Twas the days before Xmas and all through the world people frantically are buying enough food to feed armies although only their families will be in attendance. I guess my point for this Blog is to be mindful of excess.
When I was in the Military the cooks (highly qualified chefs) would use a mantra for dishing out food, that I came to understand when I asked them what was the theory behind meal times ? They used to say that their goal was to "feed them not fatten them".
In times of plenty it would seem that now this is a great way to consider the portion laden servings that we get nowadays and this excess consumption contributing to our waist lines.
We waste so little effort consuming excess calories that our waist lines grow by the day. I saw an alarming report this morning. With the problem of childhood obesity being an issue from too many calories from sugar and fat there is now a concern for a growing number of these at risk children growing to have health problems that just scare the heck out of me.
Look at the article I saw today in the news .......
- - - - - - - - - - - - -
IT USED to be a health concern of alcoholics.
Now medical experts are bracing for an explosion in the number of children with the potentially life-threatening fatty liver disease. Doctors say they are seeing children as young as nine with the condition, which develops when there is so much fat in the liver that it can't process it.
With more than 15 per cent of boys and 14 per cent of girls in Australia considered obese, health experts predict the problem will continue to grow.
"Too much fat causes some destruction of the liver cells and leads to swelling inside the liver and a kind of low-grade infection," said Avi Lemberg, a pediatric gastroenterologist at the Sydney Children's Hospital Randwick. "If you become obese during childhood there will be more build-up of fat in the liver over time so it increases the chance of getting fatty liver disease and of developing cirrhosis of the liver later on."
Dr Lemberg sees only a handful of young patients with fatty liver disease but predicts the problem will worsen in the next 10 to 15 years. "There's probably a significant proportion of the population out there with fatty liver disease and they don't know it," he said.
Staff specialist and pediatric hepatologist at the Children's Hospital at Westmead (Australia), Dr Michael Stormon, said he saw "the tip of the iceberg" in terms of the number of children with liver damage caused by non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
In the US, fatty liver disease is predicted to become the leading cause of liver transplants in the next 20 years.
"You could draw the conclusion that as more children become obese in Australia it may become a problem down the track when they reach adulthood," said Dr Stormon. The doctors told parents not to panic if their child was overweight, saying a healthy diet and exercise could reverse the condition in most cases.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
We need to start taking these issues seriously !
Tomorrow on Xmas Day I want you to think of excess calories and YOUR personal Human ECO System. Will it be overloaded or will be respected ?
Sure have some turkey, vegetables, pudding + ice cream - I will be but also don't then go crazy and eat like you won't be fed for the next week. This is the problem we need to address.
TIP - Between the first and second sittings of food intake why not go for a walk and take your relatives with you. Instead of sitting and talking, try walking and talking. You will enjoy the day more and improve your health too.
My blessings and best wishes go to you all (and your families) and I wish you a very merry Xmas Day !
Sunday, December 23, 2007
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Wednesday 19th December - 24 hours on a Spin Bike ... OUCH !
As I mentioned in the last Blog I am going back to New York in 30 days to spend 24 hours (with a few breaks) to take part in a fundraising initiative for HealthCorps.
What is the event ?
24 hours. 100 spin bikes. 1 Guinness World Record for the most distance travelled. Get Ready Set - Go.
Did you ever think that one day you'd be riding a spin bike in Grand Central during rush hour? Or that you and your friends would be helping out a great cause, while trying to set a Guinness World Record at three in the morning? Well, now you can.
New York Sports Clubs and Snapple are proud to sponsor "Saints & Spinners" – a 24hour Spin Party and Benefit to help HealthCorps fight teen obesity.
We're looking for a few (thousand) good men and women.
Riders of all levels are welcome to participate in this once-in-a-lifetime event. Just picture Vanderbilt Hall (the entrance to Grand Central Terminal in the middle of New York City) packed with 100 spin bikes. Every hour a new set of riders, led by a top instructor from New York Sports Clubs, will spin for a fun, 55-minute workout.
Yes, there will be celebrities. Yes, this is a great cause.
So who's riding? Dr. Mehmet Oz, celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito, rap legend Grandmaster Mele Mel, members of the cast of The Apprentice...and that's just for starters.
You'll also ride with top athletes and people from the world of fitness, fashion and finance – everyone's welcome. I am raising the money to donate to the cause – all net proceeds go directly to HealthCorps. You might have seen HealthCorps founder Dr. Mehmet Oz on Oprah recently talking about the importance of fighting teen obesity.
As you can imagine this will be a huge event and a huge personal undertaking from me. From what I am told by the organizers there is a team of riders going for the Guiness Book of Records and some riders are doing 6-7 hours but only the Global Health Warrior is going to attempt to do the entire 24 on his own. What can I say - it is a personal challenge and a cause dear to my heart.
I fly out on the 17th for the event on the 18th. This again is a strategy so that I don't get jet-lag until the event is over. Having now done seven trips between Sydney and New York over the last three years I am pretty familiar with how my body adjusts and hey I am sitting down hahaha.
I am planning on filming segments of the next 30 days until the event and then during it I will get some footage so that you can see how exciting and "painful" the event is. Needless to say there are many hours of training that lay ahead leading up to this but I keep telling myself it is only one day in your life for a cause worth supporting !
So while you are sucking down your egg-nog and munching on Xmas festive treats spare a thought for my "glutes" pinned down to the seat of a Spin bike just cranking out minute by minute.
Stay tuned for updates and if you want to sponsor me let me know !
What is the event ?
24 hours. 100 spin bikes. 1 Guinness World Record for the most distance travelled. Get Ready Set - Go.
Did you ever think that one day you'd be riding a spin bike in Grand Central during rush hour? Or that you and your friends would be helping out a great cause, while trying to set a Guinness World Record at three in the morning? Well, now you can.
New York Sports Clubs and Snapple are proud to sponsor "Saints & Spinners" – a 24hour Spin Party and Benefit to help HealthCorps fight teen obesity.
We're looking for a few (thousand) good men and women.
Riders of all levels are welcome to participate in this once-in-a-lifetime event. Just picture Vanderbilt Hall (the entrance to Grand Central Terminal in the middle of New York City) packed with 100 spin bikes. Every hour a new set of riders, led by a top instructor from New York Sports Clubs, will spin for a fun, 55-minute workout.
Yes, there will be celebrities. Yes, this is a great cause.
So who's riding? Dr. Mehmet Oz, celebrity chef Rocco DiSpirito, rap legend Grandmaster Mele Mel, members of the cast of The Apprentice...and that's just for starters.
You'll also ride with top athletes and people from the world of fitness, fashion and finance – everyone's welcome. I am raising the money to donate to the cause – all net proceeds go directly to HealthCorps. You might have seen HealthCorps founder Dr. Mehmet Oz on Oprah recently talking about the importance of fighting teen obesity.
As you can imagine this will be a huge event and a huge personal undertaking from me. From what I am told by the organizers there is a team of riders going for the Guiness Book of Records and some riders are doing 6-7 hours but only the Global Health Warrior is going to attempt to do the entire 24 on his own. What can I say - it is a personal challenge and a cause dear to my heart.
I fly out on the 17th for the event on the 18th. This again is a strategy so that I don't get jet-lag until the event is over. Having now done seven trips between Sydney and New York over the last three years I am pretty familiar with how my body adjusts and hey I am sitting down hahaha.
I am planning on filming segments of the next 30 days until the event and then during it I will get some footage so that you can see how exciting and "painful" the event is. Needless to say there are many hours of training that lay ahead leading up to this but I keep telling myself it is only one day in your life for a cause worth supporting !
So while you are sucking down your egg-nog and munching on Xmas festive treats spare a thought for my "glutes" pinned down to the seat of a Spin bike just cranking out minute by minute.
Stay tuned for updates and if you want to sponsor me let me know !
Wednesday 19th December - its beginning to look a lot like ...........
To all those that have been emailing and texting me as to why I haven't been writing my Blog I have to say sorry but I have been busy.
You are probably thinking that I am talking about Christmas which is rapidly upon us but no that has not been my main reason. I have been so engrossed in writing my movie script that I am losing days to the development of storylines and it has been a lot of FUN !
It is coming along really well - or that is what I am told from those that have seen early segments. See I told you there was an advantage to "being A.D.D. before it was trendy". It has allowed me to totally explore my creative side again from an aspect of pure entertainment and not one of helping anyone. This has been an incredibly liberating and refreshing time and feedback for the early drafts are very supportive.
So what can I tell you without giving too much away. It is a fun, action, adventure story about what happens when you arrive in a foreign country and how you need to get along with the locals and how they interact with you. Oh yeah and it's set in the Australian outback with lots of different scenarios with lots of interesting characters and ......... thats all I can say for the moment.
Then there is the imminent trip back to the United States in 30 days. Yes I am again travelling across the "pond" to New York City. I have volunteered to take part in a childhood obesity fundraising initiative for Dr Mehmet Oz and HealthCorps.
HealthCorps educates American youth about the workings and wonders of their bodies through in/after school seminars on diet, nutrition, exercise. HealthCorps empowers children to become educated consumers and to make shifts in behavior that can be measured by changes in rates of obesity and physical fitness as well as mental well-being and self esteem.
Dr. Mehmet Oz is the Professor and Vice Chairman of Surgery at Columbia University, Director of the Cardiovascular Institute, and Founder and Director for the Complementary Medicine Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital.
I first met him two years ago when I was in New York promoting my animated health heroes the Body Mechanics (www.bodymechanics.tv) which is aimed at children in the 5 to 9 years age group. HealthCorps works in High Schools so it seemed that our meeting was destiny. He wanted to get involved with Elementary School (Primary) but had no means to do this. He loved what I had created and has always been a supporter of our efforts.
This fundraising initiative is going to take place in Grand Central Station (New York City) with a 24 hour Spin Class with 100 participants but I will post a seperate blog about that.
So obviously I have been busy writing the movie script (FUN) and training my butt off (WORK). One compliments the other as when I need a break from the characters I just head for a workout which is currently 3-4 hours a day with the 24 hour class only 30 days away.
Now to the Xmas cheer. With the shops full of people spending more money than they can afford on people they don't like .......... wow that sounds a little too much like it's bar-humbugish so I will modify it to explain what I am getting at.
The fitness centres are under utilized at this time. Everyone is out partying and drinking "for the festive season" and getting in way too little sleep and then justifying it by saying hey Xmas only comes once a year. Yes it does but you then spend four weeks celebrating this one day.
Again I don't want to put a damper on your fun. However, be smart. Stay focussed on your health goals. Don't eat crappy food and drink lots of alcohol then feel bad because you are doing it.
Let's set some plans.
1. If you know you are going out after work, get in your training session before work or during your lunch break. DONT MISS IT.
2. If you are going to be drinking try to ensure that you don't overload the body with unnecessary calories from eating bad food.
3. There are 7 calories per gram of alcohol, which can add to a lot of additional calories in your system, especially if you are not exercising.
4. If you are having a big night then BEFORE you go out, do some cardiovascular training (20 mins with intensity) then do some circuit based resistance training using light to medium weight (10-20 mins with little rest between exercises) would be great. REMEMBER this is the basis for my AfterBurner workouts.
I am not going to get you to do anymore than this.
Try to think of all that excess calorie consumption as "toxic pollution for your Human ECO System". No one but you puts those calories in your body but YOU !
Be responsible - don't drink and drive. Have a wonderful safe and Merry Xmas. Enjoy your family and even when they drive you crazy remember they are family and that is what Xmas is really about.
Smile and tell them you love them - HEY it's Christmas.
You are probably thinking that I am talking about Christmas which is rapidly upon us but no that has not been my main reason. I have been so engrossed in writing my movie script that I am losing days to the development of storylines and it has been a lot of FUN !
It is coming along really well - or that is what I am told from those that have seen early segments. See I told you there was an advantage to "being A.D.D. before it was trendy". It has allowed me to totally explore my creative side again from an aspect of pure entertainment and not one of helping anyone. This has been an incredibly liberating and refreshing time and feedback for the early drafts are very supportive.
So what can I tell you without giving too much away. It is a fun, action, adventure story about what happens when you arrive in a foreign country and how you need to get along with the locals and how they interact with you. Oh yeah and it's set in the Australian outback with lots of different scenarios with lots of interesting characters and ......... thats all I can say for the moment.
Then there is the imminent trip back to the United States in 30 days. Yes I am again travelling across the "pond" to New York City. I have volunteered to take part in a childhood obesity fundraising initiative for Dr Mehmet Oz and HealthCorps.
HealthCorps educates American youth about the workings and wonders of their bodies through in/after school seminars on diet, nutrition, exercise. HealthCorps empowers children to become educated consumers and to make shifts in behavior that can be measured by changes in rates of obesity and physical fitness as well as mental well-being and self esteem.
Dr. Mehmet Oz is the Professor and Vice Chairman of Surgery at Columbia University, Director of the Cardiovascular Institute, and Founder and Director for the Complementary Medicine Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital.
I first met him two years ago when I was in New York promoting my animated health heroes the Body Mechanics (www.bodymechanics.tv) which is aimed at children in the 5 to 9 years age group. HealthCorps works in High Schools so it seemed that our meeting was destiny. He wanted to get involved with Elementary School (Primary) but had no means to do this. He loved what I had created and has always been a supporter of our efforts.
This fundraising initiative is going to take place in Grand Central Station (New York City) with a 24 hour Spin Class with 100 participants but I will post a seperate blog about that.
So obviously I have been busy writing the movie script (FUN) and training my butt off (WORK). One compliments the other as when I need a break from the characters I just head for a workout which is currently 3-4 hours a day with the 24 hour class only 30 days away.
Now to the Xmas cheer. With the shops full of people spending more money than they can afford on people they don't like .......... wow that sounds a little too much like it's bar-humbugish so I will modify it to explain what I am getting at.
The fitness centres are under utilized at this time. Everyone is out partying and drinking "for the festive season" and getting in way too little sleep and then justifying it by saying hey Xmas only comes once a year. Yes it does but you then spend four weeks celebrating this one day.
Again I don't want to put a damper on your fun. However, be smart. Stay focussed on your health goals. Don't eat crappy food and drink lots of alcohol then feel bad because you are doing it.
Let's set some plans.
1. If you know you are going out after work, get in your training session before work or during your lunch break. DONT MISS IT.
2. If you are going to be drinking try to ensure that you don't overload the body with unnecessary calories from eating bad food.
3. There are 7 calories per gram of alcohol, which can add to a lot of additional calories in your system, especially if you are not exercising.
4. If you are having a big night then BEFORE you go out, do some cardiovascular training (20 mins with intensity) then do some circuit based resistance training using light to medium weight (10-20 mins with little rest between exercises) would be great. REMEMBER this is the basis for my AfterBurner workouts.
I am not going to get you to do anymore than this.
Try to think of all that excess calorie consumption as "toxic pollution for your Human ECO System". No one but you puts those calories in your body but YOU !
Be responsible - don't drink and drive. Have a wonderful safe and Merry Xmas. Enjoy your family and even when they drive you crazy remember they are family and that is what Xmas is really about.
Smile and tell them you love them - HEY it's Christmas.
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Thursday 13th December - the gravity of the crisis
I had to go and visit someone in hospital today. The waiting area is adjacent to a clinic that is dealing with overweight / obese clients. I was astounded at how many people were going in and out of the clinic and the state that some of them were in.
Now for years Australia used to be called the "lucky country".
We had a reputation for being an outdoors style of population that leads an active life. Well that has long since changed. We are in the same boat as the rest of the world when it comes to dealing with the war on obesity.
If you want to see a real war on terror - go and watch the faces of people emerging from some of these "clinics". Many of them looked scared. After I got home I called up a former personal training client who is a Medical G.P. (General Practioner) after this visit and asked him what sort of ratio of health complaints his practice saw on a daily basis for conditions that were in fact lifestyle related.
He told me that it was well over 50% and that the number continued to grow each year. I then asked him if he was still exercising since he had become a father. He replied that he hadn't really done much. I asked him why and he said that when he took my call he knew I would ask him this question. He replied that LIFE was getting in the way but my call had served as a "wake up call".
I was shocked and scared if that is the kind of world we are living in now - how is it going to be in 5 or 10 years.
We are living longer not living stronger.
We are living longer not living healthier.
For those people that are suffering from health conditions that preclude them losing weight easily and I am talking about certain medications that cause your body to hold onto water (not fat) or you have a limiting condition for movement then you are less likely to be impacted by this.
For the rest of the population that has no reason other than they are too tired, too lazy or too busy YOU need a reality check AND A WAKE UP CALL !!
How about this ?
Instead of worrying about yourself (as it seems like you don't), then let's start to think of the implications of the loss YOUR death will have on your children. Trust me it will have an effect. YOU are responsible for their future happiness as well as your own.
Do you want to see them reach their teens ?
Do you want to see then grow up ?
Do you want to see them get married ?
Do you want to see their children ?
These are all the questions that you have to ask yourself when you are sitting there reading this Blog. It is a choice to be more active or eat better and the choice is yours !
Do something today. Take the kids for a walk. Take your partner for a walk. Take a friend for a walk. Just do something that will burn some calories and improve your health, your attitude and your life.
"the phone is ringing !!!"
Now for years Australia used to be called the "lucky country".
We had a reputation for being an outdoors style of population that leads an active life. Well that has long since changed. We are in the same boat as the rest of the world when it comes to dealing with the war on obesity.
If you want to see a real war on terror - go and watch the faces of people emerging from some of these "clinics". Many of them looked scared. After I got home I called up a former personal training client who is a Medical G.P. (General Practioner) after this visit and asked him what sort of ratio of health complaints his practice saw on a daily basis for conditions that were in fact lifestyle related.
He told me that it was well over 50% and that the number continued to grow each year. I then asked him if he was still exercising since he had become a father. He replied that he hadn't really done much. I asked him why and he said that when he took my call he knew I would ask him this question. He replied that LIFE was getting in the way but my call had served as a "wake up call".
I was shocked and scared if that is the kind of world we are living in now - how is it going to be in 5 or 10 years.
We are living longer not living stronger.
We are living longer not living healthier.
