Food As Medicine

Many paleo folks will stay away from some of the foods included in ABC's article titled Recipes That Serve Up Flu-Fighting Superfoods. I'm writing it up, however, because in the first paragraph the article mentions "food as medicine" which is a principal I'm believing in more every day.

The list:

1. Broccoli
2. Legumes
3. Green tea
4. Blueberries
5. Salmon
6. Squash
7. Yogurt
8. Chicken Soup

Cake in a mug?

Every now and again, I come across some game changing piece of information. This time, it was a recipe from The Paleo Angel. Lots of recipes that I'm drawn to are for complex dinners that take long to prepare. They generally also require me heading out to get some crazy ingredients that I would never have lying around. Basically, they require planning.

This game changer is a dessert recipe - but I'm feverishly thinking of ways to turn it into a breakfast meal. Basically, it's a brownie in a cup that took less than 1 minute to cook in my microwave, and I already had the key ingredients in the kitchen. It also has 14 grams of protein (by my estimation) and a good shot of omega 3s. I didn't have a few things, so I was forced to substitute in some similar ingredients. For the real deal, check out The Paleo Angel blog.

It is surprisingly bread like!

My ingredients:
1 packet of Justins Maple Almond Butter
1 heaping tablespoon of fresh ground Almond Butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg
1 teaspoon of grated bakers chocolate (substitution)
1 tablespoon of agave nectar (substitution)
1 teaspoon of mint extract (for the heck of it. I like mint)

I put the mug in for one minute at first, but had to stop at around 30 seconds to remove the grate from my microwave as the batter was quickly rising beyond the rim of the mug. I cooked it for about another 30 or 40 seconds in 10 and 20 seconds bursts, since the batter was still threatening to rise up and pour out of the mug. In the end, I think I may have over cooked it. The result was surprisingly bread-like, but a little dry and not very sweet nor with enough chocolate. But still delicious. I will try again next week.

Roasting a Pheasant

After a few years of living walking distance from awesome fresh eggs and assorted fowl, I decided to walk myself down to the Goffle Road Poultry Farm. Making the 1 mile walk a little more interesting was the first snow flakes of the 2012/2013 fall (winter?) season. I was on a mission to eat local, and eat pheasant. Why pheasant? I ate pheasant thighs last winter during a ski trip to Vermont, and I've been looking forward to cooking a bird on my own every since. Below is the recipe I used, and pictures of the results!

The bird.

Pheasant Recipe (from AllRecipes)

Ingredients:

• one whole pheasant (cleaned)
• one cup olive oil
• two sprigs rosemary leaves, stripped and chopped
• one tablespoon chopped, fresh thyme
• salt and ground black pepper to taste

The instructions couldn't be simpler. First, pre-heat your oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Next, rub down the bird with salt and pepper (inside AND out). Mix up the rosemary, thyme, and olive oil in a bowl, and then cover the bird liberally. I dumped the extra in the pan.

I also took out the giblets (neck, liver, and heart or gizzard - I couldn't tell) and cooked them a long side the bird.

Set your timer for one hour, and let the bird cook. At the one hour mark, cover the bird with aluminum foil, and put it back in to cook for one more hour. After two hours, check the thickest part of the bird with a meat thermometer to see that it is around 180 degrees. If it is, you're on the home stretch; take the bird out and let it rest for 10 minutes. AllRecipes says to baste the bird with its own juices every 10 minutes. I didn't baste it at all, which could possibly have made it more awesome. However, I thoroughly devoured it in one sitting and enjoyed every minute of it.

Deliciousness.

Before I sat down to eat it, I decided to eat the giblets in the kitchen, before my wife saw them. She's a vegetarian, and I knew this would freak her out. I enjoyed the liver and the mystery organ without her noticing, but she walked in just as I was trying to gnaw some meat off the neck. Let's just say that she let me know she was less then thrilled with my nutritional choice that evening. And I learned that necks are probably best left for the stew pot.

Of course, I couldn't enjoy such a fancy meal (fancy for me, anyway) without a fancy beer (again, fancy for me). I kept it local with a bottle of Cricket Hill Colonel Blides cask ale.

I don't know if it was all the great protein, the organ meat, or even just the beer, but I went to bed happy and fulfilled that night. And I slept like a baby! This was my first attempt at cooking a whole bird, and I consider it a great success. Next time, I'd like to experiment with some sort of paleo-friendly stuffing. Tips and/or links would be appreciated!

