Product Review - Myprotein Chocolate Protein Clusters

 Hey Guys,

Today I am reviewing Myprotein Chocolate Protein Clusters

Myprotein Chocolate Protein Clusters are a protein based snack that are a lot like the Rice Krispe cakes of your childhood.

Here is what MyProtein had to say about them,

Chocolate Protein Clusters are delicious and crunchy high protein crispy bars covered in milk chocolate, perfect for a high protein treat throughout the day or around training.

These clusters are made up of crunchy whey isolate protein crisp balls which are then covered in a delicious chocolate coating, making them perfect for a great tasting snack when on the go and looking to increase your protein intake.

Chocolate Protein Clusters are perfect for anyone looking for a sweet tasting treat and are high in protein. Each 4 cluster tray provides over 8g protein to support the growth and maintenance of muscle mass. The high protein content is sourced from whey protein isolate and provides a complete amino acid profile.

Ideal as a convenient snack across the day, or as a source of protein around training, these Chocolate Protein Clusters are a real treat for any fitness fanatic.

Here is the nutritional breakdown,

NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

		Per 100g	Per Serving (9g)
Energy		1971 kJ/469 kcal	177 kJ/42 kcal
Fat		18 g	1.6 g
	of which saturates	11 g	1 g
Carbohydrate		51 g	4.6 g
	of which sugars	32 g	2.9 g
Protein		25 g	2.2 g
Salt		0.3 g	0.1 g

And here is the ingredients list,

Chocolate Flavour: Milk Chocolate (57%) (Sugar, Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Liquor, Dried Skimmed Milk, Milk Fat, Whey Powder (Milk, Emulsifier (Soya Lecithins)), Whey Protein Isolate (Milk), Rice Flour, Emulsifier (Soya Lecithins).

So are they any good?

Well as per previous reviews people will remember that I am not keen on 'snack foods'. These however are the exception! They taste great, have a good level of protein and are ok on carbs. Don't get me wrong, they aren't a daily stable but when I'm really craving a sweet food these really hit the spot. If you are after something to take away cravings then these are a good place to start.

You can grab Myprotein Chocolate Protein Clusters by clicking HERE for only £12.99 for a ten pack.

For more product reviews just click here.

Stay healthy,

Mike

January Offers for Nutrition Plans, Macro Coaching and FREE Seminars

 

January Offers from Unorthodox Nutrition For the First time in 6 years we are doing some Offers on Nutrition Plans, Coaching and Free Seminars. YOU CAN USE THESE OFFERS FOR ANY COMPETITION OR PRE BOOK THE TIME FOR WHEN GYMS REOPEN ETC Click the Images below for details.  Visit the Website for more details

10 Quick Diet Tips

Hey Guys,

I thought that I would do a quick blog this week on some handy diet tips. Give them a read and feel free to add your own!

1. Be dedicated. I know this is a boring tip but it's still the most vital. Be consistent with a nutrition plan is more than half the battle. You can have the best nutrition plan that was ever created, nut if you don't follow it then you're going to lose out.
2. Eat lots of green veg. Unless your plan states that you should only have a certain amount, eat as much green veg as you like. This will help keep you full and won't add much calories. Eat 1kg of broccoli, then tell me how much you want to eat a sandwich :)
3. On the same topic, if you feel yourself caving and reaching for something sweet, drink 500ml of water with some sugar free dilute added. This quenches most sweet tooths.
4. Sugar free jelly is only 10 cals and can be incorporated into just about any meal plan to help relive a sweet tooth if you still have to eat something.
5. I always like to keep protein between 1-1.25g per pound of body weight for most clients. This stays pretty much the same all the way through the plan. However it sometimes changes with female clients.
6. Women are known to hold more water weight than men (even more so at a certain time of the month). If a female clients weight shoots up or doesn't drop as expected, then one of the first things I look at is water intake. Chances are they aren't measuring their intake and just guessing. 
7. Fat keeps you fuller for longer and helps good hormone production, so I like to keep it relatively high in clients plans. A great way to do this is some sort of nut butter. Mainly because its easy and it feels like a dessert. 
8. Pre cook your meals. i know this is in every tips article ever, but I don't know anyone who is successful with their nutrition that doesn't do this. make time to get it done.
9. Educate yourself. Knowledge really is power. Plus the more you learn and like this kind of stuff, the more likely you are to succeed. 
10. Hire ME. Sorry, had to be done :)

Please add your own tips below or Tweet me @mike_unorthodox

More tips are regularly added on Twitter and on the Facebook page Unorthodox Nutrition.

Stay healthy,


Mike

Fad Diets - Video

Hey Guys,

Today I want to share with you a great video on fad diets from the guys over at Elite FTS.

