**HOLD UP!** 





Before you read the blog post... Check out our latest feature/testimonial from our camper Andrew or "Tomlinson" as you've heard Curtis yell over the loud speaker. It's right there, to the right. 

See it?
READ IT!!------------------------------->

That was awesome huh?  Okay, you can read the rest now :)

Ever walk down the meat and deli departments of Whole Foods and Spouts and see "NITRATE FREE" written big like that all over the packaged meats? Lunch meat, hot dogs, bacon etc? Then have you heard the Rock Star trainers preaching "NO NITRATES" over and over when talking about nutrition? There's a good reason...

Nitrates and Nitrites are compounds found that have been linked to cancer in both lab animals and humans. There are many studies, some that show the link between certain cancers in adults, and some that don't. You'll see nitrates mostly on packages of cured meats. It helps to retard the growth of bacteria and preserve flavor and color. Shockingly though, unless you eat cured me with every single meal, every single day of the week, vegetables have the highest source of nitrates. Say WHAAA?? Vegetables??? Yes, don't fret though.

Nitrates and Nitrates occur naturally in foods and water and are produced by living cells. They're important for many different chemical reactions in the body and actually you could argue that nitrates and nitrites are essential to your health. However vital in natural form, they can react with other compounds in your body or other food to form cancer-causing substances. These reactions are most likely to occur in the presence of protein... Meat is obviously mostly protein. Still worried that your veggies have nitrates? Studies also show that these cancer-causing compound-forming reactions are most likely to occur less when accompanied with Vitamin C and other anti-oxidants...


With all that said, don't panic. There are ways to reduce your cancer risk and still eat healthy, nutritious, delicious food:

Buy nitrate/nitrate free hotdogs: If you can't do with out hot dogs, make sure to purchase them nitrate free. They will taste the same (maybe better!) but they wont be the same pink color.. if you think about it, bright pink meat is just weird anyway! Nitrates help out with the pink color, so without them, they'll be a tan or even brown. It'll take some time getting use to, but it's all for the better.

Reduce the amount of cured food you eat in general. That includes baloney, bacon, ham. Try sliced turkey or roast beef. Just don't eat cured meats every single day.

Give your bacon TLC and cook it slowly! cook your bacon on low heat and DON'T burn it. Cooking bacon (or any cured meat) quickly on high heat greatly increases the reaction of nitrates and produces TONS more nitrosamines (the bad stuff). Also, buy nitrate free bacon.

EAT YOUR VEGETABLES!!!  This is a cardinal rule for Rock Stars so I'm sure you already are eating a steady amount of veggies right? RIGHT?? Right. The more vegetables you eat, the more antioxidants and Vitamin C your body will have to inhibit the conversion of nitrates into harmful compounds.

For the parents or parents to be: Infants and children are at highest risk of exposure to nitrates. Of all the testing and studies done, this age group was affected the greatest with the most significant side effects. Ever heard of Blue Baby Syndrome? Make special effort to feed your children nitrate/nitrite free food and water. Especially when pregnant, avoid eating cured meats and other nitrate preserved food. Fetuses are THE most vulnerable to nitrate poisoning. If you live near a farm, make sure to have your water tested for nitrates as well.

You want to eat bacon? Do it, but the healthiest that you can, and enjoy it.
It's all about doing what you can to make yourself healthier and hold yourself accountable.

Who is participating in the Spartan Race, Tough Mudder, or any other obstacle race coming up? Cheers and more power to you, I'm envious and look forward to my turn!


Also remember that we're always looking for more stories like Andrew's so email them to me at erika.staten@gmail.com

**NOTE: This is formation is purely my finding and interpretations of the information I've read. I'm not a doctor and if any of the information is inaccurate or you disagree, I'd love to know about it so I can correct it.**

 By doing a simple Google search you'll find that the most popular New Year's resolutions revolve around a health related topic. Stop eating junk food, eat more veggies, start exercising or exercise more, lose x-pounds quit smoking, go hiking... you get the picture. How many of these resolutions are actually successful? Not many. That's why year after year the same promise is made, "THIS year, I'm really going to lose weight, THIS time I'll stick to my exercise program." Are you guilty of this? I am. A resolution is nothing more than a goal you want to reach. Most failed goals are those not planned out or given serious thought toward the execution on attaining such goal. So year after year, we pledge to do better starting January 1st.