For those people that are suffering from health conditions that preclude them losing weight easily and I am talking about certain medications that cause your body to hold onto water (not fat) or you have a limiting condition for movement then you are less likely to be impacted by this.
For the rest of the population that has no reason other than they are too tired, too lazy or too busy YOU need a reality check AND A WAKE UP CALL !!
How about this ?
Instead of worrying about yourself (as it seems like you don't), then let's start to think of the implications of the loss YOUR death will have on your children. Trust me it will have an effect. YOU are responsible for their future happiness as well as your own.
Do you want to see them reach their teens ?
Do you want to see then grow up ?
Do you want to see them get married ?
Do you want to see their children ?
These are all the questions that you have to ask yourself when you are sitting there reading this Blog. It is a choice to be more active or eat better and the choice is yours !
Do something today. Take the kids for a walk. Take your partner for a walk. Take a friend for a walk. Just do something that will burn some calories and improve your health, your attitude and your life.
"the phone is ringing !!!"
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Tuesday 11th December - Berry Good News from the Wholefood Farmacy
You all know that I am a fanatic about the dangers of Free Radicals now and how we need to find as many ways as possible to combat this by increasing Anti-oxidant consumption. In fact I changed my whole book content and eating plan around that very concept to combat preventable disease.
Today I received this information below from my friends at the Wholefood Farmacy.
They not only have the best tasting snacks in the United States but they are also "very Berry conscious".
It is this consistency to increase knowledge and by creating awesome products (that taste out of this world) which is the reason that I would rate them so highly. Their Phi Plus and Fruitalicious products are outstanding. Oh and don't forget to give their Cornucopia product a try. I take this one when I am going to watch a movie as it is not only far more nutritious than the "fat filled bought product", it tastes better too.
These products contribute to my sanity breaks and they never fail to supply me with quality nutrition that is simply the best. Whenever I know that I am coming to the United States, I go online and order product to have it waiting for me at my hotel. It's that good !!!
Now I get news that not only are they producing great product but they are also looking to increase childrens education which as you know I strongly support. Another great initiative from a great company. Do yourself a favor and go online and check them out. I promise that this is not a sales pitch, it is a FLAVOR pitch !
They are even doing a "Cake of Dreams" until December 31st - someone has to try this and let me know how good it is. Just looking at the ingredients has my taste buds watering.
From their program 90 days of Wellness.
Anti-oxidants are natural substances found in plants, which are known to aid in the prevention of heart disease, cancer and stroke. Berries have an especially high level of antioxidants, according to a recent study published in the journal BioFactors (Vol. 23, pages 197-205).
The pigments that give berries their rich red to blue, black and purple colors are a type of phytochemical that has been shown to have significant disease-fighting, cell-protecting antioxidant capacity. In addition to boosting your immune system, these valuable compounds are also known to slow the effects of aging by improving things like memory, balance, coordination and motor skills.
The Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC Value) of foods is a measurement of the Antioxidant levels. The higher the ORAC Value, the more Antioxidants a food has. It's believed that foods high in these powerful nutrients give the body its greatest protection.
Berries are some of the most delicious and powerful disease-fighting foods available. Blueberries are among fruits and vegetables with the highest Antioxidant levels with an ORAC Value of 5486. Right behind blueberries are blackberries with an ORAC Value of 4654; strawberries at 3520 and raspberries, 2789. Berry ORAC levels top that of many other fruits and vegetables such as oranges, grapefruit, cherries, plums, brussell sprouts, broccoli and spinach.
Single servings of fresh or freshly cooked fruits and vegetables supply an average of 600-800 ORAC units. Scientists believe that increasing intake of foods that provide 2000-5000 units per day may be needed to increase serum and tissue antioxidant activity sufficiently to improve health outcomes. This is why it's important to eat 5 to 9 servings daily of fruits and vegetables.
The Wholefood Farmacy makes it easy and convenient to get your 5 to 9 servings each day and to enjoy the very best that nature has to offer. You can find many different types of berries in your favorite Wholefood Farmacy foods including Phi Plus, Cranberry Phi, Coco Cherry Phi, Fruitalicious & Fruitalicious Plus.
Visit The Wholefood Farmacy Here: http://www.wholefoodfarmacy.com
Today I received this information below from my friends at the Wholefood Farmacy.
They not only have the best tasting snacks in the United States but they are also "very Berry conscious".
It is this consistency to increase knowledge and by creating awesome products (that taste out of this world) which is the reason that I would rate them so highly. Their Phi Plus and Fruitalicious products are outstanding. Oh and don't forget to give their Cornucopia product a try. I take this one when I am going to watch a movie as it is not only far more nutritious than the "fat filled bought product", it tastes better too.
These products contribute to my sanity breaks and they never fail to supply me with quality nutrition that is simply the best. Whenever I know that I am coming to the United States, I go online and order product to have it waiting for me at my hotel. It's that good !!!
Now I get news that not only are they producing great product but they are also looking to increase childrens education which as you know I strongly support. Another great initiative from a great company. Do yourself a favor and go online and check them out. I promise that this is not a sales pitch, it is a FLAVOR pitch !
They are even doing a "Cake of Dreams" until December 31st - someone has to try this and let me know how good it is. Just looking at the ingredients has my taste buds watering.
From their program 90 days of Wellness.
Anti-oxidants are natural substances found in plants, which are known to aid in the prevention of heart disease, cancer and stroke. Berries have an especially high level of antioxidants, according to a recent study published in the journal BioFactors (Vol. 23, pages 197-205).
The pigments that give berries their rich red to blue, black and purple colors are a type of phytochemical that has been shown to have significant disease-fighting, cell-protecting antioxidant capacity. In addition to boosting your immune system, these valuable compounds are also known to slow the effects of aging by improving things like memory, balance, coordination and motor skills.
The Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC Value) of foods is a measurement of the Antioxidant levels. The higher the ORAC Value, the more Antioxidants a food has. It's believed that foods high in these powerful nutrients give the body its greatest protection.
Berries are some of the most delicious and powerful disease-fighting foods available. Blueberries are among fruits and vegetables with the highest Antioxidant levels with an ORAC Value of 5486. Right behind blueberries are blackberries with an ORAC Value of 4654; strawberries at 3520 and raspberries, 2789. Berry ORAC levels top that of many other fruits and vegetables such as oranges, grapefruit, cherries, plums, brussell sprouts, broccoli and spinach.
Single servings of fresh or freshly cooked fruits and vegetables supply an average of 600-800 ORAC units. Scientists believe that increasing intake of foods that provide 2000-5000 units per day may be needed to increase serum and tissue antioxidant activity sufficiently to improve health outcomes. This is why it's important to eat 5 to 9 servings daily of fruits and vegetables.
The Wholefood Farmacy makes it easy and convenient to get your 5 to 9 servings each day and to enjoy the very best that nature has to offer. You can find many different types of berries in your favorite Wholefood Farmacy foods including Phi Plus, Cranberry Phi, Coco Cherry Phi, Fruitalicious & Fruitalicious Plus.
Visit The Wholefood Farmacy Here: http://www.wholefoodfarmacy.com
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Saturday 8th December - Head over Heels ........
I was doing a Spin class today and many thoughts were racing around my head. You see I often go to workout to provide "clarity to my thoughts", strange huh but it sems to work like a distraction for any one thought which often helps to give me options and solutions.
So now to the title of this blog.
Head over heels doesn't refer to being in love. It also doesn't refer to anyone who wears heels either but it refers to how we "think" about ourselves.
Today I realized one thing and that is that I am definitely just like everyone else. I was having an average day. Just couldn't seem to get the jigsaw puzzle pieces of my LIFE to match up. I wasn't upset, distressed or depressed, it was just one of those days when the creative work that I had intended to do just wasn't happening.
So I did what I always do when I need clarity.
I hit the gym to blow off the cobwebs inside my head (note the clever tie in for the ECO environment .....)
I was assessing how my internal Human E.C.O. System is affected by my thought process. We have already (in a previous Blog) covered how there is a real issue of "thought pollution" and that can be detrimental to our Human E.C.O. environment just as any "form of pollution" is to our planet and it's environment. Yet we continue to "clog" up our lives with thoughts that can directly impact what is happening in our bodies.
So I wanted to get you "out of your heads" and start to get you "into your bodies". Not easy as there will be a lot of resistance. For us to overcome this resistance you have to want and be conscious of how to do this.
There are studies and research by people much smarter than I am, that believe we are able to assist our bodies to get healthier if we get that mind / body connection or "head over heels". There are many people that talk about the "connection" but I still don't think we get it.
Too often you will judge yourself (affecting self esteem) by the way you look. Yet you only assess your body because that is what you are looking at.
What about if you took in the whole package ?
What about if you then made a positive decision to change what you DON'T like ?
You are now using positive thoughts (your head) to impact your body (the heel part) to impact the physical outcome by "moving forward".
You are no longer inactive.
You are no longer procrastinating.
You are now using these positive thoughts for motivation.
This is the true meaning of being "head over heels". You see you are already letting what I call the "mind over matter" principle go into effect. You see what happens above your shoulders affects below your shoulders. Whether good or bad.
Remember the Human E.C.O. System is a wonderful thing. But like the planet unless you start to care about it - it will definitely affect YOUR future.
So now to the title of this blog.
Head over heels doesn't refer to being in love. It also doesn't refer to anyone who wears heels either but it refers to how we "think" about ourselves.
Today I realized one thing and that is that I am definitely just like everyone else. I was having an average day. Just couldn't seem to get the jigsaw puzzle pieces of my LIFE to match up. I wasn't upset, distressed or depressed, it was just one of those days when the creative work that I had intended to do just wasn't happening.
So I did what I always do when I need clarity.
I hit the gym to blow off the cobwebs inside my head (note the clever tie in for the ECO environment .....)
I was assessing how my internal Human E.C.O. System is affected by my thought process. We have already (in a previous Blog) covered how there is a real issue of "thought pollution" and that can be detrimental to our Human E.C.O. environment just as any "form of pollution" is to our planet and it's environment. Yet we continue to "clog" up our lives with thoughts that can directly impact what is happening in our bodies.
So I wanted to get you "out of your heads" and start to get you "into your bodies". Not easy as there will be a lot of resistance. For us to overcome this resistance you have to want and be conscious of how to do this.
There are studies and research by people much smarter than I am, that believe we are able to assist our bodies to get healthier if we get that mind / body connection or "head over heels". There are many people that talk about the "connection" but I still don't think we get it.
Too often you will judge yourself (affecting self esteem) by the way you look. Yet you only assess your body because that is what you are looking at.
What about if you took in the whole package ?
What about if you then made a positive decision to change what you DON'T like ?
You are now using positive thoughts (your head) to impact your body (the heel part) to impact the physical outcome by "moving forward".
You are no longer inactive.
You are no longer procrastinating.
You are now using these positive thoughts for motivation.
This is the true meaning of being "head over heels". You see you are already letting what I call the "mind over matter" principle go into effect. You see what happens above your shoulders affects below your shoulders. Whether good or bad.
Remember the Human E.C.O. System is a wonderful thing. But like the planet unless you start to care about it - it will definitely affect YOUR future.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Friday 7th December - Thoughts from Chuan Tzu
I have been reading a book titled The Warrior of the Light (from the author of the Alchemist) and it is really page after page of his thoughts and beliefs in about three to four paragraphs per page. It is quite interesting and a very easy read.
One page got my attention.
It is a set of rules by "the warrior Chuan Tzu" from three thousand years ago. I have made comments underneath in brackets
Faith - before going into battle, you must believe in the reasons for the fight
(Now that is a great piece of advice. How many times have you heard people say I don't even know why we are fighting)
Companions - choose your allies and learn to fight in their company, for no one ever won a fight single handed
(Haven't things drastically changed in that regard. Who hasn't heard that we need to learn how to fight our own battles. However in today's modern life, we all too often try to deal with issues in our lives that would be better discussed or shared)
Time - a battle in winter is different from a battle in summer; a good warrior is careful to select the right moment to begin a fight
(A smarter warrior tries to avoid fights. If you are "fighting" in Summer make sure you wear sunscreen)
Space - one does not fight in the same way in a mountain pass as one would on a plain. Think about your surroundings and how best to move around in them.
(I'm a strong advocate of not fighting in planes ... oh it's a different plain :-)
Strategy - the best warrior is the one who plans his fight.
(With any battle a plan is essential. We are fighting a war on obesity so let's use strategic plans with a conscious thought for positive outcomes to win)
Now of course these original "scripts" were written three thousand years ago but even then there was always thought given to action.
If we can learn to apply "thoughts" to our actions and then invoke some personal responsibility I believe that we can get fitter, lose body fat and improve the quality of our lives.
One page got my attention.
It is a set of rules by "the warrior Chuan Tzu" from three thousand years ago. I have made comments underneath in brackets
Faith - before going into battle, you must believe in the reasons for the fight
(Now that is a great piece of advice. How many times have you heard people say I don't even know why we are fighting)
Companions - choose your allies and learn to fight in their company, for no one ever won a fight single handed
(Haven't things drastically changed in that regard. Who hasn't heard that we need to learn how to fight our own battles. However in today's modern life, we all too often try to deal with issues in our lives that would be better discussed or shared)
Time - a battle in winter is different from a battle in summer; a good warrior is careful to select the right moment to begin a fight
(A smarter warrior tries to avoid fights. If you are "fighting" in Summer make sure you wear sunscreen)
Space - one does not fight in the same way in a mountain pass as one would on a plain. Think about your surroundings and how best to move around in them.
(I'm a strong advocate of not fighting in planes ... oh it's a different plain :-)
Strategy - the best warrior is the one who plans his fight.
(With any battle a plan is essential. We are fighting a war on obesity so let's use strategic plans with a conscious thought for positive outcomes to win)
Now of course these original "scripts" were written three thousand years ago but even then there was always thought given to action.
If we can learn to apply "thoughts" to our actions and then invoke some personal responsibility I believe that we can get fitter, lose body fat and improve the quality of our lives.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Wednesday 5th December - We Failed Again !!!
I wanted the title of this Blog to be dramatic.
Sure I might be writing a light hearted family comedy currently but I am rooted in reality each time I think of our lives and how bad the obesity problem is.
Let me explain.
Today a lady was asking me about fitness and said "do you really think you can make a difference to the obesity issues ?"
"Of course" I replied with total conviction
"I don't doubt your passion but I doubt your ability to make it happen" she smiled
"What do you mean ?" I asked as my mind spun into justification mode seeking a witty response and failing
"There are millions of people who know they are fat, know it is a health risk, but don't do anything about it, often until it is too late, so what can you do about it?" she replied
I thought for a moment and understood her question now. In fact I totally had to agree with her comments. I personally can't make anyone get healthy. I personally am not there with any friend or client 24/7 which makes my quest and their goal hard to achieve if they don't follow my "recipe".
You see losing fat, getting fit, staying healthy are all PERSONAL.
There is only one person that can make sure that happen and this is YOU.
This conversation really had me thinking.
If she was right, and I was starting to consider her position - possible, that means that the fitness industry is built on a shaky platform that gets shakier with every year. Now before you trainers / instructors / gym owners all bomboard me with emails, read on and digest. Remember to chew before swallowing !
I have no doubt that there is no greater industry that is so totally committed and passionate about "doing the right thing" more so then the fitness industry. I have no doubt that everyone that joins the industry does so with the best intention of helping others change their lives.
However I think that it is our belief system that will fail us.
WE are not able to "make a promise to get someone healthy".
Contrary to popular belief - you don't get paid to workout but you actually get paid to help others achieve their goal by facilitating their workout. Sorry for the reality check - but read on.
YOU can be the greatest trainer in the world. It doesnt mean you can help everyone. There are TV shows, there are Video's and DVD's, there are fitness centers, there are personal trainers, yoga and pilates instructors, in fact there is an expert for every single form of getting fit and healthy possible. YET, we still can't deal with the every growing number of people getting unhealthy !
WHY is this ?
What is health ?
Who determines when you arrive at a "healthy status" ?
How can we stay at this great place and not have to leave ?
You see until we can convince other's to achieve this personal belief (and that is what we really have to do), not "sell", not "trick with great marketing offers" but create a personal belief in each person that we want to help, that this "getting healthy really is a good thing", and will work, then we are just playing a number's game.
This game is designed to ensure that there are "members" joining fitness centres so that they don't have to close their businesses as they are unable to pay their bills and the wages (of the passionate believers).
Wow could this lady's question have started a revolution ?
I hope so !
You see life is really about the checks and balances that are needed to keep us real so that our dreams can actually become reality. You see there is a difference between dreams and reality.
I'm sure that when as a young boy I told my mother that I wanted to be an astronaut to which she smiled and said "yes dear" knowing that her son probably in likelihood wouldn't actually become one (a dream).
However she never laughed out loud and said "YOU have got to be kidding. YOU will never be an astronaut and will probably end up digging ditches (no offence to the ditch diggers of the world - dig on guys) because that may have been too much for a young child's dreams (reality).
In fact I'm not an astronaut. From that dream I went on to want to become the following all with the loving support of my mother - a Superhero, a Jockey, a Policeman, a P.E. Teacher, again a SuperHero, and then finally I joined the Military (Navy) where I got infected with the "fitness and health bug".
Don't despair about being a dreamer but think how you can make your dream become a reality. You see the world is full of people who will want to crush your dream.
It is a sad but true part of human nature to knock down emotionally rather than build up and support one another's dreams. I am not sure why but it is so common that they have a name for it - "tall poppy syndrome" by which they imply that so you don't get too big for your boots (try working that one out physiologically ....) we are going to keep you grounded in reality.
You hear it all the time. Joe Average comes up with an idea that he thinks is great. He tells someone who says "that will never work" which puts doubt in Joe's mind that he may not be able to do it - so he doesn't.
However I am sure that there ARE some people who will push through this barrier to reach the next level and it is this belief that we should nurture. Not the actual dream but the willingness to foster belief and hope in someone else's ability to achieve a goal. Now how can we put that into our "health goals".
Just imagine if the Wright Brothers (they started us flying for those playing the game at home), had stopped inventing when their first plane didn't get off the ground and everyone said "I told you so" or any other of the great inventors of the past who failed at their first, second or even third attempt.
You see fitness is like that. It is like a dream or goal or quest that we need to keep nurturing in others who have been faced with the doubts of success in the past.
