Seminars, Workshop, and Class Information

                                           Next Webinar is August 17th, Wednesday, 8pm CT

Is the Gut Your Body's 2nd Brain?

By Dr. Diana Mladenoff

Implications:

• MS
• Parkinson's
• Auto-Immune Disorders
• Alzheimers
• ADHD
• Learning Disabilities
• Cancer
• Concussions

Please join my meeting from your computer, tablet or smartphone.

https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/898166869

You can also dial in using your phone.

United States +1 (312) 757-3121

Access Code: 898-166-869

Go to http://tinyurl.com/hgsuc2a to see podcasts of past shows.

Innovative Sports Training offers:

•Customized Private Training and Classes

•Hormonal and Bio-Mechanical Assessments

•Sports Performance Sessions

•Video Blog Library

•Blogs

•Private Consults for Individuals, Groups, and Sports Teams

[email protected]

metabolicprimal.webs.com

http://istworkshops.webs.com/

istfastandfurious.webs.com

Phone:816-405-7703

Upcoming shows on “Your Life-Your Health”

Current IST members will be awarded 10 points on rewards system for each webinar attended. Full attendance is required to receive points.

 Check out other podcasts:

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLi1otwN5hBlduWBFHXGt-yiCApBdJjmQ1

“Let’s Get Busy and Grow”

IST is more than just about showing up and working out 2-3 days per week. There is so much more involved in the process of obtaining optimal health. As I have often said “train for health and looks will follow”. If you train primarily for aesthetics health benefits are typically compromised. It is a sad fact that more people have greater knowledge about how their smart phone functions versus how their body functions relative to good health and longevity. This is an amazing opportunity for your personal growth and education that will pay tremendous dividends for you and your family.

By attending live workshops, webinars, participating in evaluations, and being consistent in class attendance you will be rewarded with points that can lead to free months of training classes, free private sessions, and free consultation sessions.

Point System

• Live workshop attendance 20 points ( 2 or more per year)

• Webinar attendance 10 points( 12 or more per year)

• Sign up for Hormonal/Bio-mechanical Evaluation 20 points per evaluation ( Deluxe or Elite Plan only). 2 evaluations per year are highly recommended.

• 5 points for every event that you participant in during the IST Challenge Month(3-4 sessions per year)

• Refer a friend, colleague, or family member who enrolls with a 6-12 month membership, 15 points

• Enroll for 6 month membership, 10 points

• Enroll for 12 month membership, 20 points

• Enroll for 6 month family membership, 15 points

• Enroll for 12 month family membership, 35 points

Rewards

• 1 month of free training classes, 160 points

• 2 months of free training classes, 260 points

• 1 free private consultation session, 185 points

• 2 private consultation sessions, 275 points

• 3 private consultation sessions, 325 points

Example point totals

Example 1:

• 1 live workshop attendance, 20 points

• Webinar attendance, 60 points

• 6 month membership, 10 points

• IST Challenge Events, 60 points

Total points= 150 points

Example 2:

• 2 live workshops attendance, 40 points

• Webinar attendance, 120 points

• Family 12 month membership, 35 points

• 2 Hormonal-Bio Mechanical Evaluations, 40 points

• IST Challenge Events, 80 points

Total points= 315 points

“Let’s Get Busy and Grow”

Mark your Calendars for May 7th!

Innovative Sports Training is presenting and hosting a Men's and Women's Health Summit:

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1o1PdqCdhq8zGQ3gLdptrzYQptxvR9hIJCbR7NFUPFVQ/edit?usp=sharing

For the past 35 years I have been training competitive athletes, recreation weekend athletes, youth league athletes, white collar workers, blue collar workers, stay at home moms, and the list goes on. The common denominator is that we all have some sort asymmetry/muscle imbalance due to work environment, sports environment, previous injuries, or direct trauma to the bodily system. On a scale of 1-10( 10 is the worst) how well do we manage these asymmetrical imbalances?

When these imbalances are not addressed it can lead to a serious diseased type of process such as arthritis, tendonitis, muscle/bone degeneration, debilitating pain, poor posture, and poor functional physical movement patterns. In spite of these maladies that are slowly occurring many of us are extensively involved in strength/conditioning programs and fitness programs that on the surface are good for the fully able person, however, if one has creeping physical asymmetries that are occurring-certain weightlifting, body weight, cardio, and speed exercise programs can be contributing to the debilitating process.

Typical Questions:

• My back severely hurts within 24 hours after working out. What am I doing wrong?

• The knees are not functioning like they use to. How can I strengthen them?

