TSRF

Bonjourno, I had a fantastic trip to Italy last week where I did a two day seminar that was very detailed.  Some highlights from the trip:

1) I arrived in Florence and was immediately picked up and taken to my hotel-I was exhausted from my long flight and recovered that night–of course my Emergen-C and high dose amino acid supplement Recoverzene really helped that recovery process!

2) The next morning after some nice recovery, I explored Tuscany a little and went shopping-coming back from Italy without some fashionable goods from an Italian manufacturer for my wife would NOT be a good thing! So I went to this outlet place where that had all the Italian trendy brands–you know Fendi, Armani, Gucci, and other brands that break the bank! I even went to the Dolce&Gabbanna factory. I was very excited since when I hear the word Outlet, I think discount like most normal bargain shopping Americans! But I found out the hard way the Euro is no joke and the “deals” I thought I was getting weren’t actually deals at all! Oh well, you can’t be cheap with gifts I guess–especially if the receiver may find out you cheaped out!!!

3) Sandro at Olympians News organized a very professional seminar with a really nice set up and made it comfortable for me. Thats a good thing because the seminar info was intense! And the constant flow of espresso saved the day!

4) The crowd was advanced and had some great knowledge about training/nutrition/fitness. I had to keep on my toes! I met some really nice people who enjoyed the seminar. I reviewed some really serious topics like nutragenomics (actually reviewing each gene and supplements to address DNA repair and expression). I also got into hormones that control appetite and looked at all the newest research on a multitude of topics.  My translator (yes the seminar was translated into Italian) Rossella was fantastic and I really made her work hard with all the long words I was saying–plus I talk fast so that always makes it interesting!

5) Then I enjoyed some amazing Tuscany food! Suffice it to say I didn’t really try and eat healthy there! I binged a little because I HAD to! I met my old buddy Matteo there–one of the funniest guys ever–really fun to be around! He actually learned more english and spoke it pretty well this time–last time no english at all!

6) My workouts in Italy were nice too– Olympians gym is one of the best I’ve seen. We took some workout pics as well so my dieting for the past 2 months paid off–I hope!!

7) One really big highlight for me was watching Italy play in the EuroCup soccer quaterfinals versus Spain at a restaurant in the beautiful Tuscany mountains! Was really breathtaking actually.  Look I’m a big sports fan but Futbol in Europe is on another level of fanhood! The most interesting part was watching the reaction of the people after each and every strike! It was priceless and the streets were totally empty during the match of course!

Overall, a great trip and I look forward to going back soon!!

Check out www.olympian.it for more info.

Grazie,

RJ

Sleep is magical. And absolutely necessary for a host of things. I know a lot about sleep except the part about actually doing it–sleeping that is..But there are a few interesting new studies on sleep–One shows that eating a high fat diet during the day causes sleep disruptions and interferes with sleep.  Basically the researchers concluded that eating more fat in the day leads to poor sleep at night.  Maybe its because fat laden junk food makes you feel sluggish or too full.  Or it could be much more complicated like specific junk fats effect Orexin A and Orexin B in the brain which control sleep patterns and even appetite.  This preliminary study doesn’t get into that but interesting nonetheless!

http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/news/20080610/high-fat-diet-linked-to-poor-sleep?src=RSS_PUBLIC

Another study suggests that too much sleep is as bad as too little sleep.  So there has to be a balance there.  The article suggests that if you’re looking for life extension you need to sleep between 6.5-8 hours per night.  More than 8 hours may be detrimental with regards to a long life. Sleeping too little or too much is associated with many illnesses.  They didn’t look at other factors like how much sleep is optimal for muscle recovery and growth. I stand by the suggestion in my book of 7-9 hours of sleep per night being optimal for fitness and workout enthusiasts.  Whats interesting about the article is that it also mentions that short sleep is OK and not as bad as once thought. Whats really interesting is that scientists still don’t know the exact reason we need to sleep from a physiological point of view–but they’re working on it!

 http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20080610/hl_time/howmuchsleepdoyoureallyneed

RJ

I must be the laziest blogger on the planet. But I assure you I will do better and write more posts.  So much happening! Last week I had the pleasure of attending the premiere of the movie “Bigger, Stronger, Faster”! It was an excellent event at Graumans Egyptian Theater in Hollywood. The movie is well done and yours truly has a small cameo in it! It is playing in NY and LA and nationwide next week. I think it will definitely start a lot of dialogue and discussion about the American win at all costs culture.  For more info and a trailer, you can go to www.biggerstrongerfastermovie.com.  The movie doesn’t make the supplement industry look great but I think it does send a message that there are some bad seeds in the industry making everyone else look bad.  I mean most manufacturers I know do put a lot of quality control and research into their products but there are always gonna be people out there wanting to make a fast buck. 

