Just about everybody knows that you shouldn’t eat just before a workout. I know that too, but my stomach rules my world. Plus, I’m an idiot. I got hungry before Stephen came to pick me up for our Crossfit workout. So what did this genius do? I made a huge bowl of Korean spicy noodles and I threw in an egg and four xiao long bao for good measure. Then, in Stephen’s car, I just had to rub it in with a can of Mr. Brown iced coffee. I was already feeling bloated but I continued with the warm-up anyways. Then we moved into the work-out. The acid reflux was agonizing!!!

Throw in the spicy soup lingering up at my esophagus and the game was over. Off to the washroom for this spewing tank, I was compelled to perform the two finger in the mouth salute to relieve the pressure. Spent the last bit of my workout suffering the chills and wishing I had some antacid. No spicy soup and coffee just before Crossfit, next time I’ll leave at least an hour to digest.

When I first started seriously working out at the gym, I went crazy and worked out at least five times a week. While I felt great and my body was seeing some improvements at the start, the results soon began to plateau. No matter how hard or often I worked out, I just could not see the gains that I wanted. Then I started a job that had me working twelve hour shifts, four days on 4 days off. My workouts dropped down to about 2-3 days a week.

Surprisingly, I noticed some muscle mass gains right away. Soon, I was only working out hard about two days a week and giving my body the much needed muscle-building rest in between. I got so huge in a one year period my work had to buy me new shirts to accommodate my increased arm and neck size. Now with my Crossfit workouts, I am back down to two days a week, but I am considering going back to my regular gym one day a week to focus on weight training. I wanna get my pipes back up to the size they used to be

Today’s Friday Health Check demonstrates that the old saying “quality over quantity” applies to fitness as well.

Training Volume More Important Than Frequency

Strength and muscle mass increase in response to repeated overload. What kind of overload causes the greatest training gains? is it better to do more exercises two days a week or fewer exercises three days a week? Canadian researchers found that training volume was more important than workout frequency in developing muscle mass and strength in beginning weight trainers. Subjects did the same number of exercises per week (exercises, sets and reps), but one group did them in two workouts per week, while the other did them in three. Both groups increased in muscle mass, squat strength and bench press strength with training, but the number of workouts per week did not affect the results. This study used untrained subjects, so the results may not apply to trained bodybuilders or weight-trained athletes. (Journal Strength Conditioning Research, 21: 204-207, 2007)

I remember many years ago when I got a gym membership and started working out it was the norm to stretch before a workout. I had heard from preliminary studies that stretching before weight training could actually hinder your workout and thus your results. I decided to incorporate my stretching as a post-workout exercise and part of my cool-down. I saw some nice gains in strength almost right away. I then moved my cardio to post-weight training and, while I saw a decrease in my cardio performance, my muscle gain and pump increased dramatically. At one point my gains were so good I had to get new dress shirts because I couldn’t button the top button anymore and I could barely move my arms to a flex position. I still keep one of the old shirts around just to see how much I’ve bulked up This was all natural too as I never took supplements (except for multi-vitamins) and protein shakes gave me really bad gas

This Friday Health Check shows some more recent studies that seem to back up the results I’ve personally experienced. To each their own though, everbody’s body reacts differently to stimuli and there are so many other variables. Experiment and find your best fit to maximize strength gains.

Static Stretching Decreases Leg Power

Static stretching has been part of the standard pre-exercise warm-up for more than 100 years. Until recently, most exercise books urged people to stretch large muscles thoroughly before doing powerful movements, such as sprinting, jumping or throwing. Many recent studies showed that pre-exercise stretching decreased muscle strength and might increase the risk of injury. Yet, weekend warriors commonly stretch before a game of tennis or golf.

Japanese researchers found that pre-exercise stretching decreased power (the ability to exert force rapidly). Power output at 5 percent, 30 percent and 60 percent of maximum strength was much lower than when subjects did nothing before the exercise test. Recent research from the U.S. Army showed that an active, full-body warm-up improved exercise performance in powerful movements much better than stretching. Stretching is still important, but do it after exercise, when muscles are warm and you don’t have to perform powerful movements. (Journal Strength Conditioning Research, 20: 804-810, 2006)

How Safe Are Weight-loss Drugs?