• As an athlete I feel very strong in the weight room but my ability to move on the field is below average. How can I improve my mobility and improve my athletic performance?

• I go to the gym 3 days/week and train like a beast, yet when I perform simple daily functional tasks I cannot move well without experiencing pain somewhere in my body. I need help. What do you recommend?

Do any of the aforementioned questions apply to you, to a loved one, co-worker, or personal friend? Innovative Sports Training now offers the Function Movement Screen(FMS) evaluative system used by world renowned personal trainers, physical therapists, collegiate strength/conditioning coaches, NFL/NBA/MLB/NHL strength coaches, chiropractors, and Olympic coaches.

Hot Spot Areas that are normally adversely affected:

• Neck

• Shoulders

• Lower back

• Knees

Unless there is heavy direct trauma to any of the aforementioned areas pain typically does not evolve from these specific locations, it evolves from surrounding areas that are being compromised due to lack of mobility and/or stability and the pain is referred to these 4 main areas.

We have to find the weak links in the kinetic chain. One little pebble tossed in very silent pond can cause hundreds of unhealthy ripples.

How Does it Work?

You will be evaluated on 6 basic movement patterns that will take about 20-30 minutes of your time. Based on the screening results you will be emailed a suggested corrective exercise program that will address any asymmetry or imbalance that is found during the screening. The corrective exercises are not meant to be a long time replacement for conventional strength, fitness, and/or sports training programs, however, they are supplemented into the programs to reverse or lessen the burden of asymmetries that may be regressing your performance and/or ability to function.

Cost?

• Initial 20-30 minute session plus program design is $100

• Follow up sessions with program design is $70

• Ask about family, group, or team prices.

What others have said about the FMS Program

Since I have been using it I have had great success with my athletes. They move better and feel more balanced. Using your techniques I have been able to clear up a lot of trouble spots and help a ton of athletes. Just by balancing a kid out and doing the proper corrective exercises he was able to increase the speed on his fastball by 5 mph.”

Mark Shropshire - Exercise and Sport Physiologist

“The Functional Movement Screen has allowed me to observe problematic movement patterns and have viable solutions to correct/improve them. It allows the conditioning specialist an opportunity to get an accurate snapshot of our clients to develop an individualized

program design…to access and address.”

Sean Armistead - President/Owner of Phenomenal Fitness, Chicago, IL

“As a Tae Kwon Do and RKC Kettlebell instructor, the FMS has help me personally improve my ability to properly perform techniques as well as improving my clients. In the past I was stumped and frustrated by those clients that seemed uncoachable when it

came to improving certain movements or techniques. The FMS has given me the insight to recognize bad movement patterns and the tools to objectively rank and improve movement quality. Knowing the 'why,' 'when' and 'how' of incorporating correctives and increasingly

difficult exercise progressions into my private and group sessions has produced pain-free, efficient athletes with beautiful movement regardless of the activity. Thanks to the FMS system, I have been able to improve the performance of 'difficult' clients even

when other more credentialed professionals could not.”

John Scott Stevens - RKC, CK-FMS Omaha Elite Tae Kwon Do / Omaha Elite Kettlebell

How Do I get Started?

Contact Roberto Parker, CSCS, MS, FDN, MTA, FMS, USWA, CHEK2

Head Trainer and President , Innovative Sports Training

Website: ISTworkshops.webs.com

Email: [email protected]

Phone: 816-405-7703

To Learn more about FMS go to:

http://www.functionalmovement.com/fms

Roberto Parker, MS, CSCS, FDN, MTA, USWA, CHEK2

The body is a 3 dimensional design that moves and functions in 3 planes of motion:

• Sagittal plane-linear motions
• Frontal plane-lateral sideway motions
• Transverse plane-rotational motions

What are the most popular lifts conducted in school weight rooms and health club gyms?

In high school and university weight rooms the most popular lifts are bench press, squat, power cleans, and push press. These are more popularly known as the big 4.

In the majority of health clubs where is there less emphasis on sports performance and more on vanity, the most popular lifts are bench press, arm curls, lat pulldowns, and tricep extensions.

What is the common denominator among all of the aforementioned lifting exercises? They are all linear sagittal plane movements that focus building and strengthening the power thruster muscles consisting of the glutes, pectorals, latissimus, trapezius, quadriceps, arms, and hamstrings. The power thrusters are important for performing heavy work loads and certain athletic endeavors, however, the body also has muscles that function as stabilizers, neutralizers, and steering mechanisms for joints and lager muscle groups.

