Podcast with Jimmy Moore from Livin La Vida Low-Carb

If you haven't heard my podcast with Jimmy Moore yet please check it out - it is about 45 minutes in length.

Jimmy Moore is the successful low carb blogger of Livin La Vida Low-Carb and the Annual Low-Carb Cruise.

It was very gracious of him to interview me and provide publicity for my book, "The Glucometer: A Self-Empowering Tool to a Healthy and Lean Body".

Please drop me a line and let me know what you think of the interview!


http://livinlavidalowcarb.com/blog/the-llvlc-show-episode-591-angela-ross-says-a-glucometer-will-help-make-you-healthy-and-lean/14710

Food Termi-confusion-ology

How can I make this crazy terminology used to complicate what REALLY needs to be a simple explanation on what we need to eat to nourish our bodies and minds simple?

How can I make this simpler so that you can easily understand what you need to eat to be vibrant, have energy, and live the life of HEALTH?

It starts with the question of WHY is food terminology obscure and muddled with science? Oh…that’s right – because someone can make a damn buck off of it.

You need to understand that packaging is about sales and lining someone's pockets each and every time you purchase food. Because of marketing laws you CANNOT trust what the label is telling you, you need to go off what you KNOW as hard, cold facts.

The first two terms - right out of the gate - are befuddling. Micronutrients and Macronutrients.

Nutrients, nutrients, nutrients. We all know we NEED nutrients – but very few of us know WHAT nutrients REALLY are or why they are so important.

Macronutrients are defined as providing calories – protein, carbohydrates and fat - but alcohol isn’t included….but provides calories. Hmmmm……

Fat has 9 calories per gram. Carbohydrates and protein have 4 calories per gram. Alcohol also has 4 calories per gram.

All calories are not created equal – what is a calorie? To simplify this I am going to tell you to ignore calories. I know, I know….this goes against a lot of what you have been taught and you DO need to pay attention to “calories” in the sense of you don’t need to over consume food. But calories don’t matter – the amount of food you consume for the amount of energy you need to live a healthy and vibrant life matters.

And everyone’s dietary needs are different – the USDA telling the public to consume 2200 calories a day in a one size fits all diet approach isn’t going to work.

Try and stay with me….I know I am convoluted….but I WILL (eventually) make a point.

Protein is defined in science as a group of molecules that contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and usually sulfur and are have at least one chain of amino acids.

Proteins are fundamental components of all living cells and include many substances, such as enzymes, hormones, and antibodies that are necessary for the proper functioning of all of our cells.

If we say protein is molecules that contain carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, and usually sulfur and are have at least one chain of amino acids and a McDonald’s burger contains this definition do we define a McDonald’s burger as protein? I sure hope not. A McDonald’s hamburger is manufactured junk. Yes, it does have calories which provide energy, yes it does contain the definition that science has determined is protein….but it is ultimately a science experiment. Merchants and vendors got together and figured out the cheapest way to produce a product with a extended and sustainable shelf life to increase their profit margin. There is no interest in nourishment, life or health. Just profit margins.

The macronutrient named carbohydrate is carbon, hydrogen and oxygen. What is not common knowledge is that a carbohydrate molecule is glucose, whose formula is C6H12O6. Simple or complex came along to try and separate carbohydrates – but why do they need separated? Carbohydrates are glucose – plain and simple. Renaming them complex and simple was a marketing term. But whether they are complex or simple doesn’t change the fact that they are glucose and what you REALLY need to know is how YOU are affected by glucose.

Our bodies do not need dietary glucose (meaning you don’t need to eat carbs). Our liver can make the glucose our brain and liver needs from glycerol (fat) and amino acids (proteins) through a process called gluconeogenesis. You don’t need dietary carbohydrates….they are just tasty and we prefer them because they are easy energy. Our body doesn’t need to work hard to convert them into glucose (because they are already glucose) to use for energy.

