How much weight should I be losing? Part 2. Or the gospel according to PN

PN, or Precision Nutrition to the uninitiated, is a scientific, restricted carb, weight-management and lifestyle programme. The guy who developed it has a PhD in the field and really knows his stuff. Plus he’s put together a top-notch team of nutrition and exercise experts and coaches everyone from national sports teams to joe blogs. I have tried PN, and to be honest, it didn’t really agree with me or my lifestyle, but I have nothing but respect for the guy and I know people who have had amazing results using the programme.

In fact, over the last 3 years, nearly 6000 men and women have successfully completed the PN online fat-loss programme. Each season they have a big body transformation contest, where the people with the most inspiring transformations can win big prizes. They also keep detailed data about how people are getting on, if they’re following the diet and exercise plans and so on. Based on data from people who did at least 80% of what they were supposed to, AND ended up as finalists in the $50,000 contests, they have calculated what kind of weight loss can be expected from people who are doing everything right. Remember, these are not the world-class athletes. These are everyday schmos who need to lose weight and get in shape. Some of them have had incredible success, but surprisingly, when the numbers were crunched, the week to week weight loss that led to these fantastic body transformations were a lot more modest than you’d expect. And here it is – what you could expect from the men and women who do what they were supposed to and had phenomenal results:

* Men should be losing 0.678% of their body weight each week.
* Women should be losing 0.678% of their body weight each week.

Now these are average weight losses over the 24 week programme. Some weeks were more, some weeks were even less, or nothing at all. Even the odd gain here and there. But over six months, to do something amazing for your body, the average weekly weight loss is just over half a percent of your body weight. Now remember, this is for people who were getting personal weekly coaching and following a cutting edge exercise and nutrition plan. But even so, there are some big variations:

For example, on average, Lean Eating male finalists typically lose between 0.3% and 1.2% of body weight per week to end up with jaw-dropping transformations. And Lean Eating female finalists typically lose between 0.2% and 1.5% of body weight per week to end up with jaw-dropping transformations.

Anyhow, they have done some statistical number crunching and come up with a formula that should give ordinary people a pretty good idea of what to aim for. And those nice people at PN have kindly put a calculator on their site so that you can work out what kind of weight loss you can expect if you are on a sustainable healthy eating and fitness plan. Using their calculator you can find out what your average weekly weight loss should be, and also, how long it will take you to reach your goal if you are following a sensible plan. And without further ado, here it is:

The PN Weight Loss Calculator

If you scroll up the page on their website you can also read more about how they came up with the numbers and see some of the before and after pictures of their contest finalists. You’ll also find links for the PN programme in case you want to find out more about it. I haven’t added a link here because I only recommend programmes that I like myself. But if you’re interested….

For the record, I asked it how long it would take me to go from 15 stone to 10 stone, and the figure it came up with was a surprising 63 weeks! And when I asked it how much I could expect to lose in 4 weeks (you can put in any time you like), the answer was 5 pounds. Remember, this is based on real numbers from people who have done amazing things.

So the take home message is: Don’t give up if you don’t lose half a stone every two weeks. Focus on the big picture. Make it sustainable. Make it long-term. And you will get there. Best of luck.

How much weight should I be losing? Part 1

One of the commonest questions we ask ourselves, if not others, is how much weight should we be losing. Is a pound a week about right? Two pounds? Is it true that if you lose more than 2 pounds a week, it won’t stay off? Does that mean if you lose less than 2 pounds a week it will?

Well let me answer the latter two questions first – except in unusual circumstances (for example, a lot to lose AND first week or two of diet, especially with carb depletion – when much of the ‘weight’ will actually be water loss as you give up your carb stores and the associated water molecules), if you lose more than a couple of pounds a week on a regular basis, chances are it won’t all be fat. Rather, some of your losses will be lean muscle mass.

Why does this matter? Isn’t all weight loss good? Well, no, basically. Your body is made up of a bunch of different tissues – muscle, fat, a bit of bone (not as much as we ‘large-boned’ individuals would like to think), and a lot of water. The fat is not very metabolically active – it just kind of sits there and makes you look like an overstuffed sausage. The muscle, on the other hand, actually uses a lot of fuel to just keep ticking over. What this means is that the more muscle (or lean body mass, if you prefer) that you have, the higher your basal metabolic rate. That is, the more calories you burn at rest. But what does it mean to have a higher (or lower) basal metabolic rate (BMR)?

