Cutting Through The Hype Of Supplement Ads - No Punches Pulled
By Nick Nilsson
A hard-hitting look at the techniques that advertisers use
to separate you from your hard-earned money. With this
insider knowledge, you will never get ripped off again!
I'll start with the bottom line: you don't NEED supplements to burn fat or build muscle. The human body can function and make excellent athletic progress on nothing but quality food and proper training.
But you CAN use supplements to help the process along faster. The real key is knowing what works, what is garbage, and when an advertiser is simply trying to take your money.
Let me put it this way...in a recent muscle magazine, I counted 120 pages of full-page (in some cases 3 to 6 page), high-powered supplement ads. If you were to buy all these products, you'd be laughing all the way to the bank...laughing maniacally, because you'd have to rob it in order to pay for all those supplements!
There ARE good supplement manufacturers who make good products...they put in what they say they're putting in and don't try to fool you with advertising. But this article is about the BAD ones and it's more fun to talk about them...
So what sneaky tricks do advertisers use to separate you from your money?
1. Unprovable Testimonials
How many times have you seen testimonials like "I lost 10 pounds in a week" or "I gained 20 pounds of muscle in a month." These testimonials prey upon the desire in all of us for fast and easy results. Who wouldn't want results this quickly? After all, if this person did it, I should get those same results too, right?
To me, this is like a car commercial that uses special effects to catch your attention then has an official disclaimer like "car should not be driven underwater" or "does not imply resistance to meteor strikes." It looks and sounds cool but you know it's just not real - you want to believe but...
And believe me, I would LOVE to think that results like this are possible with just a supplement. But how do you prove that those results even happened? You can't. How do you prove it was due to that supplement? You can't. How do you know the person wasn't "on" something? You can't. And how do you get your money back when it doesn't work? You can't.
About 10 years ago, I did an experiment on myself to see just how much weight I could gain in a week (keep in mind, I was just aiming for total bodyweight, which includes muscle, water and fat). By going on a very strict diet and training program for 2 weeks then completely reversing everything and loading up, I was able to gain 25 pounds of bodyweight in 7 days. And I owed it all to the incredible new supplement I was taking called Hydrogen Dioxide (a.k.a. H2O).
Here's the full story on that:
How I Gained 25 Pounds in One Week
http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru&l=1027
2. Before and After Photos
Before and after photos can be very inspiring and offer proof that a product works. Or they can fool you like the time Homer Simpson opened a can of beer that had just been in a paint shaking machine.
Here's a before and after picture technique you can try at home:
Your Before Picture:
- slouch as much as you can
- let your gut hang out and down, push it out if you can
- bow your shoulders in, hunch your back over, and bow your knees in
- stand directly square to the camera so you look as wide as possible
- frown or look miserable
- have a messy, unflattering hairdo
- wear the most unflattering clothing you can find - make sure the clothes highlight every bulge
- don't flex or tighten up anything - make yourself feel as flabby as possible
Your After Picture:
- stand up straight and tall
- suck in your gut and flex your abdominals
- keep your shoulders back
- look happy and wear a big smile
- stand slightly sideways (tilting your body at angle makes it look thinner)
- wear flattering clothing and have your hair neat
- flex all your muscles and keep everything tight
You can make quite a change in yourself pretty quickly!
3. Pay An Athlete To Get Fat Then Pay Them To Get Back In Shape
It is a little-known fact that some supplement companies have been known to actually pay well-trained athletes to stop training and get fat. Why? To get a really awful-looking "before" picture.
Then, when the athlete starts training hard again, eating right and, of course, taking their magic supplement, they get into great shape very quickly. The goal is to convince you that it was the supplement that was the key to the transformation, not the fact that it was a well-trained athlete in the first place. But an average person is NOT going to be able to make a transformation like this, no matter how good the supplement is.
When you're already a well-trained athlete, you can make dramatic changes to your body extremely quickly (as evidenced by my own 25 pounds in a week weight gain I talked about above). To me, it's like telling a professional boxer that he can only punch with his face for a few rounds. When he starts up with the fists again, he's going to make a pretty rapid improvement!
4. 6 Page Special Ad Reports
Have you ever started reading an article in a magazine only to realize partway through that you're being sold a supplement? These styles of ads are VERY common - informative enough to make you believe it's the magazine itself writing the article but, lo and behold, the best solution to the topic in the "special report" is the supplement they're trying to get you to buy.
Note to supplement companies: even a good product can be wrecked with too much slick advertising.
5. Misrepresenting Legitimate Scientific Studies
Here's the set-up: take an ingredient that showed some positive results in an isolated scientific study that has nothing to do with actual weight training, e.g. malnourished toddlers in Lithuania showed an increase in lean tissue when given nutrient "X".
Now assume that the same results will also happen in a 200 lb healthy male athlete. Tell people that nutrient "X" is backed by scientific studies. They know that you're not going to actually READ those studies!
Here's the kicker... now include 10 mg of it in your product when the effective dose in the toddlers was actually 1000 mg!
And here's a fun way to kill an afternoon: call up these companies and ask them to send you copies of the studies they've used to prove their supplements are effective. I've done that...they don't stay on the line very long. Oh, they've sent me "studies," but where I went to school, legitimate scientific studies don't generally include price lists.
6. Name Your Product Similar to a Drug and Claim It's "Almost Illegal"
Luckily for them, it's not illegal to be useless. If the only thing a product has going for it is a mashed-up name similar to a drug, pack up your underwater car and go driving through a meteor shower. It's going to be a long day.
7. Proprietary Formulas
I have no problem with people keeping the lid on the specifics of an effective formula to keep others from copying it. But when that is used an excuse to include next to nothing of the active ingredients that actually do anything...
You see, I don't want to pay for a pill that is 95% methylbullcrapsomethingorother and 5% active ingredient. When the phrase "proprietary formula" is used, the manufacturer doesn't legally have to say exactly how much of each of the ingredients is in the formula.
