there is no finish line...enjoy the ride...

What goes in, must come out....

There’s a plethora of information about the good food and the bad food we put into your bodies everyday, but you don’t read much about what comes out.  I came across a great article written by Jonathan M. Vapnek, MD, a urologist and the clinical associate professor of urology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City and I think you would be surprised by how much information can be gleaned from the urine you produce each day.

For example, the simple “dipstick” urine test that doctors often use to check for a urinary tract infection also can help them diagnose kidney disease, diabetes, cancer and other conditions. But there is more.

What you may not realize: If you know what to look for, you can tell a lot about your health just by being aware of the physical characteristics of your urine—such as colour, smell and frequency.

COLOUR

When you’re healthy and drinking enough water, your urine should be mainly clear or straw-coloured with just a hint of yellow. The yellow colour comes from urochrome, a pigment produced by the breakdown of a protein in red blood cells.

Urine is naturally darker in the morning because you don’t drink water while you sleep. If a colour change persists, however, it could be a problem.

For example...

Brown or dark brown. Pay attention if your urine is dark for more than a week.

What this usually means: Liver disease. The liver normally breaks down and excretes bilirubin, a pigment that’s produced by the turnover of red blood cells. Patients with liver disease accumulate bilirubin. This initially will cause jaundice, a yellowing of the skin or the whites of the eyes. As more bilirubin accumulates, it can cause the urine to become brown. A combination of dark-coloured urine and jaundice means that liver disease might be getting worse. See your doctor right away.

Dark-coloured urine also can be a side effect of some antibiotics, laxatives and muscle relaxants. Eating large amounts of fava beans, rhubarb or aloe can cause brown urine as well. In some cases, dark-coloured urine can signal kidney failure.

Red or pink. Urine that’s tinged with red or pink could simply mean that you have been eating beets. (The medical term for beet-induced urine changes is beeturia). Or it could mean that you’re urinating blood.

The amount of blood will affect the colour. If the urine resembles cabernet wine, you’re bleeding a lot…urine that’s pinkish or just slightly red contains only traces of blood. A microscopic amount of blood won’t be visible—it can be detected only with a laboratory test.

What this usually means: Blood in the urine is always a problem. Make an appointment to see your doctor. If you see blood and it also hurts when you urinate, you could have an infection—in the urethra, bladder or kidney or even a malignancy in the bladder, for example. Bleeding without pain also can indicate these conditions.

Green. Though rare, a person’s urine can turn a greenish colour.

What this usually means: Green urine can appear when you’ve consumed a chemical dye—from food colouring, for example, or from taking medications such as amitriptyline (Elavil), an antidepressant, or indomethacin (Indocin), a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug. In some cases, urine with a greenish tint can signal a urinary tract infection with certain bacteria (such as pseudomonas) that affect the colour.

If your urine is greenish, increase fluid intake to see if it clears. If it doesn’t in two days, see your doctor or a urologist.

 ODOUR

If you’re healthy, your urine should be highly diluted, consisting of about 95% water, with only small amounts of dissolved chemical compounds and metabolic by-products. It typically has no—or only a faint—odour.

Of course everyone is familiar with the effect that asparagus and some other foods, such as onions or fish, have on the smell of one’s urine. This strong “rotten” smell is due to the chemical compounds in certain foods, particularly molecules that are not completely broken down by the body. The smell usually disappears within a day or so.

Some other less common urine smells include…

Ammonia-like. If your urine is concentrated, with a larger-than-normal amount of urea (a chemical compound in urine), you might smell an aroma that resembles ammonia. Or you might just notice that it has a stronger smell than usual.

What this usually means: Dehydration. The less water you drink, the higher the concentration of urea and other substances—and the stronger the smell. You can diagnose this yourself by drinking, say, one extra glass of water an hour for several hours to add water to your urine. The strong urine smell will probably disappear within a few hours. If it does not, see your doctor.

Foul-smelling. If your urine smells foul or unusual in any way for more than a few days, pay attention to the odour.

What this usually means: If it’s not caused by a food that you’ve eaten, it could signal an infection in the bladder or kidneys. Less often, it’s due to a metabolic disorder that reduces the body’s ability to fully break down foods during digestion.

Uncontrolled diabetes can cause an abnormally sweet odour, and penicillin can cause a distinctive medicinal odour.

Even if you have no other symptoms, such as pain while urinating, but your urine continues to have an unusually strong smell for more than a couple of days, talk to your doctor.

FOAMY OR BUBBLY

It’s natural to see foam in the toilet when you really have to go and have a heavy stream. But urine that’s consistently foamy or bubbly could mean that you’re losing protein.

What this usually means: Kidney disease. Large amounts of protein in the urine is one of the main signs of chronic kidney disease. See your doctor right away.

MUCUS OR CLOUDY

Mucus in urine could indicate inflammation in the urinary tract.

What this usually means: Urinary tract infection. See your doctor.

Cloudy urine also can be related to infection but often is just an indication that your urine is alkaline, which is harmless at low levels.

VOLUME AND FREQUENCY

The average adult typically urinates four to eight times in 24 hours. A change in the frequency of your urinary habits, including getting up more than twice a night to urinate, or an increase or decrease in the amount that you urinate, warrants attention.

What this usually means: An increase in the frequency of urination, along with an increase in volume, is one of the telltale signs of diabetes.

If the amount of urine seems the same but you’re urinating more often, you could have a urinary tract infection. If this is the case, you’ll probably have very strong urges to urinate even when just a small amount comes out.

Frequency of urination and/or urinary urgency in the absence of a urinary tract infection can indicate an overactive bladder.

In men, enlargement of the prostate gland can trigger urinary urgency. Patients with neurological conditions, such as multiple sclerosis, can also have this symptom. Don’t worry if there’s been a decrease in the amount or frequency of urination. You probably just need to drink more water. If this doesn’t help, see your doctor.

So a basic understanding of the physical characteristics of the pee coming out of your body can be just as important as what you're putting in your body.  That being said, I can almost guarantee that if what’s going in isn’t healthy, what’s coming out will simply confirm it.

Enjoy the Ride.....Rob

What Are You Made Of?

My regular guest blogger, Dr Les Davidson and I align on most health related topics and this week is no exception.  Of the people that actually monitor their body weight, I wonder how many understand what makes up the number on their scale, and why is it important.  That’s the topic of today’s post by Dr Les.

Besides our nation being just lazy, the obesity epidemic gripping North America may be in part due to what I call, “health illiteracy”.  So many people have preconceived ideas of what “healthy” is, but in actual fact they score very low on the health literacy scale when it comes to nutrition, diet, body weight, fitness, sleep, stress, etc., and even lower on execution.

Specifically related to Dr Les’ topic of weight, I’m experiencing this “illiteracy” first hand as I train for the hardest amateur bike race in the world this August - Haute Route.   This 7 day stage race starts in Geneva and finishes in Nice France and covers 860km through the beautiful French Alps.  But it's not the distance that makes this race so grueling; it’s the 21,000 meters (68,000 feet) of climbing over the Alps that makes is so hard.  Below is the profile of the 7 days of racing facing the 600 participants of Haute Route. 

 

Given the amount and severity of climbing involved, special attention to a rider's body weight and its composition is of primary concern to every participant.  There’s a reason why cyclists pay more attention to their weight than international super models, and it has little to do with vanity.  In fact, it has everything to do with how much power a rider can produce for every kilogram of body weight.  And the relationship between power output and weight has greater sagnificance when long, steep mountain climbs are involved.

