Do Something!

"Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." 1Cor. 9:26

It is perhaps my biggest pet peeve in the gym. Maybe this is because it is so rampant. I work out at 3 different gym locations, depending on my day’s schedule. This problem plagues each of them! You know you have seen it, and maybe (gasp!) even done it yourself! Most of the time while you are at the gym to work, but not today. Today, you are just going through the motions. You would rather “fake it till you make it” rather than not show up at all. You know it will be harder to show up if you just pass on working out today. Rather to burn maybe 100 or 200 calories instead of your usual 500. So you just sit on the bench, dazing, thinking about how you wish you could muster up some strength, discipline, and motivation.

You see the evil looks from the other gym patrons as they are begging to use the machine you have chosen to rest your butt on. We catch the looks and it pushes us some. Or it doesn’t. This works in the gym (if it works anywhere) but not in the rest of life. Yes, we may think we have so called “haters” but really the only ones to motivate us are ourselves. Just like when we lift, everything has a purpose. We lift light with more reps to burn fat. We lift heavy with little reps to build muscle mass. Everything we do in life has a purpose, if not, it does about as much good as using a piece of gym equipment as a couch.

Folic Acid

"Take your vitamins! Remmber to get folic acid!" We seemed to be screamed at all the time to make sure we have enough folic acid. Especially women who are pregnant or may become pregnant, they are given so many different capsules and powders, folic acid seems to become a necessity.

Folic acid is a B vitamin. It is the man made version of the natural substance folate. It has been attributed with cell growth and metabolism. Most of the attention of folic acid is for those nearing 50 and oregnant women. The main reason for this is that it has shown to decrease the delineating effects associated with diseases common among the elderly (including Alzheimer's) and in utero. It has shown to decrease the probability of preclampsia and birth defects, such as spinal bifida. It is unsure whether it is a cause or not, but there is a commonality between low numbers of folic acid and early or preterm labor.

Though it is most known for being found in pill form, there are otehr ways to get your recommended amount of folic acid. The pills often have more in them than just folic acid, such as artificial coloring and hydrogenized oil, to keep the capsules together. So fresh instead with green vegetables like spinach and broccoli. Natural proteins such as beans are also a good source.

Soul Surfer: Is it any good?

Recently making the trip from movie theaters to dvd release, Soul Surfer is the story of surfing competitior Bethany Hamilton. Most of us know the story but if not, here it goes, she was the teenage girl who was bitten by a shark but did not let that stop her from surfing.

The movie begins by making sure we have a clear understanding of her home life. Her love for surfing. The realtionship with her best friend, fellow surfer Alaina Blanchard. Her relationship with God and how she views her church community, esp the youth leader.It also takes much time to make sure are aware of the the intricacies of how the Hamilton family dynamic works. Perhaps it takes too long to get through all of this, but there is a lot there. Many poor reviews of the film simply call it slow starting and sugar coated. True is has a certain cheesy feel to it, such as Fireproof or Courageous, but it is obvious that the postponed climax is purely to make sure you are completely entered into how this girl's world was prior. That is very important, esp since after the attack, as one can imagine, her entire world is upside down. She doesn't have a fear of surfing as one might expect, because as we already know she had been surfing since age three. The references to her as "The Little Mermaid" let us know that its not fear of another shark that keep her out of the water, rather she is fearful that she would never surf again. Her best friend seems to be more freaked out than she is, and had they not spent extra time on thier relationship showing us that they are inseparable, then the 5 minutes in the movie where its communicated that Alaina isn't mentally able to deal with the new storyline would not come across properly. The theme of perspective comes across over and over again after the first act, Bethany asks a question that all of us have asked at one time or another, "why does a caring, loving God allow bad things to happen to good people?" The movie takes the entire second half demonstrating that she was able to take and bear it, and even used it to help those struggling around the world. Continuing in its symmetry, the movie after the act copies the first half, concentrating most of its energy on how the family operates. From the mother daughter loving relationship and father daughter coaching relationship to how it was difficult for the brothers to handle the changes in thier new lives. The message is clear, what happens to other people happens to us as well. Take a look at your own life and you will notice that when something happened to someone else (even if they are not close to you) your own life is affected!

Therein lies the question, is it a good movie? Rather than go on and  on about the great surfing scenes, or whether acclaimed actors Helen Hunt and Randy Quaid have lowered thier perfomrances, lets take the movie itself. It is a true story, so saying "I wish they would've..." is not really an option. Take away the few CGI. The movie depicts a true story that everyone can relate too. There are many different lessons within it. When the end credits roll, you are left encouraged and feeling good. If you find those to be the makings of a good movie, then yes Soul Surfer is the movie for you!

