Want Some Estrogen With That Soft Drink?

It turns out a cold drink isn’t the only thing in your pop can. A Health Canada study of canned pop has found the vast majority of the drinks contain the chemical bisphenol A, a substance that imitates the female hormone estrogen and is now banned in baby bottles.

The highest levels of the chemical, known as BPA, were found in  caffeine-loaded energy drinks, but the residue was also detected in ginger ale, diet cola, root beer and citrus-flavoured soda. Pop cans are lined on the inside with BPA in order to prevent the drink from coming into contact with the metal in the can.

“The emphasis has always been on canned foods, and the results are especially startling, given that the average person, worldwide, consumes more than 22 gallons of soft drinks every year. Yikes!” (thedailygreen.com)

Out of 72 drinks tested, 69 were found to contain BPA at levels below what Health Canada says is the safe upper limit. However, studies in peer-reviewed science journals have indicated that even at very low doses, BPA can increase breast and ovarian cancer cell growth and the growth of some prostate cancer cells in animals. Health Canada spokesman Stéphane Shank said  there is no risk to Canadians. “The average adult weighing approximately 60 kilograms would have to consume over 900 cans per day” to reach the department’s safety threshold, he said. (www.cbc.ca)

The drinks tested came from a variety of sources, representing at least 84 per cent of the market share of soft drinks sold in the country. Despite this, the federal department did not reveal why this study was only published January in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry and on Health Canada’s website. The reasoning? It wasn’t their intent to hide it. However, had they wanted to get this report out, which would certainly have been the case if it was more positive, more sources would have been included.

Like estrogen — BPA is active in very small amounts. The average soft drink contains levels of around half a part per billion, resulting in 500 times more estrogen in people than normal. Some experiments have found harmful effects in animals at BPA concentrations as low as 1,000 times below Health Canada’s marker. Given this information, we need to consider the cumulative effect of hormone-disrupting chemicals.

You Know You’re Big When….

http://www.bostream.nu/beefq/oldtimebb.html

Saw this list on a website of Bodybuilding Humour by Roland S Persson, PhD. The guy is build pretty good and therefore has some background in what he speaks of. I thought you would find the list amusing:

You know you have finally made it to bodybuilderdom and become quite muscle bound…

• …when your shirt unintentionally bursts open the first time.
• …when clothing shops do not have your sizes anymore.
• …when unknown people ask how much you bench press.
• …when people turn around in the street to stare at you.
• …when you cannot scratch your neck.
• …when the bar won’t come all the way down to your chest anymore.
• …when you wear out pants in a matter of weeks because of inner thigh friction.
• …when you cannot reach the opposite shoulder to shave.
• …when you cannot undress a tight shirt without assistance.
• …when your feet turn flat because of your weight.
• …when your shopping cart is filled with as much as possible of a few things.
• …when unknown men and women come running across the street asking to feel your arms.
• …when your food bills exceed your clothing bills.
• …when you have sacks or piles of tubs of protein visible in your kitchen.
• …when you need to apply vaseline between your thighs when walking in shorts.
• …when you have no choice but to wear gym clothes at work.
• …when you must sleep on your back in bed.
• …when sex in a bed from IKEA becomes doubtful.
• …when you need two bus seats or aircraft seats when travelling.
• …when you bring food and protein drinks with you at all times.
• …when the table in front of you squeaks and cracks as you merely rest one arm on it.
• …when people declare you a brainless musclehead but simultaneously can’t hide how much they want you for sex.
• …when you no longer fit behind the steering wheel of European city traffic cars.
• …when fellow passengers scream at the air stewardess: I don’t bloody want to sit next to HIM!
• …when fellow professionals ask if you have added “bouncing” to your other qualifications.
• …when you without thinking about it bounce your pex and flex your arms in public.
• …when you change your sounds and vocabulary in the gym doing 600+ lbs squatting.
• …when you spend a good part of the day in the bathroom … reading.
• …when butt-whiping becomes an effort in terms of reach.
• …when you shy away from the word “small”.
• …when one of your turnons is muscle soreness.
• …when you know more about physiology and pharmacology than your family doctor.
• …when food becomes function rather than pleasure.
• …when your shadow provides sunshelter for at least two people.
• …when you can’t help looking like jumbojet taking off with lats forcing your arms outwards.
• …when you have to go through many doors sideways and can give up the thought of heeding Nature’s Call on board an aircraft or a train.
• …when you walk like you have wet yourself.

