Thursday, May 21, 2009

6 Simple But Highly Effective Tricep Workout Tips

Despite what you may have heard, the tricep muscles are actually the largest muscle group in the human body. The triceps generally take up nearly double the space that the bicep muscles occupy. This means that in order for you to develop massive, ripped arms you absolutely need to focus on building and strengthening your triceps. If building massive arms is something you are interested in, then I strongly suggest implementing the following tips:

Don’t Mix Your Chest & Triceps Workouts – When performing chest workouts, a substantial proportion of the weight is placed upon your tricep muscles. If you start your tricep workout immediately after your chest workout you simply will not be able to train with the same intensity you normally would. Whenever possible, try to leave a solid 48 hours between your tricep workout and your chest workout.

Avoid Overtraining – Undoubtedly, the largest single problem causing a lack of muscle growth in men is training to hard. Bear in mind that your triceps tend to be hit very hard when performing both chest and shoulder exercises. Try to make sure that you do no more than 18 individual sets of direct and indirect tricep exercises each and every week.

Lower Your Reps & Increase Your Weight – Your triceps do not need to be trained in a very high rep range. Your muscle tissue responds much better to heavy weight and reps between 6 to 10 reps which is also true of the tricep muscles.

Do More Squats – Believe it or not, doing more squats doesn’t just produce better looking thighs and buttock muscles but also causes muscle gains through out your entire body due to the fact that squats are such a demanding and intense exercise. To better strengthen your triceps you should try doing squats at least once a week.

Weighted Dips – Compound exercises happen to be very effective at forcing your muscles to grow and develop. A very good but often overlooked compound exercise is something called weighted dips. Weighted dips are of course just like regular dips except that you are using weight while performing the dips. While performing weighted dips always make sure to keep your body vertical at a 90 degree angle to the floor in order to maximize your muscle gains from the dips.

Can't Stick To Your Weight Loss Program? Here's Why

Woman Sad about Dieting

By Erin Upshaw

Many people are very similar to you. They are tired of
constantly trying new exercises and diets that just will
never work. You're motivated at first, but as time progresses
you become tired of it, and you feel as if you have failed
again.

Does this sound like you? Are you wondering why you cannot
stick to your weight loss program? Well, so are many others.
There are many factors that could explain why you cannot
stick to your weight loss program, and this article will
examine a few of them in depth.

Your program may have been a bad program that resulted in
failure. Maintaining an extreme diet will fail on you
because it is too difficult to maintain. Eating specific
fruits or performing weird exercises or workouts for long
periods of time is eventually not sustainable. If you're
looking to stay slim, you've got to pick a routine that you
can maintain consistently for the long-term.

A lack of support from family and friends causes many to
quit their diets. Maybe your family and friends didn't
provide the support you needed in order to say no to that
bite of rich dessert. It could be possible that your
friends had no faith in you or your diet. A fact of life is
the fact that support is critical when focusing on weight
loss. Try joining a weight loss group with others that are
in the same situation, or consider hiring a personal trainer
that will keep you motivated towards your goals.

You could have been dieting incorrectly while exercising too
much, or even dieting without doing a single exercise
routine. The results you expected didn't happen and led you
to quit what you were doing and loose focus. Both diet and
exercise are a necessary combination when doing a workout
program in order to lose weight. No matter what plan,
program, or diet you choose, you must combine a balance of
diet and exercise.

Another reason was that you expected results far too
quickly. Diets take time to work, and your body may take
even more time to adjust to your new diet before weight loss
is noticed. Your body is resistant and will require you to
use diet and exercise to steer it to shed pounds. Stick to
a well designed program, and the results you want will be
achieved.

A final reason for you to quit your weight loss program
could be that you lacked a bona fide commitment. It is
impossible to begin a new lifestyle with only half the
motivation. Diet and exercise plans require full mental
commitment. You will find yourself taking shortcuts around
your diet and become frustrated when the scale goes up not
down. Personally commit to this workout plan from day 1 and
don't look back. Remember that if you continue to do what
you always did then you will get what you always got.

Most people advertise all kinds of secrets to weight loss,
but the secret never really was a secret. It's the one
truth that we all know: a lifestyle with a healthy diet and
exercise are what will help us all lose weight and stay in
shape. There are no secret tricks or shortcuts to becoming
healthy. You've just read the trick for yourself. You will
not find a "fat buster" cure besides a healthy diet and
exercise. Do your research, pick a workout plan that you
will enjoy, and stay with it. Remember to aim for realistic
and achievable goals and you will be sure to shed those
unwanted pounds.

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Wednesday, May 20, 2009

Peer Pressure And Healthy Eating - How To Say No

Man Holding Drink and Pointing

If you are on a diet or simply enjoying a healthy lifestyle, then you probably know that peer pressure to eat foods that are not good for you is a major part of your life. If you are worried about the food that goes into your mouth, don’t worry—there are ways to overcome peer pressure. It simply takes a little know-how to get people off your back!

