Early Morning Fasted Training and Breathing Squats

I have been doing fasted weight training for a couple weeks now and love it. I have been following the Leangains EMFT protocol of taking 10g BCAA shortly pre-work out and every other hour until my feeding window starts. I am performing better and enjoying my workouts despite their high intensity. I have become convinced that training while in the fasted state is the reason for the above occurrences. I will use this post to proselytize for fasted training, whether it be endurance or weights.

This morning was leg day; leg day is hell. I have been doing breathing squats as my maximum effort exercise followed by some specialized calf and quad work and finishing with a few sets of box jumps or stairs. It is a killer workout, and today was my first time doing it while in the fasted state. I can report that I thoroughly enjoyed my workout and my performance did not suffer; to the contrary, it was stellar. I was able to complete all planned reps and sets with perfect form. Even more, I felt great post-workout, almost euphoric. 

Much of what I have reported anecdotally has been experienced by others. It is normal that many fasters feel increased focus, energy, and motivation during the fast; I think that the fasted workout simply boosts the effect. In addition, my anecdotal evidence notwithstanding, the high performance is founded in scientific proof, along with increased metabolism and muscle growth. Refer here for an explanation of and links to the actual studies about muscle growth and fasted training. Refer here for an explanation and link to a recent study that sheds light on fasted endurance training.

In short, I love fasted training. I plan to continue my fasted weight training in addition to adding some fasted endurance workouts in the mixer. Regardless, people will still recoil in disgust when hearing fasted training, but as more research comes out, the dogma of needing to eat pre-work out will quickly become obsolete.

How To: Pan Seared Rib Eye with Cheesy Brussels Sprouts

Being new at this whole game of posting how to guides, my preparation for this post was less than adequate, but I figure I must start somewhere. Conversely, my preparation for the meal, judging by its taste, was stellar. My only regret is that I failed to achieve the highly sought-after cross hatched grill marks.

First, The Steak

Ingredients:

6-8 ounce rib eye steak(organic and grass-fed preferably)

Butter (again, grass-fed, organic dairy butter is preferred) or other preferred fat

Salt

Pepper

Garlic Powder

Ideally the steak will be brought to room temperature before cooking, this will ensure that the meat cooks more evenly. Next, preheat the oven to 550 degrees and insert an oven safe grill pan for approximately 5 minutes. While the pan heats, season both sides of the steak with the salt, pepper, and garlic. I didn't really measure, but about 1/4 tsp of each should do the trick.

After the 5 minutes has expired, set a stove top burner to high and remove the grill pan from the oven. Once accomplished, brown the steak for 30 seconds per side. After the 1 minute is up, do not turn the steak a second time; instead, place the pan into the preheated oven. Let it cook for 2 minutes per side before removing. Lastly, move the steak to a plate, cover, and let rest for at least 5 minutes so the juices can redistribute.

Cheesy Brussels Sprouts:

Ingredients:

Half a bag of fresh Brussels sprouts (that is just how much I used; adjust accordingly)

2 TBSP Olive Oil (Extra Virgin (EVOO) is best)

Salt

Pepper

Shredded Cheese of your choosing (I used Gruyere)

First, wash and dry the Brussels sprouts. Next, remove any loose leaves before cutting off stems and halving the Brussels sprouts from top to bottom. After this ponderous undertaking is completed, place the Brussels Sprouts in a bowl and drizzle with olive oil, making sure the flat part of the halves gets covered. Lastly, salt and pepper the sprouts and you are ready to begin cooking.

Heat a skillet on medium-low heat and add the remaining TBSP of olive oil. Place the Brussels Sprouts into the skillet flat side down. Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes or until lightly browned. When browned, turn heat to high and toss the sprouts until the sides are lightly browned as well. Remove from heat and sprinkle with cheese of choice.

Voila! I enjoyed mine with a glass of Cabernet, but any red will suffice.

Intermittent Fasting: Part 1

Before I begin any explanation, I will give credit where credit is due. While intermittent fasting exists in many unique forms, the majority of my knowledge comes from a few main sources—and these are in no particular order. First, after having read The Primal Blueprint and a few articles on the author’s website, I became somewhat interested in the concept of fasting in general. Next, I began to search the internet for more information on the concept, and I very quickly realized that intermittent fasting exists in many different forms: Eat stop eat, Leangains, ADF, Warrior Diet, and etc.—see here for a brief summary by the venerable Martin Berkhan, or Google “Intermittent Fasting” and heaps of information will result. After a few initial articles and some trial and error, I stumbled upon Martin Berkhan’s website. It was love at first sight, and I have been using the Leangains approach to dieting for approximately the past 2 months—and I would add, with nothing but positive results. More recently, I began frequenting Lyle McDonald’s website and even bought and devoured his latest and highly informative book, The Stubborn Fat Solution. Lastly, the idea to do this post came from the increasing interest friends and family have expressed in their questions about my diet and training.

Intermittent Fasting means what it literally denotes: periods of fasting combined with periods of eating. This is achieved in a number of different ways. My favorite, the Leangains approach of fasting for 16 hours/feeding for 8 hours (it is 14 fasting/10 feeding for women) everyday or 5 days of the week. Other approaches, such as the Warrior Diet and Fast 5 Diet, condense the eating window even further to only 4 or 5 hours. Many choose to fast whole 24 hour periods once or twice a week. On the other hand, a more Primal, Mark Sisson approach is fasting much more randomly—for example, randomly skipping breakfast or just taking an unplanned day off from eating.

During the fast liberal amounts of coffee, tea, and diet soda can be ingested but nothing else. In regards to cream and sweetener for coffee or tea, Lyle McDonald points out that even a smidgen of either will raise insulin slightly. While I am getting into a topic deserving of its own post, just keep in mind any spike in insulin turns off or reduces the fat oxidation which occurs as a result of the lowered insulin levels during the fast. As such, I have been mindful to refrain from using any cream or sweetener in my coffee when consuming in the fasted state. This may not be necessary, as Martin Berkhan sees no problem with using a small amount of both for fasted coffee consumption, so I guess that is just me being anal.

Regardless of the approach—systematized or random—the the underlying principle of being able to take advantage of the health benefits of fasting—such as improved insulin sensitivity, less oxidative stress, increased metabolism, etc.; see here, here, here, and here—while also addressing any other goals remains solidly in place. The cited health benefits notwithstanding, many fasters report increased focus, energy, and mood during the fasted state. Further, intermittent fasting is a highly effective method for fat loss, as it allows one to reduce calories with much less trouble. Even more, I recently read a study concluding that in rats eating exactly the same diets, an intermittent fasting eating pattern resulted in lower body fat and better heart health markers. If you want the study link comment below, as I am too lazy to look for it/them at this point.

In part 2 I will go into more depth regarding my eclectically modified fasting approach. In addition, I will include what I eat in a normal day as well as an example of different training regimens with which I have been experimenting. In reality, it may end up being a 3 part series, as I tend to digress quite a bit.

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