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Want to Gain Muscle and Lose Fat? Eat These Foods!

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Hey Durham fitness lovers! Today we are coming at you with a food list that is sure to tone you up and shred the fat as you stay consistent with your workout routine. Pure and simple, here’s our holy grail food list:

  1. Whole Eggs: Perfect protein
  2. Fish Oil: Reduces inflammation
  3. Salmon: Great source of omega-3 fatty acids and protein
  4. Berries: Strong antioxidants
  5. Yogurt: Improves your gastrointestinal health
  6. Flax Seeds. Great source of fiber, protein & omega-3
  7. Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Protects against heart diseases and cancer
  8. Red Meat: Protein, vitamin B12, iron, and zinc! c
  9. Broccoli: High in soluble fiber and low calorie
  10. Spinach: Prevents muscle & bone loss
  11. Turkey: Low in fat and loaded with protein
  12. Quinoa: High in fiber & protein
  13. Oats: High in soluble fiber.
  14. Apples: Pectin in apples helps weight loss by increasing satiety
  15. Carrots: Improves eye-health, rich in fiber, and low calorie
  16. Water: Prevents water retention, helps muscle recovery and prevents dehydration from strength training

Eating these foods and drinking plenty of water will keep you full and focused on your fitness goals! We recommend eating these foods in moderation every three hours or so and with at least 2 cups of water!

What are your favorite foods to eat that help you gain muscle and shed fat?

 


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Healthy Eating Tips from our Personal Trainers in Durham

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Happy Wednesday friends! Today we are sharing some of our Durham personal trainers top nutrition tips… 5 to be exact!

  1. Don’t Deprive Yourself: Learn portion control and reward yourself every now and then to avoid binging later! Just make sure you savor your occasional treat!
  2. Food Quality Control: Make sure you use high-quality ingredients that look and smell great like fresh herbs and produce. This will make your healthy dishes more pleasurable overall
  3. It’s All About the Presentation: Make your plate pop with lots of color (fruits and vegetables) and arrange the food in an artistic way. Make your culinary experience as aesthetically appealing as it is delicious!

  4. Add Greens Whenever Possible: Greens aren’t just for salads. Add them to smoothies, sandwiches, and as a garnish. Dark, leafy greens benefit every cell in your body and deliver a variety of nutrients.

  5. Don’t Get Distracted: Put away the phone and devices while you eat. Focus on every bite, texture, and taste, instead of the television. Mindless eating is the quickest way to pack on the pounds!

What are your favorite diet or healthy eating tips? We’d love to learn! For more nutritional guidance, come by our Durham gym and begin training with one of our experienced personal trainers. We are here to help you meet your fitness goals and provide you with smart tips and guidance along the way!
Keep sweatin’ Durham!

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Tips from our Personal Trainers: What NOT to Eat for Breakfast

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We all know eating breakfast is important in getting slim and curbing your appetite later in the day… But just because we all should be eating breakfast doesn’t make it a “free” meal. Today our personal trainers in Durham are sharing some mistakes that could result in you packing on some extra pounds:

You Drink the Juice:

Juice is packed with sugar… Go for the real fruit instead. It is not only more filling but contains more fiber! Plus who doesn’t love to chew!

You Eat the Cereal:

Cereal is packed with carbs, even if you go for the healthy option. If you eat cereal, make sure you measure out a serving and don’t leave the box out so you’re not tempted to pour more.

You Down the Bagel:

It’s important to think of bagels as a treat if you want to lose weight. Did you know? Most bagels are equivalent to about five pieces of bread, PLUS the toppings. If you love bread, go for the whole wheat toast!

You go for the Sugary Fruity Yogurt:

yogurt can be a great choice in the morning but make sure you go with a plain, non-fat or low-fat option and then top it with your favorite fruit. The yogurts with fruit already added tend to have tons of extra sugar and additives. Go for the fresh fruit and save some calories!
There you have it folks! Some tips from our personal trainers in Durham to help you start your day right! What’s your favorite healthy breakfast? We’d love to hear!


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Durham Personal Trainer Tip: How to Change Your Body

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Many of our clients at The Method come to us with a clear goal in mind; They want to tone up, shed extra body weight, and gain strength. Our personal trainers in Durham help our clients meet these goals by our unique training techniques and through providing them with effective health and dieting tips. Here are some of our top tips that we tell our clients who want to change their bodies:

1. Send Your Body a Clear Message
Our bodies are designed for homeostasis. That means if you want to see changes in your body, you must introduce your brain and body to new and definitive patterns. To see change, you must take clear and consistent actions in order to create change and a new habit.

2. Stay Consistent
Ever gone on a trip and missed your workouts? Do you notice that when you do, it takes some time to get back to the same level of training before your trip? Our bodies need a consistent workout schedule to see results. It’s important you make a training schedule that is fairly consistent in terms of time spent and intensity. We always recommend you give your body and muscles time to recover, but taking long periods of time off will seriously stall your results.

