The Mind Over Body Matter Letter

In this issue…

1. Three ways to tell if your club is closing.

2. Eating like a cave man… good or bad? (Tom Venuto)

3. Today’s Humor - Fitness products that SHOULD be invented (Nick Nilsson)

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Health Club Problems — Three Ways to Tell if Your Club is Closing
By Brad Howard

Nowadays, there is getting ready to be a huge rollup of clubs with many of the clubs either being bought out or closing their doors completely. Many times, the owners of the clubs want to shut the doors as fast as possible to avoid legal troubles, press involvement, theft, and employee bashlash. So, for you the consumer, how can you tell if your club is getting ready to hit the chopping block?

Three Ways To Spot Financial Trouble

A Sudden Decrease In Rates For New Members. Many owners turn to this tactic to try to encourage more people to join. The problem comes in when that’s all they do. In most cases, this is the only thing that owners know to do when the club starts to have trouble. Sadly enough, this tactic can work in the short term to great success. However, soon enough the revenue will start to fall off again and even lower rates follow (again, because that is all that they know). To make it simple, if you start to see a firesale, you know there’s a reason.

Constant Employee Turnover. This isn’t as noticable to most but employee turnover generally means that the ownership group either has no idea how to hire the right people or that the group continually lies to their employees about pay or pay scale and they leave. Neither is a good thing. You can’t have happy, paying members without happy, committed employees.

Sudden Removal of Key Programs. There is no such thing as addition by subtraction in the health club industry. Many times, the owners of a club will justify the removal by saying that no one is using the program (even though you know that it’s not the case). This is usually one of the first things you’ll notice.

Hopefully, you’ll never see any of these in your club. However, if you do, find a new club quickly.

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The Paleolithic Diet - Should We Eat Like Our “Cave Man” Ancestors?
By Tom Venuto, CSCS, NSCA-CPT
www.burnthefat.com

QUESTION: Hi Tom: Your Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle ebook was an eye-opener for me. I am following your advice closely with very good results. I’m a semi professional windsurfer and a mountain biker, and especially for the latter I need to be as lean as possible. Thanks in large part to your program, I’m well into single digit body fat and dropping. Just recently I came across a book called the paleolithic diet and I was wondering if you ever heard about it? What’s your opinion on this book? Is it worth reading if I already have your book? Is the program any good?

Mariusz
Poland

ANSWER: The “paleolithic,” “stone age,” “cave man,” or “neanderthal” eating plans have been around for a while and there are quite a few books that have been written on the subject.

In general, with a only few minor constructive criticisms, I think they are right on point, and will benefit your health and definitely your fat loss efforts.

A “Paleo Diet” is actually quite similar to my Burn The Fat program, only with the starches and grains (and dairy products) removed completely.

In fact, a “paleo” or “cave man” diet is very, very similar to the “contest” (bodybuilding or physique) diets I recommend in Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle and this is most definitely a great way get very lean, very fast.

On physique competition diets (bodybuilding, fitness, figure, etc), you leave the lean proteins, lean meats, nuts and seeds, the green veggies (fibrous carbs), and some fruit in the diet, while reducing or removing ALL processed foods and SOME of the grains and starches. (usually the dairy products go too).

When it comes to MAXIMUM FAT LOSS, the removal or reduction of grains and calorie dense starchy carbs in favor of lean protein and veggies will definitely help speed the process - even if that’s only because it reduces caloric density of the food intake, although there are other reasons.

Lean protein (fish and meat) + good fats & nuts + lots of green veggies + some fruit = LEAN!

And thats basically what the “paleolithic” diets recommend, because the principle there is to eat like our “stone age” ancestors did - before there was McDonalds, Coca Cola and other junk food.

The premise is that since our genetic code (the human genome) has changed less than 0.02 percent in 40,000 years, this means that our bodies are still expecting to get the same foods and nutrition they were getting 40,000 years ago.

By eating what our “stone age” hunter and gatherer ancestors ate, say the paleo diets, we will rid ourselves of the health problems and the obesity problem that has only recently begun to plague us as a result of modern lifestyle and processed manmade foods.

Forty thousand years ago, you had to eat nature-made food. There was no food in cans, boxes or packages was there? The packaging was peel, a skin or a shell!

There were no TV dinners. There was no drive in fast food. There were no convenience stores.

