Can Chocolate be Healthy? By Dr. John Berardi

Eat and Run is an internet program Precision Nutrition has created in partnership with the endurance-oriented folks at Competitor.com. (Thus the name; Eat and Run.)

Over the next few months Precision Nutrition is bringing you dozens of new high-quality nutrition videos. Every single one supports the important ideas presented in the Precision Nutrition System.
So, make sure you’ve got your copy of PN. And then be prepared for a host of “a-ha” moments as we roll out successive episodes of Eat and Run.
Also, keep one thing in mind. The tips you’ll learn in the Eat and Run program aren’t exclusive to an endurance-oriented audience. Indeed, good nutrition is univerally important whether your primary activity is lifting weights or whether it’s lifting your bike pedals.

For more information about Chocolate:
Check out our Precision Nutrition System

Making an Investment in Your Health, Part 2-NUTRITION

I can attest that I could workout 7 days a week, 2 hours a day and still have a belly on me. That is because that exercise is only half the battle. Proper nutrition is the other half to this equation to invest in your health.

Yes. I have stated in the past that "I wish I could eat healthier but I just can't afford it". Nowadays you can actually SAVE money by eating healthier. Bulk food chains like Walmart, CostCo and Sams Club are starting to carry healthier foods like Quinoa and Flax Seed. They also have a nice selection of fruits and vegetables, many which are organic.

I also would like to say that PREPARATION is probably the best thing you can do to help you to make proper choices. Some tips for you from what has worked best for me.

WE WOULD LIKE TO STATE THAT ALL OF THIS SEEMS LIKE IT IS A HUGE COMMITMENT OF TIME. But in all reality, if you get it done in one day or a 1-2 hour block for 2 days then you really don't have to worry about preparing meals each night for dinner/supper and for the following day for breakfast and lunch. The work is practically all done for you. You have more time at night to do other things. Again, remember you are making an investment in your health.

1. TAKE OUT THE TRASH. Get rid of all the crap around the house that will allow you to make a poor choice. If we have chocolate and marshmallows in the cabinet, then that will be one of the first things we grab when we are hungry instead of something healthy.

2. GO ON A SHOPPING SPREE!!! Nikki and I usually hit about 2-3 different grocery stores to get all the things we need. We usually spend 1-2 hours getting it all but it is very beneficial for us. For example: We start out at costo for our veggies, eggs, milk, cottage cheese, nuts, flax seed, quinoa, and turkey burger. (Best price for our buck and healthy as well). Next it is off to walmart or harris teeter to pick up any remaining veggies that we would like to have but not in bulk. Finally we head to whole foods for canned pumpkin and flatbread (actually their "365" generic brand is very good and cheap!), usually we tend to go on a sample Saturday so we can treat ourselves to some treats!

3. PREPARE YOU MEALS AHEAD OF TIME. Before we go shopping we try to think of what our schedules are like and what type of meals we would like to have for the week. Then make a list and stick to it. Then sometime during the weekend we prep all our meals ahead of time and put them in containers so that all we have to do is grab and go when we need to pack our lunches and dinners for the week. In all actuality it is a great opportunity for you to get some "family time" everyone can have an assignment or meal to work on. I enjoy that time I get with Nikki and we both feel very accomplished afterwards.

4. VEGGIE AND LEAN PROTEIN WITH EVERY MEAL. Enough said.

5. EARN YOUR CARBS. Try to avoid processed carbs as much as possible, the body has the hardest times breaking this stuff down. Now, Nikki and I don't always stick to this rule 100% but if we are planning to have waffles on Sunday morning for fun we earn them. We have a workout before we have a processed carb or heavy carb meal and always throw a veggie/fruit and a protein with it. The body will use those carbs to your advantage after a good workout.

Busy Sunday

My wife Nik and I had a very productive Sunday today. On Saturday we did about 3 hours of grocery shopping at 4 different stores. We first headed off to the Farmer's Market for vegetables, then to Costco for our bulk items, next Wal Mart and finally to Whole Foods for the things we needed that aren't at any of the other stores.





Woke up this morning and began cooking. In a few hours I had made 2 dinners (breakfast casserole from gourmet nutrition & an enchilada casserole) and 2 snacks/post workout bars (peanut butter bars & granola bars both from the gourmet nutrition cookbook). I did all of this in time to sit down and watch football and monitor my fantasy football teams. By the time the Giants were taking care of the Cowboys, Nik and I made one final meal of stir fry steak and cauliflower mash (kind of like rice or mashed potatoes with the fiber and not the starch-gourmet nutrition cookbook as well).





