Women bulking up?

On Warped Beauty Standards, and Embracing the Buff
-by Kristin Darguzas

I resisted the larger weights. I didn’t mind sweating, but I’d read in Self and Fitness and all of the other magazines with the cayenne pepper maple syrup diets and concave-bellied glamazons that in order to tone, you must do high repetitions of light weights. Sure, it was obscenely boring to lift 10-pound dumb bells over my head six hundred and twenty times, but that’s why my iPod existed, to relieve the mind numbing boredom.

I wanted my belly to look like this….

I wanted my legs to look like this….

If eating only collard greens and suffering endless boredom were the only means to a shiny abdomen and skinny legs of doom — I at least wanted to give it an honest go.

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But tolerance of the mind-numbing boredom only lasts so long when you’re an adrenaline-chasing Type A personality. Thank the Universe that we found Crossfit when we did, because I had run out of good music and was beginning to unwittingly enjoy songs whose lyrics centred around sunglasses making you cooler than me (side note: have you listened to the lyrics of the songs at the top of the charts right now? Are they infuriatingly dumb or am I just a crotchety old lady?)

Anyway, we discovered Crossfit moments before I might have thrown myself in a ditch in frustration and boredom. I totally enjoyed flinging wall balls and jumping on boxes and firing mad kettlebells in the air. But I worried about the heavy backsquats, the push press that might turn my arms into huge quivering beasts of flesh.

“I’m worried I’m bulking up,” I whispered to Corey after my first week of cleaning 100 pounds, back squatting almost 200. I could see veins bulge in my neck, under the bar, and I imagined myself with tree-trunk legs and a stumpy She-Ra neck, terrifying gas station attendants and maitre ds who worried secretly that I’d crush them with my dangerous girth. I was worried my muscles would take away my femininity, I’d be totally bereft of any womanly appeal.

“It is hard to bulk up,” he said.”It takes forever, and you have to concentrate on it, so don’t worry. You’re not going to bulk up.”

But he is a man and therefore knows nothing about these matters, so I disregarded his assurance as blessed male ignorance and continued to be scared of the heavy weight and its potential to fuck up my relationship with my skinny jeans.

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Six months into Crossfit and I stepped on a scale for the first time in ages.

The scale was up 14 pounds, and I said to Corey, “I’m worried I am definitely bulking up.”

I think he said nothing, because as a relatively intelligent man, he must have known there was no correct answer to my slightly frantic (and very obviously true) observation.

I ran home and hauled all my skinny jeans and pencil skirts out of the closet.& One by one, I tried them on. Or rather, my legs tried them on a la carte, because there wasn’t a single garment in my closet that could fit over my ass.

At first I felt like crying — ripped off, because I’d put so much work into exercise and eating spotlessly. And I had believed for so long that the reason I exercised was so that I could look like a slightly older houselady representation of that girl on the cover of Self.

And then it came to me in a rapid hurtling swoosh: A concave stomach and matchstick arms are stupid reasons for lifting a five-pound dumb bell sixty million times in a row. Aspiring to look like an undernourished teenager is more than slightly insane. The definition of fit needs an overhaul in the mainstream media.;

I had developed a booty, nurtured muscular thighs and created a bit of a muscle maze on my back. There was no evidence of starvation anywhere on me.; I put my skinny jeans in a large black garbage bag and dropped them down a vent in the clothing donation box down the street.

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“I’ve heard about Crossfit,” says the young mom outside my son’s kindergarten class.

She has just asked me where I work out, and I am suddenly realizing that I never wear anything but spandex and sweatshirts at drop-off and pick-up.

“But,” she says,”I don’t want to bulk up.”

I have to fight hard not to sigh brokenheartedly. I was her a year ago; I have only just stopped thinking like her.

I want to say: It’s effing ridiculously hard to get buff. It takes concerted effort over time and attention to your diet and maybe you will get “bulky” if you eat like a maniac and throw around heavy weight five days a week for a year or so. But if you do get bulky at that point, you’ll also likely to be amazed at the transformation of your body and proud of the hard work you’ve put in at making it a lean, mean, effective machine.

Some might call me “bulky” at this point into my fitness journey: I am 16 pounds heavier than I was a year ago. My thighs are too big for a lot of my old pants, and I can see muscles in places I never knew muscles existed. Skirts fit me better now, because my waist is much smaller. I can haul a tire up a mountain for you if you ever need it and overhead squat your back-talking seven-year-old.

I am more confident in my abilities and willingness to try new things.

If you’re a woman who refuses to lift heavy weight because you fear the bulk? I think you should give it a try anyway: This terrified line of thinking interferes with your capacity to do so much more than what you think you can do right now. Your fear of the bulk and adherence to the twisted media perception of ideal feminine body proportion is ripping you off. It’s preventing you from kicking ass in a monumental way.

I think (admitting fully that I know nothing in particular) that you should give those heavy weights a try. Back squat, deadlift, load up bars with weights heavier than your cat. You can always stop trying so hard if you are afraid of the sleek new muscles that will appear after months of hard work, but my best is that you’ll be surprised by your appreciation of them and all that they mean. If we all lost a bit of the fear, we’d maybe see women like this on the cover of Fitness Magazine:

(Mothereffing BULKY. And also: completely hot, elite Crossfit Athlete and Competitor Crystal McReynolds, photo from Facebook group.)

Maybe if strong women started gracing magazine covers and helping to define feminine, we’d stop making excuses to take it to the next level. We’d maybe understand what really fit and healthy really looks like, and aspire to the beautifully possible rather than the absurdly unattainable.

A Case Against Cardio Taken From Marks Daily Apple

A Case Against Cardio (from a former mileage king)

We all know that we need to exercise to be healthy.

Unfortunately, the popular wisdom of the past 40 years – that we would all be better off doing 45 minutes to an hour a day of intense aerobic activity – has created a generation of overtrained, underfit, immune-compromised exerholics. Hate to say it, but we weren’t meant to aerobicize at the chronic and sustained high intensities that so many people choose to do these days. The results are almost always unimpressive. Ever wonder why years of “Spin” classes, endless treadmill sessions and interminable hours on the “elliptical” have done nothing much to shed those extra pounds and really tone the butt?

Don’t worry. There’s a reason why the current methods fail, and when you understand why, you’ll see that there’s an easier, more effective – and fun – way to burn fat, build or preserve lean muscle and maintain optimal health. The information is all there in the primal DNA blueprint, but in order to get the most from your exercise experience, first you need to understand the way we evolved and then build your exercise program around that blueprint.

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Like most people, I used to think that rigorous aerobic activity was one of the main keys to staying healthy – and that the more mileage you could accumulate (at the highest intensity), the better. During my 20+ years as a competitive endurance athlete, I logged tens of thousands of training miles running and on the bike with the assumption that, in addition to becoming fit enough to race successfully at a national class level, I was also doing my cardiovascular system and the rest of my body a big healthy favor.

Being the type A that I am, I read Ken Cooper’s seminal 1968 book Aerobics and celebrated the idea that you got to award yourself “points” for time spent at a high heart rate. The more points, the healthier your cardiovascular system would become. Based on that notion, I should have been one of the healthiest people on the planet.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t – and that same mindset has kept millions of other health-conscious, nirvana-seeking exercisers stuck in a similar rut for almost 40 years. It’s time to get your head out of the sand and take advantage of your true DNA destiny, folks!

The first signal I had that something was wrong was when I developed debilitating osteoarthritis in my ankles…at age 28. This was soon coupled with chronic hip tendonitis and nagging recurrent upper respiratory tract infections. In retrospect, it is clear now that my carbohydrate-fueled high-intensity aerobic lifestyle was promoting a dangerous level of continuous systemic inflammation, was severely suppressing other parts of my immune system and the increased oxidative damage was generally tearing apart my precious muscle and joint tissue.

The stress of high intensity training was also leaving me soaking in my own internal cortisol (stress hormone) bath. It wasn’t so clear to me at the time exactly what was happening – in fact it was quite confusing, since I was doing so much of this so-called “healthy” aerobic exercise – but I had no choice but to give up racing, unable to train at anywhere near the intensity required to stay at an elite level.

To make ends meet…

…I became a “personal trainer” and I refocused my attention on training average “non-athletic” people to achieve reasonable levels of general fitness and health. Of course, we lifted weights as part of the overall plan (and I will go into greater detail on that important aspect of fitness in a later post), but for the aerobic component of their training, I started doing long walks or hikes or easy bike rides with them. My many clients got the benefit of me actually working out right along side them and I got the benefit of 3 to 5 hours a day of very low intensity aerobic work (well, very low for me anyway). It was refreshing and really didn’t take much effort on my part, but I knew I had to be deriving at least some small benefit from those hours.

