Coulee Region Bootcamps

For decades the prevailing thought is that saturated fats & cholesterol in your diet will increase your chances of having heart disease.  We have been told to avoid fatty meats & eggs or else if we want to avoid heart attacks and the like. 

But does this have any truth to it?  Have we been lied to?

Where did this notion come from and why does everyone believe it?

Ancel Keys published a study in the 1950′s claiming saturated fats were to blame for the increasing heart disease trends in the world. 

However, there were some big holes in his study. 

For one he only used data from a select few countries and neglected data from many more.  Other researchers have gone back and used all the data that was collected and found no correlation between heart disease and saturated fats.

Ancel also only considered saturated fat intake as a factor. He neglected to consider smoking, stress levels, sugar intake and exercise habits.

He really only made a weak shot in the dark that was then believe to be fact for over 50 years thanks to pushing from the cereal industry (aka: buy our grains instead).

Several studies have been done to expose this myth. 

Stephan Guyenet at Whole Health Source has written phenomenal posts about this very same thing here and here.

As Stephan wrote about, there have been studies done on tribal communities in remote island nations and Africa where 50% of the calories in their diets is saturated fats. 

Can you imagine eating 1000 calories a day of saturated fats?  That’s a huge amount! 

Yet the cholesterol levels are not elevated  (115 in Masai tribe males vs 198 for  American males).  Pretty amazing right?

You might say comparing Americans to native African tribes is comparing apples and oranges.  There are many more difference than just diet between the populations. 

Ok, there was also a study on tribes from the island nation of Tokelau.  Their diet consisted of 50% saturated fats (mostly from coconut oil).  Males aged 20-24 had an average cholesterol levels of 168.  Yet Tokelauans who migrated to New Zealand ate decreased their saturated fat intake from 50% to 25%.  The average cholesterol of the same age group of males was 191.  It’s interesting to note the New Zealand Tokelauans consumed over 10% more sugar than the native still on Tokelau.

So it’s time to stop cursing red meats & eggs for your high cholesterol levels. 

Go ahead and eat that roast or omelet.  Stop throwing out egg yolk in the trash.  They will not give you a heart attack. 

Limit your sugars and process grains to keep your ticker happy.

But don’t take this to mean you should follow the Atkins diet for the rest of your life.  That has it’s own flaws & dangers, but that’s another blog for another day.

So eat in moderation and enjoy food this holiday season.

I might be a little slow, but I am finally going to try to put up the Christmas lights on our house.  This is the first time I have done this so we will see how it goes. 

We are also going to see the Rotary Lights display in Riverside Park.  My wife and I have driven through the park to see the display in years past, but this year we are going to actually stop and walk around with our son.  He will love it.  Whenever we are driving in the car he always tells us what color all the lights are. 

Now to the roundup.  These are links to some of what I’ve read recently. Hopefully you enjoy them or learn something.

Teenage Obesity Linked to Increase Risk of MS – Being overweight can have so many negative effects.  Ever more the reason get healthy.

Sodas and Obesity - Big shocker here.  This goes to show how hidden calories can sneak into your diet.

Fat in Diet Won’t Make You Fat - I somewhat agree with the conclusion, we shouldn’t be afraid of fat in our diets.  It has many benefits.  However, I think the study is very weak.  There needs to be a greater difference in dietary fat levels to make these conclusions.  Make sure you understand how studies are conducted before you start believing what they say.

Forging Habits of Steel - A great post from the Art of Manliness.  I wrote on this topic here.  The most important part of starting new habits in to start.  Make sure not to take on too many changes at one.  As the great Dan Gable says “If it’s important do it everyday.”  It takes little things done consistently over the long haul. 

Disease, Death and Organ Failure – This post may offend some people.  I think it brings up a good point.  We generally treat our bodies pretty bad through our whole lives.  Then we expect doctors to delay in inevitable at the taxpayers expense.

Have a great weekend!

Winter has finally come barreling down on us here in La Crosse. And that means the doctors will be swamped with the number of people who hurt themselves shoveling snow. I can’t tell you how many people I know have tweaked their backs in their zealous attempts to keep a clear driveway.

Today I am going to reveal my top safe shoveling secrets. For those of you who do not live in La Crosse like me (or any other cold weather location), you still need to know this information too. Why? Because with the global epidemic that is climate change you really never know when snow is coming your way. It even snows in Las Vegas and Arizona for crying out loud!

So, without further adieu, here are my top five safe shoveling tips:

1.) Perform a Proper 5-Minute Warm-up Before Shoveling

Just as very few people properly warm-up before intense exercise, so do many people fail to get their bodies ready for the rigors of shoveling snow. Let’s face it, snow, especially when it’s wet, is a real beast to move around. And if your body is tight and cold then you will dramatically increase your chances of short or long-term injury.

I have created a great shoveling specific five-minute warm-up to get your body ready to rock. There is a special emphasis on opening up the hips and chest to save your back and shoulders, the two most commonly injured areas of broken down shovelers:

Perform each exercise in the following warm-up circuit at a slow, controlled tempo for 50 seconds with a 10 second rest and transition between exercises. Do this warm-up indoors to better increase core temperature and total body blood flow:

Exercise#1- Stationary High Knee Run

Exercise#2- Jumping Claps (modified jumping jacks with arms moving across chest level, palms facing)

Exercise#3- Alternating Forward Lunge, Overhead Reach, and Twist

Exercise#4- Alternating Lateral Lunge with Opposite Hand to Toe Touch

Exercise#5- Prisoner Squats (hands behind head with finger interlocked)

2.) Split Your Stance When Shoveling

Back pain is probably the biggest complaint for avid shovelers. In most cases, a sore or tight back stems from restriction at the hips (see the warm-up above to best remedy this). Most people have tight hips due to all the sitting we do.  More specifically, using a parallel stance puts your lower back at a greater risk of injury due to the greater likelihood of excessive flexion of the lumbar spine that often leads to back spasms in the short run and herniated discs in the long run. However, the simple switch to shoveling with a split stance, where one leg is forward and the other leg is back, will not only help prevent this hyper flexion while bending over and moving snow, but will also actively stretch and open up those tight hips at the same time. Be sure to keep things in balance by doing an even number of shovel strokes with both legs forward by alternating every 10 reps or so.

