Chasing the bacon with Liam “The Nightmare” Gittins!

Feel Supreme sponsored Liam “The Nightmare” Gittins

You can’t argue that Southport’s Liam “The Nightmare” Gittin’s career is going from strength to strength at the minute. Following on from his fight-of-the-night performance against John Hughes at the Cage Warriors Academy show, flyweight champion Liam has deservedly had the call up to the senior Cage Warriors card at Liverpool’s Echo Arena this Saturday.

We sat down with him to discuss his upcoming bout, his diet and lifestyle and our recent sponsorship deal with Liam.

Hi Liam,

You make the step from Cage Warriors Academy to debuting on the full Cage Warriors card this weekend. It must be a great feeling showcasing your skills on such a high level show?

Hi Matt,

It’s a great honour to be fighting on Cage Warriors and especially headlining the undercard!

You’re defending your flyweight belt against Abdul Choudhury of SBG Manchester, a gym renowned for their Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. How are you expecting the fight to play out?

I know he’s good for his Jiu Jitsu, but I’m ready for anything when I go in there on Saturday. Just because someone’s good on the ground doesn’t mean they won’t try to strike with you. I know I’m capable of taking the fight to various places in the cage against my opponent. He’s a skilled fighter and I’m not going to underestimate him but I think with my experience and style I’ll have the edge over this fight and I’m ready to prove that.

Your head coach at Team Elite Southport, Andy Brocklebank, is a highly respected Muay Thai guy, and although you have to be very much a well rounded fighter this day in age, does this Muay Thai v Jiu Jitsu base have the potential for us to see some old school MMA fireworks?

Yes that’s definitely a potential for the fight, sticking towards your strengths is always a great idea in each fight. Having Andy Brocklebank who has had over 30 pro Thai Boxing fights, Kev Ward who is a multi world championship K1 fighter and Jake Barton who also has loads of experience in Thai Boxing, also having a WBC title in it. Just looking at that, our gym has an obvious  high level knowledge of standup.  I’m not one to avoid wrestling or just jitsu either though, I think a great scenario for this fight would be me picking my opponent off standing, but whether or not I choose to do that on the night we shall see.

If it’s anything like your previous title defence and fight of the night performance against John Hughes, then we expect it to be a thriller! 

As you know, we are a health and wellness company, so what does a typical diet and lifestyle look like for you at this late stage of camp?

Liam after hearing that the bacon is back in stock!

Yes that fight was for sure a top performance from both me and John. It was awesome to have an opponent who wants to fight and trade blow for blow until the last bell rings!

I had a lot of fun that night haha!

A typical diet right now, coming up to weigh ins, is a reduced carb diet and making sure to eat at the right times for energy, and training so that I’m still losing the last few bits of weight and keeping my energy up to stay sharp. With the nutritional testing that Feel Supreme put me through, I realised that there were foods that I was sensitive to and with keeping away from them my body felt cleaner and  happier during my training. You can’t go wrong with some salads and lean meats. Your company, Feel Supreme has helped a lot and give me advice on CBD Oil, which has made my recovery quicker and sleeping way easier!

Well, that was our next question- what kind of supplements have you been adding to your diet? And for what reason?

Okay sweet haha. I’ve started taking the CBD oil, vitamin C and pro-biotics. These are things which I think are important- you can get a lot through a healthy diet but supplements definitely have a place when you’re training as hard as the MMA athletes do. Your body burns through alot everytime you train so you have to take notice of how your body is feeling and what you’re eating in order to stay ready for a high performance.

Definitely. At a time that your body is burning a lot of nutrients with less than usual going back in, your immune system can become compromised. It’s vital to take in immune boosting nutrients and anti oxidants. 

And what about complimentary training such as yoga and meditation? More and more athletes are taking an holistic approach at the moment. Is this something you’ve considered?

Yes that’s very true! I actually did yoga for a year when I was 18 years old and I did enjoy it and saw the benefits too.  I’ve been looking to get back into it recently for helping my flexibility and also relaxing.  I do meditate occasionally which is great for just slowing everything down during the day or thinking over techniques that I practice in training. This helps a lot because you have the muscle memory for moves but you also need to have the mental rehearsal over combos and moves.

Ok so finally, who is Liam when he’s not The Nightmare?

That’s what Liamcam’s all about! (Editor note- excellent plug!)

Liamcam is my Youtube Chanel which gives an insight into the life of me and the various adventures I get upto whilst pursuing a career as an MMA fighter.

I’d also like to just give a shoutout to my coach Andy Brocklebank, my team mates at Elite, Adam Ventre for always believing in me and my family and friends for the massive amount of support I get! They’re all top bacons!

I would also like to say a big thanks to Hamma who welcome me down to train with them for my upcoming fights, Nathan Fletcher who helped train with me for this upcoming bout and to you guys at Feel Supreme for your nutrition advice and constant support. Also to Russle Wright (RDW) who has become a new sponsor and to Shakespeare Barber Shop!

