Welcome to FunctionalTrainer.co.za

For the past two years, I have been having short periods where I can’t sleep. I have gone to bed earlier, have made sure I eliminated coffee after 1 pm and have even, on the rare occasion used medication, only to spend the next day struggling to concentrate and feeling exhausted.

This got me very interested in exactly why we need to sleep, how does in-sufficient sleep affect your body and how can you help if you are suffering from bouts of insomnia?

It is obvious that sufficient sleep promotes mental and physical functioning. Think of sleep as the period where your body gets to sort through the massive amounts of information that it takes in daily, either sensory or as knowledge. This needs to be sorted and processed. This is what happens when you sleep. Physically sleep is the state where most of your repair and recovery happens. It is interesting to note that most muscle growth actually happens while you are asleep. The hormones responsible for your cellular repair peek during these periods of rest. There is also a massive boost to your immune system activity while you sleep.

Logically then a lack of sleep has great influence on your body and psychology and is related to increase in heart attacks, type 2 diabetes, strokes and immune system functioning, as well as depretion, anxiety and loss of cognitive function.

How much do you need?
Research indicates the 8 hours a night is optimal for mental functioning, although people who slept 6-7 hours actually seemed to live longer than those who slept for 8 hours plus.

It is interesting that the need for sufficient sleep does not decrease with age, although the patterns for interrupted sleep are higher in older individuals.

What causes sleep interruption?
o Lifestyle changes
o Decreased melatonin production
o Decreased exposure to natural light
o Dietary changes
o Increase mental stimulation just prior to bedtime
o Disease and medication
o Stress
o Frequent waking to go to the bathroom
o Menopause

Help yourself sleep better:
o Make sure that the room where you sleep is comfortable in temperature, without load noise or excessive light interference.
o Stake away from computers or television just prior to sleep time.
o Avoid certain medication that will stimulate your brain ire caffeine, nicotine, diet pills etc
o Practice short naps of 20 mins during your day will help you to fall asleep easier
o Use supplementation like Magnesium, Melatonin, Valerian or Chamomile to induce restful sleep. Stay away from chemical pharmaceuticals that force you to sleep. They interfere with the natural sleep cycle and are often habit forming.

Personally, these few recommendations have helped me to improve my sleep patterns and have a better quality of rest. I understand that for most people there will be certain periods of sleeplessness; however, it is in your power to try to improve the conditions under which you get rest.

Kind regards

Jason

Woman are often faced with the question of how much energy they should be burning off with exercise to induce weight loss.
There are obviously body type and genetic differences between individuals, but having said this there are some fundamental principles that one can apply to start the process and shed some weight.

When it comes to weight loss, one of the most basic principles of weight loss is energy in versus energy out. To lose weight one needs to create a negative energy balance through a caloric deficit. This is created in two ways; by reducing food intake, and by expending more energy through physical activity.

Another thing to consider when reducing nutritional amounts is the quality of the food you are eating. You should not just aim to slash calories per se, but should also aim to consume those foods that are nutrient dense and more beneficial to your body’s physiological processes. After all, we are pursuing optimal immune function, health and longevity and not just a slim physique.
It is interesting to note that I have met many a model who survives on very low calories, but makes poor choices in food selection, and although they appear to have slim physiques, they are weak and susceptible to illness. That however does not account for all of them.

Sounds easy enough, but how much and how often are the two most common considerations for the energy deficit equation to work?
Typically a weight loss of no more than 2lb (about 900g) per week is often a healthy goal for the following reasons:
1. Smaller amounts of weight loss help to preserve lean body weight
2. The lower amounts of weight loss may result in better long term adherence and a better ability of the person to maintain the weight lost as the person has made lifestyle changes, rather than long-term unrealistic changes that cannot be maintained
3. Slower weight loss typically means less water loss and, thus, that a “false weight loss” has not occurred, as does typically happen on crash diets.

Did you know? Your body stores three molecules of water with one molecule of a stored form of energy known as Glycogen, which a complex chain of glucose. When you lower or eliminate carbohydrates, you first start to deplete these stores and therefore lose water along with it. This gives one the false impression that you have lost a lot of weight in a short space of time.
It is important to know that long term(12-16weeks) of carbohydrate depletion will cause Glycogen levels to drop low enough for the body to start looking elsewhere for energy, and one of the sources would typically be fatty acids from the fat cells, if your caloric intake is at the right amount.

