Los Angeles Personal Trainer Nicholas Barrett

Alcohol and Fat Burning

Nicholas Barrett — Mon, 14 May 2012 06:45:08 +0000

Regular alcohol consumption will limit or stop your weight loss results altogether. Drinking alcohol and going to the gym, is like cleaning your carpets and then running round your home with muddy hiking boots. When there is alcohol present in your system, the liver prioritizes getting rid of the toxins (alcohol) first, and therefore slows down the body’s ability to burn fat. When the body’s primary focus is on processing alcohol, it is not able to effectively break down foods containing carbohydrates and fat. These calories are then stored as body fat and hence herein starts the problem. If you have one or two drinks, you might stall your fat loss for a few hours. If you have quite a few drinks, it might be as long as four days before you’re metabolizing fat again. So you see why those ‘little’ drinks at social occasions can be so detrimental to your waistline.

Alcohol is a diuretic, causing the body to lose water and dehydrate. It also inhibits the quality of your sleep patterns, which in turn raises cortisol levels, which can often trigger you to eat more the following day. If this is not enough to make you think twice before reaching for the next ‘little’ drink, it also lessens your discernment and willpower over what you chose to eat (hello pizza, chicken wings, tortilla chips) etc, and the late night binging on ice cream. In this state you are more likely to over-eat, in particular the more calorie laden salty foods, making you more thirsty and leading to you drinking even more alcohol – which can cause your waistline to expand. Alcohol is only worth doing if you’re not too serious about making a major body- transformation.

If wine with dinner is part of your lifestyle, and you’re not in any particular hurry to have abs like a wash board, you might experiment a little. See if you can have a glass of wine a few times a week and still be making progress. If you’re not making enough progress, keep cutting back the number of drinks until you’re satisfied with the level of your results. Of course, if you’re wanting to radically transform yourself for a better quality of life, or a beach/pool vacation, or a class reunion with a little black dress, forget the alcohol.

Alcohol is the enemy when it comes to weight loss. It adds a lot of empty calories to your daily diet, alters the normal digestive process, turning the food that you eat into body fat. The best way to maintain a lean waistline and at the same time enjoy your life is moderation. Be blessed…Enjoy!

-Nicholas

If you are in the Los Angeles area and you would like a complimentary one-on-one assessment with Personal Trainer in L.A. Nicholas Barrett, please don't hesitate to get in touch! Personal trainer Los Angeles. Los Angeles personal trainer. Personal trainer marina del rey.

Exercise Is Good – Even When You Think It’s Not

Nicholas Barrett — Sat, 05 May 2012 09:00:48 +0000

Hi Friends, I hope that you are all outstanding, and living each day with gratitude and purpose. We come around once and often the art of living takes so long to learn,but the life is so short. With this month’s newsletter i want to bring to your attention the benefits of exercise when you would least expect them.

I have long touted the great benefits of a regular exercise program, as it’s the best natural medicine there is, offering a multitude of benefits such as, anti-aging, a sharper mind, better moods, increase immune system, better bone density, and prevention of many of the modern day epidemic of diseases.

As a Personal Trainer Los Angeles i hear many misconceptions about the “wrong” time to engage in exercise, with some thinking when you are pregnant, or have high blood pressure, that you should avoid exercise.

The fact of the matter, is that exercise is almost always the best option in any scenario, and folk are actually making their journey in life harder than if they did something, as opposed to deciding that the couch potato option is for them!

When you have a cold

Most people think that as soon as you get a cold that you should stop exercising, when in actual fact it is fine and may improve the way that you feel, and even help speed up the metabolization of the cold. The only time it becomes best to stop exercising is when you have a lower respiratory tract infection.

Numerous recent studies have also shown that regular light to moderate exercise may even raise the body’s immune system to fight and prevent colds. Exercise increases the immune cells by as much as 50%- 300%.

The studies in Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews states that over-training can suppress your immunity, so that moderate exercise is best while you feel below par.

“Prolonged intense exercise causes immunosuppression, whereas moderate-intensity exercise improves immune function and potentially reduces risk and severity of respiratory viral infections.”

The idea is to train within your limits during this time, and keep it to a sensible level.
A study showed that people who were on a regular exercise regimen decreased their risk of having a cold by more than 50% per cent. At such times as they did get a cold or flu it was much less severe and lasted a lot shorter than in people with no regular exercise routine, as a result of increased immune function in trained people.

