5 ways to start your day better

1: Resist turning on the news

The news is very rarely a source of positivity and especially with the current recession its quite often all doom and gloom.

Replace- Instead listen to some inspirational music or audio book. Look up some motivational quotations online.

2: Ensure to have a high protein breakfast

Your body after fasting for 6-8 hours during sleep is in need of a good boost of protein to support neurological and immune system function. Accompany this with some healthy fats and you will find you will feel sharper and more ready to take on the day. I have to credit Charles Poliquin for this tip.

Lots of processed carbohydrate in the form of breakfast cereals is not a good option at this time of the morning as this tends to produce an insulin spike and promote release of serotonin which you would rather save for later in the day when relaxing after work.

3: Have your tasks for the day established

"If you fail to plan you plan to fail."

Having your tasks organised for the day and knowing what is most priority will make your day far more productive. This will also feel satisfying and rewarding as you work your way through your ‘to do list’. I would recommend to write out tasks and establish your goals the night before so that you can relax in the evening without things playing on your mind when you go to bed.

4: Training early in the morning before work

I’m a big believer that training earlier in the day is superior to evening training for these reasons-

You are fresher and have more energy first thing in the morning (once you have adapted of course!)

This eliminates the risk of missing a workout should you be asked to stay at work late.

Allows you to spend more quality time in the evening with your loved ones

The evening time should be a time when you are winding down and getting ready to sleep, not pumping up and stimulating your nervous system which might interfere with your sleep.

When you start the day off well you are more likely to remain compliant on the other things you need to do, such as eating the right foods.

5: Move more

We as a society are getting less and less active which is a huge contributory factor to the increases of obesity we see in the UK. Get off a stop or two early on the way to work or better yet walk the whole way or use a Boris Bike.

Things I learned at Charles Poliquin’s Hypertrophy seminar held at Ultimate Performance Mayfair.

I just spent the weekend at Ultimate Performance Gym in Mayfair.

On Saturday we had a private seminar only for Ultimate Performance Trainers on the subject of improving results for clients.

I then went back on Sunday for a seminar on Hypertrophy training.

Being the always avid note writer I took detailed minutes of the events.

Here is a tidbit: 5 things I learned from each one –

Saturday

• When getting someone to change their eating habits never use the word DIET, this implies restriction and something short term.
Instead teach them a lifestyle, this is a non threatening approach.

• Don’t overload the client, start them off small. They have to buy into the process step by step when they perceive a benefit from the advice you are giving them.

• The first 40 grams of protein you eat supports detoxification and the immune system. These are a priority to the body before it considers less essential functions such as repairing/growing lean body mass (muscle).

• Male clients like to see figures and numbers, women clients are more interested in abstract concepts and ‘feel’.

• Only having artificial source of light all day lowers dopamine, acetyl choline and suppresses serotonin production.

Sunday

• Bio mechanical factors and restrictions in soft tissue are one of the greatest limiting factors in muscle growth.

• Soft tissue tolerance has decreased in last 20 years due to environmental toxicities according to functional medicine expert and lecturer Bob Rakowski

• Multiple Training sessions per day are superior for muscle hypertrophy

• The more you control cortisol the better you progress with strength development.

• If training for hypertrophy you want to create an acidic environment as possible so its not a good idea to use an alkalinising drink such as primal greens during a hypertrophy workout.

Overall I found the seminar very interesting and I stayed back afterwards to talk to Charles for longer. It was entertaining to hear Charles stories on some of the most dangerous gyms in the world he has visited.

The next Poliquin event I plan on attending will be a 5 day Hypertrophy boot camp which will entail training 3x per day and result in copious amounts of muscle soreness and growth.

5 Things I’ve Learned As A Personal Trainer

1, You can be a technical expert in exercise but without communication skills they aren’t worth jack

I have meet many personal trainers who were excellent in regards to their training knowledge but lacked in their communication skills If you are unable to communicate the knowledge across to your customers and demonstrate the benefits as person will get from training with you then your business will no doubt fail. I often see new personal trainers afraid to talk to members, in fear that they might be rejected. When I first started as a trainer I was guilty of this myself.

On the flip side of this I see many personal trainers who to quote the movie Dodge Ball “are about as useful as a cock flavoured lollypop” do well with their business because they able to talk to customers and convince them to invest in their training services. They are ballsy and don’t care if they get rejected, they play the numbers. The fact that they are often completely inadequate as trainers to actually get anybody results is another matter and will be a subject for another blog post.

2, There is no such thing as a perfect programme

Some people search high and low for the perfect routine. They swap and change routines weekly, trying to find something that will turn their bodies into something worthy of a men’s health or shape magazine. The fact of the matter is that there are certain training guidelines to fall within depending on your goal but quite often anything can work for while provided the required effort and intensity is put into it.

