Macro #3 - FATS

Learning About Fats

1 gram of fat is equal to 9 calories


WHY DO WE NEED FAT?

Although fats have received a bad reputation for causing weight gain, some fat is essential for survival. According to the Dietary Reference Intakes published by the USDA 20% - 35% of calories should come from fat. We need this amount of fat for:

• Normal growth and development
• Energy (fat is the most concentrated source of energy)
• Absorbing certain vitamins ( like vitamins A, D, E, K, and carotenoids)
• Providing cushioning for the organs
• Maintaining cell membranes
• Providing taste, consistency, and stability to foods

Fat is found in meat, poultry, nuts, milk products, butters and margarines, oils, lard, fish, grain products and salad dressings. There are three main types of fat, saturated fat, unsaturated fat, and trans fat. Saturated fat (found in foods like meat, butter, lard, and cream) and trans fat (found in baked goods, snack foods, fried foods, and margarines) have been shown to increase your risk for heart disease. Replacing saturated and trans fat in your diet with unsaturated fat (found in foods like olive oil, avocados, nuts, and canola oil) has been shown decrease the risk of developing heart disease.

The misconception about fat is that it is always bad for you. In fact, fat is essential for maintaining a healthy body.

The trick is to eat more of the good fats and less of the bad fats. Saturated and trans fats should be avoided while increases levels of unsaturated and the essential fatty acids, such as omega 3 and omega 6, can be good for you. Replacing sweets and high fat meats with foods such as nuts, avocados, and olive oil will help shift the balance away from unhealthy towards those fats that are useful to the body.

Fat has many roles in the human body. One of fats main functions is protection. This includes insulation to keep body temperature and cushioning to protect body organs. It also promotes growth and development, as well as maintaining cell membranes. Fat, in addition, plays a vital role in the digestion of vitamins. Vitamins A, D, E, and K are fat soluble vitamins, meaning they need fat in order to be absorbed into the body.

Macro #2 - Carbohydrates

Learning about Carbs
Just like Proteins - Carbohydrates are also 4 grams per calorie

 Carbs provide your body with the fuel it needs for physical activity and organ function - so any diet that gives a blanket statement of "Don't eat carbs" is not only unsustainable, but also unhealthy.  Your brain and nervous system relies on a steady stream of glucose, using about 130g/day (about 45% of the recommended daily intake). Instead of choosing no carbs, choose good carbs.

Carbs are built out of sugar molecules, and we have often thought of simple carbs as 1-3 sugar molecules linked together, while complex carbs are made up of 4 or more sugar molecules.

Almost all carbs are broken down by the body in the same way, breaking them down into single sugar molecules, glucose, which are then able to cross into the bloodstream. Your pancreas responds to an increase of glucose by releasing insulin. Insulin then travels and binds to your cells membranes allowing cells to take up glucose from the blood and normalize the levels of sugar in the blood.

Thus, carbs play a role in diabetes, if you swing too far in one direction, continually creating insulin you eventually wear your pancreas out - and get type II diabetes.

There is one carb, however, that is not digestible - fiber. Fiber is unable to be broken down, and thus passes through your system. Soluble fiber binds to LDL and transports it out of the system, lowering your bad cholesterol. Insoluble fiber helps to push food through the intestinal tract.

Good Carbs
Choosing good carbs, those that are high in fiber and have a low glycemic index, leads to a healthier body. The glycemic index (GI) of a food is a marker of the effect that a food has on blood glucose levels, with a lower number being preferable (55 or less is considered a low GI food). Common low GI foods include beans, nuts, seeds, most fruits and vegetables and most whole intact grains. High GI foods, ones to steer away from, are things that seem obvious; white bread, cookies, corn flakes, potatoes and pretzels to name a few. Check out an extensive study on the GI of foods worldwide, or see the Harvard study for a nicely compiled table.

That wraps up our chat on carbs, next newsletter - beans! Good or bad?

