Bodybuilders Making Use of Caffeine

Roughly 90% of Us residents use a drug on a daily basis. This drug is called caffeine. Most of the people who get any items that contains caffeine do so to stay alert and enhance their quantity of power. It’s been tested for years and decades, and unless of course it really is abused by taking far more than one gram daily, caffeine can be a reasonably safe item for your vast majority of the population. Caffeine does have some side effects that probably would affect bodybuilders before everyone else, both in positive and damaging ways.

Limited Muscle Gains
For bodybuilders, this will go either way. Caffeine has become recognized to deliver a by natural means thermogenic impact inside the physique. There is a issue with this, particularly for bodybuilders coaching and competing at each professional and intermediate ranges, which is the fact that the thermogenic effect may also prevent muscle gains. This thermogenic effect keeps the physique in a state of increased stimulation and may be really helpful for generating the abs more defined and also the veins commence to pop out. This also removes the additional calories, which is among the main components you need to develop new muscle. Caffeine requirements to become taken very sparingly should you be in a coaching period to place on and grow new muscle.

Burning Off the Body fat
There’s no query that caffeine is a great tool for burning fat. A good deal of bodybuilders are employing the ECA stack although coaching, which combines caffeine with ephedrine and aspirin for efficient results. But even by alone, caffeine can be used being a potent instrument in order to achieve increased oxidation and a desired thermogenic effect. Utilizing about 200 mg 2 occasions each day can help out with diet and cardio for burning body body fat.

Increased Power
It’s got by no means been debated that caffeine will result in elevated power. A good deal of people utilize the energy increase of caffeine for simple every day duties like waking up within the early morning or staying alert at their job. Expert bodybuilders however spend their workday engaging in and out of extreme 1-2 hour coaching sessions, so they use the benefit of this additional power to enhance the results of their routines.

Elevated Psychological Clarity
You might not believe that bodybuilders would require this to become an benefit, but in fact mental nicely becoming is extremely important for any bodybuilder. The major demands placed on the body can borrow assets for recovery, sources generally reserved for mental processes. The coaching of bodybuilders who understand what they’re performing demands a huge amount of counting, measurement, and interest to detail. Caffeine provides huge rewards and advantages in each and every 1 of those places.

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Bodybuilding Clothing

There are 2 kinds of body building clothing that we can reference. The first involves clothing when you exercise. The other ‘s what to wear inside a bodybuilding competition. The variety of muscle building clothing is really a billion dollar market filled with choices and possibilities.

When doing your work out, the important thing to what clothing you wear is comfort. You would want to wear clothes you could move about in easily. You is going to be sweating, do you want the pad being breathable and permit for enough ventilation that you simply won’t become over-heated.

Some companies manufacture body building clothing that is both stylish along with functional. For certain people, looking good in the club is very important on their behalf. Still others could care less the things they appear to be. They’re there to be effective their muscles and grow their own health.

For men and women, good choices in bodybuilding clothing include tank tops and shorts. You also can choose sweat pants or spandex pants that may hold within the sweat you will be generating. This can lend to weight reduction when you lose fluid and work parts of your muscles.

Bodybuilding clothing that you simply wear at competitions or contests is extremely distinctive from what you should wear while working out. In contests, the emphasis is on showing off your body. Clothing in bodybuilding competitions can be extremely important.

You will want to choose something which will show a maximum level of skin without having to be too risqu. For both men and women, that means swimwear. Men should pick a small Speedo-type suit, and women should choose tasteful bikinis.

Revealing the muscles tone depends upon the judges being able to see all muscles you are concentrating on. By exposing as numerous muscles as possible, it is possible to show off what you’ve been working hard to achieve.

Choose a color that is complementary to your skin tone. You will want to tan before competing, so an easy color is obviously the ideal choice. Men are often barefoot over these competitions while women often choose high heel shoes, but going barefoot can be very befitting women too.

While the clothing you decide on for muscle building isn’t as essential as the workout you obtain, it can make a difference between a powerful workout then one that isn’t. If you might be constricted by clothing which is too tight, your body building efforts come in vain. Plus, you won’t need to get overheated throughout a workout or else you risk problems for yourself and bring about fatigue.

Choose your system building clothing with security in mind for your workout portion, and baring one of the most level of skin for competitions. Once you’re making your choices, let your system building clothing speak for itself.

