[as seen in the Oxford Review March 29th, 2012]
We have been told for far too long that fat is bad.

The statement fat is bad is simply too simplistic and frankly dead wrong. We have, as a nation, been eating more and more low-fat food in the past 30 years than ever before in our history. And yet obesity, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s have skyrocketed. Something doesn’t add up. I am going to talk about coconut oil today. It is currently the only oil I cook with. It is a staple in my home. And I eat a lot of it. It is interesting to note that multiple studies on Pacific Island populations who get 30-60 percent of their total caloric intake from fully saturated coconut oil have all shown nearly non-existent rates of cardiovascular disease?

The fact is – all saturated fats are not created equal.

Some saturated fats occur naturally, while other fats are artificially manipulated into a saturated state through the man-made process called hydrogenation. These are the bad fats – yes the ones we ourselves make. And yet coconut oil has been included in this group. Well not anymore!

How It Works
Many are surprise to hear that nearly 50% of the fat in coconut oil is of a type rarely found in nature called lauric acid. This a compound called a “miracle” by some because of its unique health promoting properties. Your body converts lauric acid into monolaurin, which has anti-viral, anti-bacterial and anti-protozoa properties.

Coconut oil is also nature’s richest source of medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs), also called medium-chain triglycerides or MCTs. By contrast, most common vegetable or seed oils are comprised of long chain fatty acids (LCFAs), also known as long-chain triglycerides or LCTs. When we look at MCTs being smaller there is a few things that they do: they are easily digested and are immediately burned by your liver for energy (without the insulin spike). MCTs actually boost your metabolism and help your body use fat for energy, as opposed to storing it, so it can actually help you become leaner. Coconut oil has actually been shown to help optimize body weight, which can dramatically reduce your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. Besides weight loss, boosting your metabolic rate will improve your energy, accelerate healing and improve your overall immune function.

Coconut Oil and Alzheimer’s
Something that most people don’t know is that the brain is not an obligate consumer of glucose. What that means is that the brain can run on something else other than glucose. That something is ketone bodies.

Suzanne DeLaMonte, a researcher and professor at Brown University, has done some startling research on the causes of Alzheimer’s disease. Her findings suggest that Alzheimer’s could be a type of diabetes in the brain (this can be found on Dr. Oz’s website where he interviews her). If the brain has impaired insulin sensitivity and cannot feed the brain glucose then what do we do? To start with we need to take insulin out of the equation. But how do you do that?

Use coconut oil to feed your brain ketone bodies. This may sound simplistic but it works. While scientific studies are currently underway to validate the idea that brain neurons can be fed with ketones bodies in those with Alzheimer’s (and those without), I have personally heard from many many people that coconut oil has made a dramatic difference in the lives of their loved ones. It is worth a serious look and there is literally no downside to trying it.

I use the purest coconut oil I can find. I feel fortunate that I can find it right here in Woodstock (InsideU Health – 682 Peel St). It is called Nutiva and it is organic and cold-pressed virgin coconut oil. It has the most amazing marbly white colour and smells .. well like coconut! I use it everyday and I can say it has been the best addition to my healthy lifestyle since I discovered unpasteurized whey protein. But that is another story.

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[as seen in the Oxford Review February 16th, 2012]
Over the last few years kettlebell training has grown by leaps and bounds in Canada, the US and overseas. There are literally thousands of people who have experienced the great strength, power and cardio effects of this training. There is also an equal number of ladies and men using kettlebells to get more define, gain more muscle and just to be stronger overall. The reason – kettlebells work!

I have put together short training program for you using kettlebells. A lot of kettlebell exercises can be done with one kettlebell. This is great because it creates an asymmetrical load across the body causing the lifter to stabilize in all three planes of movement (sagittal, frontal, transverse)

A good example of an exercise that is done with one kettlebell is the Turkish Get-up. The TGU begins by lying on your back with arm extended (kettlebell in hand over your chest). Procced to ‘Get-Up’ to a standing position, the kettlebell should now be over your head. Then reverse the whole movement until you are flat on your back again. Sounds easier than it is – trust me. This is a great core exercise.

As for using two kettlebells, it is much more neurologically challenging (like using dumbbells) than using an Olympic bar since the arms are not fixed by the bar and the arms must stabilize independently.

Next, let’s go over the training program to get you going. If you don’t know what the exercises look like just search for them on YouTube.

