Exercise

Benefits Of Wheat Germ Oil

Published by superadmin on February 25, 2025 | Leave a response

Should you take wheat germ oil or include it in your supplements? It all depends on your personal needs and goals. Wheat germ oil is packed with nutrients. It provides a generous supply of omega-3 fatty acids. It also contains omega-6 and omega-9. It is packed with vitamins K and E. It also contains choline, which is neither vitamin nor mineral but is frequently grouped with B vitamins, as well as vitamin A and other B vitamins. Wheat germ oil comes from cold-pressing wheat germ.

Wheat germ oil can improve energy and reduce the potential for infection.

Taking wheat germ oil can provide an energy boost. It’s the omega-3 fatty acids in it that convert to energy for muscles to use. It helps increase circulation, which translates into more energy as well. After a demanding workout, some athletes are susceptible to respiratory infections due to the reduction of immune functioning. Including vitamins C and E in your diet can help prevent the problem. Since wheat germ oil is high in vitamin E, it’s one option to use.

You may lower your blood pressure when you take wheat germ.

Taking wheat germ won’t replace medication. Don’t use it in conjunction with blood pressure-lowering medication since it might cause too low of a drop. It also has other heart-healthy benefits due to the omega-3 fatty acids. It helps lower the harmful LDL levels and increase the beneficial HDL. It can reduce the risk of plaque building on the interior of arteries. It does contain an imbalance of omega-6 6o omega-3, so moderating your use is suggested.

Wheat germ oil may have side effects.

If you have a wheat allergy, you may have side effects from wheat germ oil, such as nasal congestion, headache, digestive issues, or difficulty breathing if taking it internally. While it’s considered safe for most other people, take precautions if someone in your family has a wheat allergy. Don’t give it to babies. They could develop wheat allergies.

Your brain requires healthy fat. Wheat germ oil contains healthy fat that can improve your nervous system. It’s the omega-3 fatty acids that support the brain and nervous system. It also is an antioxidant that protects the brain.
Wheat germ oil may help regulate your blood sugar. If you’re already on a medication for high blood sugar, consult your healthcare professional before taking it. It can cause blood sugar levels to drop dramatically.
Wheat germ oil can keep you looking younger. It’s been used on the skin for centuries. It helps avoid oxidative stress and can minimize scars and wrinkles. It also boosts collagen production.
Wheat germ oil may help prevent obesity by boosting your metabolism to burn more calories. As with any supplement, use it cautiously and always consult your healthcare professional if you take medications or have a health condition.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness, Nutrition

Is There A Good Time Of Day To Take Vitamins?

Published by superadmin on February 15, 2025 | Leave a response

Not everyone needs supplements if they eat right, but some still do. Each person’s body and needs are different. Once you find you have a deficit, other questions arise. Is an imbalanced diet the cause? Is there a health issue responsible for the problem? Once you answer those questions, you move to the type and dosage of the vitamins and the time of day you take them. There are two types of vitamins: fat-soluble and water-soluble. Water-soluble vitamins include eight B vitamins and C. Fat-soluble vitamins include D, K, A, and E.

You should take some vitamins with food.

There are several reasons to take vitamins with food. Some work better on an empty stomach. Some require the consumption of food to avoid digestive issues. Fat-soluble vitamins need fat for absorption. Taking them with a small amount of fat ensures they are available for the body. The fat should come from healthy choices like avocados or salmon. Studies show that when a person takes vitamin D after a meal, absorption increases by 32% compared to vitamin D taken with water. When taken after a meal with more than 5 grams of fat, the absorption increased by as much as 57%.

Can food interfere with the absorption of water-soluble vitamins?

Water-soluble vitamins like vitamin C dissolve easily in water, so drinking a glass of water is the only thing necessary. The water should be tepid. If it’s too hot or cold, it can interfere with the process. Water-soluble vitamins should be taken on an empty stomach, according to some authorities. Vitamin C may cause stomach issues in some people when taken on an empty stomach. Vitamin B12 tends to boost your energy. Take it in the morning to avoid insomnia.

Multivitamins diminish the absorption of one vitamin type.

It doesn’t matter whether you take a multivitamin at mealtime or take it earlier with only water it will affect the absorption of either fat-soluble or water-soluble vitamins. There’s no best time to take them unless you’re susceptible to stomach issues from vitamin C. In that case, taking them with food protects from gastrointestinal issues and provides the fat necessary for absorption of the fat-soluble vitamins. The trade-off is diminished absorption of water-soluble vitamins.

