Honestly when it comes to health and weight loss, you probably know what you need to do. Are there really any true breakthroughs that will help you? Not really. Are you shocked when you hear to “eat less overall, eat healthier foods and exercise more”? Nah.

At some point most everyone has been lean and then maybe life took over, things became busy, emotions were more important, things happened….who knows. But that’s life….things are supposed to happen. Nothing stays the same, it never does. People come, people go. Relationships start, relationships end. People get jobs, people lose jobs.

We can all survive these things physically….and sometimes these small stressors are what help us to take control, adapt and move on in a more positive direction (remember the whole stress response system of the body and how it adapts better to small stressors? Like with intermittent fasting).

The real problem is when events/emotions of the past take over our lives on a more daily and consistent basis….that these acute events can turn into an emotional or mental downfall. The acute stressor that we should of moved on from now becomes chronic and ongoing, that is the most dangerous part. The mental battle is probably the most important one to master….because I’ll let the secret out, losing weight and eating healthy is really EASY….but doing it consistently while not allowing events around you and your emotional states to turns against you, is NOT.

Your mind can be our best friend….or your greatest enemy (and it’s the only true enemy you will ever have, as there are no evil forces outside of us making us do things). There may be influences in life good and bad, but we are still in full control and have a choice…..so choose to get that control back once and for all!

Realize You DO Have Control 100%!

This is Step 1.

You have full control over everything in your life such as…..if you put healthy or sugar-loaded foods in your mouth, if you make time for exercise or blow it off for another day, if you stay up late or go to bed early and get sleep, what you do for a living and how many hours you work, and most importantly…..what you think about yourself and the actions you take because of it.

Stop Blaming Yourself or Anyone Else!

Stop blaming anyone for anything....you'll go nowhere fast with that attitude.

I think most people really want to either blame someone or someone else. You can look in the mass media and it’s full of finger pointing. It must be the fast food industry making us fat….no wait it’s the high fat products….or it could be that TV/video games forcing us to sit down and not be outside playing in the fresh air.

In the end my response is going to be “Who Cares?”. Or a better question may be “Why do you need to have someone to blame? Just take responsibility for your actions and fix the problem!”

The blame game doesn’t help fix/solve the issue at hand. You can blame a fast food restaraunt if you like, but that doesn’t mean plenty of healthy lean people don’t drive it past daily and decide (personal choice) not to stop in. Heck I could walk into a McD’s if it’s the only option and still be able to eat a hamburger without the bun, no fries and water to drink. Chances are I am not going to get overweight on that diet!

What you need to do is understand our healthy choices, take 100% control and then make those choices. You can eat out all the time and pick something (or make something healthy) off the menu. You can take the bun off a burger. You don’t have to order a soda or milkshake. You can sub out veggies for fries with any meal. We do have a choice….no one is forcing us to do anything, even if the media loves to paint a picture that way. Making someone/thing else as the evil force in our lives for everything bad, takes the control away from you….and that loss of personal control can spell disaster.

What is even more scary is the amount at which we can blame ourselves! Why do we need to make ourselves the bad guy? Nothing good ever comes from it. So realize you are NOT to blame Why? Because you are not blaming anyone, remember? If you take an action, then whatever happens has happened. You can’t change it and blaming yourself will not change the outcome in the past. All you can do is move forward and take other actions.

Learn from the past, but then let go of it. Who cares if you used to weight 50lbs less or had a higher paying job, how does that really matter now? You have a choice, to either think anything is possible and move forward…or forever put your life on pause to live in the past and become part of it. The latter is not living.

Master the Simple Things…That is Real Long Term Results!

Eat right, make time for exercise, don’t worry about the little things, smile, enjoy being outdoors, help others……do that and what else is your life really missing? The biggest rewards come from the smallest things in life done on a daily basis.…which in turn are the most important ones to follow. No big secrets here, just most people focus on all the wrong things day after day. Such as:

• Best results hands down for anyone trying to lose weight….is a diet of real foods, avoiding processed carbs like breads/pastas, and enough protein. Will there be times you may eat something else? Sure of course…but you have to stay the course daily and stick with the basics. Diets DO NOT work!! Why? Because once people stop eating that way….there is no sense to take back control. Eat for a LIFESTYLE….one you can always go back to at any time.

• You have to be active every day…..make 30 min somewhere to go break a sweat doing something. You have the time….you just have to prioritize it.

• Stop stressing out about things that are trivial or out of your control. Let go of what you can not control or things of the past, focus on just what you can do now in your life.

• You need sleep. Turn off the tv, stop staying up late, it’s your choice afterall.

• Smile all the time…why not? Be happy….as a choice!

You Are NOT a Victim…..Ever!

Letting go of all your worries, doubts and fears....will allow you to be happy with who you are right now.

This goes with the “no one to blame” point. No one is doing anything to you. If you feel you are a victim, then you have lost control….and once you lose control it’s all downhill from there. Things happen in life, good and bad. You can’t control everything…and bad things will happen.

What defines us is how we respond and act in those situations.

You have the choice to brush it off, smile and keep going forward. Forget what just happened as it’s in the past and can’t be changed…..all that can be controlled is what action you take right now.

This is the one thing I can’t stand about modern medicine giving people a “disease” name. Did they really give anything to you? Are you stuck with it forever and ever? A disease is just a fancy name to a set of symptoms that medicine can classify so they know what treatment/drug to perscribe.

Get rid of the ownership! You may “experience” knee pain, but you don’t “own” arthritis. It is not part of you….because what happens when you clean up your diet and your experience of inflammation is no more? What do you own now? This feeling of helplessness and lack of control of one’s health is deadly….and must be overcome. Whatever you are experiencing in life, don’t be a victim of anything….things happen, accept it, and just move forward and improve your life as you see is the right way.

Excuses No Longer Exist in Your World

Period! No exceptions. Excuses are for people who don’t have control of their mental attitude. You are no longer that person! Whatever has happened, whatever the circumstances….accept that they are what they are and just move on with a new plan. When it comes to our health, fitness, success or happiness….if you leave room for excuses then you will not get where you want to go.

• Can’t get to a gym? – Go outside, do some pushups, run around, lunges, go to the playground and do some pullups, just get out and break a sweat everyday….no excuses. Make it happen every day.

• Eat out alot on the road? - Doesn’t mean you can eat everything on the menu. Make good choices of meats, veggies, or whatever you can create on your own.

• No Time? Too Busy? Work Long Hours? – Well that again is a choice, so you can either workout when you have the time, or make a way to work less (work smarter, find a new job, however you want to make it happen). You do have enough time in one day….actually too much time, the question comes down to how you spend that time. Choose to spend it on the things you enjoy or want to do, ignore the rest. Do some pushups under your desk or run the stairs at work if you must, but really sit down and examine where all your time goes….time to take back control of how you spend your time, as it is the most valuable thing you have to use in this life (and it is a limited resource)!

• No more self defeating words – When you hear yourself say these words, stop and slap your hand, as these are no longer allowed: “I can’t…”, “I don’t….”, “but….”. Replace them with positive action words like “I can…” and “I will….”. If you don’t think it will happen, then you will not take the steps to make it happen…….However, If you believe it will happen, then you will make it happen. You become what you think about!

Food is NOT Your Friend

Emotional eating is something most people may agree is an issue. So why is it emotional? You feel down….had a long day and food cures your feelings? How? Could it be the sugar rush? A childhood memory? What exactly is going on here? Well it could vary from person to person, but in the end the message is the same….food can do NOTHING for you. It won’t listen to you, it won’t help you focus on a positive outlook, it won’t change the past or future, it won’t solve or cure anything……all it can do it help or hurt your body! So stop thinking Ben and Jerry is a real person waiting to comfort you (unless you have their phone number and plan on calling them). Take the personality away from food, it’s not a real person.

Food is something your body needs, it’s fuel to keep your brain, heart, lungs and all cells working. Feed it all the wrong stuff and things may start working incorectly. Sugar is legal crack….it has addictive properties…yet is also has the most destructive properties. Would you give a hyperactive child more sugar?? Heck No. So not only are we going to try and get rid of these emotions in the first place…..we are also going to take away food as an escape. If you can’t do either of those things….then you are in for a long road of up and downs in both emotional state and weight loss/gain.

We need to stop the yo-yo and keep it steady and consistent. Food is just fuel for the body….or in some cases a destructive force. Nothing else. If you need a real friend, pick up the phone and call someone…..don’t pick up the spoon and eat till you are sick to your stomach, that solves nothing.

Don’t Put off Anything for Later/Tomorrow

Either you do something now or you don’t. Don’t tell yourself “I’ll do it later”. Unless you have it scheduled it won’t get done. We all know this. We have all done this whether it is paying bills, calling an old friend, doing our taxes, or working out.