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Muscle Building For Women

Men aren’t the only ones who is able to build a great body. Body building for a woman is a superb way to shed weight, condition your body, and look great. An effective bodybuilding program won’t produce a woman look muscular necessarily. This is one reasons why many women hesitate to start out strength training and employ intently. What a great bodybuilding program for a lady can do is sculpt an attractive body you could are proud of.

Body building generally started gaining popularity in the 1970′s following your discharge of the movie “Pumping Iron” starring Arnold Schwarzeneggar. It was about this time how the women’s liberation movement began rising in popularity too. As women started standing for rights, in addition they begun to exercise their options to do what men used to do – and that included body building.

Now, there are 2 types of bodybuilding women: those who work for health insurance and those that work with competition. Needless to say, any body building program for a lady will have great health benefits, but those that want to compete will discover themselves working in another way.

A lot of women hesitate to start a physique building program simply because they don’t wish to appear to be male bodybuilders with huge muscles and oversized shoulders and legs. But women are different from men because they can’t naturally produce the massive level of testosterone that men have which contributes to large muscles in males.

Muscle building for a lady is a lot more about sculpting muscles to look toned and strong – not to become large and massive. It can occur for anyone ladies who opt for illegal substances for example steroids. But muscle building for a woman who chooses the healthy route will simply make a chiseled body that appears and feels great.

Many people think the feminine is naturally a thing of beauty, but it’s an easy task to get off track with the stresses of each and every day life – specifically for women. They are required to hold to some pre-conceived ideal of exactly what a woman is supposed to seem like. But every woman is different just like every woman’s body is different.

Body building for a woman could make her more confident, feel happier about herself, and appearance great in the process. Many people believe the strong, chiseled muscles that female bodybuilders have IS the ideal of exactly what a woman is supposed to seem like. Getting healthy and staying healthy is essential for everyone. Body building for a woman can help get her there and stay there.

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Cardiac Health Warnings for All and Good Nutrition

Everyone is familiar with the tragic stories of the young, impossibly healthy athletes who have dropped dead on the field after routine exertion. There was the high school basketball player who fell to the floor during the game and had to be shocked back to consciousness. There was the young Russian ice skater who died after a routine practice. An autopsy revealed no drugs, no alcohol and no physical anomalies that would explain his death at such a young age. There have been runners, football players, soccer stars – all gifted athletes, all in peak, physical condition – all of them dead or near dead because of a phenomenon called SCD, also known as Sudden Cardiac Death. There are several conditions associated with SCD as well as some factors that can increase its risk. These include:

- Hypertrophy cardiomyopathy or heart muscle thickening

- Atypical blood clotting

- The muscles not getting enough oxygen – anomalous coronary artery

- Faulty heart rhythm or congenital Long QT Syndrome

- Irregular heart muscle tissue which can lead to heart rhythm problems.

- Use of cocaine

(Source: The American Heart Association)

Any athlete at any level of competition should be tested for heart conditions before they compete, however those who are involved in extreme sports are at higher risk, so should pay even closer attention to their body’s signals. Here are some of the reasons that increased testing should be encouraged for all athletes:

- Out of every one million marathon runners, nearly four or more will die during the marathon. There is not a single age group that is not affected by this risk.

- One third of runners after a marathon had an increased level of a biomarker that indicates heart muscle damage.

- Higher levels of creatine kinase enzyme have been found in long distance runners, this is used to measure damage in the heart after a heart attack.

In addition to this testing, there should be someone on every athletic field or in every arena who can perform CPR or is versed in how to use the defibrillator, although in some cases even this may not be enough to do any kind of good.

Good Nutrition & Sports

The amount of calories needed by an athlete compared to that of the average person can be staggering. For some extreme athletes, their daily intake is almost double what it would ordinarily be simply because the body is burning so much fuel. To stay competitive and strong, they must make sure to get not only enough foods, but the right food sources into their bodies every day.

Carbohydrates- These are used by the body as one of its primary fuel sources and the only source of energy that the human brain will accept. The carbs that are included in the diet for an athlete should be healthy, complex carbs that do not cause sugar spikes and unhealthy weight gain. Whole grain foods and vegetables are a good source of complex carbohydrates, which should make up as much as 60% of the overall diet.

Fats- Healthy fat options should makeup as much as 20% of the overall daily calories; however, an athlete who is training may be eating far less than this amount and may be sticking to around 10-15%. Fats are an important source of energy for the body and certain types, including Omega 3s, actually protect the heart. Good sources for these include Omega 3 enhanced eggs, salmon and other cold water fish, nuts and nut oils.

