In recent years, glucosamine has come out above other pain killing remedies as the way to repair cartilage and joint related injuries. Many athletes used to find themselves just enduring the pain or giving up their sport altogether. There is no longer a reason to “just bear with it.”

What types of injuries can it help?
Glucosamine can help joint related injuries that result for overuse or persistent wear on any particular joint causing damage to the cartilage that connects the joint. The cartilage wears down and or becomes inflamed and can cause great pain the athlete. What results over time is a type of arthritis called oesteoarthritis.

How it works
Glucosamine is an important sugar related substance that begins by reducing the inflammation in the joint cartilage, which helps reduce the pain. Next, it helps keep cartilage from breaking down and causing more pain. Finally, it helps increase the cartilage production, keeping the arthritis from coming back.

Although glucosamine is a sugar based compound, tests have shown that it is safe for diabetics with joint pain and does not trigger any bad diabetic side effects.

A typical adult dose is one pill, two or three times daily. Most people will want to take the glucosamine with food as some people report upset stomachs if they take it alone. It is also thought to be absorbed more readily when taken with food. You may also consider taking it in liquid form as it is much more readily absorbed by your body than the powder form offered in glucosamine pills. Whatever form you choose, the result won’t be noticeable for at least two weeks and possibly as long as eight weeks.

Types of Glucosamine
There are two main varieties of glucosamine, regular and vegan. Typically, glucosamine is made with shellfish so if you are allergic, it is very important that you choose a vegan variety to avoid any unwanted side effects. The vegan variety is made from corn so it won’t trigger a shellfish reaction and is completely animal product free if you are vegan.

Is glucosamine good for anything else?
Glucosamine is also an excellent tool for elderly or obese people that experience joint pain. The elderly can enjoy the joint rejuvenating effects of glucosamine and can help them move around better without addictive pain killers. Overweight people often have joint problems, especially in the knees that can be helped greatly with glucosamine. Years of added pressure on the knee joint wears the cartilage down making it a great way to help obese people return to an active and pain free lifestyle.

As with any supplement or pill, a doctor should always be consulted before beginning a pill regimen. Extra caution should also be taken by pregnant and breast feeding mothers.

>>> Get Glucosamine

I got an email from a reader asking if they’d “bulk up” on one of my programs that I have in my ebook “The Ideal Body Fat Loss Guide.” I know, the name says it all, but this reader is a female who does not want to bulk up.

Here’s the problem that I explain to many of my clients. When starting *any* program with resistance training, it’s very likely you initially get sore. When your muscles are sore, they need to repair and recuperate. Your body does a fine job of doing this, but during this time, extra fluid enters the muscle during this recuperation process. Extra fluid means - you guessed it, extra weight! (And this is temporary, of course.)

99% of the time, women see this as “bulking up” whenever they start resistance training. They explain that their pants fit tighter and that whenever they lift weights, they “easily” put on more muscle. Consequently, they stop resistance training and continue doing more “cardio.” -Ugh. Cardio for fatloss and fitness… haha. I’ll save that for another post.

Okay, enough of this erroneous thinking. Here’s an explanation:
1. Your muscles retain more fluid when they are sore.
2. The rate that you do build muscle could be initially faster than your rate of fat loss.
3. You’re working out, yet you remain eating the same as you did before (i.e. eating excess).
4. You really don’t know how much you’re eating because you’re only “guestimating” how many calories you’re actually consuming.
5. Bulking up is largely dependent on calorie intake.

In my 17 years of training, I’ve heard from many women that they bulk up easy and don’t wish to lift weights. However, none have come up to me with a nutrition log or tape measure to “prove” it.

So please, let go of the “if I lift weights I’ll get too big mentality.”

Here are some additional links:
http://exercise.about.com/od/exerciseworkouts/ss/strengthmyths_5.htm
http://colormefit.paradygma.com/archives/fitter-or-bulky

Okay, so I’m starting a new bootcamp in Homewood. And I’m still running the one in Liberty Park. Get all the details at RigorousBootcamp.com.
Now, if you haven’t done so yet, check out our CrossFit site at CrossFitBirmingham.com. You can follow the daily crossfit workouts there and post your results! Keep yourself accountable and keep yourself going! Plus, you gotta check out the videos.

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Get your Supplement Starter Kit here.