When you have a headache

Ever wondered if you should exercise with a headache? Exercise and fitness can help reduce headaches in the long run. Whilst there are cases of exertion induced headaches, people with more regular or migraine headaches can actually benefit from getting in shape. This is because exercise releases endomorphins which are the body’s natural painkillers. Other benefits of exercise for reducing headaches are:

Reduced muscle tension and tiredness
Improving blood flow to your brain
Better sleep patterns
Block “bad” chemicals that are major contributors to migraines
Enhanced digestion and toxin metabolization

Exercising when pregnant

Some old fashioned doctors abscond any type of physical activity during pregnancy, instead promoting the “couch potato” approach, which results in gaining tons of unnecessary weight and feeling like a slug. In reality there are many pregnancy- safe workout routines that can be done during this time. The benefits of maintaining an exercise during this time are many, some being:

Fewer associated backaches
Enhanced sleep patterns
Better moods due to endorphin release
Weight control/management
The better shape you are in, the better shape the baby will be in at birth
Better recovery postpartum

Arthritis and joint pain

If you are like most people when you experience any type of joint pain, you almost certainly reduce or stop exercise altogether. Well in actual fact you may be doing yourself more harm than good! Lets examine why?

Exercise is the best thing to do for arthritis
Exercise strengthens and conditions the muscles around the joints
Exercise manages weight and therefore helps you put less stress on the joints

Many people are under the misconception that exercise will aggravate their joint pain, when in actual fact it’s far to the contrary. The main reason is that exercise ensures that muscles and their surrounding connective tissue are in optimum condition, This supports the bones and puts less stress on the joints.

The choice of which exercises to do or avoid are more crucial if you are currently/or at any time in the future suffering from arthritis or joint pain, and it is best to consult with an expert Los Angeles Personal Trainer in setting up the best program for you. These would include range of motion and agility training- Strength training- cardiovascular exercise.

How about improving your life quality and starting a regular exercise program, if you are not already?

There is widespread consensus that exercising is the best solution to keeping the doctor with his/her prescription medications away, and also in creating the fundamental foundation to build a healthy, flourishing life. Whether it’s in disease prevention, anti-aging, or just staying physically and mentally at the top of your game, exercise scores 10 out of 10 every time. You may invest in plastic surgery, expensive holidays, but the only thing that can enhance your life and longevity is exercise, and compared to those aforementioned things is practically free!!

There is no better time to start making exercise a regular part of your lifestyle than today. It does not matter how young or old you may think of yourself, as exercise at any age offers abundant benefits.

No matter what your current condition or limitations are, do firstly what is possible, then necessary, and then very soon you will be doing what you thought to be impossible!

-Nicholas

Parkour Training

Nicholas Barrett — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:33:50 +0000

Parkour, training was started by David Belle, a gymnast that saw a vision for developing a training modal that can be used in the great outdoors, without the use of expensive, often less functional gym equipment. The skill (a traceur) involves the skill of moving and negotiating objects in a loose freestyle format .It can be park benches, stairs, walls or any object you need to pass while moving around town, from one place to another. It can take the form of running, jumping or hurdling using the objects you pass as a medium for exercise.

Parkour as a modal uses multi-planar ranges of motion, acceleration, deceleration, stimulating core and functionality. It helps the body to be subconsciously adaptive and more athletic and nimble in everyday movement.
Parkour is regarded as being more a self-discipline than a sports activity, combining the intrinsic and extrinsic, meshing the focus and synergy of mind-body connection to overcome physical challenges through conditioning of the body and mind.

Parkour Training

The practice of Parkour can be challenging as there are not many public areas that are suitable to be set up with enough obstacles to make a circuit possible. Large urban areas are best as they offer lots of suitable obstacles,such as an array of benches, swings, walls, stairs and various other objects that can be used to beef up your Parkour skills.

The Parkour training method is so effective because it calls upon stability, jumping, landing, decelerating , accelerating, moving in multi- planar ranges of motion, jumping and swinging over obstacles that we randomly encounter. It is best as it is with most new exercise modals to start of gradually, and negotiating hurdles that are not overly demanding, as to attempt to jump over a bench on your first time out could risk injury.Build up to that over time as your body becomes more conditioned and accustomed to the myriad of movements.

Functional Power — How can Parkour benefit you?

Parkour training stimulates and encourages the development of the core, and hence uses more of your 206 muscles giving an intense, explosive workout modal to get through a circuit. It gets you in top shape as it employs a combination of power, endurance, speed and develops instinctive movement.

Parkour training is challenging, stimulates the core, and gets you super fit without the need of expensive gym memberships, and the need to rely on equipment.

