Char Biggs

Do you find yourself working out on a regular basis and feel like you are always getting hungry? Before your start eating your face off and add calories in, make sure you are feeding yourself properly for your activity. Always try to have a snack about 45 minutes to 1 hour before or a small meal 2-2.5 hours before your workout to give your body the right nutrients it needs to perform at its peak and keep you satisfied. Immediately following your workouts within one hour, make sure you are having a meal with protein and carbohydrates to repair, refuel and replenish your muscles.
Still feeling hungry? Make sure you are taking the right amount of calories and macronutrients for your bodyweight, age, height, and activity levels. If you find your calories are too low, slowly start increasing your calories by 50-250 to avoid adding fat. Let your body use and adjust properly to the new caloric levels slowly over the course of the week. Always opt for adding more nutritious choices like healthy carbs and fats, than calorie dense foods and processed foods. Remember to keep your portions and calories in check, for your personal needs to help achieve long term success.

Char Biggs

For most people when it comes to macronutrients, proteins and fats come easy.  We want to try to aim for 1 gram of protein per pound of lean body mass in most cases and have a diet that is moderate in fats, especially the healthy kinds (Think omega 3s, walnuts, almonds, natural peanut/almond butters, fats in salmon, olive oil etc.).  When people hear the word carbohydrate, they go into a total shock of what to do.  Low carb diets have made a pretty good rep for a number of things because they can help manage your caloric consumption-making dieting easier, keeping body fat levels at ease and it’s no  brainer (You just try to avoid carbs, simply put it).  However, for the active person or someone trying to build muscle mass, low carb is not always the way to go.

Know this:  Carbohydrates get a number.  This number is their rating on the glycemic scale.  What is that?  It basically is a rating scale that tells us how fast it takes carbohydrates to digest in your body and break down into sugars to go into the blood stream.  The lower the number on the scale the better you are off when it comes to managing body fat levels, fighting off diabetes, and maintaining steady energy levels without a crash.  Fiber, protein, fats added to meals help bring higher numbers on the glycemic scale down and stabilize blood sugar levels.  Always try to include low to moderate glycemic carbohydrates in your nutrition for ample energy levels, unless it is after your workout.  That’s when you want more of those sugary or high glycemic carbohydrates along with lean protein to replenish and rebuild after your workout.

Here are some BIGG Tips for active people to get the most out of their diet:

BIGG Tip 1:  Break the Fast.

Having a healthy breakfast is one of the most important, yet missed link in many people’s diets.  Too many people skip this meal or have it 2.5 hours later followed by 4 cups of coffee beforehand.  Make sure you are eating your breakfast within your first hour of waking to get your day going to prevent your muscles from breaking down and get your engine running full speed.  Breakfast is one of the best times to have the bulk of your slow burning carbohydrates.  Think about it.  Overnight you sleep, burn calories up, and walk up in a carbohydrate depleted state.  Fill it up first thing with some good choices like Quaker Old Fashioned Oatmeal (not instant packets, not the apples and brown sugar flavored kind), multigrain pancakes, and whole grain cereals, bread/grains.  A piece of fruit is ok too at this time, even though it is higher in sugars.  The fiber from the other meals will help curb your insulin levels down.

BIGG Tip 2:  Snack it.  Lunch it.

A mid-morning snack and lunch are also key times to include carbohydrates into your diet.  Those trying to cut body fat should fewer carbs during these meals, and those trying to put on more muscle should have more during those meals to increase caloric needs.  Try out brown rice, quinoa, yams, sweet potatoes, whole grain pastas, whole grain granolas, of course paired up with a protein and healthy fat.

BIGG Tip 3:  Simple Carbs Post Workout.

Post workout your body needs simple carbs along with protein.  Simple carbohydrates are the kind that digests more quickly to help refill all the glycogen (think:  carbohydrate storage in the muscles) that was used during your training and refuel your for you next workout.  Depending on if you are trying to drop body fat or gain muscle you may want more or less simple carbohydrates post workout.  Try a whey protein shake with some dextrose or another form of a simple sugar to repair, replenish, and rebuild.

BIGG Tip 4:  Keep it a low key night.

