Dre Fitness

August 30, 2010August 31, 2010

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How are You with E. Coli beef and Salmonella eggs?

Food is life.

Life is like energy, incorporating food.

My fellow reader. We are the energy from nourishment — the nutrients of life. But something is taking away from that.

Sick eggs.

Bad bacteria in food is a serious issue. Half a billion eggs — taken off the market due to health risks.

Beef has it too

Bacteria are simple living organisms — constantly recycling basic nutrients for higher life.

Think of the bad bacteria that steal nutrients from cells. The good guys help you when you help them.

For now, this is about avoiding the bad bacteria. Half a billion egg recalls and now big beef comes into question. What isn’t in doubt is the importance of prevention.

How cows get E. coli.

Diet
Lack of nutrition
Unfavorable touch and/or abuse (handling conditions)
Dangerously unhygienic habitat grow space

Coming to a plate near you…

How to Protect yourself from E. Coli and Salmonella in Beef and Eggs:

Since you have heard the news, you’re already in the game.

1. Consumer education

What are you actually eating? Where does it come from? When was it grown or created?

Know your food.

Feed 'em right, so they're like angels.

2. Choose healthy options

Building from the first step, seek the good stuff.

Intuitively, you probably already know what it is. Whole foods, fresh foods, and real foods.

3. Prepare food at home to avoid standard restaurant fare.

Sure, if you forget to pack a lunch one day a week, you can get some Mexican food that day.

But for the rest of the days, prepare food ahead of time and pack it for lunch.

Ice pack + lunchbox = meal on the go.

IronMan2 drinks his Greens

4. If in doubt, cook the life out of it.

It’s known that heat kills bacteria. For example, some egg companies pasteurize the product before sale. So the bacteria is pre-cooked — you know it is pasteurized by the marking on the egg.

When at home, you can cook meat and eggs to kill bacteria. But if you verify that your meat was from healthy animals, then you can even leave some raw in the middle.

5. Buy local organic

Aside from the nutritional benefits of well-treated cows, there are greater health benefits as well.

Healthy is something that contributes positively to behavior and self-thought. Even though each cow must be ended, the healthiest cows feed us mind-body-everything nourishment.

Go for the beef, and make it grass fed. Chew thoroughly for optimal digestion, and rock on.

Your GUT is the Last Stand against Bad Bacteria

Anything that cant survive in a certain place, won’t survive for long.

The healthy immune system promotes a digestive environment in which E. Coli and Salmonella do not survive.

Bad Digestion is a warning signal!

If you hear other people talk more about digestion, you aren’t alone.

It’s common for people to have horrible digestion from the highly processed diets found in America.

For most, the intestinal flora is out of balance.

Too much acid, not enough alkaline.

Eat more vegetables. Green is known as the color of peace and ecology. Make it green, keep it clean.

To clean up the gut, consume Probiotics

Probiotics are non-human cells that are beneficial to the system.

Probiotic foods prevent disease and promote healing.

The best probiotic foods have this in common:

it is abundant with beneficial living cells
promotes positive enzyme potential

These probiotic foods contain beneficial lactic acid producing bacteria. In the gut, lactic acid acts as an environmental regulator for other strains of other bacteria. Healthy bacteria that has been with you since birth will thrive in this environment.

For example, from Probiotic Kefir I can easily consume over a hundred billion bacteria from one large serving. Now, most, of this bacteria will continue traveling on through my system.

A serving of Kefir

One serving of Kefir can:

Promote assimilation of nutrients
Relax the central nervous system
Reduce the ratio of harmful bacteria in your gut
Provide all eight essential amino acids
Good source of Tryptophan — precursor to serotonin and a good mood.
Excellent source of calcium
Contains some Vitamin-K (MK7) which promotes constructive metabolism of bone tissue.
Regulate blood sugar levels (great for diabetic)
Gives you energy
Aid in the development of lean muscle tissue
Boost the immune system against bacteria, virus, and more.
Contribute active enzymes

When it comes down to it, this food changed my life. I don’t go more than a day or two without it.

