I’ve been working a lot lately on a new product that I can’t wait to share with you guys. It's going to help you build muscle and burn fat at home with minimal equipment. It will be available through my website once it’s finished. The product will be an electronic, downloadable training program complete with full video gallery, a full program manual, and printable workout logs.
If you read my last post, you'll know how important it is to be as "inefficient" as possible when trying to burn fat. This program will definitely help you be as inefficient as possible while both building muscle and losing fat.
A while back I sat down to brainstorm the best possible program that could be done at home with minimal equipment, that would produce measurable results in a fraction of the time that most people’s exercise routines require. There were three main criteria for designing this program.
The key elements of the program are:
1. High-power movements that involve high levels of muscle tension, which helps to promote strength gains.
2. High calorie expenditure which promotes rapid fat loss.
3. Minimal time requirement, so that there are NO MORE EXCUSES.
Item number three is the one that people will be most excited by. The absolute minimum time requirement is only 4 minutes a day. Don’t get me wrong, four minutes a day isn’t enough if that’s all you ever do, but on those days where you don’t have more than 4 minutes, any of the four-minute routines will keep you strong, fit, and motivated.
I’ve got four sample workouts from the program below. I’m starting to film video of the exercises for the program next week, so I don’t have the videos for you yet, but as soon as they’re ready, I’ll be making the ones from the sample below available to you free of charge.
Each group of exercises are done in a circuit. Instead of counting reps, you will go by time. I suggest picking yourself up an interval timer. The best one out there is GYMBOSS. I use it for my bootcamps, and it is simple to use and only costs $20. I ordered it online from their WEBSITE, and it arrived in the mail in only 4 days.
If you are unaccustomed to vigorous exercise, you start slowly, and just focus on the technique, building up your speed and effort level over time.
Circuit #1 (4 minutes)
Bodyweight Warrior Squats 20:20
Inverted Rows 20:20
Supported 1-Leg Squats 20:20
Pushups 20:20
Lateral “skating” hop 20:20
Extended Abdominal Plank 20:20
Circuit #2 (4 minutes)
Bodyweight Front Squats 20:20
Pull-ups (assisted if necessary) 20:20
Supported Pistol Squats 20:20
Pike Pushups 20:20
Lateral Step-Overs 20:20
Floorclimbers 20:20
Circuit #3 (4 minutes)
Bodyweight Jump Squats 20:20
Alternating DB Bent-Over Rows 20:20
Split Jump Squats 20:20
Hindu Pushups 20:20
Lateral Jump to 1-Leg Squat 20:20
Mountain Climbers 20:20
Circuit #4 (4 minutes)
Bodyweight 1-Leg Jump Squats 20:20
Band Pull-Apart To Chest 20:20
Sumo Band Squats 20:20
Plyo Push-ups (from knees) 20:20
4-Way Hop 20:20
T-Twists 20:20
Increase the difficulty of each exercise by increasing your speed of movement. Be sure not to drop too quickly in the bodyweight squat, as you don’t want to bottom out.
Depending on your fitness level, start off with just one or two circuits and train every other day. Each week, add another circuit, or do two rounds of the same circuit. Keep increasing the number of circuits and/or rounds of circuits until your total time reaches about 20 minutes. That's all you'll have to do to get amazing results.
If you like these workouts, and want even more variety, check out your local bootcamps, and look for boot camps where they run people through short but super-intense exercises involving lifting, carrying, throwing, pulling, dragging, and flipping of any number of different objects such as tires, ropes, and sandbags. Bodyweight exercises are great too, but they need to be done in circuit fashion like the circuits above in order to produce the rapid fat loss effects. Simply doing lunges for a minute then pushups then crunches is just going to make you sore.
The smartest thing you could do though without a doubt, is to check THIS out! Nothing will strip the fat off you faster! I designed Your Beach Body Boot Camp to be quite possibly the fastest fat loss program ever.
I won’t lie to you though, it’s tough. Really, really tough. But the folks who are coming down and really pushing their limits are seeing some incredible changes to their bodies!
Ah what the heck, nothing wrong with a healthy bit of self-promotion! ;)
So that’s it for this week’s newsletter, I hope you’ve enjoyed the three articles I had for you today. I’ll be back with a few more blog posts later in the week, and a brand new newsletter next week!