It begins as an intangible when you start the journey. You are not able to quantify what you want or how long it will take to get there when asked, but YOU know that it must be better than where you currently are - and it will be !
Fitness professionals MUST begin to not only support and help those that come to us but also we must start to instill in them that "self belief" in their individual ability to complete and succeed on this quest.
There will be some losses along the way but hopefully we can make the losses more about fat loss then numbers of people.
I have been part of this fitness industry for nearly 25 years and still get excited by the question "can you help me?"
Hey what can I say I am a DREAMER !!!
Sure I might be writing a light hearted family comedy currently but I am rooted in reality each time I think of our lives and how bad the obesity problem is.
Let me explain.
Today a lady was asking me about fitness and said "do you really think you can make a difference to the obesity issues ?"
"Of course" I replied with total conviction
"I don't doubt your passion but I doubt your ability to make it happen" she smiled
"What do you mean ?" I asked as my mind spun into justification mode seeking a witty response and failing
"There are millions of people who know they are fat, know it is a health risk, but don't do anything about it, often until it is too late, so what can you do about it?" she replied
I thought for a moment and understood her question now. In fact I totally had to agree with her comments. I personally can't make anyone get healthy. I personally am not there with any friend or client 24/7 which makes my quest and their goal hard to achieve if they don't follow my "recipe".
You see losing fat, getting fit, staying healthy are all PERSONAL.
There is only one person that can make sure that happen and this is YOU.
This conversation really had me thinking.
If she was right, and I was starting to consider her position - possible, that means that the fitness industry is built on a shaky platform that gets shakier with every year. Now before you trainers / instructors / gym owners all bomboard me with emails, read on and digest. Remember to chew before swallowing !
I have no doubt that there is no greater industry that is so totally committed and passionate about "doing the right thing" more so then the fitness industry. I have no doubt that everyone that joins the industry does so with the best intention of helping others change their lives.
However I think that it is our belief system that will fail us.
WE are not able to "make a promise to get someone healthy".
Contrary to popular belief - you don't get paid to workout but you actually get paid to help others achieve their goal by facilitating their workout. Sorry for the reality check - but read on.
YOU can be the greatest trainer in the world. It doesnt mean you can help everyone. There are TV shows, there are Video's and DVD's, there are fitness centers, there are personal trainers, yoga and pilates instructors, in fact there is an expert for every single form of getting fit and healthy possible. YET, we still can't deal with the every growing number of people getting unhealthy !
WHY is this ?
What is health ?
Who determines when you arrive at a "healthy status" ?
How can we stay at this great place and not have to leave ?
You see until we can convince other's to achieve this personal belief (and that is what we really have to do), not "sell", not "trick with great marketing offers" but create a personal belief in each person that we want to help, that this "getting healthy really is a good thing", and will work, then we are just playing a number's game.
This game is designed to ensure that there are "members" joining fitness centres so that they don't have to close their businesses as they are unable to pay their bills and the wages (of the passionate believers).
Wow could this lady's question have started a revolution ?
I hope so !
You see life is really about the checks and balances that are needed to keep us real so that our dreams can actually become reality. You see there is a difference between dreams and reality.
I'm sure that when as a young boy I told my mother that I wanted to be an astronaut to which she smiled and said "yes dear" knowing that her son probably in likelihood wouldn't actually become one (a dream).
However she never laughed out loud and said "YOU have got to be kidding. YOU will never be an astronaut and will probably end up digging ditches (no offence to the ditch diggers of the world - dig on guys) because that may have been too much for a young child's dreams (reality).
In fact I'm not an astronaut. From that dream I went on to want to become the following all with the loving support of my mother - a Superhero, a Jockey, a Policeman, a P.E. Teacher, again a SuperHero, and then finally I joined the Military (Navy) where I got infected with the "fitness and health bug".
Don't despair about being a dreamer but think how you can make your dream become a reality. You see the world is full of people who will want to crush your dream.
It is a sad but true part of human nature to knock down emotionally rather than build up and support one another's dreams. I am not sure why but it is so common that they have a name for it - "tall poppy syndrome" by which they imply that so you don't get too big for your boots (try working that one out physiologically ....) we are going to keep you grounded in reality.
You hear it all the time. Joe Average comes up with an idea that he thinks is great. He tells someone who says "that will never work" which puts doubt in Joe's mind that he may not be able to do it - so he doesn't.
However I am sure that there ARE some people who will push through this barrier to reach the next level and it is this belief that we should nurture. Not the actual dream but the willingness to foster belief and hope in someone else's ability to achieve a goal. Now how can we put that into our "health goals".
Just imagine if the Wright Brothers (they started us flying for those playing the game at home), had stopped inventing when their first plane didn't get off the ground and everyone said "I told you so" or any other of the great inventors of the past who failed at their first, second or even third attempt.
You see fitness is like that. It is like a dream or goal or quest that we need to keep nurturing in others who have been faced with the doubts of success in the past.
It begins as an intangible when you start the journey. You are not able to quantify what you want or how long it will take to get there when asked, but YOU know that it must be better than where you currently are - and it will be !
Fitness professionals MUST begin to not only support and help those that come to us but also we must start to instill in them that "self belief" in their individual ability to complete and succeed on this quest.
There will be some losses along the way but hopefully we can make the losses more about fat loss then numbers of people.
I have been part of this fitness industry for nearly 25 years and still get excited by the question "can you help me?"
Hey what can I say I am a DREAMER !!!
Monday, December 3, 2007
Monday 3rd December - Control Freak or Control Freq
Has anyone ever described you as a "control freak" and by that they mean that YOU have to be in charge of the situation. It can be seen as a personal attack if you are sensitive to the opinions of others.
It has happened to me. At the time while most of us would seek to defend or justify our position, I hope this Blog serves to provide a different perspective and comes from a place of non-judgement but one more of acceptance.
Clarity comes to me at different times for different things but writing this Blog each day has served as a form of "therapy" and I hope that I am honest enough to be truthful in all aspects of what I write.
This "therapy" has served to give me glimpses of not only the person that I am, but also I hope, the person I want to be. Whether this is observed by others is not as important to me as constantly trying to live up to the goals that I set.
For example - The Global Health Warrior credo is :
Strength of Mind
Compassion of Heart
Integrity of Soul
For those of you joining us late in the game allow me to describe my personality;
I have a strong competitive drive and that fuelled with both passion and experience wrapped up in an undiagnosed ADD state (I tell people proudly), makes for a pretty confident person. However, I always am cautious to try to temper that with humility.
In the past I have been labelled a "control freak" but as I gain more insight into myself, I have found that this is NOT QUITE correct. When I have created a project or have been tasked with completing a project, I do try to fulfill that task to the best of my ability to achieve a positive outcome.
At other times I am willing to "let go" of this responsibility and surrender it to others so they can also be involved. This "surrender" doesn't mean give up, but instead if means that at that particular time someone is more suited or qualified to fill the "drivers seat" position than I am.
This clarity came to me as I was spending much time in "downward dog" when the instructor would tell us all to relax and breathe. This takes some real focus for me to do but it is getting easier with practice. As I started to "surrender" to my breathe I realized that the "control" was being removed. It was then that I realized that I am more a "control freq".
When it is required, I just dial in on my frequency and then assume control again "and get behind the wheel". This ability to recognize the difference gave me a sense of ease as I then shifted back into the "passenger seat" and went along for the ride.
I think that at times in our lives we are all in "control of the drivers seat" but it is our ability to let others take a turn that will make us better "passengers" and also take some of the stress that a lot of people feel.
YOUR goal is to find your frequency and now how to turn down the dial to let others be either in control or involved in your relationships at home and at work.
Hope this helps to give you some perspective so that next time someone calls you a "control freak" you can smile knowing that your dial might need some adjustment and their comment will offend less.
It has happened to me. At the time while most of us would seek to defend or justify our position, I hope this Blog serves to provide a different perspective and comes from a place of non-judgement but one more of acceptance.
Clarity comes to me at different times for different things but writing this Blog each day has served as a form of "therapy" and I hope that I am honest enough to be truthful in all aspects of what I write.
This "therapy" has served to give me glimpses of not only the person that I am, but also I hope, the person I want to be. Whether this is observed by others is not as important to me as constantly trying to live up to the goals that I set.
For example - The Global Health Warrior credo is :
Strength of Mind
Compassion of Heart
Integrity of Soul
For those of you joining us late in the game allow me to describe my personality;
I have a strong competitive drive and that fuelled with both passion and experience wrapped up in an undiagnosed ADD state (I tell people proudly), makes for a pretty confident person. However, I always am cautious to try to temper that with humility.
In the past I have been labelled a "control freak" but as I gain more insight into myself, I have found that this is NOT QUITE correct. When I have created a project or have been tasked with completing a project, I do try to fulfill that task to the best of my ability to achieve a positive outcome.
At other times I am willing to "let go" of this responsibility and surrender it to others so they can also be involved. This "surrender" doesn't mean give up, but instead if means that at that particular time someone is more suited or qualified to fill the "drivers seat" position than I am.
This clarity came to me as I was spending much time in "downward dog" when the instructor would tell us all to relax and breathe. This takes some real focus for me to do but it is getting easier with practice. As I started to "surrender" to my breathe I realized that the "control" was being removed. It was then that I realized that I am more a "control freq".
When it is required, I just dial in on my frequency and then assume control again "and get behind the wheel". This ability to recognize the difference gave me a sense of ease as I then shifted back into the "passenger seat" and went along for the ride.
I think that at times in our lives we are all in "control of the drivers seat" but it is our ability to let others take a turn that will make us better "passengers" and also take some of the stress that a lot of people feel.
YOUR goal is to find your frequency and now how to turn down the dial to let others be either in control or involved in your relationships at home and at work.
Hope this helps to give you some perspective so that next time someone calls you a "control freak" you can smile knowing that your dial might need some adjustment and their comment will offend less.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
Sunday 2nd December - Life in Flight - the Journey
I write this Blog in absolute delight at seeing a close personal friend achieve what has been the culmination of a full year's hard work and an awesome milestone in his life.
Andrew is the proud author of "Life In Flight" (www.lifeinflight.com.au) which is based on a narrative of his life through over 18 years as a flight attendant right through to his Management position or as he describes it :
See what 18 years service, 10 million kilometres, 30,000 colleagues, 5 million passengers and 15,000 hours on a plane can teach you about life.
Along the way he shares with us many LIFE lessons and is able to through each of the anecdotes and stories relate a way that YOU can take action in your own life. I just spent the weekend reading it and was of course impressed with the content and user friendly information but more impressed with the man.
He has a full time career, is the husband and partner to his gorgeous wife and father of two children AND still he made time to write this book. There were many times we would sit over coffee and he would try to explain a situation that he had been involved with but until you see it in context you don't truly appreciate the labour of love this book is and was for him.
While many (I along with them) doubted that it would be easy to relate the significance of the journey he took he has done it - and done it well.
I stand corrected about any misgivings that I had for his ability to relate LIFE in a plane to LIFE on the planet - guess I was just missing the poin"T".
If you are a Manager, have a Manager, want to be a Manager or know a Manager then I would recommend you buy this book and read it.
Great work mate !
Andrew is the proud author of "Life In Flight" (www.lifeinflight.com.au) which is based on a narrative of his life through over 18 years as a flight attendant right through to his Management position or as he describes it :
See what 18 years service, 10 million kilometres, 30,000 colleagues, 5 million passengers and 15,000 hours on a plane can teach you about life.
Along the way he shares with us many LIFE lessons and is able to through each of the anecdotes and stories relate a way that YOU can take action in your own life. I just spent the weekend reading it and was of course impressed with the content and user friendly information but more impressed with the man.
He has a full time career, is the husband and partner to his gorgeous wife and father of two children AND still he made time to write this book. There were many times we would sit over coffee and he would try to explain a situation that he had been involved with but until you see it in context you don't truly appreciate the labour of love this book is and was for him.
While many (I along with them) doubted that it would be easy to relate the significance of the journey he took he has done it - and done it well.
I stand corrected about any misgivings that I had for his ability to relate LIFE in a plane to LIFE on the planet - guess I was just missing the poin"T".
If you are a Manager, have a Manager, want to be a Manager or know a Manager then I would recommend you buy this book and read it.
Great work mate !
Saturday, December 1, 2007
Saturday 1st December - SUMMER Fat Loss + Activity Strategies
I received a great question this morning via email about exercise and fat loss and how best to achieve it. So with the first day of Summer downunder upon us, I thought that I would answer that question right here so it will benefit everyone.
Q: Do you always make sure that your energy expenditure is greater than your energy intake? Is this the only way to lose weight & get lean?
A: Great question(s). I am going to "translate" the knowledge into user friendly form (I hope) because I want to give you everything you need to know to help you lose bodyfat forever.
Why am I doing this ?
My goal is simple. I don't want or need to sell you anything. In fact I want to give it away so YOU can use it for FREE. Why - because we are facing a crisis like no other when it comes to health.
I am going to continue to do my part to change that.
You have to do your part by getting involved in YOUR own life.
FAT LOSS KNOWLEDGE AND STRATEGIES FOR WORKING OUT - 1 0N 1 (ME to YOU)
This knowledge is designed to teach you about your Human E.C.O. System and the best way I have found and learned to access stored bodyfat for use as energy.
Maximum Fat Loss Objective - ensure the levels of available energy from sugar (glucose / glycogen) in your blood stream and also your stored glycogen levels in your liver are low when there is a required demand from you being active.
What is Glycogen ?
It is the stored form of glucose (sugar) in your body
Where is it stored ?
In your muscles with a reserve held in your liver.
Most of the Diets that are Low / No Carbohydrate often fail when they tell you to stop eating one nutrient (carbs) and load up on another (fat).
Think logic - does loading up one nutrient seem to make sense ? Answer = NO.
Strategy Tip = Eat the required amounts of good fat daily (about 30-40g) but don't abuse this (eating treats) just so you fill your body up with an energy overload of calories that will lead to another failure.
So if the original premise has a basis for doing good and helping us lose bodyfat can we improve the application of how to make that last for life ?
Answer = YES. Our goal is to get you to lower your intake of "non-essential processed carbohydrates" and focus on getting your body ECO-friendly.
Working with the expert nutrition team that I use, we came up with the RAINBOW NUTRIENT REFUELLING PLAN that is filled with nutrient dense foods that mainly are loaded up with anti-oxidant profiles and essential phyto-nutrients. The basic method of application to apply is to ensure that you have three (3) colours on your plate - see where the catchy title came from.
So now back to the lesson.
How do we take advantage of being active to help this.
Activity can be an added bonus for increasing fat loss to happen and thus get the advantage of improving your health too.
Throw in a cardiovascular use and it is HIGH on the positive side for health benefits.
When you are active, there is a rise in your body's energy demands (calorie use) by lowering your stored energy (muscle use) and to keep this happening there is a requirement to "burn" or use calories = POSITIVE BENEFIT.
The most common error for fat loss that I see is that people starve themselves thinking that this will lead to fat loss. It won't. In fact it only leads to the body being given the signal that you are doing this so it tells YOU that you are hungry or tired = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
Your brain is very clever.
It will limit any use of stored fat (as it has the highest energy value at 9 calories per gram in comparison to carbohydrate or protein at 4 calories per gram).
The brain deems that your body is going into "starvation mode" and so in an effort to conserve this resource to protect itself and the important organs that may need energy later during the starvation period it stops the use of any release of stored bodyfat = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
As a result, when you recognize the signal for being tired / hungry, you will probably eat something which will then likely "blunt any activity benefit" or alternatively you decide to rest and go to sleep which lowers your caloric demand and metabolism = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
It's not all bad news. Now you know what NOT to do. What can you do to help ?
Instead of encountering these problems ABOVE and to attain maximum effect and increase the benefit of an "Afterburner" response - use this hydration mantra that I use with children - "Go Go Go with H20" (drink water !!!)
Try to limit soft drinks / sodas or these types of sugar laden drinks, plus also limit excessive fruit intake before AND during periods of activity to assist your fat loss goal = POSITIVE BENEFIT
NOTE - this is not relevant if you are doing an activity that is OVER 2 hours in duration when there will be a larger demand to prolong activity.
Okay, so what do you need to do to help get the most out of this activity benefit (calorie burning). Eating within certain time windows before and after activity can assist the benefit of calorie burning from exercise - for example :
BEFORE
- dont eat for about 2 hours before exercise but if you must limit the intake of excessive carbohydrates. One option is to have a boiled egg before exercising in the morning, eat a piece of lean ham with it and its quite tasty.
- caffeine is one of the only things that can assist with stored fat for use as energy. If your "available blood sugar levels" are low, which they will be if you havent eaten for 1.5-2 hours there is more chance this will happen.
NOTE - there are some stipulations for doing this. You need to have only one within the hour before. You CANT have any sugar in this drink and try to use skim milk and only a small amount.
AFTER
- eat within an hour after exercise and this is the time that you want BOTH protein and carbohyrates. A protein based energy drink with fruit after working out is perfect.
- Our goal at this time is to have a response with "insulin - the storage hormone" being active to take advantage of the available nutrients of both energy loaded carbohydrates and building focussed amino acids.
I can see you are already learning - Good Job !
My plan is to help you and yes it may seem a lot to digest but here is another tip to help you -
Chew (or read slowly)
Swallow (and Understand)
Bon Appetite !
Q: Do you always make sure that your energy expenditure is greater than your energy intake? Is this the only way to lose weight & get lean?
A: Great question(s). I am going to "translate" the knowledge into user friendly form (I hope) because I want to give you everything you need to know to help you lose bodyfat forever.
Why am I doing this ?
My goal is simple. I don't want or need to sell you anything. In fact I want to give it away so YOU can use it for FREE. Why - because we are facing a crisis like no other when it comes to health.
I am going to continue to do my part to change that.
You have to do your part by getting involved in YOUR own life.
FAT LOSS KNOWLEDGE AND STRATEGIES FOR WORKING OUT - 1 0N 1 (ME to YOU)
This knowledge is designed to teach you about your Human E.C.O. System and the best way I have found and learned to access stored bodyfat for use as energy.
