FAT ON FIRE: EFFECTS OF EXERCISE, NUTRITION AND STRESS.

Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

And where there’s fire there’s a raging body-fat burning inferno with your name on it.

You can’t start a fire without three things:  fuel, oxygen and heat.

You also cannot start a body fat burning fire without three things being in order in your life:  exercise, nutrition and stress management.

I have three very specific case-studies of current / past clients who showed a great deal of progress in a short amount of time, simply by diligently doing those three things.

Horace M. – male, 60 years of age – he came to me to begin training 6 weeks before he was supposed to make a hiking trek to the top of Mt. Rainier.  I prescribed 3 days per week of weight training and 5 days per week of stair climbing at the Doak Campbell Stadium at Florida State University.  He cleaned up his eating habits and already was in a place of being a very easy-going, low-stress guy.  He dropped 15 pounds in 6 weeks.  The backpack he was to carry was to be in the neighborhood of 45 pounds.  That’s a net difference of really only being an additional 30 pounds he had to carry.  He made it to the top with his 21 year old son who was a punter for FSU at the time.

Paola G. – female, 40 years of age – for 3 months, she had a bit of a rough time getting started with her exercise routine, not the least of which was due to being busy over the holidays, stress at home and a fast-paced work environment.  She started her exercise plan in October and up unto the point where the holidays kept her from exercise for two weeks, she had lost seventeen pounds — 7 of which she put back on during that lapse.  She started exercising again in January to moderate results.  After a request to meet with me for a follow-up, and after about an hour discussion about various things including nutrition, exercise and such, we determined that her home-life was causing a great deal of stress in her life.  We talked through some things and I suggested she take a look at Meetup.com to find some activities with some people that have similar interests.  6 weeks later when our paths crossed again, I could tell that she had lost another 10-15 pounds – I wasn’t in a place where I could get an accurate number from her, but she was/is definitely shaping up well.

Allyson G. – female, 29 years of age – like Paola, she had some starts and stops for about 3 months as well when it came to getting her routine underway.  Work was stressful and although she was exercising, she wasn’t seeing a great deal of progress.  But she stayed on it.  When things leveled out at work (aka, when the work-related stress subsided a bit), she buckled back down on her exercise (a combination of indoor and outdoor cardio and resistance training) and with the accountability of Weight Watchers, she was down 12.6 and then 26.2 pounds at two meetings that we had to discuss her progress (each about 6 weeks apart) after our initial set-up of her exercise plan at the beginning of January.  After seeing her in passing last week, she is down 30+ pounds since the beginning of 2011.

I’ve been working with another gal, Laura, who is 30 and definitely getting stronger but feels like her shape isn’t changing too much after almost 6 weeks.  She raised this concern with me and after a brief discussion (she eats fairly decently and exercises 6 days a week), it seems that outside stress is sabotaging her progress.

This composition has mainly taken a turn toward being about stress, even though I indicated that it takes all three things to have a balanced approach to wellness and weight-loss.  Though, I suppose that was a natural course in which this article would flow, because stress is perhaps a less-discussed part of the wellness continuum.

EVERYONE knows that if you eat poorly, it will reflect in poor body shape, and a litany of other health-issues aside from just excess body fat.

EVERYONE knows (even if they’re not willing to admit it) that exercise (cardiovascular, resistance training) are going to assist with general wellness, weight management and a feeling of well-being.

Even in Los Angeles, which is rated the #1 Most Stressed Out City in America, many don’t consider that their stress / stress-management may be torpedoing their exercise goals without even realizing it.

In Laura’s instance (and the other two for that matter), they indicated that coming to the gym for exercise was a big step in helping reduce stress and that is absolutely correct.  You’re all right on target ladies, and we haven’t even gotten into any discussions about hyper-thyroidism (which can lead to major weight gain due more to hormonal imbalance) because it wasn’t applicable in these cases.  But, how we deal with stress as it presents itself during the day on a day to day basis is enormously key in helping keep our cortisol levels under control and generally aiding in a feeling of well-being.

And know that not all stress is bad, or at least, the way your body is designed to respond to certain stress is not necessarily bad.  Cortisol is a stress hormone that has numerous benefits, including:

• A quick energy burst for survival reasons
• Heightened memory function
• Increased immunity
• Lowering pain sensitivity
• Homeostasis maintenance in the body

Though, it’s important that the body’s relaxation response be activated so the body functions can return to normal following a stressful event.

Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in the bloodstream (such as those associated with chronic stress) have been shown to have negative effects, such as:

• Cognitive performance impairment
• Thyroid function suppression
• Blood sugar imbalances — hyperglycemia
• Decrease in bone density and muscle tissue
• Higher blood pressure
• Lowered immunity / inflammatory responses in the body, slowed wound healing, other health consequences
• Increased abdominal fat. Abdominal fat is associated with a greater amount of health problems than fat deposited in other areas of the body. Some of the health problems associated with increased stomach fat are heart attacks, strokes, the development of metabolic syndrome, higher levels of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and lower levels of “good” cholesterol (HDL).

To keep cortisol levels healthy and under control, your body’s relaxation response should be activated after the fight or flight response occurs. Learn to relax your body with various stress management techniques, and make lifestyle changes in order to keep your body from reacting to stress in the first place.

Cortisol secretion varies among individuals. One person may secrete higher levels of cortisol than another in the same situation. Studies have shown that people who secrete higher levels of cortisol in response to stress also tend to eat more food, that food being higher in carbohydrates than people who secrete less cortisol.

So, the takeaway…

Do we roll with the punches (indeed there are many in life and sometimes they are punches in the face with fitness) and keep on trucking?

Do we let things roll off so that we don’t hold onto unnecessary burdens?

Easier said than done right?

Yep.

But you have to find a way.  You MUST find a way.  There is NO other way.  YOU have to find what works for YOU.

In each of the 3 success stories above, they found what worked for them.  And what worked for them was NOT by purchasing an over-the-counter cortisol reducing supplement (which only treats the symptom and not the cause of the problem) but by balancing their life.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

FEEDING THE CYCLIST.

by Skylar Nelson, Nutritionist

The most important nutritional need for cyclists is energy. The more intense, the longer the ride, the larger the total energy expended. It has been estimated that professional cyclist need to consume between 3,000 to 7,000 calories per day. The typical sedentary, normal weight human being consumes between 1,400 to 2,800 calories per day. This wide range only highlights the need and importance of individual assessment, but estimating energy your needs in daily practice simply requires satisfying your appetite and monitoring your weight. Not meeting your energy needs will lead to decreased performance, chronic fatigue, and weight loss.

The nutrient that is most important for cyclists and is the primary fuel for muscle contraction is, carbohydrate. The energy from carbohydrates is released 3 times faster than the energy from fat in exercising muscles. But the body only stores a limited amount of carbohydrate in the muscle called glycogen. When glycogen stores are depleted the level of training and racing diminishes and the cyclist will experience fatigue.

In order to accomplish daily glycogen repletion it is important to consume a substantial amount of carbohydrate—approximately 60 percent of your total daily caloric intake. For most cyclists this amounts to 500 to 600 grams of carbohydrate or 2,000 to 2,400 calories per day. Feeding and fueling a cyclist means consuming large amounts of carbohydrate foods. Always remember to consume a variety of different carbohydrate foods and to consume several smaller meals throughout the day. This will ensure that the carbohydrates are digested and absorbed properly for maximum energy utilization and minimal recovery time.

Recent research suggests that additional dietary protein may be beneficial to endurance athletes. The added protein may be necessary to repair damaged muscle tissue and to provide an alternate fuel source during long-term training.

Fortunately for most cyclists, major changes in diet are not necessary. If you consume 10 to 20 percent of your diet in protein, which most people do, your intake will be adequate. Remember to include high protein foods like low-fat milk, yogurt, lean meat, poultry, fish, eggs, beans, and lentils.

While it is true that cycling stimulates changes that increase your body’s ability to utilize fat as an energy source, there is no need to supplement. The recommended intake for healthy and active individuals is 20 to 25 percent fat. Adequate fat intake can be achieved by consuming a diet containing whole grains, dairy products, fish, and lean meats. Remember that fat aids in providing energy, helps to store and use fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K), and is essential to the movement of nutrients in and out of cells.

Most nutrition researchers and sports nutritionists and dietitians agree that the optimal ‘athletes’ diet contains 60 percent carbohydrate, 15 to 20 percent protein, and 20 to 25 percent fat. There are mountains of research and data to validate this recommendation. Experts also recommend the consumption of carbohydrate before and during exercise to improve performance, and the consumption after exercise to replenish glycogen stores and thus reduce recovery time.

