Your Scrumhalf Connection

Water is the most important nutrient in the body and our body is about 65% water so it is also the most prevalent. We need water on a daily basis in order to live and survive. We will die without water. We can go up to 3 months without food. We can survive about a week without sleep. We will be dead in 4 days if we don’t have water. That number could be even less if we are in a hot area or sweat a lot. Hopefully it is clear that water is VERY important and we need to be consuming water at all times in order to assure proper hydration.

Water has many uses in the body. It acts as a solvent, it controls thermoregulation (maintaining body temperature), gives structure to cells, used for lubrication in our joints and helps to conduct electrical current for our neurotransmitters (messages from our brain to various body parts). Since these things are all over the body we need a lot of water and since this happens on a daily basis we need to ensure that we have enough water for these things to happen.

The average adult female needs about 72 ounces of water daily for normal hydration. The average male needs 96 ounces of water daily for normal hydration. This is the average sedentary “I don’t bust my ass in the gym, on the pitch or sweat my butt off on a daily basis because I hate to sit on the couch” type of lifestyle that is Rugby. The more you sweat on a daily basis then the more you need to replenish. Sweating profusely means another 32 ounces or more. If the temperature is high then sweat loss will be even greater and water replenishment demands will also increase.

On a daily basis we need to drink plenty of water as this is our major source of water intake. However, we do get water from more sources other than just plain water. We can get water from any liquid and food source. Chicken, lettuce, bananas, vegetables, fish, and nuts all have water in them. Any food has water in it. Only oil does not have water in it. If we eat a steak there is water in it. That is the juice that we are tasting. We will use the water as part of our daily need. Every liquid is also water based so our body will process the liquid and use the water. We can get water from sources other than water but we still need to attempt to drink water for a quantifiable consumption of water. Alcohol, carbonated and caffeinated drinks have water in them also but with the processing need to derive the water these beverages can only be considered for half of their intake. Meaning if you drink a 12 ounce soda it will only be considered 6 ounces for your daily need.

An easy way to check whether or not you are hydrated properly is thirst. If you are thirsty then you are already at the early stages of dehydration. Drink some water at this point because continuing to sweat and work hard will cause you to become more and more dehydrated. Sometimes in the middle of a game it can be difficult to consume the water needed to stay hydrated. Therefore, it is very important to ensure proper hydration before the game. Do not do this by consuming massive amount of water before a game. That will cause bloating and slow your performance. Water must be consumed daily to allow the body to get acclimated to increased water and become accustomed to being fully hydrated. Drink plenty of water every day. Make it a habit and you are sure to improve your sports performance.

Anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Spencer Aiken,CSCS (951) 296-7993 email:spencer@truefitness.biz

Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness

Fat is not bad! Fat is actually needed by the body everyday to be healthy. Eating fat will not make you fat. Not eating any fat will actually cause you to store body fat. Now that we got that out of the way let’s begin to look at fat in our diet and why we need it.

Fat is actually very important in our diet. The muscle that is our heart runs off of fat. Without fat in our diet our heart would stop beating. Cardiac muscle runs exclusively off of energy created from fat. For that reason alone we must have fat in our diet. But fat also plays several other key roles in the body. Fat is the substance that makes up the cell membrane of every single cell in the body (the membrane is like the outer surface of a balloon, it is what allows the cell to have structure and allow in or out certain nutrients and compounds). Fat is also important in thermoregulation, the maintaining of our body’s temperature. Fat pads and protects our vital organs. Fat also plays a role in the transport of cholesterol and in helping to maintain muscle tone.

The body needs two specific kinds of fat in our daily diet. These are known as essential fats. Omega 3 and Omega 6 are the two essential fats that are body needs every day. We get Omega 3 and 6 from foods such as salmon, avocados and almonds. If we do need get enough of our essential fats then our body does not run at its optimal performance level. For this reason most people are wise to take a fat supplement such as fish oil. This ensures you get your Omega 3 and 6 without eating too much fat in your diet. Health professionals advise that at least 10% of your daily diet comes from fat. This is the amount that will limit the overeating of saturated fats while still allowing the possibility of eating enough of the vital Omega 3 and 6 fats

What we do not need in our diet is a lot of saturated fat. Saturated fat, in laymen’s terms is completely filled with Hydrogen and therefore is bulkier, is solid at room temperature and does not travel well in the blood stream. It tends to block arteries so therefore it is a cause of heart attacks and strokes since the blood cannot get through. Saturated fat comes in processed foods, dairy, fried foods, milk chocolate, and meats. Avoiding saturated fat altogether is not the answer but limiting your intake is the smart thing to do.

