Uncategorized

“Eat 4-6 meals per day to rev your metabolism and burn more calories.”

How many times have you heard that? Plenty, I imagine. In bodybuilding circles, this often gets expanded to 6-8 meals. I even saw a Mr. Olympia diet article where the reigning champ was eating 10 meals per day.

I get the logic. More is better. Keep fueling the metabolic furnace. But do we? When a dietary system like this places such strict demands on our lifestyles, we need to re-examine our habits and the science that drives them.

I found that fitness and bodybuilding people could benefit from eating less often, and people just starting out on their weight-loss or bodybuilding journey benefit from eating more often. But no matter which camp you’re in, I recommend building an eating plan based around your caloric needs, rather than arbitrarily using a number you hear mentioned by someone else.

How should you begin to do that? Let’s break it down.

Why Six Times Per Day?

I’ll be blunt: There’s not really any good data supporting hyper-metabolic effects of multiple meals.

One study published in International Journal of Obesity found that consistently eating more frequently—six times per day, to be specific—led to a greater “thermic effect” from food than eating sporadically. The thermic effect of food is basically the amount of energy it takes for your body to break down, digest, and process, the energy (food) you ingest.

In this study, frequent meals were linked to a statistically significant increase in the thermic effect of food, e.g. calorie-burning, but it wasn’t enough to draw significant conclusions in the realms of physique or body composition. Additionally, there wasn’t anything in the study to indicate that eating three, four, or five meals were worse than six—only that it was better than “sporadic” eating.

That is pretty much all the data you’ll find on meal frequency and boosting metabolism. For this reason, I make meal frequency recommendations for my clients based on two major factors: protein synthesis and satiety.

Meals Gained ≠ Muscle Gains

OK, so the science isn’t there, but everyone else seems like they’re doing it, so it can’t cause any harm, right? If your goal is maximum protein synthesis, I think there is a definite downside to eating often.

The first problem I see people run into when they eat frequently is that their blood amino acid levels are constantly elevated. In order to optimize protein synthesis you need to give your body a solid serving of protein which boosts protein synthesis and subsequently causes your blood amino acid (specifically leucine) levels to drop. To maximize synthesis, you should then hit your body with more protein while the levels are lower.

If you eat non-stop—every hour or two—then you aren’t going to experience the fluctuation in blood amino acid levels you need to optimize muscle growth. You need to space your meals out sufficiently in order to get the maximum amount of protein synthesis out of the food you eat.

Another issue that you run into is meal size. On one hand, it’s true that protein content plays a big role in satiety. Protein’s presence in the digestive track triggers the release of the hormone cholecystokinin (CCK), which signals to your brain that you’ve eaten and should be satisfied. However, meal size has been shown to be more important than protein content when it comes to satiety. If you eat too often, your meals will be so small that despite being protein-rich, they won’t satisfy you.

So you’re hungry—so what? Seriously, that is no way to live! If you’re going to go to all the trouble to eat all those meals, you should at least feel full. If you don’t, well, good luck sticking with your plan through the endless hours of prep and planning.

How Frequent Is Frequent Enough?

Some simple math can help us here. When looking to optimize anabolism and satiety, the number meals you eat throughout the day should be a divisor of the total amount of calories you eat.

If you eat 3,000 calories per day, then breaking that into five 600 calorie meals would probably give you sufficient food to feel satisfied, while not demanding so much that you need to turn to lower quality foods in order to hit your per-meal calorie targets. On the other hand, if you eat only 2,000 calories per day, eating five 400-calories meals is not a satiating option, but eating four 500-calorie meals would be more filling.

Each of these meals should contain a minimum of 30 grams of protein (the amount which research has shown is necessary to maximally stimulate protein synthesis). This pulse of protein can also be effectively spaced out and repeated throughout the day for the biggest increases in protein synthesis. If your calories are so low that you can’t get 30 grams of protein at each meal, sprinkle on a little leucine or have a BCAA drink with your meal to cover your bases in the protein synthesis department.

Remember when planning these meals that size is directly connected to satiety, so don’t make them too small to be filling. Not a big-time planner? You can still do this. Just eat a solid, protein-rich meal every 3-4 hours, and you’ll be more or less on track.

7 Serious Diseases with Back Pain as a Symptom

(and a FREE Solution!)

By Jesse Cannone

What if it’s not just a backache?

Back pain should always be taken seriously. What you may have written off as “strain” or “overwork” could actually be an early warning sign of a major health problem.

That’s because it’s not always your muscles causing back pain. When you’re taking care of your back but still having pain, it’s time to look at other potential problems.

Your back pain could be caused by your gut, an infection, or even an inflammatory disorder you can’t see. The pain and tenderness you feel are your body’s way of screaming out for help.