Quite often people change programmes searching for the easy way to get results. It takes hard work and consistant effort to produce a body worth admiring!

3, Be wary of experts or gurus who make blanket statements

There are thousands of so called ‘experts and gurus’ in the fitness industry who claim that there way is the ‘holy path’ and the only way to train. Firstly be wary of their exercise preferences as they are likely to be biased towards a style of training that has best suited them.

Everyone is different and so will respond different to training stimuli. A very wise quote from Bruce Lee is to:

"Absorb what is useful, Discard what is not, Add what is uniquely your own”



Smart Guy!






Through years of consistent, hard work you can discover what works best for you.

A good trainer should always be a student to his profession, constantly striving to learn more and be open to new ideas and techniques.

You also have to question why an ‘expert’ is making a blanket statement, do they have a hidden agenda? Are they trying to sell you their own style of training or supplement line?

4, Nutrition, nutrition, nutrition

The difference between a guy and girl who spends years in the gym training but never changes their body can most often be attributed to lack of effort in the kitchen. There are three main types of people I encounter-









Perma-bulkers
There are thousands of guys who are ‘perma-bulkers’ walking around the gym for years with too much body fat to ever be close to seeing their abdominal muscles. They train hard and often can be quite strong but never get smart with their nutrition which would allow them to diet down and reveal the hard, chiselled muscle underneath their soft exterior.









Cardio queens/Ms. pink dumbbells

There are also many women who slog away at the gym, quite often performing too much cardio and not enough resistance training but also who fail to make adjustments to their diets and consequently never achieve the lean, toned look they so desire.








Skinny dweebs

These guys try and do all the hardcore training, often trying to follow the routines of their favourite pro-bodybuilders they read in magazines. They however never get it right with their nutrition, never eating enough nutrients to enable their body to grow into something worth looking at. They are often too scared to eat too much in fear that they might temporarily loose sight of their abdominals. You can train your ass off but unless you eat the required nutrients you will not grow.

The difference between someone who looks average which these days is often overweight and a bodybuilder who gets into contest shape (5% or below) is nutrition.

A bodybuilder or even a Men’s Health cover model (a more desirable look for most people) makes the most adjustments to his/her routine through diet. If your goal is to build your body you need to provide your body with the building blocks in which it can grow. If you want to loose fat then you have to create a deficit which will encourage your body use fat as a fuel while preserving the muscle you have.


5, Create a definitive goal and then shoot for it







I am surprised by the number of people I encounter who have absolutely no idea what they are trying to achieve by attending the gym other than the vague idea of ‘trying to get in shape’.

If you don’t have a definitive goal then you will never be able to achieve success. If you goal is to look “bloody fantastic at your sisters wedding, making all the males at the wedding heads turn” or “I want to bench press 100 kilo’s” then write this down!

Once you have a definitive goal you can better plan how best to achieve this. Some of the most successful people in the world such as Bill gates, Richard Branson, and Arnold Schwarzenegger are all keen goal setters and clearly defined what they wanted to achieve in every area in which they ultimately succeeded.

Give yourself a deadline; we all generally work better under pressure. Take responsibility for you goal and make yourself accountable. Create checkpoints towards your goal and then make sure you consistently hit them along the way.

Wrap up

This is just a small sample of things I have learned, stay posted for future insights!

How to boost your magnesium levels

If you are eating lots of processed food or ready meals or have a history of alcoholism then you are more likely to not be getting enough magnesium in your diet.

What role does magnesium play?

Magnesium is an important element in the body because it activates or is involved in many basic processes or functions, including:

cofactor for over 300 enzymes
oxidation of fatty acids
activation of amino acids
synthesis and breakdown of DNA
neurotransmission
immune function
interactions with other nutrients, including potassium , vitamin B6, and boron

How to up the intake

A simple tip to boost your magnesium intake is to eat more dark green vegetables. These are important sources of magnesium because it is the central atom in the structure of chlorophyll.

Other dietary sources of magnesium include nuts; dried peas and beans; whole grain cereals such as oatmeal, millet, and brown rice; bone meal; blackstrap molasses; brewer's yeast.

Magnesium as a cure

Many naturopaths believe that the official government recommended daily allowance (RDA) of magnesium is too low. They think that it should be doubled to about 600 or 700 mg daily for adults. Most recommend the use of dietary supplements containing magnesium to make up the difference.

Naturopathic practitioners regard magnesium to be important in the relief or cure of the following conditions:

Mitral valve prolapse: Magnesium deficiency may lower the body's ability to repair defective connective tissue, including defective mitral valves.

Atherosclerosis.

Certain psychological conditions, including apathy, decreased ability to learn, memory loss , and confusion.

Kidney stones : Magnesium increases the solubility of certain calcium compounds that form kidney stones if they are not excreted in the urine.