The best part is when the scientific study they used to prove their product works shows a dose of 5 grams is needed to be effective and their serving size/pill size is only 1 gram...AND they have 10 other ingredients listed as being in the pill.
8. Professional Bodybuilder Testimonials
Because I'm quite sure that a pro bodybuilder weighing 280lb at 4% bodyfat really gained all that muscle from a couple of scoops of some fruity powder that is supposed to give you a better pump.
9. The "Latest" Supplement
There was a time when the AMC Pacer and the Gremlin were the "latest" cars to come off the assembly line. Just because something is the "latest" doesn't mean that it actually works.
The current craze: Nitric Oxide (a product that is supposed to increase circulation to muscles, resulting in a greater "pump"/blood flow to the muscles for increasing muscle growth). Let me put it this way...I've tried it, I've researched it and don't waste your money on it.
The only way it'll work is if you mix it with something else that DOES work (like creatine, for instance). Then you're just paying extra for the privelege of combining the two supplements.
You want a better pump? Drink more water - that's what blood primarily is. The better hydrated you are, the greater your blood volume will be. Need proof? One of the primary dangers of diuretic use for reducing water levels to show muscles better is thickening of the blood, which basically is reduced blood volume. The more water you have in your body, the greater your blood volume will be and the stronger your pumps will be.
Heck, if you REALLY want to build muscle, half your day should be spent sloshing around because you've drank so much water!
10. "Eat What You Want And Still Lose Weight"
Chances are, a product like this contains something to speed up your metabolism (most likely a herbal stimulant) and/or something to block the absorption of fat or carbs. You will probably lose weight but you may be a nervous insomniac with debilitating cramps and greasy diarrhea. What a great way to promote good health!
Conclusion:
Bottom line, I have no problem with supplements or supplement ads that are legitimate. What I do have a problem with (and you probably gathered this from the article) is the way people are manipulated through clever advertising into spending their hard-earned money on useless products. It gives weight training a bad name makes even good products look suspicious.
You see, a supplement can only do so much - it can only SUPPORT what you're doing with your weight training and nutrition. If your training program or nutrition don't work without supplementation, no supplement is going to fix that.
I use supplements every single day. They can help tremendously in your training, especially when you use supplements that are effective and have proven to be so! There are plenty of good supplements and good manufacturers out there (more on that below)!
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
The Glycemic Diet - Does This "Heir-Apparent" to the Fading Low-Carb Diet Boom Hold The Key to Effective Fat Loss?
By Nick Nilsson
Learn the facts about how the Glycemic Diet works, how
well it works and if it's something that can help you
drop your extra fat quickly.
With the popularity of the Atkins/Low Carb diet fading rapidly, it was only a matter of time before the next "big thing" came along to replace it. Enter: the Glycemic Diet.
The premise of the Glycemic Diet is simple: carbs are not the bad guys-it's the TYPES of carbs you eat that are most important.
What Is It?
The Glycemic Diet is based on a scale called the Glycemic Index. The Glycemic Index (or G.I. for short) charts how quickly a food is converted into sugar in the body. Foods that have a higher G.I. number are converted into sugar more quickly than foods that have a low G.I. number, based on a scale of 1 to 100.
For example, straight glucose (which is straight sugar) has a G.I. number of 100, whereas a whole grain like barley has a G.I. number of 27. Proteins and fats, which have neglible impact on blood sugar, are generally not listed on the Glycemic Index, only carbohydrate containing foods.
So why is the G.I. number important? Insulin is secreted by the pancreas in response to increases in blood sugar in your body. Insulin is the primary storage hormone in your body and is used to help get nutrients into the different cells of your body. When blood sugar goes up, insulin is released to bring blood sugar back down by storing the sugar until a normal baseline is reached.
The faster a food is converted into blood sugar (e.g. with high G.I. foods), the higher the blood sugar levels get and the more insulin is secreted by the pancreas to help the cells of your body absorb the sugar. Your blood sugar decreases and your pancreas stops sending out insulin.
It's a simple "stimulus-response" system that works to keep blood sugar levels in balance in the body.
Now, that's all well and good but how does that affect your fat loss?
First, when insulin is present in the bloodstream, the body is in STORAGE mode and will NOT release fat from your fat cells to burn. So while blood sugar and insulin levels are high, your body isn't burning fat.
Next, while your blood sugar is up, your body is using that blood sugar for energy instead of fat. Sugar is the preferred fuel for your body because it's metabolically easier to use. This is why if you eat a carb-containing food before training, your body is going to be using primarily the sugar from that food for energy rather than your bodyfat AND, since insulin and blood sugar are present, your body is in STORAGE mode, not fat-burning mode.
[Quick Lesson - put away the Gatorade if you want to burn fat during your workout! Sports drinks have a G.I. number very near 100!]
Now comes the REAL fat loss killer...
When you eat a high G.I. food and your blood sugar levels rise very quickly, your body doesn't really know how much insulin to send out so it sends out quite a lot and keeps sending it out. The result: soon your body has sent out TOO MUCH insulin and your blood sugar levels drop BELOW normal levels.
When your blood sugar drops below normal levels, you may feel dizzy, nauseous, and (the killer for fat loss) immediately hungry for sugary foods. This is a natural defense mechanism as your body wants to get your blood sugar back up into the normal range as quickly as possible!
But then the vicious cycle starts. When you eat the sugary food to get the levels back to normal, blood sugar goes up again and BEYOND normal levels, which sends insulin levels back up again.
How The Glycemic Diet Works:
The theory of the Glycemic Diet is to put a stop to this vicious blood-sugar/insulin cycle by focusing your eating on LOW glycemic carbs. When you eat low G.I. foods, the carbs are converted into sugar (the usable form in the body is called glucose) more slowly, allowing for a steadier release of that sugar into the body. The pancreas doesn't shoot out large quantities of insulin in emergency response, which means your blood sugar doesn't drop a lot soon after eating.
