Tag Archives: nutrition

Calories, Sex, & 100 year Old People.

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In a recent social media post I made it clear that I believe calorie counting, for many is an unhealthy practice. To be honest, I was surprised by the number of medical professionals that showed their support. There was of course the messages that showed their… not support. This post is to clarify my view point, show how/why I’ve built it, and hopefully offer some needed guidance to those looking for nutrition advice.

Far too often the first nutrition question I get asked is: “How many calories should I eat a day?” Starting in 2012 during consults, when the person I was sitting with would ask about calories I would ask them if they knew what a calorie was. Roughly 1% of the population knows. The subsequent conversation goes like this:

Me: “Do you know what a calories is?”

Person: “Yes”

M: “Ok, what is it?”

P: The “umm”s & “err”s fill the air.

For the record, its the measurement of energy it takes to heat one gram of water one degree Celsius.

But here’s the thing… The healthiest people in the world don’t count calories… Did you hear that? People who see their plates the way Neo sees the matrix just screamed “You mutherfucker!” at me all at once. (Oh well, I always felt like a uniter.) But its true. Now, many may want to point to their favorite Insta Fitspo hashtagger, games athlete, or sponsored influencing calorie counter as a beacon of health but they’re most likely wrong. I’ll give you that they’re fit. As “fit” denotes that they are conditioned to perform well at X task; get likes, perform athletically, and sell you products, respectively. But are they healthy? Maybe (and that’s a big maybe). One of the healthiest in the world? Not likely.

If you’re looking to find the healthiest people in the world, look to the blue zones. These are the sections of our globe where the population lives full, active lives with the highest percentage over the age of 100. Allow me to repeat the key words there: active lives… over 100. These centurions are as active and capable in their 90s and beyond as most Americans are in their 20s. And they were found to be fulfilling lives too. Deep with purpose, real social engagement, and vitality. Compare this to your average American senior. They’re out living everyone on the X and the Y axises. While they all had some things in common, counting calories wasn’t in the mix… at all.

They did, however have a good relationship with food. But what the hell does that even mean? Let’s look at it this way; What does a healthy relationship with sex look like? (Stay with me here) Late nights with no info on the source? As much as possible as fast as possible? Cheap & easy? You’re not agreeing with any of these, right? Its OBVIOUS that these are unhealthy traits, right? OK, how about these; Sex by tally? Stroke count? Score of any type? Those can be great ways to identify a problems, for sure. But using it as a method to guide action quickly becomes a world of “have tos” & “can’t do’s”. It creates scarcity mindset and only highlights failure.

On the flip side, a healthy relationship is knowing where it’s coming from, cultivating its production, adding the spice that brings the flavor you’re looking for and BAM! You have a meal! … Oh… we’re you still thinking about sex? Get your mind (and your food) out of the gutter.

Furthermore, Dr John Berardi of Precision Nutrition studied the success rates of adherence to nutrition changes. Participants were given 1, 2, or 3 changes to make in their eating over 30 days. The group with 1 assigned change had a 55% success rate after 30 days; the group with 2 changes dropped to 15% and the group with 3 was below 1% success rate. Meal plans do. not. work. And any plan built around a measure that the follower doesn’t understand?… If I were a betting man…

Look, you wouldn’t plan a cross country trip by feet traveled. You would drive to check points along the way and enjoy the trip. So do that. And you wouldn’t pack it up and head home if/WHEN you make a wrong turn, right? So don’t do that either. Make a note, take the lesson and get back on your journey.

So here’s the deal; focus on actions and make them good habits. You don’t need to buy all your groceries direct from the farmer, but there’s probably a farmer’s market near you where you can get some much better choices and support your local community. You don’t need to cook every one of your meals, but if you don’t know how to cook, there are services that will deliver ingredients to your door with “Cooking for dummies” level instructions. If you’re already doing some of that, try growing your own food. You don’t need to grow all of it, but starting a garden is not a bad idea. It may sound daunting, but that’s also an activity that can bring a couple/family closer together. How’s that for a healthy a relationship… with food?

Food for thought.

Is the Sauna Useful? If so, When and For How Long Should You Sit?

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Is the Sauna Useful? If so, When and For How Long Should You Sit?