Maximum Fat Loss Objective - ensure the levels of available energy from sugar (glucose / glycogen) in your blood stream and also your stored glycogen levels in your liver are low when there is a required demand from you being active.
What is Glycogen ?
It is the stored form of glucose (sugar) in your body
Where is it stored ?
In your muscles with a reserve held in your liver.
Most of the Diets that are Low / No Carbohydrate often fail when they tell you to stop eating one nutrient (carbs) and load up on another (fat).
Think logic - does loading up one nutrient seem to make sense ? Answer = NO.
Strategy Tip = Eat the required amounts of good fat daily (about 30-40g) but don't abuse this (eating treats) just so you fill your body up with an energy overload of calories that will lead to another failure.
So if the original premise has a basis for doing good and helping us lose bodyfat can we improve the application of how to make that last for life ?
Answer = YES. Our goal is to get you to lower your intake of "non-essential processed carbohydrates" and focus on getting your body ECO-friendly.
Working with the expert nutrition team that I use, we came up with the RAINBOW NUTRIENT REFUELLING PLAN that is filled with nutrient dense foods that mainly are loaded up with anti-oxidant profiles and essential phyto-nutrients. The basic method of application to apply is to ensure that you have three (3) colours on your plate - see where the catchy title came from.
So now back to the lesson.
How do we take advantage of being active to help this.
Activity can be an added bonus for increasing fat loss to happen and thus get the advantage of improving your health too.
Throw in a cardiovascular use and it is HIGH on the positive side for health benefits.
When you are active, there is a rise in your body's energy demands (calorie use) by lowering your stored energy (muscle use) and to keep this happening there is a requirement to "burn" or use calories = POSITIVE BENEFIT.
The most common error for fat loss that I see is that people starve themselves thinking that this will lead to fat loss. It won't. In fact it only leads to the body being given the signal that you are doing this so it tells YOU that you are hungry or tired = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
Your brain is very clever.
It will limit any use of stored fat (as it has the highest energy value at 9 calories per gram in comparison to carbohydrate or protein at 4 calories per gram).
The brain deems that your body is going into "starvation mode" and so in an effort to conserve this resource to protect itself and the important organs that may need energy later during the starvation period it stops the use of any release of stored bodyfat = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
As a result, when you recognize the signal for being tired / hungry, you will probably eat something which will then likely "blunt any activity benefit" or alternatively you decide to rest and go to sleep which lowers your caloric demand and metabolism = NEGATIVE BENEFIT.
It's not all bad news. Now you know what NOT to do. What can you do to help ?
Instead of encountering these problems ABOVE and to attain maximum effect and increase the benefit of an "Afterburner" response - use this hydration mantra that I use with children - "Go Go Go with H20" (drink water !!!)
Try to limit soft drinks / sodas or these types of sugar laden drinks, plus also limit excessive fruit intake before AND during periods of activity to assist your fat loss goal = POSITIVE BENEFIT
NOTE - this is not relevant if you are doing an activity that is OVER 2 hours in duration when there will be a larger demand to prolong activity.
Okay, so what do you need to do to help get the most out of this activity benefit (calorie burning). Eating within certain time windows before and after activity can assist the benefit of calorie burning from exercise - for example :
BEFORE
- dont eat for about 2 hours before exercise but if you must limit the intake of excessive carbohydrates. One option is to have a boiled egg before exercising in the morning, eat a piece of lean ham with it and its quite tasty.
- caffeine is one of the only things that can assist with stored fat for use as energy. If your "available blood sugar levels" are low, which they will be if you havent eaten for 1.5-2 hours there is more chance this will happen.
NOTE - there are some stipulations for doing this. You need to have only one within the hour before. You CANT have any sugar in this drink and try to use skim milk and only a small amount.
AFTER
- eat within an hour after exercise and this is the time that you want BOTH protein and carbohyrates. A protein based energy drink with fruit after working out is perfect.
- Our goal at this time is to have a response with "insulin - the storage hormone" being active to take advantage of the available nutrients of both energy loaded carbohydrates and building focussed amino acids.
I can see you are already learning - Good Job !
My plan is to help you and yes it may seem a lot to digest but here is another tip to help you -
Chew (or read slowly)
Swallow (and Understand)
Bon Appetite !
Friday, November 30, 2007
Friday 30th November - Your Body and it's Coat of Arms
Hi there All,
Apologies for not being regular this week but it has been one of those weeks when things not only didn't go as planned, but there also just seemed to be too few hours in the day to get things done.
So most of my time has been spent writing an animated movie storyline this week and while it has been fun there is a downside. You can't program your time as well because it isn't like you can just "turn on or turn off the creative juice" once it begans to flow. You have to go with it and take advantage which isn't able to be scheduled. HINT for the homeplayers (keep a pad and pen handy at all times).
There were times this week when I found myself sitting there looking out over the Harbour (Sydney) from my apartment with no clue what to write when out of no where some random thought would proceed me on a tangent for the storyline and some hours later I would look up and realize that it was dark and I had been so engrossed in doing this that I had forgotten to breathe. By that I mean be present.
One evening I eventually stopped typing at 2.30am when my eyes had had enough of looking at the words and my fingers were protesting over their over-use. Although my body was tired, it wasn't the same for my mind as it continued to "play" with the storyline. Ah the joy of creativity !
This was a very inspiring week for the me with the story as a chance meeting with an icon of the Australia TV landscape led to us sitting down to have a coffee. He had been on TV when I was growing up and it was surreal to be there sitting with him and listening to such positive energy.
He spoke and I listened. It is possible you know.
He allowed me to gain awesome insight into elements of the Australian history that I want to weave into the storyline and had probably forgotten from school (if they even taught it - which is possible as I did tend to spend a lot of time surfing - not the web but waves - instead of learning).
There was one point when we discussing the Australian "Coat of Arms" which is a crest (symbol) that is used on most Australian government legal documents. That wasn't the fascinating point but it was the way that he spoke of it and how it will play in my animated storyline that was fantastic. You will enjoy it. We brainstormed and it was great to hear someone else getting passionately involved in the creative process with me whom I respect. It was also a priviledge for the opportunity. Thank you Mr Bonner.
Later it also got me to thinking (again) of the Human E.C.O. System and how we treat our bodies so poorly. How we need to regain our "relationship" of not only understanding the body but also the implications and ways that this can happen. This I see as an immensely important part of what I hope will be a significant changing process with behaviour.
Let us imagine that for the purpose of understanding that our "Coat of Arms" is actually our skin. We wear it daily and treat it with reverance by doing wonderful things to it and buying gorgeous things to add to it. It is of course the thing that we see most when we look in the mirror and pass judgement so it is always on our mind.
We seek answers for questions that decide our daily esteem.
Am I too fat = ?
Am I too skinny = ?
Am I too blotchy = ?
Am I too old = ?
Does my hair look okay = ?
Do these shoes go with this dress = ?
For all of these answers we look to "hide" with some form of coverage or some form of disguise. We add clothes, we take clothes off, we add make up, we remove make up off, we use moisturer and sunscreen, we get haircuts, we get hair colour, we do all the things that will either hide or show our selves (skin) based upon the way we feel from looking at it.
Now imagine that we are going to change your focus and peel away your "Coat of Arms" or Skin to reveal and see what is below.
Did you just squirm ?
Do you think that you would be embarrassed at what YOU find ?
If you do you are probably not alone.
What it means though is that you are NOT looking after your Human E.C.O. System and taking care of your INNER self. We need to remember that if we peel away our skin it will show us a lot of faults. It will reveal exactly what we do to care for ourselves.
The inner self reflects the outer self.
This is why I work so hard to create that relationship of understanding and responsibility with this project.
Now I need to refuel, rehydrate and relax = the 3 R's of the Human E.C.O. System !
I just want you to think what YOU would find if we took away your "disguise" ?
Apologies for not being regular this week but it has been one of those weeks when things not only didn't go as planned, but there also just seemed to be too few hours in the day to get things done.
So most of my time has been spent writing an animated movie storyline this week and while it has been fun there is a downside. You can't program your time as well because it isn't like you can just "turn on or turn off the creative juice" once it begans to flow. You have to go with it and take advantage which isn't able to be scheduled. HINT for the homeplayers (keep a pad and pen handy at all times).
There were times this week when I found myself sitting there looking out over the Harbour (Sydney) from my apartment with no clue what to write when out of no where some random thought would proceed me on a tangent for the storyline and some hours later I would look up and realize that it was dark and I had been so engrossed in doing this that I had forgotten to breathe. By that I mean be present.
One evening I eventually stopped typing at 2.30am when my eyes had had enough of looking at the words and my fingers were protesting over their over-use. Although my body was tired, it wasn't the same for my mind as it continued to "play" with the storyline. Ah the joy of creativity !
This was a very inspiring week for the me with the story as a chance meeting with an icon of the Australia TV landscape led to us sitting down to have a coffee. He had been on TV when I was growing up and it was surreal to be there sitting with him and listening to such positive energy.
He spoke and I listened. It is possible you know.
He allowed me to gain awesome insight into elements of the Australian history that I want to weave into the storyline and had probably forgotten from school (if they even taught it - which is possible as I did tend to spend a lot of time surfing - not the web but waves - instead of learning).
There was one point when we discussing the Australian "Coat of Arms" which is a crest (symbol) that is used on most Australian government legal documents. That wasn't the fascinating point but it was the way that he spoke of it and how it will play in my animated storyline that was fantastic. You will enjoy it. We brainstormed and it was great to hear someone else getting passionately involved in the creative process with me whom I respect. It was also a priviledge for the opportunity. Thank you Mr Bonner.
Later it also got me to thinking (again) of the Human E.C.O. System and how we treat our bodies so poorly. How we need to regain our "relationship" of not only understanding the body but also the implications and ways that this can happen. This I see as an immensely important part of what I hope will be a significant changing process with behaviour.
Let us imagine that for the purpose of understanding that our "Coat of Arms" is actually our skin. We wear it daily and treat it with reverance by doing wonderful things to it and buying gorgeous things to add to it. It is of course the thing that we see most when we look in the mirror and pass judgement so it is always on our mind.
We seek answers for questions that decide our daily esteem.
Am I too fat = ?
Am I too skinny = ?
Am I too blotchy = ?
Am I too old = ?
Does my hair look okay = ?
Do these shoes go with this dress = ?
For all of these answers we look to "hide" with some form of coverage or some form of disguise. We add clothes, we take clothes off, we add make up, we remove make up off, we use moisturer and sunscreen, we get haircuts, we get hair colour, we do all the things that will either hide or show our selves (skin) based upon the way we feel from looking at it.
Now imagine that we are going to change your focus and peel away your "Coat of Arms" or Skin to reveal and see what is below.
Did you just squirm ?
Do you think that you would be embarrassed at what YOU find ?
If you do you are probably not alone.
What it means though is that you are NOT looking after your Human E.C.O. System and taking care of your INNER self. We need to remember that if we peel away our skin it will show us a lot of faults. It will reveal exactly what we do to care for ourselves.
The inner self reflects the outer self.
This is why I work so hard to create that relationship of understanding and responsibility with this project.
Now I need to refuel, rehydrate and relax = the 3 R's of the Human E.C.O. System !
I just want you to think what YOU would find if we took away your "disguise" ?
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Tuesday 27th November - Fat Loss Plateau
Sorry for the few days away but I have been dealing with a personal family issue that is probably part of the reason for wanting to create both this blog and the work that I do. I will cover this in a few days when I have had the chance to better put into words what has happened.
The topic for today is the inevitable fat loss plateau we will experience when the elation of the short term goals have been achieved. I was reminded of how this can impact your mental attitude when I was talking with a friend who had decided to get not only her body into shape but also encouraged another friend of hers along for the journey. This is a great idea - buddy training is awesome.
It is a "journey" because life doesn't stop in 56 days. I use this example as I wanted to get across the impact that programs can have on your perception of "lighting the fire on fat loss" but further how to "maintain the rage on fat loss". This is the harder yet far more satisfying aspect of getting healthy.
She mentioned her friend (nearing the completion of the 56 day program that I created) had gone through an amazing transformation and while elated with his success at changing his past, he wanted to further his goals. This is all to common with human beings who go through a transformation.
They either -:
a) move the end goal posts further away as they the original finish line or
b) they forget how much success they have achieved by denying the start point in their plan.
The second one is easy to cope with IF you have taken pictures and good measurements when starting your journey - this is why we trainers ask you to do it. If you have not it is more challenging as you never want to admit to yourself that you had let yourself go THAT much and believe that with your inner dialogue along the lines of "I wasn't that bad before, was I ?".
Now what is the correct answer to that ?
It is a no win situation. I mostly took the honesty answer and said "Yes, you were" but there were times that I just wanted to help this person over an emotional hurdle and move forward so I answered "No".
The first point about moving the "end goal posts" happens as you start to see changes and want more. This is your ego talking to your "greedy gene" who tells you that you can do one or all of the following - workout a bit harder, do more sessions, limit your intake of food, not hang out with friends, and all this so that the reflection you see in the mirror is better.
How would I suggest we deal with this issue ?
I think that first off we have to accept where we have come from, where we are, where we want to go and have moments in the journey where we congratulate and reward ourselves on the efforts to date.
Now I am not going to tell you that I ever stop trying to improve. It is not in my nature to either lie or ask you to do something I wouldn't try myself. However I will temper this with the fact that I have been working on improvements every year. I have a personal goal of improving some facet of my life by 10% each year, whether it be physical, financial or emotional.
I can not always improve physically (view in mirror) by 10% but I can definitely improve internally (health status) by 10% EVERY year. LIFE is about the quality of effort you put in balanced with the quality of LIFE you desire.
You have to put the work in to get a better result.
So how do we cope with the "voice in our head" telling us that we are not good enough, or we need to try harder, or we can go just that little bit further.
All of these options MUST be balanced with reality.
When it comes to fat loss your body has what is known as a "set point". I am going to make this simple so that we all understand how our body works. When you reach a certain level of fat loss your "set point" kicks in and starts to limit the use of stored fat (use of fat for energy).
It will start to send signals to your body that you are tired so that you limit your levels of activity. It will ramp up your hunger signals so that you eat. It will do all of this in response to your current activity regime because it wants to limit how lean you get. It is perfectly normal. You will have to work through all of this as well as the emotional rollercoaster ride of "creating a NEW YOU".
This is part of your Human E.C.O. System resetting your thermostat to a new level and this will allow you to access another level of stored energy.
Hope that helps. Keep on working out, eating well and saving your Human ECO System !
The topic for today is the inevitable fat loss plateau we will experience when the elation of the short term goals have been achieved. I was reminded of how this can impact your mental attitude when I was talking with a friend who had decided to get not only her body into shape but also encouraged another friend of hers along for the journey. This is a great idea - buddy training is awesome.
It is a "journey" because life doesn't stop in 56 days. I use this example as I wanted to get across the impact that programs can have on your perception of "lighting the fire on fat loss" but further how to "maintain the rage on fat loss". This is the harder yet far more satisfying aspect of getting healthy.
She mentioned her friend (nearing the completion of the 56 day program that I created) had gone through an amazing transformation and while elated with his success at changing his past, he wanted to further his goals. This is all to common with human beings who go through a transformation.
They either -:
a) move the end goal posts further away as they the original finish line or
b) they forget how much success they have achieved by denying the start point in their plan.
The second one is easy to cope with IF you have taken pictures and good measurements when starting your journey - this is why we trainers ask you to do it. If you have not it is more challenging as you never want to admit to yourself that you had let yourself go THAT much and believe that with your inner dialogue along the lines of "I wasn't that bad before, was I ?".
Now what is the correct answer to that ?
It is a no win situation. I mostly took the honesty answer and said "Yes, you were" but there were times that I just wanted to help this person over an emotional hurdle and move forward so I answered "No".
The first point about moving the "end goal posts" happens as you start to see changes and want more. This is your ego talking to your "greedy gene" who tells you that you can do one or all of the following - workout a bit harder, do more sessions, limit your intake of food, not hang out with friends, and all this so that the reflection you see in the mirror is better.
How would I suggest we deal with this issue ?
I think that first off we have to accept where we have come from, where we are, where we want to go and have moments in the journey where we congratulate and reward ourselves on the efforts to date.
Now I am not going to tell you that I ever stop trying to improve. It is not in my nature to either lie or ask you to do something I wouldn't try myself. However I will temper this with the fact that I have been working on improvements every year. I have a personal goal of improving some facet of my life by 10% each year, whether it be physical, financial or emotional.
I can not always improve physically (view in mirror) by 10% but I can definitely improve internally (health status) by 10% EVERY year. LIFE is about the quality of effort you put in balanced with the quality of LIFE you desire.
You have to put the work in to get a better result.
So how do we cope with the "voice in our head" telling us that we are not good enough, or we need to try harder, or we can go just that little bit further.
All of these options MUST be balanced with reality.
When it comes to fat loss your body has what is known as a "set point". I am going to make this simple so that we all understand how our body works. When you reach a certain level of fat loss your "set point" kicks in and starts to limit the use of stored fat (use of fat for energy).
It will start to send signals to your body that you are tired so that you limit your levels of activity. It will ramp up your hunger signals so that you eat. It will do all of this in response to your current activity regime because it wants to limit how lean you get. It is perfectly normal. You will have to work through all of this as well as the emotional rollercoaster ride of "creating a NEW YOU".
This is part of your Human E.C.O. System resetting your thermostat to a new level and this will allow you to access another level of stored energy.
Hope that helps. Keep on working out, eating well and saving your Human ECO System !
Saturday, November 24, 2007
Saturday 24th November - 7 Day ECO-Cleansing Week E-Book
I had originally planned not to release this week seperately from the remaining seven (7) weeks that make up the 56 days of the program.
Then I was talking with a colleague who was asking me what I thought about detox programs and in particular the lemon drink version. When we spoke he said that he wanted to see and complete my version as it seemed not only healthier but it also made sense. Wow, a plan that makes sense.
Now I am from a background where although I don't profess to be an expert of nutrition I have a pretty good understanding of the body and it's nutritional requirements. To support this I work with highly schooled health professionals (nutritionists and dieticians) so it will come as no surprize that I really dislike this lemon drink option.
