What are carbohydrates and why is their so much controversy over them?
Carbohydrates are nutrients that provides your body with energy. You can differentiate carbs into two groups:
– Simple carbs – sugars
– Complex carbs – starches and fibers
You can also put them into groups of two by determining if the carbohydrate has a high glycemic index or a low glycemic index.
What the hell does that mean, right?
Foods with a higher glycemic index will spike your blood sugar.
What is blood sugar?
It’s the amount of sugar, or glucose, in your body.
For a sound healthy diet, it’s best to stick to foods with a low glycemic index such as oats and whole grains.
It has been found that there are risks with foods with higher glycemic index’s and that they can lead to chronic diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
Carbohydrates are nutrients that are easily digested which is why they are your main source of energy. Since protein and fats are a bit more difficult for your body to digest, they are used to build tissue in your body. With that being said, most of your calorie intake should be from carbohydrates.
How much carbs should you consume on a daily basis?
Well that depends on your goals and needs of course. But if you are on a 2000 calorie diet, then it should be anywhere from 45-65 % of your daily total calorific needs.
Ok, covered a good amount of info their. Ready to move on?
Good :)
– Slow digesting carbs (lower glycemic index) create slow increases in blood sugar and release a moderate amount of insulin.
Insulin is a hormone that regulates the amount of glucose (sugar) in the blood.
An easier way to think of these guys is that they are all natural foods such as whole grain rice, whole grain bread, sweet potatoes, and oatmeal.
– Fast Digesting carbs (higher glycemic index) are quickly digested in your body and reaches your blood stream a lot quicker. Think of these as man made products or products that have been processed such as bagels, potatoes, white rice, and fruit juices.
Many sources say that you should stay away from fast digesting carbohydrates, except right after a workout session.
When you consume carbs your body produces insulin to push glucose into your muscles to give you energy. It also feeds protein to your muscles which leads to muscle growth.
The reason why consuming too many fast digesting carbohydrates is because it is more easily transformed into fat rather than slow digesting carbs.
People who have a hard time gaining weight may indulge in fast digesting carbs from time to time especially because it increases appetite.
Still with me?
It’s good to consume slow and medium digesting carbs before a training session. When you train your muscles the glycogen in your body depletes. So in order to prevent your body from crashing, take in some of these guys roughly about an hour and a half before a training session.
Alright so you just finished working out and pushing your body to its limits.
What should you eat post workout?
After your workout, you want to consume a good amount of carbohydrates as well; primarily fast digesting carbs. This is because after your hard training your muscles are like sponges and they are more susceptible to absorbing nutrients. Consuming a post training meal that spikes your insulin levels will alter into a state of muscle growth.
Keep in mind that some foods that are eaten together can slow down digestion. For example, mixing white rice with broccoli will slow down the digestion of the rice due to the fiber in the broccoli. Also combining a protein source that contains fat such as whole eggs, will slow down the digestion rate of any carbohydrate.
And my last tip for those who can’t seem to suppress their appetite; try consuming slow digesting carbs with every meal except post workout.
Hey everyone! Glad to see that there are people out there using the information that I’ve been posting here on my blog.
Tonight I was a little hungry and wanted to make some awesome tasting food. If you know me, then you know I LOVE food.
I was able to have my friend / room mate / CIA graduate, ADAM AKA Opie, cook a little something up for you, just to show how easy cooking really is. Guys and girls, if you want to get the physique of your dreams, take the time to at least learn the easy fundamentals of cooking. Most home cooked meals, such as the one we are putting together in this video is NOT TIME CONSUMING. It would probably take you more time to go to MC Donald’s, order your food, pay for your food, before actually eating it. So do yourself a favor, suck it up and start cooking some healthy and tasty meals.
In this video Opie is going to show you how to cook some trout and a stir fry from scratch.
MMMM sounds friggin delicious!
Ingredients needed for STIR-FRY:
-Broccoli
-Mushrooms
– Peppers: Green and Orange Bell
– Carrots
– Onions
– Shallots
– Shoulder Chuck Steak
– Dry Pasta
– Canola Oil
– Sauce: House of Tsang Classic Stir Fry Sauce ( or any sauce of your choosing)
– Salt
– Pepper
– Herbs ( dry herbs such as parsley if you choose to)
Ingredients needed for the TROUT:
– Trout
– Salt
– Pepper
– Italian Herbs
– Oil
– Balsamic Vinegar
– Aluminum Foil
Shizayum!!! There you have it. All of the ingredients muahahahah!
So these two meals are going to take us approximately 20 minutes to make. I’m writing this post after I tore up those meals and I got to say that it was well worth it.
Here’s the video of how a Real CIA operative cooks.
There you go everyone, how to cook like a BAD ASS CIA MOFO!
I know that there are a lot of women out there who will not lift weights because of the negative thoughts that they’ve conjured up through false information and the media. OHHH… You don’t like to lift weights because you don’t want to look like a giant muscular monster that could possibly be a part of a circus act…
YIKES!!!
