Health Benefits of Coffee

Throughout history, coffee has been alternatively glorified and vilified. Actually, that's not entirely true—most of our history has held up coffee as an important beverage. It was only once certain health fads started taking hold in the past few decades that coffee was seen as something that could be dangerous, and we began asking the question, is coffee healthy?

Why has coffee recently been called unhealthy? It helps to look at the environment of some of the studies that were done around that time. According to the Mayo clinic, most of the coffee drinkers that were surveyed didn't just drink coffee—they also smoked, and led inactive lifestyles. What studies now are showing is that it was the smoking that contributed most to heart problems—not the coffee.

What Are The Health Benefits Of Coffee?

These days, we have more stringent controls on health studies, and we're slowly finding that coffee has some pretty incredible health benefits. One study found that coffee is effective against Parkinson's disease, and even against some forms of liver cancer.

Coffee is packed with a dense mixture of antioxidants and alkaloids that go above and beyond simple caffeine (although the caffeine itself is healthier than you might think).

And of course, coffee always has a place in my kitchen because of that oldest reason of all: Alertness and improved mental and physical function.

So, is coffee healthy? The studies declare an overwhelming YES, but just remember: everything in moderation.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #10 Cottage Cheese

If you've been following this list of the 10 best healthy foods, you probably realize that the foods just keep getting worse and worse. Me personally, I like everything else on here (yes, even the kimchee), but cottage cheese is pretty low on my list of go-to snacks when I need a nutrient boost.

But it shouldn't be, and here's why: Cottage cheese is awesome, especially cottage cheese with live cultures. Let me explain what that means.

You see, cottage cheese is actually a byproduct of cheese- it's the curd produced when cheese is made. However, it's extremely high in casein, which we've talked about on here before as one of the best protein supplements for bodybuilders.

Additionally cottage cheese contains live bacteria cultures that help promote good digestion. These cultures can also help prevent colon cancer from forming.

One thing that you do have to be careful about with cottage cheese is the lactose content. It has less than regular cheese or milk, but it can still be a concern if you're lactose intolerant. If that's not an issue that affects you, give it a try! It's definitely worth it, despite the texture.

Somanabolic Muscle Maximizer

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #9 Broccoli

This is something most of us are forced into eating as children, because parents are cruel and heartless. Unfortunately, this means that a lot of us also grow up to hate broccoli as adults- and that is a real shame.

Look, you've probably heard this more than you ever want to, but your parents had the right idea. Broccoli is one of the single most healthy foods in the world. It's perfect for weight loss because it has a low concentration of carbohydrates but a lot of fiber- that's the exact nutritional profile you want in a diet food.

But it gets better. Broccoli is also an extremely good source of diindolymethane and indole-3-carbinol. If you're not familiar with those two compounds, just know that they have been shown to be beneficial in the prevention of cancer.

Broccoli is best raw or steamed, but I understand that a lot of you may not be into that raw, natural, disgusting vegetable taste (I like it myself). If you're looking for a tasty way to cook up your heart healthy broccoli, try a stir fry. There are literally hundreds of ways you can alter stir fry to make it new each time.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #8 Raspberries

Raspberries often fall under the shadow of their cousins, blueberries. Blueberries have been getting all the media hype lately, so it's easy to forget that raspberries are just about as nutrient rich.

In fact, raspberries have over twice as much fiber as the same amount of blueberries, along with an astoundingly high antioxidant capacity, which is higher than tomatoes, apples, leeks, broccoli, kiwis, and strawberries. The antioxidant capacity is a term used when researchers are studying the levels of antioxidants in any particular food.

As with blueberries, raspberries are just as healthy when they're frozen as they are when they are fresh, which means that you don't have to limit your raspberry intake to any particular time of year. That's great news, because raspberries have been shown to repair DNA damage, and fight against certain proteins that cause inflammation.

How can you eat raspberries? You tell me! They're so good that I usually just eat them alone, by the handful. However, you can put them in salads, smoothies, fruit cocktails, oatmeal, and really anything else you can think of.

