Holiday Nutrition

Yum! One Tasty Bird!

Hello everyone, hope that you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family and friends. I am writing this post in response to the numerous times that I was asked "What did you eat for Thanksgiving, Paul?" Well, the answer to that is I very likely ate the same things that most of you all did. Albeit in a slightly less terrible version. I had more than my fill of turkey, stuffing (yes, there was bread in it), cranberry dressing and yes, dessert. What I did though, was to try my best to make things that everybody would eat, yet still satisfied my dinner-guests preconceived notions of what we were supposed to eat. I roasted the turkey with a traditional mix of carrots, celery, portobello mushrooms and onions. Threw in some fresh herbs such as rosemary and sage and used a container of low-sodium chicken broth to keep it all moist. The stuffing was a spinach-artichoke mix with brie and french bread (c'mon now...can you really make a good stuffing without a little bit of bread?) and it was delicious. The hit of the dinner. And guess what, it really wasn't that bad from a Paleo point of view. Not perfect, but not terrible either. Cranberry dressing was easy. I threw two bags of fresh cranberries into the food processor and added three oranges cut into chunks. I used agave nectar to sweeten it but ran out and had to finish with honey. I zested one of the orange peels and a lemon peel, as well and added them for a bright flash of flavor. Yummm! I made a small bowl for myself and added a couple shakes of habanero pepper for a little heat. Let me tell you. It was delicious! For dessert, my sister-in-law Robin made a flour-less chocolate torte that was phenomenal. And yes, I had some ice cream with it. So...all-in-all, not too bad of eating experience. Was it perfect, no. Was everybody eating a lot healthier than they have in a long time, yes! And everyone left happy. So what can you take away from this long story. That while I can tell you how to eat while you are here in the gym working-out, it is completely up to you to put that plan into action. We are all adults here. We know what is good, clean healthy food and what is crap. Do I expect everyone to be neurotic about what they eat? No, I don't. But I do expect you to have confidence in your ability to eat healthy 90% of the time. If you noticed in the above story, there was very little bread and no other grains present on the table during the meal and everybody loved it. Eating Paleo does NOT have to be boring. That is the biggest obstacle that I feel keeps people from fully-embracing the lifestyle. That they can NEVER eat anything fun or good(?) again. I am here to tell you that you can eat better than ever and feel better than ever, too! Thanks, everyone. I hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend. Next week we shake things up in the gym yet again!

Robin's Road: Results!

I've been working out with Paul at Category Five Fitness three times a week for the last four weeks. On the first day, I completed a test that included 200 meters on the rowing machine, inverted rows on the rings, push-ups on one of the bars, and squats that sat my butt on a bench every time I crouched down. The workout shredded my leg muscles for the next few days, but I completed all of it in 11 minutes 27 seconds. Yeah, I was big-time out of shape.

So over the intervening weeks, I have been doing all sorts of different movements at different levels of difficulty. Some I hated. Others were pretty easy. Still more were a challenge. These were the types of exercises that I've shied away from for such a long time. I liked the way I worked out at my local gym, nevermind that I wasn't really seeing any results and often skipped going to the gym because of the time it took out of my day. 

Then last summer, Paul told me what he did at Category Five Fitness. His workouts are based on CrossFit principles, but are customized to work with any type of person at any stage of fitness. They're short, intense and have consistently yielded results for his clients. Still, I was resistant to the idea of stepping out of my comfort zone. 

Robin's Road: Different Strokes

I have never been a runner. Even when I was young and thin and cute, I was never any good at running. But I tried to be. 

My first two years of high school gym class consisted of trips to the track three days a week throughout most of the year. We had to run or walk a mile -- four laps total. I would push myself to run two laps straight before walking the rest. 

Sometimes I'd get really masochistic and run the last half lap, too. This probably wasn't the best idea for me considering I was living in a house with toxic mold at the the time, which I later learned was the cause of my many respiratory infections and my current state of lung damage. But smart or not, I still did it.

Out of my adventures in high school gym class I learned two things: I hate running, and I can walk forever. I am a walker by nature and have stuck to this path for many, many years now. 

