XTEND FAQ

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Nutri-ForeFronT

By: Marc Lobliner

What is Xtend?
Xtend is a precise, scientific blend of Energy Aminos consisting of the proven 2:1:1 ratio of Branched Chain Amino Acids (L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine and L-Valine), Glutamine, Citrulline Malate, and Vitamin B6.


XTEND 1KG
* Also avail XTEND 400g

 

If I already eat a lot of protein, will additional free-form BCAA be beneficial to me?
The metabolic effects seen from ingesting free-form amino acids are different from ingesting the same amino acids when they are in a whole protein (peptide bond). The rapid flushing of the system with the particular amino acid exerts a much more powerful activation of its target pathways. For example, if you were to ingest 5 grams of free-form arginine pre-workout you would notice a greater pump then without it. If you were to ingest 5 grams of arginine in the form of a whole protein (1) you’d have to eat a ton of protein to acquire the 5 grams of arginine and (2) the rate of delivery would be much slower and (3) you would not be flooding your system with a large dose of arginine at one time. The same holds true for BCAA. Ingesting 10 grams of BCAA will lead to greater activation of mTOR, PI3K, etc. than ingesting 10 grams of BCAA from a whole protein.

What if I already take in a lot of whey protein which is high in BCAA?
Free-form amino acids are absorbed quicker than whey, and as stated above, whey will not flood your bloodstream with BCAA as quick as ingesting free-form BCAA. The BCAA from whey compared to free-form BCAA could be compared to filling up a glass of water from a garden hose (whey) to a faucet (free-form BCAA). If you use a garden hose you have to wait until the water travels the length of the hose before you can use it. With a faucet, the water is right there when you turn it on. On top of this, the faucet has a wider opening than the garden hose and releases more water than the garden hose. During your workout and times of stress (dieting), you want the BCAA to get to your muscles as quickly as possible.

I have heard one can get the same effects from taking Leucine alone as from taking all 3 BCAA, is this true?
Due to leucine’s metabolic properties, many people focus solely on leucine and not the other two BCAAs, valine and isoleucine. Research has shown that leucine-rich diets or administration of leucine alone lead to decreases in valine and isoleucine plasma concentrations and a BCAA imbalance (Shirmomura et al., 2004). While it may be cheaper to supplement with leucine alone instead of all three BCAA, one should supplement with all three BCAA so not to create a BCAA imbalance.

Isoleucine and Valine also has some interesting properties of their own, separate from leucine. Isoleucine has been shown to increase glucose intake via PI3K activation, one of the same pathways leucine uses, but independently of the mTOR pathway (Doi et al., 2003). Valine has been shown to reduce fatty acid synthase in adipocytes by 40%, which will lead to less fat storage (Taylor & Halperin, 1975).

Can women take Xtend?
Yes. Xtend is very effective for both men and women.

How much and when should I take Xtend?
How much Xtend you take per day will depend primarily on how much money you can spend and your goals. The following dosing protocols are based on the large tub of Xtend, which has 90 servings.

Servings per day

1 Jug will last (days)

3 Servings during Your Workouts Strategy
During exercise BCAA oxidation is increased. Supplementing with additional BCAA spares muscle tissue from being broken down to acquire BCAA. Therefore, drinking Xtend around and during your workout is the ideal way to use it. Start sipping your Xtend 15 minutes prior to the start of your workout (i.e. while driving to the gym). Continue sipping Xtend between sets during your workout and finish whatever Xtend you have not drunken immediately post workout. Follow this up with your usual post-workout shake or meal. If you only use Xtend during your workouts, 1 jug will last as follows:

If you want to take additional Xtend on your rest days to accelerate recovery and growth, 1 jug will last:

Sipping Xtend throughout the Day Strategy
Another popular method for using Xtend is to sip it throughout the day. Many users of this method have reporting gaining lean mass while losing fat simultaneously. This method would be ideal for those cutting on a low-carb, hypocaloric diet. Simply put the desired amount of Xtend in a container (i.e. gallon jug) and drink from it occasionally throughout the day. I would recommend using 4-6 scoops in a gallon jug.