Macros - what are Macros??? Macro #1 Protein

Learning about Proteins

1 gram of protein is equal to 4 calories - first and foremost

Protein is the building block of all the tissue in the body including hair, nails, skin and muscle. As it relates to exercise, protein provides the body with the material it needs to repair damaged muscle tissue.

By reaching the necessary amounts of protein intake for your body you can build and maintain muscle as well as lose fat. In fact, your body burns more calories digesting protein than it does for carbs or fat. Not only that, protein helps you feel fuller longer!

Exercise causes tiny tears to the muscle. The body treats these tears as injuries and repairs them during rest. In addition to rest, the repair process requires nutrients such as: vitamins, minerals, fats, carbs and proteins. The repair process makes you bigger, stronger and faster.

Amino Acids
Protein is made up of amino acids. There are two types of amino acids; some the body can produce (non-essential amino acids) and others that need to be ingested (essential amino acids). There are nine essential amino acids (isoleucine, valine, leucine, tryptophan, threonine, methionine, arginine, lysine, histidine) that must be provided to the body through proper nutrition.

 The recommended daily allowance is 0.8g/kg (0.4g/lb) of body weight (so about 80g of protein for a 200 pound person) - which can easily be reached through whole protein sources at each meal. However, athletes need a bit more protein per day, usually about 1.4-1.8g/kg if you are strength training or 1.2-1.4g/kg if you are endurance training. This extra requirement is often met through a supplemental protein shake either just before or right after a workout.

Urban legends have spread about the consumption of protein. It is often touted that too much protein can damage your kidneys, and while this is possible in severe excess, studies have shown that elevated protein intake under 2.8g/kg does not impair kidney function. Just as protein intake does not cause renal failure, it also does not cause weight gain (unless you increase your caloric intake).

Protein Sources
The best sources of protein is through whole foods such as red meats, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs and nuts. If you are on a budget, here is a list of cheap protein sources:

• Canned Tuna - 40g of protein per can, if you eat 1 can per day or less your mercury intake should be within normal limits. Watch out, however for BPA.
• Whole Eggs - 7g of protein per egg. Don't throw the yolk away! Dietary cholesterol doesn't affect blood cholesterol in the ways previously claimed.
• Whey - 24g of protein per 30g serving
• Ground beef - 25g of protein per 100g of ground beef. You can reduce the amount of fat present by rinsing your ground beef first.
• Milk - 30g of protein per liter of milk. This is great if you can find raw milk in your area, but shy away from milk as a protein source if you are aiming to lose weight.
• Chicken breast - 25g of protein per 100g of chicken

Whey vs. Soy
Soy protein is one of the only plant based protein sources considered to be a "complete" protein source. Soy protein is found in soy isolate, tofu, soybeans, miso and soy milk and the clear winner if you are vegan or vegetarian.

Whey is also a "complete" protein derived from animals. Whey is absorbed quickly in the body and has been shown to help build muscle and increase strength. In addition, whey protein helps reduce oxidative stress and has the ability to 

act as an antioxidant, antihypertensive,

antitumor, hypolipidemic, antiviral,

antibacterial, and chelating agent.
 

Looking at the numbers, whey protein has an efficiency ratio of 3.2, a biological value of 104, 92% protein utilization and 100% digestability compared to an efficency ratio of 2.2, biological value of 74, 61% utilization and 100% digestability for soy protein. This makes whey protein a clear winner for anyone other than vegetarians and vegans. Check out the table below to see the breakdowns for other protein sources as well.

 

 

That wraps up our chat on proteins, next up is carbs!

Monday 23, June 2014

Warm up

400m run
2x20 yard skip
2x20 yard stiff leg bounding
1x20 yard karaoke right
1x20 yard karaoke left
2x10 yard high knees
2x10 yard butt kickers
1x5 yard inch worms
1x20 yard lunge
2x50 yard ACCELERATIONS - gradually pick up speed to 80% of max to 50 yard line

HIIT:

8x20 yard resistance sprints - resistance can be parachute, tire, weight from partner, 3-5% slope
4x20 yard backwards sprints
8x100 yard sprints
4x50 yard backwards sprints

Be A Role Model

You don't have to be superhuman strong, insanely fast or have the motor of a genetic freak to be a good role model.

