The Truth About Anitoxidants

It is amazing to think about all of the reactions going on in our body at any given moment.  We rarely even feel what is going on with our body, unless it is making us sick somehow.  But generally when you put good things in your body and stay active, your body functions better and you feel better.

Antioxidants is a term most people have heard of before. News and magazine articles explain the benefits for fighting inflammation, cancer, diseases, and strengthening our immune system.  Antioxidants have a long list of benefits and should be included in your daily diet.  But when people hear something is good for you they get the idea that more must be better.  But is this always true?

First we should look at what antioxidant molecules really do.  Free radicals are molecules in the body that contain an unpaired electron in their outer orbital.  I know, you didn't think you were going to have to know chemistry to read this post.  Don't worry I will keep it simple.  Just know that when a molecule has an unpaired electron like this, they are highly reactive  and can interact with cellular components, which causes damage to proteins, cell membranes, and DNA.  This damage that free radicals cause can lead to increased aging of the body and diseases.

Antioxidants can fight this damage by binding with free radicals so they can no longer do harm.  Our body's can create antioxidants and we get them in with our diet.  We want a combination of these two types of antioxidants.  Here is a small list of foods high in antioxidants:

• Red Kidney Beans
  
• Wild Blueberry
• Pinto Beans
• Cranberries
• Artichoke
• Prunes
• Raspberries
• Strawberries
• Black Beans
• Gala apples

So where do free radicals come from?  Free radicals come from a variety of places.  They can develop from radiation from the sun, outside toxins in the environment like smoke or even the food/water we drink. We also produce free radicals in the body.  

That might sound weird that our body produces something that damages cells in the body.  One event that causes free radical production is muscle contraction.  So when you workout, you guessed it, you are increasing free radicals in your body.  So when you exercise and free radicals increase we use the antioxidants our body produces plus the ones we ingest to fight against this.  

So many believe taking antioxidants is crucial when exercising.  You might see someone take high doses of Vitamin C or E to fight the increasing free radicals.  This makes sense but researchers are now realizing that there is a specific reason free radical production increases with exercise.  It is sending a signal to the body that muscle are being stressed and the result of the reaction leads to the benefits we see of exercising like stronger and more conditioned muscles.  High free radicals itself is a signal for the body to start producing more antioxidants and proteins build stronger muscles.  When high doses of antioxidants are taken it blocks this signal and decreases the effectiveness of exercise.  

Again it amazing what these tiny molecules and reactions do in our body without us realizing it.  The take home message is antioxidants are good.  You should consume foods that are high in antioxidants daily.  But like most things I write about more is not always better.  If you don't eat foods high in antioxidants regularly you might want to take a supplement but that doesn't mean you should go crazy with the dosage.    With Vitamin E 400iu and Vitamin C 1000iu would be considered a high dose.  

You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler MS, CSCS

San Diego Premier Training

Fat Changes Your Brain.

My colleague, Dr. Irv Rubenstein, in Nashville Tennessee wrote an interesting blog post about how new research is finding that your brain actually changes when you become obese.  Does being obese mean that you do not have the same control over your eating behavior?  There may be research that shows it is not as simple as saying to stop eating when you are full.  You can read more through the link below on his evaluation:

http://www.stepsfitness.com/brain-hunger-complex-how-obesity-alters-brain-and-vice-versa

 I have personally been more and more interested in learning about behavior change and how it relates to losing weight.  When you look at weight loss in simplistic terms many will say just eat less and exercise more.  While this is the foundation for any weight loss program, I think most people already understand this.

Instead we should focus on the more challenging aspects.  This is the how we do it.  How do I convince, manipulate, inspire...whatever term you want to use to make this a priority for you and keep you accountable so you stick with it and see the results.

The brain is a powerful organ.  It controls all movement of the body, functions of our organs and systems, and controls our thoughts.  We need to start taking control of our minds to get results.  If you have negative thoughts or negative influences on you, the rate of success dramatically falls.

Start controlling your thoughts.  When you have a negative thought come into your head, immediately stop what you are doing and say a positive thought 10 times.  It might sound silly but thinking positive is a trait of most successful people.  If you think you can do it you probably will.

You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler MS, CSCS
San Diego Premier Training

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Drinking Wine As Good As Exercise?