Parties are a major source of peer pressure, especially with alcohol. However, remember that alcohol contains hundreds of empty calories in just one drink. When you go to a party, people might be pressuring you to have a drink and relax, and it can be difficult to say no when they are constantly trying to convince you. Instead, offer to be the designated driver. This way, people won’t want you to drink and, in fact, they will probably be purchasing you waters and maybe even helping to pay for your gas. It’s a win-win situation for everyone.

Another time when you may feel pressured to eat is at work when the boss orders lunch for everyone at a meeting or when you have to visit a client. Instead of giving in to temptation, simply politely decline the food by letting your boss know in advance or order a meal that is healthy and split the portion in half so you have a meal for tomorrow’s lunch as well.

Baby showers, weddings, birthday parties, and other special events can also wreak havoc on your diet, even if you are good at resisting temptation on your own. When someone hands you a piece of cake and won’t take no for an answer, it can be difficult to know what to say! Here, little white lies might be appropriate. For instance, saying that your stomach was upset earlier in the day will convince a person that you don’t want to eat at the moment or pretending to have a chocolate allergy will get people to allow you to enjoy the party without a hassle surrounding food.

Remember, however, that while refusing bad foods is fine, you should be eating good foods. If you do not, dangerous eating habits and disorders can develop, which will give you, your friends, and your doctor a real reason to worry. It’s ok to say no to peer pressure, but don’t say no to food in general!


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Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Why it pays to rely on nutritional supplementation

UPDATE: 11 June: BOO to BELO. BELO Broadcasting reports tonight on its KREM TV news outlet about Reglan yet makes no reference to safe B complex.
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One of the medical newsletters I receive arrived today with an article focused on the care of women who are pregnant.

The topic of the article was on treating a condition called hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) or severe nausea and vomiting during pregnancy.

The medical model of today is to offer drugs. The drugs offered in this report were metoclopramide (Reglan) plus diphenhydramine (Benadryl). Reglan has a caution for use during pregnancy. Benadryl contains aspartame which is not recommended for use in pregnancy.
May 18, 2009 — A protocol including metoclopramide plus diphenhydramine may be helpful for hyperemesis gravidarum (HG), the most severe form of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy, according to the results of a retrospective cohort study reported in the May issue of the European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biology.HG, the most severe form of nausea and vomiting of pregnancy, is intractable vomiting associated with weight loss of at least 5% of prepregnancy weight, dehydration, ketonuria, and hypokalemia. Second only to preterm labor, HG is a leading cause of hospitalization during pregnancy.

There is no gold standard for HG treatment, but droperidol (Inapsine Pregnancy: Category C: INAPSINE administered intravenously has been shown to cause a slight increase in mortality of the newborn rat at 4.4 times the upper human dose. At 44 times the upper human dose, mortality rate was comparable to that for control animals. Following intramuscular administration, increased mortality of the offspring at 1.8 times the upper human dose is attributed to CNS depression in the dams who neglected to remove placentae from their offspring. INAPSINE has not been shown to be teratogenic in animals. There are no adequate and well-controlled studies in pregnant women. INAPSINE should be used during pregnancy only if the potential benefit justifies the potential risk to the fetus.) and diphenhydramine have been used since 1998. Warnings about the cardiovascular toxicity of injectable droperidol, including QT prolongations, serious arrhythmia, and sudden death, were issued by the US Food and Drug Administration in December 2001 and subsequently by Health Canada. A new HG protocol replacing droperidol with metoclopramide has been used since June 2002 but has not previously been evaluated.
Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol. 2009:143:43-49.

Depletion of B complex vitamins in pregnancy is related to nausea and vomiting as well as HG based on nutritional research.

The use of B vitamins will resolve this issue and they do not cause risk to the fetus or the mother's health.

Our nutritional powder, RK BioBlend, has helped many people over the years with this health concern in a safe and effective manner. The B vitamins also help prevent birth defects related to many issues especially neural tube defects (Spina Bifida).

Perhaps you'd like your toast and butter spread with nutritional yeast?

How To Rapidly Build Muscle Mass The Natural Way

Many weight lifters have a difficult time gaining muscle weight and, more often than not, these same people end up gaining more body fat in the process of trying to gain muscle. Discovering the correct diet and weight lifting plan to gain lean muscle mass tends to be a difficult process for many people. Fortunately, the solution is actually much more simple than most people imagine.

Because illegal drugs like steroids tend to be readily available, many people will go after this "easy fix" forgetting the dangerous side effects that steroids often inflict upon users. Steroids are simply not the answer to gaining muscle weight fast, assuming of course that your overall health and well being is of some importance to you.

So what exactly can you do?