Only problem is they spike the hormone insulin and shuttle any excess glucose that your muscles can’t use into those adipose tissues (fat cells) and the process of needing energy starts over…or hunger pains and cravings.

All carbohydrates from the snickers in the vending machine, to a coca-colam to an orange to carrots are turned into glucose in the body. Simple stuff really. Some carbohydrates have other molecules in them, like carrots have beta-carotene and Vitamin A and a snickers lover will argue that it has protein from the peanuts. The carrots will spike your blood sugar levels less than the snickers because of the “other stuff” in the carrots. But in the end they are all glucose and impact your blood sugar levels. How much carbohydrates YOU can consume is determined by your activity level, how much muscle mass you have, genetics, metabolic damage, stress, and even sleep. How do you KNOW how many carbohydrates your personal diet can tolerate? A glucometer of course! A glucometer is THE tool to sleep better, train better, feel better, and look better. It will tell you exactly how that meal impacts your body from the inside. No guessing. All the guesswork is taken out. Want to learn MORE about using a glucometer to tailor a personal diet for you?

http://www.amazon.com/The-Glucometer-Self-Empowering-Tool-Healthy/dp/1468576313/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345589540&sr=8-1&keywords=a.m.+ross+the+glucometer

Fat…which seems to be the most difficult to pinpoint on WHAT it actually is. Fat can be described as adipose that resides on our bodies, lipids, glycerol, fatty acids, triglycerides, saturated, unsaturated, hydrogenated, and trans fat.

No friggin wonder we are confused as to WHAT exactly fat IS and the name is associated with everyone’s nightmare word “FAT”. No one wants to be FAT….and if there is FAT in a food….and we eat that food……that will lead to us BEING fat….right? Made sense when someone said don’t EAT fat or you’ll GET fat.

But that’s wrong. Not only because not all energy is created equal in the sense that you need to break them down into these macronutrient categories but also because not all fat, protein and carbohydrates are created to provide you the best nourishment, energy, health and life.

Fat….oh man, this one drives me crazy. We call animal fat, olive oil, vegetable oil, wings, butter, Crisco, coconut oil, nuts, eggs, steaks, sausage, bacon, grease, corn oil, avocados, ice cream, cream, French fries, and our stomachs FAT. How in the heck are you supposed to know anything about dietary fat that will cushion your organs, repair cells, buffers us from disease, provides the most efficient source of energy, provides the sheath for myelin in the brain making you smarter, help organ functions at top notch and hormone production stay humming healthily? We NEED fat.

But what kind of fat? Simple…pasture raised, grass fed meats and animal fats, pasture raised butters and creams, avocado, extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and nuts. How you translate those foods into fats in your diet is up to you. If that means guacamole on your salad….awesome. If it means rutabaga fried in coconut oil or bacon and eggs…so be it…you need these items in your diet. When we start talking about trans saturated fats and hydrogenated fats we complicate it too much. When we say ice cream is a fat we leave out the fact that most of it is glucose and THAT is what plumps up our adipose tissues from the ice cream. Not the fat content that the nutrition label boasts.

Calories……another horrible term. Don’t concern yourself with calories. How can we concern ourselves with 3500 calories is one pound of body fat unless we are breaking down that “x” of those calories were carbohydrates that impacted your glucose over normal thresholds for “X” amount of time causing the body to produce “x” amount of insulin and storing “x” amount of excess energy/calories into adipose tissues…which in turn those fat cells accumulated and made your belly puffy, gooey and roll….confused much?

There is so much more to food than protein, fat and carbohydrates, it is the direct impact these macronutrients have on organ functions, hormone production and a direct relation to how your mental perspective. Sometimes moving your body more and sitting less isn’t a lack of physical prowess but mental status.

