I just thought maybe some visuals would help you all out.
Remember sugar raises INSULIN levels and INSULIN is a FAT STORAGE HORMONE.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Breakfast of Champions
I get this one a lot from some of you "what the hell do I eat for Breakfast?!?" Well here again from the paleo newsletter is some really good advice. Those hitting up those 6:30am workouts or 8:30 or even 12:00 should pay attention and take notes.
NOTE!!: If weight reduction is still your goal this may no be the breakfast you need, in fact I would probably vote against it as your choice. If you want to loose weight and dont know what to eat for bfast then you need to speak with me.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
When converting to a Paleo lifestyle, many people find breakfast to be the most challenging meal to keep Paleo. No doubt, this is probably due to the conditioning we’ve likely all received that a healthy way to start the day is with a grain-based product (cereal, bagel, toast and so on). Many of us view certain foods as being for breakfast, others for lunch and dinner, and others for snacks.
The first step is to throw that thinking out the window! Food is food no matter what time of day, and the morning is a great time to eat vegetables! I personally, eat veggies and red meat, chicken or fish for breakfast on a typical day.
But, what should you eat if you’re an athlete preparing for a workout? I change my usual breakfast if I’ve got a big workout to do right away. Rather than the protein and veg-heavy foods I mentioned above, I’ll opt for a starchier (via yam, sweet potato or banana) and easier to digest (like egg whites) combination so that I’m not only well fueled, but I don’t have to wait too long to digest.
The amount you should consume will be determined by body weight and the intensity and duration of the workout. Experiment a bit and see how much you need to eat based on how you feel during the workout, and change the subsequent meal accordingly. Here are some great ideas for athletes looking for a great way to start the day, pre-workout, while remaining Paleo.
Baked yam, hard-boiled egg whites, olive oil, banana, and raw almond butter.
Homemade smoothie: chilled green tea, egg white protein powder, banana, raw almond butter, and flax seed.
Baked sweet potato, natural (unsweetened) applesauce, sliced lean turkey breast, and olive oil.
Stick with higher glycemic fruits right before and after a workout. Also, remember to add some table salt because athletes need to replace lost electrolytes. We athletes may need to supplement with electrolyte tabs, depending on the intensity and duration of our workouts, as well as ambient conditions and individual sweat rates.
Experiment with the above suggestions and make changes to keep it varied. Try pineapple in a smoothie instead of banana, or use baby food banana instead of applesauce.
Whatever you do, DON’T make the mistake of thinking that you have to resort to non-Paleo foods to support athletic performance. If I can stay Paleo while racing Ironman, and my husband can stick to it while racing 100-mile endurance runs, I think it’s safe to say that Paleo provides 100% of the support needed for endurance racing, or any other athletic endeavor!
Its not your fault your moody.....
.....actually yes it is. This article is hot off the Paleo Press and discusses the link to diet and mental stability and mental illness. Enjoy!
Leaky Gut, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and Psychiatric Disease by Maelán Fontes and Pedro Bastos
Psychiatric disorders are common conditions among IBS patients1. Recent research suggests that the gut-brain connection plays an important role in IBS patients suffering from psychiatric diseases2, 3.
IBS and psychiatric disorders
IBS is diagnosed in patients suffering from abdominal pain/discomfort and inconsistency in stool frequency. IBS is included in functional gastrointestinal disorders because organic causes are not present. Currently, it seems to be produced by anomalies in the digestive function, especially motility and sensitivity1. However, it is associated with activation of mucosal immune cells.
IBS is a common condition affecting between 10-20 percent of the population4. It is more prevalent in women, and is exacerbated by stress5.
Less than half of IBS patients seek treatment, but of those who do, between 50-90 percent have psychiatric disorders. This includes panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, post traumatic stress disorder, and major depression2.
The root of mood disorders
Current theories suggest that impaired neurotransmitter metabolism, neuroendocrine function, and neural plasticity disrupted by inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes may be at the root of mood disorders. These processes include factors such as low-grade chronic inflammation, oxidative and nitrosative stress, and tryptophan catabolites6, 7.
One of the mechanisms leading to mood disorders in IBS patients is “bottom-up signalling” from the gut4. This signalling is mediated chiefly by the so-called vagus nerve, which directly connects the gut mucosa with mood-related brain areas4.
Another mechanism involves the central nerve system (CNS) immune activation, which is induced by peripheral inflammatory substances, namely cytokines. This leads to an inflammatory response, and oxidative and nitrosative stress in the brain6, 7.
Such immune activation could result from peripheral inflammation. The gut immune system could be the source of this inflammation since the gut associated lymphoid tissue is challenged and activated by countless antigenic and allergenic substances (bacterial and dietary antigens) every day8.
Increased gut permeability linked to psychiatric conditions
Scientific evidence shows that decreasing gut permeability improves conditions such as depression and chronic fatigue syndrome9.
One important factor that might activate “bottom-up signalling” and CNS immune activation is increased gut permeability or leaky gut (LG)3, 4, 7, 8. LG refers to the gut barrier allowing increased passage of bacterial or dietary antigens from the gut to peripheral circulation6, 8. This might increase the risk of psychiatric disease.
Lectins8, saponins10, gliadin11, capsaicin, alcohol12, and factors known to increase E. coli and gram-negative bacteria overgrowth (such as certain dietary lectins8) are common in the Western diet, and can produce LG through different mechanisms8, 10, 11.
The Paleo Diet protects against increased gut permeability and related disorders
The Paleo Diet can help reduce gut permeability by eliminating foods known to contribute to LG. This includes lectin-containing foods, such as cereal grains and legumes (including peanuts and soybeans)8.
Gliadin11 is also associated with LG, and it is found in all wheat-derived products (such as bread, pasta, pizzas, bagels, and donuts).
When LG is a concern, we recommend that solanaceous plants (such as tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and peppers)10, 13 as well as alfalfa sprouts14, root beer15, amaranth, quinoa, alcohol12, and chilli peppers (which contain capsaicin) also be avoided.
We further recommend avoiding eggs, at least until LG symptoms subside. Egg white is a source of some membranolytic proteins, such as lysozyme16, that break cell membranes and may contribute to LG.
Following the Paleo Diet has been shown anecdotally to help IBS and other autoimmune diseases, and many autoimmune diseases present with LG. Next time, we’ll take a look at who is at high risk for vitamin D deficiency, and the risk factors for disease associated with this. We'll also share ideas on how to save with grocery store specials.
Leaky Gut, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), and Psychiatric Disease by Maelán Fontes and Pedro Bastos
Psychiatric disorders are common conditions among IBS patients1. Recent research suggests that the gut-brain connection plays an important role in IBS patients suffering from psychiatric diseases2, 3.
IBS and psychiatric disorders
IBS is diagnosed in patients suffering from abdominal pain/discomfort and inconsistency in stool frequency. IBS is included in functional gastrointestinal disorders because organic causes are not present. Currently, it seems to be produced by anomalies in the digestive function, especially motility and sensitivity1. However, it is associated with activation of mucosal immune cells.
IBS is a common condition affecting between 10-20 percent of the population4. It is more prevalent in women, and is exacerbated by stress5.
Less than half of IBS patients seek treatment, but of those who do, between 50-90 percent have psychiatric disorders. This includes panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, social phobia, post traumatic stress disorder, and major depression2.
The root of mood disorders
Current theories suggest that impaired neurotransmitter metabolism, neuroendocrine function, and neural plasticity disrupted by inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes may be at the root of mood disorders. These processes include factors such as low-grade chronic inflammation, oxidative and nitrosative stress, and tryptophan catabolites6, 7.
One of the mechanisms leading to mood disorders in IBS patients is “bottom-up signalling” from the gut4. This signalling is mediated chiefly by the so-called vagus nerve, which directly connects the gut mucosa with mood-related brain areas4.
Another mechanism involves the central nerve system (CNS) immune activation, which is induced by peripheral inflammatory substances, namely cytokines. This leads to an inflammatory response, and oxidative and nitrosative stress in the brain6, 7.
Such immune activation could result from peripheral inflammation. The gut immune system could be the source of this inflammation since the gut associated lymphoid tissue is challenged and activated by countless antigenic and allergenic substances (bacterial and dietary antigens) every day8.
Increased gut permeability linked to psychiatric conditions
Scientific evidence shows that decreasing gut permeability improves conditions such as depression and chronic fatigue syndrome9.
One important factor that might activate “bottom-up signalling” and CNS immune activation is increased gut permeability or leaky gut (LG)3, 4, 7, 8. LG refers to the gut barrier allowing increased passage of bacterial or dietary antigens from the gut to peripheral circulation6, 8. This might increase the risk of psychiatric disease.
Lectins8, saponins10, gliadin11, capsaicin, alcohol12, and factors known to increase E. coli and gram-negative bacteria overgrowth (such as certain dietary lectins8) are common in the Western diet, and can produce LG through different mechanisms8, 10, 11.
<---Definitely has leaky gut.....:(
The Paleo Diet protects against increased gut permeability and related disorders
The Paleo Diet can help reduce gut permeability by eliminating foods known to contribute to LG. This includes lectin-containing foods, such as cereal grains and legumes (including peanuts and soybeans)8.
Gliadin11 is also associated with LG, and it is found in all wheat-derived products (such as bread, pasta, pizzas, bagels, and donuts).
When LG is a concern, we recommend that solanaceous plants (such as tomatoes, potatoes, eggplant and peppers)10, 13 as well as alfalfa sprouts14, root beer15, amaranth, quinoa, alcohol12, and chilli peppers (which contain capsaicin) also be avoided.
We further recommend avoiding eggs, at least until LG symptoms subside. Egg white is a source of some membranolytic proteins, such as lysozyme16, that break cell membranes and may contribute to LG.
Following the Paleo Diet has been shown anecdotally to help IBS and other autoimmune diseases, and many autoimmune diseases present with LG. Next time, we’ll take a look at who is at high risk for vitamin D deficiency, and the risk factors for disease associated with this. We'll also share ideas on how to save with grocery store specials.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Older Words
This is from an interview conducted between a T-nation reporter and Jonny Bowden, Ph.D., C.N.S.
Some damn good sound advice. Not all of it I agree with, but thats me just being an ass and nit-picking.
Testosterone Nation: One of your books, The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, is considered to be controversial because some of the info goes against what most people believe. For example, soy doesn't make your favorite list but whole eggs do. Yet most Americans think soy is a miracle food and whole eggs are bad for you.
Dr. Johnny Bowden: There are a lot of foods and ingredients that don't fall cleanly into the good and bad category. The same thing is true with exercise. Is a low-rep bench press a good exercise? Well, sure it is, but not if you're a 74-year old woman trying to get some strength to open a jar. It would be a stupid exercise for that person.
In much the same way, many foods and ingredients fall into that category. Some foods are naturally high in sugar. Not a problem if you don't have any issues with the metabolism of sugar. If you do, then you might want to stay away from bananas or mangoes. Those are great foods, lots of nutrients, but may not be a good choice for someone who's pre-diabetic.
T-Nation: Any "health foods" being touted today that, well, really aren't that healthy?
Bowden: Our huge emphasis on grains is very misplaced. A very substantial portion of the population has sensitivities to gluten. One in 133 people have full-blown celiac disease.
Grains are fairly new in human history — the last 10,000 years, which compared to 2.4 million years isn't that long. Grains cause problems for a lot of people. If you're not one of those people, it's fine food. But for a lot of people, more than you might think, a grain-free or at least gluten-free diet may be a smart idea.
