Part 3 of Nutrition Series:Proteins

Proteins:

    Hello everyone, welcome to the third portion of this nutrition segment. So far we have spoken about how carbohydrates and fats circulate and are used in our body. Now it is time for one of my favorite topics. That is a lie, I find ALL  nutrition very entertaining and ruthlessly plunge into whatever information I can find on any related topic. But let us get on with it.
    So what is a protein? Well the simplest answer is as that a protein is a basic building block of life and that without it we would not even exist. So before I put you all to sleep let me first demonstrate the importance of proteins with a few examples. Let us start deep within the body, slowly becoming more superficial so that everyone can understand how proteins affect every level of our biology. First let us start with DNA. Our personality and our physical traits are determined by a complex code of nucleotides that determines everything we think we know about ourselves. This alpha helix structure  is primarily proteins with a sugar-phosphate back bone. Just like how a triglyceride has a glycerol back bone and fatty acids attached to it, DNA has the same general structure. A backbone with proteins that stem from it and connect with other proteins that form a twisted latter shape. So thanks to protein, you are who you are. If you do not like who you are I suggest going to a genetic engineer. 

   Figure 1: DNA- as you can see the four proteins that attach and create the “rungs” of the latter

As if this does not demonstrate the importance of proteins enough let us go up a level to the cell. In the last segment I discussed how the basic structure of a cell is a double layer of fatty acids. Well this is a very general and over simplistic view of the cell. Imbedded into the fatty acid layer are “boulders”. These “boulders” act in multifaceted ways which life could not exist without. They are able to increase the structural integrity of the cell because they are held together by stronger bonds then the fatty acids, which in the last article we explained move slightly to help the cell function. Some of these “boulders” form tunnels right into the cell and act as a door way into and out of the cell. Nutrients and hormones can come into the cell and unwanted particles can leave the cell so it does not overfill with waste. Wouldn’t want to be constipated on a cellular level would you? A lot of these “boulders” allow for hormones to attach to the cell and cause a signalling cascade to happen in the cell. An example of this would be how Epinephrine causes a signal to Hormone Sensative Lipase to start breaking down fat, which I discussed in the last article.

  Figure 2:A section of the phospholipid bilayer. You are unable to see the glycoproteins however they look similar to the “charbohydrate chain” as seen above.

Some of these boulders have long projections sticking out and allow it to communicate with other cells for various reasons.  One example would be that a virus can look like a cell, act like a cell but because these projections exist then it allows the cell to say “ Hey wait, this cell does not seem familiar, let’s get rid of it.” Without these projections then we would get sick very quickly considering how everyday bacterium tries to infiltrate our body. It is up to these “boulders” and projections to keep us safe. If you have not guessed yet, these “boulders” are proteins.  Let’s move up yet another level for all you athletes and coaches.  Muscles are made of proteins as well, which for most is nothing new. To imagine how a muscle contracts let’s look at a gymnast climbing a rope. The gymnast’s name is Myosin; he’s foreign. And he is climbing up our 28 foot rope whose name is Actin. Myosin has to get to the top of the rope and to do this he will place his hand higher on the rope then he is currently, use his muscles to pull himself up, then repeat until he is dangling from the rafters or rings that bell that so many gymnasts hate to hear. The muscle works the exact same way. Myosin proteins pull on actin proteins pulling them closer together. We humans with our brutal vision, due to sitting in front of the idiot box all day, cannot see these small microscopic events. However we can see the result of thousands of actin and myosin proteins pulling on each other so that they all slide a bit closer together.  We call this muscle contraction. 

Figure 3: actin and myosin sliding against each other to shorten the “H” zone which is done thousands of times along the muscle fiber and causes it to shorten.


I will write a article with more information on this process later, but for now let us get back to the topic at hand; proteins. Our last example will be one that we all know so well, or not so well depending on your hairline status. Keratin is a protein that is found in nails, skin and yes, hair. We cannot see the individual proteins but they are a major part of our physical appearance, which we know is extremely important in this day and age.
    So now we all know exactly how important proteins are, let us look into the structure of these important little building blocks. You can imagine these building blocks like a nice little bead bracelet bunched up in someone’s hand.  As you look from a distance it looks like a clump of some arbitrary physical substance. However when you get close you can see that it is made up of lots of little individual beads that and are strung together by a string. Each bead is called an amino acid. Amino acids are the base of all proteins and depending on what types of beads are strung together, how many are strung together and what way they are held in the hand, they can do many different things. Any protein can become a keratin protein, a cell membrane protein, a transport protein as discussed in the last article. It soley depends on how they are made. The topic of protein synthesis is a very long and dreadful discussion that simply does not apply to many people that do not study them as a career. I will skip this part for the sake of boring everyone and if you would like a specific article tailored to this topic leave me a comment. So why are amino acids different? This is a complicated and a simple question all at the same time. Every amino acid has the same basic structure as you can see below.

Figure 4: structure of amino acid- these are linked together to form polypeptide chains-these are folded to create proteins-proteins are clumped together to create enzymes and receptors etc.

