Where to start….

Where to start….

Ok, so you have decided that you want to make a change, now what!  First of all, congratulations on deciding to make a change.  I am always encouraged by those who are willing to do something to improve their own lives.  Keep in mind it is a journey.  It will take time, so stay off the scale, do not expect immediate results in your weight loss and be patient.  You are making life long changes.  Always know that quick fixes are short term and are not sustainable for the rest of your life.

For me, I started by making a few small changes, it is very hard to change everything at once, that creates frustration and disappointment.  Who wants to go from eating all the bad stuff to only eating the good stuff all in the first week!  Small changes that are easy to keep will encourage you to make much larger changes as you progress.

I would suggest two initial changes to start.  First, drink water; give up the sodas, juice packs, kool aid, and anything with sugar or other additives.  Do not drink your calories, it will not satisfy you and only makes you crave more food.  If you cannot give it all up at once, then change something.  Drinking water will help to cleanse your body; this will satisfy your thirst and not add empty calories to your waistline!

Next, I would eat lots of fruit, especially for breakfast and mid-day snacks.  Never start your day with a heavy breakfast that will slow you down.  Fruit is best eaten by itself.  If you eat it with other foods, it will not digest properly.  You can mix different fruits together, just do not add cereal, bread, eggs or anything that is not fruit.  This will help your body get off to a good start.

Other changes can include the following options:

Eat smaller meals

Limit deserts & sweets

Reduce or eliminate fried foods

Limit meat consumption

Reduce packaged foods like crackers, sweets, or snacks, just remember you won’t find any health food in a convenience store.

When you eat better you will eat less becasue you are proviing the body with the nutrition it needs.  I never skip meals and I do not go hungry.  If you do, then your body will do everything it can to hold on to the fat becasue it does not knwo when you will eat again.

To help get you going you also need to start moving, while exercise helps with weight loss it will not make up for a bad diet.  Start with running, walking, biking, rollerblading or anything that will help you sweat!  If you are not sweating then you are not raising your heart rate up to a point to work out aerobically.  While lifting weights is ok, it will not help you lose fat as well as aerobic activity will.  You MUST exercise 20-40 minutes at a constant rate.  Be careful not to go out to hard, you never want to be in a state of huffing and puffing.  If you are, then it means you are working out anaerobically and you are not helping yourself.  Anaerobic activity is useful for gaining speed but it is a short-term exercise.  Start with aerobics – just go get your sweat on!

The benefit of small, slow change is you will start to feel the results in about a week and it will actually help you do more.  As you feel better, you will become motivated to do more, trust me on this.  If you go all out and overdo it then you will quit from exhaustion or injury.

Good luck!

Diets…..Are you freaking kidding me?????

Note the first 3 letters of Diet is DIE!

I am so tired of hearing about diets and trendy fads.  These diet programs are not sustainable and the worst ones are the ones that sell you food, or have you count calories or some other gimmick that is pointless.  I am all for programs that have support systems, but most of those are bundled around plans things that do not really work.  We all know that most dieters return to their previous weight or gain more once they quit these programs.

Here is the plan and simple truth: IF you make lifestyle changes and eat the right types of whole natural foods then you will lose weight, PERIOD!!!  Our bodies are very complex in nature but eating should not be.  I am not sure if I ever heard stories about previous generations or eastern cultures that were healthy counting calories or over complicating food options.  The best thing we can do is keep it simple.

Your worst enemy is the food companies that try to sell you healthy packaged foods.  It is very difficult to find packaged foods that are actually healthy, you must eat fruit and vegetables in their natural state (or as close to it as possible) and if you are going to eat meat and dairy then get it as unprocessed as possible.

Most diets make you restrict your calorie intake.  Do you know what your body does when you restrict calories?  It views this calorie shortage as a threat (not having enough food), it hangs on to the fat stores that we have, it reduces your energy levels so it can conserve energy and then your body starts to crave more food!  Is that any sustainable way to live?  How can we expect to live healthy and starve our bodies of nutrition, it does not work and I encourage you to save your money on those programs and go out and buy nutritious healthy food!

