Feb
01

MMA Diet: Yogurt

By | Featured, MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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Many athletes start their day off with a cup of yogurt. While this can be good, it’s often not as good as many think. Not all yogurts are created equal. Let’s explore why.

For starters, food demand in developed countries is based more on taste than necessity. Whereas people in rural or less developed places in the world may receive only a few options and even then only of the dietary staples – white rice, for example – developed countries have a wide variety of choices due to economic and transportation factors and are therefore able to stock foods based purely on taste demand. When we consider that the average buyer will likely choose the sweeter, more colorful, more advertised and easier items than athletes seeking the best possible foods to fuel themselves for their careers, it’s easy to see why even the selection of yogurt can be a tricky one.

Nov
27

MMA Diet: RUDOG Nutrition

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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MMA Diet: Rudog Edition

Nov 27th, 2011

In July 2010 I wrote this short profile piece about Rudog Nutrition because I felt they were on to something major. The MMA nutrition field was evolving, but fighters didn’t have many sources to turn to other than expensive nutritionists that were clueless about MMA or the supplement industry that bombards them with ads. Mary Bell, founder of Rudog, filled this gap. She’s a licensed dietician, has worked with the MMA team at Roufus Sportand, perhaps the most amazing part: For only $9.95 a month or 99.95 a year she’ll provide you all the nutrition education you need. Rudog is quickly becoming the most respected nutritional authority for the MMA community. I recently caught up with Mary to throw some questions her way.

CC: Mary, congrats on your successes so far. It must feel so rewarding to be considered this trusted nutrition source amidst the chaos. Not only are you helping people lead healthier lives, but each person who comes your way is less likely to be swayed by the junk science out there. Was this your original goal? At what point did the lightbulb moment happen about MMA nutrition?

MB: Yes, my original goal was to simply provide a trusted nutrition resource for MMA athletes that didn’t cost them a lot of money. It needed to be something that could be accessible by anyone in the world and could fit any budget. My lightbulb moment happened when I was finishing up a kickboxing class about 3 years ago and I overhead some guys talking about nutrition. I was shocked at how little they knew. (And these were guys who knew what I do for a living!) That’s when I realized that no one was specifically targeting the MMA community for sport specific nutrition education. I decided to change that.

CC: You’ve talked before about how many MMA fighters take in too much protein. What are two other areas where fighters often struggle when it comes to fulfilling their nutritional needs? How do these struggles differ from the struggles seen in the general population?

MB: The fighters that I have worked with seem to struggle with 2 other key areas: Eating enough total calories and not getting enough high quality sleep. These are so critical to their overall game plan, and yet they are guessing at both. They typically are so afraid to eat too much that they under eat. They also spend so much time training that they neglect to schedule adequate time for sleep. Both of these contribute to poor or incomplete recovery and chronic fatigue, which sets the stage for injury. I think the general population struggles with these areas also, but when your paycheck doesn’t depend on your ability to avoid being killed, I think the effects of poor nutrition are not as readily apparent.

CC: Just like fighters have other fighters they respect in the field, who are some other nutrition folks inside or outside of the MMA community that you read and respect?

MB: I think it’s important to have exceptionally high standards in competitive sports and in the field of nutrition, and very few people make that cut for me. Nancy Clark is a dietitian who practically pioneered the field Sports Nutrition. I have the utmost respect for her and her approach. She is out of the Boston area and is my “go to” resource on anything sports related. I also look to many experts from the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas. The founder, Dr. Kenneth Cooper, and his work on fitness and nutrition speak for themselves.

CC: What can people expect to receive when they enroll in your services? How can fighters and fans alike contact you directly?

MB: I like to explain the Rudog website as an online magazine for nutrition.  Subscribers have access to articles and content that covers anything from why carbs are important, to a great seared tuna recipe. The content is updated weekly and is written either by myself or a contributing author, many times from a different discipline than myself. Subscribers are always welcome to text or email if they have questions or need a suggestion or tip. If they need or want more in depth information, additional services can be purchased for a separate fee. You don’t have to be a member of the Rudog site to get any of the customized services (like consults or menu planning), but Rudog members do get a 25% discount.

