it was a tough decision, especially since they were free!!

Going to have fun with these:

Find local in-season food at farmers markers in your area
http://www.getlocavore.com

The Next 2 are Habit trackers and can help you change one SMALL habit at time and keep you accountable.

Healthy Habit tracker
http://www.2morrowmobile.com/HealthyHabits.php

Lift (I like this one better)
http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/lift/id530911645?mt=8

Stay fresh,

Rich

CoreXcellence Athletic Development – Where the pros of tomorrow come to train today.

10 reasons why we are different than the rest:

How? Here’s how:

1 – Minimal effective dose

Our job as athletic development coaches is to understand how much is enough. In theory you can train very hard all the time, but eventually you’ll have some off-days and then some off-weeks… your body will rebel and break down. This is why we only administer what is absolutely necessary.

At CoreXcellence we monitor your energy levels every training session and adjust accordingly.

We strive for long term, continual improvement by administering the minimum effective dose to keep you on the right track and continually improving.

 2- Continual improvement means being injury free!

Everybody knows injuries suck. Not only do they hurt your physical performance, but they hurt your mental performance too.

We pride ourselves at being able to assess your movement, find dysfunctions, and fix them! If you have an injury, we will figure out why you have that nagging issue, and fix it!

3 – Cutting edge strength, power, speed, conditioning, rehab and nutrition specialists.

Our team of Osteopaths, Active Release Specialists, Nutritionists and Performance enhancing specialists work together to better YOUR performance so that you can go all season long injury free!!

4 – Coach and develop

As coaches and professionals it’s our job to develop every athlete that comes into CoreXcellence to their full potential. We pride ourselves by being at the forefront of reputable training and rehabilitative methodologies. We run a system that has been proven to do so time and time again.
You, as an elite level athlete, will be following the same cutting-edge system that the pros do! You will develop!

5 – We teach and we learn

Humans constantly strive for improvement. We will teach you methods to not only make you stronger, faster, and less injury prone, but we will teach you to be more efficient in your movement patterns. Thereby using less energy per movement and saving more for that final play.

We are constantly looking and learning new methodologies to better your performance and movement efficiency. This summer’s program will not be the same as the last, or the one before that. This is attributed to: like you, we have to keep learning if we want to grow.

“It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts.”  ~ Harry S Truman

6 – Highly Monitored Programs

By now you’ve figured out that movement is an integral part of our program. It is of the utmost importance that the movement quality is not sacrificed by adding weight to the bar. While getting stronger is the main goal, mastering movement will pay bigger dividends come the second half of the season.
For the above-mentioned reasons we keep the athlete to coach ratio at a maximum of 4 athletes to 1 coach. We have tried and tested this ratio and found it is a perfect balance to letting the athletes train with their teammates, and for us as coaches to make sure even the smallest improper movement pattern is caught and corrected.

7 – Experience
 
The performance specialists at CoreXcellence have done work in the trenches of their respective sports. Whether it is football, hockey, basketball, or soccer, All of us here played (and still play) at an elite level. We coach it and we live it, so we understand the sport first hand.

With a strong staff of 6, plus a varying number of interns, we combine to over 50 years of coaching excellence.

8 – Unique programming for each athlete and sport

Every apple is not the same, nor is every sport or athlete. We understand the demands of each sport, team or individual, and create a structured, periodized program to ensure continual success for every athlete.

9 – In-season vs. off-season

The demands of your sport vary according to whether you are preparing for tryouts, maintaining your strength and power during the season, or preparing for the playoff push. This is where the science comes into play by administering the minimum effective dose to make sure your body, and brain are running on a full tank when you need it most.

10 – Development

All of this talk about developing you doesn’t actually make you a better athlete. But we can.

Come in for an assessment, and let us show you how you can become a bigger, better, stronger, faster, less injury-prone monster who will recover faster and out-perform the competition.

The next season looks like the best season yet.

To your success,

The Guys at CoreXcellence

Spring XCAD (CoreXcellence Athletic Development) starts at the end of the month and Summer XCAD starts at the end of June.

Fill out your the registration forms and bring them in to reserve your spot.
2 groups are already filled up for spring and summer!!

Click and download the PDF and bring it in before all the spots fill up!

XCAD REGISTRATION FORM Summer ’12

XCAD REGISTRATION FORM Spring ’12

You may recognize some of these women from Team Canada, Top ranked rookie at Boston University, or from the champion Mcgill Martlets!

