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Q: Hey Anthony what’s up? I loved your breakfast series that you have done over the last couple months. I will have to say that it was super comprehensive and you really hit the nail on the head in regards to how Powerlifters eat breakfast. I learned a lot from that series and hope to start incorporating some of your ideas into my nutrition plan. My question is about a product called Alpine V. Have you heard of this product before? It contains something called Sandthorn Berry and I was wondering if you could let me know more information about this. I figure you are the guy to go to if you can give me your input it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks again for writing such great articles and being such a contribution to the sport of powerlifting. Please keep up the good work as I look forward to your article every month when my magazine comes in the mail.

A: Hey Glen it is great to hear from you. I am really happy that you liked the Breakfast series that I did. I put a lot of planning into it so I am glad it paid off. Thanks for all the kind words as it is very important to me that my readers are learning something that can benefit their training and health. Now in regards to your question yes I have heard of Alpine V. Well that is an understatement in the least as I use Alpine V daily in my supplement regime. Now with me I am very picky about what supplements that I use as well as the quality of the ingredients so the fact that I personally use it should hold a lot of credibility for you. Now you are correct about the fact that one of the main ingredients in Alpine V is Sandthorn Berry. What I am going to do is go over the three main ingredients in Alpine V and explain the benefits of each so you can see for yourself of what a high quality supplement it really is. Let’s take a look.

The first people to use the Sandthorn Berry in their medicine were the Chinese. In many of their medical texts dating from over a thousand years ago it was praised for its numerous health benefits for the body

Now for starters this amazing fruit has actually over 190 bioactive nutrients. This should make all of you who are interested in maximizing your health wake up and take note to this powerful health booster.

Sandthorn Berry is very high in antioxidant protection. I have written briefly on the topic of antioxidants in the past and emphasized truly how important it is for powerlifters to get them in. They are crucial to protect your cells from free radical damage that can lead to disease

Sandthorn Berry contains 39 different isolated forms of Carotenoids. I have mentioned Carotenoids before in regards to certain food profiles that I have included. For those of you who forgot what they do, no stress I will elaborate again.

Carotenoids are very important because they protect the damage caused by free radicals on your bodies numerous cells.

They also can help inhibit certain forms of tumors, and in my opinion who the hell doesn’t want that?

They can also increase the efficiency of your immune system. We all know when you are training hard for a competition your immune system can take a beating due to all the strain that is placed on it from training and stress

They also have a positive effect on your cardiovascular profile by working on your good and bad cholesterol.

Now I have pushed the benefits of essential fatty acids or what is known as the good fats over and over in my column due to the numerous health benefits they offer the Powerlifter

Sandthorn Berry contains a wide spectrum of EFA’s including Omega 3, 6, 7, and 9. These healthy fats are crucial for health and performance and are a must for all serious lifters.

EFA’s have numerous benefits to the lifters health including helping lower bad or LDL cholesterol and increasing your level of insulin sensitivity. This is of great importance to the lifter looking to take care of his long term health since Cardiovascular Disease and Diabetes are no doubt the two most common diseases that Powerlifters are known for

I have performed nutritional analysis on hundreds of powerlifters and the large majority has shown signs of not only a bad blood profile in regards to their cardiovascular health but Insulin resistance as well. When these early signs are ignored then a heart attack and Type II Diabetes will be a reality in the near future.

Watermelon juice is rich in the water soluble vitamins including a wide spectrum of B vitamins as well as Vitamin

This nice inclusion of B Vitamins is essential for energy production as well as the absorption of the protein you consume

Vitamin C has too many benefits to include here but immune strengthening, recovery from your training, lowering Cortisol production and raising Testosterone levels are some that all powerlifters can take advantage of

Also provides a source of fiber and we all know that powerlifters do not get in enough daily fiber

I have pushed the many benefits of fiber numerous times which includes lowering bad cholesterol, stabilizing your blood sugar levels, fat loss, and eliminating toxins from the body just to name a few

Pomegranate juice contains a wide spectrum of numerous different antioxidants. These include tannins, polyphenols and anthocyanin

These powerful antioxidants protect you from free radical damage that harms your DNA

It contains high levels of flavenoids and for those of you who don’t know, they are a form of antioxidant

What makes this form so special is the fact that they are known for eradicating free radicals that can lead to Cancer

One new study showed that those that drank one glass of pomegranate juice per day actually increased the blood flow to their heart by more than a third

This may be due to the fact that pomegranate juice prevents plaque build up on the arterial walls which as we all know is the leading cause of heart attacks and strokes

