podcast

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Adicto a la aptitud de Mexico

Not only is this the 40th episode of Addicted to Fitness, it is the FIRST international episode of the podcast, which you may have already known if you are fluent in Spanish or curious enough to put the episode’s title into a translator on google. Shannon and I decided our trip to Mexico to attend a friend’s wedding would be an ideal environment to record a podcast. Picturesque scenery, relaxing ocean waves and all inclusive access to resort amenities both healthy and not so healthy.

Shannon and I have been running and gunning since the start of the year and this weekend gave us the opportunity to recharge our batteries. Finding moments of temporary stress relief are important to both your physical and mental health. Another practice that can be beneficial to your health is a 30 day challenge. Whether it be 30 days of progressive pushup repetitions or 30 days without dairy, these periodic challenges can help you develop sustainable healthy habits.  I love doing 30 day challenges, and you’ll hear in this episode that I celebrated the completion of 30+ days without alcohol while on the trip. I did celebrate the completion of my challenge with a drink or two, but I quickly discovered why I started the challenge in the first place. Shannon and I may have made some naughty dietary choices while on our short vacay, but we did participate in an activity that was extremely beneficial to our health.

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If you’re an avid listener of the podcast, I’m sure you’ve heard me mention that I’m a big fan of massage. Well apparently Shannon heard me because she scheduled a surprise couples massage at the resort spa during our stay. Therapeutic massage is not only relaxing it can help you move more efficiently. “Tight” muscles can be painful and can create improper movement patterns that could lead to injury. If you know a qualified massage therapist and can afford regular treatments, I’d recommend doing it. Much like this trip, I think it would be money well spent.

We hope you guys enjoy this week’s international episode. If you do, please let us know by giving us a rating and review in iTunes. We’d also really appreciate it if you shared Addicted to Fitness with a friend. Simply copy one of the links below and paste it to their Facebook page or text it to them. We appreciate the support. ¡Mantente saludable esta semana!

Links to this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/adicto-a-la-aptitud-de-mexico/id1121420986?i=1000381935294&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/adicto-a-la-aptitud-de-mexico

 

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – From the Vault: Protein Preferences

I got my toes in the water, ass in the sand. Not a worry in the world, cold beer in my hand. Life is good today. Life is good today

I imagine I’ll be humming along to this Zac Brown tune while you all listening to this week’s podcast. Shannon and I are off to Mexico for a friend’s wedding, but we don’t want to leave you loyal listeners without your weekly dose of health and fitness information. Which is why we reached into the ETT Wrap show vault for a throwback episode of the Addicted to Fitness podcast.

Shannon and I start off this classic episode discussing our weekly workouts, group training and ETT’s first team competition, the Mud Endeavor 5k. For those unfamiliar with the Mud Endeavor, its a great obstacle course race based out of West Central Florida. Having already ran this race, I highly recommend it and suggest anyone looking to challenge themselves, consider obstacle course racing. After all the mudrun talk, we get into the real “meat” of the episode.

The remainder of the podcast focuses on the wide variety of protein sources available to meateaters and non-meateaters. Shannon describes her experience as a vegan and lists off her go-to protein sources (legumes, nuts, seeds) along with what type of supplements she had to take in order to get all her essential nutrients (B12 & iron to name a few). We also read off a ton of our listeners favorite protein sources which include peanut butter, yogurt, eggs, cricket flour, red meat and many more. Reeling off our protein preferences leads to an interesting discussion about the importance of gut health, which we will definitely be talking more about in a future episode.

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We’ve got a lot of great podcasts lined up for you all, including next week’s episode which I believe is our best episode to date. You’ll definitely want to subscribe to the podcast if you haven’t done so already, and please rate, review and share Addicted to Fitness with anyone and everyone. Thanks again for all the support and stay healthy this week peeps!

Links to the Addicted to Fitness podcast

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/addicted-to-fitness-podcast/id1121420986?mt=2#episodeGuid=ff12ecccd3885916e7d604ce5fdecb63

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/from-the-vault-protein-preferences-for-vegans-meateaters

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – The Macros Game Returns!

I’m giving Shannon the week off from writing the show notes to ensure that she is in tip top shape for our trip to Mexico next weekend. Even though she’s taking a week off from the show notes, it doesn’t mean you won’t get to hear her on the this week’s Addicted to Fitness podcast.

We start this week’s episode with a recap of our past week of training. Even though Shannon was feeling a little under the weather, she was able to complete a couple short sessions on our beloved peloton cycle. After our training recap, Shannon discusses her upcoming yoga “immersion” weekend, which is part of her Bella Prana yoga teaching certification program. This certification process will provide Shannon with a whole new skill set and allow her to pursue one of her passions. Shannon discussing pursuing her passion was the perfect segue to my big announcement about Elemental Training Tampa (ETT).

