Powerful Foods

If you ask a random health enthusiast what the most important part of being healthy is, most people will likely tell you that it's diet. A solid diet means your body has the fuel it needs and also the chemicals or the precursors to chemicals needed to filter out and get rid of toxic metabolites that are produced from cellular metabolism, a fancy word for the 'work' that an organism does, both seen and unseen.

This won't be a long post, I just want to share with you a few of the things I've found help me to be the best man I can be.

Eggs are probably top on my list. They make an excellent breakfast and if you pair this with a little fish, it's a powerhouse combination that delivers healthy fats and oils that the body can use in many important ways such as building cell walls, producing hormones like Testosterone, and building brain tissue. Eggs also contain Acetylcholine so they are great for brain functioning. I like to buy eggs that are from chickens that are free range and fed an organic diet. It's only $1-2 more per dozen eggs and I feel that it makes a big difference both in flavor and in nutrient density.

Another staple of my diet is chicken. Chicken is a good source of protein and not as expensive as some other meats like Beef. I like to cook my chicken slowly on a low heat setting (3-4) on the stove in a frying pan with the lid on. The lid helps trap the steam and cook the meat throughout in a way that I feel makes the meat more tender and juicy. I like to cook the chicken in Coconut fat.

For snacks, I often eat a banana or sometimes have a few handfuls of peanuts. Bananas are a good source of fiber and about 100 calories each so they provide energy but not so much that you need to worry about how many you eat.

And of course, water. Water isn't a food of course but I think it fits in the category of diet because it makes such a difference in how our food is digested and delivered deep into our body's cells. It's important to have a good clean water source. This is especially important because having access to drinking water that you enjoy the taste of means that you'll probably drink more of it: a good thing. While I don't enjoy the plastic waste involved, I have been buying Spring Water in gallon bottles from the grocery store and using that primarily as my water source. I know at least in my city, there have been increased levels of Nitrates in the water, even to the point that they've had to turn on a very expensive filtration system to filter my city's water supply. These nitrates come chemicals that farmers apply to their fields and then they drain into creeks which drain into rivers...

Anyway, I hope you've enjoyed my post. There are many different kinds of foods but when a person is trying to improve their diet, sometimes it helps a lot to keep things simple. Start off with a few key foods and just form habits around them. Make it like a personal ritual. I promise that you'll begin feeling different and seeing the results of putting healthy food in your stomach.

I'd love for you to share your personal strategies for health and what some of your favorite staple health foods are! Share in the comments below!

Seriously, Drink more water!

Water is really important to a fully functioning body and brain

We can get by pretty well with very little water. Depending on what your definition of "well" is. But tipping back a large bottle of water (I like to use a 46 oz. juice bottle that has had the juice drank already) can be very beneficial.

Try drinking a Liter or so as soon as you rise in the morning.

How much water should we drink daily? 1.5-2 Liters per day.

Now that might sound like a lot but it really doesn't have to be that daunting. If you make sure your properly interpret your body's signals for water and food, you will sometimes notice that no matter how many snack foods you eat, your body still feels an urge to consume something. That thing which your body probably wants to consume is...you guessed it: WATER!

Water, aqua, H2O...this clear fluid...this solvent...is basically like the chemical compound that makes life possible. If all we had was our body but no water, guess what...nothing would work...we'd be completely dead! And I don't just mean we'd lack a heartbeat or a brainwave pattern! I mean to say that all of the complex chemical reactions that take place within the cells of living organisms would never work properly!!

Water is important as a medium to deliver nutrients to cells, to wash them clean of their metabolized waste matter, to buffer the body and cells from pH changes and chemical irritants/toxins.

Water is the essence of all life.

I guarantee you will feel more alert and ready to fulfill the goals you have planned out for the day...or if you have none decided currently...perhaps getting properly hydrated will help you think clearly enough to decide what you want to do with your day.

Cheers to great health and full Hydration!!
Remember, 1.5-2 Liters of Water per day...

The extreme importance of Hydration

Our body's signal of thirst is almost indistinguishable from hunger so it is important to make sure that we are providing what our body really wants. When you think you want a soda or a donut or a slice of cake or a candy bar or whatever you think you're craving...try drinking some mildly cold water and see if that does the trick.

In fact, check out these warning signs of dehydration:

Yellow Urine

Infrequent Urination

Headaches

Dry Skin

Dry Mouth

Dizziness

Fatigue

Muscle Soreness

You should drink at least 6-8 Cups of Water per Day if not more!

