Mike Cheliak: Photography, Fitness, Nutrition and Life

Welland Triathlon

The HSBC/MultiSport Canada Triathlon Series – Welland Triathlon

A little rainy but otherwise another nice event under the belt!  Some good times were recorded with Wolfgang Guembel (Pro Triathlete) shredding the course in 1:23:30!  He was six mintues ahead of the two next finishers who I know are both very talented and experienced Triathletes!

SHOT OF THE RACE

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In Happiness and Health as always!

Mike C.

Something about Salmon

Salmon has been and does remain somewhat of an “acquired taste” for most people.  It has a rather unique taste that has a bit of a heady flavour and requires somewhat of an open mind.

The trick with salmon is to select the correct cut and also the correct cooking method.  Salmon has a fair amount of fat (very healthy fat) but fat none the less.  Grilling is the ultimate way to cook salmon and I prefer using Norwegian Steelhead Salmon with the skin on.  The cold water of Norway makes for a very nice fish that is low in sodium and VERY HIGH in Omega 3 Fatty Acids.

Preparing Salmon for grilling is fairly easy.  Keep it simple.  Use a number of alternatives such as lemon & dill, lime & cilantro or my favourite pure dark maple syrup.  If you are grilling with the skin on, just put your BBQ on low and season your grille with olive oil before laying the salmon portions.  If you have a skin off salmon, I recommend using a soaked Cedar Plank or a heavy foil barrier.  Either way, you just set your grille, put your salmon on, close the cover and let it cook for 15 minutes or so.

Salmon is great served with sides like curried yams, mixed greens with a balsamic vinaigrette or grilled asparagus.  Which ever way you slice it, salmon is a two fold winner.  It provides an amazing heart healthy Omega 3 fat and it also provides a nice alternative to steak or traditional BBQ meat.  Salmon is hearty, dense and ready to be cooked!

In happiness and health as always…

Mike C.

Changing Workouts

Almost all people involved in fitness know that changing your routine is critical to ensuring you get results.  Our bodies are highly adaptive and therefore will adjust to new stimuli in a relatively short period of time.  As a general observation you should shake up everything around the 4 week mark although a little longer won’t hurt if your routine is diverse.

Many training variables can be manipulated in an attempt to optimize the exercise program: the number of sets per exercise, repetitions per set, the types of exercises, number of exercises per training session, rest periods between sets and exercises, resistance used for a set, type and tempo of muscle action (e.g., eccentric, concentric, isometric), and the number of training sessions per day and per week.

I had to take a couple weeks off while getting used to my BP medication and in this time, I researched a lot of information about effective management of BP with fitness and nutrition.  The one thing I do have to face is my heredity and therefore I may be on meds for good.  This doesn’t mean that I can’t work towards lowering the amount I have to take however!

My new routines are going to be much lighter in weight (no more meathead Mike!).  Gone will be the days of Deadlifting 405 and Squatting 405 or doing ANYTHING with 405!  My main focus is going to be building more endurance through biking, running, intervals and lighter weight lifting.

The weight routine change will be to perform light weight routines that challenge the muscle and then very little rest until continuing.  Supersets, Tri-Supersets, Circuits, Complexes and body weight movements will all be a key part of the routines.  These type of routines work and build your cardio and endurance, help you shred fat and still maintain muscle tone and density.  You will not have any Hypertrophy (muscle growth) with routines like this but you will build your definition.

Just remember that no matter what type of routine you are doing…shake it up every once in a while.  Try to do something different every four weeks to re-challenge your body.  Craig Ballantyne’s Turbulence Training System is a great place to start to any fitness level.  His programs are diverse and his database of workouts is ENORMOUS!

In happiness and health as always…

Mike C.

Iced Green Tea

No not store bought Green Tea…Homemade! The anti-oxidant benefits of Green Tea are well documented so I won’t get into the technical details. What I will however mention is that too many people drink too many sugared or artificially sweetened beverages.

Carbonated sodas, diet drinks and mixes that are so jacked full of chemicals that you won’t recognize 3/4 of the ingredients and also sugary beverages disguised as “fruit juices”.

