Saturday, 29 August 2009

Unique Protein Shake Recipes For Bodybuilder Diets

Unique Protein Shake Recipes For Bodybuilder Diets

by Marget M. Pena

Drinking whey protein shakes aids in the development of your body by giving you adequate amount of protein. With just one drink, you can complete your whole protein requirement for the day. The problem is that drinking the same ready-made protein shake is tiring. The solution to this is to concoct your own protein shake.

Protein powders can be mixed with dozens of ingredients and flavorings to create rich smoothies and shakes that not only taste great, but provide ample nutrition. David Heber and Susan Bowerman, authors of the book "The L.A. Shape Diet" point out that it's best to adjust shake recipes to suit your protein needs; most people need to consume a shake mix that provides at least 9 grams of protein before adding other proteins such as soy milk or skim milk. If you're getting tired of your usual nutrition program, here are a few delicious protein shake recipes to try:

Banana Protein Smoothie: You'll need 1 medium banana, 1 cup of soya milk, 1 teaspoon of golden syrup, 3 to 4 ice cubes, 2 tablespoons of vanilla yogurt and of course, 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder. Place all ingredients in a blender and process until smooth. This drink can be consumed as a meal replacement.

Strawberry-Nut Protein Shake: The ingredients for this are 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder, 1 cup low fat strawberry yogurt, 1/4 cup sliced strawberries and 5 macadamia and pine nuts. Shred the nuts and place all ingredients in a blender.

Chocolate Coffee Shake: This recipe requires 2 scoops of chocolate powder, 1 cup soy milk, 1 cup water, 5-6 ice cubes and 1 spoon of instant coffee. This recipe tastes like frozen frappuccinos available in coffee shops. You can drink this as a substitute for your coffee.

Wild Berry Smoothie: You'll need two scoops of vanilla powder, 1 cup of soy milk and one and a half cup each of three wild berries: raspberries, strawberries and blueberries. Place all ingredients in a blender and drop in some ice cubes for a cold drink.

Peanut Butter Shake: Prepare 2 scoops of vanilla protein, 1/2 cup each of raspberries strawberries, and blueberries and 1 cup of soy milk and three to five ice cubes. Place all ingredients in a blender and mix until smooth. This recipe is great for desserts or as a stand-alone snack.

Cinnamon-Oatmeal Shake: The ingredients for this recipe are 1 cup dry oatmeal, 3 dashes of cinnamon, 2 scoops of vanilla protein, 2 tablespoon of maple syrup, 1 tablespoon chopped almonds and 1 cup of soy milk. This shake is an excellent source of protein, carbohydrates and healthy fats.

Pina Colada Shake: Prepare 2 scoops of vanilla powder, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1/4 teaspoon of coconut extract and 1/2 cup of pineapple juice. This recipe needs 1/4 teaspoon of rum as well. Blend all ingredients and add 5 to 6 ice cubes for a thicker and colder drink.

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Friday, 28 August 2009

How to Build Pecs

How to Build Pecs

by Frank Hommes

If you're a beginner to weight lifting, you may feel like you're not doing something right when you're trying to learn how to build your pecs. You may see yourself doing all of the same exercises you see other people doing, but you're still having trouble getting your pecs built up. What you missing, is the understanding that's not just about the exercise itself, there's other things involved.

1. The first tip is to eat the correct types of food, because this is just as vital as doing the proper exercises. The reason for this, is that muscle can't be built without certain types of nutrients. Muscle is composed of protein and in order to build up the muscle properly, you should be eating food with a lot of protein. Eating foods rich in carbohydrates can also help, because they give the body extra energy during the workout.

Overall health is a big part of how to build pecs so having a well balanced diet will be useful. Along with eating a lot of protein a person should be eating many fruits and vegetables. The body will be able to focus on building new muscle as long as it is healthy.

2. The second secret is stretching. A person trying to build their pecs should do stretches that get the upper chest ready to do some hard work. One can do something as simple as mimicking the motion of a push-up while standing can stretch out the pectoral muscles.