3. “When Will I Start Seeing Results?”
Our Durham personal trainers get this question a lot. Typically it takes a full 10 days to see any sort of results from a new workout program or diet regimen. Stick to it and be consistent and see how you feel after 10 days, or better yet, 2 weeks.

4. Diet is Key
For most people, change is 80% diet and 20% exercise. In order to lose weight, you must limit certain foods. In order to gain muscle, you must eat certain foods. Exercise is absolutely essential in getting the body you want but it needs to be supported with the right diet in order to see results. It all comes down to the amount of protein, fat and carbs.

5. It’s Not Always Going to Be Fun
Getting in shape is hard work. Dieting is straight up hard. It’s important to start any new program with realistic expectations and to not jump in too quickly. Easing into any program makes it easier to stick to it long-term. Be patient with yourself and know, sometimes, it will not be fun.

 

Ready to change your body? Meet with our personal trainers in Durham and start seeing REAL results!


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THE METHOD GYM NEWS: Exclusive Celebrity Interview!

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Hey Durham! Are YOU subscribed to The Method Gym mailing list? If you missed it, we’re filling you in today!

In our latest newsletter for The Method Gym in Durham we are sharing all of Dr. Phillip Goglia’s celebrity training tips!

View the full Private Durham gym newsletter here!

For the latest news and fitness inspiration…

Click here to subscribe to The Method Newsletter!

Keep sweating Durham!


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Fitness Tip from Our Durham Personal Trainers: Be Mindful

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While just walking into the gym is always a good thing, it’s important to be mindful when exercising. Today, the tip from our personal trainers in Durham is all about avoiding mindless exercise. Sure, it’s easy to sit on the bike and flip through a magazine  or text on the elliptical…. But how effective is that really at building muscle and losing weight?

Our Durham personal trainers say, not that effective. There is a big difference between going through the motions of an exercise and really thinking, feeling, and engaging your muscles during your workout. They say the key is focusing on the muscles you’re working and ENGAGING them. Form is also key here. Be very aware and conscious of your body and listen to your muscles. Enjoy the feeling of getting stronger with each step and each rep! You know what they say… “Pain is weakness leaving the body” (within reason, of course!)

…So next time you want to workout, focus on your breathe, your muscles being engaged, the stretch, and the strength that you are acquiring.

Keep working hard Durham! Come visit us at our clean and private gym near Duke!


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Women, Weight Training, and the Fear of Getting “Big”

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Many women tend to make a big mistake when they step foot into a gym. They assume that weightlifting and resistance training will result in them becoming “big” and bulky. As a result, they tend to only focus on cardio and spend most of their gym time on the treadmill trying to burn off the pizza from the night before.

Getting “big” like a man or a competitive body builder is a common concern among women, and has led many women to steer clear of the weight room and from resistance training in general. For those women avoiding the weight room, we’ve got news for you! If your goal is to be slim and toned with a flat stomach and nicely defined muscles, resistance training is going to be absolutely essential in achieving that end goal. So quiet your fears and remember:

Women can and should do weight lifting exercises if they want to shed body fat and achieve a sculpted and toned physique.

So if you’re one of those women just stuck on cardio, know that your current cardio routine is going to accomplish very little in terms of your end goal. Sure, you may burn a few hundred calories during the cardio workout but you won’t reshape how your body looks. A complete body transformation begins in the weight room.

And no, you won’t get bulky. In fact, lifting weights will actually achieve the opposite… And here’s why:

1. Female Testosterone Levels

You need not to worry about getting big because it’s the testosterone that is the magic ingredient of getting big and bulky. A woman simply does not have enough testosterone to make them bulk up like a man does. It’s science- Men have higher testosterone levels than women, and women have higher estrogen levels than men. This fact alone should calm a lot of your fears as testosterone is the primary muscle-building hormone in the body.

2. Female Dietary Habits

If you’re worried about bulking up like a female body builder, it’s important to keep in mind that dietary habits play a key role here. If your end goal is to bulk up and get “big” you’d obviously be consuming a massive amount of calories to purposefully gain weight, as these women do. Proper weight resistance training paired with a mindful diet of calories in versus calories out will result in the loss of fat and the fine sculpting of muscle. In order for your weight resistance training to really bulk you up, you’d have to force feed extra protein, eat excessive calories daily, add supplementation, AND lift heavy weights on a regular basis.

3. Weight Lifting Increases Your Metabolic Rates

Another reason why you don’t need to worry about getting big is that weight lifting actually increases your metabolic rate, aka you will burn more calories when you lift weight. This is because weight lifting creates tiny muscular tears throughout the body, meaning your body will expend a greater number of calories post-workout to repair those tiny tears. This repair process increases your overall calorie requirements. More calories burned, means less body fat for you.

