3 Tips for Pre-Season Conditioning

Today's post is a brain explosion from Goose Osorio:

It’s no big secret that most people HATE running; this goes for majority of athletes as well. However running is essential to most sports and may hinder performance if not trained properly or at all. Here are a couple of conditioning tips for athletes who may not be the most fond of running but need to stay in shape:

1. Prowler

WARNING: Prolonged use of the prowler may induce Prowler Flu!

Whether you do pushes or drags, the prowler is going to give you the most bang for your buck! It’s a versatile tool which can be used on almost any surface (road, track, grass, gravel, turf, and carpet). It can be used for speed development and work capacity improvement (conditioning). And as far as time efficiency goes, all you need is 10 minutes with a prowler to get a good workout. Here are a couple of ideas for prowler workouts:

-Push/Drag Every Minute on the Minute for 5-15 minutes

-Drag down, Push back for 15-30m

-High Handle Push to Low Handle Push

-Lightweight Drag/Push for Speed

-Heavy Drag/Push

2.  Hill/Bleachers

My coach used to call these workouts “speed work in disguise”, they’re great off season conditioning tools because they improve both cardiovascular and anaerobic capacity. Hill workouts are fantastic for practicing maintaining an appropriate stride length when you’re in a fatigued state. Also, bleachers are useful for working on maintaining stride frequency, that is, how fast your feet make contact with the ground, when fatigued. Both of these modalities require a higher amount of force production per step than sprints on a flat surface.  These are apt for athletes who don’t have a training facility, however they are dependent on weather conditions. I would advise against doing either an a rainy or snowy day.

**Also worth noting, when doing hill or bleacher workouts, take your time on the way down. The descent portion of these workouts can increase the risk for injury at both the ankle and the knees. Both joints are placed in vulnerable positions, especially when fatigued. Take your time on the way down and go wild on the way up.

3. ERG/Bike

Who said cycling would make your legs shrink???

If your back is against the wall on a snowy day and you desperately need to work out, cardio machines are a suitable option. The ability to control the intensity and monitor your power output (RPM) are rare qualities which make machines a viable option for anaerobic interval workouts. Take 10 to 15 minutes to warm up and used this time to feel out what your steady pace is, something you can maintain for long periods of time. This steady pace will be your rest pace. When doing interval workouts it’s important to keep an appropriate work to rest ratio. This means if you work really hard for 30 seconds you need at least the same amount of time if not longer in order to recover and go again. Here is a general guideline for these ratios:

-        1:1, ex. 30 sec ON/30 sec OFF. This should be used for longer moderate intensity workouts.

-        1:2, ex. 1 min ON/ 2 min OFF. This should be used for moderate to high intensity workouts.

-        1:3, ex. 15 sec ON/ 45 sec OFF. This is for high intensity/”all out” bursts

**”OFF” doesn’t mean stop and do nothing. It means go back to that steady pace and maintain it during your rest period.

All three of these options will get you in shape much faster than going on a long slow jog. Don’t overlook your aerobic conditioning but in the end you can’t get faster by running slowly all the time! If the goal is to move fast, then you have to train fast.

SPEED KILLS!

Percolation of Lies: Why I Hate Nutritionally "Sensational" Headlines

This is why America has no idea what to eat. This is why our collective relationship with food is so darn complicated. The following is akin to the constant stream of media articles that claim a food is horrible one week and a wonder food the next. (We all know how  frustrating and confusing that is!)

Time ran an article about an Iowan science teacher, John Cisna, who ate nothing but McDonald's for three meals a day for 90 days and lost weight. It's also HERE entitled: "Man Loses Nearly 40lbs Eating Only McDonald's."

That's an extremely misleading title! While I can't blame the new sites for wanting catchy titles to reel in readers, the articles don't expound too much on Cisna's diet (or what the nutritional composition of those meals were) and they down play the plethora of other factors within his self-experiment.

A quick run-down on the facts expressed in the articles (in case you don't want to ready them). With the help of his class, John Cisna:

1. Constructed 3 meals based on a 2,000 calorie diet and the recommended intakes for protein, carbohydrates, and fat by the USDA (which I think are bunk, but that's a whole 'nother ball game).

2. Walked 45 minutes per day (when previously, he was doing no extra physical activity)

3. Resulted in a 37 lb weight loss and a drop in cholesterol from 249 (dangerously high) to 170 (decent level). His LDL dropped from 173 to 113. (also insanely high to an ok-level).

