Amino of the week; Arginine;

As you may know, arginine is the main ingredient in almost every nitric oxide, (NO), supplement on the market today. Arginine is readily converted in the body to NO, which regulates muscle growth, as well as dilates blood vessels. The last function helps to increase blood flow to the muscles, which results in the delivery of more blood to the muscles along with more oxygen, nutrients, and anabolic hormones, as well as bigger muscle pumps. Arginine is also effective in boosting growth hormone,(GH), levels, critical for stimulating muscle growth.
Arginine is not an essential amino acid, meaning the body can make this amino if it needs it, but it is vital to good health. Studies show that arginine is useful in lowering blood pressure and treating erectile dysfunction in men and may increase the effectiveness of viagra, to name only a couple of the numerous findings that have been shown when supplementing with arginine.
I usually take gaspari nutrition's superpump pre-workout to get all the effects of nitric oxide that i am looking for as well as a little kick to get me through my grueling workouts. To try and get the same effects with arginine alone would require swallowing a lot of arginine capsules without the added benefits of the peripheral nutrients in the already made pre-workout powder, easy to drink quickly, before i workout. If you plan on supplementing with arginine before going to sleep, i would recommend getting a supplement with arginine and ornithine, taken on an empty stomach before going to sleep to help boost growth hormone output while sleeping. Although everyone is different, i would take it for at least two weeks before expecting any noticeable results and to keep supplementing with this pair of aminos for a little while.

Mineral corner; Iron;

Iron is an essential element involved in the production of hemoglobin, the oxygen-transport protein in the blood. Iron deficiency is associated with anemia and plummer-vinson syndrome, an abnormal growth in the esophagus.
Iron helps in body growth, preventing fatigue and helps to safeguard the body from disease. Iron is especially important to women, for in one month, women lose almost twice as much iron as men! Iron is one of the major dietary deficiencies of american women today! Iron is also a helper mineral, meaning it helps the body better utilize the B-vitamins. Always be careful with iron as it is toxic when taken in very high doses within the body. If you are already taking a multi-vitamin with iron, there is, in most cases, not a need for you to supplement with a singular iron supplement, unless you are otherwise prescribed to do so by your health care professional.

Minerals;

Did you know that just about all of the minerals found in nature are found in our bodies?That's why it's imprtant to make sure we get a constant supply. Minerals are vital to human life, without them the body could not function in a healthful state. Minerals are inorganic substances that the body cannot make, there are fifteen or more minerals that experts believe are important to your health. Minerals work in partnership with vitamins in helping vitamins get to where they are needed faster,vitamins also do the same for minerals. Even though minerals make up a small part of the body's actual weight, they are essential to life. Minerals are important for pretecting our cells and in helping to keep bones, teeth, and skin in a healthy state. Mierals also play an important role in blood pressure, heart regulation, wound healing, muscle functions, proper body fluid balance, the reproductive system, plus much more.
Alcohol, smoking, the cooking of vegetables, meats, etc.. and processed foods can rob the body of these vital minerals, they then must be replaced through the foods we eat or by taking a supplement with all of the important minerals and vitamins included in it.

Vitamin corner;Vitamin E;

Vitamin E helps promote healthy circulation, promotes red blood cells and is believed to act as a protector against environmental pollutants. The list of benefits for vitamin E goes on and on! Vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin which means the body can store it and it doesn't get "washed" away as easily as a water soluble vitamin such as vitamin C! This vitamin is essential to our health. It protects red blood cells and is important to the skin, our reproductive organs and our muscles. Birth control pills, mineral oil, alcohol, air pollution and chlorinated drinking water can possibly deplete vitamin E in the body. Vitamin E is also known as an antioxidant which helps protect the body from free radicals known to form in the body from not only the forementioned reasons but also from working out.
Also, there are two forms of vitamin E: Natural E (called D-alpha) and man made vitamin E ( dl-alpha). Although man-made vitamin E is less expensive to create, the natural form of the vitamin appears to remain in the body longer.

Amino of the week; Creatine;

Typically creatine is not considered an amino acid by most who workout out and most are surprised to learn that creatine is made up of several amino acids, arginine, glycine and methionine. So technically it's an amino acid supplement, not an individual amino acid. Taking creatine before workouts helps keep your muscles saturated with creatine, producing the rapid energy your muscles need to perform rep after rep in the gym. It also makes muscles stronger by pulling more water into the muscle cells, which gives them a biomechanical advantage, helping you lift more weight or squeeze out an extra rep or two. For best results, take a dose of creatine after you work out. This will help to replenish your levels of creatine in the muscles and maximize growth.
I usually take a preworkout mixture of two grams of creatine and some "potion" of nitric oxide to rev up my muscles for the grueling workout ahead. Afterwards, i usually take another 3 to 5 grams of creatine malate or another form, due to the fact that i have a reaction to creatine monohydrate, for some unknown reason, it goes through my system post haste!
In a future entry i will show you what i take pre and post workout to give you a better picture of my supplement program and this will bring this whole series of amino of the week and the previous entry about the many different kinds of proteins, all together to enable you to set up your own pre and post workout supplementation program, to hopefully help you get the most from all of your training!

