Sweet Tooth Control 101

You know how some werewolves lock themselves up before the full moon so they can’t harm anyone?  I’ve done that to myself this evening…because if I saw you on the street with a donut or bowl of cereal, I’d kill you for it.  Nothing personal.  Wanna know why?  Good.  I’ll write this article about it, because it’s the only frikkin thing I can think about at the moment.

I’m calling 100%, complete BS on the idea that you should allow yourself everything in moderation.  It’s because of that common non-wisdom that I’m not remotely hungry, but my brain is telling me that finding carbs is the highest priority.  I’ve been perfectly fine without cake, ice cream, cereal (cereal is the devil btw), chips, etc for a while now.  Well, two days ago was my kid’s birthday…

My diet has been on track, I’ve been losing bodyfat and getting close to my “after photo” self again, so no biggie on one slice of cake and one scoop of ice cream, right?  WRONG!  That stuff literally stimulates the same part of my brain as heroin.  Not. Kidding. (here’s a Livestrong article explaining how heroin works, except they are talking about sugar.  Same mechanism!)

I warned myself ahead of time that I had to have just one serving.  Well, I broke.  I had a few extra bites of leftover cake before bed.  Then I woke up and had cake for breakfast.  I never eat before leaving for work in the morning!

I ate fine the rest of the day. Until I got home from the gym and NEEDED another slice…and maybe a bite off the next slice.  I looked at the rest and, with heroic effort, stuffed the whole thing down the garbage disposal.  Victory!

Just one hit and, as predicted, I was chasing the high all over again.  The house is now barren of simple carbs, and I’m having some serious withdrawals.  Happens every time…I’m going to suffer for a few days, then it won’t be as bad.  In a couple of weeks, I just won’t care anymore.

Perhaps some people really are better off having just a little, but be damn honest with yourself if that’s going to be your approach.  I think, more often than not, that an indulgence derails diets and makes people feel like they simply “can’t stick to a diet.”

In their never-ending quest to lure me back, Nabisco keeps inventing new and amazing flavors of Oreos and Chips Ahoys. But I have a secret weapon: I know that as long as I keep trying to satisfy my sweet tooth with “just a few” cookies, I’m keeping myself in the most difficult phase of detoxing. And the longer I stay there, the more likely I’ll give up the fight altogether.

If you’ve had a hard time sticking to your diet, maybe do yourself a favor – detox once and for all.  Cut that crap out and DO NOT indulge in simple sugars like sweets or cereal. If you feel that you could never live without sweets, then you need to cut them out more than anyone.  I promise that the “need” for them will go away, and you’ll finally be free to stay in control.  Stay clean – get lean.

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Reason #4 That Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You

Reason #4 your diet and exercise plan has failed you:  You’re not getting enough sleep.

I don’t know who said it, but it’s true:  A focused mind is your sharpest tool when achieving weightloss.  What does sleep have to do with it?  Sleep has everything to do with it!  There have plenty of studies indicating that those who get less sleep tend to consume more calories, crave higher carb food, gain more weight, blah blah blah.  For example:  Even when I’m in my most disciplined athlete groove, my will of stone crumbles at the lack of sleep and I am unable to control the craving for sugary foods.  I didn’t need a study to figure that out, but here’s some info from a Mayo Clinic study and some from a Harvard Study, just to prove that I don’t make this shit up.

Wait.  Did that Mayo study just say that we tend to trim 550 calories from my diet just by going to bed earlier?!  That’s enough to lose or stop gaining more than a pound a week, and SNL sucks now anyways… Can I get a “HELL YEAH!”?

I’m not even going to bring up that sleepiness leads to half-assed or skipped workouts because it’s so obvious.  (oops, just did).  But aside from preventing diet self sabotage, helping maintain proper levels of testosterone (essential for healthy energy levels in men AND women), and controlling cortisol levels (a fat storage hormone), another magical thing happens when we sleep:

Recovery from our workouts!

Hate to break it to you, but working out doesn’t make you stronger – it’s breaks you down.  Getting stronger happens when you sleep, because that’s when your body releases 80% of the growth hormone needed for repair and building new muscle (and other tissues).  It’s like taking your paycheck to the bank to cash it.  Would you run out of the bank before the teller was done handing you all the cash?