You don't need to have a bunch of acronyms in your pocket; PU, MU, DU, HSPU, T2B, C2B....those don't make you a role model either.

Your integrity makes you a role model.


Your willingness to listen to your coach, to their technique pointers, to apply their corrections - even if you are a world class lifter, or its your first time seeing a barbell - that willingness makes you a role model.

Cleaning up after your WOD, disinfecting your bar, cheering others on - THAT makes you a role model.

Killing yourself in the warmup to beat everyone else, but then half assing the WOD? Nope, not role model, try schmuck.

Recording a few extra rounds or reps or shaving 30s off your real time? Wrong again, that makes you a cheat.

Proudly rocking the band so you can hit the workout with more intensity? Encouraging your classmates to push themselves a bit harder?

DEFINITE role model material right there.

Wherever you are - firebreather, recent ex-couch potato or somewhere in between - be a role model today.
  

Thursday 19, June 2014

This should be a good one!

10 yard SPRINT
1 push up
5 second plank hold
     Sprint back to start

20 yard SPRINT
2 push ups
5 second plank hold
     Sprint back to start

30 yard Sprint
3 push ups
5 second plan hold
     Sprint back to start

CONTINUE this pattern every 10 yards increasing push ups by 1 until you reach the 100 yard mark or end zone to end zone with 10 push ups

If you are feeling REAL GOOD - go back down!

WHY WE MUST WARM-UP!!!!

A dynamic warm-up is one that challenges every part of your body that you use to run.

Your body is a machine—your machine—and there are lots of moving parts. Your cardio
capacity is certainly a driving factor in your performance, but your ability to get the most from your cardio endurance is highly dependent on your body's ability to transfer your effort efficiently, from head to toe and on to the pavement, during each and every running stride.

A dynamic warm-up coordinates all of your moving parts—muscles, ligaments, and joints—by challenging your flexibility, mobility, strength and stability all at once; because that's what you ask of yourself when you run, right?! Doing so is pivotal in getting you to the finish line as fun, fast and pain-free as possible.

The Goals of a Dynamic Warm-Up

? Increase heart rate to get the blood pumping through the body and warm up the muscles.
? Open up your joints, especially those within the hips, spine, feet and ankles.
? Actively stretch your muscles to prepare them for what you'll be asking them for during the run.
? Reinforce great posture.
? Hit the ground running with all systems go when the gun goes off!

The Keys to a Dynamic Warm-Up

? Think of it as a part of the race. Do it!
? Set aside time dedicated to it. Whether it's 30 minutes or two minutes, you can do your body good.
? Clear your mind and focus on your body. Save chit-chatting with friends for before or after the race.
? Move through the movements purposefully but continuously so that your heart rate increases throughout.

The Key Elements of a Dynamic Warm-Up

[NOTE: Click on exercise names for a link to videos of the exercises.]

1. Great Posture

• Stand tall, like a string is attached to the top of your head gently pulling upward.
• Stand with feet shoulder width apart and pointing straight forward.
• Tighten key abdominals by pulling the bellybutton inward and rib cage downward.
• Pull the shoulders back and downward while keeping arms relaxed.

More: Exercise Your Way to Perfect Running Posture
2. Fire Up Your Glutes, Then Use Them, Always
Two Options:

Glute Bridge: Lying on your back, bend your knees to 90 degrees, keep heels on floor while pulling toes to your shins. Use your glutes to raise your hips so they are in a straight line with your knees and shoulders. Keep hips parallel to the ground. Hold for two seconds. Release, then repeat 10 times.
Lateral Lunge: Start with great posture and your feet wider than your shoulders. From there, squat your hips down and over to the right while keeping your left leg straight. Keeping your feet flat on the ground, use your right glute to push you up to your starting position. Repeat on the left side. Do 10 total.

