Review of Eat-Stop-Eat

I recently purchased and read the e-book Eat-Stop-Eat from nuritionist Brad Pilon. I first heard Brad interviewed a little while back on a podcast (can't remember which one, sorry) where he explained his method for losing bodyfat called flexible-intermittant-fasting. Needless to say I was intrigued since much of what Brad was saying was flying in the face of nutrional recommendations that I subscribe to and have used for years!

Listening to Brad speak definately gave me a case of congnitive dissonance, which is that feeling you get when something contradicts a deeply held set of beliefs or convictions. Being very much a science and evidence-based person, I knew that I needed to examine my own nutritional beliefs. For years I have recommended and followed the principles of meal frequency(4-6 small meals/day) to control blood sugar, build muscle, and lose bodyfat. This methods has worked pretty well for me and many I have recommended it to.

Brad's basic view however, is that this style of eating promotes a chronically elevated insulin level, which can increase fat stores as well as increase inflammation and other negative health markers in the body over time. I'm not sure I buy into this completely as I don't seem to have any of those effects (not yet at least). But from an evolutionary perspective, it kind of makes sense that are bodies are meant to go for longer periods of time without food. And this is where Brad's system of flexible-fasting come in to play. He simply advises to choose one or two non-consecutive 24-hour periods (at most) per week to restrain from food while drinking non-caloric beverages liberally. He even advises exercising on these days!

While this sounds brutal to some (as it did to me), the results people are getting on his program seem pretty significant. What's kind of refreshing too, is that Brad simply dismisses many of the myths about short-term (24 hour periods) fasting such as:

1) you'll lose muscle (he says you won't, especially if you are resistance training 2-3x/week)
2) you'll enter the starvation mode and then store fat next time you eat (not so according to Brad who gives many scientific references to back this up_
3) you'll feel terrible and have no energy (after the few fasts, he says you feel great and get a lot of work done without worrying about eating all day)

Also, Brad dismisses much of the debate over protein, carbs, and fat intakes and simply recommends eating a healthful diet (lots of fruits and veggies, lean proteins, etc..) on the days you eat without any real need follow any strange and restictive diet plan with expensive supplements and fibers pills, etc... The one or two 24-hours periods you don't eat make for a great caloric deficit over the course of the week that you will lose fat. The real key is to eat normally on your regular days and not try to "make-up" for lost feeding opportunities. Also, you never actually need to miss a day of eating. Instead, Brad recommends choosing a time, say 2 PM one day until 2 PM the next day to fast. Any time will work though, according to Brad.

I will give this eating plan a try once my track season is over and report my findings in my blog. I'm not trying to lose weight per se but maybe will lose a little "love-handles" fat that I've accunulated as I got into my 30's. I haven't had any clients try it yet but am starting to think this might be a great eating style for many of fat-loss clients or anyone who wishes to save money on their grocery bill!

To read more about this very fascinating book or to purchase your own copy, go to
http://www.eatstopeat.com/?tid=newblog or Brad's personal blog: http://bradpilon.com/ to read more about his recommendations.

A Review of Recovery & Regeneration

Just today I received notice of the first review of my new DVD Recovery & Regeneration: Self-Massage Techniques. The review was done by RKC (Russian Kettlebell Certified) instructor

Rannoch Donald from Scottland. To read the entire review, go to Ronnach's excellent blog, Simple Strength:

http://simplestrength.blogspot.com/2009/02/recovery-regeneration.html

Here's a bit of what he said about the DVD's:

"I don't think Keats will mind if I say, right off the bat, he's not going to win any Oscars for make-up and lighting. But no-one watches instructionals for the production values. We want content - and this is where "Recovery & Regeneration" delivers completely.

"Recovery & Regeneration" comprises 2 discs.

Disc 1 covers instruction of specific techniques. Keats doesn't waste any time. After a brief but informative discussion on the benefits of self massage and the tools available we are introduced to a series of progressive drills using a foam roller. These include postural, perpendicular, torso and leg applications. Also included on disc 1 are tennis ball moves for plantar fascia and some alternative self massage methods. The disc concludes with a stretching sequence. Coach Keats presentation is clear and unambiguous and I found myself eager to get to disc 2 where the fun begins.