At the beginning of January, I weighed 171lbs, but to race Haute Route, I would have to shed between 15lbs to 20lbs to increase my “power-to-weight” ratio to over 4 watts/kg.  Losing weight is just half the battle, as one must also be mindful of what type of weight that's lost.  In my case, I want to lose body fat, while maintaining or even increasing lean muscle mass. 

There’s an old saying in business, “If you can measure it, you can manage it”.  So, at the beginning of February I started measuring my body fat using skin fold calipers.  By focusing on the quality and even more importantly, the quatity of food I consumed, I now weight 156lbs.  During this time I also gained 4lbs of lean muscle, so effectively I’ve lost 19lbs of body fat since January.  Since fat occupies more volume than muscle, I’ve also lost an inch from my chest, waist and hips, so I actually appear much thinner.  Below is my progression of weight loss and muscle gain since I started recording this information in February.

And here in lies the “health illiteracy” issue.

It seems in North America you can be overweight, or even obese, and no one will ever mention that you have a serious and potentially life threatening health issue.  In fact, a recent study found that over 60% of parents with overweight children considered them to be of normal weight.  But if you’re thin, as in healthy thin, people take it upon themselves to point out that you’re too thin and don’t look healthy.  Can you imagine the reaction you would receive if you told a friend that she was overweight and didn't look healthy?  The duel standard is because of three reasons:

1. Given there are so many overweight and obese people in North America, our mental model of what constitutes a healthy weight and size has been skewed over the decades.  People of a healthy thin composition are now in the minority and look different to the majority of overweight North Americans.
2. Most people are illiterate when it comes to what a healthy size and weight should be.  Just like the majority of people no longer know what represents a healthy food portion.  As a result, the bigger is better attitude prevails.
3. Finally, weight loss is generally associated with serious illnesses such as AIDS, Cancer or Eating Disorders.  My good friend Pierre LeClair who I coach was once 250lbs.  After losing 80lbs last year, he tells me people that haven’t seen him for a while ask him if he’s sick because he looks too thin, even though he’s the healthiest he’s been in decades.

This is obviously frustrating to a guy like myself that’s uber aware of my health and fitness, but more importantly, it draws attention to the fact that so many people are “health illiterate” which has negative consequences at both individual and national levels. 

Dr Les, has done a great job of framing the issue, why it’s important to understand what you’re made of, monitoring techniques, and how to bring yourself back to a healthy and well proportioned size. 

As always with much of what I share, “knowledge is power, but action flicks the switch”. 

Enjoy the ride….Rob

 

What Are You Made Of?

by: Dr Les Davidson

What are you made of? Or stated more technically, what is your body composition? Are you a lean, mean athletic machine, or are you getting a little soft?  Every year billions (with a “b”) of dollars are spent on weight-loss endeavors in North America. Beyond the obvious — looking good at the beach — is there any reason to be concerned about the composition of your body.

As a competitive wrestler throughout high school and university, the scale was a constant companion because we were grouped according to our weight classes for competition.  I learned quickly that the quality of my weight was crucial; reducing extraneous fat became an important objective. Forty years later the challenge to maintain an optimum fat to muscle ratio is still there but my motivation is less about competing and more about remaining healthy and active. In order to do that, I need to pay close attention to my body composition.

Body composition is simply a measurement of lean body mass (bones, muscles, ligaments and organs) compared to fat mass which is referred to as adipose tissue. Technology allows us to accurately measure the amount of lean mass versus fat mass. These measurements are expressed as percentages of overall weight and knowing these percentages and what they indicate is important to your health.

A certain amount of body fat is essential to insulate our body, protect our organs from trauma, provide energy, and to assist hormone production necessary for reproduction. The amount of essential fat will vary dependent on sex and age but there are recommendations for ideal body fat percentages. The table below from the American Council on Exercise is typical fat percentages.

	Male	Female
Essential fat	3-5%	10-16%
Competitive Athletes	6-13%	14-20%
Recreational Athletes	14-18%	21-24%
Average	19-20%	25-31%
Obese	25+%	32+%

 

An equally important variable is where the fat is located; excess fat found at the waist (also known as central obesity) is associated with increased risk to our health. Our waists are thickened not just by the fat we can feel but also because excess fat accumulates around the organs (visceral adipose tissue).

Historically, we believed this fat to be an inert storage of extra energy. Medical science has now come to understand that adipose tissue is a major endocrine organ that produces hormones associated with insulin resistance and general body inflammation. The conditions associated with excess fat are often discussed as separate syndromes but in reality, they are a group of interrelated issues that cascade into ill health. Insulin resistance and inflammation leads to Metabolic Syndrome or Syndrome X — conditions associated with an elevated risk of Type Two diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease. There is also strong evidence that Metabolic Syndrome increases risk for certain Cancers. Then there is the impact that excess adipose tissue has on the musculoskeletal system with increased back pain and damage to the weight-bearing joints of the lower extremities. In my office each day I see patients impacted by being overweight. It may not cause their back, hip or knee pain but it aggravates their symptoms and limits their ability to be as active as needed to regain good health.

Determining your risk:

Body weight alone is a poor indicator of body composition as it does not differentiate between lean tissue (bones, muscles, connective tissue and organs) and body fat. There is no single ideal percentage of body fat for everyone. Estimating body composition is attempted with the body mass index using the variables of weight and height (weight divided by height squared). More accurate methods using DEXA (dual energy X-ray absorptiometry) or hydrostatic weighing (calculating what sinks (lean mass) versus what floats (fat) when the client is submerged under water) are often difficult for most individuals to access. Using calipers to measure skin folds or employing Bioimpedance are affected by the skill of the person measuring and the formulas applied, but can be easily mastered with a little practice. At our office we employ the bioimpedance method. With careful attention to patient hydration and selection of the optimum formula, we have had results that match closely to results of the DEXA scan.

Another method to stratify those who have high levels of body fat ignores the percentage of lean mass and body fat and focuses instead on the amount of belly fat. Measuring your waist circumference may be a more sensitive test because, as I mentioned, Intra-abdominal or visceral fat (regardless of overall body fat) has a particularly strong correlation with cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancers and other life shortening diseases. There are three ways that this measurement is used to quantify risk:

1. Waist circumference, Absolute waist circumference (>102 cm in men and >88 cm in women)
2. Waist–hip ratio (the circumference of the waist divided by that of the hips of >0.9 for men and >0.85 for women)[19]
3. Waist circumference divided into height. This has been described as the index of central obesity. (0 .5 or greater is suggested as a sign of increased risk. More specifically the range for women was suggested to .47-.54 and for men as .51-.58).

Reducing the risk:

1. Diet: You cannot exercise at the same pace you can eat so it is critical to moderate your calories regardless of the protein, fat or carbohydrate content of your food or the amount you exercise. Look for food in a natural state with no “improvements” by the food industry (such as partially hydrogenated fat, preservatives or high-fructose corn syrup).
2. Exercise: Just remember we are designed to move and not doing so compromises our health. Vary the intensity and duration and include resistance activity. This challenge becomes greater as we age because hormonal shifts make building lean mass harder and layering on fat easier
3. Sleep: Sleeping too little or of a poor interrupted quality increases insulin resistance and raises cortisol the stress hormone. (See Rob’s blog, The Sleep Mistake Many of Us Make)
4. Stress reduction: Being overwhelmed or on heightened alert increases the sympathetic nervous system activity. This releases cortisol and directly increases belly fat. Moderating our moods by eating or drinking too much is often seen in response to stressful situations.