To lose 1lb(454g) of body fat per week, a person should be in a 500kcal deficit per day, because 1lb of body fat stores 3500kcal. Not everyone can lose this amount per week, but it is an average guideline, as individual variation does occur. A person can achieve this deficit by exercising enough to burn 250kcal and decrease intake by 250kcal daily. This energy expenditure is over and above your resting metabolic rate or normal daily energy expenditure rate, needed just to maintain your current daily physiological processes and general movement.

It will take the average female about 35-45min of moderate aerobic intensity on a daily basis to burn off 250kcal-300kcal in a session, and about 20-35min of intense vigorous intensity to burn the same amount of energy. Couple this with some resistance training to stimulate lean muscle tissue, and you have a winning formula. Some people cannot train every day and so need to account for this by upping the intensity or duration of exercise on the days they do train, so that the overall weekly energy expenditure is on target. Don’t, however think that you can cram what is meant to be done on 3-5 weekly session into 2 sessions and expect great results. Your body does not work like that.

The differences between gender and weight loss:
Men often typically respond quicker and make progress faster on weight loss programs primarily due to gender specific endocrine differences. Men have more lean muscle tissue, which is the most metabolically active tissue in the body, due to higher levels of Testosterone produced by the Testes. As a result of this it often has a knock on effect on the thyroid producing more heat in the body due to a faster increase in lean muscle tissue when stimulated through resistance training.
Woman do produce smaller amounts of testosterone through the adrenal glands, but in much smaller amounts than men. This is not to say that woman cannot achieve great results, but in my experience woman do tend to lose fat mass at a slower rate. This is also why woman generally have a smoother appearance to their muscles and higher subcutaneous body fat %. This is most visible on a lean woman’s triceps and abdominal area, in comparison to lean men, who appear much leaner and harder in this area.

Summary:
Proper Weight loss takes time. People do not gain excess weight in a short period of time: therefore , they need to remember that weight loss will not take a short period of time. A small deficit in food intake of about 250kcal-350kcal, coupled with an increase in energy expenditure of about 250-300kcal per day, can lead to a weight loss of about 1lb per week.

Yours in Health & Wellness,
Jonathan Mannheim.

Welcome to the new look Functionaltrainer.co.za. For those of you who have been with me the last two years you will have been through quite an educational road trip. This site is dedicated to helping you to understand the philosophy and benefits of Functional Training.

I decided to adjust the look of the site because I know a new feel will keep things fresh. This meant new photos, thanks Anthony Friend, and many tireless hours work by my I.T. legend Steve Pieterse. The results are something much softer with many new features.

Along the left column I have added a video feature. All you do is press play and you will be able to watch clips of extraordinary strength training and routines. In the near future, I will use this to teach you my ab routines.

At the top, you have a sliding carousel where you can scroll through some of the Kettlebell movements I like to use. It will be systematic and each month you will have a new movement to practice. We are still loading these sequences, so I put some pics from the 2009 shoot.

Many of my clients have asked me to keep the ‘gallery’ option for the site so I have one for 2008 and the one from 2009. Each year I will do a new shoot, this year I hope to get Jonathan to join in, he is sometimes in better physical condition than I am!

Another new feature is ‘Downloadable Programs’. Here you can download programs that actually work. This is a system I have collected over the years. In addition, there will be advanced programs for those who already have the basics covered. Those of you who get information from me by remote contact will find these programs familiar. What I intend to do is teach you how to use the system to improve your performance overall. There will be separate ones for men and women.

What I do intend to keep is the articles I write about training, diet and health related topics. I will however try to keep these short. (I know you do not always have the time to read all the information.)

I really hope you enjoy the new changes, I know I enjoyed working with my team to deliver it to you.

Kind regards

Jason

As I discussed in the last article, you want to use the information you have about fat storage and fat metabolism to stimulate your system to burn up excess energy. You are probably carrying a few kilos after the break.

A quick recap?

You know that fat is stored in 2 pathways:
o The Alpha pathway stores body fat as triglycerides
o The Beta pathway stimulates the breakdown or storage of fat in the bloodstream

Males tend to have more beta-receptors, whilst females tend to have more alpha-receptors. This means you store fat in different ways.

