External Craving Hack

Ever walked past a bakery early in the morning, right as soon as they open? Sniffing up the delicious bouquets of fresh goods you get the sudden urge to stop in and pick something up. If so, you just experienced an external food craving.

External food cravings are one of the toughest uphill battles we face when changing our dietary lifestyle. Whether we’re in a social setting, bombarded with advertisements, or even walking past a good smelling bakery, it hits pretty hard. We have to stick to our guns.

Luckily I have a small strategy that helps my team mates and I stay on course. As competitive combat athletes we have to maintain a respective weight range. We also come up with some pretty wacky hacks for keeping our weight at bay. The easiest one I've notice is brushing or mouth rinsing.

We simply carry a portable toothbrush with paste or mouth wash and use them right before a social setting or after a meal to help thwart off a craving. The toothpaste or mouth rinse will alter the taste in your mouth, which can help you turn off the switch on a external craving.Cinnamon and clove flavor is the most effective for me.

Now as you’re walking past this bakery you dig into your pocket and realize you forgot your mouth rinse. Another simple option is to stop breathing from your nose and go into mouth breathing mode. This way you will at least get a little taste of the aroma. 

Gum can be another option, but since the flavor dies off rather quickly you’ll most likely end up chewing a baseball size wad. Carrying the toothbrush with paste and mouth rinse helps us stay on track and keep our sanity when it comes to weight management.

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A Quickie On Our Anaerobic Energy System.

As a combat athlete you should be aware of the role our anaerobic energy system plays in our sport. There are 2 types of anaerobic energy systems that we use. I‘m not going to bore you with a biology lecture detailing each pathways. Instead I will highlight a few key notes every fighter should be aware of so that you know what's going on in your body during training.

Phosphocreatine system, which is the most explosive and sadly the shortest of our energy system. Think of a quick jab or flying knee KO. Creatine is the chief substrate of energy for this system. Depending on the athlete, this system can only last for 5-10 seconds. It can also regenerate during competition/training, depending on how well conditioned you are. Hence why some fighters are still explosive in rounds 2 & 3.

Glycolytic system, also known as the lactic energy system, which breaks down glucose and glycogen (the storage form of glucose). This is the main energy source that we fighters run on. It kicks in after 5-10 seconds, when phosphocreatine is exhausted, and can last about 2 minutes. One of the chief sources of energy for this system is glucose. Think 5 rounds of continuous heavy bag work.

It's important to take into account how our energy systems work. This will benefit you when constructing a strength & conditioning(S&C) program. You will be able to fine tune certain aspects of your training depending on your goals. This will allow you to customize to your needs instead of doing general S&C circuits. Catering your S&C to your energy system will significantly carry over to your fight.

Rinsing as a Pre Workout Snack Hack?

If you're looking for a quick pre workout snack you might benefit from rinsing your mouth with carbs. 30-15 mins prior to training you basically should ingest straight up simple carbs. Unless you're into having a full belly while training & farting your way through a session. 

Your body isn't likely to digest fats & proteins in such a short amount of time. Carbs however, specifically glucose, provides fuel instantly. With the help of the enzym Alpha-amylase/ptyalin digestion starts in our mouths.

Here's a write up from Erog-Log about rinsing with carbs.

 The athletes divided the drink over the duration of the ride. Each time they had to either swill liquid around in their mouth for 5 seconds and then spit it out [rinse], or swallow it immediately.

The triathletes who just rinsed with the drink clocked up 3.7 percent shorter times than the others. The rinsing boosted the amount of exertion the athletes could manage per unit of time. 

 With This Rinse, Performance Improvesfrom from NY Times

“Your brain tells your body, ‘Carbohydrates are on the way.’ ” And with that message, muscles and nerves are prompted to work harder and longer." 

 Seems promising? Maybe, you would have to expeiremnt for yourself to see if there is any real benifit or just expensive spit. I personally prefer to eat baby bananas pre workout. Chewing till my eye brows are white while the banana liquifys in my mouth. 

There are some claims that mouth-rinsing with carbs is really dependant on each athlete's pre-exercise nutritional status. I beleieve pre-exercise nutitional status also matters when it comes to those of us who train fasted. After all, our body stores energy for later use.

Negative Visions

Visualization training is a great tool that is often recommended by sports psychologist. Imagining your performance a few days before your fight will help you keep those nerves at bay. Here's one exercise I strongly recommend to keep your cool inside & outside of the ring.