Do yourself a favor and pick up some frozen raspberries next time you're at the store. They keep forever.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #7 Chia Seeds

Remember chia pets? If you were around at all in the 90's you know what I'm talking about, those little clay animals (or rappers, if you went to that link), that grew green "hair," which was really chia sprouts.

Well, did you know chia seeds are actually an incredibly healthy snack? A single tablespoon of these healthy seeds can have up to 5 grams of fiber, which is about double what flaxseed contains.

That same tablespoon of chia seeds also contains about two and a half grams of alpha-linolenic acid, or ALA, a long chain omega-3 fat, which is very healthful for your heart. Again, this is more than flaxseed contains. It sounds like I'm trying to bash flaxseeds more than anything, but I'm just honestly surprised that chia seeds are such a nutrition powerhouse.

Chia seeds don't really taste like much, so it's easy to add them to your regular foods. Pop them in the blender with a smoothie. Stir them into a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. Sprinkle some on the top of a salad. Add them to a yogurt based fruit parfait. The possibilities are endless. Hell, you could just munch a handful of them every now and then as you go about your day.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #6 Eggs

Eggs are sort of a catch 22- they're filled with protein and vitamins, but they can also contribute to raised cholesterol levels in the body if you eat too many of them. There's also the reputation that eggs have for being less healthy these days because of all the growth hormones fed to chickens in the majority of the chicken farms around the country.

These are all legitimate concerns, don't get me wrong. But do they outweigh all the benefits of eggs? I've found that the best eggs to get are the omega-3 eggs. These eggs come from chickens that have had extra omega-3 fatty acids added to their feed, which comes out in the formation of the eggs. It's been found that a single omega-3 enriched egg can have up to 150 mg of DHA, which is crucial for healthy brain function.

In the grocery store you can find omega-3 eggs because they will be labeled as such, usually right beside the regular eggs.

Now if you know somebody, I would always recommend getting fresh eggs right from the source. If you live out in the country that shouldn't be too hard, but I know a lot of people reading this are living in the city, so the omega-3 eggs are your next best shot.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #5 Walnuts

Walnuts are some of the oldest nutrient rich sources of food in the world. There are records that show walnuts growing during the time of the Roman empire. Why are they so great? Well, for one thing, researchers tested walnuts against thousands of other foods and found that these little brown nuts have more antioxidants than over 1,000 other "healthy foods." The only thing with more antioxidants was blueberries.

Antioxidants are important because they help find and neutralize free radicals. If free radicals are allowed to build up in a certain part of the body, they can contribute to early aging signs and, potentially, cancerous growths.

If you're looking for a real antioxidant punch, mix some walnuts in with a handful of blueberries and toss it all on top of some Greek yogurt. This makes a great breakfast, dessert, or anytime snack.

Also don't hesitate to add them to a smoothie. Other nuts like almonds will form a layer at the bottom of the cup, but walnuts stay in suspension. And besides, their flavor can blend with just about anything else- you won't even know they're there!

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #4 Spinach

If nutrition was a football team, spinach would be the starting linebacker. It has a wider variety of nutrients, vitamins, and minerals than just about any other vegetable, going all the way from vitamin A down to iron.

When you're at the store, look for baby spinach, preferably triple washed. Regular spinach can be fairly bitter, but baby spinach tends to have a slightly sweeter taste, making it easier on your health buds if you've never been a real big vegetable person.

If you've been on a diet or a cutting cycle for awhile you're probably getting pretty sick of salad, so don't box yourself in- spinach is highly versatile. Throw some wilted spinach into an omelet along with a helping of feta cheese for a delicious, nutrient rich breakfast. Toss some baby spinach into a blender for a green smoothie. The sweet-ish taste of baby spinach blends well with fructose-filled fruit.

