The Hungry Games: Controlling Hunger

The thing about hunger is most of us aren't hungry because we need food.  We have trained our bodies, with the help of Monsanto to Mcdonalds, to crave and desire food. As Americans we have fast, cheap and out of control access to every kind of food imaginable.  Willpower to just say 'no' is not enough. Understanding hunger and doing some self experimentation is the key to controlling it.

Hunger- \ˈhəŋ-gər\ (noun):

a. A strong desire or need for food.

b. The discomfort, weakness, or pain caused by a prolonged lack of food.

For many years I ate 5 to 6 small meals per day, grazing.  I trained my appetite to signal me to eat every 3 hours or so.  If I didn't eat, I would get cranky as my blood sugar dropped.  Eating 3 meals and having 2 to 3 snacks per day was the dogma I followed and many nutritionist still proscribe for health and weight loss.  "It will stoke your metabolism", I thought.  However, science is anything but clear on this.  In fact, I believe it made me hungrier.  So now I am practicing a form of intermittent fasting (IF) and I have never felt better.  In the beginning of my IF personal experiments I felt hunger for the first time in my life.  It hurt, it made me uncomfortable, it forced me to day dream about food so much so I almost quit until I redefined hunger and let my body acclimate to the new eating pattern. I persisted and now reap the benefits of embracing and redefining hunger:

1. Weight loss (mostly fat loss)
2. Increased focus and memory retention
3. Increased energy levels
4. More control over my food cravings and appetite
5. More time to do other things during the day (other than preparing and cooking food)
6. Resting my digestive system
7. More stable blood sugars and improved insulin sensitivity
8. Recognition of what satiety really is and not overeating

I discovered that nothing terrible will happen if I don't eat for a full day let alone a few hours.  As I practice a daily fast, 16 hours a day of fasting, the feeling of hunger will ebb and flow.  Perhaps the most stunning result of fasting on a regular basis is the laser like focus one attains while not eating.  This may be an evolutionary response harking back to times when we hunted to survive.  The hunters that lived to pass on their genes were adept at finding food even when they were on the verge of starving.  The NYTimes stated in regards to hunger and brain power, "...some biologists believe that human intelligence itself evolved because it made early hominids more effective hunters, gathers and foragers." Scientists have correlated periodic fasting to the increased production of brain-derived nerve growth factor (BDNF):  a protein that acts as a “fertilizer” to the synapses, protects brain cells, and in certain areas of the brain, regenerates brain cells.

The feeling of hunger is triggered by over 100 physiological, psychological and environmental factors.  Here are a few of the major ones:

• Ghrelin - a hormone produced in the stomach that stimulates hunger - think stomach Gremlin
• Leptin resistance (seen in the obese) - a hormone released by your fat cells which tells your body you are sated.  Except in cases of resistance where your brain can't see the leptin and increases its fat stores as a result by upping your hunger levels.   
• Insulin - a hormone when elevated (by eating carbs and sugar) will depress blood sugar and increase appetite - it is sometimes given to undernourished people in order to increase their appetite!
• Smells of food - I avoid walking by some restaurants because their cooked food smells so darn good.  I'm glad I can't smell ice cream.  
• Looking at food - specifically looking at fattening foods will elicit responses in our brain that will increase cravings.
• Meal timing habits - your body will get use to eating at certain times and rev your hunger hormones prior to your regular meal times.
• Stress - releases cortisol which seems to increase hunger yet in the long term stress may actually decrease hunger.  A chronically stressed person is not primed to digest well.  

I recommend most people try to fast for one whole day from breakfast to breakfast in order to become acquainted with the signals of true hunger while simultaneously conquering their fear of going without food.  Nothing bad will happen and your body will likely burn some stored fat for energy.  We don't need to eat every 3 hours or snack.  Your metabolic rate won't slow down, you will survive and probably lose weight in the process.  If you decide to participate in a intermittent fasting regimen it will take some getting use to (about 2-3 weeks).  Your body craves homeostasis and will soon fall in line with your new eating habits. Its easy to redefine hunger and once you do, it'll give you more control of how you eat, feel and live.

Sources:
1. JAMA: Insulin and Hunger
2. Looking at food increases appetite
3. Robert Sapolsky, “Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers”, Henry Hold & Company; 1994.
4. Brain Wansink, "Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think", Bantam: 2006.
5. NYTimes: Empty Stomach Intelligence 
6. Autophagy: Fasting and Brain Health  

Juicing is Not so Healthy

Sadly we have migrated away from eating whole foods in their natural state.  Are we lazy or is it something else because this is the healthiest way to pack in nutrients and sate your appetite.  Science hasn't improved on mother nature. Sorry GMO's. Why have so many of us resorted to blending or juicing our fruits and vegetables? I suspect its because its easier and faster to drink 2 apples, 1 lemon and bushel of kale than to actually go through the tedious mastication process.  Besides who has the time to steam kale, chew up 2 apples and slice and squeeze a lemon when you can pulverize them in seconds and slurp them down?  We are a fast food nation. Science shows that blending or juicing fruits and veggies will rob them of one the most precious and healthiest nutrients, fiber, and even worse may potentially spike your glucose levels leaving you more hungry and insulin resistant.  Diabetes here I come!

Lots of people do juice fasts in order to lose weight quick.  It works, albeit temporarily. Like most very low calorie diets, this produces results in the short term but it is not advisable or easy to sustain for the long haul. People drinking liquid food tend to gain more weight than whole food eaters because the quicker a food is consumed the more calories one tends to take in. It is true, nutrients in liquid food are absorbed more readily but so is the sugar.  Not a good thing. This results in blood sugars rising faster and higher than the body can control.  After the initial spike in blood sugar (mostly made from fructose- arguably the worst kind of sugar) and lack of fiber intake you will be hungry again.  Plus people who are juicing on a regular basis rarely get in their 25-50 grams of recommended fiber per day.  They have unhappy colons. 

