Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Friday, February 24, 2017
PLEASE - would you Help Me Help You Tune In Dial Up Shift Gears for your WELLTH SUCCESS
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How can i Help - i’m asking this all the time when engaging with folks who share they’re a bit tired or stressed, or they’re keen to start getting fit, i really want to help! i can HELP SO MUCH - trust me…). I mean, i KNOW - it’s my research ok - that we’re complex and that we can defeat our best plans if we try one practice and expect great results, and we don’t get them, because the other bits of our complexity don’t get tuned to support the new practice.
Like if you start lifting, how make it possible to make sure your rest and food and partying align with that new thing so you feel great rather than totally fatigued? so you burn fat rather than actually start to store more of it? and then feel frustrated because what you believe is supposed to work - stops working.
It’s a personal challenge to let folks have their process but also offer - in a trustful way - that i’m here if you’d like some feedback. I get a little eager.
Like just last night, i asked on twitter for pete’s sake when someone just said they’d successfully lifted some heavy stuff i aks - so what is your aspiration in doing this new thing?
And perhaps they’ll share what they hope to achieve - like they’re now lifting weights and they say it’s cuz they want to get leaner. Like lose weight really.
And i’m trying really hard not to jump up and down and go (in 145 characters)
Too intense?
And see i KNOW that it doesn’t matter about food, right away - moving is great. What's importnat is beginning to build self- efficacy. And hopefully not hurting yourself.
What i’m really trying to do is just flag up - well, you can start here if that sounds great, but if you want to have a chat about this WHOLE THING - rather than try to hack this space and DIY it, and maybe get it right; maybe not, a wee conversation could give you view of the horizon you could use to be aware of some more of the factors you could play with as well to get to your goals FASTER and having more FUN doing it and less risk of injury or frustration.
How say that? Or not? should i not try?
And ok the other thing is - how build trust? This person may never catch up with me about this - why should they? they don’t know me - but maybe they’ll have this conversation with someone else who has a wholistic view.
or not.
Oh it’s hard to shut up shut up shut up and not say oh wow can we talk about this? because i really really like to hear what people do, how they come to their decisions about what they’re doing, and how they support this.
And i like to say “you won’t believe how this really tiny thing can make this HUGE difference? want to know more? How you can test it for yourself?" Cus sometimes these little conversations help figure out that there may be some beliefs that aren’t helpful that are interupting making real gains towards the aspiration.
For instane, a colleague shared about her running, and i offered a tip about pacing she thought was really useful (practicing offer a little and shut up) so when i saw her again, we talked about her runs over the winter - how she wasn’t really cuz it’s wet and yucky out so she’s running up and down her one set of stairs at home. Fantastic. I ask if she’d like to look at something to complement that stair practice if she doesn’t feel like running. She says yes, sure (not sure if she’s just being polite).
So i ask has she ever thought about lifting heavy
stuff (i’m actually thinking about the power of swinging a kettlebell) - and she tells me, no she doesn’t want to bulk up. AND THERE IT IS: the huge belief about weights that keep women from protecting ourselves from osteoporosis. And that’s just the kind of belief so important to explore!
Because guess what? that lack of lifting heavy stuff, means lack of muscle, means lack of stress on the bones from having to support the muscle that is pulling load, means lack of need to have bone because we’re use it or lose it systems, means less tissue laid down, means a future likelihood of osteoporosis. Why don’t guys have as much incidence of osteoporosis? more muscle mass, more stress on bones, more need therefore to have bone, so more bone tissue, more resilience. Jeeze eh?
And as for bulky? What i wouldn’t give for some biceptual bulk! Ha. SO i share as well, it is SO SO hard for women to build mass.
I actually finally say “do i look bulky?” NO! comes the reply Exactly AND I”m REALLY WORKING IT! (See? small white gal - lifts heavy - looks well not like x-fit champion to be sure).
Anyway, to get back to my point about this personal challenge.
I LOVE to talk with folks about how to help them TUNE IN what they’re already doing right now to better support their aspirations. To help them get their foot off the brake if it’s there - if they don’t even know or suspect their foot is on the break while hitting the gas. Or maybe how to shift gears to really pick up momentum - because things are revving really high but things aren’t changing. That ever happen? OR folks just don’t know things they’re doing could feel better, easier...
My challenge is i’d love to develop a way to engage with folks so that i could offer this kind of tune up without overwhelming that person and so it invites trust to explore - not making that person feel defensive - open the possiblity that’s inviting. That i’m keen to hear rather than prescribe; that anything i offer is testable to see how it works etc etc.
So if you connect with me and health or anything about performance comes up - first let me say so sorry if i get a little carried away - i’m working on it to pull back.
And second: as i’ve written about in detail before you really are doing everything you need to be doing for health - you move, you eat, you sleep, you talk with others, you seek to learn new things - all fantastic. What you may find helpful is some insight into how to tune what you’re doign already on those fundamentals to get to that resonant frequency with with these activities where they really just hum. When that dialing in occurs, you can build that resiliane, leanness, fitness, as effeciently and joyfully as possible.
So please pardon me - i’d love to learn about your health aspirations and if i can help you find your path more quickly more joy less chance of injury - at bottom, on my side, this is likely a joyful path for making contact with another human. Some people cook for others; i coach and research and design for health and wellbeing (“wellth”). Thanks for your patience.
Thanks for listening. Have a great fitness practice thing today, whatever you're doing. And heh - door's open...literally
Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Like if you start lifting, how make it possible to make sure your rest and food and partying align with that new thing so you feel great rather than totally fatigued? so you burn fat rather than actually start to store more of it? and then feel frustrated because what you believe is supposed to work - stops working.It’s a personal challenge to let folks have their process but also offer - in a trustful way - that i’m here if you’d like some feedback. I get a little eager.
Like just last night, i asked on twitter for pete’s sake when someone just said they’d successfully lifted some heavy stuff i aks - so what is your aspiration in doing this new thing?
And perhaps they’ll share what they hope to achieve - like they’re now lifting weights and they say it’s cuz they want to get leaner. Like lose weight really.
And i’m trying really hard not to jump up and down and go (in 145 characters)that’s so great that’s super. Heh, what about your diet? You know you can’t outrun a donut, right? not that you’re eating donuts, but i mean working out is great, you’ll get stronger, help your bones all good - but if you really want to kill the fat, if that’s your aspiration, and you’re doing the strong thing, it’s really diet not exercise that’s the prime mover there - i mean do you want to dial that in. And heh, do you know how to do that? what are you doing? i know how to do that. You don’t really know me, but i’m insured, i’m certified, i help people, heh just talk with me, promise this is going to be great. C’mon - maybe what you’re doing is perfect, but maybe just a little tweak could make it exponentially better - like totally - you’ll be so amazed. Really: you’ll be able to test it yourself. It’s awesome.
Too intense?
And see i KNOW that it doesn’t matter about food, right away - moving is great. What's importnat is beginning to build self- efficacy. And hopefully not hurting yourself.
What i’m really trying to do is just flag up - well, you can start here if that sounds great, but if you want to have a chat about this WHOLE THING - rather than try to hack this space and DIY it, and maybe get it right; maybe not, a wee conversation could give you view of the horizon you could use to be aware of some more of the factors you could play with as well to get to your goals FASTER and having more FUN doing it and less risk of injury or frustration.
How say that? Or not? should i not try?
And ok the other thing is - how build trust? This person may never catch up with me about this - why should they? they don’t know me - but maybe they’ll have this conversation with someone else who has a wholistic view.
or not.
Oh it’s hard to shut up shut up shut up and not say oh wow can we talk about this? because i really really like to hear what people do, how they come to their decisions about what they’re doing, and how they support this.
And i like to say “you won’t believe how this really tiny thing can make this HUGE difference? want to know more? How you can test it for yourself?" Cus sometimes these little conversations help figure out that there may be some beliefs that aren’t helpful that are interupting making real gains towards the aspiration.
For instane, a colleague shared about her running, and i offered a tip about pacing she thought was really useful (practicing offer a little and shut up) so when i saw her again, we talked about her runs over the winter - how she wasn’t really cuz it’s wet and yucky out so she’s running up and down her one set of stairs at home. Fantastic. I ask if she’d like to look at something to complement that stair practice if she doesn’t feel like running. She says yes, sure (not sure if she’s just being polite).So i ask has she ever thought about lifting heavy
stuff (i’m actually thinking about the power of swinging a kettlebell) - and she tells me, no she doesn’t want to bulk up. AND THERE IT IS: the huge belief about weights that keep women from protecting ourselves from osteoporosis. And that’s just the kind of belief so important to explore!
Because guess what? that lack of lifting heavy stuff, means lack of muscle, means lack of stress on the bones from having to support the muscle that is pulling load, means lack of need to have bone because we’re use it or lose it systems, means less tissue laid down, means a future likelihood of osteoporosis. Why don’t guys have as much incidence of osteoporosis? more muscle mass, more stress on bones, more need therefore to have bone, so more bone tissue, more resilience. Jeeze eh?
And as for bulky? What i wouldn’t give for some biceptual bulk! Ha. SO i share as well, it is SO SO hard for women to build mass.
 |
| not me |
Anyway, to get back to my point about this personal challenge.
I LOVE to talk with folks about how to help them TUNE IN what they’re already doing right now to better support their aspirations. To help them get their foot off the brake if it’s there - if they don’t even know or suspect their foot is on the break while hitting the gas. Or maybe how to shift gears to really pick up momentum - because things are revving really high but things aren’t changing. That ever happen? OR folks just don’t know things they’re doing could feel better, easier...
My challenge is i’d love to develop a way to engage with folks so that i could offer this kind of tune up without overwhelming that person and so it invites trust to explore - not making that person feel defensive - open the possiblity that’s inviting. That i’m keen to hear rather than prescribe; that anything i offer is testable to see how it works etc etc.
So if you connect with me and health or anything about performance comes up - first let me say so sorry if i get a little carried away - i’m working on it to pull back.
And second: as i’ve written about in detail before you really are doing everything you need to be doing for health - you move, you eat, you sleep, you talk with others, you seek to learn new things - all fantastic. What you may find helpful is some insight into how to tune what you’re doign already on those fundamentals to get to that resonant frequency with with these activities where they really just hum. When that dialing in occurs, you can build that resiliane, leanness, fitness, as effeciently and joyfully as possible.
So please pardon me - i’d love to learn about your health aspirations and if i can help you find your path more quickly more joy less chance of injury - at bottom, on my side, this is likely a joyful path for making contact with another human. Some people cook for others; i coach and research and design for health and wellbeing (“wellth”). Thanks for your patience.
