CW, I agree about the muscle mass issue while dieting. Theoretically, creatine could hinder our gains by making our cells sense that they have more energy than they really do. In fact one study suggested that fat loss was slightly hindered by creatine supplementation, but the results really weren’t conclusive enough to make assumptions.
I suggest creatine while dieting, because of the potential anticatabolic effects, and would use it myself if I ever cut up.
Good question!
[quote]Chad Waterbury wrote:
DB,
Forgive me if this issue has been addressed by you, but I’ve got a question.
Do you think creatine is beneficial to those on a cutting phase? To me, it seems that creatine might be even more efficacious to maintain muscle mass during dieting and low-carb phases than bulking phases.
No Disc & LumBARR. I just wanted to be included, too. sniff.
[quote]David Barr wrote:
I would like to thank the following people for their name suggestions in this thread: Mike RoBarrtson, Chad WaterBarry, CrowBarr, MikeTheBarr, and… Get Lifted (damn).[/quote]
One final comment I will make specifically on Blue-Green Algae.
Having tried it once or twice the stuff is exteremely deep in color and VERY strong in taste. More so then any green leafy veggie I have ever seen.
Generally there seems to be a correlation between color/taste and the amount of Anti-O’s in a food(atleast from what I have seen). For example: butter lettuce < romaine < spinach < Kale.
I wonder about the ORAC of foods such as these.
That brings me to another point, has anyone ever done a study on what foods have the most BIOAVAILABLE Anti-O’s? Just because something shows extremely high activity out of the body doesnt mean that those particular chemicals will survive digestion well.
GL, cherries contain the usual complement of antioxidants, flavonoids, and other healthy stuff. They also have something called beta-sistosterol, which is a main ingredient in those cortisol blocking supplements. Eat cherries and get huge?! No, I don’t think so, but it’s a cool idea. LOL
Cherries also contain a little melatonin, but we’d have to eat quite a few for it to have a noticeable effect on us.
As for blood tests, they’re a good way of ensuring that all of this crazy crap we do to our bodies actually helps. For example, my last blood test (a little over a year ago) showed that I was fasting to an unhealthy degree, albeit unintentionally. I was also consuming too many omega-3’s, which I didn’t even know was possible at the time.
So a combination of dietary recall and blood tests will determine overall health. You can also get your hormones checked to ensure that everything is okay for growing muscle and losing fat.
Hope that helps!
[quote]Get Lifted wrote:
Barrrnicle Bob has a question:
I like cherries, barry barry sweet, I like cherries barry barry sweet.
What is cool about cherries. I switched some other fruit out for the cherries to mix things up and I was curious if there is anything nifty about them?
and, Barrrnicle bob wants to know what you can get from a blood test screen or whatever and glucose test that would be useful. I have never had one done before but I thought if I did for fun I would want to know something I could do with it or it would be pointless.
10-15 minuted before is a good time to drink. Also, be sure to have some liquid carbs on hand in case your blood sugar crashes during the workout (which it shouldn’t).
[quote]crowbar524 wrote:
Dave, I drink a whey protein shake with frozen berries blended in and 1/3 cup oats with 3/4-1 cup blueberries, two hours before my morning workout.
I use Surge both before and twice after training. How long before my workout should I be consuming my 1/2 serving (1 scoop) of Surge–1/2 hour, 15 minutes, immediately before?
[quote]David Barr wrote:
elars, can you elaborate on what you mean by “feeling better”?
-A general sense of well being that wasn’ there before. Things haven’t been ruining my day like usuallu happens
-I’m a 400m runner and my workouts are steadily improving, nothing out of the ordinary though.
-My lifting workouts have improved in density: I don’t need as much rest to do the same workout. Again with a decent program nothing really out of the ordinary.
-I’ve noticed an improvement in recovery time between workouts
I’ve increased calorie intake without increasing expenditure and I’ve lost weight and appear leaner.
I don’t directly attribute any of this to the glutamine. Mostly I think it’s more EPA/DHA from fish oil instead of ALA from flax, and the fact that I’ve drastically increased fruits/veggies and have dropped most other carbs except a few bowls of oatmeal in the AM and post-workout.
