Have the food experts been misleading you?

Whole grains. Day after day we are absolutely bombarded with them and their wide range of associations in our culture. Some of them we recognize as unhealthy – like spaghetti dinners, donuts, apple pie, birthday cake, etc.

However, there are others that are just as solidly etched into our modern American psyche that appear, and in fact are marketed as healthy – corn on the cob, whole wheat bagels, bran muffins… the list goes on and on.  Grains have become such a staple of the American diet that they take up the majority of the square footage at any local supermarket!

Despite the food pyramid’s efforts to convince you that grains should be the largest percentage of your nutritional intake, they will single handedly destroy your weight loss efforts or any efforts you make to improve your body composition. Sounds like a bold statement, doesn’t it?  Good!  Am I suggesting that the “experts” may be giving you the wrong advice?  YES!  But let’s look at why…

Among my many problems with grains, the first and foremost is the effect it has on your glucose levels, thus eliciting an unhealthy insulin (and other hormones) response.  Humans have developed the insulin response to help us metabolize sugar and to carry excess glucose out of the bloodstream. However, we as a human race have simply not evolved enough (nor do I believe we ever will) to handle the mass quantities of carbohydrates with which we tax our systems. And make no mistake about it, the average American’s carbohydrate intake comes from grains!

So why is this a problem? Simply put, grains elicit a physiological response that favors fat storage.  All carbohydrates are broken down into glucose.  Unless you’ve just completed a long, physically taxing workout (in which case those grain-based foods could be used in restocking depleted glycogen stores), then those carbohydrates will more than likely be stored as fat. In addition, the hormonal production that occurs to respond to elevated glucose levels also taxes the adrenal system, the pancreas, and the immune system. That’s not the way I would want to approach a fat loss program!

As far as the nutritional value of grains…they truly fall short of being the complete nutritional sources they’re cracked up to be. What they may give you in fiber, they lack in many other categories. They have been associated with vitamin and mineral deficiencies, and they have also been proven to reduce the body’s ability to process Vitamin D.

Whether you’re trying to lose weight or simply make healthier food choices, the question is the same. Why not get the same nutrients from the sources that won’t come back and haunt you? For example, you can get the same B6 vitamins from chicken that you can get from whole wheat pasta…and without the havoc on your blood sugar! Similarly, if it’s fiber you’re after, why not get it from real fruit and vegetable sources? In terms of nutrient density, grains can’t hold a candle to whole, natural food sources!

Hold on, there’s more to this grain story!  There are other substances that lurk in grains that can really reak havoc on the digestive system.  Specifically, gluten and lectins… both of which you may say initiate digestive chaos!

Gluten is the large, water-soluble protein that is found in most common grains like wheat, rye, and barley (By the way, it’s also the primary adhesive in wallpaper paste).  Gluten has proven to elicit a perceptible inflammatory response in most people.  Over time, those who are particularly gluten intolerant can also develop an array of dismal medical conditions, including joint pain, acid reflux, and autoimmune disorders.

Lectins, though more mild, are still natural toxins that are found in most common grain varieties. Researchers have uncovered that lectins can actually inhibit the natural functions of the GI tract, allowing an array of undigested molecules into the bloodstream. Over time, this repeated taxing of the digestive system can lead to the further development of autoimmune disorders.

Here’s the bottom line (for those of you who enjoy mathematical equations): grains = glucose spikes = insulin response = fat storage. Not a great formula for success if you’re trying to lose weight or burn fat from your body. A diet low in grains has been shown to manage your blood sugar, and therefore decrease your risk for problems associated with diabetes. Also, low grain diets will help you lower your blood pressure, alleviate digestive problems, minimize inflammation, and shed abdominal fat.

Look, it’s not going to be easy to eliminate grains completely from your diet, especially because they’ve become such a staple of the American diet. But take it one step at a time and have patience with the process. Make small changes first- replace your cereal with eggs, replace your sandwiches with salads, and pile some veggies on your plate for dinner instead of rice or pasta! Your waistline, and your health will thank you.

If you feel that your carbohydrate intake has hindered your weight loss, share your struggles with us and the community by leaving your comments below.  We’ll answer and questions and you are sure to get some helpful hints!

If you enjoyed the article, be sure to share this on Facebook so some of your friends and family can enjoy it as well.

Check back with us soon, as we will be following up on this article with some tips on developing strategies to greatly reduce or eliminate grains from your diet!