The situation is not as easy and simple as I am trying to write about, but basically you need to limit the storage system, by controlling the sugar intake and limiting your insulin response; and secondly you need to stimulate the use of body fat, both cellular and blood borne.

Last time we dealt with some training variations that will help you to increase the fat burning capability of your muscular system, today we will deal with dietary adjustments.

Through extensive research, not done by me, studies indicate that the fat metabolic system is stimulate more by a ketogenic type diet, this means high protein, high fat and low carb intake. Now a lot has been said about high protein diet, and not all of it is untrue.

Personally, this is the way I eat for life. Remember, high protein does not mean NO CARBS. What you need to do is limit the intake of simple sugars into your system; this decreases your insulin response and thereby prevents you from storing body fat.

Excess carbohydrate intake is public enemy number one when it comes to fat. (To read more about insulin go to my post “Fruit sugar and Body Fat loss” )

The top culprits in our modern diet are:
1. Alcohol
2. Sugar i.e. coffee,sweets,chocolates,
3. Fruit
4. White Flour i.e. Bread Dough
5. Pasta
6. Potatoes
7. Additives like maltodextrin, milk solids

By cutting these foods, you reduce your calorie consumption dramatically. It must be noted however that you still need to get energy from somewhere… this leads us to vegetables and fat intake. Complex carbohydrates release their energy slowly and allow your body a sustainable source of energy, the same is true for unsaturated fats, which are found in certain nuts, oils, avocado and oily fish. It is much more desirable to consume these foods that simple, processed sugars.

The simple formula for fat loss is to use more energy than you consume.

The dietary adjustments will help reduce calorie intake and exercise will increase energy output. The use of supplementation to boost the body’s metabolic rate is another way you can burn calories. Since the discovery of the harmful side effects of ephedrine and clenbuterol as fat burners, many people turn to “natural” products to boost fat burning potential. The best product that I have used is Yohimbine HCL. It has few side effects and is relatively safe if taken in controlled doses. Once again, I need to warn you that NO SUPPLEMENT is a quick fix. If you are not prepared to eat properly and exercise regularly, you are wasting your time taking pills and powders.

Just another warning about following the High Protein type eating style: If you do not re-introduce carbohydrates slowly into your system after completing any diet you will rebound, which is an experience most people know about. You cannot just go back to eating what you want. Your body cannot process simple carb’s after being denied them, it will just store all of it and you will be back to square one.

I know that it is difficult to glean information from the loads and loads of things out there. The best advice is to follow an eating plan consistently over a period. Do not try to achieve things dramatically; you set yourself up for failure. Try to form a habit of eating properly and the effects will be forever. A Healthy, Lean body takes time.

Kind regards

Jason

 

Firstly, I would like to welcome you all back to the site. I hope you have all made a real effort to enjoy your break. If you are like me, and had the best of intentions to control my eating and minimize my festive alcohol consumption, but who did not exactly achieve that goal, you will be wondering ‘Where to next’.

 

Referring to my previous post on periodization and modalities of training it is plain to see that, with the extra kilo’s you are sitting with, weight training is not the proper solution to this problem. Initially you want to concentrate on activating your muscle groups and increase your base level fitness.

 

It is a mistake to think you can just begin training where you left off last year. Remember that we worked up to a peak and you have been resting. Starting at a high intensity is going to lead to injury. So be careful how you begin.

 

The systems you want to focus on most in these next few months are

• Cardiovascular fitness
• Flexibility
• Joint strength
• Stability

 

To stimulate your ‘fitness’ system I recommend using pyramid systems for your endurance workouts.

 

Using a stationary bike try doing this pyramid:

Increase the intensity each minute until you reach a high point at 5 minutes, then decreasing the intensity to begin again. This is a forward pyramid.

For example 2,3,4,5,6,3,4,5,6,7,4,5,6,7,8,5,6,7,8,9. This is a 20-minute workout.

 

For the treadmill, I use a complete pyramid:

Start with one-minute walk at 6 km/h, and then run at 10 km/h for 1 minute. One-minute walk, two mins run etc.

For example w1,r1,w1,r2,w1,r3,w1,r4,w1,r5,w1,r5,w1,r4,w1,r3,w1r2,w1,r1. Where ‘w’ is walk and ‘r’ is run. This is a 40-minute run.