 The only thing that gives different amino acids different properties is the chemical properties of their “R” group, or side chain. This can be anything from a simple single carbon with a three hydrogen’s or can be slightly more complicated with a thiol group which we discussed earlier. The string that holds these beads together in our analogy is called a peptide bond and is formed by taking away a water molecule. These bonds can be easily broken as well by adding a water molecule.  There are 22 different amino acids that are used to create proteins or are used for energy. For the purpose of this series we will focus on the breaking down of the protein for energy.
    All amino acids can be broken down and put into other processes. Here are a few examples. After breaking down Tyrosine, a protein, many chemical reactions can occur to create fumerate. Fumerate is one of the chemicals involved in the citric acid cycle.  This can be used to fuel exercise. Breaking down certain amino acids can increase substrates to glucose, CAC and ETC pathways. This is used a lot during exercise for any athlete who depletes their CHO stores. Even though the NH2 group has already been used, the rest of the amino acid can be converted into a keto acid and put into the CAC. In the liver, Glucogenic Amino Acids can be converted into  alpha keto acids and used in glyconeogenesis ( formation of glycogen) to be put into glycolysis, CAC and then ETC.  Some of these include Valine, Serine, Glycine etc.  Tryptophan is a precursor to creating serotonin, a neurotransmitter that has been shown to increase happiness. All amino acids have different pathways they can all enter but to go through every one of them would be excruciating and, simply, I do not know them all anyways. If you look at the ingredient label of a protein supplement it gives you a whole list of proteins that it increases. The idea is that by increasing certain ones, that it will give athletes an advantage to building muscle and help the body to prevent breaking down muscle. The conclusion is that the more of these substrates that are in the body, the more fuel the body has to use before it has to take it from the muscle, which no athlete wants of course.
Nitrogen balance is the input of nitrogen compared to the output of nitrogen. This refers to an athlete muscles. If the athlete does not intake enough proteins and is exercising the body is said to be in a negative nitrogen balance. This means that the NH2 groups are running low in the muscle because it is being all used up to be put into the other processessuch as CAC or ETC. In a sedentary human this is not a huge problem because proteins usually do not need to be used because enough CHO and fat is available. For an athlete however this may be a problem. If the nitrogen balance is negative it means the body actually has to break down muscle to use for energy. An athlete wants to be in a positive nitrogen balance as much as possible. This means muscles are being built and amino acids are being added, ie. Hypertrophy.  When an athlete exercises their nitrogen balance naturally drops a bit and usually an athlete will eat proteins after to “feed” the muscle and spike their nitrogen balance.  It is always a balancing act (excuse the pun) with proteins in the muscle. Can you have too much? NAW, not really. Many research articles have been done and even giving someone up to 4,000 mg per kg has not shown any detrimental effects on the body. That is a lot of protein.  The body uses whatever protein it can use, depending on the primary fuel source of each athlete. The left over is converted into urea as discussed earlier. If the body is unable to use protein it simply just increases the amount of urea made. Vitamins are the same. You cannot over dose on a vitamin. Anyways, long distance runners will be able to use proteins more efficiently then a sprinter. A long distance runner almost always has to tap into their protein stores to get through a race. When the protein stores are used up it is called “hitting the wall”. This is when a sprinter just collapses and is out of energy. A sprinter uses the Creatine system for energy because it is usually under 10 seconds.  Creatine is an acid that can create a lot of energy very quickly for the cell. The downside is that it is used very quickly. It takes about 10 minutes to replenish Creatine stores fully. Sprinters barley use fat, never mind protein to fuel the exercise. He or she does not have to. A sprinter will use glycogen stores up as he or she uses creatine stores to get an extra push. If the athlete is not use to using protein then he or she will not have as many enzymes that can perform protein breakdown and transport because the body does not need it as much.
    I have discussed many different pathways here and the conclusion is that all coaches need to understand the pathway that their sport requires. How do you know? Well it depends on the requirements of the sport. Here is a few ways to tell:
If the sport requires a lot of explosive quick bursts of power such as hockey or sprinting then creatine and glycogen are the main energy providers.
If the sport is a long distance but low intensity sport then fat will be the dominate fuel source after CHO is used up. This would include any long distance running or swimming. For extremely long sports protein will come into play at the end as a last kick to finish the race. The burst to the end is the creatine stores being used up by a long distance athlete.
Lots of sports that require a bunch of different forms of exercise such as hockey and soccer, where the athlete may be coasting, sprinting, changing directions etc. It is safe to give them a well balanced diet of everything. He or she will need all of them.
These are a few ways to determine what nutrient is most important for your athlete but at the end of the day it is very simple and a lot cheaper than any manufacturer will tell you.  Here are the take home messages of this series:
1) Have a well balanced diet from all four food groups and an athlete should be eating more than the average person to fuel the extra exercise.
2) All processes go hand in hand with each other so do not limit to certain diets that “focus” primarily on fat or protein or CHO.
3) Athletes go from Creatine to CHO to Fat to Protein to Ketones in the brain. Depending how long the exercise sessions of your sport are you can determine what nutrients are more likely to be needed.
4) Do not stuff your face with proteins, CHO or Lipids. The body can only handle so much at once. You can keep cramming but you  will only store the food or release it as waste. For CHO the body can only digest about 1 gram per kg of body weight per hour. So do not waste your time and get GI distress by having 5 plates of pasta before a game. Protein does not seem to have a limit but again only so much protein can be used. Honestly I am not sure what the limit of protein is, if there is one.
5) If you can during the sporting event, try to get more CHO and Proteins in the body to keep the substrates plentiful for all the processes. Fat takes too long to digest and be put to use to gain any real benefit from it on the fly.
6) Eat after the event if you can to replenish the CHO, Fat and PRO. Stores to keep nitrogen balance positive so protein is not broken down during rest.
THE MOST IMPORTANT ONE:
7) Do not go crazy over your nutrition. Some people find  that it helps, some do not. The most important aspect of the sport is to have fun and love what you do. Sometimes these things such as nutrition and proper post training “dos” and “dont’s” go a little too far and take away from the sport for little gain. Keep yourself eating plenty and eat proper food but some athletes find the need to measure to .1 of a gram and time themselves and go to some pretty ridiculous ends to do well in their sport. If you love to do that and that is your thing then great, have fun, just do not let nutrition run your life. A happy athlete with a few beers in him or her will always go farther than a frustrated athlete, no matter who how good their nutrition is.