If you’ve listened to the podcast before, I’m sure you’ve heard me mention that providing personal training through ETT is where my passion lies. However, I haven’t had the opportunity to make ETT my full time vocation, until now. I’m proud to announce that starting in March, ETT will be a full time health & fitness operation. We have been invited by the Tampa Strength Academy to operate our training system at their new location in South Tampa. When I started ETT back in 2014, I always wondered if I’d be able to go full time into fitness. Now that the opportunity has actually presented itself, I almost can’t believe it. I’ll be writing another post about the entire process of deciding to take ETT full time, but needless to say, I couldn’t be happier.  As if that announcement wasn’t enough, we’ve got a brand new edition of the MACROS GAME!

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For anyone that is unfamiliar with the Macros Game, it is a nutritional trivia game that requires contestants to guess the macronutrient (fat, protein or carbohydrate) when given its amount in grams contained in 1 serving of a specific food. It may sound complicated, but once you hear it in the episode, I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it. We’ve done holiday editions in the past, but this week we grab nutritional info from food items we picked up on a recent trip to the grocery store. We would love you all to play along at home and let us know if you have more nutrition knowledge than Shannon or I.

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When you all send your scores for this week’s Macros Game, we’d love it if you’d provide us any feedback on the podcast. Better yet, head to the iTunes store, and give us a rating and review. I say it every week because its true. Your feedback helps us create a better product. Thanks again for all the support and stay healthy this week peeps!

Links for this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/grocery-shopping-edition-macros/id1121420986?i=1000380846108&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/grocery-shopping-edition-of-the-macros-game

 

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Our Favorite Smartphone Fitness Apps

Written by Shannon, aka Cassandra. 

Sometimes you simply can’t avoid getting sick. This week I caught a cold which resulted in a husky alter-ego that Nick named “Cassandra.” So don’t mind the raspy co-host for today’s episode.

Ironically, we’re talking about health & fitness apps today! Specifically, Nick and I share our favorite apps that we use every day, then we go through apps from listeners and friends who submitted their picks.

Following up on our previous episode where I reviewed the Fitbit Charge 2, I dive into the user-friendly mobile app that serves as the real power behind any Fitbit. This free app is where you setup your actual Fitbit device, establish your goals, and even where you can track a few other handy health and fitness items.

The Fitbit app includes a very easy user interface, with a main screen that highlights some of your main daily metrics like: steps, floors climbed, miles covered, calories burned, activity and water consumed. You can also get info on your resting heart rate, calories consumed, sleep, etc.

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Picture courtesy of fitbit.com

The best part is the integration with other apps, including Nick’s food log app that he breaks down further, and the peloton app, which sends workout info from the bike to your Fitbit app.

Nick provides a review of the Lose it! app, which is a food journal. While neither of us are big on counting calories, we do like holding ourselves accountable and it’s easy to lose track of what you’re eating. This app is a great way to ensure you’re truly seeing how much macronutrients you’re taking in each day, your calories consumed and your calories burned.

The food catalog for Lose It! is truly impressive with millions of food items, ingredients and meals alike, already logged into the database. You can even scan barcodes with a built-in barcode scanner to make it easy to identify specific food items.

Snap it!, which is an extension of the Lose It app, even gives the option of identifying food by snapping a picture, which it then tries to match up to corresponding nutrition information. It’s just not incredibly accurate, so it’s more effective for simple items (e.g. piece of fruit, protein bar, etc.).

There is a premium version of the app, but the free version offers great options and even integrates with other fitness apps to provide information like steps and exercise.

Getting into the listener’s favorite fitness apps, we list them off for ya:

At the end of the day though, it doesn’t matter if you use fitness apps or not. Use whatever tools you need to hold yourself more accountable and help you to reach your fitness goals.

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We wrap up this episode getting amped up for the new Facebook Live workout that is now available on the ETT Facebook page. Perfect little 25-min workout video that includes a warmup, 15 min HIIT workout and an ab-centric cooldown.We’ve got exciting episodes coming up; please reach out at elementaltampa@gmail.com and let us know what topics you’d like us to discuss on a future episode. Thanks for listening!

Links for this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/our-favorite-smartphone-fitness/id1121420986?i=1000380559728&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/our-favorite-smartphone-fitness-apps

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Heart Rate Training & Fit Bit Breakdown

The first month of 2017 is nearly complete and some may be welcoming new habits after weeks of hard work setting new routines. On this week’s podcast, Nick and I kick-off by sharing the things we’ve added to our own fitness/health routines so far.

Nick started the year by doing a series of monthly challenges. For January, he’s given up an overindulgence – alcohol. In addition, he’s incorporating daily morning workouts to try and lose the pesky holiday pounds that almost all of us pack on.

