I’ve recieved it so much lately, I figured it would make a good blog post and was inspired by Mark Young and Bret Contreras talking about how they learn.
I have a confession to make.
I have had to put my general reading on the back burner a bit.
Gasp!
I know, I know, I should be reading more, but the key question to ask is “Is that the best way to learn?”
I also probably read more research than most still though. Most don’t read research and I am fine with that as long as you don’t try to state that “research shows….” and you are pulling it out of your butt!
Since I am working on a project (book chapter) on protein, I have about 40 studies sitting in front of me on it at any point in time. Other topics are energy drinks and metabolic flexiblity; so I tend to read everything on those topics.
I can’t read on a computer screen for long, so I keep studies printed out and in my backpack or at my desk (aka kitchen table) which normally has a huge pile at all times of fun stuff to read.
I read a few blogs and other sites for fun on occasion as a break.
Alan Aragon’s Research Review (AARR) is a must! For like 10 clams a month you get some great article and breakdowns of research. I have written research reviews and it takes more time than people realize, so I will cheerfully pay a 10 spot for it.
The Valencia mediacasts from Carl Valle are great too. You can find him at Elitetrack.com and send him a note if you want to sign up to them. They are dirt cheap and awesome info. I make zero money from promoting either one.
I have subscriptions to the Journal of Strength and Conditioning and Medicine & Science in Sport and Exercise from ACSM. Since I am still a student, I can get access to almost any full study which is great.
I use Evernote through my phone to snap pictures of printed studies, upload then and pull the full study. I can use Ref Works to add in abstracts to Ref Works database.
As of today I have over 1,360 studies in there. Looks like I will buying a subscription to ref works for the rest of my life once I graduate! They got me.
I do find great research on there from time to time too. It is also a great way to connect with people using the ole interwebz.
I love listening to podcasts and my ipod is great for it.
My top 2 favs are Ironradio and Super Human Radio and not just because I’ve been a guest on both shows in the past, but top notch information in an entertaining format too.
Other good ones are The Fitcast, the Strength Coach Podcast and Sports Rehab Expert podcast. I have to confess that I generally listen to these for some good nuggets and to also see what most people are into. I am working on seeing things from the other person’s perspective, so I can understand how they think and view things. I feel this will make it easier for me to communicate with them.
Collection is not the goal. Action/results are the goal. Frankie has a great post below on it
I always look to see what ACTION I need to take to test the new info I learn. My goal is not to just collect info, it is to see what is useful and how does it change what I do.
I think ACTON is a missing link many times.
I am one of those old school people that does not download music for free. At last count I have about 1,400 CDs. Yes, the old silver looking platters. I still love getting all the art work and listening to it how the final mix was supposed to sound, not compressed to hell and back on MP3s.
I do love my ipod since you can put so many track on there, but I prefer to buy CDs still and support the artists themselves directly.
Similar to electronic products, if you like the product and the person who purchased it, just buy it. The people that I know who put out products are doing it for the love it and yes they want to make some money from it too. They are not doing it just to pump up their bank account. They are doing it to make a living yes, but primarily to help others.
How do you learn? What are some good resources that you use?
Let me know by placing a comment below!
Rock on
Just wanted to drop you a note that I will be presenting at the Fitcom Xpo coming up in the next week or so.
There will be tons of fitness professionals presenting on topics ranging from Boot Camps, How to Gain Muscle and Drop Fat, Fitness Marketing and much more!
You will be able to log on from the comfort of your own home and pick from a huge selection.
I will be doing a presentation this year for Fitcom on
This will not be some old hat presentation as it will have cutting edge science and be VERY practical for you also. I am currently finishing up my dissertation writing on Metabolic Flexibility.
More details to come very soon! This will also be a great way to get CEUs if you are a fitness professional too.
In the interest of full disclosure, I do make a few bucks if you sign up for the expo through my site HERE.
Rock on
Mike T Nelson
Below is a shorter literature review I did as part of my PhD research. It can be on the dry side, but the take away is that as your body gets closer to a Metabolically INflexible state (e.g. diabetes) you have a much harder time process any food and turning it into a good fuel sources.
If you are very Metabolically Flexible, you can adapt to virtually any fuel source (e.g. various foods). Now this is not an argument for going crazy and eating Ho Hos and Krispy Kremes, there are limits!
The point is that every is different and perhaps there is a way to quantify how metabolically efficient each person’s body is without subjecting them to IVs and sticks in the arm for hours at a time.
Any questions, let me know and I will be happy to discuss. Big thank you to my advisor Dr. Don Dengel and Dr. George Biltz for the ideas, background, and all the support.
This ran awhile back, but since I am doing a presentation on Metabolic Flexibility for Fitcon II and some other projects, I thought I would re-run it here. Other had asked for literature that supports that theory too, so here you go. I am more than happy to answer any questions in the comment section too, so post away. It is a VERY dense post and I will have more break downs that are easy to digest in the future again.
For a simple version, see this post
Enjoy
Mike N
METABOLIC FLEXIBILITY (and also INFlexibility)
It is no secret that in the United States, the rate of obesity in children is on the rise. In fact, childhood obesity in the US has tripled over the last 40 years and doubled in the past 15 years
(32). About 40% of adolescents seen in the University of West Virginia pediatric clinic have body mass index (BMI) greater than 85% for gender and age (44). Body fat and its distribution is related to cardiovascular disease, hypertension and type 2 diabetes, all diseases that are considered to have an “incubation period” during childhood and adolescence (51). In 2003-2004 17.1% of US children and adolescents (age 2 to 19) were overweight (defined as at or above the 95th percentile of the sex specific BMI for age growth charts) (29). If the current epidemic of child and adolescent obesity continues at the same rate, life expectancy could be shortened by two to five years in the coming decades(30) and it will be the first time in recent history that life
expectancy has decreased.
LITERATURE REVIEW
Metabolic Flexibility
Due to possible discontinuities in both the supply and demand for energy, humans need a “clear capacity to utilize lipid and carbohydrate fuels and have the ability to transition between them.” (18). This capacity is a healthy state and termed “Metabolic Flexibility”. It is hypothesized that metabolic inflexibility may play a role in various disease processes such as the metabolic syndrome that may even start in childhood (3, 27, 28, 46). Location of body fat may affect
disease risk also and data from prospective studies using waist to hip ratio or waist circumference confirmed that abdominal obesity is more closely associated with disease risk than total body fatness(6, 7, 22).
