Do You Know or Care Where Your Food Comes From?
Posted on 04. Jul, 2010 by admin.
Last night, I saw a documentary called, “Food Inc.,” which investigates where our food comes from, how it’s treated, how the worker’s are treated, and who controls the majority of our food supply. The movie starts by mentioning that the average supermarket contains about 47,000 different food items and yet the food industry controls 80% of the market and is mainly composed of 4 key companies which are Cargill, Swift, Tyson, and National Beef. I was startled!
The film talks about how these big food companies treat their animals and workers inhumanely. The creator and author of the movie and the book, Nick Schlosser, also talk about how there are not many farms anymore. Instead our food comes from factories even if the labels say “farm” or has picture of a graising cow on it. These factories have become so efficient in producing cheap food that is produced in half the time it used to take to make it during the 1970s. As a result of this “efficiency,” the workers, animals, and the environment suffer the consequences. There is not enough room for the animals to grow and live comfortably. The workers are overworked, underpaid, and recruited from foreign countries to work in the U.S. illegally only to be sent back when the immigration department cracks down on them. Contaminated water from meat plants run off into farm land which in turn contaminates plant crops with the deadly E.coli bacteria strain O157:H7.
Here is trailer of the movie so you can have a better idea of what this movie is about:
The one thing that did stick with me was a story about a family who was left to buy cheap, fast food over healthier options because of poverty. In reality, pre-packaged foods are cheap because they are mass produced and the manufacturers have cut corners somewhere else. The father who suffers all sorts of illnesses due to eating unhealthily takes so many expensive medications that his family was even more forced to eat poorly. I thought to myself, “how ironic.” I realized that cheap, junk food is not really cheap when you take into account the environmental and health costs we incur in the long run. This is one reason I do not have a problem paying for healthy foods, I see it as an investment so that I do not have to pay for medical bills later on when I age.
There many other issues discussed in the movie which I would not talk about in this post. Instead, I want to focus on the actions you and I can take immediately. As I was watching the movie, I sort of felt hopeless at the beginning. I was asking myself, “what do I do now? Do I stop eating meat? Do I do this or do I do that?” But, the documentary had a clear message in the end. We as consumers have the power to demand good quality food from these big food companies with every purchase!
Here are more steps you can take to take this power back (taken from the end of Food Inc.):
- Buy from companies that treat workers, animals, and the environment with respect.
- When you go to the supermarket, choose foods that are in season. Buy foods that are organic. Know what’s in your food. Read labels.
- Know what you buy. The average meal travels 1500 miles from the farm to the supermarket.
- Buy foods that are grown locally.
- Shop at farmer’s markets.
- Plant a garden. (Even a small one)
- Cook a meal with your family and eat together.
- Everyone has a right to healthy food.
- Make sure your farmer’s market accepts food stamps.
- Ask your school board to provide healthy school lunches.
- The FDA and the USDA are supposed to protect you and your family. Tell Congress to enforce food safety standards and re-introduce Kevin’s Law. For more information on Kevin’s law and to support the bill, click here: http://www.opencongress.org/bill/109-h3160/show
- If you say grace, ask for food that will keep us, and the planet healthy.
For more steps to change how our food is prepared and delivered to our dinner tables, please visit takepart.com/foodinc. You can also find the 10 steps you can take to help change our food system here: http://www.foodincmovie.com/get-involved.php.
You can help re-authorize the Child Nutrition act by signing the petition at http://www.foodincmovie.com/sign-the-petition.php.
Continue Reading
A Lesson I learned at the Coffee Shop
Posted on 27. Jun, 2010 by admin.
I was at a coffee shop the other day while having some quality talk time with a friend. On any other day, I probably would have indulged myself with a delicious vanilla latte but this day was different. It was a fast day. So, I opted for a cup of chai tea instead. I told the barista specifically that I did not want anything added to the drink, not even milk. To my surprise, the chai tea had a sweetness to it. I’m not the type of person to complain and I didn’t want to interrupt my chat with my friend so I just proceeded to drink my tea knowing that it’s probably just a natural sweetness to the tea.
Later on, it was still bugging me that my tea was sweet so I called the coffee shop to ask if there was any added sugar to my drink. When the barista looked at the box where the chai tea came from, she said it had cane juice and honey. It had 90 calories per tea bag! I found it disappointing that when I chose not to have any calories or sweets added to my drinks, I still ended up drinking 90 calories of it. To add insult to injury, I did on a fast day!