Whenever I write these article and blogs I normally will reflect back on my 3 decades of personal and professional experience in training performance athletes, men, women, and kids from all backgrounds. What I have often notice is that to many people are extremely weak in the middle portions of the body consisting of the midsection, middle/upper back, hips, and buttocks areas. Often times I will train a high performance athlete who can squat a building on his back, however, he struggles to execute a 1 legged pistol squat. Another example is a an active man or woman over the age of 30 who has chronic back or knee pain.

Over the years in working with these types of individuals I began to wonder why is it that a number of the individuals that I train and/or coach are very strong with conventional weightlifting but they cannot hold their own bodyweight in a plank position or performing a pushup on a stability ball without collapsing within 2 seconds of attempting the movement?

The midsection abdominal area plays a role in stabilization of the spine and contributes to hip stability and balance, however, in order to strengthen the steering mechanism components of the lower body it begins with the Hips. The functional importance of the hips play a huge role in knee and ankle stability along with spinal stability. Functional training of the hips engages the muscles of the femur that are responsible for internal rotation, external rotation, abduction( lateral movement of the femur away form the body’s midline), adduction( movement toward the body’s midline), flexion, and extension. Going back to the power thrusters vs. the steering muscles: squats, power cleans, and push press( sagittal plane) will strengthen the leg/hip thrusters which consists of flexion and extension, but they have very minimal impact on the steering components( frontal/transverse plane) of the leg which consists of abduction, adduction, and external/internal rotation of the legs. Once again the body functions in a 3 dimensional pattern and if 1 or 2 of these dimensions are continually compromised, performance will diminish and injury potential will significantly increase in the back, hip, knee, and/or ankle areas.

Posture

It all begins with good posture. When everything is aligned correctly from head to toe the potential of injury, chronic pain, immobility, or compromised performance is significantly minimized. Within a positive postural environment when the body is placed under a load from running, jumping, lifting, striking, and/or falling, the majority of the load forces are dissipated into the ground as opposed to a negative postural environment in which the brunt of the load travels to the joints of the body( not good!).

Illustrative example of good posture:

What happens within a bad postural environment? The body is one huge network that has innate compensatory survival instincts to keep us alive and functioning even when tissues are out of balance. That being said, if tissues are chronically out of balanced with no functional attempts to correct the problem, major pain, injury, and a state of disease can work its way into the tissues of body.

When your car is out of alignment it still runs, however, there is decrease in fuel efficiency, more wear on the tires, the engine works harder and becomes overloaded, pressure hoses wear out faster, and the car just does not run smoothly as it should. When the body is working under a chronic out of alignment type of load there a number debilitating maladies that will happen similar to a misaligned automobile. Converse to the good posture illustration, with bad posture much of the external force loads are absorbed by the joints of body which can cause extreme of amounts of wear and tear on the joints( tendonitis, cartilage deterioration, nerve impingement, ligament damage, muscle tears…

Bad Posture illustration:

Notice in the bad posture illustration how spine has a very pronounced curvature along with a protruding belly in the front, this is termed hyperlordosis. In the second bad posture illustration the left hip is hiked up higher than the right hip, termed lateral pelvic tilt. Here a few maladies that can occur from hyperlordosis or pelvic tilt:

• Pronation( inward rotation) of knees
• Shortened leg length
• Pronation of the ankles
• Flat feet
• Weakened gluteus maximus and other gluteal muscles
• Over tight hamstrings
• Over tight spinal muscles
• Shoulder shift and tilt
• Head shift and tilt
• Weakened midsection

The hips can be off center by only a fraction and if it is not functionally corrected before it becomes a chronic issue it will have negative effects on performance and overall health.

Anatomy of the Hips:

Major Contributors to Hip Function …. See spreadsheet graph

• Illiopsoas ( hip flexor) is a very powefulr hip flexor( thruster muscle) in the sagittal plane.

• Gluteus Maximus( buttocks) is a big time muscle thruster responsible for hip extension( sagittal plane).
• Biceps Femoris is a lower leg(hamstring) power thruster muscle that also assists with hip extension and is major component of knee flexion(sagittal plane).
• Lateral Hip Flexors consists of the gluteus medius. Its role is hip stability in the frontal and transverse planes. The lateral hip flexors contributes to steering the femur inwardly while its main job to thrust the femur laterally( sideways) from the body’s midline.
• Adductor Muscle Group adducts( inwardly) the femur toward the body’s midline( power) and internally rotates( steering) the femur towards the midline( frontal/transverse plan).
• Piriformis is deep hip muscle that is primarily a steering wheel for the femur( transverse/frontal planes)

Lower Cross Syndrome

According to Vladimir Yanda( holistic muscle therapist) many of the maladies that afflict the hip, knee, foot, and back areas emanates from the illipsoas muscle group. Notice in the below illustration how the illiopsoas ( A) has a predisposition to shorten and tighten, opposite of the illiopsoas is the gluteus maximus (B) which is predisposed to lengthen and weaken.

