It’s marathon day in Chicago. 40,000 plus people lined up this morning and headed out for a 26.2 mile run. The marathon for all of these runners marked the end of a commitment that required much hard work and sacrifice. It’s always amazing to watch the elite runners knock off mile after mile of sub 5minute miles. But, it’s even more inspiring to watch the middle and back of the packers. You see every body type from lean to round. It confirms one thing, you can do anything if you put your mind to it.

    Let’s return to our review of carbohydrates verses proteins. When we left off, we were going to discuss souces of carbohydrates and proteins. Carbohydrates come from fruits, vegetables, and juices. Getting carbohydrates from fruit is a good source. Fruits are high in carbohydrates and also provide fiber. The addition of fiber fills you up more and also slows digestion down. The slowed digestion aids in more absorption of the carbohydrates. Juices are not the best choice for carbohydrates. While juices are a source of carbohydrates, they are also high in calories. Vegetables are a good source of carbohydrates but do not provide as high of a level of carbs as fruits.

    Protein is best provided by lean meats and eggs. Chicken breasts are a good source of protein. They are high in protein and low in fats. Red meat is a good source, but many red meats are high in fat. Egg whites are a good source of protein, however one has to be careful in preparation. Butter and cheese is often used when preparing eggs.

    There are always questions regarding supplements as a source of carbohydrates or proteins. It is always best to get your nutrition from whole, non-processed foods. Sport drinks are most effective after 45min. to an hour of constant exercise. They are very high in sugars and calories. Casein and whey proteins are available in many flavored shakes. A serving usually provides 20grams of protein. Again, these supplements should only be used after heavy, strength training sessions. Check the labels, proteins often have sugar added to improve tastes. They can be very high in calories.

    The benefit of hard work is,”results.” In our case, it’s performing better, losing weight, completing a running race, or just feeling better. Something we try to do is watch our athletes in their sport. We have had just that opportunity over the last two weeks. Some of our athletes play high school football and one plays college. In both cases, the athletes we trained over the summer are playing impact positions. Their names were called frquently for both defensive and offensive play. At the end of the season we will post their achievements and give their names. Sit tight.

   As promised last week, we are going to cover the key components to successful exercise programs. For the next few weeks we are going to cover diet. This week we will start with carbohydrates verses protein. Carbohydrates provide the body with immediate energy. This is especially handy when performing continuous exercise. Protein is a building block for tissue, especially muscle. It is a must when building strength. Protein does help provide energy, but it is a very inefficient way for the body to receive energy. When you require muscle to go in to a mode where it provides energy, you place your body in a traumatic position. More on energy later.

    Carbohydrates come in the form of simple and complex sugars. Simple sugars are processed sugars like granulated sugar or sucrose, a form of syrup used as an additive to sweeten foods and drinks. They are high in calories and inefficient in providing long term energy. Cpmlex sugars come from fruits and vegetables. They provide a more efficient way for the body to receive energy over time.

    Proteins come mainly from meats and nuts. It also comes from eggs and dairy. Where you receive your protein is important. Some proteins are more efficient for the body to digest and use than others. We will be talking about sources of carbohydrates and proteins next week. If you have any questions or comments before that, contact us at info@kcconditioning.com

      It has been a great week. Our weekend speed and agilty sessions were well attended by both old and new athletes. Everybody is getting back into the fall routine in our evning sessions. It’s good to see people with a plan to improve their health and then to actually follow through on it. More on that in a minute. We are happy to announce we are now affiliated with CLC’s Health and Wellness program. We will be hosting students during their practicums. They will be observing our weeknight training sessions and on the weekends during our speed and agility sessions. Having students will only make our trainers better by keeping them on their toes and in the teaching mode.

    As mentioned before, we are seeing people return with a plan to get healthier, in better shape, and lose weight. Over the next few weeks we will be talking about the keys to succes in improving your health : diet, exercise, and sleep. If you have any topics you would like information on, feel free to send us an e-mail. The first topic will be on diet, carbs. v. protein. Check back next week.

    Commitment,Dediction, Discipline, these are the keys to success. Every successful endeavor starts with a plan or goal. Once a goal has been set, there must be aplan to achieve that goal. From that point on, one must be dedicated to that plan. Dediction takes personal discipline. Discipline is the hardest of all to maintain. There are so many ways to fall off the wagon and break away from your discipline. If you really look at the reasons why people aren’t disciplined, thay can be summed up as one word, excuses. Don’t let excuses get in your way. With that in mind, we are happy to be back on track with our weekend training sessions at Grass Lake School. 13 young athletes were in attendance yesterday. We have the plan. They just need to be committed, dedicated, and disciplned enough to keep coming back. We will help them achieve their goals. Come and check us out!

Have a good week

    We are in the middle of Labor Day Weekend. This weekend marks the end of summer vacation for schools. At least, it used to. Most students have already returned to school. With the school year starting and summer activities winding down, it is time to get back into the workout routine. Weekend training sessions at Grass Lake School start next Saturday, 9/10/11, at 7:30 a.m. Many parents have inquired about the sessions. We are looking forward to the return of many of our previous participants and to those who are new to our sessions. We receive a lot of calls asking us to explain what we do. Hopefully the following description will be helpful.

     Our sessions are offseason training sessions which address flexibility, core strengthening, general conditioning, running form, change of direction, injury prevention, anaerobic, and aerobic conditioning. We use the latest techniques and drills research has proven effective to address the above areas. The majority of our strengthening is done with body weight, medicine balls, and resistance bands. The athletes who participate in our sessions range from middle school age through college age.  Sessions are Saturday and Sunday mornings from 7:30 a.m.- 8:30 a.m.Each session is $10, pay as you go. On Saturdays, we have a trainer available for parents who wish to work out while their student athlete is working out. We do work with teams at a group rate, upon request.

    We hope everybody is settling back into their fall routines. We also hold an adults only, group exercise class, on Monday and Wednesday nights at Colletti Physical Therapy, 543 Orchard St., Antioch, Il. Sessions are from 7-8 p.m. They are also $10, pay as you go. If you have any further questions, feel free to call us at 847-395-6100.