Since I didn’t have much time left in the week for my own workouts, once or twice a week I would do a very short but very intense workout for my own benefit, usually sprints at the track or “hill repeats” of 2-3 minutes each on the bike. Lo and behold, within a year, my injuries were healing, I was rarely sick and I was even back to occasionally racing – faster than ever. Something “primal” was happening and it made total sense in the context of the DNA blueprint. I was training like my hunter-gatherer ancestors, building my aerobic capacity slowly and steadily without overstressing my adrenals or my immune system, training my body to derive more energy from fats (and not glucose), requiring far fewer carbohydrate calories from my diet, and building muscle with occasional quick bursts of speed and intensity. I was suddenly both fit AND healthy. My Primal Health system was kicking in and it all made perfect sense.

Humans, like all mammals, evolved two primary energy systems that powered the skeletal muscles of our hunter-gatherer ancestors 40,000 years ago and that would keep us all well-powered the same way today, if we weren’t so bent on circumventing them with our ill-fated (literally) lifestyle choices.

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The first energy system relied heavily on the slow burning of fats, keeping us fueled while we were at rest or sleeping, yet also allowing for continuous or intermittent low levels of aerobic activity (think of our ancestors walking across the savannah for hours foraging for roots, shoots, berries, grubs, insects and the occasional small animal). It makes sense. Fats are very efficient fuels that are stored easily in the fat cells and burn easily and cleanly when lots of oxygen is present (as when we are breathing normally). Even if there’s no food in the immediate area, a well-trained fat-burning hunter-gatherer could continue walking and foraging for days without compromising his or her health or efficiency.

The second major energy system we developed through evolution was an ATP-fueled system that allowed for intense loads of work to be done in very brief bursts (think of our hunter-gatherer ancestors sprinting to the safety of a tree to avoid being eaten by a lion). ATP is always sitting right there within the muscle cells, available in a split second, and it is the highest octane fuel we have. In fact, it’s ATP and adrenaline that allow the little old lady to lift the front end of the Ford Fairlane off her husband when the jack fails. Unfortunately, the muscles can only store about 20 seconds worth of this precious fuel to complete life-or-death tasks. If our ancestors survived that quick sprint to safety, their ATP reserves were filled again within minutes using the other energy systems.

Furthermore, that brief burst of intense energy sparked a small “growth spurt” in the muscle, making it even stronger for the next encounter with the next lion – a true survival adaptation.

(Note: While our energy systems are actually quite complex, varied and interrelated, I have simplified things here to make it easier to “digest”.)

Bottom line: Fats and ATP were the two primary energy sources for locomotion: we either moved slowly and steadily or “fight or flight” fast, and we became stronger and healthier the more we used only those energy systems.

But here’s the real take-home message for us: We did not evolve to rely heavily on a carbodydrate-fueled energy system, and yet, carbohydrate metabolism seems to rule our lives today. Yes, carbohydrate (in the form of glucose) can play a major role in the production of energy in skeletal muscle, but it turns out that the heart and skeletal muscle prefer fatty acids (fat) as fuel over glucose.

Our hunter-gatherer ancestors didn’t regularly ramp their heart rates up for over an hour a day like so many of us do now. Even when the concept of organized hunting came along, it would appear that our hunter-gatherer ancestors relied more on superior tracking ability (using our highly evolved and exceptionally large brains) and walking (using our superior fat-burning systems), rather than on actually “chasing down” their prey. In fact, squandering valuable energy reserves (and increasing carbohydrate [glucose] metabolism by a factor of ten) by running hard for long periods of time was so counterproductive it would have likely hastened your demise (imagine chasing some game animal for a few hours and – oops – not succeeding in killing it. You’ve spent an incredible amount of energy, yet now you have no food to replace that energy. You have suddenly become some other animals prey because you are physically exhausted).

So, what does all that mean for us in the 21st century seeking to maximize our health and fitness?

Well, we know that this current popular high intensity aerobic pursuit is a dead-end. It requires huge amounts carbohydrate (sugar) to sustain, it promotes hyperinsulinemia (overproduction of insulin), increases oxidative damage (the production of free radicals) by a factor of 10 or 20 times normal, and generates high levels of the stress hormone cortisol in many people, leaving them susceptible to infection, injury, loss of bone density and depletion of lean muscle tissue – while encouraging their bodies to deposit fat. Far from that healthy pursuit we all assumed it was! What, then, is the answer?

Knowing what we know about our hunter-gatherer ancestors and the DNA blueprint, we would ideally devise an aerobics plan that would have us walking or hiking several hours a day to maximize our true fat-burning systems and then doing intermittent “life or death” sprints every few days to generate those growth spurts that create stronger, leaner muscle.

However, since allocating a few hours a day to this pursuit is impractical for most people, we can still create a plan that has a fair amount of low level aerobic movement, such as walking briskly, hiking, cycling at a moderate pace, etc a few times a week and keep it at under an hour. Then, we can add a few intense “interval” sessions, where we literally sprint (or cycle or do anything intensely) for 20, 30 or 40 seconds at a time all out, and do this once or twice a week.

If you are willing to try this new approach, but haven’t sprinted for a while, you may want to ease into it. Start with maybe three or four the first time, resting two minutes in between and, after a few weeks of doing this, work your way up to a workout that includes six or eight all-out sprints after a brief warm-up. An easy few minutes of stretching afterwards and you’ve done more in less time than you could ever accomplish in a typical “80-85% Max Heart Rate” cardio” workout. That’s exactly type of the plan I do myself and that I give all of my trainees now.

Let’s recap:

The benefits of low level aerobic work (walking, hiking, cycling, swimming):
- increases capillary network (blood vessels that supply the muscle cells with fuel and oxygen)
- increases muscle mitochondria
- increases production of fat-burning and fat-transporting enzymes
- more fun, because you can talk with a partner while doing it

The benefits of interval training (sprinting in short intense bursts)
- increases muscle fiber strength
- increases aerobic capacity (work ability)
- increases muscle mitochondria (the main energy production center in muscle)
- increases insulin sensitivity
- increases natural growth hormone production

The costs of chronic (repetitious) mid- and high-level aerobic work
- requires large amounts of dietary carbohydrates (SUGAR)
- decreases efficient fat metabolism
- increases stress hormone cortisol
- increases systemic inflammation
- increases oxidative damage (free radical production)
- boring!

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Biggest break through in over 30 years!

You ever wonder why there are more options for healthy eating and exercise than ever before yet so many of us seem to be getting fatter? There are countless articles, exercise programs etc. out there telling us how to lose weight when our bodies already know how.

As we eat our bodies turns our foods into glucose a simple sugar which is the primary food for our cells. Our brain, muscle and heart all feed on glucose. When glucose moves through our bloodstream our pancreas produces a hormone called insulin. Insulin is what opens the door and allows glucose to enter and be used for our energy needs. Without insulin our cells can not be fed. What happens if we need more than we need? Our body also has fat cells and the brain, muscle and heart cells never eat more than they need so the excess is store in our fat cells. Once the glucose is all out of the bloodstream with our cells being being fed and the surplus stored in our fat cells then insulin closes the doors to our cells and slowly leaves our bodies. When our bodies need more energy or glucose and there is no food available it turns to the fat cells and the free fatty acids stored inside of them. The free fatty acids leave our fat cells and go right into the blood stream to feed all of our other cells. Free fatty acids do not need insulin to open the cell doors, that is why there called free fatty acids. This natural process of storing fat when you have to much glucose and burning fat when you don't have enough glucose is how our bodies were designed to work.

The problem arises from not living in a perfect world eating a perfect diet. As a result we don't benefit from this natural process very often. In fact we suffer from storing to much fat and rarely if ever burning fat. Let's take a typical breakfast which usually consist of foods fairly high in sugar and processed foods, cereals, breads etc. This kind of food is rushed into the bloodstream quickly and the more sugary the food the faster and higher that our blood sugar or glucose level rises. Our pancreas realizing this quickly releases insulin creating and insulin spike to correspond with the fast rising glucose. Insulin does it's job opening the cell doors all our working cells are fed and the excess glucose is stored in our fat cells. This process happens fast and once insulin arrives our glucose goes back down fairly quickly however the insulin hangs around much longer. This can pose a problem because as long as there is insulin in the body we can not access the free fatty acids stored in our fat cells. Free fatty acids do not need insulin to enter the cells but they do need it to be gone before they can leave our fat cells. Our bodies need to eat continually but the free fatty acids can't leave the fat cells. This creates the cravings and irritability so we eat. Once again or glucose levels spike right back up and the body releases even more insulin the cells are fed and the access glucose is stored in our fat cells. With our insulin level remaining high our bodies are still not able to release any fatty acids so we continue adding to the fat storage but never taking any out. This cycle continues through lunch mid afternoon snacks, diner and so on. We literally end up bathing our bodies in insulin all day long and for much of the night. After a while all that insulin takes a toll, we age much faster than normal and many develop type 2 diabetes.

