One issue that relates to both fat loss food and muscle building food that anyone who’s interested in changing their body composition should know is the difference between liver glycogen and muscle glycogen. Some people may not even know what the word ‘glycogen’ refers to so it’s important to get that figured out right off the bat before moving forward.
Glycogen is essentially the storage form of carbohydrates in the body. Whether you’re taking in starchy carbohydrate molecules or simple sugar molecules, these will get broken down into glucose in the body and then sent to various tissues for storage. When it’s in that storage form, it’s referred to as glycogen.
Now, let’s look at the differences between liver and muscle glycogen.
Muscle Glycogen
As the name suggests, muscle glycogen is going to be the storage place for carbohydrates in the muscle cells. How much muscle glycogen storage you have is going to be in direct relationship with how much lean muscle tissue you have.
In addition to that, how quickly you deplete this muscle glycogen will be determined by the intensity, duration, and frequency of physical activity you perform, with those who are much more active depleting it much more quickly.
Essentially, the more storage of muscle glycogen you have and the faster you deplete it, the more carbohydrates you can eat without risking them begin converted into body fat.
Liver Glycogen
On the other hand, liver glycogen is going to be the storage form of carbohydrates in the liver. Unfortunately unlike your muscle glycogen, its storage capacity is much more limited at about 50 grams per day for the average individual.
If more carbohydrates come into the body over and above this and they are not needed for direct energy, they will then get converted into body fat.
The Key Difference
Now, the key difference to remember is that the liver glycogen is made up of fructose molecules while the muscle glycogen is made up of glucose molecules. This then can clearly illustrate to you what happens when you eat certain types of foods. Read the rest of this entry »
Whether you are gaining, maintaining or leaning – Christmas and New Year can throw a spanner in the works. Here’s a few tips to help you maintain the results of your hard work over the year – without feeling like you have to deprive yourself!
Stick to your Routine & Control your Portion Sizes
Your body is used to a routine, so to stick to it as much as possible. Try to keep your 5-6 meals a day around the same size. This is a huge factor in not over eating all the tempting extras full of sugar, salt and fat (pretzels, chocolate covered nuts, chips – you know the deal). And if you are thinking of skipping a meal to make up for over eating – don’t! Not only will it slow your metabolism but research shows we will tend to snack more prior to the next meal which leads to more over eating. Scientists call this the “dis-inhibition effect” which simply means, if you start hoeing into your Mum’s homemade dip and corn chips 1 hour before dinner (because you are starving) then restraint goes out the window and by the time you sit down to eat yes – aka a gorged Christmas belly.
The same goes for portion sizes – just because everyone is piling their plate high doesn’t mean you have to. Imagine if you ate everything you wanted to over the holidays but cut the portion sizes back by 1/3. The cumulative effect over a meal, a day and your whole holiday means a huge reduction in unhealthy calories!
Maintain your Protein Intake as a high % of your Overall Calories
Try to include some protein at every meal (you know why) but also keep an eye on your intake relative to your total calories. Don’t cut back on protein just because you had that extra piece of German Chocolate Cake last night
Avoid Mindless Eating
I use the traffic light technique to help me choose nutritionally dense foods when eating outside of my regular environment. Red light foods are those with hidden sugar, salt and fat like processed foods, sauces, dips and desserts. I stop and think, am I really hungry, do I really want it, what could I eat instead, and is it worth the calories? Yellow light foods are those that are maybe OK but I need to do a second take, just to make sure (baked goods and some “health foods” for example). And green light foods are fruits, vegetables, low fat dairy, unprocessed foods and lean protein.
Don’t Drink your Calories and Watch Out for Alcohol
It’s very easy to drink an extra 400 to 500 of nutritionally empty calories a day, especially over the holidays. If you cut back on liquid calories then you have more room to indulge a little with your favorite foods. We all know alcohol slows down our metabolism so we are more likely to store excess calories as fat. And it decreases our inhibitions so we tend to eat more. Not only that – working out the next day sucks. So, pace yourself and if possible choose red wine, preferably Australian
What if you are hung over?
Yes it happens to the best of us! Try my fresh juice remedy below. Alcohol, starchy carbohydrates, sugar and high fat diary all create acidity. This juice helps alkalinize your body and is a natural detoxifier. It contains vitamins A, C, B, potassium, iron, calcium and magnesium and is high in fiber.
Belinda’s Fresh Juice Remedy for Post Alcohol Mornings
Ingredients:
Juice of 1 grapefruit
Juice of 2 oranges
2 spinach leaves
1 cup chopped papaya, mango or red grapes
1 slice of pineapple, watermelon or melon
Instructions:
Place all ingredients in blender, liquefy and serve immediately. Drink first thing in the morning then make sure you have plenty of water during the day.
