Tag: health

The Best Times to Eat Carbohydrates

May 18, 2021

| 2 Comments

One of the questions I often get asked is “When should I eat carbs if I am trying to lose weight?” Unfortunately, with all the news, media, social media, advice from friends etc. most people are not eating carbohydrates at the most opportune times to assist them in their weightless goals. So, if you are looking to shed excess fat, improve workout recovery, feel and look better please keep reading.

If your goal is to lose fat and become leaner it is best to keep carbohydrate intake low to very low for most people.

Before I discuss when the best times to eat carbohydrates are it is important to first recognize beneficial and non-beneficial carbohydrates.

Non beneficial carbohydrates are processed foods, white flour, sugar and corn syrup (among other syrups). These types of carbohydrates will not only prevent you from losing weight but can make you fatter. especially if you eat too much of them. These types of carbohydrates are also responsible for a host of negative health issues such as, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, diabetes, inflammation, neurological disorders, cancer and digestive issues just to name a few.

So are carbohydrates the spawn of Satan himself?

Not necessarily.

For most people trying to lose fat and gain lean body mass there are two optimal times each day to eat carbohydrates.

The first is immediately or within about 2 hours post workout on workout days.

Why?

Because at this time the glycogen stores in your body are low or depleted and spiking blood sugar raises insulin. Raising insulin at this time is a good thing. Normally if you are not active and you spike insulin you will store most of the carbohydrates ingested as fat. However, when you spike your blood sugar and raise insulin levels post workout your body will shuttle the glucose in your blood stream into your liver and muscle cells replenishing the depleted stores. This also, lowers cortisol and aids in recovery. Especially if you consume protein or branched chain amino acids with your carbs. These two factors assist in muscle growth and the body’s ability to burn fat.

For some individuals, they will function more optimally eating a small amount of carbohydrates pre workout. A good idea is to experiment to see which works better for you. Generally though, eating carbohydrates post workout is better for fat loss and workout recovery.

The second best time of the day to eat carbohydrates is in the evening. Many people are still under the perception that they should eat carbs in the morning. It seems logical because you will just burn them during the day right? Wrong. Yes if you are immediately going to exercise this is fine. However, if you are not going to exercise right away then you will spike your blood sugar and raise insulin early in the day. This leads to a crash a few hours later leaving you feeling hungry and craving more sugar/carbs for the rest of the day. This rising and falling of blood sugar and insulin throughout the day increases cortisol, and leads insulin resistance and storing fat.

This is why If you have/want to eat carbs each day then eat them in the evening. This will increase serotonin, make you feel full and happy. The tired feeling the carbs bring on will help you fall asleep. Getting quality sleep each night is a key to long term health and fat loss.

Now this doesn’t mean siting on your couch watching T.V. chowing down on a bag of Doritos and a pint of ice cream. It means eating a serving of 1-2 cupped handfuls size of a complex carbohydrate such as, sweet potato, wild, brown, yellow, etc. rice, quinoa, small portion of whole wheat or gluten free pasta, and even a small white potato with a source of protein and some healthy fats with dinner can have a positive effect.

So to sum it up.

Eat a meal with high carbs, high protein post workout.
Eat high protein meals with healthy fats, and fiber-rich vegetables during the day. Then, make your evening meals consist of lean protein, starchy carbs and a some healthy fats. eg. olive oil, butter, fish-oil, coconut oil and animal fat on non-training days.

One last thought. Totally restricting all non healthy carbohydrates is also not recommended. These can lead to excessive cravings and eventually binges and that can easily derail your diet.

The simple solution is to limit eating non healthy carbohydrates to 1-2 meals per week IF you are consistent on your diet for the rest of your meals each week and on a day that you workout.

Are there exceptions to this rule? Sure. However, this keeps it simple and will work best for the majority of people.

Give it a try and let me know how it goes?

Yours in health.

Kevin

Does Eating Fat Make You Fat?

May 10, 2021

Does Eating Fat Make You… Fat?

The simple answer to this question is: you will not gain weight if you do not consume large quantities of excess calories on a regular basis.

Following this line of reasoning, we may conclude that it makes no difference which macronutrient causes the surplus: if you eat too much protein, carbs, or fat, you will gain weight.

Remember the energy balance rule: you can gain weight if you eat more calories than your body needs to maintain its weight.