The body has tremendous recuperative powers if it is provided with the right inputs. March is Nutrition month and I would like to encourage you to think of the importance of quantity as well as quality of your food! Exercise is critical for good health but it can’t exercise your way out of a bad diet! Don’t pursue some unrealistic and media-hyped expectation for your body.  People come in all shapes and sizes but no shape is improved by an expanding layer of belly fat.

Pay more attention to what you’re made of. This will be good for your health and you just might look better on the beach this summer!

Four Common Diet and Exercise Myths Dispelled

Is it any wonder why so many North Americans are frustrated with the barrage of mixed messages regarding their diets and the roll of exercise?   It’s my attempt to provide some clarity to many of misconceptions that guide people to their lifestyle choices, and as a result I write about and often share other articles that I feel assist in making informed health decisions for yourself and your families.

That being said, I came across an excellent article by Dr Mark Hyman that exposes four myths about health and lifestyle choices that I’ve written about in the past, but has consolidated them into one article.  Dr Hyman dispels the following common myths:

Myth 1: Diet Soda and Diet Drinks Don’t Make You Fat or Cause Type 2 Diabetes

Myth 2: Eating Fat Makes You Fat

Myth 3: Being Overweight Is Your Fault

Myth 4: Exercise Your Way to Weight Loss

As I’ve often said, “Knowledge is Power, but Action flicks the Switch.  Dr Hyman has provided clarity to 4 of the most common myths about diet and exercise, and after reading this; it’s up to you to put this information into action.

Enjoy the Ride....Rob

 

How Diet Soda Makes You Fat (and Other Food and Diet Industry Myths)

By Dr Mark Hyman, MD

How do you lose weight? Substitute diet drinks for sugary drinks. Eat low-fat foods. Just eat less of the bad foods -- it's all about the calories. We are told, "Just have more willpower."

These ideas are false. They are food and diet industry propaganda that make and keep us fat and sick. Lies by the food industry combined with bad government policy based on food industry lobbying are the major cause of our obesity and diabetes epidemic. Now, more than 35 percent of Americans are obese, and almost 70 percent are overweight. This is not an accident but the result of careful marketing and money in politics.

We are told it is all about making better choices. If we all took more personal responsibility, we could stop this obesity and diabetes epidemic. We have been told there are no good or bad foods, that the key to weight loss is moderation. And, of course, if we all just exercised more, all of us would lose weight. These myths hold us hostage. So, what doesn’t the Food and Diet industry want you to know?

Myth 1: Diet Soda and Diet Drinks Don’t Make You Fat and Cause Type 2 Diabetes

Diet soda DOES makes people fat? Really? How does that happen?

If losing weight were all about the calories, then consuming diet drinks would seem like a good idea. That's certainly what Coca-Cola wants us to believe in their new ad highlighting their efforts to fight obesity. They proudly promote the fact that they have 180 low- or no-calorie drinks and that they cut sugared drinks in schools by 90 percent.

Is that a good thing? In fact, it may be worse than having us all drink regular Coke (and the other food giants making diet drinks also push the same propaganda). A new 14-year study of 66,118 women (supported by many other previous studies) found that the opposite seems to be true. Diet drinks may be worse than sugar-sweetened drinks, which are worse than fruit juices (but only fresh-squeezed fruit juices).

The study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, discovered some frightening facts that should make us all swear off diet drinks and products.

1. Diet sodas raised the risk of diabetes more than sugar-sweetened sodas!
2. Women who drank one 12-ounce diet soda had a 33 percent increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, and women who drank one 20-ounce soda had a 66 percent increased risk.
3. Women who drank diet sodas drank twice as much as those who drank sugar-sweetened sodas because artificial sweeteners are more addictive and are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than regular sugar.
4. The average diet soda drinker consumes three diet drinks a day.

You might say that people who are overweight and just about to get diabetes drink more diet soda, but they scientifically controlled for body weight. And they found the artificial sweeteners increased diabetes independent of body weight!  This and other research shows how diet sodas make people fat and sick.

And that diet drinks may be even worse than regular sugar-sweetened sodas! How does that happen?

• Artificial sweeteners are hundreds to thousands of times sweeter than regular sugar, activating our genetically-programmed preference for sweet taste more than any other substance.
• They trick your metabolism into thinking sugar is on its way. This causes your body to pump out insulin, the fat storage hormone, which lays down more belly fat.
• It also confuses and slows your metabolism down, so you burn fewer calories every day.
• It makes you hungrier and crave even more sugar and starchy carbs like bread and pasta.
• In animal studies, the rats that consumed artificial sweeteners ate more, their metabolism slowed, and they put on 14 percent more body fat in just two weeks -- even eating fewer calories.
• In population studies, there was a 200 percent increased risk of obesity in diet soda drinkers.

I love Taylor Swift. I met her last summer. She is a wonderful person with great integrity. I don't think she knows about this research, and I hope someone shares it with her so she can save millions of children and fans from drinking Diet Coke because she endorses it.

Bottom line: There is no free ride. Diet drinks are not good substitutes for sugar-sweetened drinks. They increase cravings, weight gain, and Type 2 diabetes. And they are addictive.

Myth 2: Eating Fat Makes You Fat

The diet and food industry has brainwashed us to eat fat-free foods, which seems like common sense. Eating fats makes you fat. Right? But the science tells us otherwise -- not all calories are created equal. And even though fat has more calories per gram (9 calories vs. 4 calories of carbs and protein), eating fat can help you lose weight.

This low-fat idea was based on bad science. Our government told us in the 1970s to go on a low-fat diet and to eat 8-11 servings of rice, bread, and pasta a day. And unfortunately, we listened. This was the beginning of our obesity and diabetes epidemic. The food industry happily created a flood of fat-free foods.

But the science has proven that eating fat doesn't make you fat -- sugar does. And it is sugar, not fat, that raises your cholesterol despite what people and most doctors still believe. A 20-ounce soda is fat-free, but that doesn't make it a health food. If cookies were fat-free, then you can eat the whole bag, right?

But the fat is replaced with flour and sugar, and the result we now have is one in two adults with diabesity -- that's pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes -- and almost one in four teenagers with pre-diabetes or Type 2 diabetes. We did a 10-day sugar-free detox with our online community, and 600 people lost more than 4,000 pounds in 10 days!

So why does eating fat free make you fat and diabetic?

In a recent Harvard study, Dr. David Ludwig found that in two groups eating exactly the same calories, the group that had the low-fat diet (which means higher in sugars and starches) burned 300 calories less per day. Their metabolism was slower than the group eating the higher fat and higher protein diet.

If you ate the higher-fat, higher-protein diet (of exactly the same calories), it is the equivalent of running for one hour a day. In other words, if you just swap out sugars and starches for good quality fats and protein, it will be like you added an hour of free exercise a day to your life without any change in calorie intake!

Bottom Line: The key point here is that all calories are not the same. Swap out sugar and starch for good fats such as nuts, avocados, olive oil, and grass-fed animal products or wild fish. Be a "qualitarian." Focus on quality, on real food, and the rest takes care of itself.