That’s it. If you wish to be the best you can be at Parkour, the day to start training yourself is today, as we build our tomorrow’s today, and if we wait to start, tomorrow will just be another version of today. Get and instructor with experience and enjoy!

-Nicholas

Do You Want Sharp Abs For Summer? Cut Out Dairy Now!

Nicholas Barrett — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:25:05 +0000

With Summer Fast Approaching! Now Is The Time To Sharpen That Mid-Section. The Truth About Dairy And Your 6 Pack?

I get many emails, and questions from potential clients/people who say they eat a ‘healthy diet’. When I ask them how they eat on a typical day, many times it is not healthy at all.

They are misled by the media and advertising, and are not being fed the best information with regard to the optimum diet for maximum health.

We have all heard the slogans “milk is the perfect food,” “milk does a body good,” “milk builds strong bones,” “milk will help weight loss,” etc.

These slogans such as “Got Milk” are designed by the industry to get you to buy the product.

You may remember the slogan that Camel Cigarettes used “more doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette,” and “Camels are good for digestion.” As you can gather all these slogans are made with getting your money in mind — not making you healthy.

Milk and Dairy Truths

Besides humans, no other species drinks milk beyond infancy, or drinks the milk of another species.

Cow’s milk is intended for the nutritional needs of calves, who actually have four-part stomachs.

Milk/cheese is high in cholesterol, fat and sodium. Most dairy products including ice cream, cheese, yogurt, casein, are a very likely cause for our increased rate of obesity, currently at 65%, and many other health problems.

Cow’s milk has been connected to food allergies, bloating, digestive disorders, high cholesterol,mucous, fatigue etc.

The most interesting question is where do the Cows get calcium from? From plants. So a good idea would be to include a big green salad, kale, spinach, etc in at least two of your daily meals, if you are concerned about getting your calcium.

If you want to lose fat, feel better and be healthy cut out ALL dairy products!

-Nicholas

Are You Risking Your Health by Doing This?

Nicholas Barrett — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:23:54 +0000

A National Health Survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2009, made estimates on a comprehensive range of health factors governing the health of the US population.

Estimates were made for various widespread chronic illnesses, also mental health, functional limitations, general health , access to health care and lifestyle.

One aspect looked at was physical activity in leisure time. The survey showed that:

33 percent of adults were “inactive”
35 percent of adults participate in leisure-time physical activity regularly
More than half of adults over 18 never participated in any leisure time physical activity lasting 10 minutes or more per week
28 percent of adults participated in periods of high energy leisure time physical activity for a duration of more than 10 minutes or more, three times per week or more
More men were involved in leisure-time physical activity on a regular basis than women.

According to the report

“Regarding vigorous leisure-time physical activity, 50 percent of men never engaged in periods of vigorous leisure-time physical activity lasting 10 minutes or more per week compared with 60 percent of women. Thirty-one percent of men engaged in such activities three or more times per week compared with 25 percent of women.”

The Reasons Why Exercise Is Your Key To Health

The statistic that more than half of Americans do not engage in any exercise activities, is the one of the greatest single reasons to our current epidemic of obesity, strokes, Type 2 diabetes, and many others chronic conditions. The reason why fewer women than men are active in general, is that men play more group sports with colleagues and friends. Women also often carry the responsibilities that go with nursing and caring for the daily needs of young children.

Whatever your reasons, regardless of gender, there is a growing amount of research that shows that lack of exercise impacts your physical and mental health , and potentially shortens your life.

For example:

In a 2010 study published by the American Cancer Society, women that spent six hours a day sitting increased their risk of death by 37 percent compared to those who spent less than three hours a day sitting.
Those that exercise less are more likely to suffer from depression, as they have less of the feel good hormone (Serotonin) and endorphins that exercise increases . Exercise is the path to feeling better and not the prescription drugs with all the adverse side-effects that your doctor keeps pushing on you, so that he/she can get a significant commission check.
A study featured in Clinical Cardiology indicated that morbidly obese individuals – those with a BMI between 40 and 49.9 – average spent slightly more than 23 hours and 50 minutes per day either sleeping or engaged in sedentary activities, and took less than 2500 steps per day, which is well below the recommended 10,000 steps a healthy life. Needless to say that obesity is linked to five of the 10 diseases with the highest mortality: cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension and stroke.
Obesity and physical inactivity go hand in hand, and cause your body to be less sensitive to glucose-lowering effects of insulin. As a result of insulin resistance there are higher levels of blood sugar, which can lead to glucose intolerance, a precursor to the current surge in Type 2 diabetes. There are also a number of other serious diseases that have increased as a result of the increase in obesity, such as stroke, cancer, heart disease,and hypertension.