The "real experts" hate it and totally dismiss it as anything other than a "quick fix option" with no real long term results. They all agree that there should be a better way (so we created one) and if you are tempted to try any of these "programs" you should read on.
Think of your Human E.C.O. System.
Your body needs certain nutrients every day.
Your body functions from these nutrients being available from the daily intake of foods and some of these are not available unless you consume them every day.
If you do one of these extreme alternatives you are going to totally "upset" your natural inner balance by only providing lemon water and not too mention your natural functioning will be unable to meet your body's energy demands. Now how can that be good for you ?
People in the magazines say that they feel amazing after doing this "detox".
Let's be understand why they feel so "clean and clear".
They feel amazing because what they have done is to remove all the activities that cause their unhealthy state that required this severe action.
- They abstain from alcohol.
- They abstain from eating too many calories.
- They limit the intake of foods that are not designed to give them energy.
Wow it is an ephiphany.
By doing the right thing they feel amazing. Imagine if they didn't need to take such extreme measures. And don't be fooled this is an extreme measure. You are stopping your body getting what it needs to be function and be healthy !
Imagine if your attitude by doing this to your body was the same regard that you give to your other "possessions" like your car or your pet or your children.
You wouldn't willingly do something unhealthy for them, so then why would you do it yourself ?
We lack a clear and concise relationship with "our bodies". We judge it when we look in the mirror and this can be the basis for our esteem. We fail to note all the other aspects of our life that are given high value when we stand naked in front of the mirror and from these few moments can be the way our attitude (compass direction) is set for the day.
So why have I designed a sensible version for restoring your eco-system back to a healthier state. For all the people who look for a safe option and for all the reasons I have mentioned that I hate the other options.
How much will it cost you to get my version ....... NADA - NIL - ITS TOTALLY FREE.
I am setting this up as a FREE downloadable E-Book so that you can benefit from what "real experts" know is the better option for you.
With the "silly season" upon us it is now that we need to be most mindful of the "life choices" we make.
Do you want to get eco-friendly with your body ?
If so then now is the perfect time.
Get real and get healthy.
Then I was talking with a colleague who was asking me what I thought about detox programs and in particular the lemon drink version. When we spoke he said that he wanted to see and complete my version as it seemed not only healthier but it also made sense. Wow, a plan that makes sense.
Now I am from a background where although I don't profess to be an expert of nutrition I have a pretty good understanding of the body and it's nutritional requirements. To support this I work with highly schooled health professionals (nutritionists and dieticians) so it will come as no surprize that I really dislike this lemon drink option.
The "real experts" hate it and totally dismiss it as anything other than a "quick fix option" with no real long term results. They all agree that there should be a better way (so we created one) and if you are tempted to try any of these "programs" you should read on.
Think of your Human E.C.O. System.
Your body needs certain nutrients every day.
Your body functions from these nutrients being available from the daily intake of foods and some of these are not available unless you consume them every day.
If you do one of these extreme alternatives you are going to totally "upset" your natural inner balance by only providing lemon water and not too mention your natural functioning will be unable to meet your body's energy demands. Now how can that be good for you ?
People in the magazines say that they feel amazing after doing this "detox".
Let's be understand why they feel so "clean and clear".
They feel amazing because what they have done is to remove all the activities that cause their unhealthy state that required this severe action.
- They abstain from alcohol.
- They abstain from eating too many calories.
- They limit the intake of foods that are not designed to give them energy.
Wow it is an ephiphany.
By doing the right thing they feel amazing. Imagine if they didn't need to take such extreme measures. And don't be fooled this is an extreme measure. You are stopping your body getting what it needs to be function and be healthy !
Imagine if your attitude by doing this to your body was the same regard that you give to your other "possessions" like your car or your pet or your children.
You wouldn't willingly do something unhealthy for them, so then why would you do it yourself ?
We lack a clear and concise relationship with "our bodies". We judge it when we look in the mirror and this can be the basis for our esteem. We fail to note all the other aspects of our life that are given high value when we stand naked in front of the mirror and from these few moments can be the way our attitude (compass direction) is set for the day.
So why have I designed a sensible version for restoring your eco-system back to a healthier state. For all the people who look for a safe option and for all the reasons I have mentioned that I hate the other options.
How much will it cost you to get my version ....... NADA - NIL - ITS TOTALLY FREE.
I am setting this up as a FREE downloadable E-Book so that you can benefit from what "real experts" know is the better option for you.
With the "silly season" upon us it is now that we need to be most mindful of the "life choices" we make.
Do you want to get eco-friendly with your body ?
If so then now is the perfect time.
Get real and get healthy.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Friday 23rd November - Thought Pollution
Today I was talking to a friend about how our thoughts can be like pollution which again really fit in nicely with the Human E.C.O. System theories.
We were discussing how following on from yesterdays Blog she wanted to know if I ever have self doubt about my choices or actions.
I smiled and admitted that of course I have self doubt from time to time and my errors in life and business are testimony of that.
However I don't dwell on a choice once it is made. If it wrong I try to learn from it so that I don't repeat the error again but this will occassionally happen. That is LIFE and you have to experience this to be a whole person.
As most of my close friends know - I am not only unconventional in my methods I am not highly schooled. I left school early to join the Military but have always challenged the "normal thought process" because being both curious and non-traditional I like to understand why things must remain the way they are.
This has led to some confrontations with "experts" who tell me just to accept this and move on. Sadly for them that is the worst thing to tell an individual who revels in his undiagnosed ADD world.
People like myself are very pragmatic and "want to get it" so that it makes sense in our heads and often this will involve questioning what others tell us. It is not meant to be annoying (sure occassionally it will be) but rather it is meant to seek mental solace for ourselves.
The human body and in particular the human brain is an incredibly exciting thing. As you are reading this I want you to realize that there are synapses firing off left and right making sense of the words and then compartmentally breaking them down into understanding. It is an inner world full of as much fascination as the most incredible computer.
Now when that brain (computer) gets either overloaded (needs more RAM), or tired, or gets a virus, or gets old, or any other condition that affects it's ability to function at it's optimal you are going to know it.
Then add in the emotional content. Now you don't get this with your best computer BUT we have it inbuilt and hardwired into ours. This element can work for us or against us. BUT we are in control of it. It does not control us. They are OUR thoughts and this power needs to be exercised. It can be like an animal on a leash and if we control it well much like a well trained animal it's behaviours can be enhanced, even moreso with training.
Now most of our throughts during the day are rubbish.
I did a search on the internet and "they" say that we have anywhere from 6,000 to 60,000 thoughts each day. That is quite a disparity but it shows that some of us have way too many and this pollution causes problems.
There is a non-traditional belief that this level of having many thoughts causes the "monkey mind" meaning that the mind is out of control. That this thought pollution is responsible for a lack of clarity in LIFE.
If you are constantly thinking you are not present. You are not actually being "in the moment". Now I don't want this Blog to get too "airy-fairy" (not sure but don't think that is a medical term) but I am aware that when you sit still and try not to think you seem to slow everything down.
We have all heard that life is moving faster and faster in modern society. What about if you try to focus on controlling it and slowing it down for just this moment. Read this and then just sit there with your eyes closed and breathe in and out for 5 long breathes.
You will notice these few things :
Your breathing will slow down.
Your muscles will relax as your breathing slows down.
Sounds that you overlook everyday with your eyes open.
It is time to clear your mind, get present and get rid of some of the pollution in your Human ECO System !
We were discussing how following on from yesterdays Blog she wanted to know if I ever have self doubt about my choices or actions.
I smiled and admitted that of course I have self doubt from time to time and my errors in life and business are testimony of that.
However I don't dwell on a choice once it is made. If it wrong I try to learn from it so that I don't repeat the error again but this will occassionally happen. That is LIFE and you have to experience this to be a whole person.
As most of my close friends know - I am not only unconventional in my methods I am not highly schooled. I left school early to join the Military but have always challenged the "normal thought process" because being both curious and non-traditional I like to understand why things must remain the way they are.
This has led to some confrontations with "experts" who tell me just to accept this and move on. Sadly for them that is the worst thing to tell an individual who revels in his undiagnosed ADD world.
People like myself are very pragmatic and "want to get it" so that it makes sense in our heads and often this will involve questioning what others tell us. It is not meant to be annoying (sure occassionally it will be) but rather it is meant to seek mental solace for ourselves.
The human body and in particular the human brain is an incredibly exciting thing. As you are reading this I want you to realize that there are synapses firing off left and right making sense of the words and then compartmentally breaking them down into understanding. It is an inner world full of as much fascination as the most incredible computer.
Now when that brain (computer) gets either overloaded (needs more RAM), or tired, or gets a virus, or gets old, or any other condition that affects it's ability to function at it's optimal you are going to know it.
Then add in the emotional content. Now you don't get this with your best computer BUT we have it inbuilt and hardwired into ours. This element can work for us or against us. BUT we are in control of it. It does not control us. They are OUR thoughts and this power needs to be exercised. It can be like an animal on a leash and if we control it well much like a well trained animal it's behaviours can be enhanced, even moreso with training.
Now most of our throughts during the day are rubbish.
I did a search on the internet and "they" say that we have anywhere from 6,000 to 60,000 thoughts each day. That is quite a disparity but it shows that some of us have way too many and this pollution causes problems.
There is a non-traditional belief that this level of having many thoughts causes the "monkey mind" meaning that the mind is out of control. That this thought pollution is responsible for a lack of clarity in LIFE.
If you are constantly thinking you are not present. You are not actually being "in the moment". Now I don't want this Blog to get too "airy-fairy" (not sure but don't think that is a medical term) but I am aware that when you sit still and try not to think you seem to slow everything down.
We have all heard that life is moving faster and faster in modern society. What about if you try to focus on controlling it and slowing it down for just this moment. Read this and then just sit there with your eyes closed and breathe in and out for 5 long breathes.
You will notice these few things :
Your breathing will slow down.
Your muscles will relax as your breathing slows down.
Sounds that you overlook everyday with your eyes open.
It is time to clear your mind, get present and get rid of some of the pollution in your Human ECO System !
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Thursday 22nd November - Self Doubt into Self Belief
An interesting thing happened to me today when I was doing my Yoga.
Many things had been on my mind overnight with trying to complete work on three projects, plus being up late writing a movie script and then having a close family member in hospital knocking on the final door set up some mental blocks.
So I knew my ability to "let go and relax" for this activity session was going to be a challenge. And for a self confessed A.D.D. but never diagnosed person, all of this baggage came into the Yoga room with me.
Why did I even go ?
I knew it would be good for me.
I try and apply my personal principle of LIFE 101 - which is that LIFE will always throw up an excuse for you to get out of your commitment to your workouts. It is human nature to look for an excuse BUT my personal pro-active philosophy is that if I am looking for a reason not to do the workout - then it is likely that I need it.
So not letting LIFE get in the way this morning I showed up and settled onto my mat with a focus of "just breathing". The instructor was really tuned into my "dial" this morning as she mentioned that in order to relax and concentrate on our breathing we have to "stop having the conversations in our head". Those voices of self doubt seem to be loudest when we are the quietest.
She also mentioned that what we try to resist - will often persist.
Isn't that so true in many situations in our lives. When we worry about something (beyond our control), the problem seems to grow like a snowball rolling down a hill. Yet when we just let that snowball go and don't try to stop it then it no longer concerns or worries us.
This was truly powerful to me as I felt like my "voices" were on full blast.
As I tuned out my inner voices and focussed JUST on breathing in and breathing out, this provided the ability instead to tune in to and listen to her words and I started to feel the muscles in my body respond.
My shoulders relaxed as the tension dropped away.
My breathing became the life for my body and the pressure valve for my mind.
Of course this meant my human eco-system was again starting to show signs of life - through positive joy for the efforts of my mind being able to STOP thinking - and be clear.
I tried to imagine my mind was a glass of water.
Fresh; clear; cool; and this "picture" I decided was going to be my home-base that I would use when I was noticing my thoughts start to drift.
It was empowering to regain the space inside myself.
By that I mean we often fill ourselves up with unimportant issues as we try to cram in even more though we are already overflowing with totally meaningless things.
As this was happening another amazing situation developed.
My body started to relax and move into poses that had been in recent sessions difficult for me to get into. For example there is a series of balance poses in my Yoga that I try to concentrate to achieve stillness in.
I use this example in my book under the heading "the impatient perfectionist" - he who wants to good at everything he tries which is really just another voice in my head (the ego) wanting me to try harder.
This point is about 45 minutes into the workout and it was at this moment in the class that I noticed that I was starting to "try again". I wasn't getting any of the poses how I would have liked and could start to feel the frustration building as my breathing became forced.
Then I recalled another instructor in a previous session mention that if you are feeling frustrated then just remember this "all you are doing is standing on one leg, so is it really that important that you get this pose today ?"
No it wasn't.
In fact I was giving myself grief over this.
I slowed down my breathing and thought of that glass of water. Still, clear and serene. In no time at all my breathing slowed and my body became still.
As I was leaving the instructor mentioned how in control I seemed during the workout and I had to smile and share with her all my frustrations and we both laughed at how all this was happening on the inside and outwardly I looked at peace.
My lesson today wasn't to learn how to be a great Yoga student.
My lesson today was to learn how to be a better ME.
Many things had been on my mind overnight with trying to complete work on three projects, plus being up late writing a movie script and then having a close family member in hospital knocking on the final door set up some mental blocks.
So I knew my ability to "let go and relax" for this activity session was going to be a challenge. And for a self confessed A.D.D. but never diagnosed person, all of this baggage came into the Yoga room with me.
Why did I even go ?
I knew it would be good for me.
I try and apply my personal principle of LIFE 101 - which is that LIFE will always throw up an excuse for you to get out of your commitment to your workouts. It is human nature to look for an excuse BUT my personal pro-active philosophy is that if I am looking for a reason not to do the workout - then it is likely that I need it.
So not letting LIFE get in the way this morning I showed up and settled onto my mat with a focus of "just breathing". The instructor was really tuned into my "dial" this morning as she mentioned that in order to relax and concentrate on our breathing we have to "stop having the conversations in our head". Those voices of self doubt seem to be loudest when we are the quietest.
She also mentioned that what we try to resist - will often persist.
Isn't that so true in many situations in our lives. When we worry about something (beyond our control), the problem seems to grow like a snowball rolling down a hill. Yet when we just let that snowball go and don't try to stop it then it no longer concerns or worries us.
This was truly powerful to me as I felt like my "voices" were on full blast.
As I tuned out my inner voices and focussed JUST on breathing in and breathing out, this provided the ability instead to tune in to and listen to her words and I started to feel the muscles in my body respond.
My shoulders relaxed as the tension dropped away.
My breathing became the life for my body and the pressure valve for my mind.
Of course this meant my human eco-system was again starting to show signs of life - through positive joy for the efforts of my mind being able to STOP thinking - and be clear.
I tried to imagine my mind was a glass of water.
Fresh; clear; cool; and this "picture" I decided was going to be my home-base that I would use when I was noticing my thoughts start to drift.
It was empowering to regain the space inside myself.
By that I mean we often fill ourselves up with unimportant issues as we try to cram in even more though we are already overflowing with totally meaningless things.
As this was happening another amazing situation developed.
My body started to relax and move into poses that had been in recent sessions difficult for me to get into. For example there is a series of balance poses in my Yoga that I try to concentrate to achieve stillness in.
I use this example in my book under the heading "the impatient perfectionist" - he who wants to good at everything he tries which is really just another voice in my head (the ego) wanting me to try harder.
This point is about 45 minutes into the workout and it was at this moment in the class that I noticed that I was starting to "try again". I wasn't getting any of the poses how I would have liked and could start to feel the frustration building as my breathing became forced.
Then I recalled another instructor in a previous session mention that if you are feeling frustrated then just remember this "all you are doing is standing on one leg, so is it really that important that you get this pose today ?"
No it wasn't.
In fact I was giving myself grief over this.
I slowed down my breathing and thought of that glass of water. Still, clear and serene. In no time at all my breathing slowed and my body became still.
As I was leaving the instructor mentioned how in control I seemed during the workout and I had to smile and share with her all my frustrations and we both laughed at how all this was happening on the inside and outwardly I looked at peace.
My lesson today wasn't to learn how to be a great Yoga student.
My lesson today was to learn how to be a better ME.
Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Wednesday 21st November - Family based FUN
It seems an issue for most people is finding the time to be more active and get to the gym. This reminded me of the excuses that often come up when talking to clients over the years about why past attempts to lose bodyfat had failed them.
1. They had no time to spare.
2. They wanted to spend more time with their families.
I totally understand these issues but with obesity rolling along like an out of control freight train that we need to deal with here are simple facts you need to consider in relation to the Human E.C.O. Plan:
- There are 168 hours in each and every week.
- You only have to find 3 hours PER WEEK for activity on my plan.
- If you do 1 hour of activity each day of the weekend you only have to find 1 more during the week. Doesn't seem that hard does it ?
It's not but I have deliberately designed this to be a workable solution by minimizing / adjusting part of the current issue of the excessive intake of daily calories and then matching that up with an activity program to suit the goal.
Three hours per week can make a life changing difference !
Now to the issue of spending time with your family and not wanting to deprive you of that either here are some suggestions you could try.
- Enlist your family into your life changing goal which means that they will also improve their overall health.
- The three hours of activity can also include them. Your children could ride their bikes while you and your partner could walk / run.
- You could take a ball with you and play games in a park or beach.
- You could take some rope and teach your children to jump rope.
- You could take a backpack with some healthy food options, flavoured water and have a picnic halfway during the session.
Making life changing habits for ALL the family will not only ensure that there is minimal disruption to the family environment it will allow you to get healthy and provide "family time" together.
1. They had no time to spare.
2. They wanted to spend more time with their families.
I totally understand these issues but with obesity rolling along like an out of control freight train that we need to deal with here are simple facts you need to consider in relation to the Human E.C.O. Plan:
- There are 168 hours in each and every week.
- You only have to find 3 hours PER WEEK for activity on my plan.
- If you do 1 hour of activity each day of the weekend you only have to find 1 more during the week. Doesn't seem that hard does it ?
It's not but I have deliberately designed this to be a workable solution by minimizing / adjusting part of the current issue of the excessive intake of daily calories and then matching that up with an activity program to suit the goal.