Thanks:)

How Do You Deal With Scared Athletes?

            Many coaches ask the same question and the truth is that there is no right or wrong way to deal with a nervous athlete of any age. For older populations their morbidity and mortality is playing a huge role in preventing them from absent-mindedly throwing themselves into a front tuck. So how do you deal with a frightened middle aged woman? I will list out what I PERSONALLY would do. This of course is my own thoughts and I am not discrediting anyone else’s ideas or claiming my way is the only logical way.

          I find that the attitude of any athlete younger or older is based on the way the coach handles him or herself. In terms of cowardice, if the coach looks nervous or uses unsure phrases or even gets a nervous twitch at any time, it will be sensed by the athlete. This is just like when a baby senses when the parent is not ready to be a parent. They are not being directly told that the parent is unfit to be raising them but they gain knowledge of this through the actions of the parent. Coaching is the same way. Many higher level coaches understand this and even if they are a little nervous, they keep those feelings hidden away so the athlete has no reason to think that the coach has no faith. I do this by always throwing out phrases such as “ oh ye you want to learn stomach drop? Oh ye that is easy, let’s try it right now”. Obviously it is not easy. For a person who has rarely or never touched a trampoline it will be scary to  get up and trust that they will land at the perfect angle on the bed to ensure a proper landing. I think a phrase that will increase the nervousness may sound something like this.” Well, make sure you progress slowly so you do not hurt yourself”. Obviously right there is a red flag to the athlete. “ why do I have to go slow, what happens if I don’t?” etc. These questions build up like Lego and eventually you have a leaning tower of Pisa of negativity, which unfortunately, more often than not will prove to be much less sturdier then the structure in Italy.

             If this mistake is made it is very hard to come back. Literally you have to regain the trust of the athlete ,which as we know in society, is much harder than losing trust. But let us assume that from the moment you start building rapport with the athlete you are very easy going and ensure that even the toughest skills are easy, without any negativity. What else can be done to increase courage? Well for one, the athlete has to believe you know what you are talking about. It never hurts to show off a bit before the class. People will watch and spread the news of a great trampolinist. Are you going to go to an electrician that you meet outside of a courthouse who just got sued?- Probably not. Make sure your accomplishments are well out there so that people really know that you know what you are talking about.

             Another thing I do is focus really hard on making sure I demonstrate a lot. This is BIG and unfortunately too many coaches just sit on their ass during coaching while they tell their athlete to work harder. * Shake Head*. Get up and show the athlete what you want them to do. Actions speak louder than words basically. DO NOT jump high when demonstrating. This will freak the athlete out because they are trying to copy what you are doing and if you do a back drop with 1.5 seconds of air time the athlete will get nervous. Go very low, and talk during the demonstration. It shows that it is easy and there is nothing to be worried about. If the coach looks like he or she is preparing or nervous or has to even think about it then you are taking steps backwards.  Make it look as easy as possible. I do not take more then one bounce for backdrops and front drops and half airplanes etc. Bouncing=Preparing, Preparing= nervousness.

The last step is the one we all know well; progressions. Do not have them do a front drop or back drop the first time they get on the trampoline unless they already want to do it. In that case the athlete is most likely not scared and the above article does not apply to you.  Here is a list of progressions I would do with a       “ worst case scenario” of a scared athlete.

-         

           Jump up and down

-                 *Jump side to side

-                 *Jump forward and backward

-                *Jump to all four corners

-                 Tuck jumps

-                 Star jumps

-                 Straddle

-                 Pike

-                Sit on Butt and kip them slightly ( no more then an inch or two)- eventually work up to feet

-                 Seat drop onto matt- then no matt

-                Back drop- start with lying on back and kipping slightly to seat drop then to feet

-               Repeat with stomach drop to hands and knees to feet

ETC

            I have “*” the skills that normally are questioned by other athletes or coaches. The reason I have them jump around in different areas is because it increases awareness of the trampoline and how it moves the body.  Too many coaches just jump into seat drops and backdrops and ye most likely the athlete will land funny. At this early in the game ANY rough landings will facilitate into Hermit Crab-Itis. The athlete will get scared of doing it again and will not be easily risking another hard landing.