Your body needs water and liquid (more than you realize). To figure out your daily water requirement take your body weight and divide it in half (IE 200 pounds becomes 100). That is how many ounces you need. Add 8 ounces for every coffee or caffeinated beverage you have (it is a diuretic). Also add another 20 ounces per hour if you are doing strenuous work or exercise.

OK…that is a tonne of water. I am around 200 pounds so I drink at least that much in a day plus a hydration mix for exercise. You can drink too much water which will dilute your sodium level so it is a good idea to use an electrolyte replacement drink when working out. You DON’T need to jack up on the sugary ones either! HEED and ELOAD are two good brands as well as SURGE workout drink from Biotest (expensive though).

One of my favourite drink options is to do up some basic green tea. Take a jug of water (3L jug or so) and fill it with clean water. I have an RO system at my home but clean tap water will suffice. Add 6 green tea bags and let it steep overnight on the counter.

Refrigerate and then go to town. I have it plain, with lemon, with lime, with orange slices (or all three sometimes). I also do a nice SUPER ANTI-OXIDANT drink and add 2 ounces of POM with some ice and YUMMO!  Another nice variation is to muddle (scrunch and mash) some fresh mint in a glass and then add the iced tea.  Garnish with a mint sprig and you are HEALTHY AND COOL!

Inspire your Green Tea…You might just like it!

In happiness and health as always!

Mike .

Blood Pressure, be vigilant!

About 3.5 years ago, I had a high blood pressure problem.  I was also overweight (240 pounds), out of shape and not very active.  I got my “wake up call” and started re-educating myself, re-energizing myself and basically kicked myself in the ass for letting it get so far out of whack!

Here I am three years later, I have lost 55 pounds of body fat, put on 15 pounds of lean muscle and stay fit by using dynamic weight lifting routines, interval sprints and serious biking both on and off road.  I have schooled myself in nutrition and practice very good eating habits (at least 90% of the time – HEHE).

Last week I almost passed out at the gym doing dead lifts!

Without rebuilding my entire history, I went a couple days with some recurring dizzy spells and finally went to the Doctor.  Without getting into specifics; my BP was extremely high.  Higher than it was when I was a fatty!  I don’t eat a lot of  salt or processed food with hidden salt.  I am a serial label reader and most of my food comes from whole unprocessed sources.

HEREDITY!

My family history is marked with high BP.  I didn’t know how vast the problem was until I talked to my Dad.  The long and short of it is that I will likely need to be monitored on a regular basis and have some type of medication for the rest of my life.  I may be able to redouble my efforts nutritionally but the fact is; You can’t change hereditary conditions.

Here is the Crux of this post.  YOU ARE NOT IMMUNE TO HEALTH PROBLEMS JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE FIT!!!!!  A lot of athletes and fitness minded people have a very profound sense of invincibility.  I know the feeling because I did too up until last week.  Now I have come to the understanding that nobody is safe from “unseen” illnesses.  The only way to be sure is to be VIGILANT!

Whether Blood Pressure, heart conditions or any other type of illness or potential life threatening condition, I urge anyone reading this post to assess the value of seeing a physician on a regular basis to make sure you don’t get caught.

The good news is that I am fit, my heart is doing just fine and my blood work is all good.  It’s also a good damn thing that I did start getting fit 3.5 years ago as I may not be writing this if I wasn’t.  I will eventually get used to this medication (it is making me a little wonky but it is working) and I will start a new fitness regimen built around a healthy Blood Pressure.

I hope this post reaches at least one person that could use the “wake up call”.  Don’t wait until it’s too late!

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C.

Calorie Counter – Complete Nutritional Facts for Every Diet!

BINBROOK TRIATHLON SHOT OF THE RACE

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HSBC/MultiSport Canada Binbrook Triathlon

BINBROOK TRIATHLON PHOTO GALLERY

Well, the weather was perfect and not nearly as hot as in some previous years!  The Binbrook Triathlon is a fantastic little venue set in the Binbrook Conservation area south of Hamilton, Ontario.  The Conservation Area is part of the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority and boasts Lake Niapenco reservoir, the largest inland lake in the Niagara Watershed.

