Whether it has been on vacation, a business trip, or that you're just pinched for time; I think we have all tried (at one time or another) to use the excuse that we don't have enough time to or are too busy to fit a workout into our daily schedule. Whether this is a daily obstacle or just a here-and-there speed bump, there is a solution for you.
I am not typically a fan of fitness magazines in general due to financial endorsements and bias, but now and then I come across something I feel is worth passing on. Men's Fitness recently ran a few articles that, for what it's worth, have my "seal of approval." You will find my comments in italic font.
In a Hurry is NOT an excuse:
The particular workouts as prescribed in the article are as follows.
10 Minute Workout:
1) Woodchop with resistance band - 2 sets of 12-15 reps
2) Push Ups - 2 sets of 10 reps
3) Jump Push Up (hand and feet both leave the ground at top of rep) - 2 sets of2 10 reps
4) Walking Push Up (from push up position: walk on your hands, dragging your feet. One "step" = one rep) - 2 sets of 10-12 reps
5) Ice Skater (Stand on one leg, keep back in natural position, bend forward at the hip, raise one leg off the ground and touch same-side hand to the ground as far in front of you as possible) - 2 sets of 8-10 reps (each side)
6) Plyo Lunge (Jump from lunge position rather than stand) - 2 sets of 12 reps (each side)
7) Stationary Lunge - 2 sets of 12 reps (each side)
20 Minute Workout:
1) Banded woodchop - 2 sets of 12-15 reps
2) 10 x 20 yrd sprint (walking from finish back to start)
3) Push Up + Row (hands grip kettlebell or dumbbell, at top of push up pull one weight up to your chest then repeat with other side; that's one rep) - 2 sets of 8-10 reps
4) Cobra to Superman ("Bend forward at the hips, squatting slightly, and reach your arms out in front of you with palms down. Hold for 10 seconds then reach your arms behind you and turn your palms up and hold for 10 seconds") - 2 reps of 5-10 seconds
5) Reverse Grip Row (Bent over row with dumbbells or kettlebells, palms facing out) - 2 sets of 15 reps
6) Reverse Flye ("Hold a dumbbell in each hand and stand on one leg. Bend forward at the hips so your arms hang straight down. Raise the weights to your sides") - 2 sets of 20 reps
7) Band Lateral Raise (Stand on a resistance band, holding one handle in each hand and raise it to your sides, both at the same time) - 3 sets of 12-15 reps
8) Dumbbell Curl - 2 sets of 20 reps (each side)
9) Dumbbell Band Kickback ("Hold a dumbbell in one hand and the end of an anchored band. Keeping your elbow close to your side, extend your arm behind you") - 2 sets of 20 reps (each side)
10) Band Lateral Rotation ("Hold the end of a band in each hand and bend your elbows 90 degrees. Pull the band apart") - 3 sets of 20 reps
How did it get my "seal"? A lot of these movements are done standing. This means that a lot of your body is involved with each and every movement. Also, the small stabilizing muscles in your body are also getting a workout as you have to maintain body tension throughout (though the bands to provide some stability as a cable would compared to free weights)
Variations: Obviously these can all be done with a variety of set/rep/load and work/rest ratios. Feel free to mix it up These should be ONLY taken as an outline for you to take and mold to your own needs.
Other Ideas: I remember reading a long time ago on the rossboxing.com forum about a simple 5 minute (or so) workout. The process was simply to pick four exercises (or more if you have time). The reps/sets were prescribed as max reps in a given time interval. For example, you would do exercise one, two, three, and four all back-to-back for (instance) 60 seconds each. WITHOUT REST go back to the first exercise and repeat, doing each for 45 seconds. Continue this progression until you reach your maximum total time or 5 second sets. To begin, decide how much time you have to workout. Then do the math to see what the max time per exercise is that you can start with, figuring in the other sets, and still meet your deadline.
The Hotel Workout:
Prescription: Perform each exercise for 30 seconds, resting as little as possible (or not at all) between exercises and sets.
The initial plan prescribes doing all upper body exercises first, followed by the lower body series. However, at a high enough intensity, fatigue and lactic acid build up will start to take effect. It may be a good idea to alternate between upper and lower body exercises.
1) Push Up (or any variation you'd like)
2) Seagull - "Get into push-up position and then bend your elbows 90 degrees so your forearms lie flat. Keeping your body in a straight line, reach one arm straight out to the side as you balance on the other. Then reach forward. Continue for 15 seconds and then repeat on the other arm"
3) High Five - "Lie on your back on the bed and plant your feet flat. Bridge your hips up so your butt is raised. Reach up with one arm alternately as if you're giving a high five. Keep your hips elevated"
4) Plank Up - Start in a plank position on your elbows, then raise yourself up to a push up position by moving one arm and then the other. Reverse the process to complete the rep.
5) Alternating Knee Dive - "Get into push-up position and raise one knee at a time to your chest and back
6) Single Leg Squat - "Stand on one leg, brace your abs, and lower yourself into a squat, going as deeply as you can." Be extra cautious here if you have bad knees!
7) Windmills - Stand with your legs as wide apart as possible. Raise your arms out to the sides. Keeping your arms straight, like the propeller of a windmill, and knees locked, touch one hand to the opposite toe, rise back to the start, and repeat with other side to complete the rep
8) Lunge + Twist - "Get into a lunge position with your right leg forward and hold a pillow in your outstretched arms. Rotate your torso as far as you can to the right; return to the center. Repeat for 30 seconds and then switch legs and rotate to the left."
Again, I like the idea here of having a lot of core involvement in each exercise. Doing the "High Five"s on the bed rather than the floor is like doing a push up or press with your hands or back on a swiss/bossu ball. The unstable/squishy surface will require more balance and involve much more of the core and fine muscle fibers.
So there you have it! Using the principles outlined here you should be primed to draw up a workout wherever your busy schedule takes you. Thanks for reading!
Note: The Men's Fitness issues consulted here were October and November of 2011. I do not have the Ross Boxing cite to give, but if you feel the need, please jump over to his website.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Time is Money: Tips on Eating Healthy and in a Hurry
It is no surprise to many people that eating healthier tends to be more expensive. Just to clarify, this is not as simple a statement as that. Eating healthy foods usually means lots of fresh produce and meat, two things that can easily run up your grocery bill compared to super-processed and ultra-high sodium foods such as frozen entres or carb laden fatty snacks. It's just a matter of economics. It is easy and cheap to process food in a factor and expensive to keep it fresh. If you are in such a financial crisis that you are putting a price tag on your health or how much you want to spend on the "new you" then there are probably more important things for you to consider such as keeping the lights on and paying rent!
Also on the economic node, we live in a society where more has the appeal of better. Even if that is not the case, has anyone NOT ever wished for more hours in the day? Recently this school year I went back as a full time student. What was different than when I graduated a year and a half prior? Well, for starters I am now also working full time. I am also training several clients for various competitions and am trying to stay in shape for competitions of my own. All in all, I essential have a full time job, a part time job, and a 14 credit hour course load that requires about 30 hours of homework a week. What you're looking at is about a 20 hour day. Many times it is the case that children, family obligations. work, and school take priority over finite dieting principles, which they should! The purpose of this blog is not to convince you otherwise, but to provide some comfort in knowing that a beyond-busy lifestyle and a good diet do not have to be mutually exclusive.
One thing to note before we go on is that time tends to equal money. That is, things that are fast are more expensive because you are paying for the convenience of faster service. Things that are cheap, such as cooking your own meals tend to be time consuming and less "productive." Productivity being a term relative to what your willing to sacrifice for your goals, of course.
Tips for Eating Healthy in a Hurry:
1) Cook your meals ahead of time - If you cook all your meals independently then you have to clear at least a 20 min window 5-7 times per day for each meal, and that is not counting cleaning up and actually EATING! Rather, clear about a 2 hour window in the morning to prepare your meals, plop them in a tupperware container, store in the fridge, and clean up after yourself.
2) Cook WAY ahead of time - one suggestion is to cook in mass quantities on those rare occasions when you do have free time. For example, buy a bag of frozen chicken breasts and over the weekend grill ALL of them. Then put them into a gallon ziploc bag and store in the fridge. It is at low risk for spoiling because it is already cooked, and all you have to do is microwave and add veggies, pasta, etc to complete the meal.
3) Chop ahead of time - this is the vegetable application of No. 2. Just like cooking your chicken in mass quantities ahead of time, chop your vegetables and nuts, store them in ziplocs and have them ready to serve up whenever you need.
4) Double and Split meals - This is one of my favorites. Rather than cook two separate meals, you can add up the total nutrient you would need from the two combined, cook it as follows, then divide it up into however many meals you wish. Again, tupperware, refrigerate, and microwave when needed.
5) Canned Fruit and Vegetables - This can be a major time saver so that you don't have to slice and dice your produce. Simply open the can, get what you need, then stretch some syran wrap over the top of the can and save it in the fridge for later use if you don't use the whole thing.
6) Supplements - Whole foods are hands down superior to supplements. However, the value of supplements comes in their convenience and portability. Rather than having to cook a steak and carry around a lunchbox all day, you may consider a scoop or two of whey protein in a ziploc bag that you can add to a bottle of water at any time during the day.
Tips for Eating Healthy on a Budget:
1) Discounted Meat - Meats tend to suck up a lot of your grocery budget in a hurry. One option here is just common sense. Buy a news paper, or scower over one you snag at work, and take note of stores who are running specials on fresh meat. Also, while in the store, as long as you're going to eat the meat in a timely manner, you could save a lot by opting for the discounted "day old" variety.
2) Keep the Fat - Extra lean meats come at an outrageous price compared to their chunky counterparts. However, there is a solution, and an easy one. To save money purchase the 80/20 ground beef (for example) rather than the 97/3. With the money you save over time, purchase a George Foreman (or similar) grill. You can then save money and drain about 10g of fat off a 4oz patty.
3) Check Unit Prices - Just because the price on the sticker is lower doesn't mean you're getting as good of a deal as you think. Check the price per ounce of products, which is also on the sticker, to make sure that you are really saving money. If you're not careful, you may pay less and get proportionately MUCH less!
4) Calorie Dense Foods - This is typically do be avoided when dieting, but as I stated early in this post, the more calorie dense and less refined a product is, the cheaper it will likely be. Thus, in moderation calorie dense foods can save you some time, and fill you up for fewer dollars.
5) Buy Generic - You should not be paying for the name on the label, but rather the fuel you're consuming. If the ingredients and contents are the same, or similar enough to justify the price, then opt for the cheaper. The taste factor can be thrown off by price because people will try to justify their purchases, not just in food, by thinking that because they paid more they would like to think they received a higher quality product.
6) Bulk or No Bulk - Buying fruits, vegetables, meat, and everything else in bulk may result in you getting a cheaper unit price and a cheaper net price in the long run. However, if half of it goes rotten or spoils, then you have wasted the extra money you invested in up front to get the whopping 10lb block of ground beef.
Most of the tips in the above lists can be utilize in sync with each other. There will always be a trade off between price and convenience. BUT, there is a balance, or at least you can choose to be an informed consumer and strategic grocery shopper and attempt to synergize the two. Buying in bulk can save you money, and proper planning by preparing that supply ahead of time and storing it in the freezer or fridge can save you some serious time and cash. The bottom line here is that you need to make an effort to find a way rather than assuming that the rules of economics will prove your diet unacceptable. Be smart. You may not be able to have your cake and eat it too, but would you be content with brownies and cupcakes?
Also on the economic node, we live in a society where more has the appeal of better. Even if that is not the case, has anyone NOT ever wished for more hours in the day? Recently this school year I went back as a full time student. What was different than when I graduated a year and a half prior? Well, for starters I am now also working full time. I am also training several clients for various competitions and am trying to stay in shape for competitions of my own. All in all, I essential have a full time job, a part time job, and a 14 credit hour course load that requires about 30 hours of homework a week. What you're looking at is about a 20 hour day. Many times it is the case that children, family obligations. work, and school take priority over finite dieting principles, which they should! The purpose of this blog is not to convince you otherwise, but to provide some comfort in knowing that a beyond-busy lifestyle and a good diet do not have to be mutually exclusive.