Now, I do not want you to think that I’m this person who watches her calories strictly and have a very restricted diet. If you’ve read my other blog posts, you’ll know that I am quite a foodie and fasting has given me a great way to enjoy food while also maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle. So, I probaby would not have cared if this incident happened on any other day other than my fast day. But, it left me to think about just how many calories everyone else gets from their drinks. I usually drink water and the occasional latte. I rarely if ever drink sodas so this is not a big issue for me. But, for those people who has a habit of drinking sodas, even diet sodas, they might want to start thinking about it more often.
Hidden Calories in Drinks
Many people are awared of calories in foods. In fact, a new law from Obama’s health care plan mandates restaurants with more than one location to have nutrition facts available to their customers. But, a lot of people forget to count calories in their drinks. This may seem like a simple thing from the surface but with our waist lines expanding more than ever and our health risks increasing each year, we ought to start worrying about these hidden calories. Even companies who make diet sodas have a way of going around the law to say “zero calories” on ther labels.
Here is what I mean: If a serving of a food item contains less than 1 gram of a particular nutrient, it does not have to be counted on the label. In reality, if a serving of a drink has .9 grams of sugar, it is still considered “zero calories.” That is totally fine if you’re like me and you do not use artificial sweeteners all the time. But, if you’re a big time diet soda drinker and drinks them 10 times a day, those supposedly “zero calories” definitely add up. Additionally, most drinks have more than 1 serving. So, if you had the whole bottle, you’re definitely taking in more sugar than you think.
I’m not saying to abandon the whole idea of having zero calorie drinks at all. I like the fact that I can have my cake and eat it too, sometimes. Everything is fine in moderation right? But, drinking my calories does not give me that much pleasure so I would not do it too often. I guess this article talks more to those people who have the habit of drinking their calories or do not think about them. Just remember, everything is good in moderation with moderation being defined as maybe one sugary drink once or twice a month or a single serving of a zero calorie drink once a day. Really, your body will thank you later. We can increase the quality of our lives by simply eating less. I see that as the easiest thing we can do right now to lengthen our life spans. Why not do it now?
Continue Reading
Creating Workouts for Women
Posted on 20. Jun, 2010 by admin.
As I read fitness advice on the internet and in magazines, I noticed that a lot of workouts for women are made by men. As we all know, women are physiologically and physically different from men not to mention mentally but that’s a totally different article…lol. So, I decided to write a post about how women should workout and how the workouts can be designed to benefit a woman’s physiology based on my experience on myself and training other women.
First, I’d like to address the fact that you can not target train a specific body part to make it smaller. I know that if you’re an avid reader of my blog, you would know this already but it’s a fact worth mentioning many times. A lot of the women I meet ask me what they can do to lose their belly fat. My answer is to lose weight throughout your whole body. Unfortunately, we can’t choose where the fat comes off. Where you lose weight first will depend on your genetics and body type. If you’re pear-shaped which means you carry your weight mostly on your hips, thighs, and buttocks these areas will be the last to go. The same thing goes for women with an apple-shaped body who carry their weight mostly on their upper body. In other words, your body type will dictate how you will end up looking. This is also the reason a lot of women have different problem areas. Luckily, you can train specific parts to be bigger so you get a more-proportioned, pleasing look.
Training to Get a More Proportioned Look
Instead of giving a workout prescription for each body type, I want to give you some ideas on how to get your body more proportioned so you can create your own workout. The key to getting the more proportioned look is to figure out where you carry your weight the most. For instance, when I was heavier, I carried my weight on my thighs, hips, and buttocks which makes me pear-shaped. When I gained even more weight, the next area it shows up is on my abdominal area. Once I lost the weight, my lower body still looked bigger than my upper body.
There’s a way to look more proportioned. In my case, I fixed my unproportioned look by lifting heavier weights for my upper body. I did chin ups, pull ups, chest presses, deltoid raises, back rows, etc. to gain a bit more mass in those areas. Most of my training for my legs nowadays will only be done with high intensity intervals training on the treadmill or the upright bike or kettlebell swings. Even though I used to lift heavier weights for squats and lunges, I try not to do them anymore as my hips and thighs already look naturally bigger than my upper body.