T-Nation: How about saturated fat?
Bowden: Very misunderstood. I'm not convinced that saturated fat is the worst thing in a person's diet, and I'm completely convinced that heart disease is not caused by cholesterol.
Saturated fat comes in lots of "flavors." It's a whole family of fatty acids, and some of them, like the medium-chain triglycerides in coconut, are downright healthy for you. Coconut oil has been a terribly misunderstood food because people think that because it has saturated fat it's not good for you. Not so.
Saturated fat can come in the form of the crap that's in McDonald's fries or it can come in the form of some of the fat in an egg yolk. These are not the same animal, so to speak. They're very different in terms of their effects on the body. The saturated fat in coconut and yolks is extremely healthy, good for the heart and the brain. An egg-white omelet is one of the dumbest things in the world.
T-Nation: Are we talking standard eggs here or the free-range, omega-3 enriched variety?
Bowden: All animal products are only as good as the diet of the animal and living conditions of the animal. Or, as I write in my book, the quality of the food we eat comes from the quality of the food our food eats. So yes, free range is important.
If you put cows in a little stall so small that they can't turn around, feed them grain (which is not their natural diet), give them antibiotics to deal with their gut illnesses from the grains, milk them 24/7 and give them more infections and therefore more antibiotics and steroids... well, that's a whole different animal compared to the one on Grandma Jones's farm grazing in the pasture. Everything about them is different -- CLA content, everything.
With chickens it's the same thing. Unfortunately, agribusiness has co-opted the term "free range" so it doesn't really have as much meaning as we hoped it would. We picture chickens running around a farm, but the term has been downgraded to mean that the chicken simply has "access" to the range. That "access" may only mean two weeks a year. Or it may have "access" to a little gate that he doesn't even know how to use.
I'd still try to find free-range, farmers-market, omega-3 enriched eggs, though I don't even care much about omega-3 enriched. If they're truly free range and they're eating their natural diet and pecking at worms, then they'll have plenty of omega-3 anyway.
T-Nation: To go along with the corporate abuse of "free range," it seems like the word "natural" is also misused a lot.
Bowden:"Natural" doesn't mean anything — no legal meaning, no agreed-upon meaning, no meaning whatsoever! There are natural mushrooms that will kill you. Poison ivy is natural, so is gasoline, and I'm not eating either one of them.
"Natural" is a complete marketing gimmick. You're now seeing that label on foods that were never grown, hunted for, fished for, plucked or gathered. What's natural about food that comes in a plastic box? Even vitamin supplements aren't natural. They don't grow on trees.
T-Nation: I see that Lucky Charms are now proudly made with whole grains...
Bowden: That's a perfect example of how the language has become degraded.
T-Nation: And if I'm correct, the label "made with whole grains" can mean that they only threw in a sprinkle of actual whole grain.
Bowden: That's exactly what it means. It started life as a whole grain but by the time you get it there's nothing left in it. It's kind of like making yogurt with live cultures. They hope you don't notice this, but there's quite a distinction between starting with live cultures and actually having any left when you eat it. It has to contain live cultures.
And by the way, I don't think whole grains are that much better than the crappy kind. They're only marginally better. They still have about the same effect on blood sugar -- they only marginally lower glycemic load. They still affect people who are gluten-sensitive, and they still have the same effect as far as bloat goes.
Whole grains do have more vitamins and supposedly more fiber, but not much. It's like eating white sugar vs. brown sugar. Whole grains are better than regular, but not significantly.
T-Nation: Ouch. That's painful to hear. It's sometimes easy to justify a too-high carb intake if it's "healthy" whole grain. So, what other supposed "health-food" trends make you want to tear your hair out?
Bowden: Special K cereal being marketed as a healthy cereal. That's nonsense.
T-Nation: And the commercials encourage women to eat it at night! Scary. What do you think the next "super food" will be?
Bowden: That's a good question, but it needs a little parsing. What's going to be the next big super food has more to do with marketing and commercialization than it does with the inherent value of the food.
Kale, blueberries, and prunes are superstar foods on any level, but are they going to be the next big thing? If there was a new food discovered that had even half of what those foods have, everyone would be clamoring about it. You can construct an amazingly healthy diet with the foods that are already out there.
There's not one food on earth that has everything you need. Wild salmon, one of my favorites, still doesn't have any fiber. The best vegetable in the world, like kale, isn't going to have any protein. You can't get everything you need from one food, even a super food. Instead you put a wide variety of these foods into heavy rotation.
Another problem with the super food label is that it creates a false impression that you can continue to eat crap as long as you have a glass of MonaVie everyday. [Editor's note: MonaVie is a drink made from acai berries.] That, by the way, is another trend that makes me want to pull my hair out: the multi-level-marketing juices with false health claims. They actually claim it cures cancer. It's B.S.multi-level marketing at its slimiest.
T-Nation: Let's talk man-food. Are there any specific foods for men that may help boost testosterone levels, or help prevent any male-oriented diseases?
Bowden: I haven't yet found any substantial evidence that any particular food raises testosterone levels. You can raise testosterone by being at a football game and having your team win. Hormones are actually very responsive to thoughts, moods, and feelings.
Now, as far as foods go, I think there are some foods that are estrogenic. Soy, for example. Soy isn't the worst food in the world, but it has estrogenic compounds. So does beer -- that's one of the reasons people get beer bellies. So those are things you don't want when trying to build muscle and optimize the hormonal environment.
So don't think of it as raising testosterone, but moving stuff out of the way so it can do its best work. Here's an analogy: Let's say you're a swimmer and you want to go as fast as possible. You could research those titanium Speedos that might give you a slight edge, but if you're wearing weights around your ankles, fuck the Speedos; first drop the ankle weights!
I think a lot of people are in this position of walking around asking, "What's the fastest Speedo?" when they should be simply getting the weights off their ankles. With testosterone, what breaks down muscle? Cortisol, right? How about lowering your cortisol levels?
There's only so much we can do to naturally boost testosterone, but we can do a lot to get the weights off our ankles. And cortisol, as Dr. Michael Colgan once put it, is the Grinch of bodybuilding. It eats up muscle.
What bodybuilders rarely do is use some type of stress reduction technique or meditation or deep breathing. Those things, along with uninterrupted sleep in a dark room without the TV on, lower cortisol more than anything. I think that's more important than trying to boost testosterone.
T-Nation: Interesting points there. Now, you've written a couple books about low-carb diets, so what do you think of the idea that there's no such thing as an essential carbohydrate?
Bowden: That's correct. There are essential fatty acids and essential amino acids, but not essential carbohydrates.
Let's say we put all T-Nation readers on an island for a year. We give half of them nothing but protein and fats for that year. The other half gets all carbohydrates — no protein, no fat. That group, the carb-only group, would be dead in a year. The other group will do just fine.
The actual dietary requirement for carbs in the diet is zero. Now, does that mean we should eat zero carbohydrates? No. There are incredibly important things in carbohydrate-containing foods such as phytochemicals, flavonoids, vitamins, minerals, anti-inflammatories and all kinds of stuff we desperately need for optimal health.
But is there a physiological need for the metabolism to have carbohydrates in the diet? No. There is, however, a physiological need for glucose. The brain needs a certain amount of glucose per day. But, the body can make that amount of glucose just fine from fatty acids and proteins.
You know, it's kind of weird that the idiotic American Dietetic Association has us eating a 65 to 70 percent carbohydrate diet, the one thing we actually don't even need!
When you see a dietician, run the other way. Sure, talk to experts in nutrition, but avoid dieticians like the plague. It's like trying to get objective advice about religion from the Taliban. The ADA is a pathetic and irrelevant organization.
And doctors aren't much better. Doctors know dick about nutrition. They're not trained in it and they know nothing about it. Those that do know something about it got that education on their own. They didn't get it in medical school.
T-Nation: Okay, given that you've written books on the healthiest foods and healthiest meals on earth, many would expect you to be anti-supplement. Are you?
Bowden: No, I'm not at all. My next book is on supplements, in fact. I'm a big believer in supplements. I'm not a big believer in taking supplements and ignoring your diet though.
The thing is, supplements are a technology for delivering nutrients, and we need the nutrients. Now, if we all lived on organic farms, lived a stress-free life in the same village, with little exposure to pollutants and chemicals, then we'd probably do quite well with our organic food, grass-fed cows, free-range chickens, and fish from pristine waters. But that's not how we live. We really don't get optimal nutrition from our food, even when we're eating really well.
T-Nation: What would you say is the most underrated supplement on the planet?
Bowden: Vitamin D. People are finally beginning to know about fish oil, but they haven't learned yet that we're massively deficient in vitamin D. New studies have shown that people with the highest level of vitamin D had a 27 percent less chance of dying from any cause whatsoever.
Vitamin D helps prevent cancer, it increases physical performance in older adults, it's a mood enhancer, and it's a bone strengthener. It's a vitamin we just don't get enough of in our food, unless you're drinking cod liver oil. Plus since it's a vitamin made in the skin when we go into the sun, we don't get it there either since we slather on SPF 45 every time we go outside. We're sun-phobic. So, there's a case for taking Vitamin D supplements every day.
T-Nation: Okay, lightning round. I throw out some foods and you give us your thoughts on them. First, corn.
Dr. Bowden: Corn isn't a bad food. It's okay for some but not for others. Of course, corn syrup should be out of the diet. Whole corn can raise blood sugar, especially if it's eaten by itself, but there's some good stuff in corn. Just treat it as a starch and not as a vegetable. Small amounts are fine for most people. It's okay, nothing like white potatoes.
T-Nation: Milk.
Bowden: I'm not a big fan of milk. It's actually one of the top seven food allergens.
I do like raw milk however. It's just a different food than homogenized, pasteurized milk. It still has all of its healthful bacteria, its fat content is healthier, etc. It's quite safe too, in spite of what the dairy industry likes to tell you.
T-Nation: Alcoholic beverages?
Bowden: Well, they can make you fat. That's a definite. It's not just the calories, it's the fact that your body stops processing fat while it gets rid of the alcohol.
Now, there's a lot of evidence that a small to moderate amount of alcohol, one or two glasses of red wine a day, can be life-extending and healthful. But you also have this critical mass of people who don't know what "small amount" means, hence alcohol's role in car accidents, murders, and broken marriages.
For some people, alcohol is like peanuts. Peanuts are a good food, but not if you go into anaphylactic shock. If you do that, then eating peanuts "in moderation" is probably not a good idea.
So alcohol is a very personal decision. If you can manage it and drink only small amounts, you don't have an addictive personality, and you're not one of those people who craves more, then it can be a healthful compound. But so are grapes, and you can eat those without the other risks.
Some damn good sound advice. Not all of it I agree with, but thats me just being an ass and nit-picking.
Testosterone Nation: One of your books, The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth, is considered to be controversial because some of the info goes against what most people believe. For example, soy doesn't make your favorite list but whole eggs do. Yet most Americans think soy is a miracle food and whole eggs are bad for you.
Dr. Johnny Bowden: There are a lot of foods and ingredients that don't fall cleanly into the good and bad category. The same thing is true with exercise. Is a low-rep bench press a good exercise? Well, sure it is, but not if you're a 74-year old woman trying to get some strength to open a jar. It would be a stupid exercise for that person.
