The Mighty Fit Grasshopper | Product Reviews, Health Tips, Natural Health, Fitness

Discover Your Body's Internal Sonar System

2012-02-05T15:33:00.000-08:00

Did you know that your body has its own way of telling you how it's doing? In this day and age of "go! go! go!" we've learned to turn that system off, muzzle any signs with drugs and then keep going until we physically can't go no more....only having to drag ourselves to the doctor's office for more drugs. It's time to re-calibrate that internal sonar system of ours and start listening to what our body is telling us!

Did you know that our body tells us everyday how we are really feeling and doing? It tells us all the time really. The problem is, however, we tend to ignore any signs of our body telling us to "slooowww down" or "get more sleep each night" or "you shouldn't have eaten that!"

When we hear or feel these signs, typically, we shut these "voices' down. Instead, we down a huge cup of coffee when you're feeling tired, take cold medication to get through the day when you wake up with a headache and a runny rose, or you hit the gym when you're low on energy.

Our body is screaming at us and telling us exactly what it needs.

For some reason, we just ignore it because we have to pay the bills, we have to go out to check out the latest bar, or we have to lose 10 lbs in the next 2 weeks. There's always something that keeps you going.

But all this 'going' really takes a toll on our body and eventually, we will get sick. REALLY sick. Virus infections take over our body, our body gets even weaker and becomes susceptible to bacterial infections. At this point, we can't go to work and we have to crawl into the doctor's office for antibiotics.

But if only you listened to your body at the beginning, could we have avoided all of this at beginning.

A good example of this is 'over-training'. Over-training is when you have been hitting the gym TOO much, to the point where your body can't make any more progress - either can't lose any more weight or you can't increase your strength.

Typically, we think more is better. But, we all know that more is not better, especially in the gym. Your body needs time to rest, to heal, to build muscle, to re-establish hormone levels. If you keep working your body out, it won't heal, it can't build muscle and the hormone levels needed for caloric metabolism is all out of whack.

Your body's internal sonar system tries to tell you you're working out too much in a few ways. First, your muscles ache...a lot. Second, your workouts get harder and harder, even though you haven't really changed the routine too much. It gets harder both physically AND mentally..even though your routine has always been the same.

When it comes to sleep, even at a full 8 hours, you're still tired in the morning.

Your body is trying to tell you something.

Yet, we keep going. Then, the sniffles start...and then the sneezing. Now you've got a cold. You try to go to the gym to 'sweat it off'. Might get through the first work out but as the days progress, you get sicker.

Listen to your body! It tells you when you're over-training. It also tells you if you're working too hard, stressing too much, etc. Your body is a fine piece of machinery and it has its own system of trying to protect itself. It's just a matter of whether you plan on listening to its own advice.

Bottom Line: Listen to your body's internal sonar system. It's trying to warn you of when things are just too much. It's time to slow down, rest up and regain your strength. Once you're back to full strength, you can hit the gym hard again and you'll notice regular progression once again.

MFG Tip: Ask Your Pharmacist For Advice On Dietary Supplements and Vitamins!

2012-01-29T14:21:00.000-08:00

A recent survey found that pharmacists are an underused resource of vitamin and supplement knowledge. Consumers should, without a doubt, take advantage of this. So, why aren’t consumers taking advantage of this? Let’s take a closer look.

A new US-wide survey found that pharmacists are significantly less likely to face questions from customers about vitamins and supplements compared to OTC and prescription medications. Approximately 50% of consumers would ask pharmacists about prescriptions meds, 35% of consumers would inquire about OTC drugs and about 23% would ask about vitamin and supplements.

So why the discrepancy?

• Prescription medications could be perceived as more dangerous than OTCs and supplements, requiring specific directions of use, dosages and the somewhat “intimidating” names could elicit consumers in asking their pharmacists about the drugs before taking them.

• Supplements and OTC drugs have much of the information on the label, free for the consumer’s perusal, while prescription medications information is not as assessable. Perhaps many of the questions consumers are already answered by the label itself, rather than having to ask the pharmacist.

• For someone like myself, I do question how pharmacists are educated about supplements. There is no doubt in my mind that that they are more knowledgeable about prescription medications than they are about supplements. Nothing turns me off of asking a pharmacist more than when he/she tries to answer my questions by reading the product label.

The survey mentions that pharmacists recommend brands they know, that have third party certification and/or make reference to potency, safety and quality. That still leaves a lot of brands on the shelves, so how do they ultimately make their recommendation?

It’s also important to note that there are brands that are just as good as others, but do not carry third party certification, but can be less expensive than their third party-certified counter parts.
With this said, what can we take away from this survey? The ultimate message – do ask your pharmacist about supplements. Ask them tough questions too – don’t be afraid to pick their brain. Even if they don’t know the answer, it will trigger them to ask the brand of supplements for the answer. It would also trigger supplement companies to better educate pharmacists and may help clarify myths and stigmas associated with dietary supplements.

Bottom Line: Your pharmacist is a good resource for dietary supplements and vitamins – do not be afraid to ask him/her if you have any questions. And if they don’t know the answer, at least they’ll go and find out for you from the source, rather than us having to settle with an answer from Yahoo Answers. Yuck.

You can check out the details of the survey here.

FDA Cracks Down on Tweets!

2012-01-15T13:37:00.000-08:00

If you’re selling a dietary supplement and think your tweets and Facebook updates are outside the realm of FDA’s rule – think again! FDA just cracked down on one company for its misleading claims posted on its website, Facebook and Twitter accounts. Let’s break it down.

The FDA closes out 2011 with a warning letter to Nenningers Naturals for making misleading claims for its products, Triple Flu Defense. The website claims this product can ease flu vaccine side effects, relieve flu symptoms, is a unique homeopathic product and made in a US FDA laboratory, Let’s take a quick look at what happened:

Triple Flu Defense makes claims to treat conditions and/or diseases. This then automatically takes the product out of the dietary supplements category and into the drug category. The product is then evaluated as a drug by the FDA.
Testimonials on a company website are considered as health claims marketed by a company.
There is only one ingredient in the formula that is recognized as a homeopathic ingredient. In order for the product to be a homeopathic medicine, all ingredients must be recognized homeopathic ingredients recognized by the HPUS (Homeopathic Pharmacopeia).
Twitter and Facebook updates state: “Start your weekly prevention now”. In case you haven’t noticed, it is a labeling requirement for dietary supplements to state the following disclaimer “This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.”
Looks like Nenninger’s in some trouble. The good news is that none of this comes as a shocker and those that think FDA is unreasonable and has grandiose plans to shut every company down should think again. Nenninger’s got caught red handed for simply not following the regulations. Stick to the regulations and you won’t have this problem. It really is that simple.

Don’t make disease prevention or treatment claims.
If your product is supposed to be a homeopathic product, then following the guidelines and formulate it as such.
Don’t post testimonials that reflect prevention or treatment claims.
Don’t tweet or update your Facebook status with prevention or treatment claims.

If your product is supposed to be a dietary supplement, then market it as such and label it as such and by all means, follow the regulations for dietary supplements.

What’s next for Nenninger’s? they have to make some (costly) adjustments to their website, product labeling and marketing campaign. They have 15 days to respond to the FDA and the response better be good. The longer you hold out or if you provide an ambiguous response, the harder FDA will follow up their enforcement.

This type of situation is quite common. I’m not sure if it’s purely a lack of regulatory knowledge on Nenninger’s part (especially if it’s a small startup) or if they intended to turn a blind eye to the regulations. Either way, it doesn’t matter – they got caught.

If you’re selling supplements, make sure you’re in the loop and follow the regulations!

If you’re a regular consumer: whether this product works or not, Nenninger’s was quite misleading to you, branding their product as a homeopathic product when it isn’t. On top of that, they state their product is made in a FDA approved laboratory. That statement really means very little and the product should be made in a GMP compliant facility, not laboratory.

Bottom Line: If you’re a supplement manufacturer or distributor, learn from Nenninger’s mistake. Watch what you tweet, what you post on Facebook and what’s on your website!

The Secret To A Successful 2012!

2012-01-08T11:41:00.000-08:00

Well it’s the year 2012 so let’s make it count! Everyone’s ringing in the new year but how did you close out 2011? Everyone’s looking ahead to 2012, but what did you get out of 2011? Let’s be different and take a moment to review, shall we?

Happy 2012 everyone - All aboard the 2012 train!! But I ask, how did you close out 2011? Did you accomplish all that you planned? You see, 99% of the people out there look ahead to what the new year will bring and what new resolutions can be made. I say, let’s be that 1% and see if we’ve managed to close out the year successfully! Did you do everything you wanted to do for 2011? What were some hurdles you encountered? Will those hurdles still affect you in 2012?

Everyone wants eager to turn to the next page, to start with a clean slate, and establish new goals, but very few reflect and absorb the year’s life lessons that will show us how get where we want to go. If you haven’t already, definitely take some time out of your day - even 3 minutes - to reflect on what you could or couldn’t do in 2011.

For myself, here’s what I managed to accomplish:

• Muscle building routine – gained back significant amount of muscle without gaining fat and without getting too big all with the help of Mica, our favorite personal trainer.

• Completed my home renovations to-do list

• Joined a boxing gym

• Reconnect with old friends and increased my network of new ones

Here’s what I wish I had done for 2011:

• Save $$$! I’m sure we can all do this, but I recently moved into a new place and that really put a dent into my savings plan and was only financially back on my feet late 2011. Don’t know how much to save? Well check out my post here on real advice you can use!

• Miss my kung fu training! Working later into the evening, getting up early the next day and family issues have taken up my time away I would normally devote to kung fu training.

• Do more different things! 2011 was all about trying to find stability – stability in my weekly routine, in my finances, in spending time with people I care about. I found that it took me quite a while to adjust to a new regular routine after having moved into a new place and with major changes at work. Finding that routine took up a huge chunk of the year, and made things feel a little stagnant.