If you use 3 servings (6 scoops) per day in this manner, 1 jug of Xtend will last 30 days. If you combine this method with the above method of taking 3 servings of Xtendduring your workout, 1 jug will last:

Cardiovascular Training
Different scenarios:
(1) Cardio only
(2) Cadio AM, Weight training PM (or vise versa)
(3) Weight training followed by cardio
(4) HIIT
Depending on the duration and intensity, cardiovascular exercise can deplete muscle glycogen levels significantly. Supplementing with Xtend will assist in sparing muscle glycogen and muscle tissue and increase gluconeogensis. In addition to this, the citrulline-malate in Xtend will increase your performance due to its ATP boosting effects.

(1) Cardio only
If you are only doing cardio on a given day, I would treat this just as you would a weight training workout. Start sipping your Xtend 15 minutes prior to the start of your cardio (i.e. while driving to the gym). Continue sipping Xtend throughout your cardio session. Dosing will depend mainly on the duration. I would suggest taking 1 serving of Xtend per 10 minutes of cardio.

Another option would be to decrease the amount of Xtend and add some whey protein for session greater than 40 minutes. For example, you could do 3 servings of Xtend and 1 serving of Substance WPI (with the matching flavor).

(2) Cardio AM, Weight Training PM
If you perform both cardio and weight training on the same day, I would recommend dosing 3 servings of Xtend pre/during/post weight training as outlined above and supplementing with an additional 2-3 servings of Xtend during your cardio session.

(3) Weight training followed by cardio
If you perform cardio after your weight training session, I would recommend increasing your Xtend servings from 3 to 4-6 servings. Add all of the servings to a jug or water bottle and sip throughout your weight training session as usual. Whatever Xtend you did not drink during your workout is to be drunk during your cardio session.

(4) HIIT
HIIT is an anaerobic form of cardio. While a HIIT session is usually shorter in duration then a cardiovascular session, it is much more intense. I would recommend using 1-3 servings of Xtend during the session. If you are doing sprints, I would suggest taking 1 scoop (1/2 servings) per 5 sprints.

What Supplements Can I Combine with Xtend for Enhanced Results?
The Mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) is one of the body’s protein synthesis regulators. mTOR functions as an energy sensor; it is activated when ATP levels are high and blocked when ATP levels are decreased (AMPK is activated when ATP decreases, which works antagonistically to mTOR).

The main energy-consuming process in the cell is protein synthesis. When mTOR is activated (high ATP levels sensed) protein synthesis is increased and when mTOR is suppressed (low ATP levels are sensed) protein synthesis is blunted.

MTOR activation is vital for skeletal muscle hypertrophy. Interestingly, mTOR is also a nutrient sensor of amino acid availability, specifically of leucine availability. Research has shown that regulation of mTOR by ATP and amino acids act independently through separate mechanisms (Dennis et al., 2001).

It is my belief that combining supplements that increase/elevate ATP levels with BCAA will lead to an increased activation of mTOR, and therefore protein synthesis. Our goal is to keep ATP levels elevated while working out. To do so, we must supply the needed nutrients and substrates before and after the workout to keep ATP levels elevated and our bodies primed for growth.

Creatine
Creatine is used in the high-energy phosphate or ATP-PCr system to regenerate ATP. ATP, the body’s main source of energy, is a molecule of adenosine (adenine + the sugar ribose) linked to three phosphate molecules by high-energy bonds. Breaking of the two outer bonds results in the release of energy.

When the most outer bond is broken, the energy is released and ADP and Pi are left behind. Creatine, which is bonded to a phosphate ion, transfers energy to the ADP and Pi molecule by breaking its own bond. This regenerates the ATP molecule, which means one now has more energy to use.

Skeletal muscle has a limited storage of creatine. Therefore supplementing with creatine increases your ability to form ATP and therefore increases the available energy for exercise (Casey et al. 1996 & 2000). More importantly to our topic on hand, by keeping ATP levels by supplementing with creatine we increase protein synthesis through mTOR activation. Creatine also has many other beneficial effects that are to numerous to address here.