So, you can imagine my thoughts when Paul tells me I have to run on the treadmill during my Wednesday training session. In the words of my tween daughter (which she stole from some tweeny TV show), "You say what now?" 

Robin's Road: Taking the Leap

Name: Robin Kavanagh Matthews

Age: 32

Weight: 225.5 (down from 238 one year ago)

Cholesterol: 222

BP: 130/80

Time to Complete Paul's Initial Workout: 11 mins, 27 secs

Me surrounded by my two girls and husband.

Okay. I know I just violated a ton of "girl"rules by disclosing all of this information to the world. But I'm okay with that if it means my experience can help others find it in them to take control of their lives and their health. 

I know that committing to improving your health is tough to do and even harder to stick with. Exercise can be boring, hard, and time consuming. But for years, I've known that strength training is the key to making every minute in the gym count. I just never had the means to really pursue it properly, or the money to pay a personal trainer three times per week to kick my butt into gear.

I do now with Paul and Category Five Fitness. Every week, I'll be sharing my experience working out with Paul at Category Five Fitness in Fitness Zone. Why? I'm an overweight, overworked, overstressed mom of two who needs to make a serious change to combat a metabolic disease that has already nearly cost me a pregnancy, years of poor body image, energy, and some of my good health. If I can fit in the time and go through Paul's regimen to strengthen my body and improve my health, anyone can do it.

So, here's my story. 

Another Amazing Testimonial!

On Aug 1st I made the best change in my life. I started to train with Paul LaFrance. In the beginning I was nervous and scared but Paul took care of that real quick. He noticed that I was a Yankee fan sooo of course he had to talk the talk because he's a Red Sock's fan. After the first week my confidence was building and I was always looking forward to the next workout with him. Now I'm in it exactly a month and i've lost 10lbs or more, lost some inches, and gained muscle!!! I'm also completely pain free!! I didn't notice the results at first but now I can see it and I absolutely love it!! Now I have to work out!! I'm completely addicted to training with Paul. He knows that I will reach my goal, he's very positive, and motivating!!! Paul is not only changing my body but he's changing my whole self. I'm beginning to love ME! (which never happened before) I'm looking forward to the next couple of months because I know that eventually I will reach my goal. There's no doubt in my mind. I am officially a lifer for Category Five Fitness thanks to PAUL!!! HE'S THE ABSOLUTE BEST #1 ON THE BEACH!!!

Thanks, Lyndsay. You are an Inspiration to us all!

Power!!!

Hi Everyone, This weeks discussion is all about Power!!! According to Physics, Power is the rate at which work is performed. In the realm of Category Five Fitness, it is expressed most profoundly during the Olympic Lifts, which require one to move a load in an explosive manner. For you newer trainee’s, you should recall me telling you to “explode” the weight up over the past week. This “exploding” action will cause the weight being used to move much faster, which equates to more Power being used. This increase in Power will shorten the duration of the work which means a shorter time in which to complete a workout. Same workout, less time, equals more Power being used which equals less time spent in misery. In regards to athletic events, what this means is that the more powerful athlete is more likely to consistently win a certain event as he/she is able to instantly apply much more force, much more quickly than their opponent. If the opponent is strong but can’t quickly apply that force, than they will lose. Next time you walk into the weight-room, ask yourself this question. “Would you rather be strong or Powerful?”


Check out some video's on my facebook page!

Next layer in the Pyramid of Fitness...Strength!

Hello everyone. This week's topic will continue with what I feel is the next most important layer in the pyramid of fitness...Strength!

Strength is the ability to apply force. The stronger one is, the more force one can apply. Hence, the stronger you are, the larger the load you can move. This can come in quite handy throughout life. From doing heavy yard-work to doing laundry, the stronger one is, the easier is the task at hand.

Recently, a lot of emphasis has been placed upon endurance and stamina. And while being durable and having great stamina is important, I believe that strength comes in slightly ahead of those qualities. It is much easier to take a strong athlete and get them well-conditioned than it is to take a well-conditioned athlete and make them stronger. Let's look at this from another point of view. If you are a police-officer running-down a criminal, what good will it do you if you are a good runner, but can't perform more than five or ten good push-ups, for example? You will probably catch the bad-guy, but then what? In a scuffle, you will more than likely lose. This is where strength becomes important. 

