We’re now at a point in time where we can get anything we want pretty much instantly. Whatever it is that you want, thanks to Amazon, it’s now two clicks away and sitting on your doorstep the next day. [9 times out of ten, that is - I’m still missing my f***ing cafetiere…]
Now that we can access the internet whenever and wherever, patience is no longer necessary… And so, in an effort to keep up with the times, here’s how you can change your physique in a very short time frame.
A popular diet [I won’t name it…] recommends consuming under 1000 calories per day, with many of the followers claiming to have lost 7lbs in 7 days.
Nothing surprising there.
The recommended foods are fairly high protein with fairly low fat [my personal favourite recipe being the 1 egg omelette…] because of the need to keep the calories low.
Yes, significantly reducing your calories will help you get lighter - so far so good - but do you know what else significantly reducing calories does? It significantly reduces your nutrient intake… It makes you weak as f*** too, but let’s deal with the nutrition aspect…
Halve your food intake and you halve your nutrient intake from vitamin A all the way through to zinc, with many people already being deficient in plenty of vitamins and minerals in the first place.
I’ll use vitamin A as an example...
- Low fat means low vitamin A intake.
- Consuming protein requires vitamin A for utilization.
- Your valuable vitamin A stores are now depleted.
- Now, on your new diet, you’re f***ed…
You’re f***ed because vitamin A is a catalyst on which innumerable biochemical processes depend on. This vital nutrient is needed for the growth and repair of body tissues; the utilization of protein; protection of the mucous membranes of the mouth, nose, throat and lungs; the production of testosterone; it helps to build strong bones and teeth; it is essential for good eyesight; it aids in the production of RNA; vital for adrenal and thyroid health; contributes to the health of the immune system… Deficiencies in pregnant mothers result in offspring with eye defects; abnormalities of the heart and larger blood vessels; displaced kidneys; harelip; cleft palate; etc…
*There is only one true type of vitamin A - preformed vitamin A, also known as retinol and its associated esters - and it is only found in animal fats and organs. Provitamin A, or beta-carotene, is found in plants. It is a substance that the body can convert into vitamin A, but only if certain conditions are met, and very, very few people meet these conditions...*
Cut calories in half and you cut your nutrition in half too, so if you’re going to do it, you need to focus on foods that deliver the most nutrition per calorie… You also have to live with the fact that all of your physical efforts will likely be spectacularly s*** for the foreseeable future…
Ok, so that’s one way to quickly transform your physique - albeit a very drastic and s***ty one - but what about people who want to stay healthy and strong while they lean out?
This is where things get properly interesting!
Believe it or not, fat cells require quite a lot of attention to maintain their size.
Many people have tried to improve their looks by having fat injected into their lips, but watched their expensive enhancement shrivel and disappear when the transplanted cells refused to flourish in their new location. When researchers investigated this phenomenon they found that not only had the once girthy fat cells reduced down to slivers, but some had changed into an entirely different type of cell called a fibrocyte, the cell type most prevalent in the tissues into which the fat cells had been injected.
Essentially, the fibrocytes surrounding the transplanted fat cells did not produce the necessary fat sustaining hormones, without which the newly injected fat cells would either have to shrink and shut down, OR, reinvent themselves as fibrocytes.
You may be able to coerce fat cells into becoming just about anything you want. Fat tissue belongs to a class of tissue called connective tissue - this includes blood, bone, muscle, collagen, etc - with the current belief being that a connective tissue cell permanently retains its ability to transform into another cell type whenever it is given the chemical signal to do so. This process - called transdifferentiation - can make fat cells leave your adipose tissue and migrate to become new muscle, bone or even brain cells… You can control this chemical signalling with what you put in your mouth and what you expose your body to...
If this interests you as much as it interests me [and I am fully turned on right now] you can check out these studies:
1. Transdifferentiation potential of human mesenchymal stem cells derived from bone marrow, Song L, FASEB journal, volume 18, June 2004
2. Reversible transdifferentiation of secretory epithelial cells into adipocytes in the mammary gland, Morron M, PNAS, November 30, 2004, vol. 101
3. Identification of cartilage progenitor cells in the adult ear perichondrium: utilization for cartilage reconstruction, Togo T, laboratory Investigation, 2006
4. The cellular plasticity of human adipocytes, Tholpady SS, Annals of plastic surgery, vol. 54, 2005
Exercise transforms your body not because it “burns calories”, that’s just silly - it’s like 3 hours of running to burn off one Big Mac - exercise transforms your body because it generates signals to build muscle, bone and other lean tissues instead of unwanted body fat.
The general rule is this: the greater the stress, the stronger the signal.
How do we do this?
First, we get adequate sleep. Sleep reduces corticosteroid levels and increases levels of immune system chemicals that reduce inflammation and fat cell number. If you feel like you’re doing everything right but still struggling to lose that belly fat, chances are high that it’s sleep related.
Second, we make sure our diet is on point. This is a big topic that I’ve covered before, so I won’t go into too much detail - ensure you have adequate building blocks [meat cooked on the bone] and don’t eat anything that sends the wrong signals [no vegetable oils or refined sugars].
Third we stress the body. We keep every workout under 1 hour and we utilize a periodization [programming] method that allows for the application of high levels of stress within a framework that allows optimal recovery time between workouts to ensure proper, continuous adaptation to stress…
Heavy carries allow for the highest application of stress… Nothing compares to the top-to-toe muscle recruitment of a heavy carry… You can read why I love farmer walks here: http://www.crossfitblackbrook.com/farmerwalks.html but when it comes to sending the strongest chemical signals for change - when it comes to producing the highest levels of muscular tension [often with loads greater than your max deadlift or squat] all over the body for long durations - the yoke carry is king of the hill...
You get under a heavy yoke, you TELL your body that you NEED more muscle, bone and connective tissue, and that you NEED it NOW… Useless, unwanted fat cells will now rapidly leave your adipose tissue and migrate to become new muscle, bone and connective tissue… If you want to get shredded, start doing heavy carries.
There are plenty of other seriously cool benefits [which I may write about soon…] but for now I will leave you with these 3 points…
1. Many athletes report huge poundage increases in the squat and deadlift just by training yoke and farmers exclusively for the lower body.
2. Yoke carry is an effective training tool for any sport, but it has a particularly strong transfer to rugby and American football.
3. Progressions in this exercise should follow the same steady, slow pattern as you would see in the squat so that the load doesn’t exceed the ability of the athlete… [Don’t be an idiot, basically...]
Think that’ll do for today…
“Sit the f*** down and have a beer…”
~ Coach Collins
Copyright 2017