Also, I’m dieting hard for my trip to Italy for my seminar and book promo–yes, my book is translated into Italian–for more info go here:

www.olympian.it

I always feel better dieting, doing more cardio, and eating well! I could certainly use some deep dish pizza but hey I’d rather get that 8-pack instead!! and then pizza afterwards!

Finally, there is a research study that suggests why diets don’t work:

 http://news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20080530/sc_livescience/fatfindingrevealswhydietsdontwork

Basically, childhood is to blame! But I am working on nutrients that can cause fat cell death or apoptosis (I gotta throw a few big words in there to sound legit)!!

Time for my egg whites….

RJ

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I know this headline could fall under the “totally obvious” category but I wanted to share this story about some head turning research on rising obesity rates in various ethnic groups.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080512/us_nm/us_obesity_dc

 One of the most interesting parts of the research was that obesity can cause Silent vascular disease that shows no symptoms–kinda scary.  At least when you are having a heart attack there are some real signs like indigestion, pain on the left side of the body, a tingling feeling in the left arm,etc.. But since Obesity can “kill you softly” sort of speak, I think its time to drop the pizza and step away from the counter! Hey I enjoy the occassional pizza once in a while (deep dish usually) so I’m not playing “holier than thou” but I do think its important to lower obesity since it is not that difficult to do—pretty simple equation–eat less, exercise more, and stress less! There I said it!!

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I don’t want to harp on the benefits of green tea and tell you it helps boost metabolism, health and a myriad of other benefits. I just want to tell you about a study showing acute ingestion of green tea extract can increase fat oxidation (let me translate–fat burning!) AND get this can even enhance insulin sensitivity.  Now you might ask yourself why do I want my insulin to be sensitive?! Well actually ehancing insulin sensitivity can allow you to manage blood sugar better and support the fat loss process. I like taking green tea extract (about 1000 mg) and a cup of oolong tea (another one of my favorites to rev up that metabolism) before cardio exercise! Look for a green tea extract standardized to at least 45% EGCG and 90% Polyphenols.  A good brand is Lean Green from Primaforce. 

Study:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18326618

You might think I’m obsessed with Abs and of course this blog will again confirm your suspicions.  Its not that I’m obsessed with abs (okay maybe a little), its that I know the detrimental effects of having a belly and want to help people get rid of it! We know that people with bigger bellies are more predisposed to diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and some cancers.  Now a research article published in the FASEB journal show that having a belly can actually make you hungrier causing you to eat more and make that belly even bigger.  It has to do with NPY (no it’s not an abbreviation for Not Pretty Yet but rather Neuropeptide Y). NPY is the most potent physiological appetite booster known.  It is found in high amounts in obese individuals.  Imbalance in NPY secretion can lead to fat storage and obesity. There is an abundance of NPY in the hypothalamus but it can be found in other parts of the body. It causes an increase in feeding and energy metabolism.  Well these particular researchers found that NPY is actually reproduced in abdominal fat tissue creating a vicious cycle of fat gain by making you hungrier. So once again please keep it real, keep it flat. REAL FLAT! A flat stomach can do wonders for your health AND your social life if you know what I’m sayin!

Article here:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080416153551.htm 

This and energy metabolism.

We all know or at least should know that eating too much saturated fat can have serious detrimental health effects like raising bad (LDL) cholesterol and other “unwanted” cardiovascular effects. Now a pretty good review article published in the British Journal of Nutrition concludes that consumption of a high saturated fat diet can decrease insulin sensitivity. Now some of you might ask “so what?”! To which I would respond “so much”! Decreasing insulin sensitivity can cause problems in blood sugar levels and may eventually lead to diabetes or Syndrome X.  So if you are having fluctuations in blood sugar levels, it might not be the carbs but the saturated fat.  On the same not, it is really important to take adequate amounts of Omega 3 fatty acids as most people have an essential fatty acid imbalance since they consume way too much Omega 6 and saturated fats.   Taking Flax Seed oil or Hemp oil can help provide good amounts of Omega 3 fatty acids (Barleans makes a great Flax seed oils product). 

