What does the flight deck door and our muscles have in common?

The fight deck door and your muscles are more common than you think.

The flight deck door is built so no-one can easily break in. It's tough and you won't break in by knocking gently on the door. The crash axe on the other hand offers a much greater force and gives a better chance of breaking down the door...... it's all about the force! 

A similar scenario relates to our muscles, by gently "knocking on the door" (basically cardio exercise for long periods) we won't break down the muscle. We need force to break into our muscles, much like the crash axe (resistance training), to cause muscle breakdown and this leads to greater muscle growth.

Note:

Cardiovascular Exercise = low intensity exercise for a long period of time, for example, jogging.

Resistance Exercise = exercise that requires force from your muscle to move a resistant weight, for example, weights or bodyweight exercises.

The benefits of muscle muscle growth include:

1. Looking leaner
2. Feeling stronger
3. Having more "energy hungry" muscle to help us burn more fat

Lets look at these benefits in a little more detail:

1. Looking Leaner 

The worry about weight is over, muscle weighs MORE than fat! And we want more muscle!

Why? 

Because muscle is denser. For example, a kilo of bricks is the same weight as a kilo of feathers but they LOOK much different! The amount of bricks are smaller than the amount of feathers. The same as a kilo of muscle looks smaller than a kilo of fat. 

Building muscle defines our bodies. Muscle makes us look leaner, as it is denser and more compact than fat. 

Ladies are you worried about looking too "bulky" and muscular?

There is NO need to worry, as big muscle growth relies on hormones such as testosterone and growth hormones. You do not possess enough of these hormones naturally. Even the biggest of men take "steroids" (hormones) to allow the unnatural bulky muscle growth.

Resistance exercise will allow you to build more defined muscle and look leaner.

2. Feeling Stronger 

Through resistance training we can use enough weight/resistance that causes our muscle to produce a force intense enough to break the muscle fibres down. Through our recovery period, with the correct diet and rest, our muscle will  grow back stronger and bigger than before.

With more muscle, we will feel stronger. We are able to manage our bodies better in day to day movements such as walking up stairs, getting up from laying down and carrying our flight bag becomes easier.

3. Having more "energy hungry" muscle to help us burn more fat

Muscle is a living tissue and requires energy to survive. We need to feed our muscles. If we eat the real foods suggested throughout the flight crew health and fitness blog, it allows our body to burn body fat for energy. 

If we need more energy because of more muscle, we can burn more body fat, look leaner and feel stronger!

The flight deck door is always locked and so are your muscles, break them down with resistance exercises.

Check out this post on my top 5 hotel room exercises to find out what resistance exercises you can do today without going to the gym!

How I Burn Fat Snacking and Flying

Snacking is probably the worst habit all pilots and cabin crew have to endure and it's not our fault! In this post I'll cover the reasons why flight crew snack, how we can deal with snacking and how I snack to help burn fat!

I love this quote used by Zoe Harcombe:

"You are not a cow, stop grazing"

Zoe is a leading UK obesity expert working against the worlds obesity epidemic. This quote details the "normal" life of 3 to 6 full meals a day that would be welcomed into any healthy lifestyle. However, the days of the 25 minutes turn around are here to stay, with just enough time to catch our breath, a "sit down" meal eaten slowly and enjoyably is unlikely to happen (unless you are in the long haul business then reason #1 below is more likely your snacking excuse).

So, snacking will be part of our daily lives as Flight Crew and there are several reasons for this:

1. Boredom

2. No time to eat a "sit down" meal

3. Living out of a suitcase 

4. Commuting to work

5. Unnatural body clock due to work pattern

Let's be honest, there's only so much monitoring of the instruments and the blue yonder outside we can gaze at before our tummys rumble and a subconscious hand movement leads us to the food bags! Boredom is definitely the #1 reason we snack. Even in the cabin, a quiet passenger load or not so talkative crew can lead to boredom at 30000ft!

But how can we overcome this? Or should we accept this will happen and prepare ourselves for our bodies drive to keep us entertained and supply us with nutritious foods?

I don't want to fight against my body or my subconscious mind, there's only one winner in the long term. With so many things going on around me I won't win this battle, so this is what I do....

PREPARE! PREPARE! PREPARE!

The 5 P's - Preparation Prevents P**s Poor Performance is the key!

I know the day I am about to live, my roster tells me this. I know the meals I have available to me, my roster tells me this and I know I will want to snack as my roster tells me this. Through examining your roster you will see the eating pattern that you are likely to follow that day. 