3. Open Up Your Joints and Stretch the Muscles Around Them
Spine: Flex, extend, rotate and laterally bend the spine. Do this by rounding the back while reaching for your toes and then extending your back in the opposite direction. Then do a few side bends while keeping your abdominals and hips locked in place.

Hips and Knees: Try these two options:

Knee Hugs - Standing with great posture, grab one knee with both hands and bring it up toward your chest. Maintain balance on the lower leg by firing the glute. Release the knee and step forward with that leg. Alternate legs while stepping forward for 10 yards.
Forward Lunge with a Twist - Lunge forward with one leg while keeping hips, knees, and ankles in line and hips parallel to the ground. Forward foot should be planted firmly on the ground to activate your glute. Hold that position strong while first reaching up with the arm of your lower leg, then reach the same arm to the outside of the forward leg to get a rotational stretch. Hold stretches for two seconds each. Face forward once again and return to standing using the strength of your forward leg.

More: 5 Hip-Strengthening Exercises for Runners
Ankles and Feet: Do the all-important Calf Raise and Calf Stretch. This will not only warm up your calves and the muscles and ligaments of your ankles and feet, but will also stretch out your plantar fascia and prepare it to take on the forces of your running stride.

Calf Raise and Stretch: Either keep it simple by raising your calves up and down while standing in place, or find a wall or a large tree trunk and, while facing it, stand three to four feet away with both hands on the wall. After doing a posture check, lift one leg just off the ground and raise the other calf by coming up all the way up on your toes. Hold that position for two seconds, then release and push the heel of that foot into the ground to get a calf stretch. Then bend the knee and continue to stretch. Repeat 10 times on each side.

4. Put it all Together With Some Marching and Skipping
You've moved all your parts, now it's time to get the heart rate even higher, and give you control of your movement instead of gravity.

Forward March: Maintaining great posture and keeping your upper body as quiet as possible, march forward by bringing each knee up one at a time. Keep your toes pulled up toward your shin and hit the ground directly beneath your body, on your midfoot, each step forward. Drive your elbows back and keep them at 90 degrees throughout the drill. Do this over 10 yards twice.
Forward Skip: Same as the march, except you alternate with one foot bouncing on the ground while one hip drives up as in the march, then both feet bounce together, then the opposite leg, then both feet. Repeat. Again, cover about 10 yards twice. Or something similar, as long as you are actively changing the direction of force on the ground and getting your heart rate up while keeping great posture and opening up the hips.

More: 9 Causes of Hip Pain During and After Running

The Two-Minute Version

1. Glute Bridge or Lateral Lunge
2. Forward Lunge with a Twist or Knee Hugs
3. Forward Skip

You're committed. Your mind is strong and will only get stronger. Make sure you give your body the best chance you can give it so you can do all that you'd love to do with it. Because you can!

Wednesday 18, June 2014

Nice and easy short sprint day!!!

12x

SPRINT

15 seconds

JOG
45 seconds

12 minutes of solid HARD work!!!

Tuesday 17, June 2014

Grab some weights if you have them.

If not, you can alternate the shoulder press with a version of a hand stand push up. For the swings, do plank holds.

2x

100 yard SPRINT
8x
     20 seconds dumbbell/kettlebell shoulder press
     10 seconds rest

100 yard SPRINT
8x
     20 seconds push ups
     10 seconds rest

100 yard SPRINT
8x
     20 second speed skaters
     10 seconds rest

100 yard SPRINT
8x
     20 seconds dumbbell/kettlebell swings
     10 seconds rest

Monday 16, June 2014

Little sprint a little body weight a little kick ass workout!