Ciao

Dennys Passeto

•   Share

Between work demands, family obligations, and fighting the DC
area traffic everyday, you’ve probably noticed that it’s
extremely difficult to prepare healthy meals everyday when
you’re in the middle of the grind. We’ve all had the experience
of being stuck feeling hungry with only two minutes to dash
into the closest convenience store or fast food joint to get
a quick bite.

While this certainly isn’t an ideal scenario, it happens to
the best of us from time to time. So, are there healthy options
out there that are still quick and accessible? Of course! But
first, I’d like to caution you that many of the foods that
have gotten the “healthy” nod are actually laden with sugar,
fat or preservatives, despite being marketed as health foods.
I will share a few of the main culprits with you.

Protein Bars. Most of these are basically glorified candy bars.
They’re packed with sugar or artificial sweeteners, and I
challenge you to find a single ingredient on the label that
you actually recognize or can pronounce. The point is, they’re
loaded with junk. The end result – your body can’t properly
metabolize them.

Bran muffins. This is a big one. Many people think the word
bran is synonymous with healthy fiber. Bran muffins contain
two of the worst ingredients for spiking your blood glucose
levels- sugar and refined flour. The fact that they might
contain a few grams of fiber is insignificant. What’s worse -
most bran muffins you pick up at your local 7 Eleven or
Starbucks contain upwards of 450 calories and over 25 grams
of fat!

Frozen Diet Meals. Weight watchers and Lean Cuisine come to
mind. Just because they have a “healthy” label on them doesn’t
make them open game. Most of these frozen meals average about
600 milligrams of sodium and offer very little nutritional
value, if any. In addition, they’re often so low in calories
that chances are you’ll be running back for a second helping
soon after eating them.

Fruit smoothies. I’m talking about the ones you pick up at a
store. You can perfect a healthy fruit smoothie at home if you
know what’s going into it. Most of the fruit smoothies that you
get as quick pick ups contain very little fruit at all. Almost
all of them have added sugar or high fructose corn syrup, and
are usually made with ice cream to give them a sweet flavor.

SUBWAY. I know, this is disappointing. Jared wouldn’t possibly
twist the truth about Subway sandwiches being good for you,could
he? Sure, if you have the choice of turning into the Subway
parking lot or hitting the drive thru of McDonald’s, then
Subway is your healthier option. But you do have the option, so
my advice is – opt out of this one. Their 12 inch subs, even
on their “healthy” breads contain about 92 grams of carbohydrates
and are loaded with over 2000 mg of sodium. Talk about a great
way to shock your metabolism. Yuck!

There is hope, however, you just have to know what you’re
putting in your body. There are plenty of quick foods that you
can grab on the run that will not destroy your weight loss
efforts. Opt for foods that don’t contain ANY ingredients.
When I’m stuck out on the road or working all day, I stop for
an apple and a bag of almonds. If you’re absolutely stuck
having to reach for quicker options, then you can still reach
for jerky, low-fat cheese sticks or trail mix.

Train yourself to question the actual content of the foods
that are marketed as good for you, and you will make some
shocking discoveries!

•   Share

As you’ve heard me write about many times, I’m a big advocate for eating organic. The word organic encompasses many different practices for different types of foods. As a general rule of thumb, it means that no hormones, anti-biotics, or pesticides were used in the production of that food.

For live stock it means that they weren’t confined and fed a diet(corn) that wasn’t its natural diet. In the case of cattle, they roam freely and eat grass. Hence the commonly used term “grass fed beef”. Fish are caught wildly instead of raised in fish farm tanks. Chickens roam wildly eating worms and their natural diets instead of living in a case or overcrowded dark hen house walking on their own feces and trampling each other to death.

Recently I watched a documentary that has enforced my commitment to eating organically stronger than anything I could have expected. It’s a documentary called “Food Inc.”. In this movie they highlight so many cruel, un-sanitary, and downright ridiculous ways that everyday food is modified in order to increase profit, decrease price, and decrease nutritional value.

Our food has changed more in the last 50 years that it has in the previous 10,000. It is now cheaper to eat a bag of potato chips than a bag of carrots. A trend has been taking place in front of our very eyes where the poor are getting fatter, experiencing more disease than they did 50 years ago. The nutritional education we’ve received as kids and adults is a joke. The truth is that your everyday “conventionally” grown foods are poisoning you. The big food companies just like the big drug companies are doing everything they can to keep this information from getting out.

The US government has subsidized corn farming in the US to where its now they main ingredient in the majority of foods. It’s what we feed cattle, chickens, pigs, etc… Not what they were intended to consume. Anti-biotics and growth hormones are used so that a chicken can reach full maturity(larger than normal) for slaughter in 49 days instead of 90 days.

