Chain mase optional

Japan is a land of great innovation but also steeped in tradition.

Here are some of the aspects the traditional Japanese lifestyle, including diet, exercise and in general a way of life that should be the model of healthy living for the rest of the world.

Read more…

In the meantime, I’ll link you to 5 things I think you should check out - some of them my Diet Blog articles and others are things that I think you’ll find informative/entertaining.

1.  Gwyneth Paltrow has bones like “Mr. Glass”: Not eating and avoiding the sun gives you brittle bones!  This one sparked quite a debate between yours truly and someone who thought a) I was mean,  b)  higher proteing intakes would make your kidneys spontaneously combust and c) ketosis is caused by high protein diets and is dangerous.

2. Insulin: An Undeserved Bad Reputation: Super-duper smart guy James Krieger pens this outstanding 2-part (so far) series of how insulin became the red-headed step-child of weight regulation and why this concept is largely a steaming heap of ostrich poop.   You can also read part II here.

3. Fit Marker: Friend and colleague JCD and partner-in-unapologetic knowledge bombs FitJerk founded a revolutionary hub where you can access the best of the best of training, nutrition and health information.

4. The Truth about Alcohol, Fat Loss and Muscle Growth: Martin Berkhan: Swedish for common sense.  Berkhan delves deep into the science and practicality of alcohol intake and its impact on fat loss and muscle.

5. Should Obese People be Given a Handicap Parking? Another pot-stirring piece courtesy of my fellow Diet-Blogger Ted Kallimer.  A fascinating debate, indeed!

Hope you enjoy the bits!

Religion, politics and let’s throw in nutrition/exercise for good measure. Passions run strong when it comes to belief about the best nutritional or exercise approach.

In this 5 part series, I’ll detail some of the more hotly contested nutritional and exercise debates that I’ve seen in recent years. Some of them I’ve lurked on, others I’ve actually participated in.

Regardless of where you come out on these issues, there are always opportunities for learning. So grab some popcorn and prepare for some pot-stirring, panty-bunching debates.

Dr. Mike Eades vs. Anthony Colpo: MAD vs. Sane?

This is easily one of the most compelling nutritional debates of the past few years. With low fat dogma pretty much abolished, debates often now shift to varying opinion within the realm of low carb belief.

This particular debate features bestselling author of Protein Power Dr. Michael Eades and trainer and author of “The Great Cholesterol Con” and “The Fat Loss Bible” Anthony Colpo.

The gauntlet was dropped a couple of years ago in the form of an Anthony Colpo open letter to Dr. Eades about his insistence of the existence of a low carb “metabolic advantage”.

Colpo put together an entire e-book: “They’re all MAD”, detailing why he thinks Eades and his other low carb proponents (Gary Taubes, Fineman and Fine) are misguided in their metabolic advantage theory.

AC even went as far as issuing a $20,000 challenge to anyone who could provide credible evidence of metabolic advantage.

After a long period of silence from Dr. Eades, he re-emerged with a thorough counter-argument to Colpo’s “Fat Loss Bible” principles here. This post got quite a round of applause from Eades’ followers – all of whom unanimously hailed Dr. Eades’ as the “victor”.

But wait… AC wasn’t done – not by a long shot, here is an equally detailed retort: The Great Eades Smackdown 2010 part I.

Eades’ wasn’t ready to waive the white flag just yet, though – taking another crack at AC’s argument here.

In what could be a final argument, Colpo responds to Eades’ response, which (according to AC) lacked sufficient response… The great Eades Smackdown part II.

My Take

Although Eades’ has vowed no further response to this debate, this case is far from closed in the forum of nutritional scientists. My summary: If a metabolic advantage exists, it’s likely to be pretty insignificant and calories still matter the most. As it stands, the more neutral and even-handed scientific minds (read: those who do not profit by declaring the existence of a metabolic advantage) contend that there is no empirical evidence of such a phenomenon as per tightly controlled metabolic ward studies.

Eades and Colpo are stalwarts – both very bright, both steadfast in their beliefs.

The pro-Eades crowd will often cite Colpo’s ire as reason to dismiss his ideas, however if you look at the argument objectively, Colpo seems to have legitimately called Eades out on some of his sacred cows. Having read Eades’ blog for a while, I highly respect his intellect and his analytical acumen. The chink in Eades’ armour however is his glaring confirmation bias – a trait that his most ardent readership has appeared to have contracted.