A key to understanding metabolic flexibility is the vital role of insulin. In humans, insulin is a regulatory hormone synthesized in the pancreas within the beta cells (?-cells) of the islets of Langerhans. Insulin can be characterized by two phases an initial (cephalic phase) driven by the nervous system and a sustained secondary phase (1). Some data indicated that variations in prestimulatory glucose can secondarily affect the magnitude and pattern of subsequent glucose-induced insulin secretions (13). Humans in a healthy state with normal insulin
metabolism have the ability to effectively switch from primarily a fat metabolism to a carbohydrate metabolism. Also, in human subjects that reach a stage in the metabolic syndrome characterized by insulin resistance and glucose intolerance bordering on frank diabetes, there is still considerable beta-cell capacity demonstrating a clear absence of the normal initial peak of insulin secretion (5, 45). Skeletal muscle is a major player in energy balance due to its metabolic activity, storage capacity for both glycogen and lipids, and its effects on insulin sensitivity (9-11). Obesity/visceral fat, transient state of puberty, ethnicity, genetic factors, and physical inactivity all may lead to insulin resistance (2).
Elevated lipid content and intramuscular triglyceride (IMTG) are both linked to insulin
resistance (20)and thus compromise efficient lipid utilization. Perseghin et al. (31) used magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) to report that lipids contained within muscle fibers were strongly correlated with the severity of insulin resistance. In metabolically inflexible subject, lipid oxidation may fail to increase with fasting and fail to suppress with hormonal insulin elevation. Lowered post-absorptive fatty acid oxidation leads to excess accumulation of IMTGs and begins a downward spiral. Interestingly, endurance trained athletes also have an increased IMTG level, but remain insulin sensitivity (perhaps from increased turnover rate) (9).
Kelley et al. (17) (as shown in Figure 1 below) showed that under basal fasting conditions glucose uptake and oxidation are normal or even increased in obese subjects compared with lean subjects. Fatty acid uptake is also normal, but fatty acid oxidation is lower and its storage is elevated in the obese group which may explain why they have a higher body fat as they are more apt to store fat.
During a hyperinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp condition the differences between lean and obese are quite different. In lean subjects, glucose uptake increased 10 fold with both oxidation and storage primarily contributing while fatty acid uptake decreased equally dramatically. In
obese subjects however, glucose uptake, oxidation and storage are reduced; which is quite a different response from the lean group.
Figure 1 (47) shows the contributions of lipid and glucose oxidation to resting energy expenditure of the leg. Obese subjects derived relatively less energy from lipid oxidation during basal conditions; showing a blunted fat burning response. During insulin-stimulated conditions, lean subjects show a greater suppression of lipid oxidation compared to the obese group under
the same conditions.
Figure 1 from Kelley et al. 1999
In summary, Kelley et al. (17) presented data from subjects with type 2 diabetes showing metabolic inflexibility as obese subjects derived relatively less energy from lipid oxidation during basal conditions (P<0.01). Lean subjects showed a greater suppress
ion of lipid oxidation during insulin-stimulated conditions (p<0.01). As shown in Figure 2 below, lean subjects have a different response compared to obese and diabetic’s subjects as carbohydrate oxidation is increased (19).
Figure 2 from Kelley et al. (19)
Assessment of Metabolic Inflexibility
One way to assess metabolic flexibility is by the infusion of drugs (insulin, glucose, etc) to alter the metabolic environment. The downside is that this is more difficult to use in a clinic, requires more specialized training, and is not generally an option for children due to its invasive nature. Metabolic inflexibility is also dynamic in nature and the data collected are normally for acute settings and brief time periods only. An ideal method of assessment would be non invasive and able to collect dynamic data.
HRV
A noninvasive measure of a dynamic system is done currently by the collection of cardiac data via heart rate variability (HRV) (40). HRV analysis has been used extensively to assess autonomic control of the heart under various physiologic conditions. Most often linear analysis is done in both the time and frequency domain.
There are some data to suggest a difference in HRV for obese and non-obese individuals (25). It is well know that the autonomic nervous system ANS) plays an important role in regulating energy expenditure and body fat content, but to what extent is not exactly clear. Nagai, et al. (25) studied 42 non-obese and obese healthy school children where both groups were matched for age, gender, and height. ANS activity was assessed by HRV power spectral analysis. The results showed that the obese children had reduced sympathetic as well as parasympathetic nerve activity which could be a factor in preventing and treating obesity.
Activity is also known to affect HRV (26). Nagai et al. (26) presented data that lean active children demonstrated a lower resting heart rate (HR) as well as higher total power (TP), low frequency (LF), and high frequency (HF). LF reflects mixed sympathetic (SNS) and parasympathetic (PNS) activity, HF reflects PNS activity and TP evaluating the overall ANS activity. In contrast, obese-inactive group showed significantly lower TP, LF and HF. These data suggest obese children have reduced sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous activities as compared to lean children with similar physical activity levels. This autonomic reduction that is associated with the amount of body fat in inactive state may be an important factor for the onset or development of childhood obesity. The good news is that regular physical activity could contribute to enhance the ANS activity in both lean and obese children (26).
There are some data to suggest alterations in HRV in young patients with diabetes (14). Autonomic neuropathy is a common complication of diabetes mellitus (DM) and the aim of the study was to assess HRV changes during prolonged (40 minute) supine rest in 17 young patients with DM compared to an aged matched healthy control group. HRV analysis consisted of time/frequency domains, Poincare and sequence plots and sample entropy. The study found that HRV was able to distinguish cardiac dysregulation in young patients with DM from a control group. However, it did not find any significant difference in sample entropy between the groups, perhaps due to the subtle nature of the cardiovascular impairment in young DM patients (14). Data from Porta et al. (41) used SampEn and ApEn to analyze HRV during a head-up tilt test and concluded that with short duration data SampEn was significantly more reliable at producing accurate entropy scores.
HRV provides a non invasive method that is able to capture data in a dynamic fashion, but to date it has very limited data regarding its relation to metabolic inflexibility.
Sample Entropy
Entropy, in the original context of thermodynamics is a measure of system disorder and randomness. Approximate entropy was first coined by Pincus et al. (36) in 1991 as a way to quantify the dynamic control of a system (such as HR control) and possibly analyze many other “random” sequences (34). The promise of approximate entropy (ApEn) is that it can classify complex systems with only 100 data values in diverse setting that include both deterministic chaotic and stochastic processes (34). To date, ApEn has been used in the analysis of medical data (37), cardiology (16, 43) and neurohormonal responses (15, 35, 38, 49, 50).
The ApEn algorithm counts each sequence as matching itself to avoid the occurrence of ln (0) in the calculations. ApEn is heavily dependent on the record length and is uniformly lower than expected on short records (42). It is also lacking in relative consistency meaning that if ApEn for one data set is higher than another, it should but does not remain higher for all conditions tested (33).
