The Highly Effective Belted Resistance Band Squat!

 

If you are not including the use of flat, circular resistance bands in your training you are missing out!    These bands provide several powerful benefits including:

The ability to train at high speed without momentum – aka power training which is key to athletic performance.

Variable resistance that provides ideal overload to key movements like the chest press, overhead press and squat.

The belted resistance band squat is one of the many exercises you can do with these bands, and this exercise allows people with back issues to squat safely because the load is on the hips and down – not on the shoulders!

How to Perform Hip Belt Resistance Band Squats

You will need some type of belt such as a standard weight training belt or dip/chin belt (see here:  https://tinyurl.com/4trn6hss ) or you can create your own belt using a large, wide diameter resistance training band like this one:   https://www.serioussteel.com/collections/bands-1/products/7-mega-steel-band-41

The best bands are multi-layered latex bands (unless you have a latex allergy).   They deliver the best variable resistance, feel fantastic, and last much longer than cheaper bands!

1. After you have a suitable belt ready you will need to select the right flat, circular band to deliver the correct amount of resistance during the squat.   This may take some experimenting but it is worth your time!

2. With the belt on low around the top of your hips step one foot into one end of the loop of the band you selected.

3. Guide the other end through the belt loop (see videos below) and then down to other foot so both feet are now standing on one end of the circular resistance band.   You can do this standing or seated – less work when seated.

4. Stand up and adjust the position of the belt and band for comfort.

5. Then perform your squats.

To see how to do this using two different belts check out these excellent instructional videos: 

Band Squat Set-up from resistancebandtraining.com - https://youtu.be/lCqnMzlMfCs showing how to use a large band as a belt.   Excellent video that also shows you an easy way to adjust the load of the band higher by creating an additional loop the feet.

Hip Belt Squat from Testosterone Nation - https://youtu.be/LabcPf9kIoE - shows how you use a dip/chin belt and several variations including using a dowel for both hands.  

What is really great about this set-up is you can add load to jumping exercises to allow for some of the most effective explosive power training possible without overloading your low back!

Is Red Meat Really Bad for You?

 

The vast majority of people believe red meat and associated saturated fat are bad for you? However, that is not what the science says!

In fact, a recent extremely well-done study showed just the opposite!  Unlike many other studies that looked at meat consumption and health - this one included a world-wide population.  The study also corrected for other lifestyle factors such as smoking, lack of exercise, and alcohol consumption making this a much better test of whether red meat is really the villain it is purported to be!

In this study the authors looked at the overall health effects of total meat consumption in 175 countries around the world.  Here are their key conclusions:

“…Consumption of energy from carbohydrate crops (grains and tubers) does not lead to greater life expectancy, and that total meat consumption correlates to greater life expectancy, independent of the competing effects of total calories intake, economic affluence, urban advantages, and obesity.”   WOW – not what you thought right?

Further that “humans have adapted to meat-eating from the perspective of their more than two million years of evolution.”

"Meat of small and large animals provided optimal nutrition to our ancestors who developed genetic, physiological, and morphological adaptations to eating meat products and we have inherited those adaptations.”

“Our take home message from the paper is that meat-eating is beneficial to human health provided that it is consumed in moderation and that the meat industry is conducted in an ethical way.”

To check out the study click here:   https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/labs/pmc/articles/PMC8881926/

If you are concerned about saturated fat intake from meat you may want to check out this previous blogpost on the subject because as a general rule saturated fat is NOT a problem for most human beings:    http://workoutanytime.blogspot.com/2016/10/is-saturated-fat-and-cholesterol-really.html

Caffeine - A Natural Pesticide that Helps Prevent Alzheimer's Disease!

 

Sounds crazy – but it is true!   Caffeine is produced by many plants and acts as a natural pesticide to protect them against insects.   It also can help protect your brain function.

We usually consume caffeine for the energy boost it provides, but for the plants that produce it, caffeine serves as a pesticide that drives away insects and animals that would like to munch on their leaves and fruit.

Science has discovered that caffeine stimulates the production of an enzyme that can help fend off Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.

The enzyme, NMNAT2 (nicotinamide mononucleotide adenylyl transferase 2) helps improve brain health in two ways:

• It protects neurons from the negative impact of stress.
• It helps prevent tau proteins from folding the wrong way and forming masses of harmful plaques in the brain’s neurons.