Let food be the answer.

Mass produced food is one of the greatest causes of disease, but it is also one of the greatest causes of human life.

Without massive globalized agriculture, billions of people on this planet would not subsist. But we have to find a balance. Our food is our life — by choosing your food, you choose your life.

So you have two choices. Cook the life out of all of your food, OR… make probiotic food a priority.

This is the difference between less than potential versus wellbeing.

WARNING: Healthy food may produce long lasting results

You are the answer.

Eat with confidence, my friends.

Nutrition, Immunity, and Digestion

August 26, 2010August 26, 2010

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How does Family Lifestyle become YOUR Decision?

Family depends on Our behaviors.

Most of us are on auto-pilot when it comes to neglecting our true motivation.

We don’t usually think about deeper aspects of personality until some drastic event happens to us. Like, why did it happen to me?

Do you realize what you’re doing?

I would pause for a moment and consider, the true magnitude of time spent with family.

It could be a parent, sibling, and significant other. Family time is influential no matter what.

Be passionate about a healthy lifestyle.

This is a proud statement of who you are.

A person who loves to live. Life empowers you only if you empower it.

In other words, to gain physical, mental, and emotional strength, you must feel like this…

Responsibility...

Have the responsibility for how you are, for what you do, and for who you do it with.

We eat vegetables. What do you do?

Nutrient-dense food that empowers us to empower ourselves.

Fresh food.

You aren’t what you eat;You’re what you digest.

Improve your digestive health by understanding it.

Sure, you can learn great nutrition tips from EllisonFitness, but the truth is that you’re already well equipped.

With body and mind, all you need is a little inspiration.

Inspire Family…

Role models are great to have. I gain respect when witnessing character, knowledge, and passion that that is virtuous to me.

Even though I may try, some traits are not for me to master. We are too unique, and I am what I am. Our benefit, though is our positive alliance.

My oldest brother inspires me, and the best part is that it’s mutual. I inspire him with this blog…unless I get too busy to write new posts!

He said this great truth about Lifestyle that I had to share:

Health testimonial:

Making physical fitness a lifestyle choice is one of the best decisions I’ve made and has changed the quality of my life for the better.

I strongly believe consistency is the most important factor for determining success. Exercise and eating healthy requires dedication, discipline, and educating yourself on how to best achieve these goals. That’s why approaching physical fitness as a “lifestyle” makes so much more sense. It becomes something permanent rather than a fleeting vague goal.

Way to go, brother! Success is built upon consistency and successful behaviors.

How to get an amazing body, with family.

You are you, and I am me.

We evolve habits that promote health.

Imagine if eating vegetables was your habit — eating healthy is easy then.

Therefore, being lean with me is the right thing to do.

August 23, 2010August 23, 2010

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The Effect of Feminism on the Musclehead and his Mom

The second wave of feminism may have had the greatest effect on the current batch of young males in America. Baby-boomer, middle class women grew up in an era where education, equality, and independence budded into key values.

In the notorious feminist 1963 exposé, The Feminine Mystique, author Betty Friedan argues that the modern woman felt a sense of emptiness. Tired of having an identity revolving solely around husband and family, these woman felt a need for more — for completeness.

They went to school — not just to search for a husband anymore, but to develop professional groundwork. Highly educated and competent, these women took on leadership roles in businesses and agencies while growing their families.

Who's your Captain now?

Ultimately, it would be how modern woman raised her sons that would influence current day masculinity.

The Drive for Masculinity

In the early 20th century, masculinity had more to do with having a stable career and being able to support a family.

Then something new started happening.

Women began to take on higher and higher paying jobs. They out-competed men for leadership roles, meanwhile expecting their potential sexual partners to at least be of equal or higher status professionally.

Feminism taught women to claim their sexuality. Men were to blame for many of their prior problems — men were to blame for their boredom and repression as housewives.