Here is one study that compared the calorie intake of a meal following the consumption of nothing, a whole apple, apple juice with fiber added, and regular apple juice.  Here are the results:

Though the apple, applesauce and apple juice with fiber all had the same amount of fiber, there was a clear (and significant difference) in the effect of these 3 forms of apple on satiety and caloric intake.

• The whole apple decreased calorie intake by 15% in the meal that followed
• The apple sauce decreased caloric intake by 6% in the meal that followed
• The apple juice with fiber decreased calorie intake by  1% in the meal that followed.
• The plain apple juice actually increased total caloric intake by 3%.

You've come a long way baby?! Or not.

In regards to blending your fruits and veggies Dr. Robert Lustig in his book "The Bitter Truth About Sugar" has this to say:

"The problem is that the shearing action of the blender blades completely destroys the insoluble fiber of the fruit. The cellulose is torn to smithereens. Whiles the soluble fiber is still there, and can help move food through the intestine faster, it now does not have the "latticework" of the insoluble fiber to help form that intestinal barrier.The sugar in the fruit will be absorbed just as fast as if the juice were strained with no fiber at all. You need both types of fiber to derive the beneficial effects."

Unfortunately I cannot find any scientific research to back up what Dr. Lustig states but I can personally attest to feeling less full and sated after I drink a smoothie or juice as compared to eating the same amount of raw fruit and vegetables.  Do juices or smoothies fill you up?

The Harvard School Of Public Health warns individuals not to have more than 4oz of juice per day.  I understand that many people simply like juice and are not prepared to give it up. So here are a few things you can do to ameliorate some of the negative effects:

1. Add fiber and/or fat to your juice to slow down the absorption rate - olive oil, apple pectin, psyllium etc.
2. Use mostly vegetables - they have less sugar 
3. Use organic foods - no GMO's and no extra chemicals (unless you like that kind of thing)
4. Use spices that have anti-inflammatory properties - cinnamon, ginger, turmeric
5. Watch your portion size and check the calories and total sugar content
6. Invest in a good blender and make your own low sugar high fiber smoothies

Water is the healthiest thing you can drink and hydrates you a lot faster than any other liquid. H20 should make up the majority of the liquids you consume; a smattering of unsweetened coffee/tea and perhaps a glass of wine or two may also be beneficial.  Many of the other beverages are made up of empty calories, high sugar levels and little fiber. Perhaps, instead of reaching for a juice eat some fruit or veggies and drink a glass of water, it'll be healthier and your colon will be happier.

Yeah, if you want diabetes! 

Sources:
1. American Journal Of Clinical Nutrition: Fiber & Juice

2. 
JAMA: Sugar sweetened Beverages & Weight Gain 

3. American Journal of Public Health: Juice and Childhood Obesity

4. Robert Lustig, "Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity and Disease", Hudson St. Press, 2013.

5. Harvard School of Public Health: beverages

GMO Frankenfoods, Yum!

Since the 1990's most likely you have unknowingly been eating GMO's everyday and so have your kids. Genetically modified organisms (GMO) are a part of a huge uncontrolled science experiment pushed on the American public by Monsanto and other argri-farms.  We really don't know if they are safe, but just like the helpless lab rat we are mandatorily subjected to this frankenfood on a regular basis.  Many in the health and fitness field think we should limit our exposure to these foods.  So what exactly are GMO's?

"A genetically modified organism (GMO) or genetically engineered organism (GEO) is an organism whose genetic material has been altered using genetic engineering techniques. These techniques, generally known as recombinant DNA technology, use DNA molecules from different sources, which are combined into one molecule to create a new set of genes. This DNA is then transferred into an organism, giving it modified or novel genes. Transgenic organisms, a subset of GMOs, are organisms which have inserted DNA that originated in a different species."

Today, 45 percent of U.S. corn and 85 percent of U.S. soybeans are genetically engineered, and it’s estimated that 70 to 75 percent of processed foods on grocery store shelves contain genetically engineered ingredients.

GMO's are NOT the result of cross-breeding.  Scientists take a gene from a completely different species and insert it into a new one. An example of this is extracting a gene from a Arctic Char fish that is resistant to freezing and inserting into a vegetable so it can withstand cold temperatures.  The end result is a tomato with fish DNA. Yummy! Other examples are:

• Glow in the dark cats (cross bred with glow in the dark fish genes)
• Cabbage that produces scorpion poison to kill pests
• BT toxin inserted into yellow squash to kills insects.

Currently US companies list GMO ingredients on their food labels only if they want to. Self regulation at its best! So how do you avoid GMO's? Eat 100% USDA Organic food; eat only 100% grass fed organic beef; seek products that are specifically labeled as non-GM or GMO-free; grow your own food; stay away from high fructose corn syrup; and make sure to avoid all non-organic soy, corn and milk products.

Despite biotech industry promises, very few if any of the GMO traits currently on the market offer increased yield, drought tolerance, enhanced nutrition, or any other consumer benefit.  Furthermore, one of the other major problems with GMO's is that we do not know the long term effect they have on our health. Here is a great infographic with more:

