This is where I aim to provide you with some of the latest research in health, performance, nutrition, exercise and more.
Stuff you don't have the time to read I breakdown to the biggest takeaways and what you can do to implement them today!
TRAINING:
BIG IDEA: "Moving fast with lighter weights has been shown to develop favorable
motor unit recruitment, and also muscle fiber development for lifting
heavy weights". However, when you move fast the bar path is different and may lead to it jumping off the shoulders in a squat or popping off the thighs in a deadlift. This doesn't happen with heavier weights and can increase chances of injury.
WHAT TO TRY TODAY: When lifting lighter weights:
- Try squatting or deadlifting with bands or chains to work on accelerating the weight while not sacrificing technique. "Bands and chains help us overload the top of the lift while decreasing weight at the bottom".
- Try pauses at the bottom of the lifts or at sticking points to strengthen muscles in that specific configuration. "This helps to make us strong through the weak spots while building up
tissue tolerance in these positions to make us more resilient to injury".
NUTRITION:
BIG
IDEA: Many studies that say meat is bad for us actually use bad quality processed meat as opposed to high quality grass-fed cuts of meat
WHAT TO TRY TODAY: Eliminate processed meats like salami from your diet to avoid additives like sulphites, nitrates and food colourings
SLEEP:
BIG
IDEA: Your bedroom should be conducive to good sleep, free from technology, work and food so you can fully recover and perform at your best.
WHAT TO TRY TODAY:
- Take TVs and all technology out of your bedroom. If you use your mobile as an alarm make sure its in airplane mode.
-
Keep snacks in the kitchen
- Use scents like lavender to relax ready for sleep
- Keep the temperature in the bedroom between 18-20 C as your core temperature needs to drop to get into deep sleep
This is where I aim to provide you with some of the latest research in health, performance, nutrition, exercise and more.
Stuff you don't have the time to read I breakdown to the biggest takeaways and what you can do to implement them today!
TRAINING:
BIG IDEA: 10 min stair climbing workout 3 times a week, including warm-up, cool down and recovery periods, improved cardiorespiratory fitness (which is linked to longevity)
"Previous studies have proven the benefits of vigorous stair climbing
over sustained periods of time--up to 70 minutes a week--but scientists
set out to determine if sprint interval training (SIT), which involves
brief bursts of vigorous exercise separated by short periods of
recovery, was an effective and time-efficient alternative for improving
cardiorespiratory fitness".
"Both protocols, each involving a total time commitment of 30 minutes a
week, increased cardiorespiratory fitness, an important healthy marker
that is linked to longevity".
"Interval training offers a convenient way to fit exercise into your
life, rather than having to structure your life around exercise," says
Gibala, who has studied high-intensity interval training for more than a
decade and recently wrote a book on its efficacy entitled, "The One Minute Workout."
WHAT TO TRY TODAY: No more excuse of not enough time or no gym access. Find some stairs get to work.
e.g. 3 min warm-up, 3 x 20sec all-out work with 2 min recovery, 2 min cool-down
NUTRITION:
BIG
IDEA: 3 eggs daily improved lipid profile more than 1 or 2 eggs a day. Forget what you heard. Eggs are back.
"So, what should I remember? It's not just that you can have your egg(s) and still be healthy, it's rather that you can have your (at least three) eggs (per day) and thus be
healthy - heart-healthy, as this particular study with its improvements
in particle sizes (those have been linked to reduced risk of heart
disease - 55% reduced w/ fluffy LDL in Lamarche. 2001; and Williams et
al. (2012) show that a higher concentration of the larger, more buoyant
HDL is closely associated with decreased CVD risk), cholesterol efflux
and transport, as well as the total antioxidant status of the subjects'
blood shows".
WHAT TO TRY TODAY: Eat up to 3 eggs a day to get good quality protein for muscle building and fats for brain function and energy, all while potentially improving your lipid profile (cholesterol levels and particle size). Just make them free range and organic even better if you can!
SLEEP:
BIG
IDEA: Pink noise played through headphones at intervals during sleep improved slow wave sleep and performance on memory tests.
"Zee
says that the effectiveness of pink noise is all in the timing. “The
effect here, at least for memory, is quite related to the ability of the
sound stimulus to enhance slow-wave sleep,” she says. “That’s very much
tied to what part of the slow wave the stimulus is hitting on.”"
"That
doesn’t mean there aren't benefits to other soothing background sounds.
Music, nature sounds and white (or pink) noise apps may still help
improve sleep, she says—which, in itself, is good for the body and for
the brain".
WHAT TO TRY TODAY: Although playing sounds during sleep may be impractical, you can use mobile apps to listen to pink noise, white noise, binaural beats or other sounds to wind down and prepare the brain and the body for sleep. (Through headphones is better)
I like these:
White noise app
Sleep Stream
Pzizz - Sleep at the push of a button
Thunderspace