3 College Pro's conditioning after their lift last summer.
These 3 guys killed it this past season! If you like college hockey, you'd recognize them as being the top forwards and defenseman in the NCAA

Work on mobility, and continue to watch the bar weight go up without any hiccups because of injury.

This is an advanced exercise we use at CoreXcellence to improve the bottom position of the squat.
The reason we use the ‘huh’ is to make sure that our pelvic floor is braced on the way up.
Staying in the bottom position of a squat for extended periods of time puts the tissues, and spine in a compromising position. The ‘huh’ gets us to brace not only the pelvic floor but the inner core as well. This technique ensures a stable pelvis when coming up and out of potentially compromising/dangerous positions.

Please note: if your lumbar spine rounds under when bottomed out in a full squat, you’re too tight. You would need to go up a bit higher in your squat and continue through the exercise there.

To your continued success,

Rich

As a CoreXcellence intern, you have the opportunity to work with Performance Specialists who effectively develop young athletes in preparation for their college and professional careers. You’ll be trained in the same systems that produce these world-class results and you’ll get the skills needed to far exceed others in your field.

As part of your CoreXcellence internship, you’ll participate in lectures and practical sessions for an in-depth look at CoreXcellence’s core fundamentals: Mindset, Nutrition, Movement and Recovery!

CoreXcellence is proud to announce that we have a whopping 0% injury rate in our athletes who have finished our spring and summer Athletic Development camps!

The Deadline to apply for the sumer internship (June 1st – August 30th) is May 15th
**We are only accepting 5 interns for this summer**

For More information download the PDF: CoreXcellence Internship application, visit our Facebook page, or come into CoreXcellence and speak to one of the Performance Specialists today!

Click on and fill out the XCAD Winter session Registration form. Circle your desired time/day and bring it in to reserve your spot!

To Your Success,

Now that you’ve got the just of what I think about supplements and eating in general. Below you’ll find a list of a few more supplements I recommend to athletes looking to fill the gaps and progress optimally in their performance/health status’.

Greens:

By taking one serving with your shake or when extra greens are not available, it can help obtain ideal nutritional intake.

Recommended Brands: Greens + Genuine health, PhD Pharma Greens

Creatine & Beta-Alanine:

Creatine Take 5g per day to help preserve muscle mass throughout the year. If possible, divide dose into two servings and take one 30 minutes before and one immediately after training or practice Beta-Alanine Take 4-6g/day to improve performance in prolonged high intensity activities.

A little background on Creatine:

There are 3 energy systems that you need to know about: ATP-Pcr (or ATP-PC), Glycolytic (anaerobic) and Oxidative Phosphorlyative (aerobic).  The first, ATP-Pcr system, is ‘working’ during rapid and powerful movements lasting less than 10 seconds. This is the system affected by creatine supplementation.
ATP-Pcr system quickly replenishes the stores of adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, which provides energy to the working cells. Muscles have an existing amount of ATP hanging around ready for action, but not that much of it, merely enough for a just a few seconds of work. The ATP is broken down by removing one phosphate (P), This turns ATP into adenosine diphosphate (ADP).
To make more ATP, the muscles need to get the missing third phosphate from somewhere, quickly and that’s where creatine phosphate comes in. Creatine phosphate donates its phosphate so that ADP can become ATP again, but more importantly, so that you can finish that sprint!

Because creatine plays a major role in this system, more creatine means more potential ATP, which in-turn mean improved performance during short-term high-intensity tasks. Long-duration, low-intensity exercise however relies more on a different energy system, the Oxidative Phosphorlyative energy system.
This system is not enhanced by creatine.
In other words: creatine will help a sprinter and not so much a marathon runner. Another effect of creatine is the uptake of into muscle. Creatine also has a cell volumizing effect by drawing water into the cell.
Over the long term, this swelling may increase protein synthesis and glycogen storage. Both are a good thing resulting in increased recovery rate and prolonged peak performance.

A little background on Beta-Alanine:

Excessive increases in blood lactate have been shown to diminish performance with an associated decrease in coordination and skill. I’m sure you’ve felt that burning sensation in your legs before from lactic acid build up. In order to help regulate those lactic acid levels researchers have found a compound called ‘Carnosine’, which can buffer (slow down) the rise in hydrogen ions. This buffering of hydrogen ions can increase time to fatigue and VO2 max/oxygen uptake (that’s a good thing). Carnosine is a di-peptide that’s formed by the amino acids Beta-Alanine (BA) and Histidine.
Not only has it been found to decrease hydrogen ion production, ultimately increasing pH levels (i.e. lactic acid), but also acts as an antioxidant, and because of its hydrogen ion buffering it may can help improve muscle contractions improving work output!