Conversely, if you eat fewer calories than it needs, you will lose weight.

Although there are other reasons for gaining weight, in particular fat weight, this is the underlying foundation for all weight loss and weight gain protocols.

The 4 Types of Fat

Now, not all fats were made the same, meaning that consuming certain types of fat can be very harmful for the body.

When it comes to fats from food, there are a couple of types consider.

Those are: Trans fats, saturated fats, monounsaturated fats & polyunsaturated fats.

Let’s go over each one separately!

Trans fats

Fats are inherently unstable compounds, and when exposed to a variety of environmental factors (light, moisture, heat), they spoil and lose their properties quickly.

Of course, industries that use a lot of fat during production have devised a method to address this issue.

That method for refining fats is known as “hydrogenation.”

Hydrogen atoms are applied to the molecular structure of liquid fats using this method until they enter a solid or semi-solid state.

Foods made with hydrogenated fats have a longer shelf life as a result of this process. This means big money for the big food companies and big problems for your health.

Trans fats are fatty acids with a chemically modified structure found in hydrogenated fats. This fats are 100%artificially made and do not exist naturally in nature.

When it comes to food, trans fats are one of the most harmful substances you can eat.

Trans fat consumption raises the risk of heart disease, miscarriage, type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and certain cancers significantly.

Trans fats are, without a doubt, one of the worst nutrients we have in modern-day food products.

However, given the abundance of such foods nowadays, it really is hard to get trans-fat consumption down to 0.

Nevertheless, all you have to do is avoid these foods:

Baked goods, such as cakes, cookies and pies
Shortening
Microwave popcorn
Frozen pizza
Refrigerated dough, such as biscuits and rolls
Fried foods, including french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken
Nondairy coffee creamer
Stick margarine.

If you see any of these, or it is a processed food then you may be certain that the product contains trans fats.

The simple solution, avoid these fats like the plague to dramatically improve your overall health.

Saturated fats

At room temperature, saturated fats are typically solid or semi-solid.

Long, medium and short-chained triglycerides are the three forms of saturated fats that can be distinguished.

Animal products, such as dairy products and beef, pork, and veal meat, include the first type (long-chained triglycerides).

Saturated fats are contained in smaller amounts in other foods, such as chicken and turkey.

Palm, cocoa, and coconut oil all contain medium-chained triglycerides.

Now, for the longest time, saturated fats have been thought to be bad because they are thought to raise cholesterol levels. However, a major study involving nearly half a million people was published in 2010 in the American Journal of clinical nutrition.

According to the findings, there is insufficient evidence to support the argument that saturated fats are the leading cause of cardiovascular disease and strokes.

And though that is true, your best bet is to not go overboard with any type of fat, including this one.

It is recommend that you consume no more than 10% of your daily calories from saturated fats.

Monounsaturated fats

Avocados, nuts, and certain plant oils, such as olive oil, are rich in monounsaturated fats.

Since this form of fat is one of the cleanest and least processed, it is a good idea to put it at the core of your fat intake.

Some studies suggest that monounsaturated fats can be useful for the cardiovascular system, improving its function and lowering the risk of cardiovascular disease.

“Monounsaturated fat is a type of dietary fat. It is one of the healthy fats, along with polyunsaturated fat. Monounsaturated fats are liquid at room temperature, but start to harden when chilled. Medlineplus.gov

Polyunsaturated fats

Last but not least, we have polyunsaturated fats, that are just as essential as monounsaturated fats.

In reality, Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids are the only ESSENTIAL types of fats.

Essential means that the body cannot produce them on its own and that we must obtain them by diet or supplementation.

This is not true of the other three categories of fats, including monounsaturated fats.

Now, though omega-6 fatty acids are essential, they are found in abundance in our modern-day nutrition.

Plant oils, such as sunflower oil, corn oil, soy, and hemp oil, vegetable oil as well as nuts and seeds, contain a significant amount of short-chained omega-6 fatty acids.

Oppositely, we have arachidonic acid (AA), which is a long-chained form of omega-6 fatty acids.

This is involved in the structure of cell membranes and is used by the body to fight infection and regulate inflammation.

AA can be found in livers, eggs, yolks and seafood products.

Now, unlike omega-6 fatty acids, omega-3 cannot be found much in our modern-day nutrition and is actually deficit for most people.

The bad thing about this deficiency is that omega-3 fatty acids are actually a preventative nutrient.