This "steady-state" nutrition allows your body to more easily access stored fat and to use that fat for energy rather than constantly relying on blood sugar. The bonus...you don't get nearly as hungry because your blood sugar levels don't drop far below normal.
Think of it this way...fat burning is like walking blindfolded on the deck of a ship (stay with me here :)). When insulin and blood sugar levels fluctuate constantly up and down, it's like walking on a ship in a storm that's rocking all over the place in the waves. You have to constantly react to changes in your balance and you're not going to get very far and definitely not in a straight line.
When you eat lower glycemic foods, it's like walking in calmer seas. Even blindfolded, you're going to be able to walk fairly straight and cover a lot more distance more quickly. You won't have to be constantly reacting to changes that keeping you from walking that straight line.
And that straight line is fat loss!
Another advantage of the Glycemic Diet is that it also focuses on including good amounts of protein, healthy fats and fiber in with the foods you eat. Protein, fats and fiber, while having the advantage of no glycemic response, also work to bring DOWN the G.I. number of carb-containing foods when combined.
For example, a rice cake (a typical diet food which has a G.I. number of 87) will spike your blood sugar quickly. But put some peanut butter on it and the number drops by 10 to 20 points.
There are times when a high blood sugar response is desirable though! The only time, quite honestly, is immediately following a workout. At that time, your body is primed to use all the nutrients you put in. A G.I. carb at this time can help your body recover by spiking insulin levels. Insulin, in addition to helping sugars get into cells, also helps other nutrients like amino acids (the building blocks of protein) get into cells, which is very desirable after a workout.
The Bottom Line:
The concept of the Glycemic Diet is scientifically sound (that means it works). This is not a "fad diet" even though it may come across like one in the media. Eating low glycemic foods for fat loss can have a positive impact not only your fat loss but on your mood and well-being in general.
Think of it this way...a diet that focuses on natural, unprocessed foods such as whole grains, quality lean proteins, healthy fats and lots of fiber, regardless of the media and advertising gimmicks and hype that are used to promote it, is going to be a very effective diet.
For more information on the Glycemic Index and the Glycemic Diet, please use the following links:
http://www.mendosa.com/gi.htm
http://www.glycemicindex.com/
http://www.prevention.com/topic/0,5768,s1-3-61-114-0-0,00.html
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
Common Sense Protein FAQ - Get Answers To Your Most Frequently-Asked Questions About Protein
By Nick Nilsson
How much protein do you need? How much protein can your
body absorb at once? Will excess protein make you fat?
Learn these answers and more!
Protein: it's the nutrient that is most commonly associated with weight training, yet it's also one of the most misunderstood! When it comes right down to it, when you train with weights, your body NEEDS protein.
But when it comes to using protein (both in supplement form and in food), there is a lot of confusion. In this FAQ, you're going to get common sense answers to some of the most controversial questions that people have about protein.
QUESTION #1:
How Much Protein Does Your Body Really Need?
ANSWER:
At its simplest, your body has a baseline protein requirement that depends on a two main factors: lean body mass (muscle) and activity (type and amount).
The more muscle your body carries, the higher your protein requirement. Also, the more intense, the more frequent and the longer the activity you perform, the more protein you need.
Studies on protein requirements that demostrate a greater need for protein often meet with much controversy in scientific literature. It seems sometimes, for some reason, that many in the scientific and nutritional community are actually anti-protein! In fact, you may have even witnessed a similar prejudice when it comes to supplements as simple as vitamins as well!
Bottom line: if you train with weights, your body is breaking down protein and you need to provide it with extra protein to help rebuild. Though the exact amounts that different sources recommend varies widely between 0.7 grams per pound of bodyweight (140 grams for a 200 lb person) to levels as high as 2 grams per pound of bodyweight (400 grams for a 200 lb person), there is a solution...
Experiment for yourself! Start with a moderate protein intake of 0.7 grams per pound of bodyweight and see how you feel and how your results are. The next week, increase your protein intake a little, adding about 20 to 30 grams to your daily total. See if that makes a difference. The following week, add a little more protein.
You may find that you need more protein than you've been taking or you may find that you don't need as much protein as you think!
QUESTION #2:
How Much Protein Can The Body Digest At One Time?
ANSWER:
There are many who suggest your body can't digest and use more than 30 to 40 grams of protein at a time. I've not seen convincing research on it to say if that's true or not.
Personally, using a common sense approach, I think we need to consider a few things.
1. Think about what state your body is in. If your body needs the protein (like after workout), I think it will use and digest more of it if it's available. Your entire metabolism is accelerated after a workout and protein use in the body shoots up. If protein is just eaten during the day, smaller servings of around 40 grams may well be better.
2. It's better to have more than you need than not enough when you need it. After a workout, I take in about 60 grams of whey protein, simply because, even if my body can't use it all, I'd prefer to have a little bit more than not have enough, which would slow down recovery.
The same can certainly apply during the day. A little extra protein that your body burns up or excretes is not going to have any appreciable negative effects. But, not having protein available when your body needs it can slow and stop muscle growth.
3. Protein doesn't digest all at once, especially with meals. Think about it this way, your stomach doesn't process and send out everything it digests all at once. It works on some, then sends some on its way. This applies more to meals than protein drinks but the fact remains, your body doesn't digest a whole meal all at once. It digest a little at a time. Think of it like time-release vitamin - your body doesn't use the whole all at once but uses it over the course of the entire digestion process.
4. Different people can handle different doses of nutrients other than protein. Does it makes sense that a 250 lb bodybuilder can only digest the same amount of protein as a 110 lb woman at one time? Different metabolic systems require and can handle different dosages.
Bottom line: The limit of 30 to 40 grams of protein at once? It could be right, it could be wrong. Just make sure you're getting plenty if and when your body needs it.
QUESTION #3:
Will Eating Too Much Protein Make You Fat?
ANSWER:
The quick answer to that question is yes. However, an excess of ANY nutrient (protein, carbs or fat) has the potential to make you fat. Of the three major nutrients, protein is the LEAST likely to do so as it's primarily a structural nutrient rather than an energy nutrient.