Building muscle.

How big a deal is it?  I personally need about 7.5 hours of sleep, depending on my workout volume. If I get just one hour less, I begin to eat like my old fat boy self. Keep it up for a few days, and my heart rate begins to climb as one of the first signs that I’m not recovering fully from my workouts.  At 6 hours of sleep, I’m not able to push during hard workouts, and my “easy” sessions begin to feel like work.  A killer workout will usually leave me sore for a one or two days, but I’ve been sore for as many as 5 days from a single hard workout when getting less than 5 hours of sleep or less!  I. Simply. Will. Not. Recover.

Don’t believe me?  Try it.  I dare you.  Log how long you stay sore after your next killer workout, and how many hours of sleep you’ve been getting per night.  Then do a similarly intense workout and cut back on your sleep by 2 or 3 hours per night.  Then never, ever question me again.

Reason #3 Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You

You need money to live your life, right?  Forget luxuries…you need a certain amount of money to pay your rent,  utilities, and buy food.  Ask yourself this question:  Why not work one day a week at Walmart for minimum wage?  You need money to live, and working one day per week at Walmart would provide you money.  Should work just fine…right?

Reason #3 Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You:  You’re not getting enough protein to pay the bills.

The suggestion above is obviously ridiculous.  You know how much money you need, and you try your best to work enough hours or at a high enough wage to bring that money home.  You need to think of Protein as a currency needed for your body to rebuild from workouts -  to build muscle and/or spare the muscle you already have.  (are you seeing a theme in this series, btw?  The biggest weight loss plan mistake is not building/protecting muscle)

Protein is not only the foundation material for building muscle, but is also used for making blood components, bone, hormones and enzymes.  Any time you don’t have enough protein floating around for any of these needs, it comes out of the savings account.  In other words – it get stripped off of your body’s existing structure, slowly weakening it and depleting your existing muscle.

I can hear you exclaim – “But I eat food with protein!”  Really?  Don’t come to me with some BS that you have peanut butter, a handful of nuts, or a serving of beans every day, either.  You might as well tell your landlord that he has to settle for what you earned at Walmart today.

How much do you need?  Well, the latest FDA recommendation is 50 grams.  THAT IS A BARE-ASS MINIMUM for almost everyone, and simply inadequate for most very active people.  I believe a much more suitable MINIMUM to be .5 grams per pound of desired bodyweight – if you want to support a 160 pound body, 160 x .5 = 80 grams per day. Serious bodybuilders usually take at least 1, and up to 3 grams per pound.  I like to shoot for .75, or around 140 grams per day.  That’s pretty close to a 50/25/25 balance that an very, very active person such as myself should shoot for. We talked about it in “Have About half,” remember?

Grams of protein in various sources, per 100 calories. Notice that you have to eat 500 calories or more from nuts or nut butters to get the same protein in 100 calories of chicken. Using exclusively plant sources requires much more thought if we want to get enough protein while avoiding excess calories. (which WILL be stored as fat)

So about that peanut butter…it packs only 7 grams of protein to go with it’s 16 grams of fat per serving.  Healthy fat, sure, but a lot of calories and a serving a day doesn’t touch your requirement.  Beans and Rice? You get about 5 times as many carbs as you do protein.  FIVE FRIKKIN TIMES! I’d have to eat 4000 calories of beans and rice to get my 140 grams of protein.  Diabetes, anyone?  And I swear to you now that if one more coworker proudly shows me the 2 grams of protein on their granola bar wrapper, I’m going to initiate some workplace violence.  Include this stuff in your diet, but balance it with other foods.  For the love of God, hit your protein goal every day!

See you soon with the final reason your not seeing the results you want.  Follow me on Facebook for a heads up when it’s published! (and a chance at Visa Gift Card!)

Reason #2 Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You

You’re doing great!  As we talked about in reason #1 , you’ve done a great job of making sure your calories in are less than your calories out.  You’re eating less crap, and have even made time for exercise.  Walking, running, cycling, swimming…all fantastic!  Just don’t let it stop there.