Women beginners who still have a good amount of weight to lose will do well on a workout program that involves basic, compound lifts like squats, lunges, deadlifts, pushups, planks, rows, military press, etc. The repetition range should be around 8-12 repetitions of 2-3 sets. These type of lifts and repetition scheme will give you a big boost in metabolism without spending too much time in the gym. In terms of cardio, 2-3 times of high intensity interval training a week would be enough. In a nutshell, women in this category should work on losing weight overall first by doing full body workouts.
Women who have less than 15 pounds to lose can be a little bit more specific in their training. This is the point where you can now try to target specific body parts so you can make your “look” more proportioned. For example, an apple-shaped woman who carries her weight on her upper arms, chest, and shoulders, can lift more heavily when it comes to doing her lower body strength training exercises. The key to keep in mind is this: making other areas of your body bigger, will make the bigger areas look smaller. when it comes to cardio, 2-3 times a week of high intensity intervals combined with 30 minutes of very light activity such as walking twice a week will work well for this group.
When I say “bigger,” it means that you will see a bit more mass in those specific areas but it does not mean that you will gain muscle quickly. Gaining muscle is actually difficult for women and most of the time we need to eat a little bit more to gain muscle especially because our hormones do not favor muscle growth as much as men’s hormonal mix does. If you’re still afraid of gaining some sexy muscles, read this article that I wrote about Jessica Biel.
Lastly, while I encourage each and every woman to have a model to look up to for inspiration, I also encourage you to be realistic about your expectations. Because your body shape does dictate your end result, you can not end up looking like Kim Kardashian who most likely has an hour-glass shape if you are pear-shaped. But, you can get really close to a certain look, the closer you get to your ideal weight by applying these tips to get more proportioned.
If you have any questions or comments aboout this post, please feel free to leave them below.
Continue Reading
Measuring Progress During Weight Loss: Frequency and Accuracy
Posted on 14. Jun, 2010 by admin.
There has been a time when I have gotten used to the habit of weighing myself everyday. I thought that it helped me stay focused on my goals and stay on track. What I didn’t know was, it was actually doing the exact opposite. Weighing myself daily was a big mistake and one that I weaned myself from doing because weight just naturally fluctuates daily. As a result, my mood will be affected by the number on the weighing scale and it will set off a series of events that eventually lead to self-sabotage. So, I have come up with a system to keep track of my progress which helps me consistently and accurately track my progress without the consequence of self-sabotage later.
I have a set amount of time for each type of measurement. For instance, I weigh myself once a week and get my girth and body fat measurements taken every two weeks. If you like pictures, take them every four weeks. But, it does not stop there. I do a few things to keep my measurements consistent and accurate.
Tip #1 Keep Variables the Same
In terms of the weighing scale, I try to keep a lot of variables the same. This means that I weight myself on the same scale, on the same day of the week, and on the same time of the day under similar circumstances. For instance, I always use my bathroom scale and I weigh myself as soon as I wake up every Sunday morning before I eat breakfast. Because we are creatures of habit, we most likely do similar things on each day of the week in terms of what we eat, what we do, etc. So, keeping all 3 variables as consistent as possible will help us get a more accurate weight reading.
Tip #2 Reduce Operator and Tool Error
When getting your girth and body fat measurements, make sure that you are using the same tools that you used for your original measurements. If you used your yellow measuring tape and your white body fat caliper for your first measurement, use these same ones for your next set of measurements 2 weeks down the road. More importantly, the person who measures you matters a lot. Each person will use and handle measurement tools differently so to increase the accuracy of your measurements, make sure that you have the same person measure you all the time. I taught my husband how to measure my girth and body fat so that he’s my go to person when it comes to measurements. If you go to the gym, make sure you ask for the same personal trainer or customer service person each time you get your measurement.
One last thing to remember when it comes to girth and body fat measurements, make sure that you get measured at the same spots or close to them. For example, if you get 3 abdominal measurements, one above and one below your belly button, try to measure a specific spot such as 2 inches above and 2 inches below the belly button. Additionally, take the extra step to mark the exact spot before you measure.
Tip #3 Get the Big Picture
My best form of progress so far is taking before and after pictures. You can take this step further by taking progress pictures every four weeks. Photos give you the big picture of the things that you have not noticed or what measurements can not tell you. For instance, you can really see changes changes in the way your ab area looks and how your skin protrudes on the back from clothing impingements like bras or shorts when you take a picture. You can take this another step further by having jeans that are one to two sizes smaller than you currently are and trying them on every 2-4 weeks.