So no more procrastination or putting off what you need to do right now. You can sit down and prioritize the top 3 things you need to do, but by the end of that day everything on your list has to be done! No exceptions…no excuses. As Nike says….”Just Do It!”

You Can’t Change the Past, So Live Right Now!

The journey is now...life is in the present moment only.

Fear, self doubt, depression…..where do they all live? In the past or future! Why? Because what do you really fear? Fear of failure? Fear of losing something/someone? Fear of something happening to you?

None of it has actually happened or may ever happen. Wasted Energy!

Self doubt, where is that coming from? The past. Maybe you think because something happened that you can’t do anything going forward. Do you see things as failures in the past? Well guess what….from now on there are no failures of anything in your life.

All you have is actions and results. If the results were not what you wanted then you learn and try again. Failure is when you give ownership to a result because of your action. You don’t own it! It’s not part of you! How many successful business men try things that don’t work out the way they want them to yet keep moving on in life trying more things? They all do if they are successful!

Depression is in the past too. Usually comes from thinking you are “missing something” in your life. Where does that perception come from? Someone breaks up with you? You gain some weight? Where? Only you have that answer. Another case of ownership….you “are not” depressed, you don’t “own it” for yourself, you are not identified by it. You can “feel” depressed but you can never actually “be” depressed.

Find what you think you are lacking and then realize you have everything you need to be happy right now, if you give up your past attachments. If you were hypnotized to only remember the last hour of your life….you would probably be the happiest person on Earth! So live in the present…..use the lessons from the past, they are not owned by or define who you are. Make the decision on just what you need to do right now. Laugh in the face of so called “failure”….because it doesn’t exist anymore and just means you are trying. Life without trying is not going to get you anywhere. Use the time you have left to explore and live life the way you want without ever living in the past.

There Is NO Quick Fix to Anything, Don’t Expect the Laws of Nature to Make an Exception

“3 min workouts” and “lose 50lbs in 1 hour” sells books, supplements and magazines….it’s not reality. Don’t expect any quick fix other than what you can do with a regiment of eating healthy and exercise. As far as losing weight, detoxing the body, and improving health….the body will only go one maximum speed, but some of us may be far from reaching that potential right now.

Now not to say that eating a certain way or increasing exercise may help get you closer to that one optimal speed, but anything that looks like a shortcut….is just marketing hype. The old saying has been around for a reason, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is”. You can make great progress in weight loss and health on a steady and consistent healthy eating and exercise regiment, don’t fall for the marketing hype of other people that just want to make a quick buck.

Anything is Possible, If YOU Believe it Can Happen!

The old saying is true, “The only limits in life are the ones you put on yourself”.

If you think you can, then you will. If you say you can’t, then you won’t. It’s that simple.

You become what you think about. So time for negative and self-defeating thoughts are done and gone. Remember, you don’t own them….you just experience them, and from now on you are going to choose not to think that way every again. You have the choice and control.

Wake Up! Be Aware of Every Present Moment, That is the Only Way to See What is Really Going on and Take Control!

Stop sleepwalking through life and "Wake Up"....otherwise you are just living in a dream world.

This is key for all progress in the mental battle. You have to “Wake Up” and be aware of what you are thinking in each present moment and see why. Most people are just mentally “Sleepwalking” through life “reacting” (not “acting”) to anything thrown in front of them.

Become a 3rd party observer of yourself. Step out of your body and watch it from a distance like you were on TV. Watch your actions, your thoughts….see what you are thinking and why. Once you see something as it truly is in life (an emotion, a negative feeling, stress and worry, fear and doubt, happiness and thrills, whatever you are experiencing), you can drop your attachment to it….it’s that easy.

Don’t attach your happiness to any person or thing either, because nothing lasts….and when that thing or person goes away, so does your perceived happiness. Enjoy people/things when you experience them….yet let them be unattached to you and walk away. You’ll never get the monkey off your back if don’t realize it is there in the first place.

Make your day a series of just being aware of the present moment. All day long…practice just being aware of what is really going on. The more you practice, the better you will get at it. Monks do it all day on a mountain top, just sitting in the present moment.

You can do it in your car (turn off the radio and just be present at driving, see there is no where to go but where you are now, stop being in such a rush), at work (see where you spend your time, are you reacting to phone and email or do you have a plan and get your work done on time), at home(what are you spending your time on, what are you thinking you need to do, are you just watching TV and being distracted so you don’t have to be present and aware?

Shut off the TV and just enjoy the moment), sitting on a park bench (nature always helps us get back to slowing down and appreciating the present moment. Look at a bird, a tree…they are in no rush, they don’t care what time it is, they don’t care about your work deadlines, they just do what they do one present moment at a time)….be present anywhere and everywhere you go!

They key is you have to do it. The goal is not to become the expert at it…the goal is just to apply and use it. Say to yourself “NOW”….as a reminder to just stop, sit back and watch what is really going on. Tell yourself that as much as you can especially in times that you are “feeling” (you don’t own it remember?) sad, depressed, happy, or just anytime. Examine all emotions and see what makes them tick at heart. Without action…nothing happens.

Keep it Simple, Stick to the Basics and Live the Journey Daily!

• Health and Weight loss is simple - Follow the basics of healthy eating and be active daily.

• You have 100% control - Now live your life the way you want to. If you don’t like something the way it is now, either do something to change it up or stop focusing on it. Take action or let it go.

• No more Excuses, No one left to Blame - Don’t look for someone to take the blame, there is no blame anymore. Don’t beat yourself up, you are not to blame for anything. Forget the past, and focus just on what you need to do right now!

• “Wake Up” and Live in the Moment - Don’t be asleep like most. Take action on purpose…just don’t react to anything that comes along. Take time to just live and experience life all around you. “Watch” yourself from a distance, and release your attachments. Be Free!

• All you have is actions and results – Failure or success is non-existent and doesn’t matter anymore. Just keep taking actions and moving forward in life on moment at a time. You will become whatever you focus on….so focus on making things happen.

• Enjoy the Journey – That is what life is.…and we only get one turn (as far as I know). Don’t live for regrets or be left to wonder “what if”. Make anything happen, dream big, try anything….if you think you can, you will!

Lastly, help others to “wake up” also in their own journey in life…..as that could be the greatest thing you could ever do for another person. That itself could also bring alot of meaning and happiness back to you.

Above photo by gabork

Thanks to the Interstate Highway System, it is now possible to travel from coast to coast without seeing anything.
- Charles Kuralt

An Epic Journey

Last week, I embarked on a journey. Those of you that are friends of mine on Facebook already know that I’ve moved 2200 miles from my hometown of Louisville, KY to San Diego, CA. My girlfriend and I hopped in my car last Saturday and took a 7-day, 3100 mile trip across the southern/southwestern United States en route to San Diego.

So really, how often do you get the chance to drive cross-country? In my 30 years, this was my first chance, so I wanted to make the most of it and see as much as possible. I could have hopped onto I-64 heading west out of Louisville, switched to a few other Interstates, eventually ending up on I-8 and cruising into San Diego in about 3 days at 75mph the whole way, watching the country whiz by.

Instead, I meticulously planned out the trip, aiming to avoid Interstate highways and stick to US and state highways where I’d drive through small towns, eat at local restaurants, and see things the expressway just can’t show you. In 3100 miles, we ended up on Interstates for about 50-75 miles, once due to a wrong turn and twice due to roads that were closed.

Sometimes you gotta say “What the f**k”, make your move. Joel, every now and then, saying “What the f**k,” brings freedom. Freedom brings opportunity, opportunity makes your future.
- Miles, in Risky Business

Stepping Outside Your Comfort Zone

I think to really grow and develop, you need to regularly step out of your comfort zone. Deciding to move away from Louisville wasn’t easy. I have a great group of close friends there, several of whom I’ve known since grade school, along with plenty of family. I’m now in a city where I really only know one person, a friend of mine that decided to move out here also (and he’s not even here yet). I don’t know the best restaurants or how to get around the city like the back of my hand. I have a new job that is going to require me to get up to speed quickly. There’s going to be a nice learning curve over the next few months professionally, socially, and culturally.

But that’s also the beauty of it. There’s so much to learn that life is going to be very exciting! Sure, I could take a vacation and try out a city for a week, but in my mind, immersion in a new place is the best way to really see what it has to offer.

Life is not tried, it is merely survived, if you’re standing outside the fire.
- Garth Brooks, Standing Outside The Fire

I think that quote from Garth Brooks’ song is perfect. You can sit back and watch life pass you by or you can make like you’re in a Dodge commercial and “grab life by the horns.” I think, in the end, you really only regret the risks you didn’t take.

If what you’re doing feels perfectly safe, there is probably a better course of action.
- 88 Important Truths I’ve Learned About Life

Modern Nomadism

Some time back, I read an article by Mark Lundegren of HumanaNatura titled The Nomad Within Us, in which Mark proposes moving around regularly, or somewhat modern nomadism. In the past few years, I’ve really developed more of this mentality and feel that it’s a good way to experience the world and keep things fresh. To put it simply, I probably learned more about the country in 7 days than all the years of history and geography that I had in school.