All in all Nik and I made 3 anytime meals and 2 snacks that will end up lasting us the whole week. Its very true what the experts say, it pays to plan ahead and make all of your meals ahead of time.

Now we have no excuse to say that "we have nothing to eat" or that "we are too tired to cook". I will try and get a recipe up this week and also try to get some more video of Nik and I performing our kettlebell routines.

Eat like it is your job, by Marie Spano, MS, RD, FISSN, CSCS

Terrific article by Marie Spano who is a registered dietician. Let me know what you think.

Quick Hint #3: Weekend Nutrition

This quick hint is by Nate Green who posted this online article on t-nation. Stupid Things Young Guys (and Some Older Guys) Do in the Kitchen.

You've been rocking the gym all week, getting all of your healthy meals in, and you're feeling like a freakin' champ. Now it's the weekend and you're faced with an interesting dilemma: eat chicken wings and drink beer at Hooters, or try to talk your friends into doing something else. What's your call?
"It really depends on your performance that week leading up to Friday night," says Roussell.
Let's say you eat six meals a day, seven days a week, which equals 42 total meals. If you were following Berardi's 90 percent rule (eating well 90 percent of the time), you'd have four or five "free" meals where you could drink some beer and have some nachos without feeling guilty.
But if your nutrition was less than great that week, you'd be better off skipping the bad stuff, and ogling the Hooters wait staff while eating a clean meal and nursing a single beer.
No one wants to live a life free from beer, chicken wings, and general weekend debauchery, so the trick is to stick to the plan when you can, indulge on your own terms, and know when you need to get tough with yourself and get back on track.
The bottom line: When faced with an indulge-or-not-indulge choice on a weekend, let your adherence to your program and goals in the previous week be the deciding factor. If you've eaten clean and aced your workouts, you've earned the right to loosen up a bit. (Not that you have to use the privilege; I'm just saying it's there if you want it.)
And if you haven't earned it? You know, there are worse things than not eating crap food and getting sloppy drunk on a Friday night. You can be the designated driver for your friends, earning you some karma points.

Eating healthy while eating out - by Mike Roberston

Great post from Mike Robertson on his blog


http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=3035571976650461447





This past weekend I had the chance to catch up with some old friends in Chicago. One thing I always come back to when traveling is trying to make solid food choices while "on the road."Luckily, if you arm yourself with a little knowledge it's generally pretty easy to be successful. Here are some things I try and do to eat well on the road, regardless of the situation:- Pack small snacks. My wife and I are really good about packing mixed nuts, water, protein bars, protein shakes, etc. If you're in a pinch, these items can substitute for a meal. Along those same lines, it will curb your appetite so you don't binge on the 8 lb. burger (yes, one of the restaurants we ate it really did offer it up!)- Always order a sald and/or extra fruit. If your only goal is to consume copious amounts of calories, then by all means forget about this tip and get that fried appetizer sampler platter and double dessert. If you are in the least bit concerned about your health (not to mention your waistline), adding a sald or fruit to your order helps ensure that you get more nutrients and fiber from your food.- Opt for extra virgin olive oil or vinagrettes instead of "traditional" salad dressings. Not only do they taste better (assuming your palette isn't dead), but they typically have better fatty acid profiles.A few more quick hits, without all the explanations:- If you are looking to shed pounds or body fat, say no to the pre-meal bread and get double-veggies for your sides.- Drink water vs. calorie-laden beverages.- Be reasonable with your meat selections. I'm all for a huge slab of beef from time-to-time, but eating a 10 or 12 ounce steak every night probably isn't necessary.- Whenever possible sub a salad, veggie or even a soup instead of fried side items. They may taste good but there's minimal nutritional value in fried foods.- I won't ever tell you that beer is bad - at the very least, drink light vs. normal beers.While eating out or on the road may never be optimal, performing some damage control can go a long way to helping you achieve your health and fitness related goals.Stay strongMR

Eating better but staying full

• Eating better but staying full
  
  One of the big problems I have been faced with is being able to control my food portions throughout the day. If I do a bad job and don’t eat enough, then by the time I get home I am STARVING! What I end up doing next is overeating during my dinner meal and thus the reason I am having trouble getting to my ideal weight. This also brought up another problem people are faced with is staying full with the smaller portioned meals that they eat during the day and have the same starving feeling the time they get home for dinner.
  