For ladies, the same thing holds true. All of these classes being offered that use little to no weight resistance will NEVER  increase bone-density or add enough meaningful muscle to naturally raise one's metabolism which directly contributes to an improved body composition, ie, more muscle and less fat! I guarantee that if you ladies put on a  little shapely muscle, you'll be turning more heads than the vast majority of Hollywood actress'!

Canada's Camille Leblanc-Bazinet

Mary Mary quite contray how does your garden grow?

I have been terrible at keeping up my end of the blogging but I still want to share our trials and tribulations of organic gardening...

Plants look tired but they're growing!

Here in, South Eastern NC we hit the 90ties back in May and it hasn't let up. Normally it starts in July. Not to mention no rain and no pollinating insects. So we water out garden and keep it healthy.

It grows and grows, it flowers but no fruit. We've noticed an absence of pollinating insects. So with our cucumbers we have pulled off a male flower and touch it to all the female flowers. A paint brush is suppose to help to. Wouldn't you know it we got 2 cucumbers. Tomatoes are a different story. They have both male and female parts so they self pollinate but if it's too hot they get sticky and can't do the job. We've had only one very tiny but tasty tomato.

First cucumber of the year!

Thankfully last week we had 3 days of rain. Which yielded 7 cucumbers! I've even noticed a bumble bee or two. I should have pinched the lemon and cinnamon basil flowers back so I would have more tasty leaves to eat but it seems that's where the bees are drawn too. The more the merrier! We are keeping our garden watered, so as it cools come fall, we will have our crops. It will be a long wait but we are hoping it's worth it!

Don't give up!

2008 article honeybee article is interesting.

Our sweet tiny tomato.

Our indoor experiment is going strong.

Supplements

     Today's follow-up article on nutrition focuses on supplementation.  To which anyone who hasn't spent the last ten to fifteen years can attest, supplement sales have become BIG business. The public is being marketed-to in a continuous onslaught about the benefits of this or that product. There is so much sales-generating material available everywhere one turns that it can make one's head spin. Hopefully, today I can help you all and you can go forth and help others.
     In my opinion, there are really only four, or five if you count BCAA's post-workout, that are worthy of spending your hard-earned money upon. First and foremost is FISH OIL. I have recently posted an article that effectively states why one needs to be using this product. Look back a few days on this blog and read or re-read that article.
     The next product that I recommend is a GOOD-QUALITY MULTIVITAMIN/MULTIMINERAL supplement. I am of the opinion that today's food sources do NOT contain the micro-nutritional profile that they once did. A good-quality product is a relatively-cheap form of insurance that assures one that their their basic micro-nutritional needs are being met.  I use and recommend to my clients that they use "MVM" from the Metabolic Diet by Dr. Mauro DiPasquale. There are several sources online that carry this product. Expect to pay around $26 plus shipping. The reason that I like this product is that it offers vitamins and minerals in effective dosages and in their most bio-available form to actually receive the benefits of taking them.
     Now MAGNESIUM, on the other hand, is where most of the world's population is deficient. I recommend a CHELATED form of this mineral as it will significantly improve the bio-availability. Research has suggested that magnesium is best utilized when taken before bed as it has shown to have a relaxing effect upon the body and contributing to a good night's sleep.  Sleep is so important that it warrants it's own separate, future article.
     Finally, I also recommend a D3 product. I live in the southern U.S. and have the benefit of high annual sunshine. Sunlight, as you know, is used by the body to manufacture vitamin D. However, I like using it in the winter months to assure proper levels. For those of you living much further north than Washington, D.C., you may want to consider using this product pretty-much year-round as you may not be getting the sun-exposure you need. Vitamin D is beneficial for bone strength, as well as immunity and controlling systemic inflammation, in addition to a number of other health benefits.
     Hopefully, this helps to lessen the confusion and keeps a little bit more coin in your pocket!  Have a great day everybody!

Have to share this testimonial!

I will begin my testimonial by first explaining my love/hate relationship with Paul LaFrance, my trainer for the past six months. I hate him when he's pushing me during my workouts and I love him when I see the transformation my body is making week by week.

