What Stage Are You At?

There are 5 stages a person goes through before starting a healthy routine.  If you are having a problem sticking to a routine, learning the 5 stages and identifying where you are may make it easier for you start and stick to a healthier lifestyle.

Somethings gotta change!!

First Stage: Pre Contemplation

At this stage you don’t think there is a need to eat healthier and exercise.  You think everything is fine and you can continue a life of scarfing down junk food and practicing the art of being a couch potato.  You shrug off claims that diet and exercise are good for you and decide to spend you free time in front of the television.

Second Stage: Contemplation

You realize you need to do something. Your weight has gotten progressively worse, and you don’t have any energy. You may be experiencing some health issues and you feel tired most of the time. When you check your kitchen for something healthy to eat, you find the closest thing you have for healthy consumption is water. Still the problem seems too big to handle and you decide to do nothing.

Third Stage: Preparation

In this stage you start collecting information. You call a few gyms for pricing and inquire about healthy eating programs. You may even engage in some sporadic exercise like walking once every week or so. People in this stage are ready to adopt a healthy lifestyle. This is the stage most get stuck in. If you can stay on this path and try to progress to the next stage it will be a big and important hurdle. Starting a routine with a friend is more fun. It’s much easier when you are not going it alone.

Fourth Stage: Action

This is the stage when people engage in a regular routine of healthier living. They exercise several times a week and make healthier food choices. This stage is still new and the routine has not been regular for more than 6 months. It is at this stage that more than half of the people give up and slide back to their old ways. If you can push through at least 6 months it is more likely to become part of your regular routine.  Your body will really show signs of a healthier lifestyle. Having a friend helps a lot in this stage. Sharing experiences, hardships and triumphs with someone else increases the rate of success.

Fifth Stage: Maintenance

By now the body has a routine and eating healthy is something that comes much easier. This happens after 6 months of a daily healthy routine. Regular exercise is craved by the body and you don’t feel right unless you stick to it. Health has improved, energy levels are up and you not only feel better but look better too!

We wish everyone good luck in starting their routine. But it is not luck you need. Your limits are defined by agreements you've made about what’s possible, change that agreement and you can dissolve all limits*. Remember you are never too old, too fat, too out of shape, too weak or too busy to start living a healthy lifestyle, only too lazy!!!

*Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, "Everyday Wisdom"

Written by Joann Agoglia

Edited by Rob Marshall

A Dose of Reality Mac and Cheese: The Other White Meat

A long time friend of mine had a Facebook post this week that drew a lot response. Normally this is no big deal. His posts are pretty popular. The first few words “Colin” and “school” caught my eye. I thought it was another charmingly funny post about his son Colin. I, not unlike many others, love to hear about his grade school experiences. My favorite being the picture of his butt he drew in school that the teacher didn't quite appreciate. Anyway, this time it was a note about the upcoming school year. According to Sean it read, “In order to comply with state and district nutrition policies we no longer permit celebratory snacks for birthdays or class parties.” Almost immediately the comments stated pouring in. They all had the same tone. People stated how fed up they were with the state and government stepping in to fix a problem with the wrong solution. I have to admit my views are not much different.

I remember back in the day celebrating birthdays and holidays in school. I would bring less for lunch on those days because I knew I would be eating all the yummy cookies and cakes the moms brought in. I also remember going outside for recess and running till I couldn’t run anymore. Today, recess is much more structured. Some schools feel it is necessary to organize play time in order to get all of the children moving. It is true that kids don’t get out and play enough because television and Xbox keep them occupied most of the time. Let’s face it. It is not just the kids that are occupied by the flat screens. So are the adults. The truth is we all need to move more. We all need to spend more time away from our computers, TVs, and video games, but that is only part of the problem.

We get angered when the state imposes rules on us especially when it regards our children. When it comes to kids’ health, there is no one in the world that has a child’s best interests in mind more than the parent, and we don’t need the government to step in to force rules on us. The politicians need to learn how to do their own jobs before they start telling us how to do ours. So when the school district sent that letter home regarding celebratory snack food, I felt that the government was fringing upon our rights once again.  But before I started to bash this policy, I needed to see just what the states position on nutrition was.

This is protein according to the USDA.