Myth 3: Being Overweight Is Your Fault

The food industry would have us believe that controlling our weight is about personal responsibility. Tell that to a 200-pound 5-year-old with diabetes and liver failure. Our taste buds have been hijacked by the food and diet industry. We are programmed to like sweet, salt, and fat tastes.

And those slick combinations of sugar, fat and salt in junk and processed food have hijacked our taste buds, our brain chemistry, and our metabolism. These foods are biologically addictive. We are held hostage by the food industry and we blame ourselves. This is food terrorism!

How does food addiction happen?

New research shows that industrial food full of processed sugars, fats, salt, and chemicals are powerfully addictive. And sugar is the worst culprit. One animal study found that sugar is more addictive than cocaine. When rats were given the choice between mainline cocaine right into their veins or sweetened water (in fact, they used an artificial sweetener), they found that sugar was eight times more addictive than cocaine. Even the rats already addicted to cocaine switched over to diet drinks!

And what's even more interesting is that while cocaine and heroin activate only one spot for pleasure in the brain, sugar lights up the brain like a pinball machine. If these foods are addictive and drive overeating, then the whole idea of moderation just doesn't work. Hey, just have that one line of cocaine or that one hit of heroin.

We can't stop eating, but we can stop eating junk and sugar! So we have to take back our taste buds, take back our brain chemistry, and take back our bodies from the food and diet industry. How do we do that?

Bottom Line: By eating real food -- chicken, fish, veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds, beans, and a little whole grains will reset your taste buds and your brain chemistry automatically.

Myth 4: Exercise Your Way to Weight Loss

The food industry and diet industry push exercise. Even Michelle Obama's childhood obesity initiative focuses on exercise in its name, Let's Move. But it should be really called Let's Eat Real Food.  Here's why. Sugar-sweetened drinks make up about 15 percent of our calorie intake every day. But you have to walk 4.5 miles to burn off one 20-ounce soda, which contains 15 teaspoons of sugar.

You have to run four miles a day for one week to burn off one supersize meal. If you have one supersize meal everyday you would have to run a marathon every day! You can't exercise your way out of bad diet -- except if you run a marathon every day.

Drinking 32 ounces of Gatorade after a workout is a dumb idea, unless you run around like Kobe Bryant on the basketball court for 48 minutes. There are better ways to replenish your energy and electrolytes than colored sugar water with a few minerals sprinkled in. To paraphrase my friend Bill Clinton, "It's the food, stupid!"

Bottom Line: Exercise is critical to long-term health and weight loss, but you can't exercise your way out of a bad diet.

Thankfully, science is shedding light on the ideas that keep us fat and sick. Unfortunately, scientists don't have billion-dollar marketing budgets. But we as a community of thinking people wanting real information can speak out, can spread the word and turn the tide of obesity and chronic disease together.

Believe ‘A Calorie is a Calorie’? Coke says it is....Think Again!

I read the following article today by Dr Robert Lustig, Professor of Pediatrics at UCSF, and President of the Institute for Responsible Nutrition. 

I’ve shared Dr Lustig’s research and information in the past and given Coca Cola’ latest slick new 2 minute ad – Coming Together on YouTube suggesting to their consumers that a Calorie is a Calorie, thereby implying that it’s the fault of the general public for the obesity epidemic because they offer reduced and low calorie options (claiming no culpability on their part) is reprehensible, but predictable.

 

Dr Lustig’s research below is certainly timely given this slick piece of marketing and something every person that cares about their health and the health of their families should know and understand. 

Let's be clear, companies like Coca Cola, PepsiCo, and others that market processed foods are no friends of yours, mine or our families when it comes to selling products that are harmful to our health and the health of our families. They care only about revenues at the expense of a healthcare system that are struggling and on life support, while giving little consideration for their customers that are addicted to their unhealthy products.

Think about your health the next time you reach for the “Real Thing”, because you're not only paying for their products, you're also paying for a dying healthcare system.

I’ve copied the full article written by Dr Lustig for your convenience below.

Enjoy the Ride....Rob

Still Believe ‘A Calorie is a Calorie’?

By Dr Robert Lustig

If you do, you fly in the face of mounting and incontrovertible evidence that some calories -- in particular, "sugar calories" -- are jeopardizing both your and your family's health. Physicians and politicians who cling to the dogma that "all calories should be treated equally" imperil our country's health care system, food supply and standing in the world for the next hundred years.

A calorie is a measurement of energy (a matter of physics), not a value judgment on where that energy goes (a matter of biochemistry). As my book Fat Chance explains, you get sick from inappropriate energy storage (in your liver and muscle), not defective energy balance (bigger love handles). Nonetheless, "a calorie is a calorie" continues to be promulgated by the food industry as their defense against their culpability for the current epidemic of obesity and chronic metabolic disease. But it is as dishonest as a three-dollar bill. Here are just four examples that refute this dogma:

1. Fiber. You eat 160 calories in almonds, but you absorb only 130. The fiber in the almonds delays absorption of calories into the bloodstream, delivering those calories to the bacteria in your intestine, which chew them up. Because a calorie is not a calorie.
2. Protein. When it comes to food, you have to put energy in to get energy out. You have to put twice as much energy in to metabolize protein as you do carbohydrate; this is called the thermic effect of food. So protein wastes more energy in its processing. Plus protein reduces hunger better than carbohydrate. Because a calorie is not a calorie.
3. Fat. All fats release nine calories per gram when burned. But omega-3 fats are heart-healthy and will save your life, while trans fats clog your arteries, leading to a heart attack. Because a calorie is not a calorie.
4. Sugar. This is the "big kahuna" of the "big lie." Sugar is not one chemical. It's two. Glucose is the energy of life. Every cell in every organism on the planet can burn glucose for energy. Glucose is mildly sweet, but not very interesting (think molasses). Fructose is an entirely different animal. Fructose is very sweet, the molecule we seek. Both burn at four calories per gram. If fructose were just like glucose, then sugar or high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) would be just like starch. But fructose is not glucose. Because a calorie is not a calorie.

Up until now, scientists have shown that sugar is "associated" or "correlated" with various chronic metabolic diseases. For instance, the increase in sugar consumption over the past 30 years paralleled the increase in obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Areas that drink more soda (e.g., the American Southeast) experience higher prevalences of these diseases. But correlation is not causation.

Which direction do the data go? Does sugar cause obesity and metabolic disease? Or do obese people with metabolic disease drink soda? You can't tell, because you only have one point in time -- the snapshot, not the movie. In the February 27 issue of the journal PLoS One, my colleagues Dr. Sanjay Basu, Paula Yoffe, Nancy Hills and I put this issue to rest, because we now have the movie.[1]

We asked the question, "What in the world's food supply explains diabetes rates, country-by-country, over the last decade?" We melded databases from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAOSTAT), which measures food availability, the International Diabetes Federation (IDF), which measures diabetes prevalence, the World Bank World Development Economic Indicators, and the World Health Organization Global Infobase. We assessed total calories; meat (protein); oils (fat); cereals (glucose); pulses, nuts, vegetables, roots, and tubers (fiber); fruit excluding wine (natural sugar); and sugar, sugarcrops, and sweeteners (added sugar). We controlled for poverty, urbanization, aging, and most important, obesity and physical activity.

Bottom line -- only changes in sugar availability explained changes in diabetes prevalence worldwide; nothing else mattered.

