The Positive and Negative Fallout from P90X….from a grad of the program

This week, questionable company Beach Body, announced that they were in the process of creating P90X 3.  Having done and completed both P90X, P90X Plus, and P90X 2, one would think that I would be jumping at the chance to undertake a third round. This may only be a partially true assumption. While I am truly curious about what lies ahead for Tony Horton and the gang, I wanted to also look back at the impact this program has had on the those who are both inside and outside the fitness community.

Many people do not realize that this program was initially put on the market in 2004. I would say that it did not hit its real stride until a yr or two later. I was first exposed to the program in 2007, and I will share what it did for my life.  I began the program in earnest from day one. I was a pretty well-conditioned individual at that point, holding a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. I’d trained often, but my life began to get crazy (married kids, job far away) and it was limiting me to about two days per week.

P90X offered me a solution for all of this. Regardless of when I got home, I was able to use my own space, quickly change, and work out. The routines were tough, and I felt immediately, that in spite of what anyone said, I would not recommend this program to a beginner. It simply required too much base level conditioning for a sedentary person to complete. I grew to love all of the various dvd’s (except kenpo x).  P90X had allowed me to make significant gains in muscular endurance and overall cardiovascular health.

Naturally, I went on to buy just about anything that resembled this program as time moved on. I mentioned them before. I’d also completed Insanity twice. On the whole, I was a very fit person. I continued to do Beach Body programs (adding in dead lifting) until fairly recently. I have a feeling many others, like me, were able to find themselves athletically through these programs. It set me up to be an active person on a daily basis, regardless of the fact that I was starting many dvd’s at ten pm.

There came a day earlier in the year when I forced myself to stop and re-evaluate. I had been exposed to some other theories and books that started to hold a heavier influence on me. It was as if Beach Body had taken me as far as it could. I was great in the realm of their exercises and their demands, but the holes in my armor began to show themselves.

I lacked absolute strength. The kind of strength that you get by loading up a barbell and working until you are shake. I also discovered that kettle bells build a more insane core than any routine I could ever hope for. I thought I was a stud until this point. I picked up quickly, but have to admit that I felt like the new kid on the block for more than just a day here.  If anyone is looking for alternate ways to get strong, please check out http://www.dragondoor.com. I have no affiliation with them monetarily, but they offer amazing and refreshing insight into the real world of building insane strength.

In full review, P90X was a launchpad for me. I tended to stay in the comfort zone of that launchpad a bit too long, which led to a major false sense of security. They are great workouts though, and if you have not tried them, they are worth your time. Maybe they will light the same spark in you as they did for me!

Building Mass the Proper Way…my bridge to cross!

Like many people in the fitness community, I enjoy a good challenge! I was genetically given a body frame that is extremely slight for someone who is well over six feet tall. I am able to shed fat with extreme ease, but have always lacked true size. This is typically not a problem for most people, who put size on for cosmetic or pure, raw strength reasons. My case is different, as I have a Crohn’s disease diagnosis to work through, and I recently rehabbed a neck injury.

Crohn’s afflicted people are often very underweight, and will lose large percentages of their body weight when the disease flares up. Doctors fear the worst because these patients are often grossly underweight to start with, and during a serious bout…they are losing even more weight. I decided this was not going to be me. I want a bit of a cushion in the event that something goes wrong.

I began looking into an amazing book by Dan Johns called Mass Made Simple.  The exercise routines in the book and clean weight gain techniques are excellent, and this item is a steal at under ten dollars at the kindle store. Basically, each week you add a new protein/fiber source to your diet for six weeks. You also do TONS of high rep squat sequences, as doing so will aid the body in naturally releasing human growth hormone. The large size of the quad muscles is what brings this on. You also work your entire body using complexes that stress many different movements without ever putting the bar down. I also listened to some amazing eating methods from “The Mike Dolce Show”. Type that into google, listen and absorb the words of a weight/nutrition expert!

I am a very fit person, who has conquered program after program in my pursuit of better fitness. I even reached the pinnacle by earning a black belt in jiu jitsu, and I’m working on my second degree each day. Mass building was a whole new story! I could barely walk after these workouts, and I even threw up after the third workout day. This type of insane load and volume work was enough to drive me to the brink, and I love it.

It also made realize that there is no replacement for good technique. When you are on rep number 30 of a squat weight that exceeds your body weight, it better be clean. Good technique also allows you to take the most from each exercise. If you are unsure of how to do a move, watch videos, look at a pictorial progression, and read explanation. The best thing (if possible), is to have another member of the fitness community assist you.

