Environment.....it matters

Your environment...it matters.  Your body is constantly interacting with the things around you.  We are porous creatures.  We inhale and absorb our surroundings.  Don't believe me....how about that crabby co-worker that is always negative, when you are forced to work side-by-side with them for eight hours, you find yourself miserable at the end of the day. 

You hit the gym with that go-getter, they are "full of pep" and ready to rock the workout.  Don't you find yourself getting amped up?  Don't you have a better workout?

Environment it matters.

Let's take a look at some of the factors that affect your environment and in turn are damaging your health...regardless that you are eating well.

Are you on the upstream nutritional path?  Are you educating yourself to find out WHERE your food is coming from, what soil it was grown in, or what your meats was eating before you ate them?  Are you surrounding yourself with other folks who nurture your upstream thinking?  Or are the folks around you still stuck in downstream nutrition?  Are they still letting the industry, agriculture and media dictate their food choices? 

Do they question you or maybe even insult you when you eat your burger wrapped in a lettuce leaf?  Do they insist that grains are healthy and full of fiber and vitamins and that you are crazy for eliminating an entire food group?

How does that make you feel?  Anxious? Stressed? Alone?

We are porous creatures and our environment matters.

Have you heard how you can't spot reduce?  You've struggled with excess triceps fat or saddle bags and even now you are eating foods in that 85-100% perfect range and getting more exercise than before and these spots are still carrying excess fat.  You've asked trainers and they say you can't spot reduce and they tell you...diet, diet, diet.  Your diet has to be spot on.  And you are thinking gosh, I must have to be 100% spot on all the time to get rid of this.....SO FRUSTRATING!!! 

Environment matters.  We are porous creatures.

Ohmigawd Angela, if you say that one more time in this post!!...MAKE your point....

OK, OK....

Spot reduction is NOT a myth. It just doesn't exist in the way that we have been told since the days of Jane Fonda and aerobics taking mainstream.  Hundreds of crunches a day won't get you a flat stomach, hundreds of dips each day won't burn off that triceps wing, hundreds of hyper extensions won't get rid of those back love handles, and you can squat and lunge everywhere you need to go and you will still have those saddlebags......environment matters.

What does belly fat tell me about a client?  It tells me they have excess cortisol production.  Or in layman terms....they are stressed the fawk out.  And I am never wrong about this.  I start asking questions - how's your job, how's your commute, how's your marriage, relationship with your mom, how much caffeine do you consume, how much sleep do you get, what kind of parenting style do you have.......and it always pans out that they are STRESSED, consuming too much caffeine, looking to carbs for comfort and trying to skimp on sleep to "get caught up".

How about those saddle bags?  I start asking about menstrual cycles and how they are transporting their lunch, or storing leftovers.  Plastic.  And even worse....heating their leftovers in the plastic.  Drinking their hot coffee in a Styrofoam cup with a plastic lid, or a Tervis Tumbler.  Their menstrual cycle is messed up, painful.

Back fat or love handles...that unsightly fat that rolls up on your back.  Insulin resistant.  A diet high in refined carbohydrates.  The whiter the bread....the faster your dead.

And my personal demon....triceps fat.  Anxiety, a diet low in Omega-3 and another sleep abuser. 

OK....great, now I have to worry about EVERYTHING! Thanks, Angela...now I'm REALLY anxious....gigantic triceps wings here I come!

Wait, wait, wait!  I'm a former Marine....we don't complain unless we have a solution.  I have a solution!!!

Environment it matters....we are porous creatures. 

We need to pay attention to those precious Omega-3 fatty acids and the foods that they are in: fish, coconut oil, evoo, avacado, walnuts...one.of.these.in.every.single.meal. 

Eliminate the plastic.  Get your Bed, Bath and Beyond coupons together and go get you some glass containers.  Hit garage sales.  Use wax paper instead of plastic bags.  YES...it IS inconvenient....BUT it is essential....environment matters; we are porous creatures...health, it requires effort.  Eliminate the plastic where and when you can.  It is everywhere - limit your exposure.  (http://www.npr.org/2011/03/02/134196209/study-most-plastics-leach-hormone-like-chemicals)

The asphalt dragon....oh dear, this one has ME the most ANXIOUS.  Everywhere I look they are tearing down trees and building 7-11's or putting in a new road.  How will we connect with nature and the rhythm of life if we can't go outside and play, run, walk, ride a bike, sit on the Earth.  There is NOTHING more relaxing and de-stressing than connecting with nature.  I'm not saying chain yourself to a tree so they don't tear it down....but connect with nature - sit on the Earth, hike in the woods, splash in a river....relieve that stress.  Your belly fat is counting on it.

Artificial light.  You know just because you can flip a switch in your living room and stay up until 11PM "getting stuff done" doesn't mean you do.  Our bodies are the perfect machine, as the sun starts to go down so do our bodies.  Our hormone production starts to slow and taper as soon as the sun goes down.  Ever notice when you go camping you and your camping buddies are usually asleep by 9PM?  Maybe a little later but it is only because you are really pushing it.  The sun went down and you are very affected and overcome with sleepiness by the dark.  We fight this natural rhythm with artificial light....and in this fight we destroy our health by abusing sleep.  Sleep...it's pretty fawking important.

Next is what I am going to call "sick building" because I really don't know how else to describe this phenomena that is happening.  What is "sick building"?  The use of hand sanitizers.  They are everywhere, in our classrooms, we put them in our kids lunch boxes, they are in the halls at work, it is in the soaps in the bathrooms.  They are killing our gut flora and our ability to fight the common cold.  Stop using them.  Educate your kids.  Yes, you need to wash your hands, not too much though - sometimes a rinse is sufficient.  Be wise about bacteria....we need it to live and thrive.  Otherwise our guts will NOT be able to digest the foods we consume - even if they are the BEST quality.     (http://www.marksdailyapple.com/gut-flora-healthy-immune-system/#axzz23MXeUL1j)

I say this frequently, I preach this, I live by this.....YOU are the sum of the THREE closest people to you.  Environment matters.  We are porous creatures.  Are your three closest friends causing you anxiety? Stress?  Do they question your upstream nutritional values?  Evaluate the people you surround yourself with often.  You want people who are stronger, smarter and have better values than you as you will strive to be smarter, stronger and have better values.  If you have folks who wallow in self-pity, focus only on the negative things that are happening in their life, they don't strive for more education or to be a better person you will find yourself complaining and gossiping too.  Environment matters.....We.Are.Porous.Creatures.