In much the same way, many foods and ingredients fall into that category. Some foods are naturally high in sugar. Not a problem if you don't have any issues with the metabolism of sugar. If you do, then you might want to stay away from bananas or mangoes. Those are great foods, lots of nutrients, but may not be a good choice for someone who's pre-diabetic.
T-Nation: Any "health foods" being touted today that, well, really aren't that healthy?
Bowden: Our huge emphasis on grains is very misplaced. A very substantial portion of the population has sensitivities to gluten. One in 133 people have full-blown celiac disease.
Grains are fairly new in human history — the last 10,000 years, which compared to 2.4 million years isn't that long. Grains cause problems for a lot of people. If you're not one of those people, it's fine food. But for a lot of people, more than you might think, a grain-free or at least gluten-free diet may be a smart idea.
T-Nation: How about saturated fat?
Bowden: Very misunderstood. I'm not convinced that saturated fat is the worst thing in a person's diet, and I'm completely convinced that heart disease is not caused by cholesterol.
Saturated fat comes in lots of "flavors." It's a whole family of fatty acids, and some of them, like the medium-chain triglycerides in coconut, are downright healthy for you. Coconut oil has been a terribly misunderstood food because people think that because it has saturated fat it's not good for you. Not so.
Saturated fat can come in the form of the crap that's in McDonald's fries or it can come in the form of some of the fat in an egg yolk. These are not the same animal, so to speak. They're very different in terms of their effects on the body. The saturated fat in coconut and yolks is extremely healthy, good for the heart and the brain. An egg-white omelet is one of the dumbest things in the world.
T-Nation: Are we talking standard eggs here or the free-range, omega-3 enriched variety?
Bowden: All animal products are only as good as the diet of the animal and living conditions of the animal. Or, as I write in my book, the quality of the food we eat comes from the quality of the food our food eats. So yes, free range is important.
If you put cows in a little stall so small that they can't turn around, feed them grain (which is not their natural diet), give them antibiotics to deal with their gut illnesses from the grains, milk them 24/7 and give them more infections and therefore more antibiotics and steroids... well, that's a whole different animal compared to the one on Grandma Jones's farm grazing in the pasture. Everything about them is different -- CLA content, everything.
With chickens it's the same thing. Unfortunately, agribusiness has co-opted the term "free range" so it doesn't really have as much meaning as we hoped it would. We picture chickens running around a farm, but the term has been downgraded to mean that the chicken simply has "access" to the range. That "access" may only mean two weeks a year. Or it may have "access" to a little gate that he doesn't even know how to use.
I'd still try to find free-range, farmers-market, omega-3 enriched eggs, though I don't even care much about omega-3 enriched. If they're truly free range and they're eating their natural diet and pecking at worms, then they'll have plenty of omega-3 anyway.
T-Nation: To go along with the corporate abuse of "free range," it seems like the word "natural" is also misused a lot.
Bowden:"Natural" doesn't mean anything — no legal meaning, no agreed-upon meaning, no meaning whatsoever! There are natural mushrooms that will kill you. Poison ivy is natural, so is gasoline, and I'm not eating either one of them.
"Natural" is a complete marketing gimmick. You're now seeing that label on foods that were never grown, hunted for, fished for, plucked or gathered. What's natural about food that comes in a plastic box? Even vitamin supplements aren't natural. They don't grow on trees.
T-Nation: I see that Lucky Charms are now proudly made with whole grains...
Bowden: That's a perfect example of how the language has become degraded.
T-Nation: And if I'm correct, the label "made with whole grains" can mean that they only threw in a sprinkle of actual whole grain.
Bowden: That's exactly what it means. It started life as a whole grain but by the time you get it there's nothing left in it. It's kind of like making yogurt with live cultures. They hope you don't notice this, but there's quite a distinction between starting with live cultures and actually having any left when you eat it. It has to contain live cultures.
And by the way, I don't think whole grains are that much better than the crappy kind. They're only marginally better. They still have about the same effect on blood sugar -- they only marginally lower glycemic load. They still affect people who are gluten-sensitive, and they still have the same effect as far as bloat goes.
Whole grains do have more vitamins and supposedly more fiber, but not much. It's like eating white sugar vs. brown sugar. Whole grains are better than regular, but not significantly.
T-Nation: Ouch. That's painful to hear. It's sometimes easy to justify a too-high carb intake if it's "healthy" whole grain. So, what other supposed "health-food" trends make you want to tear your hair out?
Bowden: Special K cereal being marketed as a healthy cereal. That's nonsense.
T-Nation: And the commercials encourage women to eat it at night! Scary. What do you think the next "super food" will be?
Bowden: That's a good question, but it needs a little parsing. What's going to be the next big super food has more to do with marketing and commercialization than it does with the inherent value of the food.
Kale, blueberries, and prunes are superstar foods on any level, but are they going to be the next big thing? If there was a new food discovered that had even half of what those foods have, everyone would be clamoring about it. You can construct an amazingly healthy diet with the foods that are already out there.
There's not one food on earth that has everything you need. Wild salmon, one of my favorites, still doesn't have any fiber. The best vegetable in the world, like kale, isn't going to have any protein. You can't get everything you need from one food, even a super food. Instead you put a wide variety of these foods into heavy rotation.
Another problem with the super food label is that it creates a false impression that you can continue to eat crap as long as you have a glass of MonaVie everyday. [Editor's note: MonaVie is a drink made from acai berries.] That, by the way, is another trend that makes me want to pull my hair out: the multi-level-marketing juices with false health claims. They actually claim it cures cancer. It's B.S.multi-level marketing at its slimiest.
T-Nation: Let's talk man-food. Are there any specific foods for men that may help boost testosterone levels, or help prevent any male-oriented diseases?
Bowden: I haven't yet found any substantial evidence that any particular food raises testosterone levels. You can raise testosterone by being at a football game and having your team win. Hormones are actually very responsive to thoughts, moods, and feelings.
Now, as far as foods go, I think there are some foods that are estrogenic. Soy, for example. Soy isn't the worst food in the world, but it has estrogenic compounds. So does beer -- that's one of the reasons people get beer bellies. So those are things you don't want when trying to build muscle and optimize the hormonal environment.
So don't think of it as raising testosterone, but moving stuff out of the way so it can do its best work. Here's an analogy: Let's say you're a swimmer and you want to go as fast as possible. You could research those titanium Speedos that might give you a slight edge, but if you're wearing weights around your ankles, fuck the Speedos; first drop the ankle weights!
I think a lot of people are in this position of walking around asking, "What's the fastest Speedo?" when they should be simply getting the weights off their ankles. With testosterone, what breaks down muscle? Cortisol, right? How about lowering your cortisol levels?
There's only so much we can do to naturally boost testosterone, but we can do a lot to get the weights off our ankles. And cortisol, as Dr. Michael Colgan once put it, is the Grinch of bodybuilding. It eats up muscle.
What bodybuilders rarely do is use some type of stress reduction technique or meditation or deep breathing. Those things, along with uninterrupted sleep in a dark room without the TV on, lower cortisol more than anything. I think that's more important than trying to boost testosterone.
T-Nation: Interesting points there. Now, you've written a couple books about low-carb diets, so what do you think of the idea that there's no such thing as an essential carbohydrate?
Bowden: That's correct. There are essential fatty acids and essential amino acids, but not essential carbohydrates.
Let's say we put all T-Nation readers on an island for a year. We give half of them nothing but protein and fats for that year. The other half gets all carbohydrates — no protein, no fat. That group, the carb-only group, would be dead in a year. The other group will do just fine.
The actual dietary requirement for carbs in the diet is zero. Now, does that mean we should eat zero carbohydrates? No. There are incredibly important things in carbohydrate-containing foods such as phytochemicals, flavonoids, vitamins, minerals, anti-inflammatories and all kinds of stuff we desperately need for optimal health.
But is there a physiological need for the metabolism to have carbohydrates in the diet? No. There is, however, a physiological need for glucose. The brain needs a certain amount of glucose per day. But, the body can make that amount of glucose just fine from fatty acids and proteins.
You know, it's kind of weird that the idiotic American Dietetic Association has us eating a 65 to 70 percent carbohydrate diet, the one thing we actually don't even need!
When you see a dietician, run the other way. Sure, talk to experts in nutrition, but avoid dieticians like the plague. It's like trying to get objective advice about religion from the Taliban. The ADA is a pathetic and irrelevant organization.
And doctors aren't much better. Doctors know dick about nutrition. They're not trained in it and they know nothing about it. Those that do know something about it got that education on their own. They didn't get it in medical school.
T-Nation: Okay, given that you've written books on the healthiest foods and healthiest meals on earth, many would expect you to be anti-supplement. Are you?
Bowden: No, I'm not at all. My next book is on supplements, in fact. I'm a big believer in supplements. I'm not a big believer in taking supplements and ignoring your diet though.
The thing is, supplements are a technology for delivering nutrients, and we need the nutrients. Now, if we all lived on organic farms, lived a stress-free life in the same village, with little exposure to pollutants and chemicals, then we'd probably do quite well with our organic food, grass-fed cows, free-range chickens, and fish from pristine waters. But that's not how we live. We really don't get optimal nutrition from our food, even when we're eating really well.
T-Nation: What would you say is the most underrated supplement on the planet?
Bowden: Vitamin D. People are finally beginning to know about fish oil, but they haven't learned yet that we're massively deficient in vitamin D. New studies have shown that people with the highest level of vitamin D had a 27 percent less chance of dying from any cause whatsoever.
Vitamin D helps prevent cancer, it increases physical performance in older adults, it's a mood enhancer, and it's a bone strengthener. It's a vitamin we just don't get enough of in our food, unless you're drinking cod liver oil. Plus since it's a vitamin made in the skin when we go into the sun, we don't get it there either since we slather on SPF 45 every time we go outside. We're sun-phobic. So, there's a case for taking Vitamin D supplements every day.
T-Nation: Okay, lightning round. I throw out some foods and you give us your thoughts on them. First, corn.
Dr. Bowden: Corn isn't a bad food. It's okay for some but not for others. Of course, corn syrup should be out of the diet. Whole corn can raise blood sugar, especially if it's eaten by itself, but there's some good stuff in corn. Just treat it as a starch and not as a vegetable. Small amounts are fine for most people. It's okay, nothing like white potatoes.
T-Nation: Milk.
Bowden: I'm not a big fan of milk. It's actually one of the top seven food allergens.
I do like raw milk however. It's just a different food than homogenized, pasteurized milk. It still has all of its healthful bacteria, its fat content is healthier, etc. It's quite safe too, in spite of what the dairy industry likes to tell you.
T-Nation: Alcoholic beverages?
Bowden: Well, they can make you fat. That's a definite. It's not just the calories, it's the fact that your body stops processing fat while it gets rid of the alcohol.
Now, there's a lot of evidence that a small to moderate amount of alcohol, one or two glasses of red wine a day, can be life-extending and healthful. But you also have this critical mass of people who don't know what "small amount" means, hence alcohol's role in car accidents, murders, and broken marriages.
For some people, alcohol is like peanuts. Peanuts are a good food, but not if you go into anaphylactic shock. If you do that, then eating peanuts "in moderation" is probably not a good idea.
So alcohol is a very personal decision. If you can manage it and drink only small amounts, you don't have an addictive personality, and you're not one of those people who craves more, then it can be a healthful compound. But so are grapes, and you can eat those without the other risks.
On the Tongue
Since we are talking about possibly eatin' dirty, here is the follow up to Melissa Byers blog post on the not "so good food days."
