May 2013
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The Question: "But, don't Cheeiros lower my...
I had this question presented to me by a coach with regards to grain consumption and cholesterol levels: “I had a client ask me this when I was explaining grains role in paleo (none). They asked me why their doctor told them to eat cheerios to lower cholesterol if grains are so bad.” My response” “Good question! First, people (even doctors) need to realize that...
April 2013
2 posts
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“Cooking is probably the most important thing you can do to improve your diet....”
– Michael Pollan
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Science n Stuff: Fiber Decreases Glycemic...
A recent study analyzed whole kiwifruit and its effects on blood glucose levels. I like reading articles like these because they actually look at the whole food, rather than it’s consecutive parts (e.g. vitamin C or fructose).
The kiwi is roughly 80% dry matter available for carbohdyrate digestion as either fructose, glucose or sucrose. The other 20% consists of dry cells walls and...
March 2013
3 posts
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“Cooking is the great divide between good and bad eating.”
– Barbara Kingsolver, author of Animal, Vegetable, Miracle
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Go Nuts On Macadamia Nuts, well sort of
What’s that? Macadamia nuts improve risk factors for heart disease? Sweet sauce—but from this study it shows that people who already had hypercholesterolemia (high cholesterol) and replaced saturated fat with macadamia nuts saw an improvement in risk factors for heart disease. And… they were feed 40-90g of nuts per day, which equates to about 3/4 a cup (kind of a lot). Do I...
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“Someone consuming a Nutri-Grain bar in the morning, a Subway Chipotle Chicken...”
– Melanie Werner, author of Pandora’s Lunchbox: How Processed Food Took Over the American Meal
February 2013
3 posts
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Science Round-Up: Omega-6 fats and heart disease,...
Replace Saturated Fat with Vegetable Oils = get Heart Disease.
The battle between what does and does not cause heart disease will continue to ensue. Almost every person in the world has heard that saturated fat causes heart disease. We’ve heard it, told someone else and avoided saturated fat for this reason. But this statement is false and because of only one word: causes. The correct...
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“There is simply no other exercise, and
certainly no machine, that produces the...”
– Mark Rippetoe
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Southern Foods increase Risk of Stroke
A large study presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference (say that five times fast) found that a Southern-diet leads to and increase risk of stroke. Increase intake of fried foods (fried chicken, fired fish, fried potatoes) and sugar (sweet tea, pop) are associated with increase risk for stroke.
Fried food = trans fats + added sodium
Sugar foods =...
January 2013
5 posts
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“The greater amount of your diet that comes from foods that require the least...”
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Science Round-Up: Fish Oil Won’t Fix Your Crappy...
Fish Oil Doesn’t Fix A Poor Diet
I mentioned this study a few weeks ago in a presentation that I gave on the Whole30. I think it’s really cool because it shows that we can’t just take a “pill” to fix our health problem—whatever that problem my be! So what’s the study? Well, the study was from the British Journal of Nutrition (2013) and they actually fed rats a “Western diet”—a diet that is full...
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Science Round-up: Whole-eggs improve lipid profile...
Whole Egg consumption + Low-carbohydrate diet improves lipid profiles and insulin sensitivity in individuals Metabolic Syndrome.
I know I push egg yolks alot, but too many people still freak out about the whole “cholesterol” thing—it’s old science people! A recent study out of Metabolism (2012) looked at individuals with Metabolic Syndrome (obese, hypertensive,...
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Intermittent Fasting: A complete Review by Dr....
Experiments with Intermittent Fasting
If you are interested in leaning out, managing those food cravings or just want to experiment with intermittent fasting (IF) then I suggest you check out the link above. Dr. Berardi has very extensive review and personal experience with IF that will answer any questions and hopefully get you started!
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How belly fat differs from thigh fat, and why it... →
December 2012
8 posts
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Diets for body weight control and health: the... →
Abstract: At the beginning of the last century obesity and type 2 diabetes were treated quite successfully using low-carbohydrate diets. Following the discovery of insulin, the carbohydrate content of the diabetic diet became more liberal, as glycaemia and glycosuria could be controlled, more or less well, with hypoglycaemic medication and insulin treatment. Later, saturated fats and high-plasma...
