Tamara Makar

IFBB Pro Athlete

About HIIT cardio

Posted on March 31, 2018 by Tammy

The competition season is upon us, many of you guys do endless cardio to lose body fat. Sometimes we go through phases when the weight loss stops and it seems almost impossible to get it going again. The body is trying to hold on to that little bit of fat – it’s a normal survival mechanism.

When weight loss stops, it’s a sign that your body has adapted to your current training and diet, and you just need to change something to kick it off again.

Sometimes it’s a good idea to switch up your cardio from steady state to HIIT. Many bodybuilders are scared that HIIT training will make them lose muscle. If you use it wisely, that can be avoided.

First of all you don’t need to do it all the time. If you do cardio 1x or 2x a day, you shouldn’t do HIIT both times. Actually, doing HIIT increases your metabolic rate for the next 24 hours, so you could even do it only every other day and on the other sessions stick to steady state cardio. And don’t forget: your body adapts to HIIT cardio, too, so after some time (could be about 3-4 weeks) you can change back to normal cardio again.

Now let’s see how we do HIIT cardio:

The essential framework of high-intensity interval training is always the same: Brief, all-out work periods, separated by rest periods. The work-to-rest ratio can vary from 1:1 (for example, 30 seconds on, 30 seconds off) to 1:4 or more, and the rounds can be just a few or 15 or more. Always try and gradually progress: either by reducing the rest periods, extending the work periods, adding one more round at the end or all these 3.

Don’t forget to supplement with BCAA before and after your cardio to minimise catabolism.

@wawannutrition WBCAA or Ronnie Coleman series Aminotone are a good choices for your BCAA supplementation

@wawanbahrain

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About oats

Posted on March 23, 2018 by Tammy

Fit Oatmeal

Oats are a gluten-free whole grain and a great source of vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants. They have a lot of health benefits:

⁃ lower blood sugar levels

⁃ Reduce the risk of heart disease

⁃ Reduce blood cholesterol levels.

Oats are a good source of carbs and fiber and they’re rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants play a role in keeping blood pressure low by increasing nitric oxide production.

Oats also contain beta-glucans, which is a soluble fiber and it helps with:

⁃ reduced levels of bad cholesterol

⁃ Reduced blood sugar and insulin response

⁃ Increased feeling of fullness

⁃ Increased growth of good bacteria in the digestive tract.

Fit Oatmeal also contains 30gr of slow and fast releasing protein making it a very healthy and protein rich meal replacement snack when you’re on the go.

Available at any branch @wawanbahrain

About GABA

Posted on March 3, 2018 by Tammy

Gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA, is a substance that bodybuilders and other athletes sometimes use when looking for a competitive edge. It is an amino acid that serves as a neurotransmitter in the brain.

GABA acts on the pituitary gland, which controls synthesis of growth hormone and also plays a role in body temperature and sleep cycles. GABA supplements increase growth hormone levels, facilitate muscle recovery, relieve anxiety and induce sleep. The results that athletes hope for are more lean muscle tissue and lower body fat levels.

GABA was discovered in 1950 and has since been recognized as the dominant inhibitory neurotransmitter in the brain. There are excitatory neurotransmitters as well, like adrenaline, which, in excess, can lead to anxiety, insomnia, and restlessness.

The brain balances these effects by sending out other neurotransmitters that have calming effects, such as GABA. By inhibiting the action of excitatory neurotransmitters and reducing anxiety and restlessness, GABA promotes relaxation and sleepiness, and thus, as a supplement, can be a fantastic aid for people who suffer from insomnia and anxiety.

To understand how GABA influences a person’s sleeping patterns, it’s important that you understand the standard cycle that the brain undergoes each night during sleep. The following is an overview of the different sleep stages.

Stage 1 is when you’re getting sleepy and are ready to drift off.
Stage 2 – Your brainwave activity quickens and follows a steadier rhythm. Your core temperature and heart rate decrease.
Stage 3 sees the emergence of deeper, slower brain waves. Here, you switch from light sleep to deep sleep.
Stage 4 is the deep sleep stage, also known as delta sleep. This is a vitally important stage because it’s where much of the highest-quality sleep occurs.
Stage 5 is the REM (rapid-eye movement) stage, where most dreams occur.

The third and fourth stage are arguably the most important. Stage three, the slow-wave sleep stage, is important because it reduces the level of cortisol, the stress hormone, in the body, and simultaneously reduces inflammation. Both of these are important for improving your nightly sleep.

The fourth stage, deep sleep, is important because it helps your immune system grow stronger. In a similar manner that your brain commits things to memory, your immune system “memorizes” pathogens and viruses to memory during this phase.

Getting a proper sleep cycle each night is crucial for optimal health, and the brain’s GABA system is primarily responsible for activating each stage. Activated GABA receptors—which require a source of GABA to actually be activated—promote quality sleep, especially in stages three and four.