The water course is nice, clean and free from any major currents and rough water, the bike course is flat and fast and the run course is a nicely scenic tour of the Conservation area (a bigger tour depending on your race).

The theme of this event post is YOUTH!  Man, did we have some fast young men and women ripping up the GT 12.9 course this weekend!  Four out of the five top athletes (both male and female) in the GT 12.9 Triathlon (Give it a Tri) were Junior Athletes under 20 years old (some a lot younger than that!

I have been with the series since 2003 and have seen these young people grow from little Kid’s of Steele munchkins to these specimens of speed!  A big congratulations to all the kids out racing and keeping fit.  Your dedication to fitness and excellence is a perfect role model for youth of today.

Too often we allow our kids to “take the easy road” and hang out unattended instead of focusing on something productive.  These young racers train with great dedication to be as good as they are and my hat is off for their determination, dedication to the sport and to their parents for encouraging them and supporting them with their efforts.

I happiness and health as always…

Mike C.

Lakeside Shot of the Race Winners

Congratulations to Carina Orschel and Francisco Moreno.  They have been voted by YOU as the Lakeside Weekend Shot of the Race winners.  Each athlete will recieve a FREE 8×10 photo of their shot of the race.

Contratulations again and remember…if you are racing…it’s better to look good than it is to feel good darling!

In happiness and health as always…

Mike C.

Those Darned DOMS

From time to time anyone training can expect to experience some level of DOMS (delayed-onset muscle soreness).  Quite often it is experienced when you are going into a new routine of unfamiliar exercises or after taking a rest week.  A good general rule of thumb is to ease into the new exercises.  Jumping in full bore is sometimes a recipe for a good case of DOMS.

I shouldn’t really be one to preach because I am having a DOMS day today after yesterday’s squat-fest and workout!  I would have been advised to take it a bit easier than I did and as an experienced lifter; I should have.  None-the-less, I didn’t and my A** and legs are a little tender today.

The first thing is that there really isn’t any “magical” cure for DOMS.  There are a number of partially effective methods but none have been clinically proven as completely reliable.

NSAIDS such as Ibuprofen have the potential to alleviate some of the symptoms of DOMS, but there are many issues regarding dosage, drug allergy sensitivity and the fact that you are relying on a chemical to cure what ails you.

Therapeutic treatment using physical modalities such as icing, massage or stretching are inconsistent at best. Acupuncture, herbal remedies and hyperbaric oxygen therapy (injured athletes breathe 100% oxygen)are found to be of limited use. Some reviews did indicate that of all the therapies examined, icing the affected area was the most effective.

Nutritional supplements are touted (by the people that sell them) as being the best method of treatment.  Post workout, surge recovery, mega-paks…you name it, we got it.  Save your money.  There is NO clinical proof that any of that snake oil works.  I use creatine once in a while when bulking up and I have the odd protein shake like the ones posted here.  I don’t by into the jacked up philosophy of all the other supplement companies that sell you whatever they can because..that is their business!

Light exercise is my little remedy.  It’s not so much a “get back on the horse” mentality rather it is my little way of getting my stiff extremeties moving.  I am always very careful not to over exert the affected area.  Today I did a very light 40k bike ride.  I never got much speed up and didn’t challenge any hills or hard riding.  I still have a sore A** but my legs do feel a little better.  Again, this “therapy” is not held as being wholly effective but it is what I do.

Bottom line?
Until there is some definitive answers, you should try to ease into any unfamiliar exercises (especially if they have a heavy eccentric component). Failing that, (like I did yesterday) if you get a little case of DOMs, with some appropriate rest and recovery, Mother Nature should take her course over 2-3 days and you’ll be able to get back to your training, relatively pain-free.  As for me. I am back in the gym tomorrow doing my Push/Pull/Big/Small with CORE and intervals.  My intervals will work around any residual soreness and I will likely do Dumbbell swings in 30/30 work/rest intervals.

In happiness and health as always!

Mike C.