I did not lose 60 lbs. by starving; I ate all I wanted until I was full and satisfied.  The trick is to change what you want to eat!  We also need to listen to our bodies.  It will tell you when you are thirsty, it will tell you when you are hungry and when you are full.  We do not listen to our bodies or we feed it non-nutritious food, then it craves more trying to get the right food to sustain us.

What drives me even crazier are the weight loss “programs!”  These programs offer to sell you food so they can restrict the calories for you, however as noted above the same results will occur at a much higher price.  Supplements or foods claiming to replace meals are also a problem.  Just because the label says it has the right nutrition does not mean it is healthy or even good for you.

When you see those celebrities showing off their before and after pictures, keep in mind the companies that hire them also hire them chefs, trainers, etc.  Most of these people go on these programs because they are paid to, just as they are paid for an acting deal.  Have you EVER seen Kristie Allie keep the weight off? J

I am shocked at how desperate we are as a society to lose weight and take cut short cuts.  I am not pointing fingers here; I have tried a few gimmicks myself but I quickly realized that do not work.  Part of the problem is no one makes any money telling you what you should already know.  If you do not know what to eat, then you can quickly learn it and not have to buy anything.  There is no profits to be made when we eat sensible natural foods.  These people must bottle up the magic and sell it to the victims!

If you really, really want to lose weight then you have to change your lifestyle.  Slow steady change will work best as I have described in other blog post.  It took me about 12 months to lose the weight that I had gained over the last 12 years!  The other challenge with this approach is it is a fairly slow process.  Your body has to adjust to the changes.  Once your body starts to heal and it realizes the change is permanent then you cross the threshold and the weight comes off faster.

Good luck in your journey, enjoy eating the right types of foods and enjoy a healthy life!!!!       

Alcohol & Training

The effects of alcohol on training

When I started on my journey, I consumed alcohol on a regular basis.  I would have a few drinks a few nights a week and a little more on the weekends.  When I decided to get serious about my training, (just before marathon training began) I decided to give up the alcohol completely.  I did this back in 1996 when I ran two marathons in the same year and I had great results.  In March of 2012, I went cold turkey as they say and frankly, because of my commitment to my training it was actually very easy.  The hard part was convincing others I was NOT going to have a drink while being with them.  My goal was to give it up while training, I never told myself I would never drink again and I have stayed with that philosophy even now.

I wanted to share this story because there are many implications if you drink alcohol and want to change your health for the better.  There are the obvious one we know about – the alcoholism, sleep deprivation, the expense and the overall control it can have on your life if you let it.  Growing up with parents who were alcoholics taught me firsthand how bad it can be if you let it.  I will not dwell on these issues but rather focus on how I benefited from this change.

First, when I gave up the alcohol, I dropped about 12 lbs. in a month.  This was my fastest weight loss period in my journey to good health!  I did not realize the implications of the drinking until I did more research.  What I learned is alcohol has a seriously negative effect on training.  It does two major things; first, the alcohol prevents your body from oxygenating as efficiently while you are working out, even on the day after having the drinks!  Secondly, if you drink after your workout, your accelerated metabolism goes way down after the first drink, therefore counteracting on the positive benefits for your workout.  Essentially the fat burning machine you fired up is now doused in water and goes out!

The other benefit for me personally is when I drank I made poorer decisions when it came to my eating.  I did not make the best food choices when I drank and I probably ate more than I needed because the drinks hampered my judgment.  I also discovered I could now get up earlier to work out because I felt so much better in the mornings.  I also sleep better and do not snore anymore!

I know there are tons of articles about the positive effects of wine/beer for your health, but I firmly believe my decision has had a more positive impact than having a drink or two could ever have.  As they say, you can make anything look good on paper in a study!

I did not write this to sway you to give up all your alcohol, but instead I just wanted to share with you what I gained by doing it.  I hope that you have gained some tidbits of information that can help your overall progress to good health and active training.

Mile Marker 26.1

This is a copy of my Facebook post in December posted just before my Marathon.