Steamed spinach is also easy to prepare and can compliment just about any meal. Use your imagination, or Google some spinach recipes, because the worst thing you can do with a strict eating routine is get tired of a particular taste. Vary it up a little.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #3 Kimchee

This dish from Korea is mostly made up of fermented cabbage. Sounds pretty tasty, eh? Yeah, I didn't think so. However, I'm pretty sure you'll be surprised once you try it. It's actually a lot better than it sounds.

So why would anybody want to eat a bowl full of fermented vegetables? The main benefit of kimchee is that it's full of probiotics, which come about as a side effect of the fermentation process. One of those probiotics is a bacteria called lactobacilli, which is the reason yogurt is considered so healthy.

Probiotics like this have a strong effect on digestion, making the process more efficient. A study done by the Ajou University School of Medicine came to the conclusion that eating kimchee every day can lower body fat and produce more regulated insulin levels. If you don't know, diabetics don't have enough insulin in their bloodstream, which is why they need regular injections to keep going.

Where can you find kimchee? Check out a local Asian grocery store (or just the Asian section of Wal-Mart). Alternatively, you could just make it yourself. It tastes great in stir fry.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #2 Blueberries

Blueberries are awesome. I'm just going to start out by saying that. They're packed full of the things you need to keep going strong with your workouts, and they don't taste half bad either. People who study these kinds of things estimate that these tiny blue berries have been in existence for over 13,000 years.

What are the benefits of blueberries? For one thing, they've been shown in clinical trials to lower blood pressure. A study from 2010 found that daily intake of at least 2 cups of blueberries can drastically lower blood pressure.

Now I know what you're thinking- blueberries are expensive! But don't worry. Frozen blueberries are just as full of nutrients as their fresh brethren, so buy frozen in bulk and stock up. You also don't need to eat 2 cups a day. About half a cup a day or less is enough to get their immune boosting properties and increased energy levels.

Try a bowl of tasty Greek yogurt topped with raw cashews and a handful of blueberries for breakfast.

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10 Super Healthy Foods- #1 Salmon

Pink and delicious, salmon is one of the top healthy foods you could ever eat. That's because it's packed chock full of omega-3 fats, the ones that are good for your heart. Salmon is also a great fish for protein because it has comparably low levels of mercury, as opposed to, say, tuna, which has some of the highest concentrations.

DHA and EPA, two of the omega-3 fats found in salmon, have been shown to decrease triglyceride levels. High triglyceride levels are linked to an increased risk for heart disease. In fact, decreasing triglycerides can lower your risk of heart attack by nearly 50%. That's something I can really get behind.

The best kind of salmon to get is wild caught, but it can be expensive so don't worry too much about buying farm raised. Some farm raised salmon actually have higher concentrations of omega-3s than those found in the wild, so it's definitely not the end of the world.

Similarly, fresh is preferable, but if you're on a budget you can still go for the canned salmon. This also has the benefit of a much longer shelf life, and by much longer I mean pretty much forever, so you can stock up on salmon at the beginning of the month and not have to worry about it anymore.

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10 Super Healthy Foods

Do you know what's in your refrigerator? Sure you know most of the foods, but do you know what's REALY in there? I'm talking about maltodextrin, hydrogenated corn oil, saturated fats, and most likely pounds and pounds of sugar as the coup de gras, the cherry on the belly fat sundae.

Every bodybuilder knows that he has to be careful what he eats, but just because you get the "lean" or "diet" option doesn't mean you're eating any healthier foods.

Over the next 10 days we're going to be looking at the top 10 healthy foods that you can put into youre body. Whether you're trying to lose weight or build muscle mass, you need to make these items a part of your regular diet.

Why?

I hate to drop scare tactics, but Type 2 diabetes is rapidly becoming the most prevalent health concern in America. A recent clinical study took a look at diet changes as compared to some of the top diabetes medications, and do you know what they found?

That's right, your diet is a more powerful deterrent for Type 2 diabetes than any of the drugs we currently know about. So check back regularly over the next week and a half as we talk about what those specific foods are and why they're good for you. Even better, subscribe by entering your emsail in the top left.