Proteins- Protein should make up 25-35% of the daily calories at most, according to the American Heart Association’s recommendations. In addition, the source of the protein should be carefully analyzed. All animal proteins plus the plant-based protein from soy are complete, meaning that they deliver the nine essential amino acids that the human body cannot make on its own. However, many of these protein sources are also high in calories and saturated fats. Choosing leaner protein sources protects the body from increased cholesterol and can include turkey breast, fish, low fat or non-fat dairy foods and plant-based proteins.

Additionally, protein can be added to the healthy diet by using protein supplements, which can boost intake for those who are struggling with making good choices. There are dozens of protein supplement options to consider, including protein powders made from soy, rice, whey and egg as well as protein bars, shakes and enhanced waters. In addition to these, there is a small protein supplement called Profect from Protica that delivers a significant amount of protein (25 grams) in a very small serving (2.9 fluid ounces/100 calories). Available in a number of flavors, Profect is perfect for the athlete because it is small, portable and easy to contain.

Cardiac Health Screening: A Case Study

Sean is a young and gifted hockey player. He spends hours on the ice perfecting his shot and hours in the gym perfecting his body. He is able to avoid most hits and can crunch players against the board and be off with the puck in a flash. Sean, the young and vital athlete, has a ticking time bomb in his chest. He is at risk for a heart rhythm change that can potentially kill him in a second. He has no current risk factors for heart disease and his family’s health has been fair for the last few generations. Despite all of this, he is at risk for sudden cardiac death. After reading about yet another of the athletes that have fallen to this condition, Sean agrees to go in for testing. His heart shows no abnormalities at this time, however he will do everything he can to protect his health.

He will continue to train hard so that he is in top condition. He will continue to play hard every shift, every minute. He will not smoke or use drugs of any kind, and he will continue to eat a healthy and well balanced meal. This will now include the addition of Profect, a protein supplement from Protica that will boost his protein intake but not his calorie count.

Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) specializes in the development of Capsulized Foods. Protica manufactures Profect, IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and over 100 other brands, including Medicare-approved, whey liquid protein for weight loss surgery patients. You can learn more at Protica Research – Copyright

When Is a Calorie Not Just a Calorie?

Every few years there are new diets introduced suggesting that if you count calories you will be more conscious of them, and therefore you will eat less and lose weight. But being conscious of calories is not the same as choosing not to eat as many. Simply acknowledging the calories in that bacon triple cheese burger with extra bacon and chocolate milkshake is not going to negate them. It will not block their artery clogging cholesterol, saturated fat and simple carbohydrates that leave you feeling hungry even though you never burned them off.

A calorie is simply a unit of measure. It is the amount of energy that is needed to raise the temperature of one gram of pure water one degree Celsius. There is nothing magic about the calorie in and of itself. It doesn’t matter what time you eat or what in what order you consume your foods. The calorie will still affect your body in the same way. If you eat too few calories, you will feel hungry and may become sluggish and tired.

Eat too many calories and you will feel sluggish, bloated and possibly unwell. Continually eat too many calories for your own body and you will gain weight. There is no real trick to the concept of the calorie. It is actually quite simple: Your body has a set need for calories to maintain its current weight. If you eat more than your body actually needs to have, the additional calories will be converted first to additional energy and then to fat. More unnecessary calories coming in leads to more fat.

On the other hand, if there are too few calories taken in, the body will be forced to burn its own stores of fat for energy. If the body goes too long without a new source of calories, however, it will stop burning the right fuel and will instead hold onto every single calorie that comes in, making you remain at the same weight even though you are eating far less than before.

The Calorie and the Concept of Hunger and Appetite

The calorie is simple enough to understand, but there is more at work behind the scenes. Complicated processes called hunger, appetite, digestion and metabolism can be influenced by emotions and other outside factors.

Appetite can be influenced by more than just a need for food. The body can feel like it is starving because of emotional, visual or other cues. In fact, the body can be influenced by something as simple as the time on the clock, eating not because you are hungry but because your body is conditioned to expect food at this time every day. Watching other people eat can also make you eat, even when you know that you are not really hungry. Actual hunger rarely prompts the office worker to hit the vending machine mid afternoon, but rather he is driven by his sense of habit.

Real hunger can be a difficult thing to understand, but there is also the concept of misplaced hunger. It is important to understand the difference between real hunger and false hunger or you will end up eating more than you intended and more than you need, even when you are not hungry at all. For some people, thirst can be mistaken for hunger. Imagine that you need eight ounces of zero calorie water and instead eat a three hundred calorie snack. Instead of giving the body what it was asking for, you have given it three hundred calories more than it needed and have also skipped giving it the water it needed in the first place.