Reason #2 Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You:  Your Exercise Plan Lacks Strength Training.

I get that weights aren’t fun, but I’m sad to report that all a calorie deficit can guarantee is the loss of weight.  It’s been well documented that a good portion of weight lost during calorie deficit periods that don’t include strength training is actually muscle lost, not just the fat we are targeting.  Without that muscle, we won’t have the foundation required to keep things looking healthy and fit.  Take a look at the pics below – the pic on the left was taken just a few hours after I completed Ironman Arizona – basically 14 continuous hours of swimming, biking, and running.  I pretty much cut out strength training for the 6 months leading up to the event and spent 2-7 hours per day in the pool or on the road – losing a lot of upper body muscle in the process.   The pic on the right was taken 6 weeks later after cutting back to maybe 5 hours per week of cardio and adding about 4 hours of strength training per week.  I weigh the same 195 pounds in both pictures, but I have regained some muscle and lost some fat in the pic on the right.  I’ll let you decide which guy looks healthier, but I can tell you that the guy on the right feels much younger, stronger and energetic!

The difference between just doing “a LOT of cardio” and doing “just a little cardio AND weight training.” I weigh the same 195 pounds in both pics, but my body composition is much healthier on the right (3% less bodyfat). Not quite back where I want to be, but getting there!

The moral of the story is that all the leg muscles in the world from running, etc, will not make your upper body look good.  To the contrary, your body will strip protein and other nutrients off of unused parts to support active muscles, or just because it doesn’t want to support muscles it that aren’t being used anyway.  Also, endurance training alone leads to elevated estrogen and decreased testosterone levels – exactly what you don’t want if you want to look nice and tight!

I enjoy triathlon training far more than pushing a heavy bar, but a six pack doesn’t happen for me unless I’m doing weights.  Don’t even get me started preaching about the other benefits…In fact, if I had to choose between only cardio or only weights for the rest of my life, you’d find my bike and running shoes for sale on ebay.  Use free weights, your own weight, or flip over tractor tires and carry tree trunks around the park.  Just take your medicine and get your whole body strong – the person in the mirror will thank you!  (Bonus: A new study in The Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research says strength training will make you run faster anyway!)

We’ve got two more roadblocks to cover and you’ll be sprinting in the right direction to reach your goals.  Be the first to know when those are published by following me on Facebook!

Four Reasons Your Diet and Exercise Plan Has Failed You

Without enough muscle to hold things together, I do not look good even at the same weight as in the picture on the left. #skinnyfat

You’re motivated!  You’re not content with what you see in the mirror and you are determined to change that. Maybe you’ve already lost weight and people are commenting that you’re getting “too skinny.”  Maybe you haven’t gained much weight, but you’ve noticed that things jiggle where they haven’t before.  You’ve already been working on it – dieting, exercising, passing on desserts and drinks when out with friends. Still – the image in the mirror doesn’t match the image in your head and it’s bothering the heck out of you.  Stupid mirror!

It’s a question I hear ALL the time.  A deeper talk with whomever is asking the question almost always reveals the same four fundamental problems.

  I’ve lost some weight (or “I’m not overweight”) but why do I still have a flabby __________ (insert body part here).

Mistake #1:  Focusing on “losing weight” instead of “losing bodyfat” when you set out on a weight loss mission.

That sexy person you envision in your head likely has a solid foundation of muscle topped with a minimal (but healthy) amount of fat.  That’s what we see on TV, Magazines, and the cover of those trashy romance novels.  Fortunately, you can lose or gain either muscle or fat pretty much at will if you choose, and thus sculpt yourself to fit whatever image you paint as ideal.  Unfortunately, you’ll never get exactly where you want to be if you don’t take the wheel and steer in the right direction.  In other words – We can only tailor our efforts for the desired effect when we understand the difference between “losing weight” and “losing bodyfat.”  Simple concept, but overlooked often enough that I’m putting it at the top of the list.

What are we told to do when our waist spills over our pants?  Diet and exercise, right?  Right.  We know that if we restrict calories by diet and/or exercising, then we will lose weight.  Simple.  Accurate.  Irrefutable.  (I talk about it HERE in much greater detail). To be blunt, however, keeping things quite this simple usually takes us from big and flabby to smaller and flabby because much of our weight lost is muscle rather than fat!  Ever hear the term “Skinny fat?”  That’s what we call it when someone isn’t “overweight,” but has a foundation of fat instead of muscle under their “minimal fat topping.”

