Posts Tagged ‘lose weight’

What to look for when choosing a Personal Trainer

Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010

Choosing a Personal Trainer might seem like a simple process, but make the wrong decision and you could end up spending a fortune in order to flatten that stomach, lose weight & improve your physique and the only size you drop is that of your bank balance.

Here are some tips to help you find the ideal Personal Trainer to help you achieve your specific goals:

Do you need a Personal Trainer? – The simple answer is Yes.

No matter who you are, you can always improve. Whether it be your health, your physique, your stamina or your sporting ability, you can always be better. Working with the right Personal Trainer will always achieve better results than working on your own (scientifically proven). Even the world’s top athletes work with coaches. If you have something you wish to achieve, whether it be a high level sports dream or if you simply want to flatten that stomach, working with a professional will always be of benefit in getting you there.

What do you want from your Personal Trainer? – This is perhaps the most important question. Yet it is often the least explored. Most people will start by asking about fees. Whilst money is an important factor, as everyone has their own budget, there is no point in getting the wrong service for the right price. If you are hiring a Personal Trainer or Coach to work with, then you are most certainly looking for a result of some kind. Therefore you should be looking for the best coach that you can within your budget.

The national average fee for Personal Training in the UK is around £55 per session (I’ll come to the issues with that shortly) so if you find a Personal Trainer charging £20-£25 per session, you could see that as a bargin. After all a Personal Trainer is a Personal Trainer right? But what kind of a service are you likely to receive from such a trainer? Either you will be looking at someone who will be training you outdoors with little to no equipment which, despite what they will tell you, is far from optimal for 99% of the population as far as results are concerned (plus, if you are based in the UK or anywhere with a similar climate, it can be dangerous to train outdoors in the winter months – and it doesn’t make you hard to train that way, it’s just plain stupid!). Alternatively they are desperate for clients and there is probably a reason for that – they are not good enough to survive on reputation alone.

The bottom line is, to a large extent, you get what you pay for and someone charging at the bottom end of the scale will either be racking up clients back to back (at 9 or 10 per day) to cover their costs and still making a living or they are just not good enough to warrant a higher rate. Either way, your results will suffer.

So your biggest question should always be, “what do I want to achieve?” and then find the best person to help you do that. One session, one week or even just one chat with the right person will be far more beneficial than any amount of sessions with someone who is throwing generic programmes at you.

So how much should you pay for Personal Training? – It may not seem so right now, but this is the least important question. The real issue is – how much are the results worth to you? What are you willing to pay to achieve them? And I don’t mean cash here.

To obtain something new there is always a price. In this case the price is commitment. I don’t think I’ve ever met someone who can’t afford to get the help they need. Though almost everyone would tell you they can’t. But if you really, genuinely want to make a change then what are you willing to sacrifice? The Friday or Saturday nights out? Your satellite TV subscription? This year’s holiday? Your crisps, biscuits, chocolates, ready meals? The weekly Domino’s Pizza order? The monthly clothes shopping spree? This list could go on but the fact is, if you really look at the money you waste each month on things that are destroying your health and figure, you probably have more money than you think.

Not only that, but, as much as you might have the motivation at the start of the process, it is all too easy to lose the momentum when the going gets tough, when work comes calling, when ‘everyone’ is going out and you have a gym session planned. If the investment was minimal, it wouldn’t mean much to miss ‘just this once’. (Most commercial gyms rely on such apathy). However, if the investment is tough on you, there is no way you will just throw it away for the sake of a moment of weakness.

Work out in advance what you can GENUINELY afford to pay, find the best person for your purposes and then work out the best way to put those things together.

Who is the right Personal Trainer for you? – Only you are going to know the answer to that and the answer is almost never ‘the first link you click on in Google’. You are going to be working with this person for a while and you will be spending a lot of time with them, so you MUST find out if you feel comfortable with them.

The first port of call is usually the web site. This can give you a strong clue. If someone can’t be bothered spending the time to create a presentable website (their image to the world) then how much of an effort do you think they put into your results? A fancy, slick website proves nothing, but a poor one can tell you everything. Also, is that website just a page asking you to contact them or is it a source of information? If the site is little more than a digital business card, then unless that person is just starting out, there is no way to know if you can feel confident with this person. Do they have any idea what they are talking about? Are the passionate about their profession? Or do they simply want you to call them and hand over your hard earned cash?

Next thing to check is, do they offer a free consultation? If not, move on! If someone is not confident enough in themselves to give up an hour or so of their time to chat to you in case you decide not to sign up with them, then they are not good enough, it’s as simple as that. Personal Training should be a passion not a job and the industry is here to help people who are passionate about making a change.