One thing to note before we go on is that time tends to equal money. That is, things that are fast are more expensive because you are paying for the convenience of faster service. Things that are cheap, such as cooking your own meals tend to be time consuming and less "productive." Productivity being a term relative to what your willing to sacrifice for your goals, of course.
Tips for Eating Healthy in a Hurry:
1) Cook your meals ahead of time - If you cook all your meals independently then you have to clear at least a 20 min window 5-7 times per day for each meal, and that is not counting cleaning up and actually EATING! Rather, clear about a 2 hour window in the morning to prepare your meals, plop them in a tupperware container, store in the fridge, and clean up after yourself.
2) Cook WAY ahead of time - one suggestion is to cook in mass quantities on those rare occasions when you do have free time. For example, buy a bag of frozen chicken breasts and over the weekend grill ALL of them. Then put them into a gallon ziploc bag and store in the fridge. It is at low risk for spoiling because it is already cooked, and all you have to do is microwave and add veggies, pasta, etc to complete the meal.
3) Chop ahead of time - this is the vegetable application of No. 2. Just like cooking your chicken in mass quantities ahead of time, chop your vegetables and nuts, store them in ziplocs and have them ready to serve up whenever you need.
4) Double and Split meals - This is one of my favorites. Rather than cook two separate meals, you can add up the total nutrient you would need from the two combined, cook it as follows, then divide it up into however many meals you wish. Again, tupperware, refrigerate, and microwave when needed.
5) Canned Fruit and Vegetables - This can be a major time saver so that you don't have to slice and dice your produce. Simply open the can, get what you need, then stretch some syran wrap over the top of the can and save it in the fridge for later use if you don't use the whole thing.
6) Supplements - Whole foods are hands down superior to supplements. However, the value of supplements comes in their convenience and portability. Rather than having to cook a steak and carry around a lunchbox all day, you may consider a scoop or two of whey protein in a ziploc bag that you can add to a bottle of water at any time during the day.
Tips for Eating Healthy on a Budget:
1) Discounted Meat - Meats tend to suck up a lot of your grocery budget in a hurry. One option here is just common sense. Buy a news paper, or scower over one you snag at work, and take note of stores who are running specials on fresh meat. Also, while in the store, as long as you're going to eat the meat in a timely manner, you could save a lot by opting for the discounted "day old" variety.
2) Keep the Fat - Extra lean meats come at an outrageous price compared to their chunky counterparts. However, there is a solution, and an easy one. To save money purchase the 80/20 ground beef (for example) rather than the 97/3. With the money you save over time, purchase a George Foreman (or similar) grill. You can then save money and drain about 10g of fat off a 4oz patty.
3) Check Unit Prices - Just because the price on the sticker is lower doesn't mean you're getting as good of a deal as you think. Check the price per ounce of products, which is also on the sticker, to make sure that you are really saving money. If you're not careful, you may pay less and get proportionately MUCH less!
4) Calorie Dense Foods - This is typically do be avoided when dieting, but as I stated early in this post, the more calorie dense and less refined a product is, the cheaper it will likely be. Thus, in moderation calorie dense foods can save you some time, and fill you up for fewer dollars.
5) Buy Generic - You should not be paying for the name on the label, but rather the fuel you're consuming. If the ingredients and contents are the same, or similar enough to justify the price, then opt for the cheaper. The taste factor can be thrown off by price because people will try to justify their purchases, not just in food, by thinking that because they paid more they would like to think they received a higher quality product.
6) Bulk or No Bulk - Buying fruits, vegetables, meat, and everything else in bulk may result in you getting a cheaper unit price and a cheaper net price in the long run. However, if half of it goes rotten or spoils, then you have wasted the extra money you invested in up front to get the whopping 10lb block of ground beef.
Most of the tips in the above lists can be utilize in sync with each other. There will always be a trade off between price and convenience. BUT, there is a balance, or at least you can choose to be an informed consumer and strategic grocery shopper and attempt to synergize the two. Buying in bulk can save you money, and proper planning by preparing that supply ahead of time and storing it in the freezer or fridge can save you some serious time and cash. The bottom line here is that you need to make an effort to find a way rather than assuming that the rules of economics will prove your diet unacceptable. Be smart. You may not be able to have your cake and eat it too, but would you be content with brownies and cupcakes?
Thursday, August 18, 2011
(Almost) Everything You Need to Know About Building a Diet
The following will illustrate the steps that I take personally and with all my clients when seeking to formulate a diet will suit the needs of the dieter.
BMR - The first step in creating a successful diet is to know what your baseline is. Your Base Metabolic Rate is the amount of fuel you body needs to sustain the weight you are at. It should be mentioned that this is the weight you are at given your current activity level. Activity level includes exercise routine and daily activeness. There are lots of calculations for figuring out your BMR online. However, most of them, no matter how scientific, are a waste of time. This is largely due to factors that cannot be accurately accounted for such as genetic disposition, metabolism, and activity level. There is, however, an accurate way to calculate BMR and that is based on the FACTS that are given in your life. For several days you will need to record how many calories you consume each day. It is very important here to NOT eat extra healthy just because you are keeping track. This will only set you up for failure. We are trying to figure out what you eat on a random day, not a day when you are trying to eat more healthy than usual. If you cheat now, your BMR will be figured much too low and your diet will be all the harder to follow as it will be MUCH more aggressive than it should be. As I have said before, the more aggressive a diet or exercise plan, the more likely you will fail. The reason it needs to be done over the course of several days is that there may be one outlying day that can skew the results if you were busy at work and skipped a meal or were stressed out and binged on a tub of ice cream. Once you have recorded your caloric intake for at least 4 days, take the average and that will give you what we will call your BMR.
Why is this the most accurate procedure? Because everything is custom suited to your body, your genetics, and your lifestyle. If you eat what you currently eat, exercise as much as you do (or don't), and maintain all of your daily activities you WILL weigh what you currently weigh. The only room for failure is if you were not honest with yourself and cheated on the numbers a bit.
MACRONUTRIENTS - The next step, whether you are trying to loose weight or build lean mass, is to configure what percent of your daily calories will come from which nutrients. Every calorie you consume will either come from a fat, protein, or carbohydrate source. Manipulation of macronutrient ratios can have dynamic effects on the body, both in terms of weight and composition. As a loose figure Protein intake should be between 40 and 50 percent, fat between 20 and 30 percent, and carbohydrates between 20 and 40 percent. It is important to know that your body needs ALL of these nutrients. Having an extremely high content of any of them, or an extremely low content, does more harm than good. As a starting point, for those looking to maintain their weight I recommend 40% protein, 30% fat, and 30% carbohydrates. For those looking to gain weight a good starting point would be 40% protein, 35% carbohydrates, and 25% fat. If you are looking to lose a few pounds; 45% protein, 35% fat, 30% carbohydrates. It is also important to know that these are NOT concrete figures. Everyone's body is different and will handle the energy intake sources differently. It will take a lot of trial and error to figure out which nutrient ratios are right for you. That is just the way it is. There is no quick fix. More on this topic later...
GOALS - You need to know what your plans are. Do you want to build lean mass? Do you want to get in shape for summer? Do you simply want to maintain your weight but be more fit? These are general goals that must be determined before beginning a diet plan. You also need to account for the time that you want to achieve your goal. I have mentioned many times before that loosing or gaining too fast will only mean that you are more likely to fail at your goal. Thus, your goals need to be lofty yet attainable. Typically whether you are losing or gaining weight it should not be at a rate of more than 1-2 lbs per week. One pound per week would be conservative, but two per week would be very aggressive. Keep in mind that it takes a surplus/deficit of 3500 calories to gain/lose one pound of body mass. I typically recommend that clients plan to gain/loose about 5lbs per week which is a good , stable pace. We will also revisit this topic later.
MACRONUTRIENTS 2 - Everyone's body is different and will handle the switch to proper macronutrients differently. This is why it is important to spend a couple weeks trying out different macronutrient ratios. This should be done without adding or subtracting anything from your BMR. You should spend this time consuming the same amount of calories you normally would, but get them from good sources and in adequte ratios. Proteins should be lean. Carbohydrates should come primarily from green vegetables, few colored vegetables, occasional fruits, and sparring starchy vegetables (such as corn and potatoes) and grains/pasta. Fats should also come from good sources such as nuts and fish, with a bit from vegetable and animal fats. As a side note, if you feel like you never recover fast enough from your workouts, try adding some protein. If you get hardcore sweet tooth cravings, add a little fat. If you feel like you don't have enough energy to get through the day, add some carbohydrates.
GOALS 2 - Now that your goals are set and you know which macronutrient ratios will best suit you, you can begin planning a time frame to achieve your goal. For example 12 weeks or 3 months. Next, decide the amount of weight you would like to loose or gain. As an example 15 lbs. This is still a pretty aggressive plan to loose 15 lbs in 3 months, but for mathematics sake we will go with it. It is always best to start conservative and then work your way up rather than start too aggressive, fail, and have to start all over again. Now, 3500 calories/lb x 15 lbs is 52,500 calories. This means that if you're looking to gain 15 lbs in 3 months than you will need to consume an excess of 17,500 calories and have the same deficit if you're looking to loose 15 lbs. If we are going by a weekly measurement this comes out to 52500 / 12 = 4375. 4375 / 7 days per week = a surpluss/deficit of 625 calories per day. If you are looking to gain, add this to your BMR, if you are looking to loose, subtract it. Apply the macronutrient ratios that work best for you to your new BMR (nBMR).
MAKING MEALS - When deciding what to eat first choose your protein source. Then choose a fat source. Lastly select a carbohydrate source. Remember that some foods will count as a double selection. That is, eggs and cheese are high in protein but also in fat for example.
WHEN TO EAT - You should be eating 5-7 small meals per day. There are two main reasons for this. The first is that eating small meals will ramp up your metabolism. The opposite is true if you were to only eat 1-3 times per day. The result of that would be that your body cannot use all that fuel at once or does not know when it will be fed next and will store the excess calories as fat. If your metabolism is slower then your body will also hold onto those calories longer making it much more difficult to get rid of them. The second reason is that eating several small meals per day controls your insulin levels. Insulin increases testosterone in the body BUT it also blunts the fat burning process; something that is a strong negative for both hardgainers and dieters alike. Keep in mind that there is also an adjustment period for this process. If you eat too many meals per day then your body, and more importantly your brain, will never feel like it is satisfied from a feeding, and thus you will feel like you are always hungry. If you are eating too few meals per day, we have already discussed that. Essentially the VERY general idea here is that no matter how long your day is, you should be eating lean protein, green vegetables, healthy fats, and a small amount of fruit or starch every 2-3 hours.
DAILY BREAKDOWN - If you have applied your macronutrient ratios to your nBMR, then you will know how many grams of each macronutrient you need each day. Protein content should be steady throughout. Fat and carbohydrate intake should also be relatively consistent with the following exceptions. You need the most carbohydrates first thing in the morning (as your body has not been fed for 6-8 hours while you slept) and following your workout for restorative purposes. Fat content should be low in the morning and post-workout and relatively high at the last meal of the day. You should not eat anything 1-2 hours before going to bed. You want your body to have fuel overnight, but want it to start digesting before your metabolism slows during sleep. You don't want your body to store calories (stored calories are fat), but you don't want to push it so close that you're hungry right before bed.
THAT'S (ALMOST) ALL SHE WROTE - There you have it! ALMOST everything you need to know about building a diet. This is a free blog to view, read, and subscribe to. It would simply be bad business for me to provide the same services here that I do to clients who pay hard earned sweat, blood, tears, and dollars for it. Hope you enjoyed the read!
BMR - The first step in creating a successful diet is to know what your baseline is. Your Base Metabolic Rate is the amount of fuel you body needs to sustain the weight you are at. It should be mentioned that this is the weight you are at given your current activity level. Activity level includes exercise routine and daily activeness. There are lots of calculations for figuring out your BMR online. However, most of them, no matter how scientific, are a waste of time. This is largely due to factors that cannot be accurately accounted for such as genetic disposition, metabolism, and activity level. There is, however, an accurate way to calculate BMR and that is based on the FACTS that are given in your life. For several days you will need to record how many calories you consume each day. It is very important here to NOT eat extra healthy just because you are keeping track. This will only set you up for failure. We are trying to figure out what you eat on a random day, not a day when you are trying to eat more healthy than usual. If you cheat now, your BMR will be figured much too low and your diet will be all the harder to follow as it will be MUCH more aggressive than it should be. As I have said before, the more aggressive a diet or exercise plan, the more likely you will fail. The reason it needs to be done over the course of several days is that there may be one outlying day that can skew the results if you were busy at work and skipped a meal or were stressed out and binged on a tub of ice cream. Once you have recorded your caloric intake for at least 4 days, take the average and that will give you what we will call your BMR.
