BQuick Speed Camp to be held on June 27th

BQuick Athletic Development is proud to announce a 1 day Speed Camp

Where: The camp will be held at the Madisonville Rec Field on Pine St. (2 blocks south of Badeaux's in Madisonville, on the right hand side)

When: June 27, 2009, From 9am-12pm.

Ages: 6 and up

Description: This camp will focus on the basics of speed and performance enhancement, movement training and proper form and technique as it relates to sprinting and changing direction.
The camp will begin with dynamic flexibility (flexibility in motion) and speed drills, which are the foundation of the remaining training techniques that will also be taught at the camp. These training techniques include, plyometrics, neuromuscular training to assist in kinesthetic awareness and proprioception (knowing where their growing bodies are in space), speed drills and fitness games to improve efficiency of movement in any and all directions. We will finish with static flexibility, core work, and will also speak to the kids about proper nutrition and fueling their bodies properly.

Things to Bring: water/sports drink, snack, cleats/tennis shoes, change of clothes, and a positive attitude!

Cost: $25 by June 13, $35 after June 13, walk up registration welcome.

Registration Form for BQuick Speed Camp

More Nutrition Facts from John Faciane

Coach John has sent us some great new nutrition facts, that's right, COACH JOHN!!!! John is now coaching and training with us and has been doing a great job because of how passionate he is and his love for people and helping them in their quest for health, wellness, fitness and performance!!!! THANKS COACH JOHN!!!!

Here are those facts:
Scientists aren't exactly saying that wine, chocolate and tea make you smarter-but those flavonoid-rich foods were associated with better performance on a battery of cognitive tests in a new Norwegian study. Researchers tested 2,031 older adults, ages 70 to 74, and compared scores to subjects' self-reported food consumption. Those who consumed all three-wine, chocolate and tea-had significantly better average cognitive-test scores and the lowest likelihood of poor test performance. The association with better cognitive performance was strongest for wine and modestly weaker for chocolate.-Journal of Nutrition

Even if you don't have diabetes, lowering your blood-glucose levels may be good for your brain. Columbia University scientists report that higher levels of blood glucose are associated with dysfunction in an area of the brain's hippocampus; dysfunction in this part of the brain with normal aging is known to contribute to cognitive decline. The MRI-scan study of 240 dementia-free adults age 65 and older included both diabetics and non-diabetics. Negative effects on the brain could be seen even when blood sugar was only moderately elevated. "We have a behavioral recommendation-physical exercise," said researchers, noting that exercise improves glucose regulation.-Annals of Neurology

More Benefits of Red Wine

Yet another great fact(s) about red wine from John Faciane:

"Everyone has enzymes that repair DNA as it gets damaged due to oxidative stress and other factors, but as we get older these enzymes slow down and stop working. When the enzymes stop functioning properly, we get cancer, age, and/or die. Compounds in red wine have been found to keep these enzymes working perfectly for much, much longer than they otherwise would, which results in increased lifespan! The researchers actually said that this compound has been proven to increase lifespan in animal test subjects. Yet another reason for you to enjoy a glass of red wine!"

The antioxidant capacity of 5-7oz of wine per day is what helps to protect and preserve DNA in the same way that fruits and vegetables work to protect our DNA and anti-oxidize free radicals (realize it says 5-7oz per day, not 50-70oz, that means one glass!). As you start to drink 9oz and over, the antioxidant capacity drops significantly and it can actually become a detriment to your body and mind. My next blog will be about antioxidants and how they work to combat free radicals because we hear the term antioxidant all of the time, but very rarely is it ever explained so you can understand it. If you are over 21, drink a glass of red wine per day!

