One thing i’ve heard a lot about over the years in the training circles is pre vs. post nutrition, and the difference in what your body needs at both stages. It’s commonly accepted that carbohydrates before, and protein afterward is the right way to go, and it makes total sense when you see how muscles work and what they need (fuel before to give maximum energy and then foods to grow and repair afterward). So that begs the question,

Where does Energy come from?

There is one point i need to make here before we get into it, and that is to do with where real energy comes from. Energy is life, and so it comes from ‘live’ things – fresh (electrically charged, moving) air, clean mineral rich water from the source (which doesn’t mean the tap!), natural water rich foods, in general most things that grow in the earth canhelp us to grow from the life that is contained in them, in their natural raw state – it makes sense when we switch off the’scientific’ mind and just use our intuition, but science also backs it up.

From the other side of the equation, if we consume dead foods or artificial/ synthetic products to gain energy, our
body will be using more than it’s fair share of energy to try and burn through and eliminate these toxins in the quickest possible way. Just like a child would be stunted if not given the proper nutrition, our muscles will be stunted if not fed what they need to grow.

So if this is the case and we need energy to train at a level of intensity needed to get real results, what are some of
the options regarding foods that we can benefit from? When thinking of this question we need to think of what will encourage growth and general health in out body, because some people just want to build huge muscle but don’t really care about their health, but by focusing on their health they encourage their body to build stronger, leaner muscle… You can’t lose when you focus on health first – nutrition is key!

Foods for intense training

Ok, so what foods will help us to push our boundaries and hurl those weights like feathers?

Here is a basic list to get you going, and keep you going when you really need it…

• Chocolate – just kidding! although it is sometimes recommend that dark chocolate in small doses is good,but i’m going to go one step further and say the original cacao beans (if you can get hold of some), but let’s stick tothe easy stuff that you can get anywhere.

• Eggs - If you can get eggs that you know are ‘free range‘, then go for it. Many that are labelled as free range have as much freedom as a prisoner being able to walk from his cell door to the window, so make sure before you spend the extra cash. For the purposes of training it’s the egg whites that have the goodies, so easy on the yolks.

• Chicken – The same as eggs in the way of ‘free range’. If you go for this then make sure it’s a free runner, and leave the skin behind.

• Potatoes – This is one of the best there is! make them how you like them, but try not to add bacon, butter and the like… keep them lean and as natural as possible

• Wholegrain breads and grains – as a general rule, the more crumbly the bread the better it is for you (if you can press it into a ball and bounce it off the door, chances are it’s going to take a while to break down). Things such as oats are good for sustained energy in your workout too.

• Bananas – There’s Something about the potassium that aids nerve and muscle function, so you’ll want to keep these in the menu.

• Pasta & rice – Try and make it a good quality wholegrain or brown pasta/ rice, because after all, it is a clogging food so if you choose this option you’ll want to make it as easy on your body as possible.

• Lentils – ok ok, i know they take a little getting used to, but start small and just have a little bit – The benefits are well worth it.

An insiders tip: It’s a common belief that foods that are hot or spicy can give you a little extra ‘kick’ in your workout. Try adding chili or ginger to your pre workout meal, as these will aid in the thermogenic process along with the rest of the natural foods, and help with fat loss.

What has worked for me is natural but heavy foods such as potatoes before a workout (and using the general rule of one hour before your workout is a wise move), and then protein/ enzyme rich foods after to repair and cleanse, and allow the muscles to absorb as much of the goodness as possible. Remember from the last post the importance of a little salt? Water with a little celtic sea salt before the workout will assist with hydration, and you’ll need all the hydration you can get during the training!

As always, keep it natural, and your efforts will be rewarded. You’ll also save money on expensive supplements and powders, and feel so much better when your body is working as it should, with foods that complement the powerhouse you live in!

Need more? Why not check out the complete system to overhaul your body with Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle!

Over the past few decades there has been mixed reactions when it comes to salt and what it does for us, or more importantly, what it does ‘to’ us. There have been those out there that would have us believe it’s a nasty that we should avoid and that it causes all sorts of health problems…but what are the facts? And how does it affect us in our daily lives as well as in our training?