            I know that article may make scared athletes seem fragile and hard to handle but most athletes, no matter what age, quickly get into the rhythm of trampoline and the nerves pass quickly. I have never had to do the above progression with anyone. I have done certain ones based on the particular fears of the athlete but never all in that order.  The main key is your attitude. You have to have the athlete believe it is easy and that the chances of hurting themselves are very low. Be patient as well. Some people take five minutes to get over fears and others take 3 months. If they are willing to come back, then go at their pace. Only competitive can you start pushing a bit and even then you may scare them off with a hard shove. As long as they are trying and putting honest effort into it keep a smile on your face. If you find yourself getting irritated because of a cowardice athlete, stop and think about something you would be hesitant of doing. Ie. Having a stranger tell you to jump out of a plane with a flimsy sheet on your back. You have to understand that that fear that so many people have is the exact same thing that some feel when on a trampoline.

I hope this gives people something to think about. Thanks.

Fat Metabolism (Part 2)

Time for Fat metabolism:

                This section will focus on the complex processes of how a fatty acid is broken down, transported and used for energy in the cell. Again I will give you the main ideas rather than complicate the situation with big fancy biological names.

                First of all, fat cells, known as adipocytes and lipids, are large vacuoles of space and inside this space are triglycerides. This is a word most people have heard before but for many the actual meaning of the word is hazy. “Tri”- meaning three fatty acid chains attached to a glycerol back bone. These fatty acids are broken off the glycerol back bone and transported to where ever it needs to go. Let’s look at this incredible process more closely.

              

           Assuming our host is doing slow exercise or is in a fasted state, fat will be the main nutrient for producing energy. This is because glucose levels in the blood are low due to one of the above reasons unless you have a medical situation such as diabetes. Once the blood glucose levels are low then the body senses this with receptors in the arteries and sends a signal to the brain saying “Hey man we need more energy and we are out of glucose” . You may ask why do we not use the glucose from glycogen. We already have. The first signal of the brain is to use up glycogen stores in the muscle or liver. When these are out then the body has to go to its secondary nutrient, ie. fat. The hormone Epinephrine is send from the medulla of the Adrenal Glands, located on top of the kidneys. Some research shows that Glucagon can be used to activate this process as well because it is the starvation hormone. It is activated when the body does not have enough glucose. Other research shows that this is not the case and that inhibiting insulin, a hormone that takes up glucose out of the cell, is the source of this activation.

                When epinephrine binds to the outside of the cell it causes a signalling cascade which activates many different proteins along the way each passing a signal to the, eventually affected target. In this case our target is triglyceride. First epinephrine binds to Beta-Adrenergic Receptor, a protein imbedded into the phospholipid bilayer, also known as the cell membrane. This activates G protein which in turn activates  Adenylate Cyclase. After this step ATP is added to the process and bonds are broken to release energy inorder to keep the reaction moving forward. ATP turns into Cyclic AMP, which is a signalling molecule. This molecule activates Protein Kinase A. Here, another ATP is broken, but only once this time, to create a bit of energy and forming a molecule of ADP which is recycled for later use. Using this last ATP activates the Hormone Sensative Lipase which is the hormone that cuts off two of the fatty acids. Monoacylglycerol Lipase comes and finishes the job by cleaving off the last fatty acid chain. YAY, now we have 3 single fatty acids floating around and a glycerol back bone.

So what now? Well glycerol can have two fates depending on the situation. If the body is in a need for glycolysis such as during exercise, as mentioned above the glycerol back bone can be converted into Dihydroxyacitone Phosphate. (DHAP) This is where you guys suffer for not having me list off every molecule in glycolysis. DHAP is the 5^th step of glycolysis meaning that if we were to add more of these molecules then more substrates are available to fuel glycolysis WITHOUT GLUCOSE!!

The glycerol can also be used to create more triglycerides if need be. This may occur when a work out is finishing. The body does not need any more energy and maybe it broke down a few too many TGI’s and now has nowhere to put them. Time to recycle. This process takes a few more steps but inevitable ends up with a molecule of TGI.

So we have dealt with the glycerol and still have the fatty acids to deal with. The FA’s go to the cell membrane and diffuse through the membrane and attach to Albumin. Albumin is a carrier protein that attaches FA’s and transports them via the blood stream to a cell where they can be put into the mitochondria. Albumin is found in eggs as the white portion we see when we cook them. Intracellular carrier proteins grab the fatty acids and transport them into the cell once they reached the cell. Once in the cytoplasm of the cell outside of the mitochondria each fatty acid has to be “Activated” . This is done by adding a Coenzyme A onto carboxylic acid group. This is the side of the fatty acid that was attached to the glycerol backbone and consists of two oxygen’s and a hydrogen.

I guess we should take a minute a  describe a fatty acid. A fatty acid is known as a hydrocarbon chain. It consists of a carbon back bone with two hydrogen’s attached to each carbon.  This fatty acid is always moving around slightly and not fixed in an immoveable structure. This is important because it allows the cell membrane ( phospholipid bilayer) to move around and helps the cell function. It is like putting a human in a straight jacket. They do not have very good function and there is no way a mental patient deserving of this special treatment can be in the Olympics. We want all of our cells to be in the Olympics and to work at their greatest capacity. This is where bonds come into play. A fatty acid chain can either be straight with single bonds on every carbon known as a saturated fatty acid. This is bad for the cell to be made of too many of these for the above reason. The same fatty acid can have one or more double bonds and this causes the fatty acid to change shape and twist a bit and actually makes the fatty acid more moveable on the triglyceride and the cell membrane. The more moveable the fatty is the potentially better it is. These are known as Monounsaturated fatty acids or polyunsaturated fatty acids. Trans fats are a derivative of a polyunsaturated fatty acid where the double bond simply faces the opposite direction. This in a natural form is good for us but when influenced by heat or by pressure then it turns out bad for us and that is where the “trans fat” dogma came from. Companies do not naturally make food because chemicals and heat and pressure and other processes change the molecules for the worse. Omega 3 and 6 basically is a naming technique used by scientists to differentiate different fatty acids. “3” and 6” simply determine what carbon the first double bond is. Omega 3 is an essential fatty acid meaning it has to be ingested to get into our system. Too many Omega 6 fatty acids are said to compete for the same rate limiting enzymes as omega 3s and for this reason are said to be bad in large amounts.

