Erick Avila, Author at T NATION

Tip: The Best Nuts for Your Nuts

Erick Avila — Fri, 11 Aug 2017 11:00:00 +0000

Where Has the Sperm Gone? Sperm counts are dropping all across Western society. According to a meta analysis, sperm counts have dipped over 52% since 1973. Now, that could be partly caused by our improved technology for measuring sperm counts, but researchers think it also has to do with exposure to endocrine disruptor chemicals in

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Tip: Combat Muscle Loss With This Fat

Erick Avila — Sat, 08 Jul 2017 11:00:00 +0000

Yet Another Benefit of Omega-3s Omega-3 fatty acids are associated with a wide range of health-promoting benefits including increased insulin sensitivity, reduced inflammation, neuro and cardio-protection and even anti-depressive properties. And here's another, little known reason to get plenty of omega-3s: They can promote anabolism (gains, bro) and reduce catabolism (muscle wasting, bro). Omega 3s

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Tip: How to Train for Brain Gains

Erick Avila — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 15:00:00 +0000

Metabolic Stress for Muscle & Brain Hypertrophy One mechanism for building muscle is metabolic stress. In bodybuilding, that usually means using constant tension and going for the "pump and burn" effect. Metabolic stress results from exercise that's reliant on anaerobic glycolysis for ATP production. This type of training results in a buildup of metabolites like

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Tip: The Food That Improves Your Thinking

Erick Avila — Sat, 15 Apr 2017 17:00:00 +0000

With age comes wisdom and experience... but also some memory loss and cognitive decline. Research on this topic usually focuses on those 65 or older, but some signs of age-related decline appear earlier. Symptoms can become apparent anywhere from age 35-65 and for some as early as their 20s. Berries for Brain Power Luckily, researchers

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Tip: The Juice That Boosts Athletic Performance

Erick Avila — Sun, 12 Feb 2017 18:00:00 +0000

Tomatoes Boost Performance You know that tomatoes are full of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients like lycopene, but did you know they can boost athletic performance and maybe even longevity? Studies have shown that practical dosages can deliver benefits fairly quickly. For instance, track athletes supplementing with 75ml of tomato juice after a training session for

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Tip: Balance Your Hormones With the Right Veggies

Erick Avila — Sat, 22 Oct 2016 17:00:00 +0000

Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, and kohlrabi are nutrient dense. One compound that's found in cruciferous vegetables, glucobrassicin, gets broken down and converted to Indole-3-Carbinol (I3C). I3C then gets rapidly converted into various other metabolites which have potent effects on hormonal balance. I3C affects the hormonal activities of our body by impacting

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Tip: Eat These Foods to Squash Cravings

Erick Avila — Fri, 01 Jul 2016 15:00:00 +0000

Gut Bugs and Constant Cravings From the moment we're born, our bodies are getting colonized by thousands of microbiota. These microorganisms have a profound effect on our health, including our metabolisms. Lean and obese individuals have different amounts of gut flora and diversity. Lean people typically have more diversity among their gut microorganisms. Gut microbes

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Tip: Control Insulin with Food

Erick Avila — Tue, 14 Jun 2016 15:00:00 +0000

Insulin gets a bad rap, but it's simply a hormone the body makes in response to the food we eat. It can either help us store the energy we get from food in muscle cells (good) or in fat cells (not good). The more muscle you have – and the more insulin sensitive that muscle

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Tip: Eat "Gross" Organ Meats

Erick Avila — Wed, 20 Apr 2016 15:00:00 +0000

For those who grew up eating traditional Western diets, the thought of eating kidneys or intestines can be cringe inducing. But organ meats have always been the preferred animal protein source for hunters across a wide range of cultures. In fact, even in the animal kingdom most predators go after organs first (namely the liver)

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Tip: Maximize Testosterone with Two Minerals

Erick Avila — Sun, 20 Mar 2016 17:00:00 +0000

If you're deficient in zinc and magnesium, as many athletes and rigorous exercisers are, your natural testosterone level will plummet. Here's why and how to fix it. Magnesium Numerous studies on men have shown magnesium to be positively associated with total testosterone. Unfortunately, deficiencies in magnesium are common because people don't generally get enough of

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