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How Much Protein to Consume

The amount of protein you should consume all depends on if you are trying to lose weight or be a body builder. Typically most Americans consume much more protein that they need which also increases calorie intake as a direct result. Protein is the most vital of the 3 caloric macronutrients(carbohydrates, fat & protein). 

There is a much wider range of acceptable protein intakes than there is of carbohydrates and fats, when it comes to dieting/bodybuilding. If your body does not get a sufficient amount of protein then your body will begin to take it from your muscles, thus reducing muscle mass, thus reducing your metabolism. If bodybuilding you should consume roughly one gram of protein per pound that you weigh. 

A standard 2000 calorie diet of a person that is about 150 pounds would require about a third of that persons body weight. If you are trying to increase your muscle mass to boost your metabolism this would be better served with rigorous exercise every other day or every third day. Consume roughly half to three-quarters of your body weight in grams of protein a day. 

In order to maximize your muscle mass gains you should consume the grand majority of protein before and after a workout. A tuna sandwich using a can of tuna in water would have relatively low calories with about 20-30 grams of protein per sandwich. Whey protein is good alternative to gain a large amount of protein. That is how America does it!

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The Most Common Diet Mistakes During an Intense Workout Routine- Part 5

Mistake: No variety in your meal plan.

This is the same reason people quit every diet, whether they're trying to lose weight or add more pounds: There's just no variety in the diet. If you've been trying to stick with a bodybuilder diet for any reasonable amount of time, you know how it always ends up – Should I have chicken with rice today or chicken with potatoes? How about chicken with pasta, or chicken with....yeah you know what I mean.

The diet gets boring, bland, tasteless, and God there's so much chicken. You have to find ways to mix it up and get the same nutritional content without eating the same foods every single day. Eventually you're going to lose your initial excitement for your workout routine, and the food isn't going to be one of the reasons that keeps you going.

You can always do a few online searches to find great recipes based on the nutritional content you need for your gains in your workout routine. We've also got a few here on the site, just do a search.

Check out the fourth workout routine diet mistake

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The Most Common Diet Mistakes During an Intense Workout Routine- Part 4

Mistake: Not committing!

Yeah, we've all heard this one before, but listen up guys. If you don't commit yourself to your workout routine, both physically and mentally, you're going to gain slower, if at all. Once you start skipping workouts or slowing down on your calorie intake, you've lost everything you already worked so hard to gain.

Everybody hits a point where they have to decide whether they want to commit 90% of their life to bodybuilding, or if they want to stick with all their old habits. You can start out strong but then slowly begin eating more junk food and fast food, drinking a little too much some nights, or losing your workout intensity. It's easy to do, I promise, and if you're not committed it WILL happen to you, 99% of the time.

Make a decision about what you want to do, and then stick with it. You may miss those cookies and potato chips, but when you start seeing real results and real ripped muscle, you're going to be happy you made the decision you did.

Check out the third workout routine diet mistake

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The Most Common Diet Mistakes During an Intense Workout Routine- Part 3

Mistake: Counting on supplements to do the work.

This is a huge newbie mistake that, honestly, a lot of veteran bodybuilders still do. Now, completely and truly honest, you don't need any supplements to achieve massive muscle gains. However, I do understand that some supplements make it a lot easier. And some actually give you vital nutrients that you may not be getting, depending on your diet.

At the beginner stage, supplements definitely aren't worth the money. You need to get into the habit of sticking with your workout routine first, and then start adding supplements. There will come a point where you're building your body up much faster than it's ready for, and at that point you can either slow down for a little while and let your body catch up, or you can begin taking some supplements to boost that growth.

The choice is up to you. I have my own opinions that you should never push your body past functionality, but I know that many people go for looks, especially competitive bodybuilders. My sole advice is to make sure you're getting as much as you can out of quality foods in your diet, and then begin adding supplements after that.

