The Low Down on Fish Oil

Few people would dispute the benefits of having omega-3 fatty acids in their diet. Even people that might not understand why fat is good usually agree that omega-3s are good for you. But SAYING they're good for you and know WHY and HOW are two different things. So, without further ado, I present my version of Fish Oil FAQs.

UPDATE 10/10/2011: Robb Wolf's Fish Oil Revision

How to Maintain a Healthy Weight

Note: The box to the right is an anonymous way of asking for certain topics to be covered here. This is a post in response to someone's request. 

adipose tissue (fat) can easily be observed in the cross section of a woman on the left

Losing weight. Come New Years or spring break or summer vacation or a 20th reunion, you can always find someone who wants to "lose weight." What does this really mean though? If I take off my shoes, I've just lost weight. If I cut my hair, I've just lost some weight. Of course people don't think of these things when they say "lose weight;" they mean "lose excess fat." When people want to "get in shape" (another very loose, relative term) the hope is that they want to increase muscle mass and decrease body fat. Let's be honest folks, YOU WANT TO LOOK GOOD NAKED.  Maybe you don't want to be shredded like Ahhnold back in his prime and hopefully you don't want to be twig-thin like these models.  But you DO want to maintain a healthy bodyweight. So how do we go about this? I can tell you right now, Diet Coke and rice cakes is NOT going to help you be lean and strong (but they can help you be emaciated and weak). Let's take a look at some factors and how to actually do this.

Food Rules

Not only does food RULE, but everyone has different food rules for themselves. Some people will have dairy, some not; some will have real fruit juice, others will not; some will have 10 chips with guacamole and not consider it having grains, some will not. So what do YOU do and what are YOUR rules? Do you have rice with sushi? Do you have sugary drinks like Vitamin Water? Do you drink alcohol? If you observe the Catholic season of Lent, are you giving anything up? Post thoughts to comments.

Michael Pollan's Food Rules: An Eater's Manual

Nutrition, Fitness, and Health: 101

Living a long, happy, healthy life. I think most people would say they want this, but how many know HOW to do this? If only it came in a bottle like the picture above. Actually, there's no one simple answer like taking a pill, but I believe there are some guidelines for basic areas of your life: eating real foods, getting quality sleep, and getting strong.  I don't think there's ever a day that someone wakes up and suddenly knows what to do in regards to these areas. It's a process and something that takes time not only to cognitively be aware of what to do, but how to actually implement that information in your lifestyle.

So while it's good to know about advanced topics such as arachidonic acid and how to snatch, let's start with some very basic guidelines of living a healthy lifestyle.

Whole Foods or Whole Fools?

Check out this post by Jimmy Moore about Whole Foods' new campaign for a low-fat, vegetarian lifestyle for everyone. Post thoughts to comments.

Low-Carb Community Responds To Whole Foods Exclusively Marketing A Low-Fat, Vegetarian Diet 

 

LIGHT WEIGHT!

This guy is certainly no light weight, but he makes the bars seem like it! 1005 pound CrossFit Total is impressive...doing it for 10 rounds in less than 5 minutes is stomp-on-my-face amazing. And oh yeah, he weighs 180 pounds.

Backsquat - 425lbs.

Press - 135lbs.

Deadlift - 445lbs.

Produce Junction, What's Your Function?

Eating paleo/primal is not necessarily cheap when it comes to grass-fed meat, but you can probably find some SUPER deals on veggies/fruits. Instead of going to Genuardi's and paying $81.47, I just got back from Produce Junction in Glenside, PA and paid $25.25. Yes, $25.25 for:

Where's the (dried) Beef? Homemade Jerky

Jerky. Portable, nutritious, and downright delicious. But so expensive! A 3oz. package could be $3-$5 PLUS it has a ton of nitrates and preservatives in it.  So what do we do if something is worth having, but not always worth buying? Make it yourself! Don't have a smoker or dehydrator? Me neither. If you have an oven or a box fan, you can make your own jerky.

To Java or Not to Java? That is the Question

Coffee. As an educator, it's hard to find someone I work with that doesn't drink coffee. If I do find someone, they're usually drinking tea. It's well known that coffee/tea is addicting due to the caffeine, but what are the health pros/cons and how does it affect performance in the gym?

The Chris P. Chronicles

If any of you have the CrossFit Journal, you know it's a worthwhile investment. For $25/year, you get access to a ton of great PDFs and videos about everything ranging from how to deadlift to interviews with firebreathers like Tanya Wagner. You also are probably familiar with CrossFit HQ's Pat Sherwood's "Zone Chronicles." These are a series of videos where Pat tapes his meals and explains why he eats what he does. I'm always fascinated by these because as much as people will give guidelines on how to eat, I want to see how REAL people eat and WHAT they are eating. This inspired me to take pictures of our fridge and cupboards to show you what KDitty and I eat. So here we go.

THE FRIDGE

 

Baby Got Back

Let's take a journey through your average morning. You get up and head to the bathroom, maybe taking a peek at your disheveled self in the mirror. You take a shower and after drying off, you probably look in the mirror. As you brush your teeth, you have no choice but to look in the mirror. As you're getting dressed, you look in the mirror. When you have to do your hair and/or do your makeup, what do you need? A mirror. As you head out the door, you take one final glance in the mirror to make sure everything is in place.

Do you see a theme?