Tabata: The Most Diabolically Effective Training Ever Conceived By Man

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Just thumbed through the latest Muscle and Fitness magazine and was re-inspired about one of my favourite ways of training – the Tabata Interval Method. It’s been a while since I tried it, so now I’m back on and am once again forcefully reminded of what extreme muscle soreness is all about. If you’re stuck in a rut, this “kick in the groin” type of routine will definitely wake you up.

It’s really the title that caught my eye: 20/10: A Pain Odyssey. It’s not for the faint of heart, let me tell you. It can make a grown man cry, (not that I was doing so, harrumph). But you WILL endure a lot of pain if you push yourself.

Here’s a quote I love from their article:

“Tabata Interval training is so far out of the three-sets-of-ten-reps box, it doesn’t even speak the same language.“

So, as the author states, “your days of resting longer than actually lifting are history, if you try this routine. You will actually be doing the opposite and will lift for twice as long as you break.”

Therefore you’ll:

1. Do as many reps as possible for twenty seconds,
2. Rest for ten seconds
3. Repeat seven more times!
4. Move on to the next exercise

Simple right? Eight sets of “as many reps as you can get done,” followed with a brief ten second rest. But don’t forget, this isn’t “eight sets of eight.” Try “as many reps as you can get in during the twenty seconds, followed by ten seconds rest.

You will not be throwing up large poundages. Typically, you’ll be using “50%-75% of what you’d use for a typical set of 8-12 reps, depending on the exercise. The best options for the Tabata Method are exercises that use a large number of muscles. Use the “lowest rep number” of any of the eight sets as your measurement to compare workout to workout. If you go too heavy, that last set may be 2-3 reps. If you go too light, you might get around 15 reps or more.

And by the way, those ten seconds go by fast. Don’t even think about getting a drink, looking in the mirror, or talking to the cutie on the bike. Ten second is ten seconds! No cheating! Besides, if you do it right, six seconds should be used for grimacing in pain – wohoo!

So why should you do this workout? The Tabata program might be the single best “fat burning workout” that I know, not to mention the increase in VO₂max. It’s not long, but it keeps you sweating, breathing hard and teaches the mental focus needed to help reach your goals.

Let me tell you, after a week on this baby, you will know all about a new “alien” muscle language. It’s one of extreme lactic acid buildup, agonizing bouts of soreness, and days of uncomfortable movement due to sore muscles.

Besides burning off tons of bodyfat, what can this type of training do for you?

• Improve your cardio-vascular function (aerobic endurance)
• Improve your anaerobic endurance
• Improve your muscular endurance
• Make you strong and fit and look fantastic

You got it right! It increases both aerobic (endurance) capacity and anerobic (quick power) output – two things that don’t typically go hand in hand. How’s that for a training method – yeah baby, yeah!

I think this type of routine is extremely beneficial because it includes 2-4 exercises per bodypart, unlike traditional Tabata training, which is usually one exercise per major muscle group. Once finished eight sets of a given exercise, you will then rest 2-3 minutes before repeating the same painful journey into the next exercise.

I took this excellent workout from a blog called “Healthhabits“. This guy (a Personal Trainer from Toronto, Canada) has some great advice on this type of training. Well worth a read -  go check it out. Anyways, here it is:

Workout # 1

1. Vertical Push Movement
2. Horizontal Pull Movement
3. Quadriceps Dominant Movement
4. Core Stabilization – focus on Spinal Flexion & Extension
5. Vertical Push Movement – optional
6. Horizontal Pull Movement – optional
7. Quadriceps Dominant Movement – optional

• Feel free to re-arrange the order of Exercises 1, 2 and 3. It doesn’t really make a difference.
• Sets 5 to 7 are for advanced athletes only. Remember, intensity is the key to Tabata success. Don’t try and pace yourself in order to add another set. Go full out on each set. Believe me, 4 sets of full intensity Tabatas should be enough to have you soaking wet with sweat and bordering on nausea.

Workout # 2

1. Vertical Pull Movement
2. Horizontal Push Movement
3. Hamstrings/Glute Dominant Movement
4. Core Stabilization – focus on Rotation and Lateral Flexion
5. Vertical Pull Movement – optional
6. Horizontal Push Movement – optional
7. Hamstring/Glute Dominant Movement – optional

• Feel free to re-arrange the order of Exercises 1, 2 and 3. It doesn’t really make a difference.
• Sets 5 to 7 are for advanced athletes only. Remember, intensity is the key to Tabata success. Don’t try and pace yourself in order to add another set. Go full out on each set. Believe me, 4 sets of full intensity Tabatas should be enough to have you soaking wet with sweat and bordering on nausea.