I'm a strong believer in leaving no stone unturned. We all want to inflict our will upon our opponent but it's a big mistake if you're only thinking positive. There are gonna be times during your visualization training where a negative thought will cross your mind. What if I get KO? What if I don't check any kicks? What if he/she is stronger/faster than me? I'm going to feel humiliated. :( 

Don't force out any negative thoughts. Rather grant it a pass. Establish an answer to it. Then methodically let it float away with your solutions. As a fighter you must know what it feels like to swim in the deep end out of your comfort zone. Then with the hammer of Thor, force adaption on to it. 

Example 1: Conditioning

Biting down on your mouth piece when you're dead tired but still pushing the pace. You are fighting yourself more than the person in front of you. Imagine yourself feeling tired, out of breath, sore legs & arms. Get used to that feeling & fight through it. This gassing out feeling should be experienced during your physical training as well as your mental training.

Example 2: Answering right back.

It's very important during your fight camp to work on some sparring drills. Whether you block, parry or get hit you should establish a rhythm of firing back offensively. You want to enforce that into muscle memory then call upon it in your mental training. That would give you a slight peace of mind & a solution if you do find yourself getting peppered by your opponents attack.  

This  mental drill is intended to build perseverance. During your fight anything is possible. You can't control the outcome, but you can control the process. Your opponent might have a horse shoe up his ass & pancake you with a axe kick from hell. You have to be willing to accept these possibilities. Also keep in mind that you could be the one with the horse shoe up the ass!

Sauna Suits & Dandelion Roots.

Assess & Reassess For Weight Cutting.

Fighters often utilize every legal advantage they can. Using top of the line sports supplements, following the latest in strength & conditioning, hiring a nutrition consultant  & even penciling in appointments at the sports psychologist office. One of the most popular advantage to the combat athlete is weight cutting. These athletes aim to reduce body fat because adipose tissue isn't functional in competition. Also, weight cutting is believed to offer a desirable power to weight ratio. Which offers leverage over a evenly skilled opponent.

Most weight cutting athletes will disastrously lose muscle in the attempt to make their "scale" weight. Which can damage his/her performance. A 10 lbs loss of body fat means a higher power to weight ratio that will likely improve your performance. A 10 lbs loss of muscle...Well, I'm sure you don't want that. Unless of course you're all about the skinny fat hipster look.

Just because you are losing weight does not mean your power to weight ratio improved.  I can't stress enough how important it is to monitor your body composition along with your weight loss. Here are a few suggestions to help you assess & reassess during your weight loss

1. Estimate your body fat%. There are cheap convenient ways of doing this. Measuring tapes, calipers, scales & hand held BIA
2. Take pictures. You want to look for body composition improvement. Like a 4 pack instead of a 2 pack, lower ab veins for you lucky SOBs or visible muscle definition/striations.
3. Measure your height. Calorie restriction can cause a cascade of health problems. If your posture sucks ass or you are shrinking. Reassess ASAP.
4. Track nutrition intake. You can use free websites like FitDay or calorie counting apps
5.  Performance. Has your speed improved? Is your strength better at least the same?
6. Get good sleep! This will regulate your hormones. Which at the end of it all, dictates your body composition as well as your overall health.

Raw Figs as aphrodisiacs.

Figs are held highly when it comes to aphrodisiac foods. The open fig emulates a females sex organ. Maybe that explains why it was Cleopatra's favorite fruit? If you want to one up the aphrodisiac effects of the fig, you can try using the leaf as underwear. Your partner will be pleasantly excited or flat out laugh at you. Either way it's still a bonding moment & a win in my book!

"There are references of fig and fig trees in Greek mythology; the Greeks considered it sacred and associated it with fertility and love. In ancient Greece the arrival of the new fig crop was greeted with ritual copulation. The Romans considered the fig a gift from Bacchus, who was the God of intoxication. The fig was also Cleopatra's favorite fruit and it is rumored that the last meal before her death contained figs." Are Figs Really an Aphrodisiac?

Figs are a good source of Sugar, Water & Fiber. One fig about 50g contains 10g of sugar,1g of fiber & ranges 80-90% water. They're also a great source for Vitamin C,K,B6, & Thiamin. They're one of the riches plant source for Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium, Copper, & Manganese. Along with a plethora of antioxidants, flavanoids & polyphenols.

Rinse! Fight A Craving Right Now.

Mouth Wash

Having late night sugar cravings? Finished eating a meal but now you want something sweet? Trying to eat right but get side tracked when you see a chocolate bar?

Try rinsing your mouth! I've used this many times successfully while trying to eat clean or cut weight for a fight. It's a simple and affordable way to stay on track.

You can use Listerine, plain old sea salt with water or make your own. The mouth wash will not only freshen your breath & clean your teeth. The strong taste will rinse the craving right out of your tongue. 

Now if by any chance you start getting cravings for mouth wash. You'll have to relay on good ole will power. Try this today & beat those cravings before they add up!