Looking ahead, here’s what’s next:

• 2011 was about building muscle, 2012 will be about maintaining muscle but shedding the fat in time for summer! Who wants to be skinny fat? Not me!

• Hit the gym in February when many others have given up by then (avoid the crowds).

• More kung fu training – making the most out of the little training time I got.

• Try different things! Now that I’ve established a somewhat regular routine, it’s all about integrating a new thing or two every season.

Bottom Line: In order to know where you want to go, you have to reflect on where you’ve been and what’s stopping you from getting to where you want to be. It can take as little as 3 minutes today. 3 minutes! That’s practically a tv commercial break! Reflect on 2011 so that your 2012 will be even more fruitful. Invest in the 3 minutes, will you?

MFG vs. The Popular Free Radical/Antioxidant Concept of Disease

2011-12-28T11:17:00.000-08:00

You have seen and read the terms free radicals and antioxidants EVERYWHERE. Somehow it’s linked to arthritis, inflammation, heart disease, asthma, and even aging! The term, “antioxidant” is everywhere – on the news, in juice advertisements, and all over health supplements. And, I have a problem with this. How so? Read on!

What are free radicals?

Free radicals are natural molecules your body forms when oxygen interacts with certain molecules within your body. Free radicals are completely natural and are a product of your body’s own processes. Unfortunately, free radicals are damaging to nearby cells and can affect cell membranes or, if deep enough in the cell, can actually attack DNA and alter its structure. It can do good things, however, such as help in white blood cell function by damaging foreign invader cells.

What are antioxidants?

Antioxidants, in a sense, neutralize free radicals. When antioxidants “meet” free radicals, it renders the free radical of its harmless state so minimizing it’s potential for damage. This ability to neutralize free radicals is commonly called anti-oxidative effect.

What does the research say?

This is very well studied in the scientific community, and is considered, well, fairly old news. There are mountains and mountains of research papers that demonstrate the anti-oxidative effect of various fruits, vegetables and fatty acids – think acai, cherries, tomatoes, spinach, red wine and healthy oils such as fish oil or olive oil.

There are a plethora studies that link free radicals to heart disease (eg. involved in forming cholesterol deposits within veins and arteries), arthritis (eg. involved in deterioration of cartilage and joint tissue), cancer (eg. involved in damaging DNA) and the list goes on an on. There is no denying that many diseases involve, at some level, free radical damage.

So the general consensus from health experts around the world is that increasing your intake of fruits, veggies and healthy oils (since they are high in antioxidants) are associated with a decreased risk of cancer, heart disease, etc.

If antioxidants are so great, then what’s my concern?

Well there are a couple of reasons:

• The scientific studies showing anti-oxidative properties and free radical damage in disease states are primarily test tube, cellular, and animal studies. In order to determine that drinking an expensive blend of exotic fruit juice, for example, will actually cure arthritis, you’re going to need a study showing exactly that! There has to be a study that shows drinking X # of cups of juice significantly alleviates arthritis in humans. It can’t be assumed that because it works in a test tube or in an animal, that those results can be directly observed at the human level.

• Eating veggies, fruits, and healthy oils, etc will only lower your risk. It doesn’t mean that you won’t get cancer. It only means that your chances of getting cancer may be lowered. Antioxidants are not the magical cure.

• Unfortunately, the free radical/antioxidant concept can pretty much be applied to ANY disease state – asthma, eczema, allergies, inflammation, heart disease, cataracts, etc. The list goes on. Free radicals are found throughout the body and across so many diseases, it’s almost insignificant, in my opinion. And yes, while it’s true that free radicals have shown to be involved, at some level, in the mechanism of these diseases, it is not the cause of the disease. And so…

• It troubles me to see the many brands of supplement, juice, or food touting their products to be some kind of cure-all (or close to it) because of the antioxidant ingredients it claims to have. It is important to differentiate between the companies making erroneous claims from responsible companies that make truthful claims in a way that does not mislead the consumer.

Bottom Line: The free radical/antioxidant concept is very popular and, while it’s supported by science, it’s also important to note that it’s not the cure that many irresponsible brands, organizations, bloggers, and sales people make it out to be.

Invisible Obesity - The New Black?

2011-11-20T20:01:00.000-08:00

Sure you may be skinny, but you may already be obese on the inside. Experts say it’s not always about how much fat you have “on” you, as it is about how much fat that is “in” you – that is, how much fat that surrounds your organs and may actually lead to diseases associated with obesity. That’s right, you may be thin on the outside, but fat on the inside. Read on for more!

Typically, when we think of the term ‘obese” we think of a high body mass index and the all the fat that is being carried on one’s frame. Typically, in this scenario, the fat is carried under the skin and is called “subcutaneous fat”.

But guess what? There’s also fat that surrounds your organs and can also collect INSIDE your organs – that fat is called “visceral fat”. One can actually have lots of visceral fat, but low subcutaneous fat – hence the term, skinny on the outside and fat on the inside.

This also means that people that are fat on the outside, can actually be skinny on the inside. Think sumo wrestler. They are big men but are actually quite healthy – low risk of diabetes, healthy cholesterol, blood pressure, and good overall cardiovascular health.

Visceral fat can be found wrapped around the heart, streaked through the muscles that are underused and surround other vital organs. This could eventually lead to insulin resistance, diabetes and cardiovascular conditions.

The most dangerous part of this? You can’t see it. And skinny people are susceptible to assume that they are healthy. Which gives them the green light to smoke, consume alcohol, stay up late, avoid the gym, consume copious amounts of coffee and rationalize that all is well with their once a week yoga class, Coke Zero and ‘gluten-free’ crackers.

What can you do to combat Invisible Obesity? Hit the gym, go for a jog, get active! Internal fat can be burned off relatively easily through exercise and by eating healthy. (Tip: You can start by training with me or with Mica!)

Of course, this is not to say that being obese is healthy or that body mass index or overall weight is entirely flawed. Chances are if you’re obese, then you also at risk for diabetes, cholesterol problems, etc…unless, of course, you work out like a sumo wrestler.

Bottom Line: Don’t assume that just because you’re skinny that you’re healthy. Sure, you can be skinny by diet alone, but if you want to be healthy – you have tohit the gym. Don’t be a victim of invisible obesity!

MFG Dares You To Try This Boxing Workout!

2011-11-13T13:29:00.000-08:00

A couple weekends ago, I had the opportunity to work out with a good friend of mine. Over the last year, she’s really been getting into the gym routine and even hired a personal trainer. We ran into each other the other day and she mentioned the idea of trying out the boxing workout. How could I say no to that?

We stepped into Sugar Ray’s boxing gym on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The gym was quiet and waiting for our arrival. We were given private instruction that day, as the trainer introduced my friend, Kat, to the boxing workout. Essentially, a boxer’s workout is of high intensity and interval driven (eg. 20 seconds on, 10 second off).

Warm-up:

We started off with 3-5 rounds of skipping rope (3 minute rounds, with 30 second rest in between), depending on fitness level.

Then it was body weight resistance training (20 seconds on, 10 seconds rest = 1 round):

• 5 rounds of burpees
• 2 rounds of jump squats
• 2 rounds of alternating jumping lunges
• 5 rounds of mountain climbers
• 5 rounds of “double leg” mountain climbers.

Ab exercises followed – 1 set each, 25-40 reps for each exercise:

• Ab crunches
• Knee lifts
• Toe touches
• Pizza box hip raises
• Double crunch

To even this out, we then flipped over and worked on the back (1 set each, 25-40 reps for each exercise)

• Arms behind the back, back hyperextension
• Arms out to the side, back hyper extension
• Superman

To work the shoulder and chest, we then performed various push ups (1 set each, 10-15 reps each)

• T-pushups
• Spiderman pushups
• Lateral pushups
• Standard pushups

We then topped off the workout with:

• 2 minute plank x 1
• 50 squats x 2
• 3 minute arm rotations (alternating direction every 10 seconds) x 1

At this point, our resistance training was completed and then we got into some fun stuff, introducing Kat and I to the fundamentals of boxing foot work, and then progressing into the jab and the cross. Concepts of distance, timing and body positioning were emphasized.

The boxing trainer had us working in front of a mirror the entire time. Although it was not as intensive as the workout above, the constant repetitive nature, when practiced correctly, can be very exhausting and requires mental focus as well.

We were short on time, but managed to get the gloves on and work the bag for 3 rounds at 3 minutes each. The gloves are 16 oz, so they do work your shoulders quite a bit while you hit the bag. As well, holding the bag while the other person goes to work also ends up adding to the workout.

I believe we were in the gym for about 2 hours, which just flew by. I would say both Kat and I had a blast! Kat’s competitive nature had me pushing even harder and looking forward to the next session. Now it’s your turn to give the boxing workout a try! Let me know how it works out for you!

You can follow Kat on twitter here.

MFG Presents: The Rules To Life!

2011-10-23T19:06:00.000-07:00

Wouldn't life be easier if we just all knew what to do? What to look for? If only someone had the rules to life. Well, guess what? Here it is! Read on!

In this day and age, everyone is stressed out. No one can sleep, people are fat, 50% divorce rate, kids are on anti-depressants, people are losing their jobs and their house, and Lindsay Lohan is back in prison – where does the chaos end?

Well, let’s rephrase this question – where does the healing process begin?

It begins with us.

Here’s my ridiculously succinct guide to life. All of this is in good fun and is pretty much a framework that I personally use. The point I would like to stress is balance – finding that happy medium across all aspects of life: finances, romance, health, career, etc. means a restful night’s sleep, and a more relaxed and focused day. It’s just one less thing to worry about and gives you an opportunity to better tackle the issues at hand.

