Honey Stinger Protein Bar

Last weekend I was handed a Honey Stinger Protein Bar as part of the Craggy Island Triathlon competitors bag. I chucked it in my kit bag and promptly forgot about it. At the end of the triathlon, while we all rummaged around in our bags for food, Ashton Ramsay (FG member and Craggy Island competitor) bravely tucked into his Stinger. As he spat it out, we all flung ours back into the dark recesses of our kit bags. I’ve just found mine again, and to my surprise it’s not that bad! This may be in part because my expectations were very low after Ashton nearly choked on his, or maybe because I’ve been eating Promax bars for some time now and by comparison the Honey Stinger isn’t bad. Ash, feel free to have a Maximuscle Promax on the house!

Not a diet bar!

Please make no mistake, the Honey Stinger Protein Bar is not intended as a diet bar. It’s loaded with fat and sugar (honey) and is intended as an energy bar or meal replacement. It’s VERY filling! I’ve had two bites and I’m quite satisfied. So what’s in it?

Grainy texture and very dry.

It’s very dry and has a grainy texture, there’s no doubt about that, however, the honey gives it a more natural flavour. To be honest, it’s not at all suitable as a post-triathlon snack given the competitor is likely to be dehydrated. Nonetheless, as a source of fuel for an endurance event (taken before or during) it would likely be effective. It’s certainly not a low calorie snack! However, it might work as a meal replacement as it is indeed very filling. My suspicion, however, is that given its sugar load, anyone using it as a meal replacement might find they experience a sugar crash.

Would I swap my Maximuscle Promax for a Stinger?

Simply, no. The intended use of the two bars is very different. Nonetheless, even as a pre-training energy source I’d rather tuck into a Promax. The reason being that it’s less stodgy, less calorific, less likely to result in a sugar crash and contains caffeine.

Anyone else tried this bar? Let me know what you think…

“Even with the vast amount of information available on the subject I still get more questions about abs than any other body part. The good news is that abs are probably the easiest body part to develop. I should also mention here that I’m talking specifically about ‘six pack’ abs, and not core training in any of its many forms.

I follow a very simple program – 3 sets of crunches once a week. I’d recommend you do exactly the same. Go to failure, which will for many of you probably mean somewhere between 12 – 20 reps, on each set, rest for a minute between sets. Some of you may wish to add in another exercise, in which case I’d suggest reverse crunches, and at a push some side crunches, but any more than that is really a waste of time. Seriously! Go home, rest and recover.

So how will you possibly get results from such a simple program? By training like a bodybuilder, that’s how. In the words of Dorian Yates, 6 times IFBB Mr Olympia:

“Bodybuilding is not weight and repetitions; it’s resistance and absolute muscle failure. It’s not quantitative; it’s qualitative. It’s more mental than physical. It’s more control than rage.”

A perfect workout starts in your mind.

Your entire being should be totally focused on your workout. As you start to warm up, begin to focus on the workout ahead. Adopt a calm, controlled, precise approach. I train abs after legs so I’m well warm by this point, but the bottom line here is that you must warm up thoroughly, no half hearted going through the motions. Warm up like you mean business, with focus and intent.

Once you’re warm, then you’re ready to go to work. Leave NOTHING to chance. Make every single rep count. Make them perfect. Allow NOTHING to distract you. Start with crunches and aim for deep, full, total muscular contractions with every single rep. Crunches are the Rolls Royce of ab exercises – simple to perform and incredibly effective. What more could you want? Check the video below to make sure that you’re performing them effectively.

Click here to view the embedded video.

If you really feel you need some extra work move onto reverse crunches. Keep your focus strong and your rest periods to a minute. And finally, for the brave ones, give side crunches a go (all demonstrated in the video above).

That’s it. Your abs are done.

Cool down, stretch and go home. Rest and recuperate. While one session a week is enough to develop a toned, chiselled six pack there is another important point that needs to be mentioned here. If you can’t SEE your abs then the chances are that you are carrying too much body fat and not that your abs are underdeveloped. So rather than adding extra sets or more ab exercises try eating less food and doing more cardio. That’s the truth, pure and simple… it’s really not rocket science, it’s bodybuilding.

For any of you that are interested for the next 2 weeks I’m available to go over this routine with you. Just grab me (physically or leave a message below) and we’ll make sure that you get it spot on.”