Reading the USDA’s policy on the school lunch and breakfast program is very taxing. It is 78 pages long, and it covers not only the dietary requirements as defined by the USDA but the cost of EVERYTHING, which is understandable. As I read past the first 10 pages, I kept thinking that nutrition doesn’t have to be this hard. Then I realized this is the government and everything really does have to be this hard. Everything needs to be worded so that maybe, just maybe, you will get tired of reading (as I did), and just give in (which I didn’t). I started to sift through the crap looking for what the USDA thought was nutritionally sound food. A few things caught my attention. I was reading the daily recommendations of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, meat and meat alternatives, fluid milk, calories, and saturated fat from calories, sodium, and trans fats. It all sounded good. Then I got to the definitions of whole grains and fruits. A whole grain was defined as whole grain rich.  It said nothing about being 100% whole grain or made with 100% whole grain flour. If you have not read our blog on White Bread vs Wheat Bread, you may find it interesting to know that if a product only says whole grain, it may as well be made with white flour.  In turn, whole grains can equal a lot less nutrients and empty calories. The same concept applies when they talk about enriched macaroni as a substitute for protein. Yes, you read that right. Enriched pasta can be used as a source of protein. But its white pasta we are taking about here, and it goes through the same process as white bread because it is made with white flour. Then they put nutrients back in to make up for what they took out. Doesn't make much sense does it? It just equals more empty calories. Then we come to the fruit requirements. Fruit doesn't always have to be fruit.  Fifty percent of the daily requirement can be in juice form. We also did a blog on that. Once you remove the juice from the rest of the fruit, you remove the sugar from the nutrients that help your body digest, utilize, and properly dispose of the sugar. This is why a diabetic can drink orange juice or eat a piece of candy when they are low in sugar. It is absorbed quickly into the blood stream. There was no mention of water intake. We did a blog on that too! Water is one of the basic things the body needs yet not one word about it in any of the 78 pages.

It seems like a good portion of the requirements are based on calories. Americans have been counting calories for at least 50 years and we have gotten fatter every since. If you go by this standard some of the healthiest breakfasts would not stand up to these requirements, but some of the crappiest breakfasts would pass. Example: the following breakfast would not be enough caloric intake even for a kindergartener

1extra large egg 2 pieces of whole wheat toast	8 oz glass of milk 15 grapes
Total 340 calories

If you take this same meal and substitute the nutrient rich whole wheat bread for the empty calories in white bread and add 1 slice of bacon (assume this could count as protein even though it is the fat of a pig) then maybe it would an acceptable breakfast for K-5. My kids would never have eaten this much for breakfast at that age. Then, we would have to add another 100 calories for the grades 6-8 and another 200 for the high school kids.

Then of course we come to the center of all the FB comments: the state’s policy on foods with minimal nutritional value. It is called Title 7. You can read the whole thing on our FB page. From what I can figure out chocolate is still ok if it doesn’t contain corn syrup. I find that strange because a lot of enriched foods like bread have corn syrup in them.  Soda is a no go but not because it contains loads of sugar but because of the carbon dioxide. Water ice is not expectable unless it contains fruit juice (I believe we covered the whole fruit juice thing) or real fruit. So I don’t know how Rita’s was allowed into the school lunch room last year.

I could sift through this policy for hours and find more problems with it, but the bottom line is that the state doesn’t need to tell us how to feed our kids. The government loves to put band-aids over bleeding wounds. The reason the government changed the policy on the school lunch programs is because they wanted to make fruits and vegetables more available in school meals and to help fight the obesity problem that plagues America. So they make it appear like they care by imposing regulations on schools (who are already stretched by budget cutbacks) about what they can or cannot serve and what parents can or cannot bring in to the classroom. Meanwhile big business gets to brainwash our kids by constantly bombarding them with ads and images everywhere you look.  It’s not just enough to limit the TV and computer time. You would have to keep them isolated from them completely. How about a drive down the road just passing a fast food joint? You can’t escape the oversized advertisements. And forget about taking them to the super market. The focus on kids is ridiculous with movie characters on the box, toys inside, chances to win computers or an Xbox, etc. Then they hit you with the 1/3 less sugar or no sugar added so you feel good about buying it. But what you may not know is that a favorite trick of the trade is to make the portion size smaller so the 1/3 less sugar refers to sugar per serving size and the no added sugar means they added a new kind of chemical sugar to keep the taste sweet. The snack food today is nothing like it was 20-30 years ago. The food today is grown from seeds that are genetically engineered with things that don’t have to be proven safe for human consumption. The meat that is served in fast food restaurant and big restaurant chains, even the meat we buy in the super markets, is loaded with hormones. It won’t say so on any food label or warning because the corporations responsible for this food don’t have to tell you if they inject their meat with hormones. The government agencies that are supposed to regulate what goes into our food are run by the same big business that make and grow the food. The same people who run corporations that grow genetically modified foods in this country are the same people who run government agencies like the FDA and the USDA. Each year they change jobs and bounce back and forth from the corporations to the government positions. It is like a game of musical chairs only no one is left standing. They all have a seat at a new job: different position; same crap.