There is a way to break this cycle. The product is called Bios Life Slim. A safe natural way to restore our bodies natural fat burning process. Instead of the spike in glucose and insulin we typically see, when taken before or during meals it allows for a more mild release of these two elements. This mild release allows the insulin levels mirror the glucose levels therefore burn out about the same time as the glucose. Our bodies are now able to release fatty acids and we enter the fat burning zone. This is the period of time in which our bodies burn off the access fat stored in our cells. No more craving, no more irritability. After a couple of hours in the fat burning zone we are ready to have Bios Life Slim before our next meal and we start the cycle again storing less fat and burning more of what was already stored.

There are 5 adjustments that you can make starting today in conjunction with using the Slim that can speed up the fat burning process.

1. Eat a high protein breakfast each morning. There are several ways to do this including meal replacement drinks.

2. Along with the Bios Life Slim eat 3 healthy meals which include lean protein, healthy fats and complex carbohydrates.

3. Space your meals appropriately. Allow 3-4 hours between each meal and 12 hours between supper and breakfast allowing to burn fat even while you sleep.

4. Increase physical activity. You do not have to become and exercise junky just find ways to do a little more each day.

5.Decrease amounts of sweets and process foods you eat especially avoid sodas and sports drinks which can be full of sugar and cause a huge increase in insulin.

Does Bios Life Slim actually work? In my experience it does. It comes with a 90 day unconditional money back guarantee. I have had a huge amount of success with this product. No stimulants no jitters, no negative side effects! This product can also be found in the Physicians Desk Reference. For more information visit www.pgdnews.com Contact me with additional questions or to order this product.

Jim's Gym to host Empire State Games Weightlifting Tryouts

We will be hosting weightlifting tryouts for the 2010 Empire State Games here at Jim's Gym on Saturday May 1st.

Weigh-ins are at 8, lifting starts at 11.

Anyone interested in trying out can either contact Jim Wheaton at Jim's Gym or follow this link

http://www.empirestategames.org/summer/tryouts/sched/default.asp?region=central&division=open.

I would like to encourage anyone interested in just supporting the lifters to attend. You do not have to be a member of Jim's Gym to attend.

Look forward to seeing you!

Jim Wheaton
607-735-9789

Naturally increase testosterone and burn fat!!

This is a great article I found. Everyday people are on the lookout for the latest and greatest supplement to increase testosterone, build muscle or lose weight. Doing the things in this article is probably the single most important thing you can do to help with those processes and it doesn't cost anything!!

The Definitive Guide to Sleep

Sleep 1Sleep Awareness Week (as sponsored by the National Sleep Foundation) technically ended March 13th, but somehow I’m guessing there are just as many sleep deprived folks milling about this week as there were a few days ago – just like our good reader Monday. Maybe a few of us feel better adjusted to the time change these days, but probably just as many stayed up late to watch the NCAA games this weekend. Or maybe it was a late St. Paddy’s Day party. Somehow it’s always somethin’, isn’t it?

Even if we’re good and diligent and never sacrifice sleep for entertainment purposes, life too often pokes holes in our most worthy intentions. Babies wake up in the middle of the night. Flights leave early. Deadlines, projects and bills keep us up later than we’d planned. Maybe we even burn the midnight oil to get a jump on the next morning’s tasks! Nighttime too often becomes a default slush fund for the day’s chores. Still others of us might deliberately stay up to bask (however groggily) in what seems like the only time we have to ourselves. The house is quiet, the kids/partner are asleep. The world is hushed, and the deep solitude is too much to resist.

But there’s always a price…. The next morning has us clutching our pillows in fervent denial. Cruel, callous and relentless as it is, the alarm tolls for thee and you’re suddenly reeling in regret. However much you enjoyed or appreciated the previous night’s extension, you now see the error of your ways. Your bed is suddenly the most wonderful, restful place in the world, and you couldn’t possibly tear yourself away. Snooze button it is.

When the necessities of life (or an incredible bracket-busting game) strike, it’s good to keep ye olde 80/20 Primal Principle in mind. Nonetheless, let’s give shut eye its due. I’ve done Definitive Guides on all manner of Primal priorities. It was high time, I thought, we offer the same deference to our non-waking Primal efforts.

The “I’ll sleep when I’m dead” overachiever mindset assumes our bodies aren’t doing anything useful when we’re buried beneath the covers. Nothing could be further from the truth. Sleep is an incredibly active time for our bodies and brains when we undergo all manner of growth and repair processes through a dynamic biochemical orchestration. When we know the facts on sleep, we’re more likely to give it our full respect – and wholehearted Primal commitment. Let’s begin….
What’s Sleep Done For Me Lately?

A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor’s book. ~Irish Proverb

Sleep is key, essential, absolutely downright necessary for our basic physiological operations – with special support for neurological performance, endocrine balance, immune system functioning, and musculoskeletal growth and repair. For one, you wouldn’t be half the man or woman you are without the physiological feats sleep achieves. I mean that both literally and figuratively, since sleep spurs the release of human growth hormone (HGH), an essential player in cellular regeneration.

Before you stay up for your favorite late night host, consider the fact that a solid night of shut eye bears all kinds of gifts. A full night of sleep will enhance your memory performance and creative problem solving skills the next day, not to mention make you a better person to be around by helping you see the positive in your interactions. Oh, but there’s more of course. A good night’s sleep will further boost your athletic performance, including speed, accuracy, mood and overall energy.

Then there’s your immune system. Hate getting sick? How about cutting your risk for the common cold and other basic illnesses? Your immune system is, in fact, most active during sleep. (So, that’s why the flu leaves you in a coma-like state…) To boot, adequate sleep makes you more resilient to daily stress, which supports your immune functioning that much more.

Finally, there’s the big picture. Solid, consistent sleep over the long-term has been linked to self-reported “successful” aging.
The Ugly World of Sleep Deprivation

Without enough sleep, we all become tall two-year-olds. ~JoJo Jensen, Dirt Farmer Wisdom

Now consider the flip side. Believe it or not, you’ll die of sleep deprivation before you will starvation. Of course few people ever venture that far into the insomniatic tunnel, but the fact underscores the damage done when we skimp on sleep. When you pull that all-nighter or drag yourself through multiple months of newborn-induced sleep deprivation, you feel like crap because, well, you’re body is legitimately struggling. Every system suffers in some regard. Make no mistake: even a single hour of missed sleep takes its toll, as the research on daylight savings time shows. If you continue down the path of scarcity, you build up what experts call a sleep debt – one that the body tries desperately to repay.

In the short term, you find a full spectrum of unsavory impacts. On the cognitive side, you sacrifice all manner of memory abilities, including short-term and working memory. Over time, even long-term memory and the generation of nerve cells are impaired. Of little surprise is the impact on emotional mood and well-being. Sleep deprivation has been shown to increase the risk for conditions like depression and exacerbate pre-existing psychological illnesses. However, even a single night of sleeplessness can throw our emotional regulatory abilities out the window. Sleeplessness causes our emotional selves to revert to their more primitive roots, effectively shutting down the reasonable prefrontal cortex and putting the primally defensive amygdala in the driver’s seat. One study even linked sleep deprivation with a corresponding increase in people’s dissatisfaction with their primary relationships. (An important bit of perspective to cranky new parents…) Finally, the physical self pays a price of course. A single night of sleep loss increases systemic inflammation, and (as I shared Monday) impairs the body’s ability to handle the kind of moderate oxidative stress we deal with every day.