Try drinking 2 quarts of Water first thing in the morning to rehydrate your body after sleeping and help flush your digestive tract. You may try adding a bit of salt to replenish your electrolytes and have a banana for the potassium.

Some hydrating fresh produce are tomatoes, cucumbers, apples, oranges, grapes, strawberries, watermelons, cantelopes, and coconut water.

Water is absolutely essential for you to properly digest and utilize your food! And when you workout, especially cardiovascular exercises like walking, jogging, and running...you help increase the circulation of your fluids and this helps detoxify and replenish and feed your cells.

Proper Hydration and Exercise are very synergistic to each other. The one greatly amplifies the benefits of the other.

Here are some other problems of chronic dehydration:
13 Symptoms of Chronic Dehydration

There's an APP for that! Track how much Water you're drinking on your Android:
Waterbalance App for Android

Don't sweat it! Well...you know what I mean!

Peace...

What should we Eat and When should we Eat it?

Food is a seemingly simple thing. And yet pop culture is full of fad diets that go in and out of favor and battle for superiority. Some people swear by the Atkin's. Some people think you should avoid all Cholesterol like it's a deadly flesh eating bacteria. Some tout the claims of Superfoods and bottled supplements as a miracle. Some think all diets are ridiculous.

The one thing in common with the majority of these points of view is that there is a mysterious lack of perspective and Scientific data to truly back up claims and support their viewpoint. Well, I assure you, I have looked into the Scientific literature over a period of a couple of years now and although I'm still working towards a deeper perspective and more refined view of optimal health standards, I am pretty sure I am on the right track. I am always willing to course correct though.

This post will be about some simple guidelines I think we should follow if we want to get variety and easily digestible meals.



Firstly, we must ask ourselves what main "food groups" we should eat from. I'm not talking about the groups in the pyramid yet. I'm starting one level of abstraction higher than that even. I'm talking about the basic 3...Carbohydrates, Fats, and Proteins.

We've all heard of these. Carbohydrates are complex sugars which are sources of fuel for our cells. They constantly get broken down into Glucose (blood sugar) in the bloodstream and used to energize the metabolism of our cells. We all know that it's best to avoid highly refined sources of sugar such as table sugar or drinks which contain many, many spoon fulls of the white crystals such as sodas, energy drinks, and fake "juices."

So where should we get our Carbohydrates? Fruits and Vegetables are a good source. Grains from Granola, Cereals, and Bread are OK sources although shouldn't be relied upon too heavily. Fruits do have a lot of sugar but they are also full of lots of Fiber which buffers the impact of sugar on the body and makes it easier for our body to absorb the sugar without mounting an emergency response and creating a huge spike in Insulin. These insulin spikes are very intense and not healthy for the body. It is best to keep as stable a blood sugar level throughout the day as reasonably possible.

Proteins are obviously important for the building of muscle and cellular machinery but the truth is that there are lots of sources of most Amino Acids besides just meat. A lot of people tend to think of meat as the main source of protein but really there is lots of protein in other foods. Nuts, seeds, fruits...there is often a lot of protein to be found...

It is important that we get all the different kinds of Protein that we need. The different kinds are called Amino Acids. The kinds we need from our diet are called Essential Amino Acids. I won't go into those in detail in this post but I will at a later date. The important thing to keep in mind is that you need a good variety of foods. I don't recommend eating the same thing or same couple of things every meal, for obvious reasons. (although I do recommend keeping each meal as simple as possible...in essence, food combining principles...again, I will get into that at a later date as well)

Now, for the evil Fats. LOL. This is definitely the most hated category. It makes sense due to the fact that this is the category that is most visible to the naked eye when we see someone who is clearly not healthy. Even though excess fat storage on the body is a common sign of bad health, this is not a very good reason to malign the entire food group.

In fact, Fats are extremely important for you Heart, Brain, Nerves, Cell Membranes, Skin, Liver, Blood Vessels, etc! Fats are insulators and in the body they protect our brain and nerves from interference. Fat also divides the inside of the cell from the intracellular fluid. Fat cushions soft, delicate tissues as well and can even do emergency healing in arteries and blood vessels if there is damage to the internal structure of the vessels. This is why arterial plaque (cholesterol) is often found in heart attack patients. But we need to keep in mind that "Correlation does not equal Causation!" Vitamin C deficiency is in fact often cited by many Scientists, including Linus Pauling, as a good predictor of heart disease. Vitamin C is an important Antioxidant that can protect against free radicals which often do the most damage to delicate organs like the heart, blood vessels, brain, and nerves. Fats and Antioxidants protect against this Free Radical damage which we absorb from our food, the environment, and even is produced naturally from metabolism.

