Soy...Just say no

Soy, Why is it good? It’s not. But in the spirit of argument: vegetarians and vegans eat the stuff so they can get protein in their diets. Yay ::sarcasm:: Plus the stuff is apparently low in fat and an alternative to whey for the lactose intolerant.Why is it bad? Straight up, soy is linked to lower testosterone and increased estrogen in males, and is also linked to increased breast cancer in women. Soy also promotes hypothyroidism, thyroid cancer, and infertility just to name a few additional disorders. Phytic acid, trypsin inhibitors, toxic lysinoalanine and highly carcinogenic nitrosamines are all highly present in soy products. Infants in particular can be adversely affected in many negative ways from exposure to soy, including premature development in girls, and underdevelopment in boys. Some people also are allergic to soy protein.Instead choose: any high protein whole food such as brown rice, goats milk, coconut milk, almond milk, whole grains, nuts, seaweeds, seeds, beans, and lentils. If you must have a protein powder, choose any of a variety of protein powders available on the market today, including whey and egg protein. As a side note, goats milk is considered one of the healthiest foods on the planet today, so give it a try.

Weight Loss Update

I'ts been a month from starting the low/no sugar diet and I think I'm ready for a little more drop in calories. The problem I am already having is loss of energy and motivation and I know it is directly related to the lowering of carbs (just the sugars)! My body weight is slowly but steadily declining and I can see my abs (well kinda), but better than at any time in the last year and a half. The one thing I have to remember is that I bulked up for the Power Ministry to almost 280 and I am now down to 240. So progress is being made! Last weekend we went out to dinner with a couple (my buddy Chris and his wife Trina) and I ate whatever I wanted, the following day (Monday), I had energy like crazy! Man I Lifted, did some hardcore Abs from p90X and Yoga, and I still felt like I could have (and should have) ran 5 miles! The following day after returning to the diet my energy has crashed and my motivation sucks! When I use to diet hardcore for bodybuilding I would workout directly after eating as this was the only time I had energy, I might have to return to that formula if I don't start to adapt pretty soon! Next week I think I'm going to add fruit back in to see if that helps, I just don't want to mess with my blood sugars to much. My thinking is that if I add fruit then I will have energy to do some awesome training and the extra Calories will be burned anyway!
Well I'll let you know how it goes,
Till next time
"Keep the Faith and Never Surrender!"

I AM SPUDMAN!

O.K. It was as hard as I knew it was going to be! That swim was scary and hard! And I was going with the current. 5am race morning I am so nervous and freaked out that I am just trying to get everything together and not forget something important. 6am I am outside dry heaving so violently that my wife has to come outside to check if I'm still alive! 7am we have put the rest of my gear where it belongs, my stomach has settled down and we find a very nice couple that has been doing this for years that help with details. We find my bro Chris who brought his camera and because of him I have documented evidence that I actually did this thing!

Here I am right before the swim, I gotta smile but the nerves are kicken in!!

Flexing makes me temporarily forget how close I am to the swim!!!

Come on, I know that finish is here somewhere!!!!

The Bike was the one part I really held my own!! Had a great time but man did I cramp as soon as I got to the run!!!


My wife! She decided last minute not to do it so she could keep an eye on me. She would have crushed my time!!

So That's it! I am already training for next year!!

What, Already!?!

We tomorrows the big day and I gotta admit I'm a little freaked out. We swam last night and it seemed a ton harder than the other day. I have began eating whatever I want for the rest of the day in hopes of getting my glycogen levels back up. I can't wait for this to be over, I really want to work on lowering my weight and when this is done I can do it without worrying about energy loss so much! Well I gotta go, let you know how it all turns out.

One week out

One week from my first Triathlon and I think I'm as ready as I can be. The one mistake I always made in bodybuilding was that I could not stop the hard training and diet until only a few days before my event. This would almost always lead to being over trained and depleted. This time I have cut all serious training a full 8 days before my event, this should allow me plenty of recovery as well as allowing my mind to rest a bit. I am doing easy stretches and some easy weight training, but nothing to take me to far in to carb depletion. As you know I am eating a sugar free diet at this time. That means the carbs I'm taking in are very clean as far as sugar content. In a week of this diet I have lost about 6 pounds and feel much better. Dieting alone (without crazy training) can lead to a depleted state and I will begin eating allot more Thursday of this week. The run will be the roughest part for me, but if I run walk I should finish O.K. I'm shooting for 3 hrs and 20 minutes so be praying for me!
God Bless!
Mitch

Hill Training

Wow! Last night my wife and I went on a hill run up a trail that we usually mountain bike. Many times as we are biking this trail my wife has commented on "how much easier running would be!" Well guess what? It's not! That hill was a bear. The awesome thing is though was the incredible calve burn going up and the otherworldly leg burn going down! My legs hurt all over today and along with the incredible amount of calories that we used and the working of the cardiovascular system makes hill running a hit! Just remember that running this way is extremely intense and should only be done once or twice every 7-10 days. This along with short but intense weight training and 2-4 other cardio sessions per week and you will be the envy of all your fat friends!

Eating Sugar Free

I think most of us know that eating sugar can be down right destructive to our health, but dang! That stuff tastes good! I am 2 weeks out from my first ever triathlon and am pretty worried about that swim! However I have found a diet the I can still eat plenty of good, fun food for training energy and still loose that unwanted belly fat. (Gotta look good getting out of the river)! Eating sugar free can be a real trick because it is hidden in so many of the foods we eat and especially the condiments that we all love! The advantage to sugar free is that the body converts sugar to glycogen to quickly spiking the insulin and causing the body to store it as body fat. When you are eating sugar free you have less cravings, more energy and better health! So go for it! Clean it up and go sugar free, your body will love you and you will love your body!