Sports Nutrition

If you suffer from constipation, you’ve probably been told to increase dietary fiber. But a recent study suggests that eliminating fiber might be a better way to reduce the symptoms of chronic constipation. Is this a better choice? In this week’s Research Review, we’ll explore some findings that go directly against what we’re commonly told when treating constipation, and leave you with… ehem, the bottom line. What goes in must come out Caca, turd, doo-doo, or poop. However much we joke about the product of elimination, most people probably don’t give the process a whole lot of thought. But bowel function is actually quite complex, involving the coordination of a number of nerves and muscles. Here’s how it works: The bowel is part of the digestive or gastrointestinal (GI) tract, which is designed to absorb nutrients from whatever we eat and drink. Nutrients like proteins, fats, carbohydrates and vitamins are absorbed in the small intestine. Anything the body can’t use continues to the large intestine, also known as the colon. Here, water is reabsorbed, along with some minerals, and then the remaining foodstuff is formed into stool. Now, if you have a sensitive stomach, prepare yourself for this next bit. There’s some variation in “normal” stool. But, in general, it will be smelly (because of bacterial fermentation), it should be brown (due to the bile), and it should be a soft consistency, like toothpaste. In other words, you shouldn’t have to bug out your eyeballs trying to pass it (1). How often should you poop? Frequency varies. There’s no “normal” number of times a person should go, but rather averages. Some people poop every day at the same time, like clockwork. Others go a couple of times a day. Still others go every other day, or maybe once or twice a week. (Factoid! Sloths poop only once a week, and they must climb down to squat at the base of a tree to do it.) This variation makes it difficult to define “constipation”. Our bowel speed can vary depending on our individual makeup, our age and sex, what we’ve eaten, our lifestyle, stress, etc. However, if: you pass fewer than three stools per week; they are hard and dry (2, 3); and bathroom time can be a bit of a challenge… …then you are probably constipated. Common treatments for constipation Most constipation is temporary. Maybe you’ve changed your diet recently or undergone some stress. Ordinarily, your bowels will return to normal soon after your life returns to normal. But what happens if constipation becomes chronic? The most common recommendations are to eat more fiber, drink more water, and get more exercise (1, 2, 3). What if these tricks don’t get things moving? Well, most people move on to stool softeners, schedule a visit to their MD – or even resort to colonic irrigation. Yup, that is definitely one way to keep your colon clear! Speaking of colonics, these were the focus of the movie The Road to Wellville staring Anthony Hopkins and Matthew Broderick. Who would have guessed that John Harvey Kellogg, a holistic medical doctor and the inventor of corn flakes, was also a proponent of vegetarianism and colonics? Not all constipation is created equal Truth is, most common treatments for constipation lack scientific support. And they’re often chosen without much forethought. Before we decide on treatment, we should know what type of constipation we’re dealing with. Constipation due to slow transit time may respond well to pharmacological agents like stool softeners, or may improve if the patient increases water, exercise, or fiber – assuming s/he is deficient in one or all of these. Common bulk forming agents like psyllium and bran can help in these situations. There is some evidence that Traditional Chinese Medicine and probiotics can also be useful. (See Research Review: Good bacteria, gut health and exercise.) However, in cases where th

It’s time for a Greek yogurt showdown! Today is a three-way match pitting Dannon Oikos vs Chobani vs Fage, with Great Value and Trader Joe’s brands available for alternates in case of injury. I’ll introduce the challengers and get into a comparison, but before we begin, what’s so special about Greek yogurt in the first place? Why Greek Yogurt? There’s a problem with yogurt. The vast majority of them are either full of sugar or artificial sweeteners (or both.) Not only is that a waste of calories, it’s a health hazard. That junk feeds the bad bacteria in your gut, while also killing off the good bacteria… which completely defeats the purpose of eating yogurt for the probiotic benefits! Even plain yogurt is a bit high in sugar for all the more protein it contains. (And be careful because “vanilla” is one of the flavors with added sugar!) Greek yogurt, on the other hand, is ridiculously high in protein. A cup of Greek yogurt has about the same protein content as a full scoop of whey protein