When asked about the advantages of sauna use at the gym, most people reply with something about detoxing and sweating out the bad stuff. While there is truth to this, I used to joke about the sauna being part of the “executive workout package” and would rarely incorporate it into my week unless I was post-holiday, birthday, or vacation and in need of some detox. Until a few years ago that is when I was lucky enough to come across a study showing a benefit to strength gains through sauna use after an intense strength session. (I couldn’t find the link to this study, but it showed sauna use post workout reducing fiber damage allowing strength gains to be maximized and recovery time minimized.) This aligned with my goals so I started to incorporate sauna post workout, especially after a more intense session.

A few months later I had my genetic testing done and started learning about how to maximize beneficial gene expression through nutrition, lifestyle, and supplementation. (I highly recommend getting your genetic testing done as it dramatically reduces the guess work in nutrition and workout programming.) Through these readings I saw many studies finding significant long and short term health marker increases from sauna use beyond what I thought possible.

First, for anyone dealing with one or more risks of cardiovascular disease, a recent study showed dramatic improvements in many important biomarkers indicating reduced risk after just one 30 minute session. (Please don’t be ‘that guy/girl’ and hit the sauna once thinking you’re all fixed… just in case you are I’ll list some upsides to continued use.) If hypertension is a concern for you, then consistent use should be important. A study from The American Journal of Hypertension showed sauna use of 2-3 times/week cutting risk by a quarter and 4-7 time nearly halving it. The point here: on top of eating well and working on your conditioning, spend some time in a hot box.

But there’s more…

When I think of degenerative mental diseases like Alzheimer’s and dementia, I have to admit that it’s one of the scariest things I can imagine. So when I started finding studies correlating sauna use with decreases in both diseases with as little as 2-3 twenty minute sessions/week I was telling all my clients to take part, but it should be noted that those that sat in the sauna for 4-7 times/week saw ~65% lower risk for both. (Even after adjusting for nutrition and activity.)

There have also been findings published that show sauna use maintaining muscle mass and strength during immobilization or injury. This is obviously useful for me right now (those that don’t know, I had my leg pinned between 2 vehicles by an intoxicated driver on 11/20/17), but I had used this strategy during de-load phases as well.

So, what do you do with all this info? First, it’s always a good idea to talk to your doctor about something like this. (If they ask why you’re interested, feel free to send them all the links provided in this article.) Even once you’re cleared to “go hot”, I would advise using the buddy system, and especially the first time you enter a sauna. The common times I see referenced in research results are 15-20 minutes. I’ve been sitting for 20 minutes, 2-5 times a week (on the higher end now, given my situation.) The temperatures used tend to be around 160-170 degrees Fahrenheit and I’ve seen anecdotal reasoning for toweling off every 7-10 minutes so as to not reabsorb the toxins you’ve released back into your pores (makes sense.) If you’re strength training… *ahem* which you should be… *ahem* plan sauna time after your strength sessions to decrease soreness, speed recovery, as well as all the additional upsides coming with it.

Thanks for reading! Please share this info to help make a healthier world.

Will Supplements Help With Depression?

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I got this question today and was quickly hit with the urge to recommend 3 or 4 supplements that can help. But, this isn’t a simple yes or no questions. There are plenty of factors to be considered.

First; Start with your core nutrition. Supplement, by definition means, “In addition to…” Supplements were meant to fill gaps, not replace food. So if you’re not eating quality protein, veggies & healthy fats, then the supplements you take will be less effective than if you were.

Second: Sourcing & manufacturing are important. Do not look to cut costs when it comes to food and supplementation. Do your research and find quality supplements that are built to address your needs. This doesn’t mean that you’ll be spending a fortune or that more expensive products are better, but I can assure you that the cheapest products on the shelf are (for the vast majority) useless. Working with a Coach to find the best path for you & help you stay on it is advisable. Again, do your research to find a quality Coach.

Third: Make exercise & activity a priority. A properly progressed exercise program will do wonders for your mood. This has been proven in countless studies & can be proven by going outside right now and doing 5 rounds of :30 second sprints with :90 seconds or rest.

Lastly: Social interactions with quality people. There’s is an old saying (i don’t know who said it) but it goes, “Before you diagnose yourself as depressed, make sure you’re not surrounded by assholes.” We all will have to deal with one or two at some point, but do your best to purge them from your life. Move, quit your job, hang out in a different place, or just have an awkward conversation like, “Could you please stop doing X, Y, Z…” All this may seem difficult to initiate, but your well being is worth it.

To answer your original question: They can, but there is no magic pill.

If you have any further questions feel free to reach out & please share if you think this could help someone you know.