Second-wave Feminism

The young boys learned that it was their entire gender’s fault that women were treated as objects and toys. So these sons of feminism grew into pushovers. They submitted to the glory of woman. They became the hopelessly flawed, “Nice Guy.”

What does Human Nature tell us about Mating and Manliness?

Evolutionary psychology submits that all humans are governed by innate programming — in which the primary goal is survival and replication. According to this theory, both men and women have evolved specific psychological mechanisms that enable us to gauge perceived sexual value of another person within mere moments.

You can’t walk into a store without seeing at least one magazine with half naked men sporting ripped abdominals. Women claim they are more interested in personality than appearance in men, but study after study reveals that muscular men have access to a significantly greater amount of women.

Cosmo Man - the ideal male?

Boys now realize that working really hard professionally in a difficult economic reality may not be the best strategy for reproductive success.

Every Guy Values Muscle. Period.

Some people say that buff guys either get instant respect or instant jealousy from other men. Either way, during these interactions, the amount and appearance of muscle has real value for those who possess such qualities as strength and aesthetics.

Once you gain more muscle, people will say that you look like “more of a man.” It is as if being a man, and the masculinity inherent in that, is directly related to both power and ability to attract women.

Handsome man in proximity!

To be a man with muscle is like being part of a special fraternity. You no longer need brains to get laid, but if you have both muscle and personality, then women stop caring about your income. The right blend of muscularity, charm, and confidence will stop women in their tracks — because attraction is not a choice.

Muscularity satisfies the Man and the Woman

The more of a Man that you are — whatever that really means — the more women will find you attractive. Muscles alone may get some women into bed, but having genuine feelings for her is more important.

Depth of feeling … expands sexual connection … throughout our journey … into mind-blowing realities. Whereas bodies contribute pleasure, it is the intense emotional harmony that sends chills running through her spine. Like a spell, she is captivated by warm touch and the intimate whispers that enhance unmatched passion. Intensity magnifies because he is that, who is of man.

A real man makes her feel beyond safe

From feminism, men learned that it’s okay to be sensitive. But what got lost in translation is that to be a Man is to posses a strong and unique identity. For his virtue manifests inside of himself to which he offers others, and that in itself is valued even greater than the muscular exterior surrounding the physical self.

Stay strong, my friends.

Uncategorized

August 21, 2010February 9, 2017

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The Inverted Row: Best Upper-Back Exercise known to man?

The Inverted Row is gaining popularity, but it still remains an underrated movement.

To get a visual, first pause and imagine the Bench Press exercise for a moment. The bench press is a pushing exercise that brings the bar to your chest and then pushes it away. Whereas the inverted row is a pulling exercise that brings your chest to the bar and then you lower yourself back down.

Back built by rows

Think about the complete opposite of the Bench Press — this is the Inverted Row.

Inverted Row

The Inverted Row is the ultimate upper back exercise.

In the next few paragraphs, I will make the case for why every gym goer in search of a strong, healthy, balanced physique should be doing the Inverted Row exercise.

Aside from the strength benefits, the Inverted Row wins points in a variety of categories related to the ideal physique.

I. Comparison of Barbell Row vs. Inverted Row

The Barbell Row is also a highly effective compound exercise for the back. If you’re looking to build a great physique, then the Barbell Row (or a variation) should probably be somewhere in your routine.

However, the Barbell Row has some contraindications and limitations that may make the exercise inappropriate for some people.

Barbell Row

Benefits of the Barbell Row:

One of the best exercises for back and arms
You can adjust the weight according to your own strength levels
It’s possible to use lots of weight (powerlifters can often row up to 300+ lbs)
Can build muscle and tone your physique
Crossover strength into other exercises

Disadvantagesof the Barbell Row:

Possibility of injury with improper form
Strain the lower back if not careful

Avoid lower back pain

You can “cheat” very easily on the form, which decreases its benefits
Doesn’t activate lower trapezius as much (a small, yet essential muscle for shoulder health)
Is not a direct counter-balancing movement to the Bench Press

As you can see, the Barbell Row is a fantastic exercise for a lot of people. If you train the Row, then more power to you!