powder! It’s filling, too. Sure, the flavored Greek yogurts are still loaded with sugar, almost defeating the purpose of Greek yogurt. So I’m only including the plain yogurt today. Without further ado, let’s meet the challengers… Challenger #1: Dannon Oikos Dannon Oikos is an easy-to-find, moderately priced Greek yogurt. It is priced higher than Wal-Mart’s Great Value brand, but a little less than Fage and Chobani. For this battle, I got two 32oz tubs – the “Traditional Greek Yogurt” made with whole milk and the “Fat Free Greek Yogurt” made with nonfat milk (as seen below.) Ingredients for full fat: Cultured Grade A Milk. Ingredients for 0% fat: Cultured Grade A Non Fat Milk. Both varieties have a mild flavor which makes them very versatile, and the smooth creaminess of the whole milk version can’t be found elsewhere. Challenger #2: Chobani Chobani is probably the most popular authentic brand of Greek yogurt. They have a rich history, good looking containers, and a high price – just under $6 for the 32oz tub. Ingredients: Cultured Pasteurized Nonfat Milk, Live And Active Cultures: S. Thermophilus, L. Bulgaricus, L. Acidophilus, Bifidus And L. Casei. It definitely has a strong, tart taste. I’d even call it sour. I couldn’t eat it plain – it was actually too potent for me! So there’s no confusing this with the other brands! Challenger #3: Fage The most expensive choice at over $7 per 35.3oz tub, Fage offers both a rich Greek heritage and a great taste. Ingredients: Grade A Pasteurized Skimmed Milk, Live Active Yogurt Cultures (L. Bulgaricus, S. Thermophilus, L. Acidophilus, Bifidus, L. Casei). Quite simply, Fage tastes awesome! It has a great, rich flavor with almost no tartness. And you wanna talk about Greek yogurt being thick? This is THICK! It’s like scooping out ice cream! Alternate #1: Great Value At about $3.98 per container, Wal-Mart’s private label brand is the best value in Greek yogurt. Ingredients: N/A It tastes pretty good; it’s not tart and it’s definitely not sour. Actually, it tastes like plain yogurt, just thicker. This makes it a great way to transition into eating Greek yogurt. Alternate #2: Trader Joe’s At $4.99 for the 32oz container, Trader Joe’s brand is slightly cheaper than name brands, while still providing a great product. Ingredients: Grade A Pasteurized Nonfat Milk, Live And Active Cultures: S. Thermophilus, L. Bulgaricus, L. Acidophilus, Bifidus, L. Casei. Cultured After Pasteurization. It’s a very good yogurt that seems extra smooth, but still thick, not runny. It practically melts in your mouth! (So it’s like experiencing the whole milk Oikos without the fat.) There’s certainly a hint of that trademark Greek yogurt tartness, but just enough to tell you what it is. It’s pleasa

If you want to live a long, healthy, and productive life, find your passion. This personal “reason for being” will support you through good times and bad. In Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3, Coach Craig Weller talked about the importance of finding your “deep reason”, how to keep going when the going gets tough, and tackling challenges in the face of fear. In the final part of this series, Coach Craig Weller explains the wisdom of Okinawans, and why we need a reason for being. Ikigai and the Okinawans In a 2009 TED talk, explorer, author, educator, and award-winning cyclist Dan Buettner described his research in the Blue Zones – areas of the world in which people live inordinately long, healthy lives. The Blue Zone with the longest disability-free life expectancy is the archipelago of Okinawa, Japan. Here, men and women routinely exceed 100 years of age. Still physically capable, fully alert, and involved in the world around them, they work in their gardens, play with their great-great-grandchildren, and when they die, it is generally quickly, and in their sleep, and sometimes after having sex. Their rates of disease are many times lower than throughout much of the world. Interestingly, Okinawans don’t have a word for retirement. What they do have is ikigai. Roughly translated, this means “passion” or “reason for living.” In the course of their research, Beuttner’s team asked Okinawans to identify their ikigai. Almost all the interview subjects answered – without hesitation. The ikigai of one 102-year-old karate master was to teach his martial art. For a 100-year-old fisherman, it was bringing fish back to his family three days a week. A 102-year-old woman named spending time with her great-great-granddaughter as her reason for living. Why did you get out of bed this morning? The word passion comes from the Latin verb patoir, meaning “to suffer and endure”. This is where stories like “The Passion of the Christ” get their name. Eventually, the word came to mean not only suffering itself, but also that which sustains a sufferer – whatever drives a person to keep going, even in the face of pain