Nitric Oxide (NO) product (Arginine, DiArginine-Malate, AAKG, etc)
The rate-limiting step of amino acid uptake into skeletal muscle is the transportation of the amino acids through the blood to the skeletal muscle, which is governed by blood flow (Wolfe, 2004). NO vasodilates blood vessels, thereby increasing blood flow. This increase when combined with exercises means greater blood flow and greater amino acid deliver and uptake in the working skeletal muscle. Exercise itself results in an increase in NO production, and the increased blood flow created by exercise is believed to be linked to the increase in protein synthesis post workout (Douglas et al., 2004). Xtend already has Citrulline-Malate in it, which will increase NO production, but an additional serving of arginine (i.e. 5 grams) preworkout should further enhance NO production, blood flow, and amino acid uptake.

Do I have to take Xtend on off days?
No it is not necessary to take Xtend on off days, though doing so will enhance your recovery. The most important time to take Xtend is during training.

Can I stack Xtend with VasoCharge?
Yes. We highly recommend taking 2 scoops of VasoCharge +* 2 scoops of Xtend pre-workout and then sipping on 4-8 scoops of Xtend during your workout.

Can I stack Xtend with Sesamin and Dialene 4?
Yes, Xtend can be stacked with the entire Scivation product line.

Can I overdose on Xtend?
It really is not possible to overdose Xtend.

Can I take Xtend with meals?
Yes, that is perfectly fine.

Will Xtend cause me to fail a drug test for natural bodybuilding competitions?
No. Xtend contains all natural ingredients and no hormones. It will not cause you to fail a drug test.

REFERENCE:
Casey, A, Constantin-Teodosiu D, Howell S, Hultman E, Greenhaff PL. (1996) Creatine ingestion favorably affects performance and muscle metabolism during maximal exercise in humans. Am J Physiol. Jul;271:E31-7.
Casey A, Greenhaff PL. (2000).Does dietary creatine supplementation play a role in skeletal muscle metabolism and performance?Am J Clin Nutr. Aug;72(2 Suppl):607S-17S. Review.
Doi M, Yamaoka I, Fukunaga T, Nakayama M. Isoleucine, a potent plasma glucose-lowering amino acid, stimulates glucose uptake in C2C12 myotubes. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2003 Dec 26;312(4):1111-7.
Douglas, Borsheim, and Wolfe. Potential Ergogenic Effects of Arginine and Creatine Supplementation J Nutr. 2004 Oct;134(10 Suppl):2888S-2894S.
Shimomura, Y. Murakami, T.Nakai, N. Nagasaki, M. Harri, R.A. (2004). Exercise Promotes BCAA Catabolism: Effects of BCAA Supplementation on Skeletal Muscle during Exercise J. Nutri. 134: 1583S-1587S.
Taylor WM, Halperin ML. Effect of valine on the control of fatty acid synthesis in white adipose tissue of the rat. Can J Biochem. 1975 Oct;53(10):1054-60.
Wolfe, et. al., In vivo muscle amino acid transport involves two distinct processes. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 2004 Jul;287(1):E136-41.

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Be Healthy!

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Nutri-ForeFronT

6 Easy Ways to Reverse the Signs of Aging

- Drink plenty of water. Studies show that drinking sufficient amounts of water daily (about 60-80 oz) will keep your skin hydrated and looking youthful.

- Eat a well balanced diet. A diet filled with fruits and veggies, lean protein and whole grains provides your body with disease fighting nutrients.

- Exercise. Regular weight training helps keep bones strong and muscles toned! Cardiovascular exercises keep your heart ticking and your weight healthy.

- Get plenty of sleep. A good night sleep allows your body to recuperate and rejuvenate for the next day. When you fail to get enough sleep, your body is stressed, your immunity is lowered and your energy is lagging.

- Wear sunscreen. Years of the sun’s ultraviolet rays can weather your skin and make you look wrinkly! By wearing sunscreen, you can prevent age pots and pre-mature wrinkles.