Hypertension: Hypertensive people often have lower levels of magnesium within their cells than people with normal blood pressure.

Angina pectoris: Magnesium is thought to relax spastic arteries and help prevent arrhythmias.

Osteoporosis : Many osteoporosis patients have low levels of magnesium in their bodies.

Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and menstrual cramps: Some women report relief from the symptoms of PMS when taking magnesium supplements.

Naturopaths also treat asthma, epilepsy, autism , hyperactivity, chronic fatigue syndrome , noise-induced hearing loss, insomnia , and stress-related anxiety with supplemental magnesium.

Wrap up

I recommend to everyone to up their intake of dark green vegetables. As well as providing magnesium, they also supply a host of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients and dietry fibre.

I further recommend supplemental magnesium taken 45 minutes before bed if sleep is an issue for you.

You can be as great as you want to be

"A man or woman can be as great as they wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, the determination, the dedication, the competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile, it can be done." - Vince Lombardi

I post this in response to the tidal wave of limiting beliefs I hear from people every day in the gym. I get tired of hearing people making excuses for themselves and trying to rationalise why they can't achieve something.

Lets break this quote down-

Courage - Grow a pair and step out of the herd. Take that first step into your new healthier lifestyle and you will see how quickly you can transform your body.

Grow some self respect and realise that being fat is your fault but you can change it. It’s neither healthy nor attractive so stop with the excuses. Tell me, do you want to live a long life free of obesity related diseases?

Determination - Remind yourself every time you don't feel like going to the gym or you go food shopping and come across the sweets isle what you want to achieve! Use positive affirmations regularly!

Dedication- You will commit to dedicating the time and effort needed to transform your body no matter what obstacles stand in your way. Stop dedicating yourself to a lifestyle that is ruining your health.

Competitive drive- You can either compete with yourself by tracking your progress in the gym and with body composition testing. Alternatively can challenge a colleague or loved one a competition to see who can make the biggest body transformation. Turn it into a game and make it fun!

Willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worthwhile - If you want to achieve a body transformation then your daily trips to McDonalds or the cookies in the evening have to go. Get off your ass and get outside or in the gym. Switch off the depressing, insidious, worthless soaps like East Enders and Coronation Street and instead get your body active.

What do you love more?

Your one minute fix from eating something sweet or would you love more to have a six pack?

Do you really love to work 60-80 hours per week to earn 'good money'. Constantly lacking in sleep and good nutrition, causing the quality of relationships with loved ones to suffer. Filling the void with addictions to alcohol, food or even drugs to escape from reality. Tell me, is it really worth it?

Or would you love to work less and have more time for yourself? There are always ways to live within your means better and many strategies to escape the rat race. Have the courage and make the changes necessary!

Finally, don't be a victim and take control of your reality today!

For another good read please go here-

http://www.charlespoliquin.com/ArticlesMultimedia/Articles/Article/161/The_Myth_of_Discipline.aspx

The Bio Signature Method

Here is Charles Poliquin explaining the Bio Signature Method-



Please drop me an email if you have any questions about Bio Signature Modulation.

Healthy food is not boring food

When discussing eating and nutrition with people they often hold the belief that eating ‘healthy’ has to consist of the same boring foods.

I think this stems from the fact that many competitive bodybuilders will literally eat egg whites and porridge for breakfast followed by dry chicken breast, rice and broccoli for years upon end.

The above example is not a balanced diet; you would be missing out on a significant amount of nutrients if you limited yourself to those food groups. Then again modern bodybuilding is not really about health.

The second problem with the above example is that eating the same foods all the time makes you more likely to develop food sensitivities.

When you become sensitive to a food you body develops an inflammatory reaction to it. This over time can lead to symptoms of IBS, bowel disorders bloating, depression and other neurological disorders. The gastrointestinal tract is a prominent part of the immune system. Are you starting to see how a dysfunctional gastrointestinal tract can cause a host of problems?

I recommend people to vary their sources of food regularly. This serves to provide them with a variety of nutrients, vitamins and minerals. With food ever available buy these days it’s possible to eat a different food every day.

How to put it into action

Step 1: Vary your sources of protein

Protein is made up of Amino acids and different amino acids have varying pharmacological effects upon the body. Different meats contain different levels of amino acids and this consequently gives them their distinctive tastes.

For example Turkey is high in tryptophan which has shown to be reasonably effective sleep aid, probably due to its ability to increase brain levels of serotonin (a calming neurotransmitter when present in moderate levels)[21] and/or melatonin (a sleep-inducing hormone secreted by the pineal gland in
response to darkness or low light levels).

So choosing turkey as your last meal of the day before bed would be a wise choice.