Fad diets are always going to be in the industry as they are a quick way for people to pray on the insecurities of others by offering the next 'miracle pill'. The truth of that matter is that these diets probably have certain qualities that can be used as tools to help your diet but anyone who says that there way is the only way is misleading you.

As always, principles first then methods!

Hope you enjoy the video!

Stay healthy,

Mike

Types of Food and what you should be eating

STOP EATING CRAP THAT HURTS YOUR TRAINING AND LIFE!! 

This is the jist of this article.

The idea behind this article is to show you the right type of foods to eat in the macronutrients protein, carbs and fat. While this may seem pretty basic it is what you eat and when that can make a real difference to your training and the results that you require. Again, I must point out that this is a BASIC overview and the full scope of foods and nutrient timing go well beyond the scope of this article. I highly recommend speaking to your coach or nutritional coach (not steroid Steve with the uber guns in the gym) about what would be best for you.

Before we start looking at what some of the best foods are, I just want to touch on the area of food intolerances. Not everyone is meant to eat all foods, some people can’t handle dairy very well and others can have problems processing different types of protein. Anybody can encounter a intolerance, the main signs are upset stomach, cramps, loose stools and gas. If you encounter any of these I recommend eliminating dairy then anything new in your diet. If you have intolerance then you are not absorbing all of the nutrients from the food so there isn’t much point in eating it. I recommend everyone adding in a pro biotic to their diet (1 with your first meal) to help aid with digestion.

I’m now going to give you a run down of the best sources of food within each macronutrient group and the best time to ingest them based on your goals. Again this is a rough guide as every single person is different and each has different needs. No one person is ever the same and some people can get away with, and benefit from some food sources that others do not. For the amounts that you should be eating, please take a look at the last article to see the reasoning behind what I do and why.

Ok, so the food sources.

Protein

• Chicken Breasts – One of the best forms of lean protein that is low in calories, great to eat for any meal.
• Turkey – As above but even leaner. Slightly more expensive but has a better macronutrient profile.
• Fish – People should eat more fish, at least twice a week. High in protein and predatory fish (tuna, mackerel, salmon, swordfish) also have an amazing Omega profile which is great for health and fat loss. Oily fish can be high in calories so factor this in.
• Eggs – High in protein and good fats. They don’t raise cholesterol. Great for breakfast, don’t fear the yoke!
• Red Meat – the leaner the better as it is high in calories. Best consumed in the off season or when you are trying to add good quality muscle. Great after a hard training session. Go for grass fed if you can as it is higher in omega 3 and 9.
• Pork – a bit leaner and lower in calories than red meat (beef and lamb) but still higher than chicken, fish or turkey. Best when trying to build muscle as an alternative.
• Cottage cheese – a great slow releasing protein, ideal before bed or as a snack. Try mixing chocolate whey protein or pineapple with it to give it a sweet kick.

Carbohydrates

• Rice – Brown is best. Make sure it’s actually brown rice and not just white rice been dyed (always check ingredient labels). White is ok if you are building muscle as long as it’s after a hard training session as they are faster acting but it is not ideal.
• Sweet potatoes – A great carb source that is again, best after a training session but if your macros allow it, they are great for any meal. Taste great as mash or chips. A slow releasing carb source.
• Oats – A great source, ideal for breakfast as they are slow releasing or in shakes. Make sure the label ONLY says 100% steel cut oats. If they contain anything else leave them on the shelf. You don’t need the extra calories and sugars that lurk in some brands.
• Fruits – There is a lot of focus on fruits at the moment due to the fact that they are quite high in sugar (fructose). I feel as though fruits still have a place in a healthy nutrition plan. Have them at breakfast and after training and aim for plenty of different coloured fruits (more nutrients). 
• Green Veggies – These are amazing! Eat as many as possible with every meal. Far too many great benefits to list

Fats

Fats have gotten a bad rap for a few years now. Fat is not bad. I repeat FAT IS NOT BAD!  Fats are great for many things from correct hormone production to fat loss. The right type of fats should be included in most meals that are lacking carbohydrates. However they are high in calories compared to the other macros so watch the amounts that you are eating. The following is a great place to start.

• Nuts – great source of protein and great as a snack. Cashews and Almonds are the way to go.
• Peanut butter – Not that vile Sunpat rubbish, but PB that has only 100% nuts as the ingredient is amazing. Not does it just have a great fat content but it also contains protein. Winner!!
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) – a fantastic dressing for salad and veggies. Just don’t cook with it as it loses all its good qualities when it’s heated. For cooking use coconut oil.
• Avocadoes – great in salads and on their own as a snack. Also great on chicken and fish as homemade guacamole! They don’t keep when they are opened so eat them the same day.
• Fish Oil – a great supplement that EVERY person should be taking. Take at least twice a day with meals.

So there we have a general list of great foods that you can start making a good quality nutrition plan with. 