Once you get to the consultation stage, make sure you use it to ensure you are talking to the right person for your needs. You should be in a position, at the end of the conversation, to definitively say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to continuing. If it’s a no, that is entirely your prerogative. This is a big investment and you want a return on it, so you are fully entitled to walk away if this doesn’t feel like the right person for you and you shouldn’t be embarrassed to do so. On the flip side, you should be armed with sufficient queries to know at the end of the consultation if you can go ahead.

If you end the conversation with ‘I’ll think about it’ or ‘I’ll have to talk to my partner’ etc. Then you haven’t come prepared. You are procrastinating. And that is not the way to make a decision to change. Your mind will always create doubt and fear because change is unknown and the unknown could be dangerous. But if you go with the right queries and get the answers you are looking for, plus you feel comfortable with the person you are talking to, there is no reason you should feel sceptical and you should be ready to push on.

What do you ask at the consultation? – Treat it like an interview. Make sure you know what you are getting for your investment. You are investing your time and money in the hope of getting a result, what is this person going to invest in return? This shouldn’t be about time in the gym. In fact, the time in the gym, whilst important, is only one of many elements important to your success. Remember there are 168hrs in a week, unless you intend to spend most of that at the gym then you need to know that you are using the rest of your time wisely. What kind of nutritional advice will you get? Will you receive a diet analysis? Will you get meal plans tailored to your needs? Will you have contact out-with the gym to check if you are doing the right thing or for coaching if you feel you are going off the rails?

How will your progress be tracked? The only way to track body composition improvements is by measuring body fat. This should be done through the use of skinfold callipers (assuming MRI or underwater weighing is out of the question, which it most probably is) NOT – I repeat NOT through the use of an electronic body fat tester or scales. These are far from accurate and will fluctuate from hour to hour depending on your hydration levels. I’ve seen these things measure around 30% one day and the next day show 20% for the same person. That is useless when tracking progress.

How often will this be tracked. Ideally you are looking for weekly feedback (bi weekly at the most). If you are getting feedback once every 3 months (or less) that is potentially 3 months of doing the wrong thing and therefore 3 months of your time and money wasted.

Remember, weight means nothing. You can lose weight and add fat and you can gain weight and lose fat. You can weigh the same and look worse. The only way to check progress correctly is by measuring your body fat.

How will your workouts be created? Too many PTs treat every client like the next on the conveyor belt. If you are female, short and looking to lose 10lbs and tone up for your holidays, you should not be doing the same workout as a 6ft male who is 80lbs over weight and trying to stay out of hospital. These are extreme examples, but if you find you are turning up and doing the same workout as the person that just left, I’d be questioning the effort and thought that is being applied to your training.

Workouts should be generated to your specific needs. It is a common agreement in the industry that the squat is a highly effective exercise. From that, though, it is common to see PTs making every client that comes through the doors perform this complex movement, regardless of their ability to perform it. Postural issues and general mobility are critical in selecting exercises. It is all very well programming an exercise because it is ‘good’, but if it cannot be performed with good technique, you are heading towards an appointment with a chiropractor or a surgeon in the near future.

What is your guarantee? Remember that big important question of “what do you want from a personal trainer?” Well if you are going to hire someone on this basis, then that ‘something’ should be delivered. If the something you are looking for is time, then go and hire the cheapest person you can find and forget about results. Better yet, just go and find some friends. If you want a result, however, why should you pay for time alone? If you paid someone to decorate your house would you expect them to charge you by the hour or for doing the job? Why should it be different for a Personal Trainer? Remember, the time you spend in the gym with them means nothing if you don’t get a result, so don’t get hung up on 1hr sessions etc.

I have no idea where this notion that a session should last an hour (or 45mins in some cases) came from. I can only assume it is because diaries are generally divided into 15min increments. However, if a PT has every client working out for exactly an hour, then at least half of those people are not getting the correct workout. Some people will respond better to shorter workouts, others longer workouts. If you are someone who responds better to short sessions (say 35mins) would you really want to train for an extra 25mins just because that’s what other trainers do? Similarly, if you need your session to be longer (say 75mins) to get the best out of it, is it ok to cut it off at 1hr?

Let me put it another way, if you had the choice of 2 dentists to do a root canal for you. One could do the job in 3mins and the other would keep you there drilling away for an hour and a half and they both charged the same, would you book the 2nd one because you were getting better value for money? If so, the word masochist springs to mind.

The bottom line is, you are paying for a result and so long as you are following the instruction you are given, you should get that result. If not, what are you paying for? If the trainer is not willing to guarantee a full refund if you do not get into that dress, add that muscle or flatten that stomach under those conditions, then they have no confidence in their ability to achieve them, so why should you?