They actually show a side by side comparison of raising a chicken all the way through the slaughter process in both the conventional fashion and organic natural farming fashion. It’s pretty eye opening.

Check out the trailer for the movie:

I can’t do justice to the information shared with you in that documentary. All I want to say is that if you truly care about what you are putting in your body(and your families). Please watch this documentary. It will change your life.   Go to www.FoodIncMovie.com

Dedicated to your health,

Dennys Passeto, CPT
www.achieve-fitness.com

•   Share

Tips For Preventing the Holiday Weight Gain

Balance and moderation may be the last things you think about during Thanksgiving. But, the fact is, the holidays give us too many opportunities to take a step away from our weight loss and fitness goals. Here are a few simple strategies
you can use to minimize the effects of your Thanksgiving feast on your body.

Don’t go to the Thanksgiving dinner hungry.
Starving yourself all day before the big meal will send your metabolism for a ride – a SLOW ride. You should eat breakfast and lunch as you normally would on any other day.

Don’t Drink Your Calories.
You will get plenty of calories from food during your Thanksgiving feast. Even a couple of sodas or beers can add several hundred calories to your intake and can also reak havoc on your digestive system.  Soda and beer can cause gas and bloating and will give you that dreaded stomach bulge you’re trying to avoid!

Eat like a Cow!
Did I say that? Yes! What do cows do extremely well? They chew their food! Your body needs some time to realize that it has a job to do after you’ve fed it. Allow time for your digestive enzymes to break down your food and use it for energy.

Balance Your Meals.
Thanksgiving dinner is not an all-you-can -eat buffet. Fill your plate primarily with lean protein and vegetables. You can still leave some room for your favorite foods, as long as its minimal. 

Go skinless on your turkey.
Choosing skinless turkey will slash away a good portion of fat and cholesterol. Save your appetite for the healthier side dishes and desserts.

Make a conscious choice to limit high fat items:
high fat food items are found in the creamy or cheese-filled food selections.  For instance, mashed potatoes are usually made with butter and milk; green bean casseroles are often prepared with cream of mushroom soup, cheese and milk and topped with fried onions; candied yams are loaded with cream, sugar and marshmallows.  If you cannot control the ingredients that go in to a dish, simply limit yourself to a smaller helping size. Moderation can save you hundreds, if not thousands of calories!

Pace yourself throughout the gathering.
Thanksgiving Dinner is quite a production in most families.  Therefore, we tend to want to honor the host by stuffing ourselves, acknowledging their hard work, well-prepared and delicious meal.  Avoid this trap.  It is still just a meal.

Research healthy Thanksgiving recipes in advance.
They’re all over the Internet! For example, instead of making stuffed turkey sandwiches, make a healthy turkey stew. Just boil a few slices of turkey in water, add bay leafs and a little white wine, and you have a great low-fat turkey stock. Now you can add as many vegetables as you want, and can even include some healthy whole grains if you’re dying for those carbs!

Eat one small meal at a time!
Many of us have multiple Thanksgiving meals. we go to grandma’s house for breakfast, then to Uncle Joe’s house for lunch, etc. If you’re locked into multiple eating commitments, make sure you treat each meal as a moderate one. Try small amounts of the foods offered at each meal instead of piling it on every time. Most Americans eat about 6,000 calories on Thanksgiving Day! Don’t be a statistic!

Get some exercise!
Don’t use the holiday as an excuse to sit on the couch all day. There are hundreds of scheduled turkey trots in the DC Area and most of them allow you to register the same day. Personally, I’m doing the Turkey Burnoff on Saturday the 28th with clients and Friends.  It’s at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg if you’re interested…
http://www.mcrrc.org/racing/2009/race_descriptions.php#turkey_burnoff
If you can’t join us for that one here are some other local area events going on throughout the entire DC, Maryland and
Northern Virginia region…

http://www.runwashington.com/archive0/news/nov03turkeyraces.html

If that sounds too overwhelming, just go for a walk or schedule a backyard football game. Made you could invite a few of the Washington Redskins players and have the kids show them a thing or two.  I’m sure they could benefit from the advice!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dennys Passeto and Entire Achieve Fitness Team

•   Share

by Dennys Passeto

There is an abundance of misinformation that exists when it comes to developing nutritional plans that support weight loss. The majority of people who are striving to lose weight or transform their bodies by dieting end up failing, not because they lack the motivation, but because the information they receive on how to do so is inaccurate.