Always take fat-soluble vitamins after you’ve eaten food with fat. You don’t have to eat an entire meal. You can eat toast with mashed avocado instead of butter or a cup of yogurt.
B-complex vitamins boost energy. Taking them before a workout may be beneficial. Vitamin D is necessary for strong muscles and bones. Use them before strength-building sessions.
If you’re building muscle, taking vitamin D before a workout with a snack helps increase testosterone levels and makes muscle-building easier.
If you’re taking any medication, always check with your healthcare professional or pharmacist before taking any supplements. Some vitamins interact with or boost the medicine. One example is vitamin E. When it’s taken with warfarin it can cause excessive bleeding.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Nutrition, Supplements

How Athletes Can Manage Stress Through Nutrition

Published by superadmin on February 5, 2025 | Leave a response

Athletes often are nervous right before an event. Sometimes, it continues throughout the endeavor. Being a little tense is good. It’s part of some athletes’ preparation, but once the race, fight, or race begins, it’s time to get down to business. If an athlete can’t manage stress, it can negatively affect their performance. During the competition, additional physical stress comes from pushing the body to the limit. There are multiple strategies available to help. One of those uses nutrition. It can help reduce both mental and physical stress.

Stress can be beneficial and provide a boost in energy for competition.

Getting the jitters before a competition is normal for everyone, whether they play professional football or compete in a chess tournament. The fight-or-flight response is a preservation instinct. There is an optimal point where stress helps the athlete function at their best. It’s rare to see an athlete have too little stress, especially right before their performance. If they do, it can impede the driving force to excellence. A little stress can be helpful to push the athlete toward their best by providing a boost of energy and improved focus. Overstressed athletes don’t function at their best. It impairs their ability to make decisions and decreases their performance.

Dietary advice can help the athlete perform their best and reduce stress to controllable levels.

Athletes can use various dietary strategies for stress management. Maintaining maximum glycogen stores, increasing protein intake throughout the day, and ensuring adequate hydration to prevent excess fluid loss are three. Timing food intake and the balance of macronutrients, which includes pre and post-workout snacks consisting of protein and carbohydrates, is another approach. Newer methods include the supplementation of micronutrients. The most critical factor is using a nutritional combination that addresses the athletes’ needs and keeps them mentally and physically healthy.

Stress can occur due to lack of energy.

Stress isn’t all mental. Physical stress is part of the problem. Ensuring the body has adequate energy can reduce the amount of stress. That assurance comes from timing food intake and choosing the food combinations that provide energy at varying times. Consuming snacks before and after exercise can boost recovery and reduce the physical stress exercise places on the body.

It takes a delicate balance of protein intake. It’s necessary for recovery, but too much can cause calcium loss and increase the risk of dehydration.
It takes the perfect balance of calorie intake to calorie output to ensure athletes maintain weight classes. Athletes should focus on nutrition and avoid diets that put undue stress on their bodies.
Introduce food into the diet that contains natural stress relievers, such as leafy greens, sweet potatoes, and eggs. Eggs contain multiple nutrients, including choline, that help reduce stress. Sweet potatoes reduce cortisol, a stress hormone.
The diet that fills your nutritional needs and addresses excess stress may contain food like broccoli. Broccoli contains sulforaphane, which has a calming effect and contains multiple vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness, Nutrition

How Exercising Can Be A Stress Reliever

Published by superadmin on December 25, 2024 | Leave a response

Are you feeling stressed? It’s easy to do in Louisville, KY. Life is busy. People have a lot of tugs on their time. Finding a way to reduce the stress or counteract it is vital. People often look to ways that aren’t healthy. Those ways may bring even more stress, like poor health or physical injury. One stress reliever not only improves your physical health, but it also improves your mental health. It’s exercising.

Stress starts a natural reaction to danger.

Caveman needed survival skills. The body’s reaction to stress is one of those. When early man faced danger, it signaled his brain to trigger hormones that prepared the body to fight or run. The hormones cause blood to go to the extremities. It caused blood pressure and heart rate to rise. All the changes made man more prepared to flee or fight. Burning off stress hormones while creating new hormones makes the person feel better. We don’t have the same dangers today, but the response is the same. It’s not best to fight an angry boss or leave your car and run into a traffic jam. Mimicking both actions through exercise helps overcome stress and provides other benefits.

Some people use exercise as a form of meditation.

Meditation can change your mind’s focus and help you relax. It is one way to reduce stress. Some people use exercise as a form of meditation. They direct their focus to the present and the rhythm of the body. If you’re running outside, it’s all about the sound of your feet hitting the ground and the wind and warmth of the sun on your face, and the warmth of the sun. If you’re lifting, your focus is directly on the muscles. Not only does exercise help divert your attention and bring stress relief, but it also helps you develop laser focus.