Most people don’t think of water as a nutrient, but it may be the most critical part of a cyclists diet. Approximately 60 to 70 percent of the average person’s body weight is water, and it is lost in many ways. Through breathing, urinating, and sweating, the typical human being can lose up to 1 liter of water per day. Cycling in hot weather can easily double or triple that amount of water loss. Insufficient fluid intake and small changes in fluid levels will lead to fatigue and decreased performance. Even losing 2 to 3 percent of body fluid through sweat (3 to 4 pounds in a 150 pound person) will decrease cycling performance by 5 percent. Losing 4 to 6 percent of body fluid, and the cyclist risks cramps, heat exhaustion, heatstroke, and possible death.

It is best to drink 2 to 3 cups of water before exercise and to drink often during exercise. Also, remember to include a fluid source that contains carbohydrate to help supple vital energy to your muscles.

Have a strong day, cyclists.

 

Skylar is a MS in Nutritional Science Candidate from Cal State University-Los Angeles as well as a Registered Dietician candidate.  He has been a dietetic Intern at the following locations: St. Johns Health Center, Santa Monica, CA; Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA; Ketchum-Downtown YMCA, Los Angeles, CA.

Skylar is a former soccer player with college and professional playing experience. He currently competes in triathlons, road cycling races and various running events. His interests include helping both regular individuals and athletes with eating right and choosing the best foods for a healthy lifestyle, increased energy and overall well-being.

Contact me for nutrition plans / counseling and take the next step in your Strong Day TotalStrength® plan.

Please use “Strong Day Nutrition” as the subject of your email.

As professionals, we will keep your information completely CONFIDENTIAL.  We do not sell or rent client information to any third parties.  We do not disclose personal identifying information as tied to successful case studies that we might use as a reference for new inquiries unless explicit written permission is given.

THE WORKOUT: SMOKING GUN.

CrossFit 110117 – “Smoking Gun”

Warm up (3 rounds):

200m row/150m run
20 jumping jacks
10 mountain climbers
10 squats
5 bar power clean/5 bar clean and jerk
Bear Crawl

Skill: Mobility

WOD “Smoking Gun” (7 rounds):

4 burpee deadlifts
3 burpee power cleans
2 burpee squat cleans
1 burpee squat clean and jerks

15:00 cap

Are you ready to get punched in the face with fitness?  Yeah.  This one just might do it.  I’m going to give it a go this week.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

FEARFUL AND WONDERFUL SYNERGY.

I am fearfully and wonderfully made; […] I know that full well.

We are all fearfully, wonderfully and naturally made.

Every cell in your body is connected to nature’s God.  Every cell is crying out to be exercised, worked, used, fed, regenerated and given thanks for.  Every existing cell in your body will be replaced with a new one within 5-7 years. Will the NEW cells be added to a foundation of muck and mush and created from nutritionless “food?” Will your health and wellness be a house of cards set up to collapse under the weight of not having prepared for the future by preparing your finances, family and faith?

Or will the new cells – the new YOU – be constantly built and rebuilt on a foundation that is stronger and stronger?  A foundation of holistic bricks that addresses all areas of your life.  You are NOT engineered to fade away and weaken until the day you take your last breath. You ARE engineered to keep a strong metabolism and outlook until the day you are called home.  GIVE YOUR NEW CELLS A REASON TO LIVE and your life will change.

Every cell in the lining of your GI tract is regenerated every 48 HOURS! If things “hang around in there” by not eating enough healthy foods and fibers, the likelihood that it will poison you from the inside out IS NOT A LIKELIHOOD, IT IS A DEFINITE CERTAINTY!

Truly, quite literally and figuratively, you are not the same person you were 5 years ago. New cells are there to replace the old. New experiences come to pass to bring wisdom and insight. Even the delicate valleys and crests in the shape of YOUR brain are unique as YOUR thoughts and experiences cause the shape of your “grey matter” to change over time.

The farther you go from man-made, chemical laden, artificially colored / flavored / sweetened waters, drinks, foods and personal care products, the closer you will grow to strength and success.  Everyone’s target for personal best health is different, but it doesn’t have to be a moving target.

As you train, you have probably noticed that you’ve had good days and bad days. I would wager that you could trace some of your bad days to poor “fuel” – an order of fries snuck here and there, too little water being consumed, too few vegetables in your diet, etc. I know that I can notice a clear difference in my own performance when I do those things.

I began changing my cheat day from Sunday to Saturday because I was noticing a HUGE lag in my body responding during my Monday workouts after having eaten not as well as usual on a Sunday. So when my cheat day was on Saturday, I’ve had another full day (Sunday) to replenish my body with good things so that I don’t miss a beat when Monday / early week workouts come.  Nowadays, I don’t have a cheat day necessarily, it is oftentimes just a cheat meal, which makes even less of an impact on my workouts, but I digress.