The thing I really like about what Mark wrote is that you don’t have to take the drastic step of moving across the country. You can learn a lot about your own city that you probably don’t already know just by changing neighborhoods and meeting new neighbors in a new community. And since constant learning is important in health, it seems like a good idea to me.

Lessons From The Road

Here are a few things I learned (or at least had reinforced) this past week…

• This is a very rural country. I’d guess I saw ten trailers serving as someone’s home for each regular house and 100 trailers for each multi-million dollar house. I’m guessing those in the trailers are just as content as those in the houses.
• You have no idea just how beautiful a country it is until you’ve driven mountainous forest roads where you can’t go fast enough to get out of third gear for over an hour. For real excitement, take your Honda Civic on unpaved roads for 40 or 50 miles.
• People are generally very grateful for and hospitable to outsiders coming and eating where they eat and seeing their little towns.
• Your chain restaurants will never beat the food little roadside shacks serve. When you find yourself in a town with a population 1/100 of the city you come from, ask for recommendations and see just how good of a meal you’ll get.
• You probably have no idea what the terrain is like out there. I sure didn’t. Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona were all quite surprising.
• It’s hard to find someone that you can spend 7 days (~80 hours) in a car with and still enjoy their company. But it can be done.

Side note: You can see the pictures of my journey through the southern US on Facebook. Since my girlfriend posted them, I think you have to be a friend to view them. It was a great drive through central KY and TN, down the Natchez Trace Parkway (through TN, AL, and MS), across central LA, through the bayou, across central TX, through Gila National Forest in NM, through the AZ desert and mountains, up through Prescott, then through the real desert in southwestern AZ and southeastern CA, and finally through the hills outside of San Diego, with a final walk out to the tip of the Ocean Beach Pier.

A Nutrition Note

As I’m want to do, I picked up on something nutritional-related on my trek. Check out this picture:

This is a dairy farm in southwest CA. That’s not grass those cows are standing on. We saw (and smelled!) several confinement feeding operations. One of them was in southwest NM…it was calves being kept in dog houses with enough room outside of the dog house to walk out and turn around. Pretty sad. And if you’re buying your milk at the grocery, that’s the type of life the animal lives. Do you think you get the same milk as this cow produces (found grazing with other cows in the middle of Gila National Forest)?

How do you keep things fresh in your life? How do you toe the line between community and mobility? Do you opt for security or excitement or some combination of the two?

Less is more in my book. Sometimes in a world full of massive information overload we need to step back and find more wisdom from within.

If you have seen my attempts at daily wisdom and wit on my Facebook status (as I know no one gives $0.02 about where I am and what I am really doing), I try to find quotes to inspire people to think about a deeper message, and apply to their life. Little words that pack a bigger punch.

So here are many of the top health and fitness quotes out there for you to read, ponder over and spread to others as well. Note that even without many of the modern advances in understanding through science/medicine, how true some of these quotes were from long ago.

You may agree with some, disagree with others, and others may just be funny…but if they make you think, then they have done their job. Enjoy!

• “So many people spend their health gaining wealth, and then have to spend their wealth to regain their health.” ~ A.J.Materi

• “To lengthen thy Life, lessen thy meals.” ~ Benjamin Franklin

• “If we could give every individual the right amount of nourishment and exercise, not too little and not too much, we would have found the safest way to health.”  ~ Hippocrates

• “Leave all the afternoon for exercise and recreation, which are as necessary as reading. I will rather say more necessary because health is worth more than learning.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

• “He who cures a disease may be the skillfullest, but he that prevents it is the safest physician.” ~ Thomas Fuller

• “Health is the greatest of all possessions; a pale cobbler is better than a sick king.” ~ Isaac Bickerstaff

• “A man’s health can be judged by which he takes two at a time – pills or stairs.” ~ Joan Welsh

• “The ingredients of health and long life, are great temperance, open air, easy labor, and little care.”  ~ Sir Philip Sidney

• “He who enjoys good health is rich, though he knows it not.” ~ Italian Proverb

• “Be careful about reading health books.  You may die of a misprint.”  ~ Mark Twain

• “Few people know how to take a walk. The qualifications are endurance, plain clothes, old shoes, an eye for nature, good humor, vast curiosity, good speech, good silence and nothing too much.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

• “The best of all medicines is resting and fasting” ~ Benjamin Franklin

• “Those who think they have not time for bodily exercise will sooner or later have to find time for illness.”  ~ Edward Stanley

• “Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it.”  ~ Plato

• “The greatest wealth is health.”  ~ Virgil

• To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.” ~ Buddha

• “Health is the first muse, and sleep is the condition to produce it.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

• “An hour of basketball feels like 15 minutes.  An hour on a treadmill feels like a weekend in traffic school.”  ~ David Walters

• “Many so-called spiritual people, they overeat, drink too much, they smoke and don’t exercise. But they do go to church every week and pray ‘Please help my arthritis. Please help me bring up my strength, make me young again.’” ~ Jack LaLanne

• “To insure good health: eat lightly, breathe deeply, live moderately, cultivate cheerfulness, and maintain an interest in life.” ~ William Londen

• “As a child my family’s menu consisted of two choices:  take it or leave it.”  ~ Buddy Hackett

• “The more you eat, the less flavor; the less you eat, the more flavor.”  ~ Chinese Proverb

• “As for butter versus margarine, I trust cows more than chemists.”  ~ Joan Gussow

• “If you are surprised at the number of our maladies, count our cooks.” ~ Seneca

• “Most diseases are the result of medication which has been prescribed to relieve and take away a beneficiant and warning symptom on the part of Nature.” ~ Elbert Hubbard

• “The physically fit can enjoy their vices.” ~ Lord Percival

• “In general, mankind, since the improvement in cookery, eats twice as much as nature requires.”  ~ Benjamin Franklin

• “Most of the food allergies die under garlic and onion.”  ~ Martin H. Fischer

• “I think you might dispense with half your doctors if you would only consult Dr. Sun more.”  ~ Henry Ward Beecher

• “It’s not food if it arrived through the window of your car.” ~ Michael Pollan

• “Doctors are men who prescribe medicines of which they know little, to cure diseases of which they know less, in human beings of whom they know nothing” ~ Voltaire

• “The word aerobics comes from two Greek words: aero, meaning “ability to,” and bics, meaning “withstand tremendous boredom” ~ Dave Barry

• “The doctor of the future will no longer treat the human frame with drugs, but rather will cure and prevent disease with nutrition.” ~ Thomas Edison

• “The deviation of man from the state in which he was originally placed by nature seems to have proved to him a prolific source of diseases” ~ Edward Jenner

• “There’s lots of people in this world who spend so much time watching their health that they haven’t the time to enjoy it. ” ~Josh Billings

• “Our food should be our medicine and our medicine should be our food.” ~ Hippocrates

• “I fear not the man who has practiced 10000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10000 times.” ~ Bruce Lee

• “Too many people confine their exercise to jumping to conclusions, running up bills, stretching the truth, bending over backward, lying down on the job, sidestepping responsibility and pushing their luck.” ~ Author Unknown

If you enjoyed this article, you may also enjoy my own personal quotes on Trainer Tells All about Health and Fitness here.

References: Thanks given to sites like Think Exist,  Brainy Quote, and Quote Garden for making many of these available.

So here they are (with the original articles linked as well) in no particular order for you to enjoy!

Best Quotes/One liners of 2009:

The point being in your battle against weight loss, you need to start where it matters the most…in how and what you eat. From there you compliment your efforts with “effective” exercise…and not “excessive” exercise. Too many people are being excessive in what they do, expecting faster results somehow.
- Aerobics (Cardio) is Not Your Priority in Lasting Weight Loss

With the caveat that sugar intake should be VERY minimal, I’d rather go ahead and give my body the substance that it can process rather than some unknown chemical. … Again, better is a relative term. It’s better to smoke one pack of cigarettes than to smoke two packs. Cocaine is probably less harmful than crack. That doesn’t make it healthy. It’s even better to do neither.
- Real Sugar Vs. Artificial Sweeteners: Which Is Better?

I eat clean 90% of the time so that the other 10% of the time, I can relax and do whatever. I can eat sushi without being concerned about the rice. I can dig into the chips and guacamole at a Mexican place before my plate-load of carnitas. I can have a drink or two while watching football with friends.
- Cheat Meals, Flexible Eating, and Dietary OCD

“Stimulate and don’t annihilate”
- Get Bigger Muscles by…Walking?