When you graduate to the extended – however “minor” – levels of sleep deprivation, you’ll enjoy the above experiences (magnified of course), all the while putting significant strain on many of your body’s systems, including your neurological and cardiovascular systems. One study found that skipped sleep led to a shrinking brain. Bye, bye gray matter! The heart and kidneys also take a beating as does your blood pressure. You, in fact, put yourself at continually increased risk for a whole host of lifestyle diseases, including obesity and diabetes. The logical extension of this pattern? Numerous studies link partial sleep deprivation/disruption and increased mortality risk!
Not All Sleep Is Created Equal

“An hour before midnight is worth 2 after.” ~Sleep Proverb

Although it might feel like it some days, it’s not an instantaneous plunge into cataleptic nothingness. Sleep fills a progressive spectrum of sorts. The process and pattern of sleep reveals the complex, dynamic experience it is. We likely all recall the REM and non-REM designations gestured to in our middle school health classes. The picture is a little more complicated than that, but those categories represent the bones of it. Essentially, the body moves through three stages of non-REM (Non-Rapid Eye Movement) sleep that are called N1, N2 and N3, proceeding eventually to REM sleep (typically with a N1, N2, N3, N2, REM pattern) and then back again through numerous cycles throughout the night.

Phase N1 represents the initial switch in brain wave frequency. It’s the stage in which you feel like you’re mostly under but can still see the light above the water. It characterizes most surreptitious office naps that people think no one will notice – until your head slips off the hand that was holding it up. (Hmmm…forgot about that N1 relaxation of muscle tone, I guess.) Most notably, it’s the stage in which you scare the crap out of yourself and your spouse with those annoying sudden jerks. From there, N2 takes you down enough that any residual awareness of your environment is gone. Finally, N3 takes you into deep, slow wave sleep. Those of you who walk or talk in your sleep tend to begin performing now.

If you recall from your textbooks, REM sleep hosts most of our dreaming, particularly those memorable bits in the early morning that confound us for hours throughout the day. Although muscle tone was progressively relaxed in non-REM sleep, it’s generally non-existent in the REM stage.

REM sleep constitutes about a quarter of the typical adult’s sleep. The N2 stage of non-REM sleep makes up an additional half. The remaining quarter is split between the initial N1 stage and the deep sleep of N3. We experience most of our deep sleep early on in the night – hence the instructive proverb about going to bed early.

What moves us to sleep in the first place, however, is our circadian rhythm, the physiological clock responsible for putting in motion temperature changes and hormonal releases associated with sleep and waking. As we approach sleep, our body reaches its highest concentration of adenosine, a sleep promoting neurotransmitter. Simultaneously, the body begins to kick out melatonin and begins reducing our core temperature, which will hit its lowest point in the second half of our normal sleep schedule – around the time when melatonin will incidentally be at its highest. Our best sleep, not surprisingly, results from staying on consistent course with our natural circadian rhythm and – if we nap – not napping too late in the day. Speaking of which…
Closed for Siesta

There is more refreshment and stimulation in a nap, even of the briefest, than in all the alcohol ever distilled. ~Edward Lucas

I’m a big believer in naps, and I consider them one of the most useful (and pleasurable) of the PB sensible vices. Research supports the benefit of inducing the relaxation response each day, and one study showed that even the anticipation of a nap can lower your blood pressure. Following a truly bad night, naps can help us recharge our cognitive and physical stores. Longer naptimes following sleepless nights tend to include more REM sleep for better restoration. Although some “authorities” might balk at the healthiness of daily napping, I think long-time tradition (as well as the natural circadian rhythm) shoots that one down sufficiently. Problems can arise when naps signify symptoms for an otherwise unhealthy lifestyle or when they become a consistent, necessary stand-in for good sleep quality and adequate hours each night. Nonetheless, for those with young babies or swing/night shift jobs, sometimes the best Primal choice we can make is doing the best we can with the reality in front of us. Naps can be part of that effort.

Our Need for Sleep

People who say they sleep like a baby usually don’t have one. ~Leo J. Burke

Of course the need for sleep varies by individual. Though most of us fall into the pot of the seven-eight hour average, others of us genuinely can’t get by without nine or ten. A few lucky ones among us hit our optimum with only six or so hours of shut eye. (These folks are honest to goodness mutants, as science has confirmed.)

However, the majority of our sleep differentiation is determined by age. Babies, no surprises here, need the most (however patchy it is), while adults require the least. The notion that older adults need less sleep is actually hogwash. Although sleep patterns become more fragmented as we age, we still need the same good old average. Sleep still fosters critical hormonal secretion (like growth hormone) necessary for healthy aging. One study in particular linked solid sleep with higher levels of testosterone in older men.

Children, however, are especially susceptible to the ravages of sleep deprivation. Sleep is essential for babies to learn and retain new information. Sleep deficits have been long been linked to an increased risk of ADHD, depression and behavioral problems in children.
Getting Some Good Primal Sleep

There is no hope for a civilization which starts each day to the sound of an alarm clock. ~Author Unknown

In Grok’s world, of course, there were no alarms, no clocks, no trains to catch or appointments to make. Likewise, there were no lamps or computers, T.V.s, smart phones and all the other technological gadgetry that tests our circadian rhythm and tempts us to stay up instead of hit the sheets. Although Grok and his tribe didn’t turn in the second the sun fell below the horizon, they undoubtedly slid into a hunkered down, lower key mode. On a typical night, the darkness – even with a central fire or bright moon – would’ve been enough to impose a quieter sense of consciousness. The stars, the flames would’ve been enough to inspire calm, maybe meditative stillness if not sleep. What would our experience of night be – how rested and composed might we feel – if we spent ten to twelve hours in relative darkness?

Although I suspect most of us have at least several hours to trudge through before we can call it a night, maybe some of you are already planning a clandestine nap this afternoon. (There’s always our Primally approved plan for selling your boss on the siesta idea….) Looking forward to sleep is the first step to taking back bedtime, I’d say. Not only is it an essential investment for your health, it’s one of life’s best luxuries. You wake up looking better and feeling like a million bucks. How much better can it get? Now take the money you’ll save on extra coffee and buy yourself a nice set of sheets or the pillow you’ve always wanted.

In the meantime, be sure to check out our past tips for a great night’s rest!

P90X Review

I have decided to review the P90X workout regimen and give my honest opinion of it only after being asked several times about it. I want to make it clear that this is my opinion only and is not to meant to undermine the program or anyone who has had success with it.

Pros:

It is a well put together program that offers some variety. It comes with a diet plan and exercise log that are probably the 2 most important keys to the success of this program. In other words just doing the workout set before you is not enough. You need to track workouts in order to improve and you will not meet your weight goals without the diet program. It is able to be done for the most part in the privacy of your own home with vary little equipment. There seems to be a pretty decent sized community on the internet for support.

Cons:

Not enough variety. Although there is some variety, most people will either peak or get bored in about 60-90 days. There is no where near enough load bearing exercise (use of weights). There is so much to be said for resistance training in regards to fat loss, bone building, core strength and a whole list of things. The diet plan is not the lifestyle change that I can see people sticking with. It has to be realistic or else your setting yourself up for failure. Working out at home though it sounds nice but is often a challenge. There are many distractions and many excuses not to exercise at home. Sometimes people do better in an actual exercise environment.

In summary I would say that this workout is certainly better than nothing. People who have been doing nothing will most certainly see some progress if they are pushing themselves and eating right. It is in my opinion not the answer for a long lifestyle changing exercise program.

“Is It Really That Important to Warm-Up?”


One of the most neglected ingredients to many athletes’ training program is proper warm-up prior to training. Many athletes don’t even consider performing a warm-up beforehand or if they do it is generally done very poorly and more often than not, incorrectly. For example, athletes can be found warming-up without wearing shoes, the wrong kind of shoes such as flip-flops or unsupported shoes, immediately stretching without any sort of prior warm-up or just simply poor execution of the warm-up exercises in general. All of these prevent the athlete from accomplishing the true importance of a warm-up, which must not be done just because you are told to; it has a purpose and multiple benefits such as:



• Increased core body temperature

• Increased muscle and connective tissue elasticity

• Improved movement patterns

• Increased proprioceptive awareness

• Strengthened stabilizers of joints and spine

• Increased dynamic flexibility

• Readied nervous system for athletic movements

• Prepared better, psychologically for activity




The two most important benefits are lessening of chances for injury and maximized performance from a properly completed warm-up. Once completed, the body and mind are now primed to act within the necessary parameters required for the sport. Remember, one way to tell if you have done an adequate warm-up is that you will have a little perspiration, which means the body is truly warmed-up and ready for more strenuous activity.