But a Carb Calorie Counts for More than a Protein Calorie?

Each gram of fat and carbohydrates has nine calories while each gram of protein calories has four. In addition, the body burns up more energy while digesting protein than it does with either of the other macronutrients. That being said, there are different considerations for which nutrient is needed, when it is needed and how much should be eaten. The brain, the mysterious, complex organ that controls every system and other organ in the body, can only accept and use energy that is generated from complex carbohydrates.

Protein is used to build muscles and skin but also plays a number of other very complex roles in the body. It contributes to cellular creation, the generation of bones, ligaments and tendons and also helps the body to create new chemicals that are used during the digestion, ovulation and even sleep. Protein also plays a role in the cardiovascular system, helping to maintain the pH balance of the blood and keeping the blood pressure regulated.

It is important to get the right number of calories from the right kind of foods. For some people, habit eating and a lack of understanding of real hunger can be a serious problem. Some people become so overwhelmed with the deluge of information that they simply stop eating completely, which is just as bad as overeating to the metabolism. It is important to remember that the body actually does need to get new energy sources every day, in evenly spaced meals, perhaps eating more frequently throughout the day instead of eating two or three large meals and nothing more. Healthy between-meal snacks can be a great way to get the energy you need to keep your metabolism high.

Using protein supplements or protein based snacks can be a great way to accomplish this, helping you to avoid the lure of the vending machine at the end of the hall. Protica, a company famous for its small protein shot, Profect, also offers a number of other protein supplements including two protein candies, Protein Twist and Protein Taffy. Check these and other protein supplement products out on the web site, http://www.protica.com for information on the benefits and available flavors as well as the ways to order your favorites today.

Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) specializes in the development of Capsulized Foods. Protica manufactures Profect, IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and over 100 other brands, including Medicare-approved, whey protein supplements for diabetic patients. You can learn more at Protica Research – Copyright

The Truth About Diet Food

Think about it: everything that you eat is part of your diet by the mere definition of the word. But, in reality, when people are talking about diet food, they mean certain types of products that line the shelves of every grocery store in the country- usually with huge labels that proclaim them to be “fat-free” or “sugar-free” or any number of variations on those terms.

The problem with these foods is simple: the human brain recognizes the word ‘free’ as a very positive thing, a green light to eat these foods at will without worry of their health repercussions. After all, free is free, right? In most cases, that is patently false; fat-free, sugar-free, and the other terms do not mean calorie-free, but even when the food is calorie-free, there might still be problems with it and they all start with the way that the human body and the mind work.

An Example: Diet Sodas and How They May Cause Weight Gain

It was discovered that beverages contributed to weight gain and that many, many people drink more of their calories than they get from solid food. Huge beverages, especially sugar-laden soft drinks are largely to blame for the increasing number of people who are overweight. Sodas are filled not only with sugar but caffeine and some also contain phosphates, which can contribute to the development of osteoporosis over time. Instead of suggesting that people limit the amount of sodas that they consume or making healthier beverage choices, diet sodas were created- but they did not solve the problem at all.

Think of it this way: Dave, feeling a little sluggish at his desk starts craving a little jolt of energy and a little sugar to get him going. He goes to the vending machine and gets a cola drink and goes back to work. He does this four or five times a day and pretty soon, Dave has gained quite a bit of weight. The average can of cola has more than a single serving in it, with the calorie count listed as 160-180 per serving, not for the whole can. A serving is equal to eight ounces, so that additional four ounces is worth 80-90 more calories for each can. A 20 ounce bottle of soda will equal two and a half servings of cola and can be worth 250 calories (or more). Chug down three or four bottles of those a day and you are getting 1,000 calories from liquids alone. The average adult needs between 1400-2200 calories a day and does not live on soda alone, so the problem becomes very clear, very fast.

So, Dave, who has gained weight from his soda addiction, switches to diet soda. As one of the most popular and biggest selling diet foods, it has to work, right? Not exactly and the problem is not with the lack of calories but with the way that the body sees and processes it. Used to the sugary rush of the regular sodas, the body expects to find sugar in heavy doses after the diet drink is consumed. Instead, it is confused and starts craving the sugar that it was promised and did not get. Instead of helping to lose weight, the diet soda can instead be contributing to weight gain and it is the same with other types of diet foods as well. Low fat cookies still have calories and to make up for the lack of fat; they may have higher sugar content or harmful chemicals that can cause the body to stop processing foods correctly. The body needs fat, but it needs the healthy kind in the right amount. It is the same with carbohydrates and protein as well.