We can call them that because these fatty acids regulate inflammation and immune processes, along with many other processes in the body.

Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in some animal products, such as fatty fish and crustaceans, but also in linseed oil, chia and hemp seeds and nuts.

Another great source of Omega-3s is supplementing your diet with a high quality fish oil supplement to assure that you are consuming enough of this very important nutrient.

Final Thoughts

Dietary fat is one of the most essential nutrients for the body next to protein and as such, it needs to be carefully selected.

The selection of fat-containing products is important, mainly because many foods contain highly-processed fats, which are terrible for the body.

For this reason, the first step is to learn how to differentiate between the 4 different types of fat.

In my upcoming post , I am going to give you more insight on the functions of dietary fat, as well as the best sources for you to derive these fats from!

See you next time.

Yours in health,

Kevin

But What if I Gain the Weight Back?

May 1, 2021

You started an exercise and nutrition program and have lost some weight and can finally fit into your old “skinny” jeans and clothes again. You are extremely happy, and you should be. You have made an amazing accomplishment. It is at this point that I like to say to clients “now it is time to donate all of your “fat”, “old” clothes because you won’t be needing them anymore. Unfortunately, at this point the client often replies “but what if I get fat again?” Here is why it is important to change your mindset if you wan to maintain your results for the long run.

In his awesome book Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill tells this story. “A long while ago, a great warrior faced a situation which made it necessary for him to make a decision which insured his success on the battlefield.

He was about to send his armies against a powerful enemy, whose men outnumbered his own. He loaded his soldiers into boats, sailed to the enemy’s country, unloaded soldiers and equipment, then gave the order to burn the ships that had carried them. Addressing his men before the first battle, he said, “You see the boats going up in smoke. That means that we cannot leave these shores alive unless we win!

We now have no choice—we win, or we perish! Well guess what? They won!

To be successful in whatever goal you are undertaking then this is a very important and often overlooked concept. When you are attempting to accomplish something and enter into it already thinking about your “escape” plan that you have to fall back on, will you really and truly continue to give it 100%? Especially during tough times that will inevitably pop up from time to time? Probably not.

Now I am not saying it is not a great idea to have a back up plan but if that plan is also comforting you in a way that already has you thinking that you are going to fail in the long run then guess what? You WILL fail in the long run.

To keep the burning desire to reach your goals alive you need to eliminate things that will make it easy for you to retreat from your challenge when the going gets tough. If you remove the sources of retreat then you will have no choice but to succeed.

Let’s apply this to fat loss. If you keep your “fat “ clothes just in case you gain the weight back then you are already planning to gain the weight back. I see this happen all the time.

Let’s take a different approach. You just lost a bunch of weight and all of your clothes are too loose. Schedule a time and take all of the clothes that are too big for you now and confidently donate them to people that can use them. Then when you have a slip up from time to time and start to feel your “skinny” clothes getting a little tight use this as a sign to tighten up your diet (instead of your clothes) and get more consistent with your exercise before you fall to far off the wagon.

If you are serious about wanting to be leaner, healthier and fitter then “burn your boats” don’t give yourself an easy out for when you get in a rut. Remind yourself that this new lifestyle is who you are now. Not the unhappy, unhealthy and unfit person you were before. You got this!

Yours in health,

Kevin

Increase Workout Intensity With Isometrics Part 1

April 9, 2021

| Workouts

Isometric exercises are exercises that involve the maximal contraction of muscles without any movement in the surrounding joints. The constant tension on the muscles may help improve muscle endurance, strength, hypertrophy and support dynamic exercises. Isometrics can be done against an immovable object like a wall (absolute Isometrics) or by holing a weight in a fixed position and contracting the muscle without moving (yielding isometrics). There are other types of isometrics, but they are all subtypes of the above.

Isometric holds can be used to strengthen a weak point in a specific joint range of motion. They can also be useful for injuries when you cannot yet move a muscle through a full range of motion without pain. Isometrics can also be AWESOME if you have limited equipment or only bodyweight and need to make the workout more challenging and increase intensity.

For this post I will use an example of one type of yielding isometrics, Iso-Dynamic. There are a few different ways to do Iso-Dynamic Isometrics but for this workout we will do a version where we prefatigue a muscle for 30-45 seconds of an isometric exercise and then go immediately into 10-12 reps of full range repetitions. This version causes an intense burn and will have your muscles shaking and burning in no time flat.