Thanks for listening. Have a great fitness practice thing today, whatever you're doing. And heh - door's open...literally
Tweet Follow @begin2dig
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Sunday, February 19, 2017
Stress as Illusion - Dealing with Stress Toms vs Stress Tigers
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Stress - for me that’s the “i HAVE to get this DONE!!!” Everything else falls before the necessity of this sudden, total imperative. GRRR ARRRGH. You know?
On reflection, as i somehow pause in the midst of one of these exact “i have to” moments (that’s gone on for almost my entire weekend) -i begin to think, you know, a lot of my stress seems to be convenient. It reminds me of the four quadrants for assessing what’s important to do - and what is not that Steven Covey made popular.
Very little, Covey says, is important and urgent: like our child is being rushed to the hospital and so we have to break an appointment.
Lots, says Covey, we let be urgent but it’s not important. Not really. Not such that it has to be attended to right now - which means other stuff - perhaps even important, but not urgent stuff - gets pushed to the side. Again. Sound familiar?
Thing is, i have other stuff to do that is actually important, but feel like i can’t do those other things till i get this one sorted. My focus also becomes intense, like if i look up, it will all fall apart; the “don’t bug me” walls go way up. Someone’s nice to me: i want to growl at them. Somehow this task has become the mission critical one. Is it?
As i pause right now, to ask this question, to confront myself, i find myself having to ask: is the problem i’m dealing with really that life or death that it affects the quality of life i have with those around me? Um. ok it feels that way, but that’s not the truth.
Sometimes it’s just easier to be in this reactive place than to pull back, breath and think more about what’s actually important, needs doing, but doesn’t have the “crisis” excuse wrapped aroung it to get it done. And heh, the stupid thing that does feel like a crisis has another feature: as it becomes an absolute time sink, it can also run out the clock of the day too so that other important thing that’s less interesting on the stack but actually more necessary to do gets delayed - again.
Let me step back: i’m not saying that stress isn’t real. The physiological response to something that sends up all those fight or flight responses - that makes me feel i have to respond to this “threat” right this minute - the very hormonal stress response is real. But i’m good, it seems, in allowing a wee stress trigger to dominate my action.
That is, the thing supposedly triggering the urgent “must do” stress response isn’t a tiger threatening to eat me.
It really isn’t that urgent such that if i don’t fix it, RIGHT NOW, drop everything else, i can’t get any of the important but not urgent stuff done.
Nope, i’m playing a role here in translating a kitty that’s spooked me - maybe even a nasty spraying tom kitty - into a tiger with big sharp teeth - and i’ll tell other people: there’s a tiger!! must get tiger!! get out of my space - when really it’s the tom in the corner.
To ask: what’s important today that this Stress Tom, is deflecting - and most important: has it interfered with me being loving with the folks i only get to go around life with once?
If it’s not really urgent and it’s screwing up my limited time with the folks i love or the things that are important (like a workout that can reduce all those hormal stress responses or doing some work that will add real value in an ongoing way to my life), then i need to find another solution.
For instnace, it may be to stop the stress tom activity and go make some tea for the family and re-engage there, try to talk about the rest of our day, or figure out where i can get some movement - and see if the solution to the Stress Tom doesn’t just manifest.
One way to get this practice is just to check in. If you'd like to try a practice session, for instance, while you're reading this, you might ask first, what is my trigger to know i'm in stress? Next: Am i having one of these moments? When was the last time i had one of those moments? Checking against the quadrants was that a real Tiger - something Urgent and Important - or was it just a stress Tom - Urgent-feeling, but not super important?
My experience, these kinds of reflections help build up the patterns our brains need to be able to (1) recognise these situations more quickly (2) fire up the options we want more quickly to deal with them - to put the cat out, as it were.
Does this process resonate?
Let me know how you identify and cope with your stress tom's
Good luck!
mc
@mcphoo Tweet Follow @begin2dig
On reflection, as i somehow pause in the midst of one of these exact “i have to” moments (that’s gone on for almost my entire weekend) -i begin to think, you know, a lot of my stress seems to be convenient. It reminds me of the four quadrants for assessing what’s important to do - and what is not that Steven Covey made popular.
Stress as Urgency Illusion
The four quads are important/not urgent; important/urgent; Not important/not urgent; not important/urgentVery little, Covey says, is important and urgent: like our child is being rushed to the hospital and so we have to break an appointment.
Lots, says Covey, we let be urgent but it’s not important. Not really. Not such that it has to be attended to right now - which means other stuff - perhaps even important, but not urgent stuff - gets pushed to the side. Again. Sound familiar?
The Techno Trap - stress illusion example
Here’s an example for me: something started happening on a computer network that affects how i can access the content i use to keep parts of my life moving, and i feel i need to get it fixed right away.Thing is, i have other stuff to do that is actually important, but feel like i can’t do those other things till i get this one sorted. My focus also becomes intense, like if i look up, it will all fall apart; the “don’t bug me” walls go way up. Someone’s nice to me: i want to growl at them. Somehow this task has become the mission critical one. Is it?
As i pause right now, to ask this question, to confront myself, i find myself having to ask: is the problem i’m dealing with really that life or death that it affects the quality of life i have with those around me? Um. ok it feels that way, but that’s not the truth.
Sometimes it’s just easier to be in this reactive place than to pull back, breath and think more about what’s actually important, needs doing, but doesn’t have the “crisis” excuse wrapped aroung it to get it done. And heh, the stupid thing that does feel like a crisis has another feature: as it becomes an absolute time sink, it can also run out the clock of the day too so that other important thing that’s less interesting on the stack but actually more necessary to do gets delayed - again.
Stress Tom vs Stress Tiger
So stress, it seems, can be a useful illusion. Useful if i am actually being fearful and want to procrastinate.Let me step back: i’m not saying that stress isn’t real. The physiological response to something that sends up all those fight or flight responses - that makes me feel i have to respond to this “threat” right this minute - the very hormonal stress response is real. But i’m good, it seems, in allowing a wee stress trigger to dominate my action.
That is, the thing supposedly triggering the urgent “must do” stress response isn’t a tiger threatening to eat me.
It really isn’t that urgent such that if i don’t fix it, RIGHT NOW, drop everything else, i can’t get any of the important but not urgent stuff done.
Nope, i’m playing a role here in translating a kitty that’s spooked me - maybe even a nasty spraying tom kitty - into a tiger with big sharp teeth - and i’ll tell other people: there’s a tiger!! must get tiger!! get out of my space - when really it’s the tom in the corner.
So how deal with the Stress Tom (not Stress Tiger)?
Part of the process for me - once i actually get to a pause - has been running the reality check of this supposed urgent thing to do against the Quadrants to find out if what the issue is, is truly urgent or just irritating?To ask: what’s important today that this Stress Tom, is deflecting - and most important: has it interfered with me being loving with the folks i only get to go around life with once?
If it’s not really urgent and it’s screwing up my limited time with the folks i love or the things that are important (like a workout that can reduce all those hormal stress responses or doing some work that will add real value in an ongoing way to my life), then i need to find another solution.
For instnace, it may be to stop the stress tom activity and go make some tea for the family and re-engage there, try to talk about the rest of our day, or figure out where i can get some movement - and see if the solution to the Stress Tom doesn’t just manifest.
Three Steps to Disengage From the Stress Tom Illusion
In sum,- STEP ONE: ID YOUR TOM TRIGGERS: practice recognising i’m having what for me is my stress response. For me that’s anything where i’m saying to myself or others “i have to do this." Usually, that's just not true. And even if it is, what did i do to get there?
- STEP TWO: STOP & REALITY CHECK - Once i hit an "i have to" - the challenge is to disengage from that " i have to" and check it against the quads for true urgency value against true importance value.
- STEP THREE: RECONNECT - If i have a stress tom in front of me - when assessed against the quads, the best way to move it from Tiger to Tom is do something else asap that will re-engage with what’s important, like go be present to someone i love, or go do some push ups.
One way to get this practice is just to check in. If you'd like to try a practice session, for instance, while you're reading this, you might ask first, what is my trigger to know i'm in stress? Next: Am i having one of these moments? When was the last time i had one of those moments? Checking against the quadrants was that a real Tiger - something Urgent and Important - or was it just a stress Tom - Urgent-feeling, but not super important?
My experience, these kinds of reflections help build up the patterns our brains need to be able to (1) recognise these situations more quickly (2) fire up the options we want more quickly to deal with them - to put the cat out, as it were.
Does this process resonate?
Let me know how you identify and cope with your stress tom's
Good luck!
mc
@mcphoo Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Sunday, March 20, 2016
The Cream of Fake Health Foods
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If we see something that says we can have all the flavours of something supposedly sinful like heavy (or in the EU double) cream but with an Nth of the calories - and in fact that that product will BURN fat and suppress appetite, what wouldn’t we pay for it?
How about 20bucks for 280g (about a pint)?
Recently i saw this post on a fitness challenge site by one of the participants:
"Leaner Creamer is the realization that a healthy alternative to fatty coffee creamers can exist"
Healthy? Healthier? Time for the Claims Check, Please.
First troubling bit: you won’t find the nutrient breakdown on the product site, but you can find it.
Creamer ingredients (14)Coconut Oil, Maltodextrin, Natural Flavors, Sodium Caseinate(A Milk Derivative), Mono, and, Diglycerides, Dextrose, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tricalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin, Silicone Dioxide.17% Proprietary Blend:Citrus Aurantium, Hoodia Gordonii Extract, Green Tea Extract.- See more at food facts:
You know, this does look remarkably like the ingredient list for flamable coffee mate or similar. IN fact about the only differences are the added supplements at the end, and the presence of some coconut oil.
Which on the health side, raises the question:
IF this is the same as regular (flammable)highly processed coffee creamer, how is it "healthier" than cream? Coconut oil (first ingredient) needs to be processed to become a powder that will dissolve like a fat when put in hot water: that's in part the role of the maltodextrin (type of sugar) and the fifth and sixth ingredients: mono and di glyserides as emulsifiers - these also make up some of the fat content. In other words fat from the coconut oil is extracted, and some of these other fats are put in. How much coconut oil is really left?
Note also that after the little bits of fat and sugar, there's flavourings. The third ingredient is flavouring - unnamed - who knows derived from what.
Then i looked to find the nutrient calorie info. Amazing reading
First off, the serving size is 1teaspon (5g of a 280g bottle) like a packet of "powdered creamer" for coffee. For 1 teaspoon it's listed as 10kcal. There are 17.5kcal in that amount of heavy cream. Half and half has 7.5! interesting, eh?
