Episode #172: Why Your Back Is The Most Important Part Of Your Core Workout, And What You Can Do About It.

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In today's featured topic, Ben interviews Eric Goodman, the author of this book.

In this November 30, 2011 free audio episode: The new BenGreenfieldFitness podcast "sidekick" gets redefined, is the paleo diet good for cross country runners, how to improve your bike times using cross fit endurance, how to address Severs Disease, Magnesium or Epsom Salts - which is better, which type of protein is best, should you only supplement with Omega 3 or are 6 and 9 ok too, should you target parts of the body or do full body workouts, can and should you track your insulin levels, and does the Bite Tech mouth guard help eliminate snoring?

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News Flashes:

Sports, testosterone, fitness: usually better when 2nd finger shorter than 4th finger: Digit ratio (2D:4D) and performance in male surfers.

Apparently using a Wii Fit for 3 months really doesn’t do much for your fitness: Changes in physical activity and fitness after 3 months of home Wii Fit™ use.

Would love to see antioxidant review like this actually look at hardcore athletes/antioxidant intake: Antioxidant Supplementation during Exercise Training: Beneficial or Detrimental?

This study says for 4-6 hours after finishing exercise do 0.8 g·kg·h carbs with 0.4 g·kg·h protein (a lot of food!): Building a beverage for recovery from endurance activity: a review.

For 3 weeks after blood donation, peak aerobic power is lower, but it doesn’t seem to matter for performance: Time course for recovery of peak aerobic power after blood donation. Realistic NYTimes article about why more people don’t run: For Beginning Runners, Advice Can Be a Hurdle

Yet another reasons for runners to lift weights as they age: Aging and factors related to running economy.

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First Name Last Name Email Cell # (1+area code) --------------------------------------------------------------- Featured Topic:

Why Your Back Is The Most Important Part Of Your Core Workout, And What You Can Do About It.

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Why Your Back Is The Most Important Part Of Your Core Workout, And What You Can Do About It, with Dr. Eric Goodman

In today's interview, Ben Greenfield interviews Dr. Eric Goodman about his new book Foundation - Redefine your core, conquer back pain and move with confidence.

Eric earned a doctor of chiropractic degree after undergraduate study in physiology and nutrition. He developed an innovative approach to human performance and movement in his work training elite athletes. He is now teaching people to benefit from proper movement.

Eric's book is available on Amazon.

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Listener Q&A:

Shay-Mo asks:

I'm a freshman in high school and I run cross country competitively. I run anywhere from 240 to 380 minutes a week on average, and I eat very healthy… for the most part! But lately I've been doing research on the Paleo diet and I'm very interested! I've done quite a bit of research on it and I really want to give it a go, but I just don't want it to affect my performance, level of intensity or my goals. I feel sluggish at times with my regular diet and I have stomach related problems such as gastritis and duodenitis, and I'm hypo-thyroid. I know that with the Paleo Diet I would have to alter some things, such and Robb Wolf and you talked about in your discussion (Episode 120), but I'm still not really sure on where you stand. You said that you lost weight and muscle, and that your performance altered a little on the vegan diet, but I'm not sure what your views are of the Paleo diet for athletes. One of my teammates took a huge jump in her season and went from running JV to being our second runner, which is very impressive considering the depth of our team and our competitive level, and she follows the Paleo diet. I would have to talk to my coach but I'm really interested and I have a feeling it would really help me, since eating certain foods messes with my stomach sometimes! But I am scared of jeopardizing my season!

Ken asks:

I trained Cross Fit Endurance for my first ironman and finished in 14:00 with a smile on my face. Since I was beyond a beginner, I spent extra time working on my swim. My question is for my NYC Ironman - how can I turn my bike from 7 hours to 6? I will be training Cross Fit Endurance again but I am considering doing a traditional longer hour bike training to cut down my time? What do u think?

John asks:

I have a question on behalf of my 11 yr old son. He has pain around the bottom of both feet around the heel and radiating up the achillies tendon. To try and massage around the bottom rear of his heals has him in much pain. I have researched and found that Severs Disease seems to be closest to his symptoms. He has been to see a podiatrist friend and she has given him some heel wedge type elevators which have taken some pressure off the heel area. This has been going on now for three years, Ben. He loves to run - but he has brought his running style onto the front / balls of his feet which I fear is going to give him more problems. How can I train him to correct this toe gait when he still has the pain in his heels? Any advise would be greatly appreciated.

In Ben's response to John, he recommends a night splint for Plantar Fascia.

willrunforfood asks:

My husband is considering using magnesium. However, Mike has checked out Epson salt and the price is much cheaper. What more benefits would he get from magnesium vs. Epson salt? Which type of magnesium do you suggest? Lotion, spray or oral? Mike is a road cyclist who rides quite a bit: centuries plus shorter very hard rides too. Mike suffers from calf cramps, mostly, but also has a tight IT band.

In Ben's response to willrunforfood, he mentions Ancient Minerals Magnesium Bath Flakes.

John asks: Getting protein through healthy food is best, but sometimes that is not possible and I have to use a powder. I am looking at ordering a custom mix of protein powder to use before or after workouts and as an occasional snack. There are a lot of different kinds of protein powder available, such as whey, soy, egg, beef, hemp, calcium caseinate, pea, rice, isolates, concentrates, hydrolized, etc., etc. I can also add many different kinds of carbs and supplements. What mixture do you recommend?

In Ben's response to John, he recommends Living Fuel Living Protein and Mt. Capra Double Bonded Protein

James asks: I know you prefer real foods, but what are your thoughts on Quorn and Mycoprotein (e.g. Naked Chik'n Cutlet) as a vegetarian source of protein?

Michael asks: You stated in an earlier podcast that we should avoid Omega 6 because we get plenty of it in our diet via veggie oils and it is pro-inflammatory. Unfortunately, I recently bought a bottle of Nordic Naturals Complete Omega 3,6,9. Did I waste my money? Should I have just bought Omega 3. Also, I need to limit my amount of Choline because I have a rare genetic disorder called Trimethylaminuria (TMAU). I can't seem to be able to determine if Nordic Naturals Omega 3,6,9 has Choline in it. I've called the lab but I'm left on hold forever. Choline is abundant in fish, but I'm not sure if it's in the oil or the final product of N.N's Complete Omega 3,6,9.

In Ben's response to Michael, he recommends going back and listening to the interview with Udo Erasmus.

Jenny asks: I do strength training 3 to 4 times per week. I like to vary my routines and was wondering - is it better to do overall body workouts or to cover specific body parts separately with more exercises, such as chest & triceps for one session? I do triathlons but am in my off season period.

Raminta asks: I have heard many times from various sources that carbs cause an insulin spike, and that if this spike is too much, your body stores the carbs as fat. I have also heard that really most foods (like protein) cause some sort of insulin spike, but that carbs, and especially processed carbs, cause a much faster insulin spike. But I have not seen many people quantify how much of an insulin spike is undesirable. So the question is, is there a way to determine if and when I have had an undesirable and fat-storing insulin spike? Could I use a blood glucose meter that diabetics use to see how my body responds to certain foods and meals?

In Ben's response to Raminta, he mentions the insulin index and also recommends a home blood glucose meter.

Audio Testimonial:Listener Chad talks about cutting 36+ minutes of his PR in the NYC Marathon by using the Marathon Dominator program.

Closing music from "Blue Satin Jacket" by Brock Skywalker. Available on iTunes or at CD Baby.

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