Weight Management Tips for the Holiday Feast-tivities!

Weight Management Tips for the Holiday Feast-tivities!

Alright, the holidays are quickly approaching and along with this time of year come, parties, big dinners and lots of tempting treats.  So here are a few of our favorite tips for surviving the holiday feasting season:

1. Try Using Light Alternatives:  Nowadays there are lots of good alternatives that are low-calorie, lower in carbs or lower in bad fats that taste very much like the original high-calorie version.  See if you can add a few of these items to your menu to help reduce the calorie content of some of your favorite foods like butter, whipped cream, sour cream.  In some cases you can blend things like Splenda (artificial sweetener) with real sugar to still make your baking sweet and tasty, but lighten the sugar/calorie content at the same time.
2.  Go For A Quick Walk:  On the days you are going to be feasting, take a walk in the morning and after the meal.  As you walk the increased oxygen, endorphin's and adrenaline will help digest the food and help you avoid the couch coma effect.
3. Go Outside and Play:  This one is much easier for us here in South Florida.  Many families in Florida plan beach time during the holidays, just remember to bring the Frisbee or football and make sure you get some activity involved with your beach outing.  Or take the kids to the park after a big meal, get some fresh air and have some fun!
4.  Chew Your Food Extra Well:  Your body is used to chewing a mouthful of food a specific number of times.  The more you chew, the less you are inclined to eat and your body will feel full sooner.  Plus, when you chew your food very well, it has time to interact with the digestive enzymes contained in saliva.  Once you do swallow, your body is better able to digest, process and eliminate your meal, allowing nutrients to be absorbed more efficiently.
5.  Drink Plenty of Water:  Water has no calories and helps you digest and process foods.  It will also make you feel fuller faster.  Drink a glass or two with the feast and it will interact with the fiber in your meal and make you feel full and satisfied faster.
6. Pay Attention to Your Body:  When you begin to feel uncomfortable, stop eating!  Many times the food just tastes so good that we go way beyond the point of comfort.  You feel full and sluggish and, of course, the natural progression of this leads to a couch and a long nap.  It all sounds so tempting, but remember, when you sleep, so does your metabolism. I call this the lips to hips condition. 

You can enjoy the holidays and still keep on top of your diet and at least maintain your body’s current condition and weight.  It is not as hard as it seems with these simple tips!  Our Certified Fitness Nutrition Specialists have lots of other great ideas for helping you get through the holiday season happy and healthy!

Til next time,

Mikie

Five Supplements Even CrossFitters Should Love!!

Every now and then I run into some people who do intense crosstraining but don't take supplements. I ask them how they feel and they ALL say their times suck, they can't move the next day and that they don't feel like they are making progress.
So I ask what supplements they are taking and I'm shocked that they say nothing! NOTHING...not even aminos...zip...zilch...nada!!!

So I searched the internet for the best and most basic information I could find, so between all our knowledge here and the good folks at Breakingmuscle.com we've put together a great list of supplements that will help you become a healthier and better performing athlete.

CoQ10

Also known as ubiquinol, coenzyme Q10 is so named because it is ubiquitous in your body. That means it’s everywhere. Coenzyme Q10 is a naturally occurring enzyme in our bodies, so you’re not putting anything foreign into yourself by supplementing with it. And while you can get CoQ10 in small levels in a variety of foods, our body’s level naturally declines as we get older.

What CoQ10 Does:

• Helps with the production of ATP (your ability to produce energy)
• Is a powerful antioxidant
• Plays a major role in circulation and the health of the heart
• Helps regulate insulin levels
• Helps prevent and alleviate migraines

CoQ10 isn't just hype. In fact, it’s been approved for use in Japan for the treatment of heart disease for many decades. This is one of those supplements that the more research comes out on it, the more of a no-brainer it seems to be.

On top of all those basic health reasons, recent research showed CoQ10 improved power output in elite athletes by 2.5%. Do some math with your “Fran” time and tell me you wouldn’t love that.