44 fat fighting super foods for women;

I found this article in my wife's e-mail from fitnessmagazine.com and found it to be quite intresting regarding women and a new take on some new research, as to what factors relate to women, weight gain and what they might be able to do about it.

44 Fat-Fighting Super Foods: The Secret Diet of Slim Women
Some women seem to eat everything they want and still lose weight. Here's how they do it -- and how you can, too. Plus, the 44 super foods that fight fat.
By Sara Wells



Pages in this Story:
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Slim Women's Secret Diet

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44 Super Foods That Fight Fat

Slim Women's Secret Diet
The reason you can't ditch those extra pounds? Your body may be working against you. According to new research, inflammation, a condition in which your immune system is kicked into overdrive, may lead to weight gain and make losing more difficult. Doctors think inflammation interferes with leptin, a hormone that helps control appetite and metabolism. "In a normal-weight person, when body fat increases, leptin levels rise, which signals the brain that it needs to speed up metabolism and decrease appetite," explains Leo Galland, MD, director of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine in New York City and author of The Fat Resistance Diet. "But in heavy people, that message gets lost, and the body can't regulate its fat stores."
Inflammation is caused by a number of factors, including stress, lack of exercise, and exposure to toxins, and it contributes to medical problems such as heart disease and arthritis. But the foods you eat, especially a diet high in saturated and trans fats, sugar, and red meat, can also trigger it.
• The Anti-Inflammation Diet >>
The simple solution, says Dr. Galland, is the Fat Resistance Diet: Eat super foods, such as apples, almonds, bell peppers, salmon, and egg whites, that act as natural forms of ibuprofen, helping to stop inflammation. Some pretty convincing evidence that his plan works: On this diet, people have achieved their optimal weight, losing as much as 100 pounds. A number of Dr. Galland's patients have kept the weight off for up to 20 years. "It's all about consuming the right foods and enjoying what you're eating," says Dr. Galland. You'll be amazed by what you can eat on this plan. This delicious dessert recipe is just a taste of what we mean. Dig in!
• Black Forest Banana Split Recipe >>
Continued: 44 Super Foods That Fight Fat >>

Yogurt, good for the gut!;

I found this article while surfing through the yahoo.com health page and thought it might be of some intrest to those of you that are health conscious.

Get Healthy Bugs with Yogurt
Posted by Cheryl Koch, M.S., R.D.
on Fri, Jul 06, 2007, 5:44 pm PDT
Post a Comment View all 7 Comments »
This week, my husband offered to make the weekly trip to the grocery store. In addition to our usual staples, he brought home a surprise for me: a widely advertised yogurt.
He explained that the product had been on sale and that he had remembered seeing a TV advertisement claiming that this type of yogurt was good for digestive health — so why not give it a try?
What he was referring to was the claim that Bifidus regularis, a type of bacteria that is being added to one brand of yogurt, can decrease intestinal transit time — the time it takes for food to move through the intestine — by improving digestive regularity.
While you may be alarmed to learn that bacteria are being added to your yogurt, most yogurts do in fact contain bacteria cultures, such as Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Streptococcus thermophilus, and Lactobacillus acidophilus.
These bacteria are what cause the natural sugars to ferment and produce the acids that give yogurt its characteristic taste. In addition, once inside us, the bacteria help us strike a balance in the gut between the healthy, naturally occurring bugs and the bad bacteria that can lead to food poisoning.
What I needed to explain to my husband was that regardless of the claims of this specific product to improve our digestive health, all types of yogurt can benefit your diet and your intestinal health.
Yogurt is a source of protein, with at least eight grams of it in every eight-ounce serving. It is also a great source of calcium, riboflavin, B12, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium. Remember to opt for non-fat or low-fat yogurt to help reduce the calories and fat in each serving.