The benefits of regular exercise are as follows:

Combat depression
Lose weight
Fight Arthritis
Lower blood pressure
Reduce your risk of heart disease
Lower your risk of Type 2 diabetes and reverse pre-diabetes
Reduce the risk of cancer
Boost immune system
Improve sleep
Anti- aging

Why Does Exercise Have Such A Significant Impact?

Exercise aids your body in the utilization of insulin (blood sugar), and increases it’s effectiveness to receptors. This factor is one of the most significant ways in which exercise helps to prevent many of the present chronic diseases.

Exercise also helps maintain lean muscle mass, therefore fending off Sarcopenia (muscle catabolism) as people age. It also boosts growth hormone (GH), the mother of all hormones that is singularly by far the most important one to slow down aging.

Exercise helps you stay younger at a cellular level, by maintaining the length of telomeres- the DNA on either end of thread-like chromosomes. They can be compared to the plastic tip at the end of a shoe lace which stops the lace from fraying, telomeres protect the chromosomes that carry genes during cell division. As each time when cells divide, the telomeres get shorter, until the point that they eventually become too short to divide and become obsolete. To put it in a nutshell the longer your cells last, the more you will offset aging.

How To Get Into Exercise

The biggest scapegoat people use for not engaging in exercise is… “i don’t have time”! If The President has the time you do too! It is a matter of balancing your life so that you can plan exercise time around your life, and not your life around exercise. If you change the way that you do things, the things you do will change. Set some time aside either before work, getting up a bit earlier on days you exercise, say (3) times per week to start, or plan some time right after work before you go home and settle down for the evening, as if you settle down before it will be harder to get going.

When you start to see exercise as a health requirement rather than a “luxury”, you will find the time for it, rather than look upon it as an unpleasant chore. The key is finding balance within your life to work, rest and play.

List The Things That Will Inspire You

Current fitness level/ health
Weight loss goals
Fitness goals
Health issues
What you enjoy
Poolside vacations
Long term goals, for example; skiing vacation, climbing Mount Baldy or Kilimanjaro

What purpose is there to a life with no purpose can be analogized as , what purpose is there to exercise with no purpose? Well if you connect to any of the above you have just found your purpose. Regardless of your present age, weight , fitness level there is no better time to start exercising than today, and start working to a better quality of life.

Start Out Slowly But Surely

If you are just getting back into exercise, you will need to work your way back into it slowly. Attempting to do too much all at once will lead to burnout and makes you less likely to continue your program. For starters, you could try walking at a steady pace, then add periods of brisk walking, or jogging. Then, as your body grows more conditioned, you can upgrade to higher intensity training. A sound, well balanced routine often includes the following types of exercises:

High Intensity Interval Training
Cardiovascular Exercise
Resistance Training
Stretching

If you have emotional resistance, you may want to buy a copy of MIND SET TO FITNESS available on Amazon.com by Google searching under that title.

Even without too much discipline you will want to exercise as you will feel so good that it will become a must do, like watching your favorite game on a Sunday, or having your favorite coffee drink or meal.

get in touch!

Weight Loss Doesn’t Need to be In Food Jail

Nicholas Barrett — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:20:10 +0000

When you are consumed with all the weighing, measuring and calorie tracking, attempting to drop a few pounds can seem as tedious as driving to Las Vegas in holiday traffic. In order for a weight loss program to be successful one doesn’t need to obsess on calories and calorie counting, as there a plenty of ways to cut or reduce them without being a slave to them! Lifestyle changes can make the greatest difference, and also set the foundation for a lasting change, as opposed to a ‘build a house on sand’ approach that most calorie counting diets instill!

Have a strategy to making a life change

Join a gym or club. Here’s why: Attempting to keep up with the numbers is more akin to guessing how many jelly beans are in a mason jar. According to a 2006 study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, Americans – even those who are at a healthy weight – continually underestimate the number of calories in fast food by up to 38 percent.

To control your portions without decimal points, you can try and serve meals on smaller plates, as the plate will look full, but with way less calories than it would take to fill a regular plate. Look on- line for a healthy lifestyle meal delivery service that has meals for each day for particular (individual) caloric needs ie; 1200- 1800- 2200 kcal per day, and so forth. This will keep your food intake within a preset caloric total, giving you meals on hand and therefore conditioning your mind to eat to a format that will regulate your body weight. I would recommend doing this for a period of at least (30) DAYS, the time it takes to create a habit!