I can be reached directly by email at [email protected] or by phone at 972.880.8443. Follow us @RudogNutrition on Twitter or here on our Facebook page.

This article was originally published here on Sherdog.com.

Oct
14

Martin Rooney Nutrition

By | Interviews on Others, MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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MMA Diet: Martin Rooney Edition

by Cameron Conaway
Oct 11th, 2011

 

A list of Martin Rooney’s academic and fitness credentials do not begin to show the impact this man has had on the field of strength and conditioning as it relates to MMA athletes.

In July 2010 I did a 4-part interview with him titled, “The World’s Best MMA Fitness Coach,” but he’s even grown tremendously in popularity since then. However, part of what makes Martin Rooney so successful at what he does – aside from the results: he prepared Frankie Edgar for BJ Penn – is his versatility. He’s a terrific writer, a terrific speaker and he looks like he follows the words he preaches. Sure, it’s usually his Training for Warriors knowledge that’s featured in magazines, books and videos, but he can talk MMA nutrition with the best of them. I caught up with Martin and he agreed to answer a few questions for us here at Sherdog.

CC: Martin, your success has meant loads of athletes are getting proper training advice and information. As I see your career continue to skyrocket I know everyone is benefiting. The same can’t be said for many other big name trainers out there. However, it seems the next step for our MMA athletes (and our country in general) is to continue building upon sound nutritional advice. What are three common misconceptions about MMA nutrition and what advice would you give to counter them?

MR: Thanks for the kind words Cameron. I am always doing my best to share what I have learned with as many people as possible. This goes along with my belief that the more you share with others, the more you benefit.

In terms of nutrition, yes, it could be argued that this is an important area in which MMA athletes are paying more attention. Even with this attention, however, I still feel this is perhaps the most abused aspect of physical preparation next to overtraining.

The first most common misconception is that since an MMA athlete is doing so much training, they he or she thinks they are allowed to eat whatever you want. I don’t know if the Michael Phelps interview helped or hurt here (he prided himself on eating 10,000 calories of poor food choices and won a record haul of gold medals) but there is no good excuse to eat poor food. I would counter this by reminding athletes that a calorie is not a calorie. Make sure that you are eating clean with plenty of good food choices like fruits, vegetables and lean meats. Regardless of how many antioxidants they say dark chocolate has, that doesn’t mean it is good for you.

The next most common misconception is that supplements are actually food and that the labels on these tell the truth. I would like to remind the athletes out there that the term “supplement” means in addition to, not “all you need to eat.” So, a bar here or there in a pinch and a post workout shake is great, but make sure that you are eating “real” food first. Too many people are subsisting mainly on things from bottles and wrappers. We have to be smarter than that.

The final common misconception I see is that huge weight cuts are normal and it is ok to be relatively out of shape and use a less than strict diet and make up with it through a drastic cut. True, I have pushed the knowledge forward in this area and believe being big and strong in a certain weight is essential these days, but it still has to be done well. Good food choices, a more gradual cut and proper rehydration and weight gain processes are essential.

CC: There are many parallels between how a member of the general population needs to eat and how an MMA fighter needs to eat, but can you fill us in on three key differences that make an MMA athlete’s nutritional needs different?

Click here to read the full article on Sherdog.com.

Sep
14

MMA Diet: Vitamin D

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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This article will be a bit shorter and sweeter than the others primarily because information about vitamin D is simply everywhere, and the vast majority of it is quite accurate because vitamin D is not a “drug” or “supplement” owned or marketed by a company who can hype, exaggerate or otherwise influence buyers. Also, it’s been studied extensively, and for over 40 years, so many of the current studies about the health benefits of vitamin D are simply reinforcing and/or adding new layers to the body of good news.

Vitamin D is emerging well-beyond its original “bone vitamin” status. It’s now viewed as the vitamin we all need to make conscious steps to get more of. Actually, reports in nearly every health magazine and university are touting its benefits – from large things like a decreased risk of cancer, depression and inflammatory diseases to the smaller things like stronger fingernails, skin and gums. In fact, many see vitamin D as one way to help our country’s debt and healthcare problems – it makes sense. Here we have a vitamin with a host of health benefits, that we can get either naturally through sun exposure, or supplementally through pills that cost just a few dollars a month and can be picked up at anywhere from mom-and-pop health stores to Wal-Mart.