Here at the gym, the only diet protein bar we sell is Maximuscle’s Promax Bar. It sells well, people seem to like it. However, I have to admit I think it tastes horrendous. This doesn’t stop me from eating them – they serve a purpose. With 20.3g of protein for 204 kcal, 5.6g of fat and 18.4g of carbohydrate per bar, they’re a great way to curb hunger and prevent endless snacking. They’re also laced with caffeine which keeps me going when I don’t have time to eat a meal or when I need a quick boost. Nonetheless, I’m a bit bored of their stiff texture and synthetic chocolate orange and mint flavours. If I didn’t sell them, I might even suggest they’re akin to chewing on old gym gloves. Is it really too much to ask for a palatable diet protein bar? I hope not. Hence I have begun a search for the perfect (or at the very least, a pleasant) diet protein bar…

Sample 1: Muscle Milk Light

CytoSport's Muscle Milk Light

FG receptionist, Angela Millar, swears by Muscle Milk Light bars. They’re manufactured by CytoSport and far more widely available in the US than here in the UK. I managed to get hold of two flavours – Vanilla Toffee Crunch and Chocolate Peanut Caramel. The composition of the two is pretty similar…

So, how do they taste?

Neither bar is awesome, but they’re not horrifying either. The Chocolate Peanut Caramel has a great flavour initially, but it’s a bit like chewing on a brick (I was a bit worried for my teeth), and as I persisted in chewing, the flavour became increasingly unpleasant. The Vanilla Toffee Crunch was softer and held it’s flavour better. Although the Chocolate Peanut Caramel was initially better, overall I found the Vanilla Toffee Crunch to be nicer.

Chocolate Peanut Caramel

Would I swap my Promax?

The Muscle Milk bars definitely taste better – there’s no contest. However, they are smaller, contain less protein and no caffeine. The Muscle Milk Bars are intended as a snack, rather than an alternative to a meal – for 160 kcal they’re pretty good at cutting hunger. However, they’re definitely not as filling as a Promax – I was very tempted to continue snacking afterwards. I’d probably order them again for variety, but I’d still grab a promax in preference if I was really hungry. The search therefore continues…

Let me know what protein bars you’re using (diet or otherwise) so I can give them a go.

Friday: Physio #3 – Peter @ Physio First

It turns out the physio that works in the same practice as my GP is also an acupuncturist. At this point, I knew the drill, and was expecting the standard physio assessments – poking and prodding combined with background questions. Peter surprised me with a number of new tests and more specific questions about my training. One of the tests being to stretch some nerves – I could immediately feel an increase in the tingling sensation in my hand and fingers. He performed some laser treatment (like ultrasound apparently, but more effective) and then acupuncture. The first time I had acupuncture I could feel a warm sensation around the area, this time I experienced a dull ache in the region of the the needles. It was a little uncomfortable, but disappeared after about 30 seconds. Every time the dull ache went away, he would twist/manipulate the needles to get the dull ache back – apparently “that’s what we are looking for”.

Our conversation after the treatment:
Peter: “It is most likely inflammation of the roots of the nerve in your spine, from C4-C8. Maybe just one, but probably a few of them.”

Me: “Cool beans. So how long do you reckon before I can start weight training again?”

Peter: “Several weeks.”

Me: “eh!? By several meaning more than the 2 I’ve already been off?”

Peter: “Yea, it may take another 4 weeks or more to recover”

Me: “Brilliant. Do you have a suicide support councilor here?”

Peter laughs at my joke. I buy a Snickers-Duo and a pack of Minstrels on my way home.

Saturday: experimental legs session

“Don’t let what you cannot do, interfere with what you can do”. – NCAA basketball coach John Wooden

Time to figure out what I can do, and make a plan. I made a list of alternative lower body exercises and drew up a training plan. In fact, I’ll put together some training videos for anyone in a similar situation. My first session was pretty tough, mainly because it was all new and different. After I was MEGA hungry for the rest of the day and I demolished a ton of bagels, a tub of Ben & Jerry’s and a packet of peanut M&M’s (movie snack pack size).

Sunday: experimental cardio session

So, what cardio can I do? I can spin if I keep moving my hand and I can run on the treadmill (at limited speeds, after which there is too much arm movement). I felt pretty rubbish after this session – I’m desperate to achieve my former training intensity. What do I do? Eat another tub of Ben & Jerry’s, a bag of white Malteasers and giant bag of Cadbury’s Buttons.

Monday: Started back on my diet experiment today. Weighed in at 84.9kg (mostly chocolate & ice cream, I guess). Body fat percentage at 14.8%. Took my prescription meds today at 3pm & 6:30pm. This was probably too close together, as from 7pm onwards I felt pretty rotten. A combo of feeling like I was going to be sick and shit myself. Apparently both co-codomol and dicolfenac can cause stomach upset and lead to constipation. Brilliant news! The pain gets worse and worse.

Thursday: Massage with Ray Head (Head For Health)

Ray came back in to work on my upper back and neck. The massage was significantly less painful this time round and I felt a lot looser afterwards. There’s hope, maybe?! I did another experimental legs session (this time with Matt Lazenby) involving lots of isolation exercises (which I never do) and lots of movements with no upper body involvement (this was very weird at first). Great to get a workout done without affecting my arm, hand or neck. I was happy.