Lifestyle balance is crucial, and in my opinion, could probably help keep people away from pill popping stress-relief supplements or, better yet, anti-depressants. Of course, this is an over-generalization, yet true in some ways, nonetheless.

So here it is: The rules to life.

Relationships

Relationships with family, friends, coworkers and even strangers is work. You cannot always assume that a relationship is easy to maintain. Take the time and make the effort to see these people, to talk to these people, to get to know them

The important message here is to realize that it takes effort to maintain and foster a relationship. This means going to gatherings you sometimes don’t want to go to, going to dinners you sometimes don’t want to go to, etc etc. It’s like working out. Schedule the time to see your friends and family, to talk to your fellow coworkers, make a phone call, etc.

Romance

I can only speak from the perspective of a man and the advice below is in regards to finding a life-time partner:

Men, you must be confident, a challenge, and have self-control (eg. keep jealousy in check, do not rush into a relationship or into the bedroom with the new lady)

Ladies, you must be a giver, have a good attitude and have integrity (eg. do what you say you’re going to do).

Take the time and due diligence UP FRONT to find the perfect person, instead of putting in the time and effort AT THE END, trying to salvage a relationship. That just doesn't work.

Don't rush into things. Don't move in with each other right away.

You'can't buy love, but money is always an issue. Move in together because you care about each other, not because your costs of living go down or that you're able to then move out of your parents place.

Finance

At the absolute minimum, save 10% of your earnings. Pay yourself first – set up an automated system with your bank to withdraw 10% of your cheque each pay day and put that into a savings account.

Avoid or minimize all bank fees (eg. interac fees, annual credit card fees, processing fees, mutual fund fees, bank account fees).

Embrace all tax free or tax sheltered programs – take advantage of tax free savings account or RRSP.

Do not rely on a pension.

Career

Even though you have a college or university degree, you’re not entitled to anything.

People always tell you to do what you love. Sometimes that just can’t happen because you gotta ‘man’ up and support the family, pay the bills, etc. So what can you do?

Whatever you do, do it exceptionally well. Whether that means you’re a fitness trainer, a marketing analyst or a pet groomer. Do your job exceptionally well. There’s a level of doing what you’re supposed to do and a level beyond that. Aim for “beyond that”.

Be known and be liked. No one will promote or help you if they don’t know you or if they don’t like you.

Don’t be a suck up, but be friendly to everyone and mindful of everyone – your coworkers, subordinates, bosses and people that you may not work with directly, but do cross paths with.

Do not expect that just because you do your job well that you will be promoted or entitled to a raise.

It is more important to do the right thing than to do things right. What’s the difference? Some people do too much and focus on the little things when really they should be focusing on what matters. It’s the difference between perfecting the free throw or playing on the basketball court (sink a basket vs winning a game). Or the difference between perfecting the pushup or working up a sweat (perfect form vs lose 10 lbs). Or the difference between emailing someone or making a phone call (get something done tomorrow vs. getting it done today).

Health

Take your loved ones into consideration when thinking about your own health. Do your children depend on you? Does your partner care for you? Sometimes, seeing the doctor, eating right, working out, etc. is also for them, rather than just for your own sake.

Eat junk food, fast food, etc in moderation. So eat healthy 6 days a week. Eat liberally 2 days of the week. Be active 3-4 days a week.

Make an effort to look good – buy clothes that fit well, ironed and spend some time in the morning to do your hair, make-up, etc. You’ll feel better and it’ll boost your confidence and self-esteem. (Don’t need to spend a ton of money at all to make this happen by the way!)

Don’t forget to keep your mind sharp. Read books in which you will learn something. There are millions of people who have “succeeded” in an area of life of which you feel you could improve on. Don’t reinvent the wheel – read up on what they did and apply their teachings.

There are many ways to ‘treat’ sickness – pharmaceutical drugs, natural health products, traditional Chinese medicine, etc. Just depends on exactly what the ailment is. If you have an infection, antibiotics may be the way to go. Got back pain? Skip the painkillers and maybe head to the acupuncturist.

Code of Conduct/Religion

I’m not a religious person but I have nothing against religion. If it makes one a better person and/or gives people what they need to tackle a certain aspect of their life, I’m all for it.

Surround yourself with people that bring you UP. That may mean they make you laugh, bring you joy, have strong business sense, make you smarter, a better worker, etc.

Stay away from negative energy and/or people that bring you DOWN. If they instill feelings of anger, let you down, negatively impact your health, career, etc. then minimize your time with them.

What good is money if you don’t have the opportunity to enjoy life? Working 60+ hours a week to earn a 6 figure income as your kids grow up not knowing you, having no vacation/family time, little opportunity to spend and enjoy your earnings, and provides you with little to no satisfaction is really just another dead-end job that will suck your life away.

Be sure to smile. No one wants to hang out with someone who’s not smiling, or looks like he’s not having a good time.

As much as we are taught that we shouldn’t care about what other people think about us, perception is also a significant part of the game of life. You may be a really friendly person on the inside, but if you’re not smiling, no one will perceive you as friendly.

Perception is powerful so its influence shouldn’t be underestimated. Be true to yourself, but you can tweak things about you to create a positive and powerful perception. It’s like learning to say thank you/you’re welcome, or to learn how to act in a certain situation (eg. when meeting your girlfriend’s parents), or something as simple as learning how to properly shake hands. Sure, it’s not “natural” or “you” and is something you have to change about yourself to make it happen, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing and doesn’t make you less of a person for doing it.

So there you have it – a quick run down of my rules to life! One thing to keep in mind: wellness living isn’t just about eating organic foods or being green. It’s about establishing balance and a level of sufficiency on all aspects of your life. So what other rules have I missed? What are your rules? Hit me up in the comments section.

Trouble Sleeping? Boost Your Melatonin Levels NATURALLY!

2011-10-16T16:39:00.001-07:00

People are busy, on-the-go, and have bills to pay. In other words, they are stressed and, with that, comes troubles sleeping. On the shelves, you can find yourself a gamut of stress-relieving and sleep inducing supplements, the most popular being melatonin. But what exactly is melatonin? Is there a way for the body to naturally increase it's own melatonin levels? You bet! Read on...

Stress-relief and sleep inducing supplements are quite popular here in North America. The typical "stress-relief" ingredients you'll see at your local store shelves are L-theanine, GABA and, of course, the very popular melatonin. Melatonin is actually a hormone that your body naturally produces in very tiny amounts throughout the day and is well studied to help induce sleepiness as the highest levels of melatonin are concentrated at night time.

Supplements sold are synthetically made (not that it's a bad thing) and are usually given at doses from 1-5 milligrams, some times higher. Interestingly, your body makes much smaller amounts naturally, at the microgram levels. So, personally, I would only use supplements as a last resort and only temporarily to help you get back into a proper sleep cycle. There are plenty of clinical trials to support the use of melatonin and it's safety is, for the most part, established.

That said, it's all about boosting your own body's melatonin levels NATURALLY.

Here are some tips to naturally increase your melatonin levels:

• Get your dose of natural light! Open the windows, go outside for walks (even when it's overcast/raining). You want to expose yourself to as much light as possible throughout the day. Your body's internal clock tells your body when to make melatonin. It relies on both daylight and night time darkness.

• At night time, limit the amount of bright light exposure. That means, stay away from your computer, from your flat screen tv, from your ipad or from your cell phone! That bright screen of yours is telling your brain to reduce the amount of melatonin at exactly the WRONG time. Instead, opt for a book or a magazine or enjoy a brandy by the fireside!

• Eat right! Foods like cherries have melatonin in them. So don't be afraid to snack on these. They are also loaded with antioxidants. Milk also has some melatonin content as well. Perhaps a glass of warm milk before bedtime may have some truth to it afterall... (On a somewhat related note, researchers are looking at at producing milk from cows with 100x more melatonin than regular milk. Crazy!)

• Hit the gym. That's right, a powerful and exhausting workout will help induce melatonin secretion and, as well, contribute to overall fatigue. Ideally best to hit the gym hours before bed time. And hey, why not workout outdoors? Get in some natural light while you're at it!

• Mediation, grasshopper! Although I have not researched this formally, I have come across some articles regarding the ability of mediation to boost chemicals such as serotonin, melatonin, and GABA. Mediation also teaches you how to actively relax yourself, showing you that many of the autonomic physiological reactions are body undergoes can actually be controlled to a certain extent consciously.

• Do the horizontal mambo! Make no mistake about it, people get sleepy after sex. Not sure if this has anything to do with melatonin levels per se. But many attribute the drowsiness to the sense of satisfaction, complete release of stress and recovery period to contribute to a relaxed state physically and psychologically that puts you into that drowsy peacefulness.

Bottom Line: Personally, I say stay away from melatonin use unless it's only used temporarily and within the proper dose. Consult your doctor too. Otherwise, boost your melatonin levels naturally - get your daylight, relax at night, and stay away from your iPad.

6 Signs That Your Workout Is EFFECTIVE!

2011-10-02T21:38:00.001-07:00

6 Signs To Tell You That Your Workout Is Shedding The Fat!

You've been going to the gym for the last few months, been eating right and you've seen progress. But over the last week or two, things seemed to have stalled. Your workouts don't seem to be hitting the right places any more and, well, it just seems like things have stagnated. How can you tell if your workouts are still just as effective as they were from day 1? Read on my friends!

Everyone, when they first start working out, experiences gains in muscle and fat loss - muscles feel sore, your arms, thighs, shoulders and chest have a cool tighter feeling, but eventually, that soreness goes away. Your workouts feel a little bit bland and your muscle gain stalls - this is typically called a "plateau" where your progress slows down considerably. This plateauing effect is our body's amazing ability to become more efficient at whatever it does!

So what do most people do? They run longer or run faster. They add an extra workout day to their week. Some even add more reps and sets to their resistance training. Eventually, you're working out for 2 hours a day, 6 to 7 days a week!! Who has the time for that???