There was no corn syrup. There was no white sugar. There were no hydrogenated oils. No chemicals. No preservatives. No artificial anything.

There was only what could be hunted and gathered: Meat, fish, nuts, seeds, plants, vegetables, fruits.

My only real constructive criticism is that some of these programs not only recommend removal of all grains and starches (and even dairy), they outright condemn them - sometimes unfairly, I believe.

They say that agriculture arrived on the scence only 10,000 years ago so foods produced as a result of agriculture should also be on the “banned” list and that includes 100% whole grain products and even rice, potatoes and other starches which are not manmade.

The truth is there are some starchy carbohydrates and grains which are very minimally processed or completely unproceseed (the only processing being cooking).

Also, some people can metabolically handle starches and grains just fine, while others cannot. The same can be said for dairy products.

This is known as metabolic individuality. Because this individuality exists from person to person, I don’t believe it’s necessary to recommend that “EVERYONE” cut out “ALL” the starches and grains “ALL” the time.

I do believe that many people are getting an overdose of refined carbs and sugar and that moderating intake of concentrated carbs almost always accelerates fat loss.

However, the nutrition program you choose should depend on your metabolic/body type, your current body composition and state of health as well as your goals (maximum fat loss vs. muscle growth vs. maintenance, vs. endurance athleticperformance).

I don’t believe that “agriculture” and everything that came with it is “evil.”

I believe that highly processed and refined and packaged foods are the “nutritional evils” we should be aware of.

To remove brown rice, 100% whole grains, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, legumes and so on for healthy carb tolerant people, especially those who are highly active and or already at a normal body fat level doesnt make a lot of sense to me.

In particular, for athletes with a high energy expenditure, eating the concentrated complex, starchy carbs and grains - from natural sources - can be quite important.

Sure, there are some “renegade’ nutritionists who prescribe high fat diets for endurance athletes and claim that will provide high energy and high performance, but that is controversial.

Also, an explanation for athletes successful on such plans may be that they are metabolically suited for more fat and protein to begin with, so that conclusion shouldn’t be generalized to everyone.

Thats the trouble with so many programs — the creators might say, “It worked for me and for some of my clients, so this is the way EVERYONE should do it.”

Everyone is different, so the true inquiring minds will inquire about what is best for THEM, not the other guy… In the case of highly active healthy people and athletes, I would lean towards a decent amount of natural carbs forperformance goals (and pull back on starches and grains when goals change to maximum fat loss).

The key word here is NATURAL!

There is a HUGE difference between natural starches and grains and refined starches and grains.

For example, look at old fashioned unsweetened oatmeal versus sugary, white flour cereal grains. How can you throw those together into the same category??? They are no where near the same, but often they get lumped together by those who are adamantly “no-grain” or “no-cereal” allowed.

What about sweet potatoes? why cut something like that out of your diet? They are not processed or man made at all are they?

Aside from that minor quibble I have with some of these programs being too strict with their “Absolutely no grains or starch allowed,” there is a lot anyone can learn from the “paleolithic” eating concept.

The questions raised from these programs and books are good ones:

“What were we eating tens of thousands of years ago?”

“What are we genetically and environmentally predisposed to eat?”

“what has gone wrong with the modern day diet that has led to so much disease and obesity which didn’t exist thousands of years ago?”

I believe that too many people get caught up in low fats or low carbs or whatever the trend of the month is, but the real source of our problem is neither fat nor carbs, it is an excess of processed, refined man-made food! (combined with a serious shortage of exercise)

If you study and understand the concept of eating according to your personal goals and your unique body/metabolic type first, which I discuss in chapter 5 of my book, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle, then I believe you will get even more benefit from the further study of the “paleo” eating concept, as you will be informed and flexible enough to adapt it to your personal situation.

Loren Cordain and Ray Audette have written two of the more notable works on the subject (the Paleo diet and Neanderthin). You can get either of these at almost any bookstore or Amazon.com. You can get my Burn The Fat program at www.burnthefat.com

ANY good nutrition program - for health or for fat loss - is going to be focused on natural foods and it will teach you how to get the processed food OUT and the natural food IN

When you analyze ANY diet or nutrition program, keep in mind what ageless Fitness Icon Jack Lalanne has always said,

“If man made it, dont eat it!”

THAT is the essence of eating how we’re supposed to eat!