Back to fat metabolism. While activating the fatty acid a thiol group, simply a sulfur molecule, is added to the fatty acid chain. This thiol group has a lot of energy and can be broken like an ATP to fuel reactions.  ATP is used to create this “activated” state of the fatty acid but that is a necessary consequence Now that the fatty acid is ready to go into the mitochondria. It diffuses through the outer membrane of the mitochondria but it has to be transported into the inner membrane with a carrier called Carnitine. The FA attaches to this molecule and rides in into the inner membrane of the mitochondria.  In the process of attaching to the Carnitine molecule the Coenzyme A is dropped and recycled.

Now it is time for Beta Oxidation once the fatty acid attached to the Caritine travels into the inner membrane.  Basically after a few steps the long fatty acid chain has shortened by two carbon molecules. This forms Acetyl  CoA. If you read the last article then you would know this is a substrate for the Kreb cycle which powers glucose metabolism. It is interesting how each process can aid other processes that seeming have nothing to do with each other.  In addition to Acetyl CoA  NAD and FAD is produced in these few reactions which can go into the ETC. Amazing  isn’t it.

If the Acetyl CoA’s do not go into the Kreb Cycle they will be converted into ketones in the liver.  This happens in small amounts normally and the keytones are reconverted into acetyl CoA’s  to be put back into different processes. In times of starvation keytones are used as an energy source in the brain and can cause a lot of harmful side effects.

Our Last Process is known as Lipogenesis and is the process of reversing the beta oxidation process we just discussed. Fatty acids are built up 2 carbons at a time in a multi step process that is not necessary to understand. The end result of this process is Palmitic Acid, a 16 carbon fatty acid with no double bonds. From this fatty acid many others are formed by groups of proteins that lengthen, shorten and create double bonds.  These are then transported to different parts of the body depending on their function.

 That is what happens to fat as it goes into the body. Last up is Protein. That will have to wait until a nother day however. 

Thanks :)

Carbohydrate Metabolism

How The Aerobic Glycolysis Pathway Works:

In this article I will explain how the human Body intakes, breaks down, stores and utilizes energy in the Form of Carbohydrates. This process is vastly complicated and way beyond most humans capability to fully comprehend the complexity of the human body. I will be giving a general overview of all processes leaving out all the big names that will only cloud the vision I am trying to portray.

                First let’s start with the idea of nutrition. The human body is a complicated biological, electrical and mechanical machine and like any machine technology has created for our use, something has to power it. Most of the technology we use today is powered by electric power which is simply an electric charge that has formed around all atoms since the Big Bang. Understanding WHY there is electricity is a very crucial question, at least in my opinion, but with a very blatant response. It does not matter. The Electromagnetic Field discovered by Clark Maxwell, has been around since the beginning of our Universe. For the purposes of this article we will assume the Big Bang Theory is the correct theory. With this said I am sure in a few hundred years a brand new theory will completely wipe the slate of all we think we know and those seeming irrational religious church goers will point and laugh as the image of God seems more and more plausible. For now let us discuss the world how it is view currently because quite frankly it won’t matter what theories navigate civilization a few hundred years from now, well unless human life expectancy drastically spikes, which I doubt is too much of a concern.

                Back to Electricity. All particles in the universe are inside of a electromagnetic field. This gives particles a charge. Humans are made of particles and therefore can be said to run on electricity like a Lamborghini would.  All cells in the human body produce electricity, so why do we not simply plug ourselves into an outlet, charge up over night, unplug in the morning and then go on our merry way to our dreadful nine to five? Electricity it’s self does NOT power a cell. It will power a group of cells that make up our body. If cells no longer function then electricity no longer conducted throughout the body and inevitably we will die. So how do we keep our cells nice and happy? Just like humans needs sustenance to achieve a proper lifestyle, cells too need to be fed.

                What  feeds a cell though? Why can’t I simply inject a squashed Baconator into my skin and have the cells absorb it? Even though that would be an interesting idea the body has defenses to foreign particles and even burgers. Virology is a very complicated science that i will not pretend to understand the least bit of, but none the less the idea is simple. The body controls what goes in and out of the body just like customs at an airport. So if we can’t inject food then how do we feed the cells? We have to  go through the complex process of digestion. The concept of digestion is pretty simple and I want to quickly move onto the fun intra and extracellular processes so I will give the brief idea. Simply, food is chomped many times (hopefully) in the mouth, cut up into small pieces by front teeth and grinded by back teeth. Then the food goes into the esophagus which is one of the tubes leading down into the stomach. Peristalsis is the process of controlled contraction of the muscular rings circling the esophagus, like many rings stacked on each other. This pushes down the food into the stomach like pushing water out of a straw into a cup. Once there Pepsin, an enzyme, causes a further breakdown of the food into even smaller pieces.  Pepsin is the stomach acid often referred to that causes heart burn when accidently pushed into the esophagus and breaks down the epithelium. Epithelium is a fancy word for skin. There are many layers of these cells all with their own names that really do not matter at this point. After pepsin breaks down the bolus ( clumps of food) then it goes into the intestine. Here the nutrition is absorbed through the walls of the intestines until it is dried out, smelly and simply gross. Then the left over is excreted into a toilet, hopefully.