 

When I came to Paul I was your typical middle aged, somewhat active, somewhat overweight, recently retired woman looking to improve my health and fitness. Tennis has always been my passion but in order to increase endurance and strength I looked to Paul for assistance. I now play between 3 - 5 times a week and play for approximately 2hrs or more each time. I could never have done that without his training.

 

Paul is passionate about his career in training and compassionate in his approach. He knows when to push you and he knows when to sit down and talk about anything that's holding you back from performing at peak. He ALWAYS makes time to talk you thru a rough time. His expertise in nutrition has also helped me in learning to cook and eat differently.

 

In summary, I will say that Paul La France is the most professional, down to earth trainer I have ever come across.  His ability to keep you motivated is achieved by the different workouts he assigns each day and by his continued encouraging words. Thanks, Paul. YOU'RE THE BEST!!!

 

MJ

This week we will be focusing on Nutrition

Welcome back. I hope everyone had a wonderful fourth of July week. For the next few weeks, I will be talking about the various modalities of training and how I believe they rank in order of importance. This week we will be focusing on Nutrition.

I believe that proper nutrition is most important and that it provides a strong base upon which everything else is added. As I stated in an earlier article, “you cannot out-perform bad nutrition.” You really are what you eat! If your diet is crap, then you are asking your body to do the impossible. You cannot build a strong, lean and viable machine out of garbage. It will NOT happen. The most difficult obstacle that I see having to overcome is the inaccurate belief that eating well is too time-consuming. That is false. How long does it take to slice up some chicken or steak, add a handful of spinach and possibly some garlic, onions and mushrooms? Now ask yourself how much time you waste surfing the internet to find out who’s sleeping with who in Hollywood? Or who won whatever game in whatever city?...because both of those activities contribute so much to your well-being!

As you all know, I am a strong advocate of eating a Paleo Diet. This consists of eating meat, fish, shellfish, vegetables (the greener, the better), some nuts, a little fruit, NO GRAINS and NO REFINED SUGAR!!! In no way does this mean that your diet will be boring or uneventful, to the contrary, it will be be better than ever! There are numerous books and resources available on-line to help one deal with eating properly while consuming very little of our precious family or personal-time. One book I recommend is “The Primal Blueprint Quick and Easy Meals”. It is available through Amazon and every recipe presented can be prepared in thirty minutes or less. When you eat the proper foods, you will tend to need less volume of food and you will feel full for a longer period of time.

A proper diet will also contribute to a favorable hormonal profile. Hormones, ladies and gentlemen, control the show. More on that in a separate article. As the effects of following a wholesome and nutritious diet start to ‘kick-in’, you will begin to feel significantly more energized each day, your performance in the gym will start skyrocketing, clothes will fit better and you will feel better about your appearance because you will be leaner, meaner, faster and stronger! Now go eat a big piece of meat with a big a$$ salad topped with olive oil and lemon juice or apple-cider vinegar!!!

Category Five Q&A with Paul

Hillary LOVES the ropes!

I have received a lot of inquires about what I offer here at Category Five Fitness and how it's different from what you find at other gyms and with other trainers.

My philosophy is simple. I focus on building strength in my clients so that it's easier for them to complete a certain amount of work, play or exercise. That means that you're not only working on your fitness while you're in the gym with me, but all day long as well. 

After more than twenty years in the weightlifting game, I've found that what works best are the simple, compound movements performed at relatively high intensity. In plain English, I take a classic, multi-joint exercise (like the deadlift), make it heavy enough that you can still perform the exercises with good form and have you perform a certain amount of work within a certain amount of time. This technique increases your capacity for work (you can do more work in a shorter amount of time).

Another question I get a lot is "Is Category Five a CrossFit program?" The answer is no -- and yes.

I stumbled upon CrossFit back in the fall of 2005. After initially being destroyed by the workouts, my strength and conditioning improved, and I was spending significantly less time in the gym. After strictly adhering to the main site’s programming for approximately two years, I felt I could improve upon the program by removing some of the risky protocols that I saw were leading to overuse injuries in myself and others who were strictly Crossfitting.