It’s not a magic wand – Remember, no matter how good a Personal Trainer or Coach is, they can only give you the tools, you still have to commit to them. You have to have faith in what you are being asked to do at all times. If you don’t, then you should be discussing this with them to get clarification and confidence. If you don’t trust them fully, you are working with the wrong person. If you seek clarification and you don’t get it, you are with the wrong person. But it is up to you to make sure you have all the information you are looking for and then to follow it. If you skip sessions, don’t follow nutritional or lifestyle advice, lie about your diet or don’t give your full effort when training, then there is little anyone can do. A good coach will encourage you and give you confidence if you need it, but you still have to commit to the result.

If you have a target in mind, follow these guidelines and commit to the right trainer, you will be rewarded with a more positive self image, a feeling of well being as well as a feeling of elation as everyone around you starts to compliment you on how much better you look. The investment is worth it and who better to invest in than yourself? Just make sure you invest wisely.

A few final pointers:

How a Personal Trainer looks – Never judge a book by its cover. Some of the best coaches in the world don’t live up to the physiques of the athletes they train. Having said that, if they don’t look like they train and aren’t willing to practice what they preach, then they are not ones to be giving out advice. That doesn’t mean if they are overweight, walk away. Again, question them. Ask why they are where they are. You might find that the 150lb guy you are talking to was 250lbs less than a year ago and is well into the journey you are looking to take. Maybe he’s had a fatal injury that has stopped him training for a year, but has been ultra toned in the past. You want someone who knows how to get YOU there. So in an industry built on physiques, you should be able to judge a coach or trainer on theirs, but only once you have all the facts.

Qualifications aren’t everything – Are the people that do the best at University the best at their jobs? Sometimes, but not always. As an example, Norman Foster (the renowned, world famous Architect) got a 3rd at University. Does that make him bad at his job? I think his ‘results’ would say otherwise. The fitness industry is no exception. There are people out there who have no qualifications what so ever, and they could be the best coach for you. Qualifications are a good sign of basic competence. It means that person knows how to train you safely and with a certain amount of knowledge and understanding. But, as with getting your driver’s licence, after you have the certificate, how you act is in your hands. It is more important that the trainer is passionate about their industry and is continually seeking to improve their service, knowledge and techniques. In the end, the results do the talking.

Don’t trust everything you read – When you are searching for a PT you may be impressed by the testimonials. I couldn’t believe this myself at first, but a huge number of those client testimonials are complete works of fiction. Thankfully that is not always the case, but if that is what you are basing your assessment on and all you have to go on is the trainers self generated website or flyer, you may want to investigate further. Testimonials are great to get a feel of the feedback a Personal Trainer is receiving (and it’s better to see that at least they have some than none at all) but if the feeling you get is that they were all written by the same person, you may want to proceed with caution.

Watch out for bean counters – If you do sign up with a trainer, check that you are getting helpful feedback during your sessions. There are many trainers who seem to think that their job is to count the reps for you. If your motivation or feedback sounds anything along the lines of “ONE, TWO, that’s good, THREE, FOUR, lovely, keep going, FIVE, SIX…” You may want to re-assess what you are paying them for. By all means they should push you to do that ‘extra rep’ or encourage you when you get it right, but if you are being told to ‘keep going’ all the time, then either they are not correcting your form, they don’t realize your form needs correcting or you are so good you don’t need them to be there anyway (unless you have trouble counting yourself of course).

Just because it’s written down, doesn’t mean you have to do it. – It is a commonly misconception that every time you enter the gym you should be doing more than you did last time. An extra rep, heavier weights etc. And yes progress is all part of the process. But human development isn’t linear and most people do have a life outside the gym. So if you do 10 reps one day and your trainer forces you to perform 12 reps the next time you do that exercise (despite the fact you are struggling at rep 6) then they are not paying attention and are going to cause you to injure yourself at some point. There has to be accountancy for how you feel that day. Maybe you didn’t sleep too well, perhaps you had a stressful day at work or maybe you didn’t get the ideal nutritional input. Whatever the reason, positive development comes when you train your body to the highest level you can fully recover from. If you push beyond that level, you will either strain a muscle or you will not recover and either regress in your progress, or worse, get sick or even injured. You train to the maximum level you are at that day and if your trainer is pushing you beyond that, they are not doing the job you seek from them. Personal Trainers need to be adaptable and not religiously stick to their notes. Sometimes ‘winging it’ is the best way forward.

Keep these points in mind and hopefully they will help you get the most out of your investment with a Personal Trainer.