Magnesium

Some of you might take magnesium for sleep or for muscle function, but it’s benefits go way beyond that. Magnesium also helpsbalance blood sugar and lower insulin.You know, all those things you’re working toward with your paleo diet. Research has shown that there is an inverse relationship between magnesium levels and insulin resistance. So, the more deficient you are in magnesium, the more likely you are to take that first step toward diabetes.

Research has also shown that magnesium increases testosterone levels in athletes. Whether you’re male or female, healthy T levels are good for your muscle growth and performance, and regardless of gender your levels are dropping as you get older.

Phosphatidylserine

CrossFitters are nerds, let’s face it. Most of you guys are pretty darn driven, successful, and intelligent people. Wouldn’t it be great if you gave your brain all the fuel and power it could possibly use? What if your speed of thought, reaction time, and analytical powers were all boosted?Welcome to the world of nootropics.

A great nootropic to start with is phosphatidylserine (PS). Again, it can be made in the body, but we get most of our supply from the food we eat. Having a good enough supply in our system is essential for our brain health.PS is commonly used in the treatment of Alzheimer’s, dementia, and other diseases related to aging of the brain.

More importantly for you as an athlete, though, is phosphatidylserine's ability to lower your cortisol levels. Here's an excerpt from one study:

The findings suggest that PS is an effective supplement for combating exercise-induced stress and preventing the physiological deterioration that can accompany too much exercise. PS supplementation promotes a desired hormonal status for athletes by blunting increases in cortisol levels.

In addition it was reported in Biology of Sport all the way back in 1998 that PS could be a "valuable training tool" for weight training athletes due to its ability to reduce muscle soreness. Reduced cortisol and muscle soreness? Sounds like a winner to me.

Vitamin D

So, like magnesium, we all know the basic reasons for supplementing with vitamin D. We know we need our dose of sunshine or we need to rub some liquid drops in our skin if we're trapped inside all day or happen to live in the northern regions.

But did you know that low vitamin D levels have been directly linked to low testosterone levels?So not cool. And again, whether you're male or female, you need testosterone in your body if you want to have strong bones and build your muscles. The great thing is, though, further research into magnesium went on to show that supplementation with vitamin D can indeed raise your T levels. Men taking 3,332 IUs of vitamin D daily for a year experienced a 20% increase in their free testosterone levels. So, it's an easy fix, as long as you've got vitamin D on your daily to-do list.

Protein Powder

I know, I know, CrossFitters only eat “real food,” right? And protein powder is the gold standard of everything that’s wrong in the supplement industry, right? Wrong.What’s wrong is all the stuff you bought in the past from some pyramid level outlet company that was indeed chemical-filled junk. But there are plenty of quality protein powder sources out there.

And let’s look at real life for a moment. For one thing, real food gets expensive. For another, real food is not always very convenient. And third, I don’t know about you but sometimes I don’t feel like chewing and digesting a meal within thirty minutes of a killer workout, but I do feel pretty stupid and woozy.

And as much as we would all like our lives to revolve around our workouts, the fact is we do have these things called jobs and schedules. Are you going to eat a cold chicken breast right after your 7:00am workout as you rush to shower and get to work? Would you rather not refuel your body than consume protein powder?

If you take your training seriously, then you need to take your post-workout nutrition seriously and that means replenishing glycogen stores and consuming protein. A good post-workout shake can fill the gap when you've got ten minutes to shower and get out the gym door.

So there you have it. Five things that are not foreign to your body, but in regards to which you may indeed be operating at a deficit. CoQ10, magnesium, phosphatidylserine, vitamin D, and protein. That list doesn't sound too bad right? And, all of these you can find at 4X Nutrition Center. Along with getting a sweet discount.

Consider the effort you put into each individual workout you do. Consider the care with which you choose and prepare your food, and the care you put into the selection of the gear you use. You are working hard and being incredibly discerning in your attempts to optimize your health and performance. Intelligent supplementation is just one more way to squeeze more results out of the work you do. You deserve supplements that work just as hard as you do!

And I promise it won’t make you a bad person if you take these. In fact, it might make you a better athlete and a healthier human being.

Til next time,
Mikie

Weight Management Tips for the Holiday Feast-tivities!