Looking
on amazon for non-organic sugar and coconut oil, it works out to about just under 2c for real coconut oil and just over 2c for maltodextrin - or 2.5c if using table sugar - per serving. Times 112 per container that's less than three bucks - retail.
So, LESS than 1/5 of this 5g serving (less than 1g) has these special bits in it. Let's round up and call it 1g to see what 1g of Citrus Auratium, Hoodia and Green Tea are supposed to do there.
Hoodia extract has just about nill evidence that it "tricks the body into feeling full" and if you were going to use it, coffee may be the last place you'd pay to have it. Why? Because caffeine IS a certified, verified by a ton of studies, appetite suppresant all on its own. Also - the fat in cream cues the body towards satiety (here's a post about fat tea using some cream and some coconut oil), so no need to play around with hoodia there. But how much is needed to have any effect? well, again: no science means who knows? Guesses anecdotally go from 1500-3000mg a day. A 60 cap bottle of 250mg pills can go for 20bucks - for unknown value. Just saying.
Green Tea extract (some more info here) - for it to have any sort of real fat burning effect, we're talking about isolating ECGC - the catachins in the green tea. And by the way, as with caffeine, some folks get heart palpatations from this stuff so approach with caution. What we do not know from this company is what the purity of the extract is. You may be paying for the sweepings of the tea house floor as 1/3 or less of that 1g of stuff in your creamer. In research studies, doses to have an effect OVER TIME included green tea with 690mg of Catechins total, of which 136mg were EGCG - but here, we don't know what makes up this extract.
One look at supplement shelves will show you how varied the amounts can be.
Fortunately there have been studies using just green tea, too, where the amounts of catechins are known - and that seems to work too - when calculating your costs).
Then there's Bitter Orange. another debatable component for fat burning. I love how WebMD describes its use: this stuff, and caffeine and st john's wort and "low calorie diet and exercise" may help with weight loss. That's like saying an iron nail and 3.50 will get you an americano at starbucks. Mind you other studies did not even find that. So of all this what do we have where we really can make any claims?
OF course the only way this really works is if the main ingredient of this 17% proporietary thing is green tea extract being close to a gram and then only the tiniest bits of hoodia and bitter orange.
That way the manufacturers can say they have these three ingredients, without saying amounts.
And then again, it's not likely they're using FDA approved labs (like the supplements i was quoting) to add their inredients either.
Metabolism claims??
"Further, it increases the body’s metabolic rate by removing stress on the pancreas,"
I have no idea what that means. Stress on the pancrease? that doesn't quite make sense.
It might be more sensible to say that coconut oil’s particular kinds of fats are used more readily for fuel almost like carbs rather than being stored (citric acid cycle and all that), but even saying that, metabolism is more complicated than that, but heck, the simple truth is, eating too much is eating too much - pretty much no matter what that source is.
Or if you’re trying to get leaner quicker, try a no-cal beverage like black coffee or green tea you can enjoy at near zero kcal’s and get the benefits of these real deals.
The fat in cream also has a satiety effect and a great mouth feel without additives. If you like dairy.
If you want the benefits of green tea extract, try exploring japanese green tea.
You can get some of the best in the world at teevana for the same amount as a pint of this stuff and you can reuse the tea leaves - from 20g of genmaicha i can get about five to seven liters (or seven big pots) - that's tea for about a week.
Or 20bucks can get two big jars of organic coconut oil - if you don't like the taste - don't get the extra virgin: it's pretty taste-neutral.
And sugar -well - if desperate you can get that for free where you buy your coffee.
And skip the hoodia/bitter orange.
I'm just testing the claims. and sadly, Coffee Creamer even with a literal pinch of hoodia added is still coffee creamer.
As per usual: whole real food is better and (unless super subsidized like sugar in the US and EU) cheaper than supplements.
Eat less; mostly plants, as Michael Pollan says. and Save your money - for more whole food?
just food for thought
mc
@mcphoo Tweet Follow @begin2dig
 |
| getting heavy about cream |
How about 20bucks for 280g (about a pint)?
Recently i saw this post on a fitness challenge site by one of the participants:
For all multiple cups a day coffee drinkers like me, I have your morning joe's new best mate!
Supresses appetite, taste delicious, and a healthier alternative to pounds of creame in your coffee!My favorite product of the week, Leaner Creamer!
"Leaner Creamer is the realization that a healthy alternative to fatty coffee creamers can exist. Leaner Creamer revolutionizes the cherished ritual of coffee drinking by adding the benefits of appetite suppression and weight-loss while you enjoy your java!"
Made with Hoodia extract, a plant native to the Kalahari Desert that tricks your brain into thinking it's full. Coconut oil easy to digest and it helps in healthy functioning of the thyroid and endocrine system. Further, it increases the body’s metabolic rate by removing stress on the pancreas, thereby burning more energy and helping obese and overweight people lose the weight. Green tea extract to increase metabolism and fat oxidation, inhibit fat cell development, and increase fat excretion!I love it, use it every day, taste great, stops me from snacking! Check it out!Wow! and i thought a pint of whole organic cream in the US at 5.60 was expensive. THis is 19.95 . For POWDER!
"Leaner Creamer is the realization that a healthy alternative to fatty coffee creamers can exist"
Healthy? Healthier? Time for the Claims Check, Please.
First troubling bit: you won’t find the nutrient breakdown on the product site, but you can find it.
Creamer ingredients (14)Coconut Oil, Maltodextrin, Natural Flavors, Sodium Caseinate(A Milk Derivative), Mono, and, Diglycerides, Dextrose, Dipotassium Phosphate, Tricalcium Phosphate, Soy Lecithin, Silicone Dioxide.17% Proprietary Blend:Citrus Aurantium, Hoodia Gordonii Extract, Green Tea Extract.- See more at food facts:
You know, this does look remarkably like the ingredient list for flamable coffee mate or similar. IN fact about the only differences are the added supplements at the end, and the presence of some coconut oil.
Which on the health side, raises the question:
IF this is the same as regular (flammable)highly processed coffee creamer, how is it "healthier" than cream? Coconut oil (first ingredient) needs to be processed to become a powder that will dissolve like a fat when put in hot water: that's in part the role of the maltodextrin (type of sugar) and the fifth and sixth ingredients: mono and di glyserides as emulsifiers - these also make up some of the fat content. In other words fat from the coconut oil is extracted, and some of these other fats are put in. How much coconut oil is really left?
Note also that after the little bits of fat and sugar, there's flavourings. The third ingredient is flavouring - unnamed - who knows derived from what.
Then i looked to find the nutrient calorie info. Amazing reading
First off, the serving size is 1teaspon (5g of a 280g bottle) like a packet of "powdered creamer" for coffee. For 1 teaspoon it's listed as 10kcal. There are 17.5kcal in that amount of heavy cream. Half and half has 7.5! interesting, eh?
Basic Real Ingredient Comparison
Of the total calories per serving (1 teaspoon or 5g) only .5g is fat. 5 fat calories. the other 5kcal are from carbs. That's the second, third and sixth ingredients: Maltodextrin (sugar) Sodium Caseinate (trace amounts of protein from milk but mostly a flavouring/texture "food additive") and more sugar. As said, basic coffee creamer. Free when you get a black coffee at a store.SO, what are you paying for at 20 bucks a pop? Analysis of basics:
There is Less than half a teaspoon of "coconut oil" and less than half a teaspoon of "sugar. “ in this stuffLooking
on amazon for non-organic sugar and coconut oil, it works out to about just under 2c for real coconut oil and just over 2c for maltodextrin - or 2.5c if using table sugar - per serving. Times 112 per container that's less than three bucks - retail.
Where's the other 17 dollars worth of retail product coming from?
The rest are little bits of stuff to give it the colour/flavour of cream and then there's the "17% proprietary blend" that includes "Citrus Aurantium, Hoodia Gordonii Extract, Green Tea Extract"So, LESS than 1/5 of this 5g serving (less than 1g) has these special bits in it. Let's round up and call it 1g to see what 1g of Citrus Auratium, Hoodia and Green Tea are supposed to do there.
Hoodia extract has just about nill evidence that it "tricks the body into feeling full" and if you were going to use it, coffee may be the last place you'd pay to have it. Why? Because caffeine IS a certified, verified by a ton of studies, appetite suppresant all on its own. Also - the fat in cream cues the body towards satiety (here's a post about fat tea using some cream and some coconut oil), so no need to play around with hoodia there. But how much is needed to have any effect? well, again: no science means who knows? Guesses anecdotally go from 1500-3000mg a day. A 60 cap bottle of 250mg pills can go for 20bucks - for unknown value. Just saying.
Green Tea extract (some more info here) - for it to have any sort of real fat burning effect, we're talking about isolating ECGC - the catachins in the green tea. And by the way, as with caffeine, some folks get heart palpatations from this stuff so approach with caution. What we do not know from this company is what the purity of the extract is. You may be paying for the sweepings of the tea house floor as 1/3 or less of that 1g of stuff in your creamer. In research studies, doses to have an effect OVER TIME included green tea with 690mg of Catechins total, of which 136mg were EGCG - but here, we don't know what makes up this extract.
One look at supplement shelves will show you how varied the amounts can be.
Fortunately there have been studies using just green tea, too, where the amounts of catechins are known - and that seems to work too - when calculating your costs).
Then there's Bitter Orange. another debatable component for fat burning. I love how WebMD describes its use: this stuff, and caffeine and st john's wort and "low calorie diet and exercise" may help with weight loss. That's like saying an iron nail and 3.50 will get you an americano at starbucks. Mind you other studies did not even find that. So of all this what do we have where we really can make any claims?
Prices for the rest of the 1g for those 112 servings
If we just divided these supplements into common ways they're bottled- 400 mg of GTE by now is 14 bucks for 250 caps or 6.272 for 112
- 400 mg hoodia is 18.99 for 180 caps or 11.82 for 112
- and
- 170 mg is 9.49 for 60 - so need to double this - say 20 for 120 18.66
OF course the only way this really works is if the main ingredient of this 17% proporietary thing is green tea extract being close to a gram and then only the tiniest bits of hoodia and bitter orange.
That way the manufacturers can say they have these three ingredients, without saying amounts.
And then again, it's not likely they're using FDA approved labs (like the supplements i was quoting) to add their inredients either.
Metabolism claims??
"Further, it increases the body’s metabolic rate by removing stress on the pancreas,"
I have no idea what that means. Stress on the pancrease? that doesn't quite make sense.