 

For Joint Strength and stability, I use a circuit system for training. Either you may use the super circuit in your gym or you can do a simple circuit I use when I train at work (I do not have the super circuit at my gym).

 

Do 10- 15 reps per movement with no rest between exercises. I suggest using two 4kg dumbbells for women and 10 kg’s for men. Remember the point is to get fitter and stimulate joint stability not to lift heavy.

 

First, warm up with a 7-minute run.

 

Front Squat

Stiff leg Deadlift

Stationary lunges

Push-ups on D/b

Bent over rows

Squat/curl/press combo

Step ups onto a box

 

Repeat this circuit 2 -3 times.

 

Finish with a 7-minute run. Try to maintain the pace of your first run.

 

To complete my training I Stretch for10 minutes. This is important because the muscle need to cool down and need to be stretched when they are warm. Give yourself some time to relax the begin stretching. DO NOT skip this part. Neglecting your flexibility is the biggest cause for pain and injury.

 

I try to keep the training relatively simple for the first few weeks before I even consider increasing any intensity. I use a 4-day training week. 2 days circuit two days pyramid cardio, with a rest day between the two.

 

I hope this can get you going. Do not put off starting your year. The sooner you begin the better your results will be. I am going to be updating the sites tomorrow so do not be alarmed by the changes or if the site is down for a while.

 

As always

 

Kind regards

 

Jason Hough

I would firstly like to thank all of you who have been using this site for information in the last year. When I started this free service I intended to use it as a platform to educate my clients about the scientific side to training… It has become so much more. The base has increased over the past year and we now have subscribers in over 25 countries around the world.

 

This year has brought all of us some complex and challenging opportunities to improve the way we think and use physical exercise to improve our quality of life. It has been a major goal of mine to teach people that there exists a way of training out there that is inclusive of the general population. That exercise and movement should be accessible to all, regardless of experience or age. This I have accomplished and will continue to push in further articles.

 

I have been privileged to have been writing for several magazines throughout the year and am happy to see that my philosophy and attitude is reaching people in the health and medical field out there. Exiting times lie ahead.

 

As for training, I have been helping clients to achieve massive growth this year in terms of speed, power, agility, lean mass, weight loss, endurance and flexibility, not to mention dieting, where most of us seem to slide the most. You name it we have done it! Congratulations to all those of you who have achieved your goals this year. It has been a long drive, and we have exceeded most of our expectations.

 

I have just completed the photos for next years upgrade to the website and we will have some new features, along with the quality of articles that you have grown used to. Also I look forward to completing the book I have been working on…finally I can say I am happy with the product, after writing and rewriting and changing it constantly.

 

I hope I can be of service to all of you in the future and hope you enjoy your holidays… I know I will be eager to resume the training year in early January as we start with compound circuit training to destroy the ‘holiday happiness’.

 

As always

 

Kind regards

 

Jason Hough

Hi all.

The purpose of this article is to look briefly at some of the underlying factors of people struggle to lose stubborn body fat in those seemingly impenetrable fat storage compartments.

The short and disappointingly hard to hear answer is that you cannot spot reduce fat by targeting a specific body part by attempting to train it everyday with high volume sets and repetitions and burn off fat in that area. Ever heard some idiot in the gym mouthing off about how he likes to train abs everyday as it gets the abs leaner and more ripped. Sorry but your body doesn’t work quite like that on a Physiological level.

Basics:

Men tend to store fat in their upper body and trunk, whilst women store it mainly in their lower abdomen, hips, thighs & buttocks. These typical Male & Female body fat storage patterns tend to start showing up during adolescence, when girls and boys hit puberty. This change in adolescence comes about with the onset of different hormones that start to be produced by ones body, mainly being Testosterone in boys and Estrogen and Progesterone in girls. Thus giving us our first clue that fat storage and mobilization has everything to do with what is going on in the background with your hormones.

Hormones control their distribution in the body. Not rocket science now is it? Individual genetics however do play a role in a person’s specific make up when it comes to factors such as metabolic rates , bone structures and how much of each hormone will be produced in the body. There are general trends of fat storage though.

When fat cells are formed:

Fat cells are made most rapidly at specific times in a human’s development. The last 3months as a fetus until approximately 18months of age, between the ages of four and seven, and during early adolescence. After that fat cells only increase or decrease in size depending on whether you gain or lose weight.