Improperly folded proteins are linked to Parkinson’s and Huntington’s diseases, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) as well as Alzheimer’s.

Brain Cell Stress Reduction

Research has shown that caffeine reduces the activity of a receptor called adenosine A2A.  This receptor increases stress in brain cells and can slow your mental abilities as you age.   Reducing the activity of this receptor prevents it from interrupting memory circuits in key areas of the brain.

Caffeine and Alzheimer’s

While NOT a panacea – research has confirmed that daily caffeine intake up to 261mg per day (the amount in two – three cups of coffee) significantly reduced the chance of developing dementia.  

Dark Side of Caffeine

Keep in mind that too much of a good thing is not a good thing!  Caffeine intake beyond 261mg has NOT been shown to improve benefits so limit your caffeine intake. This is the equivalent of one large coffee.

In addition, there is significant variation in how individuals respond to caffeine with slow and fast metabolizers.  If you happen to be a slow metabolizer be very careful with how much caffeine you consume – and take none after Noon or you will likely disturb your sleep which is very bad for brain health! 

How Heart Rate Variability can Help Optimize Recovery, Sleep and Results!

 

We all know that exercise is key to health and fitness, but it is easy to lose sight of the fact that exercise is a stimulus and stressor and that progress occurs during recovery from exercise!

There are many factors which affect our ability to recover from and improve from exercise including adequate sleep, breathing patterns, hydration, nutrition, and mental ability to relax to name a few.

Measuring your Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is an accurate and easy way to check your recovery status.  HRV refers to the fact that the time between each heartbeat continuously changes!   The picture above shows the change in time between each beat of the heart on an electrocardiogram.  Even though the time between each heart beat is always varying your heart rate - expressed as beats per minute - can be steady at times.

For example, an average heart rate of 60 beats per minute (bpm) does not mean that the interval between every heartbeat is exactly 1.0 sec, instead they may fluctuate/vary from 0.5 sec up to 2.0 sec.   During exercise, HRV decreases as heart rate and exercise intensity increases. HRV also decreases during periods of mental stress.

As a general rule of thumb we want to see HIGHER Heart Rate Variability.    Higher HRV indicates that your body is in a highly responsive state and able to quickly adjust to changes and challenges to optimize homeostasis.   Homeostasis refers to the need for your body to maintain a consistent internal environment to function properly so your body needs to constantly adjust to changes such as changes in air temperature, changes in muscle activity, changes in light level, etc.

HRV is regulated by the autonomic nervous system (ANS) which controls the function of our internal organs such as heart, lungs, intestines, level of arterial tension, digestion, etc.    The Autonomic Nervous System has two parts:  Sympathetic and Parasympathetic.  

The sympathetic nervous system is the "fight or flight" system, while the parasympathetic nervous system is often considered the "rest and digest" system. In many cases, these systems have "opposite" actions such as the Sympathetic System turning off digestion and the parasympathetic System turning on Digestion. 

Parasympathetic activity decreases heart rate and increases HRV, whereas sympathetic activity increases heart rate and decreases HRV.    Recovery is all about increased parasympathetic activity.   When your sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) is active for long periods of time – you cannot recover from stress and sooner or later you will begin to experience symptoms and disease.  This is what being “Stressed Out” is all about!

Measurement of HRV

Measurement of HRV allows you to know how your body is responding and adapting to all the stressors in your life.  By measuring HRV each morning upon waking before you rise from bed or eat or drink anything you can very accurately track your recovery status.   There are several easy-to-use devices and apps available to measure your HRV:

 

•      Fitbit – in the Sense, Versa 2 and 3, Charge 4, Inspire 2 and Luxe models – less expensive than many other options

•      Oura Ring – www.ouraring.com – very popular and one of the best available and simple ring

•       http://www.elitehrv.com/ - gold standard device for HRV!

 

By looking at your HRV daily you will quickly notice patterns and find out how different workouts, alcohol intake, stress and caffeine affect your recovery.  You will also see how your HRV score tracks directly with the quality of sleep.   When you have a great nights sleep you will see it reflected in improved HRV!