There are tons of fad diets that we have come across in the past few years that force people to make extreme changes in their diet by either excessively restricting caloric intake or by drastically cutting out certain macronutrients. These diets are not only detrimental to your metabolism, they also require a huge amount of effort.

However, there is a solution that will not require you to  work harder on your diet or to make drastic changes. By implementing a simple technique that is relatively easy to execute, you can make positive changes to your metabolism and to your body. This powerful technique is know as calorie cycling.

Calorie cycling accomplishes weight loss through constantly  varying your eating routine by reducing your caloric intake in short, 2-3 day cycles. In most of today’s fad diets, you end up shocking your body into a rapid weight loss scheme and your body reacts by slowing down your metabolism so it can store fat for energy use later. Calorie cycling, however, does not allow your body to fully acclimate to a particular routine, and, in turn, your metabolism stays up to speed.  This enables you burn off more fat with regular exercise.

So, how does this technique actually work? Let’s look at  an example. If you are used to eating a 2000 calorie/day diet, then your body becomes accustomed to burning that amount of energy each day. With calorie cycling, you would cut 400 or 500 calories out of your regular intake for a short period of time, about two days or so. Luckily for us, our bodies will take about 2 days to recognize this change,  and in the meantime, will continue to burn the 2000 calories a day that it is used to getting.

Therefore, if your body is still burning the 2000 calories but you’ve only been feeding it 1600, it must find the  energy elsewhere. As long as your diet consists of some core healthy foods in the form of lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, then your body will use those missing calories in the form of stored body fat. The beauty is, you don’t  need to make enormous sacrifices or changes to your current diet for this technique to be effective.

Obviously, this type of strategy has to be done correctly to be effective, so you have to exercise some common sense. Ideally, the calories you cut out of your diet for those  short periods should be calories that come from unhealthy foods, primarily flour, sugar, and any heavily processed foods. In addition, your cycles of calorie restriction should not be permanent, about a day or two before you return to your normal intake.

The powerful part of this program is that you can continue to increase the efficiency of your metabolic system by continuing  to cycle your calories. In other words, your metabolism will continue to increase throughout the cycles until it has reached  its maximum fat burning level!

The end result of this “diet” is that you’re not really dieting at all! You are simply eating healthy foods in varied caloric cycles, therefore you’re not shocking (and damaging) your metabolism. Once your metabolism is in high gear, with the assistance of regular exercise, you’ll start to see that stubborn fat be blowtorched!!

•   Share

by: Dennys Passeto

For years, the media has come to vilify saturated fats in all of its forms. These  include butter, red meat, cheese, and the most talked about culprit – coconut oil. While some research would suggest that saturated fats are associated with a host of serious diseases, is it possible that saturated fats can also have some major health benefits?

The short answer is yes! There is a form of fat called CLA (conjugated linoleic acid), which is a natural form of healthy fat that occurs in meat and in the dairy from grass-fed animals such as cattle, bison, deer, goats, etc. CLA has been shown to provide many health benefits, including lowered LDL (bad) cholesterol and increased levels of HDL
(good) cholesterol.

While CLA has been proven to be beneficial to your overall health, keep in mind that not all saturated fats are created equal when it comes to their CLA content. Only meats and dairy products that come from grass-fed meats contain the most natural form of CLA. Typical grain-fed meats that are typically found at your local supermarket only contain about 20% of the CLA content that is found in the meat from ruminant animals.

Coconut oils have also been one of the most criticized forms of saturated fat by the media. Yet, study after study has been conducted, only to discover that coconut oils can actually lower your cholesterol, boost your metabolism, and decrease your waist size. Unlike other fatty acids that have been publicly accepted as healthy, coconut oil is rich in medium-chain triglycerides.

For all intensive purposes, medium-chain triglycerides are small enough to enter the mitochondria of your cells directly. This enables your cells to use these fatty acids for energy immediately. Otherwise, fat would be stored for later use. When fat is being used for energy instantly, it won’t have a negative effect on your body composition.

Overall, many saturated fats perform a critical role in allowing our body to absorb certain fat-soluble vitamins, such as A, D, E and K. They also play vital roles in the health of our bones, joints, and immune system functions. Probably the most powerful function of saturated fats for the general public is the fact that they actually slow down absorption from our foods, allowing us to go longer without feeling hungry. This sounds like a critical piece to the weight loss equation if you ask me! However, keep in mind that fat is the most calorie-dense macro-nutrient, so should be consumed in moderation when trying to support weight loss efforts.

