It has been a while since my last post; amazing how times clicks on by! What has struck me this past month, more than ever before, is the importance of slowing down. I know it is so hard to do; society tells us the exact opposite. Hurry and buy this on Thanksgiving Day instead of on crazy Black Friday, rush to get the shopping done, rush to make dinner. The list of things to do will never get done. And you know what, it's okay. I have found that if the list and the tasks it contains are the focus, I miss out on the moments, the moments that really matter! 6:00pm - me thinking, "I gotta check this email and respond to it because it's from a new client," and I start typing on my phone. Logan, "Dad it's after dinner play time, put the phone away!" He was right plain and simple. There will always be "other" things vying for my attention. Having worked as a firefighter/ paramedic for over the last 10 years has allowed me the opportunity to see many people die well before their time. I say opportunity because it has given me a perspective on my own life and what is truly important. As I spend time with my kiddos, I try not to let a teaching moment go by. This means that I have to be completely engaged with them and what is going on. I have by no means perfected this. I was recently reminded by someone that I truly love and respect, that for all those other times when I don't do it as well as I would like, God covers them with his grace. But it is a conscious choice that I have to make moment by moment. I have been struck by the fact that with a little organization of each day the, "Big Things" get mostly done, and the "most important things" stay the most important. Slow down a little. The list will always be there, enjoy your journey and those that are in your life to share it. Happy Thanksgiving!
A good friend of mine, who is much better with the written word than me, wrote a great post earlier this month regarding family and those little teaching moments that are so important. Here's the link; I think it's worth a read.
http://inthelionsname.blogspot.com/2013/11/thanksgiving-tradition-window-on-our.html
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Friday, November 1, 2013
Is Coffee a Miracle Food?
That Morning Cup
Like many of you, I start my morning off with a cup of coffee. My wife calls me a bit of a coffee snob; she is probably right. I have my favorite roaster and like to point out what subtle nuances of other coffees I do not like. Too much of a citrus and floral note in that one, too much of a spicy finish on that one. When we go on vacation, I know how much she loves hearing my commentary on the coffee that our Bed and Breakfast or Hotel is serving. Side note, if you are going on vacation and need coffee stop recommendations, I can probably steer you in the right direction.
As I mentioned in my Facebook post last night, the media often leads us to wonder whether our morning cup is good for our health or bad for it. It seems like every week a new study comes out that contradicts the last one. Coffee is not alone in this, it happens for all types of food and drink, especially those most of us consume on some type of regular basis. I have heard many conversations that go something like this, "I heard the other day that drinking coffee can help lower your chance of heart disease." Next week it will be, "I heard on the news that drinking coffee can increase your risk of heart disease." The word coffee could be replaced with a multitude of items we eat and drink each day. The answer to whether it is good or bad for you most likely lies in your parents. Without going into the whole science based explanation and putting many of you to sleep, just start getting to know the word NUTRIGENOMICS. Some of you technical types may have already know that this relatively new science essentially looks at an individual's genes and studies how they respond to the chemicals that make up our foods. There is a good chance that in the next five to ten years this science will start to explain why different people have different reactions to given food items (the whole spectrum from weight loss, to food sensitivities, to cancer). Personally, I'm hoping that means that they find a favorable Butterfinger candy bar gene because, confession here, I took three of them out of my son's trick-or-treat bucket when we were strolling the streets last night.
Seriously though, most of us have a pretty good idea what we should be eating and what we should not. I think most would agree that Butterfingers would fall into the "not" category. So, before you get even more frustrated with the media, remember that they are just doing their job of highlighting the latest headlines and rarely have time to tell the whole story. I will still fall back on what my nutrition professor said many times to us. "Eat really, really good most of the time, and enjoy your food." For me this means working towards getting my plate to contain mostly vegetables, some fruit, some lean type of protein and small amount of healthy fats, along with a reasonable amount of minimally refined carbohydrates. I say working towards because, like most people, I probably do not eat as many vegetables as I should and I'm continually trying to find creative ways of getting them into my diet.
So, the take home message is this - the next time you hear about a "miracle" food or diet, the answer is that for some people it may be beneficial. But for some people it may not. Do not let yourself get tossed back and forth by all of the information out there (especially in the media). If you have specific goals, whether fat loss, muscle gain, or performance sports related, and are having a hard time getting there ask yourself, "Is my current way of eating helping me, or is it hindering me?" Most of us should be getting more fresh vegetables, good lean protein, and less starchy carbohydrates. Focusing on these things will get you much farther than the latest "miracle food."
That's enough for today, I need to go make my one cup of coffee for the day. Below is a link to a full article on coffee and nutrigenomics, by John Berardi, PhD.
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