Something's obviously wrong here and the solution is not about adding more. "More" does not mean "better" when it comes to working out. In fact, you can over train and it'll have a negative effect as your body is breaking down too much muscle to keep up with all that extra working out and your body experiences fatigue which keeps you from adding more resistance and can lead to injury.

The answer? Change it up! You have to change up your workout routine. But you have to change it up in a way so that it makes your entire workout EFFECTIVE! So how do you know if a workout is effective? Here are some signs:

• Your workouts are no longer than 1 hour
• Your heart should be pumping like crazy after a set or superset
• Your breathing should be quite heavy, almost like that of a fast run (but not a sprint)
• Your rests should not last longer than 1-2 minutes (unless you're on a muscle building program - but that's another topic altogether)
• You are working both your upper body and lower body
• You do not rely on ab exercises, instead you focus on CORE exercises.

If your workout routine is not doing this, then you're in need to change it up!! It really doesn't matter what exercise you choose or resistance you use as long as it satisfies the 6 signs of an effective workout. For myself, I don't focus on the type of exercise I plan on using, instead I focus on what body parts I plan on working on that day/week.

For example, let's say I'm planning a total body routine - I would like to work on my chest, back, shoulders, bicep and triceps. I would also want to workout my legs somehow too.

What would give the most bang for my buck? best value for the time I have?

A1: Incline chest press (chest, tricep, shoulders)
A2: Squats (legs)

B1: Pull Ups (back, biceps and rear shoulders)
B2: Lunges (legs)

C1: Chest fly (chest and shoulders)
C2: Calf Raise (legs)

D1: Seated rows (bicep, back, core)
D2: Diamond pushups (tricep, chest, and core)

Rest time would be 30-60 seconds, aim for 8-12 reps and 3-4 sets. Notice how the exercises hit all the body parts I want repeatedly. Also notice how I started with large body parts, and as the workout progresses, work out smaller muscle groups.

If I start to stagnate, I would replace A1 with another chest exercise instead, A2 would be replaced with jump squats, etc. You can also change up the rest times or reverse the routine (for example, start with leg exercises and superset with an upper body exercise). The possibilities are endless as long as you ensure that you're sweating, breathing hard and your heart is pumping1

Feel free to change it up every week or every 3-4 weeks, etc. It's up to you and your body!

If you're not sweating a quarter way through your workout, you're wasting your time. If you're talking to the guy next to you, you're not focused enough. Do it right!

Bottom Line: Ensure your workouts are as effective as possible by ensuring that every workout is no longer than an hour, keeps you breathing hard, pumps your heart, gets you all sweaty, works your core, has a short rest time and works out your entire body!

6 Meals A Day vs. 3 Meals A Day? Which is better?

2011-09-18T21:42:00.000-07:00

I was browsing through the paper the other day and came across a very interesting article about the latest study on whether 3 meals a day or 6 meals a day was more effective for weight loss. So what was the verdict?

Within both fitness and medical circles, the mantra has been that if you wanted to lose some fat, you'll have to switch from eating 3 meals a day to eating 5-6 meals a day. Of course, it doesn't mean that you really have 6 normal size meals - it just means that you should be spreading your daily caloric intake across 6 meals instead of 3.

This is what I do and pretty much recommend others to do. What's the premise here/ Well, it achieves two primary things:

• Your blood sugar maintains a healthy level throughout the day. This will help curb cravings and also keep your hormone (insulin) levels in check and not stress out your body from producing spikes in hormones that may affect weight gain.

• Eating 5 to 6 meals a day will keep your metabolism up throughout the day. You're pretty much eating every 3 to 4 hours, so your body is constantly "burning" calories and never goes into that dreaded starvation mode.

But does eating 6 meals a day really help with weight loss? I did some further digging and came across a strong lack of evidence supporting the 6 meals per day mantra. It's seems, to me, to be one of those 'myths' that just caught on. You know, like drinking 8 glasses per day or bed-rest during pregnancy. There's no real scientific data out there to support these claims!

A recent article I came across looked at whether eating 6 meals a day was more effective at losing weight vs 3 meals a day. (I apologize in advance for not linking to this study . I can't seem to find it and hopefully it will be published soon so that I can link to it!) So what did they find?

Well, believe it or not, they didn't find any difference between eating 3 meals a day vs. 6 meals a day. Weight loss between the groups were not significant. So then they also looked at hormone levels. AGAIN, no significant difference between the groups. The study concluded that eating 6 meals a day was NOT any better than eating 3 meals a day!

I did come across another study that found that eating 3 meals a day was actually better than eating 6. Why/ because eating 3 meals helped provide a feeling of fullness and satisfaction that 6 meals just couldn't do, even though the total daily calories were the same! According to that study, the 3 meals a day would help curb hunger better, and is expected to lead to weight loss more effectively than 6 meals a day.

So should we throw away the idea of eating 6 meals a day? Well, not so fast!

The concept of eating 3 meals a day doesn't really take into account real world weight loss and inclusion of exercise. Due to the lack of studies out there, i can't say for certain if this will make a difference, but for myself, I do prefer the 5 to 6 meals per day because it keeps me energized throughout the day without feeling heavy/full and i don't get drowsy after lunch. Because I'm not feeling full or heavy, i can also hit the workouts fairly hard while still being light on my feet. But perhaps this more personal preference than science?

To me, the studies point out two things:

• Everyone's different (duh!)
• It's okay if you can't do 5-6 meals some days and have to opt for 3 meals instead. Sometimes my schedule doesn't allow it and, heck, sometimes it's just fun to enjoy yourself at the buffet!

Bottom Line: 5-6 meals a day is what I prefer when it comes to shedding fat and staying in shape, but the science isn't really there to say that it's any better than eating 3 meals a day. Everyone's different so do what your body and your schedule allows you to do!

Want Sexy Abs, Chest, Butt and Thighs? Add Skipping To Your Repertoire!

2011-09-11T17:25:00.000-07:00

I stepped foot into my first boxing gym only two weeks ago and I’m loving it! The workout regimen is different from what I’m used to and has opened my eyes to a new cardio workout – skipping rope. Why is skipping rope so important to the boxer’s workout routine? What is it that makes it so effective? Read on!

I haven’t skipped rope in years...probably 15+ years (and even then, not seriously). So when the coach started me with 6 rounds of skipping, I was like “You’re kidding, right??” Each round was 3 minutes long and I was given a 30 second break in between. The first round lasted forever – what felt like 2 minutes gone by was more like 30 seconds! It was grueling and I kept tripping on my rope. By the end of the 3rd round, I started to get my rhythm and completely drenched in sweat.

At that moment, I knew that skipping rope is going to be a staple of the Mighty Fit Grasshopper’s workout routine.

What makes skipping rope so effective, compared to say jogging or biking?
There are just too many reasons!

• It’s cheap! You can buy a very decent rope for $8 and you’re good to go. You don’t need a fancy treadmill or expensive bike to get going.

• It takes up limited space! You only need space about the size of a coffee table and you can do it indoors or outdoors.

• It’s not high impact! When done properly, the impact to your joints is not as damaging as that of jogging or sprinting. You’re on the balls of your feet at all times, which cushions the impact.

• It’s still interval training! Training at a high intensity for a specific number of rounds will increase your resting metabolism and burn more calories throughout the day, compared to steady state cardiovascular training.

• It trains coordination and timing! Your upper body has to coordinate well with the lower body, timing the speed of the rope with the skips. Depending on the complexity of your skipping techniques, you’ll have to coordinate the foot work, hand work and overall timing. (Perhaps this is what keeps people away from jumping rope, as well?)

• It works both the upper and lower body! You’re not only working your leg muscles, you’re also working out your forearms, wrists, deltoids, chest, core and back.

• It burns calories! The amount of calories you burn depend on how much you weigh. Typical estimates for a 160 lb person, skipping for 15 minutes, will burn about 160 calories. This is assuming a moderate pace of 60 skips per minute. To give you some perspective, if I were to do 5 minute warmup, followed by 4 rounds of sprints on the treadmill (1 minute on, 1 minute off), the treadmill says I’ve burned about 180 calories.

When it comes down to skipping rope, there’s just a cool factor captured in its efficiency, simplicity and its apparent ‘effortlessness’ when performed properly. Of course, it will take a lot of practice before you can skip continuously for 3 minutes without tripping. If you haven’t already, definitely give it a try!

Bottom Line: Skipping rope is simply one of the best workouts you can do! It will take practice and can be a frustrating for the beginner but once you find your rhythm it just can’t be beat.

Mighty Fit Grasshopper Is Lacing Up The Gloves And Training Old School!

2011-08-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

Fellow readers! You've followed me through my Journey to Sexy Six Pack Abs, then you followed me on Building Muscle and Losing Fat AT THE SAME TIME, well MFG is switching it up all over again to get fat-shredding results! How? Read on!

When this blog started, I laid out an entire plan for myself as to how to lose the fat and show off some sexy abs. I not only wanted you to follow my journey, but also work out with me! It was a lot of fun and the results pictures do not lie! We introduced the concept of supersetting, interval training and proper eating.

Because the program relies on a caloric deficit, the body is constantly in an "under-fed" state, which means it resorts to using fat storage as energy..and..unfortunately, muscle. That's right. When you do these types of calorie burning intensive program, there is going to be muscle loss and boy, i sure noticed that.

Luckily, our favourite personal trainer, Mica, was super kind enough to spend some time with me to create a muscle building program that doesn't pack on the fat! Remember, when you follow a muscle building program, you'll have to eat lots, but that calorie surplus could turn to fat, so Mica designed a program for me that will pack on lean muscle but minimize the fat. And guess what? It worked! Results pictures DO NOT LIE!

So now what? I've packed on maybe a good 10-15lbs of muscle all over and now, I want to really tighten up all over. And I'm resorting to an old-school training method that I'm sure all of you have heard of - BOXING.