This “flabby effect” doesn’t just occur during a weight loss period, either – Middle age spread?  it’s incredibly common to stay in the same weight range over a period of years but wonder why we are more jiggly and need bigger shirts as time goes on.

The good news is that you absolutely can correct or avoid this skinny fat effect!  Understand this, and the next three articles will identify corrections you can make to steer yourself towards a strong, athletic, rockin’ body rather than simply a smaller one.  Follow me on Facebook and you’ll be the first to know when they’re ready! (And maybe win $25!)

Fat Guy + Mcdonald’s = Ironman Triathlete

Hi Guys!

I was fortunate enough to be the subject of a short, inspirational documentary! Thanks so much to Mike Wilkinson at http://www.wilkinsonvisual.com/ for finding my story interesting enough, and putting in a lot of hard work watching me play!

Advice for a Fitness/P90X Beginner (Response to a Readers Email)

I love hearing from readers!  Here’s an email from a new friend, and my response:

HELP!

I have been back and forth with working out, eating right and sleeping well the last couple years…and I’m sick of it! I am READY to see some real life changes again!  I am only 26 and am tired of feeling like a slave to my weight, and I want to take control!  I am a very very busy guy, but I know this is something I need and want to make time for!

I am starting P90X next week. Please pass this way any words of advice or encouragement, I know I will need them!

- Josh

Josh, I either want to high five you or slap you to get you focused.  Look at me.  Look me in the eyes right now while you read this.  I understand exactly where you are… After an entire life of being the fat kid – unable to hop a fence, climb a tree, or run the soccer field with my friends – I’m now a cliff climbing, Ironman triathlete, all around adventure guy.   I enjoy white water rafting, obstacle races, and even the beach for the first time since I was a toddler.  I’m an athlete now and give my body the food it needs to perform the very demanding tasks I ask of it, and rebuild itself after it’s done them.  My life changed when I learned to get my high from looking in the mirror and seeing someone approaching who I wanted to be, instead of getting my high from a fu**ing bag of Oreos. I get my high every time my body proves that it will do anything I ask it to, and when I catch girls checking me out.   I’m 37 years old, in the best shape of my life and I get my high from being a frikkin superhero that people admire.  Even people that I previously envied as “in shape” are amazed at my adventures – they have neither the confidence or energy to tackle what I call simply a “fun weekend.”

Josh, I’m making the most of what I’ve got left, but you’re so young and have much more time and ability than me… I will hunt you down and slap you if you waste what should be the best years of your life feeling sorry for yourself. You’ve got it in you to do everything I’ve done and things I won’t have time to accomplish before my body says I’m too old. Are you still looking at me? I understand that the weights feel heavy right now…that your muscles begin to burn after a few reps. I understand that walking up a single flight of stairs makes your legs burn and steals your composure as you become very out of breath. I was you, brother – sick of being embarrassingly out of shape, I’d get out of breath getting up from the couch to go to the kitchen. I always had to stand on someones porch and recover before knocking because it was humiliating to be breathless when they answered the door. You don’t have to live that life. Working out and eating right is hard, Josh, But not liking who you see in the mirror every day is even harder.

A famous marathoner said “I could never run 26 miles, I run just one mile 26 times.”  That little bit of wisdom that has gotten me through countless mental and physical challenges.  My advice: Forget thinking about “90 Fu**ing days?! That’s a long time…”  Just worry about your next chance to workout or your next meal.  I’m going to say that again -. Don’t worry about changing anything forever..just make the right choice, right now.  Then repeat.

The good news is that every day, making the right choice becomes easier until it is habit.  For now:  Dig, brother. Dig deep.  Because that’s what a badass does.

Lloyd

Quit Pretending That You Know Your Limits

Me crossing the Ironman Arizona Finish Line, just a couple years after believing that I’d never be a runner again.