Dinner and late night is when we want to back off of the bulk of those complex carbs.  Switch it off to the protein and fibrous vegetables.  This will help prevent unwanted carbohydrates overnight to turn into access body fat that your body cannot burn off.  Think about it.  At night time if you are sitting around watching TV you are not doing much, so you don’t need those carbs for quick energy.  Plus, the protein is a muscle saver for overnight sleeping.  Don’t have time to cook:  try frozen vegetable medleys found in the frozen section of the grocery store to keep the flavor going. More muscle = high metabolism.  For those trying to build muscle try a late night snack of cottage cheese or a casein protein shake has protein and digests slowly overnight to further help prevent muscle breakdown with minimal added calories from carbohydrates.

BIGG Tip 5:  Fiber it up.

Too many people do not eat enough fiber.  Minimally you want to aim to consumer 20-25 grams a day, and larger people can have up to 30-40 + to keep your digestive tract happy and healthy.  Fiber helps slow down the digestion of your foods, helps insulin levels and keep body fat levels at bay.  Always include fibrous vegetables, beans, whole grains, and fruits with fiber.   Reality Check 101: Fiber helps decrease your risk of developing diabetes and prevent colon cancers in the body.  Go colorful with your vegetables and fruits to get an array of nutrients for your body.

Bottom Line:  Taper your carbohydrates off as the day goes on to help give you ample amounts of energy while trying to either gain weight or drop body fat.  Although ‘low carb diets’ are no brainers, tend to be the buzz, and can help people drop body fat do not think that is the only option or be scared of having good helpings of carbohydrates.  Your body needs carbohydrates, especially if you are active.  Pick the right kinds and have them at the right time.

My 600LB Life

I wanted to write an informal post about the season premiere of the show ‘My 600LB Life’ on The Learning Channel, which I watched last night.  It was quite an empowering, and at the same time very disturbing 2 hour documentary that took 7 years in the making.  It includes 4 extraordinary people who first were applicable to have gastric bypass surgery back in 2005 who were over 600lbs.  Last night was Melissa’s 6 year documented journey on how she went from 673 pounds to under 200 pounds over the course of 6 years.  Absolutely, a life and mind changing experience.   Over the course of the first 6 months after her surgery the doctors said she would drop up to 30 pounds PER month.  Over the next 6 years she attempted, I say attempted, to eat better to continue to lose weight and go under multiple surgeries to remove 20, 40, up to 60 pounds of access loose skin from here body due to drastic weight loss.

At her heaviest she had barely moved off her couch.  She said she had been ‘hiding’ and ‘sleeping’ for 10 years because she #1 could not go out in public or get out of her house without squeezing through it sideways barely making it, and #2 was petrified people would make fun of her.  She was married.  However, her husband became her care taker instead of soul mate because she could not do anything for herself at her size, including cleaning herself up.  All she wanted was kids and to be happy again- something she had not experience in years.  Questionably, her whole entire life.  She couldn’t remember the last time she was under 300 pounds… it had been before 1999 she saw that number.  She had not stepped on a scale since then.  She was in a pity coma for herself hiding from the world and missing out on valuable life opportunities.

Astonishingly enough, she was able to lose over 425 pounds during that six year coarse.  Holy shit.  Yeah, that is what I said too.  The 425 pounds she lost  also included a 3 month stay in the hospital because her skin would not heal after being stapled (when she was around 300 pounds a few years later) from her third skin removal surgery.  She had become so obsessed with losing weight and was doing it completely unhealthy.  She was barely eating and became completely malnourished.   Yes, obese people can be malnourished even at around 300 pounds.   She was so malnourished that her skin would not process skin cell renewal to heal after surgery.  This brings me to my main point.

Losing the weight and changing your body is not all physical.  A matter a fact it is mostly mental.  You need to have a healthy and mental mind to create a healthy and happy body.  Really address the issues behind the weight gain.  Here Melissa had been molested as a child, which is a heart breaking thing to hear.  She ‘said’ every pound on her body was 80 percent because of this.  She had an unhealthy marriage, where her husband was in total control of her because she could not get off of her couch- he had been talking to other woman for those 10 years she was hiding.  Melissa never addressed these issues personally, never discussed them to anyone, or talked to a therapist or friend.  She only briefly did towards the end of the show, making her husband go to therapy.  Bottom line: She never confronted them, the core issues to her weight gain.