Hopefully they are of use. If you have any comments you wish to make or any pieces of advice you’d like to add, post them below. I’d be happy to hear them.

In the meantime, I wish you luck in finding that perfect Personal Trainer for your needs and I guarantee, if you find the right person you will tone those thighs, flatten that stomach, find that six pack, build those biceps, or whatever goal you have set your heart on, in no time.

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So what is a ‘Fat Burning Zone’?

Thursday, September 17th, 2009

I was recently presented with a question on the ‘Fat Burning Zone’ as part of a forum discussion and my response ended up being an article in itself, so I thought I’d post it here in case someone else finds it useful.

The tone is a little rambling and it may not be all that structured, but I was just letting go, because it’s one of those ‘trueisms’ that just keep appearing again and again and one I thought there was more common knowledge about these days.

The original post read:

“I have been fat burning for 2 months now and seem to be wondering sometimes if I am wasting alot of time for nothing. I have lost about 1 st in this time from 18.7 down to 17.7stone, and need to get to 15 stone. I was in a bad accident 1 yr ago and when I came out of hospital with my shoulder and leg in casts I continued on my normal diet of pasta ect and not taking into account the amount of cal’s I am not using compared to what I did before my accident and this made me put on at least 2 1/2 stone over the year. I knew I shouldnt be eating as much but it was so hard not to due to the bordem .

The problem I have is 2 of my friends have gave me conflicting info and both of them are fitness instructors. I am 28 and 1 of my friends says I should be doing 60% of my max H/R for 1 hr a day which is about 115-116 beats per min…… well i now do 1hr 45 a day at this rate and I do feel the difference….. AND…

My other friend says i should be working at around 135-140 for 1hr for the best fat burning

 

I know how the fat burn process works ect, like you only burn sugar for the 1st 20 mins then u burn fat but I dont know what H/R’s to stick to”

My Response read:

“I’m going to try to answer this, but talk of a ‘Fat Burning Zone’ really drives me crazy because it adds confusion where there should be none (as you have clearly found out).

First of all, there is no magical heart rate where you suddenly start burning fat. You are always burning fat and carbohydrates (or glycogen) in every activity. What shifts is the balance between the two (or the focus). The slower and more laid back the pace, the more your body uses fat as its primary fuel source. As the intensity of your activity increases your energy source switches from Aerobic to Anaerobic and the fuel source becomes primarily carbohydrates (I’ll stick with that term as it is the macronutrient you consume and so will recognize it more freely – I don’t want to over confuse with the actual internal process).

However, even when carbs become the primary fuel source, your body will still be burning fat, just a much higher percentage of carbs.

The so called ‘fat burning zone’ is the zone that you work at where you are burning the most calories before reaching the point where this change in emphasis occurs (and it’s usually – though not always – around 60-70% of your Max HR).

There are several problems with that though:

1) The max HR calculation of 220-age is a huge generalization. Even the person who came up with it has since been quoted as saying it was just a theory and he didn’t expect people to take it so literally. That calculation can be vastly off. First off, women can usually get the heart rate higher than men during exercise (if at the same level of fitness).

Also, someone who is physically fit can raise their heart rate much higher during exercise (safely) than someone who is new to physical fitness. Therefore, if you are going to aim for this magical zone it would probably be best to use PRE (Perceived Rate of Exertion) as your guide [on a scale of 1-10 (10 being flat out) how hard are you working?] and you would aim for around 6-7/10 which is slightly out of breath but still able to hold a conversation without the sentences getting broken up.

2) Is burning fat during exercise the best solution? – Have a think about this. Your body will react to the demands you place on it. So, for example, if you lift weights, what you are actually doing is breaking down muscle. Your body then reacts by building that muscle back stronger than before in order to cope with that demand.

If you burn fat, therefore, what does your body do?

It tries to cover that demand for the future by trying to store more fat. Now if you keep pushing for longer each time and continue to train, that may not be a problem. But you can’t increase your output indefinitely. There are only so many hours in the day. And when you stop increasing your output level your body’s improved fat storing ability will catch up with you. And if you were to stop altogether, you would probably end up putting on more fat than you had to begin with. Therefore, if fat burning is your goal (as apposed to endurance running) then wouldn’t you be better teaching your body to store the nutrients you want it to and to let it realize the one thing it can do without is fat?

As a comparison – Imagine the physiques of an Olympic 100m sprinter and compare to that of a marathon runner. Which would you prefer to achieve?

Most people go for the sprinter, because they look more ‘toned’. That is because, whilst long distance runners are ‘skinny’ they still generally have quite a high body fat content and what they have lost is actually muscle tissue. The reason is that is what makes them more efficient long distance runners. (muscle weighs more than fat, fat is easier to carry around and is an acceptable fuel source, so that’s what is sticks with).