It might be more sensible to say that coconut oil’s particular kinds of fats are used more readily for fuel almost like carbs rather than being stored (citric acid cycle and all that), but even saying that, metabolism is more complicated than that, but heck, the simple truth is, eating too much is eating too much - pretty much no matter what that source is.
BOTTOM HEALTH and Cost LINE:
From the ingredients we see that this is pretty much coffee creamer powder that costs 8 bucks for 340g or, 6.22 - less than a third of what this stuff costs. Even the dairy derivative sodium casinate is present.You are in other words PAYING THROUGH THE NOSE - for those UNKNOWN amounts of UNKNOWN quality supplements that are but for the green tea of dubious benefit for weight loss or satiety.
Alternatives:
If the concern is to be “healthy” - decrease ingestion of chemicals and increase ingestion of whole foods. Like real cream or real coconut oil.Or if you’re trying to get leaner quicker, try a no-cal beverage like black coffee or green tea you can enjoy at near zero kcal’s and get the benefits of these real deals.
As for better fat burning and satiety?
Well, the types of fats that lead to fat burnding from coconut oil will also be found - pending the season - in organic milk/cream - along with other types of fat burning fats like CLT. So if you like dairy, organic cream is not unhealthy.The fat in cream also has a satiety effect and a great mouth feel without additives. If you like dairy.
If you want the benefits of green tea extract, try exploring japanese green tea.
You can get some of the best in the world at teevana for the same amount as a pint of this stuff and you can reuse the tea leaves - from 20g of genmaicha i can get about five to seven liters (or seven big pots) - that's tea for about a week.
Or 20bucks can get two big jars of organic coconut oil - if you don't like the taste - don't get the extra virgin: it's pretty taste-neutral.
And sugar -well - if desperate you can get that for free where you buy your coffee.
And skip the hoodia/bitter orange.
Bottom Bottom Line: we’re suckers for a quick fix,eh?
We are trusting creatures, especially when folks are selling things that sound great. If we're affluent enough, we'll buy it and try it.I'm just testing the claims. and sadly, Coffee Creamer even with a literal pinch of hoodia added is still coffee creamer.
As per usual: whole real food is better and (unless super subsidized like sugar in the US and EU) cheaper than supplements.
Eat less; mostly plants, as Michael Pollan says. and Save your money - for more whole food?
just food for thought
mc
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Friday, November 19, 2010
And Speaking of Indian Clubs...Swords to Ploughshares and sticks to fishing poles - kali
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All this thinking and chatting about indian clubs and swinging things recently rather reminds me of a secret desire i have to be able to whack at "things" (you know? things!!) with sticks.
Rannoch Donald, Monk of the North of Simple Strength, shows how both can be accomplished by blending Thomas-esque style club swinging (as discussed yesterday) with Filipino Kali Sticks - and while i don't know the formal history of the sticks i understand that there's a fishing pole part to the history. How nice is that? If someone messes with your effort to get a meal for your family, what else ya gonna do?
Rannoch suggests looking at the similarities of the two movements. Cool, no?
These are but a few attractions of Edinburgh:
Rannoch's promise to show me how to use sticks (potentially to whack things), and good coffee (like black medicine, by the eScience center)
If you need more of an excuse to get to Edinburgh. There's also my fave suit shop, 21st Century Kilts (ask for Howie, and suggest mc from the south recommended you).
But also, Rannoch has a bunch of workshops in Edinburgh coming up. Please check them out here at Simple Strength. And while you're at it, perhaps consider Rannoch's amazingly elegant 100 Rep Challenge. Fitness can be easy, and Rannoch sweeps a clear path to get one there. Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Rannoch Donald, Monk of the North of Simple Strength, shows how both can be accomplished by blending Thomas-esque style club swinging (as discussed yesterday) with Filipino Kali Sticks - and while i don't know the formal history of the sticks i understand that there's a fishing pole part to the history. How nice is that? If someone messes with your effort to get a meal for your family, what else ya gonna do?Rannoch suggests looking at the similarities of the two movements. Cool, no?
These are but a few attractions of Edinburgh:
Rannoch's promise to show me how to use sticks (potentially to whack things), and good coffee (like black medicine, by the eScience center)
If you need more of an excuse to get to Edinburgh. There's also my fave suit shop, 21st Century Kilts (ask for Howie, and suggest mc from the south recommended you).But also, Rannoch has a bunch of workshops in Edinburgh coming up. Please check them out here at Simple Strength. And while you're at it, perhaps consider Rannoch's amazingly elegant 100 Rep Challenge. Fitness can be easy, and Rannoch sweeps a clear path to get one there. Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
How To Coach Nutrition for Health, Fitness and Body Comp Goals: do the Precision Nutrition Level 1 cert
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When is a PhD useless? Ok that's extreme, but if you listen to John Berardi talk about his nutrition coaching and his PhD, he says it's when it didn't help him do what he wanted to do: coach folks how to improve their nutrition and achieve their fitness, health and body comp goals:
Whether you're intrested in upping your nutrition know how for training others, or just want to know what a great coach would be able to offer, this course overview may be of interest.
Success: I've just completed the PN level 1 cert, and it's very good (and i'm v.happy, too. You know, yay i passed? happy dance time). One might ask, how would i know a good nutrition course if it fell on me since i don't hold either an RD or a PhD in Nutrition or Exercise Physiology myself? Well, here's the thing: i have a lot of reps designing and evaluating grad and undergrad courses in a number of subjects, and reviewing text books for publishers. Quality will out. The same stuff that makes a good course in one area, i've seen, pretty much makes a good course elsewhere too.
Also, in recognised training certs like the NSCA CSCS (which i do hold), there is a Big Component on bioenergetics, how the body uses nutrients for exercise, as featured in the text Essentials of Strenght and Conditioning
. That courses' materials are pretty comprehensive. Similarly there are excellent general course texts in Exercise physiology like the awesome 7th edition of McArdle and team's Exercise Physiology.
In both cases, the text material covers a lot more than nutrition. Meaning that, compared to PN's cert which is solely focused on nutrition coaching (with an eye on the need for exercise too), is better.
I still highly recommend doing the CSCS or related to get the foundational knowledge for those of us who mayn't be coming through a formal sports degree program, but for getting deeper into how to fuel someone's fuel to meet their health, fitness and body comp goals, more is needed. And the right more. Hence PN L1
In the PN cert, the course is delivered in two parts: nutrition fundamentals and nutrition coaching - all focused around health, fitness and body comp goals for the person involved. I take it that's a pretty unique emPHAsis.
Nutrition and Energy, part 1
The first half of the PN certification focuses on the usual stuff one might expect to be covered in a course about nutrition, like how carbs and fats and proteins are processed in the body, but for me, it's done in a more accessible while still not oversimplified way. It also has components that the trainer certs so far have not. For instance, it's chapter on Water Balance goes well beyond what i've found in any of the cert texts and several grad course texts. The explanation on hyponatremia (too much water) is fantanstic - and by the way, too much water in a practical sense means relative to sodium balance. Amazing and rather critical point. Likewise the case study on how to use water effectively over a ten day period to make weight for a competition. Nice practical wisdom.
Something else nicely done is digestion itself. Rather than just getting info on macro & micro nutrients, we get the big picture: what happens to a lump of food from the moment it enters the body till it leaves the body. Makes sense but you'll be hard pressed to find that in most units on nutrition or even text books on bioenergetics. Did you know that a hunk of food once it's moved from the stomach into the gut has a name? It's called the chyme. Before that, once masticated to be swallowed, it's a bolus.
Combined Play
That may seem like nice info but not essential. Fine. The thing that really gets me going about this course are the questions posed in the study guide to see if one has grokked what's going on in the material. They are so basic that one wonders why this stuff isn't a core highschool curriculum. We may not come with a manual, and there's lots of stuff we don't know, but there are some things over which there is a larger consensus. How do you do with these questions:
Above and beyond the nutrients, the vitamins, the phytochemicals, the authors are dead keen on people talking about, thinking about FOOD rather than macro/micro nutrients. "Because people eat food" and because food is more than macro/micro nutrients. Its got psycho- / sociologico- components, and these things are important for coaching real people who eat real food. Ah but we like to play with supplements, too, do we not? Well that's actually in the coaching section: how to understand when and where these might come into play.
Successfully Coaching Change, part 2
While this kind of clarity around digestive and absorptive processes especially relative to energy needs is fascinating and important, and i feel the better for having it, where the course sets itself apart is in how it maps out a process of coaching towards "outcomes based" goals. That is, goals that are meaningful, doable and especially, trace-able.
There is as much attention to this part of coaching as professional practice as there is to the nutrition theory. Here's a practical take away. Folks who have used PN know that measures it takes are not only the scale and girth, but also 7 site skinfolds. Actually getting readings at each of those skinfold sites can offer up information about what may be going on in the body if say, fat is being lost from all but one of those sites. How bout that, eh? I'd spend a lot of time going through the literature looking at the accuracy of one measuring technique over another and why and when 7point sf's are good; had not once come across the value of any of those sites for specific information. Wicked.
Oh and here are a few questions from the Coaching part of the program:
The coaching part of the program has mutliple key components presented in progressive sensible fashion, each situated within when someone would do what : from gathering info, to interpreting it, to using it to formulate a plan, to assessing when it's actually the program not client adherence that may need tweaking; how to tweak a plan. And more: how to anticipate and work with client issues around getting one with their new nutrition practice.
Course Approach: Athlete at the Center
I've said recently how i really like the model of coaching that puts the athlete at the center and then considers the athlete's needs (i use the term athlete in the z-health way where if you're moving you're an athlete). I've presented the 9S model (overview here) that includes categorizes those needs in terms of sustenance, suppleness, strength, spirit, speed, skill, stamina, structure and style. The job of a great coach is to be able to figure out what the athlete needs when, and how to offer those skills to that athlete in a way that the athlete can hear and use.
The Precision Nutrition Level 1 cert gives a coach an awful lot of those tools for the sustentance part of that coaching. It helps the coach
Course Materials:
Beyond the approach and deliverables of the cert content, this course just kinda sings of quality, thought and beta testing. From a pedagogy perspective, this course presents really well constructed, well considered material, from the content to the study aids (and there are copious study aids for various learning modes). Likewise the material has been used for a module in a masters program, so it's had high level students test it out. And students are not shy of sharing what they think of materials. Its apparently thrived in that environment.