Muscles that have a propensity to tighten and shorten are termed “tonic” muscles. Opposing the tonic muscles are “phasic” muscles which have a propensity to lengthen

and weaken. Tonic and phasic muscles must be work in concert with one another to create a healthy balance environment for the musculo-skeletal system to maximally function.

When the System is out balance Mr. Yanda termed the condition as The Lower Cross Syndrome.

Listing of the Tonic/Phasic muscles:

Tonic: illiopsoas, adductor muscle groups, piriformis, biceps femoris

Phasic: gluteal muscle groups, rectus abdominus,

The illiopsoas and gluteus maximus are working in opposition to provide balance to the hip area.

Typically when they are out of balance the illiopsoas over powers the gluteus maximus causing the hip pelvis area to anterior ( forward) tilt. If anterior tilt is not corrected it will cause a cascade of negative events:

• Low back pain due anterior pelvis that places an overload on the lumbar( low back) spine.
• Stretched and weakened Gluteus Maximus. As the pelvis tilts forward the gluteus maximus is less active and less engaged in powerful movements.
• Oblique hip tilt loads and moves to one side( right or left) of the pelvis, often at an oblique angle which adversely effects leg length, lumbar spine area, and the height of the pelvic structure.
• Weakened midsection, due to the anterior hip tilt the fibers of the rectus abdominis are overly stretched and weakened and if the pelvis is tilted at an oblique angle the fibers of internal/external obliques are overly stretched.
• Knee Pronation (knock knees) is quite often caused by anterior hip tilt which can also become problematic to the foot and ankle areas of the lower leg.

Abnormalities from a Lower Cross Syndrome( see illustration):

Practical Applications:

Remember, the body is a network of that has a series of communication between muscle nerve, tendon, ligament, and organ tissues.. The prime directive is survival even if the body must compromise optimal performance and comfort levels.

To put in simplistic terms the muscles of the trunk feed into the hips, muscles of the hips feed into legs, muscles of the legs feed into the knee, foot, and ankle areas.

• Constant foot pain? Evaluate the hips.
• Knee complications? Evaluate the hips
• One leg is shorter than the other and it effects my gait? Evaluate the hips
• I have constant low back pain? Evaluate the hips
• Can’t get my midsection stronger? Evaluate the hips
• Chronic sprained ankles? Evaluate the hips
• Cannot improve my athletic speed and jump skills? Evaluate the hips
• Have a difficult time properly performing a barbell squat? Evaluate the hips.

Be advised there are other factor contributing to the above complications. We could go further upstream to the head and neck areas (forward head posture, overly protracted shoulders, weak scapula retractors..) to further evaluate, however, typically it begins in the relationship of the gluteus maximus to the hip flexors. In future articles we will investigate the affect of the neck and shoulder areas in relationship to back, hips, and leg areas.

Hip Strength/Mobility Exercises

Go to this link to view gallery:

http://istworkshops.webs.com/apps/photos/album?albumid=15825297

There are a number of times in which I will spend the first 30-40 minutes of a one hour session focusing on what I term “stretching/strengthening” exercises and drills. Recall what I stated earlier in this article, so many individuals are tight in the middle portion of there bodies, more specifically their hip area. Over the years I have emphasized a good portion of a training session to mobilize the hip area of many students/athletes/clients and what I have noticed is a dramatic improvement in their range of motion in executing weighted squats, lunges, jumps, speed drills, agility, kick boxing, etc…

In fact I had a client state to me on day that he felt so “looser and stronger” in his hips, legs, and back after spending 30 minutes of performing mobilization drills.

Improve Athletic Performance.

I can’t tell you the number of young athletes that I have trained( middle school-college) who are so stiff and tight in their legs and hip areas and have a difficult time with simple movements such as body weight lunges, body weight squats, and quadruped planks. A number of the same middle school, high school, and college athletes are doing heavy squats, power cleans, push presses, and deadlifts at their respective school weight rooms, yet some of them cannot even body weight squat without losing their balance or breaking form! Not a good plan. I highly encourage coaches, PE teachers, and parents to emphasize the fundamentals of body weight movement patterns, and mobility drills before applying maximal weight to young athletes.