Why is this the most accurate procedure? Because everything is custom suited to your body, your genetics, and your lifestyle. If you eat what you currently eat, exercise as much as you do (or don't), and maintain all of your daily activities you WILL weigh what you currently weigh. The only room for failure is if you were not honest with yourself and cheated on the numbers a bit.
MACRONUTRIENTS - The next step, whether you are trying to loose weight or build lean mass, is to configure what percent of your daily calories will come from which nutrients. Every calorie you consume will either come from a fat, protein, or carbohydrate source. Manipulation of macronutrient ratios can have dynamic effects on the body, both in terms of weight and composition. As a loose figure Protein intake should be between 40 and 50 percent, fat between 20 and 30 percent, and carbohydrates between 20 and 40 percent. It is important to know that your body needs ALL of these nutrients. Having an extremely high content of any of them, or an extremely low content, does more harm than good. As a starting point, for those looking to maintain their weight I recommend 40% protein, 30% fat, and 30% carbohydrates. For those looking to gain weight a good starting point would be 40% protein, 35% carbohydrates, and 25% fat. If you are looking to lose a few pounds; 45% protein, 35% fat, 30% carbohydrates. It is also important to know that these are NOT concrete figures. Everyone's body is different and will handle the energy intake sources differently. It will take a lot of trial and error to figure out which nutrient ratios are right for you. That is just the way it is. There is no quick fix. More on this topic later...
GOALS - You need to know what your plans are. Do you want to build lean mass? Do you want to get in shape for summer? Do you simply want to maintain your weight but be more fit? These are general goals that must be determined before beginning a diet plan. You also need to account for the time that you want to achieve your goal. I have mentioned many times before that loosing or gaining too fast will only mean that you are more likely to fail at your goal. Thus, your goals need to be lofty yet attainable. Typically whether you are losing or gaining weight it should not be at a rate of more than 1-2 lbs per week. One pound per week would be conservative, but two per week would be very aggressive. Keep in mind that it takes a surplus/deficit of 3500 calories to gain/lose one pound of body mass. I typically recommend that clients plan to gain/loose about 5lbs per week which is a good , stable pace. We will also revisit this topic later.
MACRONUTRIENTS 2 - Everyone's body is different and will handle the switch to proper macronutrients differently. This is why it is important to spend a couple weeks trying out different macronutrient ratios. This should be done without adding or subtracting anything from your BMR. You should spend this time consuming the same amount of calories you normally would, but get them from good sources and in adequte ratios. Proteins should be lean. Carbohydrates should come primarily from green vegetables, few colored vegetables, occasional fruits, and sparring starchy vegetables (such as corn and potatoes) and grains/pasta. Fats should also come from good sources such as nuts and fish, with a bit from vegetable and animal fats. As a side note, if you feel like you never recover fast enough from your workouts, try adding some protein. If you get hardcore sweet tooth cravings, add a little fat. If you feel like you don't have enough energy to get through the day, add some carbohydrates.
GOALS 2 - Now that your goals are set and you know which macronutrient ratios will best suit you, you can begin planning a time frame to achieve your goal. For example 12 weeks or 3 months. Next, decide the amount of weight you would like to loose or gain. As an example 15 lbs. This is still a pretty aggressive plan to loose 15 lbs in 3 months, but for mathematics sake we will go with it. It is always best to start conservative and then work your way up rather than start too aggressive, fail, and have to start all over again. Now, 3500 calories/lb x 15 lbs is 52,500 calories. This means that if you're looking to gain 15 lbs in 3 months than you will need to consume an excess of 17,500 calories and have the same deficit if you're looking to loose 15 lbs. If we are going by a weekly measurement this comes out to 52500 / 12 = 4375. 4375 / 7 days per week = a surpluss/deficit of 625 calories per day. If you are looking to gain, add this to your BMR, if you are looking to loose, subtract it. Apply the macronutrient ratios that work best for you to your new BMR (nBMR).
MAKING MEALS - When deciding what to eat first choose your protein source. Then choose a fat source. Lastly select a carbohydrate source. Remember that some foods will count as a double selection. That is, eggs and cheese are high in protein but also in fat for example.
WHEN TO EAT - You should be eating 5-7 small meals per day. There are two main reasons for this. The first is that eating small meals will ramp up your metabolism. The opposite is true if you were to only eat 1-3 times per day. The result of that would be that your body cannot use all that fuel at once or does not know when it will be fed next and will store the excess calories as fat. If your metabolism is slower then your body will also hold onto those calories longer making it much more difficult to get rid of them. The second reason is that eating several small meals per day controls your insulin levels. Insulin increases testosterone in the body BUT it also blunts the fat burning process; something that is a strong negative for both hardgainers and dieters alike. Keep in mind that there is also an adjustment period for this process. If you eat too many meals per day then your body, and more importantly your brain, will never feel like it is satisfied from a feeding, and thus you will feel like you are always hungry. If you are eating too few meals per day, we have already discussed that. Essentially the VERY general idea here is that no matter how long your day is, you should be eating lean protein, green vegetables, healthy fats, and a small amount of fruit or starch every 2-3 hours.
DAILY BREAKDOWN - If you have applied your macronutrient ratios to your nBMR, then you will know how many grams of each macronutrient you need each day. Protein content should be steady throughout. Fat and carbohydrate intake should also be relatively consistent with the following exceptions. You need the most carbohydrates first thing in the morning (as your body has not been fed for 6-8 hours while you slept) and following your workout for restorative purposes. Fat content should be low in the morning and post-workout and relatively high at the last meal of the day. You should not eat anything 1-2 hours before going to bed. You want your body to have fuel overnight, but want it to start digesting before your metabolism slows during sleep. You don't want your body to store calories (stored calories are fat), but you don't want to push it so close that you're hungry right before bed.
THAT'S (ALMOST) ALL SHE WROTE - There you have it! ALMOST everything you need to know about building a diet. This is a free blog to view, read, and subscribe to. It would simply be bad business for me to provide the same services here that I do to clients who pay hard earned sweat, blood, tears, and dollars for it. Hope you enjoyed the read!
Monday, July 25, 2011
Building the Right Diet for You
I have said before that there are many different types of diets for the different needs and goals people have. For example, there is a huge difference between what a professional athlete considers a “good diet” and what a middle aged person looking to lose a few pounds that have accumulated over the years may consider a “good diet.” Which is right? Well… they both are. Your diet should suit your lifestyle and your goals. However, it is important to keep in mind that no matter what your goals are, the more aggressive approach you take, the more likely you will fail. In other words, if you want to lose 30 lbs in two months it is probably not going to happen. If it does, you are almost guaranteed to gain it all (and then some) back again. The more moderate your goals are, the more likely you will be able to sustain them for a long period of time; or ideally for the rest of your life. Hence, dieting is a lifestyle change. You should not really be “on a diet” simply “my diet (the way and what I eat) is this.”
If you read my blog posts on “Dieting for Dummies” then you will be reminded of the different degrees of dieting that accompany different goals. There are far too many variables from genetics to lifestyles and everything in between to assume that any one “fad” diet is going to work for everyone. There is just too much uncertainty involved. Where do we get concrete information and results? I will tell you.
In spite of having innumerous variables that are impossible to accurately calculate and compensate for, there are a few certainties or “givens” as I call them. What is a given? A given universally true. It is fact. It is not subject to change via activity level or genetic makeup or anything else. Ironically, the same givens are true for everyone while the specifics of each given are as wide varying as the people applying them. What are these “magic” Givens you I speak of?...
We are given a few concrete pieces of information prior to building a diet. 1) Your lifestyle (how active you are in your everyday life including your exercise routine). 2) The amount of energy you are consuming (the calories you’re eating). 3) Your weight. What do these mean? They mean that given your current activity level and energy in take, respective of the sources you are getting your energy from, you WILL weight what you currently weigh. How do I know this? Because the fact is that you DO weight ### lbs and you DO consume #### calories per day, and your daily routine IS what you do every day. “If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.” Got it?
So what needs to happen? If your weight is what you want to change, then one of the other two variables are going to need to be altered. That is, you will either need to adopt a more active lifestyle (to expend more energy) – OR – adapt and restrict your diet (so that you consume less energy). I am a vicious advocate of the idea that you cannot out work a shitty diet. If you think you can eat whatever you want because you work out a lot, you’re dead wrong. You may be in the gym flexing in front of mirrors 6 days per week for hours at a time, but if you spend the rest of your day feeding your face with grease-burgers, potato chips, and candy bars while you sit in your cubicle you’re not really going to get very far. Ideally you would change both factors in this equation. That is, become more active by exercising more (frequency and intensity are preferred routes to volume) and by moderating your energy intake. Now it’s time for some examples.
With my current fitness and activity level (that is, if I continue exercising and going about my daily activities in exactly the same amount of volume, frequency, and intensity that I do currently) I need to consume about 1800 calories per day to maintain a weight of 165 lbs. How do I know all of this with such scientific certainty? Well, I DO weight 165 lbs and DO consume about 1800 calories per day and my exercise regimen and daily activity levels ARE constant on a day-to-day and long term basis. OK, so now you know that if you maintain your current activity level (either exercising or not, having a physically demanding job or not), if you do not change anything in your day-to-day life but alter my diet, I will lose weight. Great, but where do I go from here?
Personally, I have a very low percentage of body fat, so I am not participating in the following example. The numbers shown above are accurate and truthful to myself, but below they will be used purely as a mathematical speculation to demonstrate the dieting process. Now, let’s say that I wanted to lose 10 lbs. The first thing that I have to do after choosing a goal is to decide upon a reasonable time frame to complete it. You should NOT try to lose any more than 2lbs per week. This is not healthy, though I have done it and have seen others do it as well and keep the weight off. My professional recommendation is to plan to lose about 5lbs per month (4weeks) which meets the generally recommended criteria of 1-2 lbs per week. The same is also true of gaining weight. More than 2/week is too much, a good goal would be the same as losing weight; 1-2 lbs per week or about 5 lbs per month. That is a little over 1 lb per week which is plenty doable and will also not be so harsh on the body that you cannot sustain yourself throughout the day or keep the weight off once your goal has been met. So, with that in mind, my theoretical goal of losing 10lbs should take me about 2 months, or 8 weeks. Using a little mathematical reduction here, that’s 1.25 lbs per week. Time for more math. To gain/lose 1 lb of dietary body weight (not from fluids or excrement) you need to have a caloric surplus/deficit of 3500 calories. 1.25 lbs x 3500 calories/lb = 4375. I need to have a caloric deficit of 4375 calories per week. Divide this by 7 and we find that I need to have a daily caloric deficit of 625 calories per day. Subtract that from my previous caloric intake (1800) and we find that if my daily activity level and exercise regimen stay the same, I can plan on losing 10 lbs in about 8 weeks if I reduce my caloric intake from 1800 calories to about 1175 calories. Now you see why it is so absurd to attempt to lose over 2lbs per week. To do so in the same time frame, I would have needed to go from eating 1800 calories per day to ONLY 550 calories per day! That is, of course, assuming that my diet is not being aided by additional exercise during the weight loss process. While extreme, this does paint an accurate and educational picture.