Here’s an added plus: Through the use of smaller portions, they train you to recognize proper portion sizes, and make smarter decisions when prepackaged food is out of reach. You can get food service delivery from $ 10 to $ 20 per day, plus there are good choices in the freezer aisle as well, says Elisa Zied, RD, author of So What Can I Eat? Look for frozen dinners with less than 500 calories with at least four grams of fiber, no more than 15 grams of fat (less than three grams of saturated and trans fat free), and less than 700 milligrams of sodium.

Food ratios may not be the answer

Simply view the labels. Here’s why: If the diets, such as the Zone, Atkins or South Beach never worked for you, it may be because you cannot give up the high glycemic carbohydrates, such as white bread, bagels, muffins etc. It could also be because you’re too busy worrying about percentages and ratios at each meal. If you don’t have your own food service or personal trainer monitoring all your meals, try this: Take a minute to scan the main ingredients on your food labels. According to 2007 report by the Economic Research Service of USDA, Americans spend an average of 30 percent of their annual grocery bill on foods such as muffins, pies, cakes, biscuits, cookies, ice cream, candy, soda and donuts – all with sugar listed near the top of the ingredients list, worse still from corn syrup/ corn syrup solids. It should be a no-brainer that sweeteners pump up the calories, but also run your blood sugar through a roller coaster where you end up still hungry and eating after your meal in front of the television with the cookie jar!!! Please see my Articles on this topic under ‘Diets’.

You can stop this vicious spiral by incorporating natural, whole foods as the main staple of your diet. You should include fruits, vegetables and lean meats like turkey, and fish, as well as the foods that burn fat. Please see my Article ‘Food And Body Fat’ @ www.personaltrainerinla.com’. Choose packaged snack foods with whole-wheat flour, oats, peanuts, and real fruit, listed at the top of of ingredients. The idea is that these foods are low in calories and high in fiber and protein rather than those with lots of high-fructose corn syrup, sugar, or honey, as these will trigger a brain signaling mistake that will lead to a whole host of problems.

Instead of 30 minutes on the treadmill. . .

Try (HIIT) or High Intensity Interval Training to scale down. According to a recent study by Duke University Emergency Medicine Research, treadmills inflate the number of calories you burn by 10 to 15 percent. The study found also that 20 per cent of us treat ourselves after exercise by eating as many calories as we worked off, the work and reward method! See Article ‘(HIIT)’ @ www.personaltrainerinla.com

A most effective way to counter the dessert is to engage in resistance training. Despite cardio workouts burning more calories per minute, weight training keeps your metabolism burning long after you end your training session. A study published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise found that after six months of lifting weights for three days a week, the subjects increased their resting metabolic rate (the number of calories you burn simply sitting) by 7 percent. To maximize the effectiveness of your weight training sessions, reduce the rest between exercises, and train circuit style. Another study in the same journal indicated that the rapid lifting (for example, doing a squat for two seconds, then rising as quickly as you can ) burns calories 11 percent faster than doing them slowly. Researchers believe that explosive movements create more calorie burning muscle contractions.

You Do Not Need To Put Yourself In Food Jail

Enjoy the foods you eat! Being a slave to your kitchen scales will not change the one in your bathroom any faster. A 2007 study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition confirmed that you can eat more and lose weight. This study compared weight loss in two groups of obese women. They all were instructed to eat a reduced-fat diet, but one group also had to consume a large amount of water foods like soups, fruits and vegetables. This first group ate 25 percent more in volume, but lost more weight (on average compared to 17.5 pounds 14). How was this possible? They were eating fewer calories, but they were still satisfied, thanks to the higher water content in the food. “Physical activity was the same in both groups, so if the people in one group lost more, they had to have eaten fewer calories,” says lead study author Barbara Rolls, Ph.D.

Instead of measuring your food, try a more natural approach, eat more slowly. It takes your brain 20 minutes to get the signal from your internal messaging that your stomach is full, so wait for the signal. The hormonal system we have includes the Leptin and gherkin hormones that do the job of controlling out appetite and hence food intake naturally. ‘If you pause between bites, you’ll probably get the signal before you head for second helpings. You don’t think you have that kind of self control? Pick foods that take longer to eat such as fruits you have to peel, shelled nuts, and spicy foods.

