Diet Update

I intend to do a more detailed diet update in the future following on from my post a while ago where I highlighted my experience with a Leangains Intermittent Fasting approach.

The obliques are coming in!

For now, just a couple of photos.  I have lost maybe a couple of pounds since the last photos, putting me at about 154lb.

You can see my obliques coming in now.

I have some loose skin on my lower abs which I hope will go as I get leaner.

I am no longer fasting.  I east 3-4 times a day, breakfast, lunch and dinner plus a snack.

I walk a lot and train in the gym once a week.

Diet sorts out definition.  Calories are important.  Control those and you will control your weight.  Diet composition? - follow the bodybuilders: set calories, get enough protein and fill in the rest as you wish

...and my arms are still there....

Habit

I've been following a writer / trainer for a little while who has a blog called Go Kaleo.  I like her approach a lot.

She put this on Facebook which is worth repeating

The secret to weight loss and improved health and fitness isn't paleo/low carb/plant based/low fat/crossfit/yoga/pilates/raw/isagenix/shakeology/protein/etc.
The secret to weight loss and improved health and fitness is:
Good habits, practiced consistently, over time.
Sorry it's so boring.

That fits with a lot of what I am thinking about at the moment - so many are searching fo the magic secret knowledge that will solve all of their training  diet and health problems.  We disciple ourselves to guru after guru  as we look for that secret - low carb, paleo, vegan, cardio, zumba etc etc etc.  But the basics, the sensible basics remain.  We blame our fatness or unhealthiness on gluten or casein or carbs or fat or something.  But we ignore sleep, relaxation, walking, real food and friendship.

People do not like the basics of sensible food intake and exercise.

How do knees work?

From Scientific American

Getting stronger makes cyclists more efficient....

Cyclists' improvement of pedaling efficacy and performance after heavy strength training.

AbstractThe authors tested whether heavy strength training, including hip-flexion exercise, would reduce the extent of the phase in the crank revolution where negative or retarding crank torque occurs. Negative torque normally occurs in the upstroke phase when the leg is lifted by flexing the hip. Eighteen well-trained cyclists either performed 12 wk of heavy strength training in addition to their usual endurance training (E+S; n = 10) or merely continued their usual endurance training during the intervention period (E; n = 8). The strength training consisted of 4 lower body exercises (3 × 4-10 repetition maximum) performed twice a week. E+S enhanced cycling performance by 7%, which was more than in E (P = .02). Performance was determined as average power output in a 5-min all-out trial performed subsequent to 185 min of submaximal cycling. The performance enhancement, which has been reported previously, was here shown to be accompanied by improved pedaling efficacy during the all-out cycling. Thus, E+S shortened the phase where negative crank torque occurs by ~16°, corresponding to ~14%, which was more than in E (P = .002). In conclusion, adding heavy strength training to usual endurance training in well-trained cyclists improves pedaling efficacy during 5-min all-out cycling performed after 185 min of cycling.

Does massage help through an effect on stem cells?

Maybe....

Stem cells, angiogenesis and muscle healing: a potential role in massage therapies?

Abstract

Skeletal muscle injuries are among the most common and frequently disabling injuries sustained by athletes.Repair of injured skeletal muscle is an area that continues to present a challenge for sports medicine clinicians and researchers due, in part, to complete muscle recovery being compromised by development of fibrosis leading to loss of function and susceptibility to re-injury.Injured skeletal muscle goes through a series of coordinated and interrelated phases of healing including degeneration, inflammation, regeneration and fibrosis. Muscle regeneration initiated shortly after injury can be limited by fibrosis which affects the degree of recovery and predisposes the muscle to reinjury. It has been demonstrated in animal studies that antifibrotic agents that inactivate transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 have been effective at decreasing scar tissue formation. Several studies have also shown that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) can increase the efficiency of skeletal muscle repair by increasing angiogenesis and, at the same time, reducing the accumulation of fibrosis. We have isolated and thoroughly characterised a population of skeletal muscle-derived stem cells (MDSCs) that enhance repair of damaged skeletal muscle fibres by directly differentiating into myofibres and secreting paracrine factors that promote tissue repair. Indeed, we have found that MDSCs transplanted into skeletal and cardiac muscles have been successful at repair probably because of their ability to secrete VEGF that works in a paracrine fashion. The application of these techniques to the study of sport-related muscle injuries awaits investigation. Other useful strategies to enhance skeletal muscle repair through increased vascularisation may include gene therapy, exercise, neuromuscular electrical stimulation and, potentially, massage therapy. Based on recent studies showing an accelerated recovery of muscle function from intense eccentric exercise through massage-based therapies, we believe that this treatment modality offers a practical and non-invasive form of therapy for skeletal muscle injuries. However, the biological mechanism(s) behind the beneficial effect of massage are still unclear and require further investigation using animal models and potentially randomised, human clinical studies.

Common running injuries

This is a clever little infographic.

Click away

Too much aerobic bashing?

A couple of days ago I posted a video of James O'Keefe talking about the potential dangers of running too much.   His research and presentation has got a fair bit of coverage - e.g. in the Wall Street Journal.

His position and presentation are quite compelling, but perhaps are not the whole story.

Alex Hutchinson points out some of the concerns about the research :

The Too-Much-Running Myth Rises Again

The Sock Doc also has just written a post closely examining O'Keefe's argument and the way in which it has been popularised.  Definitely worth reading:

Enough of the Aerobic and Endurance Bashing Fostered by “New Research” and Personal Agendas

Remember: Always health first, fitness second. So train smart and train hard when you can and you’re ready to do so. Training hard is good for you, but do not do such extreme training too often. I love training hard, but I am intentional about it and only when my health is optimal and my movement is efficient

I think possibly we are all on the same side here, just misunderstanding each other a bit.