On the flipside, AC has petulance to his diatribes that would be a bit off-putting by general standards. He does at times make it difficult to get behind his plight – especially on an issue that doesn’t carry a whole lot of significance in the “big picture”. That said, I think the industry needs people like Colpo. AC has the intellect to match his vitriol and doesn’t pull any punches. I do applaud people (however uncouth their language) who aren’t afraid to call people out on untenable claims. AC also gave Eades’ friend and fellow carbaphobe and slow thinking training advocate Fred Hahn a science smack-down.

I will also go out on a limb and contend that Dr. Eades is equally brash – he just executes his petulance in a more passive-aggressive manor. Dr. Eades has a proclivity for “taking the high road” when he paints himself into a corner with questionable claims.  He pulled this stunt recently when a cerebral researcher with a particularly acute nose for BS - James Krieger, M.S., M.S. took Eades to task on an unsubstantiated claim that Eades made about meta-analyses on this thread (scroll about halfway down the page to see James’ contention).  Eades did a fancy Irish jig around Krieger’s press - providing only an obfuscated response.

Final (sort of) word on Metabolic Advantage

While a metabolic advantage remains a physiological plausibility as well as a scientific possibility – to claim MA as a principle rather than a theory is intellectually dishonest. While many may not appreciate Anthony Colpo’s bombast - when the dust settles, I think the clear-thinking individuals will see a well-contructed and scientifically sound challenge.

Let’s be honest here, salads don’t exactly scream masculinity…. Until now. Armed with a roasted chicken, some greens and a surge of testosterone, I set out to make the ultimate “bro” salad. It was simple to prepare, tasty, super-nutritious and surprisingly filling. Here’s how it breaks down;

2-3 Cups of greens (I used spinach)

4oz. of shredded chicken (pre-roasted – mostly breast)

2oz. of cubed mozzarella cheese

½ an avocado

1 medium red bell pepper

3 Tbsp. Sundried tomato dressing

Mix and enjoy!

Note: I didn’t purposely skimp on the added veggies – it just happened to be low on them. Do add generous amounts of your preferred veggies.

Oh, and this salad is suitable for both “bro’s” and “brah’s”!

Nutritional Facts

Calories: 636

Protein: 52g

Carbohydrates: 10g

Fat: 43g (about even mix of saturated, monounsatured and polyunsaturated fats)

Mojo: Off the charts!

No better time to discuss one of nature’s best foods - eggs. I realize the kind of eggs we think about this weekend are of the chocolate and suspect-looking white and yellow sugary insides variety, but let’s talk real eggs. I’ll make this short and sweet.

In terms of protein quality, nutrient profile, caloric value and cost, you would be hard-pressed to find a better quality food than eggs.

• Eggs have about 6g of protein (yolk in), 77calories, and an almost full range of vitamins and minerals.
• Eggs (both white and yolk) contain antibacterial, anti-microbial and anti-cancer properties.
• Egg yolks contain health-enhancing substances such as; lutein and zeaxanthin (great for the eyes) and choline (for brain and memory).

Yolk - in or out? The question of cholesterol

Evidence is very conclusive now that under the majority of circumstances, cholesterol from eggs will not raise blood cholesterol.  The link is quite weak between egg and cholesterol consumption and cholesterol levels.  The link between cholesterol and heart disease is also suspect.

Bottom line: If you are having only 1-3 eggs at a time, leave the yolks in.  This is more than sufficient to impart its nutritional benefit.  If you eat 4 or more eggs at a time and your goal is fat loss, consider leaving out some of the yolks as they add unnecessary calories.

Enjoy your eggs - whether they are poached, scrambled, fried or omeletes!

After 5+ years of following Eric Cressey’s work, I finally had the opportunity to see him present at a workshop – 5 minutes from where I live, no less. Needless to say it was worth the wait. Eric treated the course participants to an impressive 1-2 punch of top notch theory and some universally applicable assessment and corrective exercise techniques. The following are some selected knowledge bombs from EC’s “Nuts and Bolts of Corrective Exercise” course.

• Structure dictates function and function dictates dysfunction.
• Symmetry is important to a degree, but our bodies are not symmetrical by nature and we are also either right or left handed. This makes perfect symmetry nearly impossible.
• What if a coach/trainer had 100 athletes and; 82 of them had disc bulges/herniations, 27 of them had vertebral fractures and 34 of them had rotator cuff tears? Is this the sign of a bad trainer or is it normal?