3) Calorie Balance – When it comes down to it, the only thing that matters when burning fat is the calorie balance. If you are burning more calories than you are consuming you will lose weight (and fat) if you are consuming more than you burn you will not (and may add weight). Therefore, the more calories you burn the better. Now, if you were to go out and go for a nice gentle stroll for half an hour the percentage of fat burned over carbs would be huge. The ratio is greatly in favor of fat burning at that level. If, however, you were to go and bust a gut sprinting for half an hour you would be burning more carbs than fat.

Does that mean you are more likely to burn more fat walking than sprinting for the same period? Absolutely not! In fact, even though you are burning more carbs than fat whilst sprinting, you are still burning more fat than you would be walking, you are just burning WAY more carbs. But over all, what you are doing is burning vastly more calories and that is what will help you achieve that deficit.

My last point is going to be about weight though – you say that you have lost 1stone and NEED to get to 15stone. Why? What is so magical about 15st?

Are you competing in a boxing competition?
Are you a jockey?
Are you doing some kind of activity that has a weight restriction?

If yes, then your comment is perfectly valid. However, if it is because you were 15st in the past when you looked good, that is not a valid reason. If you stuck your arm in a tractor’s wheel and ripped it off you would probably lose the weight you wanted to, but I’m guessing that’s not the look you are going for (But then maybe I’m just out of touch with the ‘in look’ these days).

However, if you were to add a little muscle (say 5lbs) and drop another 15lbs of pure fat, I think you’d find you’d look a lot better than you wanted to. But you will only have lost 10lbs more. The thing is, weight is not the issue – the amount of fat on your body is (remember, muscle weighs more than fat). I refer you back to the 100m sprinter and the marathon runner physiques. The marathon runner will weigh much less than the sprinter, but which physique looks healthier and more ‘toned’?

So in summing this up, my suggestion is to forget about fat burning zones.

When you go to train, with whatever you are doing, do it with an intensity befitting the results you want. If you are looking to burn fat and you have 40mins available, then work at an intensity that is befitting 40mins of HARD WORK. Push yourself and don’t leave anything in the gym (or on the track). If you have 20mins work even harder to squeeze the most out of your session. If, on the other hand, your goal is to run the London marathon, then train for endurance, forget the scales and just work on your technique and progression.

If you train hard and your diet is right you will get the results. At the end of it all, results are all that matters. Find what works for YOU and do that, even if it goes entirely against what the ‘science’ says ‘should’ work.

I hope that is of some use to you.

Rant ends.”

Hopefully that clears up a few issues and maybe clarifies some of the confusion regarding the subject and will allow for a more informed choice when it comes to your training regime.

Thanks, as always, for taking the time out to read my ramblings and I truly hope you are finding them useful.

Mark

Mark Tiffney is a certified Personal Trainer, Nutritionist, Fitness Instructor & Life Coach. (REPS Registered)

If you are interested in having your diet evaluated or having a meal plan prepared for your body type, fat loss or muscle building goal or are looking for general help with your training of fitness goals, please contact Mark by emailing:

 

info@designsonyouself.com

 

Mark is also currently offering one to one Personal Training & Coaching sessions in Glasgow.
To arrange a free consultation, please call 0141 41 60 348 or email info@designsonyourself.com
(c) Dynamic Core Solutions Ltd

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How do you run?

Thursday, July 30th, 2009

It’s simple isn’t it? One foot in front of the other at a brisk pace!

But that’s not really the issue here.

Every commercial gym in the land is lined from wall to wall with treadmills. Running is the most calorie intense of the CV stations, so if you want to burn lots of calories, get on that treadmill, you are told.

But there is a road outside the gym, couldn’t you just run on that? It’s free and at least you feel like you are getting somewhere rather than putting in all that effort and not actually moving.

So why then are there so many treadmills in these gyms? And why are they always full? Even on the occasional bright summers day we are garnished with in the UK it is still common for people to be taking their summer stroll or jog on the mechanical device, under the air conditioning in front of a big screen TV.

Surely it’s just a question of taste? After all, it’s the same thing and you get the same results, so whatever feels more comfortable should be fine.

For many the advice would be that is not the case. Fitness advisors will often sing the praises of the treadmill over road running.

Road running is a heavy impact activity which can cause long term damage to your knees. Treadmills are cushioned to absorb the impact so it is a much safer option. You don’t have to deal with the weather, running in the wind & rain (despite the fact the forecast said bright sunshine for the next 3 days). The surface is even and true. And you don’t have to be mindful of your own safety from muggers after your ipod or inattentive drivers when you cross the road.