People should avoid overworking their pecs for the same reason they should stretch. Too much activity on the pectoral muscles can strain the muscles causing them damage as opposed to making them stronger. It could also lead to overly pronounced pecs which some people call "man boobs."

3. The third tip is to perform the proper types of exercises if want to build up your pecs. An exercise such as push-up, can properly work the pecs and can be done right at your home. Also, if you have access to a weight lifting bench you can do bench presses in addition.

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Wednesday, 26 August 2009

Five Known Fat Loss Mistakes People Continue To Do

Five Known Fat Loss Mistakes People Continue To Do

by Tomuse Gospuse

Straight to the point, there are up to five different fat loss mess ups that I've seen men and women do everyday. Fix these mistakes now and you will lose fat.

1. No support whatsoever

Trying to lose fat without any social support from your friends, family, trainer, etc. is not the way to go. Research has proved that with social support you will most likely be successful in burning fat. Concentrate on two people out of your social support that has be successful as well.

2. Not using a program

If you walk into the gym wondering what you are going to do first today then you should just leave because your wasting your time. Make a plan, understand what you got to do. Stay with it and complete it. Now you wont be walking around the gym figuring out where to start.

3. Keeping the same workout after 4 weeks

The longest you should go with one program is 4 weeks. If you have stayed with a program more than 4 weeks and if it hasn't worked yet, it isn't going to magically start now. Change it up more frequently. You will receive more results and have a lot more fun.

4. Not taking it into consideration that nutrition is a big part to losing fat as well

Diet and nutrition is a big part in losing fat. Eating right is an important factor for fat loss. You can't just go to the gym bust it out training like an animal and still eat junk food. That way you won't see the fat loss your looking for. Your diet is as important as your training. Consume natural whole foods, 6 meals a day (medium sized). Take in plenty of protein, vegetables and fiber. Eat fats that is good for you, stay away from trans fat. Also drink a lot of water. It is simple and yet effective.

5. Not knowing their limit to exercising

I always get asked by people if adding more lifting and cardio to their workout is good, no it isn't. People get this crazy idea that if they add more cardio and lifting to their training it would be even better for them. Doing so is not advised.

Your body can breakdown to fast from too much exercise, especially when you are dieting. Over training and low calories do not go together. This type of combo will not make your engine run at optimum performance.

Look towards quality in your workout not quantity. For lots of reasons stick to high quality training and high quality nutrition. All that matters is the results that you see not aching muscles or exhaustion after each exercise. It is all about quality exercising and a quality diet for a healthier better looking body.

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Save Money By Muscle Building at Home

Save Money By Muscle Building at Home

by Mark Wilson

Is driving to the gym to time consuming? You can produce great results from the convenience of your home working out under the right advice. You can ensure success if the right steps are taken, in a home work out as opposed to a gym membership.

Muscle building at home can and should be easy as long as you have motivation and dedication, and put in the hard work needed for the results youre looking for.

You need to start eating healthy before beginning to work out, contrary to popular belief that exercise is the first step. You can focus on finding the right exercises after you have good diet plan and are eating only the correct healthy foods.

Buy the right equipment for your home before you start working out. The right weights, and the equipment that comes with them, makes muscle building at home much safer and more effective. If you dont have the right amount of weights for the exercises you want to perform, the risk of injury increase.

As with most health related issues, consult your physician before starting a home work out program. You can learn what is needed to shed excess body fat and the proper use of the weights in your first visit with your physician. Your physician will be able to let you know what lifts to you should be avoiding as well as diagnosing any potential health conditions that would inhibit in your muscle building program.

Remember the pros and cons of weight machines and free weights when it comes time to buy equipment. Weight machines take up a considerable amount of space and limit movement, unlike free weights. When considering which weights to buy, always consider quality and durability.