• Studies have shown that over half of people that have bulged discs don’t have back pain.
• Studies have shown similar results for people with rotator cuff tears.
• Because many of these conditions remain “silent” until there is pain it is best to manage these potential pitfalls by helping the individual move efficiently through targeted mobility/strength and soft tissue work.
• “Inefficiency” and” pathology” may not be the same thing. Correct the “inefficiency”, however and you will also correct the “pathology”.
• A pragmatic training goal would be to re-distribute stress from an area of inefficiency.
• Eric on bagging your head against the wall: Traditional medical model – patch up the wall and take some aspirin for the headache. The smart way – stop banging your head against the wall!
• Active vs. Passive restraints: Passive restraints are; muscles, tendons and bone. Active restraints are; meniscus, labrum, and discs. Suboptimal passive restraint function (strength, flexibility, tissue quality) leads to stress on the active restraints.
• Muscles operate on mobility/stability continuum. Some joints are typically too mobile (which provides poor force transfer) and include; the scapulae, lumbar spine and the shoulder joint.
• Joints that are typically stiff (and thus provide poor force production): ankles, hips, thoracic spine, shoulder joint).
• There are no “contraindicated exercises” just “contraindicated people”.
• Ankle mobility is important as it keeps the heels down and spine neutral while squatting.
• Poor ankle mobility forces the knee to become unstable.
• The advent of ankle taping and high tops has undoubtedly contributed to higher incidences of ankle sprains.
• Nike Shox are horrible – go with “Free” if you choose Nike.
• Orthotics should be used sparingly. They can cause more harm than good by actually perpetuating structural deformities.
• The knee is the bastard child of the ankle and hip.
• Hip mobility is important as stiff hips can cause problems above and below (lower back and knees).
• Common hip problems include; rotational deficits and hip flexor imbalances.
• Core stability is important for resisting extension/rotation/flexion and maintaining posture.
• Eliminate sit-ups, side bends and hyperextensions from your program!
• Thoracic spine mobility is important for lower back and shoulder function, posture and respiratory function.
• 100% of shoulder problems are related to scapular diskinesis (abnormal shoulder blade movement). Scapular problems are often the result of scapular winging and downward rotation.
• Unstable surface training: Very effective for ankle rehab – craptacular for athletic enhancement.

For more information about Eric Cressey, I encourage you to check out his site, which is packed full of amazing information on performance. http://ericcressey.com/

Here is a list of books and/or products that Eric has

Rick Kaselj, Eric Cressey and me

published or co-authored. 

Here is Eric’s upcoming seminar schedule.

Vancouver’s most complete bootcamp

It’s back!!!!  With the Olympics over and “beach-think” setting in, I am excited to announce the spring edition of the Leaner, Stronger, Faster! Bootcamp.  This session promises to be better than ever and I HIGHLY recommend you join us!  Here are the details;

When:  April 26th, M/W/F

Time:  6:30-7:30am

Duration:  6 Weeks (ends June 4^th, 2010)

Location: Quilchena Park Vancouver (4500 blk of Magnolia just east of Arbutus at 33rd)

Cost:  $175 ONLY - By FAR the best value of any Vancouver Bootcamp

Who is it for:  Anyone interested in fat loss and optimum health who wants to do so in a challenging, fun and encouraging environment. 

Why should I join YOUR bootcamp?  There’s like a million of them in Vancouver.

1. Quality instruction from a highly qualified trainer (12 years industry experience and expertise in corrective exercise, fat loss and nutrition)
2. You are getting the most comprehensive, cutting edge and functional workouts that are guaranteed to make you leaner, stronger, more mobile and more confident.
3. You will receive nutritional guidance and education including a start-up kit with dietary and motivational strategies to ensure success.
4. If your goal is fat loss, you can opt into a cutting edge protocol I’ve been working on that ensures impressive and sustained fat loss.    
5. You will be in a supportive, encouraging environment that will challenge you and give you the tools you will need for lifetime success.
6. Class size is limited to 12 participants to ensure more individual attention. 
7. The results are guaranteed, or your money back!*  You can’t go wrong there!

Sign-up today!  You have nothing to lose (other than unwanted fat)

To secure your spot or ask any questions, email me at coreconcepts@shaw.ca

www.coreconceptswellness.com

*”Results” are defined as improvements in 4 of 6 parameters tested on day one.  Attendance at all sessions and adherence to guidelines are mandatory to be eligible for a refund.   

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