Here is a simplified explanation. Let’s just say, for the sake of argument, that your BMR is 1200 calories. If you eat 2000 calories in a day, your body will actually burn off 1200 of those just to continue its existence – cell repair, moving stuff around, temperature control, that kind of thing. That means you’ll only have 800 excess calories to worry about. You can burn off some of that with exercise, but any that’s left over will be stored as fat. For every 3500 excess calories you store, you will gain a pound. Or thereabouts.

Let’s assume that your weight is stable on 2000 calories a day – you’re not losing and you’re not gaining. We can assume therefore that there are no excess calories and that your daily activities are accounting for the other 800 calories.

Now, let’s say you lose some of your lean body mass and reduce your BMR to 1000 calories per day. If you eat the same 2000 calories as before, now you’ll only burn off 1000 of it, and you’ll have 1000 excess calories you’ll need to deal with. But your daily activities only used up another 800. So now you have an excess of 200 calories. In other words, even though you are now eating the same as before, and exercising the same as before, you won’t be able to hold your weight steady at your starting level. You now only need 1000 for basal metabolism, and 800 for daily activity. So your stay-the-same calorie level isn’t 2000 anymore. It’s 1800 now.

That’s what happens when you diet – you drop your calorie intake – say 1500 instead of 2000. You lose lots of weight. Some of it is fat. Great. But some of it is muscle. Boo. All is well and good as long as you are taking in fewer calories than you need. But as soon as you get fed up of your diet and go back to eating 2000 calories, not only do you put the weight back on, but your weight will rise to higher than when you started!!!

This is why it’s critical to maintain your lean body mass. It explains why if you lose muscle, not only won’t you keep the weight off (if you go back to eating and moving the same as you did before), but you’ll end up heavier than when you started.

This is why we say a fast weight loss means you won’t keep it off. What it means is you are likely to be losing lean body mass as well as fat, mucking up your metabolism, and reducing your ability to burn off calories.

It does NOT mean that if you lose weight slowly that you will automatically keep it off. Even if all the weight you lose is fat, if you go back to eating and activity levels like before, you will go back to your starting weight. The only ways to change this are:

• make sustainable changes to your diet – i.e. reduce your food intake in a way that you can keep up;
• increase your level of physical activity in a sustainable way to account for the extra calories;
• increase your lean body mass.

The only way to do this is to do resistance activities – weight training and the like. Things that build your muscle up. This will allow you to eat more and stay the same or lose weight. Increasing your metabolism (your BMR) is the only way to get off the dieting treadmill. Women, especially, are often scared of building muscle. But believe me, you will not look like Arnie. Even men, with their naturally higher levels of testosterone, have to work out for hours, on a daily basis, and pay fortunes for supplements and steroids to get that look.

Putting on muscle will actually make you look sleeker. As well as being stronger. It’s good for your body in lots of ways, especially for older women. True, it may slow down the rate of WEIGHT loss you observe on the scales. But if you can learn not to value yourself by the number on the scale what you should see is your body getting smaller, dropping a dress size, looking better. I want to recommend two books that you will find useful.

1. Strong Women Stay Young
2. The New Rules of Lifting for Women

These are the kinds of books that can change lives. If you are over 40, I’d start with the first book. If you like what you learn (my 70-year old mother hasn’t looked back since), and want to try something more intensive, you can progress to the second book. If you are young but don’t know how to begin with resistance training, go for the second book.

In my next post, I’m going to provide some tools to actually answer the question “How much weight should I be losing?” in real terms. One for the number crunchers.

Getting off the wheel

I want to share with you a couple of posts I made on a fellow TT Transformation Challenge participant’s log.

It all started when she wrote this:

I totally totally totally suck

You know, I lost about 9 lbs and a bunch of inches. That was prior to this weekend. Now I feel as if I gained it all back in two days. I hate the lack of control that I feel over my eating habits. I’m so angry with myself.

Another of our fellow contestants (getfit2009) replied:

Relax – there’s no way you can add 9 lbs in a weekend – just get back on track again.

Do you know if there’s anything special that leads up to the situations where your bad eating habits take over? – might be a good place to start to see what you can do in those situations instead.