What to Cook!
If you’re the one doing the cooking during the holidays, you will have a lot more control over the ingredients and how meals are cooked. OK fine, but most of the holiday recipes are loaded with sugar, salt and fat. With a little effort your favorite traditional special-occasion recipes can be “cleaned up” just by swapping whole grains for refined ones, choosing low-fat dairy products, and Stevia instead of sugar. To make it easy, I have put together my Celebration Cookbook which contains over 100 recipes that are super healthy and loaded with flavor. I’ve also included full menus for all special occasions (including Christmas) and shopping lists – so all you have to do is cook and eat!
Now, Dave has asked me to do something extra special for you this for Christmas. So together we have put together an awesome package to help you stay on track with your physique goals through the holidays AND eat, drink and be merry!
If there’s one supplement that you absolutely cannot miss out on with your diet plan it’s essential fatty acids, otherwise referred to as EFA’s. More and more people are starting to realize the importance of taking in EFA’s daily, but yet there are still some individuals who have yet to wise up to this and start including them in their plan.
Let’s give you a brief run-down of what EFA’s are all about and why you must start taking them so you can clearly see how important they are regardless of what your current fitness goal is.
What Are EFA’s?
Essential fatty acids are a polyunsaturated fatty acid that is classified as one of the essential nutrients of the body. This means that without taking it in from an outside source, your body would be unable to produce it on its own, meaning that you’d slowly become deficient.
Essential fatty acids are a very good form of fat that the body needs in order to function properly and will be the precursor to a number of other fatty acids that get synthesized in the body as well as a variety of different hormones that are required to keep up with your hard workouts and maintain overall good health.
The two main EFA’s that you’ll hear the most about include Omega-3 or ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) as well as Omega-6 or LA (linoleic acid)
What Are The Benefits of EFA’s?
So why should you be taking in EFA’s? What are the benefits to you?
A better question might be what aren’t you going to get from regularly including this in your diet. EFA’s support so many different body processes that it doesn’t matter who you are, you will benefit from them.
Some of the major benefits that you’ll get from EFA’s include enhanced metabolic functioning, improved overall energy levels, a greater degree of sensitivity to insulin (which allows the body to utilize carbohydrates better), lowered levels of blood pressure, improved brain function, enhanced mood, better stamina and endurance, improved production of hormones including muscle building testosterone, and the enhancement of the skin, hair, and nails.
As you can see, the benefits are extremely plentiful so it would be a big mistake to miss out on this important nutrient. I ALWAYS supplement with EFA, both off-season and when I’m dieting.
How Much EFA’s Should You Be Taking?
While you can get some EFA’s from food sources such as walnuts, flaxseeds, and fatty fish, most people are not getting nearly enough through their food intake and often not in the right proportions. That’s why adding the supplement makes things easy.
All you have to do is take a few capsules each and every day and you can rest assured that you’re going to get the powerful benefits that these have to offer.
Most people will do best aiming for 3-6 grams of EFA’s per day.
So make sure you’re not overlooking this powerful supplement. It may not have quite the hype that some others do, but rest assured that it will make a big difference on your overall progress.
To celebrate Halloween Prograde are putting ALL of the awesome Prograde products on sale at 13% off!
Simply use the coupon code SCARY13 at checkout.
Well, 1 week left to this mini 4 week ”diet”… fat loss as slowed down this week as I anticipated (my numbers usually always slow down on the 3rd week), but still lost 1 lbs…
This week, I’m gonna tweek the diet by reducing my stachy carbohydrates intake and bump my fibrous carbs intake. In other words, I’ll have most of my carbs coming from veggies and fruits… a strategy that works well for me when it comes to burn body fat…
When I diet for a bodybuilding show, I like to gradually cut down my carbs coming from foods like patmeal, potatoes, whole grains, etc… and gradually switch to carbs coming from fruits and veggies sources only…
2 weeks down, 2 to go… and another 2lbs of bodyfat lost! Last week went really well once again.
Energy levels are great, it more than likely due the carbohydrates I kept in my meal plan, a bit higher than I usually do when I ”diet” for a bodybuilding show for example.
I also don’t have any cravings or anything, which is a good sign too.
You will find below my complete meal plan that I’ll be using for week 2 of my 4-week pre-vegas ‘’diet’’.