Keep it simple. Eat REAL food. Food that wasn’t manufactured to be “fun, easy, convenient, enjoyable, indulgent and cheap”. Quit worrying about saturated fats and your cholesterol levels. Blood tests doctors run only predict plasma cholesterol, which has nothing to do with the small particle Low Density Lipoproteins that find their way into your arteries and build up or break passing by red blood cells which clot. That stuff is too complicated. If you want to know what YOUR personal diet should be get a glucometer. Keep your blood sugar levels between 80-90mg/dl, 90 minutes after you eat (post­­-prandial). Want to know more? Read my book =)

http://www.amazon.com/The-Glucometer-Self-Empowering-Tool-Healthy/dp/1468576313/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345589540&sr=8-1&keywords=a.m.+ross+the+glucometer

My "How to be Happy" list

Gratitude….it is the number one rule on my list of “how to be happy”.  Number ONE.  Being number one, on any list, is a powerful position. 

I recently was in a situation where I was NOT shown gratitude and it reminded me why I value this quality so much.  I was shown no gratitude where I was a volunteer and this perplexed me….but reminded me of #5 on my list, Forgive and cope. 

This is my personal list on “how to be happy”.  I share it with you and perhaps you can use some of my list to create your own.

#1 Show gratitude.  Number one, and for good reason.  You should always tell someone thank you for their time, their services, their presence.  Time is a valuable commodity that is free and limited.  Never take someone’s time for granted.  Saying “thank you” makes the other person feel good.  It also says a lot about YOUR own personal character.  People are not here for your own personal gain, pleasure or service.  Expecting others to treat you well just because you are who you are, is venal and close minded, regardless of what your mom tells you, the world does not revolve on you.

#2 Be kind.  This ties in quite nicely with number one.  You should always be kind because it is much easier to cross a bridge that hasn’t been burned.  If your emotions are high, take a minute and re-group before you speak.  Even if showing gratitude and being kind is the last thing you WANT to do….it is ALWAYS the better approach.

#3 Stare at the positive.  For far too many years I would look for the dull spot on the proverbial shiny penny.  I’d flip it over and over in my hands looking for its flaws.  And the only thing that would result is I would take a perfectly good time and ruin it.  I have also found that when I focus on everything that is “wrong” in my life I cannot appreciate the good people, opportunities and experiences that I am blessed with.  If I spend more time enjoying the people in my life and the things that make me happy I can find solutions to the stuff that is REALLY wrong and not just “not ideal”. 

#4 Nurture your relationships properly.  Spend quality TIME with the people you love.  Don’t buy gifts in replacement for your time.  Your time is valuable and spending it with the people you care about strengthens the relationship and says more than flowers.  The best memories I have with my husband are just that…memories.  There is no “thing” that I value more than taking our evening walk together and discussing our day, our tomorrows and all the in between moments.  Spending time with him and our children and my friends reminds me that I am not alone, and that makes me feel supported and empowered to do great things.

#5 Forgive and cope.  Forgiveness is a hard skill to learn – you must tell yourself to STOP thinking about the scenario, replaying it over and over again in your mind.  How you were done wrong, how you could have handled it better, things you could have said.  The longer you dwell on it the easier it is for you to go to that place in your mind.  And this is actual science.  Your brain will create an electro-neuropath to this memory and automatically go there without you consciously wanting to.  The longer you dwell on it the harder it will be to get out of your mind….literally.  You have to cope with “I was done wrong” in YOUR way, a way that is healthy and allows YOU to forgive.  That may mean coming to terms that the situation “is what it is” and being done with it or asking for an apology.  Either way you have to move forward…and refer to #3

#6 Practice YOUR spirituality.  This one usually confuses most people as I do not have a deity.  I stopped following a god when I was 14.  But I am still a spiritual person I just express it differently than praying or thanking a deity.  My spirituality comes from KNOWING and respecting just how small I am in this universe.  Respecting that I am only here for a very short time and that I must make the most of the time I am blessed with; live in harmony with man, nature and beast; and in the blink of an eye the current situation can get much, much worse.  My spirituality is being thankful and knowing just how lucky I am to have the ability to move my body, exercise my mind, and use them both to be the best Angela I can be.  I use exercise as a form of prayer.  I show my body love and kindness by stretching, strengthening and empowering my muscles and mind each time I exercise.  I am regarding the temple that I live in with value by this act of love.  Exercise is not a form of punishment for dietary discretions or perceived imperfections. 