If you're interested in checking out the program, PN has made a TON of material available to provide a clear sense of the course. If you sign up to the waiting list to do the course you'll see that what's on the label is what's in the tin. To connect you with some of those weigh points:
Text Book Overview. The table of contents for the PN Cert textbook is online here. That will give you a very clear idea of the material covered and assessed by the program in both bioenergetics and coaching parts. Because the material here is not a single module in a larger program as it is in various trainer certs there is space to go into the material in a meaningful and applied way and in significant but practical detail. It's just a great book.
Previewing the Coaching Methodology: If you'd like to get a flavour of the coaching methodology, there's a free, five day, 12 mins a day, mini course for trainers that PN has set up - and they provide the forms used for client assessment, too. I'm kinda stunned at how much material is given away in this wee freebie. If this mini-course speaks to you, then the cert will be right up your street. 6 forms of those used in the course for assessments are provided - that gives one an idea of the kinds of tools one will be able to offer a client to develop a meaningful assessment and build an effective outcomes-based program.
Likewise, if you'd like a sense of the bibliography that informs this approach towards client support, here's an overview of the coaching books Berardi recommends.
Questions to ask a prospective coach on Nutrition
Even if you're not personally interested in taking a PN cert, looking at the above will help get a handle on what a great coach will be able to do to work WITH and FOR you and your goals.
So if you're looking for a nutrition coach - someone to help you get going or tweak what you're doing, an easy thing you can do is just look at who's already listed with PN and go from there.
If you'er interested in someone who isn't listed, there are some questions you may want to ask:
Summary: Qualified
Last year i did a five day super intense course on nutrition and getting into some very intense topics in what's going on with inflammation, foods, diets and looking at the homeostatic and hedonistic attributes that contribute to why, effectively, change is tough. That course too spend a good deal of time on coaching practice with emphasis on motivational interviewing and approaches very much in sync with Berardi's above. We practiced these techniques a lot. I keep thinking what great synergies there are between these two programs.
Looking Ahead from "theory" to praxis. Now PNL1 is what PN calls the "theory" side of their certification process. At a chapter a week, it's about a 16 week course. Some folks doing 2-3 chapters a week, it's faster. There's an invitation-only Level 2 which is a practicum and it's 6months long. It hasn't started up. But based on how much further ahead i feel with just this "theory" on nutrition coaching, i am prepared to be gob smacked by what the Level 2 practicum will require and provide.
I've worked with folks before on nutrition planning. I've felt good about my work with folks and their progress. Right now, with this cert, i have to say i feel WAY better. I have better tools, resources, knowledge to enhance the skills i have and offer way better support.
Excellent course, highly recommended. If you're looking for a great cert to add effective practical nutrition coaching to your practice, this is an awesome course. Even the exam is great - with an 80% pass rate. Really engaging. How often does one say that about an exam.
Likewise, of course, if you're looking for good nutrition coaching, the PN certified directory is a great place to start. G'head, call me.
Related Posts
Precision Nutrition: personal nutrition benchmarking. Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Enter the Precision Nutrition Level 1 certification, designed by Berardi, the co-founder and chief science officer of Precision Nutrition, and Ryan Andrews, RD and director for education at PN (and interviewed recently here at b2d). Its design fills a considerable gap in the nutrition coaching space for health, fitness and body comp success. Why? because it covers not only nutrition fundamentals, but then devotes the same amount of energy to how to apply and coach that esoterica in a way that is meaningful for people who eat food.Ultimately, I went to study in the Exercise and Nutrition Lab at the University of Western Ontario, and wrapped up my grad work in Exercise Physiology and Nutrient Biochemistry. But really, I never learned what I set out to learn — exercise and sport nutrition coaching.
John Berardi, PhD, CSCS
Whether you're intrested in upping your nutrition know how for training others, or just want to know what a great coach would be able to offer, this course overview may be of interest.
Success: I've just completed the PN level 1 cert, and it's very good (and i'm v.happy, too. You know, yay i passed? happy dance time). One might ask, how would i know a good nutrition course if it fell on me since i don't hold either an RD or a PhD in Nutrition or Exercise Physiology myself? Well, here's the thing: i have a lot of reps designing and evaluating grad and undergrad courses in a number of subjects, and reviewing text books for publishers. Quality will out. The same stuff that makes a good course in one area, i've seen, pretty much makes a good course elsewhere too.
Also, in recognised training certs like the NSCA CSCS (which i do hold), there is a Big Component on bioenergetics, how the body uses nutrients for exercise, as featured in the text Essentials of Strenght and Conditioning. That courses' materials are pretty comprehensive. Similarly there are excellent general course texts in Exercise physiology like the awesome 7th edition of McArdle and team's Exercise Physiology. In both cases, the text material covers a lot more than nutrition. Meaning that, compared to PN's cert which is solely focused on nutrition coaching (with an eye on the need for exercise too), is better.I still highly recommend doing the CSCS or related to get the foundational knowledge for those of us who mayn't be coming through a formal sports degree program, but for getting deeper into how to fuel someone's fuel to meet their health, fitness and body comp goals, more is needed. And the right more. Hence PN L1In the PN cert, the course is delivered in two parts: nutrition fundamentals and nutrition coaching - all focused around health, fitness and body comp goals for the person involved. I take it that's a pretty unique emPHAsis.
Nutrition and Energy, part 1
The first half of the PN certification focuses on the usual stuff one might expect to be covered in a course about nutrition, like how carbs and fats and proteins are processed in the body, but for me, it's done in a more accessible while still not oversimplified way. It also has components that the trainer certs so far have not. For instance, it's chapter on Water Balance goes well beyond what i've found in any of the cert texts and several grad course texts. The explanation on hyponatremia (too much water) is fantanstic - and by the way, too much water in a practical sense means relative to sodium balance. Amazing and rather critical point. Likewise the case study on how to use water effectively over a ten day period to make weight for a competition. Nice practical wisdom.
Something else nicely done is digestion itself. Rather than just getting info on macro & micro nutrients, we get the big picture: what happens to a lump of food from the moment it enters the body till it leaves the body. Makes sense but you'll be hard pressed to find that in most units on nutrition or even text books on bioenergetics. Did you know that a hunk of food once it's moved from the stomach into the gut has a name? It's called the chyme. Before that, once masticated to be swallowed, it's a bolus.
Combined Play
That may seem like nice info but not essential. Fine. The thing that really gets me going about this course are the questions posed in the study guide to see if one has grokked what's going on in the material. They are so basic that one wonders why this stuff isn't a core highschool curriculum. We may not come with a manual, and there's lots of stuff we don't know, but there are some things over which there is a larger consensus. How do you do with these questions:
- What are the two most important nutrient/energy stores in the human body? How are the responsible for survival?
- What does cholesterol actually do? Why is it important.
- What are ketones? why are they formed?
- What happens to carbs from mouth to cell?
- What's the relation of the fat we eat to our cells' membranes?
- In what ways can you estimate water needs for clients?
Above and beyond the nutrients, the vitamins, the phytochemicals, the authors are dead keen on people talking about, thinking about FOOD rather than macro/micro nutrients. "Because people eat food" and because food is more than macro/micro nutrients. Its got psycho- / sociologico- components, and these things are important for coaching real people who eat real food. Ah but we like to play with supplements, too, do we not? Well that's actually in the coaching section: how to understand when and where these might come into play.
Successfully Coaching Change, part 2
While this kind of clarity around digestive and absorptive processes especially relative to energy needs is fascinating and important, and i feel the better for having it, where the course sets itself apart is in how it maps out a process of coaching towards "outcomes based" goals. That is, goals that are meaningful, doable and especially, trace-able.
There is as much attention to this part of coaching as professional practice as there is to the nutrition theory. Here's a practical take away. Folks who have used PN know that measures it takes are not only the scale and girth, but also 7 site skinfolds. Actually getting readings at each of those skinfold sites can offer up information about what may be going on in the body if say, fat is being lost from all but one of those sites. How bout that, eh? I'd spend a lot of time going through the literature looking at the accuracy of one measuring technique over another and why and when 7point sf's are good; had not once come across the value of any of those sites for specific information. Wicked.
Oh and here are a few questions from the Coaching part of the program:
- Why is it important to know a client's previous exercise habits?
- What are five staple supplements for regular or occasional use?
- What are five strategies you can use when choosing supplements to improve the risk/reward profile?
- What are the most common food allergies in adults?
- When displaying professsional committment to your clients, what key factors should you keep in mind?
- When might counting calories be important to your client's success.
- What can you suggest to clients who lack social support?
- What's your client's limiting factor for making change?
The coaching part of the program has mutliple key components presented in progressive sensible fashion, each situated within when someone would do what : from gathering info, to interpreting it, to using it to formulate a plan, to assessing when it's actually the program not client adherence that may need tweaking; how to tweak a plan. And more: how to anticipate and work with client issues around getting one with their new nutrition practice.
Course Approach: Athlete at the Center
I've said recently how i really like the model of coaching that puts the athlete at the center and then considers the athlete's needs (i use the term athlete in the z-health way where if you're moving you're an athlete). I've presented the 9S model (overview here) that includes categorizes those needs in terms of sustenance, suppleness, strength, spirit, speed, skill, stamina, structure and style. The job of a great coach is to be able to figure out what the athlete needs when, and how to offer those skills to that athlete in a way that the athlete can hear and use.
The Precision Nutrition Level 1 cert gives a coach an awful lot of those tools for the sustentance part of that coaching. It helps the coach
- assess where an athlete is at with respect to nutrition and nutrition change right now
- it provides sufficient knowledge on nutrition and communication to be able to understand how to tune a program for that athlete
- if offers strategies to help guide the athlete through the change process.
- it affords a network of colleagues to connect about challenges in practice.
Course Materials:
Beyond the approach and deliverables of the cert content, this course just kinda sings of quality, thought and beta testing. From a pedagogy perspective, this course presents really well constructed, well considered material, from the content to the study aids (and there are copious study aids for various learning modes). Likewise the material has been used for a module in a masters program, so it's had high level students test it out. And students are not shy of sharing what they think of materials. Its apparently thrived in that environment.
If you're interested in checking out the program, PN has made a TON of material available to provide a clear sense of the course. If you sign up to the waiting list to do the course you'll see that what's on the label is what's in the tin. To connect you with some of those weigh points:
Previewing the Coaching Methodology: If you'd like to get a flavour of the coaching methodology, there's a free, five day, 12 mins a day, mini course for trainers that PN has set up - and they provide the forms used for client assessment, too. I'm kinda stunned at how much material is given away in this wee freebie. If this mini-course speaks to you, then the cert will be right up your street. 6 forms of those used in the course for assessments are provided - that gives one an idea of the kinds of tools one will be able to offer a client to develop a meaningful assessment and build an effective outcomes-based program.
