Philadelphia Personal Trainer Supplement suggestions

Supplementation and your Meal Plan - There are billions of dollars spent each year on meal and dietary supplements, from vitamins to protein bars and even those magic weight loss pills sold over the counter. The most important thing you need to understand, how is what you are taking really benefiting or supporting your overall fitness or health goals. Make sure you READ the labels and look for clean products that still support a healthy meal plan. Multivitamins are an excellent choice to fill in your nutrient holes from your eating plan and sometimes protein powders as well as protein supplements can help support, a busy lifestyle.

Keep in mind though that supplements are just that, supplements. They are not intended to replace whole food nutrition.
Multi-vitamin nutrients are great but are best whem extracted from whole food.

Boost metabolism with tips from Philadelphia Personal Trainer

Flavor for Fitness - Eating food that has no flavor makes it very easy to fall off your healthy meal plan. Food doesn't have to be fattening and bad for you to taste good, so Spice it up. Here are some great flavoring alternatives that don't add bad calories to your healthy meal plan when used with moderation.
a. Mustard
b. Salsa
c. Flavored Vinegars - Balsamic, Raspberry, Red wine, etc
d. Teriyaki or Low Sodium Soy Sauce
e. Any type of your favorite hot sauce
f. Herbs - Basil, Dill, Tarragon, Rosemary, etc.
g. Spices - Cinnamon, Cloves, Curry Powder, etc.
h. Citrus Juices - Lemon, Lime and Orange both juice and Zest
i. Low and No Salt Seasonings - Like Mrs. Dash, etc.

Get some spicy ideas from Philadelphia Personal Trainer, Phil Nicolaou. Also a Certified Fitness Chef

Philadelphia Personal Trainer's way to eat smart

1) First Thirst. Water is cheap, readily available and will boost your health, your absorption of nutrients and give you great skin! What’s not to like about that? Before you order a soda, grab the juice or iced tea, drink your water. Water first, then the other stuff. If you really wanna save some cash, skip the other stuff entirely.

2) Big on Breakfast. Eating breakfast gets your metabolism started, your appetite handled and consequently, helps you to stabilize, maybe even lose weight!

3) Eat in Season. Fresh fruits and veggies can be expensive, but if you buy in season (take advantage of locally grown stuff), you’re going to get superior quality and less cash outlay! If you do a garden, you’ll eat even better for WAY less!

4) Watch the Iceberg. There are FAR better lettuces out there. Iceberg is nearly nutritionally void. Just let the color GREEN be your guide; the greener, the better!
5) Get Some blueberries. Blueberries (fresh or frozen) have more antioxidants and phytonutrients than any other vegetable or fruit on the planet! I like them in my steel cut oats in the morning.
6) Home Plate. Large salad plates work better for portion control than conventional dinner plates. Your plate should have a deck of cards-sized protein source and a fist-sized amount of complex carbs. The rest, pile high with veggies.

7) Brown Outs. Skip the white rice, white flour and sugar. Instead, go with whole-wheat flour, brown rice and use evaporated cane juice (also called Sucanat) instead of regular sugar. And go SPARINGLY on all of them!

8) Go Fish. Eat wild fish instead of farm-raised fish to enjoy the benefits of omega-3 fatty acids not found in farm-raised. You can find it on sale and flash frozen to save money. Wild salmon is an especially nutritious choice!

9) Better Butter. Use half olive oil and butter whipped together. Spreads easier, better for you and less saturated fat than regular butter.

10) Shake the Salt. When cooking, use salt toward the end of cooking and only to add taste. Taste your food BEFORE you salt it and if you wanna go hardcore, remove the shaker entirely from the table. And do yourself a favor, use sea salt. Much gentler and better tasting; you’ll use less!

Get a comprehensive nutrition program by Philadelphia Certified fitness nutrition coach, Phil Nicolaou.

Train for flexibility with Philadelphia Personal Trainer

Flexibility is one of the most overlooked Components of Fitness among both the athletic and non-athletic populations. For the non-athletic, lack of flexibility and a functional range of motion (ROM) around a joint can cause pain and discomfort. Low back pain syndrome is usually caused by lack of flexibility, poor strength and poor anaerobic endurance in the back and surrounding muscles groups (i.e. hip flexors).

The athletic population does not spend that appropriate amount of time on their flexibility preferring to spend their time on the more “Showy” Components of Fitness. This decision leads to numerous athletic injuries. Athletes require full functional range of motion and a “reserve” range of motion, particularly when their sport may require a “Ballistic Contraction.” This is obvious in sports like gymnastics, wrestling, martial arts, track and field, etc., but may not be as obvious in a sport like golf. Without sufficient functional ROM (FROM), the golfer will not perform optimal strokes at best and at worst, risks debilitating injury.

