Conditioning Research

I had a post up a few days ago about low carb diets making people happier . And then there was the post about cholesterol and mental function . Here is another: Schizophrenia, gluten, and low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diets: a case report and review of the literature It is a case study of a schizophrenic who is "cured" after adopting a low carbohydrate diet. Very interesting stuff.

Mind....body.....it is all connected. A few times here I've pointed to stuff about the importance of limiting chronic stress because of the hormonal consequences of stress. Here is a study that explains that simply being mentally tired can limit your physical performance - because it seems harder. Mental fatigue impairs physical performance in humans Mental fatigue is a psychobiological state caused by prolonged periods of demanding cognitive activity. Although the impact of mental fatigue on cognitive and skilled performance is well known, its effect on physical performance has not been thoroughly investigated. In this randomized crossover study, 16 subjects cycled to exhaustion at 80% of their peak power output after 90 min of a demanding cognitive task (mental fatigue) or 90 min of watching emotionally neutral documentaries (control). After experimental treatment, a mood questionnaire revealed a state of mental fatigue (P = 0.005) that significantly reduced time to exhaustion ...

I've had posts before about the way in which a low carb diet seems to be effective in treating cancer. Cancer cells need sugar to survive so starving them of glucose starves them. Richard has had good posts on the same lines too. Anyway I spotted this story today: New findings measure precise impact of fat on cancer spread Researchers at Purdue University have precisely measured the impact of a high-fat diet on the spread of cancer, finding that excessive dietary fat caused a 300 percent increase in metastasizing tumor cells in laboratory animals. interesting....it might put you off eating fat! BUT when you read on a bit beyond the headline you find out that it is not all fat that is the problem....it is polyunsaturated fat! That is supposed to be the healthy fat. The researches used the imaging and cell-counting tools to document that linoleic acid, which is predominant in polyunsaturated fats, caused increasing membrane phase separation, whereas oleic acid, found in mono...

Just wanted to point to a couple of recent pieces on cholesterol. Cholesterol-reducing Drugs May Lessen Brain Function, Says Researcher If you try to lower the cholesterol by taking medicine that is attacking the machinery of cholesterol synthesis in the liver, that medicine goes to the brain too. And then it reduces the synthesis of cholesterol which is necessary in the brain," said Shin. In his experiments, Shin tested the activity of the neurotransmitter-release machinery from brain cells without cholesterol present and measured how well the machinery functioned. He then included cholesterol in the system and again measured the protein function. Cholesterol increased protein function by five times. Chris Masterjohn's been saying the same thing for years. Anyway, I do not want statins! Peter had a great post as well looking some of the dodgy science which gave rise to the whole cholesterol is bad thing.

Here is another mobility / agility drill that is pretty similar to something that Rannoch and the guys from the IKFF taught us last week.

One of the things I keep coming back to on this blog is the need for enough decent sleep in the dark. Way back on this blog I mentioned a book - Lights Out - which went into some of the detail: one of the key problems we face in the world today is that we do not get enough sleep nor - importantly - enough darkness. It looks at how various hormones in the body are promoted by sleep and darkness and how others are released in response to light. The premise is that today we live in an environment where we are almost always in the light. Our bodies and their hormones think we are living in a perpetual summer. Anyway, Jimmy Moore has just put up an interview with the author of the book. It is worth a listen! By the way I find Jimmy really frustrating. He is a nice guy and gets some great interviews, but his own diet drives me mad as it is full of artificial sweeteners and "pretend carbs". He could do so much better if he sorted his food out and started exercising a bit more...

calories, carbs, insulin.......an interesting presentation. I've ordered the DVD

Time for another interview . When I first started reading about evolutionary fitness / paleo diets etc, one of the first people that I came across was Tamir Katz. I'd seen his name on a couple of internet discussion boards, did a search and found his site - The TBK Fitness Page , where he has a few really good articles on exercise and diet. I bought his book the TBK Fitness Program (also at Amazon UK ) which is a straight-forward, well-written and accessible introduction to the science behind a paleo diet ( reviewed here ). As well as presenting a good range of exercises and routines, he also touches on some things that are often neglected in our health and fitness routines such as the need to minimise chronic stress and the benefits of adequate sunshine. This book was written back in 2003 and it is interesting to me to see so many of his ideas now coming to the fore in the various paleo blogs I read (e.g. Keith and Richard ) . Anyway I thought it would be good to get in ...

