An Interview With Bart Firch

Here at Optimized and Energized we are all about the success of students and the making sure they have the right tools at their disposal. I decided to get in touch with one student who has decided to make a life out of striving to healthy, fit, and optimized all while continuing his education. Bart Firch, a kinesiology student at California State University Sacramento, has spent many years optimizing himself through diet, fitness, and mindfulness. He is a certified personal trainer, a certified yoga instructor, and has done research on and practiced healthy eating habits for many years. I wanted to find out how Bart become so involved in his own personal health as well as helping others reach their own fitness goals.

O&E: What first got you interested in health and fitness?

Bart: Well, I fist started working as a personal trainer at California Family Fitness my junior year of high school. Around that same time I started doing more and more yoga because of the way it made me feel and the awesome results I began to see. I decided to get certified and began teaching when I got to college. After high school I stopped personal training and focused just on yoga and school. I’ve worked at a few studios in the area and even help start one up. As for eating right I quickly realized at a young age that eating right was the only way to go.

O&E: Do you follow any sort of strict diet?

Bart: I mean I like to eat as primal as I can. Eating primal or paleo is basically like eating as a caveman would. I try to cut out gluten when I can and I try to eat a lot of grass-fed meats and organic vegetables. A lot of students think it’s harder to eat like this when you’re in school full-time but once you find a few things you like and know how to make it becomes easier.

O&E: What kind of tips do you have for college students looking to get healthier while balancing busy school schedules. 

Bart: My best advice would be to start by eating right. Diet is a personal thing so I would say do some research online to figure out which diet will help you reach what ever goal you have set for yourself. After that I would say find a class to take whether its yoga or kickboxing or anything really. You can probably find a relatively inexpensive plan that fits your schedule at your schools athletic complex. classes are great because they usually only last an hour and you get to work with a group. I teach 3 yoga classes a week on campus and I get students telling me how much they love it all the time. 

 

 

The Benefits of Grass Fed Beef

Not all beef is created equal. In fact, there are many differences between the industrial beef most people consume today and beef that has been raised or finished on pastures. The most significant difference between the two is the diet in which they are fed. Typically, cows will feed on grass for the first 6 months to one year of their life. Then, they are moved to a feedlot where they are fed a mixture of corn, grains and soy along other supplements, hormones and antibiotics that fatten the cow up in a much shorter span of time. The faster the cows can gain weight, the faster the industrial beef processing plants can slaughter, package and distribute the meat.

Photo Credit: New York Times

Just like the human body wasn’t designed to consume high fructose corn syrup, cows were not designed to consume soy, corn, and grains. Cows that eat these things often live very unhealthy lives and when the added stress of being confined in a stall on an industrial feedlot is added to the equation, the actual quality of the cow’s meat can change drastically. It becomes higher in saturated fats and looses nutritional value not to mention even after the cow has been slaughtered the added hormones and antibiotics linger in the fat and tissue.

Cows raised on pastures that are fed good quality grass tend live much healthier and less stressful lives. This results in a much more nutritious cut of beef. Not only is grass fed beef lower in calories and saturated fat, it is rich in Omega 3’s and conjugated linoleic acid, or CLA’s.  A study done by the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington showed that Omega 3’s can help reduce the risk of high blood pressure and heart attacks. CLA’s can help reduce the risk for cancer. In a Finish study, women with diets high in CLA’s showed a 60 percent lower risk for breast cancer than those who didn’t consume as much CLA’s. Grass fed beef also contains 4 times as much vitamin E as grain fed industrial meat.

Here’s a great infographic I found published by http://www.mcmichaelchiro.com/

It illustrates exactly why grass fed beef is superior to grain fed!

Grass-fed Beef vs Grain-fed Beef infographic

 

The Best Twelve Minutes of Your Week (Part 2)

 

Here are Dr. McGuff’s videos!

 

 

 

 

 

The Best 12 Minutes of Your Week! (Part 1)

An introduction to the two part video blog series on Dr. Doug McGuff’s take on HIT training and fitness.

College Basketball: Behind the Madness

The month of March (along with the inevitable shananigans that occure on St. Patrick’s Day) marks the beginning of the collegiate basketball championships! That’s right, March Madness. And what better way to get excited about watching your team work it’s way through the bracket, than understanding what is  happening to the players physiology as they compete. So, in honor of this classic display of athleticism and competition, O&E is going to break down what goes on within the body during a game of basketball.

 

Photo Credit: Mvongrue via Flickr

 

First, we have to understand the types of energy your body is using when playing basketball. The human body’s metabolic processes work both aerobically (with oxygen) and anaerobically (without oxygen) and produces energy using three different systems that all serve different metabolic needs. They are the phosphagen system, glycolytic system, and oxidative phosphorylation. The phosphagen system and glycolytic system are anaerobic while oxidative phosphorylation is aerobic. Each system produces energy at a different rate.