Alright, the holidays are quickly approaching and along with this time of year come, parties, big dinners and lots of tempting treats.  So here are a few tips for surviving the holiday feasting season:

1. Go For A Quick Walk:  On the days you are going to be feasting, take a walk in the morning and after the meal.  As you walk the increased oxygen, endorphin's and adrenaline will help digest the food and help you avoid the couch coma effect.
2.    Go Outside and Play:  This one is much easier for us here in South Florida.  Many families in Florida plan beach time during the holidays, just remember to bring the Frisbee or football and make sure you get some activity involved with your beach outing.  Or take the kids to the park after a big meal, get some fresh air and have some fun!
3.  Chew Your Food Extra Well:  Your body is used to chewing a mouthful of food a specific number of times.  The more you chew, the less you are inclined to eat and your body will feel full sooner.  Plus, when you chew your food very well, it has time to interact with the digestive enzymes contained in saliva.  Once you do swallow, your body is better able to digest, process and eliminate your meal, allowing nutrients to be absorbed more efficiently.
4. Drink Plenty of Water:  Water has no calories and helps you digest and process foods.  It will also make you feel fuller faster.  Drink a glass or two with the feast and it will interact with the fiber in your meal and make you feel full and satisfied faster.
5. Try Using Light Alternatives:  Nowadays there are lots of good alternatives that are low-calorie, lower in carbs or lower in bad fats that taste very much like the original high-calorie version.  See if you can add a few of these items to your menu to help reduce the calorie content of some of your favorite foods like butter, whipped cream, sour cream.  In some cases you can blend things like Stevia with real sugar to still make your baking sweet and tasty, but lighten the sugar/calorie content at the same time.
6. Pay Attention to Your Body:  When you begin to feel uncomfortable, stop eating!  Many times the food just tastes so good that we go way beyond the point of comfort.  You feel full and sluggish and, of course, the natural progression of this leads to a couch and a long nap.  It all sounds so tempting, but remember, when you sleep, so does your metabolism.  I call this the lips to hips condition.

You can enjoy the holidays and still keep on top of your diet and at least maintain your body’s current condition and weight.  It is not as hard as it seems with these simple tips!  Our Certified Fitness Nutrition Specialists have lots of other great ideas for helping you get through the holiday season happy and healthy!

Til next time,

Mikie

Maple-Roasted Sweet Potatoes

I love the fall and all the healthy food that comes with it! 
One of my favorite things is sweet potato's and in the fall you get extra fresh ones. 

So I found a great recipe on www.eatingwell.com that I had to share!!
I've taken it a little father and added some Myofusion protein into the mix it give it a little more protein. I hope you enjoy!

Makes: 12 servings, about 1/2 cup each

Active Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (about 8 cups)
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1/2 scoop Myofusion Elite Vanilla

PREPARATION

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Arrange sweet potatoes in an even layer in a 9-by-13-inch glass baking dish. Combine maple syrup, butter, lemon juice, protein ,salt and pepper in small bowl. Pour the mixture over the sweet potatoes; toss to coat.
3. Cover and bake the sweet potatoes for 15 minutes. Uncover, stir and cook, stirring every 15 minutes, until tender and starting to brown, 45 to 50 minutes more.

TIPS & NOTES

• Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day. Just before serving, reheat at 350°F until hot, about 15 minutes.

NUTRITION

Per serving: 246 calories; 5 g fat ( 2 g sat , 0 g mono ); 5 mg cholesterol;  24 g carbohydrates; 26 g protein; 2 g fiber; 228 mg sodium; 189 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (230% daily value), Vitamin C (15% dv)

Carbohydrate Servings: 1 1/2

Exchanges: 1 1/2 starch, 1/2 fat

I hope you enjoy these as much as I do and feel free to stop by and share your favorite recipes with us!