Peanut Butter: Healthy Snack, or Fatty Filler

It has been a popular snack for years. Our moms used it as a staple in our lunches. So, why now, after all these years, is peanut butter getting a bad rep from nutritionists and profesional athletes?

It could be fake peanut butter. Sadly, not too many people are keen to purchase natural food like peanut butter. Many caim the same reason that they do not buy organic: cost. While many off brand items are the exact same thing, Kroger and Great Value peanut butter seems to be the exception. JIF and Peter Pan brands each claim 2% hydrogenated oil (trans fat), while the off brands remark "fully hydrogenated oil." Our bodies were not meant to process the additives and preservatives meant to expand shelf life.

Since the 1990's the dietary trend, unfortunately, has been low calorie, low fat, low nutrient. Aside from the fact that low calories mean a food is not a particular source of a nutrient, or bodies need fat. Fat is merely stored energy. Peanut butter is high in fat (which is to say that there is more fat than protein in each serving.) Peanut butter is high in saturated fat (which it what makes it a superfood.) The saturated fat is what helps to keep cholesterol down. Whether related or not, studies have also shown a decrease in those with Type II diabetes and heart disease among those who eat peanuts and peanut butter.

Peanut butter is not particularly high in protein or carbs (but it couple well with foods that are such as bread.) It is, however, high in fiber. This is why it helps to keep you fuller longer. People who eat peanut butter habitually have been shown to eat less daily calories, and to eat less frequently than those who don't. This may also have to do with the items peanut butter is coupled with being high in the essiential amino acids that peanut butter does not have. However, peanut butter does contain Folsate, Vitamin E, and Magnesium. It also contains Zinc- good for the immune system and the libido.

In fact, it would seem that the Trans Fat (which is more common in bargain brands) is the worst part of peanut butter. So, while we might never admit them to them face to face, perhaps our moms did know what they were doing filling us to the brim with Peanut Butter sandwiches!

Brett Hoebel: The Three Most Important Factors

Brett Hoebel is a world class trainer. Known for his "Rev"- olutionary body transformation program,

REVABS, he became internatioanlly known as one of the "unknown" trainers on The Biggest Loser Season 11. Currently, he is the host and trainer on Food Network's Fat Chef.

He recently wrote on Askmen.com a synopsis of how he trains. If you have ever heard him speak or watched video of him training, you know that he believes body transformation (ie: weight loss) is a simple science. For "The Dues Collector," it is a three step process.

You must "activate people emotionally so they are 100% committed." According to Brett, finding your "why" is important. You want to lose weight? Okay, but why? So that your blood pressure goes down? Okay, but why is that important? So you are there to give your daughter away on her wedding day? That's more like it!

People must be educated. That way they understand the reason they are doing certain things. In my own experiecne, people are more apt to stick with a routine when they understand exactly what they are doing. For example, take pushups, just doing them to say you can is meaningless, but doing them to stregthen you arms, chest, back, and core has meaning. Using them as part of a cardio regime to blast fat away has more meaning.

"Motivation is good, but inspiration is better." Brett reminds us of something that we didn't know, that we already knew. Motivation passes. Inspiration lasts. Motivation harps on a passing emotion like fear or anger. Inspiration leads off something meaningful to us, like love. When you are inspired, you can motivate those around you. It does not work the other way around.

Brett's advice is sound advice. He even guides us through how it helped a client, Rocco- a celebrity chef in Cleveland. After looking at these three steps, you can easily see how activation, education, and inspirationcan better our lives, and not just in sheedding a few pounds, but in our jobs, home life, even our spiritual battles.

Food Rules: A Quick Review Over a Quick Book!

Everyone has a different perspective on everything. We hsould be open to hear where everyone is coming from and what they back up thier own opinions with. That being said, I was somewhat skeptical when my very vegan friend recommended a book to me called Food Rules.

Food Rules? You don't even eat half of the food I do and you want to preach to me about Food Rules? Fine. It was barely 100 pages so I figured a few days and it would be done. Make that one day!

Food Rules is Michael Pollan' condensed version of what we should be considering when deciding what goes into our systems. We treat our vehicles with much better respect than we do our own bodies. We get a new car every 5- 10 years and (as far as we know) this is the only earthly body we get.

The book is a series of sentences with small explanations. However, all of these sentences can  be summed up in three. Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants. Basic rules that we all know yet over. But why do we overlook them? That is the discussion of Pollan's other book, most specifically the Omnivore's Dilemma. Food Rules reads more like an angel on our shoulder telling us to ask ourselves "do you really want to eat that?" before we engulf what may or may not be food. Pollan's other thesis amongst his writing is that not all food is food. Some, nay most, of the food we see actually is science experiments masqueading as food!

Food Rules is a nice, easy read. Not to heavy, not too intellectually. Jusst nice and breezy things to think about what  is in that which we put into our bodies.