After something proves positive in the general population, generally athletes are next in line. This is where vitamin D stands. For the past three years or so research on vitamin D within the field of sport has intensified and is looking equally positive. Look, in this writer’s opinion, you should be taking vitamin D just as a person in the world. But, if you’re an athlete and you need a few more specific reasons to pop a pill or step out into the sun, well, here goes:

Deficiency:

Of course, vitamin D is renowned for its role in musculoskeletal health. As MMA athletes train explosively – box jumps, bounding and nearly every other forceful movement – bones are being pounded together. This can help create bone density, which is a good thing, but it can also lead to stress fractures both large and small. Not to mention the fractures caused from the fights themselves. Vitamin D can reduce the chances of this (and thus time away from training) and help improve recovery time when a fracture does occur. Lastly, because much of our training and work in general takes place inside buildings these days, it means it’s ultra-important to get enough vitamin D. Some suggest at least 1,000-2,000 IU daily, or at least 10-15 minutes per day of sun exposure to large areas of skin. Those with darker skin pigmentation should shoot for the upper range of this level.

Straight-up Performance:

Click here to read the remainder of the article on Sherdog.com.

Aug
27

MMA Diet: Nitric Oxide

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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Cameron’s article about Nitric Oxide is now up at Sherdog. Click here to read the full article.

Here’s an excerpt:

Increase your muscular endurance, size, pumps, strength, vascularity, mental focus, power, fat-burning capabilities, recovery times, workload and performance. I kid you not (although nitric oxide is often referred to as laughing gas, laughing gas is actually nitrous oxide), a single supplement, nitric oxide, claims to deliver all of this. And I didn’t even include the exclamation points. Or the asterisks. We’ll explore both below after the tip and the disclaimer. Let’s check it out.

Tip: Nitric oxide isn’t actually the supplement. The aim of the supplement is to increase levels of nitric oxide in our body, and it does this chiefly through the amino acid L-arginine, which is a nitric oxide precursor. Although most nitric oxide products also contain 20-50 other ingredients (like caffeine and citrulline malate) in order to supplement the supplement’s effect. It’s really a science here. People ask me all the time, “Should I take nitric oxide?” I know what they mean, but often hope they know what they mean. Especially if they’re using it.

Disclaimer: The information below comes both from current research and personal experience. I am not endorsing or recommending. Tip: Nitric oxide supplements are often referred to as NO2. But NO2 is nitric dioxide, a dangerous toxin and auto/industrial pollutant.

The Exclamations:

Can a nitric oxide supplement like BSN’s popular NO Xplode actually deliver everything it claims? Yes, but only with a person who is training properly and only if that athlete is responsive. Considering both of those attributes are met – this rules out many typical nitric oxide users – let’s move forward.

Aug
13

MMA Diet: Caffeine

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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Does caffeine impact sports performance? Absolutely. Cameron’s latest piece explores caffeine’s effect on the MMA athlete. Click here to read the full article on Sherdog.

Here’s an excerpt:

“Most of us know caffeine as the stuff in coffee that gives us a morning boost. It’s estimated that 80% of us drink coffee regularly. But according to the National Strength & Conditioning Association (NSCA) caffeine is the world’s most commonly used drug, according to Vanderbilt University it is the “most inexpensive and readily available drug known to man,” many nutrition sites list coffee as the world’s most powerful and ingested antioxidant beverage and according to many athletic improvement sites it is considered the most widely studied aid to enhance physical performance.