At her smallest 6 years later, she still experienced the mental anxiety of being 600 pounds.  She never let go to create a new, more fulfilling life for herself.  She was never truly ‘happy’ even after creating a skinnier life which she though would change her completely- she could now just walk out of her home.  She stated after her weight loss that she always felt something was always missing even when she reached around 150 pounds 6 years later.  She had a miscarriage at her lowest weight, mostly apart to her being malnourished and never addressing her real issues for weight loss / weight gain- another metal stressor which she never addressed to heal herself.  She had a child, as well, later on in the show.  She went on to help other people who were going through the same surgery at the doctor’s office at her smallest weight when she was finally able to walk and have a job.  Imagine having to be transported in a wheel chair for 10 years of your life because you were too heavy.  She had quite a remarkable journey.

Although, tying a band around your stomach to decrease the amount of food you can eat will likely cause weight loss, the bigger picture is fixing the core issues.  Melissa was in constant mental distress and had body image issues.  She was never properly taught how to eat healthy and exercise.  She never once exercised on the show more than briskly walking to her car and errands.  She was still relatively sedentary- minimal activity.  She turned back to food as an emotional scapegoat after dropping over 400 pounds because she was still facing the problems she had never addressed.  Bypass surgery, weight loss pills, the magic powder will never fix the problems really hindering you from goals.  What really is, if you are not satisfied? How can you improve your situation?  How can you make daily decisions, day in and day out, to build up to your main goal?  Did you confront what is the main problem and are you able to move on from it?  If not, what are you other options?

Just some food for thought… ox Char

Char Biggs

Try these simple tricks to help you bust through your weight loss plateau:

BIGG Tip 1:  Less calories in, more calories out.

Are you working out 5 days a week and still not seeing the change you want to see in your body?  Figuring out the right caloric intake for you is key.  If you want to lean up you must take in fewer calories than you are burning or put out more energy then you are consuming.  Most people have no idea how many calories you need.  Try a simple BMR calculator to find out your ‘basic’ needs for a head start.  You can Google ‘Basal Metabolic Rate Calculator’ online to find one to help you out.  Watch your portions and really be considerate of how much you are putting in your body to reach weight loss goals.  Same goes if you are taking in too little in food and burning too much through exercise aka metabolic shut down.

BIGG Tip 2:  Quality of calories.

Not all calories are created equal to change your body.  The quality of your carbohydrates, proteins, and fats are just as important.  Cheesesteaks will not have the same effect on your body as lean proteins and complex whole grain carbs.  Just like eating 1,500 calories in one sitting from dining out won’t have the same effect as having 1,500 calories 2 or 3 smaller healthier meals 3-4 hours apart throughout the day.

BIGG Tip 3:  Too many processed and complex carbs late night.

Some examples of processed and complex carbs are rice, quinoa, potatoes, risotto, pasta, yams, noodles, and cereals.  Fat burning happens more steadily when your glycemic levels are kept at ease.  Complex carbs tend to cause a larger rise in insulin levels and when you are trying to burn body fat you want to keep them at bay.  Sitting around watching TV isn’t the time to have that bowl of pasta if you are trying to burn fat late night.  Save your complex carbs like oatmeal for your morning and afternoons and switch to more fibrous low glycemic carbs later in the day in most cases.   Some examples are broccoli, asparagus, kale, spinach, cauliflower, and kale etc along with lean proteins and healthier fats if you need to add calories in.

BIGG Tip 4:  Honestly, how much alcohol are you consuming at social events?

When trying to completely change your body or lose the last 10 pounds watching how much alcohol you take in on a regular basis is important.  Lots of people do not realized how many extra calories you add in when drinking out at social events more than 1 day a week. One glass of red wine does have its health benefits, but having one glass 5 days a week adds about 750 calories extra a week to your diet or 1/4 of a pound of fat you could have lost from taking away 5 glasses of wine.  Alcohol is filled with empty, nutrition-less calories.  Just one shot of clear alcohol is roughly 80-95 calories. Pick and choose appropriately.

BIGG Tip 5:  Eat out right.

Have you been trying to drop the pounds but are stuck?  Are you eating out or ordering out too much weekly?  Always try to cook and prepare your meals so you know exactly what you are putting in your body.  Opt for grilled varieties and eat like a caveman or woman in most cases-  look for grains, veggies, and appetizers like guacamole, homemade salsa, and bean dips for appetizers.  Load up on water with lemon, unsweetened iced teas, and try to cut out diet sodas, regular sodas, alcohol when possible. Tell the waiter how you want your food cooked and don’t opt for fried options if you need to cut calories.  Was the hour you spent in gym that morning really worth that dessert?

