Good Health And Wellness For Life

Trying to get more protein without too boring a diet

As I try to gain muscle weight, I lift weights every day and eat a lot of protein. For a while that meant chicken and egg whites. Did I ever get bored of chicken and egg whites though! The last couple of days I’ve had pork chops and apple sauce for dinner. It’s not chicken, but it won’t be long before that also gets old. I was able to find a few pork recipes which should help. Of course if you add sauces and things, you eat more non-protein…

I suppose if I get too bored with my diet I could just fly to Peru for some frog juice but I’m not sure how much protein frog juice has…

Trying to get more protein without too boring a diet

As I try to gain muscle weight, I lift weights every day and eat a lot of protein. For a while that meant chicken and egg whites. Did I ever get bored of chicken and egg whites though! The last couple of days I’ve had pork chops and apple sauce for dinner. It’s not chicken, but it won’t be long before that also gets old. I was able to find a few pork recipes which should help. Of course if you add sauces and things, you eat more non-protein…

I suppose if I get too bored with my diet I could just fly to Peru for some frog juice but I’m not sure how much protein frog juice has…

Omega 3 fats: your body needs fatty acids

I spend my days and nights studying this stuff and providing it to people. I’ve seen literally thousands of mini-miracles with omega-3s and other nutrients in terms of health.

I was at a nutrition conference in California a few months back. A Dr. Maroon, chief surgeon of the Pittsburgh Steelers, gave a talk on fish oil and omega-3 fats. He said that he put every member of the Steelers on the fish oil at the start of the 2005 season; you know, the year they won the Superbowl.

I for one am a firm believer in fish oil, whether it’s the cod liver oil of old, or the highly refined, pollution-free brands of today. Yet, I was still amazed that this physician said it made all the difference. Certainly, it can affect the body in many positive ways, from joint relief, to bone building, heart health, cognitive acuity, softened skin, dry eye relief, mood lifting, anger control, and reduced inflammation overall. It really is amazing stuff, especially if you don’t eat fatty fish, like salmon, sardines, mackerel, tuna, halibut, etc.

I’m not saying that any one nutrient is gonna win the Superbowl for your team, but I know the importance of fish and fish oil. Every cell in your body contains these fats. It’s what makes your cell membranes fluid and dynamic. Other oils can do the same, but these other oils (omega-6 fats) are pro-inflammatory. Omega-3s from marine or plant sources (e.g., flax, walnuts, hemp) are anti-inflammatory. They are the peace makers in the body, while the omega-6 fats from vegetable oils (e.g., corn and soybean) are the warriors. They help fight infection and heal wounds. But there’s too much omega-6 in the modern diet. The trick is to balance it with omega-3s. One other important fact: Up to 20% of the dry weight of your brain is DHA, one of the omega-3 fats found in fish and algae. DHA is hard to get from any other source.

With regard to what to take, it’s all a matter of what works for you. If you like fish, eat salmon and sardines. If you’re on the go and want to get your daily dose of omega-3, have some good quality fish oil around. The dose depends on the quality. If you don’t mind a slight fishy taste, cod liver oil (1-2 tablespoons daily) is great because it is full of other nutrients (e.g., vitamin D) as well. It’s not nearly as bad as what it used to taste like. Nordic Naturals sells a great product. Personally, I take highly refined fish oil capsules from Iceland Health (0.5 to 1 gram a day of EPA and DHA) because it does not repeat on me (no fishy taste), and I only have to take one pill. It’s also free of mercury and other pollutants. There are many other good brands out there, like Nordic Naturals, Omax, Coromega, Zone, etc. There is also a prescription form (Omacor) for people with high triglycerides and heart troubles.

Probably the best brand is Pharmanex. A little hard to get since it’s a network marketing company but you can go to faq.mypharmanex.com/ and order Marine Omega. It’s expensive, but it is the best.