However, if you become significantly overweight, you can develop new fat cells because there is a limit as to how much your fat cells can enlarge. This phenomenon is known in scientific circles as Hyperplasia. Another “danger” period for women to watch out for is during the last three months of pregnancy when studies have shown that new fat cells can be made during this period if the mother gains excessive weight. Research indicates that a person with more fat cells will have a harder time losing weight than a person with fewer fat cells. This highlights the importance of preventing childhood onset obesity, since childhood is the time that most fat cells are created.

Differing receptors in fat cells:

Now that you know that hormones have a big influencing factor on fat loss and mobilization it’s time to go a bit deeper into the physiology of fat cells. Scientists have discovered through research that fat cells have different receptors or triggers that respond in different ways. They have identified two kinds of receptors:

1) Alpha receptors, which cause or promote the storage of triglycerides (fat);

2) Beta-receptors, which cause the release or breakdown of fats into the blood stream.

Wouldn’t you know it?
The fat cells in the hips, thighs and buttocks have more fat retaining or Alpha receptors while the fat cells in the abdomen tend to have more Beta, or fat releasing receptors. Scientists have also found that hormones influence these receptors. Male hormones tend to trigger the Beta or fat releasing receptors, while female hormones tend to stimulate Alpha, or fat retaining receptors. This explains largely why hip and thigh fat is so stubborn to remove in females and, why men tend to lose body fat at a more rapid rate than females. Women have a higher body fat requirement because of the demand of childbearing and subsequent breastfeeding. So comparing yourselves to your husbands, ladies, is unrealistic, although some women are exceptions.

 Now you have a quite basic understanding of how fat works… the next article will focus on how you can use this information to help reduce fat storage.

Yours in Health & Wellness,

Jonathan Mannheim.

Compartment syndrome is an acute medical problem following injury, surgery or in most cases repetitive and extensive muscle use, in which increased pressure (usually caused by inflammation) within a confined space (fascial compartment) in the body impairs blood supply. It can be a result of overuse and over-developing the muscle through training.  This condition is most commonly seen in the anterior compartment (shin) and posterior compartment (calves) of the leg.  It is commonly misdiagnosed by laymen as “shin splints”. Compartment syndrome can be very painful, and if left untreated, can lead to a very serious medical condition where the muscle tissue dies – due to lack of oxygen and nutrients.

Symptoms of Compartment syndrome

• Pain is often reported early and almost universally. The description is usually of severe, deep, constant, and hard to locate. The pain is aggravated by stretching the muscle group within the compartment and is not relieved by pain-relief medication. The pain increases during exercise which eventually makes running impossible. Pain goes after a short rest but comes back again during exercise.

• Paresthesia (alterated sensation e.g. “pins & needles”) in the cutaneous nerves of the affected compartment is another typical sign.

• Paralysis of the limb is usually a late finding. The compartment may feel very tense and firm as well (pressure). In some cases, some find that their feet and even legs fall asleep. This is because compartment syndrome prevents adequate blood flow to the rest of the leg.

• Tense and swollen shiny skin
• Difficulty in lifting the toes and foot up.
• Pain when pulling the toes and foot downwards.

Treatment: Acute compartment syndrome is a medical emergency requiring immediate surgical treatment known as a fasciotomy to allow the pressure to return to normal.

Subacute compartment syndrome, while not quite as much of an emergency, usually requires urgent surgical treatment similar to acute compartment syndrome.

Chronic compartment syndrome in the lower leg can be treated conservatively or surgically.

What can the athlete do?

Rest, but try to exercise your upper body or cycle if it is not painful. Apply ice and compression for 20 minutes at a time. Rest until there is no pain. Apply sports massage techniques to increase the elasticity of the muscle sheath.

Apply heat and use a heat retainer.  See a sports injury professional who can advise on rehabilitation.

What can a sports injury specialist, biokineticist or doctor do?

Prescribe diuretics and anti-inflammatory medication e.g. ibuprofen. Correct any biomechanical dysfunction with orthotic devices, or by correcting gait patterns and muscle imbalances. Analyse your training methods, running gait and types of shoe to determine any contributory factors. Use sports massage techniques to stretch the muscle sheath. Operate. They could make a small cut or two in the muscle sheath to allow the muscle to expand out.