5×5 (Five Sets Of Five) Weeks 1-4
5 reps x 5 sets is a training protocol that has been around for many years. It is also an extremely effective way to put on some definition, strength and to do some toning. Here is how it works. Pick a training weight and do five sets of five reps. If and when you can complete all sets of five, increase the weight by five to ten pounds and shoot for five sets of five again. Take three-minute breaks in between each set. Since incremental weight increases are not possible with kettlebell training we have to look at other factors to manipulate. One factor to manipulate is time under tension. When you can do 5×5 with a quick tempo, increase the negative to four seconds and the positive to two seconds. When that becomes easy, try five seconds up, a pause at the bottom and five seconds down. Another factor to manipulate is the breaks between each set. Instead of taking three-minute breaks in between each set, take two-minute breaks, etc. There is always something that you can do to make an exercise harder or a training regimen more effective.

Here is a sample 5×5 kettlebell program:

Monday
A-1: Double Floor Press (push ups using the kettlebells as stands, drop low into the push up on the eccentric (downward) movement

A-2: Double Bent-over Row

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. This is called supersets. In other words, do one set of A-1, wait a minute and then do a set of A-2, wait a minute and then do another set of A-1 and so forth. Keep going back and forth between A-1 and A-2 until you have completed all five sets.

B-1: Double Front Squat

B-2: Double Snatch (this is a technical movement and should be done technically correct before adding additional weight)

Wrap up with:

Turkish Get-ups using a 5×5 (left and right independently) rep range. Take a two-minute break in between each set. One complete set equals five reps on each side.

Wednesday
A-1: Double Military Press

A-2: Kettlebell Pull-up

B-1: Double Kettlebell Front Squat

B-2: Double Kettlebell Swing

Do A-1 and A-2 back to back. Do B-1 and B-2 back to back.

Wrap up with:

Double Windmill 5×5 (left and right) Take two-minute breaks in between each set. One complete set equals five reps on each side.

Friday
A-1: Double Seated Military Press

A-2: Kettlebell Pull-up

Same A-1 and A-2 as above.

B-1: Double Kettlebell Front Squat

B-2: Double Kettlebell Swing

Wrap up with

Guard Sit-up 5×5 (left and right) Take two minute breaks in between each set. One complete set equals five reps on each side. Take a day off in between each workout. In other words, do Day 1 on Monday, Day 2 on Wednesday, and then Day 1 again on Friday. Four weeks later you will be ready for another routine. Good Luck!

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Organic, unadulterated wholefoods have formed the basis of human diet through the ages. Only now has the human race been subjected to countless man-made chemicals found in food and the environment.

Eating foods that provide a balanced amount of nutrients is required to keep the body in perfect balance. A good deal of energy is wasted trying to disarm alien and often-toxic chemicals – some of which cannot be eliminated and accumulate in body tissue. Choosing organic foods whenever possible is the nearest we can get to eating a pure diet today. By supporting the organic movement, we help to minimise the damage of chemical pollution, which poses a real threat to the future of humanity. I might sound dire but it is the truth.

Raw, organic food is the most natural and beneficial way to take food into the body. It is especially important to buy organic fruit where you eat the skin. Almost and every non-organic edible fruit-skin has been sprayed. The surface area is vast, and many fruits (think apples) are found to contain large amounts of organophosphate fertilisers. If you cannot find or afford organic then you must wash them (even this only partially helps since the chemicals get into the fruit).

In straightforward nutritional analyses, organic food tends to have more in it, both in terms of dry weight and nutrients (see chart below). This is because organically grown produce must be grown in enriched soil and because modern methods of farming with agrochemicals can speed up the growth of a plant, changing its structure to be more full of water. In other words, although it may still look like a carrot you could be buying less food.

 The average price difference between organic produce and non-organic produce is around 20 per cent (sometimes higher, sometimes lower). Organic produce was found, on average, to contain 26 per cent more dry matter (less water) — therefore actually making it cheaper to buy organic. This is why non-organic produce tends to shrink more on cooking as its high water content evaporates.