Source: GMOs: The Walking Dead of the Food Industry

30 Strange Fitness Facts & Myths Debunked

1. Cholesterol is not a good indicator of future hearth disease.  A large waist size (over 40 inches for men and 35 for women) is a much better indicator of future cardiovascular disease risk then cholesterol levels.  
2. Pound for pound your tongue is the strongest muscle in your body and your glutes (butt muscles) are the strongest in absolute terms.  
3. There are 10 bacteria cells in your body for every 1 human cell you have.  Meaning you are more bacteria then human! Furthermore, most of this bacteria in and on your body is not yet classified by science.  Click here for more. 
4. "It takes on average 17 muscles to smile and 43 to frown" is not rooted in science and is untrue. Actually, it takes about the same amount of muscles to frown as it does to smile.   
5. Every day an adult body produces 300 billion new cells. To make those cells your body uses the food you take in...you are what you eat so think about what you put into your body.  
6. Most of us are about a half inch taller in the morning.  Click here for why. 
7. Your body uses almost half of its 650 muscles to balance you out while standing still. 
8. Lean muscles do all their growing on your rest days.  Without proper recovery times in between workouts (about 48 hours) you will negate your efforts and possibly lose ground by over-training.  Fix your sleep. This is the most vital part of your rest, your body is at very high recovery when you are having good sleep.
9. Most of our human cells (not all) will be completely replaced every 10 years.  Different tissues in the body replace cells at different rates, and some tissues never replace cells.  
10. The "cracking" or "popping" sound you hear (crepitus) when moving your appendages is gas being released....not bone rubbing on bone. 
11. Muscle fibers are thinner than human hair yet each can support 1000x its own weight. 
12. During the first 2 months as an embryo we start to develop a tail and by the 9th week it disappears, leaving the coccyx (the last segment of the backbone).
13. No other mammal has as such a large a proportion of fat around the buttocks as humans...no one seems to know why this is true, although theories are abound. 
14. The penis contains no muscle tissue. 
15. An infant's foot has about 20x the toe grasping capacity as a shoe-wearing adult.  However, in shoeless societies adults retain this pre-hensile ability. Click here for more.  
16. Your liver and skeletal muscles store about 12-24 hours supply of glycogen (sugar)....but once they are filled up, any extra carbs eaten will be converted to fat for long term-storage.  Daily exercise prevents your muscles and liver from being filled up.  
17. Science is not sure why we yawn or sleep.  However, most humans will die after 11 days without sleep. 
18. Tight calves can give you headaches by tightening your fascia (tissue covering your muscles) which run in continous bands from your heels all the way up to the back of your skull.  
19. Static stretching before an exercise or event will "turn-off" the muscles you are stretching and make it less active during movement.  In fact, runners who stretch before running burn 5 percent fewer calories than runners who don't stretch.
20. Hanging in a pullup position does not stretch most of your muscles (it contracts them) but will temporarily make you up to 1/2 inch taller.   Click here for more.  
21. Exercise works just as good (and in some cases better) at alleviating depression as anti-depression medication. 
22. People who want to quit smoking are twice as likely to succeed in quitting if they lift weights than if they don't lift weights.
23. There is a common myth that we use only 10% of our brains yet fMRI's and PET scans show we use 100%! 
24. Exercise has been show to increase brain volume and  grows new brain cells. The latest neuroscience suggests exercise does more to bolster thinking than thinking does! 
25. Snot from sneezes do not travel 100mph...The science based TV show Myth Busters, clocked snot at a slow 35-39 mph. 
26. Swimming workouts tend to make people hungrier then similar intensity running or biking workouts. 
27. Eating eggs does not increase your cholesterol level and in fact may prolong your life.  Click here for more. 
28. Conventionally grown peaches have the highest pesticide load of any fruit or vegetable (according to Environmental Working Group). Buy organic foods to limit your exposure to agricultural chemicals. 
29. Science has never shown breakfast to be the most important meal of the day.  Click here for more.
30. Muscle soreness the day after your workout is not lactic acid build up and stretching will not alleviate the 'pain'. 

Lose Weight and Get Smarter Simultaneously!

"I can only meditate when I'm walking. When I stop, my mind ceases to think; my mind only works with my legs." -Jean-Jacques Rousseau 

The human brain thrives on exercise and deteriorates without it.  First and foremost the animal brain evolved for the purpose of driving movement (thinking came next - don't believe me? Watch this video).  Later along on the evolutionary ladder early man survived by doing most of his thinking while on the move or hunt. Humans are geared for sharpened cognition while moving.  In fact our body rewards regular sustained activity with better health and stronger brain power.  Want to perform optimally in a board meeting or on a test?  Exercise for 20 minutes prior to the exam and you will do better. Numerous studies have provided evidence that physical activity improves brain plasticity and facilitates learning.  Some research actually shows learning while exercising simultaneously improves memorization and overall cognition. "Rhythms in the brain that are associated with learning become stronger as the body moves faster", UCLA neurophysicists report.  So the next time you need to study for a test or put something to memory go for a run or bike ride. Load up your iphone (or Sony Walkman) with audio books or informational podcasts and review them while you sweat.

Dr. John Medina, a developmental molecular biologist who has my old job (not) as Professor of Bioengineering wrote two best selling books: "Brain Rules" & "Brain Rules for Baby":

Science has shown exercise improves the brain in these ways:

1. Increases oxygen to the brain
2. Reduces brain bound free-radicals 
3. Increases neurons’ creation, survival, and resistance to damage and stress
4. Improved neurotransmitter levels
5. Increased neurogenesis (the growth of new brain cells)
6. Decreases stress levels 

A report in the Journal of the American Medical Association, entitled "Effect of Physical Activity in Cognitive Function in Older Adults at Risk for Alzheimer's Disease," found that elderly individuals engaged in regular physical exercise for a 24-week period had an improvement of an astounding 1,800% on measures of memory, language ability, attention and other important cognitive functions compared to an age-matched group not involved in the exercise program!!!

As we all know or should know: Too much stress is a killer.  The good news is exercise improves stress levels and one's ability to deal with 'hard' situations.  Stress brings on the hormone cortisol which in large amounts impairs your ability to learn and retain information (it also promotes fat storage).  Even though exercise itself is a stress (albeit a good one) your body will become more resistant to it and increase its threshold for cortisol by consistently participating in an workout program.  Exercise ameliorates stress by:

• Daily exercise relaxes muscles: Being stressed causes the muscles in the body to become tense and stiff. Physical activity improves oxygen delivery to the muscles, removing tension and muscle soreness.
• Exercise produces feeling of happiness: Through the production of endorphins, exercise removes stress by creating a peaceful feeling of euphoria.
• Exercise reduces feelings of frustration: Performing physical activity forces the brain to concentrate on your body and its surroundings, giving the mind a break from focusing solely on frustrations.
• Exercise improves stress resiliency: People who exercise are more likely to have less of a stress reaction to adverse situations.