or deprivation. In Man’s Search for Meaning, psychologist Viktor Frankl describes his life as a prisoner in two different concentration camps during the Holocaust. What he endured and learned in those settings later informed the important school of therapy he founded. He called it logotherapy – from the Greek logos, or meaning. Logotherapy is based on three main principles: Life has meaning under all circumstances, even the most miserable ones. Our main motivation for living is our will to find meaning in life. We have freedom to find meaning in what we do, and what we experience, or at least in the stand we take when faced with a situation of unchangeable suffering. As a young candidate in Naval Special Warfare selection, I once asked a mentor to share his tips for success in the grueling program. He thought for a minute, and then told me: “Whenever I thought about quitting, I imagined my family. I was going to have them when it was over. I could never face them, or live with myself, if I quit.” Over the years, I discovered that nearly everyone who made it through the selection process felt much the same. Those who quit seldom mentioned the way their families would feel. And somehow, they rationalized their decision. But those who continued could not have left without imagining the disappointment of their wives, brothers, sisters, or parents. It was as if their families were watching them, expecting them to succeed. And that sense of connection kept them focused on their goals. Recently, I came across this passage in Frankl’s book: ” … We stumbled on in the darkness, over big stones and through large puddles, along the one road leading from the camp. The accompanying guards kept shouting at us and driving us with the butts of their r

get pics of MyoTape wrapped around my waist and/or calves and one with Dan measuring my bicep LOL --> Now this is cool! The MyoTape Body Tape Measure is a specialty tape measure that’s made for taking girth measurements consistently and accurately, in the comfort of your own home. The one-handed operation means you can take the measurements on your own! No longer will you suffer the embarrassment of having your bodybuilder friend measure your 11″ biceps and laugh in your face! (There’s no way you measured your own bicep accurately with a regular cloth tape measure.) How much do you have to pay for this ingenious device? It’s only $6 (sometimes less) if you’re ordering from Amazon.com! How does it work? It’s simple. You just pull the tape out, wrap it around your body, and hook the plastic end into the slot on the opposite side. Making sure the tape isn’t twisted, kinked, or uneven, you push the button, and the tape tightens up. Then you read the measurement and you’re done! (If the tape isn’t even and held level, the pin may pop out of the handle during tightening. It’s like a warning that says, “hey buddy, fix your technique and try again if you want the correct measurement.”) Since it does most of the work, it always provides the same level of tightness. So you can’t leave it loose or pull it tight to influence your measurements. The tape locks in place as well, so you don’t have to worry about it winding itself back up if you let it slip. My #1 tip is to make sure you record the number from where the tape meets the outer edge of the handle. Be consistent with that and your measurements will be consistent, too. I can take some angled pics to demonstrate this --> There are two huge reasons to use this: First, you can take your own measurements. Not only does that save you embarrassment, it saves time – no need to schedule an appointment with a friend or wait around for someone to help. While it doesn’t seem like a big ordeal to get these measurements, you might not want someone else touching you, and some people surely don’t enjoy having to touch you! Second, the measurements will be taken consistently. That’s something that can’t be said for a regular measuring tape. Even if you have the same person using the tape, they might vary the pressure ever so slightly each time, so the accuracy of the measurements could be questionable. From my personal experience, there can be huge discrepancies between regular measuring tapes and the MyoTape. I’m talking two inch variations in chest measurement! That’s insane. I don’t even know how the slight pressure differences result in that big of a measurement difference, but it happens. That’s what really sold me on the MyoTape, even if you have someone else taking your measurements. You can take your own measurements, have a friend take measurements, and have your spouse take measurements, and they’ll all be the same if you use this device. That will NOT happen if they do it “freehand.” The tape measures up to 60″ – that should cover most cyclists’ quads, calves, biceps, forearms, neck, shoulders, chest, hips, and waist. (Olympic track cyclist Chris Hoy reportedly has 27″ quads, and I don’t imagine you’re going to beat that!) You could also use the tape to get an accurate measurement of your skull, for determining your proper helmet size! There’s nothing I can complain about. I’ve had mine for years, and it still works fine. Sure, it takes a delicate touch to be able to measure your own chest and shoulders, but it’s not difficult. [Note: For those of you who own the Precision Nutrition course, this is the tape measure that's recommended in the "Measurement Guide" section.] Want one? You can get the tape for about $5 at Amazon.com, or do what I did and get the whole kit (which also i