So you are right, all you angry posts on Sean’s FB comment, the state should not be poking their nose in what we feed our kids.  We need to protect our children from the government. I urge everyone to become an avid label reader and find out what is really in that food you are feeding your family. It may take time, but it is time well spent. Nothing is more important than the health of your family. When things break, like your car or something in your house, they can be replaced or fixed. It may cost money, but it can be replaced. It is not so easy to replace good health. Once it is gone it can be very hard to retrieve. You may need the help of a professional. With all the pitfalls and food traps on the market today, it is understandable that the average person would need help with such an important issue. Let us know if you have any question. We are more than happy to offer our assistance!

Written by Joan Agoglia

Edited by Robert Marshall

A Shot of Fitness Walk a mile in your own feet.

Nike, Converse, Reebok, ASICS, and ADIDAS. Shoes come in all different sizes, shapes, colors, styles, and prices. As we watch the evolution of the shoe, we can see that it has followed the same path as other products from the common sense to the gimmicky.

First there was the sandal. Then there was the leather shoe. And at last, the rubber sole. US Rubber (The big tire companies) created the first comfortable sneaker in 1892 called Keds. Keds were mass produced in the early 1900s and were soon manufactured for basketball players by Converse. If you know your shoe history, you probably know that Chuck Taylor began endorsing Converse shoes in 1923 which are now lovingly called "Chuck Taylors" or "Chucks" by millions of devoted shoe fans. Soon a German man named Adolf "Adi" Dassler took shoes to the global market creating his own brand called ADIDAS (cleverly named after himself). His brother Rudi started Puma (one of my personal favorites). In the 50s, sneakers became fashionable with movies like Rebel without a Cause. Fast forward to 1984 and the first batch of Air Jordans, and the modern colorful, laceless, air-pumped, zig-zagged, butt-lifting sneaker generation begins. Competition becomes so intense that shoe manufacturers have to find the next best thing to make a buck. This competition created the running shoe and the monsters that spawned from it.

The next big thing. It's American, is it not? HDTV, Xbox 360; SUVs with HDTVs and Xbox 360s. This approach exists throughout all corners of our markets, but sometimes one has to stop and wonder if the next big thing is right for them. Shoes are one of those big things. Historically, humans have lived centuries without compression gel in their soles, zig-zags under their heels, or ridiculous gimmicks pumping them up. The basics of footwear were to protect the foot from damage from sharp objects or hot or cold surfaces. But for the sake of money, shoes keep evolving. The modern shoe company has created running shoes that let the human body open its stride, land stiff-legged, and drop its entire weight on fragile hip, knee, and ankle joints without feeling the immediate consequence of pain it would get from performing the same action barefoot. Today's shoe has become a cast. Look inside of your shoe right now and see what's inside. Go ahead. I'll wait. Hey, have you seen the Walking Dead? Pretty cool, right? Yeah, I know! Zombies are awesome. It was about time we got some good zombie TV shows going on. Oh, you're done checking? What did you see? Some cushioning material, maybe the name of the shoe company, perhaps some cool interior designing going on, and what else? Did you see your arch support? I bet you did.

You may or may not have worn a cast before, but chances are that you know someone who has. After a few months, the doctor takes it off, and you finally get a good look at the limb (in this case, let's say an arm) that's been locked away 24/7. When you compare it to the other arm you can see a big difference. Ol' cast-y arm has atrophied! It's weaker and in need of some TLC. Let's imagine for a moment that you put a cast on your arm every day for 16 hours at a time, and you have done this since you picked up your first toy as a child. Now you wear it when you try to play sports, make lunch, or do school work. Kind of a pain in the butt, right?