Many of you will know that just like the earth we are between 70-80% water, but did you know that we are also about 10% fresh water, the rest being salty? So it makes sense that we need a high water/ water rich food diet, but also a reasonably salty one. Did you know that salt is the 4^th most critical nutrient in the body? And they claim it’s bad for us…

Is all salt the same?

No. Salt that is sold in most supermarkets as ‘table salt’ is the reason why people say salt is bad. One difference in these is the way it is dried (usually in a kiln at high heat which robs it of vital nutrients), but the real danger is the anti-caking agents that are added, quite often being aluminium based.

A good natural (there’s that word again) salt that has been sun dried, like a Celtic Sea salt for instance, is one that has minerals that your body needs and will use.

A good natural salt...

What exactly does it do?

Here I have a list of a few of the benefits of salt in your diet:

• It helps fight infections and prevent diseases (Hospitals know this with their use of Saline drips, otherwise known as ‘salt water’)
• It assists hydration
• It prevents muscle cramps
• It generates Hydroelectric energy, that in turn gives you the feeling of being energetic (all 76 trillion cells rely on this to function properly)
• It helps extract acids from the body, particularly from the brain
• It’s also a natural antihistamine

When and how do I take it?

Regardless of what you do, how energetic you are, you need salt in your body. For this reason it’s a good idea to ‘graze’ as opposed to having it all in one meal, just as you wouldn’t drink 3lts of water in one go but throughout the day.

From a training perspective you will need a little more, as your body will use up more. What I find best for me is adding a pinch of salt to my water to make it a weak saline solution, this means I get it consistently through the day and it also has the benefit of lowering the surface tension of the water, making it easier to absorb into your system. When you drink water during or just after training, you’ll also consume more salt in the same action – it just makes it easy.

If you have any questions feel free to write a comment and I’ll get back to you – all comments are appreciated!

Need more? Why not check out the complete system to overhaul your body with Burn the fat, Feed the muscle!

There have been countless discussions on this topic of Protein, particularly in regard to Whole natural foods vs Powders. For the purpose of this article I will be focussing on the whole foods and we’ll have a look at what your body needs in respect to building muscle.
We all know the importance of protein in muscle growth and repair, but do we really need as much as the Supplement companies are telling us? Or is this another case of drug companies pushing their product?

Let’s take a look at what muscles need first and work back to what can provide a solution to that need.

The Muscle building process –

It’s no secret that in order to build muscle, you first need to push the muscle harder than it’s used to, it’s a simple system of putting strain on it, feeding it what it needs to recover, and letting it recover with the appropriate time of rest. It makes sense that the more strain you put on the muscle, the more time you will need to allow it to recover. We can also take from this that the more recovery it needs, the more nutrition it needs to 1) grow to the optimum level and 2) recover in the fastest possible time.

Is all Protein the Same?

In short the answer is No. It can basically be divided up into 2 forms – Complete and Incomplete protein. The basic understanding of this is that complete protein has all the 8 essential amino acids included, whereas Incomplete protein is usually missing one or more amino acids. The general rule here is to mix and match different protein sources throughout the day to get a balanced ‘Complete’ protein source.

How much protein does your body need?

The recommended intake for protein (for people doing any major physical activity) is anywhere between 1 – 2 grams per Kilo of body weight, so if you’re 80kg you would need 80 – 160 grams per day. It’s up to you which side of the scale you want to aim for, but if you’re eating mostly whole natural foods then it doesn’t hurt to aim for the higher amount, but anything over this is overkill and will have no benefit, you may as well save your money.

What foods can I eat to achieve the required amount for muscle growth?

This is by no means an exhaustive list, but just a clue as to where to start with your protein sources in natural foods.

• Eggs (1 Medium Size) = 6 gms – A good source of  ‘Complete’ protein
• Milk (1 Glass) = 6.3 gms (Milk however is not as good for you as people believe; I’ll cover more on that in another article).
• Soya Milk (200 ml) = 6 gms
• Low Fat Plain Yoghurt (150gms) = 8 gms
• Fish (Deep sea is best – 100g) = 21 gms
• Meats (Most meats like chicken/ beef) = 25 – 28 gms (Meat just like milk will be covered in a later article)
• Most nuts, seeds, beans and Soy products are fairly good protein sources – especially almonds, and here’s one you may not know about, Broccoli comes in at 45% protein!