That's right folks, MFG has joined a boxing gym. And not one of those "cardio" boxing gyms! Some of you might know that I'm currently training in Chinese boxing (kung fu) right now and I'll be keeping up with that, but I'm going to tone down the weight training and rely on the physical conditioning exercises that Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed endured, to get me some awesome abs, angel wing lats and a nice left jab at the same time.

And as I'm writing this, I just came back from my first session and holy cow, my whole body hurts. I was probably in the better shape compared to the other "newbies" in the gym, but wow I'm sore all over. And I realize I hate skipping rope. No pain, no gain as they say.

Boxing gloves on order, i have my hand wraps and I'm so psyched to keep you all in the loop as to what exercises I'm doing, how it's being done and how I'm surviving through all of this.

Bottom Line: MFG is training old school style - western boxing. Join me, won't you?

Fix Your Posture Now: MFG Shares His SUPERTIP for a Confident, Taller You!

2011-08-21T12:32:00.000-07:00

I'm in front of the computer for the most part of the day. As much as we're educated about ensure proper seating position, I catch myself slouching throughout the day. The result? A sore lower back. Over the last two years or so, I've made some progress with my posture and reducing back pain. I'm also going to share you the one, more important tip you can practice to ensure an amazing, confident posture!

Sitting in front of a pc day in and day out can really do a number on your back and overall posture. The increase in screen resolution and bigger screens (which results in tinier font) slowly brings us closer to the monitor as we try to get a better view of things. Also, the physical positioning of our hands on the keyboard relative to the screen can really encourage slouching and hunched shoulders.

I only made aware of my horrible posture a couple years back from my kung fu teacher. Of course, he wasn't speaking to me personally, but to the class, yet it really struck a cord in me and I really wanted to fix my the way I held myself for a more confident posture. (On a side note, a confident posture also helps in terms of self-defense, as assailants would screen victims/targets for their shy, introverted posture.)

So here are just a few of my favorite back exercises that I've used in my training programs to awake those muscles and help pull my back into shape:

• Pull up/Chin up: this is your standard staple back exercise. If you can't do the exercise, just replicate it with resistance bands or on a lat pull down machine.

• Seated Row: I really like doing this to focus on the inner back muscles and it's not as difficult as a pull-up. Just be sure to focus on squeezing the shoulder blades together instead of pulling the weight toward you using your bicep muscles.

• Superman: I use this exercise to really target the lower and centre of the back. It may not look that difficult but if you've never really worked out your back, I can guarantee it's not that easy!

• Stretch: don't forget to spend some time to stretch those back muscles. There's a plethora of stretching exercises you can google!

I would say the back muscles can be easily ignored as we primarily focus on what we see in the mirror. As such, it also means you haven't worked the muscles a lot so it's good to focus on proper form and muscle awareness while you do the exercises using a LIGHT weight. Trust me, when you really focus on the movement, the exercise can be quite challenging.

Now if you don't have time (or the desire) to do any of this, here's the ONE TIP that you'll have to arm yourself with to get you standing tall, confident and amazing!

Tap into the power of awareness:

Take a few moments, in front of the mirror, to fix your posture and "learn" which muscles are being activated. I like to turn to my side in front of the mirror to see how my back is like normally (eg. slouching), and what it looks like when it's properly aligned and to be aware as to what muscles are being activated.

Also I like to imagine that someone is tugging on my hair, straight up, which pulls my spine upwards and just hold this position for a moment and then relax back into my properly aligned posture.

It's all about awareness people!

As you practice this more often, eventually, you won't need the mirror and can just activate the target muscles on command!

Bottom Line: Get your back into shape and be mentally aware of the muscles involved in proper posture. It doesn't take much - just a few minutes a day! You can thank me later!

Are You Getting the Most Out Of Your Home Gym?

2011-08-07T20:57:00.000-07:00

When you don't have access to a state of the art fitness gym, or the funds to one, you can still have an effective workout and create the variety your body needs to keep up the fat burn and build lean muscle. Today we will go over each variable involved in keeping your workouts fresh and we will learn exactly how to tweak each one to maximize fat burn and build muscle!

The gym I currently use is less than state of the art - it's not bad but not great. I like it because it's part of my apartment so it's convenient and free. It can get busy, but by the time i'm in there, it's usually empty.

But people have asked me many times - how are you able to get results working out in that tiny gym day in and day out? Don't you get bored? Don't you outgrow the weights? Aren't you limited to the types of exercises you can do? The answer is NO!

Here's what I'm working with:

• 2 benches
• A set of dumbbells that go up to 50 lbs, then jumps to 75 lbs and then skips to 85lbs.
• A small univeral gym for lat pull downs, cable curls, squat press and a chest fly.
• Cardio machines are limited to 2 treadmills (one of which is broken), 1 upright bike and 1 elliptical.

As you know I've been able to do a variety of workout programs such as the" journey to six pack abs" and, more recently, the "build muscle and lose fat" program in this tiny gym.

In other words, you don't need an all-star membership to a fancy gym for a healthy body. All you really need is an understanding of the principles to an effective workout and applying them to your workouts.

So what are the variables to an effective work-out?

1. Reps: your rep range is the number of times you're going to do the exercise. Typical rule is to perform 10 reps of an exercise. I'm not a huge fan of this rule. Instead, you can break it down to three major rep ranges: low reps (1-5) or medium reps (8-12) or high reps (15-20+). Typically lower reps build power/strength, medium rep range build size and high reps build endurance.

2. Sets: This depends on your rep range. The higher the reps, the lower the number of sets to aim for. The lower the reps, the higher the number of sets you can do.

3. Resistance: This refers to how much weight you're using.

4. Rest Time: This refers to the amount of time you're resting between exercises.

5. Tempo (speed): This refers to how fast or slow it takes you to do an exercise. For example, you can do a standard push up or you can do a slow push up (eg. count to 3 seconds to lower yourself, count to 3 seconds to raise yourself) or you can do an explosive push up.

Playing with each of these variables, or in combination, can drastically change the workout and trick your body into burning more fat and building more muscle when your progress starts to plateau. This is the exact trick that P90X uses!

For myself, I'm limited to either certain exercises or limited to a certain weight; however, to trick my body using the same weight and exercise, i may decrease the rest time from 2 minutes to 45 seconds and all of a sudden, that 50 lb dumbbell which was too easy for me last week becomes incredibly difficult for me this week.

Increase the number of sets - instead of doing 3 sets, I'll add in one more to all of my exercises.

You can also do things like supersetting (which i love) where you move from one exercise and then straight into another without resting at all.

If you're daring enough, remove rest times altogether and go through your sets without any rests and only take a QUICK breather only when you absolutely need to. Before you know it, your body is aching, you're sweating profusely and your heart is pumping like crazy = FAT BURN.

One other trick I use is to switch up the order of the exercise. For example, let's say I've been doing the following superset over the last few weeks:

A1: Chest press
A2: Dumbbell squat

Well, instead, just do the reverse:

A1: Dumbbell squat
A2: Chest press

On paper, it doesn't seem like it would do too much but boy was I wrong! When I started with the squats, and then moving into the chest press, my heart was already going crazy after the squats - making the chest press even more difficult and tiring to do.

Just tweaking your workout here and there exponentially increases your options! You don't need a fancy gym with a 100 machines so that you can do different exercises to see progress. Just change up your rest time, or rep range, slow down the exercises, or a combination of rest and rep range, etc. The possibilities are endless!

You can even throw in exercises using a kettle bell or resistance bands to give all the exercises at your disposal a different dimension to its workout. Sometimes I substitute chest flies with the machine and use my MightyBands or skip the squats in favour of a dumbbell or kettlebell swing.

Bottom Line: You don't need to do different exercises or sign up to a fancy gym to keep your workout fresh and your body guessing as to what's next. It's all about understanding the variables to a workout and how to modify each one. Trust me! It's worked for me and i still look forward to the gym each day!

Product Review: All Natural Bath Products by Healthy Options of Days Gone By

2011-07-24T13:42:00.000-07:00

Do you know what's in your soap? Do you want to? Healthy Options of Days Gone By offers all natural health, beauty and bath products. We were fortunate enough to get our hands on some of their products and put it to the test! Read on!

As a life long sufferer of dry skin and eczema, I've always had to reach for the fragrance-free and hypo-allergenic soaps, moisturizers and other bath products. Many soaps, shampoos and detergents have fragrances added that can irritate the skin. Soaps can also contain chemicals such as sodium lauryl sulfate - which make for an effective cleaning agent - but can strip the skin of moisture.

Fortunately, one company, Healthy Options of Days Gone By, is offering consumers a line of health, beauty and bath products that are all natural, affordable and freely accessible. Healthy Options of Days Gone By offers a variety of products that include bath soaks, laundry soaps, lip balms, candles, sugar scrubs and more.

We were given some of these products and asked to try them out and tell you what we thought about it. We were given the following:

Hot Liniment Achy Muscle Salve

I was really looking forward to using this product, and at the same time, had pretty high expectations. After some of the more intense workouts over the course of my Muscle Building workout plan, my muscles were very sore in the morning - particularly my shoulders and back.

My sample of muscle salve contains an all natural blend of various ingredients including coconut oil, beeswax, peppermint, eucalyptus and essential oils. The aroma from this product is quite strong and I have to admit that I was a bit sceptical of this product's efficacy.

The salve has the texture of an ointment (think "Vicks Vaporub") and goes on the skin pretty easily (although a bit oily) leaving a relaxing cooling sensation.

This cooling sensation helps provide some relief to the achy sore feeling from the previous days workout. Because the salve went on a little bit oily, I would typically leave it on my skin for 10 minutes to allow for absorption before putting on the office shirt and tie.

