Archive for the 'Orange' Category

A Low-Carb Primer

My friend and LA-based nutrition expert & trainer, Joey Emont, recently posted on his facebook page something he titled, “A Low Carb Primer”. My clients hear me talk about eating low carb all the time but why exactly does it work? Mark Mcdonald, who founded Venice Nutrition, and Gary Taubes, author of “Why We Get Fat” both have helped thousands of people see the light by stating that regulating insulin – stabilizing your blood sugar – is the best and quickest way to lower body fat.

Joey’s short but concise reasoning is a great addition to anyone wanting to know exactly how to start eating low-carb and doing it correctly. With his permission, here is Joey’s “Low Carb Primer” in it’s entirety. Be sure to check out Joey’s Facebook page and let him know what you think!

A Low Carb Primer:

Seems like everyone these days are running to jump on the low carb bandwagon. You must know that for most individuals this WILL be the fastest and easiest way for people to lose body fat. In fact this approach works longterm for about 75% of the general population just based upon genetics, and food commonly available to the masses. Our “crap food” nation has really done a number on our ability to be sensitive to insulin, a hormone that gets elevated by carbohydrates. A travesty that unfortunately forces most of us to swing the pendulum back the other direction in order for there to be balance.

Granted your metabolism is relatively healthy (and I use relatively extremely loosely) ,you are not too toxic, and you have adequate digestive capacity;

Low carb works.

First off there is a 300-500 calorie metabolic (as yet unexplained) advantage in the literature that shows when individuals eat an excess of 300-500 cals over RMR, they still manage to loose bodyfat.

It also trains and forces your body to utilize the fats stored on your body for fuel.

That being said, these nutrition plans still have to be approached in the right way.

1. A low carb diet CANNOT be low fat as well if you want it to be sustainable moderate fat is fine but make sure not to eliminate all of it. Choose healthy fats from this family

2. Carbohydrates in the form of fibrous vegetables dont really count as calories and should be consumed in unlimited amounts.

3. Depending on how low carbohydrate you choose to go will determine how high or low your protein is. the lower the carbohydrate the higher the protein should be set at since carbs are protein sparing, you need the extra protein during this time. Set protein around 1-2g protein per lbs Lean body mass

One thing that will tend to happen on a low carb diet is you will have down regulation of many of the hormones that kept your metabolism humming along quite nicely all along.

For instance, after a while active form thyroid hormone T3 goes down lowering metabolic rate (some argue this isnt a problem because it’s just a sign your body is becoming more efficient). IGF-1 can also down regulate as well as Leptin (the mother hormone) which is the master governor of your metabolism.

This is why high carb “refeeds” must be included every so often. this “every so often” will be very different based upon your genetics, enzyme function, hormonal status, current bodyfat percentage, muscle mass etc… but a good general rule of thumb is this: if you are very lean you could have a refeed day every 5 days but for someone who is very obese a refeed day may not be necessary for a month or 6 weeks. everyone else will be somewhere in the middle (every 2 weeks etc…)

On your carb refeed day: choose to lower fats as much as possible, lower protein by 25% of normal and use starchy carbohydrates in the form of “gluten free” oats or sweet potato (other sources can be chosen as well but for the sake of simplicity…) at the level of 1.5-2g/lbs of bodyweight for the day. so for a 200 lbs male this number would be around 300-400 grams of carbohydrates for the day. for extremely active individuals this number could be even higher, or for heavier individuals this number may have to be a bit lower, experimentation is key.

This will restore metabolic balance and make the rest of your low carb days (which continue immediately the day after) work that much better, and keep your metabolism humming along.

this much controversial way of eating must be done right. but I guarantee you if you put some of these practices into play and really stick to it, you will find that fat loss comes quite easily.