According to the American Heart Association, only 4% of elementary schools, 8% of middle schools, and 2% of high schools provide daily physical education programs or some equivalent.  Science has shown for a fact that physical activity potentiates learning so why do we devote so little time to it in our schools?  We also know as a fact that the human animal does not do well sitting for periods longer than three hours at a time (read about the dangers of sitting).  Add junk food, TV, an overabundance of prescription medications to our sedentary lifestyle and viola: over 60% of Americans are overweight and we rank 17th in the world in education.

Many great thinkers of human history did their best work while exercising or walking like Rousseau, Kant, Aristotle, Darwin and others.  Working out a problem while working out may achieve the perfect balance between body and mind.    

Sources:

1. Fitness Effects on the Brain of the Elderly
2. Medina, John. "Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Surviving and Thriving at Home, Work and School"; Pear Press 2008.  Buy Here
3. Nature: Exercise effects on the Brain and Cognition
4. TED talk: Brain and Movement 
5. TEDx Talk: Exercise and the Brain 

A group of Siemens engineers were going to open up an office in China, and were learning Mandarin. They got a 22% increase in the rate of vocabulary acquisition if, right after their students exercised, they sat them down in the class—as opposed to control groups who had no exercise, or had exercise but did their learning in the evening. - See more at: http://brainworldmagazine.com/three-brain-rules-you-need-to-know/#sthash.I6SMy15r.dpuf

A group of Siemens engineers were going to open up an office in China, and were learning Mandarin. They got a 22% increase in the rate of vocabulary acquisition if, right after their students exercised, they sat them down in the class—as opposed to control groups who had no exercise, or had exercise but did their learning in the evening. - See more at: http://brainworldmagazine.com/three-brain-rules-you-need-to-know/#sthash.SbmZoJO9.dpuf

“A group of Siemens engineers were going to open up an office in China, and were learning Mandarin. They got a 22% increase in the rate of vocabulary acquisition if, right after their students exercised, they sat them down in the class—as opposed to control groups who had no exercise, or had exercise but did their learning in the evening. - See more at: http://brainworldmagazine.com/three-brain-rules-you-need-to-know/#sthash.SbmZoJO9.dpuf

“A group of Siemens engineers were going to open up an office in China, and were learning Mandarin. They got a 22% increase in the rate of vocabulary acquisition if, right after their students exercised, they sat them down in the class—as opposed to control groups who had no exercise, or had exercise but did their learning in the evening. - See more at: http://brainworldmagazine.com/three-brain-rules-you-need-to-know/#sthash.SbmZoJO9.dpuf

Breakfast Makes Me Hungry

My mother always told me breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Is this another one of her cover-ups, like the Santa Claus fiasco?  Others before her have proclaimed "eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper." Supposedly a big meal in the morning will fire up your metabolism and slay your hunger for the remainder of the day (not completely true). The fact is science just doesn't know.  There is lots of conflicting data floating around out there. One thing is for certain, eating breakfast makes me hungrier.  Here's what science and history does know:

Breakfast Facts:

1. People have been eating breakfast for at least 2000 years...but not always upon rising. 
2. Breakfast has not ever been proven to increase basal metabolic rate.  It does not increase your metabolism!
3. Throughout history and even today many populations wait a couple hours before eating breakfast. 
4. Eating breakfast soon after rising will increase your insulin and blood sugar response more than other times during the day.
5. High fiber and protein breakfasts have been scientifically shown to decrease hunger throughout the day when compared to a protein neutral breakfasts.
6. In studies breakfast eaters on average are thinner than breakfast skippers - however this is correlation not causation research - breakfast eaters are usually shown to have healthier habits i.e. workout more often and less likely to drink and smoke.   
7. A new study in JAMA debunks regular breakfast eating as a preventative measure against  obesity. 
8. We need better randomized controlled studies researching the effects regular breakfast eating has on diet, weight gain/loss, appetite, and hormone levels to properly assess its benefits or lack there of. 

Most workdays I have a plain full fat yogurt topped with lots of seeds, nuts and berries for breakfast (high protein and fiber, low sugar with plenty of good fats). My nutrition books tell me this is the breakfast of champions and should easily sate my hunger pangs until lunch.  Nevertheless, I'm usually hungry 2 hours later.  On the weekends, I might have a bigger breakfast, especially if its brunch,  this will not only make me ravenous 3 to 4 hours later, it'll zap my energy.  Either there is a insatiably hungry mid morning monster in my stomach or eating upon rising is effecting my hunger/sating hormones.  In hopes it is not the former,  I have been experimenting with skipping breakfast and you know what?  I feel great and not hungry or tired.  So what's the deal?

"Consider a study published in Nutrition Journal in 2011. Researchers followed the eating habits of 100 normal-weight and 280 obese participants during a two-week period. They found that in both groups, the more calories they ate at breakfast, the more total calories they ate for the rest of the day. And when they ate a smaller breakfast, or none at all, their total calorie intake was less." - I know, I'm sure you can find a study that contradicts this one.  The breakfast research is convoluted. 

 This is real cereal!

We all know some breakfast foods will induce hunger more readily than others. A breakfast high in simple carbohydrates like a bowl of Kellogg's Milk Chocolate Krave (I can't believe Bloomberg hasn't gone after this sugar bomb clearly marketed toward kids) will spike your insulin and cause a hunger surge much quicker than a high protein/fiber meal like a spinach and mushroom omelet.  Unfortunately, for many people no matter what they eat in the morning it will "open" their appetite for the rest of the day.  But whatever you do, steer clear of this weaponized imitation food product called Krave and others like it.  If you eat this stuff the terrorists win...because you will die of diabetes and obesity related diseases.     