Total caloric availability was unrelated to diabetes prevalence; for every extra 150 calories per day, diabetes prevalence rose by only 0.1 percent. But if those 150 calories per day happened to be a can of soda, diabetes prevalence rose 11-fold, by 1.1 percent (and Americans on average consume the added sugar equivalent of 2.5 cans of soda per day, so that's 2.75 percent!). And this effect of sugar was exclusive of obesity; controlling for body mass index did not negate the effect. Even more important, we showed that the change in sugar availability preceded the change in diabetes (that's cause, not effect); and we showed directionality -- those countries where sugar availability rose showed increases in diabetes, while those where sugar availability fell showed decreases in diabetes. This is a very robust signal, with little noise. While epidemiology can't prove scientific causation, the data allow for objective inference. Sugar drives diabetes worldwide, and unrelated to its calories.

When you do the math, fully one-quarter of the world's diabetes is explained by sugar alone.

The food industry has contaminated the American food supply with added sugar to "sell more product" and thereby uphold their Wall Street mandate to increase profits. Of the 600,000 food items in the American grocery store, 80 percent have been spiked with added sugar; and the industry uses 56 other names for sugar on the label. They know when they add sugar, you buy more. And because you do not know you're buying it, you buy even more.

The outcome: By the year 2050, one-third of all Americans will have diabetes. Trustees of the Medicare program predict that Medicare will be broke by 2024. No health care for you. Yet just six weeks ago, Coca-Cola had the temerity to introduce its two-minute ad "Coming Together," in which they say: "All calories count" because a calorie is a calorie; if you're fat, it's your fault (they claim no culpability); and because they make non-caloric drinks, they're part of the solution. The problem is that a calorie is not a calorie; if non-caloric drinks are the solution, then by inference they're saying that caloric drinks are the problem.

Sugar in excess is a toxin, unrelated to its calories. The dose determines the poison. Like alcohol, a little sugar is fine, but a lot is not. And the food industry has put us way over our limit.

The food industry will summon their spin doctors. They will yet again argue that the statistics are wrong, the interpretation is too broad -- but they will not be able to effectively refute the science. They haven't yet, and they won't succeed now. Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and it's shining brightly on the food industry's practices. They will continue the propaganda, and try to sow the seeds of doubt. But they will be on the losing end of this battle. The UK and Australia have just this past week laid down stricter guidelines for sugar consumption. The people and scientists of the United States are onto them as well. It's just a matter of time before the politicians follow.

Robert H. Lustig, M.D., is Professor of Pediatrics at UCSF, and President of the Institute for Responsible Nutrition (responsiblefoods.org), at which the Doctors' Food Project is the first campaign. He is currently getting his Masters in Studies of Law at UC Hastings College of the Law. His YouTube lecture, "Sugar: The Bitter Truth" has been viewed over 3 million times. His book, Fat Chance: Beating the Odds Against Sugar, Processed Food, Obesity and Disease (Hudson Street Press, 2012), is in bookstores now.

Calories are NOT Created Equally

I’d like to share with you an article I recently read in Bicycle Magazine that’s excellent “food for thought” (pardon the pun).  And not just for cyclists, but for anyone that’s interested in maintaining a healthy weight.  It's often suggested that it doesn't matter if the calories you eat comes from a donut, or an apple, because a calorie is a calorie and the body doesn’t know the difference.  Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Let’s start with some basics.  There are 3,500 calories in every pound of body weight and when you exercise you burn a varying amount of calories depending on your activity and intensity. For example, I zap around 9 to 10 calories every minute when I’m riding my bike, which means a guy weighing 159 pounds like myself will burn between 500 and 600 calories on a typical one hour bike ride—roughly the calories in a 6-inch Spicy Italian Subway sub. (If you're heavier, you shed more calories; if you're lighter, you lose less.)

Most people that exercise generally overestimate how many calories they’re burning up during their workout.  And if they eat an energy bar and drink a sports drink, they’ve effectively cancelled any calorie burn.  According to Leslie Bonci, MPH, RD, director of sports nutrition at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, “Surveys show that many exercisers overestimate the calories they burn by nearly double and unless every morsel has a food label, it's difficult to know how many calories are consumed and even harder to know how much you're burning."  And it goes without saying that your average couch potato has no clue what they’re consuming and unfortunately they couldn’t care less.  In fact, the only time they take an interest is when they’re told they have heart disease, cancer, or diabetes.

As mentioned above, a calorie is a measurement of the energy in food. And for years we've been told a calorie is a calorie. According to Bonci, "Foods close to their natural state, such as fresh vegetables, fruits, whole grains and lean, whole cuts of meat, require energy from your body to chew and digest them. They create a thermic response, which means you burn calories just processing them."

Bonci and other experts partly blame the preponderance of "lazy calories" for the current obesity epidemic. "Our food is so heavily processed, it's practically predigested," she says. "That fast-food burger you eat from McDonalds has gone through so much pulverization, you barely have to chew. We're losing the ability to burn calories as we naturally would during the eating and digestive process." And many of these same foods are calorie-dense, so there's more for your body to store.

Neither Bonci nor I suggest counting calories as it takes the joy out of eating and ends up a futile venture. Instead, fill your plate with active calories, like those found in fruits and vegetables. Such foods possess more fiber and water, which means you digest them slowly, feel satisfied longer with longer-lasting energy.  Consider them as, "free foods" and eat as many as you want.

By simply changing the composition of your plate, you will lose weight without worrying about hunger pangs, counting calories, or bonking episodes if you’re a cyclist like me. Below shows what a "high performance plate" should look like. Structuring your meals this way will allow you to fill up without filling out.

The Performance Plate

• One-quarter to one-third of your meal should consist of active and semiactive calories from protein such as lean meat, skinless poultry, fish, eggs and low-fat dairy.
• One-half should be active calories from fruits and vegetables (for the fill-and-chew factor).
• One-quarter should be active and semiactive calories from whole-grain starches: brown rice, whole-wheat pasta.
• Couch Potato calories should be consumed sparingly; and if you are overweight (BMI greater than 24.8) try your best to avoid them completely.

Active Calories

• Lean meat, fish, poultry
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Leafy greens
• Whole grains
• Beans and legumes

Semiactive Calories

• Fiber-rich cereal
• Whole-grain bread
• Low-fat dairy
• Soups

Couch Potato Calories

• Pastries, cookies, pies, cakes
• Fatty processed meats
• Chips, pretzels, snack foods
• Fast food

So being mindful of foods that are not only nutritious, but require energy to digest, you won’t have to starve yourself on one of those crazy diet programs that force you to count every calorie while depriving yourself the enjoyment of eating for pleasure as well as nourishment. 

Enjoy the Ride....Rob

Alzheimer's - don't let it steal your life

Last week my uncle died and his funeral was held on Monday.  He lived in Edinburgh Scotland, so I wasn’t that close to him as I’ve lived in Canada all my life and we’ve only met a few times.  Even still, it was a sad day when I received this news.  I was further saddened when I heard my Aunt wasn’t able to attend his funeral because she suffers from Alzheimer’s and it would have been too confusing for her.  Alzheimer’s seems to run in my family, as two other Aunts of mine, who have both since passed away, also had this disease. 