Sample entropy (SampEn) was developed to reduce the bias of ApEn as it does not count self-matches. Richman et al. (42) defines SampleEn as “precisely the negative natural logarithm of the conditional probability that two sequences similar for m points remain similar at the next point, where self-matches are not included in calculating probability.” So a lower value of SampEn indicates more self-similarity (and thus less variability). SampEn is defined in terms (m,r, N) where m is the length of sequences to be compared, r is the tolerance for accepting matches and N is the length of the time series. Another benefit of SampEn is that it does not use a template-wise approach when estimating conditional probabilities as it is in essence an event-counting statistic (42). In a study by Richman et al. (42) SampEn agreed much better than ApEn statistics with theory for random numbers with known probabilistic character over a broad range of operating conditions and it has successful been used to calculate HRV on very short ECG mV recordings (10 to 60 seconds); so it does not appear to require long periods of data collection (4). HRV calculated by SampEn has been used in studies on recovery post exercise training (12, 24) and alterations due to disease and aging (39). Lake et al. (21)performed a sample entropy analysis of neonatal HRV in an attempt to predict sepsis and found that entropy falls before clinical signs of neonatal sepsis and also that missing data points were well tolerated.
RER
The RER is the ratio of the volume of CO2 to O2 and can be measured with a metabolic cart to collect expired gases. The RER at steady state is displayed as a ratio between 0 .7 to 1.0 where 0.7 corresponds to 100% fat metabolism, 0.85 corresponds to 50% fat and 50% carbohydrate metabol
ism and 1 corresponds to 100% carbohydrate metabolism.
RER has been found to be reproducible during exercise under standardized conditions (23), but factors such as age, gender, dietary substrate intake, insulin, and plasma free fatty can influence the selection of substrates during exercise and hence alter RER(8, 48).
IMPLICATIONS
With the rise in obesity, it will be imperative to have a method to determine which children are on the fast track to further metabolic damage. Current methods such as insulin clamps may be effective, but they require more training on the clinician side, more difficult to obtain IRB approval and many times will not be used children due to their invasive nature. Future studies may be conducted on newer non-invassive methods to determine metabolic inflexibility and potentially investigate the effects of various forms of exercise and nutrition methods to combat obesity in children and target those in high risk groups.
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51. Wells J. C., M. S. Fewtrell. Is body composition important for paediatricians? Arch Dis Child. , 2007.
Thanks!
Rock on
I have dream that the fitness world is under a revolution. Time to stop living by all the rules of how to train based on their rules.
I WANNA LIVE IN A FEARLESS STATE
I WANNA LIVE WITHOUT THE HATE
I WANNA BE ABLE TO DECIDE MY FATE
I WANNA BREAK OUT OF THIS CAGE
LET’S TAKE IT BACK
WELCOME TO THE FUTURE
–Welcome to the Future by Left Spine Down
Trying to actively feel everything is a recipe for chronic pain. I stole this idea from Frankie. You don’t need to actively seek it. If you screw up bad enough for your body, pain WILL find you. Trust me on this. I’ve done the experiments in my own lab. If you don’t trust me, let me know if you find it not to be true. I suggest you not test this one out.
Think of pain as an indicator light and your last line of defense. If I don’t put oil in my car ever, and my Ford pinto burns oil like at the rate of sweat running off a fat man chasing a runaway M&M, I wil have damage.
You don’t listen to pain in your body, you too will have some damage.
When the oil light comes on, I better stop the car before I destroy it (unless someone hits me from behind and I blow up anyway)
No, I am still not convinced your body will lie to you. If you can’t trust your own body, you are going to trust your body to someone else who does not trust their body either to tell you what is going on? I am all for guidance and seeking help, but their goal is to help you interpret what is going on based on your feedback.
Ford Pinto: Source
Oh boy, don’t start those dangerous deadlifts since you may just suck at them since you have never done them.
Newsflash, of course you are going to suck, you have never done them! With the exception of a few crazy athletes, you will NOT be very good at them on the first rep.
Did anyone not learn to play golf because they were afraid they were going to suck at it? Or did you want to learn to play golf, took lessons, stuck with it and became pretty good (or at least better).
The first time I learned to kiteboard, I got my a$$ handed to me over and over and over, even during a lesson! My buddy Rob had bruised his ribs earlier in the week and had to keep chasing the kite down as I floored it right into the ground. After about 20 minutes of this I hear “You suck!” The truth was I did suck, but over time, I got better. I also got a free trip across the soccer fiedl on my butt, complete with sexy grass stains as the kite powered up.
If you want to learn to kiteboard, take a lesson, but don’t NOT try it.
Did I never start because I was afraid I would suck? Nope.
Why would you not learn to do an exercise for fear you wil suck? Stupid idea that has got to go the way of the DooDoo bird.
DooDoo bird: Source
For the new readers, I am NOT saying load a bar up to 400 lbs and go ape $hit crazy with it and send your spine across my gym. I hate to clean up that kind of mess.
Test it, maybe you only do rack pulls. Maybe you can’t deadlift the standard way so you use a trap bar or even sumo style. Work around it, test it (ala Grip n Rip) and get better.
My buddy Brad Nelson has the perfect line with new clients
Brad to client “Are you a perfectionist”
Client “Yes”
Brad “Then today is not your day”
Love it.
Start today!
How demotivating is that. Sorry, you suck and you will have to eat chicken and broccoli the rest of your life, so start looking forward to that and please pay me more money so I can tell you how wonderful it is too.
I will then spend more time to tell you that broccoli has over 300 different phytonutritents and is really not the vile weed you think it is
Broccoli-A Vile Weed or Nutrient Powerhouse? Source
That is BS on a stick and you know it.
The goal of a long term program should be to eat as many “bad foods” as you can get away with WHILE keeping your body composition and health goals.
This gives the client some friggin hope. Yes, it is going to suck for awhile as your metabolism changes, but we are working towards you enjoying food long term and not making anything off limits forever.
If 4 brownies on a Saturday afternoon destroys you for the rest of the week, there are some issues to fix.
Caveat. I am not saying that you should mainline high fructose corn syrup, eat boxes of Twinkies for lunch and order more large slurpees with no ice from the 7-11 across the street that you rode your scooter to.
If your body composition and metabolism is a wreck, you have some work to do, but the body is amazingly adaptable and a vast majority of the time we can alters its ability to convert food into fuel with few “ill consequences” Hint, you NEED to exercise. This BS that exercise does not help obesity has got to stop also. Studies has shown that with exercise we can change your metabolic flexibity in a rather short period of time (1), even those who are diabetic or borderline diabetic.
Why would I cue your lat muscle during a pressing movement? Last time I checked, the lat pulls the humerous (upper arm) DOWN, which is the opposite of my goal to press the darn heavy weight up! How about I cue you based on the movement I want you to do? Hmm, I see an experiment here.
Latissimus Dorsi Muscle: Source
Why can we cue isolated movement, but argue that compound movements are better?
This makes no sense. Some rip on bodybuilders for doing “isolation work” (can we really isolate anything in the body?) and say compound movements are best; but in the same breath state that you need to work more on your VMO in your quads to stabilze your knee.
Or as above, you need to contract and pull your lat down while pressing.
How can you cue an isolated movement when you just stated isolation was bad?
How about we give ONE cue (yes ONE cue) at a time (no vomitting cues on them) on what movement we want the athlete to accomplish first. Let’s start there and see how that goes. Give their own brain a chance to fix it. Their own brain is darn smart at running their own body (it has lots of reps).
