Rolf Devinci

 Fasted Training Found this posting on Martin Berkhan's Leangains website and is definitely food for thought.Results of a 2010 study by The Institute of Food Nutrition and Human Health, Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand. "The main findings of the present study were that: training in an overnight-fasted state enhances storage of muscle glycogen compared to training in the fed state; skeletal muscle of men and women respond differently in terms of oxidative activity to training in the fed and overnight-fasted state; and peak VO2 and peak power improved more when training in the fasted state compared to the fed state....." http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20452283 Martin provides an excellent synopsis of the study that has produced some very interesting results in terms of fasted training in regards to VO2Max, power and muscle glycogen. In a nutshell..... VO2 Max Increase -  Fasted: +9.7% , Fed: +2.5% Muscle Glycogen Content Increase - F...

With the first summer long weekend two days hence I headed off to the Canadian Blood Services to donate my B RH Positive blood anticipating the need from the usual long weekend carnage.While checking in I was flagged to see if I qualify as a platelet donor so agreed to give an extra sample for testing. Due to recent history I was curious to discover my platelet count. At least two of my three sisters have been diagnosed with chronic low platelet counts along with other issues, thyroid, food allergies, joint and muscle pain and fatigue. Modern medicine has been unable to nail down a cause.Since I share some symptoms with them I always assumed I was also afflicted by the mystery ailment. In July 2005 I crashed on wet railway tracks and suffered some blunt force trauma from impacting the ground. Jammed vertebrae in my neck, concussion, road rash and a massive hematoma on my hip. A subsequent physical later that week at the medical clinic and ...

 February of 2010 I "officially" adopted paleolithic nutrition and realized some dramatic results over six months in terms of weight loss, fitness and overall wellness. I adhered to strict paleo(no grains, dairy,legumes or fast foods) for the most part but initially was not a high fat eater.That changed as my preconceptions(or brainwashing) of saturated fat dangers subsided through self education.By the summer of 2010 I was embracing coconut, beef and bacon. I was also eating a fair amount of nuts, seeds and fatty seafood. By the Fall of 2010 I became more aware of the debate around the Omega 3/6 ratio and essentially dropped the nuts and seeds from my diet but continued to focus too much on my consumption of Omega 3 foods. In retrospect the Omegas are essential fatty acids but a "little will do you". I adapted my diet once again to now include some seafood (on a weekly not daily basis), fre...

With the Provincial Time Trial in early July I opted to ride my first practice ITT today on Kearney Lake road. An out and back is around 9kms so four circuits would get me close to the 40 km distance of the Provincial race. Generally flat but with some "bumps" and a longer gradual climb outbound Kearney Lake does simulate the actual race course. On the outbound lap seven I was showing an average of 35.7kph but on a short riser I clipped something in the bike lane.A rock or piece of debris ended up causing a rear wheel flat. Switched out to a new tube but that burst upon inflating so I suspect there might be a shard of something stuck in the tire. With no other tube I reached for my phone only to realize I left it home. Doh! With helmet strapped across the aerobars and shoes in my hand I start the trek home under blue skies and bright sunshine. I now have an appreciation for bare foot runners - I have no idea how they do it because my walk on pavement and/or grass was hard...

After Monday's recovery day I have opted to intermittent fast today. No calories since 8PM last night with only water and coffee today. I did use a little pastured 35%MF cream with the coffee. Before I depart for my(hilly) training ride I will take about four tablespoons of whey protein powder in water. This should be another good test of fasted training. Purcell's Cove road is a bicycle friendly, scenic stretch of road adjacent to the coastal approaches to the Halifax Harbour. Being along the coast it also presents one with lots of good climbing challenges.We generally ride an out of back and is a perfect way to incorporate hill training in about an hour's ride. Short, sweet and tough depending on how fast you ride the hills.  Not only would it be a fasted training ride but I added my aerobars yesterday to start training for the Provincial Time Trial Championship in July. It would double as a shakedown ride to evaluate my aero position. Too my d...

5pm AST Saturday and the rain has started. The question heading into race day tomorrow is whether it will be wet or dry? The lastest forecast is saying a 40% chance of precipitation but some areas may experience thunderstorms. Swell! Not much to do but wait and see what the morning will bring. http://www.bicycle.ns.ca/Library/2011/Events/Lun_Rvrprt_Poster.pdf Many would argue that the race at Riverport, on the mouth of the Lahave river in Lunenburg County Nova Scotia is not a race if it isn't rainy,foggy and unseasonably cool. I have witnessed both since starting racing in 2004; miserably soggy but also scorching hot days. Regardless of the weather conditions there is always wind.Racing on the coast of this province, adjacent the North Atlantic, wind is omnipresent. It is just a question of where the headwind will be on the 28km loop. Along the river heading towards the appropriately named Grimm's road(and toughest climb) or the last ten kilometres heading t...