When it’s all said and done, life is nothing more than a collection of experiences and memories.  All your worldly possessions don’t add up to much when you can’t recall the life you lived.  This horrible disease robs people of their most precious asset...their mind.  For me, the most frightening consequence of aging is the possible loss of my mental faculties. Utter the phrase “Alzheimer’s disease” – especially to someone like me who’s seen three family members touched by it – and people’s expressions tend to get a bit strained.

Although Alzheimer’s can affect younger people, it’s the most common cause of memory loss among the elderly. With the first baby boomers reaching age 65 in 2012, healthcare experts are predicting that many citizens will spend their final years either suffering from Alzheimer’s or caring for loved ones who have it. 

Alzheimer’s is currently the only condition among the top ten causes of death that cannot be prevented, cured or even delayed. While death rates for other major diseases like stroke, heart disease, HIV, and several cancers – have declined in recent years or at least remaining constant, those with Alzheimer’s continue to climb at an alarming rate. Despite this grim trend, in 2011 the National Institutes of Health spent about one-tenth as much for Alzheimer’s research as it did on cancer, heart disease and HIV/AIDS. 

Given the lack of focus and funding for this mental health illness, it’s going to be a while before any meaningful treatment for Alzheimer’s is forthcoming.  Like I’ve said many times before, what you do today has a profound impact on your health in the distant future, and this doesn’t only apply to your physical health, but also your mental health.  So you might want to take care of your brain today to avoid being a statistic in the future.  I suggest the following:

1. Avoid unhealthy brain habits: Stop smoking, avoid recreational drugs and limit alcohol consumption to a maximum of one (women) or two (men) drinks daily. Smoking damages the blood vessels that feed your brain, and substance abuse including social alcohol consumption destroys neurons that simply cannot be replaced.
2. Eat a healthy diet: When planning your meals, rely heavily on vegetables, fruits, legumes, whole grains and nuts. These foods contain vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other compounds that are essential for neurotransmitter synthesis, healthy nerves and robust circulation. Limit red meats, which can be artery-clogging and increase oily, cold water fish, which is excellent for normal brain function.
3. Exercise your body: 60 minutes of exercise daily not only protects your heart, strengthens your muscles and builds strong bones; it also helps delay the onset of dementia like no other medication. You don’t have to take up triathlons either, simple walking will do.  Walking improves balance, aerobic conditioning and cerebral blood flow.
4. Exercise your brain: A 2009 study in the journal Neurology demonstrated that people who read, write, learn a new language, do crossword puzzles, play board games or cards, play musical instruments or regularly participate in group discussions are less likely to develop dementia. The study’s authors reported that every mentally stimulating activity you undertake will delay the onset of dementia. Besides wanting to retire to the South of France where the ability to speak French is necessary, learning this language to exercise my brain is the second reason I picked up the Rosetta Stone program.  Who knows if I’ll be able to speak French fluently, maybe not, but it sure is fun learning and like physical exercise helping my heart, I know learning French is helping my brain.
5. Address your medical issues: If you have high triglycerides, high blood pressure, high lipid levels, or diabetes, or if you’re packing on more body fat than you should, see your doctor or medical provider to get these problems addressed immediately. Uncontrolled hypertension or chronically elevated blood glucose or lipid levels wreak havoc on your brain and contribute to memory loss. Studies show that people who are obese during their youth and middle age are 40% to 80% more likely to develop dementia than their healthy-weight counterparts.

More of us are living longer these days, and there’s no reason to believe you won’t be one of them. Making smart lifestyle choices right now just might keep you sharp-witted well into your twilight years.  Don’t let poor lifestyle habits today rob you of the only thing of true value in your future....your lifelong memories. 

Enjoy the Ride....Rob

Travel to the "Bizarro World" using your healthy "Auto-Pilot"

When it comes to health, diet and exercise I think I live in the “Bizarro World”, where everything is opposite to the normal world.  It’s a world where exercise is done every day for more than one hour, and taking an unscheduled day off is considered cruel and unusual punishment.  The reason my Bizarro World is so normal for me is because my priority and attention to my health, fitness and wellness is set on “Auto-Pilot” for more than 3 decades.  Unfortunately, the majority of North American’s have their Auto-Pilots pointing in the wrong direction.  And it’s such a mystery why so many people are surprised when they receive bad news about their health. 

In addition to exercising every day, my Bizarro World’s auto pilot also directs me to shop for food in the outside aisles of the grocery store where the real food is sold, while in the “Normal World”, people shop the inner aisles where they find unhealthy processed foods, snacks and soft drinks.  My auto pilot also prevents me from ever eating at fast food joints like McDonalds, Burger King or Wendy’s, while in the Normal World, their auto pilot directs them to frequent these unhealthy fast food joints on a regular basis, with giving little consideration for the future health outcomes.  And we wonder why our healthcare costs are so out of control.

Many months ago I wrote a Blog Post about the emerging science of “Behavioural Economics” and how making small changes in lifestyle can put you a Healthy Auto Pilot.  This past weekend’s Globe and Mail had a great article on this very topic, which I’ve copied below in its entirety for your convenience. 

Having your auto pilot pointed in the right healthy direction is so important to your long term health.  Research has found that most decisions that have a long term impact are not the result of careful deliberation, but are formed through a dysfunctional Auto Pilot that repeats the same unhealthy practices over and over again for decades.  Since most degenerative diseases are the result of years or decades of repetitive choices, it only makes sense that you adjust your auto pilot’s direction towards the Bizarro World and enjoy the associated long term health benefits.

Enjoy the Ride....Rob

Can we nudge ourselves to better health?

The Globe and Mail - October 5, 2012

Eat less, move more, stop smoking, cut down on booze. Public health campaigns have been drilling these messages into our heads for years. Even so, Canadians are failing to ditch their bad habits.

The reason, according to a growing body of research, is that we spend much of our days on autopilot. Instead of making conscious decisions each time we commute to work or buy lunch, we hop in the car, see a fast-food sign and order fries.

Automatic behaviours make life more efficient, freeing up cognitive energy for important tasks. But according to a new study published in the journal Science, our mindless choices are literally putting our health at risk.

The authors suggest that instead of just providing health information, public health initiatives should target the knee-jerk behaviours that are making us fatter and sicker.

“We now know that much of our behaviour is not driven by deliberation upon the consequences of our actions but rather, is automatic, shaped by our environments, often without awareness,” says Theresa Marteau, lead author of the study and director of the behaviour and health research unit at Cambridge University.

She and her co-authors note that subtle changes in the environment, which require little or no conscious engagement, may nudge people to make healthier choices.

For example, when elevator doors are programmed to close slowly, more people take the stairs. Cafeteria customers are more likely to choose fruits and vegetables when salad bars are easier to reach. And drinkers tend to consume less alcohol when it is served in tall, narrow glasses instead of short, wide-bottomed tumblers.

Since many behaviours that increase the risk of disease offer pleasure, Marteau says, health initiatives should take enjoyment into account. She notes that young children are more willing to consume vegetables when the packaging features cartoon characters, and more likely to eat lentil stew if it is called “teddy bears porridge.”

Much of the global burden of disease may be preventible, she adds. The World Health Organization estimates that rates of Type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease would be cut by 75 per cent and cancer by 40 per cent if people stopped smoking, reduced alcohol consumption, improved their diets and got more exercise.

Behaviour change is the holy grail of preventive medicine – and the subject of recent bestsellers such as The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business and Nudge: Improving Decisions About Health, Wealth, and Happiness.