Perhaps you’ve been avoiding doctors to cut costs. That’s great since there are many alternatives to drugs and surgery out there. But to make the best choices for your health, you truly need to listen to what your body is telling you.

To help you tune in to what you need to hear, here’s a quick guide to seven serious diseases your back pain could be telling you to watch out for now.

#1 Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

Lower back pain and back cramping are associated with Irritable Bowel Syndrome. Depending on who you ask, IBS affects between 3% and 20% of the population at some point in their lives. What everyone can agree on though is IBS will make your life miserable.

IBS is caused by bacterial invasions, inflammation, and chemical sensitivities that often get worse with age. Until you can bring your gut back to health, you’ll fight bloating, cramps, alternating bouts of diarrhea and constipation, painful pressure, and of course – back pain!

#2 Ulcerative Colitis

Who wants to have a part of their intestines removed? No hands? Good, so pay attention to lower back pain that might indicate yet another painful bowel disorder.

Ulcerative colitis affects around 700,000 Americans each year. Scientists are still looking for the cause, but at least the effects are well recognized. Ulcers in the lining of your intestines caused by this disease can lead to severe internal bleeding, a hole in your colon and increased risk of colon cancer.

For this one, your back pain may appear at the same time as blood in your stools, cramping and fever. It’s not the flu, and it won’t go away without treatment.

#3 Inflammatory Arthritis

Over 2 million people in America suffer from inflammatory arthritis. While you many watch for the signs of arthritis as they grow older, inflammatory arthritis can hit you at any age – and back pain can give you a heads up that it’s moving in.

Inflammatory arthritis can go after spinal spaces and joints, causing pain and stiffness that’s worst in the morning or after you’ve been sitting for a while. Your back and other joints may feel swollen and warm to the touch. Particularly if you’re under 40, you’ll want to pay attention to this pain and start fighting the inflammation to keep your joints flexible and mobile for the rest of your life.

#4 Kidney Infection

Kidney infections don’t always carry the same obvious symptoms as a bladder infection. Instead, you’re likely to notice lower back pain and tenderness in the kidney area as an early warning that something is wrong – and the pain won’t go away until you treat the problem.

Even if you don’t have a full-blown kidney infection, the inflammation and tenderness of an irritated kidney can set off major back pain. Watch for collaborating symptoms – frequent bathroom trips, burning and sharp pains in your side – and don’t miss the message your back is sending!

#5 Diabetes

Who knew back could be a short cut to reading your blood sugar levels? It turns out that severe back pain can be a major red flag for diabetes – even more when it’s combined with pain radiating down your leg.

While this type of pain is commonly sciatica, it also could be a symptom of diabetic neuropathy. Diabetes affects the nerves in your body. Left unchecked diabetes can lead to a loss of sensation and range of motion as a result of this nerve damage. Bad cases can mean a total loss of sensation or even amputation below the knee. Don’t let things go that far – hear what your back is telling you and get help.

#6 Multiple Sclerosis

Neck and back pain are both associated with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). The natural progression of the disease often combines this with burning or tingling sensations and is made worse when you also have other inflammation issues.

While pain hasn’t been historically linked to MS, that view is changing. In some patients, it’s a critical marker of the onset of the disease. And if you don’t know why you’re hurting, it certainly pays to make sure your back pain isn’t MS, given the ways MS can be helped – if you catch it at an early stage.

#7 Heart Disease

Back pain can be a warning of major heart trouble – especially in women. While men often experience heart disease and heart attacks in traditional, chest-clutching ways, women tend to experience heart problems differently. Once considered “abnormal” or “atypical,” back pain in the middle to upper back is now commonly accepted as a sign of a heart issue in women.

For both men and women, the pressure of a blocked vein can manifest itself as back pain. If the pressure for the pain seems to be coming from within, and you have other symptoms like shooting pains in your arms, shortness of breath or sudden sweats, don’t ignore your back pain and seek immediate medical assistance.

Fight the pain – AND disease – by fighting the inflammation… FREE!

Look back over this list again. Did you notice that inflammation is a significant part of almost every one of these diseases? It’s also associated with virtually every kind of pain in your body.

Whether your back pain is related to one of these seven serious diseases or not, reducing inflammation in your body can only improve your health and reduce your pain. And it could save your life. Chronic inflammation is a serious problem. But it’s one that you have the power to do something about.

You could take anti-inflammatory drugs, but their list of potential side effects often reads worse than the problem you’re trying to treat. Or, you can do something naturally to fight runaway inflammation.

From Plastic Wrap to Pyrex, What’s Best?

By Jesse Cannone

Be sure what you store your food in keeps it safe to eat

New research is constantly discovering new causes of the world’s most deadly diseases – and more often than most people realize, it is due to poor choices in food storage.