And I followed with this:

As for the internal messages we take from the words we use – hon, you don’t “totally, totally suck”! You made a poor choice in one situation. But you have made many, many good choices, which is why you are now closer to your goals than you were, say, a year ago. Get it right more often than not and you will get there. If you are trying never to make a mistake, you’re not in the right place. Try Pluto!

If you want to make a better choice next time, like GF2009 said, start to look at why you are making those choices in those situations.

We all still love you. Your family still loves you. Your friends still love you. Here’s to making better choices next time. 🙂

Anyway, that seemed to work for a while, but then today came this from our poor benighted fellow contestant:

Frustration rears its uglyhead

Aaaargh!!! Need to vent!!! Doing pretty well overall although not perfect which I’d really like. Was planning on fasting yesterday after breakfast ’til breakfast today. Didn’t happen. Just wasn’t feeling it. I was feeling sesame chicken and ben and jerry’s, unfortunately, which I really enjoyed but probably gained a lb of fat and some water, too. Been trying to do ESE instead of cutting and tracking my calories daily. Prob is, I feel like I get SO few calories to begin with!!! Anyway, I’m fasting today but I’m so cranky. Having an angry fast day which sucks (especially for my kids who are feeling my wrath). Feel frustrated over a lot of things. Torn between being happy for all of your successes and envious that I feel like such a freak. Want to be happy with how I look and feel without having to eat 1300 calories a day for the rest of my life. Hubby will be making whole wheat and walnut pancakes this weekend and I’m angry that I won’t be able to have any.

Thanks for letting me vent……

And my reply made me realise, yet again, what strides I have made in the last few months. This is what I said:

Have the damn pancakes. And post the recipe. Like you said, this is your life. You’re not going to get another one.

I have been unhappy with my weight for nearly 30 years now. I’m 40. I’ve learned to loathe myself whilst getting progressively fatter and fatter.

At the beginning of this year I made a decision. There is a history of heart disease, obesity, diabetes etc in my family. I was 40 years old, my blood pressure had just jumped into the hypertension range for the first time after being ‘normal’ for years, I was carrying around at least 6 stone (84 pounds) above my ideal weight, and I was a statistic waiting to happen.

I decided to make some changes, but I also made a decision that I would not make myself miserable over a number. My husband loves me and finds me attractive. I would learn to be a little easier on myself. I would not do ANY programme that did not let me lead a normal life. I didn’t want my life, and my practically every waking thought to be about food – did i have enough calories/points left? was it over 3 hours since my last meal? did this food have [insert banned food of choice] in it – was it allowed? was there enough protein in my snack? Did I have my cool box with my 24 meals in it for the day before I left the house in the morning? Had I earned my carbs? Etc Etc.

As a result, I am not following a meal plan as such. No ESE. No PN. No Weight Watchers. No calorie counting. Nada. I try to eat more nutritious foods on a weekly basis. Increase my portions of fruit and, especially, vegetables. Drink more water. Choose whole grains. Pick lean organic meats and dairy. Avoid processed foods and words I can’t pronounce. I knew that I would lose weight more quickly by following one of the other programmes, but I’ve been there before, and I guess you have too. By trying to be healthier, you are loving your body and yourself, rather than punishing yourself on a daily basis. This is for ever.

Anyway, I have lost 18 pounds of weight and 5.2% body fat since the beginning of the year. I have eaten goujons, and drunk Dime Bar milkshakes. I’ve eaten out with friends, drunk wine, even had the odd plate of potato wedges with sour cream and sweet chili sauce. Yet I am seeing changes in my body, my energy levels, and most importantly, my self respect on practically a daily basis.

I had an epiphany a while back. I wrote on my blog:

I no longer have good days or bad days, as defined by what I put in my mouth. They’re just days.

And then, after a weekend staying with friends, where friends cooked dinner, and I enjoyed them, the food, the company, the wine and the garlic bread – all in moderation:

I promised myself a month or so back that I would no longer define a ‘good day’ or a ‘bad day’ by what I put in my mouth. A bad day is when a school collapses in an earthquake and 200 children are killed. My garlic bread consumption is just another day in my ongoing journey to be a better me.

You seem to be on a treadmill (or a hamster wheel) of deprivation and regret. You don’t need to work harder to be ‘good’. You need to get off the wheel. It is this cycle that got you to where you are now. Old saying: if you do what you have always done, you will get what you have always got.