Did you know your cortisol levels peak first thing in the morning?  Upon rising when cortisol levels are highest they have a pronounced effect on feeding induced insulin secretion.  Thus as you eat during this period it leads to a rapid and large insulin response, and a corresponding drop in blood sugar...which makes you hungry again and more predisposed to store fat.  In people who are fit and insulin sensitive (diabetics are insulin resistant) this effect seems to be more pronounced.  The interesting thing is by not eating, your blood sugar and insulin remain pretty low and your morning cortisol has nothing to potentate.  Skipping breakfast and waiting a few hours to eat will naturally lower your cortisol levels thereby stripping its ability to spike your insulin and blood sugars. Moreover it will also increase your human growth hormone output which will advance fat burning and muscle building.  If you'd like a more in depth explanation please read the great article from Leangains.com:

 Detailed Scientific Explanation of Post Breakfast Hunger

It takes anywhere between six to eight hours for your body to use up its glycogen stores (sugar) and after that you begin to shift to burning fat. However if you are replenishing your glycogen by eating every eight hours (or more), you make it far more difficult for your body to actually use your fat stores as fuel.  Skipping breakfast will ensure you have a least an 8 hour fast and will likely speed up your fat burning potential.

Now I understand there are many people who do not get hungry after they eat breakfast.  If you are one of these people, good for you. For the rest of us, try pushing breakfast back 2 to 3 hours or skip it all together and see how that makes you feel.  Don't just do this willy nilly. Have a plan, and most importantly don't binge eat later!  Warning: it may take a couple weeks to get accustomed to skipping breakfast.  If you are anything like me (I unknowingly trained my hormones through decades of breakfast eating to instigate ravenous hunger upon waking), it'll be hard for a week or two. Coffee (sans the sugar) makes the transition easier.  Hunger pangs wane and wax but it gets easier and easier as you train your hunger hormones.  If you'd like to go whole hog and try intermittent fasting read my somewhat interesting post: Fast(ing) Weight Loss

Please don't get me wrong, breakfast has been eaten by populations for thousands of years and is not bad in itself (although Kellog's Krave is evil). Ancient Romans soldiers ate breakfasts of porridge before they practiced or went into battle.  Many early American farmers would work the fields and a few hours later come in for a light breakfast of tea and some form of cooked oats.  Guess what? The farmers and soldiers did not have desk jobs and they were not obese. American's sit a and move too little to justify and big breakfast to start the day. I think the importance placed on breakfast by media, doctors, and nutritionists is definitely overrated. If you are not hungry first thing in the morning or you're choosing to fast, skipping breakfast is not a big deal. We should focus more on food selection, food amount, and food timing compared to focusing on a single meal. 

Sources:

1. Nutrition Journal: The Impact Of Breakfast On Daily Energy Intake
_{2. McCrory MA, Campbell WW. " Effects of eating frequency, snacking, and breakfast skipping on energy regulation: symposium overview." Journal of Nutrition, January 14, 2011.}
3. American Dietetic Association. " Position of the American Dietetic Association: Weight Management." February 2009.
4. Paul M La Bounty, Bill I Campbell, et al. " International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: meal frequency." Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition March 16, 2011

Most Vitamins Are a Waste of Money

"Let food be thy medicine”- Hippocrates

More than half of U.S. adults blindly take vitamins daily.  Do you know what you are actually putting in your body?  Probably not.  Are you wasting your money?  Maybe.  Most consumers aren't aware that the supplement industry is not regulated by the USDA or any other governmental organization.  The government does not check supplements for content, safety or efficacy.  A study by the International Olympic Committee conducted in 2002 showed 18.8% of the 240 supplements purchased in the USA contained illegal steroids!  Other have been known to contain the same or similar active ingredients as prescription drugs, such as Viagra, Cialis, and even banned weight loss drugs like Meridia. The kicker is anyone, even your kids, can go into any vitamin store and unknowingly buy this stuff laced with illegal (unlisted) ingredients.  We really have no idea what's inside them.  In fact if your unsavory neighbor (or you) would like to start their own vitamin/supplement business out of their dirty kitchen, it is as easy as pie:

                                                                                From the movie "Bigger, Stronger, Faster"

Vitamin supplements are simply nutrients and minerals taken out of their native state and sold in an isolated condition.  Many of these nutrients have been discovered to be helpful for human health but when taken from it's natural state it can be harmful.  Micheal Pollen NY Times writer and author of "In Defense of Food" gives a great example this:

"Carrots are good for you, right? People have been eating them for a long time and the assumption was that what was good in cancer preventing in the carrot was the beta carotene. What makes it orange. So we extracted that and we made these supplement pills and we gave them to people and low and behold in certain populations like people who drink a lot would get sicker, were more likely to get cancer on beta carotene and the scientists kind of scratched their head. There is a couple of explanations. We don't know. But one may be that the beta carotene is not the key ingredient. You know there are 50 other carotenes in carrots. Food is incredibly complex. It's a wilderness, you know, we don't know what's going on deep in the soul of a carrot. And we shouldn't kid ourselves to think we can reduce it to these chemicals. It also may be some synergies between different thing. Beta carotene is also found in the company of chlorophyll, maybe it's that combination that contributes to health. The point is we don't, as eaters, need to know what makes carrots work. We can eat carrots, they taste good, they're good for you. It's that simple." 

Scientific evidence for vitamin supplement effectiveness is anything but solid.  Many people take vitamins as insurance.  This may be faulty thinking and may actually cause harm.   High doses of certain vitamins and minerals may actually cause disease not prevent it.  Many of the foods we eat are already fortified with vitamins and taking more can cause imbalances which may make you less healthy and more prone to disease.  Furthermore most vitamins and minerals found in food seem to be more bioavailable then their manufactured pill counterparts.  There are certain populations that require vitamins due to special needs like vegans, very low calorie dieters, pregnant or breastfeeding mothers, some people with digestive disorders and people suffering from particular diseases. The rest of us are better off getting our vitamins from the foods we eat.  