How would you know the lat was the problem or maybe it was the lower trap since I just read an article that said the lower traps are really lazy bastards and don’t like to work. Or maybe it is rhomboids, etc etc. Or maybe we need more YTWLs and more corrective work.
If you are teaching better gross (large scale) movement, let’s start there by cueing gross movement. Only get finer when needed.
Rock on
Mike T Nelson
Refernces
1) Diabetes. 2010 Mar;59(3):572-9. Epub 2009 Dec 22.
Restoration of muscle mitochondrial function and metabolic flexibility in type 2 diabetes by exercise training is paralleled by increased myocellular fat storage and improved insulin sensitivity.
Meex RC, Schrauwen-Hinderling VB, Moonen-Kornips E, Schaart G, Mensink M, Phielix E, van de Weijer T, Sels JP, Schrauwen P, Hesselink MK.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Mitochondrial dysfunction and fat accumulation in skeletal muscle (increased intramyocellular lipid [IMCL]) have been linked to development of type 2 diabetes. We examined whether exercise training could restore mitochondrial function and insulin sensitivity in patients with type 2 diabetes. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Eighteen male type 2 diabetic and 20 healthy male control subjects of comparable body weight, BMI, age, and VO2max participated in a 12-week combined progressive training program (three times per week and 45 min per session). In vivo mitochondrial function (assessed via magnetic resonance spectroscopy), insulin sensitivity (clamp), metabolic flexibility (indirect calorimetry), and IMCL content (histochemically) were measured before and after training. RESULTS: Mitochondrial function was lower in type 2 diabetic compared with control subjects (P = 0.03), improved by training in control subjects (28% increase; P = 0.02), and
restored to control values in type 2 diabetic subjects (48% increase; P < 0.01). Insulin sensitivity tended to improve in control subjects (delta Rd 8% increase; P = 0.08) and improved significantly in type 2 diabetic subjects (delta Rd 63% increase; P < 0.01). Suppression of insulin-stimulated endogenous glucose production improved in both groups (-64%; P < 0.01 in control subjects and -52% in diabetic subjects; P < 0.01). After training, metabolic flexibility in type 2 diabetic subjects was restored (delta respiratory exchange ratio 63% increase; P = 0.01) but was unchanged in control subjects (delta respiratory exchange ratio 7% increase; P = 0.22). Starting with comparable pretraining IMCL levels, training tended to increase IMCL content in type 2 diabetic subjects (27% increase; P = 0.10), especially in type 2 muscle fibers. CONCLUSIONS: Exercise training restored in vivo mitochondrial function in type 2 diabetic subjects. Insulin-mediated glucose
disposal and metabolic flexibility improved in type 2 diabetic subjects in the face of near-significantly increased IMCL content. This indicates that increased capacity to store IMCL and restoration of improved mitochondrial function contribute to improved muscle insulin sensitivity.
It is one of the most unpleasant aspects in the preparation for that big meet, competition, show, game, or whatever you’ve been training so hard for. This dreaded thing I’m speaking about is cutting weight. If you’ve ever had to fit into a weight class for a certain sport or your coach is demanding you lose weight you know what I’m talking about. In the article to follow I will detail some nutritional, supplemental and recovery protocols that can help to maximize the chance that you’re efforts in training and weight loss will be rewarded with a personal best and/or a victory in whatever you’re competing in. These strategies can also help minimize the chances you’ll be lashing out like the Incredible Hulk at your colleagues and loved ones while they’re throwing bacon wrapped doughnuts down their gullet during your diet. I will use some of my own experiences of what has helped me while competing at the national level in Olympic Weightlifting while being a full time strength and conditioning coach as well as a full time graduate student.
How Much and How Long in Advance?
Know that experience counts while attempting weight loss and you need to find what is the maximum amount of weight that you can lose without having too much of a decrease in performance. Each individual’s ideal amount of weight for cutting will vary depending on how much bodyfat they carry. The leaner athlete obviously has less weight to lose before they are sacrificing muscle mass and critical fluid stores within the body. The more experienced you are in losing weight, the closer to competition you can accomplish it. I can also accomplish my weight loss fairly easily within three weeks and sometimes even two weeks. For example I compete in the 77 kilogram weight class so I have to be about 169 pounds for competition. I know that my cut off for my “ideal cut” is about 12 pounds. That means if I can stay at around 181 pounds between competitions, my final cut of weight will be a lot easier. Any more than 12 pounds for me becomes very difficult due to the great deal of calorie restriction and dehydration.
Food and Meal Choices
The only way to know which specific nutrient ratios are right for each individual is to have a hair mineral profile or genetic testing done by a professional lab and nutritionist. If you do not have access to these, we all know that one of the most effective strategies for weight loss is carbohydrate restriction. Despite what many dieticians will tell you, your body is able to adapt and utilize other sources for energy while you’re restricting your carbohydrates. By tweaking our diet, you can better utilize body fat stores as fuel as well as the process of gluconeogenesis, which utilizes amino acids and some other substances in order to create enough glucose for the brain and muscles.
Evolution will also tell us that this short-term restriction on carbohydrates can a good thing as well. Human beings only developed agriculture 10,000 years ago. Before we had an easy way of obtaining refined carbohydrates and were hunters and gatherers, humans never had saturated levels of liver glycogen all year round. Humans now have food manufacturing practices, that make refined carbohydrates such as pasta, bread, rice, etc. available to us at all times to constantly elevate our insulin levels. When these food manufacturing processes are paired with outrageous suggestions of the food pyramid we have incidences of diabetes near epidemic proportions. Although healthy active athletes usually don’t have to worry about diabetes, occasional carbohydrate restriction can be done without detriment to health.
I do use carbohydrate and overall portion restriction when I am cutting, however I never count calories and rarely even count grams of carbohydrates. I concentrate on the quality of foods I eat. It’s extremely important if you’re restricting food choices, to choose foods that have a maximum amount of protein, fat, vitamin, enzyme and mineral content per serving. That’s why the biggest source of my calories comes from raw meats, raw eggs, and raw vegetables while I’m cutting weight. This ensures that the food is in it’s most natural state and none of the nutrients will be destroyed from the heating process.
The guideline that I try follow is to limit carbohydrates very close to pre and post workouts times while trying to consume them mainly from vegetables and fruit sources that have a low glycemic response, meaning that they will not spike blood sugar levels and can be utilized by the body as fuel for a longer period of time. For example, broccoli, unsweetened berries, honeydew melon and squash are acceptable fruits and vegetables. However pineapples and carrots would be out of my menu due to their high glycemic response.
One rule I always try to follow is to avoid foods with a high glycemic response at all costs. This can be killer for cutting weight as the spike in blood sugar and insulin can cause you to store a greater amount of fat as well as a potentially high inflammatory response on the body. This very rapid rise and fall of blood sugar levels can be the cause of some very powerful cravings soon after you eat.