Of course we all need our down time to relax our eating habits for a bit, but remember how you perform with both good and bad foods and plan for it. Remember the old saying “garbage in, garbage out.” You will be amazing for your exercise or for events in which you may be competing if you put good things in. And your outcome will be amazing even when compared only to yourself.  It doesn’t matter what times others log, it only matters that you compare yourself to… yourself.  A race begun — for someone who has never taken this step before — is already a race won.

As you change your body, you WILL change your life. THERE IS NO OTHER OPTION.  It is a universal truth. Adversity will come, but you will be stronger because of it.

Be well and give thanks for every step and breath you take for they are the best gifts.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

“RESTLESS LEG SYNDROME”: WHAT POSSIBLE PHARMACEUTICAL INSANITY COULD BE NEXT?

Restless Leg Syndrome.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.

WTF.

This is like someone claiming they have: “Post Workout Exhaustion Disorder”

Patient: “Doc, I just worked out and now I’m SO TIRED! What could be the problem??”
Doctor: “You’re an idiot.”

What’s next after Restless Leg Syndrome, “Twitching Eyelid Disease?”

“Doc, Doc! My eyelid was doing this funny thing where it moves up and down at will??! WHat COUld IT be!??”

“Well my trusty patient who has kept me in business for far too long with insane pharmaceutical purchases, it could be that your eyelid is doing this thing that it does to keep dirt and debris out of the eye and keep the eye moist. This procedure is also known as blinking. I know, its scary. But there will be a new drug out soon to treat it. A new drug that will cause you to lose all bowel control at an inopportune time in public, it could cause dry mouth, wet skin, stomach cramps, menstrual bleeding in men, nipples that stay erect for longer than three hours for women (please see a doctor immediately in this case as this could be the sign of a problem), it could cause your hair to start growing inward toward your brain thus causing you to be bald AND brain dead and in a vegetable-like state within 3 weeks of taking the aforementioned drug – but nevermind those side-effects because, my trusty patient, your eyelid WILL – STOP – BLINKING. Even if you will no longer be alive, it will – stop – blinking. They are developing a logo and a brand and a drug and a t-shirt and a theme song and hiring Tom Skerritt (yes, the guy from Top Gun because he probably has restless legs since he hasn’t done anything to speak of since Top Gun. hm. well i guess he DID do steel magnolias…) to be the spokesman, and hell, while they’re at it they’re going to come up with a catchy tag line. Maybe something like: Try our drug “Blink Free.” ‘Blink Free: For when you want to be free from blinking.’ Because Everyone knows that people who F’ing blink too much are guilty.”

For the love. of. god. Did you see the early TV commercials about “Restless Leg Syndrome?” What kind of asinine, inane B.S. is being perpetrated on us now? And of course, there is a DRUG to fix it. You can sleep better tonight now. Right? You can sleep better knowing that just as quickly as they can develop and have new drugs approved that they can make up a new disease for it to treat?

Yes. I said make up a new drug and THEN define the disease that it treats. Not, find a disease and then develop a drug to treat it. Why wait for a disease to treat when they can simply prey on our already weak, overmarketed-to populace with another drug that we can go request from our doctors.

Restless Leg Syndrome. Let’s examine what this means etymologically word for word. No. Actually, lets call it what it is. Lies. Stupidity. Misconception. Misleading. Insanity. Ridiculous. What horse’s a$$ came up with this. Restless Leg Syndrome is your legs’ way of saying to your body and brain “You suck. Move around.”

Restless Leg Syndrome. Another “syndrome” that can have a nice logo and brand created for it and then develop a foundation to collect money for drug research WHEN THE ONLY THING NEEDED IS FOR THESE PEOPLE TO GET OFF OF THEIR A$$ AND STOP B*TCHING ABOUT RESTLESS LEGS.

Restless leg syndrome. Sounds like an SNL skit. Or even one of those fake commercials that they play – generally after the SNL monologue where they play a complete farce of a commercial for some ridiculous pointless product.

Somewhere, somehow there is a pointless person receiving a pointless salary for a pointless job and a pointless medical “syndrome” (which is what they call anything that can’t be defined) and answering the phone “Restless Leg Foundation. How can we help you on the road to recovery?”