A SPECIAL NOTE: There should also be importance placed on the kinds of food you are eating. This is one of those intangible details that cannot be accurately depicted. Your body may respond differently to different types of foods and digest/absorb/excrete them at different rates as well. What I typically find in clients that I train is that they are actually not eating enough calories to lose weight! What I mean by this is that though they may only be eating 1200 calories per day, they may perhaps actually lose weight if the EAT MORE! Why is this? The 1200 calories they were eating before were 1200 calories of shit; pizza, alcohol, fatty, greasy, calorie-dense, starch-loaded, and sugary foods. One client in particular was actually able to lose weight while eating (compared to his previous 1200 calories/day) a whopping 2000 calories/day of clean food. He was eating more, felt more full, had more energy throughout the day, and his body was reaping the rewards of feeding it adequate nutrients in proper ratios. Macronutrient ratios are a topic for an entirely different post though J
Monday, June 20, 2011
A Success Story Pt II: "Secrets" and Post Competition Blues
The Secrets:
The "secret" to my success was exactly as the subtitle of part on says. "You can't outwork a shitty diet." I completely overhauled my diet and buckled down with obsessive determination, driven by the desire to compete in a lower weight class by means of healthy and stable weight loss. For a long time I relied on the excuse that I was "in shape enough" to "not need to worry about what I was eating." I could not have been more wrong. The bottom line is this. Imagine your current fitness level. Now imagine your diet in terms of what you eat. If your diet is not a healthy one, you may still manage to maintain what is to you an acceptable fitness level and physique. However, regardless of your current condition, imagine how great the gains could be if you actually bothered to control how much you ate and managed the nutrients you consume. The point should be clear. You may be "good enough", but is "good enough" good enough for you to settle on? For me, it was not.
The diet I followed was very strict. I DO NOT recommend such a diet for every day persons seeking to modestly "live healthier" or "get back into shape." Such a diet as the one I followed demanding to the point of near insanity and was only drawn up because the sports in which I compete mandate my body weight.
I did not bother calculating my Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) at my starting weight, nor did I calculate the current time it would take to acquire the appropriate caloric deficit needed to meet my weight goals over the given period of time; something I should have done and DO recommend to my clients. I started right off the bat with what I thought would be the minimum number of calories I needed. Then number was 1500 calories per day. I knew I would be losing a lot of weight and wanted to retain as much muscle tissue as possible to ensure that I was losing fat and not Lean Body Mass (LBM). I chose macronutrient ratios of 50% protein (187.5g / 750 cal), 25% fat (41.6g / 375 cal), and 25% carbohydrates (93.75g / 375 cal). Each day I recorded everything that I ate as well as the amount (grams or ounces), and grams of protein/fat/carbohydrates. I also planned on completely blowing my diet on a "cheat meal" twice per week. The reason for this is that it provides both and mental and physical stress relief while on a strict diet. There was no new-fangled, press-publicized "super food", or fad-diet that simply remains a "fad"... there was simply science and agonizing perseverance.
I did not adhere to any bodybuilding, isolation, or celebrity workout. I simply trained in the sports of my choice (Boxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) for about 6 - 8 hours per week, as well as doing the same of strength and conditioning workouts I was having a client of mine (at the the time) do.
I did use a few supplements while dieting down. I made good use of Whey Protein both as a shake and in cooking/baking to keep my protein supply high and clean. I also used a multi-vitamin to ensure that while losing weight my body still had plenty of micronutrients to work with. In addition, I also used a Joint Health Supplement due to the nature of combat sports.
Problems:
What I found was that I ended up cheating on my diet. That is, I was eating more food than I was recording. That being said, I was still consuming few enough calories to loose the required amount of weight. About half way through the training phase I had a "coming clean" revelation where I began actually recording EVERYTHING that I ate. I did not bother to revamp my planned diet. If it ain't broke, don't fix it; as the saying goes... I was loosing weight at the sufficient rate to achieve my goal. There was no problem, just a lack of honesty with myself.
A later problem that I would find after the competition is that as I remained on the same diet, I was still losing weight. This would not typically be a complaint for most people, however, I had my ideal competition weight class in mind and (now being much leaner) could not afford (psychologically or physically) to attempt to force myself to loose more weight.
Post-Workout Blues:
What this expression means is that there is that competition drives us to remain dedicated to our diets. In a sense, it is more difficult to maintain a certain weight than it is to loose weight. This is because the aspiration of a goal gives us a mental edge to push us towards obtaining that goal. I HAVE to do this if, I want to compete at this weight class - or - I have to do this if I want to fit into that swim suit by summer.
Part III: The Story Continues
My next BJJ competition is scheduled for August 21, 2011 in Chicago. My goal is now not to loose weight, but to gain about 5 lbs and maintain that weight. My goal is also to maintain that weight in a fashion that is a lay-man's diet and does not require the obsessive recording of every calorie and macronutrient my body takes in. After much trial and error of the past few weeks, I have finally settled on a diet that I believe will allow my body to reach the weight goals I have in mind while keeping body mass lean and do so without obsessive documentation (though still with much effort). The "new" diet is documented below. The "General Guide" as well as serving sizes are all that is to be memorized and logged. I started with the basics. Daily Caloric Need, Macronutrient Ratios, and then The New American Diet by Scivation as a guide and general game plan, but not as a Bible.
The "secret" to my success was exactly as the subtitle of part on says. "You can't outwork a shitty diet." I completely overhauled my diet and buckled down with obsessive determination, driven by the desire to compete in a lower weight class by means of healthy and stable weight loss. For a long time I relied on the excuse that I was "in shape enough" to "not need to worry about what I was eating." I could not have been more wrong. The bottom line is this. Imagine your current fitness level. Now imagine your diet in terms of what you eat. If your diet is not a healthy one, you may still manage to maintain what is to you an acceptable fitness level and physique. However, regardless of your current condition, imagine how great the gains could be if you actually bothered to control how much you ate and managed the nutrients you consume. The point should be clear. You may be "good enough", but is "good enough" good enough for you to settle on? For me, it was not.
The diet I followed was very strict. I DO NOT recommend such a diet for every day persons seeking to modestly "live healthier" or "get back into shape." Such a diet as the one I followed demanding to the point of near insanity and was only drawn up because the sports in which I compete mandate my body weight.
I did not bother calculating my Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) at my starting weight, nor did I calculate the current time it would take to acquire the appropriate caloric deficit needed to meet my weight goals over the given period of time; something I should have done and DO recommend to my clients. I started right off the bat with what I thought would be the minimum number of calories I needed. Then number was 1500 calories per day. I knew I would be losing a lot of weight and wanted to retain as much muscle tissue as possible to ensure that I was losing fat and not Lean Body Mass (LBM). I chose macronutrient ratios of 50% protein (187.5g / 750 cal), 25% fat (41.6g / 375 cal), and 25% carbohydrates (93.75g / 375 cal). Each day I recorded everything that I ate as well as the amount (grams or ounces), and grams of protein/fat/carbohydrates. I also planned on completely blowing my diet on a "cheat meal" twice per week. The reason for this is that it provides both and mental and physical stress relief while on a strict diet. There was no new-fangled, press-publicized "super food", or fad-diet that simply remains a "fad"... there was simply science and agonizing perseverance.
I did not adhere to any bodybuilding, isolation, or celebrity workout. I simply trained in the sports of my choice (Boxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) for about 6 - 8 hours per week, as well as doing the same of strength and conditioning workouts I was having a client of mine (at the the time) do.
I did use a few supplements while dieting down. I made good use of Whey Protein both as a shake and in cooking/baking to keep my protein supply high and clean. I also used a multi-vitamin to ensure that while losing weight my body still had plenty of micronutrients to work with. In addition, I also used a Joint Health Supplement due to the nature of combat sports.
Problems:
What I found was that I ended up cheating on my diet. That is, I was eating more food than I was recording. That being said, I was still consuming few enough calories to loose the required amount of weight. About half way through the training phase I had a "coming clean" revelation where I began actually recording EVERYTHING that I ate. I did not bother to revamp my planned diet. If it ain't broke, don't fix it; as the saying goes... I was loosing weight at the sufficient rate to achieve my goal. There was no problem, just a lack of honesty with myself.
A later problem that I would find after the competition is that as I remained on the same diet, I was still losing weight. This would not typically be a complaint for most people, however, I had my ideal competition weight class in mind and (now being much leaner) could not afford (psychologically or physically) to attempt to force myself to loose more weight.
Post-Workout Blues:
What this expression means is that there is that competition drives us to remain dedicated to our diets. In a sense, it is more difficult to maintain a certain weight than it is to loose weight. This is because the aspiration of a goal gives us a mental edge to push us towards obtaining that goal. I HAVE to do this if, I want to compete at this weight class - or - I have to do this if I want to fit into that swim suit by summer.
Part III: The Story Continues
My next BJJ competition is scheduled for August 21, 2011 in Chicago. My goal is now not to loose weight, but to gain about 5 lbs and maintain that weight. My goal is also to maintain that weight in a fashion that is a lay-man's diet and does not require the obsessive recording of every calorie and macronutrient my body takes in. After much trial and error of the past few weeks, I have finally settled on a diet that I believe will allow my body to reach the weight goals I have in mind while keeping body mass lean and do so without obsessive documentation (though still with much effort). The "new" diet is documented below. The "General Guide" as well as serving sizes are all that is to be memorized and logged. I started with the basics. Daily Caloric Need, Macronutrient Ratios, and then The New American Diet by Scivation as a guide and general game plan, but not as a Bible.
6/21 Diet
2000 Calories
Protein | 40% | 200g | 800 cal |
Fat | 30% | 66.6g | 599.4 cal |
Carbohydrates | 30% | 150g | 600 cal |
Estimates
Meal | Protein | Fat | Carb | Cal |
1 BFST | 40g | 13.2g | 40.8g | 442 |
2 POW | 40g | 6.6g | 27.2g | 328.2 |
3 LNCH | 40g | 13.2g | 40.8g | 442 |
`4 BRK(2) | 40g | 13.2g | 27.2g | 387.6 |
5 SPR | 40g | 19.8g | 13.6g | 329.6 |
General Guide
Meal | ||||
1 | 5 serv PTN | 2 serv STRCH | 2 serv FAT | 1 serv VEG |
2 | 5 serv PTN | 1 serv FRT | 1 serv FAT | 1 serv VEG |
3 | 5 serv PTN | 2 serv STRCH | 2 serv FAT | 1 serv VEG |
4 | 5 serv PTN | 1 serv FRT | 2 serv FAT | 1 serv VEG |
5 | 5 serv PTN | - | 3 serv FAT | 1 serv VEG |
Information
STARCH serv = Foods Containing ~ 12 – 15g Carbohydrates
FRUITT serv = Foods Containing ~ 12 – 15g Carbohydrates
VEGETABLE serv = Foods Containing ~ 4 – 6g Carbohydrates
PROTEIN serv = Foods Containing ~ 6-8g Protein
FAT serv = Foods Containing ~ 5g Fat
*subject to change via caloric need and macronutrient ratios
**Some foods count as a serving of multiple nutrients
Free
One serv / Meal / Day: less than 20 cal, less than 5g Carb, Cream Cheese, Fat Free Mayo, Fat free margarine, Fat Free Dressing, Fat free sour cream, hard candy (1), sugar free gum (1), low sugar/lite Jam/Jelly, sugar free syrup
AND
ONE unrestricted meal per week
*I do not work for, get sponsored by, or specificlly endorse any of the supplements, websites, companies, or links contained in this post
A Success Story Pt I: You Can't Outwork a Shitty Diet
In late May / early June of 2010, after graduating college I weighed 200 lbs. This was quite the jump since I had wrestled in high school at 170, 152, and then at 160; and in college at 165, 157, 174, then back to 165. The last competition being in the Fall of 2009. Those were (of course) dehydrated figures depicting the weight classes I was competing in. My natural weight would have been approximately 12 - 15 lbs higher. At 200 lbs I was still in shape, or trying to convince myself that I was. I did not look obese, but was not content with my now "average" (most 'average' Americans are overweight) body weight, athletic ability, or physique. And so the journey began....
After graduating college in May of 2010 I had been training to gain lean mass from previously weighing in the mid 180s. It is generally acknowledged that if you gain about 10 lbs of body mass, about 3 lbs will be from fat. However, the result of being in denial of my lax diet, and a very sedentary lifestyle outside of the gym, were very painfully obvious and certainly not favorable. Again, I probably was not extremely obese, but nor was I were I wanted to be in terms of physical ability.
I began training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Boxing, and Muay Thai Kickboxing at Peoria Athletic Club in Peoria, IL in May of 2010. After enduring many grueling training and sparring sessions my weight dwindled off a bit. Slowly but surely I was shedding the pounds, but my diet was still completely lax.
