Hi again everybody,

I consider today’s TIP to be very important: a calorie is not a calorie!

What does this nonsensical statement mean? Well, since many people are fans of counting calories in order to lose weight, it’s important to explain this.

The concept of calories in/calories out for weight loss is so oversimplified and antiquated that world-renowned strength coach Charles Poliquin goes so far as to say “counting calories is for certified morons!”. He’s worked with tons of elite and professional athletes and knows how to help people reach their goals, so the fact that he dismisses calorie coating like that deserves some attention.

Simply put, not all calories are created equal. While it may be true that someone can lose weight – albeit temporarily – on a 1500 daily calorie diet of strictly Twinkies, that fact remains that this is a really silly thing to do, and the results could not last.

Briefly, there are two main reasons why the caloric model doesn’t work well for fat loss:

1) Foods you eat evoke a hormonal response in your body. Meaning that even if you take in the exact same number of calories, the energy from eating protein vs. eating carbs are not used the same way and they affect your body composition differently as well.

2) Not all foods require the same amount of digestive effort to be broken down. Breaking down meat or raw vegetables (whole foods) requires a lot more calories from your body than processed foods like pasta or cookies. It is estimated that people who eat whole foods burn a stunning 50% more calories per day, and their resting metabolic rate is higher.

High carb meals provoke a chain of reactions that literally put you in fat-storage mode and also cause rapid cellular aging. So to treat all calories the same way is indeed silly. In fact, studies show that people who do periods of caloric restriction and yo-yo dieting tend to get fatter over time because they gain back the weight + 8% more than they had before.

As I’ve said in a past TIP, to function optimally, your body requires lots of healthy fats, some protein and only a little carbohydrate. Always aim for the most nutrient dense whole foods and stay especially far away from white flour, sugar and other processed foods, as they have lead to what are known as the diseases of affluence.

If you still don’t believe me, I encourage you to read about the tragic story of the Pima indians and the lessons we have learned from studying them.

A final quick thing to remember is this (as stated by George Cahill in 1957 – scientist, diabetes expert and Harvard Medical School professor): carbohydrate is driving insulin which is driving fat storage.

Eat smart – not less!

Processed foods not only extend the shelf life, but they extend the waistline as well.
–Karen Sessions

Those who think they have no time for healthy eating, will sooner or later have to find time for illness.
–Edward Stanley

Today, more than 95% of all chronic disease is caused by food choice, toxic food ingredients, nutritional deficiencies and lack of physical exercise.
–Mike Adams

The food you eat can be either the safest and most powerful form of medicine or the slowest form of poison.
–Ann Wigmore

Hi guys, just 10 days to go in this month’s challenge, so keep up the good work!

I’ve a got a TIP for you today, regarding the consumption of salt.

First off, I know that salt has been demonized for many years now, starting with a 1972 research study, which found that if you fed rats an unrealistically and impossibly high amount of salt (50 x normal human consumption), they developed high blood pressure – how revealing! 😛

I know that the modern Western diet may be relatively high in salt, especially as compared to any historical diet, but salt has literally been around almost forever, and that is no coincidence. In fact, an adequate intake of salt is absolutely required to maintain good health. The sodium found in salt is a vital nutrient. It helps maintain fluid balance and cardiovascular function, while also playing an important role in the nervous system. Also, aside from sodium, the other component of salt is called chloride, and it is used in the stomach as hydrochloric acid (HCL), which is vital for digesting your food.

Therefore, being a vital part of our body’s function, the subject of salt is not to be taken lightly. Studies show that there can be serious danger with very high or even very low salt consumption, especially on the long term.

All that being said, what we really need to consider is how much salt is the right amount? Forget that the government is still recommending salt restriction! The latest research recommends about 1.5 to 3.5 teaspoons per day (depending on how much you sweat, how active you are).

What’s also important is the quality of salt. The basic (cheap, refined) table salt is just sodium chloride, and lacks the extra trace minerals (like calcium, potassium, magnesium, sulfur, zinc and iron) found in sea salt or other natural salts (like Himalayan pink salt). That and the fact that table salt commonly contains undesirable additives such as anti-caking agents makes it automatically scratched off my list.

By eating whole foods and eliminating processed junk, excess sodium in our diet is greatly reduced. Therefore, you never need to think about adding some salt to your meal – it generally makes things (especially veggies) much tastier! Just follow your appetite or instinct, our bodies have of way of regulating themselves, and salt intake is no exception to that. Unless you have a kidney problem, there are almost no good reasons to deprive yourself of some good ol’ unrefined salt!

In all ages salt has been invested with a significance far exceeding that inherent in its natural properties… Homer calls it a divine substance. Plato describes it as especially near to the gods, and we shall presently note the importance attached to it in religious ceremonies, covenants and magical charms. That this should have been so in all parts of the world and in all times shows that we are dealing with a general human tendency and not with any local custom, circumstance or notion.
–Ernest Jones, 1912

Hi everyone and congrats on making it to the second half of this month’s challenge!

My TIP for today is this: Meditate your way to success!

I know this may sound odd at first, but all that meditation is, really, is taking a few moments or minutes from the busy day to slow down, breathe deeply, and refocus. That’s it! It doesn’t need to become some obscure esoteric booga-booga.

Stated that way, I believe it becomes much more clear how beneficial such a simple and short practice can be. If you take that quick break to recenter yourself and refocus on your real goals, what’s truly important to you and what’s aligned with your values, then success comes much more effortlessly.

On a related note, I remember reading an article about Yiannis Kouros many years ago (a fellow Greek, who is arguably the greatest runner who has ever lived), and how he described the process by which he would transcend his physical body in order to accomplish his inhuman feats. This struck me particularly because he is a very simple man, of Greek Orthodox faith (like us), and yet he spoke about channeling some form of higher power (in mid-race!) to go beyond the physical limitations of his body. Pretty mind-blowing stuff, but whether you buy it or not, his jaw-dropping world records continue to speak for themselves.

All this to say that having any form of spiritual practice or relationship with whatever power you believe in, can definitely be a real aid towards accomplishing things you may never have initially even dreamed were possible.

Keep fighting the good fight, and continue to transform into a better version of yourself!

When we raise ourselves through meditation to what unites us with the spirit, we quicken something within us that is eternal and unlimited by birth and death. Once we have experienced this eternal part in us, we can no longer doubt its existence. Meditation is thus the way to knowing and beholding the eternal, indestructible, essential centre of our being.
–Rudolf Steiner

Prayer is when you talk to God; meditation is when you listen to God.
–Diana Robinson

Just remember persistence and patience are the foundation of any success.
–Christopher de Castell Junghertz