A common sense approach to answering this question would be to break it all down by numbers.
Consider this:
1 gram of protein contains 4 calories. Your body uses approximately 40% of the calories stored in protein to break it down and digest it.
Say you eat 300 grams of protein per day and your body only needs 150 grams. That's 150 extra grams of protein per day. Of those 150 grams (which yields 600 calories), the equivalent of 60 of those grams (240 calories) will be burned digesting the extra protein.
This leaves you with 360 extra calories. A pound of fat contains 3500 calories. It's going to take a LOT of excess protein to fill up a pound of fat. Even then, if you're training hard, excess calories are burned to fuel activity (not necessarily from the protein itself but also from carbs and fat).
Bottom line: the fat-gaining effects of eating extra protein are negligible. You're better off making sure your body is getting enough protein when you're training hard.
QUESTION #4:
Do I Need To Take Protein Supplements?
ANSWER:
The answer to this question is both yes and no.
You DON'T need to supplement with protein if you're getting enough quality protein in your food in your regular diet. You also don't need to supplement if you are able to get your protein conveniently and when your body needs it (especially after a workout).
If you can get enough protein and get it when your body needs it, there's no need to supplement with it! Food sources of protein are absolutely fine and you can build and support muscle with them.
But here's the big "BUT!"
Food sources are good for daily protein requirements BUT you SHOULD supplement with protein if you're not able to get enough quality protein in your diet WHEN your body needs it.
The very best example of this is after a hard workout. Protein supplements are easily digested by your body and very convenient to simply drink after a workout. This is the time when your body needs protein the most and getting it to your muscles quickly is a top priority. Food sources of protein are just not digested as quickly as supplements for post-workout use. Supplements are an easy way to make sure your body has the protein it needs after a workout.
Also, if you have trouble getting enough protein on a regular basis throughout the day, a protein supplement is ideal for keeping your muscles supplied consistently. It's much easier to drink a protein shake than cook and eat a chicken breast!
Bottom line: while you don't always HAVE to take a protein supplement, sometimes it's a very good idea to. If nothing else, take a protein supplement IMMEDIATELY after a workout to maximize recovery and results.
QUESTION #5:
Will Eating Too Much Protein Harm My Kidneys?
ANSWER:
Only if you already have trouble with your kidneys. No studies have demonstrated damage to the kidneys with increased protein intake unless the kidneys are already damaged.
Drinking plenty of water can help the kidneys do their job of processing waste products, though! Keep in mind that there are many other variables at work in the body as well, including other bodily processes that could affect protein metabolism and excretion. If you have any concerns about protein and how your body uses it, I would definitely recommend you consult with your physician.
CONCLUSION:
These common-sense answers to frequently-asked protein questions should help you get a better idea of how you should look at and structure your protein consumption.
If you have any questions about protein intake or supplementation, including which supplements are recommended, please don't hesitate to contact me at betteru@fitstep.com.
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
Impact Carbs, Net Carbs and Effective Carbs - Is Marketing Slang Messing With Your Low-Carb Diet?
By Nick Nilsson
Find out exactly what these terms mean, how they
are being used in foods and supplements and if they are
actually effective in a low-carb diet. The answers may
surprise you!
Low-carb diets are here to stay. There is no question that they can be very effective for fat loss when done properly. But low-carb diets aren't easy for those who are used to eating a lot of carbohydrates. You must strictly limit the amount of carbohydrates that you eat in order to get results. It's not unusual for a low-carb dieter to be found gazing longingly at a piece of bread or cake!
But here comes nutrition and supplement science to the rescue in the form of non-impact carbs, net carbs and effective carbs with the promise of low-carb foods wrapped up in traditionally high-carb packages! It sounds like a dream come true to low-carb dieters who crave the taste of carb-containing foods but still want the results of a low-carb diet.
These terms are the latest buzz words in the weight loss industry but are people getting more than they bargained for with foods and supplements that are based on net, non-impact and effective carbs? Could these designer-foods be slowing or even stopping your progress on a low-carb diet?
Let's start with a little Nutrition 101. A carbohydrate is a nutrient that is used by your body for energy. It contains 4 kilocalories of energy per gram (kilocalorie is the formal name for calorie).
Your body converts the carbs that you eat into glucose/blood sugar for use in a wide variety of metabolic processes. This conversion can happen rapidly or slowly depending on the type of carbohydrate food eaten. This rate is known as the Glycemic Index. A higher number means the food is rapidly converted into glucose - a lower number means the food is more slowly converted into glucose. For example, table sugar has a high glycemic index while beans have a low glycemic index.
Generally speaking, slower conversion of carbs into blood sugar is better. Here's why...
The faster food is converted into blood sugar, the faster your blood sugar levels rise. When blood sugar levels are high, your body secretes insulin, its primary storage hormone. When insulin is present in the bloodstream, energy nutrients such as fat or carbohydrates are far more likely to be stored rather than burned. In terms of fat loss, this means fat is not readily mobilized from fat cells and fat burning slows or even stops.
By controlling insulin secretion, you can effectively improve your body's ability to mobilize fat from fat cells. Once mobilized from the fat cells, they are more readily burned for energy, i.e. you lose fat. This is the basic premise that most low-carb diets are based on (there are exceptions, i.e. ketogenic diets, which I will get into later in the article).
For a more detailed look at the Glycemic Index, check out:
http://www.glycemicindex.com/
Non-Impact Carbs:
Non-Impact carbs, in a nutshell, are carbs that have very little effect on blood sugar levels when they are eaten. Since they don't have an impact on blood sugar levels, they are technically "allowed" on most low-carb diets.
Examples of non-impact carbs that you'll see in low-carb foods and supplements include fiber, sorbitol, maltitol, and glycerol. Fiber is completely indigestible by the body and passes through unused. Sorbitol, maltitol and glycerol are what are known as "sugar alcohols." They are digested by the body but have little to no effect on blood sugar levels.