I truly hope some of this is getting through to you. One day, on your death bed, you are not going to look back at your life and think, damn, I really shouldn’t have eaten those pancakes. If only I’d lost more weight…

I’d like to recommend a couple of books to you.

The first one is Fed Up and is written by a doctor, psychiatrist and ex-eating disordered woman, and includes a lot about the science of how dieting/restriction affects our moods and our physiology. Despite this it is an easy read, a real eye-opener, and you will no doubt identify yourself in much of it. There are used copies available on amazon.com from $0.01!

The second one is The Body Fat Solution, Tom Venuto’s new book. He is an ex-champion body builder, yet despite his undoubted expertise in the fine tuning of transformation, he has a very common sense approach to the simple improvements that ‘ordinary folk’ can make to massively improve their health and fitness. This book claimed to be about overcoming emotional eating, and that comprises the first half of the book, and it was something in this book that finally got through to me and has been propelling me throughout the year. But there is also some very sensible nutrition stuff in there, general guidelines that will get you to where you want to go without turning it into rocket science. (There’s also workouts, but you don’t need to follow these – they are extremely TT-like with the exception of additional isolation exercises – no doubt, a throw back to Tom’s body building days – that add little other than time to your workout. Still, it is an easy read and I would recommend it.

I think you need to reconsider what you want to achieve in this challenge. Use this time, and the people here, to help you change your life, rather than your body. It is not a race. And most of us will never see the prize money, which, let’s face it, is hardly of the life-changing variety. We are here for the support and the accountability. Use the contest to learn to become the person you want to be.

Sorry for going on and on on your log. It’s just you remind me so much of myself, and I am so glad that I am (mostly) off that wheel. I will always have to be ‘careful’ about what I eat, and continue to workout, if I don’t want to revert to the blob I was at the start. But I now realise that I can do that without giving up the things that make life worth living.

ps. Don’t forget that pancake recipe!

Will let you know if I get the pancake recipe.

It’s official, and the benefits of keeping a food diary

Today is official weigh day and I weighed in at 14 stone 10.8 (206.8 pounds), down 1.4 on last week and my lowest weight in two years. I now feel comfortable about crossing off the first of my weight loss goals, to crack 15 stone, as I am sure that I am not going back that way, no way, no how!

Just six pounds to goal number two – 10% weight loss from my starting point in January 2009.

I have lost five pounds in the twelve days since I started the Turbulence Training 5th Transformational Contest (TT 5TC). I credit the majority of this loss to tightening up my nutrition by logging everything I eat on FitDay. This is a really good example of how important it is to keep a food diary. I am somebody who knows quite a lot about nutrition. I lost a stone in three months at the beginning of this year (mid Jan to mid April) just by cleaning up my nutrition and not worrying about anything else. Then I got a bit complacent and started grazing a bit, or nibbling on goodies at work, just a little, mind, but obviously enough to keep my weight at the 210 pound mark for about a month.

The only difference now is that I am logging what I eat. And I’ve dropped five pounds in twelve days! I haven’t changed my nutritional strategy. I am not worrying about my calorie intake – I mean, I can see what it is on FitDay, but I am not aiming for any specific number. Some days it is as low as 1300 cals and some over 2000. Mostly around 1600-1800, but that is by chance, not design. And the results are clear for all to see. The main difference is that it keeps me honest. I don’t just mindlessly put a cookie in my mouth at work knowing that I will have to go back to my desk and log it in, and thinking about what it will do to my totals. Although that’s not to say that if I really wanted the cookie I wouldn’t eat it. It just gets me to question if I really do want it.

Just as an example of the latter, hubby has just invented a new ice cream topping – melted 70% dark chocolate, mixed with a little Elmlea single cream (a cream replacement) and chopped hazelnuts. I am not sure he is taking this transformation contest as seriously as he could. LOL. Lord it tastes divine. And last night, after dinner – lemon sole, buttered courgettes, steamed broccolini and aspargus, small glass of wine – I really, really wanted it. So I had a single scoop of Wall’s Vanilla Soft Serve Light (the best tasting light ice cream I’ve come across, at least in the UK), plus a tablespoon of hubby’s new calorie-fest sauce. And it was goooood. So as you can see, I am hardly depriving myself here. And I’m down half a pound on yesterday. Fantastic. I’m deblubberising!

