RobGrant01

Carnivore VS. Herbivore

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 13:00:00 +0000

"However, you may slaughter and eat meat within any of your towns, as much as you desire, according to the blessing of the LORD your God that he has given you. The unclean and the clean may eat of it, as of the gazelle and as of the deer. Deuteronomy 12:15

Proper nutrition is becoming increasingly important to me. Partly because I am getting older, but mostly because I am finding that food has a great affect on my workouts. As I mentioned in a previous post, I have been using P90X as my workout regimen. This program comes with a nutrition guide to help you lose weight and get the most from your workouts. I followed the nutrition plan pretty closely for the first few months, then started to modify it a bit to fit my lifestyle and what I felt my body was telling me I needed nutritionally.

After several months, I noticed that my workouts were beginning to suffer. I began making adjustments to my diet. For the most part, I found that adding more protein to my diet and limiting grains had the greatest positive affect on my workouts, no surprise here. Everything was going great until...

I read this article I received in a newsletter from Tony Horton (Tony is the star of the P90X videos).
5 Things to Cut Out of Your Diet

In the article, Tony advocates cutting:

Processed sugars.
Alcohol.
Caffeine.
Anything with a face. (all meat)
Gluten.

Now, numbers 1,2,3 and 5 I understand, but cut out all meat? Tony's rationale is that the meat supply is tainted and unhealthy in America, so rather than use meat as a source of protein, you should choose vegetarian sources of protein. Initially this made sense to me and I was truly considering it. Then in doing some research, the very next day, I came across the teachings of Weston A Price.

If you have never heard of Weston A. Price, here is a brief explanation of Dr. Price and the foundation that bears his name, pulled directly from their website:

The Weston A. Price Foundation is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charity founded in 1999 to disseminate the research of nutrition pioneer Dr. Weston Price, whose studies of isolated nonindustrialized peoples established the parameters of human health and determined the optimum characteristics of human diets. Dr. Price's research demonstrated that humans achieve perfect physical form and perfect health generation after generation only when they consume nutrient-dense whole foods and the vital fat-soluble activators found exclusively in animal fats.

Dr. Price discovered when people followed their traditional diets, that is before the modern industrial diet, they were healthier and had virtually no degenerative diseases. So what was in the traditional diet??? Meat and lots of it. And not just the muscle meat, but the organ meats and the fat too. I would encourage you to visit www.westonaprice.org and learn about this protocol.

So with all due respect to Mr. Horton, I am going to part with him on the vegetarianism recommendation for a couple of reasons:

The Bible - As in all matters, the Bible is my final authority and it has a lot to say on this matter. I did a quick BibleGateway.com search of the word "meat" and was returned 41 Bible verses where meat is specifically mentioned. Almost all were positive commands to eat meat, and most of those that were negative were dealing with the sin of gluttony.
Flawed Premise - Mr. Horton's argument for going vegetarian is that there are no quality sources of animal protein anymore. Hormones, antibiotics, disease and poor environment have destroyed what was once a great source of protein. I agree with him, in at least what is offered for meat at the grocery store. Grain-fed beef, pork and fowl are riddled with problems. Animals were not designed to eat grain. However, you can find meat the way God intended for it to be, from grass fed farms; just as you can and should find your vegetables from organic farms. There are meat producers that are completely dedicated to providing clean and nutritionally superior products to those found in your local grocery store.

So if you cannot get good grass-fed meat and pastured poultry in the supermarket, where do you get it? Do a Google search in your area for grass-fed beef. Most of these farmers/ranchers sell directly to the public either through mail order, farmers markets or co-ops. You can also check out the local chapters page of the Weston A Price Foundation website. Local chapters can put you in touch with local farms and ranches. In our house we just received a shipment from Slanker's Grass Fed-Meats. I like their website as it has a overwhelming amount of information from nutrition and cooking advice, to details about how their livestock are raised, as well as information on their industry. In addition to ordering from Slanker's, we like to visit local farmers markets where there are often local grass-fed/pastured meat selections. This is a great way to get to know the people who own the farms and ranches.