THREE WEEKS LATER…

Three weeks have now passed and I’ve done no more than two legs sessions (VERY low intensity) and two 30 min cardio sessions per week (this represents less than a third of what I did before the injury). I’ve not only not gained weight, but lost fat and gained muscle!! While continuing to eat chocolate – at no point did I regulate my calorie intake. Yet, I’ve lost 0.6kg in fat and gained 0.4kg in muscle. This sounds small, but ordinarily someone in my position would gain fat fast once training stopped. Even I’m surprised. Just think what would happen if I wasn’t injured and stopped comfort eating every evening! More next time…

The stranded on a boat diet...

So, what am I looking to achieve?

As many of you know, I am presently injured and unable to do any upper body weight training or lower body weight training that requires the use of my upper body. On top of that, I can only do certain cardio activities that don’t aggravate my injury. So, imagine you train a lot. Work hard to build muscle and get your body fat % pretty low. You get injured. The two things you most want to avoid (especially while you are unable to train) is muscle loss and fat gain! People who follow this method of eating (it’s not so much a diet as a system of eating) say that it has helped them achieve their greatest fat loss results… wait for it… without muscle loss!

Typically, individuals forced out of training by injury suffer weight gain and muscle loss rapidly unless they’re incredibly controlled. This diet system hasn’t been specifically applied to individuals out of training or in rehabilitation, but assuming the principles behind the system are correct, it should work. I figure this is the perfect time to put it to the test! If it works when one isn’t training, the potential for fat loss once I return to training will be phenomenal.

It’s controversial though…

The diet system I am experimenting with (I am midway through week 2) most fitness professionals will tell you is the worst thing you could possibly do. They will tell you that it will lower your metabolism, increase fat storage and all your hard earned muscle will burn off. They say that the meal frequency will put your body into “starvation mode” making it even harder to burn body fat with exercise. That you will have no energy to train at any kind of intensity to achieve results and that you will lose your strength and fitness. Yet it is practiced by many athletes, without them even knowing it.

What is the diet? More info coming very soon – I don’t want to publish it until I have finished the first month and have some results to present to you. So stayed tuned. Let me know about your own diet experiments. Are you a serial dieter? What works best for you? Have you tried any of the famous diets?

Tom

Today’s session again combines heavy weights training with a cardiovascular element. Complete all the reps of the resistance exercises first and then move on to the cardiovascular circuit. Similarly, the 30/50 reps should be completed per exercise before moving on to the next resistance exercise. In other words, finish all 50 squats before moving on to do the 50 push-ups. Take as many sets as needed to get all 50 reps done.

Choose a heavy weight…

Selecting an appropriate weight is very important for this workout. As in workout 20, select a weight you STRUGGLE to lift for 10 reps. It should be hard, but achievable with good form. Do not increase the weight as you proceed, make sure you select an appropriate weight from the beginning. Remember to warm up properly before beginning. If you’re not warm, you will likely struggle at an early stage.

Having selected your weight, undertake the specified number of reps using as many sets as you need. As your legs get tired, it will become harder to do sets of 10. Reduce the number, doing one/ two reps at a time if necessary. If you find this workout easy, you’ve not selected a heavy enough weight. It should take you some time.

Congratulations

Today’s workout is very tough! You will deserve a giant congratulations when you get through it. In fact, being the final workout, it’s a good time to look back and see how much we have achieved. Well done folks and thanks for your comments and participation – it has made the the program lots of fun to organise.

What’s next?

I’m presently working on a 10K program for anyone interested in starting or improving their running. This will follow on nicely from the Body Blitz Program. In addition, I will be publishing a weekly workout challenge to keep your routine varied and engaging. The program will be published every Sunday, giving you something to work towards the following week.

Chloe

Okay, so this workout should have been published yesterday, but as many of you know, I got an 8 week old puppy two nights ago. She is a complete bundle of joy, but cries, barks and grunts the minute I stop cuddling her. Needless to say, I’ve barely had a minute to myself – she’s currently chewing her way through my laptop cover. So, I hope you will forgive my delay. I did this workout today, while Tom watched Kilo (the puppy), and I was very sweaty at the end. It was the first time Kilo preferred to spend time with her toys! Success!

The challenge for August is to try something new for the month, all 31 days. Whether it is something you have been putting off, making excuses about or something you have been wanting to do, but simply haven’t gotten round to. Try something new for the whole of August. You can be as adventurous as you like, depending how challenging you want to make this. Make it as big or as small as you wish, but stick to it! Anything fitness or diet related will count for this challenge, and I guarantee (depending on the challenge you set) you will be healthier in a month.

