fat loss – Page 2

10 Foods Staples to Throw Out From Your Kitchen NOW!! – Part 4

Every household needs pantry staples; they are essential for easy meals and an on-the-go lifestyle! But there are some staples that are not worth their convenience. Here is our final installment of our #pantryoverhaul! If you missed our first three installments check them out here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 .

9. Microwave POPCORN

Microwave popcorn is one of the worst snacks to be keeping in your pantry. The chemicals used in the artificial butter flavoring – diacetyl- has been linked to sever respiratory disease or ‘popcorn lung’. Diacetyl is thought to be harmless when consumed, but when heated to high temperatures, diacetyl vaporizes and becomes toxic. While ‘popcorn’ lung is usually only seen in those who work in packaging factories do you really want to be consuming and inhaling this chemical in any amount?!

Maybe even more concerning are the chemicals sprayed on the inside of your microwavable bag. perfluoroalkyls, perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorooctane sulfonate are all used to prevent the grease and oil from soaking through the bag, when heated these chemicals fuse onto the popcorn. These chemicals have been found to interrupt the endocrine system, causes thyroid issues, and may be linked bladder cancer.

If all that wasn’t enough to turn you away from this toxic snack a typical bag can contain upwards of 25 grams of fat, 500+ mg of sodium and 600 calories!

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Whole Kernel Popping Corn

Do not fret popcorn lovers! Popcorn can be a relatively healthy snack as long you prepare it the right way. Air-popping is the best way to ensure that you are getting the most out of your popcorn, avoid all the toxic additives, and you can add your own flavours! A small amount of melted coconut oil, fresh dill and a little bit of salt is my favourite!

BONUS! What staple to throw out of your fridge…

10. MARGARINE

The main ingredient in margarine is usually a vegetable oil. The problem with vegetable oils is that they are liquids at room temperature so they must go thorough hydrogenation in order to harden the oils. To do this the oil is subjected to high heat, high pressure, hydrogen gas and a metal catalyst (typically nickel) this forces the oils to become saturated with the hydrogen and in-turn firming it up. However, the final product is a lumpy grey mess that needs to be processed even further. Emulsifiers are added to remove the lumps, bleach is added to move the grey colour, the mixture is then steamed in order to remove the chemical smell, and finally synthetic vitamins, artificial flavour and colouring is added.

The process of hydrogenation also produces trans-fat, which raise bad cholesterol levels, decrease insulin responses, and are associated with heart disease.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Organic Grass-fed Butter

Butter has had a bad-rep for many years because it contains large amounts of saturated fats and cholesterol. However, recent research has shown that saturated fats actually can help improve lipid (Cholesterol) profiles. Eating small amounts of saturated fats actually raises your good cholesterol (HDL) and helps reduce harmful LDL cholesterol levels.

The health effects and nutrient levels of our food depend largely on what the animal ate. Cows who eat grass produce much more nutritious by-products which contain more vitamin K, Omega-3’s and other heart healthy vitamins.

Thanks for tuning into this blog series! Be sure to share with a friend and help spread the #pantryoverhaul

If you have any questions about this blog series or any of our other series contact Courtney (cplewes@sstcanada.com) at SST Mississauga

10 Food Staples To Throw Out NOW!! – Part 3

Welcome back to our pantry overhaul series! If you have missed the first 6 pantry items to trash check out Part 1 & Part 2 of this series.

Quick and easy meals and snacks are great and almost essential for our sanity and schedules. Sometimes, however, seemingly healthy options can be our worst enemies. Our next two items can be very tricky…

7. CANNED SOUP

Soup can be a great healthy quick option for meals, however, a lot of canned soup should be re-labelled as canned liquid sodium! Some varieties can contain upwards of 800mg of sodium per cup. That is over 1/3 of your daily recommended intake in one cup of soup!!