What types of fats should we look for in our diet? Which should we avoid? Through my research, the main fats that I have learned to avoid are Hydrogenated oils such as Margarine. I recommend opting instead for real Butter from Cow Dairy.

I also recommend looking for Whole Milk from Grass Fed Cows in a Glass Bottle. The taste will be surprisingly different.

Good sources of Cholesterol are eggs.

Then there are the Omega 3 and 6 Fatty Acids. These are commonly recognized especially in the last decade or so and, as many know, they are common in Fish and Fish Oil Capsules.

Through my research, I have learned that the Standard American Diet (SAD) which is high in grains and meat and often way too low in fresh fruits and vegetables...is too high in Omega 6 and too low in Omega 3 Fatty Acids.

The recommendation is to move the ratio to a more optimal level where you are taking in more Omega 3 and less Omega 6. A good source of Omega 3 Fatty Acids is Flax Seed. You can add Flax Meal to yogurt, cereal, smoothies, etc. Or you can alternatively take Flax Oil in Capsule form or bulk oil form. A good way to ensure a healthy balance of Omega 3 and 6 is to eat fish at least once or twice per week and limit your grain and meat meals compared to fruit and vegetables.

The main problem with modern, industrialized countries (especially the United States) is that a lot of us go for the quickest meals we can possibly find including microwavable box dinners, quick oven boxed meals, takeout, fast food, quick stovetop meals, etc. Most of these things are not inherently bad but our over-reliance upon them is. When we don't make time to sit down and peel an orange or take a few bananas along with us to work or pack the kids' school lunches with an apple and some peaches...we are setting ourselves up for infections, sickness, tiredness, irritability, headaches, and nutritional deficiencies. The nutritional deficiencies are basically what causes all of the sicknesses. Disease mostly has to do with not eating the right stuff and less to do with eating the bad stuff. (although when we eat more of the good stuff, we usually have less room for the bad stuff...)



Now, for the big picture view of Carbs, Protein, and Fats. I subscribe to the 80/10/10 Diet which recommends about 80% of your Caloric daily intake as Carbs, 10% as Protein, and 10% as Fats.

A lot of people don't realize how much Protein is in nuts and seeds or meat so they inadvertently eat a lot more protein than they probably really needed that day. Same thing with fats. It's so easy to pack a lot more fats (especially the kinds we really should avoid) into our diet if we eat that donut or that cake, or that ice cream, or what have you...

Also, be careful where you are getting your Carbohydrates or Sugars from! If you are getting most of your Calories from Soda, you are doing it all wrong!! We've all done this. I have drank more pop in my lifetime that I can keep track of and it hasn't done me any good! I can guarantee you that! It's a quick fix to fatigue and it doesn't really last all that long anyway. It's not worth it. If you are low on energy, peel open a banana, an orange, bit into an apple, drink some 100% Fruit Juice, juice your own fruit, etc.

Do NOT give into the temptation of going to your local convenience store and filling up the 32oz. cup with your favorite mixture of highly sweetened, carbonated syrup and water! You will only be satiated for a little while and then you will get thirst for some more! This is not a sustainable way to drink/eat...

Also, if you get the urge for a soda, there's a good chance that what your body is truly craving is a big glass of mildly cold water. BTW, it is a great idea to down a quart or two of water early in your morning routine. You may want to consider adding a small amount of salt to it as well in order to prevent having too low of salt in your body.

Anyway, I commend you for making it this far and I hope that I haven't made you fall asleep!

One last recommendation real quick:
Try to eat most of your heavier meals (high in carbs) earlier in the day and have lighter meals in the evening. Try to have more of your fats especially at night. Maybe a nice large salad with olive oil and some tomatoes perhaps for your Supper meal! Also, you can always have a banana anytime!

Bananas are great for any snack and having a three or four of them can even be pretty filling! They are only approximately 110 Calories each and are rich in Fiber, Potassium, and Tryptophan which is a precursor to Melatonin. The Potassium can prevent leg cramping and is an electrolyte which helps rehydrate so athletes and runners often eat bananas quite often.

The reason you should eat more of your Carbs earlier in the day and eat lighter, less energy-dense meals towards the evening is so that digestion is easier and you don't get hopped up with a whole bunch of energy just when your body should be going to sleep!

So, I hope I gave you a taste of what I have been learning.

Peace! Happy Easter.