In the end, we all just need to go back to the basics. Eat Real Food! Do that and you can forget worrying about the cardiovascular protection of omega-3s or how many egg yolks you should eat to lower your blood pressure.
- How A Paleo/Primal Eating Plan Improves Your Health; And Why None Of It Matters

Along with trans fats, sugar is the worst thing you can put in your body.
- Marketing Lies: There Is No Such Thing As “Healthy Sugar”

Perfection is an illusion, it means there is some final destination to be achieved (and disappointment to be had if you don’t get there). Strive for living daily instead, not trying to achieve a goal that your happiness is depending on. Your happiness is now.
- Deep Thoughts……More on Weight Loss, Health, and Living

So many people accept illness as a regular part of being alive. But is it really? Is illness the normal human life, an inevitable part of drawing breath? I don’t think it is.
- How Do You Repair Your Immune System?

Many people are overweight despite eating hardly any food…so while calorie deficit is needed to lose weight, it’s only in relation to how optimal the overall metabolism is running in the first place. Have a hampered liver and it will also negatively affect your fat burning metabolism.
- Speed Up Your Metabolism – Fatty Liver Disease

You probably noticed I left one off. Here’s a statement to ruffle some feathers: Do not drink soy milk. If you want to know why, go back to the anti-nutrient section. Add to that very high levels of omega-6 fatty acids in soy fat. It’s really not good for you.
- Nutrition In Milk And Milk Substitutes

We have seen healthy societies with various %s (high and low) of carb intake but they all have one big thing in common…they all eat natural “real foods”. They also have another thing in common, once people from their culture move into a more “modernized” food environment, then the health benefits seen previously decrease dramatically.
- Are Low Carb Diets Over-rated for Health and Longevity?

The reality is that humans started cooking food because it makes food more easily digestible, rather than making it more difficult to digest. There are some exceptions, but for the most part, this is true. And the only measure of how nutritious a food is is how well the body can digest it.
- Are Raw Vegetables Healthier Than Cooked Vegetables?

If you don’t like something….change it or quit whining about it. Anyone can change their job, anyone can move to a different state, anyone can stop doing so much inorder to spend more time with family, anyone can make time for simple exercise, anyone can find ways to eat healthier. Dump the excuses and just take action to make a change now.
- Urgent Changes to Make in Your Vocabulary Today (for Health and Happiness)

Proteins and fat lowered a bit % wise, but carb% increased dramatically (primarily thanks to the whole “low fat” movement that could turn out the be the worst advice ever given). We are not saying carbs are the enemy, but we know that quality matters…..so let’s see where we are getting our carbs from. While fruits and vegetables have marginally increased, cereal grains and sugars have skyrocketed.
- Obesity, Diabetes, and Other Diseases vs Food Trends in Pictures

So knowing that pastured eggs are markedly more nutritious than conventional eggs, along with being more flavorful and safer, you have another reason to support your local farmers. Pastured eggs are more expensive, but they are also more nutritious. Check out your local farmer’s markets and buying clubs.
- The Truth About Free Range, Organic, Cage Free Eggs Nutrition

“If you told me you were going to jail and only had a barbell and didn’t want to get raped in the showers and could only do one exercise to put mass and strength on, then I’d tell you to do the snatch deadlift on a platform.”
- The Best Muscle Building Exercise…If You Had to Pick One

If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you already know that I’m no fan of grains, whether processed or whole. Unfortunately, those of us that think such blasphemous things against those “wholesome” grains are an anomaly. So for those that still think whole grains are an important, healthy, wholesome, and necessary part of the diet, let’s look at just a few of the issues.
- The Real Truth About Those “Healthy Whole Grains”

It all boils down to the simple equation that if you put your feet in a stiff shoe, you are not going to use all the muscles in your feet. What happens when you don’t use muscles? They get weak. Add an addition unnatural stride (heel striking) with weak feet and you create instability at the base of your body (your feet hitting the ground). That translates up your knees, legs, back and creates compensatory movements (such as overpronation) and injuries.
- Cure all Running Injuries (and Pain) with One Simple Fix….Barefoot Running

Instability of the scapula is a major cause of shoulder issues, so my goal is to teach the muscles to work together to make sure my scapula is moving within the joint as it should be. And there are a load of muscles that connect to this bone: deltoid, traps, biceps, pectoralis minor, rhomboids, serratus, and rotator cuff to name a majority.
- How To Improve Scapular Stability For Healthy Shoulders

IF is not about starvation, it’s not about crash dieting, and it’s not about quick weight loss (even if results may happen quickly for some). To me it’s all about a lifestyle and lasting approach to improving your health, redefining your relationship with food, to reduce unnatural cravings, get back in tune with the natural survival design of our bodies, optimizing your glucose energy metabolism and just an easy and simple approach to lasting results.
- Intermittent Fasting has a New Name….Intermittent Feeding

As you can see, I don’t think that you need to 100% give up coffee or alcohol to be healthy. I enjoy both and am unlikely to go completely clean from either. If you stick with the a low intake of both and pay attention to how you feel after having them, there’s no reason that you have to be completely ascetic.
- Caffeine, Alcohol, And Health – How Much Is Too Much?

The bottom line is that humans have been eating eggs, meat, and butter for a really long time without heart disease and cancer. Yet somehow, now heart disease and cancer run rampant and the food industry is always there to protect us from eating these wholesome foods.
- Real Foods Take On Fake Foods: Butter, Bacon, And Eggs

Wrapping up the year, we mainly want to thank YOU the readers for making this a great 2009 at Fitness Spotlight (with all your contributions/comments). We look forward to more great things to come in 2010!

- Mike and Scott

PS. If you have any great quotes or one liners you heard this year, please feel free to share them in the comments below as well.

Well, I hit the big 3-0 last Tuesday, December 8th. That’s right…about 1/3 of the way through my life, give or take. It came and went pretty uneventfully, as I don’t tend to make much of a deal over birthdays. I went for some Mexican food and had some drinks and laughs with good friends.

So today is a little something different. I was thinking about some good lessons I’ve learned in life. We all have our own and here’s my version of 30 In 30. There won’t be any big time nutrition stuff or research in here, so if that’s what you’re looking for, skip this post. Otherwise, read on.

1. Discussing nutrition in social gatherings is akin to discussing politics or religion. People identify closely with their food.
2. Don’t neglect your health and fitness to pursue monetary success.
3. If you’re in a bad situation (be that job, relationship, or otherwise), first take steps to fix it. If it’s beyond repair, do whatever it takes to get out of it. Life is too short to be miserable.
4. Maintain a few close friendships. I’d rather have 2 or 3 close friends than 50 mere acquaintances.
5. On that note, relationships (with friends and significant others) come and go. People change and grow. Enjoy the time you have with people and let it go when the costs to maintain it outweigh the benefits. Practice non-attachment. Read “The Way To Love” by Anthony De Mello.
6. Apologize quickly. Forgive quickly.
7. Let it go. It’s probably not worth dwelling on.
8. Call your mom.
9. Don’t let anyone crap on your dreams…most people are offended if you want to follow a different path (even if you aren’t an asshole about it). And don’t be an asshole about other people’s dreams either.
10. You make your bed, you lie in it. I’m not talking about sleeping.
11. Live in the present. The past is done and you can’t control the future. Plan for the future. Aim for goals. But don’t miss the present while planning for whatever is next.
12. There are very few facts. Most “facts” are just individual interpretations.
13. You can’t get rich quick, short of robbing a bank or hitting the lottery. I don’t recommend robbing a bank and your odds of hitting the lottery are slim (0.00000000512%)…any number that close to zero might as well be zero. I suggest you just get to working hard.
14. Find a hobby you enjoy. Don’t worry about making money at it. Just have fun with it.
15. Music trumps a movie any day of the week. Rock, classical, jazz, rap, or techno. Doesn’t matter…music, hands down.
16. Don’t spend your life doing things you don’t enjoy. Sure, we all have to attend the occasional wedding or funeral, but if you find yourself being sucked into other people’s idea of fun constantly and it’s not yours, say no. Say it often.
17. Take 90 minutes to watch these two videos: Steve Jobs Commencement Address at Stanford and Randy Pausch’s last lecture. If you’ve seen them, watch them again.
18. Eat high-quality food. If you drink coffee or alcohol, drink high-quality alcohol, high-quality beer, and high-quality spirits.
19. If you’re depressed, there’s probably a reason other than chemical imbalances. Fix it.
20. Meat won’t kill you. Neither will butter. Donuts won’t help though.
21. Just because you get older doesn’t mean you have to age. Here I am, 30 years old, as fast as I was at 18 and stronger, fitter, and healthier than I’ve ever been. I don’t buy the nonsense about how it’s all going to catch up to me at 30 (or 35 or any other age). Things change as you get older: recovery takes longer, injuries are more detrimental, and you can’t abuse yourself like you could at 21. That doesn’t mean you have to turn into mush.
22. Never stop learning. Step outside your comfort zone as often as possible.
23. Set goals, re-evaluate on a regular basis. Spend most of your time doing things that progress you towards those goals.
24. You work for you, regardless of who your employer is. If the demands are unrealistic, remember that you work for you. On that note, use all of your vacation days. They are there for a reason. Don’t let yourself be guilted out of benefits.
25. Don’t concern yourself with other people’s vision of your success.
26. Your health is the most important thing you have. Stay healthy and you’ll be better in every area of your life. Don’t sacrifice health for materiality.
27. Before you give advice, listen. Listen some more. Keep listening.
28. Selfishness is a virtue. Be selfish – take care of yourself first.
29. A relationship or career can’t make you happy, but it can make you miserable.
30. I hate to be cliche and quote a movie, but Andy Dufresne might’ve said it best: “Get busy livin’, or get busy dyin’.” Stop feeling sorry for yourself…no one else does.