I wasn’t thanked for the time I volunteered, but it is what it is.  It speaks volumes of the people I dealt with and their personal character – but I cope because I know that it is not my job to police them, or teach them manners.  I forgive them for their indiscretions and I thanked them for their time.  Because even in this negative situation I know someone grew from this experience.  And at the end of the day I still get to talk with  my friends and walk with my husband and tell them all about my day and they all wrap their arms around me and says, “I’m sorry that happened. “

What is YOUR “how to be happy”list?

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.

Because you will DO happy!

I am going to rant here….and yes, I know….this isn’t much of a surprise….BUT I really DON’T want to rant about this.  I have this fear this is going to come across as jealousy or projection. 

Let me state up front that this is a tad bit of jealousy because of the publicity that the folks I am going to talk about have/get over me.  That is very true and I will never deny that.

But there is no projection here on how I am interpreting their message and I think you will largely agree with me. 

Yesterday, a well renowned trainer shared a blog post from another renowned trainer.  Why are they renowned?  Because the internet says so….there is even a list made up by yet another renowned trainer that lists the top 20 trainers as “people who know their chit and you should listen to”.  The article’s purpose was to tell us we should listen to these top 20 trainers’ words and advice on fitness, nutrition and living as gospel.  Sounds valid, right? Me no like it.

Here’s my problem….I don’t agree with their advice particularly on food and I am sometimes concerned about the message they are sending with their Facebook posts on their personal choices.

I have learned a considerable amount over the last year, and here is where I am going to tell you I was wrong. 

One of the utmost important things I have learned is that arrogance will have your message fall on deaf ears.  It’s NOT a good medium.  Some will listen, the ones who are “mostly” there as far as food choices and exercise, or the ones conditioned by the fitness magazines and commercial gyms because this is the same message the magazine articles have or the same energy that can be found in a gym.  And some love the arrogant approach because they are insecure about themselves and feel they have some power over those that struggle with their diet and getting exercise.      

For those that aren’t in love with Muscle and Fitness and frightened to death at the thought of stepping into a commercial gym, struggle with food choices, and aren’t sure where to start with exercise this arrogant tone just makes them feel worse and hopeless.  Enter gimmicky pills, shakes, belts, and Weight Watchers.

Alienating folks is the LAST thing you should want to do if your GOAL is to help people be stronger and healthier.    

I had a daily habit of reading these renowned trainer’s blogs and getting caught up in what they were/are doing.  What they are lifting and how they are training.  I have my diet down to a science that I am 100% solid on …but my training has always been this elusive paradigm that I always wonder about…am I doing it right, could I do it better, is this as effective as I can be, should I be competing, would I win if I was competing, I wouldn’t win if I was competing.  I drive myself crazy with these thoughts. 

Because of this training comparison I put myself on a yearlong roller coaster ride trying to find the perfect training plan for Angela.  And the scary part is….I had it and I threw it to the side because I got caught up in this media nonsense. 

A few weeks ago I pulled out my journal from a year ago.  I was reading through the work outs and my comments about the work outs and I realized “holy chit!  THIS made me happy, made me STRONG, and I felt GOOD about myself after I completed these workouts!” And I started doing these type of workouts again and guess what?  I felt like a machine, I felt really good about myself during and after the workouts, I was LOOKING FORWARD to the next one…not dreading it. 

You may be asking right here, Angela….what is it?  What are you doing?  What is the secret?  The secret is your workouts should make you HAPPY.  Yes, yes, they SUCK during, and your muscles and stomach burn and you ask….WHY am I doing this…then the work out is done and you are sweaty, spent AND content.  You have that “I just did that” smirk.  The goal is….HAPPY!  Because everyone will do happy. 