Effective Carbs:
The Effective Carb is the opposite of the Non-Impact Carb. They are carbs that will have an effect on blood sugar levels. In most low-carb diets, the idea is to place a limit on Effective Carbs to keep blood sugar and, therefore, insulin levels under control. On a strict, low-carb diet, this number can be as low as 20 grams of effective carbs per day.
Effective Carbs can be divided into two basic groups: simple and complex carbs. Simple carbs are rapidly converted into glucose by the body while complex carbs (which, as the name implies, are more complex in structure) generally take longer to convert to glucose.
Net Carbs:
The Net Carb count is basically the same as the Effective Carb count. It's the total number of carbs in the food minus the non-impact carbs. These terms can really be used interchangeably, which can be a source of confusion in consumers.
For example, if a food contains 30 grams of carbs and 10 of those carbs are fiber, the food contains 20 grams of net carbs. It's basically what's left over after you subtract everything else.
The term "Net Carb" was coined by supplement makers after glycerol (the non-impact sugar alcohol discussed above) was reclassified by the FDA as a carbohydrate. Previously, it had not been classified as either a carb or a fat and supplement makers were able to use it as a sweetener without adding to the carbohydrate count of a protein bar. When this reclassification took place, the carb counts of low-carb protein bars increased dramatically! The term "Net Carb" is a result of manufacturers wishing to keep their carb counts down while still using glycerol in the manufacturing process.
The "Up" Side:
1. Non-impact carbs are very effective at reducing the insulin response you get from eating foods made with them. This means insulin levels will stay more even throughout the day, which will definitely improve the body's ability to burn fat.
2. Non-impact carbs help low-carb dieters stick to their diets. There is no denying that sometimes you just want to eat a cookie. By eating a low-carb cookie, you get the enjoyment of the cookie while still keeping your insulin levels under control.
3. Low-carbs foods are actually being used by people who aren't on strict low-carb diets but who just want to lower their carb intake. Non-impact carbs are very effective for this purpose.
The Downside:
1. While non-impact carbs don't affect blood sugar levels, they still contain calories (except fiber, which is not digestible). A person who eats a lot of non-impact, carb-containing foods is still getting all the calories of an equivalent amount of regular carbohydrates! This fact is never highlighted in advertising for non-impact carb foods. Total caloric intake still matters on low-carb diets. If your body is getting too many calories, it won't need to burn bodyfat.
2. If you eat large amounts (or in some people, even small amounts) of sugar alcohols, you could experience what could tactfully be called the "green apple quicksteps," i.e. diarrhea. Sugar alchols are not normally found in large quantities in natural foods and the body can have a hard time digesting them. What the body has trouble digesting, it tends to get rid of as quickly as possible (if you're familiar with the results of eating Olestra, the fake fat, you will understand what I'm talking about).
3. If you're on a low-carb diet that is designed to put the body into ketosis (a state where the body burns ketones for energy instead of blood glucose), you may find eating non-impact carbs puts the body out of ketosis by providing carbohydrate-like calories. In this case, the non-impact carb basically defeats the whole purpose of the low-carb diet. If you're on a ketogenic diet, stay away from from foods that have non-impact carbs as they will have an impact on your diet.
4. The FDA has not formally defined the terms "Low-Carb," "Non-Impact Carbs" and "Net Carbs" as it has done with terms relating to fat content in food. That will surely come, but in the meantime many foods that are not particularly low-carb can get away with labeling themselves low-carb. As always, reading the nutritional information on the package and noting serving sizes is your best protection.
Is the recent flood of low-carb foods to the marketplace here to stay? Big food manufacturers are banking on it as evidenced by a recent Low-Carb Summit in Denver attended by many major companies such as Con-Agra and WalMart.
In my opinion, however, the burning question when it comes to low-carb foods is: are we getting away from the real point of the low-carb diet? Processed foods are what got us into the obesity epidemic that we're in today.
Is substituting one type of processed and manufactured food for another type of processed and manufactured food (albeit a "healthier" one) the way to go or would we be better off focusing on foods that are less processed and naturally low-carb?
The answer lies in how you choose to approach your low-carb dieting. Foods that contain "non-impact carbs" can certainly be useful on an occasional basis but I don't believe it's wise to rely on them for a significant portion of your food intake. If you rely too much non-impact carb foods, you could easily find yourself not losing or even gaining weight on your diet!
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
Stop Wasting Your Protein Powder! How To Squeeze More Results Out Of Each Scoop Of Protein Powder You Take
By Nick Nilsson
Without knowing when and how to take your protein powder
for best results, you could be flushing your gains
directly down the toilet!
It doesn't matter what brand or type of protein powder you take...if you are taking it at the wrong time, you aren't getting as much out of it as you could be. In fact, if you take your protein powder at the wrong time, you may as well just dump it in the garbage!
Here is a list of the when, why and how of effective protein supplementation, ranked in order of importance.
1. Immediately After A Workout
If you only take protein powder once per day, this is the absolute best time to take it. Immediately after you finish your workout, your body needs raw materials to rebuild and recover with. If you don't supply the raw materials through eating, your body will break down muscle from elsewhere in your body in order to rebuild the damaged areas. This is very counterproductive as you can well imagine.
By taking in some protein (20 to 30 grams or so) within minutes after exercise, you provide your body with the raw materials it needs to recover without breaking down its own muscle tissue.
2. An Hour After A Workout
About an hour following a workout, your body has settled down from the excitement and is ready to really start rebuilding. The protein that you took in immediately following the workout has been metabolized and your body is looking for more. Another protein shake at this time is a good way to help speed recovery. Try to take in another 20 to 30 grams about an hour after working out.
3. First Thing In The Morning
Immediately upon waking, or as soon after that as you can manage, take a scoop of protein powder. Your body has just been through an (approximately) 8 hour fast and is hungry for nutrients. Feed your body!
Protein powder is more quickly assimilated than solid food and gets into your muscles faster. This protein shot gives your metabolism a boost, which can help with fat loss. Be sure to follow it with a good breakfast, of course.