Vitamin E Sugar Scrubs Citrus Delight

The sugar scrubs have a very inviting sweet and citrusy smell. We noticed that the crystals in this all natural facial scrub are actually much bigger than typical exfoliators one would find in the drug stores - a sign of its 'all naturalness'.

I don't particularly use exfoliators, but upon the advice of my team, they mentioned that it may be a good idea given my dry skin. I was actually kind of worried that it my irritate my face. When I applied it, it actually felt like I was rubbing a combination of brown sugar and olive oil on my face.

The verdict: the scrub didn't make me break out or irritate my skin whatsoever. In fact, i was pleasantly surprised to see that it helped remove dry skin and left my face feeling smooth and softer than normal.

Beeswax Lip Balm

The lip balm has a subtle mint aroma and has the same texture of standard lip balms. The balm applies much like typical lip balm and helps moisturize the lips to help prevent dry, chapped lips. We did notice that, although it doesn't apply messy, it does make the lips feel more smooth or 'buttery' than your standard balm. Also, when you happen to 'eat' the balm, it doesn't taste bitter like your typical balm - a testament to the natural ingredients of this product.

Healthy Options of Days Gone By offers a variety of flavours including Mint, Lemon, Orange and unscented.

Body Powder for Men Hint of the Woods and Body Powder Talc Free Kiss Me Goodnight

This talc free body powder is a mixture of cornstarch, various essential oils, arrowroot and other natural ingredients. The body powder is intended to be applied to high moisture areas of the body such as the foot, and arm pit and can be used as a natural deodorant.

The powder flows quite freely from the bottle dispenser and found it quite difficult to apply in a way that isn't too messy and to apply it on in a consistent manner. Because of this, I didn't use the body powder too much

I found the body powder to be quite subtle in its fragrance and doesn't have that same 'punch' as standard deodorants. So if you're looking for that fragrant smell of typical sport deodorants, you won't find that here.

I did find the body powder quite useful during the summer months as the trend, as of late, is to wear loafers and moccasins sockless. The body powder can easily handle any odours coming from this trend.

Others on the team also tried the Kiss Me Goodnight powder after their nightly showers and found the powder to help them relax into a sleepy daze.

Healthy Options of Days Gone By is a small, family-based, operation led by two people who really care about their family, their health and yours. They truly believe in their mission of providing all natural hand made products. Because it is a small operation, however, I did ask them about the shelf-life of their products. Because they are all natural, i was curious to know how long these products last or if they contain preservatives.

The owners mentioned that all products are hand-made and carry a shelf-life of 9 months and do not contain any preservatives. Because the products do not contain animal fats, the products are not expected to go rancid.

Bottom Line: Healthy Options of Days Gone By offers all natural health, beauty and bath products that are free of harsh chemicals, preservatives and artificial fragrances. These products do not irritate the skin and pleasantly surprised the Mighty Grasshopper himself. Definitely take a look at their website here!

FDA Releases New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) Guidance Document

2011-07-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

The FDA recently revealed the long awaited New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) Guidance Document for industry feedback. What is the NDI guidance document? Does this spell the end of health supplements? Read on to find out!

The US FDA released a guidance document on NDI notifications. This guidance document pretty spells out exactly what constitutes a New Dietary Ingredient, when an NDI notification is required, when it's not required and how to file an NDI notification.

A new dietary ingredient, as defined by the FDA, is any ingredient that falls under the category as a dietary supplement and that was not in market prior to 1994. That means if you want to market an ingredient that was not in the market 1994 or prior to that time, you'll have to notify the FDA 75 days before your ingredient goes to market.

Before everyone freaks out, let's make it very clear that there is a huge umbrella of supplements that were sold in 1994. Products like ginseng, olive leaf extract, apple cider vinegar, chlorella, etc. are all okay to market. So about 95% of the health supplements and their ingredients as we know it can be marketed without a problem and do NOT require a notification.

It's just the new stuff that this regulation affects - dietary ingredients that were extracted in new and innovative ways (think nanotech, super critical extraction). There are perhaps new forms of coenzyme Q10, for example, that may need notifications.

But it's not the end of the health supplements industry. Notifications to the FDA, while the requirements may seem complex, is really not that complicated. i can tell you right now that countries like Canada, Australia, and even the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have much higher requirements and a more stringent regulatory framework. These countries look at not only toxicology, pharmacology and clinical trial evidence, they also look at a company's processes and quality assurance standards. These requirements are WAY more involved that the FDA's notification.

So, in other words, there's no need for industry to freak out.

Of course, many in the industry will (Most likely due to misunderstandings or just fear of the unknown). It is quite understandable, but before everyone starts sending letters and making phone calls to their Senator and Congressman - at least know what you're going to talk to them about. Just telling them that they are taking the freedom of choice away is not really going to resolve anything specific.

However, if you'd like to address the FDA's guidance document, then by all means for go it. In fact, the FDA has released this draft version of the guidance document for INDUSTRY FEEDBACK. If you feel it's too stringent or not clear or too restrictive, this is your opportunity to. The FDA wants to hear from you so that they know how to revise the guidance document.

It's also important to note that this notification will result in increased workload for the department - a department that is very limited on resources. So, with your feedback, the FDA can tailor the notification process so that it will not strain the available resources (or at least, minimize the strain). So definitely, provide your feedback! But screaming and shouting that you don't like the notification is not enough - you'll have to actually read the document to note what exactly you don't like about it.

Bottom Line: FDA's new dietary ingredient notification will not destroy the dietary supplements industry. The majority of ingredients can still be marketed. That said, if you're not a fan of the latest guidance document, the FDA encourages your feedback so that they can work better with industry and ensure that all safe supplements can go to market seamlessly.

Build Muscle and Lose Fat AT THE SAME TIME: Final Results!

2011-06-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

As you know I've been working closely with our awesome personal trainer, Mica Whitworth to BUILD MUSCLE AND LOSE FAT AT THE SAME TIME. Well it's time for progress pictures folks!

Over the course of the last 4-5 months, Mica and I have accepted the challenge that anyone can actually build muscle while reducing fat gain, and in fact, lose fat! As mentioned in my first post about this, this is a very hotly debated topic in the workout circles. While many fitness experts say this is possible, many experts also say it's not.

Why is building muscle and losing fat so difficult to do?

Building muscle requires calories - as your body repairs itself after the rigorous resistance training, it needs an exccess of calories to draw from so that your body can build additional muscle.

BUT

The excess in calories also leads to fat gain.

Burning fat, however, requires a calorie deficit. The problem with this, unfortunately, is that the calorie deficit means that you body has a hard time finding the energy and nutrients (carbs, fats, in addition to protein) to build lean muscle.

While I agree with the 'paradox' above to a degree, there was a specific goal I had in mind:

I wanted to gain additional muscle without increasing my suit size. I wanted to gain some additional muscle that I've lost over the year prior from doing my journey to sexy six pack abs program, but not having to buy a new work attire as my suits, shirts and pants are already slim fitted to my body type.

So while it's true that you might not be able to gain muscle and lose fat at the same time, I would say this is only true to the extent for those that are looking to GET HUGE, like bodybuilder huge.

The Strategy:

When it came to my diet, eating was staggered - I would eat a high calorie diet on certain days and a low calorie diet on the other days.

When it came to working out, Mica designed a lower body and upper body program (separated in 2 phases) that I would perform 4 days a week with a specific way to progress in weight.

You can read more about my second phase here.

Limitations:

i don't workout in a fancy gym. In fact, i have access to my MightyBands and the limited weights in the weight room in my apartment. That means I have some dumbbells, a limited universal gym, no chin up bar, no barbell, etc.

Eating was not easy. My work schedule fluctuated A LOT, working late evening, early days, meetings throughout the days, etc that got in the way of, surprisingly, not being able to EAT ENOUGH.

Eating 3500 calories a day is very difficult. Of course, i'm not packing away Big Macs, but eating whole unprocessed foods like almonds, lean meats, fruits, yogurts, etc. I found this to be very challenging and I slipped a lot on my eating.

Results:

Well until I saw these pictures, I couldn't really tell if I was making any real progress. With the exception of some shirts feeling a little bit tighter, i thought that perhaps it was just my imagination. But after taking a look at the pictures below, i am very happy with the results, considering my hurdles I came across.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

I definitely see that there's more room for improvement here but overall, I'm glad to see the muscle gain with very little fat gain! This plan works! And I know that it can work better for you if you stick to the plan and strategy.

This is definitely a plan that I would do again, but with a better diet and access to equipment.

Be sure to stay tuned as I plan on letting you know how you can get your hands on the exact Build Muscle and Lose Fat AT THE SAME TIME workout plan and strategy!

Bottom Line: It is possible to build muscle and lose fat AT THE SAME TIME. A big thank you goes out to Mica! Be sure to check out her website! She has a plethora of workout videos that I use all the time.

For my first article on Build Muscle and Lose Fat at the same time, click here.

For my second article on Build Muscle and Lost Fat at the same time, click here.

Want six pack abs instead? Here's the entire training plan!

the new MyPlate guideline

2011-06-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

First Lady Michelle Obama announces the new MyPlate guideline, replacing the 19 year old Food Pyramid dietary guideline. So what is the MyPlate Guideline? Read on for more!

This week, the USDA unveiled the new MyPlate guideline, which replaces the old Food Pyramid dietary guidelines. The MyPlate guideline shows you how much of your ‘plate’ should be fruits, grains, vegetables and protein. I find it to be much easier to understand and follow than the old pyramid guideline.

You can find the MyPlate website here.