So there you have it, thirty things I’ve learned in the past thirty years. Okay, to be truthful, I learned most of them in the last 5 years. Who knows what I’ll come up with in another decade.

So why not look at them all together and try to draw some common threads?

Vitamin And Mineral Deficiency Prevalence

For starters, there are thirteen known vitamins and untold numbers of minerals. The vitamins are classified as either fat-soluble – vitamins A, D, E, and K – or water-soluble – the B vitamins and vitamin C. A few major minerals are calcium, zinc, magnesium, copper, iron, and iodine. There are far too many trace minerals to list, however.

Unfortunately, I can’t find solid evidence on most of the vitamins and minerals about how many people are deficient. Here are the ones I was able to come up with from this site: [I was hoping to find some stuff on PubMed, but it doesn't seem many studies have been done, which makes sense in an industrialized nation where people are presumed to be well-nourished.]

Vitamin/Mineral Deficiency Prevalence

How Did We Get Here?

Depleted soils. Processed foods. Indoor living. Fear of the sun. Pretty much a complete rejection of the evolutionary lifestyle that sustained us for a couple million years. It all adds up to pretty high levels of vitamin and mineral deficiencies across the population. While most people aren’t deficient enough to get the overt symptoms, such as rickets or bleeding disorders, lots of us have less than recommended levels, which does have an effect over the course of a lifetime. Just look at all of the studies showing that low vitamin D levels, though high enough to stave off rickets, being tied to cancer, cognitive impairment, heart disease, and any number of other diseases.

I think there’s also one other culprit – low-fat diets. Low-fat diets tend to promote processed foods that are fortified with selected vitamins. But there’s one problem. No matter how many IU of vitamins A & D you cram into that skim milk (because skim is what’s always recommended), the body can’t absorb them without fat.

A Toxic Environment

So check out some of the stuff I came across about what specific types of pharmaceuticals do to vitamin and mineral status:

These drugs/substances lead to these specific nutrient deficiencies:
* Antibiotics – Vitamin A, B-12, C, E, K, Biotin, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Potassium
* Chelators – Copper, Iron, Magnesium, Zinc
* Anticonvulsants – Vitamin B-2, B-12, C, F, K, Folic Acid, Calcium, Magnesium
* Antidiabetics (Oral) – Vitamin B-2, B-12, C, D, Folic Acid
* Antihistamines – Vitamin C
* Aspirin – Calcium, Folic Acid, Iron, Potassium, C, B Complex

How many people are reaching for the antibiotics at every little illness? Now let’s look at the effects of deficiency of a few of these vitamins and minerals.

Zinc Deficiency

Zinc Deficiences A Global Concern

Other vitamins and nutrients may get more headlines, but experts say as many as two billion people around the world have diets deficient in zinc – and studies at Oregon State University and elsewhere are raising concerns about the health implications this holds for infectious disease, immune function, DNA damage and cancer.
….
Zinc is naturally found associated with proteins in such meats as beef and poultry, and in even higher levels in shellfish such as oysters. It’s available in plants but poorly absorbed from them, raising additional concerns for vegetarians.

The article also points out that even mild zinc deficiency is associated with higher levels of DNA damage. And of course, zinc is incredibly important for testosterone production and for releasing enzymes that inhibit testosterone conversion to estrogen.

Magnesium Deficiency

The Importance of Staving Off a Magnesium Deficiency

The latest government study shows a staggering 68% of Americans do not consume the recommended daily intake of magnesium.
….
The National Academy of Sciences has determined that most Americans are magnesium deficient, with men obtaining only about 80 percent of their daily needs with women fairing even worse obtaining about 70 percent of their needs.

But magnesium is only a big deal if you care about having strong teeth and bones, not cramping during your workouts, how effectively your heart pumps, and your blood pressure. Y’know, just a few somewhat important things like that.

Vitamin K Deficiency

New vitamin K analysis supports the triage theory – Modest vitamin/mineral deficiencies increase age-related disease

An important analysis conducted by Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute scientists suggests the importance of ensuring optimal dietary intakes of vitamin K to prevent age-related conditions such as bone fragility, arterial and kidney calcification, cardiovascular disease, and possibly cancer….
Average intakes of vitamin K in the United States and the United Kingdom are less even than currently recommended intakes, which are primarily based on levels to ensure adequate coagulation.

Unfortunately, that article recommends the typical plant vitamin K sources like spinach and Swiss chard, completely ignoring even better sources, namely animal foods. I pointed out in this fat-soluble vitamins series, that vitamin K2 is at least as important as K1 and showed some great sources like egg yolks, butter, ground beef, and liver.

I won’t run through all of the various effects of vitamin K since I’ve already done so in here. If you didn’t read that series the first time, you might want to check it out to learn more about the oh-so-important fat-soluble vitamins.

Vitamin D Deficiency

I think vitamin D is so important that I can’t really touch on it enough. And I know that I’ve written about it quite a few times. So if you want to know what vitamin D does and how having adequate levels affects you, check out these two articles:
Get Your Vitamin D Checked: Why And How?
Just How Important Is Vitamin D?

Also, one of my readers sent me this article written by his girlfriend (or fiancee or perhaps even wife) which goes a bit more in-depth than I’ve ever gone: Vitamin D Sources, Supplementation and Toxicity. Unfortunately I can’t recall who sent it to me, but thanks!

Check this out…from Ms. Perciavalle’s page:

Vitamin D deficiency is now considered to be a pandemic. Approximately 1 billion people worldwide have deficient levels of Vitamin D.

So while the media is concerned with a supposed H1N1 pandemic, one-sixth of the people in the world are deficient in vitamin D (and I’m betting a huge number that aren’t “deficient” are sub-optimal). Go check out those links to see all of the various effects of being deficient in D.

How To Resolve Vitamin And Mineral Deficiencies

That’s just the tip of the iceberg, just a high-level view at a few of the vitamin deficiencies that people don’t notice, but which cause numerous effects that are typically chalked up to “aging”. I strongly believe that most of these issues can be resolved pretty simply. And I don’t mean loading up on supplements.

Eat Real Food

For starters, we need to just Eat Real Food. No matter how fortified or enriched your packaged, processed foods are, they will never compare to real, unprocessed fruits, vegetables, and meats. So eat your grass-fed meats, poultry, eggs, and wild seafood. Load your plate up with vegetables and fruits. Snack on nuts. And ditch everything that says “Now With Added X”.

Your body needs plenty of healthy fats. Get rid of the highly processed polyunsaturated fats and go with stable fats like coconut oil and palm oil and the fat from grass-fed animals. These the healthy fats that your body craves and that retain all of their vitamins.

Eat Organic And Grass-Fed

Some studies say organic food has more nutrients than non-organic food. Other studies say it doesn’t. Regardless, I think organic is a better bet, if for no other reason than that the pesticides and fertilizers left on the food represent a toxic load for your body to deal with. I’d also imagine, though I’m guessing, that dealing with these toxins requires some level of vitamins and minerals, perhaps exacerbating nutrient deficiencies. Certain produce items have been shown to have higher pesticide contamination levels and should be your first choice for going organic.

I also found some interesting information showing that low vitamin A diets lead to increased intramuscular fat storage (i.e., marbling) in cows (I bet it does the same in humans…). You can bet feedlot farms are using that to their advantage to increase the grading of their meat, while decreasing the vitamin content of the actual meat. There’s yet another reason to eat grass-fed meats.

Should You Take Supplements?

Finally, I do take a few supplements in small amounts (and one in big amounts). I take zinc and magnesium due to my workout load, along with a large daily dose of vitamin D after testing very low, and I take a whole foods-based multivitamin as a cheap insurance policy. Other than that, nothing. I think loading up on vitamin C or E or whatever probably causes more issues than it cures since vitamins need to exist in ratios in the body, not just in mass quantities.

If you do think you need to shore up a few nutrient deficiencies, Vitamin Shoppe carries a wide range of supplements, including zinc, magnesium, and vitamin D. Just remember to look to real food first, supplements second.

What other ways do you see to shore up nutrient deficiencies?