I am by no means discouraging weightlifting drills, in fact I include them in my training programs for those athletes that are functionally ready to properly execute them. As trainers, teachers, and coaches we need to functionally screen these young athletes prior to advancing them to intensive weightlifting exercises.

Much of the issues that I see with young athletes is that there a bound up in the hip areas which as previously illustrated compromises the hip, knee, ankle, and foot areas relative to power, speed, and balance movements.

Improving hip strength and mobility will pay huge dividends in the following areas of:

• Weightlifting
• Speed
• Quickness
• Reducing injury potential
• Jump skills
• Flexibility
• Agility
• Confidence

Improve Fitness Potential:

After age 30-40 the body slows down and stiffens up…right? Not if you take care of your body and incorporate the correct type of exercise program. Often I work with 30-40 some things and there biggest concern is losing weight and desiring to keep that 20 year old looking physique from back in the day. My counsel to them is to improve your health first and foremost and that includes the proper balance of nutrition, rest, stress management, some supplements, and of course exercise. For the sake of this article lets direct our focus on the health of the middle portion of the body. There must be a proper balance of stretching the muscles that are overly tight( hip flexors) and strengthening the muscles that are overly weak( gluteal muscles and midsection). When there is balance it creates a healthy environment that amounts to:

• Healthier back
• Healthier knees
• Healthier spine
• Better posture
• Ability to physically move from point A to point B with minimum or no pain
• More energy and vitality
• Increased confidence

Recommendations:

Much of the what Yanda explains in relationship to the Lower Cross Syndrome stems from our lifestyle of sitting down 8-12 hours/day. Sitting for extended periods of time overloads and hyper-tightens the hip flexor muscles which is the main culprit contributing to the Lower Cross Syndrome. Sitting in front of an electronic device has become the number work station in our industrialized society. My recommendation to you is leave your station( if possible) every 30-60 minutes and walk around, Do a few body weight lunges, squats, stair climbs, pushups. Why pushups? Just for the health of it!

Think about this, what if you did 5 body weight squats and 2 pushups every 60 minutes during an eight work hour day?

That amounts to 40 squats and 16 pushups per day, multiply that by 5 days/week, that would amount to 200 squats/week and 80 pushups/week.

In addition, take about 5-10 minutes/day to perform specific exercises to mobilize and strengthen the hips( stretching, strengthening, bungii cords, ankle weights, kettlebells, swiss balls, and dumbbells).

You will notice a huge difference in your energy level and certainly in the health of your hip and spinal regions.

  Mobilize and Strengthen those Hips!

Related Web Sites and References:

http://www.muscleimbalancesyndromes.com/2012/09/24/hip-exercises-beneficial-for-anterior-knee-pain/

http://www.muscleimbalancesyndromes.com/2012/05/08/treating-hamstring-cramps-through-the-hips-functional-or-structural-approach/

http://www.muscleimbalancesyndromes.com/2012/01/23/lower-crossed-syndrome-type-a-vs-type-b-whats-the-difference/

http://www.muscleimbalancesyndromes.com/2012/04/10/evidence-for-dns-diaphragmatic-dysfunction-in-low-back-pain-patients/

http://www.jandaapproach.com/the-janda-approach/philosophy/

Innovative Sports Training offers physical, nutritional speed, and strength evaluations for all ages.

Contact Roberto Parker:

Phone Number, 816-405-7703

e-mail: [email protected]

Websites:

• ISTfastandurious.webs.com
• ISTworkshops.webs.com
• Metabolicprimal.webs.com

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Innovative-Sports-Training/122777307793391?ref=bookmarks

By Roberto Parker, CSCS, MS, CHEK2,FMS,FDN,USAW,MTA

We have a dilemma in this country, it is called “Health Degeneration”. Ask yourself the following questions regarding Health issues:

Why are 2/3 of the USA overweight?

Why is obesity on the rise in this country among adults and children in spite of the fact that we spend billions of dollars on health and fitness products and services?

Why are there so many varying expert written opinions on how to eat?

How is that my best friend has success on a low carb diet yet I feel lousy with minimal success when I incorporate those same eating patterns?

How can cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and a host of other degenerative diseases be on the rise each year?

Accumulatively there have been thousands of books written on losing weight and dieting, Who is right and who is wrong? Basically there is no right or wrong way to eat. Most foods in there purest intrinsic form are not deleterious to our system, however the manner in which we grow, process, and prepare foods are key components in determining how that food is accepted and processed physiologically by our bodies..

Most importantly, each person has there own “biochemical individuality” or Metabolic Type similar to a finger print.