The Byers Guide to Eating Dirty (Part II)
If you haven't read yesterday's Part I post yet, do that now. You really do need the background to understand where the below recommendations are coming from. If you're all caught up, let's continue with The Byers Guide to Eating Dirty.
1. Eat cheat meals or snacks throughout the week, instead of having a full cheat day. For one, it’s more practical and sustainable in real life. Opportunities for good food and socializing come up at different times. So allow yourself to have a drink on Tuesday night, a slice of cake on Friday afternoon and French toast with Nutella on Saturday morning. Think about this… if you eat/snack 4-5 times a day, and incorporate four cheat “meals” or “snacks” a week, you’re eating clean almost 90% of the time. Good lord, I’ll take that. In addition, your insulin sensitivity, GI tract and mental health and wellness will take far less of a hit if you eat clean, slip in a bowl of ice cream and then go back to eating clean… versus an entire day of Carb-a-Palooza. You’ll recover from your cheat faster, and you’ll feel better about yourself if you surround your cheat with good, clean eats.
2. Eat something because you want it, and because it's special... not just because it’s there. Say someone brings donuts in to the office. I look at the plate and think, donuts are here. I could eat a donut. But I can have donuts any time I want. So if I really want one in an hour, or a day, or next week… I’ll just go get one. The fact that it's sitting there does not make it special enough for me to go off-diet. But if my Mum (or anyone else, for that matter) shows up with freshly made snickerdoodles, I’m eating one. Or three. Those are SPECIAL, and I will really WANT one. So the next time you mindlessly pop a bagel, slice of pizza or piece of candy in your mouth just because it’s there... Pause. Think, do I really WANT this? If the answer is no, pass it up. If the answer is yes, proceed to numbers 3 and 4.
3 (to be performed in conjunction with 4). Eat only as much as you must to satisfy your craving. If you are dreaming about chips and salsa, break out the blue corn chips and get some. But now go back to #2, because you don't have to eat the whole bag just because it is there. In addition, if you are also properly working step #4, you should have plenty of notice that your mental fix has been achieved. When it has, stop eating. Maybe that's four peanut M&Ms. Or maybe that's an entire pint of Chubby Hubby. Both are okay, as long as you are mindful of the process.
4. When you do go off-diet, SAVOR IT. There’s nothing worse than filling up a bowl with Blue Bell chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream and then hoovering it mindlessly in front of the TV. That is a shameful waste of a cheat. So when you finally get that drool-inspiring forbidden food in front of you, spend some time with it. Take small bites. Enjoy the flavor. Make it last. Since we cheat as a means of providing mental satisfaction, squeeze as much satisfaction as possible out of what you are eating.
5. Finally, a more complicated recommendation - cheat smart. There are off-diet foods you can eat with little perceived negative physical effect, and there are others that will absolutely wreck you if you eat even the tiniest amount. The catch is, these things are different for everyone. For me, French toast (grains) and syrup (sugar) in reasonable amounts (one good sized piece) are 100% okay. Last weekend, I ate my Nutella French toast, and immediately hit the gym and pulled a 10# clean PR. But had I eaten just a few bites of goat cheese (dairy) in an omelette, I would have had a stomachache for hours. Mathieu Lalonde tells a similar story. “After eating strict Paleo for two months, I cheated with a pizza for dinner. I woke up the next morning with a huge headache, blurry vision, and lethargy. I wondered if the insulin spike from the white bread and cheese was the problem or if there was something else involved. The next time I cheated, I ate a banana split and a pint of ice cream. I woke up feeling a little bit fuzzy the next day, but nothing compared to the gluten hangover from the pizza.” So, cheat smart. Figure out what foods are okay, and what are not. You will eventually figure out that the not okay foods are simply never, ever going to be worth it. Stay away from those cheats, and find other foods to satisfy those cravings.How do you figure out what foods are okay for you, and what foods are not? I’ll tell you exactly how to do that... next week. I’ll give you an easy to follow, step-by-step plan to cleaning out your dietary closet and cheating smart. But be prepared… this helpful advice comes with a healthy dose of Tough Love. You’ve been warned.So there you have it – my official and decidedly opinionated Guide to Eating Dirty.
Just for Kicks
I dont suggest any of you do this, but I have noticed some pretty ha
rd workers lately who may deserve a cheat day. So here is a list I found on line of the secret stuff offered by food joints. Notice some of the hidden items are on two opposite ends of the table; 1 side not so healthy/ 1 not so unhealthy.
rd workers lately who may deserve a cheat day. So here is a list I found on line of the secret stuff offered by food joints. Notice some of the hidden items are on two opposite ends of the table; 1 side not so healthy/ 1 not so unhealthy.Secret Menus
1. In-N-Out Burger’s “secret menu” isn’t so secret these days – in fact, they’ve posted it on their website. But in case you’re not in the habit of surfing fast food sites, here’s the skinny on the rather un-skinny items: ordering something “Animal Style” at In-N-Out means you’re going to get it with lettuce, tomato, a mustard-cooked beef patty, pickles, extra spread (it’s sort of Thousand-Islandy) and grilled onions. You can even get your fries Animal Style. “Protein Style” is a burger wrapped in a lettuce leaf instead of a bun. A Grilled Cheese is two slices of American cheese, lettuce, tomato and spread on a bun (grilled onions if you so choose). And you can get just about any combo of meat and cheese that you want if you order it like you’re ordering lumber: 3×3 gets you three beef patties and three slices of cheese, 4×4 gets you four of each, and so on. It doesn’t stop there – one gluttonous patron requested a 100×100 at an Las Vegas store a couple of years ago. One item not listed on the website secret menu: the Flying Dutchman, which is two slices of cheese sandwiched between two patties, hold the bun.
2. If you’re at Starbucks and in need of just a little caffeine, don’t worry – there’s a tiny option for you. It’s the Short size, and they don’t advertise it. It’s like a little baby cup of coffee. It also comes in handy when you’re scrounging for change and don’t have enough for a tall… not that that has ever happened to me.
3. It’s a good thing we don’t have Jamba Juice here in Iowa, because I would be all over candy-based smoothies. Because it’s considered a health-food chain, Jamba Juice doesn’t officially list these on their in-store menus, but Mighty Foods assures us that the secret flavors exist. The ones they confirmed with the company’s headquarters include Strawberry Shortcake, White Gummy Bear, PB&J, Various flavors of Starbursts, Fruity Pebbles, Push-Up Pops, and Skittles. Other tantalizing flavors that are rumored to exist: Chocolate Gummi Bear, Apple Pie, Sourpatch Kid, Tootsie Roll, Chocolate-covered strawberries, and Now and Later.
4. Chipotle has a whole secret menu that is limited only by your imagination – they have a store policy that says that if they have the item available, they will make it for you. Things that have been tested include nachos, quesadillas, taco salads and single tacos. Some stores are testing out quesadillas as a regular menu item, however, so maybe someday soon you won’t need a super-secret handshake to order one.
5. If you’re at Wendy’s and you’re really hungry – like, three-patties-just-won’t-cut-it hungry – go ahead and order the Grand Slam, which is four patties stacked on a bun. It’s also known as the Meat Cube. Gross.
6. Several places, including McDonald’s and In-N-Out, will serve you the Neapolitan milkshake. It’s just what it sounds like – chocolate, vanilla and strawberry shakes layered in a cup. This gives me a great idea… I wonder if they would make me a mint-chocolate shake when they have the Shamrock Shake in March. Hmmm. (Picture from Flickr user Mrjoro.)7. Feeling a little health-conscious at Popeye’s? If you are, you really should have gone somewhere else. But there’s a little hope for you – ordering “naked chicken” will get you breading-free poultry. The word is that this is on the menu at some Popeye’s, but not all of them, although it is an option at all of them.8. Like Chipotle, Taco Bell will make you just about anything within reason as long as they have the ingredients for it. Since most of the food at Taco Bell is made out of the same basic items, that means you can probably ask for most discontinued items and get them. One “secret,” though, is that they have a not-advertised green chili sauce at most locations, and apparently it’s excellent.
9. Some Subways will still make you the popular pizza sub from the ‘90s. Once the chain decided to make their focus healthy eating, the pizza sub disappeared from the menu in most places (the word is that Canadian and Mexican Subways still offer them on a regular basis). But if you ask, lots of places will still make it for you. Be warned, though – Jared would not approve of the nine slices of pepperoni and copious amounts of cheese slathered in marinara sauce.
10. This one might be my favorite. At Fatburger, you can order a Hypocrite – a veggie burger topped with crispy strips of bacon.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Barry Sears IS Paleo!!!
This little rant-par-excellence comes straight from the fingers of Robb Wolf. Robb, to put it bluntly, is a superx26 busy man. Take it from someone who knows, you dont want to ask this man simple questions you can find answers to on google and ones that he has been asked 600,439,027 times, especially when you can do a simple search on his amazing blog and find the answer to. The last thing you want to do is say to the man that what he does and teaches "isnt real." If you do, you cause him to do this (which is unfortunate because he is a super humble guy):
Barry Sears is Paleo!!
By Robb Wolf
I receive a lot of email from folks asking a variety of questions. Two questions tend to about send me over the brink: “How many blocks should I eat?” and “should I eat Paleo or Zone?” Both questions are troubling for several reasons but it’s actually the later question that just slays me and, is in fact, the causative factor FOR question number 1. You see, Barry Sears, The Zone, everything the man and the diet represent, are steeped in evolutionary biology. That folks, (Level 1 Cert crew teaching nutrition…) is paleo. For some damn reason CrossFit HQ (or elements so of it) can not wrap their minds around the concept that the basic premise of the paleo diet, that nice bit of writing from World Class Fitness in 100 Words: “…Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds. Some fruit, little starch, no sugar…” is in fact everything that Barry Sears talks about in the Zone! Sometime ago I received confused emails from people who attended a closed to the public gig in which the HQ lecturer, when asked “What about paleo?” responded “Paleo is pseudo science and the individuals who purport it’s methods are pseudo scientists…”
WOW! Better than half of my Crossfit Nutrition Certification is pseudo science! That’s a bummer. Strike one for CrossFit Nutritional offerings. Strike two was delivered this past weekend when Dr. Barry Sears gave a seminar to a large group of avid CrossFitters. Kelly Frankson attended the seminar and was kind enough to allow me to link to her notes. What we find is that Sears is practicing Pseudo Science just like other scientists like Cordain, Eaton, Eades and, well, me. Sears talked at length about genetics that are mismatched for our current environment, the need to return carbohydrate and essential fats BACK to Paleolithic levels. It’s a pretty serious situation if myself, Loren Cordain and Barry Sears are all practicing pseudo science! How long until Dean Ornish or John McDougal will lead the vegan charge for HQ. Those guys are definitely NOT paleo, so they must be of credible scientific pedigree…
Of Weights and Measures
There is a common bit of “wisdom” that is shot around the CrossFit world that goes something like this: “No one will ever reach elite athletic performance without weighing and measuring food…”. Interestingly however, few of the top finishers the CrossFit Games weighed and measured. Would they do better WITH weighing and measuring? Sure, I think you need to keep track of your chow at some point if you are going to affect some additional changes above what a food quality (paleo) approach will provide. But THAT is not the statement, nor the sentiment. Despite defying logic AND the actual stated nutritional hierarchy within Crossfit (don’t piss in your gas tank) the order of operations out of HQ is NOT food quality first (paleo), weighing and measuring second. It’s weigh and measure, whatever you have on hand and THAT will guarantee your ultimate success. It’s an interesting proposition that is proving itself to be completely false. Laura Demarco was an ardent Zoner (weighing and measuring) using VEGAN foods. She had ass-kicking performance but she did one simple thing (always nice in science) she shifted her food from grains to paleo carbs and her proteins all became animal based (paleo). You know what happened? She saw remarkable IMPROVEMENT in her performance. For her it mainly focused on strength (former 1RM DL was 275, current 5RM DL 285!!), but the results are stunning. The only change was a shift in food quality. I have dozens of stories like this. Apparently, food quality DOES matter.