Diet Food Should Mean Healthy, Natural Foods as Much as Possible

Too many people rely on processed foods, even the ones that are labeled as diet foods, for their nutrition. The more processed a food is before you eat it, the less work your body will have to do to break it down and the more likely it will be stored by the body as fat. A glass of orange juice is nutritious in small amounts, but eating the orange gives you fiber, vitamins and fewer calories. You also have to work to get to that orange, peeling and segmenting it, chewing to break the fruit down before you actually swallow it. With the juice it is nothing more than open a container, pour, drink and done. The more work you have to do to break down foods, the better.

In a perfect world, everyone would eat the right foods for their body’s health and in the right amounts. They would cook these foods in their own kitchen using only healthy cooking methods such as baking, roasting, and broiling. They would steam vegetables and scrub and then eat whole fruits. There would be no need for diet food at all because all foods would be part of a healthy diet. However, that is not the case. There are far too many people who do not have the time to cook or to even eat a whole meal. While many of these people will simply grab a burger from a fast food place, others will look to another aspect of the diet food industry: the meal replacement and supplement products.

Choosing a Good Meal Replacement or Supplement Product

For a meal replacement product to be healthy, it has to have the right nutrients and provide enough calories for the average adult. There are meal replacements and supplements that are marketed specifically for children. There are a number of products on the market that qualify, however there are some that may have too much added sugar or fat to be beneficial for weight loss.

Fruitasia, a product from Protica, can be used as either a meal replacement or as a supplement and has a number of health benefits. First, it is 100% fruit and vegetable and provides three full servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit in each small serving. For less than three ounces, Fruitasia also provides 5 grams of dietary fiber, proven to aid in weight loss and to be beneficial to colon health. Fruitasia is cholesterol-free, preservative-free and 100% all natural. Unlike a number of other meal replacements, it is also lactose and egg free as well as yeast, wheat and gluten free. There are so many people who have not been able to choose a meal replacement because of food allergies or intolerances, so Fruitasia may be the answer they were looking for.

Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) specializes in the development of Capsulized Foods. Protica manufactures Profect, IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and over 100 other brands, including Medicare-approved, whey liquid protein for dialysis patients. You can learn more at Protica Research – Copyright

5 Secrets to Improve Your Bench Press

Bench Press is literally the Benchmark to gauge your Strength. I am going to share some cool tips I use to help my members increase their Bench Press faster.

Bench Press is the Best chest exercise and is one of the 3 Olympic moves and for good reason. It tests real strength in your shoulders, chest and arms like no exercise does.

Things You can Do Today

There are many steps a person can take to improve their bench press. In some cases, the wrong techniques may be used. This can frustrate a bodybuilder and make him think there is no way for him to bench more weight than he currently can. Below are a few tips that will help anyone increase their bench press.

1. Is your technique absolutely correct?

A Proper bench press grip is vital. It can be the difference between a max bench press or mediocre bench press. Use a proper closed overhand grip for best results.

In addition to proper griping the bar, the bar needs to be well aligned when you lift with arms extended. The best position is to to hold the bar at arms length making sure it is at the level of the eye.

3. High bench press is all in the proper reps and sets

Keep a journal to record you reps and sets for every workout. This helps you aim for constant improvements in every workout and help you lift more, even if 1-2 reps in every next coming workout.

This is because the heavier the weight, the more your muscles will be worked and torn. Each time, they build themselves back a little stronger. With that being said, be sure you don’t take on more than you can handle at any one time, or you could end up with an injury.

3. Feedback/Evaluation is the Breakfast of Champion

It is a good idea to evaluate your progress as you go through your journey to improve your bench press. Most people understand the benefits of setting short term and long term goals. However, they may not realize they need to assess their growth along the way.

Every week or two you should check back on your workout details from your journal to see how well you are progressing.

4. Proper nutrition can help you bench harder week after week

Eating the proper diet for muscle building can help your body gain the strength needed to increase your bench press. Most people think they understand the workings of the body and how to adequately fuel it to increase muscle mass.

The best post workout nutrition is to consume a workout shake with 30 grams proteins and 50 grams carbohydrates or make one that contain the desired calories.

5. Grow while you rest and eat

If you want to improve on bench press in your next workout then get some quality sleep of at least 7-8 hours every night.

Train legs on other days when you rest your chest and shoulders. This will help release more testosterone naturally which will build more muscle and strength over coming weeks and months.