If someone forwarded the newsletter to you or sent you the link to my blog and you haven’t signed up for my newsletter yet, you really should. It’s absolutely free, and to boot you’ll get my Free 7-Day Fat Loss Jumpstart guide. There’s so much great info in it that I really should be selling it instead of giving it away, but I think the info is so important that I want everyone to have it.
To join up, just fill in your name and email address on the right side of my site up near the top. I promise to never share your name or email address with anyone.
Have a great week!
:)
Shane Miller, CPT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Monday, September 7, 2009
To Burn Fat Fast You Must Be Inefficient
To Burn Fat Fast Inefficiency Is A Must!
Inefficiency? Really? Don’t you mean Efficiency?
Nope.. I mean Inefficiency!
Here’s the deal:
When you think of an efficient car, what comes to mind? A small car that can go a long way on a small amount of gas. Now what about inefficient car? What comes to mind? How about a Hummer? Or one of those Cadillac Escalades right? Both are gas guzzlers!
Essentially, the smaller more efficient engine requires less energy to do the same amount of work than the bigger, more gas-hungry engine of the Hummer and Cadillac.
In the human body, our “engine” when it comes to burning energy is our muscles. The principles that work in the car are the same as those that work in our bodies. If your goal is to burn as much fat as possible in the shortest amount of time, do you think it is better to be more or less efficient?
Less Efficient!
Because a less efficient machine “wastes” much of the energy that it is given. Most cars have an efficiency of about 18-20%. Which means they only get 18-20% of the energy in the gas to be converted into actual mechanical force that propels the car. Can you guess where the rest of it goes?
HEAT!
That’s right, practically 80% of the energy in the gas is turned into heat. At least you know now why the hood of the car gets so hot after a long drive!
The human body works in exactly the same way. The more inefficient we are, the more heat we produce.
Now, in a car, if you had to be as inefficient as possible, how would you do that? You would accelerate as hard as you can right? Exactly! Everyone knows that frequently stepping hard on the gas is the quickest way to empty your gas tank. Strangely, few people structure their fat-loss training this way.
In every poll ever taken in
However, if I concede that it is lack of time, why is it that for every person I see at a gym who is actually using high intensity interval training methods for fat loss, I see ten people reading the paper on their stationary bikes and elliptical machines?
A couple reasons come to mind. The fact is, pushing yourself hard enough to really do HIIT style workouts is a little scary for some. You do have to leave your comfort zone, and when there’s a nice “fat-burning” zone that’s easy and doesn’t hurt, most people will stay there. But this is also why MOST people do not reach their fat loss goals.
Remember Jared from the Subway commercials? He lost 300 lbs just walking an hour a day and eating a 6” subs. This was great “fat-loss zone” marketing, and it definitely contributed to helping to keep people from reaching their potential.
One of the real problems with training in the fat-loss zone is that you burn so few calories for the time required. In an hour you might shed 300-600 calories depending on your bodyweight and fitness level – but that’s it. There’s no significant elevation of your metabolism afterwards. Considering how easy it is to put those calories back on, it just seems like such a waste.
If you ditch the “fat-loss” zone in favour of high-intensity interval training workouts, you’ll only need about 20 minutes, and you’ll burn upwards of 200-500 calories during your workout, but you’ll continue to burn excess calories for up to 24 hours afterwards. The results can be quite significant. We typically see people losing between 1-3 lbs of body fat a week, with only three 20 minute workouts per week.
This type of training will leave you gasping for air, and this brings us back to the fat burning zone for a moment, I know you’ve also heard that if you can’t carry on a conversation then you aren’t burning any fat. This is true, but unimportant. If you were limited to only burning fat during the time you were exercising it would take you upwards of ten days to burn a single pound of body fat with an hour of slow, boring cardio a day.
What’s more important is the total number of calories burned not just during the exercise, but during the period of elevated metabolism that can last as much as 24 hours after exercise. Scientists call this period of elevated metabolism “EPOC” or Excess Post-exercise Oxygen Consumption.
Essentially, because burning sugar for energy does not require oxygen, the reactions can speed along at incredible rates, liberating great quantities of energy very rapidly. However, it also creates a huge oxygen debt, which is repaid for hours after the exercise is stopped. By becoming inefficient, you’ll literally be burning more calories 24 hours a day.
So folks, stop the long, slow, boring cardio, and get inefficient and blast away your unwanted body fat!
Until next time,
:)
Shane Miller, CPT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Can Exercise Actually Make You Gain Fat?
What really ticks me off is when journalists who can’t come up with creative, helpful content, just write crap in order to make headlines!