Injury update;

Well, its been over two months since my operation and i am getting back to normal, in life as well as the gym. Under doctor's orders, i am unable to go heavy with my upper body just yet, and probably won't be going heavy over the next two months or so. I have, however, been going pretty heavy with my lower body, to a point of course, due to the fact that i need to use my arms to hold myself down on heavy leg presses and it is still a bit of a strain on my biceps to reach back while doing squats. With all that aside, i am still going to the gym nonetheless and am able to stay in shape. This coming week will be the first week in the gym where i will be able to do biceps exercises, the doctor advised against any direct bicep work until enough time had passed to be sure that the healing process had taken place to a certain degree. Of course, i will be going light and i will work my way back to where i was pre-injury in no time. Muscle has memory and it will quickly return to where it was and it is up to me to take it that much further this time to be able to avoid another mishap. This time i guess i have to take my own advice and train a little harder but much smarter. I will keep you posted on my progress and my return to the competitive powerlifting world. With a little luck and a lot of hard work, i will be able to compete in early two thousand and eight, as for now that is subject to change, until then just remember to train hard and smart and so will i!!!

Vitamins and Minerals;

Recently i've added two new entries to this blog as ongoing series that cover vitamins and minerals. Vitamins and minerals work synergisticly, meaning that they work better when taken as a group, together. Most vitamins and minerals need other vitamins and minerals to be readily absorbed by the body. So, even though i write about each one seperately, it is much wiser to take all of these vitamins and minerals together several times throughout the day with say, breakfast, lunch and dinner. This is where a simple multi vitamin and mineral capsule comes in handy. The vitamin shoppe sells a multi with everything included and i take it three times throughout the day with the fore mentioned meals.This keeps a steady supply of the water soluble vitamins in the system and allows me to get an intake of fat soluble vitamins in even doses throughout the day to reach my proper intake by dinner without over doing it. I write about each individual vitamin and mineral to allow you to see the importance of each and to stress the point of getting these important nutrients into your system on a daily basis. I am not one to take anything without first researching the things i am about to put into my body and i am intrested in finding out what it will do for me. I carefully plan out my meals and try to give my body the best nutrients from food and supplements in hopes that it will translate to better workouts in the gym. I hope the little insight that i give you about each vitamin and mineral and amino, helps you plan a more vital role for your own life, not only to give you better workouts, but a better and longer life in the future.

Mineral corner; Calcium;

This mineral is vital to our health as 99% of all calcium in our bodies is found in our bones. A lack of it can lead to loss of height, teeth, back pain, and weak porous bones that can crack or break. The simple fact is that if the body does not get the calcium it needs, it can begin to draw away vital calcium already stored in the bones. The result can be that bones become brittle, weak and can break easily. As the body matures, the demand for calcium increases, making calcium particularly vital. It's not only important for bones to get proper amounts of calcium, but all vital functions depend on it. Calcium helps the body utilize iron and the passage of nutrients in and out of cells. Stress, lack of exercise, antibiotics, aspirin, mineral oil, excess intake of fats and other factors can leave you short of calcium. Calcium in an essential mineral for a healthy body.

Amino of the week; BCAA'S;

The number one amino acid on our journey of this series of amino's of the week is actually a group of three that are the most important amino acids for the manufacture, maintenance and repair of muscle tissue. Branched chain amino acids include leucine, isoleucine and valine. Of the three , leucine appears to be the MVP. Research shows on this single bcaa that it can stimulate protein synthesis(the process in muscle cells that builds up muscle protein and therefore creates muscle growth). Yet, the three work even better together to provide a host of benefits. They stimulate protein synthesis, boost insulin release, and stimulate muscle growth and drive nutrients such as glucose and creatine into muscle cells. They also block cortisol, a catabolic hormone that blocks testosterone's anabolic effects and leads to increased muscle breakdown. Bcaa's also decrease delayed onset muscle soreness or DOMS.
Dosage; I always take 3 to 5 grams of BCAA's 30 minutes before and immediately following my workouts.

Sleep less; Weigh more;

Is there an effortless way to lose weight? Yes. It's called sleep! At least three major studies link a lack of sleep to increased weight. In one, men in their twenties who on two consecutive nights got only four hours of sleep reported having increased appetites. In another study of more than 40,000 adults and children, those who were sleep deprived had almost twice the risk of obesity.
The connection? One theory: When you're sleepy, you produce more of an appetite-stimulating hormone called ghrelin and less of the hormone leptin, which lets the brain know when you are full. The result? You feel hungry all the time and don't know when you've had enough. Also, when you get less sleep, you make less human growth hormone, which burns fat and helps build muscles. The body sees undersleeping as a stressor, so it produces more of the stress hormone cortisol, which contributes to weight gain. So get those ZZZ's and lose those pounds!