Back to the Barry Sears seminar, Dr. Sears, the developer of the Zone…DOES NOT RECOMMEND WEIGHING AND MEASURING. HE RECOMMENDS FOOD QUALITY FIRST. He makes the point that WAM may be more trouble than it’s worth. For the vast majority of folks I work with that is absolutely the case. When we shifted AWAY from weighing and measuring in our clinical practice our clients got far better and more consistent results. Wacky things like reversing autoimmune disease, something that weighing and measuring beer, Pringles and beef jerky will not accomplish. Which reminds me, I’ve received quite a number of emails about the nutrition lecture at given Level 1 cert. The gist of the lecture is that a well-known athlete weighs and measures his beer, Pringles and beef jerky. He kicks ass (he is about 23…wait till 10 more years are on the odometer), so this is what you should do too. The best spin on this I can provide is this is a method of portion control. Being less diplomatic, I’d say people paid good money to attend that cert and the nutrition portion was a failure. We can and should do a hell of a lot better than that. As a Fitness company I cannot figure out why a general policy on eating is not “Eat the best food you possibly can, as often as you can. Slice it and dice it into the proportions that help you to reach YOUR goals”.
I’m NOT trying to make a paleo cult, I am encouraging people to TRY things and then report back what works. In the mean time I’ll be developing a t-shirt that says “Paleo Diet: Pseudo Science Since 5-million BC”.
WOW! Better than half of my Crossfit Nutrition Certification is pseudo science! That’s a bummer. Strike one for CrossFit Nutritional offerings. Strike two was delivered this past weekend when Dr. Barry Sears gave a seminar to a large group of avid CrossFitters. Kelly Frankson attended the seminar and was kind enough to allow me to link to her notes. What we find is that Sears is practicing Pseudo Science just like other scientists like Cordain, Eaton, Eades and, well, me. Sears talked at length about genetics that are mismatched for our current environment, the need to return carbohydrate and essential fats BACK to Paleolithic levels. It’s a pretty serious situation if myself, Loren Cordain and Barry Sears are all practicing pseudo science! How long until Dean Ornish or John McDougal will lead the vegan charge for HQ. Those guys are definitely NOT paleo, so they must be of credible scientific pedigree…
Of Weights and Measures
There is a common bit of “wisdom” that is shot around the CrossFit world that goes something like this: “No one will ever reach elite athletic performance without weighing and measuring food…”. Interestingly however, few of the top finishers the CrossFit Games weighed and measured. Would they do better WITH weighing and measuring? Sure, I think you need to keep track of your chow at some point if you are going to affect some additional changes above what a food quality (paleo) approach will provide. But THAT is not the statement, nor the sentiment. Despite defying logic AND the actual stated nutritional hierarchy within Crossfit (don’t piss in your gas tank) the order of operations out of HQ is NOT food quality first (paleo), weighing and measuring second. It’s weigh and measure, whatever you have on hand and THAT will guarantee your ultimate success. It’s an interesting proposition that is proving itself to be completely false. Laura Demarco was an ardent Zoner (weighing and measuring) using VEGAN foods. She had ass-kicking performance but she did one simple thing (always nice in science) she shifted her food from grains to paleo carbs and her proteins all became animal based (paleo). You know what happened? She saw remarkable IMPROVEMENT in her performance. For her it mainly focused on strength (former 1RM DL was 275, current 5RM DL 285!!), but the results are stunning. The only change was a shift in food quality. I have dozens of stories like this. Apparently, food quality DOES matter.
Back to the Barry Sears seminar, Dr. Sears, the developer of the Zone…DOES NOT RECOMMEND WEIGHING AND MEASURING. HE RECOMMENDS FOOD QUALITY FIRST. He makes the point that WAM may be more trouble than it’s worth. For the vast majority of folks I work with that is absolutely the case. When we shifted AWAY from weighing and measuring in our clinical practice our clients got far better and more consistent results. Wacky things like reversing autoimmune disease, something that weighing and measuring beer, Pringles and beef jerky will not accomplish. Which reminds me, I’ve received quite a number of emails about the nutrition lecture at given Level 1 cert. The gist of the lecture is that a well-known athlete weighs and measures his beer, Pringles and beef jerky. He kicks ass (he is about 23…wait till 10 more years are on the odometer), so this is what you should do too. The best spin on this I can provide is this is a method of portion control. Being less diplomatic, I’d say people paid good money to attend that cert and the nutrition portion was a failure. We can and should do a hell of a lot better than that. As a Fitness company I cannot figure out why a general policy on eating is not “Eat the best food you possibly can, as often as you can. Slice it and dice it into the proportions that help you to reach YOUR goals”.
I’m NOT trying to make a paleo cult, I am encouraging people to TRY things and then report back what works. In the mean time I’ll be developing a t-shirt that says “Paleo Diet: Pseudo Science Since 5-million BC”.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Very Sound Advice
Stolen from the Fingers of Melissa Byers:
The Byers Guide to Eating Dirty (Part I)
This weekend, I discovered Nutella. Yes, Nutella – that chocolate hazelnut spread that the jar assures you can be a part of a balanced, healthy breakfast. Now, Nutella marketing people, come on. I’ve read the label. I know there is nothing about Nutella that is balanced OR healthy. But damn if it isn’t delicious between two pieces of French toast. (Put that on the label.) Yes, this weekend I “cheated” on my diet with grains, sugars and processed foods. And that’s the subject of the day – eating dirty.If you’re reading this blog, we probably have one thing in common. We all try to eat well. We eat Zone proportions or Paleo quality or some other mechanism that we would call a “clean” diet. We know the difference between Real Food and Stuff You Can Eat.
We eat real food, natural food, nutrient-dense food. We avoid foods that require additives to be “healthy”, high-tech fabrications designed to replace real food, and food-like products made from ingredients we cannot pronounce. And we do this, day in and day out, for the vast majority of our meals and snacks.But most of us don’t eat like that ALL the time. A 100% strict diet is mentally taxing, socially restrictive and just plain not fun. So, we “cheat”. We go off diet, eat things that we normally wouldn’t, indulge in things that taste good and satisfy our urges.
But on the Healthy/F Off Scale, we still want our diets to tip well to the Healthy side. Which means we need to think long and hard about how we cheat, what we choose to eat and drink during these cheat periods and how often we go off diet.Let’s first define what we mean by “cheat”. I’m going out on a limb and saying 99% of the time, cheat = high carb, processed, sugary foods and drinks. What else do we cheat with? Certainly not fat. Fat is not only allowed, it’s encouraged. No, we cheat with dirty, dirty carbs. Beer and pizza, nachos and tequila, cinnamon swirl French toast slathered with Nutella.
We cheat with insulin spiking, sugar rushing, energy crashing CARBS. (Can I get an "amen" from my Brooklyn boys?)Now that that's settled, in this next section, we’ll talk about the physiological benefits of cheating. Surely, you’ve heard that cheat meals or cheat days are a necessary part of your fitness program? They “shock the body”, “keep it guessing”, “jump start your metabolism”, right? So this next section will discuss the science-y details of how going off diet and cheating with things like pizza, pasta, cake and cookies has a positive impact on your physical health, fitness and performance.This section is short.IT DOESN’T.To be perfectly clear, a cheat day does not have a single significant, long-term positive effect on your metabolism, your body composition or any other internal science-y factors, despite what you read on the internet. Mathieu Lalonde can step into comments and explain all the reasons that a single cheat day negatively impacts how you look, feel and perform for the next two weeks... but I’ll shoot down some common arguments here.First… for those of you who eat a bowl of Breyer’s every night before bed and suddenly notice you’re looking leaner… that’s not the Breyer’s.
It is, however, a sure sign that you have not been eating enough. The ice cream is giving you a caloric boost, and has jump started your metabolism. Which is great, short term. But keep eating ice cream every night for months on end and tell me how that’s working out for you. Or, I’ll argue, how much better would your fat loss and performance be if you instead ate more almonds, chicken and/or sweet potatoes to get those extra fat and calories in? In short, the “cheat” may have helped short term, but it’s a bad long term solution, and you could do better. (Pay attention to that last part. You’ll hear it again.)Second, you may pass off your cheats as preventing metabolic slow-down. Serious calorie and carb restrictions decrease the release of the hormone called leptin. Leptin is important to keeping up your body’s metabolic rate. Increasing food intake drastically, even for a short period of time (like with a cheat day), will prevent the drop in leptin that occurs when dieting.
But most of us aren’t seriously “dieting”, are we? We’re CrossFitting, so we are at least eating enough to support performance. We may have a slight caloric deficit to prompt fat loss, but we are NOT in starvation mode. Not even close. Our metabolisms should be chugging away like a super-powered bullet train. So, if we are already eating for performance, do we really need to “mix it up” and “jolt our metabolisms” with chili cheese fries and an ice cream sundae? (That's rhetorical, kids.) And if for some reason you are on a seriously calorie-restricted diet... again, I'll say that you can pull off a better metabolic shock-and-awe with a higher volume of good, clean carbs than you can eating crap.How about the idea of “loading” or “refeeding” – essentially, replenishing glycogen stores? Glycogen (the carbs stored in the muscles and liver) is the primary fuel source for intense physical work.
When your glycogen stores are low, you won't be able to train as hard as when you're fully loaded. For that reason, it's a good idea to periodically give the body a shot of carbohydrates to keep glycogen stores at least somewhat full. (We do this in the form of a post workout meal.) But again, it comes back to this. You can “refuel” with ice cream and candy… or you can refuel with sweet potatoes and butternut squash. Ice cream supports the basic, fundamental requirement of replenishing glycogen stores… but also messes with a whole host of other body processes, like insulin sensitivity, fat stores and autoimmune responses. Again, you could do better.So there you have it – a cheat meal or a cheat day does nothing for your physical health and well being that couldn’t be done better with good, clean food. But there are a whole host of reasons to cheat that I DO support - and those are all mental. Your taste buds crave things that taste good. Your brain rebels against the rigidity of “can have” and “can’t have”.
Your emotions needs a break from the isolation and social pressures of being the weird eater, the difficult dinner party guest, the one who makes everyone else feel bad about the way they eat. You need a mental break, which means you need to stray from your diet. And I am more than okay with that.So we’ve established that we want our diets to weight in on the side of Healthy, but that there are mental and emotional reasons that mean it is absolutely necessary that we go off-diet from time to time. And as you might imagine, I have a few thoughts as to how you do that. Tomorrow, I'll publish my advice for how to strike the best balance possible while still preserving your mental sanity.
The Byers Guide to Eating Dirty (Part I)
This weekend, I discovered Nutella. Yes, Nutella – that chocolate hazelnut spread that the jar assures you can be a part of a balanced, healthy breakfast. Now, Nutella marketing people, come on. I’ve read the label. I know there is nothing about Nutella that is balanced OR healthy. But damn if it isn’t delicious between two pieces of French toast. (Put that on the label.) Yes, this weekend I “cheated” on my diet with grains, sugars and processed foods. And that’s the subject of the day – eating dirty.If you’re reading this blog, we probably have one thing in common. We all try to eat well. We eat Zone proportions or Paleo quality or some other mechanism that we would call a “clean” diet. We know the difference between Real Food and Stuff You Can Eat.