America is in the midst of a major obesity epidemic, with two-thirds of the population either overweight or obese. Drugs that could safely help people lose weight would have a significant impact on public health. Effective diet drugs used to be available (amphetamines, phentermine and fenfluramine) but were pulled from the market years ago by the Food and Drug Administration because of severe side effects such as heart valve damage, psychosis and addiction. Current weight-loss drugs include orlistat (Xenical), sibutramine (Meridia) and rimonabant (Acomplia). The first two are approved in the United States, while the third is approved in Europe. In a review of literature, Canadian researchers assessed the effectiveness and side effect of these drugs. Each produces only modest weight loss and none is superior to the others. All have side effects that can be uncomfortable or dangerous; orlistat can cause gastrointestinal distress and diarrhea, sibutramine increases blood pressure and rimonabant can trigger insomnia, depression and psychological disturbances. Not much data exists on the long-term safety of these drugs. The authors concluded that not enough is known about the mechanisms of obesity to prescribe drugs to overweight people for extended periods. (Lancet, 369:71 – 77, 2007)

I’ve never been a believer of diet fads. I believe in short term regulation of food and drink intake to achieve a particular short-term goal (i.e., a photo shoot, acting gig, a cleanse, etc.). However, a definition of a healthy diet implies something that you can sustain over a lifetime. One of the craziest I’ve heard of is the low-carb diet. The human body is an amazing biological machine and needs a fine balance of food intake . . . carbs and fats too! Otherwise the body will not function properly and can affect both physical and mental health. A healthy diet also should be followed up with ample physical exercise to be truly effective. With exercise, the body needs to receive an increased intake of carbs to fuel the body’s functions.

Think of your body as a car. The harder, faster you drive, the more fuel your car needs. As with a car, you also have the choice of fuels (i.e., regular, premium, etc.). From intake to exhaust, a healthy car functions with with regular maintenance and fuel. Your body is no different. Today’s Friday Health Check sheds some interesting light on the low-carb fad and some of the side-affects. Feed your body what it needs, it’ll thank you

Low-carb Diets Cause Euphoria

The early phases of low-carbohydrate diets are accompanied by feelings of well-being and euphoria. Scientists have linked these sensations to ketones (ketosis) – chemicals formed by incomplete breakdown of fats. One of the ketones is B-hydroxybutrate (BHB), a chemical similar to the date rape drug gammahydroxybutryic acid (GHB). GHB is an anesthetic that causes euphoria, unconsciousness and loss of memory; BHB has similar effects. Dr. Andrew Brown from the University of New South Wales speculated that BHB is responsible for the pleasant feelings people feel during the early phases of low-carbohydrate dieting. He suggested that scientists conduct research to determine if GHB and BHB have similar effects on the brain. (Medical Hypotheses, 68:268-271, 2007)

Oh yes, the workout was so tough and I pushed myself so hard, that I had winded myself to the extreme and lost bodily control. Once I made my way to the washroom, the toilet was the image that triggered the torrent, wasted was my beautiful lunch of bison burgers made on my new Hummer grill

The workout that made me lose my lunch is called “Tabata This”. Tabata basically means doing a specific exercise non-stop for 30 seconds in sets of eight, with 10 second rests in between sets. You try to do as many reps in each 30 seconds. The set with the “lowest” number is your score. There is a 3 minute rest in between each specific exercise. So, my workout consisted of Tabata Squats, Tabata Pull-ups, Tabata Sit-ups, Tabata Push-ups and finishing with Tabata Rows. Try doing them each non-stop for eight sets of 30 seconds each set. After the push-ups I never even got to the rows, I made a B-line for the washroom. My whole body feels like I was hit by a truck, but it has never looked so good. Funny how you can look your best when you feel like dying, lol.

With that, I bring you this Friday Health Check!

Stable Surface Best for Building Squat Strength

Performing exercises on unstable surfaces is the latest muscle-building fad in many health clubs across the country. The rationale is that instability forces muscles in the lower body and trunk to stabilize the spine during whole-body exercises, such as squats and overhead presses. Researchers from Appalachian State University in North Carolina, led by Jeffrey McBride, determined that muscle activation in the lower body was up to 45 percent less during isometric squats on unstable surfaces than on stable surfaces (i.e., normal squats). The researchers measured muscle activation with electromyography(EMG), which gauges the electrical activity in muscles when they’re activated by the nervous system. Muscle tension is critical for building mass and strength. While exercising on unstable surfaces helps develop core muscle stability, it doesn’t create enough tension to promote optimal training gains in hardcore gym rats. While athletes may include some instability training in their programs, it shouldn’t be the primary means of gaining strength and muscle mass. (Journal Strength Conditioning Research, 20:915-918, 2006)

Welcome to another edition of Friday Health Check! Tomorrow morning I am off to the beautiful resort town of Whistler for a weekend-long loss prevention seminar. It is considered a work event so the bonus is that I will be paid for my time up there in addition to having my transportation, lodging and food taken care of

Hopefully, I’ll be able to make some updates while I’m up there but I don’t have a laptop so the next site update may not be until Monday evening when I get back home. I need a laptop!

GH Increases More in Men than Women During Exercise

Growth hormone (GH) promotes growth during childhood and plays a pivotal role in fat, carbohydrate and protein metabolism in adults. GH elevations during exercise are linked to decreased body fat and increased protein synthesis that occur after exercise (i.e., the training response). When you lift weights, growth hormone helps remodel muscle during recovery and promotes increases in muscle mass.

