Hello Bootcampers & Fitness Enthusiasts!

 

Inflammatory Foods: Unlocking the Door of Your Plateau

By David Nash: Director of Pinnacle Fitness Bootcamp

Over the past 10 years I have trained many clients who seemed to get to a certain point and plateau.  Have you experienced a plateau in your fitness routine?  Plateaus are not fun.  In fact, they are just plain frustrating.  However, we must accept the fact that our body is not responding like it should and keep working toward our goals.  Most of the time, it is not easy.  It’s not easy because we have worked so hard and what do we get from our body.  I will say it for you. “Nothing, nada, zip, zilch!”  Our body is now tired and our wonderful mind will always take the easy way out and tell us, “quit now while you have a chance!!!!!!!” “Go eat ice cream, cookies, and brownies” and “be fat and happy.” 

 Although brownies and ice cream are tasty and comforting, you know they aren’t going to make you happy but for a moment. This leads us back to our dilemma. How do we get past our plateau?  How can we move forward and actually accomplish the goals that we set out to reach?  Most people do not have a fitness goal to be a bodybuilder or even an Olympic athlete.  Most of us just want to see some form of muscle tone in our extremities and maybe a two-pack.

Anyone who is a true fitness enthusiast will tell you that you have to eat clean. This means that you have to consume foods that are considered easily digestible nutrients for the body.  When I entered into the Super Natural Bodybuilding Show in 2002, I asked the bodybuilders “How do I look like a bodybuilder?” They all told me the same thing. “You have to workout until your muscles hypertrophy (tear and rebuild), throw in intense interval cardio training and eat clean!”   I was already putting myself through a tough workout, so this meant I had to get serious and clean the kitchen.

I was serious. I started cleaning and ridding the kitchen of inflammatory foods. Inflammatory foods are substances that will cause your body to have swelling and hold onto fat and water weight. Many of you may have eliminated some foods that you know are causing inflammation in your body, but there are a number of foods that you may not think are inflammatory that you may want to consider eliminating.  Below I have listed the top10 inflammatory foods that I have researched.

List of Inflammatory Foods

1. Pasteurized dairy products: milk, cheese, yogurt
2. Refined sugar: white sugar, brown sugar, high fructose corn syrup, etc:  
3. Processed Foods:  foods with white floor, luncheon meats, candies, flavored yogurts, and boxed foods
4. Food’s high in sodium: table salt, seasoning salt
5. MSG: is partially found in Chinese food and other fast-foods
6. Red Meat: reduce your red meat intake and choose organic forms of red meat
7. Caffeine: coffee, tea, soda, etc   
8. Alcohol: 
9. Vegetables in the night shade family: white potatoes, eggplant, and tomatoes
10. Gluten: gluten can be found in grains such as: wheat, barley and rye. Consider going gluten free. Many people have an unknown intolerance or allergy to gluten.

 Now you are one step closer to reaching your goals and unlocking that plateau!

Suffering from Inflammation?

For my full article on “Inflammatory Foods: Unlocking the Door of Your Plateau”  click here and type the word “article” in the comment box.  If you have been working out hard and have not seen a change in your body, you definitely need to read this article. In this 5 page article I discuss inflammatory foods in-depth, I give you anti-inflammatory foods to put in your diet, and I tell you how to set up meals to eat a clean lifestyle. 

Have you ever eaten a hamburger and felt like it sat in your stomach for 2 days?  Have you had a food item during the week like salt, cheese, or bread that seemed to make your stomach poke out or cause you swelling?  If this has happened to you with any of the food listed above you may have a problem with inflammation.

Please leave your comments below.

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