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Science and Health: Did you Know...
It takes 2-5 times more energy to break down protein (thermogenic effect of food) than fats and carbohydrates.
The level of cooking (steaming vs grilling) can actually increase the absorptive capacity of nutrients in that food. For example, the beta-carotene in sweet potatoes is better absorbed in cooked than raw sweet potatoes (kinda obvious there, who wants to eat a raw sweet potato?).
Humans...
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Can Cardio Cause Heart Disease? →
“Chronic Cardio” might cause Heart Disease. For all those “cardio warriors” out there—might need to cut back
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November 2012
2 posts
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Oldest Stone Spears, Older than We Thought →
It seems as though “human ancestors were making stone-tipped weapons 500,000 years ago at the South African archaeological site of Kathu Pan 1 — 200,000 years earlier than previously thought.” This has important implications in our evolution as a species—and as hunters. Previous studies have shown that cooking was also an integral part of our evolution as it helped with...
October 2012
8 posts
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Be the Food Skeptic if....
“Made with real fruit”…because we won’t accept fake fruit, it tastes like plastic!
If a food makes claims like these, then I would not buy them or consider an alternative:
“Fortified with..”
“Natural”
”____% less fat/sugar”
“Fat-free; reduced-fat”
“No added sugar”
“Contains real fruit”
...
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Eat the Whole-Egg for Crying Out Loud!
Source: SuppVersity
You throw your yolks away? Tis tis!
If you are ordering an “egg-white omelet” think again, those yolks actually hold a lot of nutritional vale. And NO the cholesterol won’t give you heart disease. EAT THE WHOLE EGG! Come on people!
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Pre-WOD meal: the sauce
I have been messing around with my pre-WOD meals recently trying to find something that can keep me going. Recently I have been super ketogenic (that is high fat/low-carb), keeping my daily carbs below 100g. But most of my carbs will come around my WODs, usually before. I have been experimenting with what I call my Pre-WOD sauce:
0.5-1.5 cups applesauce
2-3 tablespoons MCT oil
5 g BCAAs...
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The Toxic Truth About Gluten-Free Food and Celiac... →
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Nutritional Recommendations: are they making...
Nutritional recommendations in the US date back to the late 1800’s when the USDA started making dietary recommendations to the population. Food guides like “Food for Young Children” and “How to Select Food” popped up around the great Depression, and during WWII “A Guide to Good Eating (Basic Seven)” [seen below] introduced daily servings and needs from...
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Don't Drink Your Calories!
Everyone will see this at some point during the day—maybe not exact, but it’s close. Whether a vending machine or even your own frig, drinking your calories in the form of pop, fruit juices and even sports drinks is just plan wrong. Don’t drink your calories! A study from the Journal of Clinical Endocriniology and Metabolism found that a 25% increase in consumption of...
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What You Did Not Know About Cholesterol (or maybe...
Some facts about cholesterol so you don’t freak out next time you eat egg yolks, a ribeye or some bacon.
Cholesterol is an organic molecule essential for life—we consume it, we can make it, we can store it and we can get rid of it.
No cholesterol means no life.
Cholesterol comes in 2 forms: unesterified (free) cholesterol and esterified.
Therefore, not all cholesterol we eat is...
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Don't Get Fooled by Your "Food"
The American public is constantly being tricked, especially when it comes to food. I saw this at the grocery store the other day and it got me thinking.
“Good source of Vitamin D.” Haha…nice try. You can add all the vitamin D you want to this, but it’s missing one thing: fat. Look now at the ingredients
Total fat: 0g
No saturated fat, no trans fat, no...
September 2012
7 posts
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How Much Protein per day?
I am sure most of you have wondered this question: How much protein do I need to consume in a day?
Well, lets do a quick calculation to give you a nice range. Trust me, knowing how much protein to consume per day will definitely help gain strength, lose fat mass, and improve immune function! I suggest getting protein from whole foods—chicken, fresh water fish, beef, and eggs. Protein...