But there are some areas in which the BB Row can’t keep up compared to the Inverted Row.

II. Benefits of the Inverted Row

The Inverted Row is an exceptional upper back exercise.

Similar to a pull up, push up, and other bodyweight exercises, the Inverted Row is a closed kinetic chain movement. In terms of fitness, is important to be able to move your body through space at a variety of angles.

In order to perform a feet-elevated inverted row, you must already be strong or you can do inverted row progressions to gain the required strength.

The Inverted Row with feet elevated is so demanding that 90% of an average gym population won’t be able to complete a single rep with perfect form. It is indeed a humbling exercise, especially for guys who can bench 300+ pounds.

So here are the top benefits of the Inverted Row…

1. Builds a great Phsyique

What guy doesn’t want at least a little more muscle? What gal doesn’t want that hourglass shape torso?

The Inverted Row is definitely a physique builder alone or in a well designed program. The actual exercise itself can be a great stimulus for muscle growth, but even better is that it is a great activation exercise so it can benefit your other movements.

Jamie likes to row

Rear delts
Middle trapezius
Lower trapezius
Lats
Rombhoids
Biceps
Forearms
Core

2. NO Lower-back strain

Our lower backs are simply not designed to move a lot of weight. The lower back is designed to remain rigid while the primary movers of the body do their work. Thats everyone knows they should “lift with your legs.”

During an alternative exercise like the Barbell Row, the lower back may succumb to the weight before the upper back. If the lower back is too weak, you won’t get the true benefits for the upper back during that exercise.

The Inverted Row takes the lower back out of the equation.

Low Back pain does not exist in this exercise.

3. Strengthens the Shoulder Girdle (Shoulder Health)

The Inverted Row movement requires a lot of effort from the muscles in the middle back. These muscles are particularly important for shoulder health.

In particular, the lower trapezius, middle trapezius, and rhomboids need to be balanced compared to other muscles. For example, the lower trapezius should have similar activation to the upper trapezius. When people have upper traps that are too dominant, it contributes to the “slunched over” posture and can wreak havoc on the shoulder joint. The inverted row strengthens the lower trapezius at just the right angle.

The inverted row is not only a great movement for the lower trapezius, but it is also a fantastic rear-deltoid exercise as well. Aside from making your physique look fantastic from all angles, the rear-deltoids should be balanced to the front-deltoids for…you guessed it…shoulder health.

4. Benefits the Bench Press

Dear Benchers, I’d like to win you over here, because the Bench Press is the one exercise that every single person on the planet knows about. We all know how awesome the bench press is. It gives you great chest, shoulder, and tricep development. In other words, it makes you manly and powerful. (Or lean and alluring, if you are female).

Bio-mechanically, the Inverted Row is the perfect compliment to the Bench Press. Instead of pushing a bar away from you, you are pulling yourself towards a bar.

Think of the upper back as the foundation, while the chest is the active machinery during bench press. If your foundation is a pile of feathers, how effective is your machinery?

Dumbbell Bench Pressing supported by upper back.

What most people don’t realize is that the muscles in the back are constantly stabilizing the muscles in the front during the Bench Press. Essentially what this means is that stronger upper back equals a stronger bench press.

Strong upper back –> strong foundation –> Big Bench Press.

5. Promotes optimal Recovery

After you get into weight lifting for a while, you realize one fundamental element…

Success in the game is a balance between training and recovery. The stimulus is the weight lifting, while the recovery includes everything from the food you eat, the timing of the food you eat, the amount of sleep you get, and essentially everything else you do.

Therefore, recovery is different for everybody. You want to optimize recovery because it allows you make more progress and stay healthy. (if you seriously overtrain, you will lose progress, get hurt, or get sick — guaranteed)

Bodyweight exercises are inherently easier to recover from compared to barbell exercises. This means that you can do bodyweight exercises more frequently and potentially make progress significantly faster than barbell exercises alone.