Lithuania Blog Post #3

We have 3 days left of camp. The guys have been so open to this new style of training and have worked so hard they are already seeing results. They all walked to lunch yesterday with their shirts off. Yes, it’s warmer this week but I took that as a sign of confidence that they are feeling bigger & stronger. Klemensas made the comment as well that they all look bigger to him. The coach who was here had to leave yesterday as well and since Klemensas went with our one guy to the tryout it’s just me for these final three days. So I’ll be doing the weight room and basketball workouts. I did the basketball workout last night and it was fun to do that again. As much as I love my job I also miss coaching basketball. And since we lost some players as well (we are down to 9 players from 20 at the highest point) it will be a bit easier to manage by myself.
I just finished my breakfast. I had an omelette with ham, fresh veggies on the side and a (European) latte. It cost me about $4. Ya’ gotta love exchange rates.

I spent last weekend in Klaipeda with my friends Laimas, Mantas & Valdas. Moose (Mustafah), the pro player from France came with me and Bonnie arrived in town on Saturday. Some other of Laimas’ friends joined us and we picked some other friends up over the weekend. All in all it was a great time. We went out each night and both mornings I taught them what a mimosa was. Yes, I am responsible for brining the mimosa to Lithuania. We didn’t take many pictures but here’s one:
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You can check out my facebook page for more pictures from the weekend….including Mantas with his shirt off and Lenus in his boxers!
Weekend In Klaipeda Pics

We will be 1RM strength testing the players today and tomorrow to see the results of our training program. Saturday morning will be our last practice and we will be heading to Vilnius that afternoon. I will train the 3 French players there as well as maybe 1 or 2 more players next week. Me & Bonnie will also be able to do some sightseeing.

It’s totally different here than coaching my clients in Orange County for general fitness. I will be with them very soon and will be excited to train with them again. But I will miss these guys. They have all been special to work with and have seen such tremendous gains. I have also had the chance to share my personal story with them which has been a great opportunity as well.

Thanks for reading. I’ll check back in in a few days.

Healthy Fat loss – The Scientific Way

The Challenge…

While at the CHEK Institute last weekend I was confronted yet again with the importance of nutrition and the role that it plays in our goals of dropping body fat. Since becoming a personal trainer so many of my clients have struggled with this over the years so I’m going to make it REALLY simple. I’m reducing all of our diets…yes, I am doing this as well…to the bare minimum – To the macro and mirco-nutrients that we need to survive and operate at our peak level, and nothing else. Paul Chek talks about the 3 choices we always make: the optimal, the suboptimal, and the indifferent.
-The optimal always produces the best outcome for everyone involved.
-Suboptimal often produce what we want, but create friction in relationships with others. They cause pain, but they are still useful choices because they produce life experience, which is necessary if we are to evolve.
-The indifferent choice is choosing to do nothing. It is almost always the worst decision we can make because it halts our own self evolution.
So for the month of June I am choosing to only eat meats, eggs, above ground vegetables, olive oil, coconut oil & avocado. Organic is preferred and HIGHLY recommended. Veggies served raw are also HIGHLY recommended (although I’m sure I’ll cook some as well).
The results you will experience will be greater than you expected. How you feel and the energy you will have will be off the charts. What we are doing is eliminating all of the common food allergies and detoxifying our bodies by focusing on what it REALLY needs and not filling our bodies with things that harm it. No gluten. No grain. No soy. No dairy. No caffeine. No alcohol. No corn.

Just try it…

If you’ve been struggling with getting rid of fat, it’s probably because your way isn’t working. It’s time to try my way. What’s the worst that could happen??

I challenge everyone reading this blog to participate with me and see how great your body can look AND feel in just 30 days. But I’m guessing that after the 30 days are up you will want to continue to eat this way because of what great strides you have made in your health. If you want to eat any of the “banned substances” after 30 (or more) days then we’ll reintroduce ONE AT A TIME to see if you are intolerant to it AS WELL AS show you how your body reacts to it. Right now you can’t tell how it reacts because it’s been desensitized over the years.
Your gut wall will be in better shape making food more digestable by the body. You won’t experience dips in your energy (like after lunch) as often. Your sense of smell and taste could even improve!

The two other things that are necessary that I’ve preached since day one is:

1.  Drink 1/2 your bodyweight in ounces of water per day! (So if you’re 150lbs you drink 75oz/day. (More on days you work out) )

2.  Be in bed AND ASLEEP by 10:30pm. NO EXCEPTIONS, ALLISON & SHIREESH! (and me!!)

Please pass this blog along to anyone who you think would want to join us…

Let’s all get lean, healthy and strong this month and let’s do it together!!!