Three hours per week can make a life changing difference !
Now to the issue of spending time with your family and not wanting to deprive you of that either here are some suggestions you could try.
- Enlist your family into your life changing goal which means that they will also improve their overall health.
- The three hours of activity can also include them. Your children could ride their bikes while you and your partner could walk / run.
- You could take a ball with you and play games in a park or beach.
- You could take some rope and teach your children to jump rope.
- You could take a backpack with some healthy food options, flavoured water and have a picnic halfway during the session.
Making life changing habits for ALL the family will not only ensure that there is minimal disruption to the family environment it will allow you to get healthy and provide "family time" together.
Tuesday 20th November - Stinking Thinking or Negative Thoughts
I had just finished a run this morning and was stretching in a local park. I overheard a father yelling at this son aged about 7 yrs old for doing something wrong and calling his son stupid (it wasn't hard to hear as the father was quite loud).
I felt for the boy as the park had quite a few people in it. Now you may say that there may have been a reason for his comments (note - I didn't say "good reason" as I see little benefit to bashing the boy's esteem with or without an audience).
Walking home it got me to thinking how easy it can be for us to hurt someone's feelings and esteem (whether intentionally or not) with words. I wondered if that young boy had a terrible day as a result. I am sure we have all done it, maybe not as disrespectfully as that father, but our words can hurt those we care about.
The point of Stinking Thinking (or negative thoughts) is that not only do we have the power to relive them but equally we also have the power to let them go.
They are only words and sometimes it is best to let them go which can often help us to relax and lose some of the stress from our lives.
How do we let go of this stress when these words often come from someone we love or whose opinion we value ?
Well first off, you should put as much weight in your own opinion as you do in others. You know that you are mostly a good person but this rarely has any currency or value in our esteem bank. IT SHOULD.
We should all try to make daily deposits into our own esteem bank account knowing that it can also improve our self perception. This is really important for children.
A lesson that is now taught to business managers is to try to catch your staff "doing something right" instead of just catching them doing something wrong. Equally we should try to do this with our friends and family.
Maybe if this happens we can try to change more negative thoughts into positive thoughts and lose the stinking thinking !
I felt for the boy as the park had quite a few people in it. Now you may say that there may have been a reason for his comments (note - I didn't say "good reason" as I see little benefit to bashing the boy's esteem with or without an audience).
Walking home it got me to thinking how easy it can be for us to hurt someone's feelings and esteem (whether intentionally or not) with words. I wondered if that young boy had a terrible day as a result. I am sure we have all done it, maybe not as disrespectfully as that father, but our words can hurt those we care about.
The point of Stinking Thinking (or negative thoughts) is that not only do we have the power to relive them but equally we also have the power to let them go.
They are only words and sometimes it is best to let them go which can often help us to relax and lose some of the stress from our lives.
How do we let go of this stress when these words often come from someone we love or whose opinion we value ?
Well first off, you should put as much weight in your own opinion as you do in others. You know that you are mostly a good person but this rarely has any currency or value in our esteem bank. IT SHOULD.
We should all try to make daily deposits into our own esteem bank account knowing that it can also improve our self perception. This is really important for children.
A lesson that is now taught to business managers is to try to catch your staff "doing something right" instead of just catching them doing something wrong. Equally we should try to do this with our friends and family.
Maybe if this happens we can try to change more negative thoughts into positive thoughts and lose the stinking thinking !
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Sunday 18th November - Feedback on the Human ECO Plan
As promised I have been sending out the 56 day plan to a range of health and fitness professionals who I wanted to independently give me feedback. This was not designed to pander my ego but rather assess if they thought in a real world scenario that it would work for anyone trying.
There are two parts -
1. Rainbow Nutrient Refuelling Plan for 56 days to set you up for life changing results.
2. Afterburner Workouts are either 3 x 60 mins or 6 x 30 mins you choose it's your life.
Remember that this program is designed for the majority of the population but mostly those that are NOT currently doing something. This is like a "shot in the arm" or insert whatever bodypart you need to fix.
So far from five of the best it's come back 100% positive. I will continue to provide feedback as we finalize the "uploading process" to make this available very soon. Sorry for those that are getting impatient !
Here is one testimonial from Deb Dawson who is an Australian lady who recently (October 07) competed in the Womens National Bodybuilding Federation Championships (hope I got the translation right) and she placed 2nd - what an awesome effort !
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Deb says "I really had to step back and look at it from a "non competitive bodybuilder" perspective. Once I did this I could see that it would be very benefical to also most anyone willing to take up the challenge.
RAINBOW NUTRIENT RE-FUELLING PLAN
Excellent food variety and choices making it easier for one to obtain these foods throughout the day for meal times. Also the variety in the foods provides all the macronutrients needed for a healthy functioning body, once the body is in this state it will respond accordingly e.g. fat loss, muscle gains.
The food options are also a great way not to give one the excuse of not having the ingredients available, this is a key to keeping it simple and not complicated, if complicated then excuses are used to not follow the program.
I liked the way you eased into the Rainbow Nutrient Plan by starting at week 1 and slowly reducing fats, alcohol, dairy etc over the few weeks until week 5 of the Rainbow plan!
The more I go over it, the more I like it.
AFTERBURNER WORKOUT PLAN
My first reaction after reading this was "I would not do this"!
But that's because I am a competitive bodybuilder and need to train and do cardio differently to achieve as much muscle gains as possible!
So looking at it from a perspective of say a personal trainer who perhaps had a client who was interested in losing weight, being healthy and wanting to increase his/her fitness levels but had not worked out for a while.
Now would I recommend Afterburner Workout Plan?
Yes! And here's why:
It's broken down in every aspect from cardio to resistance training so it makes it easy to follow but more importantly, easier to stick with and follow through.
It focuses on fat burning during cardio and resistance training due to the high reps.
This combined with the Rainbow Nutrient Refuelling Plan will definately produce results in the reduction of body fat.
You have a great package here Tony and I hope it becomes a success for you and for anyone who uses it. Trying to battle the obesity epidemic is one of the hardest challenges in this day and age, but if we can go back to basics and re educate people about food and how the body really works it would be a step in the right direction. The other important issue here is time, we are all so rushed these days, so keeping it simple is crucial, you have done this with offering many options with the meal plan.
Thank you for sharing this with me.
Deb
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Not sure I could ask for better than that.
There are two parts -
1. Rainbow Nutrient Refuelling Plan for 56 days to set you up for life changing results.
2. Afterburner Workouts are either 3 x 60 mins or 6 x 30 mins you choose it's your life.
Remember that this program is designed for the majority of the population but mostly those that are NOT currently doing something. This is like a "shot in the arm" or insert whatever bodypart you need to fix.
So far from five of the best it's come back 100% positive. I will continue to provide feedback as we finalize the "uploading process" to make this available very soon. Sorry for those that are getting impatient !
Here is one testimonial from Deb Dawson who is an Australian lady who recently (October 07) competed in the Womens National Bodybuilding Federation Championships (hope I got the translation right) and she placed 2nd - what an awesome effort !
- - - - - - - - - - - -
Deb says "I really had to step back and look at it from a "non competitive bodybuilder" perspective. Once I did this I could see that it would be very benefical to also most anyone willing to take up the challenge.
RAINBOW NUTRIENT RE-FUELLING PLAN
Excellent food variety and choices making it easier for one to obtain these foods throughout the day for meal times. Also the variety in the foods provides all the macronutrients needed for a healthy functioning body, once the body is in this state it will respond accordingly e.g. fat loss, muscle gains.
The food options are also a great way not to give one the excuse of not having the ingredients available, this is a key to keeping it simple and not complicated, if complicated then excuses are used to not follow the program.
I liked the way you eased into the Rainbow Nutrient Plan by starting at week 1 and slowly reducing fats, alcohol, dairy etc over the few weeks until week 5 of the Rainbow plan!
The more I go over it, the more I like it.
AFTERBURNER WORKOUT PLAN
My first reaction after reading this was "I would not do this"!
But that's because I am a competitive bodybuilder and need to train and do cardio differently to achieve as much muscle gains as possible!
So looking at it from a perspective of say a personal trainer who perhaps had a client who was interested in losing weight, being healthy and wanting to increase his/her fitness levels but had not worked out for a while.
Now would I recommend Afterburner Workout Plan?
Yes! And here's why:
It's broken down in every aspect from cardio to resistance training so it makes it easy to follow but more importantly, easier to stick with and follow through.
It focuses on fat burning during cardio and resistance training due to the high reps.
This combined with the Rainbow Nutrient Refuelling Plan will definately produce results in the reduction of body fat.
You have a great package here Tony and I hope it becomes a success for you and for anyone who uses it. Trying to battle the obesity epidemic is one of the hardest challenges in this day and age, but if we can go back to basics and re educate people about food and how the body really works it would be a step in the right direction. The other important issue here is time, we are all so rushed these days, so keeping it simple is crucial, you have done this with offering many options with the meal plan.
Thank you for sharing this with me.
Deb
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Not sure I could ask for better than that.
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Saturday 17th November - What is my E.C.O. plan going to contain ?
I was asked what the E.C.O. phases of my plan are going to contain so I want to share it with you here. The Human E.C.O. System is the book YOU need to read. Here is a description of what it contains:
1. Evolution - This is a section devoted to the past habits, patterns, trigger points that have impacted upon achieving success for weight loss. By being able to identify these errors we can move forward with clarity which then allows us to better comprehend this knowledge.
2. Comprehension - This section is to provide a level of understanding of your body and the key internal elements I will cover such as the Heart, the Liver, the Kidney's, Pancreas and Gastro-intestinal Tract, to show you that nutrition and activity can reduce and reverse the "internal pollution", so that YOU can become personally responsible with greater awareness and change the past.
3. Operation “GO” - This is the action phase which consists of the outline of the next fifty six (56) days or eight (8) weeks of life changing habits so YOU know what you are going to be doing; the RAINBOW Nutrient Refuelling plan is to maximize your fat loss results and ; and the Afterburner Workouts based around your weekly commitment of 3 hours of activity with either 3 x 60 minute or 6 x 30 minute workouts to give you a variety of options for your activity sessions.
I have sent the 56 Day Plan out to some friends and I will be posting their feedback in the next 48 hours so you can see if it as good as I am saying.
Remember this plan is designed for the majority of the World's population. It can assist anyone that completes the 56 days.
Are you ready for the challenge ?
1. Evolution - This is a section devoted to the past habits, patterns, trigger points that have impacted upon achieving success for weight loss. By being able to identify these errors we can move forward with clarity which then allows us to better comprehend this knowledge.
2. Comprehension - This section is to provide a level of understanding of your body and the key internal elements I will cover such as the Heart, the Liver, the Kidney's, Pancreas and Gastro-intestinal Tract, to show you that nutrition and activity can reduce and reverse the "internal pollution", so that YOU can become personally responsible with greater awareness and change the past.
3. Operation “GO” - This is the action phase which consists of the outline of the next fifty six (56) days or eight (8) weeks of life changing habits so YOU know what you are going to be doing; the RAINBOW Nutrient Refuelling plan is to maximize your fat loss results and ; and the Afterburner Workouts based around your weekly commitment of 3 hours of activity with either 3 x 60 minute or 6 x 30 minute workouts to give you a variety of options for your activity sessions.
I have sent the 56 Day Plan out to some friends and I will be posting their feedback in the next 48 hours so you can see if it as good as I am saying.
Remember this plan is designed for the majority of the World's population. It can assist anyone that completes the 56 days.
Are you ready for the challenge ?
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Thursday 15th November - What is an ECO System ?
I was doing my Yoga session this morning and trying to focus on my breathing when what I really wanted to do was to leave the class and come and write this blog. Of course I decided not to and proceeded to clear my mind and with that I found an even greater level of expression.
Why did I want to leave ?
It occurred to me that I have not at any time explained how or why I arrived at my book title "The Human E.C.O. System Anti Diet" and also why this is important for us all.
What is an ECO system and how does that relate to the human body ?
"An ECO system is the biological term used to describe two or more organisms living together in harmony. The study of how organisms interact in an environment is ecology and each environment is in itself termed an ecosystem."
Doesn't that sound like what we are learning more and more each day about the human body. For me it certainly resonated enough that I changed my book content to have this focus and really started to get more passionate about understanding this.
If you do any research on eco-systems, the human body is often described as one of the examples along with a rainforest and an aquarium.
Then with all the focus globally on "being green and saving the planet", I was writing and talking with people about what my book would be about when I "stumbled across this personal level of clarity" which really excited me.
The human body is an eco-system in peril so shouldn't we try to save it ?
Obesity is out of control.
Diabetes is rampant with adults and children.
Cancer is becoming as common as the cold.
Stress related illnesses are getting worse each day.
There just seemed to be a light go off in my head (eco-friendly globe of course) and everywhere I looked I was able to find examples of how human biology is like the earth's ecology (the bi-line for my book is "where biology meets ecology).
Now I want to be able to pass on this new level of understanding of how the body works and also to create a knowledge based relationship with your body.
There was an "aha" moment for me.
When I spoke to children about these similarities they understood straight away the importance of "taking action NOW". They are learning about the planet and it's issues everyday so if they could get it, was there hope for adults ?
I think there is.
So what does an Anti Diet mean ?
It is a strategic based plan (not just eating outline) that comes from a point of wanting you to be able to make more informed life choices about nutrition and activity with understanding.
You have all heard the saying "knowledge is Power".
I believe that when it comes to our own bodies in today's society - knowledge is essential !
Over the last five years I have learned a lot of information about really important things (education) that seemed to have been "glossed" over during my life. Such as how critical it is that I make certain life choices based upon what I know more, than what others tell me.
For anyone to act with personal responsibility there is a level of assumption that we understand right from wrong. To support this there are laws that tell us what we can and can't do in society.
When we get a job there are agreements and contracts we sign for employment to know what is expected of us.
Then there are moral and religious expectations that are "given" to us so that we can function as a human being within our society.
However there is little to no formal education given (except if you become a medical specialist) on the most important "treasure" that we have - OUR OWN BODY.
We get no Warranty;
We get no Instruction Manual;
So how do we operate this complex machine called the Human body if something goes wrong ?
What normally happens is that we react and our course of action is that we run to a medical expert who then "tries to ascertain" from what we tell them are our known symptoms. From this a diagnosis is given and a "treatment" prescribed.
In fact here is a does of reality.
From the moment you are born you start to die.
It is this time between birth and death that YOU get to ascertain the level of quality in your life. You get to make choices and this is best served with knowledge but most people ignore even the most blatant warnings.
This is an example that I use in my book.
Imagine that you are driving along in your vehicle and there is a RED light flashing. You would most likely ignore it for a while and then you take action realizing that something is definitely not right.
Let's imagine that you had an instrumental panel for your body.
What red light alarm is flashing for YOU right now ?
What are you going to do about it - ignore it or act ?
The Human E.C.O. System is like any other environment.
When something is wrong there will be warning signs (symptoms) that you need to recognize and change or else something much worse will happen.
Do it now - act today !!
It's your BODY - It's your LIFE.
Why did I want to leave ?
It occurred to me that I have not at any time explained how or why I arrived at my book title "The Human E.C.O. System Anti Diet" and also why this is important for us all.
What is an ECO system and how does that relate to the human body ?
"An ECO system is the biological term used to describe two or more organisms living together in harmony. The study of how organisms interact in an environment is ecology and each environment is in itself termed an ecosystem."
Doesn't that sound like what we are learning more and more each day about the human body. For me it certainly resonated enough that I changed my book content to have this focus and really started to get more passionate about understanding this.
If you do any research on eco-systems, the human body is often described as one of the examples along with a rainforest and an aquarium.
Then with all the focus globally on "being green and saving the planet", I was writing and talking with people about what my book would be about when I "stumbled across this personal level of clarity" which really excited me.
The human body is an eco-system in peril so shouldn't we try to save it ?
Obesity is out of control.
Diabetes is rampant with adults and children.
Cancer is becoming as common as the cold.
Stress related illnesses are getting worse each day.
There just seemed to be a light go off in my head (eco-friendly globe of course) and everywhere I looked I was able to find examples of how human biology is like the earth's ecology (the bi-line for my book is "where biology meets ecology).
Now I want to be able to pass on this new level of understanding of how the body works and also to create a knowledge based relationship with your body.
There was an "aha" moment for me.
When I spoke to children about these similarities they understood straight away the importance of "taking action NOW". They are learning about the planet and it's issues everyday so if they could get it, was there hope for adults ?
I think there is.
So what does an Anti Diet mean ?
It is a strategic based plan (not just eating outline) that comes from a point of wanting you to be able to make more informed life choices about nutrition and activity with understanding.
You have all heard the saying "knowledge is Power".
I believe that when it comes to our own bodies in today's society - knowledge is essential !
Over the last five years I have learned a lot of information about really important things (education) that seemed to have been "glossed" over during my life. Such as how critical it is that I make certain life choices based upon what I know more, than what others tell me.
For anyone to act with personal responsibility there is a level of assumption that we understand right from wrong. To support this there are laws that tell us what we can and can't do in society.
When we get a job there are agreements and contracts we sign for employment to know what is expected of us.
Then there are moral and religious expectations that are "given" to us so that we can function as a human being within our society.
However there is little to no formal education given (except if you become a medical specialist) on the most important "treasure" that we have - OUR OWN BODY.
We get no Warranty;
We get no Instruction Manual;
So how do we operate this complex machine called the Human body if something goes wrong ?
What normally happens is that we react and our course of action is that we run to a medical expert who then "tries to ascertain" from what we tell them are our known symptoms. From this a diagnosis is given and a "treatment" prescribed.
In fact here is a does of reality.
From the moment you are born you start to die.
It is this time between birth and death that YOU get to ascertain the level of quality in your life. You get to make choices and this is best served with knowledge but most people ignore even the most blatant warnings.
This is an example that I use in my book.
Imagine that you are driving along in your vehicle and there is a RED light flashing. You would most likely ignore it for a while and then you take action realizing that something is definitely not right.
Let's imagine that you had an instrumental panel for your body.
What red light alarm is flashing for YOU right now ?
What are you going to do about it - ignore it or act ?
The Human E.C.O. System is like any other environment.