Some people might think that measuring progress is very tedious but it is a must thing to do especially if you’re serious about getting results. Measurements give us the feedback we need to tell us if the things we’ve been doing are working to move us toward our fitness goals or if they aren’t. Once you see the you are moving in the right direction, you can then keep doing the things you’ve been doing that got you there. But, if you haven’t changed or moved away from your goal then, it’s time to look for another workout program or alter your nutrition plan. Exercise and nutrition takes some trial and error. So, if you do not know what’s working or what’s not working, you wouldn’t know what to change. Like Alwyn Cosgrove once said, “If you’re not assessing, you’re just guessing.”
If you or the person measuring you needs to learn how to take body fat measurements, read this article on, “How to Measure Body Fat.” The article includes a document download with a step by step detail on the subject.
Continue Reading
Jake Gyllenhaal’s Workout Transformation Into Prince of Persia
Posted on 23. May, 2010 by admin.
The “Prince of Persia” movie, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, comes to theaters this week. When I saw the trailer for the movie, I can’t help but notice that his physique has changed greatly. So, I set out to research what he did look like the Warrior Prince h e’s portraying.
A Little Background on Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake has really come a long way in his acting career. With parents both in the film industry, his father is a director while his mother is a produce/screenwriter, it’s no surprise that Jake has been acting in films since he was 11. But, my first exposure to his acting was in Donnie Darko which came out in 2001. The movie was about a disturbed teenager who had visions of a gigantic bunny rabbit encouraging him to commit crimes. Even though this movie was a little on the weird side, it gained a cult-like following when it was released on DVD. Of course, I wouldn’t do Jake any justice if I didn’t mention “Brokeback Mountain” where Jake plays a gay farmhand who gets romantically involved with Heath Ledger’s character. Surprisingly, I saw this movie with my two, male college roommates who were into film arts of all sorts. Yes, they totally date women. But, I digress.
One of my favorite Jake films is “Jarhead” which came out in 2005. This film really made me take notice of him because he filled out his Marine uniform nicely not to mention his acting skills…haha. Judging from his physique back then which you can see from some pictures taken in between takes in Jarhead, he must have gained 15-20 lbs of muscle in preparation for Prince of Persia.
On a more serious note, Jake really did go all out in terms of physically preparing for his role as the Prince of Persia. This movie was based on a Ubisoft videogame of the same title and features a warrior prince who, together with his princess, fight against dark forces who are after a dagger which is capable of turning back time. This movie was made by Disney which means we can expect some amazing effects. When Jake talked about his role in “Prince of Persia” with Entertainment Tonight he said, “I over-prepared myself [physically] because I never knew how much they were going to ask me to do, so I just made sure I’d be hopefully able to do anything.”
I’m sure that it’s not coincidence that Ubisoft is releasing a sequel to “The Sands of Time” which is the first Prince of Persia game. The sequel is entitled “The Forgotten Sands.” Here is a short preview of the new game:
The trailer for this video game really take me back to when I used to watch my brothers play their role playing games(RPG) like Tomb Raider and Resident Evil. It amazes me how true to life these trailers look thse days.
The Role of Prince of Persia
In 2009, Jake started training with Simon Waterson to turn himself into the “warrior” that he needs to look like for this movie. Waterson, who is a trainer to the stars and also a former Royal Marine, is responsible for training the lead actors for the previous five James Bond movies, including Daniel Craig and Pierce Brosnan. When asked about Gyllenhaal’s training, Waterson responded, “There’s an increasing fusion between the worlds of fitness and film. Most actors are athletes nowadays. Their fitness is a big factor in whether they get cast or not,” he says. “Jake has to look like a warrior capable of sword-fighting, not like he’s been hitting the gym. He is working out twice, sometimes three times a day, six days a week, for three to four months on top of stunt rehearsals before filming begins.”
Here is the Trailer for the movie if you haven’t seen it already:
Jake went through Parkour style training to prepare for his stunt moves. If you haven’t seen or heard of Parkour before, it is basically people jumping or running from building to building or from different physical outdoor structures. Since he needed a lot of relative strength to lift his body and perform his stunts, this type of training was ideal. Here is a good video of people performing Parkour to give you a better understanding of the sport:
When Gyllenhaal was asked about his stunt training at Wondercon, an annual comic book, science fiction, motion picture conference in San Francisco, he replied, “Well, I’m going to stress this – I tried everything, but I didn’t always succeed at everything. So what I didn’t succeed at, someone else had to pull it off. But it was difficult, but also really fun. I mean when you get parkour down, or the essential idea of parkour, it really is an extraordinary sport because there’s an ease to it and it ends up not feeling that hard.” He worked out two to three times a day along with Parkour for 4 months to achieve his warrior-like physique. If you can see from his picture from Prince of Persia, Gyllenhaal does not look as ripped as Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man 2 but this is most likely planned. He had to have the effortless look and not forced to look a certain way with a gym workout. Of course, proper nutrition also plays a role in creating his rugged look.