From TV to computer screens, sexy food images are everywhere. That’s why we have to be careful; food porn stimulates poor choices and overeating. Find out how and why in today’s update. Also, learn what you can do to appreciate food and choose wisely at the same time. I just watched Silver Linings Playbook. In the film, the main character goes to a diner and orders a bowl of Raisin Bran. After that scene, all I wanted to do was eat Raisin Bran. If this subtle cue can make me crave Raisin Bran – a food that isn’t even part of my normal diet – what happens when I watch the Food Network or scroll through recipe blogs? If you’re trying to lose fat or maintain a healthy weight, this is something to consider. Indeed, we’re looking at, talking about, and — as a result — thinking about food a lot these days. Bruce Horovitz of USA Today explains: “Social-media chatter about food — which is where we do much of it — is up more than 13% over the past year… Food Network, which had 50,000 viewers per night in the mid-’90s, now averages more than 1.1 million.” And as my Raisin Bran experience shows, pictures and discussions of food can tempt us to eat… and even to overeat. What’s “food porn”? Why do we call it “food porn” and not, say, “food pictures”? For that matter, why does the word “porn” appear on PN at all? Sure, originally the word “pornography” referred specifically to images of sex. But now, it’s used more broadly to refer to the commodification, simplification, and simulation of an experience, person, or thing. Porn presents a world where everything is better than reality. Porn packages up a part of life into a shiny, visually appealing, easily consumed fantasy package. So you can have “lifestyle porn” (think Martha Stewart), “house porn” (think Architectural Digest), or heck, even “knitting porn“. And porn creates desire. It taps in to our primal “me want that” brain. Thus, food porn isn’t just pictures of food. After all, images of food from previous eras were somewhat unsophisticated. You probably don’t want to dig in to this dinner party special from the 1960s. But nowadays, food is an industry — an industry that includes skilled photographers and designers, food stylists, product developers, celebrity chefs, social media, and reality TV as well as thousands of websites and amateur food bloggers. Food looks a heckuva lot better than it used to. Images of appealing food are everywhere now. And these images can and do affect our food choices. Why we eat Eating patterns are influenced by many factors, including: Gut/brain cues (e.g., low blood sugar, growling stomach) Learned behaviors (e.g., it’s lunchtime at noon) Thoughts (e.g., I’m on a low carb diet; I haven’t eaten for 3 hours) Habits (e.g., cookies every night before bed) Social context (e.g., it’s a party with food, so I’ll eat) Food availability (e.g., I’m out of vegetables, so I won’t eat them) External / environmental cues (e.g., images of food, cooking shows, food blogs). And it turns out that looking at food, or even pictures of highly palatable food, can chronically activate our desire to eat – even in the absence of true physiological hunger. That’s because we don’t just eat to satisfy our nutritional requirements. We also eat for pleasure. Pleasure & palatability Highly palatable foods (in other words, foods that taste extra-good) are highly pleasurable foods. And when we get highly palatable foods, we — and other mammals — will eat more of those foods than our bodies need. Highly palatable foods also look good to us. Whether it’s a juicy burger or a shiny jellybean, highly palatable foods are specifically constructed — yes, constructed — to appeal to all our inherent preferences. We don