Metabolic Type (MT) is related to how we evolved as human beings. The USA is a melting pot of people from all corners of the world. We can date back thousands of ancestral years which called for dietary adaptation to climate, vegetation, geography, and natural occurring food supplies.

If your ancestry dates back to people from the far northern regions of the world, more specifically Eskimos, they relied heavily on animal fats and protein, primarily because that was the main food source available. It is reported that Eskimo’s could consume up to 10 pounds of meat per day , yet there was not a hint of cancer or heart disease among there tribes until a number of them became “westernized” and started getting away from their ancestral foods.

You might be asking how did they get there supply of minerals and vitamins typically found in fruits and vegetables? The northern people were eating a heavy supply of fish (salmon and cod) and whale blubber, where were the fish and whales getting their supply of food? Answer, seaweed and algae from the ocean floor, which are loaded with healthy minerals, vitamins, and phyto-nutrients.

Converse to the northerners are the equatorial inhabitants of South America and Africa. There diets primarily consisted of vegetative foods (vegetables, fruits, and nuts) with moderate amounts of animal fat and proteins.

Many of us have heard that dairy products are bad. Healthy peoples of the Swiss Alps region diets consisted of dairy and rye bread.

Here is the challenge we have in our current global society; what happens when a person of Eskimo ancestry marries a person from South America or Africa who also has Swiss ancestry? All of us have a predominant gene that determines what type of MT we are. This predominant gene is our Dominance Factor (DF). All foods have a sedating or stimulating effect on our body’s chemistry. Some foods will alkalinize (sedate) the system while others will acidify (stimulate) the system. Certain foods will have a catabolic (muscle breakdown) effect while others will have an anabolic effect (lean muscle building).

What is Your Metabolic Type?

Contact Roberto Parker, Innovative Sports Training to learn more.

[email protected]

816-405-7703

Lipolysis (lioplytic) means your metabolizing fat for energy. Set a goal to become more lipolytic(fat burning). If you are female be advised losing too much body fat can disrupt hormonal balances. Women should have a body fat assessment prior to beginning a fat loss program.

Here are a some important steps to becoming a lipolytic “fat burning machine”.

1.Consume significant amounts of dietary fat (good fats) in your daily eating regimen. For some reason during the past 10-15 years Americans have been indoctrinated to believe that all fats are bad and evil. I have coached and trained clients who refuse to consume fat in their diet but will snarf down processed breads, muffins, cookies, and a wide assortment of pastries. Processed foods are loaded with hydrogenated fats that promotes various types of pro-inflammatory conditions in the body not to mention excessive weight/fat gain. An experiment was conducted on a group of livestock in which the animals were fed coconut oil fat as opposed to their typical heavy grain diet. Much to the ranchers’ disgruntlement the animals became leaner and more muscular which does not bode well in the market place when attempting to sell livestock. The animals were quickly transitioned back to a heavy grain diet which better promotes bigger/fatter bodies. Is there any question why 2/3 of Americans are overweight, it is called improper exercise, processed foods, and excessive grain diets. Having said all this, there are “Metabolic ”differences relative to protein types, carbohydrate types, and balanced types . There are some individuals who can consume more carbohydrates (carbohydrates types) vs. a protein type who cannot assimilate and/or digest carbohydrates as well. Innovative What are the benefits of consuming good fats?

• Promotes the production of lipase which is a fat digestive enzyme
• Improves neural transmission (brain to muscle communication)
• Lubrication of joints and other tissues of the body
• Promotes hormonal balance which is crucial total body health

2. Exercise in the early morning. Upon arising from bed perform exercises that will jump start the metabolic processes and get the system pumped up for the day. You can perform a complete training routine(30-45 minutes) or for those who are not morning exercisers a fast/moderate paced 4-6 minute will suffice. If you want to really rev up the fat burning process perform a 4-6 intense routine in the morning(4-5 days/week) followed by a 30-40 minute strength/interval session(2-3days/week) in the afternoon or early evenings prior to lunch or dinner.

3. Consume 4-6 meals per day. Want to lose fat? Eat smaller meals throughout the day. The body’s metabolism is most active between sunrise(6:00am) and sunset(6:00pm). After 6:00pm there is a significant drop-off in body’s conversion of food to energy. Unfortunately in our fast paced society we fail to consume enough calories throughout the daylight hours and consume the majority of our calories after 6:00pm.