However, there are a few supplements that have stood under the microscope of time and science and through unbiased peer reviewed research proven themselves to be safe and effective.  Here is a list of vitamin supplements that have been shown in large randomized placebo controlled human trials to produce tangible benefits:

1. Folic Acid - prevents some birth defects
2. Fish Oils/Omega-3's - help prevent heart disease
3. Melatonin - helps insomnia
4. Niacin - helps prevent heart disease   
5. Vitamin D - decreases mortality in adults (the long term research on this one is lacking)

There are a smattering of objective companies that test the quality, ingredients and dangers of most commercially sold vitamins and nutritional products.  My favorite independent testing lab is Consumerlab.com.  This fee based company investigates topics like how many contaminates are in the differing fish oil brands, which coconut water is best for re-hydration, how much calcium is actually in your calcium supplement, comparing one vitamin brand to another etc.  If you decide to take vitamins, you should know what you are putting into your body and what you are actually paying for.  The USP.org is another organization that certifies and tests supplements to make sure they:

• Contains the ingredients listed on the label, in the declared potency and amounts.
• Does not contain harmful levels of specified contaminants. 

• Will break down and release into the body within a specified amount of time. 
• Has been made according to FDA current Good Manufacturing Practices using sanitary and well-controlled procedures.

The human body is an extremely complex structure and changing one variable like adding a vitamin to your diet can have many positive and negative influences on your whole system.  Modern medicine does not have the technology to fully comprehend the cascade of effects and full ramifications of what supplements/vitamins outside of their natural state do to us.  Eat real food, drink a good amount of water and investigate what you are putting on and into your body, you'll be healthier for it.

General Vitamin Rules:

1. Don't assume all vitamins are safe.
2. Don't believe the hype or so called scientific evidence that supplement ads tout - many of these purported results are paid for by the vitamin company and the before and after pictures are heavily Photoshopped. 
3. Vitamins are not substitutes for healthy foods like fruits and vegetables.
4. Multivitamins can be dangerous...don't take one unless otherwise directed to by your dietician or doctor with a nutrition background.  
5. Find out if any of the vitamins you take effect the prescription medication you need. Ex: The herb St. John’s wort can interfere with oral contraceptives, seizure medication, blood thinners, and antidepressants.
6. Don't take a vitamin just because you learned about a new study promoting it's benefits.  Most nutritional studies are seriously flawed.  For every one study claiming benefits of a certain  supplement you can find a counter study.   

If you are still not convinced, take a one month long vitamin vacation.  Keep a log and track of your energy levels, sleep patterns, appetite, pain levels, body weight and overall mood.  Is there any difference? If there is no discernible variation, you just might be wasting your hard earned dough. Or not.  The placebo effect is one of the strongest non-medical non-treatments known to man.  If you believe the inert vitamin is helping you, it just might.   

Sources:

1. NY Times -News Keeps Getting Worse for Vitamins
2. Interactive InfoGraphic: Snake Oil Supplements 
3. Consumer Reports - Dangers of Vitamins

Stretching May Be Bad?

"...there is no research which proves categorically that there is any need for separate stretching sessions, phases or exercises to be conducted to improve performance or safety." Dr. Mel Siff,  Supertraining

This may sound like a crazy person rant on the subway but science has shown that stretching does not improve performance (it can diminish it), warm you up, prevent soreness or most injuries for that matter and does not make you taller.  So why then do so many people stretch?  One guy once actually admitted "so I can impress the girls in Yoga class." Obviously, he couldn't be helped.  The fitness industry is fraught with many conflicting ideas concerning stretching.  Depending on your goals, it might not be a problem if you are 'tight'.  Sometimes tightness actually helps people in sports and (tight hamstrings can make you more economical and a better runner- according to a Nebraska Wesleyan study) in daily activities by protecting against injury. Contrary to popular thinking, inflexibility isn’t always due to simple disuse or a lack of stretching.  There’s often a functional and genetic basis for tightness and stretching may not solve the 'problem'.  In a thinly veiled ego boosting effort I'd like to compare myself to the world class Kenyan runners...like them, I don't participate in flexibility programs.  The costs and time outweigh any of the dubious benefits. 

There are many kinds of stretches.  All stretches fall under these two categories:

1. Static - it's held in a challenging but comfortable position for a period of time usually 10-60 seconds  - Includes: Passive, Static active and Isometric
2. Dynamic- done by moving through a challenging but comfortable range of motion repeatedly, usually 10 to 12 times and holding for no longer than 2 seconds and incorporates muscle contractions - Includes: Active, PNF and Ballistic- there are more compelling reasons to perform these stretches than static ones.

A goal of stretching a tight muscle is to push it into a position it was not capable of before.  But why is the muscle tight to begin with?  Are you addressing the symptom and not the cause? All your muscles work in pairs and have opposing/antagonist muscles.  When one muscle is tight the opposite muscle is many times over stretched and possibly weak.  By addressing the antagonist muscle you may relieve the tightness without spending one minute stretching!  Moreover, new research actually shows stretching does not increase the length of muscles. The greater degrees of flexibility garnered with stretching are likely the result of boosted tolerance to the pain of stretching, not actual lengthening of tissue.  In other words you get used to the pain and can go farther in the stretch. 

"...researchers...found that when athletes did static stretches, performance often suffered. Many couldn’t jump as high, sprint as fast or swing a tennis racquet or golf club as powerfully as they could before they stretched. Static stretching appeared to cause the nervous system to react and tighten, not loosen, the stretched muscle, the research showed." -NY Times  

Another major concern of flexibility training is stretching past the point of what you can control. If you can not control the range of motion there is little reason to go there.  Let me show you what I mean.  Take a look at the photo below.  Even though,  I'm not crazy about this 'quad stretch' it serves as a good example.  Please stand up and try it.  I'll wait.  Were you able to get your heel to your butt? Ok, now tighten your hamstring, remove your hand and try to keep your heel up.  Did your foot drop?  This is called your flexibility/strength window: the distance between your passive flexibility and your active range of motion. 