It’s the lack of faith that makes people afraid of meeting challenges, and I believe in myself.
– Muhammad Ali

I don’t know how many acquaintances have told me they’d love to run a 5k or marathon, but can’t because they “aren’t made for running.”  I call BS.

We’ve all of us have had our faith-crushing experiences – I’ve heard them all and have used a number of them as excuses myself.  Sucked at everything sport as a child?  Tried “everything” to get in shape and failed?  Have an injury/ache/pain that won’t let me (insert activity here)?  Guilty on all counts.

“Not cut out for running?”  One of my Heroes, Sarah Reinertson, didn’t decide she wasn’t cut out to become an Ironman when she failed her first attempt.  She trained again and returned to conquer the grueling course in Kona, Hawaii the following year.  By the way, Sarah is the first female above the knee amputee to even attempt an Iron distance Triathlon.

Do you really think your body is naturally weaker than that of 82 year olds Lew Hollander or Sister Madonna Buder, the oldest persons to complete an Ironman triathlon?  (Sister Buder is a genuine nun).  Do you think they wake up feeling like spring chickens and complete their grueling training regimens without aches and pains?  Of course not.

Is your body weaker than that of  Teri Griege, a cancer patient who trained for her Ironman traithlon with a chemo pump literally strapped to her back?  No, it wasn’t an “easy” cancer – it was stage 4 and had already begun to spread.

The real gift that extraordinary people have is that they don’t accept pretend limits or invent excuses so they feel better about not trying.  Our strength lies in our hearts and minds, it only shows in our bodies after we learn and apply that lesson.

If you’ve ever been inspired to achieve something, it’s time to quit pretending that you can’t.  It’s time to quit pretending you know who you are and who you aren’t, because you have no idea until you dig deep and try something you’ve never thought possible.  If someone else has done it, the only reason you can’t is if you don’t try.

***Follow me on Facebook for a chance to win a few bucks!***

How To Save Even More Time With Your Time-Saving George Foreman Grill

I like burgers.  You know what I don’t like?  Making burger patties.

George Foreman Grill

Call me a princess for not liking to get my hands all icky, but I don’t.  Perhaps more than that, making patties takes time – those minutes add up to other stuff I need to accomplish in my day.  Sure you can buy pre-made patties if you want to pay a premium, but not usually in the ultra lean ground beef I prefer or the other ground meats (chicken, turkey, buffalo).  Also, there’s a lot more uses for meat prepared this way than just burgers…we’ll get to those later.  For now, start with a George Foreman grill and a 1 pound package of your ground animal of choice.

Block of seasoned meat

Step One – Add seasoning to meat.  Notice I didn’t say anything about taking it out of the package first.

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Don’t even have to touch it…

Step Two – Flip the package upside down and dump the meat block onto the George Foreman Grill, then season the other side.

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I actually use two hands and press pretty hard. Had to hold the camera, though.

Step Three – Close the lid and press down hard.  You’re trying to flatten the meat block as much as possible without damaging the grill.  I don’t know what it would take to damage it – they seems pretty sturdy.

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Bonus: It’s easy to get burger sizing and calorie count right this way!

Step Four – Cook to desired doneness (10 minutes works for me), then remove the entire block and chop into quarters.  Add cheese quickly if desired.  Put meat on buns.  TADA!

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Perfect, no-touch George Foreman Grill burger!

Step Six – Like BodyByMcdonald’s on facebook so I can give you some free cash! You’ll get notified when a new post is up, and the occasional extra tip.   (Giveaway Details here!)

Free Money For Liking BodyByMcDonalds on Facebook!

You know you want it!

The rules are simple:  Like my Facebook Page, and Live in the US or Canada.

When my Facebook page reaches 100 likes, I will one draw one Lucky fan’s name out of my sweaty Ironman Finisher’s hat and mail that person a $25 (USD) Visa Gift card!  When we reach 200 likes, I’ll do it all over again with all 200 names.  Click fast, because those who are among the first 100 will have TWO chances to win!

I’ll post the Winner’s name here and on Facebook, then you’ll have 7 days to email me your info.  If I don’t hear back, I’ll draw again on the 8th day.  I love giving stuff away!

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Body-By-McDonalds/168974686538257