The latest evidence from neuroscience, psychology and behaviour economics suggests that our actions are guided by two interacting systems: a reflective system, in which we work toward goals, aware of our motivations and actions, and an automatic system, in which we act without reflection, responding to external cues while our thoughts are elsewhere.

Automatic behaviours are often at odds with our conscious goals, Marteau and her co-authors explain. What’s more, they tend to kick in when we’re under stress or faced with a task that requires attention. In one experiment, participants asked to memorize a string of numbers were more likely to choose chocolate cake over fruit salad when forced to make the decision in the middle of the exercise. (That may explain why we grab chips from the vending machine instead of multigrain crackers when we’re working on deadline.)

Although people can consciously change their behaviour, “this requires using our scarce cognitive capacity,” which may then be deflected from the complex situations we face every day, Marteau says.

Howard Leventhal, a professor of psychology at Rutgers University, confirms that external cues may prompt healthier behaviours. But he cautions that when a person leaves the environment designed to encourage healthy choices, the approach stops working. “People don’t internalize it.”

Public health campaigns should engage the reasoning process that individuals use to embed a preventive behaviour into their daily routines, he says. For example, a person with Type 2 diabetes could make a habit of parking farther from store entrances to incorporate short walks. Ideally, he says, the patient’s new automatic behaviour would be reinforced by initiatives to create healthier environments, such as making nutritious foods more readily available.

Marteau acknowledges that a multi-pronged approach is probably the most effective way to achieve widespread behaviour change. But campaigns designed to nudge the public to adopt better habits can only go so far, she and her colleagues suggest. In an earlier report in the British Medical Journal, they argue that policy makers may need to increase regulation around such issues as junk food advertising and the glut of unhealthy products on the market, to counteract the powerful cues that trigger our unhealthy behaviours.

Smoking is one example, Marteau says. While smoking cessation treatments may be effective, she points out, “they are more successful when there are fewer places where tobacco can be bought.”

6 Rules that will Increase the Quality of your Life

Over the weekend I participated in the Gran Fondo Rockies 170km cycling “race”.  Well, they say it’s not a race, but hey, they give you a number, a time and the top 5 male and female finishers were awarded prize money.  So as far as I can tell, it had all the characteristics of a race. 

Training for a 170km bike race, or just trying to increase the basic quality of your life requires 6 key criteria. If you follow these 6 basic rules, you will enjoy increased energy levels (at any age). 

1. Eat Healthy, (Most of the Time):  I have to admit, I have a sweet tooth and I love French Fries and Onion Rings.  That said, I rarely eat this stuff because over the years, I’ve made small changes to my diet whereby I don’t crave it.  When grocery shopping, stick to the outside aisles, because that’s where you’ll find the healthy whole food and avoid the inside aisles where they stock the processed foods that are accountable for the health crisis in North America.  Over time, increase your fruits, vegetables, leafy greens, whole grains and lean meats, to the point where this becomes the majority of your calories consumed and junk food is the exception.  Finally, watch your portions.  North Americans eat way too much and generally have no idea what a healthy portion looks like.
2. Keep Moving & Move More:  I’m often asked how many times a week should one exercise for optimal health.  The answer is 7 days a week for a minimum of an hour.  If you live a sedentary life, start walking.  Instead of plopping your butt in front of the TV with a bag of chips and a beer, or wine and cheese.  Get moving and go for a brisk walk.  It’s easy, free of cost and you will feel better when you’re done.  If you’re already active, try switching up your routine, or increase the training intensity.  As the ad goes, “Just Do It”.
3. Sleep:  This is one of my areas where I can certainly improve.  Sleep is critical for the body to recover, especially for those of us that are active.  I’ve written on this topic before and I have two suggestions, 1) go to bed this week 30 to 60 minutes earlier, and 2) get into a pre-bed routine that reduces the exposure to TV, Computers, and work e-mails.  Making these two changes will increase the quantity and quality of your sleep, thereby increasing your body’s ability to recover and be energized for the next day.
4. De-stress Your Life:  I look at stress as being both negative and positive.  The stress that you place upon yourself to improve and drive yourself to new levels is positive.  By its very nature, healthy stress is a motivator.  It makes us better people.  Having just watched the Olympics for the past 17 days, we witnessed incredible performances that were the result of positive stress.  While at the same time these very same athletes do everything in their power to eliminate all negative stress from their lives.  If you have issues at work, or within your family that are causing internal turmoil, deal with it, because the stress is unhealthy and will affect your ability to sleep, exercise and eat properly.  The good thing about negative stress, it’s usually within your power to control, or eliminate.  But like most things pertaining to health, it requires action on your part to make it happen. 
5. Drink H2O:  With all the exotic drinks that are available these days, there’s still nothing better than good old fashion water (even our tap water).  Water is the ultimate energy drink and don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.  If you eat a healthy diet, there’s no need for vitamin water, energy drinks, sports drink, electrolyte replacement drinks, etc, etc.  And if there’s just one thing you take away from this post that will make a huge change in your energy levels, stop drinking soda pop.  Just remember, the majority of the human body is water and it needs approximately 2 litres (67 oz) every day, and more depending on the intensity of your exercise.  If you want to turn you water into a more exotic drink, slice up a lemon, lime or orange for some flavour.  Finally a word on alcohol; if you’re female, more than 1 drink a day is considered unhealthy and 2 drinks a day for men.  Many of our chronic diseases are directly attributed to the increase in social drinking habits, especially amongst women.
6. Find and Fuel Your Passion:  Anyone that's met me for more than 5 minutes will know my passion is cycling.  Living your passion fuels your spirit.  Finding and living your passion is a key criterion for living a quality life.   If you don’t know what your passion is, list the things you used to love doing and start doing them again until one emerges.  People often lose their way when they live without something they love to do that defines who they are.  If you know what your passion is, but aren’t doing it, now’s the time to stop procrastinating and make it happen.  You’re body and soul will thank you.

I placed 2^nd overall in that Gran Fondo and after 170km of hard racing, it came down to a sprint finish between three of us and I was edged out by a wheel at the line by the guy in the front of this picture.  This picture was taken after 160km of racing with only 10km to go and by this point, we were all sufferring. 

After we finished the other two guys I sprinted with were surprised that a 56 year old guy could compete with guys that were 15 to 25 years younger.  The answer was simple and contained in the 6 points listed above. 

For the most part, I eat well (most of the time), I train every day (a day off is the exception), maybe if I got a little more sleep, I could have beaten the other guy to the line (note to self, go to bed 30 minutes earlier, starting this week), I drink approximately 4 litres of water every day to fuel my body, I deal with all stressors in my life and eliminate the negative ones that affect my wellness and finally, I know my passion and enjoy doing it every day.

Implementing these 6 basic rules will certainly increase the quality of your life.

Enjoy the Ride...Rob

Action Flicks the Switch - an inspirational story

I’ve often said the intent of writing my blog is to provide people with information that when put into action will improve the quality of their life.  Except for the number comments and emails I receive from time to time, I really don’t know the personal impact I have on the thousands of people that tune in from time to time....that is until this past year!

The saying, “Knowledge is Power, but Action Flicks the Switch” is epitomized by Peter LeClair.   Let me introduce you to Peter.  Last summer, Peter weighed an unhealthy 245lbs (a BMI of 33.5 or considered obese) and at the age of 53, this kind of weight carries all kinds of health risks that I’ve discussed in numerous posts. 