As for me

Workout Schedules

We all lead busy lives and I am no different.  This time of year for me is fantastic.  I am busy all the time from May – June shooting dance studios and sports leagues.  I try to get most of the 6000 kids photographed before school is out so I can have everything processed, packaged and delivered by mid-July.  Triathlon season is also in swing from the first week of June so all my weekends are pretty much spent travelling and shooting.

This leads me to today’s little post.  I usually try to workout with weights on Monday, Wednesday and Friday with some alternate stuff on Tuesday and Thursday (biking, a light jog, yard work, stretching, body-weight complexes…).  Yesterday (Monday) was just way too busy for me getting caught up after the weekend Triathlon so I wasn’t able to get to the gym.

Instead of blowing the day off, I “unplugged” and did a series of bodyweight complex circuits for 30 minutes.  The basic idea is to take a group of complimentary exercises and combine them (upper, lower, core…) into a circuit.  Complete the circuit, rest a minute and repeat as many times as you can in 30 minutes.  It is a great workout and a nice way to break up the work day.

Today I got back into the gym and started my Monday, Wednesday, Friday routine except I will work it on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.  It really doesn’t matter what day, as long as you set a good regimen with ample rest between heavy days.  I lift fairly heavy but use a simple method in the gym. 

First is that I am out in around one hour including warm up and stretching, second is that I don’t spend a lot of time between sets (1 minute rest), third rule is to try to do super-sets with all your exercises.  I have started doing a core exercise after each main movement.  The final rule is to keep it simple and to use mostly compound exercises.

I do a set up like this.

1 Push – (Shoulder press, military press, bench press, DB press, dips)
1 Pull -  (Chin-up/Pull-up, bent over row, DB row, pull downs, cable rows)
1 Big – (Squat or variation, Dead-lift or variation)
1 Small (Single movements like Bicep curls, calf raises, Leg extensions/curls, Triceps push-downs…)

Between every set (except the squats or dead-lifts) I do a core exercise such as plank, side plank, mountain climbers, Stability ball pike or roll-out or any other exercise that makes you stabilize your core.

The other thing to keep in mind is the variation of angle and alternating to one handed movements like one handed incline presses or one handed dumbbell movements.  I have followed the Turbulence Training program for a while now and believe me; IT WORKS!.  It has also given me enough confidence to build my own routines that work best for my body type.

The final piece of the puzzle are the intervals.  I don’t do any steady state cardio aside from light jogging or biking.  All my work is done in 10-20 minutes of intense work/rest interval training.  I work 8 out of 10 for 30 seconds and rest for a minute usually but do variations on that.  I also switch between treadmill sprints, spin bike sprints and body-weight or dumbbell/kettlebell swings.

Variation is key to ensure your body doesn’t adapt and keeping this type of program is great because the variations are almost endless. 

Today’s workout went like this…

5 minutes on the treadmill light jogging followed by ballistic stretching movements for another 5 minutes.

Each set is preceded by adequate warm-up sets (usually 50% of your real set weight).  Once you have warmed up, each main set is done in 5 sets.  On heavy days I do 25 total reps for each movement on medium days I do 40 and on Light days I do 60.

HEAVY DAY (5 sets of 5 reps)
DB Chest Press – 110 pounds
CORE – Plank (30 seconds)

Weighted Chin-ups – 45 pound weight added
CORE - X-Body mountain climbers (10 reps each side)

Squats – (365 pounds) – I usually do at least 3-4 warm up sets using progressively heavier weight

DB bicep curls  – 50 pounds
CORE – Stability Ball roll-out (12 reps)

INTERVALS – Treadmill – warm-up for 2 minutes then ramp up for 30 seconds (11mph) and slow for 1 minute (4 mph), repeat 6 times and then cool down for 2 minutes.

LIGHT STRETCHING – about 5 minutes of light stretching variations working upper and lower joints.

This type of weight training is not for novices, it is a considerable program for more advanced lifters.  You should always get a personal trainer to show you the correct way of doing all exercises but especially the heavy movements like dead-lifts and squats.  Correct form is everything with these movements and doing them incorrectly can lead to SERIOUS injury!

In happiness and health as always…

Mike C.