Continue Reading
3 Best Cardio Exercise Equipments
Posted on 17. May, 2010 by admin.
Whenever I walk into my local gym, I notice a bunch of different cardio exercise equipment to the left side of the entrance. Not surprisingly, they are almost always taken and there’s usually a line of people waiting to use it. So, I wondered if these people actually know how to effectively use these cardio machines to their advantage. Unlike other fitness experts, I don’t consider certain cardio equipments to be bad. How much benefit you get out of them will just depend on whether you know how to use them effectively or not. Additionally, one cardio equipment can help you burn more calories in less time compared to others.
Cardio exercise equipments are not made equal. So, I’m going to categorize them into their level of effectiveness. Here they are:
#1 The Treadmill
The treadmill is at the top of my list of cardio exercise equipments. But, not everyone knows how to use them to their advantage. We all know running would burn more calories compared to walking so if you already run on the treadmill, you’re half way there. The common mistake that a lot of people make when they’re on this machine is to either run at a steady, medium speed or hold on to the side handles while walking on an incline. Most people I see commit both mistakes. There’s probably other mistakes out there but these two are very common.
To use the treadmill more effectively, you’d have to give yourself a little bit more challenge by running at different intensities. For instance, you can warm-up at 3 mph for 3 minutes. After warm-up, you can run at a faster pace at 5 mph for 20 seconds then increase your speed to 7 mph for another 40 seconds. You can then repeat this sequence, besides the warm-up part, 4 more times then end with a cool-down.
[I have fond memories of playing and bathing in the rain as a child. This photo of children running reminds me of them.Photo by Neloqua. Above photo by Omsel. ]
This protocol is called high intensity interval training or HIIT and the intensity you will get from doing them will help you burn more calories during and after your workout. Beginners can usually follow these intructions without a problem. After you’ve been doing this for about 2-3 weeks, you can progress your workout by changing your speed, increasing the time that you run at a high intensity, perform more intervals, or decrease your recovery time, etc.
So, the next time, you’re at the gym, use this protocol on the treadmill if you plan to run and want to run more effectively.
#2 The Stairmaster
The stairmaster is a great equipment and it can give you a workout as effective as running on the treadmill. When you’re tired of running, this is a great alternative because climbing stairs is also very easy on your joints. This is also a great equipment for people who have need to watch their knee health due to a previous injury.
To use the stairmaster, think in terms of doing high intensity intervals again. Make sure to warm-up for a few minutes and climb at a faster speed for your intervals. You can start with 4-6 intervals at 20-30 seconds and go up from there. Remember to always cool down by slowing down your speed or move on to the Elliptical as detailed below.
#3 The Elliptical
The elliptical is probably the most popular cardio machine in the gym especially amongst the ladies. A lot of people tend to like it because they don’t have to lift their foot off the ground and they can still watch the television while they’re using it. I put it as the #3 machine because it has its place in a fat loss program. But, it definitely shouldn’t be your #1 choice if you want to lose stubborn fat.
To use the Elliptical more appropriately, I suggest using it after you’re done with your intervals on the treadmill or the stairmaster. Head to the Elliptical for another 20 minutes after your interval session. This helps you burn the fat that was released by performing intervals into your blood system so you don’t end up storing it again. Doing it in this sequence is an efficient way to burn more fat in less time. This strategy is particularly helpful when you’re really close to your ideal weight and want to lose a few extra pounds.
In summary, you can use the treadmill or the stairmaster for your high intensity intervals then use the elliptical only after you’ve done your intervals. Keep in mind that using the elliptical in this way is completely optional. The rule is to only use the elliptical as a complementary device to add to your cardio routine. If you use these cardio exercise equipment as directed in this article, you will see that even your most stubborn fats will melt away.
Continue Reading
How to Get Your Pre-pregnancy Body
Posted on 13. May, 2010 by admin.
Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot about soon-to-be mothers and they ask me how they can get back to their pre-pregnancy body. The common question I get asked is how soon can they start exercising after giving birth. While I do not have any personal experience about this topic yet, I went ahead and researched the subject. During my research, I came across a program called, “Post-natal Body Fix,” by Kaisa Tuominen. I first heard of Kaisa after joining a online forum for personal trainers. She has been a trainer since 1998 and has degrees in Exercise Science and Public Health from Oregon State University. Her gym is currently based in Spain. Her specialty and passion is in working with expectant mothers and helping them recover after childbirth.
Note: This article is mostly for women but if you are a guy, this will most likely help you when you are about to have a baby with your significant other.
Without much thought, I went ahead and bought Kaisa’s latest program to help with my research. From reading the books, I was in awe at how knowledgeable she was about this topic. Since she works with moms at her gym daily, I’m really not surprised that she is. In her book, she goes into detail about the what is going on in new moms’ minds and all the emotions that they are feeling. She then discusses ways to live a balanced, enjoyeable life during a time when moms can be very busy, overwhelmed, and stressed.
The part that I like the most about Kaisa’s book was when she discussed the cost of doing nothing after pregnancy. These costs come from the weakening of the core/abdomen area and the pelvic floor. The weakening of these muscles happen when the ab muscles have to naturally separate to make space for the growing baby inside and when your pelvic floor muscles have to pull away from each other to make the baby pass through during childbirth. Two of these costs that really stood out for me. The first one was neck and back pain that wouldn’t go away. My sister and a close friend have been complaining about back pain since they gave birth and now I know how pregnancy can alter your spine alignment to cause this pain. The second cost is having a weak pelvic floor that causes sexual difficulties and incontinence. The thought of using diapers when I get older gives me the motivation I need to do this program so that I do not have to wear them.
Post-natal Body Fix has 3 phases with each phase lasting 6 weeks. The phases 1-3 are called Post-natal Core Fix, Fitness Fix, and Fat Loss Fix, respectively. The biggest misinformation that I learned from Kaisa is women do not have to wait for 40 days before they start to exercise after pregnancy. In fact, the sooner women start, the faster they will recover. Having said that, you can start phase 1 on day 1 which is designed to strengthen your pelvic floor and core muscles. When you move on to phase 2, you will be working on gaining strength and training your body to work as a whole. You will also be working on improving your cardiovascular health during this phase. The last and final phase will probably look like something you would do before you got pregnant. This phase is designed to help you lose the baby weight and improve your overall fitness.
Of course, no fitness program is complete unless you talk about nutrition. Kaisa’s approach is a lot similar to Dax Moy’s Elimination Diet. If you have not read my post on it, you can read it here: Elimination Diet Day 1. I totally support and highly recommend this diet or way of life since I have seen great results with it and so have my clients.
During a Google search for Kaisa, I also came across a free e-bok she gave away sometime ago. This e-book called, “Pregger Fit,” will teach you how to do exercises during pregnancy that will help giving birth easier. You can download your copy of Pregger Fit here: Pregger Fit Download.
If you’d like to get a copy of Kaisa’s book, simply click on this link: Post-natal Body Fix. When you sign up for her newsletter, you can get a copy of her free report, the 7 Secrets of Getting Your Pre-baby Body Back. Lastly, I will get a small commission if you buy Kaisa’s report through the links in this post. But, I bought her product with my own money and no rewards from Kaisa. I promise that I would never recommend any product to you if I have not bought it for myself and/or if it will not help you in staying healthy and fit.
I hope you enjoyed this post and let me know what your thoughts are especially if you’re an expecting mom.
Continue Reading
How to Choose a Pull Up Bar
Posted on 03. May, 2010 by admin.
After writing a post about a home gym for under $100, I thought about editing the post and adding the pull up bar to the list. But, I wanted to create a separate post for it because I own two different kinds of pull up bars and I want to give you a better idea on which model will fit your needs. Also, thanks to Dave for giving me the idea to write about it.
There are two pull up bars that I’m going to compare in this post. For the first kind, you can either mount it on your door frame and for the second one, you can take on/off the door way whenever you like. The other kind of bars that are out there are the free standing ones which are usually more expensive and takes up more space.