So Go Bench Press More and Get Big, Big and Bigger.

Abdul Matynne is the author of the ebook “The TEN Commandments of Weight Training“. You can find more Bench Press Workouts at his website.

High Protein Diets: Are They Right for Everybody?

Not that long ago, the biggest diet fad was the Atkins diet, at the time thought to be the saving grace of the diet industry. People could still eat their bacon and eggs in the mornings; they just had to skip the toast and the juice on the side. They could still have their bacon cheeseburgers, they just had to skip the buns, the ketchup, and the French fries. Unfortunately, they also had to skip the dill pickles that go so deliciously with these foods. But, how effective could a diet that suggested eating burgers with bacon and cheese really be? And, how long could a human body continue to go without complex carbohydrates without developing serious problems?

As it turns out, not very long. What should have been a very simple diet to follow – after all, you ate all the high fat meats that other diets tend to banish on day one – turned out to be very difficult after the second or third week. Energy crashes were very common. Moods plummeted. The carb-craving-crankies set in and stayed a major factor for many people who were no longer satisfied with simple weight loss; what they wanted was to lose weight and still feel fairly human.

The long-term health effects of the Atkins diet and similar diet pans are just now starting to catch up with many of its devoted followers. However, there are other high protein diets that are far more reasonable, easier to follow, and most importantly, healthier.

How Much Protein Do You Really Need?

There is a formula that is typically used to determine how much protein a person needs; however, there are variables that have to be accounted for during this process as well. The basic protein formula is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. To get the right amount of protein using this formula, you simply divide your current weight in pounds by 2.2 which will give you your weight in kilograms. That number is then multiplied by 0.8 to determine your daily protein needs. However, if you are a very active person, your daily protein needs will automatically go much higher. If you are not active at all, your protein needs will be lower.

In addition to activity levels, you have to know your basic health condition as well to determine the right amount of protein that you need because certain health conditions mean that you will need to get more protein to regain your health. While high protein diets may push protein above this 0.8 gram per kg mark, it will not go that much farther. The average body builder only gets about 1.5 to 1.7 grams of protein per kilogram of their own body weight to get bigger. They do not build their remarkable bodies with protein alone, but with good overall nutrition, dedication, and hard work. Genetics also play a large role in their size and the ability to build large muscles. (Source: Osterweil)

How High is Too High?

Most of the high protein diets get around 30% of their daily calorie intake from protein with carbohydrates and fats making the other 70%. Taking protein intake up to 35% and lowering fat intake to around 15% is beneficial for weight loss and can help the dieter feel full for longer than the lower protein amount. However, protein intake of higher than 35% is not recommended because it can lead to a number of serious health conditions including cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, kidney disease, and kidney and gall stones. The American Heart Association suggests that protein intake be limited to no higher than 35% for safety and that the bulk of the protein comes from very lean meat or plant sources whenever possible.

Using a Protein Supplement to Ensure Protein Intake

While most people know what they should eat, there are many times when they cannot eat these foods because they do not have the time to sit down for a healthy meal or they are too busy on the road to stop and get something that qualifies as healthy. Because so many people are just too busy, the concept of using a protein supplement became a viable alternative to the less-than-healthy food choices on the road and certainly better than continually skipping meals. Protein supplements can be found in many forms, including the protein supplement Profect from Protica.

Small in size, Profect is high in protein, low in calories with zero carbs and zero fat. In addition to Profect, Protica also offers Proasis, the first all-natural protein supplement. Both Profect and Proasis are available in a number of sizes, including the single serving size, and a number of refreshing flavors so that there is always a variety of digestible and healthy protein to be consumed.

Increasing Protein and Good Health

In addition to using protein supplements such as Profect and Proasis, there are a number of healthy protein-based foods such as skinless, roasted turkey breast, salmon, and eggs. Non-meat food sources that are high in protein include milk, cottage cheese, other cheeses, soy foods, and other plant-based proteins.

High Protein Diets and Health: A Case Study

Lindsay was one of the first people to jump on the Atkins diet fad, using only Atkins approved or licensed foods in addition to the red meats, eggs and other foods on the approved list. She felt great after losing nearly 10 pounds the first week, but by the end of the second week, she was dreaming of dancing potatoes and corn on the cob and snapping at her coworkers and family. By the middle of week three, she couldn’t take it anymore. She was dragging herself out of bed, too sluggish to exercise. Weight loss had stalled completely; she was constipated and felt generally unwell. She returned to her old habits and unfortunately, regained her weight and then some.