Have you ever had the inclination to try baby food, but couldn’t be seen eating baby food? Well check this out – it’s virtually the same ingredients, in the same container, but with a mature, sophisticated label design. I’m talking about Health Valley “On the Go” Fruit Yogurt Smoothies. You can get them in a box of four and no one will know you’re buying mashed fruit in baby food containers! I found them on sale for $2.50 per box, but I guess the typical retail price at Wal-Mart is still only $2.98 per box. These ready-to-drink smoothies are a blend of real fruit and yogurt with no added sugar, and you don’t have to refrigerate them (until after opening… but that would be like refrigerating an energy gel packet after opening.) Speaking of which, could these be a more natural alternative to an energy gel? Let’s see… Health and Nutrition Inspection Starting with the ingredients list… Ingredients: Pears, mangoes, water, yogurt (milk, nonfat dry milk, yogurt cultures), calcium citrate malate, citric acid, ascorbic acid (vitamin c), vitamin d. Seems like a healthy list – it really is fruit and yogurt. Obviously both those ingredients are naturally full of sugar, but there’s no added sugar (or worse, corn syrup.) It also looks like these have the upper hand over comparable bottled smoothies, like Yoplait or even Stonyfield Farms Organic Super Smoothies, which contain added sugar (yep, “organic sugar” is Stonyfield’s #2 ingredient.) Nutrition Facts Calories 90 Total Fat 0.5g Total Carb. 20g Dietary Fiber 2g Sugars 15g Protein 1g Running the numbers, these Health Valley smoothies contain nearly as many grams of sugar per ounce as the Stonyfield ones, but here, the sugar is from the fruit. Stonyfield’s smoothies are based on yogurt and added sugar, with fruit coming in third place. That makes these Health Valley Fruit Yogurt Smoothies a good sugary snack that could probably function as an energy gel substitute! There’s dairy in them, but they’re mostly just fruit puree, so you’d get a good shot of fructose. Taste Testing The Smoothies I purchased all three flavors, and they all taste like real fruit! Strawberry Banana: This one is “pretty good.” It tastes like real fruit; we’re not talking fresh cut fruit, but real fruit nonetheless. You can taste strawberries and bananas separately, like fruit on the bottom yogurt. Sometimes the bananas tasted like they were a little too ripe, but not bad. The strawberry half was just right. Pear Mango: OH MY GOSH! Now this is amazing! Again, it tastes like real fruit, but this time the pear and mango flavors are perfect! Perfect ripeness, completely natural and real, and they taste like fresh picked fruit!! I’ve never had a pear mango flavor combo before, but now I want to mix pear and mango all the time! These are at least as good as, but probably better than, a Naked fruit drink! (Green Machine would be the one exception.) Just wait, the next Cooking With Coach Levi segment this summer will be a pear mango protein smoothie! Apple Blueberry: This was really really good!! The blueberries taste amazing and it tastes like they’re mixed with apple butter! (That’s right, apple butter!) Right now I think I like it better than the pear mango, but they’re two completely different, complementary flavors, so you should get a box of each. One thing that was odd was that every single package, even of the same flavor, was slightly different. Some had more of one fruit than the other, and sometimes the fruit was just right, while others it was overripe (specifically the banana.) That would explain why sometimes the mango ones were awesome and sometimes lackluster. (Not unlike buying fresh mangoes – you never know if you’ll get a good one.) And a few tasted like pears, with just a hint of mango. It wasn’t a

Fat loss is a constant, ongoing battle of trying to burn more than you store. So while it’s a good idea to use supplements that can free up more fat and burn it up, you should also consider using supplements that decrease the amount of fat your body stores. CLA is a naturally occurring group of healthy omega-6 fats. Numerous research studies confirm that CLA enhances fat loss while simultaneously boosting muscle growth and strength. The main way it works is by inhibiting the enzyme lipoprotein lipase (LPL). LPL allows fat cells to take up fat from the bloodstream and store it as body fat. By inhibiting LPL, CLA prevents the body from storing fat and instead encourages it to burn fat. Sometimes an increase in caloric burn isn’t enough to ensure that it all gets torched for good. The fat has to get to the tiny power plants, known as mitochondria, located in the body’s cells where it will be burned up as fuel. But fat isn’t allowed to pass into the mitochondria at will, it must be carried in. Fat transporters can help to maximize the amount of fat that gets in. L-carnitine is an effective supplement for increasing the transportation of fat to be burned by the cells mitochondria. The more we learn about nutrition and nutritional supplements, the more we realize that nutrients can affect our genes in some profound and surprising ways. Fat burning is one such case. Fish oil as a source of essential omega-3 fats provides both eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). These omega-3 fats have recently been found to turn on genes that increase fat burning while turning off genes that allow fat storage.

