The official Dietitian for the UTF Podcast joins the show to talk about two subjects that we hear about often - Caffeine and Protein
There is so much knowledge inside Suzanne Himka’s brain and we are very lucky to have her share her years of experience and expertise with us. There is a ton of great information inside the podcast with Suzanne so please listen to the show and subscribe in iTunes.
Here are some of the things we learned while talking with Suzanne:
Protein -
How much protein should you have on a daily basis? As Americans we’re having too much protein and that extra protein is being turned into fat and can also lead to kidney problems. As a rule, a person should consume half of their body weight, in grams, of protein per day. So that means if a male weighs 180 pounds he should eat about 90 grams of protein per day and if a woman weighs 130 pounds she should eat 65 grams of protein per day.
When and how often should you eat protein? Suzanne suggests eating protein with every meal and recommends protein during breakfast as it will help keep your insulin at healthy levels. You don’t have to have a lot of protein but shoot for a small serving 6 times per day.
What types of protein are there? There are 3 types of protein:
Just like most things with health and fitness balance is the goal. Too much protein is bad and too little can have negative effects as well. If you’re really concerned about your protein intake we recommend discussing it with your health care professional.
Caffeine –
How does Caffeine work? During our talk with Suzanne we learned some amazing things about caffeine and some of the negative effects it has on us. Contrary to my belief caffeine isn’t this magical substance that gives me more energy… What it actually does is block receptors in the brain from receiving signals that you’re tired. A compound called adenosine is partly responsible for making you tired and caffeine looks identical to your body. What happens is; caffeine takes the place of adenosine and keeps you from feeling tired, but at the same time adenosine is building up so when the caffeine wears off there is a sudden rush of adenosine giving you that crash you feel hours after a caffeinated drink.
How much caffeine should you drink? Caffeine stays inside your body for a long time and can affect you getting to REM sleep. For this reason, it’s probably not the best idea to drink caffeine that much and the amount should be relatively low. A cup of tea a day should be ok but much more than that can cause problems. Also going back to that REM sleep… Sleep is so important for us to stay in balance and lead a healthy life so the fact that caffeine disrupts us from getting the rest we need should really be a major factor to consider when thinking about drinking caffeine.
Finally – Knowing that caffeine doesn’t actually give you more energy but rather keeps you from getting the proper rest you need means that if you quit caffeine you’ll actually have more energy as you will be resting more!
We would like to thank Suzanne for joining us and if you would like to learn more please feel free to contact her here: SuzanneHimka.com
Email: drew@undertenfitness.com
Twitter: @undertenfitness
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And as always remember – Stay Motivated!
Drew Smith
Allison Murphy has competed in bodybuilding as a bikini competitor and joins us to day to give some tips on diet, cardio and mindset.
Tips from Allison -
What to avoid:
These are relatively simple but NOT easy to put into practice.
Excessive Cardio – Cardio is built into every bodybuilding program but how much should you be doing? That answer will be different for each person but here are some things to keep in mind. Cardio isn’t the only way to lose weight. Lifting weights and strength training are a great way to burn extra calories and shape your physic into something worth looking at. Plus, you have to keep in mind how much motivation you have and not overdo it otherwise you risk burning out. We’ve seen some programs out there where you do as little as 2 hours of cardio per week.
Not Getting Enough Rest – We’ve spoken to many experts on the show and learned that sleeping is when the body repairs itself. For this reason, sleep should never be overlooked when building a training program and you might even go as far as writing it into your program. 8-9 hours a night is a good place to start.
Focusing on Others – Everyone is at a different place on the journey toward their goals and comparing yourself to others will always lead to disappointment. For this reason, we suggest that you take measurements of your body, plenty of pictures and make notes of how you feel. Overtime you can use these to measure how far you’ve progressed and rather than comparing yourself to others you can see all of YOUR results from your hard work.
Alcohol – A glass of wine or a beer every now and then won’t completely destroy your gains but drinking consistently can lead to some challenges when prepping for a competition. Alcohol has 7 calories per gram and those calories have nothing to offer you in the way of nutrition, they are empty calories and your body has no use for it. Also, drinking can lead to other poor decision such as late night junk food and lack of sleep.
Having No Post-Show Plan – This is a thoughtful question that anyone competing needs to ask themselves. What will I do after this is all over? The majority of people who compete in a bodybuilding show are not going to make a career out of it and are usually competing for the joy and fun of it. Knowing this it’s good to have an idea of what to do after the show is over. Goals are always important and can be as simple as wanting to be healthy.
We would like to thank Allison for joining us to share these tips and her story. For a complete picture we would suggest listening to her interview and hearing her tips and story first hand!