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Nutrition Science Initiative
Nutrition Science Initiative or NuSI was just launched! A new look on nutrition, disease and what you can do to prevent it! Here are a few figures from their site:
US Obesity Trends have grown over the last 40+ years. Interestingly enough the US government began making recommendations on what to (and what not to) eat around this time.
US Diabetes Trends—that type 2 diabetes, not type...
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Food Fight In Your Gut: Bacteria Helps Absorb More... →
I know another study on gut bacteria. But seriously, when you think about it this stuff is pretty rad! Foreign bacteria exists in our guts sharing a symbiotic relationship with our bodies—tell me that’s not really cool. Not to mention these bacteria have numerous properties that aid in our daily functioning, like immune defense and digestion.
The link provided goes into detail...
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What's the main cause of obesity-- Our Genes or... →
What do you think? Genes? or Environment? I think it’s hard to really pinpoint the direct cause of obesity because really there is not just ONE cause. There are two rules of thought here: (1) we have genes that cause us to be fat, and (2) that our environment will make us fat. Two plausible explanations. Could both be true? In this case—Yes! Environmental factors, like consumption...
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Gut Bacteria Through Development
Found this awesome figure in Science magazine from a few months ago! The gut microbiota is super important in human health—and develops throughout a lifetime. PS. Those are my highlights & sorry it’s kinda small!
Keys from the figure:
Gut bacteria (or microbiota—same thing) is essential for maintain human health, and physiological function (i.e. immune, digestive) from...
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Illustrated History of Heart Disease 1825-2015
A must read for everyone: Illustrated History of Heart Disease from 1825-2015.
I think everyone’s view on heart disease is different, therefore, this little timeline helps set a lot of the facts straight. Popular belief does not always mean that it’s true!
August 2012
8 posts
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“Our bodies actually prefer fat for energy metabolism, but because of the...”
– Me having a conversation with a friend about the importance of fat in one’s diet. Fat gets a bad rap—but if you know what fats to look for (MCTs, omega-3s, and yes animal fats), and how to consume them (with vegetables and some fruits) then much of the ‘bad’ press fats get...
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Multidisciplinary Reconstruction of Paleo... →
For all you nerds out there that want to read a recent review article on Paleo nutrition here ya go! Enjoy!
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“Moreover, excessive consumption of foods that are caloriedense, nutritionally...”
– Diseases don’t just happen. There needs to be an underlying cause to the initiation and progression of many common diseases we see today. The food you eat (or don’t eat) is the underlying cause. Don’t look for health and wellness at a “nutrition” or...
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Obese Individuals Unable to Metabolism Fat in... →
Pretty interesting publication on obese individuals and fat metabolism in skeletal muscle. As they say in the conclusion, obese individuals were unable to metabolize fats—that is utilize fats for energy—in skeletal muscle. Their lean counterparts on the other hand were able to utilize fat when exposed to it. I have not had a chance to read the entire article, but it does shed some...
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Early Human Ancestors Had More Variable Diet →
“…the greater consumption of meat in the diet of early forms of Homo could have contributed to the increase in brain size in this genus.”
An interesting point brought up in the article. Brain size related to intake of meat? I like it!
Cooking is also attributed to a larger brain size. People think raw food is automatically better for them, when in fact cooked food is better...
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Coffee Raises Total Cholesterol and Triglyercides
A recent meta-analysis shows that intake of coffee, especially unfiltered coffee, increases total cholesterol, LDL-C, and triglyceride levels. If you have been literally living in a cave for the last 60 years increased TC, LDL-C and triglyceride levels are associated with increased risk for cardiovascular disease. It seems as though there is a dose-dependent response as “the increase in...
July 2012
4 posts
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The Naked Plate
A few weeks back I had the pleasure of going to Springfield, MO to pay a little visit to the lovely community that makes up Crossfit Springfield! It was an awesome time, learned a lot about myself as a presenter/teacher and was able to present on the Paleo diet, pre-/post-workout nutrition and other health topics. I wanted to share with you guys their blog called The Naked Plate—run by two...
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