Today, I want to touch on several related points, all going back to the main point of eating healthy, yet still being able to have a great social life and enjoy some of your “off limits” foods. So first I’m going to look at cheat meals and how to do them. Next, I’ll show you how I eat to not need to worry about scheduling cheat meals. Finally, I want to dig into the dietary OCD that too many people seem to have that keeps them from actually enjoying what they eat.

Cheat Meals

I’ll go ahead and tell you that I hate the term “cheat meal”. It implies that you’re doing something “bad” and since you’re being “bad,” you probably need to somehow punish yourself to make up for it. However, since it’s a common term, I’ll work with it. The way I see it, there are two basic ways to deal with cheat meals.

The First Way: Scheduled Cheat Meals

Some people go with the method of planning out their cheat meals. So every week or two, they’ll go out for pizza or beer and chicken wings or ice cream or whatever their particular poison happens to be. I think this is fine when you’re first starting out with shifting to a healthier way of eating because it gives you something to look forward to. It’s easier to stay on course during the week if you know that you can have whatever you’re craving on the weekends.

I also like this way in the beginning because the beginning is when the cravings hit the hardest. I think it helps people stay on course if they know they can give in a little once or twice a week.

But for a lifelong way of doing things, I think you should eventually move away from a strict eating schedule and go to a pattern of eating that lets you be flexible, eating right 90% of the time and still enjoying whatever life brings your way.

The Other Way: Flexible Eating – Eating In Chicago And Boston

Basically, I don’t schedule my cheat meals. I know that I’m going to go out to eat once or twice a week and it might entail some non-Paleo foods. And if I don’t go out to eat or if I go somewhere and end up eating Primally, then I just avoided cheating just because it was scheduled.

Vacation is one time when I know I’m not going to stick to 100% good eating. For one, there are too many good restaurants and two, without a kitchen in the room, it’s hard to stay strict. I look at vacation as a time to enjoy what other cities have to offer me.

For instance, I was in Chicago for a long weekend back in September. Here is a sampling of a few of my meals:

• Pizzeria Due: Real deep dish Chicago-style pizza and a couple beers
• Yolk: Omelet loaded with meat and cheese, side of fruit, pancakes with bananas and blackberries
• Goose Island Brewery: Pulled pork with rice, beans, and habanero-pineapple salsa. Two very strong and amazing beers.
• Rock’s in Lincoln Park (while watching Notre Dame lose to Michigan): Burger with pineapple, avocado, and teriyaki (and yes, I ate the bun) and sweet potato fries.
• The West Egg: Egg and chorizo scramble with sour cream and avocado, fried potatoes.

How exactly can I justify following a dinner of pizza and beer with a breakfast that includes pancakes and syrup, a couple more beers that night, a burger the next day (with a few more beers), and then fried potatoes with my final breakfast? Here is one tip I wish people would remember: it’s not the single data points, but the overall lifestyle that matters. I balanced my eating with 20-25 miles of walking over 4 days and only ate twice each day because I was busy seeing things and hanging out with friends, as well as not being exceptionally hungry due to eating big meals already, even if not completely “Primal”.

And I followed up my Chicago trip with a trip to Boston a couple weeks later. After the above list, you might be scared to see what I ate there. Here you go:

• Steak tips, eggs, and mustard-drenched potatoes
• Tons of baked, steamed, and boiled fresh seafood – lobster, mussels, clams, shrimp, scallops, salmon, tuna, scrod, and raw oysters
• Fish ‘n chips slathered in tartar sauce and malt vinegar and a Guinness at an Irish bar
• Cannolis from Mike’s Pastry
• Sufficient quantities of clam chowder

Feeling The Effects Of A Blow-out

And what were the after-effects of all of this? Nothing. No decrease in my performance. In fact, I came back and killed it in the gym and after the Chicago trip, I set a 1-mile PR (5:50). No increase in body fat. Nothing. So you see, you can “have your cake and eat it too,” so to speak. You can cut loose and enjoy some of the delicious foods available in other cities (or in your own) without worrying about whether every bite you take is Primal, Paleo, or Zone-conforming. As long as you keep your overall lifestyle healthy, you are free to go out and dig into some pancakes, pizza, and beer now and then.

I think a lot of people get way too worked up about “staying in the Zone” and “being Paleo” when they should really just focus on enjoying life. I know that the way I eat the other 90% of the time that I’m not vacationing allows me to cut loose and try some new things, have a few beers, eat pizza, and open my day with some of the best pancakes in Chicago with no concern of ill effects. In fact, I won’t even lie and say that I felt like crap from what I ate. I felt just fine.

Now I know that someone is misconstruing what I’m saying and probably thinking “How can he say that you should have a blow-out just because you’re on vacation?” Someone is probably also thinking that I’m casting aside my previous advice and saying that it’s okay to eat garbage because I didn’t see a performance decrease. Nope. Not at all. I know that if I did that all the time, I would feel it, I would see performance decreases and body fat increases.

The key here is that when I’m at home, my meals are as healthy as can be. I don’t make pancakes at home. I don’t make cannolis at home, nor would I go to a bakery in Louisville and get one because there are no “must eat cannolis” here. And I certainly don’t fry fish at home. It’s pretty much all meat and vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds…real food with some occasional sushi or Mexican food. And since I’m unfortunately not on vacation all that often, you can see how the percentages work out and why I don’t even have to give a second-thought to how I eat on vacation.

Is Your Diet Too Restrictive To Just Live?

I have actually seen people ask how they can eat Paleo or stay “in the Zone” at a baseball game. You can’t, short of smuggling your own food in. If you want to go to a baseball game and have a hot dog or nachos, do so. And deal with clean eating before and after. Or eat beforehand and just enjoy the company. Do you really want to count out 15 almonds when you should be just hanging out with your friends? Is that what life is about?

The ultimate goal should be that you are able to step off the wagon for a day or two, then jump right back on without punishing yourself or stressing out. If a friend drops in town and wants to go grab a drink, can you do that or is it not on your plan so you have to turn them down?

Dietary OCD: Orthorexia?

Okay, so it’s time for a quiz. When you looked at my vacation meals there, did you gasp that I ate pancakes or notice that even when I dug into a stack of refined flour and sugar, it came beside a plate full of meat, eggs, and fruit? Did you ask yourself, “how can he eat all those potatoes?” several times or did you notice that they all came with meat, eggs, and typically fruit or vegetables?

Don’t be obsessive-compulsive about your eating, my friends. I have literally seen questions like “do I need to count the carbs in two tablespoons of basil when calculating my Zone blocks?” Yes, you read that right. There are people that are concerned over the carb content of basil leaves. If basil leaves are wrecking your metabolism, you should probably see a doctor. I’m betting that an entire pound of basil leaves can contain no more than a few grams of carbs.

I’m reminded of people that argue over whether carrots or squash or bananas are “favorable” or “unfavorable”. Really? Our girl Melissa Urban derailed The Carrot Train To Crazytown a few months back and I couldn’t agree more. (It’s cool that you had better things to do than hang out when I was in Boston, Melissa. No, really…I’m only a little raw about it.)

Arguing about whether carrots, pineapple, sweet potatoes, and acorn squashes are “good” or “bad” is a serious Nuke The Fridge moment for anyone proposing healthy eating. It may be “healthy eating,” but it’s not a healthy relationship with food. Worrying about the carbs in your herbs and spices or whether something like a carrot or a squash, which I’m betting have not made anyone fat in the entire history of obesity, are good for you is taking navel gazing to a higher level.

It’s Really Not That Serious

So how you deal with cheat meals is up to you. I know that they’re going to happen, so I don’t go out of my way to schedule them. I eat clean 90% of the time so that the other 10% of the time, I can relax and do whatever. I can eat sushi without being concerned about the rice. I can dig into the chips and guacamole at a Mexican place before my plate-load of carnitas. I can have a drink or two while watching football with friends.

I don’t count blocks, calories, grams of carbs, or grams of fat. I simply eat real food most of the time and my performance and health are great. There’s really no reason to make eating such an obsessive-compulsive thing. I doubt the Okinawans, Inuit, or Kitavans ever measured a gram of their carbs or fat, yet they’re some of the healthiest cultures ever.

On the other hand, if I’m going to dig into something I wouldn’t normally eat, I go for the best of the best. I don’t eat pizza very often, but when I’m in Chicago, I’m going to get some good pizza since it’s pretty much the Pizza Mecca (sorry New Yorkers). You won’t find me at a pizza buffet eating a bunch of not very good pizza though. A Snickers bar does nothing for me, so I don’t eat them, but a nice fluffy stack of pancakes a few times a year sure hits the spot.

How do you handle cheat meals? Do you ever just cut loose and dig into something really processed and refined?

Excuses need to go, pure and simple. Those we call “successful” don’t use them, so why do we think it is ok if we do? Sometimes it’s our outlook that is the real problem, not anything else. So in the steps to find our own inner peace and success, take these words out of your own vocabulary and then you will be able to help others do the same.