The take home message is that this stuff is ESSENTIAL! Your opinions don’t count here, because the science is absolutely fullproof on this. And you really don’t want to argue with me about science. However, if you wish to follow your old fashioned doctor to an early grave, that’s your business.

The question is not whether you should get this in your diet, but rather how much and in what form. Each of you (if you have a lick of sense) needs to figure that out for yourself.

Omega 3 fats: your body needs fatty acids

I spend my days and nights studying this stuff and providing it to people. I’ve seen literally thousands of mini-miracles with omega-3s and other nutrients in terms of health.

I was at a nutrition conference in California a few months back. A Dr. Maroon, chief surgeon of the Pittsburgh Steelers, gave a talk on fish oil and omega-3 fats. He said that he put every member of the Steelers on the fish oil at the start of the 2005 season; you know, the year they won the Superbowl.

I for one am a firm believer in fish oil, whether it’s the cod liver oil of old, or the highly refined, pollution-free brands of today. Yet, I was still amazed that this physician said it made all the difference. Certainly, it can affect the body in many positive ways, from joint relief, to bone building, heart health, cognitive acuity, softened skin, dry eye relief, mood lifting, anger control, and reduced inflammation overall. It really is amazing stuff, especially if you don’t eat fatty fish, like salmon, sardines, mackerel, tuna, halibut, etc.

I’m not saying that any one nutrient is gonna win the Superbowl for your team, but I know the importance of fish and fish oil. Every cell in your body contains these fats. It’s what makes your cell membranes fluid and dynamic. Other oils can do the same, but these other oils (omega-6 fats) are pro-inflammatory. Omega-3s from marine or plant sources (e.g., flax, walnuts, hemp) are anti-inflammatory. They are the peace makers in the body, while the omega-6 fats from vegetable oils (e.g., corn and soybean) are the warriors. They help fight infection and heal wounds. But there’s too much omega-6 in the modern diet. The trick is to balance it with omega-3s. One other important fact: Up to 20% of the dry weight of your brain is DHA, one of the omega-3 fats found in fish and algae. DHA is hard to get from any other source.

With regard to what to take, it’s all a matter of what works for you. If you like fish, eat salmon and sardines. If you’re on the go and want to get your daily dose of omega-3, have some good quality fish oil around. The dose depends on the quality. If you don’t mind a slight fishy taste, cod liver oil (1-2 tablespoons daily) is great because it is full of other nutrients (e.g., vitamin D) as well. It’s not nearly as bad as what it used to taste like. Nordic Naturals sells a great product. Personally, I take highly refined fish oil capsules from Iceland Health (0.5 to 1 gram a day of EPA and DHA) because it does not repeat on me (no fishy taste), and I only have to take one pill. It’s also free of mercury and other pollutants. There are many other good brands out there, like Nordic Naturals, Omax, Coromega, Zone, etc. There is also a prescription form (Omacor) for people with high triglycerides and heart troubles.

Probably the best brand is Pharmanex. A little hard to get since it’s a network marketing company but you can go to faq.mypharmanex.com/ and order Marine Omega. It’s expensive, but it is the best.

The take home message is that this stuff is ESSENTIAL! Your opinions don’t count here, because the science is absolutely fullproof on this. And you really don’t want to argue with me about science. However, if you wish to follow your old fashioned doctor to an early grave, that’s your business.

The question is not whether you should get this in your diet, but rather how much and in what form. Each of you (if you have a lick of sense) needs to figure that out for yourself.

Bowflex weight the same as benching with a Bar?

Question:

I bought a bowflex about 6 months ago and have been consistently training on it. I am very, very happy with it. I’m 155 pounds and my bench has gone from 4 sets of 120 to 4 sets of 240 with a max of 300. I’m wondering if anybody who has used one knows if bowflex weight is the same as the weight on a flat bar bench at a gym? From what i’ve read on the internet and articles on it, it has a 1:1 ratio being exactly the same. I would just like to know if I go try to show up one of my buddies at the gym with my 300 pd bench, is the bar going to collapse on my chest like a douchebag because i’m being fooled by the weights on the bowflex?