Before you begin, realize that it is important to maximally contract the muscle (flex) while you are holding it in the isometric position to achieve optimal results. You are not simply trying to hold the weight in the position.

For the following program you will need a bench or Swiss ball, barbell and squat rack or set of dumbbells and a set of dumbbells. Use whatever Dumbbells you have available. If you have a few different pairs of different weights that’s ideal.

Day 1: Pre fatigue Isodynamic Chest and Back

A1) Isometric Dumbbell Bench Press. (Use a bench or Swiss ball) Hold upper arms parallel to floor position. 30-45 seconds the do 10-12 reps of regular dumbbell bench press. Rest 75 seconds

A2) Isometric Dumbbell Bent Over Row. Squeeze the shoulder blades together and hold the weights just below the abdominals for 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps regular dumbbell bent over rows. Rest 75 seconds

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (B1, B2 etc.)

B1) Feet Elevated on Swiss Ball Push-ups. 3 sets of 12-15 reps 3010 tempo Rest 60 seconds

B2) Renegade Rows. 3 sets of 10-12 reps each arm. Rest 60 seconds.

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (C1, C2 etc.)

C1) Incline Dumbbell Chest Fly on Swiss ball or Bench 3 sets of 12-15 reps 3-0-1-0 tempo 10 second’s rest.

C2) Single Dumbbell Pullover on Swiss Ball or Bench 3 sets of 12-15 reps 3-0-1-0 tempo 75 second’s rest

Repeat for 3 supersets.

Day 2: Pre fatigue Isodynamic-Legs

A1) Isometric Squat (Barbell, Dumbbells or Body Weight) hold thighs parallel to floor position. 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps of regular squats. Rest 90 seconds

A2) Isometric Hamstring Curl (Machine or Use a Swiss Ball) hold knees 90 Degrees 30-45 seconds then do 8-10 reps regular hamstring curls. Rest 90 seconds

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (B1, B2 etc.)

B1) Dumbbell Split Squats 3 sets of 8-10 reps each leg. 3010 tempo Rest 75 seconds

B2) Single Leg Dumbbell Pendulum RDL 3 sets of 12-15 reps 3010 tempo Rest 75 seconds.

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (C1, C2 etc.)

C1) Iso Single Leg Calf Raise 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps of regular single leg calf raise. Rest 60 seconds

C2) Iso Dynamic V-Sit 3 sets 30-45 seconds then 10-12 V-Ups. Rest 60 seconds

Repeat for 3 supersets sets.

Day 3: Pre fatigue Isodynamic-Shoulders and Arms

A1) Isometric Seated Dumbbell Military Press. (Sit on a bench, chair or Swiss ball) Hold upper arms parallel to floor position. 30-45 seconds the do 10-12 reps of regular military press. Rest 75 seconds

A2) Isometric Dumbbell Bicep Curl. Hold elbows 90 Degrees 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps regular bicep curls. Rest 75 seconds

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (B1, B2 etc.)

B1) Isometric Dumbbell Lying Triceps Extension. Hold forearms parallel to floor position for 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps of regular lying dumbbell triceps extensions. Rest 75 seconds

B2) Isometric Side Dumbbell Lateral Raise. Hold arms parallel to floor position with palms facing down for 30-45 seconds then do 10-12 reps of regular side dumbbell lateral raise. Rest 75 seconds

Repeat for 3 supersets sets and then move on to the secondary exercises. (C1, C2 etc.)

C1) Standing Dumbbell Hammer Curls 3 sets of 10-12 reps 3-0-1-0 tempo 10 second’s rest.

C2) Triceps Push-ups 3 sets of 12-15 reps 3-0-1-0 tempo 10 second’s rest

C3) Bent Over Dumbbell Lateral Raise 3 sets of 12-15 reps 2-0-1-1 tempo 90 second’s rest.

Repeat for 3 supersets.

There you have it. A great workout using prefatigued Iso-Dynamic Isometrics. Give the workout a try for 5-6 weeks and let me know how it goes. You should notice some definite strides in strength and muscle gain. If this style of workout interests you please check out world renowned strength coach Cristian Thibaudeau’s article Isometrics: The most underrated training tool.