Many canned soups are also packaged with plastic linings that often contain BPA’s, are flavoured using MSG, and all those veggies in there are left pretty much nutrition-less after the high heat and pressurization from the packaging process.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Sodium-free Chicken or Vegetable Stock

Soup is one of the easiest and quickest meals you can make! Keep a few boxes of low-sodium broth in the pantry and throw whatever you have lying around in the fridge into a pot – corn, potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, onion, garlic, celery, green beans. Blend it to make a creamy soup or don’t to have a clear broth soup. Add chicken, meat balls, or shrimp. Add your own salt, hot sauce, or fresh herbs. The possibilities are endless, delicious, and nutritious!

8. GRANOLA BARS

Bars can be a great on-the-go or emergency snack but be cautious! While the word granola may make you think of whole grains, whole nuts, fruit all wrapped up in a convenient bar most granola bars have suffered the same fate as trail mix. Many are made more like candy bars containing sugar, molasses, high fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils, marshmallows, chocolate, artificial flavours, any many chemicals that cannot be pronounced. Some Bar can contain upwards of 30+ grams of sugar in a single bar; spiking your blood sugar and actually making you hungrier in the long run (check out this post to see how).

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Bars made with whole foods, short ingredient lists and high in fiber

While any type of bar may not be the healthiest option (always try to eat your food as close to its natural state as possible) their convenience cannot be matched and there are some options that are healthier. Make sure to look at the nutrition label, your bar should contain at least 5 grams of fiber. This will help moderate your blood sugar levels and keep you full. Look at the ingredient list, it should be short, all ingredients recognizable – Oats, whole nuts, fruit – and sugar, or any derivative of it, should be as far down the list as possible.

Thanks for tuning in this week! Check back next week when we look at pantry items 9 & 10. One of which is probably the MOST toxic food item almost every household has and needs to throw out now!!

If you have any questions or comments about this post make sure to ask in our comments section or email SST Mississauga’s Lead Strength Coach, Courtney ( cplewes@sstcanada.com ).

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10 Foods Staples to Throw Out NOW!! – Part 2

nutnHere we are with our second installment of food staples that you need to rid your pantry of ASAP!

And of course what to replace them with!

Click the link in case you happened to miss Part 1

3. WHITE OR “MULTI-GRAIN” BREAD

White bread, and even deceivingly, multi-grain breads contain zero whole grains, are made with enriched white flours, and little to no fiber. Meaning these breads will spike your blood sugar levels and leave you feeling unsatisfied and hungry again soon after eating.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – 100% Whole Grain Wheat Bread

Look for breads with ‘whole grain’ as the first ingredient on the ingredient list. The first ingredient on any nutrition label means it is proportionately the most used ingredient in that particular product. Whole grains are not only great for keeping you satiated but can also help protect against many diet-related chronic diseases; such as diabetes.

4. GENERIC PEANUT BUTTER

While peanut butter on toast or fruit may seem like a smart snack choice, generic peanut butter is full of sugar, trans fats and little useful nutrients. Generic peanut butters (such as Kraft, Jif or Skippy) are usually highly processed using a technique called hydrogenation. Hydrogenation is the process of adding hydrogen atoms to the molecular structure of fat in a product in order to make it more spreadable, creamier, and shelf-stable. This process actually lowers levels of good cholesterol (HDL) in the body and increases levels of bad cholesterol (LDL). Hydrogenated oils should be avoided as much as possible.nutrition fat loss,

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Natural Nut Butter
Now a days there are SO many nut butters to choose from! Almond, cashew, walnut, the choices are endless. When choosing a nut butter to keep your pantry stocked, read the ingredient list, there should be 3 or fewer ingredients and the first one should always be nuts.

5. TRAIL MIX

Trail Mix is another tricky snack dressed up and disguised as a healthy one. Pre-made trail mixes now contain chunks of chocolate, M&M’s, and dried fruit. Making this, could be healthy, staple more like a bag of candy.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Homemade trail mix

The best trial mix is the one you mix yourself! You can customize them to your own preferences and goals. Cut out the unwanted sugar and look to add ingredients such as 90% dark chocolate, almonds, and walnuts. Be sure to store them in air-tight containers to keep your mixture fresh!