Why would you stretch past the point of where you can control?  Many times these flexibility/strength windows are so big it contributes to injury.  It is not uncommon to slip and be flexible enough to fall into a certain position but not strong enough to hold it, so you tear some soft tissue.  The next time you stretch try powering your limb/joint into the stretch position using only the strength of the opposing muscle.  Hold it there for a prescribed amount of time and then attempt to bring it a little farther into the range of motion.  You may find it useful to have a friend or trainer act as a barrier that holds your position.  Do not have the person "push" you into a range of motion you can't control.

If you are going to stretch here are some rules:

1. Get an evaluation and find out what muscles and joints are tight and why.  You may not need to stretch. 
2. Flexibility is largely genetic and increasing your flexibility takes a long time - re-evaluate why you are stretching and if your time might be better spent elsewhere. 
3. Only static stretch after your warm up, not before.   Do the activity you are warming up for, but slowly at first.   
4. It may be good to lightly stretch at night before bed, many people report it helps them sleep. 
5. No static stretching prior to an event or activity - this will inhibit the muscles from contracting fully during your movements.
6. Don't over stretch!  At best, you will lose stability in your joints and at worse your will tear a tendon (which shouldn't be stretched to begin with) and forever have a looser joint (which will open you for future injuries).  
7. Don't stretch loose joints, it will only make them more unstable.  

A big bugaboo of mine is watching people stretch all their muscles, including the loose ones.  Think of your body like a out of tune guitar.  When you tune an instrument, would you stretch all the strings the same, or just the out of tune ones?  Stretch all the joints and muscles the same and you'll be a looser and more unstable version of your asymmetrical self.  If you insist on a flexibility program find out what is tight and why and then stretch only those muscles that need improved range of motion.

The one uncontroversial truth about stretching is that it does increase flexibility...albeit after a long and dedicated effort.  Now you are more flexible so you can show off in yoga class, join the circus or be better at doing splits. Simply participating in a smart exercise program will actively move all your joints thorough their normal safe range of motion; this may be enough.  Ask yourself and search your soul, is independent flexibility training worth the gym time even though most of its benefits are unconvincing?   

Full Disclosure:
Before you discredit this whole article because you think I have a confirmation bias about stretching please know I used to be a huge advocate of flexibility training.  If truth be told, I taught other trainers about its efficacy and how to properly integrate it into one's routine - and many of them are still doing it today. The fact of the matter is that the damned science caught up and got in the way which pushed me to reevaluate my flexibility protocols.  That being said, sometimes I do stretch because it feels good, maybe I'm just a masochist?

Sources:

1. Mel Siff, Facts and Fallacies of Fitness, Denver, M. Siff,  pp 121-122; 2002.
2. NYTimes: Right reasons to Stretch
3. NY Times: To Stretch or Not to Stretch
4. Shrier. Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine. 1999. This paper and Herbert are literature reviews:  contradictions in existing research, and conclude that there is no convincing evidence that stretching is useful
5. British Journal Of Sports Med: Stretching Before Exercise 
6. PT Journal: Stretching Does Not Increase Muscle Length  
7. C. O'Connor : Muscle Activation Techniques  

Fast (ing) Weight Loss: Intermittent Fasting

Intermittent fasting is easy...starvation not so much.

Until recently I recommended 5 to 6 small daily snacks/meals spaced evenly throughout the day to stoke one's metabolism.  Most nutritionists and dieticians still cling to this maxim although the science on its effectiveness is quite sketchy.  It works for some people, many others not so much.  Grazing your way through the day on small meals consistently elevates your blood sugar which promotes a better environment for fat storage.  In turn this guarantees your body will never have to utilize much fat for energy since there’s a constant supply of sugar in the bloodstream (thanks to that meal you ate 3 hours ago and are about to repeat).  Moreover, eating too often disrupts the leptin/ghrelin balance (hormones that control hunger) and may lead to leptin resistance where it becomes hard to feel sated.  It's like having a hungry monster in your stomach that can't get enough food. 

Over the last 2 decades I noticed something interesting:  most of my slim clients skipped breakfast and did not snack, but they stayed skinny.  Evidently they were practicing a form of intermittent fasting (IF).  This is quite simply a period of fasting followed by a period of eating.  Most IF programs recommend you fast for at least 14 hours or more a few times a week.  It has been shown to increase fat burning metabolism, protect the brain from disease and lower homeostatic blood glucose levels in nonhuman animals. There have been many animal studies (most using lab rats and monkeys), depicting the benefits of strategic fasting.  Sadly the scientific community has not completed any long-term human controlled experiments studying the effects of intermittent fasting. The animal research is well done but we are not exactly rats or monkeys. However the data we have is promising and copious amounts of anecdotal evidence report good success with strategic fasting diets.  

Here are some more benefits seen in 'other than human' animal models:

• Reduced blood lipids
• Reduced blood pressure
• Reduced markers of inflammation
• Reduced oxidative stress
• Increase fat burning
• Increased growth hormone release later in the fast
• Increased metabolic rate
• Improved appetite control
• Improved blood sugar control (by lowering blood glucose and increasing insulin sensitivity)

While examining human evolutionary history, one might conclude that for most of our time on earth we've involuntarily participated in various forms of fasting diets, otherwise known as periodic starvation.  Our population unwillingly subsisted on the feast or famine meal plan.  And no early man ate cereal for breakfast...they simply skipped brunch altogether because the fridge was empty. Our great grandparents and their great grandparents did not have access to food 24/7 (many people on this planet still don't).  In fact if they had a craving for something, they had to get off their butts (actually they probably weren't sitting) hunt, kill then cook it from scratch!

The ability to "fast" for days on end lies within in us all.  If you are reading this, you are the very lucky genetic end product of ancestors who were wily enough to survive during times of starvation.  Throughout periods of low food it was survival of the fittest and fattest.  In fact, modern man continues to practice a type of IF everyday.  It is common for most people to go half the day or more without food.  If you eat dinner at 8PM and breakfast at 8AM, you just fasted for 12 hours.  The human body is built to function efficiently without food.