Mile Marker 26.2 (12/07/2012)

Well on Sunday I will have completed my goal of running a full marathon after a 14-year hiatus from the sport I loved so much. During those 14 years I let life happen, I gave up on running, I gave up on proper nutrition, and I let myself become a physically wreck. I focused on the job, the kids and everything else going on around me. I am not sure what changed 18 months ago, but I just got tired of being the way I was. I was on track for an early visit to the grave, or cancer or some other life altering illness. Nothing particular happened, I just wanted something better.

So 18 months ago I began a journey. I started with the little things, some walking/running, making better food choices, etc. As I began to change, I realized I wanted more. I began to learn more about nutrition, revisited my old running habits and so on. I kept things quiet, just making small changes here and there and I began to see a huge difference on the inside, which eventually showed on the outside. I did not even start going to the gym until a year later.

So what did I do over 18 months, well I have logged over 1200 miles of running, changed my diet to vegetarian, quit smoking cigars, gave up the alcohol and now I am working towards a completely plant based diet! By now you may be thinking there is no way I could do all that, well I am here to tell you it does not happened easily and it literally took 18 months to get here. I did not just wake up and change everything at once. There is no diet fad in the world that would support what I have done; it is all about lifestyle changes and doing things that are sustainable over the long run.

If there is one thing I can share with people who also want to change is do something, don’t wait, and don’t live a life that is sickly. You have control, and you can be who you want to be. I have come to realize that too many of us just go around and accept our fate, let life happen to us and fear a future of illness and disease. Well I have realize it does not have to be that way and I hope that in some small way I have inspired a few folks to join the journey at some level.

I want to thank my family and friends for your support, especially my wife Amy, because without her support I would not have been able to make the changes to become an athlete again and make as much progress as I have!

I can’t wait for mile marker 26.2 on Sunday!

P.S.: Post Race Update – I successfully completed the race in 4:43.  I accomplished my goal of beating my first Marathon time from 1995!

My Foods

I am asked what DO YOU eat these days?  While I am still adding new foods to the routine and getting more consistent about plant based foods I thought I would give a high-level overview of where I am today.  Many of you may think, “How can he run a marathon and train everyday eating so little of “these” food?”  Well the answer is very very simple, when you eat the right foods you provide your body the nutrition it needs then you do not have to eat as much to satisfy your hunger.  Believe me I do not go hungry, count calories or any of that, I have learned to listen to my body, feed it when it is hungry, drink when I am thirsty and take note when I am not a 100% and look at my most recent food choices to consider what is not making me feel more energized!

Keep in mind I did NOT make all of these changes overnight.  It has been a journey, as I learn more about food, then I make changes along the way.  I will admit that I do still have a weakness for sweets, whether it is peanut butter M&M’s, sugar in my coffee, the occasional ice cream, or other deserts, it is all about consistency over the long haul!

Water, Water Water!  Nothing will quench your thirst like pure water will.  I do drink coffee in the morning (working on cutting this one out) but I avoid any other drinks throughout the day except water (sometimes with lemon), coconut water or fresh squeezed juice.  No concentrates for me, the juices that are packaged have been cooked and devoid of their natural benefits.  Packaged juices normally contain added sugar/fructose and are very acidic due to the pasteurization process.  I also avoid sports drinks, even while I am training.  I never had a Gatorade or similar drink while training or running my marathon.  As a side note, the whole 8 glasses of water a day theory is a result of our diet.  If we eat foods that are plant based then we can listen to our bodies and drink when we are thirsty.  When we are told to drink this much water no matter what, it is because we eat foods devoid of natural water, i.e. eat more fruits and veggies to stay hydrated! 

Breakfast:  I always eat fruit in the morning – period!  I will have a cup of coffee, especially if I am headed to the gym or going for a run, I find the caffeine helps to get me going.  My fruit choices include apples, bananas, grapes, melons, strawberries and oranges.  Fruit is God’s perfect food, it contains many of the nutrients our body needs, it is very high in water so it helps the body cleanses itself and it takes very little energy to digest it.  Many of the fruits out there are zero calories to our bodies, meaning it takes as many calories to digest the fruit as it contains.  Be aware, fruit should really only be eaten by itself.  Mixing fruit with other foods, especially cooked or packaged foods create a toxic environment in our stomachs.  The fruit, which is readily digestible, becomes acidic and ferments in our gut if it is slowed down by our bodies digesting other foods at the same time.  Just look at how quickly an apple turns brown – now just imagine mixing an apple with scrambled eggs and letting it sit for an hour…….YIKES right?  Fruit should also be avoided as a desert after dinner for the same reasons above.