———————————————–•Head over to our website

• Use code “SouthportElite”

• Get 10% off! and 

•Feel Supreme 

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The Importance of Vitamin C

Vitamin C (also known as ascorbic acid) is a water soluble nutrient which is essential for a healthy body, aiding in collagen integrity, adrenal gland function, the circulatory system, the immune system and the respiratory system amongst others. Most mammals synthesise vitamin C from glucose in their bodies, however, as humans evolved they lost the enzyme required to carry out this conversion. Therefore we must absorb it through a diet rich in fresh fruit and vegetables and supplementation (if necessary), which is important to do regularly as it cannot be stored in the body. The recommended daily allowance is 60mg (although the optimal intake is said to be nearer 1000mg), which boosts the immune system by stimulating the production of white blood cells. It also works synergistically with phytonutrients, each one increasing the anti-oxidant power of the other.
 Properties
As mentioned above, vitamin C has many properties and it is suggested that over 300 biological functions are dependent on this vital vitamin. Some examples of these properties are;
•It supports the adrenal gland- The highest amounts of vitamin C in the body are found here in the adrenal gland, and it is critical if the gland is to function. The adrenal gland is part of the nervous system which is responsible for the production of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. When a person is stressed, the urinary excretion of vitamin C is increased, thus diminishing necessary levels. Without an adequate amount, the production of the stress hormones is severely impaired.
•It has anti-ageing properties; It is believed that signs of ageing are due to the damage of cells by free-radicals. As an effective anti-oxidant, vitamin C aids in preventing some of this damage and can possibly extend our lifespan.
•It is essential for collagen production- The production of the protein collagen is proceeded in steps, and vitamin C is involved in every one of these steps. It also plays a structural role in bone, teeth and cartilage. Without vitamin C there would be no collagen.
•It aids respiratory function- As vitamin C is a natural antihistamine, it can defend the effects of inflammatory substances produced by the body in response to certain allergens.
•Vitamin C also acts as an amazing booster to the immune system in many ways. It can stimulate the production of white blood cells and the protein interferon and inactivate viruses such as polio, the common cold, measles, mumps and herpes by attacking the nucleic acid of the virus. It works synergistically with phytonutrients and other vitamins as an anti-oxidant to absorb and neutralise free radicals and their destructive ways. By producing anti-histamines, vitamin C can clear up inflammation and reduce the effects of allergy reactions. Vitamin C stimulates a compound called cyclic AMP, which raises production of steroids that decrease inflammation.

In a study of 1038 doctors and their wives, those with a daily intake of 410mg of vitamin C had the fewest signs of illness or degenerative diseases. In another study, an overwhelming 37 out of 38 tests of vitamin C versus the common cold concluded that supplementing with 1000mg had a protective effect. These are just 2 of the many studies carried out on the effects of vitamin C which point to the conclusion that a) it is essential for a healthy functioning immune system and b) the optimal daily allowance produces significantly more benefits than the government set recommended daily allowance.

Vitamin C can be depleted in the body by smoking (its suggested that 25mg of vitamin C is lost per cigarette!), alcohol, pollution, stress, fried foods, heat, cooking (it leaches into water with being soluble and also lost through heat) and drugs. The symptoms of deficiency include; frequent colds, lethargy, frequent infections, bleeding or tender gums, easy bruising, nosebleeds, slow wound healing and red pimples on the skin. To protect against a deficiency the UK recommended daily allowance of vitamin C is set at 60mg per day; however the optimum daily allowance is believed to be between 400mg-1000mg per day! The RDAs are set by the government to prevent deficiency diseases e.g. scurvy, but they are not designed for optimal health. In a large survey in the US by Dr Paul Edstrom and Dr Linus Pauling, significant reductions in mortality from cancer and cardiovascular disease were observed when the intake of vitamin C was between 400mg and 1000mg. We can absorb a large amount of vitamin C through our diet, although since 1000mg is equivalent to approximately 17 oranges, adding supplements to the diet would be a more realistic prospect when therapeutic levels are required. Foods rich in vitamin C include;
•Strawberries– 11mg per single large strawberry
•Oranges– 83mg per orange
•Kiwi fruits- 84mg per fruit
•Broccoli– 28mg per piece

•Sprouts– 16mg per sprout

•Kale– 120mg per 100g serving
•Peppers– 132mg-341mg per pepper depending on the colour (yellow being the highest)

Large doses of over 1000mg can cause loose stools, flatulence and bloating, however as vitamin C is soluble and easily excreted, these side effects can easily be rectified by simply reducing the dose.

In summary, I believe we can see why vitamin C is the most widely known and commonly used supplement on the market. It is critical for maintaining our health as a deficiency may be lethal. It plays out numerous essential functions within the body, and since it cannot be synthesised in the body, it is important to consume a healthy and balanced diet to absorb the minimal recommended daily allowance of 60mg. However, to absorb the ODA (400mg-1000mg) and benefit from its healing properties, a healthy diet along with non-synthetic supplementation would be advised.

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