Interestingly people and animals who fast for a full day usually make up the calories the next day or later in the week yet still reap the health benefits of a calorie restricted diet including the weight loss part!  But why?  It seems that practicing IF increases: human growth hormone output (which burns fat and increases lean muscle), catecholamines which raise your metabolic rate while decreasing insulin levels and allow stored fat to be burned for fuel.  Furthermore, the constant eating most of us engage in may lead to metabolic exhaustion. By practicing IF your body will eat up all your sugar stores within 6-8 hours and you will preferentially burn stored fat until you dine again.  Yeah! 

The method I find the least painful and still efficacious is the 16 hour fast (mostly done while sleeping) and 6 to 8 hour feeding period done 2 to 7 times per week.  Here is an example of how it works:

Eat your last meal of the day at 7PM and then skip breakfast in the morning and dine on your first meal at 11AM.  Yes, I said skip breakfast, the most important meal of the day...more on that later.  Eat regularly for the next 6 or 8 hours and at the end of this feeding time (sounds like something we do with zoo animals) fast until breakfast the next morning.  It is really not that hard.  Try this 2-3 days the first week and then gauge how you feel.  Tweak accordingly. 

Intermittent Fasting Rules:

1. Don't eat for period of 14 to 36 hours 
2. Drink lots of water 
3. For this to work you must exercise regularly
4. Drink non-sweetened tea or coffee (no milk or just a splash during fasting hours)
5. Do not drink juice! It is full of sugar and will interrupt your fast
6. Limit your eating window to 4-10 hours
7. Do not drink alcohol during fast  
8. Eat healthy foods during your feeding periods (lots of veggies, protein and good fats)- not whatever you want - but bigger meals than normal. 

If your mother raised you right she told you "breakfast is the most important meal of the day".  Sorry mom, the research on this is quite skimpy (although school aged children should eat breakfast due to the strong correlation between it and higher cognitive abilities).  Does eating breakfast prevent weight gain and decrease hunger?  I don't know about you, but many times breakfast makes me hungry for more food.  Eat begets eat.  Breakfast, specifically a carbohydrate laden one, will spike your insulin (this is why your doc wants you to fast prior to blood tests) and shuts down all fat burning.  Going without breakfast seems to stoke the fat burning process. 

In any event, try to develop a habit of going at least 12 hours without eating on a regular basis.  This will give your metabolic processes a rest and teach you how to deal with a little hunger.  Being hungry for a few hours won't kill you and might even feel good.  Embrace the feeling and once or preferably twice a week, depending on your goals,  go big and strive for a 16-18 hour fast.   Obviously, there are many people not suited for IF due to diseases like diabetes, anorexia and/or daily medications needed to be taken with food.  Before starting a program like this talk to your doctor or dietician about your options.  Expierment with what works best for you and your schedule and always remember to drink lots of water. 

Sources:

1. Journal of Nutritional BioChem: Beneficial Effects of Intermittent Fasting
2. Dr. M. Eades Nutritional Science 
3. NY Times: Big Breakfast Bigger Daily Calorie Count
4. Free Book: Intermittent Fasting: Dr. John Berardi
5. An Objective Look-at-Intermittent-Fasting
6. Verboeket-van de Venne WP, Westerterp KR. Influence of the feeding frequency on nutrient utilization in man: consequences for energy metabolism. Eur J Clin Nutr. 1991 Mar;45(3):161-9.
7. Taylor MA, Garrow JS. Compared with nibbling, neither gorging nor a morning fast affect short-term energy balance in obese patients in a chamber calorimeter. Int J Obes Relat Metab Disord. 2001 Apr;25(4):519-28.

Strength Does Not = Size

There may be a correlation between strength and size but no direct causation.  Many lilliputian sized Olympic lifters continue to gain strength year after year despite the fact their body mass remains the same.  On the other hand there are hulking bodybuilders who are not as strong as they look.  This is why in "Strongman Contests" you rarely ever see a bodybuilder win.  The strength of a muscle is certainly proportional to its size, however there are many other factors from which absolute strength is determined:

1. The number of muscle fibers actually contracting
2. The speed at which these muscle fibers are contracting
3. The amount of inhibitory motor neurons active
4. The duration of time a muscle fiber can sustain the contraction
5. The order of muscle contraction
6. Recruitment of stabilizing and co-contracting muscles
7. The volitional (motivation) effort put forth 
8. The amount of human growth hormone and testosterone present in the blood stream -women usually produce small amounts of these hormones which prevent her muscles from becoming 'too big'.

Different training modalities are used for increasing strength or hypertrophy (size). Neuromuscular efficiency is paramount  in producing strength which is strongly influenced by regular explosive exercise.   Strength training is characterized by maximal or close to maximal lifts, low time under tension 5-20 seconds (the time it takes to perform a set) and high in between rest periods. Whereas hypertrophy training is dependent upon longer bouts of time under tension, about 35-70 seconds, low rest periods and weights not typically exceeding 80% of one's max.  By changing the variables and closely monitoring one's routine and progress it is possible to develop a training routine targeting strength, size or a hybrid combination of the two.

When compared with strength training, bodybuilding has fewer real world applications.  Strength training depends on lots of muscles engaged using momentum, leverage and speed whereas building muscle size focuses on controlled slow movements with with a clear emphasis on individual muscles.  Functional movement patterns are not the domain of bodybuilders.  Olympic lifts and low reps are usually fast and have global body demands.  Many people workout to look better but neglect the more primal aspect of exercise, strength.  Depending on your goals and limitations it might be wise to incorporate a hybrid training regimen that covers all bases.  

The Pocket Hercules, Naim Suleymanoglu, from Greece is 4'10" tall and weighs less than 135lbs yet he was strong enough to clean and jerk over 415lbs! He is a great example of someone who is quite small who posses hulking strength.