This Weeks Top Tip

Many 'experts' believe coffee isn't good for our health and can cause all sorts of 'problems.' However there have been so many studies backing coffee up, from increasing fat loss and strength output, extending one's life to improving brain health.

In the year 2000, two studies (one in the mainstream journal Neurology) showed that coffee consumption is associated with a reduced risk for Parkinson’s disease. More recent studies have also shown that coffee drinkers are less likely to get Alzheimer’s and dementia, with a decreased risk of about 65% at late-life. It's also been shown to improve short-term cognitive function on various testing parameters like reaction time, choice reaction time, incidental verbal memory, and visual-spatial reasoning.

The mechanisms behind the health benefits of coffee could be the fact that coffee enhances detoxification in the body, and/or its anti-oxidant content and ability to increase insulin sensitivity and reduce the onset of type 2 diabetes... after all Alzheimer's can otherwise be known as type 3 diabetes.

Source: Caffeine as a protective factor in dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

Hall Training Systems Is Now On Facebook!

I'm please to announce Hall Training Systems has now landed on Facebook... Finally!

Please take the time to check it out and recommend it to friends and family.
Thank you

Find it @ www.facebook.com/fatlossexpert

Hall Training Systems.co.uk Coming Soon!

I'm please to announce that the design of the Hall Training System website is finally underway. I've teamed up with one of Oxfords top web team - Pandemedia.biz to create what is hopefully going to be Oxfords best and most resourceful personal training website.
The official launch is expect to be towards the end of March and will contain a host of the following features:

• A research corner that will allow people to have access to scientific papers backing up a lot of training, nutrition and health claims. These are great at dispelling common gym myths.
• A video library that will teach people proper exercise technique and provide an array of new exercises to add in to workouts.
• A library of articles that you can download and access to expand your knowledge and aid your training.
• Special client login area that will give my clients access to exclusive articles, download-able protocols and FAQ's.

I'm really excited about the launch and will be sure to inform you of its launch.

This Weeks Top Tip

 Here is another reason you should ditch the treadmill in favor for weights.

Researchers have discovered that resistance training or in other words, training with weights, improved markers of blood pressure more effectively and efficiently than aerobic training. Resistance exercise increases blood flow which is known to reduce blood pressure.

Source: Changes in Arterial Distensibility and Flow-Mediated Dilation After Acute Resistance vs. Aerobic Exercise

The Myth Behind... Discipline. Why Discipline Doesn't Exist!

The following article was written by world renowned health expert and strength coach Charles Poliquin. I came across this back in Oct 09 and it really gave me food for thought. I'd like to pass it on in the hope it opens your eyes up to the misunderstood term... Discipline!

There is no such thing as discipline. There is only love.
Love is the most powerful creative force in the universe. You are the result of what you love most. You either love finely etched muscular abs more than donuts or you love donuts more than wash board abs you could do your laundry on. It is as simple as that. Don’t beat yourself up that you have no discipline or further drown yourself in a sea of refined carbs. Admit that you like crappy food more than you love strength. Or ask yourself this, what do you really love? Self-esteem is the reflection of self-judgment. One of the best ways to raise self-esteem is to make truly loving choices that lead to increased strength of body and mind. For example, if you truly love yourself in the gym, you choose the full squat with chains over the leg extension machine. At the restaurant, if you truly love yourself, you pass on the heavenly smelling basket of bread and creamy butter, and ask for some more limes for the water. Limes alkalize your body which in turn helps your bones, muscles and your ability to deal with stress.

When you are faced with difficult choices, ask yourself, in context of course, what would a loving expert recommend? For example, when working chest, would a loving strength coach recommend the pec deck, or full range dumbbell presses. When choosing desserts, would the loving nutritionist recommend a bowl of berries or the triple decker brownie submerged under melting vanilla ice cream.


How to free yourself from the outdated concept of discipline:

1. Accept that all your choices are reflections of what you truly love.
2.  Love is the greatest creative force of the Universe. Use it wisely.
3. Choose to love yourself more than external things.
4. Treating yourself well accelerates the growth of your self-esteem.
5. When people comment on your results and say things like “Wow you have a lot disciple” answer “No, I just make loving choices for myself". Reinforcing your own positive behavior will help you grow in strength.
6. What you appreciate appreciates. Whenever you make a truly loving choice, say to yourself ‘Thank you for taking care of me in a loving way”. The more you talk to yourself like a loving parent, the faster you will grow. Let’s say, for example, you just did a single on the squat with a load you didn’t feel like doing. Say: “Wow! I am impressed with your strength of mind, that’s why you are a champion”. By documenting and rewarding your successes, they will grow in magnitude and frequency. Whenever I meet a goal, I reward myself with positive things like a vacation or a new piece of equipment. When I get something better, I make the choice of giving away the old piece to someone who will appreciate it. Living a clutter free life allows for more growth.
7. The more you believe in yourself, the more objectively you will be able to take the advice of authority figures.
8. “Use your faults” was French singer Edith Piaf’s motto. I don’t like to stretch athletes. It is too time consuming and requires too much energy. Using that fault, I developed the Poliquin Instant Muscle Strengthening Technique (P.I.M.S.T.),  which is a system that uses a myriad of body work techniques such as acupressure points that instantly give increases in flexibility!