I'll state the glaringly obvious that, any a man who was quite overweight to begin with (280lbs) performing NO extra physical activity, and was probably over-eating anyway, WILL lose weight with calorie reduction and added physical activity. That's just physiology. At this point, ANYTHING he does towards reducing his calories and increasing his exercise will produce weight loss. Also, the cholesterol reduction is a result in the weight loss, not necessarily the food he ate. Can you start to see why this title is misleading?

To quote the man himself, "The point behind this documentary is, Hey, it's (a) choice. We all have choices. It's our choices that make us fat, not McDonald's." source

On one hand, I agree with Cisna; we are not victims of our environment, we do have the option to choose healthier foods when out to eat. No one forces us to purchase a Big Mac over a salad. It is imperative that we be wary consumers when fast food is involved (the food companies strive to make their food palatable, cheap, and addictive) and Cisna proved that when one digs a bit and is aware of the caloric values of food, that empowers us to make smarter food choices.

On the other hand, the real message is convoluted and lost amid that headline. It presents the situation as a justification for choosing McDonald's instead of  a home cooked meal. Or instead of a meal composed of WHOLE, minimally-processed foods ('cause I guarantee that McDonald's has very few whole foods on the menu.). Conveniently, you can read along with this handy ingredient guide. You'll want to refer to this as we move on.

Cisna admitted to having double cheeseburgers and a Big Macs throughout the experiment. Hmmm... Big Macs have roughly  29 grams of fat (and not the good kind check out the "Big Mac sauce"), 46 g of carbohydrates (definitely not the minimally processed kinds, look at the guide under "regular bun"), and 25 g of protein (but, really, where does that meat COME FROM?)

"Yeah Kelsey," you say, " we already KNOW that's not a 'healthy' choice." Fair enough, let's take a gander, shall we, at the yogurt parfait he ate regularly:

2 g of fat, 30 g carbohydrates, and 4 g of protein. Once again, I question the quality of the source of the fat and protein (from the milk). I can't imagine that the milk used in that is really that great. However, that is overshadowed by that 30 grams of carbs, that is, SUGAR. Highly processed, sugar (though there's a smidge of natural sugar in the milk and fruits, but it's NOT 30 grams worth). Don't believe me? Look up yogurt and granola in that handy guide. Ick. Sugar has, time and time again, been shown to be a culprit in increasing inflammation in the body and creating insulin resistance (to keep the list short), both of which are risk factors for Type 2 diabetes. The same criticism rings true for the maple oatmeal he ate, except that little bugger has some light cream in it... yum!

At first glance, the Eggwhite Delights that Cisna consumed seem like a good idea, only 250 calories each, oh but wait, check out the "whole" grain muffin and egg white and margarine ingredients. Super appealing right?

I could continue in this vein for a while, but I'll cease my tirade and allow my point to actually surface: 240 calories of crap is still crap. The composition of food absolutely matters. The message, as it stands on the surface, is still, "reach for processed foods over whole foods." How much BETTER do you think Cisna would feel if he had chosen whole, minimally processed foods?

I applaud Cisna for sticking with his endeavor, to keep walking even when he didn't want to, and to making conscientious food choices. I'm so glad he lost weight, is healthier than before, and has learned the value in monitoring caloric intake. This is a great stepping stone on his path to a healthier lifestyle. I hope very much that he will be able to continue without the help of McDonald's.

I think the true message of this experiment is food quantity and quality matter, along with regular exercise. Unfortunately, the second half, food quality, is buried under the lie that choosing "healthy" options at McDonald's is a viable way to improve health. Again, crap is still crap. Don't let the media's sensationalism divert you from the truth of eating real foods.

The Battlefield is in the Kitchen: Part II

Maria Halkiadakis, once again, graces the Blog of SAPT. Take it away Maria!

Last Friday’s post began the discussion, The Battlefield is in the Kitchen.  Before moving on to Part II let’s do a quick recap on the topic…

Training alone is not enough to help anyone achieve the results they are after. Common sense tells us that eating right and exercising are the two key elements to taking care of our bodies. It is important to find a balance between the two by not over training or depriving oneself of proper nutrition. Translation = pick up the right amount of heavy things and eat the right amount of good food.

Today we are focusing on what needs to be done in the kitchen to reach our goals. Last week we discussed how planning and preparation are crucial factors. This means creating weekly menus, using these menus to make grocery lists, and dedicating time to prepare meals. Two days a week my kitchen counter looks a little something like this…

We also discussed purging your pantry last week. If you find yourself eating junk food because it is around the house, get rid of it! Donate it, throw it in the trash, or give it away. It is perfectly okay to have snack foods in the kitchen, but it needs to be the healthy kind, which brings me to the first new point of today’s discussion.