Now imagine that your arm is your foot. Not only that, but the folks that sell you casts keep telling you that the next big cast is even better because its blue or green or black, and it pumps up to get tighter. And now you can run in your cast without feeling it for a few years (but you still get a nagging pain in your lower back for some reason). That cast is your running shoe. The arch "support" puts pressure underneath your arch. "So what? That's supposed to be good for your feet." The way an arch (architecturally) stays up is with downward force (gravity) pressing evenly on all pieces. If pressure is placed upward, the arch can collapse (or in the case, atrophy) making it not "good for your feet."

What is the alternative? My personal preference is to go barefoot whenever possible. The bottom of the foot is full of nerves for a reason. That reason is to send information back to the brain about the environment. When that information is processed, the body (naturally in pre-cast times, methodically in the modern era) changes the gait so that it can walk or run as safely and efficiently as possible to protect the joints. A person with their shoes on my impact the ground at 300% of their body weight on one leg when running. A person going barefoot will soon find out how not to impact that way. That is done when the knee bends and the person lands on the ball of the foot (not the heel) to absorb the weight of the body like a car's suspension. It is a skill to walk and especially run in that fashion, but it is not impossible to learn. The other alternative is to find shoes with little to no arch support. Chucks are usually pretty good with that. Right now my favorite shoes are a pair of Toms. The only problem with them is there is just a little too much support, but the balance is that they are easy to slip on and off so that I can go barefoot any time.

“But what about orthotics?” some of you may say. There may be some cases where orthotics are helpful like with pronated feet, but if you do not have pronated feet or feel foot pain then chances are that you do not need arch support. Of course, you should refer to your doctor about that. If your doctor says that you need support, remember to ask why and ask for alternatives. Doctors are not immune to marketing or gifting (did you know that they get all types of free stuff from pharmaceutical companies like clipboards, food, and vacations?) so be confident and know your options.


Not sure what to think about your shoes? Time to do some research, my friend. Read about the Tarahumara. They are a tribe of people that run for the sake of running (sometimes marathon long runs), and they do it barefoot. The Tarahumaras are interesting people. Some of their elite runners have won extreme marathons in the States wearing nothing more than tire rubber tied to their feet (for protection).


Take some extra time today to set your feet free, and remember what it is like to feel (the ground). Its only natural.

Written by Robert Marshall

A Nugget of Nutrition Do you have a toxic relationship?

Have you or anyone you know gone hungry or skipped a meal with the hope that you will lose weight?  Or maybe you have heard about substituting a shake for a meal.  It seems ok since the shake advertizes that it has all the vitamins you need, but usually that just leaves you hungry and obsessing about your next meal. When most people hear the word “diet” they usually groan and think of hunger and being deprived.  They think, “Well, I guess I won’t be enjoying my favorite foods for a long while. Nothing but salads for me.” All of a sudden you find yourself watching what everyone else is eating. If you have kids, especially a teenage boy, they seem like a bottomless pit; consuming anything and everything in their sights without gaining an ounce. You may even find yourself talking to food that you crave. “Goodbye chewy, chunky, delicious chocolate chip cookies. Farewell big, giant coffee frappaccino thing with the smooth whipped cream and the sweet chocolate drizzle. So long my comforting bowl of ice cream at night. No more late night movies for us.” It is like a love affair.

For many of us this is food we have given years of devotion to.  I gave mine a name. I call it my BFF: my best favorite food. Unfortunately, this love affair is toxic. Sure your BFF may call to you in a soft voice and whisper sweet nothings to you from the kitchen. And it tells you exactly what you want to hear. So you give in to your BFF. It makes you feel happy and warm inside and everything seems wonderful for a while. Then your BFF goes behind your back (or in this case in your stomach) and doesn’t exactly return your devotion. The love you have given it doesn’t seem to be enough so it seeks other places to get attention. It starts a very public love affair with your hips, thighs, tummy area or even your butt. Sometimes it is sneaky. It hides in your arteries and gives you high blood pressure. Either way, it puts a real strain on your heart. You know you have to put an end to this relationship no matter how good it may seem at times, but how?

