ALL BLOGS — protein

5 STEPS TO SHOW ABS

So there he is . . . Hugh Jackman with his shirt off, blades protruding from his fists, abs protruding from his stomach. You secretly ask yourself, how do I get abs like that?? Here is the secret . . . Everybody has abs ready to go. The only issue is the layer of fat surrounding your gut keeping them hidden. There are steps you can follow to strip away the fat and show off the washboard you didn’t know was there, but it takes hard work and motivation. We are going to look at ways to strip away the fat and become ripped. How fast your progress, is up to you.

 

Step 1: Diet Plan

We have talked about Macros and ways to monitor your diet, but let’s simplify it and try to focus on the basics.

• Calorie consumption: Try to consume 9-14 calories for every pound of body weight you have on board daily. (your weight is 220lbs x 10 calories = 2,200 calories you can intake).
• Protein consumption: Try to consume 1.5g of Protein for every pound of body weight you have on board daily. (your weight is 220lbs x 1.5g = 330g of Protein)
• Fat consumption: avoid bad fats (i.e. chips, candy, soda, etc.) and focus on good fats. Good fats can be found in nuts, fish, flax seed, olive oil, coconut oil, etc.
• Carbohydrate consumption: You can boost your metabolism by alternating your diet with low-carbs throughout the week and then high-carb weekends. (Depending on training program, you may want to focus on low carbs daily, then hit high carbs on HIIT days).

Step 2: Supplements To The Rescue

• Whey Protein / Whey Isolate / Casein Protein can all assist you with hitting your protein targets. Wake up to a Protein shake, take another shake within 30 minutes of completing your workout, finish the night off with a slow digesting Casein to keep the body from becoming anabolic and feeding on muscle tissue.

• Fat burners can increase metabolism and speed up the fat shredding process. 
• BCAA powder are a great way boost endurance and start the protein synthesis process to build muscle. Ensure the formula is a 2:1:1 ratio to give you the desired results (inspect quality for vegan based versus duck feather, or pig fur)
• Glutamine is essential to repairing muscles in between gym sessions.

Step 3: Workout Strategy

• There has been some dispute around the amount of time it takes abs to recover. They are utilized in a lot of different movements and weightlifting exercises. So when you decide to perform ab focused exercises it is important to only do it 2-3 times per week allowing for ample recovery time.
• Mix up your ab exercises (don’t try to do 200 crunches every session). Switch up between Crunches, sit-ups, planks, flutter-kicks, decline crunches, oblique crunches, etc. 
• Incorporate more compound lifts to improve your core strength and improved abs size. (deadlifts, squats, kettlebell swings, hacksquats, etc.)

• Cardio is key
• Running at 8mph can boost metabolism up to 13.5 times your normal rate.
• Jump rope burns 11 calories per minute.
• HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) can burn body fat for up to 24 hours post workout. 

Step 4: Sleep More

• A. Lack of sleep can actually drop your metabolism by up to 35%. You can fix this by shooting for 7 hours of sleep per night or more.
• B. Exercise in the morning. Avoid evening lifting as your adrenaline and continued energy from preworkout can keep you awake.

Step 5: Stay Focused

• A. Get a training partner to keep each other on track towards hitting your progress goals. 
• B. Vary workouts, this will keep it engaging and interesting. When workouts become stagnant you are more likely to become uninterested and fall off of your plan.
• C. Progress photos are a great way to visualize the differences you have made over time. Take them once every couple of weeks. 

Protein is popular among athletes today.  It is digested/absorbed into the body quickly to help return the body and muscles to an anabolic state.

SO, WHAT IS WHEY ISOLATE?

To start, Whey Isolate is a dietary supplement.  It is a bi-product of dairy and cheese.  Whey ISOLATE contains the highest percentage of pure protein out of the different whey categories, and can be almost lactose, carbohydrate, fat, and cholesterol free.  It is digested/absorbed into the body rapidly, making it a great source of protein intra and post workout.  There is a high concentration of EAAs (Essential Amino Acids), CAAs (Conditionally Essential Amino Acids), and NAAs (Non-Essential Amino Acids) in isolate which are used to fuel your muscles and initiate protein synthesis necessary for muscle growth.  Post workout, your body is in a catabolic state and wasting muscle tissue.  Amino acid supply is critical to raise the rate at which your body synthesizes muscle tissue.  Whey Isolate benefits the body at this point in time for both muscle growth and recovery.

HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM WHEY CONCENTRATE?

WHEY ISOLATE- The main difference between the two forms lie in the composition and protein content.  Whey Isolate is manufactured through a process of ultrafiltration (the base component, water, is removed) to provide a higher protein content (above 90%) while retaining it’s bioavailability.  There is minimal fat and carbohydrates, allowing one to monitor their macros more accurately.  This is the perfect formula for someone looking to lose fat and gain lean muscle.

WHEY CONCENTRATE-  This is the cheapest, yet most common form of Whey Protein.  In these formulas you will find a significant amount of fat and cholesterol.  Concentrates also are deceiving with the amount of pure protein actually found in the product.  You may only find 29%-80% of actual protein per scoop.  This means you pay less for an inferior product that will NOT deliver the results you are looking for.  It also means more profits for companies selling these products.

I CAN FIND IT CHEAPER . . .

 As stated above, there are different forms of Protein on the market.  Isolate is a more bioavailable and nutrient dense form of whey, making it the purest form of Protein.  Conversely, it is also one of the most expensive forms.  Concentrates may only deliver a third of actual EAA/CAA/NAA that your muscles need post workout.  There are also deceptive techniques of proprietary formulas and Amino Spiking to be wary of.

Proprietary formulas-  Some formulas claim to have a combination of the different proteins to deliver optimal results.  They may use a proprietary blend to protect their formula from being stolen.  However, the FDA requires those proprietary blends to list the ingredients in order of weight.  If Whey Concentrate is the 1st ingredient, you are being deceived and potentially paying more for a sub-par product.

Amino Spiking- Companies have also been found to add amino acids to their protein (example – 1g of Taurine, 1g of creatine, 1g of glycine added to 24g of Isolate = 27g of Protein) and count that weight towards their total protein count.  While it is additional aminos, they are not beneficial for the anabolic state . . . So why do it?  Some aminos are cheaper than others.  Dumping more of a cheaper amino into the formula creates more profits and cuts the price down for the price conscious customer.

 WHY UXO WHEY ISOLATE?

UXO Whey Isolate contains 24g (Vanilla) and 24.7g (Chocolate Peanut Butter) of pure Isolate Protein per serving.  It can dissolve in as little as 4 ounces of water, depending on how thick you like your Protein shakes.  Our Whey Isolate goes through an ultrafiltration process to give you the profile listed above, with all of your EAAs, CAAs, and NAAs.  Our formula is perfect for supporting lean muscle growth and recovery.  We deliver top quality Whey Isolate with ABSOLUTELY NO AMINO SPIKING, NO CONCENTRATES, NO PROPRIETARY BLENDS, AND NO HIDDEN GIMMICKS.  The Hype is real!!

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food & Drug Administration.  This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.