Well sorry to break the news to you but you CAN’T look like a man from lifting heavy weights. I mean, that is unless you really, really, really, really, wanted a mans physique. Anything is possible lol. The fact of the matter is that the female body just doesn’t work like that. First of all, women do not produce as much testosterone as men do, which is 10-30 times more than women. Men are made up of a lot more muscle than women. About 23% of a woman’s body is muscle while men usually have about 40%. Since the production level of testosterone in a woman’s body is minute compared to men it is damn near impossible to build muscle st the same intensity as men do. P.S. Even men are having trouble building just a lb of muscle, so you don’t have anything to worry about. Oh and there is also no scientific data that says lifting heavy weights will turn you into a giant freak!
With that being said ladies, you can’t workout like little girls anymore. No offense but if you want that sexy tight looking physique you have to increase the intensity of your workouts.
Well this is a little… A LOT easier on the eyes :)
Lifting weights is what is going to get you that toned and sexy look that every female dreams of. Not only by lifting weights, but by lifting heavy weights.
Again just to reassure you, women just don’t have the genetics to build muscle!
So lets get down to business.
You want that TONED look right. Well what does that mean? You want you muscles to be visible with no flab shaking around right? Well that’s because of the low body fat % that is surrounding your muscles that get that “toned” look.
If you are gaining unwanted mass then I would take a second look at your diet rather that your fitness routine. You might be eating more than you should be.
As I have said before, diet is key! Muscles grow on calories which means you need to build the muscle before “toning” it.
For more information on this article that was based on Flavia Del Monte’s weight loss and fitness for women just download her free report by submitting you email address through the link below.
Most fitness enthusiasts would probably tell you to start with your diet. If you don’t have your diet already planned out before you hit the gym, you are setting yourself up for failure; and if that’s the case then you shouldn’t even set foot in a gym or grab hold of a set of weights.
So much information has been discovered about the human body that seem to be over looked even after it has been read in books, watched on television, or heard on the radio. Why are you ignoring the facts!
You are what you eat. If you eat little to nothing how are you going to build lean hard muscle? How are you going to obtain that lean, tight, strong, and sexy body?
It’s impossible. Yeah I said it! it’s a word that I don’t like to use but in this case it is true.
With that being said I’m going to lay down the facts to make it easier for you to figure it out. All of this information can be overwhelming but I want to help you. I want you to feel great about yourself. I want you to be proud this summer when you show off what you’ve worked hard for.
1. First things first, you need to know how to calculate your calories.
This might be hard for some of you out there but try to be honest with yourself.
There are three major body types that will determine your diet break down.
Ectomorph: people who are skinny and have a hard time gaining weight. Their fast metabolism makes it seem impossible to put on any type of fat no matter how much they eat.
-Calorie break down: 35% protein, 40% carbs, 25% good fats
Mesomorph: these people don’t have as hard of a time putting on weight (fat or muscle) than someone with an ectomorph body type. They build muscle faster than other body types and drop fat faster with a proper diet and exercise regimen. Their muscle recovery from exercise is also faster than that of an ectomorph, which allows them to go through intense training sessions and be ready for more with less rest.
-Calorie break down: 35% protein, 35% carbs, 30% good fats
Endomorph: These people have larger bones and carry more fat cells in their bodies. They are the exact opposite of the ectomorph body type and have a hard time losing fat.
-Calorie break down: 40% protein, 35% carbs, 25% good fats
You also need to know:
– it takes about 15 calories per pound to maintain your current body weight.
-There are 4 calories per gram of protein and per gram of carbohydrates. There are 9 calories per gram of fat.
-For maintaining and building muscle, most of us should consume 1-1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight (less your body fat).
– It takes 3,500 calories to make or lose 1 lb of body weight. So to lose a pound simply subtract 3,500 calories from your diet (weekly). It takes about 5,000 calories to build 1 pound of lean muscle.
Get the idea?
2. Find out what your daily calorie intake should be.
For just about everyone out there, this might seem overwhelming but truest me its not as complex as you think.
Here is an example ( credit to muscle and body magazine, April 2011 edition, Page 58):
John is a 225 lb endomorph.
*Current weight: 225 lbs.
*Multiply body weight by 15 calories: x 15 per lb
equals ( = )
*Muscle maintenance calories: 3,375 calories per day
subtract ( – )
*Defecit calories: – 500
Equals ( = )
*Total daily calorie intake: 2,875 total calories per day
3. Now that we have our calorie needs situated lets break it down into a macro-nutrient level so we know exactly how many grams of protein, carbs, and good fats we should be consuming on a daily basis.
Using the endomorph break down above ( #1 ) 40/35/25
1) divide total daily calories by 40% = 1,150; then divide by 4 = 287 grams of protein
2) divide total daily calories by 35% = 1,006; then divide by 4 = 252 grams of carbs
3) divide total daily calories by 25% = 718; then divide that by 9 = 79 grams of fat
4. Lastly, divide that into 6 or 7 meals per day and there you have it.
Now it’s time for you to get into the gym and get down to business. No Pain, No Gain.
Thanks for reading. Questions , comments, and ratings are appreciated :D
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