I will have another post next week using this same method for a total body boot camp style workout with video demonstrations so please check back. The workout is one of the exact workouts we did this week in my Online Virtua Boot Camps and it was a burning and shaking good time.

Lastly, I use a similar form of prefatigued iso-dynamic isometrics as part of the workouts in the Trinity 6-Week Home Training and Nutrition Transformation Program. I just lowered the price for this awesome program to only $29! If you train at home or are planning to then this a great program to take your results to a whole new level.

Yours in health.

Kevin

Healthy Snacks

April 2, 2021

One of the most common questions I get asked by clients is “what are some healthy options for me to snack on?” Snacks between meals can be very helpful for fat loss, gaining lean muscle and controlling hunger and cravings but not all snacks are created equal. In fact, eating poor quality snack choices and/or too large of a portion can quickly derail your fat loss and muscle gain progress.

Let’s first define poor quality and high quality snack choices.

Poor Quality Snacks:

Processed food-pretzels, chips, most protein bars, candy bars, processed food etc.
High Carbohydrate -bagels, cakes, chips and similar junk, snack bars, etc.
High Glycemic-candy, snack bars, bagels and bread products, cakes, cookies, etc.
Low Protein- All of the above or even a healthy food such as, a salad or veggies without a protein source.
Non-nutritious-empty calories-most all packaged and processed snack food. Many smoothie recipes.

High Quality Snacks

Unprocessed-whole food such as, eggs, meat, jerky, chicken, hummus, etc.
Quality protein-eggs, meats, poultry, protein powder, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese.
Low/moderate carbohydrate- fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds
Low glycemic-protein, veggies, low glycemic fruit, jerky, nuts, seeds, etc.
Highly nutritious calories-Lean protein, veggies, salads, nuts, seeds, jerky.

For a great list of high quality snack ideas that will help improve your health and help you achieve your goals please click on the link below for a FREE Healthy Snacks Sheet.

One last caveat, it is important to watch the portion size. Snacks are one of the easiest things to inadvertently consume too much of. This can dramatically increase your daily caloric intake and sabotage your progress.

To your health,

Kevin

Small Steps, Big Changes

March 29, 2021

One of the hardest things about falling off the health and fitness wagon is getting started again. Many people will be on a roll for a while and getting great results and then life kicks you in your junk and knocks you down. The truth is that this happens to even the most dedicated people from time to time. This post was written to help you get back up and get back at it. If you are having trouble getting motivated to start exercising and eating healthy, please keep reading.

It’s not if life gets in the way and derails your training and nutrition program but when. The trick is get going again. Fortunately, it is not as hard as you think. A common problem is once someone falls off for a while, they get frustrated and oftentimes depressed. Part of the reason for this is that people feel like if they are not able to do as well as they were doing before then it is not worth doing at all. The other reason is that people tend to look at the big picture of everything they have to do to get back to where they were and get intimidated and scared. The trick is to not even think about what you were doing before or all if the things you “should” or “have” to do but focus on one small action step towards your goal that you can do now. Less thinking, more doing.

Depending on how long you have been out of the training and nutrition game you may be very out of shape, feel weak, tight, aches and pains etc. The key is to keep your action step as simple as possible. Do not make it more overwhelming than it already seems to be. Do not try to go from zero to 100 in a week. Simply pick something small that you feel 100% confident that you can do. For example, set out your gym clothes for the next day’s workout and then walk 10 minutes. Do 10 squats and 10 push-ups 2-3 times per week. If you want to start eating healthier and you have been eating ice cream every night, then starting by not eating ice cream for one night. Sure, you may be thinking “what is that little bit of exercise or dietary change going to do for me?” The answer is to build momentum and confidence. Contrary to what many believe motivation does not lead to action. Action leads to motivation. This approach works for everything in life. The key is that once you start getting some small wins you feel better. You feel accomplished you get into a flow. Then over time you begin to want to do more and more and before you know it you are back at it full swing and kicking ass.

If you have been stuck for awhile or unmotivated to exercise or eat healthy then pick something easy. Even if it is just a small step towards your goal and start by doing that step each day. Then build on it from there. Every great journey began with a first step. Make you first step small and easy and in a short time you will look back and say to yourself ‘Wow, look how far I have come?”