Good sources of protein: grass fed beef, free-range chicken, free-range turkey, new Zealand lamb, free-range pork, fresh or deep water fish, seafood, eggs, wild meats

Step 2: Vary your sources of vegetables

Vegetables contain varying levels of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. It’s important to get a broad spectrum of these compounds for optimal health. The simplest way to make sure your bases are covered is to vary the colours regularly.

Here is a list of some good options you can eat-

Alfalfa Sprouts
Artichokes
Asparagus
Bean sprouts
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Celeriac
Collard greens/ spring greens
Cucumber
Eggplant
Fennel
Green beans
Kale
Leek
Mange tout
Mushrooms
Okra
Peppers
Radishes
Rocket
Romaine Lettuce
Sauerkraut
Seaweed/Kelp
Spring onions
Spinach
Swiss chards
Tomatoes
Swede
Water chestnuts
Watercress

Step 3: Vary your sources of Fats

Using different types of fats to cook with or accompany a meal will again provide different health benefits. The most important point of fat intake is having the right balance.

Here is a brief on fats, I will go into more detail in another article-

Monounsaturated fats

These fats are generally high in Vitamin E and are found in foods such as pumpkin seeds, sesame seed, cashews, almonds, avocado, olive oil and olives. Providing essential fatty acids they are also believed to lower cholesterol and aid in reducing heart disease.

Monounsaturated fats are usually liquid at room temperature

Polyunsaturated fats

Usually liquid at room temperature, polyunsaturated fats can be found in sources such as fish, sunflower-seed and plant oils, safflower, soy and corn

Omega 6

In general most peoples intake of Omega 6 fats has increased to an unhealthy level in the last 60 years with the increased availability of plant based cooking oils and also the shift of diet of farm bred animals that we now eat. Cows and chickens are not supposed to eat grains and when they do their fat becomes too high in omega 6 fatty acids.

Sources of omega 6- cooking oils, nuts, and grain fed animals

Omega 3

Our intake of Omega 3 fatty acids has also decreased due to the shift in what the animals we eat are made of. Grass fed animals and Wild meat is naturally higher in Omega 3 and I highly recommend investing in eating only these types of meat. I

Sources of omega 3 – oily fish, flax seed, supplements

Trans Fats

These are the byproducts of food manufacturing and unless you have been living under a rock you should be informed by now that these are bad for you and should be avoided as much as possible!

Sources of trans fats- processed food, baked goods, re-used fast food oils

Saturated Fat

This has also unfortunately come at the expense of using good fats such as grass fed organic butter and animal fats which have been demonised as a source of heart disease by some very clever food manufacturers with an interest in selling you their vegetable oils.

For the skinny on saturated fat please go here and read these series of articles-

http://www.spacedoc.net/saturated_fat_is_good_for_you_1

Sources of saturated fat- butter, coconut oil, animal fats, dairy products

Step 4: Vary your sources of carbohydrate but limit gluten

Carbohydrates are by no means evil; you just need to eat them relative to your daily energy needs and individual metabolism.

For someone who is gifted with good tolerance of carbohydrates (and also normally a very lean sub scapular) these people can get away with murder in regards to how many carbs they can eat without putting on any body fat. If you are a carboholic then to you they are the lucky bastards of the world, get over it!

For the majority, sometimes estimated at up to 75% of the population; carbohydrate intake needs to be limited to sticking mainly to fibrous vegetable sources and limited fruit with strategic use of starchy carbohydrates based around times of exercise.

This is especially true if with people who are overweight or obese and having markers of metabolic syndrome. At a certain point for these people their body will stop responding properly to utilising carbohydrate effectively and become much more likely to store it as more fat. As a person gets leaner they can reintroduce more carbohydrates into their diets.

Get rid of the Gluten

I am not a fan of Gluten due to its Lectin content. Lectin’s have been shown to irritate the gastrointestinal tract and can contribute to autoimmune disorders. The number of people who also have issues with wheat has also increased over the last 60 years due to the mass expansion of harvesting grains using seed with the same genotypes. Again having the same food all the time causes a problem. In the past where people could be eating dozens of different species of grains before mass standardisation this was less of an issue.

For more on Lectin’s go here- http://www.krispin.com/lectin.html

Wrap up

So there you have it. The take home point is that a healthy diet doesn’t have to consist of the same foods; in fact a diet that consists of the same foods is not so healthy. A healthy diet should consist of a huge variety of foods in order to maximise your intake of nutrients.

Im also a strong believer in balance and the occasional treat of foods we know are not so good for us is ok to have.

I am by no means a food Nazi and enjoy my bit of cake every so often as much as anyone else. Its when that bit of cake becomes part of the daily intake along with biscuits, pizza, donuts etc.

Don't fall victim to mass marketing and become a sheep eating whatever the adverts promote into your living room. You have the power to choose!