Revolution

Any Tracy Chapman fans out there?  Talkin bout a revooolution….sounds like a whisper.

I have recently “unliked” quite a few pages on Facebook.  I feel this is my vote.  I recently unliked Girls Gone Strong.  I know at 12K likes my measly little one like won’t make a difference but it matter to me.

Why did I unlike this “movement” as they call themselves?

I really had high hopes for Girls Gone Strong.  I thought this was going to be the voice that was going to reach out and convince women that being strong shouldn’t be intimidating and that lifting weights isn’t going to make you bulky and manly.

But it’s not.  It is a voice for women who already lift….and lift really well.  Some of these ladies put my lifts to shame and I am strong.  Instructions on how to throw a 24kg kettlebell around and PRs at 380#s Deadlifts isn’t a voice for the new lifter….especially the new female lifter.

But let me ask you...cause I am not always right. 

If you are new to the gym does it intimidate you?  Are you afraid you are going to be snickered at?  Are you afraid of sweating and looking unattractive in public? Do you think you need to lose a few pounds before you even go to the gym?  Do you have time to go to the gym?  Do you worry about what to wear to the gym?  ave you Have you found yourself having to budget the gas to get to the gym (I mean gas here on the East coast is $4 a gallon and rising and significantly more on the West coast).

This is what I want.  I want to give these women….and men….a voice.  I want the woman who doesn’t know what a burpee is, I want the woman who is too scared to step into the gym.  I want the woman who doesn’t have the time to go to the gym.  I want the woman who doesn’t have the money to go to the gym (or buy equipment).  I want the woman who feels silly sweating.  I want the woman who thinks she needs to lose a few pounds before she can go to the gym.  I WANT THEM!  And I want them to have a voice.   A LOUD VOCAL VOICE!

Here is why.  IT IS YOUR BIRTHRIGHT TO BE HEALTHY AND LEAN.  BIRTHRIGHT…..DO YOU HEAR ME!?  No Globogym asshole in a cut up tanktop snickering in the corner at everyone’s form is going to steal your voice.  Your lack of the “lingo” isn’t going to steal your voice.  Your fear of doing it wrong will not steal your voice.  And your motivation to get loud….will be this community. 

THIS is why I asked for your videos.  This is why I want you to post them for everyone to see.  Because if you are working out….even if it is P90X on your living room floor or dancing on the Wii….YOU FOUND YOUR VOICE.  Share it with someone else who is struggling. 

And if you do NOT share your voice….don’t LET ME CATCH YOU SNICKERING OR MAKING FUN OF SOMEONE because of their weight….because YOU did nothing when you were asked to give them a voice.     

Here is your first step. 

I want you to make a promise to yourself for 30 days.  For 30 days I want you to DO something.  Follow my daily challenges for 30 days, pop in Insanity or P90X or Jillian Micheals....whatever! Head outside and walk, head to the pool and swim.

But I want you to say these next 30 days are my Revolution....and I may be whispering today but on the 30th day you will hear me. 

You will need to start eating REAL food.  Food that will nourish your brain, body and soul on this 30 day journey. 

I recommend you eat grass-fed beef, certified organic poultry and veggies.    Add olive oil and celtic salt to raw veggies.  Sautee them in coconut oil.  No grains, no sugars. 

The eating part of lifestyle changes is always the hardest.  And you won't figure it out in 30 days.  But any changes you make will make a difference for the better.  Even if it is just you quitting soda for 30 days. 

Join me....if you are already lifting post your videos.  This isn't about being judged on proper form or competing against anyone....its about support.  It is about WHAT YOU CAN DO RIGHT THIS VERY MINUTE.

Quit waiting.  Here is your voice.

Here is your first workout.  No equipment needed.  You don't even need to leave your home. 

Minerals are just as important to our body as oxygen!

All chemical reactions in the body require an enzyme system to help the biochemical reaction take place.

What are chemical reactions in the body, you ask?  They include, the electrical activity in the heart, breaking down of fats, protein synthesis (or using protein to build and repair muscle tissues), menstruation, orgasms, breathing, blood pressure, blood glucose levels, cell reproduction and repair (cause we all like to grow hair and have pretty skin)…..what are the chemical reactions of the body?  Fawking EVERYTHING!!  VITAL, I tell you, VITAL.  To all mental and physical processes and for total WELL BEING. They are the most important factors in maintaining all physiological processes, are constituents of the teeth, bones, tissues, blood, muscle, and nerve cells.  Basically if you feel like crap or if you are having food cravings it is because you are deficient in vitamins and minerals and your body is trying to tell you. 