#1 – Get rid of: “It must be because I am getting old”

Do you call this a natural part of "getting old"? I certainly do not...and Jack Lalanne might agree.

Recently I had a friend of mine who was complaining about his knee pain at 40 as he popped 6 Advil and I jokingly said “Oh you are getting old”. Then I stopped myself and thought “Wait a minute, that is BS….it’s not age, it’s the fact that his body is not in balance for optimal health”. So if you find yourself saying the “aches and pains” are just a natural part of getting old, time to stop and realize that it is NOT natural. There is nothing natural about increased inflammation and joint pain. There is nothing natural about someone’s memory going as they get old. There is nothing natural about sexual impotence in your 40s. These are all signs that the body isn’t working correctly and steps need to be taken. But first we need to stop thinking that getting older means we have to experience these problems. There are many people who are still sharp as a tack, energetic and have no need for pain killers in their later years. As an old saying goes “It’s ok to get older….just don’t age in the process”.

Instead say: “My body must be out of whack, time to get it back in tune to my optimal state of health”

#2 – Get rid of: “There’s a bug going around”

This will always be around you...so better get your immune system working right, or you are the one to blame.

We’ve all heard this one in one place or another (work, school, etc). If people get sick, well it must be the virus and have nothing to do with our built in defense mechanisms otherwise known as an immune system. Guess I’ll just go get a shot or antibiotics to kill off the bad bug and get on with life. It is sad the general public thinks like that, but it does. How about instead of saying “it must be something going around” that instead we think “my immune system must be compromised, time to get it back to optimal function”. Stop blaming some virus for what may be things in your life (wrong foods, negative lifestyle habits) bringing down your natural defenses. The bugs will always be out there, and there will be new ones every year threatening us. Either you have the best defense possible or you are just going to allow yourself to be taken advantage of. Don’t blame the bug, time to blame yourself and your daily actions.

Instead say: “My immune system must be compromised, time to take steps to strengthen it”

#3 – Get rid of: “I’m this way because of my genes”

Meet idential 24yr twins Otto and Ewald. One trained for distance events, the other for power. Think genes are still to blame for putting on muscle? Stop using the "hardgainer" excuse for not doing the right things in the first place.

I would like to thank most of modern medicine for this cop out. With billions of dollars being spent and thousands of man hours invested by people with more degrees than I can count, our solution to most diseases….is….”Oh, it’s just in your genetics”. Heaven forbid we take some sort of preventive lifestyle to keep our genes from going in the wrong direction. People need to realize the power that our eating and lifestyle have on our genetic expression. If you have 2 twins, and one gets cancer…does that mean the other has to as well? No of course not, as each can be living 2 different lives with different hormonal messengers from their overall lifestyle. We all have the genetic capability for cancer, it’s just whether or not we tell our body to switch them on or not that we can control of every day.

Instead say: “I have control over my genetic expression and will take a preventative lifestyle approach”

#4 – Get rid of: “Yeah I wish things were different, but….”

Don't call other people lucky for getting to a place you want to be, as they are no more special than you other than they took steps to make it happen. No excuses, just action.

This could be with you work/job, hours spent with other commitments, how much time you spend with your kids, how you eat and where you get it, how much time to spend outdoors or exercising. I don’t care what your excuses are…they are just excuses. If you don’t like something….change it or quit whining about it. Anyone can change their job, anyone can move to a different state, anyone can stop doing so much inorder to spend more time with family, anyone can make time for simple exercise, anyone can find ways to eat healthier. Dump the excuses and just take action to make a change now. It doesn’t have to be perfect all the time, happen all overnight, or in a week…but just start making the right changes knowing where you want to be in a month, 6 months or year. Otherwise you will be in the same spot one year from now complaining about the same things and making the same excuses. If you hear someone else say this, then encourage them to do something about it today….or go find someone else to whine to. There’s a difference between encouragement and useless wasted energy. I challenge you to know what you want to do and make it happen. I know you can….but the question becomes do you know you can too? If you say “yes” then there is nothing to stop you.

Instead say: “I can and will make changes to better my life…starting right now”

#5 – Get rid of: “But my doctor says I need to….”

If your medical professional is overweight and on meds, why do you think they would be a good source of info for health? Maybe they need to change themselves first before they start telling others what to do.

As much as doctors get a lot of schooling and are very smart people when it comes to medical terminology, does that mean they always know what is best for proper lifestyle approaches to getting and staying healthy? Sadly the case may be “not quite”. Your full dependency on doctors to dictate your health is a dangerous move, especially when there are those that may be misinformed about correct eating habits and rely more on pharmaceutical solutions for everything. This is not to say all doctors are like this, but people need to stop farming out all decisions to them. I can’t tell you how many people I talk to that use that line, when I just want people to question everything he/she has to say and then get the right answer for yourself. Become a team working together, not just believing 100% of what he/she says because they have a certain piece of paper on the wall. You can partner up with your doctor, but don’t let them take over 100% control over everything you do…that is like giving random teenagers the keys to your car and hoping it comes back in one piece!

Instead say: “I am going to do my own research and find out what is best for my health, and then partner up with my doctor”

So to sum up:

• There is no more “getting old”, just whether you are breaking down your body quicker than it can repair itself. Take some lessons from Jack Lalanne as he is healthier than most people half his age!

• There are no more viruses making you sick, just your immune system being compromised from your lifestyle choices. So work on strengthening your immune system the only ways we know how.

• Your genes are not in charge, as your lifestyle choices daily are what effect your genetic expression. A good start is following the #1 rule of nutrition, eating real foods.

• If you want to make a change, take the steps to do something about it now….and quit the complaining. Learn the simple secret in how to get anything you want in life and then the world is yours.

• While your doctor may be a consultant in taking care of  “Yourself Inc.”, you need to make all the educated decisions in the end. For example….does your doctor really know the truth about meat, fat and heart disease?

Just you and the trail....enjoy the journey that lays ahead

One of my favorite active lifestyle (as there is no “cardio” in my life) hobbies is going out for a mountain bike ride. I’m lucky enough to have a nice 6-mile technical trail near enough that I can go out for a quick 30min ride without needing a whole day to drive to the mountains. It is full of many hills (up and down), quick turns, and obstacles to overcome. All of which got me thinking about how the lessons I learned while mountain biking over the years and how they can apply to all other parts of life (I won’t even count the lesson of learning how to break into my car with a screwdriver and long tree branch after locking my keys in the trunk).

Lesson #1: Going too cautiously out of fear will actually make you crash more

Everyone when they first start something usually will take it slow and careful. Same applies in biking, as I would go slow down the hills while clamping on the brakes because I didn’t want to get out of control. But the real reason was because I was afraid of not being able to take a turn or bump and landing on my butt (or head). I look back now and realize that I crashed more because I went too slow. It made it harder to get over the obstacles and I didn’t have confidence that I needed. Nowadays, I go faster downhill and just hold on knowing the bike can overcome anything (it’s just me that can mess it all up).

Take home point: You don’t want to always go too slow because of having no confidence or fear of failing. On the flip side you don’t also want to cut the brakes and never be able to slow down when needed. The balance is in finding how to embrace your fears, overcome and turn it into confidence. It may be that same fear daily that is holding you back or causing you to make the ride (life) harder than it needs to be.

Lesson #2: You are going to crash, accept it, and the more you do…the better you will get at getting back up

Falling down just means you are out there doing something….don’t play it too safe. You fall down and you get right back up.

I think my first biking nickname was “crash” from some of my clients because they wanted to see all the cuts and bruises I got after every weekened of biking. I did my fair share of crashing, some really stupid and some glorious in their own right. But something funny happened, the more I would crash…the better I got at it. By that I would mean I would just hit the ground softer, tuck and roll and just get right back up and on with the ride. I no longer feared crashing and now crash very rarely (knock on wood!).

Take home point: We all have set backs or “crashes” in life, but there is no reason to fear them. The more you can just get up, brush yourself off and get right back on your way…the sooner you will get to where you are going. Those that just sit there and whine in self pity or quit altogether out of fear, will never get there. Like Coach Lombardi said “It’s not whether you get knocked down, it’s whether you get up”.

Lesson #3: Don’t use the easy gears too quickly and embrace the challenge

Most bikes come with many gears (like 18-24) to use as things get harder. The problem is many people use those easy gears too quickly, end up just spinning their pedals and going very slow. A while back I had all those gears, and then one day while riding my derailer (which allows all the shifting of gears to happen) snapped off. Instead of spending another $300 for all new parts, I had the bike shop make my bike into a single speed for $15 (which basically means I went from 24 gears to 1….yes 1).

That was 2 years ago, now I love riding my one gear bike up and down the hills. The main reason being, I can’t bail out into easy gears and mentally talk myself out of it….when the hills come I have only 2 choices: to just start peddling hard and fast or end up walking….and I am not planning on walking any hills.