Take John Cloud from Time Magazine. In his Aug 9th column, he writes an article entitled “Why Exercise Won’t Make You Thin”.
HELLO MR. CLOUD: MY
Sorry folks, but this is going to be a bit of a rant!
In his article, Mr. Cloud writes about how he’s been exercising for a few years now and can’t seem to get rid of his gut. He quotes a number of studies that are all “true”, but mean nothing in the big picture context.
Mr. Cloud tells his readers how the country now spends more money on trainers and gym memberships than ever before, but still manages to show increasing rates of obesity. He also finishes the article saying how tomorrow he may skip his workout and his post-workout blueberry bar because there is some research showing that as a survival mechanism, when we expend large amounts of energy during intense exercise, hunger signals from our brain are increased.
There’s also a survival mechanism that says if you don’t look both ways before crossing the street you might get smoked by a truck. I wonder if Mr. Cloud would suggest we all stay home and not ever leave our homes anymore to avoid being run over.
YES, Mr. Cloud is correct, when you exercise harder you get hungrier. Makes sense doesn’t it? We are designed by nature to survive, not get lean and ripped. And by the way Mr. Cloud have you actually looked on the wrapper of your (Kellogg’s) Blueberry Bar? There’s about 270 calories, maybe 5g of protein, 45g of carbs, and 7g fat. If you eat this after your exercise, you’ll definitely replace the energy you just burned off.
There is a huge problem with Mr. Cloud’s article as a whole. It is basically telling the reader that they are powerless in their weight loss pursuits. That if you exercise harder you might actually gain weight, because you wont’ be able to help yourself .
Here are two quotes from Mr. Cloud’s article. In the first quote, he is speaking in the first person. In the second, he is quoting the journal Psychological Bulletin:
“What's going on here? Church calls it compensation, but you and I (Mr. Cloud) might know it as the lip-licking anticipation of perfectly salted, golden-brown French fries after a hard trip to the gym.”
“If you force yourself to jog for an hour, your self-regulatory capacity is proportionately enfeebled. Rather than lunching on a salad, you'll be more likely to opt for pizza.”
Excuse me for a second… are you freakin’ kidding me?
I HAVE NEVER, EVER OPTED FOR PIZZA OR FRENCH FRIES AFTER LEAVING THE
Seriously folks… if you’re trying to lose body fat, and you exercise hard and then go eat a bunch of crap… then you’re just plain hilarious. Clearly, you have either no idea, in which case now you do… or you just don’t really care if you lose any weight.
You can look all you want for examples of people who exercise and don’t lose weight and you can use it as your excuse to not exercise, but all the people I know who are serious about losing body fat, and who are actually making progress are busting their butts at the gym and it shows!
Maybe the editor of Time Magazine Online should make sure that with such a serious obesity problem as the country faces, that any articles they publish empower people to take action instead of just giving them another excuse to do nothing.
No matter how you look at it, this article by John Cloud gets a serious thumbs down from me!
Anybody else agree with me? Please leave your comments below!
:)
Shane Miller, CPT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Monday, August 17, 2009
Day 8 Review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp
I know, I said I'd have a great bodyweight program ready for you on today's blog post along with guest blogger Katy Sinha's final review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp, but... with this incredible weather we've been having (since our summer so far has been pretty much garbage), I decided to take Sunday to get out in the sun instead of working on the program.
Don't worry, I'm sure the weather will be back to "normal" soon, and I'll have nothing better to do than head down to my studio and devise some evil new training plans for you!
That said, here's Katy's final entry on (Day 8) reviewing Your Beach Body Boot Camp.
It was hot outside this morning and sun shining. Most of my 'favourite' drills were still in the lineup: push ups, battling ropes of death, long jump, sledge hammer, tire pulling... geez, I can't even pick one favourite, they're all so endearing! It was the final session today for the first round of boot camp which has been Mondays and Thursdays for the past 4 weeks.
Shane is ready to start round 2 with boot camp on Monday/Wednesday/Friday for the next 4 weeks. I have signed myself up for more because I can proudly say that I feel stronger and have better energy. My lower back no longer feels vulnerable where my old injury occurred.
Boot camp has been just what I needed to break me out of my 'stay at home mom' routine. I now look forward to 3 mornings a week where I have an hour of time to myself to spend on improving myself. My baby girl has adjusted beautifully to having a bottle when she wakes. My husband has learned how to make himself a smoothie and my toddler has learned that her mommy does her exercises to get 'big and strong'.