Listen.  Everything you need to know your body will tell you.  But you must listen.

So how does this work?  In my opinion it is just a work of art.  Truly beautiful….but that doesn’t explain it.  I am going to keep this very complex process very simple.   

An enzyme process has three parts; they are a specific protein molecule (eat your meat), another smaller organic compound, which is often a vitamin, such as the eight B vitamins, C,D and A, and finally a mineral, such as zinc, copper, manganese or magnesium.

Magnesium is a critical co-factor in more than 300 enzymatic reactions in the human body; so you won’t find it shocking when I tell you most people are magnesium deficient and take prescription drugs for problems that could simply be cured by eating more spinach and broccoli.  

Potassium and magnesium are the most abundant minerals found within the cells of the body with magnesium being the most.   Magnesium is important stuff folks.  BUT!!  Although minerals are discussed separately in deficiencies it is important to note that their actions within the body are interrelated; no single mineral can function without the others, since they are synergistically related. 

For instance, you could take a magnesium supplement but if you’re missing other vital micronutrients your stomach could be too acidic or too alkaline and not have the ability to absorb the magnesium.  

Minerals are a catalyst for many biological reactions within our bodies, they are necessary for transmission of messages through the nervous system, digestion, and utilization of all nutrients in foods or what most people refer to as “metabolism”. Do you remember me in the past beating my drum about your cells having to get the right signals or you can diet and work out until you drop without the shed of one nary pound?  Yep. 

Vitamins cannot be properly assimilated without the correct balance of minerals. For example; calcium is needed for vitamin "C" utilization, zinc for vitamin "A", magnesium for "B" complex vitamins, selenium for vitamin "E" absorption, yatta yatta yatta….

Minerals are very important in keeping the blood and tissue fluids from either becoming too acid or too alkaline (as I said) and they allow other nutrients to pass into the bloodstream, and aid in transporting nutrients to the cells.   A SLIGHT CHANGE IN THE BLOOD CONCENTRATION OF IMPORTANT MINERALS CAN RAPIDLY ENDANGER YOUR LIFE. 

The body runs electrically, and minerals are the conductor.  Established.  They provide the necessary charge or "ionization" of positive or negative electrical molecules. Ions keep the "human battery" charged. If a person is lacking in minerals or deficient in any one particular one, they can become run down very rapidly.

Let me give you a few instances of what a mineral deficiency can do to you.  Potassium controls the electrical activity in your heart and protein synthesis.  If you are deficient in potassium you can have heart palpitations.  Iodine produces thyroid hormones for proper thyroid function.  Interesting thing about iodine, your body doesn’t produce it.  Americans are salt-phobics.  We look for reduced sodium labels.  Problem is the salt on your saltines isn’t the problem.  It is the wheat.  Cut out the wheat and sugar and your blood pressure normalizes.  Add iodine into a iodine deficient diet and bam..that person could magically start losing weight (dependent upon proper diet and exercise of course).

Let me throw a disclaimer out.  Just because you start taking some vitamins and mineral supplements don’t look for magic energy or weight loss.  The rest of your life needs to be in order.  Proper diet….where you should be getting these micronutrients anyways, exercise and sleep. 

Vitamin and mineral supplements are great, they are tricky, you have to make sure you are buying magnesium or vitamin c.  Most multi-vitamins are junk.  If you truly want the most bang for your buck with minerals and vitamins….EAT REAL FOOD.

But Angela, you said listen to my body and it will tell me what I need to eat.  It is telling me…no scratch that….it is SCREAMING to eat Ruffles Wavy Potato Chips and spoonful’s of peanut butter.  Well you are probably right, but if you can get a handle on your emotions long enough to get the foods that your body REALLY needs to replace the nutrients it needs then those cravings will go away.  Generally, potato chips, pretzels, saltines and snacks of the like cravings are for salt.  Chances are your diet isn’t huge on salt water fish, seaweed and we reference back to the salt-phobia.  Your memory bank tells you chips are salty.  Problem is all the vegetable oil and starch you eat while getting your salt from those chips negates anything good about the salt.  Peanut butter, sweet cereals, brownies, ice cream….this is your body crying out for fat.  Now fat isn’t a micronutrient, but it is required by your body the same as minerals, vitamins and oxygen.  Let me bang my drum. DIETARY FAT WON’T MAKE YOU FAT.  What makes you fat is the digestion and metabolizing of carbohydrates and sugars.  What you really need instead of the brownies and ice cream is a big ole grass-fed beef burger….slathered in onions and garlic and SALT! Mmmm….is it dinner time yet? 