EAT REAL FOOD

There are no secrets or anything new to be learned here. Just eat real food. It really is that easy.  Eating a variety of real food, meaning fruit, vegetables, meats, grains, legumes, nuts/seeds, and dairy, will provide the human body all the nourishment it needs.

A good rule of thumb is not to eat anything that has more than five ingredients. Unless of course you made it yourself and know it is filled with wholesome ingredients.  For example, grains and dairy products are perfectly acceptable as part of a healthy diet.However, be cautious when deciding which ones to purchase from the grocery store. As far as ingredients go on prepackaged items, less is definitely more. (Note from Kelsey: How To Read Food Labels.)

EAT IN MODERATION

Slow down, set aside the fork for a minute, and enjoy how your food tastes. I hate seeing people practically inhale their meals. Food is NOT fuel, it is so much more than that. Therefore, don’t treat your body as if you would treat your car at the gas pump: by filling up with the cheap stuff and going on with your day.

Food is delicious! Slow down and enjoy every bite of it. Strive to be mindful of what you are eating while you are eating it. Avoid distractions during meals such as watching television or talking on the phone. Doing these things won’t allow you to pay proper attention to your body’s hunger signals.

It takes approximately 20 minutes for the human body to realize it’s full. For this reason it would make sense to allow yourself at least 20 minutes to eat a meal.

Below are a few tips:

- Try drinking water between bites to slow down.

- Eat meals with friends or family whenever possible.

- Lengthen mealtime by enjoying their company and engaging in conversation. As a bonus you’ll be killing two birds with one stone; adopting healthier habits and spending time with the people you care about.

Sometimes you may need to eat in a hurry. If this happens make an active decision to do so and pay attention to your portion size realizing you may not feel full by the time you have eaten enough.

You do not have to deprive yourself of your favorite foods and restaurants.  Follow the 90% rule, meaning aim to keep your diet on point about 90% of the week.  If you eat 3 meals a day, roughly 21 meals per week, and 90% of that is 19. Therefore, you can eat out twice a week, make your favorite meal twice a week, or some combination of the two.

MAKE SMALL CHANGES

Don’t expect to do a complete 180 over night. This is why hasty, lofty New Year’s resolutions tend to fail. In order to be successful it is better to start by making small changes rather than throwing all caution to the wind and diving into unknown territory. Here are a few ways to implement small changes into your routine:

• Start by swapping out snacks like chips or candy with something healthier such as fruits, veggies, or nuts.

• Try learning one new recipe a week or every other week if you all ready have some healthy favorites.

• Gradually reduce portion sizes if you are eating too much.

• Be willing to try new things! You might just fall in love with a fruit or vegetable you’ve never had before.

• Substitute things in your diet one at a time. For example, swapping out yogurt with a list of unpronounceable ingredients you can’t understand for plain yogurt with fruit or honey mixed in.

Remember to apply these suggestions at your own pace. Set small term goals while you are planning your menu each week and write one at the top of it, such as, “this week I will put one less teaspoon of sugar in my coffee and next week I would like to try this new kale recipe.”

Take care of your body, feed it right, and you’ll see the results you are working so hard to achieve.  Use this advice, find people to support you, and ask for help if you need it.  It may not always be easy, but you can do it!

Strength for Success

As the New Year approaches I’ve noticed an increase in ads for workouts or supplements that will give you the body you’ve always dreamed about.  After viewing them, I can’t help but think back to the days where I was trying tooth and nail to put on all the mass in the world or cut weight to prep for wrestling season. I was game to try any program if it got me the results. So I can’t help but feel for many of the individuals who are stricken with the same motivation and work ethic for their new years resolution, but are at a loss for guidance. Thus causing them to fall victim to these ads. These individuals may work harder than some, pay more than most and yet get little results. I know this because was there once too. Which is why it frustrates me to no end when I see an advertisement on Facebook or TV about the hot, new workout that claims to give you washboard abs and yet I know the only thing it will truly do is thin out your wallet.  

Supplement companies will lure you in with this same gimmick. Claiming that all you need to do is drink their shake or take their pill twice a day and you’ll loose fat, gain muscle and crap gold nuggets. And with some, you may lose weight,, but is this really a sustainable life-change? Do you really want to be dependent on a shake or pill? Does it really take that strong of a person to swallow this miracle cure and is it going to truly fix the reason you ended up with the figure of Mr. Potato-head? When it really comes down to it, success is all about one thing, strength.