When something is wrong there will be warning signs (symptoms) that you need to recognize and change or else something much worse will happen.
Do it now - act today !!
It's your BODY - It's your LIFE.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Wednesday 14th November - Diabetes - be afraid !
What is Diabetes ?
Now I am going to keep this simple because "the understanding" is very important for the level of information that I want to pass on to you.
Overview.
Diabetes is a chronic condition in which the body does not produce enough of the hormone insulin (type 1), which is not reversible and mostly hereditary or cannot make proper use of the insulin it does produce, a condition called insulin resistance (type 2) which is impacted upon by lifestyle choices.
As a result of both conditions, there are wild fluctuations of glucose levels in the bloodstream (following your intake of carbohydrate type fuels or food). You would know these as fruit (including juice), grains, vegetables, legumes, some dairy and includes the non-traditional but heavily consumed forms from soda or soft drink, sweets, fast food etc. From these foods your body gets these "sugars" and they enter the bloodstream as glucose for energy.
The problems arise when there is a build up of excess glucose. There may be resulting problems with your artery walls which can become thicker increasing blood pressure. This then impacts on other conditions. The implications of these can eventually lead to blindness, coronary heart disease, amputations or kidney failure.
What does that mean to you as an individual ?
I can tell you one thing that people have died from this disease. Diabetes is fast becoming a major health concern as it gets more and more common. The world is becoming more overweight / obese and this means an unhealthy population. It is not limited to one country, one race or one gender. It is rampant everywhere.
Is this a result of us living longer and our bodies aging or is it a result of the lifestyle choices we make ?
It seems to be a function of both of these situations but the most common form of Diabetes (type 2) can be a preventable condition. Yes I said PREVENTABLE. Type 2 Diabetes or as it used to be called Adult Onset Diabetes has now had to revert to it's correct title as the incidence of the disease is now presenting in children all over the world.
How can children get an "adult onset disease" condition ?
It really isn't all that hard to understand. There is far more processed food being eaten then 10-20 years ago. The availability of low quality nutrient, high density calorific fuel is everywhere. Our use of this fuel (movement in any kind) has been markedly reduced.
Bottom line is that we have become 'UNDER-ACTIVE AND OVER-FED" !!
Is there any likelihood that this situation will get worse in the coming years ?
Absolutely. They call Diabetes the silent killer for a reason.
You could have it now and not know. The symptoms may not be presenting so as a result you continue with your "unhealthy" lifestyle that is by your standards all about "balance and moderation".
Sure you may be carrying a few extra kilo's but so is everyone.
You probably use the words of balance and moderation for justification when you are doing something that you know is not in your best health interests but "you have to have a life - right ?".
It is just a few extra glasses of wine.
And who can enjoy that wine without a nice cheese platter ??
Doing this every so often can't really do us harm - can it ?
Yes it can if in the rest of your daily life you do not practice your Human ECO plan.
All of your poor lifestyle choices add up.
If you don't make exercise a regular part of your life on a regular basis then you are adding to all of the other health errors you are making.
Just so we are clear, I am not talking about your walk on a Saturday to the nearest drinking hole or your weekly shopping trips when you walk miles from shop to shop. They are not getting your heart healthy.
You have the ability to reduce / reverse the implications of this disease.
Type 2 diabetes, the more common of the two types, results mainly from an unhealthy diet and inactivity and is becoming epidemic in scale in many developed or fast-developing countries.
Are you a statistic or are you going to change your life ?
Be a Health Warrior NOT a Health Worrior !
Now I am going to keep this simple because "the understanding" is very important for the level of information that I want to pass on to you.
Overview.
Diabetes is a chronic condition in which the body does not produce enough of the hormone insulin (type 1), which is not reversible and mostly hereditary or cannot make proper use of the insulin it does produce, a condition called insulin resistance (type 2) which is impacted upon by lifestyle choices.
As a result of both conditions, there are wild fluctuations of glucose levels in the bloodstream (following your intake of carbohydrate type fuels or food). You would know these as fruit (including juice), grains, vegetables, legumes, some dairy and includes the non-traditional but heavily consumed forms from soda or soft drink, sweets, fast food etc. From these foods your body gets these "sugars" and they enter the bloodstream as glucose for energy.
The problems arise when there is a build up of excess glucose. There may be resulting problems with your artery walls which can become thicker increasing blood pressure. This then impacts on other conditions. The implications of these can eventually lead to blindness, coronary heart disease, amputations or kidney failure.
What does that mean to you as an individual ?
I can tell you one thing that people have died from this disease. Diabetes is fast becoming a major health concern as it gets more and more common. The world is becoming more overweight / obese and this means an unhealthy population. It is not limited to one country, one race or one gender. It is rampant everywhere.
Is this a result of us living longer and our bodies aging or is it a result of the lifestyle choices we make ?
It seems to be a function of both of these situations but the most common form of Diabetes (type 2) can be a preventable condition. Yes I said PREVENTABLE. Type 2 Diabetes or as it used to be called Adult Onset Diabetes has now had to revert to it's correct title as the incidence of the disease is now presenting in children all over the world.
How can children get an "adult onset disease" condition ?
It really isn't all that hard to understand. There is far more processed food being eaten then 10-20 years ago. The availability of low quality nutrient, high density calorific fuel is everywhere. Our use of this fuel (movement in any kind) has been markedly reduced.
Bottom line is that we have become 'UNDER-ACTIVE AND OVER-FED" !!
Is there any likelihood that this situation will get worse in the coming years ?
Absolutely. They call Diabetes the silent killer for a reason.
You could have it now and not know. The symptoms may not be presenting so as a result you continue with your "unhealthy" lifestyle that is by your standards all about "balance and moderation".
Sure you may be carrying a few extra kilo's but so is everyone.
You probably use the words of balance and moderation for justification when you are doing something that you know is not in your best health interests but "you have to have a life - right ?".
It is just a few extra glasses of wine.
And who can enjoy that wine without a nice cheese platter ??
Doing this every so often can't really do us harm - can it ?
Yes it can if in the rest of your daily life you do not practice your Human ECO plan.
All of your poor lifestyle choices add up.
If you don't make exercise a regular part of your life on a regular basis then you are adding to all of the other health errors you are making.
Just so we are clear, I am not talking about your walk on a Saturday to the nearest drinking hole or your weekly shopping trips when you walk miles from shop to shop. They are not getting your heart healthy.
You have the ability to reduce / reverse the implications of this disease.
Type 2 diabetes, the more common of the two types, results mainly from an unhealthy diet and inactivity and is becoming epidemic in scale in many developed or fast-developing countries.
Are you a statistic or are you going to change your life ?
Be a Health Warrior NOT a Health Worrior !
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Tuesday 13th November - My 3 Life Principles
When I was creating both the Global Health Warrior brand and Warrior Media business I was asked by my designer to think of a few words that I felt described my life's intention.
I came up with Strength / Compassion / Integrity.
From that he then created the symbol of the "Warrior" that I use. I have decided to make these three words into my life principles.
1. Strength of Mind - this is the belief that when your mind is strong it allows you to truly focus on achieving physical wellness which is displayed through your body by creating a mind / body connection.
It also means that you must work towards being pro-active (the warrior) and allow yourself to be less re-active (the worrior).
I use this point a lot in seminars, when I ask people are you a Health Warrior or a Health Worrior. Your life - your choice.
2. Compassion of Heart - this is the belief that if you open yourself up to allow others (and the Universe) you get to truly see who you are, and it can give you a sense of fullness. I find that when I do this I "feel more".
We often get caught up in our own "small" world that we fail to see that life isn't really that bad and the world is a big place. We add drama's when in fact there need not be so many but by being true to yourself you have less doubt.
3. Integrity of Soul - this is the belief that YOU are a product of the life you live. There is an old saying that others will treat you the way you let them.
As I learn more about life and myself I see that we would all like to be treated well and in order for that to happen "we have to first start being kind to yourself and others", then it will come back.
I came up with Strength / Compassion / Integrity.
From that he then created the symbol of the "Warrior" that I use. I have decided to make these three words into my life principles.
1. Strength of Mind - this is the belief that when your mind is strong it allows you to truly focus on achieving physical wellness which is displayed through your body by creating a mind / body connection.
It also means that you must work towards being pro-active (the warrior) and allow yourself to be less re-active (the worrior).
I use this point a lot in seminars, when I ask people are you a Health Warrior or a Health Worrior. Your life - your choice.
2. Compassion of Heart - this is the belief that if you open yourself up to allow others (and the Universe) you get to truly see who you are, and it can give you a sense of fullness. I find that when I do this I "feel more".
We often get caught up in our own "small" world that we fail to see that life isn't really that bad and the world is a big place. We add drama's when in fact there need not be so many but by being true to yourself you have less doubt.
3. Integrity of Soul - this is the belief that YOU are a product of the life you live. There is an old saying that others will treat you the way you let them.
As I learn more about life and myself I see that we would all like to be treated well and in order for that to happen "we have to first start being kind to yourself and others", then it will come back.
Monday, November 12, 2007
Monday 12th November - Little things can make a HUGE difference
I know that it seems like I am stating the obvious with this blog title but it truly can be the way to see significant changes.
Make the little things count.
I was thinking about all the amazing things that I had found out and also remembered during the writing of my book and there is one point that comes up time and time again.
Reduce your intake of total calories by 100 each day and at the end of a week you have taken in 700 calories LESS. I know that doesn't really sound like much to most people but it is and you should know that 3,500 cals is a kilogram (2 lbs) of fat. That means in 5 weeks with JUST DOING THIS small change you can impact and limit your "bottom line".
Now let's reverse that and see how easy it is to put weight on.
If you consume an additional 100 calories per day in 5 weeks you can add a kilogram or two lbs of fat. It is that easy.
Now with our life policy of "balance and mderation" justifying our excesses, let's say that you are not eating correctly and are consuming 200-500 cals over your required daily intake. Quite easy to do with today's food portion sizes. Let's say that you also consume a few glasses of wine each night (which is worth about 200-250 cals).
That means each week you are adding about an additional 3,500 calories. That means you could be adding the equivalent of a kilogram (2lbs) of fat calories.
Now with this fact we can see the importance of the calories in (total) vs calories out (total) scenario and how it becomes significant.
To meet this additional intake of calories you would need to be working out everyday just so you don't add to your weight and subsequent health problems. Yeah who is doing that ?
I always have to smile when someone starts learning that they should be limiting alcohol intake. As trainers we get this little bit of research thrown at us all the time "alcohol contains anti-oxidants which assist heart health".
Sure there is no fat in alcohol and you get some anti-oxidant values BUT becomes of little to no value with your body being laden down with excess bodyfat.
In fact it will directly impact this "bottom line" as you try to justify your drinking habits and of course you can do this as much as you want. This is your life. But I guarantee that you will be doing it from a position of defeat because it will only be a matter of time until you realize that "life choices" have been poor.
So we are clear. The research actually says a glass a day may assist heart health - one glass. So when you consume half a bottle a night it's not heart healthy it's alcoholism. Also there is new research that indicates that alcohol may be a contributing factor to breast cancer.
(From Womens Health News Sept 2007)
"It is the alcohol itself (ethyl alcohol) and the quantity consumed that increases breast cancer risk. In fact, the increased breast cancer risk from drinking three or more alcoholic drinks a day is similar to the increased breast cancer risk from smoking a packet of cigarettes or more a day, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers Yan Li, MD, PhD and Arthur Klatsky, MD."
This is incredibly scary. Having had a close friend go through breast cancer this year I am not the bearer of bad news but I want you all to know what the potential dangers are for your Human ECO system.
From time to time with this Blog you may think that I am being harsh.
I don't ever intentionally mean to be harsh but for most preventable conditions YOU could be right. I do care and sometimes this presents as "black and white". But I want you to be responsible for your own health and more importantly get healthy NOW and don't wait until something goes wrong.
Make the little things count.
I was thinking about all the amazing things that I had found out and also remembered during the writing of my book and there is one point that comes up time and time again.
Reduce your intake of total calories by 100 each day and at the end of a week you have taken in 700 calories LESS. I know that doesn't really sound like much to most people but it is and you should know that 3,500 cals is a kilogram (2 lbs) of fat. That means in 5 weeks with JUST DOING THIS small change you can impact and limit your "bottom line".
Now let's reverse that and see how easy it is to put weight on.
If you consume an additional 100 calories per day in 5 weeks you can add a kilogram or two lbs of fat. It is that easy.
Now with our life policy of "balance and mderation" justifying our excesses, let's say that you are not eating correctly and are consuming 200-500 cals over your required daily intake. Quite easy to do with today's food portion sizes. Let's say that you also consume a few glasses of wine each night (which is worth about 200-250 cals).
That means each week you are adding about an additional 3,500 calories. That means you could be adding the equivalent of a kilogram (2lbs) of fat calories.
Now with this fact we can see the importance of the calories in (total) vs calories out (total) scenario and how it becomes significant.
To meet this additional intake of calories you would need to be working out everyday just so you don't add to your weight and subsequent health problems. Yeah who is doing that ?
I always have to smile when someone starts learning that they should be limiting alcohol intake. As trainers we get this little bit of research thrown at us all the time "alcohol contains anti-oxidants which assist heart health".
Sure there is no fat in alcohol and you get some anti-oxidant values BUT becomes of little to no value with your body being laden down with excess bodyfat.
In fact it will directly impact this "bottom line" as you try to justify your drinking habits and of course you can do this as much as you want. This is your life. But I guarantee that you will be doing it from a position of defeat because it will only be a matter of time until you realize that "life choices" have been poor.
So we are clear. The research actually says a glass a day may assist heart health - one glass. So when you consume half a bottle a night it's not heart healthy it's alcoholism. Also there is new research that indicates that alcohol may be a contributing factor to breast cancer.
(From Womens Health News Sept 2007)
"It is the alcohol itself (ethyl alcohol) and the quantity consumed that increases breast cancer risk. In fact, the increased breast cancer risk from drinking three or more alcoholic drinks a day is similar to the increased breast cancer risk from smoking a packet of cigarettes or more a day, according to Kaiser Permanente researchers Yan Li, MD, PhD and Arthur Klatsky, MD."
This is incredibly scary. Having had a close friend go through breast cancer this year I am not the bearer of bad news but I want you all to know what the potential dangers are for your Human ECO system.
From time to time with this Blog you may think that I am being harsh.
I don't ever intentionally mean to be harsh but for most preventable conditions YOU could be right. I do care and sometimes this presents as "black and white". But I want you to be responsible for your own health and more importantly get healthy NOW and don't wait until something goes wrong.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Sunday 11th November - We Need Good Fats
There is clear evidence from recent research that there is a direct benefit for our health to consume "good fats" from natural food sources. Modern science has discovered that essential fatty acids (EFAs) do indeed profoundly influence human health and as we can't produce these in the body we need to source them externally.
As we move away from the fat phobia of the 90's that so affected our lives and we now move toward influencing our health through more informed choice, it is starting to resonate on most people's personal radar to embrace this beneficial nutrient of Omega 3 fatty acids that provide the following.
Eicosapentaenoic Acid and Docosahexaenoic Acid (EPA and DHA), these two difficult to pronounce fatty acids are responsible for the beneficial effects of Fish Oils. These good fats provide us with not only an energy source but also assist to protect our hearts. Even everyday foods such as bread and cereals are now having these fats added which is a good thing.
My personal favorite is Salmon and I try to consume it two to three times per week as it is a great source of Omega 3 fatty acids. We know that EFAs control or modulate an amazing number of cellular processes and each EFA plays a specific role in the body from assisting to combat heart disease and improve brain functioning plus assisting other health conditions.
If you still find eating "fat" a personal issue then look for quality supplementation. Daily intake for individuals can vary to the individual from about 300mg to 400mg of these EFA's and most commercial products that I have found seem to be a blended oil product that combines a balance of these essential fats in one 1000mg convenient capsule which provides the following ratio of 180mg EPA and 120mg of DHA = Total of 300mg EFA's.
There are a number of natural sources of essential fats including several plants and some species of fish such as salmon, mackeral and tuna. Oils from these sources are often used for dietary supplementation. Natural sources of essential fats include Evening Primrose, Black Currant, Flaxseed and cold water Fish. Fish Oil is prepared mainly from salmon, cod liver, and tuna.
As we move away from the fat phobia of the 90's that so affected our lives and we now move toward influencing our health through more informed choice, it is starting to resonate on most people's personal radar to embrace this beneficial nutrient of Omega 3 fatty acids that provide the following.
Eicosapentaenoic Acid and Docosahexaenoic Acid (EPA and DHA), these two difficult to pronounce fatty acids are responsible for the beneficial effects of Fish Oils. These good fats provide us with not only an energy source but also assist to protect our hearts. Even everyday foods such as bread and cereals are now having these fats added which is a good thing.
My personal favorite is Salmon and I try to consume it two to three times per week as it is a great source of Omega 3 fatty acids. We know that EFAs control or modulate an amazing number of cellular processes and each EFA plays a specific role in the body from assisting to combat heart disease and improve brain functioning plus assisting other health conditions.
If you still find eating "fat" a personal issue then look for quality supplementation. Daily intake for individuals can vary to the individual from about 300mg to 400mg of these EFA's and most commercial products that I have found seem to be a blended oil product that combines a balance of these essential fats in one 1000mg convenient capsule which provides the following ratio of 180mg EPA and 120mg of DHA = Total of 300mg EFA's.
There are a number of natural sources of essential fats including several plants and some species of fish such as salmon, mackeral and tuna. Oils from these sources are often used for dietary supplementation. Natural sources of essential fats include Evening Primrose, Black Currant, Flaxseed and cold water Fish. Fish Oil is prepared mainly from salmon, cod liver, and tuna.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Saturday 10th November - What do I have for breakfast ?
It seems that the Blog from yesterday illicited some visceral responses from the emails I received. To the gentleman who wished to remain anonymous your email address came up so it's all good. For the record I don't get offended if you don't agree with me, and in fact if you can prove me wrong all the better as that means I can learn more - which I love to do.
