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The Importance Of Exercise And Tips On Building Muscle

In our recent article about Dr. Brooke Goldner’s Hyper-Nourishing Green Smoothie, we introduced you to her YouTube Channel, Goodbye Lupus by Brooke Goldner, M.D. and explained how this inspiring physician has helped thousands of people reverse autoimmune diseases like Lupus with a plant-based diet. This best-selling author is married to Thomas Tadlock, an award-winning trainer who has successfully led training sessions for thousands of people, organizations, celebrities, recording artists, and entrepreneurs.

Tadlock is also a best-selling author, and wrote Miracle Metabolism: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Quickly Lose Fat, Gain Muscle, and Heal at Any Age. He writes about transforming “your body with the greatest amount of ease and enjoyment, in a way that will leave you healthier, more energetic, stronger, and fitter.”

This healthy power couple leads a discussion on Chef AJ’s YouTube channel called Metabolism – How To Lose Fat Faster and Build Muscle Easier with Dr Brooke Goldner & Thomas Tadlock where they share tips about metabolism, building muscle, and exercise.

Why is exercise important?

Thomas Tadlock, who has a master’s degree in exercise science and health promotion, explains the importance of keeping your body moving.

“It’s amazing how well your body adapts to whatever you do to it. That means if you lay down all the time your body adapts to laying down, it wants to stay down. When you move, when you put resistance against your body, whether it’s with weights or if you’re doing some body weight exercises, or just going out for a hike, it’s so good for your body because getting your muscles to actually contract in your joints lubricates all of your joints, but it also signals the release of hormones in your body that can actually reverse aging, protect your heart, increase your lifespan, and increase your energy overnight.”

Mayo Clinic explains “everyone benefits from exercise, no matter their age, sex or physical ability.” They continue, “Exercise can help prevent excess weight gain or help you keep off lost weight. When you take part in physical activity, you burn calories. The more intense the activity, the more calories you burn.”

In their article about the benefits of regular physical activity they state that exercise can combat health conditions and diseases, improve mood, boost energy, and promote better sleep.

Exercises To Consider

•     Walking
•     Hiking
•     Weightlifting
•     Sports
•     Aerobic activity
•     Strength training
•     Swimming
•     Cycling
•     Muscle strengthening exercises

Muscle Building Tips

Tadlock explains how metabolism works. “…in the fitness world when people say fast metabolism and low metabolism, they’re really talking about a term that is called the basal metabolic rate. That’s the number of calories that you burn when you’re at rest.” He continues, “It’s how well all the cells in your body are doing their job”….“when your cells aren’t working as well as they could, then they’re just not going to produce the same results.”

Tadlock says to build muscle it’s important to eat the right foods. He explains our bodies need vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and enzymes to assist with metabolism and the foods that will give our bodies the most nutrients for our cells to function properly are whole raw vegetables and omega 3 fatty acids.

He says achieving a fast metabolism helps with muscle building. For people trying to build muscle but are unable to, he explains it’s because “some cells are just not doing their job to the greatest degree possible.” He suggests fixing this problem and creating “happier healthier cells” by giving them the nutrition they are missing.

Tadlock explains the important fundamental ingredients for raising anybody’s metabolism is to consume 96 ounces (2.85 liters) of water daily, eat whole raw vegetables especially cruciferous vegetables, and omega 3 fatty acids from flax or chia seeds.

Water

Tadlock says, “If you start with 96 ounces of water as a baseline and you never dip underneath that you’re going to instantly feel a lot better.” He continues, “If you’ve been spending most of your life dehydrated and you feel the difference right away, everything will work better.”

Whole Raw Vegetables

Tadlock explains it’s crucial to get enough raw vegetables in your diet to help metabolism and, therefore, build muscle. “Now I’m not saying stop eating everything else, what I’m saying is get enough raw vegetables because raw vegetables, especially the cruciferous family of vegetables like broccoli, kale, cabbage, the vegetables that are literally in direct contact with the soil, they are the most packed with vitamins, nutrients, and minerals.”

He suggests consuming as many raw veggies daily as you can and mentions his clients consume up to 24 ounces (about 680 grams) of solid raw vegetables a day. 

Cruciferous veggies to consider: 

•     Broccoli
•     Kale
•     Leafy greens
•     Bok Choy
•     Brussels sprouts
•     Collard and mustard greens
•     Chard
•     Cauliflower
•     Radish
•     Turnip
•     Watercress
•     Cabbage (read our cabbage blog for tasty recipes!)

Omega 3 fatty acids (vegan sources)

•     Flax oil
•     Chia seeds
•     Flax seeds
•     Walnuts
•     Edamame
•     Beans
•     Seaweed and algae such as nori, spirulina, and chlorella

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, endorsers of the Plant Based Treaty, explain, “Omega-3 fatty acids are readily available in a wide variety of plant foods. Sources include walnuts, flaxseed, chia seeds, hemp seeds, edamame, seaweed, and algae. Other green leafy vegetables and beans also contain small amounts.”

The first three sources of omega-3 fatty acids on the list are what Dr. Goldner suggests adding to her hyper-nourishing green smoothie recipe found on Smoothie Shred.

For more healthy and sustainable food ideas, check out Plant Based Treaty’s free plant-based starter guide with recipes, tips, and all the information you need about calcium, iron, and protein.

In addition to the health advantage of eating a plant-based diet, it also helps us live safely within our planetary boundaries, reforest the earth, combat the climate crisis, and save millions of animals from factory farming.  

Please consider helping us continue to implement plant-based solutions across the globe and halt the expansion of animal agriculture to avoid a climate catastrophe by donating today. ​​One generous donor has offered to match your donations, meaning for every $1 you donate, we receive $2. With your support, we can expand the Plant Based Treaty in 2025 and beyond.

Disclaimer: This blog should not replace medical advice from a physician and is for informational purposes only.

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