  I just recently read a great article online by a gentleman named Chris Shugart. He gives a great solution to my problem. He states that the problem we face is that the foods we eat are high calorie and low volume foods. So we are putting calories in our system but they are not satisfying our hunger. He suggests “volumize your food” (eat more low-calorie and high volume foods in our diets). Then we will be full more and hungry less and also less likely to eat too much at the end of our day (he calls it “making us full but not fat”).
  
  Some ideas or substitutions he suggests when baking and preparing meals:
• Olive oil and almonds are high in calories and fats, BUT they provide very important omega-3s to your diet. Use them sparingly in your diet.
• Replace white flour with whole grain flour. Healthier and adds much needed fiber to our diet.
• Replace sugar with sucralose (splenda). Saves a ton of calories!
• Replace oil with unsweetened apple sauce. Another HUGE calorie saver can be used for brownies, pancakes, muffins and most baked goods.
• Eggs: Replace with some or all egg whites. (there are omega-3s in egg yolks as well, but this will help to reduce some of your calories in your recipes)
• For burgers, mix lean ground turkey and/or veggies with your ground beef
• For spaghetti, cut out half the pasta and replace with vegetables
• Instead of adding butter, bananas, syrup, peanut butter or other calorie-dense ingredients to recipes, use calorie free extracts or imitation flavorings.
  
  I will try to do my best over the next few months to begin providing recipes with this new “volumized” replacement method and show the difference made in calories and healthy additions made to the “modified recipes”.

Reading Nutrition Labels

One of the most important quick hints I was given about reading nutrition labels is this. If within the first three ingredients it states "high fructose corn syrup" or just "corn syrup" then put the item down and slowly walk away and look for something else. Read every label of every food you put into your cart. My wife and I were surprised to read that corn syrup was a main ingredient in some of the whole wheat breads that are available in the grocery store. I even found it as the 1st ingredient in a popular sports drink.

This is a high calorie, sugar and if it is not burned off quickly (say before or after a workout) usually it will be transformed within the body into fat.

Starting from Scratch

You need to start anew with your workout plan? Start simple and work to complex is the key. Start with a plan and see it through for 4 weeks, then re-evaluate your plan and mix it up for another 4 wks after that.

Get yourself into good habits

1. planning and preparing meals for the week ahead of time

2. getting yourself on a food journal, check www.dailyplate.com

3. schedule your lifting and cardio days with your work schedule

This makes it easy to get on track. Begin your strength training by working on some foundational strength, especially if you have had injuries in the past or more importantly, want to prevent injuries in the future. This will be very important in the beginning of a program so you can perform more strenuous lifts later on down the line which will allow you to reach those big goals you have (lose fat, gain strength, gain muscle).

Foundational strength is crucial and is not machine lifts! These are exercises that help to improve your posture and technique and work various stabilizing muscles in the body that can sometimes fall asleep on you when you need them most. In the upcoming weeks I will give you my top 5 foundational exercises for you to try in the gym or at home. Until then, get working on that Nutrition!

Greetings to SGHP!

First of all we are extremely excited to post the very first blog for Snow-Gargano Human Performance. Nikki and I are sooooo excited to get started telling everyone all that we know about in one of the most important things in everyones life, their human performance. We could have called is sports performance since I have a background in getting athletes to perform better in their field of play, but that would take out so much of us that just want to live our lives healthier.

This blog spot is for everyone out their that wants to improve or maintain their quality of life. Whether it be the individual that wants to be able to go for walks, garden and play with their grandchildren to those individuals who need help training for triathlons and half marathons. Whether it is that young athlete who wants to train for an upcoming high school basketball season or the recreational athlete that wants to get prepared for a fun and injury free coed softball season. This is for everyone that wants to learn more about injury prevention, rehabilitation, fitness for all ages, sports medicine, athletic injuries, nutrition, recipes and so much more!

Nikki and I will post (at least weekly) cool information to all of you. And without further blabbing my me (Mark), WELCOME TO SGHP!

PS. I want to thank my BEAUTIFUL wife Nikki for giving me the idea for our blog! (she is such an inspiration! "moment")