Recommended Brands: Clout, Beta-alanine, Creatine Monohydrate

I like both products very much, however if you are slightly deterred by the negative buzz surrounding these supplements I suggest you do some digging yourself. I can gladly steer you in the right direction regarding research studies on both.

If you are hesitant about Beta-Alanine, it can be taken in lower doses ~3-4g/day depending on the size of said teen. As far as creatine doses, they can be lowered to ~2-3g/day.

Glyco-Peak:

Glyco-peak, is designed as a peri-workout drink(pre, during or post-workout) to keep your energy levels and mental awareness at it’s peak. It contains zero caffeine or stimulant. Glyco-peak is mainly a combination of glycogen (broken down carbohydrates), amino acids (broken down proteins) and electrolytes to aid in replenishment of vital nutrients commonly lost during intense exercise.

When performing high intensity exercise, in training or game play, your body is rapidly depleted of carbohydrate stores (glucose and glycogen), amino acid stores (glutamine, BCAAs…), water and electrolytes (Sodium, Potassium…). Without theses vital nutrients your body’s ability to maximally produce force at high speeds deteriorates drastically, particularly in fast-twitch muscle fibers.

Bleow is a chart that explains how your energy system’s decline as you keep giving your all. Your body simply will not let you give 100% all the time.
Essentially you have 3 types of energy systems. After about 8-10 seconds of all out effort your ATP-PC system drops off. Your energy systems then change to the Lactic acid system or more commonly known as Anaerobic or Glycolytic system, lasting up to 2 minutes. Finally the Aerobic system comes in to save the day and keep you going for 2 minutes and more!
If the ATP-PC system would be a 100m sprinter, the Aerobic system would be an ultra-marathon runner.

What Glyco-peak does is remove the accumulation of hydrogen ions (H+) in the working muscles which cause debilitating fatigue, Replenish your ATP (adenosine tri-phosphate) stores, PhosphoCreatine (PCr) stores, Glycogenic substrates, and balance muscle pH (acid level of muscle) all of which help you go harder longer.

Vitamin D3:

Not getting enough sun in the winter months? Take about 2000 IU’s/day to help with that. If you can somehow get your MD to check your levels so you can consume a dosage more individualized, I strongly encourage that. Vitamin D can play a huge role in preventing mid-winter blues you hear so much about.

Recommended Brands:
Anything from your local grocery store should do the trick. Make sure however that it has some sort of vitamin C or calcium as it helps the uptake of D3 in the body. Teenagers may not have developed a deficiency of a Vitamin D as adults have…yet. So before downing 2,000 IUs of the stuff, it would be a pretty safe plan to get your levels tested by a doctor.

Do you have some supplements that you swear by?
Leave a comment below and tell me why. I’d love to hear what you think.

To your success,

Rich

For one reason or another, school has never been my strong-suit. When it comes to Strength & Conditioning and Nutrition,on the other hand, I amabsolutely in love! I can read anything related.

As I was typing in my credit card information on the PN site and I couldn’t help but think, can the amount of money i’m about to spend justify the education I’m about to recieve?

About 2 days later a package showed up on my doorstep and within minutes I was reading page 1. Without even noticing I was finished the first chapter! I sat back in my chair and felt satisfied with my purchase. Just by opening the book and reading the first page, you can tell that the book was written in lamens-terms yet very scientific when it needed to be.

I had a hard time putting the book down, and as the chapters continued on it was more and more intriguing.

One thing I have to say about the content is that it’s not light reading. Every page is PACKED with incredibly detailed information. I find myself sometimes re-reading paragraphs at a time just so the information would stick.