Overall, a raging success and I'm very much looking forward to the next 4 weeks. I'll sign off here as it's been a great pleasure to guest blog for Shane. He's a superb boot camp coach. Always encouraging, motivating, knowledgeable, trustworthy.
Thanks for reading, hope my thoughts and observations have helped you decide to make a positive change for yourself too!
Katy
Thanks for following Katy's reviews, and as she mentions, there are just so many incredible benefits to this type of workout, and pretty much anybody can do it, you start at your own pace and build your capacity over time.
For the cost of the bootcamp, you really won't find a better value that delivers serious results!
If you'd like more information, please head on over to www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com to check it out!
Thanks for reading!
:)
Shane Miller
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Don't worry, I'm sure the weather will be back to "normal" soon, and I'll have nothing better to do than head down to my studio and devise some evil new training plans for you!
That said, here's Katy's final entry on (Day 8) reviewing Your Beach Body Boot Camp.
It was hot outside this morning and sun shining. Most of my 'favourite' drills were still in the lineup: push ups, battling ropes of death, long jump, sledge hammer, tire pulling... geez, I can't even pick one favourite, they're all so endearing! It was the final session today for the first round of boot camp which has been Mondays and Thursdays for the past 4 weeks.
Shane is ready to start round 2 with boot camp on Monday/Wednesday/Friday for the next 4 weeks. I have signed myself up for more because I can proudly say that I feel stronger and have better energy. My lower back no longer feels vulnerable where my old injury occurred.
Boot camp has been just what I needed to break me out of my 'stay at home mom' routine. I now look forward to 3 mornings a week where I have an hour of time to myself to spend on improving myself. My baby girl has adjusted beautifully to having a bottle when she wakes. My husband has learned how to make himself a smoothie and my toddler has learned that her mommy does her exercises to get 'big and strong'.
Overall, a raging success and I'm very much looking forward to the next 4 weeks. I'll sign off here as it's been a great pleasure to guest blog for Shane. He's a superb boot camp coach. Always encouraging, motivating, knowledgeable, trustworthy.
Thanks for reading, hope my thoughts and observations have helped you decide to make a positive change for yourself too!
Katy
Thanks for following Katy's reviews, and as she mentions, there are just so many incredible benefits to this type of workout, and pretty much anybody can do it, you start at your own pace and build your capacity over time.
For the cost of the bootcamp, you really won't find a better value that delivers serious results!
If you'd like more information, please head on over to www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com to check it out!
Thanks for reading!
:)
Shane Miller
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Day 7 Review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp
Keeping it short, we're back with guest blogger Katy Sinha's Day 7 review of
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
Enjoy!
Hey everyone,
WHOA! Day 7 boot camp just picked up a notch. Ten minutes into the sessions, I was so winded and leg muscles feeling like spaghetti that I started thinking I'd have to sit out for one drill. I think it was the back-to-back "battling ropes of death" and then the long jump. I was fooled thinking "hey, the long jump! I did that in grade 3 during PARTICIPACTION.
More accurately, I should have said... I haven't done that since grade 3!
Push ups again... tough tough tough. I don't feel like I've improved yet. And THEN...bilateral "battling ropes of death" in the first session and again in the second session using one arm independent of the other. Those are deadly, ugh!
The other day in the mirror, you know what I noticed?! Shoulder, biceps, triceps, and (I think even my) butt muscles developing! I guess those pushups and sandbag cleans are working their magic.
So it's true and out in the open for us to digest. We are going to increase boot camp frequency to 3 mornings a week. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks. I have sorted out my child-minding and now have to get my brain used to 6:15am wake ups 3x/week.
More after Thursday's camp.
Katy
That's it for today folks, I'll be back tomorrow with an article on body weight only training that you can do at home with minimal equipment, to build both strength and increase muscle mass, as well as burn fat fast. I'll also be featuring Katy's Day 8 review of www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
Until then,
:)
Shane Miller, CPT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
Enjoy!
Hey everyone,
WHOA! Day 7 boot camp just picked up a notch. Ten minutes into the sessions, I was so winded and leg muscles feeling like spaghetti that I started thinking I'd have to sit out for one drill. I think it was the back-to-back "battling ropes of death" and then the long jump. I was fooled thinking "hey, the long jump! I did that in grade 3 during PARTICIPACTION.
More accurately, I should have said... I haven't done that since grade 3!