6. WHITE PASTA

White pasta has the same problems as white rice or white bread, it has been stripped of all its useful nutrients, is highly processed, and is a simple carbohydrate. It will spike your blood sugar levels as well as leave you feeling hungry again soon after your meal.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Garbanzo bean, Quinoa, Black Bean or Veggies Based Pasta

The one upside to the ridiculous gluten-free craze that hit the supermarket shelves was the introduction of vegetable based pastas! These ‘pastas’ contain more fiber, protein, and vitamins and minerals. These options are going to keep your blood sugar levels steadier and keep you feeling full long after your meal. Granted they do not taste as bland or neutral as regular pasta but once you try these options you will not want to go back to tasteless pastas ever again!

Have you tried any of new food staples?!? Let us know how these new staples are fairing in your kitchen down in the comment section.

Check back next week for Part 3!

If you have any questions or comments make sure to ask in our comments section or email SST Mississauga’s Lead Strength Coach, Courtney ( cplewes@sstcanada.com ).

10 Foods Staples to Throw Out NOW!! – Part 1

With busy schedules of work, school, kids, training, housework – the list can go on and on – pantry staples can be a great time saver in preparing your meals, avoiding the drive-thru and keeping your nutrition on track. However, there are many everyday staples in your pantry that are doing more harm than good and need to be thrown out immediately!

Having healthy, nutrient dense pantry staples on hand will help keep you full longer, aid in lean muscle growth, increase your energy and help the waist line shrink!

Read on to find out what time saving staple need to be kicked to the curb and what you can replace them with!

1. READY-TO-EAT BREAKFAST CEREAL

These are the first thing that need to hit the trash bin!! This staple is quick, easy, LOADED with sugar and not much else. It is easy to be fooled by labels boasting about ‘added vitamins’, and pictures of whole almonds, oats, grains, mountain scenery… But even those cereals marketed as ‘healthy’ are usually loaded with sugar and refined carbohydrates and they lack sufficient fiber, protein, and healthy fats to help keep you energized and full for the start of your day. Because of this you are more likely to have a crash in blood sugar levels mid-morning causing more sugar cravings and having you reaching for snacks that contain more sugar and doing so earlier in the day then you should be.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Oatmeal

Were not talking to Quacker packets loaded with sugar. Stock your pantry with plain oats (steel cut are even better) that can be made on the stove top. They only take a couple minutes to prepare and you can customize them with all your favourites – almonds, cashew butter, fruits, seeds, flax-seed, organic honey, dark chocolate shavings – the possibilities are endless and delicious!

2. WHITE RICE

White rice is about as void of nutrients as a product can get. The heavy processing the rice goes through strips rice of almost all vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants. Along with that white rice is a refined carbohydrate meaning it is digested and absorbed by the body quickly, causing spikes in blood sugar levels which in turn forces your body to process the sugar quickly and leads to fat conversion and storage.

What to Keep On-hand Instead? – Red, Black or Wild Rice
These whole grain rice options may cost an extra buck or two but they are worth the splurge! Whole grain rices have vitamins, minerals, fiber, and are digested at a much slower rates. Allowing your body to properly process the carbohydrates and using them as fuel instead of converting them for fat storage. These options will also keep your blood sugar levels more stable leading to less cravings and the extra fiber will help keep you feeling full longer.

If you liked this post make sure to check back in a few days for Part 2!

If you have any questions or comments about this post make sure to ask in our comments section or email SST Mississauga’s Lead Strength Coach, Courtney ( cplewes@sstcanada.com ).

Body Types and Fat Loss Part 3

In Body Types PART 2 we discussed the importance of interval training.

To review there are 4 body types we use SST use to identify fat storage:

· The apple

· The pear

· The banana

· SST Skinny Fat guy

The Apple

Walk down Bay Street or Wall Street and you will run in to many apple types, or what I call it the businessman’s disease. These people are typically overworked, overstressed people who and are probably insulin resistant as well. Their body composition will have upper back fat, love handles, and an excess amount of abdominal fat. Do you know anyone like this?