Last week went really well… dropped 3 lbs, and I had an unplanned cheat meal on sunday. I was planning on not having a cheat meal this week (I like to start my diets with 2 weeks of 100% clean eating before introducing my usual weekly cheat meal).
If you’ve been following this meal plan, you can allow yourself 1 cheat MEAL next weekend (I won’t as I cheated last week).
50+ comments by Wednesday night and I’ll reveal a brand new video of my best snack recipe ever… and if I get these 50 comments, I also promise to add it to next week’s meal plan… you’ll thank later
You will find below my complete meal plan that I’ll be using for week 1 of my 4-week pre-vegas ‘’diet’’. In fact, in exactly 4-weeks Karine and I will be in Las Vegas with my good friends and top fitness coaches Vince DelMonte, Lee Hayward, Mike Westerdal, Adam Steer, Dr.K, Joel Marion, etc…
We’ll be in Vegas for fitness related meetings and also to go see the Mr.Olympia competition. So needless to say I want to look my best when I’m there
I’ll modify my diet every week. If you plan on fallowing a fat loss diet, it’s probably a good idea to give this one a try and learn from it.
1. Your first meal should occur within 30 minutes of waking up time., or after cardio if you decide to do your cardio on an empty stomach forst thing in the morning
2. All meals should be spaced out 2-3 hours apart. It does not matter if your last meal is at the wee hours in the morning, you must consume all the meals on the plan.
3. Always have a meal 1 hour before working out.
4. If you happen to miss a meal, replace it by a protein shake. Therefore, always carry an extra protein shake, ready to drink. This ensures you reach your daily total calories and macronutrient needs.
5. If you cannot follow the meal plan for whatever reason, try and substitute with foods that are as close in nutrition as the ones listed. You will still get similar results if you do so.
6. Drink at least 3 Litres of water a day
7. You can also use:
· Any Calorie-Free Sauce or Low-Cal Sauce (i.e. not more than 5 calories per tbsp)
· Franks Red Hot Sauce
· Dijon Mustard
· Apple Cider Vinegar (For Salads)
· You can also use Stevia as sweetener (Splenda is fine too).
How to tweak it:
Don’t make it too complicated. Normal expectations for this meal plan are to lose about 2 lbs of body fat a week.
I’m about 240 lbs right now, at 12% body fat. Men over 200lbs can use the same diet plan.
Men under 200 lbs : consume 3/4 of what is listed on this diet
Women: Consume 1/2 of what is listed on this diet plan
50+ comments by Wednesday night and I’ll reveal the Fat Burning workout I’m going to use for the next 4 weeks! Deal?
This is a very simple recipe that will make any fat loss
meal plan a lot easier to follow!
It’s super easy to prepare. It will take you about 2-3 minutes to prepare and only requires 15 minutes of baking time.
But be careful, just like some of my other recipes, these nuggets are highly addictive, and their flavor will put to shame these greasy disgusting McDonald’s ultra fat nugget!
Here’s the recipe!… and make sure to leave your comment below! I want to know what your think
about these awesome Baked Crispy Chicken Nuggets!
Makes 6 Servings
Ingredients
- 3 x 6oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup oat bran
- 1/4 cup of wheat germ
- 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed
- 1/4 cup ground almonds
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- Garlic powder (pinch)
- 1/2 cup water or low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 large egg white
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 Degrees F. Prepare baking sheet by lining with parchment paper or coating lightly with best-quality olive oil.
2. Cut chicken breasts into nugget-sized pieces, about 1.5 inches square. Set aside.
3. Next, combine all dry ingredients in a large container with a tightly fitting lid. Shake well. This is your coating mixture.
4. Combine water and egg in a medium bowl. Dip each piece in the water/egg-white mixture. Then dip each piece in the coating mixture. Make sure each piece is well coated.
5. Place on the baking sheet. When all of your chicken has been coated and your baking sheet is full, place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden.
Traveling can be a stressful and tough time to make healthy choices. But when I hear people saying they can’t eat healthy when traveling, or use the excuse that it is impossible to make healthy choices, sorry my friends but you’re wrong!
I travel a lot, both for business and pleasure, and trust me, you can eat healthy while traveling, the key to success is planning.
Here are some suggestions in order not to fall off the fitness wagon while traveling:
1.Invest in a good quality lunch box
2. Pack convenient, easy to eat foods, examples:
- Protein: canned or packed tuna and salmon, sardines, boiled eggs, etc…
- Carbohydrates: fruits like apples or bananas, rice cakes, etc…
If there’s one supplement that you absolutely cannot miss out on with your diet plan it’s essential fatty acids, otherwise referred to as 
What Are The Benefits of EFA’s? 