The fact is, saturated fats provide a concentrated source of energy in the body and help provide the building blocks for a variety of key hormones. Without these building blocks, your body would not be able to perform everyday functions that are essential to life.

A great example of this is that the media encourages us to replace butter with lower-fat, “healthier” substitutes like margarine or other artificial spreads. These alternatives that are marketed as healthy replacements contain hydrogenated oils that are produced artificially (man-made) and their altered form has been linked to a host of
life-threatening illnesses. Yet, these products continue to be promoted as health foods.

The popularity of these replacements over otherwise healthy saturated fats represents a triumph of advertising duplicity over common sense!

It all comes back to eating a healthy, balanced diet that is comprised of natural foods. And yes, saturated fats occur in natural foods!

These nutrition tips combined with a sound exercise program will get you on the road to achieving ANY fitness objective. If you feel like you’re already on the road to success – great!  But if you know someone that needs a little extra help, we’d like to let you know that we offer Gift Certificates for all of our personal training services.

If you’re looking to get an early jump on your holiday shopping, simply pick a package that you would like to give to a friend, co-worker, or loved one and we will send you a very nice certificate to give as a gift.

And since we hardly ever think about ourselves during the upcoming holiday season, I’ve got something special FOR YOU!

Sign up for a package of 12 sessions or more by Nov. 30th and we’ll give you a 3 session Jump Start Gift Certificate Absolutely Free to give to anyone of your choice.  This is a $300 value!  You can see it on our website for yourself: Jump Start Personal Training Package. The only requirement is that the individual reside in the Maryland, DC, Northern Virginia Metro area.  So go ahead, get your metabolism ready for the holiday debauchery starting now and cross a gift off of your list for a friend or family member.  They will BOTH thank YOU for it.

Call Mike to take advantage of this great offer at 888-872-7961 ext. 1.  Don’t miss this opportunity to get yourself and your loved ones back into shape for 2010!

•   Share

There’s a nasty word out there in the weight loss world, and it’s “fat.”  Everyone is trying to lose weight, to lose “fat.” All the diet foods are labeled “fat free” to be appealing to dieters, even if they are laden with sugar. When people see an overweight person they say, “Oh man, look at that fat person.”

But fat is not just a bad word. In fact, there is an entire family of fat that is beloved by healthcare professionals, dieticians and is healthy for you.  In fact, these fats are not only healthy they are essential for your body and can aid in weight loss efforts. They are known as Omega, or the Omega-3 fatty acids.

Omega-3s are the good-for-you unsaturated fatty acids comprised of the polyunsaturated trio of a-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

While the Omega-3 fatty acids are the big buzz word of today where healthy living and weight loss are concerned, they were discovered way back in the 1930s. During that decade it was found that these polyunsaturated fats were actually necessary for normal human growth to occur.

In the 1970s researchers studied the diets of the Eskimos of Greenland and it was discovered that two of the 3 Omegas (DHA and EPA) were essential to heart health. These fatty acids were eaten in large doses via the Eskimos’ seafood-rich diet. Moreover, they showed almost no cardiovascular disease as these Omega-3 fatty acids naturally reduce triglycerides and arterial plaque while reducing heart rate and maintaining healthy blood pressure. What an amazing family of fats!

Now where most supplements have to add the tag line “these claims have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration,” two of the three Omegas HAVE been evaluated. In fact, EPA and DHA have both been awarded “qualified health claim” status by the FDA.

Here’s the statement from the FDA: “Supportive but not conclusive research shows that consumption of EPA and DHA [n-3] fatty acids may reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.”

The Canadian Government has done additional research and has publicly stated: “DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid, supports the normal development of the brain, eyes and nerves.”

As one might guess, with the rise in popularity of the Omega-3 fatty acids, advertisers are producing supplements and adding it to foods or just prominently labeling those foods that already have these good fats in them. A diet high in fish is all that is needed. But for those of you who either don’t enjoy fish or who want more Omega-3 in their diet, the places to get the highest dose are in fish oil and flax oil supplements.

No matter how you look at these Omega fats, they are good for you and essential for health. Who said all fat was bad?

•   Share

Nutrition Made Simple

In today’s health conscious world, there’s a lot of information out there on nutrition and healthy eating. With all the fad diets and companies releasing an abundance of“weight loss” products, it’s difficult to know where to turn for sound, credible advice on eating for weight loss. It becomes overwhelming when the information you get seems to change constantly, and you can’t go a day without hearing about a new extreme weight loss diet.