Yes, treadmills are the way to go – technology over antiquated methods are clearly the more sensible option.

Well lets look at this a little deeper.

What happens when we run?

Firstly we extend one leg out in front of us using our quadriceps (thigh muscles). We then bring the foot down and make contact with the ground. At this point the posterior (rear) muscles take over pulling and flexing the leg in order to propel us forward as the other leg extends out to repeat the sequence.

So very simplistically, when we run we are constantly performing leg extensions followed by leg curls, working the muscles on both sides of the leg while at the same time expending energy and working our heart and lungs.

However, on a treadmill this is not the case. On a treadmill, we extend our leg as we would normally, but upon connecting with the belt of the treadmill, it takes over and rather than propelling our bodies forward with the posterior leg muscles, the belt does this work for us by pulling the foot backwards. Essentially, as far as our leg muscles are concerned, we are doing half the work we usually would and we are only using the anterior (front) muscles to do it.

Since the uptake of pedometers over recent years, 10,000 steps per day has been a much hyped goal for improved health in most people. So imagine if you were to take those 10,000 steps on a treadmill. That would equate to 5,000 leg extensions on each leg with little effort being exerted by the posterior chain to balance that out. This means, firstly, less calories burned due to fewer recruited muscles and secondly, the imbalance is likely to cause stress, particularly to the knee.

This goes somewhat against the argument that treadmill running is safer than outdoor running as far as your joints are concerned.

But there’s more to consider:

According to a study by the University of East London (1998) the hip flexion angle increases significantly (particularly in women) when running on a treadmill. Hip and knee flexion angles have to increase to bring the hip through the stride causing a tightening and fatigue of the hip flexor muscles. As a result technique alters automatically to counter this weakness causing poor form. This fatigue and substitution pattern can also cause knee pain, compounding the issue of the imbalanced muscle development.

Further, if your goal is to become a better runner (perhaps you have decided to run a charity race or even a marathon) then specificity is extremely important. Simply put, when training for any specific event, your training should match your goal as closely as possible. The physical differences already mentioned (surface type & elements such as the wind) mean that training on a treadmill does not in fact mirror the road running involved of these events.

Not only that, but the simple elimination of elements such as the wind makes for a significant decrease in your workload (as much as 10%) meaning the workload is less efficient and in turn will burn fewer calories.

The uneven surfaces are also a contributing factor in this and can further be of benefit to your balance and neuromuscular conditioning, which is critical to your development as a runner as well as increasing that all important calorie burn.

Another inequality shows up in stride length. There are varying opinions on whether stride length is generally different when running on a treadmill as apposed to outside. One of the few detailed studies on this came up with some very interesting results. It would appear that, whilst experienced runners increase their stride lengths when running on a treadmill, inexperienced runners do the exact opposite and shorten their stride length when compared with running on the road.

It does make sense that experienced runners will utilize the additional energy they have available from the belt taking some of the workload, where inexperienced runners will shorten their stride as a result of apprehension due to the moving parts of the machine.

Whatever the reason though, it is clear that the techniques employed to run on a treadmill do not equate to those utilized when running on the road.

To add more fuel to the fire, researchers have also found that when the foot lands on the belt of a treadmill, the foot, ankle and shin, become temporarily part of the belt and move backwards from the centre mass of the body at the same speed (which makes sense). However, this means the shinbone is not as upright as with normal running and is forced into a greater range of motion, which in turn can lead to stress of both the bone and it’s supporting muscles (causing a tight feeling often referred to as shin splints or worse)

All the above is not to say running on a treadmill should be avoided entirely. As a means of warming up or an occasional CV workout it is as good as any other you might find in your gym. Also, for rehabilitation or corrective training, running in front of a mirror can be most useful in ensuring good foot placement and action.

Also, during the winter months in particular, the risks involved with running outside may well outweigh the benefits, in which case using a treadmill would be a good alternative to avoid losing ground on your training.

However, if you are training specifically for running I would suggest a good set of running shoes appropriate to your feet & running style (advice can be obtained from your local running shop) and head outside.

If your concern is burning calories and you would rather stay indoors, I’d suggest you would get more benefit from circuit style training where a good balance of muscle groups can be catered for. You can get your heart rate up just the same and ensure opposing muscle groups are equally worked, which will not only burn more calories in the long run, but will help prevent injury and make you functionally fitter.

Yes, impact is a concern for road running, but if you gave a good pair of running shoes, that should be limited. I would still advise varying your routine and like all things exercise related, keeping a healthy balance to your training.

