Protein - How Much is Enough?

There is considerable debate on how the body synthesizes protein. Some say no more than 50 grams at an one time; other say around 20-30 grams is the maximum limit.
And yet others will say it isn't the amount you take at any one time, it the amount of protein you get during the whole day.

Protein, of course, is necessary to repair damaged cells and to build new ones. It is a pretty fair statement to say that it is universally accepted that eating within 3 hours of your workout enhances protein synthesis and therefore recuperation and muscle building.

The average person eats about double the amount of protein that their body requires, consuming an average of almost 70 pounds per year, when the average man needs about 65 grams a day compared to the average woman's needs of around 55 grams.

Too much protein can reflect in less energy and even lethargy. Eating too much protein, especially from red and processed meats is associated with higher rates of heart disease and cancer. Although it is not the greater amount of protein that is causing the cancer,...it is much more likely that the affected person is not getting a complete diet of nutrients and/or is consuming too many toxins in their whole foods.

It just may not only be safer and more healthy but more and easier to consume smaller amounts of protein each day, shooting for 4 to 5 servings. One serving could be two eggs; or several tablespoons of peanut butter; a hamburger patty, a large glass of milk among other protein sources.

There seems to be an organized effort to get people to discard red meat sources of protein, such as beef which is among some of the most complete single source foods you can eat. Impact on the environment. Claims that meat and dairy production require tremendous amounts of fuel, pesticides, and chemical fertilizers, and generates a large amount of greenhouse gases are all published reasons from environmental groups to stop using these sources of protein. In fact, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) recently published a Meat Eater’s Guide, pointing out that if you ate once less burger a week it would be the environmentally-positive equivalent of taking your car off the road for 320 miles.

Meat is also expensive. Not all proteins are created equal -- neither at the doctor’s office, nor the cash register.

Anyway, as always the consumer should do their own research and make up their own mind. But watch out for the wacko environmentalists,....anybody seen Al Gore? Come on now, I'm just having some fun.


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Physical Exercise - One of the Four Legs of the Chair of Health

I have previously written of the four legged chair of health. Obviously if any of the legs are shorter than the others, this chair becomes unbalanced. It can be come unbalanced to the point where the chair falls over.

I advocate taking a high quality nutritional supplements to give your body the required nutrients it needs in order to have a healthy immune system and I further advocate taking optimizers for any problem areas, such as Glucosamine and Omega 3 Fatty Acids for chronic joint pain.

I also advocate doing your best to stay away from toxins – cigarettes are probably high on the list. Excessive drinking, unhealthy fast foods and exposure to chemicals are also important to avoid.

Several people have contacted me and asked what they should do for physical exercise. First thing would be to consult with a medical professional to ensure you are in decent enough health to begin an exercise program. But don’t let the word “exercise program” scare you away. You can easily build physical exercise into the nooks and crannies of your life and reap those benefits.

The main areas of physical exercise you should consider are:

Aerobic exercise. Participate in moderate intensity aerobic activity for 20-30 minutes several times a week. This type of exercise could be simply walking at a fast pace, say 3.5 to 5 mph. An excellent route would be one that includes a couple sets of stairs of an uphill incline but does not have a downhill incline – downhill adds stress to knees.

Resistance (Strength) training. Perform weight lifting or body weight resistance exercises to increase muscular tone, strength and endurance twice a week. Body weight exercises such as pushups, situps, crunchs, and dips on a chair are a great start. A light weight set of dumbbells can be used to for shoulder presses, biceps curls, arm raises, triceps extensions are also a very good addition. Shoot for a minimum of 12 reps per set. Build to a three or four sets per sessions. You can certainly get great benefit from two 20 minute sessions a week.

Flexibility. Top reduce risk from injury, warm up before any exercise. You should include stretching before and after the exercise. The time to build on your flexibility – meaning pushing yourself for increased flexibility – is after the workout when your muscles are completely warmed up.

Flexibility also aids in balance and can help elderly people avoid those falls that sometimes result in debilitating injuries.

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