What are the 3 most important areas in becoming a stronger and better you?
This is a great question to ask yourself and we are going to look into these 3 areas mentioned above in order to help you be a more balanced and stronger person to maintain confidence and sustain energy for your mind and body.
These 3 areas we will dive into are in no particular order because they are all quite a balance and dependent on one another in life. For example, if you eat bad then your energy gets out of balance, then this can snowball to no exercise, and ultimately more weight and less muscle.
While one area might be perceived to either be stronger in your life or another a more desired area to work on; one must understand and realize how all these areas are interrelated to maintain homeostasis, and sustain a healthy balance to be the strongest you can be mentally, emotionally, and physically.
Food is Essentially the Fuel for our Whole Body & Mind
There is one area above all as where everything starts or can essentially stop and this area would be the almighty mind. A person’s mind can either create harmony or even disaster based on our own decisions and ultimately our perceived reality.
So, how do we create a sound reality for ourselves to keep a strong baseline and platform to build on other important areas in life?
Food For our Thoughts :
There are many foods that are essential for the brain.
- Blueberries protect the brain from oxidative stress and may reduce the effects of age-related conditions, increase learning, and motor skills.
- Avocados contain healthy monounsaturated fat, which contributes to healthy blood flow.
- Nuts and Seeds have high levels of vitamin E which have the ability to help with cognitive skills as you age.
- Beans are underrated and aid in stabilizing the glucose in our bodies. Brain power such as thinking, memory, and learning are directly related to the glucose levels in our bodies. The brain is highly rich in nerve cells and is known to utilize one-half of all the sugar energy in the body.
Foods to Gain Muscle Growth :
We all know that creating new muscle growth is done by breaking down muscle fibers. This process needs protein and omegas to help with the repair process and the best and most natural way to get protein is through food.
- Deep Water fish and wild salmon provide our minds and bodies with omega-3 fatty acids and essential, healthy fats for energy. These fish are loaded with protein to feed your muscles and gain the strength you need.
- Chicken- Chicken is still one of the best gotos for a lean choice of protein compared to the fat it allows.
- Soybeans– Soybeans are extremely high in in omega 3’s.
- Oats are great for energy levels to maintain blood sugar in the body. They are digested slowly and provides steady energy for the brain and body.
- Hemp Powder and seeds provide a great source of magnesium and protein, antioxidants, omega-3s and omega-6s and other vital nutrients for the body and mind.
Exercise and Strength Conditioning
There has been a long debate on whether weight lifting or aerobics/cardio is better for you in terms of burning fat, increased health, and gaining that muscle tone that everyone desires.
People continue to argue whether high intensity is better than long endurance or is aerobic better than a more strength component? These are continuous questions that we will try to unravel.
With a recent study from Technical University of Madrid and La Paz University Hospital, it not surprisingly concluded that the best way to lose weight was to combine all of these exercises along with a balanced diet of more restricted calories.
This is not very surprising, as another study from Calgary concluded that when younger kids combined aerobic and resistance training vs just aerobic; the fat was decreased significantly. Additionally, they lost more weight doing just one of the exercise programs vs just dieting alone and no exercise at all.
Balancing Strength and Aerobic Exercises
It is most optimal to have short and long term goals for your exercise routine. The best thing is to mix it up in order to keep your body improving in all areas which will definitely increase your metabolism, fat burning, and muscle mass.
As a general guideline, it is great to start out resistance training a little bit more than weight lifting to get your core and strength moving towards your more long term goals. One thing you do not want to do is get an injury which will set you back tremendously.
It is best to lift weights 2-3 times a week and resistance training and aerobics mixed into the schedule. High intensity aerobics can be mixed with endurance training to get your metabolism revved up to burn the most fat. Over time it might be better to lessen weight lifting or even do more based on whatever objective you are trying to accomplish.
Types of resistance Training
Using Body Weight: Pushups, situps, pull up, chin up, squats
Types of Aerobic and Cardio
- Hip Hop Dancing
Types of Weight Lifting
- Using Free weights and heavier lifting with lower reps will burn the most calories with focusing on many muscle groups.
- Using free weights with greater reps and medium sized weights will increase your tone and act as a more strength conditioning and aerobic workout.
With the lighter weight, you can increase the intensity and reps to gain higher target heart rates and intermittent intensities for optimal weight loss while toning muscle.
Remember it is best to mix things up with your timing between sets, days you work on specific muscle groups, and even the weight of the barbells. When mixing things up it provides for changes in the lactic acid, heart rate, and muscle groups being targeted. Which all have a factor in weight loss, gaining muscle mass, or that toned stomach that you desire.
Supplements for Mind and Body
We have determined so far that everything works together in order to get the best results for that strong body or even that balanced mind. There are essentially no short cuts and without the right fuel your engine is going to be misfiring.
Types of Supplements for Exercise and Muscle Growth
- Creatinine Monohydrate: Creatinine is a natural substance that is found in the skeletal muscle tissue and is good for cell changes and production. Many muscle builders take Creatinine because of the ability to quickly attain muscle mass, faster workout recovery, and increased glycogen storage.
- Beta Alinine: Beta Alinine is an amino acid that is found in lean meats and is know to aid in helping to increase the levels of carnosine. Carnosine is know to help reduce levels of Hydrogen and decrease acidity from high level workouts. Increased acidity can cause fatigue and decreased muscle performance, and lessen endurance.
- Whey Protein: Protein is essential for anyone wanting to pack on lean muscle mass and is one of the most used supplements across the world. Protein plays a vital role in protein synthesis and cellular health and is vital for muscle growth and repair.
Nootropics for the Mind
Nootropics are smart drugs that actually work and are a class of supplements that are used to enhance memory and cognitive aspects of the mind. There are natural and man made nootropics that have been around for 40 years. The science of increasing brain power has been around a long time and is still ever changing.
Top 3 Nootropics For Cognitive Power, Memory, and Sleep
- Duck Dose Modafinil: Marketed as Provigil – It is one of the most popular smart pills on the market.It is know to be fast acting and improves mental alertness, cognition and working memory.
- Axon Labs – Nexgen Stack- This is a nootropic stack which provides synergistic action and combines both Nexus and Mitogen to give you optimal effects that are better than one supplement alone. They both together accelerate the brain for improved functioning.
- Natural Stacks – Magtech: This nootropic was made for quality sleep with 3 different types of magnesium known to have the highest absorption.