Month: March 2019

 

What is a Diet?

A diet is the kind of food that a creature habitually eats.

We have a cockatiel at our home. I can go to the pet store and find a bag of “Cockatiel Food”, feed him and he is happy and presumably healthy. It is his diet. People are omnivores. Classic omnivores have a diet that consists of edibles from plant and animal origin.

 

 

Go ahead and search the internet for the list of the 10 best diets. Since the list has little to do with what you are supposed to eat but rather what someone is selling for you to eat, it will be a suckers list. In your search, you will need to know what you want your diet to do. Do you want to lose weight, gain weight, muscle up, energy up, mode up, libido up, flatten the belly, or lower your Blood pressure and A1C? The list can go ad infinitum. It’s a sucker list.

 

I recently looked into Michael Greger’s diet information. He is a Vegan and has a book “How to not die”. He writes about how to diet to fight certain diseases that kill us. I also looked into Dr. Steven Gundry, a former cardiologist who is also a “plant-based diet” advocate and author.

There are a lot of MD’s who have become an entrepreneur in the business of selling various diet plans and supplements to the unhealthy American consumer. The problem with is that the advocacy of each one is based on “cherry-picked” facts to prove a predetermined outcome. Bad science. These bright minds pick proof that supports what they want to sell and then ignore the balance of information from various studies. It seems almost all “diets” work for someone. They help carry a specific goal, but none can work for everyone. There is too much variety in the species for there to be a universal plan. Your plan must be customized for you.

I am repeating some basic information for a healthy diet.

• Eat fruit and vegetables with everything.
• Avoid Bio-engineered food, no GMO veggies.
• Limit over packaged food products.
• Limit fast food
• Avoid over-consumption by monitoring caloric input.

THE 2019 Winner for Best Diet       

Source: livestrong.com Jan. 21,2019

The Mediterranean Diet

The Mediterranean Diet is eating that emphasizes and encourages meals to be made at home, made of fresh and whole-food ingredients. The ingredients include vegetables, legumes, fruits, grain, lean protein, nuts, wine, cheese, oil, and herbs and spices. This diet likes social eating and smaller portion sizes than most Americans eat regularly. If you want a recognized plan, there are tons of recipes and resources available for this one. In order to keep it from being another “sucker” plan, add and subtract from it based on your personal needs and goals. It is a great starting point.

Next time: Quick Mindful Meditation to relieve stress.

Be Healthy,

Dave

 

 

It is of little importance how fast I am moving, but it does matter which way I am pointing. I have taken 2 months off from blogging. There seemed to be a need for fresh air into my perspective, I am ready again. There will be some changes and additions this year to the blog to try to share more information and to try to pay for some upgrades in the site.

Two years ago I weighed in at the cardiologist at 251 pounds, The doctor said don’t come back here at that weight again. One year ago, this month, my weight was around 240 pounds, My work schedule had sent me off to Honolulu, Hawaii. I had the simple realization while there that I don’t have to live the life of a fat guy. This came to me through a high school buddy who lives in Honolulu. Keith was recovering from a minor surgery so he was off his regular workout routine. He is an age group, world-class jungle/off-road runner. We talked about aging, eating habits,  workouts, and old friends. He took his time each afternoon and evening to walk me through his city. He drove me to his workout sites and we walked some more. Oh, did I mention we ran track together in High School? I believe Keith is the same body weight as he was in high school or maybe a little less. My post-high school athletic career had me working to gain weight for football and I just kept going and gaining long after I’d stopped competing. I am grateful this old friend showed me the path to fitness. I am now at 218 pounds and pointed in the right direction.

5 Reasons Walking is Underrated

Source from https://blog.myfitnesspal.com

There are a lot of workouts that have a barrier to entry. Take spinning for instance. To do it safely, a new rider needs help setting up the bike. Boxing requires extra gear, like gloves and hand wraps. The list goes on and on.

Walking often gets flack for not being “good enough”. Here are five reasons why that’s a myth:

1. IT GETS YOU MOVING

In today’s “sitting is the new smoking” society, any movement is better than none. British researchers found sitting or simply standing for more than 30 minutes at a clip can negatively impact your health. The CDC recommends at least 150 minutes of moderate-level exercise each week. You can divide it to fit your life, but get moving.

       2. IT REDUCES MORTALITY RATE

A study surveying more than 50,000 walkers in the United Kingdom found regular walking at an average, brisk or fast pace was associated with a 20% reduction in all-cause mortality. They also found a 24% reduction in the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease.

3. IT’S LESS LIKELY TO CAUSE INJURY

Compared to running, walking has a much lower injury rate. A systematic review showed a one-year injury rate of 27% in novice runners, 32% in long-distance runners and 52% in marathon runners.

4. IT HAS SIMILAR BENEFITS TO RUNNING

 Moderate-intensity walking shows a similarly visible reduction in risk of heart disease,   high cholesterol, diabetes, and high blood pressure, when compared to vigorous-   intensity running, according to research from “Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and   Vascular Biology”.

5. IT CAN HELP YOU THINK CREATIVELY

Whether you’re a fan of the treadmill or prefer to stroll outdoors, walking can help you come up with your next big idea. Stanford researchers found creative thinking improves while a person is walking as well as shortly thereafter.

Next post: Which diet is ranked best for 2019

Be healthy,

Dave