Tag: nutrition

Training by Conor HeffernanJul 26, 20177:12 am

Guest Post: How To Effectively Use Cheat Meals

Our latest post comes from the wonderful and talented Samantha Olivier from Ripped.me. We’re delighted to have Samantha featured on the site again and know you’ll enjoy her latest piece.

Yes, I know, the word “cheat” sounds awful, but before you go all negative on cheat meals, you should know that they can be a valuable tool that can boost your metabolic rate. There are cheat strategies that people of all fitness levels and sizes can implement successfully. However, considering factors such as your previous dieting failure/success, daily eating habits, and fitness goals is a must as part of your self-evaluation.

Eating clean for the most of your week, staying active and rewarding yourself is at the heart of this matter. After a sudden intake of those extra calories, your metabolism starts burning hot, and the effects of enhanced fat loss and muscle gains are increased. Your body utilizes protein better, your cravings are reduced as well as metabolically damaging gut bacteria. So, there’s no need to feel guilty after consuming a cheat meal from time to time, because it actually helps you to become and stay lean.

Tips on Nurturing Healthy Eating Habits

If you have been thinking that eating healthy means you have to stop eating the things that you love and instead stick to foods that make you sulk, then you are perhaps mistaken. Also, it does not mean that you have to starve to stay thin and get that much sought after size zero figure. But eating healthy means, that it should reflect in your appearance, in your attitude, and most importantly, in your approach towards life.

In fact, if you have been eating well and eating right, it should make you more energetic, make you feel great, it should also help you to visit your medical practitioner less frequently, and increase the instances of so called “feel-good factor” in you.

In this write up, let us find out what is meant by eating healthy food and staying fit and how you can incorporate these habits in your daily life.

Given below are few tips that you can follow to stay fit, healthy, and in great health and spirit. Check out these guidelines-

Resources by Conor HeffernanJun 21, 20176:37 am

Guest Post: What You Need to Know about Vitamin B12 [Infographic]

Taking fitness seriously not only means training regularly but also means paying attention to the vitamins and nutrients that our body needs. While working out is often half of the battle towards increasing fitness, enhancing health and protecting against anti-aging, getting the right amount of nutrients is a long term battle.

Most of us know about the ‘headline’ vitamins such as vitamins C and D but B is often talked about much less, and specifically B12 is one of the most under discussed vitamins, that a growing number of people are deficient in. B12 plays a vital part in many of our body’s core functions such as the production of red blood cells and nerve cells.

Not only that, being deficient in B12 is likely to make you tired, sluggish and prone to getting headaches. To find out more about vitamin B12 and the symptoms, causes and treatments check out the below infographic by psysci:

Training by Conor HeffernanJun 8, 20171:07 pm

Guest Post: Reaching the Plateau – And Overcoming It

If you’ve tried basic diet and exercise to shed unwanted pounds, chances are, you are no stranger to the weight loss plateau dilemma. When we first alter our diets by cutting calories and adding a side of exercise, we tend to shed pounds quite rapidly. Yet, once we get down to the nitty gritty of shedding those last ten to 15 pounds to reach our goal weight, we then learn that it’s not nearly as easy as it was in the beginning. That’s because once our body starts to reach a comfortable weight, it becomes more difficult to shed the rest of those pounds.

Resources by Conor HeffernanMay 5, 20172:57 pm

Guest Post: 5 Breakfast Ideas for Fitness Enthusiasts

Skipping breakfast is not a habit that you should adopt, but still many people do it because they don’t have the time or the energy to eat in the morning. To each their own, of course, but you should know that having the first meal of the day on a regular basis allows your metabolism to go on full speed from an early morning and it actually helps in waking up. Healthy breakfast regulates your blood pressure and blood sugar, not to talk about the fact that it has a significant impact on how you’re going to eat for the rest of your day and if you’ll be able to keep cravings away.

All of these reasons are but the tip of the iceberg of why you should always have your breakfast of the champions and we’re here to help you out in this domain. Here are some breakfast ideas that won’t take up a lot of your time in the morning, they are perfect for every fitness enthusiast and they are delicious.

Resources by Conor HeffernanApr 10, 20174:04 pm

A History of Pre-Workout Supplements

Situated halfway between the gym and the nightclub, pre-workout supplements have taken on a remarkable popularity amongst gym goers in recent years. Labelled with ‘hardcore’ names such as ‘Anarchy’, ‘Mr. Hyde’ or ‘Rage’, the pre-workout supplement has become a staple amongst portions of the lifting community.

Indeed, one may be forgiven for thinking that bodybuilders, powerlifters, weight lifters and just about anyone else who has ever graced the gym floor have been using these supplements since the dawn of gym going. This however, is not the case. In fact, the first major pre workout supplements did not hit the markets since the 1980s.

So what came before the pre-workout supplement? What did bodybuilders do in the time of physical culture or the time of Arnold and co.? Furthermore when did pre-workouts hit the market? And why did they become so popular? An ambitious set of questions, which today’s article seeks to answer.

Nutrition by Conor HeffernanMar 31, 20177:10 am

Guest Post: How Insect Protein has begun to reach the Western Fitness Industry

The consumption of insects is an idea that is consistently getting more popular. Despite a lot of people’s dismissal of the concept, the Food and Agriculture Organisation estimates that about two billion of the world’s population already eat insects as part of their normal diet [1].

Although the demand is increasing in Europe and America, insects on a plate is still seen as an exotic dish or some type of novelty product, rather than a viable long-term alternative.

However, the fitness industry seems to have found a solution by incorporating bugs into items like protein powders, ice-creams and brownies.

Let’s look at why gym enthusiasts and fitness brands are jumping on the bandwagon.

Resources by Conor HeffernanMar 28, 20174:20 pm

Old School Supplements: Choline and Inositol

The early forerunners of bodybuilding were adventurous in every sense of the word. From 20 rep squats to raw meat, these men and women stopped at nothing in the pursuit of pure, unadulterated muscle. For muscle anoraks like me, this pursuit resulted in a series of supplements being used, which of course, had varying levels of success.

Though we’ve previously covered old school supplements such as Bob Hoffman’s fish protein powder (excuse me while I gag…), it seemed about time to study a supplement that may actually benefit the current bodybuilding populace.

These ‘vitamins’, combined together, were thought to increase one’s energy and strength levels, lower their body fat and even protect one’s heart and liver. The last benefit being one of major importance at a time when steroids were beginning to hit the scene and few knew what side effects if any they may have.

We are of course, referring to choline and inositol, a power couple used by iron heads for decades with varying results.

Nutrition by Conor HeffernanMar 14, 20173:54 pm

Guest Post: The Evolution of Supplements

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Our latest post comes from the wonderful and talented Samantha Olivier from Ripped.me. We’re delighted to have Samantha featured on the site again and know you’ll enjoy her latest piece.

There is quite a bit of hearsay as well as a slew of myths that obfuscate the truth behind supplements. Well, I would ignore the things you’ve heard through the grapevine and focus on solid facts instead. The story about the evolution of supplements is a stirring one, full of unexpected plots, developments, twists and turns. More importantly, it teaches us a lot about the products that have quickly transformed from unknown interlopers to lead actors on the central stage of fitness.

Resources by Conor HeffernanFeb 14, 20172:15 pm

Bradley J. Steiner’s 1988 Hardgainer Diet

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Discussed previously on this website, Bradley Steiner was once the go to man for hardgainers seeking to gain weight and muscle mass. Focused on both exercise and correct nutrition, Steiner’s advice in the 1980s is as timely now as it was back then. For all those muscle fanatics struggling to expand their chest size, the below advice will no doubt be of interest.