Looking for some input, here. I workout five days a week pretty hard but haven’t been getting the best results. I figure it’s my nutrition. Been reading up on it. Exactly how stringent do I need to be with my diet? I eat pretty healthy, but I also like to have a beer now and then and sometimes, chicken wings taste pretty darn good.
Also, it’s hard to keep on a regular diet plan when I don’t always cook for myself (i.e., my wife, and dinner at the firehouse). So, do I have to eat on a exact nutrional plan, or can I expect to get decent results with a sensible diet plus a little splurge now and then?
DH, the study participants used 1g/d of ALA, although it doesn’t indicate whether r-ALA was used. I used to use 200mg of r-ALA PWO.
The reason I am cautious about ALA PWO now, is because it works in a similar manner as N-Acetyl Cysteine (NAC). You may recall from the Top Ten article that NAC was one of the antioxidants contributing to muscle damage when consumed in “standard doses”.
Cheers
[quote]Disc Hoss wrote:
ALA does seem to be the best of the breed. I even use it on the AD, despite minimal CHO intake. My blood glucose generally hovers around 90-95 on weekdays.
What dosage is optimal for CM utilization enhancement?
On the partitioning issue, would post exercise be a time to utilize ALA?
Hi david do you have any general recommendations for carb consumption during a fat loss phase. I am using heavy training protocols for low volume. right now i an 6’3 260. i am built solidly with good strength but would like to lose about 30 pounds. any recommendations for be great. do you think a diet rotation would be a good idea. 2 weeks of extreme dieting followed by one week of mainteance or gaining calorie levels
Pretzel, if you’re trying to gain muscle then I encourage splurging! In fact, if it’s not working, do it more often!
While alcohol hinders protein synthesis, the occasional beer won’t hurt. Besides, it’s great for calories.
Are you getting enough protein?
Of course, having said all of that, if your goal is fat loss then that’s a different deal altogether. Let us know!
[quote]Pretzel wrote:
Looking for some input, here. I workout five days a week pretty hard but haven’t been getting the best results. I figure it’s my nutrition. Been reading up on it. Exactly how stringent do I need to be with my diet? I eat pretty healthy, but I also like to have a beer now and then and sometimes, chicken wings taste pretty darn good.
Also, it’s hard to keep on a regular diet plan when I don’t always cook for myself (i.e., my wife, and dinner at the firehouse). So, do I have to eat on a exact nutrional plan, or can I expect to get decent results with a sensible diet plus a little splurge now and then?[/quote]
I just read an interesting study about protein hydrolysate. It seems that there was an immune response when hydrolyzed casein was applied intranasally (I’m not kidding about this). This effect was abolished when the protein was given via IV.
[quote]David Barr wrote:
I just read an interesting study about protein hydrolysate. It seems that there was an immune response when hydrolyzed casein was applied intranasally (I’m not kidding about this). This effect was abolished when the protein was given via IV.
The conclusion? Don’t snort your protein![/quote]
The first time I read that I could’ve sworn it said Intra-anally. Good thing I double-checked before I lost my Grow! scoop.
Tri, for you, keep using your Surge and Grow! intra-anally. It should make those 60 mile bike rides seem like nothing.
[quote]TriGWU wrote:
The first time I read that I could’ve sworn it said Intra-anally. Good thing I double-checked before I lost my Grow! scoop.[/quote]
The reason I brought up the whole intranasal thing, is because I’m sure there will be some kind of lame anti-supplement group using this as a reason why supplements are evil and dangerous.
If we’re all aware of the situation then we can call bullshit on these people. It’s all a matter of protecting our interests.
Cheers
[quote]David Barr wrote:
I just read an interesting study about protein hydrolysate. It seems that there was an immune response when hydrolyzed casein was applied intranasally (I’m not kidding about this). This effect was abolished when the protein was given via IV.
Oral glutamine supplementation has been shown to increase intra nasal levels of IgA, which is a marker of immune system activity. What does this mean you ask?
This has been shown to correlate with enhanced immunity in non-human primates, but not in high level athletes.