So drop the cream cheese and limit these foods high in saturated fat: Some types of beef like ribs and high fat ground, cheese, canned condensed milk, sour cream, whipping cream, coffee cream, cheesecake, chicken pot pie, butter, fast food burgers, and egg yolks.  You know all the good stuff!

 Article link:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18394213?ordinalpos=2&itool=EntrezSystem2.PEntrez.Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVDocSum

As I was browsing thru Yahoo, I came across this news story from ABC news (Good Morning America): http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=4603127

It talks about how food labels are off.  And how “Good Morning America”–you know that bastion of scientific knowledge, hired a lab to test several packaged foods and the results were SHOCKING. Ok maybe not but after reading the story it sounded like the foods they tested were completely bogus.  In my opinion, I think its a little overblown. I mean if a product contains 1 gram of saturated fat and is off by say 25% well that means you get a whopping 1.25 g of saturated fat. Big deal.  I do think that the governments allowance of foods to contain 20% more than what’s on the label before taking action is a little much.  I kinda like to get in the box whats on the label! But to get accurate results from the lab analysis, multiple lot/batches have to be tested numerous times.  One quick test is a gauge but a more comprehensive multiple test is better.  I hope this does help the food manufacturers tighten up their quality control but I know they do test and have a tight quality check system in place–at least the big ones do anyways–the liability of not doing so is a risk.  I also get leary when I see that the labels are off in a good way–for example more protein than whats listed on the label–that might mean that other batches have lower protein! I think it is always a good idea to call the company in question directly and ask for a lab analysis of the exact lot number of product you bought. Most credible companies can provide this, if they can’t well that may give you a hint! Remember, its your hard earned money at stake here!

If you ate fresh foods that don’t have Nutrition Facts panels, you might be better off anyways! Here’s to quality eating!

RJ

I have a problem.  It’s not a serious one like cancer or something but it does affect my life. I feel like I’m in therapy or something here. Ok, I’ll just disclose it–I am obsessed with Abs. There I said it.  I’m to Abs what Michael Jordan was to basketball! I study what makes up the abs, what causes them to get fat, and most importantly what you can do to get a six pack. I mean jeez my book is called “The Six-Pack Diet Plan”.  I’ve previously written about how having a belly causes all sorts of problems-I’m sort of on a mission–Mission: Belly Fat Reduction! For some people this is Mission Impossible but if you truly understand the extremely serious things belly fat has been linked to, you might drop the Krispy Kreme Doughnuts and hit the treadmill! Research has actually shown that an increased amount of abdominal fat specifically is linked to hypertension, diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, and even hyperlipidemia.  What’s more interesting is these risk factors associated with central body fat distribution are independent of overall obesity.  Scientists have also linked abdominal fat to depression, anxiety, and even social difficulties.  So you can obviously see that getting a six pack is not only good for looks but also for health.  Hey I’m not gonna lie, A six pack certainly doesn’t hurt your social life! Oh yeah I got game–unfortunately that game for me is “Sorry”!!! Ok now let me get to the title of this post. New research in the journal Neurology links belly fat to dementia and Alzheimers disease later in life. I think it goes back to the cortisol link. You see, cortisol is a catabolic (fancy word for breakdown) hormone that causes all kinds of deleterious effects in the body.  And your belly fat is a sponge to the protruding effects of cortisol.  Basically if you are stressed, cortisol goes up and since the abdomen has 4 times more receptors for cortisol, you gain fat there fairly rapidly.  This increase in circulating cortisol could have the negative effects on the brain later.  Here is the article:

http://health.yahoo.com/news/ap/belly_dementia.html

For help, you can try a product called Abgone ES and of course exercise, stress reduction, and cutting out the junk food daily can help! A flatter tummy has plump effects! So keep it Real. Keep it Flat. Real Flat!

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I can’t stress the importance of sleep enough. I mean I have a whole section on sleep in my book “The Six-Pack Diet Plan”. There are so many negative consequences to sleep deprivation. Now a new study (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_62257.html) shows that sleep deprivation may actually cause weight gain by modifying appetite control hormones Leptin and Ghrelin.  By the way, if you are interested in appetite control and the wonderful world of appetite control hormones, please read my article here: http://www.zidiet.com/news_detail.asp?id=4  Don’t be scared by all the big words–there are tips on maximizing each hormone in plain english!

 So as I write this blog at 2 AM, I remind myself first and you that SLEEP IS ESSENTIAL TO FITNESS SUCCESS. There I said it!

 ZZZZZZZ!

RJ