And the RLS logo which looks somewhat like the sun? The sun you haven’t seen because you have been sitting on your lazy a$$ and haven’t actually seen the sun in recent history because we’re also now terrified that the sun is going to vaporize us in a puff of cancerous smoke if we leave the house, when in actuality, ALL LIFE COMES FROM THE SUN. Yes, its still up there and shining away. Waiting for you to come visit. But the logo is there to remind you what it looks like since you apparently haven’t done anything to enjoy it. The marketing genius behind this “Well, our victims probably don’t know what the hell the sun looks like anymore. Let’s remind them. It’s a new day.”

AND GUESS WHAT! THERE IS A FOUNDATION FOR THIS! OF COURSE! BECAUSE WHERE ELSE WOULD ALL OF THOSE WITH RESTLESS LEGS GO! THEY WOULDN’T ACTUALLY GET UP AND MOVE THOSE LEGS, THEY SHOULD SIT AT HOME AND KEEP THOSE LEGS STATIONARY AND SEARCH FOR HELP ON THE RLS FOUNDATION WEBSITE.

Friends, if this wasn’t so serious, it would be hilarious. I challenge you. When their website was first launched, it had a menu link at the top that says “I Have Restless Legs” that actually has multiple menu options under this drop down. The only thing that should be present under that menu option is a message that says “STOP WASTING TIME ON THIS WEBSITE YOU LOSER AND GET OFF YOUR A$$ AND GO FOR A WALK.”

You can even join their membership! Please do. And then you will assuredly be WELL on your way to recovery.

Their newsletter was called NightWalkers. Sounds like a farcical horror-comedy flick. Or maybe it sounds too close to Nightcrawlers. You could also get a handy membership card. To SHOW TO WHO?! FOR WHAT PURPOSE?! To show your doctor so that he will know without a question that you are an idiot and that you are a prime candidate to buy whatever crap drugs they are selling you?

Can you believe this crap.

Here was the definition of Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS).  THIS WAS COPIED DIRECTLY FROM THEIR WEBSITE. My comments in red:

• RLS occurs during periods of inactivity. (Yes, get off your a$$.)
• Become more sensitive in the evening and at night. (Give me a break.)
• RLS is relieved by the movement of the limb. (No kidding. Limbs were meant to be moved. Get your lazy can up off the couch and MOVE around and you will have no problems with this part.)
• Often cause difficulty staying or falling asleep, which leads to feelings of daytime tiredness or fatigue (No. Kidding. How much better do I sleep personally when I have had a good workout. I sleep like a log. You will have NO trouble if you move around like human beings are in existence to do.)
• May cause involuntary jerking of the limbs during sleep and sometimes during wakefulness (I’m spent. This is insanity that people swallow this hook line and sinker.)

They even had a national meeting in Orlando. Wow. I bet that will be a rip roaring good time. A bunch of lazy bastards laying around not able to do anything because they have restless legs.

And support groups. A link in the menu even to “Support Groups.” Wow. Someone please send this blog post to them when their contact info is available. Someone save those restless legs! The ONLY thing that needs to be present under this menu option is a link to a personal trainer in your area that will whip your a$$ into shape.

You see, in the “old days,” oh you know 12 or 15 years ago when I actually WENT to the doctor and wasn’t sickened by the way symptom-based medicine treats patients, the doctor would check you out and then prescribe a drug or give a sample to try IF IT WAS NECESSARY. But now, thanks to mass media and modern science, we can self-diagnose and TREAT OURSELVES before we even walk into a doctor’s office! How does that make you feel?

When is the last time anyone actually cured a disease? Salk curing Polio in the 1950′s and 60′s? And then what happened. The drug companies realized that they would lose billions of dollars. Please don’t be naive enough to believe that the powers that be don’t suppress cures.

The drug companies RUN COMMERCIALS, and OBTAIN MEDIA BUYS in all major publications and television channels (What do you think drives the cost of our drugs up so high? Think about it. Don’t be sheep.) so that you can be exposed to their product relentlessly so that you ACTUALLY believe you need this drug so that you can REQUEST it when you go to the doctor (because if someone is going to decide what toxic pharmaceutical substance to put into your body it might as well be YOU and not a doctor since apparently doctors don’t know anything about treating health problems with nutrition anyway because why waste extra time in medical school talking about nutrition and / or correcting the SOURCE of the problem rather than the symptom, when we can just churn out more clones that will write prescriptions to keep the money flowing and keep us in bondage to them) so that the doctor will actually PRESCRIBE it so that the drug companies can make MONEY off of the health insurance that you’re ALSO PAYING FOR so that they can continue to run drug ads and continue the cycle over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over.

Don’t believe the lies.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

HOW TO GET STRONG IN ONE DAY.