I went back to my old lifting routines where I do six to seven rounds of six to seven reps of about four exercises keeping the weight moderate instead of worrying about maxing on lifts.  I got so caught up in the fact that all these renowned trainers post online that they are lifting heavier than me and maxing their dead lift at 300#s that I felt insecure, and ineffective and useless to others and myself.  Fawk that...I really don't LIKE dead lifting max weight; maxing my dead lift makes me feel like my colon, uterus and esophagus is going to come out my rectum and me no like that.   

I'd rather do 175#s for 49 reps over seven rounds and broken up.  My heart racing because I just did handstand push-ups and now have to do burpees and right back to the dead lifting...racing the clock....sweaty, miserable, huffing and puffing and when it is all over I feel like a gawd damn million bucks.  This makes ME happy.

Media dictates the economy and our actions.  This is a plain and simple fact.  I don’t follow mainstream media, but none the less the media I was reading had me question what worked for ME.  The more I work with REAL people and talk with them I realize who I am and where I WANT to be....not where the MEDIA is telling me I should be.

I know what works for PEOPLE....real people with real problems that include having excess weight, having physical injuries and disabilities, having metabolic damage out the yang, with not a lot of time to exercise, with people who have sacrificed their health their entire life trying to chase the elusive “perfect body”.  I KNOW you cannot sacrifice your health for protein shakes and pseudo science.  I KNOW that most people don't NEED that meal, even if their protein count isn’t at the one gram per pound of body weight yet that day.  I KNOW that most people have so much metabolic damage that eating carbs at night will NEVER allow them to heal…even if they fasted all day.  I KNOW that most people don't have a DESIRE to dead lift 300# or push a sled around on a regular basis….or even HAVE 300#s to dead lift or an expensive sled to push.  

Most people want the strength and energy and ability to run after their kids, run on the beach, go hiking or biking, try kayaking or skiing, have the strength and ability to unpack a car full of groceries, play on a softball league when invited, LOOK GOOD NAKED!  They are OK with air squats or squatting a bottle of laundry detergent.  

 
AND THIS IS OK!!  STRONG is not JUST defined as dead lifting 300#s.  You can be defined as strong when you go for a run and your kid follows you on his/her bike.  Strong is defined as completing laps at the pool with your family. Strong is doing push-ups every hour, even when they are wall push-ups. Strong is defined as doing calf raises while you blow dry your hair.  (That’s for you Stacy ;-))

Strong is defined as YOUR decision to move your body, to make it stronger, make your muscles more supple and shapely in YOUR way.  Strong is setting an example for your kids, your significant other, your co-workers.  If you aren’t HAPPY with what you are doing for exercise change it.  CHANGE IT!  Get happy with it. You will do happy!

I think it is a poor message to post on your FB page that you stayed up all night watching episode after episode of True Blood then hammered coffee and caffeine pills to train clients the next day.  You post this kind of message on a page where people are going for advice and they will think it is OK because you - someone who they look up to - is doing it.  It is habit for us to give ourselves leeway; we don’t need role models giving us more.

These FB pages have thousands of likes, they are touching thousands of people with their advice, thoughts, and lifestyle habits daily.  I saw on my FB feed that someone on my feed just “liked” Real Housewives of New Jersey, I went over to check this page out and it has close to TWO MILLION likes!!  Each comment that was posted has an average of 600 replies!! 

This cannot be what we are focusing on.  I am going to sound judgmental and I apologize because I truly do feel sorry for these women and especially sorry for their children, sorry that they don’t have enough respect for themselves and act like this for the entire world to consume.  The media controls economy.  Digest that for a minute. 

This means that two million people daily are exposed to this train wreck carnage of women and their families that drink excessively, act lewd and obnoxious, concern themselves only with exterior appearance and the things they own and they parade this for the whole world to see shamelessly. 

Media controls the economy.    

