THE BASICS: EVERYDAY WORDS – BUT WHAT DO THEY REALLY MEAN?

Health:
A state where ALL of the body’s systems are working in harmony, not merely the absence of disease or disease-like symptoms. Most always, when symptoms appear, total health has been greatly diminished and the disease process(es) has been developing for some time. Symptoms signify that the person’s stress threshold has been exceeded.

Fitness:
Simply put – the person’s athleticism. The faster or more efficient one person is over another, the more fit that person.

• Health and fitness DO NOT necessarily exist simultaneously, but they affect one another, for better or worse depending on the person’s total whole health perspective.

Aerobic:
Literally “with oxygen”. The body’s ability to primarily use fats for energy rather than sugar (glucose). This system uses the “red”, slow twitch muscle fibers that are more endurance building.

Anaerobic:
Literally “without oxygen”. The body’s ability to primarily use sugar (glucose) for energy rather than fats. This system uses more of the “white” fast twitch muscle fibers that are more efficient in activities that require speed.

Training = working out + rest

STRESS!!

1. Physical: pain, injury, infections, poor posture, improper equipment fit, training too hard or too much (overreaching or overtraining)
2. Chemical/Nutritional: poor diet, hormonal imbalances, poor air & water quality
3. Emotional/Mental: work, relationships, competition, expectations
4. Thermal Stress: heat/humidity, cold/damp (weather & water)

“THE STRESS OF LIFE”  – The General Adaptation Syndrome:

1.	The Alarm Reaction Increase in cortisol and DHEA Increase in systolic blood pressure Start of structural problems Increase in performance
2.	The Resistance Stage Blood pressure may drop upon standing = dizzy or lightheaded Increase in cortisol & insulin, decrease in DHEA Resting heart rate increased Chronic structural problems Plateau or decrease in performance Menstrual problems in women Cravings for sugar and salt Eyes sensitive to light Emotional mood swings/irritability
3.	The Exhaustion Stage Low blood pressure Decrease in cortisol and DHEA Resting heart rate decreased Chronic structural problems (“the pain that never went away”) Chemical sensitivities – food/environmental allergies Digestive problems (heartburn, bloating, diarrhea/constipation) Frequent colds, chronic sore throat, achy joints (depressed immune system) Emotional and body fatigue (depression), carbohydrate intolerance Excessive decrease in performance

OXIDATIVE STRESS: FIGHTING FREE RADICAL DAMAGE
OXIDATIVE STRESS IS THE CONDITION IN WHICH CELLS SHOW AN INCREASE IN REACTIVE “UNSTABLE” OXYGEN FREE RADICALS, CAUSING SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE TOO ALL TISSUES.

THE MOST COMMON CAUSES OF OXIDATIVE STRESS:

HIGH INTENSITY/ANAEROBIC TRAINING OR OVERTRAINING LONG DURATION TRAINING PROLONGED SUN EXPOSURE & AIR POLLUTION SMOKING, DRUG, & HIGH ALCOHOL INTAKE TOXIC METAL EXPOSURE (CADMIUM, LEAD, MERCURY, ALUMINUM) DIET HIGH IN TRANS FATS AND SATURATED FATS (PG2) INSULIN RESISTANCE – from refined carbs and/or excess intensity or duration in training LOW ANTIOXIDANT LEVEL ADRENAL STRESS EMOTIONAL STRESS

COMBATING OXIDATIVE STRESS:

TRAIN AEROBICALLY AND MODERATELY DON’T SMOKE; DRINK ALCOHOL IN MODERATION; REDUCE CAFFEINE TREAT ANY TOXIC METAL BURDEN (BEWARE OF MERCURY IN FISH, ALUMINUM IN FOODS, ETC.) ELIMINATE ALL TRANS FATS IN DIET REDUCE SATURATED FAT INTAKE REDUCE/ELIMINATE REFINED CARBOHYDRATES IN DIET ELIMINATE ALL ARTIFICIAL INGREDIENTS & PRESERVATIVES TREAT ADRENAL STRESS ACCORDINGLY (VIA PHYSICIAN OR OTHER MEANS) INCREASE ANTIOXIDANT LEVELS AS NEEDED: VITAMINS C & E – natural sources – not “ascorbic acid” or synthetic “dl” forms of vitamin E BETA CAROTENE SELENIUM NIACINAMIDE (B3) SUPEROXIDE DISMUTASE TRACE MINERALS – COPPER, ZINC, & MANGANESE FLAVONOIDS – ESPECIALLY QUERCETIN & HESPERIDIN GLUTATHIONE – more importantly, the nutrients which make up glutathione – such as Cysteine, very high in whey protein COENZYME Q10