This post goes out to those (yes, believe it or not, there have actually been more than one) who, over the last year, have found my site using the search term “how to get strong in one day,” “how to be strong in one day,” “how to get strong in a day,” “how do you get strong in one day,” “how to get strong in days,” “how to get strong in 1 day,” “how to strong in one day,” and last but certainly not least, “how to get very strong in one day.”

Here’s a secret tip:  YOU CAN’T GET STRONG IN ONE DAY.

Aside from the fact that on the day you work out you actually get WEAKER because you’re breaking your body down and then the strength actually comes from the day or two or few afterwards where your body is rebuilding STRONGER, there is no way that anyone, in any area of their life (physical, mental, emotional, spiritual) can become truly strong in one day.

Our lives are very similar to the stock market.  Rises and falls.  Upswings and downswings.  But over time, the goal is to have an upward trend in your portfolio.

“Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done!” -Rocky Balboa

Yeah, I’d love to have things be all sunny and blue skies all the time.  But when would I ever learn anything new or grow if things were easy all the time.  When finances are limited, it forces you to analyze and optimize every dollar you spend.  When you have a physical limitation if forces you to create a workaround or be patient until that deficient area has been repaired.

By staking my tents on the STRONG DAY Manifesto, in essence I’ve opened myself up to people scrutinizing how I handle trials in life.  That’s a scary place to be, but it makes me vulnerable.  And who really wants to be or seem vulnerable?  We all want to seem like we have everything put together all the time.

“Now if you know what you’re worth then go out and get what you’re worth. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits, and not pointing fingers saying you ain’t where you wanna be because of him, or her, or anybody! Cowards do that and that ain’t you! You’re better than that! … until you start believing in yourself, ya ain’t gonna have a life. Don’t forget to visit your mother.” -Rocky Balboa

Take heart, you have permission to not have everything together all the time.  BUT YOU WILL PICK YOURSELF UP AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN because, WHAT OTHER OPTIONS DO YOU HAVE?  Give up and end up in the gutter?  Perhaps so.  And then, YOU WILL PICK YOURSELF UP AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN.  And more than likely there will be someone there to help you pick yourself up.

If you take a holistic, long-term approach to your life and becoming stronger, you definitely can be STRONG ONE DAY or someday down the road, but NOT strong IN one day.

Oh, and don’t forget to visit your mother.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

APATHY KILLS.

So I was pondering the other day about our apathy. Our apathy as a society – everything from voting to exercise to our health and so on. What drives this? How could we come so far from fighting for our freedom from England to the point where we barely have the desire to vote in a presidential election – much less, a local one. I’m convinced it is a disease of the spirit. Somewhere, someplace, somehow, in the past of each person who has given up on something important in their life, a disease was picked up that seems to have no cure, antidote or antivenom to overcome it.

To single out people’s motivation to address their health and fitness, it is curious to me that this is such a widespread problem – an epidemic even. Akin to the chicken and the egg, does our laziness come from a poor diet or does our poor diet come from our laziness to put energy into one of the most important things in our lives?

$75 billion to treat obesity in 2003. $75 billion.

Regarding 1 billion:

A billion seconds ago it was 1959.
A billion minutes ago Jesus was alive.
A billion hours ago our ancestors were living in the Stone Age.
A billion dollars ago was only 8 hours and 20 minutes, at the rate Washington spends it.

$75 billion – to treat something that IS PREVENTABLE. Just to put it into perspective, they estimated $40 to $60 billion to rebuild New Orleans and surrounding areas after Hurricane Katrina. And people can’t justify redirecting some of their hard-earned money they spend on trash foods (that provide completely empty calories) into some healthy nutrition or supplementation to get their health and bodies in order?

It seems to me that it really does start with the nutrition (the nutrition being the “chicken” in the chicken and egg scenario) and because we have skimped on our diet, avoided taking action, misspent on foods that our bodies can’t process (just look at the shelves and shelves of space in every grocery that are dedicated to antacids and laxatives), misplanned our meal planning, misdirected resources and disbelieved that we could achieve better health, we have created a medical system that is bent on writing prescriptions to treat symptoms not causes and we have created a monster of obesity that WILL overwhelm our medical society in this generation – or if it doesn’t overwhelm it doctors will be writing prescriptions faster than the drug companies can keep up.