Every day, it seems that leached Bisphenol A (BPA) or Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) is proven a cause for yet another serious health condition, like cancer or organ damage.

Though many companies have responded to research with healthier ways to store food, it is still important to check every container you use for purity and safety. (If you have children in your home, it’s absolutely essential. Children are the most susceptible to the effects of leached toxins.)

From the worst to the best, here are seven popular ways to store food ranked from the worst to the best choice for safety.

#7 – Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC)

The absolute worst…

Polyvinyl chloride plastic containers are so dangerous they’ve been nicknamed “toxic plastics.” PVC, or vinyl, is one of the worst ways to store food because it is made with DEHA, a type of chemical softener. According to the EPA, exposure to DEHA can cause liver damage, depleted bone mass, and even cancer.

You can usually identify products containing PVC by its resin identification code (the number with the rotating arrows around it). PVC is marked with a number 3 resin code.

#6 – Polycarbonate

Not as bad, but still nasty…

Most often, the number 7 resin code indicates the presence of polycarbonate—and the presence of a health crisis waiting to happen.

You’re probably aware of the debate between researchers, the plastic industry and the FDA over the safety of BPA in plastic products. BPA has been shown to leach out of plastic products and into the food it contains, causing serious problems because of its ability to mimic the hormone estrogen.

Numerous headlines continue to raise alarms about BPA causing cancer, early onset of puberty and childhood obesity. Yet the FDA maintains it is safe to use, even around children.

While the debate rages on, consumers are forced to come to their own conclusions. Since number 7 coded plastics have been used to make hard baby bottles—and even a slight chance that BPA could harm your infant is too much—it’s best to steer clear of this toxic plastic.

Number 7 plastics are also used to make water bottles, cups, cans and food storage liners.

#5 – Plastic Wrap and Bags

No number? No way!

Plastic wraps, sandwich bags and freezer bags aren’t individually marked with resin codes. However, these plastics are known for containing PVC and BPA and can cause many health problems.

#4 – Polystyrene

“They’re” still not sure…

Polystyrene is found in “Styrofoam” containers commonly used as storage for restaurant leftovers.

According to its annual carcinogen report, the National Toxicology Program insists there’s nothing wrong with polystyrene itself. That’s probably because it doesn’t become poisonous until it’s heated and reverts back to styrene, its toxic basic form. The EPA describes styrene as “a suspected toxin to the gastrointestinal tract, kidney, and respiratory system, among others”.

You’re still better to steer clear of polystyrene. And NEVER attempt to heat your food back up in it.

Polystyrene containers are marked with a number 6 resin code.

#3 – BPA-Free Plastics

Pretty good… but what will cause cancer next?

Many companies have removed Bisphenol A from their plastic formulas in an attempt to make them safer. While the effort is noble, what happens when a few years down the line we find out that some other chemical in plastic is even worse for our health than BPA or PVC combined?

In general, it just seems safer and healthier—especially for kids—to avoid plastic for storing food altogether. But if you must use plastic, BPA-Free is the best choice we know of for now.

#2 – Stainless Steel

Much better, but not without controversy.

New companies are springing up that offer stainless steel food storage containers. Considered far safer than plastics, even this sleek option isn’t entirely without debate.

The stainless steel controversy began when it was first offered as an alternative cookware to cast iron, Teflon and copper— all which leach metals and toxins into food over time.

Stainless steel doesn’t have as many terrifying toxins as the plastics listed above. But it’s important to remember that even “food grade” stainless steel is made of iron alloys combined with chromium and sometimes manganese or nickel.

According to a study that tested the leaching of iron, chromium and nickel into food, “stainless steel utensils may put a reasonable amount of iron and chromium trace element into the diet.” And, it concluded, leached nickel did not exceed the EPA recommended amount.

While the study showed trace amounts of metals being leached, avoiding anything that comes apart in your food is a healthy rule of thumb.

#1 – Borosilicate Glass with a Glass Top

The Best Way to Store Food!

Glass is a completely inactive material—it won’t react with food, it won’t deteriorate and it won’t absorb bacteria or toxins. It is also one of the greenest container solutions available since it is 100% recyclable.

Borosilicate glass specifically holds up to extreme temperature changes much better than other types of glass.

Of course, glass is nothing new—it has been used for centuries for everything from jarring harvested fruits to your favorite 9×13 casserole dish. But as a storage option, it hadn’t been perfected until recently.

Because you don’t want any plastic—BPA-free or not—touching your food, the standard airtight lid isn’t going to cut it. The absolute best option would be a glass-on-glass bottom and top set—of course, that’s impossible.

Thankfully, many companies such as Pyrex have come out with a glass-on-glass container solution that uses a silicone rim to maintain an airtight seal to prevent premature spoilage. This is, in our opinion, the healthiest way to store food available today.