Training Tips:

Here are a few tips if you are implementing an exercise program into your life or if you have already been at it for a while:

 

1.)  Ease into things:  If you have not trained in a while, make sure to ease your way into it, especially the older you get (because as we age our growth hormone levels lower, which impairs our ability to recover as fast).  A great example is my father.  He will lay off of exercise and running for a year or two, then go out to the track thinking he is in world class condition like Usain Bolt!  He will go out and try to run 2 400's, 2 300's, 2 200's, and 2 100's on the first day.  This is why he came back the last time with a torn hamstring which was black and blue from his knee to his glute up the back of his leg.  Ease into it for better results later in your program.  Build a great, solid base and you will thank yourself later.

 

2.)  Make sure that your program is well balanced with all of these things:  Diet, Cardiovascular Training, Strength Training, Flexibility Training, and Education.

 

3.)  Diet:  this is the most important aspect of your regime.  you get out of your body what you put into it.  I know people who cycle 150 miles per week, weight train, run and swim several miles per week and are still obese.  They wonder why, and the first thing I always ask people is, "what is your diet like?".  Then they smirk, roll their eyes and before they say anything I know they eat whatever they want whenever they want it.  This will simply not work.  Diet alone can change someone's body composition tremendously even without exercise.  Don't take that the wrong way, i firmly believe in exercise but am trying to explain how important diet is!  Eat right--lean and clean always!  No excuses, such as, "I am always eating out".  There are always alternatives and things you can eat that are great for you while at restaurants:  fish, vegetables, lean meats, etc.  Eat well always and reap the benefits, both in body and mind.  Nourish your, body, your brain, and all functions of the body by ingesting the RIGHT things!  Yesterday, i saw a young girl I know who has hypothyroidism, standing by a cotton candy station at an all sports fair.  She ate some until it was gone, then put more on her stick and slammed it.  Her mom said nothing to her!  OOOOOOhhhhhhh, that heats me up, but, i threw in my two cents and told her how bad it was for her.  The cotton candy man didn't think that was a good comment to throw out amongst all the other kids too, so I had to explain myself to him.

 

4.)  Cardiovascular Training:  the heart is the most important and underlying muscle in the body that supplies the rest of the body's musculature, organs, etc., with blood, fuel, and much, much more.  We need a healthy blend of working both energy systems and its corresponding musculature.  This can be achieved by incorporating 1-2 days per week of continuous, aerobic training, holding a nice consistent pace on cardio of your choice (60-80% of heart rate max).  Second, we need a good 1-2 days of tempo work, where you hold that nice consistent pace, but increase your intensity every so often to increase your heart rate, then return to the consistent pace, then repeat.  The last 1-2 days should be spent at a higher heart rate for a certain duration of time (80-90% of heart rate max), or you can sprint several times until you achieve and reach your heart rate max.  Doing all of these things will ensure you are burning a healthy blend of protein, fats, and carbohydrates for fuel.

 

5.)  Strength Training:  will help to increase your metabolism not only during training, but throughout the day as well.  Strength training helps us to get stronger and sculpt our bodies.  It also has several other benefits:  injury prevention, bone density, strengthening the tendons, joints, ligaments and overall musculature of the body, etc.  Core work/Core Training is also included in this and is also one of the most important aspects of your strength training.  Every movement in your body is initiated from your spine and its surrounding musculature (CORE), which is why it's so very important to train the CORE in its entirety.

 

6.)  Flexibility Training:  for health, vitality, and longevity.  This will help you to recover from the others demands that you place upon your body.  It will limit the chance for injury, and, the longer your muscles are, the more force they can generate.  I call this the rubber band principle:  the more you stretch out a rubber band, the more force it will generate, which is the same as your musculature.  There is also a core element to the flexibility training when doing yoga and pilates.  Dynamic Flexibility (flexibility in motion) can be done before exercise or moving, or simply as another form of flexibility work for variation.

 

7.)  Education:  educate yourself on all of the previous things so that you too can make informed decisions at they relate to your health, wellness, and fitness goals.  Education is empowerment.

 

8.)  Variation:  vary what you do within each of these components.  From changing what you eat, to changing strength training routines, this will help ensure that you do not hit plateaus (sticking points in your progress), and will also help to cut down on boredom since you will always be changing it up and doing something new and exciting.