Trans fats are a partially and chemically altered fat through the process of hydrogenation (adding hydrogen). Trans fats are not essential in any way in the diet and are not used to promote a healthy body. Trans fat should be avoided in the diet with only trace amounts being allowed for optimal health promotion.

We need fat. We cannot avoid fat to be skinnier. Not eating fat to be skinnier is like purposely not reading for fear of learning will increase the size of our brain and make us weigh more on a scale. It just doesn’t make sense. Too much bad fat (saturated and trans) will make us fat especially if we lead a sedentary lifestyle. If we are active and watch our overall fat intake then we are on the road to a healthy lifestyle.

TrueFitness now offers online training for anyone throughout the world looking to improve. Anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Spencer Aiken,CSCS (951) 296-7993 email:spencer@truefitness.biz

Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness

Enough about carbs. This is for Rugby so we need to be strong and powerful and the food source that will allow us to become strong and powerful is Protein. Today, we blog about why we need protein, how much do we need and what are our sources of protein to ensure that we have enough to produce the gains we need to be the best possible athlete.

Protein has been called the building block of life because of the many body components that it is the structural basis for such as muscle, bone, tendon, ligaments, hair, nails, and many more. It is because it is the structural building block of most of the body that we call it the building block of life. With it having so many uses for building in the body it is reasonable to assume that we must have a lot of protein in our diet in order to have enough protein for all of it uses. Protein can also be used as an emergency fuel source when our body is low on carbs. If you remember back to last week, carbs are the preferred and primary fuel source for our body but when they become depleted we can use protein.

Protein is for building muscle. Big, fast, strong powerful muscles. It is the amino acids (the structural component of protein) that enable the muscles to repair and then become bigger, faster, stronger and more powerful. Protein is how we recover from our brutal workouts and then how those workouts and recovery help us to dominate on the pitch. Protein is the fuel source that is required by muscles to repair itself so make sure to get enough in your diet to allow for this repair.

But how much is enough to ensure that we are getting enough protein. It can get confusing for the lay person to understand exactly how much they need in their diet. An easy way to ensure that you get enough protein is to simply eat 1 gram of protein for every pound of bodyweight. This is an easy strategy for everyone and everyone can find out what their bodyweight is by simply stepping on a scale.

We need protein in our diet and we need a lot of it but where do we get our protein. The best sources of protein are meat products. Beef, chicken, fish, and pork are all great sources of complete protein. Complete proteins are the protein sources that have all of the amino acids required on a daily basis. These are called complete because our body does not need to change or rearrange amino acids in the body to be used for repair. We can also get our protein from dairy, soy and in protein shake form. Just be careful not to eat too much soy as this can inhibit an anabolic body response and lead to limitations on growth and repair.

Protein is used to build big powerful muscles which are needed to play Rugby. Protein’s best source is in animal products such as meat and dairy. Protein needs to be eaten at a daily rate of about one gram for every pound of bodyweight. Knowing these facts will help athletes become the powerful successful winning athletes which is the reason we put all those hours in during the off season.

We now offer online training. Anyone looking to become the best athlete they can be then let us know and we will help you become your best. Also, anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Spencer Aiken,CSCS (951) 296-7993 email:spencer@truefitness.biz

Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness

Last week I began a nutrition discussion and I would like to continue this week. Whole grain foods are good and enriched grains are kind of bad. Not all bad just empty calories not optimizing nutritional value bad. This week I want to go further into detail about carbs and why they are important and why they can become “bad” if not eaten in the right amount.