Dark Chocolate and Coconut Oil

One day last week, I wanted something sweet. I was in the office, and my options were limited. I didn't have time to run out, and I somehow stumbled into a flashback from my childhood. It was of my father telling me his strategy for snacking. He told me one day that he "likes pickles, and mustard, so why not just have mustard on a pickle?" It may not have been pickles and mustard, but he was always into taking two things that he liked, and combining them regardless of how absurd it may have seemed.

Well, I had two things on my desk that I really enjoy: dark chocolate (100% cacao) and virgin coconut oil (for my coffee/tea). I took a piece of the chocolate, dipped it in the coconut oil, and immediately thought of eating a "Mounds" candy. It was tasty, as the coconut oil cut the bitterness of the chocolate.

100% cacao with virgin coconut oil.

Typically, I blend coconut oil, as well as coconut milk (or sometimes grass-fed butter) into my coffee, like the BulletProofExec does. I'll have this potion of fats and coffee before early morning bike rides, or prior to commuting home from work by bike. I treat all of these rides as slow fat burning rides, so I tend to limit my carb in-take on these days (even though they are "activity" days). But the fats keep me full, alert, and happy.

For another endurance perspective, check out this post on coconut oil from Hammer Nutrition. And for some general information, here is an additional follow up: The Surprising Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

Week in Review - 11/11/12

Some major things happened this week.

• For the first time in my life, I cooked (and subsequently ate) an entire bird. It was a pheasant, it was delicious - and I ate the giblets.
• I stumbled upon a delicious new snack involving 100% cacao chocolate -  and another tasty ingredient.
• I logged some of the best sleep and quality rest days I've had in a while - and I attribute it to eating quality meat.
• I commuted by bike, in and out of NYC (~53miles round trip) - and stopped for an amazing beer on the ride home.
• I fasted for 23 hours - and used WellnessFX for the first time.
• I suffered from a illiotibial band issue.
• And last but certainly not least, I became a father for the first time - 8 weeks sooner than expected.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be covering each of these bullet points in more detail! Stay tuned, and in the mean time, I encourage you to go check out Abel James and listen to his FatBurningMan.com podcast. To be honest, before I started listening to Abel, I thought that podcasts in general were just plain dumb. But 10lbs of fat loss later, I am hooked.

Dealing with Cravings: Why am I eating this?

Being "hungry" is usually not a challenge for me on active days, or even many days when I work from home. I began to realize, however, that I would feel "hungry" more when travelling, onsite with clients, or anywhere out of my mental comfort zone. Most times, I know for a fact that my need for fuel has been met, but I still felt "hungry."

I generally eat well for breakfast and lunch, so the in-between-cravings that occur even after I've had a snack are what I question.  To combat this, every time I would reach for an extra piece of food, I would ask myself, "why am I eating this?" This is a multiple choice question, and the answers are below. Pausing and asking this question gives you a minute to think about what you're eating, and subsequently make a better decisions.

Emotional Stress - Am I stressed out? If yes, then I'm probably not hungry, I'm just looking for a distraction. Don't eat it, and instead focus on fixing what is causing the stress.

Thirst - Have I drank enough water today? If not, or if I'm not sure, drink some water, and wait it out.

Tired - Did I get enough quality rest to keep up with my workload? When my eyes dry out, and I'm having trouble focusing, I won't reach for the coffee, but I need to do something to keep from falling asleep. When this happens, I'll seek out some fat (almonds, or brazil nuts) and possibly fruit (like an apple).

Because something looks delicious - Do I just want a tasty treat? It's OK to answer for me to answer yes - but in moderation. One challenge for me is when the office surprises everyone by bringing in tasty Indian food, after I've already eaten my own paleo-style lunch. I've gotten good at turning down these surprise meals by telling myself I'll make up for it on the weekend. During my slow, fat burning training rides on the bike, I make it a point to seek out high-quality (i.e. delicious) pastries. To be honest, as I continue to eat healthy, even the thought of these treats is becoming less appealing. I'm learning to control my cravings.

Not Paleo: This donut was one helluva a cheat, during a slow, easy ride to Nyack , NY.
Maple Bacon donut courtesy of  The Gypsy Donut.

