Fitness and the Ten Commandments

disclaimer -- this post is not meant to inlame or fire up anybody's religious beliefs , or lack thereof - so if there are issues with my observations , -- send me an email at  Dougmcbride@fitclaimspro.com  ,
   but if not - enjoy the read

Gluten Free

Unless you have celiac disease, (and its a small portion of the population that has this) -- then you don't need to worry too much about Gluten mania -- but NEED and WANT - are 2 different things

Its hard to get away from though -- the "Gluten Free!" marketing is impressive-- it reminds me of the "zero carb" stuff that was popular 12 or so years ago

So we have otherwise sane people eating pizza crust's that taste like rubber, and hoagie buns that have weird mushy textures in attempts to make so-called healthy pizza's and NY deli sandwiches --dumb
 --much better just to eat the real deal, but reserve it for a once -every coupla weeks cheat day or something - unless, as I said, you are in the small % who is truly mildly allergic to wheat products


   The low carb people eat bacon and velveeta for breakfast, then snack on pork rinds and Slim Jims  throughout the day
   -----does any of this stuff sound like something an athlete should be consuming ?  Well, not unless he has a good antacid handy



Tons of stuff is gluten free , or low gluten naturally, as gluten is a wheat derivative ---

 

 


Here's where we start digging deep ------
   ------ moderating gluten consumption , just like the 10 commandments , is not a bad way to live your life,   ----In fact, it can be the cornerstone of a great diet plan

I have had conversations with people who do not share my philosophical beliefs -- one of my longstanding rebuttals has been --- lets examine the 10 commandments -- also, -- not a bad way to live your life or raise your kids

Not saying that restricted gluten should be an 11th commandment or anything -- but again -- as long as you can separate fact from fiction and rely on good foods, and not bandwagon jumping companies trying to release chemically altered breads and things in the name of low gluten -------- I'd also say -- Not a bad way to live your life

  ---  Anybody reading this has probably already noticed I try to keep the mood light -- as such , I'm not going to drop 10,000 words of nutrition history -
 but look at it simply -- our ancestors did not consume a lot of wheat products because it was hard to process ----- millstones and grinding and all that - I mean, bread and beer has been around since biblical times, to be sure, 
   but today, with the automation, - and half million dollar tractors processing hundreds of acres of wheat and corn per day -- it is being used in almost everything to fortify foods ---- plus our reliance on carbs is higher than ever

            Reducing Gluten in your diet is not the same thing as eating in the Paleo fashion, but there are some parallels if you go a fewsteps further and concentrate on eating foods as closeto their raw and unprocessed , or minimally processed state as you can

 

There is quite a list of naturally gluten free foods --- one look at this and you can see its not necessarily just "health foods"

      
Foods made from grains (and grain-like plants) that do notcontain harmful gluten, including: Corn in all forms (corn flour, corn meal, grits,etc.). Rice in all forms (white, brown, basmati and enriched rice). Also amaranth, buckwheat (kasha), Montina, millet, quinoa, teff, sorghum and soy.

The following ingredients:

Annatto, glucose syrup, lecithin, maltodextrin (even when it is made from wheat), oat gum, plain spices, silicon dioxide, starch, food starch and vinegar (only malt vinegar might contain gluten). Also citric, lactic and malic acids as well as sucrose, dextrose and lactose; and these baking products: arrowroot, cornstarch, guar and xanthan gums, tapioca flour or starch, potato starch flour and potato starch, vanilla.

 

The following foods:

Milk, butter, margarine, real cheese, plain yogurt and vegetable oils including canola. Plain fruits, vegetables, (fresh, frozen and canned), meat, seafood, eggs, nuts, beans and legumes and flours made from them.

 

 

 

So there, --- as with most ideas I try to introduce with this forum --- I recommend anybody try it out for a couple of weeks to test your tolerance , or intolerance, to a particular diet modification

  --- but if wheat products make you sleepy ,  or causes energy dips throughout the day, -- give it a try, its not going to hurt anything - and you may just find it helps you out --- like the 10 Commandments


So  ---- lunch may look like this  -

 Instead of this --------- admittedly, this looks pretty good too --- but lay off the wheat based pastas for a while and see if you notice any changes



Dinner?  ---

A wise man named Sam Elliott once said -- "Beef, its whats for dinner "

Not a hint of gluten to be found , except maybe in a crouton -- which you can pick off and throw at another patron easily enough
  -------- I don't see much at all in the way of those mean 'ol carbs on that plate either, but if I needed to watch the calories, I'd pick either the steak or the lobster, not both


----------- and if you don't like the idea of red meat that often, there is always fish and fowl

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Okay ------ if the Gluten thing was a stretch for you -- here's where things may get really weird   ;)

I believe a few of these commandments are actually applicable to our fitness goals, --

So bear with me as I break this down   ---------

HEre are the 10 originals  --- no argument here

1. You shall have no other gods before Me.
2. You shall not make idols.
3. You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.
4. Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.
5. Honor your father and your mother.
6. You shall not murder.
7. You shall not commit adultery.
8. You shall not steal.
9. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
10. You shall not covet.