 

9.)  It's not a bad idea to hire someone to help you with this:  hire someone to give you a little help with all of these components.  Let a health and fitness professional guide you in you journey, lending a helpful ear and a helpful hand in what you are doing, making sure you are doing things safe and the right way.  We can provide internet coaching, 1 on 1 training, group training, program design and implementation (where we design a program specifically for you and implement this program with you, making sure you understand each and every aspect of it.  Even if you hire someone for 1 hour per week or month, it will help you in all of your health and fitness endeavors. 

 

Give me a call, shoot me a message here, or email me for help with any and all of the above.

 

Brandt Quick

504 451 5391
bquick@bquickfitness.com

Eat an Avocado Today

Eat an avocado today for several reasons: great for your heart and cardiovascular system because of all the great fats in avocados, they also have tons of fiber which is needed in our diets to aid in digestion, they have tons of vitamins and minerals which are great for your skin as well as the rest of the body, vitamin K, the electrolyte potassium, folate, vitamin b6, and vitamin c. 

Eat the avocado plain, on a salad, or with some olive oil and red wine vinegar for an even more heart-healthy snack, eat an avocado today! I am going to mix mine with my egg whites and turkey bacon this morning, we call this a bacado omelette!

Two Healthy Sunday Snacks

This is easy. Ingredients you will need (although not limited to just these, be creative): strawberries, blueberries, apple, orange, raspberries, plums, pears, and bananas. Chop each of these up into bite size pieces and mix together. You can also top this with cottage cheese or fresh yogurt (which has lactobacillus acidophilus that promotes great intestinal flora and aids in digestion and overall internal health).


Another healthy Sunday snack, ingredients you will need: Avocados, Tomatoes, Cucumbers. Chop all of these up into bite sized pieces, mix with olive oil and red wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar and enjoy for a heart healthy snack! Avocados and olive oil both have great fats! All of the roughage has a great fiber content and vitamins and minerals! you will feel like a million bucks after eating this one!

Enjoy and have a beautiful Sunday!

BQuick

TRICK OR TREAT

This Halloween, we are not giving out the traditional candy for trick or treaters or our athletes and clients (not that we ever did). However, this year, we are making a special treat for athletes, clients and trick or treaters that will actually give them some great fuel for their minds and bodies at such a pivotal time in their growth and development.

What we are giving them will include per one cup: 8g good fats (mono- and poly- unsaturated fats), 3g saturated fat (which will come from the milk chocolate in the m&m's), 2mg cholesterol (from milk chocolate), 28g carbohydrates, 2g fiber, 17g sugar (mainly from milk chocolate and the fruit), 4g protein.

Obviously, as you can see, if you pick out the m&m's, it will be a lot healthier! This power-packed treat has all of the essentials of growth, development, and fuel for the mind and body! Nuts are one of the best and healthiest snacks that you can put in your body. They encompass good fats, carbs, protein and fiber. Dry fruit will give us fiber, good sugars, and vitamins and minerals that are essential to our life. Cheerios give us great carbohydrates, fiber, vitamins and minerals. This well rounded snack also has 4g of protein to help rebuild and repair our tissues that we break down through activity! All of this is making me hungry! I wish everyone was serving treats like this door to door, I would actually go trick or treating! TRICK OR TREAT, I'm opting for the TREAT!

Another Awesome Fact About Tea:

Tea, when drunk with fish (especially sushi) that may have some mercury contamination, blocks up to 92% of the mercury from being absorbed into the blood! The reason is that the catechins in the tea react with mercury to form a substance that cannot be absorbed by the body. White, Green and Black tea were shown to have the same results. That being said, always drink tea when eating fish!

Artichokes for Lowering Cholesterol and Digestive Health

The globe artichoke is one of the oldest known cultivated vegetables, originating from Ethiopia, with Italy currently being the world’s largest producer.