At SST we have found that up to 60% of people fit the businessman’s disease profile and cannot handle the excess insulin they produce. Upper back fat and love handles are indicators that an individual is insulin resistant. Insulin is the only hormone that you can control 100% of the time. If a client cheats I ask them if that donut was forced down their throat.

Let’s take a quick look at how excess insulin plays a role in the body. After eating a carbohydrate rich meal (donut for breakfast), blood sugar levels increase rapidly. In response, the body releases insulin, which acts by facilitating the movement of sugar into the muscle or fat for storage. Apple types are insulin resistant meaning that their cells are not responsive to high amounts of insulin. Thus, when an apple type of person consumes a food high on the glycemic index fat storage is increased.

What can be done to control insulin?

Well, let’s look at that professional football player I mentioned earlier. When tested, he was an apple. In fact he was a large Granny Smith! What did we recommend for him? He eliminated all refined carbs, increased his protein to 1.5 grams per pound of body weight and consumed 25 grams of fish oil each day. (Must be wild pacific salmon oil and not the cheap Costco brand.) He maintained this protocol for eight weeks with built in cheat days where he could eat pizza, ice cream, cookies and anything else his mouth could find. What person wouldn’t love being able to have a pizza once in a while and still make such excellent changes in his body composition?

Stubborn abdominal fat is linked to high amounts of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is an energy hormone, which should be elevated when an individual wakes up and should decrease throughout the day. Unfortunately Apple types have a difficult time in a viscous cycle of yo-yo cortisol levels. Excess stress such as job, family, financial issues all contribute to an increase in cortisol. But, what I have found to be the main contributing factor to excess cortisol is what people put in their mouths on a daily basis. Yes, refined carbohydrates and any food that leads to an insulin spike will increase cortisol levels, which then leads to that stubborn abdominal fat.

We tell all of our ladies that everyone has abs; it’s just that some people have fat covering them! Increased cortisol not only leads to abdominal fat but also is linked to a decrease of up to 50% in free testosterone! The hormone testosterone is anabolic (meaning growth) while cortisol is catabolic (breaks down muscle tissue). Do you now know why I frown upon rhythmical cardio – it causes a break down of muscle tissue and decreases testosterone! Heck, we work too hard in the gym to let this to occur.

The problem with the stress hormones is that they follow the same path as testosterone. In fact when someone is too stressed the hormone pregnenolone is being stolen to produce cortisol and lowers the levels of testosterone.

WHAT TO DO?

When an Apple type comes to us for help we put them on a Paleolithic type nutritional system. Humans have been around for 2.5 million years and our DNA is 99% the same as our prehistoric ancestors. These hunters and gatherers consumed foods that were fresh and natural not processed or canned. They consumed organic types of meat, vegetables, nuts, seeds and some fruit. Only after the agricultural revolution did we start to eat foods such as cookies, chips and Coke. By consuming highly processed foods we are causing increased levels of insulin and robbing our raw resources to make more cortisol, which has led to our society being fatter than ever. Right now obesity is at epidemic proportions and is one of the most serious medical issues of our time.

Remember this: When you go grocery shopping, stick to the outside aisles and only go down another aisle to get your toilet paper.

All SST clients start on a similar type of protocol for 14 days. They consume large amounts of fish oil, a high quality multi vitamin, 1.5 grams of protein per pound of body weight and follow a strength training program to increase their cross sectional muscle fibers. What should be expected? We’ve seen menopausal women lose 3% body fat and 5-10lbs in only 2 weeks by following this protocol!

Next article, I will discuss the Pear and Banana body types and the appropriate protocol for these types. After that, I’ll tell you about the Skinny Fat Guy.

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Body Types and Fat Loss Part 2

In part one, we discussed how to increase GH and testosterone levels. Today we discuss the benefits of interval training.

SST athletes follow an interval-training program geared according to their sport needs, but the happy by-product is also a large amount of fat loss.