Having experience in Strongman training, an exercise science education, and heavy exposure to powerlifting, (particularly the Westside Method), I decided to pull aspects from all three areas and blend them with the best methods of CrossFit to create something new. As a CrossFit-certified trainer, I believe my program is the best method for changing body composition (more muscle, less fat) and increasing one’s confidence in day-to-day activities.

No more back pain for Meredith!

My clients have seen significant improvements in their quality of life, as well as in their physical appearance. Yes, the workouts are hard but NOT impossible, no matter what your level of fitness is! My clients range in age from 8 to 80, so there is no one who can't work the Category Five program. You will find yourself spending significantly less time in the gym, yet getting more results than you have in the past.

By focusing my efforts on training small groups of clients at one time -- 2-4 people max -- my clients are getting personal attention and I am able to maintain quality control to ensure that the exercises are being performed properly and with the right amount of intensity. On top of that, the cost of my program is significantly less -- at least 70 percent in most cases -- than the cost of traditional personal training. Plus, members get the benefit of possibly making some new friends and/or business contacts.

I am currently offering classes of up to 12 sessions with no more than 2 people for $200/mo. Another option is $200 for the first month so I can teach you the proper lifts. Then switch to $150/month with a slightly larger group — no more than 4 people. This allows you to train under a coach’s supervision 3 times per week. If you were to train this much through the cheapest personal training program, you would be paying at least $500 a month and not getting anywhere near the same results.


What other questions to you all have about Category Five Fitness?

Knees up HG!

Sherry has perfect form.

The Buzz on Fish Oil

While doing some research online, I came across this article from one of the greats in the world of strength and conditioning. It conveys the importance of supplementing with a high-quality fish oil. I believe this article is as good as it gets, so I will just post the link and then add my own recommendation for dosage at the end based upon the latest findings.

Why Fish Oils Are The Most Important Supplement

Fish oils have been promoted as a potential cure for virtually all diseases. Some members of the medical community have inferred that most ailments can be healed by manipulating the ratios between the EPA and the DHA. For those of us interested in positively and optimally altering body composition and maximizing our training efforts, fish oils offer sixteen possible advantages: READ MORE

How much one needs to take varies greatly. If one is overweight or suffering from an illness, significantly more is required—up to 30 grams a day. A good rule of thumb is one should be taking 1 gram for every 10 lbs of bodyweight.

For quality and taste, Barlean's can't be beat. Check out their Omega Swirl varieties. I go for the straight up oil in orange. Kara and my mother-in-law love the pina colada Omega Swirl and my father-in-law sticks with their first Omega Swirl, lemon. Check out their site for coupons and free samples.

The Ongoing Organic Garden Experiment

Paul and I are both Northerners (originally), pro-organic, and half Italian on our mothers' side. Our grandparents had robust plentiful gardens all summer, every summer without fail. They grew all kinds of varieties of tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and eggplant (to name a few) from our family gardens. So when we moved to the southern coast of North Carolina, we thought, "Awesome! Long growing season! There will be lots of fresh organic produce." Paul was ready to take up the gardening tradition.

Start of Our Cucumber Crop

What a battle. We soon found out that there's a reason the South grows tobacco, cotton and corn -- growing conditions are harsh! First off, the soil is acidic due to our proximity to the ocean. This meant that we had to treat the soil with a lime treatment to make it more basic (remember the good ole pH scale from 7th grade?) before we could hope to grow anything. (we found this out in our four attempt at gardening - this year!)

Then there are the bugs; foreign and monstrous ones like the tobacco horn worm. It looks like the Caterpillar in Alice and Wonderland, is just as stoned, has the munchies and will devour tomato plants over night! The whole thing! Some boring moth thingy (like my scientific precision?) kills your squash with its larva. So. Very. Gross.

Branched Chain Amino Acid Supplementation

Meredith listens to me.
She's now stronger than she's ever been.

Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) have been a topic of discussion lately within the world of strength and conditioning. These are amino acids that play a key role in building muscle.  Most strength coaches have been adapting the philosophy of taking BCAA supplements both prior to and immediately after a training session. However, there have been a few who stick to the belief that we can get all that we need through the ingestion of protein from our diets.