In short though, treadmills have their place, but the next time you go to get on one, stop and have a look outside. There’s a whole world out there to explore, places you miss in your every day commutes. Why not get out there, get some fresh air in your lungs, some vitamin D and all the additional benefits associated with road running? At least you’ll feel like you’re getting somewhere

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The Big Fat Debate! – Butter V Margarine

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

Saturated fat is bad for you, Butter contains lots of saturated fat, therefore butter is bad for you!

Margarine on the other hand has much less saturated fat, no cholesterol and on top of that it spreads much easier.

That is certainly the information I was brought up on and seems entirely logical. Margarine manufacturers are always telling us about the low cholesterol levels, the fact that despite being much healthier they have managed to make it taste just as good and these days it’s even an excellent source of Omega 3, the latest buzzword in health food marketing.

As for butter, well it sits there in it’s foil wrapping next to the packets of Lard. You can’t spread it on your bread without tearing it to pieces and there’s nothing else in it to entice you. It’s just butter. A big lump of saturated, artery clogging fat.

So where did it all go wrong for butter?

Butter has been part of our diet for centuries. According to www.dairygoodness.ca “Butter’s origings go back about 10,000 years to the time when our ancestors first began domesticating animals. The first reference to butter in our written history was found on a 4,500 year-old limestone tablet illustrating how butter was made”, but earlier this century the number of autopsies performed in America was increased and a startling discovery was made. The number of people dying as a result of heart disease was much higher than previously thought. Scientists had also found a link between high cholesterol and heart disease and one of the biggest causes of high cholesterol was saturated fat in the diet.

As a result the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) recommended a reduction in saturated fat intake and Government guidelines were issued accordingly. This lead to the influx of the low fat, high carb diet.

The implications of these guidelines is a topic for discussion all by itself. Suffice to say, this trend to go ‘low fat’ was probably one of the biggest factors in pushing consumers away from butter and looking for lower fat alternatives. Enter margarine.

Margarine tubs flood the supermarkets with their big bold claims gracing their packaging,

“Less than 1% fat”
“Zero Cholesterol”
“Tastes like butter”

But is it that straight forward?

If you stop and take a look at the ingredients list you will note on most margarines that it is primarily made from soybean oil. Soybean oil has the lowest amount of heart friendly monounsaturated fats of all oils. It also has the highest ratio of Omega-6: Omega-3 fatty acids (a balance that has been highlighted recently as needing to be redressed drastically in most western diets).

So why is this oil used? Quite simply, it’s cheap.

Not only that, but regardless of which oil is used, the fact remains that it is an oil. Liquid at room temperature (Saturated fats are solid at room temperature) so in order to make this unsaturated fat more solid for the purpose of spreading, it is hydrogenated. A by product of this process is the formation of Trans fats. Trans fats have been found to be just as bad, if notworse than saturated fats when it comes to heart disease.

Margarine has been shown to not only increase LDLs in the body (Bad Cholesterol) but it also lowers HDLs (Good Cholesterol). It has also been shown to lower the quality of breast milk in pregnant women and has been shown to decrease immune response.

To top it off, it is also usually more expensive than butter.

But what about the healthier margarines?

Since the benefits of the low fat diet have been put into question, and the problems of Trans fats have started to become more a part of the consumer conscience, a number of ‘healthier option’ margarines have hit the shelves with claims to:

“Lower Cholesterol”
To have “No Trans Fats”
And to be “Fortified with plant sterols which appear to lower LDLs (Bad Cholesterol)”
And to be “an excellent source of Omega 3”

Let’s take a look at a couple of examples of these claims:

I Can’t Believe it’s not butter claims to have “Zero trans fats” but if you have a look at the nutritional information you will find the following:

Per 14g serving

Kcal – 90
Total Fat – 10g
Saturated Fat – 2g
Polyunsaturated Fat – 4.5g
Monounsaturated Fat – 2.5g

Cholesterol – 0mg

The FDA allows manufacturers to make the “Zero Trans Fats” claim as long as each seving of the product has less than half a gram of trans fat in a serving of 14g. This equates to up to 3.5% fat by weight. Take a look again at the fat break down – 2g + 4.5g + 2.5g = 9g of Total fat, but the total fats are listed as 10g. The reason for this is there are trans fats making up the rest, but as they are allowed to claim “Zero trans fats” on the front of the packet, they are hardly then going to list them on the rear.

Further, have a look at the ingredients list. These include:
Vegetable Oil Blend (Liquid soybean oil, [we’ve already seen why this is bad] liquid canola oil,hydrogenated soybean oil, partially hydrogenated soybean oil) plus numerous other ingredients including ‘artificial flavors’

So what about the “Great Source of Omega 3” claim?