I, on the other hand, finally started exploring a quest into a new topic of my health, which is also the topic of our podcast today – Heart Rate Monitoring and Training.

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Nick shares the formula for how to calculate your Zone 2 (fat burning zone):

180 – your age = your zone 2 beats per minute (BPM) OR being able to hold a conversation while exercising (e.g. if you’re 30 years old, you subtract that from 180 and your Zone 2 heart rate is 150 bpm, give or take a few beats)

In order to better understand my own heart rate efficiencies (or otherwise) I invested in the best monitor for the money I was looking to spend and bought the Fitbit Charge 2.

My motivations for wanting to better understand this element of fitness and how it contributes to my health comes after long battles with stress and poor sleep, two things many people are likely grappling with as well. The Peloton classes introduced me to how heart rate training can improve your fitness and I had read countless articles about how it benefits your overall health.

The Mayo Clinic states that a normal resting heart rate (RHR) for adults is 60 to 100 beats per minute. Fitbit compiled their substantial user data and estimated 50-90 BPM is average for an adult.

So what affects your resting heart rate? Well, as it turns out, quite a lot:

  • Activity level
  • Fitness level
  • Air temperature
  • Body position
  • Emotions
  • Body Mass Index (BMI)
  • Medications

You can impact your own heart rate in a number of ways:

  • Physical exercise (15-20 min/day will lower RHR)
  • Reduce body fat/increase muscle mass
  • Mindfulness

In terms of exercise, Zone 2 training is how many athletes build endurance. It’s all about low intensity for long periods of time – staying in that fat burning zone.

I’ve been experimenting with some of the Zone 2 training on the Peloton so far and have already seen some impact on my RHR.

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Much of what I’ve learned in the last few weeks is due to my Fitbit Charge 2. Costing a fairly reasonable $130 (to start) the Fitbit Charge 2 was highly rated by CNET, even more so since Fitbit launched a software upgrade late last year.

In the last part of the podcast I get into the details of my own review of the fitness monitor, including the ups and downs (because nothing is perfect, right?).

Pros:

  • Not bulky
  • Changeable bands
  • Useful mobile app/interface
  • Battery life is good (4-5 days before needing a charge)

Cons:

  • Absolutely can’t get wet
  • Charger is awkward

Some of the features I like most include a cardio fitness rating. It gives a rating based on its estimated VO2 Max and indicates your overall performance in endurance-based activities. Currently, mine is sitting around 38-42, which is “good – very good” for a female of my age (positive sign!).

The app is a whole other side of this product, which we’ll get into in a future episode, but as of now, I would recommend the Fitbit Charge 2. It holds me to new levels of accountability, further helping me stick to a healthy lifestyle.

Now all I need to work on is adding some friends to my Fitbit circle!

We’d love hear what goals you set or accomplished so far this year. Please feel free to share them with us in the comment section, on Facebook or email us at elementaltampa@gmail.com. Your feedback and support has helped us grow into a 5 star rated podcast and we are extremely grateful. Keep rating, reviewing and sharing the podcast and let’s stay healthy year.

Links for this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/addicted-to-fitness-podcast/id1121420986?mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/a-breakdown-of-heart-rate-training-the-fit-bit-charge-20

 

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Interview with World’s Tallest Bodybuilder, Aaron Reed

This week, Nick interviews former pro-wrestler and the world’s tallest competitive bodybuilder, Aaron Reed. Not only has Aaron worked hard to become a beast of an athlete, he’s also the author of the nutrition book The Supernatural Lifestyle, which serves as the basis for the Eat Like Aaron meal prep service he offers in Tampa Bay.

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Image created with photo courtesy of Luis Battistini (@luisx_com)

The road that got him to where he is today has not been a cake-walk. In fact, Aaron faced a humorless, life-threatening a-hole, also known as leukemia, as a child. He was diagnosed young and had to beat that monster before he was able to follow in his family’s athletic footsteps.

His late start didn’t deter him from finding his passions, though. Aaron learned early on that he was good at lifting weights and sought his inspiration from legend, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Fast forward a bit, and Aaron talks about his days in the WWE and how an injury as a pro wrestler led to him discovering that he had hepatitis. Faced with the choice of going back on chemotherapy, he made the decision to treat his illness with nutrition. A lack of help from other fitness experts led him to become a self-taught nutritionist, passionate about using his diet as a healing and strengthening force in life.

Aaron’s three rules to nutrition:

  1. Eat whole foods
  2. Don’t combine sugar and fat
  3. Eat certain macronutrients at certain times

His learned expertise in nutrition resulted in him writing his book in 2011 and subsequently starting his meal prep service, which focuses on raising insulin sensitivity (that’s a good goal) by eating more fat on its own and fewer carbohydrates.