Push ups again... tough tough tough. I don't feel like I've improved yet. And THEN...bilateral "battling ropes of death" in the first session and again in the second session using one arm independent of the other. Those are deadly, ugh!
The other day in the mirror, you know what I noticed?! Shoulder, biceps, triceps, and (I think even my) butt muscles developing! I guess those pushups and sandbag cleans are working their magic.
So it's true and out in the open for us to digest. We are going to increase boot camp frequency to 3 mornings a week. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for the next four weeks. I have sorted out my child-minding and now have to get my brain used to 6:15am wake ups 3x/week.
More after Thursday's camp.
Katy
That's it for today folks, I'll be back tomorrow with an article on body weight only training that you can do at home with minimal equipment, to build both strength and increase muscle mass, as well as burn fat fast. I'll also be featuring Katy's Day 8 review of www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
Until then,
:)
Shane Miller, CPT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Day 6 Review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp
Today we have a short one for you, just guest blogger Katy Sinha's review of
Your Beach Body Boot Camp.
Day 6
Boot camp this morning had MORE push ups and I don't think I was fully recovered from previous day because my chest was still killin'!
Thankfully, Shane showed me how to do a variation by bringing my arms in closer to my body so I worked my triceps much more this time and my chest much less. Wouldn't it be faaaabulous if I actually developed tricep muscles again?!
So there's this sneaking rumour going around that Shane wants to increase boot camp days to 3x/ week. Monday, Wendesday, and Friday. I wonder if I can commit 3 mornings per week as I have to juggle my family responsibilities which include 2 baby girls and a husband's work schedule.
My husband is definitely not a morning person however he has graciously been getting up with the girls on the mornings of boot camp so I can get my butt in shape. I'll have to work this out at home before I can commit.
I think Shane even commented on this aspect of getting in shape. He said that you've got to set yourself up for success which includes getting your partner on board. If he/she is eating junk in front of you, you're more likely to cheat also.
Same goes for this 3rd day in the boot camp schedule. I need my partner's full support. Given that he works long hours and I respect that he does need sleep in the mornings, I think I'll have to look elsewhere for caretaking of my kids. Perhaps my neighbor who is up early with her kids, perhaps my Mum can come over early one morning a week. I'll figure it out and let you know.
Now, why is Shane increasing the frequency? I'm still feeling the work out after each session... is my body already getting muscle memory and not working as hard as when I started? I'll ask him on Day 7.
Let's talk results now.
When I started boot camp, my lower back was in a constant state of vulnerability due to an old sports injury. Whenever I twisted or bent over, I would feel a little pull, or tingle which told me to be careful or I'd have a sore/tight back for a few days.
Since day 4 at boot camp I have not had any pain or sensitivity in my lower back. My abs and core are finally tight enough to handle the daily movements that I (as a Mum with 2 kids) endure. That alone is a milestone for me.
In addition, my whole body feels 'tighter', more together. I feel like I have much more energy throughout the day and my appetite has definitely picked up. I feel less inclined to reach for empty nutrition foods. I can honestly say that my brain is driving me towards healthy nutrient rich foods.
Yippee! Yes, I do want to come 3 mornings/week so I can enjoy more results!
See you after Day 7
Katy
I'll be back tomorrow with Katy's review of Day 7.
Until then,
:)
Shane Miller, CFT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Your Beach Body Boot Camp.
Day 6
Boot camp this morning had MORE push ups and I don't think I was fully recovered from previous day because my chest was still killin'!
Thankfully, Shane showed me how to do a variation by bringing my arms in closer to my body so I worked my triceps much more this time and my chest much less. Wouldn't it be faaaabulous if I actually developed tricep muscles again?!
So there's this sneaking rumour going around that Shane wants to increase boot camp days to 3x/ week. Monday, Wendesday, and Friday. I wonder if I can commit 3 mornings per week as I have to juggle my family responsibilities which include 2 baby girls and a husband's work schedule.
My husband is definitely not a morning person however he has graciously been getting up with the girls on the mornings of boot camp so I can get my butt in shape. I'll have to work this out at home before I can commit.
I think Shane even commented on this aspect of getting in shape. He said that you've got to set yourself up for success which includes getting your partner on board. If he/she is eating junk in front of you, you're more likely to cheat also.
Same goes for this 3rd day in the boot camp schedule. I need my partner's full support. Given that he works long hours and I respect that he does need sleep in the mornings, I think I'll have to look elsewhere for caretaking of my kids. Perhaps my neighbor who is up early with her kids, perhaps my Mum can come over early one morning a week. I'll figure it out and let you know.