Consume the majority of your calories prior to dinner. Here is chart explaining the relationship of percentages, meals, and times:

• Breakfast 7:00am
• Snack 10:00am
• Lunch 12:00pm
• Snack 3pm
• Dinner 6pm

If you find that eating 4-6 meals prior to 6:00pm is difficult because of time and money, I suggest you become creative and “brown bag it” ( pack lunch and snacks) everyday. You will invest some time in preparation, however, it will save you time and money in the long term versus going out to restaurants everyday, and most food establishments do not cater to very healthy selections. This also applies to kids attending schools. Pack healthy lunches and snacks for them to eat and avoid the processed foods and fast foods that are typically served in school lunch rooms.

4. Walking is a great activity especially for those who are starting from ground zero. Walking stimulates enzymatic activity that may result in the “afterburn” effect up 12 hours dependent on the intensity of your walking (distance, terrain, hills, load, and tempo).

If you are more advanced incorporate:

• Hand weights
• Jog/walk
• Sprint/walk/jog
• Stadium stairs
• Hills

Sample Routines:

• Level 1, novice:

Walk 1/2-1miles per day on level terrain

• Level 2, Intermediate

Jog/Walk 1-2 miles per day. Jog 30-60 seconds>1-2 minute walk

• Level 3, Advanced

Sprint/Jog/Walk 1-2 miles, Sprint 5-10 seconds>jog 60 seconds>walk 60 seconds.

4. Drink 1/2 bodyweight in ounces in water. Our cells, tissues, and muscles are comprised of water. Water content can vary from person to person. It has been found that the amount of water in the human body can vary, 45% in very obese individuals and 70% in very lean individuals. Blood typically has 83% water, muscle 75% water, bone 22% water, and fatty tissue 10% water. If we do not have enough water in our system it will adversely effect blood levels, muscle strength, bone density, and body fat.

Staying hydrated is important in the elimination of waste and toxins within the body, in addition, water is critical in the digestive process.

Other good sources of water:

Fruits and vegetables(80-90%)

Meat cooked rare(75%)

Innovative Sports Training offers an assessment program which will determine your ‘Metabolic Type”. Please contact me: [email protected] or 816-405-7703.

You can eat all the right foods and intensely exercise 5 days per week, however if you do not allow the body to regenerate itself via proper sleep and rest you are taking 1 step forward and 2 steps backwards. Thinks back 5,000 years ago before humans had electrical lighting. What did humans do when the sun set? He and/or she went to sleep, and they slept until the sunrise. Physiologically we are not very far removed from primitive man who lived and survived in the wilderness, however, we have adapted lifestyles that have certainly far removed us.

If you recall from the “Keep It Lipolytic” section it stated that after 6pm our metabolism begins to slowly shut down. The brain is signaling the muscles and nervous system to slow down and start repairing.

Sleep

Of course we all know the prevailing thought is that we need 8 hours of sleep, quality of sleep needs to be the emphasis. As the sunsets the body’s Cortisol (catabolic hormone) levels drops and *DHEA (growth hormone) levels increase. Conversely, as the sunrises Cortisol levels increase as DHEA decreases. Cortisol is a necessary hormone for mobilizing amino acids (protein) for the body, however, an excess of cortisol can increase blood sugar levels, decrease protein absorption, decrease muscle gain, and lead to increase fat accumulation. DHEA is an anabolic hormone that is a precursor to production of testosterone (male hormone) and estrogen (female hormone). DHEA is significant in developing lean muscle and decreasing body fat.

Ideally the optimal time to retire for the evening is 10:00pm and arise at sunrise(6:00am). Between the hours of 10:00pm-2:00am cellular regeneration and repair (muscles and organs) is occurring. Additionally, the adrenal glands do a considerable amount of repair during this time period(11:00pm-1:00am) along with the gall bladder dumping toxins which will be excreted from the body via urinary and fecal waste. However, if you stay up beyond 1:00am the toxins will back up into the liver and muscle tissues causing health complications.

From 2:00am-6:00am neurogenic (nervous system) regeneration and repair is occurring.

I have had clients and friends ask me “as long as I get 8 hours of sleep what difference does it make what time I go to bed”. If you go to bed at 1:00am and get up at 9:00am you have compromised 3 hours of cellular repair which confuses the entire system causing more production of CORTISOL and less production of DHEA because you stayed up to late.

Our bodies were designed to follow the sun. When the suns rises we produce energy by working and gathering, when the sunsets we conserve energy by resting and sleeping.

After age 25 the body produces less growth hormones and melatonin (hormone to help deep sleep), so if you burning the candle on both ends with stress, over exercising , sleep deprivation, poor eating, and a host of others, you are a freight train that is about to derail in the future.

The good news is that growth hormone productivity can be enhanced and excess cortisol levels can be minimized with good training, proper eating, managed stress, and quality sleep and rest.