Likewise, if you'd like a sense of the bibliography that informs this approach towards client support, here's an overview of the coaching books Berardi recommends.
Questions to ask a prospective coach on Nutrition
Even if you're not personally interested in taking a PN cert, looking at the above will help get a handle on what a great coach will be able to do to work WITH and FOR you and your goals.
So if you're looking for a nutrition coach - someone to help you get going or tweak what you're doing, an easy thing you can do is just look at who's already listed with PN and go from there.
If you'er interested in someone who isn't listed, there are some questions you may want to ask:
- how do you assess where i'm at and what my needs are?
- How do you refine goals?
- What is your style of coaching?
- How do you measure progress?
- how frequently do we meet?
- What materials will you provide me?
- How long will "it" take to get where i want to go with you?
- How will you assess that?
- What kind of tuning do you do on an approach, when?
Summary: Qualified
Last year i did a five day super intense course on nutrition and getting into some very intense topics in what's going on with inflammation, foods, diets and looking at the homeostatic and hedonistic attributes that contribute to why, effectively, change is tough. That course too spend a good deal of time on coaching practice with emphasis on motivational interviewing and approaches very much in sync with Berardi's above. We practiced these techniques a lot. I keep thinking what great synergies there are between these two programs.
Looking Ahead from "theory" to praxis. Now PNL1 is what PN calls the "theory" side of their certification process. At a chapter a week, it's about a 16 week course. Some folks doing 2-3 chapters a week, it's faster. There's an invitation-only Level 2 which is a practicum and it's 6months long. It hasn't started up. But based on how much further ahead i feel with just this "theory" on nutrition coaching, i am prepared to be gob smacked by what the Level 2 practicum will require and provide.
I've worked with folks before on nutrition planning. I've felt good about my work with folks and their progress. Right now, with this cert, i have to say i feel WAY better. I have better tools, resources, knowledge to enhance the skills i have and offer way better support.
Excellent course, highly recommended. If you're looking for a great cert to add effective practical nutrition coaching to your practice, this is an awesome course. Even the exam is great - with an 80% pass rate. Really engaging. How often does one say that about an exam.
Likewise, of course, if you're looking for good nutrition coaching, the PN certified directory is a great place to start. G'head, call me.
Related Posts
Precision Nutrition: personal nutrition benchmarking. Tweet Follow @begin2dig
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Ryan Andrews of Precision Nutrition: The PN voice of Reason and Wellbeing Education
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I've said before how much i like the Precision Nutrition program (review) for a bunch of reasons: as an approach to eating, it's based on nutrition habits not calorie counting. These habits act as a baseline to help one learn what and how our bodies respond to different foods in different circumstances. It's also got a great approach to health and well being in terms of getting sufficient movement happening.
But one of the things i have celebrated about PN in particular is the forum, which really means the people and the interaction with people offered there. This is a model of great forum interaction made up of just super folks. And the folks from PN are full participants along with folks just wanting to learn a healthy way to get to understand ourselves and food, students and professionals from all walks of life. As resources there are professional trainers from a rich variety of backgrounds, scientists, nutritionists, body workers, physicians, it's an amazing mix of expertise and experience. The quality of the interaction is first class, polite, convivial, witty, knowledgable and respectful. If you hang out on forums at all you'll appreciate how exceptional this sounds. It's par for the course here.
Personally, i've connected with lots of great folks at PN over the several years i've hung out there, learning about nutrtion and working out. Georgie Fear and Mike T. Nelson have contributed to numerous posts here. Roland Fisher, trainer extraordinaire i've mentioned often and you'll see his comments from time to time on the blog. Carter Shoffer's approach to peri-workout drinks on the PN forum is second to none, and he has a way of coming up with great analogies for difficult concepts - he's one of the guys that makes the Forum such a great place to be.
If we accept that leadership comes from the top and leadership sets the tone, then getting to engage with John Berardi a bit more this year shows that that niceness and professionalism does come from the team lead. His unflagging optimism about folks getting healthy with balanced food and workouts with the best of science and practice is inspiring.
More recently i've had the pleasure of interacting a bit more with the guy who's become literally "the Voice of PN" - Ryan Andrews is the person doing the voice overs for the forum tutorials, and more recently for the Precision Nutrition online Certification materials. He's also the author of 99.9% of PN's incredible and well researched "All About" article series. One of the assets of of getting PN is access to the forum, and access to the forum includes these practical/research summaries on everything from Cholesterol to Creatine; from Sleep to Protein to BCAAs to Fish Oil to - well anything to do with nutrition health and well being, pretty sure there'll be a PN All About article there.
I aksed Ryan if he's be willing to have a wee chat about who he is and how he's come to connect with PN, and a bit about his own approach to food and life. He agreed. The following is our discussion. To kick things off, here's Ryan's signature:
What are some of the trends in nutrition that are well let's say scary on the one hand or exciting on the other?
think ROland Fisher said something like but a child asks for stuff all the time, too, and it wouldn't be smart to deliver on that request all the time. So, what's it mean to "listen" wisely, shall we say, and how have you seen this go south?
Speaking of bombarding, could we talk a wee bit about popular voices on food right now? Michael 
Pollan for instance - very popular guy; great presence as part of food inc, very critical of what he calls nutritionism. This is Precision NUTRITION - what's your response to Pollan-ism, let's call it?
Cool, can you offer a couple of examples of science knowledge meeting reality where you seen this happening? that someone would recognize it as the two places coming together?
. 
Thank you very much, Ryan.
Related Articles:
This post is an interview with Ryan Andrews, Education director of Precision Nutrition. Ryan walks the talk, all the way down. He brings a careful, thoughtful eye to a wide range of issues in nutrition practice. As you'll see, he's a pretty exceptional person, with a life time's passion for wellbeing, blending good nutrition, health and fitness practices and thoughtful awareness of the choices we make within those practices.
I've said before how much i like the Precision Nutrition program (review) for a bunch of reasons: as an approach to eating, it's based on nutrition habits not calorie counting. These habits act as a baseline to help one learn what and how our bodies respond to different foods in different circumstances. It's also got a great approach to health and well being in terms of getting sufficient movement happening.But one of the things i have celebrated about PN in particular is the forum, which really means the people and the interaction with people offered there. This is a model of great forum interaction made up of just super folks. And the folks from PN are full participants along with folks just wanting to learn a healthy way to get to understand ourselves and food, students and professionals from all walks of life. As resources there are professional trainers from a rich variety of backgrounds, scientists, nutritionists, body workers, physicians, it's an amazing mix of expertise and experience. The quality of the interaction is first class, polite, convivial, witty, knowledgable and respectful. If you hang out on forums at all you'll appreciate how exceptional this sounds. It's par for the course here.
Personally, i've connected with lots of great folks at PN over the several years i've hung out there, learning about nutrtion and working out. Georgie Fear and Mike T. Nelson have contributed to numerous posts here. Roland Fisher, trainer extraordinaire i've mentioned often and you'll see his comments from time to time on the blog. Carter Shoffer's approach to peri-workout drinks on the PN forum is second to none, and he has a way of coming up with great analogies for difficult concepts - he's one of the guys that makes the Forum such a great place to be.If we accept that leadership comes from the top and leadership sets the tone, then getting to engage with John Berardi a bit more this year shows that that niceness and professionalism does come from the team lead. His unflagging optimism about folks getting healthy with balanced food and workouts with the best of science and practice is inspiring.
More recently i've had the pleasure of interacting a bit more with the guy who's become literally "the Voice of PN" - Ryan Andrews is the person doing the voice overs for the forum tutorials, and more recently for the Precision Nutrition online Certification materials. He's also the author of 99.9% of PN's incredible and well researched "All About" article series. One of the assets of of getting PN is access to the forum, and access to the forum includes these practical/research summaries on everything from Cholesterol to Creatine; from Sleep to Protein to BCAAs to Fish Oil to - well anything to do with nutrition health and well being, pretty sure there'll be a PN All About article there.
Ryan Andrews: "PN isn't about dieting.
PN is about helping people find what works for them."
PN is about helping people find what works for them."
Ryan D. Andrews, MS, MA, RD, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, ACSM-HFS, CISSN Director of Education - Precision Nutrition ---Healthy Food Bank --Compassionate CooksCan we touch on your training? The formal path you've taken with respect to nutrition work?
I did my undergrad in exercise science. I did my graduate degrees in exercise science and nutrition. When I arrived at grad school, I quickly realized that to have any impact in the nutrition world, I needed to become an RD. If I didn't get the credential, I would have always felt limited to what I could recommend to people.Can you talk a little about the RD? That's a biggie in terms of qualifications. But it's also a qualification i've seen met with considerable skepticism of late as people being wedded to the high carb world that is the Food Pyramid.
A RD spends at least 4 years studying nutrition, then does a 6-12 month nutrition internship, then must pass an exam, then does continuing education each year. In the past, I think RDs felt like they had to follow the governments advice about eating. But now, more RDs are starting to question old science and challenge strategies that aren't working. I know some RDs who are bright, cutting edge, and really help people get healthy. I alsoNo argument there. So moving away from the formal to the personal: one of your first tags on the PN bio is that you were a competitive bodybuilder. My sense of competitive bb is that there's a lot of time spent starving and feeling like crap. is this an incorrect view?
know some RDs who are boring, outdated, and don't know how to help people
eat (and can't eat healthy themselves). I guess most professions are like this, huh?
So why bb, and why competitive bb?When preparing for a contest, you are hungry and feel like crap. When trying to put on mass, you are always full and feel like crap.
I discovered weight training when I was 13 years old. I discovered healthy nutrition when I was 14 years old. I became fascinated with the ability to alter these to alter my body.Where did bodybuilding and nutrition intersect for you?
They always went together. Ever since I had my first training partner at age 14 - a discussion about training was always followed up by a discussion on eating.Sounds like you've had an interest in nutrition from your undergrad days - how did that happen?
I was interested in nutrition before college. I remember thinking how amazing it was that I could actually study exercise/nutrition after high school.OK, this is even more atypical. When your friends asked what you wanted to study and you said "food" how'd you describe the interest? Did you also like cooking at this point?
At this point, it was about nutrition science. People knew I was in shape and competed in bodybuilding. I was always known as the "nutrition and exercise guy." It's interesting looking back, because I actually knew very little about food, culture, farming and cooking. Only about science.You've written about not stepping on the scale much, and being a vegetarian who has his diet rather dialed in. How long did it take you to get that setting for yourself?