My take on this subject is that while it may be possible to take in all that we need from food alone, nutrient timing is something that also needs to be considered: the timing of specific macro and micro-nutrients around our training sessions in order to gain maximum benefit. Science has strongly suggested that certain nutrients, including BCAAs, contribute significantly more toward meeting out nutritional needs when ingested around the time you workout.

Benefits of Working Out on an Empty Stomach

Okay, so you may be scratching your head. Don't you need to eat before hitting the gym to make sure you have the energy to get through your session? Actually, working out on an empty stomach maximizes the body's ability to burn fat and produce testosterone and growth hormone -- two important chemicals your body needs to burn baby burn.

To make this happen, don't eat for at least one hour before you work out. Not a protein bar, a 100 calorie snack pack or even an apple. The calories from these perfectly healthy snacks will need to be burned off before your body gets to your stored body fat. And isn't burning the stored fat the point of working out in the first place?

So, what about your blood sugar? You're probably thinking that if you're hungry and then burn off more energy by working out that your blood sugar will drop. Actually, low blood sugar results when your body can't efficiently convert fat into glucose to feed the brain. Unless your doctor has properly diagnosed you with a disease, such as hypoglycemia, diabetes, or insulin resistance, a little hunger won't kill you. Not to mention that the longer you keep sugar out of your diet, the more efficiently your liver converts fat into glucose.

So your trainer tells you to go Paleo...

What’s Paleo? Simply, protein, veggies, fruits, nuts and NO GRAINS! Sounds insane. Especially with the media push for whole grains in your diet. What do I think? It’s worth it.

Two years ago during a Christmas visit with my brother and his family, we celebrated with lots of Christmas cheer. Paul then declared: “When we get home we are not eating any grains.” I said, “What’s with this ‘we’ nonsense?” and ended with a NO! 

In the end, I did give in to limiting grains, but cold turkey wasn’t an option. We started with dinner – lots of big salads like you get in a restaurant minus the dressings that kill the fact that it was healthy. We use mixed greens, baby romaine or spinach for our base. Then cucumbers, tomatoes, bell peppers, apple, pear or orange, (or any veggie/fruit we are in the mood for). Add some nuts/seeds like walnuts, pine nuts or sunflower seeds, then some feta or goat cheese, and of course protein! 

For us, this was a great start and is still a staple dinner more than two years later. A few of our favorite salads are now:

• Mixed greens, cucumber, bell peppers, feta, walnuts, chicken or steak, oil and vinegar.
• Baby romaine, cucumber, green apple, goat cheese, walnut, (maybe some bell pepper), chicken or steak oil and lemon juice.If you need salad dressing other than oil and vinegar, make it yourself! You can find all kinds of great recipes at http://everydaypaleo.com.

Who We Are

Contingency Plan: A plan involving suitable backups, immediate actions and longer term measures.

What does this mean for all of us at Category Five Fitness? LIFESTYLE!! 

Being healthy is not just a stop in the gym, but lies in the choices we make everyday. We've created this blog to help our community learn more about how to build a healthy lifestyle. We will share health, fitness and meal plans with you to help you make the healthy choices that will enrich your life and nurture your body.

So who are we? We're Paul and Kara LaFrance, the owners of Category Five Fitness.

Paul is personal trainer and strength and conditioning coach extraordinaire -- not to mention health guru. He is the man that makes Category Five Fitness the most effective workout program on the Strand. Paul loves his job, his clients, and making people strong and healthy.

I'm his wife, Kara. I fight for my health everyday because of a rare pituitary disease, acromegaly, which has left me unable to work and in nearly constant pain. I've lived with this condition for more than 15 years and know just how important good health is.

Come See us in Little River!

As much of a blast it was helping all of our awesome clients get their strength training on in North Myrtle Beach, we've decided to move to a bigger and better location just up the road in Little River. You can now find Category Five Fitness at 304 East Hwy. 90, Little River, SC -- right inside of Fitness Zone!

So, what does this mean for you? You'll not only get the same kickin' workout with Paul LaFrance, but you'll also enjoy a larger space to work out in, beautiful changing rooms and showers, front-desk service, access to massage and physical therapy services, and cool music to get you energized.

We've got tons more for you coming up in the next few months. In the meantime, check us out at our new Little River facility, "like" us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and tell your friends they have to check out just how life changing Category Five Fitness can be.