I’m about 90% done the certification now. Here is just the tip of the iceberg of what i’ve learnt so far:

• What good nutrition is - Good nutrition properly controls energy balance, provides nutrient density, achieves health, body composition, and performance goals. Good nutrition is honest and outcome based.
• Cell structure and function - People respond differently to the digestion and absorption of certain foods because of the unique differences in our genetic makeups. These small genetic differences (genetic polymorphisms) explain why some people respond slightly different to various types of foods.
• Food intake, digestion and absorption - Bile’s main function is to break down the bolus (ball of chewed food) and absorb the nutrients in the small intestine, along with: acids, mucus and enzymes. Bile is produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder.
• Energy transformation and metabolism - The two most important nutrient/energy stores in the body are Triglycerides (stored in fat cells and smaller amounts in muscle cells) and Glycogen (Stored in muscle and liver cells). Triglycerides and Glycogen provide energy to the tissues where they’re stored along with providing energy to cells that can’t store energy producing nutrients, i.e. brain & Red Blood Cells.
• Energy Balance in the body - In a lab 1g of fat=9.44 Calories, 1g ofcarbohydrates=3.94 Calories, 1g of protein=5.65 Calories. You might have heard that fat=9 Calories/gram, protein=4 Calories/gram and carbohydrates=4 Calories/gram. These aren’t rounding errors, the numbers you’ve heard of are actual physiological values (how the macronutrient behave in the body). Therefor the values obtained in the lab are true values, just some of the energy is lost through digestion.
• Aerobic & anaerobic metabolism - A benefit of regular aerobic and anaerobic exercise is greater insulin sensitivity. The body responds to carbohydrate intake with less insulin release, allowing insulin to act in carbohydrate uptake and protein synthesis without stimulating fat gain.
• Macronutrients - There are three different types of carbohydrates: Monosaccarides, Olgiosaccharides and Polysaccharides. The term “saccharide” means sugar. What sets the three groups apart is the amount of sugar groups linked to the carbohydrate chain.  For example: Monosaccharide = 1 sugar group (short chain), Olgiosaccharides = 2 or more sugar groups (short chain), Polysaccharides = more than 10 linked monosaccharides (Long complex chains of linked monosaccharides)
• Micronutrients - Research states that vitamins and minerals from whole food sources have greater health benefits when compared to vitamins and minerals in supplement form. A large scale study on vitamin E was stopped because it was found that when consumed in isolation, the supplements appeared to increase rather than decrease disease risk. The opposite effects than that of a whole food source.
•  Water and fluid balance -0.5% water loss = Increased strain on the heart1% water loss = Reduced aerobic endurance3% water loss = Reduced muscular endurance4% water loss = Reduced muscular strength, motor skills & heat cramps5% water loss = Heat exhaustion, cramping, fatigue, reduced mental capacity6% water loss = Physical exhaustion, heatstroke, coma10-20% water loss = Death.
•  Special needs.  - Some micronutrients may require supplementation during injury recovery to speed up and ensure full, proper healing.Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Copper, Zinc, Iron/Calcium.Vitamin A– Helps collagen formation and stops post-injury immune suppression.Vitamin C – Increases the activity of Neutrophils (white blood cells) and Lymphocytes (immune system cell) during the acute phase of injury.Calcium/Iron – Play a huge role in bone health and prevention of injury.Copper – Forms RBC’s and together with Vitamin C forms elastin to strengthen connective tissue.Zinc – Promotes DNA synthesis, cell division, and protein synthesis

Those chapters were only in the first half!

The second half of the book shows you step by step how to coach a client through the process of positive changes in lifestlye habits.
Next week ill touch up on the biggest take-aways I’ve had from the 2nd half of the PN cert. Here’s a preview of what you’re going to read.

• Step1: Preparing for your client
• Step2: Collecting preliminary client info
• Step 3: Interpreting client information
• Step 4: Providing a nutritional plan
• Step 5: Nutritional supplementsaion
• Step 6: setting behavoir goals and monitoring
• Step 7: Making nutritional adjustments
• Step 8: providing continuing education and support

For those of you who know me understand that this is a feat in itself!

Every time I pick up this book I seem to read through 10-15 pages at a time before even noticing that I’ve been reading it at all. The book is called “How To Win Friends & Influence People”.  It is a collection of mini short stories, if you will, all with a moral written between the lines and summarized at the end of each.

Although I’m not finished reading the book, I am a good portion of the way through. It will take me a little while to finish the book since I’m a bit caught up with other major projects now (more on that next week). That doesn’t mean I can’t share with you the most valuable lessons i’ve taken away so far. There are 6 principles that echo in my head every time I meet someone new or talk to an old friend. It’s almost funny how well they work:

1.  Become genuinely interested in other people.
2. Smile – “Don’t feel like smiling? Then what? Two things. First, force yourself to smile. If you are alone, force yourself to whistle or hum a tune or sing. Act as if you were already happy and that will tend to make you happy.” - “Actions seem to follow feeling, but really action and feeling go together; and by regulating the action, which is under the more direct control of will, we can indirectly regulate the feeling which is not.”
3. Remember that a person’s name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
4. Be a good listener. Encorage others to talk about themselves.
5. Talk in terms of the other person’s interests.
6. Make the other person feel important – and do it sincerely.