To be clear - telling me that by providing options you are answering what the public wants is not justification for giving them low quality products. I recall my mother telling my brothers, sisters and I that just because you want it doesn't mean you should have it as it may not be good for you. Equally you should also undertake a certain moral compass when you are dealing with other less informed people who rely on your integrity to be part of the selling process. But hey that might just be the way that I was brought up.
Your reply might be - sure that would work in a perfect world that wasn't driven by the almighty $$$ but even so, there comes a time when it should be just as much about your consumer, as it is about your stockholders.
TONY STEPS DOWN OFF HIS SOAPBOX. (well it is my Blog)
So do I consume cereal for breakfast.
No I don't consume anywhere near as much as I used to.
I used to eat a lot of it and recommend it to my clients but now I feel that I should be giving them as much assistance to decypher the "marketing hype" as I can.
For me it was a moment when something went off in my head that asked me this question. What are you going to be doing for the next three hours ?
At the time I was writing the manuscript for the first animated movie that I developed so I replied to the question - just sitting at my desk. Sure I would be working out later in the day but for most of this day I would be just typing. At best I would be getting up occassionally to refill my water bottle and stretch my legs. Little activity for my body.
It occurred to me that I would be better served assessing what my "needs" would be. So I realized that I would need a little energy for serving my body to function but mostly it was all about nutrients for the brain to function optimally.
I would need vitamins and minerals, some amino acids, some good fats but NOT need a lot of sugar laden energy. I wasn't going to be active so I didn't need to eat like an athlete. Had I just finished a workout there could be benefit but I hadn't so I needed to assess on a daily basis what was optimal for my functioning. Do not just grab the same option everyday if your day is different. THINK.
So what do I have. Here it is - recipe for Tony’s Energy Shake.
This is a great way to meet the goal of getting in nutrients and feeling energetic for up to three hours. I also take a vitamin / mineral complex and Omega 3 capsules.
Shake ingredients:
- 100ml of water
- 250ml (or 4oz) of low fat / no fat milk
- ½ cup of Blueberries (or any other berry you like)
- Two scoops of Whey Protein Powder to meet my 30-40g needs
(pick a brand whose taste YOU like. Vanilla can be mixed with any fruit for taste)
+
- I also add "greens" with a product called Kamut Powder. The ultimate wheatgrass juice from the ancient kamut plant, blended with other valuable cereal grasses like barley greens, oatgrass, and alfalfa. One serving is equal to one ounce of fresh wheatgrass juice. It is an organice product that I order from the U.S.
NOTE - Adding ice will increase the consistency and make it thicker if that is your preference.
There it is. Blend and Drink !
To be clear - telling me that by providing options you are answering what the public wants is not justification for giving them low quality products. I recall my mother telling my brothers, sisters and I that just because you want it doesn't mean you should have it as it may not be good for you. Equally you should also undertake a certain moral compass when you are dealing with other less informed people who rely on your integrity to be part of the selling process. But hey that might just be the way that I was brought up.
Your reply might be - sure that would work in a perfect world that wasn't driven by the almighty $$$ but even so, there comes a time when it should be just as much about your consumer, as it is about your stockholders.
TONY STEPS DOWN OFF HIS SOAPBOX. (well it is my Blog)
So do I consume cereal for breakfast.
No I don't consume anywhere near as much as I used to.
I used to eat a lot of it and recommend it to my clients but now I feel that I should be giving them as much assistance to decypher the "marketing hype" as I can.
For me it was a moment when something went off in my head that asked me this question. What are you going to be doing for the next three hours ?
At the time I was writing the manuscript for the first animated movie that I developed so I replied to the question - just sitting at my desk. Sure I would be working out later in the day but for most of this day I would be just typing. At best I would be getting up occassionally to refill my water bottle and stretch my legs. Little activity for my body.
It occurred to me that I would be better served assessing what my "needs" would be. So I realized that I would need a little energy for serving my body to function but mostly it was all about nutrients for the brain to function optimally.
I would need vitamins and minerals, some amino acids, some good fats but NOT need a lot of sugar laden energy. I wasn't going to be active so I didn't need to eat like an athlete. Had I just finished a workout there could be benefit but I hadn't so I needed to assess on a daily basis what was optimal for my functioning. Do not just grab the same option everyday if your day is different. THINK.
So what do I have. Here it is - recipe for Tony’s Energy Shake.
This is a great way to meet the goal of getting in nutrients and feeling energetic for up to three hours. I also take a vitamin / mineral complex and Omega 3 capsules.
Shake ingredients:
- 100ml of water
- 250ml (or 4oz) of low fat / no fat milk
- ½ cup of Blueberries (or any other berry you like)
- Two scoops of Whey Protein Powder to meet my 30-40g needs
(pick a brand whose taste YOU like. Vanilla can be mixed with any fruit for taste)
+
- I also add "greens" with a product called Kamut Powder. The ultimate wheatgrass juice from the ancient kamut plant, blended with other valuable cereal grasses like barley greens, oatgrass, and alfalfa. One serving is equal to one ounce of fresh wheatgrass juice. It is an organice product that I order from the U.S.
NOTE - Adding ice will increase the consistency and make it thicker if that is your preference.
There it is. Blend and Drink !
Friday 9th November - Who Hijacked Breakfast ?
The answer to this question shows us one of the greatest marketing coups of all time - the breakfast cereal companies.
Breakfast used to be about "breaking the fast" from sleeping and taking in food to start the day. Then over the years the new players (other companies) entering the cereal game started to take some market share away from the established food companies that had had a monopoly on this area for years.
In came the alternatives, the copy-cats, the healthier ones and now starting to get a piece of this action are the organic companies.
So the older more established and traditional companies had to begin to use more strategic methods and employ the best marketing minds to regain their profit share. That is really what breakfast is about to them. If you don't purchase and consume their product they don't make money.
And don't be fooled ITS ALL ABOUT MAKING MONEY.
They play on heart strings by telling mothers that research shows that children having breakfast are less likely to have trouble learning - This can be true but is not true when they product is laden with sugar and low quality nutrients as this can impact upon learning.
They play on the power of "want" by adding children's movie and TV identities on the outside of packets so that to stop the screaming war in public most mother's give in and are forced to purchase under pressure - This is not only unfair it is immoral. If your product needs a cartoon superhero to sell it's worth then it is likely to be filled with sugar.
They play on the male ego by getting sports heroes to promote their product and asking us how much of that product do you consume - Clever marketing as you try to consume more to "meet or beat the challenge issued by your hero".
They play on our guilt by telling us that it is low fat and with today's obesity crisis who isn't concerned by that - Again this can be true if it is not also calorie laden or filled with empty calories of sugar as most are.
The latest "breakthrough" is the use of WHOLEGRAINS.
This one annoys me the most.
Nearly all cereals start out as a whole grain but through the "manufacturing process" they remove the benefit for increased fibre which by the way can also lower the GI score (another benefit) and also improve bowel health. So to compete with the lastest research pointing out the benefit of having it included they are now adding it back to counter their competitors who have only ever had the natural product.
Compounding this annoying fact is that they are also not removing the original lower quality product that they have "now improved" but sit it right there alongside each other.
Breakfast should be about taking in quality nutrients to meet your next few hours expediture needs. Notice I never said daily needs because you are going to be having another refuelling stop in a few hours. Most people consume enough total calories in this first setting then go and reduce their levels of activity which means that most of that nutrient intake is stockpiled.
This is another part of OUR obesity problem.
Eating too much and then doing too little.
Think about what you consume for breakfast and which marketing genius' idea for his employer did you buy into, to add to the food company's bottom line (profits). Instead let's start to remove a little off our bottom (line).
Eat Less and Move More !!
Breakfast used to be about "breaking the fast" from sleeping and taking in food to start the day. Then over the years the new players (other companies) entering the cereal game started to take some market share away from the established food companies that had had a monopoly on this area for years.
In came the alternatives, the copy-cats, the healthier ones and now starting to get a piece of this action are the organic companies.
So the older more established and traditional companies had to begin to use more strategic methods and employ the best marketing minds to regain their profit share. That is really what breakfast is about to them. If you don't purchase and consume their product they don't make money.
And don't be fooled ITS ALL ABOUT MAKING MONEY.
They play on heart strings by telling mothers that research shows that children having breakfast are less likely to have trouble learning - This can be true but is not true when they product is laden with sugar and low quality nutrients as this can impact upon learning.
They play on the power of "want" by adding children's movie and TV identities on the outside of packets so that to stop the screaming war in public most mother's give in and are forced to purchase under pressure - This is not only unfair it is immoral. If your product needs a cartoon superhero to sell it's worth then it is likely to be filled with sugar.
They play on the male ego by getting sports heroes to promote their product and asking us how much of that product do you consume - Clever marketing as you try to consume more to "meet or beat the challenge issued by your hero".
They play on our guilt by telling us that it is low fat and with today's obesity crisis who isn't concerned by that - Again this can be true if it is not also calorie laden or filled with empty calories of sugar as most are.
The latest "breakthrough" is the use of WHOLEGRAINS.
This one annoys me the most.
Nearly all cereals start out as a whole grain but through the "manufacturing process" they remove the benefit for increased fibre which by the way can also lower the GI score (another benefit) and also improve bowel health. So to compete with the lastest research pointing out the benefit of having it included they are now adding it back to counter their competitors who have only ever had the natural product.
Compounding this annoying fact is that they are also not removing the original lower quality product that they have "now improved" but sit it right there alongside each other.
Breakfast should be about taking in quality nutrients to meet your next few hours expediture needs. Notice I never said daily needs because you are going to be having another refuelling stop in a few hours. Most people consume enough total calories in this first setting then go and reduce their levels of activity which means that most of that nutrient intake is stockpiled.
This is another part of OUR obesity problem.
Eating too much and then doing too little.
Think about what you consume for breakfast and which marketing genius' idea for his employer did you buy into, to add to the food company's bottom line (profits). Instead let's start to remove a little off our bottom (line).
Eat Less and Move More !!
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Thursday 8th November - Thoughts for YOU
I have looked at these on the wall of my office for the last few months and decided that they are more powerful when they are shared. They came from Mother Theresa.
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centred.
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful you will win some false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat on you.
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight.
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough.
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the end, it is between you and God;
it was never between you and them anyway.
People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centred.
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives.
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful you will win some false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat on you.
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight.
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous.
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough.
Give the world the best you've got anyway.
You see, in the end, it is between you and God;
it was never between you and them anyway.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Wednesday 7th November - Supplements = Good or Bad ?
There appears to be more questions / confusion over this point than seems to make sense. I do understand that with OBESITY raging out of control everyone is looking "for an edge". However I find that most people are looking for a quick fix or a way to cut corners.
To be healthy and lean (in a good way) there are NO SHORTCUTS !
I think of people taking supplements of any kind APART FROM A DAILY MULTI VITAMIN / MINERAL combination whose eating habits are poor and activity levels are low as taking part in the weekly Lotto draw. You might win but it's more likely you will just waste your money.
So are they any good ? Like most things in life they can be. I rate them as being of assistance for what I term nutritional support IF and I say IF - YOU DO WHAT IS REQUIRED FOR OPTIMIZING YOUR HEALTH GOALS of eating well and being active. Sure this seems like less fun and more hard work to most people which is why we have this obesity crisis.
Now supplement companies are smart. They know that you will believe what they tell you in their promotions. I want you to take a look at the next advertising campaign that you see and you say to yourself "wow, I want to have abs / or a butt like that person" then look through the magazine and see if that "person" is also recommending any other product. You will probably find they have been enlisted to promote multiple products from a companies range.
Look at the "fitness model" or "elite level athlete" that you admire, as this is their normal profession and ask yourself these questions.
1. Do you have the same lifestyle as this person ?
2. Do you have the same activity levels as this person ?
3. Do you think that this is the only product they are promoting ?
4. Do you think that if you take this product you will look like them ?
If you answered NO to any part of that little survey then the chances of getting that same result from that product is slim. If you think it will give you the same result you should rush right out and buy lotto tickets.
Now what would I recommend for the average person that has no pre-existing health conditions ?
I have been involved fitness for over 20+ years and so have developed this list from what I have learned over those many years of personal research and also through consultation with other subject matter experts.
THE A TEAM.
A. Eating Clean: There is nothing higher on my list than having great eating habits. With preventable diseases running out of control we need to being to protect our "cells". This has been a lession that I have had to modify with new research as the benefit of macro-nutrients vs micro-nutrients has changed. Which is why I developed the evolutionary eating plan titled "RAINBOW NUTRIENT REFUELLING". If you are not eating clean you could be wasting your money on supplements. School is in and the lessons start here!
B. Multi-vitamin & mineral: My number 1 on the charts with a bullet (means gaining value everyday). The more I learn the more I place a high value on ensuring that you get all your vitamins & minerals. Double this need when are being active (or breathing in today's pollution levels - bottom line get yourself a good one).
C. Protein powder (Whey): My number 2 and staying steady. Getting the necessary intake of protein through eating foods is difficult (contrary to what "experts" say about the amount we need - ask to see their abs). Taking it in powdered make it much easier. Powders seem to be absorbed faster by the body making them ideal after workouts or after sleep (start the day with my Energy Shake - recipe tomorrow).
D. Water: My other personal favourite. So little value is given to this essential element of your body that like the term "health" it is taken for granted that we will be getting enough. I find that most people all over the world are guilty of over-estimating and under-consuming "enough" water. Get 8 glasses every day. More is required on days that you are active.
E. Omega 3 (good fat): This little favourite is starting to make a big comeback. After dropping off the charts in the nineties when we all became fat phobic and carb paranoid there is more and more research to indicate that for brain health in later life this one is a good strategic partner. There is also some research that this could be beneficial for children to cope with developmental and behavioural issues. Pictures at 11.
THE B TEAM.
The more specialized supplements for very active individuals.
(Note I said very active individuals):
A. Creatine: This is definitely for those that are doing harder workouts. It can assist workout recovery as well as increasing muscle size as it increases the water held inside the muscle cell.
B. Amino Acid support with L-glutamine: This has been shown to be an effective nutrient for supporting the immune system and aids in muscle recovery.
C. Fat Loss Thermogenics: Can be harmful if you are taking medications. These are making a huge amount of money for companies by getting promoted heavily in print media with before and after shots. You see them less on TV as the advertising guidelines are stricter. Proven research has them at about a "possible" rating although they will have little to know benefit if you are eating bad. Save your money on them for your next SuperSize meal if you think they will solve your bodyfat issues as you chow down on fast food.
To be healthy and lean (in a good way) there are NO SHORTCUTS !
I think of people taking supplements of any kind APART FROM A DAILY MULTI VITAMIN / MINERAL combination whose eating habits are poor and activity levels are low as taking part in the weekly Lotto draw. You might win but it's more likely you will just waste your money.
So are they any good ? Like most things in life they can be. I rate them as being of assistance for what I term nutritional support IF and I say IF - YOU DO WHAT IS REQUIRED FOR OPTIMIZING YOUR HEALTH GOALS of eating well and being active. Sure this seems like less fun and more hard work to most people which is why we have this obesity crisis.
Now supplement companies are smart. They know that you will believe what they tell you in their promotions. I want you to take a look at the next advertising campaign that you see and you say to yourself "wow, I want to have abs / or a butt like that person" then look through the magazine and see if that "person" is also recommending any other product. You will probably find they have been enlisted to promote multiple products from a companies range.
Look at the "fitness model" or "elite level athlete" that you admire, as this is their normal profession and ask yourself these questions.
1. Do you have the same lifestyle as this person ?
2. Do you have the same activity levels as this person ?
3. Do you think that this is the only product they are promoting ?
4. Do you think that if you take this product you will look like them ?
If you answered NO to any part of that little survey then the chances of getting that same result from that product is slim. If you think it will give you the same result you should rush right out and buy lotto tickets.
Now what would I recommend for the average person that has no pre-existing health conditions ?
I have been involved fitness for over 20+ years and so have developed this list from what I have learned over those many years of personal research and also through consultation with other subject matter experts.
THE A TEAM.
A. Eating Clean: There is nothing higher on my list than having great eating habits. With preventable diseases running out of control we need to being to protect our "cells". This has been a lession that I have had to modify with new research as the benefit of macro-nutrients vs micro-nutrients has changed. Which is why I developed the evolutionary eating plan titled "RAINBOW NUTRIENT REFUELLING". If you are not eating clean you could be wasting your money on supplements. School is in and the lessons start here!
B. Multi-vitamin & mineral: My number 1 on the charts with a bullet (means gaining value everyday). The more I learn the more I place a high value on ensuring that you get all your vitamins & minerals. Double this need when are being active (or breathing in today's pollution levels - bottom line get yourself a good one).
C. Protein powder (Whey): My number 2 and staying steady. Getting the necessary intake of protein through eating foods is difficult (contrary to what "experts" say about the amount we need - ask to see their abs). Taking it in powdered make it much easier. Powders seem to be absorbed faster by the body making them ideal after workouts or after sleep (start the day with my Energy Shake - recipe tomorrow).
D. Water: My other personal favourite. So little value is given to this essential element of your body that like the term "health" it is taken for granted that we will be getting enough. I find that most people all over the world are guilty of over-estimating and under-consuming "enough" water. Get 8 glasses every day. More is required on days that you are active.
E. Omega 3 (good fat): This little favourite is starting to make a big comeback. After dropping off the charts in the nineties when we all became fat phobic and carb paranoid there is more and more research to indicate that for brain health in later life this one is a good strategic partner. There is also some research that this could be beneficial for children to cope with developmental and behavioural issues. Pictures at 11.
THE B TEAM.
The more specialized supplements for very active individuals.
(Note I said very active individuals):
A. Creatine: This is definitely for those that are doing harder workouts. It can assist workout recovery as well as increasing muscle size as it increases the water held inside the muscle cell.
B. Amino Acid support with L-glutamine: This has been shown to be an effective nutrient for supporting the immune system and aids in muscle recovery.
C. Fat Loss Thermogenics: Can be harmful if you are taking medications. These are making a huge amount of money for companies by getting promoted heavily in print media with before and after shots. You see them less on TV as the advertising guidelines are stricter. Proven research has them at about a "possible" rating although they will have little to know benefit if you are eating bad. Save your money on them for your next SuperSize meal if you think they will solve your bodyfat issues as you chow down on fast food.
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