When developing a warm-up program for an athlete, it is imperative it follow the needs of the sport as well as the athlete in regards to any possible areas of soreness and/or past injuries they may have or had in the past as well as any weakness in motor skills. The warm-up should utilize many varying dynamic exercises physically preparing the athlete, be it a workout, practice or competition. As stated before, most athletes simply feel it is enough just to stretch before working out, which is known as static stretching. The problem with this is the athlete’s body is not properly warmed-up to stretch creating a situation similar to placing a rubber band in the freezer for a couple minutes, then pulling it out and attempting to stretch it. It doesn’t take much to hypothesize that the rubber band simply snaps under these conditions, which is the same thing that happens to an athlete’s muscles when just stretching is performed without prior warm-up. However, it is appropriate to statically stretch following a training session, especially for any problematically tight muscles or muscular imbalances since the body is properly warmed-up at this point. Instead of utilizing static stretching, athletes should incorporate dynamic exercises into their initial warm-up; exercises that incorporate range of motion through movement. The reason for this is they better prepare the body for movement, increase flexibility, can be more specific to sport and can increase overall conditioning level.



A warm-up can be designed to last anywhere from five to thirty minutes depending on needs of the athlete, discipline, time available and reason for warming-up. Most warm-ups will generally last five to fifteen minutes before practice with the longer warm-ups being utilized at competitions. If you start warming-up consistently for two weeks before training you will see a dramatic improvement in your ability to start the session since the readiness of your physical and mental states will be dramatically enhanced. This is especially true for those athletes who probably just rolled out of bed with very little if any breakfast and expect to complete their workouts. On the other hand, you have athletes who rush to skate after work, have been sitting at an uncomfortable desk all day and now expect to move through a full range of motion without a proper warm-up. From these few points, I hope everyone is now saying “point well taken” and are willing to start a proper warm-up before training.



Because of all of these benefits, when you think about it, nobody really has an excuse not to warm- up prior to activity. While there are many more, these are just some of the exercises utilized on a daily basis in our warm ups.



Warm-Up Exercises:

Butt Kicks


Leg Cross


Pistol Squat

High Knees


Prone Scorpion


Split Squat

Back Pedals


Mountain Climbers


Soldier

Side Slides


Frogs


Sumo Wrestler

Grapevines


Supine Leg Raise


Knee Grab

Side Steps


Front Body Bridge


Box Checkouts

Skips (distance/height)


Ab Bridge


Jump Walk-Throughs

Lunge


Jump Jacks


Jump Rope

Reverse Lunge


Vertical Jumps


Torso Rotation

Squat-G.M.-Calf Raise


Long Jump


Opposite Knee-to-Elbow



By utilizing any of these exercises in a structured format every athlete is able to warm-up their body appropriately before practice or competition. However, it is essential that all of the exercises be done correctly and with substantial effort to achieve their maximum potential towards warming-up the athlete. Now is the time to begin implementing a warm-up into your daily routine if you haven’t already and with all of the benefits how could you not?

Weight Lifting Clinic

Jim's Gym will be hosting a weight lifting clinic on Saturday December 12th at 11:00 A.M. We will be covering technique and form for both of the Olympic Style lifts including the Snatch and Clean and Jerk.

The coach will be Jim Storch, Senior Coach for USA Weight Lifting. Jim has over 20 years experience as a weight lifting coach. He has been the coach for the Central Region Empires for 10+ years. He has also completed course work and all the athletic production requirements for a Regional Level coach.

Jim is a 3 time Gold Medalist at the Empire State Games. He has also coached numerous Gold Medalist at the Empire State Games as well as being a National Record holder.

The cost will be $25 for members and $25 for non-members.

Anyone interested can call or email me to get on the list for Saturday.

What's new at Jim's Gym?

Gym Kids
Classes For Kids 4-16

We launched our Gym Kids Classes last week. We are now offering classes
for kids 4-16 years old 3 times per week. The classes are 45 minutes long
and will include such things as push, pull, run, jump, throw, climb and
lift. They will be taught to apply these core techniques safely and
effectively. Gym Kids will have healthy bones, muscles and joints, they
will be able to achieve and maintain a health weight. Gym Kids will be more
attentive in school and learn a healthy habit that will last a lifetime.
Stop on to check out the classes the first week is free. The classes are
being held Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 5:30 P.M.

Functional Fitness Classes
Classes for anyone 16-99

Functional fitness focuses on building a body capable of doing real-life
activities in real-life positions, not just lifting a certain amount of
weight in an idealized posture created by a gym machine. The main purpose
of functional fitness is to teach the muscles to work together rather than
isolating them to work independently. We are seeing phenomenal results
during the testing of this system which began in August of this year. These
results include, weight loss, fat loss, muscle gain, increased endurance
and many other positive results. The first 3 classes are free so stop in
for more info or to try a class.

Gift Certificates
Now Available!!

Gift certificates are now available for regular gym memberships as well
as our Functional Fitness Class and Gym Kids program. Stop in before to get
your today!!

In This Issue
Gym Kids Classes, Functional Fitness Classes, Gift Certificates

The Danger or Muscle Imbalances

I usually write my own stuff but this was a great article and wanted to share it with you.

The Danger of Muscle Imbalances and the Importance of Symmetry

The Danger of Muscle Imbalances and the Importance of Symmetry. Symmetry is a beautiful thing. It seems to be nature’s preferred state, at least in the structure of organisms: two eyes for stereoscopic vision (the better to hunt you with), two legs of equal length for injury-free traversal of the environment, two hands, two arms. For all intents and purposes, the two sides of the body are approximate mirror images of each other, with corresponding muscles and ligaments and tendons. Our anatomical symmetry is obviously a product of evolution, because a balanced body simply works better. Kids born with right legs an inch or two shorter than the left are more prone to injury, just as cars with bigger wheels on the left will be more prone to disrepair. Objective human beauty is determined by symmetry of the facial structure, as if we’re innately drawn to balance. A balanced body structure, too, is objectively attractive, because it connotes strength and competence in matters of survival (war, hunting, protection). It becomes clear that if symmetry weren’t important for survival in this environment, it wouldn’t have been selected for, we wouldn’t be drawn to it, and plants and animals would have assumed entirely different forms. Maybe we’d be amorphous blobs just kind of oozing around (as opposed to the amorphous blobs with legs and arms that presently populate our planet).

But we’re not all amorphous blobs (not yet at least – the American populace sure is doing its darndest). Our bodies want to be perfectly balanced. They function best when everything – muscles, tendons, bones – are equally healthy and strong. When we make a movement, every muscle has to pitch in and do what it can (to the best of its ability). If a single muscle falters, the others have to pick up the slack, and the entire production is compromised. Sounds a bit like Communism, eh? It may not work in government, but it’s definitely the best way to govern your body.

Art de Vany talks about the X-look: a “symmetrical balance of mass in the shoulder girdle, upper chest and back, the calves and lower quads.” The X-look indicates muscle balance – a very, very good thing. Balanced muscles allow our bodies to function the way they’re supposed to function. Injuries become rare, strength and performance optimize, and you start to give off the positive evolutionary cues that say, “Hey, strong, capable human here! I can hunt, slaughter, and haul a deer back to camp, then pass on my superior genetics to my kids!”

But despite the obvious importance of maintaining muscle balance, people seem to have missed the memo. Oh, sure, things are getting better, and “functional fitness” is growing by leaps and bounds (take Crossfit, for example, which only gets more popular), but the average gym goer is still woefully ignorant of muscle balance. And if he or she is familiar with the term, they’re probably just focused on keeping their biceps symmetrical with no consideration of overall function. Just how prevalent are imbalanced muscles, really? Well, take a quick look at your gym’s inhabitants. You’ve got the old guys pouring buckets of sweat everywhere despite languishing on the chest fly machine for hours at a time. Or how about the over-the-hill bodybuilder who has somehow managed to keep up with some semblance of a routine while failing to keep up with the regular waxing and deodorant applications (there’s nothing quite like discovering a cache of curly black hairs in your gym bag upon returning home). Then there are the frat boys twisting their bodies into unnatural contortions just to target their medial tricep and get that pump going.

But my absolute favorite has to be the top-heavy, dreidel-shaped buffoons sporting massive chests and bulging biceps along with bird shoulders, chicken legs, and the back development of young boys. These guys are the perfect pictures of muscle imbalance. Still, they thrust these chests proudly forward and strut around the gym, pausing only to scratch their arms in contrived positions that show off their biceps whenever there’s a nearby mirror. Oh, and they love doling out unsolicited advice. They now know better than to accost me (especially when I’m lifting) with that nonsense, but I see at least a few guys fall for their “charms” daily. It might actually be funny if it weren’t so damn dangerous. For every newbie they pressure into working out their way – isolation exercises, for the most part – that’s one more human who’ll be plagued with chronic muscle imbalances, possibly for life.

