Ask Aaron Orton Anything About Health and Fitness

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 19 Oct 2008 17:08

gMoney wrote:I've got this muscle or vein or something that like pushes on the bottom of my foot (the arch) whenever I run, and it feels very weird, although there's no pain. What's wrong with me?

I can't diagnose that, it may be a varicose vein in a uncomfortable location. Who knows, if it gives you trouble, see a doctor.

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 19 Oct 2008 17:11

exudedex wrote:I work a 9-5 out in the field doing somewhat physical labor, play an hour of footbag, play an hour of competitive water polo, swim 1-2 hours at high intensity, and rock climb for 30 minutes each day. How many calories should I have in my diet?, and what meals would you recommend to meet that requirement?

Thanks

That's an intense amount of exercise, and I don't believe you do it every day. If you're at 15% body fat and your conducting all of this exercise, I can't see this as a realistic situation unless your over the age of 55.

Your basal metabolic rate depends on age, height, activity level, and body surface. Only one of which you gave me.

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 19 Oct 2008 17:24

jon wrote:Not that I was asked but I don't believe it is possible to loss fat and gain muscle at the same time. Your body either gains muscle and fat, loses muscle and fat, or does neither. I would say the biggest lie that most personal trainers tell their clients is that this is an achievable goal.

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Not entirely true. While gaining muscle mass requires more calories, and decreasing body fat requires less. Obtaining both simultaneously is very real. Your body is in a constant frenzy of chemical reactions, all dependent of your food and exercise choices. While you can never be in a constant state of building muscle and losing fat, it is a short duration event that anyone and everyone's body is going through. Since increase lean tissue means more calories required by the body to maintain homeostasis, then less of those calories will be deposited as triglycerides in an effort to store fuel (fat). Therefore you are reducing the capability of fat to be created, and promoting the synthesis of amino acids to living lean tissue. Thus, a reduction of fat, and an increase in muscle mass. This is a very real capability and is often seen with large increases in testosterone, IGF-1, and GH. These hormones are released whenever a sufficient amount of cardiovascular and/or anaerobic exercise is conducted. Breaking down the body through exercise requires the mobilization of these repair hormones in an effort to combat that stress the next time the body may face it.

You may have mistaken this for body fat percentages and not muscle building versus fat loss. With body fat percentages, trainers may tell their clients that they are increasing their lean percentages while reducing their fat percentages. While this may sound like building muscle while decreasing fat, it is not the same.

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 19 Oct 2008 17:29

Senor Grommet wrote:After you answer all of the above questions, ponder this one:

I'm about 5'10", weigh in at 165 typically. I'd guess that I probably have about 20 pounds of fat on me that I don't need. I have a short term goal to reach 155 lbs, so dropping at least 10 pounds of fat but also gaining muscle.

I am going about achieving this goal currently by:
-modifying diet: intake is primarily protein-rich foods (legumes, meats, fresh and cooked veggies, egg whites, and minimizing carb/sugar intake)
-100 pushups regimen (program to ^ max amount of pushups (3x weekly))
-daily or so 10 min of abs
-bike riding-between 8 and 10 miles per week
-playing Net or Takraw 3-5 times weekly.

I know that adding muscle helps to burn fat more quickly. I am doing pushups and crunches for this purpose, and don't really have access to weights at the moment. What might you recommend dietarily for me? Can you confirm that I am making smart choices, or have suggestions for modification of my diet? Right now Lunch is my "biggest" meal of the day, although my lunch typically extends over a 2 hour period, during which I snack on nuts, apple sauce, fresh fruit, a main dish that is usually veggie rich with some meat. My b-fast is small because I'm not typically hungry when I wake up. I try to keep dinner fairly light, maybe have a late night healthy snack if I get hungry. In about 2 weeks of healthy eating with minimal cardio exercise (due to leg injury) Ive gone from 169 to 164 lbs, so I feel like I'm on the right track.

Any sugestions?

Thanks Aaron!

Your good to go man. As long as your diet is in check throughout the week, I'd even recommend a cheat meal on your final day of the week as a reward. Just make sure that it isn't too insane, and only a couple hundred calories over what you would normally eat for lunch/dinner. If you seem to be doing fine on a bit larger lunch, thats awesome. Work with what your body is telling you, just don't negate the other 4-5 small snacks/meals you should be consuming the rest of the day.

jon · Post by **jon** » 19 Oct 2008 19:18

Aaron I don't think your explanation really states how it is possible to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously.