To PN or not to PN, that is the question

Today I came up against a bit of dilemma that had me questioning everything I know about myself, about nutrition and about weight loss. The Team at Precision Nutrition (PN) are about to launch a 6-month nutrition and fitness training programme called Lean Eating for men and women who want to lose weight and get in shape. The programme provides unrivalled support and coaching and is incredibly reasonably priced. Plus, places are limited to 100 women and 100 men, and there is a $10,000 prize in each category (men and women) for the best transformation. Registration begins tomorrow (Wed 27th May 09) and details can be found here.

As a member, and because I pre-registered my interest, I had the opportunity to reserve a place today, 24 hours before everybody else, and so be in with a good shot at getting one of the no-doubt coveted spots. So here is my dilemma…Should I?

The Pros:

• It is a sound, scientifically based system of nutrition, and all of the cutting edge research is now pointing to PN-style advice for maximal weightloss. If I followed the programme, I would no doubt achieve superb results.
• Everything I read this days, whether about fitness, business, whatever, says that the people who succeed tend to have mentoring and/or coaching support. If you don’t have a coach/mentor, get one. This programme provides that.
• I had a couple of problems when I initially tried PN (see below). Individualised attention to address these could help me overcome what stands in the way of my best results.
• Normally, this kind of support costs fortunes. They are practically giving it away here.
• My weight has been stuck at 15 stone for around a month now. PN would shift me off this plateau and get my weigh loss going again.
• $10,000 prize money is not too shabby.

The Cons:

• As I said above, I had a couple of problems when I tried PN for myself a couple of years ago. The most important one was that as a depression sufferer, I found that after a few weeks, my mood began to get more erratic and I felt a little out-of-control. I associated this with the effective reduction in carb intake, as carbohydrates are linked to enhanced serotonin function, and came off the PN programme. Having spoken to JB at a conference recently, he was aware of this effect and suggested it might be dealt with using a high dose of daily fish oil. This is my primary health concern regarding PN, but the promise of individualised attention is tempting.
• It is boring. At least for me. There seem to be many people who like the type of food in PN, but I do not seem to be one of them. I am a carb girl through and through. I am also a 15-stone carb girl, and am aware that my love of carbs, and my lack of love of veggies (see previous posts) may well be what got me into this position in the first place. Hence my continued interest in PN, despite the initial problems I had. My biggest concern is that I would not be able to stick to the programme, or that I would be absolutely miserable doing it. Hubby reckons that at least part of my depressive problems the first time round was probably due to not enjoying myself rather than the direct effects of restricted carbohydrates.
• I made a decision at the beginning of this year that I was going to make changes, but to do them whilst continuing to have a life. I wanted to be flexible to enjoy situations that arose. I wanted to have variability and I didn’t want to obsess about calories, macronutrient ratios, carting protein-rich meals around with me everywhere I went, cooking up a hundred weight of chicken breast each weekend, etc etc. Signing up for this programme, would mean giving that up.

It is this last point that is the real sticker, I think. This is the one that is going to stop me from sticking to the programme and achieving my goals. It is the one that is going to make me most miserable. It occurs to me that perhaps I need this kind of short, sharp shock to knock me into shape, and this could be the best thing that ever happened to me. It would also mean faster results. By doing it my way, I am conceding that progress will be slow. But after talking it through with hubby, I have decided I am not at that place. I am not ready to give the programme everything I have and am thus less likely to see it through.

My weight has been stuck for around a month because I am eating too much junk – not so much at meal times, but a little of this here, a little of that there. I believe that you can lose weight and get into shape without turning into a protein bore and without giving up the life you want. I just need to stick to my principles. So here is what I have decided:

1. Start keeping a food diary again.
2. Be stricter with myself about meal plans and not eating other than planned snacks.
3. Stick to my workout plan, which I have been a bit slack about the last couple of weeks. Do it even if I don’t want to.
4. Try to implement more of the Body Fat Solution nutrition rules. Start with the veggie rule (see previous posts).
5. If this doesn’t kick start my weight loss within two weeks from today, i.e. 9th June 2009, have a look at my calorie intake – use FitDay or the like to work out exactly what I am eating and where I need to make adjustments.
6. If I have not lost at least 3 stone (42 pounds) come the next PN Lean Eating programme in 2010, I will sign up then.

Anyone who wishes to tell me I have made the right decision, feel free to comment below. LOL.