We eat real food, natural food, nutrient-dense food. We avoid foods that require additives to be “healthy”, high-tech fabrications designed to replace real food, and food-like products made from ingredients we cannot pronounce. And we do this, day in and day out, for the vast majority of our meals and snacks.But most of us don’t eat like that ALL the time. A 100% strict diet is mentally taxing, socially restrictive and just plain not fun. So, we “cheat”. We go off diet, eat things that we normally wouldn’t, indulge in things that taste good and satisfy our urges.
But on the Healthy/F Off Scale, we still want our diets to tip well to the Healthy side. Which means we need to think long and hard about how we cheat, what we choose to eat and drink during these cheat periods and how often we go off diet.Let’s first define what we mean by “cheat”. I’m going out on a limb and saying 99% of the time, cheat = high carb, processed, sugary foods and drinks. What else do we cheat with? Certainly not fat. Fat is not only allowed, it’s encouraged. No, we cheat with dirty, dirty carbs. Beer and pizza, nachos and tequila, cinnamon swirl French toast slathered with Nutella.
We cheat with insulin spiking, sugar rushing, energy crashing CARBS. (Can I get an "amen" from my Brooklyn boys?)Now that that's settled, in this next section, we’ll talk about the physiological benefits of cheating. Surely, you’ve heard that cheat meals or cheat days are a necessary part of your fitness program? They “shock the body”, “keep it guessing”, “jump start your metabolism”, right? So this next section will discuss the science-y details of how going off diet and cheating with things like pizza, pasta, cake and cookies has a positive impact on your physical health, fitness and performance.This section is short.IT DOESN’T.To be perfectly clear, a cheat day does not have a single significant, long-term positive effect on your metabolism, your body composition or any other internal science-y factors, despite what you read on the internet. Mathieu Lalonde can step into comments and explain all the reasons that a single cheat day negatively impacts how you look, feel and perform for the next two weeks... but I’ll shoot down some common arguments here.First… for those of you who eat a bowl of Breyer’s every night before bed and suddenly notice you’re looking leaner… that’s not the Breyer’s.
It is, however, a sure sign that you have not been eating enough. The ice cream is giving you a caloric boost, and has jump started your metabolism. Which is great, short term. But keep eating ice cream every night for months on end and tell me how that’s working out for you. Or, I’ll argue, how much better would your fat loss and performance be if you instead ate more almonds, chicken and/or sweet potatoes to get those extra fat and calories in? In short, the “cheat” may have helped short term, but it’s a bad long term solution, and you could do better. (Pay attention to that last part. You’ll hear it again.)Second, you may pass off your cheats as preventing metabolic slow-down. Serious calorie and carb restrictions decrease the release of the hormone called leptin. Leptin is important to keeping up your body’s metabolic rate. Increasing food intake drastically, even for a short period of time (like with a cheat day), will prevent the drop in leptin that occurs when dieting.
But most of us aren’t seriously “dieting”, are we? We’re CrossFitting, so we are at least eating enough to support performance. We may have a slight caloric deficit to prompt fat loss, but we are NOT in starvation mode. Not even close. Our metabolisms should be chugging away like a super-powered bullet train. So, if we are already eating for performance, do we really need to “mix it up” and “jolt our metabolisms” with chili cheese fries and an ice cream sundae? (That's rhetorical, kids.) And if for some reason you are on a seriously calorie-restricted diet... again, I'll say that you can pull off a better metabolic shock-and-awe with a higher volume of good, clean carbs than you can eating crap.How about the idea of “loading” or “refeeding” – essentially, replenishing glycogen stores? Glycogen (the carbs stored in the muscles and liver) is the primary fuel source for intense physical work.
When your glycogen stores are low, you won't be able to train as hard as when you're fully loaded. For that reason, it's a good idea to periodically give the body a shot of carbohydrates to keep glycogen stores at least somewhat full. (We do this in the form of a post workout meal.) But again, it comes back to this. You can “refuel” with ice cream and candy… or you can refuel with sweet potatoes and butternut squash. Ice cream supports the basic, fundamental requirement of replenishing glycogen stores… but also messes with a whole host of other body processes, like insulin sensitivity, fat stores and autoimmune responses. Again, you could do better.So there you have it – a cheat meal or a cheat day does nothing for your physical health and well being that couldn’t be done better with good, clean food. But there are a whole host of reasons to cheat that I DO support - and those are all mental. Your taste buds crave things that taste good. Your brain rebels against the rigidity of “can have” and “can’t have”.
Your emotions needs a break from the isolation and social pressures of being the weird eater, the difficult dinner party guest, the one who makes everyone else feel bad about the way they eat. You need a mental break, which means you need to stray from your diet. And I am more than okay with that.So we’ve established that we want our diets to weight in on the side of Healthy, but that there are mental and emotional reasons that mean it is absolutely necessary that we go off-diet from time to time. And as you might imagine, I have a few thoughts as to how you do that. Tomorrow, I'll publish my advice for how to strike the best balance possible while still preserving your mental sanity.
My pen is out of ink
Hey there!
Where the hell have you been?!?
Well Im back!!! After a small stint in jail for stalking Jessica Alba, no no thats not true at all. I wish it was though.
Ive been going through quite a rough patch of things recently (for about a month now) and just havent been gather and posting information as quickly (last post was in june).
And I know what youre saying "chris is really dont give a Sh*t about you and your problems, I just need to know how not to get fat and how to gain muscle." And you are totally right. I always said I would never make a blog where I cry about my feelings, so let me set the tissues down and get back to business!
Note: Thanks to my girlfriend and friends who think I should live a little and party like Keith Richards long lost child I have become very out of shape. It took a solid two weeks and it will take three to get back to 60%. Bad diet+bad sleep+alcohol= a fatter, slower(mentally and physically) christopher. Ill keep you updated about cravings, cheats, and gains (good gains I hope). Current standings:
Weight: 183.5 (way less than I thought it would be).
Waist: 33"
Bodyfat: 11% WAY less than what I thought
Body fat lbs: 20#
Muscle lbs: 165#
Daily Protein Req: 99g
Where the hell have you been?!?
Well Im back!!! After a small stint in jail for stalking Jessica Alba, no no thats not true at all. I wish it was though.
Ive been going through quite a rough patch of things recently (for about a month now) and just havent been gather and posting information as quickly (last post was in june).
And I know what youre saying "chris is really dont give a Sh*t about you and your problems, I just need to know how not to get fat and how to gain muscle." And you are totally right. I always said I would never make a blog where I cry about my feelings, so let me set the tissues down and get back to business!
Note: Thanks to my girlfriend and friends who think I should live a little and party like Keith Richards long lost child I have become very out of shape. It took a solid two weeks and it will take three to get back to 60%. Bad diet+bad sleep+alcohol= a fatter, slower(mentally and physically) christopher. Ill keep you updated about cravings, cheats, and gains (good gains I hope). Current standings:
Weight: 183.5 (way less than I thought it would be).
Waist: 33"
Bodyfat: 11% WAY less than what I thought
Body fat lbs: 20#
Muscle lbs: 165#
Daily Protein Req: 99g
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Post Workout Nutrition for Leaning Out
Summer is here!! Kind of......
In the past there have been several talks about cycling carbs towards post workout and how this can fuel performance and taste buds, but I have also lightly touched on the post workout meal being used for leaning out and balancing that bugger "insulin sensitivity."
In a recent post by Robb Wolf he discusses his way of leaning out after a mass gain experiment and how he used post workout nutrition to help burn the fat off.
"If you recall, I did a mass gain experiment about 9 months ago. Moved from 163-185. Strength was up, but I was pretty damn chubby. I have been following either CrossFit Football or Rutman’s ME-Black Box for training. For about 6 months I was still messing with some post WO carbs, typically about 50-70g depending upon the size of the WOD. Not surprisingly, my leaning out has been glacially slow. I thought back to when I just did cyclic low carb, what Poliquin had to say about leaning out (earn your carbs, be lean…) and I dropped to less than 50g of carbs per day with an occasional (once per week) larger carb meal that I just dropped in whenever. Result? Stunningly rapid fat loss. I’m about 178lbs but below 10% BF at this point. In general I’ve had 4 meals per day, large whacks of protein, just a little added fat and then loads of veggies. I have been using a post WO whey protein with coconut milk (40g protein, 20-30g fat) and I really like this.....I generally recommend against liquid food for fat-loss scenarios but as with all things, there are exceptions. Keep in mind, a low carb approach will NOT turn you into a CrossFit Super Star. It is however a nice approach to leaning out, getting healthy and not being a fat-ass for summer."
Heather and I are going through a similar process based off a different kind of carb cycling. I have already done it but she will be roughing her way through it starting today. It involves very low carbs to generate a shift in metabolism from sugar burning to fat burning. After which you cycle between high carb and low carb meals. The benefits and points that I like are that I can have massive carbs meals with variety and those meals help instead of hurt AND the only thing I really have to count is carbs rather than try to figure out ratios between carbs/pro/fat. It gives me a lot more freedom when the freedom is given. Tough part is only the beginning but really if you have been playing around with paleo or zone then its not that hard to tighten the belt. If you are a typical American on a typical American diet this could seem like coming off heroin...because...its extremely similar. So maybe for the next week or so be careful on how you approach Heather.....she may bite.... also if you see me with bruises are scars.....I fell down some stairs and I love my girlfriend very much =) *coughpleasehelpmesneeze*
Dont go SO nuts
I know in the past few weeks a few of you have recently heard me say that you should start alternating healthy fats not only for variety but overall health. I finally came across an article from the paleo newsletter on the topic so I thought that I would share it.
I have said before that peanuts/almonds/cashews should not be the fat staple but included once in a while. The reasons I was being told was "because______" and then it would be something science-y that I couldn't remember. No finally I have an answer from a great source.
Newsletter:
The Debate over the Safety of Legumes by Dr. Loren Cordain.
Legumes, such as beans, lentils, peanuts, and peas are ubiquitous in modern society. Even the Mayo Clinic's website labels legumes as "among the most versatile and nutritious foods available." As many readers already know, though, the Paleo Diet does not include legumes. To explain why, we'd like to share the following thoughtful question regarding whether legumes could have been a nutritional resource for our Paleolithic ancestors that would have been incorporated into our evolutionary heritage.
"Dear Dr. Cordain,
I have read your Paleo Diet books and some interviews with you as well, but I have a question the answer to which continues to evade me. If we are to eat as our ancestors, i.e. as nature designed (with which I completely agree), would they not have eaten legumes as long as they didn't experience immediate discomfort from doing so? I understand how raw peanuts or cashews (or their evolutionary predecessors) would not have been eaten as they were poisonous until cooked and would have caused distress, but what about such things as string beans or sugar-snap peas? These can be eaten raw with no immediate ill effect, regardless of lectin content, so wouldn't the ancestral equivalent of these foods have been eaten by Paleolithic man?
What would have dissuaded him? And as such, shouldn't we now be able to handle them? (As you can tell, I miss my beans. I'm also assuming there were Paleolithic equivalents). I've been kind of going on the theory that if you can eat it raw it's okay (because they would have)."