ProSupps CRASH contains GABA therefore it promotes deep REM sleep which increases growth hormone levels and helps with muscle recovery. Available at @wawanbahrain

About glucosamine

Posted on February 5, 2018 by Tammy

Glucosamine

Glucosamine is a compound naturally found within the cartilage of our joints, made from chains of sugars and proteins bound together. It acts as one of the body’s natural shock-absorbents and joint lubricants. Glucosamine possesses natural anti-inflammatory and anti-aging properties. One of the most popular supplements taken by people with bone and joint pain glucosamine aids in treating common symptoms of age-related disorders like arthritis and osteoarthritis.

Using glucosamine supplements or obtaining it from natural sources increases the amount of cartilage and fluid that surrounds our joints. This helps prevent joint breakdown and reduces pain.

Glucosamine slows down deterioration of joints when used long-term, plus it offers other benefits that prescription painkillers cannot (such as lowering chronic inflammation and improving digestive health).

Chondroitin

Chondroitin is a natural substance found in the human body and a major component of cartilage, which helps build connective tissue throughout the body. Because it works by retaining water, it helps add lubrication and flexibility to tissue and joints.

Chondroitin used with glucosamine helps lower symptoms associated with loss of collagen and cartilage, which are found in tendons, joints, ligaments, skin and the digestive tract. These conditions can include tendonitis, bursitis and so on. In healthy people, when cartilage becomes damaged due to overuse, injury or inflammation, new cartilage is normally produced to take its place. Unfortunately, as we get older our ability to regenerate lost cartilage and repair damaged connective tissue becomes less efficient.

In both humans and animals, glucosamine and chondroitin stimulate the production of new cartilage and can also help reduce inflammation in the process.

Source: https://draxe.com/chondroitin/

About L-glutamine

Posted on January 30, 2018 by Tammy

L-glutamine is the most abundant amino acid in the bloodstream.

L-glutamine benefits the body in the following ways:

1. Improves gastrointestinal health because it is a vital nutrient for the intestines to rebuild and repair

2. Helps heal ulcers and leaky gut by acting as a Band-Aid for protection from further damage

3. Is an essential neurotransmitter in the brain and helps with memory, focus and concentration (

4. Improves IBS and diarrhoea by balancing mucus production, which results in healthy bowel movements

5. Promotes muscle growth and decreases muscle wasting

6. Improves athletic performance and recovery from endurance exercise

7. Improves metabolism and cellular detoxification

8. Curbs cravings for sugar and alcohol

9. Fights cancer

10. Improves diabetes and blood sugar

Doing approximately one hour of exercise can cause a 40 percent reduction of glutamine in the body. It can also cause suppressed immune function. This has a negative impact on your resistance training and may lead to overtraining syndrome.

Supplementing with L-glutamine allows your muscles to fight and push a bit further, which boosts your strength and helps repair your skeletal muscles.

L-glutamine supplementation makes it possible to recover quicker from intense weight training sessions because it improves muscle hydration. This aids the muscle recovery process and reduces recovery time for wounds and burns.

L-glutamine also burns fat and builds lean muscle mass by helping suppress insulin levels and stabilize blood glucose. This enables the body to use up less muscle mass to maintain blood sugar and insulin sensitivity in the cells. For this reason, L-glutamine benefits diabetics and those with sugar and carb cravings as well.

About beta-alanine

Posted on January 24, 2018 by Tammy

Beta-alanine is a non-essential amino acid. It is not used by the body to synthesize proteins. Instead, together with histidine, it produces carnosine.

Carnosine reduces lactic acid accumulation in your muscles during exercise, which leads to improved athletic performance.

In muscles, histidine levels are normally high and beta alanine levels are normally low, which limits the carnosine production.

Since beta alanine supplements increase carnosine levels in muscles, they help the muscles reduce their acid levels during exercise. This leads to reduced fatigue.

Beta-alanine improves athletic performance. It can reduce fatigue, increase endurance and boost performance in high-intensity exercises.

In general, muscle acidosis limits the duration of high-intensity exercise.

For this reason, beta-alanine specifically helps performance during high-intensity and short-duration exercise lasting one to several minutes.

It’s possible that beta-alanine improves body composition by increasing training volume and promoting muscle growth

L-carnosine’s health benefits are generally due to its antioxidant properties, which support many age-related conditions. The specific uses of L-carnosine include support for the skin, joints, digestive system and memory. Carnosine also prevents changes in the structure and function of proteins in the body. This may give it some anti-aging properties.

Moreover, carnosine seems to elevate nitric oxide production. This may help against the aging process and improve immune function.

Lastly, carnosine increases the quality and function of muscles in the elderly.

It is generally recommended to consume 2-5 grams of beta-alanine daily. Taking it with a meal may be even more effective.

The most common side effect of beta-alanine is paraesthesia.

This is an unusual sensation typically described as “tingling of the skin.” It’s usually experienced in the face, neck and back of the hands.

The intensity of this tingling increases with dosage size. It usually starts with doses of 800 mg or higher, and disappears 60–90 minutes after consumption. But there is no evidence that paraesthesia is harmful in any way.