Vertical Push Movement

• 1 Arm Overhead Press
• 1 Arm or 2 Arm Push Presses
• 1 Arm Grappler Presses
• Side Presses
• Thrusters – 1 Arm or 2

Horizontal Pull Movement

• 1 Arm Standing Cable Row or Band Row
• Body-weight Row – use an adjustable power rack or Smith machine. This allows you to modify the angle of pull and the percentage of body-weight. Also, change your grips from set to set – width, underhand, overhand
• 1 Arm or 2 Arm Seated Rows – I prefer the standing rows because of their high demand for stabilization, but the seated version is pretty good as well
• Avoid any bent-over movements – Your lower back will fail long before the rest of you

Quadriceps Dominant Movement

• Front Squats – Dumbbells or Barbell
• Body-weight or Weighted Vest Squats – 1 Leg or 2
• Overhead Squats – 1 Arm or 2, 1 Leg or 2
• Quad Dominant Lunges – Lunge forward onto the ball of your foot AND keep your step short and allow the knee to travel past your toes…I know, I know, everyone says not to lunge this way, but it really hits the quads. BTW, take a look at how far your knee travels past your toes as you climb a flight of stairs…ooooh scary stuff.
• Bench Step-Ups
• Bulgarian Lunge/Squat

Core Stabilization – focus on Spinal Flexion & Extension

• Standing Cable or Band Crunch
• The Ab Wheel
• Leg raises/Knee-Ups / Crunches (various) - I would skip these exercises – you will fatigue quickly and you will probably have to cheat to complete all 8 sets

Vertical Pull Movement

• Chin-Ups/Pull-Ups – Palms facing you, palms facing away, neutral grip, towel grip, offset grip , assisted
• Pulldowns – 1 Arm or 2, different grips, kneeling, seated, standing
• Hanging Snatch or Hanging Clean – 1 Arm or 2, dumbbell, barbell, kettlebell

Horizontal Push Movement

• Push-Ups – like the Body-weight Row, use a Smith machine to adjust angles and body-weight resistance. Also, adjust hand placement (width, overhand, underhand) from set to set. Trust me, switching grips will increase the number of reps you will be able to perform
• 1 Arm Standing Cable Press or Band Presses
• Stay away from any standard bench press type exercise. The lactic acid will hit way too soon. You will never get a good Tabata workout…trust me. The cable/band exercise is the best choice. Even the push-ups allow you to use your legs and core to help perform the lift. You need these extra muscles to take some of the load

Hamstring/Glute Dominant Movement

• 1 Leg Deadlifts
• Glute – Ham Raise
• Hip Extensions – Band or Body-weight
• Pull-throughs – Band or cable

Core Stabilization – focus on Rotation and Lateral Flexion

• Wood-chops - play around with different angles
• Barbell Russian Twist
• Tornado ball or
  
• Windshield Wipers – Bent Leg or Straight Leg

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Is That Wiggle In The Middle Because Of Winter Blues?

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Ok heavy sigh, who’s got the winter blues? Those irritating mood swings, the hibernation effect and the lack of everything towards anything. As the weather freezes our behinds, we try hard to stay upbeat and positive but sometimes we fall into the abyss. Yes, it’s been a long winter and we may yet get some more snow, but if the recent sunny days are any indication, summer will soon be on the way. That means we get more energy, become more active and usually look to improve our health.

Let’s face it, everyone wants to see a trim and healthy body staring at them in the mirror. Problem is, we now have to decide what in the world it will take to get rid of that wiggle in our middle. Transforming your life and bringing about positive results is there for the taking, but how to start? It begins with us doesn’t it? We have to actually swing those legs off the couch and do something about how we feel. Research has provided solid evidence that a good exercise program offers astounding benefits in weight control, preventing aches, pains, illness and even disease.

But keep in mind that you have to be balanced in thinking. A bikini body or a set of washboard abs in six weeks, after five or six months of inactivity, is generally unrealistic. It’s going to take some time to undo the damage. The good news is that consistent and vigorous effort at any type of exercise, four to five times weekly, usually produces excellent results.

So go ahead, leave the excuses at the door and take control of the way you look. Never get down about your present condition; rather let it serve as an incentive for change. Then stop talking about it and invest some time and energy in yourself. You’ll soon feel youthful and confident strutting the new you, because a fit body, unlike a lax attitude, never goes out of style.