4. Last Thing At Night
Prepare your body for the long overnight fast by giving it a little something to work with. A good combination for this purpose is to mix a scoop of whey protein in with a small glass of milk.
Whey is what's known as a "fast" protein, meaning that it's digested quickly, while milk protein (casein) is what's known as a "slow" protein, meaning it's digested relatively slowly. At night, you want your protein to be metabolized slowly so that your body gets a more even supply over the course of the night. By mixing "fast" and "slow" proteins, you get the benefits of the higher-quality whey with the slower digestion time of the milk.
5. In-between Meals
A quick protein shake can be a great snack in between meals. It helps keep your body supplied with protein all day long. This is especially useful if you tend to have long periods of time in-between meals. It could mean the difference between losing muscle and building or keeping muscle!
6. With Meals
Taking a protein supplement with meals is a handy way to increase the protein content of a meal. This is perfect for when you eat
a meal that is somewhat low in protein.
7. In The Middle Of The Night
This is a trick that bodybuilders sometimes use in order to keep their muscles supplied with protein throughout the night. Keep a pre-mixed protein shake right beside your bed. Although some trainers have been known to set alarms to wake up to drink it, I prefer to have it there waiting just in case I wake up, but I don't try to wake up on purpose. If I don't wake up, it's right there ready for me to drink first thing in the morning! This strategy is more targeted for muscle growth rather than fat loss.
WARNING!
Never drink a protein supplement immediately before working out!
Some people do this thinking that it will give them an energy boost or give them a head-start for post-workout recovery. Basically, all it does is sit in their stomach and bloat them up. Valuable blood that should be going to working muscles gets sent to the digestive system to try and digest it. The same warning goes for taking protein during a workout. Don't do it!
Taking protein powder is not going to make up for poor diet or a bad program but it can definitely help to support you in your training efforts. Take it at the right time and you'll get the most bang for your buck!
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
Are You Cheating Yourself Out Of 50% or More Of Your Hard-Earned Results?
By Nick Nilsson
What Every Trainer, From Beginner to Advanced, NEEDS To
Know About Post-Workout Nutrition and The Four-Hour
Window of Opportunity.
I have one question for you. What is your post-workout nutritional regimen?
If you answered "nothing," you are cheating yourself out of results that are rightfully yours. You may be wasting as much as 50% of your effort in the gym by not maximizing your post-workout nutrition!
When you exercise, your body burns carbohydrates for energy and breaks down your muscle tissue (especially if you are weight training). Immediately after a workout, the body has an enhanced ability to utilize nutrients such as glucose (sugar) and protein (your body's main building blocks) in order to rebuild and recover from your exercise.
What this essentially means is that your body is turbocharged and ready to grow! This period of power lasts for approximately four hours after a workout, hence the name "Four-Hour Window of Opportunity."
Taking in nutrients immediately after exercise helps you to recover faster and feel better after a workout. This can help you to not only gain muscle faster, but also keep your metabolism fueled so that you lose fat at a faster rate too!
But what happens if you don't eat immediately following a workout? Let me put it this way: it's definitely a situation you want to avoid.
First, your body starts breaking down muscle tissue in undamaged areas of your body in order to get raw materials to help repair the areas you just worked. Over time, this will result in a loss of muscle from your whole body.
Stress hormones in the body (primarily a hormone called cortisol) speed this process along. The stress hormones are produced because working out is a stress on the body - it's a totally natural but results-stopping reaction. How do you control the effects of cortisol? You eat as soon as you can.
But what do you eat after a workout to maximize your results? Both protein and carbohydrates are important for fast recovery.
Protein - Immediately following a workout (within a few minutes of completion) take in some protein. The easiest and best way to do this is in the form of a protein powder (whey is an excellent choice), though a food source such as milk will do.
Taking protein gives your body something to rebuild with instead of tearing down its own muscle tissue for raw materials. Do not take protein right before a workout as it will just sit in your gut and possibly cause bloating. Try to get about 30 to 40 grams of protein in as soon as you can after you're done.
Carbohydrates - Take in about 60 to 100 grams of carbohydrates to help the body refuel. Your body is most efficient at rebuilding its carbohydrate stores immediately after a workout. It's important to take advantage of this period.
A few common examples of healthy carbs to take after a workout include juices, fruits, and sports drinks. Examples of protein foods include milk, eggs, poultry, fish, meat, or soy products. Flavored yogurt is an excellent example of a post-workout snack. It contains carbs, protein and calcium all in one.
Post-Workout Meal - About one hour after your workout, take in a high quality source of protein (as in the examples above) and a good supply of carbohydrates such as grains, potatoes, cereals, etc. At this time, the body has settled down from the stress of the workout and is looking to rebuild.
If you're looking to get as much from your workouts as you possibly can, you can see that post-workout nutrition is critical. By supplying an ample amount of raw materials right after you're done, you will be preventing the body from breaking itself down in order to recover. This means more results from the effort you put into your workouts!
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
I Didn't Realize How Important Protein Was For Fat Loss Until I Discovered Something That Blew My Mind...
By Nick Nilsson
Learn why protein is the often-forgotten critical factor in fat loss.
The year was 1992. I had just finished a long cycle of weight gain whereupon I had moved my bodyweight up from about 150 pounds to about 215 pounds. And let me just tell you, it wasn't all muscle!
I hadn't been all that careful about my diet previously but I thought I knew pretty well what I was doing. It was time to lose some of that fat.
The first thing I did was make the biggest mistake a dieter can make: in my focus of trying to eat only low fat foods, I unwittingly and drastically reduced the amount of protein that I was eating.
The result? I lost weight and plenty of it. The problem was, I lost mostly muscle! I was smaller, weaker, lighter and nearly as fat as I was before. Not quite the results I was looking for.
In retrospect, I know exactly what I did wrong and it's something I'll never do again.
I FORGOT ABOUT PROTEIN!