I know this was all over the place, but I wanted to share the small piece of my journey. I’m up 5 pounds in a short period of time, and I want to try to gain ten more before this cycle is closed out. Definitely check the book out to learn more, and please give “The Mike Dolce Show” a listen. If you want help with bulking, I can let u know anything further that I know. We can go through this together!

True Motivation…not as seen on TV!

The world of fitness is truly not what the general public sees on their collective television sets each week. Hollywood has dramatized the way we view working out and the type of working out that is typically done. While this may alienate some of you, my intent is always to provide an honest assessment of what I see, and not pander to any special interests.

“The Biggest Loser” is probably my number one offender. I’m shocked that there has not been a fatal vascular incident of some type on this show. They eschew the idea of progressively breaking someone into a healthy lifestyle for the glamour of pushing a crew of highly sedentary and obese individuals to the point of danger. On top of this, one of the famed trainers loves to scream at these clients for not immediately turning into super athletes by simply stepping into her gym. This is not how professionals should act, and once again the allure of high ratings replaces the true advice on form and duration that should be given. Worst of all, are the embedded product endorsements! They openly talk about the wonderful choices at Subway, and how “good ” it is for you! This isn’t real advice, it’s recognizing your sponsor. I could think of about 100 food items that I could place ahead of Subway when making recommendations, but these so-called trainers will compromise their own knowledge for a higher paycheck.

“Celebrity Fit Club” is perhaps a bit better in a few respects, but once more the drama rises to the top, and the folks who go there in serious pursuit of weight loss are often the ones who get the least air time. I like the idea of giving the clients reachable goals, and I also appreciate the the fact that there is someone on hand who handles the mental aspect of transformation. I do feel at times though, that some of this advice is contrived or rehearsed.

There are plenty of others, but my point goes beyond all of this. How many clients do you see weight training? How many of them are smiling or enjoying the workout? How much actual training is going on? I look to the world of power lifting and see a coach like Marty Gallagher (look him up please!), who wrote a masterpiece of a book named, The Purposeful Primitive. He took five extremely obese clients, used no outside supplementation, had them eat easy-to-find normal healthy food choices, and created champions. Nearly all of them went on to place in AAU weight lifting competitions. Most of them had never done a squat in their entire lives! This is who we should see on our sets each week, but his calm and thoughtful nature don’t make for amazing shows. He has set these people up for a lifetime of amazing health.

Those within the fitness community know what the true fit life is like. My fear is that these shows have turned people off to attempting a healthier lifestyle because of their severe and over-dramatized nature. It is our charge to welcome newcomers with friendly, open arms and ensure that they are training safely and properly. Until next time, stay fit and be well!

Breathing Through the Negative…living for the positive

As I posted last time, I’m trying to heal up from an injury which can be mild torment for an athlete who has tons of time during the summer. At first, I was devastated. I had visions of my body crumbling like an old statue that has finally succumbed to the oppression that time has placed on it. Immediately after the initial shock wave of extreme pain shot through my neck, I picked up the nearest item and threw it in frustration (it was a shoe, so you can bet I looked totally ridiculous as I held my neck with one hand and tossed a shoe with the other). It seemed as if the thud made against the wall acted as some time of subconscious alarm clock. 

I began to awaken to fact that feeling angry or upset about this was not going to help me mentally or physically. As I enter my twelfth year of martial arts, I thought back to all of the mild nagging injuries that I got when I was new and ended up on the wrong side of almost every sparring session. They were like battle wounds, and gave me one more obstacle to say I had surpassed on my odyssey towards a black belt. This was going to have be treated as one of those blockades to circumnavigate. I had choices; move through this with grace or trudge through it and feel badly for myself.

I could not be more pleased to have selected the former. The next step for me was not sulking in a corner, but finding the right kind of care for my injury, and in the days that passed I worked with my new chiropractor to make significant gains. She even commented on how well my body responded to the treatment. I feel as if this was no coincidence. Our mind clearly has an impact on our physical health, which is why you see people with chronic disease suffer flare-ups during overly stressful periods of time. 

Now I have heard the sedentary folks around me comment with little barbs like “See…that’s why it doesn’t really help you to work out!” or “You could have broken your neck! See what happens when you overdo it!” I have learned that nothing I say will change people of this mindset, and err on the side of “breathing through the negativity”. I don’t need to feed a negative comment with another negative comment. That doesn’t create the environment I wish to maintain in my home. 