The Perfect Pullup
The first one we’re going to talk about is the Perfect Pull Up which is the one you can attach to your door. This wall mounted pull up bar is great because you can do a lot more things with it. For instance, you can change the position of the bar so that it’s upside down. You can perform body rows at different angles from this position. This brand also comes with a pair of Ab Straps that you can hang on the bar and rest your elbow on while doing hanging knee raises and other ab exercises. It also comes with rotating handles for different hand positions.
Because the bar is moveable, you can also do chest presses, tricep extensions, etc. It’s definitely a versatile pull up bar that you can use for many other different exercises. If you go to this Amazon page for the Perfect Pullup, you will see a video of a guy who’s using this bar for the exercises I mentioned above. The price of this bar has gone down significantly since I first bought it. You can get it for as low as $22 which is a very good deal.
Here is a Youtube video showing more ideas on how to use the Perfect Pullup. It’s an infomercial but you get the idea:
If you haven’t done chin ups or pull ups before, here is a great video by Craig Ballantyne of Turbulence Training and CB Athletics demonstrating how you can practice your way to your first one:
Iron Gym
The Iron Gym is probably the simplest pull up bar out there. It is removeable so this is great for people who are renting because you don’t have to put holes on your door frame. It comes with a small metal hook that you place on top of the door frame. This hook helps keep the Iron Gym in place while you’re performing pull ups or chin ups. Make sure the you install this hook. Otherwise, you might fall. The one thing I like about this brand is the cushion on the handles. This cushion helps a lot especially if you have callouses. I also like the fact that I didn’t have to install it and the assembly is easy. It can also double as a push up stand when you put it face down on the floor. Using it this way is helpful especially if your wrists hurt while doing regular push ups.
The disadvantages to this bar is that it’s not very versatile. You can only do chin ups, pull ups, push ups on it, nothing else. If you have other gym equipment, this is not a big deal. Unlike the Perfect Pull Up, the Iron Gym is not as versatile. They did come out with an extreme version that allows for different hand positions on the bar but you still can’t do other exercises with it besides the three I just mentioned. You can get this bar from Amazon for $27 to $30.
Please leave any thoughts, ideas, comments below. Thanks for reading!
Continue Reading
A Home Workout Equipment for under $100
Posted on 27. Apr, 2010 by admin.
Nowadays, people are looking for convenient solutions to their problems. A home workout equipment is a great way to remedy the problem of not having enough time to go to the gym and/or not having the money to pay for a gym membership. Having your fitness equipment at home is also helpful because you can workout whenever you want on your workout days and don’t have to worry about getting child care if you have kids. Not to mention that you’ll save yourself the trouble of fighting to get your hands on gym equipments if you go to the gym during peak hours.
Lately, I’ve been working out at home and I enjoy all the benefits that I just mentioned above. If you’ve never worked out at home before, you might think that you’d have to spend a lot of money on expensive home fitness exercise equipment like the Bowflex. To be honest, I’ve never tried one of those and I probably never will. Most home gyms cost somewhere between $300 and up and I don’t even have the space to have one at my place. So, I’ve found a great alternative to my dilemma. Today, I get a very effective, full-body workout with kettlebells.
[You can even workout outdoors or do a beach workout with just body weight exercises if you don't have any exercise equipments at home. Photo by Gettyimages.com]
Women usually start with an 18 lb or 8 kg kettlebell while men will do well with an 35 lb or 16 kg kettlebell. An 8 kg kettlebell costs about $63 plus shipping while an 16 kg one costs about $79.95 plus shipping at Dragondoor.com. Either way, both options are still under $100. You might think that you can’t really do much with one kettlebell. I used to think so too until I got a full workout from just one kettlebell while I was training for my instructor certification. Granted that my husband has a 35 lb one but I didn’t use it until I was a little bit more advanced which took me about 8 months of focused training.
Here are some exercises that you can do with one kettlebell:
- Swings
- Turkish Get-ups
- Snatches
- Cleans
- Presses/Military Presses
- Lunges
- Squats/Goblet Squats
- Rows
- Halos
- Around the world/Slingshot
- Figure 8
- 1-leg Squats
- Clean and Jerks
- Windmills
- Bent presses and many more
I mainly use kettlebells for our weights in the bootcamp along with some jump ropes, resistance bands, and body weight exercises. This just goes to say that you can have an effective, full body, home gym workout with minimal equipment without the cost of expensive ready-made home gyms out there. If you think about it, you never have to buy another kettlebell for awhile because these things are so durable that they would probably last for your whole lifetime. Just don’t leave them outside otherwise they’ll get rusty. And, just like with anything in life, in order to really use these equipments to their full potential, you’re going to have to do some learning on your own to perform the exercises well or get a good workout program that is designed to be done with minimal equipment.