Now, why is Shane increasing the frequency? I'm still feeling the work out after each session... is my body already getting muscle memory and not working as hard as when I started? I'll ask him on Day 7.
Let's talk results now.
When I started boot camp, my lower back was in a constant state of vulnerability due to an old sports injury. Whenever I twisted or bent over, I would feel a little pull, or tingle which told me to be careful or I'd have a sore/tight back for a few days.
Since day 4 at boot camp I have not had any pain or sensitivity in my lower back. My abs and core are finally tight enough to handle the daily movements that I (as a Mum with 2 kids) endure. That alone is a milestone for me.
In addition, my whole body feels 'tighter', more together. I feel like I have much more energy throughout the day and my appetite has definitely picked up. I feel less inclined to reach for empty nutrition foods. I can honestly say that my brain is driving me towards healthy nutrient rich foods.
Yippee! Yes, I do want to come 3 mornings/week so I can enjoy more results!
See you after Day 7
Katy
I'll be back tomorrow with Katy's review of Day 7.
Until then,
:)
Shane Miller, CFT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The Top 10 Ways to Reduce Sugar Consumption plus The Real Day 5 Review
We have long known that diets high in simple and refined sugars lead to an increased risk for heart problems, but what we haven't known is why. Well, now we know.
A study recently published in the Journal of The American College of Cardiology conducted by Dr. Michael Shechter of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine and Sheba Medical Center's heart institute (in cooperation with its endocrinology institute), has demonstrated the exact mechanism for how the damage is caused.
Now bear with me, this gets just a teeny bit mumbo-jumbo-y.
The scientists used what's called brachial reactive testing, which, similar to taking blood pressure, uses a cuff around the upper arm, but instead of just getting a static pressure measurement, they get a real-time measurement that they use to measure the reaction of the arteries over time to different meals.
Elasticity of the arteries is extremely important in helping to maintain optimal blood pressure, and reduced flexibility is known to be a factor in heart disease. This study showed a sudden and temporary dysfunction of the endothelial lining in the arteries in response to the high glycemic foods.
Apparently, while an important function of the arteries is their ability to stretch when needed, the enormous peaks and suddenness of the stretching over time causes damage to the endothelial lining, and the body responds to such damage with a repair job by a substance called c-reactive protein(CRP). CRP once laid down in the arteries creates a sticky place for cholesterol to adhere to. Thus starting the process of Atherosclerosis.
Clearly, we should all be looking for ways to reduce our consumption of simple and refined sugars.
Top 10 Ways to Reduce Simple and Refined Sugar Consumption
1. Don't add it to foods. This may sound simple enough, but people do it all the time. Sugar is added to coffee and tea all the time. Many people who consume upwards of 10 cups of coffee a day put as much as a tablespoon of sugar in each coffee. Adding sugar to cereals or to fruit salads is another mistake.
2. Cane sugar, Honey, Molasses, Turbinado sugar, Brown Sugar, Raw Sugar. Don't be fooled by these nicer sounding names for sugar. Once you eat it, they all cause the same damage.
3. Artificial sweeteners. These guys don't have a glycemic index, but because of their sweetness they may cause you to crave sweets at other times.
4. Reduce or elminate processed and refined sugars. Breads, pastries, candies, bagels, pasta, cereals, and virtually all snackfood are just loaded with refined sugars. They may come under different names such as Confectioners sugar, flour, cornstarch, high-fructose corn syrup to name just a few, but don't be fooled. Once in your stomach, they all turn to glucose and drive your blood sugar up rapidly.
5. Fat-Free foods. As soon as "Fats" were deemed bad, manufacturers stripped large quantities of fat from everything they could get their hands on, and dumped massive quantities of processed and refined sugars in their place to keep you coming back for more.
6. Eliminate Juices. I don't care whether they're natural and unsweetened or not, just get rid of them. If you want the goodness from natural unsweetened juice, eat the fruit. You'll get everything in the juice, plus a ton of fibre and you'll consume far fewer calories in the long run. The fibre in the fruit helps to slow digestion, keeping you full longer.