Well, lets have a look at the content in Flora’s Omega 3 Plus margarine:

The ingredients list shows 1.8% fish oil (180mg per 10g portion) if you consider that it is generally felt that 500mg should be the recommended amount of fish oil in a daily diet and that a 4 oz portion of Wild Salmon contains over 1230mg of Omega 3, suddenly the words “Great Source” seem to lose their significance. So if that is your reason for going the margarine route, perhaps supplementing might be a better route?

But then there’s the plant sterols lowering our LDLs. That’s got to be a good thing right?

Well perhaps. It is true that plant sterols appear to lower LDLs by around 10% however there is some question as to whether they may have some negative effects on the heart independent of lowering LDLs.

The fact is these extra ingredients are just that, ingredients. What you should remember is that Margarine is processed, manufactured substance as compared to butter which is one ingredient – butter (sometimes with added salt). There is no getting around the fact that Margarine will always be a laboratory produced product and added with the ‘good’ ingredients are the colours and preservatives all used to make it look like butter. (That yellow sheen doesn’t come naturally)

One thing to keep in mind is the human body is a highly sophisticated machine that is very good at evolving to its environment. That said, evolution is a very long process and doesn’t happen over night. As stated above, butter is a natural substance that has been around for thousands of years and has become a dietary staple, margarine is less than 100 years old, a drop in the ocean of evolutionary development, and is therefore not something our bodies are accustomed to dealing with during the digestive process.

But what about the saturated fat? What about the heart disease?

As the saturated fat in butter is naturally occurring, it has generally been agreed by experts that a small percentage of saturated fats are beneficial to a healthy diet.

At the turn of the century, heart disease in the western world was rare. By 1960, it was our number one killer. Yet during the same time period, butter consumption had decreased to less than a quarter. So it is clear that, whilst it remains logical to control portion sizes, butter itself is not the be all and end all of the argument.

Not only that but butter also contains a huge list of nutrients essential for your body’s growth, repair and well being. It has been shown to increase the absorption of many other nutrients in other foods. It contains antioxidants, which can help to offset free radical damage to cells. It is a source of Vitamin D, Calcium & Selenium. It also contains conjugated linoleic acid which is thought to help maintain lean body mass, prevent weight gain and may reduce the risk of certain types of cancer.

So it’s not the big bad monster it has often been though of and in fact has a lot going for it.

(For a fuller list of the nutrients contained in butter check out http://www.westonaprice.org/knowyourfats/skinny.html#butter)

I would, however, suggest that you stick to Organic and preferably Raw butter as the non-organic alternative is highly susceptible to persistent organic pollutants, a class of toxic chemicals that are attracted to fatty tissues in substances like milk. They are hereditary and so passed from mother to calf and originate from the eating of contaminated feed. According to Horizon Organic’s Marketing Director Gwen Scherer, “Organic butter avoids such contamination.”

But, if you should watch your portions, how much is too much?

Well 7% Saturated fat is considered healthy even for high risk candidates, with 11% recommended the cut off for most people. So for a women consuming 2000 Kcal per day, 24g of Saturated fats would be considered acceptable. Whereas for a weight training male consuming 4500 Kcal per day, 55g would be acceptable and anything under 35g would be considered very low.

Given the fact that butter has also been shown to aid in the development of lean body mass, weight trainers and body builders would do well to air towards the upper extremes. But remember, everyone is different and what works for most may not work for you.

The purpose of this article is not to give a definitive answer, because there isn’t one. It is simply to point out the flaws in general perceptions and give you new information to help you make informed decisions that benefit you. Anything that has one ingredient is usually going to be a better choice over one that has 20+ and has been processed in a factory. However if you must go the margarine route, read the labels and the ingredients and make your choice on the facts rather than the advertising hype.

So now you are allowed butter again, the only choice is what to put it on? If your answer is white bread or even wholemeal bread, you may want to reconsider. But, that’s a topic for another day. Might I suggest using it for cooking, especially with eggs, to add flavour?

Lastly, once you have worked out your portion sizes, I’d suggest you keep an eye on this, at least for a while. For a week at least, portion out your daily amounts the night before to get a feel for how much your portion is. Then when you reach for the butter you can see how much of this you are using. Otherwise it is all to easy to get carried away.

This is something I go into more detail with my clients on when helping them create their weekly menus and I feel it is critical to get a good understanding of portion sizes early on as you will be surprised just how wrong you are when you estimate things.

For now though, rejoice in the fact that eating healthy doesn’t always mean deprivation. Have your butter and enjoy it guilt free as part of your healthy eating lifestyle. And smile if the buttercup tells you that ‘you like butter’.

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