The Inverted Row, while a demanding exercise, is easier to recover from than the barbell row.

Training hard in the gym accounts for maybe 15% of your gains, while optimal recovery accounts for the rest.

Thats why you need to eat well, sleep well, and do bodyweight exercises!

6. Functional Strength development

Would you still be as impressed by a guy who could bench press 500 pounds, but couldn’t move his own body through a simple plane of motion?

Powerlifters struggle to lift as much weight as possible in the bench press, and even their coaches tell them they need to do bodyweight exercises — especially the Inverted Row.

The Inverted Row is a functional strength exercise with significant carryover to other exercises and quality of life.

Now you know…

This is why the Inverted Row is one of the best Upper Back exercises known to man, and why we need to spread the word to our fellow man.

III. How to perform the Inverted Row.

You may look at the picture and think you know how to do an inverted row, and you may very well be able to. Just keep in mind a few cues to help you out.

Inverted Row Feet Elevated

1. Foot placement determines difficulty.

Place feet on ground for beginners, and feet elevated for advanced trainees.

2. Keep your butt up

If your butt sags down, you are not doing the exercise right. Keep that butt tight and elevated.

3. Maintain Core Stiffness

This may be a core exercise for those with less developed abs. It is important to maintain core tightness, and keep your butt up, because this will put the lower back in the right position. It also enables you to focus on the primary mover, which is your back.

4. Chest up

Open up your chest, keep it up and out.

5. Lean your head back

When the head goes back, it puts your body in a position to activate the muscles that you really want. This helps to activate the lower-traps and muscles surrounding the shoulder blades.

6. Do not use momentum

Momentum is cheating. If you can’t complete a full rep with feet elevated, then start with the progressions first. Feet to the ground.

In terms of execution…

Pull from the elbows and middle back.
Squeeze your shoulder blades together at the top of the movement.
Try to activate as much of your back as possible.
I like to squeeze at the top for a count of 2 seconds
Go up fast, then lower yourself slower

Here is a video to give you the visual of it.

IV. Go forth and Row!

I would say that 95% of people in weightlifting programs should be doing at least one variation of row. Rowing is essential for strengthening the muscles of the back.

TRX system check it out on Amazon.com. Definitely one of the best bodyweight tools, used by all my clients.

As a follower of drefitness.com, you now have the knowledge of this incredible upper-back exercise.

You know how I feel about the all-powerful and beneficial Inverted Row.

I’ll let you decide whether or not you think the Inverted Row truly is the best upper-back exercise known to man.

Either way, give it a go next time you work your upper back! Prepare to be humbled.

Physical Fitness by Dre

August 19, 2010

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Three Simple Steps to Understanding Digestive Issues and the #1 Healing Food

Without good digestion, you cannot be in good health.

Almost everything about the human body relies upon the proper functioning of digestion.

At least 70% of all immune system function is in the digestive tract.

Nearly all components required for life are absorbed or created in the digestive system.

The state of your digestive system is indicative of your overall health. This is why it is imperative to listen to the signals that your body sends. Anything such as bloating, cramping, diarrhea, constipation, throw-up, and bloody stool should not be ignored.

Step 1. Mind-body Awareness: How do Certain foods affect you?

My journey in nutrition began as a way to build muscle without adding body fat. Therefore, I would study my body everyday and consider how the foods I ate affected the shape, size, and feel of my physique. That is how I determined “healthy” vs “unhealthy.”

But the reality goes much deeper than body fat percentage.

Here are the questions you can consider during and after each meal you consume:

On a scale of -10 to +10, how effective does my digestion feel?
Do I feel like I ate too much, too little, or just the right amount of foods?
Are the foods I consumed causing gas, bloating, or an upset stomach?
On a scale of -10 to +10, how energized do I feel?
Do certain foods upset my stomach only when combined with other foods?
Am I satisfied?