You lost me about here, "Therefore you are reducing the capability of fat to be created, and promoting the synthesis of amino acids to living lean tissue. Thus, a reduction of fat, and an increase in muscle mass." Reducing new fat storage doesn't mean removing fat. Creating lean tissue doesn't mean removing fat (unless you are stating the body is taking fat cells and converting them into muscle tissue which I believe is also impossible). What am I missing here that allows the conclusion you draw to be correct?

Please explain how this is possible in layman terms. Everything I know, mind you not a hell of a lot, tells me this is impossible to do both of the above at the same time.

However anecdotal it might be I have never observed this as being possible in my 3 years of bodybuilding or with any of the people I have ever worked out with.

gMoney · Post by **gMoney** » 19 Oct 2008 20:03

Maraxus wrote:
gMoney wrote:I've got this muscle or vein or something that like pushes on the bottom of my foot (the arch) whenever I run, and it feels very weird, although there's no pain. What's wrong with me?
I can't diagnose that, it may be a varicose vein in a uncomfortable location. Who knows, if it gives you trouble, see a doctor.

I don't think it is. I don't know, it hasn't bothered me in awhile, but if it comes back I'll see a doctor. Thanks for trying to answer my stupid question.

Sergey · Post by **Sergey** » 21 Oct 2008 06:01

You wrote:

My recommendation for you Jorden is to get at least one source of protein in every meal you consume, eating 4-6 meals per day.

Most recommendations for an active healthy individual involve a meal proportion of three parts carbohydrates, two parts protein, and one part fat. This breaks down to 50% calories from carbs, ~33.3% from protein, and 16.6% from fats.

1) Aron, where can I find examples of these 6 meals?
Photos and cooking step by step instructions would be helpful too.

2) I've heard there are some health problems associated with meat, what is your opinion on this?

3) How to get most of my protein from plant sources if I decide to cut down on meat products? Can you give me some meal examples (same as in 1) ?

Thank you!
Sergey

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 26 Oct 2008 10:59

Sergey, try these recommended websites:

Food guide for vegetarians:
http://www.poly.asu.edu/saas/nutrition/ ... yramid.jpg

Examples of using the food guide:
http://www.poly.asu.edu/saas/nutrition/ ... anism.html

If you continue to have questions on specific information for vegan and vegetarian needs, try this basic website:

http://www.vrg.org/

Sergey · Post by **Sergey** » 27 Oct 2008 03:24

Thank you Aaron !

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 08 Nov 2008 01:41

jon wrote:Aaron I don't think your explanation really states how it is possible to lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously.

You lost me about here, "Therefore you are reducing the capability of fat to be created, and promoting the synthesis of amino acids to living lean tissue. Thus, a reduction of fat, and an increase in muscle mass." Reducing new fat storage doesn't mean removing fat. Creating lean tissue doesn't mean removing fat (unless you are stating the body is taking fat cells and converting them into muscle tissue which I believe is also impossible). What am I missing here that allows the conclusion you draw to be correct?

Please explain how this is possible in layman terms. Everything I know, mind you not a hell of a lot, tells me this is impossible to do both of the above at the same time.

However anecdotal it might be I have never observed this as being possible in my 3 years of bodybuilding or with any of the people I have ever worked out with.

Lean Tissue (Muscle Mass) Burns Calories.
Calorie Burning Is From Free Fatty Acid and Liver/Skeletal Muscle Energy Stores
So if you build muscle, your burning more calories, and/or fat.

The difference between those who can achieve this and those who can't is based on nutrition, genetics, and training stimulus.

jay7 · Post by **jay7** » 08 Nov 2008 20:52

Hey Aaron, I'm not entirely sure as to how much information I have to give you for such a vague question. I am ~140 pounds, and ~5'10". Typical lanky footbagger body type.

For the past two weeks, I have changed my breakfast schedule from oatmeal to a fruit, yoghurt, granola, peanut butter and [vanilla] soy milk smoothies every morning. I notice virtually every 16-20 year old male has some stash of powder protein sitting in his closet ready for the day they actually start working out, and wondered how good it actually is for you. My physical activity includes 30 minute walk between home and school, and 1->2 hours of footbag a day 6-7 days a week.

Lunch generally is my meal with some sort of meat, usually some sort of stir fry, wrap or pasta. Dinner is typically more of a typical breakfast meal, bagel, cereal scrambled eggs etc. Either way, I intake some amount of meat each day.

Would it be wise to buy this protein that seems to get "all the hype", or does my diet contain just as much as my body actually needs? If I should purchase some magical protein powder, what are some things to look for / good brands?

Thank you for all of your help,

BenRea · Post by **BenRea** » 10 Nov 2008 13:13

jay, all im gunna say is you should be taking in 1.5g of protein for every lb you weigh. If you want reach this and you are looking into gaining weight/muscle then maybe some whey protein is good for you. but PLEASE, DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY ANYTHING.

oh wait, im not Aaron, sorry, back to you Mr. Orton.

professor · Post by **professor** » 10 Nov 2008 13:57

What is your stance on milk? Do you think it is harmful or helpful? Necessary or not?