Comparison of Organic vs Non-Organic Produce

Component Mean % increase in organic produce vs non-organic produce

• Dry matter +26%
• Potassium +13%
• Calcium +56%
• Magnesium +49%
• Iron +290%
• Copper +34%
• Manganese +28%
• Protein +12%
• Essential amino acids +35%
• Nitrates +69%
• Phosphorous +6%

Organic food’s strength also lies in what it doesn’t contain. This stretches well beyond excluding agricultural chemicals such as fertilisers and pesticides, to prohibition of artificial preservatives, colours, sweeteners, residual antibiotics, hydrogenated fats, processing aids and meaningless starches. There is, in fact, only food in organic food (I am not talking about packaged organic food which is sneaky and should be avoided).

One of the most amazing things that I have noticed regarding organic food is the taste.  Have you even purchased wonderful looking tomatoes from the store only to find them totally tasteless?  That is actually one of my pet peeves.  I have found almost exclusively that organic food tastes better than commercially grown produce. It has more nutrients and our bodies recognize that. It is the nutrients that give fresh whole food its distinct taste.

As always remember to: Train Hard, Eat Well, and Smile!

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[as seen in the Oxford Review January 20th, 2011]
There are a few things that you don’t want to do when trying to lose some weight. They are crucial and you will not get the results you want if you tumble into these pitfalls.

Lack Discipline
A lack of discipline is most likely the most harmful pitfall if you are trying to lose weight. You have to have what I call persistent consistency. You have to tough it out even when you don’t feel like it. Then tough it out again. And again.

Cutting down on your waistline takes a reasonable amount of effort which must be sustained over the course of a year (or more). This didn’t happen to you overnight so it is unreasonable to expect results in less time than is actually possible.

There is one word that describes the staying power of winners. One word that describes the type of commitment that is needed. One word that you need to learn to use and become. That word is: Grit.

Eliminate Fat
Eliminating fat or eating a very low fat diet is a common error that people are encouraged to make by food marketing. Eliminating fat intake to get rid of fat from the body may seem like a good idea at first glance, but when you understand that most food producers add sugar when they take out the fat you will begin to understand why ‘low-fat’ doesn’t mean healthy. (Note: all trans-fat should be removed from your diet because they will hurt you).

You need a decent amount of good fat in the diet because all the cells in the body are made up of two layers of lipids or fats, which will be composed of good fats or bad fats depending on the type you eat. If the cell lipid layers are made up of healthy fats, it will make them more sensitive to insulin and allow the receptors to bind more easily, which is necessary for good metabolism and energy production. Remember to balance your fat intake by taking fish oil for the high levels of available Omega-3. I recommend at least 1g of EPA per day.

Keep Getting Stressed
To lose fat, it’s essential that you minimize stress to lower your cortisol levels. It is well established that chronically high cortisol results in fat gain, particularly around the middle. This means that no matter how much you exercise or eat healthy, you won’t lose weight if your cortisol is elevated because of how cortisol makes the body insensitive to insulin.

One recent study looked at the relationship between cortisol levels, insulin sensitivity, and visceral belly fat in men. Men with more belly fat produced far more cortisol throughout the day and had decreased insulin sensitivity than those with less belly fat. Interestingly, subcutaneous fat—the jiggly kind that’s right below the skin—was not related to insulin or cortisol levels. Researchers suggest both external stress and internal physiological stress (in the form of chronic inflammation in the gastrointestinal tract) are the cause of the elevated cortisol.

Forget Your Gut
Fix your gut health and support digestion by taking a probiotic to lose fat, have more energy, and feel better. Probiotics are the tiny bacteria that naturally occur in the gastrointestinal tract and are commonly found in dairy products such as yogurt and kefir.

Gut health is essential in that it will improve digestion and help you feel better. You will actually feel more energetic because your neurotransmitters will be firing at optimal levels, and your metabolism will be supported so that nutrients and energy sources are getting broken down, absorbed, and used by the body in the most effective manner. Additionally, research shows probiotic supplementation helps lower anxiety and stress levels, which leads to less secretion of cortisol.

Miss Adding Protein to Breakfast
Skipping breakfast and missing meals will set you up to fail when trying to lose weight. Eating breakfast is one of the simplest, healthiest things you can do to feel better and have more energy, but there’s one catch. You have to eat protein at breakfast. Eating cereal for breakfast is a common pitfall that is often not addressed by the media or mainstream health professionals.

Cereal is bad for breakfast because it’s typically packed with sugar and additives. In the rare case that you can find a cereal that doesn’t have added sugar, cereal tends to be low in protein. You can always add some high quality whey protein to your breakfast. It what I do and it works wonders.

Stay Focused, have Grit, and Smile.

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