7. Keep Fruit Consumption Moderate. I know I said eat fruit instead of drinking juice, but if you were drinking ten glasses of juice a day, you can't eat ten pieces of fruit each day and expect to lose body fat. For those who have reducing body fat as an objective, keep fruit consumption to just a few pieces a day at most. Fruit, while containing lots of fibre, vitamins, and minerals, also contains significantly more sugar than vegetables, which also contain lots of fiber, vitamins and minerals. So if you believe you need to eat more fruit to get enough nutrients, think again. Reach for additional veggies if you think you need more than a few pieces of fruit each day.
8. Beware of Hidden Sugars. If you pick up a food and the label says there's 30g of total carbohydrates, and you notice beside the word "sugars" it only says 3 or 4 grams, what do you think is making up the difference? It's sugars of some sort. So take the total grams as what you're eating. Divide the total number by 4 and that will tell you how many teaspoons of sugar you're eating.
9. Increase Your Nutritional Awareness. I rarely read nutritional labels because most of the foods I eat don't come with nutritional labels. Apples, oats, broccoli, etc... these things don't need labels because they're in their natural form. Its only when man has messed with the ingredients (usually screwing it up in the process) that things needed to be labeled. Conversely, obsessing about nutritional content of foods is a surefire way to end up with all sorts of health problems. However, if you do pick up a food that has a label, give it a quick read, and make yourself aware of what you're putting in your body. The old saying "Ignorance is Bliss", is only true until you start suffering, and then Ignorance is your regret.
10. Use the 5 Ingredient rule. Try not to buy foods that have more than 5 ingredients listed on the label. If you limit it to five, chances are there won't be any refined sugars.
Day 5 Review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp by guest blogger Katy Sinha
Good morning !
Glad to get back to my car after boot camp this morning. We had a touch of rain and the BUGS were crazy outside! THERE! I said it. I was sneaking my blog entries in without mention of the bugs, but finally, I broke down and had to write about it. As they say, if it doesn't kill me it'll make me stronger! I think we're talking mental toughness again.
As for the drills today, push ups came into the lineup. I started with my sissy push ups from the knees in the first round. I promptly moved to push ups from my feet as I noticed that everyone else was challenging themselves with the real thing. Yes I do have a competitive streak in me and I figure that doing only 6 push ups in 20 seconds is better than 12 from my knees.
Sneaky Shane has now organized the drill order so that in a series of 4 stations, the end of the first station and the start of the second station are at opposite corners of the camp. Our precious rest period between stations is getting taken up by having to hoof it to the next drill. Boot camp, like in the military, is starting to have its effect. I've noticed that we're now in the habit of starting the next drill when we hear the 'beeeep' and not waiting for Shane to give us the verbal cue to start. Our collective attitude of "I won't do it if I don't have to do it" is now shifting to "well, I'm here so I might as well get stronger".
Looking forward to day 6 tricks.
Katy
That wraps it up for today! Come back tomorrow for Day 6 Review, and more goodies to keep you strong, healthy, and happy!
Until next time,
Shane Miller, CFT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
A study recently published in the Journal of The American College of Cardiology conducted by Dr. Michael Shechter of Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine and Sheba Medical Center's heart institute (in cooperation with its endocrinology institute), has demonstrated the exact mechanism for how the damage is caused.
Now bear with me, this gets just a teeny bit mumbo-jumbo-y.
The scientists used what's called brachial reactive testing, which, similar to taking blood pressure, uses a cuff around the upper arm, but instead of just getting a static pressure measurement, they get a real-time measurement that they use to measure the reaction of the arteries over time to different meals.
Elasticity of the arteries is extremely important in helping to maintain optimal blood pressure, and reduced flexibility is known to be a factor in heart disease. This study showed a sudden and temporary dysfunction of the endothelial lining in the arteries in response to the high glycemic foods.
Apparently, while an important function of the arteries is their ability to stretch when needed, the enormous peaks and suddenness of the stretching over time causes damage to the endothelial lining, and the body responds to such damage with a repair job by a substance called c-reactive protein(CRP). CRP once laid down in the arteries creates a sticky place for cholesterol to adhere to. Thus starting the process of Atherosclerosis.
Clearly, we should all be looking for ways to reduce our consumption of simple and refined sugars.
Top 10 Ways to Reduce Simple and Refined Sugar Consumption
1. Don't add it to foods. This may sound simple enough, but people do it all the time. Sugar is added to coffee and tea all the time. Many people who consume upwards of 10 cups of coffee a day put as much as a tablespoon of sugar in each coffee. Adding sugar to cereals or to fruit salads is another mistake.