There is an old Hindhu saying: “The World is as we are”. Are you tired of seeing the condition of the world around you? Start by changing yourself - be the change you want to see in the world - Charles Poliquin

How Many Kcals Do I Need To Burn To Lose 1lb Of Fat!

I often find people get very caught up on how many calories they burn up in a workout.
It is the end figure illuminated on the treadmills display that often dictates to someone whether or not they've had a productive workout. If an hour passes and they're not happy with the figure displayed they'll often stay for an extra half hour/hour  to help increase it - nevertheless this is all well and good but do any of these people know exactly what figure their trying to achieve?! I mean what figure do they reach before they decide; time's up!

Well for most people who either run, row, cycle, etc their main goal is probably fat loss. (although we already know, looking back at a recent blog post that long duration cardio has a negative impact on fat loss)
With this goal in mind then, how many Kcals are needed to burn... lets say a 1lb of fat?

If you type into Google "how many kcals are in one pound of fat"  the answer you get is about 3,500kcals, however if we look at the science the figure is more like 4,082Kcals.

That's right - 4,082Kals Equate to One Pound of Fat

Now I'm not saying jump on a treadmill and reach 4,000kcals every workout, that would be ludicrous. What I am saying is, we now have a better idea of the figure we need to reach in order to burn a pound of fat.
E.g If you need to lose an extra 5lbs then you should aim for a calorie expenditure of 20,410Kals over a period of time to help with this weight loss.
Bare in mind this doesn't have to come from exercise alone, by adjusting your diet, taking into account your Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR - amount of Kcals you burn while resting) and eating the right foods at the right times will help with total calorie expenditure.

Let this be quick reference, something tangible, to help keep you focused and on the right track. This figure can be used as a goal, something to aim for when training without over complicating things.

Remember though the science of fat loss and body re-composition isn't as simple as calories in vs. calories out.

Success Story #4

I'd like to congratulate another of my clients today on a terrific drop in body fat measurement around the love handles (supra iliac)

After only starting up with me a week ago I advised her to limit the intake of sugars and carbs and as a result she has dropped from 30mm to 24.6mm.

A total loss of 5.4mm and in only 6 days! 

Her total training for the week was only a one hour yoga session.

This shows that with certain, small yet important changes you can reap huge rewards.

This Weeks Top Tip

This is a top tip for anyone who finds it a problem remembering names, numbers, dates or even people's faces.
A lot of people believe that their ability to remember and retain information is down to perceptiveness and general brain activity. Little do they know that memory can be enhanced by eating the correct foods!
Brain cells, the primary component our brains are made out of, require what we call neurotransmitters to carry messages around.
Low levels of certain neurotransmitters can have impacts on our memory, specifically the neurotransmitter, acetylcholine and dopamine.

If you have a hard time remembering names and numbers it is a sign that you have a deficiency in the acetylcholine neurotransmitter.

For those of you who struggle to remember peoples faces it’s a deficiency in dopamine levels. 

If you are someone who struggles with the above then I've provided a short list below of the types of foods your diet should revolve around to help resolve the problem.

Here is a list of foods that help boost Acetylcholine, the neurotransmitter responsible for memory, concentration and focus:

Acetylcholine

• Egg Yolks
• Meat – Chicken, Beef, Pork, Mutton
• Fish
• Liver
• Dairy Products – Milk and Cheese
• Vegetables – Broccoli, Cabbage and Cauliflower have higher amounts
• Pine Nuts and macadamias are particularly good if eaten at breakfast
• Blueberries are also great at raising acetylcholine levels

Remember those clearly… and now for the next one.

Dopamine

Dopamine is responsible for learning, a very important feature that helps boost intelligent memory, the memory that contributes to your overall intelligence. A list of foods that boost this particular neurotransmitter:

• Protein sources – Meat, Milk products, Fish, Nuts, Beans,

I often find this information to be invaluable to clients of mine who need great memory for their job e.g accountants, mathematicians, historians, lawyers, policemen etc

The Myth Behind... Long Duration Cardio For Fat Loss. A MUST READ

One of the most common myths held by the public and indeed many fitness professionals is the notion that steady state cardio (long duration aerobic exercise) is the best exercise for fat loss. However when we take a look at the science and results I achieve with clients, it tells us a different story.