The reason why conventional diets don’t work is because they don’t address the real problem: the toxic relationship you have with food. Most diet plans expect you to wake up one morning and completely change what you eat. They may ask you to count points or calories, but these plans ask you to become even more obsessed with your food intake. A habit that you have had for years will not change over night. You may be able to stick with a conventional diet for a while. You may even lose weight, but sooner or later you go back to your old habits. It is like quitting cold turkey. For some people it works but not many. Studies show that fewer than 5% of people who quit smoking have done it cold turkey.  Studies also show that that number is pretty consistent with the percentage of people who lose weight and keep if off with any of those conventional diet plans. Changing a habit is easier when you replace it with another habit. But unless you fully understand why you should break a life long habit, chances are the new habit won’t stick.  In other words, if you don’t understand why you need to find a new BFF then you will always go back to your old more comfortable BFF. Why? Because it’s easier and familiar, and when things get tough people, tend to go back to what’s more comfortable.

So how do you let go? Your whole thought process about food has to change. The first thing you should do is not think diet. Since diet has become a bad word and is usually something people don’t expect to do forever, you need to think healthier eating. You may even have to change the way you think about healthy eating. A friend of mine once described the healthy food my partner and I eat as grey. I believe he may have been referring to the way it tasted to him. His taste buds were too clouded by the sweet and over-processed foods he was eating.  Then his thoughts changed about the food he was consuming.  It was about the ethical treatment of animals that helped him end his fast food addiction. After that he started to question all of his food. “Where does it come from? How is it made and grown?” He took a very green approach to healthy eating and bought better food. Now he eats much healthier and really enjoys eating and preparing his meals. This is a big change. He never liked or even wanted to cook before. I don’t think he would describe his food as grey, anymore. As a matter of fact, I heard him refer to a cucumber basket that he recently won as “a good time”. He lost 25lbs this summer and gained a new perspective on food. Way to go Mike!

Everyone is different so everyone will have their own reason for changing their eating habits. You have to be just as connected to those reasons as you are with your BFF.  It doesn’t happen over night. It’s a gradual thing.  Your healthy eating habits shouldn’t leave you hungry or feeling deprived. You should never watch others eat and feel like you are missing out. Your new way of eating should be all about adding healthier things to your life. You new BFF should love you as much as you love it. It should be delicious. It should whisper sweet nothings to you and leave you satisfied. It should be something your mind and body love equally. It should be something that is nutritious; something that is willing to give its all to you without looking elsewhere for attention. After all, isn’t that what a healthy, long lasting relationship is all about?

As always, if you have a question or comment about this topic, please let us know.

Written by Joann Agoglia

Edited by Robert Marshall

A Nugget of Nutrition The meal that you should never miss

Picture this: It's the beginning of spring. A man walks out to his garage and wheels out the lawn mower that hasn't moved since the last warm fall day.  After he brushes off a few remaining leaves and cobwebs, he begins. It takes a few tugs, but it starts. The next thing he does, to ensure it keeps running, is check the fluids.  In a sense, he needs to feed his lawn mower to make sure it keeps running.

When you wake up in the morning, your body is similar to the lawn mower that hasn't been used all winter. You may not be asleep for months, but your body needs to be properly nourished so you can keep running throughout the day. Breakfast is the perfect name for the first meal of the day. You are breaking the fast (not eating) when you sleep.

I'm sure you have heard the old saying, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."  Nothing can be more true. Those first couple of hours after you wake up often set the tone for the rest of the day.  Of all the hours of the day, those first few are the ones you have the most control over.  You can choose to sleep in till the last minute, rush out in a hurry, and maybe grab something along the way; or you can wake up with enough time to eat a healthy breakfast, and give your body the energy it needs to start the day off on a positive note. Breakfast doesn't have to take much of your time.  A good quality cereal and some fruit is a great place to start. Refueling your system with a good breakfast will kick start your metabolism.

If you are trying to lose weight and you think skipping a meal is a way of achieving your goal, you are wrong. A healthy breakfast gets your metabolism running so you can start burning those calories. Studies show that people who eat breakfast tend to weigh less than those who don't. Skipping any meal won't help you lose weight. Neither will eating a breakfast on the go like donuts or egg sandwiches from the local mini mart or fast food joint.  Would you put fluids in your lawn mower or car that would get them started but would eventually clog the system and limit the life of the engine? Or would you buy the better fluids that won't clog the system and will keep the engine running strong for a longer life? And on top of that, healthy food can be inexpensive, too. The choice seems obvious.

We know how confusing it can be to pick a quick, easy, and healthy breakfast.  There are a lot of foods out there that claim to be healthy but simply are not.  If you need any help or have any questions please feel free to ask.  We will be more than happy to help you start your day right!

Written by Joann Agoglia
Edited by Robert Marshall