It was valued in ancient Greece and Rome as a digestive aid, available only to the wealthy due to its scarcity.

It was the French and Spanish explorers who fist brought artichokes to the shores of the United States, and today virtually all of the globe artichokes grown in the US are produced in Castroville, California.

Health Benefits of Artichokes

Nutrients
Globe artichokes are an excellent source of dietary fiber, magnesium, and the trace mineral chromium. They are a very good source of vitamin C, folic acid, biotin, and the trace mineral manganese. They are a good source of niacin, riboflavin, thiamin, vitamin A, and potassium.

Cholesterol
There have been numerous studies on artichoke extract ever since European scientists first discovered cynarin's ability to lower cholesterol in the 1970's. Caffeoylquinic acids, such as cynarin are the active ingredients in artichokes that lower cholesterol, with higher concentrations in the leaves. A 6 week double blind, placebo controlled clinical trial of 143 patients has demonstrated without a doubt to the effectiveness of artichoke leaf extract for lowering cholesterol. The decrease of total cholesterol in the group that received the extract was 18.5% compared to 8.6% in for the placebo group. LDL-cholesterol decrease in the AE group was 22.9% and 6.3% for placebo. LDL/HDL ratio showed a decrease of 20.2% in the AE group and 7.2% in the placebo group.. A compound found in artichoke called luteolinis is also believed to assist with reducing cholesterol.
Artichoke extract is available here..

Irritable bowel syndrome
In a trial involving 208 adults, results provide support for the notion that artichoke leaf extract has potential value in relieving IBS symptoms.

Indigestion
In a double-blind trial, 247 patients with dyspepsia (digestive problems) were treated with artichoke leaf extract, and the results demonstrated an improvement in their dyspeptic symptoms. Dyspepsia is often attributed to insufficient flow of bile from the gallbladder, and there is evidence that artichoke leaf has the ability to stimulate this flow.

Diabetes
The carbohydrate in artichokes is in the form of inulin, which has been shown to stabilize blood sugar levels in diabetics. The artichokes must be fresh, as the inulin will eventually convert to other sugars as the artichoke ages.

Hangovers
Contrary to what some would like to believe, a study demonstrated the ineffectiveness of artichoke extract in the cure of alcohol-induced hangovers.

http://www.elements4health.com

Great Breakfast Tips

Breakfast is definitely the most important meal of the day, along with your snacks throughout the day and other meals. The reason breakfast is so important is this: when we wake up in the morning (depending on how much sleep we had, and the last time we ate before going to bed) our glycogen stores deplete after 8 hours (this may happen a little later or sooner for others, depending on your individual metabolism). This means that all of the carbohydrates that we have stored in our liver and our musculature is depleted. Our brain needs sugar (carbohydrates) to function and keep the rest of our autonomic (parasympathetic) nervous system functioning properly and efficiently. Once our glycogen stores are depleted, our body will first go to muscle tissue to break down for sugar for the brain. We work very hard to build this tissue and maintain it, so why would you want your body to eat it away? This is why it is essential to eat as close to opening you eyes in the morning as possible. This will ensure that your brain and body have fuel to function. Make sure that you eat well-balanced, and this will ensure that your brain and body are functioning optimally!
Secondly, what do you think will happen within your body if you omit breakfast from your life and if you are one of those people who do not eat until mid-morning or lunch? As soon as you do eat, your body will store a lot of it as fat. Why? Because you tricked your body into not knowing when the next time it is that you are going to feed it because you have gone so long without eating, therefore, your body must store some of this fuel as fat, to be used as a reserve of energy if you do not eat for another long, extended period of time. EAT BREAKFAST! If you do not eat breakfast now, however start to, you may even end up seeing yourself lose a few pounds! Remember, eat often throughout the day, the volume of how much you eat depends on your goals: getting leaner, losing weight, or gaining weight.