Lunch: Well this one really depends on my day.  If I am out with customers or eating out then I normally eat cooked veggies, salads and potatoes.  I avoid all meats, including fish.  Look at it this way, if it poops then it is meat and that includes fish!  You may think this is hard to do, but I have yet to find a restaurant (not counting fast food) that does not have grilled/steamed veggies, potatoes and salads.  Your best bet is to eat the greenest salad on the menu, i.e. mixed greens or spinach over iceberg.  Choose vinaigrettes over creamy dressings; have them hold the eggs, cheese, and bacon.  If possible, choose grilled veggies over smothered or creamy ones.  Limit the butter and other toppings on potatoes.  Try salsa on potatoes, it is an excellent topping.

If I am not eating out, then I usually stick with more fruit, nuts, or cliff bar for lunch.  If you need more than this, then add some beans, rice or pasta to help fill you up.

Dinner: this one changes depending on what is going on.  At home, I will eat some of the following choices:  Beans, rice, grilled veggies, potatoes, pasta with marinara, homemade veggie pizza, fresh breads, and salads.

Snacks: My snacks include fruit, cliff bars (or other similar options that are not processed with lots of sugar and flour), nuts, popcorn, dried fruit etc.

What to avoid:  While this could be a long list, I will just say this, if it is packaged then be cautious.  Your focus should be on fresh foods, those given to us by God naturally.  Our government has allowed the food industry in to tricking us – if you doubt me then consider ketchup is now be considered a vegetable and french fries are counted as a potatoes meeting some dietary requirements.  If you can focus on a plant based diets, no meats or animal products, several things will happen.  You will lose weight, feel better, lower your cholesterol and blood pressure and reduce your chances of chronic illness such as heart diseases, cancer, arthritis, diabetes, etc.!!!  

Our medical community is just now making the correlation to diet and many chronic diseases.  Consider for a moment who funds the training, journals and the massive advertisements?  Drug and food companies……and do drug companies make money by telling you to eat better?  Do they benefit from you being healthy?  I am not trying to be paranoid but just think about it and make your own conclusions.

Healthy Resolutions

As we approach the New Year and many of us make resolutions to change something, I thought I would provide some helpful suggestions for those wanting to take better care of their own health!

First, I suggest you start with small changes!  The reason resolutions fail (usually within the first few weeks) is we take on too much change at one time.  People ask me all the time “there is no way I could do what you have done” and I agree with them to a point, you cannot do it all at once!  My journey began with small changes.  As I saw how the changes where helping me live better then I made more changes.

Small changes could be as simple as drinking mostly water and given up the sodas, tea or milk.  You could start with walking 2 miles several days a week and maybe adding some light running into that walk.  How about eating less, force yourself not to finish everything on your plate, especially at restaurants.  DON”T supersize!  Maybe you could make one meal a week without meat, eliminate fried foods, and start taking your lunch to the office.  Any one of these small changes can make a huge difference over time.

Second suggestion – read books about natural health and healing.  I have really enjoyed inspiration stories about people who have overcome huge challenges and changing their lifestyle.  Note I did not say diet books!  Diets do not work, lifestyle changes do.  My other post has suggestions about reading material and websites.  If you are not a reader then try podcast or audio books.  I am a terrible reader so most of the books I have are audiobooks.

Third suggestion is to be patient.  When I started my journey 18 months ago, I could not run a single mile, I was 60lbs overweight and I eat horribly.  It took almost 4 months for others to notice the changes in my appearance; however, I could tell the difference in how I felt within a few weeks.  Remember it may have taken you years or your lifetime to become unhealthy; you will not fix it overnight.  Your persistence will pay off and do not get discouraged.  Even if you break down and blow off all your changes on a binge just go back to them, 1 week of the old habits will not undo months of good ones.