It`s been a great week of discoveries at the local markets. I have been looking to taste test a full fat Greek yogurt for some time but was only able to source fat free versions? Kinda defeats the whole purpose of eating traditional yogurt doesn`t it? Needless to say I discovered Greek Gods products in the health food section of  the Atlantic Superstore this week and saw that it was 10% milk fat(MF). The closest I was able to find(to date) was Astro's Balkan style yogourt listed at 6%MF. That said I see Astro has added a 10%MF Greek yogourt to their lineup but I have yet to see it on the store shelves. Stay tuned for a review. http://www.greekgodsyogurt.com/html/index.php http://astro.ca/products/astro_original_balkan_plain_750g_family_tub/ The cost of the Greek Gods yogurt was more expensive than the Astro Balkan style selection but is made of organic ingredients so that explains the difference in price points. In terms of taste the GG 10%MF y...

Bison in the Maritimes? Seems so after I discovered some steaks and ground at the Joe Howe Superstore. Martock Glen Farms about 60kms from Halifax raise several unique species including Bison.I just had to try that and picked myself up a small steak. It wasn't cheap but worth the cost to try something new. After You Tubing and getting advice on how to prepare bison I whipped up a marinade of olive oil, vinegar, garlic and oregano and let the steak soak while I went and played ballhockey. Home for a shower, glass of red wine and my bison steak. Dropped it in a hot pan and seared both sides but avoided overcooking the meat as per instructions on You Tube. It was basically rare but quite tasty. As a side I had two sweet potatoes; the normal orange and one that was marketed as a Carribean(Jamican) tuber. It was purple skinned with pale yellow flesh. Both were topped with some butter, cinnamon and a little Greek yogourt - an ideal sour cream replacement. After 90 minutes...

 One has to love those foraging days when you stumble upon something unexpected at the market. Today I sourced some fresh(local) Nova Scotian lamb's liver at Sobey's. Score! The best part is the price - they are practically giving it away - .275kg for $1.92(CDN).  Home to prepare my feast. I know......most paleo/primal advocates have difficulties with organ meats including liver. I like it but I am fussy. I prefer it sliced thin and usually like to dice(cube) it before eating. Here is my recipe. I fry six slices of bacon and dice them up before they get crispy. I then add diced onion and fresh mushrooms to the bacon and bacon fat then lay in the liver strips. When the liver is near cooked I cube it then stirfry the mixture together with a little Lea&Perrins worcestershire sauce and a dash of soy sauce. Serve over a bed of greens. Delicious!Oddly enough I find it milder than (grass fed) beef''s liver when cooked but stronger in flavor when eaten r...

If there are sports that are synonymous with high carb diets they are cycling, endurance running and multisport competitions such as triathlons.Spectators and athletes alike know that these sports require discipline and fitness but also carbohydrates to fuel performance....in fact it is considered essential. Whereas I cannot truly speak from experience about endurance running or multisports, other than competing in an occasional duathlon, I can speak from the cycling point of view. I question the belief that high carb diets are the cornerstone of cycling nutrition and performance. As an amateur club cyclist and racer participating in the 2011 road racing schedule I continue to successfully maintain a low carb WOE within the Paleo/Primal school of thought. Needless to say I still get those "looks" from other competitors, club ...

Experimenting with consecutive intermittent fasting and fasted training this week(see post -The Next Level) I discovered a concept that seems to be the logical goal of my current WOE which includes both intermittent fasts and fasted training. From the beginning of this paleo/primal journey back in 2010 I felt that what made us Homo Sapiens unique was our ability to adapt, specifically in regards to nutrition. We are the ultimate omnivores - how else do we explain how our species can thrive across the globe living in various enviroments which offer completely different food sources. We are designed to be flexible with metabolic systems cabable of adaptation to what energy sources are available. "How I approach my personal diet is to fill the bulk of my daily food with paleo staples;grass fed meats(beef, lamb and turkey), cold water fish, greens, veggies, coconut(oil, meat and milk), some fruit(apples mostly), coffee, water and free range eggs. Firmly believin...

Since I am in between races with my next scheduled event being the Riverport road race on June 19 I have decided to self experiment in regards to intermittent fasting. To date my fasting regimen has been once or twice a week of varying durations based loosely upon when I get hungry but with a minimum fast of 16 hours. The premise of this experiment will be to do a fasting regimen of at least 16 hours every day this week commencing June 5 for five consecutive days ending on the 10th. I will record my fasting weight each morning to track body weight changes and also note my non caloric fluid intake while fasting. My "eat" window will be between the 16 - 24 hours but(generally) no food later than 9PM. The purpose of this experiment is two fold; to see if consecutive intermittent fast days will break my body weight plateau(best to date 190.4 lbs) and the short term affect of consecutive fasts upon my current fitness level....