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder and author of the #1 best selling e-book, “Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to burn fat without drugs or supplements using the little-known secrets of the world’s best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and turbo-charge your metabolism by visiting: www.burnthefat.com.

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Bodybuilding Products That SHOULD Be Invented
By Nick Nilsson

Somebody has yet to fill in these “important” gaps in the bodybuilding product world. Enjoy a humorous look at products that will probably never grace any store shelves but really should.

If you’ve been training for any length of time, you know there are certain shortcomings in the products that are available at the moment. The following is a list of products that I think someone someone should invent. I think a person could make a million dollars with these ideas!

1. The Gasless Protein Shake

If you’re familiar with the gastric rumblings that occur soon after taking a big protein shake, you know how popular this item would be. It will also keep those pesky Environmental Protection Agency people off your back with their “industrial emissions violation” warnings.

2. Bench Press Air Bag Shirt

For the bouncing bencher…helps prevent rib crackage. The air bag inflates automatically when it detects terminal velocity on the bar.

3. The Sweat Alarm

Most useful in a commercial gym, simply attach one of these to each machine. When the electrodes detect sweat left on a machine after a person is done and that person starts to walk away, a loud alarm goes off and pepper sprays them.

4. Self-Cleaning Spit Mirror

This mirror is most useful in front of the squat rack. When a set is done, sensors determine the amount of spit that has appeared on the mirror then sends a squirt of cleaner and a squeegee down the surface.

5. Lister-prot-ine

A combination of Listerine mouth wash and protein powder, this supplement leaves your mouthy minty fresh instead of tasting like nasty rotten milk. Your friends and loved ones will thank you for it!

6. The Smart-A** Weight Belt For The Dumb-A** Trainer With Optional Shock Attachment

Simply put on this belt and sensors with pre-recorded messages tell you in no uncertain terms when you’re doing something stupid that you’re going to hurt yourself with. The optional shock attachment works like the invisible fence shock collar you put on a dog to keep in in the yard. When you break form, the belt tells you what it thinks of you then sends a sharp shock up your spine. You’ll never round your back over when doing squats again!

7. The Timer-Spray Fountain With Backwash Detector

Tired of people taking way too long at the water fountain when there’s a line? Tired of people backwashing into it? Fix that with the Timer-Spray Fountain with Backwash Detector. If a person takes too long or if the fountain detects backwash, a spray of water shoots out at the person to make it look like they wet their pants. Curbs annoying behavior very rapidly!

8. The OverFragranced/B.O. Biohazard Shower

This machine operates much like a metal detector/electronic sniffer. As people leave the changeroom, the machine determines whether they’re wearing too much cologne or perfume, if they’ve got rampant B.O. (or Beyond B.O.), or some eye-watering combination of both. Powerful jets of water immediately rinse the excess aroma away.

9. Barbell Curl Rack

This unique rack gives the barbell curlers an option instead of hogging the squat rack. Because it’s just too hard to pick up that dang heavy bar all the way from the floor…

10. Ego Alert Siren

This clip-on attachment for barbells (most useful in the bench press) automatically detects the speed of the bar on the way down. If the downward velocity exceeds a certain pre-set limit, the Ego Alert automatically goes off, alerting everyone in the immediate 10 square mile radius that you’re trying to use more weight than you should be. Also available: optional laugh track to discourage further Alerts.

11. Chicken Leg Filler Pants

Designed for those sporting the always trendy “riding-a-chicken” look, these pants for the “upper-body-only” trainer are stuffed with high-density foam padding to make your legs look proportioned to the rest of your body. Great for fending off attack dogs, too.

12. GPS Workout Enforcer

This gadget utilizes Global Positioning satellites and beacons attached to the equipment in your gym to track your location in the gym and remind you when you’ve been neglecting certain tiny, little nuisance bodyparts such as your entire lower body.

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Nick Nilsson is Vice-President of the online personal training company BetterU, Inc. He has a degree in Physical Education and Psychology and has been inventing new training techniques for more than 16 years. Nick is the author of a number of bodybuilding eBooks including “Metabolic Surge - Rapid Fat Loss,” “The Best Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of,” “Gluteus to the Maximus - Build a Bigger Butt NOW!” and “The Best Abdominal Exercises You’ve Never Heard Of” all available at http://www.fitness-ebooks.com. He can be contacted at betteru@fitstep.com.