For very quick bursts of intense energy (sprinting, dunking, crossing) , your cells will use the phosphagen system by turning phosphocreatine into ATP (energy for your body). This is a quick process and only results in about 10-30 seconds of energy. After your cells have used up all the phosphocreatine at their disposal, glycogen (glucose or carbohydrates in the muscles) will begin to be broken down. This is called the glycolytic system and to work, glycogen must be converted in ATP through 10 steps. After these steps have been completed, the body is left with 2-3 ATP along with 2 hydrogen molecules and pyruvic acid. This energy is produced at a slower rate than the energy produced by the posphagen system but can be used for. The ATP is used as energy while the hydrogen atoms begin to build up within the cell mitochondria and form lactic acid. the build up of lactic acid is what makes our muscles tired and sore.

The final energy system being used is oxidative phosphorylation which simply replenish the muscles and cells with oxygen and takes away excess hydrogen that builds up within the mitochondria. This energy system is extremely important for basketball because it is what allows for continues play through out the entire game. Think of it this way, when your body needs quick and immediate energy it will go through the two anaerobic means of producing energy and when your body needs constant energy and endurance, it will use the aerobic process to deliver oxygen to your cells and buffer hydrogen.

Now that we know how our muscles get their energy, we can look at what muscles are being used during a game of basketball. Basketball is a very dynamic sport that utilizes using many major muscle groups found throughout the body.

When running across a basketball court, the hamstrings and gluteus maximus muscles contract to bend your knees and hips while your quadriceps contract to straighten legs and produce downward force that propels the player forward. Calf muscles also come into play by stabilizing the ankle during quick movements as well as helping the player jump during a jump shot. These muscles keep the player running, jumping, and squatting down in a defense position.

When a player dribbles and shoots the ball, another set of muscles are being used. The bicep keeps the elbow bent while the tricep extends the arm. The shoulder muscles like the trapezius and deltoids help elevate the arm and the wrist extensors and flexors in the forearm help with wrist control. When taking a shot (extending your shooting arm forward), the pectoral muscles are also engaged. These muscles are also engaged when grabbing rebounds and passing the ball.

Core muscles located around the hips lower back and abdomen are also crucial for playing the game of basketball. Bodybuilding.com’s Jason Morgan says core muscles stabilize all of your body movements while playing basketball by keeping your spine and hip joints in alignment. These muscles are constantly being engaged through out a typical game of basketball. The abdominals and erector spinae are used in conjuncture to keep the trunk of the body stabilized while hip muscles drive the thighs forward and rotate the lower when changing direction.

Basketball is a game which requires many different dynamic movements and functions within the body. Understanding how these movements and functions affect the human physiology helps sports medicine professionals learn how to increase certain skills within players as well as overall athleticism and fitness. Many athletes improve their game by learning how their body works and finding ways to manipulate and enhance those aspects of their physiology.

The information for today’s post was provided by livestrong.com, sectiononewrestling.com, a study done by the Department of Physical Education and Recreation at Victoria University of Technology in Australia, and Jason Morgan of Bodybuilding.com

 

Coffee and Butter…Together.

No, the title is not a joke. I am really going to tell you why adding butter to your coffee is good for you. Last October, I was listened to a man by the name of Dave Asprey talk about his coffee he drinks every morning. Asprey calls it Bulletproof Coffee, and for good reason. It is a coffee recipe designed to take your morning to the Next Level. But this is no average coffee, and Dave Asprey is no ordinary man. In the past 15 years, Asprey has spent over $250,000 “bio-hacking”  and literally upgrading his body and mind through changing his diet and fitness, supplementation, and self quantification. As for the coffee, it combines high quality, mold free, coffee beans (not Starbucks people), butter from grass-fed cows, and MCT oil (an extract of coconut oil). Sounds strange, right? It is a bit strange at first but after having drank this for breakfast for almost three months now, I understand the benefits. This recipe, along with exercise and small diet changes, has helped me loose almost 20 pounds and keep it off! To understand why this recipe works, we have to break down why all these things are good for you.

Coffee

Not all coffee is created equal. Good coffee, in moderation of course, has been proven to improve memory recall, improve insulin sensitivity, accelerate fat loss, and improve exercise function. Bad coffee gives you the shakes, heartburn, and can make you irritable in high doses. The coffee beans Asprey sells online are mycotoxin free, meaning they are free of any unwanted toxins or molds that normal coffee beans are usually riddled with. Quality is important for anyone who drinks coffee on a regular basis. Here are Dave’s 3 steps for picking the best coffee beans.