Another study showed that pomegranate juice actually reduced the size of atherosclerotic lesions. The reason why this is so important is the fact is because these lesions narrow the arteries to the heart which can lead to heart failure

So as you can see the ingredients contained in Alpine V are nothing less then phenomenal. This formula is not only well thought out in its design but also in the quality of the raw ingredients that are used. There are numerous other “Fruit” based health drinks currently on the market and after reviewing all those that are available I put Alpine V at the top of my list. Many other brands will use inferior ingredients or use certain ingredients in such a small dosage that they will not offer the benefits they speak of. This is not the case with Alpine V as each ingredient is dosed in optimal ratios to make sure that you get the benefits you are looking for. I have many of my athletes using Alpine V right now as we speak and I will no doubt make it one of the staple supplements in all my athletes’ plans. There are way too many health benefits not to include it their daily meal plan. I also use Alpine V daily in my supplement plan. I use 4 ounces first thing in the morning before I prepare my breakfast. Since I started using it I have noticed a lot of benefits already and I am sure that I will see more the longer that I take it. I have noticed an increase in my daily energy. I have a very hectic schedule working about 12 hours per day. Then there is the commute, gym time, errands and whatever else that needs to be done. I seem to always be on the go so it is not in my best interest to drag my ass, hell I don’t even have the time to drag it. With the Alpine V, I don’t feel a jittery burst of energy like I just downed 400mg of caffeine, but a nice calm energy that lasts all day long. I have also noticed a very nice improvement in my joint health as well. When you have been lifting close to 20 years it can take a toll on your tendons, ligaments and joints. I have noticed a lot better joint recovery between workouts and much less inflammation in my particular problem areas like my elbows and knees. This alone is worth its weight in gold and for any of you that suffer from this as well which most likely is just about everyone reading this article at one time or another, Alpine V can really make a difference. Another plus to this product is the ease of taking it. You don’t have to take 5 pills three times per day like some other dosing schedules that you find with other supplements. All you need is 2-4 ounces per day first thing in the morning and you are done. Hell it’s so easy a caveman can do it…oops I mean a Powerlifter! I just love those commercials. For those of you out there that are looking to lower your chances of heart disease, keep Diabetes far away from you, and fight free radical damage that can lead to Cancer then this powerful formula should be part of your current supplement program!

Q: Hey Anthony what’s up man? I loved that articles series that you did on the protein bars my man. They were truly awesome. I tried many of the different recipes that you gave us and I actually liked them all. Now I was wondering if you had some cookie recipes too. I love cookies man I can sit in front of the Television and wolf down a whole bag of chocolate chip cookies with a quart of milk like it was nothing. I know this isn’t good for me but I am a cookie junkie. Well with the bars that I have been making I have cut down my cookie gorging fiesta to about once a week where as before it was at least a few times per week that I did some damage. So nutrition man what do you got up your sleeve now, can you help me out or what? Keep up the good work as you always seem to give us real info that we can actually use not just quoting some stupid study that none of your readers will care to read about.

A: Hey Bob its good to hear from you man. I am really happy to hear that you liked my series on Protein Bar recipes. I put a lot of work into that series for sure and hearing your kind words made it all worth it. So you like cookies do ya? Well eating as many as you do is not the healthiest thing do. I am glad to hear that you cut down to one gluttonous feeding per week but in reality it’s still not making me proud to hear that. There is a little secret of mine that can really help you out. Now this will be good for even the laziest of powerlifters out there as well. Hell you don’t think I know that a lot of you were too lazy to even try to make even one of the recipes that I gave you? Hey boys and girls I know you better that you know yourselves. That’s pretty scary isn’t it? Well here is something you are all going to love and it’s super easy as well. I am going to let you in on a cookie mix that is actually healthy. Best of all it also tastes great so all the complainers and whiners out there don’t have to have a little suckie baby fest when these cookies reach your palate. See I know how you like to whine and complain if anything even remotely healthy comes near you! There is a site on the web called Custom Nutrition Warehouse. These guys cater to not only numerous different supplement companies but the also sell a lot of bulk powder products ranging from Rhodiola to Raspberry Ketones. Now one of their top products is their chocolate chip cookie mix. This bag of nuggety goodness comes in a 5 pound bag and is made only with ingredients that I would give both thumbs up to. Yes that means their isn’t any sugar in them but don’t worry they still taste fantastic. Let’s take a look at the nutritional profile so you can see for yourself.

Now here is something that will make all those lifters that want to have their cookies and eat it too something they can actually do. They contain…

The only ingredients are 100% grain milled Flax Seed, 100% whey isolate protein powder, Hershey Healthy chocolate chips, sucralose, pure vanilla and baking soda.

