The True Enemy...

Somewhere in the middle 20th century "fat" became demonized.  Not the word fat, but the nutrient fat.  Drilled into our heads was "eat fat, get fat".  The bummer of the past 50 odd years? That advice is wrong.  

Fat isn't the enemy - fat is a nutrient essential to our physical and mental health.  Appropriate amounts (and types) of fat provide quick energy, protects our organs, and boosts metabolism.  Quick warning:  this statement is not a license to guzzle milkshakes and cheese steaks.  

Your body needs fat, but in the proper amounts and from the proper sources.  The food sources containing the best fat are those with which you are already familiar:  Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Avocado, Peanut Butter (organic only), and nuts.  Stock your diet with these and you'll find yourself in good shape.

The  true enemy is Sugar.  Arguably, your body needs very little sugar to function properly, but many Americans consume pounds of sugar each year.  Our love affair with sugar is two fold:

                        1.  Ancestrally speaking, fat and protein were readily available in cave man days.  Sure they had to hunt for their food barefoot, wearing a loose fitting loin cloth as "clothing", and using a spear or rock, but the food was there for the taking.  Sugar was not.  Fruit was hard to find and when found, our ancestors consumed mounds of it knowing full well it could be weeks or months before they found more.  

                        Over thousands of years this "sugar loading" built itself into our bodies.  Now, humans love sugar and consume it in great quantities, often with little satiety after.  

                        2.  In response to the low fat craze of the last 50 years food manufacturers responded by dropping the fat content of their processed foods.  Problem: Low fat processed food tastes like a table.  Solution:  Add sugar.  And with that our lives were set on a path to massive sugar consumption.   (There's much more to this, but a full scientific explanation would require charts, graphs, easels, laser pointers, etc.)

As the years passed sugar began hiding in places we would never expect.  Sugar is now added to bread, pasta sauces, dairy products (especially yogurt), canned and frozen fruit, nut butters, and juice.   The sugar is used to make tart foods more palatable, bland foods more robust, and sweet foods sweeter.  Sugar hangs out everywhere.

Avoiding sugar is tough.  However, virtually any food sold in the US has a nutritional label.  Sugar is listed clearly under "carbohydrates" .  The next time you visit the grocery store, take a look at some the nutritional facts on food labels...you will be shocked to see how much sugar lurks in some of the most innocuous places.  How many "health"foods have boat loads of sugar - yogurt one of the worst offenders.   

Aside from looking at the nutritional label, look at the actual ingredients.  If "sugar" is listed, ditch it.  Be advised, Sugar knows its being hunted, so its created a number of aliases and fake identities:  High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Sugar, Brown Sugar, Cane [fill in the blank], Maltose, Molasses, Syrup, Fruit Concentrates, and more.  Sugar hides, be vigilant. 

Cutting sugar from your diet isn't easy  - as mentioned above, it lurks in alleyways, hides in the shadows, hoping you don't see it.  Also, our taste buds develop as we consume sweet food.  Over time, we need more and more sweet for our taste buds to register.  Fortunately, tastes  change.  Over time, as sugar intake is reduced, your sensitivity to sweetness will ramp up.  You'll need less and less to have the same effect.  (this also works with Salt).

The Rule: Generally - avoid foods with more than 6 grams of sugar per serving. 

As expected, every rule has its exceptions.  The rule does not apply to raw, unprocessed foods.  For example, while fruit has sugar, the benefits of fruit outweigh the risk. Also, be realistic - if you like a certain peanut butter that happens to have 9 grams of sugar, go for it.

Avoiding sugar will have a terrific effect on your physical health, and your mood as you'll suffer fewer sugar crashes.   Give it a try.  See how much better you feel.

Remember:  "If you've got it, flaunt it.  If you don't, get it with us".  

       

The Skinny on Sleep (and naps)...

Blanket statement:  You sleep too little.  

Waking up tired is a terrible feeling, spending your day tired is even worse.  Nothing ruins a day more than thinking about bedtime immediately after your alarm goes off.  Unfortunately, many of us spend our days in a sleep deprived haze . 

1.  Benefits of Sleep.  

This could fill volumes...here are some of the biggest hits:

1. Heart Health:  Sleeping reduces the work load of your body, giving the cardiovascular system a much needed rest from the constant pumping, processing, and oxygenating that our bodies require.
2. Stress Reduction:  Sleeping reduces blood pressure, as well as the the stress hormone Corstisol (which by the way can increase fat retention).  
3. Improved Memory: Your brain needs time to relax.  Zoning out to Reality TV, or listening to music is insufficient; the brain is constantly stimulated.  However, sleep lets the brain slow down and play (i.e. dream), relaxing a bit. 
4. Controls Body Weight:  Sleep deprivation leads to hormone imbalances (see #2).  This can make weight loss more difficult, and muscle development even harder.
5. Maintain Even Temper:  Adequate sleep can prevent dramatic mood swings.  Think about every movie centered around new parents - they're tired and stressed out.  This leads to lashing out (often comedically) at their spouse or partner.  Unfortunately, in real life lashing doesn't ever seem to end in hilarity.  

2.  Assuring Good Sleep.  

1. Avoid excessive alcohol within a few hours of bedtime.
2. Avoid caffeine (which includes chocolate) within a few hours of bedtime.
3. Exercise regularly and with intensity - just not right before bedtime.
4. Go to sleep and get up at the same time every day (even on weekends).  This establishes a pattern.  Our bodies love patterns.  
5. Drink tea or take a hot bath an hour or so before bed.  Try scented bath oil.
6. Drink plenty of water.  Why waste precious sleep time waking up for a glass of water at 3:00 a.m.?
7. Load your calories early in the day and slowly reduce your caloric intake as the day progresses.  A body in "digestion mode" is not a body in "sleep mode".
8. Don't read on your phone or wireless device before bed - the light from the screen can disrupt your biorhtym  Also - try  to keep your phone, computer, iPad, pager (if you actually still have one), iPod, or lap top out of the bedroom.  

3.  Your Bedroom;

1. Dark and quiet.  
2. If you have thoughts running through your head, turn on a fan or other white noise.  This gives the brain something to focus on, so you body can fall asleep.
3. TV Off - at bedtime.  Watch before bed if you need to.
4. Make sure you have a good bed, good bedding, and good pillows.

4.  Sex and Sleep:

1. This is your bedroom's primary purpose - focus on them when you're in bed.

5.  Naps:

1. Naps are awesome in every way.  Take one whenever you need.  Naps increase your productivity, mental clarity, mood, focus, and metabolism.  Ideally, no less than 20 minutes and no longer than about 30.  Too short and you wake up feeling worse, too long and you risk trouble falling asleep at night.

Sleep is important.  Saying you "only got 4 hours of sleep" last night doesn't make you cool, it doesn't make you tough.  It makes you prone to heart disease, weight gain, mood swings, and memory loss - all things that suck.   Don't be that guy.

Be the guy who is heart disease-free, of a healthy weight with an even mood and has instant recall of important facts (and all the useless ones that make you so much fun at parties).

Remember: "If you've got it, flaunt it.  If you don't, get it with us."