If I were to address these comments, it would likely remain positive in nature (although I don’t because it allows them another chance to heap on negative). I would simply state that I would take all of the injuries and all of the associated pain all over again if you gave me the choice. Exercise, fitness, and martial arts in particular have impacted my life in ways that are hard to describe in mere words. I have improved my life in pursuit of what is right for my body. I hope you liked this one. Please give me some feedback, stay fit, and be well!

Greasing the Groove…great for busy folks and rehabbing injuries!

After many years of really good luck (including 12 yrs of mma), it finally happened to me. I was in mid-dead lift and inhaled some type of dust or other similar irritant, leading to a sudden cough, which brought on a turn of my head. The shooting pain the fired through the right side of my neck dictates the rest of the story. Under a load of over 200 lbs (it was an 8-12 rep day), I had done some type of damage here.

Most of my prior injuries were deep bruises or simple muscle pulls, but this one felt structural. Those would heal with a bit of rest, this didn’t seem to be headed in that direction. After a torturous following day of work, I was diagnosed by the chiropractor. She told me I had a subluxation of my c3 and c4 vertebrae in my neck. In simple terms, things were completely misaligned now, and the muscles were seriously inflamed.

After a week of multiple visits of cracking and popping things back into place, I began to feel like I was doing a bit better. I was still shelved for martial arts for at least another ten days and from any type of full contact engagement for longer, but cleared for light exercise. It was tough to realize that I had very limited options, as weights were out of the question.

I was given a book called “The Naked Warrior” that limits its scope to body weight work. In this program, two exercises are done without a direct or concentrated time routine. Pistol squats (look them up because they’re awesome) and one arm push-ups (it’s a slow buildup to this) are the highlight movements. They require an extreme amount of full-body bracing and allow the participant to ease progressively into the exercise.

While these movements are excellent, it’s the idea of “greasing the groove”  (GTG) that really worked for me in the scenario I’m currently facing. You only focus on two moves during a two/three week cycle, which allows you to remain focused and perfect those moves. The most interesting part is found in the frequency in which these moves are done. It is recommended that you do mini-sets of no more than five reps as often as is comfortable in your daily schedule. You should attempt to get a fairly high number of mini-sets in though. This allows you to remain fresh each time you approach the moves.

I found the mini-set idea to be a great option for my neck injury. I would not be fatiguing myself. Additionally, the author is clear that it’s okay to fluctuate the amount of mini-sets done throughout a day depending upon your physical level of wellness. I am currently working on getting a better handle on the pistol squat and one arm push-up, so I did a GTG with tricep and chest dips, as well as calf raises. I wanted to steer clear of my neck, while working on areas that have been weaknesses for me.

Pavel Tsatsouline has created a great program that lets you sprinkle your reps throughout the course of your day. I highly recommend it to anyone who is transitioning between cycles, injured, or looking to learn some great body tension ideas that will help you through your everyday lifts. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop me a comment. Until then, stay safe, be well, and I’m glad to be back.

Assessing Your Goals…a main pathway to success!

As a member of the fitness community, I’m sure we’ve all heard people talk about what they wish to do with their body, and/or the current routine that they are working with. We’ve probably also seen upstarts dream big and go way too hard in the first month or two. Today’s article is going discuss the ideology behind a fitness plan, and how you should really be planning to reach the goals that you’ve laid out for yourself.

A clear objective is the first step to any exercise plan. Whether it’s adding a certain amount of weight to a specific lift, or going a further distance on runs, these flexible landmarks need to be clearly defined from the outset. I’d say the biggest stumbles that occur with objectives lies in those who create vague ones like “I want to run more” or “I want to do more pull-ups”. You can reach these kind of goals by day two if you really think about it, and since that’s not what you’re looking for, you’ll often end up lingering in the same program for far too long. This will either create imbalances or limit gains due to General Adaptation Syndrome.

The other conundrum that jumps off of the page is a goal that is totally unrealistic. Beginners are renowned for this, and it is very problematic. It often discourages the person because they continue to fall short of the goal, or it isn’t happening fast enough for them. The result usually leads to workout overload during the early weeks/months, which lends itself readily to injury. I have seen this too many times, and frequently that person ends up leaving the fitness community. They are very tough to get back as well.