I'm always making adjustments and evolving. After bodybuilding, I was really able to listen to what my body needs, and treat my body well, instead of always forcing it to extremes. I know when I am making healthy decisions in my life. Seeing a number on the scale doesn't serve any purpose to me.Since this parameter *is* such big deal with so many of us, do you find that you're working to help folks find your perspective around the scale? For folks who are concerned about that number - or need to demonstrate a number for their sport, what is a suggestion you'd make to either group?
In terms of food decisions, when did the vegetarian (or is it vegan?) approach kick in for you? would you care to talk a little bit about that for you, your decision process? Your challenges?With everything related to nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle, it's about helping the person find what works for them. What works for me doesn't work for everyone. I do think that a lot of people feel like they 'need' a scale to have success with health - but really, I try to remind them that daily behaviors are what matters. We know what to do to be successful - the scale shouldn't dictate how we feel about ourselves and our habits. Even with bodybuilding, the scale didn't matter much. It was about how I looked in the mirror and how I felt about my physique. I would challenge everyone to think about how the scale impacts their life - and how it benefits or harms your decisions.
I was taking an "ethics in research" class during grad school. We were discussing animal research. I realized I wasn't very comfortable with using animals in research. I talked to my lab partner about this and she asked if I ate meat. I told her yes. She informed me that I was killing animals every day. I had never made that connection before. Meat was always just XX grams of protein. That's it. So, from that moment forward, I haven't consumed meat. The more I learned about animals being used in food production, the more I wanted to eat plant-based. I transitioned to a 100% plant-based diet over the next couple years (empahsis mine, -mc).That's cool that it took time to make that total plan move. Now that you're there, how long has it been? i ask because many people float back and forth, and a consistent non-meat approach over time is still pretty rare.
I haven't consumed meat for over 6 years. I haven't consumed any animalWhat is your biggest challenge when it comes to nutrition practice?
products at all for over 4 years.
Remembering what my values are when it comes to nutrition. Sometimes in our society, it's easy to forget and go with the masses.John talks about every two years doing the get shredded thing - do you have a similar walk in the desert?
No. Restrictive diets don't lead to anything positive for me. They mess with my head and end up making me disregard my body.That's very interesting. Are there any other ways you find that you listen to your body? i guess i'm thinking about movement, pain/injury etc?
I always allow wiggle room with my workout schedule. If I feel run down and fatigued, I take time off. If I feel full of energy and loose, I'll do extra workouts. If any movements feel awkward and/or painful, I do something else. I used to force things, and this led to pain/injury.How did you get SO involved with Precision Nutrition?
I've been following JB since I was 19 years old. Fast forward several years to when I was at Hopkins, I collaborated on a few projects with JB. We worked together well and got along. We did some articles for T-nation and some presentations for the NSCA. From there, I ended up wanting to transition away from Maryland, and JB offered me a job with PN.What are some of the features that have appealed to you, and that keep you involved?
PN isn't about dieting. PN is about helping people find what works for them. We provide a basic foundation, and then guide people through the outcomes based decision making process. Is it working? Or is it not working? Then make adjustments. PN is open-minded and progressive. I find those qualities essential. Also, PN has some of the most interesting and bright people I've ever met.That really resonates with what i've found too from the participant side. Folks on the forum tend to stick around long after whatever body comp challenges we've worked through, too. It's cool.
What are some of the trends in nutrition that are well let's say scary on the one hand or exciting on the other?
Nutrigenomics. It's fascinating and exciting, but opens a new level of "information overload" that North America probably can't deal with right now [see Berardi's interview with field leader Dr. Ahmed El-Sohemy here or here -mc].Have you seen folks general knowledge about food get worse or better?
It's weird. I've seen knowledge about calories and nutrients get better among the general population, but I've seen peoples knowledge about how to actually eat and listen to their body diminish.Really? since "listening to the body" seems to be a theme here, let's make sure we're on the same page for this. I remember you posting about eating now when you feel hungry - listening to that. And i
think ROland Fisher said something like but a child asks for stuff all the time, too, and it wouldn't be smart to deliver on that request all the time. So, what's it mean to "listen" wisely, shall we say, and how have you seen this go south?
We talk about it more here on calorie countingThis kind of thinking about food, relationships to food, what that means for the body, getting to grips with that, seems to lead to your title at PN is as director of education. What does that mean?
It comes back to what we REALLY want, what we value. Sure, eating donuts and sitting around might bring temporary pleasure - but it doesn't REALLY feel good. It leads to low energy, mood swings, bloating, disease, the list goes on. When we crave fruit - eat fruit, enjoy the fruit, stop just before being fully content, and move on. Once we start selecting whole foods, unaltered, our hunger and satiety cues recalibrate.
I am involved with educating people. I help with articles, presentations, coaching, certifications, courses, etc.Part of this work is the new Precision Nutrition Certification. Let's talk about that for a sec. There are existing certs out there - the CSCS and similar organizations also certainly have big chunks of their exams on nutrition for athletics. What did you want to do differently with the PN certs?
We wanted to keep it real. We wanted to provide textbook knowledge and then connect it with real world eating.Is that the main gap in current nutrition training?
Yes. There is a gap between science and real world eating. And there is a gap between science and where actual food comes from.As part of support for addressing this gap, the level 1 cert has put together an awful lot of resource from content to content types including a fat textbook, voice over slides, workbook, a discussion forum where the PN team is very responsive. When did you decide to do this and how did you decide to to in this way?
It was in the works for a couple years. JB and I collaborated and took it one step at a time.Let's talk about the text book for a second. How did y'all figure out the degree of complexity or not that you wanted to get into to make the content simple enough without being too simple?
It was helpful for JB and I to reflect on our educational experience and real world coaching experience. We focused on the items that are useful in both areas.How will folks know what to expect from a PN certified coach? I guess i'm asking about this because it seems that when stuff comes from organizations that sound generic like Candian College of Sports Medicine (there is no such thing - i just made that up, dear reader), it sounds a bit more authoritative than "precision nutrition" cert - than something effectively associated with a brand. One might think of such a coach "oh great: they know how to sell PN - i need someone who knows about nutrition; i don't want to eat 6 times a day" you know?
We want to empower PN certified coaches. We want to give them the knowledge base to help people with eating and health. Trainers are bombarded with nutrition questions, and having this certification will help them feel confident about responding.
Speaking of bombarding, could we talk a wee bit about popular voices on food right now? Michael Pollan for instance - very popular guy; great presence as part of food inc, very critical of what he calls nutritionism. This is Precision NUTRITION - what's your response to Pollan-ism, let's call it? Pollan is great. As people focus on the science and details of eating, we tend to eat worse. I think if we can join our scientific knowledge of nutrition with real world eating and culture - we'll have all bases covered, and really be able to achieve optimal health.
Cool, can you offer a couple of examples of science knowledge meeting reality where you seen this happening? that someone would recognize it as the two places coming together?
Example #1: "Wow, it seems like eating omega-3 fats is really good for my body. And gosh, omega-3 fats are found in flax seeds and hemp seeds. I'm going to start eating those in salads or on oatmeal."And related to food combinations, would you like two moments to talk about your take on Paleo?
Example #2: "Protein dense foods seem to be great for muscle mass and body
composition. I'm going to prioritize things like beans and greens each day
to ensure I get protein."
And one more again in the more popular/populist voices on food: Taub's good calories bad caloriesI don't really have any strong feelings on Paleo eating. No matter what, I think a diet based on whole, unprocessed foods is essential. But I've come across too many guys using "Paleo eating" as an excuse to eat a platter buffalo style chicken wings or get 2 big macs without buns. That ain't Paleo. I really like what Jack Norris has to say about it.
. He makes some excellent points and gives us some things to think about.
I don't think whole, unprocessed carb dense foods like grains and beans are resulting in health problems.For yourself, Ryan, how are you working out right now?
For the past few years, I've been doing more full body resistance training
and conditioning.
I'll do Monkey Bar Gym workouts 3-4 times per week
monkey bar gym tour with founder John Hinds
I'll also do a yoga class 1-2 times per weekYay on the no car. And with your own eating?
Other than that, I bike and walk each day since I don't have a car.
I don't like to spend too much brain power on my own eating. I already think about it enough with my coaching and job. Thus, simplicity rules.
I'll sometimes prep food in bulk. Stuff like brown rice, quinoa, lentils, or split peas for the week. Otherwise, I just prep food as I go.
I hardly ever carry food with me, as my job allows meals to be at home. If I'm going to be away, I just stop at a grocery store or healthy restaurant.
Most days:
-after my AM workout I'll have a super shake (with greens, fruit, nuts, etc.
Just like here: pn's super shake creations
If I am hungry later in the AM I'll have a slice of sprouted grain bread with some peanut or almond butter and some cut up veggies or salad
-Early afternoon I might have some roasted garbanzo beans and a piece of fruit
-For dinners - I'll rotate between veggie burgers, bean burritos, yams/potatoes, rice/beans, pizza, stir-fry's, big salads with aduki beans....stuff like that.
I drink lots of tea and water during the day -In the winter, I eat more grains, beans and cooked foods. In the summer, I eat more raw veggies and fruits and salads.A big yam for dinner, Ryan? This approach on the surface may seem a little un-PN's habits of protein and greens and fats at each feeding.
My meals aren't very "typical." I might have a big yam for dinner - that's it. Or a bowl of beans. Really basic stuff.
The way I eat works for me and my goals. And that's what PN is about. PN is about giving people a foundation and then helping to guide them in finding a strategy that works for them and their goals. Something that gets results and can be sustained.When you're not being Director of Education, what are you up to?
The way I eat is 100% PN.
I help at an organic farm. I am a newsletter editor for the American Dietetic Association. I do a lot of Monkey Bar Gym style workouts. I read lots of non-fiction. I help in the Boulder School Lunch Program. I like to go outside and bike, walk, swim. I really try to challenge myself to live a better life each day and figure out how to make the world a better place to live.A lot of folks would ascribe these kinds of principles to a religious or spiritual belief system. If that's not too personal, is that the case here, or is this the evolving Zen of Ryan?
I don't really follow any specific religion. Most organized religions don't appeal to me because it creates barriers between groups. One of my favorite quotes is by the Dalai Lama - "My true religion is kindness." I do my best to follow that religion.If there's one thing you'd like people to hold onto about nutrition, eating, what would it be?