February 26, 2011 was my first Mixed Martial Arts fight. I had entered my training camp phase weighing about 187lbs. My goal through the next month (my "Training Camps" usually last 6 weeks with the first and last week being rest/recovery phases and the middle 4 weeks being exceptionally taxing) was to get to less than 185lbs in order to realistically be able to cut/dehydrate the remaining weight to weigh in at <170lbs. The night before the competition, at the weight ins, I weight in at 168lbs (Dehydrated). I got in the cage the next night at approximately 183lbs. I was victorious by Arm Bar Submission in 2:40 of the first round.
After the fight I did an analysis of my training, diet, and weight... the works. I felt that in all honesty, I was too short to be fighting as a welterweight at 170lbs. I am only 5'8" and my reach is short for my height, only about 65". I had sparred with many other welterweights who had much longer reach and some who were nearly 6 feet tall and some TALLER. It was clear that while I could manage at 170lbs, I was much better suited to fight at 155lbs (Lightweight). But was I willing to make the dietary sacrifices required?
With the summer of 2011 came the 2011 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. May 7th in St. Louis, MO would be my first BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) tournament. The weight class was to be 170lbs. However, different from MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) weigh ins, the weigh ins for this tournament were the morning of the competition, leaving only hours to rehydrate and refuel the body. I began cleaning up my diet after my about a month ahead of time by eating healthier foods such as fruits instead of sweets, whole grains instead of white grains, much more protein, and weening off fatty foods in general while maintaining healthy fats (those found in fish and nuts for example). At the competition I weighted 168 slightly dehydrated and without my Gi on. When fully hydrated I weighed about 180 with a 5lb Gi, meaning my naturally hydrated weight was about 175lbs. I took second place in the competition. (Below is a flexing picture from my home before departing to the tournament)
My next BJJ tournament was scheduled for June 11, 2011 in Indianapolis, IN. However, the weight classes were to again change. I was now mandated to weigh in at 167.5lbs while wearing a Gi. There would also only be an hour or two between weigh ins and the start of competition. Below are the progress pictures leading up to the tournament. Both were taken while hydrated, first thing in the morning after going to the bathroom and prior to eating or drinking anything. Preparation for this competition began immediately following the previous. I would go on to finish 2nd in a 16-man bracket at the competition.
How was this all accomplished? What new fangled diet and fancy supplements did I use? Which zealous bodybuilding magazines and celebrity workout regiments did I employ? Want the answers? Stay tuned for Part II.
After graduating college in May of 2010 I had been training to gain lean mass from previously weighing in the mid 180s. It is generally acknowledged that if you gain about 10 lbs of body mass, about 3 lbs will be from fat. However, the result of being in denial of my lax diet, and a very sedentary lifestyle outside of the gym, were very painfully obvious and certainly not favorable. Again, I probably was not extremely obese, but nor was I were I wanted to be in terms of physical ability.
I began training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Boxing, and Muay Thai Kickboxing at Peoria Athletic Club in Peoria, IL in May of 2010. After enduring many grueling training and sparring sessions my weight dwindled off a bit. Slowly but surely I was shedding the pounds, but my diet was still completely lax.
February 26, 2011 was my first Mixed Martial Arts fight. I had entered my training camp phase weighing about 187lbs. My goal through the next month (my "Training Camps" usually last 6 weeks with the first and last week being rest/recovery phases and the middle 4 weeks being exceptionally taxing) was to get to less than 185lbs in order to realistically be able to cut/dehydrate the remaining weight to weigh in at <170lbs. The night before the competition, at the weight ins, I weight in at 168lbs (Dehydrated). I got in the cage the next night at approximately 183lbs. I was victorious by Arm Bar Submission in 2:40 of the first round.
With the summer of 2011 came the 2011 Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. May 7th in St. Louis, MO would be my first BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu) tournament. The weight class was to be 170lbs. However, different from MMA (Mixed Martial Arts) weigh ins, the weigh ins for this tournament were the morning of the competition, leaving only hours to rehydrate and refuel the body. I began cleaning up my diet after my about a month ahead of time by eating healthier foods such as fruits instead of sweets, whole grains instead of white grains, much more protein, and weening off fatty foods in general while maintaining healthy fats (those found in fish and nuts for example). At the competition I weighted 168 slightly dehydrated and without my Gi on. When fully hydrated I weighed about 180 with a 5lb Gi, meaning my naturally hydrated weight was about 175lbs. I took second place in the competition. (Below is a flexing picture from my home before departing to the tournament)
May 29, 2011
169 lbs
June 10, 2011
165 lbs
How was this all accomplished? What new fangled diet and fancy supplements did I use? Which zealous bodybuilding magazines and celebrity workout regiments did I employ? Want the answers? Stay tuned for Part II.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Sandwich and Light Snacking Guide
The sandwich portion of this post comes from the May 2009 issue of Men's Health that I happened to read while seated in a waiting room. The healthy snacking information comes from a recently posted article on bodybuilding.com. Sources are at the bottom if you wish to check out the details.
The Art of a Healthy Sandwich:
Condiments from Best to Worst - Hummus, Honey Mustard, Guacamole, Dijon Mustard, Pesto, Miracle
Whip, Italian Dressing, Ranch Dressing, Mayonesse
Meat (1oz slice) Best to Worst - Turkey, Roast Beef, Honey Ham, Beef Pastrami, Salami, Bologna,
Mortadella
Cheese (1oz slice) Best to Worst - Fresh Mozzarella, Swiss, Sharp Cheddar, Provolone, Pepper Jack,
American
Reasons: Read Full Article (Link Below)
Easy Lunches and Healthy Snacks:
1. Chicken Wrap with a Whole-Wheat Tortilla
2. Dried Fruit, Pretzel, Almond, Pecan, Sunflower Seed = Trail Mix
3. Homemade Protein Peanut Butter Balls - "Mix 2 scoops of protein powder, ½ cup peanut butter, 1 cup of dry
oats, and ¼ cup dried cranberries. Once a sticky mixture is formed (note that you may need to add a small
amount of water to moisten), form into balls."
4. Beef Jerky and an Orange
5. Peanut Butter and Banana Roll-Ups (in whole-wheat Pita or Tortilla)
6. Protein Pancakes
The Art of a Healthy Sandwich:
Condiments from Best to Worst - Hummus, Honey Mustard, Guacamole, Dijon Mustard, Pesto, Miracle
Whip, Italian Dressing, Ranch Dressing, Mayonesse
Meat (1oz slice) Best to Worst - Turkey, Roast Beef, Honey Ham, Beef Pastrami, Salami, Bologna,
Mortadella
Cheese (1oz slice) Best to Worst - Fresh Mozzarella, Swiss, Sharp Cheddar, Provolone, Pepper Jack,
American
Reasons: Read Full Article (Link Below)
Easy Lunches and Healthy Snacks:
1. Chicken Wrap with a Whole-Wheat Tortilla
2. Dried Fruit, Pretzel, Almond, Pecan, Sunflower Seed = Trail Mix
3. Homemade Protein Peanut Butter Balls - "Mix 2 scoops of protein powder, ½ cup peanut butter, 1 cup of dry
oats, and ¼ cup dried cranberries. Once a sticky mixture is formed (note that you may need to add a small
amount of water to moisten), form into balls."
4. Beef Jerky and an Orange
5. Peanut Butter and Banana Roll-Ups (in whole-wheat Pita or Tortilla)
6. Protein Pancakes
7. Mexican Tuna - "Tuna is always a great grab-and-go protein source. Make good use of it in your quest
for lean mass. To prepare this muscle-building snack, open and drain a can of tuna. Combine with ¼ cup salsa, ½ cup kernel corn, and chopped mushrooms, peppers, and carrots."
8. Apple with Low-Fat Cheese
9. Protein Shake with Raw Oats
10. Canned Salmon with Whole-Wheat Crackers
11. Cottage Cheese with Canned Fruit
12. A Protein Bar
Source Info:
Recent Conditioning
Here are just a few workouts that I've done over the past couple weeks. They all have principles that translate to combat sports, core strength, and being cross fit (fit for all things). Some of them were not what you would call easy....
Workout 1:
5 Exercises in this order (Body Squat, Fingertip Pull Up, Push Up, Ball Slam, Body Row from Rings)
Each exercise is done for 5 minutes with as little rest and/or stoppage as possible. You MAY NOT switch to a previous or skip a head to the next exercise until you have finished all 5 minutes of the exercise (set). ORDER MATTERS. Rest 1 min between rounds. Score for each Exercise = # of Reps
Body Squat x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Finger Tip Pull Up x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Push Up x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Ball Slam x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Body Row from Rings x 5 min - DONE
AUSTIN'S RESULTS (5 min time limit on each exercise):
Squat x 304
Finger Tip Pull Up x 77
Push Up x 262
Ball Slam x 203
Body Row from Rings x 70
Workout 2:
a1 - Squat Jump x 10
b1 - Body Squat x 20
c1 - Tuck Jump x 10
Round 1 = (a1+b1+c1) x 3
Rest 3 min
a2 - Goblet Squat @ 70 lbs x 10
b2 - Ball Slam x 25
Round 2 = (a2+b2) x 3
Rest 3 min
a3 - Burpees x 15
b3 - Ball Slam x 15
c3 - Push Up x 10
Round 3 = (a3+b3+c3) x 3
Done
Workout 3:
Round 1 (on heavy bag or mitts - punches are max speed)
1 punch - 1 body squat
2 punches - 2 body squats
3 punches - 3 body squats
etc....
Round = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Rest 2 min
Round 2 = 4 players
P1 does 10/10 1-Hand KB Snatch @ 55lbs while other 3 Players do push ups until he/she is finished
Rotate so that P2 is now doing KB Snatch and P1, P3, and P4 are doing push ups
Continue to rotate until each player has completed all the required snatch reps
Rest 30 sec between player intervals
Workout 4 (8 people divided into 4 pairs/teams):
Each team elects someone to start and the other to finish. Race distance is 20 yrds down and 20 yrds back.
Round 1: Starter Bearcrawls 2 x 20 yrds while Closer does Push Ups; upon completion the Closer Bearcrawls 2 x 20 yrds while the Starter does Push Ups until their return
Team that won the round is eliminated
Round 2: Starter does 2 x 20 yrds Flying Burpees while Closer does Body Squats; reverse roles upon completion
Winning Team is eliminated
Round 3: Starter does 20 yrs somersaults followed by 20 yrd sprint back to start; Closer does Crunches until the starter's return, reverse roles upon starter's return
Winning team is eliminated
Round 4: Losing Pair does 1 min wall squat
Workout 1:
5 Exercises in this order (Body Squat, Fingertip Pull Up, Push Up, Ball Slam, Body Row from Rings)
Each exercise is done for 5 minutes with as little rest and/or stoppage as possible. You MAY NOT switch to a previous or skip a head to the next exercise until you have finished all 5 minutes of the exercise (set). ORDER MATTERS. Rest 1 min between rounds. Score for each Exercise = # of Reps
Body Squat x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Finger Tip Pull Up x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Push Up x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Ball Slam x 5 min - Rest 1 min
Body Row from Rings x 5 min - DONE
AUSTIN'S RESULTS (5 min time limit on each exercise):
Squat x 304
Finger Tip Pull Up x 77
Push Up x 262
Ball Slam x 203
Body Row from Rings x 70
Workout 2:
a1 - Squat Jump x 10
b1 - Body Squat x 20
c1 - Tuck Jump x 10
Round 1 = (a1+b1+c1) x 3
Rest 3 min
a2 - Goblet Squat @ 70 lbs x 10
b2 - Ball Slam x 25
Round 2 = (a2+b2) x 3
Rest 3 min
a3 - Burpees x 15
b3 - Ball Slam x 15
c3 - Push Up x 10
Round 3 = (a3+b3+c3) x 3
Done
Workout 3:
Round 1 (on heavy bag or mitts - punches are max speed)
1 punch - 1 body squat
2 punches - 2 body squats
3 punches - 3 body squats
etc....
Round = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
Rest 2 min
Round 2 = 4 players
P1 does 10/10 1-Hand KB Snatch @ 55lbs while other 3 Players do push ups until he/she is finished
Rotate so that P2 is now doing KB Snatch and P1, P3, and P4 are doing push ups
Continue to rotate until each player has completed all the required snatch reps
Rest 30 sec between player intervals
Workout 4 (8 people divided into 4 pairs/teams):
Each team elects someone to start and the other to finish. Race distance is 20 yrds down and 20 yrds back.