Stress can lead to anxiety or depression.

Many studies have revealed that exercise helps both depression and anxiety. Many therapists use it as an adjunct therapy. One study found therapy and exercise had better results than therapy alone or therapy and medication. Another benefit was that it had no side effects except for a healthier, more attractive body.

Exercise improves your posture and makes you look more confident. The more confident you look, the more people treat you as though you are. That treatment makes you feel more confident and less stressed.
Exercise helps promote better sleep. That can enable people to cope with stress better. Lack of sleep alone can be stressful. Add that to the day’s stress, and you have an overwhelming combination.
You’ll improve your gut microbiome when you exercise. Many beneficial microbes in the gut create enzymes that can boost your mood and improve your emotional well-being.
Always check with your healthcare professional first before starting any exercise program. If you have limitations, consider using a personal trainer to guide you safely through a program. Make sure you let the trainer know about any physical problems.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness

Do You Need Protein After A Workout?

Published by superadmin on December 15, 2024 | Leave a response

What you eat plays a major role in your health and fitness level. When you eat also plays a role, especially if you workout. You need the nutrients to keep you going and get the most from your workout, but you also need the materials to recover and rebuild muscle tissue. That means you need both carbohydrates and protein pre and post-exercise.

Most people understand a small snack or meal before exercising boosts your energy.

There are a few rules to follow when you eat before working out. The closer you are to exercising, the less you should eat. You also should avoid fatty foods. These rules are logical. They have to do with digestion. If you eat a large meal, make sure it’s 3 or 4 hours out. For smaller snacks, make it a half-hour window. Your body has to digest the food and exercise can interrupt that. Also, fats take longer to digest, so go light on fatty food. Pre-workout food also helps start recovery quicker.

Exercise causes tiny micro tears in the muscle.

When you exercise, especially when you do intense muscle-building, it causes micro tears in the muscles. The magic of muscle-building doesn’t occur when you exercise but during recovery. That’s when the micro-tears heal and form scar tissue to build bulk and strength. It’s one reason you should wait 48 to 72 hours before exercising those muscles again, or the healing doesn’t occur.

Post-workout snacks are for recovery and replenishing glycogen stores.

Eating a snack of protein provides the building blocks for building muscles. Carbohydrates replenish the glycogen stores in the muscles. Both are necessary to maximize your benefits from the workout. Eat it as soon after a workout as possible. It can be a full meal or a snack like apples and a spoonful of peanut butter. If you have a busy day following exercise, you won’t run out of steam midway.

Protein contains amino acids that are the building blocks for muscle tissue. Carbohydrates provide the energy for your body to function. The combination for a post-workout snack should be 40% protein and 60% carbohydrates.
If it’s close to breakfast, lunch, or dinner, wait until your next meal to eat. Make sure you replenish liquids throughout the workout and afterward, regardless of intensity.
You don’t have to make it elaborate. There are simple, inexpensive snacks you can make. Greek yogurt with bananas and berries is one option. Fruit and nuts are another. Keep the carbohydrates healthy and avoid food with added sugar.
If your workout is intense, you may need to replenish electrolytes. For potassium, eat a side of sweet potatoes, grapes, or green, leafy vegetables. You’ll also get magnesium from the green, leafy vegetables. Chicken soup can provide sodium.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness

Are Avocados Good For Diabetes?

Published by superadmin on December 5, 2024 | Leave a response

If you have diabetes, your diet plays a vital role in your health. Some foods are off-limits, like those packed with added sugar or other simple carbs. Food high in trans-fat should also be avoided. Most people try to avoid foods high in fat or calories and may cut avocados out of their diet. They think eating it can interfere with weight loss. That could be a mistake. Avocados provide many health benefits, especially for people with diabetes.

Eating avocados provides healthy fat and nutrients.

Avocados are high in nutrients that everyone needs, especially diabetics. They are an excellent source of vitamin K. Vitamin K helps boost insulin sensitivity and improves sugar metabolism. According to one study, eating a medium avocado daily lowered the risk of metabolic disease by 50%. A different study showed that people who ate the most avocados had a lower risk of developing diabetes.

If you’re worried about losing weight, avocados can help.