 

 

NUTRITION BEFORE, DURING, AND AFTER EXERCISE/COMPETITION

What you eat before, during (if the race is long enough), and after a race as well as during exercise will have a profound effect on your performance as well as recovery. Eating the right types of food before your race can help as much as eating the wrong type of food can hinder. Depending on the duration and intensity of the race, you’ll perform better consuming certain foods and liquids at certain times. And when the race is over and most are staring at the race crew figuring out the results, you should be eating and drinking to recover. Here are some general guidelines.

Before

• Carbohydrate solutions should be at a 3% or less concentration for the hour leading up to exercise – typically water is all that should be consumed
• During aerobic activity lasting under one hour, (even 90 mins for some, it depends on fitness levels), it is most beneficial to not eat within one hour before the exercise and drink only water before the exercise. You’ll burn more fat if done this way.
• The “last meal” before the activity should be geared towards what your body is in store for and is also very individualized depending on your health and fitness. The more fit and healthy you are, the more fat you’ll be burning – so the less you need to eat. The more unhealthy you are, and/or unfit you are then the more sugar you will burn – so you’ll need/want to consume more carbohydrates & sports drinks
• Aerobic activity of long duration (over 2 hours): eat approximately 2-3 hours before, with a high protein (20-30 grams) and “good” fat intake such as olive oil, or some nuts and seeds, moderate complex carbs. Experiment with what works best for you.
• Carbohydrates 45 mins or less before aerobic exercise has been shown to be detrimental to performance – and you’ll burn more sugar than fat for energy
• Anaerobic activity of short duration: increase the carbohydrates, moderate protein and low fat up to 1 hour before exercise
• Are you training aerobically or anaerobically? Read more here.

During

• Most current studies show that a glucose solution of 7-8% during prolonged exercise (one hour and longer) is most efficient to the body. Begin after 15 minutes into exercise. 8% is approximately 20 grams of carbohydrates in 8oz of water (1 cup). Glucose with some fructose works best.
• Calorie intake during exercise lasting over 3 hours is dependent upon energy expenditure. For example, a 150 lb person exercising over 3 hours should consume around 400 calories per hour, on average. As noted above, the more healthy and fit a person is, the less they will need to eat in regards to carbohydrates and calories, because they are a more efficient fat burning machine
• Calorie intake (as food) for exercise lasting under 3 hours is dependent upon the person’s aerobic efficiency. The less efficient and more anaerobic, the more carbohydrate needed to keep blood sugar levels normal & stable.
• Calorie intake for exercise lasting under one hour is unnecessary and may impair fat utilization for energy.

After – Eat & Drink!

During the recovery phase following any training regime or competition, there is a time considered as the “window of opportunity” where an athlete can recover faster than if he or she was to wait. The window is said to be open for approximately 60 minutes post-exercise and the focus should not be just on hydration, but also on  protein and carbohydrate intake particularly. Approximately 100g of carbohydrates and 25g of protein are needed within the first hour after exercise (the actual amount depends on body weight, activity duration and intensity). This ratio of 4:1 is said to nearly double the insulin response, which results in more stored glycogen. Carbohydrate-protein (CHO-PRO) supplementation is more effective to rapidly replenish glycogen levels than just a regular carbohydrate supplementation post-exercise.CHO-PRO supplementation has also been shown to improve exercise endurance during a second bout of exercise performed on the same day.Glycogen stores are quickly replenished in depleted muscles (and to some extent the liver) and amino acids are readily available to repair any tissue damage, particularly those caused by cortisol’s influence of converting amino acids (specifically branch chain amino acids) to glucose for fuel through the process of gluconeogenesis.

Amino acids are oxidized as substrate during prolonged exercise and both endurance and resistance training increase skeletal muscle protein synthesis and breakdown in the post-exercise period. During intense exercise workouts lasting longer than three hours, as much as ten percent of energy may come from protein. The branch chain amino acids (BCAAs) leucine, isoleucine, and valine are said to be the most important for recovery than any of the other amino acids. BCAAs make up about one-third of muscle’s protein and enhance endurance by conserving glycogen, maintaining muscle mass, power and endurance during exhaustive bouts of exercise. Furthermore, BCAAs have been shown to help maintain immune status and therefore reduce overtraining.