Why does your body crave sweet foods when it needs fat.  Simple…amino acids.  Amino acids are recognized by the metabolism as sweet.  (not in a sugar sense).  Chances are you are probably a fat-phobic in addition to being a salt-phobic.  You eat turkey burger, turkey bacon, turkey sausage and chicken.  And maybe even fish.  I’ll point out the fact of how processed these foods are and then I will also point out I haven’t seen certified organic turkey bacon, sausage or burger on the shelves.  So good chances are you are eating nitrates (very bad) and the turkey you are eating was fed corn and antibiotics and kept in a tiny cage to fatten up.  It is so organically messed up it can’t even re-produce.  Yeah, that sounds way better than the fat from a grass-fed burger

Grass-fed burger has tons of Omega-3 and amino acids, protein, iron, vitamin A….oh the list really is endless how great this stuff is for you.  If I have to hear how expensive it is please invite me over to your house and we can come up with a budget.  Even if you aren’t splurging on SOMETHING….which you all are….it is better to spend the money NOW than later on higher insurance premiums, co-pays and medication.  Jus’ saying.  You don’t say….oh, I’ll just buy my car a new engine instead of paying for an oil change now do you?  And hell you can BUY a new car.  This body is the only one you get.  You get to rock and roll around in it…..for better or worse…until you die….which will hopefully be later, after a long healthy and happy existence.

Quality of life matters.  Now here I go beating my drum about your babies again.  How many people out there have or know a child with behavior problems or ADD or ADHD?  Or has severe food allergies?  Look at what they are eating.  They aren’t eating a balanced diet….and I am not talking about that shit Michelle Obama is pushing with MyPlate.  I’m talking grain and sugar free, grass-fed beef, certified organic poultry, cage-free eggs, veggies, nuts, fruit and a little starch.  (in that order)  My guess is none of them.  They live on an industrialized diet and are being treated with industrialized methods (medication….after medication). 

Let’s do a better job with our’s and our family’s diet.  What’s for dinner?

Endocrine glands, coffee, and shit you should really know.

Your endocrine system secretes hormones directly into your bloodstream. These glands include: the pituitary gland, pancreas, ovaries, testes, thyroid gland, and adrenal glands. Another organ which is not known for its endocrine activity is the stomach, because it produces the hormone ghrelin.

Now before I lose you down this boring post about glands, let me ask you a few questions.

How do you sleep? Do you poop every day? If you are a woman do you have painful periods or infrequent periods? Do you gain most of you weight in your belly and hips? Loss of libido? Do you exercise and diet with no loss in weight? Do you get tired half way through your day and need to recharge with a cup of coffee/energy drink/shot/soda? If you are a man do you have enlarged breast tissue? Are you hyper-sensitive to stress? Depressed?

Any of this plaguing you? Your endocrine system works dependent upon each gland. If one isn’t working properly you will experience a whole slew of complications that I listed and more. The scary part is the chances of your endocrine system getting sick are really, really high. For instance, do you pack your lunch in a plastic container to take to work? Do you drink beverages out of styrofoam cups? Do you heat your food in plastic? Use plastic cooking utensils? Drink water out of a plastic water bottle? Is most of your food bought in plastic containers? Do you buy certified organic fruits and veggies? Do you wash them? Do you eat industrialized meats? And by industrialized I mean not grass-fed beef and certified organic poultry. Is your milk rBST free? If you answered yes to the plastic questions and you aren’t sure about the types of food you are eating then chances are you are over exposed to exogenous estrogen. What does exogenous estrogen do? It increases estrogen levels that can cause that laundry list of complications I listed above...and more.

How much coffee do you drink? How about tea? To include iced? Soda? Energy drinks or energy shots? Do you eat chocolate? How much. Sit down and figure it out. And don’t say I have one cup of coffee. One cup of coffee is 6 ounces. You would be hard pressed to get a 6 ounce cup of coffee anywhere, most coffee mugs are double and even triple that size. Why should you be concerned about your caffeine intake? Too much caffeine overworks your adrenal gland. What does your adrenal gland do? These two pretty little glands that look like walnuts produce adrenaline and cortisol. Caffeine doesn’t “wake you up” it jolts your adrenal glands into pumping out adrenaline and cortisol to put your body in the “fight or flight” mode. And the effect of caffeine can last 12 hours. The more caffeine you consume the more your adrenal glands become fatigued. The more adrenaline and cortisol you have floating in your blood stream the more insulin resistant you become; meaning your blood glucose levels remain elevated, turning your blood into sludge; increasing your risk for developing diabetes, heart disease and cancer.