Please don’t forget to check out our 21 DAY FAT LOSS CHALLENGE

Some quick notes on anaerobic training:

A person burns more calories than with aerobic training.
Metabolism remains elevated post anaerobic-workout unlike after a long cardio-based workout. This means that your metabolism is increased, dependent upon the intensity of your workout for up to 24 hours. Therefore, you are burning more calories even in your sleep!
I compare anaerobic training (non-rthymical) to the stock market. You put your money in and watch it grow! If you perform your intervals your metabolism will be elevated for the day. Whereas cardio is somewhat like working 24/7. Sure you’ll make some gains at the beginning but those gains will soon peter out.
Interval training will burn 75 more calories post-workout for the next 5 hours, and, don’t forget about the number of calories burned while performing these intervals. This equals at least 1 lb of fat lost in 10 weeks ONLY from the additional caloric expenditure at REST!! Yes, lose body fat while resting! How cool is that!

On the SST interval program each individual is given their personal dietary guidelines and a supplement protocol suited to their particular needs. I will go into more detail regarding each body type.

What did we learn at the conclusion of this 8-week Fit and Lean course? We proved that if people are provided muscle-building workouts and individualized nutrition protocols that are updated on an ongoing, as needed, basis the results are boundless. The 24 workouts these ladies performed were unique and were changed every day. We don’t repeat the same workout day after day. This challenges the body and keeps it interesting and fun. Doesn’t this sounds a of lot better than riding a bike watching TV day in and day out while actually increasing ratio of body fat to muscle due to the breakdown of muscle tissue.

At SST we have tested and trained thousands of athletes and many weekend warriors. Our research led us to define 4 different body types. Body types were determined by the individual’s body fat make up. Part of the Biosignature protocol is to measure 12 skin-fold sites with calipers. Each site is directly related to a hormone in the body. I will get into more detail regarding hormones in an upcoming article.

The four body types are:

The apple
The pear
The banana
SST Skinny Fat Guy

In part 3 we will discuss THE APPLE!

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Body Types and Fat Loss–Part I

Body Types and Fat Loss Part 1

Wow! What a response we received as a result of our last article, “Fat Loss without Kardio”. We heard from a few naysayers who insisted that it is impossible to lose significant amounts of body fat without doing lots of cardio work. But, most people were relieved to know that weight loss doesn’t have to include long, boring sessions on the treadmill or stair-climber. Many people told us that they actually hate to do that kind of cardio work, and, that the results they are striving for are, to say the least, not evident.

For the people who have not read Fat Loss without Kardio please visit the link “Fat loss without Kardio” to get caught up. Just a quick note regarding this article: I stated that rhythmical cardio leads to an increase in the hormone cortisol, which research now links to an increase in abdominal fat. Remember, I am a strength coach who gets paid to train athletes to be faster and stronger, so rhythmical cardio would be detrimental to my athletes. For example, one of the professional football players who started at SST weighing 267 lbs and 21% body fat managed in only 8 WEEKS to weigh in at 276 lbs and had 11.3% body fat! Guess what, he did not do any KARDIO – just a proper strength training program and his my blueprint nutrition protocol.

I know what some of you are saying, “Yeah, that’s great for an athlete but what about the regular folks who want to lose 10 or 20 pounds?”

Well, ask the Fit and Lean women who participated in an 8-week class that consisted of a strength-training program with their Biosignature results in hand. Most of them lost 10 to 20lbs and some even lost 25 lbs of body fat! Now what woman wouldn’t want those results? Oh, did I neglect to state that they did NO KARDIO!

The best way to lose body fat is to increase growth hormone and testosterone. The method we like to use at SST is strength training with short rest period in between.

Just some quick notes on building muscle:

· Every additional pound of muscle burns roughly 50 calories extra per day.

· If one extra pound of muscle burns 50 calories a day X 365 days a year that adds up to 18,250 extra calories burnt per year, which would result in the loss of 5 pounds of body fat! And that’s just for one additional pound of muscle.

· Imagine if you gained 5 lbs of lean muscle in one year!! You could burn off 25 lbs of fat in one year!

· This does not take into account the huge caloric expenditure required to put on this muscle.

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Men over 30? This program was created specifically for you!

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