Benefits of Increased Testosterone • Increased Muscle Mass • Increased Strength • Reduced Soreness and Recovery Time • Enhanced Sexual Function • Reduced Body Fat • Increased Energy Levels D-Aspartic Acid (DAA) is a naturally occurring amino acid found in the human reproductive organs, hypothalamus and pituitary gland. D-aspartic acid is formed when the enzyme aspartate racemase converts L-aspartic acid into D-aspartic acid in the testes and other glands within the body. D-aspartic acid plays a vital role in the manufacturing of sperm cells and sex hormone production. DAA is a very potent sexual performance stimulator, enhancing libido, erection quality, and heightening of orgasms and the quality of sexual activity. Human studies have shown a correlation between a significant increase in luteinizing hormone (LH), a messenger hormone which signals the testes to produce more testosterone, and higher testosterone levels in men when supplementing D-aspartic Acid. DAA also induces potent elevation of neurotransmitters such as dopamine and GABA, which are responsible for its memory enhancing, anti-depressive and neurotropic effects. The amino acid Sarcosine works synergistically with D-Aspartic Acid to greatly enhance its activity at the receptor site. The use of Sarcosine infused DAA leads to a greater elevation of testosterone peaks compared to the usage of DAA alone. Ursolic acid is derived from the skin and tissues of many edible plants and fruits. Recent scientific studies have shown Ursolic acid to be a powerful anabolic substance. Recent research has suggested Ursolic acid can be a potent muscle builder and fat burner. Ursolic acid was shown to block muscle wasting caused by undernourishment. Ursolic acid was also shown to accelerate muscle growth by as much as 15% when fed to normal mice. Interestingly, fat loss occurred simultaneously and at a rate practically inversely proportional to muscle gain. Ursolic acid’s anabolic mechanism is enhancing the expression of  IGF-1. The local production of IGF-1 in muscle initiates the key steps of satellite cell recruitment into new myonuclei and protein synthesis; new muscle signaling. Ursolic acid has been shown to shrink fat cells. It is believed that it achieves this by both enhancing lipolysis (fat burning) and blocking fatty acid synthesis. It may also affect fat stores by blocking cortisol activation. Ursolic acid is also an effective blocker of the enzyme aromatase, so it has the potential to control estrogen production while maximizing testosterone release. Tribulus contains an extract of Tribulus terrestris herb (aerial parts – leaves and stems) and contains steroidal saponins, mainly furostanol glycosides (including protodioscin and protogracillin) and small quantities of spirostanol glycosides, sterols and other compounds. The compounds in Tribulus work together not to induce the production of testosterone but rather to increase luteinizing hormone (LH) which converts free testosterone into useable anabolic hormone. Maca Root Extract contains plant sterols which can block and control the production of estrogen and boost testosterone levels. In studies, Maca increased total testosterone indirectly by increasing sex hormone binding globulin which increases free testosterone levels. Testofen is an extract of fenugreek seed containing the steroidal saponins, sapogenins and furostanol saponins, which are important precursors for the synthesis of a number of sex hormones. The extract has been suggested in human studies to raise free testosterone, the only type of testosterone to actually enter the muscle cell and cause positive results in

Joining us today is biologist Dr. Matthew Papaconstantinou. Matthew received his PhD in Medicinal Chemistry and conducted postdoctoral research for 5 years in the field of blood biochemistry at Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis, MO. Matthew is an avid windsurfer who lives in the beautiful seaside village of Aktaio, Greece. He often goes mountain biking and hiking in the majestic Greek mountains. WeightLossTriumph.com is a blog where Matthew reviews the latest diet trends, compares clinically studied weight loss programs (such as Weight Watchers, Medifast, and Nutrisystem,) and often publishes interesting scientific findings in the fitness and nutrition fields. He has a very different approach than I do (likely due to my severe lack of scientific background,) so this will be an interesting change of pace!  Get ready to crunch some numbers! Coach Levi:  I’m always getting emails from endurance athletes wondering how many calories they’re burning during each workout.  Why is it important

In fitness and nutrition, we’re saturated with information. But though we acquire knowledge, we seem to be lacking clarity and wisdom. In today’s video, I talk about cultivating both. A few weeks back I was asked to give a keynote lecture at the annual Equinox Personal Trainer Summit in West Hollywood, California. The theme of the event was “longevity”. Instead of doing another nutrition lecture, I decided to talk about something different: the importance of actively developing wisdom, especially in the midst of a never-ending barrage of facts, ideas, and opinions. To check out the video, click the image below. (Or you can listen to the audio by clicking the “Download Audio File” link.) Want to listen to it on the go? Click here to download the audio file and listen to the presentation on your phone or mp3 player.