Now the fun stuff. Let’s start with sugars of the body also knows as carbohydrates. When a carbohydrate rich meal such as pasta is digested into the small intestine it is broken down into small parts known as glucose, fructose and galactose. Glucose is the major one used. Fructose is fruit sugar and in large amount can cause gastrointestinal distress. Galactose has to be converted into a substrate (building block) for Glycolysis and Gluconeogenesis, called D-glucose 6 phosphate. “D” determines the type of links formed in the molecule and determines what can be broken down by humans. We will talk about galactose later on when glycolysis and its reverse reaction, gluconeogenesis needs to be discussed. The sugars are small and can be directly absorbed into the blood stream from the small intestines and put into circulation throughout the body. Now we are ready to discuss our first process, Yippie.

Glycogenesis:

This is the process of storing a lot of glucose molecules in a compact state that can be then used at a later date. Most Carbohydrates are stored after digestion unless the individual is underfed or is in a state of high intensity exercise and needs the food immediately. Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) the energy molecule of the body kicks off this series of reactions and the end product is a single molecule of glucose which  is added to a pre-existing chain of glycogen (many glucose molecules attached together). Uridine Diphosphate is the molecule that transports an attached glucose molecule to the glycogen chain. The idea of transporters is very crucial because many molecules cannot travel in the body unassisted by a carrier protein.  These are the “Diva’s” of the biological world. Now we have a large chain of glucose connected by 1,4 alpha glycosidic bonds.  To understand this let us look at the basic structure of a glucose molecule.

 Figure 1 a glucose molecule

 

Figure 2 -a part of a glycogen chain

There are 6 carbons in each glucose molecule and the bond that holds them together is known as a glycosidic bond. Alpha simply means that the bond is arranged in a way that humans can break it down. Beta bonds are present in other organisms such as plants. They have different enzymes that can break down these bonds that humans do not have. “1,4” simply means which carbon the bond is sprouting from.  Ie. the fourth and 6^th carbon.

Pheew.  Hold on to your hats it gets more fun. Now we have created a nice bulk of glucose ready to use for the body. Let’s say the human we are using as a host for this article decides to get up and run at a moderately fast pace. Now the body has to use these glucose molecules to power the cell to create energy for the body. At a moderate intensity glucose is used due to the fact it is converted into energy the fastest compared to fats or proteins.  More on that later. So we need to make a molecule of glucose turn into energy for the body. ATP is the molecule we are trying to make which holds energy in its bonds. When the bonds are broken energy is released at it powers the cells. So how does a glucose turn into an ATP molecule? I’m glad you asked.

Glycolysis:

Many people remember this dreadful word in grade 10 science class and really do not want to revisit the horrid memories brought up at the thought of this word as it rekindles the emotional exhaustion of trying to remember the steps and names of the molecules and enzymes. Well, you’re welcome because I have taken this burden from you and am able to give you the take away messages. Generally what happens is that once molecule of glucose ( 6 carbons) is broken down into 2 three carbon molecules called pyruvate. This requires energy to create energy in very small amounts. Why you may ask. Glycolysis can be thought of as a preparation step where certain substrates are created in order to fuel two other steps that are crucial in creating ATP. It is a series of ten reactions that require enzymes at each to change the conformation of the molecules. At steps 1 and 3 ATP is used and the cell is at an ATP deficit.  But do not worry the molecule is broke into two smaller 3 carbon molecules and for each 3 carbon molecule 2 ATP are made at steps 7 and 10 so the net ATP production is 2 ATP At sep 8 2 molecules of NADH ( nicotinamide DInucleotide + a hydrogen molecule) are made which are used in the last step of this pathway. NAD is a carrier molecule along with FAD (flavinamide Dinucleotide) and carrier protons to the last part of the pathway. Do not worry we are getting there. So your net products are :

2 NADH

2 ATP

2 Pyruvates

Now we are ready to go into stage two of three of glucose breakdown. But let us not forget about the little step in between that requires Pyruvate to be transferred into another molecule that can be used in the next process.  Pyruvate combines with  coenzyme A and NAD, detaches a carbon and two hydrogen molecules and creates a molecule of acetyl CoA and carbondioxide along with a molecule of NADH.  Carbon Dioxide is broken down by other enzymes and reused in the body at different places where oxygen and carbon is needed. Acetyl basically means two carbon molecules. Unfortunately unless I want to write a 10, 000 word paper I cannot get into the language of biochemistry. All the words have a basic Latin root and basically tell you exactly what is happening. Ex. Lipolysis- the breakdown of fat. Lipo means fat, lysis means break down.  