Do I have your attention yet?

What brought my attention to the endocrine system? In January I got my “lady friend” as my husband likes to call it. She came in with the thunder. I had pain in my hip bones so bad that it hurt to walk, I was exhausted to a point I’ve never felt and I had to leave work. Really fun telling your boss you have your period and have to leave work. What a bullshit excuse, eh? I thought this was a freak thing….until February came and the same thing happened. OK, woa, woa woa....hold up. Pain means inflammation. My diet is spot the fawk on. What is going on here? Caffeine abuse. That was what was going on. I was drinking way too much coffee with my intermittent fasting. About 60-80 ounces a day. And doesn’t count my home-made cacao fudge. (100% chocolate and heavy whipping cream…mmmm)

OK, so let’s attack this problem. I quit coffee and chocolate. Holy Chit!! I attempted to go cold turkey. Not a good plan. I got the worst migrane around the 12th hour. My beautiful daughter, Syd, came home from school saw me pathetically laying on the couch trying to sleep…it hurt to sleep….she grabbed the computer and researched caffeine withdrawal. How smart is this kid? She told me I needed to wean and made me a cup of black tea. It did slightly take the edge off, but the headache raged on…..for….nine….fawking….days.

Not only did I have a constant dull throb in the front of my head and eyes, but I also had sludge brain. Every movement was difficult. I had to push myself to do basic tasks. Working out wasn’t too bad once I got started. But here is why…..working out increases cortisol levels, which is good….unless your adrenal glands are fatigued. So I had to stop working out. It was a form of self-medication....and medication being a treatment not a cure. I had to let my adrenal gland heal. This may sound like no big deal but if you know me, working out is my nucleus. It is my best friend, my mood stablazier, my zen. I got depressed. I got pissed. How did this happen? I have a diet better than anyone I know. Why did this happen?

My best guess is I set myself up for adrenal fatigue a long, long time ago. Like...in utero. My mom is a huge coca-cola fan, and yes, she drank it while she was pregnant with me. She also gave me sprite and water in a bottle when I was a baby. I drank soda every day, several times a day growing up. As an adult my favorite pre-workout snack was a pepsi and a chocolate-chocolate chip muffin. I ran marathons, did figure competitions (excessive exercise), competitive swimming…you get the picture.

When my daughters were young I was active duty, went to school full-time, had two toddlers, my husband was working the midnight shift and running a house.....well stuff had to get done, if that meant sleep got put on the backburner well then it did. As a young 20 year old I didn't realize that the chore fairy doesn't sneak in and do the dishes and wash the floors for you....they do wait....unfortunately.

A steady stream of caffeine, stress, and overtraining set me up for failure as I hit my 30s. I am paying much more attention to my endocrine system these days. I have rid our house of as much plastic as possible. I take my food in glass containers (Bed, Bath and Beyond! Use your coupons!). I threw out plastic cups, plastic baggies (we use parchment paper now) and I try to buy as many products in glass (perrier, oils, vinegar, etc) and I don’t use convenient plastic bags at the grocery stores for produce. I quit coffee, tea, chocolate.

I will add chocolate back in one of these days.

I added wild yam extract to help off-set any extra exogenous estrogen. And I am more aware of over training and getting rest.

I know I have a tendency to be repetitive but if you live and eat by the industrialized society you will get sick and fat.

But here is another note.

"When an adult is malnourished it happens in the present. When a child is malnourished there is another dimension. It also happens in the future. For a child is potential, in the act of becoming." Sherman Apt Russell.

A child not able to reach their full potential because they aren't eating REAL food and having someone look out for their endocrine system is tragic.

You all know a kid that drinks coffee. Maybe even a caramel frapacino....still coffee.

Their growth is stunted not only in stature but organ development, bone density, hormonal function, immune system, basically a lifetime of medical challenges. It will start as smaller things. Easily breaks bones. Catches every cold that blows side ways. A young boy with too large nipples and breast tissue. This is the body...what about the brain and cognitive development? Mental health? Malnourishment shows up in a lack of memory, inability to pay attention, inability to retain general knowledge. Later depression and anxiety. The wrong food and drink choices and wrappings!! for your kids can change who he or she cold be in this world.

That is a fact.

Love your babies more!!