Without strength, be it physical, mental, or social, nothing can be accomplished. This is a lesson that I wish I could share with every resolutioner before they set out on their journey: Get strong first.

Without physical strength, every fitness program you ever try, will be diluted and probably fail. After all, the definition of strength is the ability to withstand great force or pressure as well as being able to perform physically demanding tasks. If you are not already strong or if strength is not a priority in your program, then nothing good will come out of your, “super, cool, new workout.” Your joints will not be able to stay in the proper positions and your form will break faster than Anderson Silva’s shin. That of course can land you in pain, making you inactive, then your back at square one. Lets also keep in mind that if you are not strong, the amount of work exerted will be relatively greater than if you were strong, this means that your body will be more broken down from each workout and can increase your likelihood of overtraining. Overtraining is another great way to land you right back at square one.

What about mental strength? Do you think that someone who is mentally weak is going to be able to stick to their diet? Are they going to have the foresight to plan out their days and meals? I think not. Sit down and put some thought into what you’re doing. It will force you to create better and healthier habits. Remember that pills and shakes only last until the package runs out, habits can last a lifetime. I’ve never seen a supplement that helps you lose weight then weans you off of it completely, so there’s definitely a lack of strength on that route.

Social strength is the one that everyone rules out, but how many of us have been victims of peer pressure and have grabbed a couple beers or some junk food because we were convinced by a friend? As I said, strength is the ability to withstand great force or pressure. But being socially strong is much more than that, it’s having a network of friends and loved ones to support and help you through this difficult task that you have chosen to take upon yourself. Very few of us can accomplish anything without our friends or family support, so again, strength here should be a priority.

With all this being said, really ask yourself what you need to do for any of your resolutions this year. Does a cool, new workout or diet shake fit in there? Maybe, they can be useful tools, but I guarantee you that getting stronger will be step 1 for success.

The Battlefield is in the Kitchen: Part I

Today's Blog Post is Brought to You By: Maria Halkiadakis

On the journey to become the best version of ourselves, it is important to remember that you absolutely cannot out-train a poor diet.  If you have been successful in dedicating yourself to a good training plan, but still aren’t seeing the results you want, then you probably need to make some serious changes in the kitchen.  You can lift, run, cycle, hike, or jump on a trampoline till you’ve sweat enough to fill a small swimming pool, but you aren’t going to get the results you want without suffering the perils of overtraining…

That doesn’t look like a good time now does it?  Exercise is definitely part of the equation, but not at the expense of wearing ourselves down to the point of being dysfunctional for the rest of the day.  Instead, we provide balance in our lives by doing a little less work in the gym, and a lot more work in the kitchen.

In this two part series, we’ll highlight a few things you can do in the kitchen that will be crucial to achieving your goals, be it performance-based or physique oriented.  If you're read SAPT's blog long enough, you’ve figured out by now that most things in life aren't easy.  If you want good grades in school, you are going to have to spend hours studying.  If your name isn’t Kim Kardashian then you are going to have to do actual work to earn at least a six-figure salary.  I've also heard Santa hasn’t left anyone a beach body under their Christmas tree this year so you are going to have to put in the work yourself.  It will be worth it!

PLAN AHEAD AND PREPARE YOUR MEALS

Step 1:  Plan a week's worth of meals and snacks.

In other words, be prepared!  Take some time to sit down and plan out your meals for an entire week or two.  Unless you married a chef, leftovers will be your new best friend.  Be sure to have a small healthy snack readily available so you don’t over-indulge at mealtime or give in to temptation when you walk past a vending machine.

Don’t know how to cook?  I bet you know someone who does!  I bet you have Internet too!  (Hint:  Consult the Google for free recipes and cooking instructions.)  You could also borrow cookbooks from the library, call your grandparents for recipes, or if your feeling rather brave, just start throwing things into a skillet and see what happens.

Where there’s a will, there is a way.  There may be some trial-and-error in the beginning, but you can find a way to do things that works for you.

Step 2:  Make a grocery list.

Once the meals are planned then you can make a grocery list.  Don’t forget to actually bring it to the store with you and stick to it!  Unless of course you find yourself drooling over a bunch of kale in the produce section and you realize you forgot to write it down.  A very important note about grocery shopping:  DO NOT GO GROCERY SHOPPING HUNGRY! Done it before…it was a bad idea wasn’t it?