Figure 3 Pyruvate Dehydrogenation process. Ie. Creating acetyl COA- it is more complicated then this but this is the main idea

The acetyl coA molecules each go into the Citric Acid Cycle also known as the Kreb Cycle.  This as well is a many step process with 9 steps all together. The kerb cycle goes around 2 times before dumping the products into the final step of the pathway. One turn of the cycle produces 3 NADH molecules, 1 FADH Molecule and 1 ATP molecule in the form of GTP ( Guinine Triphosphate) 2 molecules of carbon Dioxide are taken out of the cycle. With two turns of the cycle this brings the products to 6 NADH, 2 FADH and 2 ATP and 4 molecules of CO2 taken away.

Now we are up to a total of:

10 NADH ( 2 from glycolysis, 2 from intermediate step and 6 from CAC)

2 FADH ( from CAC)

4 ATP ( 2 from glycolysis and 2 from CAC)

***remember this is only from ONE glucose molecule and there are hundreds of these molecules. ***

Now for the Final Step of the process and possibly the most complicated. I will keep it simple though do not worry. The Electron Transport Chain is the last step and takes all the credit for the last 2.5 steps. Here the NADH’s and FADH’s transport their electrons to a series of 5 proteins known as complexes.  These are imbedded into the Inner Mitochondrial membrane and create an electron gradient. Some say this is a “proton gradient” but that is incorrect because protons are in the nucleus and if they were to travel out of the nucleus they would blow you up. Literally. Breaking apart nucleuses was how atom bombs were created. 

NADH goes to complex 1 and FADH goes to complex 2. Flavin Mononucleotide (FMN) takes H+ from the NADH and takes it to the complex 1. It is passed around like a hot potato to a few different proteins and complexes and finally goes to the ATP Synthetase. Non-Haem FE-S protein takes the electrons from FADH and does the same process but starting at complex 2 and these electrons also go to the ATP Synthetase.  Now the electrons are all out side of the inner membrane and due to diffusion the electrons want to come back into the cell to event out the particle balance in the mitochondria. The ATP Synthetase is a complex in itself and forces the electrons to help force a molecule of Adenosine Di phosphate and phosphate to fuse together to create ATP. It takes 4 electrons to create one ATP.

Figure 4- ETC- these are the complexes and the Hydrogens from NADH and FADH are stripped of electrons and passed liek a hot potato down the assembly line to the ATP Synthease.

So if we do some quick math we can determine the amount of ATP created per NADH. This turns out to produce 2.5 ATP per molecule of NADH and 1.5 ATP per molecule of NADH. Do not worry about the actual math it will not help you understand the body. Once the ATP is created then it can be used to fuel other processes in the mitochondria, which is of course the powerhouse of the cell.

If certain substrates are low the body can substitute certain ones for others, change some chemical structures and by pass some processes. Only to a certain amount of course but inevitably the processes never work perfectly and plan B and C and D need to be available. For example if low levels of CO Enzyme A , NAD then pyruvate can be  transferred into oxaloacetate which goes directly into CAC. Well, why not do this all the time and make life easier by taking out the pyruvate dehydrogenase reaction? By passing this step uses ATP instead of creating NADH which can be used in the ETC. Like I said. It can be done it times of need for energy but inevitably it will not last long.  This can happen with many different substrates and would take too long to list them all.

I will write an Article of Fat metabolism later. I hope you enjoyed. 

  ThanksJ

How To Teach A Proper Back Flip

Hello Everyone, I was in a gym the other day and was absent mindedly watching a coach, who I did not know, spot a back flip to a child for the first time.  I was curious of why the coach was spotting the way she was. She simply was not looking into the future, and simply wanted the kid to not land on their head. So it inspired me to write a little blurb about proper coaching technique.

Back Flip:

First of all the coach must understand that what they teach their athletes from day one is important. I understand a lot of coaching have the mentality of " teach them first perfect later". Well for some kids this works but for most, at least the ones I know and have coached are forced to keep revising what they think they know. This can be very frustrating obviously and the child will start to lose focus and fail to take in what you are saying or they will get demotivated to learn the skills because they keep juggling back and forth. One day they are learning flifis and the next day they are doing a back tuck with their head in for an hour. Doesn't make much sense does it? So I always teach the children no matter what age or what skill level everything I know as we go. I do not scream and yell of course because some techniques do take a while to understand but simply I do not let the athlete move on too much until ALL the technical aspects are taken care of to the best of my knowledge. Younger athletes are also easily amused. A national level athlete will usually get bored doing the same skill over and over again. A younger athlete simply just loves to repeat. When I first taught one of my athletes a front tuck she would do it every second of the day. I told her to do routines, but no she wanted to do flips. Use this to your advantage coaches!! The athlete has a large attention span for skills they like so let them do 1000 back flips with critical analyses of every little issue. It will be easier then having them learn a double back flip wrong and then having to go back to "boring single back flips".

OK now lets get into technique:
General:

Every back flip or front flip starts exactly the same way. It starts as a back lay out. This allows the athlete to keep the legs straight after take off to ensure a full push out of the bed. A lot of athletes will jump high and then cut their height to do the actual flip. How can you do that if you are taking off for a back straight? The idea is that the athlete will take off straight up and down, keep body completely straight for the first quarter of the flip and then "snap" into a tuck position to finish the flip, before opening up and landing, and maybe even sticking the flip.