How long have you been putting off taking action? What is one action you can take to start moving in the right direction? Can you take that action today?

Below are a few ideas I’ve come up with, but it would be great to hear what you’re thinking. Drop me a message to let me and everyone else know what you’re planning on doing (or not doing) for the month.

31 Day Challenges to Add to your routine:

Exercise / use the gym every day,
Run a mile a day / run 10miles a day!
Row 2000m a day / row 20,000m a day!
Cycle 10 miles a day / cycle 100 miles a day!
Eat a piece of fruit/veg with every meal
Eat some form of lean protein with every meal.
Drink a glass of water with every meal / Drink 2 litres a day.
Try the (Atkins/Paleo/South Beach/Slow carb/Newest Fad) diet.

31 Day Challenges to Remove:

No Alcohol
No Sugar/Chocolate/Crisps/Junk Food/Takeaways etc.
No Caffeine
No watching TV
No drinks except water

So what challenge am I setting myself?


I’ve decided to set myself a combination of challenges to address a few of my diet weaknesses and boost my overall fitness and training:

• Exercise every day
• Eat No chicken. This might be an odd one but I eat a lot of chicken. I mean a lot. Every day. I specially order in three 1kg tubs of cooked slice chicken each week. So the idea is to give my diet a bit of diversity and try out a range of other lean proteins as replacements.
• No Chocolate. This will be a little tougher than the previous 2 challenges as i am quite partial to peanut M&M’s and the odd snickers bar here or there!

They say you have to do something for 21 days straight to make it a habit. So what new habits will you have (or be rid of) by the end of August?

Tom

Session 22! Only two more to go! Congratulations on getting this far… or if you’re just peeking ahead, keep up the hard work – it will all be worth it. I’m hoping everyone is already feeling the benefits of the program! In contrast to the last session, today we’ll use a quick high-rep resistance circuit to get our hearts going, boost our metabolism and provide full-body tone. Mountain climbers rule today…

Wahoooo! Slept like a baby! Yay drugs cocktail! Pain free and out like a light, all night. Attempted some cardio work this morning on the spin bike. My hand went numb after about 5mins of holding the handle bars. Tried the rower and lasted 30 seconds. Back to the bike for 20mins. Strangely not hungry. Like not hungry at all. No appetite whatsoever. Maybe due to the fact I am now doing zero weight training?

Met up with my assigned physio at FASIC. She seemed to find my patient questionnaire quite comical. It asks you to circle on a body diagram the parts where you feel pain – I chose fingers, wrists, forearm, upper arm, shoulder, neck, back, head and heart. She performed her assessment – largely the same as everyone else’s so far, but with a few extra movements. She focused on my neck, had me do some some mobility work and then gave me a short sports massage. She treated the problem as though it was a nerve issue, gave me a couple exercises to perform and sent me on my way.

Saturday & Sunday: Spent most of the weekend asleep, trying to catch up on sleep from what was an exhausting week. Tried doing some cardio training on both Saturday & Sunday. Both short sessions and quite unsuccessful. Needed to do some form of training to keep myself sane. Wait? Am I talking to myself right now?

Monday: think I slept too much over the weekend. Struggled to get out of bed on Monday. Went from having no appetite, to having crazy cravings for junk food. This is apparently normal when you are on strong medication. Nonetheless, I decided to experiment with my diet to ensure while I cant really train, I don’t get fat! More on this later…

Tuesday: Sports Massage from Ray Head (from Head For Health)


I’ve known Ray for almost 10 years and he’s sorted me out many times before, so I called him in to help. Lots of deep tissue massage on my back, traps and neck along with some soft tissue release. All VERY painful. He says the muscles in my upper back and neck are ridonkuously tight – close to going into spasm. He also found one knot in my back that felt like the size of a golf ball. He suggested I tried out acupuncture, so I booked an appointment for Friday. The rest of the day my back felt significantly looser and I had less pain in my hand and fingers. Success!

Thursday Morning: GP – 2nd Visit


Much the same as the first visit. A repeat prescription for all of my meds and further instruction to cut back on activity. “Anything that leads to the numbness in your hand and fingers, or aggravates your neck you need to try and not do”. This, ever increasing, list now also includes writing, typing, cycling to work, opening things and brushing my teeth. Have you ever tried brushing your teeth with your other hand? I cycled to work (one handed) later that morning.

Thursday Afternoon: Sports Massage with Ray No. 2


A repeat of the first session. More deep massage work and soft tissue release. It hurts like hell, but is bearable. Just. Apparently I am much much looser. Ray seems pleased at his handy work. I was pleased when he stopped digging his elbows into the golfball-sized knot in my back!

More on my experimental diet in my next post. It has been working well, so if you’re out of action injured and worried about packing on the pounds, don’t stress there is a solution!

Tom