So let’s keep it simple. I’ve worked for several years with people who have struggled to lose weight. Almost all of them have tried fad diets in the past with minimal success. Rather than bore you to death with the science behind why these diets don’t work, let’s talk about what will work and what has proven to be effective for my clients. Here are some tips that ANYBODY can follow to put yourself on a faster, healthier track to achieving your weight loss goals. No nonsense, no lengthy scientific explanations, just functional tips that you can use as your guideline to jump start your weight loss efforts.

You must expend more energy than you take in. I don’t care if you’re eating broccoli and carrots all day, if you’re consuming more calories than you expend, you will absolutely, positively NEVER lose weight.

Eat breakfast every day. This is the only way to jump start your metabolism each day. If you’re not giving your body a consistent enough energy source, it will hold on to everything you put in it. Unfortunately for us, this storage always comes in the form of body fat!

Don’t think low-carb, think right carbs! Carbohydrates themselves are not the enemy. In fact, they are our main source of energy, especially when supporting an exercise program. However, our carbohydrate intake should come from fruits, vegetables and healthy whole grains. The main carbohydrate source from these foods is fiber, which promotes healthy digestion and is critical to maintaining the efficiency of our metabolism.  The two carbohydrate sources that will absolutely destroy your weight loss efforts are sugar and enriched flour. These are the real culprits. Trust me, America didn’t become obese by eating too many apples!

Get your fats from 3 sources only! Fats are also not the enemy, as long as we chose them wisely. The primary dietary sources of essential fats are seafood, flax oil/seeds, and mixed nuts. These essential fats are touted for their heart health properties, aiding in recovery, and reducing the risk of several serious diseases as well. Not only should you not avoid these foods, you should seek them out as part of your weight loss plan. In fact, essential fats should make up about 30% of your overall intake.

3 words for success – Whole, Natural Foods. This is one to live by!  Our bodies are simply not designed to digest processed foods. You work your body hard enough as it is, don’t make it work harder just to digest the junk you may put in it. A good general rule here is that if you don’t recognize the food’s ingredients, it’s not natural. All of the essential nutrients your body needs to sustain health and support weight loss are contained within fruits, vegetables and lean protein sources.

Keep a food journal. I can’t emphasize this one enough. Tracking your nutritional intake is a critical piece to your success. Sometimes we don’t even realize how much we take in every day until we’ve written it down. Once you’ve seen it on paper, it becomes real and you will be way less likely to cheat if you have to write it down and admit it to yourself!

These are some pretty basic concepts, but if you stick to them as your guideline for healthy nutrition, you’ll be in a better position to achieve YOUR weight loss goals!!

By the way, if you missed it, check out our promotion for the month of August…

“Cash For Chunkers”

As most of you know, the U.S. Government recently passed legislation providing vouchers valued from $3,500 to $4,500 when you trade-in a vehicle and purchase a new one that meets higher MPG standards.  While we don’t have 4 grand to give to every new customer, we’d like to give you an opportunity and an incentive to trade in your old body for a newer, leaner, healthier one (and we don’t care how many miles per gallon it’s currently getting)!

For a limited time only, we’re offering $200 off any personal training package of 12 sessions or more until August 31st! There’s no catch, nor is your body required to meet certain standards.Because we’re not using taxpayer money to bail you out of your current body, we’re limiting this offer to 5 NEW CLIENTS ONLY! All you have to do is be ready to work hard and be willing to change your lifestyle.  The best part is, you don’t even have to come into our “dealership”, our trainers will come to you. What’s more,you can even take your trainer for a test drive before you commit to a program. If you feel your trainer won’t succeed in putting you into a new body, then there’s absolutely no obligation on your part.

If you’re ready to trade in your body and start making positive,healthy life changes, then now is the time to get in the best shape of your life! Just contact Mike at 888-872-7961 ext. 1 to set up your free test drive with the area’s best personal trainers, and we’ll put you on the road to fitness success. Be sure to mention the “Cash for Chunkers” promotion in order to receive your bail out check.

•   Share

Last week I told you about the worst ingredients found in the foods you eat, every day. These are the “foods” that the FDA says are “ok” to feed Americans. Yet, we are becoming ill faster than ever before. Long, slow deaths by heart disease, obesity and cholesterol.  Reading labels can be tricky and sometimes there are some things in there that we can’t even pronounce let alone spell or know what they are but yet we consume them without asking any questions.