Avoidance…..that is what this is, plain avoidance.  We cannot avoid the fact that everywhere around us people are over medicated, overweight, and under informed on HOW to get healthy and LIVE. 

This stuff is simple. Get up and move more and sit less….move to your happy.  Cut out the inflammatory foods, the grains, the sugars, the fake sugars.  Understand that it is more than just eating protein and fats.  Understand that having meat that was grain and corn fed and then pumped full of antibiotics is dangerous to your health.  Understand that food cooked in soybean oil, vegetable oil, corn oil and canola oil is NOT good for you.  But extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, avocado, pasture raised, grass-fed meat fats ARE good for you.  Get informed….and be happy….because everyone will do happy!

The Back to School Challenge!

Who is up for a challenge?

Who is willing to spend six weeks on becoming a better YOU?

Are you ready to go “Back to School”?  Learn how to be the healthiest, best “insert your name here” you can be?

Are you ready to have a support group – with common goals, with a leader who is experienced at getting people to a healthier state not only in body, but in mind and spirit?

You could describe me with banal adjectives….I am simple, kind and considerate.  But my perspective on life is what makes me unique and why you will want to sign up for this challenge.  I have an internal strength, resolve and a relentless passion to be the best “Angela” that I can be…and I know how to translate these qualities for others to learn to be stronger, smarter, better….this is how we move forward, this is how we are successful….even if we define success as providing your family the most nutritious foods that nourish organ function, bone health, emotional well-being and intelligence.  This isn’t about being an Olympian, or even running a race.  This is about being strong, vibrant, happy and healthy in YOUR life.

The grand scheme of life cannot be preached; it must come as a result of a connection of mutual respect; an emotional connection; and of course leadership.  This challenge isn’t going to be about raw strength, this will be about learning and applying skills of balance and self-dedication.  This will be about creating a diet ….YES….DIET….a way of life.  That will include not only the food you chose to nourish your organs, bones, blood, skin and all over health but learning exercises that aren’t about expensive gym memberships and equipment or fancy outfits or shoes.  But about strengthening your muscles, strengthening your mind…..It’ll be YOU in your home, in your yard, barefoot, wearing your favorite sloppy shirt…and hopefully your significant other or children will be there too!

The best guidance offered to the public is the USDA’s MyPlate or the USDA’s Food Pyramid.  Our population that follows the USDA’s dietary principles are the fattest, most medication dependent on earth.  This is one of the most prevalent keys to being successful at being as healthy as you can and ridding your body of excess weight….education…..so let’s me take you “Back to School”. 

“Back to School” will focus on educating you on how humans are designed to eat and how to prioritize your health.  “Back to School” will run from 4 September to 16 October – six SHORT weeks.  During the challenge you will be expected to go grain, sugar and fake sugar free.  There will not be a booze allowance in this challenge, so that translates to no booze.  You will be expected to participate in the Daily Challenges and check-in at least once daily with the private FaceBook group that will be created.  This private group will be a place for you to openly ask questions, share recipes, daily struggles and a common goal support group.  Everyone will be respectful with their questions, comments and replies.  I will not tolerate emotional abuse – even if you are directing it at yourself.  Words are powerful…spoken, typed or thought….we will use this power to create positive, forward momentum energy and a good sense of self validation.

During the challenge each week we will focus on a new topic to tackle and conquer.  These topics will include: yeast, and your carbohydrate/sugar cravings and managing it; the importance of micronutrients; the importance of sleep and how lack of proper rests is detrimental; we will pH test ourselves, discuss why your body pH is important, and how acidic pH negatively affects you; identify emotional hunger and inner demons;  and voting with your dollars.

The cost of this challenge is $50 for the six weeks (less than $9 a week).  I am only taking 10 participants.  You have between RIGHT NOW and 31 August to sign up. 

How do you sign up!? Send me an email at w8isgr8@gmail.com. 

If this interests you let me know right away!!  My challenges are popular, produce success and results and these spots will fill up fast. 

Thank you for all your support!!