Yours in health,

Kevin

Choose Your Identity

March 24, 2021

| Health and Wellness, Uncategorized

Decisions, decisions. Everyday there are numerous important choices that we must make. Such as, what am I going to have for breakfast? Should I wear a button down or a polo? Should I wear deodorant or go au natural? Just kidding, I wear deodorant and just kidding, those are not important choices. One really important choice however, is am I going to take care of myself and be healthy, fit and feel great or am I going to let myself deteriorate, get out of shape, sick and fat?

Choose your identity?

Having trained hundreds of clients for over 25 years, one of the most important common denominators of my most successful clients comes down to this one simple question. Who am I?

The most successful clients choose working out, eating healthier and exercising as a lifestyle. This lifestyle is part of who they are. It is as important to them as brushing their teeth and applying deodorant! Not sure what my fascination with deodorant is today but let us continue, shall we?

People that are not successful being in shape, healthy, lean still have not decided. From time to time they may decide to join a gym, start an exercise program or a new diet. The problem with this approach is that they have not chosen to make that a part of who they are. They have one foot in and one foot out. Sure, they decided to act which is great, and I applaud them for that first step. Unfortunately, once things get hard or life gets in the way they go right back to square one. Why? Because they did not take on the new identity of who they wanted to become. A fitter, healthier, better version of themselves.

There are many reasons we humans do this. Most of the time it is fear. Fear of failure. Fear of success. Fear of change etc. A great piece of advice I heard from Jaimie Foxx on a Tim Ferris Podcast is “What’s on the other side of fear?” the answer is “nothing.” And he’s absolutely right. There is nothing on the other side of fear.

Many of us worry about what might happen, about the worst case scenarios and what can go wrong but rarely do they ever happen that way. And even if they do, it would still be a really good experience, a life lesson for you to learn and grow from.

What are your goals? Take a moment and write them down in detail. Then ask yourself is this who I want to become. If the answer is yes, then you must make this part of your being. It must be who you are. If you want to be fit, look, and feel your best then you must do the actions necessary to be that way. It must be a priority. No negotiations. Plan your meals, shop for your food, prep your meals, schedule your training sessions, take your supplements. Show up each day. I am not going to lie. It will be hard in the beginning. The trick is to stick with it. Day in and day out and in no time at all it will become a habit. A beautiful healthy habit. Just like brushing your teeth and putting deodorant on.

To your health.

Kevin

How to Improve Sleep Part 1

March 22, 2021

One of the most common issues I see with clients is lack of sleep and/or poor quality sleep. What is good quality sleep? Sleeping from, the time your head hits the pillow until your alarm wakes you up in the morning. Not only is poor sleep annoying but it can have severe adverse effects on your health, fitness and fat loss goals. If you are interested in improving the quantity and quality of your sleep please keep reading.

Aside from making you a grumpy bastard here are some of the serious effects on your body form poor sleep quantity and quality:

Depression
Mood Disorders
Stroke
High Blood Pressure
Diabetes
Cancer
Premature death
Kidney disease
Learning problems
Memory problems
Heart disease
Metabolic Syndrome
Hormone problems
Obesity
Danger while driving
Low metabolism
Weakened immune system

In the words of Dr. Rob Racowski : Without adequate sleep you get sick fat and stupid!

So, do you think sleep is important?

Let’s find out how to sleep better.

Shape the path. Simple changes to your environment can have significant effects on improving sleep. Here’s some of the best ways to do just that.