With that in mind I also know that things come up and there must be room for flexibility. Cheat meals have been important for my overall success. For example, Mauro Di Pisquale’s book, The Anabolic Solution, suggests adding in a higher carbohydrate day in the middle of the week or using the weekends “carbo-load”. This can replenish glycogen stores in the body while cutting weight with a low carbohydrate diet and is especially helpful if you’re going low carb for a significant amount of time.
I found out the hard way for myself how very important it is to intermittently cycle on and off carbohydrates. Before one of my competitions, I had let my weight go to about 20 pounds over my required weight. I then panicked and decided to go on a strict low to no carbohydrate diet for five weeks before competition. My weight loss quickly stalled out and I was lethargic and irritable from the lack of glycogen. With two weeks to go before competition and training not going very poorly, I gave up on getting into my 77 kilogram weight class and decided to lift in a higher weight class in hopes that I could still salvage a decent total.
I felt so good that I decided to finish my weight cut in the final eleven days, got into the 77 kilogram class for the meet and lifted only two kilograms away from a lifetime best total.
Supplements
What Not to Do
Although creatine supplements work great and are safe for enhancing bouts of intense work, taking a separate creatine supplement while you’re trying to cut weight will be counterproductive. Creatine molecules will help to keep extra water in the muscle cells and can actually help cause weight gain depending on how some athletes respond to them. Save the creatine for the offseason when you’re not concerned about cutting.
It’s vital to keep outside stresses to a minimum while trying to keep your weight down. High amounts of stress will release greater amounts of stress hormones, such as cortisol, that will increase catabolism (muscle breakdown) and cause more fat storage.
Staying up late and keeping bright lights on will keep insulin levels and disrupt sleep cycles. This also trips a survival mechanism that tells your body that it is daytime and you need to search for food. It’s almost inevitable that you’ll be craving carbohydrates at this point. I realize that those people who live in the real world and have outside stressors such as job, school, family, etc. simply do not have enough hours in the day but to put it plainly, if you do not sleep, you will not lose weight.
Do not think under any circumstances that you can achieve your weight loss and performance goals by starving yourself. Due to the fact our body is wired for survival and not performance (Humans would have never lasted this long if we weren’t), your body does not know you’re simply trying to lose weight temporarily for a competition. When you starve yourself, your body believes that it must prepare itself for famine, and will alter its functions anyway it can to keep critical body mass on and prevent you from starving.
Conclusion
Minimizing the negative effects from cutting weight is crucial for performance at high level in competition and in your personal life. These have been strategies that have helped me compete at my best while still managing other aspects of my life. Each individual must find what works for them and hopefully some of these strategies can be you used in your own training and daily life.
Di Pisquale, M. (2002). The Anabolic Solution.
Dietz, C. (2009). Professional Communication.
Goldstein, E., Ziegenfuss, T., Kalman, D., Kreider, R., Campbell, B., Wilborn, C., et al. (2010). International society of sports nutrition position stand: caffeine and performance. Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition .
Mercola, J. (n.d.). Mercola Natural Health. Retrieved 2010, from www.mercola.com
Nelson, M. T. (2010). Extreme Human Performance. Retrieved from www.extremehumanperformance.com
Stout, J., & Antonio, J. (2008). Essentials of Creatine in Sport and Health. Totowa, New Jersey: Humana Press.
Wiley, T. (2000). Lights Out: Sleep, Sugar and Survival. New York: Pocket Books.
Kevin Kocos is an Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach to Olympic Sports at the University of Minnesota. In his two years with the Gopher’s, Kevin has been part of 6 conference championships and has trained numerous All-Americans. Prior to coming to Minnesota, Kevin worked as an Strength and Conditioning Intern for the Chicago Bulls. He has worked with a wide array of athletes from the NBA, NHL, AHL and USHL as well as high school and collegiate athletes. Kevin also competes as a Senior Athlete in USA Olympic Weightlifting. He is a certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist from the NSCA and a certified club coach through USA Olympic Weightlifting.
First off, a huge thanks to Kevin for writing up this exclusive article for us here at Extreme Human Performance! Sweet!
While I don’t “agree” per say on some of his thoughts for a reason why, the end result is what matters. We can debate the reasons why until the cows come home, but the results are more important than the whys. Kevin has significant experience in the process and through much research and testing, he wa able to find what works FOR HIM. This is a great starting point for you, but you may respond differently. Kudos to Kevin for taking his interpretation of the research and applying it in the real world, under contest conditions.
I do confess to the part about where he ate whatever he wanted and dropped 5 pounds. Awesome! I like that he referenced me too, haha!
Thanks again Kevin! Much appreciated
Let me know what you think! Agree or not? Useful?
Rock on
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Here we go again, a tip inside my brain as to what is rattling around in there. Trust me, you have been warned!
Adam T Glass just found them and was blown away. Great stuff. I prefer their earlier work with J Mann, but the new upcoming CD still sounds pretty cool. Awesome live shows if you ever get the chance to see them–go!
“The iron never lies to you..the iron will always kick you the real deal. The iron is the great reference point, the all-knowing perspective giver. Always there like a beacon in the pitch black. I have found the Iron to be my greatest friend. It never freaks out on me, never runs. Friends may come and go, but two hundred pounds is always two hundred pounds.” – Henry Rollins
It seems that loading the body axially like squats and overhead pressing seems to have a greater trigger for muscle hypertrophy (bigger muscles).
There is not any direct research that I have seen on this looking at similar loads (volume), but adding squats and kettlebell clean and jerks into your routine can pack on some mass quite fast.
I added about 3-4 lbs in the past month by adding these in. I also increased my calories again and my stress level was a bit lower too. Make sure those movement test well though (ala Grip n Rip).
I think we are making it entirely too complicated. An exercise/movement either makes you better or worse. If it makes you worse, you are not doing it correctly for YOUR body, or it is not good for you at THAT time. We are either getting better or worse. Is corrective exercise any more complicated than that?
We need to stop putting foods into categories as “good” or “bad.” Very few foods are really bad. If something is really bad it will kill you fast. That is bad. A poorly prepared puffer fish will kill you very fast. I say avoid it, but even eating twinkies for a week straight will probably not kill you. You may look similar to a twinkie by the end of the week though.
Along those lines our goal of health is backwards. People think they need to eat “clean” 100% of the time. Even the most strict, pre-competition bodybuilder types don’t need to do that 100% of the time and even then the pre contest period is short compared to the rest of their life.
Having people try to get to a goal of 100% is not realistic and will set them up for massive failure.
If you can do this at a 70% compliance vs a 90% compliance, 70% is better!
The ability to take in virtually any food item and convert it into fuel (termed Metabolic Flexibility) is key to health.
Do you want to have more freedom with your diet and eat the foods you love, or feel like you are boxed in and “never good enough”?
I knew when I start this, that it would be a long road. I had other warn me about it. I thought they were nuts. No way I was going to be in school for another 5-7 years after the 11 years I had already done. Screw that.