- Supplement Wisely.

Nutri-ForeFronT recommends:

to facilitate good sleep – ZMA
 ZMA contains scientifically-proven ratios of zinc, magnesium and vitamin b6 and has been clinically shown to support healthy hormone production, promote lean mass, maximize restful sleep and does not contain any hormones or banned substances. Because muscles are generally stronger during the eccentric phase of the movement (muscles can resist more weight than they can lift), you can also use a spotter to allow you to use more weight during the negatives. Just have your partner help you out on the positive portion of the movement, and really blast your muscles with those heavy negatives.

to cleanse your body from free radicals -Radox
This unrivaled formula contains a full spectrum of the most scientifically advanced compounds with anti-oxidant properties ever to be incorporated into one formula.

to improve insulin response – Insopro-R
 R-alpha lipoic acid is not only one of the very best and most universal anti-oxidants but it also is the perfect dietary supplement for improving insulin response / sensitivity and blood sugar control.

to improve sexual health – T-Bomb II
 The advanced T-Bomb II matrix has been shown to help increase natural testosterone production, build muscle, maximize sex drive and boost immune function.

to facilitate joint recovery – Elastamine
 Elastamine contains a proven blend of Glucosamine and Chondroitin to help maintain healthy joints and cartilage.

Check the range of Protein Supplements here.

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Be Lean!

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Nutri-ForeFronT

Start With Cardio

Get rid of the layer of fat covering your abs first. When you lower your body fat percentage, your abs will appear more chiseled and defined. To get the abs up to shape, you’ll want to do about 30 minutes of cardio work 3 or 4 times a week. Some great choices for cardio are:

  • Circuit Weight Training
  • Tennis
  • Brisk Walking
  • Bicycling
  • Running
  • Basketball
  • Even House Work!

Pick an exercise you actually enjoy doing. That way you’ll stick to it until it becomes a habit you won’t want to give up!

Eat Small, Frequent Meals

Be sure to eat small frequent meals every 3 or 4 hours. When you’re trying to lose fat you may want to skip meals to reduce your caloric intake, but a better–and easier–way to cut calories is to eat smaller meals more frequently. This keeps your metabolism running high. Don’t wait until you’re hungry to eat! This not only leads to overeating, but you end up overeating the wrong kinds of foods.

Do carry meal replacement shakes like Solution 5 in your car or at work. They are a great way to get nutrition and fill you up between meals. Our most popular meal replacement shakes are packed with wholesome and essential macro-nutrients, while our protein shakes ( Refined, Whey Blend, Matrix and Nectar) are low in carbs and come in delicious flavors.

Don’t let your mini-meals come from the snack machine. Often these over processed choices are high in fat and calories and have little nutritional value. Opt for whole foods instead.

Do bring small containers of healthy snacks to work. Granola, raw vegetables to crunch on, even hard boiled eggs are some great choices. Try bringing a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread with some fresh crisp greens. Most brands of canned tuna in water and instant soups now come in low sodium varieties, and they fill you up without having a lot of calories.

Emphasize the Negative

Research has shown beyond any doubt that the eccentric or negative portion of a movement is at least as important to muscle growth as the positive or concentric phase.

By periodically placing greater emphasis on the eccentric, you’ll push your muscles harder than ever before . . . and as a result, you’ll stimulate new growth.

For each body part, I like to focus on negatives once every couple of weeks. The easiest way to do this is resist the weight during the negative, lowering slowly.

For instance, you can focus on the eccentric portion of the Standing Barbell Curl by raising the weight at a normal tempo (for me this is usually a 2 count) and then lowering the weight very slowly (a count of 4 or 5).

This is a high intensity technique that you shouldn’t use every workout . . . doing so will likely lead to over-training. For best results, use the technique periodically during a couple heavy sets of each body part.

Because muscles are generally stronger during the eccentric phase of the movement (muscles can resist more weight than they can lift), you can also use a spotter to allow you to use more weight during the negatives. Just have your partner help you out on the positive portion of the movement, and really blast your muscles with those heavy negatives.