Progressions:

The athlete needs to jump with full extension of the legs going at a decent height. It is up to the coach to judge the height needed. The athlete can start off by doing flat back- back drops. This is a variation of a simple "legs up" back drop where the body falls in one straight position and remains tight upon landing. The heals, buttocks, back and head all land at the same time. This is you quarter flip in the lay out position. Ideally the child should be able to do this with arms above their head. The hips should land where the feet have taken off from the trampoline. Assuming the child can do this with eyes open perfectly I make them do it onto a big fluffy matt with eyes closed. YES YES I KNOW- don't do it , its bad, if my level 1 and 2 tramp instructors see this they will be upset. Too bad. Simply said: the athletes usual problem is that they throw their head back. They want to see where they are going. Well, if they can do a back drop comfortably with eyes closed then they will have no reason to put their head back because no matter what they do they wont see anything. It will help reinforce proper head position which I will discuss later. So after the athlete can do it blind folded and non-blindfolded correctly almost every time they are then ready to move on. If you have taught back drop correctly this stage should not take very long. It also depends on age, gender, maturity level, etc etc. You will know very quickly if you moved the child on to quickly. They will have to go right back to it.

Once this is complete the coach should stand behind the athlete and instruct them to do the exact same back drop. The coach will catch the athlete while he or she is horizontal in the air in a flat back back drop position and then push them back up. The coach catches the athlete by putting one hand on each shoulder blades. You slow them down a bit at the apex of the jump and then push them up so they land back on the feet. I find some athletes think to much and freak out so I do not tell them what I am doing. I simply say " I am watching from a different angle". have them do it eyes closed and then push them back up. They will freak a bit but they just did it with out throwing the head back or changing anything on the way up. That's what I want. I could care less how they come back down. Once the athlete can do this easily with eyes open and closed then the next stage.

Instruct  the athlete to do the same back drop but when they see their toes go parallel to their head, tuck in a quick and tight as they can and hold it. Many will half tuck and freak out and chicken out but keep doing it. The athlete will soon be able to go up in a straight position, tuck quick with the head in and then kick out and land again. All of this is done with you behind them so they do not actually flip. Some athlete will go so high that you can actually balance them in your hand before  letting them down. This method will teach the child to tuck after the quarter straight flip so that the tucking motion actually speeds up their flip. Ren, from Gymnastics Mississauga, gave me a helpful hint when trying to teach me standing double back. A back flip is like standing with your hands above your head and jumping so that you kick your hands. Bringing the feet over your head instead of your chest down to tuck.

After this stage the hard part is done. The child can now do a half a back flip with their head in after a straight quarter take off and snap into a tuck position. Simply now, you roll them over your shoulder. Hold on to them as you roll them but at this stage they should be comfortable with the landing. Do this a bunch of times and then you can spot from the side in a traditional manor. Do not expect the athlete to do it the same though. You may have to go back and forth until he understands that no matter where you are the skill is the same.

from there it is simple. Number, numbers and numbers. Eventually the child will do it on their own. I have had athletes take a few months to progress through these stages. I have had athletes take a day to do a proper back flip progression. All depends on the athlete.

The last part is the arm movement. The arms do not take off  straight up like many coaches teach. The arms are slightly flexed just above the should girdle. This allows the arms to be thrusted upwards on the take off. This does a few things.

1) it forces the athlete to wait before adding twists when learning back fulls etc.
2) gives the athlete a bit more height because of the shoulder thrust
3) allows the athlete to hold lines a fraction of a second longer on the skills before the back tuck ( prudent in higher levels( holding lines right to the bed))
4) make the athlete actually think of jumping higher rather then just flipping
5) actually make it easier to stay in a single spot on the trampoline because the arms are moving upwards. Arms whipping upwards are more stable then arms being isometrically contracted.

With all these benefits it seems stupid that even many senior national team members do not focus on it. Got to hand it to Dave Ross, me and him don't get a long great sometimes but hey, no one knows trampoline like he does.

Have the athlete do a million back flips with this arm technique. has to be done on the way up just out of the bed. To early or to late causes the athlete to miss the timing and not get the full effect. This arm extension upon take off has fixed one of my athletes back fulls. It does work, give it a try.

A simple drill is by having the athlete start with his or her arms down completely and throw them up as fast as possible on the take take off for the back flip. The athlete will find it easy in comparison when you ask them to do it from 45 degrees from shoulder height.

There you go. :):)

bye

COMPILATION 3 :)

Hello All,

I have finally gotten the third compilation up and running on youtube. I hope you all enjoy. It is in the "video header" Please comment  :) I need new suggestions for the next video:) Thanks to all my supporters :):)

Figure Skating Testing

Today was an early day at Canadian Sports Center where we tested the up and coming figure skating athletes from across canada. I was there first calibrating the BOD POD and setting up the other equipment. I was positioned on the Opti Jump system. The groups were split up into boys and girls and ranged from 12-17 years old. I was administering the counter movement jump protocol and the depth drop protocol and 22, 32 and 42 cm heights.  Over all the tests ran smoothly even though it was the first time any of the athletes had done the test. The idea is to get them experience for later on in their career. Upon dismissal, I came over some very depressing news. The contract with the New Jersey Devils is on June 2,3 and 4rth. I am away in China competing those days and will miss the chance to work with the hockey team. Hopefully more chances will come my way in the future.