-Nicholas

Core Training Vs. Training Machines

Nicholas Barrett — Thu, 03 May 2012 07:10:09 +0000

Most people wanting to get into better shape, whether it be to lose weight, gain muscle, or get conditioned for a specific sport, at some point join a gym.

When joining a popular gym you are then offered an initiation to the ‘equipment’ or machines. This involves meeting one of their personal trainers, who will then wheel you around a circuit of mostly 10-12 machines, on a count from 1 to 10 basis. This circuit is usually repeated 2 to 3 times with all the movements done in the comfort of a nice chair… Sound familiar? Well that’s great business for their Personal Trainers, as it is easy and can be done from the knowledge gained from a one day course, as all they need to do is basically adjust the machine and know how to count from 1-10… Simple!

The drawback is that for any person wishing to improve the functionality and fitness level of their body, settling for this type of training will bring little “bang for the time invested”, not to mention money. The only benefit maybe psychological in that you feel you are doing something. If you didn’t go to the gym for a year and then went back, you would probably notice the same people doing the same machines on a count from 1-10 basis, with 2-3 circuits. You would also notice very little if any change in the trainees appearance or fitness level, as in order to have what you have not had before, you must do what you have not done before. Doing the same mundane easy routine, will bring the same mundane results.

Are you one of those people??… If yes the next part of this article can bring you ground breaking results.

The idea of taking time and effort to exercise, whether as a professional athlete or a lay person is to get your body to function and perform better, be it on the sports field or in the routine of everyday life. Machine training is great for getting ‘show’ muscles like bigger biceps for a summer tank top, or poolside on a vacation, but for the functionality of lifting luggage, moving furniture, carrying a TV from Fry’s to the car, or balancing off a high chair to reach up to a shelf, these isolated now bigger muscles are useless. What use is there to bigger muscles without being able to use them more efficiently, other than to lift a heavier number on the bicep machine.

Machines quite simply due to their isolation of individual muscle groups, are not effective in creating the duality of translating what you can lift in the comfort of sitting in a chair of a machine, verses what is demanded of your body in the ‘real’ world. I’m sure it will start to make sense to you by now, that sitting and just moving your arms, or legs slowly up or down will do nothing to improve your everyday mobility or performance.

In the routine of everyday life we are called upon to move at varying speeds and angles, fast or slow adapting to what the circumstances demand, making adjustments of speed essential. In core,functional training it is imperative to develop awareness of every moving part of your body involved in a particular movement. It is also important that your body is constantly adapting to the correct position, keeping it aligned to the range of motion required for a movement.

The benefit to you of using core/ functional movements is that they use more of your body’s 206 muscles to perform each movement, giving you maximum results in a shorter time. A training program that uses non- functional exercises, such as seated exercises on machines ,with single muscles in isolation will not trigger the core muscles to stabilize, hence will use less muscles and burn fewer calories.

For example:

Non- Functional movement;	Functional movement;
Bench press	Push- up
Cable pushdown.	Chin or Pull Up
Leg press	Squat
Tricep pushdown	Tricep dip

What is Functional Training?

The answer put simply, is get stronger performing an activity that you need to get stronger in performing. Functional training has become a buzzword over the last several years in training studios, and other more cutting edge facilities around the world. In fact it has become a household term.

What is function?

The body only knows movements as it relates to function.

Functional is integrated training, using multiple directions (Multi- planar) movements that involve stabilization, acceleration and deceleration.

The best way for me to put it in comprehensive terms, is to describe it as being integrated training to achieve more effective movement patterns. It stimulates the body to work as a synergistic moving piece, resulting in a body that can perform at a higher level in sports, as it functions with balance, and not the rigidity associated with most PERSONAL TRAINING. Functional

TRAINING puts the the focus on increasing strength, flexibility,endurance, speed and agility.

Core/ functional training will not only improve an athlete’s performance, but the average person to develop strength and balance that will aid everyday activities, such as carrying a child, standing on a ladder to reach up and get an object off a high shelf. A core/functional training program will also aid in the correct activation of the musculoskeletal system, by stimulating the more efficient functioning of the nervous system.

Key Benefits for Functional Training

Everyday activities
Functional TRAINING improves the quality of everyday life, by improving the body’s ability to function in a synergistic, integrated way, by improving agility and balance at the same time as strength.
Stronger back (less pain);
Weak core muscles are one of the key contributors to our modern day bad back epidemic. Functional training will dramatically improve these weak areas.
Burn more calories; Be more efficient.
Machines Training +s.
Rehabilitating an injury where an individual cannot support his/her bodyweight, or isolating an individual muscle group that has atrophied during injury.