Disc 2 covers pre and post workout self massage sequences. Another brief introduction and we move into the pre-workout sequence. This runs for about 12 minutes and employs the drills outlined in disc one. Keats has three participants and corrects form as they go, very useful. After a couple of runs you would certainly feel comfortable using these drills and perhaps focusing on the areas that need some extra TLC.The post work-out section is of similar duration and follows a similar format. Again, after a few run throughs I'd feel confident to make these drills my own. Disc 2 concludes with a static stretching routine."

Rannoch concluded with the following statement:

"I should add, in the spirit of disclosure, I ordered this DVD direct from Coach Keats, paid in full and it was worth every penny! "

If you haven't picked up your copy of Recovery & Regneration you may do so off my site:

http://coachkeats.com/

The price for the 2 DVD's is only $39.95!

The Superfruit Juice Hype!

As a fitness-enhancement coach and massage therapist, I am often asked my opinion on various fad diets, nutritional products, and supplements. Since I also happen to be a skeptic, I kind of see my role as being a consumer advocate to help people navigate their way through the unregulated and confusing health & supplement industry.

One of the newer group of supplements that has become VERY popular in the last decade are the Superfruit juices made from exotic fruits such as Acai, Goji, Mangosteen and Noni. Many of the products containing these juices make claims that are almost unbelievable as no disease or condition isn't cured or at least improved by the daily consumption of these miraculous juice products! Since the price of these products is often very high, much higher than that of regular fruit and vegetables, it raised my skeptical eye quite a bit.

Many of these products are also sold only by "distributors" who have joined in the multi-level marketing scheme which has to raise a little more suspicion. Being a science-based practitioner, I wanted to see if there was any real evidence (not just miracle anecdotes) to back up the claims made by the distributors of these products. I was delighted to find a credible study done in Australia.

In 2007, CHOICE, the Australian version of Consumer Reports, tested 9 different superjuice products that covered all of the popular superfruits (goji, noni, acai, and mangosteen). They tested these products for what is called Total Antioxidant Capacity (TAC) and compared them to the TAC of a common store-bought Red Delicious Apple (TAC content=5900).

The Results

Not surprising to me, the Apple outperformed all of the chosen juices in TAC for only a fraction of the cost. To read the full article by CHOICE, go to the following link:

http://www.choice.com.au/viewArticleAsOnePage.aspx?id=105902

For those of you who are taking these type of products or know someone who does, reading the CHOICE study is a very eye-opening experience that may save you or someone you know hundres and maybe even thousands of dollars each year. Of course, for those who are heavily vested in the business side of these juices, it's probably not really about the juice since network marketing is more about making money than it is about the particular product being sold.

Also, for the interested reader, check out the following blog post made Steven Novella, a clinical neurologist, president of the New England Skeptical society, and creator of the Science-Based Medicine blog: http://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/?p=46

And another informative post that might be of interest is the written version of the podcast created by skeptic Brian Dunning of Skeptoid.com :

http://skeptoid.com/episode.php?id=4086&comments=all

The Bottom Line

While the products tested certainly contained some anti-oxidant capacity and other essential and non-essential nutrients, they were not even up to par with a common apple. The price of these prodcuts alone should raise some skepticism in consumers, espcially when they are attached to a Network Marketing sales strategy. Why not just try to eat more fruits and vegetable in general and put the rest of your money to some other cause or activity that interests you? To end with some practical advice, here's a sample day of how one might increase his/her fruit and veggie consmption to attain the 5-9 servings recommended:

Breakfast: add 1/2 cup mixed berries to Oatmeal or a Breakfast Smoothie.

Mid-morning snack: small apple with string cheese or handful of mixed raw nuts.

Lunch: 1-2 cups leafy greens (i.e. spinach) with protein of choice and other mixed veggies/legumes.

Mid-afternoon snack: 1/2 cup mixed berries in protein smoothie

Dinner: 1 cup green veggies (broccoli, green beans, etc..)