Try to keep your room as quiet as possible. If you live in a noisy area you can also try a variety of apps that have peaceful sounds or white noise to help block out the noisy environment or just simply relax you into sleep. We all know how relaxing the sound of ocean waves, light rain, or a babbling brook can make it easy to doze off.
Keep the room dark. The darker the room the better. Light from anything including electronic devices such as, clocks, or on t.v.’s etc. can impede sleep. Keep it pitch black. If you need to get room darkening curtains go for it.
Keep the room cool. Lower temperatures have been shown to induce deeper and more restful sleep. You all know how hard it is to sleep when it is hot and humid. Chill out.
Get comfortable. One of the best thigs y wife and I ever did was to get a new mattress. I bought a really expensive mattress before we were married and it was great for years. However, over time it began to sag in places and I would wake up with back and neck pain each morning. After years of this stupidity we broke down and bought a new mattress and haven’t looked back since. Another way to look at this is, an average person will sleep for 229,961 hours in their lifetime or basically one third of their life. You might as well make it as comfortable as possible. On the same note, if you do have lower back pain keeping a pillow between your legs if you are a side sleeper or under your knees if you are a back sleeper will keep you spine in better alignment and this can dramatically reduce or eliminate back pain caused by uncomfortable sleeping positions. I started using the Contour Legacy Knee and Foam Support Pillow about a month ago and really like it. The pillow is small so it is not bulky if you turn side to side and it also contours very comfortably between your legs, Unlike a lot of memory foam products out there this one doesn’t get hot. A friend of mine turned me onto this awesome Novilla Mattress that is super affordable and is equally if not more comfortable than my higher end mattress I bought form a furniture store.
Keep electronic devices across the room from you or better yet in another room. The electronic radiation can not only negatively affect your sleep but may be harmful to your health. This is especially true of cell phones. Plus, if you have a phone near you the crack head in you will constantly want to check for likes, emails, texts, snap chats and all of the other annoying ways people can contact you. I like to put my phone on “Do not disturb” mode and it charges across the room from me.
To piggy back off #4 above, it is recommended to not have a t.v. in your bedroom. Not only is watching tv. in bed not good for you for reasons I will discuss below but it will distract you from sleeping and/or keep you up later then you want because you must finish binge watching some show. The bedroom is for two things. SLEEP and SEX. If you keep your sacred sleeping space for those two things you will subconsciously know that when you go into the bedroom one (or two) of these will occur.
Speaking of sex. Have more of it. Ever notice it is much easier to fall asleep after great sex? Not having great sex? Work on it. Practice makes perfect.

Pre-bed Rituals: Other great ways to improve sleep are what I like to call pre-bed rituals. These are certain habits that you do each night within an hour of going to sleep.

Gratitude log. A grateful log is simply a notebook or journal you keep at the bedside. Each night before you go to bed you reflex on the day and write down 3 or more things that you are grateful for that happened in that day. Write down 3 nice things you did for someone else. Write down 3 nice things others did for you. Lastly, write down 3 things that you are grateful for that you have not achieved/received yet. My mentor Charles Poliquin always said that “What you appreciate, appreciates”. My favorite gratitude journal is the 5-Minute Journal. It is a beautifully made journal and makes the process of journaling easy and fun.
Deep Breathing Exercises. Simply focusing on doing long slow inhales through the nose for 4 seconds. Pause for a 4 count and slowly exhale through your mouth for 4 seconds can have a profound effect on relaxing you. Do this for 5-10 minutes and it can work wonders.
Just like the deep breathing exercise above, one of the best ways to not only improve sleep but to improve your health is through meditation. I know meditation is hard for many (including myself) so that is why I like guided meditation. Apps such as, Headspace and Calm provide all types of guided meditation for sleep, stress relief, focus, performance etc. Many are short (10 minutes) and easy to do. My favorite meditation is the Primus Meditation. You can access it here FREE. It is a amazing guided meditation that can positively improve your life.
No TV, computer, iPad, phones, social media. Along with unwanted/unhealthy radiation of electronic devices is blue light. This is the light frequency emitted by these devices and has a direct negative effect on your hormones and sleep Try to stay off social media, the computer, watching t.v. iPad, etc. for about an hour before you go to bed. Avoiding this type of light allows melatonin (the hormone that makes us sleep) production and the natural cycle for your body to fall asleep. If you must use these devices then turn on “Night time mode” on the cell phone. This changes the light ways from blue to the red/orange spectrum associated with a setting sun and falling asleep. For your computer, there is a program called f.lux. It is free and does the same thing. For each to these apps. Set them to turn on just before sunset and return to normal at sunrise. These are simple tools to make using some electronic devices safer before bed.
Avoid caffeine and other stimulants (energy drinks etc.) after 12-1 pm. The effects of caffeine can last up to 10 hours in some people and will not only make it harder to fall asleep but sleep soundly. I am sure you have all had caffeine too close to bedtime and slept like crap that night. Some people can drink coffee late and still sleep but to be safe just avoid it. Besides the other negative effect of coffee is it is a diuretic so you will most likely have to get up in the middle of the night to pee.
The last “hack” for part one is to go to bed and wake up the same time each day. This can be hard for a lot of people. However, if you can do it or keep it within an hour difference earlier or later your body will develop a more stable sleep cycle.