Supplements for Great Abs

What About Fat Loss Supplements? Remember that effective fat loss supplements are meant to be used with an exercise program and a balanced diet. There are two different kinds of fat loss supplements: stimulant and non-stimulant.

Stimulant weight loss supplements (also known as Thermogenics) increase your metabolism so you can burn more calories when used with a sensible weight loss program. Thermogenics supplements such as SCORCH Remix can help keep up your energy, stay motivated so you can lose those love handles, and reveal your sleek abs. Only you can decide which one is best for your specific needs.

Non-stimulant weight loss supplements are great for those of you who don’t want a stimulant, but want that extra edge when trying to drop fat. In addition, Glutamine helps prevent muscle loss, while keeping you leaner. Other non-stimulant weight loss supplements include Guggulbolic Extreme, Vaporize, and Xpel. The feedback on these non-stimulant fat loss supplements have been outstanding.

Stay Focused

The key element in ab training is not how many reps and sets you do, but how hard you contract your abs on each rep. Make sure your focus is on pushing your lower abs into your upper abs and vice-versa.

Contrary to popular belief, during training, your abs should NOT move like a hinge (as in the conventional sit-up). The segments of your abs really should move towards each other more like an accordion. It’s this intense squeezing that tightens and shapes your abdominals.

If your abs are not burning, you’re not working them!

Proteins – Do I Need Proteins During Weight Loss?

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past decade, by now you are well aware of the lean muscle-building benefits of protein. Protein provides the building blocks for muscle development, and whey-dominated protein powders in particular are virtually a must-have element of any serious bodybuilding or fitness nutrition program.

The days of people knocking the benefits of supplements are thankfully over. Now, even mainstream physicians and nutritionists recognize the importance of supplementing our diets. And the real-world results bodybuilding and fitness enthusiasts have achieved through intelligent supplementation speak for themselves.

Along with training and nutrition, establishing a proper supplement program is one of the three equal points of the Triangle of Physical Well-Being and Power.

The list of tried and proven supplements that support muscle growth really isn’t that long: Vitamins, Anti-Oxidants, Protein Powders, especially whey and casein, and MRP formula, Muscle Volumizers, Essential Fatty Acids, Glutamine, Insopro-R and a handful of others. These are the supplements you need to help make your dreams of added muscle mass a reality.

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Be Muscular!

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Nutri-ForeFronT

5 Keys to Building Serious Muscle Mass Fast

Adding muscle mass takes an intelligent focus and a determined level of commitment. When approached properly, the body will respond.

So if you’ve been trying desperately to pack on the muscle but you’re just not seeing the results you want—you’re probably not following some of the tried and true rules of adding mass.

Rule #1: Short, Intense Training Sessions

If you’re goal is to add muscle mass, then there’s no way you should be in the gym for any longer than an hour, tops.

Ideally, quick, intense muscle-blasting sessions are best, especially for natural bodybuilders and/or hardgainers.

The get in the gym, hit your muscles hard, then get home and grow philosophy of Mentzer, Yates, and others has proven time and time again to be a highly successful strategy for mass training.

As an example, I train my complete chest in about 20 minutes. I see some people in the gym who take 30-40 minutes to bench press! Unless you’re looking to set the power lifting world on fire, this is counterproductive.

And forget about doing 15 sets for biceps and expecting to grow. Train them all-out in 5 or 6 sets and you’ll get much better results.

Rule #2: Emphasize the Negative

Research has shown beyond any doubt that the eccentric or negative portion of a movement is at least as important to muscle growth as the positive or concentric phase.

By periodically placing greater emphasis on the eccentric, you’ll push your muscles harder than ever before . . . and as a result, you’ll stimulate new growth.

For each body part, I like to focus on negatives once every couple of weeks. The easiest way to do this is resist the weight during the negative, lowering slowly.