Prepare your snacks before work and you won't let your unhealthy subconscious mind choose your foods!

My top 4 foods for snacking are:

1. Nuts and Seeds

I always carry a bag of my favourite nuts and seeds : almonds, cashews and pumpkin seeds.

These are wholesome foods providing essential fats and proteins. 

I avoid peanuts as a snack, even if they are unsalted, as the way the body digests peanuts is different to other nuts and results in a less fat burning effect! 

2. Vegetables 

All vegetables apart from potatoes are good snack foods.Carrots and Celery are easily carried in ones flight bag and can be eaten raw. Vegetables provide fibre and carbohydrates to your diet without the extra sugar content of fruits, so this is my preferred choice of snack. Don't limit yourself these foods will fill you and not your fat cells!

3. Dark Chocolate 

That's right ... Chocolate! Dark chocolate with cocoa content of 70% or more will satisfy your chocolate cravings without the added sugar content of normal chocolate bars. 

4. Mackerel 

The tinned version of this healthy oily fish is ideal for snacking. However,you may find problems with airport security so please check your airport. The fish is high in omega 3 fats and high in protein. Perfect for the car or commute to work. The tinned mackerel normally has a pull ring to easily open the tin. 

Thats my top 4 snacks whilst on the move. All are low in sugar, with mackerel, nuts and seeds providing valuable nutrition to our bodies with their proteins and essential fats.
This nutrition allows our bodies to burn fat and not store it.

The daily life of pilots and cabin crew is not the "normal life". We are unable to eat 3-6 healthy meals a day with the disruption we have to endure. So, don't fight against your body, work with it. Snack on healthy foods and be happy not hungry!

Try it today:

Prepare these nutritious snacks in your flight bag and never go hungry on the move again!

G

Don't Fool Yourself With A New Year FAD Diet

Happy New Year everyone!

2016 is here and with that the everyday conversation from the flight deck and cabin is... "I have started my diet and I've joined the gym. I need to to lose .. ..... pounds by ....." ( I'll leave you to fill in the blanks).

But 95% of people fail to lose weight AND maintain an ideal weight, so will it all be over by February for most? 

The over indulgence of food and drink at Christmas is a short term event and if you are feeling "bigger" and overweight I ask you.....do you think this happened over that 2 week period?

The crash diets of January will help everyone lose pounds, of course they will. Some diets dehydrate you and others shock the body with calorie restriction, anyone can lose weight rapidly, just think of a boxer at a weigh-in before his fight. The boxer will lose up to 10 pounds in 2 days before a weigh-in, so he can fight in a lower weight category. After weigh-in, his weight returns to normal as he over compensates with food and drink. This is a discipline and a specific event that is controlled to achieve a weight but, realistically his weight will return. 

This is NOT a healthy way to lose weight. In fact it is near impossible to maintain the weight loss from a rapid weight loss FAD diet because of human nature and ones self discipline to fight against our own feelings and desires. Let's talk about a diet I seen on TV a couple of days ago...... 

The diet was for 7 days and apparently Beyonce, the music artist, used this diet. Already note it's only for 7 days....what happens then?

There is NO food in this diet. You can drink 6 -12 drinks of their special drink. The drink was water, a drop of lemon juice and cayenne pepper (to help speed up metabolism). The figure quoted was a loss of 20 pounds in a week! But at what cost to the person and what will it achieve in the long run? 

The lady in the study subjected to this diet lasted just 2 days, she was hungry, agitated, moody and just not satisfied. In fact even a tv film about her could not maintain her will power to stick to this diet. How did this affect her friends, family and even work....let's start living in the real world guys!

Even if Beyonce did carry out this crash diet she would have health professionals around her, monitoring the situation, she would not be getting up at 4am for a 4 Sector day of flying!

This is just one of many crazy crash diets I've seen this year but really the only diet everyone should eat is one of REAL FOOD (it surprises me that someone eating real food is said to be on a diet!). The new years resolution of just cooking more will help you lose weight. A diet of meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, fruit, veg and some dairy is a sustainable way of eating to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight, if you cook the food yourself. 

Remember....you did not become overweight over Christmas so don't try to be underweight by February!

Start your real food regime today and keep yourself full, healthy and lose weight...

This year my new years resolution to flight crew health and fitness is to provide you with delicious recipes, training regimes, time saving tips and more in depth knowledge behind the science of nutrition and training. (I've also bought some interesting products for the home which I'll be reviewing over the next few weeks to share my experiences with you!).

* if you've seen or tried any new diets this year let me know in the comments below, share your experiences I'd love to know how you are doing*