She found a different high protein diet plan, one that included leaner protein sources, lower calorie counts and most importantly, complex carbohydrates that her body actually needed. This diet was much easier to follow and gave her slower, steadier, and healthier weight loss without feeling deprived or snapping at friends and family.

In addition to eating lean meats such as turkey and other poultry, she was getting heart healthy fish and plant-based proteins. She was also still getting vegetables and other foods so she was better able to stick to her diet plan. To keep herself on track while she was on the go, Lindsay used Profect as a healthy, between meal snack that enabled her to stay full until it was time to eat again.

Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) specializes in the development of Capsulized Foods. Protica manufactures Profect, IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and over 100 other brands, including Medicare-approved, whey protein bullets for bariatric surgery patients. You can learn more at Protica Research – Copyright

The Key To Big Arms

Train the arms two times per week Your arm muscles tend to get more training than the other muscles in the body, that is because they are worked very hard during the up and down movements of many of the exercises. Many guys may think that training the arms at least 3 times per week is the best way to make them grow. If this is your style, you are going to be disappointed. The best workout is about 1-2 times per week. Your arms will have enough time to recover and grow bigger and stronger.

They should be trained hard For your arms to grow, you need to push to the limit and beyond during training. It shouldn’t be a routine. Prepare yourself for some high intensity sets and really squeeze out every last rep. This workout is high intensity, so be prepared for it and give it everything you have.

Fast training If adding muscle mass is your number one goal then your arm routine should not be longer than 30 minutes. Training your muscles is not like training for a marathon. Some people may over do the exercises to get bigger muscles. A short but intense training is the best way to add mass quickly. When it comes to arm training, more isn’t always better.

The correct technique needs to be used Focus when using weights; they should be used in a controlled manner. Only your ego will be trained if the weights you are using are heavy you will never get bigger muscles this way. Every repetition should be done with your arms fully extended as this develops your arms fully. This targets all the fibres in the muscle even though the exercise is harder. If you’re using too much weight (like most people do) you’ll end up doing partial repetitions, and swinging your body all over the place but most importantly of all you’ll put yourself in real danger of getting injured.

You will end up doing partial repetitions if you use too much weight and your body will swing all over the place and you may get injured. Reduce your weights and do the exercise properly.

If you would like to know more about bodybuilding? Take a look at protein bars and protein shakes.

Protein Energy Malnutrition: How Serious Can it Be?

Protein is a major component of every cell, organ, and function in the body. It is vitally important and is found in a number of sources in the typical diet- including in foods that are not so good for the human body, like processed or fast foods. Even though protein is found in so many different food sources there are still many people that do not get enough calories in their diet including protein.

Protein energy malnutrition (PEM) is a potentially fatal body deprivation disorder that is the leading cause of death in developing countries. PEM happens when there are not enough calories or proteins to meet the body’s nutritional needs. However, it does not always happen simply in the absence of protein in the diet, it can also occur when the body is either unable to absorb the protein or is not able to convert it for its own use.

PEM is not a common problem in the United States; statistically however it does affect two different demographic groups: the elderly who are living in nursing homes or other long term care facilities and children from poor families. It occurs in one in every two surgical patients and strikes 48% of all other, admitted, hospital patients. (Source: FAQS.org)

There are two varieties of PEM, Primary and Secondary. Primary PEM occurs when there is a lack of overall protein sources in the diet and too few calories. Secondary PEM is more common in the United States and is typically a complication that has developed from another disease including: AIDS, cancer, chronic kidney failure, inflammation, and bowel disease. PEM can develop slowly during a chronic illness or when the body is in a state of semi-starvation, but may develop quickly if there is an acute illness.

Protein energy malnutrition occurs in both hospital patients and long term care facility residents for a number of reasons. Many of them cannot chew or swallow correctly, preventing them from getting enough food into their system. Others may have slowed or faulty digestive systems, keeping them from processing the foods that they are taking in and leaving them feeling uncomfortable and unwilling to eat the next meal. Many of them are also not active and may have slowed or completely absent metabolisms, preventing them from feeling hunger at all. The elderly also tend to have a reduced sense of appetite to begin with, even when healthy.

In addition to the inability to eat and get enough calories in the diet, these patients may have additional nutrition losses because of bleeding, diarrhea, high sugar levels, kidney disease, malabsorption disorders. There are also other conditions that greatly increase the nutritional needs in the body, especially the need for protein. These conditions include: fever, infection, surgery, trauma, tumors, burns, and the use of some medications.