-Nicholas

How Much Water Should You Drink?

Nicholas Barrett — Wed, 02 May 2012 06:49:08 +0000

As a Personal Trainer Los Angeles I get asked this question all the time. The answer is as a general guide eight glasses a day, or drink when you are thirsty approach work just fine.

For a more subjective approach it is more accurate to take into account other factors, such as lifestyle (active or sedentary), climatic conditions of the region you live in, or prescription medications that 48% per cent of the population takes (2008).

Developing an awareness of your circumstances, and their effect on your individual requirements for water, will help you fulfill your hydration needs. It’s hard to drink too much water, and it’s unlikely that you will drink enough to have water intoxication (hyponatremia), which can be serious, but effects mostly people over 65 years old, or people with kidney problems.

Geographical location

The area that you live in effects your needs for water. Those of us that live in warmer regions will require more water, to balance fluids lost as a result of perspiration. Those of us who live in areas of higher altitudes, will require more water, as a result of more rapid breathing due to a lack of oxygen in the air, resulting in moisture being lost during respiration.

Thirst

While it is safe to assume that when we feel thirsty is a good indication that we have a requirement for water, it’s better not to wait till you are thirsty, as you may be dehydrated by that time .The elderly or very young should avoid feeling thirsty, as they are more prone to dehydration. The symptoms for dehydration can be various, such as headache, muscle weakness, fatigue, dizziness, or a feeling of lightheadedness.

Staying hydrated

It is important to keep the body hydrated at all times, remaining aware of your individual circumstances. To follow an easy rule, would be to drink an 8oz glass of water with each meal and snack, and another in between meals.

With summer the weather is about to get much warmer and I want you all to stay well hydrated;

Hydration for Summer

With Summer fast approaching and warmer weather on the way, everyone needs to take more care in monitoring their hydration. While dehydration can occur during the winter months just from sweating and working out in the cold, chances of heat injury increase in the Spring and Summer periods with the onset of higher temperatures and humidity.

Useful tip on hydration:

Sweat rate

People in training can sweat as much as 2-3 litres an hour. Two litres of sweat is equal to 4.4 lbs – 1 liter = 1 KG = 2.2lbs. which can mean a loss of 3% of body- weight an hour in an 150lbs person.

4.4 / 150 = .03 ; .03 * 100 = 3%.

Here’s how dehydration affects the body. Our blood has a fluid part called plasma and when we sweat, we lower our plasma levels. This in turn changes our blood from an easy flowing fluid, into a very thick sluggish fluid, which results in making the heart working harder to pump this thick blood around.

Conclusion

I would recommend a minimum of 100 oz of water per day, and during intense activity 150oz. Data shows that women/ men who consume about 3.0 liters (100 fl oz ) of total water per day remain sufficiently hydrated. Remember as our individual factors change , so should our consumption of water.

Enjoy the Summer… stay hydrated!

-Nicholas

Alternative Protein

Nicholas Barrett — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 07:07:13 +0000

I want to address the often confusing topic of protein requirements for healthy, active lifestyles.

In recent years there has been a shift from the often unconscious eating of animal protein, to an alternative way of finding a replacement for our needs. The modern day American diet high in beef protein, which due to it’s high levels of saturated fat can be a significant factor in contributing to increased blood levels of unhealthful ‘LDL’. Many folk including myself have included more and more vegan ‘vegetarian’ foods into their diet, plant based proteins such as tempeh or tofu. The plant based proteins are incomplete proteins, meaning that they do not contain all the essential amino acids required to build and repair muscle tissue in the body.

Protein when ingested are broken down into amino acids, which then become the building blocks of skeletal muscle. Plant proteins have varying amino acid profiles. To give you an example legumes are high in Lysine (one of the essential amino acids), while grains are low, however, by combining legumes and grains you get all the essential amino acids.

As follows:

Grains and legumes combinations
Blacks beans and rice
Multi- grain bread and peanut/almond or cashew butter.
Nuts and seeds plus legumes;
Hummus (chickpea and tahini)
Lentils and almonds.

If training intensely while deciding to go the route of eating less animal proteins, such as beef, chicken, pork etc, it maybe beneficial to include egg whites in your daily diet, known as (ova-lacto vegetarian), as this will ensure that you are getting complete proteins to repair your body from intense workouts.Soy is also a complete protein with all the essential amino acids. In the long-term this will aid in the prevention of injuries.

