Some Monday Modivation, What's Holding you back??

This is a great example of a HIIT FITT workout to get your fast burning furnace started to get the results you desire to have

https://youtu.be/zQvjTZVhb04

AWESOME DAY!!! A little Tri, Back, Shoulders, and HIIT Cardio

I felt pretty good this workout.. I was having a great day at the gym... my favorite type of day

Pre workouts, Worth taking?

Pre-Workout Supplements

In my honest opinion there are so many pre-workouts that are nothing more than a waste to money not really doing much for you other than a short lived glittery caffeine rush..  There are always a few truly good products that are worth taking though... They are few and far between though, and you have to know what to look for and sort though all the unnecessary garbage most add to them...

You don't need them to have a list of ingredients a mile long, there are only a few ingredients that actually work wonders.. Some companies try to hide their less than idea products by simply listing their ingredients as a Proprietary Blend.. When I see that it means to me they have loaded it with a ton of useless stuff with very limited amounts of quality ingredients that actually give you the added pump and boost to really get at your workout... Most of those products are the ones that normally have upwards of 500mg of caffeine vs the 80mg of a cup of coffee... Taking that much caffeine will just leads to a huge caffeine crash shortly after taking, most times even before your workout is finished... They also most the time only add trace amounts of the good stuff so they can list it, making it look better product than it really is.. Personally for me, I want to know the exact amounts of all the compounds I am ingesting to know they will work the way I want them to...

A good workout blend will show the exact amounts of each item in it, not this proprietary blend stuff.. And won't have all the unnecessary junk fillers added into them making them appear to be the next biggest thing to hit the market ... I prefer to make my own pre-workout mixture though... Not only is it the best way to know exactly what you are using without all the artificial flavors and colors... It is also way more cost efficient to buy each ingredient in bulk... I would just be taking a guess, but I'll say it's around 1/4 of the price to do it yourself... I make mine consisting of only a few key ingredents:

Branched-Chain Amino Acids:

Also known as BCAA's, they are amino acids that your can't produce naturally in you body, they must either be eaten though food or other form of supplementation... They are key to promote muscle growth... The 3 BCAA's are Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine.. I take a minimum of 5 grams pre-workout and again another 5 grams afterwards again.. Out of these 3 Leucine is the most important to look for...It has been shown to stimulate muscle protein synthesis, so that's why it should be the highest amino acid in your blend... The most common ration found is 2:1:1, which is perfectly fine, but I prefer to go with the 8:1:1 still.

Beta-Alanine:

Beta-Alanine main purpose is to increase muscular endurance.. Meaning it can help improve your overall training volume, and give you the ability to keep your intensity up for longer periods of time. In other words more volume equals more gains.

If you take a large dose of Beta-Alanine, which is in most pre-workouts to give you the all mighty pump feeling, you will most likely also experience a slight tingling sensation. Don't worry this is normal if taking a quality supplement containing it... The most common dose of this is around 2.5 grams pre-workout, but I have seen people use as much as 5 grams, in my opinion that's a bit over kill and a waste of money..

Creatine Monohydrate:

One of the biggest reasons is it is meant to help with explosive strength.. It's is one of the ingredients that is going to help most with lower-rep workouts. It is something that is built up in your body over continued use and saturated into your muscles... It helps to produce a fast, big energy pump required for those really big and heavy lifts.

I personally take 5 grams a day, half pre-workout and the the other half post-workout... On my non-training days I will still take creatine to keep the levels up in my body, those day I use it right after breakfast.. Some people recommend a week "loading phase" I will argue that theory, because it is built up over time in your body.. I think it is just a waste to do the 20 grams a day some suggest for the first week of use... You will still get the same results in the end I can guarantee and save a ton of product...

Caffeine:

For me this may be as simple as a cup of coffee I don't necessarily go and but the powder every time of this, but when I do I only add up to 100mg of it.. If i am going to do a late evening workout I will leave it out as well simply because it will hinder your sleep for several hours after taking it... We all know how important sleep is to recovery, don't want to hurt that process either... So as far as this one is concerned I would say use it and the amount to your own personal preference, but wouldn't go over 100mg to keep you from having that crash later on..