A study published by Trapp and Boucher et al, at the University of New South Wales, Australia has shown long duration aerobic work to be infective at burning body fat and can in fact make you even fatter!
Below are two study's that will open your eyes and educate your mind to world of aerobic training and it's affect on fat loss.

Study 1: Trapp and Boucher et al (1)

Group 1: performed 40mins of steady sate aerobics at 60% of VO2 max, three times per week for 15 weeks.

Group 2: performed 20mins of  interval training (8secs on, 12secs off - 60 times) three times per week for 15 weeks. Group 2 started at 5mins for the first week then built up to the full 20mins during the 15 week period.

Both groups had their dietary intake closely monitored.

Results
Group 1: The steady state group GAINED 0.5kgs of fat in the 15 weeks!

Group 2: The interval training group LOST on average 2.5kgs of fat in the same time frame. When two already lean subjects were removed the interval training groups results improved to an average loss of 3.9kgs of fat. (two of the women in the group lost 8kgs of fat, each)

Study 2: Tremblay et al (2)

This study pitted 20 weeks of endurance training against 15 weeks of interval training.

Group 1: 20 week steady state aerobic program burned 28,661 calories during their workout.

Group 2: 15 week interval training program burned only 13,614 calories during their workout (less than HALF as many as group 1)

Results
Group 2: lost 450% MORE body fat than group 1, despite the fact their workouts were both shorter and burned fewer calories.

Conclusion
The calories you burn during your workout are much less important than the calories you burn after your workout.
A 30 minute steady state aerobic workout will only give you 30 minutes of a metabolic boost and that's it!

A 20 minute high intensity interval workout will:

• Burn more calories after your workout, boosting your metabolism for up to 36 hours post exercise.
• Cause your body to burn more fat all day long. Your body will burn a greater percentage of calories from fat after an intense workout rather than a low intensity workout, such as jogging ot long distance training.
• Keep the stress hormone (cortisol) low, allowing for preservation of muscle, low oxidation stress and decreased death of brain cells.

You only need to compare two kinds of athlete - a marathon runner and a sprinter to help show that interval training supersedes long distance work when it comes to fat loss!

Sources: 
1. Trapp EG and Boutcher SH. Fat loss following 15 weeks of high intensity, intermittent cycle training. Fat Loss Laboratory, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

2. Tremblay A, Simoneau JA, Bouchard C. Impact of exercise intensity on body fatness and skeletal muscle metabolism. Metabolism, 1994 Jul:43(7):814-8

The Myth Behind... Turning Muscle Into Fat

This was inspired by a friend of mine who was told by his friends he was wasting his time in the gym as when he stops training all the muscle he had would turn to fat... I had to laugh when he told me this however it's not the first time I've heard it.

A lot of people believe you can turn fat into muscle and muscle into fat.

Let me tell you now, this circulating 'gym talk' is in fact complete nonsense and is a total myth!

Fat and muscle are two completely different compounds and total opposites. Muscle is comprised of mainly water and amino acids (proteins) it's metabolically active (requires energy/calories to help maintain it) and is a 'living' tissue.

Fat on the other hand is comprised of toxins and is a storage site for lipids that can be released into energy. Fat can also be broken down into two substrates - white and brown adipose tissue. White adipose tissue is usually the fat which the majority of us don't like and want to lose... it's metabolically inactive and can raise questions to ones health if too high.

Another reason people still believe this to be true is through the reflection of bodybuilders. Bodybuilders dedicate great time and effort when it comes training and nutrition. They have incredible physiques and extremely low levels of body fat, often consuming 5,000 - 6,000 Kcals per day to help grow and maintain their muscular physique.

Problems become apparent when they become too old or decide to stop training; we often see bodybuilders looking fat and out of shape. This image gives people the impression their hard earned muscle has now turned to fat. The actual explanation of this is down to nutrition.

Many bodybuliders go through years of consuming enormous amounts of food per day, once they retire from training their muscles begin to atrophy from lack of stimulus and they find it hard to cut back on the calories and still eat what they were when once training... this then causes a problem! 

The amount of calories going in each day soon adds up and so does the body fat!

So the next time you run into someone giving you the 'chit-chat' of turning muscle into fat, you can either direct them to this post or simply smile to yourself and walk away in confidence knowing the truth behind it all!