Stay healthy,

Mike

Health and MMA. Are you focused on it?

Hey Guys,

Today I want to share with you an old article I wrote onOff Season Planning for Fighters.

Enjoy

Health.

We all have it.

However many of us have bad health despite training hard and eating ‘clean’.

How is that possible? We suspect that if we are exercising and eating a ‘clean’ diet then we must, by default, be healthy. It’s what all the magazines, papers and our own Doctors tell us, how can they be wrong?

The simple fact is, is that health is not a priority for fighters. They want to be at a certain weight, improve their strength, speed, power and technique, but health? That’s way, WAY down the list. Chances are if you are a fighter and you are reading this you haven’t gave a second thought to your long term health.

This absolutely needs to change. Fighters cannot keep living on diets of chicken, rice and broccoli and expecting to be living to a ripe old age and playing with their grandkids. The sport of MMA is an abusive one on the body. It is a high impact sport that wears down tendons, effects your immune system, damages muscles and in some extreme cases can effect vital organs (ever wonder what bad weight cuts do to a liver and kidneys? Go have a look). I’m going to be real with you. There are aspects of this sport that will kill you if you do not do them properly. There are factors that if not addressed, will give you serve long term negative effects. Not only on your performance, but the ability to be a husband, father and friend.

By now it should be blatantly obvious that your health needs to be your number one priority.

It’s not all doom and gloom though. Thankfully the MMA industry is slowly turning a corner and putting fighters health first. With things like Safe MMA testing fighters and more and more coaches preaching about over all health, things can only get better for fighters.

So what should you do to ensure you are maximising your health? What techniques can you employ easily that will have a dramatic effect on not only your health, but also your performance on the cage and on the mat?

Well luckily for you, Mike is here to give you the top things you can start doing right now that will make a big difference!

Speak to someone who knows about health and nutrition.

This can be anyone from a professional to a coach. As long as they have a back ground in producing great results with a variety of different people, go talk to them. Tell them what you are currently doing, any issues you currently have (lack of sleep, head aches, not being able to go to the toilet, lack of sex drive etc.), and ask how they can help. Ask them what tips they can give and what you should be adding into your over all plan. If you have a physical problem, speak to a Doctor. The quicker you can get things looked at, the quicker you can get it fixed. There is a massive trend in combat sports to let little niggles fester and find ways to train around injuries. While this keeps you training in the short term, it’s really going to mess you up in the long term. Especially if you get a couple of these ‘niggles’. Things mount up. Get things checked and more importantly, do what the Doc tells you to do to fix it!

Eat your damn Veggies

I know I go on about this a lot (and will continue to), but it is really, really important. Find a range of veggies that you like and work them into your current meals. Use a slow cooker and different recipes to give them flavour, add herbs and spices to liven them up. Hell, you can even blend them together to make a sauce (tomato based is the most versatile). Just eat the damn things. I know that a lot of you have horrible flash back of eating badly cooked sprouts as a kid, but trust me, well cooked veggies are the bomb. Find a way to add them to your diet and your health will improve ten fold.

Water. Drink more of it.

I will put money on the fact that most of you are not drinking enough water. 2 litres a day? Not even close. Think 3-4 on a training day will more the bigger you are. Water plays a role in pretty much every function the body performs and when it is deprived of water even slightly it struggles. Do yourself a massive favour and drink more. Your sleep, joints, fat loss and recovery will all improve!

Improve your digestion

A healthy varied diet with lots of veggies and a bit of fruit will help your digestion no end. However if you want to improve it a bit then you can take the following actions,

• ·      Stop eating foods that give you an upset stomach. I know that seems simple but the amount of people eating foods that don’t agree with them is staggering. For most this is junk food…
• ·      Drink more water. See above.
• ·      Take a probiotic everyday. I like clients to use either Yakult or 0% Fat Actimel.
• ·      Eat fermented foods like sauerkraut as they are teeming with good bacteria that can help your digestion.
• ·      Never stuff yourself. Only ever eat to the point of being satisfied.

That’s it for now. While these tips seem very basic, they are the ones that work 100% of the time as long as you are consistent. Remember, consistency beats everything!

Take care of your health and your body will provide you with the results you need. Not just for a fight camp, but for life!

Stay healthy,

Mike

PS for more details on Nutrition Plans, articles, interviews and product reviews please CLICK HERE

Off Season for Fighters Article

Hey Guys,

Today I want to share with you an old article I wrote onOff Season Planning for Fighters.

Competition Nutrition is something that I get asked about a lot, especially by people competing for the first time.  How much should they let their weight go up by? What should they work on?During this article I highlight some strategies that I have used time and time again to help clients take home the Gold!

Enjoy

Fighters love to fight. It’s a fact.

They have something hard wired into their brain that makes them step in the ring, cage or on the mat.