Even at this weight, Peter is an avid cyclist and through a chance guided bike ride through the South of France with my step-brother (Gerry Patterson), I was introduced to Peter.  You see, Peter had a dream of competing in a bike race held every year in conjunction with the Tour de France.  The race is called Etape du Tour  and there are two events; Act 1 - held in the French Alps and Act 2 - held in the French Pyrenees.  Peter elected to participate in Act 2, the longer and more difficult of the two races.  Act 2 is a grueling 201km trek over four monster mountain passes unlike anything we see on this side of the North American side of the ocean and will be ridden by the pro riders in the Tour de France a few days after he rides it.  Every year, the Etape du Tour attracts approximately 9000 cyclists participate and this year was no exception.

When I first spoke to Peter, he told me about this dream and was looking for a little training advice, while at the same time telling me he was a “little” overweight.   You could imagine my reaction when his actual weight was revealed, because Etape du Tour is for the most seriously fit cyclists and although Peter was motivated, he wasn’t in any condition to attempt such a ride.  In fact, I told him his first order of business was to focus on his health. 

Every few years, I personally coach a few people; sometimes it’s an athlete wanting to improve their athletic performance; other times it’s to assist someone determined to transform their lifestyle.  With Peter, I did both. 

Since I don’t charge fees for my services, my only reward is to see someone like Peter transform their life while watching their physical and psychological changes.  I only have four criteria before working with someone, because if I’m going to invest my time I need to know they are equally motivated and driven by a larger purpose than just vanity.  These include:

1. 100% support from their significant other (it's almost impossible to make this kind of lifestyle transformation if the other people in the home aren't on the same page)
2. Committed to a long term (as in decades) purpose to why they’re making this change (short term goals like just losing weight won’t get you through the tough days)
3. Commitment to my suggested dietary and exercise changes (it took years to become unhealthy, it’s tough to replace bad habits with new healthy ones)
4. Take responsibility and agree that you alone are responsible for your health (good or bad)

Peter met my criteria in spades and we started working together in early October last year (10 months ago). 

Peter was initially focussed on wanting to weigh less than 200lbs in preparation for Etape, while I just wanted him to focus on his health.  To set the appropriate weight expectation, I asked Peter what he weighed in his final year of High School, and he said around 170lbs.  I said, “Well that’s the weight you will be next summer”.  Peter thought I was nuts, as a 75lb weight loss seemed unrealistic. I simply said, “Stop worrying about weight, because if you live a healthy lifestyle, your weight will take care of itself.”  There’s no reason why anyone should gain weight throughout their life if they eat properly, limit alcohol consumption and exercise regularly.  Most excuses I hear why someone gains weight throughout their life are simply that, excuses for a lazy and unhealthy lifestyle.

I won’t take you through the detail of Peter’s transformation program, other than to say, I provided him with a daily workout schedule and a dietary plan with general concepts and rules and Peter followed the program to the letter.  Again, knowledge may be key, but more important was Peter's dedication to turn this knowledge into action.

Peter’s journey just to get him to the Etape de Tour starting line is a great success story, as he had to lose approximately 1/3 of his body weight in addition to train hard enough to be sufficiently prepared to endure over 200km of the toughest cycling conditions that would make the most seasoned pro cyclist lose sleep with anxiety.  Peter not only met his goal, but surpassed it, as he transformed his lifestyle and attitude towards his personal health and as a side benefit he ultimately weighed in at a healthy 165lbs on race day.  A loss of 80lbs in 10 months.

Below is the transformed Peter, sporting his great riding form in his size MEDIUM cycling kit.

Providing Peter the information to make his transformation possible was important, but as the saying goes, “Information is Power, but Action Flicks the Switch.  And Peter flicked that switch.  He switched his dietary practices and for the most part followed my guidelines and rules.

And when it came to training, Peter rarely missed a scheuled workout (many in his basement as pictured above during the cold Canadian winter months), even when he felt like taking a day off.  And believe me it was a tough program, which had to be proportional to the event he was perparing for.  Peter demonstrated the kind of determination, commitment and never ending positive attitude that’s usually reserved for Olympic champions.  

The day before Peter competed in Etape, I emailed and told him regardless of how he performed in the race, he was already and winner.  Below, Peter standing in front of a motivational poster the day before the big race. 

Race day was this past Saturday (July 14) and I’m delighted to report that both Peter and my step-brother Gerry (who also raced Etape du Tour - Act 1 the previous weekend) completed the Etape du Tour - Act 2 in what were horrific wet and cold conditions.  I’m hoping Peter will provide a guest blog describing his journey back to health as his story is one of inspiration, determination and what it's like to live in the world of the possibility. 

Peter in full flight living his dream of health and competing in 2012 Etape du Tour. 

Enjoy the Ride ... Rob

Ride to Conquer Cancer

A week ago I participated in the Ride to Conquer Cancer with seven of my work colleagues.   We joined over 1800 cyclists from across the province of Alberta as they rode over 230km over a weekend.  Collectively our team raised over $43,000, adding to the over $8,000,000 this single event raised in the fight against cancer. 

It’s said a picture is worth a thousand words, than I guess a video must be worth a million words.  Below is a short 10 minute video I produced to capture the event’s highlights.  Enjoy. 

  

My Observations:

The majority of the people riding in this event were your everyday person and I couldn’t find a single person that hasn’t somehow been personally affected by cancer, either personally or through a close friend or relative. 

I write this blog with the intent to increase the quality of life through providing readers information about diet, exercise and general healthy lifestyle choices.  During the weekend, I listened to the many stories about people that had cancer and lost the fight, and those that won the fight.  But as I listened, I found myself making a mental tally how many cases were the result of “bad cards” vs how many were because of “bad habits”.  It didn’t take long to realize the majority were the result of poor lifestyle choices.  Obviously, this is not a scientific study, but the point I’m trying to make, is that many people contract cancer because they have adopted unhealthy habits from their parents, or friends and without even knowing it they find themselves running directly towards a serious cancer event. 

Too many of these cases is simply a lack of education regarding the risk factors beyond genetics.  For example, eating a diet that’s high in acid, is a breeding ground for cancer (the typical North American diet, especially soft drinks and alcohol are very acidic), or not eating foods that are high in antioxidants, that remove free radicals that cause oxidative stress, which may lead to cancer.  In the absence of information, people will do what others do with little consideration to the consequences.

The other comment I heard over and over again during the weekend was how cancer caught the person by surprise.  Cancer is generally a disease that takes years or decades to develop to the point of crisis.  Except for the people that were given “bad cards”, cancer should never come as a surprise.  If you are overweight (BMI greater than 24.8, which is now over 55% of all Canadians), or you smoke (21% of Canadians), or you drink more than the safe limit of alcohol (one drink a day for women, two for men), or if you don’t exercise daily, etc. etc. then don’t be surprised if one day cancer knocks on your door.  The decisions you make today about your health will affect you decades from now.

Regardless of how or why a person contracts cancer, this disease affects more than that individual, and events such as the Ride to Conquer Cancer raise much needed awareness in addition to the funding needed for scientific research that hopeful brings a day when we live in a cancer free world.  Until that time comes, take it upon yourself and make healthy lifestyle choices for you and your loved ones.

Enjoy the Ride.....Rob