That is all for part 1. Stay tuned for part-2 where I will discuss which natural supplements help to improve sleep quantity and quality. In the meantime, sleep, tight.

To your health,

Kevin

Should You Use Ice to Treat Injuries?

March 17, 2021

R.I.C.E. Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation has long been the go-to treatment for acute injuries such as sprains, strains, and contusions (Bruises). Some recent studies have shown that using ice on an injury may not work or can even delay the healing process. So, should you use ice to treat an acute injury? That depends on how you use it and when you use it. Applying ice for a long period of time immediately after an injury can actually delay the healing process. The following post is my two cents about using ice to treat injuries.

The theory behind using ice on injuries is to reduce swelling and numb/decrease the pain. This sounds like a good thing doesn’t it? In theory, yes, but some recent studies have shown that the body needs swelling and pain to trigger the body’s natural response to heal the injured area. (Tell that to the person who just severely sprained their ankle, or blew out a knee writhing in agony.) From my experience and experimentation of various techniques in the trenches I have found the following technique to work the best for treating acute injuries. This technique can be used up to 72 hours post-injury.

I first learned the R.I.C.E. technique explained below from one of my favorite professors of all time Doug Davis at Bergen Community College 24 years ago.

To perform this technique, you will alternate periods of icing with periods of non-icing using compression and elevation. Many people simply leave ice on for an extended period. This I have found can impede the healing process and I personally do not advise that method. Instead, perform the following.

Get an ACE Bandage and saturate it under cold running water. Be sure to let it get saturated. It takes a bit of time. You want to use cold water and make sure that it is wet to maximally conduct the cold through the bandage while also protecting the skin. Ice directly on the skin can cause ice burn which is not pleasant or beneficial.
Using half the ACE bandage snuggly (not too tightly) wrap the bandage around the injured area. Be sure that it is just barely overlapping each time you wrap the bandage around the area, so it is not too thick. You want it snug to help slightly compress the area to control the swelling and give the injured area support.
Take the ice pack (real ice works better than the cold gel packs but you can use whatever you have) and lay it on the injured area. Use the remainder of the Ace Bandage to hold the Ice pack in place. These Ice Packs are great and can also be used for heat packs. They also come with a convenient elastic strap to hold the Ice Pack in pace. If an area is too large for one ace bandage to both cover the skin and holds the ice pack in place use two bandages.
If possible, elevate the injured area to decrease blood pooling in the area and to encourage proper venous and lymphatic drainage.
Keep the ice on smaller areas (ankle, wrist) for 15 minutes and large deeper injured areas (thigh, hips, back) for 20 minutes.
After 20-minutes remove the ice and bandage and let the area naturally warm back up to body temperature for 30 minutes for smaller body parts and 40 minutes for larger body parts. Try to keep the injured body part elevated at this time as well. This will once again help decrease blood pooling in the area and encourage proper drainage.
Try to repeat this sequence a minimum of 3 times in a row if possible and as many times as you can for up to 72 hours after the injury. At which time it may be advisable to switch to contrast treatment using cold and heat. (coming in another blog post)

The theory of how this works is 4-fold.

Compression (from the bandage) helps control swelling and gives the injured area support.
Elevation uses gravity to naturally help the injured are reduce swelling by decreasing blood pooling into the injured area and allowing venous and lymphatic return.
ICE (temperature) causes vasoconstriction which decreases internal capillary leakage (bleeding) and swelling. Ice also numbs the area to reduce pain and spasms.
Letting the injured body part warm back up to body temperature encourages increased blood flow to the injured area to warm the cold tissue which in turn brings in nutrients and important immune cells such as, macrophages that help clear away damaged cells due to injury, initiating the repair process that triggers inflammation, also producing insulin-like growth factor-one, enhancing muscle tissue reconstruction

To summarize, using Ice therapy in this way with compression and elevation triggers the body’s own mechanical responses causing a pumping effect from vasoconstriction and dilation to help “pump” out inflammatory chemicals and damaged tissue and to also “pump” in nutrients, important immune and healing cells to start the repair of the injured area.

In conclusion, if you do get injured it is important to first consult the proper health care practitioner to evaluate and diagnose the injury and recommend treatment. The information mentioned above is not to take the place of proper care by a physician. However, if you do decide to incorporate the use of Ice therapy then the method mentioned above has been highly effective from my experience.

If you give it a try please let me know how it works for you.

To your health,

Kevin