Til next time,

 Mikie

Five Tips for Recession Supplement Shopping

FIVE TIPS FOR RECESSION SUPPLEMENT SHOPPING

1.Cover The Basics:  Protein and a good Multi-Vitamin are essential for your body and your workouts.  Without these two key items, all of your hard work will suffer.  Beyond these, you should also consider EFAs (Essential Fatty Acids, Omega -3,-6,-9) or Glutamine as part of your Tri-Fecta Stack of products that will focus your precious dollars on the essentials.

2. Don’t Skimp On Protein:  Protein is the key macro-nutrient your body uses to re-build and repair lean muscle tissue.  In tough economic times it may seem wise to downgrade your choice in protein to a low-cost or generic brand to save money.  But remember, it’s cheap for a reason!  Just like you wouldn't buy the package of chicken that is marked down because it’s past the expiration date, buying a cheap protein may mean you are buying lots of fillers or not getting the full label amount of protein per serving. It's OK to splurge on a quality protein like Intek, Myofusion or Pro Complete 40.

3. Using Supplements to Save Money:  The other day a customer came into the store.  I had been recommending a Meal Replacement Bars (MRB) for him for almost a year.  But because meal replacement bars tend to cost a lot, he had declined the recommendation.  Then last week, he came in and bought two boxes of them and explained how he is going to use them to SAVE money.  He currently goes to a deli or restaurant for lunch every business day and spends around $12-$15.  The per serving cost of the MRB he bought is $3.00 (he bought the most expensive one in the store).  He estimates by dropping the restaurant lunch four days a week, he will save between $150 and $200 a month.  The MRB gives him a full compliment of nutrients and vitamins and fills him up.  Plus the extra time at his desk allows him to get ahead at work!

4. But I Really Want the Cool Stuff I Saw in the Muscle Mag:  Pre-workouts, post-workout, pro-hormone, specialized recovery and other cool products are great to have, but they are not essential.  But there is no reason to deny your access, just be smart.  Let us help you assess what type of workouts you are putting your body through and what your goals are and we can help find the best one or two products matched to your goal versus just buying what is “new” or “in all the mags”.  Many times the “hot” product are just basic, simple ingredients re-packaged and plugged with a lot of marketing.  Not to pick on any brand, but take Muscletech’s Leukic Hardcore…good product that runs anywhere from $60.00 to $90.00 depending on the size, but you can substitute a good old fashioned Branch Chain Amino Acid (BCAA) product for it and get the same results for only $20 - $25.  Let our Certified Nutrition Coaches help you figure out if your supplement list has room for these kind of switches.

5. Buy in Bulk:  If you love the pre-workout drinks or bars or your favorite protein powders think VOLUME to save!  We sell all our Ready To Drinks (RTD’S) and bars in single serving or case quantity.  Case quantity buying automatically saves you 15% off the price because we don’t have to break it open, price it and stock it to the various shelves so we pass those savings on to you.  As for protein, think, PER SERVING COST!  Most protein powders are priced to be less per serving the larger container you buy.  You’ll pay more upfront, but save money in the long run.  For example, Intek 5lb is $67.99 (not including your Frequent Buyer Club Credit) and with over 50 servings it costs about $1.30 per serving.  The 2lber costs about $1.42 per serving, that’s a 22% savings!  Also, related to #3 above, that’s $1.30 a serving for the equivalent nutrient value of a 6oz chicken breast…good luck buying a chicken breast at the store (uncooked) or at a restaurant for $1.30.

We hope this helps you save money and feel better about your purchase here at 4X Nutrition Center! Feel free to stop by and speak with one of our certified nutrition staff and let them help you make the most cost effect choice that will still keep you headed toward your goals.

Til next time,

 MIkie

What are Essential Amino Acids???

What are Essential Amino Acids???

An amino acid is considered essential because the body cannot make it from other dietary components. Therefore if one's diet does not contain a full complement of the essential amino acids, a nutritional deficiency exists.

Consuming amino acids in the form of whole-food proteins is preferable to taking them in through supplements, however certain amino acid supplements can offer health and fitness benefits.

During exercise, protein breakdown increases with no rise in protein synthesis. This means that training and competing can be very catabolic times, no matter what type of exercise you do. Fortunately, during the post-exercise period, this muscle catabolism can be slowed as protein synthesis begins to rise.