Protein is an extremely important nutrient whether your goal is to lose fat, gain muscle or just tone yourself up. It is the main structural nutrient in your body, making up the bulk of your muscles and organs. Protein is essential for proper hormone function and immune system health. Most importantly, for our purposes, protein is used for building and repairing muscle tissue.
When you are trying to lose fat, you reduce your calories. Unfortunately, your body views fat stores as more precious than your muscle tissue and will tend to eat up muscle tissue before it goes to fat for energy. This physiological adaptation used to protect our ancestors from famine but works against us now.
This is very unfortunate because muscle tissue is a great calorie-burner. The more muscle you have, the more calories you burn even when you're doing absolutely nothing! Protecting your muscle tissue makes fat loss so much easier, it will amaze you. Not only that, it will help you keep that fat off permanently!
What can you do to protect your muscle tissue?
The first thing you can do is exercise. Exercise, especially resistance training, provides a stimulus for your body that sends it a signal saying "keep this muscle, you're going to need it."
The second thing you can do is provide your body with enough protein. This can be in the form of food or supplements.
Good food sources of protein include chicken, fish, eggs, lean meats, legumes (beans), soy, and dairy products. Protein supplements are derived from food sources but are concentrated for convenience and effectiveness.
How much protein do you need?
The standard recommendation for athletes is between 1.2 to 1.7 grams per kilogram of bodyweight per day (or 0.5 to 0.7 grams per pound of bodyweight per day), though some research indicates a ratio as high as 2 grams per kilogram of bodyweight per day (0.9 grams per pound) is beneficial. This means if you weigh 150 pounds, you should try to eat between 75 and 105 grams and up to around 135 grams of protein per day.
Essentially, you should experiment with your protein intake to find out what works best for you. As far as importance in your supplement program goes, I would rank protein as next in importance to a good multi-vitamin.
When I made my first grand attempt at fat loss, I made the mistake of neglecting protein and it cost me. Don't make the same mistake I did!
How to Maximize The Results You Get From Your Protein Powder. Timing Is Everything!
Whether it be for fat loss or muscle gain, I always recommend taking a good protein supplement. The reason for this is simple: it is a convenient way to get high-quality protein without excess calories.
Be aware, however, that in no way am I advocating that you live on protein powder (like the dangerous Liquid Protein diets that used to be popular) alone. The key point to understand here is that a protein supplement is exactly what the name suggests: a supplement. It should be taken in addition to a nutritious diet in order to achieve a certain purpose, in this case increased protein intake.
Protein powders and protein bars can also be used as meal replacements on occasion, especially when you are on the go. They are far more nutritious than a fast food meal and more convenient.
The most popular and highest quality protein powder is whey protein. Whey is very digestable and is used efficiently in the body.
You can maximize the effects you get from your protein supplement simply by knowing exactly when to take it. Here is a list of the when, why and how of effective protein supplementation, ranked in order of importance.
1. Immediately After A Workout
If you only take protein once per day, this is the absolute best time to take it. Immediately after you finish your workout, your body needs raw materials to rebuild and recover with. If you don't supply the raw materials through eating, your body will break down muscle from elsewhere in your body in order to rebuild the damaged areas. This is very counterproductive as you can well imagine.
By taking in some protein (20 to 30 grams or so) within minutes after exercise, you provide your body with the raw materials it needs to recover without breaking down it's own muscle tissue.
2. An Hour After A Workout
About an hour following a workout, your body has settled down from the excitement and is ready to really start rebuilding. The protein that you took in immediately following the workout has been metabolized and your body is looking for more. Another protein shake at this time is a good way to help speed recovery. Try to take in another 20 to 30 grams about an hour after working out.
3. First Thing In The Morning
Immediately upon waking, or as soon after that as you can manage, take a scoop of protein powder. Your body has just been through an (approximately) 8 hour fast and is hungry for nutrients. Feed your body!
Protein powder is more quickly assimilated than solid food and gets into your muscles faster. This protein shot gives your metabolism a boost, which can help with fat loss. Be sure to follow it with a good breakfast, of course.
4. Last Thing At Night
Prepare your body for the long overnight fast by giving it a little something to work with. A good combination for this purpose is to mix a scoop of whey protein in with a small glass of milk.
Whey is what's known as a "fast" protein, meaning that it's digested quickly, while milk protein (casein) is what's known as a "slow" protein, meaning it's digested relatively slowly. At night, you want your protein to be metabolized slowly so that your body gets a more even supply over the course of the night. By mixing "fast" and "slow" proteins, you get the benefits of the higher-quality whey with the slower digestion time of the milk.
5. In-between Meals
A quick protein shake can be a great snack in between meals. It helps keep your body supplied with protein all day long. This is especially useful if you tend to have long periods of time in-between meals. It could mean the difference between losing muscle and building or keeping muscle!
6. With Meals
Taking a protein supplement with meals is a handy way to increase the protein content of a meal. This is perfect for when you ake
a meal that is somewhat low in protein.
7. In The Middle Of The Night
This is a trick that bodybuilders sometimes use in order to keep their muscles supplied with protein throughout the night. Keep a pre-mixed protein shake right beside your bed. Although some trainers have been known to set alarms to wake up to drink it, I prefer to have it there waiting just in case I wake up, but I don't try to wake up on purpose. If I don't wake up, it's right there ready for me to drink first thing in the morning! This strategy is more targeted for muscle growth rather than fat loss.
WARNING!
Never drink a protein supplement immediately before working out!
Some people do this thinking that it will give them an energy boost or give them a head-start for post-workout recovery. Basically, all it does is sit in their stomach and bloat them up. Valuable blood that should be going to working muscles gets sent to the digestive system to try and digest it. The same warning goes for taking protein during a workout. Don't do it!
By following these protein-intake recommendations, you will increase the effectiveness of your supplementation. Even if you choose to take advantage of only one or two of these timing techniques, you will certainly see an improvement in your recovery ability.
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
Ephedra - Is It Safe And Effective?