Muscle imbalances can manifest with devastating consequences. Take lordosis, an abnormal inward curve of the spine, which is sometimes caused by weak hamstrings. Heavy squatters who focus solely on the quads without engaging the posterior chain (glutes, hamstrings) often fall prey to lordosis of the spine. In fact, squats that ignore half of the lower body aren’t technically even squats; they are fundamentally flawed free-standing quad presses. Continue to overwork your quads without including your hamstrings, and you’ll probably end up with poor posture.

Muscle imbalance is also terrible to look at. The guy with huge arms and skinny legs might impress his buddies at the gym, but most casual onlookers will be horrified. The balanced, symmetrical X-look is far more aesthetically pleasing – even if we aren’t quite conscious of it, we are attracted to that body structure.

Muscle imbalances set you up for injuries. Like the boy with a shorter left leg, the guy with weak hamstrings is setting himself up for tattered cartilage and bad knees. The knee is designed to work with everything working in perfect harmony, but when your muscle balance is out of whack, undue stress is placed on the joint. Same goes for other areas of the body, too. In the real world, functional movements require the enlistment of multiple muscles. Carrying a buddy who sprained his ankle and is unable to walk requires leg, core, and shoulder strength. If you’re lacking in one area, the rest of your muscles will try to make up for it. That means muscles that are designed for one thing will have to do another (in addition to performing their original task) – and you know how opposing one’s natural inclinations usually goes.

What causes muscle imbalances? For one, poor form. Taking the squat example from above, it doesn’t mean much if you’re squatting (or deadlifting, or pressing, or doing any of the compound lifts) with poor form. At worst, you risk injury, and at best, you risk favoring one muscle group over another. A true squat is supposed to be a total body effort, with the quads pushing, the hamstrings pulling, and the glutes activating (not to mention the torso-lever supporting it all, which requires equally competent abs and lower back muscles).

Isolation exercises also contribute to muscular imbalance. As a rule, the leg extension machine doesn’t work anything but the quadriceps. Unless you’re a bodybuilder going for ridiculous quads, you should avoid this machine at all costs. Even if you supplement your “leg day” (arm, chest, back, and leg “days” are another pet peeve of mine, but more on that later) with some hamstring curls, calf raises, and glute pushes, you’re still contributing to muscle imbalance. Each individual muscle might be strong in its own way, but they don’t work together. Try to lift a heavy rock after a year of leg extensions, hamstring curls, and calf raises, and you won’t know how to coordinate each muscle to complete the movement. Isolation exercises don’t improve your performance in functional activities (sports, hunting, lifting heavy things in real world terms); they increase your ability to only perform that specific isolation exercise. A machine lover who can leg press a thousand pounds can’t squat the same amount, but a guy who squats a thousand pounds can probably double that amount on the leg press. The woman who curls a ton and loves the reverse back fly may have big biceps and a defined back, but I bet she can’t do fifteen pull-ups like the devoted Primal fitness buff might.

The very idea of “leg days” or “arm days” is counterproductive to real fitness and contributes to muscle imbalances. Did Grok have “leg days”? Did he ever spend a few hours just curling a heavy rock so his biceps would grow? No! The body is meant to function as a machine of interlocking parts, every single one of which is integral to overall performance. When we mentally separate our lifting days and focus on specific body parts, we start to think of our muscles as islands unto themselves, and eventually they’ll start to function like that – imbalanced and totally cut off from the rest of the muscles. What’s ironic is that the people who do this really think they’re balancing things out. If they only knew…

How do we promote muscle balance and fight muscle imbalance? Pretty simply, by exercising the right way. Luckily, Primal exercises are all about promoting proper muscle balance. Big, compound movements force us to use every muscle in our bodies correctly, and the best way to train for these big, compound movements is to just do them. Even if you’re worried about the size of your biceps, resist the urge to curl. Instead, just do a few more pull-ups and know it’ll all work out in the end. Also, be aware of your form, and get coaching (either in person or via videos/info on the web) on the more complex lifts to ensure you’re actively engaging all the requisite muscles.

And so, perfect Primal muscle balance is about symmetry on the micro level, between opposing muscles – the hamstring/quad, the bicep/tricep, the abs/back – and on the macro level – the entire body working in concert to perform a task. Total body muscle balance, then, requires individually balanced muscles. To isolate our muscles and go for an imbalanced look is to reject our essential natures – that of symmetrical beings constantly searching for balance in all areas of life – and invite ruin and chronic injury. To use our muscles as a cohesive, united force is to promote optimum health, freedom from injury, and better results.

Functional Fitness

Things are going great for you and your workouts, you are lifting more than ever before, going nuts on the cardio machines and able to leg press a half a ton. You go home from the gym and you are taking the garbage out and your back goes out on you. What happened? More than likely your training is not geared toward functional fitness. You might look great, ripped and toned but your not prepared to carry a case of water into your house, carry a load of fire wood or many other everyday activities.

Functional fitness focuses on building a body capable of doing real-life activities in real-life positions, not just lifting a certain amount of weight in an idealized posture created by a gym machine.

The main purpose of functional fitness is to teach the muscles to work together rather than isolating them to work independently.

A good example of a functional exercise is the squat. Not a leg press but a real squat, the kind of squat where you break parallel. We should be bending at the knees to pick things up and unfortunately things are on the floor a lot and not above parallel. If you train your body to squat in a partial range of motion when you go to lift something heavy below that range your risk of injury greatly increases.

For example the leg press, you may be strengthening certain muscles but your body is learning very little because you are not activating core stabilizer muscles.

In a good functional fitness class you should push, pull, run, throw, climb, lift, and
jump, effectively and safely.

Functional exercise is much more neurologically demanding than machine exercises. For this reason people jumping into functional fitness may be startled as it is harder than working with machines. But this is not a bad thing!!

Functional fitness classes are now available at Jim's Gym!! Contact us for more info. Your first week is free because it is something that has to be experienced. Hope to see you soon.

10 Delicious DIY Salad Dressings

10 Delicious DIY Salad Dressings

So without further ado, we present our top 10 tastiest, most nutritious salad dressings:

1. Raspberry Vinaigrette

While we’d usually pass on honey, this salad dressing was too darn tasty and refreshing to forgo – especially when paired with a salad of mixed baby greens, feta cheese and toasted walnuts. If you’d prefer to steer clear of honey altogether you can replace it with one packet of Splenda if you are so inclined. (FYI – 1 tbsp of honey is about 64 calories and 17 g of carbs)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raspberry vinegar
1 tbsp of honey
1 tbsp fresh mint leaves, finely chopped

Method:
Pour vinegar in a mason jar or other container with a tight lid. Add honey and chopped mint, cover with lid and shake. If still too bitter, add in a bit more honey or Splenda to even out the flavor.

2. Citrus Vinaigrette

Liven up a regular salad with this crisp and refreshing summer-inspired salad dressing.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp white balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp fresh squeezed orange juice
1 tbsp fresh squeezed grapefruit juice
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
6 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
2 tbsp grated Romano or Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
Again, in a large mason jar or container with a tight lid, combine the vinegar, orange juice, grapefruit juice, lime juice, and lemon juice. Drizzle in the olive oil while whisking vigorously. Once mixed, add the walnuts and cheese and stir. Season with salt and pepper to taste

3. Dill Vinaigrette

This salad dressing is so tasty, you’ll want to double the recipe so that you can have it again when dinner time rolls around!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp honey (or 1 packet of Splenda)
1/2 tsp dried dill weed
1/8 tsp onion powder
1/8 tsp garlic powder
1/8 tsp dry mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
In a blender, combine the oil, vinegar, sugar, dill weed, onion powder, garlic powder, dry mustard. Blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate until chilled.

4. Balsamic Vinaigrette

Although this makes a great, simple salad dressing, it is equally delicious as a marinade for meat or when drizzled on steamed vegetables.

Ingredients:
3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
In a mason jar or other container with a tight lid, combine all the ingredients. Shake until all ingredients are combined. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

5. Basil Vinaigrette

Delicious year round, this salad is especially tasty when paired with an Italian-themed salad laden with fresh mozzarella and ripe tomatoes.

Ingredients:
1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tbsp chopped fresh basil (it’s very important here to use fresh – it’s not nearly as good with dried leaves!)
2 cloves garlic, minced

Method:
In a bowl, whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, basil, and garlic. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

6. Parsley Dressing

Try this flavorful dressing on a salad of mixed greens or other mild-flavored salad combination.