Part 3 – Supplements

According to many medical studies, supplements are a requirement to meet and improve your health and nutritional needs. Require is a strong word, implying that you NEED supplements to make the road easier to gain or lose weight. While I partially agree with the necessity of supplements, I still do prefer whole food as the primary source of nutrients.

Supplements should be exactly that: a supplement to an already pristine diet.

Is your diet perfect?  – Probably not. Is mine?  – You bet your ass it is! So I can use supplements and you can’t! Plain and simple huh?

Let’s move on.

Supplements should only be used to improve the intrinsic functions of the body and to correct a deficiency of certain nutrients. Without fueling your body with the proper food sources, performance and recovery will suffer.

Although all the nutrients can be derived from whole food, it is not always feasible.

Who would want to choke down a piece of chicken and mango in between shifts? – Definitely not me.

It seems more practical to sip on a protein/amino acid and CHO/electrolyte blend drink. The point I’m trying to make is sometimes it’s just plain easier to get your nutrients in liquid form, and that’s not a bad thing.

Now that the ground rules have been set and my rambles are out of the way, comes the time where I recommend some supplements to you. (*Side note: I only recommend products I have tried before and have seen positive reputable results with*)

Whey Protein: 

Use a serving or two as part of a snack (when real whole food is unavailable), or immediately before and/or after a training session.
Recommended Brands: E.D.G.E. Protein Isolate, Ovation bioactive. (I like these brands because of the simple ingredients inside. Ovation bioactive whey concentrate: 100% pure undenatured ultra-filtered cold pressed whey protein concentrate, cocoa powder, natural flavors, and stevia extract. – That’s it!)

Fish Oil (Omega-3’s):

Aim for 6-12 daily grams of total fish oil per day (about 3-6 grams of EPA + DHA).  Sound like a lot? Forget the capsules; take liquid fish oil for the simple reason that it’s easier to swallow a tablespoon of liquid than a bunch of capsules.

A trick to see if the product you’re holding is worth your hard earned money is to add up the amounts of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) & DHA (docosahexonaeic acid) listed on the back and make sure the total is at least 300 mg per 1000 mg capsule. This will make it easier to get the suggested daily dose. In addition, some supplement companies put lower-quality oil into capsules (or secretly cut it with soy oil).

Look for small-fish-based combinations in the product (e.g. herring, mackerel). Small fish are lower on the food chain and therefore less likely to accumulate environmental toxins.

With lots of omega-3s, muscle cells become more sensitive to insulin, while fat cells decrease. This may mean that the body can divert more nutrients to muscle tissue. DHA and EPA can ramp up your metabolism by increasing the levels of enzymes (proteins found in the body that increase the rate of chemical reactions) that boost calorie-burning ability. Omega-3s are also a strong anti-inflammatory!

Recommended Brands: NutraSea, Biotest: Flameout, Carlson Labs Elite Omega Fish oil (vitacost.com)

Hockey players and non-hockey playing athletes should make fish oil and whey protein a staple of their supplementation. In fact non-athletes can take these supplements as part of improving their overall health too!

Before you ask, let me answer: Does this apply to your teenager? Truth is there is little research looking at the safety of these things in teenagers, and it is unlikely that there will ever be. Research on minors is plagued with ethical obstacles.

Don’t worry there isn’t any reason to think that a teenager would respond significantly different to an adult with respect to the supplements above.

Whether or not your son/daughter should or should not take supplements dwells more on the psychological aspect of improvement than the physiological at a young age. Supplements should not be used as a quick fix to a poor diet. As I’ve said before, I strongly believe that you should look into whole food as a primary source of nutrients.

The best uses of supplements I’ve seen is when they are coupled with a mediocre diet. This usually aids young athletes to be more compliant to their training program and in turn, help learn more about nutrition and health. This can easily be the door to better nutrient choices in the future! Young athletes need to be educated of how to eat well to compliment supplement usage.

In the end, make sure you and your teenage athlete are aware that supplements are like a pawn in the quest for health. They are valuable and can help you win, but chances are without other support systems in place, their impact will be limited

Stay smart and question everything.

To your success,

Rich Thaw