Grass-Fed Butter

There a some key differences to point out when it comes to grass-fed butter vs normal grain-fed butter. Because these cows are raised on pastures and consume green grass rather grains, which actually make cows sick, the butter the cow produces is a butter of a much higher quality. The short and medium chain fatty acids, carotene, and Vitamin K2 levels have been proven to be higher than standard butter. Kerrygold unsalted (silver package, the gold package on the left is the saleted version) grass-fed butter is my prefered option. You can find it at Trader Joe’s ($2.69) or Whole Foods ($3.99 or sometimes 2 for $6).

MCT/Coconut Oil

Coconut oil contains medium chain triglycerides, or MCTs. These MCT’s have been proven to help efficiently burn energy when they are broken down by the liver. Because of Coconut Oil’s high MCT levels, it can help increase the amount of HDL (good) cholesterol in the bloodstream as well as promote better thyroid function. Poor thyroid function can lead to the production of LDL (bad) cholesterol. Asprey takes coconut oil to the next level by running it through a centrifuge and Taking out just the MCT’s. This creates a super concentrated MCT oil which he sells on his website. I personally have not tried the recipe with The MCT oil. MCT oil is hard to find unless you buy it straight from Asprey so for convienience and price sake, I think coconut oil works just fine!

How To Make It

1. Grind the beans

2. Make the coffee.

3. Blend it up!

Take 2-4 tablespoons of butter, 1 1/2 – 2 tablespoons of coconut oil, and your pot of coffee and throw it all in the Blender!

(Everyone should own a blender! Weather its a Vitamix, Ninja, or a “Magic Bullet” style blender. Even a hand blender would work here.)

4. Pour, enjoy, and feel the difference in your morning!

It can take up to two weeks for your body to turn on its fat burning digestion systems if you havent been getting enough good saturated fats in your diet. Start with just 2 tablespoons of butter for the first few times you make it and add more or less dependng on how it makes you feel. This delicious creamy morning beverage takes only about 10 minutes to make. Add a scoope of whey protein powder to the recipe for a great pick-me-up after an early morning work out.

The information for today’s post was provided by Dave Asprey, Mark Sission, and Pina LoGiudice ND, LAc, Siobhan Bleakney, ND, and Peter Bongiorno ND, LAc Co-Medical Directors of Inner Source Health in New York.

 

The 10 Minute Mind: Conquering Stress Through Mindfulness

Here at Optimized & Energized, the main focus is the implementation of change. Small changes that will take you to the next level, mentally and physically. So, here is today’s small change that will keep you feeling great without adding extra stress to your already busy lifestyles: Take ten minutes out of your day, every day, to simply do nothing. Don’t watch TV, don’t make yourself a snack, and stay off the computer. Why? Because a study done by Harvard psychologists Matthew A. Killingsworth and Daniel T. Gilbert shows that “a human mind is a wandering mind, and a wandering mind is an unhappy mind.” Often times our mind begins to wander when doing activities such as resting, eating, and staring at a screen while it doesn’t wander during activities such as exercising, having a conversation, or engaging in sex. In general, the study found that the more people’s mind’s wandered, the less happy they were. On average, subjects reported that their minds were wandering 46.9% of the time. So, how do we combat the wandering human mind and train it to focus on the present moment? Andy Puddicombe, a TED speaker and mindfulness expert who also writes for Huffington Post, and The Guardian explains his theory on conquering the wandering mind using simple mindfulness meditation in a talk posted by TED earlier this month.

In his talk, Puddicombe says “most people assume that meditation is all about stopping thoughts, getting rid of emotions, somehow controlling the mind. But actually it’s … about stepping back, seeing the thought clearly, witnessing it coming and going.” Not only did Puddicombe live many years of his life as a monk in the Himalayas where he practiced various forms of meditation, he also runs an organization called Headspace, a website dedicated to teaching people how to effectively take ten minutes out of their day to increase their mindfulness.

And what about the effect? What can you expect from taking ten minutes a day to not think about the past or the future and simply live in the moment? Well for the subjects of an 8 week study performed at Stanford where mindfulness was taught and practiced, an increase in prefrontal Cortex activity (the part of your brain that regulates emotions) and a decrease in activity in the amygdala (the part of your brain that induces stress by the release of hormones). So by simply practicing mindfulness, you can reduce stress, gain more control over your emotions, and generally live a happier life! This is what living life at the next level is all about!

Here is a disclaimer: it won’t work right away. Your mind will naturally wander and start becoming anxious the first few times you sit down to do it. The main thing to keep in mind before beginning is to not give up. When your mind begins to wander, don’t panic. Just relax and try to re-center yourself. Once this technique is implemented in your life, you will reduce your stress and have that much more control of yourself emotionally which is something many of us could use some help with! Start being mindful now, and come midterm and finals weeks, you will be performing at the next level!