--Holly Schmaling
Dear Holly:
My feeling is that pre-agricultural hunter-gatherers would have been opportunists and would have consumed virtually all-edible foods. However, optimal foraging theory suggests that they would have tried to hunt, gather and fish foods that supplied the greatest energy input per energy expended. They also would have preferred readily digestible carbohydrate when animal foods were lean with little fat. Because legumes are only available seasonally, they would not have provided a staple food source until the development of agriculture. This means that humans would not have evolved the ability to cope with the "dark side" of legumes.
In general, most legumes are concentrated sources of both lectins and saponins. These toxic compounds serve to prevent predation by insects, fungi, bacteria and other organisms. The problem that saponins present for people is that saponins bind cholesterol in the gut membrane to create pores in the gut (intestinal permeability). While most dietary lectins are not toxic to humans, legumes and grains are the primary exceptions because legume and grain lectins can bind to gut tissue. While the entry of dietary lectins into peripheral circulation has been sparsely examined, is quite likely that all lectins capable of binding gut epithelial tissue can also enter into lymph/circulation.1-5
Intestinal permeability allows toxins and bacteria, from which the body needs to be protected, to breach the gut barrier and gain chronic access to the immune system. This abnormal situation may stimulate the confused response seen in autoimmune diseases when the body's immune system indiscriminately attacks healthy tissues and organs. It appears that the immune system has lost the ability to distinguish between the body and foreign invaders, such as microbe or food antigens. Approximately 33% of autoimmune diseases present with a leaky gut, and most autoimmune diseases have yet to be tested.
-----
So there you have it. My advice is to alternate between nuts and other kinds of fats and even between different kinds of nuts themselves. My rotating list includes: cashews, pecans, walnuts, olives, avocado, almonds, peanuts, almond butter.
Any questions please post them in the comments page and I will get back to you.
Friday, June 19, 2009
Pre/ Post Workout Meals
Here are some good Pre/Post workout meals that I found in the latest addition of the Paleo Diet Newsletter. If you are not a subscriber of it, you should be. Everytime I get one in my email there is always something useful or interesting to read. Enjoy!
"The following are some of my favorites. For a complete listing of why these are favorites, review sections on what to eat before, during and after training around the time of a training session in The Paleo Diet For Athletes.
Natural, unsweetened applesauce with plain egg white protein powder and a sprinkle of salt
Baked yam with hard-boiled egg whites (I'll give the yolks to the dogs as I prefer a light meal of protein and carbs only if workout session is going to follow immediately and I don't have time to digest the fat) and again, a touch of table salt
Bananas - either fresh or sliced, and then frozen. There's not a time I enjoy a banana more than after a workout session! (usually Robb Wolf has suggested banana and chocolate milk as a great post workout meal, as well as sweet potato and applesauce with sprinkled cinnamon.)
Pineapple - again, right after a workout is a perfect time for this fruit. Pineapple (and papaya and mango) contain bromelain, an enzyme that aids in digestion and helps to settle the stomach. That's quite handy for those hard sessions when you've pushed your limits, and ended up feeling a touch of nausea!
Dried fruit - the best time to eat this higher-in-sugar snack is right after a session when your muscles are screaming for carbohydrate to repair and refuel for your next session.
Cantaloupe - a great source of potassium, even higher than bananas!
Finally, I can't omit the essential: the recovery drink recommended in Paleo For Athletes, "Homebrew." It's superior to anything you're going to find commercially available, and it contains fruit, protein and salt. You'll never tire of it, as you can always vary which fruits you use to keep it interesting. "
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Eat Your Lungs Out While Getting Leaner
I know a lot of you don't have the time to read the amazing book Good Calories, Bad Calories, and honestly I don't blame you. But overall it is one of the most important books on our shelves today. Harry Pre-puberty and Twilight emo vampires shouldn't be on your summer reading if you know whats good for you. But there are some break downs of what it in this book. I have attached an article to break this down. The book is fracking long...I'm not gonna lie. Gary Taubes spent like 7 years doing research and went all the way back into what went wrong with the human diet. How far back? He brings up evidence of human diet before we even landed in America (we meaning....I'm not going to get into that). Many of you don't know this, but I have a BS in Creative Writing which means I like to read books, write essays and stories and I would never, EVER want to write a bibliography like this book has. But it is, like I said, probably one of the most important books you could/should read. It breaks down whats wrong with our Big Brother controlling our food, the experiments we have run on ourselves as humans, all of the myths of foods and more. It DOES NOT tell you what to eat though. You should be able to read between the lines. I will give you a hint though if you ask nicely (COUGH*meanveggiesseedsnutslittlestarchsomefruitnosugarnobread*SNEEZE).
This article was taking from a body building website that bashes CF pretty regularly and are interested more in aesthetics than performance and especially health. If you watch what the interviewer says in response to Gary says its pretty fun. He becomes completely stumped and shocked. Want to go a step further and read some more funny stuff, read the discussion page and the bottom and what some people say about eating. Its a HOOT!
Enjoy....and learn something....
Balance
Pretty interesting article. There needs to be a balance between eating healthy like we have for/since the beginning of our creation, exercise and the newly developed, horrific, processed, chemical added, delicious, addictive, inflammation giving, disease forming, life ending food that we have made up in the past 200 years.
Basic take home point: eat like you're suppose to (healthy: lean meats/veggies: seeds/nuts: little fruit/some starch: NO SUGAR) but occasionally you can add some of the wonderful American diet to your mix and of course exercise..... some how.... some way...
Basic take home point: eat like you're suppose to (healthy: lean meats/veggies: seeds/nuts: little fruit/some starch: NO SUGAR) but occasionally you can add some of the wonderful American diet to your mix and of course exercise..... some how.... some way...
Article:
Got to love it
My momma forwarded this to me....interesting....
Baby Carrots
The following is information from a farmer who grows and packages carrots for IGA, METRO, LOBLAWS, etc
The small cocktail (baby) carrots you buy in small plastic bags are made using the larger crooked or deformed carrots which are put through a machine which cuts and shapes them into cocktail carrots - most people probably know this already.
What you may not know and should know is the following:
Once the carrots are cut and shaped into cocktail carrots they are dipped in a solution of water and chlorine in order to preserve them. (this is the same chlorine used in your pool).
Since they do not have their skin or natural protective covering, they give them a higher dose of chlorine.
You will notice that once you keep these carrots in your refrigerator for a few days, a white covering will form on the carrots. This is the chlorine which resurfaces. At what cost do we put our health at risk to have esthetically pleasing vegetables?
Chlorine is a very well-known carcinogen, which causes Cancer.. I thought this was worth passing on. Pass it on to as many people as possible in hopes of informing them where these carrots come from and how they are processed.
I used to buy those baby carrots for vegetable dips.
I know that I will never buy them again!!!!
Confirmed by Snopes:
Snopes.com: Baby Carrots ..... Are baby carrots made from deformed full-sized carrots that have been soaked in chlorine? ...--> Contaminated Food --> Carrot and Shtick Carrot and Shtick Claim: Baby carrots are made from deformed full-sized carrots that have been... ....carrots that you buy in grocery stores come from deformed crooked big carrots. They are put through a machine to become small cocktail carrots. This part... ..I think after reading this we will all start making our own carrot sticks out of fresh carrots and keep them in the fridge (a few at a time), right?....
Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:22:59 GMT http://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/carrots.asp
Baby Carrots
The following is information from a farmer who grows and packages carrots for IGA, METRO, LOBLAWS, etc
The small cocktail (baby) carrots you buy in small plastic bags are made using the larger crooked or deformed carrots which are put through a machine which cuts and shapes them into cocktail carrots - most people probably know this already.
What you may not know and should know is the following:
Once the carrots are cut and shaped into cocktail carrots they are dipped in a solution of water and chlorine in order to preserve them. (this is the same chlorine used in your pool).
Since they do not have their skin or natural protective covering, they give them a higher dose of chlorine.
You will notice that once you keep these carrots in your refrigerator for a few days, a white covering will form on the carrots. This is the chlorine which resurfaces. At what cost do we put our health at risk to have esthetically pleasing vegetables?
Chlorine is a very well-known carcinogen, which causes Cancer.. I thought this was worth passing on. Pass it on to as many people as possible in hopes of informing them where these carrots come from and how they are processed.
I used to buy those baby carrots for vegetable dips.
I know that I will never buy them again!!!!
Confirmed by Snopes:
Snopes.com: Baby Carrots ..... Are baby carrots made from deformed full-sized carrots that have been soaked in chlorine? ...--> Contaminated Food --> Carrot and Shtick Carrot and Shtick Claim: Baby carrots are made from deformed full-sized carrots that have been... ....carrots that you buy in grocery stores come from deformed crooked big carrots. They are put through a machine to become small cocktail carrots. This part... ..I think after reading this we will all start making our own carrot sticks out of fresh carrots and keep them in the fridge (a few at a time), right?....
Fri, 13 Mar 2009 11:22:59 GMT http://www.snopes.com/food/tainted/carrots.asp
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Dont Get IT Twisted
So we all know that the big thing right now is food that is "sugar free." Well unfortunately most of the products saying "sugar free" are lying to you. (I know! Who would-a thunk it?) Basically the company tells people like the FDA who over see their product, that whatever they are selling is sugar free. What they are really saying, is that they removed the "table sugar" and replaced it with another kind of sugar OR are using another name for sugar. Clever little bastards....
Those of you who love your protein drinks, let me guarantee you, it has sugar in it (all most all of the time =). So we know, because I have said it a thousand times, SUGAR UPS YOUR INSULIN! INSULIN IS A FAT STORAGE HORMONE. If you dont like fat then you may want to, just a suggestion, its really based on science and not my opinion control your F**KING SUGAR AND INSULIN!! So if you are going to ask me in the next few days, "chris, how can I loose some weight?" You better be able to recite back to me about what you need to control.
So, anywho, if you think your unnatural, packaged product in your hand is sugar free, look for anything on the list below and become instantly disappointed if you see any of the names (i cant pronounce) on your product.
Those of you who love your protein drinks, let me guarantee you, it has sugar in it (all most all of the time =). So we know, because I have said it a thousand times, SUGAR UPS YOUR INSULIN! INSULIN IS A FAT STORAGE HORMONE. If you dont like fat then you may want to, just a suggestion, its really based on science and not my opinion control your F**KING SUGAR AND INSULIN!! So if you are going to ask me in the next few days, "chris, how can I loose some weight?" You better be able to recite back to me about what you need to control.
So, anywho, if you think your unnatural, packaged product in your hand is sugar free, look for anything on the list below and become instantly disappointed if you see any of the names (i cant pronounce) on your product.
Here are 20 other names for sugar:
Barely Malt - Brown rice syrup - corn syrup - dextrose - evaporated cane juice invert syrup - fructose - fruit juice - galactose - glucose - granular fruit grape juice concentrate - high fructose corn syrup - honey - lactose - maltodextrin - maple syrup - molasses - organic can juice - sorghum - sucrose - turbinado.
Ah...bummer.