4. Weight Lifting Results in Greater Muscle Definition

Weight lifting will result in an overall, sculpted muscle definition. Challenging yourself with the weight and lowering the reps is what will create the muscle definition you’re looking for when combined with a proper diet for fat loss.

In a nut shell,  do not fear weight training or heavy weights any longer! Weight training is the secret sauce to any woman’s weight loss and is what will help you achieve fitness goal of achieving a toned and sculpted physique.

Here’s the truth: When you lift heavy weights your muscles get STRONGER, not bigger. From our personal trainers in Durham… Push your body! You are stronger than you think!

 

 


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Pro Tips from Our Gym in Durham: The BEST Foods to Eat Before Working Out

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Last week we covered everything NOT to eat before getting your workout in and today, we’re sharing all the goods! Today’s article shares what celebrity trainer, Phillip Goglia considers to be the best pre-workout snack as well as other healthy options.

As always, if you’re loving this series and feel inspired to reboot your fitness and diet plan, come chat with our Durham personal trainers to get started on a healthier you!

We hope you Durham fitness lovers enjoy this article! And as always, thank you Dr. Goglia for your excellent insight!

The “YES” Pre-Workout Food List:

  • Raw Seeds: Raw seeds off a great source of fat as an energy source pre-workout. If the husks of the seeds do not adversely affect your digestion then they can be a great pre-workout choice. Make sure to consume between 100 and 150 calories of seeds before workout and give your body about 20 min to digest them. It is even better if the seeds are nuts like 12 almonds or almond butter 100 c mixed with 1 fruit portion. The sugar and fat combination will be extremely energizing and sustainable for a workout of 90 minutes or less. Try the nuts or nut butters with an apple… YUM!
  • Hummus and/or Bean Dips : Bean dip and hummus are sugar based with added oils. If you are not gastrically sensitive to that combination then the use of 1 tbsp 100 – 120 c before a workout can be energy sustaining. There are many benefits to beans as long as they have been soaked prior to cooking to release the mold from them. If not soaked you run the risk of consuming a high mold food that can lead to inflammation and reduction of oxygen consumption. Generally speaking, because the bean does take considerable preparation and the risk of molds. Most athletes distance themselves from consistent bean use and only using them intermittently and sparing unless on a vegetarian or vegan program

How does what you eat affect your energy level/ability to exercise?

Foods prior to exercise should be strategically consumed based on the time spent exercising and the type of exercise, ie. weights vs endurance or aerobic sport. The wrong foods or hydration choose will greatly reduce your training intensity and your results

Anything else you think is important to add to this article?

There are so many pre-training foods to choose from on the market! I say keep it simple and basic! A pre-training, 90 min or less, low-glycemic meal should be approx 200 calories with a fairly even split of sugar and fat, providing sustainable even energy.  All of my athletes either use a bonk breaker bar or they keep it even simpler : 1 fruit with 1 tbsp of almond butter. Again, keep it simple — no fake science!

Meet Dr. Philip Goglia
President & Founder of Performance Fitness Concepts

Dr. Philip Goglia  has been a certified nutritionist for over 30 years and holds a PhD in Nutritional Science in addition to being a graduate of Duke University, The American College of Sports Medicine and the National Academy of Sports Medicine. His nutritional expertise is fully measurable, with the proven ability to take all of his clients and athletes to the highest level of their performance and competitive abilities. He has a pedigree of athletic history himself as a high school and collegiate All-American wrestler, a storied 12 year history as a rugby player, a Mr. North America bodybuilding champion, and a Grand-Am motorsports race car driver.

Dr. Goglia’s bestselling book, “Turn up the Heat – Unlock the Fat Burning Power of Your Metabolism” is an acclaimed “Best Seller” and was featured on E! Entertainment, CNN, People Magazine, In Touch, Life and Style, In style, Men’s Fitness and Vogue. He is the official nutritional consultant for the Dr. Phil show and The Doctors television shows, and was the nutritionist for Jennifer Grey, for her season 11 win on Dancing with the Stars (and the oldest winner).

Having been a three time cancer survivor and once told that he would never walk correctly again or play a sport, he fully understands the commitment it takes to emotionally and physically take a stand for health and well-being. Daily, he supports his clients to overcome their wellness obstacles through the use of his years of education, life experience and wisdom.


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Pro-Tips from Our Private Gym in Durham: The WORST Foods to Eat Before Working Out

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We are continuing our fantastic series with famed personal trainer Phillip Goglia! We have disussed proper hydration, diet, and overall fitness! Today we are taking nutrition one step further and reviewing foods NOT to eat before you workout! If you’re loving this series and feel inspired to reboot your fitness and diet plan, come chat with our Durham personal trainers to get started on a healthier you!