Alternatives to a Rear Squat

I am enjoying working out with my new bench and weights, and a couple of days ago did my first workout involving a rear barbell squat. Unfortunately, the limiting factor appeared not to be the weight I could squat, but the weight I could lift onto my shoulders. Also, where the bar sat on the back of my shoulders quickly got very sore and is still quite bruised. I sent out a request for help and advice and got some useful suggestions back that I thought I’d share with you.

First off, whilst continuing with the rear squat, make the bar more comfortable by purchasing a cheap bit of foam called a barbell pad that wraps around the bar and cushions it. Thanks for that Rob. I have ordered one and it should be here soon. In a pinch, a towel will do.

Other possibilities include switching to a front squat, where the barbell sits across the front of your shoulders instead of behind them. There was recently a very good article on the Precision Nutrition site comparing front and rear squats. They reviewed research on muscle activation and shear and compression forces in the two types of squat (and included links to videos showing you how to do each correctly). They found that muscle activation was similar for the two but front squats might have the edge in people with knee injuries due to lower compression forces on the knee. So I should probably be doing these anyway. I’m going to start by trying these.

Other suggestions, from my old PT instructor, included step ups (which I can see having the same problems as the rear squat unless you hold the barbell to the front again) and split squats with the bar between your legs! This one sounds rather interesting. Do let me know how you get on if you try it.

Turn your protein shake into a Super Shake

This is a great quick guide to making fast, nutritious protein shakes from Ryan Andrews posted on today’s Precision Nutrition blog. Feel free to add your own favourite below. Experiment and enjoy!

Creating Super Shakes

To celebrate the launch of Precision Nutrition V3, over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing with you some important “big ideas” from V3, the most complete version of the Precision Nutrition System we’ve ever offered.

Today’s “big idea”: Turn Your Protein Shake Into A Super Shake

Success Secrets

Here’s one of the secrets to good nutrition:

Not all of your meals have to be food meals.

In fact, you can even replace one to two meals each day with easy to make, tasty little drinks we call Super Shakes.

Now, we know that there are tons of stores and juice bars springing up all over, offering smoothies. However, store bought and juice bar type shakes are usually barely better than fast food milk shakes. They’re typically sweetened heavily with sugar, loaded with poor protein sources, full of dairy, and missing many nutrients found in whole foods.

The Super Shake, on the other hand, is packed with good stuff like high-quality protein, fiber, good fats, antioxidants and more. Translation: Super Shakes are da bomb.

And that’s why we devoted an entire guide in PN V3 to the creation of Super Shakes. Indeed, in PN V3 we’ve got over 40 Super Shake combos created and battle-tested by the PN Team and members of the PN community. All nutritious. All delicious.

That’s right, Super Shakes don’t just stand in for whole foods when times are tough. They can actually be superior to most of the meals your neighbors are eating. They’re are quick, easy, and high quality. And you can use them as a snack, dessert, breakfast, etc. (Uh, the shakes, not your neighbors).

But you have to do them right. And that’s where this guide comes in.

Does Your Blender Smoke?

Before you start experimenting with our step by step guide, here’s a question for you. Do you have a decent blender? If not, and you want to start making Super Shakes, you’re going to have to go get one. And remember, you get what you pay for.

That’s right, if your blender starts smoking when you add a few ice cubes, it’s time for a replacement, one that’s more powerful and ready for the task at hand. And while you’re at it, why not splurge and get a nice-looking one too. If you’re embarrassed by your blender and you keep it on the top shelf, tucked behind the cake pan, even with the best of intentions, you’re not going to use it.

Recommendations? Sure.

For every-day use, I like the Magic Bullet. It’s only 50 bucks and it’s quite powerful. The only issue is that it’s small. So if you want bigger Super Shakes you’ll have to go bigger with your blender. In which case you might choose the Vita Mix. This is the Mercedes Benz of blenders. It’s pricey. But I’ve never seen another blender match its power and longevity.

Making Your Shake Super

Ok, so let’s assume you’ve got your blender out and it’s powerful enough to do the job. Now you can follow the step by step guide below for creating nutritious and tasty Super Shakes.

Keep in mind, not all of the steps below are mandatory. If you don’t want any fruit, leave it out. If you are using almond milk and don’t want to add extra nuts, leave them out. (Of course, if you’re looking to control your calories, carbs, or fats, use smaller portion sizes or cut out certain ingredients.) You get the idea.