Today I will tell you which of these unpronounceable mystery ingredients are good for you along with some common known ingredients to look for in the foods you eat. These are among the best foods you can eat, and should be included in your daily diet. Let’s take a look at what they are.

Whole Grain–­Before we get to whole grain, let’s fist look at ‘enriched flour’ products. These are the breads, rolls and pastas that are first stripped of their outer grain portion, removed of their nutrients and bleached of their natural color. the product is so poor, so value-less, that they are then “enriched” with vitamins and nutrients. Ridiculous! Forget these products, they are scams and unnatural.

What you should be grabbing for are whole-grain products. These are carbohydrates that are made from the entire grain and contain the original vitamins, nutrients and fiber and are thus good for regularity, blood sugar, lowering cholesterol and optimal brain functioning.

When checking out the ingredients on carbohydrate products, looks for those where the first ingredient listed says whole grain, whole wheat, whole meal or whole corn. These will be in the form of bread, pastas, hot cereals, brown rice, bulger, buckwheat, spelt and wild rice. The USDA suggests that each of us get at least three servings of whole grains every day.

Soy Lecithin—A product of soybean oil and also extracted from soy beans, soy lecithin is used as an emulsifier in prepared foods. It keeps chocolate from crumbling or splintering, helps dough rise in baked goods and keeps spreadable “butters” and cheeses from separating.

This product has passed the muster of the American Dietetic Association. It is found not only safe, but also good for you. As a result, soy lecithin also comes in supplement form. You see, it’s packed with choline, which is found in eggs and is known to boost brain development while also preventing heart disease, lowering cholesterol and helps treat dementia. Not too shabby!

The bottom line is, the USDA says soy lecithin is a safe emulsifier. And keeping your intake below 3.5 grams per day will yield no known side effects. So if you have to grab a bite of a processed food, look for this as its ‘hold it together’ ingredient. Better yet… go for whole, unprocessed foods instead.

Disodium Phosphate—The liver and gallbladder are so important to health and wellness. They help purify blood, breakdown toxins and fats. As far as food preservatives go disodium phosphate is one of the better ones. In fact, it helps maintain proper pH levels in the body as well as metabolizing cholesterol.

Found in such products as frozen hash browns (to keep their brown color), in canned tuna (for buffering and chelating), in poultry and pork as a scalding agent, and in potato products (as a sequestrant).

On the whole, it is best to avoid preservatives in foods as they are generally toxic to the body and harmful to the liver. However, as stated disodium phosphate actually supports liver and gallbladder function and has properties that foster good health. So, go ahead and eat some preserved meats, fish and potato products—just be sure they are preserved with disodium phosphate, and nothing else.

Riboflavin—Who doesn’t know how vital the B-vitamins are to the body? Like magnesium, the B-complex vitamins are essential to so many vital functions of the body. And riboflavin (B-2) is among the most important of the group.

In fact, a deficiency of riboflavin can cause nervous system disorders and lesions on the skin and digestive tract. This water-soluble vitamin is involved in maintaining normal cell function, proper metabolism and cell function and in energy production.

Vitamin B-2 is found in both plant and animal tissue. As such, if you eat a well-balanced diet there will be no need to take a supplement containing this vitamin. No matter what your diet, riboflavin can be found in meat, green veggies and dairy products.

In conclusion, there are many healthy foods out there. But even among prepared foods, there can be healthy options.  As one of the top personal trainers in Virginia, Maryland and DC,  I’m always looking to keep my clients informed on what to look for on nutrition labels.  So next time you are out shopping, or running to grab a quick snack, look for those foods containing whole grains, soy lecithin, disodium phosphate and riboflavin. They’re pretty good for you.

About the Author:  Dennys Passeto is a Certified Personal Trainer and Owner of Achieve Fitness.  Home of the top personal trainers in Maryland, DC, and Virginia and the only… Women’s Only Fitness Bootcamp.  For more information about our programs and services, please call 1-888-872-7961.

•   Share

By: Dennys Passeto, CPT

You’re in the food store and get lost in all the claims about what is healthy and not for you. So you make your way to a vitamin shop or Whole Foods and try your luck there. But when you grab a bag of this, or a bar of that, and turn it to check out the label… you are just as lost. What IS all that stuff in there?

In today’s article I have chosen the top four unhealthy ingredients my clients ask me about most frequently. (The top healthy ingredients will be covered in (Part 2). I hope you will find this information helpful in your healthful shopping adventures!