Our lack of proper nutrition has left us in such a state of inactivity that we don’t have the energy to get up before work and exercise because we sleep so poorly. How many are kept up all night because of acid reflux from eating poorly all day? How many of us cannot get up the gumption to exercise after work because we are too exhausted after barely being able to get up in time for work and then eating so poorly all day that we have nothing left at 5pm? How many of us work such demanding jobs that we can’t break away to exercise even at lunchtime to take care of whats most important – ourselves. How many of us don’t even have the energy to enjoy any sort of recreation on our weekends because we are so spent or unmotivated?

$8.8 billion is spent on energy drinks yearly. The sales of energy drinks grew by 38% in 2004. We need the “get up and go” apparently.

Believe me – I’ve done all of the above. I’ve been in the same ruts. I’m not pointing fingers or speaking of anything I haven’t experienced myself. Sure, we all need some downtime to just sit around, recharge and do absolutely nothing. But because I have been in the vicious cycles and done all of that, and since I’ve broken through and broken away, my life will never be the same again.

What category will YOU fall into?

Leave the apathy behind.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

STRONG DAY MANIFESTO.

Perhaps, with all of the insanity and instability in the world today (ahem, MIDDLE EAST, ahem, US ECONOMY, et al.), it’s high time to remind you of the STRONG DAY MANIFESTO.

This is a reminder that even if gas goes to $4.39 a gallon, oh wait, it already has in Brentwood, Los Angeles, YOU ARE NOT GOING TO LOSE YOUR MIND.

You are NOT going to make decisions based on emotion.

You are NOT going to have your well being, stress level, self-worth, or anything else in your life tied to the stock market.

And thus begins the manifesto:

You don’t wait for anyone to “allow” you to have a strong day.

You don’t mind starting a business in the middle of a “bad” economy.

You excommunicate yourself from the emotion of your circumstances.

You’ll move across the country even if the state to which you’re moving is planning to declare bankruptcy.

You don’t base your life, success, contentment, or anything else on the economy (a good or bad one).

Or the government.
Or the stock market.
Or your 401k.
Or the potential of catching swine flu.
Or ANY political party.
Or gas prices.
Or inflation, depression, recession.
Or global warming.
Or global cooling.
Or hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, tsunamis or mudslides.
Or your high school being bulldozed to make way for a new med school.
Or your boss.
Or your job.
Or your crazy, volatile family.
Or any news broadcast, station or personality.
Or having a dead car battery.
Or having a flat tire.
Or anything that could potentially ruin your day.
Or on the fact that you’re not exactly where you want to be.

Because you’re headed there.

You’re always headed there.

And as rough as things may seem sometimes, you’re never out of options.

And with every downswing, surely it will be followed by an upswing.

And you’re enjoying the grand, glorious, beautiful, frustrating, bittersweet process of life.

HAVE A STRONG DAY, WORLD.

FIVE YEARS AND COUNTING.

“Let me not then die ingloriously and without a struggle,
but let me first do some great thing that shall be told among men hereafter.”
— Hector from The Iliad. Homer.

5 years ago in December, HAVE A STRONG DAY was born out of an unshakable desire / calling to inspire people to better themselves.

5 and a half years ago, I started a blog (it is still online but not being currently added to) and the following are some excerpts from it.  With every 5-7 years all of the cells in your body being replaced by new ones, I am indeed a new person by now as well.  5 years seems a good time to reflect on what has taken place and where I’m headed.  I still hold to these even today.

“Two things, health and hope.

Starting with health, we all have some form of it. Good, bad, decent, vibrant – you pick the adjective for yours. I have perfect health. This is not to be boastful, this is only to preface the next portion of this post. Aside from a few miscellaneous “irritants,” I have perfect health. Hay fever, pollen allergies, etc. are the only real concerns that I have. With a recent insurance physical, I qualified for the best possible rate for disability insurance because, yes, my health and fitness is in line. My health is a precious gift. My health is a blessing. My health is the BEST blessing. My health, is my life. Your health, is my life. If I were to disregard that what would I be doing to protect that blessing? Not much. How is your health? Whatever state it is in, PROTECT IT! Fight for it. Believe in it. Hope through it. Do you want to change it? Change begins with choice. Change your mind, change your body. Change is good. These sayings are familiar to many of us. There is not any portion of this planet earth that does not undergo change. It’s somewhat arrogant that we decide that we have it all figured out and that we can be the one entity on planet earth that doesn’t change. If your body is changed, surely your life will be also. I promise you, when your health and fitness are in order, every other area of your life will begin to fall into line – personal, professional, recreational, familial, etc. Start today. You may not have tomorrow.”