However, this increase still isn't enough to counter the protein breakdown that's still occurring. The net result of this workout and post workout catabolism is that muscle recovery and improvement (if endurance exercise is your thing) or growth (if strength exercise is your thing) is hampered.
Current reach in dietary supplementation has targeted these catabolic times, attempting to minimize the catabolism and maximize the anabolism (including recovery, improvement, and/or growth). This research has demonstrated that essential amino acids (alone or with carbohydrates) ingested before, during, or after exercise promote huge increases in protein balance.

Essential Amino Acids are basic dietary components that comprise all of the proteins we eat. However, the provision of these amino acids individually (or as part of an easily digestible complete protein like Intek Evolution or Intek Isolate whey protein) can lead to more rapid digestion and absorption and faster recovery.

Choice Nutrition System EAA

Furthermore, 3 of the 9 essential amino acids are the often-discussed branched chain amino acids (BCAA). These amino acids are important to muscle metabolism and may prevent central fatigue.

Strength and endurance athletes will benefit from approximately 6g per 70kg mass of EAA ingested immediately prior to and/or during exercise.
Alternatively, athletes could choose to consume 0.4g/kg of rapidly digesting protein like Syntrax Matrix or whey concentrate/isolate like Elite Gourmet or Myfusion. For further benefit add 0.8g/kg carbohydrate to enhance the recovery effects of these amino acids.

Starting in Septemeber we will be giving away a FREE Essential Amino Acid with any purchase of  3 or more products! A $30 value stop 4x Nutrition today!

Til next time 

Seth

Gaining Muscle Myths and Bulking

TO BULK OR NOT TO BULK THAT IS THE QUESTION......

There are two big mistakes commonly made when trying to put on muscle; one is not eating enough and the other is too much cardio.

If you want to gain muscle you have to eat. Many people claim they eat enough when in fact they don’t because even if you weren’t gaining muscle you would at least be gaining body fat. If neither of those two things is occurring than clearly you aren’t eating enough. Yes, you most likely will gain some body fat when you are trying to put on muscle but that doesn’t mean cut calories to keep body fat low, it doesn’t work like that. To put it simply, in order to gain muscle you have to fuel your body with protein, carbohydrates, fats and get a sufficient amount of calories. To keep from putting on too much fat while you are trying to gain muscle you would want to create a diet that’s about 400-500 calories over maintenance. On average you may gain 0.5-1lb per week. Some of that weight gain will come from muscle and some fat. You can cycle your diet to try to cut some fat between gaining cycles. On training days eat more calories then non training days to help keep the fat down while gaining. Also more calories on training days will help to fuel your workouts. You have to monitor your body. If you aren’t gaining any weight then increase your calories. If you are gaining much more fat than muscle then change your diet.

I mentioned that you need not only protein but carbs and fats too. Don’t get in the mind set that all you need is protein in order to put on muscle. It’s almost impossible to get enough calories through protein alone, unless you want to eat 2-3 pounds of chicken breast per day for you small girls and much more if you’re trying to gain. Also protein isn't a sufficient source of energy. Studies have shown that, once protein requirements are met, more muscle is gained by adding carbs and fat than from just adding in more protein.

For my second point, Cardio!  Diet isn't the only mistake people make. Over doing it with cardio is also a big mistake. I do recommend cardio to just keep a healthy heart. Cardio for about 20 minutes maybe 3 times a week, low intensity is fine. For the guys and girls that burn a ton of calories from weight lifting, some cardio may help to increase appetite and keep some fat off while gaining but again nothing crazy like an hour on the elliptical or stair climber 5 days a week.

There’s a horrible myth that if you starve yourself and do an excessive amount of cardio that you’ll burn fat. Too much cardio will put your body in a catabolic state and burn muscle. Losing muscle leads to loss of strength and slower metabolism.  Too much cardio increases cortisol levels which weakens immune system.

Here at 4x Nutrition we can help you meet your goals by setting you up with a meal plan and also getting you the right supplements if your daily food intake isn't enough to reach your goal. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.

Til Next time,

Seth