_ The human body has an innate need to maintain a relatively constant internal environment and has an amazing ability to maintain this equilibrium.  Every cell, organ and system in the body relies on a stable environment to function and this is accomplished through a number of pre-programmed feedback mechanisms and every system in the body contributes to this “homeostatic” environment.  Receptors throughout the body sense changes in our internal and external environment and send messages to the brain; it responds by telling the appropriate organs to restore equilibrium.  Body temperature, pH, blood sugar, blood pressure, the list goes on and on. 

That’s our inner workings, and it's bloody amazing!

It’s that time of year where we become introspective and begin to set goals and challenges for ourselves (I loathe the term “Resolutions” so avoid using it).  Lose weight.  Run more.  Run farther.  Eat better.  Look better.   Feel better.  Quit this.  Decrease that.  These are great (although in most cases I ask the question “why did you wait until now to start?”)

I was leaving the gym the other day, dressed in my “standard" winter attire of shorts and sneakers (albeit I did have my winter jacket on).  As I was brushing a rather generous dumping of snow off my car I got talking to a lady in the parking lot who was rather excited about the snowfall.  I explained that I didn’t share this excitement, passing it off as me not being “a winter person” and sharing the excuse that I grew up overseas.  As soon as I jumped in my car it hit me and I said to myself, “you f’in dumbass, THAT WAS 18 YEARS AGO!!”

Over the years I’ve talked to a lot of people about change.  Where they’ve come from and where they want to go.  I’ve talked goal-setting and game plans.  I’ve monitored and followed up on their progress.   And amidst these interactions I’ve noticed something – the same thing I caught myself doing the other day - we spend a lot of time and energy focusing on who we were and what we used to do. 

“I used to be this”.  “I used to do that”.  “I used to eat this”.  That’s great!  My question... who are you RIGHT  NOW?  What are you doing RIGHT NOW and is this in sync’ with who you want to be and what you want to achieve? 

You are not defined by your past!

Yeah, you’ve probably learned some valuable lessons along the way – hold onto these and use them as you forge ahead! 

You might not wanna go back to where you were – so don’t!  Set your sights on the road in front of you and follow your plan to get there (if you don’t have a plan – make one)

You might be in a better position than you were (“better shape”, skinnier, happier) – be proud of this dammit!  But don’t get caught using this as an excuse or justification for straying from your current plan to achieve the goals you’ve set (if you don’t have a plan – see above).

The past guides our choices – it doesn’t make our choices for us.  Fixating on the past is like traveling with baggage – the lighter you pack, the easier the journey.

Unlike the inner workings of our body, we do not want to achieve a state of equilibrium.  We want change.  We strive to become better, healthier, happier people (I hope).

Newton's First Law of Motion states “a body at rest will remain at rest unless an outside force acts on it, and a body in motion at a constant velocity will remain in motion in a straight line unless acted upon by an outside force” (argh... physics).

Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

In order for us to experience the change that we are looking for we have to do SOMETHING, and we have to do something DIFFERENT than we’ve done before.  We need to create an environment of change.  We need to put our bodies under some form of “stress” in order to create this change, much like a diamond is formed from a lump of coal under very high pressure (barf).


Suggestions:

Take ownership.   Reset your scales to today’s values.  Today is your starting point.  Take the lessons you’ve learned from your progress to date and past journeys and use these to plan for your future and stop looking over your shoulder (and as you proceed down your Road of Achievement, don’t forget to reset the scales again – you’re not gonna be the person you are today!)

_ Does Christmas leave you exhausted and needing a vacation?  Longing to take a break from people, food, family, stores, the car, the TV, pretty much life in general? 

Why is that?  It’s supposed to be a break isn’t it?

We’ve been exposed to Christmas “shit” since September - before Halloween, before Remembrance Day (that’s a whole other topic of conversation).   We’ve had this pressure and deadline mounting for 3 months by the time The Big Day rolls around.  

Buy, buy, buy.  Go, go, go.  Eat eat eat.  Drink drink drink.  Happy happy joy joy!  ‘Tis the season. 

Gifts for wives, husbands, kids, cousins, grandparents, friends, co-workers, bosses, teachers, clients, the postman  – pretty much anyone you can think of right?!  Then there are the functions and the food (see my previous blog on Restraint around the holidays).  The obligations put on us (and that we put on ourselves) are endless and heaven forbid we forget a card or a gift or say “No!” to attending a party or dodge the treat tray at work or skip a second serving lest we offend someone.

TIME OUT!

I get the whole “Spirit of the Season” thing, but somewhere along the way this spirit has became a little possessed!   Look back over the last few years – when was the last time you took some time and did something just for YOU over Christmas (and that doesn’t mean Christmas shopping)?  