MSG—These initials mean Monosodium Glutamate, and are the main flavor enhancer in your local Chinese take-out place. Like Mrs. Dash, MSG enhances flavor especially in frozen and processed foods… and causes people who are allergic to it to experience headaches, rashes and muscle pains. In fact, the American Academy of Pediatrics removed MSG from all products for infants under the age of one, after injections into lab animals showed nerve cell damage!

Despite the fact that MSG has been proven a poison substance, it is so widely used that you might not even think where it might be. Cans of tuna? You bet! Turkey breast cold cuts? Absolutely, in some brands! And the result: an increase in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s, serious rise in cases of asthma, Parkinson’s disease, migraine headaches and heart trouble.

Bottom line: Stay away from MSG. Check the label of everything you buy and avoid the brands that include it. And when ordering food from a restaurant, they are obligated by law to NOT include MSG if you specifically tell them you are allergic. Sounds like a plan.

Maltodextrin—Maltodextrin is essentially a powder derived from potatoes or corn and when combined with other spices and things becomes a tasty coating for snack foods. This powder food additive is found in such things as flavored potato chips, pretzels and crackers.

While the FDA says this chemical is “safe,” it does not really count it as healthy or unhealthy. That is, the content amount found in food is so low that it barely counts. Yet, in large quantities it is not healthy. So what is “non toxic” in one bag of chips may not be so healthy when one eats several bags of chips, pretzels, crackers in the course of a week, month or year.

And while the maltodextrin processed in North America is derived from potato and corn, the Asian equivalent is manufactured from wheat and is thus not gluten free. This means that if you are prone to migraine headache, Candida or have Celiac disease… you should stay away from snacks imported from Asia.

Again, check the labels. If an item contains maltodextrin it will say so and if it contains the wheat-based form, this must also be noted on the package. In moderation, the sweet or savory aspect of this additive can be delightful. But over-consumption is unhealthy. Not just because it is a chemical, but because the foods it is used to flavor are, themselves, not on the diet plan of any serious fitness program!

High Fructose Corn Syrup—This sweetener has been called the main culprit in the rise in youth obesity in the United States… and later has been given a clean bill by the FDA. Talk about bi-polar! No wonder we don’t know what is going on with our health. Well, here’s the scoop…

High-fructose corn syrup is corn syrup that has undergone enzymatic processing to convert its glucose into fructose. This fructose has then been mixed with regular corn syrup, which is 100% glucose, and the result is a sweet liquid known as high-fructose.

This liquid is the sweetener found in just about every cold beverage in your local convenience store, including iced tea, sodas and energy drinks. Not only that, but it is also found in so-called healthy foods like tomato soup and yogurt, and less healthful items such as salad dressings and cookies.

Yes it’s true that the FDA did a 30 year study and found a correlation between HFCS and obesity, and that it is worse for your health than plain sugar. Yet the Corn Refiners Association has launched an aggressive advertising campaign to counter these criticisms, claiming that high fructose corn syrup “is natural” and “has the same natural sweeteners as table sugar

Well, if you have any question, just look to two of the largest-consumed beverages, Pepsi and Snapple. Both have ditched the nasty stuff and gone back to sweetening their drinks with plain old sugar. Stay away from the HFCS, it will make you fatter than sugar!

Partially Hydrogenated Oils—whatever you do, stay clear of hydrogenated and partially hydrogenated oils. They are unnatural and very unhealthy. You see the original oil is subjected to hydrogenation which changes its molecular structure. This allows the oil molecules to harden thus giving it a longer shelf life, which is why manufacturers like it. But the changed oils are actually closer to plastic than to oil, and the hydrogenation process kills the Omega 3 and 6 essential fatty acids, which are the healthy parts of the original oils!

What all this means is that the body does not get the desired anti-oxidant affect of consuming oils, and the new hydrogenated oils are then treated in the body as fatty foods that the bloodstream can’t process. The result is fat stored in the body. Excess storage of fat in the body and arterial plaque build-up, then, are the big issues with partially hydrogenated oils.

Avoid foods containing partially hydrogenated oils at all costs. Check the labels on spreads, crackers, cookies, cakes, and even some so-called fruit snacks.

The bottom line is to eat naturally, to eat fresh, and to always read the label. When in doubt, write down the ingredient and do an on-line search. You just might be surprised at what you find!

About the author:
Dennys Passeto is a Certified Personal Trainer and the owner of Achieve Fitness.  The top personal training company serving Maryland, Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia.  Mr. Passeto along with Achieve Fitness’ trainers have helped hundreds of clients reach their fitness goals.

•   Share