Most of these amino acids are essential and the body cannot store them, so they need to be included in our daily diet. Be sure to include foods such as nuts, seeds, pulses, soy and protein powder supplements in your diet, as this will give you the balance that your body needs.

Conclusion

Proteins are necessary to sustain life, repair body tissues and promote cell renewal, pre- curse hormones, enzymes and blood cells. It is one of the most vital substances in the body second only to water, totaling about one fifth of a person’s body weight. Protein deficiency can result in weakness, fatigue and lowered immune function.

Many vegetarians assume that because they consume a higher carbohydrate content, that their diet will be balanced enough for optimum health. This often leaves them short of sufficient protein for adequate energy for workouts, or for the repair needed after.

Many folk look down upon vegetable sourced protein viewing it as inferior to animal based proteins. However along with supplying the body with a valuable source of protein, plant foods also contain micronutrients, phytonutrients, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and fiber that you will not find in animal proteins.

It is also much lower in saturated fats and less perishable. Many people make vegetable protein their main source, and remain in optimum health. I would recommend supplementing with a high quality egg white protein powder, and in addition loading up on essential and BCAA amino acids to boost and ensure that you have enough protein for your fit lifestyle requirements. Enjoy the variety even if you are not vegetarian.

-Nicholas

Why Does Exercise Make You Lose Weight?

Nicholas Barrett — Sat, 28 Apr 2012 09:00:41 +0000

The common held conception is that the more you exercise the more you lose – right? Well partly so, but it is a little more complicated than that as i will convey in this article. As a Los Angeles Personal Trainer i am avidly in pursuit of research that can translate to better and more efficient results for my clients.

The most useful insight in that context is in the area of exercise and weight loss. It is in what the exercise triggers in our bodies that sets the tone for weight loss, and not so much the exercise. Physical function/activity boosts the body’s internal messaging system (the in-built brain computer), to be more sensitive to appetite surprising hormones Leptin and Insulin, which is more critical to weight loss than just the calories the activity burns.

Leptin is the new kid on the block, having been discovered in 1994, but one of the most important hormones for assisting in weight loss. It is one of the reasons why with all the modern diets around today, that cause people to yo-yo in their weight loss journey, as each time they go on a ‘diet’ cycle they unbalance their Leptin levels, which causes the body to rebound and hence gain weight.

Leptin hormone is most abundant in adipose tissue (body fat), so the more overweight a person is the more their body secretes. The main function of this key hormone is to signal to the brain/body when it has been adequately fed, which regulates energy stores in the body through the hypothalamus to maintain balanced body weight.

Leptin can at first glance appear to be desirable to have in evaluated amounts, as it suppresses food intake at the same time as increasing the metabolic rate. However, people that are overweight and produce higher Leptin levels become leptin resistant and encounter a similar problem as those that develop insulin resistance.

To explain this further one must have an understanding of the way that leptin communicates with our body. It is part of our “internal messaging system”, sending signals to the brain when enough leptin has been secreted by the fat cells, resulting in a state of satiety and a feeling that we can stop eating.

With our modern day obsession of perpetual diets and the latest and greatest food craze of the week,all mostly promoting a reduced food supply, the result is a society with decreased leptin levels as our bodies adjust to the lowered level of food intake. The adage is the less you eat, the more your body stores by way of stored calories (body- fat).

On the other hand there is a tendency to overeat all the “wrong” foods, that is processed and high glycemic foods, that further scramble the hormonal signals of the body, with the result that our leptin receptors become unresponsive to leptin’s effects. When in this state the body is leptin intolerant, and does not send it’s usual signals to the hypothalamus to tell the brain that it has been fed sufficiently, or reached a state of satiety. This is the catch, although blood leptin levels are high, brain levels are low which leads to uncontrollable food binges, overeating and tremendous weight gain. The brain is misled to think the body is in starvation mode and tells it to store more body fat. This is what i term the “vicious cycle”. In its balanced state leptin is the most powerful natural appetite suppressant there is, but when unbalanced it can’t do what it is supposed to, and this leads to cravings for sweet foods. This is nowhere more perfectly exampled that in overweight to obese folk, as they seemingly do not eat a lot, but crave all the wrong foods.

Conclusion

The benefits of exercise are far more wide reaching than simply the calories a certain activity burns. A study at the University of Florida has shown that exercise reinforces the balance of leptin and it’s effectiveness, and in turn insulin regulation. High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT), which uses short bursts of higher output exercise interspersed with lower intensity, is of most benefit in hormone balancing and regulation.

Kick up your training a notch, buy a heart rate monitor and see the results multiply.

-Nicholas