In endurance sports, GH stimulates tissue repair in response to repeated trauma induced by training. Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro found that GH increased in proportion to exercise duration during aerobic exercise. Also, GH increased more in men than women in response to the same relative exercise load. The results of this study help explain why prolonged exercise (greater than 60 minutes) works best for training-induced fat loss. (Journal Applied Physiology, 101:1641-1647, 2006)

It feels like summer is finally here! I’m running around in nothing but shorts and sandals and I’m anxious to head down to Wreck Beach (local clothing optional beach), don’t worry I’ll spare you the photos In preparation of spending more time outdoors, I’ve gone ahead and bought myself a grill for my patio. I’ve held off on purchasing one because of space, my little one bedroom condo just lacks the patio space to make buying a full-size grill unpractical. The strata by-law also probibits anything other than gas fueled (propane/butane) grills, so those charcoal grills and habachis were out of the question.

It’s funny that General Motors would come to the rescue with their Hummer Grill. I kid you not! The thing is built tough and sturdy and the beauty of its compact size is that it actually flips around like a Transformer into a suitcase/luggage contraption that is small enough to easily store or transport. A friend and I had some nice rib steaks the day after buying the Hummer and enjoyed it with some nice, cold beers as I enjoyed the view of the park across the street. It’s gonna be a great summer!

This edition of Friday Health Check covers the topic of caloric intake. Another reason why the grill is a thing of beauty as high protein foods (like meat) help to keep you feeling fuller, longer and speeds the metabolism. Kill it and grill it!

Feeling Full with Fewer Calories

People eat 300 calories per day more than they did in the 1970s. Also, more than 60 percent of people fail to meet the minimum physical activity recommendations of 30 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise, five days per week. The combination of too many calories and not enough exercise has created an obesity epidemic in America, with more than 65 of the population overweight or obese. Scientists are searching fora way to make people feel full while taking in fewer calories. Danish scientist Dr. Arne Atsup, in a review of literature, reported that people can lose 5 to 10 pounds in six months by reducing dietary fat from 37 percent to 27 percent of daily calorie intake. Men and women have trouble staying on low-fat diets because the food doesn’t taste good. Substituting protein for carbohydrates and fats helps get rid of hunger and speeds metabolism, which promotes weight loss and helps keep it off. High-sugar soft drinks promote obesity because they don’t suppress hunger, which encourages people to consume more calories. (International Journal Obesity, 30: S4-S9, 2006)

Ok, ok, so I know this is a day late but I was unexpectedly called last minute to work on the new “Flash Gordon” TV series yesterday. It was filming all the way out in Aldergrove and I had to fight the long weekend traffic all the way down to set. The show has been picked up for 22 episodes for the Sci-Fi Channel, which means it will probably aired on the Space Channel in Canada. Wrapped out at 4am and was in bed around 5:30-ish. Had to wake up at 10am to train for my Dragon Tiger Gate audition, which was in Chinatown at noon. Phew! I need sleep sooo bad. But here I am writing the next Friday Health Check!

Slow Lifting Doesn’t Create Enough Force, Power Or Volume

Ultraslow training involves lifting weights at very slow velocities until the muscles fail. Muscle growth requires the right combination of muscle tension, anabolic hormones, calories, amino acids and rest. Remove even one of these ingredients and muscles won’t grow as well as they should. Constant muscle tension is a prominent element in slow-velocity training, so on the surface this technique looks ideal. Slow training is extremely fatiguing and painful. Slow reps decrease muscle blood flow and prevent flushing of muscle acids and waste products, which reduce muscle tension and training gains. Researchers form the University of Connecticut concluded that very slow velocity training doesn’t trigger the necessary levels of force, power or volume to optimize muscle strength or size. Slow training may be a good variation, but shouldn’t be your primary method of training. (Journal Strength Conditioning Research, 20: 760-766, 2006)

In this edition of Friday Health Check, coffee drinkers everywhere rejoice! Forget the decaf. What’s the point of drinking coffee without caffeine anyways? That’s like weight training without gaining muscle. I usually fill up on water or Powerade/Gatorade but maybe I’ll stop by the nearest Starbuck’s after my next Crossfit workout.

Caffeine Cuts Post-workout Soreness

Delayed onset muscles soreness (DOMS) is muscle pain you feel during the days following an intense workout. DOMS can be particularly severe in untrained people. Researchers from the University of Georgia in Athens found that a caffeine supplement reduced muscle soreness in study participants following electrical muscle stimulation. The subjects took 5 milligrams of caffeine per kilogram bodyweight at 24 and 48 hours after the muscle stimulation treatment. The researchers speculated that caffeine blocked the activity of a chemical called adenosine, which is released during inflammation in response to muscle injury. Caffeine relieved post-exercise muscle soreness better than acetaminophen (Tylenol) and naproxen (Aleve). This study used untrained subjects so the results may not apply to weightlifters or people who consume high amounts of caffeine regularly. In an earlier study, researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign showed that caffeine reduced leg pain in subjects during cycling exercise. (Journal of Pain, in-press, published online Dec. 2006; Medicine Science Sports Exercise, 38: 598-604, 2006)