One of the programs I highly recommend if you want to do full kettlebell workouts is Kettlebell Burn by Master RKC, Geoff Neupert. I mentioned to Geoff that we named our programs the same and he said that “great minds must think alike.” So, if you know about my kettlebell e-book, just be sure that you don’t confuse mine for Geoff’s new program. His program lasts 16 weeks and it comes with a training log and a nutrition guide. After buying Kettlebell Burn and reading through it, I immediately decided that I’m going to follow it for the next 16 weeks. Geoff has designed it so that I make progress in every workout. It is a solid program.
Last note, kettlebell exercises can be technical so make sure that you take some classes with a certified instructor. The cost of paying for classes versus paying for a gym membership will be a lot cheaper in the long run because you don’t need to be paying for instruction or classes forever. Compared to a gym membership that you have to pay month after month, getting a home gym is the way to go in terms of cost and time as long as you know what you’re doing.
If you’re doing a kettlebell workout, please do let me know how it’s going in the comments section. Everything else on your mind or questions, please leave a comment as well.
Note: I will receive a small commission if you buy kettlebells or the Kettlebell Burn program through the links above. However, I trust these products and have bought them for my own use. I don’t recommend anything that I haven’t bought or tried beforehand.
Continue Reading
Nutrition Plan Hacks to Control Your Calories
Posted on 18. Apr, 2010 by admin.
Lately, I have been thinking about how I can save even more calories but still enjoy my favorite foods. This idea came to me when I still wanted to eat something sweet while watching “Gran Torino” which is a great movie, by the way. This lead me to think about my top 3 nutrition hacks so I can still eat without sending my calorie intake through the roof.
Reducing Calorie Content But Not the Volume
I learned this strategy from following the Precision Nutrition (PN) plan when I’m not fasting. Basically, you can eat the same food and reduce the amount of calories in it without reducing the volume. For example, if you already eat plain yogurt with your fruits, you can switch to fat-free, plain yogurt instead. One cup of regular plain yogurt has about 120 calories while the same amount of fat-free yogurt is about 90 calories. You can also apply this idea to foods like whole milk vs. fat-free milk, white rice vs. brown rice, cottage cheese, etc. This is also a great trick for your eyes and your tummy because it usually can’t tell the difference in volume but you’re still saving calories.
Heather's Farro Recipe from 101cookbooks.com
Eat High Protein Grains
Eating high protein grains is one nutrition strategy is especially helpful for vegetarians or for people who are looking to add more protein into their nutrition plans but still want to enjoy their carbohydrates. Here is a list of grains that have more protein compared to rice at a serving of 1/4 cup:
- Farro – this a whole grain much like barley and wheatberries but it has 6 g of protein per 1/4 cup compared to brown rice which has 1 g of protein for the same amount. Check out this great Farro recipe from www.101cookbooks.com
- Quinoa – we are all familiar with Quinoa by now. This grain has 7 g of protein.
- Grain Amaranth – another grain that originated from Asia and South Americas. This grain has 7 g of protein.
- Hemp Bread – this is a lot like Sprouted Grain Breads but is a nice change if you’ve been eating those for awhile. You can find these at the bread aisle of your local grocery store. Each slice of bread has 100 calories and 6.5 g of protein. If you want to see if your local grocery store carries them, go to www.frenchmeadow.com and click on store locator.
When you eat high protein grains, you are also eating less carbs. That was obvious but I thought I’d still mention it.
Keeping it sweet but Reducing Sugar Content
So, I ended up getting a medium cup of French Vanilla cappuccino from 7-eleven to enjoy with Gran Torino. But, when I started giving up a lot of my sweets addiction, this cappuccino just tasted too sweet for me. So, to lessen the sweetness, I’d only pour the French Vanilla about a third of a cup and then fill up the rest with regular or decaffeinated coffee. This is a happy medium for me because I so love the flavor of French Vanilla but didn’t want all the added sugar. I haven’t actually applied this strategy to other foods since I try to avoid sugary stuff most of the time but if you want to sweeten things up without jacking up the calories, adding stevia is always a good option.
There you go, nutrition hacks that you can apply right away while still enjoying your favorite foods and not feeling like you’re depriving yourself. Thanks for reading my post and I look forward to your comments.