What About Paleo?

Aaron E.
What do you think of "paleo-like" diets? What exercise style do you recommend?

Seth Estrada 
I think Paleo type diets are great. Of course, The Zone diet is also great, in that it now has numerous studies linked to it's core principles. Either way, the case each school makes is very similar. That said, numerous generations have lived very healthy lives in agrarian societies with diets based primarily on fruit, grain, and lacto-ovo protein, with a smattering of red meat for the special occasion.

For exercise style, again, it totally depends on the end goals of the person. High Intensity interval style training, AMRAPS, Tabata, and Fartleks are all extremely effective, but so is rest-based density training and Olympic style lifting. For most people, more important than style is consistency. My reasoning for saying so is as follows:

If you are consistent in your workouts over many many months or years, you become less of a 'flight risk' on the nutritional side. You won't want to willingly jeopardize your results for the momentary pleasure a doughnut might give, for example.

Also, the longer one stays consistent, the better he'll understand which is the most effective program, training partner, exercise location, long-term exercise modality, and injury-prevention technique for his own body.

So as a rule, you can always work out [even in captivity], but you can't always control what you eat. So focus on the workouts, and sort out the nutrition as you go.

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

How Much Daily Protein?

Matt M.
How much protein is enough? 1 G for every pound you weigh to maintain size? Or can I eat less?


Seth Estrada 
The honest truth is that you can eat less than 1g per pound, and still continue to make strength and endurance gains. You can even maintain a decent physique, but it will be difficult to go up in muscle mass unless you eat that much protein, or more. [But also be sure to eat enough fiber each day, or the story of your intestinal distress will be epic] So anywhere from .6-.8 grams of protein per pound of bodyweight is still just fine for maintenance, as long as you train with serious intensity, á lá Crossfit. For traditional bodybuilding, you'll need a tad more.

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Work Out @ Home. Just You & P90X

Tania P:

I have been overweight most my life with little to no exercise. In January I began working out 3-5 times a week, March I walked a 5K and now plan to be in the Carlsbad 1/2 marathon in January. A co-worker has been training me with the P90X fitness book. I recently bought it and see there is also a nutrition guide. Previous to now, I was keeping track of calories and trying to eat between 600 and 900 calories a day. That only worked for a while. I am 5'3" and currently weigh 178. Any suggestions? are you familiar with P90X? do you suggest jogging at this point? my knees seem to always hurt and my hips too. Thanks for any advice you can give me. 

Seth 'Cash Money' Estrada

Tania - To answer your questions directly, jogging should probably be avoided till you're a little lighter on your feet. Try walking stairs instead. Seriously, walking up stairs for 20-30 minutes at a time will bring your heart rate up to whatever training zone you want to get it to, but have almost zero impact on your knee and hip joints.

On the nutritional side of things P90X, like any exercise program, is only as good as your eating habits. Unfortunately calorie restriction doesn't work for very long, as you discovered. I want you to borrow two books from the library. [Don't buy them! Try them out first] The first is 'Body for Life' by Bill Phillips. It's a great introduction to the higher-protein-plus-supplementation paradigm, and is largely responsible for the higher incidence of awesome physiques that we've been seeing since the mid 90's. It is a slightly more sustainable nutritional model.

The next book is 'Enter the Zone' by Dr. Barry Sears. This is a much more sustainable nutritional model, though it can be more expensive to get all the varieties of foods he recommends. That said, Barry Sears is a doctor, with numerous scientific case studies to prove the effectiveness of his hypotheses, and Bill Phillips is an 'expert', with really good anecdotal evidence. Both have their place.

Now, 'Enter the Zone' is really an introduction to the so-called 'Zone Diet', and lays down the scientific foundation for why it is so successful. 'Mastering the Zone' is a follow up book, which contains many more recipes, shopping lists, tips, and tricks to get you past the initial try-out period. If you find the Zone effective, then this book should help you stay in the Zone more effectively.

Try each book for 4-6 weeks, and then decide which one is working best/is more maintainable for you. Once you've chosen the best nutritional model for you, stick to it religiously, like your very life depends on it. Two weeks before the marathon, go ahead and re-evaluate the approach you wish to take for AFTER the marathon. Don't wait till you get home from that 13 mile run. Why? Because most people quit due to lack of planning. You will not quit.

Best of luck. Let me know how you like the books!

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

'Supp, Foo!' Returns!

Daniel A.:
What are some long term effects of energy drinks?

Seth 'Ur Face-Melting BFF' Estrada:

Possible caffeine addiction, anxiety - here's just one study done in Brazil: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20164571

Here's another study from Spain showing correlation between high doses of caffeine and poly-consumption of other drugs by university students: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20402455

My personal take is that caffeine is another pharmaceutical tool, to be used methodically and with careful planning, not willy-nilly. The makers of energy drinks tout them as nothing short of miraculous, which is very dangerous. If you are drinking energy drinks for the caffeine, you are also ingesting artificial sweeteners, high fructose corn syrup, and other questionable, if not overtly dangerous ingredients/combinations of multiple potentially dangerous ingredients. Additionally, high-dose caffeine acts as a diuretic, which increases pressure on the prostate (for men anyway), an unnecessary risk for men over the age of 30. I could go on, but I'm simply going to end with this analogy:

Both Pepsi and Coke were initially considered medicinal drinks, not recreational beverages, and certainly not a replacement for water, as some people consume them. Energy drinks are the Coke of the new millennium. Please use caution.