Flexibility Training Tips:

Always warm-up before stretching. Muscles can increase their functional range of motion by 30% when warm.
Perform each stretch to the point of tight and hold for 30 seconds. When the muscle begins to “loosen-up” and increase its functional range of motion, you can take it into a deeper stretch for an additional 30 seconds (60 seconds total).
Never go to the point of pain! When you perform a painful stretch the muscles will react be DECREASING your functional range of motion to avoid potential tearing injuries.
Increase the functional range of motion symmetrically. Improve flexibility in all muscle groups equally, especially agonist-antagonist muscle groups.
Flexibility exercise increase functional range of motion, but after 4 hours, muscles begin to lose their increased FROM.
It is recommended that you perform flexibility exercises everyday to improve functional range of motion and relieve stress.
Breathe regularly during stretching.
Functional range of motion decreases with age and physical inactivity (though growing evidence suggests that physical inactivity, specifically failure to train flexibility, is the primary reason for loss of flexibility with age).
Perform 1-3 repetitions of 1-3 sets utilizing the IFPA Gradual Progressive Overload (GPO) Principle.
Static Stretches can be performed anytime on your own using your body weight. Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitation (PNF) techniques can be performed with a competent partner or IFPA Certified Personal Trainer. Ballistic stretching should only be performed if required for your specific sport or activity (i.e. ballet).
Always use proper form as detailed in the IFPA Book on Personal Training. Correct form is safer and more effective than incorrect form or “cheating” to increase reach.
Since Flexibility Training is a very low intensity exercise regimen, it is possible to train everyday, 3 times per day with no ill effect.
DO NOT STRETCH an affected area if:
You had a recent bone break or fracture
You had a recent sprain or strain
You had a sharp, acute pain with a joint movement or muscle elongation

Contact Philadelphia Personal Trainer Philadelphia to train for specific flexibility. 

The Benefits of Tea

There are over 3000 varieties of tea from around the world. It was discovered by accident around 2700 B.C., when the Chinese Emperor Shen Nung was resting beneath a shade tree as his servant was boiling some drinking water and the leaves from a wild tea tree fell into the pot. The Emperor sipped what he thought was water and to his delight the beverage tea came to be. All true tea derives from a single plant, the Evergreen Camellia Sinensis. Note * Herbal teas are not really “tea” at all, but rather beverages brewed from roots, herbs and other sources.

Three types of tea derive from the Camellia Sinensis: Green, Black and Oolong. The difference between the three teas, come from the way the tea leaves are processed. Green tea is lightly processed and has received the most attention for heart benefits. Black tea is made from leaves left to ferment following the harvest of tea leaves. This process darkens the leaves and allows the flavor to be strong. Oolong tea is partially fermented, milder than black and stronger than green.

Tea contains phytonutrient polyphenols or “flavonoids”, one of 4000 chemical compounds found in tea. These flavonoids are the same type found in red wine and berries. There are 266 milligrams of flavonoids in one cup of brewed black tea and around 315 milligrams of flavonoids in green tea. However, the most potent substance you will find in tea is EGCG, a flavonoid group called Catechins. It has been documented in several laboratory tests that EGCG (Epigallocatechin Gallate) found in green tea is twenty times more potent an antioxidant than vitamin C.

The benefits of drinking tea are many: cancer prevention, lower risk of dementia, heart health, dental health, kidney health, bone health and may assist in weight loss due to energy boost from caffeine. Consuming one cup of tea provides some benefit for health, but for the maximum benefit you may need to consume up to 4 cups per day.

To get the maximum benefit, here are some tips for you on brewing!

Instant tea will not give you the antioxidant benefit you are looking for due to the processing.
Tea should be brewed for at least 3 minutes.
You will get the same benefit from tea bags as you would from loose leaves.
To get a bigger boost of almost double the polyphenol, squeeze your tea bag!
Does not matter if you drink it hot or cold, but do not drink excessively hot.
Drink fresh brewed tea as flavonoids will degrade over time.
Use green tea in marinades and sauces.
For an added dose of polyphenol add a wedge of lemon or lime.
Whether you prefer Green tea (favored in Japan), Black tea (favored in Europe) or Oolong tea (favored in China) they are great health benefits to be had from all.

To find out more, contact Philadelphia Certified Personal Trainer, Phil Nicolaou.

Philadelphia Personal Trainer Healthy Holiday Tips

These several tips can shave hundreds of calories from your Holiday meal.

Avoid skipping breakfast or lunch on Thanksgiving
Use fat-free chicken broth to baste the turkey
Use sugar substitutes in place of actual sugar
Reduce oil and butter, even if only by 20% or 30%
Although Thanksgiving Day is generally for being with family and friends, try to take at least 30 minutes for a brisk walk or in-home workout
Consider plain yogurt or fat-free sour cream in potatoes or casseroles
Drink more water throughout the day so that you will feel satisfied sooner
Drinking alcohol? Consider wine as opposed to beer or other forms of alcohol, and aim to limit alcohol intake to no more than two drinks.

For more information on shortcuts in dieting that work, contact Philadelphia Personal Trainer and Nutritionist, Phil Nicolaou.

Watch those liquid calories!

Watch those liquid calories that add up - One great alternative to soda is a fresh brewed glass of decaf Green tea. Brew green tea with cloves and cinnamon stick and sweeten it lightly with Splenda and a fresh wedge of lemon or lime juice. It's a great health drink with NO Calories and high in antioxidants. So drink to your health and Lose Weight. Remember that liquid calories can really add up in your daily intake. So drink wisely.

Get more comprehensive nutrition information from Philadelphia Certified Personal Trainer, Phil Nicolaou.