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 16 Nov 2008 20:49

I think milk is an almost essential part of where our daily calcium should come from. In fact, mypyramid.org just remade their guidelines for daily consumption from a "dairy" group to a "milk" group. The biological reason for this is because milk carries the amino acid profile necessary to digest it's protein and carries the vitamin D necessary to intake the calcium. Other dairy products like butter and cream cheese were dropped from the dairy list because they didn't coincide with what the government recommends for saturated fat intake. Too many anti-milk advocates are out there because they don't understand what their food is and where it comes from. As long as unhealthy additives and harmful processing techniques aren't used in the milk your drinking, you should be fine. Those who are lactose intolerant, (the people who do not produce the enzyme necessary to digest and utilize milk) should find their nutrients from other sources.

Jay, the newest research that I have seen and I agree with is to take in .8g of protein per lb of body weight of (and this is key) your ideal body weight. Therefore, if your ideal shred weight is 140 lbs, then you should be consuming 112g of protein per day. You don't need a whey protein supplement to hit this goal if your intaking protein at each meal. For example, if your eating four times a day, then you would be intaking 28g of protein per meal and you will be fine. If your eating 5 times a day you will be intaking 22-23g of protein per meal to get your necessary intake.

Slowsis · Post by **Slowsis** » 28 Nov 2008 09:23

My Question: Which muscles (and what coresponding excersizes) need to be worked out to keep the body balanced for footbag?

By this I mean that obviously some muscles get way more work than others when you shred, and I know tht it is a muscle imbalance which causes shin spints, so really I'd like to know if there are any other ways to cross-train my body to avoid injury and improve performance.

zeroman13 · Post by **zeroman13** » 29 Nov 2008 16:44

I have a question about working out your abs.

What's the most effective way to work your lower abs? Like the bottom 2 of the 6 pack?

Cause it seems with everything I've been doing lately has been working the upper 4 and not really the bottom 2.

BenRea · Post by **BenRea** » 30 Nov 2008 08:00

zeroman13 wrote:I have a question about working out your abs.

What's the most effective way to work your lower abs? Like the bottom 2 of the 6 pack?

Cause it seems with everything I've been doing lately has been working the upper 4 and not really the bottom 2.

hang upside down by your feat and do crunches. (serious)

jon · Post by **jon** » 30 Nov 2008 09:54

zeroman13 wrote:I have a question about working out your abs.

What's the most effective way to work your lower abs? Like the bottom 2 of the 6 pack?

Cause it seems with everything I've been doing lately has been working the upper 4 and not really the bottom 2.

If you can't see the bottom 2 it's likely genetic. If the case is that you can't see the bottom two but can see the top of the abs the odds are you are working the bottom already. Look at Arnold in this picture:

.

It is not the case that he didn't work the bottom of his abs. Some people just don't show the bottom of the six pack. 6-packs are much much more a factor of diet, genetics, and body fat than direct ab work.

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 26 Dec 2008 11:36

zeroman13 wrote:I have a question about working out your abs.

What's the most effective way to work your lower abs? Like the bottom 2 of the 6 pack?

Cause it seems with everything I've been doing lately has been working the upper 4 and not really the bottom 2.

Work your abs in this order to save time and improve effectiveness. The university of penn state released a study showing muscle activation after woking your abdominals in specific orders. The most effective order is to start with your lower abs with exercises such as leg raises, flutter kicks, v-ups, and six inch holds. Then, as soon as your completely flushed in the lower, switch to the obliques. Try exercises like side planks, side crunches, side bends, and penquin crunches. Once this is complete, finish the abs off with normal upper ab exercises like crunches, bicycle crunches, and situps. What you'll notice is quite a bit more activation from the obliques and lower abs even during this time. Try it for fifteen minutes.

Like Jon said, six-packs are genetic. Some people have four, some have six, some have eight, I've even seen ten. The point should be do have a flat, attractive midsection not a "six pack"

Maraxus · Post by **Maraxus** » 26 Dec 2008 11:37

Slowsis wrote:My Question: Which muscles (and what coresponding excersizes) need to be worked out to keep the body balanced for footbag?

By this I mean that obviously some muscles get way more work than others when you shred, and I know tht it is a muscle imbalance which causes shin spints, so really I'd like to know if there are any other ways to cross-train my body to avoid injury and improve performance.

I'd say every muscle. Practice footbag every day and try free weight compound exercises to keep your muscular strength and lean tissue gains up.