“Athletes at all levels – including the Olympics – can be banned and even have their medals taken from them due to caffeine levels over the sport’s testing limit. Yes, caffeine, a substance most of us drink every morning, is on the list of banned “supplements” just like steroids and cocaine – but only if the urine test comes back at 12mg/L (basically 8 cups of traditional coffee, depending on body size). A “moderate” amount is generally considered 250mg/day. Positive correlations between caffeine and focus/athletic performance have been found ranging from 150mg-600mg/day, but after this amount the effect doesn’t increase much and may even turn negative. If caffeine is the world’s most commonly used drug, then it’s also the world’s most commonly used performance enhancer. It’s certainly worth exploring the effects of caffeine on MMA performance. As we know, MMA is as much mental as it is physical, so let’s look at how caffeine could effect both. Note: Caffeine’s effect varies not just among individuals, but also quite significantly between individual users (those who have developed a tolerance) and non-users.”

Aug
06

Cameron interviews Rudog Nutrition

By | Interviews on Others

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MMA’s evolution has advanced the martial arts to their highest point in human history. Along with this evolution came a revolution in combat athlete strength & conditioning practices. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said (yet) for nutritional advances in regards to MMA. New supplement companies spawn daily with bikini models, steroid men and, of course, a skull logo. These supplements are marketed for MMA fighters, but either are not different than other supplements on the market, or are actually worse. And when it comes to MMA dietary regimens, the word “supplement” seems to be used far more than “nutrition.” Mary Bell is trying to change that.

Mary Bell received her education as a clinical dietitian from UT Southwestern Medical Center in 1993. She has been a sports and wellness dietitian for over 10 years in the Dallas area. The concept of RUDOG was developed in 2008 as a natural extension of her personal involvement with MMA, kickboxing and the martial arts.

I asked Mary a few questions about RUDOG Nutrition. Here are her responses:

What is RUDOG Nutrition? Who should join?
Rudog began in 2008 and is the nutrition resource center for the MMA community. It’s where they come to learn how to eat, to get customized meal plans, have their diets evaluated, improve their endurance and recovery, or work individually with an MMA dietitian. Everything is customized and targeted to MMA. Rudog is for anyone involved with MMA, kids and adults. Trainers, fighters, recreational MMA athletes, gyms, and coaches can all benefit from Rudog.


How did it begin? What void does it fill in the MMA community?

Being a dietitian and personally involved in MMA , I noticed that NO ONE was working with these guys on a credible level and at an affordable price. That’s when I started looking for a way to market nutrition to the MMA community that was relatable, credible, and affordable. Thus the creation of Rudog. If you just want to learn about nutrition for MMA but can’t afford weekly sessions, you just pay a small monthly fee and you get a virtual dietitian on-line. If you need one-on-one or something more customized, then Rudog can work with you on a fee-for service basis. Rudog offers something for everyone.


What is the most common nutritional misconception you’ve found among MMA fighters?

The biggest thing I find is that fighters eat too much protein and not nearly enough total calories to support their level of training. That’s the number one thing I work with.


What are the future goals of RUDOG Nutrition?

My goal is for Rudog to be the most respected nutritional authority for the MMA community. When someone wants to know something about nutrition, I want the answer to be, “Ask Rudog.”
People can find out more about Rudog at www.rudog.com or at www.facebook.com/rudognutrition

Aug
05

MMA Diet: Judge a Book by its Cover

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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Sometimes judging a book by its cover pays off…with food. What your foods are cooked in matters greatly. It can take a healthy food and transform it into a trans-fat nightmare. Click here to read Cameron’s article on Sherdog.

Here’s an excerpt:

“We’ve talked about the basics of food, now we move to an oft-neglected area of nutrition: the outsides of foods. What are the foods we’re eating cooked in, coated with and or flavored with? Calories can skyrocket and saturated fat intake and blood sugar levels can deceptively spike.”

Aug
05

MMA Diet: Control

By | MMA Nutrition, Sherdog Writings

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We’ve all heard it before: Portions matter. But we need splurges, right? Do MMA fighters splurge? What’s the best way to splurge? Click here for Cameron’s article on Sherdog regarding the mental battle of dietary control.

Here’s an excerpt:

“With rules, especially strict rules, come thoughts of breaking rules. Often, with thoughts, especially repeated thoughts, come actions influenced by those thoughts. These ideas pair with many societal aspects – from school dress codes to religious dogma. Our focus now is control as it relates to our MMA Diet.”

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