I make goals like, “I would like to add 20 pounds to my deadlift”, or “I want a 3% drop in my body fat.” These are clear, and I know when I have attained them. I also can plan for success for goals such as these with clarity and understanding. If my goal is to add pounds to my deadlift, I’m not going to do that by running and doing cardio work for a majority of my time. I would have to line up accessory lifting work that traditionally benefits this lift, while allowing enough other work for my body to remain balanced. Likewise, if my goal was to reduce body fat, I better not be pounding down steaks for dinner every night and asking for dessert.

There are also going to be times when the goal is appearing further away than you wanted it to at that juncture of the workout routine. Don’t be afraid to redraft the path that you need to take to get to that objective. Sometimes we consult with someone and get some new ideas, or we see that a particular action is not bringing the rewards we anticipated it would. These things are bound to happen through your fitness career, and I find myself doing these subtle tweaks. In fact, the most successful people are the ones who set up a solid plan and are adept at knowing how and when to make the small alterations that might add up big time later.

What happens when I get to that goal? Time to reassess how you got there, and what you would do next time to extend this goal. I then begin the process of setting up an entirely new goal to reach, because fitness is a journey without an end. We just reach new and exciting landmarks along the way. Stay fit and be well!

A Review of Three In-Home Workout Programs…now you know!

We’ve all been up later in the night hours and run into a variety of infomercials for workout plans with wild before and after pictures. They promise to change your life and make you attain all of your fitness goals within some specified number of days. I want to help people make informed choices when ordering these programs, as many of them cost a decent chunk of cash. In my travels, I’ve done many of these. I’ll be giving each trainer a short review and then talking about the pros and cons.

P90X – This 90 day system is perhaps the most successful workout dvd set in modern history, earning $420 million dollars in its tenure to this point. That is an astounding number, and main trainer Tony Horton has become a recognizable figure in the fitness industry since its release. As a trainer, I found him to be positive and encouraging. He does a vast majority of the exercises with the group, and explains each exercise in an acceptable level of detail. People sometimes complain that he makes untimely jokes or patronizes the others on his set. While I’ve heard this from P90X grads, it never jumped out at me.

Pros – This program, when followed correctly, will get you in outstanding shape. The main focus is on body weight exercises with some light weights or bands sprinkled into the workouts.  The workouts last about an hour each, and are planned immaculately. The layout of the program is clear and direct. I also appreciate that you change things up after about each month and do a recovery week. This periodization is key for making gains and preventing general adaptation syndrome. I left this program after my 90 days in far better physical condition than I began with. I was a bit stronger, and had tons more muscular endurance.

Cons – This is not for beginners although they tell you it could be. I cannot imagine a non-athlete attempting to adhere to this plan for 90 days. The workouts are rather demanding, especially when you first begin the program. I’m a martial artist and I found the Kenpo X workout to be rather awful. It was a weird amalgam of moves, and Tony looked a bit lost during all of it. I found myself skipping it to do something else most of the time.

I would give this one a go if you have a foot in the athletic world and want some new challenges.

Insanity – This was another huge seller, and its advertising is even more aggressive than the aforementioned program. It’s hard to find flaws with Shaun T. as a trainer. He is professional, motivating, and does nearly every minute of every DVD with the huge crew he has around him. He tells you why certain moves are in the workouts, and stresses the importance of warm-ups and stretching. This program runs for 60 days.

Pros – Insanity got my cardio level to new highs, shattering my old notions of how long I could sustain myself during intense physical exercise. I like the fact that there were people on the videos who took breaks, which let me know that a minute of rest was not the end of the world in such a physically demanding set of workouts. The focus on plyometrics also helped my explosive power and I got to work both fast and slow twitch muscle fibers. This program really ramps up after the first 30 days, and you truly see what you’re made of.

Cons – This is another one that would be tough for a beginner. These workouts are intense, and I know a few people (myself included) who sustained some type of injury doing them. I also know people who complained of foot pain from the persistent impact with the ground. It’s also fairly expensive for a program that only runs for the equivalent of two months. I would not have minded a bit more upper body work either.

If you need cardio or are looking to slim down a bit, this might be the one for you. If you want to sculpt a physique and lift heavy objects, you should pass.

Metamorphosis – Tracy Anderson comes across as a polished version of a hippie girl. It’s a weird contrast that she manages to make work for her. She is professional and succinct in what she is doing, but can have a tendency to remain too quiet at times. I am going to disclose that this review is based on feedback from a few people I had contacted who own this program, not my own experience.

