Just a quick post. Sorry I haven’t posted in a while, life has been so hectic preparing for INBA WA State Titles. I will do a proper post on the experience soon but for now, know that I am in good spirits, in awe of what’s happening and excited to start preparing for nationals.
Today I had the opportunity to hang out with a really good friend of mine, sponsored athlete and climber Anna Davey at The Boulder Hub. As you can see she has incredible back muscles. Here she is working on her chins and pull ups.
Anna introduced me to the world of bouldering and climbing not too long ago. She swears by climbing as one of the best work outs you can have.
As a lead climber, she says her secret to getting ripped is climbing.
Because of the intensity, it’s easy to burn off 500-800 calories in a session and that’s why climbers are all so ripped. The muscles over your whole body gets involved with getting you up that wall. But the part I love most is pushing the boundaries of what you can do to your limits and beyond. Because climbing is so dynamic, that seemingly impossible dyno move gets you working all those little muscles you never knew you had.
Here I am doing a bit of bouldering. I like this free form of climbing as a work out because there’s no messing about with rope. You are literally up and down the wall in a matter of seconds pushing the intensity of the work out. Bouldering rarely goes beyond 6m and the drop to the mattress is pretty safe.
I will definitely be adding climbing to my work outs – it’s great to have a different work out for arms, shoulders and back while burning massive calories and having heaps of fun!
So get to your local indoor rock climbing gym and get up that wall!
Much love, Dr E 🙂
“If you want a fit healthy body that looks good too, you won’t get there just by exercising alone.”
If exercise & fitness is only half the picture then diet & nutrition is the other half. You cannot ignore what you put into your body and I can’t stress this enough! As a dentist, not only am I focused on my patients’ diet but as an expert in obstructive sleep apnea, I look at both diet & nutrition as well as fitness & exercise as lifestyle factors.
I don’t put anything poisonous in my body if I can help it – no smoking, no drugs, no junk food, no added sugars. I rarely drink and if I do, it’s a glass of red which is good for the heart! But this takes discipline, a bigger budget, meal prep time and motivation. Not everyone can diet like me, even I have my moments of weakness from time to time. So the key is balance and everything in moderation.
“Mostly, I focus on my macros: proteins, carbohydrates and fat.”
Protein is most important for growth and maintenance. As a bodybuilder, I’m aiming for around 100-150g of protein per day but the average person probably just needs around 60g. I like to source my protein from chicken, eggs, milk, cottage cheese and seafood especially my favourite: salmon. Not only is it delicious, it contains plenty of essential fats such as omega 3. I only eat lean red meat around once a week simply because I find that it is a bit harsh on my stomach.
Carbohydrates have many functions with the main one being an energy source. Carbohydrates can be broken down into simple carbohydrates (sugars) and complex carbohydrates (starch). Generally, any complex carbohydrate I have will be sourced from wholegrain such as wholemeal bread and brown pasta or rice. I avoid processed carbohydrates like the plague as they have little other nutritional value. I will ingest natural sugars usually in the form of fruit and vegetables which come with other important vitamins and minerals and avoid added sugars found in desserts and confectionery.
Fats have a number of roles from being an energy source, helping you absorb vitamins to affecting your cholesterol levels. But not all fats are the same. The bad fats that raise cholesterol which you want to stay away from are saturated and trans fats. These are found in butter, margarine, cream and high fat cut meats. The cholesterol lowering good fats are mono-unsaturated and poly-unsaturated fats and these are found in olive oil, nuts, peanut butter, sunflower seeds, fatty fish, soy milk and tofu.
And lastly stay hydrated! Water is important for flushing toxins out of vital organs and carrying nutrients to your cells. I try to drink at least 2-3L of water per day.
I’m often asked if I take supplements and the answer is a resounding yes! But I’m an athlete and I need to make sure I give my body everything it needs to perform at its best. Whether or not this is necessary for you is based on your individual needs and you should speak to a dietitian or nutritionist. The diet above should give you everything you need but if you want to supplement, start with good vitamin and mineral support. If you are looking for cost effective gains in muscle building, I’d start with creatine monohydrate then add BCAA’s to the mix. Protein powders may be considered if you aren’t getting enough macros in your diet. Then there’s pre-workouts and thermo fat burners if you want to get serious but we’ll go into these in more detail later!
“If there is one thought I can leave you with…that is your body is made up of what you put into it. Start with a healthy canvas, it makes the sculpting a lot easier!”
Much love, Dr E 🙂
Every superhero, champion or person who has ever done anything worth doing has an origin story…
Mine began in 2010, when I walked into a random clothing alteration shop and met Anthony Pham – tailor/beast. I was 5’10, an unintimidating 55 kg and I wanted to learn jiu jitsu. He said to me,
“Son, you need to put on some size first…”
He took me to the gym and trained me for 6 months and that’s how I fell in love with lifting.
Fast forward to 2014, I am weighing in at 69 kg with 9% body fat. My lifestyle has completely changed. I eat healthy, I look forward to my workouts and I excel athletically. But more importantly, I am loving life…I wake up each day feeling energetic and motivated which means I have accomplished more than I ever could have imagined. I am happier and more confident than ever.
So this is my journey to INBA in May 2015. I share my journey with you in the hopes that you can benefit from the lessons I’ve learnt, to enhance your own lifestyles through health and fitness.
Much love, Dr E 🙂
DR ERIC WANG FITNESS 