2. Cane sugar, Honey, Molasses, Turbinado sugar, Brown Sugar, Raw Sugar. Don't be fooled by these nicer sounding names for sugar. Once you eat it, they all cause the same damage.
3. Artificial sweeteners. These guys don't have a glycemic index, but because of their sweetness they may cause you to crave sweets at other times.
4. Reduce or elminate processed and refined sugars. Breads, pastries, candies, bagels, pasta, cereals, and virtually all snackfood are just loaded with refined sugars. They may come under different names such as Confectioners sugar, flour, cornstarch, high-fructose corn syrup to name just a few, but don't be fooled. Once in your stomach, they all turn to glucose and drive your blood sugar up rapidly.
5. Fat-Free foods. As soon as "Fats" were deemed bad, manufacturers stripped large quantities of fat from everything they could get their hands on, and dumped massive quantities of processed and refined sugars in their place to keep you coming back for more.
6. Eliminate Juices. I don't care whether they're natural and unsweetened or not, just get rid of them. If you want the goodness from natural unsweetened juice, eat the fruit. You'll get everything in the juice, plus a ton of fibre and you'll consume far fewer calories in the long run. The fibre in the fruit helps to slow digestion, keeping you full longer.
7. Keep Fruit Consumption Moderate. I know I said eat fruit instead of drinking juice, but if you were drinking ten glasses of juice a day, you can't eat ten pieces of fruit each day and expect to lose body fat. For those who have reducing body fat as an objective, keep fruit consumption to just a few pieces a day at most. Fruit, while containing lots of fibre, vitamins, and minerals, also contains significantly more sugar than vegetables, which also contain lots of fiber, vitamins and minerals. So if you believe you need to eat more fruit to get enough nutrients, think again. Reach for additional veggies if you think you need more than a few pieces of fruit each day.
8. Beware of Hidden Sugars. If you pick up a food and the label says there's 30g of total carbohydrates, and you notice beside the word "sugars" it only says 3 or 4 grams, what do you think is making up the difference? It's sugars of some sort. So take the total grams as what you're eating. Divide the total number by 4 and that will tell you how many teaspoons of sugar you're eating.
9. Increase Your Nutritional Awareness. I rarely read nutritional labels because most of the foods I eat don't come with nutritional labels. Apples, oats, broccoli, etc... these things don't need labels because they're in their natural form. Its only when man has messed with the ingredients (usually screwing it up in the process) that things needed to be labeled. Conversely, obsessing about nutritional content of foods is a surefire way to end up with all sorts of health problems. However, if you do pick up a food that has a label, give it a quick read, and make yourself aware of what you're putting in your body. The old saying "Ignorance is Bliss", is only true until you start suffering, and then Ignorance is your regret.
10. Use the 5 Ingredient rule. Try not to buy foods that have more than 5 ingredients listed on the label. If you limit it to five, chances are there won't be any refined sugars.
Day 5 Review of Your Beach Body Boot Camp by guest blogger Katy Sinha
Good morning !
Glad to get back to my car after boot camp this morning. We had a touch of rain and the BUGS were crazy outside! THERE! I said it. I was sneaking my blog entries in without mention of the bugs, but finally, I broke down and had to write about it. As they say, if it doesn't kill me it'll make me stronger! I think we're talking mental toughness again.
As for the drills today, push ups came into the lineup. I started with my sissy push ups from the knees in the first round. I promptly moved to push ups from my feet as I noticed that everyone else was challenging themselves with the real thing. Yes I do have a competitive streak in me and I figure that doing only 6 push ups in 20 seconds is better than 12 from my knees.
Sneaky Shane has now organized the drill order so that in a series of 4 stations, the end of the first station and the start of the second station are at opposite corners of the camp. Our precious rest period between stations is getting taken up by having to hoof it to the next drill. Boot camp, like in the military, is starting to have its effect. I've noticed that we're now in the habit of starting the next drill when we hear the 'beeeep' and not waiting for Shane to give us the verbal cue to start. Our collective attitude of "I won't do it if I don't have to do it" is now shifting to "well, I'm here so I might as well get stronger".
Looking forward to day 6 tricks.
Katy
That wraps it up for today! Come back tomorrow for Day 6 Review, and more goodies to keep you strong, healthy, and happy!
Until next time,
Shane Miller, CFT, CSN
Your Strength and Fat Loss Coach
www.your-beach-body-boot-camp.com
www.your-strength-and-fat-loss-coach.com
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