Step 3:  Pick one or two days a week to cook.

This really depends on how you feel about eating leftovers that have been in the refrigerator for almost a week.  I like to do my grocery shopping on Saturday, cook on Sunday, and then my next cooking day is either Wednesday or Thursday.  This helps spread out all planning and preparation work and I’m never eating five day-old leftovers.  Do whatever works best for your schedule.  You are going to be cooking food for half the week at a time, so make plenty!

Step 4:  Enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Putting in the work to plan ahead and prepare meals will actually make your week  much easier; most people don’t want to or  have the time to cook everyday.  It’s pretty nice when you get home at the end of a long day and have a healthy meal waiting to have a little rendezvous with the microwave.  Clean up is much faster and you don’t have to endure the potential guilt that comes with devouring half a cheese pizza you decided to order to make the night easier.

PURGE YOUR PANTRY

Get rid of temptation.  There’s no reason to deprive yourself from a treat every now and then, but there’s also no reason to keep a box of cookies in the pantry especially if you find yourself snacking on them occasionally.  It adds up…

Do you have kids?  If so, I bet they LOVE junk food.  You don’t have to deprive them either, but by no means do you need to keep Oreo cookies, potato chips, and ice cream on hand.  Save the goodies for special occasions.  I know that jumbo box of Oreo cookies at Costco is such a good deal, but I promise you won’t miss it and neither will your waistline.  You’ll feel a lot less guilty about indulging on some holiday goodies if it’s the only junk food you have eaten all week.

REMEMBER…

A goal without a plan is just a wish.  If you want to see results whether it be looking stellar in that bikini this summer or becoming your team's VIP, you have to put in the work to get there.  Stay tuned for part two of the Battlefield is in the Kitchen next Friday for more advice on how to win the war!

Sweat and Sacrifice: It’s OK to be Uncomfortable

Kidding! It's not Kelsey. Goose is back in the blogging world and has a solid post, just in time for the holidays!

Every now and then random people approach me asking, "How do I get abs?" "How do I lose weight?"

My answer: “Well, what are you doing right now?”

It’s surprising to me how much people underestimate the amount of time and hard work it takes for change to happen. Whether you’re an athlete not breaking a sweat in the weight room or a Desk Jockey who thinks walking 25 mins on a treadmill is a hard workout, the outcome is the same. If you don’t put in the work you don’t get any results!

NO RESULTS FOR YOU!!

A simple, yet extremely effective, rule to live by is: If you aren’t sweating you aren’t trying! Not breaking a sweat can be attributed to 1 or more of the following:

- Improper warm-up etiquette

- Moving too slowly

- Using too light of a weight

Wrong! Errr-body got time for dat!

Are you warming up properly? If you aren’t breaking a light sweat, lubricating your joints, or elevating your heart rate, what exactly are you doing?? A great quote by Olympic Weightlifting Guru, Greg Everett, “If you’re not warming-up, you’re not tough or elite, you’re lazy.”

If you skip or half-do youe warm up, well done! You've set yourself up for an injury or, at best, an unproductive workout!

How fast are you moving through your workout? If your workout speed can be described as “Slower than molasses on a winter day” we’ve got a problem on our hands! Going too slowly or taking too long between sets of exercises is not only a reason for the lack of perspiration but is also detrimental to strength gains.

Don’t be that guy!

Are you going heavy enough?? Once passed the learning period, where technique needs to be mastered, there is no reason to do “easy” weights. If the weight/load of an exercise isn’t in the least bit challenging there is no point in simply going through the motions.

Motivation: Somewhere in China there is a child warming up with you max!

Getting sweaty and uncomfortable are side effects of truly pushing the limits of your body in you quest for greatness! A concept that one of my coaches constantly drilled into my head was “If you are comfortable, you are not giving your 100%." Whether you are conditioning or resistance training, I believe this concept to be true.

The human mind is a very powerful thing; it is also incredibly lazy if you let it be. When things start to get tough, when your legs burn and you are breathing heavily, your mind likes to tell you that’s enough. However, the reality is that your body is still good to keep going, you’ve just got to find the resolve to push through the fatigue and finish whatever your objective is. That is mental toughness, that is what separates 1st from 2nd place. No one ever said getting better was a walk in the park. Getting better sucks, it’s painful, and super frustrating. But in the end when all the work has been done in the weight room and on the field, when you’ve lost countless ounces of sweat and winced through sore muscles, that’s when results will show. And that’s when PRs will be broken and victory will be gained.

Rant over. Happy Holidays!