By Nick Nilsson
Burn fat while you sleep! Eat whatever you want and still lose
weight! Don't suffer through hours of grueling exercise to burn fat!
You've probably heard all these phrases before but are the fat burners containing ephedra that these claims are attached to really that effective and are they safe?
The primary ingredient in fat burners is the herb ephedra, also known as ma huang, or it's manufactured version ephedrine. It has been used in Chinese herbal medicine quite safely and effectively for thousands of years. It is often combined with synthetic or herbal versions of caffeine (e.g. guarana, yerba mate or kola nut) and aspirin (e.g. white willow bark).
But does it burn fat?
The answer to that question is yes. Ephedra does effectively help the body to preferentially burn fat for energy. But, according to medical studies, there can be side effects, some of which are quite serious.
Ephedra works to burn fat through several means.
- Its chemical makeup increases the breakdown of fatty tissue for fuel.
- Its stimulatory properties help to increase resting metabolism. This process is known as thermogenesis, which is essentially excess heat production. You body burns more calories simply by producing more body heat.
- When ephedra is combined with caffeine and aspirin, it may have appetite suppressant effects.
- The nervous system stimulation you get can help you maintain your energy levels, which can aid you in your exercise program.
When used according to instructions and in moderate doses, studies suggest that fat-burning formulas containing ephedra, caffeine and aspirin can be safely and effectively used to SUPPLEMENT a good fat-burning program.
Fat burners should never be used as the sole means to achieve fat loss. A good fat loss program must also address diet and exercise, contrary to the hype you see on television and in print. Anyone who relies solely on pills to lose fat is usually doomed to regain the lost weight and potentially quite rapidly after they stop taking the pills.
There is a reason for this weight gain. These pills are effective, therefore the person does not necessarily have to change the habits that made them overweight in the first place. When a person discontinues use of ephedra without changing those habits, almost inevitably the weight will come back.
The fat-burning effects of ephedra do not come without a price, however. Ephedra has a number of side effects and should not be taken by people with certain conditions.
Some of these side effects may include: jitteriness, sleeplessness, increased heart rate and blood pressure, anxiety, skin flushing or tingling and nausea.
People who should not take ephedra include those suffering from heart disease, anxiety attacks, high blood pressure, diabetes, adrenal disease, thyroid disease or prostate disorders. If you are taking medication for high blood pressure or are taking antidepressants or MAO inhibitors, you should stay away from ephedra. Also, it is not recommended for pregnant women to use this herb.
Now that you know some of the pros and cons of taking ephedra supplements you, along with your doctor, can use this information to help decide whether or not ephedra is right for you.
For more information on fat loss and exercise, visit
http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru&l=1039
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.
The Atkins Diet - Separating Fact From Fiction
By Nick Nilsson
Have you ever wished for a diet where you ate bacon, eggs,
red meat, butter and sausage all day? Surprise!
It's not the Atkins Diet.
The Atkins Diet has been in existence for over 30 years and has enjoyed a surge in popularity over the last few years.
Pioneered by Dr. Robert Atkins, the theory behind the Atkins Diet is simple. Your body prefers to utilize carbohydrates (such as in grains, cereals, breads, etc.) for energy and will burn them first prior to body fat. By cutting down dramatically on carbohydrates in your diet, you force your body to burn fat for energy.
Reducing the carbohydrates in your diet puts your body into a state called "ketosis." This word is derived from the "ketones" that are used by your body for energy when sugars/carbs aren't available. When you are in this state of ketosis, your body is producing ketones from your fat that is being burned for energy. Ketones are essentially the leftovers from this process and are used in place of sugar in the body.
One of the major misconceptions about the Atkins Diet that has been widely reported is that you can or should eat extremely unhealthy, fatty foods all the time. This is not actually true. Dr. Atkins recommends that you limit your intake of these types of foods (e.g. butter, sausage, bacon, etc.) and instead focus on healthy fats such as olive oil, fish oil, nuts, etc.
The Atkins Diet has many positives and negatives that have been associated with it. Some of the positives include:
- Rapid Weight Loss - though the first couple of days the majority of weight lost is water, your body does become more efficient at fat burning and you do lose fat.
- Reduced Mood or Energy Swings - eating carbohydrates (especially sugary ones) can lead to mood and energy swings. This is often seen as the post-lunchtime or afternoon energy crash. When you eliminate the carbs, you eliminate the source of this problem.
- Reduced Consumption of Refined Foods - highly refined foods are the source of many health problems. The more processed a food is, the less nutrients are generally in it. The Atkins Diet encourages a focus on the consumption of more natural state foods such as vegetables, lean meats, fish, eggs and healthy oils.
Some of the negatives that have been associated with the Atkins Diet include:
- Rapid Regaining of Lost Weight - this can happen when a person comes off the Atkins Diet. They regain all the weight they lost. One of the major reasons for this is that when you eliminate the carbs from your diet for a long period of time, your body becomes more sensitive to them. When you go back to your regular eating habits (which may not have been great to begin with), your body reacts more strongly to the sugar and carbs in foods, leading to weight gain. This weight gain can be reduced by easing off the Atkins Diet gradually rather than by feasting on carbohydrates.
- Lack of Food Choices - it can be difficult to find things to eat that are low carb. Most grocery stores are primarily stocked with carbohydrate-laden foods and it can get boring eating the same things over and over again. Luckily, with the popularity of the Atkins diet and other low carb diets, there are many delicious recipes available to help alleviate this boredom.
The Atkins Diet may not be for you but by incorporating some of the principles in it, such as lowering your carbohydrate intake and eating more natural-state foods, you may find that you can achieve great results without ever having to restrict yourself. It may take a little longer but the results will be more permanent as it is more of a lifestyle change than a diet.
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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including "Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss," "The Best Exercises You've Never Heard Of," "Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!" and "The Best Abdominal Exercises You've Never Heard Of" all available at (http://hop.clickbank.net/?fitrition/betteru). He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.