Protein Primer

Proteins are found in all cells and tissues and are required for the structure and function of every part of the body. And of special interest to bodybuilders, muscles are made of protein.

Proteins are chain-like molecules, and the links of protein chains are called amino acids. About 20 different amino acids occur in human proteins. Twelve of these can be made within the body. The other eight are called “essential amino acids”  because they cannot be made by the body; therefore, it is essential that they be obtained from the diet. The proteins you eat as food are not directly incorporated into your body tissues. Instead, the protein chains are digested to yield short fragments (peptides) and individual amino acids which are absorbed into the bloodstream. The individual amino acids then serve as building blocks your body uses to build its own proteins. If any one of the amino acids is deficient, your body can’t make new protein molecules. They all have to be there at the same time.

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Train hard, train often and above all else, train smart!

By Duke Nukem

The Parrillo philosophy of physical training is multidimensional: there are a lot of components and these components need to be put in play and executed simultaneously. To further complicate an already complex approach, approximately every four weeks the lifting and cardio needs to be changed to avoid stagnation. The Parrillo approach is so sophisticated and effective that stagnation and inertia are actually anticipated ahead of time and significant revisions are made to the training template on a predetermined basis.

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Episode 42: A leg to stand on

By Ron Harris

Having been training now for over a quarter-century and in a lot of different gyms, there is still one common sight that never ceases to disappoint me. So many times I will see a guy with an upper body that’s anywhere from better than average to highly impressive, but below the waist it seems he’s hardly trained his legs at all. The old joke used to be that in cases like these, there was always the legal danger of the upper body suing the legs for lack of support.

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Get Creative With Creatine

I’m sure most of you have heard about creatine and hopefully are taking it to gain mass and help strip away body fat. Creatine occurs naturally in meat, especially red meat. This is probably the main reason red meat has a reputation for increasing strength. No other foods are a good source of creatine, and this is why vegetarians are often creatine deficient. The problem is to get a significant amount of creatine, you would have to eat a lot of red meat, which would bring with it a ton of fat. Creatine supplementation allows you to get much higher levels of creatine in your muscle than you could ever get from conventional food, and without supplying any fat.

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THE 8 TOP SUPPLEMENTS FOR EXERCISERS OF ANY AGE

Whether you want to stay in peak health, have healthy joints, develop lean muscle, or all the above, there are 8 supplement “musts” to help you reach and maintain your health and fitness status. I’ve outlined them here, in no particular order. Keep in mind, though, no supplement works as effectively unless it is supported by proper diet.

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The Parrillo Mass Stack

When it comes to getting in the best possible shape, the subject of supplements becomes an important one for you to implement. You need to know which supplements work best, and which ones work best together. The technical term for this is “stacking.” In this column, I’m going to talk about the best “mass stack” for gaining lean muscle. Using the following supplements synergistically will help you make great gains, along with hard training.

Creatine Monohydrate

Creatine has been the subject of more than 400 research studies in the past 10 years, focusing primarily on muscle performance and size both in athletes and in individuals with neuromuscular diseases. Creatine is a key nutrient in muscle energy production, and it also appears to increase muscle size.

What can you expect from creatine? Typically, hard-training bodybuilders can expect an increase of 4 to 14 pounds of lean mass during the first month of use. The more muscle mass you have, the more creatine you can assimilate leading to greater weight gains. We’ve seen athletes experience a 5 to 15 percent increase in strength on their maximum lifts and an increase of about 2 reps per set with their working weight during the first month. This increase in intensity allows you to put a greater load on the muscle, which will indeed increase your gains in muscle mass over time.

The way to use creatine is to start with a loading phase, which usually is 20 grams a day for five to seven days. To do this, take five grams (one teaspoon) four times a day, for five to seven days. This is followed by the maintenance phase, which is five to ten grams a day. After only one month, you should see a noticeable increase in size and strength. Parrillo Creatine Monohydrate™ is the highest purity creatine supplement available. Take creatine monohydrate with your meals or supplement drink as this will facilitate absorption.

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Our response to Consumer Reports’ hit piece on protein supplements

Consumer Reports “hit piece” on supplemental protein

Unsubstantiated allegations, fake science and bogus “experts”

Consumer Reports magazine has taken aim at the nutritional supplement industry in their July issue and the industry is fighting back. Using a too-familiar strategy of innuendo, false assertions and scare tactics, CR makes the allegation that ‘heavy metal’ contamination in protein powder is a grave health concern requiring immediate government intervention. A bit of digging and some serious examination of the “facts” related in the article reveals a blatantly biased agenda. Consumer Reports bases their “call to action” on the “revelation” that three protein products (out of fifteen tested) exhibited “elevated levels” of heavy metal, i.e., arsenic, cadmium and lead. Buried in the small print were a few inconvenient truths: in order to overdose on heavy metals, even in those products that exceeded federally recommended levels, would require consuming massive amounts of the “contaminated” products for a protracted period of time. Further, an individual could overdose on these same heavy metals eating too much seafood. Finally, CR reluctantly reports that, “for most drinks we tested, levels of those contaminants were low – when we could detect them at all.” In the big bold print they proclaim, “Consuming too much protein can cause health problems.”

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Parrillo Training

How Can We Help You?

-We want to help you – so let us know what you want to see on our web-site!

-Would you like to see more information on our supplements, different diets, fascial stretching or workouts?

-Are you a competitor using Parrillo supplements?  We want to hear from you.

Contact us today 1-800-344-3404 or Heather@Parrillo.com

Team Extreme – Mike Fuelner and John Parrillo

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