Carbohydrates in and of themselves will not make you fat! Your body is a very efficient machine and has learned how to optimize the fuel that it is given. The fuel our body uses begins out as a carbohydrate that we ingest. Our primary source of energy comes from carbohydrates in the form of glucose. Glucose is the base level of a carbohydrate that we use as our fuel source to create more energy. This energy is needed to run all the systems and processes in the body from breathing to digestion and from repairing muscles to producing more enzymes and hormones. It is carbohydrates which provide the fuel to create the energy needed for the human body to work. Taking away carbohydrates from the diet therefore does not allow the body to optimally create energy. Any diet that prescribes no carbs doesn’t allow the body to provide the energy needed to be at your best. If you are not at your best to train then how can you become your best at the sport for which the reason it is that you are training.

Carbohydrates are the largest macronutrient component of our diet. This means our daily diet should consist mostly of carbohydrates then protein and lastly fat. We need about 50-55% of our diet to be from carbs. This can skew higher for aerobic long distance athletes but for Rugby 50-55% of daily intake is the goal. This will provide enough calories for energy and not allow for an over abundance of calories while still allowing for enough protein and fat in the daily diet.

An over abundance of calories means one thing. You are eating too many calories and too many carbohydrates will lead to one thing. That one thing is storage as body fat. Now I did say earlier that carbohydrates will not make you fat and I still stand by that statement. Carbohydrates will not make you fat but eating too many carbs will. The body stores excess carbs as fat and it is the excess that can make carbs bad. Carbs are an easy food source to overeat. With all the processed foods and high carbohydrate foods available in the American diet it is very easy to overeat carbs on a daily basis and overeating carbs is what we need to avoid since that leads to an increase in body fat. Avoiding excess carbs is a start to a healthier diet. If you know how many calories your body burns on a daily basis then you just need to factor in that number and estimate between 50-55% of your calories from carbohydrates and then you know how many calories from carbohydrates to eat on a daily basis.

The overeating of carbs is what got the misnomer that there were “bad” carbs and therefore must be “good” so we had the belief of avoiding the eating of bad carbs while eat good carbs. Well as we just learned along with last week, there are no “bad” carbs. It is the overeating of carbs which leads to carbs being stored as body fat and those carbs created a whole belief that eating carbs are bad. Go ahead and eat your carbs. You need them to fuel your workouts get better at your sport.
For anyone interested in learning their total daily need of calories to figure out how much is 50-55% for their daily carb intake please email me at spencer@truefitness.biz and I will give you a free consultation.

Anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Spencer Aiken,CSCS (951) 296-7993 email:spencer@truefitness.biz
Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness

When training to improve your performance it is very important that you consider your nutrition along with the physical part of the training. Athletes are not going to get better is they are not eating properly. A race car will only run as well as the fuel you put in it. An athlete is a race car so the fuel they use is very important in determining their potential ability and thus their performance in their sport.

The right fuel for an athlete is partially determined by the type of event the athlete is in. We will be talking about Rugby since this is a Rugby blog. Now all partying and alcohol aside, the fuel that is chosen and the amounts eaten will give the athlete the ability to reach their potential, maximize their ability and develop an athletic body with low body fat and explosive powerful musculature.

So what should and shouldn’t an athlete’s diet consist of is an easy question to answer. Eliminate fried foods!!!! Eat healthy complex carbohydrates, lean cuts of meat for protein and plenty of a variety of vegetables. Fruits early in the day are a good source of carbs so be sure to add them. Low fat dairy is also vital. Be sure to eat Omega 3 and Omega 6 fats while avoiding foods high in saturated fats. Now it’s a matter of what kinds of foods provide me with these nutrients. We will begin by discussing what has come to be known as good carbs and bad carbs. Good and bad carbs come down to the discussion of whole grains and enriched grains and whether or not your food is giving you nutritional value or is simply empty calories. So the next paragraph will “begin” to clear the muck of what should and should not be eaten in regards to carbohydrates.