Round 1: Starter Bearcrawls 2 x 20 yrds while Closer does Push Ups; upon completion the Closer Bearcrawls 2 x 20 yrds while the Starter does Push Ups until their return
Team that won the round is eliminated
Round 2: Starter does 2 x 20 yrds Flying Burpees while Closer does Body Squats; reverse roles upon completion
Winning Team is eliminated
Round 3: Starter does 20 yrs somersaults followed by 20 yrd sprint back to start; Closer does Crunches until the starter's return, reverse roles upon starter's return
Winning team is eliminated
Round 4: Losing Pair does 1 min wall squat
Saturday, March 5, 2011
First Fight Training Camp
On Feb 26, 2011 I made my MMA debut which I won via armbar submission from a crucifix position in 2:40 of the first round. Below is the 6 week "Training Camp" that I followed leading up to the fight.
Week 1 - Rest. Relax and heal up from your regular training schedule to get ready for the next 6 weeks.
Weeks 2 - 5:
Monday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 4:30PM Boxing. 5PM BJJ. 6-7PM Teach Boxing
Tuesday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 5PM NoGi BJJ sparring. 6-7 Muay Thai
Wednesday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 4:30PM Boxing. 5-6PM BJJ
Thursday - 8AM Hard Shadow Boxing. 5:30 PM Boxing. 6-7PM Teach Boxing
Friday - 5-6:30 BJJ sparring
Saturday - 10:30AM-12:30 Boxing/Muay Thai/MMA sparring
Week 6 - Rest and recover. Discuss strategy with coaches. Cut weight
Diet: 5 meals per day
Morning Workout
Meal 1 - Carbs, Protein, Fat
Meal 2 (Noonish) - Fruit/Veg, Protein, Fat
Meal 3 (PreWorkout) - Fruit, Protein, Fat
Evening Workout
Meal 4 - Free Meal (eat whatever I want, but only 1 serving)
Meal 5 - Veg, Protein, Fat
Week 1 - Rest. Relax and heal up from your regular training schedule to get ready for the next 6 weeks.
Weeks 2 - 5:
Monday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 4:30PM Boxing. 5PM BJJ. 6-7PM Teach Boxing
Tuesday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 5PM NoGi BJJ sparring. 6-7 Muay Thai
Wednesday - 8AM Strength and Conditioning. 4:30PM Boxing. 5-6PM BJJ
Thursday - 8AM Hard Shadow Boxing. 5:30 PM Boxing. 6-7PM Teach Boxing
Friday - 5-6:30 BJJ sparring
Saturday - 10:30AM-12:30 Boxing/Muay Thai/MMA sparring
Week 6 - Rest and recover. Discuss strategy with coaches. Cut weight
Diet: 5 meals per day
Morning Workout
Meal 1 - Carbs, Protein, Fat
Meal 2 (Noonish) - Fruit/Veg, Protein, Fat
Meal 3 (PreWorkout) - Fruit, Protein, Fat
Evening Workout
Meal 4 - Free Meal (eat whatever I want, but only 1 serving)
Meal 5 - Veg, Protein, Fat
Exercise: A Means to an End
There seems to be a lot of debate in the strength and conditioning world over whether different set/rep/load combinations build different types of muscle. For example, some people think that low weight loads with extremely high repetitions build long skinny muscles while extremely heavy loads for a small number of repetitions builds only bulky muscle. This is really nonsense, and I will explain why.
Your physique is how the shape of your body looks. The single most determining factor in your physique is your DIET. It is NOT the number of reps or sets or the size of the load. It is your diet. Your diet has a far more profound impact than any other thing you will do to improve your physique, I would almost go as far as to say than any other factor combined (genetics excluded). As I have said earlier posts your weight is determined by calories consumed vs calories burned, that's it. If you want to loose weight, you need to burn more calories than you eat; and if you want to gain weight then you need to eat more than you burn. Simple as that. However, your body composition (what accounts for your body weight: muscle, fat, bone, water, etc...) is determined by WHAT you eat. With out going into too much detail, if all you eat is butter then whether you loose or gain weight you will still look like butter; the same is true if all you eat is steak. The concept that "you are what you eat" is mostly true with the exception that your body NEEDS fat, carbohydrates, and protein. They are ALL important necessities for your diet.
But this post isn't about dieting, its about exercise. While different exercises do change your physique as directly as exercising in general, they do serve a very specific purpose. The easiest way to explain this is to say that you should "practice how you will play." If you want to be a faster sprinter, then you need to sprint. If you want to be a better tennis player, you need to get more sets in on the court. If you have decided that you would like to lift weights to increase your athletic performance then there are a few things you should also realize.
While different exercises do not determine your physique, what they do do is condition your body to be more tolerant of a certain stimulus. What does that mean? It means that if you work explosive exercises like power cleans, you will develop very strong white (fast-twitch) muscle fibers while your red (slow-twitch) muscle fibers will remain the same or possibly weaken. This is why I call exercises a means to an end. The exercises that you choose to do should derive some sort of skill that you will be able to use when you perform. Obviously if you just want to "live healthier" then you have a lot of play in your exercise routine. If you are a body builder, then you also have a lot of play but concentrate more on working isolation (one muscle group at a time) exercises. If you are a power lifter then it is doing you no good to work on muscle endurance, you need to keep the reps low and the load high to condition your body for your competitions. If you are an endurance athlete (runners for example) weights can still help you but you will want to keep the weight very low and the reps very high, as this is how your body will perform when put to the test, with a low load and a very long duration. Football players often want to brag about their bench press when in reality they should be working explosive movements such as power cleans, jerk presses, power snatches, clean and presses, etc... because unless you plan on getting knocked flat on your a** you will never lie on your back to push your opponent around.
Are you getting the idea yet? Practice how you play. Exercise conditions your muscles and body to a specific stimulus. If endurance is your sport, your training should be long and enduring. If you need to be explosive, then you should train explosive exercises. If your a fighter, then fight. Every aspect of your training should incorporate some skill that you will use in your athletic performance. Even for bodybuilders, as much as I despise the idea, if you "just want to look good" then the numbers shouldn't mean a thing, appearance does. If you are just trying to live healthier, then you don't need to worry about numbers or appearance, simply trust in your diet and your exercise is purely a means of caloric expenditure. Practice how you play. Good luck all!
Your physique is how the shape of your body looks. The single most determining factor in your physique is your DIET. It is NOT the number of reps or sets or the size of the load. It is your diet. Your diet has a far more profound impact than any other thing you will do to improve your physique, I would almost go as far as to say than any other factor combined (genetics excluded). As I have said earlier posts your weight is determined by calories consumed vs calories burned, that's it. If you want to loose weight, you need to burn more calories than you eat; and if you want to gain weight then you need to eat more than you burn. Simple as that. However, your body composition (what accounts for your body weight: muscle, fat, bone, water, etc...) is determined by WHAT you eat. With out going into too much detail, if all you eat is butter then whether you loose or gain weight you will still look like butter; the same is true if all you eat is steak. The concept that "you are what you eat" is mostly true with the exception that your body NEEDS fat, carbohydrates, and protein. They are ALL important necessities for your diet.
But this post isn't about dieting, its about exercise. While different exercises do change your physique as directly as exercising in general, they do serve a very specific purpose. The easiest way to explain this is to say that you should "practice how you will play." If you want to be a faster sprinter, then you need to sprint. If you want to be a better tennis player, you need to get more sets in on the court. If you have decided that you would like to lift weights to increase your athletic performance then there are a few things you should also realize.
While different exercises do not determine your physique, what they do do is condition your body to be more tolerant of a certain stimulus. What does that mean? It means that if you work explosive exercises like power cleans, you will develop very strong white (fast-twitch) muscle fibers while your red (slow-twitch) muscle fibers will remain the same or possibly weaken. This is why I call exercises a means to an end. The exercises that you choose to do should derive some sort of skill that you will be able to use when you perform. Obviously if you just want to "live healthier" then you have a lot of play in your exercise routine. If you are a body builder, then you also have a lot of play but concentrate more on working isolation (one muscle group at a time) exercises. If you are a power lifter then it is doing you no good to work on muscle endurance, you need to keep the reps low and the load high to condition your body for your competitions. If you are an endurance athlete (runners for example) weights can still help you but you will want to keep the weight very low and the reps very high, as this is how your body will perform when put to the test, with a low load and a very long duration. Football players often want to brag about their bench press when in reality they should be working explosive movements such as power cleans, jerk presses, power snatches, clean and presses, etc... because unless you plan on getting knocked flat on your a** you will never lie on your back to push your opponent around.
Are you getting the idea yet? Practice how you play. Exercise conditions your muscles and body to a specific stimulus. If endurance is your sport, your training should be long and enduring. If you need to be explosive, then you should train explosive exercises. If your a fighter, then fight. Every aspect of your training should incorporate some skill that you will use in your athletic performance. Even for bodybuilders, as much as I despise the idea, if you "just want to look good" then the numbers shouldn't mean a thing, appearance does. If you are just trying to live healthier, then you don't need to worry about numbers or appearance, simply trust in your diet and your exercise is purely a means of caloric expenditure. Practice how you play. Good luck all!
Saturday, January 29, 2011
Shadowboxing, Bag Work, Conditioning, and Plyometrics
The best way to train for a sport is to do it over and over and over again. If you want to get better at throwing a football, you need to throw hundreds and hundreds of passes. Combat sports are no different. The best way to become a better boxer is to go to gym and have an instructor train you in the sport of boxing. However, gym membership costs can add up quickly and there are a few things that you can do at home with minimal equipment (such as a heavy bag and double end bag) or if you are training at a gym, you can do these workouts on your own without a partner. As I said earlier the BEST way to train for combat sports is to sign up with a gym and get professional instruction. Workouts you find online, or even instructional DVDs are NOT a substantial substitute for diligent dedication and countless hours with a qualified instructor.
Shadowboxing - Shadowboxing is a great tool for honing your skills and building your conditioning. I like to think of there being two different types of shadowboxing. The first is a controlled, slow-paced action where you concentrate on technique, footwork, and head movement. The emphasis here is on getting full extension on your punches and kicks and make sure they have good technique. The second type is of course shadowboxing as a means of conditioning. Mike Tyson did a lot of this. It was almost more frightening to watch him shadowbox than to fight. You are more likely to "get sloppy" when throwing hard and fast, so make sure you have good technique before you begin shadowboxing for conditioning purposes.
Sample Workouts:
1) 5 minute rounds (with 1 min rest between rounds) until you've thrown over 1,200 punches
2) 1,500 punches in 5 x 5 min (1 min rest)
3) 800 punches in 3 x 3 min (1 min rest)
4) 1,050 punches in 3 x 4 min (1 min rest)
5) 1,300 punches in 3 x 5 min (1 min rest)
6) 1,500 punches in 5 x 5 min (1 min rest)
7) 760 punches in 7 min (no rest)
Plyometrics - plyometrics are great for improving coordination and core strength. Below is a list of different plyometric exercises. If you do not know what some of the exercises are, Google is your friend. You can add intensity to these exercises by progressively increasing the distance you do them. For example for weeks 1, 2, and 3 you might do them each for a distance of 10 meters; weeks 4, 5, and 6 a distance of 20 meters; and weeks 7, 8, and 9 a distance of 30 meters.
Sample Exercises:
High Knees (forwards and backwards)
Butt-kickers (forwards and backwards)
Shuffle
Carioca
Bear Crawl (forwards and backwards)
Skip (for Height)
Skip (for Distance)
Runbox (forwards and backwards)
Walk on Heels (forwards and backwards)
Lunge (forwards and backwards)
Sidebend Walk (lean to front leg) (forwards and backwards)
Trunk-Twist Walk (turn towards back leg) (forwards and backwards)
Heavy Bag and Other Bags - Bag work is a good way to drill combinations, work on conditioning, speed, and safely work on punching power. There are several different ways to train on the heavy bag; for speed, for power, and for technique. Below are some sample bag workouts, most of which I found on RossBoxing Conditioning Forum.