Ingredients:
3 tsp olive oil
2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp onion powder
2 tsp chopped parsley

Method:
In a bowl, combine the olive oil, lemon juice and onion powder. Once combined, add in the chopped parsley, mix thoroughly with a whisk and serve.

7. Lemon Caesar Dressing

Try this citrus-infused spin on this popular salad dressing option.

Ingredients:
1 tsp lemon peel (finely grated)
3 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp anchovy paste
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup olive oil
1 tbsp sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Method:
In a bowl, whisk all ingredients except oil and sour cream. Once combined, slowly add oil, whisking constantly until smooth (if you stop, the dressing could break). Once combined, whisk in sour cream until smooth and creamy. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

8. Asian Dressing

Add a taste of the orient (without the sugar) with this tangy Asian-inspired dressing.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup orange juice (about 2 large oranges)
1/3 cup white vinegar
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 tbsp Asian mustard (should be easily found in the ethnic food aisle of your local grocery store)
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 medium garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsp sesame oil

Method:
In a bowl, whisk together orange juice, vinegar, sesame seeds, mustard, sugar, salt, and garlic. Once combined, slowly whisk in sesame oil.

9. Ginger-Asian Dressing

A second spin on the Asian dressing theme, this dressing is delicious on salads as well as steamed or grilled veggies.

Ingredients:
1 carrot, fresh, small, peeled and shredded
2 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
1/2 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp minced onion
1 tbsp hot mustard
1 tbsp fresh ginger root, grated

Method:
Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.

10. French Style Dressing

Looking for a way to get the kids to eat their greens? This tasty recipe is sure to wow ‘em!

Ingredients:
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp white pepper, ground
1 tsp unsalted tomato paste
7 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup red or white wine vinegar
2 tsp water
1/2 tsp fresh chopped onion

Method:
In a large mason jar or other container with a tight lid, combine all ingredients, shake it up and serve.

Flu/Swine Flu/Heart Disease

The seasonal flu is responsible for 200,000 hospitalizations each year and approximately 36,000 deaths each year. So far this year the swine flu has been responsible for 4,958 hospitalizations and 292 deaths. Of the people hospitalized 70% have had pre-existing conditions. These are not made up numbers, they are directly from the CDC website. Now I am in no way trying to minimize the risk some people are at of becoming very ill from the flu. I just wanted to put these numbers out there because the media has caused an enormous amount of panic and it's nice to actually see some solid statistics.

On to my next subject, Cardiovascular Disease. Cardiovascular Disease is STILL the number one killer!! In fact it kills more people per year then the next 3 causes of death combined including all Cancers, Alzheimer's and Accidents, yet a lot of us still don't seem to be concerned about it. The old it won't happen to me mentality comes into play with this. . A few more startling facts are 910,000 Americans have cardiovascular disease, a person dies of cardiovascular disease every 35 seconds from the disease. For those people fortunate enough to survive a Cardiac episode, there life will be forever changed. They may live in fear of having another episode. The average number years of lost life due to heart attack is 14.2 years. Cardiovascular Disease in large part is a preventable disease. The top nine risk factors for Cardiovascular Disease in order are as follows, over consumption of alcohol, lack of exercise, lack of vegetables, obesity, hypertension, physiological index, smoking, diabetes and cholesterol ratios. Now almost every single one of those top nine are life style choices. Many of them could be corrected by exercise alone.

The point I am trying to make is, many people are in a panic over this flu season and while we need to be aware of it there is no need for panic. We all should however take a long hard look at these facts and decide whether or not we can make some changes in our lifestyle. I know that it is not as simple as going out and getting a flu shot but you can do a lot to help prevent Cardiovascular Disease. Remember your risk of dying from Cardiovascular Disease is over 30 times your risk of dying from the flu. Also a lot of the things you need to do to help prevent Cardiovascular Disease also helps prevent the flu.

ABS

I am sitting here today in the gym and was asked for probably the billionth time how do I get ABS. My next question is always what exactly do you mean? Do you want to increase the muscle tone or do you wanna lose the layer of fat that has taken over?

Usually they are looking to lose the fat. I blame television and magazines for the misconception that you can simply buy an ab machine or do crunches to rid that layer of fat. Could not be further from the truth. Crunches are not going to burn fat at least not that much fat from the mid-section without proper nutrition and exercise.

It's a pretty simple concept. You have to eat less calories than your burning. Now there is a little more to the science end of it including your resting metabolic rate and so on but we do not need to go into that here for this purpose.

So let's break this down a little bit. What burns calories? We all know that cardiovascular exercise burns calories but is it the best option? Many people forget or don't realize that working with weights burns calories. Just because there is no calorie counter does not mean that you are not burning calories. In fact weight training can burn more calories than cardio alone. When you are done with cardio your done burning fat...when you get done weight training you continue to burn fat for many hours to follow. Another point to make is the more lean muscle mass you have the more calories you burn.

So let's put to rest some common myths. Will weight training make me bulky? No..not unless that is your goal and you are eating appropriately to make this happen as well as taking supplements to speed the process. This is a big fear for many women...bottom line is women do not have the correct hormones to build muscle effectively. Will weight training make me less flexible? Again...no. As long as you are training using a full range of motion for every exercise you will not lose flexibility in fact you should gain flexibility.

So the bottom line is...get in the gym and work hard and go home and eat less. Again I am making this simple on purpose because we don't need to concentrate on fancy programs or diets especially in the beginning. This is what you need to do to find those elusive abs.

That is all for today!!!

Have a great week!!

Weight Loss Challenge

Join the Get Slim Contest and change your life while winning great prizes! Just like Slim, it’s easy to take part in the contest. Simply register, provide your measurements, a photo, and start using Bios Life Slim™!

The Get Slim Challenge will be ongoing and winners will be selected at the end of each quarter and six month period. Participants can join at anytime. Your 90 and/or 180 days will run based on the date you joined the Challenge. Your results will be compared with participants who end their period in the same quarter and six month period.

The Prizes!
90 Day Challenge
- One 1^st Place Winner - $5,000
- Two 2^nd Place Winners - $2,500
- Five 3^rd Place Winners - $1,000
- Sixteen Honorable Mentions - $500 Product Credit

180 Day Challenge
- One 1^st Place Winner - $15,000
- Two 2^nd Place Winners - $10,000
- Three 3^rd Place Winners - $5,000
- Sixteen Honorable Mentions - $1000 Product Credit

Please contact me with the details on how to get started on the Get Slim Challenge. Also anyone who is interested in personal training to go along with this challenge contact me as well. Anyone who hires me as there personal trainer to go along with this program is going to have a huge advantage over the competition. I have seen the results and I know we can win!!

Below are the finalist for June. Take a look!

Scott Wiggins

“At 255 pounds, I felt sluggish and lifeless,” said Get Slim Challenge finalist Scott Wiggins. “I had reached the point in my life where I was fed up with being heavy. I often avoided mirrors and my clothes didn’t fit well. I wasn’t motivated and my weight always seemed my excuse for not living life.” Scott was constantly overeating due to stress but he finally decided it was time for a slimmer, happier and more fulfilling life. He gave Bios Life Slim a try and was able to lose 23 pounds in only 90 days! “After using Slim two to three times a day for 90 days and making a commitment to myself to live the Slim lifestyle, I feel more fit and excited for each new day! Now I have more energy, greater focus, and better appreciation for living healthy and being fit.”

Scott added, “I’m more engaged with life, participating in a myriad of sports and taking my family on trips I wouldn’t have done before. Because I have more energy, I’ve been able to connect with my children through outdoor activities such as biking, hiking and Frisbee golf.” “Slim helped satisfy my hunger, cravings, reducing my binge eating and getting the exercise recommended in the Slim Lifestyle guidelines has helped me reduce the stress in my life,” he said. Scott is excited about life again and he shares his confidence and increased self-esteem. “As I continued to drink Slim, I began seeing the inches disappear and then the scale begin to go down. I have had the most fun pulling out clothes that I have not worn for a couple of years only to have them fit better than when I bought them. I feel more confident and I also enjoy my wife looking at me again like we were newlyweds.” Scott urges everyone to try Slim. “Try it for at least a month and commit to it. Don’t let the weight continue to be an anchor in your life. I feel fantastic now thanks to Slim!”