The following article is something I've found, and has a few good tips in it for you:

Make Time for Breakfast
Start the day with a healthy meal

(HealthDay News) -- Your mother probably urged you to eat a healthy breakfast, noting it was the day's most important meal.

She was right, says the Nemours Foundation, which offers these suggestions on how to refuel your kids to begin their day:

* Keep your kitchen full of healthy, quick and easy breakfast choices.
* If morning time is at a premium, try to prepare for breakfast the night before. Set out dishes, prepare and cut up food, etc.
* Wake your family 10 minutes earlier than usual to allow time for breakfast.
* Encourage your child to help decide what to have for breakfast. The child can even help prepare it.
* Have on-the-go breakfast options ready for mornings when you're running late, including fresh fruit, yogurt, trail mix, and individual boxes of cereal.
* Pack a nutritious snack for your child if he or she isn't hungry first thing in the morning.


-- Diana Kohnle

Over Training: A couple questions to ask yourself.....

Here is a question that I had received from a friend and colleague about a problem she was having and my response to her. If you are having any issues like this, take a step back and answer a couple of these questions:

"Maybe you can offer some advice, through all my Ironman training, all of a sudden I am getting a cramp or muscle spasm in my left hamstring. Any idea's? Overuse?? It is not all of the time, it can cramp even when I am just sitting here."


When is the last time you took a week completely off? A couple days? A day? If you cannot remember when, you are definitely over training. Do you take vitamin E? Vitamin E directly correlates to the hamstrings. If you are taking too much or not enough that could be a problem. What about electrolytes, sodium/potassium, and calcium/magnesium? These all need to be kept in balance and if they are off, that could be contributing to the problem. What do you refuel with? Have you had a massage lately? When is your race? If you can answer a few of these questions I can give you some more specific recommendations. I hope it feels better!

Why Training is Great for Our Immune System!

When we train, our bodies rip our tissues (musculature, tendons, ligaments, etc.) apart (in a good way) because of the specific demand that we place upon them through training (resistance/weight training, cardiovascular training, speed agility conditioning work, flexibility and core training). When these tissues are broken down, it is the job of our immune systems to go back in there and rebuild and repair those tissues to adapt to the specific demands that we place upon them: ie., to be stronger, faster, more flexible, jump higher, etc.

We strengthen and refine our immune systems just as we strengthen and refine the rest of our bodies and minds! However, we need to listen to our bodies. Sometimes when you may feel like you are getting sick (which hopefully never happens, but if it does....), do not train or do not train hard. If you do, you are asking a lot of your immune system and it will not be able to completely fight off what it may be trying to if you are placing excess demand upon it because of training hard at the same time. Be smart, listen to your body, and continue to train when you are 100% healthy for a stronger, more durable immune system!

REST

Rest is one of the most overlooked, most important parts of a training program. Our bodies adapt to the demands placed upon them when we rest. There are a couple forms of rest: complete rest and active rest and recovery. Complete rest is when we just do that, REST. Lying around, hardly moving, and allowing our bodies to adapt to the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual demands placed upon them. Last week was exam week for most students, and as you know this can take a toll on you mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually if you are praying very hard for the ability to study longer and asking to be guided through the process of studying and taking the tests! This mental, emotional, and spiritual stress and tension can lead to physical exhaustion when it's all said and done. Complete rest days are to be taken advantage of with: Epsom salt baths, whirlpool therapy, contrast (hot/cold) therapies, dry saunas, steam rooms, ice/heat, floating around in a pool, massage, laughter, light stretching and deep breathing with an emphatic emphasis on deep breathing.