Good luck trying to find a clean product!......Im not being sarcastic, seriously good luck, its hard as hell even for someone like me but just remember....no one really loves love handles .......=)
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Go Paleo for Summer
Some of you already received this email, but I thought I would share it with the rest of you just in case. This is basically a real easy (Paleo) way to drop weight. If followed accordingly you could shed fat and fast. But! There is a catch. This is pretty much for form not function. Meaning it is only for how you look not how you will preform. If you intend on doing this and not sucking at the WODs then you are mistaken =( Though, a few of you might just perform better. This is the amazing "tinkering" process you hear so much about. Nothing works exactly the same for everyone. If I cut carbs (another article on that later) then I lean out, but I cant perform worth my power animal (and she doesn't like it. She likes the way I look but thinks I'm a bitch). If I have just the right amount of carbs, I can tear it up (like some of you saw bright and early on Saturday=) So without any more rambling; here it is.
What’s going on inside:
Ok so this whole weight loss, weight gain issue is basically determined by a fat storage hormone called insulin. If we can become masters/controllers of our insulin we will become dominate over our appearance.
The deciding factor of what goes where (i.e. energy going into muscles or things being stored as fat) concerning insulin regulation is carbohydrates. So let’s break it down:
Carbs = insulin.
Carbs have the most influence on our insulin, way above protein and fat. The more carbs you eat the higher your blood sugar and insulin rise. Insulin ultimately determines how much your fat and muscle cells grow.
So when you eat more carbs then your body can burn and the body can not use the carbs to boost muscular growth, then those remaining carbs are automatically stored as fat.
When we keep glycogen levels and insulin levels low enough, we basically are telling our bodies to build muscle and burn fat. Your body would rather work off, and will work off, of the sugar (glycogen) in your muscles first, before it gets to the fat. If we keep the insulin levels low enough, we will train the body to use stored fat as an energy source once the sugar in the muscles is tapped/used. With insulin levels low enough, and exercise in the proper form, we can force the body to store carbs in the muscles rather than covert it to fat storage.
So counting overall calories becomes less as important as being aware of the total amount and the time in which carbs are consumed. If we eat carbs at the wrong time, our body stores them as fat. Eat them as the right time and the body stores it as energy in the muscles to be used as fuel.
Warning:
For the first few days there can be some complaining because basically the body is detoxing. Having your body switch over and making it start burning stored fat as a fuel source takes time, depending on how much damage you have done to your insulin levels over time. Basically if you are addicted to carbs, because they are addicting, your body will have to adjust and learn to not be addicted; this part of the process can cause issues with the body, mainly mentally. Crankiness, irritability, fatigue and tiredness are all common. BUT THEY WILL GO AWAY. Once your body adapts, and it only takes a few days, you will operate better than you ever have in your entire life. Eventually you will have more energy, be more clear-headed, have less carb cravings and have less gastrointestinal issues.
What to eat: A majority of your eating should come strictly from protein and fat. Both will make you feel full and give you plenty of fuel to operate effectively on a day to day basis. Protein, fat and veggie will only spike insulin levels ever so slightly. Anything outside of those three can cause insulin levels to rise, possible causing your body to store the carbs as fat.
Your daily numbers should look something like this:
Protein 30-40%
Carbs: 20-30%
Fat: 40-60%
Protein: Good sources of protein in the general sense consist of:
Beef – Eggs – Poultry – Fish – Pork
Carbs: Good Sources of carbs in the general sense should consist of:
Mushrooms – onions – spinach – broccoli – celery – zucchini – cucumbers – cauliflower – tomatoes – asparagus – artichokes – brussel sprouts – apples – grapes – strawberries – blueberries.
The fruit listed about should be LIMITED. Maybe a serving a day…maybe. For now. Figure it this way; the fruit will spike insulin levels higher than veggies. So if you eat more fruit, you could potentially, store more fat. If fat loss is your goal, then you decide. Abuse this and I will step in and intervene.
Fat: Good sources of fat will consist of:
Nuts and seeds – olives – olive oil – coconut oil/ coconuts – butter (natural butter) – avocados.
Meals:
All of your meal will consist of Protein and Fat. This is a great way to start breakfast. Lunch you can add in some veggies. Snacks should consist of Protein + Fat + (up to you) Carbs.
Protein is the essential followed by fat. If you are way too hungry, way too tired and overall just not liking the diet then you aren’t eating enough fat. Fat basically becomes important for controlling how your body craves and needs calories.
Things to stay away from: Grains, sugar and starches.
How long:
It should take about two good, clean weeks for results to be very noticeable. Worst case scenario an entire month to balance out the system. What it really comes down to is your goal and how serious you are to get there. If you want to loose weight and quickly you will do everything exactly stated as above and not deviate from the plan. Any time you go off the plan you have to basically restart. This isn’t something that goes on forever. We need to get to where we want to go and then maintain, but we will be allowed room to play. It’s not hard it’s easy. Its not expensive, it’s cheap. It works and it works the best. If you have any questions, email me.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
What are you really eating??
One of the common ways we describe to eat healthy, especially when we try to clean up eating habits (meaning going Paleo) we talk about ingredient labels. This is often an over looked part of the food or beverage being purchased by the consumer. Usually the food label is checked for carb, protein, fat (if you don't know what you're doing) and sugar percentages. Although these are important, the ingredient label is either as or more important.
If the product says "sugar free" but contains sucralose or fructose then it contains sugar and a lot of it. In fact most of the sugar free products get away with saying they are sugar free because they remove the sugar, add a chlorine mocule to the sugar molecule, and then reintroduce it back into the product. Yes, I said chlorine, the same chemical you put in your pool to clean it. Yummy :)
When we tell people to go Paleo we usually suggest that when they are buying a product, if it has an ingredients label DONT BUY IT CAUSE ITS NOT FOOD!! If they have to tell you whats in it, which means you dont know just by looking at it, there is a problem with that. No one should not know whats in an apple, or chicken, or water, or turkey, or lettuce. Get my point. If its natural, you should already know what it is. But if you pick up a product and it says things like: hydrolyzed collagen, sodium caseinate, glycerine, polydextrose, maltodextrin, guar gum, cyanocobalamin, D-Alpha tocopherylacetate etc etc then its not food. I dont even know what the hell most of that is or how to say it. (By the ways I got SOME of those ingredients off the back of an Atkins bar) We also suggest that if it has a shelf life longer than 2 weeks, DONT BUY IT CAUSE ITS NOT FOOD. This is also a reason we dont really suggest "protein powders." We dont really know whats in them.
When it comes to foods in general, these rules can apply to everything. For instance I have posted about what to look for when buying meat. Free range, non hormonal, no additive meats. Why? Well here is a breakdown from an article in the LA Times about tasty healthy chicken:
"Overall the birds we liked best for their meats flavor and texture were generally organic or fed special diets and almost all were free range.
According to the USDA requirements, organic chickens must be fed additive-free diets, be raised under specific conditions and not be treated with antibiotics. Generally, the organic chickens we sampled were fed diets almost entirely of corn and soy. Conventional chickens can be fed diets that include animal by products and fat.
Free range chickens are allowed to roam outside of the coop (though the amount of room is not specified); because then can move around, their muscles are allowed to grow more naturally."
Want to know what else is in your foods, check this article out:
http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/10-ingredients-fast-food.htm
Now I understand and am fully aware of improvements in modern foods and nutritions. But some of these are false improvements that are actually potentially harmful additives. A large portion of the things we buy will have an ingredient label on it and contain things that have been added to the product to improve quality or shelf life, I understand this. BUT it doesnt mean that we need it. If the product can be harmful, why buy it. Analogy: If the stove is red and hott, should you touch it? So, if your potential product is dangerous to your health, should you buy it? (And I know from one of you Im gonna hear the old "OH!! But its soooo tasty!!!) In this case I would agree and say yes, it is, its very tasty in fact, and a once in a blue moon induglance hopefully wont kill you, but dont go nuts and have it when ever you fracking want. Our foods are evolving and have had certain things added to them, some of which even could help our general health. Just be catious about what you are buying and what your are putting into your system. This is simply a warning. Why am I warning you? Because I dont want to hear a complaint of why you cant loose weight, stop eating a certain food because its "soooo tasty" or have recently been diagonsed with a disease. I know I may be sounding brash or even like an ass, but I have the potential to help you and you dont want it, then I dont want to waste my time, or yours.
So join my cult and eat healthy. You will look sexier, feel better, preform great, live longer, have healthier children, be smarter, etc etc. My cult is awesome. We even eat ice cream. If you have a problem with my cult, talk to my power animal. PEACE!
If the product says "sugar free" but contains sucralose or fructose then it contains sugar and a lot of it. In fact most of the sugar free products get away with saying they are sugar free because they remove the sugar, add a chlorine mocule to the sugar molecule, and then reintroduce it back into the product. Yes, I said chlorine, the same chemical you put in your pool to clean it. Yummy :)
When we tell people to go Paleo we usually suggest that when they are buying a product, if it has an ingredients label DONT BUY IT CAUSE ITS NOT FOOD!! If they have to tell you whats in it, which means you dont know just by looking at it, there is a problem with that. No one should not know whats in an apple, or chicken, or water, or turkey, or lettuce. Get my point. If its natural, you should already know what it is. But if you pick up a product and it says things like: hydrolyzed collagen, sodium caseinate, glycerine, polydextrose, maltodextrin, guar gum, cyanocobalamin, D-Alpha tocopherylacetate etc etc then its not food. I dont even know what the hell most of that is or how to say it. (By the ways I got SOME of those ingredients off the back of an Atkins bar) We also suggest that if it has a shelf life longer than 2 weeks, DONT BUY IT CAUSE ITS NOT FOOD. This is also a reason we dont really suggest "protein powders." We dont really know whats in them.
When it comes to foods in general, these rules can apply to everything. For instance I have posted about what to look for when buying meat. Free range, non hormonal, no additive meats. Why? Well here is a breakdown from an article in the LA Times about tasty healthy chicken:
"Overall the birds we liked best for their meats flavor and texture were generally organic or fed special diets and almost all were free range.
According to the USDA requirements, organic chickens must be fed additive-free diets, be raised under specific conditions and not be treated with antibiotics. Generally, the organic chickens we sampled were fed diets almost entirely of corn and soy. Conventional chickens can be fed diets that include animal by products and fat.
Free range chickens are allowed to roam outside of the coop (though the amount of room is not specified); because then can move around, their muscles are allowed to grow more naturally."
Want to know what else is in your foods, check this article out:
http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/10-ingredients-fast-food.htm
Now I understand and am fully aware of improvements in modern foods and nutritions. But some of these are false improvements that are actually potentially harmful additives. A large portion of the things we buy will have an ingredient label on it and contain things that have been added to the product to improve quality or shelf life, I understand this. BUT it doesnt mean that we need it. If the product can be harmful, why buy it. Analogy: If the stove is red and hott, should you touch it? So, if your potential product is dangerous to your health, should you buy it? (And I know from one of you Im gonna hear the old "OH!! But its soooo tasty!!!) In this case I would agree and say yes, it is, its very tasty in fact, and a once in a blue moon induglance hopefully wont kill you, but dont go nuts and have it when ever you fracking want. Our foods are evolving and have had certain things added to them, some of which even could help our general health. Just be catious about what you are buying and what your are putting into your system. This is simply a warning. Why am I warning you? Because I dont want to hear a complaint of why you cant loose weight, stop eating a certain food because its "soooo tasty" or have recently been diagonsed with a disease. I know I may be sounding brash or even like an ass, but I have the potential to help you and you dont want it, then I dont want to waste my time, or yours.
So join my cult and eat healthy. You will look sexier, feel better, preform great, live longer, have healthier children, be smarter, etc etc. My cult is awesome. We even eat ice cream. If you have a problem with my cult, talk to my power animal. PEACE!
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