The new site provides a wealth of information on healthy eating, offering eating and shopping tips, ways to balance calories, encouraging physical activity and offering more targeted information to various subpopulation (eg. kids, women who are pregnant), health professionals and those who are trying to lose weight. The website, I found, is very easy to navigate – and the messages are straight forward and simple (just the way I like it!):

• Grain group: Make at least have your grains whole
• Vegetable group: Vary your veggies
• Fruit Group: Focus on fruits
• Dairy Group: Get your calcium-rich foods
• Protein Group: Go lean with protein

That said, you can see that the dietary guidelines is quite tailored to the typical western diet (understandably). It can be quite challenging to determine the amount of each food group you’re getting from a stir fry or casserole. Also, there has been some criticism from some health experts that feel the “protein group’ can be found in other food groups such as the dairy, vegetable and grain groups, so the additional ‘protein group’ unnecessarily encourages us to more protein than we actually need.

Bottom Line: Overall, I think the MyPlate is a step in the right direction. The simplified scheme makes it easy to ‘get it’ and so more people will follow along. Now if only Health Canada would fix up their website…it’s horrendous…

The Secret to Fat Burn

2011-05-29T15:22:00.000-07:00

Summer is here and that means people are hitting the gym to shed some of that weight and get their body into fine beach-ready form. Gym attendance has certainly gone up and people are spending more time in the gym - but I haven't noticed any real progress! What gives? Well I can tell you right now that there's one element that their routine is missing that is hindering fat burn. Do you know what it is? Read on to find out more!

I am going to tell the secret to fat burn.

It is, however, not a specific exercise, workout routine, or exercise equipment. It is not necessarily about dieting either, nor really a combination of any of these.

So what it is it? It's about perspective. Once you train with this perspective, will you maximize fat burn.

Have you ever had an 'ah-ha' moment?

Whether that was solving a mathematics problem, understanding how the internet works, or how to flirt? There is a 'phase-shift' in your perspective where you just GET IT and apply that 'ah-ha' lesson to your life.

All of a sudden, things make sense and you start seeing results immediately.

The same goes for fat burn.

So what's the fat burn secret?

When it comes to maximizing fat burn, do not focus on how many calories you burn during the workout, instead focus on how many calories your burn AFTER the workout.

Don't look at how many calories your treadmill says you burned. Don't look at how many calories your bike says you burned.

You'll want to take the perspective of how many calories your body will burn AFTER your session on the treadmill. Did you workout hard enough to boost your metabolism high enough that your body will continue burning calories AFTER your workout?

The same goes with resistance training. Don't think about lifting really heavy weights, with long rest times. Instead, you'll want to have a cardio-intensive resistance training workout so as to increase your resting metabolism so that your body continues burning calories.

When it comes to your eating, you'll want to eat foods that take some energy to digest (eg. lean proteins, veggies, whole grains, etc) and you'll want to eat every few hours to keep your body 'burning' calories and never hitting a state of starvation

You want to implement this secret to all facets of your workout plan and you're guaranteed to see results! High intensity interval training helps with this. Resistance train with lighter weights or fitness bands (like MightyBands), in which you work up a sweat, get the heart pumping and where you're breathing hard. And finally, eat small meals every 2-3 hours.

Bottom Line: The secret to maximizing fat burn is to focus not on how many calories you burn during the workout and, instead, focus on how many calories your burn AFTER the workout. Have fun!

GRIT: Get To The Top and Get What You Want

2011-05-15T22:55:00.001-07:00

First there was IQ (Intelligence Quotient), then there was EQ (Emotional Intelligence Quotient). Now, the latest research demonstrates what REALLY determines whether you get to the top, finish that marathon or land that senior executive job. Best of all, working out with me will get you one step closer to it...

We are all familiar with IQ - intelligence quotient. The test was designed to score how 'intelligent' someone was. (I know there's a lot of debate as to how accurate the test was, but let's save that for next time). Researchers in the 1950's actually followed geniuses who scored high on the IQ test and found out one thing: the only difference between the smart people who made something of themselves, and the smart people who didn't was that the 'successful' group scored higher in traits like perseverance and goal orientation.

Perseverance, you say?

Actually, Dr. Angela Duckworth PH.D says so.

Dr. Duckworth interviewed high achievers in all sorts of fields and found one thing in common: the power to persevere. Or, as she calls it, "Grit".

Grit is defined as "sustained perseverance and passion for long-term goals".

It is because of grit, that the majority of CEOs come from state schools, rather than Ivy league schools.

It is because of grit, that Michael Jordan won 6 NBA titles (he was not a first round pick in the NBA draft).

It is because of grit, that the Vancouver Canucks made it past the first round against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Perseverance and passion are the key elements. You have to think positive, enjoy what you're doing and want it bad.

Although one can be born with grit, I would say that the majority of us aren't (myself included). But, fortunately, it can be cultivated.

How? How about a workout so physically intense, that when your physical capabilities shut down, but your mind gets you through it. That means squeezing out those last few reps. That means sprinting for that extra 30 seconds.

It doesn't have to be just a workout either. Life gives you opportunities throughout each and everyday to cultivate grit. Suffering from workplace politics? Your school work is really really testing your time and patience? Perhaps something at home (eg. low income, health problems and social pressures) is really keeping you from your goals.

I know - I've been there. I've seen what the results of people who have little grit - pretty much nil. And yet I know many who have been tested much harder than I have and only achieve more for doing so.

Opportunities to develop grit exists all the time. It's just about recognizing it and then capitalizing on it. You don't have to get what you want today. It's about massaging the grit quality over time!

See a pretty girl next to you but too scared to approach her? Just say hello. That itself is one step closer in the right direction.

Want a raise at work? Don't work harder. That's a given. How about letting your boss know? Schedule an appointment.

Want to lose 50 lbs? Follow me on my journey to sexy six pack abs or train with Mica. You don't need an expensive membership at a fancy gym. Workout in the comfort of your home. The key is to start now!

Bottom Line: The next time you hear yourself saying that you can do any more chin-ups, think of it as an opportunity to develop grit and know that that one extra chin-up is one step closer to a successful life. Develop and cultivate yo

FDA Raids Maxams Nutraceuticals. Lessons Learned and How To Avoid This Happening To You

2011-05-08T15:46:00.000-07:00

US FDA officials invade Maxams Nutraceuticals late last month in a full scale raid, confiscating files, computers and supplements. Is this the end of freedom of choice? Perhaps it is the FDA’s mission to destroy the livelihood of those trying to help people through natural medicine. Maybe it was direction from the pharmaceutical industry. Maybe…it is none of those things.

Yes, that’s right – it was none of those things. Sometimes companies get raided, not because of a hidden FDA agenda, but simply because these companies aren’t following the regulations.

Follow the regulations and you will not be in trouble with the FDA – it really is that simple.

Let’s take the Maxam raid as an example. Here’s the warning letter sent by the FDA to Maxam’s back in 2010. You don’t have to read the whole thing, but they were warned by the FDA regarding their products’ health claims which include the treatment of alzheimers, autism, removal of vascular plaque, anti-arthritis, and the list goes on and on.

It’s clearly stated in the regulations that any dietary supplement sold in the US cannot be used to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat or prevent disease. Why? Not because the FDA hates supplements. But simply,dietary supplements are currently classified as foods. That means, supplements should be viewed similar to foods: risk is low and disease-treatment claims don’t apply. You don’t eat an apple to treat asthma.

Now let’s say Maxams’ products can really cure Alzheimer’s. Then they should take the next appropriate step and seek approval from the FDA so that they can label their products with those health claims. By doing so, the product will now be classified as a drug simply because you’re saying the product can treat a disease or its symptoms. (This is not uncommon. There is a fish oil product, where typically it is considered a dietary supplement, where one company has been given FDA approval for their product to bear health claims pertaining to cardiovascular disease). For whatever reason, Maxams did not do this.

FDA raided Maxams because it is a high risk offender. High risk isn’t just defined by whether a product can kill someone or have serious adverse effects. High risk also takes into account the risk inherent with not seeking appropriate treatment or medical advice. For example, let’s say I had Alzheimer’s disease, and instead of seeking appropriate care, I take these supplements instead and it does nothing for me. My dementia worsens and I end up hurting myself or someone else.

From a business perspective, this is clearly a case where Maxams has either ignored the regulations completely in the hopes that the FDA wouldn’t catch on or it had no idea what the regulations were. This clearly demonstrates the importance of business having to implement a regulatory team or outsource a consulting firm.

This whole raid could’ve easily been avoided. FDA is not raiding them because they are a supplement company selling natural health products. They are raiding them for breaking the law and not having done anything significant since the warning letter was sent.

A competent regulatory team would have been able to recommend changes in the wording of the health claims (and testimonials), marketing material and website so as to comply with the regulations allowing Maxams Nutraceuticals to continue selling their product. Alternatively, the same regulatory team could help seek FDA approval for their treatment claims.

Of course, such compliance efforts can be quite costly, in terms of man-power and/or softening their marketing campaign. Such changes will no doubt reduce their profits (in the short-term), so they typically ignore the regulations and keep on selling until they get caught.

And getting caught is exactly what happened to Maxams Nutraceuticals.

Bottom Line: The Maxams raid is not an example of how FDA wants to remove your freedom of choice to natural health products. It is a genuine case of a business trying to satisfy their bottom line by ignoring the regulations.

How efficient is your workout? Maximize burn. Minimize time wasted.

2011-04-24T23:00:00.000-07:00

The NBA and NHL playoffs are in full swing and that means your time doing other things is going to be limited – including your workout! If you plan on drinking a beer or two during the game and munching on some nachos while you’re at it, you know it’s a good idea to squeeze in a workout before the game! But with the limited hours in the day, how can you possibly squeeze in an effective workout? Read on to find out!

Time is precious...especially during the playoffs. Getting home and to the bar with my friends means I’m going to have to somehow squeeze in a workout in between. To add, I know I’m going to have a beer or two, so it’s even more important that the workouts boos my metabolism. Here are 5 tips that I use to make more workouts as efficient as possible – maximizing fat burning and minimizing time spent in the gym.