Char Biggs

Life can throw you curveballs all the time.  Do you have a list of things you have been meaning to do?  Off on your diet all week?  Stop getting mad at yourself for not getting things done, instead take charge go through that list and finish it off.  You will feel much better after you completed it and your life will feel more rounded.  When you start taking care of the external things in your life it becomes easier to take on the internal factors that can hold you back from accomplishing really what you want in life.

You know that sweet goodness that you put down your mouth that you just want more and more of because it just tastes that darn good.  Before you decide to put some into your body, think about this the next time:

Sugar is a simple carbohydrate for those who don’t already know.  It is broken down into the bloodstream extremely quick.  When you eat sugars your body can store them in two places: the liver or your muscle glycogen (carbohydrate) storage.  What happens when the body can’t burn off those extra sugars or store them in your liver or muscles?  They turn into fat cells aka something we don’t want.  Once again, this slightly goes back to the topic of energy (calories) in verse energy (calories) out.  But, I want to talk about how sugars are causing you to pack on the pounds and essentially messing up your immune system.

Feeling tired?  How much sugar are you consuming or is it consuming your energy levels?  Sugar is great when it comes to quick fast energy.  It spikes up your insulin levels and gives you that sugar rush that makes your brain run like a rat on a wheel.  However, then it drops you off the cliff wanting more and more, leaving you tired and cranky.   This puts your body through a wave pull.  When your blood sugars decrease, it doesn’t just stop at the street, it digs you down into the ground.  Now that you are tired again you to reach for more sugar and bad empty calories you don’t need.  How about that mid-day coffee loaded in sugars in cream or a late with that extra shot of espresso?  It can lead to constant fatigue day in and day out if you do not remove the bulk from your nutrition and become a horrible cycle.  Eating constant sugar is like jumping in a hot tub to a freezing pool inside your body.  All of the ups and down that it puts your metabolism and body through can weaken your immune system, throw off your metabolic function, cause fatigue, and pack on the pounds.

Are you eating hidden sugars?  Sugars can be everywhere.  They can be in your flavored instant oatmeal; yea not so healthy.  They can be in your Special K cereals-those yummy berry and yogurt varieties, they can be in your morning bagel if it is not whole grain or whole wheat.  I like to look at bagels as dead pieces of white bread aka fattening machines.  Sugar can be loaded in your protein bars too even; it is all over the place if you do not really read what you are putting into your body.  Pick up and read the label you may find yourself surprised.

Bottom Line:  Watch the sugar intake and focus on whole grains/healthy carbohydrates.  Be aware of what really is in your food by reading labels.  Opt for things like Quaker old fashioned oatmeal, Kashi cereals, whole wheat grains, brown or wild rice, quinoa, sweet potatoes, yams, colorful vegetables and fruits.  The extra minute you take to make something healthier could be one less extra pound on those hips.  - Happy Thursday Y’all! – Char

Char Biggs

Be Dynamic.

What is the best kind of stretching before your workouts? Warm up with some dynamic stretching. Muscles work more efficiently and are less likely to be injured after they have been properly warmed up. Think of muscles that are not warmed up as a rubber band in the cold. It is less elastic and flexible; having more of a tendency to break or snap. That is why it is important to get blood and oxygen flowing to muscles before they get worked. Take 5 minutes before your workout to do about 1-2 minutes of jumping jacks or jogging followed by some active/dynamic stretching.

For years people got into the habit of holding their stretch before and after their workouts. Holding your stretches for 20-30 seconds is what we call static stretching. This kind of stretching is great for after your workouts to prevent muscle soreness and help begin the process to remove lactic acid build up from working out. We want to go dynamic here though before our workouts. Begin your workouts with full body movements that include things like air squats with back rolls, rotating movements for your trunk and core, high knee movements, and arm windmills for starters to allow blood and oxygen to move to the working muscles as they stretch.

Bottle line: Warm up properly and prevent injury during by doing dynamic stretching before your workout and static stretching after. This will help you have a better workout!

Here is one of my outdoor plyometric workouts from the week. This particular one hits your leg muscles, increases your power and strength output, and your vertical/lateral jumps. Just make sure you land softly to absorb pressure for the knees and you are good to go. Try it out!