Continued inability to get enough calories or enough protein in the diet can lead to severe problems and can alter the form or function of every organ in the body. How fast or severe the condition actually is will depend on prior nutritional and health status, the nature of the disorder, and the speed of its progression.

Protein energy malnutrition ranges from mild to severe; however there are no set criteria for setting the levels. Most doctors agree that a loss of ten to twenty percent of body weight constitutes moderate PEM. At this level, there is a weakened grip and the inability to perform high energy tasks.

Severe PEM involves a weight loss of more than twenty percent and is potentially fatal. At this stage of the condition, the patient will be unable to eat any normal sized meals even if they have an appetite, the heart rate will be abnormally slow and the blood pressure will be dangerously low. The body’s core temperature will also drop below normal. The skin will appear baggy and wrinkled and the hair will be dry, thin, and brittle. Constipation is very likely at this point as is lethargy. The patient will also be more prone to pressure ulcers (commonly referred to as bed sores) and other skin lesions as the body is unable to fight off damage to the skin’s surface or underlying infectious agents.

It is very important that those people who are most at risk for protein energy malnutrition (children, the sick and the elderly) be given enough calories, including all three macronutrients to ensure their good health or to help them recover from illness or trauma. Using a protein supplement may be beneficial because is it more easily assimilated into the body. Once the condition has reached the moderate to severe stage, the likelihood of fatality becomes even more eminent without medical and nutritional intervention.

There are several different types of protein supplements that can be considered at this point, however they must meet the same criteria to be useful:

- They must contain high quality protein that can be assimilated by the body without extra effort. (Protein requires the most energy by the body to digest)

- They must not contain additional ingredients that can cause allergic reactions or be hard to digest or finally, could displace the protein.

- They must be palatable. A protein supplement that is very high in amino acids is typically very bitter and will not be easily eaten by the average person. The protein in the supplement should be broken down into smaller peptides so that it is easier to use and does not have the bitter taste.

- They should be adaptable meaning that the patient should be able to transition with the same protein supplement from feeding tube to consumption without the need to introduce a new supplement source to the system which could increase the risk of allergic reaction in some people.

- They should not cause a rise in blood sugar which can happen in the presence of added sugars.

- They should address the actual problem of protein digestion or absorption if at all possible.

- Finally, the protein supplement should give as many additional benefits as possible without comprising current health status or impeding healing.

There are a number of protein supplement types including the protein powders that can be added to other feeding sources and protein supplement shots. Protein powders have a number of advantages and disadvantages for each of the four types.

Whey Protein Powder: Advantages

- Enhances the production of glutathione, an immunity booster

- Highest level of natural food sourced branch chain amino acids which can be metabolized straight to muscle tissue

- Excellent source of the amino acid leucine which is vital for muscle growth

- Helps with the optimal intake of protein, fats, carbohydrates and the micronutrients

- Helps preserve muscle tissue

- Maintains a healthy blood sugar level

- High calorie protein source

Whey Protein: Disadvantages

- Potential allergic reaction in those who are lactose intolerant

- Too much whey can damage the liver

Soy Protein: Advantages

- Highly digestible form of protein

- Improves the nutritional value of other foods

- May decrease cholesterol

- Is suitable for vegans

- Source of phytoestrogens which are beneficial in a number of conditions and diseases including osteoporosis and breast health

Soy Protein: Disadvantages

- Potential allergen

- May not be indicated in some forms of breast cancer

Rice Protein: Advantages

- Hypoallergenic

- Easy to digest

- Suitable for vegans

Rice Protein: Disadvantages

- May be difficult to find in some areas

- May be more expensive to buy

Egg protein Advantages

- Made from the white of the egg, considered to be the perfect protein source

- Fat free

- High quality protein

- Highest food source in the amino acids, alanine, argine, glycine and methione.

Egg protein disadvantages

- Allergen potential

- May react with some medications

In addition to these powdered protein sources, there is another to consider that meets all of the criteria: Profect from Protica. It is available in a number of strengths and flavors and can be used as is or can be mixed with fruit juice or water. It can also be used as a feeding source for those who are being fed by alternative means either as a temporary or permanent solution.

Protica Research (Protica, Inc.) specializes in the development of Capsulized Foods. Protica manufactures Profect, IsoMetric, Pediagro, Fruitasia and over 100 other brands, including Medicare-approved, whey protein shots for bariatric surgery patients. You can learn more at Protica Research – Copyright

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