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Supp, Foo! 3D!!!

Trisha N.:
Seth what's your take on the HCG diet? Just curious to know if you've looked into it. 

Grass-Fed Beefeater?:

Trisha - I'm always leery of any hormone treatment or supplement; if your body doesn't produce enough, then you should have your blood drawn, and levels checked. If you DO produce enough, then why upset the balance?

Food is actually a drug. Water is food's companion. Exercise is actually stimulus. Just like electrodes on a lab animal. Sleep is necessary recovery time from stimulus.

Be methodical, and you generally won't need more than these elements.

 

 

Oh, and here's the titular 3D spectacle, just in time for October-ween. Have a fun weekend!

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Supp, Foo! Part Deux

Heather H.:
What do you think about those probiotic enhancer drinks? The one I tried was called like Pre10 or something??

Seth, the Happy Man:
Heather - I generally don't endorse supplements, so I'll be as descriptive as possible in general terms.  Probiotics are great for your health. Packaged juices and soft drinks? Not so much. The added sugars make it taste good, but sucker you in to drinking empty calories. Plus the amount of active probiotic cultures cannot possibly be as high as they claim, or it would be a yogurt drink. Try enteric coated probiotics of any strain, and they'll wind up costing less money, and working 1000% more effectively, if not more.

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Supp, Foo!

Ryan S.:
What is your take on Proto Whey?

Psychotic Misanthrope:  
Ryan - I generally don't endorse supplements, so I'll be as descriptive as possible in general terms. Hydrolized whey peptides are awesome, and drinking protein with fiber is always a good idea. This looks like a good product, if you're ok with artificial sweeteners (sucralose).

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Change Up The Old Food Routine

Manny S.:

Hey,
I know I'm always asking questions so sorry for being a pain in the neck...but I'm just curious and I know you know your stuff. I am trying to change up what I eat/drink for the first thing in the morning and the same before I go to bed.

What do you to during those times?
Trying to get some ideas and feedback. Right now I'm doing a protein shake for breakfast/banana and then eggs glass of milk.

And before bed protein shake after dinner or some greek yogurt.

-Manny

Face It, Punk; I. Will. Melt. You. :
Manny, it's really no problem. Thanks for your confidence.

What I do for breakfast and bedtime varies depending on my current goals. I hit my bodybuilding goal for the year, so now I'm moving on to strictly performance oriented goals, and have different nutritional considerations [not to mention a different body :P ].

In your case, with the goals of shredding and building [or 'keeping'], what you're doing is a good start, but it sounds like you're getting bored. Perhaps try a new protein blend for bedtime: two of my favorites are SYNTHA-6 and Nitrocore 24. They are a blend of multiple types of protein, and give a more sustained release of amino acids. Next, try some new fruit. Bananas are awesome if you're running or playing a lot of ball. If you're not, you may not need one every morning. Next, use milk with your bedtime protein, and water in the morning. The lack of calories in the morning may stimulate your appetite for breakfast a little sooner.

The last suggestion is to increase your fiber intake overall. Leafy greens, water-laden veggies, and low GI fruits at every meal.

Let me know how it goes :)

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!

Restore Mid-Section After C-Section!

From ANONYMOUS :

"What are the best stomach exercises for someone to do who has had a c-section? Before having [3] kids, it was so easy for me to get muscle definition, now my stomach is way different. I feel like crunches are useless! I tried the stomach video from [a workout series] once, which I thought had some interesting exercises I have never seen but my stomach was not sore the next day (I of course tried my best to do them but am NOT nearly as fit as them) and the only thing that was really sore was my lower back from doing the exercises on a hard floor without a pad. I had also walked around the zoo all morning and went for a run up the hill with [my husband] and the kids before doing those stomach exercises, so I was surprised my legs weren't sore from running up the hill pushing 60 lbs of kids. Sorry to go on and on...but I'm interested in learning how to flatten my weird looking c-section stomach. Thanks."

Seth Estrada :

"Great question, and don't worry about giving all those details; most of us have a life outside of our fitness efforts.
 

You might try weighted ab exercise twice a week, using the classic bodybuilding approach of 3 sets, and no more than 12-15 reps. Some great exercises with weights are Russian Twists, V-Ups, weighted straight-leg raises, Weighted Hundreds [with the weight held between your feet], and Superman Rows.

The second part to the answer was given to another asker: you must be ready to change a little bit of what you eat. If you are finishing your kid's food, eating the same snacks your kids are eating, or drinking any calorie-containing beverages, then you are likely getting some empty calories, which wreak havoc on any attempt to tone ANY part of your body. Cut them, add more water, and give your abs focused, methodical attention, and you will notice a difference, even if you are not sore.

Try it for 3 weeks before deciding whether or not you're seeing/feeling results. Good luck!"

So if you got to this point, obviously you read the whole post- Thanks! I've kept this blog 100% ad-free, so if you found any part of it useful, all I ask in return is that you please hit that Facebook Share button, or maybe share it on Google+, Twitter or Digg- it's really easy, and it helps more people benefit from the tips, tricks, and fun we're having over here. Thanks again!