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Digesting the Sweet Belly of America

The United States of High Fructose Corn Syrupica?

Here’s the fact, calories come cheap nowadays. Basic survival is possible for the vast majority of Americans. So we made progress in the 20th century.

Palin publicly enjoys a big gulp.

Palin enjoys a big gulp.

True secrets to fitness lie within.

What is inside you? From bacteria to blood cells, neurons and rhythms… you will notice the connections. Energy becomes connected to us as we use it and excuse it.

We all know it’s about food.

I am a strong advocate for health and nutrition in this country. There are ways in which public reform would seek to reshape nutritional incentive. We need to show the consumer that consuming leafy green vegetables truly is the best option for long term health and vitality.

The sugar industry is most powerful when people remain ignorant to the intolerable effects of high fructose diets. Sodas are some of the worst offenders as the concoction causes inflammation through multiple parts of the body.

Nutrient density is key.

Foods which contain a high density of nutrients are lean meats, natural dairy, and plant vegetables. Aim for the most nutrient dense foods according to your budget. Eat your greens.

 

Celebrity's & Weight Loss Nutrition, Immunity, and Digestion Weightloss Now
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Hip to Waist Ratio related to Fitness and Attractiveness

What is your Hip to Waist ratio?

People who study humans use the word, ‘gait,’ to describe one’s manner of walking. Our movement is observed by those around us who create inferences about our fitness levels. Some body parts are simply more salient than others.

It's hard to know what they are like unless we observe their gait.

One could know more from gait analysis

Humans always assess threat and opportunity. From a distance, we are more likely to notice many factors about one’s gait. For example, a person’s movement may have much to say about one’s fitness and fertility. Some may notice and gaze upon those displaying strong evidence of virility.

This guy understands the benefits of healthy carbs.

Respect bro

Fitness has Always been about Hips, Butt and Back

Altogether, the glute-hip-back muscles remain the powerhouse of human physical ability. As the muscles decrease in balance, asymmetry occurs more frequently. Therefore, we MUST strive to promote healthy hip, glute, and core function.

Strength and mobility in the hips is a significant fitness indicator. Genetics play a role. Intelligent programming adds value for the trainee as it relates to progress.

Ideal and Goal to Aim for

A WHR of 0.7 for women and 0.9 for men has been shown to correlate strongly with general health and fertility.

Visual

Visual

Now like I said before, a fantastic weightlifting program will help you tone the stomach and transform the hips. Ultimately, success is only truly achievable with a focus on healthy diet.

Women within the 0.7 range have optimal levels of estrogen and are less susceptible to major diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disorders and ovarian cancers. Men with WHRs around 0.9, similarly, have been shown to be more healthy and fertile with less prostate cancer and testicular cancer.[15]

So more people should realize that understanding hormones will help them improve their health status.

Knowing how Nutrition regulates our Hormonal status

There are quite a few basic nutrients needed for long term survival. And then there are nutrients which are required for optimal being, health and longevity.

If there is one thing you could do to improve your situation, it would be to consume cruciferous vegetables on most days of the week for the rest of your life. Hormonal regulation is only one of the benefits form these leafy green vegetables. The abundance of nutrients in a plant like Kale truly has a healing effect.

In Summary: 

1. Train your hips/back/core with more intensity than chest and arms. (maybe for about 10 weeks)

2. Consume leafy green vegetables because you will become more healthy and attractive

Stay tuned

 

 

Nutrition, Immunity, and Digestion
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End Scrawny: 5 Fixes to Gain Muscle Mass for the Skinny Guy

How to Gain Lean Bulk for the Skinny/Underweight Male

Guys who are skinny are skinny for either one of two reasons.

1. They are young, somewhat active, and still experiencing growth

OR

2. Most skinny guys haven’t learned how to eat properly

The author with a 50 lbs difference in body mass

The author with a 50 lbs difference in body mass

Consuming food is easy, while consuming nutrients takes dedication.

Because most underweight males are at their weight due to lifestyle choices, we should focus on certain quick fixes to help gain some success and confidence. First I will discuss a few quick fixes, then I will relate the reasons why it is fundamental to create new eating habits.