Lets end the vicious cycle of failure and make this YOUR year. What is it that you want? It can be anything. Complete the Spartan Race, tighten and tone up your muscles, lose 5/20/50 lbs, move toward cleaner eating? Whatever it may be, there is a way to make it happen. Plan, prepare, set mini-goals. There will always be a bad day, you might slip up on your program, miss a day of exercise... eat a juicy cheeseburger. But that doesn't mean you get to give up. Many times we'll be so extreme in what we allow ourselves to have, and when we succumb to our human nature and make a mistake, our willingness to continue to work towards the goal goes right down the toilet (along with that delicious cheesy burger you just scarfed down too quickly).


What will make us all successful, no matter what we're trying to accomplish, is to accept that there will hiccups along the way. Pledge to do your best one day at a time, and you're almost guaranteed to succeed.

Resolutions are usually permanent... You're not going to quit smoking just to start back up the next year, most people don't plan to lose 5 pounds just to gain it back on purpose. So look at these changes as a positive new beginning to a new life. The new you. Each day think of how you can make your life better, healthier, and take a step in that direction.

Above are my own reflections and opinions based off of personal experience and some research of the interwebs. I'm no life coach though, so take what I say at your own risk! 

2012 is the year of NO EXCUSES. Rock Stars don't give up. Show up at boot camp and Curtis will help with the rest. YOU are the only one that can make your life better. What do you plan to do differently this year? What resolutions have you made that you've kept and are proud of? Any tips? Leave your comment below, don't be shy!

Each week we are going to feature a camper's testimonial here on the blog. We want to hear whatever it is you have to say, and the campers want to read it, so SHARE! It can be funny, sad, happy... full of success AND failures, tips that help you get fit, RECIPES!, we want it all. Email erika.staten@gmail.com to be featured. Our first submission and all future stories will be posted under the Featured Testimonial segment in the side bar here on the blog. Just look to the right of this screen and you'll see it. Please take a minute to read Jen's story, she was so kind to share it with us!

............*reading Jen's story*..............
    
Wasn't that refreshing? Look forward to weekly installments of the new Rock Star Blog! If you have any questions, comments, tip, ANYTHING, please leave it in the comments below or email erika.staten@gmail.com

CHEERS!

Ever see a pregnant MAN workout? You're about to, thanks to the
Chris & Amy Show, mornings on 98.7 The Peak radio.

Homemade Fresh Salsa

Ingredients:

One large tomato (about 8 ounces), seeded and chopped

Three green onions with green tops, chopped

½ red pepper, diced

½ green pepper, diced

1/3 cup packed chopped fresh cilantro

Dried oregano and basil, dash of each

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon seeded and chopped jalapeno

Two cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

Optional: add some chopped mango or peach for a different taste

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl; mix well. Leave about 30-60 minutes to set in all the flavors.

(Offer organic blue chips with it)


Homemade Grass-fed Beef BBQ Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 lb. of grass-fed beef

½ cup of ground flax seeds

¼ cup wheat germ

5 cloves of garlic

½ onion, finely chopped

2 cage free eggs, beaten

1 cage free egg white, beaten

Sea salt & pepper for seasoning

8 ounces of Organic BBQ Sauce (no HFCS in the ingredients)

½ cup organic grape jelly

Directions:

Mix all the meatball ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Roll into 2-inch meatballs and place on a cooking sheet coated with olive oil spray. Bake at 375-degrees for 25-30 minutes. In a separate mixing bowl, combine the BBQ and grape jelly. Pour the BBQ mix into the slow cooker and add cooked meatballs to the cooker and keep it on low. Let the BBQ mixer absorb into the meatballs.

Have toothpicks handy for easy eating. This is a hit!


Homemade Red Pepper Hummus

Ingredients:

2 cans of chickpeas – drain and rinse

6 cloves garlic, minced

4 tbs. of tahini

3 tbs. of fresh lemon juice

2 tbs. fresh parsley

1 red pepper, finely chopped

¼ cup of olive oil

¼ tsp. sea salt

¼ cup of water

1 Tbs. of Olive oil for heating and browning the garlic


Directions:

Place the garlic in a skillet with the tbs. of olive oil and brown over medium heat, about 3-5 minutes. In your food processor or blender add all the ingredients except only add 1-cup of a time of the chickpeas (add the next cup once the first cup is mashed). Process until the hummus is creamy and smooth. Great for vegetable trays.