The goal is to have perfect digestion.

Step 2. Aim for Perfect Digestion

What is perfect digestion?

It is the maximum absorption of nutrients without causing harm or discomfort to the body.

Some foods are naturally highly digestible.

For example , bananas eaten alone are almost never known to cause an upset stomach. Avocados are also a very gentle food, high fiber, and highly satisfying.

Other foods are very difficult to digest.

Difficult foods to digest include processed milk, processed foods, highly saturated foods, and starchy or sugary foods.

Eat healthy. This is easier said than done, but simple really. Consume only foods that your digestive system approves of, and avoid all the rest. In this manner, only you know what is best for you.

Step 3. Seek out Healing Foods

Some healing foods are very common. For example, almost everybody has had broccoli at least once this year.

But other healing foods remain outside certain perspective.

My personal favorite number 1 Healing Food is Kefir

Kefir

Raw Kefir is my all time highest ranked healing food.

Kefir is similar to yogurt, but it is in the liquid form because the molecules are smaller. As a result of smaller molecules, the digestion is much easier on the body. But thats only one reason why it’s great for digestion…

Raw Kefir is created by combining Kefir “grains” (the live culture) with raw milk. The Kefir “grains” eat the lactose sugars from milk and convert the milk into a zero-glycemic probiotic superfood.

Kefir contains large amounts of beneficial Lactic acid bacteria:

By consuming lactic acid bacteria, the internal environment in your intestines is more suitable for the bacteria that naturally resides in your body. In other words, Kefir bacteria doesn’t necessarily stay inside you, but during the time that it is inside you, it is helping you grow your own healthy bacteria. Therefore, you have more intestinal balance.

The healthy bacteria in our bodies are beneficial in many ways.

For one, healthy bacteria are essentially enzyme factories. They produce catalysts that make our bodies function more efficiently.
Secondly, beneficial bacteria break down indigestible particles such as plant fibers.
Third, healthy bacteria produce and convert vitamins. For example, Vitamin B12 is required in the metabolism of nearly every cell in the body and is vital in brain, nervous system, and blood formation. The only thing on this entire planet that can produce Vitamin B12 is bacteria. Another vitamin involved in healthy circulation and clotting is Vitamin K — which can only be converted to the preferred form (Vitamin K2 in the Mk7 form) through bacteria.
Fourth, beneficial bacteria are essential for proper immune functioning. These bacteria can physically take the place of potentially harmful bacteria. Beneficial bacteria can also produce antifungal, antiviral, and antiyeast compounds.
Fifth, these healthy bacteria can regulate a normal inflammatory response. When the bowels are inflamed, you are not healthy. By sustaining a healthy environment in the digestive system, beneficial bacteria are vital to overall health.

Kefir is high in Protein:

In addition to containing all of the benefits above, Kefir is also a valuable source of highly absorbable protein. Most of the protein in Kefir is essentially pre-digested as a result of the fermentation process. The Amino Acids from Kefir protein are in healthy ratios and promote healthy body functions.

Kefir is particularly high in the amino acid Tryptophan, which can be converted into various neurotransmitters. Kefir also contains a good ratio of L-Lysine to L-Arginine, amino acids that are vital to immune function.

Of course, Kefir also contains the essential amino acids like L-Leucine and L-Valine which directly support muscle tone. Kefir is just a great way to get your protein.

Kefir contains vitamins and minerals:

Aside from some of the B family vitamins, Kefir is high in both calcium and magnesium. Calcium, of course, supports bone density and magnesium has a variety of functions. I usually consume Kefir before bed because it can promote a healthy wake-sleep cycle.

Kefir benefits are backed by both testimonial and scientific evidence

I don’t sell Kefir, I just love it.

It heals me and has healed so many others. I consume it on a regular basis — I do not experience ANY symptoms of colds or flus when I regularly consume Kefir.