                       

 

Article contributed by Angela Paterson – biokineticist and sports massage therapist at the Renaissance Body Science Institute

 In this article I will focus on the theories of how you age. This knowledge will help you to make the shift in thinking about how you lead your life. I had lots of comments from the last post about hormone therapy, and solutions to aging problems. I must stress that no amount of pills or medicine can help to the extent that using your bodies natural processes can. Hormone therapies are for specific people and supplements can assist in healing, but there is no substitute for healthy, moderate lifestyle, moderate exercise and sufficient sleep!

This article will help you to understand the thinking behind the approach to Anti-Aging medicine. As you have learnt in the last article we can see that there are many factors contributing to a person’s perceived physiological age. These factors affect individuals in different ways through their life courses. It is important to understand this point because the theories of aging are based on certain assumptions:

Age is DEVELOPMENTAL… This means that people age differently as they reach maturity. This is because they may be exposed to various experiences of sickness and lifestyle than others.

Normal aging and PATHOLOGICAL aging is different…Related to the first… aging may be brought on by the onset of disease, for example diabetes may cause heart disease. This is not normal aging, although nowadays disease is accepted as part of life.

Aging may be slowed by TECHNOLOGY…advances in science and medicine may be able to prevent disease through vaccination, anti-biotics etc which can prolong life in certain instances.

This leads me to discuss the four top theories that I found valid.
There are more, obviously, but they are beyond the scope of what I want to achieve with this article.

‘Wear and Tear’
As you live, your body, organs and cells work hard. As with any complex machinery, this use leads to natural breakdown in structure and normal functioning. Even if you don’t drink, smoke or expose your body to the sun often, normal ‘wear and tear’ occurs.

Obviously bad lifestyle choices force organs like the kidneys, liver, stomach and skin to work at levels far beyond what is normal for them. This causes excessive damage and premature aging.

Good news is that this theory suggests that by helping these organs to function at optimal levels you will be able to cope more easily with the damage of normal life and therefore slow down the aging process.

Neuroendocrine
When we are young, our brains regulate the release of hormones into our systems to control our bodily functions. Different organs release different hormones to control sexual functioning, heart rate, even responses to hot or cold! The thing is hormones never work alone. They are always part of a team.

 As you age your body produces lower levels of hormones, thereby effecting your functioning… causing a decrease in the bodies ability to repair and regulate itself. Decreases in hormone levels result in decreases in all the subsidiary processes involved with those hormones as well!

This theory suggests that by regulating the primary hormones you can stimulate the body to fix itself and return your body to youthful levels.

Genetic Control
We all know that our DNA carries a map for our bodies to follow as to cell life and reproduction. This theory says that we are mainly genetically predetermined as to physical and mental functioning.

This is the theory of the ‘Biological Clock’. When the clock goes it signals the body to begin to age. This is very subjective because as you know each of us has different DNA to the next person. Our ‘Genetic inheritance’ is completely unique.

The treatment from this thinking is that if we can repair the DNA within our cells, we can prevent damage and slow down the clock.

Free Radicals
As has been discussed previously, ‘Free radicals’ are molecules in your body which are electrically unbalanced. This occurs through natural chemical processes in your body, for example the production of energy for muscle contraction.

The free radical molecule attaches itself to other molecules in an attempt to nullify the imbalance. This action destroys normal molecules and cell membranes, which in turn produce even more toxins.

Free Radical action can be compared to rust Oxidation that occurs to metal as it degrades over time. This theory helps us to understand that by consuming sufficient ‘Anti-Oxidants’ you will counter the effect of the free radicals that your body produces naturally and thereby slow down the aging process.

Wow that’s quite a load of heavy reading. I do feel that is it important though you to be aware of the different ways you age. This site is not just a gym site. As my clients know… Nothing exists in isolation. A failure to address a problem in one area of your health will minimize your potential in other aspects.

Next time we will go into something a little lighter. Hope you enjoyed it.

Kind regards

Jason

 It has been the drive behind this site to educate you, our readers as to lifestyle changes and modifications that will benefit you in living a healthy sustainable life. Often this has required a paradigm shift from what you have been taught as a youth with regards to what is actually healthy for you. This means that you have to look a little deeper, search a little harder, to find your way through the smoke and mirrors of Marketing to discover who actually has your best interests at heart.