5x

25 yard sprint
10 push ups
50 yard sprint
20 mountain climbers
75 yard sprint
10 frog jumps - squat low and deep
100 yard sprint
20 sit ups

Rest 60 seconds between rounds

Tip of the Week

Tip #1:  

The number on the scale will go down easier when it goes up too. Let me explain why: The whole idea of eating is to fuel your performance and use the times when you’re less active to burn fat. Ever notice how the scale always seems to stall at the same place?

When you eat to fuel activity, the scale SHOULD go up and down; this is a good sign and is often a signal to your body that it doesn’t have to “make due”. When you provide an adequate amount of glucose from starches, your weight will sometimes go up as your depleted glycogen levels rise. This will fuel amazing workouts and lead to better progress. It also sends a signal to your body to up-regulate your metabolism over time and that is favorable for fat loss.

For many people, under eating leads to fat retention because the body is overly reliant on fats for fuel. Eating in a balanced way “with a purpose” sends the opposite signal and your body is not only willing to release stored body fat but it will also send a signal that will aide in building and retaining lean mass. So the tiny spikes up on the scale actually set up a better scenario to break through plateaus.

Friday 13, June 2014

Find a hill - if you are at UNR, the left side of the field has a nice little "ramp"

Warm up - nice and solid stretch be READY

Tabata speed skaters

then you will

10 hill sprints 100 meters when you reach the 100m turn around and finish a backward run for 25 meters

Thursday 12, June 2014

Its getting hot outside so get your work done early a.m. or a little later in the p.m.

8x200 m sprints with a 2 minute rest
     keep your time consistent within 3 seconds either direction

6x400m runs with a 90 second rest
     keep your time consistent within 3 seconds either direction

Wednesday 11, June 2014

Extra stuff for your FAT burning needs!

This is one you can do with or without "cardio" equipment

1.

15 sprints -
     15 second sprint
     30 second rest

2.

8 sets of stadiums -
     1 minute of every other
     90 seconds of every step
          - coming down is not included in your work time

3.

10 sets of jump rope
     20 seconds of double unders
     40 seconds of singles

It's HOOOOTTT out - here are some recipes to COOOOLLL you down

Everyone likes a nice cold Smoothie or Shake, and these are 3 yummy Paleo ones!

Apple Shake

1 cup almond milk or coconut milk
1/2 cup diced green apple - skin removed
1/2 teaspoon natural vanilla essence
Ice - or freeze your apples and almond milk as well

Place in blender
Blend about 1 minute

Peach and Apple Smoothie

1 cup almond milk or coconut milk
1/2 cup diced green apple - skin removed
3/4 cup fresh diced peach - skin removed
Ice

Place in blender
Blend about 1 minute

Chocolate Banana Shake

1 cup almond milk or coconut milk
1 medium banana
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
Ice

Place ingredients in blender
Blend about 1 minute

Tuesday 10, June 2014

Today will take a total of 14 mins not including your warm up.

Just like we do everyday in here - you need to do a full body warm up to get you ready for any explosive, weight bearing, gymnastics based movements.

We will start our sprint days with a tabata always to get our heart rate pumping.

Tabata Burpees
4 minutes
20 seconds of work, 10 seconds of rest
8 rounds

Then we have
10 min EMOM
SPRINT 11 seconds
Jog 49 seconds

There it is, 14 minutes of HIIT done and over!

Look at our main site WOD for the day as well, you can throw it in with this just as easily and burn a few more calories!

Monday 9, July 2014

HIIT at the field

The 5 a.m. group tackled a fun HIIT workout you can do in our own time today or even later this week if you are missing a day of conditioning.

The width of the football field - so side to side

Starting at the goal line

20 toe touches - on your back feet in the air raise your torso to touch your feet
Sprint the width of the filed
20 air squats
Sprint the width of the field, but now you are on the 5 yard line

And continue this rotation until you reach the 50 yard line

Once done,

2x

Sprint the straight away, jog the turns

With

20 stair jump squats
10 stair decline push ups
20 alternating jump lunges
10 dips
20 stair mountain climbers

At the end of each full 400m