GASP!!!  

I know!  It sounds so selfish doesn’t it?  Now don’t get me wrong, I’m not suggesting that people turn into Scrooge and become rude, but seriously folks... WTF??   What’s so wrong with saying, “Sorry Johnny, I’m not going to be able to make your party” or “Thank you, this is delicious but I’m not going to have another piece”.  Really?  Does this decision to abstain revoke our “friend status”? (I guess it might on Facebook)

We lose control of ourselves out of obligation to others.  Reluctant to be deemed “non-Christmassy” or hurt someone’s feelings, we lose sight of the goals that we’ve set out for ourselves and have strived hard to achieve all year long.  And when the dust settles, we’re left standing there, looking like we’ve just been beat with a Nerf bat!

Unfortunately life is not a team sport.  We have family and friends to support us through tough times but ultimately successes and failures fall on our shoulders.  We’re the ones who don’t give ourselves credit where credit is due and we’re the ones who beat ourselves up the worst.  And if family and friends are truly there to support us, they should understand if we Just Say No... shouldn’t they?

As that magical day rapidly approaches, and all pistons begin to fire, do yourself a favour and take a few minutes just for you.  You deserve it after all.  It is a holiday!  Remember your goals and the things that YOU want to achieve and have strived towards throughout the year. 

Suggestions:

1.       If the stress of the Season is accumulating, allow yourself a few periodic moments of non-Christmas activity.

2.       Just like you would for a doctor’s appointment, set aside some time for YOU.  Get a massage.  Go for a walk.  Grab a workout.  If you don’t want to leave the house, find a quiet corner, unplug the phone and read a book.  Listen to some music.  Take a nap.

3.       Be true to yourself and what your priorities are.  You may have to adjust some of your regular habits in order to make a compromise but forsaking them altogether will only set you back.

4.       Save some of your Christmas cheer for the rest of the year.  We become too caught up with the Hallmark Calendar of Celebrations and forget that we can hold on to the “Spirit of the Season” and be Merry the other 11 months of the year too! 

5.       Enjoy the holiday for what it truly means to you.... no one else can enjoy it for you!

_ As I was making some turkey soup this weekend, I looked on the back of the bag of split peas that I was adding and noticed a recipe for “Vegetable Split Pea Soup” (can you believe this is the way I start a blog that I'd like people to actually read).  Then I noticed the first ingredient - a ¼ pound of diced bacon - trivial I know.  I was a little confused though (obviously it doesn’t take much).  I must just be too literal. 
 
With all the recent hype surrounding “Pizzagate”, this got me thinking that there seems to be some serious misinterpretation by Big Food about the true representation and nutritional claims of our food.

"Healthy", "Doctor Recommended", "Made with Natural Goodness", "Kid Approved" have all become common place sales pitches.  In Canada, food companies are permitted to make health claims pointing out the relationship between a low-sodium, high-potassium diet and reduced risk of high blood pressure; a healthy diet with adequate calcium and vitamin D and reduced risk of osteoporosis; a diet rich in fruits and vegetables and the reduced risk of certain types of cancer, as well as others.  With 50% of shoppers responding that they are motivated to purchase new food products because a product “seems healthy”, we leave the door wide open for Big Food to mislead us in purchasing less-than-optimal choices.

So, I decided to jot down some of the literal translations for the “code” that food manufacturers use in their attempts to make us buy.


“FREE” DOES NOT MEAN NONE! 

Neither does “zero...”, “contains no...” or “without...”.  It means it has a “negligible amount” according to whatever Big Food has worked out with policy makers (Canadian Food Inspection Agency - Canada’s version of the FDA).

Non- or –free.  Must have less than the following per serving: fat (0.5 gram), sugar (0.5 gram), cholesterol (2mg), sodium (5mg) or calories (5 calories).


“Reduced” IS RELATIVE.

Reduced.  Generally, the product must have at least 25% less of the given component (calories, fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, sugar, or sodium) than is typically found in that type of food.  Synonymous with “less...”, “lower...”, “fewer...”.


“LIGHT’s” OUT

Apart from being used to describe things like the color or texture of a food, for example "light brown sugar" or "light and fluffy” (as long as the label explains this (insert uproarious laughter here), this term indicates that a product has been changed to have ½ of the fat or ⅓  fewer calories than the regular product; or that the sodium has been cut by 50% (as in “Lightly Salted”)


THE “LOW” DOWN

Low Fat. Fat is a tricky one to monitor as there are “good fats” and “bad fats” (far beyond the scope of this blog), but as a rule when you see the term “low fat” it means that there is 3 grams or less of fat per serving.

Low Calorie.  Means that a product contains 40% less calories than the regular version. 