Here is a great quote from Ross Enamait : Nutrition I strongly believe that clean eating contributes to my ability to recover from less than optimal sleep conditions. I don’t believe in micro-managing the eating process, but I do believe in clean eating. My nutritional strategy is very simple. I eat real food (ex. fruits, veggies, fish, meat, etc.) when I’m hungry, and I don’t eat any artificial and/or processed junk. That’s it. I have better things to do with my time than counting how much of this or that nutrient has been consumed in this or that meal. My ancestors did pretty well without calculating zones and nutrient ratios on the abacus, so I see no reason to change. I never get sick, recover quickly from training, and feel good throughout the day. If it isn’t broken, I see no reason to fix it. Find what works for you. That’s the best nutritional advice I ever heard, so now I’m giving it to you. I like Ross's material : simple and motivational but effective. His books are sup...

I've mentioned a couple of times that I've started training in Krav Maga and have begun to be a bit more interested in self defence. I keep watching this video which I find fascinating. Interesting mechanics, but I can't work out whether or not it is practical

Egg Protein as a Source of Power, Strength, and Energ y Ok, I know that one was funded by the National Egg board or whatever but it is worth a read. New research shows high-quality protein in eggs contributes to power, strength and energy The Nutrition Today review analyzes more than 25 protein studies and concludes that the all-natural, high-quality protein in eggs contributes to strength, power and energy in the following ways: Sustained energy: The protein in eggs provides steady and sustained energy because it does not cause a surge in blood sugar or insulin levels, which can lead to a rebound effect or energy "crash" as levels drop. Eggs are a nutrient-rich source of high-quality protein and provide several B vitamins required for the production of energy in the body, such as thiamin, riboflavin, folate, B12 and B6. Muscle strength: Dietary protein intake directly influences muscle mass, strength and function in people of all ages. One egg provides more than six grams of...

Dr Briffa pointed this out ( I'll have to interview him sometime! ) People feel better on a low carb diet than they do on a low fat diet. Here is the abstract: Effects of two weight-loss diets on health-related quality of life Purpose To compare the effects of two diets on health-related quality of life (HRQOL). Methods Overweight volunteers (n = 119) were randomized to follow a low-carbohydrate, ketogenic diet (LCKD) or a low-fat diet (LFD) for 24 weeks. HRQOL was measured every 4 weeks using the Short Form-36 and analyzed using linear mixed-effects models. Results The mean age was 45 years and mean baseline body mass index was 34 kg/m2; 76% were women. At 24 weeks, five subscales (Physical Functioning, Role-Physical, General Health, Vitality, Social Functioning) and the Physical Component Summary score improved similarly in both diet groups. Bodily Pain improved in the LFD group only, whereas the Role-Emotional and Mental Health subscales and the Mental Component Summary ...

The video makes some interesting points and makes them well. The discussion of the efficacy of high intensity training - such as sprint training - is well done. I've got this guy's book and it is an interesting read - I don't agree with all of it but the science is good.

I've mentioned Steve Maxwell before . Here is his video of a simple move that is actually a lot harder than it looks! Rannoch (another fan of Maxwell) mentioned something similar in his interview the other day For the Walkout people start on all fours and simply walk their hands out (like using an ab roller) the ideal is to get to full extension, hold and then walk back. A single rep is usually enough to show up any weakness in engaging the core. From these simple drills we can start to engage the body as a single unit. You can do so much with bodyweight.

Just thought I'd flag this one up: The Effect of a High-Intensity Interval Training Program on High-Density Lipoprotein Cholesterol in Young Men . This study examined the impact of an 8-week program of high-intensity interval training on high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), and the atherogenic index (TC/HDL-C) in 36 untrained men ages 21-36 years. Participants were randomly assigned to an interval training group (n = 20) or a control group (n = 16). Participants in the experimental group performed 3.2 km of interval running (1:1 work:rest ratio) 3 times a week for 8 weeks at an intensity of 90% of maximal heart rate (~423 kcal per session). Results indicated significant pre- to posttraining changes in HDL-C (1.1 vs. 1.3 mmol.L, p 0.05) with interval training. It was concluded that an 8-week program of high-intensity interval training is effective in eliciting favorable changes in HDL-C and TC/HDL-C but not TC in young adult men with normal TC level...

Of course some people (like Richard or Keith or Mark )have been saying this for a while, but it is nice to see some science. It is good for Blood Pressure, glucose tolerance, it decreases insulin secretion, increases insulin sensitivity and improves lipid profiles..... Metabolic and physiologic improvements from consuming a paleolithic, hunter-gatherer type diet. Background :The contemporary American diet figures centrally in the pathogenesis of numerous chronic diseases-'diseases of civilization'. We investigated in humans whether a diet similar to that consumed by our preagricultural hunter-gatherer ancestors (that is, a paleolithic type diet) confers health benefits. Methods :We performed an outpatient, metabolically controlled study, in nine nonobese sedentary healthy volunteers, ensuring no weight loss by daily weight. We compared the findings when the participants consumed their usual diet with those when they consumed a paleolithic type diet. The participants consumed...