Active rest and recovery is when we do light, gentle yoga, light blood flow workouts to flush out the metabolic waste from our tissues, light swimming, eating the right foods for recovery (pineapple has an enzyme called bromelain, which is a natural anti-inflammatory) and any activity or sport that we deem fun and enjoyable.
Please do not ignore this very important component of your training program as it is one of the most important. Schedule your rest days accordingly, just like you plan your weekly workouts! Please let me know if you have any specific questions or concerns and have a great day! SMILE! It's contagious

Difference in Musculature and Energy Systems

While training a baseball team recently, we were testing them on their verticals and broad jumps (standing long jumps). During the testing, they were all excited and wanted to see where one of our coaches and myself could jump to in both events. I told them that i would once they were finished and so did Scott Cook, who is one of our great coaches. To my disappointment, I only jumped a 32 in my vertical, and 8 ft 10 in in my broad jump. The reason this disappoints me is because when I tried out for the NFL, I jumped a 36 in the vertical and a 9ft 8in in the broad jump. However, I know that the training that I have been doing for triathlons for over a year now which is endurance based, is not conducive to sprinting (ie running a faster 40yd or 60yd dash, jumping higher, and overall being more explosive in general) but is all about the pace. The training I have been doing is working my aerobic system, thus training the type I (slow twitch) musculature of the body. I do still do sprints, jumps, etc., but I am doing more endurance training so I am now starting to see the effects of this training on my other explosive movements where my anaerobic system, type IIa and IIx (fast twitch muscle fibers) are being affected. I never thought I would ever run a half marathon, do triathlons, or bike 150 miles for that matter, but i am enjoying it thoroughly. The reason is because it is a big challenge for me because my entire life I have been an anaerobic athlete and have never asked this much of, or have I placed this much demand on, my aerobic system. I am going to finish off this half Ironman in New Orleans in April 2009 very strong, continuing to work my aerobic system more, then I am going to train my anaerobic system more and get back to heavier lifting like I used to. I am a firm believer in variation, and need to get more anaerobic training back into my life. I am still going to do triathlons though, but not do as much crazy training for them as I have been over the past year. I needed to build a solid aerobic base and foundation, and now that I have done that, the sprint triathlons will not be as hard to train for. Whatever your goals, continue to push forward with everything you have and you will not disappoint yourself!

Two Week Triathlon Training Schedule

Week of October 6th 2008

Monday: AT Run: warm up for 10 to 15 minutes light running in your warmup zone to get your motor running, then get your HR up to AT and keep it there for as long as you can. If you feel like you need to back down, back down to AB, then get back up to AT and hold for as long as possible. Cooldown in your warmup zone for 5-15 minutes after finishing. Stretch and breath if time permits.

Tuesday:Get on your bike. Forget Spin. You do need some real time on your real bike. Try to ride for at least an hour if not more. Stay at you AB, but periodically get up and sprint as long as you can, then get back to the saddle and back to AB.

Wednesday:Swim. Swim as many laps as you can in a row after swimming 6 laps easy for a warmup. Again, please let me know what this # is. Even if you burn out before, try to swim and finish at least 36 laps (1/2 mile). Also, let me know how long this takes you.

Thursday: Tempo run---stay at AB, then burst to AT as many times as possible.

Friday: Get on your bike or spin. find your most efficient gear, stay consistent, and hammer down on the pedals at a consistent speed, please let me know what that speed is.

Saturday: swim for recovery and distance. swim as long as you can at an easy pace that allows you to stay continuous. let me know where you get to. lift, core, yoga.

Try to get at least 2-3 lifts in per week and core and calves everyday.


Week of October 13th 2008
There is a Duathlon on Sunday the 19th in Mandeville for any one who is interested.

Monday: Brick Training--ride at or right above your AB on the bike or in spin for 30-45 minutes, then get off and try to run for 20-30 minutes (whatever time permits for you) at or right above your AB as well. If you are feeling great and want to push it a little (HR), go ahead but let me know what you do.

Tuesday: Swim as many laps as you can in a row, time permitting after warming up. You are not going for speed here, rather distance. If you have to stop after a certain #, fine, but rest and then see how many more you can do in a row, with a cooldown after. Core and weights if you can.

Wednesday: Same as Monday. If you did not pick up your intensity above AB on Monday, do it today, push it pretty good and let me know what HR you get to above your AB.