 My final thoughts:

You should take your pre-workouts roughly 30 minutes before getting to your actual workout. That way it has time to absorb into your body and start to take effect.. I typically drink mine just before leaving my house to the gym... Taking it to late it may not kick in till half way though your workout and you will miss out on the awesome benefits from it.. To answer the question if I think they are worth taking, YES I personally do, most of my workouts are either really early morning or after a long day of work.. I need a little kick in the butt sometimes to get myself in gear to keep my intensity up... Others my not feel this way because of either their lifestyle allows for lost of rest or other personal choices, for me I almost always take one..


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Banana Bread for Breakfast - Pre-workout!!

This meal is perfect for a great all around breakfast and pre-workout
combined.. It's packed with great carbs and proteins to get you though
any workout no matter how intense it may be!!! Please enjoy.. All the
macros and nutritional facts in the bio of the video so Please check it
out!!!

A killer AB Workout followed by Cardio!!

Don't be afraid to try it some of these exercises, a couple were new to me such abs the pull and press... It was one of the best routines I think I've ever done, you'll be sure to enjoy it as well

Artificial Sweeteners and Sugar Free Foods

Artificial Sweeteners, a Better Choice?

     What is a artificial sweetener? Basically all that sugar free and artificial sweeteners are is a man made chemical added to your food... Doesn't sounds good put that way does it? I didn't think so either, personally I try not to put any man made toxic additive into any of my foods... They all come with some major risks... 

     These so called "healthy" alternatives to sugar are anything but healthy... There are 5 different types of them we will touch base on a few to give you an idea of what you are really consuming... Then I'll name the rest so you know what to watch out for...

     The number one biggest seller is "Splenda" chemically know as Sucralose, it is nothing more than sucrose that's been chemically altered by a cancer causing agent we all know, chlorine... They simply replace a few atoms in sucrose with some chlorine atoms creating this now potentially dangerous cancer causing compound ment to lower calories in food... Sound like a good idea to you?? Me either!!!

     The second biggest seller in America is, Aspartame, also know as "Equal" it is found in countless everyday products we consume ranging from bread, yogurts, and even your chewing gum you so dearly love... It's so bad for you the U.S. Air Force recommend that none of their pilots consume any amounts of it due to the fact that it causes tumors, birth defects, epilepsy, diabetes, mental retardation, and even fibromyalgia... (Hum that last one seems to be a growing problem for sure)... The list goes on and on for this fine product, (being sarcastic if you couldn't tell)... This Aspartame only got approved because of loop holes in the system and the FDA has never went back to try to have it removed, go figure the American way.... 

     Like I said there are 5 artificial sweeteners, those are only your two main biggest sellers... I will just list the remaining three for you.. I think you get the point of the health concerns with consuming them by now, they are all very similar in that aspect... 

#3) "NutraSweet"

#4) Saccharine

#5) Acesulfame Potassium

     Beyond the health risks that I already stated they also come along with some more serious issues as well such as Metabolic syndrome.. In a nutshell it's where you have increased blood pressure, increased fat in abdominal area (your belly), and increased cholesterol... These conditions lead to a increases chance of both stoke and heart disease....

     Even though they are low calorie sweeteners compared to consuming real sweeteners studies have also shown artificial sweeteners to actually promote weight gain, Yes that's correct they will actually cause your BMI to go up... Which defeats the entire intention of consuming them right?... They basically play a mind game with your body.. Since they are so much sweeter, up to 100 times more so than real sugar, when consumed it causes you to eat more later on in the day to obtain that level of sweetness again that it believe is normal and makes you crave it like you wouldn't believe... You will find yourself craving way more sweets like candies, pies, cookies, and soft drinks than you would normally which is where the weight gain comes into play....

     Take a look around at society and the normal individual today compared to 30 years ago, need more proof our government could really care less about your health?... I don't!!

     What can you do though to stay healthy? Stay clear of all products with miss leading statements such as low calorie, no sugar added, or diet... For the most part all of these will all contain artificial sweeteners.. 

     Also a fact that not to many people know is your public tap water is also contaminated with a wide array of chemicals that are bad for you ranging from chlorine, a cancer causing agent and sucralose... There are thousands of things that you drink unknowingly with tap water, the thought of it just makes me sick to know what they allow to poison our bodies... 

     The best thing you can do is just real true sweeteners like pain old sugar or more preferred honey.. Yes they have calories so limit the consumption of them, but ask all cost stay away from artificial sweeteners... Your body will thank you... 

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