When asked what kinds of meals are included in the Eat Like Aaron meal plan, he told Nick:

  • Carbs + protein meal (e.g. chicken and rice)
  • Protein + fat meal (e.g. grass-fed burger and guacamole)
  • You can have vegetables at any time because they provide fiber (not suggested for post workout)
  • Eating fat is important because it helps with hormone production and sex drive (hey-yo!)

Aaron also shared his belief that artificial sweeteners are a big no-no because they dull insulin sensitivity and may be the cause of visceral belly fat. So don’t expect to see those anywhere in his meal options.

As the first body builder we’ve interviewed for the podcast, Aaron set a really high bar (and not just because he’s 6’7″)! He’s a friendly and talkative guy with an incredibly inspiring story and a clear passion for nutrition. Seeing how far his knowledge has already taken him is motivating proof of just how critical diet is to your health.

Do yourself a favor and connect with/follow Aaron on his social channels – Facebook, Instagram (@aaronw.reed), Twitter (@AaronWReed)

Oh! And just in case you need a little comparison to see what we mean by the world’s tallest bodybuilder, check out the side-by-side selfie of Nick and Aaron below.

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Let us know how you’re enjoying the podcast between episodes and keep sharing the feedback either on Facebook or by leaving a review in the iTunes store. We love hearing from you! As always, thank you so much for listening and supporting.

Links to this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/interview-worlds-tallest-bodybuilder/id1121420986?i=1000380018657&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/an-interview-with-the-worlds-tallest-bodybuilder-aaron-reed

 

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – Our Whole Body Cryotherapy Experience

Hope you are ready to chill with us on this episode as we get into a review and interview on cryotherapy.

Nick speaks with Jeff Houghtaling, who is the manager of the Tampa location of US Cryotherapy Tampa, a franchise based out of California. They discuss the difference between US Cryo’s whole body cryotherapy (WBC) and the partial body cryotherapy aka cryo-saunas (i.e. different cooling component, more thermoreceptors stimulate, breathing in cold air, etc. – more info).

They also chat about the WBC chamber, which a group of ETT clients bravely jump into later in the episode.

The benefits of cryotherapy are varied and attract a number of different types of clientele – from athletes to people looking to reduce wrinkles.

Because the therapy uses pretty extreme cold temperatures, there is quite a good deal of safety equipment and procedures include covered hands, feet, ears, nose and mouth, along with limited exposure times (3 minutes is the max for the full WBC chamber).

Nick shares his initial reaction on how much more intense the full chamber was than a cryo-sauna.

There’s more to the cryotherapy facilities than just the chamber, there’s a warm-up area and Jeff describes all the various equipment they have. While it’s not mandatory, there are some benefits that Jeff goes through why the equipment should be used.

The ETT team ventured into the unknown with a group therapy session and we interview everyone for their reactions after emerging from the frosty chamber, including frozen eyelashes (probably good to not wear mascara in the chamber).

These heat photos track the before and after from Nick and my trip into the WBC chamber.

Overall the whole crew’s experience was really positive and almost everyone walked out wanting to try it again in the future. Armed with a new appreciation for the cold, US Cryotherapy taught us all about our limitations and that we can all use a good chill from time to time.

Don’t forget to drop us a line between podcasts and keep the feedback coming either on Facebook or by leaving a review in the iTunes store.

Links for this week’s episode

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/our-first-whole-body-cryotherapy/id1121420986?i=1000379748600&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/our-first-whole-body-cryotherapy-experience

Addicted to Fitness Show Notes – 2016 Year in Review

Shannon here. I’m back!

The end of one year and the start of another prompts many traditions, including a look back at the year we’ve bid farewell to. 2016 was a pretty epic one for the podcast, being the inaugural year!

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We covered some great topics in the past year and picked out some special highlights for you in this week’s episode.

  • Interview Highlight – Vinnie Tortorich explaining the NSNG diet and how it could have a great impact on the country’s obesity epidemic.
  • Taste Test Highlight – Bone both review discussing the taste and benefits of this popular “new” food item.
  • Product Review Highlight – Peloton cycle review including an on-bike workout going through the features the bike has to offer.

Mostly, we want to thank all the listeners for your support which has helped keep us going through this first year and made Addicted to Fitness a 5-star rated podcast in the iTunes store. We are so appreciative for all your support. Don’t forget you can get in touch with us between podcasts and keep the feedback coming either on Facebook or by leaving a review in the iTunes store.

Thanks again for listening and Happy New Year!

Links to this week’s episode:

iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/addicted-to-fitness-2016-year/id1121420986?i=1000379513408&mt=2

Android: http://subscribeonandroid.com/addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/rss

Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/addicted-to-fitness-a-year-in-review