There is however one that food that contains every identified mineral and trace mineral including Calcium/ Sodium/ Potassium/ Magnesium, , has more Iron per volume than spinach, and averages approximately 25% protein – Wheatgrass. This one food alone will provide your body with more of what it needs than most other foods on the planet combined! You can buy it in juice form or powder (the powder still retains the nutritional value of this food), and with the addition of some of the other protein sources mentioned, will give you more than enough of what you need.

As a general rule, if you make sure you get about 70-80% whole natural foods in your diet, and as much of that as you can in its raw uncooked state (When natural food is eaten raw, it contains the essential amino acids in the form of enzymes – some of this is removed when cooked). You will always be giving your body what it needs – even with extreme training. If you feel you need a protein powder even after reading this, then look at the label for yourself and work out if it’s what you need (without the harmful additives) – education is the key, and not being swayed by advertising or the peer pressure in the gym.

Train hard, rest well & eat well – get results… it’s that easy!

Need to get to the next level with training? Check out the resources at the top for the results you’re after!

You may at first think it strange to cover such a topic in a ‘nutrition’ site, but when you look deeply into it it’s only about nutrition – or the lack there of… lets first take a look at what’s going on.

What we know so far

All we are hearing so far is that this epidemic, pandemic, whatever the news of the day is calling it (although the figures don’t back up the terminology) is going to end the world, until it blows over and the next disaster of choice comes along to wipe out the world.

Let’s look at the symptoms of this so called Swine Flu:

Chills, Fever, Sore Throat, Muscle Pains, Headache, Coughing, Weakness, and general Discomfort. Interesting…

Let’s look at the symptoms of any other cold or flu:

Chills, Fever, Sore Throat, Muscle Pains, Headache, Coughing, Weakness, and general Discomfort.

Now is it just me, or is there a common theme here? hmmm…Now let’s look at this from a nutritional point of you.  All of these symptoms are signs that your body is run down, is lacking the nutrients it needs, has gone without restful sleep etc… and is not operating as well as it could.

So now we have two options when it comes to dealing with this; we can either treat the symptom with a medication of some kind to suppress the problem, or we can work on strengthening our body to eliminate what it needs to and quickly get back in shape. Bear in mind the facts first, and that is when you have the symptoms listed above, your body is trying to clean itself out. Do we hinder it or help it out? The choice is ultimately yours, i just want you to see both sides of the equation so you can make an educated decision as to how you approach things when you start feeling ‘under the weather’.

If we take the medical approach and buy cold and flu tablets, cough mixtures, anti this and that, we push it back into our system and temporarily ease the pain, but it’s still there. Later on down the road it will come out again a little bit stronger, maybe in another form – it heads straight for the back door, so we take another tablet to dry things up and push it back in. We are always treating the symptom in this scenario, not the problem. It will keep coming back until it’s eliminated one way or another, and if it’s not eliminated, eventually will lead to what we call disease.

If we take the natural approach and let things run their course, and help it along with the right food choices regarding whole foods and nutrition then whatever is offending your body is removed and is no longer a problem.

Check out what the ‘Indiana Jones’ of Health says about whole foods and their healing properties – Don Tolman

What we can do

Do you want to take the natural approach? my guess is yes if you’re here reading this page…so here’s some tips when you start feeling this way, and these are also good to prevent it happening in the first place.

• Stay well hydrated – the importance of this is always understated, but it is essential to drink plenty of fresh clean water daily (try to add a pinch of celtic sea salt to your water to make more of a saline solution – your body will love you for it).
• Cleanse on a regular basis, and if you start feeling run down  get some fresh juice into you of any kind (more of what juice can do in a later post).
• If you have a cough or sore throat try some hot water with a good sqeeze of lemon and honey.
• Keep moving. Get out in the fresh air as much as you can and get your body moving! This will help speed up the elimination process and the sun also gives you nutrients that you won’t find in any pills or powders. Sweat it out in the gym if you can, it’s all about helping to speed up your body’s natural recovery process.
• Finally, get more natural whole foods into you, and stay away from clogging foods such as dairy. There is a theme here, and that is to help your body cleanse itself, without the so called aid of pharmacueticals.

I hope this helps, if we educate ourselves on these things then we don’t have to worry about what’s in the media…
Let the swine have their flu, while we just get on with training!

Keep an eye out for my next post on the best sources of muscle building protein in natural foods…