Wawan WBCAA recovery contains 1.8gr of Beta-Alanine, 10gr of BCAAs and 2.5gr of L-Glutamine, with 12gr of carbs – it makes it a perfect intra workout drink.

About diabetes – part 1

Posted on January 1, 2018 by Tammy

There are 3 main types of diabetes mellitus:

Type 1 Diabetes: results from the pancreas failing to produce enough insulin

Type 2 Diabetes: a condition of defective insulin signalling

Gestational Diabetes: a condition where women without previously diagnose diabetes exhibit high blood glucose levels during pregnancy.

When insulin isn’t produced or acts ineffectively, glucose remains circulating in the blood, leading to a condition known as hyperglycemia. Long term hyperglycemia can result in the dysfunction and failure of various organs and systems, including the eyes, kidneys, nerves, heart and blood vessels.

The key players in diabetes are the pancreas and the liver.

The pancreas is both an endocrine and exocrine gland.

Exocrine means that it’s a gland that release its contents through a tube from inside to outside the body. It helps with digestion by producing important enzymes that break down food, which allows the body to absorb the nutrients.

The endocrine function primarily involves the secretion of the 2 primary hormones relevant to diabetes management: insulin and glucagon.

Insulin increases the storage of glucose, fatty acids and amino acids in cells and tissues and is considered an anabolic hormone. Insulin is a key player in the storage and use of fuels within the body.

Disorders in insulin production and signalling have widespread and devastating effects on the body’s organs and tissues. Glucagon is a peptide hormone produced by alpha cells in the pancreas. The pancreas releases glucagon when blood sugar levels fall too low. It opposes the action of insulin by raising the concentration of glucose in the blood.

Dietary carbs are not essential, however, the body needs glucose. The brain typically needs about 130 gr of glucose every day. Not all glucose has to come from the diet because the liver has the ability to synthesise it.

The liver serves as a warehouse for glucose storage and production. It can also produce fatty acids under certain conditions.

As blood glucose and insulin levels increase, the liver increases its absorption of glucose. Glucose is stored as glycogen. The amount of glycogen stored depends on circulating insulin and glucose levels. When blood glucose levels drop, insulin production falls. The shortage of insulin signals the liver to release its assets by sending glucose back into the blood to keep the body nourished.

When carb intake is restricted, it lowers blood sugar and insulin levels. As insulin levels fall and energy is needed, fatty acids leave their respected fat cells and enter the bloodstream. From here they’re taken up by specific cells and metabolised. Ketone bodies are molecules created in the liver, that are pushed into the blood stream where they’re utilised by skeletal and heart muscles cells as fuel. Also, the brain begins to use ketones as an alternate fuel source when blood levels are high enough to cross the blood-brain barrier. When this happens a person is said to be in nutritional ketosis.

Ketogenic diets are very popular because they suppress insulin and that seems to be very effective in the treatment and management of obesity and T2D. However the severe restriction of carbs (often below 30 gr) may increase the potential for hypoglycaemia of people with T1D.

Lipogenesis is creating fat within the body from glucose or other substrates. It takes place mostly in the liver. Lipogenesis occurs in the liver during times of calorific excess and overfeeding. The liver converts excess glucose to fatty acids. These fatty acids can be stored in the liver or transported via lipoproteins (carriers) to muscle and fat tissue for future fuel use or storage. The ratio that is stored or used is highly dependent on energy intake vs. energy expenditure.

In a healthy liver, insulin halts the production of glucose and instead promotes glycogen storage or generates fatty acids during times of energy excess.

The liver of a person with T1D has no internal break system. Insulin deficiency allows glucose production in the liver to go uncontrolled leading to hyperglycaemia and ketoacidosis if unmanaged. When there’s not enough insulin available, glucose cannot enter the cells for use as energy. Therefore the liver produces even more glucose in an attempt to provide energy for the starved cells, but because insulin is not available, none of this glucose can enter the cells. It builds up and starves the cells even further. Consequently, administration of insulin medication is needed to facilitate the entry of glucose into cells.

Insulin increases glucose uptake in the liver by facilitating the creation of glycogen and decreases glucose output.

Prolonged elevations in insulin that result from an energy surplus increase the body’s ability to produce fat via the process of lipogenesis.

Source:

Phil Graham: Diabetic Muscle

As a newly qualified sports and exercise nutritional advisor…

Posted on July 18, 2016 by Tammy

Getting some nutrition and training plans done for my clients. When it comes to nutrition I always favour a pro thyroid / pro metabolic approach and include an ‘avoid’ food list that promotes inflammation and therefore slows down thyroid production and metabolism. The main aim in every diet is to keep your metabolism high. An overall hormonal balance is very important and it is achievable with the right nutrition.

The right type of foods at the right time can mean success or failure in performance or weight loss.

I am available for nutrition consultations and bespoke Nutrition plans and training plans, 121 and online training, contact me on hello@tamaramakar.me or KIK: tamaramakar

#tamaramakar #nutrition #diet #coach #nutritionadvisor #worldchampion #onlinecoaching #prothyroid #prometabolic #thyroidhealth #coaching #followme