Quick Fix# 1: Breakfast 

This is simple and it should be happening at least 6 out of every 7 days. Sure I can speak for days as to how breakfast enhances human metabolic processes… but you just need to do it.

  • Smoothies (berries / milk / protein)
  • Oatmeal (milk / whey / almond butter or peanut butter / or coconut oil)
  • Shake (fresh juices, vegetables, fruits, powders)
  • Eggs + vegetables
  • Many possibilities

Quick Fix# 2: Allow yourself a minimum of 20 minutes for breakfast

Okay, so the first two MOST IMPORTANT THINGS YOU CAN DO are both related to breakfast. That should give you a glimpse as to how extremely valuable this time is for your body.

You cannot rush through breakfast and expect to have healthy digestion and consumption.

Go to bed 20 minutes earlier the night before if you must.

Quick Fix# 3: Eat Big Carbs before / after workout

To gain muscle mass, you want to increase the energy storage within the muscle. Carbohydrates, particularly glucose or food that readily converts into glucose are the muscles preferred sources of energy.

This guy understands the benefits of healthy carbs.

This guy understands the benefits of healthy carbs.

As muscles adapt to training stimuli, the overall amount of glycogen stored within the muscle will be increased.

Let me put it this way: The more lean, athletic muscle you possess, the more carb-based energy will be stored within the muscles. This is one reason that gives the muscles a larger physical size/appearance. It also means you have the potential to be more powerful than most other people.

Quick Fix# 4: Consume Protein before / after workout

Protein contains bonds of amino acids which are essential for the body. Powerful body-strengthening mechanisms are activated by protein.

After your workout, your muscles will be increased sensitivity to uptaking carbohydrates and glucose. When the muscles uptake glucose more readily, it has a carryover effect of uptaking protein as well. In other words, carbs help attract muscle building amino acids into the actual muscle tissue.

Quick Fix# 5: Take Omega-3 Fatty Acid supplement 

Some people eat Wild Alaskan Salmon three times per week — and they might not need an Omega-3 supplement. However, most people, especially skinny guys NEED the nutrients and will utilize Omega-3’s to support anabolic processes.

You will cripple your progress unless you consume adequate omega-3s.

You will cripple your progress unless you consume adequate omega-3s.

A lot of people talk about the health benefits of Omega-3 fatty acids — I know all about them. If you want to know more, google that. Let’s talk about the MUSCLE BUILDING and ANABOLIC properties that omega-3’s possess.

  • Improved insulin sensitivity (translates to –> more protein/glucose IN your muscles)
  • Joint lubrication (translates to –> less achy joints, quicker recovery time from exercise)
  • Supports Inflammatory process (translates to –> inflammation is regulated to improve adaptation to exercise)
  • Brain health (translates to –> you learn skills /exercise form quicker and can progress faster)

Gaining Lean Mass requires Lifestyle Alteration

Regardless of genes, your lifestyle is the reason for why your body looks the way it does. In order to enhance the muscularity of the body, you must also enhance the internal health.

I take a strong holistic approach towards gaining weight in a healthy way. You must pay attention to the bio-feedback and signals from your body in order to truly achieve a state of wellness.

A few things to consider during your journey:

  • The role of gut health / bacteria in nearly all realms of human health condition
  • Sleep and other cycles
  • Hormones, how to optimize male / human hormones to exist in a muscle building state
  • Stressors — your ability to adapt to everyday stress
  • Coping strategies. Example… health = exercise. Unhealthy = smoking / drinking.
  • Antioxidants and intracellular optimalization

Muscle mass must be earned, every day. every week. and every month. 

The best things in life don’t come for free. The requirements to achieve greatness will always come with sacrifice and character building opportunities.

You can choose to make excuses… or you can force mental adaptation (lifestyle change).

Some perspective…

Exercise: 3-4 hours per week

For the other 164 hours of the week, you need to be owning up to habits which promote healthy metabolic functioning. And in your case, that means forcing physical adaptation through recovery methods (sleep, nutrition, unstress, and soft tissue work).

Stay tuned for the next post for an Exercise Routine to help the skinny guy. 