Thursday: Spin or bike for 45 min-1 hr doing some tempo work which a traditional spin class should do for you with the hills. Stay consistently around your AB then sprint to AT and hold for as long as you can, then back off and repeat. Core and weights if possible.

Friday: recovery swim. swim 3 easy laps and 1 fast 1 for a much time as you can before heading up to do core and weights, giving yourself enough time for these two things.

Saturday: your choice---probably a good day to get on the bike or swim, take Sunday off, next week will be a down week with less intensity.

Keep eating right and staying true to your cause. remember to eat early and often.

Do men seem to lose weight faster than women do?

This was a recently asked question by a lot of women who are frustrated by their husbands or any other male in their lives losing weight a lot faster than themselves. Men have more of a particular hormone called testosterone, which promotes lean mass and tissue, decreases body fat, and has many other health benefits and detriments as well. Women obviously have more estrogen as the main hormone in their bodies, which promotes adipose (fat) tissue, leads to diseases, sicknesses and cancers (in excess amounts), and also obviously has a lot of good things associated with it including helping the female to maintain homeostasis (balance) in order to reproduce and have children. Men also have estrogen but not a lot of it, while women also have low amounts of testosterone. These two hormones keep a certain balance within both male and females and change as the other hormone changes. One way to decrease the amount of estrogen present in the cells, is to drink soy milk or ingest some sort of soy products, due to the fact that soy isoflavones are the only other thing beside estrogen itself that can bind to an estrogen receptor site, thus allowing the excess estrogen in the body to be eliminated via excretion through the excretory systems of the body (sweat, urine, feces).

Do not always look at the scale as this is one of the most common mistakes. Look at the way your clothes fit and the way you feel. When starting an exercise program, especially with resistance training, you will actually see the scale go up because you will be gaining muscle and losing fat. Muscle weighs more than fat, so if you are gaining muscle and losing weight at the same rate, you are going to see the scale go up. This frustrates a lot of people, but you want to gain lean tissue because it is going to increase your metabolism and you will eventually see the turnover (which is different for different people) where you will start losing pounds, although you may gain a few good pounds first. Although you won't burn a ton of calories while you are doing the resistance training, your body's metabolic furnace will continue to burn those calories for you later and throughout the day. Men can jump start and lose weight a little faster, but stay consistent and true to your routine, and you will see over time that you too can change you body and feel and look a lot better than before! Always be your hardest critic, but keeping these things in mind so you don't get frustrated, and most importantly, stay focused and consistent on your goals! Make sure you set goals, because without them what are you working towards!

Deep Ujiyah (Yoga) Breaths

During this time of stress and uncertainty in our lives with the hurricanes (and everyday life if you are not affected by the storms), take a step back and take at least 5-10 deep belly breaths as many times per day as you can. If you ever look at a newborn baby while they are sleeping or lying on their backs, you will see that as they inhale their belly rises away form their spine and the floor, and as they exhale, their belly button moves toward the spine and floor. As we grow and develop and get enveloped into everyday human life, we lose this natural belly breathing. Notice when you get in a stressful situation what happens: your breathing will start to shallow and hyperventilation occurs. This is not optimal for performance. Performance in life or in anything that you do. Why? By filling the lungs to capacity on a inhale, several things happen: 1.) Our lungs are lengthened (if we inhale until we can fit no more air in the lungs) which helps to improve the amount of oxygen you can consume in a minute, which, if improved will improve your VO2max and how efficient of an athlete/active person you can be because you fitness levels and thresholds will improve as well. 2.) By filling the lungs and fitting this excess oxygen into the lungs and body, this excess oxygen will help us to be more efficient and recover quicker because that oxygen works to nourish every cell, tissue, and organ of the body. This happens because the fuels that we put in our bodies are transported by the amount of oxygen that we can consume, so, if we can consume more oxygen, our fuels will be delivered more efficiently and more often to the places in the body that need them, both during exercise and at rest. 3.) Finally, when stretching and doing yoga, our breath can help us to lengthen our tendons, ligaments, and musculature more and allow us into positions that would not otherwise be possible for us unless we were inhaling to the capacity of the lungs which will help us create a greater capacity for our lungs. By emptying the lungs completely on a exhale, several things happen: 1.) We release toxins from the body through our expiration, in the form of CO2 and other metabolic waste. 2.) We allow the body to internally decrease space so that we can move through different ranges of motion when doing yoga, stretching and even doing core exercises and other activities. 3.) by detoxifying the body we allow the body to be more efficient in everything from cognitive function, to neuromuscular impulses, to muscular contraction, and a decrease of free radicals in the body which are the agents that cause disease, sickness, and cancer. This detoxification can also help in many other areas as well.

