Biological Value of proteins [BV]

Biological Value of any food is defined as the rate of absorption of protein from that food into the body. It is a value to determine how readily the broken down protein is absorbed by the body for protein synthesis.
It is a measure of the amount of nitrogen incorporated by the body:

The values below are from Wikipedia.com and generally considered standard:

If 100 defines 100% nitrogen used, then the BV of various foods are:
Whey : 96
Whole Soy bean: 96
Human Milk : 95
Chicken Egg : 95
Soybean Milk: 91
Cow Milk : 90
Cheese : 84
Fish : 76
Beef : 74

Hic hic hurray? Not really..

Alcohol can cause havoc in your body:

In the short term alcohol can cause the following problems:
1. It provides lots of empty calories without nutrition
2. It dehydrates you
3.Alcohol consumption is catabolic to muscles
4. Alcohol increases oestrogen
5. Alcohol lowers testosterone
6. Blocks the absorption of nutrients to muscles
7. Precision, equilibrium, hand to eye coordination, reflexes are all negatively impacted.

Long term effects:
1. Liver cirrhosis
2. Fatty liver
3. Gastritis
4. Cancer risk of several organs
and innumerable other problems along with it.

When faced with an unavoidable social situation what should you do?
To avoid it's effects on your fitness goals you can ensure the following:
1. Agree to a limit before you begin
2. Avoid drinking games
3. Don't consume it on an empty stomach
4. Choose low alcoholic beverages
5. Continue drinking non-alcoholic beverages / water alongside your alcoholic ones to avoid its dehydrating effects

Picture source : healthhype.com

Bhausaheb Landge - Body Building over 6 months

Bhausaheb Landge photographed on 22nd January 2011

Paul Bodhak - Body Building Changes over 6 months

PAUL BODHAK 22ND JAN 2011

Good and bad fats.What are they?

Stay away from Saturated fats, always opt for unsaturated fats.

Saturated Fats or trans fatty acids	Polyunsaturated Fats	Monounsaturated Fats
Butter	Corn oil	Canola oil
Lard	Fish oils	Almond oil
Meat,	Soybean oil	Walnut oil
Poultry, poultry skin	Safflower oil	Olive oil
Coconut products	Sesame oil	Peanut oil
Palm oil, palm kernel oil and products	Cottonseed oil	Avocado
Dairy foods (other than skim)	Sunflower oil	Olives
Partially hydrogenated oils	Nuts and seeds	Peanut butter

Source for the table :WebMD.

Why is breakfast important?

I am really surprised to know how many people actually skip breakfast. It is the most important meal of the day.
There are several studies to indicate that children who have breakfast have better concentration levels in school.
Without breakfast kids tend to get irritable and tired. The same applies to adults as well.
There are several benefits to a good healthy breakfast.
Breakfast breaks the overnight fasting cycle and jump starts the metabolism.
A good breakfast with Low GI foods that are high in fiber, some protein and milk will keep your energy levels high throughout the day.
Eating breakfast might be good for your weight loss. People who eat a good breakfast generally tend to keep the weight off. Another benefit is that once you have a good hearty healthy breakfast it reduces the amount of junk foods that you might have otherwise had throughout the rest of the day. 2 important things to have a good diet according to me are : 1. Early dinner 2. Healthy hearty breakfast
If you skip breakfast you are likely to go binging on fatty snacks, pastries etc throughout the rest of day. You might try to get an energy boost at 11AM by drinking tea or coffee.
Nothing beats having a good healthy breakfast in the morning. Try doing it regularly and see how energetic you feel throughout the day!

Body fat percentage.What is it and how is it calculated?

Body fat is generally essential body fat and storage fat. Body fat percentage is calculated as the weight of fat in your body divided by your total weight.
The widely used BMI is not a very accurate indicator of fitness as it does not account for a higher muscle mass. 
When you exercise regularly and eat a good balanced diet, your body loses fat and builds lean muscle. Even if your weight remains constant over a period of time, the body fat percentage definitely drops. 


What are ideal body fat % levels :
The below source is from Wikipedia

"Different authorities have developed different recommendations for ideal body fat percentages, such as these from the American Council on Exercise"

Description	Women	Men
Essential fat	10-13%	2-5%
Athletes	14-20%	6-13%
Fitness	21-24%	14-17%
Average	25-31%	18-24%
Obese	32%+	25%+

It is generally advisable to have body fat percentage levels below 20% +/-2 for women and 
17% +/-2 for men.