Pros- The striking part of these DVD’s is how they tailor themselves to your goals. You basically pick what kind of workout setup you want because of this. Instead of the one-size-fits-all approach that was presented in the first two programs, this one attempts to personalize a bit more. It’s tough to find other programs that offer this type of thing.

Cons- Ok, so I got to view a few of these, and I was a little shocked. The movement patterns are bizarre and don’t follow any type of traditional muscular training approach. To a layman, it would appear as if she is basically flailing her arms around for an hour and then stopping. I would guess that she is trying to work small muscle groups. I could see how a start-up exerciser could hang with these DVD’s but I also don’t really know what they would gain either.

This was a little too out there for me. There are better programs or classes that would help you see improvements faster.

There you have it everyone! Stay fit and be well!

Crushing the Plateau…pushing new limits safely

The word “plateau” strikes fear into the hearts of members of the fitness community. When we plateau, we have hit a point where gains are either coming slowly, or have ceased to occur at all. It can weigh heavily on us both physically and mentally. There is a barrier between us and the short (or long) term goals that we hope to reach.  I hope to offer tips on working through these daunting periods of time. I’ve been there and it can be difficult.

Take a few days off. It’s not uncommon for someone who is extremely devoted to exercise to be in an “overtrained” state. The body is worn down and the central nervous system can actually become sluggish because of the considerable amount of repeated similar movements. It’s quite impressive what a bit of rest can do for someone.

Add in a bit more cardio. If you are doing heavy lifting as your primary modality of exercise, this can take its toll. I’ve done cycles of very heavy weight lifting, and sometimes I found that the answer was simple. I was fatiguing late in my workouts, thus affecting the outcome of each lift. I added some cardio in place of the final set of these lifts and I felt as if the rut began to dissipate. My body was able to maintain a steadier heart rate throughout the exercise, and it was easier.

Try some kettle bells. Kettle bells are very useful items in the world of both strength and endurance training. Adding a kettle bell swing and/or snatch to your workouts can help open your hips and, increase your grip strength. I also like figure eights, as they strengthen many stabilizer muscles that can help you reach your peak. These have been a savior for me over the years.

Change your diet. Sometimes, our exercise commitment outweighs our will power when it comes to eating. The food you eat is the fuel for your body, and it can truly set the tone for the level of success that you attain when working out. Eating cleaner will definitely reap many positive benefits. For more advice on nutrition, check out the “healthy eating” section of my blog.

I’d like to wrap things up by reminding you that this is a journey without a defined destination. Fitness is a process that we develop over our lifetimes, and we must stay with that process at all times. Work through your plateaus and you will take even more pride in what you have been able to accomplish!

Muscle Imbalances… Potential Danger

Muscle imbalance is a problem that arises of a variety of causesThere are many times that society puts people into tough situations that they might never have seen coming. People see a certain image of fitness, and only work the muscle groups that they associate with these images. Other times, it’s simply being a bit overly comfortable in your routine, and liking “what I’m good at”. While it’s excellent that you might have found your niche in the workout world, it’s often the things that we find the hardest that highlight the parts of our body that need the most work. In rarer cases, people will work a specific motion purposely for short burst and then cycle on to another movement pattern, and this is less problematic.

In my observations, legs and the act of actually working them out is a lost art among some folks at the gym. Now I’m aware that they aren’t the glamour muscles, but they are every bit as vital to your fitness and balance as your upper body. It’s not uncommon though, to see someone who is extremely underdeveloped in his/her lower body area, and totally ripped on his/her upper half. This is putting tons of stress on the joints of the leg, and will likely create endurance issues when performing cardio work. Also, as that person ages balance will become more rapidly declined (balance is the first key physical element to degrade in most people)

I can go over various types of imbalance, but I’m better off helping you never have to deal with this trouble in the first place. If you can set up a workout schedule that includes the vital elements of an balanced system, you will be many steps ahead of  the person who doesn’t. The word of today is “egalitarianism”. Look it up because it’s a cool word w/ a simple meaning. Here are some guidelines in no specific order about balancing out a routine.

Have at least one day dedicated to total body work. There are two main reasons for this, and they are quite simple. The first is that you will hit nearly every area at least once in a week, thus lessening the imbalance that can occur. The second is one that people tend to overlook. If you do a full-body routine and really struggle with one or two areas of that workout, take some time to assess whether or not these areas prevalent enough in your weekly/monthly regimen.