Envision the weights in the space you have allotted to work out in. Do you have storage available when the weights are not in use? Make a more economical choice if space is not sufficient for a large set of weights or machines. Free weights are able to be purchased in weight combinations for numerous exercises and generally garner less space than machines. The ease and efficiency of muscle building from home will come to fruition by buying the proper weights.

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Tuesday, 25 August 2009

What Body Builders Understand About Muscle

What Body Builders Understand About Muscle

by Dr. Dorothy Nevelestein

Whey protein isolate and whey protein powder concentrate is an examination very frequently sought. This question without a doubt is one that has crossed the minds of a lot of hopeful weight lifters when glancing at the shelves of an assortment of kinds of whey protein powder on hand in the health food supermarket.

Which whey protein is the one for you; concentrate or isolate?

The most imperative differentiation amid the two is that Isolate is processed at deeper levels so that the fat and lactose are removed. This more involved system provides a higher quality of protein. The fact is that over 90% of whey protein powder isolate is protein calculated by weight.

This is precious as smaller levels of fat are an advantage for the standard daily diet of bodybuilders and when whey is utilized for the principle of losing mass.

Decreased lactose levels are also a positive for individuals who are lactose intolerant and can also diminish the chance of that bloated feeling that can go along with some protein supplements. There are some side effects to using whey protein isolate nonetheless.

Since it is high in protein ratio, isolate powder requires you to pay a higher retail price. The filtering procedure isolate goes through is significantly more intensive to remove the components that are known as alpha lactoglobulins and lactoferrins which is significant immune boosters.

Whey concentrate has lower protein availability that can range from anywhere between 29% and up to 89% in some instances. Concentrate is elevated in levels of lactose and anyone in distress with lactose intolerance needs to be very wary.

Concentrate does have an advantage because it cost less so this can be a better alternative depending on what your financial plan is. Whey concentrate protein powder also is small in levels of cholesterol, which is another positive to consider for your diet.

On the whole, dietary and medical circumstances call for action to be taken into consideration when choosing the type of whey protein powder you choose.

Isolate may have the minor edge in terms of biological value (BV) and will provide you with more worth for the money if you are requiring a higher dosage per serving of protein.

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Sunday, 23 August 2009

Solid Protein is Good for Muscle Gain

Solid Protein is Good for Muscle Gain

by Dr. Dorothy Nevelestein

Out of the many protein sources out there, whey protein is the ultimate. It comes from milk. During the process of turning milk into cheese, whey protein is separated out. Protein can be found in a variety of foods -mainly meats, such as fish, beef, and chicken.

Dairy products as well as eggs, cottage cheese, soy and vegetable protein also contain good amounts of protein. Nevertheless, none of these sources compares in quality or ease of use like whey protein. Whey protein has the highest value in providing branched-chain amino acids, which result in building and retaining muscle tissue.

Research has shown that ingesting protein powder every day can boost immune system health, facilitate the healing of wounds after surgery or injury, and promote healthy skin - in addition to fostering muscle strength and development.

A human body needs daily protein because that is what muscles and tissues are built from, and there is no place where the body can store extra protein. The need for adequate protein in the human body is second only to the need for water.

Luckily, it has been found that most varied diets - including vegan get plenty of protein through daily intake of various food combinations. However, some people like to supplement their protein intake, or occasionally substitute a fast, easy protein shake for a meal.

Whey protein also plays a role as an antioxidant and helps support a health immune system. Most importantly, consistent whey protein intake coupled with exercise will result in consistent muscle building.

Protein powders can also be a combination of one or more ingredients.

These concentrated sources of protein are processed into the powdered form, to be reconstituted into liquid form as a protein shake, or mixed with fruit juice or milk. Additionally, protein powders can be sprinkled on cereal, stirred into soups or stews, and cooked into baked goods.

Protein powder is designed to be taken everyday as a dietary supplement. Even if you aren't a bodybuilder, starting your day with a protein powder shake can provide nutritional benefits. While many nutritionists advise consuming protein throughout the day, a healthy boost of protein first thing in the morning can stabilize your blood sugar levels throughout the rest of the day.

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