Take home point: What kind of “easy gears” do you have in your life? The things you use to bail out when things get tough. How about instead you just buckle down and attack that hill, you’ll get over it much quicker that way and be stronger for it.

Lesson #4: Don’t look at the things you want to avoid, or too far ahead

Where are you looking...at the trees or the path? You will go wherever you focus on.

I learned very quickly that if you want to hit a tree or rock, just keep staring at it and the bike magically seems to go that way like it was stuck in a tractor beam. While you want to know where the trees are, you don’t want to focus directly on them…instead you want to see where you want to go down the path. When I go over wooden bridges/platforms that are elevated, if I look at the bridge I am fine…but if I look over the side at where I don’t want to go, I’ll be falling very soon. Also there were some trails a while back that I would dread a certain point (whether a long hill climb, or a drop off that scared me), but what good did it do me to focus on something that I wasn’t even at yet? I found it would ruin my ride that I was doing right now.

Take home point: Don’t focus on the things in life that you do not want to have happen, instead focus on where you want to go. If you focus on failure (hitting a tree), guess what…you will hit that tree. If you focus on where you want to go (down the path) then you will go down the path. Also don’t worry about things that you can’t even do anything about right now. If there is a big hill coming much later on, deal with it when it comes. Otherwise worrying about it for the whole time will just ruin your daily journey.

Lesson #5: Be prepared but not overly so paranoid

I was just reminded recently that I am not so invincible, when I was biking and blew out my tire. Funny part was (sarcasm) that it was about a mile from the parking lot and my pump was in the trunk of the car. So my humble lesson began with a nice 1 mile trail hike out carrying my bike. Let’s just say I will take the small pump and spare tire on rides from now on. On the flip side, I once rode a long trail with a 40lb (felt like it) backpack full of everything I could think of….I never used any of it and it wore me down just carrying it with me.

Take home point: It’s ok to be prepared for things that may go wrong. But you don’t have to be overly burdened with it. A small pump and spare tire is nothing to carry with me, but a backpack full of medical supplies and tools for every possibility would just weight me down and tire me out. So be prepared for the small things you can take care of, and ditch the excess baggage that is just slowing you down and wearing you out.

So there you have it….in life, as in moutain biking, if you want success (whatever you may define it to be) then just:

• Don’t be afraid of crashing, embrace the challenges and just move on as you go.
• Don’t be afraid of hard work, too many take the easy way out.
• Look at where you want to go in life, not focus on where you don’t want to go.
• Get rid of the excess baggage you may be carrying around with you. Grab the essentials in your journey and move forward.
• Enjoy the journey every day. The ride is only so long, so don’t be afraid to enjoy every minute of it…because when it’s over, it’s over. Never look back in regret of things you might have done.

Learn how to effectively unplug once in a while, and be more productive and happy because of it!

Are you feeling like you have no time and not getting anything done? Do you keep having the same New Years resolutions year after year? Are you wishing you were somewhere else in your career but never seem to follow your dream? Do the days just pass by all too quickly? Well my friend, it may be time to take a break.

Many people think if they keep pushing themselves non-stop mentally/physically then it will lead to better and quicker results. In the long term, this is usually the complete opposite. The people who succeed in life know how to get things done in less time, and then go enjoy their life.

What creates results? It’s a simple 3 step process:

1. Visualizing exactly what you want
2. Knowing what step you need to do right now
3. Taking action and repeating the steps

Unfortunately if you ask many we all seem to be stuck in a rut, still in the same place, not feeling like we are moving forward, or just lost clarity on what we really want in life. To get back on track, take a break, step back, relax and let the mind/body reset back to optimal working capacity.

Don’t be busy, be productive

Don't work long hours day after day, be smarter and get more done in less time.

I know people who stay busy all day long, yet over the long haul really aren’t going anywhere. It’s not about how much you can “spin your wheels”, but what you really do in life. There are enough distractions out there to derail any of us, but we can always learn to identify what activities are helping and what ones are just keeping us spinning in the mud.

Of course in order to be productive we need to know where we want to go in the first place. You can walk 100 miles in one direction with a map and compass to a set destination, or you can walk in circles. Two completely different journeys and outcomes in the same amount of time.

So focus on what you want and just don’t do “stuff” to kill time. Remember time is all you have, your greatest gift day in and out, waste it now and you will only live to regret it (or wish you had more) later.

Learn the art of saying “No”

Along with staying “busy” is having way too many obligations or commitments. It is one thing to participate in and do things you really enjoy, but it is another to get suckered into everything that pops up just because someone asks you to do it. The answer is simple, learn to say “No” to people. Stop caring what they will think if you don’t participate. It’s your life to live and only those that want to spin their wheels stay busy. From this point forward you are going in a set direction right? So now it’s important to use your time for your journey, and not just stay busy.

The only way you will get good at it is to practice. Say “No” to going out on the town if you really don’t want to, say “No” to volunteering if it’s not something you believe in, say “No” more often and pretty soon you will be the expert. Remember we are still saying “Yes”, but only to the things that we want to have happen. We are in total control now.

More is not better, smarter is

We know this to be true in most things such as in work or exercise (working out). You don’t exercise all day long and expect to have bigger muscles, you take time off. Same thing for work, you don’t want to work 12 hours just for the sake of it but you want to get stuff done.

I’ve found personally that the days I tend to work the longest, I end up really getting the least amount done. We have all done it, just stare at the computer screen for what seems like hours on end. Writing my ebook Break Free was the same way. I had to be focused and have clear mind to write effectively…otherwise I would stare and type slow resulting in not doing much.

By working longer the only thing most of us accomplish is heading down a road of burnout which will lead to less productivity day after day and eventually require a bigger break to recover from.

Get out and play

You are never too old to be like a kid again. Just go play!

Something I keep telling myself when I feel like I am “mentally” unfocused or slowing down is to just “get out and play”. Nothing helps to recharge the brain/body more than getting outside and going to do something I enjoy. It doesn’t have to be planned, and can take many forms. It could be a walk around the park, going for a bike ride, playing catch with your kids, walking the dogs, or whatever activity you enjoy.

The key is to make it fun and uncomplicated. Forget the cell phone, leave the ipod at home, don’t worry about the computer/emails. Shut it all off and just go play.

3 types of breaks

Below I have listed the 3 types of breaks that you can use at your discretion. These can be applied to many aspects of your life including your work, social commitments, relationships and even your workouts.

Option#1: Take a short break

This is simple and should be used daily. Know when to just turn off the computer/phone and go play. In fact take as many “little” breaks as you want during a day. Nothing keeps you as focused as having a clear mind and knowing you are not going to take all day with something.

Also within this strategy is planning your work hours. Don’t just call work from 6am to 10pm 7 days a week. This is something I have to remind myself to do as well quite often. Set specific hours in which you will ONLY check your email or do other work activity, and then be done with it (one reason I will NEVER have email on my phone). You can spread those hours through out the day if you want, like say working from 8am to 10am and 2pm to 4pm on the computer. It’s up to you. But the goal is to not just “stay busy”, but be focused and productive. This is about getting things done, and keeping your sanity and happiness in the progress. Figure out what will work for you and then just make it happen.

Option #2: Extended time off to recharge

Taking a vacation is this easy...even if it's just in your own backyard.

We could call this a “vacation” from something (or even someone if that is the case). Sometimes the short breaks aren’t enough and we need a longer time to recharge the batteries. You don’t even have to fly to some tropical island (although that would be nice wouldn’t it) to take a vacation. You just need to get away for a while from whatever it is. You could take a weekend off from the computer (gasp, not checking email for a whole weekend? I know). You could just go take a day to some local place, park, town and just enjoy.

The one thing that you don’t want to do is to take a “busy” vacation. You know, always running around the kind that most need another vacation to recover from. This is about taking time off to give your mind and body a break, to be able to come back with a clearer vision, to know what actions to take….not to just make you happy for a day only to come back to the same routine and never change.

Option #3: Sometimes you just need to walk away

The last action is used when something (or someone) is really not in line with your vision or how you want to live your life. It is at this point you may have to just detach and walk away. This is not supposed to be an ugly mental breakup with whatever (or whoever) it may be, but you can smile knowing that you are just needing to go your own way. Detach from it with no hard feelings, only positive ones of how you are going to live your life from now on. It could be a bad job that you are stuck in, a bad personal relationship or something in your life that is not taking you where you really want to go. It’s not about ignoring people or not helping those that need help, it’s about finding what does and does not work in your life. Live a life of purpose, not of being held back by things you are attached to.

So in the hustle and bustle of today’s fast paced society remember that sometimes less is really more, especially when you are focused and then have time to enjoy your daily life.

Life isn’t that complicated, it’s only what YOU make it to be. The only one with the power to make changes is you, so what are you going to do today?