Think “Push/Pull” for upper body work. Let’s assume that you actually work your legs. You may be working on one plane of motion far more than the other. People who do excessive benching and overhead pressing (I love them too so calm down), may not be as proficient with deadlifts and pull-ups. Many fitness gurus will be very upfront about the fact that each time you are doing a pulling motion in that workout, it will be followed by a pushing one.

Don’t forget cardio/strength! There is a clear line of demarcation for females and males here. In general, males tend to overemphasize strength training, and females tend to overemphasize cardio training. I have run into many more females who life recently, but a vast majority avoid it. Many are afraid of appearing masculine in their build, The American Council for Exercise did extensive amounts of research that concluded that most females do not possess high enough levels of testosterone for that to ever occur. Guys, your muscle won’t shrink if you run a few times a week.

Change things up. The more we refine and evaluate what we are doing, the better it becomes. Don’t be afraid to take cues from the better in-home programs that are out there. I’ll be posting about the best of those very soon. The good ones are set up with a decent amount of balance.

Those are just a few ways to make sure you are doing what is best for your body each time out. I’m off now to do my UML (upper, middle, lower) workout ironically enough. Be fit, stay well, and take care!

False Advertising… fakers in the world of healthy eating.

Nutella – The claim in their ads that it’s “Good for kids” has always made me somewhat infuriated. I’ve even heard the term repeated about this product by a co-worker, and I had to just shake my head and walk away. Let’s take a look at the ingredient label first, and the very first one on the list is sugar. Simply stated, this mess is more sugar than anything else. Now let’s get to that “nutritional goodness” that people just love… 4% of your RDA for calcium and iron. I can imagine how biologically unavailable it is too, considering the sugar content. Wow, what a great deal! 21 grams of sugar in two teaspoons and 4% of my RDA! This glorified candy spread needs to stop attempting to march around as a health food.

“Baked!” Chips – Yes, it sounded too good to be true; chips that you could eat without a hint of guilt because they weren’t the fried little patrons of unhealthiness that preceded them. I’m going to use Baked Doritos as the example here because this junk doesn’t deserve an individual review for each product in the line. After giving these a closer look, you may be safer eating baked cardboard than Baked Doritos. These are bereft of nutrition, and has no more than 6% of the recommended RDA for any nutrients that it claims to have. Now let’s look at what this product does have. It’s a fine amalgam of GMO corn, inflammation-producing oils, and monosodium glutamate. Add the dairy products to this equation and you realize that this product is a monster in disguise. Find some organic tortillas and bake them in the oven to make your own version of these… and this method actually might be healthy!

Subway Sandwiches – Yes folks, I apologize for ruining this one for all of you, but I’m here to inform and help us all out. Sodium is the Achilles heel of this franchise, and allow me to spend a few lines reflecting upon the power of too much sodium in one’s diet. First, the bones are impacted terribly. The average person who consumed too much salt on a regular basis loses 2.5% of their skeleton yearly. In a decade, you are down 25%! Additionally, salt bombs like Subway sandwiches can affect cellular health. Each cell has an electric charge that keeps it going strong. This charge is literally sliced in half when a person overloads themselves with high sodium products. The heart effects are also well-documented. Well, how much sodium are we talking about here? Roughly four meals worth! Also, one must look at the “meat” that is served here. It is all highly processed, and one needs to look no further than the “chicken” to note that it all looks the same. This is because the patties are pressed together, carrageen (a problematic filler) is added, and we get those lovely grill lines (although there is no grill on premises). Fast food is still fast food, no matter where you go!

Fruit Juices – I think that bottled fruit juice falls under the heading of “glorified sugar water”. World-renowned fitness expert Mike Dolce is one of the leaders in lashing out against these juices. He has made frequent mention to the idea that freshly created juices from fruits and vegetables in the home last under one day. He creates his own juices daily and runs into this issue frequently. Additionally, there are many juices that are completely loaded with high fructose corn syrup. Juice provides you with the flavor of the fruit or vegetable, but none of the benefits. The fiber that is present when you blend at home is removed, and the added sugars render the nutrients biologically unavailable.

The underlying point is summed up well by early fitness guru Jack Lalane. “If man made it, don’t eat it!” I’ll be dedicating a post to him soon, but his theory holds true. Natural fruits and vegetables are never a bad bet. Raw nuts and seeds are another snack choice that is likely to include far less hidden ingredients. I won’t enter the meat debate at this time, but that’s beyond the point. Watch yourself if you plan on eating healthy and you have to open some type of package to get to your food.There are better ways to stay full.Until next time… be fit and be well!