1) 5 min rounds w/ 1 min rest until you've thrown 1,200 punches
2) 6 x 5 min rounds w/ 30 sec rest
3) 5 min shadowbox, 2 x 5 min heavy bag, 5 min double-end bag, 5 min jump rope (1 min rests)
4) 12 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
5) 10 x 1 min power (every shot as hard as you can) @ 30 sec rest
6) 3 x 5 min (30 sec rest), 4 x 1 min power (30 sec rest), 4 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
7) 4 x 5 min (30 sec rest), 6 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
8) 3 x 3 min shadowbox, 3 x 3 min heavy bag, 3 x 3 min double-end bag, 3 x 3 min jump rope (1 min rests)
Conditioning - Unfortunately the time tested method of running long mile after mile, is NOT the best way to condition for combat sports. Any type of circuit training is ideal. There are tons of workouts found online. There are obviously TONS of similar websites, but these are some of my favorites.
Websites:
http://www.gymjones.com/schedule.php
http://www.rosstraining.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=19144
Long Distance - Long runs still have their place. They are good for general conditioning, and road work can be very helpful, but the more sport-specific you can make your training, the better. If you're training for a marathon, run half-marathons to train. If you're a sprinter, sprint; a fighter, fight... etc.
Road Work Examples:
(Olympic Boxing examples from RossBoxing.com)
1) 1 mi warm up, 2 x 800m (1 min rest), 4 x 400m (1 min rest), 4 x 200m (1 min rest), 800m cool down
2) 1 mi warm up, 6 x 600m (1 min rest), 800m cool down
3) 2 mi run, sprint 100m, shadowbox 3 min, backpedal 200m, sprint 100m, shadowbox 3 min, sprint 100m, runbox 400m, shadowbox 3min, sprint 100m, backpedal 100m, jog 400m, walk to cool down
Shadowboxing - Shadowboxing is a great tool for honing your skills and building your conditioning. I like to think of there being two different types of shadowboxing. The first is a controlled, slow-paced action where you concentrate on technique, footwork, and head movement. The emphasis here is on getting full extension on your punches and kicks and make sure they have good technique. The second type is of course shadowboxing as a means of conditioning. Mike Tyson did a lot of this. It was almost more frightening to watch him shadowbox than to fight. You are more likely to "get sloppy" when throwing hard and fast, so make sure you have good technique before you begin shadowboxing for conditioning purposes.
Sample Workouts:
1) 5 minute rounds (with 1 min rest between rounds) until you've thrown over 1,200 punches
2) 1,500 punches in 5 x 5 min (1 min rest)
3) 800 punches in 3 x 3 min (1 min rest)
4) 1,050 punches in 3 x 4 min (1 min rest)
5) 1,300 punches in 3 x 5 min (1 min rest)
6) 1,500 punches in 5 x 5 min (1 min rest)
7) 760 punches in 7 min (no rest)
Plyometrics - plyometrics are great for improving coordination and core strength. Below is a list of different plyometric exercises. If you do not know what some of the exercises are, Google is your friend. You can add intensity to these exercises by progressively increasing the distance you do them. For example for weeks 1, 2, and 3 you might do them each for a distance of 10 meters; weeks 4, 5, and 6 a distance of 20 meters; and weeks 7, 8, and 9 a distance of 30 meters.
Sample Exercises:
High Knees (forwards and backwards)
Butt-kickers (forwards and backwards)
Shuffle
Carioca
Bear Crawl (forwards and backwards)
Skip (for Height)
Skip (for Distance)
Runbox (forwards and backwards)
Walk on Heels (forwards and backwards)
Lunge (forwards and backwards)
Sidebend Walk (lean to front leg) (forwards and backwards)
Trunk-Twist Walk (turn towards back leg) (forwards and backwards)
Heavy Bag and Other Bags - Bag work is a good way to drill combinations, work on conditioning, speed, and safely work on punching power. There are several different ways to train on the heavy bag; for speed, for power, and for technique. Below are some sample bag workouts, most of which I found on RossBoxing Conditioning Forum.
1) 5 min rounds w/ 1 min rest until you've thrown 1,200 punches
2) 6 x 5 min rounds w/ 30 sec rest
3) 5 min shadowbox, 2 x 5 min heavy bag, 5 min double-end bag, 5 min jump rope (1 min rests)
4) 12 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
5) 10 x 1 min power (every shot as hard as you can) @ 30 sec rest
6) 3 x 5 min (30 sec rest), 4 x 1 min power (30 sec rest), 4 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
7) 4 x 5 min (30 sec rest), 6 x 30 sec burnout (30 sec rest)
8) 3 x 3 min shadowbox, 3 x 3 min heavy bag, 3 x 3 min double-end bag, 3 x 3 min jump rope (1 min rests)
Conditioning - Unfortunately the time tested method of running long mile after mile, is NOT the best way to condition for combat sports. Any type of circuit training is ideal. There are tons of workouts found online. There are obviously TONS of similar websites, but these are some of my favorites.
Websites:
http://www.gymjones.com/schedule.php
http://www.rosstraining.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=19144
Long Distance - Long runs still have their place. They are good for general conditioning, and road work can be very helpful, but the more sport-specific you can make your training, the better. If you're training for a marathon, run half-marathons to train. If you're a sprinter, sprint; a fighter, fight... etc.
Road Work Examples:
(Olympic Boxing examples from RossBoxing.com)
1) 1 mi warm up, 2 x 800m (1 min rest), 4 x 400m (1 min rest), 4 x 200m (1 min rest), 800m cool down
2) 1 mi warm up, 6 x 600m (1 min rest), 800m cool down
3) 2 mi run, sprint 100m, shadowbox 3 min, backpedal 200m, sprint 100m, shadowbox 3 min, sprint 100m, runbox 400m, shadowbox 3min, sprint 100m, backpedal 100m, jog 400m, walk to cool down
Friday, January 21, 2011
Grappler's Guide to Nutrition
The following is a summary of "The Grappler's Guide to Nutrition" by John Berardi and Michael Fry. I highly recommend the book for any and all coaches and athletes involved in combative sports (Wrestling, Boxing, Jiu Jitsu, Kick Boxing, Muay Thai, etc...) You can purchase the book or download the PDF for free. Just google it and it should be fairly easy to find. My comments/additions can be found throughout in italic text.
10 Rules:
1 - Eat every 2 - 3 hrs
2 - Eat protein at every meal
3 - Eat fruit or vegetables at every meal
4 - Eat carbs only during or post - workout
5 - Eat healthy fats (apx 30%)
6 - Non-calorie beverages only (tea, coffee, diet soda)
7 - Eat whole foods rather than supplements when possible
8 - Eat a wide variety of foods
9 - Plan ahead and prepare your meals in advance
10 - Plan to break the rules about 10% of the time
Explanation of Rules:
1 - This is to keep your metabolism ticking. When you eat less often you tend to eat more at once. This does two things. It makes your body think it is starving and thus it stores all the energy (calories) you are feeding it because it does not know when it will be fed next. It also slows your metabolism (the rate at which your body burns calories) because your body does not know when it will be fed next, it will use existing stored energy (fat) sparingly.
2 - You are what you eat; a ragging bull or a tub of butter?
3 - Remember the food pyramid from when you were a kid? 3 - 5 servings of fruits and veggies per day is a good guideline
4 - Carbs spike your insulin levels which blunts your body's ability to burn fat. Thus, you need a steady supply of energy throughout the day but only need it to be fast acting energy (carbohydrates) or particularly really fast acting (simple sugar carbs opposed to complex carbs) in large doses first thing in the morning, during your workout, and immediately following your workout.
5 - Many people DIED in the 90s because they thought ALL fat was bad for you and removed it entirely from your diet. You NEED protein, you NEED carbs (contrary to Atkins), and like it or not you NEED fat. Just make sure its coming from the right places.
6 - You need to choose your calories so that you will feel the most satisfied, eating calories will fill you up more than drinking them. Alcohol, soda, and fruit juices are all wasteful. There is a reason they call them "empty calories."
7 - Supplements are great for convenience but for the best food, whole food is better for you and more satisfying than supplements. When price and convenience can be spared, go with the whole foods over supplements every time.
8 - Variety will keep you sane and help keep you from burning out on your diet.
9 - "Fail to plan and plan to fail" Its hard to make sure all your meals meet your needs, and can be inconvenient to cook and clean along with eating every 3 hours. To simplify things, cook 2 or three meals at a time, put them in a ziploc or tuperware then leave it in the fridge or cooler or lunchbox until your ready to eat again.
10 - This is again to help keep you sane and stay on a lifestyle track instead of short-term diet fix. Cheating is OK every once in a while as long as it does not become habitual. If you're eating 5 times per day (as you should) at 7 days per week that's 35 meals per week, thus you should plan on breaking ONE OR TWO of the above rules once every 3 - 4 times you eat.
Examples of Given Food Groups:
Protein - (at every feeding) - lean beef, chicken, fish, egg whites, low-fat dairy (cottage cheese, yogurt), protein supplements (whey, casein)
Simple Sugar Carbs - (during workout and post-workout) - soda, fruit juice, table sugar, sports drinks (gatorade), breakfast cereal
Starchy Carbs - (post-workout) - bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, sweet corn, whole oats
Fruits and Veggies - (one of either at every feeding) - spinach, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, apples, oranges, berries, green beans
Saturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - Animal Fat (whole eggs, dairy, meat, butter)
Monosaturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - olive oil, nuts, avocado
Polysaturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - vegetable fats, flax seed/oil, fish oil
20 Super Food:
Lean Red Meat
Salmon
Omega 3 Eggs
Low Fat Yogurt
Supplement Protein
Spinach
Tomatoes
Cruciferous Veggies (Cauliflower, Broccoli, Cabbage)
Mixed Berries
Oranges
Mixed Beans
Quinoa
Whole Oats
Mixed Nuts
Avocados
Olive Oil
Fish Oil
Flax Seeds
Green tea
Liquid Exercise Drinks
Above is the list as it appears in the book. Personally I would change the list to: Grapefruits, Blueberries, Skim Milk, Green Beans, Almonds, Peanuts, Smart Balance Cooking Oil, Smart Balance Peanut Butter, Protein Powder, Tuna, Chicken, Salmon, Green Tea, Broccoli, Lean Beef, Fat Free Turkey, Whole Grain Pasta, Chicken Breast, Oats, Oranges
On Dehydration:
This is a common practice of "cutting" weight in order to compete in a weight class that is lower than your natural body weight. Here are some things you should know:
1) Effects of dehydration can take place as soon as 2% of the body's weight is lost in water. In an extremely hot environment while taking part in strenuous activities, some marathon runners have been known to loose as much as 8lbs of water in ONLY AN HOUR!
2) You should drink every 15 - 20 minutes while exercising
3) Carb drinks and protein supplements should be sipped after exercise (dilute to apx 6 - 12% concentration)
Top 5 Supplements:
Protein, Greens, Muscle Recovery / Workout Drinks, Creatine, Fish Oil (If you want to know the reasoning for these, look it up in the book, I'm just summarizing here and don't want to take credit for another person's work)
Again, there are a few changes that I would personally make and they are...
Protein Powder - for recovery and to make it more convenient and affordable to maintain high
protein diets
Glucosamine - there are a variety of "joint guard" products out there and people in combat sports
tend to beat the hell out of their joints especially after years of cutting weight
Omega 3, 6, 9 - find something with all three of these and you will be doing your heart and joints a
big favor
Multi Vitamin - in spite of our best efforts to eat healthy, it never hurts to have a little insurance when
it comes to micronutrients and all kinds of other vitamin/mineral goodies
CGT - Creatine is good, but lets make it better. Amino Acids in general help repair your body, of all the amino acids in your body nearly 50% of their content is from Glutamine alone.
I do not think that a Greens+ supplement should be on the list by the books own admission, whole foods (real fruits and veggies) are superior to supplements and I used the same reasoning for abandoning recovery drinks (that is what the protein powder and/or gatorade is for). Fish Oil is good, but a bit too general. The goal is to get EFAs (Essential Fatty Acids) which are grouped as Omega 3s, Omega 6s, and Omega 9s. It's just as easy to find a supplement with all 3. Creatine is a type of energy that your body uses at a cellular level. In my opinion it is a bit of a toss up between creatine and glutamine; it is the question of the chicken and the egg; which is more important, energy to work out or material to recover? Why not both.
