Designer Protein 20% Off Sale On Bodybuilding.com!

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Bodybuilding.com is having a big sale on ALL Designer Protein products this month!

Go to http://www.bodybuilding.com/store/designer-protein.htm and make sure to enter the following discount code:

DesignerProtein20

The code is good for a 20% off all Designer Protein and will be effective from today through October 31st.

designer-protein-products

Nuzest

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I was recently introduced to a company called Nuzest, which is committed to developing nutritional products which optimize people’s diets and put them on the right track to feeling their best.

The Clean Lean Protein is pea protein-based, allergen free, and a complete protein. It mixes beautifully, tastes great, and is highly digestible and absorbable, which sets it apart from the majority of proteins out there. Another outstanding feature of the Clean Lean Protein is the fact that it is one of the few alkaline proteins on the market, with a pH of 7.8. It’s paleo friendly too.

If you are looking for a top-notch plant-based protein, look no further than Clean Lean Protein!

Nuzest also has a greens product called Good Green Stuff which features over 75 ingredients for comprehensive nutritional support.

Go to nuzest.com to order these great products, and be on the lookout for my video review of Clean Lean Protein on YouTube later this month!

PlateJoy

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Check out this great site which offers customized meal plans that you make at home. Recipes are scaled to fit individual nutrition needs and also accommodate dietary restrictions such as non-GMO, gluten free, vegan, etc.

Personalized meal plan access

Custom recipes tailored to you

On-demand grocery lists

As many courses as you’d like (breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack)

Change dietary preferences any time

On-demand advice from our nutrition-focused personal chefs

Full nutritional information for every meal

Connect PlateJoy with your JawBone or FitBit

HOW IT WORKS:

1. Personalize – Take their lifestyle quiz so they can get to know your tastes, health goals, and time constraints.

2. Discover – Receive custom-designed meal plans that will simplify your life and delight your taste buds.

3. Enjoy – Cook healthy meals effortlessly, with custom recipes and shopping lists sent straight to your phone.

https://www.platejoy.com/

Hot Logic Is Amazing

Please check out my review of the Hot Logic Mini on YouTube!

It’s a portable mini oven which you can take everywhere with you! All you need is a power source, and you can heat up pre-made meals or even cook something from scratch.

Another HUGE selling point about the Hot Logic Mini is that your food heats up evenly, and is the perfect temperature whenever you’re ready to eat it. You’ll get that fresh baked oven flavor, not that nasty microwave heated flavor. Another great feature about the Hot Logic Mini is that it enables you to heat up a meal in a hotel room (many hotel rooms no longer have microwave ovens), board room, or any room where you have access to a power source.

Go to http://www.hot-logic-mini.com/staceynaito to order, and you’ll save 20% off your order.

Which Protein Powder If You’re Lactose Intolerant?

If you are lactose intolerant, then you are quite accustomed to checking to see if dishes contain dairy. You might also be wary of whey and casein protein powders due to their derivation from milk. However, if you have only a mild lactose intolerance, you may not have an issue with whey and casein. Why is this?

Many individuals with a mild lactose intolerance are fine with whey protein isolate as well as with casein. Both whey and casein are separated from the lactose during processing. There are small concentrations of lactose which bypass the separation, but usually this is not enough to mount a reaction in a mildly lactose intolerant individual. Only the most sensitive individuals will have a problem with these forms of protein. Bear in mind that whey concentrate is not the same as whey isolate, and that individuals who are more lactose intolerant or who have other gut issues might not tolerate the concentrate form of whey.

You may be asking what the big deal is with whey and casein, and whether they are better than other forms of protein. Why take a chance of mounting a reaction in the belly when there are other forms of protein?
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Whey is a complete protein, meaning that it provides all the amino acids the body requires. It is also relatively cheap. Casein protein is also a complete protein, and is digested very slowly, making it a great option for bedtime.

While soy is also a complete protein, it undergoes considerable processing, and it contains phytoestrogens which are estrogen mimics. I am definitely not a fan of soy protein and will not advocate its use.

Rice, hemp and pea proteins are good alternatives for the vegan or vegetarian crowd, but since they are not complete proteins, they must be combined to fill out the amino acid profile. Rice protein is very easily digested, while pea protein has glutamic acid, which helps convert carbs into energy instead of being stored as fat. Hemp protein is rich in omega-6 fatty acids and has a high fiber content.

As long as you mix plant based proteins to get a complete profile, you will not be at a disadvantage if you cannot tolerate whey or casein. However, when it comes to cost, nutrition profile, and convenience, whey will always win the prize for being the king of protein powders.

On a personal note, I discovered that I had a mild intolerance to whey and a moderate intolerance to casein, and though I only have a mild case of lactose intolerance, the whey and casein proteins themselves cause my body to react. As a result, I keep whey protein intake to a minimum, consuming only a small amount (about 20 grams) a few times per week. This is a drastic drop from the 60 to 70 grams of whey protein which I was ingesting during my competing days in the off-season.

These days, I opt for soy-free plant-based proteins. Since the combination of pea and rice proteins delivers a complete amino acid profile, I tend to look for those blends. Healthy Skoop has a very tasty version which mixes beautifully:

Protein

I also use MitoXcell’s new Plant Protein formula, which also features hemp protein and the original MitoXcell formula for mitochondrial optimization. I think it’s a superior protein, but it’s a bit chalky for my tastes:

MitoXcell Plant Protein

Some Foods Just Don’t Like Me

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As one who loves most types of foods and who isn’t particularly finicky, I look back fondly on the days when I could eat whatever I wanted without any digestive or reactive consequence. Sadly, the past three years have been defined by a number of food intolerances which have required me to monitor what I eat. I honestly believe that the extreme and repetitive meal plans which I consumed while competing were major factors in the development of my food intolerance issues. During one particular contest prep regimen, I began to notice that every single time I ate broccoli, I would get severe abdominal cramps and a headache which persisted for an entire day (now they last for 3-5 days if I am stupid enough to eat even one small floret).

After my last Pro contest in June of 2014, I noticed that other foods were aggravating my gut, my skin, my head and my mood, so I decided to eliminate them. In January of 2015, I had an ALCAT food intolerance test , and was pretty stunned by the results. Not only was broccoli on the list of offending foods for me, but I also apparently had SEVERE gluten intolerance, as well as intolerance to coconut, mangos, casein, blueberries, and a number of other foods considered healthy. In an effort to allow my body to calm down, I eliminated every food which I had any intolerance to (there were about 30 foods) for close to a year.

Because I am hoping and assuming that my body has reset from the elimination of offending foods, I currently allow myself to have blueberries, coconut, mango, lobster, cashews, bison, and spinach on occasion, and have noticed no reactions. However, every single time I eat broccoli or any food which has barley in it, I regret doing so within 30 minutes. This means that pizza (which I actually don’t consider a favorite food) is no longer a cheat meal option, not unless it is a gluten free version. Food combinations also wreak havoc on me. For example, if I have pizza and wine, I might as well forget about functioning like a normal person for a couple of days.

If you suspect that you have food intolerance, try eliminating the suspect food to see if it makes a difference. Trust your body’s signals. And if you want to get a food intolerance test, check out ALCAT.com and Everlywell.com for the kits they offer.