What sort of body fat levels are required for a six pack?
A LOT of gym goers want those highly desired 6 pack abs. Who doesn't? But it comes for a price.
If you can maintain body fat % levels of under 6% then you will get those rockhard abs you so desire!
The link below is a good indicator of what your body would look like at different stages of body fat percentage.
http://www.naturalphysiques.com/cms/index.php?itemid=144


How much fat is necessary?
Women are said to require about 12% body fat whereas men require about 3% at least to stay healthy. Levels lower than that affect your essential body fat stores and are not good for your health.

How to select the right Whey Protein?

Whey is available in 3 main forms:
1.Whey concentrate
2.Whey Isolate
3.Whey Hydrolysate
It is important to find out the difference between the 3 to understand which product to opt for.
Whey concentrate can contain proteins from about 75% to as low as 30%. The rest is made up of lactose and fats.
Whey isolate is made up of 90 to 100% protein. It improves the muscle building properties a notch. Concentrates are harder to digest, isolates might be better on the stomach. Concentrates are generally cheaper whereas isolates might be a tad expensive.
Whey hydrolysates are isolates that are further broken down. They are even more readily absorbed than the isolates but are even more expensive than the isolates. Hydrolysates also are extremely bitter to taste.

How to choose the right protein?
Look at the details on the box! Opt for more protein isolates and hydrolysates and less concentrates.
Proteins can be a mix of concentrates, isolates and hydrolysates. These 3 are mixed together to give the impression of a superior product. Be mindful of what you are purchasing.
Check for the BV[Bioavailability]  for that protein on the container sleeve. The BV is described as the fraction of protein that reaches the bloodstream in a specific time. Certain proteins have a low BV while for some it can be as high as 170. Many manufacturer's mention it on the box. Contact the manufacturer if it has not been mentioned on it.
Price is another important consideration. Hydrolysates are generally more expensive whereas concentrates are cheaper. Isolates are probably somewhere in the middle.
 If you are looking to gain weight, you can safely opt for concentrates as the extra carbs and fat will not be a problem for you. Go for whey isolates if you need only protein from your whey supplement.
Dairy sensitive people should opt for isolates over concentrates.
Taste is quite important as well. Hydrolysates have not caught on as they are quite bitter. They do come in a lot of flavours. Make sure to select on that you like.
There is a wealth of information available for the product that you are about to purchase. Make sure to check out user reviews before you take a decision.

To whey or not to whey?

Plenty of people that I come across are reluctant to try whey protein. Many equate it to taking anabolic steroids.
Whey is a high quality protein powder derived from cow's milk.It is a co-product of cheese making and is perfectly safe. Whey protein isolate is the most pure and concentrated form of whey protein available. It contains  90% or more protein and very little fat and lactose. Whey protein concentrate has anywhere between 29% and 89% protein depending upon the product. As the protein level in whey decreases the amounts of fat or lactose usually increase.
There are several benefits to take whey:
1.It helps increase muscle mass as it is readily absorbed
2.It is also useful for weight loss, especially fat loss
3.It increases glutathione levels and hence immune function
4. There is significant evidence to suggest its protective effect against cancer

The simple rule one can follow when deciding whether to opt for whey or not is ask yourself if  you are getting  enough protein from your diet. If not, then you probably do not have a better option than whey.

Why fitness matters?

I often ask people why they want to get fit. The most common response is "to live a long and healthy life". 
The actual reason though is probably highly individualised. It can vary from just wanting to appear attractive to the opposite sex, getting ready for a marriage or the qualitative aspect of it. 
There are certainly a lot of physical benefits to getting fit. Exercise helps prevent heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke and a variety of other diseases. Better sleep, stronger bones and muscles and better posture are some other benefits of regular exercise.

The mental benefits of exercise far outweigh the physical. Effect of exercise on mood is well documented. You must have all heard about the "runners high". Sedentary states are often associated with depression.

Our bodies were not designed to sit in a chair and stare at computer screen the whole day. It might strike you as ironic that I am doing exactly the same thing as I type away. But you get my point! Our bodies were designed to run in the jungles and hunt animals with our bare hands!
Prolonged disuse of our bodies makes them lose their "functional edge".We often don't realise this neglect  until something dramatic happens and draws our attention to it. Often it is an injury or having to be off work for some period of time. 
Several researchers have found that the benefits of exercise start immediately. Even if you haven't been exercising for a prolonged period, the best time to start is today!