Often, people with diabetes, especially type 2 diabetes, need to lose weight. Keeping calorie counts lower is important. They’re high in fat, which means they’re higher in calories. That usually stops people from eating them. Don’t let that stop you. It doesn’t mean you should eat several a day, but it does mean you can eat them. Avocados contain fiber that fills you up and helps maintain blood sugar levels. The more fiber in your diet, the lower your fasting blood sugar and A1C levels are.

Metabolic syndrome is reduced when you eat avocados.

What is metabolic syndrome? It includes having three of five medical conditions. These include abdominal obesity, high blood sugar, high blood pressure, low serum high-density lipoproteins, and high serum triglycerides. It increases your risk for stroke, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. Scientists believe the problem may come from increased visceral fat—belly fat. Visceral fat causes inflammation. It plays a central role in weight gain and insulin resistance. One 12-week study found that when two groups ate the same calories but one group included avocados in their diet, the body converted visceral fat to subcutaneous fat that was not associated with metabolic syndrome.

Avocados contain oleic and monounsaturated fatty acids. Using oils high in oleic fatty acids instead of polyunsaturated fat, such as flaxseed oil, can reduce abdominal fat. Monounsaturated fatty acids also reduce belly fat.
It is high in vitamins E, C, B3, K, B6, B5, and B2. It contains folate, copper, potassium, magnesium, and manganese. The high potassium content can help lower blood pressure.
The high-fat content of avocados can help you lose weight. It keeps you feeling full longer. It lowers the bad LDL cholesterol and improves the body’s ability to absorb fat-soluble vitamins.
Always check with your healthcare professional before including avocados in your diet if you have diabetes. Every person is different and requires a personalized diet.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness

Natural Remedies For Sleeping Better

Published by superadmin on October 25, 2023 | Leave a response

If you listen to pharmaceutical commercials, you probably think there’s a pill for everything. At the end of every commercial, the announcer speaks rapidly in a soft, unemotional voice about all the side effects of the drug, many of which are far worse than the ailment it’s supposed to cure. Many people in Louisville, KY, look for natural remedies to help them sleep that don’t require disclosures. Lack of quality sleep causes many physical issues, yet millions of Americans suffer from it. Many people may be in bed for 8 hours but still don’t go through all stages of sleep to be healthy.

Should you eat before bedtime or not eat?

Almost everyone has heard you shouldn’t eat before bed, but that isn’t always true. The type of food you eat and the amount you eat is the key. Don’t overload your stomach with fatty foods, food high in sugar, or junk. It can cause digestive issues if you do or if you eat too much. However, if you can’t sleep, the problem may be hunger. Man is hardwired to stay awake and hunt for food if he’s hungry for survival. If you can’t fall asleep, try eating a small amount of protein with tryptophan, like beef, poultry, or seafood, combined with a healthy carb.

Get plenty of exercise.

A consistent program of exercise can help you sleep better. It doesn’t matter what type of exercise, walking, running, calisthenics, or just dancing. If you have a chronic problem with sleep, getting 30 minutes of exercise daily can help. Don’t overdo it, especially at first. It can cause aching muscles that will keep you awake all night. Not only will exercising regularly help you fall asleep, but it will also improve your quality of sleep, too.

Avoid alcohol, nicotine, and caffeine before bedtime.

People drink coffee to stay awake, so it seems like a no-brainer. However, most people don’t consider the caffeine in colas, chocolate, and energy drinks. Drinking or consuming caffeine-containing substances late in the day can keep you awake. Alcohol may help relax you, but if you drink it before bed, you won’t get the quality of sleep. You’ll wake up throughout the night or miss several stages of quality sleep.

Get out in the sun and eat food higher in omega-3. Both vitamin D and omega-3 are necessary to produce serotonin which plays a vital role in how quickly you fall asleep and the quality of your sleep.
Eating almonds or almond butter on toast can also help. Almonds contain magnesium that can calm your mind and help you sleep. A magnesium deficiency can cause insomnia.
Make sure you turn off all electrical appliances that emit light, such as the computer or TV. Sleep in a dark room that’s a bit on the cool side. You may think the TV helps you fall asleep, but it interferes with the quality of sleep.
Make a sleep schedule and stick with it, even on the weekends. Falling asleep at a specific time becomes a habit and helps you go to sleep quickly.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness & Wellness

How To Lose Body Fat And Preserve Muscle Mass

Published by superadmin on October 15, 2023 | Leave a response

It’s possible to lose body fat and preserve muscle mass. To lose weight, you have to eat fewer calories than you burn. The body doesn’t differentiate where it gets those calories, whether it’s from burning fat or muscle for them. Bodybuilders tend to focus most on this since getting ripped requires reducing fat, allowing muscles to show. To achieve body recomposition, reducing body fat and maintaining or increasing muscle tissue, focus on the best diet and exercise program.