For more ideas of how to get in more servings of fruits and veggies check out:

http://www.fruitsandveggiesmatter.gov/index.html

NEW DVD NOW AVAILABLE!

Finally, after some unfortunate technical problems with my website, my new DVD is now available for purchase! It can be bought off my webiste: http://www.coachkeats.com/

for the low price of $39.95.

As mentioned in my last blog post, it is a 2 DVD set. The first DVD is an instructional DVD with lots of low-tech/high-result techniques explained in detail. The second DVD shows me take some guinea pigs (not the animals!) through a pre and post-workout example of a self-massage and stretching routine. This is a great resource for athletic and non-athletic people alike and can be succesfully used by health/rehab/fitness professionals and almost anyone from the general popluation!

New DVD Coming Soon!

After many years of ruminating about creating a DVD on self-massage techniques, I've finally finished it! The product will be called "Recovery and Regeneration, Self-Massage Techniques." The content includes many practical release techniques that can be done with "low-tech" devices/objects such as foam rollers, various massage balls (golf, tennis, etc..), and even massage sticks (including rolling pins). Some basic stretches that can be used in conjunction with self-massage techniques are also shown. There's a lot of good information and demonstration in this video production.

It is a two-DVD set that includes an instructional DVD and then a follow-along program DVD. The price will be $39.95 for the set. The total running time between the two DVD's is around one hour and forty minutes. The editing and production quality is very good and I'm happy with how it turned out.

It should be available to purchase in the next week or so; I'll send out a mass email to my newsletter list when it's ready!

Inspirational Clarence Bass Video

Check out the following YouTube video; it's a collection of pictures to music of the legendary master of healthy living and leanness, Clarence Bass:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNwgmFsFsOk

At over 70 years of age, he continues to defy father time and show how healthy, strong, and lean someone can remain into advanced age! I have been influenced by Clarence from way back in the late 80's when I first started reading Muscle & Fiction (I mean Fitness) where he had a column called "Ripped." His approach to fitness with a focus on eating whole foods and performing whole movements is very much in line to my own. Keep up the great work Clarence!

Review of Nutrition Seminar

On friday the 3rd of October, 2008, I attended a Nutrition seminar down in Tucson, Arizona called The Winning Edge 2008: Sepcial Topics in Sports Nutrition. It was affiliated with the University of Arizona and was a good (not great) seminar to attend. I did get some good tips out of the seminar however and will review the speakers and topics covered below in this post, and sbusequent posts.

Lecture #1: Nutrition Periodization and Exercise Performance
Bob Seebohar, MS, RD, CSSD, CSCS

This first lecture was by far the most interesting and dynamic of the day. Bob Seebohar is an excellent presenter and was quite entertaining in his delivery of his powerpoint presentation. His basic gig was to explain his simplified approach to Nutrition Periodization which can be summed up nicely by one if his initial slides:

SUPPORT the body's energy needs assoicated with the different training VOLUME and INTENSITY stressors throughout the training year to elicit positive physiological responses.

He also repeated gave the mantra : Eat to train, don't train to eat." Pretty good advice in my opinion. In Bob's experience, the biggest mistakes are made by athletes during the transitional and off-season when athletes often fail to reduce both their total caloric intake and/or alter their macronutrient ratios to meet the demands of their trainig. The end result, in Bob's opinion, are athletes with higher bodyfat percanteges and decreased ability to burn stored fat as fuel. In essence, he stated that athletes are often too reliant on dietary and supplementary carbohydrates which blocks efficient fat oxidation and increases the onset and severity of fatigue during training. This was interesting to hear as Bob primarily works with elite (inclduing Olympic level) endurance athletes which have notroisouly been known for their impressive carbo-eating capabilities.

Bob then went on to give examples of how to create a meal for any seaon of the year using a plate/pie-chart ratio formula. In essence, the more active and intense the trainig, the greater the caloric content can be and the higher level of carbohydrate consumption; kind of common sense huh? So just as you wouldn't do the exact same training program day in a day out, nor should anyone's food remain exactly indentical all year round. Again, this makes intuitive sense.

All in all, this was a very infromative lecture but not groudnbreaking by any mean.