In the end, we selected some of the fruits, vegetables and proteins that seem to work best for our clients. However, our list isn’t exhaustive. Feel free to branch out. But for optimal mixing, flavor and consistency, follow the steps in order. In other words, add your ingredients in the order listed. Just go through each step and select an item (or two) from each column. Mix and match as you like. You’ll end up finding combinations you prefer the most.

Step 1: Start with ice

• Use 1-4 cubes for a thin, chilled shake
• Use 5-10 cubes for thicker, pudding-like consistency shake

Step 2: Pick a Fruit

• Frozen banana
• Frozen/fresh berries
• Dates
• Pineapple/mango
• Powdered fruit supplement

Notes:
Frozen bananas give an excellent consistency. Using half of a banana is usually enough.
Dates are very sweet. Make sure to get rid of the pit first.

Step 3: Pick a Vegetable

• Dark leafy greens, e.g. kale, Swiss chard, spinach (stems optional)
• Pumkin/sweet potato
• Beets/beet greens
• Cucumber/celery
• Powdered greens supplement

Notes:
Canned pumpkin is great. It goes well with vanilla.
When using beets, try roasting and removing the skin first. Beets go well with chocolate.
If you add celery/cucumber, make sure to adjust the amount of liquid you add.

Step 4: Pick a Protein Powder

• Whey protein
• Rice protein
• Pea protein
• Hemp protein
• Other proteins or protein blends

Notes:
Some protein powders have thickeners added. This will increase the thickness of your shake.
Find the protein supplement that you digest well and enjoy the taste of.

Step 5: Pick a Nut/Seed

• Walnuts
• Flax, hemp, chia seeds
• Cashews
• Almonds
• Nut butter

Notes:
Nuts and seeds give the shake an excellent consistency.
A handful is usually enough.

Step 6: Pick a Liquid

• Almond milk (unsweetened)
• Soy milk (unsweetened)
• Hemp milk (unsweetened)
• Iced green tea
• Water

Notes:
Less liquid = thick shakes; more liquid = thin shakes.
Adding liquid at the end of the process can improve how the shake initially blends.

Step 7: Pick your Topping

• Coconut
• Cacao nibs, dark chocolate
• Pomegranate seeds, goji berries
• Oats, granola
• Cinnamon

Notes:
A little goes a long way.
Cinnamon goes well with vanilla protein powder and pumpkin.

So, how about an example? Here’s one of my favorites.

• Step 1: 5 ice cubes
• Step 2: ½ frozen banana & 2 pitted dates
• Step 3: 2 kale leaves & 1 tsp of powdered greens supplement
• Step 4: 2 scoops of plain pea protein powder
• Step 5: Handful of walnuts
• Step 6: Water (just enough for it to mix)
• Step 7: Top with a few sprinkles of coconut
• Step 8: Drink. Feel smug about getting more nutrition than most people get in one week.

There you have it, a template for creating awesome Super Shakes, every time. For a host of additional Super Shake recipes, check out Precision Nutrition V3 – everything you need to know to get the body you want and to maintain it for life.

Extending your intervals with steady-state cardio

This week I saw a very good article on interval training on the Precision Nutrition blog written by the strength and conditioning coach Mike Boyle. You can access it here and just scroll down to the relevant bit. While very informative and well researched, I’m getting a bit sick of all the stick that the elliptical gets. For the less fit client, like me, it is a good starting place. Plus, if you have knee problems, like me, it is a good low-impact form of cardio. I know the bike is too, but I loathe the bike. I never learned to ride as a kid and I guess I just never developed the right sitting-on-a-saddle muscles. I just find it absolutely excruciating.

Still on the theme of intervals, if you’ve ever gotten to the end of your interval training workout and thought that you had enough left in you to do some more cardio, but maybe not at the same intensity, here is a great tip for extending your interval training session with steady-state cardio. (This is not to suggest that after my intervals on the elliptical my heart is not pumping at a mile a minute and I am not dripping with sweat – don’t tell me I’m nor working hard enough!!) This tip comes from the book The New Rules of Lifting for Women by Lou Schuler, Cassandra Forsythe and Alwyn Cosgrove.