 

This has got me thinking. One of the biggest traps is supplementation, specifically Anti Aging medication that companies use to promote Immortality. I have decided to include a new category on this site dedicated to giving you the best information about anti aging strategies. As is typical of this site I do not endorse ANY brand of supplements. What I plan to do is to educate you to decide for yourself whether or not you use the products.

 

For the first article I will go through the paradigm shift and thinking processes that are behind ‘Anti Aging’. I found it fascinating doing the research. I don’t expect the same passion from you, just read and understand. I will make it simpler than graphs and charts and statistics!

 

Here goes….

 

When you consider that most people nowadays have a life expectancy of around 80 years, it begins to dawn on you that the last period of your life could have two possible scenarios.  The first is one where you go to the grave quietly, with dignity and self respect. The other is not so rosy. Today more than 75% of all the money the world spends on healthcare is spent during the last two years of people’s lives. This is frightening to think that lifestyle related disease can be so expensive, especially because it can be prevented.

 

So how does Anti Aging fit in?

 

Firstly, remember that the term ‘Anti-Aging’ actually refers to longevity, and how you can improve the quality of your lifespan, not only the duration. There are three main pathways to helping you to improve your quality of life. These being Nutrition, Exercise and Hormone control (It is hormones that control most of the processes in your body. It is their slow decrease with age the causes your body to lose its optimal functioning.)

 

Anti-Aging medicine deals with early detection, prevention and treatment of Aging related disease and conditions. This has truly been a revolution in medical science, which previously only focuses on treating disease after the fact, not on prevention of disease.

 

It is interesting to note that Age and Aging are subjective. A persons chronological age and their physiological age can be very different. I know personally of a  60+ year old client of mine who has more energy, more vitality than most of the other people train.

 

 

Curiously enough this guy doesn’t smoke, exercises regularly, eats healthily and keeps his mind active by constantly challenging his boundaries.  Everything he does screams positivity!

 

 Conversely I have seen other people 40 + who smoke 2 packs a day, eat mostly processed foods, abuse alcohol and have bitter dispositions. Not to mention not being able to run for more than 5 minutes without having a coughing fit. Quality of life is the point here!

 

The goal for all of us is to reach that 80 years feeling 55! Having vitality and energy to give to those around us, not to be a burden on those we love.

 

More specifically we want:

1. A properly functioning  IMMUNE SYSTEM
2. Improved MEMORY and COGNITIVE function
3. A physical change in musculature and reduced Body FAT.
4. Enhanced SEXUAL functioning
5. Increased rate of WOUND HEALING
6. Increase AEROBIC ABILITY

 

Now that we have the goals, what can you do to improve your chances of reaching them. Follow some of these simple suggestions to improve your quality of life NOW!

 

• Avoid depression and stress
• Do at least 30 minutes of exercise a day. It is the number 1 defense against growing old.
• Keep clear of processed foods and saturated fats. These cause heart disease and cancer
• Get at least 8 hours sleep. Sleep is where you repair your body. No sleep, no repair!
• Limit your intake of alcohol. Alcohol is poison to your body. Just because we dilute it to consume it doesn’t mean it is not poisonous anymore.
• Do not smoke. Cigarettes kill!
• Maintain a reasonable body weight. Even having too much muscle places strain on your heart system!
• Consume sufficient anti-oxidants to help prevent aging.
• Water, Water, Water! At least 8 glasses a day.  Being hydrated allows you to flush toxins from your body and helps transport nutrients to where they are needed.
• Make sure you are tested for disease, especially if you are over 45. Early detection is the biggest cure for diseases like cancer and heart disease.
• Think young and keep busy. Also surround yourself with people who are young minded. This will buffer the effects of depression and stress.

 

Now I realize that we have been conditioned into a certain mindset of work and money equals happiness… I am here to tell you that you have been lied to! Look around you. How many people do you know you have worked themselves to the bone, have the health they always wanted, the family life they always dreamed of… you know where I am going with this.   You have a choice to make about the quality of life you want to have. 

 

The next article I write will relate to some of the theories of how we age… don’t worry I have done the heavy reading already, I will simplify the information. Also I will include the direct effect aging has on your system. This will help you to understand why certain supplements work and which systems they affect.

 

I welcome any questions or comments you have…

 

Kind regards