Take a few minutes each day to think about the repercussions of your food choices. Think about how they impact the planet, your health, animals, workers, and so forth. Then make sure you are living in line with what you value.
Thank you very much, Ryan.
Related Articles:
- b2d nutrition article index
- Where Calorie Counting may fit in
- what's a whole protein or whole food?
- Georgie Fear on digestive enzymes...
- A minute with mike on protein timing
- 8lbs of lean mass in one hour
- change in diet is hard
- help with motivation in food practices and beyond
- human support helps with food practice change
- real cacao chocolate cake.
- balsamic vinegar - for that getting more from less eating.
Thursday, August 5, 2010
More Beautiful Swing(s): Franz's Picks of Exemplary Beautiful HardStyle Kettlebell Swings
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The kettlebell swing is a foundational movement to work with a kettlebell. Despite it's status as the basic kb move, it's also a whole lot more: it's a potent full body movement that can be used for work from strength/hypertrophy (a la Geoff Neupert's latest "kettlebell muscle" DVD and program) to lactate threshold work (like Kenneth Jay's Viking Warrior Conditioning) to endurance (my own humble running the bells as one of multiple variations). As a dynamic movement, it taps both coordination and these various kinds of strength in motion. It is a foundational move, but it is a powerhouse. Put together with the Turkish Get Up, it is a complete health program (as described in Enter the Kettlebell). Practiced well, it is also a beautiful, elegant movement.
A couple posts ago, i did an interview with Franz Snideman about the hardstyle kettlebell swing (the version taught in the RKC) as something worthy of practice towards achieving that Beautiful Swing. I asked him for examples of other Beautiful Swings. He named RKC TL's Delaine Ross, Keira Newton, Dennis Frisch, Dustin Rippetoe, Jason Marshall and Master Trainer Brett Jones.
These folks have kindly agreed to contribute a vid of their swings, and a few notes on their Swing perspective and offer some of their fave tips coaching clients. I'd like to thank Franz again, and each of the RKC's in this post for offering these resources so freely. Here we go
Beatutiful Swings in Motion
(geek note: sorry this is such a FLASH based post. When HTML 5 takes over, all browsers should be able to see vids without plugins)
Dennis Frisch, RKC TL, Denmark.
Micro Interview: At the time of the interviews, Dennis was on a well-deserved break. As soon as he's back, i'll slot in his thoughts on the swing.
Keira Newton, RKC TL of Dynamic Strength Kettlebells
Micro Interview with Keira on the Swing:
1. where or when does the swing fit into your own practice?
Jason Marshall of LoneStar Kettlebells (a real Texas Marshall)
2. what is the most common thing you would say your clients need guidance on with their swings?
1. where or when does the swing fit into your own practice?
Dustin Rippetoe, RKC TL, from wayofstrength.
2 &3 Usual Pitfalls & Favorite Tips
Brett Jones, Master RKC, author, start of multiple kettlebell and now Indian Club swinging videos.
Brett has been on the road of late like mad, and sent these through while making a home touch down. Thanks Brett.
First, two hands, then single hand to hand
Summary:
From these examples we have many heights, body sizes and limb lengths, but lots in common.
A beautiful swing is a move that lets the hips drive, for forward move and pull back; that gets the butt back to feel the hamstrings load, keeps the back flat, the neck in neutral. The knees do not move too much ahead of the ankles, the bell floats a bit at the top and drives back fast in the last part of the swing and then forward with power from the loaded hips.
Also, from looking at these, it might be more possible to get a sense of why a good coach, particularly one trained to work with whole body movement, may be able to help you unlock your swing, and thereby help all your movement. Love yourself: see a ck-fms or z-health certified RKC.
With practice and good coaching, you can tune your kettlebell technique to rock. With a clean swing, the foundation is there for an infinite variety of training options.
Thanks to all the folks who contributed.
Related Posts
 |
| Franz Snieman, RKC TL, one hand swing set up |
These folks have kindly agreed to contribute a vid of their swings, and a few notes on their Swing perspective and offer some of their fave tips coaching clients. I'd like to thank Franz again, and each of the RKC's in this post for offering these resources so freely. Here we go
Beatutiful Swings in Motion
(geek note: sorry this is such a FLASH based post. When HTML 5 takes over, all browsers should be able to see vids without plugins)
Dennis Frisch, RKC TL, Denmark.
Micro Interview: At the time of the interviews, Dennis was on a well-deserved break. As soon as he's back, i'll slot in his thoughts on the swing.
Keira Newton, RKC TL of Dynamic Strength Kettlebells
Micro Interview with Keira on the Swing:
1. where or when does the swing fit into your own practice?
When does the swing NOT fit into my practice, may be the question. I use the swing in almost every training session that I do. It is fundamental to kettlebell training for me.2. what is the most common thing you would say your clients need guidance on with their swings?
I am not sure that I can say there is one common thing. There are often a variety of things that I see people do, and to take it further, a varitey of combinations. Some of the most common are:3. and what's the tip you find helps them tweak their swing best?
- Squatting too much, not hinging at the hip
- Not finishing with a strong hip snap, and, or not engaging the glutes at the top.
- Timing! usually, a new person will think that they need to pull the kettlebell with with their hands, forgetting the essential hip snap. They also tend to forget that everything needs to lock into place at the top of the movement. On the flip side, they will pull away from the top of the swing too soon and lose the lat tension.
- Rounding the spine.
One of my favorites is that the swing is not an up and down (vertical) movement, it is a back and forth movement (referring to the hing at the hip). As a side note, I use a lot of different tips, because people learn in different ways and do well with hearing things in a variety of ways.
Jason Marshall of LoneStar Kettlebells (a real Texas Marshall)
1. where or when does the swing fit into your own practice?
For me, swings are used as a warm up tool, assessment tool, and conditioning tool. I'm not accustom to cranking out a ton of swings since it would be counterproductive to powerlifting, but I do like getting the occasional ETK set. I mainly use them as a warm up exercise to get the blood going and that allows me to assess how I'm feeling before my workout. I also use them on my GPP days.
For clients, it's a different story. The swing is everything...next to the get up.
2. what is the most common thing you would say your clients need guidance on with their swings?
I have to remind them to stay tall in their posture at the top and not to jut their chin forward. A tap with my finger on the crown of the head or a visual cue usually does the trick, as well as saying "tall posture". Also, getting the bell out of "the hole" or the hike position....keeping that transition quick is key to the explode/relax balance of the HS swing.
3. and what's the tip you find helps them tweak their swing best?
Wall squats and stick deadlifts for most, but it really depends on the mistake and who's swinging.bonus - any other wee note about the HS swing you'd like to share?
I've battled it out with the CF'ers on the "American Swing" and once they see the reasoning behind HS and feel the power and balance of it, it makes a lot more sense to start and master HS. There could be a place for AS, but it's a small window of practicality and too much risk for the reward. Start with HS, progress to snatches...THEN you might try some American Swings for some ballistic work. HS swings taught through the RKC are by far one of the most effective exercises for any application across the board. I can't really think of anything or anyone who wouldn't benefit from some form or version of it.Delaine Ross, RKC TL, of Condition, Inc.
1. where or when does the swing fit into your own practice?
Right now, I’m following Neupert’s Kettlebell Muscle and incorporate double swings twice a week. Before, when I wasn’t following a “book” protocol I would do Whitley’s “The Furnace” workout at least once a week – it’s basically dissected get-ups with swings in between.2. what is the most common thing you would say your clients need guidance on with their swings?
Hmm. In the intro class we cover a good many:
- -Not being explosive – trying to do it slowly to try to do it correctly when that’s pretty much impossible (then go over biomechanical breathing)
- -pulling with their arms (towel swings)
- -letting the bell fall too close to the ground (center hiking to the quarterback analogy)
- -squatting instead of hinging (box squat)
The best overall teaching cue I have used I stole from Doc Cheng: Imagine that you’re punching a heavy punching bag with your butt then jumping without leaving the ground.
3. In your swing one might say, from the side, that you're cranking your neck back but that just can't be. What's happening with your head in your swing.
I use the “look on the horizon” head position instead of exactly neutral. And it’s mainly because when people see my “neutral” and they dot have body awareness (when they begin) then they exaggerate the neutral and end up with a rounded back.
Dustin Rippetoe, RKC TL, from wayofstrength.
1.Where does the Swing fit into your practice?
My Swing practice has be interesting this year. I have pursed it in a more GTG fashion 10-20 heavy reps here and there as the opportunity presents itself. I have been experimenting with stance, forward knee allowance, head position, and letting the 'bell float a bit more (hence the higher "top"). The swing has become this year what the TGU was last year...a lab.
2 &3 Usual Pitfalls & Favorite Tips
Depends on client of course. Beginners tend to have little root and we work on getting them the desired heaviness. With that said, the static stomp deadlift with an emphasis on the lockout. Define the end point and the middle tends to take care of itself. My other favorite drill is letting victims swing three times and release on the fourth swing. If done well all the energy should go into the forward trajectory of kettlebell not knock them off balance.
I train a lot of RKC's and RKC hopefuls. These same folk tend to overemphasize the tension at the top and lose the ballistic aspect of the swing. What Brett Jones calls "Ugly style" The biggest tip I have been sharing with them is to "let the 'bell swing you" or Jeff O'Connor's tip "let it float."
Brett Jones, Master RKC, author, start of multiple kettlebell and now Indian Club swinging videos.
Brett has been on the road of late like mad, and sent these through while making a home touch down. Thanks Brett.
First, two hands, then single hand to hand
Summary:
From these examples we have many heights, body sizes and limb lengths, but lots in common.
A beautiful swing is a move that lets the hips drive, for forward move and pull back; that gets the butt back to feel the hamstrings load, keeps the back flat, the neck in neutral. The knees do not move too much ahead of the ankles, the bell floats a bit at the top and drives back fast in the last part of the swing and then forward with power from the loaded hips.
Also, from looking at these, it might be more possible to get a sense of why a good coach, particularly one trained to work with whole body movement, may be able to help you unlock your swing, and thereby help all your movement. Love yourself: see a ck-fms or z-health certified RKC.
With practice and good coaching, you can tune your kettlebell technique to rock. With a clean swing, the foundation is there for an infinite variety of training options.
Thanks to all the folks who contributed.
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Related Posts
- Franz Snideman, the Making of a Beautiful Swing
- Andrea Du Cane on Kettlebell Training
- Kenneth Jay on Viking Warrior Conditioning
- Dan John on the KB Press
- b2d KB Article Index
- Perfect Rep Quest series
- Full Muscle Firing for better strength and form.
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