“If your health is not in line, how do you know where the problem lies? How can you treat a symptom without having the root cause of the problem addressed? How quickly does our medical community write prescriptions to treat symptoms WITHOUT TREATING THE ROOT CAUSE OF THE HEALTH ISSUE? How many side effects do prescriptive drugs have THAT ARE WORSE THAN THE PROBLEM ITSELF or ARE SO NUMEROUS THAT ITS NOT WORTH IT TO TAKE THEM? How many drugs are prescribed TO OFFSET THE BAD EFFECTS OF ANOTHER? Don’t get me wrong, there are good pharmaceuticals. But how quickly do we jump to put some toxic or life destroying (antibiotics) pill in our mouth when we are too lazy and too stubborn to even get our basic nutrition in order? Slick ad campaigns, backwards medical training mindsets, etc. have led up to a social programming that has caused our group as a whole to jump first to the nearest pharmacy to solve our problems when the problems really result from what is in our refrigerator, pantry and cabinets.”

5 years is a long time.  In terms of a lifetime though, 5 years is to our life span as our life span is to a millennium.

So, what do you spend your time on? Are you willing to work and spend every day of your life investing your time and money into something from which you may never reap benefits or financial rewards so that you can leave a legacy from which your progeny can benefit?

The great irony and juxtaposition between our life span and what we feel driven to accomplish in our life span, because it is indeed so short and we want to be remembered or feel that we made a difference, is that the things we do during our time here don’t even really become a legacy or don’t mature until after we’re gone.

Do you think that Van Gogh set out to create artwork that was worth millions of dollars per piece today?  I highly doubt it.  I wager that he set out to do something he was talented / skilled at or passionate about.  Artists often labor in obscurity with their work never seeing the light of day.  Artists are often troubled individuals that have to have an outlet to cope or feel productive.  But then again, aren’t we all troubled in some way.  And this is even more of a reason while we all need an outlet.

Do you have that vision for your life?  Do you want to “live” forever?  If so, then you need to recalibrate your long term goals.  Instead of setting 5- and 10-year goals start thinking about 50- and 100-year goals with the clear understanding that you will never see what they become.  But if you don’t leave a roadmap for those to carry the torch, then your work might as well die with you.

Salvation Army.
The YMCA.
Boys and Girls Clubs.

How many of the founders of these organizations never were able to see what their organizations have become today?  All of them.

Go to a funeral every year to remind yourself that time is short and you must live while you may.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.

CARPAL TUNNEL VISION.

Time after time after time, those who are wandering aimless in the pain management wasteland find that when they exercise the area that is deficient or otherwise is their “weak link,” things begin to improve.

I’ve had those come to see me that have shoulder pain.

I’ve had those come to see me that have carpal tunnel issues.

I’m currently working with someone with rheumatoid arthritis as well as someone who played tennis for 7 hours in 107 degree heat, had a minor heat stroke and compartment syndrome in his lower leg and had part of his calf removed.

Even if the affected area never again reaches 100%, the body has an amazing way of compensating and accommodating for those areas that need help.

If you work around and strengthen the surrounding area, it can take some load off of the troubled area thus allowing it to heal, allowing scar tissue to break up, etc.

I’ve given encouragement and advice to those with knee pain / problems, some of which actually shouldn’t be as bad as it is, but they opted for surgery that might not have been necessary and now their pain is worse than previous.

Remember this, pain can be different than discomfort.  Specifically, pain from something that is clearly very wrong and needs prompt professional medical attention (x-rays, MRIs, etc.) or something you should just lay off of until it has healed versus the discomfort we feel when tissues are being exercised again, muscles are re-knitting and re-strengthening, scar tissue is being broken down, and so on.

I certainly experienced plenty of discomfort after hurting my back by doing squats with a Smith machine.  And, though I have rehabilitated myself with plenty of core and total-body functional-fitness exercises, I can tell when my exercise has dropped off too much because my back will begin to tighten and pain will begin to return.

Pain and discomfort both bring an emotional response – one in which we want to avoid pain and discomfort, so our first reaction, our knee-jerk reaction is to avoid doing what hurts.  Of course, if you’ve consulted with a physical therapist, doctor, orthopedist, etc. then follow their advice first.  The bottom line still is, you need to keep moving.

Take the blinders off.  Expand your vision.  And work through it.

It’s better to move than to be still.

Or you just might find yourself more stiff, more frozen up than even the Tin Man, and we don’t want to challenge him for his title now do we?

Wear out, don’t rust out.

HAVE A STRONG DAY.