We hope you Durham fitness lovers enjoy this article! And as always, thank you Dr. Goglia for your excellent insight!

The ‘NO” Pre-Workout Food List:

  1. Leafy Greens : prior to workout leafy greens will create the risk of abdominal distention, gas, and bloating. Greens are a great source of minerals and antioxidants, but are primarily useful for digestion and NOT as an energizing pre-workout meal
  2. Chocolate Milk : Prior to working out, the use of dairy and its sugars – maltose and lactose – will cause bloating and digestive discomfort. Additionally the sugars found in dairy are inflammatory and mucus producing. In fact, they inhibit the full use of our oxygen pathways. This is why when you speak to athletes and ask them about their dairy consumption, they will all tell you that they do not consume any dairy pre or post-workout as it is like eating moderately hard phlegm. Most of all, dairy can contribute to elevated triglyceride levels and inflammation.
  3. Whole Grain Breads and Muffins: Stay away from carbohydrates that are yeast mold and gluten bound. They are inflammatory, water retentive, and ultimately inflammatory. They provide energy obviously as they are a sugar — but the side effects far out weigh the benefit of sugar energy as a pre-workout meal.
  4. Last night’s Pad Thai: The convenient but bad pre-workout move. These heavy foods lots of digestion time and will hinder workout intensity and fat utilization. Mostly it will set you up for a nap rather than a workout!
  5. Sports Drinks: NOT prior to a workout. Many of these sports drinks are high sodium and sugar and contain caffeine, all of which will cause digestive discomfort and a type of energy that will be “spikey” at best. These sports drinks over load our cells with electrolytes prior to depletion — at which point your body will have difficulty establishing a sweat rate and its ability to manage an appropriate temperature while training. The result will be poor performance during your workout
  6. Protein Bars: There is NO such thing as a protein bar — Does your PROTEIN bar taste like salmon – chicken – steak ? Doubtful!  Chances are your favorite protein bar has some kind of low grade protein in it. If you must choose to use a pre-workout bar make sure it is one that offers up honest marketing that is a health 50 / 50 split of sugar and fat to be used for sustainable workout energy — examples are a bonk breaker bar. This is my favorite choice and the choice of cyclists and multi sport athletes. The other OK choices are a KIND bar or CLIFF bar – all solid choices.
  7. No foods with saturated fats that require long digestive periods

How does what you eat affect your energy level/ability to exercise?

Foods prior to exercise should be strategically consumed based on the time spent exercising and the type of exercise, ie. weights vs endurance or aerobic sport. The wrong foods or hydration choose will greatly reduce your training intensity and your results

Anything else you think is important to add to this article?

There are so many pre-training foods to choose from on the market! I say keep it simple and basic! A pre-training, 90 min or less, low-glycemic meal should be approx 200 calories with a fairly even split of sugar and fat, providing sustainable even energy.  All of my athletes either use a bonk breaker bar or they keep it even simpler : 1 fruit with 1 tbsp of almond butter. Again, keep it simple — no fake science!

Meet Dr. Philip Goglia
President & Founder of Performance Fitness Concepts

Dr. Philip Goglia  has been a certified nutritionist for over 30 years and holds a PhD in Nutritional Science in addition to being a graduate of Duke University, The American College of Sports Medicine and the National Academy of Sports Medicine. His nutritional expertise is fully measurable, with the proven ability to take all of his clients and athletes to the highest level of their performance and competitive abilities. He has a pedigree of athletic history himself as a high school and collegiate All-American wrestler, a storied 12 year history as a rugby player, a Mr. North America bodybuilding champion, and a Grand-Am motorsports race car driver.

Dr. Goglia’s bestselling book, “Turn up the Heat – Unlock the Fat Burning Power of Your Metabolism” is an acclaimed “Best Seller” and was featured on E! Entertainment, CNN, People Magazine, In Touch, Life and Style, In style, Men’s Fitness and Vogue. He is the official nutritional consultant for the Dr. Phil show and The Doctors television shows, and was the nutritionist for Jennifer Grey, for her season 11 win on Dancing with the Stars (and the oldest winner).

Having been a three time cancer survivor and once told that he would never walk correctly again or play a sport, he fully understands the commitment it takes to emotionally and physically take a stand for health and well-being. Daily, he supports his clients to overcome their wellness obstacles through the use of his years of education, life experience and wisdom.


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The Method Gym wins Best Place to Workout in Durham!

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Thank you Durham for voting us the “Best Place to Workout in Durham!”
Our private personal training studio employs the latest weight resistance training exercises and coaching for healthy living. Not only is our workout methodology effective, it’s safe!
Come workout with us in our private gym.
We are located in Durham adjacent to Duke Campus and 5 minutes from downtown Durham.

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