Rather than just shifting straight into steady-state mode, get off the machine (or take a rest if you are working-out freestyle) for five minutes, then continue your workout with steady-paced exercise at an easy pace. The reason for this is that the intervals have used up some of the glycogen in your muscles and stopping exercise causes your body to flood your bloodstream with triglycerides. Women’s bodies tend to use triglycerides for energy more than men’s. When you start up again, you’ll have a ready pool of fat molecules to fuel your steady-state workout to increase the rate of fat burning. Cool or what?

Steady-state cardio is getting a bit of a bum rap at the moment, with many of the big name muscle people slating it as a fitness option. Certainly intervals are more efficient, and more productive in terms of improving fitness levels, but you can only keep them up for so long, and if you are out of shape and overweight, adding a bit of extra cardio is no bad thing in my opinion. And although aerobic exercise like steady-state cardio is catabolic, as opposed to weight training which is anabolic, unless you are training for a body building competition, I really can’t see that an extra mile on the treadmill every day is going to derail your attempts to shape up. I find it completely counter-intuitive. One of the reasons I like Tom Venuto is his rather more sensible approach to cardio, i.e. just do some. Yes, intervals are ideal, but he’s not precious about it like some of the other experts. I am currently doing the exercise programme from Tom’s new book – The Body Fat Solution. So I’m doing interval training three times a week, and in addition, I am doing steady-state cardio as often as I can manage on top of that, not as an alternative. And weights of course, three times a week. I’ll write more about the book later in the week.

Nutrition Tip of the Week No. 20

Tip #20
How much water?
by Dr. John Berardi

You always hear experts recommending that you drink more water but how many of you actually do it? And how much is enough? Well, check out this chart below for some interesting data on water loss.

Water Loss/ Normal Weather No exercise/ Warm Weather No exercise /Exercise in Warm Weather (85° F)

Skin 350 mL/ 350 mL/ 350 mL
Respiratory Tract 250 mL/ 350 mL/ 650 mL
Urine 1400 mL/ 1200 mL/ 500 mL
Feces 100 mL/ 100 mL/ 100 mL
Sweat 100 mL/ 1400 mL/ 5000 mL
Total 2,300 mL (2.3L)/ 3,300 mL (3.3L)/ 6,600 mL (6.6L)

It should be clear that quite a bit of water is lost per day, especially if you’re an athlete. Since most people can get about 1.5L of water from their food and from metabolic water production, for a margin of safety, I suggest:

Sedentary individuals drink at least 2L or about 8 cups of water per day
Athletes in normal climates drink at least 3L or about 12 cups of water per day.
Athletes in hot weather climates drink at least 4L or about 16 cups of water per day.

SEE ALSO:
This tip is sponsored by Precision Nutrition – our pick for the best nutrition and supplement resource currently available. Containing system manuals, gourmet cookbook, digital audio/video library, online membership, and more, Precision Nutrition will teach you everything you need to know to get the body you want — guaranteed.

Order Precision Nutrition now and get $50 off!

To see an amazing transformation and to get an idea of what Precision Nutrition could do for you, click here.

Look out for more on water intake in next week’s tip.

Nutrition Tip of the Week no. 19

Tip #19
How to Manage Your Macronutrients
by Dr. John Berardi

Are you more likely to be able to decipher ancient Greek texts than figure out how to construct a diet containing 30% protein, 50% carbohydrate, and 20% fat? Well then check out the following resources.

1. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic is the National Agriculture Library’s Food and Nutrition Information Center. Here you can find basic information on dietary supplements, an advanced food composition database, information about the food guide, and a listing of interesting resources about special needs, food allergies, etc.

2. http://www.nutritiondata.com is a fantastic resource and although it uses the food database above, may actually offer a better presentation of the food composition data. It doesn’t offer the other information, though.

3. http://www.fitday.com is another great food composition site that offers much more including online diet and fitness journals.

4. http://www.calorieking.com offers many of the same resources as fitday.com but has several excellent additional features such as an online ‘university’ (weekly education about the physiological and behavioral sides of nutrition). The extras cost money but are worth checking into.

SEE ALSO:
This tip is sponsored by Precision Nutrition – our pick for the best nutrition and supplement resource currently available. Containing system manuals, gourmet cookbook, digital audio/video library, online membership, and more, Precision Nutrition will teach you everything you need to know to get the body you want — guaranteed.

Order Precision Nutrition now and get $50 off!

To see an amazing transformation and to get an idea of what Precision Nutrition could do for you, click here.

Look out for another nutrition tip next week.