It starts with your diet.

There’s a reason we include nutrition in our fitness programs, especially when you want to focus on losing fat and not muscle. Reducing your caloric intake too much can result in losing muscle mass. While many weight loss diets reduce calories by more than 500 a day, it can cause a loss of muscle mass. Rather than lowering calories, increasing activity levels is the way bodybuilders achieve that goal. They maintain the calorie intake for their weight and exercise more, increasing intensity and activity.

Some exercises are better for body recomposition.

Maintaining your caloric intake while boosting your exercise regimen is the key if you just want to burn fat and build or maintain muscle tissue. If you have a particularly intense workout, like intense strength training or HIIT—high intensity interval training—-you can even minimally increase your caloric intake to provide the energy you need. On days away from the gym or doing moderate to mild exercise, you can cut your calories by a small amount, such as 200 to 300.

Full-body workouts, interval training, and HIIT workouts are a few options.

A personal trainer can develop the perfect plan to help you, but if you don’t have a trainer, aim for full-body workouts, such as kettlebells that burn the most calories. Constant aerobic workouts won’t give you the results you want. They burn both fat and muscle. Strength-building workouts build or maintain muscle tissue and burn mostly body fat. Make your workouts shorter but work at a more intense pace, taking fewer breaks between sets or exercises. When you’re doing strength training, increase the weight you lift. You can also set a time and focus on increasing the number of lifts you do in the allotted time.

Increasing protein intake can help protect your muscles is important. Protein is necessary for building muscle tissue and can help burn fat. Cutting out processed food and food with added sugar is also necessary.
If weight loss and maintaining muscle mass is your goal, you have to adjust your diet slightly. Maintaining the same or slightly lower calorie intake on your days working out and cutting it by 300-400 calories on your days off works well.
Never underestimate the power of a good night’s sleep. Getting adequate sleep can boost your energy so you burn more calories. It also keeps your appetite in check.
Drink more water and stay hydrated. Water makes you feel full, so you don’t overeat. It also boosts your energy level. Don’t forget to include protein and carbs after working out. It helps with recovery by providing the necessary raw materials.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness & Wellness

How Many Calories Are Burned During Each Workout?

Published by superadmin on October 5, 2023 | Leave a response

Predicting the number of calories burned during a workout isn’t easy. Each person is different. The calories they burn doing the same exercises as someone else will vary by age, weight, gender, percentage of muscle tissue, length and intensity of the workout, and other factors. Even though you may be doing the same workout, the calories you burn at each will also vary. You can approximate the calories you burn, which for most people is adequate.

Your weight, gender, age, and body composition make a difference.

If you weigh more, moving around takes more energy, and you’ll burn more calories. Gender and body composition are linked. Men tend to have more muscle mass than women. People with more muscle mass burn more calories working out. The older you get, the harder it is to reach the intensity required to burn the maximum calories. You might think that fit people will burn more calories, but that’s not necessarily true. Their body is more efficient, so they burn fewer calories.

The area temperature, the amount of sleep, and your intensity affect the calories burned.

It makes sense that someone running at peak speed will burn more calories than someone walking slower, so intensity counts. If the room is warm, your body temperature will be higher, burning more calories. Getting adequate sleep the night before makes a difference. It can cause fatigue so you won’t work as hard. It also slows your metabolism.

Sometimes, just estimating the number of calories is enough.

Many charts will show the number of calories burned. Some even add weight to the mix. For instance, a 125-pound person will burn 165 calories doing 30 minutes of low-impact aerobic exercise, while a 155-pound person will burn 108. High-impact exercises burn more. That same 125-pound person will burn 210 calories, while the 155-pound person will burn 252. Knowing approximately how many calories you’ll burn based on the activity is often enough. Staying more focused on consistency and being active is more important.

While lifting weights doesn’t necessarily burn the most calories, they do create afterburn that increases your metabolism for hours. They also build muscle tissue that boosts metabolism.
Eating a small snack before you exercise can help keep you working your hardest, burning more calories in the process. The snack should contain a carb and some protein.
HIIT—high intensity interval training—torches calories. It’s not a type of exercise but a way of modifying any workout, alternating between peak intensity and a recovery pace.
A personal trainer will create a program designed to help you maximize the calories you burn, while also focusing on all types of fitness, strength, endurance, balance, and flexibility.

For more information, contact us today at Body Sculptors Personal Training

Posted in Exercise, Fitness & Wellness