So here you have it folks a cookies that is actually good for you. They contain about 13 grams of protein per cookie. Hell for you cookie monsters out there can wolf back 4 of these guilt free cookies and you are consuming over 50 grams of protein. That is about the amount found in two cans of tuna. What would you rather eat, two cans of oh so great tuna, or 4 of these rich chocolate chip cookies that go down so nice with a glass of low fat milk. Take your choice but I know I would rather take in some of these cookies than look at another can of tuna. Now what also makes these such a great idea is the preparation time? I know a lot of you guys out there don’t want to sit in the kitchen for an hour to bake up something even if it tastes great. Hell many of you don’t even have the time to do if you wanted to. All you have to do is mix the cookie batter with milk, mold them into cookies and bake them in the microwave for less than a minute. Now if that isn’t easy enough than I don’t know what is. Plus the wait time won’t kill you because even the most impatient of you cookie munchers out there can wait less than 60 seconds for them to be finished. So if you guys are looking for some cookies that won’t add another roll of flab around your waistline then these are the cookies for you. Now before I forget you can get these online at www.CustomNutritionWarehouse.com. Give these heart healthy cookies a try because you will be glad you did and so will your cholesterol scores!

Q: Hey Anthony I have a question for you about cheat meals. I have heard you talk about them many times before but you never really explained what the deal is? Is this where you eat things you shouldn’t or is it a free for all kind of junk marathon. Please expand about this so I know what you mean and how I can incorporate them into my eating plan.

A: Hey Gina it’s good to hear from you. So you want to know what the deal is with the cheat meals eh? This is how I incorporate them. Now when I give a customized nutritional plan to an athlete I will lay out each and every meal of the day which will consist between 6-8 meals. Now I know this sounds like a lot but you have to remember each meal is customized for each person and what their specific goals are. So this doesn’t mean that you are going to be eating a 16 ounce T-bone steak 8 times per day, no this is not the case at all. Of course each meal’s caloric intake is calculated to best suit their needs and varies from meal to meal to maximize their results. Now when I present a plan to an athlete I want them to give it their best. This means that they should try and follow it to the best of their abilities. Of course your Aunt Bertha’s 90th Birthday party may throw off your plan for one meal but in the end of things if the rest of your days are followed it will not be that much of a problem. The goal is with any plan that the athlete will follow it for at least 90% of what I have instructed for them to consume. So if there are one or two glitches during the week as long as it’s not wolfing down a bag of chips with 2 liters of soda, things should even themselves out.

Now when my athletes have followed a cleaning out phase so to speak I will then include a cheat meal once per week. In layman’s terms what I am referring to with the cleaning out period is that when an athlete comes to me and has been polluting their body for years on end, I like them to eat super clean for the first 4 weeks. This means no cheat meals allowed. This shouldn’t kill most of you since you have eaten enough crap for several decades, a few weeks of eating healthy should be something your organs should welcome. Once they have done this I will allow them once per week to eat whatever they want but in moderation. This means that I don’t want an athlete of mine to go out and eat a large pizza with 30 chicken wings and a case of beer for his cheat meal because he has been eating clean for a few weeks. No this is not what should be done. Remember moderation is the key. Now after several months of eating like an athlete instead of a couch potato slob waiting for your next junk food hit, I start to ease up a bit. Now there is a reason for this. Over time many changes occur which allow you to take in a little more treats that you once did. Your metabolic rate will increase so you will now burn more calories daily. Your level of insulin sensitivity will also improve and this is monitored with blood work to make sure it is happening. These are just a couple of the physiological changes your body will go through which will actually let you get away with more than you could have in the past. Now when an athlete drops a substantial amount of body fat, and his insulin sensitivity level is improved I may start including 2-3 cheat meals per week. As long as the athlete is sensible about what they are consuming this can actually be a benefit instead of a hindrance. Remember I will be monitoring them weekly so if they go out of control I will nip it in the bud quickly so they don’t destroy any of the progress. This will help keep you motivated as well because you will eat clean most of the week and then once or twice you can indulge in a little something that you may have been craving. This way you get the best of both worlds. I am realistic when dealing with powerlifters. I know that you are not competitive bodybuilders, or track athletes willing to eat anything to win. Hell I have a hard time with most of you just to take a daily multivitamin. So this is why I allow some leeway for you to make progress because if it’s too strict I know it won’t do you any good when you throw the plan in the trash. So Gina this is what I do with cheat meals for my athletes and if you are eating clean all week long it can be nice to cheat a little and have something you want on the weekend. This way you stay motivated and satisfied and most importantly you reach your goal because you can mentally handle eating like a champ.