Superset your workout. Performing one exercise followed by another without a rest in between is supersetting. For example, perform 10 reps bench press, followed by 20 reps squat with no rest in between. Take a 1 minute rest period and repeat the superset again. Supersets decrease the number of rest periods in your workout routine and really gets your heart going!

Minimize your rest time. Time your rest periods and stick to them. 1 minute rest periods should suffice. Others can shorten it down further. Some can even try to move through their entire workout without a rest in between. Of course, the less rest you take, the lower reps you’ll perform. It’s a great way to trick your muscles if you’re hitting a plateau and implements a cardio effect to your resistance training routine.

Perform compound exercises. Compound exercises are exercises that work multiple parts of the body and incorporate movements of multiple joints. For example, instead of bicep curls, do a pull-ups – they work your biceps, as well as your rear shoulders, back muscles and abs all at the same time!

Skip the gym. Work out at home and save yourself the hassle of traffic, changing in the gym and waiting for equipment. No equipment at home? No problem. I use these workout bands all the time in my condo to get me an intense full body workout.

HIIT the treadmill! HIIT stands for “high intensity interval training” – where you would do rounds of sprint followed by a rest period. For example, sprint for 1 minute and jog for 2 minutes. That’s one round. Repeat for a total of 4 rounds. You can apply the principles of HIIT using bodyweight resistance exercises (eg. lunges, jumping jacks, pushups, pull-ups, etc). This is a great when you don’t have 45 minutes to spare on a treadmill. It also boosts your metabolism so that you’re burning calories AFTER your workout.

Skip the pre-workout stretch and post-workout cool down. Pre-workout stretch helps, but studies have shown that it doesn’t really add much to your workout. Consider the walk to the car your post-workout cool down.

This is just a few of the tactics I use when I’m short on time. The trick, though, is to make sure your intensity makes up for the lack of time spent in the gym. You should be sweating like crazy, breathing hard and really feeling your heart pump after each exercise. It’s grueling, but this will jack up your metabolism and keep you body burning calories AFTER the workout and you can enjoy the next playoff game guilt free!

How Do Fat Loss Pills Work?

2011-04-17T21:49:00.000-07:00

Dietary supplements that target fat or weight loss is a very competitive and die-hard market. Some products promise amazing results of weight loss in as little as a few days, while others promote a more balanced approach (eg. weight loss with a diet and exercise plan) . But how exactly do fat loss pills work? Let’s take a look

When it comes to the weight loss category of dietary supplements, the competition is fierce and strategies aggressive. Companies differentiate themselves by focusing on brand and design, while others take a quality and brand reputation approach. Then you have the other group that depend solely on heavy marketing, spam, and rely on falsified testimonials.

You can tell right away which supplements fall into that last group. These products take the form of making ridiculous promises of losing 5lb or more per week simply by taking their product and showing fairly dramatic before/after pictures. The ingredients are made up of a proprietary blend which is no more than a sprinkle of “hot” ingredients that has garnered the latest buzz in the media. Usually the packaging is flashy and glossy too.

How weight loss supplements are meant to be used:

But there are weight loss supplements that actually work! The ones that do work are meant to be used along side an effective weight loss plan that consists of a healthy diet and exercise routine. Weight loss supplements should be used temporarily as well and are not meant for long term use. They should only be used with the mindset to help you get through that initial weight loss hump but once you’ve reached your target weight, your regular exercise and healthy eating routine should maintain your current weight.

So how do weight loss supplements work?

• Create feeling of fullness – some supplements are high in fiber that are specially designed to expand in the stomach to create a feeling of fullness BEFORE your meal so that don’t end up eating too much at the dinner table. Taking these supplements after your meal really won’t help you much. If anything, may expand your stomach more and making you more hungry at the next meal time.

• Increase metabolism – these supplements usually have caffeine-containing ingredients that get your heart rate going. You’ll feel a kick of energy and your body temperature would increase slightly. By increasing your metabolism, your body will break down sugars and fats to keep your body running at its elevated state. Side effects, however, can include jitters, heart palpitations and crashing effect after the caffeine wears off.

• Curb hunger – caffeine also helps eliminate the feeling of hunger. When you’re not hungry, you won’t eat. A problem with this, is that you run the risk of not providing your body with the proper amount of nutrients (eg. carbs, fats, protein) and you may end up starving your body without knowing it. Your body will eventually come off the caffeine hungrier than ever which may make you eat like crazy, which won’t help with your fat loss plan.

• Change body composition – some products contain ingredients that have shown to change your body fat composition, literally decreasing the amount of body fat you have. Sounds good, doesn’t it? While it may be true, the drop is typically noticed only in obese populations, and even then, is fairly unnoticeable at that weight. If you’re not grossly obese, these supplements may not really give you any visible benefit while creating a nice dent in your bank account.

As you can see there are products out there that actually do help with weight loss, but, on the other hand, you can see that some factors have to be considered before you take them.

Typically, these products are most effective when you use them correctly and understand how they work. For example, maybe you know you have a potluck party to attend to, so taking a fibre supplement may be a good way to go. Or, perhaps, because your body is adjusting to the new eating plan, that you’re feeling weaker/sluggish on the Wednesday, so perhaps a green tea supplement may be worth looking into.

Bottom Line: there is no magic bullet to weight loss. Ultimately, weight loss comes down to calories in vs. calories used. There are supplements out there that can help with this, especially at times when you hit a plateau in your weight loss progress or feel that you need an extra hand on certain days, but ultimately a healthy diet and exercise routine is most important.

Product Review: ActiveWrap Knee & Leg Wrap

2011-04-03T15:02:00.000-07:00

I've gone through the first week of the second phase of my training plan and it's leaving my body stiff and achy! Luckily, it's also the week where I got well acquainted with a product from ActiveWrap specifically designed to help soothe my aching muscles. This week we take an in depth review of ActiveWrap Knee & Leg Wrap. Read on!

The first week of any new training plan is always the toughest - it's when you're learning proper form, figuring out what amount of resistance to use, fiddling around with new equipment and, all the while, performing exercises that your muscles are just not used to using. It is exactly this that had me waking up the next morning feeling the aches in my upper back, abs and thighs. Wow. thanks, Mica! ;)

Relief is, luckily, an arms reach away as ActiveWrap sent me a product specifically designed to soothe achy and sore muscles (it can also be used to relieve swelling as well). ActiveWrap has a line up of various products that target specific parts of the body: mid back/lumbar, foot/ankle/achilles, elbow, knee and shoulder. I had a chance to use the knee wrap for this review.

I don't want to go into too much product detail as you can find all the information on the ActiveWrap website - very briefly: ActiveWrap prides itself as a high quality, professional grade thermal compression wrap manufacturer and has served as the official therapy wrap of USA Gymnatics of 2003-2004.

All I can say is that I have high expectations for this product.

Unboxing:

The entire package comes with the sturdy plush knee wrap, 2 ActiveWrap heat/ice packs, and one carry pouch,

Design/Quality:

The first thing I noticed was how soft and sturdy the support wrap was, not to mention the overall build quality of this thing! The stitching is very well done, the velcro pieces are thick and well reinforced and the materials used is soft to the touch.

There are two pouches that hold the ice/heat packs and these can be detached and repositioned to best target the aches or swelling areas. The pouches, although very functional, seem to be a bit "flimsy" than I would have liked. Perhaps this serves to let the heat/cold pass through with ease.

Overall, this product is very well made and I can see that ActiveWrap makes every effort to target the athletic market seriously.

Putting It To Use:

There are two major factors that make this product effective: the hot/cold pack and the support wrap architecture.

1. The hot/cold pack are ones specifically developed for ActiveWrap. The material used is very interesting in that it takes seconds to heat up and, when frozen, never freeze solid. Even when stored in the freezer over night, the pack stays pliable which is great when you want it to contour the crevices of your joints. Heating is a cinch - either pop it directly in the microwave for a 30 seconds (depending on your microwave wattage) or submerge it in water and heat that up for 2 minutes (the method I prefer).

Once hot/cold, you would slip the packs into the pouch of the support wrap.

2. The knee support wrap itself allows you to really apply the wrap on tightly. The straps that hold the wrap is stretchable and held in place by velcro. The velcro can attach along the length of the entire wrap itself, so chances are good that it'll fit your leg. (The knee wrap actually comes in two sized: small/medium and large/x-large).

Although the support wrap fits quite snug, you can't really walk around too freely without it falling off or shifting in place. Quite understandable, but something i did notice. I suppose, typically you wouldn't want to be moving much anyway as you're applying the support wrap.

Does It Work?

Yes, it does! Unfortunately, it wasn't my knee that was sore during this whole week but my upper back, abs, hamstrings and thighs. The ActiveWrap knee wrap was great for my legs. The hot packs felt great but I did find that the heat dissipated sooner than I would have liked. You don't need the heat for too long, but i did find myself having to re-heat after a while. This is probably just my body acclimatizing to the heat very quickly.

For the upper back, I just ended up applying the hot packs directly on my upper back. It did the trick.

After apply the hot packs, I would also give my muscles a good stretch and then follow that up with another heating session. I think I indulged more than I had to with the hot packs, but hey, why not?

Fortunately, i never had any major injury or swelling during the week but I had to try the cold pack. I tossed the packs into the freezer and tried them out. Sure enough, the cold sensation works through the support wrap without a problem. I love how it's not frozen solid!

Bottom Line:

ActiveWrap provides a very professional line of thermal compression wraps. With its steady construction, ease of use and innovative ice cold packs - this product is great. To some this may be a bit more expensive than your typical bandage with ice bag (the knee wrap is about $52 USD), but for those that train regularly either competitively or for pleasure, this may be just the relief your body is aching for.

For more information, be sure to check out ActiveWrap's website.

Full Disclosure: ActiveWrap provided me with the knee support wrap. Otherwise, I was not compensated for this review.