Finally do not use the scale to judge your progress, it will only discourage you.  Listen to your body and use your clothes as a guideline.  Your body is an amazing machine and you know when you eat bad food, get indigestion, and become tired after an unhealthy meal.  Take on your challenge as a way of living, not fixing a problem.  Make your changes permanent and take them slowly.

Fad diets can work because they shock the body, deprive you of calories in the short run, but you are in it for the long haul.  Do not join a program that counts calories or has some point system, your body will tell you when you are hungry and will tell you when it is full IF you will take the time to listen to it.  In addition, any diet that restricts natural foods is a sign that it is unhealthy.  Fruits, vegetables, grains and nuts in their natural state cannot be bad for you because God gave them to us to eat!  When people say stay away from starchy foods or carbohydrates, they are wrong!  What they should be saying is saying is stay away from processed or refined foods.

What I have noticed most about my own change is I eat a whole lot less when I eat the right foods.  I do not ever starve myself and I eat what I want; I just changed what I want to eat for the better.

If you decide to go the gym that is great, but remember that aerobic exercise is the key.  Lifting weights is fine, but you must include 30-45 minutes of sweating, either by running, elliptical or cycling.  Lifting a few weights will not change your overall appearance and does little to make you healthier.

Good luck and I hope to see a better you in 2013!!!!

Disease is not normal!

Disease is not normal!

Unless you live under a rock, you see illness and disease everywhere.  I think it is so prevalent today that our society accepts it as normal; well I will rock the boat and claim it is far from normal.  As a society, we should be very concerned about the rampant rise of chronic illness and disease.

Now I am not a doctor and have no formal medical training, I will just take the approach of common sense and the results I have seen in my own life.  I believe that almost all disease (especially chronic) can be traced back to our diet and lifestyle.  We have become a society of the pill, the cure or a fix in a bottle.  Well the cure in a bottle is a deception, it is not a cure, and it is just a clever assembly of chemicals to mask, hide or trick the body.  Why do you thinking there do are so many side effects, when we change one thing with chemicals we then have other side effects.

Here are some basics – high cholesterol has the largest impact to our heart and arteries.  Bad cholesterol comes from animal products – period!  The less animal products you eat the better your cholesterol will be.  This is meat of any kind (including eggs) and dairy products like milk and cheese.  Many people do not know this – we mask these products as being good for us but it is a lie.  Anything you think you need to get from animal products can be found by eating the right mix of fruits, vegetables and seeds. 

Protein - the big challenge!  You can get all the protein you need from nuts, seeds, green leafy vegetables and so many other things.  Over eating protein is actually a bad thing, it takes the body a tremendous amount of energy and resources to expel all the excess protein many people eat.

Our food is like fuel for our cars.  If your car breaks down from bad gas or putting water it the tank, do we blame the engine (our bodies) or do we look at what we are putting in our cars like the fuel, i.e. our food!

Our bodies are very resilient and can make miraculous improvements if given the right food.  Why not look at only eating the foods God gave us in nature, like fruit, vegetables, nuts & seeds? 

When we accept cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, headaches, or whatever as a part of life or normal then we will not seek the truth.  The truth can be found by looking at non-western cultures, their diets and much lower disease rates.  They live much healthier lives than we do!

We are bombarded with messages of how meat and dairy are required to sustain us and are good for us.  This is a lie – we do not have to consume these products to be healthy.  Look at the source of those messages and their advertising, it comes from the industries that produce these products and give millions of dollars to Washington to help their cause.

If we can make the correlation of smoking to lung cancer then why do we refuse to see that other illness like cancers, heart disease, arthritis etc. comes from our diets!

If you want to see the facts, review the data and become a much healthier you then I encourage you to check it out for yourself.  I have and I am living proof that you can change who you are and how you feel!

Resources:

The China Study - http://www.thechinastudy.com/

Forks over Knives - http://www.forksoverknives.com/

Dr. John McDougall - http://www.drmcdougall.com/

John Robbins - http://www.johnrobbins.info/

Dr. Michael Greger M.D - http://nutritionfacts.org/