In conclusion, do your research. When it comes to fitness, Tony Horton is truly an inspiration. One of the reasons I like his workout products is that he is not young and he is in incredible shape. For a guy like me who took a 20 year hiatus from working out, it is helpful to see a guy who is older than me in top physical condition. I feel like I can get there too. But everybody has an opinion on nutrition and there is a lot of information out there. Read as much as you can on the matter, ask a lot of questions and pray about it.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. Proverbs 3:5-8

41 Years Old and 40 Pounds Overweight

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 03:50:00 +0000

Christmas 2009, my heaviest @ 235lbs.

Hear, my son, and be wise, and direct your heart in the way. Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat, for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and slumber will clothe them with rags. Proverbs 23:19-21

I am not sure what happened this year, but around my 41st birthday, I decided that if I did not start taking care of myself, the already difficult task of getting back into shape was not going to get any easier.

I have to assume that this was something laid on my heart from the Lord. I would look at photos and it was painful to see how I looked. Now I know some of that is vanity, but also I felt guilty for not being a good steward, and for not being a model that I want my children to follow. Food was my idol and slothfulness was my friend. These were imparted to me from my parents and I naturally followed in their footsteps.

Earlier this year I started working out again. I decided to make an investment in learning to work out properly and ordered the P90X program from Beachbody products. If you have not tried P90X, it is an intense workout; and if you have not ever worked out, this may not be the program to start with. Beachbody has many programs for all fitness levels. I did not know that I was not fit enough for P90X until we got the program and attempted the fit test.

The fit test is a series of short exercises to see if you are ready for P90X. I have to admit that I failed and failed miserably. By all indications I should not have started with this regimen, but I did not want to return the product and I really did want to get back into shape. I knew it would not be easy, but if I could stick with it I would eventually be fit again. I pressed on.

P90X is intended to be a 90 day program, but when you are as out of shape as I was, it lasts much longer. In fact, there are still several videos that I cannot work all the way through. The program is designed to change and intensify every 30 days to prevent plateauing. I am not going to claim to be a fitness expert, but when you start from really out of shape, the first plateau does not come for some time. I am still using the videos and have been doing so for seven months. I have not plateaued yet. Also, I have modified the program a little because there are areas where I am strong like upper body, and there are areas where I am weak like core and legs. I basically do a resistance day, then a cardio day and alternate them back and forth. That is how the program is designed, however I do not follow the workouts in exactly the same order as they are laid out in the fitness guide that comes with the program. My goal is to eventually be strong enough, and have enough stamina to do the program as designed.

So what about results? Well even though I am not following the program exactly, I have to admit that I am very pleased with the results. First of all, I have shed 20 lbs. I started the program at 235 lbs, and I am down to 215. My strength and stamina have increased dramatically. I have traded a lot of fat mass for lean muscle mass. I look better and feel better. Most of all, getting back into shape has helped me to put food into perspective. While I still enjoy food, I am eating smarter and realizing how food affects my body. I have noticed what I eat has a dramatic affect on my workouts.

It is resolution time. You have been charged by God to lead your families. This is an area where many of us fail in our leadership. The new year is upon us soon, I want to encourage you to take your physical fitness seriously. Your wife and kids need and will welcome your leadership in this area. Remember, your kids will develop habits from your modeling as a parent. Whether you are fat or you are fit, chances are they will be the same.

God only gives use one body while we live in this fallen world, take good care of it. Each of us has a birth date and a death date. Only God knows when the latter will be. Getting fit will not add more years to your life, but it will add more life to your years.

Christmas 2010, 20lbs lighter and in much better shape. Still a long way to go, but headed in the right direction.

Better Late Than Never

noreply@blogger.com (Rob) — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 10:54:00 +0000

This year I turned 41. I don't know why, but for some reason this is the year I decided to take a hard look at my life and make some much needed changes in health, wealth and my relationship with God.

On my 41st birthday I was at least 40 lbs. overweight, lethargic, lacking in sleep, eating what for most might seem an OK diet, and not happy at all about my physical condition. In addition, my finances were a mess and my spiritual life was even more lethargic than my physical life.

So why should you care? You shouldn't really. This blog is not about me, but about Him. It is about how God works in our everyday lives and provides for us often without us asking, and usually without us thanking him for what he has done. It is about growing and maturing, something we are obsessed about as children, but sadly not as adults.

Luke 8:14
And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.

Written from a husband and father's perspective, I expect this will resonate with men more than women. However, I hope women will read and comment on posts.