So take number 1 --
 1) You shall have no other gods before Me.   -- this  applies to the concept of treating your body as a temple.    The gods in this sense, are the things we let stand in the way of our goals, whether it is stress at home,  overwork, or any number of other things that keep us from our goals  --------
      --- none of us reading this are lazy , and we cant be accused of lethargy - the career we have chosen is too demanding and strenuous for that -----
   -- but, if we put off our time on the treadmill  in favor of getting a little more paperwork done -  we are putting work before our own bodies, and as a result sacrificing ourselves one piece of paper at a time
  ----- nobody looks at a heavyset guy and thinks --- "Man - he weighs 256 with 35% bf and skyhigh blood pressure, but you should see him process a claim--- he can do 6 a day!"


I'm not touching 2 and 3 , but 4?
4) Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. --
---take a rest day, - and take it seriously.  If you think you have problems with discipline regarding skipping days, make it an active rest day-- if you're working in a cool area, take a walkingtrip through the downtown area (if its safe) -- basically, if skipping a day makesyou prone to skipping 2 days, - then try to do something fun that's still active -- but get plenty of sleep, take long naps, and recuperate
  note: - your rest day does not have to be on a Sunday , but its just as good a day as any

5) Honor Your Father and Mother 
     This is where your genetic code was written, so it makes sense to recognize this, and give reverence to it, as your natural strengths and weaknesses were passed down here
        This is helpful in setting realistic goals  -- if your parents were both tall and thin, and you need 6000 calories a day just to keep your pants up  - it might not be constructive to make it a goal of competing in the MR Olympia contest

    If your parents were short and stocky, - and your the same way - it might be counterproductive to shoot for a sub 2:30 marathon time (but you may be able to bust 3:15 :)  )
  Basically, we need to recognize our genetic strengths and weaknesses , but not use them as excuses ----- you may not ever be able to squat 400 pounds -- but chances are, you can squat a bit more than you do now
 -- you might not ever be able to do a 25 mile bicycle time trial in less than an hour, but I'm pretty sure that with some effort, you can still improve on what you have

Thank your parents for the gifts that you do have ----we all have something we can be a little bit special at

6)  Thou shall not murder.

I don't know -- this one is tough for me--- I think you should spend a few hours a week attempting to murder a weight pile, a treadmill, your bike trail, or your rowing machine

7) You shall not commit adultery.
   -- probably poor form to do this, unless your Bill Clinton -- but no real parallels here I can see

8)You shall not steal.
I'll reference the remarks I gave above regarding the 1st commandment --- are you stealing from yourself? 
    Stealing your own health, vitality, and zest for life in favor of being a slave to the grind?   Well, stop that

9) You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

You should not call your neighbor a fat, ugly stupid inbred pile of monkey shit just because he won't go on a bicycle ride with you, or flip tractor tires with you in the backyard  --
 -- with luck, you can be a positive example with either how good you look, or how good you feel and the confidence you project ,  - and he or she  will come around

10) You shall not covet.
  -- Unless you leave your bike outside - then you need to covet before it rains   (see what I did there)
 
I'm going to disagree with this one for the sake of this blog --- coveting, or wanting something, can be a powerful motivator
   If you covet your body from 5 years ago, --- take control , and lets get it back -- if you covet running a 7 minute mile, and are now running 8's , lets do that too ---- use your shame and desire  as a powerful form of goal setting

                              
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Okay, I've managed to apply 7 out of the 10 commandments to our lifestyles we are trying to lead -----
  that was exhausting,  --- its time to dive into a big 'ol cereal  bowl full of pudding !   (kidding -- lunch was a spinach stuffed chicken breast with a side of broccoli, no way am I going to ruin the good vibrations with a bunch of puddin'  today )


As always -- direct complaints or constructive criticism to  Dougmcbride@fitclaimsro.com  ---
likewise if you have any personal suggestions on amending  the fitness "commandments"

If you like what ya read, turn on a friend, neighbor, co-worker or even a lover to the site and i'll get 'em added to the subscriber list



Thanks

-Doug