Answer 1: not the case at all. You build stabilizers using dumbbells more so then a barbell. Cables won’t give you mass.

Answer 2: It really is two different exercises. If you use the bowflex a lot and do not use a regular straight bar to bench, you will not be able to do the same weight. Just like if all you do is bench with a straight bar and then you just try use the bowflex. You will definitely be able to do more than you normally would have with a straight bar but it will not be one to one. There is a different form. When you use cables, your arm angle is always changing. With a straight bar, your arms are in a fixed position. I stopped using the straight bar for awhile and only used dumbells but when I went back to regular benching there was an adjustment period.

Answer 3: You never watched their infomercials? They have these jacked guys that work out in the tradition ways and then they try to use the bowflex and are all over the place and the weight is too much. This has the same effect when you reverse it.

Answer 4: While not everyone has used the same exercise you’re using a lot of people in the gym will use cables to do certain exercises they do other than bench, such as curls, raises, upright rows, etc. From my experience, the numbers on the cables are significantly higher than the amount of weight I would be using on a free weight. You also have to consider that the hardest part of the movement in cables is at the highest point/peak, whereas with the same free weight exercise (say for example flies) the tension is actually the least at the top of the movement.

Answer 5: you are only 155 lbs., correct? Don’t go into the gym and try to be Johnny Weightlifter. Don’t go putting a crap load of weight on the bar and try it. You will look like a fool and hurt yourself. Make sure you have a spotter and gradually increase the weight starting from what you normally would do. I would say start with 135 and work your way up.

I am 165 now. When I was 155 to now, I put up anywhere from 225 to 245 depending on how often I work out. I think that is pretty good but I have been lifting for most of my life. That is why I am telling you to start at 135 and gradually increase. I think it was just this year that somebody posted a newspaper article about a guy in Jersey that killed himself benching. That sounds pretty ridiculous but stuff like that happens.

Answer 6: if you could do 135 I’d be surprised- are you kidding me? First off- you weigh 155 pounds. Benching your body weight is a good standard, if you can bench your body weight your doing OK. Second off- for a 155 pound person to max at 300 lbs should let you know how much of a joke a bowflex is. Only the upper, upper echelon of body builders can lift twice their body weight. To put into perspective how much weight 300 pounds is, its the bar, 2 45 plates on each side, then a 25 on each side, a 10 on each side and a 2 and a half on each side. There is literally no physical way you can lift 260 pounds man, sorry. Also- to double your bench from 120-240 in 6 months is also basically impossible without the use of illegal substances(or legal prohormones).

Answer 7: I have a bowflex along with dumbells. There is no comparing the “weight” on the cables with the bowflex to the true wt of freeweights. The weight you’re lifting with the bowflex is highly variable and depends on body position, how far you pull down the wt bars, etc. That said, the bowflex is an excellent home gym that’s quite safe and will build muscle.

Answer 8: an apples and oranges comparison - The lifting mechanisms are obviously very different, you’re going to have to hit an actual gym and see what you can do. I’d wager you won’t be able to press anywhere near 300 lbs using free weights, however. In other words yes, you’re being fooled by the bowflex … so be careful when you hit an actual gym and free weights, and make sure you’ve got a spotter to help.

Answer 9: Compare bowflex to a bow and arrow. When you first start cocking the string back, there’s not as much tension, but the further you go, the more tension. Same for a bowflex. When you’re benching 300 pounds it’s likely that it’s not a constant pressure and it maxes out at 300 towards the top, and at that stage you can extend your elbows to support the weight rather than have the pressure work against your muscles. Contrast that to free weights, where there is a constant pressure bearing down on you throughout the entire workout. Don’t be surprised when you are lifting significantly less with free-weights.