Dealing with cravings is very challenging. But if you want to achieve your goal, you need to find a way to face them, deal with them head on, and learn to control them. I think it's OK to enjoy a little junk now and again - I just make sure I enjoy it on my own terms, so I don't second guess myself later on.

Food, Beer, and Anxiety

The Falling Rock Tap House. Denver, Colorado.

I love beer. But I think most people would agree that drinking too much alcohol is not good for general health, let alone athletic performance. You don't need to be an MD to understand this point. But what about moderate drinking? Obviously there are calories to be concerned about, and dehydration from from alcohol can have a significant impact on how you feel and perform. So if you balance your calories, and be sure to stay hydrated, will you be free from negative effects of alcohol?

For me, the answer is no. I'm generally an anxious person, who can be prone to stressing out about things that don't require such an intense response. What I've found is that, for a day or so after having more than a drink, my stress and anxiety is heightened to an uncomfortable level. Put a couple of drinks in me, and I wake up super early (generally with a head ache) worrying about work or family, for no great reason.

What I'm beginning to understand is the true impact that food has on your body. It goes way beyond fat, carbs, and protein. The food you eat (and drink) has an effect on all of your body's systems. This means that eating the wrong things can have a much broader effect than just making you fat. It also means that, just because you're skinny, you're not necessarily healthy and functioning optimally.

A point of irony: this blog is called "paleo," yet one of the books I recommend on the right is a book promoting a vegan diet. I really enjoyed the book Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life for a number of reasons. First, it is direct and to the point, and full of applicable knowledge. You can read this book and immediately make changes resulting in a positive impact on your life. Second, it is chock full of recipes - although not necessarily paleo friendly ones. But if you are looking to break away from the high-carb, processed foods that many people eat, these recipes offer a unique and tasty alternative.

Most important, however, is the point that the author Brendan Brazier makes about stress. We are constantly bombarded by stress: at home, at work, at the gym, on the trail. Most of the things that cause us stress are pretty obvious. What is not so obvious, however, is the fact that many of us stress our bodies from the inside out. The process of digesting food is a stress on the digestive system. Brazier argues that we should aim to consume low-stress (easily digestible) foods with the greatest nutritional punch. I agree wholeheartedly.

There is a definite gap in my current knowledge. I understand that some foods are harder to digest than others, thereby putting the body under more stress. However, there are also foods that can make you feel more stressed mentally, in the same way that a bit of alcohol will leave me feeling anxious for a few days. There are complex chemical things going on here that I don't really understand. Fortunately, there are people smarter than myself who've done far more diligent research on the subject.

You can Google it yourself, but here are a few of the first links to show up:

Nutrition for Anxiety: An Anti-Anxiety Diet?
Natural Way of Treating Anxiety with Nutrition

Introduction

I used to be a normal, out of shape, button pushing, computer guy. In 2009 I decided to get back into mountain bike racing, which was something I loved to do as a teenager. Since 2009, I've realized nutrition was important, but I focused on it for the wrong reasons. I ate differently so I could shed fat and go faster on my bike. My focus was not necessarily on eating to be healthy. And it seemed to catch up with me this past year. I was heavy, not fast, stressed out, and seemingly burnt out, both on and off the bike.

A few months ago, I read a few books focused on vegan diets for endurance athletes. I changed my diet based on these books, started feeling better, and I started losing weight. The truth is, I didn't feel better because I was eating like a vegan. I felt better because I started eating more whole, nutritious foods. And I didn't give up meat and fish entirely. I saved it for the weekends, and made sure it was high quality and wild. In the end, reading all of these books about vegan nutrition pushed me back to what I understood in 2010 as a better way for me to eat: paleo.

As a nerdy bike racer, I tend to track my weight pretty regularly. In the chart above, can you pick out the times I've been eating, on average, a paleo diet? I say "on average" because I can't stick to it 100%. I need breaks to eat the things I enjoy. And as of the last 90 days, I've found a good balance of healthy nutrition, weight loss, and feeling great. In the last 60 days, I've lost 5lbs of body fat.

I invite you to stick around and see what I've got going on. I'm going to be talking about my adventures in nutrition, cooking, bike racing, trail running, not driving my wife crazy, and becoming a dad. It's going to be fun!