Developing more muscle and losing body fat does not occur while you train in the gym, it does not occur while your eating breakfast, lunch, dinner, and/or snacks, it occurs during optimal sleep and recovery when the bodily system can rest, repair, and regenerate itself.

*DHEA (dehydroeplandosterone)

If you want to get the most “bang for your buck” I highly recommend “Free Weight” Strength Training to activate the body’s fat burning stores.

Notice I emphasized “free weight” training for strength development. Free weight strength training with dumbbells, barbells, medicine balls, swiss balls, sledgehammers, sandbags, and host of other fun tools are much superior to machine weight training in that they fire up core stabilizers which ramps up caloric expenditure and heart rate thus boosting Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR). Studies have proven that free weight strength training muscularly leans up the body much superior to machine weight training. Acquiring lean muscle tissue is one the most important components of elevating your metabolic capacity. According to a number of health and fitness specialists, strength training is the most important type of exercise for ensuring weight loss comes from fat stores not muscle tissue. In fact it has been discovered that high amounts of aerobic training mainly metabolizes muscle and lowers BMR vs. anaerobic training (strength training) which metabolizes fat and elevates the BMR.

Strength training has an “afterburn” effect on the metabolism. Example, 6-8 hours upon completion of an intense strength session it possible to have an “afterburn” effect of a significant amount of calories and/or fat. More muscle keeps the BMR ramped up 24/7 .

In addition, because strength training with free weights activates the core stabilizers functional strength and postural alignment is enhanced which reduces injury potential for occupational and recreational activities.

Incorporate compound movements

Compound movements are multiple movements in one exercise. Incorporating compound movements equals more muscle/cellular activity which promotes the production of lipase (fat burning enzyme). Thus the system becomes more lipolytic and the “afterburn” effect kicks in.

Sample Compound Exercises Routines:

Squat thrusts 8-12 repetitions(can also be perfomed with a medicine ball).

Split Jumps 8-12 Repetitions

Advantages of Compound Exercises:

• Multiple muscles are being trained in one exercise movement

• Elevates the heart rate rapidly which boost the BMR

• Many exercises can be performed in the comfort of your home, office, or gym

• Exercises routines are simple/efficient and can be completed in a minimal time frame

Suggestions:

• Perform 8-12 repetitions

• Perform 1-2 sets

• Incorporate 2-4 types of compounds

• Train 2 days/week

• Keep the rest intervals to 1 minute or less

• Train with good technique

• Tempo (speed of exercise) is relative to your of experience. Novices train with slow/moderate temp, intermediate/advance train with moderate/fast tempo.

• Change your routine every 2-4 weeks.

You will notice a positive difference within the 1st month of incorporating compound movements if you follow the above suggestions.

Mom was right...sit up straight and do not slouch! Very good instinctive advice.

What is posture?

1.) The position in which movement begins and ends.

2.) The position of the limbs or carriage of the body as a whole.

There are two types of postures:

static......position of the body at rest, sitting, standing, or lying.

dynamic......position of the body while moving.

Without good posture the muscles are working overtime to maintain optimal alignment of the bodily joints which can lead to muscle imbalances causing ailments such as forward head tilt, round shoulders, excessive lumbar curvature, flat back, excessive knee and/ or ankle pronation. When the body is out of alignment the message communication between the brain and muscles diminished thus increasing the potential for injury and reduction of performance in the occupational and athletic environments.

It is imperative before beginning an exercise program that one has a postural and biomechanical evaluation to locate specific strengths and weaknesses. If there are areas of the body that are out of alignment performing certain exercises or lack of exercises could be counter productive to one’s health.

Recommendations:

• obtain a postural/functional analysis.

• begin an exercise specific to your needs.

• stretch daily.

• avoid sitting for long periods of time.

• when sitting at the work station, desk, or table utilize a stability(swiss ball)ball for sitting amd/or working.

References:

1.) The Golf Biomechanics Manual, Chek, Paul.

2.) 10 Ways Myo Dynamics Can Enhance Your Athletic Career, Staley, Charles 1998.

3.) Problems Associated With Long Term Seated Posture, Staley, Charles & Arria, Sal Oct. 1996.

Roberto Parker is Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with the National Strength and Conditioning Association. He is currently the president of Innovative Sports Training., specializing in Sports Training and Fitness Consulting

For more information on Dietary Analysis, Interval Classes, Athletic Performance Classes, Functional Assessments, and Internet Sports and Fitness Programs call 816-405-7703, email [email protected], or visit our website at www.fitnessgenerator.com/innovativesportstraining