For instance, you can focus on the eccentric portion of the Standing Barbell Curl by raising the weight at a normal tempo (for me this is usually a 2 count) and then lowering the weight very slowly (a count of 4 or 5).

This is a high intensity technique that you shouldn’t use every workout . . . doing so will likely lead to overtraining. For best results, use the technique periodically during a couple heavy sets of each body part.

Because muscles are generally stronger during the eccentric phase of the movement (muscles can resist more weight than they can lift), you can also use a spotter to allow you to use more weight during the negatives. Just have your partner help you out on the positive portion of the movement, and really blast your muscles with those heavy negatives.

Rule #3: Variety is what it’s all about

Variation is the most important principle you can implement if you want to allow your body to continue to pack on serious muscle mass. We cannot emphasized this enough.

Our bodies are incredible machines; they’re capable of adapting very quickly to the physical stresses we place on them during training. In fact, it’s one of the things they do best.

It’s because of this ability to adapt that you must constantly be using variation in your program—or even changing your program altogether—in order to prevent this adaptation from stifling progress. There’s no doubt that it’s precisely the failure to change and alter things up in your training that results in plateaus and frustration.

Ideally, you should be following a training program that has variation built into it on all levels. In any event, a training program that does not use variation as an organizing theme is doomed to offer only short-term, sporadic gains.

Rule #4: Fuel your body for Growth

If you want big muscles, then you have to feed your body lots of high-quality nutrients. Your best bet is to give your body a continual influx of food.

We suggest eating at least 4 and as many as 8 meals per day. Of course, these meals should be well-structured and evenly distributed and proportioned.

Ideally, if you want to take in say 5000 calories over the course of 6 meals (a good target for an intense training 200 lbs. male looking to pack on muscle mass), then each meal should be around 800 to 850 calories. This is preferred to having say one meal of 350 calories, one of 1400 calories, and so forth.

Organize your meals around quality sources of protein like egg whites, tuna and other fish, chicken and turkey breast, lean cuts of beef, etc. Try to take in around 1 to 1.5 grams of protein per pound of weight. If you weigh 200 lbs., than eat at least 200 to 300 grams of protein per day.

Getting enough good fat is also important for muscle growth, and experience suggests that drastically low fat diets are counterproductive in this area.

For best results, try cycling your carbohydrate intake. Now, it’s admittedly difficult to eat 5 or 6, not to mention 7 or even 8, quality meals per day … especially given how busy most of our schedules are. This is where using a solid meal replacement powder (MRP), Mass Gainers , protein powders and other supplements becomes absolutely essential.

Top 10 Protein Sources

  • Egg whites. Crack open this not-so-secretive protein wonder.
  • Skinless chicken breasts. It may come after the egg but it’s still atop the list.
  • Salmon. Fits swimmingly into your diet.
  • Protein drinks. The healthiest drink at any bar.
  • Buffalo. May be the leanest red meat out there.
  • Lean beef. Loaded with muscle building protein.
  • Turkey. Be thankful. With protein, it’s very giving.
  • Tuna. Sparky can be just as generous.
  • Non-fat cottage cheese. Cory Everson swears by it.
  • Ostrich. A protein-packed bird in the hand.

Rule #5: Supplement Support

The days of people knocking the benefits of supplements are thankfully over. Now, even mainstream physicians and nutritionists recognize the importance of supplementing our diets. And the real-world results bodybuilding and fitness enthusiasts have achieved through intelligent supplementation speak for themselves.

Along with training and nutrition, establishing a proper supplement program is one of the three equal points of the Triangle of Physical Well-Being and Power.

The list of tried and proven supplements that support muscle growth really isn’t that long: Vitamins, Anti-Oxidants, Protein Powders, especially whey and casein, and MRP formula, Muscle Volumizers, Essential Fatty Acids, Glutamine, Insopro-R and a handful of others. These are the supplements you need to help make your dreams of added muscle mass a reality.

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Pull up challenge at IMM Singapore

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Nutri-ForeFronT

A challenge to beat # of pull ups set by Vincent Ng. Got $50 for the fun to buy milk for young Levron.

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