Well, fast forward to many years later and I am still plugging away at it. Very few things have I started that I have though long and hard about quitting and this is at the top of the list. The good part is that I am fully determined to finish, no matter how long it takes. I have decided it will not rule my life and as long as each day I am making progress, the end will come. And I can’t wait for that day. Wow. Once I graduate, all hell is going to break loose as my ability to output will go through the roof. You have been warned.
Adam mentioned this on a conference call and some are now sooooo scared of not doing an exercise correctly that they will not even TRY.
How can you get better at say a kettlebell clean and press, without ever doing one? The answer is you CAN’T.
I am NOT recommending that you go load up the bar with a max load and do your first deadlift attempt ever with it. That is just stupid. But starting with the bar and doing a few reps and measuring your range of motion (biofeedback) to see if it is good is an excellent start. Then work to make it better every time. Not starting will not help you. To get better, you can video your movements and keep testing or find a local qualified coach to help determine what is best for YOUR body; not what looks picture perfect. The goal is better, not initial perfection.
Very fun to use and easy to travel with too!
I believe that if you may fall in life (which is all of us), you need to train for falling. Special thanks to Frankie for pointing this out and covering it in the Movement Certification.
Great discuss on this at Charlie Weingrofts blog.
Joint mobility,while it can have its place and does work, is only a handful of movement the human body can do. Plus, we learn by performing large (gross) movements first and then work to refine them over time. Why would we start with the smallest movements FIRST?
If you want to learn how to squat, I want to see you friggin squat first! I don’t give a crap at that point about your ankle dorsiflexion or the ability of you to active control your pinky finger. I don’t care. If I can’t correct your squat movement, I will then start to go to more fine and fin movements. I may end up with ankle work or even thumb mobility work, but I would not START there.
You must read this post on Joint Mobility from Frankie below. It is a MUST read.
I have changed how I look at things this year once again. Here are the top things I learned in 2009 below. Can you see how I do things differently now? If so, place a comment below
If you have a weakness in one leg (most of use do) and you want to bring up your deadlift, doing a B-Stance deadlift where once foot is closer to the bar than the other (think of a very mild or shallow lunge where one leg is about 4 inches back from the bar in an asymmetric stance). Check it out at
I am still not happy with modern shoes and we would all be better off training in a pair of Vibrams, flat shoes, or no shoes at all.
I love GLC 2000 for joint issues. I have been using it for several months now and it is great. Others that recommended it to have tried it love it too. I have tried similar supplements like it in the past and they did nothing for me.
While I don’t have many joint issues, they did get a bit achy after many weeks of increased volume. I even tried to push it a bit more and still had no issues. I stopped taking it and within a few days to weeks, they got a bit touchy again.
GLC 2000 has a very high form of glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, which are natural substances found in and around the cells of cartilage (joints). Glucosamine is an amino sugar that the body produces and distributes in cartilage and other connective tissue, and chondroitin sulfate is a complex carbohydrate that helps cartilage retain water.
I have some other theories that this should help connective tissue health, which then should help maximal strength.
If you go to the link below, you can pick up 2 for the price of 1 from Carl at Super Human Radio (which you MUST listen to).
Not sure how long the offer lasts though, so it may be gone by the time you read this.
They did not ask me to mention it at all, but I feel that if I find something that works really well I need to share it with all of you.
Try it out and let me know how it goes for you. If my theory is right, over a couple months you should see a nice strength increase too.
So there you have 10 things that have been running around in my head lately. Let me know what you think by posting a comment below
Rock on
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Leigh Peele in music mode
Below is an interview I did with Leigh Peele over at http://www.leighpeele.com/ about a year ago, so I have updated it a bit here and there but left the questions and most of it the same.
Notice that some of this is not the same way I exactly think currently.
Why publish “older” thoughts? I debated about publishing it, but a friend made a good comment that he wanted to see how I have changed and evolved over time. He noticed some trends as he went back and read the earlier posts I wrote (almost 3 years ago now). So I decided to run it as it may resonate with where you are currently at right now. If I can help you become just a bit better today than yesterday, I feel my job is done.
Sit back and enjoy and take it away Leigh!
Alright there Mike, I have been checking you out and I know all your dirty secrets. Let’s see if I can’t get you all Barbra Walters crying on me.
1-What the heck is Z-Health? Pretend I am a complete newb (no jokes there buddy) and explain to me in the simplest of terms.
The Short Answer
Z-Health is a way to elicit maximal gains in athletic performance in minimal time by targeting the nervous system. Why the nervous system? It is what actually CONTROLS movements. Muscles are dumb and only do what they are told to do by the brain and nervous system.
How does an athlete’s brain get information?
1) By proprioception (positional feedback from the joints, so if I get pulled over by a Smokey, I can still touch my nose with my eyes closed).
2) eyes–visual information (try to play your next soccer game with your eyes closed and get back to me)
3) vestibular or inner ear “balance” There are a series of 3 canals in the ear that determine head position and movement.
Z Health works to optimize EACH of these for higher performance.
The Long Answer
I find the science in this area amazing. Just a few years ago we thought that the brain would not change and now we know this is not true at all. The brain actually has an amazing ability to adapt and change (just like everything in human physiology). Most probably seen the PBS special “The Brain Fitness Program” which is fantastic.
The key to this idea is that learning new movements can have a huge effect on neuroplasticity (the ability of the brain to “rewire” itself). While hardcore research studies in this area are a bit lacking currently, there is enough data to show that when we learn movements there are concrete changes in the brain. The keys to enhanced athletic performance are finding ways to harness this neuroplasticity since the brain and nervous system control movement. The flip side is also true, for optimal health, we need to learn more athletic movements and challenge the brain in new ways.
Survival vs. Performance
The human body is wired for survival instead of performance. This really bums me out personally, but once we realize this we can optimize it for survival and see an increase in performance! I have a whole presentation I did at the Z Health Master Trainer Eval in California recently on this topic. The short version is that we need to first look how we get information.
We get information to create movements primarily from:
1) Eyes (visual and eye muscle movements)
2) Vestibular (inner ear “balance”)
3) Proprioceptive (info from the joints)
In order to optimize the body for performance (and pain reduction), we need to optimize each one of these systems. Z Health works to optimize each system and then combine them in a meaningful way. The result is superior athletic performance for virtually ANYONE. Everyone can learn to move more athletically and do things that they thought were not possible with the correct approach.
(Editor’s note, while I still believe this is true, we need to keep the big picture in mind also. Getting someone to move better every time we see them is the goal. Loading of the tissue in the gym in the correct orientation can NOT be forgotten. A good way to determine what is best is to test your range of motion ala biofeedback with every movement).
2-Alright so lets hear it, static stretching dead? I’m not sold so sell it to me.
Static stretching is dead and sucks large moose balls. I can’t understand why you would put a muscle (and joints) at an extreme range of motion (ROM) and wait there for the muscles to get WEAKER. I don’t want to teach my body that!