Nutrition, Immunity, and Digestion Physical Fitness by Dre
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Why Bodyweight Training is Essential for Fitness

Bodyweight exercise has existed before any other kind.

Whether humans were running along the fertile ground near rivers or performing feats of strength as ritual, the ability to have control over one’s body is more human than any other training.

These guys didn’t wake up one day and do a handstand… no — they trained for it.

Rediscover the benefits of bodyweight exercise

  • Exercise in a natural range of motion
  • Metabolic boosts, calorie burning
  • Improved recovery capacity and less stress on the central nervous system
  • Typically supports joint health and muscles which stabilize the joint
  • Lean muscle tone

Why don’t more people do bodyweight training?

Even though there are many subcultures of fitness which are entirely dedicated to bodyweight training, the truth is that most people have a failure to appreciate the difficulty of bodyweight exercises.

The Planche is a static hold requiring tension throughout the entire body. This is an advanced position requiring many months of progression and exercises as well as a lean physique with low body fat.

The result, however, is an incredibly fit individual. This is just an example of how bodyweight exercises can increase in difficulty by changing the levers of the exercise. What was once a push up position now supports the entire body in the air.

The cons of bodyweight exercise

Gaining the strength, skill, coordination to perform advanced variations is difficult enough. Moreover, most people simply don’t have the physique (at this point in time) to be able to perform advanced exercises.

So most people are forced to begin with simple variations on bodyweight exercises and they feel very humbled by how much trouble they have. Instead of doing bodyweight exercises, many gym-goers go off and use implements such as dumbbells and machines. People with large body mass or people with significant excess body fat will have difficulty performing bodyweight exercises.

“Older” guys can do it too. Jack Lalane showing his fingertip push up skills.

On the flip side, people with very LOW body mass (skinny people) may have more trouble building muscle mass from bodyweight exercises alone because their bodies are not forced to move as much weight. For example, if a 130 pound guy does 20 chin ups, versus a 200 pound guy who does 15 chin ups — who do you think will have bigger arms and back as a result of chin up practice? Most likely the larger guy.

Embrace the challenge

This man realized the benefits of bodyweight training in association with weighted implement training.

The more I learn about the human body, the more I realize that bodyweight exercises should be foundational and not supplemental. The joint health benefits alone are significant enough, and then you should also remember the coordination and functional benefits as well.

Physical Fitness by Dre
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Natural Health and Muscle Recovery Secrets

For all of those who possess a passion for real training.

Even if I wasn’t in the gym, I would make time to train. Real training results in physical and mental empowerment. The beauty is in it’s simplicity.

Learn skills. And,

Develop precision and power.

Motivation to train is inherent. Physical recovery far supersedes the time spent training and involves everything from meal planning to quality sleep and hormonal balance. Here are some tips from the natural side of things.

Top 3: Recover from Exercise/Physical Activity:

1. Ginger

Inflammation can be chronic or acute. Either way, you want a tried and true ally on your side. Ginger’s effect on inflammation is based on strong evidence and more than a millennium of wisdom. Additional gut health benefits.

Root power

2. Turmeric

Supporters of Turmeric may question why ginger is ranked number 1 on my list and that’s me being partial to the benefits fresh juiced ginger. Turmeric is likely a more powerful COX-2 inhibitor and has been shown to induce apoptosis/destruction of harmful cells.

Powerful Powder of Turmeric

3. Cherries

Cherries are more much more than the pits! This berry has unique antioxidants which may have detox effects on the joint while promoting healthy inflammation. The antioxidants in cherries help process uric acid and flush the joint structures of excessive inflammatory compounds. Meanwhile, natural sugars refuel muscle glycogen and support repair process of lean tissue.

Good things come in packages like this.

Recovery from exercise, anti-aging?

To some people anti-aging is a broad marketing term, but in reality anti-aging is all about promoting healthy, efficient processes in the body.  Physical activity should invigorate people. Their bodies ought to return with increased capacity and ability.

Tip: Recovery methods are most effective within 30 minutes of exercise so utilize that time window!

Nutrition, Immunity, and Digestion