AITank: Fitness Explained

I have to tell everyone about this page because no matter who you are, it will help you make ridiculously easy and unbelievably good food. Mind you, CHEAP. The Pioneer Woman Cooks is brilliant! Their are countless recipes to choose from and everything is made so simple and easy to follow that you would have to be a little sore round the grey bits in your head to not produce what the recipes show.

Ree as the author calls herself, is a “desperate housewife. I love to cook delicious, abundant, satisfying food using the simplest of ingredients.” Where have you been all my life?!?! Everything from the lasagna to the chocolate sheet cake is superb. She provides amazing pictures for each step of the process so if something does not look right you will be able to figure it out soon enough. But really, take some time to browse around the offerings she has posted for us all. In college and need help keeping variety in your diet on a short wallet, this is your answer. Get home late and still need to whip something up for yourself before bed but do not want microwave tv dishes, this is your answer.

Nothing is overly flamboyant, there is no black truffles, no fruits from Rangoon or flour made in some small province in Italy. Just stuff you can find easily, make easily, and enjoy immensely.

Tell me what your favorite recipe is. Always looking to try new ones!

With spring break and summer fast approaching, the number one question that will start to circulate is how do I tone up to get a swim suit body or get that mythic six pack so I can show the world. It starts with knowing how to plan a lean diet. Rule number one: never skip meals. Dropping the number of meals you take in per day lowers your metabolic rate and increases the level of nutrient oxidation. This means you will feel lethargic and what fat you have, your body will fight to keep as long as possible based on a primal survival instinct. Rule number two: eat 5 to 6 meals per day. This will kick start your metabolism leading to a higher basal metabolic rate, or BMR, and will stabilize your level of nutrient oxidation making your body more efficient at utilizing food you put in it.

With the basics out of the way lets talk details now. The goal for a leaning or cutting diet is to be high in protein, low in fat and have a decent amount of carbohydrates. If you wanted to talk ratios it would be approximately 42% carbs, 38% protein, 20% fat with the fats being primarily healthy sources such as olive oil, flax oil, fish, peanuts, fruits and veggies like avocado. Look for good carbs to come from items such as, oatmeal, whole grains, yams, beans, and pasta. For good clean protein look to chicken, turkey, egg whites, seafood like tuna, low fat or fat free yogurt, soy products and 2% and lower milk.

A lot of people have been under the very ridiculous impression that eating as much protein as humanly possible will make them stronger. This is not how it works. You don’t have to gulp down 5 servings of whey at a time. You don’t have to eat protein bars before, during, and after your workout. In fact, EXCESSIVE protein will HURT you more than it HELPS you. The human body can only absorb a certain amount of protein before it starts going to waste (the cutoff is usually about 2 grams per pound of bodyweight, for serious bodybuilders - and in actuality is probably less, depending on your level of intensity). “But the more protein I eat, the bigger I’ll get!” This is true, but only up to a point, and after that point it just goes to waste. Apples are healthy but you wouldn’t sit around and eat an entire orchard in one sitting. Gulping down protein bars every hour is like staying up all night studying a subject you aren’t even taking.

Now that you know HOW MUCH you need, let’s talk about what KIND you need. There are different types of proteins as well as different qualities, and you want most of your protein intake to be high quality proteins. The BEST sources of protein are real foods, not manufactured products with sugar and fat thrown in to make them taste better. Peanut butter, chicken, turkey, salmon, nuts, eggs, milk: these are all great sources of protein. Rather than buying your groceries at GNC, grill up some chicken breast or boil some eggs.