3.) Point Your Toes In Same Direction of Shoveling

This relates to the last tip. Even when you split your stance, you can be susceptible to injury whenever you perform a rotating back extension (e.g. a shovel toss to your rear). Your lower back was not designed to rotate! So, to further bolster your body, be sure to always shovel snow in the direction that your toes point to minimize excessive spinal rotation that can literally wrench your back.

4.) Shovel EQUALLY to BOTH Sides

This is a further continuation on the last two tips. Another big mistake people make is that they always shovel to their strong sides causing further strength and flexibility imbalances that can put your body at greater risk for injury. So, we now know you want to split your stance and shovel in the direction your toes are pointing, but you should also be sure do the same amount of shoveling  to your left AND right. Do 10 shovel tosses to your left with your left leg forward and then do 10 shovel tosses to your right with your right leg forward. Repeat until your driveway or sidewalk is crystal clear.  This will help balance the stress on your back as well as your arms.

5.) Buy a Condo

No, I’m not joking. The great thing about a condominium community is that they do all of the outdoor maintenance for your home, including shoveling. Honestly, this has saved many people so much extra stress and time, and if it is a viable option and you live in a harsh winter climate, make the smart move and get a condo. It’s hard to get hurt shoveling if you never shovel.

The aforementioned tips will go a long way in keeping your body as bulletproof as possible during the next blizzard. Seriously, it’s not really cool to get hurt shoveling. It’s a sign of an even bigger problem: being overweight and/or highly de-conditioned. And if you do get hurt shoveling, be sure to lie when some asks why you’re in a wheelchair. Just tell them you got hit by a snow plow truck, it makes for a better story and your co-workers or friends won’t rip on you for the rest of your days, ha!

I recently went deer hunting with my family.  I realized this was my 15th year.  Wow, that seems like a such a long time. 

I really enjoy the time with friends and family as well as spending some time in nature.  I know I don’t spend as much time outside as I would like and spending a couple days in the woods leaves me wanting more. 

And what a workout it can be!  We like to push deer meaning we do a lot of walking to (hopefully) pressure a deer towards a fellow hunter.  I think I spent more than 6 hours walking around with several layers of clothes and heavy hunting boots.  Not to mention dragging the deer to a vehicle.  Sometimes it was a quarter mile drag with over a hundred pounds behind you.  Definitely challenging, but I love every minute.

Now with out further delay here are some link I have enjoyed the last week or two.  Hopefully you enjoy them as well.

Why Grassfed? – A good article on the benefits of grassfed meats (like wild game!  yah deer hunting!).  Feeding cattle primarily corn is dangerous to their health and ours.  But it’s cheaper, so that makes it ok….right?

Meat Grown in Laboratory – I see the benefits from a fighting starvation point of view (although it’s sketchy), I don’t know if I would ever eat this.  Whenever we try to duplicate nature’s perfection, there can be consequences.

Omelet Muffins – Making healthy meals in advance is your best weapon to improve your diet.  If you’re in a hurry grab a couple of these you have a great breakfast ready to go. I can’t wait to try this recipe* out!

Can Exercise Help Ward Off The Swine Flu? – Summary: Exercise can lay a beatdown on swine flu. 

Have a great week!

* I love eggs!!

“I am convinced that success is not measured by what you get out of life, but by what you give back. ” – Jerry Moran

I think Jerry hit the nail right on the head.  So many people’s only concern is what they can get out of life.  Everything is focused on getting something from someone. 

The average employee switches jobs every 5 years.  Usually looking for a better paycheck or promotion.

I have seen many “relationships” based on what can the other person do for me.

It seems society thinks that is the normal way to do things.  I disagree.  People should be more focused on helping others than themselves. 

I have noticed that when we help others we get much more than what we gave in return.  You just have to open your eyes/mind to see the benefits.  For example, if you give money to a charity, you may not get financial benefits back, but you’ll be suprised at what does come your way.  It can be a thank you card to brighten your day.  A recognition somewhere.  The joy of seeing others benefit from your giving.  Those things are worth much more than what you gave.

The New Horizon’s Womens Shelter in La Crosse recently had a fundraiser.  The county no longer gives them any aid and they must raise everything they need from donations.  They held a silent auction and raised over $3500 with pledges exceeding $4000!  That is amazing! 

Check out the website for the event here.

I was fortunate enough to be able to donate some free months of bootcamps for the silent auction.  That’s not to brag or anything.  The point I am making is I received much more than what I donated in return.  I met some really interesting people.  I had a great afternoon at the silent auction.  I was able to make a difference for the shelter. 

You don’t have to give a lot.  Start with something small.  It will snowball from there. 

If you don’t think you have something worthwhile to give or don’t have enough to give, do it anyways.  I have found when give a little we realize how much we actually have.  Our mindset changes from giving out of our lack to realizing we are giving out of our abundance. 

You just have to see where you have abundance.  Either in material goods or talents.

Let your neighbor have that tool you never use, but he always borrows.  Same could go for some clothes or toys.  Cook a meal or bake some goodies for a shut in or someone struggling to put food on the table.  Spend time with someone who might not have anyone else. 

You will be surprised at what benefits might come your way.

So how are you paying it forward?