Gilbert Mena

Suffering from high blood pressure and high cholesterol, Gilbert Mena was concerned with his health, especially with a family history of obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease. For the past 90 days, Gilbert committed himself to drinking Slim and was able to achieve a great body transformation! By losing most of his abdominal fat, Gilbert is decreasing his risk for heart disease and with the help of Slim he hopes to live a longer life. “After drinking Slim, my blood pressure has dropped to the normal healthy range as well as my glucose levels and I have more energy. The Get Slim Challenge is a great opportunity for someone to improve their eating habits and to become healthier and now I’ll hopefully live longer,” he said. Slim has helped Gilbert to make better decisions when it comes to food and exercise. “Slim helped to

curb my cravings for unhealthy foods and sweets, and has become a lifestyle changing habit for me. Soon after I saw the progress I made, I began choosing more physical activities like riding my bike to work several times a week. I may not have lost a lot of weight very quickly but my life has changed and I know that it is just a matter of time before I look and feel exactly how I want, thanks to Slim!” Gilbert emphasized, “Slim is a great product! Unlike many other weight loss supplements out there, it doesn’t contain unhealthy chemicals and Slim has helped me be more active, leading me to a more fulfilling life!”

Teresa Winters

Since she was a teenager, Teresa Winters struggled to lose weight despite her countless attempts to diet and exercise. At age 47, she decided to use her competitive spirit to her advantage and joined the Get Slim Challenge as a motivation to keep her on track with her weight loss. It’s no surprise that with the help of Slim she lost 30 pounds in only 90 days! “I perform better if there is a challenge to meet. I have found that drinking Bios Life Slim has been the easiest weight loss program I have ever tried and I have tried them all! Slim helps me to not feel hungry and I no longer think about food all the time,” she said. Teresa shares how Slim has improved her quality of life. “I have much more energy now and I feel better about myself. I’m proud that I have found a plan that works for me. My story reflects the struggles of most

American women. We’re always looking for some help when it comes to weight control. The girth of the nation is increasing and I’m proof that there is a product that can stem the tide!” Teresa is taking Slim to the next level and since she has been so successful with her weight loss, she became a Franchise Owner and has been trained by her sponsor Cheryl Straub. “I wanted to get the weight off and I have lost weight with Slim. People stop me and ask, “Have you lost weight?” It’s the perfect segue into telling a potential client about Slim. I’m spreading the word to others who desire to improve their health. I’m thankful to Cheryl Straub and her availability to answer my questions about Slim. Slim is easy to use and effective if taken consistently.”

Tyson Chamberlain

Raised in the Polynesian culture, Tyson Chamberlain explained that food plays a big part in his family tradition and he was always referred to as the “big” guy throughout his life. At 340 pounds, Tyson was tired of the stereotype and wanted to improve his eating habits and have a healthier life. “I finally woke up one morning and I could barely get myself out of bed and I broke down crying in front of the mirror. I told myself: ‘No more magic pills, no more “I’ll start on Monday,” no more eating food just to eat, and no more excuses about how I’m Polynesian. I then started to eat healthier and to exercise. I was able to get down to 290 pounds in four months but then I hit a plateau and I couldn’t get past that no matter what I tried. I was frustrated and I almost gave up again until my wife introduced me to Bios Life Slim,” Tyson said.

After his wife introduced him to Slim, he researched the website and read former Get Slim Challenge winners’ testimonials and was ready to try it for himself. He was able to lose 43 pounds in only three months! “Slim helps me get through my workouts and gives me the extra push to finish one or two more extra weight lift reps. I love the extra energy I get from using Slim and how much better I feel overall. I had quick results drinking Slim and I don’t have the desire to splurge and eat whatever I want anymore.” He emphasized, “I used to think that because I’m Samoan, I should be content with weighing about 290 pounds but I look at food a lot different now and I have a better understanding about food, dieting and working out. Slim has helped me discover that I can do this and I can change my life. Not just physically but mentally too. All I did to lose the weight was to incorporate Slim three times a day, 15 minutes before breakfast, lunch and dinner. I also hit the gym four to five times a week. With the help of Slim, you have no reason to delay your own journey to success!”

Maria Almengor

When Maria Almengor’s travel agency business went out of business last October, she decided to take some time off and decided to stay home for a few months before looking for another job opportunity. With her free time, she had an increased appetite and couldn’t stop eating. Her family hinted that she was gaining a few pounds but reality only hit her when she saw herself in a picture taken during Christmas time. “I had my family over at Christmas but my daughter only sent me the pictures on January 25th and I couldn’t believe how much weight I had gained! First, I thought there was something wrong with her camera but then I realized I needed it to take action,” Maria said. After researching online for colon cleansing products, she found Franchise Owner Prudencio Ramirez and started using ClearStart and then Bios Life Slim.

Joining the Get Slim Challenge in March, Maria was able to lose 19 pounds and two dress sizes! “I feel great now! I never want to go back to how I was. I was a size 18 and now I’m a size 12/14. Slim really works but you have to commit yourself to drink it every day. I don’t get as hungry anymore. I drink Slim twice a day, 15 minutes before my lunch and my dinner. I also make sure to eat a light dinner. It’s so nice to try on clothes that fit me!” She added, “I recently went to a family party and everybody told me, “Wow, Maria you look great! What are you doing?” It feels good to hear that from people and I’ve gained back my confidence.” “We’ve had a treadmill for the past eight years and nobody in my family has ever used it. Slim gives me energy and I’ve been using it every day for at least 20 minutes for the past three months. My husband was so impressed with my levels of energy that he said, ‘Wow, this product really works!’ If I can do it, anyone can!”

Carl Pellillo

After he had two coronary artery bypass surgeries, Carl Pellilo’s wife was desperately looking for a solution to improve her husband’s health. It was her sister— Franchise Owner Donna Bryant, that suggested Carl start drinking Slim and enter the Get Slim Challenge to motivate him. “My sister-in-law gave me my first container of Slim as a birthday gift and since I’ve been drinking Slim I have been able to lose 23 pounds so far, I have more energy, and I no longer have shortness of breath,” Carl said. He added, “Before Slim, I didn’t have energy to exercise and that plays an important part for my health since I have had two bypass surgeries. Slim absolutely works and everyone should try it!”

At age 63, Carl is feeling younger and has more energy than ever! “I feel and look great! I’d like to say thanks to Donna for introducing me to Slim. She believes in all the Unicity products and now I know for myself that Slim works. When I started I weighed 220 pounds and now I’m down to 197 and I hope to drop to 180 pounds as I continue with the 180-day challenge! Both my family doctor and my cardiologist are very happy with my results at this time.”

Nadia Hikert

Before Slim, Nadia Hikert was suffering from high blood sugar, fatigue and increased appetite. After three months of drinking Slim, Nadia dropped 25 pounds and now she is proud of waking up early in the morning full of energy and ready to start her yoga class. “Slim gives me energy and I don’t feel like I’m starving. My blood sugar levels went down as well as my cholesterol. I’m the proof that Slim does work! Slim has helped me change my eating habits. Now I don’t crave food late at night and I eat a lot of fresh fruits and veggies.” Nadia said Slim not only helped her lose weight but gave her life back. “I feel happy now and my friends and my family are very impressed with my results. I noticed that losing the weight has improved the relationship with my husband. Slim has helped me

focus on improving my health. My mom died at age 49 and I’m 50 now and I was scared to die and not see my grandchildren. Life is short and it’s important to take care of myself and my health to prolong my days with my husband and my children.” As a Bios Life Franchise Owner, Nadia does not miss an opportunity to introduce Slim to others. “Slim is a natural product with no side effects, very handy and I’m the proof that it works. I don’t keep this secret from my friends and family and I always show my before and after pictures to share my success with them.”

Jorge Lavayen

Four years ago, Jorge Lavayen got a job at a 7-Eleven store and started to drink an excessive amount of soda, slurpees or anything with lots of sugar and caffeine to keep him awake since he would work 12-hour shifts. He then got married and there was no time to exercise. Jorge was shocked when he realized he had gained about 80 pounds. Jorge was ready to begin a new chapter of his life and after reading Ryan Barnett’s story, he was inspired and motivated to join the Get Slim Challenge. “Before Slim, I was always tired and I had no energy. I was depressed that I had to buy bigger size clothes because nothing that I had would fit me. After reading Ryan’s story, I decided to drink Slim. After drinking Slim, I was amazed that I no longer craved sugar!” He added, “I started to lose weight fast and then I knew it was possible for me to turn my life around.

Before Slim, I didn’t think there was any product out there that could work for me to help with weight loss. Slim really works and I was a size 46-48 and now I can fit into pants that are size 38.” Jorge recommends Slim to anyone who is serious about weight loss. “Believe it or not, Slim really works! The only way to find it is drinking it! If you drink it, you’ll see results immediately!”