I want to have STRENGTH at an END range of motion.
Remember, your body is uber smart and is CONSTANTLY adapting, so what do you want it to adapt to? The question to ask is “Why Should People Static Stretch?” I said “should” because the average gym rat does not do much for static stretching any way.
I think people still do static stretching to some degree because they have nothing else to replace it with.
Here is the big revelation
Even dynamic mobility drills are much better than static stretching. Remember that the brain is in charge and ALLOWS flexibility changes. For optimal changes we need to directly target the nervous system.
Efficient movement, strength and great mobility are the goals, but I don’t think static stretching is the most effect tool to achieve it.
For those that want to argue using research, here you go
Decreases muscle strength/power (1, 2, 5, 9-11, 13-17, 21, 27, 30, 32, 34, 35)
Dose dependent? (22)
May be speed specific (31)
Dynamic motion is better (15, 37)
It is not just me making this stuff up. Here are a few referneces for you. For the pubmed ninjas, these studies are mainly in reference to reductions in strength seen with standard passive stretching.
REFERENCES
1. Avela J., H. Kyrolainen, P. V. Komi. Altered reflex sensitivity after repeated and prolonged passive muscle stretching. J Appl Physiol. 86(4):1283-1291, 1999.
2. Behm D. G., D. C. Button, J. C. Butt. Factors affecting force loss with prolonged stretching. Can J Appl Physiol. 26(3):261-272, 2001.
5. Church J. B., M. S. Wiggins, F. M. Moode, R. Crist. Effect of warm-up and flexibility treatments on vertical jump performance. J Strength Cond Res. 15(3):332-336, 2001.
9. Cornwell A., A. G. Nelson, B. Sidaway. Acute effects of stretching on the neuromechanical properties of the triceps surae muscle complex. Eur J Appl Physiol. 86(5):428-434, 2002.
10. Cramer J. T., T. J. Housh, G. O. Johnson, J. M. Miller, J. W. Coburn, T. W. Beck. Acute effects of static stretching on peak torque in women. J Strength Cond Res. 18(2):236-241, 2004.
11. Cramer J. T., T. J. Housh, J. P. Weir, G. O. Johnson, J. W. Coburn, T. W. Beck. The acute effects of static stretching on peak torque, mean power output, electromyography, and mechanomyography. Eur J Appl Physiol. 93(5-6):530-539, 2005.
13. Evetovich T. K., N. J. Nauman, D. S. Conley, J. B. Todd. Effect of static stretching of the biceps brachii on torque, electromyography, and mechanomyography during concentric isokinetic muscle actions. J Strength Cond Res. 17(3):484-488, 2003.
14. Faigenbaum A. D., M. Bellucci, A. Bernieri, B. Bakker, K. Hoorens. Acute effects of different warm-up protocols on fitness performance in children. J Strength Cond Res. 19(2):376-381, 2005.
15. Fletcher I. M., R. Anness. The acute effects of combined static and dynamic stretch protocols on fifty-meter sprint performance in track-and-field athletes. J Strength Cond Res. 21(3):784-787, 2007.
16. Fletcher I. M., B. Jones. The effect of different warm-up stretch protocols on 20 meter sprint performance in trained rugby union players. J Strength Cond Res. 18(4):885-888, 2004.
17. Fowles J. R., D. G. Sale, J. D. MacDougall. Reduced strength after passive stretch of the human plantarflexors. J Appl Physiol. 89(3):1179-1188, 2000.
21. Knudson D., K. Bennett, R. Corn, D. Leick, C. Smith. Acute effects of stretching are not evident in the kinematics of the vertical jump. J Strength Cond Res. 15(1):98-101, 2001.
27. Marek S. M., J. T. Cramer, A. L. Fincher, et al. Acute Effects of Static and Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation Stretching on Muscle Strength and Power Output. J Athl Train. 40(2):94-103, 2005.
30. Nelson A. G., N. M. Driscoll, D. K. Landin, M. A. Young, I. C. Schexnayder. Acute effects of passive muscle stretching on sprint performance. J Sports Sci. 23(5):449-454, 2005.
31. Nelson A. G., I. K. Guillory, C. Cornwell, J. Kokkonen. Inhibition of maximal voluntary isokinetic torque production following stretching is velocity-specific. J Strength Cond Res. 15(2):241-246, 2001.
32. Power K., D. Behm, F. Cahill, M. Carroll, W. Young. An acute bout of static stretching: effects on force and jumping performance. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 36(8):1389-1396, 2004.
34. Wallmann H. W., J. A. Mercer, J. W. McWhorter. Surface electromyographic assessment of the effect of static stretching of the gastrocnemius on vertical jump performance. J Strength Cond Res. 19(3):684-688, 2005.
35. Weir D. E., J. Tingley, G. C. Elder. Acute passive stretching alters the mechanical properties of human plantar flexors and the optimal angle for maximal voluntary contraction. Eur J Appl Physiol. 93(5-6):614-623, 2005.g
3-What is with your obsession with Energy Drinks lately, what is that all about?
Red Bull!!!! Red Bull!!!! RED BULL!!!!!
I kid, I kid
I am actually conducting a research study now on Energy Drinks as part of my PhD dissertation (editor’s note, study is completed, but I am working on writing it up for publication).
The overall principle is the concept of Metabolic Flexibility. Simply put, as your body gets closer to a Metabolically INflexible state (e.g. diabetes) you have a much harder time process any food and turning it into a good fuel sources, especially carbohydrates. Keep in mind that fats and glucose in high amounts in the blood stream are TOXIC; and they can “muck up” lots of processes.
If you are on the other end of the spectrum and you are very Metabolically Flexible, your body and efficiently process virtually any fuel source (e.g. various foods). Now this is not an argument for going crazy and eating Ho Hos and Krispy Kremes, there are limits!
We are testing a new way to non-invasively (e.g. without subjecting them to IVs and sticks in the arm for hours at a time) quantify how metabolically efficient each person’s body is at that time.
We are also measuring Heart Rate Variability (a measure of heart health), Flow Mediated Dilation (measure of vessel health), changes in Respiratory Exchange Ratio (amount of carbs and fat burned during exercise) and if an energy drink is ergogenic (do the darn things even do what they say –enhance exercise performance? )
Since you asked about Energy Drinks I will crawl up on my soapbox and go off on a rant.
Soap Box Rant Ahead on Energy Drinks
On one hand we have a group do people in popular media that Red Bull will give you a stroke such as this Mercola article that Red Bull Will Give You a Stroke and kids slamming back 2-3 CANS before a game or just for fun. Who is right? What are the risks?
Ok, articles like this one above by Dr. Mercola drive me absolutely nuts! I still can’t find the source of the article and the only thing I can find is the researcher was quoted in Reuters, but no study (in fairness to the researcher perhaps it is not published yet, editor’s note, I did find it as an abstract only).