I know many of you reading this are probably wine fans and are giddy with excitement when new studies come out with the benefits of drinking red wine.  While I won't deny there are some benefits of drinking wine, it really is over blown and most would still be better off cutting down on drinking any form of alcohol.  

Last year one study was all over the internet and news reports that found that drinking red wine resulted in the same benefits of an hour of exercise.  This is what everyone has been waiting for.  Fitness in a pill....well, maybe a bottle.  But could this really be true?

The short answer is no.  It most likely isn't true.  First off, I'm not a big fan of watching the news.  For the most part they just aren't accurate with their information.  They are a business trying to get viewers.  Scaring people and giving false hope are two great ways to get people to watch.  Websites are similar.  Actually a recent study looking at the most and least reliable weight loss information on the internet found that the least reliable source was from news sites (1).  So be very skeptical when you hear things like this on the news or read them online, unless you know it is a credible source.

Now back to this claim.  The main people is that reports and writers often do not know how to read studies or apply them.  They should leave that to those in the field.  Not that I am a research expert but I have read enough journals to know what is truly being said.

Problem number one is that they didn't test this on humans.  They used mice.  While animal study is a great place to start, you can't just make the conclusion that if it works for mice it will work the same in humans.  There are thousands of research studies showing that is not true.  The second problem is that they didn't have mice drink wine.  They fed them a diet high in resveratrol, which is found in red wine.  They did not give the mice alcohol so we don't know if there would be an effect there as well.

And finally, the headlines you read on these articles say that drinking red wine has the same benefits as an hour of exercise.  This wasn't shown in the study at all.  Here is what they did.  They had 4 groups of mice.  One group was sedentary and did no exercise and no special diet.  The second group did not exercise but was fed a diet with resveratrol.  The third group exercise but no diet change and the final group exercise and was given resveratrol.  You may be asking, "Exercise for mice?"  Yes they had them run on treadmills until they fatigued.  To make sure they ran they gave them an electrical shock or blew them with an air spray.  Maybe that could be a new training technique at SDPT....

And what were the results?  Well the two groups that exercised saw the best results in terms of endurance and strength.  No big surprise there.  Between the two groups that did not exercise, the group that was given resveratrol did see some improvements over the sedentary group that did not change their diet.   But it was no where even close to either of the exercise groups.  You can see the actual graphs below from the study.  It may not make sense but the bars on the right are for the two exercise groups.  See how much better they did?

So sorry to be a buzz kill.  I know you don't want to hear this from me but it is my job to make sense of all the bad info out there.  So bottom line, nothing will replace hard work and sweat.  So put down the wine glass and get your butt to the gym.

You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler
San Diego Premier Training

Resources:

1.  American Journal of Public Health (2014; 104 [10], 1971–78)

2.  The Journal of Physiology Volume 590, Issue 11, pages 2783–2799, June 2012

5 Must Have Superfoods.

While it is important to get a variety of different whole foods, there are certain ones that should be consumed often because of the high quality nutrients they have.  It is no secret that most people are deficient of certain nutrients.  When you look at the typical Western diet and have someone who is cutting calories in order to lose weight there is no question that certain things are missing from the diet that may cause health problems.  While a supplement is always an option, many people would prefer to get as much out of whole foods as they can.  With that in mind, here is a list of 5 foods that you should really try to make part of your weekly meal plans.

1.  Beets:

I really can't take the credit for this one.  Emily is a huge beets fan.  I didn't think I would enjoy them too much but no salad is complete with out a healthy serving of beets.  Beets contain nitrates which provide a plethora of benefits for your heart.  They can increase nitric oxide production in the body which can improve circulation and reduce blood pressure.  Some research shows drinking beet juice may even improve endurance performance and tolerance for high intensity exercise.  It is also a powerful fighter of inflammation.  Beets are even known as natures Viagra and may reduce issues with sexual dysfunctions.

2.  Walnuts: 

Here is another big favorite of mine. I love throwing them in salads (with beets), in my smoothies, in yogurt, or just as a snack on their own.  One of the biggest benefits of eating nuts, like walnuts, is the high quantity of Omega 3 Fatty Acids.  These are lacking in most american diets.  Omega 6 Fatty Acids are usually over consumed and not enough omega 3's are eaten.  They have a huge role with inflammation and heart health.  Speaking of heart health, recent study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition just founds that those who consume higher amounts of walnuts lower their risk significantly for all cause risk for deaths related to cardiovascular disease and cancer.  Nutrients in walnuts can actually increase the flexibility of your arteries.