Check out the second workout routine diet mistake

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The Most Common Diet Mistakes During an Intense Workout Routine- Part 2

Mistake: Wasting a whole lot of time in the kitchen.

I know, I know. How the hell are you supposed to make 6 meals a day without spending every waking moment in the kitchen preparing, chopping, cutting, and cooking? This is one of the hardest things a lot of new bodybuilders have to deal with, and surprisingly nobody really even talks about it.

You're going to be spending much of your time on your workout routine. You're also going to spend a lot of time in the physical act of eating (because God is it a lot of food...). Now you have to somehow split your time in the kitchen with that other stuff. You know, your actual life. A couple more hours in the kitchen is the last thing you want.

So save time by cooking huge batches of meals and then freezing it in single portions. You might spend an entire day in the kitchen, but then you won't have to do it again for another week or two (or a month, depending on the size of your freezer). This is a trick that you don't get out of most workout books, but it's incredibly valuable.

Check out the first workout routine diet mistake

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The Most Common Diet Mistakes During an Intense Workout Routine- Part 1

Mistake: Trying to get there too fast.

You know the "there" I'm talking about. "There" is a ripped, perfect physique from head to toe, looking like the role model Arnold based HIS workout routine on. If you push for it too fast, you're going to have a harder time getting there. Trust me.

For starters, your goal should be eating 6 meals per day. But what nobody tells you is that you can't just jump straight into that like the first time you went to the beach. If you go from a typical 3 meal per day regimen up to a 6 or 7 meal per day regimen, you'll be spending most of your workout routine squatting over the toilet.

My advice is to ease your way up to it. You'll get there before long, just don't be too impatient with the whole thing.

And trust me, I went through the exact same thing myself. Not only are you basically doubling your meals, but you're probably going to be eating more at each one than you were when you were only eating 3 meals per day. So, yeah. It's a lot to get used to.

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Are You Eating Right to Maximize Your Bodybuilding Workouts?

The bodybuilder diet is probably one of the toughest ways to eat out there. You need to toss down at least 6 meals every day, you need to shop for and cook all that food, weigh your portions, and calculate the right number of calories to experience muscle gain. Simple stuff, right?

Okay, maybe not.

I'm just realizing how much trouble people often have with their diets when they're trying to get the most out of their bodybuilding workouts, and it reminds me of back in the day when I was just starting. Back then, the idea of eating 6 meals per day seemed like witchcraft almost. I was a skinny, 130 lb hardgainer, and I knew I had to eat, but I just couldn't seem to force everything down.

So now that I'm here where I am now, it's easy to forget that there are so many people out there who are only where I was when I was just starting.

Listen guys, if you really want to hit those gains you've been dreaming about, you have to eat right. I figured out that there was only one rule I needed to follow: Eat more. The Muscle Maximizer program teaches that, but it should just be common sense.

I was doing the training so I knew I wasn't going to get fat, but I had to push myself to eat enough. Every time I thought I was full, I would eat just a little bit more.

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Will a Vegan Diet Work with a Fitness Workout Plan?

I use animal products in my diet when I'm working out (which is all the time). I use everything – beef, fish, chicken, milk, cheese, so when someone asks me about gaining muscle mass on a vegan diet, I have to stop and think.

In the bodybuilding community, there aren't a whole lot of vegans. Even Bruce Lee famously drank milk when he wanted to add muscle mass, even though he was usually against dairy products. So is it possible?

There's still a lot of protein you can get out of a vegan diet, a lot of it coming from nuts, beans, soy, and lentils. The problem isn't really the protein though, it's the vitamin B-12 loss you get from eating a diet with no animal products. Vitamin B-12, as many of you know, only comes from animal products, so it's going to lead to a deficiency eventually if you cut it out of your diet completely. The answer of course is to supplement with B-12, but even then you have to think about what goes into the pills.

Your best bet is to use a brewers yeast supplement and add that to your regular diet, and make sure you're stacking plenty of protein and carbs as well.

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