Currently, data on Energy Drinks are sparse. Most will agree that you should not go out and slam back 3 of them in a row and believe that you are doing yourself a good thing; but how “bad” they are is also unknown.
After many many hours of searching, one of the only studies I could find that directly looked at safety (below) stated (1) , “Four documented case reports of caffeine-associated deaths were found, as well as four separate cases of seizures associated with the consumption of energy drinks. ” Keep in mind that this was primarily self reported data and not done in a controlled environment.
Recently a brand new study on energy drinks was published (2)
The study was done in 15 healthy people and there was not any significant ECG changes observed, HR increased 5-7 beats/min and SBP increased 10 mm Hg after energy drink consumption. Keep in mind that subject got 2 cans on the first day and then one every day after that.
The media (Fox news, cough cough) concluded
“Study: People With Heart Disease, High Blood Pressure Should Avoid Energy Drinks”
That is probably a good idea, but the study was in HEALTHY people and the conclusion is we do NOT know what happens in other populations!! No data doesn’t mean it is BAD or GOOD, it means we currently do NOT know either way.
Here is one of the studies you will see in reference to Red Bull (7)
“Postural tachycardia syndrome associated with a vasovagal reaction was recorded in a young volleyball player after an excess intake of Red Bull((R)) as a refreshing energy drink. Considering the widespread use of Red Bull((R)) among young people who are often unaware of the drink’s drug content, this case report suggest Red Bull((R)) be considered a possible cause of orthostatic intolerance.”
The effect of caffeine (the main ingredient in the drinks) in relation to blood pressure has more data (3-6), but we are still only talking about a handful of studies and does not guarantee that those with normal blood pressure will respond in the same way!
Energy Drink Summary
In summary, we can say more research is needed and I would agree with that; although energy drinks with the current available data do not seem as deadly as portrayed in the media although you will be hard pressed to say that you are low on your quota of caffeine and corn syrup and thus your body NEEDS an energy drink. Nobody has every shown up their doctor’s office suffering from an “Energy Drink” deficiency. Take 2 Red Bulls and call me in the AM.
REFERENCES
1)J Am Pharm Assoc (2003). 2008 May-Jun;48(3):e55-63;
Safety issues associated with commercially available energy drinks.
Clauson KA, Shields KM, McQueen CE, Persad N.
2) Ann.Pharmacother., Arpil 2009
Effect of “Energy Drink” Consumption on Hemodynamic and Electrocardiographic Parameters in Healthy Young Adults (April)
Steinke,L.; Lanfear,D.E.; Dhanapal,V.; Kalus,J.S.
Ann.Pharmacother., Arpil 2009
3) Am J Hypertens. 2000 May;13(5 Pt 1):475-81.L
Additive pressor effects of caffeine and stress in male medical students at risk for hypertension.
Shepard JD, al’Absi M, Whitsett TL, Passey RB, Lovallo WR.
4) Health Psychol. 1996 Jan;15(1):11-17
Caffeine and behavioral stress effects on blood pressure in borderline hypertensive Caucasian men.
Lovallo WR, al’Absi M, Pincomb GA, Everson SA, Sung BH, Passey RB, Wilson MF.
5) “Int J Behav Med. 1995;2(3):263-75.
Adrenocortical effects of caffeine at rest and during mental stress in borderline hypertensive men.
al’Absi M, Lovallo WR, Pincomb GA, Sung BH, Wilson MF.
6) Am J Cardiol. 1985] “Am J Cardiol. 1985 Jul 1;56(1):119-22.
Effects of caffeine on vascular resistance, cardiac output and myocardial contractility in young men.
Pincomb GA, Lovallo WR, Passey RB, Whitsett TL, Silverstein SM, Wilson MF.
7) Clin Auton Res. 2008 Aug;18(4):221-3. Epub 2008 Aug 5.
Reversible postural tachycardia syndrome due to inadvertent overuse of Red Bull((R)).
Terlizzi R, Rocchi C, Serra M, Solieri L, Cortelli P.
4-What are your future plans in regards to your profession?
For now, my main goal is to graduate and if all goes well I will be done later this summer (update note, I have completed the experimental side and working on writing up the 4 studies for submission). At that point I will have completed over 14 years of college full time (eeeek gads man), so I am going to sit around for a week while I drool, scratch myself and watch Oprah (which ironically spelled backwards is Harpo). Ok, maybe not Oprah, but perhaps Myth Busters on DVD. I do have a bottle of 1994 Warre’s Late Bottled Vintage port that I am going to crack open (I’ve been saving it for over 5 years now).
Actually my fiancee Jodie (editor’s note, now wife) and I are planning to spend 6 days Mexico for our honeymoon in late March and I am really working to be done by then so it can also be a “graduation celebration” Whooo ha!! (editor’s note, yes I am still in school! argh honeymoon was awesome!)
I really want to teach in some capacity as I love teaching (editor’s note, sick of these yet? I do teach part time at Globe University now too) . I’ve done a few presentations locally and around the US and plan to do more that in the future.
My goal is to bridge the chasm between “research land” and “experience only matters” land. There are tons of things we can learn from both camps. Athletic performance enhancement is BOTH a science and an art. It takes BOTH to get optimal results.
I have a few products I am working on in my “free time” and I am looking forward to working with even more athletes since my schedule will free up quite a bit post graduation. I am looking forward to interacting with more fitness professionals and constantly improving my own craft.
Watch out, as I may call you up and show up on your door step in the future!
5-What is the last…
Malcolm Gladwell’s “Outliers” I loved “Blink”
I am a HUGE music nut. At last count I have over 1,200 CDs. Yes, I am old skoooool and buy music on the silver circular thingies. I listen to everything from Radiohead to Slayer but my taste tend to run on the metal side most of the time.
My last order to Century Media included
Lamb of God “Wrath”
Arch Enemy “Tyrants Rising Sun – Live in Japan”
God Forbid “Earthsblood”
Luna Mortis “The Absence”
Amon Amarth “With Oden on our side”
Strapping Young Lad “1994-2008 Chaos Years”
Nevermore “Year of the Voyager”
Lacuna Coil ” Visual Karma” DVD
Samael ” Eternal”
Diecast “Internal Revolution”
In Flames “Whoracle”
And a bunch more. The actual shipping cost of the order was over $17.
I have not seen many movies at all lately, not that I don’t enjoy movies but trying to carve out that much time at once is hard. I normally watch about 1 hour of TV a week, if even that. I do enjoy “CSI Vegas” and “Numb3rs” since any show that can make a math geek look cool I am all for! The last DVD I watched was Eric Talmant’s St Louis Seminar on Sheiko Training for powerlifters. Yikes, I am a geek. I do enjoy “Myth Busters” and “Dirty Jobs” on DVD since I don’t have cable.
Thanks again for giving me a chance to ramble on! Much appreciated.
–Mike T Nelson
I had some requests to run this one, so anything you want updates on, just post a comment below and I will get back to you!
Rock on
Mike T Nelson
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