 They NEED to do it, they can’t function in life if they don’t have the sense of competition, camaraderie and achievement that only a fighter knows about. However all this punishment leads them to do stupid things like take fights at the last minute and fight often without adequate rest in between fights. This is partly a coaches fault and partly the fighters. It is my opinion that the further that you move up the ladder of a sport the LESS fights they should take. For example I think a Pro MMA fighter should have a MAXIMUM of 3 fights a year. Any more and you are pretty much never out of camp.

 I believe that all sensibly trained fighters should have a good off season between fights to get better and recover for the next fight. The purpose of this article is to give you an idea of what things to be aiming and watching for from a nutritional standpoint. I must say that this is a brief overview and every single fighter is different. If anyone has any questions then please contact me or speak to your coach, they know you, I don’t.

So what is an off season and what are we looking for during it? An off season is a chunk of time (2-3 months) where a fighter aims to improve their technique, conditioning and strength. So during this time you will be focusing on weaknesses in your game and improving how strong and fast you are.

 At this point I would like to give just one piece of advice to every single fighter, GET STRONGER. Nothing will transfer to all areas of your ability than getting stronger. Trust me. With this in mind I’m going to cover off a few nutritional basics that will aid in your recovery and therefore growth. Before I get into the main points of nutrition, here are a few things that you should be looking to improve over all. Again, please speak to a strength and conditioning coach about the best plan for you. Ok, so here is the list;

• ·       Strength. Good bench marks are 1.5 x BW (body weight) bench, 2 x BW squat and 2.5 x BW deadlift.
• ·       Speed and explosive power. Sprints, jumps, throws etc
• ·       Flexibility and mobility. Please stretch and foam roll people, pretty please...
• ·       Cardio. Not long runs but being able to perform at a higher intensity for longer at your sport.

Ok, so nutrition. For most this is the area that is a mind field and I get that I really do. Every single article you read suggests something different. Intermittent fasting, fasting, carb back loading, low fat, high fat, low carb, the list is endless. I will always say that I don’t subscribe to one single way of doing things. Your body is an adaptive machine so everything works but nothing works forever. It is knowing when and what to use and knowing what works for an individual that makes the difference.  With this in mind here are a few points that I would start the average fighter off on. Again, this is a starting point so please adjust to fit your current body type and goals (or speak to your coach or someone who know what they are talking about.

The idea of the nutrition of an off season is to give your body the ability to recover and grow. Because of this it will need a slight excess of food so that it can do this. This is not an excuse for all you can eat buffets and pizza every night. When it comes to weight gain no more than 20 pounds for a pro fighter (or one that has a day before weigh in) and 10 pounds for everyone else. This way you can still build a good base of muscle but can be a fight camp away from being in shape. A little note about fight weight as some people always wonder what they will fight at. At a Pro level, having a lean lower back and abs are a good base to start!

As we are trying to promote muscle growth without to much fat gain, keeping protein high (a minimum of 1.25g per pound of body weight) and keeping carbs slightly limited but more importantly, timed to certain parts of the day. Carbs have gotten a lot of attention over the last few years and a pretty bad rap. Everyone is suggesting different things. If you haven’t tried one of gazillion methods out there, then I advise taking in 0.75g per pound of body weight and adjusting them from there. I like fighters to have about 30 – 40% of their carbs at breakfast and the rest around their training (before, during, after). People are either taking in to many carbs or not enough. I would err on the side of caution though, it’s always more fun to add in more carbs than take them out. The rest of your plan should focus on good healthy fats that will aid in joint health, hormone production, organ and immune support, fat loss and a load of other goodies (hint, get a good quality fish oil).

 Don’t fear fat.

With any plan it is the adjustments that are made along the way that will determine its success. Add or lose a pound? Getting faster or slower? Can’t sleep, shit, have sex as much? These are all factors that can be addressed through changes and adjustments in diet. The body is not a static entity, what works one week might not work the next. Factors such as recovery, stress levels and many other things are all factors that can and do, affect training. Making good sound judgements on this data is vital to improving a plan.

So how are going to measure progress while in our off season? The first point of call should be your coach. Tell them what you are doing and the goals you are trying to achieve. This way they can keep you on the right track. Nutrition wise we are focusing on good, clean gains. Changing our bodies composition (better muscle to fat ratio) should always be the goal. Remember, this isn’t body building and we aren’t bulking. We want to add muscle that will be beneficial to us in competition but we don’t want to get sloppy and stray to far from our fighting weight. It is possible to get stronger without adding weight but to be honest, most could do with a few more pounds of muscle. This is why your coach is important, while you think that you are getting ‘swole’, they will know if your performance is declining or improving. If it is improving great. If not, make adjustments so that it is.

Stay healthy,

Mike

PS for more details on Nutrition Plans, articles, interviews and product reviews please CLICK HERE