Phil Gephart PICP, CHEK

Golf, anyone???

Hi everyone! I hope February has been a great month for you so far. Dr. John DeWitt has graciously offered up another great post for this blog. Since he works with a lot of golfers he thought golf correction would be a great topic for this post.

If you are a golfer or know a golfer, read on, pass it along and enjoy!!!




Improving your golf game by addressing 4 common problems

By Dr. John DeWitt DC

Golf Injury Certified, Advanced Sports Nutrition Specialist

“Coming over the Top”

How many golfers do you know that top the ball? This problem is often believed to be caused by not keeping the head down during the swing. What causes the head to lift prematurely? It may be an anxious golfer eager to see his shot or it may be something else. Adductors muscles in the legs are activated during the transition of weight transfer from the top of the backswing to the start of the downswing. These help pull the hips through while the upper body follows behind. Tight adductors will cause the golfer to be unable to pull his hips through and force the swing around prematurely which results in “topping the ball”.

“The Slice”

One of the most common problems in golf is the slice. Golf Pros often point out that the back foot should be perpendicular to the plane line of the ball. An “open stance” causes the club head to stay open on contact leading to the shot going right of target. Sometimes golfers aren’t able to comfortably keep their foot in the correct orientation due to tight external hip rotators.

“Narrow Swing Arc”

Almost all golfers want more power and distance in their drives. They mistakenly believe that swinging harder at the ball will achieve this. The actual power of a golf swing comes from the physics of it. This involves lever arms and swing arcs. A golfer with a wide swing arc doesn’t have to swing hard because of the longer lever involved. A nice smooth stroke with the proper arc width will actually cause the club head to move at a higher velocity than a “muscled” swing with less accuracy. Narrow swing arcs are most commonly caused by shoulder tightness leading to the forward elbow bending which narrows the swing arc. The four muscles of the rotator cuff (Supraspinatus, Infraspinatus, Teres Minor and Subscapularis) must all be working in conjunction with each other for a wide swing arc to be possible.

“Inconsistent Spine Angle”

The angle of the spine at address should remain constant throughout the stroke. Lack of flexibility will cause this to be impossible. The spine itself must be flexible to allow the rotation, extension and flexion necessary to maintain the spine angle. Even the muscles of the lower leg (calves and soleus) must be flexible in order to allow the spine angle to remain constant.

Thanks again, doc, for another great post. His office is in Irvine, California. If you have any questions for Dr. DeWitt feel free to call him at 949-612-3365.

And if there are any questions out there for me, visit my website at www.newportfit4life.com or call me at 949-786-0608. Come in for a free workout and see what I really mean when I say I want you to be FIT4LIFE!

Some Truths about Carbohydrates…

For my first blog of the new year I wanted to show everyone an article to a great piece I read regarding carbohydrates. I haven’t written in a while but promise that in 2010 I will have some great blog posts including many guest “bloggers” that are already lined up.
2009 was a great year for me & Newport Fit4Life and 2010 promises to be even better. I hope you enjoy the posts that I’ll be sharing in the coming months and that you not just read them, but actually apply them as you strive toward reaching your own healthy lifestyle.
Many people don’t understand the function of carbohydrates. A lot of articles are written regarding the negative aspects of carbs. But like most things in life, some carbs are necessary, just eat them in moderation.
You also have to be conscious of what type of body you have. For example, me as an “ectomorph/mesomorph” is not affected by excess carbs as much as an “endomorph” is.
Here is a simple test to take (as well as definitions & examples of each) to find out what type of body you have.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/becker3.htm
So without any further ado, here is a great article that hopefully clears up some of your predispositions toward carbohydrates:
http://www.tmuscle.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance_nutrition/seven_things_you_need_to_know_about_carbs?utm_source=weekly_dose&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=tmuscle
***If you live in Orange County and need to get in shape and are looking for a great workout, you would be very hard pressed to find a better personal trainer. And my rates are as competitive as anyone’s. Check out my website for more info:
www.newportfit4life.com