Low Sodium. Means that a product’s original sodium content is so high that to lure in the unsuspecting consumer, food manufacturers will label it “Low Sodium”.  Foods labelled such will have 140 mg of sodium or less in each serving, or for a pre-packaged meal (who defines this?) there’s 140 mg sodium or less in 100 grams of food.  “Very low sodium” means there’s 35 mg or less in a serving.


“MULTI-" GROAN

Not to insult anyone’s intelligence, but "multi" simply means more than one.  A product bearing this label can be made with many types of nutritious grains, such as oats and bran. But it can also stay true to its claims and be loaded with sugar, salt, and trans-fats, like many "multi-grain" muffins and cookies you find in coffee shops. And the grains these products contain may not be present in their whole-grain form, which is the most nutritious way to consume grains.


“WHOLLY” MOLEY

"Made with Whole Grains" is another label we see frequently since recent dietary recommendations include consuming more whole grains. Big Food loves a good marketing opportunity so milks this claim by adding small doses of whole grains to their product (preceded by enriched flour and sugar midway down a list of ingredients but just after water).


“ORGANIC”

If you thought that organic meant pesticide-free, you might be surprised to find that's not necessarily true. Canadian regulations prohibit the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers but allow the use of some natural pesticides to curtail pest problems but the prevalence of pesticides in our environment keeps any crop from being declared totally free of synthetic chemicals.

When a product bears the “Organic” the intended message is that 95 percent or more of the ingredients have to be grown to “organic certification standards” (in accordance with the Organic Products Regulations, which came into effect in 2009).  Although controversial, there is mixed evidence that organic produce holds more nutritional benefit for us than conventional agricultural products.

The claim “Made with Organic Ingredients” means that at least 70% of the ingredients must follow organic regulations, the remaining 30% don't have to be organic at all.

NOTE: The terms “Natural” and “free-range” do not necessarily mean organic.


“ALL NATURAL” DOES NOT MEAN UNPROCESSED

There are currently no standards on the use of the word "natural" when labelling agricultural products.  When applied to packaged foods the requirement is that those ingredients have to be identical to how they would be found in nature without added colors, artificial flavours, or synthetic ingredients.  But a product that contains "all-natural" ingredients isn't necessarily healthy – salt is naturally occurring as is sugar. Just because the amount of physical change has been minimal doesn’t mean the product is nutritious. This label in no way refers to the way an animal was raised, and indeed, animals raised in industrial barns can carry the label “natural.” The natural label also does not mean that an animal was raised without hormones or antibiotics.


Vitamin Claims

A claim may not be made for a vitamin or mineral nutrient unless a serving of the food contains at least 5% of the "Recommended Daily Intake" (RDI) or "Daily Value" (DV).

5%!?  That means you’d need to eat 20 servings to fulfil the daily requirement.

High, Rich In, Excellent Source Of. All designate products with at least 25% of DV per serving (except vitamin C which must constitute 50% of DV).

Good Source, Contains, Provides. The product must have more than 15% of DV per serving (except vitamin C which must constitute 30% of DV).
 

Thoughts to ponder:

How do these light, free, reduced products keep their shelf life and “full” flavours?  

A reduction in fat is often countered by an increase in sodium and/ or sugar.  Likewise with products toting reduced sugar, having increased sodium and/ or fat content.  Foods boasting low-calorie or low-sugar status often substitute chemical options for natural ones – hardly making them healthier alternatives.


Is that really a serving size?

Serving sizes on today's nutrition labels are unrealistically small, leading us to believe they're eating less food than they actually are.  64 percent of Americans eat the whole can of canned soup in one sitting which claims to contain 2 servings (of 1 cup each).  This means they eat 1,740 mg of sodium rather than the 870 mg printed on the label. 


Suggestions:
(please remember that these are suggestions based on the scope of this blog and do not replace professional nutritional counselling)

1.    Nothing beats common sense – I’d say “follow your gut feeling” but in this case I think we innately know what “good food” is.  Screw the labels, buzz phrases and flashy ad campaigns, go back to the basics.  You know you’re probably on the right track if:
     -     a product does not have a label or ingredient list (as of 2007 all
          pre-packaged foods are required to contain a nutrition label);
     -     based on look and taste, you can guess most of the ingredients without
          looking at the label;
     -     it tastes like desert, it probably has the nutritional quality of desert;
     -     a product won’t keep indefinitely without refrigeration.

2.    Check out the noted serving size and do some quick math based on how much you eat (we tend to under-estimate this value).

3.    Read the ingredients (if your grandma didn’t eat it – leave it, if you don’t know what it is or can’t pronounce it – leave it).

Oh,  I almost forgot :

VEGETABLE(i.e. vegetable soup) means it has vegetables, but may also have meat (apparently)