Theses full, deep breaths, when combined with a full inhale and exhale help to relax the mind and body, no matter where or what situation you are in. Even in stressful situations be mindful of your breath and what it's doing and always come back to those deep ujiyah breaths. The physiology behind the full, complete, deep breath is this in addition to all of the aforementioned: when we inhale, our diaphragm drops to facilitate the oxygen moving into the body. It does this to allow your body to take in as much oxygen as possible. When this happens, all of our organs drops to the lowest possible place in our bodies allowing our body to be nourished by that oxygen. When we exhale, our diaphragm is pulled in and up as high into the ribcage as possible (keep in mind the diaphragm is a muscle). When this happens our pelvic floor, or perineum, is lifted and all of our organs lift. If we exhale to the point where we have to almost gasp for our next inhale, our organs are squeezed, and rung out like a wet rag, releasing those unwanted toxins from where they are being held. So, with a full complete breath, our breath will work as a pumping mechanism used to nourish all the tissues of the body (inhale) and rid the body of all of the toxins (exhale). Try to get in at least 5-10 long, deep, ujiyah breaths everyday!

Variation and Balance

These are two key components of the BQAD training system and programs. We use this variation and balance throughout all of the individual components to health and fitness that we use (ie. Strength, speed, flexibility, and nutrition), and also integrate all of these individual components to achieve overall balance in our lives. For example, when devising a strength regimen, we must make sure that the entire body is balanced by working all of the different muscle groups equally (we can also balance the body even further by working through specific "planes of motion" as well). The same can be done in a speed setting by working the 3 specific systems of the body (aerobic—type I muscle fibers—slow twitch, anaerobic alactic—type IIa muscle fibers—hybrid fibers mixed between fast and slow twitch, anaerobic glycolytic—type IIx muscle fibers—fast twitch). Also, the body can be balanced in the flexibility component, by lengthening as well as strengthening all areas of the body equally. Nutrition needs to be well balanced through good proteins (lean), fats (mono- and polyunsaturated), and carbohydrates (good simple and complex). There also needs to be a balance in the core of the body as well by working not only the abdominals, but also the transverse abdominus, internal and external obliques, spinal erectors, quadratus lumborum, psoas minor, and all of the muscles of the pelvis (hips). By balancing all of these individual things, one can then integrate all of these things to balance the body as a whole.

Variation in training is one of the keys to achieving this balance. People often do the same thing over and over and over again in their fitness regimens. This repetition creates sticking points, or plateaus where these people see their strength or cardiovascular conditioning stick in the same spot, or even decrease due to the same demand placed on the musculature involved constantly. This happens because our muscles have memory, and eventually end up knowing the exact demand that will be placed upon it on a daily or weekly basis. When this happens, people gain those few pounds back, or decrease in strength due to the fact that the same demand is placed upon the muscles, or muscular systems involved. Remember, the body will adapt to any demand placed upon it. Demand a lot of different things out of your body, not just one or two.

These to things are vital to the BQAD program(s) and go hand in hand with one another. Variation and balance are included daily and hourly for everything that we do, stand for, and provide to our clients, both young and older alike.