The answer is your workout and diet plan. Gaining lean muscle mass while minimizing body fat necessarily requires the right diet as well as the proper mix of cardio exercises and weight lifting. Most fitness enthusiasts believe that loading up on quality protein is the best solution. While protein certainly is very important, you should not fall into the trap of ignoring other vital nutrients.

Your body needs a good amount of carbohydrates in addition to vitamins A,B, and D in order to stimulate and sustain muscle growth. This being said, always make sure your carbohydrate intake does not mainly come from refined flour foods as these kinds of foods are very high in bad carbs and sugars. As an alternative, try eating whole grain past instead or even broccoli and potatoes.

While engaged in your workout routines, try using intervals to trick your body to allow more muscle development. Performing the same "5 sets of 6" will teach your body to simply cut off growth because your body will adapt to repetitive motion. As an alternative, mix up your routine by doing 2 sets of 10 one day and 4 sets of 6 the next. So long as you keep your body guessing as to what is coming next you will see much better and faster muscle gains.

Monday, May 18, 2009

How Crucial is Healthy Eating?

Fruit Salad and Spoon

Have you ever heard the saying you are what you eat? In some sense, this is true, because if you eat unhealthy foods you are prone to be an unhealthy person. The foods we ingest are extremely important to our ability to grow, maintain function, and prevent illness. Therefore, if you value your health, you should learn as much about healthy eating as possible.

Healthy eating is important from the day we are born. As a child, we grow quite rapidly and this is due in part to the foods we eat. Foods all contain nutrients that provide us not only with fuel to live our daily lives, but also with the very substances that build our bones, muscles, and organ tissues. Not getting enough of one nutrient or another can cause a variety of problems, including stunting our growth. For mothers who are nursing, nutrition is important because breast milk contains the nutrients a child needs to grow and develop properly. Upon growing older, these nutrients are then found in food, but don’t think that healthy eating isn’t important for growth after you’ve gone through puberty. Cells continuously break down and rebuild, so healthy eating for growth continues to be important until the day we die.

Healthy eating is also important for maintaining body function. In out daily lives, we use energy to think, walk, talk, breathe, and perform any other action. The energy it takes our body to do these things comes from two places: fat reserves in the body or our daily food intake. If you don’t eat healthy foods, you will find that you are storing more fat than necessary or that you aren’t getting enough and you feel sluggish or weak. Along with energy-providing nutrients, like fats and carbohydrates, we also need the right nutrients to allow our organs to do their jobs. Hormones and other substances in the body make sure that everything is working properly. If you don’t eat the right nutrients, your body cannot produce these hormones and, as a result, cannot function properly.

Lastly, healthy eating is important in order to prevent illness. When we do not get the right nutrients, our body’s natural defense system against diseases weakens, allowing viruses and bacteria to attack the body. It’s like a well-trained army—if the army doesn’t have enough to eat, it will not do well in battle. Without healthy foods and plenty of water, our bodies simply could not operate on a day-to-day basis. Learning how to eat healthy foods is therefore and important lesson, and one which we should begin learning as children.


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Organic, Natural etc - Understanding Food Labels

Organic food product

When you head to the grocery store, shopping for products like eggs, meat, fish, milk, and produce can be very tricky. Signs are posted everywhere labeling food as natural, organic, and a number of other things—but what’s the difference, really? Learning what specific names mean can help you decide if you should shell out extra money on a product or if its simply a marketing ploy.

Natural is a term associated with a number of fruit and vegetable products. Typically, this is simply a marketing ploy to convince you to buy the product. After all, all fruits and vegetables are natural, right? Unless it’s a new kind of food that has been developed and processed, the product is natural. What you really probably want is organic. Organic foods are grown without chemical pesticides and fertilizers.

There are two main benefits to organic foods. First, you are helping the environment because those chemicals are not being introduced into nature. Secondly, you are avoiding ingesting chemicals and are therefore eating more healthy foods. However, organic products are usually more expensive. If you’re on a budget, skip over organic fruits and vegetables that you can peel, like oranges and bananas. After all, once you’ve discarded the peel, you’ve also discarded the chemicals. Instead, opt for organic items like apples, where you eat the peel. No matter what you buy, however, make sure that you rinse off the food when you get home.

Another tricky label you will see is “no hormones.” This is usually in regards to milk or meat products and is false, since all animals naturally produce hormones. Hormones are what helps an animal (even a human) regulate body organs, have young, and otherwise function. All meat products have hormones. What the labels really mean is that no hormones were unnaturally given to the animal, which is sometimes done to increase milk production. Regardless of hormones, however, the milk and meat is safe for a person and not a violation of an animal’s rights.

Lastly, a label on eggs and meat can indicate if the animal was caged or penned. This does not make a difference in the quality or nutritional value of the meat, but is simply a matter of animal rights. These products may be a bit more expensive, but if you want to make human decisions, that is the way to go. Reading the label and making healthy choices can sometimes be difficult, but learning how to do so can help you make the best choices for you diet.


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