In the past weeks I’ve had a couple of interviews on this blog that I have really enjoyed putting together. The interview with Erwan Le Corre contains some inspiring material that really challenges how we think - not just about exercise but about our whole attitude to life. It was also fun to interview Brad Pilon and get some more of his thoughts on intermittent fasting . Today I am turning to someone closer to home for an interview. I first met Rannoch Donald in December 2007 when I went to one of his kettlebell workshops. Then last summer he invited me start his Combat Ready fitness classes – conditioning sessions attached to the Edinburgh Krav Maga Club. I loved it and as a result have started to take Krav Maga classes too. I always enjoy talking to Rannoch. He is a motivating enthusiastic coach. His interests are as broad as mine and we have shared a few DVDs and books. In this interview we talk about kettlebells, mobility, getting older, martial arts vs self defence and...

Well it seems to help rats. Intermittent fasting is found to be: pro-angiogenic - promoting the growth of blood vessels anti-apoptotic - apoptosis is programmed cell death. Not always a problem, but can contribute to hypotrophy (wasting away) in ichemic damage anti-remodeling - stops the changes in size, shape, and function of the heart after injury to the left ventricle. (I hope you are not getting bored by all the IF posts, but these things keep getting published! As ever if you want to learn more you might want to check out Brad Pilon - interviewed here . ) Here is the abstract (edited a bit because blogger was playing up....but you can click on the link to get the whole thing) : Chronic intermittent fasting improves the survival following large myocardial ischemia by activation of BDNF/VEGF/PI3K signaling pathway Received 3 September 2008; received in revised form 22 October 2008; accepted 24 October 2008. published online 14 November 2008. Chronic heart failure (CHF) is the ma...

Rannoch Donald taught me this one. Steve Cotter talks about the background of it and demonstrates it below: Great for shoulder health.

Over the weekend I posted an interview with Brad Pilon , the author of Eat Stop Eat - a great little book on intermittent fasting . One of the things that the book highlights is the idea that fasting doesn't necessarily inhibit exercise performance : During a period of fasting, the systems of your body are relying on fat, and the sugar that is stored in your liver for energy. Your muscles still have their own sugar that they need for exercising. The sugar in your muscles is used up quickly during high intensity exercises like weight training and sprinting. Research completed back in 1987 found that a three and a half day fast caused minimal impairments in physical performance measures such as isometric strength, anaerobic capacity or aerobic endurance. In other words, they found that a three-day fast had no negative effects on how strongly your muscles can contract, your ability to do short-term high intensity exercises, or your ability to exercise at moderate intensity for a lon...

I think I first came across the concept of intermittent fasting (IF) in some of Art Devaney's writings several years back and at about the same time I came across Ori Hofmekler's Warrior Diet. The Eades also wrote about the idea a couple of years ago and recently there have been several inspiring "transformation" stories on the internet of people who have adopted IF and seen some great changes in their physique: Richard and Keith (see photo to the right) are inspirational. All this material led me to study the idea of IF and it is now something I often practice. Martin Berkhan has taught me a lot, but the writer whose work I have found most helpful has been Brad Pilon . His book Eat Stop Eat is an easy read but goes into a lot of detail examining the science behind IF and exploding some of the associated myths - e.g. it is not true that fasting will send your body into "starvation mode" and slow your metabolism. This week Brad agreed to do an inter...

Well that is how I read this abstract: Whole grains and adiposity: little association among British adults Objectives: To examine associations of whole-grain intake with body weight and adiposity in two nationally representative samples of British adults. Subjects/Methods: A total of 2064 adults aged 16–64 years in 1986–1987, 1599 adults aged 19–64 years in 2000–2001. Whole-grain intake (g day -1 and 16-g amounts) was estimated from consumption of all foods with 10, 25 or 51% whole-grain content, using 7-day weighed dietary records. Body weight, body mass index (BMI) and, in 2000–2001, waist circumference (WC) were measured. BMI and WC were considered as continuous and categorical variables. For each survey, associations of whole-grain intake with body weight and anthropometric indices were examined in men and women separately, before and after adjustment for age, occupational social class, smoking habit, region, season and, in 2000–2001, misreporting. Results: In 1986–1987, whole-...