To maximize the efficiency of your cardio, you can perform 3 quality workouts each
week. Make sure to include a proper warm-up and cool down before and after interval
and tempo cardio. Alternate weeks 1 and 2, increasing the volume of the workouts
as your fitness progresses.

You can perform these on non-camp days, missed camp days or on camp days but if you do this on a camp day, be sure to separate the 2 workouts by at least 6 hours.

LT=lactate threshold

Max Heartrate (max hr) is
220 - your age x %.
If you are 40, that would be
220-40=180 as max heart rate.
So for example, 65% of max heart rate of 180
would be 117 beats per minute (bpm).

It would be advisable to know your easily access your heart rate.
Wearing a heart rate monitor or heart rate watch is the easiest
way to do this. Polar Heart monitors are a good choice
and are usually around $50.

"Cardio exercise" of choice can be chosen by user, based on their preference.
Running, stationary run, jumping jacks, mtn. climbers, jump rope, biking, hiking...
the combinations and choices are virtually endless.
Remember, our goal is to attack our fat stores and create endurance to improve cardiovascular ability.

Week 1
Tuesday (interval cardio)
30s max 60 active recovery (foam rolling, stretching or even light to moderate
effort of the exercise, for example – running then walking) x 5-8 rounds
under 15min total

Friday (tempo cardio)
15-20 @ LT intensity (lactate threshold)
which is 75-80-85% max hr, depending on your fitness
level. You want to be 'uncomfortable' but not
100% out of breath. You should be able to sustain
this pace for the entire 15-20 minutes.

Sunday (distance cardio)
60 min @ 65-70% max heart rate

Week 2
Tuesday (interval cardio)
3 minutes @ 95-100% heart rate with
2 minutes of active recovery
repeat this 5 minute sequence
3-5 times (25 min total max)

Friday @ (tempo cardio)
5 minutes @ LT intensity
which is 80-85% max hr
plus 1 min total rest
repeat this 6 minute sequence
up to 5 times for a 30 minute
workout - and remember:
LT intensity (lactate threshold) is referred to
as 75-80-85% max hr, depending on your fitness
level. You want to be 'uncomfortable' but not
100% out of breath. You should be able to sustain
this pace for the entire workout.

Sunday (distance cardio)
75 minutes @ 65-70% max hr

CAMPER APPRECIATION EVENT!!!
When:
Thursday, January 13, 2011 5:00PM-7:00PM
(the 6:30pm boot camp on Thursday Jan. 13 will NOT take place, due to Appreciation Event – however, there WILL be a bonus make up workout Saturday, Jan. 15 at 8am)
Where:
Blue Martini Lounge at City North, 5455 E. High Street, Phoenix, AZ.

What: featuring a complimentary cocktail, house wine, or beer per person as well as complimentary appetizers.

RSVP to Erica Leaton (who attends 5:30am boot camp) by email=> erical@bluemartinilounge.com Tuesday Jan 11.

All campers and past campers are invited (along with their friends and family) are invited to this event BUT YOU MUST RSVP to Erica, so we can prepare the proper amount of food and space reservation.
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Make sure to visit http://painchannel.tv to view their latest “webisode” featuring Rock Star Boot Camp – it’s very cool!

It's the first Monday of 2011. Get your a$$ up and let's do this.

Right here right now.

No more I start tomorrow, no more excuses, no more procrastination.

If you are tired of me preaching health and fitness then OPT OUT don't come back to my site. As a matter of fact, get some donuts and coffee while you're at it and start the new year with some sugar and heart-clogging fats.

Sorry for being so blunt, but as long as I am here I will preach health and fitness on a DAILY basis.

So for those of you who want to live a healthier, happier life stay tuned because I am committed more than ever to bring you the latest information to keep you on track, WITHOUT marketing hype and boring, outdated workouts.

I am going to help you make 2011 your "turning point" :)