3.  Blueberries:

Blueberries claim to fame is its powerful antioxidant capabilities.  Free radicals in the body can progress the development of aging, cancer, and other diseases.  Blueberries help neutralize these free radicals to prevent this damage from occurring.  Blueberries have also been shown to improve cognition in older adults and help fight against dementia.  They also can help strengthen your immune system with a healthy dose of Vitamin C.

4.  Greek Yogurt:

This is one of my go to snacks and/or desserts.  If you are craving those sweet foods after dinner try having greek yogurt instead of cake, pastries, and ice cream.  Actually one of my favorite snacks is simply combining #2-4 on this list.  There are many nutritional benefits of greek yogurt but the two main ones are high amounts of probiotics, which improve your gut health, and protein.  Most clients that we work with struggle to get the correct amount of protein in the diet.  Greek yogurt is usually are go to.  The way it is made results in higher amounts of protein than regular yogurt.  1 serving of Fage 2% Greek Yogurt contains 20g of protein.  The older you are the higher the protein you probably need.

5.  Spinach:

I basically could put any green leafy vegetable here, but I chose spinach since it is the most common.  And incredibly versatile.  You could easily fit spinach into every meal of the day, in an omelet for breakfast, a salad for lunch, and sautéed


as a side dish for dinner.  This powerful food is very high in magnesium, iron, and Vitamin K.  Numerous research shows the benefits of spinach in lowering blood pressure, reducing the risk of cancer, improving bone health, and managing diabetes.  Spinach can help reduce artery calcification and help with calcium absorption to improve bone health.

So there are 5 of our favorites.  Try adding more recipes that contain these five foods each week and you are on your way to better health.

You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler MS, CSCS
San Diego Premier Training

Don't Burn Fat This Way

I'm sure I have blogged about this topic before, but it is something that just won't go away.  If you could only ask personal trainer one questions, what would it be?  There are many responses that might come up, but the overwhelming majority is, "How do I lose fat on my [insert body part here]?"

This is referred to as spot reducing.  While I'm sure there will be more research to be done on this topic, the direction that current researching is pointing is that you can't do this.  I know it sucks, but we need to accept it and move on.  If you don't believe me here are some examples:

1.  The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research published a study in 2011 that 6 weeks of abdominal training lead to know fat loss of the abdomen.  It did improve the muscular endurance of the abdominal muscles.

2.  In 1971 UC Irvine performed a study on tennis players.  If spot reduction worked we would see less fat in the dominant arm of tennis players versus their non dominant.  Again this was shown to be false.

3.  A more recent study in 2007 from the University of Connecticut had subjects only train one arm to see if fat loss occurred only at that site.  Again they found that fat loss was more general all over the body and not only in the one arm.

So as tempting as it is to get on the inner/outer thigh machines to burn thigh fat or doing a million sit ups to burn stomach fat, please don't.  You select exercises for two reasons mainly.  One to train that specific muscle or movement to gain strength, endurance, or power.  The second is to select exercises that burn a lot of calories in general.  Not just at a specific location.  I know it sounds crazy, but doing squats can help burn belly fat.

In the latest issue of the Journal of Strength and Conditioning research, I came across an interesting study.  Sometimes research is way behind current training practices, but it is great when it catches up.  Something that we have been doing for years is using total body, high intensity exercises to try and burn as many calories as possible versus overtraining one specific area trying to spot reduce.  This study found that a few nontraditional exercises that are becoming more popular today were better at burning calories than traditional exercises.

Since I'm sure you don't want to read the study, I put together a short video of the exercises used in the study.  If you have trained with us before these should look familiar.  If not, give them a try and see how you do.  Just follow the instructions in the video for sets and reps.

Have fun!

So in summary, to burn fat, pick higher intensity total body movements.  Get off the inner/outer thigh machines unless you specifically want to improve the strength of those muscles.


You Stay Healthy San Diego,

Mike Deibler MS, CSCS
San Diego Premier Training