Jamcore Training Blog

You know that milk is good for your bones, but did you know that it’s great for your muscles too? Recent research demonstrated that people who drink skim milk after weight lifting sessions lose more fat and gain more muscle than people who choose other beverages, including carbohydrate-laden energy drinks and soy protein beverages. In a controlled experiment, the skim milk group lost twice as much weight as the carbohydrate group. The soy group did not lose any weight at the end of the intense 5 session-per-week lifting program that lasted three months. In terms of muscle growth, the milk group gained about 40% more muscle mass than the soy group and 63% more than the carbohydrate group. Though the specifics of the mechanisms in play are not known, researchers are recommending milk as a post-workout pick-up that can help you burn fat and grow muscle.

Popularity: 16% [?]

“I tried every diet in the book. I tried some that weren’t in the book. I tried eating the book. It tasted better than most of the diets.” Dolly Parton

When I think of Dolly’s quote, I think of how my mother also tried every diet in the book before she finally lost her weight. I know she must have felt like she spent her entire life dieting. The truth is, she just made a few common mistakes that prolonged her results. Here is a list of helpful diet tips that will make sure your weight loss journey is a success:

1. Avoid diet hopping - Some people never stick to a diet long enough to get results before they hop on the next diet that comes their way. If you chose a diet plan, stick to it.
2. Never attempt an unrealistic diet - I can’t help but think of the Cabbage Soup Diet which I was on for all of four very long days. A successful diet is one you can stick with for the long haul.
3. Don’t rely on the quick fix - We all know better but our patience often gets the best of us. Don’t give in to weight loss gimmicks. A quick fix is just a temporary fix and only postpones the inevitable.
4. Be realistic - If you are on a mild diet and exercise plan, expect mild results. The more intense the program, the faster the results. Be realistic when setting and working toward your goal.
5. Be honest with yourself - People seem quick to recall all the healthy low-calorie foods they eat but get amnesia when it comes to unhealthy choices. The scale will tell on you, so in all actuality you aren’t fooling anyone but yourself.
6. What you don’t know can hurt you - I find most people who have failed on their diet have been guessing their way through it all. Other people just don’t want to know the truth. I can’t tell you how many times my husband has taken a bite of something and as soon as I begin to read off the calories he plugs his ears saying “lalalalalalalala, I don’t want to know, lalalalalala”! The fact is the calories are there whether we know it or not.
7. If you aren’t dieting, you should be maintaining - Even if you lose the weight, you still have to be accountable for what you eat in order to maintain your new size. Many people who hit their goal end up back where they started because they went right back to eating poorly.
8. The “Weekday Diet” doesn’t always work - Many people diet all week only to erase their hard work each weekend. Although this may work while in maintenance, this diet faux pas is what makes people feel like they are dieting all the time and never reaping the reward.
9. Never underestimate the power of the calorie - Weight loss boils down to calories in vs. calories out. You can’t expect results if you are not sure how many calories you are eating.
10. Commit to dieting the right way - A lack of commitment just prolongs the amount of time it will take to get results. You can live on a yo-yo diet for the rest of your life and get mediocre results, or you can commit to working hard for a while and live the rest of your life enjoying your results.

By Bonnie Pfiester

Popularity: 41% [?]

Have you ever looked at your checking account and been surprised to see that the balance was lower than you expected it to be? I think we’ve all been there before. At first you think, “There’s no way I spent that much money!” Then, as you look further, you begin to uncover all the small stuff that created the big problem.

Big problems can creep up on you because the little stuff adds up quick. The same applies to our diet: it’s all the extras that can get us in trouble. Condiments, salad dressings, snacks, cream and sugar – they add a lot of extra calories to our diet. Unfortunately, most people have no idea how many calories they are taking in.

Dieting is all about checks and balances. The only difference is most of us don’t balance our “diet account” to see where we stand. That habit would never fly when it comes to our money. Most of us can’t afford to just keep writing checks without reconciling our account. The truth is we really can’t afford to ignore how much we eat either. Eventually it will catch up with you.

We can fool ourselves into thinking we don’t have to count calories, but just because we don’t count them doesn’t mean that they aren’t there. The only difference is no one is there to cut you off once you’ve gone “over the limit” like the bank does when you are in the red.

Managing calories is like writing a budget. It takes a little time in the beginning but, as you begin to journal your food, you quickly learn what you can and cannot afford to eat. The good news is, unlike managing your bank account, you don’t have to do it forever. The hardest part is initially learning the discipline.

You may be a good steward of your money, but are you a good steward of your body? Your body is the most valuable asset you have. Maybe it’s time to use some checks and balances with your health.

Popularity: 51% [?]

According to a report by the International Food Information Council, over 70% of American’s went on a diet last year. Ironically, many dieters find themselves feeling so alone – like they are the only one struggling with their weight.

It is so easy to fall in a trap of feeling like no one understands or no one struggles quite like you do. The truth is 70% of people are struggling with their weight or they wouldn’t be dieting.

Whether someone is 10lbs or 100lbs overweight, being heavy is not fun. It may be easy to look at everyone who appears to be smaller than you and think they don’t understand, but just because you would be happy at their size doesn’t mean they are. The fact is they could be just as unhappy about their weight as you are about yours.

For some odd reason we like to categorize our self by weight or situation which only separates us more, leaving us feeling more alone. It’s easy to think other people have it better. Although that may be true in some cases I guarantee you there is someone, just like you, who has experienced great success. Unfortunately, these insecurities often prevent people from even attempting a diet.

Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 76% [?]

We all know there are tons of myths surrounding fitness, weight loss and exercise. It is difficult sometimes to separate the facts from the fiction. Most people have a lot of common sense and know that losing dramatic amounts of weight quickly isn't possible, however some advertisers will use all of their powers to convince you of other miracle claims, and may often only reveal the truth in the fine print. In addition, there is always a lot of misinformation circulating around the general public regarding nutrition, exercise, weightloss and fitness. We chose some of the top myths we run into on a regular basis.

Myth #1 Drop 5 pounds in 5 days!

We all would love to be able to lose weight this fast, but no one we know would agree it was possible to lose 5 pounds of fat in 5 days without some seriously dangerous crash dieting and massive amounts of exercise. Read the rest of this entry »

Popularity: 93% [?]