Macro Nutrient Ratios:
Fat - apx 30% of diet/daily calories
Carbs - Less than 70% unless your an elite endurance athlete (if you've been reading my other posts you should know why)
Protein - 2g / Kg of Body Weight. EX: 220lb man should eat 100g of protein
The fat content is about right, when trying to build mass I like a my diet to be about 20% of my daily calories from fat. When losing fat I like it closer to 30% daily calories from fat. As for Carbs the book is not nearly as clear. When gaining mass I like 50% daily calories from carbs, when losing fat 30%. This protein recommendation seems a bit low to me. I have generally read everywhere else that serious athletes should be consuming between one and two grams of protein per pound of body weight. This would be 150 - 300g for a 150lb person. I think this is much closer as I like my diet 30% protein when building mass and 40% when losing fat.
Cutting Weight:
- Remember that at 2% dehydration (2% of your body weight lost through water weight) the fatiguing effects of dehydration set in. At 10% they can become FATAL!
- Try to be within 10lbs of your competition weight before you begin to cut. If I want to fight at 170lbs then I will spend my training camp trying to weigh 180lbs on the day that is one week before the weigh in.
- When preparing for a competition you will likely be working out more than you previously were in the off season and thus will need more energy to workout and fuel to recover. When preparing for a competition you should add 200 - 400 calories / day to your diet.
- Next, there is a bit of variance depending upon whether you have a SHORT or LONG period of time between when you weigh in and have to compete. Wrestling matches usually have about an hour between weigh ins and matches, some BJJ tournaments require you to go directly from the scale to the mat... those are examples of SHORT periods. Things like MMA fight have a 24 hour wait between weigh ins and competition... that is an example of a long period.
- SHORT PERIOD - drop 200 - 400 calorie from your diet 2 - 4 weeks out from the weigh in. This should get you within 10 lbs of your competition weight and thus you will not have to dehydrate yourself very much to make weight. 3 days out you should drink 2 - 3 gallons of water per day, then 2 days out, decrease the water intake to 2 gallons. The rest of your weight cut will have to come from mild dehydrate, and major caloric restriction to clean out the useless weight within your bowels. About 12 - 15 hrs away from the weigh in is when I suggest starting to actually dehydrate and not eat anything. In order to rehydrate after weighing in, you should only drink sip your fluids and make sure they are fast carbs like gatorade and maybe a protein shake or workout recovery drink. Remember that your body can only rehydrate at a rate of about 1.5L per hour, anything extra is waste. And you will crap your brains out, trust me, I know, I've seen me do it.
- LONG PERIOD - 5days out from your weigh in you should drink 3 gallons of water per day and cut back your carbs. 2 days out you should cut out your salt intake and cut back on the water. Dehydrate with COMMON SENSE if you must and clean out your bowels as above. To recover after weighing in you should eat every 1 - 2 hours. These meals should consist of a carb drink (like gatorade) complex carbs, and protein. Your last meal should be about 2 hrs before your competition.
- For both the LONG and SHORT periods, you should record and evaluate your results after your competition. Everyone's body is different and thus the above suggestions will not be exact.
10 Rules:
1 - Eat every 2 - 3 hrs
2 - Eat protein at every meal
3 - Eat fruit or vegetables at every meal
4 - Eat carbs only during or post - workout
5 - Eat healthy fats (apx 30%)
6 - Non-calorie beverages only (tea, coffee, diet soda)
7 - Eat whole foods rather than supplements when possible
8 - Eat a wide variety of foods
9 - Plan ahead and prepare your meals in advance
10 - Plan to break the rules about 10% of the time
Explanation of Rules:
1 - This is to keep your metabolism ticking. When you eat less often you tend to eat more at once. This does two things. It makes your body think it is starving and thus it stores all the energy (calories) you are feeding it because it does not know when it will be fed next. It also slows your metabolism (the rate at which your body burns calories) because your body does not know when it will be fed next, it will use existing stored energy (fat) sparingly.
2 - You are what you eat; a ragging bull or a tub of butter?
3 - Remember the food pyramid from when you were a kid? 3 - 5 servings of fruits and veggies per day is a good guideline
4 - Carbs spike your insulin levels which blunts your body's ability to burn fat. Thus, you need a steady supply of energy throughout the day but only need it to be fast acting energy (carbohydrates) or particularly really fast acting (simple sugar carbs opposed to complex carbs) in large doses first thing in the morning, during your workout, and immediately following your workout.
5 - Many people DIED in the 90s because they thought ALL fat was bad for you and removed it entirely from your diet. You NEED protein, you NEED carbs (contrary to Atkins), and like it or not you NEED fat. Just make sure its coming from the right places.
6 - You need to choose your calories so that you will feel the most satisfied, eating calories will fill you up more than drinking them. Alcohol, soda, and fruit juices are all wasteful. There is a reason they call them "empty calories."
7 - Supplements are great for convenience but for the best food, whole food is better for you and more satisfying than supplements. When price and convenience can be spared, go with the whole foods over supplements every time.
8 - Variety will keep you sane and help keep you from burning out on your diet.
9 - "Fail to plan and plan to fail" Its hard to make sure all your meals meet your needs, and can be inconvenient to cook and clean along with eating every 3 hours. To simplify things, cook 2 or three meals at a time, put them in a ziploc or tuperware then leave it in the fridge or cooler or lunchbox until your ready to eat again.
10 - This is again to help keep you sane and stay on a lifestyle track instead of short-term diet fix. Cheating is OK every once in a while as long as it does not become habitual. If you're eating 5 times per day (as you should) at 7 days per week that's 35 meals per week, thus you should plan on breaking ONE OR TWO of the above rules once every 3 - 4 times you eat.
Examples of Given Food Groups:
Protein - (at every feeding) - lean beef, chicken, fish, egg whites, low-fat dairy (cottage cheese, yogurt), protein supplements (whey, casein)
Simple Sugar Carbs - (during workout and post-workout) - soda, fruit juice, table sugar, sports drinks (gatorade), breakfast cereal
Starchy Carbs - (post-workout) - bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, sweet corn, whole oats
Fruits and Veggies - (one of either at every feeding) - spinach, tomatoes, carrots, broccoli, cauliflower, apples, oranges, berries, green beans
Saturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - Animal Fat (whole eggs, dairy, meat, butter)
Monosaturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - olive oil, nuts, avocado
Polysaturated Fat - (1/3 of total fat) - vegetable fats, flax seed/oil, fish oil
20 Super Food:
Lean Red Meat
Salmon
Omega 3 Eggs
Low Fat Yogurt
Supplement Protein
Spinach
Tomatoes
Cruciferous Veggies (Cauliflower, Broccoli, Cabbage)
Mixed Berries
Oranges
Mixed Beans
Quinoa
Whole Oats
Mixed Nuts
Avocados
Olive Oil
Fish Oil
Flax Seeds
Green tea
Liquid Exercise Drinks
Above is the list as it appears in the book. Personally I would change the list to: Grapefruits, Blueberries, Skim Milk, Green Beans, Almonds, Peanuts, Smart Balance Cooking Oil, Smart Balance Peanut Butter, Protein Powder, Tuna, Chicken, Salmon, Green Tea, Broccoli, Lean Beef, Fat Free Turkey, Whole Grain Pasta, Chicken Breast, Oats, Oranges
On Dehydration:
This is a common practice of "cutting" weight in order to compete in a weight class that is lower than your natural body weight. Here are some things you should know:
1) Effects of dehydration can take place as soon as 2% of the body's weight is lost in water. In an extremely hot environment while taking part in strenuous activities, some marathon runners have been known to loose as much as 8lbs of water in ONLY AN HOUR!
2) You should drink every 15 - 20 minutes while exercising
3) Carb drinks and protein supplements should be sipped after exercise (dilute to apx 6 - 12% concentration)
Top 5 Supplements:
Protein, Greens, Muscle Recovery / Workout Drinks, Creatine, Fish Oil (If you want to know the reasoning for these, look it up in the book, I'm just summarizing here and don't want to take credit for another person's work)
Again, there are a few changes that I would personally make and they are...
Protein Powder - for recovery and to make it more convenient and affordable to maintain high
protein diets
Glucosamine - there are a variety of "joint guard" products out there and people in combat sports
tend to beat the hell out of their joints especially after years of cutting weight
Omega 3, 6, 9 - find something with all three of these and you will be doing your heart and joints a
big favor
Multi Vitamin - in spite of our best efforts to eat healthy, it never hurts to have a little insurance when
it comes to micronutrients and all kinds of other vitamin/mineral goodies
CGT - Creatine is good, but lets make it better. Amino Acids in general help repair your body, of all the amino acids in your body nearly 50% of their content is from Glutamine alone.
I do not think that a Greens+ supplement should be on the list by the books own admission, whole foods (real fruits and veggies) are superior to supplements and I used the same reasoning for abandoning recovery drinks (that is what the protein powder and/or gatorade is for). Fish Oil is good, but a bit too general. The goal is to get EFAs (Essential Fatty Acids) which are grouped as Omega 3s, Omega 6s, and Omega 9s. It's just as easy to find a supplement with all 3. Creatine is a type of energy that your body uses at a cellular level. In my opinion it is a bit of a toss up between creatine and glutamine; it is the question of the chicken and the egg; which is more important, energy to work out or material to recover? Why not both.
Macro Nutrient Ratios:
Fat - apx 30% of diet/daily calories
Carbs - Less than 70% unless your an elite endurance athlete (if you've been reading my other posts you should know why)
Protein - 2g / Kg of Body Weight. EX: 220lb man should eat 100g of protein
The fat content is about right, when trying to build mass I like a my diet to be about 20% of my daily calories from fat. When losing fat I like it closer to 30% daily calories from fat. As for Carbs the book is not nearly as clear. When gaining mass I like 50% daily calories from carbs, when losing fat 30%. This protein recommendation seems a bit low to me. I have generally read everywhere else that serious athletes should be consuming between one and two grams of protein per pound of body weight. This would be 150 - 300g for a 150lb person. I think this is much closer as I like my diet 30% protein when building mass and 40% when losing fat.
Cutting Weight:
- Remember that at 2% dehydration (2% of your body weight lost through water weight) the fatiguing effects of dehydration set in. At 10% they can become FATAL!
- Try to be within 10lbs of your competition weight before you begin to cut. If I want to fight at 170lbs then I will spend my training camp trying to weigh 180lbs on the day that is one week before the weigh in.
- When preparing for a competition you will likely be working out more than you previously were in the off season and thus will need more energy to workout and fuel to recover. When preparing for a competition you should add 200 - 400 calories / day to your diet.
- Next, there is a bit of variance depending upon whether you have a SHORT or LONG period of time between when you weigh in and have to compete. Wrestling matches usually have about an hour between weigh ins and matches, some BJJ tournaments require you to go directly from the scale to the mat... those are examples of SHORT periods. Things like MMA fight have a 24 hour wait between weigh ins and competition... that is an example of a long period.
- SHORT PERIOD - drop 200 - 400 calorie from your diet 2 - 4 weeks out from the weigh in. This should get you within 10 lbs of your competition weight and thus you will not have to dehydrate yourself very much to make weight. 3 days out you should drink 2 - 3 gallons of water per day, then 2 days out, decrease the water intake to 2 gallons. The rest of your weight cut will have to come from mild dehydrate, and major caloric restriction to clean out the useless weight within your bowels. About 12 - 15 hrs away from the weigh in is when I suggest starting to actually dehydrate and not eat anything. In order to rehydrate after weighing in, you should only drink sip your fluids and make sure they are fast carbs like gatorade and maybe a protein shake or workout recovery drink. Remember that your body can only rehydrate at a rate of about 1.5L per hour, anything extra is waste. And you will crap your brains out, trust me, I know, I've seen me do it.
- LONG PERIOD - 5days out from your weigh in you should drink 3 gallons of water per day and cut back your carbs. 2 days out you should cut out your salt intake and cut back on the water. Dehydrate with COMMON SENSE if you must and clean out your bowels as above. To recover after weighing in you should eat every 1 - 2 hours. These meals should consist of a carb drink (like gatorade) complex carbs, and protein. Your last meal should be about 2 hrs before your competition.
- For both the LONG and SHORT periods, you should record and evaluate your results after your competition. Everyone's body is different and thus the above suggestions will not be exact.
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