the pleasant spike of energy it produces, more than any nutrional value.
- If you're having a hard time reading the ingredients in a product, chances are that they're way too processed and not that good for you.
- While whole grain breds are better than the refined ones, keep in mind that some people suffer of glutten and wheat germ allegies and contact with such products could cause a severe allergic reaction.
- The low fat thing is a fallacy condoned by the former food pyramid. People were falsely led to buy "fat free" or "low fat" products under the guise of healthy choices. Little did they know they were consuming huge loads of sugars and fillers. That's what damaged the waistlines of America in only 30 years. Mono and Polyunsaturated fats have shown many health benefits, and their consumption should be safe as long as there are no allergies involved.
- Speaking of such fats, the avocado is your friend. You can make dips and dressings out of them. All high in nutritional value and satiety. Recently, coconut oil has been showing lots of good promise, shedding the bad guy image it has (the saturated fats). I'll keep you posted as I find out more.
- Boiling your food destroys a lot of the nutrients. You are better off steaming, or simmering.
- Microwaving your food also destroys a lot of nutrients. Keep in mind that the process of microwaving involves vibrating the molecules at high speeds which alters their composition.
- The key to weight control is not eating less, but rather eating more frequent small meals. Most people who do so, end up consuming a lot less calories during the day, and their nutritients are absorbed better. The meals have to be small and nutrient dense though.
- Eat slowly! The biochemical reactions triggered by the first bite of food you take will arrive to the satiety centers in the brain in about 20 minutes. You may consume enough food to satisfy your needs, but if you do it too fast, your brain won't know it. You will eat more again, and by the time your brain gets the signal, it'll be too late.
- Good nutrition takes an open mind and A LOT of planning at first. Nothing that's good ever comes easy. However, if you keep at it, that is, planning your menus ahead of time, your shopping lists when you're not hungry, it all helps. One thing I know is useful is cooking several types of foods in large amounts ahead of time. We plan meals that can be eaten cold, or that can be mixed last minute and we put them in tupperwares. That'll save you a lot of time and dimish your chances of buying meals outside.
Of course, there's always room for a little indulgence here and there, but that has to be more of a treat for an special ocassion rather than a regular occurrence. As long as you return to your healthy lifestyle, there's nothing wrong with the ocassional guilty pleasure.
I hope this answers some of your questions. My vote goes to Cameron's book as well. Good investment and it'll give you lots of guidance to spice up your exercise routines. Good luck and see you at the Surface Interval!