Now I am going to get into a discussion on whole grains, enriched grains and the whole mess of why carbs are actually good for you. For carbohydrates you are looking for whole grain. What “whole grain” means is that is complete and wasn’t stripped of it nutritional value and it provides you with all the value that nature provides in this product. It wasn’t stripped of its fiber and endosperm. You want “whole grains” in your diet so that you get all the nutritional value possible out of your food and you are not eating “empty calories”. “Enriched Grains” are what the food industry labels food that are stripped of its beneficial nutrients and replaced with nitrogen and fillers to replace “some” caloric value. However, all the nutrients that make the food beneficial are taken out so eating “enriched grains” equates to eating “empty calories”. An athlete needs to maximize the benefit of their caloric intake and empty calories can interfere with this possibility. Although “empty calories” are not essentially bad for you they do provide no nutritional value other than the calories. This can lead to overeating and can limit the likelihood of proper nutrition and can actually hinder weight loss. If someone is trying to lose weight then ‘empty calories” can give them more than their daily intake should allow for. Some athletes need to lose weight and decrease their total body fat and “empty calories” will not help with losing weight and body fat. For athletes trying to gain weight, the calories they take in are just as important as they need to also maximize benefit since it can be hard to eat the amount of calories needed that an athlete can potentially burn in a day. It is common for an athlete to need 6000-8000 calories a day when training so in order to put on muscle the athlete must eat at or above their daily need. 6000 calories is a lot of meals in one day so an athlete really needs to properly plan out their meals with as much nutritional value in each meal as possible to give them the ability to add the necessary muscle.

This blog is just a beginning on the discussion of nutrition and is merely a starting point as we get further and further into the nutritional needs of an athlete as they prepare for their sport. We will follow up with more in depth looks into carbs, proteins and fats and how other micronutrients play a role in our athletic performance

Anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Spencer Aiken, CSCS (951) 296-7993 email:spencer@truefitness.biz

Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness

Today the subject is about wasting time in the gym and occupying equipment while not actually using the equipment. We have discussed in the past how athletes have a limited amount of time to get ready for their seasons and a limited playing career. It is simply shameful to let a moment be wasted if an athlete wants to be their best. Waste not a moment for when that moment is gone it is gone forever. An athlete needs to understand that wasting time or horsing around is not what they need to be doing; instead they need to be maximizing the use of their time.

Standing around takes up space. Sitting on equipment while not actually using it takes up space. Goofing around takes up space. Taking up space is not what we as athletes need to be doing. We need to be working and striving to reach our dreams and goals. Only with hard work and effort can we improve our bodies and taking up space is not going to help us accomplish that. Do not stand around and take up space and do not waste your chance to improve.

When it is time to “put in work” there is nothing more disappointing for a sports performance coach to see an athlete standing around and taking up space and then getting in the way of the other athletes as well as hindering the workouts of the athletes who are actually there to ‘put in work.’

Either get to work or get out of the gym is the way that sports performance coaches should address the situation of people hanging out in the gym. The gym is not a hang out. Without even factoring in the risk of injury from people not paying attention to people who throwing weights around it is simply problematic for people to be in the gym who are not working out. So get to work or get out.

Most gyms do not have an over abundance of equipment or too much space. If someone is in the way of an athlete using equipment or open space then it actually detrimental to more than just the person in the way. This slows everyone down and keeps an athlete from working effectively or pushing to their limits and improving to their potential.

Be in the gym to workout, improve and get better. If you are not in the gym to do those things then you do not belong in the gym. The gym is a place for hard work, intensity, effort, sweating and pushing a lot of weight. It is not a social gathering spot or the cafeteria or your couch.

You are in the way if you are not working out. Work out or get out of the way. Understand this very simple rule and then apply it to your workouts and anyone in the gym where you are working out. Athletes needs to training and not wasting time. Get in and get out or rephrased, do your work in the gym to your utmost ability and then when you are exhausted and finished, leave so that others have the same opportunity.

Anyone in the San Diego area is welcome to drop in at our studio at 2949 Garnet Ave. 3rd floor, Pacific Beach, CA. We would love to put you through our workout. Please feel free to call or email Annalise Evans of TrueFitness with any questions: (760) 809 1848 annalise@truefitness.biz and join her fan page on Facebook: TrueFitness Annalise Evans

Article written by Spencer Aiken, CSCS, CEO, TrueFitness