Food Reward Friday

This week's lucky "winner"... beer!!

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The Genetics of Obesity, Part I

Choosing the Right Parents: the Best Way to Stay Lean?

In 1990, Dr. Claude Bouchard and colleagues published a simple but fascinating study demonstrating the importance of genetics in body fatness (1).  They took advantage of one of the most useful tools in human genetics: identical twins.  This is what happens when a single fertilized egg generates two embryos in utero and two genetically identical humans are born from the same womb.   By comparing identical twins to other people who are not genetically identical (e.g., non-identical twins), we can quantify the impact of genes vs. environment on individual characteristics (2).

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Food Reward Friday

This week's lucky "winner"... low-carb gluten-free bacon chocolate mocha ice cream cake!!

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Food Reward Friday

This week's lucky "winner"... cronuts!!

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Food Reward Friday

This week's "winner" will certainly be the most controversial yet... bacon!!

Bacon is a fatty cut of pork (typically side or back) that has been thinly sliced, cured, then cooked until crispy.  This results in a fatty, salty, savory flavor that almost everyone loves.  Bacon's extremely high calorie density, saltiness, and savory flavor give it a reward value that competes with chocolate and ice cream.  Sometimes it's even used to flavor chocolate and ice cream!

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Update

I haven't been putting much effort into blogging these past few weeks.  Frankly, a little break has been nice while I take care of other things in my life.  But I haven't been twiddling my thumbs.  Obesity research hasn't slowed down and there are many topics that I'd love to write about here if I had the time.  I'll be starting a new series soon on the genetics of obesity-- a fascinating subject.  I also plan to cover some of my recent publications on obesity and blood glucose control by the brain.  Last but not least, we will soon roll out a substantially upgraded version of the Ideal Weight Program.  Those who have already purchased the program will continue to have access to the new version.

The Science Of Stretching

At the Shaolin Temple we never stretch first, we always start with a gentle warm up and when the muscles feel warm and loose we stretch. We do two types of stretching: static and dynamic. The Shaolin dynamic stretching we do is the five basic kicks, and the five stances which open the hips and warm up the leg muscles. We believe that it's only by doing these stretches that we can get truly flexible. We've stretched this way and warmed up our muscles like this for thousands of years, and if you train with my DVDs then you'll be doing it this way. In fact, I didn't know there was another way until I came to the UK. 

Yesterday, a student showed me a book about the science of exercise, which has a chapter on stretching. Latest research shows that the way Shaolin Disciples warm up and stretch is the way to get maximum performance from our workout. There's a belief in the West that stretching before a warm up is good but research has shown that it has no benefit and doesn't bolster performance. The other myth is the only way to flexibility is through static stretching. To quote from the book: "Dynamic stretching may be the most important element of a warm up... it involves moving and waking the tissues that will be called upon during the subsequent exercise." It's also the way to become more flexible. 

This way of preparing for a workout is not just for martial artists but all athletes.

For more information on Shaolin Training please visit shifuyanlei.com